News
Gladewater man indicted on indecency with a child charge
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- Category: News
- Published on Monday, 13 May 2013 19:53
- Written by Super User
BY PHILLIP WILLIAMS
GILMER--The Upshur County Grand Jury on Thursday returned 17 indictments, four of them sealed, and no-billed three cases, said District Attorney Billy Byrd.
Defendants, charges and bond information in the open indictments was as follows, Byrd's office reported:
Patrick David Thompson, 18, of Gladewater, indecency with a child on July 23, 2012, $35,000 surety bond
James Mitchell Roland, Jr., 44, of Big Sandy, possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine) with intent to deliver on April 30, $35,000 surety bond
Jeffery Mark Watson, 54, address unknown, burglary of habitation on April 15. He remained in county jail under $10,000 bond.
Richard Anderton, III, 46, of Gilmer, driving while intoxicated; subsequent offense--repeat offender on Feb. 16, $5,000 surety bond
Tony Michael Floyd, 60, of Mt. Pleasant, driving while intoxicated; subsequent offense on Jan. 28, $10,000 surety bond
Jose Carmen Aguilar, 54, of Hughes Springs, driving while intoxicated; subsequent offense on March 4, $10,000 surety bond
Jonathan Craig Strait, 31, of Gilmer, possession of methamphetamine on Aug. 23, 2012, $10,000 surety bond
Priscilla Darlene Pessink, 23, of Bullard, possession of cocaine on Aug. 6, 2012, $2,500 surety bond
David Bernard Hodge, 38, of Ore City, assault--family violence with previous conviction on March 20, $3,500 surety bond
Billy Lee Aultman, 34, of Gilmer, burglary of building on Feb. 23, $75,000 surety bond
Matthew Howard Baldwin, 52, of Pittsburg, burglary of building on Feb. 23. He remained in county jail under $75,000 bond
Glenn Earl Hamilton, 49, of Gilmer, possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver on Aug. 5, 2012, $35,000 surety bond
Phyllis Ann Ellis, 50, of Diana, posession of methamphetamine on July 18, 2012, $10,000 surety bond
The sealed indictments were for unlawful possession of a firearm by felon, possession of methamphetamine, retaliation: habitual offender, and aggravated sexual assault of a child, Byrd's office reported.
Upshur Commissioners make major cuts to avoid budget shortfall
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- Category: News
- Published on Monday, 13 May 2013 19:34
- Written by Super User
BY PHILLIP WILLIAMS
GILMER--Seeking to avoid a projected shortfall of nearly $1 million which Upshur County Judge Dean Fowler said threatened to shut down the entire county government, a sometimes-testy Upshur County Commissioners Court on Monday approved two budget amendments cutting the current county budget by more than $973,000.
The court said the reductions will cause no layoffs, furloughs, nor salary cuts, and while "It's not a happy situation, it's the best we can do," Fowler said.
The problem came to public light Friday when Fowler said County Auditor Janice Tucker had told him four days earlier that she projected a $995,000 negative fund balance by Sept. 30, the end of the current fiscal year.
Fowler said Tucker had not halted spending of funds which weren't directly under the court's control, and that she should have brought the financial situation to the court's attention earlier. She in turn charged she had repeatedly told Fowler the county was having financial problems because of the county budget he was in charge of preparing, and that he was "unwilling to listen" until now.
On Monday, Fowler told this newspaper that Tucker gave the court "bad numbers" for the 2011-12 fiscal year budget showing a $1.8 million reserve that did not exist. He noted he was not on the court then (because he had been suspended from office for misdemeanor charges, of which he was later cleared).
And on Monday, Pct. 3 Commissioner Frank Berka chastised both Tucker and County Treasurer Myra Harris during a special meeting of the court which was continuing that afternoon after almost four hours in two separate sessions. (Fowler said commissioners were through except for signing some documents). Berka and Harris disagreed on whether she gave him certain information.
The court finally approved one amendment authorizing $222,765.10 in certain departmental and non-departmental budget cuts before enacting another amendment stripping $750,967 from the Road and Bridge Department budget.
On Friday, Fowler said he planned to recommend an $800,000 cut in the road and bridge budget which would reduce that department to merely mowing and cutting down dead trees for the rest of the fiscal year. But Road and Bridge administrator Andy Jordan, who discussed the reductions in his department Monday with the court before it voted, said his workers would do more than that.
Jordan said the reduction will affect road "maintenance," but pledged that roadways won't "fall apart."
Joining Pct. 4 Commissioner Mike Spencer in praising Jordan, Pct. 2 Commissioner Cole Hefner said the court didn't like making the budget cuts, but that commissioners "don't have a lot of options."
At the outset of Monday's meeting, Fowler said "over the past several weeks, it has become apparent to me we have a cash problem in our current budget" because "we thought we had reserve funds we didn't have."
He said the court must remove funds from various departments and put them in a "contingency line item."
Jim Bowling, who was interim county judge when the 2011-12 budget was approved, told the court Monday he was "disappointed in the reliability of the complicated management information system that I had to rely upon when tasked with proposing" that year's budget.
Union Grove Fire
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- Category: News
- Published on Thursday, 09 May 2013 20:29
- Written by Super User
Union Grove Fire ...
Area firefighters battled a house fire in Union Grove Thursday evening, which from US 271, appeared to be at the school. That prompted area residents to rush to the scene, along with firefighters from Gladewater, East Mountain and other area agencies.
City/School Elections Results
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- Category: News
- Published on Saturday, 11 May 2013 20:35
- Written by Super User
Saturday, May 11, 2013 Election Results
City Council:
Sonny Anderson - 262
Mark Carpenter - 181
Unopposed:
Delbert Burlison - 258
Scott Owens - 289
J.D. Shipp - 331
GISD School Board:
Garth Cockerell - 291
William "Slim" Matthew - 186
Unopposed:
Jon Rowe - 333
Rickie Blackman - 323
Arrests Made by Gladewater Police
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- Category: News
- Published on Thursday, 09 May 2013 16:07
- Written by Super User
On Friday May 3, 2013,
The Gladewater Police Department received a call of a suspicious vehicle parked behind Truman Smith Children’s Care Center on West Highway 80. Upon arrival officers located 1996 Dodge Truck and 4 other individuals, 2 males and 2 females. While identifying them, one of the men gave a false name. When that name did not check out and the officer determined what his true identity was, he took off running north into a heavily wooded area. He was identified as Jeremy Clint Hadaway W/M 30 years old. The other persons were identified as Wesley Denton W/M 40 Years old, April Knight W/F 34 Years old, Precious Ford W/F 20 Years old.
It was determined that the Jeremy Hadaway had a Parole Violation Warrant for Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon. A tracking dog was called from Gregg County Sheriff’s Department and in a short while the suspect was located hiding under a brush pile. Hadaway refused to surrender and come out of the brush pile so the K-9 entered and extracted him from it.
Meanwhile, after additional officers arrived, and during the course of this foot chase and ultimate arrest of Hadaway, a “sawed off” semi-automatic shotgun was located in the vehicle. The barrel and stock had been shortened making it a Prohibited Weapon. Drugs were located in the possession of Wesley Denton.
Wesley Denton was arrested and charged with Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Felon, Possession of a Controlled Substance, and Interfering with the Duties of a Public Servant.
Jeremy Hadaway was charged with Failure to Identify/Give False Information, Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Felon, and Evading Arrest or Detention.
The females were released and as the investigation continues there is a possibility that more charges could be filed depending on the outcome of the full investigation.
The initial call came in from a Care Center employee and officers arrived in less than a minute to the back parking lot. It is still unknown as to why the suspects were there.
The Gladewater Police Department takes seriously any danger that might exist to our most vulnerable citizens and employees at the Care Center, and are relieved that no one at the Center was hurt or endangered, and our officers responded quickly and professionally in taking these suspects into custody.
40-year-old man arrested for online solicitation of minor
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- Category: News
- Published on Thursday, 09 May 2013 20:44
- Written by Super User
40-year-old man arrested in Gladewater for Online Solicitation of a Minor, a Second Degree Felony
According to Farrell Alexander, Gladewater Chief of Police, on May 8th at around 10:00 am the Gladewater Police Department was contacted by a concerned parent. They discovered that a 40 year old man their family knew from church had attempted to contact their daughter via Facebook message with some inappropriate comments and requests.
Permission was obtained from the parents for Detective Sergeant David Burrows to take the phone and answer the suspect and play the role of their 13 year old daughter. During this time conversing with the suspect, Sgt. Burrows was able to obtain a felony arrest warrant for Shawn Christian Glidden of Kilgore TX W/M Date of Birth, 10-29-72, 40 years of age.
During the course of the conversation Shawn Glidden agreed to meet and pick up, (who he assumed was the 13 year old daughter), in his truck at around 5:30pm Thursday, May 9, at the Bodacious BBQ Parking lot for the purposes of sexual intercourse.
The area was heavily staked out by plainclothes police officers located inside Bodacious and the Tumbleweed Restaurant with other officers standing by. As Glidden arrived in a white Ford pickup he was surrounded by officers and immediately taken into custody. Shawn Christian Glidden was arrested and charged with Online Solicitation of a Minor, a Second Degree Felony. Bond was set at $75,000.00. The investigation is still in its early phase and much will more will be done to follow up on this case.
Assisting Sgt. Burrows in the investigation and who were also present for the arrest is Detective Kevin Brownlee, who is in charge of the Cyber Crimes Unit of Longview Police Department, and the United States Secret Service.
The Gladewater Police Department will aggressively pursue and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law any sexual predator that would try to harm the children of our community. We are thankful for the attentiveness of involved parents, and officers who are committed to protecting the innocent and serving the community.
The raw video of the arrest is posted onhttps://www.facebook.com/gladewaterpolicedepartment?ref=hl
TEXAS AFT LEGISLATIVE HOTLINE TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2013
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- Category: News
- Published on Wednesday, 01 May 2013 08:19
- Written by Super User
After-the-fact pension cutbacks like this are illegal in the private sector, and they are not acceptable for school employees in Texas. A grandfather clause (exempting employees who as of August 31, 2014, are age 50 or above, or have 25 years of service, or meet a rule of 70), which would spare some but leave hundreds of thousands of dedicated school employees exposed to this take-away of earned benefits, does not make the take-away legitimate.
Texas AFT is working to persuade the authors of these bills to remove the take-away of earned benefits, to improve benefits for both retired and active school employees, and to strengthen the TRS pension fund for the long haul. Meanwhile, more than 20,000 of you have bolstered our negotiating position by sending a letter to your legislators in opposition to the committee substitutes for SB 1458 and HB 1884.
SB 1458 is now eligible for a Senate floor vote as early as Wednesday, May 1.Please take the opportunity NOW to write again to your senator and representative to oppose the existing committee substitutes for SB 1458 and HB 1884 and to urge the legislature to:
--reject entirely the take-away of already-earned pension benefits from current employees;
--increase the state’s contribution rate to TRS, as recommended by TRS actuaries, to 6.9 percent in fiscal 2014 and 7.4 percent in fiscal 2015;
--require any increase in the employee contribution rate to be gradual and to be matched by increases in the state contribution rate; and
--provide an immediate benefit enhancement such as a 13th check for all retirees, not just for a small minority as proposed in SB 1458 and HB 1884.
Urge your senator and representative to demand a fair deal on TRS benefits now!
Don't Let Them Sell Out Our Neighborhood Schools: SB 1718 by Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) would authorize the commissioner of education to take over neighborhood schools rated low-performing and turn them over to charter operators. In the process, students, teachers, and parents would lose most of the safeguards of educational quality and fair treatment that they have under the Education Code. The bill could come up for a vote on the Senate floor as early as Wednesday. Write your senator now!
Block SB 218—a Made-to-Order Vehicle for Attacks on Public Schools: SB 218 by Sen. Dan Patrick (R-Houston), the “sunset” bill to continue the existence of the Texas Education Agency, is a ready vehicle for amendments that would carry out a hostile agenda designed by private interests aiming to take over neighborhood schools and to eliminate state safeguards of educational quality.
The private interests behind this agenda have a ton of money and the political influence that money can buy. What they cannot match is the grass-roots opposition of thousands of parents, educators, and citizens in the communities served by our neighborhood schools.
Please write to your senator now to urge him or her not to let SB 218 come up on the Senate floor. It could come up as soon as Wednesday, May 1. This bill is just too dangerous! Note: TEA’s lease on life can easily be extended through another so-called “safety net” bill, so SB 218 is not a “must-pass” piece of legislation.
No Reason to Make It Harder to Fund Education: It’s hard enough as it is in the Texas legislature to secure adequate funding for education. But proposed legislation, SB 101 and SJR 10 by Sen. Dan Patrick (R-Houston), would make it even harder, amending the state constitution to squeeze down spending growth to fit an arbitrary formula. Sen. Patrick’s proposed limit based on overall population growth and inflation ignores the fact that some subgroups—schoolchildren and the elderly, for instance—are increasing in number at a faster rate than the overall population and have greater and fast-increasing needs for state services than other segments of the Texas populace as well. Texas AFT and our allies in the Texas Forward revenue and budget coalition urge you to send a message in opposition to SB 101 and SJR 10. These extreme proposals could be considered any day now by the full Texas Senate.
Two Good Bills Advancing: SB 1799 by Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin) would set a 240-day deadline for the commissioner of education to decide employees’ grievance appeals—cases that now take an astonishing three years on average, even though the cases are decided on the basis of the written local record without any state-level hearing. SB 1799 passed the Senate today by a vote of 31-0. It now heads for the House, where an identical companion bill, HB 2952 by Rep. Justin Rodriguez (D-San Antonio) already has been passed unanimously in committee.
HB 2127 by Rep. Donna Howard (D-Austin) is a bill to make state health-plan benefits more accessible to adjunct faculty at community colleges. We are pleased to report the bill has been scheduled for House floor action on Friday, May 3.
Two Deceptive Bills Get House Committee Hearing: HB 300 by Rep. Jason Isaac (R-Dripping Springs), under the deceptive label of “Families First,” would encourage privatization of public schools, steering taxpayer funds to private vendors and charter operators. HB 2976 by Rep. Naomi Gonzalez (D-El Paso) is the House version of the “parent trigger” bill that already has passed the Senate—better described as “parent tricker” legislation that preaches parental empowerment but delivers control of neighborhood schools to charter entities. Texas AFT testified against both bills in the House Public Education Committee this evening, along with educator, community, and parent allies. Ranged against us and in favor of these camouflaged pieces of bad legislation are lobbyists for the so-called Texans for Education Reform and other private interests that see public schools as an industry ripe for the picking. Upcoming Hotlines will give you a fuller report on the status of these two bills and others of their ilk.