Today is
Monday September 23, 2024
NEW LONDON — The Rusk County Sheriff’s office is currently seeking the public’s assistance in locating a 15-year-old boy that has been missing since Friday evening. According to our news partner KETK, Brandy Calhoun was last seen at approximately 6 p.m. on Friday walking from the West Rusk Softball Fields in New London. He is described as a white male with blonde hair and blue eyes and was last seen wearing a grey t-shirt, blue jeans, combat boots, a blue baseball hat and had his arm in a sling. If you have any information on Calhoun’s whereabouts, contact the Rusk County Sheriff’s office at (903) 657-3581.
TYLER – U.S. Senator John Cornyn was in Tyler Tuesday for a roundtable to discuss broadband access. Local leaders, healthcare providers, educators and economic development officials gathered with Cornyn to “highlight the challenges of limited broadband access that many East Texas communities experience.” The roundtable took place Tuesday morning at CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Louis and Peaches Owen Heart Hospital. Cornyn has worked on legislation that would allow local leaders to use unspent COVID-19 relief funds for regional projects like expanding broadband access and infrastructure. Participants came from a wide variety of backgrounds to discussed how broadband access impacts education, healthcare and economic development. Cornyn compared the lack of access to broadband in rural communities to the way that those same communities had little access to electricity in the 1950s, saying that “we overcame that deficit and that lack of connectivity back then, and we can do this now.”
TYLER – With Title 42 set to end May 23rd, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton spoke with KTBB about some of his concerns with the Biden administrations plans once the borders are open to the flood of immigrants. The Attorney General expressed concerns about the amount to crime, drugs and gang activity along the border. Among other things, he believes that the Cartels are being given a free pass to bring in people, drugs and weapons into the country. The Biden administration will look the other way with the understanding that these immigrants will vote Democrat. He worries this will have long term consequences economically and our way of life.
OVERTON — The Board of Trustees of Overton Independent School District voted unanimously to elect a new superintendent for the district. Larry Calhoun will replace current superintendent Stephen DuBose who will be retiring at the end of June after 18 years in the district and the last 9 as superintendent. Calhoun is currently the CTE Director and Department Chair for Fine and Applied Arts at Mundelein High School in Mundelein, Illinois. Calhoun earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from Abilene Christian University, where he played football, and received a Master of Education Administration from Lamar University. After earning his degrees, Calhoun began his career in the business world but left to begin his teaching/coaching career at Dallas Christian High School in Mesquite, Texas. After that, he spent time in Garland and Austin Texas before moving to Illinois. Calhoun and his wife, Kathy, have 2 children, both former collegiate athletes.
MOUNT PLEASANT – Mount Pleasant and Pittsburg police located and confiscated 28 stolen catalytic converters, according to our news partner KETK. A joint investigation between the Mount Pleasant Police Department and the Pittsburg Police Department ultimately led to the discovery that came to a head on Friday. Detectives found 28 “illegally obtained” catalytic converters at a business in Mount Pleasant. Catalytic converters are located under your vehicle and are required to pass state inspections. Precious metals like platinum, palladium and rhodium make up catalytic converters. Thieves can sell those metals for hundreds to thousands of dollars per ounce. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER — Another suspect has been arrested in the case of a man whose body was found Saturday in Tyler. Police say 29-year-old Edna Deanne Jones of Tyler is accused of tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, a second degree felony with a $250,000 bond, and failing to report a felony, a class A misdemeanor with a $25,000 bond. She has been booked into the Smith County Jail. Earlier, police announced that 26-year-old murder suspect Timothy Eugene Jones of Tyler had been arrested in Dallas. Read the rest of this entry »
EAST TEXAS — Three East Texas cities were awarded grants from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission according to our news partner KETK. The grants are to help create and enhance outdoor recreational opportunities and are given to government agencies on a 50/50 reimbursement match basis, and once funded, the sites must remain properly maintained and open to the public, according to a release. This will result in more nature trails, native gardens, playgrounds, splash pads, dog parks and sports fields at 26 community parks statewide. The grants were awarded based on community population and scope. Read the rest of this entry »
NEW LONDON — Officials with the Rusk County Office of Emergency Management have confirmed that the wildfire has been contained, with all units having cleared the scene. Officials advised that a substantial amount of smoke from the fire that would settle along the lower areas during the cooler temperatures of the night. All homes and structures in the area have been confirmed to be out of danger. Emergency personnel said that they will be conducting a follow-up aerial survey of the area to assess the total acreage of the fire, as well as to check for any breach of the containment lines.
TYLER — The University of Texas at Tyler recently announced that faculty within the College of Engineering have received National Institutes of Health funding to study signs of opioid exposure in infants. According to our news partner KETK, Premananda Indic, PhD, UT Tyler associate professor of electrical engineering, and Pravitha Ramanand, PhD, UT Tyler assistant research professor of electrical engineering, received an $861,744 subaward to support a University of Alabama at Birmingham project. “There is an ongoing epidemic of opioid use during pregnancy,” said Namasivayam Ambalavanan, MD, principal investigator, a University of Alabama at Birmingham professor and Virginia Walker Jones Endowed Chair in Neonatology. “Babies exposed to opioids before birth often develop neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) and are at higher risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). However, the challenge is to identify such signs early in life.” Pioneering work conducted by the team has identified that patterns of heart rate and breathing as early as the first day after birth can be used to identify infants who later develop signs of opioid withdrawal. Read the rest of this entry »
GREGG COUNTY – A man was sentenced to 20 years in prison for aggravated sexual assault of a child and indecency with a child. According to our news partner KETK, Joshua Wade Robinson was found guilty in the 188th District Court of Gregg County. A jury sentenced Robinson to 20 years in prison and according to the Gregg County Criminal District Attorney’s Office, he will be required to serve half of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole. “We would like to commend the Gregg County Sheriff’s Office for conducting this investigation and keeping our citizens safe,” said the Gregg County Criminal District Attorney’s Office.
WHITEHOUSE – The owner of a skating rink in Whitehouse was found guilty of murder on Thursday. According to our news partner KETK, 54-year-old Lars Theorine of Whitehouse was sentenced to life in prison for the 2020 stabbing of Michael Shane Reed. Prosecutors say he owns Paradise Skating Rink and Big Kahuna Party Rentals. During the four-day trial, prosecutors presented evidence that on January 20, 2020, Theorine stabbed Reed 48 times with a kitchen knife, nearly decapitating him. Prosecutors say Theorine then attempted to stage the scene to support his self-defense claim. A crime scene investigator told the jury that the blood spatter analysis proved that the victim tried to escape before “succumbing to the numerous lacerations.” Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – Tyler officials want to make the drive around Rose City easier but it requires changes to the map, according to our news partner KTEK. “There’s a lot of confusion and concern about the development of this road. Everybody here present is interested in the best things for Tyler. That was clear in everyone who spoke,” says Lead Pastor of Dayspring Methodist Church, Kris Bagley. One proposed amendment plans to extend Waljm Street in South Tyler. Eventually, connecting it with Market Square Boulevard and West Grande Boulevard. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – A Tyler man punched his ex-wife repeatedly and threatened her life while attempting to kidnap her, according to our news partner KETK. 37-year-old Adrian Perez is charged with kidnapping for an incident back on Friday, March 4. He is being held in the Smith County Jail on multiple bonds totaling close to $900,000. According to the warrant, Perez’s ex-wife ran from his home after sustaining “serious bodily injury inflicted upon her by [him].” The victim was able to drive to a Super 1 Foods on Gentry Parkway where a friend came to pick her up. The documents say that she planned to leave her car at the store and then be taken to a safe home. However, Perez had followed her, according to the warrant, and cut them off in the parking lot. He then allegedly grabbed her from the car by her hair, punched her in the face and torso, then threatened to kill her while dragging her to his truck.
TYLER – A Tyler man was denied service at Fuzzy’s Taco Shop in Tyler for being intoxicated before allegedly hitting a woman with his car when he left, according to our news partner KETK. 25-year-old Devonte Crawford-Milton is charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for the incident at the Troup Highway location just after midnight on Friday, March 4. The documents state that Milton was driven to the restaurant by a friend from a local bar. The manager denied entrance to both Crawford-Milton and the friend due to “their obvious intoxicated and belligerent state,” according to the warrant. Crawford-Milton then allegedly got back into the car by himself and backed into a parked car. As he was driving away, the warrant says that he “drove around the parking lot of Green Acres Shopping Center attempting to strike pedestrians.” Read the rest of this entry »
UPSHUR COUNTY– The Upshur County Sheriff’s Office is looking for information about a theft at a church. The sheriff’s office said that they’re looking for a 1998 Ford Mustang that is painted a dull gray (possibly primer) with a wide black stripe on the hood and the spoiler on the trunk, and also may be black in color. The license plate is believed to have red coloring on it and is possibly from another state. Three people were inside the car on Sunday, March 6. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Investigator Rob Bowen at 903-680-8223