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COFFEE CITY – The Coffee City Police Department is seeking help in solving a burglary. It occurred sometime between July 19th and the 23rd. Someone broke into the Jungle Adult Store and Patriot Games game room on Highway 155. They got in by forcing open a rear door. Besides causing significant damage to both buildings, they stole sexually oriented items, copper, surveillance camera equipment and smoking materials such as pipes and hookahs. If you have any information, you are asked to contact the Coffee City Police Department or your local law enforcement agency.

MARSHALL – Five persons have been arrested after members of the Marshall Police Department’s SWAT Team served a search warrant at a home on East Fannin Street. The action was part of an ongoing narcotics investigation. Seized were 50 grams of methamphetamine, 37 grams of ecstasy, 7 grams of powder cocaine, 20 grams of crack cocaine, 29 grams of Xanax, 55 grams of marijuana and an undisclosed amount of money. They also seized three firearms, one of which had been reported stolen. Arrested on drug and firearm charges were Brian Dewayne Davis, 26, Louis Dewayne Talley, 23, Cecilia Davis, 48, Gerald Wayne Talley, 56 and Willie Earl Brown. All are Marshall residents.

MARSHALL – After several hours of jury deliberations Monday and Tuesday morning a mistrial was declared Tuesday afternoon in the trial of former Hallsville ISD coach Dean McDaniel. The mistrial came after information was received by State District Judge Brad Morin. He did not say what that information was. McDaniel’s defense attorney, Mark Lassiter of Dallas, told the Marshall News Messenger, the judge had no choice but to declare a mistrial after an alternate juror told members of the jury false information about McDaniel during the lunch break. Continue reading A Mistrial in a Former Coach’s Trial

POYNOR – A Smith County man is being held in Henderson County for stealing a backhoe. Arrested was Ethan Lee Christian, 25, of Whitehouse. The backhoe was taken from a construction site in the Poynor area. When the backhoe was found, nearby was a pickup, stuck in mud. A search of the area turned up Christian. He was arrested for theft of property over $30,000 and he also had three outstanding warrants in Smith County.

PALESTINE – City Manager Mike Alexander has named Andy Harvey to be the Palestine’s new police chief. The Palestine City Council approved Harvey’s selection at Monday’s meeting. Harvey has been with the Dallas Police Department for 22 years. He is currently in the department’s crime scene response section. He starts his new duties August 28th.

TYLER – Marvin Lamond Rockmore, 21, of Dallas, has been arrested following a chase in Tyler and Smith County. It started around 4:30 Tuesday morning with a report of a stolen pickup on Highway 110 north of Tyler. When sheriff’s deputies found the truck, it drove off at a high speed and into Tyler. He continued, even after driving over a spike strip Tyler police put down. When deputies decided to end the chase, they bumped the rear of his car, causing it to go out of control and hit a house at the intersection of the Loop and Sunnyhill. He was then arrested and taken to a hospital for treatment. Rockmore was charged with evading arrest and was booked into the Smith County Jail. His bond was set at $150,000.

HOUSTON (AP) — A federal appeals court has rejected an appeal from a Northeast Texas man on death row for strangling his girlfriend 17 years ago. Attorneys for Daniel Acker, 45, unsuccessfully argued to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that he’s innocent of the March 2000 slaying of Marquetta George, 32, of Sulphur Springs. They also contended Acker’s trial court erroneously excluded evidence of his innocence, that appeals he previously lost were based on false evidence and that he had poor legal help in earlier appeals. George’s body was found on a Hopkins County road. Trial attorneys said she jumped from Acker’s truck and then was hit. Prosecutors said he killed her and dumped her body. A jury deliberated 90 minutes before convicting him. Acker doesn’t yet have an execution date.

LONGVIEW – A man accused of burglary has been arrested by Longview police. Kendric Earl Rider, 21, of Longview, is said to have entered several apartments on South Green Street Monday night. Among the items stolen was an air conditioner. With Rider’s arrest, officers recovered the air conditioner and other stolen items. He was booked into the Gregg County jail on a charge of burglary of a building. His bond was set at $5,000.

TYLER – The Board of Directors of East Texas Christian Academy has named Dr. Michael E. Weimer as the school’s president. He will serve with the ETCA Board as Chief Executive overseeing all school operations. The First day of school is August 16th.

TYLER — Smith County officials have made an arrest after an 18-wheeler was stolen over the weekend. KETK reports that the sheriff’s office got the report of the theft from a tire business off Loop 323. While law officers were en route, a caller claimed to be behind the vehicle near Toll 49 and Highway 155. Kelly Pickett, 38, Henderson, was arrested after being stopped. He’s charged with theft of property and unauthorized use of a vehicle.

TYLER – According to the Texas Education Agency accountability system, Tyler ISD continues to show improvement. Results from 2017 STAAR testing show that the district received a Met Standard rating and 23 Tyler school campuses received the Met Standard rating. The only two that received the Improvement Required rating were Dogan Middle School and Austin Elementary. According to a TISD news release, the district has gone from 11 campuses receiving the IR rating to 9 and now down to two. Tyler ISD also had 12 campuses earn 25 distinctions for high achievements on the STAAR test. Continue reading More Tyler Schools Meet Standards

WHITEHOUSE – A two county chase has resulted in the arrest of a motorcyclist. It began just after 9:00 this morning when a state trooper tried to stop the motorcycle for speeding. The following chase headed south on Highway 110 from Whitehouse and ended in Cherokee County. The motorcyclist was arrested at home west of Rusk at the intersection of County Roads 2202 and 2201. His name has not been released at this time.

SMITH COUNTY — Kari McKinley Noell, 29, has been added to Smith County’s Most Wanted List for credit/debit card abuse of an elderly person. The charge stems from Noell reportedly taking her grandmother’s debit card and using it without her consent. Noell’s last known address is 12951 CR 499 in Lindale. Continue reading Two Additions to Smith County’s Most Wanted List

CHEROKEE COUNTY — Edward Wilbanks, 74, was pronounced dead at the scene of a wreck Monday night. It happened around 10:10 on FM 747, southwest of Jacksonville. The DPS report indicated that Wilbanks’ truck failed to negotiate a curve and left the roadway. Wilbanks over-corrected, went back across the road and struck a pole.

WOOD COUNTY — Game Wardens confirm they have found the body of a man who went missing on Lake Fork Sunday. According to KETK, Smith County Game Warden Captain Quint Balkcom said they found the body of Danny Frank Christian, 50, of Yantis, around 9 p.m. Monday night near the mouth of Birch Creek Cove. His body has been sent for autopsy. Christian was reported missing Sunday afternoon as severe weather was moving through East Texas. His boat was found running, in neutral, with personal items on board.

LUFKIN – A registered sex offender, sought by Lufkin authorities, has been arrested. East Texas authorities had been asked to be on the lookout for William Thomas Dykes, 38. He was suppose to have been living with a family member. When police learned he had been living at a Lufkin motel, a check showed he had checked out August 7th. He was arrested Monday by authorities in Diboll. Dykes has previous convictions for failing to comply with registry requirements. His original charge stems from an Iowa conviction for attempt to commit assault with intent to commit sexual abuse.

BECKVILLE – A pilot whose plane crashed near the Harrison County-Panola County line is in the hospital with a head injury. The pilot, Charles Flay Mayo, 60, of Jefferson, reported he had crashed his small plane while checking pipelines. The plane went down on a private lease road off of County Road 267 north of Beckville. According to KETK, The man told fire officials he lost power to the plane, a Piper Model PA22135 fixed wing single engine aircraft, and was trying to make it to Carthage when the plane went down.

LONGVIEW – A pregnant Longview woman is being accused of swinging scissors and throwing a baseball bat at her boyfriend. Arrested over the weekend was Jesica Marie Barron, 25. According to the Longview News Journal, she assaulted her boyfriend of nine months after learning he had a relationship with a neighbor. He was attacked after trying to prevent Barron from attacking the neighbor. She remains in the Gregg County Jail after being charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Her bond was set at $20,000.

TYLER – Two big money items will be up for public discussion Tuesday for Smith County Commissioners. The commissioners will be discussing the proposed budget as well as a proposed master road plan for the county. The road plan has a price tag of just over $100 million. One question to be answered is, how to pay for it. They are considering using bonds to fund it, an issue that could go before voters this November. The public will have one more chances to discuss the issues today. Following this morning’s regular commissioners’ meeting, the discussion will pick up at the R.B Hubbard Center on East Ferguson this afternoon at 5:30.

CHEROKEE COUNTY – Two Bullard residents have been arrested by Cherokee County authorities who served a search warrant at a home in the Lakewood Subdivision on Lake Palestine. Callatano “Joseph” Ramirez, 41, has been charged with manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. Jennifer Richardson, 33, is charged with manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance, and abandoning or endangering a child. Deputies seized cash, two firearms and over a quarter of a pound of methamphetamine along with various items of paraphernalia including scales.

CHANDLER – A suspicious vehicle in a church parking lot Sunday morning after midnight has resulted in drug charges against three persons. Jorge Pina (pictured), 29, and Jeffery Barton, 26, both of Chandler, have been charged with manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance and tampering with evidence. Sherry Kay Brooks, 34, of Murchison, has also been charged with tampering with evidence. In their vehicle deputies found methamphetamine, scales, glass pipes and plastic baggies. The three were booked into the Henderson County Jail.

FLINT – Two persons from the Flint area have been killed and one injured in a head-on collision in Smith County. Dead at the scene were the two drivers, Emily Bauman, 23, and Kevin Riggs, 54. A passenger, Vicki Riggs, 62, is in critical condition in a Tyler hospital. The accident occurred just before 4:30 Sunday afternoon during heavy rain in the Flint area near the intersection of Farm Road 2868 and Pine Overlook. The Department of Public Safety reports Bauman lost control of her car and skidded into oncoming traffic and hit Riggs’ car.

LONGVIEW – A shooting between two vehicles traveling on Gilmer Road in Longview has injured one person. The shooting occurred Sunday morning shortly after midnight. The injured person was taken to the hospital for treatment of a gunshot wound to the neck. The injury is said to be non-life threatening. Their name has not been released.

TYLER – Five persons, including three juveniles, are in custody following the robbery of the Kidd Jones Convenience Store at South Broadway and Rice. Three of the suspects are 13, 15 and 16 year old juveniles. They were taken to the Juvenile Attention Center. The other two suspects Jontel Cruse (pictured) and James Nelson Inlow, both 17 year old Tyler residents, were booked into the Smith County Jail. The Robbery was reported just before 4:45 Sunday morning. The suspects fled on foot after taking money and packs of cigarettes from the store’s clerk. The five were found hiding behind a business on Old Bullard Road. Officers recovered all of the items taken in the robbery along with 5 airsoft handguns the suspects used in the robbery.

TYLER – Here’s a look at work planned in the district during the Week of August 24th. These schedules are subject to change due to weather conditions, equipment failure or other unforeseen issues.

Work resumed Sunday night on US 271/Beckham Avenue in Tyler. Sunday’s work was in the southbound right lane between Mulberry and Front streets; and the northbound left lane between Erwin and Ferguson streets. The full project limits are from Oakwood Street to State Highway 64/Fifth Street. Work is being conducted from 7:30pm to 6:00am Sunday through Thursday nights. Continue reading Two Tyler Projects On TxDot’s Worksheet

NACOGDOCHES (AP/STAFF) — Ten people have been arrested in what police in Nacogdoches in East Texas say was a prostitution and human trafficking operation. Police Lt. Dan Taravella says the investigation is continuing and other arrests may still be possible. The Daily Sentinel of Nacogdoches reports the arrests Saturday night are the result of a sting operation involving multiple police units. Besides facing prostitution charges, two of the 10 people also have been arrested for drug offenses. Only three of the 10 arrested are from Nacogdoches. Five are from Tyler, one from Crockett and one from Houston. Continue reading Tyler Residents Arrested in Nacogdoches Vice Sting Operation

DIANA – An undisclosed amount of money has been taken in an Upshur County bank robbery. The Security State Bank in Diana was round around 5:00 Friday afternoon. Authorities are looking for three suspects. No injuries were reported.

MARSHALL – The trial for former Hallsville coach Dean McDaniel continues today as the defense moves forward presenting its case. McDaniel is charged with three counts of indecency with a child by exposure and one count of improper relationship between an educator and a student. A panel of six men and six women is hearing the case. McDaniel, a track and cross country coach for 13 years at Hallsville ISD, announced in October, 2015, he would resign at the end of the year. He cited personal reasons for his actions. He turned himself in two months later following a grand jury indictment.

LONGVIEW – Longview police are investigating the death of a man whose body was found in the locked cab of a tractor-trailer rig. It was parked in the parking lot of the Texas Best Smokehouse just north of Interstate 20. Officers had to force their way into the cab to get to the man. They are trying to determine if the man died of natural or suspicious causes. His name has not been released.

LONGVIEW – A Longview man has pleaded guilty to online solicitation of a minor. Timothy Layne Riley, 42, entered his plea in state district court Friday morning. He was sentenced to 10 years probation and will have to register as a sex offender. He was arrested in February of last year after the mother of the 16-year-old girl told police that Riley had been sending inappropriate texts to her daughter. The messages included Riley asking the girl to send him sexual photos and sending the girl graphic photos of himself. A Longview officer was given permission by the girl to assume her identity and talk to Riley through text messages. It was then that Riley began to make plans to meet up with the girl and have sex in a hotel room. He was arrested when he showed up at the room.