KTBB News, Weather, Talk

LONGVIEW – Two shooting deaths were recorded in Longview over the weekend, the first two homicides of the year. One body was found Sunday morning. It started with a call shortly before 7:00 about a shooting in the vicinity of Twelfth and Dean Streets. Officers were told that someone had been shot at that location and then the body had been dumped near the railroad tracks off West Loop 281. There, they found the body of a black male. Investigators have been interviewing witnesses. Continue reading Two Longview Homicides

TYLER – Here’s a look at work planned in the district during the Week of February 6th. These schedules are subject to change due to weather conditions, equipment failure or other unforeseen issues.

Smith County – Tyler Maintenance plans to conduct pavement repairs on Loop 323 between U.S. Highway 271 and Farm Road 14. A second crew is expected to perform edge repairs on Farm Road 16 between Lindale and Farm Road 1253. Expect lane closures with flaggers providing traffic control at both locations. Continue reading Area Roads Update

LONGVIEW – Longview police are investigating the death of a man whose body was found Sunday morning. It started with a call shortly before 7:00 about a shooting in the vicinity of Twelfth and Dean Streets. Officers were told that someone had been shot at that location and then the body had been dumped near the railroad tracks off West Loop 281. There, they found the body of a black male. Investigators have been interviewing witnesses as the investigation continues.

LONGVIEW – A shooting in Longview has left one person dead. It was reported around 1:15 Saturday morning at J’s Club on East Marshall Avenue. The body of Thomas Lynn Harper Jr., 34, of Gladewater, was found lying in a parking lot near the club. The shooting is said to have occurred in the parking lot. Investigators have determined that Harper was involved in an altercation that began at J’s Place a short time before he was found dead not far from the scene of the altercation. The investigation is continuing.

LONGVIEW – A Longview school is having a bat problem. It started a couple of weeks ago at J.L. Everhart Elementary School. In a posting on Facebook, Principal Arthur Brown said the bats are confined to the school’s gym. He says the district has been working to rectify the issue. Brown says the Gym, which is now closed, should be reopened within 10 days.

TYLER – A Smith County woman has been killed and three persons injured in a three vehicle accident in Tyler. It happened just before 4:15 Friday afternoon on U.S. Highway 271 at the Loop 323 extension. Dead at the scene was Amparo Lecroy, 54, of Winona. The accident happened when a south bound SUV attempted to turn left onto the Loop Extension. It turned into the path of a north bound tractor trailer truck which T-boned the SUV. The truck then pushed the SUV into the path of another vehicle. The victim was a passenger in the SUV. All of the roads have been reopened for normal traffic.

TYLER – Brookshire Grocery Company’s ice cream, dairy and water plants are being sold to Hiland Dairy. According to a news release from Hiland, the deal is expected to close next month. Hiland will retain Brookshire’s employees and will supply the stores with the same products. Hiland Dairy Foods Company, which was founded in 1938, is based in Springfield, Missouri. The farmer owned company has 2600 employees and operates 12 processing plants in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas with 49 distribution centers across the region.

LONGVIEW – A traffic stop has led to drug charges against a Longview woman. The officer pulled over the a car on East Marshall Avenue because of an expired registration sticker. He searched the car after noticing a used syringe on the back floor board near the foot of Mona Reshell Kimbrough, 32. He also smelled Marijuana. When he searched the car he found, in Kimbrough’s make-up bag, baggies of meth and marijuana, used syringes, unused baggies and a scale with drug residue on it. She has been charged with possession of a controlled substance measuring between 4 and 200 grams and possession of marijuana measuring less than 2 ounces. She remains in the Gregg County Jail under bonds totaling $11,000.

– TYLER – A candidate has already stepped forward for next year’s primary election. Smith County Assistant District Attorney Jacob Putman announced today he will run for District Attorney next year. Putman said he will compete in the Republican Primary in 2018. He will be seeking the post currently held by District Attorney Matt Bingham. He previously announced he would not be seeking reelection next year to the post he has held since 2004. In the Republican Primary, Putman will face First Assistant District Attorney April Sikes, who had previously said she would run for the post. Continue reading Putman Running for District Attorney

TYLER — An East Texas man has been indicted in connection with the December 2 aggravated robbery of a Tyler restaurant. According to KETK, Freddy Criss, 54, Dallas, was indicted January 26 for allegedly holding up Rotolo’s Pizza on South Broadway. Tyler police said as they arrived at the restaurant, Criss was reportedly leaving the business in a red car. Officers attempted to pull the vehicle over when Criss wrecked, then fled on foot. He was taken into custody a short time later. He was booked into the Smith County Jail on four charges of aggravated robbery, two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and evading arrest. Police say stolen property was recovered at the scene. Several people at Rotolo’s were injured after being pistol-whipped by Criss.

ANGELINA COUNTY — An East Texas woman picked up her sixth public intoxication arrest in five years, and her second PI arrest in two days, on Wednesday. According to KETK, the Angelina County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of shots fired around 11:00 Tuesday night at Martin Cochran Road and Hill Street. When officials arrived on scene, Lacey Raine Jones, 25, of Huntington, told authorities her face was ripped off. Deputies noticed no such wounds, but did arrest Jones for public intoxication.

TYLER – A letter sent to some Smith County businesses indicates the sheriff’s department is cracking down on illegal gambling. The letters went to around 50 game rooms located in unincorporated areas within Smith County. They have been given until Monday to voluntarily comply with the letter. If the machines are not removed by that time, investigations will be started and action will be taken to see that they comply with state law. This could result in arrests and referring cases to the district attorney’s office.

TYLER – Tyler police have arrested a youngster for inappropriately touching some women. Several women complained to police about a young black male being involved in the incidents. One woman reported that he approached her while she was working in the yard on Lindsey Lane and began talking to her. As she was about to leave the residence, she said the suspect hugged and touched her inappropriately. He then ran away. Tyler detectives identified the suspect as a 12 year old boy. Wednesday, he was taken into custody and processed into the Smith County Juvenile Attention Center on a charge of public lewdness.

TYLER – Spring semester enrollment at TJC has reached a 90-year high. Spring enrollment hit 11,427 students, a 7.3% increase over Spring last year. School officials say there are a variety of reason for the increase, including around 120 degrees and certificates options offered by the College. The school has as one of its priorities, to serve as a catalyst for economic development by strategically assessing marketplace demand and constantly evaluating the need for relevant programs of study that attract and retain students while meeting the needs of business and industry from the region. Continue reading A Record for TJC

LONGVIEW – A man said to be responsible for a two vehicle accident in Longview has been arrested. Stayton F. Worthington, 43, of Kilgore is said to have run a red light shortly before 3:45 Wednesday morning. His pickup collided with a pickup driven by William Stowe, 52, of Tatum. Neither Stowe or his two passengers were injured. Longview police say, after the collision, Worthington ran from the vehicle, was arrested a short distance away. Worthington was arrested for evading arrest and Driving While Intoxicated 3rd or more. He is currently free on bonds totaling $12,500.

TYLER – Tyler Junior College has named Dr. Cliff Boucher as interim dean for TJC North. The College’s newest facility will open this spring in The Cannery, Lindale’s new residential/entertainment/retail complex. TJC North will provide general education classes, nursing programs and the recently launched Veterinary Technician Program. A grand opening event is scheduled for 10:00am on Wednesday, March 29. Continue reading Dean Appointed for TJC North

TYLER – District Chief Michael Frost is being promoted to Assistant Fire Chief of the Tyler Fire Department. Frost will be responsible for planning budgets, grants and emergency management training and drills. Fire Chief David Coble will promote Chief Frost at a ceremony at 3:30pm on February 13 at the Tyler Rose Garden Center – Rose Room. Continue reading New Tyler Assistant Fire Chief

TYLER – Tyler’s Bishop Thomas K. Gorman Catholic School has its first president. Bishop Joseph E. Strickland announced last month a new President-Principal administrative structure would be instituted at the school. Bishop Strickland has now announced Father Anthony McLaughlin is the school’s first president. The President-Principal model of leadership is currently the most common form of administration for Catholic secondary schools in the U.S. The President is the chief administrator for the school, who, among other things, appoints the Principal to manage day-to-day school operations and oversee academics, athletics, fine arts and faculty. Father McLaughlin, a native of Belfast, Northern Ireland, was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Tyler in 1997.

WHITE OAK – A pedestrian hit by a car in White Oak last week has died. Ivan Rincon-Ramos, 34, was hit around 6:00 last Friday night as he was crossing U.S. Highway 80 at Lake Harris Road. His two young sons ran into the path of a car driven by Christopher Michael of Malakoff. When Michael served to miss the boys, he hit their father. The dad died in the hospital Monday morning. The accident remains under investigation. It’s not known if any charges will be filed.

LONGVIEW – The Longview police are asking the public to help identify a suspect in a theft case. The department has posted on its Face Book page the picture of a man suspected in a theft case at Sears on McCann Road. If you have information about the man in the photo, please contact Det. Gabe Downs 903-237-1168 or Gregg County Crime stoppers at 903-236-7867 or greggcountycrimestoppers.org and reference case #16-15762.

HOLLYWOOD (AP) – Matthew McConaughey says it’s time for Hollywood to “embrace and shake hands” with the fact that Donald Trump is president. The Oscar winner, formerly from Longview, tells the BBC that Trump’s rise to power is “as divisive of an inauguration” as there has ever been. When asked by interviewer Andrew Marr if Hollywood’s elite should give Trump a break, McConaughey replied, “They don’t have a choice now, he’s our president.” McConaughey is promoting his new film, “Gold,” in which he plays a businessman who discovers the precious metal in the jungles of Indonesia.

TYLER – The East Texas State Fair is starting to look for a new location. They have just under ten years to find it. The city hired a firm to come up with a concept of what the Rose Garden Center will look like in 20 years. The plans, which were unveiled at an open house Tuesday night, showed no fairgrounds. Park of East Texas President John Sykes told KETK, the fair still has 9 years on its contract to use its current location on West Front Street and after that it will have to relocate. Some time ago, the fair bought 250 acres of land west of Tyler, between State Highway 31 and U.S. Highway 64 off the Loop. But Sykes said they are not set in stone that the location will be the fair’s new home. Another open house on the city’s Strategic Historic Preservation Plan will be held on Thursday, February 9th, at 4:00pm, at The Foundry Coffee House at 202 South Broadway.

MARSHALL – The body of a man reported missing late last month has been found in Harrison County. The body is that of Anthony Redell Green, 55, of DeSoto. His body was found in Marshall around 12:30 Wednesday afternoon. A sheriff’s deputy operating a drone found the body in a remote pasture near the intersection of Marshall-Leigh Road and John Sanders Road. An autopsy was ordered in an effort to determine the cause of death.

PALESTINE – The city has been receiving complaints about the water’s color and odor. But the city says it is safe to drink. Palestine’s Communications and Best Practices officer, Nate Smith, says the problem has been caused by the long period of the previous rain event Palestine experienced. Smith says normal rain events stir up the water at the city’s intake area. The water is then pumped to the treatment plant where it is treated and the odor is removed along with the discoloration that it causes. But, with extended rain events, it overwhelms the plant and normal and even extra efforts to control these unusual conditions are not as effective. Smith reassures residents the water remains within state guidelines set by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The city’s water treatment crews have been working to flush water lines wherever residents have complained about the water to help with the issues. The discoloration and odors should be gone within a week.