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ATHENS – After being arrested for possession of meth at his apartment almost three weeks ago, Athens ISD Board of Trustees have accepted the resignation of now former band director Nicholas Bartlett Durham. According to our news partner KETK, the 45-year-old had his apartment searched by Henderson County deputies at the 200 block of Wood Street. Found in his possession was an undisclosed amount of suspected methamphetamine. Durham was later taken to the Henderson County Jail for possession of a controlled substance and released the following day. After Durham’s resignation was accepted, the board announced Cheyenne Hernandez as the district’s interim band director.

UPDATE: The Smith County Sheriff’s Office has confirmed on Tuesday that the woman who lived on the property where the dogs were discovered has died.

TROUP – Our news partner KETK is reporting that 44 dogs were seized from an East Texas property on Friday morning at what Smith County investigators believe is a puppy mill. According to the Smith County Sheriff’s Office, around 11:45 a.m., first responders were dispatched to a medical call in the 19200 block of FM 345 near Troup. Once on the scene, medical personnel smelled a strong odor of feces, with multiple kennelled and loose dogs.

When Smith County investigators arrived on scene, they found that none of the dogs had received care of any kind for at least twelve hours and that they were not receiving an adequate amount of care, food or water.

“Smith County Animal Control responded to the location, and upon arrival, 44 dogs were seized and transported to the Smith County Animal Control Shelter,” officials said. “Of the 44 dogs rescued, 41 appear to be pure-bred Whippets and 3 appear to be pure-bred Standard Poodles. Several of the dogs were malnourished with skin disorders, overgrown nails and possible gastrointestinal disorders.” Continue reading Woman living on property with 44 malnourished dogs confirmed dead

LONGVIEW — A 66-year-old man has been booked into the Gregg County Jail for murder after a fatal shooting in Longview on Monday afternoon. According to the Longview Police Department and our news partner KETK, just after 4:00 p.m., officers were dispatched to a home on Crystal Street in response to a welfare check. Once they arrived on scene, authorities located Kathleen Bullock, who had been shot and was pronounced dead by the Gregg County Justice of the Peace.

Investigators later identified Lavan Bullock of Longview as the suspect. He was taken to a hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. Following medical treatment, Bullock was booked into the Gregg County Jail and charged with murder.

The department said the investigation remains active and no further details will be released.

LUFKIN – Lufkin ISD said Tuesday morning that an unloaded gun was brought into their middle school on Sept. 12. According to our news partner KETK, this made it the second gun-related episode that happened at their district that week. District officials released a statement Monday that a report was made to Lufkin Middle School administrators that an unloaded firearm was found on campus, Sept. 12. They added that the unloaded firearm was seen by more than one student.

The release also said, “This serves as a reminder that unauthorized possession of a firearm on campus is a serious crime, and Lufkin ISD will pursue all legal measures,” the district said. “Student safety is our top priority, and we urge parents and guardians to talk with their children about the importance of immediately reporting any safety concerns.”

This Sept. 12 incident comes just four days after a Lufkin High School student was removed from campus after an unloaded gun was found in a bathroom.

LUFKIN — The Texas Tribune reports that arapidly growing East Texas metro area is exploring new ways to ease congestion. Tyler and the surrounding area are home to about 250,000 people and counting. Fueled by a growing health care industry, nearly 2,000 people are moving to the region that includes Smith County each year. More people have meant more cars and traffic. Michael Howell, Tyler’s Metropolitan Planning Organization director, believes traffic will continue to increase, and he’d like to make Tyler more accessible. “How can you go somewhere and not have it be just you getting into a car? Because there is a finite amount of space, a finite amount of parking,” Howell asked. “There is a lot that could potentially be done, and that’s what we want to hear from everybody: If it were there, would you use it? And how would you use it?” A light rail system in a city like Tyler would be a significant shift, especially in a state known for its oil and gas industry and its historical prioritization of cars over public transit. Just this year, state lawmakers flirted with defunding light rail systems in Dallas and Houston. Continue reading Would light rail work in Tyler?

LONGVIEW – On Thursday, the Longview Police Department arrested 11 men for solicitation of a prostitute following a sting operation last week. According to our news partner KETK, last week, officers conducted a prostitution sting near the 1500 block of East Marshall Avenue. The men approached undercover female officers posing as prostitutes and agreed to exchange U.S. currency for sexual acts. James Russell, Michael Gentry, Angel Cheney, Armando Gonzales, Pablo Luna, Stefan Morrow, Jorge Real, David Grotheim, Mark Jones, Santos Morales-Villeda, and Gilberto Santana-Cruz were arrested and booked into the Gregg County Jail on solicitation of prostitution charges.

SMITH COUNTY – The Smith County Appraisal District is looking for a community representative to help with appraising property values in the county.

The district’s board of directors has a community representative that’s appointed by the Smith County Commissioners Court in order to speak for the community as the district determines who much value a given property can be taxed for. According to our news partner KETK the county’s current representative is Annie Dwyer and she’s moving out of Smith County so her seat will be vacant starting on Dec. 31. Applicants must reside in Smith County for at least two years in order to serve on the district’s board of directors.

The court is accepting applications until Monday, Sept. 29. To apply for the two-year community representative term that starts on Jan. 1, 2026, visit Smith County online.

TEXARKANA – A man was arrested on Sunday following a shooting in a Texarkana apartment complex according to our news partner KETK.

The Texarkana Police Department received calls on Sunday stating that a 34-year-old man had been shot at an apartment complex. Once officials arrived on the scene, they identified the suspect, who appeared to have sustained several gunshot wounds, and he was taken to a local hospital, where his condition was believed to be non-life-threatening. Following the shooting, officials identified 24-year-old Jack Nelson as the suspect. Officials went to Nelson’s home, but he was not there. They returned later that day after receiving a call from his family stating that he was home and willing to turn himself in.

Following his arrest, Nelson was booked into the Bi-State Jail and charged with aggravated assault. His bond has been set at $100,000.

LONGVIEW – A 24-year-old Lonestar man has been ordered to serve 10 years on probation in connection to a 2023 fatal crash that left a 23-year-old woman dead in Longview.

Hunter Tigert, 24 of Lone Star, was originally arrested for intoxication manslaughter in May of 2023 after the black Dodge Charger he was driving crashed in the 400 block of West Methvin Street, according to our news partner KETK. The Charger was carrying three passengers when Longview PD said the vehicle failed go through a curve in the roadway and crashed into a brick building. Longview 23-year-old Sydney Van Rijn was taken to a local hospital along with the two other passengers in the crash.

Rijn later died of her injuries at the hospital. Tigert was also injured in the crash and was arrested after being treated at a Longview hospital.

Tigert’s intoxication manslaughter charge was dismissed and he pleaded guilty to aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury on Sept. 22. Tigert was given deferred adjudication by 188th District Court Judge Scott Novy meaning that he’ll avoid a conviction if he doesn’t violate the terms of his 10-year probation sentence.

SULPHUR SPRINGS – The City of Sulphur Springs will soon be home to more than 1,600 acres of artificial intelligence data centers. According to our news partner KETK the centers will be run by the Florida-based tech company MSB Global.

MSB Global broke ground on their massive facility in June, they’re planning to construct 30 AI data center buildings by 2028. The new centers will host servers for AI training while also offering other resources like large language model training and cloud computing. The project has prompted growing concerns in Sulphur Springs with several local shop owners like Sharon Feldt saying they know very little about the data centers.

“I don’t know enough about what they are doing out there. I wish we had been able to vote on this,” Feldt said. Continue reading Concerns over planned AI data centers grow in Sulphur Springs

SMITH COUNTY – Our news partners at KETK report that American rapper Ricky Hampton, known as Finesse2tymes, was arrested on Friday evening along with Halie Buckingham following a concert performed in Smith County after illegal drugs were allegedly found inside their vehicle. According to an arrest affidavit, Hampton was seen driving a red Corvette and was pulled over by officials for not wearing a seatbelt while turning onto Claude Street in Tyler. During the stop, officers reported smelling marijuana and spotted a hand-rolled paper cigar in the ashtray. Continue reading Rapper Finesse2tymes arrested in Smith County

TROUP –On Friday, September 19, at approximately 11:45 am, UT Health EMS, Arp Fire, and ESD 2 responded to a medical assist call in the 19200 block of FM 345 near Troup. Once on scene, medical responders smelled a strong odor of feces with multiple kenneled and loose dogs. Smith County Deputies arrived due to the possibility of an animal cruelty case. The animal living conditions were checked and Smith County Investigators were called. It was found that none of the dogs had received care of any kind for at least twelve hours. It was determined that the dogs were not receiving adequate care, food, or water. Precinct 3 Justice of the Peace James Meredith was notified and subsequently signed an animal seizure warrant. Continue reading Animal cruelty case being investigated by Sheriff’s Office

TYLER — The Texas Opioid Abatement Fund Council has awarded more than $1.1 million in grants to East Texas organizations that are helping to fight the opioid epidemic. According to our news partner KETK, the grants are a part of $21.2 million in funds that the council distributed to organizations across the state. Officials called the statewide grants a milestone in the fight against opioid abuse.

“Today represents a significant milestone,” Texas Comptroller and council chair Kelly Hancock said on Sept. 17. “For the first time, the Council has awarded grants to communities in every region of our state. We look forward to seeing how these resources will change lives, as local organizations put them to work supporting individuals and families impacted by the opioid crisis across Texas.”

The following five East Texas organizations were awarded $1,198,845 in grants to help support their opioid recovery and treatment work: Continue reading East Texas organizations get $1.1M to fight opioid crisis