June 27, 2018

Police say Grapevine man hung doll with noose outside black neighbor's apartment

Dante Petty, 28, says that when he moved to Grapevine in June 2017 with his young daughter, he immediately began to have problems with his white neighbor in the apartment below him.

Petty, who is black, said in a Facebook post at the time that it began with Glenn Halfin, 64, throwing eggs and dog feces on his car.

Petty could not be reached for comment. But he said on Facebook that a video camera he put outside his apartment captured Halfin, a former firefighter and arson investigator, tying a rope around the neck of a doll and hanging it from a railing in December.

Halfin was arrested in January by Grapevine police and charged with stalking, Tarrant County court records show.

On Friday, federal prosecutors in Dallas charged Halfin with a misdemeanor civil rights offense: interference with the right to fair housing, which makes it a crime to threaten a person's housing rights due to factors such as their race or color.

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2018/06/26/police-say-grapevine-man-hung-doll-noose-outside-black-neighbors-apartment

June 27, 2018

Hearing set for woman responsible for "F- Trump" bumper sticker

A new hearing date has been set for the woman responsible for the “F— Trump” bumper sticker accused of fraudulent possession or use of identifying information.

On July 31, Judge Maggie Perez-Jaramillo will consider felony charges against Fort Bend County resident Karen Fonseca, who is accused of using credit cards that belonged to a person she lived with without permission.

Houston Attorney Brian Middleton, who represents Fonseca, says his client intents to fight the charges for as long as necessary.

Fonseca was arrested last November after Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls created a social media controversy via a Facebook post threatening to file disorderly conduct charges against the driver of a truck displaying a profane anti-Trump message on its rear window.

Read more: https://www.chron.com/neighborhood/sugarland/news/article/Hearing-set-for-woman-responsible-for-F-13018471.php

June 27, 2018

Pregnant border crosser rescued from island in raging Rio Grande

A pregnant border crosser was rescued Sunday from the Rio Grande by U.S. border agents after high waters and intense currents stranded her on an island.

The Honduran woman was spotted after she waved at agents patrolling near the Eagle Pass Port of Entry, authorities said.

"The Rio Grande River can be a dangerous force of nature," said Felix Chavez, chief patrol agent for the Del Rio Sector. "Due to the watchfulness of our agents, a potentially life-threatening emergency was avoided on Sunday in Eagle Pass. I am very proud of everyone involved in this latest rescue."

The woman was not injured and was taken to the Eagle Pass South Station, where she was handed over to immigration officials because of her illegal status.

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/immigration/2018/06/26/pregnant-border-crosser-rescued-island-raging-rio-grande

June 27, 2018

Former Texas state Sen. Carlos Uresti sentenced to 12 years in prison on fraud charges

AUSTIN — A federal judge on Tuesday sentenced former state Sen. Carlos Uresti to 12 years in prison.

The San Antonio Democrat, who officially resigned Thursday, was found guilty in February of 11 felonies, including fraud and money laundering.

According to the San Antonio Express-News, Uresti must pay $6.3 million in restitution to his victims and will be free on bond until his next trial on Oct. 22.

The Express-News reported that prosecutors were seeking at least 17.5 years in prison.

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/texas-legislature/2018/06/26/ex-sen-carlos-uresti-sentenced-12-years-jail

June 26, 2018

Protesters across Dallas-Fort Worth hope rallies against immigrant separation will bring change

Hundreds of North Texans plan to protest the separation of immigrant children from their parents Saturday by participating in Dallas-Fort Worth events as part of a series of nationwide demonstrations.

More than 628 events have been planned in all 50 states to “send a clear message to Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress,” according to Families Belong Together — a coalition of advocacy and civil-rights groups including the American Civil Liberties Union, MoveOn, United We Dream, Women’s March and the YWCA.

In Dallas, a rally at 10 a.m. Saturday at City Hall will be followed by a march at 11 a.m. A psychologist will speak about the trauma that detained immigrant children experience, and a representative from the Democratic Party will be available to register people to vote.

Michelle Wentz, who planned the Dallas march, hopes for 1,500 to 2,000 attendees. She said it has been “absolutely incredible” to witness her community’s empathy and passion for this immigration issue.

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/immigration/2018/06/26/protesters-across-dallas-fort-worth-hope-rallies-immigrant-separation-will-bring-change

June 26, 2018

Austin's paid sick leave ordinance draws criticism during court hearing

The city of Austin’s paid sick leave ordinance had its first day in court Monday, when the City Council’s lone Republican, Ellen Troxclair, expressed her misgivings about the law, which is scheduled to take effect Oct. 1.

The hearing Monday before state District Judge Tim Sulak came after several business groups, including the Texas Association of Business, the National Federation of Independent Business and the American Staffing Association, sought a temporary injunction against implementing the ordinance until its legality can be determined.

After 2½ hours of testimony, the hearing recessed at 5 p.m. without a ruling on the injunction request. The hearing will resume at 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Robert Henneke, an attorney for the Texas Public Policy Foundation who’s arguing on behalf of the business groups opposed to the ordinance, said he plans to call two more witnesses. The court also might hear arguments on other motions in the case.

Read more: https://www.mystatesman.com/news/local/city-paid-sick-leave-ordinance-draws-criticism-during-court-hearing/AB3O9c8LtXqi6h9Jits6gN/

June 26, 2018

Former 'First Lady of Aggieland,' Reveille VIII, dies at age 12

Reveille VIII, the "First Lady of Aggieland" and former Texas A&M University mascot, died Monday after a brief illness, the university said.

The collie, who served from August 2008 until her retirement in May 2015, was 12 years old.

Reveille fell ill early Saturday and was taken to the university's College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital.

"She had a disease that involved her liver, her spleen, and many of her muscles," Dr. Kate Creevy, associate professor of small animal internal medicine, said in a written statement. "We could see this was a source of pain for her and not something that we wanted to ask her to fight."

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/texas/2018/06/25/former-first-lady-aggieland-reveille-viii-dies-age-12

June 26, 2018

Dallas-based investor sues NPR for $57M for pointing to him as source of Seth Rich story retracted

Dallas-based investor sues NPR for $57 million for pointing to him as source of Seth Rich story retracted by Fox News


Dallas-based investor Ed Butowsky is suing NPR and reporter David Folkenflik for $57 million in damages after Folkenflik reported that a federal lawsuit stated that Butowsky had worked with the White House to influence a retracted Fox News report that enflamed conspiracy theories about murdered Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich.

Fox News published and then retracted story in May 2017 which hinted that Rich sent internal DNC emails to Wikileaks, stating that the report didn’t meet their editorial standards. D.C. police believe Rich’s 2016 death was a robbery gone wrong.

Butowsky, who has been a guest on Fox News, filed the lawsuit Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. The lawsuit said Butowsky has suffered loss of business and mental and physical suffering because of the alleged defamation.

Isabel Lara, NPR senior director of media relations, said Folkenflik and the network stand behind the reporting.

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/courts/2018/06/25/dallas-based-investor-sues-npr-57-million-pointing-source-seth-rich-story-retracted-fox-news

Fox News has editorial standards?

June 26, 2018

Texas robbers scald boy in bathtub to make his dad hand over valuables

Three masked men burst into a Houston-area home early Monday and held a boy under hot water to get the child's father to tell them where the valuables were.

The Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office said that it was alerted to the home invasion around 3 a.m. Two adults and two children were sleeping at the home in Richmond, about 20 miles west of Houston, KHOU-TV reported.

The father told authorities that the three masked men broke down the front door and attacked him.

The robbers then put held a 7-year-old boy in the bathtub and ran hot water on him in an attempt to make the father reveal where cash and other items were in the home. They ransacked the home for almost an hour, Sheriff Troy Nehls said.

Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2018/06/25/robbers-scald-boy-in-bathtub

June 26, 2018

Can Sports Betting Do for Atlantic City What Donald Trump Couldn't?

ATLANTIC CITY — The last time there was so much hype about the future of this troubled seaside resort, Donald J. Trump was doing most of the hyping.

The president, then a casino impresario, opened the Trump Taj Mahal, the biggest gambling venue on the boardwalk, with great fanfare and at a cost of $1.2 billion in 1990, only to have it collapse into bankruptcy the following year. After years of decline, it shut down in 2016, seemingly consigned to symbolize the ruinous excess here during the Trump era.

But now, less than two years later, the old Taj, stripped of its faux minarets, concrete elephants and any evidence of the Trump name, is about to reopen as the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. On the same day, June 28, another failed casino — the epically disastrous Revel — is being reanimated a short stroll up the boardwalk as the Ocean Resort.

These revivals are scheduled just as New Jersey’s casinos scramble to cash in on another way of separating gamblers from their savings: wagering on sporting events. The Borgata casino started taking bets on sports on June 14 and others, including the Ocean Resort, are rushing to install sports books in prominent spots on their casino floors. Adding a popular form of gambling could help draw customers during the dreary winter months.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/25/nyregion/casino-atlantic-city-sports-betting-donald-trump.html