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NACOGDOCHES — Three people robbed store clerks at gunpoint Wednesday night and got away with an unknown amount of cash, Nacogdoches police say. That’s according to KETK and the Nacogdoches Daily Sentinel. The store owner said she was robbed at a store in the 1900 block of Douglass Road at about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday by three black women, but police believe it could have been three men wearing wigs, Sgt. Greg Sowell, Nacogdoches Police Department public information officer, said. “One produced a handgun and threatened clerks, while one gathered an undetermined amount of cash,” he said. One of the clerks received a minor injury after being pushed to the floor by one of the robbers, Sowell said.

TYLER — Another big year for the Tyler Cattle Barons’ Gala. “We are proud to announce that the 2011 Cattle Barons’ Gala netted $552,683 for the American Cancer Society,” said Ginger Haberle, Gala Co-Chair. “Co-chairing Cattle Barons has been an experience of a lifetime. Thanks to everyone who supported this event and made this donation possible. So many lives will be impacted by the generosity of all of you.”
Since the first gala in 1988, Cattle Barons has raised more than $8.7 million for the Smith County American Cancer Society. Funds raised are used specifically for cancer research, education, and patient services.

“In addition to the generous contributors, more than 100 volunteers helped put on this event,” said Liz Ballard, Gala Co-Chair. “I am so proud to have such a wonderful team to support Ginger and I to help make this year’s Cattle Barons’ Gala be such a wonderful success.” The 2012 Cattle Barons’ Gala will be held June 9.

MANGUM, Okla. (AP) – A former Oklahoma prison warden says he wanted a convicted killer removed from a pottery program that included the warden’s wife and was run from the garage of his home. Randy Parker testified Friday in the trial of his wife – Bobbi Parker. She’s charged with helping the inmate – Randolph Dial – escape the prison in Granite where Randy Parker was deputy warden. Parker said he asked prison officials to remove Dial from the program days before Dial and Bobbi Parker disappeared in 1994. Prosecutors say Bobbi Parker fell in love with Dial and helped him escape. The two were found living together in Campti, in Shelby County, Texas, in 2005. Defense attorneys say Dial kidnapped Bobbi Parker and held her hostage. The Parkers reunited after Bobbi Parker and Dial were found.

SMITH COUNTY — Some statistics from the Smith County Assistant Fire Marshal. Between July 1st and August 16th, 2011, 213 burn ban violation citations have been issued in Smith County. Officials do say that is an unusually high number. It’s been since 2006 since Smith County was under a burn ban. Many of the recent fires have been blamed on burning trash and debris.

LUFKIN — A 45-year-old homeless man was arrested on suspicion of public intoxication after he was seen running through a sprinkler at a home on Willow Bend Drive. Edwardo Reyes, also known as “Eddie” or “Wolf,” was taken to jail on the charge just four days after being released on a criminal trespass charge. He was being held in the Angelina County Jail on a $500 bond.

LUFKIN — A Lufkin man was arrested Wednesday after admitting he broke his girlfriend’s 4-month-old son’s leg Aug. 12. Jimmy McClelland, 25, was taken into custody on a charge of second-degree felony injury to a child. McClelland initially told police at the hospital that he was rocking the child and heard a pop. A CPS investigator also responded to the emergency room, noting further injuries, including retinal hemorrhaging consistent with shaken baby syndrome, but without brain swelling. McClelland is out of the Angelina County Jail on a $35,000 bond.

LUFKIN — A Lufkin man has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for intoxication manslaughter. Leobardo Nieves, 20, accepted a plea bargain yesterday in an Angelina County courtroom. The accident happened January 29th when Nieves ran a red light on Loop 287 and Lotus Lane in Lufkin and struck another vehicle driven by 45-year-old Connie McKay. The teacher was pronounced dead at the scene. her teenage daughter was thrown from the vehicle, but survived. Nieves fled the scene and was arrested a short time later by Lufkin Police.

TYLER — Nearly two dozen people were allowed to return to their homes in eastern Smith County Friday morning. They were evacuated Thursday because of what’s now described as a 415-acre wildfire on the Smith/Rusk County line. Officials say the fire is 90% contained. Some roads that were closed have since reopened.

TYLER — A small fire has been extinguished near Tyler State Park. It took only about an hour to put out the blaze that was reported around 3:00 Thursday afternoon. It was said to have been caused when a tree limb hit a guide wire to an electrical pole, which it turn hit a live wire that caused sparks that ignited the tinder-dry vegetation.

TYLER – Testimony continues for a second day Friday as the owners of the proposed Double D Restaurant appear in state district court in answer to a temporary restraining order against the business. Toys R Us, which owns the land where the restaurant is located, alleged breach of a commercial real estate lease. Judge Christi Kennedy said last week it had been hoped that the parties would settle the matter behind closed doors. But, when that did not happen, the judge extended the temporary restraining order and increased the bond to $200,000. The current hearing in 114th State district court, which began Thursday, is to determine if the restraining order is tossed out or if a permanent injunction is issued.

TYLER – Texas shoppers get a break from state and local sales taxes today through Sunday, the state’s annual tax holiday. And, when buying clothes this weekend, you can help area school districts.

Shop any of Goodwill Industries East Texas’ stores on Tax Free Weekend, and Goodwill Industries of East Texas will be contributing 15% of their store sales to each of their 13 local school districts. Goodwill Industries of East Texas has 15 store locations in: Tyler, Longview, Marshall, Mineola, Palestine, Kilgore, Jacksonville, Henderson, Gladewater, Cedar Creek, Carthage, Canton and Athens.

This weekend, state law exempts most clothing and footwear priced under $100 from sales and use taxes, which could save shoppers about $8 on every $100 they spend. Backpacks under $100 and used by elementary and secondary students are also exempt. A backpack is a pack with straps one wears on the back. The exemption during the sales tax holiday includes backpacks with wheels, provided they can also be worn on the back like a traditional backpack, and messenger bags. The exemption does not include items that are reasonably defined as luggage, briefcases, athletic/duffle/gym bags, computer bags, purses or framed backpacks. Ten or fewer backpacks can be purchased tax-free at one time without providing an exemption certificate to the seller.

The 81st Texas Legislature passed HB 1801 in2009, which expands the list of items qualifying for exemption from Texas state and local sales and use taxes during the annual sales tax holiday in August. In addition to clothes, footwear and some backpacks, Texas families also get a sales tax break on most school supplies priced at less than $100 purchased for use by a student in an elementary or secondary school.

The following is an all-inclusive list of qualifying school supplies (if priced less than $100):
Binders
Book bags
Calculators
Cellophane tape
Blackboard chalk
Compasses
Composition books
Crayons
Erasers
Folders; expandable, pocket, plastic, and manila
Glue, paste and paste sticks
Highlighters
Index cards
Index card boxes
Legal pads
Lunch boxes
Markers
Notebooks
Paper; loose leaf ruled notebook paper, copy paper, graph paper, tracing paper, manila paper, colored paper, poster board, and construction paper
Pencil boxes and other school supply boxes
Pencil sharpeners
Pencils
Pens
Protractors
Rulers
Scissors
Writing tablets

TYLER – Mother Frances Hospital has received the American College of Cardiology Foundation’s NCDR ACTION Registry–GWTG Gold Performance Achievement Award for 2011 – one of only 167 hospitals nationwide to do so. The award recognizes the hospital’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients, and signifies that the hospital has reached an aggressive goal of treating these patients to standard levels of care as outlined by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association clinical guidelines and recommendations.

“The time is right for Mother Frances to be focused on improving the quality of cardiovascular care by achieving ACTION Registry–GWTG standards. The number of acute myocardial infarction patients eligible for treatment is expected to grow over the next decade due to increasing incidence of heart disease and a large aging population,” said John McGreevy, senior vice president of Trinity Mother Frances Hospitals and Clinics and CEO, Louis and Peaches Owen Heart Hospital.

LONGVIEW — After nearly six years on the run, a Longview man who fled his $95,000 bail in 2005 was arraigned Thursday afternoon. According to KETK and the Longview News-Journal, Jamie Lee Coker, 53, fled while facing two life sentences for two counts of intoxicated manslaughter and three counts of intoxicated assault. Authorities say he was arrested in Mexico. Gregg County officials picked him up Wednesday night at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. According to Gregg County court records, Coker was booked into Gregg County Jail Thursday with bond set at $5 million.

Coker was arrested Feb. 13, 2005, after a two-vehicle crash in the 4500 block of West Marshall Avenue. Authorities said Coker was intoxicated when his Chevy pickup crossed the median and struck a Chevrolet Impala, killing his wife, 43-year-old Sonya Kaye Coker, and Martha Hillin Wallace, a 74-year-old grandmother who was riding with her son in the Impala. He was charged with two counts of intoxicated manslaughter and three counts of intoxicated assault. He posted $95,000 bond on June 15, 2005, and did not appear at his Sept. 29, 2005 sentencing.

After Coker fled, the late District Attorney Judge Bill Jennings, who was serving as an assistant district attorney at the time, told America’s Most Wanted that Coker was the one man he was determined to get into a courtroom. Jennings died Oct. 17, 2009.

LUFKIN — Within minutes of local media outlets publicizing the Lufkin Police Department’s request for assistance in locating Winfred Kilgore, 55, a citizen notified the Department that Kilgore was in Jacksonville. That’s according to information from KETK, the Lufkin Daily News, and Lufkin police. Lufkin Police Department detectives were attempting to locate Kilgore as part of their investigation into the death of Joy Yvonne Bybee, whose body was discovered August 11 beneath a bridge at Chestnut Village shopping center in Lufkin. The detectives did not have information that suggested Kilgore was involved in the circumstances leading to Bybee’s death. But they say they did know Kilgore was with her the previous day and believed that he possessed information that would assist in determining her actions prior to her death.

Upon receiving information that Kilgore was in Jacksonville, the Jacksonville Police Department located Kilgore and notified him of the Lufkin Police Department’s investigation and need to speak with him. Kilgore waited at the Jacksonville Police Department until the detectives arrived from Lufkin and interviewed him.
According to authorities, because of the ongoing investigation into Bybee’s death, the details of Kilgore’s conversation with the detectives will not be released. But the detectives reported that they did receive additional information concerning Ms. Bybee’s actions prior to her death. Kilgore is termed an East Texas-area transient with past arrests in Beaumont and along the U.S. Highway 59 corridor between Longview and Polk County.

TYLER — Tyler Police say a wreck on West Gentry that shut down 2 lanes was caused by a woman suffering from a minor stroke. It was reported around 9:15 Thursday morning and involved downed power lines after the 61-year-old struck a utility pole. A motorcyclist was also hospitalized after he hit a line that pulled him from his bike.

LUFKIN (AP) – A former waitress whose wedding dress was stolen is getting married Saturday in a new gown thanks to $900 from some loyal East Texas diners. Crystal Wilson of Lufkin says she’s thankful for “good people in this world.” Wilson on Monday learned that her dress, which she bought for $100 at a thrift store, was swiped during a break-in at a dry cleaners. She said there was no way to replace it, at the same cost, before her wedding. Wilson stopped by Lone Star Charlie’s Family Restaurant on Monday night. Owner Wade Jabbour said she had been a good worker, word of her plight got out and a dozen customers gave her money. Wilson bought a new gown Tuesday.