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August 2008
Waco VA receives Louisiana patients as Hurricane Gustav approaches
A group of 71 residential care patients from Lake Charles, La., arrived at he Waco VA Medical Center about 4 p.m. today as Hurricane Gustav approached the Gulf Coast.
The patients from Chennault Place were under an evacuation order and traveled to Waco in two buses with eight Chennault Place caregivers, according to VA spokesperson Nelia Schrum.
After receiving the call for help Saturday, the Waco VA Medical Center reopened Building 91 and began preparations for the patients, Schrum said in a press release. The VA has worked closely with the facility to ensure that the appropriate medications are available. Sixty-six of the patients are veterans.
Chennault Place patients were evacuated to the Waco VA during Hurricane Rita.
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University defeats Crosby in opener, 14-7
9:33 PM: University wins, holding on through a scoreless fourth quarter. 14-7, final.
9:02 PM: End of the third quarter. University still leads, 14-7.
8:36 PM: University strikes back to take a 14-7 lead. Price hooks up with Demarcus Hicks on a 43-yard TD pass with 8:12 left in the third quarter.
8:26 PM: Crosby ties the score on a six-yard pass from Justin Herrera to Xavier Frank with 10:45 remaining in the third quarter.
The score was set up by University’s third lost fumble of the game.
7:51 PM: University leads at halftime, 7-0.
Price has rushed for 51 yards and a touchdown, and is 4-of-6 for 48 yards and an interception passing.
7:34 PM: Big stop for University as the Trojans hold Crosby on fourth-and-goal at the 1. University takes over.
7:25 PM: End of the first quarter, still 7-0 University.
7:19 PM: Randy Price’s four-yard touchdown run has University in front of Crosby, 7-0, with 6:30 remaining in the first quarter tonight at Waco ISD Stadium.
University had set up to attempt a field goal, but a facemask penalty during the attempt gave the Trojan offense a second chance and Price took advantage.
This game is the finale of the four-game Heart O’ Texas Kickoff Classic this weekend at Waco ISD Stadium.
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Boy hit by vehicle in Moody airlifted to Temple hospital
A 4-year-old boy was taken by medical helicopter to Scott & White Hospital in Temple late this evening after authorities said he was struck by a Ford Mustang near Moody.
The child was apparently crossing the street or standing along the street at about 7:30 p.m. on Floyd Road near Raby Road in Moody when he was hit by the vehicle, a Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman said Friday.
No other details were immediately available this evening.
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POLICE: Night race down 18th Street sends trio to local hospital
Three people were injured tonight, at least one of them seriously, and another person was in custody after Waco police say a pickup truck racing another vehicle south on 18th Street collided with a white Mazda Protege eastbound on Franklin Avenue.
The crash occurred just after 8 p.m., and at least three people were taken to Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center, Waco Police Sgt. Gary Harrison said. The driver of the Mazda, he said, was in “extremely serious, critical condition” tonight.
Victims’ names and conditions weren’t available at 9:45 p.m.
Police were questioning the driver of a blue Dodge Ram pickup truck that Harrison said fled the scene after the crash. However, no arrests had yet been made.
Sgt. Harrison said he had no information on the vehicle that the pickup truck driver was allegedly racing at the time of the crash.
As police investigators took pictures of the scene, the driver’s side door of the Mazda lay dislodged in the grass along 18th Street.
The intersection of 18th Street and Franklin Avenue was closed off to traffic for more than an hour.
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Public meeting set for mammoth site study report
The city of Waco sent out a release announcing that the National Park Service will hold a public meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday at Baylor University’s Mayborn Museum Complex, 1300 S. University-Parks Drive, to discuss the Waco Mammoth Site Special Resource Study Report.
The two-hour meeting in the complex’s SBC Theater will include public discussion and comments on the report that outlines the findings of a special resource study of the Waco mammoth site. Congress specifically requested for the study to be conducted to evaluate the site’s potential for inclusion as a new unit of the National Park System, the release said.
The study will be available for public review until Sept. 20.
For information, visit www.wacomammoth.org or call the Parks and Recreation office at 254-750-5980.
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Mother of I-35 accident victim says daughter lived for her kids
Brandee Thorpe’s whole life was her children, her mother said today, the morning after the Hillsboro woman, her two children and a friend were killed while walking on the Interstate 35 access road near West.
Thorpe, a 20-year-old single mother, worked at a Sonic restaurant in Hillsboro to provide for her young son and daughter, Austyn Fontenot, 2, and Kinzee Fontenot, 1, said Robin Thorpe of Houston. A 2006 Midway High School graduate, Brandee Thorpe had moved to Hillsboro about four months ago, she said.
“She was a wonderful mom,” said her mother, adding that what made her daughter happiest in life was hearing her children call her “mama.”
Brandee Thorpe was visiting her sister Thursday evening in the Waco area, her mother said. Because she did not own a vehicle, a friend had driven her, she said.
That friend, identified by the Texas Department of Public Safety as Gregory Howell, 25, of Robinson, was driving Brandee Thorpe and the children back to Hillsboro when his vehicle broke down, Robin Thorpe said. DPS Senior Cpl. Charlie Morgan said it was a white pickup truck, which was found parked near the accident scene.
The accident happened shortly before 10 p.m on the northbound access road near Wiggins Road, a few miles south of West, Morgan said. After the truck broke down, the group apparently walked through the ditch beside the interstate and up onto the access road, Morgan said.
They were walking south on the two-way road when a 2003 Chevrolet SUV came over a rise and hit them from behind, he said.
“They hadn’t gotten far when they were hit,” Morgan said.
Robin Thorpe said her daughter was holding Kinzee at the time of the accident, while Howell was holding Austyn. Thorpe and Kinzee were hit first, she said. Howell and the little boy were then hit, causing them to be thrown about 100 feet. They were found in the ditch, she said.
Because the accident happened late at night, the road was very dark, Morgan said. The interstate was slightly more illuminated, he said, but there are no lights in that portion of either roadway, he said.
The speed limit on the access road is 55 mph. Morgan said officers have no information to indicate that the driver of the SUV, a West woman, was speeding. Morgan said he was not certain whether the driver or someone else alerted authorities to the accident. But the driver did stop at the scene, he said, adding that her vehicle was pretty much totaled.
No charges against the driver are being considered at this time, Morgan said.
Thursday night’s accident is not the first time the Thorpe family has experienced tragedy on Interstate 35, Robin Thorpe said. In March 2003, another of her daughters died in a vehicle crash near Waxahachie, she said.
Funeral arrangements for Thorpe and her children are pending at Pecan Grove Funeral Home in Robinson. The Tribune-Herald has not yet gotten information about arrangements for Howell.
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Fellow death-row inmate speaks of Coble’s likability
A 44-year-old man who served time on death row with Billie Wayne Coble this morning told jurors that Coble was well-liked by others in prison.
Today is the 19-year anniversary that Coble killed Robert and Zelda Vicha and their son, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha.
Coble, 59, is being retried in 54th State District Court to determine whether he should return to death row for those murders.
Martin Draughon served on death row with Coble since 1991 until Coble’s sentence was overturned by a federal appeals court this year. They were on death row first at the Ellis Unit in Huntsville, then were transferred to the Polunsky Unit in Livingston where death-row inmates are now housed.
Draughon testified that he is serving 39 years for sexual assault and 40 years for murder.
He described Coble as even-keeled and someone who doesn’t lose his cool. Coble worked on the prison newspaper, he said. He added that Coble was always peaceful, helpful and upbeat.
The prosecution rested its case Thursday.
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WISD: Wiley pupils should go to new schools next week
DOCUMENT
- link: Read the ruling (PDF)
Judge Jim Meyer, of the 170th District Court, denied a temporary injunction that would have kept G.L. Wiley Middle School open through the duration of a formal lawsuit. Meyer’s ruling also dissolves the temporary restraining order, which had been keeping the school open since Monday.
Waco Independent School District plans to move forward with the closing of G.L. Wiley Middle School.
Wiley parents are being asked to enroll their students Tuesday at the school they would have attended under the closure of Wiley, before the temporary restraining order went into effect. For more information, parents should call the Office of Accountability and Instruction until 6 p.m. today at 755-9425.
In a decision issued this morning, Meyer ruled that unless a school board is breaking the law or or violating students’ legal rights, it’s not within a District Court’s authority to to second guess the school board’s decision.
Meyer found that, the school board was not in violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act for the Aug. 7 meeting, at which the vote to close Wiley was taken, because the board held another meeting Monday, and repeated the vote. Though Meyer granted a temporary restraining order based on open meetig violations, The school district corrected those violations at Monday’s special meeting by making the agenda item for the closure vote more clear to the public.
Meyer’s ruling states he did not find a probable right of recovery or a probable injury with regard to any of the plaintiff’s other claims, which included racial discrimination and violation of the Texas Public Education Code, as well as allegations irreparable harm that had been done to Wiley students.
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Outdoor Adventures offered for fall
If you like to be outdoors, you might consider signing up for one of the Outdoor Adventures classes offered for the fall by the city of Waco’s parks and recreation department. Registration is under way.
According to this release from the city, the following choices are available:
*Intro to Mountain Biking (ages 8 and up) will take place at 6 p.m. Sept. 10 and 24, and Oct. 8 and 22. The cost is $10 per person and a helmet and mountain bike will be provided. Adult supervision is required. Space is limited, so registration is required.
*Intro to Kayaking (ages 8 and up) will be at 6 p.m. every Wednesday from Sept. 3-Oct. 29. The cost per event is $10 per participant; kayaks, canoes and life vests are provided. Adult supervision is required. Space is limited, so registration is required.
*Evening hikes in Cameron Park (all ages) will be at 6 p.m. every Monday from Sept. 8- Oct. 27. The guided walks are free and will begin at Rock Shelter.
*Lunchtime exercise hikes in Cameron Park (all ages) will take place at noon on Tuesday and Thursdays from Sept. 16-Dec. 18. The guided walks are free and will begin at the Rock Shelter.
To register or for information, call 750-8071.
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McCain picks little-known Alaska governor for VP
John McCain tapped Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a conservative who shares his maverick streak, to be the Republican vice presidential running mate today in a startling selection on the eve of the Republican National Convention.
In an announcement, McCain’s campaign said that Palin, who has been governor less than two years, “has the record of reform and bipartisanship that others can only speak of.
“Her experience in shaking up the status quo is exactly what is needed in Washington today,” the announcement said.
Palin, 44, is a self-styled hockey mom and political reformer who has been governor of her state less than two years.
Palin’s selection was a stunning surprise, as McCain passed over many other better known prospects, some of whom had been the subject of intense speculation for weeks or months.
At 44, she is a generation younger that Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware, who is Barack Obama’s running mate on the Democratic ticket.
She is three years Obama’s junior, as well — and McCain has made much in recent weeks of Obama’s relative lack of experience in foreign policy and defense matters.
The February 2008 issue of Alaska magazine (shown at right) had her on its cover, touting her as “America’s Hottest Governor.” For whatever that’s worth.
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Gas prices in Texas keep falling
Good news when you head to the pump these days. The weekly AAA Texas gas price survey released today finds regular unleaded averaging $3.47 per gallon across Texas, down 7 cents from last week.
Of course, it would be better news if the amount was closer to last year’s prices.
Auto club spokesman Dan Ronan says the price was falling even as Labor Day approaches and Tropical Storm Gustav threatens to reach hurricane levels in the Gulf of Mexico, the Associated Press said.
The cheapest gas in this week’s survey is in Houston, where it fell 9 cents to $3.39 per gallon. El Paso has the most expensive gas at $3.60 per gallon, still down a nickel from last week.
I’ve been seeing a fair share of $3.45 prices around town. Check our GasBuddy link for prices around the area.
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Judge to render decision on Wiley injunction Friday morning
After a third day packed with witness testimony, the parties in the temporary injunction hearing on G. L. Wiley Middle School’s rested today.
Judge Jim Meyer, of the 170th District Court will review the case tonight and deliver a ruling on the injunction in the morning.
In an attempt to speed the case at Meyer’s request, the attorneys defending the Waco Independent School District dropped five of their witnesses and shaved off a significant amount of the questions directed at the last witness.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys, who had called witnesses for the last two days, also trimmed their cross examination of the defense’s last witness. Had the parties not rested by 5 p.m., Meyer told them, he would not be able to deliver his ruling until Tuesday.
The plaintiff’s attorneys, arguing for two Wiley families and a group of the school’s supporters, spent the last three days trying to prove Waco ISD trustees violated the Texas Open Meetings Act and the Texas Education Code. The plaintiffs also alleged racial discrimination by the school board and that irreparable harm was done to children in the East Waco middle school’s closing.
If Meyer rules for the temporary injunction, Wiley will remain open through the pending lawsuit. If he does not rule for the injunction, the school may close, per the vote the board took Monday night at a special meeting
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Coble trial update: Relative disrupts proceedings
Emotions ran high this morning during the punishment retrial of Billie Wayne Coble when a witness glared at Coble and called him “evil” in an outburst before taking the stand.
Defense attorney Alex Calhoun slammed his hand down on the counsel table and strenuously objected to the outburst, calling it prejudicial to his client and asking Judge Matt Johnson for a mistrial. Johnson denied the request.
Coble, 59, is being retried in 54th State District Court to determine whether he should return to death row for the murders of Robert and Zelda Vicha and their son, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha, on Aug. 29, 1989. His death sentence was overturned by a federal appeals court and a new punishment trial was ordered.
The woman, a relative of Coble, apologized for her outburst. During testimony, she said she was 16 when Coble offered her a job at the Circle Drive-In that he was managing.
She said Coble would drive her to and from work, but about three weeks into the job, he took her to his house and raped her. Coble would have been about 30 at the time.
The woman said she never told anyone about the rape except her sister four years later. She did not testify at Coble’s previous murder trial.
Earlier today, jurors heard from a psychiatrist who evaluated Coble when he was 15.
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School board president tears up on stand at Wiley hearing
Waco school board president David Schleicher teared up as he testified today in a hearing on a temporary injunction to keep G.L. Wiley Middle School open. The judge ordered a lunch recess soon after Schleicher took the stand.
Schleicher, who voted against closure along with two other board members, was the second defense witness to take the stand in Judge Jim Meyer’s courtroom. Meyer agreed last week to a temporary restraining order that opened Wiley this week despite the board’s voting to close it Aug. 7.
The board voted again Monday to close the school, but the injunction hearing will determine whether the campus remains open while a lawsuit brought by a community group and parents proceeds. The suit alleges racial discrimination was a factor in the move to close the school, which has been rated unacceptable by the state for five years.
Though much has been made of racial discrimination so far in the hearing, which began Tuesday, the plaintiffs’ last witness, board member Larry Perez, said on the stand this morning he didn’t think racism entered into the decision.
Asked by the plaintiffs’ attorneys whether Perez thought racism entered into the decision to close Wiley, Perez said no, he wouldn’t call it racism.
The defense followed Perez’s testimony with testimony from Marsha Ridlehuber, assistant superintendent for accountability and instruction. She also, answering a question from the defense, said that she didn’t think racism had anything to do with the decision to close Wiley.
Ridlehuber also elaborated on the plan that would have closed Meadowbrook, which came up last year. The attorneys have been holding up the decision not to close Meadowbrook as an injustice to Wiley. She said the plan to reconfigure grades in the district was tabled before Meadowbrook parents ever spoke to the board at the February meeting.
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Troopers to saturate I-35 on Friday
A lot of folks might be planning to hit the highways this Labor Day weekend. Senior Cpl. Charlie Morgan with the Texas Department of Public Safety called us today to say that troopers will be out in force on Interstate 35 and other roadways in McLennan, Bell, Hill, Johnson and Ellis counties beginning Friday.
“Saturate” was the word he used for troopers on I-35.
Morgan said a special emphasis by the troopers will be on looking for drivers who are speeding or those driving aggressively, impaired or not restrained.
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Chamber to kick off Great Cities program at noon
If you’re planning to go, you might need to leave the office soon for the first Great Cities program by the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce. And don’t forget your $30 ticket.
Allen Joines, mayor of Winston-Salem, N.C., will be the guest speaker at noon in the chamber’s Cooper Room at 101 S. Third St.
The program is designed to bring key leaders from some of America’s mid-sized cities for a day of networking, presentations and in-depth conversations.
“We will focus on bringing representatives from cities that are addressing similar opportunities and challenges as Waco. The goal is to learn about the challenges of those communities, the signature projects they undertook and ask the ultimate question ‘How did you do that?,’” said Scott J. Connell, senior vice president of strategic development for the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce. “We are pleased to have Mayor Joines be our first speaker in conjunction with the Baylor-Wake Forest football game that same day.”
Wake Forest University is one of four colleges in Winston-Salem. It is the fourth largest city in the state with a population of 222,000.
Joines spent 30 years working for the city of Winston-Salem, retiring as deputy city manager. He was elected mayor of Winston-Salem in November 2001 and was re-elected in 2005.
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La Vega football standout arrested in robbery
A standout La Vega High School football player is in the McLennan County Jail today after allegedly pulling a gun on another teen to steal his hat and shoes.
Christopher Dantae Parr, 17, was arrested Wednesday on a charge of aggravated robbery, said Bellmead Police Chief Robert Harold. The incident happened about 10:40 p.m. Tuesday in the 5200 block of Concord Road, he said.
Investigators believe three or four juveniles were involved but they have not yet been identified, he said.
The victim, Lonnie Sawyer, 19, was walking in the street when the robbery happened, Harold said. Sawyer’s residence is nearby, he said.
Parr allegedly pulled up in a vehicle and got out, holding a “large black handgun,” Bellmead police say. He proceeded to rob Sawyer of the clothing items at gunpoint, Harold said.
Asked if Sawyer knew Parr, Harold said he did because Parr is on the La Vega football team.
Parr, a junior, was to be the featured running back for the Pirates, picked by Texas Football magazine as the favorite this year to win the Class 3A, Division II title. Parr rushed for 1,762 yards and 18 touchdowns last year as a sophomore behind his brother Kourtney, who graduated.
Head coach Willie Williams said he could not comment on the case or whether Parr would be playing for the team Friday night when La Vega hosts Marlin in its season opener.
Parr is being held in lieu of $75,000 bond on the charge, a jail official said.
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Psychiatrist testifies at Coble retrial
A psychiatrist who evaluated convicted murderer Billie Wayne Coble when he was 15 gave testimony this morning in Coble’s punishment retrial in 54th State District Court.
Dr. Ralph Hodges, a Dallas psychiatrist with 51 years’ experience, had evaluated Coble when he was 15 and living at the Corsicana State Home.
Coble, 59, is being retried to determine whether he should return to death row for the murders of Robert and Zelda Vicha and their son, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha, on Aug. 29, 1989. His death sentence was overturned by a federal appeals court and a new punishment trial was ordered.
Hodges read from his May 1964 report, which said that Coble was admitted to the home because of his“unmanageability.” His life’s ambition at the time was to become a painter, according to the report.
Coble had confessed to the doctor that he committed several robberies and stole the ball bearings from bicycles to keep them for working because he didn’t have a bike.
Hodges’ report described Coble as paranoid, distant and “deliberately non-smiling” with a low self-esteem. He also exhibited a low opinion of women in general and told the doctor that he beat up a girl in a classroom when she made fun of him.
Coble was diagnosed with a sociopathic personality disturbance and his long-term prognosis did not look good, Hodges read from the report.
Defense attorney Alex Calhoun disputed the report, saying that the diagnostic manual used for such evaluations had since been revised, including that someone can’t be diagnosed with a character disorder until the brain is fully developed, which is considered to be age 18.
For Wednesday’s trial coverage, click here.
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Text of Chet Edwards’ speech at the Democratic National Convention
The following is the speech delivered Wednesday night by Congressman Chet Edwards at the Democratic National Convention:
As the proud son of a World War II naval aviator, it is a privilege for me to express tonight, on behalf of America’s Democrats, our profound respect for the sacrifices made by our service men and women and our veterans.
We also salute the unsung heroes in our nation’s defense: the spouses, children, and loved ones of our troops and veterans. Maybe they haven’t worn our nation’s uniform, but they have surely served us all through their daily sacrifice.
Barack Obama has honored our sacred trust with veterans through his service on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. In the last two years, Senator Obama helped pass the new GI education bill and voted for the budget that provided the largest increase in veterans’ health care funding in the 77-year history of the Veterans Administration.
As President, Barack Obama will responsibly bring our troops home from Iraq, and he’ll make better health care and benefits for veterans a higher priority than tax cuts for Exxon-Mobil and the wealthiest Americans.
That’s the change we need and the change our veterans deserve.
I have the greatest respect for the military service and sacrifice of John McCain in the Vietnam War. Yet, millions of veterans and Americans would be surprised and disappointed to find out that Senator McCain has received failing grades from some of our nation’s most respected veterans’ organizations. He has repeatedly voted against health care funding and benefits for his fellow veterans. And if elected, his plan could lead to the rationing of veterans’ health care. The fact is, our veterans can’t afford more of the same from John McCain.
Under Barack Obama, we’ll have a president who will honor the service of every veteran, fully fund the VA, and respect their sacrifice by giving them the benefits they’ve earned. The record is clear: our veterans can’t afford more of the same from John McCain.
Barack Obama is the change we need.
Last month my wife and I took our 11- and 12-year-old sons to Walter Reed Army Medical Center to visit wounded soldiers. We met a young soldier in a wheelchair. He had lost both of his legs in combat in Iraq, and this courageous father was holding his infant child lovingly in his lap. As we talked, I held tightly to my sons’ hands, overwhelmed by a father who will sacrifice every day for the rest of his life because he served his country. We can never give that soldier his legs back, but he should never have to give up on the dreams he has for his child.
As we watch this Steven Spielberg film, let us remember that in the 21st century, we are the land of the free, because we are still the home of the brave.
SOURCE: chetedwards.com.
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Second day of Wiley hearing wraps up
McLennan County Commissioner Lester Gibson, among others testified today at the temporary injunction hearing regarding the closure of G.L. Wiley Middle School.
The hearing went into its second day in the 170th District Court room, Judge Jim Meyer presiding. The plaintiffs, two Wiley families and a group of Wiley supporters called Fighting to Save Our Children, are asking the judge to grant a temporary injunction which would keep Wiley open through the duration of the lawsuit that has also been filed.
Meyer signed a temporary retraining order Thursday that required the Waco Independent School District to reopen the school by Monday, despite the school board’s Aug. 7 vote to close the East Waco school. The lawsuit, as well as both temporary orders, are alleging violations of the Texas Open Meetings Act and Texas Education Code, and racial discrimination on the part of the school board regarding the vote to close Wiley.
Gary Bledsoe and Donald McCarthy, the attorneys for the plaintiffs, called six more witnesses to the stand Wednesday, in addition to the six questioned on Monday. They said they have one more witness to call in the morning before the defense begins putting its eight witnesses on the stand.
Meyer seemed exasperated by the number of witnesses and lengthy, sometimes repetitive, questioning.
“You’re doing a terrible disgrace to these children by dragging this case out,” he said to Bledsoe and McCarthy at the end of the day.
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Worker crushed at granite company
A 27-year-old Waco granite worker is in fair condition at Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center today after officials say he was seriously injured when a computerized machine crushed him to the point of unconsciousness.
Just after noon, Edgar King was working on a machine that cuts granite slabs at MTTS Granite & Marble, 305 Granite Drive, when Waco Fire Marshal Jerry Hawk said it malfunctioned, and King climbed on top of the machine to fix it. A large arm from the machine clamped down on King and crushed him into a fetal position for several minutes, Hawk said.
His coworkers pried the machine off of him before emergency crews arrived. Hawk said he was lying on the floor of the shop when rescue workers arrived.
King told Hawk that when the machine crushed him he felt like “his eyeballs were going to pop out of his head,” Hawk said.
Hawk said the reason for the apparent machine malfunction is under investigation.
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Fire in Bellmead
There is a structure fire with flames visible in the 1500 block of Bowie in Bellmead, near the southern part of the TSTC campus and Connally Golf Course.
We’re headed out there now. Stay tuned to WacoTrib.com for more details.
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Wiley case judge: Things need to move along
Judge Jim Meyer, of the 170th District Court, said the pace has got to pick up in the temporary injunction hearing regarding the closure of G.L. Wiley Middle School.
Six witnesses for the plaintiffs took the stand Tuesday and the attorneys for the plaintiffs said there would be six more to go. They have only gotten through three of those witnesses this morning, pursuing similar lines of questions with each.
“I don’t need 14 witnesses saying the same thing over and over and over,” Meyer told the attorneys before breaking for lunch.
The defense said Tuesday they would be calling eight witnesses.
The lawsuit, brought by two Wiley families and a group of Wiley supporters, calling themselves Fighting to Save our Children, specifically alleges racial discrimination and violations of the Texas Open Meetings Act and Texas Education Code. The plaintiffs are seeking the reopening of Wiley, but no monetary damages.
Meyer’s ruling on the injunction will determine whether the school, reopened by Meyer’s order Monday, will stay open while the lawsuit proceeds. WISD board members voted for a second time Monday to close the school.
Cleoda Babels, former Wiley principal, and former educator James Elliott took the stand, along with Nika Davis, pastor of Second Missionary Baptist Church.
The line of questioning by the plaintiffs has been similar for all the witnesses. One topic that keeps coming up is how the closure of the school will affect special education students. Apparently, 27 percent of Wiley’s students were classified as special education.
The witnesses are also being asked about whether they believe discrimination is behind the school’s closing and when they heard about the possibility of Waco’s school board shuttering the campus. The board voted Aug. 7 to close the middle school.
In the meantime, fewer than 100 kids are attending Wiley in limbo, as the school remains open under a temporary restraining order signed by Meyer Thursday.
Court resumes at 1:30.
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Coble’s third wife testifies in retrial
Karen Vicha, whose parents and brother were murdered by Billie Wayne Coble nearly 20 years ago, has been on the stand throughout this morning in Coble’s trial in 54th State State District Court.
After the lunch break, crime-scene investigators are scheduled to testify.
The trial earlier took a recess after Vicha, who was recounting the events of the murders and her kidnapping that day, looked at Coble and said, “I hate you for making me go through this again with my kids!” She then broke down in tears, prompting the break in testimony.
Coble, 59, is being retried to determine whether he should return to death row for the murders of Robert and Zelda Vicha and their son, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha, Aug. 29, 1989. His death sentence was overturned by a federal appeals court and a new punishment trial was ordered.
Karen Vicha testified about how she agreed to go with Coble to a field in Bosque County in order to protect her daughters, whom he had restrained with toy handcuffs at their home. She said she was afraid he would kill them.
She said she had asked him as they left what he would do for money, and Coble said that he grabbed money from her mother after he killed her.
Vicha said Coble pistol-whipped her on the way to a field in Bosque County and told her that she was tough for taking the beating and then started to describe how he shot her brother.
He also told her, “You know I’m gonna have to molest you,” she said, but then corrected himself and said “make love” to her.
She also told jurors that after he kidnapped her previously on July 18, her brother Bobby and his son J.R. got a German shepherd. The dog was found dead in the front yard a week later, she said.
Vicha has yet to be cross-examined by Coble’s defense attorney, Alex Calhoun.
For Tuesday’s story on this case, click here.
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Ex-Wiley school principal testifies at hearing
The second day of testimony in the temporary injunction hearing on the closing of Waco ISD’s G.L. Wiley Middle School got under way this morning with former Wiley principal Cleoda Bables taking the stand.
Bables spoke from his experience in education. The plaintiff’s attorney asked questions regarding the planning of the school year, when teachers receive assignments, and whether teachers who moved to other campuses late in the summer would be likely to get the assignments they wanted.
Bables also talked about the Wiley support group Fighting to Save Our Children, of which he is a member.
He flip-flopped on testimony regarding whether he felt racial discrimination was the reason the board voted to close Wiley, telling the plaintiff’s attorney that he felt race was a factor, but when asked a similar question by the defense he answered otherwise.
“I don’t know if it was racially based. I think it was against G.L. Wiley,” he said.
The Rev. Nika Davis of Second Missionary Baptist Church, who advocated against the closing of Wiley, was next on the witness stand.
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Chet Edwards speaks tonight at Democratic convention
Remember that U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Waco) is scheduled to speak during prime-time coverage of the Democratic National Convention tonight in Denver.
According to Edwards’ office, in his remarks he will honor the service and sacrifice of America’s troops, veterans and their families. Edwards also will highlight presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama’s record on issues important to veterans’ and military families.
Convention coverage will be broadcast uninterrupted on C-SPAN, as well as network and cable news television broadcasts during the prime-time hour.
Edwards is slated to talk during the 8 to 9 p.m. hour (Central Daylight Time). Former President Bill Clinton will speak, as well as U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.
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Missing Marlin girl to return home
A Marlin girl who was reported missing Monday and then found in Arkansas with an older man is expected to return home today.
Marlin Police Chief Tom Hamilton said the girl was reported missing by her family at 7:30 a.m. Monday and then found later that night in a hotel in Berryville, Ark. She was with Jesus Diaz Lopez, 24, who had lived on the same street as her family. Hamilton said he is unsure whether Lopez is currently living in a house on Gift Street.
Lopez has been charged with aggravated sexual assault of child in connection with the incident. No bond has been set for the charge, said an official with the Carroll County Detention Center in Arkansas. Lopez also has an immigration hold on him, the official said.
The detention center records list his age as 18, the detention official said. However, Hamilton said he believes Lopez is in his 20s.
Details of exactly what happened are sketchy because Marlin police have not talked to the girl, Hamilton said. But at this point, officials have no reason to believe she was forced to go with Lopez, he said.
Officers were able to track the pair to Arkansas, Hamilton said, after the girl’s father told police that Lopez has been following his daughters around. Officers then went and talked to others who lived in the house where he had been staying and were informed that Lopez was in Arkansas on the way to a job in North Carolina. Hamilton said Lopez apparently travels from place to place building chicken houses.
According to a report from the Berryville Police Department, both Lopez and the girl tried to resist being taken into custody when officers found them at the motel. Several other members of the work crew were staying at the same motel, the report says.
The report also says the pair were packed up and appeared ready to leave the motel. Hamilton said they were apart to leave for North Carolina.
“They got them just in time,” he said.
Hamilton said he does not expect the girl to be charged as a runaway.
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Crawford, Texas returning to normal
The Washington Post today has this story looking at Crawford, Texas, as it prepares for upcoming summers without a sitting president taking his vacation there.
President Bush returns to Washington, D.C., today as he ends his last August vacation at the ranch while commander-in-chief.
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Chet Edwards to speak Wednesday at Democratic National Convention
U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, is scheduled to speak Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention.
Edwards, who was on the short list of contenders for the Democratic vice presidential nomination before Sen. Barack Obama endorsed Delaware Sen. Joe Biden, is to speak between 8 and 8:30 p.m. at the convention in Denver, Colo.
According to his office, Edwards will speak about the service and sacrifice of America’s troops, veterans, and their families. He will also highlight Sen. Barack Obama’s record on issues important to veterans and military families.
Convention coverage will be broadcast uninterrupted on C-SPAN, as well as network and cable news television broadcasts during the prime time hour.
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Sisters testify about how Coble tied them up, told them he and their mom were ‘deceased’
Three sisters have testified this afternoon about how Billie Wayne Coble tied them up with their cousin before kidnapping their mom and killing three other relatives.
Anne Marie Tidmore, Tracy Tidmore and Heather Moss said Coble told them after securing them with handcuffs they should consider him and his then wife, their mom Karen Vicha, “deceased.”
Prosecutors are still presenting their case to determine sentencing for Coble in the murders of Karen Vicha’s mother and father, Zelda and Robert Vicha, and her brother, Waco Police Sgt. Bobby Vicha.
Coble, has spent more than 17 years in prison for the 1989 triple slaying before his death sentence was overturned by a New Orleans appeals court, but his murder conviction was upheld.
Tracy and Anne Marie Tidmore testified that when they got home from school that day in 1989, Coble was in the house with a gun, rambling and saying he was sorry for what he had done and that he knew there was no way they could forgive him as he tied them up.
A few moments later their sister Heather Moss and cousin J.R. Vicha also arrived home and were tied up, they said.
Before the day was over, Coble had killed Vicha’s dad and the four youth’s grandparents before kidnapping Karen Vicha, according to court testimony.
Prosecution testimony is continuing this afternoon.
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School board member Alex Williams testifying in Wiley injunction hearing
Waco school board member Alex Williams repeated his reasoning for fighting against the closure of G.L. Wiley Middle School while saying racial discrimination was on the rise during this afternoon’s temporary injunction hearing about Wiley’s closure.
Williams, who represents East Waco and argued bitterly against closing the school two weeks ago, has been on the stand for the past two hours, restating his case.
The hearing comes on the heels of a Monday night vote to close Wiley taken by the Waco Independent School District school board. It’s the second such vote, as Judge Jim Meyer of the 170th District Court found the school board in violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act for the way the first item to consider closure was posted on the meeting agenda.
Williams is now answering questions on the stand about those earlier meetings, including the agendas.
G.L. Wiley principal Kermit Ward took the witness stand earlier today for roughly two hours, painting a favorable picture of Wiley and also refuting, to some extent, the very reasons the school board used in the decision to close Wiley, including low enrollment and lack of programs and activities.
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No flight delays in Waco so far from FAA communications problem
Officials at Waco Regional Airport report no flight delays so far this afternoon after a communication failure at a Georgia facility that processes flight plans for the eastern half of the United States.
The Federal Aviation Administration officials say the glitch is causing delays elsewhere around the country.
FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen says there are no safety issues and officials are still able to speak to pilots on planes on the ground and in the air.
She says she doesn’t know how many flights are being affected.
Bergen says the problem that occurred Tuesday afternoon involves an FAA facility in Hampton, Ga., south of Atlanta, that processes flight plans. She says there has been a failure in a communication link that transmits the data to a similar facility in Salt Lake City.
As a result, the Salt Lake City facility has to process those flight plans, causing delays in planes taking off. She said there are no problems with planes landing.
A spokesman for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world’s busiest airport, did not immediate return a call seeking comment on the impact there.
Brenda Geoghagan, a spokeswoman for Tampa International Airport in Florida, said “it may just be too soon” to determine the impact there.
Check back at wacotrib.com for updates on this developing story
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Ex-boss testifies Coble seemed like a great guy
Defense witnesses described the Billie Wayne Coble they knew as a nice guy who was ambitious and honest as afternoon testimony continued in Coble’s capital murder retrial today.
Husband and wife Joy and Thomas Marvin were brought to the courtroom out of order because of scheduling issues. Prosecutors are still presenting their case to determine sentencing for Coble in the murders of his mother- and father-in-law, Zelda and Robert Vicha, and his brother-in-law, Waco Police Sgt. Bobby Vicha.
Coble, has spent more than 17 years in prison for the 1989 triple slaying before his death sentence was overturned by a New Orleans appeals court, but his murder conviction was upheld.
The Marvins trained Coble to work in their insurance agency, handling mostly disability policies for farmers and ranchers. He worked for them from March through June of 1989, just a few months before the murders.
“You couldn’t have asked for a nicer guy,” said Joy Marvin.
Her husband later testified that word of the murders and Coble’s involvement was a jolt.
“I was in disbelief after the murders, disbelief. I didn’t think that was the same person I knew,” Thomas Marvin said.
Prosecution testimony is continuing this afternoon.
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Commissioners lift burn ban for county
McLennan County commissioners today lifted the burn ban that had been in effect since July 1.
This means outside burning of brush and other items is allowed.
But Frank Patterson, emergency management coordinator for McLennan County, cautions those burning outside to closely monitor wind conditions. He added that not all parts of the county have received the rain showers that prompted the commissioners to lift the ban.
“We will revisit this matter next week,” Patterson said.
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Headed to Waco’s airport? Don’t try to take Airport Drive today
Airport Drive between Steinbeck Bend Drive and Lake Shore Drive is closed today for street repairs, the city reports. Crews are working on the bridge and repairing base failures near the bridge. The work is expected to be complete by the end of this week.
Those traveling to and from Waco Regional Airport can use North 19th Street as an alternative route.
For more information, call Street Services at 750-8690.
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G.L. Wiley principal takes stand for school closure injunction hearing
G.L. Wiley principal Kermit Ward took the witness stand for roughly two hours this morning as the temporary injunction hearing regarding the closure of Wiley got underway.
The hearing comes on the heels of a Monday night vote to close Wiley taken by the Waco Independent School District school board. It’s the second such vote, as Judge Jim Meyer of the 170th District Court found the school board in violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act for the way the first item to consider closure was posted on the meeting agenda.
During Ward’s lengthy testimony, he painted a favorable picture of Wiley and also refuted, to some extent, the very reasons the school board used in the decision to close Wiley, including low enrollment and lack of programs and activities.
Members of the Wiley families who are suing the district also took the stand. Jana Bonner spoke about her son’s experience at Wiley and William Lewis spoke about his granddaughter’s love of the school.
The hearing continues at 1:30 p.m.
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Former county commissioner dies
Don Cantrell, 69, a former McLennan County commissioner, will be laid to rest tomorrow in Groesbeck. He died Saturday at a Conroe hospital after suffering with cancer for several months.
A Vietnam War veteran, Cantrell also served 14 years as district attorney for Limestone County.
Please click here for his obituary.
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Accident shutting down Franklin Avenue
We’re hearing that Franklin Avenue is closed in both directions at 26th Street because of an accident.
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Trial update: Detective recalls Coble threat
Proceedings in the capital murder retrial of Billie Wayne Coble in Waco’s 54th State District Court took a lunch break after testimony from police detective James Head, who recalled what he perceived as a threat to Waco Police Sgt. Bobby Vicha by Coble before his murder in 1989.
Coble, 59, has spent more than 17 years in prison for the slayings of his mother- and father-in-law, Zelda and Robert Vicha, and his brother-in-law, Bobby Vicha, before his death sentence was overturned by a New Orleans appeals court, but his murder conviction was upheld.
Head testified this morning that he had gotten a call from Bobby Vicha on Aug. 4, 1989, asking him to help pick up Coble on a warrant for false imprisonment for kidnapping Vicha’s sister, Karen, who was married to Coble at the time.
He said Coble was surprisingly quiet on the way to jail, and menacingly stared at them from the backseat window.
As Coble was being taken into the jail, Head said Coble muttered something under his breath that sounded like, “They’re going to be sorry. They’re going to pay.”
He said he asked Coble to repeat it, but he wouldn’t.
“It sounded like a threat to me,” Head testified.
The comments concerned him enough that he sought out Bobby Vicha later, he said, and told him that he’d better watch himself because Coble was dangerous. He suggested Vicha keep a gun handy.
Vicha replied, “Don’t worry. I’ve got one,” Head testified.
Other testimony this morning came from Naomi Rodriguez, a Kaybee Toys employee, who recounted a visit by Coble to the Richland Mall store five days before the murders. Coble had bought two packs of toy handcuffs and became agitated with her when she couldn’t provide more.
Testimony from Coble’s 1990 trial showed that he used those toy handcuffs to restrain Karen Vicha’s daughters after killing her parents and before kidnapping her.
Rodriguez said that when she testified in 1990 she looked over at Coble and he made a slashing gesture across his throat that made her feel threatened.
She said she didn’t sleep well for months after that and she didn’t want to come back today to testify.
The second day of testimony began by calling Coble’s second wife, Candy Ryan, to the witness stand.
Ryan said she and Coble were married in September 1983 when she was 18 and he was 35. Ryan said the two met when she was 16 and worked for a fried chicken restaurant in Robinson, and his welding shop was located nearby.
She said Coble was initially fun to be with and had a good sense of humor. But Ryan said that Coble began to abuse her about a year into their marriage. In the first attack, she said Coble backhanded her across the face. Ryan said the violence progressed, and about every three months, he would physically abuse her.
She said she kept going back to him because he would apologize and tell her he would not hurt her anymore.
Ryan said Coble was very manipulative and controlling, and even told her how to eat the food on her plate.
In one instance, he threw a heavy hammer at her, Ryan said, and on another occasion, he threw rocks that struck her in the back.
Ryan said one night when she came home late, Coble accused her of having an affair and slammed her head into the cabinet and on the floor.
She said she fled the house after that incident with only the clothes she was wearing, and did not return to him.
In August 1987, she got an apartment and Coble called her and stalked her, she said.
Ryan said she is still scared of Coble, and she believes he will continue to be violent.
Ryan was cross-examined by defense attorney Alex Calhoun.
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WISD trustees vote again to close Wiley
Once again, in an identical 4-3 vote, the Waco Independent School District board of trustees voted to close G.L. Wiley Middle School.
The vote, however, is subject to Judge Jim Meyer’s ruling on the temporary injunction to keep the school open that is being sought by two families and a group of East Waco supporters.
The school opened today due to a temporary restraining order signed by Meyer on Thursday. The school will remain open pending Meyer’s further rulings. The hearing for the temporary injunction to keep the school opens begins Tuesday at 9 a.m.
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Hewitt City council postpones vote on halting home construction
The Hewitt City Council tonight tabled a motion to stop issuing home construction permits temporarily to prevent further strain on its sewer system.
Council members said they needed more time to study the issue and consult with area builders.
The fast-growing suburb is getting close to overloading its sewer system as it waits for the construction of new lift stations and a controversial proposed treatment plant at Bull Hide Creek. The council will consider the suspension of home permits among other options at a 6 p.m. special meeting tonight.
“It’s something that has come to a head,” said Paul Holroyd, Hewitt community services director. “We knew that at some point, we were going to start experiencing some difficulties. At this point, we’re not experiencing overflows, but we’re trying to take some action to see that doesn’t happen.”
Homebuilders were taken off-guard by news of the proposed suspension of permits. The proposal would apply to developers who don’t yet have water and wastewater infrastructure built.
“It could make a huge impact on people developing out that way,” said Kay Vinzant, executive officer of the Heart of Texas Builders Association. “We want to see if we can sit down and come up with a better solution.”
Builder Woody Butler has built and sold 75 homes in his Imperial Estates subdivision on Sun Valley Drive and has preliminary approval for the next phase of 52 homes. He worries that the city could force him to wait another two or three years to build on the new lots.
“In the middle of the process they’ve decided they have a sewer problem,” Butler said. “I was never made aware of that problem existing. Economically this is going to affect me quite a bit. I already have a huge investment in land and construction design. I really think the city council can come up with an alternative plan.”
Holroyd said the city doesn’t want to halt construction but has run into obstacles in building the infrastructure to get Hewitt wastewater to the regional sewer system for treatment.
Currently, a lift station along Interstate 35 pumps most of Hewitt’s waste north to Waco for treatment. Hewitt is planning to rebuild that lift station and expand another lift station that would reroute some of Hewitt’s flow to the new Bull Hide Creek plant, which the regional sewer system is hoping to build.
However, the lift station plan is stalled as Hewitt waits for word from the Texas Department of Transportation on its expansion plans for Interstate 35. Meanwhile, neighbors along Bull Hide Creek in Lorena are fighting the plan for a sewer plant, creating uncertainty about that project. Holroyd said construction probably won’t begin on the plant until late 2009.
Vinzant said she understands the obstacles to getting the infrastructure ready, but that crimping development would be bad for Hewitt. She said homebuilders are urging Hewitt leaders to consider alternatives such as building a temporary pump-and-haul facility until the new plant is built.
Holroyd said the city wants to work with builders to find a solution. However, he said a pump-and-haul system would be expensive and there might be other options.
For updates on this story, check back at wacotrib.com or pick up Tuesday’s Tribune-Herald.
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Coble murder retrial begins
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- link: Trial preview
Testimony continued Monday afternoon in the capital murder retrial of convicted murderer Billie Wayne Coble, 59. The case is being heard in Judge Matt Johnson’s courtroom in 54th State District Court.
Coble spent more than 17 years on death row before a federal appeals court overturned his death sentence but left intact his conviction in the deaths of Robert and Zelda Vicha and their son, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha in August 1989.
Following this morning’s testimony, three more women, including two former neighbors and Coble’s niece testified that he displayed inappropriate sexual behavior toward them in the 1970s.
His niece said besides inappropriately touching and kissing her, a family member caught Coble peeking into the niece’s window after she took a shower and was getting dressed.
The three women who testified Monday afternoon were all in their early teens at the time that Coble’s inappropriate sexual interest was directed at them.
Earlier today, Coble’s former sister-in-law and his first wife testified against him regarding inappropriate sexual behavior.
The sister of Coble’s first wife testified this morning in his capital murder retrial that Coble acted inappropriately with her on at least four occasions.
Patricia Woolley, whose sister Pam was married to Coble for 10 years, said the first instance was when she was 13. Her sister had not yet married Coble, but while they were in the back seat of a car returning from a trip, Coble rubbed her thigh, she said. Patricia Woolley said she slid away from Coble after his advance.
The next time was when she was 15, she testified. She and Coble had pretended to wrestle, but then he fondled her breast.
One year later, while swimming in Lake Waco, Coble touched her inappropriately, she said.
Patricia Woolley then recounted a time when she was 17 or 18 and taking a shower at home. She said Coble slid open the shower door, made lewd comments about her body and then held the sliding door open and wouldn’t let her close it.
She also told the court she was struck by Coble once when he came to pick up his son, Gordon. Coble wasn’t allowed inside the house and Patricia Woolley said she blocked his path at the gate. Coble, she said, grew agitated and hit her in the mouth, busting her lip.
During earlier testimony her sister, Pam Woolley, told jurors that she still considers Coble to be “dangerous.”
Pam Woolley, who was married to Coble from 1971 to 1981, was the first witness called by the prosecution.
Pam Woolley said the beginning of their marriage was fine. Coble had a job at Texas Ironworks and they later co-managed the Circle Drive-in for two years. But she also described him as very possessive; he constantly called to check on her whereabouts.
She said he abused her, recalling one time that Coble threw a baseball and hit her in the back while she had an arm around her son. The impact made her lungs swell and she sought medical treatment at the hospital, she testified.
“We were just scared of him all the time,” Pam Woolley said.
She said Coble would apologize after the abuse but would it say it was her fault the abuse occurred.
In opening comments, McLennan County District Attorney John Segrest said Coble seems to be a good guy until things go wrong for him. Then he transforms into an abusive, violent individual, Segrest said, adding that the prosecution will present evidence from Coble’s three failed marriages to show that.
Segrest said testimony will be offered that Coble sexually abused four young girls during his first marriage, including his 13-year-old sister-in-law and 16-year-old cousin.
That marriage lasted 10 years, the prosecutor said. Coble then married an 18-year-old when he was 35. During that four-year marriage, Coble sexually assaulted his niece, Segrest said.
Coble’s third marriage, to Karen Vicha, was in July 1998. Coble married into a close-knit family and Karen already had three daughters, ages 15, 13 and 9, who thought the marriage was too good to be true, Segrest said.
But that relationship soon soured, Segrest told jurors, and Karen Vicha filed for divorce. Coble was arrested kidnapping his wife in August 1989 and her brother, Bobby Vicha, was one of the arresting officers.
“The thing that (Coble) wanted was Karen Vicha and the thing that stood between him and her was Bobby Vicha and the Vicha family,” Segrest said.
Coble then hatched a plot to kill the family to get Karen back, Segrest said.
Coble’s defense attorney, Alex Calhoun, asked the jury to consider the full measure of the man. Calhoun noted that the prosecution was talking about actions many years in Coble’s past, and he plans to show jurors the man Coble has been the past 18 years and who he is becoming.
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Political blog: Edwards may speak at convention
According to a political blog on the Dallas Morning News Web site, U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Waco), said this morning that he will likely to speak to the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night.
His topic? Saying that U.S. Sen. John McCain has not served veterans well.
“While we revere Senator McCain’s service and sacrifice for the country, major veterans’ organizations give him a failing grade when it comes to supporting veterans’ health care and benefits,” Edwards said before popping in to the Texas delegation breakfast, the blog reported.
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Judge accepts 15-year plea deal for boy in stabbing death
State District Judge Alan Mayfield this morning accepted a plea agreement of 15 years for a 13-year-old charged in the stabbing death of his teen friend.
Attorneys met at the Bill Logue Juvenile Justice Center, where the boy has been held since his arrest in the June 6 incident in which his 14-year-old friend was stabbed in the heart during a dispute at the Kate Ross Apartments.
Mayfield told the youth that if he continues to show good behavior, he could be released on parole in three years.
The youth pleaded “true” to the first-degree murder charge. He was 12 when the attack occurred. County officials have said the former Provident Heights Elementary School student is the youngest person in McLennan County charged in a murder.
He will serve his sentence at a Texas Youth Commission facility. Mayfield earlier this month rejected a 10-year plea agreement.
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Waco High, Lorena cheerleader pics online
Gimme a “W!” Or an “L!” Those letters will start the cheers for Waco High and Lorena, whose 2008-09 cheerleaders can be found on our Web site. Check out the images here for Waco High (like the shot at right) or go here for Lorena’s cheerleaders.
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G.L. Wiley students arriving for class
PHOTOS
- gallery: First day of school at G.L. Wiley
The kids are pouring into G.L. Wiley Middle School this morning as if none of the controversy of the last few weeks ever took place. By 7:45 a.m., a total of about 30 kids were standing in line to get signed in or were already in the cafeteria eating breakfast.
“That’s actually more than I expected this early,” said Wiley principal Kermit Ward. School begins at 8:30 a.m.
However, only one bus had arrived on campus by 8:30, and most of the students get to the school via bus.
On Thursday Judge Jim Meyer of the 170th District Court signed a temporary restraining order overturning the Waco Independent School District board vote to close Wiley. Waco ISD staff worked furiously after that to get the school ready for today.
Ward was fielding hugs from students and parents alike on the front steps of the school.
Some parents said their children were already registered at Carver, which enrolls a large number of Wiley-zoned students, but they chose to return to Wiley when they heard it would be open.
Central office administrators were ready to man classrooms and a few familiar faces, former Wiley teachers, had even been rounded up to be with the kids today.
Area pastors and school board members lingered at the front of the school to welcome families back to the reopened campus.
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School starts; Olympics ends; it’s hot …
Welcome to Monday, Waco. It’s the start of classes for Waco ISD and numerous other public schools, as well as Baylor University, McLennan Community College and Texas State Technical College.
Kind of hated to see the Olympics end. I enjoyed watching the pageantry of the opening and closing ceremonies and much of the competitions.
But life continues, especially with the return to school and various fall schedules for us.
One constant, however, remains the heat. It’ll be mostly sunny today with a high near 95 degrees. The heat index will push us to around 99.
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Man charged with intoxication manslaughter in deadly collision
The 23-year-old involved in a fatal collision on August 8 has been charged with Intoxication Manslaughter, authorities say.
Waco police said Joseph Howard had been drinking before his vehicle collided with a motorcycle on South Third Street near Gurley Lane in South Waco, killing the motorcyclist, Arthur Beltran, of Waco.
Howard was arrested Friday and taken to the McLennan County Jail, a Waco Police spokeswoman said.
A jail spokeswoman said Howard was released later that day on a $50,000 bond.
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High school football polls released: China Spring, La Vega ranked in top 5
The Associated Press released its preseason high school football polls this morning, and Central Texas was well-represented among the state’s elite.
China Spring (14-2) was picked fifth in the state 3A poll while La Vega (13-1), whom the Cougars upset in the regional final en route to the championship game, was slotted at No. 3 with one first-place vote. Both of last year’s defending title holders, Liberty Hill and Celina, sit 1-2 in the 3A rankings.
In 2A, Salado, McGregor and Teague all received votes, but didn’t make the top 10. State semifinalist Cisco was picked No. 1 in that classification, by the widest margin in all classes.
Both Mart (10-1, No. 6), which dropped to 1A this year, and Itasca (9-2, No. 9) made the 1A top 10. Chilton came in at No. 11, while state finalist Bremond picked up a couple of votes as well.
No local 5A or 4A teams made the poll. Euless Trinity, last year’s 5A Div. I champion, is the favorite among the big boys, while Austin Lake Travis edged Wichita Falls Rider by a single point in 4A.
State power Southlake Carroll was No. 4 among 5A schools.
And remember: If you didn’t like any of the rankings, you can blame these guys (except, of course, for our own Chad Conine).
Class 5A
School Rec Pts Pvs
- Euless Trinity (15) 15-1 184 7
- Plano (1) 13-2 159 -
- Katy (4) 16-0 127 1
- Southlake Carroll 11-2 126 2
- Galena Park North Shore 14-1 118 4
- Odessa Permian 12-1 72 5
- Abilene 13-2 62 8
- Allen 10-1 60 3
- Spring Westfield 10-3 50 -
- Converse Judson 11-5 32 -
Others receiving votes: Lufkin 19, Beaumont West Brook 16, Pflugerville 11, Flower Mound Marcus 11, Houston Cypress Ridge 9, Round Rock Stony Point 8, Arlington Bowie 8, San Antonio Warren 7, Smithson Valley 5, Cypress Falls 4, SA Roosevelt 3, SA Southwest 3, Pearland 2, Dallas Skyline 2, Aldine Eisenhower 1, Austin Westlake 1.
Class 4A
School Rec Pts Pvs
- Lake Travis (13) 15-1 179 -
- WF Rider (7) 12-2 178 6
- Everman 14-1 121 4
- Stephenville 10-2 96 7
- Dayton 11-4 89 -
- Dallas Highland Park 15-1 65 1
- CC Calallen 12-1 62 2
- Longview 12-2 58 -
- Abilene Cooper 5-6 46 -
- Port Lavaca Calhoun 9-3 36 -
Others receiving votes: Aledo 35, Texarkana 30, La Marque 30, Rosenberg Lamar Consolidated 30, Kerrville Tivy 12, Mansfield Timberview 10, SA Alamo Heights 8, Dallas Carter 8, Schertz Steele 3, Texas City 2, Gregory-Portland 1, EP Riverside 1.
Class 3A
School Rec Pts Pvs
- Liberty Hill (13) 14-0 192 2
- Celina (5) 16-0 172 3
- La Vega (1) 13-1 129 6
- Navasota (1) 9-4 115 -
- China Spring 14-2 94 -
- Cuero 12-3 87 -
- Brownwood 6-4 79 -
- West Orange-Stark 11-2 76 7
- Sealy 7-4 46 -
- Gilmer 14-1 20 4
Others receiving votes: Snyder 19, Texarkana Pleasant Grove 18, Abilene Wylie 10, Vernon 9, CC West Oso 8, Giddings 7, Crockett 5, Monahans 4, Sweetwater 3, Rio Hondo 2, Wimberley 1, Devine 1, Carrollton Ranchview 1, Carthage 1, Diboll 1.
Class 2A
School Rec Pts Pvs
- Cisco (17) 14-1 196 2
- Crane (1) 10-2 123 -
- Early 10-4 92 -
- Pilot Point (1) 6-4 89 -
- Hitchcock 10-2 77 -
- Arp 10-4 74 -
- Newton 9-3 72 -
- Kirbyville (1) 11-2 66 -
- Elysian Fields 14-2 55 6
- Refugio 13-1 51 3
Others receiving votes: Altair Rice 44, DeKalb 32, Caddo 18, Winnsboro 18, Salado 16, Blanco 14, McGregor 13, Clyde 11, Daingerfield 10, Childress 9, Henrietta 5, Idalou 4, Coleman 3, Rice 3, Bushland 3, Teague 1, Kermit 1.
Class 1A
School Rec Pts Pvs
- Alto (8) 14-0 177 1
- Canadian (7) 15-1 176 -
- Maud (4) 11-3 143 -
- Sundown 14-1 133 3
- Roscoe (1) 12-1 117 2
- Mart 10-1 80 -
- Nazareth 12-2 44 -
- Cayuga 8-4 44 -
- Itasca 9-2 41 -
- Stratford 9-3 33 -
Others receiving votes: Chilton 28, Quinlan Boles 19, Windthorst 13, Iraan 10, Munday 10, D’Hanis 10, Tenaha 7, White Deer 5, Sunray 2, Joaquin 2, Mount Enterprise 2, Bremond 2, Normangee 1, McCamey 1.
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Will it be Biden? Watch WacoTrib.com to find out
Although the Associated Press reported late Friday night that Delaware Senator Joseph Biden is Barack Obama’s pick for VP, the announcement won’t be officially made until sometime today.
Obama is scheduled to appear today with his choice for the No. 2 spot at a 2 p.m. campaign event in Springfield, Ill.
We have a full report on Chet Edwards the day before the announcement, when a media circus circled his house in Waco after it was revealed he made Obama’s short list.
In fact, Edwards was left on the very short list Friday night after news reports during the evening confirmed names like Tim Kaine, Evan Bayh and Hillary Clinton had not been chosen.
If you’d like to read more on the presumptive veep, here are a few stories from AP:
- Analysis: Biden pick shows lack of confidence
- Biden speaks — and speaks — his own mind
- Timeline of Biden’s life and career
Remember to check back here at Waco NOW throughout the morning and afternoon, and we’ll give you the news as soon as it breaks.
We’ve got full campaign 2008 coverage on our elections page.
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G.L. Wiley teachers staying at new schools, WISD spokesman says
G.L. Wiley students starting classes Monday won’t see familiar teachers’ faces.
Instead of uprooting teachers who had been sent from Wiley to other campuses after the Waco school board ordered its closure, central office administrators who are certified teachers will be leading classes after a judge ordered the school reopened, Waco ISD spokesman Dale Caffey told Trib staffer Wendy Gragg.
Marsha Ridlehuber, assistant superintendent for accountability and curriculum, and members of her staff will be on hand to greet and teach returning students Monday, Caffey said. Students who were already assigned to different schools in the district may return to Wiley or may attend the new schools.
The central office staff are certified in the range of subjects required at the school, Caffey said.
Workers who were busy moving items out of Wiley will be busy moving them back in to ready the school for Monday’s opening. The district’s computer technicians had the campus’ computers up and running by noon today, Caffey said.
Waco Independent School District trustees voted 4-3 Aug. 7 to close the school, citing low enrollment. Wiley received its fifth “unacceptable” rating from state education officials this year despite recent improvements in student test scores.
But Judge Jim Meyer on Thursday ordered the school be opened, at least temporarily. Meyer said he granted the restraining order based on violations of the Texas Open Meetings Act by the WISD school board.
Austin attorney Robert Notzon, arguing for two parents of Wiley students and a group of East Waco community leaders known as Fighting to Save the Children, alleged violations of the act in their bid to reopen the school. They also are suing the district.
Meyer, after granting the temporary restraining order, set a hearing on the temporary injunction for 9 a.m. Tuesday. At that hearing, the judge will rule Wiley either be closed or remain open until the lawsuit pending against the school district is resolved.
Waco school board president David Schleicher called for a meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at the Waco ISD conference center to discuss the school’s future.
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Edwards, in Waco, mum on VP chances
U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards remained mum on his chances as Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama’s choice for vice president today in the hours leading up to the campaign’s announcement.
“I intend to actively support him in his election whether I am on the ticket, not on the ticket or running for re-election in Congress, it doesn’t matter,” he said.
Edwards’ name first circulated publicly as a possible VP selection in June after an endorsement from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He would not say today how often he had been in contact with the Obama campaign, only acknowledging that he had been in the vetting process.
Obama will make his first official campaign appearance with his chosen running mate Saturday at an event in Springfield, Ill., where he first announced his candidacy. Edwards would not confirm whether he made travel plans to be in Illinois this weekend.
“I’ll be spending some quality time with my family tonight,” he said, playfully rough-housing with his son Garrison, who stood beside him.
He said he and his family were both honored that he was being considered for the VP. “I was really happy,” Garrison said. “I think my dad would make a good vice president.”
There’s more in this Associated Press story.
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Baylor athlete on winning U.S. relay team
Baylor’s Reggie Witherspoon was part of the U.S. men’s 4x400 relay team that won its preliminary heat today at the Beijing Olympics.
David Neville (who dove to get third place in yesterday’s 400 final), Kerron Clement, Witherspoon and Angelo Taylor successfully held onto the baton and finished in 2 minutes, 59.98 seconds.
The teams from Great Britain and the Bahamas ran marginally faster races in their heat.
BU’s Jeremy Wariner and LaShawn Merritt likely will be saved to run the final.
Check out Olympics coverage here.
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WISD trustees approve site for University High School
Waco Independent School District trustees tonight have chosen land at the corner of New Road and Old Robinson Road for the site of a new University High School.
The school board voted unanimously to buy the property for $3.35 million from Central Texas Investors Ltd.
“It’s a nice place to show off a $70 million facility,” University High principal Nolan Correa has said of the 80-acre tract, which is on the east side of Interstate 35, within view of State Highway 6 and interstate traffic.
The new high school is the biggest-ticket item in Waco ISD’s $172.5 million bond package, approved by voters in May. Other projects funded include a new elementary school in East Waco that is already in the planning stages, plus new Dean Highland and Bell’s Hill elementary schools.
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WISD gives some answers to concerns about Wiley reopening
The Waco Independent School District has posted some comments and a Q & A on its Web site to address some student, teacher and parental concerns about the reopening of G.L. Wiley Middle School Monday.
Earlier today, 170th District Court Judge Jim Meyer’s granted a temporary restraining order that will apparently allow Wiley to open, despite a vote by WISD trustees earlier this month to shutter the school and move its students and teachers to other campuses.
The WISD posting:
Court Reverses Closure of G.L. Wiley
All incoming sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade G.L. Wiley Middle School students may attend and are welcome to attend the school beginning Monday, August 25, 2008.
District Judge Jim Meyer has issued a temporary restraining order that, in effect, reverses action to close Wiley taken by the Waco ISD Board of Trustees on August 7, 2008.
The ruling was based on a claim of a Texas Open Meetings Act violation. The court has scheduled a temporary injunction hearing for August 26, 2008.
Waco ISD will have sufficient faculty, staff, administrators, materials, equipment, resources and other support that are necessary for school to begin at G.L. Wiley Middle School on August 25, 2008.
In discussing the scope of the temporary restraining order, Judge Meyer made it clear that Wiley students who have registered, been placed or transferred to other Waco ISD middle schools may remain at their new school and are not required to return to Wiley.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
My child was planning to attend Wiley prior to board action on August 7, 2008. Can he/she return to the school? Yes. G.L. Wiley Middle School will be open for school on August 25, 2008.
Will all of the teachers previously assigned to Wiley prior to board action on August 7, 2008 return to the school? Not necessarily. The number of teachers returning to Wiley will be determined by the number of students who choose to return to the campus.
With the court’s ruling coming just four days prior to the start of school, what will the first day be like at G.L. Wiley? Upon arriving at school, students should report to the auditorium where staff will be available to develop their class schedules. Administrators, teachers and support staff will work hard to make sure the needs of all students are addressed.
Will the school be open for the entire 2008-2009 school year? The answer to this question is not yet known pending the outcome of the temporary injunction hearing and any action that might be taken by the Waco ISD Board of Trustees.
If Wiley does not remain open for the entire 2008-2009 school year, where will my child attend school? Should Wiley not remain open for the entire school year, your child will return to the campus to which he/she was placed prior to the temporary restraining order.
My child was already reassigned to and looking forward to attending another Waco ISD middle school. May he/she stay there? Yes.
Who will be the principal at Wiley? Kermit Ward will return as principal at Wiley.
Will there be enough teachers, desks, computers, books, equipment and support staff at Wiley to start school? Yes
What extra-curricular activities will be offered at Wiley? Extra-curricular activities will be offered based on student interest.
If my child chooses to attend Wiley, will he/she be provided transportation? Transportation will be provided for students who live two or more miles from their school or would be subject to hazardous traffic conditions if they walked to school. (Board Policy CNA Local)
If my child chooses to attend the middle school at which he/she was placed after August 7, 2008, will he/she be provided transportation? Transportation will be provided for students who live two or more miles from their school or would be subject to hazardous traffic conditions if they walked to school. (Board Policy CNA Local)
If I requested and my child was granted a transfer to a middle school other than his/her assigned middle school campus, will he/she be provided transportation? Student transportation is not provided if a parent-requested transfer is granted. (Board Policy FDA Local)
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It’s official: Waco’s wettest August
The National Weather Service gauge at Waco Regional Airport reported 0.80 inches of rain today (which all fell in about 40 minutes late this afternoon). That brings the total for this month to a record-breaking 10.05 inches (the previous record holder was August 1914, with 9.98 inches).
Meanwhile the storm that dumped the 0.80 inches has broken up, so the flash flood warning for McLennan County has been dropped. Warnings continue for Bell, Falls and Limestone counties.
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Third Thursday event tonight
With the start of football season right around the corner, tonight’s movie selection for the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce’s Waco Third Thursday makes sense — it’s the inspirational 1993 movie “Rudy,” about Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger’s quest to play football at Notre Dame.
Activities begin at 6:30 p.m. with inflatable games from Baylor’s Touchdown Alley. Baylor spirit squads and mascots will hand out schedule cards for the football season and child ID kits will be given to the first 1,000 kids in attendance.
Popcorn and food from vendors will be available about 7:30 with the preshow pep rally right behind, including the Waco High cheerleaders, barbershop quartet Heritage Square, a spirit competition with Star 92.9’s Dustin and Beth, and season predictions by ESPN 1660’s Paul Catalina.
Mayor Virginia DuPuy will proclaim today “Reicher Football Day” in honor of the Cougars’ 2007 state championship.
The movie will start around 8:30 (right after sunset) on a portable 20-by-40-foot inflatable screen.
And if that’s not enough football for you, the chamber right now is hosting the annual Football Kickoff Luncheon at the Waco Convention Center.
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Grand jury meets in polygamist case
A West Texas grand jury is meeting again to consider possible charges against members of a polygamist group.
Today’s meeting in Eldorado was the third since authorities raided the group’s ranch in April following allegations that underage girls were being forced into marriages and sex.
About a half-dozen women wearing their trademark prairie dresses arrived with their lawyers.
It’s unclear whether the meeting would result in any new indictments against members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
At its last meeting, in July, the grand jury indicted polygamist leader Warren Jeffs and four followers on charges of sexual assault of a child. A sixth man, the group’s doctor, was indicted for failing to report child abuse.
Following the April raid, the state Supreme Court ruled it had overreached in moving all 440 children into foster care because it only presented evidence of five or six cases of abuse. The children were returned to their parents in June, though one girl — an alleged child bride of Jeffs — was put back in foster care Tuesday.
— Associated Press
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Plane headed for Waco crashes in Caldwell; 2 hurt
Two men are hospitalized in Bryan today after the crash of a small plane on a Central Texas baseball diamond.
Authorities say the single-engine Cessna was flying from Sugar Land to Waco when 39-year-old pilot Cole Reed of Georgetown experienced engine problems.
He tried to make an emergency landing at the Caldwell airport, but the plane struck a light pole at the nearby baseball field and crash landed on the infield about 6 p.m. Wednesday.
There were no injuries on the ground, where players and coaches were in the outfield. Reed is in critical condition at Scott and White Hospital in Temple. His 24-year-old passenger, Bryan Farney of Taylor, is in serious condition at St. Joseph Regional Health Center in Bryan.
— Associated Press
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Waco Police Association launches new Web site
The Waco Police Association has recently launched a new Web site.
“We invite Wacoans and others to spend time on our site and get to know us better,” said WPA President Anne Cyr in an e-mail announcing the site. “It’s important to us that the community know more about the officers who work tirelessly to protect our city. We intend to use the site as a direct line of communication with the people we serve because it’s important that residents have a better understanding of what it takes to keep them safe.”
At www.wacopa.org, visitors will find news and information about crime in Waco and how local crime rates compare with other cities in Texas. Research is presented showing how the number of police officers, their pay, benefits and working conditions impact public safety in Waco, and how local officers fare when compared with officers in other police departments.
Visitors to the site can learn more about the organization’s political action committee and how it works. And, on the site’s memorial pages, the association honors and remembers local officers who died in the line of duty.
The e-mail also invites people to sign up to receive the WPA’s e-mail newsletter. It also has a “featured headlines” section that has a number of police stories, many that appeared in the Tribune-Herald.
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Merritt beats BU’s Wariner for 400 gold
The Americans went 1-2-3 in the men’s 400-meter final, but it was LaShawn Merritt who took the gold, beating Baylor’s Jeremy Wariner by nearly a full second.
Merritt hit the tape in 43.75 seconds, a personal best, while Wariner was 0.99 seconds behind with a time of 44.74. Teammate David Neville took the bronze in 44.80 seconds by diving head-first across the finish line.
Wariner was trying to match former Baylor great Michael Johnson’s feat of winning back-to-back Olympic golds in the 400.
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Temperatures will still be a bit lower
Good morning, Waco. I will not complain about temperatures in the low 90s, which is the forecast for today. That’s better than the normal upper 90s we usually have this time of year.
The forecast calls for a 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms under mostly cloudy skies. A south-southwest wind between 5 and 10 mph will blow.
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Clyde Hart: Rumors of coaching Team USA track star Merritt ‘laughable’
Brice Cherry brings us an official fact check on the Associated Press, which reported erroneously that 400-meters specialist LaShawn Merritt “recently snapped up coach Clyde Hart after Hart and Wariner ended their longtime partnership over financial terms.”
Brice gives you the full lowdown on what he’s observed out at Hart-Patterson this summer in the latest post on The Bear Blog. He also got Clyde Hart on the phone in Beijing, and the coach called the story “a total fabrication.”
Click here to read more.
We’ve also got photo galleries from Beijing of Jeremy Wariner and current Hart trainee Sanya Richards. You can get complete Olympics coverage, including video, photos and interactive features, at wacotrib.com/olympics.
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Group files restraining order motion to keep G.L. Wiley open
A group of East Waco community leaders known as Fighting to Save the Children filed a racial discrimination lawsuit this afternoon against the Waco school system and will ask a judge Thursday to reverse an order closing low-performing G.L. Wiley Middle School.
Photos: East Waco residents at board meeting
Video: Watch what the community had to say
The group and two parents of displaced Wiley students filed the lawsuit in Waco’s 170th State District Court and also are seeking a temporary restraining order to keep the school open.
Judge Jim Meyer has set a hearing for 1:30 today to consider the request for the temporary restraining order.
Check back at wacotrib.com for updates.
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Probable University High site selected
Waco school district trustees are expected to vote Thursday evening on whether to purchase 80 acres of land at the southwest corner of New Road and Old Robinson Road for the location of a new University High School.
The purchase price for the property is $3,350,000.
Funds for the new school were approved as part of the 2008 bond election.
University High is currently located at 2600 Bagby Ave.
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Baylor names Garland interim president
Baylor University has appointed David E. Garland, dean of the George W. Truett Theological Seminary, as interim president of the school.
Howard K. Batson, chairman of the Baylor University board of regents, announced the appointment. Garland succeeds Harold R. Cunningham, who has been acting president since July 2008 when John Lilley was terminated by the regents.
Batson expressed confidence that Garland will be able to unify some of the splintered groups at Baylor.
“It’s very important to (the regents) that he can be accepted by a broad consensus of the various Baylor constituents and it’s very clear that, whatever part of the Baylor family one might talk with, they’re pretty unanimous about one thing and that’s that David Garland’s a fine fellow that can lead Baylor during a time of transition.”
Batson added that Garland’s success guiding Truett Seminary “has given us a lot of confidence in David’s ability to lead.”
Read below for more background on Garland from Baylor’s news release.
Garland is dean of Baylor’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary, a position he has held since June 1, 2007. He joined the seminary faculty in 1997 as professor of Christian scriptures. He was appointed Truett’s associate dean for academic affairs in 2001, and was named The William M. Hinson Professor of Christian Scriptures in 2005. Garland, who will assume the duties of Baylor’s interim president immediately, will serve until a permanent president is named. He also will continue in his role as dean of the seminary.
The appointment comes after consultations with various university groups that focused on the characteristics desired in the individual selected and possible candidates to fill the position of interim president.
“We sought broad participation in this decision and consulted with members of the executive council, deans, executive committee members of the Faculty Senate, alumni, luminaries in Texas Baptist life and members of Baylor’s Board of Regents,” Batson said. “David was a consensus choice who was recognized as an outstanding scholar and able administrator.
“During his tenure as dean, Truett Seminary has recruited remarkably talented faculty and seen its enrollment grow to record levels. With a profound commitment to the integration of both the faith and scholarship elements of Baylor’s mission, Dean Garland embodies the best of vision 2012. He is not seeking this position on a permanent basis but has expressed a willingness to serve Baylor as interim while we move forward with a national search to fill the presidency,” Batson said.
“I am grateful for and humbled by this demonstration of trust by so many within the Baylor family. Our goals are significant and it will take all of us working together to continue our forward momentum. I ask your prayers, encourage your patience, and invite your active participation as we lead Baylor during the months ahead,” Garland said.
Before joining the Truett Seminary faculty in 1997, David Garland served as The Ernest and Mildred Hogan Professor of New Testament and chair of the Biblical Division at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he taught for 21 years.
A magna cum laude graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University and U.S. Navy veteran, Garland received his master of divinity and doctoral degrees from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and also completed postgraduate work at Eberhardt-Karls Universität in Tübingen, Germany, and Macquarrie University in Sydney, Australia. He is an elected member of the prestigious Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas.
Garland is the author of 13 books (including commentaries on Matthew, Mark, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Philippians, and Colossians and Philemon) and more than 50 academic journal articles. His most recent commentary on 1 Corinthians was given an Award of Merit by Christianity Today and was a finalist for the Gold Medallion presented by the Christian Booksellers Association. Two of his other books were awarded a Silver and Gold Medallion respectively. He has also edited four books and currently is the New Testament editor for the revision of the Expositor’s Bible Commentary.
Garland and his wife, Diana, dean of Baylor’s School of Social Work, published Flawed Families of the Bible: How God’s Grace Works through Imperfect Relationships, which was recently translated into Korean. Garland also is working on a commentary on the Gospel of Luke for the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary series for which he is a consulting editor.
In addition to his research, teaching and administrative duties, Garland directed both of Truett Seminary’s self-studies for accreditation by the Association of Theological Schools, from 2000-02 and 2005-07.
“Dr. Garland has many years of experience as a faculty member, both as a dedicated teacher and a respected scholar,” said Dr. Georgia Green, associate dean of the Baylor School of Music and chair of the Faculty Senate. “These faculty credentials combined with his experience as an academic administrator make him an excellent choice for this appointment.”
“I have every confidence David Garland will do an excellent job as interim president,” said Dr. Donald D. Schmeltekopf, Provost Emeritus at Baylor. “At one level, he embodies the very best of Baylor’s tradition of the scholar-teacher. At another level, David understands fully Baylor’s unique challenge to be the top Protestant research university in the country. I know those who care about Baylor will rally to his support.”
“It is encouraging that we have such a fine person in David Garland to serve in this role,’ said Jeff Kilgore, executive vice president and CEO of the Baylor Alumni Association. “As he has done at Truett, I think David should do a fine job continuing to build consensus through a process of inclusion on campus. I look forward to working with him and hope that this appointment is indicative of what’s more to come for the Baylor family.”
In the coming months, Baylor regents will study best practices in presidential searches in anticipation of a national effort to identify Baylor’s next permanent president. The interim president will not be considered a candidate in a broader search for a permanent president.
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News report: Truett’s David Garland is Baylor’s interim president
A local news report says David Garland, dean of Baylor University’s Truett Seminary, will be Baylor’s interim president.
Garland, contacted by the Tribune-Herald Tuesday night, denied he had been interviewed for the post and said Baylor regents had not voted to make him interim president.
He said any report about his becoming interim president is “premature.”
“Nobody’s talked to me about it,” he said.
Garland did say, however, that Baylor would likely make an announcement Wednesday about the post.
In its 10 p.m. broadcast, KXXV-TV, Channel 25, said its sources at Baylor stated Garland would be announced as interim president on Wednesday.
Baylor has been overseen by acting president Harold Cunningham, former regent chairman, since the board dismissed John Lilley as president earlier this summer.
According to a 2007 biography in the Associated Baptist Press, Garland came to Truett in 1997 after a 20-year career teaching at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. He and wife, Diana, left that school after leaders there decided to close the school of social work, where Diana Garland was dean.
Diana Garland is now dean of the Baylor School of Social Work.
David Garland is a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University and a Navy veteran, the Associated Baptist Press bio says. He received his master’s and doctoral degrees from Southern Seminary and has done postgraduate work at universities in Germany and Australia.
The Garlands have two adult children and belong to Calvary Baptist Church in Waco.
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Power restored to 1,800 who lost it during the storms, officials say
Power has been restored for 1,800 Waco area residents who lost it during the storms earlier this evening.
Update: Waco firefighters have performed at least one high-water rescue due to flooding on Waco streets.
Firefighters tied a rope to a BMW that was submerged at least halfway in the 2000 block of Herring Avenue. A group of people trapped inside used the rope to walk to safety.
The Trib is getting reports that numerous streets are impassable due to high water.
Among streets reportedly underwater are Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Waco Drive and Herring Avenue.
A line of thunderstorms is pushing through Waco about 6:30 p.m., and the Trib is receiving scattered reports of power outages.
1,800 residents of Woodway and West Waco are out of power tonight, as Oncor spokesman Mike Cain says a circuit breaker in the area’s substation is out. Oncor crews are on the scene, he said.
Some streets are also reportedly beginning to flood as heavy rains fall in areas that got record rains Monday. The Trib is also getting reports of a possible water rescue underway in the 2000 block of Herring Avenue.
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Waco under flash flood warning
UPDATE 3: The flash flood warning for McLennan County has now been canceled.
UPDATE 2: Waco airport now at 3.67 inches so far today. The total for the month, by my reckoning, is 9.19 inches, making this the second wettest August on record for Waco (No. 1 is August 1914, with 9.98 inches). And there’s still 12 days to go for this August…
Morning breaking-news blogger Ken Sury reports 1.9 inches at his house in Woodway; the gauge on the Trib roof has 2.5 inches.
UPDATE: Waco Regional Airport is reporting 3.25 inches of rain in the last hour. The gauge on the Tribune-Herald roof has 2 inches of rain.
Original text: THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN FORT WORTH HAS ISSUED A
FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR… MCLENNAN COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS
UNTIL 945 PM CDT
AT 648 PM CDT…NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS DETECTED THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN NEAR BELLMEAD…MOVING EAST AT 24 MPH. RADAR INDICATES THAT 3 TO 4 INCHES OF RAIN HAS ALREADY FALLEN. ANOTHER 2 TO 2 INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGH 945 PM CDT.
LOCATIONS THAT WILL CONTINUE TO BE AFFECTED BY HEAVY RAIN
INCLUDE…WACO…HALLSBURG…BELLMEAD…WEST…NORTH CREST…
AND RIESEL.
DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD TO UNKNOWN DEPTHS. IT ONLY TAKES TWO FEET OF RUSHING WATER TO CARRY AWAY MOST SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES AND PICKUPS. TAKE A DIFFERENT ROUTE TO REACH YOUR DESTINATION OR WAIT UNTIL THE WATER RECEDES. REMEMBER… MOST FLOOD RELATED DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES.
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Record rain again for Waco
Waco saw a second day of record rain, but the record’s not as impressive today. This morning’s rainfall of 0.41 inches at Waco Regional Airport broke the record of 0.29 inches set only four years ago.
There’s a pretty good chance that will be added to as a line of storms is just starting to move into McLennan County now:
Those storms have already sparked an urban and small streams flood advisory for Bosque County.
Yesterday saw 3.48 inches of rain, breaking the earlier record for the date of 3.04 inches, set in 1915.
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Council eases up on new trash rules proposal
Waco city staff proposals to change rules about trash collection drew a flood of concern from citizens today, and the city is answering by changing some of those plans.
The council was set to vote today on regulations for trash carts and alley Dumpsters. Instead, they decided to discuss the measures and delay a vote.
Under the new rules, residents would have had to put out their garbage carts no sooner than 6 p.m. the evening before pickup and bring them in no later than 6 p.m. the day after their collection day.
At this afternoon’s work session, Alice Rodriguez said she’d been hearing from constituents all day about the proposed rule changes — as had other city officials departments. And they were ready to pull back on some of the plans.
For instance, now the amended proposal will call for residents to put out their garbage carts no sooner than 6 a.m. the day before pickup and bring them in no later than 8 p.m. the day after collection.
Watch wacotrib.com for more on the trash talk and other issues before the council.
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Last alternate juror selected in Coble retrial
The second of two alternate jurors was selected this afternoon for the capital murder retrial of Billie Wayne Coble.
Testimony in the case has been set to begin Monday, 19 years after Coble shot and killed his estranged wife’s parents and her brother at their homes in Axtell.
Another alternate juror as picked earlier today. The 11th and 12th jurors for the case in Judge Matt Johnson’s 54th State District Court were picked Monday.
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MCC president Michaelis announces intention to retire
McLennan Community College president Dennis Michaelis announced today that he will retire next summer after more than 20 years at the helm of the school.
Michaelis is only the second president in MCC’s 42-year history, having succeeded Wilbur Ball in 1988.
Under Michaelis’ leadership, MCC’s enrollment has grown to more than 8,300 students, with a record enrollment of 8,547 in the spring 2005 semester.
As a result of the booming enrollment, the school’s campus is undergoing a major facelift, with several new buildings under construction, including a new, state-of-the-art science building, a classroom building and an emergency services training center.
The building projects are funded by a voter-approved $74.5 million bond issue.
Michaelis came to MCC from Paris Junior College in Paris, Texas, where he was president for five years. Prior to Paris Junior College, Michaelis was president at Colby Community College in Colby, Kan., for five years after holding a number of teaching positions.
“My career in higher education has been entirely dedicated to the community college philosophy,” Michaelis told the Highland Herald, MCC’s school newspaper, when he was hired in 1988. “The community college is America’s foremost contribution to the world of higher education.”
Michaelis will retire Aug. 31, 2009.
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Tossed can of beer KO’d Pat Green
Waco native Pat Green reportedly got cold-cocked by a cold beer during a performance last weekend after NASCAR’s Carfax 250 race at the Michigan International Speedway.
According to this story from the Jackson Citizen Patriot, late into Green’s show, he shouted, “Anyone got a beer?”
Someone from the audience tossed a can onto the stage, the story said. But then came another, which hit Green between the eyes and knocked the singer out.
He was treated by medical personnel at the track, but there’s no other update.
Boy, talk about needing to be careful what you ask for.
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Road closed in Robertson County
The Texas Department of Transportation has closed part of Farm-to-Market Road 46 south of Bremond because of water on the roadway.
Thornton police had reported earlier that several bridges were covered by water around its town as well as Groesbeck and Kosse, which has several roads and some houses flooded.
Farm-to-Market Road 339 near Groesbeck had water covering several stretches of the road, according to another report.
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Woman pleads guilty to stealing missing woman’s ID
A Montana woman has pleaded guilty to stealing the identify of a missing South Carolina woman to get into an Ivy League school.
Esther Elizabeth Reed pleaded guilty to fraud and identity theft charges today in federal court in Greenville.
The 30-year-old faces up to 47 years in prison and $1 million in fines for ID theft, mail fraud, wire fraud and loan fraud charges. A sentencing date was not set.
Reed was indicted last year for using Brooke Henson’s identity to get into Columbia University.
Prosecutors have said Reed juggled six false identities to attend California State University at Fullerton and Columbia. In 2004, she used Henson’s name to get student loans.
Investigators do not think Reed was involved with Henson’s 1999 disappearance.
— Associated Press
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First alternate juror picked for Coble trial
The first of two alternate jurors was selected this morning for the capital murder retrial of Billie Wayne Coble.
Testimony in the case has been set to begin Monday, 19 years after Coble shot and killed his estranged wife’s parents and her brother at their homes in Axtell.
One more alternate juror needs to be chosen to serve along with the woman picked this morning. The 11th and 12th jurors for the case in Judge Matt Johnson’s 54th State District Court were picked Monday.
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Tokio Store loses out on proposal
A proposal this morning that tried to solve a neighborhood dispute about traffic and noise outside the Tokio Store was shot down with a “no” vote by County Judge Jim Lewis.
The store last month lost its beer permit because of protests by area residents who claim the bar is a public nuisance, with loud music and rowdy patrons. They also say the traffic and parking situation around the bar is dangerous, with patrons frequently blocking the road with their vehicles.
Precinct 3 Commissioner Joe Mashek proposed abandoning a 55-by-240-foot section of Tokio Loop that runs in front of the store and allowing store owners Charles and Deborah Kirkpatrick to purchase that section and use it for parking.
The rest of Tokio Loop would be tied into adjacent Old Railroad Road, according to the proposal.
Commissioners Mashek, Ray Meadows and Lester Gibson voted in favor of the proposal (Wendall Crunk was absent), but Lewis voted against it, which killed the proposal because a state statute requires the vote be unanimous.
Lewis said he had safety concerns about a road that suddenly stopped and would have parked cars there.
Also during the meeting, patrol Sgt. Mylie Hudson read a letter of support for Sheriff Larry Lynch in response to negative publicity the sheriff received in recent weeks over county discussions about privatization of the jails.
Hudson touted improvement under Lynch’s watch as well as his honesty and integrity. The letter was signed by about 75 McLennan County Sheriff’s Office employees.
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Waco chef wins state honor
The Texas Chefs Association has awarded Mark R. Schneider of the Heart of Texas Chapter its highest honor of Texas Chef of the Year 2008, it was released in an e-mail this morning.
This award has been given each of the 50 years of the association’s history at the Annual Chef’s Convention. This year the convention site was Lubbock.
The e-mail notes that in order to win the chef of the year title, each of the 14 local chapters awards its own chef of the year and then the state board of directors makes their selection, through silent vote. Criteria for this award are chapter involvement, association state level dedication, and national American Culinary Federation participation. Chapter Chefs of the Year are then further separated by association by-laws. To be considered for state Chef of the Year, candidates must be in good standing and be certified by the national organization.
Schneider has served as the Heart of Texas director for two terms. The chapter serves the Waco, Temple, and Killeen area. The chapter sponsors national certification practicum and competitions that are housed at Texas State Technical College Culinary Arts Waco. It also holds biannual fundraiser dinners and their annual chili cook off.
Schneider is also a national culinary arts competitor. In the last three years he has earned four gold medals, four silver medals, and two bronze medals in various hot food and cold food competitions. In addition he has been awarded best in show in two of the competitions he has performed in and has also received the Bernard Urban Judges Award from Ben E. Keith Foodservice Distributors at its Fort Worth 2008 Competition.
Schneider is currently employed with Texas State Technical College Culinary Arts Waco. He has been employed with the college for six years and is proud to serve on the faculty senate and especially proud of all the graduating students from the culinary arts program.
“I am delighted to bring this prestigious award to TSTC and to show the students what can be accomplished with professional dedication,” said Schneider.
Schneider graduated from the Greater Cincinnati Culinary Arts Academy in 1993 with a one-year culinary arts diploma and from TSTC Waco with an Associate of Applied Science degree with Board of Regents (4.0) honors from Food Service/Culinary Arts. He is due to receive his bachelor’s degree of Applied Science in Business Administration in the summer of 2009.
He’s been cooking professionally 18 years for various restaurants, private clubs and hotels. He was certified by the American Culinary Federation as a Certified Executive Chef in 2002, Approved Certification Evaluator 2005 and Certified Culinary Educator in 2008.
Schneider lives in Waco with his wife, LeAnn, daughter Olivia, and son William, who “have allowed me the time and given me the support I needed to reach this point in my career.” He specializes in both hot food competitions and cold food salon competitions, but loves to cook Italian and Asian.
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Sanya Richards wins bronze in women’s 400
Sanya Richards, the former University of Texas track star who trains in Waco under coach Clyde Hart, won the bronze medal at today’s 400-meter women’s final in Beijing today.
Christine Ohuruogu of Great Britain hit the tape in 49.62 seconds, ahead of Jamaica’s Sherica Williams (49.69) and Richards (49.93).
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Wariner wins his 400 semifinal
Former Baylor track star Jeremy Wariner won his 400-meter semifinal race at the Beijing Olympics today.
Wariner qualified for Thursday’s final with a time of 44.15 seconds, finishing ahead of Bahrain’s Christopher Brown, who was clocked at 44.59 seconds.
Wariner’s chief rival, U.S. teammate LaShawn Merritt, also won his semifinal, with a time of 44.12, slightly faster than Wariner.
They will be joined in the final by American David Neville, who placed second in his semifinal (44.91) behind France’s Leslie Djhone (44.79).
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Weather Service: Flooding in Falls County
Our Joe Weather tells us that the National Weather Service has reported there’s flash flooding around Marlin and about a foot of water covering the State Highway 6 and Farm-to-Market Road 46 intersection at the eastern edge of Falls County.
There’s also a report of water covering State Highway 14 at the Falls and Limestone county lines.
Be careful where water covers the roadways. It’s often hard to tell how deep the water is and it doesn’t take much depth to sweep a vehicle off the road.
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Flash flood warning — record rainfall in Waco
UPDATE 2: The flash flood warning for McLennan County has now expired.
The rain total at Waco Regional Airport as of 6 pm was 3.39 inches, with rain still falling.
UPDATE: With the rain total at Waco Regional Airport at 3.19 inches and counting, the National Weather Service has updated its flash flood warning for McLennan County:
…A FLASH FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 545 PM CDT FOR MCLENNAN COUNTY…
AT 359 PM CDT…NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS DETECTED
THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN OVER MCLENNAN COUNTY…MOVING
NORTHEAST AT 4 MPH. PREVIOUS THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEPOSITED 2 TO 3
INCHES OF RAIN BETWEEN WACO…GHOLSON…AND NORTHCREST…AND ALONG
INTERSTATE 35. RADAR INDICATES THAT 3 TO 4 INCHES OF RAIN HAS
ALREADY FALLEN AND ANOTHER 1 TO 2 INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGH
545 PM CDT.
Another line of storms is sitting over Coryell County, slowly moving toward Waco.
ORIGINAL TEXT: The National Weather Service office in Fort Worth has just issued a flash flood warning for McLennan County until 5:45 pm, as a record 3.07 inches of rain has fallen at Waco Regional Airport — over 2.6 inches of it in the last 40 minutes.
The previous record for today was 3.05 inches, in 1915.
For what it’s worth, the gauge on the Trib roof has 1.55 inches in it at the moment.
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Police identify four of five arrested in shooting
Four men are being held today at the McLennan County Jail in the Sunday evening drive-by shooting at the Central Texas Marketplace shopping center, which sent one man to the hospital.
Vicente Garcia, 23, of Bellmead, Daniel Hernandez Delacruz, 21, of Waco, Valente Jimenez Delacruz, 17, of Waco, and Jose Cruz Garcia, 18, of Bellmead, are charged with engaging in organized criminal activity - aggravated assault, police said. Each of their bonds is set at $25,000. All but Vicente Garcia are also being detained on an immigration hold, a jail spokeswoman said.
A 15-year-old man was also arrested in the shooting, said Waco police officer Steve Anderson.
At 7:40 p.m. Sunday, the department received several 9-1-1 calls from the West Loop 340 and Bagby Avenue shopping center about several men in a white Chevrolet pickup truck shooting at a white Pontiac Grand Am.
Witnesses told officers the vehicles were driving slowly near Kohl’s and the Zales outlet store, when the driver of the truck leaned out the window and shot at the car.
Witnesses reported three shots.
Police stopped the Pontiac at Bagby Avenue and Holly Vista where one of its occupants, Angel Oballe, had been shot in the left side of his face and lower right back. Oballe was taken to Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center, where Anderson said he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Anderson did not know Oballe’s age, or where he is from.
The pickup was stopped at Loop 340 and West Waco Drive, where the five were arrested.
Anderson said today he was not aware of whether Oballe knew his alleged shooters.
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Wrecks slowing traffic on I-35
Highway authorities are working two accidents that have slowed Interstate 35 traffic.
Both accidents were reported within minutes of each other, about 3:15 p.m.
The first was a two-to-three car pile-up in the northbound lane at the 347 mile marker north of Bellmead, said a Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman. The wreck has the area blocked, and traffic diverted.
In the southbound lanes at mile marker 351 near West, an 18-wheeler is on its side. Troopers are on the scene, and it is unknown if weather was a factor in either accident.
It is unclear if anyone has been injured in either wreck.
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Police identify pedestrian killed when struck by car
Beverly Hills officials have identified the man killed when he was struck by a car Saturday morning as 20-year-old Justin Paulk of Alabama.
Beverly Hills Police Chief Debra Bruce did not know which city Paulk was from, but said he was visiting Waco with a Christian group. She had no details about the group.
She said the circumstances of his death are still under investigation today, but that Paulk was struck by a car at about 10:30 a.m. Saturday while walking or standing in the 400 block of South Valley Mills Drive, which is on the overpass across railroad tracks and Franklin Avenue.
Bruce said Paulk was alone and wearing jeans and tennis shoes. She said, for unknown reasons, he stepped in front of the southbound vehicle.
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Restaurant inspections now updated on the public data page
Updated: Now we’ve got health inspections. At least one local bar of note, inspected on Aug. 8, received a perfect score — I have to admit I was a bit surprised. Find out which at WacoTrib.com/public.
Did you miss building permits filed for downtown construction? How about restaurant inspections down the street or your neighbor starting a business? We’ve got our weekly updates of public information filings you care about now available at WacoTrib.com/public.
Within the last couple of weeks, we’ve discovered a bakery opening on Washington Ave., renovations at Baylor and a local man who’s now doing business as “Fighting for the Children” (really).
For those of you who are a little nosier, you can check out info on marriages, divorces, bankruptcies and more.
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11th juror chosen for Coble retrial
A 54-year-old male homebuilder was chosen this morning as the 11th juror for the capital murder trial of Billie Wayne Coble (shown at right).
Of the 11 jurors, seven are men. One more juror and two alternates still need to be selected. Testimony in the retrial of Coble has been rescheduled for 9 a.m. next Monday. The trial initially was scheduled to begin tomorrow.
Coble, 59, was convicted in 1990 of capital murder and sentenced to death for the August 1989 shooting deaths of his estranged wife’s parents, Robert and Zelda Vicha, and her brother, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha, at their Axtell homes.
Earlier today, attorneys added to the potential jury pool by grabbing 29 people from the regular jury panels at the McLennan County Courthouse.
Lawyers cited “an abundance of caution” in adding the other potential jurors, essentially doubling the remaining number of people to be individually questioned. In capital murder trials in which the state seeks the death penalty, prospective jurors are questioned individually.
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Mmmm, Baylor-themed coffee now available
If you’ve noticed the smell of coffee wafting from the Baylor Bookstore, that’s because a coffee company is unveiling a line of Baylor-themed coffee blends today.
A news conference is being held now as Independence Coffee Co. presents its Baylor Signature Series.
Samples of the coffees — with names such as 1845 Charter Blend, Oso Delicious and Bruin Brew — were being prepared and served by master roaster Ragan Bond at the bookstore.
The concept behind the coffees is to connect the state’s oldest continuously operating university to its original roots at the historic village of Independence, not far from Brenham.
The new Baylor Signature Series blends will be available for purchase at the bookstore and online at www.independencecoffee.com. Royalties earned from the blends will be used by the Baylor libraries to support Baylor’s historic preservation efforts in and around Independence.
According to a release from Baylor, the Baylor Signature Series feature the following coffee blends:
*1845 Charter Blend (regular and decaf, Central and South American blend)
*That Good Ol’ Baylor Line (regular and decaf, authentic Texas pecan)
*Oso Delicious (chocolate caramel; “Oso” is the Spanish name for “bear”)
*Homecoming Special (crème brule)
*Bruin Brew (cinnamon-hazelnut)
*Sic ‘Em Special (multi-origin dark roast)
A Diadeloso blend is under development and will be ready for distribution in spring 2009. The Homecoming Special blend will change from year to year.
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Wariner advances in opening round of Olympic 400 meters
Jeremy Wariner began his defense of the Olympic 400-meter title by winning his opening heat early today in Beijing.
The former Baylor standout clocked a time of 45.23. Wariner’s chief rival, fellow American LaShawn Merritt, won his heat in a time of 44.96.
On the women’s side, Sanya Richards, who trains in Waco under Baylor director of track and field Clyde Hart, was the top qualifier for the 400 final.
She left everyone in her semifinal well behind by the halfway mark and coasted home in 49.90 seconds, the fastest time by nearly a quarter-second in any of the three heats.
Americans Dee Dee Trotter and Mary Wineberg failed to advance.
Christine Ohuruogu of Great Britain had the second-fastest qualifying time (50.14), followed by Shericka Williams of Jamaica (50.28).
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One wounded, five detained in shooting
Waco police are investigating a shooting tonight that sent one person to an area hospital.
Police detained at least five people for questioning about the shooting, but none have yet been charged, authorities said.
Waco police officers initially responded to reports of gunshots about 7:15 p.m. on Howard Street near Bagby Avenue in South Waco, said Waco police Sgt. Gary Harrison. A few minutes later, police received similar calls reporting two cars exchanging gunfire near Central Texas Marketplace, Harrison said.
Officers responding to that call spotted a car matching the description of one of the cars involved near the intersection of Holly Vista Street and Bagby Avenue and pulled it over, Harrison said.
Inside the car were two men, one who appeared to have been shot in the back, Harrison said. A bullet hole matching the trajectory of the wound was found on the left side of the vehicle. The wounded man was taken to Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, Harrison said. No further information about the man or his condition have been released.
While questioning the two men, officers were alerted to the location of the other vehicle, a white Chevrolet S-10 pickup, Harrison said.
Officers stopped the pickup near Richland Mall and detained five men as possible suspects in the shooting, Harrison said.
At least one round of ammunition was found in the pickup truck, Harrison said.
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Waco police looking for man in assault, robbery
Waco police are asking for the public’s help tonight finding a man who hit an 85-year-old woman in the face and stole her purse.
The assault and robbery happened about 8:30 p.m. Saturday as the woman got out of her car and was trying to go into her home in the 4800 block of Meadow Wood Drive, said Waco police Sgt. Gary Harrison.
A man came up and punched her in the mouth, then grabbed her purse with an unknown amount of money and ran, Harrison said. The woman was taken to Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center and treated for non-life threatening injuries, Harrison said. Her condition was unavailable this evening.
Police did not have a description of the assailant. Harrison asked anyone with information on the incident to call Waco police at 750-7500.
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Body of clerk abducted at gunpoint found in remote area
A woman’s body, found in a remote area northwest of Fort Worth, has been identified as the clerk who was kidnapped at gunpoint in the town of Scotland Friday.
Mindy Daffern, 46, had been missing from the store her family owns in the city 130 miles northwest of Dallas. An unmasked man confronted her and walked her outside the store about 3 p.m. at the small, yellow brick store, which is near the intersection of U.S. 281 and Farm-to-Market Road 172 in rural North Texas. Authorities were alerted by a 911 call.
Wallace Bowman Jr., 30, of Bowie, was expected to be charged with capital murder in the next few days. After police found him at a Bowie motel Saturday morning, he led investigators to the body Saturday.
Bowman was unarmed and the weapon used in the crime has not been found when captured. He was sentenced in 1997 to seven years for aggravated sexual assault and failed to register as a sex offender in 2004. Bowman was given probation after being convicted for burglary in 1996, records show.
Bowman currently faces charges of aggravated robbery and kidnapping. He was being held in the Archer County Jail in lieu of a $3 million bond and did not have an attorney, Daniels said.
A man suspected in the videotaped abduction led investigators to the body Saturday. Texas Rangers confirmed it was Daffern, Archer County Sheriff Ed Daniels said Sunday.
Daffern’s body was found in a remote area near the town of Sunset in neighboring Montague County. Investigators were awaiting on an autopsy report, Daniels said.
— The Associated Press
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Arkansas woman dies in wreck near Bruceville-Eddy
An early Saturday morning accident on Interstate 35 near Bruceville-Eddy claimed the life of an Arkansas woman, authorities say.
Maria Torres, 50, of Little Rock was killed around 12:10 a.m. when the vehicle she was riding in overturned, a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Safety said.
Torres was riding in a 2005 Ford Expedition driven by her son, Daniel Torres, also of Little Rock, when they were forced to “take evasive action” after a 2009 Chevrolet four-door sedan, driven by Monica Matsler, of Arlington, struck a concrete barrier, overcorrected and entered into their lane, the spokeswoman said.
The Expedition rolled several times and Maria Torres, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected from the vehicle, the spokeswoman said.
Neither Daniel Torres nor Matsler received any injuries.
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Thief locks keys in getaway car
Just a word of warning: If you’re going to hold up a drug store, don’t lock your keys in the getaway vehicle.
That’s what Midland police say happened to John Wilkinson, 24, of Big Spring, after he allegedly robbed the Stanton Drug Store of Zanax and hydrocodine with what was later found to be a caulking gun, according to this Associated Press story.
They said Wilkinson used the caulking gun, wrapped in a dark cloth, to get the drugs Thursday afternoon.
Afterward, he allegedly headed back to his vehicle, which was parked and running in front of the drug store, and discovered he was locked out, the Midland Reporter-Telegram reported in its online edition Thursday.
Stanton Police Chief Mike Adams said Wilkinson then tried to get away on foot. Police, who thought he had a gun, shot him in the top of his shoulder during the short chase.
Wilkinson was treated at the Midland Memorial Hospital and taken to the Martin County Jail on a charge of armed robbery.
I can so see Jay Leno using this on the “Headlines” segment of his show. He loves stupid criminals.
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Police: 12-year-old drives mom to bar
Proving that you just can’t make up some stories, there’s this tale of a Longview mother who allegedly had her 12-year-old daughter drive her to a bar on her birthday.
Here’s that story from the Longview News-Journal.
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Fire destroys house in Mart
A fire late this afternoon has destroyed a house in Mart.
The fire began about 5:30 p.m. in the kitchen of a house in the 700 block of Pearl Street, officials said.
A woman at the house told officials the fire started when she turned on an electric stove to cook a meal, and it quickly spread out of control.
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Heritage Square jazz fest gets bigger lineup
Carl Hoover has the latest info on Sound & Sight about three new musicians coming on board to play later this month at the Jazz on the Square fest after headliner Wayman Tisdale was scratched from the lineup due to health issues.
It’s pretty exciting stuff for downtown Waco — as Carl notes, “That’s a 10-band/musician jazz festival. In Waco.”
Tickets are $35 at the gate or $30 in advance. You can buy them at the Hippodrome, 724 Austin Ave.
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Gatesville prison renamed for ex-board chairwoman
Honoring its first woman chairman, the governing board of Texas’ prison system this morning voted unanimously to rename a Gatesville lockup for women after Christina Melton Crain.
Crain, a Dallas lawyer, recently retired after five years as chairwoman of the nine-member board.
The Gatesville Unit is one of Texas’ primary women’s prisons, with slightly more than 1,500 convicts. The more than 40-year-old lockup was formerly used as youth prison. It began housing adult offenders in 1980.
During her tenure on the board as a member in 2001 and as chair starting two years later, Crain championed new programs for women offenders as an outspoken advocate of rehabilitation and treatment programs for convicts. She argued that such programs saved lives and taxpayer money.
If offenders were not given tools to succeed once they were released from prison, she often said, they would have little choice but to resort again to a life of crime.
Officials said the new name is effective immediately. A number of Texas’ 106 prison have been renamed in recent years for former board chairmen and retired prison officials.
The renamed prison was among several honors bestowed upon Crain at an Austin board meeting this morning — ranging from a commendation from President George Bush, congratulatory speeches from Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and House Corrections Committee Chairman Jerry Madden, and a table full of gavels, plaques and and other mementos.
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Newly released files detail early U.S. spy network
Who would have guessed that famed chef Julia Child once worked for the Office of Strategic Services, the World War II-era spy agency that later became the CIA?
Previously top-secret records on Child and nearly 24,000 other OSS employee were released today by the National Archives. Other agents were Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg, major league catcher Moe Berg, historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. and film actor Sterling Hayden.
Here’s the Associated Press story.
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South Waco fire destroys home but no lives lost
A man’s efforts to fight fire with a garden hose failed this evening as a huge blaze destroyed a home at 924 Oakwood Ave., just a block off LaSalle Avenue in South Waco.
No one was hurt, but the house appeared to have been gutted by the fire, which was reported to the Waco Fire Department a little before 7 this evening.
Perry Sims, 49, told the Tribune-Herald he had just returned home when he noticed the smell of smoke and ran outside to get his garden hose.
By the time he was armed with a hose, the fire was out of control, he said.
Sims said he isn’t sure of the fire’s cause but wondered if a tree limb falling onto a power line might have sparked the blaze.
Assistant Fire Chief Patrick Kerwin said he doubts the tree limb was the cause of the blaze and that an investigation into the blaze has begun. He said no one was harmed while fighting the blaze.
For more on this story, see Thursday’s Tribune-Herald.
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Officials identify man killed in fire
The man who was killed in a Hill County house fire this morning has been identified as 59-year-old Karl Chambers.
Chambers, a disabled veteran, was alone in his house on State Highway 22, just east of Hillsboro, about 8:30 this morning when the fire was detected, said Lt. Kent Head of the Hill County Sheriff’s Office.
Head said that Chambers’ wife was at work when the incident happened and that Chambers, who had to use a wheelchair, was believed to be either in a chair or bed in the den. The fire appears to have started at the bed in the den, caused by a smoldering cigarette, Head said.
“It appears he died of smoke inhalation,” Head said. “It looked like he may have been trying to get to a window before he succumbed (to the smoke).”
Head said the fire burned itself out due to lack of oxygen.
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Baylor men’s basketball gets verbal commitment
The Baylor men’s basketball team has received a verbal commitment from Little Rock Hall point guard A.J. Walton.
Walton is entering his fourth year as a starter for Hall High School in Arkansas. The 6-0, 175-pound senior point guard averaged 17 points and seven assists last season while leading Hall to the Class 6A state championship with a 28-2 record.
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McLennan County agrees to contract with private company for new jail
A split McLennan County commissioners court voted Wednesday to renew its contract with Community Education Centers of New Jersey to operate the downtown McLennan County Detention Center and authorized CEC to finance, build and operate a new 871-bed jail adjacent to the one on State Highway 6.
With Commissioners Lester Gibson and Joe Mashek voting against the proposal, County Judge Jim Lewis and Commissioners Ray Meadows and Wendall Crunk voted during a budget work session Wednesday to allow the private company to build the new jail at no cost to the taxpayers.
Commissioners recessed their regular Tuesday morning meeting instead of adjourning it, which allowed them to take action at Wednesday’s session.
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Waco Tribune-Herald, other Cox papers in Texas up for sale
The Waco Tribune-Herald, whose Central Texas newspaper lineage goes back to the late 19th century, is for sale.
Cox Enterprises, which has owned the Tribune-Herald since 1976, is selling the paper along with its other Texas, Colorado and North Carolina newspaper properties, including the Austin American-Statesman.
Trib publisher Belinda Gaudet told the newspaper’s staff of the sale this afternoon.
The paper has 236 employees.
“Business will continue as usual with our advertisers and vendors during the sales process,” Gaudet said in a statement. “Our audience for our print products and online will continue to have access to the best news-gathering and local content in Waco and the surrounding area.”
Besides the Tribune-Herald and American-Statesman, Cox daily papers for sale include the Longview News-Journal, Lufkin Daily News, Marshall News Messenger, Nacogdoches Daily Sentinel — all in Texas — and Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, in Colorado.
Also up for sale are Cox’s North Carolina newspapers: The Daily Reflector in Greenville and a number of surrounding community publications; the Rocky Mount Telegram in Rocky Mount; The Daily Advance in Elizabeth City; as well as Savings Source Direct, a direct mail media business.
Cox also intends to sell Valpak, the nation’s leader in cooperative direct mail advertising.
Cox Enterprises will retain ownership of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Palm Beach Post, Dayton Daily News and their affiliated publications.
“This decision was made as part of an ongoing strategic review of our portfolio and enables us to maintain our strong and stable financial performance by further paying down debt,” Jim Kennedy, chairman and chief executive officer of Cox Enterprises, said in a statement. “We will continue to own and operate industry-leading companies, invest in existing businesses and maintain a level of financial discipline that ensures we are well positioned for ongoing success.”
Approximately 80 percent of Cox Enterprises’ revenues now come from sources other than its traditional advertising-supported media companies (newspapers, television and radio), he said. Moving forward, Cox will continue to strengthen its portfolio of businesses by making significant capital investments that improve their competitive positions.
Recent examples include an investment to develop next-generation wireless and mobility services for Cox Communications, Inc. and investments in technology, global expansion and innovative products at Manheim, which is transforming the wholesale vehicle buying and selling experience.
“Newspaper businesses are an important part of Cox’s history, and we greatly value the contributions the employees of these companies have made to our company,” Kennedy said. “Local newspapers play a valuable role in the communities they serve, and we are confident that the publications we are selling and those we continue to operate will continue to provide timely, valuable and trustworthy news and information to their readers.”
During her meeting with Trib employees this afternoon, Gaudet stressed that they should continue their duties as usual.
“Although the ownership of the Waco Tribune-Herald and wacotrib.com may be changing, we hope that the employees will remain the same and that the newspaper will continue to make important contributions to our community,” Gaudet said.
Cox Enterprises is one of the nation’s leading media companies and providers of automotive services, with 2007 revenues of $15 billion and more than 83,000 employees.
Major operating subsidiaries include Cox Communications, Inc. (cable television distribution, telephone, high-speed Internet access, commercial telecommunications, advertising solutions and Travel Channel); Cox Newspapers, Inc. (newspapers, local and national direct mail advertising); Cox Television (television and television sales rep firms); Cox Radio, Inc. ([NYSE: CXR] broadcast radio stations and interactive Web sites); Manheim, Inc. (vehicle auctions, repair and certification services and web-based technology products) and Cox Auto Trader (automotive publications and a majority stake in AutoTrader.com).
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Bush postponing Crawford trip to monitor Russia-Georgia conflict
President Bush has postponed trip to his Texas ranch so he can monitor the Russia-Georgia conflict.
Bush had been expected to travel to Central Texas Thursday for his annual August vacation.
It is unclear this afternoon when or if the president will visit.
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Waco-McLennan County Library internet working again
James Karney, director of the Waco-McLennan County Library system, reports that the software upgrade for the Waco libraries is complete, and Internet and computer services are up and running again
Previously, Tribune-Herald staff writer Cindy Culp reported:
Public access computers at Waco-McLennan County Library locations will not be available for use for at least part of the day today.
The library system is conducting an annual update of its software starting at 8 a.m., said director James Karney. Since patrons must use their library cards to sign onto public access computers, they won’t be able to use the computers until the upgrade is complete, he said.
Similarly, the library’s online catalog will not be accessible during the upgrade. “If all goes well, it should be up by noon or the early afternoon,” Karney said.
Customers will still be able to check books and other materials in and out during the upgrade, Karney said. Librarians can do that manually.
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Eighth juror chosen for Coble murder retrial
An eighth juror in the capital murder retrial of Billie Wayne Coble was selected this morning.
The latest addition to the jury is a 34-year-old male factory worker. Defense and prosecuting attorneys have interviewed 39 potential jurors so far.
Coble, 59, was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in 1990 in the August 1989 shooting deaths of his estranged wife’s parents, Robert and Zelda Vicha, and her brother, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha, at their Axtell homes.
In capital murder trials in which the state seeks the death penalty, prospective jurors are questioned individually.
Testimony in the trial is set to begin Aug. 19.
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Seventh juror chosen in Coble capital murder retrial
A seventh juror has been chosen today in the capital murder retrial of Billie Wayne Coble.
The latest juror is a 58-year-old male maintenance technician for a building products manufacturer.
This was the second juror chosen today. Earlier, a 53-year-old local landscaper was picked, officials in Waco’s 54th State District Court said.
Coble, 59, was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in 1990 in the August 1989 shooting deaths of his estranged wife’s parents, Robert and Zelda Vicha, and her brother, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha, at their Axtell homes.
Thus far, attorneys have interviewed 33 potential jurors since the process began last Tuesday.
In capital murder trials in which the state seeks the death penalty, prospective jurors are questioned individually.
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Waco woman who drowned off Alabama coast identified
Police in Alabama have identified the Waco woman who drowned while swimming with her 10-year-old son on the Alabama coast.
Dauphin Island Police Chief George Goodwin said the victim’s driver’s license identified her as Vicki Yvette Washington, age 39. He said she was divorced and that her Social Security card identified her as Vicki Yvette Pendleton.
Goodwin said she was swimming about 60 feet out from the Dauphin Island beach when she was caught in an undertow about 6 p.m. Sunday.
Police said Monday her 10-year-old son also had trouble in the water but had managed to reach the beach without injuries when rescue crew members arrived.
— Associated Press
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Sixth juror selected for Coble trial
A sixth juror has been chosen today in the capital murder retrial of Billie Wayne Coble.
The latest juror is a 53-year-old local landscaper, officials in Waco’s 54th State District Court said.
Coble, 59, was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in 1990 in the August 1989 shooting deaths of his estranged wife’s parents, Robert and Zelda Vicha, and her brother, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha, at their Axtell homes.
Thus far, attorneys have interviewed 33 potential jurors since the process began last Tuesday.
In capital murder trials in which the state seeks the death penalty, prospective jurors are questioned individually.
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McLennan County commissioner claims jail contractor’s visit violated law
McLennan County commissioners debated for two hours this morning without resolution on whether a private company should operate the downtown jail, and Precinct 3 Commissioner Joe Mashek said that County Judge Jim Lewis violated federal antitrust laws by allowing a Houston contractor to visit the county jail in August 2007, a year before the county requested proposals for construction of a new jail.
The county received one proposal from Community Education Centers, which has had a contract to operate the downtown county jail since 1999.
The contractor that visited, Hale Mills Construction Ltd., was named by CEC as a contractor/builder on the proposal it submitted for the new jail.
Mashek said the visit allowed Hale Mills representatives to have an unfair advantage in the county’s request-for-proposal process.
Lewis called Mashek’s claim “ridiculous,” and said he was merely trying to look ahead at the county jail’s overcrowding before it got to an emergency situation. He said he was seeking an opinion on whether to expand the county jail’s kitchen and laundry services.
Herb Bristow, an attorney for the county, said all laws and regulations were complied with in the most recent process for seeking proposals.
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One Book, One Waco presents ‘hot’ title for fall read
One Book, One Waco’s fall book will be Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, officials announced today amid the fire engines of the University-Parks Drive fire station.
Fahrenheit 451 explores a futuristic world in which reading and books have been banned and the pursuit of knowledge and education has been abandoned. The title refers to the temperature at which paper burns, as in the novel the government requires all books to be destroyed by fire.
For the first time, the program is participating in The Big Read, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts, which asks its participating members to select from a list of literary classics.
One Book, One Waco also received a $6,000 grant from the NEA, which it plans to use to purchase and distribute books to participating McLennan County students and classrooms, said Allan Marshall, director of community development for the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce. Leaders said they hoped the book would spark discussion about the role of education and reading in modern society.
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No prosecutions planned in Justice hiring scandal
Attorney General Michael Mukasey today said former Justice Department officials will not face prosecution for letting improper political considerations drive hirings of prosecutors, immigration judges and other career government lawyers.
Mukasey used his sharpest words yet to criticize the senior leaders who took part in or failed to stop illegal hiring practices during the tenure of his predecessor, Alberto Gonzales.
But, he told delegates to the American Bar Association annual meeting, “not every wrong, or even every violation of the law, is a crime. In this instance, the two joint reports found only violations of the civil service laws.”
For nearly two years, top advisers to Gonzales discriminated against applicants for career jobs who weren’t Republican or conservative loyalists, an internal investigation concluded last month.
— Associated Press
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Police: Waco woman drowns off Alabama coast
A woman from Waco has drowned in waters off Dauphin Island on the Alabama coast, according to police there.
Authorities declined to release the identity of the woman who drowned about 6 p.m. Sunday, but Police Chief George Goodwin said she was from Waco and her name and age will be released today.
There are no lifeguards on duty at the public beach operated by the Dauphin Island Park and Beach Board. Goodwin said Dauphin Island Fire and Rescue officials pulled the woman from the water, but were unable to revive her.
— Associated Press
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One Book, One Waco fall selection to be announced
The fall selection for One Book, One Waco — an initiative that endeavors to get all of Waco engaged in reading and discussing a book — will be announced at 10 a.m. today at the University-Parks Drive fire station.
Because the summer read, Marley and Me, was unveiled at the Waco Humane Society, one wonders if there’s a firefighter theme to this announcement. We’ll let you know more when it’s announced.
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Cindy Sheehan qualifies to challenge Pelosi
2005: A LOOK BACK
- video: Camp Casey near Crawford
- video: Camp Casey II
Cindy Sheehan is back in the news. The woman who headed an anti-war protest near President Bush’s Crawford ranch in August 2005 has qualified to challenge House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her seat in Congress.
San Francisco election officials on Monday said Sheehan turned in 214 more valid signatures than the 10,198 she needed to qualify for the November ballot as an independent candidate for the 8th Congressional District seat.
Sheehan, 51, says Pelosi failed to persuade her party to end funding for the Iraq war after Democrats reclaimed the House majority in the 2006 midterm elections. She also accused the speaker of failing to hold the administration accountable for the administration’s warrantless wiretapping program.
“I feel like Nancy Pelosi, as the Democratic leader, has failed our country miserably, funding for more war,” Sheehan said Monday. “The speaker’s failed to hold George Bush and Dick Cheney accountable.”
— The Washington Post
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It’s slippery out there
It was drizzling a bit during the overnight hours as Waco saw a bit of precipitation at the northern edge of a storm system that’s moving toward the southeast.
The Austin and San Antonio areas have about a 40 percent chance of rain overnight, according to the National Weather Service, while North Texas is more in the 20 percent range.
More than an inch of rain fell yesterday around dinnertime, amounting to 1.14 inches by 7 p.m. An additional of a tenth of an inch or so of gentle rain has come down since 11 p.m.
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Woodway drug store robbed
A man robbed a Woodway pharmacy at gunpoint tonight, making off with drugs, police said.
At about 6:20 p.m., a man estimated to be between 20 and 30 years old entered a Walgreen’s at State Highway 84 and Estates Drive, went to the back of the store to the pharmacy and demanded drugs while brandishing a gun, according to the Woodway Public Safety Department.
The man left the store in a small red Kia or Suzuki-type of vehicle that bore no license plate, according to the department.
No arrest was made as of late this evening.
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Law enforcement group calls for investigations into county officials’ dealings with a private jail company
A spokesman for the state’s largest law enforcement association is calling for state and federal investigations into dealings between McLennan County officials and a private detention corporation as the county continues to negotiate jail contracts.
“First of all, we don’t believe anything that officials in McLennan County say anymore,” said Charley Wilkison, political and legislative director for the 16,500-member Combined Law Enforcement Agencies of Texas. “The credibility gap in this county is incredible.”
McLennan County Judge Jim Lewis, county commissioners and Sheriff Larry Lynch have been wrestling for years with the county’s jail overcrowding problem. County officials say they sought proposals from 14 companies nationwide on a variety of options, including privatizing the entire county jail system and building a new, 1,000-bed jail.
The county received proposals from just one company, CEC, which has had a contract to operate the downtown county jail since 1999. CEC contracts with several agencies, primarily federal, to keep prisoners at the downtown jail.
The company’s McLennan County contract, which pays Lynch $12,000 above his county salary of $88,000 to oversee the downtown jail, expires Oct. 1.
Commissioners voted last week for the sheriff to maintain control and operation of the county jail on State Highway 6, on a recommendation from Lynch and after weekly protests from about 50 jailers.
Precinct 3 Commissioner Joe Mashek has called for the county to take back operation of the downtown jail to help alleviate overcrowding and give the county more time to study the situation.
Wilkison said he will ask Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott to investigate whether Lynch violated the Texas Public Information Act by failing to respond to CLEAT’s open records requests for all correspondence between Lynch and CEC officials.
He said he also is seeking state and federal investigations about whether Lynch lawfully and ethically can accept money from the private vendor or whether it is a conflict of interest when he helps decide the fate of the jail system.
“The sheriff has taken $91,000 of personal money that goes into his bank account, and then he says, ‘I am still able to decide. I am still OK deciding whether it is in our best interest to privatize.’ That old dog won’t hunt. Nobody here believes that.”
The contract between the county and CEC, then called CiviGenics, originated when the late Jack Harwell was sheriff. The part of the contract which calls for payments to the sheriff, Lewis says, has not changed, although it has been renewed since Lynch took office.
Lynch did not return phone calls to his office or cell phone today.
Wilkison also charges that county officials should come up with more efficient ways to clear out the jail, especially of non-violent, first-offenders. He claims the CEC contract pays Lynch more for more prisoners.
“We think inmates are being kept in jail to create an artificial public safety crisis so the hue and cry for a new jail can come and the new jail can be privatized and built by CEC,” Wilkison said.
Lewis scoffed at that notion and said that Wilkison’s claims are off-target. He said Lynch is paid the same in the contract with CEC whether there are 300 prisoners or none.
“It is still his responsibility to oversee that jail,” Lewis said. “By statute, it is the sheriff’s responsibility, whether it was Jack or Larry. That contract has not changed, and up until 20 months ago, we didn’t have a prisoner in that jail. So does that logic make any sense?”
Wilkison also charged that Lewis’ office is using “stalling tactics” by asking for an attorney general’s opinion about whether his office has to release 170 pages from CLEAT’s open records request that Lewis claims are attorney-client privilege. Wilkison said Lewis’s office has released 1,300 pages to CLEAT pursuant to the request.
“We believe somewhere in that 170 pages will be some of the information that will tell the tale about how you get only one bid on a private prison,” Wilkison said. “If they have nothing to hide, then they have nothing to worry about. If they have done nothing wrong, then they should release it anyway.”
Lewis said attorney-client communication is privileged and exempt from open records requests.
“That is just as standard as everything,” Lewis said.
Commissioners will continue to discuss jail proposals at their weekly meeting Tuesday morning.
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Fifth juror chosen in Coble capital murder retrial
A fifth juror has been chosen today in the capital murder retrial of Billie Wayne Coble.
The latest juror is a 33-year-old local business manager, officials in Waco’s 54th State District Court said.
Coble, 59, was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in 1990 in the August 1989 shooting deaths of his estranged wife’s parents, Robert and Zelda Vicha, and her brother, Waco police Sgt. Bobby Vicha, at their Axtell homes.
Thus far, attorneys have interviewed 30 potential jurors since the process began last Tuesday.
In capital murder trials in which the state seeks the death penalty, prospective jurors are questioned individually.
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One killed in collision in Bellmead
One person was killed this afternoon in a wreck on Interstate 35, just north of Waco.
The accident happened at about 3:45 p.m. and involved at least one car and an 18-wheeler, a Texas Department of Public Safety spokeswoman said.
The DPS spokeswoman only had scant details about the accident, and did not know the age or sex of the deceased.
More details should be available later this evening.
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Want restaurant inspections? Condemned buildings? We’ve got new public data on WacoTrib.com
18 restaurants received perfect scores in their health inspections this week, while 5 establishments had scores of more than 20 demerits. Want to know which ones? Head on over to WacoTrib.com/public, where we publish relevant community information every week. It’s easy to search our databases — just type in the name of a restaurant, choose an inspection date or a city, or check out inspections by permit type.
We’ve also got the latest actions taken by the city of Waco’s Building Standards Commission on red-tagged and green-tagged properties. You can find out which buildings were ordered condemned and which will be repaired.
Plus, we get new information every week on many items of local interest in your community:
- Marriages
- Divorces
- Building permits filed
- Assumed names
- Child support liens
- Bankruptcies
- Foreclosures
You’ll find it all at WacoTrib.com/public. And if you have ideas for new public data you’d like to see on our site, please e-mail the WacoTrib.com staff with your thoughts.
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Plea bargain in youth stabbing case rejected
A state district judge this morning denied a plea bargain offered in the murder case of a then-12-year-old boy who stabbed his 14-year-old friend in June.
Judge Alan Mayfield in the 74th State District Court rejected the plea deal sought by the youth’s attorneys and prosecutors.
No further court proceedings were set. Another plea bargain might be considered or the case could go to trial.
The boy, who turned 13 recently, has been detained in the Bill Logue Juvenile Justice Center since the June 6 fatal stabbing of Keith Dancer, 14, at the Kate Ross Apartments.
The former Provident Height Elementary School student reportedly stabbed Dancer in the heart with a knife during a fight. County officials have said they he is believed to be the youngest person in McLennan County to be charged with murder.
Here’s today’s story on the case.
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CLEAT schedules news conference today
We just received this e-mail and are not sure what it’s about, but the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas plans to hold a news conference at 4 p.m. today on the steps of the McLennan County Courthouse to advise officers and the public about emergency action it is taking in response to issues in county government and the McLennan County Sheriff’s Office.
One wonders if this has to do with the county’s jail situation.
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Story: VP talk can only help Chet Edwards
Even if U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards isn’t Barack Obama’s choice as vice presidential running mate, and he appears to be a long shot, a story in today’s Dallas Morning News, says the exposure and talk about him will only help Edwards.
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Chamber offers discounted BU-Wake Forest tickets
The Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce has announced that it and Baylor University are teaming up to make tickets to the first home football game, Baylor vs. Wake Forest, on Aug. 28 available for $20.
“We want to fill the stands for this televised game and show our support for the new season,” said Steve Smith, senior vice president of sports and special events for the Chamber.
Tickets may be purchased beginning Tuesday through Aug. 26 at the chamber offices at 101 S. Third St. or online at WacoWeDoSports.com. Enter the code “beatwake” to receive the discount.
In addition, Bear Force One will sell tickets Friday at the Hewitt Drive H-E-B in Woodway at the group rate of $20 each. The H-E-B promotion will be sponsored by the chamber, H-E-B and Bear Force One.
All purchases made through the chamber or at the H-E-B Friday also will receive a coupon for a free “Gold Rush” T-shirt that can be redeemed at Floyd Casey Stadium on game day only.
Seats for the chamber tickets will be in Sections S and T. When those two sections sell out, tickets will be available in sections U and then V.
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Kick Off Luncheon sold out
PHOTOS
- link: 2007 kickoff luncheon
- link: 2006 kickoff luncheon
The Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce this morning said that the 20th annual Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce Kick Off Luncheon, set for 11:30 a.m. Aug. 21 at the Waco Convention Center is already sold out.
The luncheon will honor former Waco Tribune-Herald sports editor and Texas Football magazine founder Dave Campbell and welcome Baylor head football coach Art Briles.
The event also will recognize the local high school state champions.
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Still jazzed about U.S. relay swimming win
OLYMPICS
It might be from my past years of covering sports (try to be impartial; no cheering in the pressbox, etc.) that I tend to not get too excited watching sporting events.
But like much of America last night, I was thrilled over the U.S. men’s 400-meter freestyle relay victory over France last night at the Olympics.
All the prerace talk was how difficult it would be for the U.S. team to beat the favored Frenchmen, and the trash talk by France’s Alain Bernard about “smashing” the Americans. I didn’t think the U.S. men could pull it off when I saw Bernard’s lead at the final turn with 50 meters to go.
But Jason Lezak had an incredible finish to plow past Bernard and make him eat his words — a chlorinated-water sandwich.
I did a fist pump and hopped up off the couch when Lezak hit the wall. It was a remarkable race. Here’s the video, courtesy NBC.
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East Waco leaders announce effort to hire legal help over Wiley’s closing
East Waco leaders announced tonight they are seeking legal counsel to reverse the closure of G.L. Wiley Middle School, after a two-hour, closed-door community meeting.
More than 400 people attended the meeting at Toliver Chapel Baptist Church.
“We have a political agenda and we are prepared to take this to court,” said McLennan County Commissioner Lester Gibson, one of the meeting’s participants.
Gibson said the community had so far been receptive to contributing money toward hiring legal counsel.
The meeting came three days after Waco Independent School District trustees voted 4-3 to close Wiley at a special school board meeting. Board members said that low enrollment was a major factor in the decision, not the school’s sagging test scores, which have improved significantly in recent years.
Many of the roughly 200 Wiley supporters present left the school board meeting angered or in tears over the controversial decision, which was made after hearing four hours of public comment on the issue.
Tonight’s event was originally touted as a communitywide meeting, but as it was set to begin, all news media were asked to leave. The Tribune-Herald went to the meeting after responding to an e-mailed statement from the Cen-Tex African American Chamber of Commerce inviting the entire public, including Waco Mayor Virginia DuPuy and Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce President Jim Vaughan.
DuPuy said tonight her invitation was sent to her work e-mail and she didn’t see it in time to make the meeting. Vaughan attended, but said he too learned of the meeting late. He said he did not wish to comment about the night’s discussions.
After Sunday’s meeting, Gibson and his colleagues stressed that they would not operate based on emotion, but on wisdom and rationale.
“We know officially that the school is closed down,” Gibson said. “If the injunction doesn’t work, we’ve got to live with what we’ve got. (The kids) have got to go to school.”
Waco city councilman Wilbert Austin said the school board ignored the pleas of parents and children at the WISD meeting to keep Wiley open.
“Think how much money it’s going to cost the average mother and father, if (their child misses) the bus, to take their child from one part of town to the other part,” Austin said. “We were more rational than an irrational school board.”
School board member Alex Williams attended tonight’s meeting but would not comment.
As for legal proceedings regarding Wiley’s closure, Gibson did not offer specifics but said a temporary restraining order might be one option.
Gibson and fellow community leaders also expressed feelings of betrayal by the school district and questioned the school board’s integrity.
Laveda Brown, executive director of the Cen-Tex African American Chamber of Commerce, said she felt that East Waco had been alienated by school district officials.
Gibson and the rest of the community leaders said they were resolved not to let the matter go.
“We’re not going to sit back as a community and roll over and play dead,” Gibson said.
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Tribune-Herald booted from church meeting on Wiley Middle School
Confusion has arisen at tonight’s public meeting in East Waco to discuss the closure of G.L. Wiley Middle School, with some participants firmly resolved to meet behind closed doors.
All news media were asked to leave what was originally touted as a communitywide meeting.
The Tribune-Herald came to tonight’s meeting after responding to an e-mailed statement from the Cen-Tex African American Chamber of Commerce inviting the entire public, including Waco Mayor Virginia DuPuy.
However, some officials this evening appeared hesitant about the news media being here, including Justice of the Peace Jean Laster and Rev. Jimmy Hunter, pastor of Toliver Chapel Missionary Baptist Church.
Rev. Hunter acknowledged he was confused about exact guidelines of the meeting at his church but said the point was, indeed, to solicit input from the community about what to do regarding the Wiley closure.
He said there was no set agenda for this evening’s meeting.
“We’re trying to just have a unified community and get a sense of where we are in the process,” he told the Tribune-Herald.
Mayor DuPuy said tonight her e-mailed invitation was sent to her work e-mail and she didn’t see it in time to make the meeting. Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce President Jim Vaughan, invited in the same fashion, said he also learned of the meeting late but hopes to attend.
The Tribune-Herald, which was asked to leave the meeting, was similarly alerted to the event by organizers.
“We are asking you not only to attend but to invite everyone you know to attend,” the original e-mailed statement says. “Please have it announced at your church and everywhere you go today. We look forward to seeing you at the meeting.”
The closed-door meeting was originally billed as a “mass community meeting.” In the e-mailed statement, the point about Wiley Middle School is again reiterated, that for East Waco residents “closure is not an option.”
Photographers were allowed to linger at the church a few minutes before also being shown the door.
Tonight’s meeting, which is going on now, is being held in the wake of the Waco school board’s 4-3 decision Thursday night to close G.L. Wiley Middle School after years of ebbing enrollment numbers and sagging state test scores.
Community leaders had hoped to keep the school open one more year because of gradually improving test scores by Wiley students. Tonight’s meeting, Rev. Hunter said, is to discuss community options.
East Waco leaders assured the Tribune-Herald that the news media and the public will be informed of what happens at tonight’s meeting.
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Midway All-Stars run-rule Canada, 10-0
BEAVERTON, Ore. — The Midway Little League Softball All-Stars rolled over Canada in its third pool play game of the Little League Softball World Series.
Midway’s Cameron Cale had three hits, including a triple, and she and Sarah Hill each drove in a pair of runs to lead the Midway barrage in a 10-0 four-inning run-rule victory.
With the win, Midway improves to 2-1 in Pool-A competition. Midway remains tied with Latin America for second place in the pool. If pool leader Robbinsville, N.J., stays unbeaten in pool play, Midway’s game against Latin America at 7:30 tonight (CST) will decide which team advances to the tournament semifinals to be broadcast on ESPN2 Tuesday.
Midway pitchers Alexia Rowe, Callee Guffey and Cale combined on a one-hitter against Canada.
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East Waco leaders to meet tonight on Wiley Middle School closure
East Waco community leaders, rankled by the Waco school board’s Thursday night 4-3 vote to close G.L. Wiley Middle School after years of enrollment decline and failing state test scores, plan to meet tonight to discuss options to fight the decision.
The public has been invited to the meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. at Toliver Chapel Baptist Church, 1402 Elm Ave., Cen-Tex African American Chamber of Commerce executive director Laveda Brown said in an e-mailed community statement.
Among those listed as invited by e-mail: Waco Mayor Virginia DuPuy, who attended Thursday night’s stormy school board meeting on the Wiley Middle School closure, and Jim Vaughan, president of the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce.
DuPuy said tonight the message was sent to her work e-mail and she did not see it in time to make it to the meeting. Vaughan said he also learned of the meeting late and hopes to attend.
“We are asking you not only to attend but to invite everyone you know to attend,” the statement says. “Please have it announced at your church and everywhere you go today. We look forward to seeing you at the meeting.”
Fireworks went off Thursday night when students, parents and East Waco community leaders argued against board consideration of options that would close the 70-year-old middle school campus, plagued by years of unsatisfactory state test scores.
The problem in recent years has become aggravated by declining enrollment and concerns over administration efforts to bus students from another attendance zone into Wiley to keep ebbing student numbers from dwindling even further.
East Waco community leaders, bolstered by figures from the Texas Education Agency, argued Thursday night that the campus be kept open another year because of gradual improvement on test scores the past few years.
Some school board members, however, argued that Wiley’s plummeting enrollment was keeping students there from benefiting from a richer range of curricular and extracurricular offerings that students at better-attended campuses now have.
Before Thursday night’s meeting ended, it had devolved into accusations by community leaders of inequity, professional misconduct and lying by school officials in their handling of the situation.
School leaders say their top priority now is ensuring that Wiley students make a smooth transition to their new campuses with less than two weeks before the start of classes, Aug. 25.
Barring some change, Wiley students will be transitioned to Brazos and Cesar Chavez middle schools as well as G.W. Carver Academy.
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