Houston Area Flu Cases Spike!

THE CHRON: If you've been putting off your annual flu shot, don't delay any longer: Texas is already being hit hard this flu season.

Houston-area hospitals have seen a spike in the number of emergency room visits for flu-like symptoms, said Porfirio Villarreal, spokesman for the Houston Department of Health and Human Services. During the week of Nov. 18, about 1,580 visits to emergency rooms were attributed to flu-like illnesses, compared with just 249 visits during the same week last year, Villarreal said.

Influenza is a serious disease that can lead to hospitalization or even death, the CDC says.

Every flu season is different, and even healthy people can get very sick from the disease and spread it to others. From 1976 to 2007, estimates of U.S. deaths each year due to flu ranged from 3,000 to 49,000.

"Flu is predictably unpredictable," said Dr. Gail Demmler-Harrison, pediatric infectious diseases specialist at Texas Children's Hospital and pediatrics professor at Baylor College of Medicine. "There's no cause for alarm but cause for action. People should get themselves vaccinated so it doesn't get any worse."

National Influenza Vaccination Week, a campaign established in 2005 to counter the notion that December is too late to get a vaccination, ends Saturday. Once a vaccine is administered, it takes about two weeks to develop immunity.

Although the influenza season usually peaks in February, 48 states and Puerto Rico have reported cases, with rates rising quickly nationwide, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said this week.

Along with Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee are also reporting high levels of activity.

In Houston, Texas Children's Hospital has seen an early start to the season with 123 confirmed cases of Type A influenza and 32 cases of Type B, compared with just two Type A cases in the same span last year, Demmler-Harrison said.

Everyone who is at least 6 months old should get a flu vaccination, but the CDC says it's especially important for these groups:

» People at high risk of developing serious complications like pneumonia if they get the flu, including those with medical conditions such as asthma, diabetes and chronic lung disease.

» Pregnant women.

» People 65 years and older.

» People who live with or care for others who are at high risk of developing serious complications.

Apartment fire in Cypress Creek

KHOU.com staff

CYPRESS, Texas – Firefighters with the Cypress Creek Volunteer Fire Department responded to reports of an apartment fire just after midnight Wednesday.

The fire was reported at the Central Park Regency apartments on Regency Green at Jones Road.

Firefighters found heavy flames shooting through the roof of an attached laundry room at the end of the apartment building. They were able to put it out before it spread, but nearby apartments suffered water and smoke damage.

The Harris County Fire Marshal was called to the scene to investigate.

No injuries were reported.

Mormon church in Cypress gets new leadership

On Oct. 28, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced the appointment of a new ecclesiastical leader, David R. Lauck, who will serve as the president of the Cypress Texas Stake in Northwest Houston. He succeeds Stirling D. Pack Jr., who successfully completed nine years of service.

The church is organized geographically into stakes, which are similar to a Catholic diocese. In his new assignment, President Lauck will preside over 12 congregations in Cypress, Waller, Fairfield, Tomball and Northwest Houston.

“I am humbled by this responsibility but committed to do my best, one step at a time,” said Lauck. “Challenges help us to develop spiritual power. Through the love of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and through his atonement, each one of us can seek the strength we need to climb the mountains in our lives and to raise our eyes to new heights.”

Stake presidents typically serve for about 9-10 years and come from a variety of backgrounds. Lauck was raised in the Sugar Land/Missouri City area. He graduated from Brigham Young University with a bachelor’s degree in business. Currently he resides in Northwest Houston and is a business development manager with Shell Oil Company, where he has worked for over 21 years.

The church has no salaried ministry, so Lauck will continue to work full time while fulfilling his new ecclesiastical responsibilities.

He and his wife, Leanne, have been married for 23 years. Houston has been their home for 14 of those years. They have three children — one currently serving a two-year church mission in New York, one attending college and one a student in Cy-Fair I.S.D.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a worldwide Christian church with a membership of nearly 14.5 million people in more than 160 countries. Currently in Houston there are approximately 60,000 Latter-day Saints in 120 congregations.

13 year old Cypress girl steals car to see boy friend

CYPRESS, Texas – A 13-year-old lovesick Cypress girl who stole her brother's car to visit her boyfriend in Kentucky has been found safe in Nashville. Elizabeth Annette Robinson is with juvenile authorities with the Nashville Police Department. The teen's parents discovered she was missing Thursday morning, along with the car and her mom’s ATM card. They last saw her around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday at their home in the 17100 block of Ledgefield in Cypress. "We love her so much. We don’t know why she’s done this," said Tressa Robinson, Elizabeth’s mother. She believed her lovestruck daughter was heading to Hodgenville, Kentucky to meet a 12-year-old boy named Dylan. The pair met while playing Xbox games online. "She had mentioned that she was talking to a boy online and said he was her boyfriend," Tressa Robinson said. "She started staying in her bedroom more, isolating herself where she was always with the headset, always talking. That’s how they communicated through the Xbox." Elizabeth’s dad took away the Xbox earlier this week and that’s when she apparently got mad and concocted the scheme to run away. Robinson’s mom said she had been asking questions about the brother’s car and what kind of gas mileage it gets. Elizabeth left a note saying she was running away to a girlfriend’s house because of bullies at school. But her parents figured out her true destination when they found an email from Dylan with his address and contacted his grandmother. Authorities began tracking Elizabeth’s travels through her mom’s ATM card. She used it Thursday in Henderson, Texas, about 180 miles north of Houston. Elizabeth’s dad hit the road to try and find his missing child. Dylan stayed at home in Kentucky. He apparently said over the phone that he told Beth not to do this. An Amber Alert was issued in Nashville, Tennessee and Beth was pulled over and taken into custody. The family released the following statement: Thank you all so much...We can’t thank you enough for all of your help in finding our daughter. An amber alert was placed in Nashville, Tennessee and Beth was pulled over and taken into custody by the Nashville Police Department.. Beth is safe and sound. Thank God! My husband will be in Nashville in 30 minutes and is on his way to the police station, to pick Beth up and bring her home... Thank you all and God Bless You for the Amazing Job in Finding our Daughter! -- Robbie & Tressa Robinson & Family

Cypress woman uses Linkedin to promote meth

A Texas woman accused of cooking methamphetamine allegedly used her LinkedIn account to conduct business, according to the Houston Press. 25-year-old Lindsay Ann Grice was charged with the crime after her meth lab exploded, scorching her partner in the process. In addition to the illegal drug operation, police also uncovered a cache of stolen goods at the residence. Grice, it would seem, has been a very busy woman.

What happened was there were two individuals making what’s called a shake in bake. It’s a one person hit cooker,” Deputy Thomas Gilliland explained to the Cypress Creek Mirror. “Somehow the guy did not know what he was doing and it exploded. The vapors caught fire. It singed his hair; it singed his face and upper body.”

Although the house wasn’t damaged in the explosion, an unidentified man was badly burned in the blaze. After taking the wounded guy to the hospital, Grice and her accomplice, 37-year-old Thurman Lee Hall, quickly rushed back to their home to dispose of the evidence. Before they could properly cover up their crimes, police descended on the property and arrested the suspects.

The Houston Press reports that Grice and Hall were originally charged with manufacturing and possessing meth. After investigating the matter, the pair are now facing an additional charge of arson while manufacturing a controlled substance.

In order to help spread the word about her meth operation, Lindsay Ann Grice took to LinkedIn to network with those in the market for some illegal drugs. In addition to “consulting offers” and “expertise requests,” Grice was also down for “new ventures” and “business deals.” Although the suspect claimed to be a chemical expert and a self-proclaimed baller, police weren’t overly impressed with her setup.

“It wasn’t really a meth lab, so to speak,” Deputy Gilliland explained. “The whole area was about the size of a shoebox.”

As of this writing, both Grice and Hall are being held at Harris County Jail without bail.

Read more at http://www.inquisitr.com/317961/texas-woman-uses-linkedin-to-promote-her-meth-business/#x4WFB4w5v9zrbrYz.99

Hurricane warning issued for Houston & Vicinity

By Eric Berger, Houston Chronicle McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

Aug. 27--Tropical Storm Isaac moved into the Gulf of Mexico late Sunday, setting the stage for a midweek rendezvous with the northern Gulf coast.

In response to the growing threat, the National Hurricane Center issued hurricane warnings for the coast from Morgan City, La., to Destin, Fla.

Forecasters said it remained difficult to determine the storm's most likely track, but New Orleans was in the middle of the hurricane center's "cone of uncertainty."

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal called a state of emergency on Sunday and suggested that people leave low-lying parts of the state. A voluntary evacuation of New Orleans began Sunday, and mandatory evacuations could begin as early as Monday.

An emergency declaration was also issued in Mississippi by Gov. Phil Bryant amid concerns of storm surge threatening low-lying areas.

By late Sunday Isaac remained a powerful tropical storm, with 65-mph sustained winds, and forecasters anticipated it would grow into a hurricane by Monday. The official forecast predicts Isaac will come ashore as a Category 2 hurricane along the northern Gulf of Mexico coast, although some forecast models strengthened it into a major hurricane before landfall.

Isaac could reach the northern Gulf coast by Wednesday -- the seventh anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

Passing through the Florida Keys as a tropical storm, Gov. Rick Scott said Sunday evening that only minor damage was reported in Florida.

In Tampa, Republican National Convention officials said they would convene briefly on Monday, then recess until Tuesday afternoon, when the storm was expected to have passed.

Offshore, energy companies were preparing for the storm, as they stepped up evacuation of workers from the Gulf and shut down some production.

By midday Sunday, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement reported 24 percent of the current daily oil production in the Gulf had been shut down, along with just over 8 percent of current daily natural gas production.

Satish Nagarajaiah, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Rice University, said the evacuations and production shutdowns were routine. More platforms will be shut down by Monday, he said, most of them in the eastern Gulf. And once the storm passes, production will be restarted quickly unless the platform sustains damage, he said.

Drilling in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico accounts for 23 percent of domestic crude oil production and about 7 percent of natural gas production, according to U.S. government statistics.

More than 40 percent of the country's refining capacity is located along the Gulf coast, too. So far, refineries are continuing operations.

BP said Sunday it had temporarily suspended production at all of its operated production platforms in the Gulf. Apache Corp. and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. both said they shut in some production. BP had begun evacuating workers Friday; by Saturday, Chevron, Murphy Oil, Shell, Exxon Mobil and other companies were evacuating nonessential workers.

On Sunday afternoon some forecast models suggests Isaac could move as far west as the Texas-Louisiana border before moving inland, possibly posing a hurricane threat to Texas.

But that scenario remained unlikely, forecasters said. "There's not a zero percent chance on Texas, but it certainly is still an outlier" that the state would get hit, said Bill Read, the recently retired director of the National Hurricane Center.

Depending how close Isaac moves to Texas, waters offshore Galveston could see some higher waves, and winds could rise over the region on Wednesday and Thursday. Some rain is also possible.

Staff writer Jeannie Kever contributed to this report.

100 Year Rainfall hits Houston area

CBS/AP) HOUSTON - Historic rainfall levels that drenched the Houston area this week flooded dozens of homes and caused widespread street flooding, but the rain also is likely to result in the end of drought conditions in Southeast Texas, officials said Friday.

Officials estimated that fewer than 100 homes were flooded after Cypress Creek, located in the northwest part of the Houston area, rose above its banks after getting about 14 inches of rain over the past couple of days, said Francisco Sanchez, a spokesman for the Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

County officials were still trying to reach flooded neighborhoods oan Friday to better assess the damage, but initial reports had homes affected anywhere from a few inches to a couple of feet of water, Sanchez said.

"Some areas along Cypress Creek got more rain in the last 24 hours than in Hurricane Ike (in 2008) or from major flooding in 1998," Sanchez said.

CBS Affiliate KHOU reports it will be mostly dry Saturday morning, but there is a 60-percent chance of rain beginning in the afternoon.

A flood warning is in effect until 8:50 a.m. Sunday for northwest Harris County and Montgomery County. A flood warning is in effect until 10 Sunday night for the Spring Creek area of Harris County.

In northwest Harris County, a good portion of the subdivision called the Enchanted Valley Estates was only accessible by boat. Homeowners could be seen using canoes, pontoon boats and even a jet ski to navigate around the area.

Firefighters rescued several families from the Norchester subdivision near Cypress Creek Friday when two to three feet of water seeped into their homes overnight.

Several people also had to be rescued early Friday morning after driving into high water.

Gary Whitaker Jr., who lives in one of the areas affected by Cypress Creek, said street flooding in his neighborhood had started to recede on Friday but a nearby subdivision still had streets that were impassable. Water from the creek was flowing "like a waterfall" across one street and into a golf course, he said.

"Quite a few people in our subdivision couldn't go to work today. They couldn't get out (due to flooded streets). It was pretty risky," he said.

Whitaker, 36, who lives in Cypress, an unincorporated area in northwest Harris County, said there were no reports of flooded homes in his neighborhood.

The American Red Cross in Houston sent out workers Friday to affected neighborhoods to assess the flooded homes, said spokesman Cameron Ballantyne. The agency had not opened any shelters.

In Montgomery County, located just north of Harris County, officials reported seven to eight flooded homes.

A shelter had been opened in Montgomery County at Living Stones Church in Magnolia, but church secretary Linda Arnold said no residents had used the facility.

Victor Murphy, a climate expert with the National Weather Service, said one rain gauge on the border of Harris and Waller counties recorded 10.3 inches of rain in a 10 hour period.

Murphy said that amount of precipitation within that short period of time suggests that area experienced a "100-year rainfall event," which caused Cypress Creek to overflow.

Other areas in Southeast Texas also got large amounts of rain, including just west of Bay City in Matagorda County, which received about 18 inches this past week.

"Rainfall in the entire (Southeast Texas) area this week was in the 8 to 10 inch category," he said. "The average weekly rainfall for this time of year is about 1 inch or so."

While the current U.S. Drought Monitor shows some parts of Southeast Texas as being abnormally dry, that does not include this week's rainfall totals.

"When the next U.S. Drought Monitor comes out Thursday, there will not be any drought in Southeast Texas," Murphy said. Most of the rest of the state was expected to remain in drought conditions.

Even if Southeast Texas only experiences average rainfall or dry weather the rest of the summer, drought conditions should be kept at bay until at least the fall, Murphy said.

Sanchez said officials were hopeful Cypress Creek, which was still rising Friday, would eventually recede if the area was not inundated with more rain. Water levels at two other nearby creeks which had also flowed out of their banks, had started to fall.

Rain was forecast for this weekend but the chances of showers were expected to be lower than earlier this week.

Bank robber sought in Cypress

The FBI is trying to identify the man who robbed the Wells Fargo Bank located at 25694 Northwest Freeway in Cypress, Texas, Monday. Bank surveillance video captured clear photographs of the man during the robbery.

At approximately 12:18 p.m., the man entered the bank and handed the teller a threatening note which demanded cash. The teller complied and gave the man some money. He carjacked two people while fleeing, said investigators. The vehicles were later recovered a short distance from the bank. No one was physically hurt during the robbery. 

The robber was described a black male, in his late twenties to early thirties, 5’5” – 6’ tall, 200 pounds with a dark complexion.

The FBI Bank Robbery Task Force has responded to 88 bank robberies in the Houston and Harris County area to date in 2012.

Crime Stoppers is offering up to $5,000.00 for information leading to the charging and arrest of this robber. If you have information about this case, please call the Crime Stoppers tip line at 713-222-TIPS (8477), or the Houston office of the FBI at 

'GI Joe Bandit' behind bars

KHOU: CYPRESS, Texas – A bank-robbery suspect dubbed the "GI Joe Bandit" was behind bars Wednesday in the Harris County Jail.

John Mathew Billings turned himself in to authorities on Friday.

He was wanted in connection with a robbery at the BBVA Compass Bank in Cypress on March 7, 2012.

In that incident, investigators said Billings walked in, pointed a pistol at the tellers and demanded cash.

He got away with an unspecified amount of money.

No one was injured.

Billings was being held on $30,000 bond

CYPRESS, Texas — Investigators say two students have been accused in a fake lunch money scam at a Houston-area school.

KPRC-TV ( http://bit.ly/IfMovd) reports the computer-printed $20 bills confiscated at Cypress Ranch High School have the same two serial numbers.

Officials say one boy was suspended and then arrested at home, while the other was arrested at school Wednesday.

Both teens have been charged in juvenile court with forgery. Names of the 16- and 15-year-old boys haven't been released.

Harris County constable's Lt. Donald Steward says lunch room workers reported some bills used to pay for lunches did not appear to be real.

Steward says at least $500 worth of fake bills were confiscated from the older suspect. The younger boy

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/04/26/3914128/2-boys-allegedly-passed-fake-cash.html#storylink=cpy

More charges filed against Cypress sex offender

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The Harris County Precinct Four Constable Office High Tech Crimes Unit announced four charges of possession of child pornography were filed against Gary Marcus Palmer, 35, from Cypress, Texas.

This is the second time investigators with Precinct Four and the Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force have reportedly dealt with Palmer. Earlier this year, Palmer was charged with indecency with a child after investigators with the High Tech Crimes unit were alerted to Palmer's alleged attempts at luring young boys with promises of alcohol, drugs and free cell phones.

Palmer, who officials say already a registered sex offender for crimes against children, has been in the Harris County Jail since late 2011 on a number of charges, including failure to register as a sex offender.

Precinct Four investigators were alerted two weeks ago by the Tomball Police Department about a computer in a pawn shop with child pornography images. Investigators were able to trace that the computer reportedly belonged to Gary Marcus Palmer. An exam of the hard drives revealed nearly 500 images of known child pornography.

Harris County Crimes Against Children prosecutors accepted four counts of possession of child pornography, adding to his current cases in the 178th District Court.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

Cypress students take a stand against bullying with music video

khou.com
Posted on April 2, 2012 at 6:31 PM
Updated Monday, Apr 2 at 6:40 PM

CYPRESS, Texas —Students at Cypress Ranch High School are taking a stand against bullying that coincides with the nationwide release of a documentary that focuses on the victims of the spiraling epidemic.

Hundreds of them recently took part in a lip-synch video promoting an anti-bullying message they hope will go viral on the Internet.
“We made this to see how many lives we could touch,” said Triple Oswald, the student body president who came up with the idea.

The video features a scene in which a girl is being bullied when another student decides to intervene. Then other students break out in song and dance.
The song features music and lyrics written by Kaitlyn Knippers, a student who was once bullied herself.

“I feel like this, for me, was such a great personal achievement because now I feel like I can stand up for myself,” said Knippers.

On Friday, the film “Bully” was released nationwide in limited distribution. The film is unrated and set for wide distribution on April 13.

Tornadoes ravage Arlington/Dallas Ft Worth

Tornado-wrecked Dallas begins assessing damage
By PAUL J. WEBER, Associated Press –


ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The tornado hurtled toward the nursing home. Physical therapist Patti Gilroy said she saw the swirling mass barreling down through the back door, after she herded patients into the hallway in the order trained: walkers, wheelchairs, then beds.
"It wasn't like a freight train like everybody says it is," said Gilroy, who rounded up dozens to safety at Green Oaks Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. "It sounded like a bomb hit. And we hit the floor, and everybody was praying. It was shocking."

The National Weather Service said as many as a dozen twisters touched down in a wrecking-ball swath of violent weather that stretched across Dallas and Fort Worth. The destructive reminder of a young tornado season Tuesday left thousands without power and hundreds of homes pummeled or worse.

As the sun rose Wednesday over the southern Dallas suburb of Lancaster, one of the hardest hit areas, it was clear that twisters had bounced in and out of neighborhoods, destroying homes at random. Vehicles were tossed like toys, coming to rest in living rooms and bedrooms.

At one house, a tornado had seemingly dipped into the building like an immersion blender, spinning directly down through an upstairs bedroom and wreaking havoc in the family room below before lifting straight back up and away. A grandfather clock leaned slightly but otherwise stood pristine against a wall at the back of the downstairs room that was filled with smashed furniture and fallen support beams.

Despite the intensity of the slow-moving storms, only a handful of people were hurt, a couple of them seriously, and no fatalities were reported as of late Tuesday.
The Red Cross estimated that 650 homes were damaged. Around 150 Lancaster residents stayed in a shelter Tuesday night.

"I guess 'shock' is probably a good word," Lancaster Mayor Marcus Knight said.
The exact number of tornadoes won't be known until surveyors have fanned across North Texas, looking for clues among the debris that blanketed yards and rooftops peeled off slats.
April is typically the worst month in a tornado season that stretches from March to June, but Tuesday's outburst suggests that "we're on pace to be above normal," said National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Bishop.

An entire wing at the Green Oaks nursing home in Arlington crumbled. Stunning video from Dallas showed big-rig trailers tossed into the air and spiraling like footballs. At the Cedar Valley Christian Center church in Lancaster, Pastor Glenn Young said he cowered in a windowless room with 30 children from a daycare program, some of them newborns.

Ten people in Lancaster were injured, two of them severely, said Lancaster police officer Paul Beck. Three people were injured in Arlington, including two Green Oaks residents taken to a hospital with minor injuries, Arlington Assistant Fire Chief Jim Self said.

Gilroy said the blast of wind through Green Oaks lasted about 10 seconds. She described one of her co-workers being nearly "sucked out" while trying to get a patient out of the room at the moment the facility was hit.

Joy Johnston was also there, visiting her 79-year-old sister.
"Of course the windows were flying out, and my sister is paralyzed, so I had to get someone to help me get her in a wheelchair to get her out of the room," she said.
In one industrial section of Dallas, rows of empty tractor-trailers crumpled like soda cans littered a parking lot.

"The officers were watching the tornadoes form and drop," Kennedale police Chief Tommy Williams said. "It was pretty active for a while."

Most of Dallas was spared the full wrath of the storm. Yet in Lancaster, television helicopters panned over exposed homes without roofs and flattened buildings. Residents could be seen walking down the street with firefighters and peering into homes, looking at the damage after the storm passed.

Hundreds of flights into and out of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and Dallas Love Field were canceled or diverted elsewhere Tuesday. About 500 flights remained grounded Wednesday, airport officials said.

The storms knocked out power for thousands. Utility Oncor said nearly 14,000 homes and businesses, mainly in the Arlington area, still had no electricity early Wednesday.
Meteorologists said the storms were the result of a slow-moving storm system centered over northern New Mexico.

Dixon reported from Lancaster. Associated Press writers Nomaan Merchant, Terry Wallace and David Koenig in Dallas, Betsy Blaney in Lubbock, Angela K. Brown in Fort Worth and Robert Ray in Lancaster contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Aryan brotherhood trial: Tomball gang member beaten for violating 'rules of conduct'

Aryan brotherhood trial: Tomball gang member beaten for violating 'rules of conduct'

CYPRESS CREEK MIRROR/WASHINGTON – Aryan Brotherhood of Texas gang member David Harlow was found guilty Wednesday by Senior U.S. District Judge Ewing Werlein Jr. in Houston of racketeering aggravated assault and conspiracy to commit racketeering aggravated assault for his role in the 2008 beating of a gang prospect.

The guilty verdict was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson for the Southern District of Texas.

According to evidence presented at trial, Harlow, 43, aka “Bam Bam,” was a member of the ABT, a powerful race-based, state-wide organization that operated inside and outside of state and federal prisons and elsewhere in the United States. The evidence showed that the ABT was established in the early 1980s within the Texas prison system and modeled itself after and adopted many of the teachings and writings of the Aryan Brotherhood, a California-based prison gang that was formed in the California prison system during the 1960s.


According to court filings, the ABT was primarily concerned with the protection of white inmates and white supremacy/separatism. Over time, however, the ABT expanded its criminal enterprise to include illegal activities for profit.

The evidence presented at trial also showed that the ABT enforced its rules and promoted discipline among its members, prospects and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, assault, robbery and threats against those who violate the rules or pose a threat to the enterprise.

Members, and oftentimes associates, are required to follow the orders of higher-ranking members, often referred to as “direct orders.”

Specifically, evidence presented at trial showed that Harlow, along with 11 fellow ABT gang members, participated in the beating of a prospective gang member at the home of an ABT gang leader – Steven Walter Cooke, 48, aka “Stainless” – in Tomball, Texas, on Sept. 22, 2008. The prospect, who sustained serious bodily injury, was beaten by gang members because he violated certain ABT rules of conduct.

All of Harlow’s 11 co-defendants, including Cooke, previously pleaded guilty to violent crimes in aid of racketeering.

Harlow faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Sentencing for Harlow is scheduled for June 15, 2012, before Judge Werlein.

This case is being investigated by FBI’s Multi-Agency Gang Task Force consisting of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the FBI; the U.S. Marshals Service; the Texas Rangers, the Texas Department of Public Safety; the Montgomery County, Texas, Precinct 4 Constables Office; the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department; the Houston Police Department-Gang Division; and the Harris County, Texas Sheriff’s Office.

The case is being prosecuted by David Karpel of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Hileman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.

Toll highway mulled by Harris County

THE CHRON:

Harris County may pick up where the Texas Department of Transportation left off as Commissioners Court considers whether to study the feasibility of building a tolled segment of the Tomball Parkway.

The Harris County Toll Road Authority is asking that it be allowed to look at State Highway 249, also known as Tomball Parkway, to see whether it would be make sense to build a toll road from Spring-Cypress Road about 10 miles north, to near Farm-to-Market 1774. Toll roads officials stress that the study is preliminary and no end point has been determined.

"You've got a populated area that's growing that needs more mobility," said Peter Key, executive director of the toll road authority. "We're taking those first steps to try to find something that's feasible."

Starting the toll road north of Spring-Cypress is natural, he said, as that is where the existing expressway ends and splits into two frontage roads separated by 400 to 500 feet of grass median.

"There was some forethought years ago when the state constructed that," Key said. "They were thinking long term: 'One day we'll come back.' Well that day has come, so now who's going to find a way to afford putting it in the ground?"

The Texas Department of Transportation and Montgomery County already have begun discussions on the project, Key said. About 64,500 vehicles per day travel between Beltway 8 and FM 1774, according to 2010 TxDOT data that includes trips in both directions.

"The people out in Tomball really want that to occur," said County Judge Ed Emmett, a former transportation consultant. "Everybody I talk to says it's almost a no-brainer that it's a financially good thing to do."

Shorter commutes

John Fishero, a vice president at Lone Star College-Tomball and chairman of the 249 Coalition, a nascent group advocating for growth along the road from Beltway 8 to Navasota, agreed.

Morning radio traffic reports, Fishero said, often cite 45-minute drive times on 20-mile stretches of the North and Eastex freeways. The commute on 249, he said, often is pegged at 30 minutes for a stretch of road one fourth as long.

"They're talking about Spring Cypress to Beltway 8, and that's only about 6 miles," Fishero said. "People are sitting there going nowhere. Getting the flow of traffic away from the stop lights and stop signs between Spring-Cypress and Magnolia will definitely help."

Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Jack Cagle, whose precinct includes the area, said he has heard positive feedback from his constituents.

"That region is one where we are exploding in our growth," Cagle said. "Having the opportunity to explore avenues of increased mobility is just a positive discussion for us to have."

Terri Hall, of Texans Uniting for Reform & Freedom, a group that opposes many toll roads, disagreed.

"People can't afford to pay tolls, especially with gas going up," Hall said. "You might be able to get it built sooner, but who's going to drive on it? They're going to still be sitting on frontage roads."

READ THE REST OF THE STORY HERE

Severe weather expected today in Houston area

KRPC: You can see a wall of heavy rain," KPRC Local 2 meteorologist Anthony Yanez. "From 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock is the time to watch for these dangerous storms."

"Do not take these warnings lightly. Typically, whenever we get these and see a pattern like we had this morning, we'll see a handful of tornadoes," Yanez said.

Gusty winds and scattered showers moved through the area at 2 a.m., knocking out power to 30,000 CenterPoint Energy customers. As of 6:30 a.m., approximately 18,000 people remained without electricity.

"Earlier this morning, we had wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph," Yanez said. "That's what knocked down some of those trees and power lines. We could still see some 60 mph straight-line winds, hail and lots of lightning."

A low-pressure system is responsible for strong storms in central and northern Texas, which are expected to drench the Houston area most of the day.

"There's a couple of lines that we're tracking. The strongest one will arrive in Houston around noon. It's a concern for this morning until early afternoon. The radar is picking up a lot of twisting winds," Yanez said. "It's going to be wet from 8 o'clock all the way through 2 o'clock. By 5 p.m., this storm system will be in our eastern counties."

Yanez said south of Interstate 10 is not expected to see the strongest storms.

"It's a lot more scattered and not as well put together," Yanez said.

Power outages caused problems for some southwest Houston businesses.

Whataburger on the Southwest Freeway near Weslayan had to turn away customers when employees could not prepare food for the morning rush.

"Their lights just came back on (at 6 a.m.), but they weren't ready to serve yet," customer Carol Bennett said.

Many Houstonians were worried about flooding after severe weather left its mark on Jan. 9.

Houston firefighters performed about 140 water rescues when people became stranded in high water.

Officials warned drivers to "turn around, not drown" if they approached rising water.

Flooding is the most common hazard in Houston and many times, individuals are not able to judge the depths of water along roadways and find themselves in perilous conditions.

Officials said 6 inches of water can cause tires to lose traction and begin to slide, and 12 inches of water can float many cars. Two feet of rushing water will carry off pickup trucks, SUVs and most other vehicles.

Water across a roadway may hide a missing segment of road or a missing bridge, officials said.

In flash floods, waters rise so rapidly they may be far deeper by the time you are halfway across, trapping you in your vehicle.

Be especially cautious at night, when it's even more difficult to gauge the amount of water in a roadway.

The safest option is to simply avoid driving over water and find an alternate, safer route, or wait until the danger has passed.

Woman charged with ripping off church ...

John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas.
Rebekah Talley, 33, is charged with aggregate theft.

Court documents state Talley stole as much as $151,000 from the church from September 2008 through May 2011.

She stole that money by repeatedly cashing in forged checks at her credit union. It was learned she had created fake bank statements relating to legitimate accounts from the church.

On May 12, 2011, church employees noticed there were accounting discrepancies and asked Talley about them. She said she did not notice any.

Later that day, she left the church with a trash bag, saying she was sick.
She never returned.

She was later arrested on Tuesday. Her first court date is pending.


Read more HERE

Houston skyscraper implosion ...

by KHOU
KHOU
Posted on January 9, 2012 at 7:57 AM
Updated today at 8:14 AM

HOUSTON — A big boom could be heard on Sunday at the Texas Medical Center in Houston as demolition crews brought down a 20-story building that was once the home of KVUE's sister station, KHOU-TV.

Rare treat: Houstonians can watch as Space Station crosses Moon

A slice of Houston will have a chance to view a rare treat this evening.

Not only will the International Space Station make an incredibly bright, six-minute track across the sky tonight, some observers will be able to see the orbital laboratory blink across the moon.

Beginning at 6:28 p.m. the station will rise above the northwest horizon in Houston, and disappear just above the southeast horizon some six minutes later. Skies are forecast to be partly cloudy.

Along this path, for some parts of Houston all the way to Galveston, the station’s track will bring it across the face of the moon.

The following map, made by Steve Clayworth of Observable Universe, shows the approximate area from which this will be visible.