Tag: texas

I looked up my birth father and discovered I have 2 brothers

DEAR ABBY: I am a 49-year-old woman who never had a father in my life. He was gone shortly after my mother announced she was pregnant. When she contacted him via his family to let him know I was born, he said he didn’t care, he was already with someone else and she was pregnant. 

I have always known his name and that he lived in Ohio. Well, thanks to technology, I found him. I would look him up every so often. I just learned he died seven months ago. I saw from his obituary that I have two brothers. 

I’m not sure what, if anything, to do. If they don’t know about me, wouldn’t that be a shock? I haven’t told my mother anything about this. I’m not sure how, to be honest. So where am I supposed to go from here? — FEELING LOST AND CONFUSED

DEAR FEELING LOST: You should discuss the fact that you have been searching with your mother. It’s long overdue, and she may be able to share more details with you. If you were seeking the father you never had, he was gone long before his death, and for that I am sorry. If you are looking for a family relationship with your half-brothers, the chances of you finding one are slim. They may have never been told about their father’s “past.”

What a healthy person would do in a case like this is build a family of your choosing, with friends who are caring and supportive, and concentrate on the future rather than the past, which you cannot change.

DEAR ABBY: “Seeking Help in Texas” (July 19) sought assistance for her 24-year-old grandson with Asperger’s syndrome and a bipolar diagnosis. He could apply for career counseling and job placement services from the Vocational Rehabilitation agency serving job seekers with disabilities in his state. In Texas he could contact 800-628-5115 or visit twc.state.tx.us/. 

Residents in other states can find their VR agencies at rsa.ed.gov/about/states/. Job seekers are generally eligible for VR Services if they have a physical, mental or visual disability that is a barrier to employment and need vocational rehabilitation services to get or keep a job. 

Other employment-related services could include training or college education assistive technology, self-employment programs and other programs needed to reach career goals. Vocational rehabilitation programs introduce or reinstate people with disabilities into the workforce, create taxpayers and reduce dependence on disability benefits and government assistance. 

The workplace could also be a great place for the young man to meet people and possibly develop socially, which was a concern in the letter. — JODY HARLAN, OKLAHOMA DEPT. OF REHABILITATION SERVICES

DEAR JODY: Thank you for providing additional resources for the young man who is in need of a jump-start in his life. I am sure they will prove helpful — not only to that family, but also to many other readers with whom that letter resonated.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

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Texas firefighter Charles Krampota found dead at after responding to call

A Texas town is mourning the loss of a firefighter who was found dead hours after responding to a call.

The Alvin Volunteer Fire Department announced on Facebook that Capt. Charles Krampota died in the line of duty on Friday after fighting a fire earlier in the day.

Krampota was part of a crew that responded to a fully-involved blaze at a mobile home off Susie Lane in Alvin, Texas. The department said no residents were at the home during the fire, and it was extinguished shortly after.

Hours after being cleared from the scene, Krampota was found dead inside his home.

Krampota was reportedly a member of the Alvin VFD for over 20 years.

“Charlie was an outstanding firefighter, and friend to so many,” Chief Rex Klesel said in a news release. “One of the most dependable and hardworking individuals I have even met. He will be sorely missed.”

He also spent over 30 years working for the Alvin Independent School District. The school district’s website showed his most recent position as a MEP Manager in the Maintenance Department.

Alvin Volunteer Fire Department Capt. Charles Krampota is seen participating in a training exercise in a picture dated March 1, 2013. 
Alvin Volunteer Fire Department

Local business The Barwash also posted a tribute to Krampota’s life with a collage of personal photos and the following statement: 

“Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Charles Krampota, who we liked to call Chuckles. He was a great man, we loved him, and he will be deeply missed by all. Today we are saddened, but I know he would want his life celebrated. RIP sir.”

The Brazoria County Fire Marshal’s Office and the state Fire Marshal’s Office are investigating his death.

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Texas woman accused of killing woman for unborn baby goes on trial

New Boston, Texas — A state police investigator testified Tuesday that a woman accused of killing a pregnant woman and removing her unborn child conducted intensive research on how to fake a pregnancy convincingly.

The testimony came in the capital murder trial of Taylor Rene Parker for the October 2020 killing of Reagan Simmons-Hancock and her stolen child.

Special Agent Dustin Estes of the Texas Department of Public Safety testified that Parker viewed numerous YouTube videos on delivering and caring for babies.

On the day of the killing, she watched a video on the physical exam of an infant delivered pre-term at 35 weeks, he said. Simmons-Hancock had a 35-week pregnancy when she was killed.

Parker also ran numerous Google searches about pregnancy, Estes said.

“She watched all these videos, clicked on all these links, and they were all at 35 weeks,” prosecutor Kelley Crisp said.

“My opinion is Taylor Parker faked her pregnancy. … She planned and carried out the murder of Reagan,” Estes said.

Parker’s attorney, Jeff Harrelson, challenged that opinion, telling Estes, “You can see somebody looked them up, but you don’t know why. You can have a theory.”

Parker, 29, has pleaded not guilty to capital murder and kidnapping in the October 2020 deaths of Simmons-Hancock, 21, and the daughter who died after being cut from her mother’s womb. Authorities say Simmons-Hancock was stabbed and cut more than 100 times and had her skull crushed with a hammer in her New Boston, Texas, home before a scalpel was used to remove her unborn baby. She is also charged with non-capital murder in connection with the baby’s death.

In her opening statement Monday, Crisp told the Bowie County jury that Parker acted not because she wanted a baby but to keep from losing her boyfriend. Crisp said Parker disguised herself to make her look pregnant for nearly 10 months, faked ultrasounds, had a gender-reveal party and posted about her fake pregnancy on social media while searching for a possible victim, Crisp said.

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Texas cops seize 10 bundles of pot in traffic stop car chase

Texas law enforcement authorities were recently involved in a traffic stop that turned into a pursuit that ultimately yielded 10 bundles of marijuana.

Troopers with the Texas Department of Public Safety say they attempted to stop a Toyota passenger car earlier this week on Military Highway 281 for a traffic violation before the car took off on them, according to a Twitter post from the department. 

The driver of the car reportedly sideswiped a US Border Patrol unit vehicle during the chase.

“DPS aircraft provided air support as the driver continued evading law enforcement traveling at excess speeds of 95 mph,” the agency said in a Facebook post. “The driver finally came to a stop and was apprehended. A search of the vehicle revealed 10 bundles of marijuana weighing 240 lbs., located in the rear passenger seat and trunk area.”

The Facebook post added that the driver, 18-year-old Azael Pena, was arrested and booked for marijuana possession in Cameron County, Texas.

The law enforcement action was part of Operation Lone Star, an effort by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Department of Public Safety to combat drug trafficking and human smuggling.

The car’s driver reportedly sideswiped a US Border Patrol unit vehicle during the chase.
Azael Pena was arrested and booked for marijuana possession.

“Texas will not sit on the sidelines as President Biden continues turning a blind eye to the crisis at our southern border,” Abbott said in a statement earlier this year announcing more funding for the operation. “Texans’ safety and security is our top priority, and we will continue fighting to keep our communities safe. This additional funding ensures the Lone Star State is fully equipped to provide Texans the border security strategy they demand and deserve.”

The Texas Department of Public Safety did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.



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Kaitlin Armstrong’s lawyer asks court to suppress murder evidence

Lawyers for the Texas yoga teacher accused of murdering a romantic rival say evidence in the case against her should be tossed because she was not read her rights when she was first questioned by police.

Kaitlin Armstrong was interrogated and released by Austin police on May 12, a day after her Jeep was seen at the home where professional cyclist Mariah “Mo” Wilson, 25, was found shot to death.

Armstrong then went on the lam for 43 days before being arrested in Costa Rica, where she was recovering from cosmetic surgery.

The 34-year-old murder suspect asked to leave her May interrogation five times before her request was granted by a cop who believed her arrest warrant was invalid because the document and the department’s system had differing date of birth’s for the murder suspect, authorities told Fox News.

Kaitlin Armstrong’s lawyer claims evidence against her must be thrown out because she was not read her rights.
City of Austin Police Department

In a motion for an evidentiary hearing filed Wednesday, defense lawyer Rick Cofer argued that cops also never read Armstrong her Miranda rights. As a result, the lawyer said prosecutors must suppress evidence improperly gathered against his client, the Austin American-Statesman reported.

Cofer’s motion reportedly includes a transcribed interview with Armstrong’s boyfriend Colin Strickland, 35, where he told detectives that his girlfriend was unhappy about a fling he had with Wilson when he was separated from Armstrong.

“Kaitlin did call her and pretty much just said, ‘Hey, do you know that I pretty much live at Colin’s house’ — or I don’t know exactly what was … I didn’t really dive in,” the interview transcript from Strickland reportedly said. “But I do know she called her, and Mo was like, ‘That was really weird.’”

Armstrong is accused of killing professional cyclist Mariah “Mo” Wilson, who was romantically linked to her live-in boyfriend, pro cyclist Colin Strickland.
Instagram / Moriah Wilson
Strickland told police that Armstrong was jealous of Wilson but didn’t think she was “capable” of murder, defense lawyers said in a Wednesday evidentiary hearing.
Flo Bikes

On May 14, a tipster told police that Armstrong told them she was so angry about Wilson’s fling with Strickland that she wanted to kill her, authorities said. Cofer claims that police never determined that the caller was credible.

“The caller’s connection to or involvement in the killing of Ms. Wilson is currently unknown,” the lawyer wrote in the motion, according to the newspaper.

He also reportedly claimed that “the affidavit completely mischaracterized and falsely stated Mr. Strickland’s words to fabricate a theory of jealousy as a presumed motive for the murder,” adding that the boyfriend told police directly he didn’t think Armstrong was the killer.

“Do I think Kaitlin could kill somebody? No, I don’t,” a transcript from an interview with Strickland reportedly read. She never mentioned wanting to physically hurt Mo. … I don’t believe in any way she’s capable of that.”

After being released by police, Armstrong flew to New York City and fled upstate before using a fake passport to fly from Newark to Costa Rica, where she stayed at hostels and taught yoga classes before her arrest nearly six weeks later.

When Armstrong was picked up by US Marshalls in Santa Teresa Beach she had a bandage over her nose and bruises on her eyes, and was in possession of a $6,350 receipt for cosmetic surgery, according to sources and witnesses.

Police said she had shot Wilson dead after following Strickland when he had snuck off to see her. The murder weapon was a gun Strickland had bought for Armstrong to use, he told officials.

Armstrong had been shooting the gun at a range before the murder and had access to nearly a half million dollars before she fled Austin, police said.

She has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges.

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