KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER — Plans pick up speed for a homeless resource in Tyler. The Planning and Zoning Committee heard requests Tuesday to approve the location on Valentine Street. According to KETK, the Day Resource Center is designed to help Tyler’s homeless population with various needs like access to a mailing address and laundry facilities. Nearly 250 people are homeless in the Tyler/Smith County area.

NACOGDOCHES (AP) – A tip from an 8-year-old boy has helped deputies recover a plane reported stolen from an East Texas airport. The Cessna turned up missing January 28 from a hangar at Athens Municipal Airport. Nacogdoches County Sheriff Thomas Kerss says online news stories about the theft included the plane’s U.S. registration, known as the N-number.

Kerss said the boy Monday afternoon noticed a plane had just landed on a private airstrip. The child went to a computer, verified the tail’s N-number was the same as the stolen aircraft, and then told his father. Deputies were notified and arrested Terry Lynn Boozer, 55, near the airstrip. He remained in custody Wednesday on a felony theft charge. Jail officials did not immediately provide more information on Boozer.

SMITH COUNTY — Smith County residents in the low income bracket needing home repairs may soon be eligible for some federal dollars. Smith County Commissioners approved an application of up to $500,000 in grants designed to help people living below the area median family income. Commissioners will learn if the county qualified for the grant in the next 2-3 months.

HALLSVILLE — The Hallsville City Council has yet to settle severance packages for Hallsville officers who were let go after the council voted to reinstate the officers who were terminated in late December. Council members met Monday night in a special meeting to discuss personnel matters. According to KETK, Hallsville Mayor Jerri Medrano said the only action taken Monday was for the city’s attorney and the former officers’ attorney to continue discussing severance packages.

Police Chief Greg Scott, Sgt. Mack Fuller and officer T.C. Livingston were terminated for policy violations Dec. 28, but the council voted 3-2 to reinstate them a few weeks later. After the December firings, the city hired Lukas Reynolds as chief and also hired Sgt. Shane Guthrie, Paul Montoya and Robert Perkins as officers. The city chose to keep Montoya, and Longview attorney Jose Sanchez, who was hired to represent Reynolds, Guthrie and Perkins, said he was working with the city to come up with a resolution that would be fair for everyone involved.

LUFKIN — A man was killed early Wednesday morning after his car was struck by a train on Southwood Drive outside Loop 287 in Lufkin. The man, identified as Kaleb Drew Rye, 27, of Huntington, reportedly pulled out in front of an oncoming train near the Lufkin Police shooting range around 4:00. The man’s maroon Pontiac Grand Am was carried two-tenths of a mile down the track by the impact. Lufkin Police closed the highway while Union Pacific workers and Due’s Wrecker Service pulled the car off the tracks around 8:00. The incident is under investigation.

TYLER – A Tyler disturbance remains under investigation. It was reported around 8:30 Tuesday night in the 800 block of Pinkerton. Officers were notified of shots being fired in the area. Officers were told that persons living on Pinkerton had been in a disturbance with several subjects at the gas station at 5th and Golden prior to the incident.

The suspects followed them home where one subject pulled a gun and pointing it at them and then firing several shots in the air, before leaving the area. They were described as white males driving a light blue Ford Taurus and a blue convertible Camaro. Officers searched the area, but failed to locate the vehicles.

LONGVIEW – A fire has destroyed the inventory of a Longview store. The fire was reported shortly before 9:15 Tuesday night at the Food Fast at 611 East Marshall Avenue. Firemen had the blaze under control within 15 minutes. No injuries were reported. Investigators say the cause remains under investigation. An employee tells KETK-TV that the fire started at an ICEE machine. This is the second fire at the store in the past seven months. Last July an employee extinguished a fire started by a cooler.

TYLER – A Longview duplex has been damaged by fire. It was reported around 4:30 Tuesday afternoon in the 1200 block of North Tenth Street. Investigators say the fire, which started in the attic on the left side of the duplex, was under control within 15 minutes. The cause remains under investigation. No injuries were reported.

TYLER – Smoke forced an evacuation from the Tyler Morning Telegraph building. It was reported around 8:45 last night. No fire was noted and it appears as if the smoke seen coming from the air conditioning vents was caused by a faulty air conditioning unit on the building’s roof.

LONGVIEW – A man Longview police says is a gang member has been arrested after a loaded gun was found in his car. Currently free on a $1,000 bond is Luis Carlos Retana, 18, of Longview.

His car was stopped in the 1800 block of Jane Street after a reported disturbance. After getting permission to search the vehicle, officers found a fully loaded .22 caliber revolver under the driver’s seat. Since he didn’t have a concealed handgun license and was a known gang member in possession of a gun, Retana was arrested. He was charged with unlawfully carrying a weapon.

LONGVIEW – A Louisiana man has been released from the Gregg County Jail after he was arrested by state troopers who said he fled from them several times. Robert Davis, 54, of Shreveport was stopped for speeding near mile marker 584 on Interstate Highway 20.

The arrest report said Davis stopped, but when the officer went back to his car to run Davis’ license plate. He sped away. He was stopped a few miles away. When the officer got of his car, Davis fled again. The third time he stopped, officers say he had to be pulled from the SUV. Inside, they found what appeared to be marijuana.

Davis is currently free on $15,000 bond after being charged with possession of marijuana and evading arrest.

LAKE TYLER — Recent rains are giving area lakes a much-needed boost. KETK reports that according to experts, Lake Tyler was down by 7 1/2 feet last September. But now, while the lake is still low, just the small rains we’ve had lately are making a visible difference, and that has fishermen in the area looking forward to even more rain. One fisherman says if the rain just keeps on coming, the lake might get back up to the regular level before summer hits.

TYLER — Three illegal aliens have been sentenced in Tyler to federal prison for immigration violations.

Humberto Oliveros-Contreras, 35, of Jimenez, Zacatecas, Mexico, pleaded guilty last June to being a criminal alien who was found unlawfully in the United States after having been previously deported. He was he was found by immigration agents in Rusk County last April after being arrested and convicted in Rusk County of driving while intoxicated.
He was sentenced yesterday to 21 months in federal prison.

Cruz Alonso Amaya-Bonilla, 38, a citizen of Honduras, pleaded guilty last September to being a criminal alien who was found unlawfully in the United States after having been previously deported. Last July, he was found by immigration agents in Wood County after being arrested for traffic violations by the Texas Department of Public Safety. He was sentenced yesterday to 41 months in federal prison.

Pedro Gallegos-Perez, 38, a citizen of Mexico, pleaded guilty last September to being a criminal alien who was found unlawfully present in the United States after having been previously deported. Last July, he was found by immigration agents in Smith County after being arrested in April for failing to identify/giving false information. He was sentenced yesterday to 10 months in federal prison.

The defendants will be deported following the completion of their federal prison sentences.

TYLER – Officials with Trinity Mother Frances Hospitals and Clinics announced that IMS has ranked TMFHC 16th in the U.S. on the list of Top 100 integrated healthcare networks. The IMS IHN Rating System rates local and regional, non-specialty integrated healthcare networks (IHNs) on their performance level and degree of integration. IMS is a leading provider of information for the healthcare industry. Trinity Mother Frances led the list of six health systems in Texas that were included in the Top 100 rankings. The complete list was published in the January 23rd edition of Modern Healthcare. “This is a great honor for us,” said TMFHC President Lindsey Bradley. “It is also a testament to our focus on quality healthcare.”

MARSHALL – Authorities have arrested 17 northeast Texas residents following a lengthy investigation into drug trafficking in the Harrison and Marion counties. Around 7:00 yesterday morning, a combined task force of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies began executing 17 federal arrest warrants for defendants charged in a conspiracy to purchase cold pills containing pseudoephedrine in order to manufacture methamphetamine in and around Karnack and Marshall, Texas, and northwest Louisiana.

According to court documents, since approximately October 2008, the defendants have been involved in a conspiracy to manufacture over 50 grams of actual methamphetamine in the Karnack area. On February 1, a federal grand jury returned an 839-count Indictment charging 17 people with conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine. Those defendants are individually charged in Counts 2 through 839 with possession of pseudoephedrine with the intent to manufacture methamphetamine.

The following defendants have been named in the federal indictment and arrested. They appeared yesterday before U. S. Magistrate Judge Roy D. Payne for an initial appearance.

David Lynn Sirmans, 55, of Karnack, TX
Christine Francis Sirmans, 44, of Karnack, TX
Peggy Ann Davis, 39, of Lone Star, TX
Debra Perry Robinson, 48, of Karnack, TX
Wanda Guthrie Apple, 67, of Karnack, TX
Mindy Gail Tims, 33, of Longview, TX
Adrian Demond Noel, 29, of Jefferson, TX
Gregory Scott Covey, 40, of Karnack, TX
Tammy Rene Price, 46, of Karnack, TX
Ronald Dean Wisdom, 64, of Karnack, TX
Dennis James Perry, 47, of Karnack, TX
Anna Lerey Woodall, 22, of Emory, TX
Tracy Renee Hampton, 44, of Jefferson, TX
Chelsey Lynn Jones, 24, of Jefferson, TX
Marcy Sanders, 39, of Mooringsport, LA
Shonda Michelle Jones, 33, of Karnack, TX
Jessica Nicole Bickham, 28, of Marshall, TX

If convicted of the conspiracy charge, defendants face a minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison. If convicted of the possession charge, defendants face up to 20 years in federal prison.

The investigation and yesterday’s arrests were led by the Texas Department of Public Safety – Criminal Investigations Division Agents with assistance from DPS Aircraft, DPS Highway Patrol Troopers, Texas Rangers, U.S. Marshals Service, and members of the U.S. Marshals Joint East Texas Task Force from Harrison County Sheriff’s Office, Longview Police Department, Marshall Police Department, Waskom Police Department, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, Atlanta Police Department, Upshur County Sheriff’s Office, Rusk County Sheriff’s Office, Tyler Police Department, Henderson Police Department, Henderson County Sheriff’s Office, Smith County Sheriff’s Office and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

LONGVIEW — A Longview man remained jailed after police said he was found “passed out” in someone else’s vehicle and admitted to taking items from a residence. According to KETK and the Longview News-Journal, Patrick Ryan Ross, 27, was being held on $25,000 bond. He’s charged with burglary of a habitation, burglary of a vehicle, theft of a firearm and unlawful possession of a firearm by felon.

Police were dispatched at about 6 a.m. Monday to the 1700 block of West Hoyt Drive for a check-welfare call. According to arrest reports, Ross was found passed out in the reporting party’s vehicle and there were items in the vehicle that did not belong to him. When officers arrived, Ross appeared to be under the influence of alcohol or narcotics, police said. During a search of the vehicle, officers found a gun, golf clubs, tools and documents with another person’s name on them. Police said Ross admitted to taking the items from a Terrace Street residence, where two vehicles had also been broken into. The victims confirmed the items belonged to them.

LONGVIEW — On a 4-1 vote, Gregg County commissioners on Monday began a process to increase passenger fees at East Texas Regional Airport by $1.50 per person in 2013. KETK and the Longview News-Journal report that for almost 10 years, passengers using the airport have paid a $3 fee, with the money going to the local match required for Federal Aviation Authority grants. The FAA traditionally funds 95% of projects, such as a recently completed parking lot upgrade and a coming terminal renovation. The county pitches in 5%.

“It looks like the federal government is getting ready to up the matching funds from 5 percent to 10 percent,” County Judge Bill Stoudt said. “So all the airports are changing the fee.” Stoudt and Airport Manager Rick Davis said the fee, called a Passenger Facility Charge, would not change until the court conducts a public hearing and votes on a resolution to raise it. “We’re considering going up to $4.50,” Davis said. “It’s not a done deal that we’re going to. … Everyone in the industry tells us we should go up to $4.50.” In objecting to the potential fee increase, Commissioner Darryl Primo said it could discourage people from choosing the local airport.

LONGVIEW — Dr. James E. Wilcox on Monday became Longview ISD’s eighteenth employee to be hired out of retirement, after reaching a deal with the district’s Board of Trustees to become interim superintendent. According to the Longview ISD website, Wilcox came to Longview from Waxahachie ISD in April, 2007. He retired from the district at the end of 2011. According to KETK and the Longview News-Journal, Wilcox began work Tuesday. In his role as interim superintendent, he’ll aid the district in its search for a permanent chief. Deputy Superintendent Andrea Mayo has served as interim superintendent since January 1.

NACOGDOCHES – A plane stolen from the Athens Municipal Airport has been recovered in Nacogdoches County and a suspect arrested. Authorities had been alerted that a suspect in the theft of the Cessna 182 had ties in Nacogdoches County. They began watching the municipal airport as well as private airstrips. Around 4:00 Monday afternoon, the plane landed at a private airstrip off county Road 536. The suspect, Terry Boozer, 55, was arrested after a brief chase from a nearby building. He has been charged with felony theft and evading arrest.

LUFKIN — Fifth-generation Lufkinite Mark Hicks is trying to buy the old Angelina Hotel for his video business. According to KETK and the Lufkin Daily News, the downtown hotel was the heart of much local activity from the 1920s to the 1970s. Hicks says there’s so much history in the building it would be a travesty to tear it down. Hicks says downtown Lufkin is in the midst of a sort of renaissance right now, and this piece of the city’s history needs to be preserved.

TEXARKANA – A 41-year-old Pine Bluff, Arkansas, man has been sentenced to federal prison for failing to report a drug trafficking crime in East Texas. Clifford Chambers pleaded guilty last August to misprision of a felony. He was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison yesterday by U.S. District Judge David Folsom.

According to information presented in court, on December 7, 2009, law enforcement officers in the Winfield area stopped a white Lexus on Interstate 30 that was found to be carrying approximately two kilograms of cocaine. Further investigation revealed that another vehicle, a Chevrolet Impala, was traveling with the Lexus as the “lead car.” Officers pulled over the Impala, driven by Chambers, after it passed their location with the Lexus. Chambers had already been pulled over earlier that day in Royse City, and at that time knew there was a controlled substance in the Lexus and failed to disclose the crime.

TYLER – Information about an unfamiliar test raised a lot of questions for Tyler ISD parents who were introduced to the STAAR End of Course (EOC) Exams. STAAR is the new statewide testing program for Texas high school students, which begins with this year’s 9th graders. TISD officials say parents of John Tyler High School freshmen listened carefully as Tyler ISD administrators explained various aspects of the new tests at a parent meeting last week.

The State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR, will replace the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, or TAKS, starting in the 2011-2012 school year. Students in grades 3-8 will be tested under STAAR, and first-time high school freshmen and middle school students taking core high school courses will take STAAR EOC exams. Students in grades 10-12 will continue testing under the TAKS program.

STAAR will include more difficult testing and require a higher level of student performance. STAAR is designed to measure a student’s college and career readiness, starting in elementary school. “With the testing dates quickly approaching, we are working diligently to prepare our students,” Marty Barbieri, Tyler ISD Director of Guidance and Counseling, explained to a group of parents. “There are many new aspects of this testing program that both students and parents need to understand,” she continued.

Tyler ISD began to modify its curriculum to prepare students for the STAAR assessments four years ago. In all grade levels and subjects, students are required to use critical thinking, a skill they will need to apply on the STAAR assessments. Tyler ISD teachers are using higher level questioning to give students the opportunity to analyze and solve real life problems. Teachers are also regularly checking each student’s progress and offering numerous tutoring and focused learning opportunities for students struggling with a specific lesson or concept.

To further inform parents about STAAR, Tyler ISD has provided additional resources on its website, . Parents are encouraged to go to http://www.tylerisd.org to download or print the guides that contain information relevant to the STAAR tests at the elementary, middle or high school level.

The next STAAR EOC information meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 9, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Robert E. Lee High School. The information will be presented in Spanish in the library and in English in the Little Theatre. This meeting is for parents of current freshmen from both high schools, and parents of middle school school students enrolled in core high school courses. STAAR testing begins in March.

LONGVIEW – Drugs are said to have been responsible for the death of a woman whose body was found in Longview last month. The body of Melissa Gonzales, 39, of Longview, was found by a hitchhiker along Interstate Highway 20 just before noon on January 11th. It was near the Estes Parkway exit, behind a concrete barrier in the westbound lane.

According to the autopsy performed by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office, Gonzales died from acute cocaine intoxication. Officials say the investigation is ongoing as to the location of her death.

TYLER — The Discovery Science Place and The University of Texas at Tyler have combined resources to enhance the educational programming available to the community. “We are excited to partner with the Discovery Science Place. Providing quality education is a mission that we share, so it’s natural that we would work together on this initiative,” said UT Tyler President Rodney H. Mabry.

While Discovery Science Place will remain a standalone museum with its own governing body, officials say the UT Tyler Ingenuity Center will strengthen the educational programming DSP offers. The Ingenuity Center will design programs based on its STEM outreach, which focuses on science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The Ingenuity Center also will serve in an advisory capacity for the museum.
The Discovery Science Place board will continue to maintain creative control over the museum’s permanent and traveling exhibit portfolio, branding and fundraising activities while serving in an advisory role in education and programming.

“Collaborations of the kind DSP and UT Tyler are implementing are quite common in the museum field,” explains Discovery Science Place CEO Phil Lindsey. “By doing so, a new stable and sustainable operating environment will allow DSP to refocus its significant community support toward immediate impacts to the museum in new exhibitions and content programming instead of underwriting operational needs.”

The UT Tyler Ingenuity Center has worked with DSP on educational and programming projects in the past. Officials say this initiative simply expands that relationship for the next three years. Under this initiative, DSP employees will become UT Tyler employees, and the ultimate goal will be to develop Discovery Science Place into a full standalone UT Tyler Center. UT Tyler and Discovery Science Place will immediately begin implementing joint programming and content planning in preparation for the spring and summer events.

NOONDAY – At least one person has been injured in a two vehicle accident southwest of Tyler. The accident was reported Sunday night on State Highway 155, south of Loop 49. The highway, which was shut down for several hours, was reopened around 11:00 Sunday night. Reports indicate a car and a truck collided. When the driver got out of the car, they were hit by a third vehicle. No other information was immediately available.

HENDERSON — Three men have been killed in a one vehicle accident in Rusk County. The accident happened around 9:00 Saturday night on State Highway 42, just north of County Road 4118D. Dead at the scene was the car’s driver, Blake Elliot Winfrey, 19, of Henderson, and his passengers Nicolas Ramon Garza, 17 and Tomas Garza, 21, both of Selman City. All three were wearing their seat belts. According to the Department of Public Safety, their car was northbound when it veered into the southbound lane. Winfrey is said to have over corrected and the vehicle veered off the road and hit a tree.

TYLER – A Tyler police officer has been injured in a wreck caused by a suspected drunk driver. The accident happened shortly before 2:15 Sunday morning at the intersection of South Broadway and Front Street.

Investigators say officer Ayasha Eddins was southbound on Broadway when pickup driven by Danny Charles Harper, 29, of Tyler, ran a red light and hit Eddins’ patrol car. She received minor injuries. Harper was charged with driving while intoxicated, 3rd or more, and booked into the Smith County Jail.

KILGORE – What appears to be an accidental fire has damaged a Kilgore home. It was reported just after 9:45 Sunday morning at 511 Nolen Street. The fire was said to have been under control about an hour later. No injuries were reported and the cause remains under investigation.

LUFKIN (AP) — Jury selection is entering a third week in Lufkin the case of a former dialysis nurse accused of killing five patients by injecting them with bleach. Kimberly Saenz faces the death penalty if convicted of capital murder. At least eight jurors are still needed, including four alternates. Opening statements and testimony are scheduled for March 5.

The 38-year-old Saenz, from Pollok, was arrested in April 2009. Authorities say two witnesses saw her pour bleach into syringes and traces of it were found in dialysis machine tubing. She’s also charged with five counts of aggravated assault for injecting bleach into five other patients who survived.

Saenz’s lawyer says she’s being blamed for mistakes at the now-closed clinic where she worked for eight months.

TYLER — The Smith County Young Lawyers Association (SCYLA) is staying busy with a number of activities, designed to help both young attorneys and the community at large. On KTBB “Staff Meeting,” SCYLA President Danny Noteware says just one activity is the “Real World Law School,” aimed primarily at college students. According to Noteware, “For those who may be interested in the legal profession who don’t know what it’s about, it’s just a good opportunity to learn more.” Prospective attorneys interact with a panel of law school admissions counselors, judges, young lawyers, and law students. For more information on SCYLA, you can check its Facebook page or contact Noteware at 903-597-8311. You can also go to http://www.ktbb.com/audio to hear the “Staff Meeting” show in its entirety.