Austin news

• Ride-hail app Fasten shutting down operations in Austin

  02-03-2018 23:11 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Ride-hailing app Fasten announced Friday that with “heavy hearts” they are shutting down all operations in Austin and Boston after three years in business.
  In a blog post by the Fasten co-founders, Kirill Evdakov, Vlad Christoff, and Roman Levitskiy, they announced Fasten has been acquired by Vezet Group, described in the post as one of the top 10 ride-hailing companies in the world. The app will shut down as of 12 a.m. on Monday, March 5.
  “While they
  
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• Sen. John Cornyn ‘very concerned’ about possible tariffs on steel and aluminum

  02-03-2018 22:58 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, hasn’t taken a stance on President Donald Trump’s plan to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, but said he’s “very concerned about it.”
  “I don’t think trade wars are good,” he said. “Sometimes they may be necessary. I’m sympathetic to the concerns the president has that America has entered into trading relationships that are disadvantageous to our country and to our country&rsquo
  
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• PHOTOS: Bastrop County shelter at capacity with cutest pups in the world

  02-03-2018 22:34 via kxan.com
  BASTROP, Texas (KXAN) — The Bastrop County Animal Shelter is overflowing with puppies that could easily win any cutest pup contest out there.
  But with its 90 kennels filled to capacity, the shelter is now hoping community members will help out by adopting these lovable dogs.
  Current adoption specials range from $50 to $125:Puppies less than 4-months-old are $125 (if a puppy has been at the shelter more than 2 weeks they are $75, if more than 4 weeks, they are $50)
  Adults more than 4-months
  
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• Gonzales Co. deputy dies at his home in Caldwell County ‘incident’

  02-03-2018 21:43 via kxan.com
  CALDWELL COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Sgt. Joshua Leopold with the Gonzales County Sheriff’s Office died at his home in undisclosed circumstances Thursday night in Caldwell County.
  Neither county’s sheriff’s department would say how investigators believe the deputy died but did say the public is not in danger. The Texas Rangers and the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office are investigating.
  The post said, “The Gonzales County Sheriff’s Office family is mourning th
  
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• Longtime incumbent Rep. Dawnna Dukes fighting field of contenders for HD 46

  02-03-2018 21:12 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Eleven-term State Rep. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin, has a field of contenders who want her seat.
  There are five Democratic candidates trying to unseat her in the Texas Primary  Election on March 6. Dukes has served Texas House District 46, the area covers east Austin, since 1995.
  Last September Dukes announced she was resigning but then changed her mind right before the 85th Legislative Session. A runoff election will be held on May 22 if no Democrat claims a majority of th
  
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• Two Central Texas employers fall for W-2 email phishing scam

  02-03-2018 20:44 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The W-2s of workers of two Central Texas employers were compromised in two separate phishing scams. 
  The Austin Diagnostic Clinic Association reported the 2017 W-2 and address information of employees were compromised on Feb. 27, thanks to an email attack. Patient information was not affected, according to Bob Presley, a compliance officer at ADCA.
  “Based on the information we currently have, the only information that was compromised was that which is contained i
  
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• 3 murder suspects escape from Bexar County jail in San Antonio

  02-03-2018 19:23 via kxan.com
  SAN ANTONIO (AP/KXAN) — Three murder suspects who managed to escape from the Bexar County Jail in San Antonio Friday morning weren’t free for long.
  A statement from the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office says the three men escaped late Friday morning. The San Antonio Express-News reports authorities noticed the inmates, identified as Jacob Anthony Brownson; Luis Antonio Arroyo and Eric Trevino, were missing around 10:40 a.m. They were captured about an hour later.
  Authorities w
  
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• The Selena craze is real: fans line up for H-E-B bags

  02-03-2018 19:06 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Fans of Selena hoping to get their hands on an H-E-B bag featuring the iconic singer weren’t alone.
  Lines stretched throughout H-E-B stores Friday morning as people clutched their limited-edition bags, limited to two per person at $2 apiece. Within an hour, some stores in Austin sold out of the bags, sending people heading from store to store. They were for sale online starting at noon Friday, but at one point the site went down.
  Selena bags at an Austin H-E-B so
  
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• Texas court reporter shortage threatens to delay hearings

  02-03-2018 19:00 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A shortage of court reporters in Texas could spell delays for the more than 3,300 judges and their courtrooms across the state.
  Court reporters, or stenographers, are in short supply, according to the Texas Court Reporters Association (TCRA). The lack of qualified record-keepers is “very real.” Depositions and hearings may have to be delayed or rescheduled.
  “It delays the justice system when there are not court reporters available,” freelance court r
  
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• PHOTOS: Device detonates on front porch of northeast Austin home

  02-03-2018 19:00 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Numerous agencies are working together to determine what kind of device detonated killing a man in northeast Austin Friday morning.
  A section of Haverford Drive in the Harris Ridge neighborhood was blocked off with crime scene tape as local law enforcement and federal agents survey the scene. Explosion in northeast Austin neighborhoodPolice investigate an explosion at a neighborhood in northeast Austin March 2, 2018 (KXAN Photo/Arezow Doost) Police investigate an explosion
  
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• Stacey Stites’ fiancé, first person of interest in murder, to get out of prison

  02-03-2018 16:46 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Jimmy Fennell, an original person of interest in the 1996 murder of his fiancé Stacey Stites, is set to be paroled and released from prison on March 9. He is finishing a 10-year sentence after pleading guilty to separate crimes of kidnapping and improper sexual activity with a person in his custody.
  Fennell, 45, was accused of raping a woman under his arrest in 2007, when he was a Georgetown police officer. However, it has been Fennell’s ties to Stites, and the
  
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• Stacey Stites’ fiancé, first person of interest in her murder to be released from prison

  02-03-2018 16:46 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Jimmy Fennell, an original person of interest in the 1996 murder of his fiancé Stacey Stites, is set to be paroled and released from prison on March 9. He is finishing a 10-year sentence after pleading guilty to separate crimes of kidnapping and improper sexual activity with a person in his custody.
  Fennell, 45, was accused of raping a woman under his arrest in 2007, when he was a Georgetown police officer. However, it has been Fennell’s ties to Stites, and the
  
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• Motorcyclist killed in crash on Fitzhugh Road

  02-03-2018 16:28 via kxan.com
  TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A motorcyclist is dead after colliding with a car in southwest Travis County Friday morning.
  Travis County Sheriff’s Office says the crash happened just before 9 a.m. on Fitzhugh Road and Long Branch Drive. Austin-Travis County EMS innitially said CPR was being given to a man in his 60s but he died at the scene.
  A motorcyclist died in a collision in southwest Travis County on Fitzhugh Road March 2, 2018 (KXAn Photo/Ed Zavala)
  KXAN will update this story
  
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• Man in his 50s shot to death in home invasion, suspect on the loose

  02-03-2018 16:18 via kxan.com
  TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A home on a quiet rural road in southwest Travis County is cordoned off with yellow crime scene tape after authorities said a man was shot and killed in an apparent home invasion early Friday morning.
  The Travis County Sheriff’s Office was called to the home in the 9900 block of Oliver Drive around 4:45 a.m. A person inside the home called 911 stating “someone had intruded into the home and that shots had been fired.”
  When deputies arrived, t
  
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• Police: Texas teen found near high school with loaded rifle, 100 ammunition rounds

  02-03-2018 15:45 via kxan.com
  ROWLETT, Texas (KETK) — A teenager is behind bars on $1,000,000 bond after being found parked near a Texas high school with a loaded rifle and more than 100 rounds of ammunition.
  On Tuesday, around 9:30 p.m., an officer with the Rowlett Police Department was patrolling the area behind the Rowlett Community Center, next to Rowlett High School, as sporting events were wrapping up and saw a vehicle with a single occupant parked in a dark area.
  The officer approached the teen, i
  
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• Livestreaming webcam launches to observe UT Tower falcon

  02-03-2018 15:08 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — One of Austin’s high-flying residents calls the University of Texas tower her home. Now, more than just avid bird-watchers will be able to see the peregrine falcon diving and looping around the campus rooftops.
  UT’s Biodiversity Center launched a live-streaming webcam Friday morning to keep track of the bird, affectionately nicknamed “Tower Girl,” because she stays there year round. An injury prevents her from migrating.
  Tim Keitt has been keeping an
  
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• One hurt in home explosion in north Austin

  02-03-2018 14:58 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An explosion shook a home in north Austin Friday morning, sending one person to the hospital.
  Austin police say the call came in at 6:55 a.m. on the 1100 block of Haverford Drive near Bennington Lane, east of Interstate 35 and a little more than a mile away from Dessau Middle School and Dessau Elementary School. They say it’s not yet clear what type of explosion it was or what caused it.
  Austin-Travis County EMS says a man in his 40s was taken to St. David’s Rou
  
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• FBI, ATF and local police investigating deadly Austin explosion

  02-03-2018 14:58 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A multi-pronged investigation involving multiple agencies is underway after a device exploded on a front porch Friday morning, killing the man who was handling it.
  Austin police say the call came in at 6:55 a.m. on the 1100 block of Haverford Drive, in the Harris Ridge neighborhood. Several 911 callers reported hearing an explosion and said that a victim had traumatic injuries.
  Austin-Travis County EMS says a man in his 40s was taken to St. David’s Round Rock with cri
  
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• Device explodes, killing one in northeast Austin

  02-03-2018 14:58 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A multi-pronged investigation involving multiple agencies is underway after a device exploded on a front porch Friday morning, killing the man who was handling it.
  Austin police say the call came in at 6:55 a.m. on the 1100 block of Haverford Drive, in the Harris Ridge neighborhood. Several 911 callers reported hearing an explosion and said that a victim had traumatic injuries.
  Austin-Travis County EMS says a man in his 40s was taken to St. David’s Round Rock with cri
  
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• World leaders push back against Trump’s trade war threat

  02-03-2018 14:20 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Friday insisted “trade wars are good, and easy to win,” a bold claim that prompted threats of retaliation against U.S. exports like blue jeans and motorcycles.
  “Make no mistake: If the president goes through with this, it will kill American jobs — that’s what every trade war ultimately does,” said Sen. Ben Sasse, a Nebraska Republican.
  Trump has declared that the U.S. will impose punishing tariffs on steel and
  
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• Trump: “Trade wars are good, and easy to win”

  02-03-2018 14:20 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Friday insisted “trade wars are good, and easy to win,” a bold claim that prompted pushback from a Nebraska Republican who quipped “kooky 18th century protectionism will jack up prices on American families.”
  Trump has declared that the U.S. will impose punishing tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, escalating tensions with China and other trading partners and raising the prospect of higher prices for American consumers a
  
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• Cowboy breakfast serves up a preview of Rodeo Austin

  02-03-2018 13:46 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Rodeo Austin doesn’t ride into town for another week, but it’s kicking off festivities Friday with a cowboy breakfast.
  People can grab some biscuits and pancakes at the Long Center at 701 W Riverside Dr. in downtown Austin from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.Click here for a full schedule of events for Rodeo AustinThe rodeo, food, music and carnival begin March 10 through March 17. Ticket prices for the activities vary and can be purchased online.  2018 Cowboy Breakfast k
  
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• Drunk man takes $1,600 Uber from West Virginia to New Jersey

  02-03-2018 13:10 via kxan.com
  GLOUCESTER COUNTY, N.J. (AP) — A New Jersey man who got drunk in West Virginia and mistakenly ordered a $1,635 Uber ride back to his home state says the experience was “crazy.”
  NJ.com reported Wednesday that Kenny Bachman thought he was taking an Uber to where he was staying, near the West Virginia University campus.
  But when his driver woke him up two hours into the more than 300-mile journey to New Jersey, Bachman says he didn’t know what was happening or who the driver
  
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• Disney pushes ‘Mulan’ to 2020, moves ‘Avengers’ up a week

  02-03-2018 13:00 via kxan.com
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — In the Disney animation Mulan, all it took was a montage “I’ll Make A Man Out of You” to do just that for the title character. Turns out, it will take a few more years than expected to make a live-action movie out of the Disney classic.
  The Walt Disney Company is shifting some film releases around including moving “Avengers: Infinity War” up one week and pushing the live-action “Mulan” back almost a year and a half.
  Liu Yifei wil
  
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• Grid foresees record power usage, tight reserves this summer

  02-03-2018 12:23 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The operators of the electric distribution grid that serves most of Texas foresees record-breaking electric power usage this summer while also facing tight operating reserves because of fewer generating units online.
  The Electric Reliability Council of Texas on Thursday attributed the expected record peak usage this summer to the strong Texas economy. It blames the tight reserve generating capacity to the recent retirement of older generating units on the grid.
  ERCOT P
  
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• Ortega Elementary neighbors call for safer routes to school

  02-03-2018 06:02 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The east Austin community surrounding Ortega Elementary School says something’s got to change before another child ends up hurt or worse. This, as city leaders determine how to divvy up a $27.6 million chunk of the 2016 Mobility Bond for Safe Routes to School.
  “This is a neighborhood that’s been neglected for far too long,” parent Reyes Rodriguez told KXAN, saying after talking the talk, city leaders need to walk the walk. “Here we are in
  
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• Parking problems persist on Rainey St. as more condos and hotels open

  02-03-2018 05:42 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A new high rise is set to open early next year on Rainey Street. 70 Rainey is expected to add hundreds of residents to an already busy entertainment district.
  The condo building will top out at 34 stories and will have 164 units. “We truly have unparalleled views of looking down the river,” said CJ Sackman, managing director of Sackman Enterprises.
  Rainey Street is part of the Central Business District, which is a zoning designation for high-density areas.
  
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• Child sex offender serving 300 years in prison released on technicality

  02-03-2018 04:38 via kxan.com
  GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) – A Colorado man convicted in 2015 of sexually molesting six young boys and girls has been set free.
  Michael Tracy McFadden, 46, was sentenced to more than 300 years in prison on charges he sexually assaulted 6 young boys and girls, but on Tuesday he was released from the Arkansas Valley Correctional Facility.
  McFadden appealed his conviction, claiming that pre-trial delays in his original trial violated Colorado’s speedy trial statutes. This past June, t
  
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• Police respond to viral video of homeless man kicked out of McDonald’s

  02-03-2018 03:10 via kxan.com
  MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) – Myrtle Beach police are responding to a Facebook video that has been viewed millions of times of an officer asking a man, who appears to be homeless, to leave a McDonald’s restaurant after someone paid for his meal.
  A five-minute video was posted to Facebook Wednesday morning just after 11 a.m. The video shows a Myrtle Beach Police officer speaking with a man who is sitting at a booth eating his meal. The officer tells the man that after he finis
  
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• Student punished after punching classmate in the face for making school threat

  02-03-2018 03:01 via kxan.com
  CAIRO, N.Y. (WTEN) – A 15-year-old student was arrested after making a threat at Cairo-Durham High School on Tuesday.
  He’s not the only one in trouble; another student is now suspended after the incident.
  Police are still investigating the nature of the threat, but one freshman girl says it was serious and worries the whole thing could seriously impact her future.
  “I feel that he was a dangerous person,” Crystal Williams-Phillips, a student at Cairo Durham High School, sa
  
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• Buckets of teddy bears donated to ATCEMS to help kids through hard times

  02-03-2018 02:41 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A cute and cuddly teddy bear can make any kid, or adult for that matter, feel a little bit better when they’re down.
  On Thursday, the Austin Junior Forum donated buckets of teddy bears to the Austin-Travis County EMS. The program provides teddy bears and stuffed Dalmatians for local public safety agencies to give to children involved in traumatic events.
  The teddy bear program has helped more than 5,000 children cope with a crisis. Since Thursday is also the kickoff f
  
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• Soldiers begin Best Warrior Competition at Camp Swift in central Texas

  02-03-2018 02:38 via kxan.com
  BASTROP, Texas – Soldiers know they have to be prepared for anything and are being put to the test at the Best Warrior Competition this week.
  Texas National Guard soldiers and airmen, along with Czech and Chilean armed forces members started competing Thursday morning, going through a physical fitness test and obstacle course.
  “It’s a lot of exposure to something I’m not normally used to, doing every day in my career field which is education and trainings,” Tech. Sg
  
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• Modern learning: Eanes ISD approves $1.3M for ‘flexible furniture’

  02-03-2018 02:16 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Ninety classes across Eanes ISD will receive new furniture this upcoming school year.
  On Tuesday, Feb. 27, the board of trustees approved $1.3 million to outfit classrooms across the district with “flexible furniture.”
  This is part of $52.5 million Eanes ISD bond package focused on addressing capital improvements, school bus replacements, technology improvements and returning land to campuses by moving district functions into a District Operations Cent
  
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• Kidnapped Round Rock girls will move in with family, temporarily

  02-03-2018 01:36 via kxan.com
  GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) — Two girls who were kidnapped after their mother was killed in Round Rock are headed out of foster care to live with family, for now. A custody hearing Thursday established a transition between their current foster home and temporary placement with an uncle and aunt.
  The girls, ages 8 and 14, have been in state custody since January, when their mother, Tonya Bates, was found murdered in their Round Rock home and the girls were found in Colorado with their mother&r
  
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• Proposed improvement projects would prevent flooding in Georgetown

  02-03-2018 01:08 via kxan.com
  GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) — “It was coming down the streets, all the streets and it was coming right here, and the water was up to my husband’s knee,” said Evelyn Ranum.
  Ranum remembers the flood Tropical Storm Hermine rushed to her doorstep — the water mark is still etched in her garage eight years later. “The carpet, the floor, everything had to be changed,” recalls Ranum.
  Ranum lives in Smith Branch on the southeast side of Georgetown, w
  
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• Text claiming man murdered wife led to discovery of woman’s body by SWAT

  02-03-2018 00:42 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin Police Department received second-hand information in a text message Thursday afternoon claiming a man murdered his wife. Following a brief SWAT situation, a woman’s body was found in a southeast Austin home. The incident is being investigated as a homicide.
  When police first got the tip, it was turned over to the homicide unit, which found a location and name. After getting a search warrant, the SWAT team was called to the 5400 block of La Loma Lane, which
  
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• SWAT situation happening in southeast Austin

  02-03-2018 00:42 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Police are working a SWAT situation near the Del Valle area Thursday afternoon in southeast Austin.
  Austin police say it was originally called to a home in the 5400 block of La Loma Lane, which is off of Pearce Lane, just after 1 p.m. for an undisclosed reason. The SWAT team was later called in to assist.
  No other details have been provided. Police are asking people to avoid the area.
  KXAN will update this story as more information becomes available. 
  
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• VIDEO: Logs crash through trucker’s windshield

  02-03-2018 00:14 via kxan.com
  SEATTLE (KXAN) — A trucker is in serious, but stable condition after massive logs crashed through the cab’s windshield.
  The Tacoma Fire Department told local NBC affiliate KING that the driver was taken to the hospital after the crash on Interstate 5 near 38th Street in Tacoma, Washington.
  Two different logging trucks were involved in the crash. Helicopter video of the scene shows the logs filled the trucker’s cab. Officials haven’t said how the driver managed to esc
  
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