CBS Dallas / Fort Worth

Pinehurst No. 2 Preps For 2 US Opens In 2014

jeffburkett — Fri, 25 May 2012 18:28:55 +0000

PINEHURST, N.C. (AP) – Things are starting to take shape before the first doubleheader of U.S. opens.

In just over two years, Pinehurst’s renowned No. 2 course will play host to the U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open on consecutive weeks _ the first time the USGA has attempted such a feat.

Organizers said Friday that they’ll keep an eye next month on the freshly renovated course to see how it behaves in typical June weather and make any necessary tweaks after that.

Ben Crenshaw led the $2.5 million facelift for the course, which had its rough removed and reverted to its original Donald Ross design. The course re-opened last spring, and Pinehurst president Don Padgett says it’s finally mature enough that “we can kick the tires and see what we’ve got.”

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Packs Of ‘Tide Pods’ To Be Made Safer

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:40:04 +0000

(credit: Procter & Gamble)

DALLAS (AP) - Procter & Gamble says it will change the design of packaging for its miniature laundry detergent product to deter children from eating the brightly colored packets that look like candy.

Procter & Gamble spokesman Paul Fox says the Cincinnati-based company plans to create a new double latch lid on tubs of Tide Pods “in the next couple of weeks.”

Doctors say children sometimes swallow the pods thinking they are edible. Nearly 250 cases have been reported to poison control centers this year — a fraction of the thousands of poisoning calls received every year. No deaths have been reported.

Fox says to reduce the risk of poisoning, household cleaners and laundry detergents should be kept out of children’s reach.

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Be a Part of Greggo’s Garage and Enjoy Some VIP Treatment at TMS this June!

amspencer — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:38:14 +0000

Are you looking to be part of Greggo’s Garage and get a little VIP Treatment at Texas Motor Speedway? The Firestone 550 IZOD Indy Car Race Weekend is coming up June 7^th through 9^th at Texas Motor Speedway and The Fan wants to hook you up with a very special Greggo’s Garage Package. Starting Wednesday, be sure you’re listening at 8:55a, 11:55a, 2:55p, 5:55p and 8:55p for your chance to win VIP Pit passes to the Friday and Saturday night races, great Friday night front stretch tickets, an opportunity take a parade lap with a NASCAR Camping World Series Truck driver and best of all suite tickets to hang with Greggo in The Greggo’s Garage Suite for The Global Rally Cross and IZOD Indy Car Series Race on Saturday night.To purchase your tickets to the upcoming Firestone IZOD Indy Car Race weekend check out TexasMotorSpeedway.com

Official Contest Rules

Election Pits Roy Brooks Vs. Roy Brooks

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:00:31 +0000

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - There is a one-of-a-kind political race happening in Tarrant County. Two candidates are vying for the County Commissioner’s Precinct 1 seat. Both are focusing on the issues. The campaign signs are different. But the biggest issue here might turn out to be the names of the two candidates — which are virtually the same.

The politcal race pits Roy Brooks versus Roy Brooks.

Roy Laverne Brooks, who was named after her dad, is trying to unseat Roy Charles Brooks, who is seeking his third four-year term. Roy L. does not see what the fuss is all about. “For me, it has really been a surprise,” she said. “My supporters know who I am.”

The incumbent feels the same way. “The people of Precinct 1 know me,” he said. “They know my record. They know where I stood in the issues.”

But because their first AND last names are the both same, the state ruled that middle names must also appear on the ballot. “I have never faced a situation like this before,” Roy C. said, “and I’m not sure anyone else in America has either.”

Roy C. and Roy L. are downplaying the buzz about the names. Instead, they are trying to keep focus on the issues in the district. “I want to talk about how to continue to provide health care to the people of Precinct 1 who desperately need it,” said Roy C.

“When crime increases, you have a community that starts to go down,” said Roy L. “It also affects the households.”

Needless to say, the two Roys are not worried about voter confusion. “Any publicity is good,” said Roy L. “By now, they definitely know who we are.”

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Is UFC’s Big Country Ready For Pro Wrestling?

jeffburkett — Fri, 25 May 2012 16:38:59 +0000

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – I had a chance to talk with one of the UFC’s best verbally entertaining fighters in Roy Nelson. We talked about his upcoming fight on Saturday night with Dave “Pee Wee” Herman.

Roy hints at a possible UFC departure is the money is right. Big Country also talks about a possible run to professional wrestling comparing himself to two sport athletes Deion Sanders, Bo Jackson and Michael Jordan.

PLAY: Listen to the greatness that is BIG COUNTRY!

Download: 5-25-12-roynelson.mp3

Don’t forget to turn into the UFC 146 post fight show hosted by myself and Richard Hunter Saturday night live from The Fan Sports Lounge. We will be joined by UFC lightweight Anthony Njokuani who will be at TFSL watching the pay-per view before hopping on the air to co-host the post-fight with us.

There is no cover at TFSL for any pay-per view events so save yourself $55 and come party with us at TFSL!

You can follow me on twitter @mmamiked

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Whitt’s End: 5.25.12

jeffburkett — Fri, 25 May 2012 16:01:19 +0000

Whether you’ve reached the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt’s End:

*After that 15-4 start that had the Metroplex on the edge of its seat with every pitch, the buzz over the Texas Rangers has at least momentarily dulled. Since then the Rangerzzzzz are only 12-14. Josh Hamilton hasn’t homered in 11 games and over 50 at-bats. Amazingly, they still have a comfortable lead in the AL West.

*Vegas’ first odds of the NFL season are out. Cowboys’ over/under for wins is 8.5. Give me the over. Way over.

*Lamar Odom is gone from the Mavs, but his ashes are an asset. Expect him – and other players, etc. – to be traded before the June 28 draft, for Paul Pierce, Pau Gasol or perhaps Atlanta’s Josh Smith.

*Cowboys’ fans aren’t supposed to be happy when opponents get injured, because of karma or something. Screw that. Think the Giants were sad when Demarco Murray went down last year? And what’d it get ‘em? Super Bowl. I applaud Hakeem Nicks’ broken foot. At the very least, he’ll miss the season opener vs. Dallas Sept. 5.

*Saw The Dictator last night. Spoiler alert: Damn skippy. If you are easily offended by non-politically correct language please go see it, because I love it when you people are offended. Favorite line: “I guess I want to apologize for some of the things I said about Captain Hook and blackie.” You’ll giggle.

*Memorial Day honors those American military killed in battle; Veteran Day honors those who have served.

*HOT

*NOT

*With HBO needing a decision by June 1, the Cowboys are still in play for Hard Knocks. Stay tuned.

*Happy birthday, RAGE. It was two years ago that I did my last radio show with Newy Scruggs, giving way to my partnership with Greg Williams. At The Fan’s 3^rd annual Memorial Day party this Monday we’ll be live and local all day, with roundtables of rotating hosts from 10a-6p. Save me some barbecue.

*Fight I’ll never win but also never surrender: It’s Dirk No-Witz-ki. I’ve asked him, have you? He pronounces it with a W. Latest irrational explanation is that he changed the pronunciation – from the German V for W – just to appease big, dumb Americans who were too lazy to say it right. But, listen, I’d say 9 of 10 people say No-Vitz-ki. So, what’s his motivation at this point: To say his name wrong when the majority is saying it right? To continue to attempt to fix something that ain’t broken? Or, perhaps he’s been saying it right all along. Duh.

*So I go online to renew my car registration and it’s $65.25, plus a $2 convenience fee. Wait a minute, convenience fee? Not a bigger rip-off in this world. We’re being charged for someone sitting at a computer and clicking, rather than a person physically opening an envelope?

*French Open > Indy 500. My favorite tennis major, because it’s the most difficult to win. Seven matches over 13 days in the searing heat and grueling clay of Paris. Fantastic theater.

*As a guy who was raised Southern Baptist, this disgusts me. In other words, I’m totally against this preacher.

*Memorial Day is Monday, otherwise known as the 1-year anniversary of when an inebriated Richie Whitt slurred his infamous “Whazzup FanFannzzz” on 105.3 The Fan. Encore? Doubtful.

*An inmate from the Coffield Unit in Tennessee Colony, Texas writes me a letter every month. Doesn’t directly threaten me, but details how he’s violent and how he’s escaped from prison three times already. Wants me to “shut the f*ck about calling inmates pieces of sh*t.” Funny, because I’ve never once said that.

*If it’s good enough for Peter Griffin it’s good enough for me. So, when someone makes reference to an object, any object – chair, football helmet, lunch menu – retort thisaway: “Is that like an iPad?” Good times.

*In case you missed it and want to see how truly dorky RAGE is, our TV commercial is right here.

*New 105.3 The Fan lineup beginning June 4. Two words: Hubba. Hubba.

*Get well soon, Greggo.

*This weekend? Today we’re at Al Lamb Honda in Dallas on 635 celebrating Memorial Day. Saturday it’s a double-header, first at Vandergriff Honda in Arlington Noon-2 then Baby Dolls on Northwest Highway for UFC 146 9-??? Sunday, the Sabbath. Don’t be a stranger.

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Shan Makes His First Trip To Valley Ranch

jeffburkett — Fri, 25 May 2012 15:41:29 +0000

IRVING (105.3 THE FAN) – With the Cowboys OTA’s in full swing, New School host Shan Shariff pointed his car towards Irving and made his first trip to the Cowboys HQ at Valley Ranch.

What was he expecting and how did his first time at Valley Ranch turn out? Shan explains!

PLAY: Shan heads to Valley Ranch for the first time

Download: 052412_vr.mp3

*Listen to New School with Shan, RJ, Jasmine & Troy weekdays 5:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. on 105.3 The Fan.

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State Says Gator Killing Wasn’t Self-Defense

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 15:35:03 +0000

FORT WORTH (AP) - A fisherman is facing a $5,300 penalty for shooting an 11-foot alligator he thought was attacking him and his fishing buddy.

Patrick Miller and Keyon Ivory said they were fishing in the Trinity River near the Fort Worth Nature Center & Refuge May 9 when the alligator swam swiftly toward their two-person boat, prompting both men to jump out and Miller to shoot it.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports Friday that state game wardens have determined the alligator killing was not in self-defense.

Game warden Clint Borchardt says the fishermen aren’t poachers, they just “made a bad choice” and will be fined.

The fishermen could not be reached for comment.

A recording of their 911 call reveals their panic at the “huge gator…deliberately coming right at us.”

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Sandusky Charity To Shut Down, Transfer To Texas-Based Program

jeffburkett — Fri, 25 May 2012 15:24:06 +0000

PHILADELPHIA (AP) – The charity for troubled youths started by former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky more than three decades ago is seeking court approval to shut down.

The Second Mile says it has been financially crippled by the child-sex abuse scandal involving its founder and onetime public face and has no other option but to close.

The charity is asking a judge to allow it to transfer programs and millions of dollars in assets to a Texas-based youth ministry that serves abused and neglected children.

Prosecutors say Sandusky found his victims through The Second Mile. He has pleaded innocent to more than 50 counts of sexual abuse involving 10 alleged victims. He awaits a June trial.

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DFW’s Best Memorial Day Weekend Events

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 15:00:21 +0000

There's never a shortage of fun and entertaining activities in North Texas, but the exciting only ramps up for the long Memorial Day weekend. Check out what's happening around town.

Eye On Traffic: May 26 – June 1

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:59:58 +0000

DALLAS COUNTY
By Julie Fisk, KRLD

The ‘Welcome Home Hollie Cavanagh Parade’ is happening in McKinney on Saturday morning at 10:00 a.m. so expect closures all around the historic downtown area.

The CityArts Festival is going on all weekend long, so you will see more congestion than usual around Fair Park.

The Texas Rangers have home games at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington nightly until Wednesday. Expect delays on Interstate-30 and around the ballpark near game time.

A big show is coming to the American Airlines Center next Friday. Nickelback, Bush, Seether and My Darkest Days are playing on June 1, so traffic in that area will be backed up that night.

The left lane of eastbound Interstate-635 will be closed nightly between Luna Road and Interstate-35E.

Alternating lanes will be closed on Highway 75 north from Highway 121 to Virginia Parkway from 8:30pm to 5:30 a.m. nightly for construction until June 18.

You never know when something big is going to happen (like a cattle-hauler spilling cattle on Interstate-35E right before rush hour), but you can always find out with Traffic & Weather on the 8’s on 1080 AM KRLD.

TARRANT COUNTY
By Teresa Frosini, CBS 11 News

Great News! The DFW Connector Project will be put on hold this weekend due to Memorial Day. Next week, expect the normal nightly closures from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.

Grapevine Mills Mall is hosting the X Games showcase, so even though there isn’t construction in the area, expect delays.

Expect delays this weekend in Fort Worth due to The Colonial on Interstate-30, University Drive and Interstate-35W at Berry Street.

Watch for lots of traffic around area lakes this weekend, on and off the water. Have a happy and safe Memorial Day weekend.

Julie Fisk Reviews “Men In Black 3”

jeffburkett — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:54:42 +0000

Actor Will Smith, director Barry Sonnenfeld, actors Josh Brolin and Tommy Lee Jones pose with a time capsule at a photo call for Columbia Pictures’ “Men In Black 3″ (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – “Men in Black 3” hits theaters this weekend, 15 years after the first movie and 10 years after MIB 2.

The gang is all back together but don’t expect to see Frank the Talking Pug in this one. You’ll notice some references to him but for some reason he is otherwise absent. Bummer.

This time Will Smith’s Agent J travels back in time to rescue a young Agent K, played by Josh Brolin doing his absolute BEST Tommy Lee Jones impression.

Check out the trailer or find local Dallas or Fort Worth show times, but first hear what KRLD Film Critic Julie Fisk has to say about “Men in Black 3.”

PLAY: Julie Fisk reviews “MIB3″

Download: 5-25-12-fisk.mp3

TRAILER – MIB3

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Open Casting Call For “The Amazing Race”

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:36:30 +0000

Are you and a partner looking for the adventure of a lifetime racing around the world?

Now is your chance to try out for “The Amazing Race!”

Bring your friend, family member or even a complete stranger to auditon LIVE at Bankston Chevrolet in North Richland Hills from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 9. CBS 11 staff will videotape your one-minute audition and then send it to “The Amazing Race” producers. No need to bring photos, passports, videotapes, DVDs or any other documentation.

Tell us why you think you should be on “The Amazing Race” and you could be in the race for a million dollars!

Open Casting Call For “The Amazing Race”
Saturday, June 9, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Bankston Chevrolet Fort Worth
7769 Grapevine Highway
North Richland Hills, TX 76180

Click Here To Check Eligibility Requirements

Art, Music, Food At CityArts Festival In Dallas

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:30:31 +0000

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – An event happening in Dallas offers everything you could want from a long Memorial Day weekend. Check out the CityArts Festival at Fair Park for a chance to see some unique artistic sights, hear some fantastic music and dine on award-winning meals, all while spending some time outside with the family.

CBS 11 News took an early peek at the event, and met some of the folks who will be showing off their goods this weekend — including a boat that can drive on the road (a must-see!) and some of the greatest steak you’ll ever taste. Watch the videos below to check it out for yourself, and do not miss the CityArts Festival this weekend in Dallas!

Click Here For More Information About The Event

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Win Tickets To Opening Night Of “Jersey Boys”

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:23:36 +0000

The Tony Award winning musical is coming to the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas, and CBS 11 wants you to be there!

Just watch CBS 11 News This Morning from 4:30 a.m. to 7:00 a.m. on Friday, June 8. The morning team will ask a trivia question and provide a phone number for you to call in and win! The 11th caller with the correct answer wins 4 tickets to opening night on June 12, a backstage meet-and-greet opportunity and a “Jersey Boys” photo book! We’ll announce the winner live on the air!

See Official Rules For Details

Must be 18 or older to enter. No purchase necessary.

Good luck!

Wade’s 41 Close Out Pacers, 105-93

mreal197 — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:11:33 +0000

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Dwyane Wade scored 41 points, LeBron James added 28 and Miami finished off the Indiana Pacers, sending the Heat back to the Eastern Conference finals with a 105-93 victory in Game 6 on Thursday night.

Miami wrapped up the best-of-7 series and will face either Boston or Philadelphia in the next round starting Monday. Nothing less than an NBA title will make for a satisfying summer in South Beach.

Two series down, two to go.

The Heat rallied from an early 11-point deficit, riding the hot hand of Wade in the opening half. He scored 26 points by the break, tying Tim Hardaway’s 16-year-old franchise record for most playoff points in the first two quarters. James hit consecutive baskets with just over a minute remaining to close it out.

X Games Athletes Perform At Grapevine Event

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 14:00:25 +0000

GRAPEVINE (CBSDFW.COM) - Some of the top international athletes from the X Games will be in Grapevine this weekend, competing at a free event held outside of the Grapevine Mills Mall. Journeys Backyard BBQ is an action-packed sports and music festival featuring top performers from the worlds of wakeboarding, skateboarding, dirt bikes and more!

CBS 11 News took an early look at some of the sports that will be on display over the long Memorial Day weekend, including wakeboarding jumpers and skateboarding tricksters. Check out the videos below to take a look, and be sure to visit the Grapevine Mills Mall to get a firsthand look at these extreme athletes in action!

Click Here For More Information About The Event

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Hot & Windy Start To Memorial Day Weekend

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 13:30:35 +0000

The hot and windy weather pattern continues on Friday for North Texas. Expect to see very similar conditions across DFW throughout the long Memorial Day weekend.

Texas Senate Race Tests GOP Establishment

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 13:00:46 +0000

AUSTIN (AP) - The story line on the Republican Senate race in Texas is a now familiar one: A veteran politician supported by the GOP establishment is challenged by a young insurgent backed by national conservative groups.

In this distinctly Texas episode in the saga for control of the Senate, David Dewhurst is the reserved, self-made millionaire and lieutenant governor facing off against Ted Cruz, the feisty son of a Cuban exile who calls himself “a proven fighter for liberty because his family knows what it means to lose it.”

The underdog is former Dallas mayor and businessman Tom Leppert, who offers himself as the no-nonsense alternative to politics as usual.

In heavily Republican Texas, whoever wins the GOP primary on Tuesday is almost sure to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison.

Cruz and Leppert acknowledge that Dewhurst is more familiar with voters and has more cash — he’s spent $9.2 million of his $200 million fortune on the primary. But both hope to force a runoff, and if one succeeds, the runner-up could win in July. While there have been no reliable, independent polls in the nine-candidate race, those released by partisans show Dewhurst on the cusp of getting the 50 percent-plus-one he needs to avoid a runoff, with Cruz in second place.

Conservative groups that complain many Senate Republicans now in office are too quick to compromise have spent more than $4 million trying to help Cruz. The benefactors include South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint’s Senate Conservatives Fund, the anti-tax Club for Growth and former Texas Rep. Dick Armey’s FreedomWorks.

Similar Senate primary battles are taking place in Wisconsin, where tea party favorite Mark Neuman is running against former Gov. Tommy Thompson, and in Arizona, where six-term Rep. Jeff Flake is being challenged by Wil Cardon, who also casts himself as a tea party candidate.

Cruz is drawing comparisons between Texas and Indiana, where state Treasurer Richard Mourdock defeated incumbent Sen. Richard Lugar in the Republican primary. Leppert looks for inspiration from Nebraska, where Deb Fischer, a state legislator, rose up from third place to become the GOP’s Senate nominee there.

Cruz, 41, made his name representing Texas before the Supreme Court in high-profile cases. He has endorsements from former GOP presidential hopeful Rick Santorum and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin in addition to several tea party groups.

Dewhurst, 66, has the backing of Gov. Rick Perry and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as well as support from the state’s most influential Republican clubs, anti-abortion organizations and political action committees.

There are few significant policy differences between the top three candidates: All oppose abortion rights, amnesty for illegal immigrants and tax increases of any kind. That has forced their campaigns to focus on personality and records with often harsh attack ads.

Tall, reserved and impeccably dressed, Dewhurst was raised by a single mother after his father was killed by a drunken driver. He served in the Air Force and as a CIA officer in Bolivia before returning to Houston, where he started a natural gas business and made his fortune.

Cruz’s father fought against Cuba’s Batista regime in the late 1950s before getting a student visa to attend the University of Texas. Cruz was born in Alberta, Canada, where his dad worked in the oil fields before moving back to Houston. A champion debater, Cruz attended Princeton University and Harvard Law School and has spent most of his career in politically appointed positions in the Bush administration or working for the Texas attorney general.

Leppert, 57, has been CEO of several companies, including the Turner Corp., the nation’s largest construction company. He ran for Dallas mayor as a reformer and balanced the city’s budget.

The competition between Dewhurst and Cruz turned ugly early. Each has spent more than $4 million on TV and radio attack ads.

Dewhurst has derided Cruz as a trial lawyer even though Cruz has specialized in handling appeals. His campaign also pilloried Cruz for representing a Chinese tire company appealing a $26 million judgment that it had stolen intellectual property from a U.S. company. Cruz replied he was only doing his job as an attorney for an international law firm.

Cruz, meanwhile, attacks Dewhurst as a “timid, moderate politician” who too often has compromised with Democrats.

“Enough of these little kitty cats we keep sending to Washington,” Cruz said. “David Dewhurst will compromise every day in the U.S. Senate. … It’s what he’s done every day in state government.”

Boasting about his experience as a top business executive, Leppert calls Dewhurst a career politician and Cruz a government staffer. Dewhurst says Leppert’s record as Dallas mayor is too liberal for Texas Republicans.

Whoever wins the GOP nomination will face one of two Democrats, former state Rep. Paul Sadler and party activist Sean Hubbard. No Democrat has won a statewide office in Texas since 1994.

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Arlington Girl Killed By Car While Riding Tricycle

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 12:30:33 +0000

ARLINGTON (AP) - A 9-year-old North Texas girl has died after the tricycle she was riding was struck by a car.

Arlington police say Jasmine Abdelaziz was crossing the street in her neighborhood around 7 p.m. Thursday when the accident occurred.

Police spokeswoman Tiara Ellis Police says the girl was hit and dragged down the street a short distance before the car’s driver stopped.

Jasmine was taken to a Fort Worth hospital where she died from her injuries.

Police continue to investigate circumstances surrounding the accident though Ellis says the driver showed no signs of being impaired and has cooperated with officers.

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Guilty Verdict In Fort Hood Bomb Plot Trial

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 12:00:21 +0000

Nasar Abdo (credit: KWTX)

WACO (AP) - Federal prosecutors say a disaster was averted when police foiled a Muslim soldier’s plot to bomb Fort Hood troops.

Pfc. Naser Jason Abdo was convicted Thursday of six charges in Waco federal court. They include attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempted murder of U.S. officers or employees.

The 22-year-old faces up to life in prison when the judge sentences him in two months.

Authorities say Abdo had started assembling a bomb when he was detained last July at a Killeen motel. Less than 24 hours earlier, gun store workers had called police to report a young man who acted suspiciously. Police didn’t know his name or background until he was in custody.

Since going AWOL from Fort Campbell, Ky., three weeks earlier, Abdo had eluded authorities.

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17 Residents Displaced By Plano Apartment Fire

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 11:47:09 +0000

PLANO (CBSDFW.COM) - Residents at the Windhaven Park Apartment complex in Plano said that they were awoken early Friday morning by two women banging on their doors, alerting them to a fire in the building. “I woke up this morning, someone was banging on my door, screaming at my door. I didn’t know what was going on,” said Kandice Marr, a tenant and mother of a 1-year-old boy.

Marr said that her son slept through it all, but was excited to see the fire trucks. “It could have been so much worse,” she said.

The complex is located in the 6200 block of Windhaven Parkway, just west of the Dallas North Tollway. The flames first started at about 3:30 a.m. Friday morning.

Marr and numerous other neighbors said that Mari Beth Zielinski and another unidentified woman tried to wake up their neighbors when she saw smoke and flames. “I was concerned,” said Zielinski. “My next-door neighbors have children and I wanted to take care of them.”

A total of 17 people and 16 apartment units were affected by the fire. According to the Plano Fire Department, the man living in the apartment where the fire originated was rushed to Plano Presbyterian Hospital for smoke inhalation. His name and condition are not know at this time.

Fire department officials escorted residents into the burned and damaged units of the complex. Some will be living in other units on the property. The apartment’s management and the American Red Cross have been helping displaced residents with housing, groceries, clothing and other basic essentials.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

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DNA Evidence To Be Presented In Clemens Case

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 11:02:20 +0000

WASHINGTON (AP) - Roger Clemens’ genetic makeup helped make him one of the most successful pitchers in baseball history. Now prosecutors hope that Clemens’ own DNA will help them convict him of a federal crime.

The government is expected to show test results Friday in Clemens’ perjury trial that link the former pitcher’s DNA to a used needle and other medical waste that also tested positive for steroids. Forensic scientist Alan Keel, who spent the last half-hour of testimony Thursday giving jurors a brief genetics lesson, returns to the stand to testify about the genetic tests he did for the government.

Chief prosecution witness Brian McNamee, Clemens’ former strength and conditioning coach, testified earlier that he saved the needle and other materials from an alleged steroids injection of Clemens in 2001 and then turned them over to federal authorities in 2008. On Thursday, two experts testified that the materials tested positive for steroids.

Clemens is on trial for allegedly lying to Congress in 2008 when he denied using performance-enhancing drugs.

While it will be a significant moment when the government places both the steroids and Clemens’ DNA on the drug needle, the defense indicated early on it wouldn’t contest that the needle had both on it. But Clemens’ lawyer Rusty Hardin said in his opening statement that the defense will contend that McNamee put the steroids in the needle after injecting Clemens and that the coach in fact had used the needle to inject Clemens with vitamin B12.

Clemens has maintained for years that he received B12 shots and the local anesthetic lidocaine but not performance-enhancing drugs.

Another defense lawyer, Michael Attanasio, tried to push that theory by posing a hypothetical question to one of the government’s expert witnesses, Jeremy Price, who once worked at the nonprofit Anti-Doping Research laboratory. Price testified Thursday that he found steroids but no trace of B12 or lidocaine on the saved items. So Attanasio asked: If he had a syringe with B12, used it, cleaned it out and then put in steroids, would the test reveal the B12? Price said he didn’t know.

Thursday’s main headliner was former major league outfielder-first baseman David Segui, who recalled that in a 2001 phone conversation, McNamee “mentioned that he had kept darts to get his wife off his back.” Prosecutors hope that will bolster McNamee’s testimony that he saved the medical waste to allay his wife’s fears he would take all the blame if the drug use was discovered.

“He mentioned that the relationship between Brian and Roger had put stress on his married life. … Coming and going … leaving at the drop of a hat to go train,” Segui said.

Segui, who has acknowledged using performance-enhancing drugs during his 15-year career with seven teams, wasn’t allowed to say that “darts” means “needles.” Despite a couple of spirited appeals by prosecutor Gilberto Guerrero, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton ruled that the jurors would have to make that assumption themselves — unless McNamee were to return to the stand to explain.

When Guerrero made a second run at the judge, Walton chided the prosecutor.

“I’m not the court of appeals,” the judge said. “I made my ruling. So I don’t reverse myself.”

Segui, who became friends with McNamee when they met in Toronto during the 1999 season, also wasn’t allowed to relate a second, similar “darts” conversation because he couldn’t remember when it happened.

“I’m not good with dates. I don’t log my life,” said Segui, appearing with a shaved head, dark suit, white shirt and black tie. He was certain it happened before the publication of the 2007 Mitchell Report on drug use in sports, but that wasn’t good enough for Walton.

“You are to disregard the question,” the judge told the jurors, who had been ushered from the courtroom as the lawyers debated the matter.

But at least one juror apparently submitted a written question about that conversation.

“I’ve legally ruled that is not before you,” Walton lectured in an irritated tone as he pointed toward the jury.

Clemens’ lawyers have implied that McNamee conjured up the evidence after becoming the subject of a federal investigation in 2007. Segui’s testimony was allowed by the judge because it appears to contradict that argument, a significant victory for the prosecution.

Another witness, former McNamee workout client Anthony Corso, is expected to give similar testimony about conversations in 2002 and 2005 with McNamee. That should come Friday, when the government is expected to wrap up its case.

Segui, whom the government portrayed as a reluctant witness, said under cross-examination that McNamee didn’t attach a specific name to the “darts” but that he knew McNamee was training Clemens at the time.

“All I know is what I was told over the phone,” said Segui, raising his hands as if to pantomime pushing away. “I didn’t see it, didn’t ask to see it.”

Segui was a colorful witness. When asked whether McNamee was a cutting-edge coach, Segui said, “Yeah, for baseball. Baseball’s prehistoric. They’re still doing jumping jacks.”

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Plano In Holding Pattern Over Cuts At HP Facility

Ryan Crowe — Fri, 25 May 2012 11:00:57 +0000

PLANO (CBSDFW.COM) – The future is still uncertain for many Plano workers who learned yesterday they could lose their jobs when Hewlett Packard cuts nearly 30,000 jobs worldwide.

Many of HP’s nearly 5,000 Plano employees received emails notifying them early retirements will be offered, which should soften any blow to the local economy.

Still, Collin County officials expect the layoffs to hit Plano’s Enterprise Services division of HP hard.

It comes at a time when Collin County’s unemployment rate is 6.3 percent, which is less than the state and national averages.

Local officials are quick to point out other similar companies in Plano are expanding. “It’s a concern,” said Plano City Manager Bruce Glasscock. “It has a rippling effect because if they live anywhere in Plano or Collin County and they get laid off that a potential impact on their buying capacity, their homes, everything. But at the same time we’re seeing businesses out there expand so it’s not doom and gloom.”

HP plans to spread the layoffs out over a three year period. The move is expected to save the company more than $3 Billion.

Missouri Upsets Texas A&M 5-3 In Big 12 Tourney

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 10:59:22 +0000

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Blake Brown homered, Jeff Emens pitched 3 2-3 innings of no-hit relief and Missouri upset two-time defending champion Texas A&M 5-3 in the Big 12 tournament Thursday night.

Emens struck out the side in the ninth inning to send Missouri (30-26) into a Saturday afternoon game against the winner of Friday night’s meeting between Texas A&M (42-15) and Kansas.

Brown’s 10th homer of the year broke a 1-1 tie in the fourth inning, and the Tigers added two more runs in the fifth on RBI singles by Scott Sommerfield and Eric Garcia.

Mitchell Nau’s bases-loaded single pulled the Aggies to 4-3 in the sixth and chased Missouri starter Blake Holovach (7-4). Emens struck out six of the 12 batters he faced.

A&M starter Michael Wacha (8-1) lost for the first time this season. He allowed four runs on eight hits and a walk. He struck out eight.

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Thunder & Spurs Have Many Similarities

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 10:55:39 +0000

Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs shoots against Jeff Green of the Oklahoma City Thunder on February 23, 2011 at AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. (credit: D. Clarke Evans/NBAE via Getty Images)

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - When Clay Bennett was seeking a leader for his team that would one day become the Oklahoma City Thunder, he picked a rising star from a San Antonio franchise on the verge of winning its fourth NBA championship in a decade.

It was the start of a process that would model Bennett’s franchise after the Spurs, leading up to their meeting in the Western Conference finals starting Sunday night.

The standards that led to San Antonio’s success rubbed off on Sam Presti, who got his start as a video intern for the Spurs before rising through that organization and eventually getting hired by Bennett as general manager of the relocating Seattle SuperSonics.

He recognized the importance San Antonio placed on humility, sacrifice and a family atmosphere and has tried to instill those standards in the Thunder.

“I think everyone within the NBA has great respect for what the Spurs have accomplished and the standards that they have established in recent years but I think every organization has to have their own identity,” Presti said Thursday.

“Certainly, we’re always going to look to try to pull from organizations such as the Spurs in our effort to build an identity and a foundation for an organization in Oklahoma City that has great endurance.”

The similarities are numerous. Each team plays in a smaller NBA market and has a nucleus of homegrown players acquired through the draft, including hidden gems plucked from overseas.

But more than the basketball product, the franchises have a reputation for how they handle their business: no bad-mouthing other teams or players, few scrapes with the law or other incidents and no sense of entitlement.

“I tell guys all the time: Not every guy can come here and play. This isn’t for everybody,” said Nazr Mohammed, who won an NBA title with San Antonio in 2005 and is now a backup for the Thunder.

“The same in San Antonio. That isn’t for everybody. … It’s not even the player, more so the person.”

It may not be no-nonsense, but there certainly isn’t much of it.

“It starts at the top, the way Sam has built the organization and then the players he’s brung in to match that system. It’s amazing to have these young guys around here that understand just the hard work, the family atmosphere,” Mohammed said.

“I’ve been on some teams where you’ve got a bunch of young guys. Family atmosphere is the furthest thing from guys’ minds. Guys are thinking about, `When am I going to get my opportunity to get out there and show the world what I can do and get my second contract?’ Here, it’s nothing like that. Guys just want to work, win, get better and they know and understand like veterans that the rest will take care of itself.”

While Presti has tried to foster that San Antonio-style atmosphere, he credits his players and coaches for carrying it out and putting in the work that has led to consecutive Western Conference finals appearances for the second time in franchise history.

The attitude filters down from ownership — Bennett used to represent the Spurs on the NBA’s board of governors — and through the front office, but Mohammed said the key is the franchises’ ability to find players who buy into it.

At the forefront, he sees San Antonio’s Tim Duncan and Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant — both superstars who don’t care about the limelight and only want “to work hard and play basketball.”

“You can preach it around but it’s still got to come from the player because you can get a young guy now who’s unbelievable but if he doesn’t buy into it, he’s going to think his own way and do his own thing no matter what,” Mohammed said.

Spurs general manager R.C. Buford said he knew within a week of hiring Presti that he wouldn’t be an intern long. Presti ended up helping persuade the franchise to draft point guard Tony Parker, who has developed into an All-Star and the Spurs’ leading scorer, on his rise through the organization.

Coach Gregg Popovich joked that San Antonio “tried to keep him in a closet for a while so no one would know about him” but word eventually got out. And now some of the Spurs’ secrets may be working against them.

“I don’t have the intimate details of what Sam’s culture is. But from an outsider’s perspective, the things that are important to the Thunder’s culture as established by Sam are similar to what’s important to the Spurs culture,” Buford said.

Bennett, who declined comment through a spokesman, said upon hiring the 30-year-old Presti in 2007 that he viewed the Spurs “as the premier franchise in our business” but he was hiring the GM on his own merits and not because he worked for San Antonio.

Presti has said from the beginning that he wasn’t trying to re-create the Spurs.

“No two places are the same and you’re going to have different circumstances and different approaches. That’s what makes the NBA great,” Presti said. “We have a lot of respect for them but we also have to build our own identity, but we’re also certainly using some of the core values that are in place there, that are also in place in other successful and sustainable sports franchises.”

And there are still four major differences between the franchises: The Spurs’ championships in 1999, 2003, 2005 and 2007.

“I’d like to think that as we continue to grow and build our organization that we’ll establish an identity for the Oklahoma City Thunder but that doesn’t happen in four years,” Presti said, “and we have to embrace the fact that we have a long road ahead of us.”

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Oklahoma Beats Baylor 3-2 In Big 12 Tourney

KTVTPhil — Fri, 25 May 2012 10:46:39 +0000

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A walk-off infield single lifted Oklahoma to a 3-2 win over top-seeded Baylor in the Big 12 baseball tournament in Oklahoma City.

Evan Mistich drove home Erik Ross from third base with two outs in the bottom of the ninth on Thursday to give OU (37-21) a second straight walk-off win. Garrett Carey homered in the bottom of the ninth Wednesday to give OU a 1-0 win over Oklahoma State.

Ross doubled with one out and — after an intentional walk — moved to third on a groundout before Mistich beat out a grounder to shortstop to drive in the winning run.

Steven Okert (8-6) picked up the win with two innings of scoreless relief while Dillon Newman (3-3) took the loss.

Baylor (43-13) will play Kansas State on Friday and Oklahoma will play the winner of the Baylor-K-State game on Saturday.

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Fort Worth Couple Fight City For Their Backyard

Ryan Crowe — Fri, 25 May 2012 10:30:42 +0000

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Nestled just northeast of downtown Fort Worth, the Oakhurst neighborhood is known for its beauty.

It’s one reason the Walters family decided to buy a house in the area. “I love the trees and the backyard,” says Cyndy Walters “I just wish we owned all of it.”

The Walters bought their home in 2000. Before they closed they were told the City of Fort Worth owns part of the backyard, but that they could buy it if they wanted.

“Where the power lines are, the land on one side is ours and on the other side it’s the city’s,” points out Walters. “They own the green house, half of the yard, about 1/3 of the pool.”

In 2006 the family decided to pay the city for its portion of their property, which was close to $4,500. Right afterwards everything was halted when they were told their neighborhood association would fight the property battle. “I’m still trying to get the backyard. We paid for it,” says Walters

A spokesperson with the city of Fort Worth says that the process to turn over the rest of the yard was never fully completed and plans were never approved by the city.

The Walters say they’re tired of being in limbo and just either want the rest of the property or their money back. “If and when we ever decide to sell they’ll come to the same problem we did and it will be probably put a halt on the sale because somebody is not going to want half of a backyard.”

A spokesperson with the Oakhurst Neighborhood Association says the association’s concern has been protecting the green space.

The Walters say they don’t plan to change the space at all. They insist that’s why they fell in love with the property and wouldn’t change a thing.

Push To Restore Prayer At Weatherford Council

gileshudson — Fri, 25 May 2012 05:21:03 +0000

WEATHERFORD (CBSDFW.COM) - Ministers in Parker County have pledged support for bringing prayer and the pledge of allegiance back to city council meetings in Weatherford.

The Parker County Ministerial Alliance told the council this week it would schedule ministers for invocations at monthly meetings, if the council was open to having them.

The city may vote on the change as soon as June.

Prayer and the pledge are common before local council meetings. Dallas and Fort Worth have both. Weatherford, though, has struggled with the practice for more than 30 years, said city Mayor Dennis Hooks.

“I really don’t know why 30-something years ago that they took it out,” he said.

City Manager Jerry Blaisdell said there was an effort within the last year to re-institute prayer. The number of people from different faiths requesting to be included though, and the time some of them took at the podium, began to take away from the meetings.

Father Scott Wilson from All Saints Episcopal Church said ministers just became aware in the last few months that both practices were missing from city hall.

“There’s a vast majority of us who would want to see the prayer said and pledge said,” Wilson said Thursday. “That’s who we are.”

Wilson said ministers did not want their support to create a political fight. On Thursday, though, he had already received calls in opposition and said they were prepared for them.

“We will organize it,” he said. “We’ll keep it short, one person at a time. It’ll be representative of a religious community.”

Hooks said he already prays daily for himself and his family. He said he believes there is support among the city council for bringing it back to city meetings.

“As long as we can put that back into our council meetings and have it fair and equitable to every religion, I think that’d be great,” Hooks said.

Texans Can Save Energy & Taxes This Weekend

Ryan Crowe — Fri, 25 May 2012 03:27:52 +0000

People check out new Energy Star rated major appliances at a departmnet store. (credit: Getty Images/Frank Polich)

AUSTIN (CBSDFW.COM) - Starting Saturday, the state is offering their annual energy efficient tax-free holiday.

Through Monday, anyone who purchases a household appliance with the Energy Star logo will not have to pay state or local sales taxes.

The state has a long list of items that qualify. To learn more about the tax-free weekend, check out the website texaspowerfulsmart.com.

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McKinney Police Seize Hundreds Of Guns In Burglary Bust

Ryan Crowe — Fri, 25 May 2012 03:01:57 +0000

McKINNEY (CBSDFW.COM) – One day after McKinney police busted a major burglary ring, officers were still removing stolen merchandise from a large home in Parker. There was so much to haul away, that police brought in a moving van to transport the evidence.

Andrew McMullen lives next door and was there when his neighbor, Paul Kelso, was arrested. “I didn’t know what to think. They [police] had my car blocked in,” recalled McMullen.”I was uncomfortable seeing people in handcuffs on the yard. The cops kept showing up,” he added.

McKinney Police believe Kelso is responsible for dozens of home burglaries over the past year, and officers say they have a mountain of evidence to prove it.

Police spent Thursday tagging and entering hundreds of stolen items into their system. They seized more than 200 guns. From high-powered rifles to handguns to assault weapons, the police evidence room looked more like a weekend gun show.

McKinney police inspect, tag and identify each of the stolen weapons from a cache of 200 recovered in a recent bust (Jay Gormley/CBSDFW)

Detectives say there were so many weapons inside the house, that they had to step over or walk around the guns to get to more guns. “This is pretty rare. This is probably the largest recovery of this kind that I’ve seen,” said Deputy Chief J.H. Ellenburg.

Over 200 guns seized by McKinney Police after breaking up a burglary ring (Jay Gormley/CBSDFW)

Police also seized thousands of rounds of ammunition as well as jewelry, expensive guitars, bicycles, TVs and countless other household items.

Detectives say they went to Kelso’s home in the 4300 block of Red Oak Circle in Parker after a nine-month investigation.

Kelso’s neighbors say the 61-year-old had been renting the house for about a year and was living there with his wife and son. Neighbors say Kelso told them he was a retired movie producer.

Investigators believe he may be tied to other home burglaries in several cities in Collin County. Police also believe there are other suspects involved in the burglary ring.

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Hamlisch Honors Memorial Day In Dallas Concerts

Ryan Crowe — Fri, 25 May 2012 01:56:28 +0000

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – He is one of the world’s premiere composers and conductors and we are proud in North Texas to call Marvin Hamlisch our Dallas Symphony Pops Conductor! He’s won 3 Oscars, 4 Grammys, 4 Emmys, a Tony and 3 Golden Globe awards but he says he is happiest just being on stage performing and entertaining.

For the past 2 years Mr. Hamlisch has brought the best of Broadway, Hollywood and beyond to the Morton Meyerson Symphony Hallas conducting various themed concerts. Friday and Saturday nights he celebrates our military with a special Armed Forces Salute just in time for the Memorial Day holiday.

Hamlisch will conduct the orchestra in some traditional patriotic tunes like God Bless America and She’s a Grand Old Flag but reminds us there are lots of very rousing and great American songs that are patriotic as well as the classics. There will be a full choir on stage and at the end of the concert, Hamlisch will ask members of the military to stand as he finishes the evening off with special tribute songs to the Marines, Army, Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard. He says he hopes one day to perform these songs for our men and women who serve when all are home safe and we are not at war.

Mr. Hamlisch will return in two weeks for 2 evenings with Michael Feinstein as they perform the best of Cole Porter, Friday 6/8 and Saturday 6/9 at the Meyerson.

Next year he returns as our Pops Conductor for the 2012-2013 DSO Pops season with tributes to the Wicked Divas and Frank Sinatra. He is thrilled to be a part of the North Texas arts community and is impressed with our commitment and patronage. Fingers crossed Mr. Hamlisch will return year after year!

Veteran Officer’s Son Killed By Suspected Drunken Driver

ktvtdeborah — Fri, 25 May 2012 00:35:19 +0000

(credit: Dallas Co. Sheriff’s Dept.)

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – One man is dead and a woman seriously injured after a suspected drunk driver slammed into their vehicle in southern Dallas just before midnight.

According to Dallas police, 25-year-old Jeremy Price died after a driver ran a red light in the 1700 block of Corinth Street, near Ervay, and crashed into the Chrysler PT Cruiser he was driving.

Price was critically wounded in the crash and died several hours later at parkland Hospital. Inside the vehicle with him were an adult woman and a 7-month-old baby boy.

The female passenger was also taken to Parkland Hospital and remained in critical condition Thursday morning. The baby boy, who was buckled in a child safety seat at the time of the crash, is in good condition and received only minor injuries.

Police believe speed and alcohol were factors in the crash and arrested driver Mathew Moore at the scene. The 26-year-old is charged with Intoxication Manslaughter and Intoxication Assault.

The tragedy is hitting close to home for Dallas police. The victim, Price, is the son of a veteran Dallas police officer.

Officer Patty Carter told CBS 11 today that Price was a “wonderful young man” who never caused any trouble. She says the fit, athletic 25-year-old loved running track, his family, and absolutely doted on his 7-year-old baby sister.

“She would always rather be with her big brother than a babysitter,” says Carter. “He’d take her to get treats and a Slurpee after school.”

“Our hearts are heavy today,” said Dallas police Chief David Brown. It’s such a devastating blow for our department and we’re asking the city to pray for our officer, Officer Carter, and her family.”

Family friends tell CBS 11 that the female friend injured in the crash is 5 months pregnant. She remains in critical condition.

A candlelight vigil for Price is planned for 8 p.m. at Mesquite’s Poteet high school.

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State Relaunches Zebra Mussel Awareness Campaign

mgoodman — Thu, 24 May 2012 23:48:46 +0000

Zebra mussels. (credit: Kilian Fichou/AFP/Getty Images)

TEXOMA (CBSDFW.COM) – The threat of zebra mussels is so serious that the state has relaunched a campaign to get boaters to take extra steps to prevent the spread of the invasive water species.

At the start of the year only one North Texas reservoir, Lake Texoma, showed any sign of zebra mussel infestation.

Recent tests on 14 North Texas reservoirs shows Zebra Mussels appear to be contained to that lake, but state authorities still want boaters to take precautions to prevent their spread.

The pebble-sized zebra mussels are not native to Texas.

And wildlife experts are warning without your help, they could easily spread to other lakes.

“One adult zebra mussel is about the size of a dime or so,” said Brian VanZee with Texas Parks and Wildlife. “But one zebra mussel can spawn up to a million eggs a year. So they’re very prolific and they can spread very very quickly.”

How quickly? The mussels first appeared in the Great Lakes on one boat from the Balkans in 1988. Now they’re in the length of the Mississippi River and a problem in 29 states.

Texoma is the only affected Texas lake now. But if a boater puts in on Texoma they could just as easily put in on any other recreational Texas lakes.

In fact, zebra mussel DNA has been found in six Texas lakes but not at a level to indicate there are colonies there. Boaters could be carrying zebra mussels in a puddle of water and not even know it.

“The zebra mussel’s larvae are microscopic,” VanZee said. “You can’t see it with the naked eye.”

Texoma used to provide a third of the North Texas Municipal Water District’s water. Not anymore. Since it can’t draw water through Lake Lavon and other waterways without spreading the infestation, the district will have to build a special pipeline to the treatment plants.

“That pipeline will cost close to $300 million to get that supply back on line,” said Denise Hickey, Spokesperson for the North Texas Municipal Water District

A new Texas law now requires boaters to clean, drain and dry their boats. Bait wells, engines, fishing nets, even minnow buckets used on the banks. Wildlife experts say even the smallest amount of water introduced somewhere else from an infected waterway can be costly.

“Every year millions and millions of dollars are spent across the United States in simply trying to deal with zebra mussels and the problems they cause,” VanZee said.

Cowboys RB Murray Talks OTA, Rehab, Coaching

jeffburkett — Thu, 24 May 2012 23:37:18 +0000

DALLAS (105.3 THE FAN) – Dallas Cowboys RB Demarco Murray checks in with 105.3 The Fan’s RAGE and talks rehab, OTA’s and coaching basketball. Yup!

PLAY: Demarco Murray on 105.3 The Fan

Download: 052412-murray.mp3

Listen to Richie & Greggo “RAGE” weekdays 2:00pm – 7:00pm on 105.3 The Fan. Follow us on Twitter @1053RAGE @RichieWhitt @TCUWhiteTrash @ArmenontheAir @Sybil1053

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Dallas Man Walks Into Jail, Confesses To Murdering Girlfriend

Ryan Crowe — Thu, 24 May 2012 23:32:00 +0000

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - A Dallas man is in custody after he walked into the county jail Thursday afternoon and calmly told sheriff’s deputies that he’d killed his girlfriend.

Christopher Worley (Photo: Dallas County Sheriff’s Office)

40-year-old Christopher Worley walked up to the Lew Sterrett Detention Center Thursday and confessed to the murder.

After the confession, Dallas police rushed to an apartment complex in the 4500 block of Munger Avenue in Dallas. After forcing their way into the apartment, officers found the body of 51-year-old Becky Ann Gee.

No word from the Dallas Medical Examiner on how the woman died. Police officials declined to comment on a possible motive.

UFC 146 Dos Santos Vs. Mir: Expect Quick Finish

jeffburkett — Thu, 24 May 2012 23:23:18 +0000

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) -

Grappler vs. Striker

Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas UFC Heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos (14-1 MMA, 8-0 UFC) puts his title on the line against former 2 times champion Frank Mir (16-5 MMA, 14-5 UFC).

At first glance this fight almost has an old school UFC feel pitting the best striker in the Heavyweight division(Overeem cheats so he doesn’t deserve that title) I Dos Santos against easily the best grappler in the division in challenger Frank Mir. Mir has 8 submission finishes in his UFC career and Dos Santos has finished 5 opponents by either KO or TKO with the lone submission victory also coming from punches when he defeated Mirko Cro Cop by verbal submission at UFC 103 in Dallas.

I feel that the biggest key to this fight will be which fighter is able to handle himself best when out of his comfort zone.

Mir has developed into a very well rounded fighter and has finished strong strikers before in Check Kongo and Mirko Cro Cop. Dos Santos has faced and defeated one of the best grapplers in the world when he knocked out Fabricio Werdum in his octagon debut in a fight that never hit the ground. The fight starts standing and if Mir is not able to test Dos Santos on the ground it could be a very long or maybe even short night for the challenger. If the fight does make it to the ground Dos Santos will be truly tested by Mir who has arguably the most creative and diverse jui jitsu attack in the Heavyweight division.

Don’t miss the 1^st round!

This fight is going to be very exciting in the early going.

Dos Santos has finished 5 out of 8 UFC opponents in the 1^st round and Mir has 8 first round submission victories to go along with one DQ victory and 3 first round losses. 14 out of Mir’s 21 career fights have ended in the first round which includes 3 first round KO/TKO losses.

When Mir was asked about the importance of the first round he said” Dos Santos, all his knockouts are in the first round, my submissions came in the first round too, so I realize that both of us are most dangerous in the first round.” When asked about what makes the champion so dangerous early on Mir had high praise for Dos Santos’ boxing ability “ It’s his speed, how fast he can throw his hands and like all people as the fight goes on it’s impossible to be just as fast as you were in the first two minutes, speed slows down. That’s why he knocks people out in the first round. He has incredible speed and its overwhelming and I don’t think people have time to adjust for it.” Mir finished by saying “I know that the first round is more important than any other round in this fight”.

My Take

Frank Mir has to get this fight to the ground or against the cage early on and wear down Dos Santos to attempt to nullify the champion’s superior speed when the fight is taking place on the feet. If Dos Santos is able to avoid what should be constant takedown attempts by the challenger, Mir’s improved striking won’t be enough to overcome the champions fast and powerful attack.

I do think that this fight will hit the matt at some point but I expect Dos Santos to be good enough on the ground to survive Mir’s submission arsenal. I am predicting a very exciting but short fight on Saturday.

Mir has shown that he is not the best at taking punches against the likes of Shane Carwin and Antonio Nogueira and I expect the power of Dos Santos to be too much for him to overcome. Dos Santos by 1^st round KO/TKO

Richard Hunter interviews Frank Mir

You can follow me on twitter @mmamiked

You can follow Richard Hunter @RichardHunter and Anthony Njokuani @anthonynjoku

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Johnson Has Colonial Lead After 64

jeffburkett — Thu, 24 May 2012 23:08:24 +0000

Zach Johnson reacts to a missed birdie putt on the eighth hole during the first round of the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial at the Colonial Country Club on May 24, 2012 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images)

FORT WORTH (AP) – Zach Johnson shot a bogey-free 6-under 64 on Thursday to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Colonial.

Johnson opened his round with a 40-foot birdie putt on his first hole, No. 10. After blasting from a greenside bunker at No. 12 to save par, he had four birdies in a row on a day when gusty wind whipped through the big oaks lining the fairways at Hogan’s Alley.

Even though he has made the cut in all 12 tournaments he has played this season, Johnson hasn’t won since the Colonial two years ago.

Jason Dufner, the Byron Nelson Championship winner Sunday, was a stroke back along with PGA Tour rookie Harris English, Tom Gillis and Kyle Reifers.

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On The Road: Assassination City

Ryan Crowe — Thu, 24 May 2012 22:11:23 +0000

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – This is not your grandma’ roller derby. For dozens of North Texas women, it’s a recipe that’s one part speed, one part toughness, and a whole lot of attitude. CBS 11 Sports Photojournalist Bret Kelly introduces the women of Assassination City Roller Derby.

Deep Ellum Brewing Company Boldly Educates With Quality Beer

mgoodman — Thu, 24 May 2012 22:05:33 +0000

Deep Ellum Brewery’s 8-ounce glass promotes its Rye Pilsner. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – It’s noon on a sunbaked Saturday along a semi-secluded industrial block of south Deep Ellum and a couple dozen people are comfortably sipping from 8-ounce glasses. They’re in a time warp of a beer garden –– it’s quite easy to forget that it’s flanked by warehouses and parking lots.

A band offers up Willie Nelson covers from a modest stage tucked in the corner while folks amble to food trucks that abut the fence. And, of course, there’s those frequent reprieves to the interior of the attached 3,000-squarefoot brewery –– it’s why they’re here, after all.

For the past eight Saturdays, Deep Ellum Brewing Company has opened its doors to the public for a tour. Four weeks ago, the nascent microbrewery tapped its first full-season brew, the Farmhouse Wit, a light wheat-styled beer that’s brewed without any wheat whatsoever.

The beer garden at the Deep Ellum Brewing Company. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

But more on that later –– Tait Lifto is cutting through the crowd donning a Deep Ellum shirt and hat, a toothy smile spread across his face. He’s come to proselytize.

“I just want people to try the beer,” he said. “It’s all about the beer. That’s what we live and breathe.”

Lifto is Deep Ellum’s ‘Sales and Brand Ninja,’ so, in other words, one of his duties is to be overwhelmingly excited about the product he cares so deeply for. Tough job, he assures me.

The 37-year-old joined the force in January, two months after the microbrewery formally launched at the Common Table in Uptown –– which may be the only thing Lifto promotes as enthusiastically as his employer’s beer.

Tait Lifto, Sales and Brand Ninja of the Deep Ellum Brewing Company. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

At that time, Deep Ellum was Dallas’s only microbrewery. Franconia hovers to the north, in McKinney, and Rahr is situated due west in Fort Worth. But Dallas-proper, the state’s third most populous city, had nothing to call its own.

“Dallas has needed this for so long,” Lifto says. “There’s, what, six million people in DFW? It’s ridiculous. You go down to Austin and there’s, like, 30 (microbreweries).”

Lifto and his colleagues are quite aware that they’re carrying the torch, so to speak. In the six months of its existence, Deep Ellum Brewing Company has released nine different beers. The Deep Ellum IPA –– by far their most popular –– Rye Pils and Double Brown Stout will be year round. The rest are varying degrees of seasonal.

Their 10^th, a Barley Wine, is aging in rye whiskey barrels and will flow in January 2013.

Barley Wine ages inside rye whiskey barrels at the Deep Ellum Brewing Company. These will age until Jan. 1, 2013. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

Deep Ellum’s bold brews are poured in 116 different bars and restaurants in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, Lifto says.

Just 10 Dallas locations offered the brewery a tap when it launched.

“We’re mindful of how sometimes you can’t grow too fast, but our big deal is to make a splash and get out there in front of people and say, look, we’re here, we’re making beer … and be unapologetic about it,” Lifto said.

Since Deep Ellum opened last November, another three have, at the very least, announced plans to brew.

Peticolas Brewing Company is operational and calls the Design District home; Lakewood Brewing Company, in Garland, will formally open sometime this summer; and Four Corners Brewing Co. vows to roll out its beers on Labor Day.

Deep Ellum Brewing Company’s draft taps are made in Grand Prairie. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

It’s easy to live in this beer bubble –– the growth is certainly a good sign for craft beer fans. But, according to the U.S. Brewers Association, just 13 percent of the volume of beers consumed in America came from craft breweries in 2011.

However, that’s up from 12 percent the year before that.

“The reality is craft beer in Texas lags behind the rest of the country. Five percent of sales in Texas is craft beer,” Lifto says, his numbers backed up by the Brewer’s Association. “Overall regular domestic beer sales are down two percent from last year, but four or five percent of all of the picture is a hell of a lot less.”

And that is why Lifto proselytizes.

Of beer and Dallas

But Lifto came on following years of planning, paperwork and patience.

Deep Ellum’s brewer’s permit –– submitted to the state in April 2011 and approved at the end of the summer, public records show –– has three names attached to it: Scott Frieling, James Piel and John Reardon.

That wasn’t always the case.

Reardon, 32, is a longtime home brewer and former Dallas club owner. And, like many beer lovers with the dedication to brew his own, he had a far-out dream to open a brewery.

After “a bit of research and a bit of planning,” Reardon pounced and began filing paperwork.

Deep Ellum Brewing Company’s owner, John Reardon. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

“Little did I know there was another group of guys doing the same thing in Deep Ellum,” Reardon says. “In fact, I filed for a trademark on Deep Ellum Brewing Company two days before they filed Deep Ellum Brewing Company, LLC. with the state. Let’s just say some not-so-friendly letters went back and forth.”

That other group of guys was Piel and Frieling. Eventually, the three agreed to meet up, fittingly, for a beer.

“After a couple meetings, it was like, ‘why not do this together?’,” Reardon remembers.

And so they did. In October of 2010, the city of Dallas classified the brewery as a “light industrial” operation. This freed up the choices Reardon, Piel and Frieling had in selecting a location for their brewery.

Shortly after this declaration, Reardon teased in the comment section of a Pegasus News article that they’d settled on somewhere in South Deep Ellum.

“While we agree that it does not make much sense to locate ourselves in the thick of things, we still wish to be close enough to weave our way into the future framework of Deep Ellum,” Reardon wrote.

Location of the Deep Ellum Brewing Company. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

The brewery’s future home would be 2821 Saint Louis Street, a small offshoot block of Malcolm X that’s visible from the mid-air split of Interstate 30 and U.S. 75 in southern Deep Ellum, just as Reardon teased.

Piel and Frieling, both trial attorneys, aren’t actually considered employees. Reardon runs the daily operations while his partners act as, well, partners.

“They help when they can, but they’re not involved in the day-to-day,” Reardon said. “They’d love to be, but they can’t support that just yet.”

In January, Drew Huerter moved from St. Louis to Dallas to serve as Deep Ellum’s brew master. The 28-year-old previously brewed at the now-defunct Mattingly Brewery, a 1.5-barrel brew house that had Huerter coming up with a new beer each Wednesday.

“I really hate the name, but it was Peak-A-Brew Wednesday,” he said, “Lame name, cool concept.”

After two years there and 75 different brews, Huerter moved to Schlafly, a much larger 45,000-barrel brew house that, according to the Brewers Association, was the 39^th largest craft brewery in the country in 2011.

The Deep Ellum Brewing Company. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

Deep Ellum, Huerter says, gives him the freedom he had at the tiny nano brewery with a yield and drive similar to Schlafly.

“This is the best of both worlds; I get the freedom I got at that place but with the resources of the Schlafly brewery,” Huerter said. “It’s nice.”

While attempting to achieve “total beer domination” –– Reardon’s words –– Huerter’s been let loose.

For proof, look at that aforementioned Farmhouse Wit –– it’s brewed with triticale, a hybrid of wheat and rye. That’s rare, Huerter says. The only other brewery he can recall experimenting with it is the unapologetically bold Escondido, Calif.-based Stone Brewery –– a name that Lifto hopes Deep Ellum will be whispered alongside.

“I think we’re going to make a huge impact,” Lifto says. “I think we’ll get national recognition and be on the same playing field of the craft beer community across the nation as Dogfish, as Russian River.”

Deep Ellum Brewing Company’s branding, done by Caliber Creative –– another Deep Ellum business. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

These are bold statements, but so was co-opting the name of what is arguably Dallas’s most recognizable neighborhood. This is something they’re mindful of.

“Us coming in an area that’s already so well defined in terms of its own brand and for us to pick up that name? We had to kind of embody what we already are,” Reardon says.

Then he continues with a rapid-fire history lesson of Deep Ellum, his voice and cadence increasing by the word: “From the turn of the century to jazz to the demise back in the 50s and 60s; with the birth of the freeways and the, sort of, hipsters in the 80s, even like the skinheads and the punks and all that shit and the fallout in the 90s; we love every bit of that, we don’t shy away from that, but we want to be the next chapter, but still … with remembrance of it all.”

Before the DART Green Line zipped travelers into Deep Ellum, there was the Good Latimer tunnel –– a 70-plus-year-old historic structure covered with city-approved graffiti. For many, it was the gateway to the entertainment district; the murals and graffiti that lived along its walls are forever matched with the memories that formed on the other side of the tunnel.

A mural of all the pieces from the Good Latimer tunnel, which was demolished in 2006. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)

“I remember going to Deep Ellum in the nineties and having some fun partying down there and going into the tunnel,” Lifto says. “I remember seeing Nine Inch Nails in ’94, ’95 at the Bomb Factory. That was something else, man.”

Even when recalling that memory nearly two decades later, Lifto walks through the tunnel before he gets to it.

While it was demolished in 2006, it’s immortalized in Deep Ellum’s slick tasting room. It’s a mural consisting of high-resolution photographs taken by area photographer Sean Fitzgerald before the destruction. It’s all there: The chubby tiger, the cartoonish DJ, the Elvis Pez dispenser, the defecating Pegasus.

Just as the Deep Ellum crew hopes to educate the public about quality beer, Lifto and Reardon both say they aim to give their city the spotlight, too.

“The Deep Ellum name has a lot of history behind it,” Lifto says. “It kind of, just, hits something in people’s souls when they think about Deep Ellum.”

A closer view of the mural at the Deep Ellum Brewing Company. (Credit: Kent Chapline/CBSDFW.com)