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TYLER — Smith County will receive the Texas Association of Counties Best Practices Award for cost reductions made through the County�s Compensatory Time Management Program. According to a county news release, each year TAC’s Leadership Foundation recognizes and highlights county programs for outstanding innovation, achievement and delivery of services.

The Smith County Compensatory Time Management Program began in 2008 as a joint effort of the Auditor�s Office and Sheriff�s Department, to reduce what officials term the ever increasing and costly payout and accrual of employee earned compensatory time. At that time, Smith County had more than $735,000 in accrued liability recorded for comp time, and more than $600,000 of the accrual was solely attributed to the Sheriff’s department and the Jail. Today, the comp hours have been reduced by 48% in the Sheriff�s office and 41% in the jail for a total reduction of more than 44% department wide. That substantial reduction in hours has reduced the county�s accrued liability by more than $350,000.

�We are very proud of the leadership in our Sheriff�s Office and Auditor�s Department. They stepped up and thought outside the box to reduce our accumulated comp time and ultimately save hundreds of thousands of dollars for the County,� said Comp Time Committee Member and Smith County Precinct 4 Commissioner JoAnn Hampton. Representatives from Smith County will be presented with the award during a ceremony at the TAC Annual Conference in Austin Sept. 2.

VAN ZANDT COUNTY — One suspect is in custody after a stabbing in Van Zandt County. It happened last night around 9:30 on VZCR 2807. Sheriff�s deputies say the suspect was reportedly involved in a burglary of a habitation earlier in the evening, in which firearms were stolen. Deputies say Gary Wayne Pritchett, Jr. of Mabank went to confront the reporting party and stabbed him in the back several times with a screwdriver. Pritchett was arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, retaliation against witness/informant. He’s being held at the Van Zandt County Justice Center awaiting arraignment by a Justice of the Peace.

WHITEHOUSE � Whitehouse is next to consider a ban on K2, a controversial substance that mimics the effects of marijuana. Whitehouse Police Chief Rick Waller says he hasn�t found anyone selling K2 in the city, but one or two places sell paraphernalia. Whitehouse Mayor Danny Hodgen says that he�s not willing to wait on the state legislature to pass a ban. The Whitehouse City Council will vote on the ordinance in September.

WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security is reviewing thousands of pending immigration cases. Officials say they are moving to dismiss cases on those filed against suspected illegal immigrants who have no serious criminal records. Many are disappointed with the action, including Tyler Congressman Louie Gohmert.

According to Gohmert, the action is devastating to those who follow the rules by trying to bring loved ones here legally. �It is also a position that tells the world we are not exerting our sovereignty as a nation. It says to the potential billion or more people who would like to come here to do so illegally and get our welfare, our healthcare, and our benefits that taxpayers are funding, because even if you get caught here illegally, this administration has decided that there will be no consequences. This utter disregard for the rule of law
is so hurtful to people of every race, gender, religion, and national origin who have worked so hard to follow the law. It also moves us ever closer to being like those countries which immigrants are fleeing because of their disregard for the rule of law.”

LONGVIEW — Authorities say a cooking accident in Longview seriously injured a resident Thursday. Around 12:09 p.m., the Longview Fire Department responded to 1805 Paver Stone. Authorities say 2nd and 3rd degree burns covered approximately 60% of the victim’s body. The call came in as a medical alert button activation which notified the family. On arrival, crews and investigators determined that clothing had caught fire at or near the electric cook top, where the victim’s clothes burned completely off. The victim had managed to move to a bedroom which was about 15 feet away from where the burn occurred. The victim was the only person at the residence at the time of the incident. The Longview Fire Department transported the resident to Good Shepherd Medical Center. The victim was then flown to Parkland Hospital in Dallas.

TYLER � Two Carthage residents have pleaded guilty in Tyler to federal drug violations. Michael Lewis Galyean, 49, and Christie Renee Tull, 27, pleaded guilty to possession of pseudoephedrine with the intent to manufacture methamphetamine Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge John D. Love.

According to information presented in court, on Dec. 11, 2008, Galyean purchased cold pills containing pseudoephedrine at a Walgreens in Kilgore, in addition to making three other purchases that same day at other stores in the area. On Apr. 22, 2009, Tull purchased cold pills containing pseudoephedrine at a CVS in Tyler, in addition to making another purchase on another day at a store in Henderson. The purchases were all in furtherance of their methamphetamine manufacturing activities. A federal grand jury returned a 256-count indictment on Feb. 2, 2010 charging Galyean and Tull with federal drug violations. Galyean and Tull each face up to 20 years in federal prison at sentencing. Sentencing dates have not been set.

LONGVIEW — A free �come and go� benefits fair for Texas veterans will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. today at the Maude Cobb Convention and Activity Center, 100 Grand Blvd., Longview. The fair, targeting all northeast Texas veterans, is one of several throughout the state. It’s presented by the Texas Veterans Land Board and Texas Veterans Commission.

State Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson is chairman of the Texas Veterans Land Board. He says officials from the Land Board will be on hand to provide information on state programs including land, housing, and home improvement loans as well as Texas state veterans cemeteries and nursing homes for veterans. Joining the Land Board officials will be representatives from the Texas Veterans Commission, the Small Business Administration, the Social Security Administration, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Also on hand: local realtors and lenders specializing in veterans loans who will be available to discuss federal benefits and pending claims.

Patterson says veterans wishing to discuss pending claims with VA officials should bring pertinent case information, including claim numbers if available. Veterans are encouraged to drop in to learn more about their benefits any time between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. and are not required to stay for the duration of the event. For more information on the benefits fair, you can call Michelle Davis with the Texas Veterans land Board at 214-498-8174 or Tito Garcia at 214-450-3092. For more information on benefits available only to Texas veterans, such as low-interest land and home loans, visit http://www.texasveterans.com or call 1-800-252-VETS (1-800-252-8387).

AUSTIN (AP) � The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has rejected the appeal of a death row inmate from Smith County. Gregory Lynn Russeau, pictured here, was convicted in 2002 for the 2001 slaying of auto mechanic James Syvertson, 75, during a robbery in Tyler. Russeau was arrested in Syvertson’s stolen car in Longview the day after the murder.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals also rejected an appeal from an Arlington woman condemned for the starvation death of a 9-year-old boy who weighed 35 pounds. Jurors at Lisa Coleman�s 2006 trial in Tarrant County heard testimony she beat, bound, neglected and starved Davontae Williams. Coleman shared an apartment with the boy�s mother, Marcella Williams, who pleaded guilty to avoid a death sentence and is serving a life prison term. An autopsy determined the child had more than 250 scars on his body when emergency medical crews in July 2004 responded to a 911 call about a child having breathing difficulties. Coleman is one of 10 condemned women in Texas.

The appeals court Wednesday also rejected appeals from Guy Len Allen, who�s condemned for the 2002 slayings of his girlfriend and her daughter in Travis County