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SMITH COUNTY – The Smith Sheriff’s Office said that a Hispanic male who was reportedly kidnapped by two other Hispanic males on FM 2015 Sunday has been found safe. According to our news partner KETK, the deputies responded to the 11700 block of FM 2015 around 4 p.m. on Sunday for reports of a kidnapping. One Hispanic male was reportedly taken from his home at gunpoint by two other Hispanic males who demanded money before fleeing the area. Smith County investigators responded to the scene and figured out that the two were allegedly heading to the Dallas Fort Worth metroplex area in a red Honda.

The investigators told information to the Arlington and Fort Worth Police Departments that led to the kidnapping victim being found unharmed along with the suspects and their vehicle. The Smith County officials are responding to Fort Worth to take custody of the suspects and transport the victim back to Tyler. The sheriff’s office said this investigation is ongoing.

TYLER – The Smith County Sheriff’s Office said that a high-speed vehicle pursuit that started in Van Zandt County ended in a crash at State Highway 64 and Loop 323 in Tyler on Sunday. According to our news partner KETK, the pursuit started on Interstate 20 where the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office was pursuing a white Ford F-150 at 100 miles per hour. Around 6:55 p.m., the Smith County Sheriff’s Office said a SCSO deputy on Interstate 20 then tried to conduct a traffic stop on the Ford. The vehicle then exited onto State Highway 110 coming into Tyler.

The Ford passed spike strips at Loop 323 and SH 110 and turned on Loop 323. The pursuit continued to State Highway 64 where the Ford reportedly crashed. According to the Smith County Sheriff’s Office, the driver was taken into custody and has been transported to a local hospital. The Texas Department of Public Safety is reportedly working the crash and Tyler PD was called out to conduct traffic.

CHAPEL HILL – Chapel Hill Independent School District in Smith County said that they’re holding a job fair for anyone interested in working with them on Tuesday according to our news partner KETK. “We are seeking individuals who are deeply passionate about student success and are dedicated to fostering a positive community impact. Our aim is to attract top talent to our district and provide them with the necessary support for success in their roles,” said Deidra Sutton, Chapel Hill ISD’s director of human resources. The job fair will be held on Tuesday, March 19 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the Chapel Hill High School Varsity Gym. Several Chapel Hill ISD staff will be at the event to discuss what working in the district is like from day to day and to conduct on-site interviews. Along with staff there will be several students from the Academies of Chapel Hill, including aspiring engineers and entrepreneurs.

PALESTINE – The Palestine Police Department said that a third person was arrested on Saturday after officers responded to reports of shots fired on Wednesday night near Spring Street and West Oak Street. According to our news Partner KETK, Detective J. Waldon and Officer L. Medina spoke with a witness who said he heard around eight or nine shots from two guns coming from a residence on West Debard Street. Waldon and Medina arrived at the residence and reportedly found several people “who appeared to be intoxicated” with two vehicles playing loud music. They spoke with a man near one of the vehicles who was allegedly to identify himself and asked the officers to leave. Officers said they decided to arrest him when he continued to not identify himself.

The man reportedly resisted arrest and began “using force” against Medina. The man’s spouse then reportedly got between Medina and her husband to prevent his arrest. Continue reading 3 arrested after gunshots reported in Palestine

PANOLA COUNTY – Our news partner KETK is reporting that one person has died after a two-vehicle rollover crash happened on US Highway 59 South in Panola County on Friday. Details about the rollover crash are limited but the sheriff’s office said that the highway had to be shutdown for a medical helicopter to land. According to the sheriff’s office, one person received fatal injuries in the crash and the Precinct 2 Justice of the Peace has been contacted for an inquest. Troopers, sheriff’s office deputies, the Precinct 2 constable, Gary Volunteer Fire Department and UT Health EMS all responded to the crash.

TYLER — A man has been sentenced to 32 years in prison after pleading guilty to a 2022 shoot out in Tyler. According to our news partner KETK, 60-year-old Fredrick Leon Harvey of Tyler pleaded guilty Friday of murdering 57-year-old Horatio Williams, also of Tyler. Authorities say on Aug. 8, 2022, Tyler PD was called to the scene of a shooting mid-afternoon. When they arrived, they found Williams with a gunshot wound. He died of those injuries later at a local hospital.

A witness told police, leading to the shooting, the two men were inside a pool hall and “everyone was giving everyone a hard time and joking with each other.” The report continues saying the two men started to argue outside. Williams pulled a shotgun from his van, displayed the gun and then put it back in the van. Around 30 minutes later, Harvey allegedly came back with a handgun in each hand. The witness said, Williams retrieved his shotgun and both men began exchanging shots.

Frederick Harvey was arrested that same day and was charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm and murder.

TYLER — Beginning March 18, Tyler Water Utilities (TWU) crews will be checking customers’ water meter boxes to determine the water service line material. TWU staff will be out from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8 a.m. to noon on the weekends. Crews will be wearing TWU uniforms and driving TWU trucks. They will NOT need to enter homes or businesses. Signs will be posted in the neighborhoods where crews are working, and customers will receive a door hanger notice before fieldwork begins in their area. The notice will inform customers that TWU will be checking their water meter box and asks that the area around the box be clear and accessible. Continue reading Crews will be checking water line material

TYLER — The City of Tyler will have a busy schedule for the three weeks as they prepare for the total solar eclipse that is expected to boost the local economy. According to our news partner KETK, The Azalea and Spring Flower Trail is expected to open on March 22. The city will open the Azalea and Spring Flower trail with more than ten miles of residential gardens with azaleas, tulips, wisteria and dogwood.

“There’s many, many beautiful historic homes to see, there’s so, so many beautiful flowers and not just azaleas, but a lot of other spring flowers,” Susan Travis, Visit Tyler vice president of sales, said. Continue reading Visit Tyler expects boost from eclipse, azalea trails

VAN ZANDT COUNTY — The Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office conducted a series of compliance checks on 152 registered sex offenders. Sheriff Joe Carter says they were assisted by Homeland Security, Texas Highway Patrol and others. Numerous arrests were made, including 3 for alleged possession of child sex-abuse material, 6 on charges of aggravated sexual assault of a child, 2 on charges of continuous sexual assault of a child and 3 on charges of indecency with a child. Three sex offenders were arrested for being non-compliant with registration and identification regulations.

SMITH COUNTY – The Smith County District Attorney’s Office said a Tyler man was sentenced to 40 years in prison on Thursday for abusing a minor, according to our news partners at KETK. According to a release, Camron Bowens, 38 of Tyler, was found guilty of abusing a nine-year-old girl for six years. “The victim testified and was able to confront the defendant with the abuse she endured,” the district attorney’s office said. A detective also testified about his investigation into the abuse and arrest of Bowens. Bowens was sentenced by the 241st District Court to serve his sentence without the possibility of parole.

TYLER – Aaron D. Williams was sworn into office as the 45th Postmaster of Tyler on Thursday. According to our news partner KETK, Williams will supervise delivery and retail operations for three stations and one financial unit. A release from the postal service said The Tyler Post Office has 240 employees, serving 52 city routes and 66 rural routes. Williams has also served for the postal service in Waco, DeSoto, Waxahachie, Lancaster and Rockwall.

TYLER — Investigators say a decomposed body discovered in rural part of the Rio Grande Valley this past weekend appears to be that of a missing Tyler woman. The woman has been tentatively identified as Laura McKeown, 52. Investigators are still waiting for a fingerprint match before making a positive identification. The body was found Sunday in a rural neighborhood north of Alamo. McKeown was reported missing by family members February 15th. She was known to be a carnival worker. Her death has been ruled a homicide. Authorities have not said how she died nor if there are any suspects in her death.

GLADEWATER — Robyn Bernard, famous for her work on “General Hospital”, is dead, according to TMZ. Riverside County Coroner tells TMZ they identified the actress’ body using her fingerprints after deputies responded to a death investigation call yesterday in the town of San Jacinto, CA. Robyn’s body was found in the early morning hours of March 12. The Riverside County Coroner says no cause of death has been determined yet. An autopsy is scheduled to be performed on Wednesday, but toxicology will take several weeks.

Robyn was born in Gladewater, Texas, and eventually carved out an acting career for herself with small parts in ’80s TV shows like “Diva,” “The Facts Of Life,” “Simon & Simon,” and “Tour of Duty.” Her big break came in 1984 on the soap opera “General Hospital” … playing the role of Terry Brock for 145 episodes until 1990. Her final credited acting role came in 2002, when she played a psychologist in the movie, “Voices From the High School.”

Since exiting the acting scene, Robyn kept a relatively private life, out of the spotlight. She was 64.

GROVETON — According to our news partner KETK, a Groveton ISD employee has been arrested after allegedly altering education records without authorization, affecting the top 10% class ranking. According to an affidavit, Breanna Faye Abshier, 35, was arrested and charged with tampering with a government record. Abshier reportedly changed student grade point averages and class rankings. Authorities said though her job duties as a registrar did authorize her to make grade changes within the system she reportedly made over 145 changes without the teacher’s authorization beginning in the 2021-2022 school year. By doing so, Abshier tampered with student class averages, affecting their semester average bumping down students from the top 10% ranking.

Groveton ISD said Abshier’s employment was terminated and the school has cooperated with law enforcement. The district said they have started an investigation of potentially affected records for all students grades 6-12. Continue reading Groveton employee arrested for tampering with grades

WILLS POINT – The Wills Point Police Department said a criminal investigation led to the arrest of one of their officers on Wednesday evening. According to our news partner KETK, Wills Point PD received a complaint of a physical disturbance in Wills Point. The police department said an investigation uncovered that an off-duty Wills Point PD officer, identified as Christopher Tomlin, was involved in a physical disturbance with a direct family member. As a result, the Van Zandt County Criminal Investigation Unit was asked to conduct an outside criminal investigation into Tomlin. Wills Point PD also conducted an internal affairs investigation. The Police department said that Tomlin was terminated effective immediately on Wednesday. “Upon conducting [and] completing the internal affairs investigation, it was found that Officer Christopher Tomlin had violated multiple department policies,” Wills Point PD said.

The Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office reportedly completed their criminal investigation into Tomlin and has charged him with continuous violence against the family. Tomlin is booked into the Van Zandt County Jail.

VAN – The Van Police Department arrested a man suspected of running into a gas station fuel pump, causing a fire and leaving the scene. According to our news partner KETK, officers booked Trevion Bowie late Tuesday afternoon in Northeastern Smith County. Investigators found a vehicle matching the one involved in the crash that happened last Friday. Bowie confessed to the incident at the time of his arrest. He was taken to the Van Zandt County Jail and charged with criminal mischief.

TYLER – A man was arrested following a shooting at an apartment complex in Tyler on Wednesday morning that has put a 3-year-old in the hospital. According to our news partner KETK, Tyler Police Public Information Officer Andy Erbaugh said  officers responded to a shooting at the Liberty Arms apartments on North Broadway, EMS also arrived on the scene. Officials said a toddler had been shot in the buttocks and was transferred to a local hospital, and their current condition is unknown. Tyler PD said that they located the suspect, identified as Darius Davis, 30, across the street and arrested him. Davis was reportedly booked into Smith County Jail and was charged with aggravated assault and is facing other charges.

TEXARKANA — The Texarkana Police Department said a man has been arrested for child grooming after reportedly sending sexually suggestive messages and videos to several underage girls according to our news partners at KETK. According to a release, Matthew Riddle, 35 of Texarkana, had access to the underage girls “through their involvement in youth sports activities in the community.” Texarkana PD said while they cannot provide details of the case due to the age of the victims. The police department said this type of behavior is used by pedophiles to manipulate and gain the trust of minors in small steps towards sexual contact. Continue reading Texarkana man arrested for child grooming

PANOLA COUNTY — The Panola County Sheriff’s Office said three people were arrested on Monday after a search warrant revealed 29 firearms and suspected methamphetamine. According to our news partner KETK, a special response team alongside two constables conducted a search warrant on Jasmine and Smith streets in the city of Beckville. During the search, authorities reportedly recovered 29 firearms and “suspected methamphetamine related paraphernalia, including measurement and packaging implement.” Continue reading Search warrant turns up 29 firearms

TYLER – The Humane Society of the United States partnered with an Oklahoma sheriff’s office as part of a large scale alleged cruelty case involving two puppy breeding operations that advertised selling at ‘Dog Alley’ in Canton according to our colleagues at KETK. According to a release, the Humane Society assisted in the rescue of over 150 dogs and puppies from two puppy breeding operations in Milburn, Oklahoma. “It’s a bleak existence for these dogs, no one would want to live like this,” said Cynthia Armstrong, Oklahoma state director for the Humane Society of the United States. “We are grateful to the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office for intervening on behalf of these animals and getting them the care they need.” Continue reading Puppy mills in Canton busted

TYLER – Our news partners at KETK report that a man was sentenced to 20 years in prison last month after pleading guilty to two charges of aggravated robbery in connection to a fatal shooting at a Tyler apartment complex in March 2023. Nicholas Hudson, 19 of Malakoff, was arrested after, according to his arrest warrant, he met with another man at the Royal Crest Apartments where a gun trade had been planned. Continue reading Man gets 20 years for aggravated robbery

TYLER — USA TODAY has named Tyler as the best city to move to in Texas for its low unemployment rate, healthcare accessibility and low risk of damage from severe weather, our news partner KETK reports. According to the article, a research team ranked 52 Texas cities and Tyler rose above the rest.

“The top five cities may be a little unexpected, but low unemployment rates (3.5% or less), great medical care and safety are just some of the reasons they rise to the top,” Rachel Newcomb, contributor for USA TODAY, said. “Tyler is number one, followed by Laredo, New Braunfels, Cedar Park and Temple.” Continue reading Tyler named best city to move to in Texas

RUSK COUNTY — The Rusk County Rescue Unit said they pulled a vehicle from the Angelina River on Monday. According to our news partner KETK, the rescue unit said that Squad 1 responded to the river at FM 1798 between FM 225 and FM 839 and used a boat to assist in recovering the vehicle. The vehicle, which was found empty, was towed out of the water and has been turned over to the Rusk County Sheriff’s Office for further investigation.

SMITH COUNTY — According to our news partner KETK, David Stein, the current county chair for the Smith County Republican Party, announced his bid for vice chair of the Republican Party of Texas on Monday. During the March primaries, Stein won 66% of the votes or 14,703 votes. After being reelected, he is serving as the county chair for the third time. In a release, Stein said he has been a conservative Republican for his entire adult life and supports the core principles of the party including being pro-life, pro second amendment, pro-military, traditional families and individual liberties.

Stein said due to limited funds, the lack of staff or plan for election integrity efforts, no get-out-to-vote initiative amongst other issues is why there needs to more training for county parties and county chairs. The chairman said he looks forward to interacting with all leaders over the next 11 weeks.

“We cannot continue to take actions that further divide our party instead of trying to find that common ground, which most importantly is getting Republicans such as Donald Trump for President and Ted Cruz for Senate, elected in November General elections,” Stein said.

Due to these concerns, Stein announced his candidacy for Vice Chair of The Republican Party of Texas. The seat is currently held by Dana Myers who recently announced her bid for the Texas Republican Party Chair. Stein said if elected, he would be honored to serve with her.

“I’m asking you to support me in this effort, I’m asking you to believe this is good for our state party,” Stein said.

TYLER – The Texas Health and Human Services Commission said that a data breach might have exposed personal information about 3,392 people in or near Tyler, Texarkana, Longview, Marshall, Beaumont and Nacogdoches. Our news partner KETK reports that on Jan. 11, the HHSC said it discovered that a staff member had allegedly emailed spreadsheets containing full names, home addresses and telephone numbers, health information, services, financial information, Medicaid identification numbers and an individual’s Social Security number to their personal email. These emails were sent between September and October of 2023 and the HHSC said they only determined what the emails contained on Feb. 2 of 2024.

The HHSC said that they’ve already contacted those affected to provide them with one year of free credit monitoring, in order to keep their credit safe from any misuse of their information.
Continue reading East Texans’ data leaked in HHSC breach

TYLER – The Texas Department of State Health Services has announced that they’ve awarded $19.3 million in grants to Federally Qualified Health Centers and similar organizations, including five in East Texas according to our news partners at KETK. This initial round of funding is a part of $40 million from the Texas general revenue fund to help expand Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), FQHC look-alikes and eligible nonprofit health centers. Continue reading Health centers awarded $19M in grants

SMITH COUNTY – One person is dead after a three-vehicle crash in Smith County Monday morning. According to our news partner KETK, the accident occurred around 9 a.m. on State Highway 110 and CR 2121. Initial DPS reports say that a pickup truck turned south off CR 2121 onto Highway 110 and collided with a northbound pickup. The northbound pickup went into the southbound lane, hitting another vehicle head-on. One driver has died. Another is hospitalized, while a third driver had minor injuries.

LONGVIEW — An arrest has been made in Gregg County after a death from a dog attack. Longview police have arrested 56-year-old Martin Rodriguez after an autopsy showed an unidentified 46-year-old man was killed by a dog. The man was found lying dead in a street beside a bicycle on February 1st with wounds that seemed to be from a dog attack. According to our news partner KETK, Rodriguez was being held without bond in the Gregg County Jail on multiple animal at large charges.

TYLER — Beginning Monday, March 11, crews will be repairing curb inlets along the outside northbound lane of South Broadway Avenue from 1st Street to Shaw Street. Portions of the northbound lane will be closed throughout the week. Drivers can expect delays. Motorists are asked to  use caution while traveling on this road, as workers will be present.