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LOVELADY –  Gustavo Zavala-Garcia, 31, who was sentenced to life in prison for the 2016 murder of 10-year-old Kayla Gomez in Bullard, has committed suicide, according to our news partner KETK. On July 2, Zavala-Garcia was found unresponsive at the J. Dale Wainwright state prison in Lovelady and life-saving measures were conducted. EMS was called to the scene and life-saving measures proved unsuccessful. Zavala-Garcia was declared dead at 5:43 p.m., an in custody death report shows. According to that report Zavala-Garcia’s means of death was hanging/strangulation caused by a homemade ligature.

Kayla Gomez went missing from Bullard First Assembly Church in November of 2016 and was found dead a few days later outside Zavalla’s home.

Zavalla avoided the death penalty by taking a plea deal to get life in prison without the chance of parole.

RUSK COUNTY – One person is dead after a two-car crash in in the Wright City area in Rusk County near the Smith County line according to our partners at KETK. The crash happened on Monday at State Highway 64 and FM 15. The Rusk County Sheriff’s Office has shut down the road as of 2:10 p.m. while they work the scene.

TYLER – About 70,210 customers are without power in East Texas as of 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday in the aftermath of tropical storm Beryl. Our news partner KETK has a list of East Texas counties and electric cooperatives affected. You can find the list here.

NEW BOSTON – The New Boston Police Department is searching for a suspect in connection to a shooting that left one victim dead and another in critical condition on Saturday. According to our news partner KETK, officers responded to a reported shooting in the 300 block of N. Lindsey St. around 5:42 p.m. on Saturday. When New Boston PD officers got to the scene they found one victim who had been shot in the lower chest and back and another victim who was shot in the right shoulder and upper chest. One victim was pronounced dead at the scene and the other is in critical condition at a local hospital, according to a New Boston PD press release.

According to the press release, officials have already detained one person in connection to the shooting and now they’re searching for another. Continue reading Man wanted after New Boston fatal shooting

TYLER — FEMA’s Disaster Recovery Centers will be closed across Texas on Monday as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall, FEMA Region 6 announced. According to our news partner KETK, FEMA centers like the one at the Hub in Smith County were initially set up to help people recover from severe weather that hit East Texas in April.

The centers will re-open on Tuesday, July 9. To learn more, click here.

ATLANTA – A boil water notice was issued for residents on the City of Atlanta’s public water system on Saturday, was rescinded Tuesday morning.

EAST TEXAS — Acting governor of Texas, Dan Patrick, has added 81 counties to a disaster declaration for hurricane Beryl, including many counties in East Texas, according to our news partner KETK.

As of Saturday, 121 out of Texas’ 254 counties are under the disaster declaration.

Anderson, Angelina, Austin, Bastrop, Bell, Bowie, Brazoria, Brazos, Burleson, Caldwell, Camp, Cass, Chambers, Cherokee, Collin, Colorado, Comal, Dallas, Delta, Ellis, Falls, Fannin, Fayette, Fort Bend, Franklin, Freestone, Galveston, Grayson, Gregg, Grimes, Guadalupe, Hardin, Harris, Harrison, Hays, Henderson, Hill, Hopkins, Houston, Hunt, Jasper, Jefferson, Kaufman, Lamar, Lee, Leon, Liberty, Limestone, Madison, Marion, McLennan, Milam, Montgomery, Morris, Nacogdoches, Navarro, Newton, Orange, Panola, Polk, Rains, Red River, Robertson, Rockwall, Rusk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Shelby, Smith, Titus, Travis, Trinity, Tyler, Upshur, Van Zandt, Walker, Waller, Washington, Williamson and Wood counties were all added to Patrick’s disaster declaration on Saturday.

Patrick said that the state has more than 2,000 responders and 850 assets that can be deployed to help in rescue operations.

TYLER– A Tyler man has been charged with six counts of aggravated assault following a report of shots fired Friday morning. It happened around 9:00 at a home on 1st Street in Tyler. Police said upon arrival, officers were able to remove several children and adults from the home, including the suspect, Chandler Haught, 22. Officials said Haught and the people inside the house are acquaintances and that this was not a random incident. There was evidence of shots being fired. The handgun was located. No injuries were reported.

Haught was transported to the Smith County Jail and booked on six counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The case remains under investigation and will be forwarded to the Smith County DA’s Office.

VAN – According to our news partner KETK, Melissa Davis, the chief of police at Van Police Department, was fired on Monday, according to the mayor of Van, Tammy Huff.
The City Council held a closed session at 7 p.m. on Friday to discuss “the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal of the Police Chief.” The council voted unanimously to table the matter until their next meeting on Thursday, July 11. “The status right now is she was terminated by our city manager, John Desha, on Monday, July 1,” Huff said. “That’s really all I can talk about, because it’s a personnel matter.”

According to Clint McNear with the Texas Municipal Police Association, Davis was fired by the city manager John Desha via letter on Monday after Davis reportedly didn’t want to fine victims of graffiti and instead organized the community to help clean the graffiti.

SMITH COUNTY – Smith County fire investigators said fireworks may have contributed to a house fire reported Thursday night. Firefighters were called to a house FM 756, near Beam Road at 11:45 p.m. Several people were at home at the time of the fire, but were uninjured. Fire crews from other jurisdictions responded to the fire, but the home was a total loss.

Smith County Fire Marshal Chad Hogue said preliminary investigation of the fire shows that the fire started in the garage, “and fireworks may have been a contributing factor to the cause of the fire. The investigation is ongoing and no foul play is suspected at this time.

TYLER – The Smith County Sheriff’s Office said that a 19-year-old has died after being shot in the head on July fourth. According to our news partner KETK, 19-year-old Rawly Sanchez, was reportedly shot to death behind a Smith County business. Sheriff’s reports say deputies responded to a call of a shots fired around 10:45 p.m. on Thursday, at Highway 271 north near Tyler. Smith County dispatch reported the gunshot victim was taken to local hospital.

Smith County Sheriff’s Office learned this at the hospital. Three friends were riding in a truck on Old Gladewater Highway, but turned around to go back to Highway 271. The trio reportedly passed behind Bautista Auto Sales and that’s when gunshots were reportedly fired. While sitting in the back of the truck, Rawley Sanchez reportedly was shot in back of the head. He was immediately taken to the hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
Continue reading Suspect arrested in Smith County fatal shooting

TYLER – A Friday morning shots fired call in Tyler has led to a 22-year-old being charged with six counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. According to our news partner KETK, Chandler Haught of Tyler was arrested after authorities arrived to the scene at a First Street residence. Multiple adults and children were escorted from the home. The case is being forwarded to the Smith County District Attorney’s Office and no injuries were reported.

HENDERSON COUNTY – A 40-year-old drowned on Independence Day near Mabank. According to our news partner KETK, authorities said that at 8:34 p.m. they were alerted to a drowning incident in Hidden Hills Harbor where callers said a man went under and never resurfaced. Payne Springs Fire Rescue and the Texas Game Wardens arrived on scene and were assisted by Gun Barrel City Fire and Long Cove Fire for their boats. The side scan sonars on the boats helped locate and recover the victim.