KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER – Tyler police are looking for a couple who ripped off to local auto dealerships. A woman, using a fraudulent name, ordered $1,229 worth of tires over the phone. She gave credit card information that was compromised. She also ordered $2,546.25 worth of BMW car parts on the same date, again using fraudulent ID and credit card information. The following day a man showed up at the two dealerships to pick up the items. The woman remained in a black GMC, Yukon with temporary plates. If you recognize this man, please contact the Tyler Police Department (Investigator Royce Jordan 903-531-1032) or call Smith County Tyler crime Stoppers at 903-597-2833.

TYLER – A vehicle-pedestrian accident in Tyler has killed one person. And it appears to have been a suicide. Killed in the accident just before 2:00 Wednesday morning was Eliceo Esquivel Vences, 30, of Marshall. The accident happened in the northbound lanes of U.S. Highway 271, by UT Health Northeast. The first report was the pedestrian walking on the outside lane of the highway when he was struck and killed. Now investigators say they believe the man intentionally ran in front of the vehicle from the far edge of the shoulder.

TYLER — Tyler ISD’s Teachers of the Year offered their reactions after garnering their awards Tuesday night during a banquet at Hwrvey Convention Center. Both winners drew attention to the top teachers on the other campuses and the other teachers on hand for Tuesday’s event. Secondary Teacher of the Year is Kala Morrow (pictured), who has classes in social studies, government, and economics at John Tyler High School. Morrow said said she was excited, describing the experience as “exhilarating” and “surreal.” She commented, “There’s so many amazing educators that do so much that were on the stage with me. And so really, it’s just a tribute to them — of their efforts and the time that they spend to do everything they can to educate the students of Tyler ISD.” Continue reading Tyler ISD’s Top Teachers Offer Comments

GREGG COUNTY — A Longview man who was recently released from jail is back behind bars. According to KETK, Keandre Zyshun Bailey, 18, has been arrested on an aggravated robbery warrant out of Harrison County. Bailey racks up his third jail stint for 2017 after having been previously arrested for theft of a fire arm and burglary of a habitation in January, as well as failure to identify and unlawful carrying of a weapon in April. He was released from jail for the April arrest on Monday, April 24. In March, Bailey was also named as a suspect in the December death of Daxtan Castleberry. Continue reading Longview Man Arrested for Aggravated Robbery

TYLER — Tyler Police are on the scene of an accident involving a pedestrian. Officials said the northbound lanes of HWY 271, by UT Health Northeast, were closed for several hours. Just before 2:00 this morning, a pedestrian walking on the outside lane of the highway was struck and killed. The accident is under investigation. Names have not been released.

KILGORE – A man who claimed to have a bomb has been arrested by Kilgore police. The man was at the front door of the National Guard Armory. He was said to have been threatening a staff member. Officers used binoculars to view several items in his possession and determined he did not have any explosives. The suspect was uncooperative and refused to comply with Officers. After a brief standoff, Jesse William Preston Hayes III, 29, Richmond, VA, was safely taken into custody and transported to the Kilgore Municipal Jail. He was later transported to the Gregg County Jail and charged with terroristic threat/fear of imminent serious bodily injury/influence the conduct or activities of a branch or agency of the federal government. He’s also charged with resisting arrest, search or transport. His bond was set at $7,000.

AUSTIN – A committee to advise The University of Texas System Board of Regents on the selection of a president for UT MD Anderson Cancer Center was announced Tuesday by Regents’ Chairman Paul L. Foster. Among those named to the committee is Dr. Michael Tidwell, the President of the University of Texas at Tyler. The presidential search advisory committee will make recommendations on possible successors to Dr. Ron DePinho. Dr. DePinho was appointed on September 1, 2011 as the fourth full-time president of the institution. He announced on March 8th he was stepping down. The committee will be asked to present names of potential candidates to The University of Texas System Board of Regents, which will make the final decision. The aim of the committee is to recommend top candidates to the regents by the end of the year.

DALLAS – An expert witness called by defense lawyers says former Dallas Mavs Maniac dancer and Tyler football standout Erbie Bowser was legally insane when he shot four women to death in 2013. In trying to prove their insanity case, Bowser’s team called a sports psychologist who testified repeated football hits, combined with post traumatic stress syndrome, left Bowser insane the night he killed his estranged wife, her daughter, his mistress, and her daughter. And pharmacology expert Dr. Ed French examined the antipsychotic medicines that Bowser was on at the time — calling some dangerous. According to French, “In terms of reducing his depression, it’s very possible that a side effect could be that he becomes anxious and agitated and he actually becomes more depressed.” Continue reading Sports Psychologist Testifies in Bowser Trial

TYLER – The City of Whitehouse will be getting assistance in housing stray dogs. Smith County Commissioners have approved an interlocal agreement with the City of Whitehouse to take its stray dogs into the Smith County Animal Shelter. According to the agreement, Whitehouse will be responsible for responding to animal control matters within its city, then transporting the dogs to the Smith County Animal Shelter. The city will pay any fees associated with impoundment, testing, medical treatment or other services. Whitehouse will pay Smith County $50 per dog that is brought to the shelter, as well as an additional $35 for each dog requiring euthanasia. The agreement between Smith County and Whitehouseis effective through Fiscal Year 2018. Continue reading Help for Stray Dogs in Whitehouse

AUSTIN — Texas right to life Republicans in the state House threaten to go over the speaker’s head to get their bills heard, with a Tyler lawmaker in the forefront. Weeks ago the Texas Freedom Caucus called for Speaker Straus to give the transgender bathroom bill a committee hearing and they got it; now they’re pushing for hearings for dismemberment abortion ban bills. State Representative Matt Schaefer said, “So you just don’t count votes on pro-life bills in the Texas House. You have to count the days left on the calendar, because unfortunately, session after session, the Texas House of Representatives has not prioritized pro-life bills.” Schaefer is also threatening to push for Governor Abbott to call for a special session if the bills are held up.

TYLER – This is National Teacher Appreciation Week. And on Tuesday, Tyler teachers were shown how much they are appreciated when they received gifts from the Tyler Area Business Education Council. To honor Tyler’s teachers, community leaders delivered cakes to over 40 different Tyler Independent School District campuses. Pictured is a cake delivered to Ramey Elementary. In the picture, from the left, Smith County Commissioner JoAnn Hampton, Thomas B. Ramey Elementary School Principal Tremayna Thomas, Smith County Administrator Leonardo Brown and Pre-Trial Services Director Gary Pinkerton
Continue reading A Sweet Treat for Tyler Teachers

MARSHALL – A Shreveport based business is moving its headquarters to Marshall. Hardware Distribution Warehouses Inc. will be moving into a a 670,000 square foot facility on Brown Road. They closed on the purchase of the property last week. The facility had been formerly owned by Celebrating Home, which closed a couple of years ago. Company officials tell the Marshall News Messenger many of the Shreveport employees are being brought to the Marshall facility. They plan to start with 165 employees and could hire up to 75 new employees from the Marshall community. A temporary employment office will be announced later this month.

PALESTINE – Palestine police have arrested a man for making a bomb threat. The bomb threat was made late Saturday afternoon at Lowe’s on South Loop 256. The phone threats were determined to have been made from inside the store. After customers were evacuated, the store manager told officers an employee was hiding inside the store. They found him, Paul Martinez, 21. The investigation indicated he was making the calls. He was arrested and charged with making a false alarm and booked into the Anderson County Jail.

TYLER – Two Tyler Junior College professors are being singled out as endowed teaching chairs for 2017. This year’s recipients are sociology professor Ryan Button who receives the “The Dorothy Fay and Jack White Endowed Chair for Teaching Excellence.” And speech professor Alfonso Ippolito, who receives “The Thomas H. Shelby Jr. Endowed Chair for Teaching Excellence.” The winners were surprised during their classes Tuesday with a fanfare of applause and balloons, followed by presentations of certificates and checks from TJC officials. Endowed teaching chair recipients receive $2,000 for each of two years. This includes a $1,500 cash stipend and $500 for professional development for each year. Continue reading Two Endowed Teaching Chairs Named at TJC

TYLER – The population of Tyler’s Caldwell Zoo has grown by three. The zoo has announced the arrival of three cheetah cubs. They were born on April 23rd. Meadow and her cubs are living in off-exhibit quarters so that this little family has time to bond with mom. And they will feel secure as she cares for her youngsters in relative seclusion for a while. The zoo staff have not disturbed the mother and her cubs, so their gender is not known. Zoo visitors can watch the cheetah family on the zoo’s Cheetah Cam. It is located at the outpost on the African Overlook. Continue reading New Arrivals at Caldwell Zoo

RUSK — 82-year-old Rayburn Hobbs of Bullard has been indicted for a November murder in Cherokee County. KETK reports A 9-1-1 call came in saying a person had been shot and killed. The caller said he was at a mobile home on County Road 3706 near Mount Selman. Police say they were met at the scene by Hobbs, the owner of the mobile home. They found 69-year-old Jimmie Zinn dead inside the house.

LONGVIEW – Longview police had been looking for a missing man. They now say that Donzel Bell, 71, has been found and is safe. Bell, who suffers from dementia, walked away from Christus Good Shepherd Medical Center around 10:00 Tuesday morning.

EAST TEXAS — The National Weather Service offices in Fort Worth and Shreveport were out surveying damage tracks again Monday. The team from Fort Worth found three additional tornado tracks. In addition, they’ve now included two tornado tracks from near Lindale and Mineola. The Eustace tornado that went just west of Canton (the first of several tornadoes to impact the city) was upgraded to an EF-4 with maximum sustained winds estimated to be near 180 MPH. Nine tornadoes have been confirmed and additional damage surveys will be conducted on Tuesday. These survey results are subject to change. Please note that the Lindale and Mineola tornado tracks are not included in the graphic.

TYLER – The nominees for Tyler’s Teachers of the year will be honored tonight. Teachers like Robert E Lee’s Josh Loeffler and John Tyler’s Kala Morrow are among the 30 teachers on the list. Those teachers will be honored and the Elementary and Secondary Teacher of the year will be announced at the annual banquet tonight at the Harvey Convention Center. Continue reading Teachers of the Year to Be Announced

LONGVIEW – One person has been killed in a late afternoon wreck in Longview. It happened at the intersection of Marshall Avenue and Enterprise Street. Pct. 2 Justice of the Peace Tim Bryan identified the driver as Martha Blazek of Longview. He said Blazek had been a nurse at Pine Tree Middle School since 1990. Longview police report she was making a left hand turn from northbound Enterprise Street. A Dodge pickup involved in the crash was traveling eastbound on West Marshall Avenue when the collision occurred. At this time the investigating officer has not completed the crash report.

TYLER — The public is invited to the final public Rose Garden Complex meeting Tuesday at 6:00pm, at the Rose Garden Center in the Rose Room. A comprehensive presentation on the new Rose Complex Master Plan will be given. Officials say it will include a review of the parking and safety improvements, a public park as the new “front door” to the Rose Complex and a new, improved Harvey Convention Center. Tyler Parks and Recreation entered into an agreement with Halff Associates in September 2016 to create a master plan of the Rose Complex area. This includes Harvey Convention Center, the Rose Garden and Rose Garden Center, the East Texas State Fairgrounds, Tyler Independent School District’s football and baseball facilities, Windsor Grove Park and the surrounding areas.

CANTON – All four victims of the weekend tornadoes in Van Zandt County have been identified. County Judge Don Kirkpatrick had earlier identified two of the victims as Lucretia Yvette Sykes, 49, of Ft. Worth and James Clayton Young, 39, of Alba. Both were in their vehicles when the tornado hit. Sykes was found near her vehicle and Young was found inside his vehicle. The Judge later identified the other two victims as Kenneth Hughes, 57, of Canton and Russell “Rusty” Barlow, 51, of Corsicana. According to a news release, Barlow was found in a building and Hughes was found in a residence.

AUSTIN – After visiting Van Zandt County following the severe weather and deadly tornadoes over the weekend, Governor Greg Abbott, on Monday, declared a State of Disaster in three counties. In response to the significant damage, the Governor has issued a Disaster Declaration for Henderson, Van Zandt, and Rains counties. “The recent severe weather across our state has had a devastating impact on the people of East Texas,” said Governor Abbott. “Texans by their very nature are resilient, and I am confident we will remain steadfast in our response to this disaster. I ask that everyone keep those impacted in your prayers as we come together to rebuild in the aftermath of these storms.” Continue reading A Disaster Declaration for Three Area Counties

East Texas – From now through May 20, several relief agencies are staffing a free hotline for debris removal and home cleanup after the recent severe weather. This hotline will connect survivors with reputable and vetted relief agencies that will assist in chainsaw work, debris cleanup, and mucking out, as they are able. All services are free, but service is not guaranteed due to the overwhelming need. Survivors needing assistance with home cleanup may call 1-800-451-1954. Continue reading Free East Texas Tornado Home Cleanup Hotline

TYLER – A professor at the University of Texas at Tyler has been named a Fulbright Scholar. He is Dr. Ali Azghani, a biomedical researcher and a professor of biology. The Fulbright Program is a prestigious international exchange initiative created in 1946 that awards grants to American scholars each year to teach or conduct research in the more than 125 participatory nations throughout the world. With the award, Azghani will travel next spring to Azerbaijan, where he will study antimicrobial resistance in certain bacteria affecting the lungs. His appointment is for the 2018 – 22 academic years.

EAST TEXAS – State health officials have a reported a slight increase in confirmed rabies cases in Northeast Texas. The Department of State Health Services, Zoonosis Control for regions 4 and 5 reported 14, confirmed rabies cases in the first quarter of the year. This compares to 12 confirmed cases in the 35 counties in the first quarter of last year. Besides skunks, there have been one dog, one cow, and three bats testing positive for rabies. And four persons have been treated for possible exposure to the disease.

LINDALE – A preliminary report from the National Weather Service indicates the weekend storms produced a tornado north of Lindale. The report said the storm was an EF-1 tornado. This type of storm produces moderate damage, including significant roof damage, windows broken, exterior doors damaged or lost and mobile homes overturned. Winds in an EF-1 tornado run between 86 and 110 miles an hour. The weather service says they will release additional information when the survey is completed.

CANTON (ABC/Staff) — The cleanup continues in Canton following the weekend’s devastating tornadoes. Mayor Lou Ann Everett says they’ve been getting utilities back up and running. Everett said Monday that power has been restored to the city of Canton. She added that crews hoped soon to resolve issues with people who weren’t able to receive power, possibly due to some limbs down. Specifically, the power at CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances HealthPark in Canton has been restored. A news release says the facility will be open to see patients Tuesday during normal business hours. Continue reading Canton Mayor Offers Update Following Tornadoes

TYLER – A Medication Cleanout Event hosted by the Tyler Police Department and Brookshires turned out to be a big success. The “No Question’s Asked” cleanout event was held Saturday. According to police spokesman Don Martin, the total amount of medications dropped of weighed in at 741.80 pounds. This beat last year’s amount which came to 482.2 pounds.

CANTON – Among those supporting the first responders and those involved in search and rescue following the powerful tornadoes in East Texas are units of the Salvation Army. While the Tyler Salvation is on standby by, awaiting a call, three Salvation Army mobile kitchens and a Rapid Response Unit have been on the scene. The Salvation Army EDS team from Lewisville has been serving meals. The Rapid Response Unit from Granbury, operated by members of the Women’s Service League of Hood County, provided roving support in addition to two other mobile kitchens. One staging area was at a Canton car dealership where The Salvation Army disaster teams distributed meals and snacks. Monday was supposed to be an exciting day for the dealership as they were scheduled to open a brand new showroom. Instead, the buildings were torn apart by the tornado with cars and trucks tossed around the property.