There are a number of free tools in the event of severe weather. One such tool is the Red Cross Tornado App which is available at http://www.redcross.org/mobile-apps/tornado-app for iPhone and Android devices. Also, you can go to http://www.tessa.org/ to find emergency precautions; that’s the website of the Texas Severe Storms Association. Baker says the Smith County Office of Emergency Management has been closely monitoring weather conditions and is prepared for a weather emergency, if necessary. “Our concern is always for the safety and well-being of the citizens of Smith County,” said Baker.

According to information presented in court, on Mar. 19, 2012, Kubisty accepted $3,000 from Edward Jacobs to burn down a building located at 3322 E. Fifth Street in Tyler that was being used by the Add-Life Recovery Center methadone clinic. Kubisty and Jacobs conspired to burn down the building in order to gain a competitive advantage for the Methadone Clinic of East Texas, which was owned by Jacobs and also had an office in Tyler. On Mar. 19, 2012 Kubisty was arrested in Tyler by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and was found to have a gasoline can, with a wick saturated in gasoline protruding from its neck, in the back of his pickup.

After Kubisty’s arrest, Jacobs feared Kubisty would testify against him, and on June 1, 2012, he arranged a meeting with a man he believed he could hire to murder Kubisty in order to prevent Kubisty’s testimony. During the meeting, Jacobs offered to pay the hit-man $12,000 for Kubisty’s murder. ATF was monitoring the meeting and arrested Jacobs at the scene. On Dec. 18, 2012 Jacobs pleaded guilty to attempted arson and solicitation of murder for hire. He was sentenced to 188 months in federal prison on Mar. 14, 2013, and ordered to pay over $12,000 in restitution.

Kilgore ISD:

Middle School awards assembly (had been scheduled for 6pm)
Orchestra performance (had been scheduled for 6pm)
7 on 7 football with White Oak and Pine Tree

Tyler ISD:

TARGET – New Parent Orientation and GT Open House
Jones Elementary MST Academy – Spring Musical “Hats”

Jacksonville ISD:

6th grade band concert (Nichols Intermediate)
4th grade graduation (Joe Wright)
All Tutorials at the high school after school

Whitehouse ISD:

Choir concert has been canceled

Lindale ISD:

High School Spring band concert (Tentatively rescheduled for May 28th)

Chapel Hill ISD:

Middle School band concert
High School sports banquet

Tyler’s Stepping Stone School:

Pre-Kindergarten Graduation/Preschool Program cancelled for Tuesday night. It is being rescheduled for Thursday, May 23rd.

Police received reports Monday night of multiple hit and run accidents on Highway 80 near the hospital. Police searched for the vehicle that was reportedly involved, a small, blue 4-door vehicle with some damage. After they found the vehicle, police say SiFuentes sped away from police. While driving eastbound on Hwy. 80, SiFuentes allegedly tried to run over people and other vehicles. Longview Police officers attempted to spike the vehicle.

At one point, SiFuentes turned around, drove westbound on Hwy. 80, and hit the aforementioned police officer, according to authorities. Police say SiFuentes was attempting to hit officers when he was shot. The officer responsible for the fatal shooting was treated and released from a local hospital. The Texas Rangers are still investigating the incident.

To provide a tip, the user is asked to provide as much information as possible on the online form. Once the person presses the button to submit a tip, he or she is given a special code number. Later, once an arrest has been made and once Van Zandt County Crime Stoppers has approved a reward, the tipster will call the usual telephone number – 903-567-STOP (567-7867) to get the additional reward code information that allows pickup of the cash reward at a local bank.

“We have been wanting to add this online tip submission feature for some time,” said Andy Flowers, president of Van Zandt County Crime Stoppers. “Other Crime Stoppers groups in Texas that do online tips have reported good results, and we expect the same here in Van Zandt County.”

As for the “No Refusal” effort, the department will be participating in a State Grant during the Memorial Day Holiday that will provide funding to the department to enforce DWI laws. The enforcement detail will be on the lookout for intoxicated drivers Friday, May 24, through Monday, May 27. A multi-joint effort between the Smith County District Attorney’s Office and police agencies from all over Smith County will participate in the “No Refusal” effort. Upon the arrest of a suspected drunk driver, he or she will be asked to blow into a breath-test machine or take a blood test. If the driver refuses, officers will obtain an immediate search warrant signed by a judge on call to have blood drawn by a nurse on staff at the Smith County Jail. The blood is then analyzed to determine whether the driver’s blood-alcohol concentration is 0.08 or higher, the legal limit for driving in Texas.

According to police, “This program has proven to be an effective tool to combat drunken drivers. It is the intent of all Law Enforcement agencies that this effort will act as a deterrent, persuading people to avoid driving while intoxicated because they know that police officers will be conducting sobriety testing with or without driver’s consent. Please don’t drink and drive!”