Today is
Sunday June 07, 2026
TYLER — According to our news partner KETK, a man reportedly called 911 on early Thursday morning after reportedly attempting to rob a Tyler dealership but was unable to leave after sustaining injuries. The Tyler Police Department received a call at around 3:45 a.m. from a man who had broken into the Patterson Dodge dealership.
Officials later identified the man as Jeremiah Megallon. Megallon was taken to a local hospital and later transported to the Smith County Jail, where he was arrested for burglary of a building.
“He said he had broken into the Patterson Dodge dealership in an attempt to steal a car but was unable to get out of the building,” Erbaugh said. “He had cuts from breaking a window at the dealership and crawling through it.”
TYLER – Tyler ISD has confirmed that three former district employees have been arrested for allegedly injuring a student with disabilities. In a statement issued to our news partner KETK, Tyler ISD said the three employees were arrested and fired after an investigation into allegations of injury to a child, elderly individual or disabled individual.
The district’s superintendent Dr. Marty Crawford called the actions of the former employees unacceptable.
“We believe in being transparent with our community while respecting the legal process and student privacy. This situation involved a student with disabilities, and while it did not include sexual acts or severe bodily harm, we take any breach of student safety with the utmost seriousness. As soon as these allegations were brought to our attention, the district took immediate action—launching an internal investigation, notifying Child Protective Services as required by state law, and fully cooperating with law enforcement. These individuals are no longer employed by the district.”
Tyler ISD
HAWKINS – An individual has been placed under arrest after one person was found dead in Hawkins on Friday, according to our news partner KETK.
After receiving a call regarding gunshots on Friday, Hawkins PD responded to the 100 block of N. Beaulah Street where a body was discovered. A suspect is now in custody and officials believe there is no threat to the public. Hawkins PD is not providing any further details at this time. The Texas Rangers have been contacted for assistance with the investigation.
Currently, the Hawkins Police Department consists of one police officer. Back in February, the department’s other three officers were fired by the Mayor of Hawkins Debbie Rushing, after she claims they were not hired appropriately.
TYLER – Our news partner KETK is reporting that State Senator Bryan Hughes, from Mineola, is leading the anti-abortion charge by filing Senate Bill 31, the Life of the Mother Act.
“This bill is to look at our pro-life laws and make the language even clearer, so there’s no question, no excuse when a mom presents with a medical emergency, she gets treated,” State Senator Bryan Hughes said.
In 2022, Texas passed an abortion law authored by an East Texas lawmaker. Over the last few years, doctors and women have expressed concerns and confusion on what’s actually included in the ban, and what the exceptions are. On Thursday, three pro-life bills were heard by the State Affairs Committee, which Hughes chairs. Lawmakers are hearing testimony from people for and against the bills. Hughes also filed Senate Bill 2880, the Women and Child Protection Act, which would try to hold people who send abortion pills to women in Texas accountable. He added that Texas is the first state to take the senders of these pills on through legislation. Read the rest of this entry »
GREGG COUNTY – Our news partner, KETK, reports that a county jailer was arrested on Friday after Gregg County Officials said she committed credit card abuse while on duty.
According to a statement from the sheriff’s office, officials found evidence of Shalisha Mungia committing credit card abuse. She has worked as a jailer since July 2021, and was let go following the arrest and several policy and code-of-conduct violations.
Mungia was taken to the Gregg County Jail and has since been released after posting a $1,500 bond.
TYLER – Rain, thunderstorms, and lightning are forecast throughout East Texas for most of the next few days, putting several counties on high alert for possible tornadoes.
Our news partner, KETK, has compiled a list of counties placed on tornado watches and warnings. To view the full list of counties, and the forecast for the coming days, click here.
MARSHALL – Two East Texas men have died following a Thursday morning crash in Harrison County, the Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed.
According to a preliminary investigation, the crash occurred in Harrison County at around 5:05 a.m. at the intersection of State Highway 43 and Fyffe Cutoff. The crash involved a GMC Yukon, driven by Andrew Allison, 44 of Carthage, and a Chevrolet Silverado driven by Terry Ledbetter, 69 of Marshall.
DPS Sgt. Adam Albritton said Allison was driving westbound on Fyffe Cutoff when he disregarded the stop sign and entered the intersection of State Highway 43, where Ledbetter was driving and collided with him.
According to reports from our news partner, KETK, both men were pronounced dead and no passengers were reported to be in the vehicles.
TYLER – Our news partner, KETK, reports that a Tyler man was sentenced to 17 years in prison after swerving into oncoming traffic and striking another vehicle head-on, killing the driver.
According to the arrest affidavit, on the morning of August 14, 2024, Cesar Efrain Viramontes-Cocolan of Tyler was driving a pickup truck traveling westbound on State Highway 32 near FM 2908, when he swerved into oncoming traffic, killing Maria Hernandez of Tyler.
DPS stated that an 18-wheeler followed Hernandez’s SUV; the 18-wheeler attempted to avoid crashing into other vehicles, but was unable to do so. Officials concluded that there were no “obstacles or anything that would necessitate that Viramontes veer onto the wrong side of the road.” Read the rest of this entry »
KILGORE – In a historic moment, Tyler Junior College’s Sign Language and Interpretation classes give the deaf and hard of hearing community a guided tour of the iconic East Texas Oil Museum in Kilgore for the first time.
According to our news partner, KETK, TJC students set to graduate in May brought the history of the East Texas Oil Museum on Kilgore College’s campus to life, through sign language. As a part of an end-of-year project, the students gave full tours of the iconic museum, and interpreted a nearly 20-minute movie to people who are deaf and hard-of-hearing.
“Without the interpreters here, we would just look through the museum,” said Todd Lindstrom, a museum guest who’s deaf. Read the rest of this entry »
GUN BARREL CITY — According to our news partner KETK, the motive has been revealed in the case of a Mabank man, John Clague, accused of killing his sister. The Henderson County Sheriff’s Dept. is reporting that that Clague had been hysterical after the victim reportedly took $1,500 and 4 ounces of marijuana.
On Monday at around 3:26 p.m., the sheriff’s office dispatch center received a call that John Clague had shot his sister, Samantha Moore, in the chest. When deputies arrived, they saw a woman applying pressure to the victim’s chest, who was lying on the front porch of Clague’s residence near Bonita Point outside of Gun Barrel City. Deputies at the scene said they could not find a pulse on the victim and that Clague had fled the scene with the firearm reportedly used to shoot his sister. A witness told officials that Clague had been hysterical after the victim reportedly took $1,500 and 4 ounces of marijuana. Read the rest of this entry »
ANGELINA COUNTY – According to our news partner KETK, an East Texas man has been charged with murder in connection to a missing persons case. Officials said he admitted to killing one of the men by striking the victim in the head and then strangling him.
The Angelina County Justice of the Peace Precinct 1’s Office, the Angelina County Sheriff’s Office and the Lufkin Police Department began working on the missing persons case on Jan. 31, and began the search for Robert Saxton, 79, and Michael Allen, 44. In the next two months, an extensive investigation led to the Texas Rangers being called in to assist. John Wayne McCroskey, became a person of interest after officials learned he lived on the property at Saxton Auto Sales, where both victims had been reported missing.
Witnesses placed McCroskey with Saxton on Jan. 27 at around 9:30 a.m. in Saxton’s lime green vehicle. Surveillance video from a Lufkin motel confirmed that Saxton and McCroskey were together earlier that morning. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – In a report from our news partner, KETK, East Texas representatives gave an update on bills filed by lawmakers for the 89th legislative session.
East Texas representatives, like State Rep. Cole Hefner (R-Mount Pleasant), who hopes to get his own bills passed. One of his top priorities is House Bill 17. This bill restricts the purchase of land in Texas from “hostile countries” such as China, Russia and North Korea.
“That bill is in the homeland security and public safety committee…in a week or two, we’re going to have a day of hearings where we hear our bills that have to do with foreign adversaries,” Hefner said.
Another big topic in the Texas House is water. Both State Rep. Hefner and State Rep. Gary VanDeaver (R-New Boston) are working to keep East Texas water in the Piney woods. Read the rest of this entry »
HALLSVILLE – Our news partner, KETK, reports that several police departments from all over East Texas had access to an abandoned school to prepare for potential threats and school shootings. Learning to work together, just like they would in real world scenarios.
“We’re finding now that if you carry a gun and badge, everybody needs this,” Longview PD alert instructor sergeant, Drew Allison said.
Mandated by the state, the training lasted 16 hours with over two days of intense instruction. The main lesson aimed to stop the threats as quickly as possible. Read the rest of this entry »
LONGVIEW – According to our news partner KETK, a Longview nursing home employee was arrested on March 20 after she reportedly left a patient tied to the bed for more than five hours. According to an affidavit, Simone Monique Barnes, was charged with unlawful restraint after exposing the victim to substantial risk of serious injuries. The victim, who is 55-years-old, has a history of falling and is unable to care for herself independently, records indicate.
On March 11, the Medical Fraud Control Unit of the Texas Attorney General’s Office opened an investigation against Barnes. According to the affidavit, investigators learned that the victim was found tied to her bed at around 8:15 a.m. on March 6. Black leggings were tied to both of the victims legs, keeping her restrained to her bed, however officials said the victim did not sustain any injuries.
Once the patient was discovered, a manager was notified and took pictures of the victim in the restraints before releasing her. The manager then sent the pictures along with a written statement from the victim to investigators. Read the rest of this entry »
TEXARKANA – A Texarkana man was arrested after he allegedly used a mini four-wheeler to run into multiple Tesla vehicles on Tuesday. According to the Texarkana Police Department and our news partner KETK, officers received a report from the Golden Palace on Summerhill Road where surveillance footage captured a man on a mini four-wheeler intentionally ramming a parked Tesla at full speed. Officials said that officers were searching for the suspect while another report came in regarding damage to a Tesla in the Lowe’s parking lot.
Shortly after, officers spotted the suspect riding the four-wheeler near Summerhill and New Boston Road. After officers stopped the suspect, he initially gave a false name, but officers quickly identified him as Demarkeyun Marquize Cox, 33 of Texarkana. Cox was arrested and booked into the Bi-State Jail in Bowie County. Read the rest of this entry »