News from the Lone Star State

[TexasStooge]

Waxahachie senior drowns during class trip

WAXAHACHIE, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/AP) – A Waxahachie High School senior drowned Friday in a lake during a class trip, authorities said.

Jesus Hernandez, 17, had jumped off a dock at Lakeview Camp despite not knowing how to swim, Ellis County Sheriff Lt. Clint Tims told the Waxahachie Daily Light. His body was recovered an hour later in about a 15-foot deep pocket of the lake.

There was no lifeguard on duty and students had been warned several times to stay away from the lake, Tims said.

Hernandez was among 162 students on the class trip for seniors. Counselors were made available to students when they returned to campus.

[TexasStooge]

Crime ranking played down

Dallas No. 1 again; officials, experts wary of comparing statistics

By JASON TRAHAN / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - For the eighth year in a row, Dallas had the highest crime rate among U.S. cities with more than a million people last year. But in the numbers game, comparing apples with oranges – or the Big Apple with Big D – may be a fruitless endeavor.

"Awww, it's my favorite story in your paper every year," said Mayor Laura Miller. Like other city officials, criminologists and crime statistics experts, she greeted the news with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Burglaries, more than any other category, helped keep Dallas at the top after an analysis of 2005 crime statistics based on crimes relative to population.

But last year, crimes reported in Dallas fell sharply, with murders down about 19 percent and overall crime lower by 5 percent.

So which is it? Is Dallas among the most dangerous cities in America, or is it a crime-fighting success story in the making?

Both, say police and crime experts.

"We are trained to believe the notion that crime statistics have a relative value," said Alex del Carmen, a University of Texas at Arlington criminology professor. "That's not to say they are regarded as the ultimate truth in terms of crime."

"Dallas has a crime problem, no question," said Police Chief David Kunkle. "Is Dallas the most unsafe big city in the United States? The answer is no."

The analysis is based on preliminary numbers that will become part of the FBI's annual Uniform Crime Reports, a national survey of about 17,000 police agencies published in the fall.

But the FBI doesn't rank the data, and doesn't condone doing it.

"The natural tendency is to want to know who is first and who is last in anything," said Maryvictoria Pyne, chief spokeswoman for the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports unit. "But what we're saying is, there are many variables that affect crime."

Experts say residents report crimes differently in different communities, police departments have different reporting methods, and some have been caught cheating. A city's density, geography, climate, economy, demographics, crime-fighting resources and other factors also affect crime rates.

"What happens in New York really has no effect on Dallas," Dr. Pyne said. "What happens in Dallas has an effect on Dallas. If the chief can say robberies are down this year, that's saying something."

Ms. Miller said she's been satisfied with the downward direction of reported crimes in Dallas. "The most important thing in my opinion is that we've seen the first reduction in crime in all categories in 13 years," she said.

That's not enough for some, including Bonnie Mathias, a Pleasant Grove community activist.

"People are fed up," said Ms. Mathias, a local chairwoman with the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN.

"We're talking about building a freaking bridge across the Trinity, and we're not addressing the issues that will bring true economic development to this city," she said. "Until we get crime under control, and until we get enough cops on the street and pay them enough to stay here, nothing will change."

Numbers game

Statisticians and criminologists argue that comparing cities' crime rates is a bad idea because crimes are reported differently by different agencies.

Consider auto theft: A simple phone call leads to a police report for a stolen car in Dallas. But in New York, not only are there fewer cars to steal, but victims must sign an affidavit swearing they didn't ditch the car for insurance purposes, said New York police Lt. Eugene Whyte, a nationally recognized crime statistics expert.

What counts as a theft, burglary or robbery in Dallas might not be classified as such elsewhere, Dallas officials said.

"If my 10-year-old's Game Boy is stolen, that'd be in the statistics," Ms. Miller said. But she added, "We can't throw stones at cities that don't report as much crime."

Although Chief Kunkle is also careful not to minimize the reality of Dallas' high crime rate, he said officers have been trained for years to count things as crimes even without hard proof.

For example, he said, if a homeless man wakes up, finds his wallet missing and says he was robbed, the department typically counts it – even if he may have just lost the wallet. "That report stays forever," Chief Kunkle said.

Chief Kunkle said he'd rather see over-reporting of crime than a population too indifferent or too frightened to call the police.

And retraining officers to not count some minor incidents – such as the theft of a tool from a garage or a flowerpot from a porch – as crimes, could lead to complaints.

"It will be attributed to the fact that we're intentionally not reporting crimes so our statistics look better," he said. "And there will be enough of those incidents to make that argument."

The fudge factor

Other departments have faced accusations of crime statistic fudging.

Los Angeles police were criticized after they touted huge crime decreases last year based largely on a 40 percent drop in aggravated assaults. But crime fell in part because the department narrowed its definition of aggravated assault to exclude simple assaults such as spousal assaults, according to the Los Angeles Times. Police later acknowledged that the city's 16 percent overall drop in crime was actually closer to 10 percent.

In the late 1990s, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Philadelphia police routinely downgraded rapes to lesser crimes and touted the results as a crime reduction.

Atlanta police were criticized for underreporting crimes in advance of the 1996 Olympic Games to make the city appear safer.

But Dr. del Carmen said he believes that the practice of fudging statistics is not widespread.

"Cities in the U.S. that would try to get away with manipulating their data would have a hard time, given the oversight of city councils, mayors and people who can request data and analyze it," he said.

Often, discrepancies are caused by faulty software, ill-trained officers or clerks misclassifying crimes, said Dr. Pyne. The FBI audits numbers reported to the Uniform Crime Reports, but there are no sanctions if problems are found, she said.

Dr. del Carmen said some departments benefit from crime increases. "That way they can ask for more resources and equipment," he said.

The murder rate

Most experts say the one truly reliable crime statistic – the one most difficult to get wrong – is murder.

That's the argument offered by the NYPD when experts and even some of its own police union leaders questioned the Big Apple's dramatic crime decreases as suspicious.

Last year, there were about seven slayings per 100,000 residents in New York. That's far closer in terms of population comparisons to Richardson's two slayings per 100,000 in 2004, than to Dallas' 16 per 100,000 residents last year.

"That throws cold water on that argument" that New York isn't as safe as overall statistics suggest, Lt. Whyte said.

Chief Kunkle said he is most comfortable comparing cities by their murder rates because it's difficult to undercount or misclassify them.

"I have no confidence at all making comparisons across cities in anything other than homicides," he said.

Among the largest cities, Dallas is No. 3 in murders. And several cities with populations of fewer than 1 million such as Baltimore, Detroit and Washington, D.C., have historically logged more murders per capita.

Looking ahead

Chief Kunkle's goal for 2006 is another 10 percent reduction in murders, and a 10 percent decrease in overall crime.

He said many strategies used last year will continue, including Operation Disruption, a roving band of officers who target outbreaks in high-crime neighborhoods.

"I think that we'll see reductions in crime this year," Ms. Miller said. But she acknowledged, "We know that if we saw reductions in crime every year it would still be difficult to get out of that top spot."

Ms. Mathias, the community activist, said she is pleased with the gains Chief Kunkle has achieved. But, she added, leaders can't brush off comparing Dallas with peer cities just because of slight variations in crime reporting.

"How many different ways can you report a burglary, whether it happens in New York City or Dallas or Garland or Austin or Houston?" she said. "They've got to explain to me what is the difference. I'm not seeing it. If we're No. 1 again, shame on us and shame on the people at City Hall who aren't taking this seriously."

Ultimately, whether someone is a crime victim depends largely on personal choices, Chief Kunkle said.

"We've always said that if you just mind your business, you don't get into road rage incidents, you don't get into fights in bars, you don't get involved in the drug trade, your chances of being a victim of violent crime are very, very low," he said.

Tell that to Ivan Pugh, 36, owner of the Alligator Cafe.

His restaurant has been broken into five times since it opened two years ago on Live Oak Street in Old East Dallas. The most recent burglary was Thursday.

"I've got cameras, an alarm system, I got the locks re-keyed, and I'm going to order [burglar] bars," he said. "I've got to sell a lot of gumbo to pay for all this."

[TexasStooge]

BREAKING NEWS: Gas Well Explosion In Forest Hills

By Jack Beavers / WFAA ABC 8

FOREST HILL, Texas - A gas well explosion has prompted evacuations in Forest Hill. The explosion happened Saturday morning around 7:30 AM in the 3500 block of Lon Stephenson. About 75 people in nearby homes had to seek shelter at a community center on Forest Drive just south of I-20. Residents report hearing a loud explosion before they were asked to leave their homes.

An officer in the Forest Hills Fire Department tells WFAA crews on the scene that the evacuations were ordered because of the explosion potential of gas in the air.

Gas was seen venting from the base of a “Christmas Tree” at the well when WFAA-TV’s helicopter arrived on scene Saturday morning. A crane is positioned over the wellhead and firefighters say four people were working on the well at the time of the accident. There was no official comment about whether any of the workers were injured.

Authorities at the scene say the well is owned by XTO Energy of Fort Worth.

[TexasStooge]

Gas Well Blow-Out, Evacuations In Forest Hill

By Jack Beavers / WFAA ABC 8

FOREST HILL, Texas - A gas well blow-out has forced the evacuations of hundreds of people in Forest Hill. The explosion happened Saturday morning around 7:00 AM in the 3500 block of Lon Stephenson. People in about 500 nearby homes had to seek shelter at a community center on Forest Drive just south of I-20. Additional evacuation centers are being opened at the Wilkerson-Greines Athletic Complex on Wichita Street and the Tarrant County College South Campus.

Residents report hearing a loud explosion before they were asked to leave their homes. Forest Hill police and firefighters, with help from emergency personnel from Kennedale, Mansfield and Fort Worth went door-to-door with evacuation notices within a half-mile radius of the well.

An officer in the Forest Hill Fire Department tells WFAA crews on the scene that the evacuations were ordered because of the explosion potential of gas in the air. Some businesses have also been forced to close.

Gas was seen venting from the base of a “Christmas Tree” at the well when WFAA-TV’s helicopter arrived on scene Saturday morning. A crane is positioned over the wellhead and firefighters say four people were working on the well at the time of the accident. One of the workers could be seen laying motionless next to one of the trucks at the well site. That worker is officially listed as "unaccounted for." The three other workers escaped unharmed.

"A well blow-out occurred when XTO was completing -- fracturing and perforarting -- a gas well,:" said Gary Simpson of XTO Energy which owns the well. "At this time we have a missing person on scene. We hope to have more on that as we continue to assess the situation," he said.

The spokesperson for the Fort Worth-based company says that high pressure stream escaping from the well-head is mostly water mixed with some gas. The presence of the water, coupled with wind, is dispersing the gas and reducing the danger of an explosion, he said.

"Local emergency personnel have done a great job of performing a precautionary evacuation," said Mr. Simpson. "XTO is assisting with the feeding of displaced individuals. We are a local company and take care of our neighbors. If this goes on into the evening we will provide lodging assistance as needed."

Several of the trucks at the scene of the blow-out belong to Pipeline Recovery Logging & Perforating Services (PLPS) of Victoria and Pearland. A person answering the wireline company's phones said that PLPS was aware of the incident but had no comment. XTO confirmed the presence of contract workers as well as their own employees on scene when the well blew but weren't prepared to talk about PLPS' role in the incident.

"Since this well was being completed there is no connection to a pipeline or other gas production facilities that could potentially spread the hazardous situation beyond the well-head," Mr. Simpson said. He also said that no poisonous gases were escaping the well.

XTO has brought experts from Cudd Well Control of Houston to the scene to help control the blow-out. A Cudd worker in a bright orange jumpsuit could be seen turning off the ignitions of several vehicles on scene and examining the well around noon.

Operations and financial reports filed by XTO list them as the second largest gas producer in the Barnett Shale production area in which Forest Hill is located. XTO has more than twenty rigs working the Barnett Shale and is producing 219 million cubic feet of natural gas from the field each day.

XTO entered the Barnett Shale two years ago with a small acquisition and has expanded by purchasing additional wells and leasing mineral rights in the area. Last year XTO paid $700 million for Barnett Shale leases owned by Antero Resources of Denver.

According to XTO's most recent report to investors the company plans to drill 240 new wells in the Barnett Shale this year and is expanding its pipeline and compression facilities in the area to handle the increased production.

The move into the Barnett Shale has been a lucrative one for XTO. The company says its wells there continue to "exceed expectations." This week XTO reported record profits for the first quarter of $467 million dollars and a 96 percent increase in cash flow. The company also doubled its top executive's performance bonus to $31 million dollars.

[TexasStooge]

Irving officer wants job back

'He didn't do anything wrong,' lawyer says; motorist files suit after assault acquittal

By ERIC AASEN / The Dallas Morning News

IRVING, Texas - Now that a jury has found a former Irving police officer not guilty on charges that he assaulted a motorist, the fallout has begun.

Dan Miller wants his job back, but at least one community leader vehemently opposes his return to the Police Department. Meanwhile, a lawsuit was filed Friday on behalf of the motorist against the city of Irving and Mr. Miller.

Mr. Miller was fired after using a metal baton and pepper spray on Jose Palomino during a traffic stop last year. Mr. Palomino, an illegal Mexican immigrant who doesn't speak English, testified this week that he couldn't understand Mr. Miller's commands. But the former officer said he feared for his safety and felt his only option was to use the baton.

A jury, which viewed squad car footage of the incident, on Thursday found the 28-year police veteran not guilty.

The lawsuit, filed in Dallas County civil court, alleges that Mr. Miller assaulted and committed official oppression against Mr. Palomino, said Domingo Garcia, a Dallas attorney whose office will represent the motorist. The suit also alleges the city was negligent in failing to properly train its officers in physical restraint and basic Spanish.

Charles Anderson, Irving's deputy city attorney, said he couldn't comment on specific details until he had seen the lawsuit. Mr. Miller's attorney, Bob Baskett, also hadn't seen the suit Friday.

The lawsuit seeks $1 million in damages and an apology from Mr. Miller, Mr. Garcia said.

"We had waited until after the criminal trial was over, but I expected a not guilty verdict would come, like the Rodney King case," Mr. Garcia said. "Mr. Palomino will seek justice in civil courts, and we'll have additional witnesses and evidence."

Mr. Miller, the former leader of an Irving police officers' group, said Friday he's trying to get his job back, but he declined to comment further.

Mr. Miller, who will pursue a civil service appeal hearing to address his termination, should get his job back "because he didn't do anything wrong," Mr. Baskett said.

Officer Keith McCain, who has served as Fraternal Order of Police president in Mr. Miller's absence, said he supports his former colleague's goal of returning to work.

"I think the jury made the right decision," he said. "We're all in favor of Dan Miller fighting to get his job back."

But Anthony Bond, former president of the NAACP's Irving branch, said Mr. Miller doesn't deserve to be back on the force.

"If he is allowed back on the Irving Police Department, I will do everything in my power to stage one of the largest protests in Irving history," Mr. Bond said.

Manny Benavides, president of the Irving chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens, wouldn't comment on Mr. Miller's future with the department. But he said Friday that Mr. Palomino was treated worse than an animal during the traffic stop and called the incident a "travesty" and an "abuse of authority."

Mr. Baskett told jurors that Mr. Palomino was responsible for the beating because he made "conscious decisions" to ignore Mr. Miller's commands and purposely hid his hands from the officer's sight. Mr. Miller testified that he used the baton because Mr. Palomino hadn't responded to the pepper spray.

Police Department morale hasn't been good as a result of Mr. Miller's situation, Officer McCain said, in part because employees weren't pleased with the way the incident was handled.

"It should have been handled internally," Officer McCain said.

Irving Police Chief Larry Boyd couldn't be reached for comment Friday. Last year, he called the incident "an extremely unfortunate situation" and said Mr. Miller's behavior "is outside what we'll allow and tolerate."

Mr. Bond and Mr. Benavides said that the incident is a reminder that the Police Department needs do a better job of reaching out to Irving's growing minority population. About one-third of Irving residents are Hispanic and 10 percent are black, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2000 data.

Hispanics don't feel respected by Irving police, Mr. Benavides said.

"In order for respect to be expected, respect has to be given," he said.

Mr. Benavides said that more Irving police officers need better Spanish-speaking skills. Mr. Bond also said the city needs to review its policies on use of force.

Most Irving officers have received Spanish-language training, said Officer David Tull, Irving police spokesman. A review of the use-of-force policy is under way, but it isn't related to the incident involving Mr. Miller, he said.

Staff writers Alan Melson and Robert Tharp contributed to this report.

[TexasStooge]

'It's the best kept secret in Irving'

Museum trots out information on 'Mustangs,' sculptor

By DEBORAH FLECK / The Dallas Morning News

IRVING, Texas - The most visited tourist site in Irving has a secret.

But the word is getting out.

The popular Mustangs of Las Colinas sculpture attracts visitors from far and wide, yet a small museum a few steps away is often empty.

"It's a hidden treasure," said Mary Higbie, who's been the museum's guide for the past two years.

In the lobby of the West Tower of Williams Square, the cozy museum offers a wealth of information on the nine galloping horses and their sculptor, Robert Glen. An added treat is the exhibit of several wildlife sculptures by the acclaimed artist, who lives in Tanzania.

"It's the best kept secret in Irving," said Keith Parkhurst, the coordinator of Irving's Preservation and Redevelopment Department. He oversees the museum and other historic sites in the community.

He and Mrs. Higbie, along with many Friends of the Irving Museums volunteers, were busy Wednesday evening. When Mrs. Higbie found out the artist was stopping in Dallas for a few days, she organized a reception in his honor.

Later that evening, La Cima Club held a small dinner to show its gratitude to the sculptor. Perched 26 floors above the bronze horses, the club is celebrating its 20th anniversary with several events throughout the year.

Mr. Glen spoke at both events and expressed his appreciation to the late Ben and Betty Carpenter, his close friends.

"His vision made it all possible," Mr. Glen said about the founder of Las Colinas. "He left behind a benchmark and high standards."

Mr. Carpenter tracked down the wildlife sculptor in Africa and asked him to create the centerpiece for the sprawling urban development.

The story of the seven-year process is told through photos and montages in the museum. A short film, shown in the museum's small auditorium, also presents details of the labor of love.

The long line of museum guests Wednesday beamed when they met Mr. Glen. They also met natural history painter Susan Stolberger, who works alongside him at the Ruaha National Park in Tanzania. The pair had an exhibit together two years ago at the Irving Arts Center and were headed from the Dallas area to Houston for a shared exhibit at the zoo next week.

Mr. Glen graciously signed posters and shook hands for nearly two hours.

Mrs. Higbie said she's had many interesting visitors to the museum, including one who brought along a scrapbook on the horses, a couple who planned a connection through Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport just long enough to visit the site and a wedding party whose bride and groom were married next to the mustangs.

The museum guide who's often hugged by many visitors said what makes her job rewarding is "hearing all the accolades. It reinforces what I already know."

"Ben Carpenter's love of history and art benefited all of us in this city," she said. "While some would say Las Colinas was his greatest achievement, I would add his selection of Robert Glen as the artist for this sculpture ranks right up there also."

She has just one wish – more visitors.

[TexasStooge]

Food training won't be on just 1 campus

Irving: Consultant offers suggestions for Union Bower learning center

By KATHERINE LEAL UNMUTH / The Dallas Morning News

IRVING, Texas - Special-needs students have catered Irving events with hot lunches and baked cookies since the Union Bower Center for Learning opened many years ago.

But by summer, the food program will be no more at the campus.

Ruth Turner, a consultant hired by the Irving district to evaluate the alternative school, has recommended dispersing the program to make room for a conference room and classrooms. The district plans to move forward with the remodel using up to $75,000 in bond funds in hopes of eliminating the need for portables at the campus.

The district deemed the shuttering of the Career and Technology Education for the Disabled (CTED) program at Union Bower as an expansion – noting that the instructor will now travel among several high school campuses to offer the classes.

But some are concerned the program is leaving Union Bower.

"If you expand the program, you don't eliminate the base – you take the base and expand from there," said Veronica Quinn, a substitute teacher for the program. "Everybody is just real upset. We're doing away with so many of our special programs for our kids who are not going to college."

Administrators said it is critical that the district prepare students with disabilities for careers beyond the food industry, such as hotel maintenance and business. Five years ago, the CTED program had two teachers and 40 students. This year it has one teacher and 13 students.

"There should be more things kids should be learning besides making cookies and brownies," Superintendent Jack Singley said.

The consultant's report, which cost the district $4,800, also said the alternative school had too many fragmented programs that overlap. The district added a literacy program last year for immigrants reading English below a fourth-grade level and a program for 15-year-olds still in middle school in 2004.

Both programs have caused some to speculate that students are being sent to Union Bower because they might hurt their home campus' accountability rating.

Union Bower also offers programs for pregnant students, for immigrant students lacking years of schooling, for night school and for self-paced learning.

The report said the programs overlap too much – a pregnant student may also need to learn English, for example. And non-English speaking students may benefit from access to students who already speak English.

"The fragmentation ... does not support consistency of purpose and a sense of community, mutual staff support and collaboration," Ms. Turner said in the report.

Other notes and recommendations in the report, which was presented to the school board Monday, include:

The name of the school should be changed to the Union Bower Center for Accelerated Learning – to signal that the school is not for "failures or losers."

The school needs different levels of courses in math, science, social studies and English.

The MEGA self-paced learning program "does not allow for adequate student engagement and authentic learning and does not have the rigor necessary for maximum student success."

The school needs more specific entry criteria because it is not consistently understood.

The school should increase parent involvement.

Principal Curtis Mauricio, who is new to the campus, said he wants less separation among the programs, which are isolated. He also wants students to have more flexibility to enroll in classes.

"What we're trying to do is do away with the program approach," he said. "We will try to do away with these labels."

[TexasStooge]

Gas well capped after blowout

By JACK BEAVERS / WFAA ABC 8

FOREST HILL, Texas - A gas well blowout in southeast Tarrant County early Saturday forced hundreds of people to flee their homes. One worker was missing.

The well was capped late Saturday afternoon, and displaced residents were expected to be able to return by early evening.

Residents of Forest Hill said they heard a loud explosion around 7 a.m. at the XTO Energy facility in the 3500 block of Lon Stephenson.

Forest Hill police and firefighters—with help from emergency workers from Kennedale, Mansfield and Fort Worth—went door-to-door with evacuation notices within a half-mile radius of the wellhead.

The residents of about 500 homes sought shelter at a community center on Forest Drive, just south of Interstate 20.

Additional evacuation centers were opened at the Wilkerson-Greines Athletic Complex on Wichita Street and the Tarrant County College South Campus.

A Forest Hill Fire Department spokesman told News 8 that the evacuations were ordered because of the explosive potential of natural gas in the air. Some businesses were also forced to close.

Firefighters said four people were working on the well at the time of the accident. One of the workers could be seen lying motionless next to one of the trucks at the site. That worker was listed as "unaccounted for."

The three other workers escaped unhurt.

Gas was seen venting from the base of the well when WFAA-TV’s helicopter arrived overhead on Saturday morning.

"A well blow-out occurred when XTO was completing—fracturing and perforarting—a gas well," explained XTO Energy spokesman Gary Simpson. "At this time, we have a missing person on scene. We hope to have more on that as we continue to assess the situation."

The spokesperson for the Fort Worth-based company added that high-pressure stream escaping from the wellhead is mostly water mixed with some gas. The presence of the water, coupled with wind, was dispersing the gas and reducing the danger of an explosion, Simpson said.

"Local emergency personnel have done a great job of performing a precautionary evacuation," Simpson said. "XTO is assisting with the feeding of displaced individuals. We are a local company, and take care of our neighbors. If this goes on into the evening, we will provide lodging assistance as needed."

Several of the trucks at the scene of the blowout belong to Pipeline Recovery Logging & Perforating Services (PLPS) of Victoria and Pearland. A person answering the company's phone said that PLPS was aware of the incident, but had no comment.

XTO confirmed the presence of contract workers as well as their own employees at scene when the well blew, but weren't prepared to talk about any role that PLPS might have had in the incident.

"Since this well was being completed, there is no connection to a pipeline or other gas production facilities that could potentially spread the hazardous situation beyond the wellhead," Simpson said. He added that no poisonous gases were escaping the well.

XTO brought in experts from Cudd Well Control of Houston to help control the blowout. A Cudd worker in a bright orange jumpsuit could be seen turning off the ignition of several vehicles near the well around noon.

Operations and financial reports filed by XTO list them as the second largest gas producer in the Barnett Shale production area, where Forest Hill is located. XTO has more than 20 rigs working the Barnett Shale, and is producing 219 million cubic feet of natural gas from the field each day.

XTO entered the Barnett Shale two years ago with a small acquisition, and has expanded by purchasing additional wells and leasing mineral rights in the area. Last year, XTO paid $700 million for Barnett Shale leases owned by Antero Resources of Denver.

According to XTO's most recent report to investors, the company plans to drill 240 new wells in the Barnett Shale this year and is expanding its pipeline and compression facilities in the area to handle the increased production.

The move into the Barnett Shale has been a lucrative one for XTO. The company said its wells there continue to "exceed expectations."

This week, XTO reported record profits for the first quarter of $467 million and a 96 percent increase in cash flow. The company also doubled its top executive's performance bonus to $31 million.

[TexasStooge]

As schools struggle, ends don't always meet

Rich districts do fundraisers, poor districts do without

By LAURIE FOX / The Dallas Morning News

Parents resort to fundraisers to boost teacher salaries, buy library books and even replace classroom doors.

Bond elections once reserved for new schools or fancy stadiums are now tapped for more basic needs: replacing outdated computers, repairing old sewer lines and fixing worn roofs.

Financial patches like these aren't what you'd expect from some of the state's most elite school districts. But the Highland Park, Richardson and Carroll school districts – all considered property wealthy under the state's school finance system – have been paying the bills this way for some time.

The picture is bleaker in property-poor areas that rely on these districts for money to equalize education funding in Texas. Many poorer districts can only dream of providing the teacher pay, services and education extras still standard in wealthy schools, even under Texas's share-the-wealth system known as Robin Hood.

In Venus, a one-stoplight town southeast of Fort Worth, the school district receives some money from the Carroll district. But it's not enough to get the youngest students out of portable buildings whose floors pull away from the wall.

A share-the-wealth finance system that was supposed to be a temporary fix for Texas school districts now has been in place for more than a decade. 12 years. There's little hope that legislators will revamp it during the special session that convened last week to comply with a June 1 deadline set by the Texas Supreme Court to fix the unconstitutional school property tax system.

Lawmakers are tasked with changing how tax dollars for education are generated. But some say the problems plaguing their schools won't be solved until legislators are willing to also tackle the politically thorny Robin Hood funding model.

"We're not holding our breath," said Debbie Barton, who runs the Carroll Education Foundation in Southlake.

Her group raises money for teacher grants in the northeast Tarrant County district. She said teachers routinely apply for money for copiers and printers, after-school tutoring programs and classroom supplies.

"They just can't be as innovative in their requests anymore," she said. "It's much more meat and potatoes now."

Some parents and educators say they are frustrated with the current funding formula that relies heavily on local property taxes, calling it inadequate and no substitute for new money that's needed from the state.

"It's a much more equitable system, but it's frayed," said Jim Nelson, superintendent for the Richardson school district and a former state education commissioner. "Everyone's at the breaking point."

Critics note there's something wrong with a funding formula that considers the Dallas school district to be property wealthy. Budget officials have estimated DISD would have to give up $43 million to poorer districts starting next year under the current system.

Withholding payment

One property-wealthy district is so fed up with the system that it plans to withhold its payment. Officials in the Boerne school district, northwest of San Antonio, decided last week to ask the Texas attorney general's office whether the payments are legal. In the meantime, it will put its $2.3 million payment in an interest-bearing account.

A spokeswoman for the Texas Education Agency said this is the first time a district has refused to make payments. By not doing so, she said, the district could be divided or consolidated if the money isn't paid by this fall.

State Sen. Florence Shapiro of Plano said she's well aware that parents and school leaders are tired and uncertain. She, too, is weary of yet another special session on school finance that could be mired in politics.

"The state has abdicated its responsibility," said Ms. Shapiro, chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee. "This is a process that's evolving, and we can't give up on it."

Not content to just debate the governor's plan to shift funding from property taxes to other sources, she filed a bill last week proposing a $2,000 pay raise for teachers and additional money to high schools to boost graduation rates and curb dropout rates.

As for whether the share-the-wealth model would be addressed during the session, she said it's too soon to tell.

The House is expected to vote Monday on Gov. Rick Perry's tax swap plan, which would cut school property taxes but provide no new money for schools.

From day one of the so-called Robin Hood plan, the Highland Park school district was declared property wealthy, not surprising since it is located in one of the toniest areas of the state. Over the years, it has sent $600 million back to the state for redistribution to poorer districts. Parents have stepped up to preserve school programs and fill in the gaps.

"We have to raise the money ourselves. That's all there is to it," said Cordelia Boone, a Highland Park mother of five. "Over the past few years, parents really began to understand that."

Without help from parents, she said, HP schools were "losing the essentials" under Robin Hood. What is essential for one district may be considered a luxury by parents in another but Park Cities residents are keen to protect their schools.

The district's Mad for Plaid effort – which generated more than $2.5 million last year – has helped pay for everything from microscopes to computers and software to teacher salaries.

Parents in Southlake's Carroll district used money from a fundraising program called Digging for Dragons to restore art and music programs in elementary schools last year. Its goal is to raise even more money this year to restore a Spanish program for grade-schoolers, which parents say in surveys they do consider essential, and add an International Baccalaureate program for high-schoolers.

The district has given up about $60 million under the refinance system in five years.

In the Richardson school district, Dinah Miller is part of a statewide political action committee called Texas Parent PAC. In the recent primary election, members sought to unseat lawmakers who they say have not supported public schools.

"I challenge people to hang out at my school and tell me where else we can cut," she said, noting a recent parent-teacher effort to raise money for new classroom doors at Prestonwood Elementary.

Peter Boysen looked beyond public schools when it came time to educate his children. The father of triplet kindergarteners enrolled them in an Arlington charter school because he wasn't happy with his local elementary schools.

As a classroom teacher, he's aware that some schools have more than others. He uses a computer and a special projector to give presentations in his middle school English classes in the Frisco school district. Just the replacement bulb for the projector runs more than $100.

His middle school has a projector in every classroom. The Lancaster district, where he taught the year before, had one for the entire school.

Mr. Boysen said he watches the action in Austin with interest as lawmakers attempt to achieve equality for Texas schools.

"It's hard because this is not a business," he said. "There are so many factors that go into education that don't happen in the school building.

"You can't promise equal opportunity in the schools because not everyone comes to school with the same opportunities."

In its ruling last fall, the state Supreme Court did not alter the wealth-sharing system but did caution that education funding in Texas was drifting "toward constitutional inadequacy."

And while parents and educators said the share-the-wealth has leveled the playing field somewhat, education funding is still not where it should be.

"School districts now are more alike than different," said Cathy Bryce, the Highland Park superintendent. "But we're all in the same inadequate circumstances. Equity and adequacy has not served our children well."

Can't compete

Venus Superintendent Elizabeth Treadway often wonders what's adequate to educate children in this small Johnson County farming community.

The median income for its blue-collar parents is $30,000 a year.

The property-poor district can't compete when it comes to teacher salaries and classroom programs. Last week, school board members increased starting teacher salaries to $32,000, but they know that nearby Mansfield will probably go higher than the $39,500 it currently pays.

"When you look at those salaries, why would someone come to Venus?" asked Sondra Lanier, the district's chief financial officer.

Ms. Lanier may be the exception.

The veteran finance officer signed on with Venus last summer for six weeks to help get the district's budget in order. But she decided to stay, commuting daily from Keller, which is north of Fort Worth.

The hourlong drive gives her time to think of new ideas to help the small district stay afloat. Time to think of ways her experience can help improve the district's four schools. Time to come up with one great idea to fulfill many needs.

Some days, it is a heartbreaking challenge.

The deeply rutted football field needs about $35,000 in repairs. There is no school soccer program because, despite parent interest, it costs too much to operate.

The primary school, which has more portable buildings than permanent structures, should have been replaced years ago.

The district has managed to save about $3 million toward a new building, but voters can't afford to approve a bond package for the remaining $5 million to $6 million. More than 70 percent of the district's students receive free or reduced price lunch.

"There are just so many needs here," Ms. Lanier said.

Mrs. Treadway said the school finance system has helped her district, but it still struggles.

"How will we catch these kids up?" she asked. "They deserve every opportunity, too. The money is just not there."

[TexasStooge]

Scales of justice can swing wildly

Two very different men commit two very different crimes. When both violate probation, there are very different results: The robber gets life; the killer remains free.

By BROOKS EGERTON / The Dallas Morning News

First came the poor man, barely 17 years old – too young to buy beer or vote, but an adult under the Texas penal code. He took part in a $2 stickup in which no one got hurt. He pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and was put on 10 years of probation.

He broke the rules once, by smoking marijuana. A Dallas judge responded in the harshest possible way: He replaced the original sentence with a life term in prison.

There Tyrone Brown sits today, 16 years later, tattooed and angry and pondering self-destruction. "I've tried suicide a few times," he writes. "What am I to make of a life filled with failure, including failing to end my life?"

Now the flip side of the coin, also from Judge Keith Dean's court: A well-connected man pleaded guilty to murder – for shooting an unarmed prostitute in the back – and also got 10 years of probation.

The killer proceeded to break the rules by, among other things, smoking crack cocaine. He repeatedly failed drug tests. He was arrested for cocaine possession in Waco while driving a congressman's car, but prosecutors there didn't press charges.

Judge Dean has let this man stay free and, last year, exempted him from most of the usual conditions of probation. John Alexander "Alex" Wood no longer must submit to drug tests or refrain from owning a gun or even meet with a probation officer. He's simply supposed to obey the law and mail the court a postcard once a year that gives his current address.

The judge's written court policies say that defendants who have broken the rules are not eligible for postcard probation. But no one can make him obey his own standards. Indeed, judges in Texas and most other states have few limits on possible punishments when defendants violate probation, which sets the stage for lawful but extreme disparities.

And "you can't tell what the reasons are," said Kevin Reitz, a University of Minnesota law professor who is one of the nation's leading experts on sentencing guidelines. "I call this a black box system. You have someone with a lot of power and no burden of explanation."

Judge Dean, a widely respected 20-year veteran of the Dallas criminal bench, said he wouldn't discuss the two cases because he might have to rule on them again someday. In general, he said, he tries to evaluate "the potential danger to the community" when someone violates probation "and what, in the long run, is going to be in the best interest of the community and the person themselves."

The judge gave Mr. Wood his special privileges without receiving a formal request, court records show. "This certainly undermines one's confidence in the judicial system around here," said Rick Jordan, who was the prosecutor on Mr. Wood's case and now is a defense attorney.

Mr. Wood, who is 46 and raises show dogs, said he has avoided prison by having top-flight legal counsel and building good relations with probation officers. His sentence is set to expire at the end of May.

One of his prominent lawyers, George Milner Jr., "had to go see the judge on something else" last year, Mr. Wood said, and agreed to seek early release from probation. Mr. Milner reported back that Judge Dean "couldn't do the early release but would do this other deal" – postcard probation.

"We didn't ask for that," Mr. Wood said. "It was a compromise."

Judge Dean said such requests are generally handled informally, with prosecutors getting only an oral alert. He said he bases his decisions on recommendations from his probation officers.

Probation records show that Mr. Wood failed five drug tests, but public court files mention only two. It's unclear why there is a discrepancy or which records Judge Dean reviewed.

Letting a killer stay free after several failed drug tests is "unheard of with this judge," former probation officer Don Ford said. And "life in prison for smoking a joint – that's harsh in any case."

Judge Dean usually let defendants like Mr. Brown off with a warning the first time they tested positive for marijuana, Mr. Ford said. A second such test failure typically meant two days in jail.

The Brown crime

Tyrone Brown's story began on a February night in 1990. A child-abuse victim and high school dropout from Oak Cliff, he was roaming the upper Greenville Avenue area with another 17-year-old.

They spied Bill Hathaway walking home from his restaurant job. According to police and court records, Mr. Brown's friend pointed a pistol at Mr. Hathaway and demanded money. (In an interview with The Dallas Morning News, Mr. Brown said he was the one who held the gun.)

The records say Mr. Hathaway handed his wallet to Mr. Brown, who removed the cash – two $1 bills. The victim asked for his wallet back and got it.

The men parted ways. Mr. Hathaway called police, who quickly caught the two robbers nearby and returned his money.

There was no trial. Judge Dean soon accepted guilty pleas from both teens and assessed the same sentence: 10 years of deferred-adjudication probation.

Under this increasingly common approach to jurisprudence, a judge finds that there is evidence to convict someone but doesn't. Defendants who complete probation successfully end up with no criminal record.

However, if they break the rules of supervision, the judge can revoke their probation, convict them of the original charge and sentence them to prison.

Mr. Brown tested positive for marijuana in May 1990, a month after starting probation. Prosecutors filed a revocation motion – the standard response – but made no sentencing recommendation.

At a hearing in early June, Mr. Brown's court-appointed lawyer asked Judge Dean to send the youth to boot camp, where defendants typically spend a few months under military-style rules before returning to probation.

The judge, according to a transcript, did not address that proposal. Nor did he mention Mr. Brown's juvenile record (he was charged with exposing himself to a woman, for example, and got caught riding in a stolen car).

Judge Dean simply reminded the teen that prosecutors initially recommended a five-year prison sentence instead of probation, "and I told you ... that you wouldn't see anything like that five years if you got in more trouble." Then he pronounced the life sentence and added, "Good luck, Mr. Brown."

Defense attorney Matt Fry did not protest, the transcript shows.

In an interview, he said he did not remember the case and had no record of it. Renie McClellan, a court-appointed lawyer who represented Mr. Brown in a failed appeal, said she, too, had no memory or record of the matter.

Mr. Brown's family did not attend the hearing and did not believe him when, in a phone call from jail, he explained what had happened.

"He told me they gave him life and I said, 'Life for what?' " recalled his mother, Nora Brown. "I almost had a heart attack."

Mr. Hathaway, the robbery victim, knew nothing about the case's outcome until contacted recently by The News. He, too, was astounded.

"Goodness gracious," he said in a phone call from Virginia, where he now lives. "You have got to be kidding me. ... Nobody touched me at all."

Meanwhile, Mr. Brown's co-defendant, Lewis Bivins, also got in trouble while on probation – he pleaded guilty to car theft. Judge Dean sent him to boot camp and let him return to probation.

Only after Mr. Bivins committed two further crimes – burglary and another robbery – did the judge send him to prison. He, too, is now serving a life sentence.

The Wood crime

John Alexander Wood's journey toward Judge Dean's courtroom began on a March evening in 1995. He picked up a 22-year-old hustler named Larry Clark on an Oak Lawn street, and they went to Mr. Wood's nearby home.

Police reports, citing Mr. Wood's statements and physical evidence, say the two men had sex, for which Mr. Wood paid $30. Afterward, Mr. Clark asked for a ride home, but Mr. Wood balked and demanded his money back. A fight ensued.

Mr. Clark ran into the back yard, which was enclosed by a high fence. Mr. Wood, using a small semiautomatic pistol, fatally shot him from behind and took the money from Mr. Clark's pocket.

Mr. Wood, who had no criminal history, initially pleaded not guilty to murder and went to trial in 1996. As jurors were about to conclude deliberations, the prosecution and defense cut a deal that Judge Dean approved: The defendant pleaded guilty to murder in exchange for 10 years of deferred-adjudication probation.

Jury forewoman Dana Toney said the plea bargain didn't change much. Jurors, she said, believed the killing was an accident, were close to convicting Mr. Wood of negligent homicide and would have been happy to put him on probation.

There is no court transcript of the case because there were no appeals, but Ms. Toney said the defense argument went like this: Mr. Wood feared Mr. Clark, who was high on drugs, and fired a warning shot that he hoped would scare the man off. He stumbled when pulling the trigger, making the gun point toward Mr. Clark.

Mr. Wood largely agreed with this summary, although he told The News that he shot Mr. Clark in the side as the man turned toward him.

"It was sort of a self-defense type of situation," Mr. Wood said. "Judge Dean understood this."

The official autopsy shows that Mr. Clark was shot in the back.

Mr. Jordan, who was the prosecutor, said he agreed to the plea because he sensed that jurors were sympathetic to Mr. Wood. And indeed they were.

"Alex came across as very boyish – a little-boy haircut, combed over, and big glasses," Ms. Toney said. "He didn't look like the kind of guy who would go around shooting people in the back."

Ms. Toney said she attends Prestonwood Baptist Church and was swayed by prominent Baptist defense witnesses. They included Mr. Wood's father, John Alvin Wood, who was a former pastor of First Baptist Church in Waco; and the Rev. O.S. Hawkins, who was pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas.

"You see O.S. Hawkins, a pillar in the community, stand up and put his own reputation on the line," she said. "It carried a lot of weight."

The prosecution had no such star witnesses. Mr. Clark, the slain man, was orphaned as a little boy in Alabama – his father drank himself to death; his mother, after remarrying, died of injuries from a car accident. He had maternal grandparents in rural North Texas, but the prosecutor's efforts to get them to court failed.

So to establish the victim's identity for jurors, Mr. Jordan had to summon a Dallas police officer who once arrested Mr. Clark for prostitution.

That opened the door to questions about criminal history, which led back to a sordid tale that the grandparents hadn't told the prosecutor about.

After his mother died, Mr. Clark was raised in Oxford, Ala., by his stepfather, whom relatives today describe as an abusive drug dealer. When Mr. Clark reached his mid-teens, he killed the man and buried him in a shallow backyard grave.

Oxford Assistant Chief Ron Herbowy, who investigated the killing, said: "You couldn't help but like the boy. You almost felt sorry for him."

A juvenile judge concurred, first refusing to send Mr. Clark to adult court for trial and later sentencing him to probation instead of detention.

But jurors in Dallas came to see Mr. Clark as the predatory half of the equation, even though Mr. Wood was the only armed party. Ms. Toney's conclusion: "You almost feel like [Mr. Wood] did the world a favor" by killing Mr. Clark.

Mr. Clark's grandmother, Jane Peel, said she didn't attend the trial because she was overwhelmed by grief. Her grandson, who'd lived with her and at other area locations in the months before his death, was her last living link to her daughter.

Ms. Peel, now a widow, said she has come to believe that Mr. Wood got probation for murder because of his prominent father.

And "it was two gays," she added. "According to everyone, [her grandson] was a nobody.

"But that's not true. He was somebody who was loved."

The Wood aftermath

The prosecutor, Mr. Jordan, said he made his peace with the plea bargain because he expected Mr. Wood to break the rules of probation. That's because witnesses such as John Orr, the killer's landlord and employer, told authorities he had an explosive temper and once threatened to kill a co-worker.

Mr. Jordan was right about the rule breaking. But "it looks like somebody turned a blind eye," he said.

Mr. Wood successfully completed nearly three years of probation before testing positive, in March 1999, for cocaine use. It was the first in a long series of troubles, probation records show.

Two months later, at 5 o'clock in the morning, Waco police stopped Mr. Wood for a minor traffic violation and found crack cocaine on the floor of the old Ford Crown Victoria he was driving. The license plate was HOUSE 11A – one of the numbers assigned to U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards.

Mr. Edwards, a Waco Democrat who remains in office, is married to Mr. Wood's sister. He told The News he was in Washington at the time and had left the car in a friend's care; he said he didn't know whether Mr. Wood had asked to borrow it. The friend, real estate agent Cindy Evans, said she didn't recall.

The police reports say Mr. Wood, when asked what he and a passenger were doing in the neighborhood where he was arrested, claimed that a maid had asked him to bring her a prescription from a 24-hour pharmacy. The woman he identified was a drug dealer, according to the reports.

But Mr. Wood told The News that he was in the area to pick up the passenger, a male friend who "was in all kinds of trouble." He said that he hadn't known there was crack in the car and that the friend must have put it there.

At the time, Mr. Wood was living in Waco. Probation officials there had been supervising him, as a courtesy to their Dallas County counterparts. Now they washed their hands of him.

Dallas County took over supervision but, contrary to state standards, let Mr. Wood keep living in Waco. He was assigned to a program in which a probation officer is supposed to make surprise visits to high-risk offenders instead of letting them report to a county office – yet records show that Mr. Wood, 100 miles away, got no visits.

Dallas prosecutors asked Judge Dean to revoke his probation, citing the arrest and the cocaine test failure. But there was no quick ruling, as there had been after Tyrone Brown tested positive for marijuana.

The judge, a Republican, left the matter pending for several months, with Mr. Wood free on bail. Meanwhile, he failed two more drug tests in the summer of 1999 – both times after denying that he was still using cocaine, according to probation records.

Such false denials are supposed to lead to revocation of probation, the judge's written policies say. But Judge Dean let him go to a private inpatient treatment center instead of prison.

Mr. Wood's next break came while he was at the center, in Minnesota: The district attorney's office in Waco dropped the possession case against him and his friend, Steve Canuteson.

Prosecutor Antonio Piña said his records show that he lacked evidence to convict Mr. Wood. He said he let Mr. Canuteson go because he pleaded guilty to an unrelated charge.

When arrested, each suspect had told officers that the drugs belonged to the other, police reports say. Most such cases result in the conviction of both defendants, prosecution and defense experts told The News.

"When they point fingers at each other, I prosecute them both if I've got a good case," Mr. Piña said. He said he didn't have records that detailed the evidence problems and didn't recall the matter.

Mr. Canuteson, who lived with Mr. Wood in 1999, told The News that they both avoided prosecution because "it was Chet Edwards' car." He did not elaborate beyond saying that "Alex had extreme political ties. I met Chet Edwards so many times."

Mr. Piña said the Edwards connection "never came into the picture. ... I would remember that."

Mr. Edwards said he didn't recall meeting Mr. Canuteson and had no contact with authorities on the matter.

"I have never made a single phone call, talked to a single official or testified in any way in behalf of Alex," he said. "It would be totally inappropriate."

Mr. Edwards said he was angry with his brother-in-law over the arrest and believes that "Alex should be treated by the judicial system in the same way as any other citizen. ... [It] should not give preferential treatment to anyone for any reasons."

In early 2000, Judge Dean dismissed the probation-revocation request at Dallas County prosecutors' request. Rachel Horton, District Attorney Bill Hill's spokeswoman, said it is not clear why the office sought the dismissal.

By April of that year, Mr. Wood was back in trouble. A police report says he broke a glass door to enter the Rowlett home of Margaret Worth, whom he knew from dog-show circles, and demanded a puppy they both claimed to own.

Dallas County prosecutors filed another probation-revocation motion, then withdrew it after Ms. Worth decided to drop charges. She told The News she backed down after Mr. Wood's father proposed a deal: "I'd keep the puppy if I dropped the charges."

Ms. Worth's take on the son, who has long lived off his parents' wealth: "Rules just don't apply to him."

In January 2001, Mr. Wood failed a drug test for the fourth time – again after denying that he was using cocaine. Records show that a probation officer then warned that if he "even had the belief that [Mr. Wood] was still using drugs," a motion would be filed recommending a prison sentence.

It turned out to be an idle threat. In March 2001, a probation officer found evidence that Mr. Wood had diluted his urine to pass a test, but there were no consequences.

And in early 2002, he tested positive for the fifth time. Judge Dean let him stay free without even paying cash bail, let him go to another drug-treatment center instead of prison, and afterward even let him travel to Italy.

Probation officials apparently didn't touch base with Waco police, where there were emerging and persistent danger signs.

Mr. Wood, for example, had been living with at least two men who had multiple criminal convictions. One rule of probation was that he avoid people of "disreputable or harmful character."

Probation officers "never knew about it," Mr. Wood said. "Basically [the men] were homeless, and I was too nice and let them camp out here, and it caused me trouble."

At different times in recent years, he has accused the men of stealing from him, then told Waco police that he didn't want to prosecute. He accused one of the men of threatening him in an effort to collect a debt.

Last summer, shortly after Judge Dean gave him the one-postcard-a-year deal, Mr. Wood and one of the housemates vanished for a time. So did an SUV and credit card belonging to Mr. Wood's father.

The father complained to police but didn't follow through on pressing charges. Instead, he called an officer and said "his son had been dropped off at his residence [with the SUV] and was heavily sedated and couldn't talk."

Early this year, Mr. Wood summoned police because the same housemate had tried to kill himself with a drug overdose. The man, Mr. Wood told officers, had recently stepped outside their home with a gun "hoping that the police would show up and shoot and kill him."

Mr. Wood told The News he is now volunteering as a drug counselor at Mission Waco, a high-profile charity. But the agency's executive director, Jimmy Dorrell, said Mr. Wood hasn't even gone though the application process and, because of the murder, couldn't pass a background check.

The Brown aftermath

All the while Mr. Wood has been free, Tyrone Brown has been behind bars. He hasn't been a model prisoner.

He started taking classes to finish his high school education, but quit. He joined a gang – "the closest thing to my family," he said. He fought with guards, which led to solitary confinement. He flirted with suicide.

And he found out he has a daughter – his girlfriend in Dallas, it turned out, had been pregnant when his probation was revoked. His little girl is now a teenager, almost as old as he was back when Judge Dean wished him luck in prison.

"She got past the stage where she'd cry every time she'd think about him," said her mother, Omika Saulters. Still, "she talks about her daddy all the time. She asks, 'Is he ever coming home?' "

Mr. Brown has learned to talk a little about his own father, who has never visited him in prison.

"He beat us so bad," the prisoner told The News. Juvenile court records say he and a brother spent a year in foster care because of the father's violence toward them and their mother.

The mom, Nora Brown, tells him that Christian faith is the way to survive prison's hell.

"Where's your God at now?" he once fired back at her in a letter. But they've patched things up some since then.

"I tell him, 'You've got to show those people you're not there to make it your home,' " said Ms. Brown, who can show you the scar near one eye where her ex-husband hit her with a candlestick. " 'You've got to show them you want to get out of there.' "

In the last couple of years, Mr. Brown has cleaned up his act and renounced his gang ties, prison officials said. He spends much of his time reading – everything from Stephen King to self-help books to a thesaurus – and he writes poetry.

He's eligible for parole in 2009. The only way to get out sooner, state officials said, would be for Gov. Rick Perry to commute his sentence.

"I am on the verge of giving up completely," Mr. Brown admitted, "because I am tired of holding on to nothing. I've been trying to hold on for over 15 years, but for the most part I've been by myself."

[TexasStooge]

Anger smolders months after fire

Dallas: Condo residents find rebuilding lives slow, agonizing

By ANDREW D. SMITH / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - Adine Bagheri rescued three things from the Jan. 12 fire that destroyed the 36 condominiums in her northeast Dallas building: the clothes on her back, the contents of her purse and her yellow Lab, Jake.

Three months later, little has changed.

"I still don't have my important papers. I still don't have my insurance money. And I still don't have a home," she said. "I have worked every day to recover and gotten almost nowhere. It's amazingly hard to rebuild a life."

The fire at Richland Trace left 108 people homeless. For each of them, the dramatic inferno was not the end of the story; it was the beginning of a continuing struggle, one that has forced many to change both their lifestyle and their beliefs about life.

The fire began around 11 a.m., when, investigators say, a plumber's blowtorch ignited the insulation behind a malfunctioning shower.

The blaze climbed the wall, engulfed the roof and quickly became a six-alarm behemoth that drew 120 firefighters and two dozen trucks.

Richard and Diane Bruton were puttering around their nearby unit when they received the evacuation order. Gerald Burns was on his way to inquire about renter's insurance. Ms. Bagheri was eating lunch.

All four wanted to rescue their possessions from the fire, but aside from letting Ms. Bagheri open her door for Jake, the firefighters kept them away. All they could do was sit motionless, contemplating the destruction.

What is fair?

The shock eventually gave way to indignation. Everything seemed so unfair. It still does.

Fire investigators remain hazy about whether the fire was started by resident Robert Jefferson, a friend of his or an unlicensed plumber hired to fix his shower. Mr. Jefferson said after the blaze that the fire started in his unit as he and two friends were using a plumber's torch to repair a shower.

Authorities decided that Mr. Jefferson bore some responsibility, so they charged him with misdemeanor negligence and levied a fine of several hundred dollars.

Outraged residents say the price should be far higher; some hope to sue him. The fire destroyed dozens of homes, killed several pets and dislocated 108 people.

Mr. Jefferson could not be reached for comment.

"What's a fair punishment? Depends who you ask," said Deputy Chief Kevin Sipes of Dallas Fire-Rescue. "It's easy to say that people should pay to fix problems they create. The problem is, no one has the money to fix a problem like this. I guess we could have tried to send him to prison, but would the residents there really benefit if this guy went to jail for an accident?"

Another question of fairness concerns the payment of homeowners association dues.

The units at Richland Trace are held individually, but each owner must pay dues – which are set by the homeowners association – to maintain and insure the property, which had 19 buildings and 600 units before the fire.

Fire victims say they should not have to pay dues until their units are rebuilt. Why, they ask, should they pay for facilities that they cannot use?

Members of the homeowners association board ask a different question: Why should a fire in one building force residents in the others to pay higher dues? Indeed, given that many association expenditures will go toward reconstruction, why shouldn't the people who benefit from reconstruction foot some of the bill?

Precious little left

It became clear soon after the fire was extinguished that the building was a goner, but demolition was delayed several weeks while the homeowners association waited for an insurance payment to finance the project.

The money came through in February, and a bulldozer quickly followed.

The property manager let residents search the rubble. Mr. Burns said he was told one man found $35,000 in cash that he had inherited from his mother and stored in his closet. Another retrieved a working television.

Most residents fared worse in the confusing wreckage. Items from apartments on one side of the building were found on the other side, hundreds of feet from where they had started.

The discovery of asbestos led to a declaration that the debris was hazardous and delayed its removal. Wind blew the dust around, and residents worried about their health. Food rotted in kitchens, and rats soon took up residence amid the stench.

Soon after the fire, Mr. Burns moved to another unit in Richland Trace – his landlord owns several – and has been struggling ever since.

"My landlord kindly gave me a bed and a TV," he said. "The only other furniture I got is a couch I found on the corner. It's covered in dog and cat hair, and I won't sit on the thing because I don't know if it has fleas. I just keep it for company."

Mr. Burns has kept himself alive on food from the Albertsons supermarket deli counter where he works.

"I eat mostly bologna and chicken salad," he said. "I have one shirt and three pairs of pants. I have to wear the shirt every day. I found two of the pants when we searched through the rubble."

Ms. Bagheri went to live with her sister, Ava, the night after the fire. It took weeks for her to get used to the bed in her sister's guest room. "I never had trouble sleeping on other beds when I still had my own, but it became very difficult," she said. "Each time I lay down, the bed reminded me of what I lost."

'Out of our hands'

Ms. Bagheri had always thought she was in control of her life. Now she knows differently. Though she owned her unit, she has no say over how and when it will be rebuilt.

She couldn't even walk into her home after the fire. It was not her decision to make.

The homeowners association exerts a good deal of control over members such as Ms. Bagheri, but it, too, marches to a tune it does not play.

The association would like to rebuild immediately, but it can move no faster than the insurance company will let it. It had to leave stinky ruins on the property for nearly two months as its insurers considered their options.

The board also felt unable to let displaced tenants and owners go through their apartments after the fire. The building did not look as if it was going to fall down, but it had been declared unsafe. Allowing entry would be courting liability.

"We can't really do much of anything without a green light from the insurance company," said Nancy Burnett, who manages the property. "The people with the money control the process. It's out of our hands."

The insurance money came through a few weeks ago. Workers have since removed the debris and poured a fresh concrete foundation for the replacement building.

The foundation traces its predecessor in every detail, even leaving space for the bushes that once surrounded the building. Some of them survived the fire, the demolition, the cleanup and the foundation work. They still look healthy.

Ms. Burnett expects the rebuilding contract to be awarded this summer and says construction should take 13 months. That would have the building reopening in about 18 months.

Starting over

It doesn't matter much to Mr. and Mrs. Bruton. The cost of the homeowner fees on top of the rent at their apartment was too much for them. They sold their unit for far less than it would have fetched before the fire and are looking for another permanent residence.

"We were pretty much set for life, and now we are starting over," Mr. Bruton said. "I'm angrier now than the day after the fire."

Mr. Burns has no financial interest in reconstruction but does have a strong emotional investment. His unit overlooks the scene of the fire. "I tear up every time I leave my front door," he said.

Ms. Bagheri doubts she'll ever live at Richland Trace again, but she thinks the rental income from her unit might give her enough money to buy elsewhere.

She has spent three months contemplating the fire and its effects on her life. The more she thinks about it, she said, the less she knows what to think.

In some ways, the ordeal has been far worse than she imagined. Everything has taken longer and cost more than expected.

She is outraged by the indifference to her plight; the cable company made her pay for the cable box and modem that burned in her apartment.

Her eyes well when she thinks about the items she can never replace: the family photo albums, the keepsakes of her youth, the "Cancer Sucks" hat that her dad wore to his leukemia treatments.

What really matters

In other ways, though, the fire has made Ms. Bagheri realize how lucky she is.

She now knows it is possible to endure total loss. She understands how much her friends are willing to do for her.

And she comprehends the value of her work, training people to raise leukemia research and treatment money.

"When you work at a nonprofit, you always realize you are helping people, but you cannot really understand how valuable help can be until you have needed help," she said. "The feeling that people are there for you is incredible. It makes you believe in the world."

[TexasStooge]

Tower stands as hope for Oak Cliff's revitalization

By FRANK TREJO / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - The high-rise at the intersection of Colorado and Zang boulevards in Oak Cliff sits empty and silent for now.

But it soon will make a powerful statement.

This summer, Lake Cliff Tower, a 1920s-era red-brick building, will become the most visible example of a development boom exploding across north Oak Cliff.

"Construction is progressing extremely well right now. We're pretty much on schedule, and we expect to have people moving into the building in late August or September," said Stephen G. Everbach, managing partner of the tower's developer, Evergreen Realty Partners.

The 14-story building was built as a luxury hotel for business people visiting downtown Dallas, about a two-minute drive over the bridge.

It later became a nursing home, but was closed about five years ago and had remained vacant.

Now Evergreen Realty is turning it into 53 condominiums with prices starting at just under $200,000 and going up to $800,000.

The high-end, high-rise condominium opening is welcome news for area residents who say they've worked hard to improve the neighborhood and restore it to its place as one of the area's finest communities.

"I think it gives us some additional legitimacy as a desirable neighborhood in the inner city," said Beverly Mendoza, president of the Lake Cliff Neighborhood Association.

"The visibility of the changes going on in the tower, as well as some of the construction already taking place along the Trinity ... has given new life to the purchasing and selling of properties in Lake Cliff."

In recent years, developer JPI has built more than 600 apartment units along Zang Boulevard.

A new condo development is also going up across the street from those apartments, and a few blocks away, Perry Homes is building seven two-story duplex-style homes on North Bishop Avenue.

"I feel this will be a time of dramatic transformation," Ms. Mendoza said, noting that some residents are apprehensive about what that means in terms of increased property values and taxes.

Ms. Mendoza said there have been so many proposals over the years about what to do with the Lake Cliff Tower that residents initially were skeptical when they heard about the development effort.

The original plan called for developers to turn the 100,000-square-foot building into apartments, but their focus changed to high-end condos.

"Most of the reasons we're interested in the project were because of the beauty of the area – there are 45 acres of parks around the building, the intriguing building itself, the tremendous amount of amenities available, plus the value of the purchase vs. what you could purchase anywhere else in Dallas," Mr. Everbach said.

Andof course, the views.

He said the entire 11th floor is one condo unit, with spectacular views of downtown, the Trinity River and Oak Cliff.

Evergreen has invested more than $20 million in the project, with $4.1 million in city tax incremental finance district funds also going into the building.

The city created an Oak Cliff Gateway TIF in 1992 to help spur development in the area.

In addition to the tower, Mr. Everbach said, his company owns nearby land where a drive-through bank will be built and other property where a 32,500-square-foot retail-commercial center will be built.

Dallas City Council member Elba Garcia, who is a Lake Cliff resident, agreed that the tower condos are a key project in the area's development.

"This is a building that for so many years has been an eyesore rather than asset," she said. "Now that is exactly what it's going to be, an asset."

[TexasStooge]

Family mourns man killed in gas explosion

By BERT LOZANO / WFAA ABC 8

FOREST HILL, Texas - Friends and loved ones reached out Sunday to the family who lost Dale Gayan to Saturday's gas well-head explosion in the 3500 block of Lon Stephenson in Forest Hill.

Medical examiners said Gayan, 49, died from blunt force trauma to the head after the rupture that forced the evacuation of 500 homes over fear the gas would spark fires.

While authorities continue their search into the cause of the eruption at XTO Energy, Gayan's family has begun to mourn.

"We just want to say he was a good dad and a good granddad," said Melanie Tittor, Gayan's daughter. "He's got four grandkids and one on the way."

Gayan lived in the small town of Paradise inside Wise County, and his family said he had been working with oil drills for most of his life. They also said he enjoyed almost every minute of it.

"He loved the oil field," said Kimberly Gayan, the victim's wife. "He died doing that line of work. He was good at it."

But his family said working with oil wasn't his only passion. Gayan also owned a dairy farm.

His four daughters, Misty, Melanie, Marcy and Mindy, said their father taught them to stick together.

"He was a good friend, not just a dad, but a good friend," Tittor said. "[He was] a good friend to a lot of people."

They said just how much he cared and others cared for him has been evident since news of his death spread.

"[It's] just an outpouring of love," Gayan said. "He'll be greatly missed from all of us and the girls."

Gayan was one of four crew members working on the gas well when it ruptured. The other three workers escaped unharmed. Federal investigators with OSHA are looking into the cause of the explosion.

[TexasStooge]

Benny Hinn to testify at fraud trial

DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - International evangelist Benny Hinn is slated to testify Monday morning in a Dallas federal court.

Hinn will appear at the trial of Gregory Setser. Setser and three others are accused of defrauding more than a thousand Christian investors of $173 million.

They poured their money into a profit-sharing import company, IPIC Investments, from 2000 to 2003.

Hinn and other well-known evangelists praised and endorsed the IPIC venture. Benny Hinn Ministries is based in Irving.

[TexasStooge]

Officer hurt in traffic wreck

DALLAS, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - A Dallas police officer was recovering from injuries suffered in a traffic accident early Monday.

The officer said a car cut in front of him at Loop 12 and Pemberton Hill Road around 1 a.m. His patrol car ran into a street sign.

Police gave the other driver a sobriety test and released him.

The injured officer was cut on the head. He was taken to a hospital for treatment.

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

[TexasStooge]

Carrollton man stabbed to death

CARROLLTON, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/AP) - Carrollton police are investigating the stabbing of a 31-year-old man found dead Saturday night.

Police said the man, whose name was not released Sunday, was found on the back patio of an apartment in the 1900 block of N. Josey Lane at about 11:30 p.m. Saturday.

Police said Sunday there was no releasable suspect information.

[TexasStooge]

Fire damages landmark in Fort Worth Stockyards

By BRANDON FORMBY / The Dallas Morning News

FORT WORTH, Texas - A Fort Worth Stockyards landmark was severely damaged early Sunday in the building’s second fire in less than four years.

Fire officials said a fire at about 2:50 a.m. at M.L. Leddy’s Boot and Saddlery was likely accidental. The blaze began on one of the store’s upper floors and caused about $200,000 in damage to the building, which sits at the corner of Main and Exchange streets.

Officials also estimate about $500,000 in damage to the store’s inventory, almost all of which was destroyed by smoke, fire or water damage.

M.L. Leddy’s had a fire in December, 2002, which was caused by a discarded cigarette. At the time, officials said the building sustained about $180,000 in damage.

[TexasStooge]

For Addison school, its sale could be its savior

By ELIZABETH LANGTON / The Dallas Morning News

Walden Preparatory School, like its 19th century namesake, is a free-thinker's paradise.

Class sizes are limited to six or seven. Students call teachers by their first names. Boys' boxer shorts can be exposed, and girls can wear strapless halter-tops.

Student art covers the walls, and spacious windows in nearly every classroom overlook a wooded ravine.

The 2.37 acres at Montfort Drive and Celestial Road seem untouched by the zero-lot-line homes, offices and shops that have boomed around it the past 36 years.

"The whole idea of the school is to value each student as an individual," said school director Pamela Ezell said. "This is an environment that values and nourishes that and doesn't force them to conform."

But officials at Walden see only one way to save their school – sell it. And people on both sides of a resulting zoning dispute lament that the tree-lined haven may soon look like the rest of Addison.

"We've been trying things to keep us here for five years," Ms. Ezell said. "It's really sad to think about leaving. But this is our only asset, and we need to use that asset to grow and move."

Zachary Custom Builders wants to buy the property and construct 23 townhomes. But zoning regulations require that the Addison Town Council approve the builders' plans before the school can sell. Nearby residents oppose the project because they say it will increase noise and traffic while lowering property values.

After a lengthy public hearing attended by more than 100 neighbors and school supporters, the council tabled the issue. It plans to reconsider the matter Tuesday.

Beginnings

The private, nonprofit high school opened in 1969. A year later, Walden moved into its building – a funky, artistic house built in 1958 by famed Dallas artist Perry Nichols. Not long after the school opened, Addison began to grow and the Walden property value began to rise.The environment plays a big part in Walden's education process, Ms. Ezell said, but administrators feel their concept can be saved. They mourn that their solution comes at the expense of the physical space.

"This is not an institutional building," Ms. Ezell said. "In the middle of Dallas, it's really a unique place. I like when you look outside and see trees instead of cars."

The school serves kids who, for a variety of reasons, wither in traditional school settings. At its height, Walden had nearly 100 students. Only 30 attend now.

When a group of parents founded Walden, they called their concept "alternative education." But since many schools now equate "alternative" with troublemakers, Walden prefers to label its approach "progressive."

The target is teens who show limited progress in other school settings because they have minor learning difficulties or chronic illness, fell behind or felt unmotivated or unchallenged.

Many students nearly dropped out at their former schools, Ms. Ezell said. But last year's entire graduating class went on to college, and all of this year's seniors plan to do the same.

'This place can save you'

The Walden program values individuality, creativity and social awareness, but academic requirements closely follow state guidelines. Students attend classes Monday through Thursday and perform mandatory community service on Fridays.

"We want to get them out in the world," Ms. Ezell said. "It's important for our kids to feel they have something of value to offer, even as teenagers. We want them to be somebody right now, not just when they're adults."

In Abby Morris' English class, six teens sit around a table. There's a desk, but Ms. Morris never uses it. She joins her students at the table.

Amanda Kersey, Carl Calvanico and Ben Chansard work together on a vocabulary assignment, chatting nonstop and sharing answers. Amanda Currier, headphones covering her ears, works alone and listens to Slipknot.

Austin Cornelius, 18, has attended private schools his entire life and found the pressure unbearable. He's a perfect fit at Walden, where the teachers set individual goals for each student.

"I'm sure there aren't a lot of kids who need a place like this," he said. "But this place can save you. It's done wonders for me."

Make money or close

School officials say that if they cannot sell for a big enough amount, Walden will close.

"We don't have a choice; circumstances made the decision for us," said board President Sarah Moore. "We don't want to discontinue the school. But we have to get some money from the sale of the property so we can pay our debtors and get another piece of property."

If the sale goes through, Walden could relocate to Farmers Branch, where officials found property near a city park and a creek. They believe moving to an area with a lower saturation of private schools could help enrollment.

The school is without an endowment and relies almost solely on tuition. Officials recently took out a loan against the property to pay their bills.

Board member Will Fulton told the Addison Town Council that if they fail to approve the townhome project, Walden would be forced into a fire sale.

"The school's going to be sold," he said. "Under this proposal, the school has a future. If it happens later, I hate to say this, I don't think we'll last until next year."

Ms. Moore remains hopeful about the school's chances.

"I think we have every reason to believe there's a future for us," she said. "I'm not going to turn loose of this idea."

[TexasStooge]

Center removes obstacles to learning English

Dallas: It offers adults free, convenient, accessible classes

By KIM BREEN / The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS, Texas - Valentina Vázquez knew little English when she moved from Mexico two years ago.

But on Sunday, she addressed about 200 classmates and their relatives at a graduation ceremony for English-language learners.

"She speaks English really good," her daughter Katia, who is 9, said afterward. "I think she's really smart."

Learning English is an invaluable skill for any immigrant, Ms. Vázquez said. "It's really important if you want to be someone here," said Ms. Vázquez, who plans to keep studying. "I want to go to college. I want to live better."

About 200 adults who studied English as a second language at the Vickery Meadow Learning Center attended graduation at NorthPark Presbyterian Church.

The "Pomp and Circumstance," the hugs, the crowd – all served as evidence for Judy Jacks, executive director of the center.

"I get so tired of hearing the phrase, 'They don't even want to learn English,' " Ms. Jacks said of immigrants. "It's just absolutely not true."

Unlike typical graduations, no one wore a cap or gown – they're too expensive for the program, which relies on donations – and many goodbyes were not for long – students will return to school for more instruction.

But the pride and appreciation rivaled more typical commencement ceremonies. For the majority of students, this was their first graduation, Ms. Jacks said.

The Vickery Meadow Learning Center opened in 1997 with 85 students in an apartment clubhouse. Enrollment has since jumped to 550, a number that would be higher if the landlocked center didn't constantly turn people away because of space constraints, Ms. Jacks said.

Most immigrants want to learn English, Ms. Jacks said. What they lack is opportunity – they can't find transportation, daycare or the money for college classes, she said.

The center attempts to dissolve those barriers in the low-income Vickery Meadow neighborhood by offering free day and night courses within walking distance. About 130 children also received instruction this year while their parents learned.

About 150 volunteers teach each week.

"We always thought the number of volunteers would be what would restrict us," Ms. Jacks said. "I really thought it was a finite number. I was wrong ... They [volunteers] know they're making a difference in someone's life."

Sara Link moved from Spain to Georgia many years ago but remembers vividly what it was like not knowing English. Ms. Link, who now lives in Plano, began volunteering as a teacher this year.

"It's my way of giving back," she said. Most of her students told her they are learning English to get better jobs.

The majority of students are Hispanic, but about 15 percent are African, including Hiba Abdalla, who is Sudanese. She said her English skills have helped her wade through everyday tasks most people take for granted, like talking to her child's doctor or finding items in stores.

"It's important here in America," she said. "You have to know English."

[TexasStooge]

Security breached on 200,000 UT records

AUSTIN, Texas (DallasNews.com/AP) - Nearly 200,000 electronic records belonging to students, staff and alumni at the University of Texas at Austin's business school have been illegally accessed, the school said Sunday.

University officials said they notified the state Attorney General's Office of the school's second major breach in three years.

The university has also established a call center and Web site for those whose records may have been breached at the McCombs School of Business.

The university said it learned late Friday that some Social Security numbers and possibly biographical material may have been obtained.

"Our effort has been to help people whose information may have been exposed," said university President William Powers Jr. "We've been working on that all day."

Officials discovered records belonging to staff, faculty, alumni, current and prospective students as well as corporate recruiters were obtained as early April 11.

"We think the problem has been limited to McCombs," Powers said. "Since then, we've been working to make sure the entire system, not just McCombs, is secure."

Powers said officials initially believed the number of records was small enough to contact each person directly.

"We eventually learned that it was a much larger problem and that would not work out," Powers said.

Last year, a former UT student received five years probation and was ordered to pay $170,000 in restitution for hacking into the school's computer system in 2003.

Christopher Andrew Phillips was found guilty in June for damaging the university's computer system and illegally possessing almost 40,000 Social Security numbers.

Still, the jury acquitted Phillips of the two most serious charges against him, rejecting prosecutors' claims that he intended to profit from the Social Security numbers.

Powers said he's concerned about the recent breach happening not long after closing the books on Phillips' January 2003 intrusion.

"This is something we have a responsibility to keep safe, and it was exposed," he said. "I have a great concern about that."