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GLADEWATER — Sheriff’s officials in Gregg County are investigating a woman’s death. Tuesday morning Deputies and Emergency Medical personnel responded to a residence on FM 2207 North of Gladewater to conduct a death investigation. Sally Coker, 60, of Gladewater was found pinned between a chain and her passenger car at the entrance to her residence. Coker’s grandchild was inside the car at the time of the incident.

“At 10:50 am we received a telephone call from a Gregg County Reserve Deputy who discovered Coker pinned between a chain and the windshield of her passenger car,” Captain Mike Claxton said Tuesday afternoon. The Deputy happened upon this event while traveling on FM2207 and called for assistance. “Unfortunately Coker had no signs of life when found,” Claxton added.

“Investigators have been examining the scene with Judge Talyna Carlson,” Claxton said. Coker’s family has been notified of her death. Carlson has ordered an autopsy on Coker to assist in determining the manner and cause of her death. “It is too soon to comment intelligently on how this incident occurred,” Claxton added. “Initial investigative findings from the scene indicates that Coker was out of her car at the entrance to her property moving the chain to enable access to her driveway when she became pinned between the chain and her car.”

TYLER — Four biomedical investigators at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler recently were awarded a total of more than $2.1 million in grants despite intense competition for research dollars. Officials say the UTHSCT researchers will use those funds to:
* examine ways to prevent the rejection of transplanted insulin-producing cells that could cure diabetes;
* develop new strategies to protect lung cells against damage caused by tobacco smoke, including the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the fourth leading cause of death in the United States;
* explore how to boost the immune system so that it can fight off deadly microbes, such as the H1N1 flu virus; and
* study how changes in the thymus gland may contribute to the development of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes.

Almost $1.8 million of the $2.1 million came from the National Institutes of Health, the premier funding agency in the United States for biomedical research. Each NIH grant is evaluated by other scientists in the same field of study, in a process known as peer review. Grants are awarded based on the scores they receive, and officials say the competition is fierce.

“To receive significant NIH funding now is a remarkable achievement that speaks to the high quality of the scientific work our investigators are conducting. They compete against the leading scientists from top-tier institutions,” said UTHSCT Vice President for Research Dr. Steven Idell, MD, Ph.D. “On average, only the top 15 percent of the proposals submitted to NIH are funded. In some areas of research, the percentage funded is even less,” Dr. Idell said. “More investigators are applying for NIH funding, while the annual NIH budget has remained about the same. In addition, the cost of research has gone up.” It has also become harder for researchers to acquire private, non-governmental funding, he said.

“Grant applications to foundations and other research sponsors have become almost as competitive – sometimes even more so – than applying to the NIH. While this is a very exciting time to be in biomedical science, researchers face great challenges in acquiring and retaining outside funding to support their work,” Dr. Idell said. “The fact that UTHSCT investigators continue to be funded shows the high quality and importance of the science being done within the UTHSCT biomedical research community.”

One of the members of this community, Zhenhua Dai, Ph.D., MD, an associate professor of immunology, recently was awarded a $1.4 million, five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health. These funds will support Dr. Dai’s ongoing study into how to prevent the immune system from rejecting transplanted organs. Sreerama Shetty, Ph.D., a professor of medicine, received a two-year grant for $387,750 from the NIH to examine the roles of two crucial proteins in protecting the lungs from the harm caused by tobacco smoke.

Amir Shams, Ph.D., an associate professor of microbiology and immunology, was awarded a three-year, $325,000 grant from the Flight Attendants Medical Research Institute. He is studying how an innovative technique that boosts the immune system could help people with COPD and other lung diseases to fight infections of influenza. Dongming Su, Ph.D., an associate professor of biochemistry, received an additional award of $71,854 to fund his ongoing research into the thymus, a gland located behind the top of the breastbone.

TYLER — Smith County Commissioners approved a budget Tuesday morning. According to KETK, the budget calls for 33 county job cuts and a property tax increase. In a crowded room, a handful of taxpayers gave their final words to the court before Commissioners decided on a final budget. They voted to increase property taxes by $.025.

During the discussion, Commissioner Bill McGinnis says he does not like the tax rate, and he thinks it should be higher. The votes for the budget and tax increase were 4-1 when Commissioner Terry Phillips voted against both. Phillips says, “I just feel like there was more that could have been done to lower the tax rate.” The 33 job cuts include 17 Road and Bridge, six administrative, five Judicial, three Public Safety, and two Agricultural Extension jobs.

TYLER – Tyler police say one woman is dead after being shot, and another — suspected in the fatal shooting — is in critical condition at ETMC/Tyler with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police identify the slain woman as 70-year-old Socorro Nunez; the other woman is named as 47-year-old Alice Alvarez Aguilar. Police initially responded to a report of gunshots that came from inside the residence around 12:34 p.m. When officers arrived, they found Nunez’s body on the floor in Apartment #1. Officers searched the area for the suspect and located her unconscious in the adjacent apartment with the self-inflicted wound. Police say investigators are attempting to determine the motives behind the deadly shooting.

LONGVIEW — The Longview Fire Department responds to a fire in the 1400 block of Lake Drive around 9:00 Tuesday morning. Officials say a man was removing the fuel pump from the gas tank of a car when a spark igniting the fuel in the tank. The blaze was extinguished with no damage to any other structures. The man suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns but refused to taken to the hospital. The car was a total loss.

TYLER — Tyler Junior College officials are clarifying the tax rate increase approved last week for the new fiscal year’s budget. Trustees approved a rate of 18.29 cents per $100 valuation — the amount originally proposed. That’s 33.57 percent higher than the current rate — and 31.62 percent higher than the effective tax rate, which is the figure that would bring in the current year’s revenue.

ELKHART – A weekend shooting in Anderson County has left one person dead and one person in custody. It happened around 1:00 Sunday morning on County Road 1121 near Elkhart. Shot to death was Jacob Kennedy, 27. Arrested later that morning was Larry Warren, 35, of Palestine. He was taken into custody at a Tyler hospital where he was being treated for a gunshot wound. He was reportedly wounded by another man in a struggle over the rifle used to shoot Kennedy. Investigators say the shooting stemmed from an argument over a woman.

QUITMAN — A Wood County employee was killed Monday will trimming trees along County Road 2775. Killed was Mathew Crowell, 31, who was part of a county work crew. He was critically injured just before 11:45 yesterday morning when a tree limb he was cutting fell on him, pinning him between the limb and another tree limb. He died about an hour later at East Texas Medical Center-Quitman. An autopsy was ordered.

TYLER — Tyler Police are investigating an aggravated assault reported just before 2:00 Tuesday morning. It occurred in the 3700 block of North Broadway. A woman tells officers she was northbound on Broadway in her vehicle when a white Ford 4 door approached her from behind. It hit her rear bumper and she pulled to the side of the road thinking it had been an accident. Two black males approached her and one of them hit her in the face. When she fell to the ground two men rummaged through her car. They then returned to their vehicle and left. She was treated at the scene by ambulance personnel. There is no additional suspect or vehicle information at this time and the case remains under investigation.

LONGVIEW — One person received minor injuries in a Longview fire. The fire, in a carport, was reported shortly after 10:15 yesterday morning at 4307 Price Lane. Firemen say they found a small fire in the carport and it was quickly brought under control. The occupant of the mobile home sustained a minor injury while attempting to remove a vehicle from the carport. The vehicle was also damaged while it was being backed out of the carport. According to Interim Fire Marshal Johnny Zackary, “the cause of the fire is unintentional.”

BULLARD – The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department says the search continues for the person responsible for a shooting death in Bullard. According to KETK, the victim has now been identified as William Earl Baker, 52. He was shot to death around 7:00 Friday night on his driveway at his house in the Shadybrook subdivision, and authorities say it’s foul play. Authorities say the investigation is ongoing and anyone with any tips or information in this case is asked to call the Criminal Investigations Division of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department at 903-683-2271. All calls will be confidential and callers may be left anonymous.

TYLER — Smith County Purchasing Director Kelli Davis has been nominated to serve on the Board of Directors for the Texas Public Purchasing Association in 2011. The new board lineup will be announced at the organization’s 2010 State Conference, to be held in Smith County. The nomination comes from current Board Member and Past TxPPA President Jack Beacham, Purchasing Director for Tarrant County. “Mrs. Davis is absolutely the quality of purchasing professional to take TxPPA to its next level of success,” Beacham said in a letter nominating Mrs. Davis. “She will make an outstanding contribution to this association and will be one of the future leaders in Texas Public Procurement.”

Mrs. Davis has been the Purchasing Director for Smith County for five years and recently won the bid for Smith County to host the Fall 2010 TxPPA State Conference. “From my perspective, they could not select a candidate with better credentials,” County Judge Joel Baker said. “She will be a strong voice for Smith County and all of east Texas to that organization.” The 2010 TxPPA Fall State Conference could bring 300 or more Purchasing Directors from across the state into the county. Officials say Smith County was chosen to host the state convention for its central location and its innovative purchasing methods.

TxPPA is the first and only multi-agency organization for Public Purchasing Professionals in Texas. The Texas Public Purchasing Association is comprised of 600 Purchasing Directors from Texas cities, counties, school districts and colleges.

TYLER — The University of Texas at Tyler has received $893,475 from the National Science Foundation to support the new Noyce Scholars Program, Dr. Arlene Horne, vice president for research and federal relations, announced. The five-year grant provides academic scholarships for high achieving juniors and seniors seeking degrees in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) who will also seek teacher certification through the university’s UTeach program.

“The UT Tyler Noyce Scholars Program encourages STEM majors to become teachers by supporting them through the most rigorous portion of their program – their upper division content courses and their field-based pedagogical courses including apprentice teaching,” said Dr. Bambi Bailey, UT Tyler associate professor of science education and program co-coordinator. “There is a high need for STEM teachers in our region. This program will support the development of over 30 new STEM teachers over the course of the next five years.” The first five Noyce Scholars will be chosen early this fall.

Noyce Scholars will teach in high-need secondary schools one year for each semester of support they receive. In addition, the program supports freshman and sophomore STEM majors considering entering the UTeach program. Dr. Michael Odell, UT Tyler Roosth professor of science education and engineering; and Dr. Fredericka Brown, UT Tyler assistant professor of mechanical engineering, also serve as program coordinators. UT Tyler last year received grants totaling $1.4 million to establish the UTeach program, which originated at UT Austin in 1997.

According to UTT officials, the core elements of the UTeach program include active recruitment and incentives, such as:
– Offering the first two courses for free;
– A compact degree program that allows students to graduate in four years with both a degree and a teaching certification;
– Strong focus on acquiring deep content knowledge in math and science, in addition to research-based teaching strategies focusing on teaching and learning math and science;
– Early and intensive field teaching experience, beginning in the UTeach students’ first semester;
– Personal attention and guidance from highly experienced master teachers, faculty, and successful public school teachers.
For more information about the UT Tyler Noyce Scholars Program, contact Bailey at BBailey@uttyler.edu or 903.565.5937.

TYLER – 38-year-old Joann Morgan of Carthage has pleaded guilty to to possession of pseudoephedrine with the intent to manufacture methamphetamine. The plea was entered Monday in Tyler before U.S. Magistrate Judge John D. Love.

According to prosecutors, on Feb. 17, 2009, Morgan purchased cold pills containing pseudoephedrine at a Walgreens in Marshall, in addition to making three other purchases that same day at other Walgreens stores in Marshall, Longview and Kilgore. Authorities say that was in addition to numerous other purchases at other stores on other days, all in furtherance of her methamphetamine manufacturing activities. A federal grand jury returned a 54-count indictment on Apr. 8, 2010 charging Morgan with federal drug violations. Morgan faces up to 20 years in federal prison at sentencing. A sentencing date has not been set.

EAST TEXAS — A capital building fund has been launched to support the efforts of the recently established Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or SPCA of East Texas. Tyler attorney Deborah Tittle-Dobbs formed the non-profit SPCA of East Texas this year, to respond to and investigate animal cruelty and neglect as well as house rescued animals for adoption. Currently, neither the city of Tyler nor Smith County has a local facility to house stray or neglected dogs for any length of time. All lost dogs and strays from the city are transported by animal control to a shelter in Cherokee County. Euthanized animals must then be transported back to Tyler for disposal by animal control. On average 60-100 dogs from our community are euthanized each week because of the lack of a community shelter.

The SPCA of East Texas hopes to remedy thE situation and is seeking private donations to build a shelter in the Tyler area. You can mail your donation to the SPCA, P.O. Box 2026, Tyler, TX, 75710. Other programs will include humane education in schools, spay/neuter awareness and pet overpopulation, “Critter Camp” a children’s day camp and a community event center for animal organizations and public events.

Additionally, the first SPCA cruelty investigator has been hired with Smith County District Attorney drug seizure funds. Former Tyler police officer, Roy Linn will investigate calls received through the SPCA hotline at 903-596-SPCA.