Austin news

• KXAN to produce debate ahead of November vote on AISD’s $1.05 billion bond measure

  19-10-2017 23:41 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — KXAN will hold a debate between local officials and community leaders on the $1.05 billion Austin Independent School District bond measure that will be live-streamed. KXAN-TV news anchor, Robert Hadlock, is serving as the moderator of the debate, which takes place from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, October 24th, 2017. Austinites are encouraged to live stream the event at KXAN.com or via the KXAN News App or KXAN News Facebook page, as the AISD bond measure will be voted on dur
  
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• Uranus will be visible with the naked eye tonight

  19-10-2017 23:35 via kxan.com
  (WKRG) — You read that right, Uranus will be visible to the naked eye.
  Get a good giggle in, but if you look up in the night sky Thursday night, you’ll be able to see the planet according to NASA. 
  Uranus will reach opposition says NASA, which means that the planet will be directly opposite from the sun which brings it closer to Earth and makes it brighter than normal.
  NASA says Uranus should be visible all night long and that its blue-green color is unmistakable.
  “It
  
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• VIDEO: Large black bear wanders down sidewalk near Lake Tahoe

  19-10-2017 23:17 via kxan.com
  PLACER COUNTY, Calif. (KRON) — The Placer County Sheriff’s Office shared a video Wednesday of a large black bear wandering the streets of Kings Beach.
  The video shows the bear walking down the sidewalk looking into the windows of businesses in the town north of Lake Tahoe.
  The Facebook post said it happened Tuesday night.
  Deputy Nevins shined a light on the bear and told him to not break into any businesses.
  The bear then crossed in front of the deputy’s patrol car and ran off.
  
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• Kindergartner empties piggy bank to pay for classmates’ milk

  19-10-2017 23:05 via kxan.com
  ISHPEMING, Mich. (WFLA) — A caring kindergartner is getting a lot of attention online for an act of kindness.
  When five-year-old Sunshine realized some of her friends didn’t have money to buy milk at snack time, she broke out her piggy bank.
  When she told her grandmother the reason she was counting out her money, Grandma Jackie was touched.
  According to Grandma Jackie’s Facebook post, Sunshine said her friend’s mom doesn’t have any milk money so she wanted to s
  
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• Family sues Austin bar, accusing them of overserving driver who killed their son

  19-10-2017 21:50 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — The father of a man killed by a drunk driver in 2015 has filed a lawsuit against the bar where the driver was a few hours before the deadly crash.
  The lawsuit claims Homer’s Bar and Grill, located along Wells Branch Parkway in north Austin, overserved John McClintock, 33. The lawsuit claims Homer’s Bar was negligent by serving McClintock, who was already intoxicated.
  According to the lawsuit, McClintock left the bar just before 2 a.m. on Nov. 11,
  
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• One dead in crash on rural road southwest of Coupland

  19-10-2017 21:37 via kxan.com
  COUPLAND, Texas (KXAN) — A person has died in a single-vehicle crash about two miles southwest of the town of Coupland in Williamson County.
  The sheriff’s office says the crash happened in the 2000 block of County Road 459, near the intersection with County Road 458.
  Around 2:15 p.m., deputies said the road is closed. Drivers should avoid the area.
  KXAN will update this story as we get additional information. 
  
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• Possible hundreds sickened after jambalaya fundraiser in Louisiana

  19-10-2017 20:22 via kxan.com
  CALDWELL PARISH, La. — (KTVE/KXAN) — The Louisiana Department of Health is investigating what they are calling “a possible food-related gastrointestinal disease outbreak” in Caldwell Parish, which is located in Northeast Louisana.
  The health department believes hundreds of people were possibly sickened during a fundraising event. The News Star reports the outbreak is due to salmonella poisoning that has been traced back to a local jambalaya event.
  According to reports, mo
  
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• Dozens sickened after jambalaya fundraiser in Louisiana

  19-10-2017 20:22 via kxan.com
  CALDWELL PARISH, La. — (KTVE/KXAN) — The Louisiana Department of Health is investigating a Salmonella outbreak at a fundraising event that has left dozens of people sick.
  The department is calling the incident “a possible food-related gastrointestinal disease outbreak” in Caldwell Parish, which is located in Northeast Louisana. The fundraising event, which was supported by several local businesses, was held on Monday. During the event, attendees purchased plates of jambal
  
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• Two Pflugerville schools were on lockout mode following threat

  19-10-2017 20:12 via kxan.com
  PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — Two schools in Pflugerville have reopened following a lockdown Thursday morning.
  Pflugerville Independent School District says the lockout mode at Mott Elementary and Cele Middle School was lifted around 12:30 p.m. It was put in place after Mott Elementary received information regarding a “potential threat,” the district said.
  District police said they didn’t believe the threat was credible, but the school decided to remain on lockdown out of
  
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• Threat forced two Pflugerville schools to go on lockdown this morning

  19-10-2017 20:12 via kxan.com
  PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — Two schools in Pflugerville have reopened following a lockdown Thursday morning.
  Pflugerville Independent School District says the lockout mode at Mott Elementary and Cele Middle School was lifted around 12:30 p.m. It was put in place after Mott Elementary received information regarding a “potential threat,” the district said.
  District police said they didn’t believe the threat was credible, but the school decided to remain on lockdown out of
  
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• World War II veteran Richard Overton enjoying new home upgrades

  19-10-2017 20:08 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — We all know and love Richard Overton. Over the past few months, crews from Meals on Wheels Central Texas’ Home Repair program and the Home Depot Foundation took out nails and hammers to upgrade Overton’s east Austin home.
  Overton, the nation’s oldest living veteran, has lived in his house since 1948. To make the home more accessible and accommodating, the construction teams put in a new shower, new electrical wiring and new kitchen cabinets, among other th
  
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• Man dies in rollover after fleeing police in Granite Shoals

  19-10-2017 20:04 via kxan.com
  BURNET COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A man died after his car rolled and collided with a tree during a police chase in Burnet County.
  Cruz Grimaldo Suarez, 18, was fleeing police Thursday morning on Prairie Creek Road in Granite Shoals, Texas. Around 3:33 a.m. his Chevy pickup swerved to the left and rotated counter-clockwise where he crashed.
  According to the Texas Highway Patrol, they do not know why he swerved. Suarez was not wearing a seatbelt.
  The Granite Shoals Police Department closed Prai
  
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• Coming soon: a selfie with your credit card application

  19-10-2017 19:51 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — The selfie is everywhere — Facebook, Instagram, Twitter — and soon your bank could be asking for one in order to approve your purchase or credit card application.
  Payment processing giant Visa Inc. is launching a platform to allow banks to integrate various types of biometrics — your fingerprint, face, voice, etc. — into approving credit card applications and payments.
  Consumers could experience Visa’s new platform in a couple different ways. I
  
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• Applying for a credit card? Please take a selfie

  19-10-2017 19:51 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — The selfie is everywhere — Facebook, Instagram, Twitter — and soon your bank could be asking for one in order to approve your purchase or credit card application.
  Payment processing giant Visa Inc. is launching a platform to allow banks to integrate various types of biometrics — your fingerprint, face, voice, etc. — into approving credit card applications and payments.
  Consumers could experience Visa’s new platform in a couple different ways. I
  
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• Toyota tops Consumer Reports’ auto reliability rankings

  19-10-2017 19:02 via kxan.com
  DETROIT (AP) — Toyota Motor Co. is continuing its reign at the top of Consumer Reports’ reliability rankings, a reward for its conservative approach to new technology.
  The Toyota brand came in first in this year’s rankings, followed by the company’s luxury Lexus brand. It’s the fifth year in a row that a Toyota brand has topped the survey. Kia, Audi and BMW rounded out the top five.
  Cadillac, GMC, Ram, Dodge and Volvo got the poorest reliability scores, dinged by bu
  
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• Social justice groups want Austin council to vote down Police Association contract

  19-10-2017 18:25 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Thursday is  expected to be the last day City of Austin negotiators meet with the Austin Police Association to hammer out a contract before it goes to council. However, local social justice groups held a large protest during the city council meeting, urging them to vote down the contract.
  Members of the Austin Justice Coalition, Grassroots Leadership, and the national group Campaign Zero took a knee as city council members listened to the invocation before their meetin
  
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• Social justice groups take a knee at Austin City Council meeting

  19-10-2017 18:25 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Thursday morning, a couple dozen people gathered at Austin CIty Hall to protest police brutality.
  Members of the Austin Justice Coalition, Grassroots Leadership and the national group Campaign Zero took a knee as Austin City Council members listened to the invocation before the meeting. Several people in the crowd held a large sign with “End Austin Police Brutality” written in large letters.
  Thursday is expected to be the last day for the city and the Austin
  
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• Former Texas Ranger heads to Puerto Rico to help with recovery

  19-10-2017 17:54 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A former Texas Ranger baseball player and MLB Hall of Famer is spending the week in Puerto Rico to help with aid work.
  Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez is from Puerto Rico. He posted a series of videos Tuesday as he was driving to Tyler, Texas, on the way to the island.On our way to see #PuertoRico and help for this whole week #StayStrongPuertoRico @UNIDOSxPR @MLBPlayersTrust @MLB_PLAYERS pic.twitter.com/FtV4US8D8i
  — Ivan Pudge Rodriguez (@Pudge_Rodriguez) October 1
  
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• Court to review ruling allowing abortion for immigrant teen

  19-10-2017 17:18 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (AP) — An appeals court on Thursday temporarily stayed a judge’s ruling that would have allowed a pregnant 17-year-old being held in a Texas facility for unaccompanied immigrant children to obtain an abortion.
  The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia issued a short ruling that still allowed the teenager to be taken to a counseling meeting with the doctor who would perform the abortion. Texas state law requires women to receive counseling 24 hours before an abort
  
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• Texas Tech police answered gunfire call prior to shooting

  19-10-2017 17:17 via kxan.com
  LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Authorities say a police report of a gun being fired in a dorm room and the sale of drugs brought Texas Tech officers to the room before they arrested a student accused of later killing one of the officers.
  Search warrants obtained by the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal say officer Floyd East Jr. and two other officers on Oct. 9 found the prescription anxiety pill Xanax and other drugs in the room of 19-year-old Hollis Daniels III.
  Daniels was arrested on a drug charge and
  
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• Raccoon, kitten become best buds while bunking in dumpster

  19-10-2017 16:36 via kxan.com
  KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) – A Knoxville police officer discovered two unlikely companions in a dumpster – a kitten and a baby raccoon.
  The Knoxville Police Department said in a Facebook post that Animal Control Officer Nick Powell was called to an animal stuck in a dumpster on Bernard Avenue. When he arrived, he found the kitten and the raccoon cuddled in the corner, keeping each other warm.
  Both animals were rescued by Powell. The raccoon was relocated and released. The kitten was tak
  
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• DNA testing issues, Red River noise curfew extension on council agenda

  19-10-2017 16:12 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Here’s a quick rundown of some of Thursday’s top Austin City Council agenda items:
  DNA consulting services
  A city memo addressed to the mayor and council members on Wednesday explains this is a professional services contract with the University of Pennsylvania Law School’s Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice to do a “thorough assessment” of the factors that led to problems within the APD DNA lab. The goal is to identify best
  
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• Free lunch for 5,000 highlights how to reduce food waste

  19-10-2017 15:51 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — There’s no such thing as a free lunch — but in Austin on Thursday, the price of this meal will just be learning about food waste.
  The City of Austin is hosting a “Feeding the 5000” event, the first of its kind in Texas.
  The lunch will be made out of fresh food that would otherwise have gone to waste, according to a release. That includes misshapen (but still tasty) sweet potatoes, small butternut squash and pasta trimmings. The food comes from school
  
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• San Antonio Spurs link arms, send social justice message after National Anthem

  19-10-2017 15:09 via kxan.com
  SAN ANTONIO, Texas (KXAN) — The San Antonio Spurs won their home opener Wednesday night, but they also sent a strong message about social justice, after National Anthem protests in the NFL have been highlighted in recent weeks.
  The players from the Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves stood on the basketball court during the “Star Spangled Banner,” and afterward linked arms as a video message played on the big screen. The message called for people to come together to promote social
  
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• Formula 1 drivers surprise the community ahead of their race

  19-10-2017 14:00 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Formula 1 drivers are racing to Austin, but before they head out onto the track, some have surprises for the community.
  Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo are training Thursday night with the Del Valle High School football team. They’ll participate in drills alongside members of the varsity team, including kicking field goals, throwing passes, punting, receiving and maybe tackling.
  On Wednesday, Formula 1 driver Sebastian Vettel and NASCAR driver Joe
  
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• Texas students fly Christian flags after religious symbol removal demand

  19-10-2017 13:26 via kxan.com
  LARUE, Texas (KETK) — A group of East Texas students are not backing down after a Wisconsin-based organization demanded a local school remove religious symbols from their campus.
  According to LaPoynor Superintendent James Young, the Freedom From Religion Foundation sent a letter to the district after a former LaPoynor student contacted the organization following the school’s “See You at the Pole” event, in which Christian students around the nation gather at the
  
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• Family of late ‘Crocodile Hunter’ back at Animal Planet

  19-10-2017 13:11 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — Crikey! The Irwin family is returning to television’s Animal Planet, 11 years after the death of “The Crocodile Hunter” star and family patriarch Steve Irwin.
  The network announced Wednesday that Irwin’s widow, Terri, and children Bindi and Robert, will work with Animal Planet on television and digital projects that will begin being seen next year.
  Inside view of crocodile’s mouth goes viral
  Animal Planet general manager Patrice Andrews said th
  
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• Late night music hours on Red River could be extended

  19-10-2017 12:35 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Outdoor music venues in the Red River district will find out Thursday if the live music can continue playing until midnight on Thursday and 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. The city has been doing a pilot program for the last six months where the music was allowed for an extra hour on those nights. The pilot program expires Nov. 1 and establishments like The Mohawk and Stubb’s will ask city council to extend the program another six months.
  The program’s goal has b
  
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• Small Texas town pitches open spaces to Amazon

  19-10-2017 05:12 via kxan.com
  MILAM COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Thursday is the deadline for cities looking to land the next Amazon headquarters. The chance to lure a $5 billion campus has prompted an all out bidding war with the biggest metro areas.
  Now, a wild card an hour’s drive from Austin emerges.
  Made up of little farm towns, Milam County is using its location to the prove it’s the perfect fit as the oasis outside of Austin.
  “We’re not Austin, we’re not Dallas, we’re not San Antoni
  
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• Students rely on college-track programs to make it to graduation day

  19-10-2017 02:16 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — In school, teachers typically talk about preparing for the next step. No matter what level, the adult figures in school districts across the country tend to lead the way for students, pointing them toward higher education.
  Data compiled by the Texas Tribune tracked the graduation rates of eighth graders from 1997-2005.
  The Tribune reported that approximately 300,000 eighth graders enroll in Texas public schools each year. Of the students who began eighth grade in 2005,
  
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• Increased ARCH patrols pushing crime to other areas of the city

  19-10-2017 01:58 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — As the city of Austin wraps up its second phase of a targeted plan to address homelessness downtown, it appears one piece of that plan may be shifting crime to other parts of the city, including an area in the midst of a high-profile redevelopment project.
  One of the goals in the strategy to address the problem was to remove those who prey upon the homeless; to that end, police arrested more than 80 people for selling drugs outside the Austin Resource Center for the Ho
  
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• Are patrols at the ARCH turning Waller Creek into an ‘open air drug market’?

  19-10-2017 01:58 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — As the city of Austin wraps up its second phase of a targeted plan to address homelessness downtown, it appears one piece of that plan may be shifting crime to other parts of the city, including an area in the midst of a high-profile redevelopment project.
  One of the goals in the strategy to address the problem was to remove those who prey upon the homeless; to that end, police arrested more than 80 people for selling drugs outside the Austin Resource Center for the Ho
  
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• White Cane Day honored as part of ‘Texas HireAbility’ campaign

  19-10-2017 01:45 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Adhyayan Singh wants people to know even though he’s blind, he’s able to do just as much as others who have their vision. It’s why he marched in the White Cane Day event in Austin.
  “When we get to march, when we get to show off to the blind people, to the sighted people, I feel like we get to express ourselves, to come out into the light and tell people that we are independent,” he said.
  White Cane Day is recognized annually to focus on the abi
  
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• VIDEO: Houston woman and child carjacked during deadly shooting

  19-10-2017 01:32 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (KXAN) — A woman and her 11-month old niece were pulled from a minivan in a broad daylight carjacking in Houston Monday, as shots rang out feet away.
  Houston police released the shocking surveillance video Wednesday, which starts with four men running from a car stopped in a ditch toward the minivan.
  One of the men opens fire toward the car they just ran from in the 6800 block of London St. on the city’s south side, KPRC reported. One man was killed and another wounded.
  So fa
  
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• Terrifying video of violent carjacking in Houston

  19-10-2017 01:32 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (KXAN) — A woman and her 11-month old niece were pulled from a minivan in a broad daylight carjacking in Houston Monday, as shots rang out feet away.
  Houston police released the shocking surveillance video Wednesday, which starts with four men running from a car stopped in a ditch toward the minivan.
  One of the men opens fire toward the car they just ran from in the 6800 block of London St. on the city’s south side, KPRC reported. One man was killed and another wounded.
  So fa
  
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• Lawsuit: Tax dollars for Central Health should only be spent on indigent care

  19-10-2017 01:00 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A group of taxpayers in Travis County say their money isn’t going where it should when it comes to the tax dollars that are funneled to Central Health — the agency tasked with providing health care for those “who need it most.”
  The plaintiffs say it wants the hospital district to spend taxpayer money only on indigent patient care. The lawsuit claims Central Health is spending money on unrelated organizations instead. They pointed toward examples like
  
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• Round Rock High swim coach placed on leave returns to job

  19-10-2017 00:58 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — A Round Rock High School swim coach has been returned to duty after being put on administrative leave, following an investigation by the school district.
  The coach was put on leave following a report of inappropriate behavior between swim team members, Round Rock ISD said, adding the administrative leave was standard for this kind of report.
  The school district said Wednesday the coach is no longer on leave and will be returning to his duties. School officials sa
  
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• At Mississippi school: Goodbye, Confederacy. Hello, Obama

  19-10-2017 00:11 via kxan.com
  JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Mississippi school is shedding the name of the Confederacy’s only president and will instead be named for the first African-American president of the United States.
  Davis International Baccalaureate Elementary School in Jackson was named decades ago for Jefferson Davis.
  The school with 98 percent African-American enrollment is set to be renamed for Barack Obama in the next academic year, in a move proposed by parents and approved by a majority of students, par
  
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• President Trump returns boy’s $3 mailed to White House

  19-10-2017 00:01 via kxan.com
  CROSSVILLE, Tenn. (WBIR) — A 9-year-old boy from East Tennessee wrote to President Trump in January to send him $3. Now he has a letter from the president.
  Eli’sha Davies from Crossville wrote to the president after hearing his parents talk about Trump’s campaign promise to only accept a salary of $1. He wanted to make sure the president had enough to pay the bills at the White House.
  “I thought how is he going to eat or drink,” Eli’sha said. “Or you kno
  
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