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WEST ORANGE (AP) — Newly available video shows police in southeast Texas making a dramatic water rescue of a woman whose vehicle was almost completely submerged in a pond.

Jonquetta Winbush’s two children, a 12-year-old boy and 16-year-old girl, managed to get out while Winbush was having a seizure in late July, West Orange, Texas, Assistant Police Chief Jessie Romero said Wednesday. Winbush then passed out and put her foot on the gas pedal, plunging her vehicle into the pond.

Body camera footage from veteran patrolman Charles Cobb, who was nearby monitoring traffic, shows Winbush’s son frantically approaching the officer.

“She’s having a seizure. She’s sunk,” the boy told Cobb. “She’s in the water. Help her.”

Cobb put the boy in the back of his patrol car and raced to Winbush’s vehicle, which was almost completely underwater. Two workers from a local plant had already gotten in the water to get Winbush out, Romero said.

After dragging Winbush from the pond, Romero said Cobb administered chest compressions.

“She was totally unconscious,” Romero said. “He was able to get a pulse back while he had her there on the ground and revive her until EMS got there.”

Winbush’s sister, Bevnisha Holman, said she personally thanked one of the workers, Epifanio Munguia, for helping save her sister’s life.

“I messaged him and (said) I want to personally thank you for being there for my niece and nephew and ultimately my sister, because he really helped save her life,” Holman told Beaumont television station KBMT.

After three weeks in intensive care, Romero said Winbush is now breathing on her own.

“She’s still in the hospital, but she’s going to make a full recovery,” he said.

TEXAS (AP) — U.S. highway safety regulators have closed an investigation into complaints that suspension parts can fail on nearly 75,000 Tesla vehicles, and they won’t seek a recall.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in documents released Wednesday that it found 426 reports of failures on the Model S from 2015 through 2017 and the Model X from 2016 and 2017. One crash was reported with no injuries.

But the agency found in testing and in checking complaints that the Teslas could still be controlled by drivers if the front fore links failed. So it decided to close the probe that was opened in November of 2020.

Tesla did a customer satisfaction campaign in 2017 to replace fore links on some of the vehicles. But NHTSA said that didn’t cover 75% of the failures identified in its investigation. The agency recommended that Tesla expand the replacement program.

A message was left Wednesday seeking comment from Tesla.

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports that months after Texas turned down millions in federal funding to feed more than 3.8 million school children over the summer, a top Biden administration official visited Houston and San Antonio this week hoping to convince state leaders to participate next year. “When kids are healthy and have the nutrition they need, they’re better prepared to learn,” Xochitl Torres Small, the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, said during a stop in Houston on Monday. While the trip was meant to highlight bipartisan legislation that has expanded school lunch programs and helped supply area food banks, Torres Small said the administration still wants to see Texas join the summer meals program to help students when they are not in class.

“We certainly are hopeful that it’s something they will invest in in the future,” she said. But Texas joined with 13 other states led by Republican governors that rejected the funding over concerns that they didn’t have enough time to implement the program and that there would be administrative costs that the federal government wasn’t covering. Nebraska was originally among the holdouts, but its governor, Jim Pillen, later reversed that decision. The federal program is designed to give children $40 a month through electronic benefit transfer cards over the summer when they are not in school, to take advantage of school lunch programs. EBT cards are like prepaid debit cards. But critics of the program say it twists an initiative developed during the COVID-19 pandemic to help students on school lunch programs even when they’re not in school. Those critics argue that USDA has morphed from a temporary assistance program into essentially a year-round food stamp program. On top of that, the Biden administration has expanded eligibility for the program to more families, creating the potential for middle- and high-income families to benefit from the programs.

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports that Harris County Democratic Party leaders on Tuesday night selected former Mayor Sylvester Turner to run on the November ballot for the heavily Democratic 18th Congressional District, following the death of U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee. With no time to hold a new primary election, over 80 precinct chairs from the district were tasked with selecting a new nominee on voters’ behalf. On Tuesday evening, hundreds of attendees gathered at the Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church’s Community Life Center for the nomination meeting. After a three-minute pitch from each of the six contenders, 79 precinct chairs cast their first round of votes. Turner and Former Council Member Amanda Edwards received 35 and 34, respectively. With no candidate winning a majority outright, the top two entered a second round of voting, where precinct chairs stood on two sides of the meeting hall to indicate support for their preferred candidate. Turner prevailed with 41 votes.

Jackson Lee died last month after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, touching off a fierce but brief battle to win over precinct chairs and replace the long-serving congresswoman on the ballot. A longtime friend and close ally of Jackson Lee, Turner had received the endorsement of the late congresswoman’s family. He insisted no one could replace what the late congresswoman bought to the district. He said Tuesday that if elected, he would continue to advance causes championed by his predecessor, including combating violence against women and pushing for police reforms. “You can’t replace her, but you can certainly serve and honor her, and that is what I intend to do,” he said after being declared the winner. Several other contenders had tried to appeal to party leaders as a younger, fresher voice in contrast to the 69-year-old former mayor. Edwards, who unsuccessfully challenged Jackson Lee in the March primary, repeatedly referenced President Joe Biden’s decision to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris, arguing that residents in the 18th Congressional District are also ready to elevate new voices. “I believe our community is, in fact, at a crossroads, and we’ve got one of two choices that we can make. We can either stay where we are, or we can choose to build upon where we are, build upon the congresswoman’s legacy in a way that is forward, innovative,” Edwards said Tuesday evening ahead of the vote. “We need a leader who will build on the promises today but also help pass the baton for the future.”

DETROIT (AP) — The United Auto Workers union has filed unfair labor practice charges against Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk after the two discussed on social media about Musk supposedly firing striking workers.

In documents filed Tuesday with the National Labor Relations Board, the union alleges that both men interfered with workers who may want to exercise their right to join a union. The NLRB said it would look into the charges, which are a request for the agency to investigate.

UAW President Shawn Fain, whose union has endorsed Democrat Kamala Harris, said in a statement that Trump is anti-labor.

“Both Trump and Musk want working class people to sit down and shut up, and they laugh about it openly,” Fain said.

Brian Hughes, a senior advisor with the Trump campaign, called the allegations “frivolous” and a “shameless political stunt” designed to erode Trump’s strong support among American workers.

The NLRB said it would investigate the complaints, one filed against the Trump campaign and the other naming Tesla Inc., the electric vehicle, battery and solar panel manufacturer based in Austin, Texas, and led by Musk.

The charges stem from statements made by Trump Monday night during a conversation between the two men on X, the social media platform Musk now owns. The former president spent much of the discussion that lasted more than two hours focused on his recent assassination attempt, illegal immigration and plans to cut government regulations.

But during a discussion about government spending, Trump praised Musk for firing workers who went on strike. The UAW contends this could intimidate workers for the Trump campaign or at Tesla who might want to join a union.

“You’re the greatest cutter,” Trump told Musk. “I look at what you do. You walk in and say, ‘You want to quit?’ I won’t mention the name of the company but they go on strike and you say, ’That’s OK. You’re all gone.'”

Musk said, “Yeah,” and laughed while Trump was talking.

It wasn’t clear what employees Trump was referring to.

In June, eight former workers at SpaceX, Musk’s rocket company, sued the company and Musk, alleging he ordered them fired after they challenged what they called rampant sexual harassment and a hostile “Animal House”-style work environment at the company.

In addition, the NLRB determined that a 2018 Twitter post by Musk unlawfully threatened Tesla employees with the loss of stock options if they decided to be represented by a union.

Three judges on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans upheld that decision, as well as a related NLRB order that Tesla rehire a fired employee, with back pay. But the full 5th Circuit later threw out that decision and voted to hear the matter again.

Sanjukta Paul, a law professor at the University of Michigan, said the UAW charges have real substance because the comments from Trump and Musk could “chill” efforts by workers to act collectively, including union organizing, or just getting together to improve working conditions.

“You’re approvingly describing, you’re wholeheartedly commending the blatant violation of our main federal labor statute,” she said. “It would constitute interference with protected rights.”

Marick Masters, a business professor emeritus at Wayne State University who follows labor issues, said the UAW’s move “puts the spotlight on Trump and attempts to put him on the defensive in terms of his attitude and demeanor toward unions.” He added that the union is watching Musk’s comments because it has targeted Tesla’s U.S. factories for organizing drives.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — An investigation found no evidence of intent to influence 2022 election outcomes in Texas’ largest county, prosecutors announced Tuesday, but they will pursue criminal charges against a county employee who was allegedly working a second job while polls ran out of paper ballots.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg’s review is one of several to scrutinize Houston’s last midterm elections, when problems at polling places prompted Republican candidates to contest defeats in local races and Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to sign a law removing the elections administrator in the county of more than 5 million residents.

Ogg, an elected Democrat, said during a news conference that her office and investigators with the Texas Rangers found no evidence that elections employees intentionally tried to sway the results. But she said the investigation found that the failures of one elections employee — whose job was to make sure polling locations had enough paper ballots — resulted in some voters being unable to cast ballots.

That employee, Darryl Blackburn, was not charged with any election-related crimes. Instead, he faces charges related to improperly claiming hours on his timesheets and filing for paid time off while secretly working a more lucrative outside job, including on Election Day as some polling locations ran out of paper ballots.

The most serious of six charges filed against Blackburn, theft by public servant, carries a potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Blackburn’s attorney said his client is not guilty and slammed the charges as politically driven.

“This case isn’t about the election — it’s about timesheets,” Houston attorney Charles Flood said in a statement. “The Texas Rangers made clear that the evidence shows no intent or attempt to influence the 2022 election, so it seems Ms. Ogg’s only motivation is to try and claim my client as some sort of consolation prize.”

Ogg said the employee’s actions undermined voter confidence.

“It is clearly extremely important to look at these crimes in a nonpartisan way,” Ogg said.

Last year, an audit by the Texas secretary of state’s office also found that race outcomes were not affected by the issues in Houston. But the report did fault county administrators for failures, including insufficient training for elections staff.

After the 2022 elections, Republican lawmakers effectively dismantled Harris County’s elections office and turned the job back over to the county tax assessor and county clerk, which are both elected offices currently held by Democrats.

Harris County has been at the center of battles over voting rights and access in Texas in recent years. Democrats, who have expanded their victories in the county, have attacked new restrictions and state scrutiny over Houston’s elections as politically motivated.

A Texas judge last year denied efforts by losing Republican candidates to overturn election results after the 2022 midterms. But he later ordered a new election in one race that was among the closest. That case remains pending on appeal.

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Lathan is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

HOUSTON (AP) — Former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner was picked Tuesday as the Democrats’ nominee to succeed the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who died last month after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Turner, 69, will appear on the November ballot after securing the most support from local Democratic precinct chairs during a party meeting in Houston. Jackson Lee had already won the Democratic nomination for what would have been a 16th term before her death on July 19, leaving party officials to select her replacement.

Turner left the mayor’s office in January after serving eight years, the most allowed by term limits. He was previously a longtime state lawmaker.

The House district in Houston is solidly Democratic. Turner will face Republican challenger Lana Centonze.

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Bill Clinton were among those who paid tribute to Jackson Lee at her funeral this month. She was 74.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The long-unsolved 1986 killing of a young Southern California woman has been linked to a convicted serial killer who admitted the crime, authorities said Tuesday.

DNA from the killing of Cathy Small, 19, matched William Suff, who was sentenced to death after being convicted in 1995 of 12 murders that occurred in Riverside County from 1989 to 1991, said Los Angeles County sheriff’s Lt. Patricia Thomas.

Suff was known as the Riverside prostitute killer or the Lake Elsinore killer, Thomas told a news conference. He was also convicted in 1974 in the death of his 2-month-old daughter in Tarrant County, Texas, and despite being sentenced to 70 years in prison he was paroled to California in 1984.

Small’s body was found on a street in South Pasadena, a small Los Angeles suburb, at 7 a.m. on Feb. 22, 1986. Clad in a nightgown, Small was found to have been stabbed and strangled.

She was a Jane Doe until a resident of Lake Elsinore, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) southeast of South Pasadena, called detectives and said that after reading a news story about the killing he was concerned that it could a local prostitute who lived with him for several months.

The resident identified Small and told investigators that the night before she was found dead she had told him a man named Bill was picking her up and giving her $50 to drive with him to Los Angeles, Thomas said.

The case nonetheless remained unsolved for years.

In 2019, an LA county medical examiner’s investigator contacted homicide detectives after responding to the natural death of a 63-year-old man found on a couch in a South Pasadena house across the street from where Small’s body was left.

“The coroner’s investigator observed several disturbing items in the house, numerous photos of women who appeared to have been assaulted and held against their will, possibly by the decedent,” Thomas said.

In his bedroom there was a newspaper article about the identification of Small as the victim of the 1986 killing, she said.

Detectives went through the Small killing file and discovered that the evidence was never subjected to DNA testing. Subsequent testing matched Suff and another unknown man, but not the man found on the couch, who was not linked to any crimes, Thomas said.

In 2022, detectives interviewed Suff over two days at a Los Angeles County jail.

“He confessed and discussed in detail the murder of Cathy Small,” Thomas said. “He also discussed and admitted to some of the previous murders in Riverside County.”

Investigators are not expected to seek to try Suff in the Small killing because of his prior convictions and pending death sentence. There has been a moratorium on the death penalty in California since 2019.

Small had two small children and a younger sister, authorities said. Thomas read a letter from the sister, who was not able to travel to the news conference.

“My sister, Cathy Small, was not a statistic,” the letter said. “She was a protective big sister, a loving mother, and a good daughter. Kathy was funny, smart, and caring. She had a big heart and would do anything for anyone.”