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Abilene News: April 1-15, 1996
- 4/15 - Governor in Town Tuesday: Gov. George W. Bush will be
in town Tuesday to help raise funds for the Taylor County Republican Party
and Young Republicans.
He will speak at a Civic Center dinner at 7 p.m.
For more information, call 692-6047.
- 4/14 - House of Yahweh May Be Breaking
Food Stamp Law
- 4/14 - Ranger Recalls Ainsworth: The Citizens for Good Government
were successful in their second try to unseat mayor Ronnie Ainsworth.
....Ranger citizens voted 454 for a recall, 169 against.
....About 72 percent of those qualified to vote did. Two Texas Rangers were
at City Hall all day to make certain things didn't get out of hand.
....No parking around City Hall was allowed unless the occupants came to
vote.
Saturday night after the results of the election were read, cheers erupted
from a good-sized crowd waiting in front of City Hall.
...."I'm tickled to death," said Mary Raines, who has been vocal
against Ainsworth. "I think this is the best thing to happen in Ranger
for a long time."
Wesley Smock, a Ranger police sergeant, disagreed.
"I think Ronnie did more than his best," he said. "He really
did all he could under the circumstances. ... I'm a citizen and a voter.
I'm contesting this election."
The votes will be canvassed at 10 a.m. Monday at City Hall.
- 4/14 - Firefighters Remembered in Merkel: The contributions
of 20 firefighters were remembered Saturday by their colleagues in the Mid-West
District of the Texas Firemen and Fire Marshal's Association.
....During a memorial service at Heritage Hall in Merkel, the Rev. Jim Ritter
of Tye Baptist Church consoled friends and relatives of deceased firefighters
and lady auxiliary members.
...."Greater love has no one than this than to lay down one's life
for his friends," he said. "A lot of times folks don't count firefighters
as a friend (because) they don't seem to know all of them. But they are
a friend."
....The firefighters and auxiliary members who died were from Anson, Haskell,
Merkel, Rotan and Snyder.
- 4/13 (early) - ABWA President Speaks of Cooperation: Men and
women should learn from each other's natural abilities and thenapply them
in the business world, the leader of a national business women's organization
said Friday.
....Carolyn Hunt, national president of the American Business Women's Association,
is in Abilene this weekend, along with 400 other women who areparticipating
in the ABWA's spring conference, themed "Lasso the Spirit."
....The women are spending three days honing their leadership skills, learning
how to manage conflict, and tying physical fitness to success at work.
....Hunt says she sees these kinds of gatherings as a time for the members
to share their lives and work experiences with other women in business.
...."I want for these women to improve their business skills ... accept
challenges in the workplace and really work at being the best they can be,"
Hunt explained.
...."They need to make sure they don't hide their light under a bushel.
They need to make sure both males and females in the workplace know what
they have to offer."
....Cooperation between men and women at work is one of the main issues
she'd like to see her ABWA members focus on.
- 4/13 (early) - Ranger Ballot Boxes Ordered Impounded: A district
judge ordered ballot boxes impounded after an attorney representing the
subject of today's recall election noted an impropriety with the early voting
box.
....Voting will take place today from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. at City Hall on whether
to recall Mayor Ronnie Ainsworth, who is under felony indictment and the
center of ongoing acrimony and suspicion between warring camps here.
....Ranger's attorney, Claudia Clinton of Abilene, said she received a letter
from Ainsworth's attorney stating "there were not two locks on the
(early voting) box" as required by the state's election code.
....Clinton said the code requires two locks with two separate people holding
the keys. Clinton said she contacted City Secretary Donna Hogan and advised
her of the problem.
....Hogan "immediately got another lock and followed proper procedure,"
Clinton said, giving one key to election judge Stephen Lang and holding
onto one herself.
....Clinton then wrote back to Ainsworth's attorney, Keith Woodley of Comanche
and said, "we now have two locks on the box."
....Woodley was out of town and could not be reached for comment.
- 4/12 - Ranger Mayor Eager for Recall
Election to Be Over
- 4/12 - Woman Arrested for Murder: An 8-month-old Abilene girl's
death earned the attention of police investigators recently, and detectives
now believe the death was a homicide.
....Cynthia Ann Seals, 20, was arrested by police Thursday in connection
with the death of her daughter, Kirstian George.
....George died March 27, apparently after being smothered, said Sgt. David
Gage with the Abilene Police Department.
....Seals faces charges of murder in the first degree, and her bond was
set at $50,000, Gage said. She was booked into the Taylor County Jail Thursday
after appearing before Taylor County Justice of the Peace Sam Matta.
....The case initially was worked as a death investigation, Gage said, but
information gleaned from police inquiries led authorities to suspect homicide.
- 4/12 - Abilene's 4th Annual Trash-Off Saturday
- 4/12 (early) - No Shifting of Abilene Election Line: Though
the Abilene City Council may tinker with the city charter, the body doesn't
seem inclined to shift the town's north-south election line to reflect the
population's southerly migration.
....Since the first city charter in 1911, council members have been elected
at-large - three from north of the Union Pacific railroad tracks and three
from south of the railway. In more modern times, Abilene's population has
crept south down Buffalo Gap Road, past the Winters Freeway and into the
Wylie district.
....Council members cite two reasons for resisting a move of the dividing
line.
....First, the population difference between the north and south sides is
minimal. According to city planning department figures, 50,952 Abilenians
live north of the tracks, 61,048 south of them.
...."I'm surprised it's so close," Councilman Ray Ferguson said.
"I'm inclined to leave (the line) alone for a while."
....Second, council members note that although they are elected to at-large
seats based on which side of the city they live, they are selected by all
voters. Council members deny being beholden to their side of town, saying
they are accountable to all.
- 4/11 - House of Yahweh Critic Arrested
- 4/11 - Victor Morales: The Stealth Bomber
of Texas Politics
- 4/11 - Snow Was Costly: Damage estimates have risen into the
millions after last Friday's picturesque but costly snow in Sweetwater.
....Hardest hit was the sprawling Rolling Plains Compress, which sustained
inexcess of $4 million in damage. General Manager Dean Church said the companylost
60,000 bales of storage capacity at the complex located on the west sideof
town.
....Twelve, 30,000-square-foot buildings along with the press building were
atotal loss, Church said.
- 4/10 - Three Ousted in Area Runoffs
- 4/10 (early) - Extra Firefighters Leaving: A team of firefighters
brought in to fight a rash of grass fires last month is packing up and leaving.
....On March 3 a dozen men from various parts of the country, under the
supervision of the U.S. Forest Service, moved to a temporary site at Abilene
Regional Airport to establish a fire retardant base.
....From there, airplanes loaded with the chemical retardant took flight
in an effort to control the plague of fires brought on by an extended drought.
....With the recent rains and snow, the special task force is no longer
needed. Only five men remained at the site Tuesday and they will be gone
by Friday, the spokesman said. The fire retardant equipment will be hauled
back to Phoenix, he said.
....While here, the men dumped about 160,000 gallons of retardant on area
fires, making about 65 trips in a little over a month. Also Blackhawk helicopters
were stationed at the airport and were used to dump large buckets of water
on fires in hard-to-reach places.
- 4/9 - Judge steps down from Bill Chaney's
three cases
- 4/9 - Treasured oak crashes after six centuries
- 4/9 - Runoff Elections Today: Several area counties will have
Democratic Party runoff elections today in addition to the statewide contests.
....Coleman County - Precinct 1 commissioner - Willard Allen, incumbent,
and Jimmie Porter; Precinct 3 commissioner - John Puckett and Doyle Waye
Pyburn
....Fisher County - Precinct 3 commissioner - Perry Paul Thompson and Jay
R. Hendon, incumbent
....Haskell County - County Judge - Bill Perry and David Davis.
....Howard County - Precinct 3 commissioner - Marvin Wise and Bill Mims
....Jones - Sheriff - Mike Middleton, incumbent, and Robby Wedeking
....Kent County - Sheriff/tax assessor-collector - Albert Brown and Charles
Alderman
....Knox County - Precinct 3 commissioner - Jerry Urbanczyk and Daniel Ramirez
....Nolan County - Sheriff - Jim Blackley, incumbent, and Donnie Rannefeld
....Throckmorton County - Sheriff - Greg Dunlap, incumbent, and Ed Taylor
....Stonewall County - Precinct 1 commissioner - Mike Hill and Pat Moorehead
....Stephens County - Precinct 1 commissioner - Jerry Toland, incumbent,
and Al P. Maag
- 4/9 (early) - Texas Midwest Promoting Itself: Communities in
the Texas Midwest Community Network will join forces to promote the region
at consumer shows in San Antonio and Dallas Sunday and April 21.
....Newspapers in both cities will serve as hosts of Weekend Getaway Shows
for familites looking for weekend excursion and vacation ideas.
....Fourteen cities and one business in the Texas Midwest will provide information
in one booth about what they have to offer.
....They include Abilene, Albany, Anson, Baird, Ballinger, Breckenridge,
Brownwood, Coleman, Comanche, Colorado City, De Leon, Hamlin, Snyder and
Sweetwater.
- 4/8 - Wylie Election to be Canceled: Wylie trustees are expected
to cancel the upcoming school board election at tonight.
....The district will save expenses totaling between $1,000 and $1,500 by
canceling the uncontested election.
....The absence of candidates for Dr. Neal Lowry and Wayne Clark means the
district will be among the first to take advantage of a recent revision
in the state's election law - and cancel the election.
....The election code change allows unopposed candidates in school board,
city council and water district elections to be declared elected without
going through the balloting process.
....Wylie will save the expenses of holding an election since no candidates
announced for Lowry's Place 4 or Clark's Place 5 trustee seats.
....Superintendent Cecil Davis is expected to certify that no candidates
filed for either places for the school board at tonight's meeting.
....The board is then expected to declare Lowry and Clark elected and cancel
the May election.
The school board will meet at 7 p.m. in the board room of the Administration
Building, 7049 Buffalo Gap Road.
- 4/7 - Hispanics see Abilene ISD initiative
as positive move
- 4/7 - House of Yahweh: Man attempts
to get family out
- 4/7 - Snow Already Gone: Wintry weather left the Texas Midwest
almost as soon as it had arrived, leaving the area well-watered and in many
cases ahead of annual rainfall totals.
....After months without rain, Abilene's rainfall total actually jumped
to almost a quarter of an inch ahead of the city's average rainfall total
to this point.
....A total of 4.04 inches of moisture has fallen so far this year.
....Abilene's record 9.3 inches of snow, the most ever recorded in the city
in a 24-hour period, was dwarfed by Sweetwater's 18 inches and Maryneal's
12 inches, according to the National Weather Service.
....Precipitation totals from the recent rains and snow across the Big Country
generally ranged between 1.5 and 3 inches.
....Travel returned to normal following the icy conditions that caused several
stretches of U.S. Interstate 20 in Nolan County to be closed. Some areas
retained a hazardous layer of snow and ice early Saturday, with the majority
melting steadily.
- 4/6 - House of Yahweh: One man's view
of Yisrayl Hawkins' world
- 4/6 (early) - Gas Prices Going Up: Gasoline prices in Abilene
are on the rise.
....This week, the most common price for self-serve, unleaded petro rose
three cents to $1.249 a gallon.
....Joe Davis, who heads Skinny's Inc., said increased wholesale prices
and government regulations are shoving the price up.
...."Since Nov. 1, 1995, the wholesale price to us has risen 41 percent,"
he said. "This constant increase forces us to raise the price to stay
in business. Those wholesale prices are driven by supply and demand."
....The wholesale price moves up rapidly as the price of crude rises, but
it declines more slowly when the crude price drops, he said.
- 4/5 - Who Says It's Spring? That cold, dreary rain that slipped
into town Thursday turned into ice and snow Friday morning, much to the
delight of those thirsting for moisture, but not creating a pleasant situation
for local motorists.
....The Abilene area has a 90 percent chance of a slow, steady rain continuing
later today, dropping to about 30 percent tonight, said Susan Fraser, local
National Weather Service meteorologist.
....She described the day as isothermal, meaning temperatures won't fluctuate
much. The forecast calls for a high in the low 40s and a low in the mid-30s.
...."It's nice that we're getting it in this slow, steady rain instead
of downpours because the ground's dry and packed and wouldn't soak it in,"
Fraser said. "It's good for the garden, good for the lawn, and if people
like rain, it's good for the people."
....Abilene recorded about a quarter-inch of much-needed rain Thursday,
the most significant rainfall here in months. The rainfall beats last week's
sleet and snow because snow can fall without a lot of moisture, Fraser said.
....By Saturday, clouds will decrease in the area and temperatures will
rise into the lower 50s.
....By Easter Sunday, temperatures should rise to near 70. But Fraser had
a word of warning for anyone heading to an early morning service.
...."Around sunrise is when we have the coldest temperatures of the
day, so people getting up for sunrise services will be a little nippy if
they don't wear jackets," she said.
- 4/5 - Woman Indicted for Murder of Son: A woman accused of
murdering her 10-month-old son was indicted on injury-to-a-child charges
Thursday.
....Christie Lynn Smart, 17, 1472 Mimosa, faces up to life in prison if
found guilty.
....Her son, Joseph Neil Smart, was taken to the hospital on Jan. 31 with
closed head injuries and died later the same day. Police indicated the injuries
were consistent with shaking of the child; there were no external injuries.
....Both murder and injury to a child are first-degree felonies, punishable
by up to 99 years.
....The state charged Smart on the highest offense it thought applicable,
District Attorney James Eidson said, with injury to a child listed as a
second count. The grand jury chose to move forward on the injury-to-a-child
charge.
....To convict on a murder charge, the prosecution must prove the defendant
knowingly and intentionally sought to cause the child's death. An injury-to-a-child
indictment generally includes a second count that says the defendant recklessly
caused the death.
- 4/5 (early) - Directors Resigning: One decision is forcing
two local agencies to begin searches for executive directors.
....Diane Livingston, executive director of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of
Abilene, has announced her resignation because of her husband's decision
to enter the ministry.
....Bill Livingston, executive director of Abilene Regional Mental Health/Mental
Retardation Center, met with the center's personnel committee Thursday to
officially announce his resignation.
....He has served as MH/MR director since September 1992 and has been approved
by the Diocese of Northwest Texas to enter the ordained ministry of the
Episcopal Church. He will attend the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the
Southwest in Austin beginning in August.
....Diane Livingston has served with Big Brothers/Big Sisters for approximately
three years - initially as program director and as executive director since
October 1995.
- 4/4 ...Dyess Hospital Alternatives: Officials at Dyess Air
Force Base are looking into Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital as a possible
alternative to military hospitals.
....Lt. Col. Bob Blum and several ranking members of his staff received
a quick course Wednesday in administration and the capabilities of a small
civilian hospital when they toured the Sweetwater hospital.
....Blum said the tour was part of a mission to gain information about neighboring
civilian hospitals.
....As the American military establishment downsizes, Blum said, there might
be additional need to make use of nearby civilian hospitals for dependent
care and other services.
....After an hour-long overview session with Rolling Plains administrators,
the Dyess officers were taken on a detailed tour of the hospital, including
surgical pediatrics, intensive care and food service.
- 4/4 (early)...Last Day to Register: Today is the last day citizens
can register to vote in the May 4 local elections. Voters can register at
their county courthouses in the elections office or the county clerk's office.
....Early voting begins April 15 and ends April 30.
....Abilene voters will be choosing a mayor, two City Council members, and
two school board members.
- 4/4 (early)...Bankruptcy Changes: Within weeks, debtors will
no longer file for bankruptcy in Abilene federal court, an inconvenience
caused by a crushing case load.
....Tentatively scheduled to begin April 15, local petitions must be mailed
directly to the Lubbock bankruptcy court, which processes all cases initially
filed in the Abilene division.
....Federal court officials explain the change is being forced by a ballooning
work load on Abilene's two district court clerks, who, though not bankruptcy
clerks, have historically filed the petitions as a public service.
....Bankruptcy filings have soared in the past few months. More than 200
bankruptcies have been filed through the first three months of 1996 compared
to 419 all of last year. And since the opening of the Robertson and Middleton
prison units, the district court has been flooded with civil suits filed
by inmates.
- 4/3...To Ban or Not to Ban: County commissioners are finding
themselves in the hot seat trying to mediate between ranchers and farmers
who need to burn off grass and firefighters who daily see those "controlled
burns" get out of control.
....Area county commissioners courts almost weekly either issue a ban on
burning or lift an existing ban to accommodate rural residents who want
to burn off coastal bermuda grass or unwanted growth.
...."We understand that and deal with it every year," Eastland
Assistant Fire Chief Mark Pipkin said of the need for controlled burns.
....But he said this year is different because of the extended dryness,
and everyone needs to adjust.
....In Eastland and Taylor counties on Tuesday, commissioners reinstated
a countywide ban on outdoor burning. Callahan County last Friday lifted
its ban, but County Judge Bill Johnson Tuesday issued a plea that anyone
burning outdoors notify the sheriff's department first.
- 4/3...Price-fixing Lawsuit: San Angelo and Big Spring gasoline
distributors were hit Tuesday with a multimillion-dollar lawsuit alleging
widespread, long-term price fixing.
....Texas Attorney General Dan Morales accused six companies and three individuals
of conspiring to inflate Big Spring gasoline prices four cents per gallon.
....The companies face penalties of up to $1 million per violation, and
three company officials could be hit with $100,000 fines for each violation.
....High gasoline prices in West Texas, an area of heavy petroleum production,
has been a frequent topic of speculation among consumer groups, newspaper
editors and investigators.
- 4/3...Appreciation Day Moved: Big Country Appreciation Day,
Dyess Air Force Base's annual airshow, has been rescheduled for Sept. 8
- but Dyess officials promise it'll be worth the wait.
....Dyess officials said the air show was moved back from May 18 in order
to ensure the most popular act of recent airshows - the Air Force Thunderbirds
flight demonstration team.
- 4/2... AISD and Hispanics: Hispanic students in the Abilene
ISD are in a race for success, and many of them are winning.
....AISD's track record reveals higher test scores, lower dropout rates
and an increase in the number of Hispanic teachers and administrators, proving
it has made great gains with its Hispanic population over the last six years.
....Superintendent Charles Hundley, board member Carlos Rodriguez and Carol
Martinez presented the district's strategies for student and staff achievement
at a National School Boards Association conference in March.
....Rodriguez repeated his presentation to the school board during Monday
night's meeting.
"I really do feel like we're going in the right direction," Rodriguez
said. "We've made big strides on issues related to Hispanics, and Mr.
Hundley deserves a lot of credit for that."
- 4/2...Landis News Conference: In a hospital news conference
Monday, Ray Corky Landis said he won't be on the campaign trail much but
vowed he's got ideas and experience enough to make a good mayor.
....The disabled, self-described one-time "troubleshooter" told
reporters his health ailment, which already has cost him toes and may cost
him a foot, will slow his politicking but that won't prevent him from being
an "effective mayor."
....Landis, 49, is at Hendrick Medical Center with a foot infection related
to diabetes.
- 4/1...Death Investigation Pending: Heart problems may have
caused the death of an Abilene man found inside a pickup Wednesday at Seabee
Park.
....Jones County Peace Justice Marolon Smith said the preliminary autopsy
report shows cardiopulmonary arrest as the probable cause of death for the
40-year-old man.
...."Although there were no obvious signs of foul play, an autopsy
was ordered to determine the exact cause of death," said Smith. "At
this time, there is nothing to indicate the death was a homicide."
....The investigation is pending until the arrival of the final autopsy
report in a few weeks.
- 4/1...Five Hurt in Wreck: Five people were treated and released
from an Abilene hospital after a car accident Sunday afternoon east of Merkel.
....Department of Public Safety trooper Jamie Duke said Rule Perry was eastbound
in a 1991 Ford Taurus on business loop 20, when he turned in front of Marsha
Tutt, who was westbound in a Chevrolet Beretta, on the south access road
of Interstate 20.
....Tutt, 28, of Merkel, was taken to Hendrick Medical Center, along with
four of her five passengers.
....They were Lucinda Patterson, 29, Michael Tutt, 31, and Robert White,
3, all of Merkel; and Nicholas Williams, 17, of Abilene.
....Larry Davis, 34, of Merkel, also a passenger in Tutt's car, and Perry,
84, of Merkel, were not treated by ambulance personnel, said Duke.
Duke said Perry failed to yield the right-of-way to Tutt when he turned
to head towards the Interstate 20 underpass.
All content copyright 1996, The Abilene Reporter-News and Reporter
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