KTBB News, Weather, Talk

KILGORE — Officials say they have identified a suspect in a Kilgore homicide that happened almost a year ago. Investigators say they are not yet releasing the suspect’s name. Renee Garrett, 25, was found dead with a gunshot wound to her torso just after midnight on January 10 at an adult video store in the 1900 block of Industrial Avenue. Garrett worked at the store. In addition to the slaying, an unknown amount of money and a cash box were taken from the store in the attempted holdup, officials said. Kilgore police Lt. Roman Roberson said Wednesday that DNA evidence taken from the scene confirmed the identity of one of the three suspects who was involved in the robbery and homicide.

LONGVIEW — A man is losing his job as a Longview High School janitor after police arrested him Monday night. The arrest came after a mother said her 14-year-old son told her the 52-year-old man had been sexually assaulting the boy for more than a year.

The Longview school district announced Tuesday morning it will fire Bobby Ray Jackson and is reviewing the charge against him to determine whether further district action is warranted. District spokesman Adam Holland said Jackson was hired in 1996 and spent his entire career with the district at LHS.

Jackson was arrested shortly after 9:00 Monday. He is charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child and was held Tuesday morning on $100,000 bond.

The boy, whom police said is mentally disabled, told his mother he had been at Jackson’s apartment where Jackson had sexually assaulted him several times. The teen also said the abuse had been occurring for more than a year, whenever he ran away from home and visited Jackson. Those visits sometimes lasted two or three days, the report said. Officers first met with the teen at his home, which is about 10 blocks from Jackson’s residence, before accompanying him and his parents to a local hospital.

TYLER – All lanes of Tyler’s South Broadway reopened hours after a wreck yesterday morning in the 2100 block. Police say a vehicle hit a utility pole. The driver, Quinten Mackey, 39, Whitehouse, was not injured and was arrested for driving while intoxicated. According to KETK, jail records show he has been released from jail. The accident left utility poles in the roadway. Police Sgt. Jason Burton says ONCOR electric was called to the scene to clear the downed power lines. Travel was disrupted for about 8 hours.

MARSHALL – Marshall police continue their investigation into a fatal car-pedestrian accident. Laurie Ann Herz, 46, of Marshall, was hit by the car shortly after 6:00 last Friday evening. Herz later died at Shepherd Medical Center-Marshall. The car’s driver was uninjured. So far, no charges have been filed in the case.

WASKOM – A Harrison County man has died when the tree he was cutting fell on him. Dead at the scene last Thursday was Nathaniel Fletcher, 61. The accident happened at his home on Fox Hunting Road.

According to a news release from Harrison County Sheriff’s Office, Fletcher’s son called 911 and told dispatchers that he was inside when he heard what sounded like an explosion in his back yard. When he went into the yard, he found his father was lying under a burning tree that had been lit prior to being cut down. Deputies and firefighters were able to remove the tree from the victim, who appeared to have multiple lacerations, burns and broken legs.

WASHINGTON — The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has granted the request for a stay of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Cross-State Air Pollution Rule. It was scheduled to have gone into effect on January 1st. The court decided to stay the rule until it determines whether or not the rule is lawful.

Earlier this fall, Luminant and multiple other petitioners filed motions to stay the rule because of the irreparable harm it would cause to our company and others. Yesterday’s decision allows employees across Luminant’s system to continue working on important generation, mining and other operations. It also allows Luminant’s Monticello units 1 and 2 in Titus County to continue operating and providing needed generation for the Texas electric market.

The company said in a news release, it intends to continue closely evaluating business and operational decisions given that the stay does not invalidate the rule, but delays a decision on its implementation until a final court ruling is issued.

QUITMAN — A man shot last Friday in Wood County has died. Authorities identify the victim as Bruce Straub. According to KETK, Straub was reportedly shot in the head on County Road 2210 around 4:00 Friday afternoon. Officials say Straub was a passenger in a pickup traveling east on the road. The driver of the truck stopped at a flea market to place the 911 call. Straub was taken by emergency helicopter to East Texas Medical Center in Tyler. Officials say the suspect in the shooting is Joel David Head, 44, (pictured), who was taken into custody Friday on unrelated charges.

NACOGDOCHES — On the first day of his bench trial on the charge of injury to a child, Anthony Watts pleaded guilty to the first-degree felony. A bench trial occurs when a court case is tried in front of a judge rather than a jury. According to KETK and the Nacogdoches Daily Sentinel, Watts is accused of scalding his then-two-year-old son, ZaTaurean Pleasant, during a bath. There was an apparent malfunction with the heating unit at Watts’ apartment, which is why boiling water from the stove was added to the child’s bath, Nacogdoches Police Sgt. Greg Sowell has said. However, doctors believe the boiling water most likely was poured over the child’s head, according to Child Protective Services officials.

The guilty plea spurred the punishment phase of his trial to begin, but Nacogdoches County 420th District Judge Ed Klein had not made a finding of guilt at last report. “At this point, I’m withholding a finding of guilt solely due to a fact that one of the outcomes the defense is going to ask me to entertain would not be accomplished if there was a finding of guilt,” Klein said in court Tuesday.

Klein said one of outcomes the defense will seek is deferred adjudication. If the judge doesn’t make a finding of guilt, Watts has a punishment range from deferred adjudication to life in prison. With deferred adjudication, the judge does not find the defendant guilty, but instead defers the finding of guilt, leaving a conviction off the defendant’s record if the terms of probation are completed, according to Texas law. If the defendant violates the terms of probation, the defendant is then subject to the entire range of punishment for the original crime. The punishment phase continued today in Klein’s courtroom.

TYLER — According to witnesses, a “Meals on Wheels” volunteer is responsible for saving a woman from a two-alarm Tyler house fire Tuesday. A Meals on Wheels spokesperson tells KETK Mark Kempf entered the burning home and rescued a wheelchair-bound woman, Sylvia Parker. Kempf was delivering meals in the 2500 block of Northcrest Drive when he noticed smoke coming from the home at 2528 Northcrest. He saved Parker, and then called 911. The initial call was received shortly before 11:15 yesterday morning. The caller reported that there was a fire in a back bedroom and everyone was out of the house. The first arriving unit saw heavy black smoke coming from the house and called for a second alarm. The fire, which caused minimal damage, is still under investigation.

NACOGDOCHES — A Nacogdoches man is arrested New Year’s Day after causing injury to his son. According to KETK, Johnell Morgan, 62, reportedly cut his 21-year-old son after a heated argument over money. Police arrived at the North Street home, where they arrested Morgan. They then booked him into the county jail on felony assault charges. The son was treated at a local hospital for minor injuries.

LONGVIEW — Longview has recorded its first traffic death of the year. Killed was Patrick Alexander Ramey II, 23, of Longview. He was involved in a motorcycle accident shortly after 2:30 yesterday morning in the 61oo block of Tenneryville Road. When officers arrived they found Ramey lying on the ground under his motorcycle. Officers say it appears as if the motorcycle failed to negotiate a curve, left the roadway, and flipped several times before coming to rest in a wooded area. Ramey was pronounced dead at the scene.

RICHARDSON — The Handsome Guy Bandit, the armed man who police say has robbed more than a dozen North Texas banks, has been caught, officials said Tuesday morning. That’s according to KETK and their news partner NBC DFW. According to Richardson police, Steven Ray Milam, 44, of Tyler, was arrested in Jackson County, Miss., after a pursuit at about 10 a.m. Officers in Mississippi said the pursuit began after officers ran the vehicle’s license plate and determined the owner was a wanted man out of Texas. The driver refused to stop so Mississippi officers shot out his tire. Once the car rolled to a stop, officers said the driver of the car tried to consume a large amount of pills. Officers identified the driver as Milam and notified Richardson authorities. Milam is currently being treated for the ingestion of the pills.

Authorities have dubbed the robber the “Handsome Guy” bandit because he uses sophisticated Hollywood make-up style masks to cover his face. Milam is the owner of a discount funeral business called “Monumental Memorials.” On Monday, authorities searched his Tyler home in the 700 block of Hampton Hill. According to KETK-TV’s sister station, KXAS, Richardson Police have identified Milam as the suspect in a robbery last Saturday in Richardson. During that robbery, the suspect shot several times at police officers before escaping. Authorities are said to have recovered his detailed mask, clothes, gun and car.

WEST FARGO, N.D. (AP) – A North Dakota-based trucking business has been sold to a Texas holding company. Otter Tail Corp. says it has sold West Fargo-based E.W. Wylie Corp. to Dallas-based Walden Smokey Point Inc. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. E.W. Wylie will continue to be operated independently, with headquarters remaining in West Fargo. It has terminals in Denver and in Tyler, Texas, and specializes in moving such items as fabricated steel, farm machinery and construction equipment. It was founded in 1938. Walden’s operating company, Smokey Point Distributing, specializes in handling large, irregular and difficult-to-transport cargo, along with aerospace parts. It is based in a town just north of Seattle, with other terminals in California, Kansas and South Carolina. It has operated since 1979.

SMITH COUNTY — Smith County Fire officials are investigating a car fire in the Noonday area around 10:30 Monday night. Authorities say a 2000 Nissan SUV was on fire on County Road 1108, near Farm Road 2661. The vehicle was destroyed. No one was reported to be near the vehicle at the time of the fire. Investigators were able to run a license plate number and contacted the owner of the vehicle. The owner told officials she thought the SUV was in her driveway the whole time.

LONGVIEW — An early morning house fire Monday destroyed a Longview woman’s home and caused the death of several pets, Assistant Longview Fire Chief Curtis Shaw said. The fire started about 6:00 at a home in the 300 block of Berkley Street. The structure had significant damage and has been declared uninhabitable by the fire department, he said. Officials say the fire seems to have been started by a space heater. Apparently they had some clothing and other items too close to the heater and that caused the fire to ignite,” Shaw said.

TYLER — The number one New Year’s resolution is to lose weight and get into shape. So, according to KETK, gyms around Tyler are packed the first week in January. But some local fitness experts say those numbers dwindle fairly quickly as the month goes on. They say the best way to stick with working out is to not do it alone. People also tend to overestimate what they can do, thus running themselves into the ground. Experts say to set small, attainable goals, and then build on their fitness from there.

QUITMAN — A meth lab explosion in Wood County leads to an arrest and lands a person in a Dallas hospital. Just before 7:45 Saturday evening, the Wood County Sheriff’s Department was notified by ETMC Quitman that a 29-year- old woman had came in with severe burns from what she explained had been a meth lab explosion near her residence. The Wood County Sheriff’s Department later identified her as Shanda Gail Simmons, 29, from Quitman. Simmons had been dropped off by a boyfriend, Russell Allen Love.

Wood County Dispatchers contacted the City of Quitman Police Department to go by ETMC Quitman to get any further details. Quitman Police officer Fortner contacted the Wood County Sheriff’s Office and advised that the meth lab was in the county’s Clear Lakes section. Wood County deputies and Quitman police responded to County Road 2150 in Clear Lakes. On arrival Love was detained for further investigation and Love gave written consent to search the residence to the Wood County deputies, who reportedly found a working “shake and bake” meth lab in the kitchen. According to authorities, Wood County Narcotics Officers responded to the scene for processing and collected numerous items and drug paraphernalia along with two containers which tested positive for methamphetamine and weighed approximately 547 grams.

Love, 38, of Quitman was arrested for manufacturing/delivery of a controlled substance Penalty group 1 over 400 grams and is being held on a $75,000 bond. Shanda Simmons was transported to Parkland Hospital for treatment. Simmons’s condition is said to be fair at this time. Further investigation is ongoing.

LONGVIEW — Anyone looking to buy the former Longview High School and T.G. Field Auditorium at its $1.2 million appraised market value? According to KETK and the Longview News-Journal, Longview ISD is asking for about a 500% markup. The school district has placed several former school buildings up for sale, including T.G. Field and the old high school site near downtown. The district is seeking a $5 million minimum bid on the auditorium and former high school buildings, according to its notice of sale. The three tracts of land are collectively valued at $1.29 million by the Gregg County Appraisal District. The district also is asking for a minimum $75,000 bid on each of two tracts of land at the old Forest Park Middle School building and a minimum $30,000 bid on the former Valley View Elementary School property.

“Appraised value and market value are based on a set of third party theories, and market prices rarely match those appraisals,” district spokesman Adam Holland said. “Downtown is not what it was 25 years ago, when businesses were tripping over each other on their way to Loop 281. Before we set our price, we considered the recent improvements to downtown streets, the plan for a regional transportation hub and the eclectic variety of businesses that have relocated to and expanded in the area.”

The district is accepting sealed, written bids until 2:00pm on February 14 at the Education Service Center on Young Street. According to the Gregg County Appraisal District, the land and building of T.G. Field Auditorium carries a market value of $378,200. The 2.0455 acres of land are valued at $178,200, and the building is valued at $200,000. The old Longview High School land and building have a market value of $732,350. The 3.5788 acres of land are valued at $311,780, and the building is valued at $420,570, according to the appraisal district. Another tract of 0.3843 acres of land with a building is valued at $183,480 ($33,480 for the land and $150,000 for the building).

LONGVIEW — The Longview Salvation Army’s Red Kettle campaign ended with $107,429 for this Christmas season, a drop of more than $17,000 from its 2010 collections, Capt. Guy Watts, director of the local office, said. According to KETK and the Longview News-Journal, he said the financial flow has been better during the past couple of weeks. “At the halfway point we were drastically below what we’d been at during the same time in 2010. So we’re grateful to the generosity of the community in helping us to catch up to the point where we at least made it past the $100,000 mark,” Watts said. The Red Kettle program raised $124,500 in 2010. The program is the Salvation Army’s main source of fundraising and is used to provide food, shelter and other assistance throughout the year.

TYLER – A Tyler house has been destroyed by fire. It happened around 8:00 yesterday morning at 1514 Jeb Stuart Drive. KETK reports a woman heard popping noises and her dog barking, and then her smoke alarm went off. The fire originated in the garage in a breaker box. No one was injured.

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama and Congress are starting the new year locked in a politically charged dispute over a proposed 1,700-mile oil pipeline from Canada to Texas. Republicans and some unions say the Keystone XL pipeline, which would run through much of East Texas, including eastern Smith County, will create thousands of jobs. Environmentalists fear it could lead to an oil spill disaster. The pre-Christmas agreement between Obama and Congress temporarily extending the payroll tax cut included language compelling Obama to make a speedy decision on whether to build the pipeline. The administration says it would rather say “no” than rush a decision in an election year. The $7 billion pipeline poses a political trap for Obama because it divides his supporters. Environmentalists oppose the project while most labor unions support it. Republicans say Obama’s stance shows he favors environmentalists over jobs.

LONGVIEW — Funeral services are scheduled for Tuesday for Longview businessman and civic leader Gordon R. Lively Sr. Lively, who was 85, died Friday at his home of natural causes.

An outgoing man who kept quiet about his community contributions, Lively impacted Longview with less fanfare than might be expected from a successful auto dealer. “He did liven up lives for people,” attorney Jerry Harris said, referring as much to Lively’s spirited personality as the charity and community building work his friend quietly accomplished. “Whatever the environment, he added to it.”

Arriving in Longview in 1967 to buy the former Harris Olds Cadillac dealership on Green Street downtown, Lively soon added the GMC truck line to his sales floor. Within a few years, he moved his growing dealership across Marshall Avenue to the relatively uninhabited area, where it continues as a McCann Road mainstay.

Funeral service for Lively will be 2:30 Tuesday afternoon in Rosewood Park cemetery under direction of Rader Funeral Home of Longview. The family will receive condolence calls from 5:00 to 6:30 today at the Judson Road funeral home.

LONGVIEW – A Longview woman is facing multiple charges after being accused of ramming a state trooper’s car and trying to drive away. Arrested after the trooper shot out tires on her car was Eloise Knighton, 25. She has been charged with driving while intoxicated and evading arrest. The incident occurred over the weekend at the intersection of U.S. Highway 80 and Spur 63.

TYLER — In Smith County, TxDOT completed eight projects in 2011 worth a combined $13.5 million, including a pair of repair-and-resurfacing projects on Tyler’s Loop 323. Crews worked nights to repair and resurface Southwest Loop 323 between State Highway 155 and Copeland Road, and across town, put the finishing touches on a project to repair and resurface Northwest Loop 323 and add medians between State Highway 64 West and U.S. Highway 69 North.

“These were both big projects for us,” said TxDOT public information officer Larry Krantz. “Loop 323 is a major artery not only for Tyler, but for all of East Texas. Keeping it in good shape is one of our highest priorities.”

Crews also worked nights to resurface State Highway 110 between the Troup-and-the-Loop intersection on Southeast Loop 323 and State Highway 64 (Fifth Street) near Tyler’s hospital district, and spent the summer resurfacing Spur 147 (Gentry Parkway) in North Tyler in a project that also saw planter boxes added at signalized intersections.

“It was a busy summer in Tyler,” Krantz said. “And we got a lot of good work done.” Around the rest of Smith County, crews completed a resurfacing project on Farm Road 756 (Paluxy Drive) south of Tyler, added shoulders to Farm Road 344 through Bullard, added shoulders to Farm Road 14 between North Loop 323 and Interstate Highway 20, and upgraded safety features like guardrail on Farm Road 16 between State Highway 155 in Winona and U.S. Highway 271.

Even with all those projects in the past, plenty of work remains ongoing, including two projects on Toll 49 which, when completed, will connect State Highway 110 in Whitehouse with State Highway 31 west of Tyler by the end of 2012. A third project on Toll 49, which will connect State Highway 31 west of Tyler with Interstate Highway 20 is being built under the direction of the North East Texas Regional Mobility Authority. That project is scheduled for completion in 2013.

Other project under way in Smith County include:
*FM 757, FM 1252, FM 2015 — Adding shoulders to FM 757 between IH 20 and FM 2767; to FM 1252 between SCR 3104 and the Gregg County Line; and to FM 2015 between IH 20 and US 271. The approximate $2.7 million project let in June and began August 29. The project is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2012. Madden Contracting, Inc., of Minden, La., is the contractor.
*FM 2767 — Repair, add shoulders and resurface between FM 757 and SH 31 near Country Tavern in Gregg County, and adding centerline rumble strips between FM 850 and SH 31 in Gregg County. The approximate $4 million project let in June 2011, began in October, and is scheduled for completion in June 2012. A.L. Helmcamp, Inc., of Buffalo, Texas, is the contractor.
*SH 110, FM 1253 — Adding shoulders to SH 110 between FM 1253 and Interstate 20, and adding centerline rumble strips on SH 110 between the Van Zandt County Line and Loop 323 in Tyler. Adding shoulders to FM 1253 between US 80 and FM 857. The approximate $1.4 million project let in June 2011, began in August, and is scheduled for completion in spring 2012. A.L. Helmcamp, Inc., of Buffalo, Texas, is the contractor.

Looking ahead, TxDOT has another resurfacing job planned for Loop 323, this time between SH 155 and Bellwood Road near the railroad overpass. The estimated $2.7 million project is scheduled to let in this month and begin construction in the late spring or early summer.

Also coming in 2012:
*Interstate 20, Spring 2012 — Repair and resurface Interstate 20 between the Smith/Van Zandt County Line and US 69 in Lindale. The estimated $2 million project is scheduled to let in February 2012 and begin construction in the spring.
*FM 16, Spring 2012 — Repair and resurface and add centerline rumble strips to FM 16 between SH 110 and SH 155, add shoulders between FM 1253 and FM 757. The estimated $7.3 million project is scheduled to let in February 2012 and begin construction in the late spring or early summer.

Smith County At-A-Glance
Projects completed in 2011:
*FM 14 — Adding shoulders to FM 14 between IH 20 and North Loop 323 in Tyler. The $1.5 million project was completed in the spring of 2011.
*West Loop 323 — Install raised medians and resurface between SH 64 (West Erwin Street) and US 69 north. The $5.4 million project was completed in the spring of 2011.
*FM 16 — Upgrading bridge rail, guardrail and safety end treatments for culverts on FM 16 between SH 155 in Winona and US 271. The $596,000 project was completed in the spring of 2011.
*Spur 147 — Green Ribbon landscaping project adding decorative traffic islands and shrubbery at various intersections along Spur 147 in Tyler. Also includes resurfacing on Spur 147 between West Loop 323 and FM 14. The $1.5 million project was completed in the fall of 2011.
*FM 344 — Resurfacing and adding shoulders to FM 344 between US 69 in Bullard and FM 346 in Teaselville. The estimated $2.2 million project was completed in the summer of 2011.
*SW Loop 323 — Nighttime resurfacing between SH 155 and South Broadway Avenue. The $1.3 million project was completed in the summer of 2011.
*SH 110 — Resurfacing in Tyler between 5th Street and South Loop 323. The approximate $692,000 project was completed in the summer of 2011.
*FM 756 (Paluxy Drive) — Nighttime resurfacing between Jeff Davis and FM 346 south of Tyler. The approximate $267,000 project was completed in the summer of 2011.

Projects under construction:
*Toll 49, Segment 3A — Building two-lane toll road between SH 155 and SH 31 west of Tyler. The $38 million project broke ground in August 2009 and is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2012. Longview Bridge and Road, Ltd. of Longview, Texas is the contractor.
*Toll 49, Segment 5 — Construct two-lane toll road between FM 756 (Paluxy Drive) and SH 110 in Whitehouse. The approximate $16 million project broke ground in February 2010 and is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2012. Longview Bridge and Road, Ltd. of Longview, Texas is the contractor.
*FM 757, FM 1252, FM 2015 — Adding shoulders to FM 757 between IH 20 and FM 2767; to FM 1252 between SCR 3104 and the Gregg County Line; and to FM 2015 between IH 20 and US 271. The approximate $2.7 million project let in June and began August 29. The project is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2012. Madden Contracting, Inc., of Minden, La., is the contractor.
*FM 2767 — Repair, add shoulders and resurface between FM 757 and SH 31 near Country Tavern in Gregg County, and adding centerline rumble strips between FM 850 and SH 31 in Gregg County. The approximate $4 million project let in June 2011, began in October, and is scheduled for completion in June 2012. A.L. Helmcamp, Inc., of Buffalo, Texas, is the contractor.
*SH 110, FM 1253 — Adding shoulders to SH 110 between FM 1253 and Interstate 20, and adding centerline rumble strips on SH 110 between the Van Zandt County Line and Loop 323 in Tyler. Adding shoulders to FM 1253 between US 80 and FM 857. The approximate $1.4 million project let in June 2011, began in August, and is scheduled for completion in spring 2012. A.L. Helmcamp, Inc., of Buffalo, Texas, is the contractor.

Projects planned for 2012:
*Loop 323, Spring 2012 — Repair and resurface Loop 323 in Tyler between SH 155 and Bellwood. The estimated $2.7 million project is scheduled to let in January 2012 and begin construction in the late spring or early summer.
*Interstate 20, Spring 2012 — Repair and resurface Interstate 20 between the Smith/Van Zandt County Line and US 69 in Lindale. The estimated $2 million project is scheduled to let in February 2012 and begin construction in the spring.
*FM 16, Spring 2012 — Repair and resurface and add centerline rumble strips to FM 16 between SH 110 and SH 155, add shoulders between FM 1253 and FM 757. The estimated $7.3 million project is scheduled to let in February 2012 and begin construction in the late spring or early summer.

2012 Seal Coat Roads (work to be done between May and August)
*FM 346 between SH 110 in Whitehouse and SH 110 in Troup;
*FM 346 between FM 344 in Teaselville and FM 2868 in Flint;
*FM 2964 (Rhone’s Quarter Road) between SH 110 in Tyler and FM 346 in Whitehouse;
*SH 57 (West Grande Extension) between SH 155 (Frankston Highway) and FM 2493 (Old Jacksonville Highway)

JACKSONVILLE — Jacksonville animal control officers are looking for a feral pit bull that is part of a pack that attempted to attack a 3-year-old girl on Harrison Street. The feral dogs roam neighborhoods and wooded areas between Monroe Street and U.S. Highway 175. Suzie Clements, the animal control officer for Jacksonville Police Department, said officials have been chasing this particular pack of dogs for several years. She said once the dogs see members in traps, they relocate and they know what her truck looks like. Originally the pack had seven members, but she believes now there is only one left. “When they see their cohorts in the traps, they leave and we have to wait until we see them again,” she said. She said the dogs are well-known in the neighborhood, and generally just a nuisance to residents by getting into their trash, eating their dog food, and attacking goats or other animals. But on Wednesday, the group came out of the woods to attack a small girl riding her three-wheeler. Luckily, the girl’s grandfather was able to scare them off.

JACKSONVILLE — A Jacksonville man crashed a car into a telephone pole trying to evade police. Jacksonville Police Sgt. Jason Price said the department received a frantic 911 call from a woman concerning someone attempting to break into her home on John Street in Jacksonville. Patrol officer Doug Yount responded to the call. Once there, he saw the suspect, Paul Taylor, 53, of Jacksonville fleeing the scene. Price said Yount told the man to stop, and when he did not the officer called for backup. Police say a high speed chase through town ended when Taylor struck a telephone pole. Taylor was injured in the crash. He was taken to East Texas Medical Center in Jacksonville where he is listed in fair condition. He’s faced with two possible felonies.

TYLER — Tyler Police respond to a report of shots fired in the 1500 block of Dargan Avenue. It happened just after 3:00 Sunday morning. Authorities say they had initially received information that a man had been shot but officers found only gunshot holes along the front of the residence. Several bullets entered the living room area. No injuries were reported. The resident was unable to provide any suspect information. Anyone with information is asked to contact Tyler Police.

ANNONA (AP) — Texas authorities say they mistakenly identified the son of the late NWA frontman Eazy-E as one of eight people killed in a two-car collision in Red River County. Department of Public Safety Trooper Ryan Case said Saturday that Eric Wright Jr.’s name was on a rental agreement for one of the cars that collided Friday in East Texas. He says Wright was mistakenly listed as killed but actually was not involved in the wreck. Wright, who raps under the stage name is Lil’ Eazy-E, posted on Twitter that close friends died. Those killed in the rental car were: Debra Thompson of Long Beach, Calif.; and Curtis Sanders, Michael Mathis, Lawrence Bridnac III, of Compton, Calif. Those killed in the other car were Sonia de la Torre, 29, of Annona, and her three young children.

TYLER — Tyler Police are investigating an aggravated assault after a report of multiple gunshots being fired. It happened around just before 2:00 Saturday morning at the Wild Bunch Club, 1714 North Palace. Officers say one person had been shot outside of the club. The victim was identified as Odis Bagley, 61. He suffered a gunshot wound to his arm and was taken to East Texas Medical Center for treatment. Investigators said witnesses were unable to describe a suspect. Anyone with information about the suspect involved is urged to contact the Tyler Police Department, at 903-531-1000 or Crimestoppers, at 903-597-CUFF.

LUFKIN — A Lufkin woman pulled over for traffic warrants was arrested after officers found a marijuana pipe with her name on it. A search of Lisa Dugat’s vehicle uncovered a plastic pipe smelling of burnt marijuana with a printed label that read “LISA DUGAT.” She was taken in on the traffic warrants and her vehicle towed for no insurance. She was also issued a citation for possession of drug paraphernalia. She was released from the Angelina County Jail after posting bonds totaling $2,500.