Austin news

• 3 suspects arrested in connection with ATM thefts, robberies across Texas

  03-01-2018 22:46 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Three suspects who police say have committed ATM thefts and robberies across the state were arrested in the Austin-area Wednesday morning.
  Around 9 a.m., Austin police along wither several other agencies arrested two people in Cedar Park. A third person was arrested as he was driving along US 183 in Austin.
  Sgt. Sheldon Askew with the Austin Police Department says the three suspects “engaged in ATM thefts and robberies throughout the state.” However, Askew would
  
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• School nurses prepare for a busy flu season

  03-01-2018 22:44 via kxan.com
  KYLE, Texas (KXAN) – As Texas students prepare to go back to school this week, teachers and staff are preparing for the sickness that could come with it. So far more than 4,000 people have had the flu in the state and the numbers are expected to rise in the coming weeks.
  In Hays County alone, officials report 304 people have tested positive for the virus in the month of December. Last year, only 15 residents had the flu during the month of December.
  Hays Consolidated Independent School Dis
  
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• Attorney: Family of ‘swatting’ victim wants officer charged

  03-01-2018 21:05 via kxan.com
  WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The family of a Kansas man fatally shot at the door of his home after a hoax emergency call wants the police officer who killed him criminally charged for his death, their attorney said Tuesday.
  Police have said 28-year-old Andrew Finch was shot after a prankster called 911 last Thursday with a fake story about a shooting and kidnapping at Finch’s Wichita home. They said the hoax call was a case of “swatting,” in which a person makes up a false report
  
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• Texas health plans now must cover 3-D mammograms

  03-01-2018 20:37 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A new Texas law that went into effect this week requires health insurance companies to cover 3-D mammograms for women during cancer screenings.
  Many health professionals say 3-D mammograms are more precise than traditional mammograms because doctors can look through each layer of tissue digitally, instead of only pictures. It could reduce the rate of false positives and allow for doctors to detect smaller groupings of cancer cells. The earlier breast cancer is detected, the
  
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• Texas health plans must now cover 3-D mammograms

  03-01-2018 20:37 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A new Texas law that went into effect this week requires health insurance companies to cover 3-D mammograms for women during cancer screenings.
  Many health professionals say 3-D mammograms are more precise than traditional mammograms because doctors can look through each layer of tissue digitally, instead of only pictures. It could reduce the rate of false positives and allow for doctors to detect smaller groupings of cancer cells. The earlier breast cancer is detected, the
  
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• Man who played piano in Harvey floodwaters receives a new one

  03-01-2018 19:49 via kxan.com
  FRIENDSWOOD, Texas (KXAN) — It’s an indelible image of Hurricane Harvey: a man sitting in a few feet of floodwater in his home, playing a piano. That moment struck a chord with singer Vanessa Carlton, who made sure the man received a replacement piano last week.
  PastorAric Harding is the man from the video that captured Carlton’s attention. She contacted people at Yamaha, who called Harding and told him that they would give him a piano once he found a place to call home.
  The ne
  
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• Former HHSC employees, including state rep’s wife, sue for wrongful termination

  03-01-2018 19:48 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Two former high-ranking Texas Health and Human Services Commission directors, including the wife of a longstanding state representative, have sued the massive state agency for wrongful termination, according to a lawsuit filed in Travis County District Court.
  Dimitria Pope, former director of HHSC’s Medical Transportation Program, and Shannon Pickett, associate director of the program, allege they were fired shortly after reporting violations of law by HHSC to the age
  
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• Airlines offering travel waivers along the East Coast ahead of winter storm

  03-01-2018 19:14 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — As a winter storm takes aim at the East Coast, airline companies are issuing travel alerts and waivers for customers who are headed to cities impacted by the storm.
  Forecasters said hurricane-force winds blowing offshore on Thursday could generate 24-foot seas along the Atlantic coast. Coastal flooding, downed trees and power lines are possible along the East Coast.
  According to Austin-Bergstrom’s International Airport’s website, as of noon Wednesday, sever
  
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• Amber Alert discontinued in Texas for two girls abducted from Round Rock

  03-01-2018 19:00 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK (KXAN) — The Amber Alert for two Round Rock girls who disappeared after their mother died was discontinued in Texas Wednesday. Officials believe they and the man they are believed to be with, Terry Miles, are no longer in the state. The Amber Alert is still active in other states.
  Police say Miles, 44, is a person of interest in the death investigation of Tonya Bates, and may have abducted her daughters, 7-year-old Lulu Bandera-Margret and 14-year-old Lili Griffith.
  The Round Ro
  
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• Abducted Round Rock girls, person of interest spotted in Colorado

  03-01-2018 19:00 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — As the Round Rock Police Department continues to track down leads on where two missing girls could be, new surveillance video from a store in southern Colorado confirms Terry Miles was at the business on Saturday, Dec. 30 — the day before the body of the girls’ mother, Tonya Bates, was found inside her home by police.
  In a news conference Wednesday afternoon, Police Chief Allen Banks said the tips that they have received took his officers and fed
  
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• Cadbury makes batch of white Creme eggs with monetary prizes inside

  03-01-2018 18:39 via kxan.com
  LONDON (AP) — British confectioner Cadbury is making a white chocolate version of its popular Easter Creme egg — and offering a cash prize for those who find them as it tries to bolster the product’s appeal.
  The company says it will make a small batch of between 350 and 400 white eggs, for sale until Easter Sunday on April 1. Each will carry a prize of at least 100 pounds ($130).
  Cadbury’s has faced accusations of cheapening its chocolate recipe in its Creme Egg since it
  
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• Storm slaps coastal South with most snow in nearly 3 decades

  03-01-2018 18:24 via kxan.com
  SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A brutal winter storm smacked the coastal Southeast with a rare blast of snow and ice Wednesday, hitting parts of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina with their heaviest snowfall in nearly three decades.
  Forecasters warned that the same system could soon strengthen into a “bomb cyclone” as it rolls up the East Coast, bringing hurricane-force winds, coastal flooding and up to a foot of snow.
  At least 17 deaths were blamed on dangerously cold temperatures tha
  
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• ‘My feet hurt’: Winter snowstorm blasts coastal South

  03-01-2018 18:24 via kxan.com
  SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A brutal winter storm dumped snow in Tallahassee, Florida, on Wednesday for the first time in nearly three decades before slogging up the Atlantic coast and smacking Southern cities such as Savannah and Charleston, South Carolina, with a rare blast of snow and ice.
  Forecasters warned that the same system could soon strengthen into a “bomb cyclone” as it rolls up the East Coast, bringing hurricane-force winds, coastal flooding and up to a foot of snow.
  At le
  
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• Florida sees first snow in decades as storm hits the South

  03-01-2018 18:24 via kxan.com
  SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A brutal winter storm dumped snow in Tallahassee, Florida, on Wednesday for the first time in nearly three decades before slogging up the Atlantic coast and smacking Southern cities such as Savannah and Charleston, South Carolina, with a rare blast of snow and ice.
  Forecasters warned that the same system could soon strengthen into a “bomb cyclone” as it rolls up the East Coast, bringing hurricane-force winds, coastal flooding and up to a foot of snow.
  At le
  
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• 2 homeless men found dead in Houston amid freezing weather

  03-01-2018 18:22 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (AP) — Houston police say two homeless men have been found dead amid freezing weather and officials are trying to determine if the cold snap caused the deaths.
  Police spokeswoman Jodi Silva says officers have been working to help get homeless people to shelters as freezing temperatures continued Wednesday.
  Police Chief Art Acevedo says two bodies were located before dawn Tuesday, in separate locations, and the deaths were believed to be the result of “exposure to frigid weath
  
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• Lifelong love of learning: 80-year-old graduates with Classics degree from UT

  03-01-2018 18:10 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — As of this December, 80-year-old Terry Orr of Austin can now say he proudly holds a Bachelors of Arts in Classical Archaeology from the University of Texas at Austin. For the first chapter of his life, he used his bachelors and master’s in engineering from Texas A&M to allow him to earn money. But he went back to school in pursuit of a liberal arts education and for the love of learning.
  Inspired in part by his wife who went back to school in the middle of her lif
  
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• Man’s body found in frozen pond in Oklahoma

  03-01-2018 18:00 via kxan.com
  ADA, Okla. (AP/KTEN) — An Oklahoma sheriff says the body of a 20-year-old man who was last seen at a New Year’s Eve party was found in a frozen pond near Ada.
  Pontotoc County Sheriff John Christian tells KTEN a search party found Colton Pennington’s body Monday evening. A member of the party saw barefoot tracks on the ice, leading to a hole.
  Christian suggested Pennington had hypothermia, though the medical examiner will determine the exact cause of death. An oilfield worker ha
  
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• Two big lottery jackpots up for grabs this week

  03-01-2018 17:40 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Two of the country’s biggest lottery games have jackpots more than $400 million this week.
  With no winner in Tuesday’s Mega Millions drawing, Friday’s jackpot of $418 million will be the fourth largest in the history of the lottery game.
  It’s the first time the Mega Millions jackpot has surpassed $400 million since the summer of 2016, when a $536 million prize was won by a person in Indiana.
  The jackpot has been rolling since it was last won at
  
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• Veterinary hospital group moving in to Seaholm Power Plant

  03-01-2018 17:19 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Seaholm Power Plant in downtown Austin will soon have a new tenant: a veterinary hospital group.
  Pathway is relocating its support team headquarters to the 15,500 square foot office space at 800 West Cesar Chavez St. The space is more than four times the size of the company’s previous office in Hyde Park, according to co-founder Shawn McVey.
  The Pathway offices at the Seaholm Power Plant (Courtesy Pathway)
  The Seaholm Power Plant functioned as a power station unti
  
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• Veterinary hospital group moves in to Seaholm Power Plant

  03-01-2018 17:19 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Seaholm Power Plant in downtown Austin has a new tenant: a veterinary hospital group.
  Pathway is in the process of relocating its support team headquarters to the 15,500 square foot office space at 800 West Cesar Chavez St. The space is more than four times the size of the company’s previous office in Hyde Park, according to co-founder Shawn McVey.
  The Pathway offices at the Seaholm Power Plant (Courtesy Pathway)
  The Seaholm Power Plant functioned as a power stati
  
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• Autopsy: 3-year-old Indian girl a homicide victim in Texas

  03-01-2018 16:44 via kxan.com
  DALLAS (AP) — An autopsy report shows a 3-year-old girl whose body was found in a culvert near her suburban Dallas home died from “homicidal violence.”
  Sherin Mathews, who was adopted in 2016 from an orphanage in India, had been missing for two weeks before her body was found in Richardson on Oct. 24.
  Steven Kurtz with the Dallas County medical examiner’s office said Wednesday that Sherin was a victim of homicide, but that he couldn’t provide any other details at th
  
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• Houston-area boy, 4, confined to closet says rats friends

  03-01-2018 15:47 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (AP) — An attorney representing interests of a 4-year-old boy authorities believe was living in a closet at a Houston-area home say he told investigators “his friends” were rats and roaches.
  A Harris County judge Tuesday allowed child welfare officials to keep the child in their temporary custody. The case remains under investigation.
  Authorities aren’t sure how long he’d been there when deputies showed up Dec. 20 with a search warrant because they believed
  
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• Austin firefighters rescue dog who ran down drain pipe

  03-01-2018 14:43 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Not only do they fight fires, but they rescue dogs from drainage pipes. Members of the Austin Fire Department responded to a pup in need Tuesday in north Austin.
  Firefighters were returning from battling a fire on the 12000 block of Tomanet Trail caused by an electrical short in the attic when they were routed to a situation where a Shih Tzu was trapped in a retention assembly near Harris Ridge Boulevard and E. Howard Lane.
  Right after clearing the Tomanet fire Engine 40 wa
  
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• 2 die in shooting in east Williamson County

  03-01-2018 13:29 via kxan.com
  THRALL, Texas (KXAN) — Two died in a shooting north of Thrall early Wednesday morning, according to the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office.
  Deputies were called out to the 5400 block of County Road 424 at 12:48 a.m. where they found a man and a woman had died. According to a tweet from Sheriff Robert Chody, other people were in the home at the time but did not witness the shooting.
  Chody said the public is not at risk, but that the investigation will be slower than normal because it
  
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• 2 die in murder-suicide in east Williamson County

  03-01-2018 13:29 via kxan.com
  THRALL, Texas (KXAN) — Two died in a shooting north of Thrall early Wednesday morning in what appeared to be a murder-suicide, according to the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office.
  Deputies were called out to the 5400 block of County Road 424 at 12:48 a.m. where they found a Ellen Rachelle DeHart, 42, with a single gunshot wound and Richard Lee DeHart, 48, with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Other family members were in the home at the time but did not witness the shooting.
  “In
  
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• How AISD is making sure your kids stay warm on the bus this morning

  03-01-2018 12:57 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Students in Austin will stay warm as they ride to school on district buses, Austin ISD’s transportation department said, following a day of testing the heating systems in the buses that have been parked for two weeks over the holidays.
  At the bus terminal in south Austin, employees turned on the systems on all 172 buses there and let them run for a few minutes Tuesday to make sure everything was working properly. Across the district, students will catch the bus on mor
  
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• Teams rescuing cold-stunned turtles along South Texas coast

  03-01-2018 12:22 via kxan.com
  CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) — Nearly four dozen sea turtles stunned by the severe cold wave have been rescued from offshore waters along the South Texas coast.
  National Park Service spokeswoman Donna Shaver says the cold-stunned turtles in shallow water become incapacitated and float to the surface. If not rescued, their lives can be in danger from predators and boats.
  She tells the Corpus Christi Caller-Times that more than 40 turtles had been recovered by Tuesday afternoon by people in bo
  
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• Chip and Joanna Gaines expecting fifth child

  03-01-2018 06:19 via kxan.com
  WACO, Texas (KWKT) — The Fixer Upper couple is now expecting!
  Chip Gaines announced on Twitter Tuesday night that his wife Joanna is now pregnant with the couple’s fifth child. Congratulations to the happy couple!
  The final season of Fixer Upper is currently airing on HGTV.
  Hint #3 You might recall a few months back.. the ever amazing, ever romantic @JOHNNYSWIM was in Waco. And they put on a little too romantic of a concert.. anyways, one thing led to another, & we are officially
  
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• Heavy fire coming from home in Mustang Ridge

  03-01-2018 06:11 via kxan.com
  TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Firefighters from multiple agencies are fighting a heavy fire coming from a home in Mustang Ridge.
  The Austin Fire Department tweeted at 11 p.m. Tuesday that its crews, along with Manchaca Fire, ESD 11 and Travis County Fire Rescue units, were at the scene on Underwood Drive, just southwest of the US 183 and State Highway 45 flyover.
  The Fire Department said the heavy fire was coming from a single family home.
  Additional information on the fire was not immedia
  
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• Five people escape fire that destroyed Mustang Ridge home

  03-01-2018 06:11 via kxan.com
  TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Firefighters from multiple agencies helped put out a heavy house fire in Mustang Ridge Tuesday night. Crews at the scene say fire destroyed the home.
  The Austin Fire Department tweeted at midnight the fire was out and all five people living inside got out safely. AFD says they were alerted by a working smoke alarm. AFD crews, along with Manchaca Fire, ESD 11 and Travis County Fire Rescue units, were at the scene on Underwood Drive, just southwest of the US 183
  
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• Fire destroys home in Mustang Ridge, five people inside escape

  03-01-2018 06:11 via kxan.com
  TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Firefighters from multiple agencies helped put out a heavy house fire in Mustang Ridge Tuesday night. Crews at the scene say fire destroyed the home.
  The Austin Fire Department tweeted at midnight the fire was out and all five people living inside got out safely. AFD says they were alerted to a working smoke alarm. AFD crews, along with Manchaca Fire, ESD 11 and Travis County Fire Rescue units, were at the scene on Underwood Drive, just southwest of the US 183
  
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• Police Activities League hosts first basketball clinic for boys

  03-01-2018 05:30 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Police Activities League of Austin hosted their first basketball clinic for boys on Tuesday. KXAN photojournalist Frank Martinez visited Jaime Padron Elementary for the special event.
  Austin Police Department senior police officer Angela Johnson said the clinic helps build the boys’ confidence and in turn helps build a relationship with police officers.
  “The biggest thing is just providing places where they can come and have a safe environment where they can
  
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• Flu spreading faster than usual in Central Texas

  03-01-2018 04:44 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — If you’re coughing or sniffling, you’re not alone. Texas is seeing more flu activity than any other state, according to The Walgreen’s Flu Index.
  Health officials are blaming the widespread virus on a weak flu vaccine this year. It’s only effective against about 10 percent of the strains being seen in patients.
  Central Texas is no exception to the outbreak. According to Austin-Travis County Health and Human Services, three people over the age of
  
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• Time to look for love online: dating sites, apps see January surge

  03-01-2018 04:20 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — If one of your resolutions for the new year is to find that special someone, now may be the time to log onto a dating app or website. Major dating platforms see an increase in users during January, which means you’re more likely to find a person who’s looking for the same type of connection you are.
  “January [sees] a huge peak in people getting on dating apps,” explained Melissa Hobley, chief marketing officer for dating website OkCupid. She explaine
  
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• Trump boasts of bigger ‘nuclear button’ than North Korea’s

  03-01-2018 04:03 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump boasted Tuesday that he has a bigger and more powerful “nuclear button” than North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
  The president’s Tuesday evening tweet came in response to Kim’s New Year’s address, in which he repeated fiery nuclear threats against the United States. He said he has a “nuclear button” on his office desk and warned that “the whole territory of the U.S. is within the range of our nuclear stri
  
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• Water main break closes stretch of Fifth Street in downtown Austin

  03-01-2018 03:30 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Water crews worked through Tuesday to repair an 8-inch water main break on East Fifth Street at San Jacinto Boulevard in downtown Austin.
  Around 6:30 p.m., an Austin Water spokesperson said water has been shut off at the location and crews were about to start digging to assess the situation.
  Video sent to KXAN show the shoulder of the road flooded. East Fifth is blocked off between Brazos and San Jacinto.
  
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• Leander ISD offices, schools will open late Wednesday due to weather

  03-01-2018 02:27 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Leander ISD announced their offices and schools will open at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 3 due to the inclement icy weather in Central Texas.
  “We would like to encourage our team members to use caution and good judgment when driving to work,” the school district said in a message on Facebook. “Please contact your supervisor if roads on your route to work are unsafe.”
  Leander ISD posted they expect to welcome students back as planned on Thursday.
  If addit
  
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• Austin-area school delays due to icy weather

  03-01-2018 02:27 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The following Austin-area school districts have decided to delay school Wednesday after icy weather hit Central Texas on Tuesday.Lago Vista ISD — 2-hour delay
  Leander ISD — 10 a.m. start (for staff; students return as planned on Thursday)If additional schools announce delays or cancellations, they will be added to this list.
  Districts open as normal:Austin ISD sent out at 9:45 p.m. Tuesday: “AISD is proceeding as scheduled tomorrow, Wed/Jan. 3. Dist offici
  
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• Family friend begs Round Rock abductor to bring girls back

  03-01-2018 01:33 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — The search continues for two girls who were abducted in Round Rock on Sunday. Their mother, Tonya Bates, 44, was found dead inside a home in what’s being investigated by police as a suspicious incident.
  Police have issued an Amber Alert for 14-year-old Lili Griffith and 7-year-old Lulu Bandera-Margret. Detectives believe they could be with 44-year-old Terry Miles somewhere in New Mexico or southern Colorado. Miles was living with Bates.
  A family friend of B
  
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• Texas judge known for his Twitter jokes joins federal bench

  03-01-2018 01:17 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Texas’ first “Tweeter Laureate” is now a federal judge on the 5th U.S. Court of Appeals.
  Judge Don Willett, previously a Justice on the Texas Supreme Court, was sworn in Tuesday by Chief Justice Nathan Hecht.
  “It has been the richest honor of my professional life to serve on the Supreme Court of Texas and to serve our Lone Star state,” Willett told the crowd at the ceremony.
  Willett was first appointed to the Texas Supreme Court by Gov. Rick Pe
  
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• One dead, 8 others injured in ice-related crash on SH 71 near Bee Cave

  03-01-2018 00:35 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A man is dead and eight others injured in a crash that has closed West State Highway 71 at Spanish Oaks Club Boulevard, just southeast of the Hill Country Galleria.
  Austin-Travis County EMS medics, who were called to the scene at 4:55 p.m. Tuesday, say the eight others injured have non-life threatening injuries. An unknown number of people will be taken to the hospital, medics said.
  ATCEMS tweeted there was ice on the road when they arrived at the crash.LIVE BLOG: Tracking
  
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• One dead, 8 others injured in ice-related collision on SH 71 near Bee Cave

  03-01-2018 00:35 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A man is dead and eight others injured in a three-car collision that closed West State Highway 71 at Spanish Oaks Club Boulevard, just southeast of the Hill Country Galleria.
  ATCEMS tweeted there was ice on the road when they arrived at the crash. Bee Cave Police say the man who died, 41-year-old Michael Charles Roder, was traveling east on SH 71. When he drove over the Barton Creek bridge, he lost control and spun into the westbound lanes.
  Austin-Travis County EMS medics,
  
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• One dead, 8 others injured in crash that has closed SH 71 in Bee Cave

  03-01-2018 00:35 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A man is dead and eight others injured in a crash that has closed West State Highway 71 at Spanish Oaks Club Boulevard, just southeast of the Hill Country Galleria.
  Austin-Travis County EMS medics, who were called to the scene at 4:55 p.m. Tuesday, say the eight others injured have non-life threatening injuries. An unknown number of people will be taken to the hospital, medics said.
  ATCEMS tweeted there was ice on the road when they arrived at the crash.LIVE BLOG: Tracking
  
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