Today is
Tuesday November 26, 2024
SMITH COUNTY — Smith County has added additional polling locations for Primary Election Day on Tuesday, March 5, 2024. Smith County registered voters can choose from any of the 38 locations throughout the county to cast their ballots. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Smith County has launched a new interactive map that shows all polling locations available. Users can input their address to see which voting precinct they are in and what will be on their ballot. The “Interactive Map of Smith County†link can be found here.
TYLER — Tyler Animal Services will waive adoption fees for dogs and cats with the donation of at least six bags of dog or cat food 15 lbs or less during the month of March. It’s an effort to help restock the Community Pet Food Bank. The Pet Food Bank was established in 2015 so families in need or those who could not afford to feed their pets would have a safety net to keep them in their homes. Many times, people who want to surrender a pet to the Tyler Animal Control and Shelter only need time to get over a short-term financial hurdle. The Pet Food Bank provides assistance through donated food and cat litter, and so far, 32,000 pounds of food and litter have been distributed over the years. All donated items go back into the community and are not used by the animals kept at the shelter. The standard dog adoption fee is $120 and $80 for cats. All animals adopted from Tyler Animal Services are spayed/neutered, microchipped and vaccinated. If you would like to adopt, see all pets available for adoption or submit an application, click here. The Tyler Animal Shelter is located at 4218 Chandler Hwy. For more information, call (903) 535-0045.
EAST TEXAS — Early voting for the March primary ends Friday. Our news partner KETK took a look at voter turnout in East Texas counties ahead of election day. Early voting started last week and Gregg County Elections Administrator shared that the turnout is lower than they’d like to see. “So far during early voting we had 4,372 check-ins, and in 2022 for the governor primary we had 6,762 for the entire early voting period,†Jennifer Briggs, Gregg County elections administrator, said. Briggs explained how they’re not the only Texas county experiencing lower turnout. “I have been conversing with other elections administrators for the state of Texas and they’re kind of saying the same thing. So the turnout is a little bit slower than it was in 2022 for the governor primary,†said Briggs. Read the rest of this entry »
LONGVIEW — The Longview Police Department said that they’ve arrested two people in connection to four robberies that happened at stores between Feb. 8 and 20. According to our news partner KETK, Phillip Redwine, 53 of Longview, allegedly entered the stores, displayed a handgun and then demanded cash from the store’s clerks. Aggravated robbery warrants for Redwine (pictured) and McKenzie Wilson, 21 of Longview, were issued and Longview PD arrested them. According to jail records, Redwine was charged with having an expired driver’s license, evading arrest/detention, aggravated robbery and a blue warrant. Wilson was charged with aggravated robbery and is being held on a $50,000 bond at the Gregg County Jail. Redwine is being held at the Gregg County Jail on a total $185,000 bond.
DALLAS (AP) – A number of Americans are dealing with cellular outages on AT&T, Cricket Wireless, Verizon, T-Mobile and other service providers, according to data from Downdetector. AT&T had more than 64,000 outages this morning, in locations including Houston, Atlanta and Chicago. The outages began at approximately 3:30 a.m. ET. The carrier has more than 240 million subscribers, the country’s largest. Cricket Wireless had more than 13,000, the outage tracking website said Thursday. Verizon had more than 4,000 outages and T-Mobile had more than 1,900 outages. Boost Mobile had about 700 outages. So far, no reason has been given for the outages. Representatives for AT&T, Verizon and Cricket weren’t immediately available to comment.
MARSHALL — Marshall drivers were asked to avoid the intersection of Highways 59 and 80 due to an unusual road hazard Tuesday morning. According to our news partner KETK, Marshall police said a “chicken gut truck†left a “trail of blood and gore†on the roadway. Police asked drivers to steer clear of the bloody lane as a hazmat crew cleaned the scene. “Drive safe, watch out for feathers, and maybe… keep your windows rolled up for this stretch,†police said. “Thanks for your coop-eration!â€
TYLER — Tyler Police have identified the victim in a February 7 homicide. According to authorities, Nathan Charles Martin, 20, of Tyler was found in the roadway on CR CR 489 with a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene. One suspect, Joshua Renae Bryant (pictured), 24, was booked into the Smith County Jail on numerous charges, including capital murder by terror threat, with bond set at $1,000,000. Tyler Police are asking for help in locating the second suspect, Caleb Austin Ward, 16, of Whitehouse. He’s been known to frequent Tyler and should be considered armed and dangerous. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Tyler Police Department at 903-531-1000 or Tyler-Smith County Crimestoppers at 903-597-2833.
TYLER — Tyler police are investigating a Wednesday night homicide. Officers responded to a report of a person in the roadway off Highway 69 at CR 489 around 11:40. A male victim was found dead at the scene from what appeared to be a gunshot wound. An autopsy has been ordered. The victim’s name has not been released pending notification of family. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Tyler Police Department at 903-531-1000 or Tyler-Smith County Crimestoppers at 903-597-2833.
BULLARD — Bullard ISD earned a $950,000 security grant from the Texas Education Agency to be put toward keeping students and staff safe. According to our news partner KETK, Bullard ISD said the funds will be used to add more fencing, replace old doors and to update surveillance cameras to be equipped with facial recognition software in all of their facilities. Due to the new school and safety law passed in Austin, districts now have to meet stiffer security requirements, including the mandate that requires all campuses to have at least one armed guard. “We’re here to keep the students and the staff safe, that’s our primary job here,†Chief of Police for Bullard ISD Pat Hendrix said. “We are a police department but our main job, we’re not here to police the students or the faculty, we are here to protect them.â€
TYLER — U.S. News and World Report named The University of Texas at Tyler’s School of Nursing among the nation’s top 50 online graduate nursing programs and as the seventh graduate nursing program for veterans, according to a news release. UT Tyler ranked fourth best in Texas. UT Tyler’s Master of Business Administration and graduate education degree programs were also ranked on the list of best online programs.
“This is a significant accomplishment for the UT Tyler School of Nursing,†said Dr. Julie V. Philley, executive vice president and vice provost for UT Tyler health affairs. “We are proud to contribute to the shaping of health care leaders who will drive positive change in patient care and nursing practice.†Read the rest of this entry »
LONGVIEW — Residents of a Longview neighborhood where a man was apparently mauled to death by a dog say it’s not a new problem. On February 1, officers found the body of a 46-year-old man with wounds consistent with those of a dog bite near South Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Rayburn Drive. The investigation is ongoing. People who live nearby say the dogs in the area need to be controlled. City of Longview Spokesman Richard Yeakley says a dog owner in the area was cited 50 times in recent years but it is not confirmed that a dog on that property attacked the victim last weekend. Yeakley says the city is considering possible policy changes.
ANGELINA COUNTY — Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Tuesday that a new district attorney has been appointed to the 159th Judicial District in Angelina County. According to our news partner KETK, Layne Thompson, of Pollock, is set to take office after he is found qualified. He has previously served as an assistant district attorney for Angelina and Harris counties. The current District Attorney Janet Cassels, confirmed she submitted her resignation in December, effective in February. In a release, Abbott stated Thompson is former counsel for Mike Love & Associates and former vice president of Thompson Cattle Company. He is chairman of the Angelina Arts Alliance.
TYLER — According to Tyler Police, the 3600 block of Old Bullard Road is blocked off after a vehicle hit a telephone pole, causing the lines to fall in the roadway. Motorist are asked to seek an alternate route. Repairs are expected to be completed by mid-morning.
ANGELINA COUNTY — The Angelina County Sheriff’s Office said one of their reserve deputies passed away on Saturday after complications from a fall injury that occurred while playing pickleball. According to the sheriff’s office and our news partner KETK, Randy Ware, who served the county for 39 years, died around 8 p.m. at a Tyler hospital on Saturday. Ware reportedly had a broken vertebrae in his neck and was in serious condition after he fell in a pickleball game on Jan. 24. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER — A Tyler woman was sentenced to six years of probation in connection to a fatal hit-and-run. Chatiryn Butler pleaded guilty on Jan 8. to an accident involving death after a 2022 hit-and-run, our news partner KETK reports. On Thursday, Butler was sentenced to six years of probation, with 240 hours of community service. On Feb. 19, 2022, Kelsey Hise, 30, of Tyler, was found in the roadway with major injuries. She was surrounded by debris after Butler had struck her with her vehicle and fled the scene. Hise died at a local hospital.