Student arrested after alleged e-mail threats
By BRAD HAWKINS / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - A North Dallas junior high student was suspended Monday after he was accused of e-mailing threats against other eighth graders at Parkhill Junior High School.
A parent of one of the children allegedly threatened said his daughter called for him after she saw the e-mail, which was a digital montage of Parkhill Junior High students bloodied and wounded.
"She was literally sitting at her desk and screamed 'Dad, come here," and when I saw it on the computer screen I was like whoa, that's an issue," said Fausto Ordonez.
The creator of the montage signed the e-mail "I hate PJH" with a smiley-face.
"My daughter had a knife in her head with blood coming from it [and] a gun pointed to her head with a bullet in her forehead," Ordonez said. "It's just unbelievable a kid could do that."
Ordonez called Richardson police who transferred him to the Dallas Police Department. However, the responding officer told Ordonez his hands were tied because the threat was not specific enough to be a crime.
Ordonez said he was frustrated after police said they couldn't help him and searched for another avenue for help. He went to the internet and e-mailed the Richardson superintendent.
Officers and district administrators were waiting at the school at the start of the day and parents said the boy was questioned and suspended.
MySpace.com, which actively polices fraud and harassment, took down the teen's profile.
But in the post-Columbine era, Ordonez said he believes police should have done more.
"...If something like this happens again they [should] immediately notify the superintendent and security officials at the school district," he said.
News from the Lone Star State
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Keller police bust vehicle burglary ring
KELLER, Texas (The Dallas Morning News) - Keller police said Monday they have broken up a burglary ring that may have been responsible for at least 60 cases of items being stolen from vehicles in Tarrant County.
Police said the breakthrough stemmed from two vehicle burglaries at Keller High School on Feb. 25. Two victims who were attending a dance at the school reported items stolen from their unlocked vehicles, including an iPod and other electronic equipment.
Several witnesses told police they saw suspicious men in a tan pickup enter the parking lot earlier in the evening.
Shortly after the burglaries were reported, officers found a man trying to enter the school building through a back door. He denied any knowledge of criminal activity in the area and identified at least three other men who had been with him earlier in the evening, one of whom was also found near the school by officers.
Through interviews with the men, officers were able to obtain names of other suspects as well as the location of the suspect truck, a 1992 Ford Ranger which was found at the school. Inside the truck , officers found items taken in the two burglaries.
Officers arrested Keller High School juniors Ben Srianant and Andrew DeCarlis, both 17, and detained one juvenile male at the scene. Srianant and DeCarlis were later released, each on $500 bond.
Through information from subsequent interviews, detectives were able to identify other theft and burglary suspects and recover a large number of stolen items, including a laptop computer, cellphones and mp3 players.
Most of the items, which totaled about $9,000 in value, had been removed from unlocked vehicles in Keller, North Richland Hills, Fort Worth, Southlake, Hurst, and Colleyville. Six stolen vehicle cases in Keller and Fort Worth were also cleared.
Keller police Lt. Tommy Williams said thefts from unlocked vehicles have been a problem for police as long has he can remember, partly because residents develop a false sense of security.
“In many cases, offenders don’t want to take the chance of breaking a window and raising suspicion, so they just try different cars and find ones that are unlocked,” Lt. Williams said. “We’ve had the same issue to a lesser degree with people leaving their garage doors open.”
Police said the investigation is ongoing, and other arrests are expected.
Burglary of a vehicle is a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in county jail, and/or a fine up to $4,000.
Dallas Morning News staff writer Alan Melson contributed to this report.
KELLER, Texas (The Dallas Morning News) - Keller police said Monday they have broken up a burglary ring that may have been responsible for at least 60 cases of items being stolen from vehicles in Tarrant County.
Police said the breakthrough stemmed from two vehicle burglaries at Keller High School on Feb. 25. Two victims who were attending a dance at the school reported items stolen from their unlocked vehicles, including an iPod and other electronic equipment.
Several witnesses told police they saw suspicious men in a tan pickup enter the parking lot earlier in the evening.
Shortly after the burglaries were reported, officers found a man trying to enter the school building through a back door. He denied any knowledge of criminal activity in the area and identified at least three other men who had been with him earlier in the evening, one of whom was also found near the school by officers.
Through interviews with the men, officers were able to obtain names of other suspects as well as the location of the suspect truck, a 1992 Ford Ranger which was found at the school. Inside the truck , officers found items taken in the two burglaries.
Officers arrested Keller High School juniors Ben Srianant and Andrew DeCarlis, both 17, and detained one juvenile male at the scene. Srianant and DeCarlis were later released, each on $500 bond.
Through information from subsequent interviews, detectives were able to identify other theft and burglary suspects and recover a large number of stolen items, including a laptop computer, cellphones and mp3 players.
Most of the items, which totaled about $9,000 in value, had been removed from unlocked vehicles in Keller, North Richland Hills, Fort Worth, Southlake, Hurst, and Colleyville. Six stolen vehicle cases in Keller and Fort Worth were also cleared.
Keller police Lt. Tommy Williams said thefts from unlocked vehicles have been a problem for police as long has he can remember, partly because residents develop a false sense of security.
“In many cases, offenders don’t want to take the chance of breaking a window and raising suspicion, so they just try different cars and find ones that are unlocked,” Lt. Williams said. “We’ve had the same issue to a lesser degree with people leaving their garage doors open.”
Police said the investigation is ongoing, and other arrests are expected.
Burglary of a vehicle is a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in county jail, and/or a fine up to $4,000.
Dallas Morning News staff writer Alan Melson contributed to this report.
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Richardson student disciplined after threat
By KRISTINE HUGHES / The Dallas Morning News
RICHARDSON, Texas - A student at Richardson’s Parkhill Junior High is facing discipline after creating a graphic image that depicts violence against about a dozen classmates, district officials said.
The image, a collage of faces with weapons pointed at them and bloody wounds painted on them, was e-mailed to one of the students Friday night.
The girl’s father, Fausto Ordonez, reported the image to the Dallas Police Department on Saturday and then to Richardson school district officials on Sunday.
“As soon as [the district] found out, they were all over it,” he said.
Mr. Ordonez said Superintendent Jim Nelson asked him and his daughter to meet with the school’s principal and district student services staff Monday morning. Soon after the meeting, he said, they reported to him that the responsible student had been suspended indefinitely.
District officials will not confirm the actions taken in the situation because student discipline is confidential by law.
RISD spokeswoman Jeanne Guerra said the student is facing disciplinary action “in accordance with the RISD student code of conduct.” The code of conduct states that any student who makes threats “may” be assigned to the district’s alternative education program.
“From the investigation it is believed the student acted alone,” Ms. Guerra said. “After interviewing the student believed to be responsible, RISD administrators do not believe that any danger to students or staff exists in relation to the image.”
By KRISTINE HUGHES / The Dallas Morning News
RICHARDSON, Texas - A student at Richardson’s Parkhill Junior High is facing discipline after creating a graphic image that depicts violence against about a dozen classmates, district officials said.
The image, a collage of faces with weapons pointed at them and bloody wounds painted on them, was e-mailed to one of the students Friday night.
The girl’s father, Fausto Ordonez, reported the image to the Dallas Police Department on Saturday and then to Richardson school district officials on Sunday.
“As soon as [the district] found out, they were all over it,” he said.
Mr. Ordonez said Superintendent Jim Nelson asked him and his daughter to meet with the school’s principal and district student services staff Monday morning. Soon after the meeting, he said, they reported to him that the responsible student had been suspended indefinitely.
District officials will not confirm the actions taken in the situation because student discipline is confidential by law.
RISD spokeswoman Jeanne Guerra said the student is facing disciplinary action “in accordance with the RISD student code of conduct.” The code of conduct states that any student who makes threats “may” be assigned to the district’s alternative education program.
“From the investigation it is believed the student acted alone,” Ms. Guerra said. “After interviewing the student believed to be responsible, RISD administrators do not believe that any danger to students or staff exists in relation to the image.”
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One dead in fiery I-20 wreck
ARLINGTON, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - One man died early Tuesday after his car was hit by an 18-wheeler and caught fire on Interstate 20 in Arlington.
Arlington police investigators said a 1994 Dodge Intrepid was either stopped or driving very slowly in one of the main lanes of westbound I-20 near Collins Street when it was hit by the 18-wheeler about 1:20 a.m.
Several witnesses in other vehicles said the Dodge’s rear brake lights were not on, and they narrowly avoided colliding with the vehicle just before it was hit by the truck. Investigators believe the Dodge was having mechanical problems.
The impact of the truck caused both vehicles to catch fire. The driver of the 18-wheeler was able to escape without serious injury, but the driver of the Dodge died at the scene, police said.
The name of the victim was withheld pending notification of family members.
Westbound I-20 was closed for nearly four hours as a result of the accident, which is still under investigation. It was the ninth traffic fatality in Arlington in 2006.
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Live Dallas/Ft. Worth Traffic Reports from Traffic Pulse
ARLINGTON, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - One man died early Tuesday after his car was hit by an 18-wheeler and caught fire on Interstate 20 in Arlington.
Arlington police investigators said a 1994 Dodge Intrepid was either stopped or driving very slowly in one of the main lanes of westbound I-20 near Collins Street when it was hit by the 18-wheeler about 1:20 a.m.
Several witnesses in other vehicles said the Dodge’s rear brake lights were not on, and they narrowly avoided colliding with the vehicle just before it was hit by the truck. Investigators believe the Dodge was having mechanical problems.
The impact of the truck caused both vehicles to catch fire. The driver of the 18-wheeler was able to escape without serious injury, but the driver of the Dodge died at the scene, police said.
The name of the victim was withheld pending notification of family members.
Westbound I-20 was closed for nearly four hours as a result of the accident, which is still under investigation. It was the ninth traffic fatality in Arlington in 2006.
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Live Dallas/Ft. Worth Traffic Reports from Traffic Pulse
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For voters, it's decision time
They can cast ballots in Tuesday's primaries or wait to sign petitions
By GROMER JEFFERS JR. / The Dallas Morning News
Pablo Pascal considered Kinky Friedman a joke, until he heard him speak recently at Richland Community College.
"I thought he was running for governor just for the publicity," said Mr. Pascal, an academic adviser at the college. "But he was even-tempered and had a lot of good ideas. I was impressed with him."
So Mr. Pascal, a Dallas resident who describes himself as an independent, and millions of voters like him face a tough decision in Tuesday's party primaries.
They can exercise their right to vote and support the party faithful, or skip the primaries to be eligible to sign the petitions of independent gubernatorial hopefuls Carole Keeton Strayhorn, Mr. Friedman and more than a dozen other assorted nonaffiliated candidates who could line the statewide ballot.
Their decisions could have significant political ramifications. If they skip the primaries, they can't participate in several races down the ballot that could be close, such as the Dallas County clash for district attorney and statehouse races where education is a big issue, such as the Kent Grusendorf-Diane Patrick tilt in Arlington.
But voting in the primary would mean not being able to help the independents get on the ballot, as state election laws dictate that they must gather 45,540 signatures from registered voters who skipped the primaries in 60 days in order to be considered in the November general election. If there is a runoff, the signatures must be gathered in 30 days.
Mr. Pascal said he had been planning to vote in the Republican primary because of the district attorney's race. But the lure of Mr. Friedman's quirky campaign was too strong.
"I'm kind of upset there are no other options that would allow us to vote and sign a petition," Mr. Pascal said. "I'm upset that I don't have more of a choice."
Make or break
Individual decisions such as the one Mr. Pascal faces could make or break the independents' campaigns. Turnout is expected to be low in the two party primaries, leaving millions of registered voters eligible to sign petitions. But finding those people could be a challenge, so the campaigns prize motivated voters who typically cast ballots in primaries.
The campaigns are planning accordingly. Mrs. Strayhorn's team will track supporters through an expansive database.
"It's going to be such a low turnout statewide that we want people to exercise their rights even though it hurts us to some extent," said Strayhorn campaign manager Brad McClellan.
Even some strong supporters, lured by the more competitive races elsewhere on the ballot, have taken themselves out of the running for signing petitions.
"I've already voted," said Dallas County Commissioner Ken Mayfield, a Strayhorn supporter who wanted to vote for former Criminal Court Judge Dan Wyde in the race for district attorney. "She [Mrs. Strayhorn] knew there would be people who needed to vote in the primaries, and she doesn't want them to skip it."
Democrats theorize that Mrs. Strayhorn's run could help their party's nominee pull a shocker in the governor's race by splitting the Republican vote against Gov. Rick Perry. But one party stalwart, former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk, said he never considered not voting.
Mr. Kirk, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate four years ago, supports former congressman Chris Bell over former Texas Supreme Court Justice Bob Gammage.
"It would be the biggest slap in the face to all the people who worked hard for me in 2002," he said of not voting in a primary.
Party politics in other races could drive voters to the polls. In heavily Republican Tarrant County, voters in Mr. Grusendorf's district have arguably the most interesting and important state House primary in Texas to consider.
"There won't be a lot of folks sitting home waiting to sign petitions," said Tarrant County Republican Party Chairwoman Stephanie Klick.
Ms. Klick said she expects turnout in her county to nearly double over 2002, when more than 30,000 people voted in the GOP primary.
But that total won't include Alton Roberts, a 59-year-old retired salesman from Fort Worth who said he's fed up with local and state government.
"I want to shake things up," he said. "If that means sitting this one out and signing a Strayhorn petition, I'll do it."
Independent thinking
For some, the candidates themselves are the deciding factor. Fort Worth street preacher Lucious Green said he distrusts Mrs. Strayhorn's reasons for running as an independent and isn't inclined to help her.
"It seems to me that Mrs. Strayhorn is in the race for revenge. That's not a good reason to ignore everybody else and sign a petition," said Mr. Green, 50.
Other voters will stay home today not because they want to help Mrs. Strayhorn or Mr. Friedman, but because they don't think the campaign is addressing what they care about – no matter how many candidates are involved.
"None of them are talking about my issues," said Ann Harrison, a 49-year-old Arlington resident who says she was hurt in a workplace accident. "None of them are talking about the workers and workers compensation. If I do anything, I'll vote for a Democrat."
They can cast ballots in Tuesday's primaries or wait to sign petitions
By GROMER JEFFERS JR. / The Dallas Morning News
Pablo Pascal considered Kinky Friedman a joke, until he heard him speak recently at Richland Community College.
"I thought he was running for governor just for the publicity," said Mr. Pascal, an academic adviser at the college. "But he was even-tempered and had a lot of good ideas. I was impressed with him."
So Mr. Pascal, a Dallas resident who describes himself as an independent, and millions of voters like him face a tough decision in Tuesday's party primaries.
They can exercise their right to vote and support the party faithful, or skip the primaries to be eligible to sign the petitions of independent gubernatorial hopefuls Carole Keeton Strayhorn, Mr. Friedman and more than a dozen other assorted nonaffiliated candidates who could line the statewide ballot.
Their decisions could have significant political ramifications. If they skip the primaries, they can't participate in several races down the ballot that could be close, such as the Dallas County clash for district attorney and statehouse races where education is a big issue, such as the Kent Grusendorf-Diane Patrick tilt in Arlington.
But voting in the primary would mean not being able to help the independents get on the ballot, as state election laws dictate that they must gather 45,540 signatures from registered voters who skipped the primaries in 60 days in order to be considered in the November general election. If there is a runoff, the signatures must be gathered in 30 days.
Mr. Pascal said he had been planning to vote in the Republican primary because of the district attorney's race. But the lure of Mr. Friedman's quirky campaign was too strong.
"I'm kind of upset there are no other options that would allow us to vote and sign a petition," Mr. Pascal said. "I'm upset that I don't have more of a choice."
Make or break
Individual decisions such as the one Mr. Pascal faces could make or break the independents' campaigns. Turnout is expected to be low in the two party primaries, leaving millions of registered voters eligible to sign petitions. But finding those people could be a challenge, so the campaigns prize motivated voters who typically cast ballots in primaries.
The campaigns are planning accordingly. Mrs. Strayhorn's team will track supporters through an expansive database.
"It's going to be such a low turnout statewide that we want people to exercise their rights even though it hurts us to some extent," said Strayhorn campaign manager Brad McClellan.
Even some strong supporters, lured by the more competitive races elsewhere on the ballot, have taken themselves out of the running for signing petitions.
"I've already voted," said Dallas County Commissioner Ken Mayfield, a Strayhorn supporter who wanted to vote for former Criminal Court Judge Dan Wyde in the race for district attorney. "She [Mrs. Strayhorn] knew there would be people who needed to vote in the primaries, and she doesn't want them to skip it."
Democrats theorize that Mrs. Strayhorn's run could help their party's nominee pull a shocker in the governor's race by splitting the Republican vote against Gov. Rick Perry. But one party stalwart, former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk, said he never considered not voting.
Mr. Kirk, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate four years ago, supports former congressman Chris Bell over former Texas Supreme Court Justice Bob Gammage.
"It would be the biggest slap in the face to all the people who worked hard for me in 2002," he said of not voting in a primary.
Party politics in other races could drive voters to the polls. In heavily Republican Tarrant County, voters in Mr. Grusendorf's district have arguably the most interesting and important state House primary in Texas to consider.
"There won't be a lot of folks sitting home waiting to sign petitions," said Tarrant County Republican Party Chairwoman Stephanie Klick.
Ms. Klick said she expects turnout in her county to nearly double over 2002, when more than 30,000 people voted in the GOP primary.
But that total won't include Alton Roberts, a 59-year-old retired salesman from Fort Worth who said he's fed up with local and state government.
"I want to shake things up," he said. "If that means sitting this one out and signing a Strayhorn petition, I'll do it."
Independent thinking
For some, the candidates themselves are the deciding factor. Fort Worth street preacher Lucious Green said he distrusts Mrs. Strayhorn's reasons for running as an independent and isn't inclined to help her.
"It seems to me that Mrs. Strayhorn is in the race for revenge. That's not a good reason to ignore everybody else and sign a petition," said Mr. Green, 50.
Other voters will stay home today not because they want to help Mrs. Strayhorn or Mr. Friedman, but because they don't think the campaign is addressing what they care about – no matter how many candidates are involved.
"None of them are talking about my issues," said Ann Harrison, a 49-year-old Arlington resident who says she was hurt in a workplace accident. "None of them are talking about the workers and workers compensation. If I do anything, I'll vote for a Democrat."
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Woman accused of attempted murder-for-hire
By JIM DOUGLAS / WFAA ABC 8
ARLINGTON, Texas - A 60-year-old North Texas woman was arrested after police said she attempted to hire a hit man to kill her estranged husband.
Nancy Kinseth was placed in jail on a $1 million bond and charged with solicitation for capital murder.
Police set up a sting after they received a tip about Kinseth.
"We were able make arrangement to meet with with her at a motel here in Arlington," said Christy Gilfour, an Arlington Police Department spokesperson.
An undercover cop posing as a hit man met with Kinseth at the Whitten Inn in south Arlington Saturday and allegedly gave him instructions on how to kill her 64-year-old estranged husband.
"She gave us some specific information about her husband, as well as a down payment on an agreed upon amount," Gilfour said. "At that point, the undercover officer signaled to the uniform officers who came in and made the arrest."
Neighbors said they didn't know much about Kinseth, but investigators said they believe money was the motive behind the alleged murder-for-hire scheme.
"There were some very complicated factors that played into this, but in the end she was going to gain financially for having her husband killed," Gilfour said.
The couple who had been married for 24 years lived in seperate homes.
Kinseth's estranged husband said he was shaken up after her arrest and would be leaving town.
By JIM DOUGLAS / WFAA ABC 8
ARLINGTON, Texas - A 60-year-old North Texas woman was arrested after police said she attempted to hire a hit man to kill her estranged husband.
Nancy Kinseth was placed in jail on a $1 million bond and charged with solicitation for capital murder.
Police set up a sting after they received a tip about Kinseth.
"We were able make arrangement to meet with with her at a motel here in Arlington," said Christy Gilfour, an Arlington Police Department spokesperson.
An undercover cop posing as a hit man met with Kinseth at the Whitten Inn in south Arlington Saturday and allegedly gave him instructions on how to kill her 64-year-old estranged husband.
"She gave us some specific information about her husband, as well as a down payment on an agreed upon amount," Gilfour said. "At that point, the undercover officer signaled to the uniform officers who came in and made the arrest."
Neighbors said they didn't know much about Kinseth, but investigators said they believe money was the motive behind the alleged murder-for-hire scheme.
"There were some very complicated factors that played into this, but in the end she was going to gain financially for having her husband killed," Gilfour said.
The couple who had been married for 24 years lived in seperate homes.
Kinseth's estranged husband said he was shaken up after her arrest and would be leaving town.
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Asylum case puts spotlight on nuns' allegations of sex abuse
Dallas Diocese aided woman who was fearful after accusing bishop
By BROOKS EGERTON / The Dallas Morning News
ARLINGTON, Texas – Pauline Aligwekwe is a 66-year-old woman from a privileged family in Nigeria, fluent in three languages, with master's and doctoral degrees from the Sorbonne.
She worked for many years as a Roman Catholic nun – tending to soldiers and prostitutes and refugees, teaching school, writing a book about Africa's experience with Christianity and running a convent, among other things.
On her good days now, you might find her at a temp job in the Dallas suburbs, standing in a mailroom from midnight to 8 a.m. "In the U.S.," as she puts it, "I am nobody."
Dr. Aligwekwe has become a refugee herself, seeking asylum in the United States with an extraordinary argument: that her resistance to a Nigerian bishop's sexual misconduct prompted him to crush her ministry and led to a violent attack on her convent.
She has won some support from U.S. Catholics and triggered some unusual frankness about their church's ongoing struggle with sexual abuse.
Last year, for example, a lawyer for an American bishop's immigration counseling service told federal officials in a court document: "Although there is a long history of clergy sexual abuse of women in Nigeria, including of sisters, Dr. Aligwekwe (to her knowledge) is the first sister to openly and formally discuss and challenge such abuse – and she fears being injured or eliminated because of her 'audacity.' " Nigerian police and the Vatican have ignored her pleas for help, the court filing says. Today, her fate rests with a U.S. immigration appeals board, which could rule shortly.
The case personifies the abuse claims of nuns, which received a flurry of international news coverage in 2001 before being overshadowed by the church's child molestation scandal.
National Catholic Reporter led the coverage then, publishing memos that showed top church officials in Rome had been briefed for years on church leaders' allegedly widespread exploitation of Third World sisters. But the U.S. weekly paper's reports were short on details, naming no accusers and no one who'd been accused.
Dr. Aligwekwe's nemesis is Bishop Anthony Ilonu, who heads her home Diocese of Okigwe. In court filings, she says he sexually harassed her and committed other misconduct – including consorting with a woman who posed as a nun and allegedly trafficked in children.
In 2002, after Dr. Aligwekwe had confrontations with the bishop and the woman, several men ransacked her convent while she was away. A security guard said they searched for her in vain before slashing him with a machete.
Bishop Ilonu and his supporters say she's lying and is in no danger from them. But the Dallas Diocese's immigration counseling program found Dr. Aligwekwe believable and took on her asylum case for free in 2004, effectively pitting Dallas Bishop Charles Grahmann against Bishop Ilonu.
"It's extremely rare to see church officials in one diocese helping a victim who is challenging church officials in another diocese," said David Clohessy, leader of the internationally active Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP. "It's a healthy and encouraging sign."
Dallas Diocese staffers tried to ignore religious politics when deciding whether to represent Dr. Aligwekwe, said Vanna Slaughter, who heads the immigration counseling program.
"The facts of the case were just so striking," Ms. Slaughter said. And, she added, they were consistent with the reports she had read in National Catholic Reporter.
Her boss, Sister Mary Anne Owens, said she had heard similar accounts from nuns with experience in Africa and consulted them before taking the case. "They said this sounds credible," she recalled.
Sister Owens, who heads the diocese's Catholic Charities operation, said she never talked to Bishop Grahmann about it.
"We were doing what our mission calls us to do," she said. "My experience has been that Bishop Grahmann will support us in our mission ... He has a heart for immigrants and oppressed people."
Bishop Grahmann did not respond to interview requests left with his aides.
New evidence
The Dallas Diocese's legal work didn't persuade Immigration Judge Edwin Hughes, who said Dr. Aligwekwe lacked evidence that Bishop Ilonu had criminally harmed her or enlisted anyone else to do so. "This dispute," the judge wrote in March 2005, "is purely a private dispute between one man and one woman."
But since then, with the case on appeal, The Dallas Morning News has uncovered new threats against Dr. Aligwekwe.
Bishop Ilonu's supporters set up a Web site early last year, demanding "vengeance" against Dr. Aligwekwe. They called her a "whore" who had sexually abused girls and had "demonic powers" – all libelous attacks and evidence of continuing persecution, she says.
The supporters were responding to a Web site she'd created in 2004 that details her allegations and alleges a broader pattern of sexual misconduct among African Catholic leaders.
"If the church feels she can do nothing ... to stop her, then let her be ready to face the insurgence of some determined soldiers of Christ," the supporters' site said. It urged other Nigerian bishops to defend Bishop Ilonu, "or the stones of the Earth will revolt and do it for you."
The site, run from the English city of Milton Keynes, disclosed no ties to the bishop. But when The News asked the site's registrant for information, he said he had donated it to "the church."
The registrant, Jude Ohuche Ukwu, said he had merely set up the site and was not familiar with its content. He said he would refer a reporter's inquiries to "one of the bishop's right-hand men," whom he would not identify. The request drew no response from Nigeria.
Mr. Ukwu identified himself as a former candidate for the priesthood in Nigeria and said he has a brother who is a priest there.
After The News began asking questions, the site was deactivated. Mr. Ukwu said he shut it down after unsuccessfully seeking information from Nigerian contacts.
Dallas lawyer John Wheat Gibson, Dr. Aligwekwe's appellate attorney, said the newspaper's findings could help her win her case.
"I think it would persuade a rational person" that she would not be safe in Nigeria, said Mr. Gibson, who is not affiliated with the Dallas Diocese.
U.S. immigration officials and Judge Hughes declined to comment.
The News also hired a journalist in Nigeria, who visited the Okigwe Diocese and verified basic details of Dr. Aligwekwe's past. The journalist tried to interview Bishop Ilonu and, when unsuccessful, left written questions with an aide.
A short while later, the newspaper began getting e-mails defending the bishop and criticizing Dr. Aligwekwe. The senders identified themselves as priests from Nigeria – and, in one case, a nun, who referred The News to the Web site that demanded vengeance.
One priest who wrote was the Rev. Hilary Ihedioha, a distant relative of Mr. Ukwu's whom Bishop Ilonu has loaned to the Diocese of San Angelo, in West Texas. His e-mail said the bishop had ordered him to tell the newspaper that Dr. Aligwekwe had "mental problems" and that her claims were lies.
"Bishop Ilonu is not chasing her," Father Ihedioha told The News in a short phone interview.
The newspaper also received a brief voice-mail message from a man identifying himself as Bishop Ilonu.
"She is just a liar, and nobody is threatening her in Nigeria," he said of Dr. Aligwekwe. "She is only afraid of the offenses she committed." The caller did not elaborate, nor did he leave a phone number or e-mail address.
Subsequent attempts by The News to contact the bishop were unsuccessful. Father Ihedioha said he didn't have a working phone number or e-mail address for him.
A rebel's roots
Dr. Aligwekwe came to Arlington in 2003 to take shelter temporarily with a nephew. Today, cut off from career, country, friends and most relatives, she lives alone in a tiny apartment.
Taped to the wall by her front door, in oversized type, is a printout of one of her favorite Bible passages – a reminder, she said, of her love for the church and why she resists its "bad elements."
In the passage, Jesus instructs his followers on how to deal with the hypocritical religious powers of their day: "You must therefore do what they tell you and listen to what they say; but do not be guided by what they do; since they do not practice what they preach."
Dr. Aligwekwe said she has never conformed easily to the "blind obedience" sometimes demanded of nuns.
"I'm looking for saints," she acknowledged. "There are very few of them."
The chain of events that brought her to North Texas began 25 years ago, when Bishop Ilonu had just begun leading the Okigwe Diocese and she went to pay her respects. According to her immigration court filings, he took her on a private tour of his new residence and suddenly disrobed, prompting her to flee and to try to avoid him as much as possible.
In the mid-1980s, Dr. Aligwekwe left her Nigeria-based Immaculate Heart order of nuns. She worked as a university professor before forming her own religious association, which ran a school for children and a training program for prospective nuns.
Bishop Ilonu ordered her convent to disband in 1999 after she continued to resist his sexual advances, Dr. Aligwekwe said in court filings. He blamed her for protests that others had made about him to the Vatican and threatened her with violence, she added.
At that point, Dr. Aligwekwe's correspondence records show, she began asking the Vatican to let her convent reopen. It declined, citing a technicality: She had never received the needed written authorization for it from Bishop Ilonu – only his oral encouragement.
"You ... have only yourself to blame for any injustice perceived," wrote Cardinal Jozef Tomko, at the time the head of the Vatican's Congregation for the Evangelization of the Peoples.
He told her that she should not use the title "sister" – that she had ceased to be a nun when she left the Immaculate Heart order. Yet other records show that many in the church, including some of its leaders, considered her a nun all along. Many still call her Sister Pauline.
Cardinal Tomko's letter also shows, without giving details, that Pope John Paul II previously had sent a special investigator to Bishop Ilonu's diocese.
Cult connection?
About the time that Dr. Aligwekwe was appealing to Rome, Bishop Ilonu began an intimate relationship with a woman who was "a member of a satanic secret cult," according to her court filings. Dr. Aligwekwe said the woman frequently was seen at the bishop's house, and talked of being haunted by evil spirits and taking babies from unmarried mothers.
"I realize that to American people this concept of a ... cult may sound somewhat strange," Dr. Aligwekwe wrote in a sworn statement. "However, in Nigeria and other parts of Africa, these cults are an unfortunate part of life."
Dr. Dayo Abah, who has a master's degree in theology from Southern Methodist University and grew up in Nigeria, agreed. She said many highly educated people there profess Christianity while also engaging in cult practices.
Furthermore, "Catholic priests and their sexual relationships with women is a common phenomenon," said Dr. Abah, who is a journalism professor at Washington and Lee University in Virginia and does not know Dr. Aligwekwe. "It is a fact in Nigeria."
Dr. Aligwekwe has provided U.S. officials a "wanted person" notice in which Nigerian state police said they were searching for the alleged cult member, who "claims to be a reverend sister" and was accused of having "duped some persons." The notice appeared in the Nigerian newspaper The Punch and had a picture of the woman dressed in a nun's habit.
Dr. Aligwekwe also has provided documents – a brochure and form letters – in which the alleged cult member says she is starting an orphanage. The documents contain what appears to be Bishop Ilonu's signature.
In 2002, Dr. Aligwekwe said, she challenged the woman and tried to confront the bishop, who angrily refused to see her. A few weeks later, when she was away, seven armed men ransacked her convent but stole nothing.
"I told them that Sister was not home, and they said if I lie they will kill me," security guard Marcellus Okoro told The News. "They cut my hand with machetes, and I almost bled to death."
Dr. Aligwekwe said she suspects, but cannot prove, that the bishop was behind the attack.
She went into hiding, first in Nigeria and later the United States, while seeking help from the Vatican and police officials in her home country. For the first time, she sent the Vatican a written account of her sexual allegations against Bishop Ilonu.
Nigerian police would not talk to The News, and the Vatican did not respond to a written request for information.
Dr. Aligwekwe lived with a group of nuns in New York City until the Vatican embassy in Nigeria told U.S. bishops that she might be improperly trying to raise funds for religious activities. That was untrue, she said, but led the New York Archdiocese to declare her ineligible for hospitality.
She left behind some supporters in New York, however.
"You don't want to believe it," said Sister Maria Goretti, superior of the New York nuns. But "I thought she was credible."
The Rev. James Healy, a New York priest, concurred. "I have been attempting to help her as much as I can," he wrote in a sworn statement to the immigration court.
Several months ago, without explanation, the Vatican named a successor to Bishop Ilonu even though he was several years from retirement age.
Sister Owens, the Dallas Catholic Charities leader, said Dr. Aligwekwe's case "may have played some role" in the appointment, along with the previous Vatican investigation. "Maybe," she said, "they got tired of hearing about this guy."
Mr. Ukwu said his associates in Nigeria also believe that the Aligwekwe matter contributed to the move.
For now, Bishop Ilonu remains on duty, with his successor governing alongside him. Dr. Aligwekwe said his departure wouldn't help her.
"My life is more unsafe now," she said, citing the great esteem that a bishop's clansmen accord him. "Anybody who would be the cause of him losing that position – they would not allow that person to live."
Special contributor George Osodi reported from Nigeria for this story.
Dallas Diocese aided woman who was fearful after accusing bishop
By BROOKS EGERTON / The Dallas Morning News
ARLINGTON, Texas – Pauline Aligwekwe is a 66-year-old woman from a privileged family in Nigeria, fluent in three languages, with master's and doctoral degrees from the Sorbonne.
She worked for many years as a Roman Catholic nun – tending to soldiers and prostitutes and refugees, teaching school, writing a book about Africa's experience with Christianity and running a convent, among other things.
On her good days now, you might find her at a temp job in the Dallas suburbs, standing in a mailroom from midnight to 8 a.m. "In the U.S.," as she puts it, "I am nobody."
Dr. Aligwekwe has become a refugee herself, seeking asylum in the United States with an extraordinary argument: that her resistance to a Nigerian bishop's sexual misconduct prompted him to crush her ministry and led to a violent attack on her convent.
She has won some support from U.S. Catholics and triggered some unusual frankness about their church's ongoing struggle with sexual abuse.
Last year, for example, a lawyer for an American bishop's immigration counseling service told federal officials in a court document: "Although there is a long history of clergy sexual abuse of women in Nigeria, including of sisters, Dr. Aligwekwe (to her knowledge) is the first sister to openly and formally discuss and challenge such abuse – and she fears being injured or eliminated because of her 'audacity.' " Nigerian police and the Vatican have ignored her pleas for help, the court filing says. Today, her fate rests with a U.S. immigration appeals board, which could rule shortly.
The case personifies the abuse claims of nuns, which received a flurry of international news coverage in 2001 before being overshadowed by the church's child molestation scandal.
National Catholic Reporter led the coverage then, publishing memos that showed top church officials in Rome had been briefed for years on church leaders' allegedly widespread exploitation of Third World sisters. But the U.S. weekly paper's reports were short on details, naming no accusers and no one who'd been accused.
Dr. Aligwekwe's nemesis is Bishop Anthony Ilonu, who heads her home Diocese of Okigwe. In court filings, she says he sexually harassed her and committed other misconduct – including consorting with a woman who posed as a nun and allegedly trafficked in children.
In 2002, after Dr. Aligwekwe had confrontations with the bishop and the woman, several men ransacked her convent while she was away. A security guard said they searched for her in vain before slashing him with a machete.
Bishop Ilonu and his supporters say she's lying and is in no danger from them. But the Dallas Diocese's immigration counseling program found Dr. Aligwekwe believable and took on her asylum case for free in 2004, effectively pitting Dallas Bishop Charles Grahmann against Bishop Ilonu.
"It's extremely rare to see church officials in one diocese helping a victim who is challenging church officials in another diocese," said David Clohessy, leader of the internationally active Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP. "It's a healthy and encouraging sign."
Dallas Diocese staffers tried to ignore religious politics when deciding whether to represent Dr. Aligwekwe, said Vanna Slaughter, who heads the immigration counseling program.
"The facts of the case were just so striking," Ms. Slaughter said. And, she added, they were consistent with the reports she had read in National Catholic Reporter.
Her boss, Sister Mary Anne Owens, said she had heard similar accounts from nuns with experience in Africa and consulted them before taking the case. "They said this sounds credible," she recalled.
Sister Owens, who heads the diocese's Catholic Charities operation, said she never talked to Bishop Grahmann about it.
"We were doing what our mission calls us to do," she said. "My experience has been that Bishop Grahmann will support us in our mission ... He has a heart for immigrants and oppressed people."
Bishop Grahmann did not respond to interview requests left with his aides.
New evidence
The Dallas Diocese's legal work didn't persuade Immigration Judge Edwin Hughes, who said Dr. Aligwekwe lacked evidence that Bishop Ilonu had criminally harmed her or enlisted anyone else to do so. "This dispute," the judge wrote in March 2005, "is purely a private dispute between one man and one woman."
But since then, with the case on appeal, The Dallas Morning News has uncovered new threats against Dr. Aligwekwe.
Bishop Ilonu's supporters set up a Web site early last year, demanding "vengeance" against Dr. Aligwekwe. They called her a "whore" who had sexually abused girls and had "demonic powers" – all libelous attacks and evidence of continuing persecution, she says.
The supporters were responding to a Web site she'd created in 2004 that details her allegations and alleges a broader pattern of sexual misconduct among African Catholic leaders.
"If the church feels she can do nothing ... to stop her, then let her be ready to face the insurgence of some determined soldiers of Christ," the supporters' site said. It urged other Nigerian bishops to defend Bishop Ilonu, "or the stones of the Earth will revolt and do it for you."
The site, run from the English city of Milton Keynes, disclosed no ties to the bishop. But when The News asked the site's registrant for information, he said he had donated it to "the church."
The registrant, Jude Ohuche Ukwu, said he had merely set up the site and was not familiar with its content. He said he would refer a reporter's inquiries to "one of the bishop's right-hand men," whom he would not identify. The request drew no response from Nigeria.
Mr. Ukwu identified himself as a former candidate for the priesthood in Nigeria and said he has a brother who is a priest there.
After The News began asking questions, the site was deactivated. Mr. Ukwu said he shut it down after unsuccessfully seeking information from Nigerian contacts.
Dallas lawyer John Wheat Gibson, Dr. Aligwekwe's appellate attorney, said the newspaper's findings could help her win her case.
"I think it would persuade a rational person" that she would not be safe in Nigeria, said Mr. Gibson, who is not affiliated with the Dallas Diocese.
U.S. immigration officials and Judge Hughes declined to comment.
The News also hired a journalist in Nigeria, who visited the Okigwe Diocese and verified basic details of Dr. Aligwekwe's past. The journalist tried to interview Bishop Ilonu and, when unsuccessful, left written questions with an aide.
A short while later, the newspaper began getting e-mails defending the bishop and criticizing Dr. Aligwekwe. The senders identified themselves as priests from Nigeria – and, in one case, a nun, who referred The News to the Web site that demanded vengeance.
One priest who wrote was the Rev. Hilary Ihedioha, a distant relative of Mr. Ukwu's whom Bishop Ilonu has loaned to the Diocese of San Angelo, in West Texas. His e-mail said the bishop had ordered him to tell the newspaper that Dr. Aligwekwe had "mental problems" and that her claims were lies.
"Bishop Ilonu is not chasing her," Father Ihedioha told The News in a short phone interview.
The newspaper also received a brief voice-mail message from a man identifying himself as Bishop Ilonu.
"She is just a liar, and nobody is threatening her in Nigeria," he said of Dr. Aligwekwe. "She is only afraid of the offenses she committed." The caller did not elaborate, nor did he leave a phone number or e-mail address.
Subsequent attempts by The News to contact the bishop were unsuccessful. Father Ihedioha said he didn't have a working phone number or e-mail address for him.
A rebel's roots
Dr. Aligwekwe came to Arlington in 2003 to take shelter temporarily with a nephew. Today, cut off from career, country, friends and most relatives, she lives alone in a tiny apartment.
Taped to the wall by her front door, in oversized type, is a printout of one of her favorite Bible passages – a reminder, she said, of her love for the church and why she resists its "bad elements."
In the passage, Jesus instructs his followers on how to deal with the hypocritical religious powers of their day: "You must therefore do what they tell you and listen to what they say; but do not be guided by what they do; since they do not practice what they preach."
Dr. Aligwekwe said she has never conformed easily to the "blind obedience" sometimes demanded of nuns.
"I'm looking for saints," she acknowledged. "There are very few of them."
The chain of events that brought her to North Texas began 25 years ago, when Bishop Ilonu had just begun leading the Okigwe Diocese and she went to pay her respects. According to her immigration court filings, he took her on a private tour of his new residence and suddenly disrobed, prompting her to flee and to try to avoid him as much as possible.
In the mid-1980s, Dr. Aligwekwe left her Nigeria-based Immaculate Heart order of nuns. She worked as a university professor before forming her own religious association, which ran a school for children and a training program for prospective nuns.
Bishop Ilonu ordered her convent to disband in 1999 after she continued to resist his sexual advances, Dr. Aligwekwe said in court filings. He blamed her for protests that others had made about him to the Vatican and threatened her with violence, she added.
At that point, Dr. Aligwekwe's correspondence records show, she began asking the Vatican to let her convent reopen. It declined, citing a technicality: She had never received the needed written authorization for it from Bishop Ilonu – only his oral encouragement.
"You ... have only yourself to blame for any injustice perceived," wrote Cardinal Jozef Tomko, at the time the head of the Vatican's Congregation for the Evangelization of the Peoples.
He told her that she should not use the title "sister" – that she had ceased to be a nun when she left the Immaculate Heart order. Yet other records show that many in the church, including some of its leaders, considered her a nun all along. Many still call her Sister Pauline.
Cardinal Tomko's letter also shows, without giving details, that Pope John Paul II previously had sent a special investigator to Bishop Ilonu's diocese.
Cult connection?
About the time that Dr. Aligwekwe was appealing to Rome, Bishop Ilonu began an intimate relationship with a woman who was "a member of a satanic secret cult," according to her court filings. Dr. Aligwekwe said the woman frequently was seen at the bishop's house, and talked of being haunted by evil spirits and taking babies from unmarried mothers.
"I realize that to American people this concept of a ... cult may sound somewhat strange," Dr. Aligwekwe wrote in a sworn statement. "However, in Nigeria and other parts of Africa, these cults are an unfortunate part of life."
Dr. Dayo Abah, who has a master's degree in theology from Southern Methodist University and grew up in Nigeria, agreed. She said many highly educated people there profess Christianity while also engaging in cult practices.
Furthermore, "Catholic priests and their sexual relationships with women is a common phenomenon," said Dr. Abah, who is a journalism professor at Washington and Lee University in Virginia and does not know Dr. Aligwekwe. "It is a fact in Nigeria."
Dr. Aligwekwe has provided U.S. officials a "wanted person" notice in which Nigerian state police said they were searching for the alleged cult member, who "claims to be a reverend sister" and was accused of having "duped some persons." The notice appeared in the Nigerian newspaper The Punch and had a picture of the woman dressed in a nun's habit.
Dr. Aligwekwe also has provided documents – a brochure and form letters – in which the alleged cult member says she is starting an orphanage. The documents contain what appears to be Bishop Ilonu's signature.
In 2002, Dr. Aligwekwe said, she challenged the woman and tried to confront the bishop, who angrily refused to see her. A few weeks later, when she was away, seven armed men ransacked her convent but stole nothing.
"I told them that Sister was not home, and they said if I lie they will kill me," security guard Marcellus Okoro told The News. "They cut my hand with machetes, and I almost bled to death."
Dr. Aligwekwe said she suspects, but cannot prove, that the bishop was behind the attack.
She went into hiding, first in Nigeria and later the United States, while seeking help from the Vatican and police officials in her home country. For the first time, she sent the Vatican a written account of her sexual allegations against Bishop Ilonu.
Nigerian police would not talk to The News, and the Vatican did not respond to a written request for information.
Dr. Aligwekwe lived with a group of nuns in New York City until the Vatican embassy in Nigeria told U.S. bishops that she might be improperly trying to raise funds for religious activities. That was untrue, she said, but led the New York Archdiocese to declare her ineligible for hospitality.
She left behind some supporters in New York, however.
"You don't want to believe it," said Sister Maria Goretti, superior of the New York nuns. But "I thought she was credible."
The Rev. James Healy, a New York priest, concurred. "I have been attempting to help her as much as I can," he wrote in a sworn statement to the immigration court.
Several months ago, without explanation, the Vatican named a successor to Bishop Ilonu even though he was several years from retirement age.
Sister Owens, the Dallas Catholic Charities leader, said Dr. Aligwekwe's case "may have played some role" in the appointment, along with the previous Vatican investigation. "Maybe," she said, "they got tired of hearing about this guy."
Mr. Ukwu said his associates in Nigeria also believe that the Aligwekwe matter contributed to the move.
For now, Bishop Ilonu remains on duty, with his successor governing alongside him. Dr. Aligwekwe said his departure wouldn't help her.
"My life is more unsafe now," she said, citing the great esteem that a bishop's clansmen accord him. "Anybody who would be the cause of him losing that position – they would not allow that person to live."
Special contributor George Osodi reported from Nigeria for this story.
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TexasStooge
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Councils take up Wright decision
Dallas, Fort Worth to seek more time to negotiate; lawmakers assail delay
By EMILY RAMSHAW / The Dallas Morning News
It was the political football none of the Dallas City Council members wanted to touch: lifting long-haul flight restrictions at Love Field. But now that the debate over the Wright amendment has returned from the nation's Capitol to North Texas, they're being forced into the game, whether they like it or not.
Today and Wednesday, the Fort Worth and Dallas city councils, respectively, will vote on a resolution asking Congress to give elected officials from both cities until Oct. 1 to resolve the nearly 30-year-old argument – one that pits Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Fort Worth-based American Airlines against Dallas hometown carrier Southwest Airlines.
On Monday, U.S. Reps. Jeb Hensarling of Dallas and Sam Johnson of Plano made it clear they'd like the solution much sooner. In a statement, the co-authors of the House legislation to repeal the Wright amendment said the proposed stand-down is too long.
Congress plans to adjourn Oct. 6, about a month before Election Day. Holding back until October would probably push the earliest congressional action into January.
"While we feel it's important for local leaders to offer their solutions, the fact is Congress put the Wright amendment in place, and only Congress can repeal it," the Republican congressmen said in a joint statement. "Postponing legislative activity on the Wright amendment until October represents an unnecessary and unreasonably long time considering the House calendar."
Mayor Laura Miller said Monday she expects a compromise "long before October."
She and Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief negotiated the legislative moratorium with congressional lawmakers last week.
"For a long time, the council was reluctant to get into the fray," Ms. Miller said Monday. "Now that we've come this far, it's time to put some ideas to paper."
Ms. Miller sees herself as Dallas' chief negotiator in the debate, while acknowledging that she'll need the input of her colleagues. For her part, she said she'll continue her talks with Mr. Moncrief, which in recent weeks have occurred up to three times a day.
And while she doesn't anticipate any formal negotiations with the full council, she said she's been holding casual meetings with members to seek their advice.
"Clearly, as we go forward, we need to be speaking on behalf of our city councils," said Ms. Miller, who expects to "prioritize a list of options" for the Wright amendment with Mr. Moncrief within the next couple of weeks. "I'm making sure at every step that everyone's in on it, and comfortable with it."
But Dallas City Council members run the gamut in their interest in tackling the so-called "Wright Fight." Some are optimistic that a consensus can be reached on repealing or amending the 1979 law and are already angling for influence in the negotiations.
Others say they'd rather watch the fallout as the two mayors grapple for a compromise. Southwest wants a repeal of the law so it can fly long-haul flights from Love, its home airport. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and American oppose any changes to Wright.
For his Dallas council colleagues who hoped to duck the debate, Bill Blaydes has a no-sympathy response: "That's just too bad."
With his experience in transportation and economic development, he said he hopes to play a key role in talks. His personal preference? Lifting the flight limits altogether.
"I'd like to see [the Wright amendment] go away," he said. "I think it's constricting."
On the other end of the spectrum – and just as likely to get involved in the negotiations – is Angela Hunt, whose district includes Love Field and the neighborhoods where many residents are desperate to prevent more flights, traffic and noise.
"I keep hearing the argument that these people moved into the neighborhood knowing an airport was there," she said. "Well, they also moved in knowing the Wright amendment was in place."
But others on the Dallas City Council aren't sticking their necks out – yet. Some, like Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Elba Garcia, are reluctant to discuss Wright.
"Obviously it's something we're going to have to deal with now," she said with a grimace.
Still others say they're not sure they'll ever have to take a firm stand on Wright. Ed Oakley said his feelings won't be hurt if he isn't asked to play a role in negotiations.
"These are 40-year-old issues; to think we're going to solve them in seven months is a real tall order," he said. "It's very tough politically. I just don't know how you do the dance."
The city councils won a temporary reprieve from members of the North Texas congressional delegation in a meeting last week. How long the legislative cease-fire will last remains up in the air.
Mr. Hensarling, who introduced the repeal legislation with Mr. Johnson, said last week he was troubled by the October timetable.
Mr. Hensarling only "agreed to the idea of a legislative cease-fire in concept," his spokesman, Mike Walz, said Monday.
Mr. Walz couldn't offer a timeframe for how long the lawmakers would stand down. Both plan to continue seeking co-sponsors for their legislation, he said.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, convened the meeting in which lawmakers agreed to yield to the cities for now.
"The delegation is in agreement that the best solution is one the local communities agree to," Ms. Hutchison said through a spokesman. "We should all give them time to see what progress they can make in finding a local solution."
For the sake of an agreement, it may be best if council members stay out of the negotiations, said Cal Jillson, a Southern Methodist University political scientist. He said the idea of the two city councils meeting amicably to hash out an agreement is improbable at best. While the "council members will clamor," he said, the mayors would be smart to keep the negotiations between the two of them.
But the Dallas City Council, which in the last year has had no trouble stealing wind from Ms. Miller's sails, could see these negotiations as another opportunity, he said. Those with mayoral aspirations could try to wrestle the issue away from her, or accuse her of leaving them out.
It's the mayor's responsibility to make sure the Wright amendment discussions don't get to that point, some of her council colleagues said.
"This is a situation where the mayor has got to work with us," council member Leo Chaney said.
Staff writer Sudeep Reddy in Washington contributed to this report.
Dallas, Fort Worth to seek more time to negotiate; lawmakers assail delay
By EMILY RAMSHAW / The Dallas Morning News
It was the political football none of the Dallas City Council members wanted to touch: lifting long-haul flight restrictions at Love Field. But now that the debate over the Wright amendment has returned from the nation's Capitol to North Texas, they're being forced into the game, whether they like it or not.
Today and Wednesday, the Fort Worth and Dallas city councils, respectively, will vote on a resolution asking Congress to give elected officials from both cities until Oct. 1 to resolve the nearly 30-year-old argument – one that pits Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Fort Worth-based American Airlines against Dallas hometown carrier Southwest Airlines.
On Monday, U.S. Reps. Jeb Hensarling of Dallas and Sam Johnson of Plano made it clear they'd like the solution much sooner. In a statement, the co-authors of the House legislation to repeal the Wright amendment said the proposed stand-down is too long.
Congress plans to adjourn Oct. 6, about a month before Election Day. Holding back until October would probably push the earliest congressional action into January.
"While we feel it's important for local leaders to offer their solutions, the fact is Congress put the Wright amendment in place, and only Congress can repeal it," the Republican congressmen said in a joint statement. "Postponing legislative activity on the Wright amendment until October represents an unnecessary and unreasonably long time considering the House calendar."
Mayor Laura Miller said Monday she expects a compromise "long before October."
She and Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief negotiated the legislative moratorium with congressional lawmakers last week.
"For a long time, the council was reluctant to get into the fray," Ms. Miller said Monday. "Now that we've come this far, it's time to put some ideas to paper."
Ms. Miller sees herself as Dallas' chief negotiator in the debate, while acknowledging that she'll need the input of her colleagues. For her part, she said she'll continue her talks with Mr. Moncrief, which in recent weeks have occurred up to three times a day.
And while she doesn't anticipate any formal negotiations with the full council, she said she's been holding casual meetings with members to seek their advice.
"Clearly, as we go forward, we need to be speaking on behalf of our city councils," said Ms. Miller, who expects to "prioritize a list of options" for the Wright amendment with Mr. Moncrief within the next couple of weeks. "I'm making sure at every step that everyone's in on it, and comfortable with it."
But Dallas City Council members run the gamut in their interest in tackling the so-called "Wright Fight." Some are optimistic that a consensus can be reached on repealing or amending the 1979 law and are already angling for influence in the negotiations.
Others say they'd rather watch the fallout as the two mayors grapple for a compromise. Southwest wants a repeal of the law so it can fly long-haul flights from Love, its home airport. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and American oppose any changes to Wright.
For his Dallas council colleagues who hoped to duck the debate, Bill Blaydes has a no-sympathy response: "That's just too bad."
With his experience in transportation and economic development, he said he hopes to play a key role in talks. His personal preference? Lifting the flight limits altogether.
"I'd like to see [the Wright amendment] go away," he said. "I think it's constricting."
On the other end of the spectrum – and just as likely to get involved in the negotiations – is Angela Hunt, whose district includes Love Field and the neighborhoods where many residents are desperate to prevent more flights, traffic and noise.
"I keep hearing the argument that these people moved into the neighborhood knowing an airport was there," she said. "Well, they also moved in knowing the Wright amendment was in place."
But others on the Dallas City Council aren't sticking their necks out – yet. Some, like Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Elba Garcia, are reluctant to discuss Wright.
"Obviously it's something we're going to have to deal with now," she said with a grimace.
Still others say they're not sure they'll ever have to take a firm stand on Wright. Ed Oakley said his feelings won't be hurt if he isn't asked to play a role in negotiations.
"These are 40-year-old issues; to think we're going to solve them in seven months is a real tall order," he said. "It's very tough politically. I just don't know how you do the dance."
The city councils won a temporary reprieve from members of the North Texas congressional delegation in a meeting last week. How long the legislative cease-fire will last remains up in the air.
Mr. Hensarling, who introduced the repeal legislation with Mr. Johnson, said last week he was troubled by the October timetable.
Mr. Hensarling only "agreed to the idea of a legislative cease-fire in concept," his spokesman, Mike Walz, said Monday.
Mr. Walz couldn't offer a timeframe for how long the lawmakers would stand down. Both plan to continue seeking co-sponsors for their legislation, he said.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, convened the meeting in which lawmakers agreed to yield to the cities for now.
"The delegation is in agreement that the best solution is one the local communities agree to," Ms. Hutchison said through a spokesman. "We should all give them time to see what progress they can make in finding a local solution."
For the sake of an agreement, it may be best if council members stay out of the negotiations, said Cal Jillson, a Southern Methodist University political scientist. He said the idea of the two city councils meeting amicably to hash out an agreement is improbable at best. While the "council members will clamor," he said, the mayors would be smart to keep the negotiations between the two of them.
But the Dallas City Council, which in the last year has had no trouble stealing wind from Ms. Miller's sails, could see these negotiations as another opportunity, he said. Those with mayoral aspirations could try to wrestle the issue away from her, or accuse her of leaving them out.
It's the mayor's responsibility to make sure the Wright amendment discussions don't get to that point, some of her council colleagues said.
"This is a situation where the mayor has got to work with us," council member Leo Chaney said.
Staff writer Sudeep Reddy in Washington contributed to this report.
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TexasStooge
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School fund shift looms
Rule may force area districts to transfer millions toward classes
By TERRENCE STUTZ / The Dallas Morning News
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas schools will have to shift nearly half a billion dollars in spending toward the classroom to comply with the governor's order that they focus at least 65 percent of resources on instruction, according to a preliminary analysis.
More than half of the districts in Dallas-Fort Worth fell under the new threshold in the analysis of 2003-04 budget data by Austin consultants Moak, Casey & Associates. Some districts, including Dallas and Fort Worth, are faced with shifting millions of dollars they currently spend elsewhere.
Gov. Rick Perry issued an executive order on the 65-percent rule last year after the Legislature failed to adopt a similar requirement.
Now, state Education Commissioner Shirley Neeley is putting the final touches on her interpretation of the rule – that is, defining what will and won't count as classroom spending. The details of her ruling will mean everything to districts.
Ms. Neeley is expected to lean on the model established by the National Center for Education Statistics, although there will be adjustments. For example, the model counts as instructional the salaries for band teachers and football coaches but not the salaries for counselors, librarians or nurses. Also excluded: teacher training, curriculum development and transportation.
The consultants, hired by leading education groups and school districts, also based their analysis primarily on the NCES definition.
Some of what they found, based on budget data from the 2003-04 school year:
• The Dallas school district was spending 63 percent of its funds on instruction and would have to shift $16.8 million to the instruction side of the ledger. A DISD spokesman said the district can't predict the impact until the commissioner's rule is issued.
• Fort Worth ISD was spending 59 percent of its money on instruction and would need to shift more than $30 million – 14 percent of what it now spends on noninstructional costs.
• Highland Park, Plano, Grapevine-Colleyville, Arlington and Lewisville are among local districts that already met or exceeded the 65-percent mark.
Although most districts won't be dramatically affected – and superintendents will have up to three years to meet the standard – the task will be daunting for those districts that are well below the threshold.
There will be tough decisions on where to trim nonclassroom expenses or raise additional revenue to push their classroom spending toward the 65 percent mark. That could mean eliminating some nonclassroom positions – such as administrators, counselors, librarians or janitors – and hiring additional classroom teachers or buying new computers.
Texas is not alone in moving toward the 65-percent standard. According to First Class Education, a national interest group behind the movement, at least 20 states are in the process of adopting such a rule.
School districts and administrator groups have been cool to the idea, arguing it is hard to establish a "one-size-fits-all" definition for spending in the state's 1,037 districts.
They have also criticized use of the NCES guidelines because of what they include and exclude as legitimate instructional expenditures.
Steve West, past president of the Texas Association of School Business Officials and assistant superintendent for finance in the Allen school district, said the NCES model was not designed to do what Texas and several other states are trying to do with it.
"It is an overly simplistic method of determining what school districts spend on instruction and does not take into account costs beyond the control of school districts," he said, citing as an example transportation costs in rural districts.
"There is a lot of concern out there because this has become a political issue that could end up hurting a lot of school districts."
Dr. Neeley has promoted the 65 percent rule in meetings around the state, in part because it was proposed by the man who appointed her, Mr. Perry. She maintains the requirement could bolster public confidence in Texas schools.
"The 65 percent solution is an opportunity to validate that Texas is spending that and hopefully more in the classroom," Dr. Neeley said. "It gives us an opportunity to rebuild trust with the public.
"It also ensures that school districts put their priority into direct classroom instruction," Dr. Neeley said.
Mr. West pointed to a recent study by Standard & Poor's that found no significant correlation between instructional spending and student proficiency on state reading and math tests.
The Standard & Poor's study of education spending in Texas and several other states found that how school districts spend their instructional dollars probably has more impact on student achievement than the total percentage of the budget spent on instruction.
Mr. West said the 65 percent rule amounts to a slap at local control of schools.
"The best approach is for the state to set outcome expectations and let us in the trenches figure out the best way to get results for our dollars," he said.
The Allen school district, according to the Moak, Casey study, has been spending 63 percent of its budget on instruction. That means the district would have to shift about $1.6 million – 5 percent of its nonclassroom funds – to classroom expenses over the next few years.
Americans for Prosperity, a national group that advocates reduced government spending, has been pushing the 65 percent standard for instructional expenditures in Texas and several other states.
Peggy Venable, Texas director of the group, said the mandate is needed to ensure that most tax dollars are making their way into classrooms rather than into spending categories that have little do with students.
"We've been seeing a diminishing percentage of money spent in the classroom," Ms. Venable explained. "Texas schools do not have a funding problem. We have a spending problem."
Catherine Clark, of the Texas Association of School Boards, said the 65 percent requirement sounds good – until you spell out what expenses can't be included.
"It's an easy thing to say, that 65 percent will be spent in the classroom. But when you start to exclude things like upkeep for classrooms, librarians and guidance counselors, it becomes more complicated because you're not describing classroom instruction any more."
Ms. Clark said school districts would have been more comfortable with criteria developed by Texas school officials, based on the experiences of Texas schools.
Dr. Neeley, who is expected to lay out the requirements of the 65 percent rule this month, also is considering a secondary proposal that would include salaries of counselors, librarians and nurses, with a minimum instructional expenditure of 70 percent.
School districts that fail to meet the standard won't be penalized financially, but it will be reflected in the district's annual financial accountability rating from the state. And those districts will have to post extensive financial information – including all expenditures – on their Web sites.
Once the new requirements are published, school districts and other interested parties will have 30 days to comment on the proposal before the commissioner finally adopts it.
_____________________________________________________________
WHAT COUNTS AS INSTRUCTIONAL SPENDING?
A look at some of what does – and doesn't – count as instructional spending as defined by the National Center for Education Statistics:
Yes
• Salaries of classroom teachers and instructional aides
• Instruction supplies: computers, television or other multimedia devices used for instruction
• Extracurricular activities: athletics, music, arts, field trips
• Payments to private institutions for special-needs students
No
• Instructional staff support services: teacher training, instruction and curriculum development, library and media services
• Student support services: attendance takers, guidance counselors, nurses and social workers
• School and district-level administration
• Operations and maintenance
• Transportation
• Food services*
* Officials have indicated food services will be excluded from nonclassroom expenses.
SOURCE: Standard & Poor's SchoolMatters report
Rule may force area districts to transfer millions toward classes
By TERRENCE STUTZ / The Dallas Morning News
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas schools will have to shift nearly half a billion dollars in spending toward the classroom to comply with the governor's order that they focus at least 65 percent of resources on instruction, according to a preliminary analysis.
More than half of the districts in Dallas-Fort Worth fell under the new threshold in the analysis of 2003-04 budget data by Austin consultants Moak, Casey & Associates. Some districts, including Dallas and Fort Worth, are faced with shifting millions of dollars they currently spend elsewhere.
Gov. Rick Perry issued an executive order on the 65-percent rule last year after the Legislature failed to adopt a similar requirement.
Now, state Education Commissioner Shirley Neeley is putting the final touches on her interpretation of the rule – that is, defining what will and won't count as classroom spending. The details of her ruling will mean everything to districts.
Ms. Neeley is expected to lean on the model established by the National Center for Education Statistics, although there will be adjustments. For example, the model counts as instructional the salaries for band teachers and football coaches but not the salaries for counselors, librarians or nurses. Also excluded: teacher training, curriculum development and transportation.
The consultants, hired by leading education groups and school districts, also based their analysis primarily on the NCES definition.
Some of what they found, based on budget data from the 2003-04 school year:
• The Dallas school district was spending 63 percent of its funds on instruction and would have to shift $16.8 million to the instruction side of the ledger. A DISD spokesman said the district can't predict the impact until the commissioner's rule is issued.
• Fort Worth ISD was spending 59 percent of its money on instruction and would need to shift more than $30 million – 14 percent of what it now spends on noninstructional costs.
• Highland Park, Plano, Grapevine-Colleyville, Arlington and Lewisville are among local districts that already met or exceeded the 65-percent mark.
Although most districts won't be dramatically affected – and superintendents will have up to three years to meet the standard – the task will be daunting for those districts that are well below the threshold.
There will be tough decisions on where to trim nonclassroom expenses or raise additional revenue to push their classroom spending toward the 65 percent mark. That could mean eliminating some nonclassroom positions – such as administrators, counselors, librarians or janitors – and hiring additional classroom teachers or buying new computers.
Texas is not alone in moving toward the 65-percent standard. According to First Class Education, a national interest group behind the movement, at least 20 states are in the process of adopting such a rule.
School districts and administrator groups have been cool to the idea, arguing it is hard to establish a "one-size-fits-all" definition for spending in the state's 1,037 districts.
They have also criticized use of the NCES guidelines because of what they include and exclude as legitimate instructional expenditures.
Steve West, past president of the Texas Association of School Business Officials and assistant superintendent for finance in the Allen school district, said the NCES model was not designed to do what Texas and several other states are trying to do with it.
"It is an overly simplistic method of determining what school districts spend on instruction and does not take into account costs beyond the control of school districts," he said, citing as an example transportation costs in rural districts.
"There is a lot of concern out there because this has become a political issue that could end up hurting a lot of school districts."
Dr. Neeley has promoted the 65 percent rule in meetings around the state, in part because it was proposed by the man who appointed her, Mr. Perry. She maintains the requirement could bolster public confidence in Texas schools.
"The 65 percent solution is an opportunity to validate that Texas is spending that and hopefully more in the classroom," Dr. Neeley said. "It gives us an opportunity to rebuild trust with the public.
"It also ensures that school districts put their priority into direct classroom instruction," Dr. Neeley said.
Mr. West pointed to a recent study by Standard & Poor's that found no significant correlation between instructional spending and student proficiency on state reading and math tests.
The Standard & Poor's study of education spending in Texas and several other states found that how school districts spend their instructional dollars probably has more impact on student achievement than the total percentage of the budget spent on instruction.
Mr. West said the 65 percent rule amounts to a slap at local control of schools.
"The best approach is for the state to set outcome expectations and let us in the trenches figure out the best way to get results for our dollars," he said.
The Allen school district, according to the Moak, Casey study, has been spending 63 percent of its budget on instruction. That means the district would have to shift about $1.6 million – 5 percent of its nonclassroom funds – to classroom expenses over the next few years.
Americans for Prosperity, a national group that advocates reduced government spending, has been pushing the 65 percent standard for instructional expenditures in Texas and several other states.
Peggy Venable, Texas director of the group, said the mandate is needed to ensure that most tax dollars are making their way into classrooms rather than into spending categories that have little do with students.
"We've been seeing a diminishing percentage of money spent in the classroom," Ms. Venable explained. "Texas schools do not have a funding problem. We have a spending problem."
Catherine Clark, of the Texas Association of School Boards, said the 65 percent requirement sounds good – until you spell out what expenses can't be included.
"It's an easy thing to say, that 65 percent will be spent in the classroom. But when you start to exclude things like upkeep for classrooms, librarians and guidance counselors, it becomes more complicated because you're not describing classroom instruction any more."
Ms. Clark said school districts would have been more comfortable with criteria developed by Texas school officials, based on the experiences of Texas schools.
Dr. Neeley, who is expected to lay out the requirements of the 65 percent rule this month, also is considering a secondary proposal that would include salaries of counselors, librarians and nurses, with a minimum instructional expenditure of 70 percent.
School districts that fail to meet the standard won't be penalized financially, but it will be reflected in the district's annual financial accountability rating from the state. And those districts will have to post extensive financial information – including all expenditures – on their Web sites.
Once the new requirements are published, school districts and other interested parties will have 30 days to comment on the proposal before the commissioner finally adopts it.
_____________________________________________________________
WHAT COUNTS AS INSTRUCTIONAL SPENDING?
A look at some of what does – and doesn't – count as instructional spending as defined by the National Center for Education Statistics:
Yes
• Salaries of classroom teachers and instructional aides
• Instruction supplies: computers, television or other multimedia devices used for instruction
• Extracurricular activities: athletics, music, arts, field trips
• Payments to private institutions for special-needs students
No
• Instructional staff support services: teacher training, instruction and curriculum development, library and media services
• Student support services: attendance takers, guidance counselors, nurses and social workers
• School and district-level administration
• Operations and maintenance
• Transportation
• Food services*
* Officials have indicated food services will be excluded from nonclassroom expenses.
SOURCE: Standard & Poor's SchoolMatters report
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Traffic Alert
THE COLONY, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - An accident has caused a backup on eastbound Highway 121 at Main Street.
Live Dallas/Ft. Worth Traffic Reports from Traffic Pulse
THE COLONY, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - An accident has caused a backup on eastbound Highway 121 at Main Street.
Live Dallas/Ft. Worth Traffic Reports from Traffic Pulse
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Stubborn fire damages Garland apartments
GARLAND, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/WFAA.com) - Garland firefighters struggled to extinguish a two-alarm fire at an apartment building near Lake Ray Hubbard Tuesday afternoon.
A steady wind and low water pressure combined to hinder firefighting efforts at the Lakeway Point Apartments in the 6000 block of Martin Loving Lane.
Aerial views showed snorkel units hovering above the three-story apartment building with only a trickle of water coming from the nozzles as the fire raged.
The National Weather Service reported winds gusting to 25 mph in nearby Mesquite at the time of the fire.
Thick smoke from the fire was being blown horizontally toward traffic on Interstate 30.
The Lakeway Point Apartments are located on the shores of Lake Ray Hubbard in far east Garland.
No injuries were reported. It wasn't immediately known how many residents were affected by the fire.
GARLAND, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/WFAA.com) - Garland firefighters struggled to extinguish a two-alarm fire at an apartment building near Lake Ray Hubbard Tuesday afternoon.
A steady wind and low water pressure combined to hinder firefighting efforts at the Lakeway Point Apartments in the 6000 block of Martin Loving Lane.
Aerial views showed snorkel units hovering above the three-story apartment building with only a trickle of water coming from the nozzles as the fire raged.
The National Weather Service reported winds gusting to 25 mph in nearby Mesquite at the time of the fire.
Thick smoke from the fire was being blown horizontally toward traffic on Interstate 30.
The Lakeway Point Apartments are located on the shores of Lake Ray Hubbard in far east Garland.
No injuries were reported. It wasn't immediately known how many residents were affected by the fire.
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TexasStooge
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Southlake Carroll cheerleaders: Try, try again
By CYNTHIA VEGA / WFAA ABC 8
SOUTHLAKE, Texas — It was after midnight Monday when the Carroll Independent School District board of trustees finally decided on a resolution to a simmering cheerleading controversy.
In December, only 14 girls had scores high enough to earn a spot on the varsity cheerleading squad. But after parents of girls who didn't make the cut complained, the school put the other 18 who tried out on the squad.
That decision sparked outrage from the original 14.
"We've been working since like 5th, 6th grade to like be a varsity cheerleader," said Stephanie Helin, who passed the tryouts in December. "Now it's just like, well, if you want to be a cheerleader all you have to do is sign up."
After hours behind closed doors, Southlake ISD trustees decided in a 4-2 vote that while the original 14 squad members can remain, the remaining 18 will face a second review before they are accepted.
After the school board vote at 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, some of the original 14 cheerleaders applauded and squealed.
"I'm really excited because they listened to us and took the time to hear our complaint," said Jessica Simmons, 15.
Parent Terri Keene said: "We gave the system a chance to work. It was a tough decision for them."
The date of the tryout has not been set.
Carroll Senior High School has an enrollment of 1,150 students.
Dallas Morning News staff writer Laurie Fox contributed to this report.
By CYNTHIA VEGA / WFAA ABC 8
SOUTHLAKE, Texas — It was after midnight Monday when the Carroll Independent School District board of trustees finally decided on a resolution to a simmering cheerleading controversy.
In December, only 14 girls had scores high enough to earn a spot on the varsity cheerleading squad. But after parents of girls who didn't make the cut complained, the school put the other 18 who tried out on the squad.
That decision sparked outrage from the original 14.
"We've been working since like 5th, 6th grade to like be a varsity cheerleader," said Stephanie Helin, who passed the tryouts in December. "Now it's just like, well, if you want to be a cheerleader all you have to do is sign up."
After hours behind closed doors, Southlake ISD trustees decided in a 4-2 vote that while the original 14 squad members can remain, the remaining 18 will face a second review before they are accepted.
After the school board vote at 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, some of the original 14 cheerleaders applauded and squealed.
"I'm really excited because they listened to us and took the time to hear our complaint," said Jessica Simmons, 15.
Parent Terri Keene said: "We gave the system a chance to work. It was a tough decision for them."
The date of the tryout has not been set.
Carroll Senior High School has an enrollment of 1,150 students.
Dallas Morning News staff writer Laurie Fox contributed to this report.
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TexasStooge
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Dallas ISD may owe $42 million to 'Robin Hood'
By KENT FISCHER / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Dallas public schools are staring down a $42 million hole in next year’s budget, a gap created by the state’s so-called “Robin Hood” system of school finance.
District trustees were warned Tuesday that Dallas is on the verge of becoming the first big-city district in the state to be required to ship local property tax money to poor communities.
DISD has been in this position before, but four times the state has stepped in and changed its finance rules and prevented Dallas and other districts from losing revenue. District officials said today that they don’t expect that to happen this time.
“This is a watershed moment in Texas school finance,” said Superintendent Michael Hinojosa. “No longer are we talking about the Highland Parks and the Planos. Now, [Robin Hood] is involving urban centers like Dallas. Houston is not far behind.”
The $42-million shortfall is, currently, only an estimate and could change as the district continues to build its 2006-2007 budget. District officials must now begin the thorny task of determining how they will cover the projected deficit.
The district has options, administrators said. Trustees could opt to eliminate the homestead exemption they grant to local property owners. That move, while politically risky, could recoup up to $35 million of the shortfall. Program and job cuts are also on the table, Dr. Hinojosa said.
The district found itself in this predicament because its property tax base has grown over the years while enrollments have stagnated. State laws dictate that districts that have more than $305,000 in property value per pupil are considered property “rich” and must send a portion of those revenues to the state. According to district budget makers, DISD’s per-student property value will be $315,000 in 2006-07 - too much to realistically expect the legislature to change the rules.
Administrators said that the budget crisis would have been worse had DISD had not enrolled an estimated 2,200 new students from the Gulf Coast and the defunct Wilmer Hutchins district.
By KENT FISCHER / The Dallas Morning News
DALLAS, Texas - Dallas public schools are staring down a $42 million hole in next year’s budget, a gap created by the state’s so-called “Robin Hood” system of school finance.
District trustees were warned Tuesday that Dallas is on the verge of becoming the first big-city district in the state to be required to ship local property tax money to poor communities.
DISD has been in this position before, but four times the state has stepped in and changed its finance rules and prevented Dallas and other districts from losing revenue. District officials said today that they don’t expect that to happen this time.
“This is a watershed moment in Texas school finance,” said Superintendent Michael Hinojosa. “No longer are we talking about the Highland Parks and the Planos. Now, [Robin Hood] is involving urban centers like Dallas. Houston is not far behind.”
The $42-million shortfall is, currently, only an estimate and could change as the district continues to build its 2006-2007 budget. District officials must now begin the thorny task of determining how they will cover the projected deficit.
The district has options, administrators said. Trustees could opt to eliminate the homestead exemption they grant to local property owners. That move, while politically risky, could recoup up to $35 million of the shortfall. Program and job cuts are also on the table, Dr. Hinojosa said.
The district found itself in this predicament because its property tax base has grown over the years while enrollments have stagnated. State laws dictate that districts that have more than $305,000 in property value per pupil are considered property “rich” and must send a portion of those revenues to the state. According to district budget makers, DISD’s per-student property value will be $315,000 in 2006-07 - too much to realistically expect the legislature to change the rules.
Administrators said that the budget crisis would have been worse had DISD had not enrolled an estimated 2,200 new students from the Gulf Coast and the defunct Wilmer Hutchins district.
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TexasStooge
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53 arrested in meth investigation
From The Dallas Morning News Staff Reports
Federal officials arrested 53 people Tuesday morning in North Texas and southern Oklahoma as part of a joint effort between federal and state agencies targeting methamphetamine traffic in the region.
The investigation, which began in May 2005, was led by agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with help from state agencies in Oklahoma and the Chickasaw Indian Nation.
The effort to date has led to over 100 arrests, 15 federal indictments for conspiracy and distribution of methamphetamine, and 88 drug-related state charges. Several of the individuals were already in custody on earlier charges. Prior to Tuesday’s arrests, approximately $161,000, 49 weapons and 15 pounds of methamphetamine has been seized.
Investigators determined that methamphetamine was being supplied in southern Oklahoma primarily by several drug rings in North Texas. Officers in both states used surveillance, undercover drug purchases and search and arrest warrants to gather evidence.
District Attorney Craig Ladd, who serves five counties in Oklahoma, said the joint effort is a good example of how pooling the resources of multiple agencies can lead to greater results.
“I am confident that this investigation and the resultant prosecutions will serve as a major blow to drug trafficking in southern Oklahoma,” Ladd said.
Methamphetamine is frequently found in this region in the form of “ice,” a highly addictive, rocklike drug which is about 80 percent meth and is commonly smoked like crack cocaine. The meth market is lucrative, with the drug selling for $400 to $3,000 per ounce according to the DEA.
U.S Attorney Sheldon Sperling said the individuals facing federal charges as a result of this investigation have ties to an organization planted in Oklahoma and North and East Texas by a violent street gang in Chicago known as Satan's Disciples.
DEA Dallas Special Agent in Charge Gary Olenkiewicz said the multiple agencies worked hard to ensure the investigation would have a wide impact.
“Our hope is this will have a lasting positive impact on the quality of life in these areas,” Olenkiewicz said.
From The Dallas Morning News Staff Reports
Federal officials arrested 53 people Tuesday morning in North Texas and southern Oklahoma as part of a joint effort between federal and state agencies targeting methamphetamine traffic in the region.
The investigation, which began in May 2005, was led by agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with help from state agencies in Oklahoma and the Chickasaw Indian Nation.
The effort to date has led to over 100 arrests, 15 federal indictments for conspiracy and distribution of methamphetamine, and 88 drug-related state charges. Several of the individuals were already in custody on earlier charges. Prior to Tuesday’s arrests, approximately $161,000, 49 weapons and 15 pounds of methamphetamine has been seized.
Investigators determined that methamphetamine was being supplied in southern Oklahoma primarily by several drug rings in North Texas. Officers in both states used surveillance, undercover drug purchases and search and arrest warrants to gather evidence.
District Attorney Craig Ladd, who serves five counties in Oklahoma, said the joint effort is a good example of how pooling the resources of multiple agencies can lead to greater results.
“I am confident that this investigation and the resultant prosecutions will serve as a major blow to drug trafficking in southern Oklahoma,” Ladd said.
Methamphetamine is frequently found in this region in the form of “ice,” a highly addictive, rocklike drug which is about 80 percent meth and is commonly smoked like crack cocaine. The meth market is lucrative, with the drug selling for $400 to $3,000 per ounce according to the DEA.
U.S Attorney Sheldon Sperling said the individuals facing federal charges as a result of this investigation have ties to an organization planted in Oklahoma and North and East Texas by a violent street gang in Chicago known as Satan's Disciples.
DEA Dallas Special Agent in Charge Gary Olenkiewicz said the multiple agencies worked hard to ensure the investigation would have a wide impact.
“Our hope is this will have a lasting positive impact on the quality of life in these areas,” Olenkiewicz said.
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Perry wins GOP, Bell takes Dem. nomination
AUSTIN, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Republican Governor Rick Perry will face Democratic former Congressman Chris Bell of Houston in the November general election.
Both won their respective primaries today.
Two independents also are running for governor - Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn and musician and professional wiseacre Kinky Friedman.
Both are trying to gather enough signatures - from Texans who didn't vote in the primary - to get onto the fall ballot.
Meanwhile, early returns show embattled Congressman Tom DeLay of Sugar Land was leading in the GOP primary.
DeLay is in his first election since he was indicted and forced to step aside as US House majority leader. DeLay has said he's innocent.
The Democratic nominee will be ex-congressman Nick Lampson, who had no primary opponent.
President Bush flew to Texas from Washington to cast his GOP primary ballot in Crawford.
A White House spokesman wouldn't say whether Bush made the trip because he wanted to vote in person or - as some suspect - because aides forgot to get him an absentee ballot.
AUSTIN, Texas (WFAA ABC 8) - Republican Governor Rick Perry will face Democratic former Congressman Chris Bell of Houston in the November general election.
Both won their respective primaries today.
Two independents also are running for governor - Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn and musician and professional wiseacre Kinky Friedman.
Both are trying to gather enough signatures - from Texans who didn't vote in the primary - to get onto the fall ballot.
Meanwhile, early returns show embattled Congressman Tom DeLay of Sugar Land was leading in the GOP primary.
DeLay is in his first election since he was indicted and forced to step aside as US House majority leader. DeLay has said he's innocent.
The Democratic nominee will be ex-congressman Nick Lampson, who had no primary opponent.
President Bush flew to Texas from Washington to cast his GOP primary ballot in Crawford.
A White House spokesman wouldn't say whether Bush made the trip because he wanted to vote in person or - as some suspect - because aides forgot to get him an absentee ballot.
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Ex-chaplain accused of buying alcohol for minor
By BRAD HAWKINS / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Police filed charges against an associate pastor of evangelism at University Park United Methodist for allegedly furnishing alcohol to a 15-year-old member of his church's youth group.
Scott Wizeman, 29, resigned from his volunteer post and faces up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine if he is convicted of the charge.
"She approached him and asked if he would provide her with alcohol and he did," said Chief Gary Adams, University Park Police Department.
Internal and criminal investigations conducted against the now former University Park fire and police chaplain said the warrant was issued after the teen told a senior pastor at her church that he bought her alcohol twice after she asked.
Last week, the town council in Highland Park made it a Class C misdemeanor for parents to turn a blind eye to underage drinking inside the home.
However, the University Park City Council did not pass a similar code partially because it said state law already provides for a more serious charge. Wizeman faces something just short of a felony conviction.
"I think our legislators intended for adults to understand the seriousness of providing alcohol to minors," Adams said. "I think we need to go with what the statute says and file the more severe charge."
By BRAD HAWKINS / WFAA ABC 8
DALLAS, Texas - Police filed charges against an associate pastor of evangelism at University Park United Methodist for allegedly furnishing alcohol to a 15-year-old member of his church's youth group.
Scott Wizeman, 29, resigned from his volunteer post and faces up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine if he is convicted of the charge.
"She approached him and asked if he would provide her with alcohol and he did," said Chief Gary Adams, University Park Police Department.
Internal and criminal investigations conducted against the now former University Park fire and police chaplain said the warrant was issued after the teen told a senior pastor at her church that he bought her alcohol twice after she asked.
Last week, the town council in Highland Park made it a Class C misdemeanor for parents to turn a blind eye to underage drinking inside the home.
However, the University Park City Council did not pass a similar code partially because it said state law already provides for a more serious charge. Wizeman faces something just short of a felony conviction.
"I think our legislators intended for adults to understand the seriousness of providing alcohol to minors," Adams said. "I think we need to go with what the statute says and file the more severe charge."
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Police issue rapist warning for Arlington, Fort Worth
By DON WALL / WFAA ABC 8
Rebecca Crook lives alone at the Marine Creek Apartments.
Police say, two rapes and two robberies committed here and at the Meridian Apartments next door during 2004 and 2005 are linked to a new wave of robberies and sexual assaults happening in Fort Worth and Arlington.
"It makes you feel unsafe, I didn't know this was going on," she says.
Police say they think these offenses are being committed by the same person.
They believe the suspect could be linked to 15 robberies and sexual assaults.
He often wears a ski mask, carries a knife, and uses a restraining device around women's necks.
Police won't elaborate on the restraining device, but the sexual predator uses it to pull his victims down, as he did, when he raped an 18-year-old woman in this field in January.
He attacks between midnight and 6 a.m.
Police encourage citizens, females in particular to be especially cautious during those hours.
The suspect has gotten single women to open their doors, then forced them back into their apartment, where he raped them.
He has also climbed through open windows.
Crook says she'll be more vigilant.
"[I'll] be more cautious about locking my patio door. I don't always do that and obviously let other people know, because I'm sure a lot of people here don't know about that, so try and warn other people."
By DON WALL / WFAA ABC 8
Rebecca Crook lives alone at the Marine Creek Apartments.
Police say, two rapes and two robberies committed here and at the Meridian Apartments next door during 2004 and 2005 are linked to a new wave of robberies and sexual assaults happening in Fort Worth and Arlington.
"It makes you feel unsafe, I didn't know this was going on," she says.
Police say they think these offenses are being committed by the same person.
They believe the suspect could be linked to 15 robberies and sexual assaults.
He often wears a ski mask, carries a knife, and uses a restraining device around women's necks.
Police won't elaborate on the restraining device, but the sexual predator uses it to pull his victims down, as he did, when he raped an 18-year-old woman in this field in January.
He attacks between midnight and 6 a.m.
Police encourage citizens, females in particular to be especially cautious during those hours.
The suspect has gotten single women to open their doors, then forced them back into their apartment, where he raped them.
He has also climbed through open windows.
Crook says she'll be more vigilant.
"[I'll] be more cautious about locking my patio door. I don't always do that and obviously let other people know, because I'm sure a lot of people here don't know about that, so try and warn other people."
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TexasStooge
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- Posts: 38127
- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2003 1:22 pm
- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
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Fort Worth infant's death ruled a homicide
By DEBRA DENNIS / The Dallas Morning News
FORT WORTH, Texas — The death of a child placed in the custody of relatives by Child Protective Services has been ruled a homicide, police said Tuesday.
Brooke Martinez was unconscious Saturday when she was taken to Cook Children’s Medical Center with injuries to her skull, said Lt. Gene Jones, a spokesman for the Fort Worth Police Department. She died Monday.
Brooke had been living with her half-sister and her husband since December when Child Protective Services placed her there.
The husband told police the child fell from a couch at his home in the 2000 block of Pearl Ave.
However, doctors said the child’s injuries were not consistent with a fall and called police, Lt. Jones said.
The Tarrant County medical examiner’s office conducted an autopsy and found the girl died of blunt force trauma to the head and brain.
“It’s just tragic,” said Marissa Gonzales, spokeswoman for CPS. “We can’t explain it. This is one of those inexplicable cases where the people had no red flags against them. Brooke seemed to be flourishing in their care.”
The family passed a background check and additional monitoring by the agency showed no signs of trouble, Ms. Gonzales said.
Brooke had lived with another foster family in August shortly after her birth. She was allowed to live with her half-sister at her mother’s request, officials said.
There have been no arrests, police said.
By DEBRA DENNIS / The Dallas Morning News
FORT WORTH, Texas — The death of a child placed in the custody of relatives by Child Protective Services has been ruled a homicide, police said Tuesday.
Brooke Martinez was unconscious Saturday when she was taken to Cook Children’s Medical Center with injuries to her skull, said Lt. Gene Jones, a spokesman for the Fort Worth Police Department. She died Monday.
Brooke had been living with her half-sister and her husband since December when Child Protective Services placed her there.
The husband told police the child fell from a couch at his home in the 2000 block of Pearl Ave.
However, doctors said the child’s injuries were not consistent with a fall and called police, Lt. Jones said.
The Tarrant County medical examiner’s office conducted an autopsy and found the girl died of blunt force trauma to the head and brain.
“It’s just tragic,” said Marissa Gonzales, spokeswoman for CPS. “We can’t explain it. This is one of those inexplicable cases where the people had no red flags against them. Brooke seemed to be flourishing in their care.”
The family passed a background check and additional monitoring by the agency showed no signs of trouble, Ms. Gonzales said.
Brooke had lived with another foster family in August shortly after her birth. She was allowed to live with her half-sister at her mother’s request, officials said.
There have been no arrests, police said.
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TexasStooge
- Category 5
- Posts: 38127
- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2003 1:22 pm
- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
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Tom DeLay wins four-way battle
AUSTIN, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/AP) - Rep. Tom DeLay won the GOP nomination to the House on Tuesday, handily beating three challengers in his
first election since he was indicted and forced to step aside as majority leader.
DeLay was widely expected to win, but a close race could have foretold a tough contest for the congressman in the fall.
"I have always placed my faith in the voters, and today's vote shows they have placed their full faith in me," DeLay said in a statement. "Not only did they reject the politics of personal destruction, but they strongly rejected the candidates who used those Democrat tactics as their platform."
With 88 percent of precincts reporting, DeLay had 19,765 votes, or 62 percent. His closest challenger, environmental attorney Tom Campbell, had 9,637 votes, or 30 percent.
In the other big Texas primary race, a former Democratic congressman from Houston won the right to challenge Republican Gov. Rick Perry in a state where the GOP holds every statewide office.
Chris Bell prevailed over Bob Gammage, a former Texas Supreme Court justice who jumped into the race in December after a decade out of politics. Perry won his primary easily, collecting 85 percent of the vote against three little-known opponents.
With 88 percent of precincts reporting, Bell had 301,358 votes, or 64 percent, compared with Gammage, who had 134,032 votes, or 28 percent.
Bell said the victory was "exactly the boost my campaign needed" heading into what could be a historic four-way race for governor in November. Two independents with considerable political charisma - Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn and musician and professional wiseacre Kinky Friedman - are seeking enough signatures from voters who do not vote in the primary to get onto the fall ballot.
In a third contest Tuesday, Democratic voters in a congressional district stretching from San Antonio to Laredo had to decide a rematch between freshman Rep. Henry Cuellar and Ciro Rodriguez, who served 31/2 terms on Capitol Hill before losing to Cuellar in 2004.
With no Republican running in the district, the winner will take the seat.
Rodriguez seized on a photo of President Bush affectionately cupping Cuellar's cheeks at the recent State of the Union address to portray Cuellar as a stealth Republican.
With about 69 percent of precincts reporting, Cuellar had 16,705 votes, or 49 percent, compared with Rodriguez, who had 15,408 votes, or 45 percent.
It was unclear when the race would be decided. The tabulation of early votes in a key county was delayed because of voting-machine software problems, election officials said.
DeLay, 58, was indicted last year and is awaiting trial on charges he illegally funneled corporate donations to GOP candidates for the Texas House in 2002. The Republicans won a majority in the Legislature that year, and then pushed through a congressional redistricting plan engineered by DeLay that sent more Republicans to Washington in 2004.
DeLay has also come under scrutiny over his ties to lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who pleaded guilty to fraud in January and is cooperating in an investigation of influence-peddling on Capitol Hill.
Tuesday's contest was DeLay's first serious primary challenge in the 22 years since he took office.
Campbell, a lawyer who was general counsel for the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration during the first Bush
administration, was considered the front-runner among DeLay's Republican challengers, who also included Mike Fjetland and Pat Baig. Campbell portrayed himself as a man of integrity and branded DeLay "unelectable."
In his concession speech, Campbell remained critical of DeLay, warning that he could still be ousted unless he is "willing to acknowledge he's made mistakes, and he will work with the entire community and be less concerned with the Republican power and more concerned with Republican priorities."
After voting in his hometown of Sugar Land, DeLay returned to Washington for a campaign fundraiser hosted by two lobbyists. He criticized his opponents for their "politics of personal destruction," saying such tactics "were rejected just like they will be in November."
The Democratic nominee in the fall will be Nick Lampson, a well-financed former congressman ousted from office in 2004 under the new congressional map engineered by DeLay. Lampson had no primary opponent Tuesday.
DeLay "gets headlines for all the wrong reasons," Lampson said Tuesday. "I'm looking forward to that headline on November 8th: 'No Further DeLay."'
The state's top election official predicted only 13 percent of the 12.7 million registered voters would cast primary ballots, so Strayhorn and Friedman should not have much trouble finding the 45,000-plus voters they each need to sign their petitions over the next two months.
Strayhorn, who calls herself "one tough grandma," got elected comptroller as a Republican but is running for governor as an independent, avoiding a primary against the popular Perry. She is the mother of White House press secretary Scott McClellan. Friedman is a cigar-chomping cowboy musician whose backup group on the road was called the Texas Jewboys.
At least two veterans of the Iraq war are running for Congress from Texas. David T. Harris, a Democrat, will take on Rep. Joe Barton in November, and Van Taylor, a Republican, won the nomination Tuesday to go up against Democratic Rep. Chet Edwards in the Crawford-area district that includes Bush's ranch.
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ALSO ONLINE:
Latest Election Results
AUSTIN, Texas (WFAA ABC 8/AP) - Rep. Tom DeLay won the GOP nomination to the House on Tuesday, handily beating three challengers in his
first election since he was indicted and forced to step aside as majority leader.
DeLay was widely expected to win, but a close race could have foretold a tough contest for the congressman in the fall.
"I have always placed my faith in the voters, and today's vote shows they have placed their full faith in me," DeLay said in a statement. "Not only did they reject the politics of personal destruction, but they strongly rejected the candidates who used those Democrat tactics as their platform."
With 88 percent of precincts reporting, DeLay had 19,765 votes, or 62 percent. His closest challenger, environmental attorney Tom Campbell, had 9,637 votes, or 30 percent.
In the other big Texas primary race, a former Democratic congressman from Houston won the right to challenge Republican Gov. Rick Perry in a state where the GOP holds every statewide office.
Chris Bell prevailed over Bob Gammage, a former Texas Supreme Court justice who jumped into the race in December after a decade out of politics. Perry won his primary easily, collecting 85 percent of the vote against three little-known opponents.
With 88 percent of precincts reporting, Bell had 301,358 votes, or 64 percent, compared with Gammage, who had 134,032 votes, or 28 percent.
Bell said the victory was "exactly the boost my campaign needed" heading into what could be a historic four-way race for governor in November. Two independents with considerable political charisma - Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn and musician and professional wiseacre Kinky Friedman - are seeking enough signatures from voters who do not vote in the primary to get onto the fall ballot.
In a third contest Tuesday, Democratic voters in a congressional district stretching from San Antonio to Laredo had to decide a rematch between freshman Rep. Henry Cuellar and Ciro Rodriguez, who served 31/2 terms on Capitol Hill before losing to Cuellar in 2004.
With no Republican running in the district, the winner will take the seat.
Rodriguez seized on a photo of President Bush affectionately cupping Cuellar's cheeks at the recent State of the Union address to portray Cuellar as a stealth Republican.
With about 69 percent of precincts reporting, Cuellar had 16,705 votes, or 49 percent, compared with Rodriguez, who had 15,408 votes, or 45 percent.
It was unclear when the race would be decided. The tabulation of early votes in a key county was delayed because of voting-machine software problems, election officials said.
DeLay, 58, was indicted last year and is awaiting trial on charges he illegally funneled corporate donations to GOP candidates for the Texas House in 2002. The Republicans won a majority in the Legislature that year, and then pushed through a congressional redistricting plan engineered by DeLay that sent more Republicans to Washington in 2004.
DeLay has also come under scrutiny over his ties to lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who pleaded guilty to fraud in January and is cooperating in an investigation of influence-peddling on Capitol Hill.
Tuesday's contest was DeLay's first serious primary challenge in the 22 years since he took office.
Campbell, a lawyer who was general counsel for the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration during the first Bush
administration, was considered the front-runner among DeLay's Republican challengers, who also included Mike Fjetland and Pat Baig. Campbell portrayed himself as a man of integrity and branded DeLay "unelectable."
In his concession speech, Campbell remained critical of DeLay, warning that he could still be ousted unless he is "willing to acknowledge he's made mistakes, and he will work with the entire community and be less concerned with the Republican power and more concerned with Republican priorities."
After voting in his hometown of Sugar Land, DeLay returned to Washington for a campaign fundraiser hosted by two lobbyists. He criticized his opponents for their "politics of personal destruction," saying such tactics "were rejected just like they will be in November."
The Democratic nominee in the fall will be Nick Lampson, a well-financed former congressman ousted from office in 2004 under the new congressional map engineered by DeLay. Lampson had no primary opponent Tuesday.
DeLay "gets headlines for all the wrong reasons," Lampson said Tuesday. "I'm looking forward to that headline on November 8th: 'No Further DeLay."'
The state's top election official predicted only 13 percent of the 12.7 million registered voters would cast primary ballots, so Strayhorn and Friedman should not have much trouble finding the 45,000-plus voters they each need to sign their petitions over the next two months.
Strayhorn, who calls herself "one tough grandma," got elected comptroller as a Republican but is running for governor as an independent, avoiding a primary against the popular Perry. She is the mother of White House press secretary Scott McClellan. Friedman is a cigar-chomping cowboy musician whose backup group on the road was called the Texas Jewboys.
At least two veterans of the Iraq war are running for Congress from Texas. David T. Harris, a Democrat, will take on Rep. Joe Barton in November, and Van Taylor, a Republican, won the nomination Tuesday to go up against Democratic Rep. Chet Edwards in the Crawford-area district that includes Bush's ranch.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ALSO ONLINE:
Latest Election Results
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TexasStooge
- Category 5
- Posts: 38127
- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2003 1:22 pm
- Location: Irving (Dallas County), TX
- Contact:
Man: Diabetic shock led to wrongful arrest
By YOLANDA WALKER / WFAA ABC 8
EULESS, Texas - A man with diabetes said his medical condition landed him in a Euless jail.
Not only did Brian McManus say he was taken into custody by police after going into diabetic shock, but he also said he was maced and tasered.
Police in Euless apparently thought McManus was intoxicated or using drugs.
McManus was driving down a service road slowly when he said he went into a diabetic shock as he tried to pull his car over.
"I felt my blood sugar getting low and I felt a little bit shaky," he said. "I live so close by I decided I would come home and get something to eat. Apparently, I never made it."
McManus was in insulin shock, but police who arrived on the scene didn't realize that.
"The symptoms of it are very much like someone that is on alcohol or drugs," said Asst. Chief Harland Westmoreland, Euless Police Department.
During the episode they said McManus was unresponsive, combative and even tried to drive off, which they said forced them to use the mace and the taser gun.
"It's an unfortunate incident and were sorry that it happened," Harland said. "Our officers have been trained, but without tests...I mean our paramedics didn't know until they actually ran some blood tests on him."
But by that time, McManus had already been taken to jail and was later released without charges.
"I am very angry," McManus said. "I mean, I don't want it to happen to anyone else."
McManus said he was even more outraged after paramedics sent him a bill.
Even though the police department apoligozed for the incident, McManus said he plans on filing a complaint.
By YOLANDA WALKER / WFAA ABC 8
EULESS, Texas - A man with diabetes said his medical condition landed him in a Euless jail.
Not only did Brian McManus say he was taken into custody by police after going into diabetic shock, but he also said he was maced and tasered.
Police in Euless apparently thought McManus was intoxicated or using drugs.
McManus was driving down a service road slowly when he said he went into a diabetic shock as he tried to pull his car over.
"I felt my blood sugar getting low and I felt a little bit shaky," he said. "I live so close by I decided I would come home and get something to eat. Apparently, I never made it."
McManus was in insulin shock, but police who arrived on the scene didn't realize that.
"The symptoms of it are very much like someone that is on alcohol or drugs," said Asst. Chief Harland Westmoreland, Euless Police Department.
During the episode they said McManus was unresponsive, combative and even tried to drive off, which they said forced them to use the mace and the taser gun.
"It's an unfortunate incident and were sorry that it happened," Harland said. "Our officers have been trained, but without tests...I mean our paramedics didn't know until they actually ran some blood tests on him."
But by that time, McManus had already been taken to jail and was later released without charges.
"I am very angry," McManus said. "I mean, I don't want it to happen to anyone else."
McManus said he was even more outraged after paramedics sent him a bill.
Even though the police department apoligozed for the incident, McManus said he plans on filing a complaint.
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