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LONGVIEW – The Longview Police Department asked City Council to approve application for five state grants, and the council has agreed. According to our news partner KETK, officials say this will help officers better serve people in the city. Each grant is up to $100,000, and two of the grants will help replace old equipment that is used on daily patrols. “The cameras, for example, are well utilized for crime scenes, and they would like some new updated cameras that are more reliable,” said Laura Hill, director of grants and human services. The department will also use the money for new body armor to protect officers in the field. “As you can imagine, it’s quite expensive, so any little bit we can get from grants helps save the taxpayer dollars and we don’t have to budget to replace that same safety equipment,” said Hill. Continue reading Longview Police Department asks for up to $500,000 in state grants

MARSHALL – A Marshall man who worked as a tax preparer has pleaded guilty in Marshall federal court to making false and fraudulent statements. According to a news release, Boyd Lynn Butcher, 50, agreed to pay over $300,000 in restitution and to be sentenced to three years in prison. According to court documents, beginning before 2015 and continuing through at least 2017, Butcher operated Boyd’s Tax Service. During that time, he prepared more than 450 federal tax returns for third parties in exchange for a fee — usually $300 per return — even though he was not authorized by the IRS to prepare tax returns for others. When preparing many of those returns, he created false or fraudulent information to generate unwarranted tax refunds. In total, officials say he caused a tax harm to the IRS of more than $317,252.00. Continue reading Marshall man guilty of false and fraudulent statements

LONGVIEW – A Tyler native pleaded guilty to four separate charges on Thursday related to a crash that killed two young boys on State Highway 149 near Lakeport last year. According to our news partner KETK, Hayden Malone, 22, pleaded guilty to two charges of intoxication manslaughter and two separate charges of intoxication assault. Malone has remained in jail since he was arrested Jan. 13, 2022 — the day of the crash that reportedly killed a two-year-old and five-month-old. The boys had been taken to separate hospitals where they later died from their injuries. Continue reading Guilty plea in two-fatality highway wreck

TYLER – Four men from Smith County were arrested this week for allegedly attempting to solicit sex from what they thought were underage girls, but were actually undercover agents with the attorney general’s office. According to our news partner KETK, their affidavits say the men messaged what they thought was a 17-year-old girl named “Sarah” on a website “for offenders soliciting minors for commercial sexual acts in exchange for payment in Tyler.” The account operating under the name “Sarah” was in reality a sergeant with the Office of the Attorney General who was conducting an online investigation. The suspects are Jose Hernandez, 37, of Tyler; Matthew Organ, 44, of Whitehouse; James Amos, 54 of Flint; and Delano Phelps, 89, of Tyler. Each was arrested for second-degree felony solicitation of prostitution under 18 years old and was freed after posting a $50,000 bond.

LONGVIEW – Longview police are asking for public assistance in locating a missing Longview man. According to our news partner KETK, LaShun David Farrow, 34, was reported missing by his family on Jan. 23. He is approximately 5’8″ and weighs around 165 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes, and tattoos on both arms. If you have any information on Farrow’s whereabouts, contact THE Longview Police Department at 903-237-1199.

TYLER – The University of Texas at Tyler has been awarded more than $1.3 million from the U.S. Department of Education’s Mental Health Service Professionals Demonstration program to help support the mental health needs of students in East Texas district schools. According to a news release, the program was recently authorized by U.S. Senator John Cornyn’s (R-TX) Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which was signed into law in June 2022. Officials say it addresses specific concerns that have led to violence in schools, including the need for additional mental health services. “We are extremely grateful to Sen. Cornyn and the Department of Education for this funding, which helps UT Tyler support mental health care for the young people of East Texas,” said UT Tyler President Dr. Kirk A. Calhoun, as quoted in the release. Continue reading UT Tyler gets over $1.3 million in mental health funds for students

HENDERSON — A Rusk County grand jury indicts a logging contractor in a case of timber fraud. Terry Beall of Henderson faces a felony charge of timber purchase as trustee with intent to defraud. He’s accused of stealing between $500 and $20,000 in proceeds from a timber sale. Investigators say in 2021, Beall had an agreement with a landowner to harvest timber from their property. However, some paperwork discrepancies got the landowner to contact the A&M Forest Service law enforcement. It showed that person was not being paid for all of the timber Beall harvested. Officials say to take this as a reminder to monitor timber harvesting, visit property often, and hold contractors to the agreed-upon terms.

TYLER – In 2022, factors such as driving under the influence, failure to drive in a single lane, and unsafe speed contributed to 167 fatal crashes and 192 total deaths in the TxDOT Tyler District. The district Thursday released preliminary numbers revealing the top five contributing factors of fatal crashes in 2022. The district includes Anderson, Cherokee, Gregg, Henderson, Rusk, Smith, Van Zandt, and Wood Counties. Failure to control speed and pedestrian failing to yield right-of-way to a vehicle rounded out the top five. Continue reading TxDOT Tyler District releases 2022 fatal crash statistics

TYLER – 73-year-old Charles Ronald Lowrance of Flint was sentenced Thursday to sixty years in prison after being convicted of aggravated assault against a family member. According to information from Tyler’s 114th District Court, Lowrance shot his wife and then himself last February in what law enforcement referred to as an attempted murder-suicide. At trial, Mrs. Lowrance testified that as she lay gasping for air, she fought for life because of her determination that she still had things she wanted to tell her kids. Ronald Lowrance will now have to serve at least thirty years before he is eligible for parole.

TYLER — Committee members, past chairs, sponsors, and hospital partners joined the 2023 Tyler Cattle Barons’ Gala Chairs, Sara and Ryan Nash, for the announcement of the Gala’s 2023 headline entertainer Wednesday at The Potpourri House during the American Cancer Society Leadership Breakfast. Country star Jack Ingram will headline the 35th Annual Gala, Hope on the Horizon, June 10 at the Texas Rose Horse Park, home of the event for the past five years. 2022 Gala Chair Whitney Cain told attendees, “The work of the American Cancer Society is incredible. So many milestones and advancements in prevention and treatment have been made, but we are not done. To continue the work to literally put an end to cancer, we know that we are Stronger Together here in Tyler.” Continue reading Jack Ingram to headline 2023 Cattle Barons’ Gala

TYLER — An East Texas museum says it will not receive a major donation from the ex-wife of Muhammad Ali, as previously announced. The Texas African-American museum in Tyler has announced that the one-million dollar gift from Dr. Khalilah Camacho-Ali will be unfulfilled. The donation was announced at a fundraising gala in February of last year. But the Empowerment Community Development Corporation announced Wednesday on behalf of the museum that Camacho-Ali will not provide the contribution after all, saying only that she doesn’t have the funds.

TYLER – U.S. News and World Report named The University of Texas at Tyler’s Master of Science in Nursing among the nation’s top 25 best online master’s in nursing programs. This year’s ranking of 24 improved five spots from the previous year. Of the other universities listed, UT Tyler ranked second best in Texas, following a fellow UT System school, The University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston. “We’re honored that our nursing program has been recognized,” said Dr. Julie V. Philley, MD, UT Tyler executive vice president for health affairs, as quoted in a news release. “This accomplishment wouldn’t have been possible without the numerous School of Nursing faculty and staff who tirelessly work to ensure we have an exceptional program.” The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a 40 percent growth rate in the number of advance practice registered nursing positions from 2021-2023, according to the release.

FRANKSTON – Frankston ISD announced on Tuesday the board had approved a three-year pilot period for a four-day instructional week beginning next school year. According to our news partner KETK, the district says the new school calendar will give every Monday off to students unless they are invited to an “Intervention Day” which will be scheduled alongside staff development days each month. The district said one of the expected benefits from the adjusted schedule is staff retention and an increase in teachers and staff satisfaction while encouraging them to stay longer. “Retaining quality teachers and staff directly benefits student instruction and achievement,” the district said in a prepared statement. Continue reading Frankston ISD board approves pilot period for four-day school week

HENDERSON – A lawsuit was filed against Henderson ISD on Tuesday that alleges the district ignored the bullying of a middle school student and retaliated against her mother after she made complaints. According to the lawsuit, the student, identified as a “person with a disability,” was a student at Henderson Middle School until her mother and stepfather removed her from the school in April 2022, “as the school district could not keep their daughter safe.” According to our news partner KETK, the family said in the lawsuit they made the district aware that the student in question had a history of emotional distress, depression, an eating disorder, and panic attacks, and had been hospitalized in the past for “suicidal ideation.” Continue reading Lawsuit alleges Henderson ISD ignored bullying of student, retaliated against mother

TYLER/LONGVIEW — Tyler and Longview will take part this Thursday in a coordinated effort to measure homelessness across Texas, referred to nationally as the Point-in-Time (PIT) Homeless Count. The Longview effort is facilitated by the City of Longview’s Volunteer in Service to America coordinator, Sabrina Fields; the North East Texas Homeless Consortium (NET); the Texas Homeless Network; and volunteers from the community. The East Texas Human Needs Network will head up the Tyler project. Officials say these counts will provide a one-day snapshot of homelessness in the two communities, with an eye on addressing concerns related to the local homeless populations. Click here and here to read more.