Houston man attempts to fly phones, tobacco, vape pens into prison on drone, DOJ says
Houston resident Davien Phillip Turner, also known as Davien Phillip Mayo, 44, pleaded guilty to owning or operating a drone that was not registered, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas said in a Nov. 8 release.
Federal judge tells Beaumont election officials not to harass or discriminate against Black voters
Claims of misconduct during early voting were raised in a federal lawsuit filed Monday by the Beaumont chapter of the NAACP, accusing election workers of scrutinizing Black voters’ identities and shadowing them while at voting stations
‘Scoundrel’ who targeted elderly victims in fictitious social security scheme sentenced to federal prison, US Atty says
A Washington man who was targeting innocent, unsuspecting seniors across East Texas was sentenced Tuesday to serve time in federal prison for fraud violations, U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston announced.
Glimpse gators in all their glory at these boggy Houston-area locales
Though alligators are plentiful in the rivers, bayous, creeks and backwater sloughs of the eastern third of Texas, the massive creatures can be somewhat elusive. For stellar alligator observation opportunities, try these Texas parks, sanctuaries and wildlife refuges.
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After slow start, Texas lawmakers pick up the pace on GOP priorities as legislative session passes halfway mark
The optimism comes after a two-week stretch dominated by a tense standoff among the House, Senate and Gov. As of Thursday, more than half — 16 — had at least gotten a committee hearing. Senate Bill 25 would give nursing-home residents the right to have a designated caretaker visit them regularly during a public health emergency. On Thursday, a Senate committee approved legislation — SB 3 — that would overhaul the state’s energy industry. AdBy Friday afternoon, Cain’s bill was rescheduled for an April 1 hearing, according to a committee hearing posting notice.
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Push for George Floyd Act during slab ride in Houston
HOUSTON – Over the weekend, there was a call for action to combat police brutality and honor the life of George Floyd. On Sunday, the Texas Coalition of Black Democrats, the Brazoir and Beaumont chapters of the NAACP and other organizations gathered for a slab ride. Several elected leaders were also there, calling on the federal government to pass the George Floyd Act. “Our committee will put on the floor of the House, next week -- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday -- the George Floyd Justice and Policing Act,” said U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Houston). “We will vote on it in the House and with the leadership, my good friend Karen Bass and members of the judiciary committee, we’re here to tell you that bill will be passed.”The slab ride started on Homestead Road near Bretshire Drive in northeast Houston.
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Texas House elects Dade Phelan speaker as 2021 legislative session gets underway
State Rep. Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, held a press conference at the capitol to declare that he had enough votes to become Speaker of the House. (Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune)AUSTIN, Texas – The Texas House on Tuesday elected state Rep. Dade Phelan as the next House speaker, ushering into office a new leader who will oversee a chamber facing its toughest set of legislative challenges in years against the backdrop of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The House voted 143-2 for Phelan, with four members not voting. The two members who voted against Phelan were GOP freshmen Bryan Slaton and Jeff Cason. Phelan, a Beaumont Republican, replaced former House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, who retired from office thanks to a secret recording scandal that fractured relationships in the 150-member lower chamber.
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Police: Beaumont officer shot suicidal man who opened fire
BEAUMONT, Texas (AP) — East Texas police fatally shot a man after he began firing a gun while officers were responding to a call about him being suicidal, authorities said. Officers tried to negotiate with the man, but more than two hours later they called in a SWAT team. The man then began shooting a gun and an officer returned fire, killing him, according to the statement. Police did not release the man’s name, age or the identity of the officer who shot him. No one else was injured during the shooting, which the Beaumont police are investigating.
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Police search home of woman found dead inside trunk of vehicle in Beaumont
HOUSTON – The body of a Houston woman was found in the trunk of a car involved in a high-speed chase that ended in downtown Beaumont Saturday morning, according to a release from the Texas Department of Public Safety. Around 8 a.m., the department received a call regarding a reckless driver, who was driving a white car on Interstate 10 in Beaumont. DPS investigators searched the Honda, which is standard procedure after a car crash. Troopers found the body of a woman in the trunk, according to the release. Sunday morning, Houston police were searching a Houston home located in the 4100 block of Maggie St. Police said evidence found inside the car in Beaumont led them to the residence.
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Texas GOP Chair says party will not "support or accept" Republican Rep. Dade Phelan as next House speaker
Phelan said last week he had support from a "supermajority of the Republican caucus" and a "broad coalition of support" from Democrats. West does not get to vote on the next speaker since he is not a House member. And past speaker candidates, including current Republican House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, who will retire at the end of his term, have claimed support from Democrats in their bids to help get to a majority of votes needed to preside over the House. Phelan, who has served in the lower chamber since 2015 and chairs the powerful House State Affairs Committee, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Phelan filed paperwork to run for speaker after a group of GOP members gathered and picked the lawmaker as their preferred candidate.
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State Rep. Dade Phelan says he has votes to become speaker of Texas House
State Rep. Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, on the House floor in 2019. Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Texas TribuneState Rep. Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, announced Wednesday he has the votes needed to become the next speaker of the Texas House. "The race is over," Phelan said at a noon press conference at the Texas Capitol. On Tuesday night, one Republican in the race, state Rep. Geanie Morrison of Victoria, announced she was backing Ashby for the job. Phelan has served in the House since 2015 and is currently chair of the powerful House State Affairs Committee. He was a top lieutenant of House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, a Republican who will retire at the end of his term thanks to a political scandal last summer.
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State Rep. Dade Phelan files to run for Texas House speaker
At right, Chairman Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, listens to testimonies during a State Affairs committee hearing on Feb. 27, 2019 Credit: Emree Weaver/The Texas TribuneState Rep. Dade Phelan, a Beaumont Republican, filed Sunday evening to run for Texas House speaker, he confirmed to The Texas Tribune. Phelan's filing comes after a group of House Republicans gathered Sunday afternoon and picked the lawmaker as their preferred speaker candidate, according to multiple people familiar with the meeting. During that hours-long meeting, some members expressed concern over holding a vote on a speaker candidate before each party knows the partisan breakdown in the 150-member House. House members will vote on the next speaker on the first day of the 87th legislative session in January. Phelan, who has served in the lower chamber since 2015, chairs the powerful House State Affairs Committee.
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Academy selling official Houston Astros AL Championship apparel immediately following Game 7 clinch
HOUSTON – If the Houston Astros win Game 7 of the American League Championship, the Astros championship merchandise will be immediately available to purchase at Academy Sports + Outdoors stores. The 32 stores in the Houston and Beaumont area will have apparel for sale. While the items can also be purchased online at academy.com.
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Houston hospitals bracing for the storm in the midst of pandemic
While at least seven local hospital campuses are now closed, at least three emergency rooms remain open. They do not anticipate the closed hospital campuses, which include outpatient, wellness centers and orthopedic hospitals, to reopen until at least Friday. Flood gates securedOfficials at the Texas Medical Center in Houston closed the flood gates Wednesday afternoon. Per emergency recommendations, the metal doors close eight hours before any storm makes nearby landfall. Research and our teaching activities within this building were completely halted for many weeks,” said Scott Patlovich, UT Health Assistant VP Environmental Health and Safety.
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Gold in secret vault is traced to Hugo Chvez's former nurse
So Daz allegedly turned to one of the oldest ways of moving vast sums of money anonymously: buying gold. She radically denies having had any gold ingots or any bank account in Liechtenstein, Oliver said. Wire transfers from Panamanian shell companies were routed through CBH to Greenhill and Amblia's accounts at the state-owned Liechtensteinische Landesbank in 2012, according to the Liechtenstein court. However, U.S. prosecutors in their exchanges with Swiss authorities in 2018 suggest the bank had itself been defrauded by Beaumont. The gold bars allegedly belonging to Daz represent just a small fraction of the total amount looted from Venezuela.
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Thousands of Texas prisoners still have the coronavirus. More than 25% of inmates at four units are infected
Two Texas prisons each have more than 670 inmates with active coronavirus infections, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, the highest counts seen at any state lockup since the pandemic began. At the massive Coffield Unit in East Texas, 753 inmates recently tested positive — 19% of prisoners there, according to TDCJ data. Aside from Stiles, three other state-run prisons and jails had at least 25% of their inmates with active coronavirus infections Monday. Since March, more than 12,000 Texas prisoners and 2,100 TDCJ employees at dozens of prisons have had confirmed infections of the new coronavirus. TDCJ began testing all inmates at dozens of units in mid-May, with more than 100,000 coronavirus tests on inmates completed by June 10, according to agency reports.
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Beaumont Mayor criticized for being spotted at nail salon amid coronavirus pandemic
The mayor of Beaumont was catching some backlash after a photo on social media appeared to show her “getting a manicure” at a nail salon amid the coronavirus pandemic and stay at home orders. Mayor Becky Ames responded to 12News after being questioned about the photo that caused a lot of “chatter” on social media. @GregAbbott_TX are you aware that Beaumont, TX Mayor Becky Ames violated your order about nail salons today when the Nail Bar in Beaumont opened to allow her to “buy product”? pic.twitter.com/9GFt6Oosn2 — Gregory Rice (@LetsGoStros2019) April 22, 2020Ames and the nail salon owner explained to the news station that they were removing an old manicure set. According to 12News, the nail salon owner said she left out a bowl of acetone for Ames to remove the set herself.
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Our hurricane history and the 2020 hurricane forecast
Tropical Storm One PATHTropical Storm One 19601960 did not have much action for Texas, but there was Tropical Storm One which is one of those sneaky storms. The next season, 1966, left Texas completely alone and, in fact, didn’t do much to the Gulf:1966 Hurricane PathsBut 1980 was another story. Believe it or not, Tropical Storm Danielle would follow in September, moving into Beaumont where Nederland picked up 18″ of rain. The 1980 season lasted well into November and Texans were glad to see it go. Before Ike, however, was Hurricane Dolly in Brownsville dropping 15″ of rain in Harlingen and causing damage to South Padre.
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Where to see the ballerinas from Beaumont whose photoshoot recently went viral
The dancers who were featured in a photoshoot that went viral earlier this month will put on their spring show this weekend. Earlier this month the ballerinas made headlines with their photos which many media outlets linked to Black History Month. Perry shared the photo on her Facebook page with the caption “fierce, determined and strong.”The viral photoshoot was shared by Good Morning America, People.com and BET.com. By coincidence, the date the families of the dancers agreed on happened to fall during Black History Month, according to People.com. “It just so happened to be February and what better month to do [the photo shoot] in honor of Black History Month.”
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A Texas restaurant opened early to serve a 3-year-old cancer patient her favorite meal
But she still wanted to dine at her favorite restaurant. When J. Wilson's in Beaumont, Texas, heard their tiny customer's desire, they opened up early, decorated in pink and covered the cost of the meal. Battling cancerLunch at the neighborhood favorite J. Wilson's was a family tradition. Then, on her third birthday, Adelaide's pediatrician told Nguyen to get her checked after he observed red spots on her body. The staff decorated the restaurant with Adelaide's favorite color, pink, and made her favorite food: biscuits.
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Patient under investigation for possible coronavirus case in Beaumont, health official say
BEAUMONT, Texas – A patient is under investigation for a possible case of coronavirus in Beaumont, according to city health officials. The Beaumont Public Health Department says it’s working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Texas Department of State Health Services, along with other partners in the monitoring of the patient’s health status. Testing per CDC guideline has been initiated and expedited for confirmation, health officials said. Officials said there is currently no risk to the public. For more information, call Beaumont Public Health Department at 409-654-3603.
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4 Houston men arrested in connection with armored car robbery scheme
BEAUMONT, Texas – Four Houston men were arrested in Beaumont in connection with an armored car robbery scheme, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Texas. Investigators believe the crew is responsible for the October 2019 fatal shooting of an armored car guard in northwest Houston, officials said. RELATED: Armored truck guard shot, killed during northwest Houston robberyAccording to the criminal complaint, the Federal Bureau of Investigation was investigating a series of armored car robberies, including the fatal robbery of a Loomis armored car courier that occurred Oct. 24, 2019, in Houston. RELATED: Dramatic photos show moments before armored truck guard fatally shot in face during robberyA subsequent investigation led officers to the four men arrested. Upon arriving in Lake Charles, the men were observed by law enforcement officers following an armored vehicle that then traveled to Beaumont, officials said.
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One-tank trips: 5 things to do during a weekend excursion to Beaumont
HOUSTON – One-tank trips can take you from Houston to some pretty amazing places. Our ongoing series “One Tank Trips,” helps you discover what to do, and where to eat and stay in these places. Beaumont, TexasDistance from Houston to Beaumont: 86 milesLocated about 90 minutes outside of Houston, Beaumont provides the quaint sense of southern charm that is commonly unseen in large Texas cities. With the popular Beaumont Craft Beer Fest quickly approaching on Sept. 14, here are some other spots and restaurants that visitors should be sure not to miss. Beaumont Craft Beer FestIf you already have tickets to this already sold out beer fest, it is an event that Texas residents should not miss.