Today is
Saturday November 23, 2024
TYLER – Tyler K-9 Officer Garrett Martin and his K-9 Izzie brought back two awards from the National Narcotic Detector Dog Association Conference held in Ft. Worth. Upon completion of the training, all 120 K-9 teams participated in a narcotics detection competition. Officer Garrett Martin and Izzie we’re awarded the 1st place trophy in the competition. They also received the Bark, Bandit Trooper Award for the top score for all dogs over 5 years of age. Another award went to Tyler K9 PACO, who recently retired. PACO was awarded the Meritorious Service Award at the conference for his over 8 years of service to the Tyler Police Department.
FORT WORTH – A Longview man’s death in Fort Worth in March is being ruled an accident. Ryan White, 25, was found in a Beach Street field near a homeless camp. At the time, investigators said that there were some signs of trauma to his body. He appeared to have been beaten. But the Fort Worth Star Telegram reports White died of a drug overdose in a hypothermic environment. The high temperature in Fort Worth that day was 40 degrees and the low was 25. According to the medical examiner’s report, White had a mixture of methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin in his system.
TYLER – Smith County Commissioners have approved the second year of a $39.5 million bond package. The county received eight bids on the bonds, with BOK Financial Securities, Inc. submitting the winning bid at an interest cost of 1.837%. In November 2017, Smith County voters approved the bond package to improve county roads. More than 50 miles of road improvements have been completed in the first year. Steven Adams, managing director of Specialized Public Finance Inc., said once the documents are signed by county officials, they will go the Attorney General for approval. He expected to close on the sale on June 11. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – A Tyler man is being charged with murder in connection with a fatal shooting last month. Treyvon Dewayne Maddox, 19, had originally been charged with deadly conduct for discharging a firearm. On Tuesday he was charged with murder. Maddox is charged with the shooting death of Keyundta Devor Barrett, 20, of Tyler. It occurred on April 20th on Tidwell Drive, off NNE Loop 323, on the outskirts of Tyler. Also shot were Kentrell Marquie Miller, 21, and Ira Brown Jr., 18, both from the Tyler area. Their injuries were not life-threatening.
TYLER – A Tyler man has been sentenced to federal prison for firearms violations. Heon Jong Yoo, 25, also known as Hank Yoo, was found guilty last November of seven counts of false statements made in connection with firearms transactions and one count of unlawful possession by a prohibited person. On Tuesday, Yoo was sentenced to 97 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Robert W. Schroeder, III. Yoo was ordered to surrender to immigration officials for deportation after serving his sentence. Federal prosecutors say Yoo, a lawful permanent resident from South Korea, was an undergraduate student at the University of Texas-Tyler, when he falsely represented that he was a United States citizen in connection to seven different firearms transactions. Some of them involved semiautomatic weapons. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – Area residents are urged to use caution when using the trail at two Tyler parks. The recent heavy rainfall caused erosion in some parts of the city’s walking and biking trails. Two specific trails were affected: the Rose Rudman Trail and the Faulkner Park Trails. A temporary reflective barrier has been placed at Rose Rudman where the ground around the West Mud Creek collapsed, south of Southside Park. Also, the bridge that crosses West Mud Creek at Faulkner Park has been closed with a barricade. The city’s Parks and Recreation Department advises trail users to use caution and to avoid crossing all bridges at the Faulkner Park trails. They also ask users not to ignore or cross the barriers and barricades.
AUSTIN – Sam’s Law, named after an East Texas student, is now on its way to the governors desk. The bill received unanimous approval in the Texas senate on Tuesday. It had previously received unanimous approval in the house. The measure will help students who have seizures. It mandates all school employees watch a video on seizure recognition and first aid, school nurses will watch a much longer video. Plus, the child’s neurologist and parents will give the school a form detailing what to do if that child has a seizure. The bill is named for Samantha Watkins, an 18 year old Kilgore High School student, who died after a massive seizure at home in December of 2016. She’d been showing signs of the epilepsy a few months before.
MINEOLA – A Wood County man has been killed in a one vehicle accident. Dead at the scene was Jonathan Wade Burge, 45, of Mineola. The Department of Public Safety reports Burge was heading west on U.S. Highway 80, at a high speed, and veered into the center median where the vehicle struck a culvert and rolled several times. Burge, who was not wearing a seat belt, was thrown from the vehicle. The accident occurred shortly before 11:45 Monday night just under 4 miles east of Mineola.
MARSHALL – Marshall police have arrested a man wanted in connection with a chase that left an officer injured. It started early Monday evening with a report of a man with a rifle who was threatening a woman a 3 small children. When officers arrived the man, identified as Antonio Dejuan Trammel, 34, ran off. A pursuing officer, and Trammel, crashed into an apartment window. The officer was injured, requiring surgery to his arm. Trammel ran into a near by wooded area. Even with the use of a DPS helicopter and K9 units, he was not found. Tuesday afternoon the police, acting on a tip, arrested Trammel behind a house on West Rusk Street. He was arrested without incident and booked into the Harrison County Jail. He is being held on an outstanding parole warrant issued by the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole. He will also be charged with at least one additional offense stemming from the Monday night incident.
AUSTIN – Thanks to the Texas Lottery and the Dallas Cowboys, a fitness grant of $1,000 is going to Kilgore’s Chandler Elementary School. For the third year, the lottery and the Cowboys have partnered to provide the Funds for Fitness grant program to Texas public schools. The funds are for creating new or enhancing existing youth health and wellness projects. As part of a five-year, $300,000 program commitment, the 2019 Funds for Fitness effort is awarding 15 schools funds totaling $60,000. The Kilgore school is one of the 15 to receive the grant funds.
PALESTINE – Palestine has reported the boil water notice affecting the 300 block of Palm Drive has been lifted. It was issued last week because of the replacement of a flush hydrant. The city says the necessary corrective actions have been taken and the boil water notice is no longer required.
KILGORE – Kilgore College has received a large gift. The Kilgore College Foundation has received an anonymous gift of $1 million. It will be used to complete a permanent operating endowment fund for the Rangerettes organization. While the Rangerettes have about 90 endowed scholarships with nine additional scholarships seeking endowment, this fund will serve to support operations and travel expenses for the group. No word on who gave the money. The school would only say it comes from a Kilgore College graduate and his wife, who is a former Rangerette.
GILMER – Two persons entered guilty pleases in state District Court in Gilmer on Monday. Lasandra Ann Peoples, 40 of Gladewater, pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery. She was sentenced to 20 years in prison. In December, 2017, she was armed with a knife when she entered the home of a 75 year old Gladewater woman. She left with an undisclosed amount of money. Read the rest of this entry »
LONGVIEW – The cleanup continues in Longview following last week’s storms. The Longview Parks and Recreation Department reported continued closures at several parks and trails. Akin Park is closed and Julieanna Trail is closed, both due to several downed trees. Meanwhile, while Cargill Long Trail and Boorman Trail have been reopened, walkers should take care around crews continuing to clean up debris from the area. Residents needing help removing debris from their private property or those willing to volunteer to help their neighbors can email CL@LongviewTexas.gov or call 903-237-1379 during open business hours. You can go to https://www.longviewtexas.gov/civicalerts.aspx?AID=1904 for more information.
TYLER – Tyler police are investigating the weekend burglaries of several cell phone businesses. The burglaries occurred in about a half an hour span from around 2:45 to 3:15 Sunday morning. They first tried to pry open the door of the AT&T store near the Broadway Square Mall. The next alarm came from the Verizon Store on the West Southwest Loop. The third burglary was at the AT&T store on the Loop near the Troup Highway. Nothing was taken in any of the burglaries. At the last burglary, the suspects left in a small silver sedan that had a driver waiting on the two suspects who entered the store. Police Public Information Officer Don Martin says it is believed that the suspects are from outside of Tyler because of multiple break-ins at other stores across East Texas, including Lindale, Mineola, and Canton.