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HAWKINS – The Hawkins mayor was booked into the Wood County Jail on Wednesday after tampering with government records, arrest documents show, according to our news partner KETK.

After only being the Hawkins mayor for a little over a year, starting in February 2024, Deborah Lynn Rushing of Hawkins was arrested and charged with tampering with governmental records on Wednesday.

In recent months, this East Texas town with a population of less than 1,300 people, has been rocked by resignations, calls to disband the police department, a lawsuit and now an arrest of the current mayor. Continue reading Hawkins mayor arrested for tampering with government records

JEFFERSON – According to our news partner KETK, the Jefferson Police Department is seeking the public’s help to identify a man who they believe committed wire theft, possibly causing signal and service disruptions across the area.

Video footage of the suspect was obtained through a tactical game camera. Officials are now looking for the public’s help to identify the man seen in the video as they believe he could have caused poor signal and service disruptions for residents in the area.

Anyone with information regarding the suspect’s identity is asked to contact the Jefferson Police Department at 903-665-2432.

FLINT — What was intended to be a quiet stay at ‘The Oasis on Valley,’ a Flint Airbnb, took an unsettling turn when gunshots echoed through the neighborhood, prompting concerns about who is renting these properties and whether short-term rentals belong in residential areas, according to our news partner KETK.

“In the evening, my relative went to bed and heard firecrackers going off around midnight. Come to find out they were driving up and down the streets, shooting towards each other,” a concerned relative, David said.

Just down the street from the Airbnb house, holes are visible in the stop sign. The owners said they have not had this issue in the past, and the customer told them they would only have four visitors in the home, but according to neighbors, there were more than 30 at the house. Continue reading Local Airbnb shooting prompts calls for stricter vetting

CROCKETT- A routine traffic stop in Crockett on Monday morning led to a police chase and an arrest for drug possession, according to our news partner KETK.

Officers initiated a traffic stop and the driver, Josue Luis Delagarza, chose not to stop his vehicle which forced authorities to pursue Delagarza along city streets as he drove recklessly, according to officials. Delagarza eventually turned onto a dead-end road and attempted to flee on foot before officers managed to arrest him on Parkway Street. During the arrest, cocaine was found in Delagarza’s possession, according to officials.

Following his arrest, Delagarza was charged with evading arrest or detention with a vehicle, possession of a controlled substance along with several outstanding misdemeanor warrants, according to officials.

ANGELINA COUNTY — A Lufkin woman was arrested on Sunday after a two-year-old boy was brought to a hospital in Lufkin for a THC overdose in April, an arrest affidavit reveals. According to our news partner KETK,  the boy was brought to a local hospital by his mother, 19-year-old Brianna Rene’ Lawrence, and another woman because he was not “waking up.” The toddler was found not alert by ER staff and was only responding to painful stimuli, officials said.

While an officer was speaking with Lawrence she allegedly admitted to using different THC products including THC gummies, marijuana and THC vape pens. After officers searched a white KIA SUV she used to transport the toddler to the hospital, they found marijuana with THC in the center console, the court documents said. The vehicle used wasn’t owned by Lawrence but the owner told the officer that the marijuana was Lawrence’s. Continue reading Two-year-old tests positive for THC at Lufkin hospital

TYLER — Colm Conneen of Tyler, a May 2025 graduate of The University of Texas at Tyler, has received a one-year U.S. Fulbright fellowship to conduct post-graduate research beginning this fall at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland. While there, Conneen will study microbial microcosms in pitcher plants, which is a continuation of his interests in community ecology and mathematical ecology. Fulbright selection is based on academic excellence and previous research experience.

“We congratulate Colm, who is a prime example of the excellent students we have in biology who go on to do amazing things,” said Dr. Neil Gray, UT Tyler College of Arts and Sciences dean. “I also want to thank Dr. Joshua Banta for being a tremendous mentor and supporter.”

A UT Tyler professor of biology, Banta previously taught Conneen and served as his undergraduate faculty research adviser in the lab. They collaborated on research focused on the ecological niche modeling –– which is predicting a species distribution area with statistical methods –– of Texas crayfish. Continue reading UT Tyler alum named international Fulbright research fellow

RUSK COUNTY – A man was arrested Monday morning after reportedly breaking into a woman’s home in Rusk County and assaulting her with a cooking pan. According to the Rusk County Sheriff’s Office and our news partner KETK, deputies received an early morning call about a home burglary in progress and when they arrived on scene they heard screaming from inside.

Officials said deputies forced their way inside and found the suspect, Christopher Lee Heard, who had broken into the home, and then assaulted a woman with a cooking pan. Deputies arrested Heard for burglary of a habitation with the intent to commit a felony (aggravated assault), and he is being held on a $100,000 bond at the Rusk County Jail.

The victim was transported to a Tyler hospital where she was treated for non-life threatening injuries.

TYLER – According to our news partner, KETK, The Texas Department of Transportation held an event in Tyler on Monday to launch their annual ‘Click It Or Ticket’ driver safety campaign. The campaign means law enforcement is increasing their efforts to ensure that drivers buckle up while on the roads. From Monday until June 1, all drivers caught not wearing a seat belt in a moving vehicle will be given a ticket, not a warning or an exception like many drivers may be used to.

“We want to make sure that everyone is safe. We don’t want anyone to be in a crash and not go home to their families, friends, coworkers, what have you,” said Tyler traffic safety specialist with TxDOT Heather Singleton said. “We’ve estimated that we’ve saved almost 10,000 lives by doing this event.”

To learn more about the campaign, click here.

TYLER – A Tyler woman was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Friday after a deputy found fentanyl inside her 6-month-old’s diaper during a traffic stop in 2024, according to our news partner KETK. Around 11:30 p.m. on May 5, 2024, a Smith County Sheriff’s deputy pulled over a vehicle near Van Highway and Loop 323 for a traffic violation. Officials said when the deputy pulled over the driver, Dre-Darian Taerondrick Ester, they smelled marijuana from the vehicle, resulting in a search.

The deputy then asked the child’s mother, Jada La Nae Speight, who was in the passenger seat, to change the baby’s diaper, officials said. At this moment, the deputy saw a “bottle of pressed fentanyl” inside the diaper.

Ester pleaded guilty to manufacturing/delivering of a controlled substance on Oct. 21, 2024, and was sentenced to 40 years in prison. On Friday, Speight pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

TYLER – A potential bill is being proposed which would expand the sale of ungraded eggs, according to our news partner, KETK.

If passed, Bill 1864, which is in the House Agriculture and Livestock committee, would expand the sale of ungraded eggs. Currently, the only way you can sell wholesale is to grade your eggs. Which are inspected by a certified grading station.

“It’s not a safety issue. It’s not that a grade B egg is not as good as a grade A egg. It just has to do with size and weight and things like that,” State Rep. Brent Money said. Representative Money serves on the committee and says this would open a lot of doors for small East Texas egg producers.

“Any time you can expand the market and make it easier for them to sell their products, it’s better for their business and it’s better for the consumer,” Money said. Continue reading Bill proposed to allow small egg producers to sell ungraded eggs wholesale

TYLER — Gantry maintenance on Toll 49 will cause a single lane closure between Hwy 155 and FM 2493 (Old Jacksonville Hwy) from 9am-4pm Tuesday, May 20. Drivers should expect short delays.