Today is
Wednesday May 14, 2025
Do you need a fitness and nutrional guide just for women? Get David Rancken’s App Of The Day. It’s called Resilient. You can find Resilient in the Apple Store and Google Play below.
TYLER — With severe weather hitting East Texas Tuesday afternoon, electric utilities and cooperatives are reporting power outages. Our news partner KETK has a county by county power outage list, you can see it here.
Do you feel you need an extra level of smartphone security? Find David Rancken’s App Of The Day. It’s called Who touched my phone? You can get Who touched my phone? in the Apple Store.
TYLER – The City of Tyler will show appreciation for outstanding public servants during Public Service Recognition Week from May 5 through May 9. All City of Tyler non-emergency offices and facilities will be closed Friday, May 9, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for an interdepartmental event. However, essential and emergency functions will continue. Celebrated since 1985, Public Service Recognition Week is a nationwide public recognition campaign honoring the men and women who serve as federal, state, county and local government employees.
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UPDATE: The Nacogdoches Police Department said Donnell was found safe and in good spirits on Sunday.
“On behalf of the Nacogdoches Police Department, Donnell, and his family, thank you to everyone who shared the post or helped in the search,” Nacogdoches PD said.
NACOGDOCHES – The Nacogdoches Police Department are currently searching for a non-verbal autistic boy named Donnell. According to our news partner KETK, Donnel, a black, 15-year-old boy was last seen Sunday afternoon about 3 p.m. Near East Main and Timberlake Street. At that time, he was thought to be wearing a green shirt and blue pajama pants. Officials ask if you see Donnell, to please call the Nacogdoches Police Department at 936-559-2607.
TYLER – A funeral service was held for a fallen Tyler police officer Saturday in Tyler. According to our news partner KETK, Tyler Police Department Officer Sam Lively died April 26 in off-duty motorcycle accident.
Officer Lively had been a member of the Tyler PD since September 5, 2023. Services Saturday afternoon were held at Green Acres Baptist Church in Tyler, followed by interment which took place at Grove Hill Cemetery in Dallas. Lively’s friend and Smith County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Ryan Boller gave the eulogy at the funeral.
“Sam was special. Sam was exceptional. Sam brightened every room he walked into with his contagious smile and his expressive mannerisms, it made you think sometimes what is this guy on? He’s always on fire. Sam was just driven to his calling to serve,” Boller said.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Ohio authorities said they’ve solved the more than decade-old fatal stabbing of a Cleveland Clinic nurse, announcing recent murder charges against her former divorce attorney who already served jail time for lying to police during the investigation.
Friday’s arrest of 51-year-old Gregory J. Moore marks the latest twist in a cold case that has eluded Ohio authorities since 2013. Aliza Sherman was stabbed more than 10 times, her body found on a downtown Cleveland sidewalk near where she was set to meet Moore to discuss her divorce.
Moore was indicted on charges for murder, aggravated murder, kidnapping and conspiracy, according to documents unsealed Friday. He was arrested by U.S. Marshals in Texas, where he remained in custody Sunday, according to online records.
“The Sherman family has waited over a decade for answers regarding their mother’s homicide,” said Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley in a statement Friday. “Through the tenacious work of multiple law enforcement agencies, evidence was accumulated that paints the unmistakable picture that Gregory Moore orchestrated and participated in the brutal murder of Aliza Sherman.”
Moore was not a stranger to authorities.
In 2017, he pleaded guilty to falsification for statements he made to police about his whereabouts during Sherman’s killing. He also admitted to calling in bomb threats in 2012 as a way to delay trials. His law license was suspended in 2017 and he resigned it the following year. He served six months in jail.
At the time, he said that he regretted his past actions.
According to Friday’s indictment, Moore allegedly planned to kidnap Sherman as a delay tactic for her upcoming divorce trial. The unsealed documents include messages between Moore and Sherman showing how he called her to the office, which was locked. She arrived and waited over an hour before deciding to return to her car, according to the indictment.
“During this timeframe, an individual who was either Moore or an unknown co-conspirator approached Sherman … circled behind her, chased her … and then stabbed her over 10 times,” the indictment reads.
Moore swiped into the office later that evening and messaged Sherman to mislead investigators, according to the indictment.
Moore did not respond to an email message Sunday. Court records did not list an attorney. A defense attorney who previously represented Moore did not respond to a phone message Sunday.
Moore was expected to be arraigned at a later date, according to prosecutors who said teamwork with the FBI led to the arrest. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation took over the cold case in 2021.
Sherman, 53, was a mother of four and has been remembered as a beloved fertility nurse. Rallies and vigils to honor her memory have been held on the anniversary of her death.
Her daughter, Jennifer Sherman, thanked authorities “for their unwavering dedication in seeking justice for Aliza,” according to a Sunday statement issued through her attorney, Adam Fried. “This is an exceptionally difficult time for the family, and we kindly request privacy during this period.”
Harry Czinn, Aliza Sherman’s brother, didn’t immediately return a message Sunday.
“I’m in shock because after 12 years, you don’t expect it,” Czinn, told Cleveland Jewish News . “The best word to sum up my feelings at this point would be bittersweet — glad they got the person, but the memories are painful.”
HOUSTON (AP) — At least one person was killed when 14 people were shot early Sunday during at party a home in Houston, where police said gunfire broke out after an uninvited guest was asked to leave.
The Houston Police Department began receiving calls reporting shots fired around 12:50 a.m. at a home in southeast Houston, Assistant Police Chief Patricia Cantu said during a news briefing.
Officers reported hearing gunshots when they arrived minutes later, Cantu said. They saw multiple people wounded in the area outside the home.
Cantu said a family party was taking place and an uninvited guest was asked to leave the home. That person is believed to have started shooting, she said, which prompted others to draw guns and return fire.
News video from the shooting scene showed officers outside the home, where folding chairs and tables had been set up beneath a carport and a party tent outside. At least two tables had been overturned. Others had bottles of water and slices of cake on them.
The Houston Fire Department responded and began treating victims in the parking lot of a nearby restaurant. At least one person was confirmed dead, Cantu said, and multiple people were in critical condition and in surgery. She said said some victims transported themselves to area hospitals.
“It’s still very complicated,” Cantu told reporters. “It was chaotic from the get-go.”
Police detained multiple people but were not immediately certain if they had the shooting suspect in custody as the investigation continued Sunday morning, Cantu said.
McALLEN (AP) — The South Texas home of Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket company is now an official city with a galactic name: Starbase.
A vote Saturday to formally organize Starbase as a city was approved by a lopsided margin among the small group of voters who live there and are mostly Musk’s employees at SpaceX. With all the votes in, the tally was 212 in favor to 6 against, according to results published online by the Cameron County Elections Department.
Musk celebrated in a post on his social platform, X, saying it is “now a real city!”
Starbase is the facility and launch site for the SpaceX rocket program that is under contract with the Department of Defense and NASA that hopes to send astronauts back to the moon and someday to Mars.
Musk first floated the idea of Starbase in 2021 and approval of the new city was all but certain. Of the 283 eligible voters in the area, most are believed to be Starbase workers.
The election victory was personal for Musk. The billionaire’s popularity has diminished since he became the chain-saw-wielding public face of President Donald Trump’s federal job and spending cuts, and profits at his Tesla car company have plummeted.
SpaceX has generally drawn widespread support from local officials for its jobs and investment in the area.
But the creation of an official company town has also drawn critics who worry it will expand Musk’s personal control over the area, with potential authority to close a popular beach and state park for launches.
Companion efforts to the city vote include bills in the state Legislature to shift that authority from the county to the new town’s mayor and city council.
All these measures come as SpaceX is asking federal authorities for permission to increase the number of South Texas launches from five to 25 a year.
The city at the southern tip of Texas near the Mexico border is only about 1.5 square miles (3.9 square kilometers), crisscrossed by a few roads and dappled with airstream trailers and modest midcentury homes.
SpaceX officials have said little about exactly why they to want a company town and did not respond to emailed requests for comment.
“We need the ability to grow Starbase as a community,” Starbase General Manager Kathryn Lueders wrote to local officials in 2024 with the request to get the city issue on the ballot.
The letter said the company already manages roads and utilities, as well as “the provisions of schooling and medical care” for those living on the property.
SpaceX officials have told lawmakers that granting the city authority to close the beach would streamline launch operations. SpaceX rocket launches and engine tests, and even just moving certain equipment around the launch base requires the closure of a local highway and access to Boca Chica State Park and Boca Chica Beach.
Critics say beach closure authority should stay with the county government, which represents a broader population that uses the beach and park. Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino, Jr. has said the county has worked well with SpaceX and there is no need for change.
Another proposed bill would make it a Class B misdemeanor with up to 180 days in jail if someone doesn’t comply with an order to evacuate the beach.
The South Texas Environmental Justice Network, which has organized protests against the city vote and the beach access issue, held another demonstration Saturday that attracted dozens of people.
Josette Hinojosa, whose young daughter was building sandcastle nearby, said she was taking part to try to ensure continued access to a beach her family has enjoyed for generations.
With SpaceX, Hinojosa said, “Some days it’s closed, and some days you get turned away,”
Organizer Christopher Basaldú, a member of the Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation of Texas tribe, said his ancestors have long been in the area, where the Rio Grande meets the Gulf.
“It’s not just important,” he said, “it’s sacred.”
TYLER – With voting Saturday May 3, 2025 complete, results are available. Our news partner KETK has the complete list. You can find it here.
WEST YELLOWSTONE, Mont. (AP) — Idaho State Police said Saturday that the driver of the tour van involved in a deadly collision with a pickup truck was licensed in California and the company that organized the trip was Ctour Holiday LLC, a large tour operator that provides international travel services.
The pickup truck driver and six people in the Mercedes van were killed in the crash, which occurred Thursday evening on U.S. Highway 20 near Henry’s Lake State Park in eastern Idaho as the tour group was headed to Yellowstone National Park.
Police identified the pickup driver as 25-year-old Isaih Moreno of Humble, Texas. They have not said whether the driver of the van was among the dead.
Ctour Holiday did not immediately respond Saturday to messages seeking comment.
The van passengers included 12 people of Chinese nationality and one Italian. Police said they were working closely with Ctour Holiday and in contact with the two countries’ consulates.
The Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco said via email that five Chinese citizens were killed and eight were injured.
The consulate “immediately activated its emergency mechanism to provide consular protection and assistance to the injured and the families of the victims,” it added.
The crash remains under investigation, and police said the bodies would be taken to the Ada County Coroner’s Office for autopsies and formal confirmation of their identities.
Three people were seriously injured: Two were flown to an Idaho Falls hospital and one to a hospital in Bozeman, Montana, according to police. Information on their conditions was not released, and the hospitals did not immediately respond to messages seeking updates.
Others were taken to local hospitals with injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening.
“Due to privacy considerations, no information regarding the medical status of the injured will be released,” police said in a statement.
AUSTIN (AP) — Texas will implement a $1 billion school voucher program, one of the largest in the country, that uses public dollars to fund private school tuition under a bill Gov. Greg Abbott signed Saturday, capping off a yearslong effort by Republicans.
School voucher supporters have long targeted the state, where past efforts buckled for decades against resistance from Democrats and rural Republicans. Last month President Donald Trump called lawmakers before a key vote needed to finally get the bill to Abbott’s desk.
Texas joins more than 30 other states that have implemented a similar program, of which about a dozen have launched or expanded their programs in recent years to make most students eligible.
School vouchers have been Abbott’s primary focus this year, coming off a 2024 election cycle in which he led a campaign to oust GOP lawmakers who voted against a similar bill last session.
Republican lawmakers and bill supporters say it will give parents more choice by letting them pull their children out of poor-performing public schools.
“Gone are the days that families are limited to only the schools assigned by government,” Abbott said before signing the bill at the governor’s mansion. “The day has arrived that empowers parents to choose the school that is best for their child.”
Democrats and Republicans in rural districts have criticized the program, saying it will drain financial resources from Texas’ more than 5 million public school students and subsidize the private education of wealthy families.
Beginning next school year, Texas families can receive $10,000 per year to help pay for students’ private school tuition. Children with disabilities can qualify for as much as $30,000 a year. The program will be capped at $1 billion for the first year and cover up to 90,000 students but could cost up to $4.5 billion a year by 2030.
HARRISON COUNTY – The Marshall-Harrison County Health District confirmed a case of measles in a child younger than five years old on Friday. According to our news partner KETK, officials with the MHCHD, suspect the exposure date and location is April 27 at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in Hallsville. Investigators are seeing if this case is connected to the west Texas outbreak.
“Now that measles has made its way into our country, we must remain diligent in preventing its spread,” Harrison County Health Authority and MHCHD Medical Director Dr. Ricky Paul said. “The best protection against measles is to receive the Measles, Mumps, Rubella vaccine.”
Officials add that measles is highly contagious and spreads through coughing, sneezing or being near an infected person. People can spread measles from four days before and four days after a rash appears. Symptoms include high fever, cough, runny nose, watery or red eyes and a rash typically starting on the face and spreading downward two to five days after initial symptoms.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — James B. Milliken, who has led major public university systems in New York and Texas, was named president of the University of California on Friday.
Milliken comes to the role from the University of Texas, where he has served as chancellor since 2018. He has also held leadership roles at The City University of New York, the University of Nebraska and the University of North Carolina.
The UC system has 10 campuses, including Berkeley, Los Angeles and Davis. Milliken starts on Aug. 1. He will be paid nearly $1.5 million a year.
“The University of California is universally regarded as the preeminent public research university in the world, and I am deeply honored to have an opportunity to join the many talented faculty, staff, and campus leaders in their vital work,” Milliken said in a UC press release. “It is more important than ever that we expand the education, research, health care, and public service for which UC is so widely admired and which has benefited so many Californians.”
The announcement comes at a time when the Trump administration is targeting federal funding at universities in an attempt to get them to comply with the Republican president’s political agenda.
The University of California, Berkeley, is among dozens of colleges under investigation by the U.S. Education Department over its ties to The PhD Project, a group aimed at diversifying the business world and higher education faculty. The Trump administration is also investigating Berkeley over allegations of antisemitism linked to pro-Palestinian protests against the war in Gaza that broke out last year across campuses nationwide.
In response, Berkeley said it has “an unwavering commitment” to fighting antisemitism.
The Trump administration also launched probes into three University of California campuses over their admissions policies to determine whether they comply with the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn affirmative action in college admissions.
Milliken succeeds Michael V. Drake as UC president. Drake was the first Black person to serve in the role in the system’s more than 150-year history. Drake announced last year that he would step down after serving as president since 2020, leading the system through the coronavirus pandemic, a graduate student strike and various campus protests.
His announcement last July that he planned to step down followed a particularly tumultuous spring. Over several days last April and early May, counterprotesters attacked a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA that had grown on campus and law enforcement waited hours to step in. The next day, authorities in riot gear dispersed more than 1,000 people who had gathered to support the encampment.
Drake said Milliken “has the depth of wisdom and experience” to deal with the challenges that come with leading one of the nation’s largest public university systems.
“I have great confidence in both his leadership and his commitment to the University’s enduring values,” he said in a statement. “I’m excited about his appointment and look forward to seeing all that he will accomplish at the University.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement that he was excited to see Milliken selected for the role to “drive the next chapter of innovation, talent, and progress that will shape California and the country for generations to come.”