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KILGORE — Twenty-two students will graduate from the Kilgore College Fire Academy No. 78. The ceremony is set for 6:30 tonight in the Bert E. Woodruff Adult Education Center Auditorium in Kilgore.

The academy is accredited by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection and the State Firemen and Fire Marshal’s Association and approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The academy offers certification schools for NFPA 1001 Basic Structural Firefighter I and II certification, the Texas Volunteer certification, Fire Inspector and Fire and Arson Investigation courses. It is also a designated institution by the Canadian Province of British Columbia.

The following candidates, listed by hometown, are part of KC Fire Academy No. 78:

Abbotsford, B.C.: Levi deJong
Anaheim, Calif.: Jason Berglund
Arp: Stephen Sarica
Conroe: Alan G. Johnson
Dallas: Mike Angell and Ian Evans
Forney: Randall Morris
Gilmer: Jared Bryant and Brunson Lee
Jacksonville: Zac Vining
Kilgore: Charles Maxwell
Longview: Roman Quinn
Overton: Havon J. Russell
Rusk: Thomas Adams
Summerland, B.C.: Philip Marischuk
Sunshine Coast, B.C.: Michael Ondzik
Surrey, B.C.: Russell Dupas
Tyler: Jesse Hall, Jordan Hicks and Michael Stroud
Vancouver, B.C.: Matthew Ward
Whitehouse: Jeremy Spencer

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture designates nine East Texas counties and most of Louisiana as a natural disaster area for crop losses from continuing drought that began March 23. The Texas counties are Cass, Harrison, Jefferson, Marion, Newton, Orange, Panola, Sabine and Shelby.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says drought has severely damaged corn, cotton, rice, soybeans, sweet potatoes, forage and pasture. The department announced Wednesday that 36 north, central and southwest parishes were designated primary disaster areas on Tuesday. Another six parishes, four from Evangeline east to West Feliciana, plus Lafayette and Iberia parishes, are secondary disaster areas because they border the primary area. So are six counties each in Arkansas and Mississippi, plus nine in Texas. Farmers in both primary and contiguous parishes have eight months to apply for low-interest emergency loans from the Farm Service Agency.

TYLER — City of Tyler crews spent last week and the first part of this week decorating downtown with thousands of Christmas lights in time for the 25th Annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony. Now it’s almost here, with the lighting to be held on the T.B. Butler Fountain Plaza following the Jaycees Christmas Parade scheduled for 6:00 this evening. The centerpiece of the ceremony, a 29-foot Leyland Cypress donated by Jackie and Debbie Merket of Merket Christmas Tree Farm in Beckville, has been covered in more than 8,000 lights. The tree will be lit by 21-month-old Faith Wilson who was named the 2011 Miracle Child, representing the Children’s Miracle Network at Trinity Mother Frances Hospitals and Clinics.

TYLER — Authorities say Tyler dentist Charles Robinson has admitted to secretly videotaping a 40-year-old woman and her 15-year-old daughter for the past 3 years. According to KETK, Sheriff J.B. Smith says cameras were found inside the woman’s home after she called deputies. They say they were focused in both the bedrooms and bathrooms of the woman and her daughter, who rented from Robinson. The names of the victims have not yet been released. Robinson has been charged with possesion of child pornography, a third-degree felony, and improper visual recording, which is a state jail felony. His bond totals $250,000.

LONGVIEW — City Manager David Willard will recommend to City Council the selection of Don Dingler as Chief of the Longview Police Department. Currently the Assistant Chief, Dingler has served in a variety of capacities during his 37 years in the Longview Police Department. Mr. Willard’s recommendation will be presented to City Council during the regularly scheduled council meeting on Thursday, December 9. If approved, Assistant Chief Dingler would become Police Chief at the end of January 2011 following the retirement of Chief J.B. McCaleb. According to Willard, “Chief Dingler is an example of a true public servant, and he is someone that has the experience and knowledge to continue moving the department forward. I believe Chief Dingler will be an excellent leader for the Longview Police Department.”

Regarding his recommendation, Dingler stated, “I am looking forward to the opportunity to serve as the next Police Chief of the Longview Police Department and eager to continue moving ahead with programs such as the Police Area Representatives and Community Policing. Both of these programs involve a partnership with the public, and we will continue to pursue a positive relationship with the citizens of Longview. I appreciate the support of City Manager David Willard, Chief McCaleb, and members of the department. I will ensure that the Longview Police Department will maintain the status as a ‘Recognized Law Enforcement Agency’ in the State of Texas.” After serving as police chief since 2003, McCaleb announced in September that he would be retiring in January.

TYLER – It’s been a busy week in Tyler federal court for cases involving methamphetamine and pseudoephedrine — and the activity continued Thursday. 29-year-old Leslie Dewayne Butler of Longview has now been sentenced to 70 months in prison after he pleaded guilty on July 20 to possession of pseudoephedrine with the intent to manufacture methamphetamine. According to information presented in court, on Jan. 10, 2009, Butler purchased cold pills containing pseudoephedrine at a Walgreens in Longview in addition to making four other purchases that same day at other stores in the area, as well as numerous other purchases at other stores on other days, all in furtherance of his methamphetamine manufacturing activities.

A federal grand jury returned a 256-count indicted on Feb. 2, 2010 charging Butler and others with federal drug violations. Co-defendants Shannon Sue Guess, Jeremy Kristopher Ivie, and Christy Renee Tull were sentenced to federal prison on Dec. 1; co-defendant, Michael Lewis Galyean was sentenced November 30. In another case involving the same charges, Randy Jess Coleman and Jerry Lee Nations, both of Beckville, were given prison sentences. All the sentences were handed down by U.S. District Judge Michael Schneider.

TYLER — KTBB Syndicated radio talk show host Glenn Beck called into KTBB Wednesday morning to speak about his book, Broke. Beck said, “Yes, our country is financially broke, but that’s just a side effect of our broken spirit, our broken faith in government, the broken promises by our leaders, and a broken political system that has centralized power at the expense of individual rights.”

Beck said, there’s a lot of work ahead, but we can’t move forward until we first understand how we got here. Starting with the American Revolution. Beck says we are entering a time where people are calling for a revolution, a real revolution and destroying of the nation along with capitalist system. Beck says an example of that would be with Wikileaks. He states that it was leaked to cause such a colossal loss of faith in the American system, that it can’t function anymore, so people will call for a new American system.

Beck went on to say that this is a Republican and Democratic issue and not just one. Beck said it’s not just Obama, he didn’t start it but he is finishing the job. Beck says “Broke” provides the hope that comes with knowing the truth. He will be in Dallas Saturday with Bill O’Reilly for their Bold & Fresh tour.

PALESTINE — A 21-year-old Palestine man is free on bond after allegedly striking his 77-year-old grandmother with a closed fist. Justin Allen Rose, 21, of Palestine was arrested Wednesday in the parking lot of Wal-Mart Supercenter on South Loop 256 in Palestine on the felony charge of injury to the elderly, according to local police. The 77-year-old woman told Palestine police officer Ricky Welch that she was assaulted by her grandson while they were in a vehicle inside the Palestine city limits. Police say the victim reported she was struck in the right arm by her grandson with a closed fist which caused severe physical pain.

The victim further reported having recent neck surgery and expressed concern that she might have also sustained injury to that area of her body, according to police. Officers later located Rose in the Wal-Mart parking lot and placed him under arrest, according to police. Records showed that Rose was released from the Anderson County Jail Thursday after posting a $15,000 bond.

LUFKIN — The 6-month-old boy injured in the care of a baby sitter Nov. 18 has died, according to Lufkin Police. The child died at Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston Nov. 24. Following the accident, he was taken by his mother to Memorial Medical Center-Lufkin with bleeding on the brain and a possible neck fracture, and was airlifted to Houston the same evening.

The baby sitter told police the child rolled off a bed onto a concrete floor when he was left unattended for a short time while she rushed to check on another crying child. No criminal charges have been filed in the case, according to Lufkin Police. The case is under investigation.

TYLER — A man who was scheduled to be retried on charges of engaging in organized criminal activity has pleaded guilty. State District Judge Jack Skeen Tuesday sentenced Demichael Rashad Jackson, 20, of Tyler, to 20 years in prison. The self-proclaimed gang leader was sentenced to prison in prison in February of last year. That conviction was overturned by the 1st Court of Criminal Appeals in Houston. But Tuesday, before his retrial started, Jackson pleaded guilty.

LUFKIN — A prank call has resulted in a prison term for an Angelina County man. James Tyler Markle, 20, of Diboll, was handed a five year prison sentence Tuesday. State District Judge Barry Bryan said he may consider granting shock probation.

In June of last year, Markle admitted calling a Lufkin McDonald’s Restaurant and telling the employee to “test the fire suppression system.” He also told them to spray the fire extinguisher on a kitchen grill and break out windows. The employee did as was instructed. It cost $5,000 to clean up the damage. Besides the prison term Markle was also ordered to pay restitution to the restaurant and the Lufkin Fire Department.

EMORY — A plane attempting to land on a private airstrip in Rains County has crashed, killing the pilot — a leading citizen in the area. Killed in the crash around 2:00 Tuesday afternoon was John Armstrong, 80, of Emory. Armstrong was the former president at the First National Bank of Emory and the First National Bank of Bonham. He had also served on the Board of Regents at Texas A&M-Commerce. Witnesses say as the plane was coming in for a landing it flipped over on its top and caught fire. The accident happened off Highway 19, about two miles north of Emory. Officials from the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.

TYLER — A trial slated for December 9 is canceled in a lawsuit filed by Tyler-based Texas Spine and Joint Hospital and Physician Hospitals of America. Instead, federal judge Michael Schneider will issue an opinion based on information already gathered. The plaintiffs are challenging a provision of the new health care reform law that curbs development of physician-owned hospitals. The court found that the provision is retroactive but not unconstitutional, and plaintiffs await the explanation to be offered in the opinion. Plaintiffs’ lead counsel Scott Oostdyk says the Supreme Court has always highly disfavored retroactive laws. Oostdyk says the opinion may be issued before Christmas, but possibly not till next year.

The provision in question, Section 6001, prohibits physician-owned Medicare hospitals from expanding after March 23, 2010 and bans construction of any new physician-owned Medicare hospitals that are not Medicare certified prior to December 31, 2010. For TSJH, the issue is a planned $27 million expansion of its existing facility that was well underway at the time of the passage of the PPACA. “We were in the middle of a multi-million dollar expansion project when the bill passed and, like so many other physician-owned hospitals, we were forced to stop immediately,” Tony Wahl, TSJH CEO, noted.

TYLER — This year’s “Miracle Child” representing the Children’s Miracle Network at Trinity Mother Frances Hospitals and Clinics is 21-month-old Faith Wilson, daughter of Sarah and Chuck Wilson of Van. Faith will light the City of Tyler Christmas tree tomorrow night following the city’s annual downtown Christmas parade.

Faith is the youngest patient to be diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes by Dr. Luis Casas, a Trinity Clinic pediatric endocrinologist. Last fall, after suffering from flu-like symptoms for several days, Faith continued to get sicker. Sarah Wilson took her daughter to the Children’s Center at Mother Frances Hospital on the recommendation of her pediatrician. After several hours of tests, it was determined that Faith was in severe diabetic ketoacidosis and very, very ill. Dr. Casas stayed with Faith in her hospital room that night monitoring her blood sugar and adjusting her insulin. He believed that Faith would have died if she had gone undiagnosed for a few more hours.

Before Faith learned to walk, she learned to endure 18 finger pokes a day. She learned to be brave through her insulin shots before she could even say the word “shot.” Managing Faith’s care is a constant battle. Until there’s a cure, Trinity Mother Frances officials say, they don’t really ever know what tomorrow holds. According to Dr. Casas, being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at such a young age is very rare and presents numerous challenges. According to Trinity Mother Frances officials, “Faith is a true miracle in every sense of the word. It is a privilege to provide her care right here close to home so that she and her family can enjoy life to its fullest.” To learn more about how you can help East Texas children like Faith Wilson, you’re asked to call Robin Rowan, Director, Children’s Miracle Network, at (903) 531-5437.

TYLER — The East Texas Area Council, Boy Scouts of America, will present Congressman Louie Gohmert with the Distinguished Citizen Good Turn Award at a luncheon in his honor to be held on Monday, December 13. The event will take place at Green Acres Baptist Church Crosswalk Conference Center, Tyler, from 11:30 am until 1:00 pm. Souting officials say the Award is given annually to an individual or couple who have made a significant impact toward enriching the way of life in East Texas. Congressman Gohmert, an Eagle Scout, has served the citizens of the First District of Texas in the United States House of Representatives since January 2005.

Past recipients of the Distinguished Citizen Good Turn Award include Bruce Brookshire, Lonnie “Bo” Pilgrim, Jeff Austin, Sr., Eugene Brookshire, C.C. Baker, Jr., Herbert Buie, Congressman Ralph Hall, Douglas V. Smith, B.G. Hartley, Lindsey Bradley, Dr. Peggy and Howard Coghlan, Governor Rick and Anita Perry, Linda Ryan Thomas, Betsy and Elmer Ellis, Carolyn and Michael Northcutt, Sheriff J. B. Smith, Judge Bill Stoudt, Harold Beaird, and Sandi and Dr. Bill Taylor. Sponsorships and individual tickets are available for the luncheon. For more information, call the East Texas Area Council BSA office at 903-597-7201.