Austin news

• Painting worth $165 million stolen 30 years ago found in New Mexico

  09-11-2017 23:49 via kxan.com
  SILVER CITY, N.M. (KRQE) – It’s a mystery that would make a great movie. A famous $165 million painting stolen from a museum more than 30 years ago, found inside a New Mexico couple’s home after their death.
  It all began on the morning after Thanksgiving 1985 at the University of Arizona’s Museum of Art. University police said a man and a woman followed a museum staff member, the woman distracted the security guard, and the man used a blade to cut out the painting.
  It was
  
  Read more

• Dell employee swindled millions of dollars from company in invoice scheme

  09-11-2017 23:44 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A Dell employee could face up to eight years in federal prison after he pleaded guilty to stealing more than $1 million from the giant tech company by filing fraudulent invoices.
  Kelly Burton Nunn, 55, his wife, Tobie Nunn, 47, both pleaded guilty Thursday to filing a false Income Tax Return. Kelly Nunn also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit fraud. A third suspect, also from Austin, Bryan Dale Wallace, 55, pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge.
  Acco
  
  Read more

• Mosquito trap comes back positive for West Nile Virus in Taylor

  09-11-2017 23:34 via kxan.com
  TAYLOR, Texas (KXAN) — Trapped mosquitoes collected in Taylor have tested positive for West Nile Virus, leading the city to start spraying insecticide.
  The sample was taken on Monday from Robinson Park at 206 S. Dolan St. and test results were reported to city officials on Thursday.
  The species collected was identified as a southern house mosquito, which has a flight range of one mile. A mosquito trap location in the north of Taylor had negative results.
  Officials say this is the first tim
  
  Read more

• UT student slams into restaurant along The Drag, charged with DWI

  09-11-2017 22:44 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A University of Texas at Austin student accused of drunk driving crashed into a restaurant on Guadalupe Street early Monday morning, and when confronted by police, said, “I’m a UT student! You can’t arrest me!”
  Two University of Texas police officers were on patrol in the area when they heard the sound of tires squealing and then a loud crash, the department said. The officers found a vehicle had crashed through the front of the Poke Bowl restaurant
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Burnet County deputy injured in crash on SH 29 in Bertram

  09-11-2017 22:13 via kxan.com
  BERTRAM, Texas (KXAN) — A Burnet County deputy on her way to a police chase was involved in a crash in Bertram, Wednesday.
  The Burnet County Sheriff’s Office says the deputy, who has not been named, crashed with multiple vehicles in the intersection of Grange Street and State Highway 29 while she was en route to the call.
  Authorities were chasing two suspects in a stolen vehicle, who crashed and were running away near County Road 321, a little more than a mile south of Bertram.
  The d
  
  Read more

• Ezekiel Elliott’s suspension upheld, will miss the next 6 games

  09-11-2017 21:45 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott’s half-season run from his six-game suspension ended Thursday when a federal appeals court refused to let him play while it considers his appeal.
  A bespectacled Elliott in a suit and tie sat directly in front of a three-judge panel that considered a request from the NFL Players Association that he be allowed to play. But the court issued an order in less than an hour disqualifying him from Sunday’s game at Atlanta. It
  
  Read more

• Elliott’s suspension upheld

  09-11-2017 21:45 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK, New York (KXAN) — A panel of three judges has denied Ezekiel Elliott’s for an injunction to his suspension and will have to begin serving his six game suspension immediately. Elliott can request another appeal, but no appeal date has been set.Elliot is the NFL’S second leading rusher with 783 yards.The Cowboys will now turn to a running back by committee approach with Alfred Morris, Rod Smith and Darren McFadden.The Cowboys (5-3) play at Atlanta on Sunday.Barring anot
  
  Read more

• Fired teaching assistant at LBJ High accused of having sex with student

  09-11-2017 20:08 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A teaching assistant at LBJ Early College High School who was fired after being accused of sleeping with a female student has been identified as Stephone Mercer, 27.
  According to an arrest affidavit, police learned about the allegations after another teacher’s assistant at the school came forward. The employee said on Oct. 11, the victim’s friend, another female student, told her the victim had sex with Mercer in his truck.
  A search of both the victim’s an
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Thank you! Where to get Veterans Day deals

  09-11-2017 19:40 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Businesses around Austin and across the country are sending a message to veterans this Veterans Day — thank you. There are a number of places offering special deals or free food for those who served.
  Food
  Denny’s will give a free Build Your Own Grand Slam Nov. 10
  IHOP offers free Red, White & Blue pancakes on Nov. 10. For every stack of those pancakes someone else buys before Nov. 30, $1 will go toward the Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation.
  BJ’s R
  
  Read more

• FEMA to relocate about 3,000 Maria survivors to US mainland

  09-11-2017 19:00 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Emergency Management Agency will provide passenger flights to relocate about 3,000 Puerto Ricans still sleeping in emergency shelters to temporary housing on the U.S. mainland.
  FEMA spokesman Ron Roth said FEMA is providing the priority transportation assistance at the request of Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello.
  Thousands of the island territory’s U.S. citizens are still homeless more than seven weeks after Hurricane Maria devastated the island. There
  
  Read more

• Although drug overdose unlikely, wiping off shopping carts still a good idea

  09-11-2017 18:51 via kxan.com
  LEACHVILLE, Ark. (KXAN/WCMH) — Mostly, those wet wipes provided at grocery stores to wipe off your cart handles will help kill any germs nearby. However, a post circulating on Facebook suggests it could also help prevent something more sinister, though experts say that’s unlikely.
  A police department in Arkansas posted on Facebook warning people that drugs such as fentanyl or a similar substance can enter into your system from contact with your hands.
  “I don’t normally co
  
  Read more

• Church where massacre occurred will be demolished

  09-11-2017 18:37 via kxan.com
  SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (AP) — The pastor of a small-town Texas church that was the site of a massacre plans to demolish the building.
  Pastor Frank Pomeroy told leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention that it would be too painful to continue using First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs as a place of worship. A national Southern Baptist Convention spokesman said Pomeroy discussed the plan this week with the denomination’s top executives who had traveled to the community in a
  
  Read more

• Austin wants to make it easier for people to remodel their homes

  09-11-2017 18:21 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — In an effort to make it easier for homeowners to remodel their homes with less headaches, several Austin City Council members are proposing a resolution to streamline the permitting system for smaller residential projects.
  The Family Homestead Initiative directs the city manager to identify all current code requirements and fees associated with improving a home. City council members say as the cost of living goes up in Austin, more people are looking for “creative way
  
  Read more

• Austin mayor boycotting Veterans Day Parade where Confederate flags will fly

  09-11-2017 18:02 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Mayor Steve Adler announced he will not participate in this year’s Veterans Day Parade, held Saturday on Congress Avenue, because some groups signed up to march will be carrying the Confederate flag.
  “Veterans Day should only be about honoring United States Military Veterans,” Adler said in a statement Thursday morning. “Symbols of racism, Civil War secession, and white supremacy should not be forgotten or erased, but they need to be remembere
  
  Read more

• WATCH: U.S. Congressmen race scooters around the Capitol

  09-11-2017 17:40 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (NBC News) — On your mark, get set, go! It’s probably one of the most unique events to happen in the U.S. Capitol — two lawmakers took to scooters for a daring race across the building’s marble floors.
  Rep. Steve Scalise challenged fellow Republican Congressman Sam Johnson to a race Wednesday. Scalise has been using a scooter to travel around as he recovers from being shot during a Congressional baseball practice last June. Scalise is the majority whip and is f
  
  Read more

• Could Little Debbie be getting rid of a popular snack?

  09-11-2017 17:35 via kxan.com
  COLLEGEDALE, Tenn. (WIVB) — Little Debbie posted a photo on Twitter Wednesday morning saying “one gotta go forever.”
  Beneath that statement were images of four iconic snacks — Christmas Tree Cakes, Oatmeal Creme Pies, Nutty Buddy and Honey Buns.
  Along with the photo, Little Debbie posed the question “Which one?”
  It is not clear if this is a hypothetical situation, or if Little Debbie is indicating that the snack cake brand intends to get rid of one of the
  
  Read more

• App tracks if McDonald’s ice cream machine is working before you go

  09-11-2017 17:01 via kxan.com
  COLUMBUS (WCMH) — Have you ever pulled into the drive-thru for a McFlurry or vanilla cone, only to be told the ice cream machine is down?
  The developers of an iPhone app hope to solve that problem for good.
  Ice Check allows people to find their closest McDonald’s and tell at a glance whether its ice cream machine is up or down. The app also allows users to report the status of an ice cream machine.
  “I came up with the idea for the app around a year ago, after a late n
  
  Read more

• Man found guilty of running over, killing Hutto police officer

  09-11-2017 16:43 via kxan.com
  GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) — After deliberating for around three hours, a jury unanimously found Colby Williamson guilty of murdering Hutto Police Sgt. Chris Kelley.
  Kelley’s family members held hands as the verdict was read and hugged after the courtroom was adjourned. “We’re glad,” said Kelley’s mother Barbara, after the verdict was read.
  “We just want justice, so this is just one step,” said Kelley’s widow Michele. “We will give m
  
  Read more

• Jury will soon deliberate fate of man accused of killing Hutto officer

  09-11-2017 16:43 via kxan.com
  GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) — A jury will soon have to decide whether Colby Williamson is guilty of murdering Hutto Police Sgt. Chris Kelley.
  Just as day three in the Colby Williamson murder trial began Thursday morning, prosecutors and the defense rested. Closing arguments will begin later Thursday. After closing arguments, the case will be given to the jury to start deliberations.
  On June 24, 2015, Williamson lead Hutto police on a high-speed chase, after refusing to pull over for
  
  Read more

• Jury finds man guilty of murdering Hutto Police Sgt. Chris Kelley

  09-11-2017 16:43 via kxan.com
  GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) — After deliberating for around three hours, a jury has unanimously found Colby Williamson guilty of murdering Hutto Police Sgt. Chris Kelley.
  Kelley’s family members held hands as the verdict was read and hugged after the courtroom was adjourned. Sentencing begins Monday, Nov. 13 at 9 a.m., and Williamson faces up to 99 years in prison.
  Just as day three in the Williamson murder trial began Thursday morning, prosecutors and the defense rested. Clos
  
  Read more

• U.S. Sen. Rand Paul’s neighbor pleads not guilty to assaulting lawmaker as he mowed lawn

  09-11-2017 16:34 via kxan.com
  BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) — Longtime neighbor of U.S. Sen. Rand Paul pleads not guilty to assaulting Kentucky lawmaker as he mowed lawn.
  Rene Boucher was wearing a suit and barely spoke in the courtroom, only saying “yes sir” to a judge. He showed no emotion and kept his head down during the brief proceeding.
  Boucher faces up to a year in jail if convicted on the charge. Boucher, Paul’s next-door neighbor, is accused of attacking the Washington lawmaker last Friday.
  Paul wr
  
  Read more

• Police: Thief didn’t get far in motorized grocery store cart

  09-11-2017 16:33 via kxan.com
  FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — A man accused of stealing a motorized shopping cart from an Alaska grocery store didn’t get very far or go very fast before his low-speed getaway attempt was foiled by police.
  The battery-operated cart with a basket mounted behind the handlebars has a top speed of 1.9 mph.
  Authorities say Rondell Tony Chinuhuk of Anchorage is charged with felony theft for attempting to take the cart early Tuesday from a Safeway store in Fairbanks.
  Police say they stopped Chin
  
  Read more

• Washington police search for skateboarder in hit and run

  09-11-2017 16:03 via kxan.com
  BELLEVUE, Wash. (NBC News) — Police in Bellevue, Washington are looking for a man who darted out into traffic against the light and crashed into the side of an SUV.
  Video from a traffic camera shows the incident unfold. The man, carrying a skateboard, gets into a three-point stance before running across the street as cross traffic still has the green light.
  As he nears the other side, he runs into the side of a Tesla SUV, causing damage to the side of the SUV and the driver’s side mi
  
  Read more

• Uber wants to introduce flying ridesharing option ‘UberAIR’

  09-11-2017 15:45 via kxan.com
  LISBON, Portugal (NBC News) — Uber is making the leap from roads to the air as it hopes to take ridesharing to a whole new level.
  On Wednesday the company announced it planned to create a flying taxi called UberAIR that could provide relief for congested roads. The sleek, helicopter-like machine’s design was unveiled at a technology conference in Portugal. The vehicle has both fixed wings and rotors.
  “This all electric bad boy flies 150 to 200 miles an hour,” said Uber Ch
  
  Read more

• WATCH: 6-year-old steals the show at church choir performance

  09-11-2017 15:13 via kxan.com
  DICKSON, Tenn. (NBC News) — When 6-year-old Loren Patterson had her first choir performance at her 2,000-person church, she had no idea her grooving to the music would reach far beyond that audience.
  Patterson sang alongside other young children on Oct. 29, but she really stands out. In a video her mom posted to Facebook, she can be seen at the end of a row of children. She dances enthusiastically before it’s her turn to belt out the song.
  “I’ve got an old church choir si
  
  Read more

• CMA Awards hosts Underwood, Paisley poke fun at politics

  09-11-2017 14:25 via kxan.com
  NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley did more than poke fun at the Country Music Association’s ill-received media guidelines that aimed to keep politics out of Wednesday’s CMA Awards. The veteran hosts dug straight in with barbs aimed at key political figures from both parties, including President Donald Trump.
  Underwood said producers required this year’s show to be a “politics-free zone.”
  “Clearly we can’t say or play anythin
  
  Read more

• Woman switches tags to get $1,800 in electronics for $3.70

  09-11-2017 14:19 via kxan.com
  VERO BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Authorities say a woman tried to sneak more than $1,800 worth of electronics through a Florida Walmart’s self-checkout by switching the items’ price tags with those from clearance items.
  Treasure Coast Newspapers reports that 25-year-old Cheyenne Amber West was arrested Monday and charged with felony grand theft and felony shoplifting.
  An arrest report says a loss-prevention officer at the Vero Beach Walmart told a deputy he saw West and another woman se
  
  Read more

• ‘You’ve never seen anything like this’: WWII death camp liberators’ stories

  09-11-2017 14:06 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas World War II veterans are being honored for the pivotal role they played in ending the horror of the Holocaust.
  Hundreds of Texans took part in liberating Nazi death camps, and Thursday the Texas Holocaust and Genocide Commission is bringing many of them to the capitol to receive special recognition at an afternoon ceremony in the Senate chambers.
  Families of at least 27 Texas liberators will be on hand, as well at least six of the liberators themselves, to receive me
  
  Read more

• Christopher Plummer to replace Kevin Spacey in already-finished film

  09-11-2017 13:10 via kxan.com
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — In a wholly unprecedented move, Kevin Spacey is being cut from Ridley Scott’s finished film “All the Money in the World” and replaced by Christopher Plummer just over one month before it’s supposed to hit theaters.
  People close to the production who were not authorized to speak publicly said Wednesday that Plummer is commencing reshoots immediately in the role of J. Paul Getty. All of Spacey’s scenes will be reshot, the people told The Assoc
  
  Read more

• Future affordable housing could be in jeopardy under GOP tax plan

  09-11-2017 12:42 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — More affordable housing could be on the way to Austin. City Council will vote Thursday on funding for an additional 1,000 units. The Housing Authority of Austin would build the apartments with the help from the federal government, but the proposed GOP tax plan could put future projects in jeopardy.
  As Congress considers tax reform, it is looking at taking away the ability to issue private activity bonds for multi-family housing — and that would limit the use of the 4
  
  Read more

• Mexican citizen executed in Texas for cousin’s 1997 slaying

  09-11-2017 12:17 via kxan.com
  HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — A Mexican citizen on death row in Texas was executed Wednesday night for the slaying of his 16-year-old cousin who was abducted from her family’s apartment and fatally beaten.
  Ruben Ramirez Cardenas, 47, was given a lethal injection after several federal court appeals failed to halt his punishment for the February 1997 killing of Mayra Laguna.
  Asked by the warden to make a final statement, he replied, “No, sir.”
  As the lethal dose of pentobarbital
  
  Read more

• Austin’s Altierus Career College set to close

  09-11-2017 06:11 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — All but three of Zenith Education Group’s 24 campuses, including Altierus Career College in north Austin, are set to close in the coming months.
  The announcement came Wednesday, impacting the former Everest College campus that sits at the corner of Springdale Road and US 290. The fate sounds familiar to colleges like ITT Technical Institute, Le Cordon Bleu and Career Point.
  In a statement on its website, Zenith Education Group wrote, “Over the past few year
  
  Read more

• Community First Village provides supportive place to stay for the homeless

  09-11-2017 05:53 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A local non-profit organization hopes to end homelessness by giving more people a permanent place to stay and surrounding them with a “supportive community.”
  KXAN photojournalist Frank Martinez introduced us to people who live inside the Community First Village, located in east Travis County on Hog Eye Road, and explains how they plan to expand.
  “This is a ginormous deal to us because first we’re dedicating what we call the crown jewel of the crown t
  
  Read more

• Pocket Bible saved Austin World War II veteran’s life

  09-11-2017 05:32 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Donald Morrison didn’t know if he was going to make it as a soldier. He wanted to go into the Navy right after high school, but didn’t pass the physical.
  “I was rejected because of my flat feet. I passed the written exam, but not the physical,” Morrison said.
  In May of 1944, after his last rejection, he listened to his father’s advice if he really wanted to get into the military service.
  “He said, ‘If you want to go that bad, get of
  
  Read more

• Public Safety Committee vice chair wants ban on open carry of semi-auto rifles

  09-11-2017 04:15 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Sunday a man walked across the street of Sutherland Springs, Texas carrying a semi-automatic rifle, entered a local church, and killed 26 people and wounded just as many.
  Now, the number two on a Texas committee charged with tackling issues like this wants to reverse decades-old state law allowing the open carry of long guns in public.
  “I don’t even think it’s improper to carry a gun to church. I wouldn’t do it because it’s church, but if yo
  
  Read more

• Shoplifter sues Target after employee who knew Jiu Jitsu stopped him

  09-11-2017 01:47 via kxan.com
  LUBBOCK, Texas (KLBK) — A Lubbock man is suing a Target for $10 million claiming he was assaulted by an employee after authorities say he was caught shoplifting.
  Kelton Arthur claims in his lawsuit that he was tackled by a Target store employee in July of 2016. The employee says Arthur was trying to steal a vacuum.
  The lawsuit claims the employee knocked Arthur from behind which caused his injuries. The employee then “attacked” Arthur as he was lying on the ground, the suit con
  
  Read more

• Authorities review video of small-town Texas church attack

  09-11-2017 01:41 via kxan.com
  SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (AP) — Authorities have reviewed video from inside the small-town Texas church where a gunman killed more than two dozen people, including footage that shows the assailant shooting victims in the head during Sunday services, a U.S. official said Wednesday.
  The official’s account of the video is consistent with statements made by survivors of the attack. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on the co
  
  Read more

• After its own tragedy, New Braunfels church offers support to Sutherland Springs

  09-11-2017 01:05 via kxan.com
  NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas (KXAN) — The Sutherland Springs community will be recovering from Sunday’s shooting for months to come. The small church lost more than half of their congregation in just one day.
  Although a very different tragedy, the First Baptist Church of New Braunfels — less than an hour away — suffered their own significant loss earlier this year. Thirteen members of that congregation were killed in a church bus crash after police say a man crossed the center li
  
  Read more

• UTPD sees increase in 911 calls involving homeless population

  09-11-2017 00:34 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The number of calls involving the homeless and transient community being reported to the University of Texas at Austin Police Department has substantially increased over the last five years. The calls coming in have been both on and off campus.“What we’re seeing, I think our numbers highlight that more individuals have come into this area,” said UTPD Chief David Carter.
  Carter explained that after a homeless individual assaulted a UT student two weeks ago,
  
  Read more

• Tip leads Austin police to $1.1 million worth of K2

  09-11-2017 00:23 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A tip about a major K2 purchase being moved from Houston to Austin led officers to nearly 75 kilograms of the synthetic drug.
  The Austin Police Department said the group moving the product was “dealing large amounts” of the drug in the Austin area. With the help of the Houston Police Department’s Kush Task Force, officers conducted surveillance on the suspects as they moved from Houston to Austin.
  When officers conducted a felony car stop on the vehicle, f
  
  Read more

Follow @Austin_News_US on Twitter!