Today is
Thursday June 18, 2026
TYLER – A benefit concert will be held in Tyler to support relief for towns in Van Zandt County affected by the April 29th tornadoes. The concert will be on Saturday from 2:00 till 10:00pm, on the downtown Tyler square. Bands performing include Kris Jones from “The Voice,†Lauren Alexander Band, Tuxedo Catz and much more. There will be local food vendors. Wine and beer sales will also be available. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – A man in a motorized wheelchair has been injured in a Tyler accident. Hospitalized with serious injuries is Robert Wyatt, 53, of Tyler. He was crossing on the Old Henderson Highway when he was hit by a pickup turning off of the loop. The driver, Jose Trevizo, 26, of Tyler said he did not see Waytt in the crosswalk when he made his turn. The accident, which happened shortly after 8:30 Friday morning, remains under investigation.
LONGVIEW – A homeless man has been arrested in Longview for robbery. Adrian Demon Simpson, 20, was arrested last night after a woman was robbed in the area of Green and East Whaley Streets. She said the suspect grabbed her and took her phone. In the process, she received minor injuries. Simpson was found and arrested a short time later. He has been charged with robbery and possession of Marijuana. He remains in the Gregg County Jail with bonds totaling $26,000.
AUSTIN – Unemployment in Texas is holding steady. But some East Texas cities have see jobless numbers fall. The Texas unemployment rate held steady during April at 5%. The Texas Workforce Commission reported Friday last month’s jobless figure copied the March unemployment rate. Nationwide unemployment for April was 4.4%. But it was a different story in Tyler and Longview. Tyler’s unemployment fell from 5% in March to 4.1% in April. It was 4.1% in April last year. Longview’s unemployment went from 6.2% in March to 5.7% in April. It was 5.6% in April, 2016.
TYLER – In Tyler federal court, a Dallas woman has pled guilty to bank fraud charges. Rachelle Dashner, 44, pleaded guilty Thursday to conspiracy to commit bank fraud. She could get up to five years in prison during a future sentencing hearing. Five others have already been sentenced in the case. Federal prosecutors say they were part of a scheme to set up surgical centers in the state through a loan with Community Trust Bank. But the doctors the documents said would guarantee the loan didn’t know about it and had not authorized it. In many instances, the medical facilities for which the financing was obtained were never built. The five fraudulent loans totaled over $7.5 million.
LONGVIEW — Three East Texas members of the white supremacist prison gang the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas have pleaded guilty to charges related to the death of a fellow member from Longview. According to the Longview News-Journal, Brian Thomas Green, 44, of Mount Pleasant pleaded guilty May 10 to the use or carry of a firearm during a crime of violence causing death. The charge was in connection with the 2011 murder of Kenneth Earl Ayres, 48, whose last known address was in Longview. Travis Lee Hill, 28, of Ore City and Kalvin Kyle McCown (pictured), 43, of Longview pleaded guilty Jan. 6 to kidnapping charges related to the case. Read the rest of this entry »
TATUM – A one vehicle accident between Marshall and Tatum has killed a Tatum High School sophomore. Killed in the accident on State Highway 43 around 6:00 Thursday evening was Sarah Paige Stanfield, 16. Details about the accident are unavailable. In a letter from School Superintendent J.P. Richardson on the district’s Facebook page said Stanfield was involved in cheerleading, National Honor Society, yearbook, homecoming court, debate and much more. There is no school in Tatum on Friday, but Superintendent Richardson said they will have counselors set up at the high school when the students return on Monday.
ARP – Two persons have been killed in a Smith County accident. The two vehicle wreck was reported around 6:15 Thursday evening on U.S. Highway 64 East, just west of Farm Road 2089. Dead at the scene was John Ruben Jones, 35, of Arp and Eric Rene Narvaez (pictured), 26, of Henderson. The Department of Public Safety says the car driven by Narvaez was heading west when, for some unknown reason, it crossed over to the east bound lane and hit the Jones vehicle. The crash remains under investigation.
TYLER – The Smith County grand jury has indicted two Tyler men on separate child sex charges. They are Larry Foley, 40,and Jessie Lee Shurum, 41. Foley was indicted on one count of indecency with a child. In March, a woman told officers that Foley had exposed himself to her and two children as he stood between two houses on Claude Street. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – Tyler Mayor Martin Hines has pledged continued improvements for the city’s infrastructure. The pledge came this week during the mayor’s annual State of the City Luncheon. Currently underway is over $4 million dollars in improvements to the Golden Road Water Treatment Plant. And, over the next ten years, the city anticipates spending over $97 million on 100 projects to improve water and wastewater systems. And they feel over two-thirds of those improvements will be paid for in cash. Also planned are improvements for city streets and drainage. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital has been granted recognition by the American Nurses Credentialing Center as a Magnet facility. This also includes the the Louis and Peaches Owen Heart Hospital and CHRISTUS Trinity Clinic. The designation comes after a years-long application process. The Magnet Recognition Program recognizes health care organizations for quality patient care, nursing excellence and innovations in professional nursing practice. According to a news release from the hospital, most hospitals and medical organizations do not meet the criteria necessary to apply for Magnet recognition. It is one of the most difficult statuses to achieve. CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler is the only health care provider in the region to hold this designation. Read the rest of this entry »
GILMER – An Upshur County man has learned, the hard way, you need to show up for your trial. Jarrod Craig McBride, 36, of Ore City, was due in court Wednesday for his trial for possession of methamphetamine, with intent to deliver. He was going to trial after he backed out of a previous plea offer of 13 years in prison. Deputies had to force their way into his house to arrest him and bring him to court in handcuffs. Back at the courthouse, McBride entered into a plea bargain agreement, pled guilty, and was sentenced to 30 years in prison. He waived his right to appeal. He was also sentenced to 180 days for contempt of court, which was stacked on top of his prison sentence.
ATHENS – Five Athens residents have been arrested in a drug raid by Henderson County sheriff’s deputies. They were arrested Thursday morning at a house on Roosevelt Street in Athens. They are identified as Kristi Costlow, 39, Johnny Sieger, 45, Brandon Rios, 21, John Minter, 58, and Carlton Lewis, 30. Costlow was charged with manufacture and delivery of a controlled substance. Not only was she in possession of suspected methamphetamine, but also had items commonly used to traffic the narcotic. The arrests follows an investigation by Henderson County narcotics investigators.
LONGVIEW — A longtime Longview High School teacher died Wednesday during an International Baccalaureate Awards ceremony at the Summit Club in Longview. According to KETK, Charles Parsons, a Latin teacher, apparently began feeling ill during the ceremony, stepped to the bathroom and later died. A doctor who was at the club attended to him, as did emergency medical technicians who were called to the scene. Longview High School Principal James Brewer is said to have made an announcement to students about the death at the end of the ceremony.
TYLER – The death of a Smith County Jail inmate is under investigation. Teddy Wayne Parker, 32, of Whitehouse, was rushed to the hospital shortly after being booked into the jail on Sunday. He was put on a ventilator at the hospital. Tuesday afternoon, the decision was made to remove the ventilator and Parker died. Justice of the Peace Quincy Beavers ordered an autopsy to be performed in Dallas. The investigation of the death has been turned over to the Texas Rangers. Read the rest of this entry »