Tag Archives: Texas

Police Officer Pulls Woman Over, Ends Up Saving Her Life

He thought she was talking on her cell phone in violation of Austin, Texas law.

Instead, he found a woman fighting for her life.

Officer Dustin Clinkscales pulled over the woman and realized something was wrong the moment he reached the driver’s side window.

“Are you ok?  You choking?” you can hear the officer asking on a video recorded from the police cruiser’s dashcam.

The woman was choking on a biscuit and couldn’t breathe.  She passed out the moment Clinkscales opened the door and pulled her out.  The officer kept her from hitting her head on the ground and then performed the Heimlich maneuver until the biscuit popped out.

The woman turned out to be the daughter of an Austin police detective.

“I gave him a hug,” says Detective Damon Dunn.  “She was lucky he was there.”

“Well this will be an example of what officer’s do every day. They step up to the moment, they help save lives. They do the job they need to do whether it is the use of force, or it is saving someone from choking,” says Lt. Robert Hightower, Officer Clinkscales Commander, Austin Police Dept.

“It’s really amazing how quickly he recognized that something was wrong, how quickly he acted and cleared her passageway,” Austin Police Department Commander Michael Eveleth told KVUE.com.

Fort Worth Teenager Charged For Planning Columbine-Style Attack on Church

A 19-year-old Fort Worth, Texas man is behind bars accused of plotting to launch an attack on a church similar to the Columbine High School massacre.

Nicholar Amrine was arrested in June by Fort Worth police and placed in a state hospital until he was formally charged last week.

Amrine reportedly planned an attack on a youth event called “Fuse.”  He had attended the church until he was thrown out by church leaders because of his age and what authorities termed “erratic behavior.”

A pastor with the church called police after Amrine posted threatening and ominous messages on Facebook.

“All the kids that forgot about me are going to get what they deserve,” Amrine posted on June 3. “I may have been hesitant in the past but next time u see me I will not hesitate about anything. It will be over in a flash, it will be over in a bang, u will see my face, and then nothing else ever again.”

He also posted photos of Columbine shooters Dylan Harris and Eric Klebold, calling them “my heroes.”

The church cancelled the special youth event out of concern for Amrine’s threats.

Amrine is facing a felony charge of making terroristic threats.  He has been bonded out of jail and posted an apology on Facebook.

“That is not who I am and I would never do such a thing,” the teen said on July 2. “The things I posted on Facebook were wrong and I should have never done that.”

Oklahoma Governor: The Ten Commandments Stay

Oklahoma governor Mary Fallin is standing up to her state’s Supreme Court and refusing to remove a monument of the Ten Commandments the court said violated their state Constitution.

The governor noted that Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt has asked the Oklahoma Supreme Court to reconsider the 7-2 decision which supported a challenge by the ACLU of Oklahoma.

The justices said the monument violated Article II, Section 5 of the state constitution:  “No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher or dignitary, or sectarian institution as such.”

Legislators are pushing to allow a vote of the citizens to remove that passage from the state constitution.

“Oklahoma is a state where we respect the rule of law, and we will not ignore the state courts or their decisions,” Fallin said. “However, we are also a state with three co-equal branches of government.”

“Legislators and supporters of the monument intended it as a tribute to the importance of the Ten Commandments in our history and our system of laws,” Fallin added in a statement. “Celebrating the historical importance of religions and religious values is not a new idea. Our nation is steeped in references to God and the rights He bestows on all men and women.”

“None of these represent state endorsement of or support for any religion. They are celebrations or visual representations of our culture and events of historical importance,” she added.

Attorney General Pruitt noted that the monument is almost identical to one in Texas that the Supreme Court ruled constitutional.  The monument was erected by private donations, not with state funds.

Oklahoma Supreme Court Rules 10 Commandments Monument Must Be Removed

The Oklahoma Supreme Court wants the Ten Commandments removed from the state capitol grounds.

A monument with the Ten Commandments was placed on the capitol grounds in 2012 and was paid for by private funds.  The court ruled that the Ten Commandments “indirectly” benefits the Jewish and Christian faiths and thus violates the state constitution.

The court rejected the argument of Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt that the monument was nearly identical to a monument in Texas that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled as constitutional.  The Oklahoma justices said it violated the state constitution.

“Quite simply, the Oklahoma Supreme Court got it wrong,” Pruitt told reporters after the meeting.  “The court completely ignored the profound historical impact of the Ten Commandments on the foundation of Western law. Furthermore, the court’s incorrect interpretation of Article 2, Section 5 contradicts previous rulings of the court. In response, my office will file a petition with the court for a rehearing in light of the broader implications of this ruling on other areas of state law. Additionally, we are requesting a stay of the enforcement of the court’s order until the court can consider the petition for rehearing. Finally, if Article 2, Section 5 is going to be construed in such a manner by the court, it will be necessary to repeal it.”

The monument has been the target of various groups who demanded they be allowed to place their own monument in the complex including a group of satanists.

Two Texas Women Raising Funds For Homeless Man’s Funeral

Two Texas women are launching a fundraising campaign to provide a proper funeral for a homeless man killed in an accident.

Duc Van Tran lived below an overpass in Houston.  Two women, Adriana Castro Garcia and Rosa Quintero would notice him.  They brought him food and other items.  They would check in on him to see how he was doing.

Then one day, he was gone.

“I really don’t watch TV or listen to the radio so I had no idea what happened until the beginning of this month,” good Samaritan Rosa Quintero said.

On May 12th, a man named Jamie Dorn was driving drunk.  He jumped the curb near where Tran was sleeping and ran over him, killing him.

Quintero called the medical examiner’s office to see if anyone had claimed Tran’s body.  No one had claimed it, but the employee told her that it would be “very expensive” for Quintero to do it.

“I just want to be able to provide him a nice funeral,” Quintero said.

“I mean he was somebody he needs somebody to at least say hey we saw you here and you are part of us even though there was no communication you mattered to somebody,” Castro Garcia said.

The two have raised over $5,000 for the funeral thus far.

Oklahoma Toddler Swept Away In Storm Related Flood

An Oklahoma toddler was swept out of the arms of his father by flood waters near Ardmore.

“The man and his 2-year-old son were trying to leave Ardmore as a flash flood swept through Wednesday night, likely from the swollen Hickory Creek,” said Hamblin. “The father was unable to hold onto the boy and he was swept away.”

The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management said that six inches of rain fell in the Ardmore area in 24 hours and that other parts of the state had more than 10 inches from the remnants of Tropical Depression Bill.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol shut down parts of Interstate 35 due to flood waters completely covering the highway.  States of emergency were declared in all 77 counties in the state.

Residents north of Dallas, Texas near Grapevile Lake are dealing with flooding even after the rain because of runoff causing rising lake levels.  The lake’s excess drains into Denton Creek and the flooding of that river will cause communities to be cut off because of impassable roads.

“We’ll take measures once we are 100% certain that it’s going there,” Chief Darrell Brown of the Grapevine Fire Department told CNN affiliate KDAF. “We believe it will be in the next 24 to 48 hours, so we are doing everything we can to ensure we give them ample notice to have a way out before we evacuate those apartments.”

The Trinity River is still above flood stage and officials are urging residents not to return to the area until the river returns to its banks.

Tropical Storm Bill Strikes Texas

Texas officials are rushing to prepare for Tropical Storm Bill which is on a path to soak parts of the state already saturated from previous rains and flooding.

The storm made landfall around 11:45 a.m. Tuesday near Port O’Connor.

Tropical Storm Wind warnings along with Flood warnings have been placed in effect through Wednesday for many parts of eastern and southern Texas.  Schools throughout the Houston area along with all summer programs were cancelled because of the impending rains and threat of flooding.

“While high winds and even tornadoes are possible, already wet grounds mean that even a moderate amount of rain will likely cause street flooding,” warned Harris County Emergency Management. “Bayous and rivers could go out of banks quickly, creating a serious threat to life and property.”

Forecasters expect the storm to bring as much as a foot of radio to parts of Texas.  Most areas in Texas and Oklahoma in the path of the storm could see as much as 8 inches.  The storm is expected to turn east and bring around four inches to Arkansas, Louisiana and parts of Missouri.

Texas residents are being cautious with this storm.

“Everyone’s a little gun-shy,” Lisa Kiefer told KXAN. “Three weeks ago, after the flood, helicopters were in town for days, and the Red Cross trucks … you just couldn’t get away from the fact the community was so damaged.”

Texas Stores Limit Egg Sales

A chain of grocery stores in Texas is telling their customers they can only purchase a limited amount of eggs because of the bird flu impacting the nation’s egg supply.

H-E-B stores has posted signs saying that customers are limited to three cartons of eggs.  There is no limit on the size of the cartons, just the number of cartons.

The restriction is also in place at H-E-B’s affiliated Central Market stores.

“The avian flu this year has impacted a significant portion of the egg laying population in the United States (over 30 million birds),” company officials said in a statement. “This temporary constriction in the US market has caused an increase in price and shortage in availability of eggs.”

The announcement by H-E-B is on the heels of restaurant chain Whataburger announcing they were reducing their breakfast hours because of the number of egg based dishes on their menu.

Texas Cop Attends Graduation For Teen Who Lost His Parents

A Texas police officer went the extra mile when he attended the graduation of a senior who recently lost his parents.

Only a few days before Kazzie Portie’s high school graduation, officer Eric Ellison delivered bad news to the 18-year-old: Portie’s parents had been killed in a car accident. Without his parents to attend his upcoming graduation, Portie wasn’t sure if he would walk on stage. However, Ellison stepped in and encouraged the young man.

“I said, ‘You’re going to walk!’ Your mom and dad will have front-row seats looking down from heaven, and I’ll stand in their place. I’ve got your back,” Ellison told BuzzFeed News.

Portie not only received his diploma on Friday, but he also received a hug from Officer Ellison in front of a standing ovation from the audience.

“Seeing Officer Ellison there to congratulate me meant the world to me,” Portie stated to BuzzFeed News. “It was so nice to see that he actually showed a genuine care for me and my family’s situation instead of just being another ‘case.'”

Portie intends on attending college.

More Texas Flooding; Death Toll Climbs

The Brazos River in Texas is continuing to swell, driving more families out of their homes with local officials saying that it might not crest until Friday at the earliest.

Parker County Judge Mark Riley ordered a community of RVs and trailers along the river to be evacuated after predictions the river could rise another nine feet before cresting.  Other low-lying neighborhoods in the areas around the river were also placed under mandatory evacuation.

The National Weather Service reports thunderstorms, hail and tornadoes are possible throughout the flooded regions on Thursday.  Meteorologist Steve Goss said the storms will be “intense and slow moving.”

The town of Wharton, around 8,000 residents, is being evacuated along the Colorado River due to fears of a massive rise over the banks.  Flood stage is 39 feet, with the river already at 36 feet.  Predictions of a 46 foot crest on Friday night would not only flood the homes along the river but also wash away a school.

Houston continues to be hammered by flooding.  Another victim of the flood, a 73-year-old woman, was identified Wednesday.  The San Jacinto River was three feet over flood stage and officials say that some subdivisions could be cut off for up to a week because of flood waters.

The death toll in the U.S. is now at 21 people.

The storms on Wednesday left three workers at a gas drilling rig in the Texas Panhandle wounded when a tornado destroyed the rig.