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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.

MT. SELMAN — Authorities in Cherokee County are on the hunt for a robbery suspect. On Tuesday at approximately 5:15 a.m., the HotSpot convenience store on Highway 69 in Mt. Selman was robbed by an individual wielding a large knife. The suspect was wearing a black shirt, jeans, brown Carhartt style jacket and an open face ski mask with a brim. The suspect entered the north side door, threatened the clerk with the knife, then handed him a pillow case and demanded the money from the cash register and all the packages of K-2 from the display. While the clerk was gathering the K-2, the suspect entered the area behind the counter and removed several cartons of cigarettes.

Prior to leaving the store, the suspect also demanded the clerk’s cell phone and instructed him to pull the battery out; saying that he would leave the battery next to the trash can on the way out. The suspect fled on foot as a customer was pulling into the parking lot, and ran in a northeasterly direction toward Farm Road 177. The suspect is described only as a white male, possibly about 6 ft. tall, thin to medium build. Cherokee County Crime Stoppers is offering a reward for information leading to the arrest / conviction of the suspect.

LONGVIEW — A Longview teen could face charges for failing to stop after a fatal hit-and-run crash on Loop 281 in Longview, in front of East Texas Professional Credit Union. Longview police spokeswoman Kristie Brian said Harold Grady, 57, was struck by Ashley Lambert, 19, about 7:45 Monday evening when he stepped into the roadway. Brian said Lambert went to the police station Monday night, because when she got home she realized that she had hit something. The case is being turned over to the Gregg County District Attorney’s Office to determine whether charges will be filed against Lambert. No charges have been filed at this time. Grady, of Farmersville, was pronounced dead at Longview Regional Hospital at about 8:30 p.m. Monday by Justice of the Peace B.H. Jameson.

TYLER — With billions in state budget cuts looming in Texas, local mental health programs in the Tyler area stand to lose approximately $4 million in funding. That’s according to the local affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). A news release from the affiliate says Texas ranks 50th in the nation in per capita spending on mental health programs, meaning the programs are already underfunded according to local NAMI members. The news release says the implications of those cuts are that fewer people will receive treatment and more mentally ill would end up in jail or the emergency room, thus shifting the costs to the local community.

The Andrews Center Behavioral Healthcare System contracts with the State of Texas to serve the area’s community members who are indigent and have a serious mental illness. The news release says the Andrews Center is serving about 1500-1600 adult patients in community mental health care per month, but is only getting paid to serve 1094. With the proposed budget cuts, according to NAMI, the state would only pay for 875 adults to receive mental health treatment per month.

The Tyler NAMI affiliate met with representatives from the Andrews Center Behavioral Healthcare System, Smith County Sheriff’s Department, City of Tyler, People Attempting to Help (P.A.T.H.), private mental health providers, consumers with mental illness, and their family members to discuss the implications. Affiliate representatives say all were in agreement that shifting the tax burden locally would be the most expensive and least effective option. NAMI Tyler is asking residents to contact their state legislators to voice their concerns.

TYLER — A woman is cut out of her car Tuesday after a wreck in Tyler at the intersection of Shiloh Road and Kent Drive. Police say a man driving a truck, ran into the woman’s car, sending her off-road. Emergency workers used the jaws of life to cut her out. Her car was destroyed but she suffered only minor injuries and is expected to be ok.

HENDERSON — A Henderson man is in jail for allegedly sending sexually explicit e-mails to a minor. Carl Dewayne Anthony, 32, was arraigned on 3rd degree charges of online solicitation of a minor. Anthony reportedly sent a picture of male genitalia to the minor. His bond is set at $10,000.

TATUM — A fatal wreck that left a Tatum student dead this weekend is being blamed on texting while driving. Tatum High School Principal Debbie Maxey says Lillian Propes was texting during the weekend crash in Rusk County. Lillian’s mother issued a plea to her daughter’s classmates asking them not to text while driving. The wreck happened on Texas 43 between Tatum and Henderson. Officials say the vehicle left the road, rolled and hit a tree.

LONGVIEW — An early Wednesday morning fire leaves four families homeless. It happened at an apartment complex at 415 Tammy Lynn Drive in Longview around 6:40. Authorities say when they arrived; an upstairs apartment was engulfed in flames. No one was at home at the time, but three other apartments had to be evacuated. Longview Fire Chief J.P. Steelman says because some alert residents were home, the flames did not spread any more than they did. Steelman says if those residents hadn’t responded, “it would have allowed the fire to have a lot bigger head start, and naturally go unnoticed for a longer period of time.” No injuries were reported. Investigators are still looking into the cause of the fire.

GREGG COUNTY — A half-dozen lawsuits arising from the January 2009 deaths of two Kilgore firefighters were consolidated in Gregg County civil court Tuesday. Attorneys for the distributor of the fire engine ladder from which Cory Galloway and Kyle Perkins fell to their deaths filed the motion Thursday to consolidate the six lawsuits against it and the ladder manufacturer, both Florida-based companies.

This past week, 124th District Judge Alfonso Charles granted the motion in parts. Charles consolidated Galloway’s suit with suits from three injured firefighters for all purposes including trial. Perkins’ and Galloway’s suits will be combined for evidence discovery and pre-trial motions but not for trial, and the same goes for the city of Kilgore’s lawsuit against the manufacturer and distributor. All six cases have been transferred to the 124th District Court for judicial economy, Charles wrote in his ruling Tuesday.

Since June 17, widows for Galloway and Perkins, along with injured firefighters Robert King, James Sanders and Gary Tyson, each sued E-One Inc. and Hall-Mark Fire Apparatus of Texas over the Jan. 25, 2009 incident. Galloway’s widow, Regina Galloway, is also suing the city of Kilgore, while the city is suing E-One and Hall-Mark through its participation in the Texas Municipal League Intergovernmental Risk Pool, records showed.

E-One manufactured the 95-foot mid-mount aerial platform truck, known as Kilgore Fire Department’s Ladder-1, according to the suit filed by Galloway’s widow. Hall-Mark sold Ladder-1 to the city, records show. According to Hall-Mark’s motion, Galloway and Perkins were ejected from the bucket of Ladder-1, while operator Sanders was trying to remove and lower the bucket on the parapet wall of the building. King was inside the bucket with Galloway and Perkins. Tyson sustained injuries, he said, while assisting the two deceased firefighters immediately following their fall.

TYLER — A doctoral nursing student at The University of Texas at Tyler, Joan Edwards of Kingwood, has been named a Fulbright Scholar. The Fulbright Award, sponsored by the U.S. State Department, is a career-enhancing scholarship intended to foster international research and collaboration. Established in 1946 through the efforts of U.S. Senator J. William Fulbright, the program is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and people of other countries through educational exchanges. It is considered one of the most prestigious award programs worldwide. “The doctoral program at UT Tyler and the knowledge I am acquiring has made a tremendous impact on what I’ll be able to accomplish with the Fulbright Award,” said Edwards.

With the award, Edwards will spend the 2011 – 12 academic year in Indonesia, where she will work with faculty at five colleges of nursing on the island of Java. The project’s objective is to raise baccalaureate nursing education standards to correspond with the 2009 World Health Organization Global Standards for Initial Education of Professional Nurses and Midwives. The project stems from 2010 meetings Edwards and her academic adviser, Dr. Beth Mastel-Smith, had with Indonesian faculty and a representative from the Indonesian Ministry of Health, supported in part by UT Tyler.

“Faculty in Indonesia expressed the desire to improve their curriculum and sought guidance in how to achieve higher standards,” said Mastel-Smith, who was instrumental in assisting Edwards achieve this honor.

Edwards will graduate in 2012 with a Ph.D. in nursing. She is a faculty member at Texas Woman’s University – Houston, where she serves as director of the Center for Global Nursing Scholarship for all three TWU campuses.

AUSTIN (AP) — Senator Bob Deuell, whose district covers part of Smith County, and who’s a physician in his real life, was pressed into action when a spectator passed out in the Senate public gallery during a resolution honoring Americans who fought and died in Vietnam. Turns out the patient was Jay Kimbrough, a Vietnam veteran and former top aide to Governor Rick Perry. Kimbrough stayed down for several minutes and although security rushed a defibrillator over to Kimbrough it case it was needed, he was eventually able to walk out on his own.

Kimbrough, a former Marine, who was wounded in combat and has a tough-guy reputation, needed some prodding to go to the emergency room to get checked out. “I told him, you want me to call the boss?” said Sen. Leticia Van de Putte. “He said, ‘You’re going to call Governor Perry?’ I said, ‘No, I’m going to call your wife!'”

TYLER — Three East Texans are sentenced in cases related to pseudoephedrine and methamphetamine. All three received their sentences Tuesday in Tyler federal court from U.S. District Judge Leonard E. Davis. Jack London Ramsey, 49, of Overton pleaded guilty on Nov. 2, 2010, to possession of pseudoephedrine and was sentenced to 58 months in prison. According to information presented in court, from December 2, 2008 to January 21, 2010, Ramsey purchased cold pills containing pseudoephedrine on 56 separate occasions which amounted to a total of 147 grams of pseudoephedrine, which he planned to use to manufacture methamphetamine. A federal grand jury returned an indictment against Ramsey on May 6, 2010. All of Ramsey’s co-defendants have been convicted and are awaiting sentencing.

Joy Lavon Smith, 49, of Kilgore pleaded guilty last November 2 to being involved in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of pseudoephedrine. She was sentenced to 121 months behind bars. According to officials, from January 13, 2009, to December 8, 2009, Smith purchased cold pills containing pseudoephedrine on 77 separate occasions which amounted to a total of 208 grams of pseudoephedrine, which she planned to use to manufacture methamphetamine. Smith was also named in an indictment returned last May 6. All of Smith’s co-defendants have been convicted and are awaiting sentencing.

Mary Kelly Maxwell, 52, of Gary, pleaded guilty on October 1, 2010, to possession of pseudoephedrine with intent to manufacture methamphetamine and was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison. According to prosecutors, Maxwell traveled to multiple pharmacies in the Eastern District of Texas to purchase cold pills containing pseudoephedrine, all in furtherance of her methamphetamine manufacturing activities. Maxwell was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 5, 2010.

LINDALE — Lindale school authorities say an elementary student has been disciplined after being caught with a knife. According to a statement from the school district, the principal of Velma Penny Elementary School was alerted by a student on Monday that a classmate was in possession of a knife. The statement says campus officials approached the student and the student revealed the weapon. According to school district officials, the weapon was reported after the student voiced a threat against a staff member to the other student. School officials say that the staff member was never directly threatened with the weapon, and that at no time were any students threatened or harmed.

The statement continues, “This is a serious violation of the Lindale ISD Code of Conduct. Appropriate disciplinary action has been taken by the district. Due to the privacy of the student and staff member, we are unable to provide further details of this incident. Providing a safe learning environment for all Lindale ISD students and staff members is our highest priority. We would like to commend the student who alerted the campus principal of the threat. Lindale ISD takes any incident of this nature very seriously and we will continue to reinforce the proper procedures to all students and staff members for their protection.”

LONGVIEW – A Longview man is facing a variety of charges after he is accused of leading law officers on a chase and firing at them. Arrested Sunday night was James Carl Goodwin, 45.

The chase started when state troopers tried to stop him for speeding and not wearing a seat belt. During the chase Goodwin is said to have tried to run over the trooper on a couple of occasions and nearly ran over pedestrians in his path. When officers shot out three of Goodwin’s tires, he tried to flee on foot. After a shot chase he was taken into custody.

He has been charged with aggravated assault against a public servant, evading arrest with a motor vehicle, evading arrest on foot, resisting arrest, and driving while intoxicated. He remains in the Gregg County Jail under bonds totaling $1.13 million.

TYLER – In an appearance in Tyler federal court, a Dallas man was sentenced to prison for drug violations. Alejandro Cabrera pleaded guilty on January 7, 2010 to being involved in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. He was sentenced yesterday to 189 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Leonard E. Davis.

According to information presented in court, on July 23, 2009, Cabrera was arrested in Smith County with around one pound of methamphetamine and a pistol in his possession. An investigation revealed that since 2007, Cabrera was involved in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Dallas County, which was then transported through East Texas for redistribution.

TYLER — A Mexican national illegally living in Whitehouse has been sentenced in Tyler Federal Court to prison for drug violations. Jose Zavala pleaded guilty on March 3, 2010 to being involved in a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribution of methamphetamine and. He was sentenced yesterday to 72 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Leonard E. Davis. Zavala was also ordered to submit to the forfeiture of $5,000 and will be deported upon completion of his federal prison sentence.

According to information presented in court, from an unknown date until January 20, 2010, Zavala conspired with others to distribute more than 50 grams of actual methamphetamine in the Smith County area. Zavala also admitted to being in possession of a firearm in relation to the drug trafficking violations. Zavala was indicted by a federal grand jury in March of last year.

LONGVIEW – A 19-year-old Kilgore man was killed when his vehicle crashed into a business Sunday morning. According to Department of Public Safety officials, Mason Rawls was traveling southbound on FM 2011, five miles south of Longview when his 2004 Dodge pickup left the roadway and ran into Amanda’s Jewelry store in the 10,000 block of FM 2011. The teen wasn’t found until following morning, but officials estimated his time of death around 2:40 a.m. Elderville-Lakeport Volunteer Fire Department called Longview Fire Department’s special operations team to assist in stabilizing and securing the store, which was “severely damaged,” Fire Chief J.P. Steelman said. DPS officials said Rawls, a Kilgore College student, was not wearing a seatbelt when the crash occurred.