Austin news

• Round Rock firefighters win 3rd straight fire truck pull, raise money for Special Olympics

  17-06-2017 22:54 via kxan.com
  
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — When it gets this hot, you’re supposed to take it easy, right? That wasn’t the case this afternoon in Round Rock as the temperature gauge topped 100 degrees at Camp Mabry for the first time in 2017.
  Central Texans formed teams of 12 members to compete in three divisions in the annual Round Rock Fire Truck Pull — public safety division, gym division and community division.
  The teams put their biceps to use to see which one can pull a 55,000-
  
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• Community teams challenge each other at Round Rock Fire Truck Pull

  17-06-2017 22:54 via kxan.com
  
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — Central Texans of all stripes — friends, family, colleagues — gathered in Round Rock Saturday to team up and see if they could pull a Round Rock fire engine 75 feet in the fastest time.
  The annual Round Rock Fire Truck Pull event raises money to benefit more than 4,000 Special Olympics Texas athletes with intellectual disabilities in the Central Texas Area.
  Members of the community entered in teams of 12 and put their biceps to use to pull the 55,000
  
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• Mike Collier kicks off bid for Texas lieutenant governor

  17-06-2017 21:41 via kxan.com
  
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (AP) — A Texas Democratic Party’s former finance chairman and a failed state comptroller candidate has formally launched his challenge of Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
  Mike Collier made his 2018 lieutenant governor campaign announcement Saturday at a rally in Round Rock, near Austin.
  Collier, who’s an accountant from Houston, was 2014’s Democratic nominee for comptroller, but lost to Republican Glenn Hegar.
  Collier has for months said he planned to ch
  
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• Man stabbed in south Austin, police searching for 4 suspects

  17-06-2017 19:31 via kxan.com
  
  KXAN (AUSTIN)– Police are searching for four suspects in connection to a stabbing at a parking lot of an apartment complex in South Austin. The apartment complex is just north of the Walmart on East Ben White Boulevard
  Police say they received a call around 11:49 a.m. Saturday of an adult man suffering from a single stab wound. Austin-Travis County EMS transported the man to St. David’s Medical Center in serious condition. It’s unclear what lead to the stabbing.
  Polic
  
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• The Latest: Prosecutor says Cosby accuser deserves verdict

  17-06-2017 16:34 via kxan.com
  
  NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — The Latest on Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial (all times local):
  11:55 a.m.
  Prosecutors in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault case are praising the accuser and say she’s “entitled to a verdict in this case.”
  District Attorney Kevin Steele spoke to reporters after the judge declared a mistrial Saturday.
  Steele says he’s disappointed the jury was unable to reach a unanimous decision.
  He says he’ll retry Cosby on charges the 79-year-
  
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• The Latest: For Bill Cosby, 2nd sex assault trial ahead

  17-06-2017 16:34 via kxan.com
  
  NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — The Latest on Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial (all times local):
  11 p.m.
  Bill Cosby and his team declared victory after jurors in his sexual assault trial deadlocked and a judge declared a mistrial.
  But prosecutors say they will retry Cosby on charges he drugged and molested Temple University employee Andrea Constand at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. Cosby says the encounter was consensual.
  Jurors deliberated more than 52 hours over six days before a
  
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• The Latest: Cosby side declares victory, goes on attack

  17-06-2017 16:34 via kxan.com
  
  NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — The Latest on Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial (all times local):
  11 a.m.
  The defense side in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial is declaring victory and going on the attack after jurors deadlocked and the judge declared a mistrial.
  Spokesman Andrew Wyatt said Saturday that “Cosby’s power is back.”
  Cosby’s wife, Camille Cosby, slammed prosecutors for bringing the case to court. She issued a statement calling District Attorney Kevin
  
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• The Latest: Cosby accuser thanks prosecutors after mistrial

  17-06-2017 16:34 via kxan.com
  
  NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — The Latest on Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial (all times local):
  12:35 p.m.
  Bill Cosby’s chief accuser is thanking prosecutors for taking her case after a jury failed to agree on a verdict.
  Lawyers for Andrea Constand issued a statement on her behalf Saturday. It says the trial has “given a voice to the many victims who felt powerless and silenced.”
  Constand accuses the 79-year-old entertainer of drugging and molesting her at his Philadelphi
  
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• The Latest: Bill Cosby faces retrial in sex assault case

  17-06-2017 16:34 via kxan.com
  
  NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — The Latest on Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial (all times local):
  8 p.m.
  Prosecutors in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial have vowed to try him a second time.
  A suburban Philadelphia judge declared a mistrial on Saturday after a jury insisted it was hopelessly deadlocked on charges the 79-year-old TV star drugged and molested Temple University employee Andrea Constand at his Philadelphia-area home in 2004. Cosby says the encounter was consensual.
  Distric
  
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• Juneteenth celebrations to cause road closures in Austin

  17-06-2017 16:06 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A long standing tradition will take over Central Texas Saturday, with it will come road closures. The community is invited to come out to take part in Juneteenth.
  The annual celebration commemorates the end of formal slavery in Texas on June 19 1865 — two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.
  The events kick off in Austin this morning with a parade starting at 10 a.m. at Martin Luther King Boulevard and Comal Street. Then at
  
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• Central Texas celebrates Juneteenth with parade, festival and more

  17-06-2017 16:06 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A celebration made its way through the streets of Austin Saturday morning as a marching band and more got people dancing during the annual Juneteenth parade.
  “We can come out with the family and get to see us celebrate a diverse section of people of Austin,” said attendee Vennie Davis. “And it’s a beautiful occasion: Celebrating freedom!”
  The annual celebration commemorates when African American slaves in Texas learned about the end of slavery
  
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• US, Japan search for 7 Navy sailors, puzzle over ship crash

  17-06-2017 16:01 via kxan.com
  
  YOKOSUKA, Japan (AP) — U.S. and Japanese vessels and aircraft searched Saturday for seven American sailors who were missing after their Navy destroyer collided before dawn with a container ship four times its size off the coast of Japan.
  The USS Fitzgerald was back at its home port in Yokosuka Naval Base south of Tokyo by sunset Saturday, its crew lined up on deck. The Philippine-flagged container ship was berthed at Tokyo’s Oi wharf, where officials began questioning crew members ab
  
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• Several sailors’ bodies found on stricken Navy destroyer

  17-06-2017 16:01 via kxan.com
  
  YOKOSUKA, Japan (AP) — Navy divers found a number of sailors’ bodies Sunday aboard the stricken USS Fitzgerald that collided with a container ship in the busy sea off Japan, but a spokeswoman said not all seven missing had been accounted for.
  Searchers gained access to the spaces that were damaged during the collision and brought the remains to Naval Hospital Yokosuka where they will be identified, the Navy said in a statement. Seven sailors had been missing, but Yoko Kato, a spokesw
  
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• Search continues for US sailors after ship crash off Japan

  17-06-2017 16:01 via kxan.com
  
  YOKOSUKA, Japan (AP) — The U.S. Navy said Sunday that the search is continuing for seven missing American sailors in the sea off Japan, after a huge cargo ship collided with a Navy destroyer.
  U.S. and Japanese vessels and aircraft have been looking for the missing crew members of the USS Fitzgerald, which crashed with a container ship four times its size in the pre-dawn hours Saturday.
  In a tweet Sunday, the Navy said the search is continuing. It said it remains uncertain how long it will
  
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• Mysterious ship crash off Japan leaves 7 US sailors missing

  17-06-2017 16:01 via kxan.com
  
  YOKOSUKA, Japan (AP) — U.S. and Japanese vessels and aircraft searched Saturday for seven American sailors who were missing after their Navy destroyer collided before dawn with a container ship four times its size off the coast of Japan.
  The USS Fitzgerald was back at its home port in Yokosuka Naval Base south of Tokyo by sunset Saturday, its crew lined up on deck. The Philippine-flagged container ship was berthed at Tokyo’s Oi wharf, where officials began questioning crew members ab
  
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• Summer Fan Drive raises more than $120K

  17-06-2017 06:05 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — More than $120,000 was raised in the Summer Fan Drive.
  Family Eldercare says Friday was a huge success, and it’s not too late to donate. Go to our donation link here.
  A reminder: this is the beginning of the fan drive, not the end. KXAN mascot Kaxan made his second appearance of the night signing “pawtographs” at Hanover’s happy hour on Interstate 35 Friday evening, as around 360 fans were donated throughout the day.That's a wrap! THANK YOU to everyo
  
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• New ‘solar-ready’ requirements add to Austin building costs

  17-06-2017 05:15 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Come Oct. 1, virtually all new homes and commercial buildings in Austin will need to be built “solar-ready.” That means they must have enough space on their roofs to add solar panels. The outside electrical box also has to be large enough to incorporate a circuit-breaker for future solar technology.
  City Council approved the move Thursday night, with just Council Member Ellen Troxclair against the ordinance, but those in the building industry warn the requiremen
  
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• The wrong kind of US Open history: Top 3 all miss cut

  17-06-2017 03:39 via kxan.com
  
  ERIN, Wis. (AP) — Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Jason Day made the wrong kind of history at the U.S. Open.They’re all leaving early.
  For the first time since the Official World Golf Ranking began in 1986, Nos. 1, 2 and 3 all missed the cut in a major. Johnson capped off this collective failure with a late collapse on the back nine at Erin Hills, making three bogeys over a five-hole stretch and closing with a 73.
  He three-putted on No. 13. He hammered a chip from just short of the
  
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• Newest DPS trooper honors father’s legacy

  17-06-2017 03:21 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (NEXSTAR) — As the commanding staff swore in the newest class of Texas Department of Public Safety troopers and issued credentials to the group, one member of the duty roster stood out.
  Johnny Karlton Keesee, of Brownwood, Texas, walked up when his name was called, saluted the director of DPS, Steven McCraw, and received his credentials in front of his father’s uniform.
  His dad, Sergeant William “Karl” Keesee died in the line of duty on Oct. 29, 2015 at age 49, acc
  
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• Body found in Lady Bird Lake near South Lakeshore Boulevard

  17-06-2017 02:53 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — First responders descended on the south shore of Lady Bird Lake, just east of the Interstate 35 bridge, after the body of a man was was found in the water, Friday evening.
  Austin-Travis County EMS says the victim is in his 30s. Austin police, investigating at the scene, do not believe the death to be suspicious at this time.
  At 7:04 p.m., the Austin Fire Department water rescue task force was called to the 2000 block of Lakeshore Blvd.
  A paddleboarder initially alerted auth
  
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• Austin hit-and-run victim wonders why no charges filed months after crash

  17-06-2017 02:36 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — It’s going to take time — if it happens at all — until an Austin man is able to walk normally again.
  The motorcycle Joel Benson was riding back in February smashed into a car that turned in front of him. Police say the car then drove off, leaving Benson in the road with a fractured skull and shattered knee that required metal plates and pins to put back together.
  Months later, Benson’s workout three times a week for at least the next few is physical
  
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• Group accuses AISD of exaggerating unsafe conditions at T.A. Brown Elementary

  17-06-2017 02:23 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Travis County Taxpayers Union is asking the Austin Independent School District to halt the demolition plans for T.A. Brown Elementary School.
  TCTU Director and former Austin City Council Member Don Zimmerman wants a second opinion on the structural condition of the foundation, after an engineer’s report uncovered structural problems in November of 2016, and led the district to make the call to close the campus for the remainder of the school year.
  “I th
  
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• Group accuses AISD of exaggerating unsafe conditions at Brown Elementary

  17-06-2017 02:23 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Travis County Taxpayers Union is asking the Austin Independent School District to halt the demolition plans for T.A. Brown Elementary School.
  TCTU Director and former Austin City Council Member Don Zimmerman wants a second opinion on the structural condition of the foundation, after an engineer’s report uncovered structural problems in November of 2016, and led the district to make the call to close the campus for the remainder of the school year.
  “I th
  
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• Public failed to call Austin 911 to report two separate crimes within days

  17-06-2017 01:30 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin police say they were not notified of an aggressive encounter Thursday between a panhandler offering to wash car windows and a driver until the media asked law enforcement for information about the video that had already circulated on social media. In fact, police said no one reported it until more than three hours had passed.
  The video, taken by Kristi Hammonds at around 4:30 p.m. at US 183 and Interstate 35, starts when the driver is already out his car. Hammonds te
  
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• 7 U.S. Navy crew members missing after destroyer collides with ship

  17-06-2017 01:25 via kxan.com
  
  TOKYO (AP) — Seven crew members are reportedly missing and one injured after a U.S. Navy destroyer collided early Saturday morning with a merchant ship off the coast of Japan, the country’s coast guard reported.
  Footage from the Japanese TV network NHK showed heavy damage to the mid-right side of the Navy ship, which appeared to be stationary in the water, and a person in a stretcher being lifted to a helicopter.
  The U.S. 7th Fleet said on its Facebook page that it is working with th
  
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• Vasectomy reversal technology makes Austin a top spot for the surgery

  17-06-2017 00:54 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Nationwide, half a million men undergo vasectomies every year to keep unwanted pregnancies at bay. But, when the patient changes his mind, there are a couple of choices: Robot or human reversal?
  Now, technology is making Austin one of the top destinations for vasectomy reversals.
  Jon Nash, 47, didn’t think he would have pool time with his children. Nearly 15 years ago, he had a vasectomy. Then, he met his wife, Madeleine, who wanted children.
  “We had some v
  
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• Typhoon Texas offers free entry for fathers this weekend

  17-06-2017 00:35 via kxan.com
  
  PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — With temperatures expected to hit triple digits this weekend, a trip to the water park might be the best bet.
  This week, Pflugerville’s Typhoon Texas is offering free entry to dads on Father’s Day. The deal is good for Saturday or Sunday. However, in order to get the free ticket for fathers, you must purchase a regular admission ticket for someone taller tthan 48 inches.
  The park is open is open from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday, and 10:30
  
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• Trump thrusts US, Cuba back toward hostile relations

  17-06-2017 00:10 via kxan.com
  
  MIAMI (AP) — Pressing “pause” on a historic detente, President Donald Trump thrust the U.S. and Cuba back on a path toward open hostility Friday with a blistering denunciation of the island’s communist government. He clamped down on some commerce and travel but left intact many new avenues President Barack Obama had opened.
  Even as Trump predicted a quick end to President Raul Castro’s regime, he challenged Cuba to negotiate better agreements for Americans, Cubans a
  
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