News from the Lone Star State

[TexasStooge]

Officials: Operator error caused gas well blast

By JEFF MOSIER / The Dallas Morning News

FOREST HILL, Texas - A fatal gas well blast in Forest Hill was caused by operator error and not an equipment malfunction, XTO Energy officials announced Tuesday night.

A few hours earlier, the City Council in neighboring Fort Worth called for doubling the distance between new gas wells and homes due to fears of possible accidents like the one Saturday.

XTO officials said in a written statement that Robert Dale Gayan, 49, who died from head injuries in the accident, should not have removed a safety plug while there was pressure on the wellhead. An “unexpected” blast of water and natural gas escaped from the wellhead and struck Mr. Gayan.

“This rare accident highlights the importance of abiding by safety standards, following operating procedures in the field and keeping open and constant communications,” wrote XTO president Keith A. Hutton in a statement released Tuesday.

In response to the accident, officials at the Fort Worth-based energy company said they would reemphasize safety and operating procedures to their workers.

The written statement also included a message for Mr. Gayan’s relatives.

“We share our deepest sympathies for Dale’s family and all those affected by Saturday’s event,” Mr. Hutton wrote in the company’s statement.

While XTO executives were preparing to release the results of their investigation, the Fort Worth City Council was meeting in closed session Tuesday afternoon to talk about the blast.

The city has approved permits for more than 500 wells within the city limits, making it a major player in the natural gas drilling rush in the Barnett Shale.

After discussing safety issues in private, Mayor Mike Moncrief announced Tuesday that he and the council believed that the minimum distance between wells and homes should be increased from 300 feet to 600 feet. That distance requirement would also apply to churches, schools, parks, hospitals and public buildings.

“In the mayor’s comments, he referenced the event Saturday in Forest Hill,” said Jason Lamers, a City Council spokesman.

He said that the council meeting was adjourned in memory of Mr. Gayan.

After the blast, more than 500 nearby homes were evacuated as a precaution in case of fire. XTO officials said that air quality monitors operated by the company and local fire departments didn’t detect natural gas further than 200 feet from the well.

A task force of Fort Worth residents and energy company representatives will meet at 4:30 Thursday at the Handley-Meadowbrook Community Center to hear public comments and discuss the regulation of gas drilling.

The task force’s initial recommendation was to keep the current 300-foot distance requirement. If a gas well already exists, a person can build a home within 200 feet of a well.

In Mr. Moncrief’s statement, he called for the task force to reconsider its recommendation. The task force is scheduled to make a presentation to the City Council May 9, and the council would vote on the restrictions at a future meeting.

Don Young, who is planning a protest at Thursday’s meeting, said that the council recommendation isn’t enough. He said that 3,000 feet is probably a more reasonable buffer zone.

“I think that 600 is still way short as far as human safety is concerned,” he said. “In my opinion, it’s pitiful. It’s window dressing.”

Mr. Young, who leads Fort Worth Citizens Against Neighborhood Drilling Ordinance, said that the existing restriction as so small that doubling only looks like progress.

Currently, Trophy Club and Flower Mound have some of the strictest gas ordinances in the area. The cities require wells to be at least 1,000 feet from homes.

[TexasStooge]

DART looks to expand N. Dallas rail service

But board expresses concerns that south needs more service

By TONY HARTZEL / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - A new North Dallas light-rail line and a long-contested east-west rail line through the area's northern suburbs could be built by 2030 under a preliminary proposal presented Tuesday to the Dallas Area Rapid Transit board.

Many Dallas DART board members, however, said they remain concerned about the need for more major rail projects in southern Dallas than reflected in the proposal.

"This is extremely important to the city of Dallas," said board Vice Chairman Joyce Foreman, who noted that the plan calls for spending $1 billion on a rail line along LBJ Freeway but did not address the city's push for service to a freight distribution port near Interstate 20 and Interstate 45. "I don't want it dismissed or diminished."

The plan calls for spending $1.8 billion to $3.2 billion on rail lines in the next 24 years. Projects would be spread across the area, including several rail extensions in southern Dallas.

But the big winner would be North Dallas, where the transit agency has tentatively proposed six to nine miles of new light-rail or similar service at a cost of $800 million to $1 billion.

In addition, DART has proposed running passenger trains on the long-disputed Cotton Belt line. The $465 million line would run from Plano and Richardson through Far North Dallas, Addison and Carrollton into Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Far North Dallas residents have historically opposed rail service along the route.

Extensions from existing rail lines that show the most promise would serve Pleasant Grove and West Oak Cliff. All extensions and rail-line proposals are recommended for detailed financial studies.

The board also recommended that extensions to Garland and southeast Dallas, as well as new lines to West Dallas and East Dallas, be studied in the next few years. Many of those lines, as well as service to the distribution port, are high priorities for projects that could drive economic development, many Dallas board members said.

In addition, the proposal took out several options for rail service through Far North Dallas and adjacent suburbs, board member Terri Adkisson said.

"I have issues that we're limiting this. If one of the priorities of the board is to get to D/FW Airport, we need to look creatively at this," she said.

Topping the list of projects is the LBJ/Inwood Road line, part of which would run in a tunnel under LBJ Freeway and connect either at the red line or blue line. The LBJ line ranked favorably against its most serious competitor for funding, the Cotton Belt line.

For the Cotton Belt, transit planners have suggested that DART operate almost 26 miles of passenger rail service similar to the Trinity Railway Express. Trains would run about every 20 minutes during rush hours and every hour at other times of day, and stations would be two to four miles apart. Light-rail stations typically are one mile apart.

Far North Dallas residents and their Dallas City Council representatives have said they would only support light-rail along the Cotton Belt, and trains would have to run along an open channel to minimize noise and traffic disruptions.

"Far North Dallas folks would like to see it be light rail, and to have stations that are easy to get to and that serve the area," said Dallas council member Linda Koop, who reserved judgment on the DART proposal.

DART officials said they have not determined what type of trains would run along the proposed Cotton Belt line. They point to growing use of lightweight diesel vehicles as one option. Those vehicles, which can appear similar to light-rail cars, do not require locomotives or overhead power lines to operate.

Some Far North Dallas residents vowed to continue their fight against passenger rail service, no matter what type train is used.

"We're just going to fight even harder," said Bob Quat.

The transit agency has only about $2.4 billion to spend through 2030, not including federal grants it could receive in the next decade or two.

Leaders in Addison and Richardson, after pushing strongly for light-rail service along the Cotton Belt, said they were pleased that DART appears to be ready to offer some east-west rail service.

"We just want to have a service that works," said Richardson Mayor Gary Slagel, whose city hired lobbyists to help push for a Cotton Belt light-rail line. Lightweight diesel vehicles "can go through suburban areas easily and move fairly quickly. They coexist with the neighborhood very well."

The city also wants a station at the University of Texas at Dallas, regardless the train used, he said.

Opponents see potential to derail the Cotton Belt by emphasizing other projects that could instead be built in Dallas.

"DART's plan is starting to unravel a bit," Mr. Quat said. "The more pressure southern Dallas can put on this, the more chance that the Cotton Belt may not survive."

But suburban leaders see a potential compromise. A less-expensive rail service along the Cotton Belt would allow DART to spend more money on lines or extensions in parts of Dallas where they are needed, Addison City Council member Greg Hirsch said.

"We are in favor of strengthening southern Dallas. If more funding is available for southern Dallas, that's great for the region," said Mr. Hirsch, whose city will get two rail lines connecting at the existing Addison transit center. "The suburbs grasp the regional concept of DART. We understand that Dallas is the heart and soul of this thing, and southern Dallas in particular."

The transit agency will have a public meeting on the draft plan at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Pearce High School in Richardson. By June, the DART board could formally send the draft to its member cities for review and have public meetings. A final 2030 plan could be approved by late summer.

[TexasStooge]

Cancer patient, 83, held in wife's death

Oak Cliff: He feared what would happen to her after he died, police say

By TANYA EISERER / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - James Roberson has only a short time to live, and he feared that his frail wife would wind up in a nursing home after his death.

On Tuesday morning, a hospice worker arrived at their modest brick home in west Oak Cliff and found that the 83-year-old Mr. Roberson had shot his wife of 60 years to death as she lay in their bed, police said.

Mr. Roberson was taken into custody on suspicion of murder. He is being held at the Dallas County Jail and is being cared for in the jail infirmary.

"It is extremely sad," said Sgt. Gene Reyes, a homicide supervisor. "It's heart-wrenching. He did not want her to know that he was going to die. He's got cancer all over his body."

Neighbors and friends of Mr. Roberson and his wife, Mary, also 83, said the couple celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in February. The shooting Tuesday left them shocked and saddened.

"I've known them all my life," said a teary Mark Hutton, whose parents have lived across the street for decades. "He was the most gentle man in the world."

According to police, the hospice nurse arrived at the home and found a note. Police declined to reveal the contents or where it was. After reading the note, the nurse found the body of Mrs. Roberson, still in bed in a flowery nightgown. Mr. Roberson was in the bathroom.

The hospice nurse called their daughter, who went to the house and then notified police about 10:20 a.m.

Neighbors say the couple had lived in their tidy home in the 2700 block of Larkspur Drive for about five decades. Their home was among the first, if not the first, built on the block. He worked for the phone company. They have a son and a daughter.

In recent years, Mrs. Roberson had been dependent on him after suffering a series of strokes that left her right side partially paralyzed. She could walk but needed help getting around, friends and neighbors said.

"He took complete care of her," said Graham Klinefelter, a family friend who had been helping care for the Robersons. "He bathed her and took care of her needs."

Hospice nurses were helping Mr. Roberson, and health-care workers were helping with her. But Mrs. Roberson was expected to go to a nursing home if anything happened to her husband – an outcome that Mr. Roberson apparently could not accept.

After Mr. Roberson was found to have terminal brain and lung cancer, he began to worry about what would happen to his wife, according to friends and police.

"I spoke to him last night," Mr. Klinefelter said. "He was telling me how much he loved us."

Mr. Klinefelter did not know about what had happened when he arrived Tuesday afternoon to bring the Robersons some egg salad sandwiches. Mr. Roberson gave Mr. Klinefelter a feeble wave as he was led away by police. A short while later, police removed Mrs. Roberson's body.

"He's only weeks or days away" from dying, Mr. Klinefelter said. "He doesn't need to be leaving the house. He needs family with him."

Dan Ronan of WFAA-TV contributed to this report.

[TexasStooge]

BREAKING NEWS: Traffic

From WFAA ABC 8 and Traffic Pulse Networks

DALLAS: The ramp from southbound I-35E to eastbound I-30 is closed due to an overturned truck.

Real-time Dallas/Ft. Worth Traffic Reports from Traffic Pulse

[TexasStooge]

Memorial planned for tortured pup

CARROLLTON, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A memorial service has been scheduled for Saturday at 10 a.m. for Mercy, a 10-month-old pit bull puppy dog who was doused with gasoline and set on fire.

The public service will take place at Operation Kindness, the Carrollton animal shelter which took in puppy after she was rescued on Good Friday.

The dog died last Sunday evening at a veterinary clinic where she had been undergoing treatment for stab wounds and burns that covered 60 percent of her body.

"We originally planned to have a private service for our staff and volunteers," said Jonnie England, Operation Kindness executive director, "but we have received so many calls and e-mails from those who have been touched by her story that we decided to make the ceremony open to anyone who would like to attend."

Dallas Animal Services' cruelty investigators are working with the Dallas Police Department to locate the person who burned Mercy. An $11,000 reward is being offered for information leading to an arrest and conviction. Anyone with information should call 214-671-0246 or 311 in Dallas.

Operation Kindness is at 3201 Earhart Drive, near Midway and Keller Springs, in Carrollton. For more information, call 972-418-PAWS or visit http://www.operationkindness.org.

[TexasStooge]

Dallas council approves bonus for new officers

By EMILY RAMSHAW / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - Dallas City Council members on Wednesday unanimously approved a police incentive plan that would offer $10,000 bonuses to new officers - a move officials hope will give the Dallas Police Department leverage to bolster its ranks.

“Every year our city loses around 160 officers just by attrition,” Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Elba Garcia said. “We need young recruits. That’s where our challenge has been. And I’m glad to see we’re not shy of that challenge.”

City officials acknowledge the department is about 600 officers short. And police associations have long argued that low pay - Dallas ranks ninth among the 10 largest cities in North Texas in starting pay - hampers the department’s ability to recruit.

Dallas’ crime rate is the highest among U.S. cities with more than a million residents.

Police Chief David Kunkle is doing a great job with the staff he has, Council member Angela Hunt said. The last year has seen a 19 percent reduction in homicide, she said, and a 5 percent reduction in all other crime.

“But we know, from talking with residents and with police officers, that we need more officers on the street,” she said. “If that means we need to increase police salaries, we must do that.”

Under the proposal, which goes into effect this month, recruits would receive a one-time $6,000 bonus after graduating from the department’s 32-week police academy. They’d receive another $4,000 after they’ve been on the force for 82 weeks.

But not everyone thinks the incentive plan is the solution to Dallas’ police shortage.

Police associations, whose members haven’t had raises in a year and a half, said the incentive pay does nothing for veteran officers.

And Council member James Fantroy argued that Dallas police already have some of the best benefit packages. He said he's tired of police officers getting perks and complaining about salaries when civilian employees have gone several years without across-the-board raises.

“We always hear that we need more” officers, Mr. Fantroy said. “There’s no doubt about it. But we need to fight for civilian employees just like we do our police employees.”

Last Friday, police association leaders met with City Manager Mary Suhm to discuss salary and benefit needs. The associations are asking that Dallas give police officers a 6.5 percent raise in the next fiscal year, followed by a similar raise the following year. They’re also asking the department to freeze employee health insurance premiums.

[TexasStooge]

BREAKING NEWS

DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Students have been moved to a safe location at Arlington Park Community Learning Center because of a natural gas leak nearby in the 5500 block of Wayside Drive.

[TexasStooge]

Dallas police recruits to get $10,000 bonus

By BERT LOZANO / WFAA ABC 8 and EMILY RAMSHAW, Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - Dallas police recruits will receive a $10,000 bonus for signing up and completing training, as part of the city's attempt to attract more officers to the area.

The Dallas Police Department is 600 officers short at present.

Low pay has been a big issue with unions pointing out that starting pay for Dallas police officers is one of the lowest in the region. Dallas ranks ninth among the 10 largest cities in North Texas in starting pay.

"I think the incentive pay is terrific. I think it will help us compete with other big cities like Houston which offers incentive pay," said Dallas mayor Laura Miller. "I think the city manager is going to put together a package which will make us more competitive and it will take a couple of years to implement."

The plan will be presented to city members in June. It could also include education incentives for police officers.

Police Chief David Kunkle is doing a great job with the staff he has, Council member Angela Hunt said. The last year has seen a 19 percent reduction in homicide, she said, and a 5 percent reduction in all other crime.

“But we know, from talking with residents and with police officers, that we need more officers on the street,” she said. “If that means we need to increase police salaries, we must do that.”

Under the proposal, which goes into effect this month, recruits would receive a one-time $6,000 bonus after graduating from the department’s 32-week police academy. They’d receive another $4,000 after they’ve been on the force for 82 weeks.

But not everyone thinks the incentive plan is the solution to Dallas’ police shortage.

Police associations, whose members haven’t had raises in a year and a half, said the incentive pay does nothing for veteran officers.

And Council member James Fantroy argued that Dallas police already have some of the best benefit packages. He said he's tired of police officers getting perks and complaining about salaries when civilian employees have gone several years without across-the-board raises.

“We always hear that we need more” officers, Mr. Fantroy said. “There’s no doubt about it. But we need to fight for civilian employees just like we do our police employees.”

Last Friday, police association leaders met with City Manager Mary Suhm to discuss salary and benefit needs. The associations are asking that Dallas give police officers a 6.5 percent raise in the next fiscal year, followed by a similar raise the following year. They’re also asking the department to freeze employee health insurance premiums.

[TexasStooge]

Collin County woman faces indecency charge

By JENNIFER EMILY / The Dallas Morning News

ALLEN, Texas - Allen police arrested a 38-year old woman accused of having a sexual relationship with a 14-year old boy, Capt. Robert Flores said Wednesday.

Police charged Regina Bowling of Parker with indecency with a child by contact and furnishing alcohol to a minor Friday after an officer found her and a boy in a vehicle, according to police and court records. The patrol officer found them around 4:40 a.m. near Celebration Park.

Capt. Flores would not say how Ms. Bowling knew the boy. He also said it was "premature" to know whether other juveniles were involved.

He said police are still investigating the case and have not finished interviewing witnesses.

Bowling, who police described as a homemaker, did not return telephone messages.

No other criminal record was found for Bowling. She was released Saturday after posting a $7,500 bond.

Indecency with a child by contact is a second-degree felony, punishable by 2 to 20 years in prison.

[TexasStooge]

Dallas city misses first Wright deadline

DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Dallas Mayor Laura Miller had hoped to have a Wright Amendment proposal to present to Fort Worth today but says it will not be ready until next month.

Miller says the council is making "a lot of progress" on the debate over lifting long-haul flight restrictions at Dallas Love Field.

Members are waiting for a study they commissioned.

Dallas' official deadline is June 14th.

[TexasStooge]

For sale: The Mansion

Five-star hotel may get update to fend off rivals

By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - Liz Taylor went there for tea.

It's where Mick Jagger and the Stones crash after their concerts.

And even the Queen of Swaziland and her court checked in for the night, taking up most of a floor.

The landmark Mansion on Turtle Creek has an international following. Now its owners hope to attract a buyer for the 143-room hotel and restaurant.

The Mansion, which opened in 1981, is Texas' only five-star hotel.

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts with its partner Maritz, Wolff & Co. of St. Louis have quietly been showing the posh property to prospective buyers.

"We decided to talk to a few people about selling the Mansion with the stipulation that Rosewood Hotels & Resorts would continue to operate it," Rosewood Hotels chairman Stephen Sands said Tuesday. "I don't know what the chances of that happening are."

Real estate brokers say that the opportunity to buy one of Dallas' iconic properties will attract a rush of moneyed buyers.

"It will prove appealing to very high net-worth players as well as the typical investment community," said Mark Gibson with Dallas investment sales firm Holliday Fenoglio Fowler L.P.

"The reception in the investment market for this property will be very high."

The Mansion – known for its signature Southwest cuisine and stellar service – is facing some big changes.

Just last month its star chef, Dean Fearing, announced that he would be leaving after 21 years. Mr. Fearing will open his own restaurant next summer in the new Ritz-Carlton.

And with the boom in luxury hotel building under way in Dallas, Rosewood officials may also have decided it was a good time to consider selling.

"We are at the point we are looking at a lot of changes," Mr. Sands said. "Before we did that we wanted to look at this option."

The W Hotel opens this summer near downtown. And Ritz-Carlton will enter the market with its Uptown hotel next year. Several luxury boutique hotels are also in the works for central Dallas.

To keep attracting deluxe guests, the Mansion on Turtle Creek is due for a makeover.

"It needs it because of the new competition," said former Rosewood Hotels chairman Atef Mankarios. "But it's a one-of-a-kind, unique asset.

"For those who understand the Mansion and its stature in Dallas, it would be a great investment," he said.

Since 1997 the Mansion on Turtle Creek has been jointly owned by the Caroline Rose Hunt family and Maritz, Wolff & Co.

The hotel has been continuously operated by Rosewood.

In 1993 Rosewood built the adjoining 13-story condominium tower, which is served by the hotel.

[TexasStooge]

Shooting at Dallas liquor store

DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Police said one person was shot and wounded at a liquor store in Northwest Dallas Wednesday morning.

The incident took place after an attempted theft at River Beverages in the 1800 block of Storey Lane, near Stemmons Freeway.

Witnesses told police two suspects fled in a silver Lincoln Continental with paper dealer tags over the license plate.

The victim, who was shot in the chest, was taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital in critical but stable condition.

The name of the victim was not available.

[TexasStooge]

Council: City can boost parking ticket collection

Funds OK'd for partial Farmers Market renovation

By DAVE LEVINTHAL / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - Without debate, the council Wednesday unanimously approved two measures aimed at improving parking ticket collections.

The first vote authorized the purchase of a $36,000, vehicle-mounted "AutoVu" license plate recognition system that Dallas will use to automatically detect vehicles with outstanding parking tickets.

The vote, which amends Dallas' parking collections and billing contract with Dallas-based contractor Affiliated Computer Services, also creates a parking ticket pay station at the city's Auto Pound and provides for the hiring of two more "boot officers," who immobilize vehicles with multiple outstanding parking tickets recorded to them.

A separate council vote amended city code to increase several parking-related fees, including creating a second, $20 penalty on all parking tickets not paid within 47 days of first being issued. Until Wednesday, late tickets received a one-time late fee. City Hall estimates the new fine will generate at least $386,000 annually.

The council vote also increased, from $55 to $100, a fee for removing immobilization boots from vehicles. The city will also issue a $500 penalty to anyone found tampering with an immobilization boot.

The changes come two months after a Dallas Morning News report revealing a backlog of nearly 1 million unpaid parking tickets worth more than $40 million. City officials say they ultimately want to collect on more than four in five outstanding tickets, compared to about two in three today.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In another decision Wednesday, the council unanimously approved spending $451,600 to renovate the enclosed Shed No. 2, in which vendors hawk goods ranging from fish and coffee to furniture and sculpture. Improvements include heating and air conditioning.

Council members also unanimously accepted a much broader market renovation plan, estimated to cost between $10.5 million and $20.6 million, that city staff unveiled to them last week.

“We’ve long neglected the Farmers Market. We know we need lots of things out there to change,” council member Linda Koop said.

By accepting the plan, the council will now open it to public discussion and meetings, with a final approval vote likely by summer. Staff presented the council with several renovation options, recommending the least expensive of them - a $10.5 million plan - that calls for new retail space, lighting, landscaping, pedestrian ways, parking, restrooms and signage, as well as renovated selling areas.

Also not yet determined: Whether to give day-to-day operational control to a non-profit or for-profit corporation, as many large cities have done at their farmers markets.

Funding for the improvements would come primarily from a planned 2006 bond program, which is slated to go before Dallas voters in November. Some money from the city’s 2003 bond program is also earmarked for market improvements, including Shed No. 2 renovations.

[TexasStooge]

Sources: Husband planned suicide after shooting

By DAN RONAN / WFAA ABC 8

DALLAS, Texas - Sources said an 83-year-old man police said killed his ailing wife Tuesday planned on killing himself as well.

Police put James Roberson in a medical isolation unit for 24 hours after a caretaker discovered his wife's body and called a relative.

The World War II veteran and retired phone company employee shot his wife and then turned the gun on himself but could not get it to work, sources said.

Doctors said James and Mary Roberson, who had been married for a little over 60 years, were in rapid declining health.

Mary Roberson had suffered a series of strokes, and James Roberson had recently been diagnosed with brain and lung cancer and is said to only have a few months to live.

Based on his medical condition, police said they took special precautions.

"He was in a medical single cell on a floor where there are nothing but elderly patients, elderly inmates [and] people with medical conditions that require special treatment," Sgt. Don Peritz said. "And we placed him on a suicide watch."

Late Wednesday afternoon, Roberson was released from the Dallas County Jail after his family put up a $250 bond.

[TexasStooge]

Tip leads to suspects in 1973 murder

By JIM DOUGLAS / WFAA ABC 8

FORT WORTH, Texas - Thirty-three years after a clerk was murdered at a Fort Worth produce stand, a Crime Stoppers tip finally led police to three suspects that some said might say met with poetic justice.

While 3100 E. Lancaster in Fort Worth is now a car lot, back in 1973 it was the spot of the deadly shooting that killed John Freeman while working the stand. The suspects only got away with $12.89, and cash was still left in the drawer.

The case went unsolved until a few months ago when someone overheard a conversation about the old days. That person called police with a very broad tip.

"We had no dates," said Det. Manny Reyes, Fort Worth Police Department. "We had no location. We had no names. We didn't even have a year."

However, the information was just enough for Det. Reyes, who solely runs the cold case unit in Fort Worth, to start looking through dusty files.

Reyes searched among the 700 cold case files and found a case that had one matching detail with the tip.

Reyes said he then confronted the witness who retold the story overheard by the tipster.

"There was no hesitation on their part, 'Yeah, I remember that. Tell you all about it. But why didn't you do this years ago? Didn't feel like it?" Reyes said the witness said. "

Despite the witness not being able to remember exact names, Reyes was able to identify three suspects within days. The suspects were scattered across Texas and had all met violent deaths long ago.

"Her boyfriend, he burned her while she was alive," Reyes said of one suspect.

Based on nothing more than a 1973 autopsy note, Det. Reyes tracked down John Freeman's son in Florida.

"We had 900 hundred exact matches," he said.

He said the meeting with Freeman was payoff for all the work he did on the cold case.

"He said, 'There is justice,'" Det. Reyes said. "Those are his words, 'This is justice.'"

[TexasStooge]

Two gas leaks force evacuations

By BRAD HAWKINS / WFAA ABC 8

A gas leak forced evacuations on Wednesday afternoon on Wayside Drive - just off of Stemmons Freeway and Inwood Road.

The leak occurred near the St. Paul Medical Center, an area where there is a lot of building going on at present.

The city construction crew punctured gas and water main pipes at the same time.

Pupils in a nearby school were allowed to stay in their classrooms.

Officials say there was no explosive gas in the system.

However, several parents rushed to the scene to bring their children home.

"I'm scared," said parent, Linda Smith. "My babies are in there. I want to get them."

The holes have now been plugged and people have been allowed to return to their homes.

There was also a gas leak in Irving on Wednesday.

A construction crew working along Shady Grove and Capital Court apparently ruptured a gas line.

Crews have now capped the line and stopped the leak.

Several homes in the area had to be evacuated but people living there are now being allowed to go back inside.

Police blocked off a stretch of Shady Grove lane which will open shortly.

[TexasStooge]

Teens warned over abusive relationships

By KARIN KELLY / WFAA ABC 8

CLEBURNE, Texas - High school students in Johnson County this week are learning how to say no to an ugly side of love before it is too late.

Teachers tolerate hand-holding at Cleburne High but there's a hidden side of love that hurts many teens - mostly girls.

Teacher Ann Lowrie told students how two years of dating a controlling high school boyfriend led to 20 years of low self-esteem.

"For two years he did nothing but tell he how fat I was, how ugly I was," she said.

"My total conversation with him hinged around 'I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry,'" she said.

This week, Cleburne students are learning how to spot abusive behavior in romantic relationships and hopefully, help friends.

"You see it all the time and when you try to talk to somebody about it they say: 'he loves me.' They're playing. It's a joke and then it gets more serious," said high school student, Melissa Sossamon.

In a new national survey, 55 percent of teens admitted to being hurt physically but emotional wounds are devastating too.

A national apparel company is funding the teen dating violence curriculum. For now it's just a pilot program. Cleburne High is one of only two schools in Texas participating.

"Every guy needs to think about it. Definitely I would tell my guy friends. You need to back off, let her do her own thing," said Nathan Lowrie, a high school student.

"We just hope that we can make other teens aware," said another student.

"It's kind of one of those little ripple effects. If one person can have a change in their life it will affect someone else."

[TexasStooge]

Speeding crackdown on Dallas toll ways

By STEVE STOLER / WFAA ABC 8

DALLAS, Texas - On the President George Bush Turnpike driving can sometimes be a frightening experience.

"A long time ago, people would let you in, when you would try to get in. Now they speed up," said Plano drive, George Cobbs.

"People drive this road, they drive real fast, and they view it as the autobahn," said Sgt. Robert Bernard.

Texas troopers say speeders are making it and the Dallas North Tollway a much more dangerous place to drive.

They patrol the two toll roads during three daily shifts. That's an average of eight troopers a shift spread out over several miles of toll way. With more people speeding they need more help.

"If people will slow down and save lives, I'm all for it, as long as it's not costing me any more money," said George Cobbs, a Plano driver.

Some drivers fear adding police officers could mean more traffic tickets.

"No one wants more tickets, absolutely not," said Plano driver, Darryl Ferguson.

But troopers say it is not the tickets - it's the crashes. Slower traffic means less violet wrecks and is the real reason they are asking for help.

"People drive so aggressively. I think it's going to be difficult for law enforcement to slow people down on the toll way because they're used to going so fast," added Ferguson.

[TexasStooge]

Two gas leaks force evacuations

By BRAD HAWKINS / WFAA ABC 8

A gas leak forced evacuations on Wednesday afternoon on Wayside Drive - just off of Stemmons Freeway and Inwood Road.

The leak occurred near the St. Paul Medical Center, an area where there is a lot of building going on at present.

The city construction crew punctured gas and water main pipes at the same time.

Pupils in a nearby school were allowed to stay in their classrooms.

Officials say there was no explosive gas in the system.

However, several parents rushed to the scene to bring their children home.

"I'm scared," said parent, Linda Smith. "My babies are in there. I want to get them."

The holes have now been plugged and people have been allowed to return to their homes.

There was also a gas leak in Irving on Wednesday.

A construction crew working along Shady Grove and Capital Court apparently ruptured a gas line.

Crews have now capped the line and stopped the leak.

Several homes in the area had to be evacuated but people living there are now being allowed to go back inside.

Police blocked off a stretch of Shady Grove lane which will open shortly.

[TexasStooge]

Meth may be at center of mail theft arrests

By DON WALL / WFAA ABC 8

MESQUITE, Texas - Investigators say the surging meth problem may be to blame in the arrest of two people Wednesday for mail theft.

Mesquite police arrested Shannon Torres, 28, and Scott Thompson, 35, for illegal possession of other people's checks. A tipster led police to a van where police said they found four large garbage bags full of mail from the Churchill Crossing Apartments, Mission Fairways Apartments, The Stoneleigh Apartments and The Colony at Lakeway.

Carolyn, a resident of the Stoneleigh Apartments who didn't want to use her real name, said she fears she might be a recent victim.

"I was involved in a fraud a couple weeks ago," she said. "I owe $2,000 because of it. So, it's not fun."

Back in February, the Stoneleigh Apartments had already been targeted by thieves armed with a crowbar. Managers at the complex said they are looking into new hardware and ways to improve the locks.

But postal inspectors said locks don't always stop thieves who are looking for money for meth.

"There tends to be a connection between methamphetamine users and the mail, either breaking in to the mailboxes themselves, or stealing people's identifying information to commit identity theft," said Amanda McMurrey, U.S. Postal Inspector.

Meth may have been the motivation in the recent arrest as well. Police said Thompson had the drug on him when he was arrested.