KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER – A two story home in Tyler has been extensively damaged by fire. It was reported shortly after 5:45 Sunday afternoon at 1604 North Bois D Arc, near the intersection of West Vance Street. Fire Marshall Paul Findley says arriving firemen reported fire on the upper floor of the two story residence. Initial findings indicate that the fire may have started in an upstairs bedroom near a space heater. There were no injuries reported and the fire remains under investigation.

LONGVIEW – A space heater that had fallen over is responsible for a fire that destroyed a Longview home. The fire at 318 Gum Street was reported around 11:45 Friday night. No injuries were reported.

TYLER – Two members of the Tyler Police Department were promoted Monday morning. Police Chief Gary Swindle promoted Robert Lee Plymail, a graduate from Hawkins High School in 1983, from sergeant to lieutenant. He served in the United States Marine Corps from 1983 to 1986 when he was honorably discharged. He graduated from the East Texas Police Academy in 1986. Lee worked for the Smith County Sheriff from 1987 to 1993. He has been with the Tyler Police Department since 1993. In 1998 he was promoted to Sergeant and served as a patrol Sergeant until 2008. In 2008 he moved to investigations as the Youth Crimes Sergeant.

Plymail received the Certificate of Merit bar in 2002 and the Police Commendation bar in 2004. He has Master Peace Officer certificate through TCLEOSE and has been a TCLEOSE Instructor since 1998. He has instructed Family Violence, Penal Code and Arrest and Search and Seizure classes in the basic academy. He has also instructed Intermediate Arrest Search and Seizure for in service training. Lee has been a member of the Special Operations Team since 2008

Also at the ceremony, Officer Paul Robeson was promoted to Sergeant. Robeson began working for the Tyler Police Department in May of 2002, and currently holds an Advanced Peace Officer license. In 2003, Paul was chosen as the Rookie of the Year. That same year he worked as a cross-trained Investigator in Property Crimes. He also joined the Honor Guard that year and has been an active member since then. Within a few years of being hired, Paul was chosen as an FTO where he served for several years. He also became part of the Police Department’s Accident Investigation team as well as a TCLEOSE instructor.

In 2006, Robeson was selected to work in the Criminal Investigation Division as a Crimes Against Children Investigator. While working within this division he received several awards including: Plain Clothes Officer of the Month, Unit of the Year, East Texas Crisis Center Hope Award, and several other Volunteer awards given through the Childrens Advocacy Center.

In December 2007, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from UT Tyler. And, in May 2009, Paul transferred into the Traffic division where he has been working up to this point. Since obtaining his Peace Officer license, he has received hundreds of hours of specialized training furthering his knowledge. He has been trained as an intermediate crime scene officer and has processed numerous major scenes. He has also received advanced training in accident investigations. He has attended 100’s of hours of investigation related courses.

AUSTIN (AP/Staff) – East Texas native Beryl Pickle, widow of longtime Texas congressman Jake Pickle, has died. Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home in Austin said that Pickle died last Thursday. She was 93. Pickle was born in Rusk and grew up in Jacksonville. She attended Lon Morris College. She and Jake Pickle, whose first wife died in 1952, were married in 1960. Three years later, he won a seat in Congress. The congressman, who served in Washington for 31 years, died in 2005. Longtime aide Paul Hilgers told the Austin American-Statesman that Beryl Pickle had a keen sense of humor and kept her husband grounded. Stepdaughter Peggy Pickle says she came to politics reluctantly, “but once she got into it, she came to enjoy it.” Services will be this Thursday at First United Methodist Church in Austin.

SMITH COUNTY — The bridge on County Road 3111 (Joy Wright Mountain Road) north of FM 1252 has been reopened to traffic. The bridge was shut down Thursday for repair according to Smith County Road and Bridge Administrator Doug Nicholson. Also, County Road 46 near County Road 411 has been temporarily closed by the Texas Department of Transportation for Loop 49 construction.

TYLER — Witnesses on the scene of a four-vehicle accident Friday afternoon in Tyler say a motorcycle and a car collided, sending the motorcycle into the ditch. According to KETK, the man on the motorcycle went to the hospital. The extent of his injuries is unknown, but they are reportedly not life-threatening. According to the driver of the car, the man on the motorcycle was in her blind spot before they hit. At least two more cars rear-ended the first in the process.

TYLER — Tyler Police officials tell KETK a six-vehicle accident at Troup Hwy. and Loop 323 in Tyler was caused when a car ran a red light just before 2:00 Friday afternoon. Officials say a black Grand Prix was headed north on Troup when it drove through the red light and kept going. Several other cars were crossing on the Loop and ran into each other to avoid the Grand Prix. Six people were sent to the hospital with unknown injuries. Witnesses did not get a license plate number on the Grand Prix, whose driver is still sought by authorities.

TYLER – On Thursday, the Texas Education Agency corrected Dogan Middle School’s accountability rating, naming the campus Academically Acceptable. This correction is in response to an appeal filed by Tyler ISD on July 29, 2011.

In July of this year, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) released preliminary campus and district accountability ratings. At that time, Dogan Middle School was listed as Academically Unacceptable. After researching the issue, Tyler ISD discovered a flaw in the way the results were calculated at Dogan and brought it to the attention of TEA. TEA reviewed the information submitted by the district, granted the appeal, and changed the rating to Academically Acceptable.

“We are pleased that TEA corrected our rating to ensure it reflects accurate performance results,” Dogan Middle School principal Masud Shamsid-Deen said. “Dogan students, teachers, and administrators are proud of the improvements we have made thus far, and we will continue to strive to achieve top results.”

Officials say Dogan Middle School has made great gains on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS), which is currently the test used to determine accountability ratings. In the 2010-2011 academic year, Dogan students achieved improvements in math scores ranging from four to nine points, and science scores were seven to 32 points higher than the previous year. In addition to meeting state standards, Dogan exceeded federal school improvement requirements.

This is the final year that TEA will utilize TAKS to determine accountability ratings. Beginning in 2012, all Texas school districts will be measured on the more rigorous State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR).

NACOGDOCHES (AP/Staff) – A county-wide burn has prompted Stephen F. Austin State University to adorn its homecoming bonfire structure with electric lights instead of torching it with flames. SFA dean Adam Peck says the college has traditionally set a bonfire structure ablaze for homecoming but the state’s prolonged drought made that “inadvisable” this year. The Daily Sentinel reports that in the absence of a bonfire, students dropped plans to burn shirts printed by other colleges as they’ve done in the past. Peck said school officials would collect the shirts and donate them to the needy instead. The university’s torchlight parade went on Friday night as planned but with lanterns, glow sticks and other portable lights guiding the way to the bonfire site instead of lit torches.

LONGVIEW — Two Gregg County Jail staffers were injured – one hospitalized – after an altercation with an inmate, authorities said Friday. That’s according to KETK and the Longview News-Journal. Cedric Duwayne Ward, jailed since Oct. 1 on $10,000 bond for two assault charges, was formally charged on two counts of assaulting a public servant. Precinct 1 Justice of the Peace B.H. Jameson set bond at $50,000 on each charge.

According to arrest reports, Cpl. Ryan Waldow and Detention Officer Aaron Medlin responded to Ward’s jail cell at 7:48 p.m. Thursday after reports that an inmate was “causing problems” and was a “potential breach of security.” Officers tried to remove Ward from his cell to restore order, but he began to resist, shoving Waldow into a table while hitting Medlin on his upper right leg and left ring finger. Ward also bit the officers, reports showed.

Wadlow was transported to Good Shepherd Medical Center for treatment. Medlin was treated by jail medical staff. Ward, 33, of Longview, remained jailed on $110,000 bond.

JACKSONVILLE — Some Jacksonville residents may sleep a little better knowing that police have arrested nine individuals selling drugs in the city over the past two months and they say it’s only the beginning. Authorities say the recent busts are primarily due to the community alerting them to areas where drug deals might potentially occur. They say many of the raids they’ve done have been at individuals’ homes, and that they even raided a business. They say all told they’ve confiscated around fifteen thousand dollars in cash, crack cocaine, marijuana, a few cars, and even some weapons.

LONGVIEW — A Longview man was charged early Thursday morning with driving while intoxicated after police said he hit two parked vehicles and ran his vehicle through the garage of a Longview home. Police spokesman Kristie Brian said officers were dispatched to the 500 block of West Cheryl Street around 3:20 a.m. in connection with a car that struck a residence.

Brian said Sky Paxton Cass, 21, was traveling down West Cheryl Street when he lost control of his vehicle, hit multiple parked cars and ran his vehicle through the garage of a home. Rayvin Morales, who lives in the residence , said she was asleep in the house with her three children when the crash occurred. Morales said no one was injured in the crash, “only startled.”

Cass was arrested after failing a field sobriety test. He was transported to Good Shepherd Medical Center to be examined before police booked him into Gregg County Jail.

MARSHALL – A Harrison County jury has sentenced Renrick DeCarlos Taylor, 22, to 99 years in prison for murder. It took the panel on Thursday only five minutes to reach a decision. The same panel, on Wednesday, deliberated around 2½ hours before convicting Taylor of the 2009 murder of LaShun Rena Jenkins, 30. Taylor is the first of the two co-defendants to be tried in the case.

LONGVIEW — Eleven persons are the latest to graduate from the City of Longview Citizen’s Police Academy. They join the ranks of the over 500 citizens who have completed the academy during the past twenty years. During the past 7 weeks, the students attended classes twice a week and learned about the inner workings of the police department. Academy courses were taught by current police officers and other guest speakers, including the District Attorney, Agents from the County Organized Drug Enforcement Unit, and a demonstration by the SWAT team.

Students were also given the opportunity to participate in the Police Department’s firearms simulator. This program is used to train officers how to react in different situations. The exercise allowed Academy students to experience, firsthand, the type of training Longview Police Officers complete on an annual basis. Students also had the opportunity to participate in the Department’s ride-along program. The ride-along program allows the individual to accompany and observe an officer as he or she performs daily patrol duties. The class is offered every September and is free of charge.

The current graduates are:
1. Lisa Clark
2. Charlotte Erickstad
3. Roger Erickstad
4. Tiffany Ethridge
5. Steve Hunt
6. Evelyn Jackson
7. Everett Johnston
8. Hans Manhave
9. Debbie Hanhave
10. Stacey Martinez
11. Brenda Nutter

TYLER — According to officials at Centerpoint Energy a new gas pipeline is being installed on East South East Loop 323, beginning at the intersection of Paluxy, going west and ending between South Broadway and Old Bullard Road. There will be intermittent lane closures until the end of the year, which will affect the outside westbound lane and possibly some intersections along that route. Some of this project will be worked during late evening and night time hours. It’s hoped that installation will be completed on or before the end of year. Drivers are urged to use extreme caution while workers are present and anyone utilizing this road is encouraged to temporarily seek alternate routes.

TYLER — Smith County Road and Bridge crews have closed a section of County Road 3111, also known as Joy Wright Mountain Road, for an urgent and immediate bridge repair. KETK reports that a failed inspection prompted the move. The bridge, located just north of Farm Road 1252, will be closed to all directions of traffic for three to five days, Smith County Road and Bridge Administrator Doug Nicholson said Thursday. Nicholson said, “We apologize for any inconvenience the closure may cause. Our crews are working to address this issue so that motorists can safely return this road as quickly as possible.” Motorists in this area are being asked to exercise caution and plan to use an alternate route.

KILGORE — The Kilgore College Institutional Advancement office has announced that a new scholarship, “The Chelsea Kirkland Memorial Scholarship,” will be created in memory of a KC Twirler. Chelsea Kirkland, from Tatum, was the head KC Twirler and a member of the Ranger Band. She died Oct. 25 as a result of a car accident. According to college officials, the Twirling Alumni Association has made a commitment to make sure the scholarship is endowed and given each year to a twirler in memory of Kirkland. To make a donation to this scholarship, send checks to: Once…Always Kilgore College Twirling; Kilgore College; 1100 Broadway’ Kilgore, TX; 75662-3299. Make checks payable to Kilgore College, and the memo line should read “Chelsea Kirkland Scholarship.”

For additional information, contact Paula Jamerson, Coordinator of Alumni Relations, at [email protected] or 903-983-8187. You can also contact Sherry Ransom, Institutional Advancement Administrative Assistant, at [email protected] or 903-983-8182.

TYLER — Tyler police say a man tried to evade officers Thursday morning after he was caught dealing drugs. He is now behind bars. Authorities tell KETK they saw Brian Pullins, 31, of Tyler, dealing drugs at around 10:00am in the 800 block of West Wilson. Police say when Pullins noticed he was being watched, he took off in his vehicle but crashed nearby.

TYLER — This morning around 8:30 a.m., Cambridge Road at the Jeff Davis Drive intersection was closed for removal of a dead pine tree. Northbound traffic is being detoured down Oakway Drive, back to Robert E. Lee Drive, and southbound traffic has the option to go on Oakway Drive to continue southward, or go to Jeff Davis Drive to go east. Work should be completed by 2:30 p.m. Drivers are urged to use extreme caution while workers are present, and anyone utilizing these roads is encouraged to temporarily seek alternate routes.

NACOGDOCHES — The price tag reaches over half a million dollars as Nacogdoches County authorities continue to investigate farm equipment thefts. The sheriff’s office tells KETK it’s found stolen farming equipment at a fourth residence. Authorities say Friday’s arrests of Antonio Centeno and Lucia Centeno are the only ones made in connection to the thefts. Once all the equipment is processed, they’ll go back to determine if more arrests are required.

TYLER — It’s on our coins, and a growing number of East Texas governments are adding it to their chambers too. Wednesday Tyler’s City Council voted to add the motto “In God We Trust” to its chambers. Council members tell KETK adding the signage is appropriate because the people of Tyler openly express their faith and support the phrase. Private funds will be used to display the motto. Smith County is second in the nation to have all incorporated chambers displaying “In God We Trust.”

TYLER — Smith County commissioners are moving forward to build the downtown jail addition. According to KETK, that’s one phase of the $35 million dollar bond package approved by voters. The jail system’s low to medium risk facility near Highway 69 and Loop 323 will be revamped by July 2013. The downtown jail expansion will adjoin the downtown facility on the corner of Fannin Avenue and Erwin Street. It will add 384 high- to medium-risk, double-occupancy cells and cost between $25 million and $28 million.

TYLER — Our rainfall deficit measures in feet these days, and Tyler’s City Council met Wednesday to review ways to deal with a shrinking Lake Tyler. Emergency projects are unfolding to deal with receding water levels, seven and a half feet below normal as of midweek. City staffers tell KETK this past summer wasn’t a normal one, with demands on the system increasing by about ten million gallons per day on average. The meeting ended with plans to continue to design and construct the Charleston booster station. Its estimated cost: around $230,000. The city is still encouraging water customers to continue conservation efforts.

ANGELINA COUNTY — Authorities identify a man who committed suicide after being stopped by authorities Wednesday in Angelina County. It happened on U.S. Highway 59 north after the truck driver was pulled over by a state trooper. Investigators say the man who shot himself is identified as Mason Burks, 46, from Springfield, Missouri. Troopers say they found 603 pounds of marijuana in the sleeper of the truck’s cab. The trooper was making a routine stop on the driver on 59 North just south of the river bridge to check the driver’s log book and credentials. As Trooper Mike McClain approached the truck’s window, he heard a gunshot. McClain took cover, and after backup officers arrived stepped back up to the window. He found Burks dead from a gunshot wound to the chest.

DOUGLASS – A two-vehicle accident in Western Nacogdoches County has left one person dead and one injured. The wreck, around 7:00 Wednesday morning, killed Daniel W. Rhodes, 63, of Nacogdoches. His pickup was hit by a tractor-trailer rig driven by Douglas H. Ayala, 43, of Houston. He is being treated in a Nacogdoches Hospital. The Department of Public Safety says Ayala’s west bound truck went out of control and into the east bound lane where it struck the victim’s pickup. The wreck occurred on State Highway 21 near Douglass.

COOPER – Four days after he was reported missing, the body of a Cooper teenager has been found. The body of Stephen Martin, 16, was found Tuesday in a creek some 300 yards from the home where he had been living with his grandmother. He was last seen Friday afternoon when he went for a walk. An autopsy has been ordered. Investigators feel the teen may have committed suicide.

TYLER – A motorcyclist has been injured in a two vehicle accident in Tyler. It happened just before 7:00 Wednesday night in the 5,000 block of the Troup Highway. Taken to East Texas Medical Center was Nathan Roberson, 37. He was northbound on the Troup Highway when he was hit by a pickup. Police reports indicate the pickup’s driver, Louis Dickey, 66, was attempting a left turn into a private drive and turned into the motorcycle path, failing to yield the right of way. Investigators say Robertson, who wearing a helmet, sustained non-life threatening injuries.

TYLER – A three month long theft investigation has resulted in a Tyler man’s arrest. It came Tuesday night as a contingent of officers raided a home in the 500 block of Meadow Creek Drive. Taken into custody was Clinton Daniel McCaa, 31. Investigators say McCaa is accused of stealing items and then training them for methamphetamine. His arrest is said to be in connection with a raid on a Tyler warehouse last summer. That July raid turned up a half a million dollars worth of stolen property.

DENVER (AP) — President Barack Obama said Wednesday his administration has made no decision on whether a Canadian company can proceed with plans for a transcontinental oil pipeline to Texas. A portion of the pipelines route would go through eastern Smith County.

A protester during Obama’s appearance at the University of Colorado Denver yelled that the president should say no to the contested Keystone XL project. Obama said his administration is looking into the issue but had made no decision. He told the protester: “I know your deep concern about it. We will address it.”

The pipeline would carry oil derived from tar sands in Alberta, Canada, to refineries in Houston and Port Arthur, Texas. The 1,700-mile pipeline would travel through Montana, South Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas.

AUSTIN – Wildfire survivors in Upshur, Smith and Rusk counties have one last chance to meet with state and federal specialists at recovery centers opening for a final time in area communities. Starting Thursday, specialists from the state of Texas, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Small Business Administration will be on hand to answer questions and provide information on the types of assistance available to survivors. They also have brochures and other written materials on disaster recovery.

The schedule is:

Upshur County
First Baptist Church of Gilmer
304 Buffalo St.
Gilmer, TX 75644
1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 27
9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28

Smith & Rusk Counties
Bethel Baptist Church
13108 Hwy 64 East
Tyler, TX 75707
1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 31
9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 1-2

Any Texan with questions about the recovery process or needing help registering with FEMA is urged to stop by a recovery center. Visiting with a recovery specialist is not a requirement for survivors who want disaster assistance, but the centers are termed an excellent way for people to get answers to their questions about disaster aid and help applying for it

Texas homeowners, renters, and business owners can go to http://www.disasterassistance.gov to register online or check on the status of an earlier registration or at m.fema.gov via the web-enabled phone. They can also call one of FEMA’s toll-free numbers: 1-800-621-3362 or TTY 1-800-462-7585. Those who use 711-Relay or Video Relay Services can call 1-800-621-3362. Assistants are available by phone from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week. The registration deadline is December 8.