TRAX To Get $100,000 Software Upgrade
A motion to review and consider approval of a contract with Shah Software is on the agenda for May 30th, 2019. Shah Software of Dallas, TX won the bid to provide transit scheduling software for the TRAX rural transportation service.
Approval of the $100,000 contract is expected at the May 30th meeting.
The Executive Committee of the Ark-Tex Council of Governments (ATCOG) will meet at 10:00 a.m., Thursday, May 30, 2019, at the Titus County Extension Office, 1708 Industrial Road, Mt. Pleasant, Texas.
Police Follow Trail Of Parts To Sleeping Man In Damaged Truck
Sulphur Springs police followed a trail of car parts to a man in a Dodge Ram pickup with front end damage early Thursday morning.
Officers had responded to complaints of multiple crashes. They observed what was found to be a trail of vehicle parts, and followed it from the 500 block of Woodlawn Street to the 900 block of North Hillcrest Drive. There, police reported seeing a blue pickup that had apparently sustained heavy front end damage. A man could be seen inside of it; the man appeared to be asleep in the driver’s seat, police reported.
After a period of time, officers were able to awaken the man. Police alleged alcohol emitted from his breath, he was unsteady on his feet, spoke with mumbling slurred speech and had bloodshot eyes. The officer alleged he attempted to administer field sobriety tests, but the man was unable to perform them.
The 27-year-old Sulphur Springs man was taken to jail, where he refused to provide a blood sample for analysis. A search warrant was obtained, requiring a blood draw. Samples were taken at 3:07 a.m., then, the man was booked into jail for accident involving damage estimated at more than $200 and driving while intoxicated, both Class B misdemeanor offenses, according to arrest reports.
He remained in the county jail shortly before noon May 23. His bond was set at $1,000 per charge, according to jail reports.
3 Arrested Following Midnight Complaint
A complaint regarding intoxicated people on Connally Street resulted in three arrests early Thursday morning.
Sulphur Springs Police Officer Zach Brown, Sgt. Josh Shufeldt and Lt. Eddie Moon were dispatched at 12:08 a.m. to the 200 block of Connally Street.
As they arrived, Moon reported one man started walking away from him near a Davis Street business. He finally stopped, after being instructed to do so numerous times, Moon reported.
On contact, Moon alleged he could smell a very strong alcoholic beverage odor on the man’s breath. Moon also reported the man to have bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and to be very unsteady on his feet. Consequently, 27-year-old Tony Contreras of Sulphur Springs was taken into custody for public intoxication.
Contreras was later found to be in possession of a vial containing less than 1 gram of tetrahydrocanaboinal, known as THC, resulting in the additional charge possession of less than 1 gram of a Penalty Group 2 controlled substance. Contreras also allegedly became very uncooperative, Moon alleged in arrest reports.
SSPD Sgt. Josh Shufeldt contacted a 24-year-old Venice, Florida man who he reported had an odor of alcohol on his breath, bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and was unsteady on his feet. Believing him to be a danger to himself and others, he took the man into custody for public intoxication, according to arrest reports.
SSPD Officer Zach Brown contacted a 32-year-old Sulphur Springs woman in the 300 block of Connally Street, where she was reportedly behind a Davis Street bar. Alcohol was smelled on her. She was reported to be unsteady on her feet and to have slurred speech. The woman also allegedly became very argumentative and uncooperative. She too was arrested for public intoxication.
Local Author’s Book Showcases the Texas Ranger Who Ended Bonnie and Clyde’s Crime Spree in 1934
It was on May 23, 1934 that the bloody career of the most notorious criminal couple in American history came to an end. Now, eighty-five years later, a recent release by local author Gene Shelton will better acquaint readers with the lawman who stopped the pair. The book is entitled “MANHUNTER” and is a novel based on the life and times of Frank Hamer, Texas Ranger. Shelton actually wrote the book over 20 years ago based upon extensive research into the lawman’s career. It was released by Berkeley Publishing in 1997. Decades later, following the upheaval in the publishing industry, Shelton took an interest in self-publishing his newer works as well as some of his older books from as early as the 1960’s. He has been successful in doing this, but the success behind the re-release of “MANHUNTER” has been especially gratifying to Shelton.
From a KSST Good Morning Show interview earlier this spring, Shelton stated “I had always regretted that to get the Hamer book published, I had to cut it down. The publisher wanted to keep the size of the book as well as it’s purchase price down in a certain range. So, I cut out more than 30,000 words of my research. But it was a successful book. However, with today’s technology, more has been made public about Hamer and the ambush and I wanted to bring the story up to date and re-release the book. It wasn’t an overnight process, but I eventually have not only received the rights to re-publish, I was able to recover the 30,000 words of the original manuscript and offer the book the way I originally wanted to, only better. The cover is nicer, and the content is more complete. I couldn’t be more pleased and gratified. Especially since it’s release co-incides not only with the May anniversary of the ambush of Bonnie and Clyde, but with the release of “Highwaymen”, a movie about the brave Ranger. There is more to his story than Bonnie and Clyde! Hamer’s law enforcement career spanned from horseback and Winchester days, to the invention of the telephone and automobile. He built a reputation as a fearless and incorruptible lawman. He survived 52 gunfights and 23 bullet wounds”.
“MANHUNTER”and many of Shelton’s 26 novels are available on Amazon.
Convicted Sex Offender Accused Of Failing To Comply With Terms to Register
May 23, 2019 – A 23 year-old Brashear man was arrested at 1:18 p.m. Thursday at his County Road 1158 residence by Investigator Charles Humphries for failure to comply with sex offender laws which require individuals with prior sex convictions to register with local authorities.
Humphries said authorities were first alerted to BURSBY, GARRETT MATTHEW, after he was reportedly seen April 26 during regular school hours at a county school, where he was thought not to have checked in with school officials.
“Anytime convicted sex offenders are at schools during normal school hours, they have to notify the school they are on the property. He had not notified the school,” Humphries said. “They may have a chaperone while on the campus, if the school is OK with them being there. It is a felony if caught without notification.”
On further investigation, Bursby was found not to have complied with terms for him to register with authorities as a sex offender as required, which resulted in a warrant being issued for his arrest, according to the investigator. Humphries served the warrant and took Bursby into custody May 22.
If anyone sees a person they believe to be a convicted sex offender on a school campus during school hours, Humphries recommends notifying the local sheriff’s office or police department so officers can verify whether the person is a sex offender, then make sure those who are have checked in with school officials as required.
7 Pounds Of Suspected Methamphetamine Discovered In Car Speaker During Traffic Stop
A traffic stop on Interstate 30 by Cumby police yielded more than 7 pounds of methamphetamine in a sub-woofer box located in the trunk of a car and a small container of THC inside of the vehicle, according to arrest reports.
Cumby Police Officer Kenneth Jones reported seeing an eastbound beige colored vehicle drive onto the shoulder and over the white line, after passing him on I-30 around 1:45 p.m. Thursday. Jones, who was patrolling, followed the Chevrolet Monte Carlo on I-30, where he alleged he saw it being driven too close to a truck and trailer as they neared the 109 mile marker, then saw it crossing the shoulder and follow too close to another vehicle.
Suspecting the driver might be impaired, Jones said he continued to monitor the car until he could find a safe spot out of the heavy traffic on I-30 to stop the car. He then initiated a traffic stop at the 110 mile marker. The driver stopped at the Valero gas station, ones alleged in arrest reports.
Jones alleged when he approached the driver, the man was shaking and acting very nervous, so he asked to search the car. The man reportedly initially said no, then agreed. During the search, Jones alleged in arrest reports, the officer found a THC vape pen capsule with THC juice inside of it. Cumby Police Chief Paul Robertson arrived at that point to assist with the stop, Jones noted in arrest reports.
While searching, Jones reported seeing a sub-woofer box that had only three screws inside of one of the speakers to hold it on. Jones, in reports, said he knew from his experience in law enforcement that people sometimes hide things in speakers and speaker boxes. Robertson provided a screwdriver, which Jones reported using to remove the screws. That allowed him to access the inside, where the officers found three large gallon-sized bags with what appeared to them to be crystallized methamphetamine, Jones noted in arrest reports.
Consequently, driver Andrew Zachery Berry, 36, of Russellville, Arkansas, was taken into custody at 1:33 p.m. May 22 for having the controlled substance.
Robertson seized the suspected methamphetamine and took it to the police station to be weighed. The chief reported the substance weighed 7.08 pounds.
A short time later after being taken into custody, Berry reportedly began complaining of chest pains and was taken to the hospital to be checked out, according to reports. He was transported to the county jail, where he was booked at 7:30 p.m. for manufacture or delivery of more than 400 grams of a Penalty Group 1 controlled substance, according to arrest reports.
Berry remained in the county jail late Wednesday morning. His bond was set at $75,000 on the controlled substance charge, according to jail reports.
PJC Offering Scholarships
PJC offering scholarship for a summer class tuition to graduating seniors.
Graduating high school seniors in the Paris Junior College service area are eligible for a scholarship covering tuition for a class in either of the five-week Summer I or Summer II semesters. Summer I starts June 3 and Summer II begins July 10.
Generous donors to the PJC Memorial Foundation make possible the scholarships for graduating high school seniors in Delta, Lamar, Hunt, Hopkins and Red River counties, plus those from Honey Grove and Fannindel. Students may take either a core academic class to transfer and save money, or a workforce class leading to a great career.
“PJC offers a great education with small class sizes and personalized attention from experienced instructors, “ said PJC President Dr. Pam Anglin. “That is a big part of why more than two-thirds of all students graduating with bachelor degrees have community college hours as part of that degree.”
The online scholarship application can be found here. High school seniors wanting the summer class scholarship should enter “graduating senior 2019” in the scholarship application box that asks for “semester/year to attend PJC.”
Registration is going on now for summer classes. For questions or more information contact Amie Cato at 903-782-0425 or [email protected] or Sheila Reece at 903-782-0211 or [email protected].
Meet Four More Contestants for Ms. Hopkins County Sr!
Everyone of this year’s field of ten contestants is excited about the Pageant, set for Saturday June 1. Let’s meet four more of the ladies who visited the KSST studios during the Good Morning Show with Enola Gay.
Marjean Allen is a first-year contestant who learned about it through Karon Weatherman at the Senior’s Center,and immediately signed up! Marjean is 65 years old, loves photography, painting and ceramics, and volunteers with Garden Club and 4-H programs. She is also a Master Wellness volunteer with the Agri-Life Extension Service. She has two daughters and four grandchildren. For her talent presentation, Marjean will present a show-and-tell of a collection of her handmade ceramics.
Vender Wright entered the Pageant last year, as soon as she turned 60! Her passion is cooking, for her church and family of course, but she likes to cook for others as a gift she can share,especially during a time of need. Another of her talents is singing, which she will present as her talent at the Pageant.
Pam George is a returning contestant who loves the personal growth provided through the Pageant. Pam is age 65, loves to garden, play the piano and sing. She is the mother of five and grandmother of five. She plans to sing to a track as her talent.
Jan Gray enjoys all kinds of arts and crafts, and even belongs to an International swapmeet organization! Her volunteer time is devoted at the Sulphur Springs Senior Citizen Center, where she joyfully does ‘whatever I am called upon to do”. Jan has two daughters and four grandchildren. For her talent presentation, she will do a comedy skit that’s rather ‘Bewitched’!
Admission is free and the public is invited to enjoy the talent and festivities in the Ballroom of the Hopkins County Civic Center at 6pm Saturday June 1, 2019.
Wildcat Football Camp Takes Place Next Week During the Evening
For years the Wildcat Football Camp for youngsters has been one of the last one’s held during the summer. This year it will be the first. It will also be an evening camp. Camp dates are next Tuesday through Thursday (May 28-30) from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. each day in the Multipurpose Building. Wildcats Football Coach Greg Owens hopes the changes will result in increased attendance. The Camp is for boys entering the third grade through the seventh grade next school year. Coach Owens said this is a non-pad camp that will feature basic fundamentals including passing, catching, blocking and tackling. He said there is a big emphasis on having fun. Coach Owens said seventh graders will be separated and will be introduced to the offense they will have at middle school. He said there will also be talks on leadership, character and how to become a student-athlete on the field and off. Cost of the camp is $20. Sign up forms are available on the school district website atwww.ssisd.net.
