KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER – A Smith County Sheriff’s deputy has been injured and a suspect officers have been chasing has been arrested. The chase started around 3:00 Sunday morning on North Loop 323 and County Road 35. The chase hit speeds up to 105 miles an hour, and the suspect even turned off his lights as he drove along County Road 492. On County Road 489, the suspect’s vehicle collided with another deputy’s vehicle. Sheriff Larry Smith says the patrol unit appeared to have been intentionally rammed by the suspect, identified as Dabrett Black, 32, of Lindale. The deputy was treated and released from a Tyler hospital. Black was charged with evading arrest, aggravated assault on a public servant and reckless driving. He remains in the Smith County Jail.

TYLER – Here’s a look at work planned in the district during the Week of July 3rd. These schedules are subject to change due to weather conditions, equipment failure or other unforeseen issues.

Due to the high volume of traffic during the holiday, TxDOT-Tyler will not allow lane closures on its construction and maintenance projects through Tuesday, July 4. Work will resume Wednesday, July 5.

In Smith County, spot repair operations continue Thursday, July 6, on I-20 at various entrance and exit ramps as well as some mainlane locations. Expect lane closures at all work locations. Once completed, operations move to Van Zandt County. Continue reading TxDOT Road Projects Update

EAST TEXAS – Strong thunderstorms moved through East Texas Saturday, knocking trees and disrupting power. At one time, over 22,000 people were without electricity. Hardest hit appears to be the Longview area where over 14,000 were without power. In the Marshall area, the figure was put at 2,500. In the Tyler area, around 1,700 people were without power.

PALESTINE – An arrest has been made in the murder of 46 year old Ricki Deann Taylor of Palestine. The police department, on their Facebook page, announced they have arrested her ex-husband, Andrew Glenn Taylor, 50, and charged him with murder. He is currently in the Anderson County Jail under a $1 million bond. Detectives got a search warrant for Taylor on Friday and he was arrested, without incident, at his home on Magnolia Street. The body of the woman was found Friday night, June 23rd, in a remote location between Grapeland and Latexo in Houston County. She was last seen last Wednesday night, June 21th, and reported missing the following day. Her blue Ford pickup was found in Willie Myers Park in Palestine. The autopsy report said she died from a gunshot wound to the head.

TYLER – A lone gunman has robbed a Tyler business. It happened around 3:00 Friday morning at the Exxon station on the North Northeast Loop. The station employee said a man with a handgun entered the store and escaped in an unknown direction with an undisclosed amount of money. He is described as being possibly a Hispanic male with a dark beard. He was wearing a Black hat, a black jacket, and black pants. No injuries were reported.

LONGVIEW – Eight Longview retailers have been issued citations for selling tobacco to minors. The citations came during and undercover sting operation on Friday. Police officers, along with juveniles under 18 years of age entered 32 Longview stores. On their Facebook page, Longview police say they encourage you to educate your children and employees of the dangers and consequences of using and selling tobacco products to minors. Continue reading Citations Issued in Longview Tobacco Sting Operation

TYLER – An East Texas man has been served with a warrant in his Tyler hospital room in connection with an officer involved shooting on June 17th. Kenneth Alan Carner, of LaRue, has been charged with aggravated assault on a public servant. Once released from the hospital will be taken to the Smith County Jail. He was shot by sheriff’s deputy Lauren Fite following a traffic stop on County Road 35, also known as Lavender Road. Continue reading Man Charged in Officer Involved Shooting

NACOGDOCHES – Two persons are in custody for sexual assault of a child, and one of them is the victim’s mother. Arrested were Noemi Saenz and Leonel Hernandez. The victim, who was under 14, told family members about the incident, who them reported it to authorities. After an interview with the youngster, a warrant was obtained for Hernandez. When investigators learned the mother was a witness to the sexual assault and did not report it, she was arrested. While Hernandez was charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child, the youngster’s mother has been charged with failure to stop or report an aggravated sexual assault, a class A misdemeanor. Both have been booked at the Nacogdoches County Jail.

KILGORE – With the approval of the school’s trustees, there will be a new director of the Kilgore College Fire Academy. Trustees are being asked to name Michael D Simmons to the post. He would replace Ronnie Gothard who retired at the end of May after serving as the director of the Fire Academy for more than 10 years. Simmons is currently the Assistant Chief of Operations at the Kilgore Fire Department, a position he has held since 2012. He also serves as coordinator of the City of Kilgore Emergency Management and is on the board of directors of the Texas Association of Fire Educators. Simmons will become full-time at the college in November, but is scheduled to be on campus each week until then to oversee the academy. Continue reading New Leadership for the Kilgore College Fire Academy

LONGVIEW – Two women have been arrested by Longview police for prostitution during a sting operation. The undercover operation occurred Thursday. Records indicate the two agreed to engage in sexual conduct with an undercover officer. Arrested were Penny Ann White, 37, (pictured) and Shawntell Aimie Wion, 27, both of Longview. Both were charged with Prostitution, previous conviction and booked into the Gregg County Jail.

There is a new leader today at CHRISTUS Health. Named as Senior Vice President of Group Operations for CHRISTUS Health is Chris Glenney. He also becomes Chief Executive Officer of CHRISTUS Health Northeast Texas. Glenney has been with the health care system since 1998. In in new position, he is succeding Lindsey Bradley, who has retired after 36 years in the health care industry. Continue reading A Promotion at CHRISTUS Health

TYLER – Law enforcement agencies in Northeast Texas will be out in force over the 4th of July weekend, trying to make your holiday a safe one. State troopers will be highly visible over the Independence Day weekend. Tyler police, with the help of a state grant, will have extra patrols on the street, looking for DWI motorists. Tyler police along with Smith County law enforcement agencies will be out in force for another ‘No-Refusal’ DWI campaign. If a suspected drunk driver refuses a breath test or blood test, a search warrant will be obtained and blood will be drawn by a nurse at the Smith County Jail. Tyler police spokesman Don Martin says this program has proven to be an effective tool to combat drunken drivers. Continue reading Efforts to Make Your Holiday a Safe One

KILGORE — A Kilgore woman has been indicted on two felony counts of aggravated kidnapping of a Kilgore College Rangerette. Police said Nancy Alice Motes, 57, kidnapped Alexa Blair, 19, at gunpoint from Blair’s home on Airline Drive in Longview. She was reportedly choked until she passed out and later was tied up in a storage building in Rusk County. Blair was able to escape and call police. Blair’s mother, Rangerettes Director Dana Blair, was at home at the time of the kidnapping and was bound by Motes. Authorities have declined to discuss possible motives for the kidnapping.

KILGORE – The Kilgore College administration, through routine internal processes, has found some money missing from the institution. Currently, the figure appears to be less than $6,000. The college police department is working in consultation with the Gregg County District Attorney’s Office and an external auditor to fully investigate the issue. An employee was terminated in late May as a result of the initial discovery. School president Dr. Brenda Kays said in a news release, “Certain matters are still under investigation and it would not be appropriate to comment further until those inquiries are complete.”

LINDALE — Authorities have released the name of the woman killed in a fire near Lindale. She is Bettie Lloyd, 78. Her dog also died in that blaze on County Road 4119 in the Lindale area around 5:00 Wednesday afternoon. The cause of the fire is yet to be determined.

PALESTINE – A member of the Smith County Sheriff’s Department is a finalist to become Palestine’s police chief. Sgt Darrell Colsin is one of four persons in the running for the Palestine post. With over 32 years of law enforcement experience, St. Colsin is the Public Information Officer and administrative supervisor for the Smith County Sheriff’s Office. A certified master peace officer, Coslin attended McNeese State University and Navarro College. Continue reading Smith County Deputy Could be Palestine’s New Police Chief

HARLETON – A Hallsville man has been charged in an accident near Harleton that killed a Gladewater teenager. Melvin Bradshaw, 24, is facing a variety of charges in the crash. Shortly after 12:45 Thursday morning, Brahshaw’s vehicle left County Road 4310 and crashed into a tree. Dead at the scene was 17 year old Bobbie Renee Burke. Brandshaw and two other persons in the vehicle were injured. Brandshaw was arrested Thursday and charged with intoxication manslaughter with a vehicle, intoxication assault with a vehicle causing serious bodily injury, driving with an invalid license with previous conviction and traveling at an unsafe speed.

HENDERSON – Nearly four dozen animals have been seized from property near Henderson. The SPCA of Texas along with the Rusk County Sheriff’s Department seized the 46 animals earlier this week. There were 28 dogs, nine kittens, six puppies, two cats and one turtle. Investigators also found multiple remains of deceased dogs. The animals were taken to a rescue center in Dallas. A custody hearing for the animals has been scheduled in Henderson on July 6th. Continue reading Animals Seized From Rusk County Property

AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott is applauding a local state senator over a piece of legislation coming up in the special session July 18th. He is saluting Senator Bryan Hughes, of Mineola, a co-author of legislation that prohibits both state and local governments from deducting union dues from public employees paychecks. This issue was one of the 20 items the governor previously announced will be added to the special session agenda. He thanked him for the work on behalf of Texas taxpayers. The governor has said that Texas taxpayers should not be on the hook for collecting union dues.

AUSTIN – A recent Texas Parks and Wildlife Department law enforcement report shows some area fishermen were usinging their hands, and not their heads. A Smith County game warden was patrolling from his truck around Lake Palestine when he noticed a group of fishermen pull up to a known catfish noodling spot. Noodling is catching catfish with your hands. After watching the group for some time, the warden noticed an illegal fishing device was being used to snag fish. The warden confronted the group, seized the illegal device and issued multiple citations for violation of hand fishing laws, no fishing licenses and other water safety violations. No names were mentioned in the report.

AUSTIN – An Anderson County man has been arrested on child pornography charges. The Child Exploitation Unit of the state attorney general’s office has arrested John Aaron Burney, 43, of Palestine. The arrest follows a CyberTipline report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. When investigators executed a search warrant at Burney’s residence, they found child pornography on his cell phone. They also seized seized additional digital storage devices for examination. Burney, who could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted, was booked into the Anderson County Jail.

TYLER- Tyler police are looking for several suspects who frequent the Tyler area and are suspected of committing credit card fraud. Police spokesman Don Martin says the suspects are using re-encoded credit cards with stolen information to purchase gift cards that may be turned in for cash and merchandise. They believe that they are staying several days at a time to commit these crimes and then possibly head back to Dallas. Martin said retailers and hotel’s should be on alert to spot these suspects and notify police. Continue reading Tyler Police Looking for Fraud Suspects

HARLETON – A Gladewater teenager has died in a one vehicle accident just west of Harleton in Harrison County. Bobbie Renee Burke, 17, died in the wreck shortly after 12:45 Thursday morning. Burke was a passenger in a car which was heading south on County Road 4310 which left the road on a curve and hit a tree. The car’s driver, Melvin Bradshaw, 24, of Hallsville and his other two passengers, Shalynn Tipton, 19, of Longview and Kyler McBride, 21, of Hallsville, are hospitalized at CHRISTUS Good Sherpherd Medical Center in Marshall.

EAST TEXAS – An area lake is ranked one of the best bass lakes in the country. Bassmaster Magazine says Lake Palestine is ranked 5th in the central part of the country. Lake Fork came in at number 11, Caddo Lake was 13th. And, overall Sam Rayburn Reservoir is ranked the second best in the nation. It jumped ahead of Toledo Bend which fell to 4th in the region. As for bragging rights for the individual state with the most lakes making the Top 100, Texas wins by a long shot. The Lone Star State features 11 lakes that made the cut. California was a distant second, with seven lakes being ranked in the Top 100.

LINDALE — A 78-year-old woman and her dog are dead after a mobile home fire Wednesday on County Road 4119 in the Lindale area. KETK reports the name of the woman is being withheld pending notification of next of kin. The cause and other details weren’t immediately known. We’ll have more information as it becomes available.

TYLER — It’s taken an an extra week, but Tyler is now ready to welcome a renovated local landmark to the community. Due to inclement weather, the Bergfeld Summer Showcase was rescheduled from last Thursday till this evening from 6:30 till 8:00. The event celebrates the redesign and reopening of Bergfeld Park’s Amphitheater and the new Centene Stage. Tyler Civic Theater and the City of Tyler are collaborating on the show. City personnel say everyone’s invited to watch and sing along to songs and scenes from the shows “Rock of Ages,” “Peter Pan Jr. the Musical” and “Legally Blonde the Musical.” Food trucks will be on site, and attendees are encouraged to bring blankets and portable seating. Continue reading Celebration Set Tonight for Renovated Bergfeld Park Amphitheater

LONGVIEW – A Longview woman is in the Gregg County Jail on fraud charges. An auto dealership on West Loop 281 told officers that a woman had bought two vehicles using false information. Investigators were later able to identify her as Sonya Diane Jackson, 37. They later found her sitting in one of the vehicles on Massingill Drive. In her purse they found over a gram of methamphetamine. She has now been charged with fraudulent use or possession of Identifying Information, theft of services, possession of a controlled substance. Her bonds total $30,000.

ATHENS — Henderson County Sheriff Botie Hillhouse continues his crackdown on drug suspects as deputies arrest Zackary Ryan Clemons, 39, and Haley Danielle Middleton, 23. Hillhouse says the arrests came on Westwood Beach Drive, south of Chandler, after a substantial amount of methamphetamine was thrown out of a vehicle as Clemons was stopped for a traffic violation. Continue reading Two More Drug Arrests in Henderson County