Blaze destroys Denton family business
By DONNA FIELDER / Denton Record-Chronicle
DENTON, Texas - A ragged wind drove flames through the attic of an automotive repair shop Tuesday evening, destroying a family business in a two-alarm fire.
Firefighters were hampered by the wind, wooden floors and cars surrounding the building on East McKinney Street at Railroad Street as they fought to control the blaze about 5 p.m. at Romero Auto Sales.
Hector Romero said his wife was operating the business while he bought used cars at an auction in Dallas when the fire broke out.
“I was on my way back when she called,” Romero said, looking at the red tin roof sagging in completely in several places. “She said our mechanic was working on a car and it backfired. He didn’t notice it was burning under the floor, and then it was too late. I told her to get all the car keys and the titles and get out.”
Fire Battalion Chief Ken Gold said the gusty, strong wind blew the flames all the way through the old building. The fire already had a good start when firefighters arrived. It burned through the floor on the east end, up through the walls and across the open attic.
“We pushed the cars out of the way, and I don’t think they’re harmed,” he said. “The floor was on fire. We made entry but it was much further advanced than we were comfortable with and we backed out and hit it with the big stream. We made sure all the keys and titles were out.”
Gold said firefighters used an aerial hose to attack the fire from above. He soon called in a second alarm, which is a request for units from other departments to cover Denton fire stations. Gold said 29 firefighters were battling the blaze.
Assistant Denton Fire Marshal Chad Weldon said the building has been remodeled several times, so that there were concealed spaces and double walls in places. The mechanic shop has a wood-slat floor, he said, over a sub-floor.
“There is always gasoline around in a business like this, and gasoline fumes are heavier than air,” Weldon explained. “So they sunk below the wooden floor and collected there. When the car backfired, that ignited the fumes under the floor.”
The employee didn’t notice the fire that burned under the floor until it had a head start, he said. Then the employee unsuccessfully tried to extinguish it with a water hose. The flames climbed the walls and then raced across the empty attic, destroying the ceiling and roof of the entire building as they went.
Weldon estimated total damage at $100,000.
News from the Lone Star State
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Dallas readers rack up nearly $3 million in library fines
By EMILY RAMSHAW / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Dallas bookworms owe the city's library system nearly $3 million in fines and missing materials, with more than 25,000 accounts so overdue, they've been referred to a collection agency, according to a review of the city's library database.
Compounding the problem is a Dallas library policy that permits patrons to check out as many as 250 books at one time. That's more than five times the number permitted by most major library systems in the United States.
"It's not a good policy – it's way, way too many," Mayor Laura Miller said. "To let anyone walk in and take 250 books at a clip is not responsible. It's a high risk on expensive items."
City Manager Mary Suhm, who got her start in Dallas' library system, said the 250-book limit was originally designed to serve teachers, child-care providers and senior centers trying to operate their own reading rooms. But librarians never asked for identification, Ms. Suhm said. Over time, the rules were lifted, making 250 the cutoff for everyone with a valid library card.
"In some ways, we've fallen short" on enforcement, said Dallas Public Library director Laurie Evans, whose department is debating whether to reduce the checkout limit. "We're going to look at doing more verification when those cases come up."
Today, nearly 300 library patrons owe more than $500 in overdue fines; 56 owe more than $1,000. The largest outstanding account tops $3,800.
The 10 most delinquent accounts have an average 100 overdue materials each – from books to videos to audio recordings. Library officials say their database doesn't tally the number of overdue books at any one time.
"I personally feel guilty if I take out more than five or six books at a time," Ms. Miller said. "Every year we talk about how much taxpayer money we should spend on library books. I have no understanding why anyone would need to take out 250 of them."
The number of overdue library accounts is proportionally tiny – 722,000 people have Dallas library cards – and has remained steady over the years, library officials say.
It's rare for someone other than a teacher or a researcher to check out more than 30 or 40 books at once, said Kjerstine Nielsen, an administrator at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library downtown.
A hold is put on an account as soon as a single book or movie is overdue, Ms. Nielsen said, so the library's biggest offenders must have been accumulating materials over a very short period of time. Library records show that one patron checked out more than 200 items before the account hit the overdue list.
"Overall it's a relatively small problem," she said. "At the same time, the No. 1 for us is having materials available for our patrons. And they get frustrated when the materials they want to check out are missing."
The Dallas library system contains 4.2 million books and other materials, 80 percent of which can be circulated.
The missing-book excuses run the gamut, Ms. Nielsen said, from "the dog ate it" and "the family left it on vacation" to the more tragic – a house fire or a stolen car.
And sometimes the stories get weird, said Kenes Bowling, customer development manager for Unique Management System, Dallas' library collections agency. One woman wouldn't return the books because "they were just the right height to support one end of her dining room table," he said. "Another said she had a dual personality, and the second personality wouldn't return them."
Just when librarians think they'll never see a book again, it shows up in the most unlikely place, Ms. Nielsen said. The library has had books returned by police officers who see them while serving a warrant, and by flight attendants who find them under airplane seats.
Library patrons can borrow materials for three weeks at a time and are permitted unlimited renewals if no one is waiting for the book or movie. If the account holder doesn't return the materials, he receives two reminder notices from the library, followed by a bill.
Fines for books cap at $12.50 or the book's original value, whichever is less. DVDs and videos cap at $20.
After 55 days and once the account reaches $35, the fines are turned over to Unique Management, the Kentucky-based collections agency. The firm's emphasis, Mr. Bowling said, is on getting materials back, not just on collecting fines. And with the threat of a bad credit report, he said, 70 percent return their books and movies.
Ms. Suhm said she's working on updating Dallas' fine-collection system to include all outstanding city fees – library fines, too – on a resident's water bill. This new billing system is "probably 18 months away," she said. "We're slowly bringing it all together."
Dallas' overdue books and fines appear to be on par with library systems across the country, Mr. Bowling said: "The vast majority return them on time." But he called Dallas' 250-book limit "unusually high."
As the mother of a young child, Ms. Nielsen said she relates to the need to check out lots of books at one time. And she's been the one pulling 150 titles off the shelf for a frantic teacher preparing for a class project.
"People have their reasons, and sometimes they lose track," she said. "It's something [the library] struggles with."
Chris Heinbaugh of WFAA ABC 8 contributed to this report.
By EMILY RAMSHAW / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Dallas bookworms owe the city's library system nearly $3 million in fines and missing materials, with more than 25,000 accounts so overdue, they've been referred to a collection agency, according to a review of the city's library database.
Compounding the problem is a Dallas library policy that permits patrons to check out as many as 250 books at one time. That's more than five times the number permitted by most major library systems in the United States.
"It's not a good policy – it's way, way too many," Mayor Laura Miller said. "To let anyone walk in and take 250 books at a clip is not responsible. It's a high risk on expensive items."
City Manager Mary Suhm, who got her start in Dallas' library system, said the 250-book limit was originally designed to serve teachers, child-care providers and senior centers trying to operate their own reading rooms. But librarians never asked for identification, Ms. Suhm said. Over time, the rules were lifted, making 250 the cutoff for everyone with a valid library card.
"In some ways, we've fallen short" on enforcement, said Dallas Public Library director Laurie Evans, whose department is debating whether to reduce the checkout limit. "We're going to look at doing more verification when those cases come up."
Today, nearly 300 library patrons owe more than $500 in overdue fines; 56 owe more than $1,000. The largest outstanding account tops $3,800.
The 10 most delinquent accounts have an average 100 overdue materials each – from books to videos to audio recordings. Library officials say their database doesn't tally the number of overdue books at any one time.
"I personally feel guilty if I take out more than five or six books at a time," Ms. Miller said. "Every year we talk about how much taxpayer money we should spend on library books. I have no understanding why anyone would need to take out 250 of them."
The number of overdue library accounts is proportionally tiny – 722,000 people have Dallas library cards – and has remained steady over the years, library officials say.
It's rare for someone other than a teacher or a researcher to check out more than 30 or 40 books at once, said Kjerstine Nielsen, an administrator at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library downtown.
A hold is put on an account as soon as a single book or movie is overdue, Ms. Nielsen said, so the library's biggest offenders must have been accumulating materials over a very short period of time. Library records show that one patron checked out more than 200 items before the account hit the overdue list.
"Overall it's a relatively small problem," she said. "At the same time, the No. 1 for us is having materials available for our patrons. And they get frustrated when the materials they want to check out are missing."
The Dallas library system contains 4.2 million books and other materials, 80 percent of which can be circulated.
The missing-book excuses run the gamut, Ms. Nielsen said, from "the dog ate it" and "the family left it on vacation" to the more tragic – a house fire or a stolen car.
And sometimes the stories get weird, said Kenes Bowling, customer development manager for Unique Management System, Dallas' library collections agency. One woman wouldn't return the books because "they were just the right height to support one end of her dining room table," he said. "Another said she had a dual personality, and the second personality wouldn't return them."
Just when librarians think they'll never see a book again, it shows up in the most unlikely place, Ms. Nielsen said. The library has had books returned by police officers who see them while serving a warrant, and by flight attendants who find them under airplane seats.
Library patrons can borrow materials for three weeks at a time and are permitted unlimited renewals if no one is waiting for the book or movie. If the account holder doesn't return the materials, he receives two reminder notices from the library, followed by a bill.
Fines for books cap at $12.50 or the book's original value, whichever is less. DVDs and videos cap at $20.
After 55 days and once the account reaches $35, the fines are turned over to Unique Management, the Kentucky-based collections agency. The firm's emphasis, Mr. Bowling said, is on getting materials back, not just on collecting fines. And with the threat of a bad credit report, he said, 70 percent return their books and movies.
Ms. Suhm said she's working on updating Dallas' fine-collection system to include all outstanding city fees – library fines, too – on a resident's water bill. This new billing system is "probably 18 months away," she said. "We're slowly bringing it all together."
Dallas' overdue books and fines appear to be on par with library systems across the country, Mr. Bowling said: "The vast majority return them on time." But he called Dallas' 250-book limit "unusually high."
As the mother of a young child, Ms. Nielsen said she relates to the need to check out lots of books at one time. And she's been the one pulling 150 titles off the shelf for a frantic teacher preparing for a class project.
"People have their reasons, and sometimes they lose track," she said. "It's something [the library] struggles with."
Chris Heinbaugh of WFAA ABC 8 contributed to this report.
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Dead couple found in abandoned SUV
By DEBBIE DENMON / WFAA ABC 8
ENNIS, Texas — Police in Ennis discovered two bodies inside an abandoned sport utility vehicle on Interstate 45 early Wednesday, just inside the city limits.
Many of the town's 20,000 residents are shocked—the Ellis County community rarely records even one murder per year.
Police found the bodies around 5 a.m. They were alerted by a purse on the ground next to the Ford Expedition and thought a robbery had occurred, but later concluded the couple inside had been shot.
Investigators said they believed the Hispanic victims were from Dallas.
"The car was not shot up, but there was quite a lot of blood around the car," said Ennis police Lt. Ron Roarke.
Names of the victims were withheld pending notification of relatives.
By DEBBIE DENMON / WFAA ABC 8
ENNIS, Texas — Police in Ennis discovered two bodies inside an abandoned sport utility vehicle on Interstate 45 early Wednesday, just inside the city limits.
Many of the town's 20,000 residents are shocked—the Ellis County community rarely records even one murder per year.
Police found the bodies around 5 a.m. They were alerted by a purse on the ground next to the Ford Expedition and thought a robbery had occurred, but later concluded the couple inside had been shot.
Investigators said they believed the Hispanic victims were from Dallas.
"The car was not shot up, but there was quite a lot of blood around the car," said Ennis police Lt. Ron Roarke.
Names of the victims were withheld pending notification of relatives.
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Grand Prairie store blaze death 'accidental'
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - The cause of death of the man who died in a fire at Benny's Ice House in Grand Prairie was accidental, the Tarrant County Medical Examiner has ruled.
The man has been tentatively identified as Prakash Koirala, 48, from Arlington. Positive identification will have to be made by DNA comparison.
He was an employee at the store on East Pioneer Parkway at South Great Southwest Parkway.
Monday's blaze had gone to two alarms. The Grand Prairie Fire Department is continuing to investigate whether arson was behind the fire.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - The cause of death of the man who died in a fire at Benny's Ice House in Grand Prairie was accidental, the Tarrant County Medical Examiner has ruled.
The man has been tentatively identified as Prakash Koirala, 48, from Arlington. Positive identification will have to be made by DNA comparison.
He was an employee at the store on East Pioneer Parkway at South Great Southwest Parkway.
Monday's blaze had gone to two alarms. The Grand Prairie Fire Department is continuing to investigate whether arson was behind the fire.
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Drivers faulted in fatal team bus crash
HOUSTON, Texas (DallasNews.com/AP) - A preliminary investigation found that the bus driver and a truck driver who lost part of his load both contributed to a wreck that killed two members of a Beaumont girls soccer team being bused to a game.
The Texas Department of Public Safety did not recommend ticketing or charging either driver with a crime. Sgt. Charles Havard in Liberty said the investigation is not over.
The accident happened last month when the bus swerved to avoid a load of plastic insulation that fell off a flatbed trailer behind a pickup truck, authorities said.
The preliminary report shows that Sun Travel Tour bus driver Lorri Ann White, 41, of Silsbee, contributed to the accident by "taking faulty evasive action" and having "impaired visibility," according to Wednesday editions of the Houston Chronicle.
The driver of the pickup, 23-year-old Joel Eugeno Martinez, a Houston construction worker, contributed by failing to "secure his load," the report said.
The bus carrying members of the Beaumont West Brook High School team was on its way to a soccer game in the Houston area when the accident happened on a rural two-lane stretch of Highway 90 near Devers, about 60 miles northeast of Houston.
White swerved to avoid the debris from Martinez's truck on the wet road, and the vehicle flipped onto its side as it skidded into a muddy ditch.
Players Alicia Bonura, 18, a senior, and Ashley Brown, 16, a sophomore, died at the scene.
Another girl, 16-year-old Devin Martindale, had to have her arm amputated just below the shoulder after the accident. Twenty-two others were injured.
Havard said the accident report will be forwarded to Liberty County District Attorney Mike Little, who will decide whether to file charges.
Martinez and White have given statements to state troopers, but those statements will not be released until the investigation is complete, Havard said.
"We had (the load) secured. But a strap tore. There was a strong wind, and then it flew off," Martinez said. He referred other questions to investigators.
White and her employer declined to comment on the report's findings.
HOUSTON, Texas (DallasNews.com/AP) - A preliminary investigation found that the bus driver and a truck driver who lost part of his load both contributed to a wreck that killed two members of a Beaumont girls soccer team being bused to a game.
The Texas Department of Public Safety did not recommend ticketing or charging either driver with a crime. Sgt. Charles Havard in Liberty said the investigation is not over.
The accident happened last month when the bus swerved to avoid a load of plastic insulation that fell off a flatbed trailer behind a pickup truck, authorities said.
The preliminary report shows that Sun Travel Tour bus driver Lorri Ann White, 41, of Silsbee, contributed to the accident by "taking faulty evasive action" and having "impaired visibility," according to Wednesday editions of the Houston Chronicle.
The driver of the pickup, 23-year-old Joel Eugeno Martinez, a Houston construction worker, contributed by failing to "secure his load," the report said.
The bus carrying members of the Beaumont West Brook High School team was on its way to a soccer game in the Houston area when the accident happened on a rural two-lane stretch of Highway 90 near Devers, about 60 miles northeast of Houston.
White swerved to avoid the debris from Martinez's truck on the wet road, and the vehicle flipped onto its side as it skidded into a muddy ditch.
Players Alicia Bonura, 18, a senior, and Ashley Brown, 16, a sophomore, died at the scene.
Another girl, 16-year-old Devin Martindale, had to have her arm amputated just below the shoulder after the accident. Twenty-two others were injured.
Havard said the accident report will be forwarded to Liberty County District Attorney Mike Little, who will decide whether to file charges.
Martinez and White have given statements to state troopers, but those statements will not be released until the investigation is complete, Havard said.
"We had (the load) secured. But a strap tore. There was a strong wind, and then it flew off," Martinez said. He referred other questions to investigators.
White and her employer declined to comment on the report's findings.
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Possible release of cop killer spurs anger
By REBECCA LOPEZ / WFAA ABC 8
MIDLOTHIAN, Texas - A cop killer may be released this week from prison after serving less than half his sentence, and the victim's family said they are outraged about the parole process in the state of Texas.
In 1987 a Midlothian undercover narcotics officer was murdered.
George Raffield Jr., 21, was lured to an empty field by Greg Knighten, a 16-year-old drug abuser and son of a Dallas police officer, and shot to death. Knighten was found guilty and sentenced to 45 years in prison.
Now it could take only two members of the parole board to decide Knighten's fate. One member already voted on the case and the other will vote soon.
However, the parole board won't announce their decision until Friday.
Raffield's family said they are upset that the board doesn't meet with the inmate face to face and only look at the file for their decision.
"They're not looking at the case," said Sheryl Obermiller, the victim's sister. "They're looking at a file, and my brother's life was more than just a file."
What the Raffield family said angers them even more is that only two people on the parole board have to agree on whether or not a prisoner is released.
"It concerns me greatly," Obermiller said. "How can two people decide if he has any remorse for what he has done?"
While the system is set in Raffield Jr.'s case, Gov. Rick Perry said he is considering new legislation that might improve the system.
However, while Gov. Perry said he didn't know a cop killer was up for parole, he said he stands behind the process.
"First and foremost, I think the parole board does a real good job of taking the information, and they get a lot of information, and combing that down into making a decision," he said.
But Raffield's family said any system that could possibly release a cop killer early is unfair.
"That is one thing that to this day I can not believe," Obermiller said. "...I am afraid if he gets out he is going to reoffend and some other family is going to have to go through what we have gone through, and to me that is unfair."
By REBECCA LOPEZ / WFAA ABC 8
MIDLOTHIAN, Texas - A cop killer may be released this week from prison after serving less than half his sentence, and the victim's family said they are outraged about the parole process in the state of Texas.
In 1987 a Midlothian undercover narcotics officer was murdered.
George Raffield Jr., 21, was lured to an empty field by Greg Knighten, a 16-year-old drug abuser and son of a Dallas police officer, and shot to death. Knighten was found guilty and sentenced to 45 years in prison.
Now it could take only two members of the parole board to decide Knighten's fate. One member already voted on the case and the other will vote soon.
However, the parole board won't announce their decision until Friday.
Raffield's family said they are upset that the board doesn't meet with the inmate face to face and only look at the file for their decision.
"They're not looking at the case," said Sheryl Obermiller, the victim's sister. "They're looking at a file, and my brother's life was more than just a file."
What the Raffield family said angers them even more is that only two people on the parole board have to agree on whether or not a prisoner is released.
"It concerns me greatly," Obermiller said. "How can two people decide if he has any remorse for what he has done?"
While the system is set in Raffield Jr.'s case, Gov. Rick Perry said he is considering new legislation that might improve the system.
However, while Gov. Perry said he didn't know a cop killer was up for parole, he said he stands behind the process.
"First and foremost, I think the parole board does a real good job of taking the information, and they get a lot of information, and combing that down into making a decision," he said.
But Raffield's family said any system that could possibly release a cop killer early is unfair.
"That is one thing that to this day I can not believe," Obermiller said. "...I am afraid if he gets out he is going to reoffend and some other family is going to have to go through what we have gone through, and to me that is unfair."
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Trustee taking on the N-word
Amid slur's rising use, DISD board will discuss ban Thursday
By TAWNELL D. HOBBS / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - The N-word, long considered a deep insult to blacks, has come into common use among students, rolling easily off their tongues. But the Dallas school board will discuss a proposal Thursday that would punish anyone who uses racial slurs at a school.
DISD trustee Hollis Brashear recommended the discussion after hearing about a Carter High School teacher who publicly denounced the word through lectures and a fast this year. Teachers have complained that it offends some people, and they worry that it could lead to fights.
"I want to clearly state that we don't want you using that word," said Mr. Brashear, who is black. "Youngsters don't have the history of it, where it came from, what it means."
Mr. Brashear said the proposed rule would cover all ethnic slurs, to avoid naming some and omitting others. He said today's discussion will include punishments for students who break the rule.
The N-word is interpreted differently, depending on the speaker. Blacks can easily use it in friendly conversation, while for other races it can come across as an insult. Some businesses make its use a firing offense.
Use is spreading
The term is particularly common among young urban blacks who use the slang form "n***a." But more Hispanic students, and even some white children, are using it, according to educators, parents and students.
The Dallas Independent School District does have a policy against using profanity, with punishments ranging from detention to scrubbing desks. But Mr. Brashear and some educators say the N-word is not considered offensive or profane by many students.
Ebony Evans, a black student at Skyline High School, said she's grown up around people who use the word and has used it herself. But she feels it's being used too much.
"Now it's becoming so popular, you hear every different kind of race using it," said Ebony, 18. "Everybody is using it so much, they've forgotten the meaning of the word."
Word more popular
Curtis Ferguson, the teacher who inspired Mr. Brashear, believes the word has become acceptable to students as comedy routines and rap music have gained broad popularity.
Mr. Ferguson, who is black, fasted for 10 days this year in a tent in South Dallas to oppose use of the N-word. He said that the reaction to his protest was mixed, but that he received more positive response from whites than blacks.
"One older black man told me, 'How dare you try to get rid of that word, what are we supposed to call each other?' " said Mr. Ferguson, a fine arts teacher.
Diane Birdwell, a white DISD high-school teacher, can't even bring herself to say the word when discussing the proposed prohibition. She said students in her class know not to use the word, but do slip up.
Ms. Birdwell, who has spoken out against use of the word before, said a black student has even called her the slur. She said the student's tone of voice made it clear the word was meant to offend.
"I couldn't believe he actually said that word," she said. "That's how bad it is. I'm old enough to remember when it was a horrible, horrible word."
Changing times
But Dallas resident Sherie Williams says times have changed. She said she doesn't want her son, a recent DISD graduate, using the word, but students shouldn't be punished for doing so. Ms. Williams, who is black, said the word has evolved over the years and the slang version, "n***a," is acceptable to many people.
"People in their late 40s and 50s fail to realize the word went from 'n***er' to 'n***a,' " Ms. Williams said. "When the children use it, it's like in a 'homeboy' slang."
Ms. Birdwell said black adults need to denounce the word, and parents need to stop using it, to keep it out of the mouths of kids.
"As a white teacher, how do I tell black kids not to use the N-word when their own community promotes it," she said.
_____________________________________________________________
Back when I was in High School, a couple of caucasian students call each other the N-word.
Amid slur's rising use, DISD board will discuss ban Thursday
By TAWNELL D. HOBBS / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - The N-word, long considered a deep insult to blacks, has come into common use among students, rolling easily off their tongues. But the Dallas school board will discuss a proposal Thursday that would punish anyone who uses racial slurs at a school.
DISD trustee Hollis Brashear recommended the discussion after hearing about a Carter High School teacher who publicly denounced the word through lectures and a fast this year. Teachers have complained that it offends some people, and they worry that it could lead to fights.
"I want to clearly state that we don't want you using that word," said Mr. Brashear, who is black. "Youngsters don't have the history of it, where it came from, what it means."
Mr. Brashear said the proposed rule would cover all ethnic slurs, to avoid naming some and omitting others. He said today's discussion will include punishments for students who break the rule.
The N-word is interpreted differently, depending on the speaker. Blacks can easily use it in friendly conversation, while for other races it can come across as an insult. Some businesses make its use a firing offense.
Use is spreading
The term is particularly common among young urban blacks who use the slang form "n***a." But more Hispanic students, and even some white children, are using it, according to educators, parents and students.
The Dallas Independent School District does have a policy against using profanity, with punishments ranging from detention to scrubbing desks. But Mr. Brashear and some educators say the N-word is not considered offensive or profane by many students.
Ebony Evans, a black student at Skyline High School, said she's grown up around people who use the word and has used it herself. But she feels it's being used too much.
"Now it's becoming so popular, you hear every different kind of race using it," said Ebony, 18. "Everybody is using it so much, they've forgotten the meaning of the word."
Word more popular
Curtis Ferguson, the teacher who inspired Mr. Brashear, believes the word has become acceptable to students as comedy routines and rap music have gained broad popularity.
Mr. Ferguson, who is black, fasted for 10 days this year in a tent in South Dallas to oppose use of the N-word. He said that the reaction to his protest was mixed, but that he received more positive response from whites than blacks.
"One older black man told me, 'How dare you try to get rid of that word, what are we supposed to call each other?' " said Mr. Ferguson, a fine arts teacher.
Diane Birdwell, a white DISD high-school teacher, can't even bring herself to say the word when discussing the proposed prohibition. She said students in her class know not to use the word, but do slip up.
Ms. Birdwell, who has spoken out against use of the word before, said a black student has even called her the slur. She said the student's tone of voice made it clear the word was meant to offend.
"I couldn't believe he actually said that word," she said. "That's how bad it is. I'm old enough to remember when it was a horrible, horrible word."
Changing times
But Dallas resident Sherie Williams says times have changed. She said she doesn't want her son, a recent DISD graduate, using the word, but students shouldn't be punished for doing so. Ms. Williams, who is black, said the word has evolved over the years and the slang version, "n***a," is acceptable to many people.
"People in their late 40s and 50s fail to realize the word went from 'n***er' to 'n***a,' " Ms. Williams said. "When the children use it, it's like in a 'homeboy' slang."
Ms. Birdwell said black adults need to denounce the word, and parents need to stop using it, to keep it out of the mouths of kids.
"As a white teacher, how do I tell black kids not to use the N-word when their own community promotes it," she said.
_____________________________________________________________
Back when I was in High School, a couple of caucasian students call each other the N-word.
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Carjacking suspect eludes police
By CYNTHIA VEGA / WFAA ABC 8
DUNCANVILLE, Texas — Law enforcement agencies were hunting for a man who carjacked two vehicles and opened fire on a Duncanville police officer Wednesday night.
Investigators said the man had kidnapped two people in a white Lexus when a Duncanville police officer pulled the car over at the corner of Silver Creek and Main Street.
A man got out of the car and pointed inside to a man in the back seat. Police said that person got out of the car and began firing shots at the officer, shattering the window of his squad car. The officer returned fire.
The two people in the car who had been kidnapped escaped safely, and the police officer was not hit—but the suspect fled into a wooded area.
A short time later, the gunman carjacked a GMC Yukon from two women at a car wash at Danieldale and Highway 67. That vehicle was found wrecked and abandoned near Southwest Center Mall at Highway 67 and Interstate 20 in Dallas.
The suspect remained at large Thursday morning.
Cedar Hill police were also involved in the case, because the occupants of the Lexus had been kidnapped in that city.
By CYNTHIA VEGA / WFAA ABC 8
DUNCANVILLE, Texas — Law enforcement agencies were hunting for a man who carjacked two vehicles and opened fire on a Duncanville police officer Wednesday night.
Investigators said the man had kidnapped two people in a white Lexus when a Duncanville police officer pulled the car over at the corner of Silver Creek and Main Street.
A man got out of the car and pointed inside to a man in the back seat. Police said that person got out of the car and began firing shots at the officer, shattering the window of his squad car. The officer returned fire.
The two people in the car who had been kidnapped escaped safely, and the police officer was not hit—but the suspect fled into a wooded area.
A short time later, the gunman carjacked a GMC Yukon from two women at a car wash at Danieldale and Highway 67. That vehicle was found wrecked and abandoned near Southwest Center Mall at Highway 67 and Interstate 20 in Dallas.
The suspect remained at large Thursday morning.
Cedar Hill police were also involved in the case, because the occupants of the Lexus had been kidnapped in that city.
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Suspect wounded in McKinney shootout
MCKINNEY, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A McKinney police SWAT team shot and wounded a man who allegedly solicited the murder of a detective.
Just after midnight Wednesday, the police unit surrounded a House in the 800 block of Inland Lane to serve a warrant on Guillermo Urquiza, 26. The officers were met with gunfire.
They returned fire; Urquiza was hit in the stomach and legs and was taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas for treatment. His condition was unknown, police said.
No police officers were wounded. It's the first time McKinney police have shot a suspect since 2001.
Urquiza had allegedly made arrangements with a police informant to kill a property crime detective who was investigating an offense that involved the suspect. Police said Urquiza will now face nine charges of attempted capital murder and other offenses.
Urquiza's mother, Maria del Carmen Urquiza, 56, was jailed pending a deportation order. She was not injured.
MCKINNEY, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A McKinney police SWAT team shot and wounded a man who allegedly solicited the murder of a detective.
Just after midnight Wednesday, the police unit surrounded a House in the 800 block of Inland Lane to serve a warrant on Guillermo Urquiza, 26. The officers were met with gunfire.
They returned fire; Urquiza was hit in the stomach and legs and was taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas for treatment. His condition was unknown, police said.
No police officers were wounded. It's the first time McKinney police have shot a suspect since 2001.
Urquiza had allegedly made arrangements with a police informant to kill a property crime detective who was investigating an offense that involved the suspect. Police said Urquiza will now face nine charges of attempted capital murder and other offenses.
Urquiza's mother, Maria del Carmen Urquiza, 56, was jailed pending a deportation order. She was not injured.
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Former Rowlett standout took a $460,000 walk
Pitcher signed with Colorado, then quit without throwing a pitch
By TIM MacMAHON / The Dallas Morning News
ROWLETT, Texas – A Colorado Rockies program sits atop a stack of magazines in his family's living room, a subtle reminder of what still could be for Kyle Hancock.
A few steps away is the kitchen table where Hancock, then a 17-year-old about a month removed from his Rowlett High graduation, signed a contract with the Rockies last summer. Hancock, a right-handed pitcher drafted in the third round, agreed to a $460,000 signing bonus.
Hancock never saw a nickel of it. He forfeited the bonus when he bolted from the Casper Rockies, Colorado's Rookie League club, after three days with the team.
Hancock attempted to play for the University of Arkansas, the school he signed with before his senior season. He hoped the NCAA would reinstate his amateur status, since he didn't receive a paycheck or pitch an inning as a professional. But the NCAA denied Hancock's appeal in January.
So Hancock's still at home, unsure of his future. Other than a weekly bullpen session, his involvement in baseball consists of coaching an 11-under team and giving pitching lessons.
He has no plans to rejoin the Rockies, who hold his rights until 2012.
"I think he's throwing away a golden opportunity," said Byron Brown, Hancock's grandfather. "I've told him that if he decides not to go back, it'll be the biggest mistake of his life and he'll regret it for the rest of his life."
Hancock's mother, Becky Holey, gives her son a gentler version of that message almost every day. Stuart Hancock, Kyle's father, lives in Waco and could not be reached for comment.
Rowlett coach Paul Carmon recently spent hours with Hancock at a local restaurant trying to persuade him to give pro ball another shot.
Hancock, however, insists he is content with his decision. He said he isn't bothered by people's opinion that he made a huge mistake.
He is taking 16 credit hours at Richland Community College and considering a transfer to a university as a regular student. He's a business major who is interested in real estate. He's often the big winner in weekly poker games with his buddies, putting some cash in his pockets and satisfying his competitive spirit.
Hancock says he's always been savvy with money. But he's asked almost every day: How could you walk away from $460,000?
Hancock said he has heard many crazy rumors suggesting he has off-the-field issues. He said there isn't a kernel of truth to any of them. His answer is simple: He was miserable during his brief stint at the minor leagues' lowest level.
"Culture shock" was part of it, Hancock said. "As much as I wasn't ready for it ... I wasn't enjoying myself," he said.
Hancock said he smiled the whole time during a tour of Coors Field on July 29. He was dealt a harsh dose of reality when he joined the Casper Rockies in Idaho Falls, Idaho, the next day.
The next stop on the road trip was Orem, Utah. Hancock, hoping to chow down on a hamburger, was dismayed when the team bus stopped at an Albertson's for food before leaving Idaho Falls. And he described the overnight trip in the cramped bus as "awful."
After arriving at the ballpark the next day, Hancock kept thinking about a speech he made at a youth tournament. He told the kids that if they weren't playing the game to have fun, they didn't need to be playing.
"I'm sitting there in the bullpen eating my words," Hancock said. "I was like, 'Wow.' It came to me, and I made my decision."
Without so much as stepping foot in Casper, Wyo., Hancock decided he didn't want to be a Casper Rockie. He called his mom that night, uncharacteristically sobbing into the phone as he told her he wanted to come home.
"I was in total shock," Holey said. "I couldn't imagine what was so bad. As long as I can remember, all he wanted to do was play baseball."
She tried to talk him into to sticking it out, as did other family members, friends, his agent and members of the Rockies' front office. Nothing anybody said could persuade Hancock to change his mind.
Hancock boarded a plane for home on Aug. 3, walking away from a lifelong dream and a six-figure signing bonus.
"I definitely was stunned by it," Rockies senior director of scouting Bill Schmidt said.
So was everybody who knew Hancock. This is the guy who would go for 45-minute runs after select games. This is the level-headed kid whose only high school disciplinary action occurred when he violated the dress code by having a few whiskers on his chin.
"It's the first stupid thing I've ever seen him do," Carmon said.
Hancock's only regret is signing with the Rockies instead of going to Arkansas. He said his gut feeling was to go to school, although he spent his senior season talking about how excited he was to begin his ascent to the big leagues. His mom and grandfather said they regret steering him toward signing with Colorado, but they did so based on advice from baseball insiders.
Hancock, who has a Razorbacks sticker on the back window of his red Dodge truck, filed his appeal with the NCAA in August. He was told the NCAA did not want to set a precedent with his case.
"As long as it got drawn out, I thought there was a chance," Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said. "The NCAA just probably realized, 'Hey, if we let this guy go, it's going to open up a can of worms.' "
Hancock holds out hope that he'll be able to play college baseball. He said he'll be eligible to play at a junior college if the Rockies release him. Schmidt said releasing Hancock has never been discussed within the organization.
Hancock said he harbors no ill will toward the Rockies, but he hasn't contacted them since boarding the flight in Utah. He just doesn't know if pro ball is for him.
"I personally would have interest in sitting down and talking with him," Schmidt said. "But it's all starting with him expressing interest."
Realistically, amateur ball is Hancock's only other baseball option. Hancock said he will probably pitch for the Dallas Tigers' 18-under select team this summer.
"I want to see if that sparks a light in me and makes me realize something," Hancock said.
Hancock said he understands that the Rockies would have all the leverage in contract discussions if he decided to return. He figures he'd be lucky to get half of his original signing bonus.
Money has never been his motivation, Hancock said. He just wants to enjoy the game he's loved since childhood.
"I want to go back knowing that this is what I want to do," Hancock said. "I don't want a question mark in my head."
Pitcher signed with Colorado, then quit without throwing a pitch
By TIM MacMAHON / The Dallas Morning News
ROWLETT, Texas – A Colorado Rockies program sits atop a stack of magazines in his family's living room, a subtle reminder of what still could be for Kyle Hancock.
A few steps away is the kitchen table where Hancock, then a 17-year-old about a month removed from his Rowlett High graduation, signed a contract with the Rockies last summer. Hancock, a right-handed pitcher drafted in the third round, agreed to a $460,000 signing bonus.
Hancock never saw a nickel of it. He forfeited the bonus when he bolted from the Casper Rockies, Colorado's Rookie League club, after three days with the team.
Hancock attempted to play for the University of Arkansas, the school he signed with before his senior season. He hoped the NCAA would reinstate his amateur status, since he didn't receive a paycheck or pitch an inning as a professional. But the NCAA denied Hancock's appeal in January.
So Hancock's still at home, unsure of his future. Other than a weekly bullpen session, his involvement in baseball consists of coaching an 11-under team and giving pitching lessons.
He has no plans to rejoin the Rockies, who hold his rights until 2012.
"I think he's throwing away a golden opportunity," said Byron Brown, Hancock's grandfather. "I've told him that if he decides not to go back, it'll be the biggest mistake of his life and he'll regret it for the rest of his life."
Hancock's mother, Becky Holey, gives her son a gentler version of that message almost every day. Stuart Hancock, Kyle's father, lives in Waco and could not be reached for comment.
Rowlett coach Paul Carmon recently spent hours with Hancock at a local restaurant trying to persuade him to give pro ball another shot.
Hancock, however, insists he is content with his decision. He said he isn't bothered by people's opinion that he made a huge mistake.
He is taking 16 credit hours at Richland Community College and considering a transfer to a university as a regular student. He's a business major who is interested in real estate. He's often the big winner in weekly poker games with his buddies, putting some cash in his pockets and satisfying his competitive spirit.
Hancock says he's always been savvy with money. But he's asked almost every day: How could you walk away from $460,000?
Hancock said he has heard many crazy rumors suggesting he has off-the-field issues. He said there isn't a kernel of truth to any of them. His answer is simple: He was miserable during his brief stint at the minor leagues' lowest level.
"Culture shock" was part of it, Hancock said. "As much as I wasn't ready for it ... I wasn't enjoying myself," he said.
Hancock said he smiled the whole time during a tour of Coors Field on July 29. He was dealt a harsh dose of reality when he joined the Casper Rockies in Idaho Falls, Idaho, the next day.
The next stop on the road trip was Orem, Utah. Hancock, hoping to chow down on a hamburger, was dismayed when the team bus stopped at an Albertson's for food before leaving Idaho Falls. And he described the overnight trip in the cramped bus as "awful."
After arriving at the ballpark the next day, Hancock kept thinking about a speech he made at a youth tournament. He told the kids that if they weren't playing the game to have fun, they didn't need to be playing.
"I'm sitting there in the bullpen eating my words," Hancock said. "I was like, 'Wow.' It came to me, and I made my decision."
Without so much as stepping foot in Casper, Wyo., Hancock decided he didn't want to be a Casper Rockie. He called his mom that night, uncharacteristically sobbing into the phone as he told her he wanted to come home.
"I was in total shock," Holey said. "I couldn't imagine what was so bad. As long as I can remember, all he wanted to do was play baseball."
She tried to talk him into to sticking it out, as did other family members, friends, his agent and members of the Rockies' front office. Nothing anybody said could persuade Hancock to change his mind.
Hancock boarded a plane for home on Aug. 3, walking away from a lifelong dream and a six-figure signing bonus.
"I definitely was stunned by it," Rockies senior director of scouting Bill Schmidt said.
So was everybody who knew Hancock. This is the guy who would go for 45-minute runs after select games. This is the level-headed kid whose only high school disciplinary action occurred when he violated the dress code by having a few whiskers on his chin.
"It's the first stupid thing I've ever seen him do," Carmon said.
Hancock's only regret is signing with the Rockies instead of going to Arkansas. He said his gut feeling was to go to school, although he spent his senior season talking about how excited he was to begin his ascent to the big leagues. His mom and grandfather said they regret steering him toward signing with Colorado, but they did so based on advice from baseball insiders.
Hancock, who has a Razorbacks sticker on the back window of his red Dodge truck, filed his appeal with the NCAA in August. He was told the NCAA did not want to set a precedent with his case.
"As long as it got drawn out, I thought there was a chance," Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said. "The NCAA just probably realized, 'Hey, if we let this guy go, it's going to open up a can of worms.' "
Hancock holds out hope that he'll be able to play college baseball. He said he'll be eligible to play at a junior college if the Rockies release him. Schmidt said releasing Hancock has never been discussed within the organization.
Hancock said he harbors no ill will toward the Rockies, but he hasn't contacted them since boarding the flight in Utah. He just doesn't know if pro ball is for him.
"I personally would have interest in sitting down and talking with him," Schmidt said. "But it's all starting with him expressing interest."
Realistically, amateur ball is Hancock's only other baseball option. Hancock said he will probably pitch for the Dallas Tigers' 18-under select team this summer.
"I want to see if that sparks a light in me and makes me realize something," Hancock said.
Hancock said he understands that the Rockies would have all the leverage in contract discussions if he decided to return. He figures he'd be lucky to get half of his original signing bonus.
Money has never been his motivation, Hancock said. He just wants to enjoy the game he's loved since childhood.
"I want to go back knowing that this is what I want to do," Hancock said. "I don't want a question mark in my head."
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Jail term for Denton County doctor
By BRANDON FORMBY / The Dallas Morning News
DENTON, Texas — Elizabeth Rohr, the Roanoke physician convicted of fleeing to South Texas with her five youngest children, was sentenced Thursday to six months in state jail, five years probation and $50,0000 in fines.
Dr. Rohr told State District Judge L. Dee Shipman she didn’t think it was right for him to sentence her to jail time after the jury recommended probation and because she has already filed an appeal seeking to overturn the conviction.
Judge Shipman also fined Dr. Rohr’s fiancé Scott Wass $100 after a bailiff announced the man was making an audio recording of the proceeding. Denton County judges typically ban recording devices from their courtrooms.
The judge already sentenced Dr. Rohr to six months in jail for contempt of court in response to outbursts during her trial. She will serve her contempt sentence concurrently with the six-month term Judge Shipman gave her Thursday.
By BRANDON FORMBY / The Dallas Morning News
DENTON, Texas — Elizabeth Rohr, the Roanoke physician convicted of fleeing to South Texas with her five youngest children, was sentenced Thursday to six months in state jail, five years probation and $50,0000 in fines.
Dr. Rohr told State District Judge L. Dee Shipman she didn’t think it was right for him to sentence her to jail time after the jury recommended probation and because she has already filed an appeal seeking to overturn the conviction.
Judge Shipman also fined Dr. Rohr’s fiancé Scott Wass $100 after a bailiff announced the man was making an audio recording of the proceeding. Denton County judges typically ban recording devices from their courtrooms.
The judge already sentenced Dr. Rohr to six months in jail for contempt of court in response to outbursts during her trial. She will serve her contempt sentence concurrently with the six-month term Judge Shipman gave her Thursday.
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Truck overturns outside Fort Worth on SH 287
FORT WORTH, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A truck overturned at midday Thursday, spilling oil on SH 287 at the Lancaster Avenue Bridge, southeast of downtown Fort Worth.
Emergency workers were trying to free the driver, who was trapped inside the 18-wheeler.
One lane of traffic is passing by the accident scene.
The flatbed trailer was carrying wood products, some of which spilled out on the road surface.
FORT WORTH, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A truck overturned at midday Thursday, spilling oil on SH 287 at the Lancaster Avenue Bridge, southeast of downtown Fort Worth.
Emergency workers were trying to free the driver, who was trapped inside the 18-wheeler.
One lane of traffic is passing by the accident scene.
The flatbed trailer was carrying wood products, some of which spilled out on the road surface.
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Carjacking suspect eludes police
By CYNTHIA VEGA / WFAA ABC 8
DUNCANVILLE, Texas — Law enforcement agencies were hunting for a man who carjacked two vehicles and opened fire on a Duncanville police officer Wednesday night.
Investigators said the man had kidnapped two people in a white Lexus when a Duncanville police officer pulled the car over at the corner of Silver Creek and Main Street.
A man got out of the car and pointed inside to a man in the back seat. Police said that person got out of the car and began firing shots at the officer, shattering the window of his squad car. The officer returned fire.
The two people in the car who had been kidnapped escaped safely, and the police officer was not hit—but the suspect fled into a wooded area.
A short time later, the gunman carjacked a GMC Yukon from two women at a car wash at Danieldale and Highway 67. That vehicle was found wrecked and abandoned near Southwest Center Mall at Highway 67 and Interstate 20 in Dallas.
The suspect remained at large Thursday morning.
"He displayed exactly how violent he can be and his disregard for human life last night," said Duncanville police spokesman Keith Bilbey. "And so that's our major concern: Finding out who this guy is and getting him off the streets."
Police were scouring the two carjacked vehicles for fingerprints and other clues to the identity of the suspect.
Cedar Hill police were also involved in the case, because the occupants of the Lexus had been kidnapped in that city.
By CYNTHIA VEGA / WFAA ABC 8
DUNCANVILLE, Texas — Law enforcement agencies were hunting for a man who carjacked two vehicles and opened fire on a Duncanville police officer Wednesday night.
Investigators said the man had kidnapped two people in a white Lexus when a Duncanville police officer pulled the car over at the corner of Silver Creek and Main Street.
A man got out of the car and pointed inside to a man in the back seat. Police said that person got out of the car and began firing shots at the officer, shattering the window of his squad car. The officer returned fire.
The two people in the car who had been kidnapped escaped safely, and the police officer was not hit—but the suspect fled into a wooded area.
A short time later, the gunman carjacked a GMC Yukon from two women at a car wash at Danieldale and Highway 67. That vehicle was found wrecked and abandoned near Southwest Center Mall at Highway 67 and Interstate 20 in Dallas.
The suspect remained at large Thursday morning.
"He displayed exactly how violent he can be and his disregard for human life last night," said Duncanville police spokesman Keith Bilbey. "And so that's our major concern: Finding out who this guy is and getting him off the streets."
Police were scouring the two carjacked vehicles for fingerprints and other clues to the identity of the suspect.
Cedar Hill police were also involved in the case, because the occupants of the Lexus had been kidnapped in that city.
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Dallas ISD considers banning N-word
By BERT LOZANO / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Some ethnic slurs, like the N-word, are often heard on Dallas campuses these days.
But the DISD board wants to change that and is considering a proposal to ban all ethnic slurs.
Gangsta rap has made it hip to use the N-word in songs and music videos.
"The N-word is used so freely nowadays in our society that anybody uses it. I see Hispanic kids calling each other the N-word, I see white kids calling each other the N-word, and absolutely I see black kids calling each other the N-word," said Ron Price DISD trustee.
The movement to ban the use of the N-word at DISD began in January with Carter High School teacher Curtis Ferguson.
He held a hunger strike on Martin Luther King Day to bring attention to the use of the N-word.
His protest spurred a number of students to create a group to discourage any use of the word.
In February the students and Ferguson took their fight to the school board.
Trustee Hollis Brashears helps their cause.
"My idea is that we would ban all ethnic and racial slurs... we cannot make a list because when you make a list and a word pops up that's not on the list, then the kids and the students will say that word is not been banned," he says.
But other trustees argue the district already has a policy on profanity.
He says students should be taught not to use racial slurs.
"I don't support any negative language toward any human being, but once again, how do you monitor that 'a' and 'b' how do you punish someone for using that language and that's the issue on the table today," Brashears said.
By BERT LOZANO / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Some ethnic slurs, like the N-word, are often heard on Dallas campuses these days.
But the DISD board wants to change that and is considering a proposal to ban all ethnic slurs.
Gangsta rap has made it hip to use the N-word in songs and music videos.
"The N-word is used so freely nowadays in our society that anybody uses it. I see Hispanic kids calling each other the N-word, I see white kids calling each other the N-word, and absolutely I see black kids calling each other the N-word," said Ron Price DISD trustee.
The movement to ban the use of the N-word at DISD began in January with Carter High School teacher Curtis Ferguson.
He held a hunger strike on Martin Luther King Day to bring attention to the use of the N-word.
His protest spurred a number of students to create a group to discourage any use of the word.
In February the students and Ferguson took their fight to the school board.
Trustee Hollis Brashears helps their cause.
"My idea is that we would ban all ethnic and racial slurs... we cannot make a list because when you make a list and a word pops up that's not on the list, then the kids and the students will say that word is not been banned," he says.
But other trustees argue the district already has a policy on profanity.
He says students should be taught not to use racial slurs.
"I don't support any negative language toward any human being, but once again, how do you monitor that 'a' and 'b' how do you punish someone for using that language and that's the issue on the table today," Brashears said.
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Police ID couple found in SUV
ENNIS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/AP) – Police are puzzled as to why a Dallas bread deliveryman and his wife, a waitress, were shot to death and loaded into the trunk of a sport utility vehicle later abandoned on the side of a highway.
Ennis police identified the victims Thursday as Ivan O. Correa, 24, and Susana Martinez Olguin, 22, both Mexican immigrants living in Dallas.
Authorities discovered the bodies early Wednesday morning in the back of Correa's Ford Expedition.
"As of now, we don't have any motive at all," said Detective Sgt. John Erisman. "We are still just following what little leads we have."
Authorities discovered the bodies early Wednesday morning in the back of Correa's Ford Expedition, ditched on the shoulder of Interstate 45 in Ennis.
A lack of blood in the van indicates that the killings likely happened elsewhere, but police do not know where, Lt. Ron Roark said in an article in the Waxahachie Daily Light.
The bodies were fully clothed and showed no marks of a struggle or of being bound, Roark said. The SUV had not run out of gas when it was abandoned.
Police found Martinez's purse with money still inside it and Correa's billfold at the scene.
Roark said the killings likely occured in Dallas and Dallas homicide detectives are working closely with Ennis police.
Correa had relatives in Dallas and worked two other jobs besides his bread route. Local family members are making arrangement to send the couple's bodies to Mexico, Erisman said.
ENNIS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/AP) – Police are puzzled as to why a Dallas bread deliveryman and his wife, a waitress, were shot to death and loaded into the trunk of a sport utility vehicle later abandoned on the side of a highway.
Ennis police identified the victims Thursday as Ivan O. Correa, 24, and Susana Martinez Olguin, 22, both Mexican immigrants living in Dallas.
Authorities discovered the bodies early Wednesday morning in the back of Correa's Ford Expedition.
"As of now, we don't have any motive at all," said Detective Sgt. John Erisman. "We are still just following what little leads we have."
Authorities discovered the bodies early Wednesday morning in the back of Correa's Ford Expedition, ditched on the shoulder of Interstate 45 in Ennis.
A lack of blood in the van indicates that the killings likely happened elsewhere, but police do not know where, Lt. Ron Roark said in an article in the Waxahachie Daily Light.
The bodies were fully clothed and showed no marks of a struggle or of being bound, Roark said. The SUV had not run out of gas when it was abandoned.
Police found Martinez's purse with money still inside it and Correa's billfold at the scene.
Roark said the killings likely occured in Dallas and Dallas homicide detectives are working closely with Ennis police.
Correa had relatives in Dallas and worked two other jobs besides his bread route. Local family members are making arrangement to send the couple's bodies to Mexico, Erisman said.
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How a Dallas mom became an inventor
By MACIE JEPSON / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Dallas mom Gail Frankel plays a lot at work.
It's her business. She has invented baby gadgets for 17 years.
"This is what started Kel Gar my company. I was like a barracuda. I couldn't let go of the idea."
Then came Snug Tubs, Tubbly Bubbly and Elephant Faucet Protector.
Admittedly common sense stuff - which is why Frankel always protects first her ideas, then talks about them later.
"You need to be cautious and have disclosure agreements. I think a lot of those are posted on websites," she says.
There are now different kinds of patents that you can file without a lot of money that you can protect your idea for a year.
Frankel suggests patent and trading websites to learn about the industry behind your idea. Visit trade shows. Peruse magazines. Then find someone to make your prototype.
Then protect with a patent attorney and find a manufacturer. Time consuming hard work that doesn't always pay off, which is why so many people simply sell their ideas.
"Sit by the pool and collect your royalties. So there's a way to make that product. Are you necessarily going to be a millionaire - no. But we're not all necessarily millionaires we're just all making a living and having fun," Frankel adds.
By MACIE JEPSON / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Dallas mom Gail Frankel plays a lot at work.
It's her business. She has invented baby gadgets for 17 years.
"This is what started Kel Gar my company. I was like a barracuda. I couldn't let go of the idea."
Then came Snug Tubs, Tubbly Bubbly and Elephant Faucet Protector.
Admittedly common sense stuff - which is why Frankel always protects first her ideas, then talks about them later.
"You need to be cautious and have disclosure agreements. I think a lot of those are posted on websites," she says.
There are now different kinds of patents that you can file without a lot of money that you can protect your idea for a year.
Frankel suggests patent and trading websites to learn about the industry behind your idea. Visit trade shows. Peruse magazines. Then find someone to make your prototype.
Then protect with a patent attorney and find a manufacturer. Time consuming hard work that doesn't always pay off, which is why so many people simply sell their ideas.
"Sit by the pool and collect your royalties. So there's a way to make that product. Are you necessarily going to be a millionaire - no. But we're not all necessarily millionaires we're just all making a living and having fun," Frankel adds.
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A no-worries way to house the poor
Some feel Dallas project won't work; others say it already has elsewhere
By KIM HORNER / The Dallas Morning News
HOUSTON, Texas – Amid the luxury lofts, a hotel and restaurants that have shot up around Minute Maid Park sits the kind of development that could elicit a "not in my back yard" backlash.
The Hamilton Street Residence – 100 feet from the ballpark – houses up to 129 formerly homeless and low-income residents. But there's no NIMBY outcry here.
"We have a very good relationship, with no problems at all," said Rob Matwick, senior vice president of operations and customer service for the Astros. The team donates tickets to Hamilton Street residents. And many of the residents work at the ballpark during baseball season.
While the low-cost, dorm-size apartments blend quietly into Houston's revitalizing downtown, a proposal for a similar project in Dallas is raising concerns.
Some neighbors to a proposed high-rise for homeless and low-income residents in downtown Dallas fear the project will increase crime and loitering and will pose a danger to children at a private school across the street.
"I think it's a good thing to get people who are on the street off the street, but we don't want to have another skid row," said Dallas developer Larry Hamilton, who opposes the project.
Central Dallas Ministries is moving forward with its plans to build the City Walk at Akard and has applied to the state for tax credits. Units will be 300 square feet and larger and rent for as low as $348 a month.
The City Council has agreed to contribute $1.75 million, partly from voter-approved bond money to help the homeless.
Project supporters point to the Houston development as an example of how housing for some of a downtown's poorest residents can also result in a good neighbor.
"It was just the antithesis of what people who fear these things are anticipating," Central Dallas Ministries chief executive officer Larry James said of the Houston apartments. "They figured out how to manage it and make it conducive to a cool living space. I think that's exactly what will happen at 511 N. Akard if we can get the tax credits."
Dallas City Council member Angela Hunt, who recently visited the Hamilton Street Residence and a similar complex near downtown Houston, said the buildings were safe and clean with no one hanging around outside.
She said Dallas officials will require that the proposed 209-unit high-rise is well-managed.
"It's essential we have housing for all walks of life downtown," Ms. Hunt said.
New hope
It's impossible to tell from the outside that the three-story Hamilton Street Residence building is low-income housing.
Inside are 200-square-foot, single-room occupancy apartments, or SROs. Houston has 1,000 of the dorm-size efficiencies, which are seen as a solution to homelessness by providing homes for people on disability or minimum-wage incomes. Dallas, which has only about 130 such units, plans to have 700 more by 2014.
Rent at the Houston complex is $330 a month. Resident Lynette Kelly said that is about all she can afford on her $603 monthly disability checks.
The 62-year-old Astros fan said she loves being near the ballpark, theaters and public transportation. The building has movie nights using the community room's large-screen TV, a courtyard patio with a close-up view of the ballpark and nice neighbors, Ms. Kelly said.
"It's an apartment, but it becomes a family," she said.
New Hope Housing Inc., which owns and operates the Houston facility plus two others in the area, does criminal background checks and provides 24-hour security.
Residents typically receive mental health care, substance abuse treatment, job training and other services from separate agencies. Occasionally, some residents go back to drinking or gambling and do not pay their rent – but they do so at a price. They get evicted, said Sarcher Chase-Downing, community manager for New Hope.
"This works for you if you work it," she said. "I can't work it for you."
No problems
The Houston apartments opened in 1995 without opposition in what was a neglected neighborhood. Five years later, the ballpark revitalized the area, bringing restaurants and bars that now thrive on game nights as thousands of Astros fans fill surrounding streets.
In the center of all the redevelopment, the property has not attracted the type of problems – loitering, theft, panhandling – that some fear the Dallas project could cause, according to Houston police and neighbors.
Houston police Officer Kyle Weiner, part of a two-officer team that addresses homelessness in the downtown area, said the apartment residents do not cause any trouble.
"The ones who go to these places, those are the ones who want help," Officer Weiner said. "Basically, you're letting them be a man again."
John Hickey, who works a block from the Houston apartments and also lives downtown, said the property is well-maintained.
"This neighborhood would be ground zero for problems," he said of the bustling area. "While there are problems, that place is not one of them."
The apartments have not gotten all of Houston's homeless people off the streets. On a recent night, a dozen people camped out in front of Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen, a few blocks from the ballpark. An overnight shelter and halfway house also are nearby, and it isn't unusual to see people under bridges.
Lauren Albanese, who lives in the upscale Lofts at the Ballpark, said she feels safe walking her Rottweiler mix, Condi, during the day. But she said her complex had stepped up security because homeless people have tried to get in.
"It's a little bit creepy at night," she said.
Dallas project
Dallas' proposed project is near the Arts District and several hotels and loft apartments.
Jake Walters, head of school at First Baptist Academy, across the street from the proposed project, said at a recent City Council meeting that the project was too close for comfort. He said he feared that residents from the apartments could harm children who attend the private school, which has 700 students.
Mr. Hamilton, the downtown developer, also led a campaign against the city's $23.8 million November bond election for a new homeless assistance center in the southeast part of downtown. He said he is concerned that in the long run the apartments will deteriorate.
"We've all seen the old-style SRO – it's basically just a dive," he said.
Central Dallas Ministries' Mr. James said he plans to get neighbors' input throughout the development process – and clear up some misconceptions about homelessness. The nonprofit, which provides a food pantry, health care and a variety of services to the poor, hopes to raise up to $10 million in private funds to help pay for the project.
"A lot of the people on the street are trying to earn money to get apartments, but they can't make it," he said.
Like Central Dallas Ministries, Houston's New Hope faced neighborhood concerns before opening another facility in November.
Many felt the neighborhood just east of downtown already had its share of low-income housing and halfway houses, longtime Houston resident Esther Campos said.
Concerned at first, Ms. Campos now supports the project after serving on a committee that asked for criminal background checks for residents, priority status for applicants from the neighborhood, and only one entrance so people can't wander in off the street.
"For the group that is planning this project in Dallas, I would say please involve the community. Let them be a major part of this," she said. "Otherwise, it won't work."
Some feel Dallas project won't work; others say it already has elsewhere
By KIM HORNER / The Dallas Morning News
HOUSTON, Texas – Amid the luxury lofts, a hotel and restaurants that have shot up around Minute Maid Park sits the kind of development that could elicit a "not in my back yard" backlash.
The Hamilton Street Residence – 100 feet from the ballpark – houses up to 129 formerly homeless and low-income residents. But there's no NIMBY outcry here.
"We have a very good relationship, with no problems at all," said Rob Matwick, senior vice president of operations and customer service for the Astros. The team donates tickets to Hamilton Street residents. And many of the residents work at the ballpark during baseball season.
While the low-cost, dorm-size apartments blend quietly into Houston's revitalizing downtown, a proposal for a similar project in Dallas is raising concerns.
Some neighbors to a proposed high-rise for homeless and low-income residents in downtown Dallas fear the project will increase crime and loitering and will pose a danger to children at a private school across the street.
"I think it's a good thing to get people who are on the street off the street, but we don't want to have another skid row," said Dallas developer Larry Hamilton, who opposes the project.
Central Dallas Ministries is moving forward with its plans to build the City Walk at Akard and has applied to the state for tax credits. Units will be 300 square feet and larger and rent for as low as $348 a month.
The City Council has agreed to contribute $1.75 million, partly from voter-approved bond money to help the homeless.
Project supporters point to the Houston development as an example of how housing for some of a downtown's poorest residents can also result in a good neighbor.
"It was just the antithesis of what people who fear these things are anticipating," Central Dallas Ministries chief executive officer Larry James said of the Houston apartments. "They figured out how to manage it and make it conducive to a cool living space. I think that's exactly what will happen at 511 N. Akard if we can get the tax credits."
Dallas City Council member Angela Hunt, who recently visited the Hamilton Street Residence and a similar complex near downtown Houston, said the buildings were safe and clean with no one hanging around outside.
She said Dallas officials will require that the proposed 209-unit high-rise is well-managed.
"It's essential we have housing for all walks of life downtown," Ms. Hunt said.
New hope
It's impossible to tell from the outside that the three-story Hamilton Street Residence building is low-income housing.
Inside are 200-square-foot, single-room occupancy apartments, or SROs. Houston has 1,000 of the dorm-size efficiencies, which are seen as a solution to homelessness by providing homes for people on disability or minimum-wage incomes. Dallas, which has only about 130 such units, plans to have 700 more by 2014.
Rent at the Houston complex is $330 a month. Resident Lynette Kelly said that is about all she can afford on her $603 monthly disability checks.
The 62-year-old Astros fan said she loves being near the ballpark, theaters and public transportation. The building has movie nights using the community room's large-screen TV, a courtyard patio with a close-up view of the ballpark and nice neighbors, Ms. Kelly said.
"It's an apartment, but it becomes a family," she said.
New Hope Housing Inc., which owns and operates the Houston facility plus two others in the area, does criminal background checks and provides 24-hour security.
Residents typically receive mental health care, substance abuse treatment, job training and other services from separate agencies. Occasionally, some residents go back to drinking or gambling and do not pay their rent – but they do so at a price. They get evicted, said Sarcher Chase-Downing, community manager for New Hope.
"This works for you if you work it," she said. "I can't work it for you."
No problems
The Houston apartments opened in 1995 without opposition in what was a neglected neighborhood. Five years later, the ballpark revitalized the area, bringing restaurants and bars that now thrive on game nights as thousands of Astros fans fill surrounding streets.
In the center of all the redevelopment, the property has not attracted the type of problems – loitering, theft, panhandling – that some fear the Dallas project could cause, according to Houston police and neighbors.
Houston police Officer Kyle Weiner, part of a two-officer team that addresses homelessness in the downtown area, said the apartment residents do not cause any trouble.
"The ones who go to these places, those are the ones who want help," Officer Weiner said. "Basically, you're letting them be a man again."
John Hickey, who works a block from the Houston apartments and also lives downtown, said the property is well-maintained.
"This neighborhood would be ground zero for problems," he said of the bustling area. "While there are problems, that place is not one of them."
The apartments have not gotten all of Houston's homeless people off the streets. On a recent night, a dozen people camped out in front of Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen, a few blocks from the ballpark. An overnight shelter and halfway house also are nearby, and it isn't unusual to see people under bridges.
Lauren Albanese, who lives in the upscale Lofts at the Ballpark, said she feels safe walking her Rottweiler mix, Condi, during the day. But she said her complex had stepped up security because homeless people have tried to get in.
"It's a little bit creepy at night," she said.
Dallas project
Dallas' proposed project is near the Arts District and several hotels and loft apartments.
Jake Walters, head of school at First Baptist Academy, across the street from the proposed project, said at a recent City Council meeting that the project was too close for comfort. He said he feared that residents from the apartments could harm children who attend the private school, which has 700 students.
Mr. Hamilton, the downtown developer, also led a campaign against the city's $23.8 million November bond election for a new homeless assistance center in the southeast part of downtown. He said he is concerned that in the long run the apartments will deteriorate.
"We've all seen the old-style SRO – it's basically just a dive," he said.
Central Dallas Ministries' Mr. James said he plans to get neighbors' input throughout the development process – and clear up some misconceptions about homelessness. The nonprofit, which provides a food pantry, health care and a variety of services to the poor, hopes to raise up to $10 million in private funds to help pay for the project.
"A lot of the people on the street are trying to earn money to get apartments, but they can't make it," he said.
Like Central Dallas Ministries, Houston's New Hope faced neighborhood concerns before opening another facility in November.
Many felt the neighborhood just east of downtown already had its share of low-income housing and halfway houses, longtime Houston resident Esther Campos said.
Concerned at first, Ms. Campos now supports the project after serving on a committee that asked for criminal background checks for residents, priority status for applicants from the neighborhood, and only one entrance so people can't wander in off the street.
"For the group that is planning this project in Dallas, I would say please involve the community. Let them be a major part of this," she said. "Otherwise, it won't work."
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TexasStooge
- Category 5
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- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
- Contact:
Prisoner escapes from hospital
By BRAD WATSON / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - A violent Dallas County prisoner charged with felony arson is on the loose Thursday night after escaping from Parkland Memorial Hospital.
Ray Morales is also only one among several prisoners who have escaped from Parkland Memorial Hospital; and the private security firm hired to guard prisoners under a $735,000 contract is now under investigation.
Meanwhile, the victim of Morales' crime has gone into hiding. The Grand Prairie woman, who is Morales' ex-girlfriend, had her house set on fire twice last month, and he then returned a third time.
Refugio Orozco and his son Ray, neighbors of the victim, said they know first hand the violence caused by Morales.
"He got upset, and when he came back he slammed his car, his truck, into that door into the garage door," Ray Orozco said. "[He] went in and broke everything in her house."
Police arrested and charged Morales with two counts of felony arson and criminal mischief, but days after arriving at the Dallas County Jail he needed surgery.
The Sheriff's Department took him to Parkland Memorial Hospital and turned Morales over to officers from Greer's Investigations and Security Services.
Greer's has a contract with the county to guard prisoners at Parkland.
However, Wednesday night Morales escaped.
The Sheriff's Department said the Greer's guard went to the restroom leaving Morales alone.
"Those aren't competent individuals who are guarding our prisoners," said Ken Mayfield, Dallas County commissioner.
County commissioners that hired Greer's said they will now investigate.
Sheriff's records showed that five prisoners in Greer's custody escaped from Parkland since January 2005. The records also showed all the escapes happened while a guard or inmate went to the restroom. Inmates were not shackled as required according to the report.
"We shouldn't be having anybody escaping, let alone five," Mayfield said.
Greer's did not return News 8 calls, but the victim's neighbors are talking.
"I'm afraid," said Refugio Orozco. "The whole neighborhood just keeps watching every time somebody drives by. They don't know. You want to call the police or something.
Sheriff's deputies are looking for Morales and said he may need medical attention soon since he may have pulled open the stitches from his abdominal surgery.
By BRAD WATSON / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - A violent Dallas County prisoner charged with felony arson is on the loose Thursday night after escaping from Parkland Memorial Hospital.
Ray Morales is also only one among several prisoners who have escaped from Parkland Memorial Hospital; and the private security firm hired to guard prisoners under a $735,000 contract is now under investigation.
Meanwhile, the victim of Morales' crime has gone into hiding. The Grand Prairie woman, who is Morales' ex-girlfriend, had her house set on fire twice last month, and he then returned a third time.
Refugio Orozco and his son Ray, neighbors of the victim, said they know first hand the violence caused by Morales.
"He got upset, and when he came back he slammed his car, his truck, into that door into the garage door," Ray Orozco said. "[He] went in and broke everything in her house."
Police arrested and charged Morales with two counts of felony arson and criminal mischief, but days after arriving at the Dallas County Jail he needed surgery.
The Sheriff's Department took him to Parkland Memorial Hospital and turned Morales over to officers from Greer's Investigations and Security Services.
Greer's has a contract with the county to guard prisoners at Parkland.
However, Wednesday night Morales escaped.
The Sheriff's Department said the Greer's guard went to the restroom leaving Morales alone.
"Those aren't competent individuals who are guarding our prisoners," said Ken Mayfield, Dallas County commissioner.
County commissioners that hired Greer's said they will now investigate.
Sheriff's records showed that five prisoners in Greer's custody escaped from Parkland since January 2005. The records also showed all the escapes happened while a guard or inmate went to the restroom. Inmates were not shackled as required according to the report.
"We shouldn't be having anybody escaping, let alone five," Mayfield said.
Greer's did not return News 8 calls, but the victim's neighbors are talking.
"I'm afraid," said Refugio Orozco. "The whole neighborhood just keeps watching every time somebody drives by. They don't know. You want to call the police or something.
Sheriff's deputies are looking for Morales and said he may need medical attention soon since he may have pulled open the stitches from his abdominal surgery.
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TexasStooge
- Category 5
- Posts: 38127
- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2003 1:22 pm
- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
- Contact:
Houston offers model on housing the poor
Some feel Dallas project will fail, but backers say others say idea working elsewhere
By KIM HORNER / The Dallas Morning News
HOUSTON, Texas – Amid the luxury lofts, a hotel and restaurants that have shot up around Minute Maid Park sits the kind of development that could elicit a "not in my back yard" backlash.
The Hamilton Street Residence – 100 feet from the ballpark – houses up to 129 formerly homeless and low-income residents. But there's no NIMBY outcry here.
"We have a very good relationship, with no problems at all," said Rob Matwick, senior vice president of operations and customer service for the Astros. The team donates tickets to Hamilton Street residents. And many of the residents work at the ballpark during baseball season.
While the low-cost, dorm-size apartments blend quietly into Houston's revitalizing downtown, a proposal for a similar project in Dallas is raising concerns.
Some neighbors to a proposed high-rise for homeless and low-income residents in downtown Dallas fear the project will increase crime and loitering and will pose a danger to children at a private school across the street.
"I think it's a good thing to get people who are on the street off the street, but we don't want to have another skid row," said Dallas developer Larry Hamilton, who opposes the project.
Central Dallas Ministries is moving forward with its plans to build the City Walk at Akard and has applied to the state for tax credits. Units will be 300 square feet and larger and rent for as low as $348 a month.
The City Council has agreed to contribute $1.75 million, partly from voter-approved bond money to help the homeless.
Project supporters point to the Houston development as an example of how housing for some of a downtown's poorest residents can also result in a good neighbor.
"It was just the antithesis of what people who fear these things are anticipating," Central Dallas Ministries chief executive officer Larry James said of the Houston apartments. "They figured out how to manage it and make it conducive to a cool living space. I think that's exactly what will happen at 511 N. Akard if we can get the tax credits."
Dallas City Council member Angela Hunt, who recently visited the Hamilton Street Residence and a similar complex near downtown Houston, said the buildings were safe and clean with no one hanging around outside.
She said Dallas officials will require that the proposed 209-unit high-rise is well-managed.
"It's essential we have housing for all walks of life downtown," Ms. Hunt said.
New hope
It's impossible to tell from the outside that the three-story Hamilton Street Residence building is low-income housing.
Inside are 200-square-foot, single-room occupancy apartments, or SROs. Houston has 1,000 of the dorm-size efficiencies, which are seen as a solution to homelessness by providing homes for people on disability or minimum-wage incomes. Dallas, which has only about 130 such units, plans to have 700 more by 2014.
Rent at the Houston complex is $330 a month. Resident Lynette Kelly said that is about all she can afford on her $603 monthly disability checks.
The 62-year-old Astros fan said she loves being near the ballpark, theaters and public transportation. The building has movie nights using the community room's large-screen TV, a courtyard patio with a close-up view of the ballpark and nice neighbors, Ms. Kelly said.
"It's an apartment, but it becomes a family," she said.
New Hope Housing Inc., which owns and operates the Houston facility plus two others in the area, does criminal background checks and provides 24-hour security.
Residents typically receive mental health care, substance abuse treatment, job training and other services from separate agencies. Occasionally, some residents go back to drinking or gambling and do not pay their rent – but they do so at a price. They get evicted, said Sarcher Chase-Downing, community manager for New Hope.
"This works for you if you work it," she said. "I can't work it for you."
No problems
The Houston apartments opened in 1995 without opposition in what was a neglected neighborhood. Five years later, the ballpark revitalized the area, bringing restaurants and bars that now thrive on game nights as thousands of Astros fans fill surrounding streets.
In the center of all the redevelopment, the property has not attracted the type of problems – loitering, theft, panhandling – that some fear the Dallas project could cause, according to Houston police and neighbors.
Houston police Officer Kyle Weiner, part of a two-officer team that addresses homelessness in the downtown area, said the apartment residents do not cause any trouble.
"The ones who go to these places, those are the ones who want help," Officer Weiner said. "Basically, you're letting them be a man again."
John Hickey, who works a block from the Houston apartments and also lives downtown, said the property is well-maintained.
"This neighborhood would be ground zero for problems," he said of the bustling area. "While there are problems, that place is not one of them."
The apartments have not gotten all of Houston's homeless people off the streets. On a recent night, a dozen people camped out in front of Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen, a few blocks from the ballpark. An overnight shelter and halfway house also are nearby, and it isn't unusual to see people under bridges.
Lauren Albanese, who lives in the upscale Lofts at the Ballpark, said she feels safe walking her Rottweiler mix, Condi, during the day. But she said her complex had stepped up security because homeless people have tried to get in.
"It's a little bit creepy at night," she said.
Dallas project
Dallas' proposed project is near the Arts District and several hotels and loft apartments.
Jake Walters, head of school at First Baptist Academy, across the street from the proposed project, said at a recent City Council meeting that the project was too close for comfort. He said he feared that residents from the apartments could harm children who attend the private school, which has 700 students.
Mr. Hamilton, the downtown developer, also led a campaign against the city's $23.8 million November bond election for a new homeless assistance center in the southeast part of downtown. He said he is concerned that in the long run the apartments will deteriorate.
"We've all seen the old-style SRO – it's basically just a dive," he said.
Central Dallas Ministries' Mr. James said he plans to get neighbors' input throughout the development process – and clear up some misconceptions about homelessness. The nonprofit, which provides a food pantry, health care and a variety of services to the poor, hopes to raise up to $10 million in private funds to help pay for the project.
"A lot of the people on the street are trying to earn money to get apartments, but they can't make it," he said.
Like Central Dallas Ministries, Houston's New Hope faced neighborhood concerns before opening another facility in November.
Many felt the neighborhood just east of downtown already had its share of low-income housing and halfway houses, longtime Houston resident Esther Campos said.
Concerned at first, Ms. Campos now supports the project after serving on a committee that asked for criminal background checks for residents, priority status for applicants from the neighborhood, and only one entrance so people can't wander in off the street.
"For the group that is planning this project in Dallas, I would say please involve the community. Let them be a major part of this," she said. "Otherwise, it won't work."
Some feel Dallas project will fail, but backers say others say idea working elsewhere
By KIM HORNER / The Dallas Morning News
HOUSTON, Texas – Amid the luxury lofts, a hotel and restaurants that have shot up around Minute Maid Park sits the kind of development that could elicit a "not in my back yard" backlash.
The Hamilton Street Residence – 100 feet from the ballpark – houses up to 129 formerly homeless and low-income residents. But there's no NIMBY outcry here.
"We have a very good relationship, with no problems at all," said Rob Matwick, senior vice president of operations and customer service for the Astros. The team donates tickets to Hamilton Street residents. And many of the residents work at the ballpark during baseball season.
While the low-cost, dorm-size apartments blend quietly into Houston's revitalizing downtown, a proposal for a similar project in Dallas is raising concerns.
Some neighbors to a proposed high-rise for homeless and low-income residents in downtown Dallas fear the project will increase crime and loitering and will pose a danger to children at a private school across the street.
"I think it's a good thing to get people who are on the street off the street, but we don't want to have another skid row," said Dallas developer Larry Hamilton, who opposes the project.
Central Dallas Ministries is moving forward with its plans to build the City Walk at Akard and has applied to the state for tax credits. Units will be 300 square feet and larger and rent for as low as $348 a month.
The City Council has agreed to contribute $1.75 million, partly from voter-approved bond money to help the homeless.
Project supporters point to the Houston development as an example of how housing for some of a downtown's poorest residents can also result in a good neighbor.
"It was just the antithesis of what people who fear these things are anticipating," Central Dallas Ministries chief executive officer Larry James said of the Houston apartments. "They figured out how to manage it and make it conducive to a cool living space. I think that's exactly what will happen at 511 N. Akard if we can get the tax credits."
Dallas City Council member Angela Hunt, who recently visited the Hamilton Street Residence and a similar complex near downtown Houston, said the buildings were safe and clean with no one hanging around outside.
She said Dallas officials will require that the proposed 209-unit high-rise is well-managed.
"It's essential we have housing for all walks of life downtown," Ms. Hunt said.
New hope
It's impossible to tell from the outside that the three-story Hamilton Street Residence building is low-income housing.
Inside are 200-square-foot, single-room occupancy apartments, or SROs. Houston has 1,000 of the dorm-size efficiencies, which are seen as a solution to homelessness by providing homes for people on disability or minimum-wage incomes. Dallas, which has only about 130 such units, plans to have 700 more by 2014.
Rent at the Houston complex is $330 a month. Resident Lynette Kelly said that is about all she can afford on her $603 monthly disability checks.
The 62-year-old Astros fan said she loves being near the ballpark, theaters and public transportation. The building has movie nights using the community room's large-screen TV, a courtyard patio with a close-up view of the ballpark and nice neighbors, Ms. Kelly said.
"It's an apartment, but it becomes a family," she said.
New Hope Housing Inc., which owns and operates the Houston facility plus two others in the area, does criminal background checks and provides 24-hour security.
Residents typically receive mental health care, substance abuse treatment, job training and other services from separate agencies. Occasionally, some residents go back to drinking or gambling and do not pay their rent – but they do so at a price. They get evicted, said Sarcher Chase-Downing, community manager for New Hope.
"This works for you if you work it," she said. "I can't work it for you."
No problems
The Houston apartments opened in 1995 without opposition in what was a neglected neighborhood. Five years later, the ballpark revitalized the area, bringing restaurants and bars that now thrive on game nights as thousands of Astros fans fill surrounding streets.
In the center of all the redevelopment, the property has not attracted the type of problems – loitering, theft, panhandling – that some fear the Dallas project could cause, according to Houston police and neighbors.
Houston police Officer Kyle Weiner, part of a two-officer team that addresses homelessness in the downtown area, said the apartment residents do not cause any trouble.
"The ones who go to these places, those are the ones who want help," Officer Weiner said. "Basically, you're letting them be a man again."
John Hickey, who works a block from the Houston apartments and also lives downtown, said the property is well-maintained.
"This neighborhood would be ground zero for problems," he said of the bustling area. "While there are problems, that place is not one of them."
The apartments have not gotten all of Houston's homeless people off the streets. On a recent night, a dozen people camped out in front of Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen, a few blocks from the ballpark. An overnight shelter and halfway house also are nearby, and it isn't unusual to see people under bridges.
Lauren Albanese, who lives in the upscale Lofts at the Ballpark, said she feels safe walking her Rottweiler mix, Condi, during the day. But she said her complex had stepped up security because homeless people have tried to get in.
"It's a little bit creepy at night," she said.
Dallas project
Dallas' proposed project is near the Arts District and several hotels and loft apartments.
Jake Walters, head of school at First Baptist Academy, across the street from the proposed project, said at a recent City Council meeting that the project was too close for comfort. He said he feared that residents from the apartments could harm children who attend the private school, which has 700 students.
Mr. Hamilton, the downtown developer, also led a campaign against the city's $23.8 million November bond election for a new homeless assistance center in the southeast part of downtown. He said he is concerned that in the long run the apartments will deteriorate.
"We've all seen the old-style SRO – it's basically just a dive," he said.
Central Dallas Ministries' Mr. James said he plans to get neighbors' input throughout the development process – and clear up some misconceptions about homelessness. The nonprofit, which provides a food pantry, health care and a variety of services to the poor, hopes to raise up to $10 million in private funds to help pay for the project.
"A lot of the people on the street are trying to earn money to get apartments, but they can't make it," he said.
Like Central Dallas Ministries, Houston's New Hope faced neighborhood concerns before opening another facility in November.
Many felt the neighborhood just east of downtown already had its share of low-income housing and halfway houses, longtime Houston resident Esther Campos said.
Concerned at first, Ms. Campos now supports the project after serving on a committee that asked for criminal background checks for residents, priority status for applicants from the neighborhood, and only one entrance so people can't wander in off the street.
"For the group that is planning this project in Dallas, I would say please involve the community. Let them be a major part of this," she said. "Otherwise, it won't work."
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TexasStooge
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Royse City coach resigns, charged in confrontation
Police chief says he could face trial on misdemeanor count
By LaKISHA LADSON / The Dallas Morning News
ROYSE CITY, Texas - A Royse City High School coach resigned Thursday and was charged with misdemeanor assault after a confrontation with a student at a track practice.
William Calvert, who is also a science teacher, is accused of pushing the athlete several times on April 5.
"A teacher or a coach does have some rights to use physical force if it was necessary due to the circumstances," Royse City Police Chief Tom Shelton said. "We can't really determine that physical force was absolutely necessary."
Chief Shelton said that Mr. Calvert could face trial if he pleads not guilty.
Mr. Calvert has said that the athlete, 18-year-old Cameron Holliness, got upset after the coach told him he was off the starting relay team.
Mr. Calvert said the confrontation escalated until Cameron was in his face, cursing with his fists clenched.
"He kept coming back, and I keep pushing him toward the gate to leave," Mr. Calvert said last week.
Marie Holliness said Thursday that her son, who she acknowledged can be a "hothead," and witnesses gave a different account: After Cameron questioned Mr. Calvert's decision, the coach lost his temper, cursed, grabbed and shoved Cameron several times, even after his friends came to pull him away.
Mr. Calvert was suspended the day of the incident. His resignation on Thursday took effect immediately, acting Superintendent Jimmy Butler said.
The coach couldn't be reached for comment later.
Mrs. Holliness, a Royse City High alumna with two children who have graduated from the school, said she was in disbelief after the incident because she had such faith in the district.
She said she and her husband have battled feelings of guilt.
"There was my son, and we weren't there to defend him," she said.
Police chief says he could face trial on misdemeanor count
By LaKISHA LADSON / The Dallas Morning News
ROYSE CITY, Texas - A Royse City High School coach resigned Thursday and was charged with misdemeanor assault after a confrontation with a student at a track practice.
William Calvert, who is also a science teacher, is accused of pushing the athlete several times on April 5.
"A teacher or a coach does have some rights to use physical force if it was necessary due to the circumstances," Royse City Police Chief Tom Shelton said. "We can't really determine that physical force was absolutely necessary."
Chief Shelton said that Mr. Calvert could face trial if he pleads not guilty.
Mr. Calvert has said that the athlete, 18-year-old Cameron Holliness, got upset after the coach told him he was off the starting relay team.
Mr. Calvert said the confrontation escalated until Cameron was in his face, cursing with his fists clenched.
"He kept coming back, and I keep pushing him toward the gate to leave," Mr. Calvert said last week.
Marie Holliness said Thursday that her son, who she acknowledged can be a "hothead," and witnesses gave a different account: After Cameron questioned Mr. Calvert's decision, the coach lost his temper, cursed, grabbed and shoved Cameron several times, even after his friends came to pull him away.
Mr. Calvert was suspended the day of the incident. His resignation on Thursday took effect immediately, acting Superintendent Jimmy Butler said.
The coach couldn't be reached for comment later.
Mrs. Holliness, a Royse City High alumna with two children who have graduated from the school, said she was in disbelief after the incident because she had such faith in the district.
She said she and her husband have battled feelings of guilt.
"There was my son, and we weren't there to defend him," she said.
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