u/Traditional_Figure70

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Wen Becerra hasn’t had hot water or a working stovetop in his apartment since May 28 when his gas was cut after a neighboring apartment building blew up in an explosionthat killed three people.

On Friday, he and other residents of The Bonnie apartments were told they had to be out of their units in three days.

“That’s impossible to move out in three days,” Becerra said. “The problem is that they send us the letters on Friday at 5:30. That's not fair because Saturday, everything’s closed. Sunday, everything's closed.”

The city said Wednesday management extended the move-out date until Aug. 31 — giving residents a little more time, though only four people remain, Becerra said.

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Dallas Parks and Recreation is rescheduling its furlough days from September to August. The first one is this Friday.

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New indictment against Johnson County Sheriff Adam King. Worth checking out.

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>Attorney Chad Baruch — who wrote an amicus brief to the Supreme Court in 2015 on behalf of rappers Killer Mike and T.I. — told KERA rap songs can only be used as evidence if there’s a link between the lyrics and the crime.

>“Obviously, if I write a rap song about murdering my wife, and 48 hours later I murder my wife, that’s coming into evidence,” Baruch said. “You can't just have a blanket rule that says, well, you can use rap lyrics, or you can't” 

>He also said the use of rap lyrics is controversial because they are used as evidence while lyrics in other genres are often not.

>“If Johnny Cash were accused of murder, no one would let them introduce the lyric that he shot a man in Reno just to watch him die,” Baruch said, referring to “Folsom Prison Blues” by Cash. “Anytime you're treating rap differently than other art forms, you're almost inevitably treating black performers differently than other performers.” 

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Jesse Rizo is no stranger to loss.

On May 24, 2022, his 9-year-old niece was among the 19 children and two teachers killed during the Robb Elementary School shooting.

Four years later, and now the president of the Uvalde school board, Rizo is dealing with a different type of loss. His hometown of Batesville, about 20 miles south of Uvalde, was inundated on Thursday with historic floodwaters, destroying homes and damaging the local school.

On Saturday, Rizo joined volunteers outside the Zavala County Nutrition Center, distributing clothes and food to those affected by the flooding. He said he’s doing all he can to keep himself together.

“You got to look strong. You got to show a certain image,” Rizo said. “You can't let them see you break. You break in your own time, but not in front of them.”

The community, Rizo said, is largely dealing with the loss the only way it knows how — by banding together and helping each other out.

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A finalist for CEO and president of Dallas Area Rapid Transit has a history of spending controversies at the transportation agency he currently leads in Florida.

Nathaniel Ford was president and CEO of the Jacksonville Transportation Authority for 13 years, but he announced this month he would resign in January after becoming one of three finalists to lead DART.

His time at the Florida transit agency was marked by accusations of financial mismanagement.

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The Collin County Democratic Party filed a formal complaint Tuesday against Attorney General Ken Paxton, accusing him of violating state law for the past two years by reporting the wrong home address while voting.

It comes in response to a Texas Tribune and ProPublica report this month that found Paxton voted in six elections over the past two years using the address of a Collin County home at which his wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, said in divorce filings he no longer lives. Paxton appears to have moved to a house in Denton County, according to the article.

“For someone who's made a stand against voter fraud, it's unconscionable (yet not surprising) that Paxton engages in this behavior,” Mary Higbe, the Collin County Democratic Party vice chair, wrote in a complaint to the Texas Secretary of State.

A man whose 1-year-old son and wife were killed in a gas explosion and fire at an Oak Cliff Apartment in May has sued Atmos Energy for allegedly failing to mark a gas line struck by a driller.

It’s at least the fifth lawsuit to be filed against Atmos over the incident.

The lawsuit, filed by Erik Perez Sr., alleges Atmos frequently failed to properly mark its gas pipes in the area leading up to the explosion. It claims Atmos has thousands of leaking pipes and frequently fails to locate its own pipes.

“They just don't know where their lines are,” Ted Lyons, Perez Sr.’s lead attorney, told KERA. “They don't know what the heck's going on with their gas system – it's amazing.”

A Plano ISD school teacher was arrested Wednesday for allegedly sexually abusing a second-grade student, police said.

Paul Campbell, 64, was arrested after detectives investigated an “outcry” by a student regarding “inappropriate physical contact,” according to a police news release.

Campbell was transferred to Collin County Jail Thursday and charged with continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14 years old, which is a first degree felony. No attorney for Campbell has been listed yet.

Campbell taught at Brinker Elementary for more than 25 years and in Houston for 10 years as a second and fourth grade teacher, according to a December Internet Archive capture of his profile on the school’s website.

Fort Worth sued the owner of an East Lancaster motel Tuesday for allegedly failing to control rampant prostitution, drug dealing and violence on the property.

The city is asking the judge to label Central Motel a common nuisance, shut it down for a year, appoint a receiver and order the owner to take measures to reduce crime.

"Chronic criminal activity that threatens our neighborhoods will not be ignored," City Manager Jay Chapa said in a press release. "Property owners have a responsibility to operate their properties in a manner that does not allow persistent criminal activity. The City will use every lawful tool available to protect our residents, support our police officers and hold property owners accountable."

Matthew Rankin, a second amendment rights activist, is suing Dallas in federal court after his gun was confiscated for jaywalking.