KTBB News, Weather, Talk

MARSHALL – The smoke testing of Marshall’s sewer lines starts Monday. It’s part of the city’s annual program to reduce groundwater infiltration into sewer lines. The process involves pumping non-toxic smoke into sewer main lines. This allows smoke to seep up through the soil and indicate any cracks or line deterioration. These cracks are a source for groundwater to infiltrate sewer lines and overload the collection and treatment system. The smoke testing program also allows the city to locate problems in private sewer lines that need to be repaired. The crews will be testing in the following areas: North Franklin Street, Wausau Street, Summit Street, Louisiana Street, West Street, May Street, Ida Street, Henderson Street, Dallas Street, Hargrove Street and Sledge Street. Continue reading A Smoke Test Starts in Marshall Monday

TYLER – The University of Texas at Tyler has announced it has been accepted into the NCAA Division II process. The announcement was made Friday afternoon by school president Dr. Michael Tidwell. UT Tyler is expected to join the Lone Star Conference. During a three-year transitional period, UT Tyler teams are not eligible to compete for NCAA championships. The Patriots applied for NCAA Division II status in February, after a nearly year-long vetting process with guidance from an expert consultant and internal research led by the school’s athletic director, Dr. Howard Patterson. UT Tyler currently sponsors intercollegiate teams in 17 sports. The leap into Division II could allow for the university to create a football program in the future.

KILGORE – Two Muslim men, who formerly worked for Halliburton in Kilgore, are claiming they were harassed by co-workers for their religion and because they hail from Syria and India. The Longview News Journal reports the men have filed a federal lawsuit because they were “subjected to taunts and name calling” by co-workers and supervisors. The suit was filed July 3rd in the Northern District of Texas by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. According to the lawsuit, one of the men reported his complaint to Halliburton’s human resources office in September 2015. The suit said he was “abruptly terminated in retaliation for his complaints.” The paper says a spokesman for Halliburton declined to comment on Friday.

KILGORE – The number of Kilgore College Rangerettes has grown. After a week-long tryout, 36 freshmen on Friday became the newest members of the Rangerettes dance and drill team. They come as far away as San Juan, Texas, east of McAllen and Woodward, Oklahoma, which is northwest of Oklahoma City. The announcement, made in a closed ceremony in Dodson Auditorium on the Kilgore campus, culminates a weeklong process for 96 young ladies. The new Rangerettes will join 36 sophomores to make a team of 72.

JACKSONVILLE – Jacksonville police held a news conference Friday over an officer-involved shooting and killing of a dog. The officer had gone to a residence on Heath Lane on July 4th concerning a call about illegal fireworks. No fireworks were found. A video shows, as the officer was leaving the property, she was charged by a 100 pound German shepherd. It was running toward her with its teeth showing and growling. The dog tried to bite the officer and she pulled her gun and shot it. Jacksonville Police Chief Andrew Hawkes said, officers do not have to wait until they are injured to protect themselves from injury threat or death.” The incident remains under investigation.

GREGG COUNTY — Eastbound I-20 is now clear near Exit 583 in the Longview area. Drivers were experiencing delays of approximately 20 minutes while authorities cleared a crash. The accident was reported around midday.

SMITH COUNTY — Smith County Road 173, northwest of Bullard, is closed due to a downed tree. Officials say county Road and Bridge crews are working to clear the portion of CR 173 between CR 152 and FM 344. They say they’ll let you know when the road is reopened to drivers. Until then, you’re asked to use alternate routes.

TYLER — Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller makes a stop in Tyler on what he terms a “listening tour,” visiting with people connected to the agriculture industry. He talked to KTBB about the two major issues he feels are affecting agriculture today. Miller pointed to tariff-related issues connected to NAFTA and China, as well as immigration and labor. Miller says there are more jobs available than workers, which he calls “a good problem to have.” Miller is upbeat about the chances of getting a good immigration bill through Congress.

NACOGDOCHES — Authorities have recovered the body of a man who drowned Thursday afternoon at Lake Nacogdoches. According to our news partner KETK and Nacogdoches Police, around12:50, 911 dispatchers received a call about a man who went under the water in the west swimming area at Lake Nacogdoches. When first responders arrived at the scene, the man showed no signs of life. The identity of the victim has not been released. Police say the investigation is ongoing.

TYLER – Tyler has set a new rainfall record for July 12th. The National Weather Service says Tyler recorded 2.03 inches of rain on Thursday. That makes the date the wettest July 12 on record, and the records go back to 1883. Previously, the wettest July 12th occurred in 1893 when 1.63 inches of rain was recorded.

LONGVIEW – Starting at 7:30 Friday night, the intersection of East Cotton Street and South Mobberly Avenue in Longview will be closed to all traffic. It will remain closed until 7:30 Sunday evening. The same intersection is expected to be closed during the same time period the following weekend. This time period was selected in an effort to limit the impact on motorists. This street work is part of the 2011 Street Bond Fund. This project consists of reconstructing Cotton Street from Green Street to M. L. King Jr., Boulevard with curb and gutter, drainage inlets and pipes, sidewalks, signs, and water and sewer improvements.

WASHINGTON (AP/Staff) – East Texas Congressman Louie Gohmert has been using a joint hearing of the House Judiciary and Oversight committees to browbeat an FBI agent about an extramarital affair he had with another FBI employee. Gohmert says FBI special agent Peter Strzok is a “disgrace” and is speculating about whether he looked “so innocent” when he looked into his wife’s eyes and lied about the affair. Strzok says Gohmert’s comments say a lot about the congressman’s own character and “what is going on inside” Gohmert. Gohmert is a member of the judiciary committee.

TYLER – Tyler is working to get flights back to Tyler Pounds Regional Airport. The city council on Wednesday voted to update the airport’s airline incentive program. This includes waiving landing and space rental fees for 12 months for airlines willing to offer new service to the airport. Also included is a new instrument landing system to help planes land during bad weather. Something else that will help is the expansion of runway 4-22. The expansion project, which has been underway for several years, is expected to be completed by November. This will allow the airport to handle larger aircraft that can fly longer distances.

TYLER – The accused killer of a Smith County girl had a pretrial hearing in a Tyler courtroom Thursday. Gustavo , who is charged with capital murder, listened as a DPS evidence analyst testified it would take another 30 days to test trace evidence, and another 60 days for the DNA testing. Then it will take another 30 days to write the report on the test results. His next pretrial hearing is scheduled on August 16th. At that time we could learn about a trial date. Zavala-Garcia is accused of kidnapping 10 year old Kayla Gomez from a Bullard church in November, 2016. Her body was found days later in a well on the man’s property.

FLINT – A Smith County man has been arrested for cruelty to a non-livestock animal. Arrested Tuesday was Keith Allen McAllister, 23, of Flint. He was booked into the Smith County Jail under a $150,000 bond. The arrest affidavit says a neighbor recorded the incident with his cell phone. The video shows McCallister hitting a puppy 15 times with a leather belt. McCallister has surrendered the dog to a local veterinarian. According to the affidavit, McAllister admitted to hitting the puppy. He told an investigator, he has anger issues.

MINEOLA – The Texas Education Agency has awarded the Mineola School District the Math Innovation Zone grant. A similar grant has gone to four other school district around the state. The three year grant is for $500,000. The district also has the chance for another $100,000 at the end of year. The grant funding will provide for additional staff, professional development, software, and hardware during this three year period.

HARRISON COUNTY — A Harrison County grand jury this week indicted Miguel Rabadan, 59, of Longview, on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The indictment says on May 13, Rabadan injured a man by hitting him in the head with a garden hoe. According to our news partner KETK, the victim told police that he and Rabadan had been drinking together at their mobile home park when Rabadan became angry that the other man’s dog had bitten him on his foot four weeks earlier. The man told police that Rabadan started screaming, picked up a garden hoe and hit him in the head with the blade.

MARSHALL – The Harrison County grand jury has indicted an Arkansas man in connection with an April murder. Indicted was Michael Gerald Clevenger, 49, Jr., of Cabot, Arkansas. He is charged with murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He is accused of wounding his wife and killing her firend, a man from Houston. The shooting occurred a motel in Uncertain, where the victims had been staying, northeast of Marshall. The woman told officers her estranged husband was responsible for the shooting. He was arrested in Atlanta after a short chase with Cass County deputies.

KILGORE – The Region 7 Education Service Center has announced the Lindale ISD Board of Trustees is the 2018 Regional School Board of the Year. Lindale School Superintendent Stan Surratt nominated the board for the award. They will serve as the regional representative in this year’s Texas Association of School Administrators School Board Awards Program. TASA will announce the five Texas Honor School Boards on August 10.

AUSTIN – Sales tax allocations from the state continue to increase in Tyler and Longview. The sales tax allocations from the state comptrollers’ office for July are based on sales made in May. Tyler’s July allocation exceeds $3.5 million. That tops the $3.1 million received last year by nearly 12%. For the year, Tyler has received from the state over $25 million, and increase of over 7% above the same period last year. Longview’s July allocation tops $2.7 million, and increase of over 16%. For the year, Longview’s allocation is up nearly 9% at over $18.7 million.

JACKSONVILLE — Jacksonville police are looking into an officer-involved shooting of a German shepherd. Police say the incident was prompted by an illegal fireworks call July 4 on Heath Lane. According to a brief police statement, a departmental administrative inquiry was opened in accordance with standard procedure. A news conference has been scheduled for Friday at 11:00 a.m. in city council chambers.

TYLER — A Gladewater man is in the Smith County Jail on child sexual assault charges. 39-year-old Joseph Rodriguez was charged with two counts of sexual assault of a child, two counts of indecency with a child and one count of indecency with a child exposure. Rodriguez was booked into the jail Friday. Bond was set at $500,000.

TYLER — A lip sync battle among police departments has swept social media. The Tyler Police Department has posted an epic video of their own. Tyler police joined other agencies in competing in an unofficial contest to highlight public safety and improve law enforcement’s image. The phenomenon has spread through challenges issued to other departments. The Facebook post has 1.4 million views and has been shared more that 49,000 times, so far. #LipSyncChallenge Watch video on Facebook

TYLER – Meals on Wheels Ministry, headquartered in Tyler, has a new president and CEO. The board of directors has announced Kari Kay Kietzer has joined the organization in the top leadership role. She has served as a consultant to the military, NATO and other organizations and has headed nonproft and for-profit agencies. Kietzer, who started her new job on Monday, succeeds long time president Mike Powell who retired. Meals on Wheels Ministry currently serves nearly 3,000 seniors and homebound individuals in 30 communities in Gregg, Henderson, Smith, Upshur, Van Zandt, and Wood counties.

GILMER – An illegal immigrant is heading to prison after pleading guilty in a Gilmer courtroom in connection with a fatal wreck over four years ago. Noe Paz-Aguillon, 30, pleaded guilty Tuesday to intoxication manslaughter and aggravated assault charges. He was sentenced to 16 years on each charge, with the sentences running concurrently. The accident, which killed an Overton man and injured his wife, happened in February, 2014. He was released to federal authorities for an ICE detainer later that month. They put him in house arrest in Dallas, and he fled back to Mexico. He had previously been deported twice from the U.S. He illegally entered the country again and was arrested in Oklahoma three months ago.

LONGVIEW – A former clerk with a water utility in Gregg County has been indicted by the county grand jury. The former administrative office clerk at Elderville Water Supply Corporation, Chelisa Portley Moore, 49, of Longview, is accused of taking money from the water utility. According to the Longview News Journal, she faces a four-count indictment of theft of property valued between $2,500 and $30,000. Prosecutors suggest it was part of a scheme dating back to February of last year. Moore, who was arrested last Thursday, is currently free on a $20,000 bond.

SMITH COUNTY – A man identified as Anthony Watkins, 59, of Dallas has died in an accident that caused traffic problems in Smith County. That’s according to our news partner KETK. Interstate Highway 20 at the Toll 49 bridge was reopened Monday afternoon. According to the Department of Public Safety report, a truck tractor struck the bridge. Traffic had to be rerouted on the service road until the interstate was reopened. According to Kathi White with TxDOT, the south end of the bridge shifted about three inches during the crash. It has been inspected by a bridge engineer, who says there is some minor damage that will necessitate repairs but it does not affect the strength of the bridge. Repairs will be conducted by the Northeast Texas Regional Mobility Authority, which is responsible for Toll 49.

CHEROKEE COUNTY — The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death of a Tyler man. The body of Olen John Defoore, 38, was found in a car off County Road 3306 Friday, July 6. Officials said they do not believe foul play was involved. Defoore’s body has been sent for autopsy. Additional details were not immediately available.