Today is
Wednesday June 03, 2026
TYLER – A man accused of shooting and killing a 29-year-old Marine veteran during a road rage incident in February was given a trial date by a judge on Tuesday. Dayton Alexander Morgan, 23, of Ben Wheeler, is accused of murdering Trevor Julian, 29, of Whitehouse, who died on February 13 at the Tyler intersection of East Grande Boulevard and Paluxy Drive. His bond has been set at $1 million since his arrest. He entered a not guilty plea and asserted self-defense. Read the rest of this entry »
HENDERSON COUNTY – Following a small plane crash at a private airpark Tuesday morning, airpark officials announced that one person had died. The aircraft crashed on the landing strip at Frankston’s Aero Estates Subdivision at approximately eight in the morning, according to Henderson County Sheriff Botie Hillhouse. The pilot was testing one of his aircraft when he tried a “impossible turn,” which resulted in the crash and his death, according to Wagenaar, the airpark manager and president of the POA. Wagenaar stated that witnesses apparently observed the pilot make a few passes before making the difficult maneuver and “[…] did not have enough altitude to perform a proper landing,” despite the fact that he was not present when the incident occurred. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – In the Texas Lottery® scratch ticket game Casino Millions, a Tyler resident won a $1 million top prize ticket. The ticket was bought at Tyler’s Travel Center, located on 407 E. Northeast Loop 323. The claimant chose to keep their identity anonymous. Under the Texas Lottery’s Retailer Bonus Program, the retailer may receive a $10,000 bonus for selling the ticket that won the prize. This was the second of ten $1 million top prizes that could be won in this game. The total prizes offered by Casino Millions exceed $195.3 million. Including break-even prizes, the overall odds of winning any prize in the game are one in 3.45.
EAST TEXAS – With the polls closed across East Texas and beyond, and the votes tallied, the Texas Secretary of State’s office has updated election results for both Republican and Democratic Primary Elections. This election includes the major runoff for U.S. Senate between incumbent John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. You can find those updated results here.
TYLER – On Monday, a drive-by gunshot on Tyler’s North Grand Avenue resulted in one injury. The Tyler Police Department reports that at approximately 1 p.m. on Monday, officers responded to a reported shooting in the 3100 block of N. Grand Avenue. Our news partners at KETK report that one individual was hurt after being struck by falling debris during the gunfire, according to the officers who arrived at the site. To receive treatment for non-life-threatening injuries, the injured person has been taken to a nearby hospital. It is believed that a white Mercedes that was discovered close to the area was utilized in the shooting. Tyler PD emphasized that no suspect has been taken into custody as of yet and that the shooting was not an isolated event.
LUFKIN – One person is dead and two have been injured following a single-vehicle crash on U.S. 59 in Lufkin, according to police. The Lufkin Police Department said traffic on U.S. 59 South is was blocked after a single-vehicle crash killed one person. A Grapeland woman, Alishia M. Scott, 43, was pronounced dead at the scene in the 5000 block of U.S. 59 south of Lufkin A man and woman are being treated for their injuries. Her family has been notified. The three were in a Chevrolet Tahoe traveling north toward Lufkin when the accident occurred. An investigation by Lufkin Police and DPS Troopers is under way.
SMITH COUNTY – Following an SUV and an 18-wheeler collision on Sunday, FM 14 in Smith County, south of Hawkins, was closed. At approximately 5:12 p.m. on Sunday, an 18-wheeler and an SUV collided in the 16000 block of FM 14, trapping one passenger, according to Smith County Emergency Services District 2. One passenger needed to be removed from the SUV in order to be transported to a nearby hospital for treatment after it was flipped onto its roof during the collision. The severity of the passenger’s injuries is unknown to Smith County officials. The driver of the 18-wheeler was not hurt in the collision. In order to clear the road, Smith County officials announced that FM 14 would be closed until further notice at the time of the crash.
COLLIN COUNTY (TEXAS TRIBUNE) – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the online messaging service Discord, claiming that the tech company misled users about the platform’s security and exposed kids to predators. In advance of his U.S. Senate GOP runoff against incumbent John Cornyn on Tuesday, Paxton filed the lawsuit on Friday in a Collin County state district court. It is the most recent in a string of lawsuits his office has filed against tech companies and other businesses. Texas has recently filed a lawsuit against Discord, joining Nevada, Indiana, and New Jersey. In March, Florida declared that it was looking into the platform. In recent months, a number of private lawsuits have also been filed, mostly by families who claim that Discord permits children to be sexually abused or exploited while using the messaging app.
Along with a number of other tech companies, Paxton initiated an investigation into the messaging platform in 2024, with a general focus on user data privacy. After conservative pundit Charlie Kirk was killed in October of last year, Paxton declared that he would broaden the scope of his investigation into Discord to include a focus on the platform’s extremist content and the sexual exploitation of minors. People typically use Discord, an online messaging service, to talk to each other while playing video games. Additionally, it has chat features and lets users set up topic-based servers. Paxton has filed lawsuits against other social media and video game companies, including Roblox, Tiktok, and Snapchat, alleging that these companies violate user privacy.
JACKSONVILLE – Over the weekend, a man at the center of an hours-long standoff in Jacksonville turned on himself. At approximately 4:42 p.m., Jacksonville police officers arrived at the Sweet Union Apartments on Highway 69 North. Saturday. The 20-year-old Roy Patrick Hamilton Jr. was accused of assaulting a woman while carrying a weapon. After barricading himself, he eventually left the apartment and became at-large. Hamilton turned himself in to the Cherokee County Jail, according to Jacksonville Police Chief Steven Markasky on Monday. He is currently being held in custody.
TYLER – A rollover crash on Highway 31 Friday morning resulted in the death of a woman and the hospitalization of a man. A truck overturned on the highway close to Surrey Trail and County Road 279 in Tyler, according to Smith County Emergency Services District No. 2. After the initial crash, the car veered off the road. One unidentified victim was brought to the hospital, while another was declared dead at the scene. The collision occurred at approximately 6:15 a.m. According to Sgt. Adam Albritton of the Department of Public Safety, both victims were not wearing a seatbelt. The crash is being investigated into by DPS.
LONGVIEW – New guidelines for youth supervision have been added to the Longview Mall’s updated Code of Conduct. According to the mall, anyone under the age of 17 must always be accompanied by a parent or supervising adult who is at least 21 years old on Fridays and Saturdays after 4 p.m. During the summer and holidays, those hours could change. The Longview Mall Code of Conduct states that unsupervised youth shoppers must either leave the mall by 4 p.m. or have a parent or other responsible adult join them right away. Proof of age, such as a state-issued driver’s license or ID card, a military ID, a school ID card, or a passport, may be requested from minors or supervising adults. A photo and the date of birth must be included, and the identification must be impenetrable.
SMITH COUNTY – After entering a guilty plea, a man who was detained along with others for several alleged sexual assaults on a teenage girl in Tyler was given a 16-year jail sentence Tuesday.
In connection with crimes against a 15-year-old girl that took place last year, Lamarcus Hambrick, 32, entered a guilty plea to two charges of sexual assault of a child in the 475th District Court. According to arrest records, he was given a 16-year sentence for each offense, and his prior probation was overturned, meaning he would spend an additional two years in a state prison. The sentences will be carried out consecutively. Hambrick was discovered at a motel in September 2025 with the 15-year-old child. It was discovered by a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper that Hambrick and the child had been having sex for around a week. Then after, Hambrick was taken into custody. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – In order to prolong the life of local roads before expensive repairs are required, the City of Tyler is moving forward with a significant street maintenance initiative. The Tyler City Council approved a $946,751 contract with Reynolds and Kay for the 2026 Seal Coat Project Wednesday. Approximately 17 lane miles of city streets will be covered by the project; the roads were chosen based on pavement condition ratings. Read the rest of this entry »
HARRISON COUNTY – After leading deputies on a police pursuit, a Tennessee man who was awaiting a court appearance on a child-rape charge committed suicide in Harrison County on Tuesday night.
The sheriff’s office, as well as our news partner KETK, reports that around 11:30 p.m., a deputy pulled over 36-year-old Trinidad Torres on Highway 59 South. Torres was reportedly acting tense during the stop, and the deputy asked him to get out of his car after discovering a pistol in his possession. Torres reportedly refused to get out of his car and started to drive away from the scene. Before Torres crashed his car into a cable close to the 1300 block of Highway 59, a chase started. Read the rest of this entry »
HENDERSON COUNTY – An East Texas county has passed a resolution asking the governor and a state representative to stop local officials from becoming “powerless observers” in the face of the fast growth of A.I. data centers. The resolution, which expressed concerns about the potential effects of large-scale data center projects on local infrastructure and natural resources, was read by the county’s attorney during a Henderson County Commissioners Court meeting on Tuesday morning.
Our news partners at KETK report that additionally, the resolution calls for an independent evaluation of the effects on natural resources before any new A.I. data centers are built. In order to address what the county refers to as “urgent reliability, water supply, and local governance concerns,” it also requests that state lawmakers investigate the matter and, if required, call a special session.
The decision was made almost a month after Data Factory showed interest in constructing a 10-megawatt facility in Athens. The company refers to its facilities as “flexible power farms,” a form of infrastructure that it claims can support high-performance computing while stabilizing strained power grids.