SUV catches fire after LBJ wreck
GARLAND, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A fiery accident shut down part of LBJ Freeway in Garland late Friday morning.
Witnesses said a speeding green car struck a sport-utility vehicle near the La Prada Drive exit around 11 a.m.
The SUV rolled over, but the occupants escaped before it caught fire. They were taken to the hospital for examination.
Police arrested the man driving the green car. They said he also hit a pick-up truck, though no one in that truck was hurt.
TxDOT officials said the southbound lanes of LBJ at LaPrada will probably be closed until just before Friday afternoon rush hour.
News from the Lone Star State
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TexasStooge
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Austin airport evacuated after package found
AUSTIN, Texas (KVUE ABC 24) - Part of Bergstrom International Airport was evacuated Friday morning after a suspicious package was found near the curbside check-in.
An airport spokesperson said during the evacuation, the west section of the terminal was closed, which affected the ticketing area for American Airlines, United, Continental, and America West. Everyone in the airport was diverted to the lower level.
The Austin Police Department bomb squad arrived on the scene and X-rayed the package, which resembled a blue Styrofoam cooler. After analysis, they determined it contained a refueling station for a model airplane.
The airport re-opened once it was determined the package was not dangerous.
No one has claimed the package. Officials speculate that it was left behind when a passenger determined the package would not be allowed on the plane.
AUSTIN, Texas (KVUE ABC 24) - Part of Bergstrom International Airport was evacuated Friday morning after a suspicious package was found near the curbside check-in.
An airport spokesperson said during the evacuation, the west section of the terminal was closed, which affected the ticketing area for American Airlines, United, Continental, and America West. Everyone in the airport was diverted to the lower level.
The Austin Police Department bomb squad arrived on the scene and X-rayed the package, which resembled a blue Styrofoam cooler. After analysis, they determined it contained a refueling station for a model airplane.
The airport re-opened once it was determined the package was not dangerous.
No one has claimed the package. Officials speculate that it was left behind when a passenger determined the package would not be allowed on the plane.
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TexasStooge
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Mystery woman at center of FBI probe
By BYRON HARRIS / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Nearly two weeks after the FBI conducted sweeping searches of Dallas City Hall, private offices and private homes, there's much that still isn't known about the reasons behind the raids.
A deeper look has pointed, however, to one key figure with connections to many points in the investigation.
You might call Sheila Farrington the "mystery woman" who sits at the pinnacle of cash, political donations and consultants' fees of many of the people and entities under the scrutiny of the FBI.
Few people know much about her. At the small office building in DeSoto that's listed as the business address for Farrington and Associates, nobody's ever heard of her or seen her. The manager said he has no knowledge of her.
An apartment house in Highland Park is listed as her residence, but since the FBI searched her apartment last week, neighbors haven't seen her. Right now, her identity is still a composite gleaned from documents, statements and relationships.
• Farrington is positioned at the point of a money trail at City Hall. She has been linked to Dallas Mayor Pro Tem Don Hill, also a subject of the FBI probe: he drives a car she owns, she gave him a $1,000 political donation and he gave her a dozen payments totalling more than $11,000 over the last three years as a political consultant.
• Farrington also owns a car driven by city planning commissioner D'Angelo Lee, also under investigation by the FBI. Lee gets income from Farrington and Associates, and was appointed to his position by Don Hill. He traveled with Hill to New York last year, using $1,830 of Hill's campaign funds.
• Farrington is also a consultant to Southwest Housing, also a subject of the FBI probe. Southwest has not yet revealed how much money it gave Farrington, only that it has made payments to her.
The affidavit for a search warrant that began this FBI investigation is more than 200 pages long. At this point, money trails to and from Farrington can be traced with documents - but for the most part, the woman herself remains a mystery.
By BYRON HARRIS / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Nearly two weeks after the FBI conducted sweeping searches of Dallas City Hall, private offices and private homes, there's much that still isn't known about the reasons behind the raids.
A deeper look has pointed, however, to one key figure with connections to many points in the investigation.
You might call Sheila Farrington the "mystery woman" who sits at the pinnacle of cash, political donations and consultants' fees of many of the people and entities under the scrutiny of the FBI.
Few people know much about her. At the small office building in DeSoto that's listed as the business address for Farrington and Associates, nobody's ever heard of her or seen her. The manager said he has no knowledge of her.
An apartment house in Highland Park is listed as her residence, but since the FBI searched her apartment last week, neighbors haven't seen her. Right now, her identity is still a composite gleaned from documents, statements and relationships.
• Farrington is positioned at the point of a money trail at City Hall. She has been linked to Dallas Mayor Pro Tem Don Hill, also a subject of the FBI probe: he drives a car she owns, she gave him a $1,000 political donation and he gave her a dozen payments totalling more than $11,000 over the last three years as a political consultant.
• Farrington also owns a car driven by city planning commissioner D'Angelo Lee, also under investigation by the FBI. Lee gets income from Farrington and Associates, and was appointed to his position by Don Hill. He traveled with Hill to New York last year, using $1,830 of Hill's campaign funds.
• Farrington is also a consultant to Southwest Housing, also a subject of the FBI probe. Southwest has not yet revealed how much money it gave Farrington, only that it has made payments to her.
The affidavit for a search warrant that began this FBI investigation is more than 200 pages long. At this point, money trails to and from Farrington can be traced with documents - but for the most part, the woman herself remains a mystery.
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DPS drill left man paralyzed
Brain injury from '88; concussions continue to happen, records show
By DAVE MICHAELS / The Dallas Morning News
AUSTIN, Texas – The Texas Department of Public Safety knew 17 years ago that a violent boxing drill could cause severe brain injuries because a trooper-trainee was paralyzed in a match then, records and interviews show.
Joel Lopez Cordova, a former Marine, sustained a severe brain injury in February 1988, when he was punched in the head during a boxing exercise now blamed for a recruit's death.
Mr. Cordova's injuries were so severe that after he spent a year at an Austin rehabilitation hospital, his caretakers thought he would never walk or talk again, his brother said this week.
"They told us that more than likely, he would never regain his normal self, or even remotely close to it," said Daniel Cordova, who lives in Austin. "They said he would probably be in a vegetative state for the rest of his life."
Over time, the former recruit, now 42, regained the use of some faculties, but he still requires a wheelchair and is cared for by his mother and sister at their home in Frederick, Okla., family members said.
DPS officials declined to comment on Joel Cordova's case Friday, as agency records revealed that nearly three dozen recruits have suffered concussions from the boxing exercise over the last decade. The department maintains the boxing drill is useful to teach self-defense to recruits, but it is reviewing its training program and the fight that led to the death of recruit Jimmy Ray Carty Jr. on May 26.
DPS is not the only police agency that uses boxing to test the mettle and fighting skills of its recruits.
Dan Carlson, the acting director of the Institute for Law Enforcement Administration in Plano, a law-enforcement education center, said full-contact fighting drills can be useful if properly managed.
DPS did not accept any blame for Mr. Cordova's injuries, his brother said. The family eventually settled a lawsuit against boxing gear manufacturer Everlast for "millions" of dollars, an amount that helps to cover the cost of Joel Cordova's care, said his sister, Nancy Cordova.
Daniel and Nancy Cordova said they blamed DPS for their brother's accident. The family believed it did not receive a straight answer about Joel Cordova's injury although DPS blamed Everlast and Rooster Andrews Sporting Goods, an Austin merchant that it said provided flawed protective equipment to DPS.
Since 1997 – the oldest records provided by DPS – 36 recruits have suffered concussions during boxing, a toll that doctors said raises alarms about the exercise's risks. A concussion is a brain injury that occurs when the head is hit and the brain moves within the skull.
In one case, a recruit who is now a trooper suffered a subdural hematoma, the same injury that Mr. Carty and Joel Cordova suffered. Trooper Joe Hill went two months without complaining about his injury and eventually required surgery that relieved blood pressure on his brain and saved his life.
The 36 concussions represent about 2.3 percent of DPS recruits. The department has graduated about 1,500 recruits since 1996, spokeswoman Tela Mange said.
"We should ask, is there some other way they could do this?" said Paul Van Ness, an associate professor of neurology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. "Isn't there a different or better way?"
During boxing, recruits are outfitted with headgear, gloves, shin guards and other protective material. There is no prohibition against punching in the head. The recruits can kick one other.
When Joel Cordova stepped into the DPS gym in February 1988, at the age of 24, he was not new to combat. He had served in the Marine Reserves for at least six years, his family said. He became a marksman and served on bases in Tulsa, Okla., and Abilene, his family said.
He applied to DPS because he wanted to be a Texas Ranger, his sister said.
"He wanted to go into politics [later] and become president," Ms. Cordova said. "He was very ambitious. Everything he did, he tried to be the best at."
After getting hit during boxing, he went to the bathroom to get some water but he lost consciousness, his brother said.
He was rushed into surgery at an Austin hospital before his father and brother could arrive.
"He almost died a couple times on the table," said Ms. Cordova, 44. "The surgeon said he'd seen people in severe car wrecks with less [brain] damage than what Joel had."
When Joel Cordova emerged from a coma, he spent a year at St. David's Rehabilitation Center. DPS officials visited him every day during that time, his mother, Florentina L. Garcia, said.
He'd planned to get married the day after his graduation from the DPS academy to a girl he said he'd "been looking for forever," Ms. Garcia said.
"She wanted to wait until he got out" of the academy, Ms. Cordova said. "He never made it that far."
Ruthann Curtis, a cognitive rehabilitation therapist who worked with Mr. Cordova, said, "His brain injury was so difficult."
"He was one of the most serious cases that I had while I was on staff" at St. David's, said Ms. Curtis, who is now a therapist at The Cognitive Clinic in Austin.
Ms. Curtis agreed to be interviewed about Joel Cordova on the condition she would not provide his name. The Department of Public Safety released Mr. Cordova's name to The Dallas Morning News on Thursday.
Over time, Joel Cordova's condition has improved, his family said. He uses a wheelchair but has regained the ability to move his arms. He used to raise one finger to signal "yes," and two to signal "no." Now, he can talk slowly.
He cannot stand or sit on his own, however. And he cannot remember his age, Ms. Cordova said.
Ms. Curtis said the staff thought DPS officials would amend the training program to make it safer. Now, after Mr. Carty's death, she believes no changes were made, she said.
"Obviously they didn't, or they forgot these are young people's lives that are forever changed by one fist," Ms. Curtis said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INJURIES BY YEAR:
Since 1997 – the oldest available records – dozens of Department of Public Safety recruits have suffered concussions during boxing drills. Here's a breakdown of the injuries by year:
1997: 2
1998: 7
1999: 6
2000: 5
2001: 0
2002: 1
2003: 6
2004: 8
2005: 1
SOURCE: Department of Public Safety
Brain injury from '88; concussions continue to happen, records show
By DAVE MICHAELS / The Dallas Morning News
AUSTIN, Texas – The Texas Department of Public Safety knew 17 years ago that a violent boxing drill could cause severe brain injuries because a trooper-trainee was paralyzed in a match then, records and interviews show.
Joel Lopez Cordova, a former Marine, sustained a severe brain injury in February 1988, when he was punched in the head during a boxing exercise now blamed for a recruit's death.
Mr. Cordova's injuries were so severe that after he spent a year at an Austin rehabilitation hospital, his caretakers thought he would never walk or talk again, his brother said this week.
"They told us that more than likely, he would never regain his normal self, or even remotely close to it," said Daniel Cordova, who lives in Austin. "They said he would probably be in a vegetative state for the rest of his life."
Over time, the former recruit, now 42, regained the use of some faculties, but he still requires a wheelchair and is cared for by his mother and sister at their home in Frederick, Okla., family members said.
DPS officials declined to comment on Joel Cordova's case Friday, as agency records revealed that nearly three dozen recruits have suffered concussions from the boxing exercise over the last decade. The department maintains the boxing drill is useful to teach self-defense to recruits, but it is reviewing its training program and the fight that led to the death of recruit Jimmy Ray Carty Jr. on May 26.
DPS is not the only police agency that uses boxing to test the mettle and fighting skills of its recruits.
Dan Carlson, the acting director of the Institute for Law Enforcement Administration in Plano, a law-enforcement education center, said full-contact fighting drills can be useful if properly managed.
DPS did not accept any blame for Mr. Cordova's injuries, his brother said. The family eventually settled a lawsuit against boxing gear manufacturer Everlast for "millions" of dollars, an amount that helps to cover the cost of Joel Cordova's care, said his sister, Nancy Cordova.
Daniel and Nancy Cordova said they blamed DPS for their brother's accident. The family believed it did not receive a straight answer about Joel Cordova's injury although DPS blamed Everlast and Rooster Andrews Sporting Goods, an Austin merchant that it said provided flawed protective equipment to DPS.
Since 1997 – the oldest records provided by DPS – 36 recruits have suffered concussions during boxing, a toll that doctors said raises alarms about the exercise's risks. A concussion is a brain injury that occurs when the head is hit and the brain moves within the skull.
In one case, a recruit who is now a trooper suffered a subdural hematoma, the same injury that Mr. Carty and Joel Cordova suffered. Trooper Joe Hill went two months without complaining about his injury and eventually required surgery that relieved blood pressure on his brain and saved his life.
The 36 concussions represent about 2.3 percent of DPS recruits. The department has graduated about 1,500 recruits since 1996, spokeswoman Tela Mange said.
"We should ask, is there some other way they could do this?" said Paul Van Ness, an associate professor of neurology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. "Isn't there a different or better way?"
During boxing, recruits are outfitted with headgear, gloves, shin guards and other protective material. There is no prohibition against punching in the head. The recruits can kick one other.
When Joel Cordova stepped into the DPS gym in February 1988, at the age of 24, he was not new to combat. He had served in the Marine Reserves for at least six years, his family said. He became a marksman and served on bases in Tulsa, Okla., and Abilene, his family said.
He applied to DPS because he wanted to be a Texas Ranger, his sister said.
"He wanted to go into politics [later] and become president," Ms. Cordova said. "He was very ambitious. Everything he did, he tried to be the best at."
After getting hit during boxing, he went to the bathroom to get some water but he lost consciousness, his brother said.
He was rushed into surgery at an Austin hospital before his father and brother could arrive.
"He almost died a couple times on the table," said Ms. Cordova, 44. "The surgeon said he'd seen people in severe car wrecks with less [brain] damage than what Joel had."
When Joel Cordova emerged from a coma, he spent a year at St. David's Rehabilitation Center. DPS officials visited him every day during that time, his mother, Florentina L. Garcia, said.
He'd planned to get married the day after his graduation from the DPS academy to a girl he said he'd "been looking for forever," Ms. Garcia said.
"She wanted to wait until he got out" of the academy, Ms. Cordova said. "He never made it that far."
Ruthann Curtis, a cognitive rehabilitation therapist who worked with Mr. Cordova, said, "His brain injury was so difficult."
"He was one of the most serious cases that I had while I was on staff" at St. David's, said Ms. Curtis, who is now a therapist at The Cognitive Clinic in Austin.
Ms. Curtis agreed to be interviewed about Joel Cordova on the condition she would not provide his name. The Department of Public Safety released Mr. Cordova's name to The Dallas Morning News on Thursday.
Over time, Joel Cordova's condition has improved, his family said. He uses a wheelchair but has regained the ability to move his arms. He used to raise one finger to signal "yes," and two to signal "no." Now, he can talk slowly.
He cannot stand or sit on his own, however. And he cannot remember his age, Ms. Cordova said.
Ms. Curtis said the staff thought DPS officials would amend the training program to make it safer. Now, after Mr. Carty's death, she believes no changes were made, she said.
"Obviously they didn't, or they forgot these are young people's lives that are forever changed by one fist," Ms. Curtis said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INJURIES BY YEAR:
Since 1997 – the oldest available records – dozens of Department of Public Safety recruits have suffered concussions during boxing drills. Here's a breakdown of the injuries by year:
1997: 2
1998: 7
1999: 6
2000: 5
2001: 0
2002: 1
2003: 6
2004: 8
2005: 1
SOURCE: Department of Public Safety
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TexasStooge
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Texas, Mexican officials seek to team up
Violence prompts effort to coordinate federal, state, local authorities
By KAREN BROOKS / The Dallas Morning News
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas is spending $5 million to beef up law-enforcement efforts along the Mexican border and will ask the U.S. government for more help fighting drug-related violence there, Gov. Rick Perry said Friday.
He called it a "critical mission to protect the lives of citizens on both sides of the border."
"Over the course of the last 12 months, we've seen indications that the state's involvement needs to be ramped up," Mr. Perry said.
His comments came after a meeting with Mexican Attorney General Daniel Cabeza de Vaca; his Texas counterpart, Greg Abbott; and the state's homeland security director, Steve McCraw. They discussed how the state can help Mexican officials stem the violence that has claimed the lives of an estimated 600 people in Mexico since January – most of them along the border.
In Nuevo Laredo, which is under martial law after the entire city police squad was ordered off the job, the police chief was killed just hours after taking office. Five officers have been killed since January.
And last week, authorities rescued 44 people who they believe had been kidnapped in connection with the cartel wars.
Texas sent 100 additional state troopers this month to Laredo, a city of about 200,000 across the Rio Grande from Nuevo Laredo, after Mayor Betty Flores pleaded for help.
Mr. Perry said he'll ask U.S. Attorney General Al Gonzales, a San Antonio native, for a stronger bilateral effort to combat the violence. The governor of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, home to Nuevo Laredo, will send a similar request to Mexican President Vicente Fox.
It's up to the federal governments whether "that means U.S. agents would be actively engaged on sovereign Mexican soil, or Mexican agents engaged on sovereign U.S. soil" or another approach would be taken, he said.
The escalating violence is a result of "great victories" by a recent anti-cartel operation, Mr. Cabeza de Vaca said. He called it an effort "like nothing that has ever been done before" and said authorities have "decapitated" the major gangs who are now fighting for territory.
Mr. Cabeza de Vaca praised Mr. Perry and other Texas officials for their willingness to help fight a problem he said was caused by issues in both countries.
"We are sure that citizens on both sides of the border will soon begin to see their cities transformed into cities that are safe and progressive, just as the residents deserve," he said.
Violence prompts effort to coordinate federal, state, local authorities
By KAREN BROOKS / The Dallas Morning News
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas is spending $5 million to beef up law-enforcement efforts along the Mexican border and will ask the U.S. government for more help fighting drug-related violence there, Gov. Rick Perry said Friday.
He called it a "critical mission to protect the lives of citizens on both sides of the border."
"Over the course of the last 12 months, we've seen indications that the state's involvement needs to be ramped up," Mr. Perry said.
His comments came after a meeting with Mexican Attorney General Daniel Cabeza de Vaca; his Texas counterpart, Greg Abbott; and the state's homeland security director, Steve McCraw. They discussed how the state can help Mexican officials stem the violence that has claimed the lives of an estimated 600 people in Mexico since January – most of them along the border.
In Nuevo Laredo, which is under martial law after the entire city police squad was ordered off the job, the police chief was killed just hours after taking office. Five officers have been killed since January.
And last week, authorities rescued 44 people who they believe had been kidnapped in connection with the cartel wars.
Texas sent 100 additional state troopers this month to Laredo, a city of about 200,000 across the Rio Grande from Nuevo Laredo, after Mayor Betty Flores pleaded for help.
Mr. Perry said he'll ask U.S. Attorney General Al Gonzales, a San Antonio native, for a stronger bilateral effort to combat the violence. The governor of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, home to Nuevo Laredo, will send a similar request to Mexican President Vicente Fox.
It's up to the federal governments whether "that means U.S. agents would be actively engaged on sovereign Mexican soil, or Mexican agents engaged on sovereign U.S. soil" or another approach would be taken, he said.
The escalating violence is a result of "great victories" by a recent anti-cartel operation, Mr. Cabeza de Vaca said. He called it an effort "like nothing that has ever been done before" and said authorities have "decapitated" the major gangs who are now fighting for territory.
Mr. Cabeza de Vaca praised Mr. Perry and other Texas officials for their willingness to help fight a problem he said was caused by issues in both countries.
"We are sure that citizens on both sides of the border will soon begin to see their cities transformed into cities that are safe and progressive, just as the residents deserve," he said.
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Boater finds body of missing father
DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A boater found the body of a 45-year-old man who sank into the waters of Lake Ray Hubbard while trying to save his two sons Saturday night.
Ray Norman disappeared after struggling to put his 7-year-old and 14-year-old sons back into an overturned water tube. He was the only one not wearing a life-vest. His 4-year-old was left in the boat and his oldest child waved over a boater who anchored the boat to mark the spot.
The search began Saturday night. MARK-9 search and rescue dogs started off the search by sniffing out the search area. Ceilidh Charleson-Jennings, the public information officer for MARK-9, said scent travels well through water.
"Their scent is extraordinarily keen," Charleson-Jennings said. "Some research indicates [they can scent] a drop of blood in a thousand gallons of water."
The search and rescue dogs helped map out a location for the divers.
Then, the divers took over the search. They worked in 20 to 30 minute shifts, diving and searching the 25 feet deep by 300 feet wide area.
However, divers said the search by hand in the murky water was a difficult task.
"Everything we do is by touch and feel," said diver Daniel Little. "Generally, there is no visibility at all. You are just using your hands."
The search ended Monday when a boater found Norman's body.
DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A boater found the body of a 45-year-old man who sank into the waters of Lake Ray Hubbard while trying to save his two sons Saturday night.
Ray Norman disappeared after struggling to put his 7-year-old and 14-year-old sons back into an overturned water tube. He was the only one not wearing a life-vest. His 4-year-old was left in the boat and his oldest child waved over a boater who anchored the boat to mark the spot.
The search began Saturday night. MARK-9 search and rescue dogs started off the search by sniffing out the search area. Ceilidh Charleson-Jennings, the public information officer for MARK-9, said scent travels well through water.
"Their scent is extraordinarily keen," Charleson-Jennings said. "Some research indicates [they can scent] a drop of blood in a thousand gallons of water."
The search and rescue dogs helped map out a location for the divers.
Then, the divers took over the search. They worked in 20 to 30 minute shifts, diving and searching the 25 feet deep by 300 feet wide area.
However, divers said the search by hand in the murky water was a difficult task.
"Everything we do is by touch and feel," said diver Daniel Little. "Generally, there is no visibility at all. You are just using your hands."
The search ended Monday when a boater found Norman's body.
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TexasStooge
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Veteran's family learn July 4 lesson
By BYRON HARRIS / WFAA ABC 8
DUNCANVILLE, Texas - With thousands of Texans in Iraq this July 4, Independence Day has taken on a new meaning for many families. One Duncanville family's experience has given them a new perspective on those who sacrifice for democracy this holiday.
As David Williams' National Guard scout unit patrols the desert near Camp Taquaddam Iraq, his family was thinking of what July 4 means to them.
Williams' daughter Christina marched in the Duncanville July 4 parade while her mother, Jennifer, and brothers watched. The whole family said they have a deeper feeling of what it means to be an American since Williams was deployed.
"This year it's different," Jennifer Williams said. "I've never thought before about the sacrifice that people give and so this year we are honoring what our loved ones give up on this day."
A new perspective on freedom isn't the only lesson Jennifer Williams has learned from her husband. She also learned that Iraqi kids were in serious need of shoes.
Williams took her husband's news and started a drive, which News 8 reported. Then "Shoes for little feet," as she called it, took off.
We had a company called Shoes for Orphan Souls that called me and said we want to help you. And they agreed to donate a 1,000 pairs of brand new shoes and a 1,000 pairs of socks.
While Williams is now known as the shoe lady, she has also gotten donations of shaving cream, suntan lotion and tarps for troops' leaky tents.
"It's nice to be able to understand what the Fourth of July is," she said. "Before it was just going to a parade and having fun and the real meaning comes home now."
By BYRON HARRIS / WFAA ABC 8
DUNCANVILLE, Texas - With thousands of Texans in Iraq this July 4, Independence Day has taken on a new meaning for many families. One Duncanville family's experience has given them a new perspective on those who sacrifice for democracy this holiday.
As David Williams' National Guard scout unit patrols the desert near Camp Taquaddam Iraq, his family was thinking of what July 4 means to them.
Williams' daughter Christina marched in the Duncanville July 4 parade while her mother, Jennifer, and brothers watched. The whole family said they have a deeper feeling of what it means to be an American since Williams was deployed.
"This year it's different," Jennifer Williams said. "I've never thought before about the sacrifice that people give and so this year we are honoring what our loved ones give up on this day."
A new perspective on freedom isn't the only lesson Jennifer Williams has learned from her husband. She also learned that Iraqi kids were in serious need of shoes.
Williams took her husband's news and started a drive, which News 8 reported. Then "Shoes for little feet," as she called it, took off.
We had a company called Shoes for Orphan Souls that called me and said we want to help you. And they agreed to donate a 1,000 pairs of brand new shoes and a 1,000 pairs of socks.
While Williams is now known as the shoe lady, she has also gotten donations of shaving cream, suntan lotion and tarps for troops' leaky tents.
"It's nice to be able to understand what the Fourth of July is," she said. "Before it was just going to a parade and having fun and the real meaning comes home now."
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TexasStooge
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Bedford woman killed, husband jailed
Oldest of 3 children called 911; police had been to house before
By MARISSA ALANIS / The Dallas Morning News
BEDFORD, Texas - A 36-year-old mother was fatally stabbed by her husband Saturday night after the couple had an argument in their Bedford home, police said.
Israel Santiago-Oquendo, 32, stabbed his wife, Sonia N. Quinones, in the chest and the back of her torso, police said. Ms. Quinones was taken from their home at 1109 Bryan Circle to John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth and died at 10:54 p.m.
Police arrested Mr. Santiago-Oquendo early Sunday morning after questioning him at the police station. He has been arraigned on a charge of murder. He was being held Sunday in the Bedford City Jail in lieu of $250,000 bail.
The couple's 13-year-old son called 911 at 9:46 p.m. to report that his parents were fighting and his mother was bleeding, said Bedford police Lt. Kirk Roberts.
Lt. Roberts said he didn't know what triggered the argument, but he added that police have learned what the couple may have fought about.
"We have some information that there had at least been some discussion or a direct conflict between the two of them about a possible divorce or separation," he said.
The incident wasn't the first time police responded to a call at the family's home. Police visited the home on Tuesday to check out a domestic disturbance call. Lt. Roberts said no physical violence or injuries were reported at the time.
Bedford police also charged Mr. Santiago-Oquendo with assault causing bodily injury to a family member in 2002.
The couple also has an 8-year-old boy and a 10-year-old girl who were inside the home during the incident. Police are investigating whether the children witnessed the stabbing.
Police also are questioning a 44-year-old female family member who lived with the couple and was inside the home during the incident.
"I believe she saw portions of the argument, and I don't know right at this point if she saw parts of it that caused the specific injuries," Lt. Roberts said.
Neighbor Ashley Hendron said she had heard yelling coming from inside the couple's home, but she said it sounded playful.
"I almost wish I had reacted to the noise and gone over there and done something because maybe I could have done something for her," said Ms. Hendron.
Ms. Hendron said the couple's three children stayed with her for about an hour and a half while police investigated the crime scene.
Ms. Hendron said the children were visibly shaken; one said she was afraid to lose her mother.
The 13-year-old son remained quiet, but the 8-year-old son talked a little about his parents' argument, said Ms. Hendron.
"He said there was an argument between the two and the father got very upset and had broken all the phones in the home and started throwing stuff," she said.
Ms. Hendron said her two daughters would sometimes play with the couple's 10-year-old daughter. And she described Ms. Quinones as quiet and pleasant.
"They seemed like a normal family, but behind closed doors, you never know," said Ms. Hendron.
Oldest of 3 children called 911; police had been to house before
By MARISSA ALANIS / The Dallas Morning News
BEDFORD, Texas - A 36-year-old mother was fatally stabbed by her husband Saturday night after the couple had an argument in their Bedford home, police said.
Israel Santiago-Oquendo, 32, stabbed his wife, Sonia N. Quinones, in the chest and the back of her torso, police said. Ms. Quinones was taken from their home at 1109 Bryan Circle to John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth and died at 10:54 p.m.
Police arrested Mr. Santiago-Oquendo early Sunday morning after questioning him at the police station. He has been arraigned on a charge of murder. He was being held Sunday in the Bedford City Jail in lieu of $250,000 bail.
The couple's 13-year-old son called 911 at 9:46 p.m. to report that his parents were fighting and his mother was bleeding, said Bedford police Lt. Kirk Roberts.
Lt. Roberts said he didn't know what triggered the argument, but he added that police have learned what the couple may have fought about.
"We have some information that there had at least been some discussion or a direct conflict between the two of them about a possible divorce or separation," he said.
The incident wasn't the first time police responded to a call at the family's home. Police visited the home on Tuesday to check out a domestic disturbance call. Lt. Roberts said no physical violence or injuries were reported at the time.
Bedford police also charged Mr. Santiago-Oquendo with assault causing bodily injury to a family member in 2002.
The couple also has an 8-year-old boy and a 10-year-old girl who were inside the home during the incident. Police are investigating whether the children witnessed the stabbing.
Police also are questioning a 44-year-old female family member who lived with the couple and was inside the home during the incident.
"I believe she saw portions of the argument, and I don't know right at this point if she saw parts of it that caused the specific injuries," Lt. Roberts said.
Neighbor Ashley Hendron said she had heard yelling coming from inside the couple's home, but she said it sounded playful.
"I almost wish I had reacted to the noise and gone over there and done something because maybe I could have done something for her," said Ms. Hendron.
Ms. Hendron said the couple's three children stayed with her for about an hour and a half while police investigated the crime scene.
Ms. Hendron said the children were visibly shaken; one said she was afraid to lose her mother.
The 13-year-old son remained quiet, but the 8-year-old son talked a little about his parents' argument, said Ms. Hendron.
"He said there was an argument between the two and the father got very upset and had broken all the phones in the home and started throwing stuff," she said.
Ms. Hendron said her two daughters would sometimes play with the couple's 10-year-old daughter. And she described Ms. Quinones as quiet and pleasant.
"They seemed like a normal family, but behind closed doors, you never know," said Ms. Hendron.
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TexasStooge
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Lightning strike kills Lake Fork fisherman
Wood County: Man from Carrollton hit while boating to shore
By LaKISHA LADSON / The Dallas Morning News
WOOD COUNTY, Texas - Pete DiMercurio took his last picture about five minutes before he died.
He's holding a fish he'd just caught Saturday at Lake Fork in Wood County.
Sensing a storm and before they saw lightning, he and a co-worker headed from the middle of the reservoir back to shore.
"Unfortunately they waited a few seconds too late," said Ronny Ward, a state game warden from Wood County. "The victim was standing on the back deck of a bass boat, and lightning struck him in the head and killed him."
Mr. DiMercurio, 52, of Carrollton, was pronounced dead about 10 a.m., Mr. Ward said.
His fishing partner, a Haslet resident who was not identified, was knocked to the floor of the boat but was uninjured, Mr. Ward said.
Mr. DiMercurio was brought back to the bank, where Chris Parker, whose family owns the Minnow Bucket Marina, and others tried to resuscitate the man, to no avail.
"The guy was just laying in his boat kind of lifeless," Mr. Parker said. "I've never experienced this before."
This is believed to be the second fatal lightning strike on the reservoir since it opened in 1980. More than 10 years ago, two people died in a lightning strike, Mr. Ward said.
Mr. DiMercurio, originally from St. Louis, went fishing nearly every weekend, said his stepson, Brian Rives of Royse City.
"He loved to fish and hunt," he said.
Mr. DiMercurio's love of outdoor sports took him throughout Texas and, at least once a year, back to Missouri. He owned two Labradors to help with his hunting quests.
After working at Home Depot, he attended DeVry University in Irving, where he graduated at the top of his class, Mr. Rives said. He then started working with SBC Communications.
Mr. DiMercurio's family said he'd been to Lake Fork before. People are attracted to the lake, which the Greater Quitman Area Chamber of Commerce calls the Big Bass Capital of Texas, because of the large bass.
"People can come here and catch more large fish than they can catch anywhere else," Mr. Ward said.
With few other water amenities, however, the lake doesn't attract many families. The local motels don't even have swimming pools, Mr. Ward said. On holiday weekends, he said, there is even less traffic.
At the time of the lightning strike, there were several other fishermen nearby.
"Some people came off the water, some people stayed out there," Mr. Parker said. "To me, until the sun came back out, I don't think I'd gone back out there."
Mr. Ward said that Mr. DiMercurio's opportunity to fish with the boat owner came after another person canceled.
"He should have stayed home," he said.
In addition to his stepson, Mr. DiMercurio is survived by his wife, Susie Rives of Carrollton; son, Jonathan Rives of Carrollton; sister, Stela Giordano of Las Vegas; and one grandchild.
Funeral services are pending.
Wood County: Man from Carrollton hit while boating to shore
By LaKISHA LADSON / The Dallas Morning News
WOOD COUNTY, Texas - Pete DiMercurio took his last picture about five minutes before he died.
He's holding a fish he'd just caught Saturday at Lake Fork in Wood County.
Sensing a storm and before they saw lightning, he and a co-worker headed from the middle of the reservoir back to shore.
"Unfortunately they waited a few seconds too late," said Ronny Ward, a state game warden from Wood County. "The victim was standing on the back deck of a bass boat, and lightning struck him in the head and killed him."
Mr. DiMercurio, 52, of Carrollton, was pronounced dead about 10 a.m., Mr. Ward said.
His fishing partner, a Haslet resident who was not identified, was knocked to the floor of the boat but was uninjured, Mr. Ward said.
Mr. DiMercurio was brought back to the bank, where Chris Parker, whose family owns the Minnow Bucket Marina, and others tried to resuscitate the man, to no avail.
"The guy was just laying in his boat kind of lifeless," Mr. Parker said. "I've never experienced this before."
This is believed to be the second fatal lightning strike on the reservoir since it opened in 1980. More than 10 years ago, two people died in a lightning strike, Mr. Ward said.
Mr. DiMercurio, originally from St. Louis, went fishing nearly every weekend, said his stepson, Brian Rives of Royse City.
"He loved to fish and hunt," he said.
Mr. DiMercurio's love of outdoor sports took him throughout Texas and, at least once a year, back to Missouri. He owned two Labradors to help with his hunting quests.
After working at Home Depot, he attended DeVry University in Irving, where he graduated at the top of his class, Mr. Rives said. He then started working with SBC Communications.
Mr. DiMercurio's family said he'd been to Lake Fork before. People are attracted to the lake, which the Greater Quitman Area Chamber of Commerce calls the Big Bass Capital of Texas, because of the large bass.
"People can come here and catch more large fish than they can catch anywhere else," Mr. Ward said.
With few other water amenities, however, the lake doesn't attract many families. The local motels don't even have swimming pools, Mr. Ward said. On holiday weekends, he said, there is even less traffic.
At the time of the lightning strike, there were several other fishermen nearby.
"Some people came off the water, some people stayed out there," Mr. Parker said. "To me, until the sun came back out, I don't think I'd gone back out there."
Mr. Ward said that Mr. DiMercurio's opportunity to fish with the boat owner came after another person canceled.
"He should have stayed home," he said.
In addition to his stepson, Mr. DiMercurio is survived by his wife, Susie Rives of Carrollton; son, Jonathan Rives of Carrollton; sister, Stela Giordano of Las Vegas; and one grandchild.
Funeral services are pending.
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TexasStooge
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"Miracle" window causes controversy
By REBECCA RODRIGUEZ / WFAA ABC 8
FORT WORTH, Texas - A woman who saw the image of Jesus Christ in her window tried to retrieve the glass pane back from a church she donated it to Sunday. Clara Martinez said St. Augustine's Mexican National Catholic Church was neglecting the window and was worried it was in danger of being broken.
However, Fr. Jim Harris has said he has no intention of giving back the window.
A month ago the window drew crowds of onlooker to the Martinez apartment to see what some said was an image of Jesus Christ in the glass.
"Some people see a face," Fr. Harris said. "Some people will actually see a lot of detail."
In an attempt to share the window with the public, Martinez gave the window to the small parish on a quiet street in North West Fort Worth.
But Martinez said the church wasn't the sanctuary it appeared to be for the window. She said the window looked neglected in the yard of the church.
"And I saw it where it is," Martinez said. "It is leaning against the wall, there is no protection. It is nearly on the ground and a branch could fall and break it even more."
However, Harris said the window is exactly where it should be.
"We want to build a more permanent display for it, maybe protect it from the elements a little bit more." Harris said. "But it is a window. It is meant to be outside, so we're not too worried about that."
St. Augustine Catholic Church is not your typical catholic church. It is not part of the Fort Worth Diocese.
"Even those who try to follow Jesus to the best of their abilities don't always get along together," Fr. Harris said.
The irony that they were fighting over an image of Jesus isn't lost on Martinez either.
"For me, this is something divine and I don't want to be in this conflict," Martinez said.
She said she believes the image has faded a little since it has been at the church. However, she said she has faith it will all work out.
By REBECCA RODRIGUEZ / WFAA ABC 8
FORT WORTH, Texas - A woman who saw the image of Jesus Christ in her window tried to retrieve the glass pane back from a church she donated it to Sunday. Clara Martinez said St. Augustine's Mexican National Catholic Church was neglecting the window and was worried it was in danger of being broken.
However, Fr. Jim Harris has said he has no intention of giving back the window.
A month ago the window drew crowds of onlooker to the Martinez apartment to see what some said was an image of Jesus Christ in the glass.
"Some people see a face," Fr. Harris said. "Some people will actually see a lot of detail."
In an attempt to share the window with the public, Martinez gave the window to the small parish on a quiet street in North West Fort Worth.
But Martinez said the church wasn't the sanctuary it appeared to be for the window. She said the window looked neglected in the yard of the church.
"And I saw it where it is," Martinez said. "It is leaning against the wall, there is no protection. It is nearly on the ground and a branch could fall and break it even more."
However, Harris said the window is exactly where it should be.
"We want to build a more permanent display for it, maybe protect it from the elements a little bit more." Harris said. "But it is a window. It is meant to be outside, so we're not too worried about that."
St. Augustine Catholic Church is not your typical catholic church. It is not part of the Fort Worth Diocese.
"Even those who try to follow Jesus to the best of their abilities don't always get along together," Fr. Harris said.
The irony that they were fighting over an image of Jesus isn't lost on Martinez either.
"For me, this is something divine and I don't want to be in this conflict," Martinez said.
She said she believes the image has faded a little since it has been at the church. However, she said she has faith it will all work out.
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TexasStooge
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- Contact:
Pomp, parades highlight Fourth
North Texas: Fourth of July celebrations fulfill Founding Father's hope for fanfare, remembrance
By ROY APPLETON / The Dallas Morning News
Friends, families and crowds are gathering this Independence Day weekend at concerts and parades, parks and lakes, pools and grills – taking to heart, whether they know it or not, the words of John Adams.
America's big break from the British crown, the founding father wrote to his wife, should always be one big celebration:
"It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward for evermore."
Fireworks shows will light up the skies from downtown Dallas to Addison, Garland to Denton. Orchestras, community bands and Willie Nelson will set festive moods across North Texas.
And beyond the central cities and high-dollar productions, Americans of all stripes will find ways to honor the past and enjoy the moment.
For Jason Jeremie, the pursuit of happiness ends with a hot fuse setting off a joyful noise and bright colors above the land.
"I love that sound. That's the sound of the Fourth," he said as a Big Saturn missile screamed maniacally overhead.
As darkness settled in last week, the 20-year-old Allen resident and four friends stood in a field behind Alvin and Joann Lafon's fireworks ("We Are Always Cheaper") stand in rural Collin County. There, beyond any city's borders and rules, celebrants can get up close and personal with their purchases from the Lafons' six local stands.
"Every day somebody's nibbling at our rights," said Mr. Lafon, a resident of nearby Branch, who has been providing the free shooting ground along FM3286 near Lake Lavon for the last 15 or so years. "Let our people have some freedom. That's what this country's built on."
Mr. Jeremie and his group exercised some impromptu freedom with their trip to Lafon's. "We were just sitting around and the guys said, 'Let's go blow things up,' " said Courtney Wyatt, 18, of Allen.
That they did, startling the night with firecrackers, Roman candles and sky-burst artillery shells.
"We really live it up on the Fourth of July," said Mr. Jeremie, who proudly offered that he and five friends had spent "three grand" a day earlier on fireworks, including three 100,000-count rolls of firecrackers. "You ought to hear it," he said, when the strips are laid out and lighted in several spots at once.
Burning money? No, Mr. Jeremie said.
"It's worth it being out here, celebrating with friends, putting on a show, bringing joy to people."
He watches his buddy Nathan Machost light a 500-gram block of gunpowder, sending up 36 sequenced shots of exploding reds, greens and whites. That's $42.50 gone in a flash.
"It was worth it, yeah," said Mr. Machost, 20, of Allen. "Hear the oohs and aahs?"
If history is a guide, the field will be thick with fired-up people, some with grills and ice chests, tonight and Monday. "It'll get stronger, stronger and stronger," Mr. Lafon said of his crowds as the Fourth approaches. "Nothing like having a good meal and going out and shooting some fireworks."
Mr. Jeremie said he would be back Monday, if not before. "If you want to see something, be out here the Fourth," he said. "We're going to put on a show."
Dave Pawson's patriotism and love of history are back in bloom along a Plano roadway.
In the 2600 block of Independence Parkway, along the city's Monday parade route, stand 122 of his replica flags, including 27 variations of the Stars and Stripes.
"It gives me a chance to get the collection out, exercise it," Mr. Pawson said Saturday morning after he and his wife and their two sons had set out the flags for the first of a three-day show.
The 46-year-old locksmith has collected "thousands" of flags since growing up on a military base, the son of a career Army officer. "Countries, states, historic, corporate," he said. "I have no idea anymore" how many are displayed, filed and folded about his Plano home.
He began his public July Fourth offering in 1980 but stopped seven years ago after "vultures in human skin," as he put it then, swiped some of his flags.
He's trying again because "I like it" and "it is the Fourth of July."
Mr. Pawson and his family will keep close watch as the display stands behind his parents' home. He has prepared a handout and as before will be on hand to talk about the flags and their underlying history.
"You never know what it is that will ignite that spark in a kid that American history is neat," he said.
The arrangement includes battle flags, protest flags and militia flags from the Revolutionary War period.
"These men fought and died and fought and lived to establish our country," he said. "It's a way to give our thanks."
At 10 a.m. Monday in northern Collin County, Mary Jones will climb aboard a red 1965 Ford Mustang convertible and star in her hometown's holiday celebration.
"Hey, it can't get much better than that," Ms. Jones said of the machine she will ride through Weston as grand marshal of the city's July Fourth parade.
From a lawn chair she has watched and sometimes videotaped many a procession – the antique cars, tractors, horses, bicycles, wagons, walkers and whatever else crept by her house and flag-adorned yard on Chicken Street.
This year she will wave from a different perspective, toward friends, family and strangers. For isn't that what a grand marshal is supposed to do?
"I have no idea," she chuckled. "This is all new to me."
A Weston resident for 42 years, Ms. Jones will reign over her town's 20th annual parade because, at age 79, she is what organizers – as in the volunteer fire department – were looking for.
"We try to get the oldest person in town," said James Atkins, fire marshal of what claims to be the oldest town in Collin County. "And she's about the oldest."
No dispute from the honoree: "I guess that must be me this year."
Open to anyone, the parade will start near the juncture of FM543 and FM455 and snake through the town of about 650 people, past most of its homes and businesses and the bleachers set up again for the Main Street crowds.
"You never know what you're going to have," said Mr. Atkins, recalling parades that "locked up," unable to move, when their head overran their tail. "We've had more than a hundred entries in this little one-horse town."
Live music and visiting, barbecue and snow cones will follow. The women's group's bake sale will again raise money for the town's Halloween carnival, Christmas tree lighting and other civic projects. Postmaster Debbie Reyno says she probably will contribute buttermilk and pecan pies, a chocolate sheath cake or two and maybe some peach cobbler.
"I'll probably be baking all night before," she said.
Ms. Jones said she was "tickled to death" yet surprised by her selection, particularly after some past run-ins with the Weston water board and mayor over her property. "I'm the bad boy of the town," she said, smiling. "This is the first time I've been asked to do anything."
The grand marshal says she will wear white slacks and a red and blue blouse for her time of celebrity. She will stay with the gathering until it gets too hot, and then join some of her family at home for their usual spread of barbecued ribs, fried chicken, coleslaw, baked beans and chocolate cake.
"I just cook it and put it on the table," said Ms. Jones, whose brood includes two sons, a daughter, seven grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. "They eat from the time they come until the time they leave."
For years, she and the family spent the Fourth camping, fishing and four-wheeling at Lake Texoma. Since the death of her husband, Lowell, the holiday (until this year) has calmed.
But her patriotism and respect for the nation's military lingers.
"I think about our veterans," she said. "They've done so much for this country. They are our independence."
North Texas: Fourth of July celebrations fulfill Founding Father's hope for fanfare, remembrance
By ROY APPLETON / The Dallas Morning News
Friends, families and crowds are gathering this Independence Day weekend at concerts and parades, parks and lakes, pools and grills – taking to heart, whether they know it or not, the words of John Adams.
America's big break from the British crown, the founding father wrote to his wife, should always be one big celebration:
"It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward for evermore."
Fireworks shows will light up the skies from downtown Dallas to Addison, Garland to Denton. Orchestras, community bands and Willie Nelson will set festive moods across North Texas.
And beyond the central cities and high-dollar productions, Americans of all stripes will find ways to honor the past and enjoy the moment.
For Jason Jeremie, the pursuit of happiness ends with a hot fuse setting off a joyful noise and bright colors above the land.
"I love that sound. That's the sound of the Fourth," he said as a Big Saturn missile screamed maniacally overhead.
As darkness settled in last week, the 20-year-old Allen resident and four friends stood in a field behind Alvin and Joann Lafon's fireworks ("We Are Always Cheaper") stand in rural Collin County. There, beyond any city's borders and rules, celebrants can get up close and personal with their purchases from the Lafons' six local stands.
"Every day somebody's nibbling at our rights," said Mr. Lafon, a resident of nearby Branch, who has been providing the free shooting ground along FM3286 near Lake Lavon for the last 15 or so years. "Let our people have some freedom. That's what this country's built on."
Mr. Jeremie and his group exercised some impromptu freedom with their trip to Lafon's. "We were just sitting around and the guys said, 'Let's go blow things up,' " said Courtney Wyatt, 18, of Allen.
That they did, startling the night with firecrackers, Roman candles and sky-burst artillery shells.
"We really live it up on the Fourth of July," said Mr. Jeremie, who proudly offered that he and five friends had spent "three grand" a day earlier on fireworks, including three 100,000-count rolls of firecrackers. "You ought to hear it," he said, when the strips are laid out and lighted in several spots at once.
Burning money? No, Mr. Jeremie said.
"It's worth it being out here, celebrating with friends, putting on a show, bringing joy to people."
He watches his buddy Nathan Machost light a 500-gram block of gunpowder, sending up 36 sequenced shots of exploding reds, greens and whites. That's $42.50 gone in a flash.
"It was worth it, yeah," said Mr. Machost, 20, of Allen. "Hear the oohs and aahs?"
If history is a guide, the field will be thick with fired-up people, some with grills and ice chests, tonight and Monday. "It'll get stronger, stronger and stronger," Mr. Lafon said of his crowds as the Fourth approaches. "Nothing like having a good meal and going out and shooting some fireworks."
Mr. Jeremie said he would be back Monday, if not before. "If you want to see something, be out here the Fourth," he said. "We're going to put on a show."
Dave Pawson's patriotism and love of history are back in bloom along a Plano roadway.
In the 2600 block of Independence Parkway, along the city's Monday parade route, stand 122 of his replica flags, including 27 variations of the Stars and Stripes.
"It gives me a chance to get the collection out, exercise it," Mr. Pawson said Saturday morning after he and his wife and their two sons had set out the flags for the first of a three-day show.
The 46-year-old locksmith has collected "thousands" of flags since growing up on a military base, the son of a career Army officer. "Countries, states, historic, corporate," he said. "I have no idea anymore" how many are displayed, filed and folded about his Plano home.
He began his public July Fourth offering in 1980 but stopped seven years ago after "vultures in human skin," as he put it then, swiped some of his flags.
He's trying again because "I like it" and "it is the Fourth of July."
Mr. Pawson and his family will keep close watch as the display stands behind his parents' home. He has prepared a handout and as before will be on hand to talk about the flags and their underlying history.
"You never know what it is that will ignite that spark in a kid that American history is neat," he said.
The arrangement includes battle flags, protest flags and militia flags from the Revolutionary War period.
"These men fought and died and fought and lived to establish our country," he said. "It's a way to give our thanks."
At 10 a.m. Monday in northern Collin County, Mary Jones will climb aboard a red 1965 Ford Mustang convertible and star in her hometown's holiday celebration.
"Hey, it can't get much better than that," Ms. Jones said of the machine she will ride through Weston as grand marshal of the city's July Fourth parade.
From a lawn chair she has watched and sometimes videotaped many a procession – the antique cars, tractors, horses, bicycles, wagons, walkers and whatever else crept by her house and flag-adorned yard on Chicken Street.
This year she will wave from a different perspective, toward friends, family and strangers. For isn't that what a grand marshal is supposed to do?
"I have no idea," she chuckled. "This is all new to me."
A Weston resident for 42 years, Ms. Jones will reign over her town's 20th annual parade because, at age 79, she is what organizers – as in the volunteer fire department – were looking for.
"We try to get the oldest person in town," said James Atkins, fire marshal of what claims to be the oldest town in Collin County. "And she's about the oldest."
No dispute from the honoree: "I guess that must be me this year."
Open to anyone, the parade will start near the juncture of FM543 and FM455 and snake through the town of about 650 people, past most of its homes and businesses and the bleachers set up again for the Main Street crowds.
"You never know what you're going to have," said Mr. Atkins, recalling parades that "locked up," unable to move, when their head overran their tail. "We've had more than a hundred entries in this little one-horse town."
Live music and visiting, barbecue and snow cones will follow. The women's group's bake sale will again raise money for the town's Halloween carnival, Christmas tree lighting and other civic projects. Postmaster Debbie Reyno says she probably will contribute buttermilk and pecan pies, a chocolate sheath cake or two and maybe some peach cobbler.
"I'll probably be baking all night before," she said.
Ms. Jones said she was "tickled to death" yet surprised by her selection, particularly after some past run-ins with the Weston water board and mayor over her property. "I'm the bad boy of the town," she said, smiling. "This is the first time I've been asked to do anything."
The grand marshal says she will wear white slacks and a red and blue blouse for her time of celebrity. She will stay with the gathering until it gets too hot, and then join some of her family at home for their usual spread of barbecued ribs, fried chicken, coleslaw, baked beans and chocolate cake.
"I just cook it and put it on the table," said Ms. Jones, whose brood includes two sons, a daughter, seven grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. "They eat from the time they come until the time they leave."
For years, she and the family spent the Fourth camping, fishing and four-wheeling at Lake Texoma. Since the death of her husband, Lowell, the holiday (until this year) has calmed.
But her patriotism and respect for the nation's military lingers.
"I think about our veterans," she said. "They've done so much for this country. They are our independence."
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TexasStooge
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Woman dies after drive-through shooting
DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A Richardson woman critically injured Thursday afternoon when a bullet struck her in the head in Pleasant Grove has died.
Sara Linebaugh, 52, died at 9 p.m. Saturday at Baylor University Medical Center.
Ms. Linebaugh was waiting in a drive-through lane to pick up food at Wok Express in the 1200 block of South Buckner Boulevard when a bullet pierced her windshield.
Dallas police said the bullet probably came from the parking lot of the CVS Pharmacy across the street, where two people had been arguing.
Police said they are looking for a suspect who fled in a red car.
Authorities ask that anyone with information call 214-671-3584.
DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A Richardson woman critically injured Thursday afternoon when a bullet struck her in the head in Pleasant Grove has died.
Sara Linebaugh, 52, died at 9 p.m. Saturday at Baylor University Medical Center.
Ms. Linebaugh was waiting in a drive-through lane to pick up food at Wok Express in the 1200 block of South Buckner Boulevard when a bullet pierced her windshield.
Dallas police said the bullet probably came from the parking lot of the CVS Pharmacy across the street, where two people had been arguing.
Police said they are looking for a suspect who fled in a red car.
Authorities ask that anyone with information call 214-671-3584.
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TexasStooge
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3 Plano homes catch fire
PLANO, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Fire investigators are trying to determine what caused three homes to catch fire Sunday morning in Plano.
The homes were under construction in a new subdivision called Preston Lakes near Tulane and Ohio Drives.
Two of the houses were completely destroyed and the other only endured minor damage. The homes were all empty and there were no reported injuries.
Fire investigators said they will try to determine if arson was responsible for the fire.
"I hope they find whoever did it or find out what happened," said neighbor Tom Cottone. "It's not a good thing...I don't like to see this at all."
The damage for all three homes was estimated at $250,000.
PLANO, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Fire investigators are trying to determine what caused three homes to catch fire Sunday morning in Plano.
The homes were under construction in a new subdivision called Preston Lakes near Tulane and Ohio Drives.
Two of the houses were completely destroyed and the other only endured minor damage. The homes were all empty and there were no reported injuries.
Fire investigators said they will try to determine if arson was responsible for the fire.
"I hope they find whoever did it or find out what happened," said neighbor Tom Cottone. "It's not a good thing...I don't like to see this at all."
The damage for all three homes was estimated at $250,000.
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TexasStooge
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School financing fought on 2 fronts
State's high court to hear case as special session struggles along
By TERRENCE STUTZ / The Dallas Morning News
AUSTIN, Texas – Turned off by the Legislature's repeated attempts to redo education funding in Texas, hundreds of school districts are pinning their hopes on the state Supreme Court instead.
The high court will hear arguments on the volatile issue Wednesday, taking up the state's appeal of a lower court decision that ordered lawmakers to overhaul the $33 billion-a-year school finance system and shell out billions more.
It's the sixth time in the last decade-and-a-half that the court will weigh in on the issue. And this hearing comes right in the middle of a special session where lawmakers are struggling to reach a deal on school funding and a tax overhaul that would trade property tax cuts for hikes in other levies – even while districts say any potential compromise would be woefully inadequate.
"Nearly everybody I know has given up on the Legislature and is ready to take our chances with the Supreme Court," said Clayton Downing, director of the Texas School Coalition and former superintendent of Lewisville schools. The coalition represents about a hundred property-wealthy school districts.
But state leaders such as Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, who presides over the Senate, reject that line of reasoning, saying elected lawmakers should decide the fate of schools.
"Not surprisingly, many of them don't want the Legislature to pass any bill," Mr. Dewhurst said last week of superintendents who are weighing in with lawmakers. "They want to wait until the court rules, thinking that our schools would be better off.
"I happen to think just the opposite. This is the Legislature's duty, not the court's."
That viewpoint will be reflected in the arguments of state attorneys as they take on lawyers for more than 300 school districts that are challenging the school finance system. They won the first round last year before state District Judge John Dietz of Austin, who ruled for the plaintiffs on almost every major point in the case.
State Solicitor General Ted Cruz, who will present the state's appeal, will argue that Judge Dietz overstepped his authority. And he will urge the justices to bow and let the Legislature decide the proper level of funding for public schools.
"Courts in New York and New Jersey and other states have dived in and taken over their state education systems, and the result has been that education policy for those states is being made by judges rather than state legislators elected by the voters," he said. "Those supreme courts essentially function as state boards of education."
Plaintiff's position
Dallas lawyer George Bramblett, who represents a large group of the plaintiff districts – including Dallas – is prepared to rebut arguments that the court should defer to lawmakers.
"Before the first decision in this case [in 1989], there was a funding disparity of as much as 700 to 1 between poor and wealthy school districts," Mr. Bramblett said. "There was nothing to push the Legislature to eliminate those disparities until the courts intervened.
"The notion that the Legislature should be able to do whatever it wants to do is the same as saying: 'Tear up the constitution,' " he said. "When legislators fail to do their duty, they force the issue into the court system."
Arguments during Wednesday's hearing – which will last two hours – will center on three major findings by Judge Dietz:
•Texas schools are not adequately funded;
•The current maximum school property tax rate of $1.50 per $100 valuation is, in effect, an illegal state property tax; and
•The state system for financing school facilities shortchanges poor districts and violates constitutional requirements for equity.
School officials are most interested in the first point. Testimony in last summer's trial in Judge Dietz's court indicated that schools need $4 billion to $5 billion per year in new money to meet an array of state and federal requirements such as annual improvements in student test scores.
Bills the House and Senate are working on in the special session propose an increase of $1.5 billion a year – or an average 4.5 percent gain. Many districts would get less than that.
Wednesday's court hearing will touch only briefly on the issue of "Robin Hood" provisions requiring wealthy districts to share their property tax revenues. Judge Dietz did not order any changes affecting the share-the-wealth mandate, which was upheld by the Supreme Court in 1995.
The high court has ruled in favor of school districts and against the state five straight times on the long-running school finance issue. But Gov. Rick Perry has boldly predicted that the all-Republican court would change course this time.
Mr. Perry, who appointed some of the justices, said he had not had any conversations with them but was offering his opinion based on their conservative temperament.
Not worried
Dr. Downing, whose organization includes several districts that are plaintiffs, said those rooting for the court to uphold Judge Dietz are not worried by the governor's remarks.
"Our attorneys think the Supreme Court justices are people of integrity and they will rule based strictly on the evidence in this case," he said.
More than one supporter of the school districts noted that the current "Robin Hood" law was upheld in a decision written by a prominent Republican justice – John Cornyn, now a U.S. senator.
The justices will consider what they hear Wednesday with a deadline in mind – Judge Dietz gave the state until Oct. 1 to fix the system or cease funding schools. State attorneys will ask the justices to postpone the deadline, as a final decision from the high court is not expected until the fall.
Legislators have a deadline of their own. The special session must end July 20 – though Mr. Perry could call another. And the governor vetoed the entire education budget lawmakers had approved in their regular session, perhaps endangering the start of school in August.
With so much at stake, and the politically difficult choices the Legislature faces on schools and taxes, Dr. Downing predicts – and hopes – that lawmakers will wait for the court to force its hand.
"At least a Supreme Court ruling would give legislators cover and maybe cause them to go in a different direction," he said.
State's high court to hear case as special session struggles along
By TERRENCE STUTZ / The Dallas Morning News
AUSTIN, Texas – Turned off by the Legislature's repeated attempts to redo education funding in Texas, hundreds of school districts are pinning their hopes on the state Supreme Court instead.
The high court will hear arguments on the volatile issue Wednesday, taking up the state's appeal of a lower court decision that ordered lawmakers to overhaul the $33 billion-a-year school finance system and shell out billions more.
It's the sixth time in the last decade-and-a-half that the court will weigh in on the issue. And this hearing comes right in the middle of a special session where lawmakers are struggling to reach a deal on school funding and a tax overhaul that would trade property tax cuts for hikes in other levies – even while districts say any potential compromise would be woefully inadequate.
"Nearly everybody I know has given up on the Legislature and is ready to take our chances with the Supreme Court," said Clayton Downing, director of the Texas School Coalition and former superintendent of Lewisville schools. The coalition represents about a hundred property-wealthy school districts.
But state leaders such as Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, who presides over the Senate, reject that line of reasoning, saying elected lawmakers should decide the fate of schools.
"Not surprisingly, many of them don't want the Legislature to pass any bill," Mr. Dewhurst said last week of superintendents who are weighing in with lawmakers. "They want to wait until the court rules, thinking that our schools would be better off.
"I happen to think just the opposite. This is the Legislature's duty, not the court's."
That viewpoint will be reflected in the arguments of state attorneys as they take on lawyers for more than 300 school districts that are challenging the school finance system. They won the first round last year before state District Judge John Dietz of Austin, who ruled for the plaintiffs on almost every major point in the case.
State Solicitor General Ted Cruz, who will present the state's appeal, will argue that Judge Dietz overstepped his authority. And he will urge the justices to bow and let the Legislature decide the proper level of funding for public schools.
"Courts in New York and New Jersey and other states have dived in and taken over their state education systems, and the result has been that education policy for those states is being made by judges rather than state legislators elected by the voters," he said. "Those supreme courts essentially function as state boards of education."
Plaintiff's position
Dallas lawyer George Bramblett, who represents a large group of the plaintiff districts – including Dallas – is prepared to rebut arguments that the court should defer to lawmakers.
"Before the first decision in this case [in 1989], there was a funding disparity of as much as 700 to 1 between poor and wealthy school districts," Mr. Bramblett said. "There was nothing to push the Legislature to eliminate those disparities until the courts intervened.
"The notion that the Legislature should be able to do whatever it wants to do is the same as saying: 'Tear up the constitution,' " he said. "When legislators fail to do their duty, they force the issue into the court system."
Arguments during Wednesday's hearing – which will last two hours – will center on three major findings by Judge Dietz:
•Texas schools are not adequately funded;
•The current maximum school property tax rate of $1.50 per $100 valuation is, in effect, an illegal state property tax; and
•The state system for financing school facilities shortchanges poor districts and violates constitutional requirements for equity.
School officials are most interested in the first point. Testimony in last summer's trial in Judge Dietz's court indicated that schools need $4 billion to $5 billion per year in new money to meet an array of state and federal requirements such as annual improvements in student test scores.
Bills the House and Senate are working on in the special session propose an increase of $1.5 billion a year – or an average 4.5 percent gain. Many districts would get less than that.
Wednesday's court hearing will touch only briefly on the issue of "Robin Hood" provisions requiring wealthy districts to share their property tax revenues. Judge Dietz did not order any changes affecting the share-the-wealth mandate, which was upheld by the Supreme Court in 1995.
The high court has ruled in favor of school districts and against the state five straight times on the long-running school finance issue. But Gov. Rick Perry has boldly predicted that the all-Republican court would change course this time.
Mr. Perry, who appointed some of the justices, said he had not had any conversations with them but was offering his opinion based on their conservative temperament.
Not worried
Dr. Downing, whose organization includes several districts that are plaintiffs, said those rooting for the court to uphold Judge Dietz are not worried by the governor's remarks.
"Our attorneys think the Supreme Court justices are people of integrity and they will rule based strictly on the evidence in this case," he said.
More than one supporter of the school districts noted that the current "Robin Hood" law was upheld in a decision written by a prominent Republican justice – John Cornyn, now a U.S. senator.
The justices will consider what they hear Wednesday with a deadline in mind – Judge Dietz gave the state until Oct. 1 to fix the system or cease funding schools. State attorneys will ask the justices to postpone the deadline, as a final decision from the high court is not expected until the fall.
Legislators have a deadline of their own. The special session must end July 20 – though Mr. Perry could call another. And the governor vetoed the entire education budget lawmakers had approved in their regular session, perhaps endangering the start of school in August.
With so much at stake, and the politically difficult choices the Legislature faces on schools and taxes, Dr. Downing predicts – and hopes – that lawmakers will wait for the court to force its hand.
"At least a Supreme Court ruling would give legislators cover and maybe cause them to go in a different direction," he said.
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TexasStooge
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- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2003 1:22 pm
- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
- Contact:
DART trains delayed by switch problem
DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is warning rail customers Tuesday to expect delays lasting between 30 and 40 minutes due to a switch problem near 8th & Corinth Station in Dallas.
“We’re working on it,” said Claudia Garibay, a DART spokeswoman. “(Normal service will resume) as soon as we get the wiring problem taken care of.”
In the meantime, DART is implementing a bus service to transport customers at the 8th & Corinth Station to the next available station and alerting customers to the delays.
Garibay said delays like this do not happen often, but when the delays happen, DART posts messages on its Web site and the conductors make announcements alerting customers.
Normal service should resume by the afternoon commute.
DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is warning rail customers Tuesday to expect delays lasting between 30 and 40 minutes due to a switch problem near 8th & Corinth Station in Dallas.
“We’re working on it,” said Claudia Garibay, a DART spokeswoman. “(Normal service will resume) as soon as we get the wiring problem taken care of.”
In the meantime, DART is implementing a bus service to transport customers at the 8th & Corinth Station to the next available station and alerting customers to the delays.
Garibay said delays like this do not happen often, but when the delays happen, DART posts messages on its Web site and the conductors make announcements alerting customers.
Normal service should resume by the afternoon commute.
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TexasStooge
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- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2003 1:22 pm
- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
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In Parkland budget, an uncertain feeling
Dallas: Government funds, medical school costs hard to pin down
By SHERRY JACOBSON / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Trying to piece together next year's budget for Dallas County's public hospital is a bit like spinning a roulette wheel.
Parkland Memorial Hospital could get $98 million in special government subsidies or up to $106 million. Its affiliation with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center could cost the hospital $56 million or as much as $98 million. And there could be a $44 million Medicaid payment from the state to settle a lawsuit the hospital won last year. Or there could be nothing.
Hospital officials say so many numbers are in flux right now that it is anyone's guess just how much local tax money will be needed to keep the financially strapped hospital operating next year. Officials said Parkland could end up with a $104 million surplus or be saddled with a $59 million deficit if everything goes sour.
"There is probably no budget more complicated than one for a public hospital, especially a teaching hospital," said Dr. Ron Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Parkland. "There are so many moving parts that you can't control, including the amount of money you receive and the number of patients you handle every year."
Dallas County taxpayers contributed $328 million, about 40 percent of Parkland's current operating budget. Officials expect to end the year with a $13 million surplus that will go into the hospital's cash reserves and capital improvement fund.
"If everything goes right, we can get by without a tax increase next year," Dr. Anderson predicted. "Our board members have said they don't see a need for it. We could come up with a positive bottom line, but it's going to be very narrow."
This week, the hospital's top administrators produced a list of 25 uncertain variables that will affect the hospital's finances next year – for good or bad. The uncertainty extends to the amount of Medicaid coverage for the hospital's poorest patients, first-time federal funding for undocumented patients who are treated in the emergency room as well as various federal subsidies for hospitals that shoulder a disproportionate share of indigent patients.
"We still don't know how much money we're going to get for the current fiscal year, not to mention the next fiscal year," said John Gates, the hospital's chief financial officer. "It's more difficult to calculate this year because the Legislature effectively is still in session and some of our Medicaid funding is open to discussion."
In May, Texas legislators voted to enroll the state's Medicaid patients in managed care programs, hoping to save as much as $109 million in future spending. Medicaid recipients in the Dallas area, however, were exempted from the requirement after intense lobbying by elected officials and business leaders.
The exemption will allow Parkland to attempt to draw an additional $25 million annually in federal matching funds for its Medicaid patients with the help of other local hospitals, Dr. Anderson noted.
"Maybe we get the money, or maybe not," said Richard Kneipper, a member of the hospital's Board of Managers, which combed through the uncertain budget numbers last week.
Another uncertainty is the growing cost of health care for county prisoners, which also comes out of Parkland's budget. The University of Texas Medical Branch provides the Dallas County Jail's medical services under a contract approved by the Dallas County Commissioners Court.
Parkland officials have been warned that the jail's health services could cost as much as $22 million next year, up from the current $14 million expenditure.
In recent months, embarrassing revelations of poor medical care in the jail have caused county commissioners to consider spending more to improve those services. However, Parkland gets stuck with the bill although it has no oversight of the care provided, unless the prisoners are sent to the public hospital for treatment.
"The board feels like we and Parkland have no control over jail health," said board member Louis Beecherl III. "We're wondering if the county commissioners could manage the money through their budget or the Sheriff's Department budget."
Commissioner John Wiley Price said it was the county's intention to increase Parkland's oversight of future jail contracts.
Dr. Anderson urged the commissioners to decide how the prisoners' medical care will be handled so that Parkland could move forward with its spending plan, which will go to the Commissioners Court on Aug. 30. The county panel has final approval over the hospital's budget and tax rate.
"The sooner the county makes a decision, the better for our budget," he said.
Dallas: Government funds, medical school costs hard to pin down
By SHERRY JACOBSON / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Trying to piece together next year's budget for Dallas County's public hospital is a bit like spinning a roulette wheel.
Parkland Memorial Hospital could get $98 million in special government subsidies or up to $106 million. Its affiliation with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center could cost the hospital $56 million or as much as $98 million. And there could be a $44 million Medicaid payment from the state to settle a lawsuit the hospital won last year. Or there could be nothing.
Hospital officials say so many numbers are in flux right now that it is anyone's guess just how much local tax money will be needed to keep the financially strapped hospital operating next year. Officials said Parkland could end up with a $104 million surplus or be saddled with a $59 million deficit if everything goes sour.
"There is probably no budget more complicated than one for a public hospital, especially a teaching hospital," said Dr. Ron Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Parkland. "There are so many moving parts that you can't control, including the amount of money you receive and the number of patients you handle every year."
Dallas County taxpayers contributed $328 million, about 40 percent of Parkland's current operating budget. Officials expect to end the year with a $13 million surplus that will go into the hospital's cash reserves and capital improvement fund.
"If everything goes right, we can get by without a tax increase next year," Dr. Anderson predicted. "Our board members have said they don't see a need for it. We could come up with a positive bottom line, but it's going to be very narrow."
This week, the hospital's top administrators produced a list of 25 uncertain variables that will affect the hospital's finances next year – for good or bad. The uncertainty extends to the amount of Medicaid coverage for the hospital's poorest patients, first-time federal funding for undocumented patients who are treated in the emergency room as well as various federal subsidies for hospitals that shoulder a disproportionate share of indigent patients.
"We still don't know how much money we're going to get for the current fiscal year, not to mention the next fiscal year," said John Gates, the hospital's chief financial officer. "It's more difficult to calculate this year because the Legislature effectively is still in session and some of our Medicaid funding is open to discussion."
In May, Texas legislators voted to enroll the state's Medicaid patients in managed care programs, hoping to save as much as $109 million in future spending. Medicaid recipients in the Dallas area, however, were exempted from the requirement after intense lobbying by elected officials and business leaders.
The exemption will allow Parkland to attempt to draw an additional $25 million annually in federal matching funds for its Medicaid patients with the help of other local hospitals, Dr. Anderson noted.
"Maybe we get the money, or maybe not," said Richard Kneipper, a member of the hospital's Board of Managers, which combed through the uncertain budget numbers last week.
Another uncertainty is the growing cost of health care for county prisoners, which also comes out of Parkland's budget. The University of Texas Medical Branch provides the Dallas County Jail's medical services under a contract approved by the Dallas County Commissioners Court.
Parkland officials have been warned that the jail's health services could cost as much as $22 million next year, up from the current $14 million expenditure.
In recent months, embarrassing revelations of poor medical care in the jail have caused county commissioners to consider spending more to improve those services. However, Parkland gets stuck with the bill although it has no oversight of the care provided, unless the prisoners are sent to the public hospital for treatment.
"The board feels like we and Parkland have no control over jail health," said board member Louis Beecherl III. "We're wondering if the county commissioners could manage the money through their budget or the Sheriff's Department budget."
Commissioner John Wiley Price said it was the county's intention to increase Parkland's oversight of future jail contracts.
Dr. Anderson urged the commissioners to decide how the prisoners' medical care will be handled so that Parkland could move forward with its spending plan, which will go to the Commissioners Court on Aug. 30. The county panel has final approval over the hospital's budget and tax rate.
"The sooner the county makes a decision, the better for our budget," he said.
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TexasStooge
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Miller recall backers: Effort is a go
Dallas: Clergy say they have enough signatures in bid to oust Miller
By DAVE LEVINTHAL / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Participants in an effort to derail Dallas Mayor Laura Miller's political career say they've collected enough valid voter signatures to recall her.
Tuesday is the deadline for Clergy for Recall, a group composed primarily of southern Dallas pastors, to submit at least 72,873 signatures to City Secretary Shirley Acy. If she certifies the signatures, the city must schedule a special mayoral election – likely in November – in which Ms. Miller would be forced to fight against any number of challengers.
Ms. Miller had no comment Monday but plans to release a statement today, said Frank Librio, her chief of staff.
Two attendees of a Sunday meeting of recall leaders said enough signatures had been gathered. Rich Sheridan, coordinator of the group's North Dallas efforts, also said enough signatures had been obtained.
Clergy for Recall has booked City Hall's Flag Room – often used for news conferences – for Tuesday afternoon.
But as of Monday, top recall leaders refused to answer inquiries about the effort, as they have for most of the 60-day signature-gathering period that began the day before voters roundly rejected a strong-mayor proposition that would have granted Ms. Miller and future mayors new powers.
Recall effort supporter Wendell Blair Sr., pastor of New True Vine of Holiness Missionary Baptist Church, said Monday that he couldn't say whether enough signatures had been obtained.
A similar coalition of southern-sector clergy failed in two recall attempts in late 2003 and early 2004. They argue that Ms. Miller has failed to represent the interests of black Dallasites.
Dallas: Clergy say they have enough signatures in bid to oust Miller
By DAVE LEVINTHAL / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Participants in an effort to derail Dallas Mayor Laura Miller's political career say they've collected enough valid voter signatures to recall her.
Tuesday is the deadline for Clergy for Recall, a group composed primarily of southern Dallas pastors, to submit at least 72,873 signatures to City Secretary Shirley Acy. If she certifies the signatures, the city must schedule a special mayoral election – likely in November – in which Ms. Miller would be forced to fight against any number of challengers.
Ms. Miller had no comment Monday but plans to release a statement today, said Frank Librio, her chief of staff.
Two attendees of a Sunday meeting of recall leaders said enough signatures had been gathered. Rich Sheridan, coordinator of the group's North Dallas efforts, also said enough signatures had been obtained.
Clergy for Recall has booked City Hall's Flag Room – often used for news conferences – for Tuesday afternoon.
But as of Monday, top recall leaders refused to answer inquiries about the effort, as they have for most of the 60-day signature-gathering period that began the day before voters roundly rejected a strong-mayor proposition that would have granted Ms. Miller and future mayors new powers.
Recall effort supporter Wendell Blair Sr., pastor of New True Vine of Holiness Missionary Baptist Church, said Monday that he couldn't say whether enough signatures had been obtained.
A similar coalition of southern-sector clergy failed in two recall attempts in late 2003 and early 2004. They argue that Ms. Miller has failed to represent the interests of black Dallasites.
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TexasStooge
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Library director's back in the stacks
Dallas: Evans hopes third stint is charm despite tight budget
By KATIE MENZER / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Laurie Evans jokes she's the Dallas Public Library's bad penny.
She's quit the library three times and returned three times.
But some argue it's her devotion to her first love that's kept her coming back. Her first job out of college was in the children's section of the Casa View branch library.
Now, 36 years later, she's been named the system's director.
"I think she's just drawn to it," said June Leftwich, a longtime library volunteer and chairwoman of Dallas' Municipal Library Board. "It's a compelling institution because, without it, where would we be?"
Ms. Evans spent almost a year as the library's interim director before being named to the post in May. The previous director, Ramiro Salazar, was named interim assistant city manager in 2004.
She might be heading up the institution she loves, but Ms. Evans knows she doesn't have an easy road ahead. Preliminary city budget numbers suggest that the library will need to cut more than $880,000 from its costs next fiscal year, with the heftiest slice coming from the new-book budget.
The library might also have to reduce its materials-delivery service from five days a week to two. That service trucks books and other media between libraries for patrons who can't drive to get them.
The cuts will be hard to take, but Ms. Evans said they are better than the alternative: laying people off.
"We are at bare bones in terms of service and what we can provide," she said. "This will be easier to manage than cutting staff."
City Manager Mary Suhm said she has faith that the new director will keep the books balanced and readers happy. Ms. Evans was the city manager's boss for a few months in the late 1970s when the two worked together at the Forest Green branch.
Ms. Suhm was an adult librarian, and Ms. Evans was her manager, and the two are old friends.
"She's smart and cares about the people who work for her," Ms. Suhm said. "And she gets stuff done."
Ms. Evans said she's using a little something from each job she's had through the years in her new position.
In 1976, she was named the library system's first community-service librarian, a position that taught her the importance of keeping libraries linked to the communities they serve.
She spent five years running a library consulting business, which helped her understand the ins and outs of running a library. The 11 years she spent in hospital administration before returning to the library in 1998 have given her a taste of the business world.
Now, she's back in the stacks, and it's her mission to prove to the people of Dallas that the library is not only a place they want to visit, it's also a place they want to pay for.
That's why she wants a statewide economic-impact study of libraries. It's also why she's out beating the brush for corporate sponsors for her new program, "authorspeak," the first author lecture series presented by the library system.
The series will bring David Baldacci, James Earl Jones and Amy Tan – along with a lot of attention to the Dallas library system – in its first year.
"The problem is, we need to show in real dollars and cents the return on investment that libraries provide to the community," Ms. Evans said.
She's also hoping to get a second bookmobile on the road and has begun a new branding campaign, "This is My Library," to raise awareness of existing programs and bring more in the coming years.
"We have so much to offer, and we want everyone to know what we have," she said.
Ms. Evans' librarian influence even shows up in her cooking. No professional bookworm can, after all, stand to use just one reference book.
"I'll read up on it – looking at several recipes in several cookbooks – then devise my own way of doing it," she said.
Dallas: Evans hopes third stint is charm despite tight budget
By KATIE MENZER / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Laurie Evans jokes she's the Dallas Public Library's bad penny.
She's quit the library three times and returned three times.
But some argue it's her devotion to her first love that's kept her coming back. Her first job out of college was in the children's section of the Casa View branch library.
Now, 36 years later, she's been named the system's director.
"I think she's just drawn to it," said June Leftwich, a longtime library volunteer and chairwoman of Dallas' Municipal Library Board. "It's a compelling institution because, without it, where would we be?"
Ms. Evans spent almost a year as the library's interim director before being named to the post in May. The previous director, Ramiro Salazar, was named interim assistant city manager in 2004.
She might be heading up the institution she loves, but Ms. Evans knows she doesn't have an easy road ahead. Preliminary city budget numbers suggest that the library will need to cut more than $880,000 from its costs next fiscal year, with the heftiest slice coming from the new-book budget.
The library might also have to reduce its materials-delivery service from five days a week to two. That service trucks books and other media between libraries for patrons who can't drive to get them.
The cuts will be hard to take, but Ms. Evans said they are better than the alternative: laying people off.
"We are at bare bones in terms of service and what we can provide," she said. "This will be easier to manage than cutting staff."
City Manager Mary Suhm said she has faith that the new director will keep the books balanced and readers happy. Ms. Evans was the city manager's boss for a few months in the late 1970s when the two worked together at the Forest Green branch.
Ms. Suhm was an adult librarian, and Ms. Evans was her manager, and the two are old friends.
"She's smart and cares about the people who work for her," Ms. Suhm said. "And she gets stuff done."
Ms. Evans said she's using a little something from each job she's had through the years in her new position.
In 1976, she was named the library system's first community-service librarian, a position that taught her the importance of keeping libraries linked to the communities they serve.
She spent five years running a library consulting business, which helped her understand the ins and outs of running a library. The 11 years she spent in hospital administration before returning to the library in 1998 have given her a taste of the business world.
Now, she's back in the stacks, and it's her mission to prove to the people of Dallas that the library is not only a place they want to visit, it's also a place they want to pay for.
That's why she wants a statewide economic-impact study of libraries. It's also why she's out beating the brush for corporate sponsors for her new program, "authorspeak," the first author lecture series presented by the library system.
The series will bring David Baldacci, James Earl Jones and Amy Tan – along with a lot of attention to the Dallas library system – in its first year.
"The problem is, we need to show in real dollars and cents the return on investment that libraries provide to the community," Ms. Evans said.
She's also hoping to get a second bookmobile on the road and has begun a new branding campaign, "This is My Library," to raise awareness of existing programs and bring more in the coming years.
"We have so much to offer, and we want everyone to know what we have," she said.
Ms. Evans' librarian influence even shows up in her cooking. No professional bookworm can, after all, stand to use just one reference book.
"I'll read up on it – looking at several recipes in several cookbooks – then devise my own way of doing it," she said.
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TexasStooge
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3 men drown in weekend accidents
By CLIFF DESPRES / Denton Record-Chronicle
DENTON, Texas - Three men drowned in separate swimming and boating accidents in Denton and Dallas counties over the holiday weekend.
The first drowning was reported late Friday at a sand quarry near Aubrey in Denton County. Investigators said several people were floating together on a raft when Javier Robles fell off and disappeared in the water.
Rescue divers found Mr. Robles' body about 2:10 a.m. Saturday, said Denton County Sheriff's Department spokesman Tom Reedy.
Dallas fire department rescue workers and volunteers began searching for a 45-year-old man after he was reported missing at Lake Ray Hubbard on Saturday evening. Witnesses said the man was last seen as he struggled to place his 7- and 14-year-old sons in an inner tube after it overturned. He was not wearing a flotation device.
The search continued Sunday but was put on hold Monday because heavy traffic on the water had made the operation unsafe, officials said. A boater called authorities about 4 p.m. Monday after spotting what appeared to be a human body floating in the lake.
Medical investigators confirmed that the body is that of the missing boater, but his identity has not been released.
Monday evening, Edwin Padilla, 24, died shortly after divers pulled him from Lewisville Lake. Mr. Reedy said a woman called 911 about 6:30 p.m. and said her brother had been underwater for 10 minutes near Pier 121 Marina at the lake.
The Denton County sheriff's boat patrol, the Lewisville dive team and Texas Parks and Wildlife game wardens searched for the man, who was pulled from the water at 7 p.m. CPR was performed at the scene before the man was transported to Lewisville Medical Center. He was pronounced dead at 7:28 p.m.
Staff writer Robert Tharp contributed to this report.
By CLIFF DESPRES / Denton Record-Chronicle
DENTON, Texas - Three men drowned in separate swimming and boating accidents in Denton and Dallas counties over the holiday weekend.
The first drowning was reported late Friday at a sand quarry near Aubrey in Denton County. Investigators said several people were floating together on a raft when Javier Robles fell off and disappeared in the water.
Rescue divers found Mr. Robles' body about 2:10 a.m. Saturday, said Denton County Sheriff's Department spokesman Tom Reedy.
Dallas fire department rescue workers and volunteers began searching for a 45-year-old man after he was reported missing at Lake Ray Hubbard on Saturday evening. Witnesses said the man was last seen as he struggled to place his 7- and 14-year-old sons in an inner tube after it overturned. He was not wearing a flotation device.
The search continued Sunday but was put on hold Monday because heavy traffic on the water had made the operation unsafe, officials said. A boater called authorities about 4 p.m. Monday after spotting what appeared to be a human body floating in the lake.
Medical investigators confirmed that the body is that of the missing boater, but his identity has not been released.
Monday evening, Edwin Padilla, 24, died shortly after divers pulled him from Lewisville Lake. Mr. Reedy said a woman called 911 about 6:30 p.m. and said her brother had been underwater for 10 minutes near Pier 121 Marina at the lake.
The Denton County sheriff's boat patrol, the Lewisville dive team and Texas Parks and Wildlife game wardens searched for the man, who was pulled from the water at 7 p.m. CPR was performed at the scene before the man was transported to Lewisville Medical Center. He was pronounced dead at 7:28 p.m.
Staff writer Robert Tharp contributed to this report.
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Man arrested after rescuing swimmer
SAN MARCOS, Texas (The Dallas Morning News/AP) - A San Marcos man was arrested after rescuing a swimmer from the swirling waters near a restaurant on the San Marcos River over the weekend.
Police say Dave Newman, 48, disobeyed repeated orders by emergency personnel to leave the water. Newman responded, "Why do I? The guy is out of the water," the report said. The police report does not mention Newman's rescue of 35-year-old Abed Duamni of Houston on Sunday afternoon.
"I was amazed," Newman said after getting out of Hays County Law Enforcement Center on $2,000 bail Monday morning. "I had a very uncomfortable night after saving that guy's life. He thanked me for it in front of the police, and then they took me to jail."
After being handcuffed and put in a Texas State University police squad car, Newman was taken to jail and charged with interfering with public duties.
Duamni, who said he did not see any signs warning swimmers of the dangerous currents, jumped into the water several times before the current caught him. He had just finished eating at the restaurant when he decided to go for a swim.
"I reached a point where I said, 'I'm dead,' " Duamni, who was visiting San Marcos, said from his Houston home Monday night. "There's was nothing I could do. I thought, 'That's it, I'm over, I'm gone."'
After pulling Duamni out of the water, Newman said, he swam him under a waterfall and over to the shore opposite from the restaurant. He could hear law enforcement personnel telling him to come back to the shore by the restaurant.
According to the report, Newman smirked and seemed annoyed by officers' requests. He stood in the water for about 15 seconds before swimming downstream, to avoid the turbulence from the waterfall, and across the river to the officers, the report said.
"When he came across the river, the officer stuck out his hand like he's going to help him out of the water, and he put cuffs on him," said John Parnell, pastor of St. Augustine Old Roman Catholic Church in Fort Worth.
According to the police report and witness accounts, the crowd that had gathered to watch the rescue was upset when they saw the police arrest Newman.
Parnell and another man blocked the police officer's path to the squad car while other members of the crowd yelled at the police, telling them Newman had saved Duamni's life and should not be arrested.
University spokesman Mark Hendricks said he did not know whether Newman rescued Duamni. Hendricks said it was his understanding that Newman was uncooperative with authorities.
When Duamni got out of the water, he saw Newman in handcuffs and asked who he was. "I said, 'What's the deal,' and the police said, 'He got you out,"' Duamni said.
San Marcos resident Bob Ogletree said he understood why emergency personnel wanted to clear the water, but didn't understand why Newman had to be arrested.
It's not the first time Newman has been involved in a controversy involving the swimming hole. In 1999, Texas State University, which owns the dam and the land around it, erected a fence to prohibit access to that part of the river. Later that year, the City Council enacted a swimming ban on that portion of the river. But Newman led a successful campaign to get the fences around the swimming hole removed and the ban relaxed.
SAN MARCOS, Texas (The Dallas Morning News/AP) - A San Marcos man was arrested after rescuing a swimmer from the swirling waters near a restaurant on the San Marcos River over the weekend.
Police say Dave Newman, 48, disobeyed repeated orders by emergency personnel to leave the water. Newman responded, "Why do I? The guy is out of the water," the report said. The police report does not mention Newman's rescue of 35-year-old Abed Duamni of Houston on Sunday afternoon.
"I was amazed," Newman said after getting out of Hays County Law Enforcement Center on $2,000 bail Monday morning. "I had a very uncomfortable night after saving that guy's life. He thanked me for it in front of the police, and then they took me to jail."
After being handcuffed and put in a Texas State University police squad car, Newman was taken to jail and charged with interfering with public duties.
Duamni, who said he did not see any signs warning swimmers of the dangerous currents, jumped into the water several times before the current caught him. He had just finished eating at the restaurant when he decided to go for a swim.
"I reached a point where I said, 'I'm dead,' " Duamni, who was visiting San Marcos, said from his Houston home Monday night. "There's was nothing I could do. I thought, 'That's it, I'm over, I'm gone."'
After pulling Duamni out of the water, Newman said, he swam him under a waterfall and over to the shore opposite from the restaurant. He could hear law enforcement personnel telling him to come back to the shore by the restaurant.
According to the report, Newman smirked and seemed annoyed by officers' requests. He stood in the water for about 15 seconds before swimming downstream, to avoid the turbulence from the waterfall, and across the river to the officers, the report said.
"When he came across the river, the officer stuck out his hand like he's going to help him out of the water, and he put cuffs on him," said John Parnell, pastor of St. Augustine Old Roman Catholic Church in Fort Worth.
According to the police report and witness accounts, the crowd that had gathered to watch the rescue was upset when they saw the police arrest Newman.
Parnell and another man blocked the police officer's path to the squad car while other members of the crowd yelled at the police, telling them Newman had saved Duamni's life and should not be arrested.
University spokesman Mark Hendricks said he did not know whether Newman rescued Duamni. Hendricks said it was his understanding that Newman was uncooperative with authorities.
When Duamni got out of the water, he saw Newman in handcuffs and asked who he was. "I said, 'What's the deal,' and the police said, 'He got you out,"' Duamni said.
San Marcos resident Bob Ogletree said he understood why emergency personnel wanted to clear the water, but didn't understand why Newman had to be arrested.
It's not the first time Newman has been involved in a controversy involving the swimming hole. In 1999, Texas State University, which owns the dam and the land around it, erected a fence to prohibit access to that part of the river. Later that year, the City Council enacted a swimming ban on that portion of the river. But Newman led a successful campaign to get the fences around the swimming hole removed and the ban relaxed.
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