KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER — Tyler police are investigating a Thursday stabbing. Police responded to the 400 block of E. Line on a report of a male who had been stabbed in the upper chest. Officers were told that the victim, suspect, and witness had been drinking in a wooded area just off Line Street. The victim and suspect had reportedly gotten into a verbal altercation when the suspect allegedly pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim in the chest. Police say the victim then walked out of the wooded area into the intersection of Line and Frank and asked for help.

EMS responded to the scene and transported the victim to a local hospital. The extent of his injury is unknown at this time. Police say the suspect fled the area on foot and has not been located by police. He was described as white, 5’7’’, heavy build, 30 to 40 years old. Police said the victim’s name will not be released until it has been confirmed.

TYLER — The Texas Transportation Commission has awarded $120,000 to the North East Texas Regional Mobility Authority to go towards the Smith County Multimodal Facility. NET RMA Chairman Jeff Austin III stated, “We appreciate being able to work with TxDOT and Smith County in this partnership and value the hard work of Mr. Jamal Moharer, Chairman of the East Texas Coordinated Regional Transportation Planning Steering Committee (ETCRTPSC) to take another critical step toward allowing this to become a reality.”

NET RMA applied for this funding through a broad partnership to undertake preparatory and planning activities for a Multi-Modal Facility (MMF) transit hub in Tyler. Partners include the Smith County Commissioners Court and its Smith County Transportation Advisory Committee; the Tyler Area Metropolitan Planning Organization; the City of Tyler; Tyler Transit; NDMJ, Ltd.; Greyhound Bus Lines; the East Texas Council of Governments; and ETCRTPSC.

Austin said, “To fund the ultimate project, the Legislature has given RMA’s new tools to work with the Counties in the area of project delivery including Design/Build and Design/Build/Finance to find the most cost effective and efficient manner to construct and fund the project. This is a great model to centralize multimodal facilities in a County and can be a model for other counties/cities to consider.”

According to a news release, the MMF will consolidate and focus several transportation elements at a single site and allow for increased connectivity for residents of Smith County and the East Texas region to access other areas of Texas and the nation. Officials say available transit services at the MMF will include Greyhound and Kerrville Bus Lines (intercity bus) and charter bus service, transportation to Amtrak train stops in the region, Tyler Transit, a park and ride lot, and demand-response rural transit services. “This was the reason that RMA’s were established — to partner to find transportation and mobility solutions for our region,” said Austin.

TYLER — East Texas Medical Center facilities have received an accreditation and a recertification. The Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons has granted three-year accreditation with commendation to the cancer program at the ETMC Cancer Institute. ETMC received the reaccreditation following the on-site evaluation by a physician surveyor in May. The commission is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to improving survival rates and quality of life for cancer patients through education, standard-setting, prevention, research and monitoring the quality of cancer care.

In 1990, ETMC’s Cancer Institute was the first oncology program in East Texas to be certified, placing it among the elite hospitals in the nation with approved cancer programs. “We are very pleased to have this approval again because it’s only given to facilities that have voluntarily committed to providing the highest level of quality cancer care,” said Todd Sigmon, vice president of the ETMC Cancer Institute.

Also, ETMC Tyler’s stroke care program has been recertified as an Advanced Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations with a Gold Seal of Approval. ETMC Tyler was the first hospital in East Texas and one of the first in Texas to receive this designation in 2005 with recertifications in 2007 and 2009. ETMC voluntarily pursued this designation in part because of the alarming rate of stroke-related deaths in East Texas. The Joint Commission conducted an on-site review this spring to review compliance with national standards, clinical guidelines and outcomes of care.

“The East Texas region has one of the highest stroke rates in our state,” said Sigmon, who also serves as ETMC Neurological Institute vice president. “Since part of the effort to earn the certification includes a focus on stroke prevention, we believe it will help us meet our goal to help change that factor in our region.”

LUFKIN — A Lufkin woman was arrested Tuesday after allegedly kicking her roommate’s 5-year-old son in the chest during a fight with the boy’s mother. That’s according to KETK and the Lufkin Daily News. Lufkin officers were called to the Lark Street home of the boy’s mother, Victoria Burr, around 10:17 p.m., in reference to the boy being injured by the woman, Versia Walker, who had been living with them for two months, according to an arrest affidavit.

Authorities say Walker, 28, left the house before police arrived. Burr told officers Walker started yelling at her and took a swing at her but then she was able to put Walker in a headlock to keep her from fighting, the affidavit stated. A neighbor reportedly tried breaking up the fight but not before the boy apparently wandered too close to Walker. Four witnesses said they saw Walker kick the boy in his chest, knocking him back several feet, according to the affidavit. When officers talked to the boy, he said his chest hurt.

After taking statements from everyone the officers left but returned about 15 minutes later when Walker showed back up. When asked about the incident, Walker said she “pushed” the boy away with her leg to keep him out of the fight, the affidavit stated. She was arrested on third-degree felony injury to a child and taken to the Angelina County Jail. As she was taken to jail a friend of hers was moving her stuff out of the home, according to the affidavit. If convicted Walker faces up to 10 years in prison.

GILMER — Upshur County officials have issued a complete fireworks ban for 60 hours. Residents will be able to purchase fireworks but cannot use them in the county. A request has been sent to Governor Perry to extend the ban for 7 days.

DIBOLL — An East Texas man wanted after a drug roundup in Diboll turns himself in. According to KETK, Neilson Gibson is charged with delivery of a controlled substance in a drug-free zone. 16 suspects on 30 drug-related warrants were involved in the undercover operation. Police began arresting them last week. Officials say the roundup started June 22 and will continue until all 16 suspects are caught.

TYLER — Smith County is one of a few government entities nationwide to receive the 2011 Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award from the National Purchasing Institute, County Judge Joel Baker announced this week. According to a county news release, the award is earned by those who demonstrate excellence, innovation, professionalism, productivity and leadership in their procurement practices. “We have worked with the Commissioners Court to implement a lot of good procedures,” Smith County Purchasing Director Kelli Davis said. “This is a great honor for the County.”

“This award is based on performance measures and best practices. Mrs. Davis and the Smith County Purchasing Team have gone above and beyond to provide the best and most efficient purchasing procedures to the citizens of Smith County,” County Judge Joel Baker said. Arrangements are in the works for an NPI member to present the award to Smith County in the near future. “The integrity and honesty that Smith County’s Purchasing Department has shown is incredible,” Tarrant County Purchasing Director and former President of the Texas Purchasing Association Jack Beacham said. “Anytime you are considered for an award of this magnitude it is a great honor.”

LONGVIEW — Longview Fire Department officials are investigating the cause of a Thursday morning fire in the 1900 block of Holly Street. Firefighters were dispatched to the home at around 8:40 yesterday morning. They say it was fully extinguished within an hour.

WILLS POINT – Nearly four dozen animals have been recovered from alleged Van Zandt County puppy mill. The animals were found in a filthy trailer house in Wills Point. The ammonia level was so great, the eyes and throats of investigators began burning. There was said to have been no food or water for the animals. Van Zandt County authorities turned over to the SPCA six dogs, 19 puppies, two turtles and a bird. They also found 12 dogs in a pen outside the trailer.

MARSHALL – An Upshur County man has been sentenced to federal prison for firearms violations. Franklin Levern Turner, 56, of Diana, pleaded guilty in February to possessing an unregistered firearm. He was sentenced yesterday to 18 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge T. John Ward. Turner was also ordered to forfeit a Winchester sawed-off 30-30 rifle.

Federal prosecutors say on July 15, 2009, Turner was found to be in possession of a firearm with a barrel length of less than eighteen inches which was not registered to him in the National Firearms and Transfer Record. Turner was indicted by a federal grand jury last August and charged with federal firearms violations.

TATUM – A motorcycle accident in Gregg County has left one person dead. Killed in the Tuesday night crash was Lonzo Lewis Jr., 40, of Tatum. The Department of Public Safety says Lewis was traveling at an unsafe speed when his motorcycle left Farm Road 2906 and hit a barbed wire fence. Lewis was not wearing a helmet.

MOUNT ENTERPRISE – The Tuesday night storms appear to be responsible for a traffic fatality in Rusk County. The accident happened around 10:30 Tuesday night when the victim’s pickup truck hit a tree that had fallen across the roadway. Alvertis Pruitt, 83, of Mount Enterprise, died about 12 hours later at East Texas Medical Center in Henderson. The accident happened on Farm Road 225.

GILMER — One man is dead after being hit by a truck while driving a golf cart in Upshur County on Wednesday morning. DPS officials say Alfred Keck, 74, was heading west on FM 49, just east of Lime Tree Rd., around 7:40 a.m. Authorities say Keck turned his golf cart left in front of a truck driven by Aldon Marty, 38, from Hawkins. According to KETK, officials say Marty was not speeding. Keck was thrown from the cart and pronounced dead at a local hospital.

LONGVIEW — The Gregg County Commissioners Court enacted a burn ban Wednesday during its regular meeting. It’s the latest in a growing series of such prohibitions throughout East Texas and around the state. According to a release by Gregg County Judge Bill Stoudt’s office, the ban will be reviewed on a periodic basis.

LUFKIN — A 17-year-old Lufkin man was arrested Tuesday for allegedly soliciting his 13-year-old cousin by reportedly sending her an inappropriate picture via text message. That’s according to KETK and the Lufkin Daily News. The man is not being named in this story in an attempt to protect the girl’s identity. He sent his cousin a text message on May 5 asking her to sneak out of her home and meet him at his mother’s house, according to an arrest affidavit. Authorities say that he then sent a message asking her for a photo and that she responded by sending a picture of herself in a bikini. In response, he said he would send her a picture of himself and did, a photo of his private parts, the affidavit stated.

The girl then sent a message asking why he would send her that photo and he messaged back that he thought she would like it, according to the affidavit. He then reportedly told her that if she would come over he would rub her neck and they could do what they did before. The man was taken into custody Tuesday on a warrant for second-degree online solicitation of a minor. If convicted he faces up to 20 years in prison.