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RUSK — A toddler who shot himself is now expected to recover. The Cherokee County youngster, Vaughn Taylor, spent several days in critical condition in a Dallas hospital after he shot himself in the chest in his home. Child Protective Services is involved with the case and says the child is now out of critical condition. Vaughn is expected to stay in the hospital for at least another couple of weeks. Robyn Taylor, Vaughn’s grandmother, says she is so grateful for the progress Vaughn is making, but she says there’s still a long road ahead. She says it’s unclear whether Vaughn will ever have use of his right arm or hand.

Deputies say the boy’s mother was in the living room during the time of the incident. They say the gun was on a dividing wall between the living room and kitchen. The little boy appears to have used a stool to get the gun case. That’s when he allegedly opened the case and shot himself once in the upper right chest, just below the collarbone. The gun is said to have been a small caliber semi-automatic with a round-chambered and fully-loaded magazine.

TYLER – With less funds expected from the state, school districts around Texas are looking at ways to trim their budgets. In Tyler, some school district employees will be receiving funds for their early resignation. The school superintendent tells the staff in a letter that a $2,500 incentive will be handed out to certain employees who turn in their resignation early. It is first come-first served, and only for the first 35 employees who turn in their resignation.

Another way to trim the budget is through an increase in class size. The district may increase the class size to 24 students per teacher in the elementary grades. More of the district plans may come out at tonight’s school board meeting. The meeting will include a discussion of the budget.

NACOGDOCHES – One person has been arrested in connection with a hit and run accident in Nacogdoches. Jafrina Seymone Jackson, 19, of Nacogdoches, turned herself in to authorities Wednesday afternoon. She has been charged with felony failure to stop and render aid in connection with the accident that seriously injured Jose Guadalupe Ramirez, 48, of Nacogdoches.

NACOGDOCHES – A Nacogdoches traffic stop has resulted in a drug bust. In custody is Thomas A. Porter, 35, of Pleasureville, Kentucky. A state trooper stopped him for speeding on U.S. Highway 59. Porter gave the officer permission to search the pickup and the horse trailer it was pulling. Inside the trailer the officer found a false compartment in the roof. Inside was 113 pounds of marijuana and nearly one thousand Hydrocodone pills. Now, the speeding ticket is the less of Porter’s troubles. He has been charged with first-degree felony possession of a controlled substance and possession of marijuana, a second-degree felony.

KILGORE — A Kilgore fire has turned up a meth lab and three persons have been arrested. It all began early Wednesday morning when a fire was reported at America’s Best Value Inn and Suites on U.S. Highway 259. Firemen found the cause of the fire was a meth lab. In the room they found 4 grams of meth along with manufacturing equipment and a large amount of counterfeiting equipment, counterfeit checks and money, and forged IDs. Arrested were Rebecca Crystal Good, 30, Tammy Joe Sparks, 40, and John Carroll Moore, 52, all of Kilgore. The women have been charged with possession of a controlled substance while Moore was charged with manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance.

CROCKETT — An East Texas man is dead after reportedly knocking on a door to start an argument. Crockett Police say Tony Robinson shot Aundra Hamilton. Investigators say when Hamilton went to Robinson’s door, Robinson began fighting with him outside. Hamilton died when Robinson pulled the trigger of a pistol. No word yet on what the two were arguing about. Robinson is facing murder charges.

AUSTIN – A Smith County group is a plaintiff in a taxpayer lawsuit to stop state expenditures for implementing the health care reform law, now that the federal statute has been declared unconstitutional. The Justice Foundation, a non-profit litigation firm in San Antonio that represents clients in public interest and limited government cases, is representing plaintiffs JoAnn Fleming and Grassroots America – We the People (GAWTP). The group, which Fleming serves as executive director, is termed the largest constitutional conservative citizen organization in East Texas.

According to the plaintiffs, Texas has judicially admitted that the law is unconstitutional. A federal judge in Florida has agreed and declared the provision requiring individuals to purchase insurance unconstitutional; therefore, Fleming claims the whole act is unconstitutional. She says Texas should stop spending anything on implementation. According to material provided by GAWTP, “Taxpayers can sue to stop future illegal spending in Texas, but they cannot get the money back once it is spent. That is why we filed suit now.” Fleming says the Texas Legislature can make the suit moot if it refuses to appropriate money to implement the law.

GLADEWATER — Gladewater ISD Superintendent J.P. Richardson is taking a 5%, self-proposed pay cut in light of state budget cuts that will cause the district to lose about $2 million annually during the next two years. “As we approach this difficult time as a district, I feel that if my family (school employees) will suffer and with the loss of jobs and possible pay freezes, that as CEO/superintendent of Gladewater ISD that I consciously could not accept a pay increase at this time,” Richardson said. In January, Gladewater trustees set Richardson’s 2011-12 salary at $131,250. The amount included a 5% pay raise.

LUFKIN — A driver in an accident that killed one Pollok man and injured another last Wednesday will face criminal charges after he’s recovered from his injuries, according to a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper. Currently listed in good condition at Hermann Memorial Hospital in Houston, Isaac Tucker, 19, has a warrant out for his arrest on one count of intoxication manslaughter and one count of intoxication assault, according to DPS trooper Joe Wood.

Tucker’s passenger Nicholas Zayne Anthony, 20, of Pollok, died at the scene, while passenger Ryan Walton, 19, of Pollok, was in critical condition in East Texas Medical Center Tyler as of Friday. An update on his condition Tuesday was not available, as he’s been listed as a “no information” patient, according to hospital officials.

The accident happened shortly after 12:30 Wednesday morning, one mile north of Farm Road 843 on U.S. Highway 69 north, where Tucker’s 1995 Lexus crossed the center line heading southbound and collided with a Kenworth truck towing a trailer driven by Michael Sutton, 40, of Louisiana, according to a DPS report. Tucker and Walton were taken to Memorial Medical Center-Lufkin and then airlifted to the separate, out-of-town hospitals. Anthony was laid to rest Sunday, according to his obituary.

COMO — A Hopkins County man has died when a tree he was burning fell on him. Dead at the scene was Domingo Perez, 67. Investigators say he was trapped under the burning tree and burned to death. The body has been sent to a Dallas lab for autopsy. The accident happened Monday night in a pasture on U.S. Highway 69 south of Como.

TYLER — A Tyler jury has assessed a 20 year prison term to a Smith County man for the sexual assault of a child. The sentence was handed down yesterday to Darren Ray Dickens, 45. He pled guilty last week to sexually assaulting some young teenage girls in his home. His sentencing trial was held in Tyler’s 241st State District Court.

FLINT — One person is in custody after leading officers on a nearly 30 minute chase in the southwest part of Smith County. It all started early Tuesday morning on Farm Road 2493. The car stopped near the Southern Trace subdivision near Flint after officers shot at and hit the car’s engine. Taken into custody was Brian Wesley Dowdle, 36, of Flint. He was booked into the Smith County Jail on charges of aggravated assault on a public servant, evading arrest, criminal mischief, and a parole violation. Investigators say that Dowdle nearly hit some officers who were on foot, but no injuries were reported.

LINDALE — They are still the same campuses that have been a part of Lindale ISD for decades, but they will receive new looks and new names next year. Monday night the Lindale ISD school board approved the name change of the current Lindale Primary School to College Street Elementary School with the start of the 2011-2012 school year. E.J. Moss Intermediate School will become E.J. Moss East and E.J. Moss West next year.

The name changes come in response to the district’s campus realignment after the passage of the 2009 bond election. The $42 million bond includes the construction of a new junior high campus and the addition of classrooms at the high school to eliminate overcrowding. The district approved the realignment of several campuses to help with future student population growth. The current primary campus serves students in first and second grade. Under the 2011-2012 realignment, the campus would serve grades 1-3. Velma Penny Elementary School currently educates students in grades 3-4. The realignment calls for Velma Penny to also serve students in grades 1-3 starting next year.

“A new name was necessary to prevent confusion concerning our two elementary campuses,” LISD Superintendent Stan Surratt said. “College Street Elementary School is a great name because the campus is on College Street, helping to identify the location. It is also symbolic in that we will prepare our young students for college careers if they chose to pursue degrees.”

E.J. Moss Intermediate School will also have a new identity. The campus neighbors the current Lindale Junior High School. The two campuses will be joined to form one school next year. Lindale Junior High School will move to its new building. When the two buildings are connected, the current intermediate campus will be known as E.J. Moss East, and the former junior high building will be E.J. Moss West. Fourth grade students and half of the fifth grade will work out of the E.J. Moss East building, and half of fifth grade and all of sixth grade will work out of E.J. Moss West. There will be functioning cafeterias in each building, two gymnasiums, and two offices. “I am most excited about our plan that prepares this school district for the next 10 to 12 years,” Surratt said. “This plan will provide every campus with room for growth.”

Lindale ISD has grown from 3,338 students in May 2007 to currently 3,778 students, a rate of growth of 13.2%. The campus realignment will give College Street Elementary and Velma Penny Elementary schools capacities of 600. The projected enrollment is 427 students at each campus next year. EJ Moss East and West will have a capacity of 1,200 with a projected enrollment of 838 students. The high school expansion will allow for a capacity of 1,460 students with a projected enrollment for next year of 1,128.

LONGVIEW — According to Longview City Secretary Shelly Ballenger, two candidates have filed to run in the May 14 General Election for City Council. In District 3, 52-year-old administrator/educator Carlton W. Mitchell has filed for the post currently held by Sidney Bell Willis. In District 4, 75-year-old incumbent Wayne Frost has filed for another term. Filing for a place on the ballot began on February 12 and continues through March 14. The last day for a regular write-in candidate to declare candidacy for the General Election is March 21.