KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER — The City of Tyler at 11:00 this morning will activate the outdoor warning system and the Tyler Emergency Alert System (Sudden-link Communications). The Outdoor Warning System will be activated starting with a test message. That message will be followed with approximately a 30-second steady tone, followed by an approximate 30-second alternate steady tone, followed by an approximate 30-second pulsed steady tone, followed by Westminster Chimes. The test will end with a test message. The test message is “Attention: This is a test of the City of Tyler outdoor early warning system. This is only a test. If this were an actual emergency, you should tune to your local radio station, 600 on your AM dial.

TYLER – The Tyler School District has a new Special Education Director. At a workshop yesterday afternoon, school trustees named Dana Pate to the post. Pate will be responsible for providing district-wide birth through age 21 services for students with disabilities, including planning, development, communication and evaluation of all initiatives and projects. She will report to the Deputy Superintendent of Schools. Pate holds more than 20 years of experience in education and is currently Executive Director of Special Programs in the Mexia Independent School District in Mexia, Texas.

“I look forward to bringing Ms. Pate on board,” said Tyler School Superintendent Dr. Randy Reid. “She has a wealth of experience and impeccable references. We are pleased that someone of her caliber is joining Tyler ISD. ” She officially begins her new duties Tuesday.

TYLER — Dr. Greg Wang, professor of human resource development at The University of Texas at Tyler, was appointed editor of the Journal of Chinese Human Resource Management. That’s an international scholarly journal, launched by Emerald Group Publishing Ltd this year, that focuses on human resource management and development research with implications for China. The announcement comes from Dr. Jerry Gilley, Department of Human Resource Development and Technology chair at UTT.

According to Gilley, Wang is appointed at a time when Chinese HRM theory, research and practice have global implications. The appointment was through an international competition coordinated by the publisher. “Together with Dr. Andrea Ellinger serving as associate editor of Human Resource Development Quarterly, we now have two international journals housed in the Department of Human Resource Development and Technology. This signifies the quality of our newly-established human resource development doctoral program.” Gilley said.

The Ph.D. program in HRD was approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in 2008 and accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 2009. The first class will enroll in fall 2011.

LONGVIEW — A 24-year-old woman is arrested for child endangerment. Around 5:30 Sunday morning, Longview Police responded to a “Welfare” call in the1600 block of Pine Tree Road. When officers arrived a witness told them she had water running into her apartment from the upstairs apartment. Officers were unable to get a response at the residence and contacted maintenance. Officers found Samantha Boland of Longview unconscious in the bathtub. The water was still running at the time they found her. Her 3 month old baby was found on the bed. Officers say the baby had been left on the bed for about 4 to 5 hours. Boland was booked into the Gregg County Jail.

TROUP — Smith County Fire Marshals say a Troup firefighter’s house was damaged by fire Monday morning. They say the fire started at about 3:00 in the 20,000 block of Highway 110 South, between Whitehouse and Troup. Officials say the firefighter was paged about a medical emergency early this morning when he smelled smoke in the house. Reportedly, the roof and ceiling were heavily damaged in the fire. Fire Marshals don’t know the cause of the fire.

GLADEWATER — Smith County Department of Public Safety troopers respond to a Monday morning wreck on Highway 271, South of County Road 3110. Troopers say a child was flown by helicopter to a nearby hospital. The wreck reportedly happened when a car hit an embankment. Authorities say the child was in a booster seat that somehow became detached.

LONGVIEW — A Longview man has been charged with arson in connection with a fire that damaged the Princeton Club Apartments in the 3700 block of McCann Road. Arrested Sunday was Preston Mark Eaton, 21. The fire is said to have started as the result of a domestic disturbance.

Officers were called to Eaton’s apartments early yesterday morning in connection to a disturbance between him and his girlfriend. Just before 3:45am, soon after officers left, the fire was reported. Residents in four units of the apartments were displaced by the fire, including Eaton. For the time being Eaton’s residence is the Gregg County Jail.

LONGVIEW — A suspect wanted in connection with a November 24th shooting in Longview has been arrested. Executing a warrant on a Home on Edith Street Friday night, swat team officers arrested Daniel Bradley, 30. He is being held without bond on an aggravated assault complaint. Plus, Bradley is named in an arrest warrant from New York.

Bradley as wanted in connection with an assault took place on Sidney Street in Longview. Witnesses say Daniel Bradley fired several shots at his ex-girlfriend and her children. Alonzo Edwards, 19, was twice shot in the left arm and taken to a local hospital with non life-threatening injuries.

TYLER — Here’s a quick look at events and work planned in the Tyler District of the Texas Department of Transportation.

KILGORE — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to make spot pavement and base repairs in various locations on U.S. Highway 259 Business in Kilgore. Crews will also be sweeping the bridges and overpasses on SH 31 between Longview and the Kilgore Bypass, and the bridges and overpasses on the bypass. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress. Motorists are encouraged to be prepared to reduce speed and merge in and around the work zone.

HENDERSON COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to begin pavement repair operations on State Highway 31 between Trinidad and Malakoff, followed later in the week by the same work on SH 31 Business and State Highway 19 Business in downtown Athens. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.

WOOD COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to be at work on the following roadways in and around Wood County:
*Farm Road 69 north of Farm Road 515 in Coke;
*Farm Road 778 between State Highway 37 in Quitman and US 80;
*Farm Road 2966 north of Quitman; and
*Farm Road 49 east of Farm Road 14.
Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic in two-lane areas.

RUSK COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to continue resurfacing operations on State Highway 42 between Farm Road 13 in Price and Farm Road 1513 near New London. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.

VAN ZANDT COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to make base repairs on Farm Road 859 north of Farm Road 1395. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.

CHEROKEE COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to begin several weeks of edge repairs in various locations on U.S. Highway 175 between Jacksonville and Poynor. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic in two-lane areas.

LINDALE — A six-year-old child is dead and three people are injured following a one-vehicle accident in Smith County. The DPS reports it happened shortly before 3:45 Saturday afternoon on Interstate Highway20, six miles east of Lindale. Authorities say the vehicle was westbound when it ran off the road and rolled over. Carter Mayes of Longview was pronounced dead at 5:00pm Saturday at Children’s Hospital in Dallas. Three people in the vehicle are listed in stable condition at ETMC-Tyler. They’re named as the driver Paige Mayes, 35, Maggie Mayes, 5 and Cooper Mayes, 7 all of Longview.

TYLER — Police need your help solving an aggravated robbery that happened Sunday morning shortly after 9:15 at the Family Dollar Store at 1403 East Gentry in Tyler. The two employees who had just opened the store told officers that three black males entered. They had their faces covered and were armed with a black handgun and a machete. They immediately announced their intentions to rob the store. They emptied two cash registers of the store’s money and fled the scene, running northbound around the store. Tyler Police officers arrived and started a neighborhood canvass for evidence and witnesses. A detective was called to the scene to continue the investigation. If you have any information, you’re asked to call the Tyler Police Department at 903-531-1000 or Tyler-Smith County Crimestoppers at 903-597-CUFF (2833).

TYLER — A rendition of the historic Smith County Courthouse is coming to Tyler’s Discovery Science Place museum. Museum officials say the exhibit will allow families an environment to explore and learn together about the judicial system and citizens’ rights and responsibilities under the law. The courthouse exhibit will include interior space furnished with a judge’s bench, witness stand, and attorneys’ desks complete with experiential props (i.e. costumes, gavels, etc.). Displays inside the structure will include informational materials to educate on the judicial process, performing your civic duty as a juror, and explanations of what the participants’ duties are during a court session. The exhibit will also explain various sectors of the law that might be most directly applicable to children. Museum officials say this will help to educate museum guests on a variety of aspects of the legal process.

The historic courthouse replica will be used for other purposes as well. Discovery Science Place is creating unique partnerships with the Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County and CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children) of East Texas to allow their exclusive use of the exhibit for their needs. These groups will have the opportunity to use the courthouse outside of regular museum hours. Museum staffers say the goal of these partnerships is to provide a safe environment for children to be introduced to the judicial process. According to the staffers, that will better prepare them for court appearances and ensure confidentiality. The courthouse exhibit has been made possible through donations from the Texas Bar Foundation, Smith County Bar Foundation and an anonymous donor.

LONGVIEW — Longview police have identified a pedestrian who was struck and killed over the weekend. On Friday around 7 p.m., officers were dispatched to a pedestrian/motor vehicle accident in the 1500 block of East Marshall Avenue. Upon arrival, officers found Christopher Moody Smith, 58, of Longview had been struck by a 2008 Ford Mustang driven by 53-year-old Brenda Himel of Hallsville. The victim was taken to Good Shepherd Medical Center. The victim later died from his injuries. Himel and her 16 year old passenger were also transported to Good Shepherd Medical Center by private vehicle with non-life-threatening injuries.

During the investigation officers learned that the pedestrian had stepped into the roadway into oncoming traffic. A witness stated that the victim had been seen earlier in the evening walking down the middle of East Marshall Avenue. Toxicology reports are pending as well.

JACKSONVILLE – A 73-year-old man is in a Tyler hospital after interrupting a burglary on his own property near Jacksonville. It happened around 1:30 Saturday afternoon on County Road 3303, just west of Jacksonville. Cherokee County officials say while checking on his property, the man apparently interrupted 2 Hispanic men burglarizing a storage building on the land. The property owner blocked the men in by parking his truck in the opening of the gate. Then, officials say, the burglars shot the man at least twice, threw him from his truck, backed his truck out, and then escaped in their car.

“He was able to identify the vehicle just as being a smaller 4-door sedan; it was a dark color…maroon or dark green in color, he wasn’t really sure,” said Captain John Raffield with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Dept. The victim says it was a newer style license plate containing 3 characters separate from the last 4 characters. He told officials the second part of the license plate numbers started with N4 (XXX-N4XX). A passerby found the man on the ground and called 911. He’s now in ICU at a Tyler hospital. Anyone with any information on the incident should call the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department at (903) 683-2271.

SMITH COUNTY – One person is injured in a major wreck involving a Smith County sheriff’s deputy. KETK reports it happened at the intersection of Chickasha and FM 2493 in Smith County, around 8 o’clock Friday night. Two vehicles were involved– a car and a county vehicle. Smith County officials say a car pulled out in front of Deputy Jeff Hobson. They say the car was attempting to make a u-turn and hit the deputy’s unit in the process. The driver of the car was taken to the hospital; the deputy was not hurt. Officials say alcohol may have contributed to the crash. The accident remains under investigation.

TYLER – One man was sent to the hospital after a rollover accident on FM 14 off Loop 323 in Tyler. According to KETK, it happened a little after 10 Friday night. Officials say a man traveling south on FM 14 was driving fast when he veered off the road. He became airborne after hitting a culvert, struck a tree, then overturned in the roadway. According to officials, Tyler Fire and the Red Springs Volunteer Fire Department used the jaws of life to free the man. Neighbors say the man may have been in his mid-twenties and was conscious. Officials say they are still investigating the incident and planned to question the driver today.

TYLER — Tyler police investigate a major Friday afternoon traffic accident. At 1:30 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 300 block of N. Palace in reference to the wreck. During the investigation, officers determined Ramona Carrillo, 32, of Tyler, was operating her 2007 Ford Fusion northbound on Palace at the intersection with W. Front St. For some reason, police say, Carrillo’s vehicle accelerated quickly through the intersection against a red light and ran off the right side of the roadway.

Carrillo’s vehicle struck a utility pole and a fence, and then rolled over onto the driver’s side of the vehicle. Two vehicles in the parking lot at this location were struck as well. When the utility pole was struck, a line from the pole went down across the roadway. Oncor Electric Delivery personnel arrived quickly and cleared the roadway of the live power line. Carrillo was transported to Trinity Mother Francis Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Police say the investigation will continue so as to ascertain the reason Carrillo was involved in this crash.

TYLER — The city of Tyler is letting people customize their own neighborhoods. It’s called “neighborhood conservation districts,” according to KETK — and for the first time, someone’s taking advantage of the idea. Minimum two-acre lots, homes set back from the roads, and roofs at a 20-degree pitch are just some of the restrictions that some who live on Cumberland Road want in an ordinance. One resident says it’s a way to protect the neighborhood and preserve what she calls its unique characteristic — “the country-like feel.” She says 81 per cent of her neighbors signed a petition to take the ordinance to city council. But one neighbor who refuses says, “It’s a free country,” and he’s not about to sign any paper that tells people to limit what they do with their homes.

TYLER — The Tyler Independent School District confirms the bus involved in a Friday afternoon wreck is from TISD. The wreck happened in the 15000 block of Highway 155 South, near County Road 196. Fire marshals say the wreck was between a school bus and a car. According to KETK, there were 31 students on the bus at the time of the wreck, and school officials say both the bus driver and students are OK. As a precaution, one student was taken to a local hospital to be checked out. School officials say the passengers on the bus are students of Jack Elementary School. The TISD transportation department contacted and brought another bus to the scene to finish the route and get the children home quickly.

PITTSBURG – Earlier this week, an environmental group claimed that Pilgrim’s Pride is one of the biggest water polluters in Texas. According to Environment Texas, the two chicken processing plants operated by Pilgrim’s Pride and Sanderson Farms are responsible for 20 per cent of the state’s water pollution. Now East Texas-based Pilgrim’s Pride says that’s not true. A spokesman for the company tells KETK any sort of water waste discharge is closely monitored and meets Texas environmental standards.

TYLER — A teen accused of fatally stabbing a Tyler teacher will undergo more psychological tests. Byron Truvia’s attorney, Jim Huggler, says Truvia will be sent back to Vernon State Hospital as early as next week. The incident took place in September of 2009 inside a classroom at John Tyler High School. The victim was Todd Henry (pictured).

TYLER – Tyler police are investigating the robbery of three residents of the Varsity Place Apartments, 3400 Varsity Drive. It happened just before 8:00 Thursday night. The men told officers there was a knock at the door and when one of the men said, “Come in,” two black men entered. One pulled a small handgun and demanded the victims’ wallets, cell phones and electronic gaming system and games. After getting the items, they fled the apartment. According to Sgt. Robert Phillips, no injuries were reported.

TYLER — Tyler dentist Charles Robinson, who is accused of secretly videotaping a 40-year-old woman and her 15-year-old daughter for the past 3 years, is being sued by the victims. Their lawyer says the women are suffering physical as well as mental distress.

The lawsuit says that the “Plaintiffs seek unliquidated damages…for physical pain and suffering in the past and future, emotional pain and mental anguish in the past and future, lost wages and wage earning capacity and medical expenses…necessary for the treatment of such injuries and mental scars which in all responsible probability will be incurred by and on behalf of the plaintiff’s in the future.”

Sheriff J.B. Smith says cameras were found inside the woman’s home. They say they were focused in both the bedrooms and bathrooms of the woman and her daughter, who rented from Robinson. Robinson has been charged with possession of child pornography, a third-degree felony, and improper visual recording, which is a state jail felony. His bonds total $250,000.

TYLER – Numerous awards were handed out Thursday night when the Smith County Sheriff’s Department held its 8th annual banquet. This will be the final one headed up by Sheriff J.B. Smith, who has announced his retirement. Among those honored last night:
*Officer of the Year – Jeff Hobson
*Plain Clothes Officer of the Year – Clint Benson
*Rookie of the Year – Theresa Smith
*Civilian Employee of the Year – Hattie Boyd
*Dispatcher of the Year – Christy Parks

CANTON — Two persons have been arrested in connection with arson and burglaries that occurred November 27th Van Zandt County Road 2314. Based upon a Crimestoppers tip, authorities were able to get a burglary of a habitation warrant.

With the assistance of family members, Chad Eric Darby, 35, turned himself in at the Van Zandt County Justice Center. A 13 year old Juvenile was arrested at a residence in Kemp in connection with the series of burglaries and is currently being housed at the Van Zandt County Juvenile Detention Center. The Investigators recovered over $50,000 of electronics, jewelry, firearms, tools and other miscellaneous items from two separate residences located in Kemp and Van Zandt County. The Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office believes the recovered items will also result in solving other burglaries in the area.

TYLER — An Award of Appreciation has been presented to A Peete Elementary student whose actions saved his family’s lives. It was LaKeith Coble, 8, who woke his mother to let her know their house was on fire. The fire was reported around 3:30 last Sunday morning in the 1800 block of West Jackson Street. Investigators determined the cause of the fire was a faulty space heater. The home did not have smoke detectors so the youngsters’ quick actions can be credited with saving his family.

TYLER – Officials say two Mexican nationals residing illegally in Tyler were sentenced to federal prison Thursday for drug violations in the Eastern District of Texas. Jose Francisco Moreno, 23, pleaded guilty on June 2, 2010, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribution of methamphetamine and was sentenced to 87 months in prison. Armando Velazquez-Castro, 24, pleaded guilty on July 14, 2010, to the same charge and was sentenced to 120 months behind bars. Each man was also ordered to submit to a forfeiture judgment in the amount of $10,000.

According to information presented in court, on Nov. 2, 2009, Moreno and Velazquez-Castro were arrested and found to be possession of 4 ounces of methamphetamine, which they intended to sell to others in the Tyler area. Further investigation revealed that the men were involved in a conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of actual methamphetamine. Moreno and Velazquez-Castro were indicted by a federal grand jury on Jan. 6, 2010 and charged with federal drug trafficking violations. It was also determined that the defendants are illegally in the United States. They will both be deported to Mexico after completing their prison sentences.

TYLER – A 61-year-old Smith County man, formerly of Arkansas, has been sentenced to federal prison for bank robbery in the Eastern District of Texas. Eddie Ray Myers pleaded guilty on Sep. 7, 2010, to bank robbery and was sentenced Thursday in Tyler to 46 months in federal prison. Myers was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,630.00. According to information presented in court, on July 14, 2010, Myers entered the lobby of the BBVA Compass Bank on South Broadway in Tyler and handed the teller a note stating, “No alarms – no dye packs, All the money in the sack I have a gun.” Myers was indicted by a federal grand jury on Aug. 4, 2010, and charged with bank robbery.

TYLER — Tyler Police, Fire and EMS had their hands full when they responded to the 1000 block of West Gentry around 1:20 p.m. Thursday on a roll-over crash involving two vehicles. Megan Butler, age 18, of Marshall, was driving a 2002 Ford Explorer that was also occupied by her mother, Kelly Butler, age 39. Megan Butler had just turned west onto W. Gentry from N. Grand when she was struck in the passenger side by a 2000 Buick Century driven by Jimmie Pierce, age 70, of Athens. Pierce had pulled out from a private drive heading east when he struck Butler’s vehicle in the westbound traffic lanes.

Megan Butler suffered minor injuries, and her mother was transported to East Texas Medical Center for non- life threatening injuries after being extracted out of the windshield by Tyler firefighters. Pierce was not injured from the crash and was cited for failing to yield the right of way from a private drive. Megan Butler was issued a citation for no insurance.

LONGVIEW — Longview Police are still looking for a suspect in a November 24th aggravated assault. The assault took place on Sidney Street in Longview. Witnesses say 30-year-old Daniel Bradley fired several shots at his ex-girlfriend and her children. Nineteen year-old Alonzo Edwards was twice shot in the left arm and taken to a local hospital with non life-threatening injuries. Police continue to look for Bradley in connection with this shooting. They say Daniel Bradley should be considered armed and dangerous.

Bradley’s last known address was 808 Edith Street in Longview. He is approximately 5’7″, weighs 170 pounds and has black hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information concerning the whereabouts of Daniel Sharome Bradley should contact Gregg County Crime Stoppers at http://www.greggcountycrimestoppers.com or 903-236-STOP. A reward of up to $1000.00 may be paid for information leading to Bradley’s arrest.