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SMITH COUNTY — Two individuals from East Texas have been arrested for allegedly scamming an elderly person out of $750 for chimney repairs that were reportedly unnecessary.

According to our news partner KETK, law enforcement initiated an investigation in August following a report in March regarding two suspects soliciting chimney sweep services from a victim. Steven Gonzalez, 33, and Erika Salinas, 33, both residents of Tyler, are accused of telling the victim that his chimney required repairs and quoted a price of $750.

Subsequently, when the victim tried to contact the business they operated under, ETX Chimney Sweep, he received no response despite sending multiple text messages to Salinas requesting a refund. Continue reading Couple charged with scamming elderly on chimney repairs

HAWKINS – The city of Hawkins officially has a new approved budget for the upcoming fiscal year, as city council members voted on the matter Thursday. The city is already over $5 million in debt, and the approved budget will be running at a deficit of $1,157,366. The city also has multiple projects slated, including hiring employees for the city water department, railroad repair, and most notably, the lack of a city police department. The new budget addressed that as well, with $162,000 being allocated for officers. Some council-members hope the new funding will help them hire a chief. Mayor Deb Rushing suggested the vacant police building could be turned into a substation of the Wood County Sheriff’s Office.

JACKSONVILLE — A 68-year-old man was arrested on Thursday morning in Jacksonville in connection to a child exploitation investigation. According to the Jacksonville Police Department and our news partner KETK, after obtaining a search and arrest warrant, James Bruce Gragg was found inside a home off Forest Trail and was taken into custody. The arrest was the result of a joint investigation conducted by the Jacksonville Police Department and the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office in Nebraska.

Following his arrest, Gragg was charged with possession of child pornography and distribution of harmful material. Investigators anticipate that additional charges will be added as the case progresses. The investigation remains ongoing and no further details will be released at this time. Continue reading Jacksonville man arrested in connection child exploitation case

SABINE COUNTY – The Texas Game Wardens are seeking the public’s help in finding a missing 21-year-old college student, Peyton Hughes, who was last seen on Wednesday on the Toledo Bend Reservoir.

According to our news partner KETK and the Texas Game Wardens, Hughes is a student at Campbellsville University in Kentucky and was pre-fishing for Bassmaster competition when he was reported missing. Several agencies in both Texas and Louisiana are assisting in finding Hughes, including the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement Agents, the Sabine County Sheriff’s Office and the Sabine Parish Sheriff’s Office.

No further information is available at this time.

HUNTSVILLE – According to our news partner KETK, Rusk County District Attorney Michael Jimerson spoke at a press conference in Huntsville on Thursday after the execution of convicted murderer Blaine Milam.

Milam and his girlfriend Jesseca Carson were arrested in 2008 after Carson’s 13-month-old daughter Amora was found dead inside their home. Milam and Carson beat Amora with a hammer and bit, strangled and mutilated her body over a 30-hour period, according to prosecutors.

Milam was put to death in Huntsville at 6:40 p.m. on Thursday. His last meal included a cheeseburger, oven-fried potatoes, green beans, pinto beans, sliced bread, scrambled eggs, country gravy, a sausage patty, pears, biscuits, tea and water. Continue reading Rusk County District Attorney speaks after Milam execution

HUNTSVILLE — An East Texas man was executed at 6:40 p.m. on Thursday evening, after killing his girlfriend’s 13-month-old daughter in what the couple claimed was an exorcism to cast a demon from the infant’s body. Our news partner KETK reports that hours before the execution the U.S. Supreme Court denied Blaine Milam’s final appeal for a stay. Milam opted out of having a spiritual advisor in his final hours.

Milam, then 18, and his girlfriend, Jesseca Carson, were arrested in December 2008 after police discovered the body of Carson’s daughter, Amora, inside their home. The child had suffered extensive injuries, including bite marks, blunt-force trauma and signs of sexual assault.

The medical examiner testified that Amora’s cause of death could not be pinpointed because of the sheer number of fatal injuries. Prosecutors said Milam and Carson beat the baby with a hammer and over a 30-hour period bit, strangled and mutilated her.

The couple initially gave shifting accounts, claiming Amora had hurt herself or eaten insulation, before admitting they had tried to “beat the demons out” of her during an exorcism. Continue reading Texas man executed for brutal ‘exorcism’ murder of 13-month-old

HUNTSVILLE (AP) – Texas death row inmate Robert Roberson will not petition for clemency ahead of his scheduled execution in three weeks and will instead focus on obtaining a new trial in his capital murder conviction, his lawyer said Wednesday.

Roberson was convicted in 2003 for the death of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki, who was diagnosed with shaken baby syndrome. Roberson has maintained his innocence over the two decades he has spent on death row, arguing that scientific evidence developed since his conviction invalidates Nikki’s diagnosis and shows that she died from chronic illness — not from being shaken so violently that she died, as prosecutors claimed at Roberson’s trial.

Roberson, 58, is scheduled to be executed on Oct. 16. His deadline to submit an application for clemency with the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles is Thursday, 21 days before his execution date. Continue reading Robert Roberson will not seek clemency ahead of October execution

SMITH COUNTY — A woman was arrested Wednesday on a charge of endangering a child after her daughter reportedly suffered an overdose. According to the Smith County Sheriff’s Office, dispatch received a 911 call regarding a possible overdose at a home on Candleridge Drive. Officials say a female child,23-months-old, was in a lethargic state. EMS transported the girl to UT Health ER in Tyler.

Smith County Investigators found that at approximately 3:15 pm, the child had ingested a THC gummy belonging to her mother, Kendall Johnson, 27, of Tyler. The child and her older brother were left unattended in Johnson’s vehicle while at a residence near Dixie Elementary School. When she returned to the vehicle, she realized her son and daughter had gotten into her THC gummies which were left in the vehicle. By this time, the daughter had already ingested a portion of one gummy. Johnson then went to the residence on Candleridge Drive where she stayed until she called 911 at approximately 5:00 pm. Continue reading Child flown to Dallas hospital after ingesting THC gummy

LONGVIEW — A pedestrian sustained serious bodily injury on Friday after being involved in a suspected hit-and-run situation, the Longview Police Department said. According to our news partner KETK, on Sept. 19 at around 8:35 p.m., officers responded to the 400 block of Mobberly Avenue, where they found a pedestrian with a serious bodily injury. The black pickup suspected to be involved had left the scene. The department is asking anyone with information regarding this case to call 903-237-1188 or Gregg County Crime Stoppers at 903-236-7827.

HOUSTON (AP) — A Texas man faces execution Thursday for killing his girlfriend’s 13-month-old daughter during a torturous ordeal the couple said was part of an “exorcism” to expel a demon from the child’s body. Blaine Milam, 35, was condemned for the December 2008 murder of Amora Carson at his trailer in Rusk County in East Texas.

Milam was scheduled to receive a lethal injection Thursday evening at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. At around the same time Milam was to be put to death, authorities in Alabama were planning to execute Geoffrey West for fatally shooting a gas station employee during a 1997 robbery.

Milam has claimed he is innocent, blaming then-girlfriend Jesseca Carson for the killing and alleging she was the one who claimed the girl was possessed by a demon. Continue reading East Texan facing execution for fatally beating 13-month-old during ‘exorcism’

LINDALE – According to our news partner KETK, a woman who was caught on camera abusing toddlers at a daycare in Lindale in 2024 pleaded guilty on Tuesday to injury to a child.

Catherine Elizabeth Guziejka was arrested in October of 2023 while working at Punkin’ Doodles Day Care. While working for the day care, video footage reportedly showed about 100 incidents where Guziejka was seen assaulting six children under her care. Guziejka has since been booked into the Smith County Jail on Oct. 30 and on Tuesday she pleaded guilty to injury to a child. Her trial has been scheduled for Nov 12, 2025.

TYLER – According to our news partner KETK, Blaine Milam will be executed Thursday for beating his girlfriend’s daughter to death in an alleged exorcism.

Milam and his girlfriend, Jessica Carson, were convicted in 20210 for the brutal killing of Amora Carson with a hammer and 24 human bite marks. Milam’s good friend, Jennifer Martin, continues to visit him and will be by his side until the last moment. Martin .”He is innocent 100%,” Martin said.

Martin met Milam on death row through her brother-in-law, Robert Roberson, who is set to be executed next month. Martin visited him just 24 hours before he is set to die on Thursday and said he is in good spirits. Continue reading Blaine Milam’s execution scheduled Thursday amid plea effort

HENDERSON COUNTY – Our news partner KETK is reporting that the current Justice of the Peace for Precinct 4 (JP4) announced on Tuesday that he will be retiring as JP following the completion of his current term. Judge Milton K. Adams has served East Texas for the past three decades, and his retirement will conclude more than 47 years of involvement in the criminal justice system, including his time as a Justice of the Peace.

“It’s been an interesting ride to say the least,” Adams wrote in his announcement. “I’d like to take a moment to thank you for allowing me the opportunity to serve you.”

Adams encourages residents to learn about the candidates who will seek the seat in the upcoming election, noting the lasting impact of the court.

“Most people don’t realize that a Justice of the Peace is a State Judge and noted in the Texas Constitution as a ‘Conservator of the Peace,’” Adams said. “It’s not always an easy task to take on.”

UPDATE: According to the Wood County Sheriff’s Office, Pruitt was found and taken into custody earlier this evening following an anonymous tip.

WOOD COUNTY — Our news partners at KETK report that a man with outstanding felony warrants for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon escaped from Wood County deputies on Wednesday. The Wood County Sheriff’s Office said around 6 a.m., they had received an anonymous tip of a person who had outstanding felony warrants for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. They then went to Caden Eric Pruitt’s residence in Hawkins, where they took him into custody. While deputies finished their investigation, Priutt escaped and fled. Continue reading Aggravated assault suspect in custody