Austin news

• State Rep. Phil King declares candidacy for Texas House speaker

  22-09-2017 23:53 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (Texas Tribune) — State Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford, announced Friday that he has filed paperwork to run to be the next speaker of the Texas House.
  “Over the past several months, many of my colleagues have encouraged me to consider running for Speaker,” King said in a statement. “In order to have an open discussion concerning the future of our Texas House, I have filed the required paperwork to declare my candidacy for Speaker.”
  The current speaker, Sa
  
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• Austin pilot sentenced for transporting marijuana in his plane

  22-09-2017 23:37 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An Austin pilot will have to spend 37 months in federal prison and pay a fine after he tried to distribute marijuana using his plane.
  Wayne Douglas Brunet, 65, was sentenced Friday on a charge of possession with intent to distribute between 50 and 100 kilograms of marijuana.
  Authorities arrested Brunet March 20 at the Llano Municipal Airport after they found $5,400 and about 206 pounds of hydroponic marijuana inside 15 duffel bags in his plane. According to a statement from
  
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• Two Bandidos plead guilty to charges connected to rival’s murder

  22-09-2017 23:06 via kxan.com
  SAN ANTONIO, Texas (KXAN) — Two high-ranking leaders of a motorcycle gang pleaded guilty to federal charges in a San Antonio courtroom Friday in connection to the murder of a Hell’s Angel in 2006.
  Johnny Romo, 47, and Robert Romo, 47, each pleaded guilty to one count of Murder in Aid of Racketeering and one count of Aiding and Abetting Using and Discharging a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence. Both are members of the Bandidos Outlaw Motorcycle Organization, and fa
  
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• DeVos releases new guidelines for college sex assault cases

  22-09-2017 22:39 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — After months of discussions, Education Secretary Betsy De Vos released new guidelines Friday for how schools should handle sexual assault allegations on their campuses. Sexual assault victim advocates say the changes will give greater protections to the accused, not the victim.
  These temporary policies allow colleges to increase the amount of evidence needed to convict students of sexual assault or rape. This means victims will have face a larger burden in proving a student
  
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• College students, advocates react to DeVos’ new guidelines for college sex assault cases

  22-09-2017 22:39 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — After months of discussions, Education Secretary Betsy De Vos released new guidelines Friday for how schools should handle sexual assault allegations on their campuses. Sexual assault victim advocates say the changes will give greater protections to the accused, not the victim.
  These temporary policies allow colleges to increase the amount of evidence needed to convict students of sexual assault or rape. This means victims will have face a larger burden in proving a student
  
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• Man awarded $1.3M after surveillance video contradicts deputies’ version of arrest

  22-09-2017 22:37 via kxan.com
  A federal jury awarded a Central Texas man more than $1.3 million in response to a civil lawsuit against Caldwell County deputies who  arrested him on charges that were never prosecuted by the district attorney’s office.
  Lawrence Faulkenberry was also awarded $350,000 in punitive damages related to a deputy who initiated a leg sweep, his attorney said.
  “Our client feels vindicated,” said attorney Karl Seelbach, of Doyle & Seelbach PLLC. “If there’s one thin
  
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• Driver pulls children from burning school bus

  22-09-2017 22:04 via kxan.com
  KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KSHB) —  A quick-thinking bus driver is being called a hero after saving elementary students from a school bus that caught fire Thursday afternoon in Missouri.
  Video taken in south Kansas City shows flames erupting from the engine consume the entire vehicle in a matter of seconds.
  “You could see the smoke and fire getting inside the cab of the bus,” said James Davis.
  Davis pulled up as the bus driver was evacuating students from the bus.
  “He had bac
  
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• Equifax breach may not mean new federal laws

  22-09-2017 21:40 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Prospects are good for a public shaming in the Equifax data breach, but it’s unlikely Congress will institute sweeping new regulations after hackers accessed the personal information of an estimated 143 million Americans.
  Since early this year, President Donald Trump and the Republican-led Congress have strived to curb government’s influence on businesses, arguing that regulations stifle economic growth. Lawmakers have repealed more than a dozen Obama-era rule
  
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• VIDEO: Mother, daughter accused of beating driver in road-rage encounter

  22-09-2017 20:11 via kxan.com
  PASCO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – Two women in Florida face battery charges after a witness recorded them beating another woman during a road-rage encounter.
  Investigators said at 3:45 p.m. on Tuesday, mother and daughter, Shelley Lyn Gemberling, 49, and Alicia Nicole Scarduzio, 20, got into an argument with Emily Bailey at an intersection in New Port Richey.
  Bailey was inside her vehicle, which was in the left lane of the road. Gemberling and Scarduzio’s vehicle was in the right lane.
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• Salvation Army now accepting applications for Angel Tree

  22-09-2017 19:54 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — With Christmas only three months away, the Salvation Army is opening registration for its 2017 Angel Tree program.
  Families who may qualify are invited to call 512-445-2003 or 512-993-4654 Monday-Friday for an appointment. Once an appointment date is set, families applying to the Angel Tree program must bring certain documentation.
  The annual Angel Tree Program provides toys and clothing to children in families experiencing financial hardship. Last year, more than 6,50
  
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• Raccoon hitches a ride on a patrol car

  22-09-2017 19:11 via kxan.com
  COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KXAN) — A Colorado Springs police officer recently came across a masked culprit clinging to his patrol car.
  According to the agency’s Facebook post, the perpetrator was a furry raccoon. The officer was on his way to a crash call when he noticed the raccoon on the hood of his car.
  The raccoon even climbed on top of the windshield to get a good look at the officer. Thankfully, the officer was able to pull over and get the new “hitchhiker” to a safe
  
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• Kim fires off insults at Trump and hints at weapons test

  22-09-2017 18:56 via kxan.com
  SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un lobbed a string of insults at President Donald Trump on Friday, calling him a “mentally deranged U.S. dotard” and hinting at a frightening new weapon test.
  It was the first time for a North Korean leader to issue such a direct statement against a U.S. president, dramatically escalating the war of words between the former wartime foes and raising the international nuclear standoff to a new level.
  Trump responded by tweeti
  
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• Original Trix, made with artificial colors, is coming back

  22-09-2017 17:52 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — Trix is back to its old tricks: The colorful cereal will once again be made with artificial dyes and flavors, nearly two years after they were banished from the cereal.
  Food maker General Mills said Thursday that Classic Trix will return to supermarket shelves in October. But it will also continue to sell the version without artificial colors and flavors.
  “We heard from many Trix fans that they missed the bright vibrant colors and the nostalgic taste of the classic Tr
  
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• Ryan Gosling to host ‘SNL’ premiere with Jay-Z musical guest

  22-09-2017 17:48 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — “Saturday Night Live” says it’s kicking off its 43rd season Sept. 30 with guest host Ryan Gosling and musical guest Jay-Z.
  For Gosling’s encore host appearance he’ll be on hand to promote his new film, “Blade Runner 2049.” Jay-Z will be plugging a world tour that starts next month.
  On Oct. 7, “Wonder Woman” star Gal Gadot will be guest host, with musical guest Sam Smith.
  Kumail Nanjiani will host the season’s third
  
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• Aaron Hernandez had severe CTE; daughter sues NFL, Pats

  22-09-2017 16:27 via kxan.com
  BOSTON (AP) — Former New England Patriots star Aaron Hernandez had a severe case of the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy, researchers said on Thursday. His lawyer announced a lawsuit against the NFL and the team, accusing them of hiding the true dangers of the sport.
  Dr. Ann McKee, the director of the CTE Center at Boston University, said Hernandez had Stage 3 (out of 4) of the disease, which can cause violent mood swings, depression and other cognitive disorders
  
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• Puerto Rico faces weeks without electricity after Maria

  22-09-2017 16:20 via kxan.com
  SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The eye of Hurricane Maria was nearing the Turks and Caicos early Friday as Puerto Rico sought to recover from the storm’s devastation.
  Two days after Maria ravaged Puerto Rico, flooding towns, crushing homes and killing at least two people, millions on the island faced the dispiriting prospect of weeks and perhaps months without electricity. The storm knocked out the entire grid across the U.S. territory of 3.4 million, leaving many without power.
  The lo
  
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• Dam failing as scope of Puerto Rico’s disaster becomes clear

  22-09-2017 16:20 via kxan.com
  SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rican officials rushed to evacuate tens of thousands of people downstream of a failing dam and said they could not reach more than half the towns in the U.S. territory as the massive scale of the disaster wrought by Hurricane Maria started to become clear on Friday.
  Government spokesman Carlos Bermudez said that officials had no communication with 40 of the 78 municipalities on the island more than two days after the Category 4 storm crossed the island,
  
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• Dam failing as scope of Puerto Rico disaster becomes clear

  22-09-2017 16:20 via kxan.com
  SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rican officials rushed to evacuate tens of thousands of people downstream of a failing dam and said they could not reach more than half the towns in the U.S. territory as the massive scale of the disaster wrought by Hurricane Maria started to become clear Friday.
  Government spokesman Carlos Bermudez said that officials had no communication with 40 of the 78 municipalities on the island more than two days after the Category 5 storm crossed the island, top
  
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• Cows being rescued from high water in Florida

  22-09-2017 16:11 via kxan.com
  OKEECHOBEE COUNTY, Fla. (KXAN/NBC News) — Cowboys at a ranch in Okeechobee County, Fla. are working to move hundreds of cattle to dry land after a dike broke a few days ago.
  “If the cattle stay where they are, eventually they’ll die,” said Jim Alderman, of Alderman-Deloney Ranch. “They’re running out of dry ground now.”
  A news helicopter flew over the area and saw dead cows as well as trapped cows.
  Alderman said the dike around his ranch, which help
  
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• Search for Mexico quake survivors enters day 4, some success

  22-09-2017 15:51 via kxan.com
  MEXICO CITY (AP) — Survivors are still being pulled from rubble in Mexico City as rescue operations stretch into a fourth day Friday, spurring hope among desperate relatives gathered at the sites of buildings collapsed by a magnitude 7.1 earthquake.
  Mexico’s federal police said several people were lifted out of the debris of two buildings Thursday. Rescuers removed or broke through slabs until they found cracks that allowed workers to wiggle through to reach the victims, then lift th
  
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• Relatives keep vigil amid search for Mexico quake survivors

  22-09-2017 15:51 via kxan.com
  MEXICO CITY (AP) — Survivors were still being pulled from the rubble in Mexico City as rescue operations stretched into a fourth day Friday, spurring hope among desperate relatives gathered at the sites of buildings collapsed by a magnitude 7.1 earthquake.
  Mexico’s federal police said several people were lifted out of the debris of two buildings Thursday. Rescuers removed or broke through slabs until they found cracks that allowed workers to wiggle through to reach the victims and li
  
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• Families of missing in Mexico quake still hold out hope

  22-09-2017 15:51 via kxan.com
  MEXICO CITY (AP) — Hope mixed with fear Friday on a 60-foot stretch of a bike lane in downtown Mexico City, where families huddled under tarps and donated blankets, awaiting word of their loved ones trapped in the four-story-high pile of rubble behind them.
  On Day 4 of the search for survivors of the 7.1-magnitude earthquake that brought down the seven-floor office building and many others, killing at least 293 people, hope rose and fell on the small things. A change in the weather, word t
  
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• Austin police officer to be awarded Badge of Bravery medal

  22-09-2017 15:13 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An Austin police officer who helped stop a shooter at a downtown Austin hotel in 2015 is being honored with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Law Enforcement Congressional Badge of Bravery Friday morning.
  On July 5, 2015, Officer Carlos Lopez’s quick actions stopped the gunman, Michael Holt, from killing any more people after he had already shot and killed an innocent bystander in the lobby of the Omni Hotel at 700 San Jacinto Blvd.When Lopez arrived at the hotel
  
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• APD officer awarded Badge of Bravery medal after 2015 Omni shooting

  22-09-2017 15:13 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An Austin police officer who helped stop a shooter at a downtown Austin hotel in 2015 was honored with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Law Enforcement Congressional Badge of Bravery Friday morning.
  U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, awarded the medal to Officer Carlos Lopez at APD headquarters downtown, just a few blocks away from the Omni Hotel, where on July 5, 2015, Lopez’s quick actions stopped the gunman, Michael Holt, from killing any more people after
  
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• Major overnight closures on I-35 this weekend

  22-09-2017 14:53 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Interstate 35 at Oltorf Street will be closed to traffic during the overnight hours over the weekend so construction crews can partially demolish a bridge.
  The Texas Department of Transportation says the closure will happen from 10 p.m. until 10 a.m. Friday and Saturday nights, Sept. 22 and 23. All main lanes will be closed during those hours. Traffic will be detoured to the frontage roads.
  Drivers headed east or west on Oltorf Street will also be detoured at the I-35 cross
  
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• Texas asks court to allow its ban on ‘sanctuary cities’

  22-09-2017 14:36 via kxan.com
  NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Attorneys for Texas are asking a federal appeals court in New Orleans to let the state’s law banning “sanctuary cities” take effect.
  U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia blocked much of the law Aug. 31 — the day before it was to take effect.
  On Friday, three judges of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will be asked to let the law take effect ahead of a November appeal hearing.
  Under the law, Texas police chiefs could face removal from office and
  
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• Man opening up medieval-themed home to the public for a good cause

  22-09-2017 14:30 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A quarter-century of passion and love for family will be on full display Saturday as Craig Turner invites anyone who wants to help Harvey flood victims to see his home.
  The south Austin resident has built a dream home, with a yard full of sculptures and trees, a home full of original paintings, and much more.
  Weird Homes Tour is hosting a fundraiser to gather support for victims of Hurricane Harvey. Turner was on board as soon as he heard where the money was going.
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• CVS moves to limit opioid prescriptions

  22-09-2017 14:17 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — CVS Caremark says it is taking measures to help curb the opioid crisis that is plaguing America right now.
  In 2015, 52,000 people died from drug overdose–33,000 of those were from opioids alone. Since the early 1990s, U.S. opioid prescribing rates have more than tripled.
  On Thursday, CVS announced it’s limiting opioid prescriptions, such as Vicodin and OxyContin, to a seven-day supply for certain conditions. The company is also limiting the daily dosage of
  
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• Harvey victims in Bastrop, Fayette County can sign up for food benefits

  22-09-2017 13:32 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — People in Fayette and Bastrop County can start applying for D-SNAP, a program that provides short-term food benefits for eligible families recovering from a disaster, next week.
  Texas Health and Human Services says food relief for victims of Hurricane Harvey will start on Monday, Sept. 25 in those two counties as well as 10 others across Texas. The state has been offering D-SNAP benefits in a phased-in approach.
  Families affected can head to the assigned D-SNAP site from 8
  
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• Uber to lose its license to operate in London

  22-09-2017 13:04 via kxan.com
  LONDON (AP) — London’s transport authority said Friday it won’t renew Uber’s license to operate in the British capital, arguing that it demonstrates a lack of corporate responsibility with implications in public safety and security.
  Transport for London says the car-hailing app was not “fit and proper to hold a private hire operator license.”
  Uber, whose app is used by 3.5 million passengers and 40,000 drivers in London, will see its current license expire on
  
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• APD can’t increase patrols on Sixth Street

  22-09-2017 12:48 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Following the death of Marques Johnson on Sixth Street this week, Austin police continue to review their data on where they are needed most in the downtown area.
  “We always tend to look at the data,” says Austin Police Department Commander Jennifer Stephenson. “We want to put more cops on the hot spot areas.”
  Stephenson oversees the downtown area. She says on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights the department dedicates 33 officers to Sixth Street w
  
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• Cyclist injured in downtown Austin crash

  22-09-2017 11:09 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A bicyclist is in the hospital with serious injuries after being hit by a car in downtown Austin early Friday morning.
  The crash happened at the corner of Fifth and Nueces Streets around 2:30 a.m. Austin police say the driver stayed at the scene.
  A KXAN crew says the minivan involved in the crash had a Lyft emblem on it but it’s not known at this time if the driver was on the clock or had a passenger in the vehicle.
  Austin Travis County EMS says the cyclist’s&nb
  
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• Car hits cyclist in downtown Austin

  22-09-2017 11:09 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A cyclist is in the hospital with serious injuries after being hit by a car in downtown Austin early Friday morning.
  Austin Travis County EMS says the injuries are not expected to be life-threatening.
  The crash happened at the corner of 5th and Nueces streets around 2:30 a.m. APD’s Watch Commander says there was no alert on the car, so he believes the driver stayed at the scene. It is also unclear if the cyclist was wearing a helmet. 
   
   
  
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• Fire damages home in south Austin

  22-09-2017 09:36 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin fire crews fought a house fire in south Austin early Friday morning. According to AFD, the call about the fire came in at 12:51 a.m. The house is located on Holt Drive in South Austin near Brodie Lane and Convict Hill Road.
  According to a KXAN photographer at the scene, the house is livable and the fire started in the back of the house and stayed in the attic.
  We have reached out to the fire department to see if anyone was hurt or what caused the fire.
  
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• Texas soccer’s Angela Kelly joins More than the Score

  22-09-2017 05:59 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas women’s soccer head coach Angela Kelly goes one-on-one on More than the Score.
  
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• George Strait joins Texas governor in Harvey-battered town

  22-09-2017 04:41 via kxan.com
  ROCKPORT, Texas (AP/CNN) — Country superstar George Strait has offered messages of encouragement to his neighbors in a South Texas town battered by Hurricane Harvey.
  Strait was joined by Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday in Rockport, a town of about 10,000 near where Harvey made landfall Aug. 25.
  Abbott and Strait met with dozens of residents and discussed what they needed to rebuild. Strait even traded in his signature cowboy hat for a cap with the name Fulton on it. Fulton is a nearby town al
  
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• US beefs up NKorea sanctions, Kim Jong Un insults Trump,

  22-09-2017 04:17 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump added economic action to his fiery military threats against North Korea on Thursday, authorizing stiffer new sanctions in response to the Koreans’ nuclear weapons advances. Its leader Kim Jong Un issued a rare statement, branding Trump as “deranged” and warning he will “pay dearly” for his threat to “totally destroy” the North if it attacks.
  The exchange of super-heated rhetoric and unusually personal abuse be
  
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• ACC Highland campus enters phase two

  22-09-2017 02:54 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin’s old Highland Mall is going from shopping center to learning center, with the second phase of Austin Community College’s campus getting underway Thursday.
  Dozens of people attended the groundbreaking Thursday for the latest additions to ACC’s new Highland Campus. In all, the new space will be 415,000 square feet and be home to a student-run restaurant, a “school to business incubator” and more than a dozen ACC programs.
  “It’
  
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• Mexico shocked by news: Girl trapped in rubble didn’t exist

  22-09-2017 02:45 via kxan.com
  MEXICO CITY (AP) — Hour after excruciating hour, Mexicans were transfixed by dramatic efforts to reach a young girl thought buried in the rubble of a school destroyed by a magnitude 7.1 earthquake. She reportedly wiggled her fingers, told rescuers her name and said there were others trapped near her. Rescue workers called for tubes, pipes and other tools to reach her.
  News media, officials and volunteer rescuers all repeated the story of “Frida Sofia” with a sense of urgency th
  
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• Diamond on the highway: Officer comes to driver’s rescue

  22-09-2017 01:49 via kxan.com
  PARAMUS, N.J. (AP) — A police officer has come to the rescue of a New Jersey woman who lost her diamond engagement ring on a highway while changing a flat tire.
  Police in Paramus said Kimberly Garcia realized when she got home on Sunday that she had lost her ring after pulling over to change the tire.
  She went back to the highway that day with police, but they couldn’t find the ring.
  For Officer Jon Henderson, the search wasn’t over.
  He returned to the highway during his free p
  
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• Witness catches Sixth street deadly punching on cell phone

  22-09-2017 01:31 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) –  Police say 28-year old Nathan Marshall is charged with manslaughter in the death of 33-year old Marques Johnson. He was caught after police put out a video showing a man they now believe is Marshall walking in to a downtown convenience store minutes after the attack.
  However, that isn’t the only video in this case.
  We spoke to a witness of the fatal punching, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of backlash.
  This video shows the aftermath of th
  
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• Dawnna Dukes’ defense opposes trial delay

  22-09-2017 00:59 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Lawyers for Rep. Dawnna Dukes filed a document Thursday afternoon protesting the prosecution’s request for more time to build up a felony case against her, saying the District Attorney has had plenty of time to build up a case and that “no ‘further investigation’ can change the fact that the State’s case has fallen apart.”
  Dukes is accused of corruption, and she will be tried Oct. 16 on misdemeanor charges. However, on Tuesday the prosecu
  
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• SWAT called to robbery in Round Rock

  22-09-2017 00:37 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — SWAT responded to a report of a robbery in progress Thursday afternoon in Round Rock.
  The team was in the area near a business at 1510 Sam Bass road shortly after 4 p.m., according to a Facebook post from the Round Rock Police Department. A witness at the business, which shows up as Lorilee’s Gourmet on Google maps, told police that a man walked in with a gun and demanded money. He stole an unknown amount of money,
  Officials closed nearby roads while they i
  
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• SWAT called to possible robbery in Round Rock

  22-09-2017 00:37 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — SWAT responded to a report of a man with a gun Thursday afternoon in Round Rock.
  The team was working what it calls an “incident” on the 1500 block of Sam Bass road shortly after 4 p.m., according to a tweet from the Round Rock Police Department.
  Officials closed nearby roads while they investigated whether the suspect is still on scene. According to Cmdr. Jim Stewart, it may have been a possible robbery situation. Officers also spoke to a potential v
  
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