Austin news

• Police: Pflugerville massage workers offered sex acts to undercover cops

  14-10-2017 23:14 via kxan.com
  PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — Two massage workers were arrested for prostitution Thursday after offering to perform sex acts on two undercover officers, according to arrest affidavits filed by the Travis County Sheriff’s Office.
  Yahong Li and Yun Li were working at the Green Leaf Day Spa in the 2700 block of Pecan Street in Pflugerville east of Interstate 35 and south of Grand Avenue Parkway.
  Police said two undercover investigators came in and requested one regular body massage each.
  
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• Matthew McConaughey spotted again during ACL’s second weekend

  14-10-2017 22:51 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Matthew McConaughey cannot get enough of Austin City Limits. The actor is back for the second weekend of ACL and fans are loving it.
  The UT alumnus and Austin resident was spotted by fans at Zilker Park on Friday while making his way to a show.McConaughey left fans swooning last weekend when he and his wife, Camila Alves showed up for Jay-Z’s closing set.Matthew McConaughey walked passed me today and I felt like my life was changed. pic.twitter.com/CvICAqf56H
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• Wilco Sheriff’s Office identifies deputy involved in shooting high-speed chase suspect

  14-10-2017 22:30 via kxan.com
  WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) – The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office on Saturday identified the deputy involved in shooting a suspect after a high-speed pursuit that ended at the Williamson-Bell County line last Thursday.
  WCSO said Deputy Jack Danford fired his gun at Alva Gwinn, 39, of Fort Hood on State Highway 195 following a chase that reached speeds of more than 110 mph. It ended near Mountain Creek Road. DPS said Friday Gwinn had a self-inflicted shot to his head before law
  
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• Police asking for footage in search of missing Texas girl

  14-10-2017 21:18 via kxan.com
  RICHARDSON, Texas (AP) — Authorities are asking the public for any surveillance video that might show a vehicle that could be connected to the disappearance of a 3-year-old suburban Dallas girl who was made to stand outside her home in the middle of the night as punishment.
  Police in Richardson say about an hour after Sherin Mathews went missing Oct. 7, her family’s 2013 maroon Acura SUV left the home.
  Investigators are reviewing video they’ve received from residents and busine
  
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• Weekend Gardener: Bringing your orchids back to life

  14-10-2017 21:04 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — We’ve all bought beautiful orchids at the gardening shop, but, after a while, they stop blooming.
  When this happens, many people think it is the end of a cycle so they remove the flower spike. The weekend gardener shows you how you can make your orchids bloom again with the right care.
  Plus: A tip for testing if your plant is getting sufficient light.
  
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• Texas inmates donate more than $53,000 for Harvey relief

  14-10-2017 20:28 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (AP) — Inmates serving time in Texas prisons have also found a way to help those impacted by Hurricane Harvey.
  Officials say Texas prison inmates donated more than $53,000 from their commissary funds to the American Red Cross to be used for hurricane relief.
  Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jason Clark says more than 6,600 inmates donated money between Aug. 31 and Sept. 30. Harvey made landfall in Texas as a Category 4 hurricane on Aug. 25.
  The commissary funds are us
  
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• Supporters of Rodney Reed to hold demonstration demanding justice

  14-10-2017 19:21 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN)– Some University of Texas students and members of a group demanding the release of death row inmate Rodney Reed are gathering Saturday at noon to “demand that the Criminal Court of Appeals take action on Rodney Reed’s case!” according to the group’s Facebook event page.
  The group will gather outside of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals building on W. 14th Street. According to organizers, people will be dressed in black holding signs with messages of
  
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• Supporters of Rodney Reed hold demonstration demanding justice

  14-10-2017 19:21 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN)– Some University of Texas students and members of a group demanding the release of death row inmate Rodney Reed gathered Saturday at noon to “demand that the Criminal Court of Appeals take action on Rodney Reed’s case!” according to the group’s Facebook event page.
  The group gathered outside of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals building on W. 14th Street. People dressed in black held signs with messages of support for Reed.
  The demonstration comes af
  
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• How knowing your risk can help you get ahead of breast cancer

  14-10-2017 18:51 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN)– In commemoration of October being breast cancer awareness month, Dr. Julie Sprunt joins KXAN’s Jacqulyn Powell to talk about breast cancer and how women can prepare to deal with it.
  While breast cancer deaths have reduced by 40 percent in the U.S., it is still expected that nearly 250,000 new cases will be diagnosed this year.
  Dr. Sprunt advises that looking at these numbers it is important for women to know their risks. She says while having a family history of breast
  
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• Charges dropped against ex-cop accused of faking his death

  14-10-2017 15:53 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A judge has dismissed a misdemeanor charge against a former Texas police officer accused of faking his own death and fleeing to Mexico.
  The false-alarm charge against 29-year-old Coleman Martin was dismissed Friday at the request of the Travis County District Attorney’s Office. The charge was dropped after Martin agreed not to own a gun, to attend counseling and not break any laws within the next two years.
  Martin resigned from the Austin Police Department last m
  
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• Trump executive order ends insurance company subsidies for 600k Texans

  14-10-2017 05:37 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Trump administration announced it will end a health care subsidy that helps more than 600,000 Texans pay deductibles and co-pays when they go to the doctor.
  The Affordable Care Act still requires insurance companies to offer the reduced prices but the Federal money will now dry up. Insurance companies have already drastically increased premiums in their plans to cover the loss in funding.
  Without a fix, the Congressional Budget Office estimates premiums could rise 20 pe
  
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• 600K Texans lose health care subsidies after Trump executive order

  14-10-2017 05:37 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Trump administration announced it will end a health care subsidy that helps more than 600,000 Texans pay deductibles and co-pays when they go to the doctor.
  Without a fix, the Congressional Budget Office estimates premiums could rise 20 percent in 2018. President Trump’s supporters hope this will force Republican lawmakers to honor their pledge and repeal the Affordable Care Act.
  The Center for Public Policy Priorities estimates that 600,000 Texans used plans with
  
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• DPS: Suspect shot by officers after chase had self-inflicted wound to head

  14-10-2017 05:06 via kxan.com
  KILLEEN, Texas (KXAN) — The suspect in a high-speed pursuit that ended with him being shot by officers on the Williamson-Bell County line turned the gun on himself, the Department of Public Safety said Friday.
  A DPS trooper joined the Williamson County deputies pursuing Alva Gwinn, 39, of Fort Hood, north on State Highway 195 on Thursday.
  Reaching speeds of more than 110 mph, the chase ended near Mountain Creek Road — about five miles north of the town of Florence — when the su
  
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• Georgetown police body cameras: three years later

  14-10-2017 04:44 via kxan.com
  GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) — Body cameras are just as common as the pistols Georgetown police officers carry on their hip. In fact, police are required to wear them when they’re out on duty, and officers have been wearing body cameras since 2014.
  “It’s about accurate record collection, when we’re out there on the street, there are so many things that happen,” explains Captain Roland Waits with the Georgetown Police Department. “Sometimes if an officer come
  
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• Cedar Park hires firm to conduct review of police department

  14-10-2017 04:33 via kxan.com
  CEDAR PARK, Texas (KXAN) — The Cedar Park Police Department will undergo an independent review of how it handles criminal investigations in light of the developments in the Greg Kelley case.
  At Thursday’s city council meeting, council members voted to to approve the city attorney to hire Hillard Heintze to conduct the review. The council decided to call for the review in August as new evidence was being presented in Kelley’s case.
  “Hillard Heintze specializes in police ac
  
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• History-making referee killed in north Austin hit-and-run, friends say

  14-10-2017 04:08 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Friends tell KXAN that 77-year-old Linda Kay Fletcher was the woman killed in a hit-and-run in north Austin Tuesday afternoon.
  Police have not yet released the identity of the victim, but friends and neighbors have spoken with police and feel confident that she was the person who died there Tuesday.
  Austin police said that around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday a woman was standing outside a legally parked car on Parkfield Drive when she was struck by a car. Medics performed CPR on her,
  
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• Private security guards at big festivals may have unverifiable licenses

  14-10-2017 03:38 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — As 75,000 music fans descend on Zilker Park for the second weekend of the Austin City Limits music festival, KXAN is asking questions about the qualifications required for private security officers hired to patrol the gates and keep guests safe.
  You see staff wearing security shirts at the festival entrance, but what can be said about the people wearing them?
  KXAN received a tip from a man who worked for one of the private security companies last weekend. He said he was not
  
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• Pedestrian critically injured on SH 45 ramp to southbound MoPac

  14-10-2017 02:37 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — A pedestrian was critically injured Friday evening on the State Highway 45 ramp to southbound MoPac Expressway, the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office said.
  The sheriff’s office, which tweeted a warning to drivers about the crash at 6:44 p.m., says the pedestrian was taken to the hospital. The Department of Public Safety is at the scene investigating.
  Additional details on the incident have not been released.
  KXAN will update this story as we learn mo
  
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• Brits make pilgrimage to Texas to get full football experience

  14-10-2017 01:57 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Visit Dallas says they’re expecting the football game this weekend between the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma to bring in $38 million to their region.
  It’s that enthusiasm and excitement for football that’s also bringing some international visitors to explore various programs in the state.
  Dominic Hallas, along with his two friends, David McDonald and Mark Howat, are spending two weeks in Texas exclusively to watch football. Hallas
  
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• Luminant to close two Central Texas coal-fueled power plants

  14-10-2017 01:15 via kxan.com
  MILAM COUNTY, Texas (KWKT/KXAN) — Even as President Donald Trump eases restrictions for the coal industry, Luminant announced Friday it will close two coal-fueled power plants in Central Texas, resulting in the loss of more than 600 jobs.
  Luminant’s announcement said the two plants were economically challenged in the competitive market in Texas, citing sustained low wholesale power prices, an oversupplied renewable generation market and low natural gas prices along with other factors
  
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• Texas State students in limbo as The Pointe Apartments remain unfinished

  14-10-2017 01:11 via kxan.com
  SAN MARCOS, Texas (KXAN) — Midterms have already started on college campuses, and some students at Texas State University say they still don’t have a home to study in. Last month KXAN told you about The Pointe Apartment in San Marcos that continues to delay students from moving in, forcing them to stay in various hotels and jump from couch to couch.
  On Friday tenants were supposed to move in but were told once again they would have to wait for another two weeks.
  “It’s fru
  
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• Trump takes a field trip to Secret Service training site

  14-10-2017 00:49 via kxan.com
  BELTSVILLE, Md. (AP) — Touring the suburban facility where Secret Service agents sharpen their skills, President Donald Trump applauded Friday as his press secretary rolled up in a Dodge Charger after taking a hair-raising spin around a driver training course.
  The smell of burnt rubber permeated the air as the car carrying a smiling Sarah Huckabee Sanders, White House social media director Dan Scavino and Ronnie Jackson, Trump’s doctor, returned to the starting point at the James J.
  
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• Open-source mapping being used to help first responders in Puerto Rico

  14-10-2017 00:23 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Satellite images of rural towns, sprawling woodlands and grooved mountainsides fill the computer screens as homeowners and students scroll across digital maps.
  This group of a few dozen people gathered on Friday at the Perry Castenada Library on the University of Texas at Austin campus for a four-hour disaster relief mapathon to bolster humanitarian efforts in Puerto Rico, where 91 percent of the island is still without electricity, and Mexico, which was ravaged by a 6.1 ea
  
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