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TYLER — Tyler Police search for three robbery suspects. Authorities say around 1:30 Friday morning at 4400 Paluxy, the victim says a black female knocked on his apartment door and when he opened the door, a black man armed with a baseball bat and another with a gun entered his home. Officials say the four occupants of the apartment were ordered to the ground while the suspects took the victim’s cell phones, wallets, and a set of keys. The three suspects fled the scene on foot in an unknown direction.

TYLER — Police have found a Tyler man accused of trying to run over two patrol officers on their bicycles. Authorities say a tip led police to the suspect, Charles Jose Baker, 32, in the 300 block of Hill around 8:30 Friday morning. Patrol officers found Baker sleeping in the back seat of his car, and he was taken into custody without incident. He was taken to Tyler Police Department for further questioning. Baker is under arrest for the probation warrant with no bond, aggravated assault on a peace officer warrant with a bond amount of $500,000, and a warrant for evading in a vehicle with a bond of $250,000.

The incident occurred shortly after 8:45 last night in the 1200 block of West Bow Street. Baker was reportedly sitting in his vehicle playing loud music when officers approached him. Officers observed alcohol in the vehicle and detected that Baker had been drinking. When officers asked Baker to turn the vehicle off, he put it in reverse running over a police bike and then ran into a parked vehicle. Baker then drove forward heading for a second officer on his bike causing him to jump from it to keep from being struck. The officer, Sgt. Eddie Sheffield, fired one shot at the suspect as he drove towards him, running over his patrol bike. Sgt. Sheffield has been employed by the department for 16 years and has been supervisor over the Bike Team for the past two years.

TYLER – A long-time member of the Smith County Sheriff’s Department has formally announced he is running for sheriff next year. Smith County Chief Deputy Bobby Garmon announced Thursday night he would be running for sheriff on the Republican ticket.

Garmon says his experience gives him the advantage in the race. According to Garmon, he’s the best man for the job because he has done all of them. He started with the sheriff’s department as a patrolman 31 years ago.

Sheriff J.B. Smith, who will be retiring, says he is supporting Garmon. “I’m supporting Bobby ’cause anyone involved in public office needs to be involved in the community. There’s not an individual in this community more involved with the Red Cross, Azleway Boys Ranch, Tyler Jaycees, and his list goes on and on. He’s just a great guy.”

Others who have said they would be running for the post are Retired ATF Senior Special Agent Larry Smith and Smith County Constable Precinct Three Captain Donn Rust.

SULPHUR SPRINGS – The trial of a Sulphur Springs doctor will be moved out of Hopkins County. State District Judge Robert Newsom Thursday approved a change of venue for Dr. Don O’Neal. It will be decided at a later date where the trial will be held. O’Neal was indicted on 61 counts of financial crimes as well as delivery of a controlled substance and prescription fraud.

TYLER (Staff/AP) – A funeral service is set for the Smith County deputy hit and killed by a cow last week. Officials say the funeral for Robert Britton will be held tomorrow at Rose Heights Church on Old Omen Road in Tyler. The service will begin at 2:00pm. Britton died Monday of head injuries suffered when he was attacked by an injured cow while he directed traffic around the half-ton animal early on March 24 near Bullard.

Sheriff J.B. Smith said the 54-year-old deputy had responded to a report of a stray cow struck by a vehicle and was directing traffic on Farm Road 344 when the cow charged him. Smith said Britton was knocked into the air and landed head-first on the pavement before the animal continued the attack until other deputies rescued Britton. Smith says the cow was euthanized. Britton had served as a deputy for the Smith County Sheriff’s Department since 1992.

LONGVIEW — A Wednesday afternoon blaze at a house in the 1700 block of Oden Street in Longview has been ruled arson. Officials ruled the fire “suspicious” after witnesses saw people leaving the scene as the fire ignited. Longview firefighters were dispatched to the blaze at 1:15pm for a reported structure fire that destroyed the home. The house was unoccupied when the fire started. According to Gregg County online records, the residence is owned by Derrick King, 33, who is serving a nine-month sentence in the Gregg County Jail for possession of a controlled substance.

Nearby neighbors said they didn’t know anything about the fire, but called 911 after they heard loud popping and saw flames shooting out of the windows. Longview Fire Chief J.P. Steelman said witnesses at the scene told investigators they saw “unknown subjects” leaving the scene around the time the fire started. Steelman said investigators ruled out all natural causes that could have started the blaze, including an electrical incident and natural gas. Twenty one firefighters, including three fire engines, two fire trucks and one ambulance were called to the scene.

Investigators said the residence suffered heavy smoke damage and said there was significant damage to the bedroom where the fire started. Steelman said there was an estimated $15,000 worth of damage, which is more than the home is worth, according to 2010 tax records. Investigators are conducting interviews to determine how the fire started. The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information about the fire is asked to contact the Longview Fire Department at 903-237-1119 or submit an anonymous tip to Gregg County Crime Stoppers at 903-237- STOP.

TYLER — Brookshire’s and Tyson Foods donate 29,000 pounds of protein to the East Texas Food Bank in conjunction with the Tyson “KNOW Hunger” campaign and to draw attention to a recent hunger survey commissioned by the company and the Food and Research Action Center. The East Texas Food Bank distributes more than 19 million pounds of food annually throughout its 26 county service area. Approximately 183,000 residents, including nearly 80,500 children and 11,000 seniors, receive emergency food assistance each year from the Food Bank and its more than 200 member agencies. All told, Tyson will donate more than 1 million pounds during March to 37 food banks in 22 states and Washington D.C. The company has donated more than 78 million pounds of protein during the last 10 years.

WHITEHOUSE — Some drivers are getting tired of having traffic tickets issued for running a stop sign at Whitehouse railroad tracks that no one uses anymore. Union Pacific says it could put the tracks back to work at any time. But one driver pointed out that railroad ties are caving in at places, and weeds have overgrown. Others say regardless of citizen concerns, the law is the law, and all stop signs must be obeyed. The crossing is at Acker Tap Road.

LONGVIEW — Two Longview men are jailed for reportedly stealing copper from an abandoned refinery. Authorities say David Branch and Gary Wilson were arrested around 9:00 Tuesday night in the 600 block of Premier Road after being found with three rolls of copper wiring. Officers say Branch told them that he owned the copper wiring. But, officers noticed that the wires had been freshly cut with no visible dirt or corrosion.

NACOGDOCHES — A former Nacogdoches County jailer is heading back to prison. Brian Sowell was on probation for child pornography after he was busted in 2007. Authorities say he violated his probation by opening a facebook account and signing up on match.com. He’s now sentenced to 7 years in prison.

TYLER — Tyler Police are investigating a suspected robbery. It happened this morning around 4:45 at the Food Fast gas station, 805 W. Houston St. when a panic alarm was activated. While officers were en route, dispatch was informed by the caller that the panic alarm was actually a robbery of the business. Moments later officers arrived on scene and found the caller/victim unharmed. The area was searched by officers, but were unable to locate any suspects. The victim stated the suspects were two younger black males who took several cartons of cigarettes and an undisclosed amount of cash before fleeing the scene on foot.

One suspect was wearing a dark color jacket and black wind pants with white on both sides and a red stripe down the back and light blue shoes. The second suspect was wearing a black jacket with a fur lined collar and rolled up blue jeans and a blue bandanna around his face.

TYLER — The County Health Rankings Report, by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin, shows Smith County leading in the East Texas area. In the study, which is based on data from 2009, Smith County ranked 66 out of 223 counties for Health Factors and a rank of 51 out of 223 in health outcomes, which is a significant improvement over the last report.

George Roberts with the Northeast Texas Public Health District says one of the main reasons is because the county has greater access to primary physicians and health care services than others in the region. And he feels the county will even do better in the next report.

He says the Smith County community has made tremendous strides, through a variety of efforts, in improving the health of the community since these statistics were last reported. Among the reasons for the improvement:
*Establishment of the Tyler Fit City Challenge to combat obesity
*City of Tyler passed a strong smoking ordinance
*NET Health started a Health Living Initiative
*Pay Attention East Texas Coalition campaigns against reckless driving
*City of Tyler Expansion of Walking Trails

AUSTIN — An East Texas man is one of three persons appointed by Governor Rick Perry to the Texas Optometry Board for terms to expire January 31, 2017. The board oversees licensing and regulation of optometrists in Texas.

Being reappointed to the board is Larry Fields of Carthage. He is an attorney and real estate broker in private practice, and a municipal court judge for the City of Tatum. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Panola County Bar Association, Texas Municipal Court Association, Texas Association of Realtors, and Longview Area Board of Realtors. He is also a member of the Carthage Lions Club and Panola County Cattlemen’s Association, and a past board member of the Panola County Chamber of Commerce. Fields received a bachelor’s degree from Stephen F. Austin State University and a law degree from South Texas College of Law.

Also being appointed to the panel is Mario Gutierrez of San Antonio and John Coble of Rockwall. All of the appointments are subject to Senate confirmation.

WHITEHOUSE — A dispute over a rescue ranch in Whitehouse is finally put to rest. Wild Rose Rescue Ranch filed suit against the city, claiming its ordinance limiting the number of pets in each household to four is unconstitutional. In the new settlement, the ranch agreed to reduce the number of dogs, and the city is prohibited from seizing any animals already present from the property. Whitehouse city officials are allowed to inspect the ranch every 30 days to verify the number of dogs present.

TYLER — Police have now shut down a Tyler massage parlor they say offered sexual favors to its customers and operated without a license. The businesses around Healthy Massage say they hope it’s closed for good. Officers earlier arrested Qin Zhang, 48, of Plano, the woman who ran the parlor on the 1400 block of West Southwest Loop 323. Investigators began looking at the business, which opened last November, when people started calling in tips. Officers say they got enough evidence to make the arrest when they sent an undercover officer to the parlor; they say Zhang actually offered the cop sex. One woman, who wants to remain anonymous, says she never saw women going into the parlor. Zhang is now out on bond.