Activist enters District 8 race
FORT WORTH, Texas (Star-Telegram) - Community activist Kathleen Hicks has filed as a candidate for the District 8 City Council seat representing southeast Fort Worth.
Hicks, 32, served almost eight years as council aide to McCloud, who represents District 8 but will retire when his term ends.
Hicks resigned as McCloud's aide before she filed for the council race. She now will serve as office manager in the law office of her mother, Maryellen Hicks, a former 2nd Court of Appeals judge.
"I think District 8 needs strong leadership, and it has had that," Hicks said. "I want to continue the positive initiatives that Ralph started and expand that.
"I know that community, and I think they know me."
Hicks is involved in various community initiatives, including service on the boards of the AIDS Outreach Center and the Women's Haven of Tarrant County.
She joins 12 other candidates who have filed for the eight council seats and the mayor's post in the May 7 election. Filing will continue through March 7.
News from the Lone Star State
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Record turnout expected in Aledo school bond election
By Martha Deller, Star-Telegram Staff Writer
ALEDO, Texas - Based on early voting, Aledo school officials expect a record turnout Saturday for their $52.68 million bond election.
In 10 days, 1,081 people cast early votes, not including mailed ballots that must be received by Saturday, said election judge Ann Grace.
"This is the most early votes we've received in 11 years," Grace said.
The previous early vote record was 622 in May, when a $45 million bond issue lost by about 200 votes of 1,800 cast, she said.
Pat Kemp, chairman of Citizens for Aledo Schools, believes the record turnout will spell victory for the revamped bond package, which includes separate propositions for educational and extracurricular facilities.
Critics attributed last year's defeat to sparse information and no voter choices between money for school and sports facilities.
This time, the ballot contains separate proposals for $35 million in school improvements and $17 million for athletic facilities.
Superintendent Don Daniel credits Kemp's 75-member group with selling the bond issue in a way district officials are banned by law from doing.
"The early vote should be directly attributed to the work of the committee," he said.
Based on past elections, when early votes represented one-third of total ballots, Daniel said election turnout could top 3,000, "about 30 percent of our constituents."
"Being the optimist, I believe that's a good sign," Kemp said. "Our goal was always to get out the information and then get people out to vote."
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ALSO ONLINE: http://www.aledo.k12.tx.us
By Martha Deller, Star-Telegram Staff Writer
ALEDO, Texas - Based on early voting, Aledo school officials expect a record turnout Saturday for their $52.68 million bond election.
In 10 days, 1,081 people cast early votes, not including mailed ballots that must be received by Saturday, said election judge Ann Grace.
"This is the most early votes we've received in 11 years," Grace said.
The previous early vote record was 622 in May, when a $45 million bond issue lost by about 200 votes of 1,800 cast, she said.
Pat Kemp, chairman of Citizens for Aledo Schools, believes the record turnout will spell victory for the revamped bond package, which includes separate propositions for educational and extracurricular facilities.
Critics attributed last year's defeat to sparse information and no voter choices between money for school and sports facilities.
This time, the ballot contains separate proposals for $35 million in school improvements and $17 million for athletic facilities.
Superintendent Don Daniel credits Kemp's 75-member group with selling the bond issue in a way district officials are banned by law from doing.
"The early vote should be directly attributed to the work of the committee," he said.
Based on past elections, when early votes represented one-third of total ballots, Daniel said election turnout could top 3,000, "about 30 percent of our constituents."
"Being the optimist, I believe that's a good sign," Kemp said. "Our goal was always to get out the information and then get people out to vote."
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ALSO ONLINE: http://www.aledo.k12.tx.us
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3 dead in Tyler shootings
TYLER, Texas (WFA ABC 8) - A man apparently upset at a child-support proceeding opened fire with an assault rifle outside the Smith County Courthouse on Thursday, killing his ex-wife and a bystander and wounding his son and three law enforcement officers. Officials said David Hernandez Arroyo Sr., 43, of Tyler, was killed after leading authorities on a car chase, during which he fired the AK-47 several times out his pickup's window. Authorities shot him as he left his truck about two miles from the courthouse, firing the rifle.
More details to come.
TYLER, Texas (WFA ABC 8) - A man apparently upset at a child-support proceeding opened fire with an assault rifle outside the Smith County Courthouse on Thursday, killing his ex-wife and a bystander and wounding his son and three law enforcement officers. Officials said David Hernandez Arroyo Sr., 43, of Tyler, was killed after leading authorities on a car chase, during which he fired the AK-47 several times out his pickup's window. Authorities shot him as he left his truck about two miles from the courthouse, firing the rifle.
More details to come.
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Senator's Name Used On Bogus Checks
AUSTIN, Texas (KXAS NBC 5) - Law enforcement authorities call identity theft a crisis because the illegal act is relatively simple to commit. To set up a fraudulent checking account, for example, thieves typically need only a computer, a printer and a name, even if that name belongs to a U.S. senator.
Check forgery software is readily available to identity thieves looking to pass bogus checks. The software shows criminals how to load a stolen name and bank data into a computer to produce forged checks.
"You just put in your information, your routing number, and it prints it for you," Mike Coffey, a private investigator, said.
The software system does not discriminate against anyone being set up as a target of ID theft, including a high-profile person such as Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson.
NBC 5, in a controlled experiment designed to show how simple check forgery can be, "borrowed" the senator's personal information to print fraudulent checks.
"Well of course (it looks familiar), it has my name and address on it," Hutchinson said when she saw the bogus checks.
The process took only minutes to complete and the outcome looked genuine.
"Isn't that amazing," Hutchinson said. "It does look quite real."
"By definition, criminals don't want to work hard," Coffey said. "This is something they can do and make a lot of money at very quickly."
If criminals produce bogus checks imprinted with the name and address of a law-abiding person, the victim could become a counterfeiting suspect when a check bounces.
"I can't get a new car," Gayle Jones, ID theft victim, said. "I can't get a home. I can't write checks anywhere."
Thieves forged checks in Jones' name. Now, she faces the possibility of a warrant being issued for her arrest.
"My whole identity was stolen, and my life is basically on hold," Jones said.
Most people, like Hutchinson, now try to protect their personal information.
"I try not to give my Social Security number unless it's really necessary," she said.
Protection efforts sometimes aren't enough, NBC 5 learned after the investigative team accessed the senator's Social Security number from an online source.
"Yes, that's my Social Security number," Hutchinson said. "I really try to guard it, but that's terrible. Your Social Security number should not be available on a Web site or something so public. We have got to find a way that the technology can be used in a positive way and not negatively."
AUSTIN, Texas (KXAS NBC 5) - Law enforcement authorities call identity theft a crisis because the illegal act is relatively simple to commit. To set up a fraudulent checking account, for example, thieves typically need only a computer, a printer and a name, even if that name belongs to a U.S. senator.
Check forgery software is readily available to identity thieves looking to pass bogus checks. The software shows criminals how to load a stolen name and bank data into a computer to produce forged checks.
"You just put in your information, your routing number, and it prints it for you," Mike Coffey, a private investigator, said.
The software system does not discriminate against anyone being set up as a target of ID theft, including a high-profile person such as Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson.
NBC 5, in a controlled experiment designed to show how simple check forgery can be, "borrowed" the senator's personal information to print fraudulent checks.
"Well of course (it looks familiar), it has my name and address on it," Hutchinson said when she saw the bogus checks.
The process took only minutes to complete and the outcome looked genuine.
"Isn't that amazing," Hutchinson said. "It does look quite real."
"By definition, criminals don't want to work hard," Coffey said. "This is something they can do and make a lot of money at very quickly."
If criminals produce bogus checks imprinted with the name and address of a law-abiding person, the victim could become a counterfeiting suspect when a check bounces.
"I can't get a new car," Gayle Jones, ID theft victim, said. "I can't get a home. I can't write checks anywhere."
Thieves forged checks in Jones' name. Now, she faces the possibility of a warrant being issued for her arrest.
"My whole identity was stolen, and my life is basically on hold," Jones said.
Most people, like Hutchinson, now try to protect their personal information.
"I try not to give my Social Security number unless it's really necessary," she said.
Protection efforts sometimes aren't enough, NBC 5 learned after the investigative team accessed the senator's Social Security number from an online source.
"Yes, that's my Social Security number," Hutchinson said. "I really try to guard it, but that's terrible. Your Social Security number should not be available on a Web site or something so public. We have got to find a way that the technology can be used in a positive way and not negatively."
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3 dead in Tyler shootings
Man kills ex-wife, bystander, wounds 4; he's slain after chase
By NANCY BARR CANSON / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News
TYLER, Texas – A man apparently upset at a child-support proceeding opened fire with an assault rifle outside the Smith County Courthouse on Thursday, killing his ex-wife and a bystander and wounding his son and three law enforcement officers.
Officials said David Hernandez Arroyo Sr., 43, of Tyler, was killed after leading authorities on a car chase, during which he fired the AK-47 several times out his pickup's window. Authorities shot him as he left his truck about two miles from the courthouse, firing the rifle.
Police said Mr. Arroyo, wearing a bulletproof vest and a military flak jacket, opened fire on his ex-wife and son on the courthouse steps on the east side of the facility about shortly before 1:30 p.m. Maribell Estrade was killed and her oldest son, David Arroyo Jr., 23, was wounded in the leg. He was in fair condition Thursday night at East Texas Medical Center.
Also killed at the courthouse was a man who lived in an apartment nearby, Mark Allen Wilson. Police Chief Gary Swindle said Mr. Wilson, who was licensed to carry a concealed weapon, ran to the scene and exchanged gunfire with Mr. Arroyo. Chief Swindle said authorities believed that Mr. Wilson's intervention saved the lives of David Arroyo Jr. and possible others.
Three officers were wounded:
• Smith County deputy Sherman Dollison, 28, was shot four times in the liver, lungs and legs when he came out the courthouse door after hearing the shots. Deputy Dollison, a four-year veteran with the Sheriff's Department who generally transferred prisoners, was in critical but stable condition Friday morning following surgery.
• Sheriff's Lt Marlin Suell, 38, was treated for a gunshot wound to his neck and released.
• Tyler police officer Tray Perrett, 54, who was treated for a minor wound and released.
Police estimated that Mr. Arroyo fired about 50 shots from the rifle at the courthouse.
"He definitely came well-armed and prepared. We do understand there had been some threats made by him the previous week," Chief Swindle said.
After the shootings, Mr. Arroyo, who authorities say may have been wounded, ran to his pickup and fled, chased by police and sheriff's deputies. About two miles away on U.S. Highway 271, a sheriff's car blocked his getaway and he got out of the pickup, firing the rifle, and was shot. He was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital.
Officers said Mr. Arroyo and Ms. Estrada had divorced in January 2002 after 22 years of marriage. The court proceeding before the shooting involved unpaid child support, officials said. Ms. Estrada, who worked at a meat-packing plant in Tyler, had two other sons, ages 18 and 7.
David Hernandez Arroyo was convicted in May 1993 of unlawfully carrying a weapon and was sentenced to one-year probation, according to court records. A decade earlier, in September 1983, he was charged with DWI. He received deferred adjudication and completed two years of probation on that charge.
Kent Boozer, a Tyler dentist, said he was finishing lunch at a downtown restaurant Thursday afternoon when he heard a loud popping sound, which he thought might have emanated from an nearby construction site. But, then he saw a man methodically shooting a semi-automatic rifle at the courthouse.
"This guy was not randomly shooting, he knew what he was shooting at," Dr. Boozer, 38, said. "I think he knew he was going to die. He had that demeanor. He was standing up straight."
Bullets were flying at the gunman, who did not appear to be fazed, Dr. Boozer said. Dr. Boozer said the gunman walked to his truck and turned to fire at another man, possibly Mr. Wilson, who was shooting at him with a pistol.
"They were having a shootout over the bed of his pickup," Dr. Boozer said. "He [the gunman] shot him three times. He shot him in the head."
Deputy Court Clerk Margo Adkins, 28, was working through her lunch hour in the annex, directly behind the courthouse, when she heard, "a series of rapid popping."
When she got to the window she saw a heavy-set man with a baseball cap walking with a long, black weapon. Two deputies were down on the ground before him.
"One sat up and held up his hand and said, 'Don't shoot.' " she said. "Then he [the gunman] shot him."
"I can't believe people are that crazy," Ms. Adkins said.
Staff writers Dave Michaels, Christy Hoppe, Pete Slover and Amy Eiermann and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Man kills ex-wife, bystander, wounds 4; he's slain after chase
By NANCY BARR CANSON / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News
TYLER, Texas – A man apparently upset at a child-support proceeding opened fire with an assault rifle outside the Smith County Courthouse on Thursday, killing his ex-wife and a bystander and wounding his son and three law enforcement officers.
Officials said David Hernandez Arroyo Sr., 43, of Tyler, was killed after leading authorities on a car chase, during which he fired the AK-47 several times out his pickup's window. Authorities shot him as he left his truck about two miles from the courthouse, firing the rifle.
Police said Mr. Arroyo, wearing a bulletproof vest and a military flak jacket, opened fire on his ex-wife and son on the courthouse steps on the east side of the facility about shortly before 1:30 p.m. Maribell Estrade was killed and her oldest son, David Arroyo Jr., 23, was wounded in the leg. He was in fair condition Thursday night at East Texas Medical Center.
Also killed at the courthouse was a man who lived in an apartment nearby, Mark Allen Wilson. Police Chief Gary Swindle said Mr. Wilson, who was licensed to carry a concealed weapon, ran to the scene and exchanged gunfire with Mr. Arroyo. Chief Swindle said authorities believed that Mr. Wilson's intervention saved the lives of David Arroyo Jr. and possible others.
Three officers were wounded:
• Smith County deputy Sherman Dollison, 28, was shot four times in the liver, lungs and legs when he came out the courthouse door after hearing the shots. Deputy Dollison, a four-year veteran with the Sheriff's Department who generally transferred prisoners, was in critical but stable condition Friday morning following surgery.
• Sheriff's Lt Marlin Suell, 38, was treated for a gunshot wound to his neck and released.
• Tyler police officer Tray Perrett, 54, who was treated for a minor wound and released.
Police estimated that Mr. Arroyo fired about 50 shots from the rifle at the courthouse.
"He definitely came well-armed and prepared. We do understand there had been some threats made by him the previous week," Chief Swindle said.
After the shootings, Mr. Arroyo, who authorities say may have been wounded, ran to his pickup and fled, chased by police and sheriff's deputies. About two miles away on U.S. Highway 271, a sheriff's car blocked his getaway and he got out of the pickup, firing the rifle, and was shot. He was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital.
Officers said Mr. Arroyo and Ms. Estrada had divorced in January 2002 after 22 years of marriage. The court proceeding before the shooting involved unpaid child support, officials said. Ms. Estrada, who worked at a meat-packing plant in Tyler, had two other sons, ages 18 and 7.
David Hernandez Arroyo was convicted in May 1993 of unlawfully carrying a weapon and was sentenced to one-year probation, according to court records. A decade earlier, in September 1983, he was charged with DWI. He received deferred adjudication and completed two years of probation on that charge.
Kent Boozer, a Tyler dentist, said he was finishing lunch at a downtown restaurant Thursday afternoon when he heard a loud popping sound, which he thought might have emanated from an nearby construction site. But, then he saw a man methodically shooting a semi-automatic rifle at the courthouse.
"This guy was not randomly shooting, he knew what he was shooting at," Dr. Boozer, 38, said. "I think he knew he was going to die. He had that demeanor. He was standing up straight."
Bullets were flying at the gunman, who did not appear to be fazed, Dr. Boozer said. Dr. Boozer said the gunman walked to his truck and turned to fire at another man, possibly Mr. Wilson, who was shooting at him with a pistol.
"They were having a shootout over the bed of his pickup," Dr. Boozer said. "He [the gunman] shot him three times. He shot him in the head."
Deputy Court Clerk Margo Adkins, 28, was working through her lunch hour in the annex, directly behind the courthouse, when she heard, "a series of rapid popping."
When she got to the window she saw a heavy-set man with a baseball cap walking with a long, black weapon. Two deputies were down on the ground before him.
"One sat up and held up his hand and said, 'Don't shoot.' " she said. "Then he [the gunman] shot him."
"I can't believe people are that crazy," Ms. Adkins said.
Staff writers Dave Michaels, Christy Hoppe, Pete Slover and Amy Eiermann and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Girl-in-trunk hoax has happier ending
Experimental program aims to help her and others with mental illness
By JIM DOUGLAS / WFAA ABC 8
FORT WORTH, Texas - It was a sensational story in 2004: Two young women kidnapped and locked in a trunk, followed by a massive search and a miracle rescue.
But Fort Worth police quickly declared it a hoax, and charged the two women. One briefly went to jail, but the other might never serve a day.
Nicole Watson is at home with her new baby because of an experimental court program to help people with mental illness. Watson said if it weren't for the program, she would be in jail.
"And I wouldn't have a kid - I would have had him taken away," Watson said.
Instead of locking up mentally ill defendants, Dallas County Judge Kristin Wade, along with a judge in Fort Worth, are trying to get offenders' lives on track.
"We're very excited because we have five graduates today," Wade said at a recent ceremony. "They are all people that have successfully completed our six-month program."
Defendants earn a certificate by staying on their medications, staying out of trouble and working with counselors. If they complete the program, charges are dismissed.
While Watson has a lot to look forward to, she also has a lot to look back on to show how she got to this point.
Born to a prison inmate drug addict and adopted by a family in Decatur, Nicole looked like the perfect happy child with a promising future. Then anger, depression and uncontrollable impulses took over before doctors diagnosed her as being bipolar.
On medication, she managed to graduate early from high school with plans for college - which soon fell apart.
"After I graduated, I started doing lots of drugs."
Her life spiraled downward into addiction, topless dancing and finally the trunk of a car.
"If I had been taking my meds, I never would have ended up in the trunk," Watson said.
The mental health diversion program will test that claim.
While the experiment is too new to have a track record, Nicole Watson said she is among those who have more incentive than ever to make it work.
Experimental program aims to help her and others with mental illness
By JIM DOUGLAS / WFAA ABC 8
FORT WORTH, Texas - It was a sensational story in 2004: Two young women kidnapped and locked in a trunk, followed by a massive search and a miracle rescue.
But Fort Worth police quickly declared it a hoax, and charged the two women. One briefly went to jail, but the other might never serve a day.
Nicole Watson is at home with her new baby because of an experimental court program to help people with mental illness. Watson said if it weren't for the program, she would be in jail.
"And I wouldn't have a kid - I would have had him taken away," Watson said.
Instead of locking up mentally ill defendants, Dallas County Judge Kristin Wade, along with a judge in Fort Worth, are trying to get offenders' lives on track.
"We're very excited because we have five graduates today," Wade said at a recent ceremony. "They are all people that have successfully completed our six-month program."
Defendants earn a certificate by staying on their medications, staying out of trouble and working with counselors. If they complete the program, charges are dismissed.
While Watson has a lot to look forward to, she also has a lot to look back on to show how she got to this point.
Born to a prison inmate drug addict and adopted by a family in Decatur, Nicole looked like the perfect happy child with a promising future. Then anger, depression and uncontrollable impulses took over before doctors diagnosed her as being bipolar.
On medication, she managed to graduate early from high school with plans for college - which soon fell apart.
"After I graduated, I started doing lots of drugs."
Her life spiraled downward into addiction, topless dancing and finally the trunk of a car.
"If I had been taking my meds, I never would have ended up in the trunk," Watson said.
The mental health diversion program will test that claim.
While the experiment is too new to have a track record, Nicole Watson said she is among those who have more incentive than ever to make it work.
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Couple upset with DA over alleged rape
They say daughter was attacked at Flower Mound party
By BRETT SHIPP / WFAA ABC 8
FLOWER MOUND, Texas - A Flower Mound couple is planning a public protest of the Denton County District Attorney.
They say the DA and Flower Mound police have done little or nothing to investigate the alleged sexual assault of their daughter.
The incident happened last August at a party for a fourteen-year-old at a house in Flower Mound, where there was a keg of beer and a mix of teens.
The parents were in the front yard, the kids were out back, and sometime during that night David and Darla Kindel say their daughter was raped.
For the past six months, the Kindels have been on a frustrating quest for the full story of what happened in the house that night. Despite reporting the rape immediately to police, they say authorities have all but ignored them.
"I expected the DA's office to look into this," Darla said, adding that nothing has happened. "They are still questioning the level of Meagan's intoxication that evening."
According to witness testimony in a civil suit, the Kindel's daughter was in no condition to resist her attacker, saying she was " severely intoxicated."
Last October, Flower Mound police arrested and charged the homeowners, Kent and Lois Maycumber, with one count each of providing alcohol to a minor. The Kindels are upset that only one count was filed.
"We have 27 statements from kids (that) they were all drinking," Darla said. "There should be 27 counts."
Denton County District Attorney Bruce Isaacks said the Kindels' accusations are "blatantly false", and added, "We have spent more time and money and manpower on this case than we do on 95% of the cases in our office."
"Mr. Isaacks, your office is stating that in Denton County adults can purchase liquor for teenagers, and as long as they don't pour the alcohol in the cup they haven't committed a crime," David Kindel said.
Officials now say the case against Kent Maycumber is pending in county criminal court, and a grand jury will consider rape charges next week.
They say daughter was attacked at Flower Mound party
By BRETT SHIPP / WFAA ABC 8
FLOWER MOUND, Texas - A Flower Mound couple is planning a public protest of the Denton County District Attorney.
They say the DA and Flower Mound police have done little or nothing to investigate the alleged sexual assault of their daughter.
The incident happened last August at a party for a fourteen-year-old at a house in Flower Mound, where there was a keg of beer and a mix of teens.
The parents were in the front yard, the kids were out back, and sometime during that night David and Darla Kindel say their daughter was raped.
For the past six months, the Kindels have been on a frustrating quest for the full story of what happened in the house that night. Despite reporting the rape immediately to police, they say authorities have all but ignored them.
"I expected the DA's office to look into this," Darla said, adding that nothing has happened. "They are still questioning the level of Meagan's intoxication that evening."
According to witness testimony in a civil suit, the Kindel's daughter was in no condition to resist her attacker, saying she was " severely intoxicated."
Last October, Flower Mound police arrested and charged the homeowners, Kent and Lois Maycumber, with one count each of providing alcohol to a minor. The Kindels are upset that only one count was filed.
"We have 27 statements from kids (that) they were all drinking," Darla said. "There should be 27 counts."
Denton County District Attorney Bruce Isaacks said the Kindels' accusations are "blatantly false", and added, "We have spent more time and money and manpower on this case than we do on 95% of the cases in our office."
"Mr. Isaacks, your office is stating that in Denton County adults can purchase liquor for teenagers, and as long as they don't pour the alcohol in the cup they haven't committed a crime," David Kindel said.
Officials now say the case against Kent Maycumber is pending in county criminal court, and a grand jury will consider rape charges next week.
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Two men found slain in East Dallas
DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Two men were found dead Thursday afternoon in a house in Far East Dallas, the apparent victims of homicide, authorities said.
The victims were identified as Pete Eustachio, 30, and Arturo Meza, 29. Police said both men were residents at the home in the 8400 block of Capriola where their bodies were found.
Police said Friday there was an apparent struggle in the home; both men had been stabbed. The official cause of death was expected from the medical examiner later in the day.
"The house is extremely cluttered with furniture," which hampered investigators who searched for evidence for hours, said Dallas police Lt. Jan Easterling.
Dallas police homicide Lt. Mike Scoggins said no narcotics were found, and there were no signs of forced entry.
Friends and neighbors described the homeowner as a kind man who invited children to pool parties and mowed neighbors' lawns. Lt. Easterling said police did not know of any prior incidents at the house.
No suspects had been identified. Anyone with information is asked to call 214-671-3661.
DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Two men were found dead Thursday afternoon in a house in Far East Dallas, the apparent victims of homicide, authorities said.
The victims were identified as Pete Eustachio, 30, and Arturo Meza, 29. Police said both men were residents at the home in the 8400 block of Capriola where their bodies were found.
Police said Friday there was an apparent struggle in the home; both men had been stabbed. The official cause of death was expected from the medical examiner later in the day.
"The house is extremely cluttered with furniture," which hampered investigators who searched for evidence for hours, said Dallas police Lt. Jan Easterling.
Dallas police homicide Lt. Mike Scoggins said no narcotics were found, and there were no signs of forced entry.
Friends and neighbors described the homeowner as a kind man who invited children to pool parties and mowed neighbors' lawns. Lt. Easterling said police did not know of any prior incidents at the house.
No suspects had been identified. Anyone with information is asked to call 214-671-3661.
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Jail mess may spur lawsuits
Legal experts say county mght be liable due to computer glitch
By JAMES M. O'NEILL / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - The serious disruptions that Dallas County's courts and jail have encountered for more than three weeks since converting to a new computer system put the county at risk of possible federal civil-rights lawsuits, some legal experts say.
In addition, county commissioners last fall relinquished one of their tools to ensure that the company hired to build the computer system would deliver a product that performs properly. The commissioners waived a requirement that the company, InfoIntegration Inc., carry a performance bond – a form of insurance in case the system does not perform as required.
Legal experts disagree on how likely civil suits against the county might be and note that the threshold for proving such cases is steep. But they say inmates held in the jail for days beyond their sentence because of the computer problems could seek damages by arguing that the county violated their freedom.
"It's a difficult claim. You've got to show not simply negligence by the county, but deliberate indifference," said University of Pennsylvania law professor David Rudovsky.
He said much depends on how well the county planned and prepared for the Jan. 31 switch from the old computer system to the new one. Problems connected with that move caused a massive backlog of people waiting to be booked into jail, delays getting them before a magistrate within the required 48 hours, and the failure to release some whose sentences had been served or who had been able to post bail.
Mr. Rudovsky helped bring a civil-rights suit against Philadelphia several years ago that was prompted by a series of court management problems. The city eventually settled and agreed to a schedule of payments to inmates based on how many days they were unnecessarily incarcerated.
Dallas civil-rights lawyer Ed Cloutman said that if an inmate could show that the county knew the computer problems were likely to occur and was lackadaisical about preventing them, it could be the foundation for a civil-rights case.
"It depends less on how they reacted after the glitch occurred and more on what caused the glitch beforehand," he said.
Tonya Brenneman, president of InfoIntegration Inc., the company that designed and built the new computer system, said that when the time came to go live, the company shut down the county's mainframe system for 20 hours to transfer data from the old system to the new system, then ran the new system without turning the old system back on for the Sheriff's Department. During that 20-hour period, jail officials had to resort to pen and paper to book arrestees, causing the huge backlog.
Gary Williams, president of the Harbour Group, which handled the county's Y2K preparations and developed the county's computer system for juvenile offenders, said the county could have transferred the data without shutting down the system for 20 hours.
The new computer system, called the Adult Information System, cost $9 million and piggybacks on an $8 million countywide juvenile offender system launched in 2001. The projects were spearheaded by County Commissioner Mike Cantrell.
The Harbour Group, an Addison company, designed and implemented the juvenile system, and in 2003, when the county asked for bids to develop the adult system, the Harbour Group and two other companies made bids.
Dallas-based InfoIntegration won the $1.3 million contract. When it submitted its bid on May 15, 2003, InfoIntegration was just a few weeks old. It had been incorporated April 23.
During a county commissioners meeting Tuesday, as debate raged over how to fix the computer problems plaguing the courts and jail, County Administrator Allen Clemson described InfoIntegration as a "small company immersed in this complex cutover to the new system, and they do not have a lot of excess capacity and resources."
Ms. Brenneman, the fledgling company's president, had worked for the Harbour Group for four years, helping to develop the county's juvenile computer system. She and Dan Rhodes, another Harbour Group employee who had worked on the juvenile system, quit the company and formed InfoIntegration within days. Two months later, in June 2003, the county awarded the new company the contract to build the adult system.
The county's request for bids on the adult contract required that the winner secure a performance bond for the value of the contract. A performance bond gives the county a guaranteed source of money to fix any problems if the company fails to produce the product or the product fails to work properly.
In its proposal, however, InfoIntegration contended that securing a performance bond would add $26,500 to the annual cost of the project, and suggested instead a plan in which the county would pay the company only after "specified deliverables are completed, tested, and accepted as functioning by Dallas County."
InfoIntegration secured a one-year performance bond to cover the initial contract of $722,835. After that bond expired, the county auditor's office put a hold on future payments to InfoIntegration because it no longer held a bond – a requirement of its contract. On Sept. 21, 2004, the county commissioners voted to waive the performance bond requirement. Currently, InfoIntegration does not carry a performance bond.
Legal experts say county mght be liable due to computer glitch
By JAMES M. O'NEILL / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - The serious disruptions that Dallas County's courts and jail have encountered for more than three weeks since converting to a new computer system put the county at risk of possible federal civil-rights lawsuits, some legal experts say.
In addition, county commissioners last fall relinquished one of their tools to ensure that the company hired to build the computer system would deliver a product that performs properly. The commissioners waived a requirement that the company, InfoIntegration Inc., carry a performance bond – a form of insurance in case the system does not perform as required.
Legal experts disagree on how likely civil suits against the county might be and note that the threshold for proving such cases is steep. But they say inmates held in the jail for days beyond their sentence because of the computer problems could seek damages by arguing that the county violated their freedom.
"It's a difficult claim. You've got to show not simply negligence by the county, but deliberate indifference," said University of Pennsylvania law professor David Rudovsky.
He said much depends on how well the county planned and prepared for the Jan. 31 switch from the old computer system to the new one. Problems connected with that move caused a massive backlog of people waiting to be booked into jail, delays getting them before a magistrate within the required 48 hours, and the failure to release some whose sentences had been served or who had been able to post bail.
Mr. Rudovsky helped bring a civil-rights suit against Philadelphia several years ago that was prompted by a series of court management problems. The city eventually settled and agreed to a schedule of payments to inmates based on how many days they were unnecessarily incarcerated.
Dallas civil-rights lawyer Ed Cloutman said that if an inmate could show that the county knew the computer problems were likely to occur and was lackadaisical about preventing them, it could be the foundation for a civil-rights case.
"It depends less on how they reacted after the glitch occurred and more on what caused the glitch beforehand," he said.
Tonya Brenneman, president of InfoIntegration Inc., the company that designed and built the new computer system, said that when the time came to go live, the company shut down the county's mainframe system for 20 hours to transfer data from the old system to the new system, then ran the new system without turning the old system back on for the Sheriff's Department. During that 20-hour period, jail officials had to resort to pen and paper to book arrestees, causing the huge backlog.
Gary Williams, president of the Harbour Group, which handled the county's Y2K preparations and developed the county's computer system for juvenile offenders, said the county could have transferred the data without shutting down the system for 20 hours.
The new computer system, called the Adult Information System, cost $9 million and piggybacks on an $8 million countywide juvenile offender system launched in 2001. The projects were spearheaded by County Commissioner Mike Cantrell.
The Harbour Group, an Addison company, designed and implemented the juvenile system, and in 2003, when the county asked for bids to develop the adult system, the Harbour Group and two other companies made bids.
Dallas-based InfoIntegration won the $1.3 million contract. When it submitted its bid on May 15, 2003, InfoIntegration was just a few weeks old. It had been incorporated April 23.
During a county commissioners meeting Tuesday, as debate raged over how to fix the computer problems plaguing the courts and jail, County Administrator Allen Clemson described InfoIntegration as a "small company immersed in this complex cutover to the new system, and they do not have a lot of excess capacity and resources."
Ms. Brenneman, the fledgling company's president, had worked for the Harbour Group for four years, helping to develop the county's juvenile computer system. She and Dan Rhodes, another Harbour Group employee who had worked on the juvenile system, quit the company and formed InfoIntegration within days. Two months later, in June 2003, the county awarded the new company the contract to build the adult system.
The county's request for bids on the adult contract required that the winner secure a performance bond for the value of the contract. A performance bond gives the county a guaranteed source of money to fix any problems if the company fails to produce the product or the product fails to work properly.
In its proposal, however, InfoIntegration contended that securing a performance bond would add $26,500 to the annual cost of the project, and suggested instead a plan in which the county would pay the company only after "specified deliverables are completed, tested, and accepted as functioning by Dallas County."
InfoIntegration secured a one-year performance bond to cover the initial contract of $722,835. After that bond expired, the county auditor's office put a hold on future payments to InfoIntegration because it no longer held a bond – a requirement of its contract. On Sept. 21, 2004, the county commissioners voted to waive the performance bond requirement. Currently, InfoIntegration does not carry a performance bond.
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TexasStooge
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Steroid-busting mom: 'I'm paying a big price'
By YOLANDA WALKER / WFAA ABC 8
COLLEYVILLE, Texas - Colleyville Heritage High School hosted a public meeting and seminar Thursday night to address steroid use among athletes.
The meeting comes after a concerned parent exposed the problem. That parent, Lori Lewis, sat down with News 8 Thursday to talk about the steroids she found in her son's bedroom last September.
"I found injectible steroids," Lewis said. "I found syringes and I found a vial."
Her son told her he was using them to try to win a position on the Colleyville Heritage High School football team.
"He said, 'Because I needed to bulk up,'" Lewis said. "'I needed to put on weight, bench more, get stronger (and) faster so I could possibly start in a position in football.'"
Lewis said her son told her a majority of the team was taking the drug called Deca, the same one that Plano West Senior High baseball player Taylor Hooten had taken before he committed suicide last year.
The concerned mother immediately called the school to alert head football coach Chris Cunningham.
Lewis recalled, "The response was, three hours later Cunningham said 'we don't have a problem in our program.'"
Cunningham explained himself recently on Dale Hansen's Sports Special during a roundtable on steroids.
"I'd have to say that I didn't know about it," the coach said.
He said he and school officials did look into the problem and even pressured the players to confess. Nine eventually came forward.
Despite her coming forward, Lewis said no parent, school official or coach ever said "thank you" for bringing the problem to their attention, despite the fact that it may have helped save lives.
"Not one parent, no one from the community," she said.
Instead, she said she and her son have been harassed and threatened; he has now transferred to another school. But still she feels she did the right thing.
"I really wanted to expose the problem that Colleyville had," Lewis said. "I'm paying a big price ... and so is my son."
By YOLANDA WALKER / WFAA ABC 8
COLLEYVILLE, Texas - Colleyville Heritage High School hosted a public meeting and seminar Thursday night to address steroid use among athletes.
The meeting comes after a concerned parent exposed the problem. That parent, Lori Lewis, sat down with News 8 Thursday to talk about the steroids she found in her son's bedroom last September.
"I found injectible steroids," Lewis said. "I found syringes and I found a vial."
Her son told her he was using them to try to win a position on the Colleyville Heritage High School football team.
"He said, 'Because I needed to bulk up,'" Lewis said. "'I needed to put on weight, bench more, get stronger (and) faster so I could possibly start in a position in football.'"
Lewis said her son told her a majority of the team was taking the drug called Deca, the same one that Plano West Senior High baseball player Taylor Hooten had taken before he committed suicide last year.
The concerned mother immediately called the school to alert head football coach Chris Cunningham.
Lewis recalled, "The response was, three hours later Cunningham said 'we don't have a problem in our program.'"
Cunningham explained himself recently on Dale Hansen's Sports Special during a roundtable on steroids.
"I'd have to say that I didn't know about it," the coach said.
He said he and school officials did look into the problem and even pressured the players to confess. Nine eventually came forward.
Despite her coming forward, Lewis said no parent, school official or coach ever said "thank you" for bringing the problem to their attention, despite the fact that it may have helped save lives.
"Not one parent, no one from the community," she said.
Instead, she said she and her son have been harassed and threatened; he has now transferred to another school. But still she feels she did the right thing.
"I really wanted to expose the problem that Colleyville had," Lewis said. "I'm paying a big price ... and so is my son."
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TexasStooge
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- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2003 1:22 pm
- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
- Contact:
Race disparity found in area traffic stops
Study: Searches of minorities more likely; varied reporting cited
By DIANE JENNINGS / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Black and Latino motorists stopped by police officers in Dallas and several other area cities are two or three times more likely to be searched than whites, according to the largest study yet of data reported by Texas police agencies.
The analysis of 2003 statistics, conducted by a coalition of civil rights groups and released Thursday, found that black and Latino residents were more than three times as likely to be searched in some jurisdictions, including Highland Park.
In Dallas, police officers searched 3.6 percent of white drivers during traffic stops, 7.5 percent of black drivers and 10.6 percent of Latino drivers in 2003. This week, the Dallas City Council's public safety committee heard similar figures from 2004.
At that meeting, Thomas Ward, a Dallas assistant police chief who oversees the department's human resources and professional standards bureau, said it would be difficult to draw conclusions from those figures because the data were insufficient.
"The Dallas Police Department will not tolerate racial profiling as a department, and we continually train our personnel," Chief Ward said Thursday.
James McLaughlin, executive director of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, said reports like that issued Thursday are not helpful because of problems with data reporting.
"The data really doesn't show much," he said, because "each community is different."
For example, officers have been known to guess about the race of a motorist when filling out paperwork. And the state lacks uniform reporting standards under a 2001 state law that requires collection of data.
"We've always said we are against racial profiling, and we continue to be," Mr. McLaughlin said, adding that the most helpful tool in addressing the issue is a video camera installed in a squad car.
'Why is that?'
The report was prepared for the NAACP, the American Civil Liberties Union and the League of United Latin American Citizens by the Steward Research Group and the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition.
Researchers said their work shows a continuing disparity between officers' treatment of whites and minorities.
"Now the question becomes: Why is that?" said Scott Henson, a spokesman for the ACLU. "Is it because of racial profiling? Is it because of legitimate law enforcement practices?"
Since 2002, police agencies in Texas have been required to compile annual reports on the race and ethnicity of individuals who are stopped and searched. Last year, the coalition reported on 2002 data from about 400 departments.
For 2003, at least partial data on searches – both mandatory and consent searches – were gathered from 1,060 of 1,115 law enforcement agencies. Usable data were gathered from 850 agencies. Researchers noted that the information remains limited because of differences in departments' collection and reporting practices.
The report focused on searches that occurred after stops. Researchers said that is a better indicator of possible racial profiling because officers are more likely to know the race of a motorist after he or she has been stopped.
Of participating agencies whose data were complete, two-thirds reported searching black and Latino motorists at a higher rate than whites.
One part of the study noted that searches of whites were slightly more likely to yield some type of contraband than searches of blacks and Latinos. However, only 62 departments provided information on contraband, so the result is far less than conclusive.
"The study should lay to rest this myth, this belief, that people have that African-Americans are more likely to be in possession of contraband or be involved in illicit behaviors," said Gary Bledsoe, state president of the NAACP.
"This racial profiling has got to stop. The results aren't justifying the practice."
Skewed numbers?
Gary Adams, University Park police chief and president of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, noted that the numbers are skewed for small departments like his. The report found that black and Latino motorists are three times more likely than whites to be searched in University Park.
Chief Adams said University Park police conducted only five consensual searches in 2003 – four whites and one Latino. All other searches were conducted when suspects were arrested, he said.
The Highland Park Department of Public Safety, whose figures seemed to mirror its neighbor, said it would withhold comment until the release of the department's 2004 data next week.
Plano Police Chief Greg Rushin said it's impossible to tell what's going on in a community by comparing numbers. Individual communities are best equipped to judge what the figures mean to them, he said.
"It's difficult to compare raw data across communities and determine what that means," Chief Rushin said.
The coalition recommended that local governments study their own numbers to determine whether they have a racial profiling problem.
The report also recommends that the Legislature amend the data reporting law passed in 2001 to include uniform reporting standards, a requirement that police collect more information and establish an independent repository for the annual reports.
Finally, the coalition wants the Legislature to ban consent searches – those requested when an officer has no probable cause to search without consent.
Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, is drafting a bill that addresses the reporting irregularities, a spokesman said.
Split on consent search
Mr. McLaughlin and other law enforcement officials oppose a consent search ban, which the report said has been enacted in New Jersey, Minnesota, Rhode Island and Hawaii.
Senior Cpl. Glenn White of the Dallas Police Association said consent searches are useful because they often yield information about crimes even if they don't reveal contraband.
"You find someone who's done something bad, chances are he's going to tell you something that he did or something someone else did," Cpl. White said.
But Sam Souryal, professor of criminal justice at Sam Houston State University, said a ban might be appropriate unless officers begin warning motorists that they have the right to refuse a consent search.
"The person who is under investigation is not in the right state of mind to freely say, 'You have the right to search me,' " Dr. Souryal said. "He or she is usually so intimidated and he is usually so overwhelmed by the circumstances, which can take away his mental freedom to do that."
Staff writers Michael Grabell, Dave Michaels and Jennifer Emily contributed to this report.
Study: Searches of minorities more likely; varied reporting cited
By DIANE JENNINGS / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Black and Latino motorists stopped by police officers in Dallas and several other area cities are two or three times more likely to be searched than whites, according to the largest study yet of data reported by Texas police agencies.
The analysis of 2003 statistics, conducted by a coalition of civil rights groups and released Thursday, found that black and Latino residents were more than three times as likely to be searched in some jurisdictions, including Highland Park.
In Dallas, police officers searched 3.6 percent of white drivers during traffic stops, 7.5 percent of black drivers and 10.6 percent of Latino drivers in 2003. This week, the Dallas City Council's public safety committee heard similar figures from 2004.
At that meeting, Thomas Ward, a Dallas assistant police chief who oversees the department's human resources and professional standards bureau, said it would be difficult to draw conclusions from those figures because the data were insufficient.
"The Dallas Police Department will not tolerate racial profiling as a department, and we continually train our personnel," Chief Ward said Thursday.
James McLaughlin, executive director of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, said reports like that issued Thursday are not helpful because of problems with data reporting.
"The data really doesn't show much," he said, because "each community is different."
For example, officers have been known to guess about the race of a motorist when filling out paperwork. And the state lacks uniform reporting standards under a 2001 state law that requires collection of data.
"We've always said we are against racial profiling, and we continue to be," Mr. McLaughlin said, adding that the most helpful tool in addressing the issue is a video camera installed in a squad car.
'Why is that?'
The report was prepared for the NAACP, the American Civil Liberties Union and the League of United Latin American Citizens by the Steward Research Group and the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition.
Researchers said their work shows a continuing disparity between officers' treatment of whites and minorities.
"Now the question becomes: Why is that?" said Scott Henson, a spokesman for the ACLU. "Is it because of racial profiling? Is it because of legitimate law enforcement practices?"
Since 2002, police agencies in Texas have been required to compile annual reports on the race and ethnicity of individuals who are stopped and searched. Last year, the coalition reported on 2002 data from about 400 departments.
For 2003, at least partial data on searches – both mandatory and consent searches – were gathered from 1,060 of 1,115 law enforcement agencies. Usable data were gathered from 850 agencies. Researchers noted that the information remains limited because of differences in departments' collection and reporting practices.
The report focused on searches that occurred after stops. Researchers said that is a better indicator of possible racial profiling because officers are more likely to know the race of a motorist after he or she has been stopped.
Of participating agencies whose data were complete, two-thirds reported searching black and Latino motorists at a higher rate than whites.
One part of the study noted that searches of whites were slightly more likely to yield some type of contraband than searches of blacks and Latinos. However, only 62 departments provided information on contraband, so the result is far less than conclusive.
"The study should lay to rest this myth, this belief, that people have that African-Americans are more likely to be in possession of contraband or be involved in illicit behaviors," said Gary Bledsoe, state president of the NAACP.
"This racial profiling has got to stop. The results aren't justifying the practice."
Skewed numbers?
Gary Adams, University Park police chief and president of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, noted that the numbers are skewed for small departments like his. The report found that black and Latino motorists are three times more likely than whites to be searched in University Park.
Chief Adams said University Park police conducted only five consensual searches in 2003 – four whites and one Latino. All other searches were conducted when suspects were arrested, he said.
The Highland Park Department of Public Safety, whose figures seemed to mirror its neighbor, said it would withhold comment until the release of the department's 2004 data next week.
Plano Police Chief Greg Rushin said it's impossible to tell what's going on in a community by comparing numbers. Individual communities are best equipped to judge what the figures mean to them, he said.
"It's difficult to compare raw data across communities and determine what that means," Chief Rushin said.
The coalition recommended that local governments study their own numbers to determine whether they have a racial profiling problem.
The report also recommends that the Legislature amend the data reporting law passed in 2001 to include uniform reporting standards, a requirement that police collect more information and establish an independent repository for the annual reports.
Finally, the coalition wants the Legislature to ban consent searches – those requested when an officer has no probable cause to search without consent.
Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, is drafting a bill that addresses the reporting irregularities, a spokesman said.
Split on consent search
Mr. McLaughlin and other law enforcement officials oppose a consent search ban, which the report said has been enacted in New Jersey, Minnesota, Rhode Island and Hawaii.
Senior Cpl. Glenn White of the Dallas Police Association said consent searches are useful because they often yield information about crimes even if they don't reveal contraband.
"You find someone who's done something bad, chances are he's going to tell you something that he did or something someone else did," Cpl. White said.
But Sam Souryal, professor of criminal justice at Sam Houston State University, said a ban might be appropriate unless officers begin warning motorists that they have the right to refuse a consent search.
"The person who is under investigation is not in the right state of mind to freely say, 'You have the right to search me,' " Dr. Souryal said. "He or she is usually so intimidated and he is usually so overwhelmed by the circumstances, which can take away his mental freedom to do that."
Staff writers Michael Grabell, Dave Michaels and Jennifer Emily contributed to this report.
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TexasStooge
- Category 5
- Posts: 38127
- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2003 1:22 pm
- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
- Contact:
Most Dallas ISD schools making grade
Almost 9 of 10 have adequate progress under No Child law
By TAWNELL D. HOBBS / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Nearly nine out of ten Dallas schools made adequate progress under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, DISD officials said Thursday.
School officials said that 26 schools, roughly 12 percent, did not meet "Adequate Yearly Progress" under tougher requirements this year.
"This is very good news," interim Superintendent Larry Groppel said in a news release. "We all know that the new standards ... have dramatically raised the bar on public schools in America."
Last year, 22 schools did not make adequate progress. DISD spokesman Donald Claxton said more schools made the list this year because passing standards increased on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, the exam used to help determine the AYP.
"The bar just got raised," Mr. Claxton said. "Unfortunately, some [students] didn't make it."
Fourteen of the 26 schools on this year's list also fell short of the Adequate Yearly Progress standards last year.
If a Dallas school fails for two consecutive years, its students must be allowed to transfer to better-performing schools. Mr. Claxton said about 100 students from the 14 schools that have failed for two consecutive years have taken advantage of that option. Schools that make the list for a third consecutive year would be required to use supplemental education services, such as tutoring.
To meet the AYP standard this year, at least 47 percent of all students at a school, and the same percentage in each student group – black, Hispanic, white, special education, limited-English proficient and economically disadvantaged – must have passed the reading or language arts section of the 2004 TAKS. Thirty-three percent must have passed the math section.
Also, schools must have 95 percent of all students, and the same percentage in each student group, take the exam. Students in elementary and middle schools must have had a 90 percent attendance rate. High schools must have had a graduation rate of 70 percent.
Mr. Claxton said the number of Dallas schools not meeting AYP probably would have been higher if the district hadn't filed appeals for some schools affected by a new special-education requirement.
Under the change, schools can count no more than 1 percent of the total enrollment as special education students who pass an alternative exam. Scores for the remaining special-education students are counted as "artificial failures" in the overall passing rates for each campus and district.
The Texas Education Agency will release a list today that explains how all of the state's public schools fared on AYP.
DeEtta Culbertson, a Texas Education Agency spokeswoman, said it's likely that some districts would file appeals for schools that didn't make AYP because of the special-education rule. She said districts could file appeals as long as they've followed state law in appropriately administering tests for special-education students.
This is the third year that the state has classified schools under AYP. The classification was first used in the 2001-02 school year but was still under development. Only seven charter schools in the state didn't meet AYP that year.
Ms. Culbertson said districts can use the AYP results to improve schools that need help.
"They've been notified through this that they need to improve something at those campuses," Ms. Culbertson said.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MISSING THE BAR
Nearly nine out of 10 schools in the Dallas Independent School District met the federal requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, according to information that will formally be released by the Texas Education Agency today. However, 26 DISD schools fell short of the mandated "Adequate Yearly Progress" this year. They are listed below. Elementary schools
Arthur Kramer
Martha Turner Reilly
Edward Titche
Daniel Webster
Middle schools
Pearl C. Anderson*
Fred Florence
Robert T. Hill
John B. Hood
J.L. Long*
L.V. Stockard
Boude Storey
High schools
Bryan Adams*
Adamson*
Carter*
Hillcrest*
Kimball
James Madison*
Molina*
North Dallas
Pinkston*
Roosevelt*
Samuell*
A. Maceo Smith*
South Oak Cliff
Spruce*
Sunset*
* Schools that also did not meet Adequate Yearly Progress requirements last year.
Almost 9 of 10 have adequate progress under No Child law
By TAWNELL D. HOBBS / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Nearly nine out of ten Dallas schools made adequate progress under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, DISD officials said Thursday.
School officials said that 26 schools, roughly 12 percent, did not meet "Adequate Yearly Progress" under tougher requirements this year.
"This is very good news," interim Superintendent Larry Groppel said in a news release. "We all know that the new standards ... have dramatically raised the bar on public schools in America."
Last year, 22 schools did not make adequate progress. DISD spokesman Donald Claxton said more schools made the list this year because passing standards increased on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, the exam used to help determine the AYP.
"The bar just got raised," Mr. Claxton said. "Unfortunately, some [students] didn't make it."
Fourteen of the 26 schools on this year's list also fell short of the Adequate Yearly Progress standards last year.
If a Dallas school fails for two consecutive years, its students must be allowed to transfer to better-performing schools. Mr. Claxton said about 100 students from the 14 schools that have failed for two consecutive years have taken advantage of that option. Schools that make the list for a third consecutive year would be required to use supplemental education services, such as tutoring.
To meet the AYP standard this year, at least 47 percent of all students at a school, and the same percentage in each student group – black, Hispanic, white, special education, limited-English proficient and economically disadvantaged – must have passed the reading or language arts section of the 2004 TAKS. Thirty-three percent must have passed the math section.
Also, schools must have 95 percent of all students, and the same percentage in each student group, take the exam. Students in elementary and middle schools must have had a 90 percent attendance rate. High schools must have had a graduation rate of 70 percent.
Mr. Claxton said the number of Dallas schools not meeting AYP probably would have been higher if the district hadn't filed appeals for some schools affected by a new special-education requirement.
Under the change, schools can count no more than 1 percent of the total enrollment as special education students who pass an alternative exam. Scores for the remaining special-education students are counted as "artificial failures" in the overall passing rates for each campus and district.
The Texas Education Agency will release a list today that explains how all of the state's public schools fared on AYP.
DeEtta Culbertson, a Texas Education Agency spokeswoman, said it's likely that some districts would file appeals for schools that didn't make AYP because of the special-education rule. She said districts could file appeals as long as they've followed state law in appropriately administering tests for special-education students.
This is the third year that the state has classified schools under AYP. The classification was first used in the 2001-02 school year but was still under development. Only seven charter schools in the state didn't meet AYP that year.
Ms. Culbertson said districts can use the AYP results to improve schools that need help.
"They've been notified through this that they need to improve something at those campuses," Ms. Culbertson said.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MISSING THE BAR
Nearly nine out of 10 schools in the Dallas Independent School District met the federal requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, according to information that will formally be released by the Texas Education Agency today. However, 26 DISD schools fell short of the mandated "Adequate Yearly Progress" this year. They are listed below. Elementary schools
Arthur Kramer
Martha Turner Reilly
Edward Titche
Daniel Webster
Middle schools
Pearl C. Anderson*
Fred Florence
Robert T. Hill
John B. Hood
J.L. Long*
L.V. Stockard
Boude Storey
High schools
Bryan Adams*
Adamson*
Carter*
Hillcrest*
Kimball
James Madison*
Molina*
North Dallas
Pinkston*
Roosevelt*
Samuell*
A. Maceo Smith*
South Oak Cliff
Spruce*
Sunset*
* Schools that also did not meet Adequate Yearly Progress requirements last year.
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TexasStooge
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- Contact:
Park over Woodall Rogers planned
Group seeks to raise millions, hopes for 2010 completion
By DAVE LEVINTHAL / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Downtown Dallas needs a lifeline, and it comes in the form a park atop a highway.
So says a coalition of business leaders and government officials, which announced intentions Thursday to raise tens of millions of dollars to fund several blocks of greenspace that would soar over Woodall Rodgers Freeway and connect Uptown to downtown. Today, downtown is encircled by high-volume highways.
Organizers said they want to break ground by 2007 on the project, which would cap Woodall Rodgers Freeway between Pearl and Akard streets. Completion is projected by 2010.
And while they wouldn't estimate the project's cost, Mayor Laura Miller said she has seen figures ranging from $45 million to $60 million.
Creating such a park has long been a goal of city officials, but until Thursday, fund-raising efforts hadn't coalesced.
"It will be the great gateway to downtown, one that we need in the worst way," said Jody Grant, chairman of Texas Capital Bank, who will donate $1 million of his own money. "We hope this effort will appeal to a major donor. There are lots of naming opportunities."
His bank also will donate $1 million, as will The Real Estate Council Foundation. Crescent Real Estate Equities announced a $500,000 donation.
"We will take Uptown and downtown and make them one," Ms. Miller said. "The success of this effort will come down to the generosity of the people of our city."
It's unclear how that generosity will translate monetarily beyond Thursday's initial donations.
Funding from governmental entities, at local, state and federal levels, is largely unsolicited, although Ms. Miller said the state should help pay some of the costs. Mr. Grant said he envisions private interests donating a third of the project's funding, with public entities providing the other two-thirds.
That's news to the Texas Department of Transportation, which administers the freeway.
Dallas region spokesman Mark Ball said his department didn't learn of the fund-raising campaign until two days ago and hasn't discussed the matter with campaign leaders. It's unknown what the Transportation Department's role would be, he said.
"We learned about the details from the press release they sent out – we haven't been contacted about it," Mr. Ball said. "If they come to us, we will work with them. It's going to be costly, though. The structures along the freeway weren't built for something like this."
Today, the eight-lane freeway dips into a canyonlike stretch near the Arts District, with several narrow concrete bridges connecting Uptown to downtown. Where there are no bridges, motorists see the sky above, and street-level pedestrians see a large void.
With the proposed park in place, motorists would drive through a veritable tunnel, beneath a deck of grass, trees, fields and structures.
Beyond those basics, "the park's design is 100 percent negotiable," Ms. Miller said. And she said she's not convinced that the 2007 groundbreaking date is firm.
"That's pretty ambitious," Mr. Grant acknowledged when asked about the park's construction time frame. "But that's our story, and we're sticking to it."
Group seeks to raise millions, hopes for 2010 completion
By DAVE LEVINTHAL / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Downtown Dallas needs a lifeline, and it comes in the form a park atop a highway.
So says a coalition of business leaders and government officials, which announced intentions Thursday to raise tens of millions of dollars to fund several blocks of greenspace that would soar over Woodall Rodgers Freeway and connect Uptown to downtown. Today, downtown is encircled by high-volume highways.
Organizers said they want to break ground by 2007 on the project, which would cap Woodall Rodgers Freeway between Pearl and Akard streets. Completion is projected by 2010.
And while they wouldn't estimate the project's cost, Mayor Laura Miller said she has seen figures ranging from $45 million to $60 million.
Creating such a park has long been a goal of city officials, but until Thursday, fund-raising efforts hadn't coalesced.
"It will be the great gateway to downtown, one that we need in the worst way," said Jody Grant, chairman of Texas Capital Bank, who will donate $1 million of his own money. "We hope this effort will appeal to a major donor. There are lots of naming opportunities."
His bank also will donate $1 million, as will The Real Estate Council Foundation. Crescent Real Estate Equities announced a $500,000 donation.
"We will take Uptown and downtown and make them one," Ms. Miller said. "The success of this effort will come down to the generosity of the people of our city."
It's unclear how that generosity will translate monetarily beyond Thursday's initial donations.
Funding from governmental entities, at local, state and federal levels, is largely unsolicited, although Ms. Miller said the state should help pay some of the costs. Mr. Grant said he envisions private interests donating a third of the project's funding, with public entities providing the other two-thirds.
That's news to the Texas Department of Transportation, which administers the freeway.
Dallas region spokesman Mark Ball said his department didn't learn of the fund-raising campaign until two days ago and hasn't discussed the matter with campaign leaders. It's unknown what the Transportation Department's role would be, he said.
"We learned about the details from the press release they sent out – we haven't been contacted about it," Mr. Ball said. "If they come to us, we will work with them. It's going to be costly, though. The structures along the freeway weren't built for something like this."
Today, the eight-lane freeway dips into a canyonlike stretch near the Arts District, with several narrow concrete bridges connecting Uptown to downtown. Where there are no bridges, motorists see the sky above, and street-level pedestrians see a large void.
With the proposed park in place, motorists would drive through a veritable tunnel, beneath a deck of grass, trees, fields and structures.
Beyond those basics, "the park's design is 100 percent negotiable," Ms. Miller said. And she said she's not convinced that the 2007 groundbreaking date is firm.
"That's pretty ambitious," Mr. Grant acknowledged when asked about the park's construction time frame. "But that's our story, and we're sticking to it."
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TexasStooge
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Clean sweep: How data 'wiping' can ensure privacy
Personal information remains on hard drive long after deletion
By JEFF BRADY/ WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Chips and bits of hardware and hard drives get ground up for recycling.
Computer shredding is the last and most dramatic solution to protect data in a era of identity theft and cyberpiracy.
"I think the biggest misconception is people think they can erase their hard drive," says Intechra CEO Cindy Brannon. "Just say 'erase' and put it into the trash bin, and the problem is, it's still there."
To test the concept, News 8 bought ten used computers. Different makes, models and owners, and then took them to Intechra, a local computer refurbishing company.
Within minutes, using $30 software, technicians found the Web sites of nearly a dozen casinos.
"Here we could actually see Web sites that he'd been to," says Intechra employee Ernie Moreno.
But online gambling's only the tip of the iceberg.
In the past, these analysts have found credit card numbers, child pornography and more.
"We actually fired up one of the returns and there was some Al-Qaeda information on that drive," says Grover Edmiston. "So we actually turned the system over to the FBI."
Criminal data is rare, but every computer owner has privacy issues. Web sites, bank accounts, wills and everything else typed into a computer may be stored and salvaged later.
Forensic data recovery expert Brian Ingram compares deleting a file to destroying a card in a library's card catalogue.
"The book's still there," Ingram says. "The forensic data software that we use simply goes and re-indexes the entire drive. And finds exactly what you're looking for."
Landfills aren't the answer, either. Lead, mercury and other components inside computers make them toxic.
Data experts say the best option to protect private data is having a hard drive scrubbed clean.
Intechra does it on a massive scale.
"It meets the Department of Defense standard for ensuring that the data is destroyed," Brannon says. "It's what we call a triple wipe."
But simpler 'data-wipe' software programs are available to the public for less than $50.
Intechra wipes hard drives of corporate customers and indiviudals. For a small fee, usually about $10 per hard drive, with a data destruction guarantee.
"If we can't destroy the data via software, then we destroy the data physically," technician Tom Maxhim says.
Personal information remains on hard drive long after deletion
By JEFF BRADY/ WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Chips and bits of hardware and hard drives get ground up for recycling.
Computer shredding is the last and most dramatic solution to protect data in a era of identity theft and cyberpiracy.
"I think the biggest misconception is people think they can erase their hard drive," says Intechra CEO Cindy Brannon. "Just say 'erase' and put it into the trash bin, and the problem is, it's still there."
To test the concept, News 8 bought ten used computers. Different makes, models and owners, and then took them to Intechra, a local computer refurbishing company.
Within minutes, using $30 software, technicians found the Web sites of nearly a dozen casinos.
"Here we could actually see Web sites that he'd been to," says Intechra employee Ernie Moreno.
But online gambling's only the tip of the iceberg.
In the past, these analysts have found credit card numbers, child pornography and more.
"We actually fired up one of the returns and there was some Al-Qaeda information on that drive," says Grover Edmiston. "So we actually turned the system over to the FBI."
Criminal data is rare, but every computer owner has privacy issues. Web sites, bank accounts, wills and everything else typed into a computer may be stored and salvaged later.
Forensic data recovery expert Brian Ingram compares deleting a file to destroying a card in a library's card catalogue.
"The book's still there," Ingram says. "The forensic data software that we use simply goes and re-indexes the entire drive. And finds exactly what you're looking for."
Landfills aren't the answer, either. Lead, mercury and other components inside computers make them toxic.
Data experts say the best option to protect private data is having a hard drive scrubbed clean.
Intechra does it on a massive scale.
"It meets the Department of Defense standard for ensuring that the data is destroyed," Brannon says. "It's what we call a triple wipe."
But simpler 'data-wipe' software programs are available to the public for less than $50.
Intechra wipes hard drives of corporate customers and indiviudals. For a small fee, usually about $10 per hard drive, with a data destruction guarantee.
"If we can't destroy the data via software, then we destroy the data physically," technician Tom Maxhim says.
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TexasStooge
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Man praised for taking on Tyler killer
He's mourned as hero, but DPS discourages citizen intervention
By MICHAEL GRABELL / The Dallas Morning News
TYLER, Texas - Mark Wilson's split-second decision to take on the Tyler courthouse shooter – a decision that authorities credit with saving lives – cost him his life.
Mr. Wilson's friends said Friday that was typical of the former Dallas resident, 52, who lived by the "cowboy code," always ready to help someone in danger.
"That's his character," said John Seiple, a close friend and neighbor. "He saw people that were being shot, and even if he didn't have a gun, Mark was the type of person that would have tried to do something about it anyway."
Tyler law-enforcement officials and others called Mr. Wilson's actions on Thursday heroic and selfless. However, other officials said it is not an example they'd like to see emulated by the 237,000 Texans licensed to conceal handguns.
"Leave the crime fighting to us," said Tela Mange, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Public Safety. "There are just all kinds of situations that they can find themselves in that don't turn out well."
David Hernandez Arroyo, 43, opened fire on his ex-wife, Maribel Estrada, and an adult son with an AK-47 Thursday afternoon. They were arriving for a child-support proceeding at the Smith County Courthouse.
Mr. Arroyo had shot the two when Mr. Wilson came down from his loft overlooking the town square and shot at the man, who was wearing a bulletproof vest and military flak jacket. It remained unclear Friday if any of the rounds Mr. Wilson fired from his Colt .45-caliber pistol hit Mr. Arroyo, said Officer Don Martin, a Tyler police spokesman. The two traded shots before Mr. Wilson fell.
But police believe Mr. Wilson distracted the gunman just as he was readying to shoot his son, David Arroyo Jr., 21. The killer ended up wounding three law-enforcement officers before he was gunned down after a car chase.
"It's in our opinion and from all the witness accounts, that Mr. Wilson saved the life of the suspect's son," Officer Martin said. "Because [the gunman] had several rounds, he possibly saved other lives."
State law allows people to use deadly force to protect themselves and others from deadly force, said Barry Sorrels, a longtime Dallas defense attorney.
"I think this is a perfect example of why we have such a good handgun law in this state, and this is a perfect example of how that can be a benefit to others," said Mr. Sorrels, who lectures on concealed handgun laws for the state bar.
But gun control advocates said a lesson of the shooting is that gun laws should be tighter.
Marsha McCartney, Dallas chapter president for the Million Mom March, questioned Mr. Arroyo's possession of the assault weapon. Mr. Arroyo was a convicted felon who shouldn't have had a gun. Police said Friday they didn't know when or where Mr. Arroyo got the gun.
"Concealed handgun carriers sometimes commit crimes and sometimes are heroes," Ms. McCartney said. "Unfortunately, the hero part doesn't happen very often, and what if he had hit a bystander while he was firing?"
James McLaughlin, executive director of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, said handgun carriers who come upon a crime must make life-and-death observations in a flash. Police officers are trained to deal with such situations.
Civilians also must quickly consider how police will distinguish them from bad guys and whether the situation is what it seems to be.
"I was in law enforcement for 30 years, and I certainly never knew what something was when I pulled up on it," Mr. McLaughlin said.
Friends said Mr. Wilson's reaction was typical of a man who always did what he believed was right. He was described as a hard-edged Vietnam War veteran who worked odd jobs, loved racquetball and was protective about his white 1986 Porsche.
He opened a shooting range in Tyler in 1997, but lost it for financial reasons about a year later.
"He wanted a place where citizens and law enforcement could learn and practice self-defense in a safe environment," said Dr. Scott Lieberman, who invested in the shooting range. "To be honest, this was a dream of his for six years, to have that range built."
Mr. Wilson graduated from MacArthur High School in Irving and owned a car repair shop in Dallas in the 1980s, Mr. Seiple said.
Mr. Seiple, a high school teacher in Tyler, was in class when he heard about the shooting and told students about his friend.
"I told them that he was like a hero," he said. "He died because he saw some people who were being hurt and he reacted to the situation like hero would, like someone that would risk themselves to help somebody else."
He's mourned as hero, but DPS discourages citizen intervention
By MICHAEL GRABELL / The Dallas Morning News
TYLER, Texas - Mark Wilson's split-second decision to take on the Tyler courthouse shooter – a decision that authorities credit with saving lives – cost him his life.
Mr. Wilson's friends said Friday that was typical of the former Dallas resident, 52, who lived by the "cowboy code," always ready to help someone in danger.
"That's his character," said John Seiple, a close friend and neighbor. "He saw people that were being shot, and even if he didn't have a gun, Mark was the type of person that would have tried to do something about it anyway."
Tyler law-enforcement officials and others called Mr. Wilson's actions on Thursday heroic and selfless. However, other officials said it is not an example they'd like to see emulated by the 237,000 Texans licensed to conceal handguns.
"Leave the crime fighting to us," said Tela Mange, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Public Safety. "There are just all kinds of situations that they can find themselves in that don't turn out well."
David Hernandez Arroyo, 43, opened fire on his ex-wife, Maribel Estrada, and an adult son with an AK-47 Thursday afternoon. They were arriving for a child-support proceeding at the Smith County Courthouse.
Mr. Arroyo had shot the two when Mr. Wilson came down from his loft overlooking the town square and shot at the man, who was wearing a bulletproof vest and military flak jacket. It remained unclear Friday if any of the rounds Mr. Wilson fired from his Colt .45-caliber pistol hit Mr. Arroyo, said Officer Don Martin, a Tyler police spokesman. The two traded shots before Mr. Wilson fell.
But police believe Mr. Wilson distracted the gunman just as he was readying to shoot his son, David Arroyo Jr., 21. The killer ended up wounding three law-enforcement officers before he was gunned down after a car chase.
"It's in our opinion and from all the witness accounts, that Mr. Wilson saved the life of the suspect's son," Officer Martin said. "Because [the gunman] had several rounds, he possibly saved other lives."
State law allows people to use deadly force to protect themselves and others from deadly force, said Barry Sorrels, a longtime Dallas defense attorney.
"I think this is a perfect example of why we have such a good handgun law in this state, and this is a perfect example of how that can be a benefit to others," said Mr. Sorrels, who lectures on concealed handgun laws for the state bar.
But gun control advocates said a lesson of the shooting is that gun laws should be tighter.
Marsha McCartney, Dallas chapter president for the Million Mom March, questioned Mr. Arroyo's possession of the assault weapon. Mr. Arroyo was a convicted felon who shouldn't have had a gun. Police said Friday they didn't know when or where Mr. Arroyo got the gun.
"Concealed handgun carriers sometimes commit crimes and sometimes are heroes," Ms. McCartney said. "Unfortunately, the hero part doesn't happen very often, and what if he had hit a bystander while he was firing?"
James McLaughlin, executive director of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, said handgun carriers who come upon a crime must make life-and-death observations in a flash. Police officers are trained to deal with such situations.
Civilians also must quickly consider how police will distinguish them from bad guys and whether the situation is what it seems to be.
"I was in law enforcement for 30 years, and I certainly never knew what something was when I pulled up on it," Mr. McLaughlin said.
Friends said Mr. Wilson's reaction was typical of a man who always did what he believed was right. He was described as a hard-edged Vietnam War veteran who worked odd jobs, loved racquetball and was protective about his white 1986 Porsche.
He opened a shooting range in Tyler in 1997, but lost it for financial reasons about a year later.
"He wanted a place where citizens and law enforcement could learn and practice self-defense in a safe environment," said Dr. Scott Lieberman, who invested in the shooting range. "To be honest, this was a dream of his for six years, to have that range built."
Mr. Wilson graduated from MacArthur High School in Irving and owned a car repair shop in Dallas in the 1980s, Mr. Seiple said.
Mr. Seiple, a high school teacher in Tyler, was in class when he heard about the shooting and told students about his friend.
"I told them that he was like a hero," he said. "He died because he saw some people who were being hurt and he reacted to the situation like hero would, like someone that would risk themselves to help somebody else."
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TexasStooge
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Bell hopes unmanned tilt-rotor takes off
By JIM DOUGALAS / WFAA ABC 8
FORT WORTH, Texas - In a garage-like laboratory at Bell Helicopter in Fort Worth, engineers put in extra hours to finish the first Eagle Eye.
"This is the first time any of these parts have been built. This is a one of a kind in the world," says Peter Klein with Bell Helicopter.
It looks like a race car with wings. It is, in fact, a tiny cousin to the controversial V-22 Osprey.
But the Eagle Eye is a UAV -- unmanned aerial vehicle. It's virtually unknown, but not for long.
"What we're looking for is to go around the world with the vehicle. Prove to everyone that it works," Klein says.
Bell isn't waiting for the Pentagon to pay for it. The company is spending its own money, which is almost unheard of for a defense contractor.
"We're taking the risk because we believe in this product so greatly," Klein says.
To give you an idea of how quickly Bell is bringing the Eagle Eye to market, just 10 months ago none of this plane existed except for the engine parts. They had to make everything from scratch and put it together. But three months from now, they expect this unmanned tilt rotor to be flying.
They believe it's a lot better than UAVs now providing valuable surveillance in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Tests on a smaller early version show it can be launched from anywhere, speed to a target at over 200 miles an hour, then hang around for hours, hovering if necessary.
And engineers insist it's deceptively simple and low-maintenance with no hydraulics and few moving parts.
"Typical helicopter has, like, 12 different gear meshes in it to make the hellicopter go. This has 3," Klein says.
The Coast Guard is sold. It wants 69 Eagle Eyes to put on cutters because they can patrol twice as much ocean as a helicopter. They can then use their own computer brains to land on a pitching deck.
But that's a few years away. Bell thinks there's a lot of potential for a lot of uses that haven't even been thought of yet.
"Right now we think the sky's the limit," Klein says.
By JIM DOUGALAS / WFAA ABC 8
FORT WORTH, Texas - In a garage-like laboratory at Bell Helicopter in Fort Worth, engineers put in extra hours to finish the first Eagle Eye.
"This is the first time any of these parts have been built. This is a one of a kind in the world," says Peter Klein with Bell Helicopter.
It looks like a race car with wings. It is, in fact, a tiny cousin to the controversial V-22 Osprey.
But the Eagle Eye is a UAV -- unmanned aerial vehicle. It's virtually unknown, but not for long.
"What we're looking for is to go around the world with the vehicle. Prove to everyone that it works," Klein says.
Bell isn't waiting for the Pentagon to pay for it. The company is spending its own money, which is almost unheard of for a defense contractor.
"We're taking the risk because we believe in this product so greatly," Klein says.
To give you an idea of how quickly Bell is bringing the Eagle Eye to market, just 10 months ago none of this plane existed except for the engine parts. They had to make everything from scratch and put it together. But three months from now, they expect this unmanned tilt rotor to be flying.
They believe it's a lot better than UAVs now providing valuable surveillance in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Tests on a smaller early version show it can be launched from anywhere, speed to a target at over 200 miles an hour, then hang around for hours, hovering if necessary.
And engineers insist it's deceptively simple and low-maintenance with no hydraulics and few moving parts.
"Typical helicopter has, like, 12 different gear meshes in it to make the hellicopter go. This has 3," Klein says.
The Coast Guard is sold. It wants 69 Eagle Eyes to put on cutters because they can patrol twice as much ocean as a helicopter. They can then use their own computer brains to land on a pitching deck.
But that's a few years away. Bell thinks there's a lot of potential for a lot of uses that haven't even been thought of yet.
"Right now we think the sky's the limit," Klein says.
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TexasStooge
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Teacher speaks out on firings
By BRAD WATSON / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - In 2003, third-graders at Budd Elementary School finished near the bottom in reading in the state but fourth-graders scored near the top.
After the school district investigated to learn how students could improve so much between grades, it fired three fourth-grade teachers and a former teacher working as a consultant.
"Well, we found statistical problems and outcomes and differences between former years' tests last year's tests and even some of the stuff that's been done this year that wasn't consistent," said DISD spokeman Donald Claxton. "It led us to believe there were testing irregularities."
In an exclusive interview with News 8, one of the discharged teachers said the district is wrong.
Rosalind Johnson is a 28-year veteran who taught most of those years at Budd Elementary and has given every achievement test since the state started them in 1980's.
She says third- and fourth-grade teachers at Budd worked hard to improve reading skills of students, most of whom are poor and minority. She also says the district isn't giving them credit.
"We used all kinds of tutoring intervention procedures to work with our students to make sure they achieved the goals," Johnson said.
The district says it didn't find irregularities at 34 other schools and claims that cheating is not widespread.
Dallas' largest teachers union questions if the school district just wanted to find some scapegoats and move on.
"... I believe that the system used to determine that there was cheating was absolutely flawed," said Aimee Bolender with Dallas Alliance AFT.
Claxton reassures the district's intent. "We do want parents and the community to know we take cheating seriously when we find it we are going to act on it."
By BRAD WATSON / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - In 2003, third-graders at Budd Elementary School finished near the bottom in reading in the state but fourth-graders scored near the top.
After the school district investigated to learn how students could improve so much between grades, it fired three fourth-grade teachers and a former teacher working as a consultant.
"Well, we found statistical problems and outcomes and differences between former years' tests last year's tests and even some of the stuff that's been done this year that wasn't consistent," said DISD spokeman Donald Claxton. "It led us to believe there were testing irregularities."
In an exclusive interview with News 8, one of the discharged teachers said the district is wrong.
Rosalind Johnson is a 28-year veteran who taught most of those years at Budd Elementary and has given every achievement test since the state started them in 1980's.
She says third- and fourth-grade teachers at Budd worked hard to improve reading skills of students, most of whom are poor and minority. She also says the district isn't giving them credit.
"We used all kinds of tutoring intervention procedures to work with our students to make sure they achieved the goals," Johnson said.
The district says it didn't find irregularities at 34 other schools and claims that cheating is not widespread.
Dallas' largest teachers union questions if the school district just wanted to find some scapegoats and move on.
"... I believe that the system used to determine that there was cheating was absolutely flawed," said Aimee Bolender with Dallas Alliance AFT.
Claxton reassures the district's intent. "We do want parents and the community to know we take cheating seriously when we find it we are going to act on it."
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TexasStooge
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Officials to begin testing avian flu vaccine
By JIM FRY / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - It kills almost every person it infects. The United Nations warns of the 'gravest possible danger' from the Asian bird flu.
And today federal health officials said they will begin testing a bird flu vaccine, before the deadly bug begins its move out of Asia.
A flu pandemic occurs on average every 20 years. That's when a lot of people die. And we're overdue -- it's been 40 years since the Hong Kong flu outbreak. This one could be much worse.
People catch the bird flu in the cramped and close chicken markets in Asia's teeming cities. The disease is widespread in the birds of Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia. Farmers say whole flocks of chickens get sick and die in a matter of days. Millions of birds have died or been destroyed.
"We need to be shaken out of our complacency. This is serious," said Dr. Julie Gerberding of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
And this is why the nation's infectious disease chief Anthony Fauci has ordered human tests.
Five studies will determine its safety and proper dosage, and two million doses will be stockpiled.
But we are not yet on the verge of a deadly pandemic.
"It happens in a series of progressive steps where you'll see local outbreaks," said Dr. Gerberding. "And the virus gradually evolves to become more efficiently transmitted from person to person."
So far, only about 50 people have gotten sick. But three out of four people die, sparking fears of a pandemic worse than in 1918 when tens of millions of people died.
"I have to say that I think it's too soon to panic," said Dr. Daniel Blumenthal Morehouse School of Medicine. "So far there's no evidence of an epidemic."
But public health authorities are taking no chances with such an efficient killer.
For now, the flu rarely is contagious from person to person. It is transmitted by handling infected birds, but the worry is that could change.
The vaccine will be tested in five places. One will be in Texas, though federal officials aren't saying exactly where.
By JIM FRY / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - It kills almost every person it infects. The United Nations warns of the 'gravest possible danger' from the Asian bird flu.
And today federal health officials said they will begin testing a bird flu vaccine, before the deadly bug begins its move out of Asia.
A flu pandemic occurs on average every 20 years. That's when a lot of people die. And we're overdue -- it's been 40 years since the Hong Kong flu outbreak. This one could be much worse.
People catch the bird flu in the cramped and close chicken markets in Asia's teeming cities. The disease is widespread in the birds of Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia. Farmers say whole flocks of chickens get sick and die in a matter of days. Millions of birds have died or been destroyed.
"We need to be shaken out of our complacency. This is serious," said Dr. Julie Gerberding of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
And this is why the nation's infectious disease chief Anthony Fauci has ordered human tests.
Five studies will determine its safety and proper dosage, and two million doses will be stockpiled.
But we are not yet on the verge of a deadly pandemic.
"It happens in a series of progressive steps where you'll see local outbreaks," said Dr. Gerberding. "And the virus gradually evolves to become more efficiently transmitted from person to person."
So far, only about 50 people have gotten sick. But three out of four people die, sparking fears of a pandemic worse than in 1918 when tens of millions of people died.
"I have to say that I think it's too soon to panic," said Dr. Daniel Blumenthal Morehouse School of Medicine. "So far there's no evidence of an epidemic."
But public health authorities are taking no chances with such an efficient killer.
For now, the flu rarely is contagious from person to person. It is transmitted by handling infected birds, but the worry is that could change.
The vaccine will be tested in five places. One will be in Texas, though federal officials aren't saying exactly where.
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TexasStooge
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Clean-up plan aims to deter graffiti
By STEVE STOLER / WFAA ABC 8
RICHARDSON, Texas - Shirley Parker is a typical Richardson homeowner. She finds unsightly and sometimes vulgar graffiti unnessessary and a potentially harmful hit to her property value.
"I should think they could find something more constructive," Parker said.
Richardson city leaders say the number of incidents involving graffiti has tripled recently, from 30 in 2003 to 90 last year.
They're looking for better ways to combat the problem. Among the proposals -- speed up the clean up.
The city would send out contractors at no charge to homeowners to either powerwash or paint over graffiti within 48 hours of the crime. Businesses would have to pay a small fee for the service.
"We want to quickly address the matter and also do it in a manner that's also easy for the resident," said Richardson assistant city manager David Morgan.
Richardson city officials say the longer the vandalism remains, the more problems it causes by attracting other crime and intimidating residents.
Shirley Parker likes the idea of getting rid of it faster.
"It certainly would get rid of the mess they cause, but i don't know if if would deter it."
David Morgan is more hopeful. "By limiting the graffiti on the property, it discourages people from tagging that property again. Our hope is to curb some of the instances we've seen in our city."
Residents who don't clean up graffiti can be cited by the city for code violations. City staffers say their plan would prevent those homeowners from becoming victims twice.
By STEVE STOLER / WFAA ABC 8
RICHARDSON, Texas - Shirley Parker is a typical Richardson homeowner. She finds unsightly and sometimes vulgar graffiti unnessessary and a potentially harmful hit to her property value.
"I should think they could find something more constructive," Parker said.
Richardson city leaders say the number of incidents involving graffiti has tripled recently, from 30 in 2003 to 90 last year.
They're looking for better ways to combat the problem. Among the proposals -- speed up the clean up.
The city would send out contractors at no charge to homeowners to either powerwash or paint over graffiti within 48 hours of the crime. Businesses would have to pay a small fee for the service.
"We want to quickly address the matter and also do it in a manner that's also easy for the resident," said Richardson assistant city manager David Morgan.
Richardson city officials say the longer the vandalism remains, the more problems it causes by attracting other crime and intimidating residents.
Shirley Parker likes the idea of getting rid of it faster.
"It certainly would get rid of the mess they cause, but i don't know if if would deter it."
David Morgan is more hopeful. "By limiting the graffiti on the property, it discourages people from tagging that property again. Our hope is to curb some of the instances we've seen in our city."
Residents who don't clean up graffiti can be cited by the city for code violations. City staffers say their plan would prevent those homeowners from becoming victims twice.
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TexasStooge
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Tape shows Tyler gunman's last stand
By REBECCA LOPEZ / WFAA ABC 8
TYLER, Texas — Tyler police released a squad car videotape Friday showing the high-speed pursuit that led to the death of the man who killed two people and wounded four others in the city's courthouse square Thursday afternoon.
The tape shows at least five police cars chasing a pickup truck driven by David Hernandez Arroyo Sr., 43, after he left the scene of the crime in downtown Tyler.
In the video, it appears that at least three shots were either fired at or from the suspect's vehicle in the final seconds before it came to a stop in the middle of a highway north of the city.
Arroyo—wearing a bulletproof vest and a flak jacket—can be seen getting out of the vehicle with his AK-47 automatic rifle in hand and starting to point it at police.
He was shot and killed by police moments later.
Investigators are still trying to piece together the story leading up to the dramatic events at the Smith County Courthouse on Thursday, when gunfire rang out, killing Arroyo's ex-wife, Maribell Estrada, 41, and wounding his oldest son, David Arroyo Jr., 23, in the leg.
Disbelieving bystanders scrambled for safety after Arroyo, apparently upset over a child custody issue, opened fire.
"Nobody knew what was going on," said John DeJean, who witnessed the carnage. "It was just shooting, shooting, shooting."
"He kept firing, I guess emptied his clip, went back to his truck and got another one, walked back into the street and started firing some more," said Derek Hawthorne.
Mark Wilson, who lives nearby, raced to the scene and was killed after an exchange of gunfire with Arroyo.
"One of the deputies on the scene said if it hadn't been for Mr. Wilson, that he thinks that the son would be dead," Smith County Sheriff J.B. Smith said.
Smith County Sheriff's Deputy Sherman Dollison, 28, was in critical but stable condition at East Texas Medical Center Friday morning following surgery for gunshot wounds in the liver, lungs and legs.
Another deputy and a Tyler police officer received minor injuries.
Arroyo's family said he was angry over a custody battle with his ex-wife involving their 7-year-old son. They said he felt like no one was listening to his side of the story.
"If somebody had listened to him, all this would be avoided," said Marie Aevar, Arroyo's niece. "Now, there's a kid without a mother, without a father, with no family."
Arroyo and Estrada were divorced in January 2004 after 22 years of marriage.
Police said Arroyo had a history of domestic violence and had weapon offenses and violations in the past.
Investigators said Arroyo threatened his ex-wife last week that he was going to take action against her.
Ballistics tests continue at the crime scene downtown and on the highway where Arroyo was shot. The information will be presented to a grand jury because there were law enforcement officials involved in the shootings.
Tyler, the seat of Smith County, is a city of about 86,000 located about 95 miles east of Dallas. Tyler calls itself the "Rose Capital of the Nation" and attracts about 100,000 visitors each October to the Texas Rose Festival.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
By REBECCA LOPEZ / WFAA ABC 8
TYLER, Texas — Tyler police released a squad car videotape Friday showing the high-speed pursuit that led to the death of the man who killed two people and wounded four others in the city's courthouse square Thursday afternoon.
The tape shows at least five police cars chasing a pickup truck driven by David Hernandez Arroyo Sr., 43, after he left the scene of the crime in downtown Tyler.
In the video, it appears that at least three shots were either fired at or from the suspect's vehicle in the final seconds before it came to a stop in the middle of a highway north of the city.
Arroyo—wearing a bulletproof vest and a flak jacket—can be seen getting out of the vehicle with his AK-47 automatic rifle in hand and starting to point it at police.
He was shot and killed by police moments later.
Investigators are still trying to piece together the story leading up to the dramatic events at the Smith County Courthouse on Thursday, when gunfire rang out, killing Arroyo's ex-wife, Maribell Estrada, 41, and wounding his oldest son, David Arroyo Jr., 23, in the leg.
Disbelieving bystanders scrambled for safety after Arroyo, apparently upset over a child custody issue, opened fire.
"Nobody knew what was going on," said John DeJean, who witnessed the carnage. "It was just shooting, shooting, shooting."
"He kept firing, I guess emptied his clip, went back to his truck and got another one, walked back into the street and started firing some more," said Derek Hawthorne.
Mark Wilson, who lives nearby, raced to the scene and was killed after an exchange of gunfire with Arroyo.
"One of the deputies on the scene said if it hadn't been for Mr. Wilson, that he thinks that the son would be dead," Smith County Sheriff J.B. Smith said.
Smith County Sheriff's Deputy Sherman Dollison, 28, was in critical but stable condition at East Texas Medical Center Friday morning following surgery for gunshot wounds in the liver, lungs and legs.
Another deputy and a Tyler police officer received minor injuries.
Arroyo's family said he was angry over a custody battle with his ex-wife involving their 7-year-old son. They said he felt like no one was listening to his side of the story.
"If somebody had listened to him, all this would be avoided," said Marie Aevar, Arroyo's niece. "Now, there's a kid without a mother, without a father, with no family."
Arroyo and Estrada were divorced in January 2004 after 22 years of marriage.
Police said Arroyo had a history of domestic violence and had weapon offenses and violations in the past.
Investigators said Arroyo threatened his ex-wife last week that he was going to take action against her.
Ballistics tests continue at the crime scene downtown and on the highway where Arroyo was shot. The information will be presented to a grand jury because there were law enforcement officials involved in the shootings.
Tyler, the seat of Smith County, is a city of about 86,000 located about 95 miles east of Dallas. Tyler calls itself the "Rose Capital of the Nation" and attracts about 100,000 visitors each October to the Texas Rose Festival.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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