AUGUST 4, 2006
FATAL CRASH WOODLANDS PARKWAY AT KUYKENDAHL
AUGUST 4, 2010
PATTON VILLAGE RECEIVES $115,000 GRANT FOR NEW CARS
Patton Village was presented a check Wednesday by the USDA for $115,000. This was a grant for them to purchase new police cars. One was damaged during Ike and the others have gotten to the point that service and repair costs have skyrocketed.
Congressman Kevin Brady was on hand as was Constable Rowdy Hayden, Judge Sadler, and Floyd Jackson, mayor of Roman Forest.
AUGUST 4, 2010
PRECINCT 4 WARRANT ROUND UP
Judge Mett’s, Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace has been big on education since taking office. He has been very strict on students who fail to attend school and even tougher on parents who allow their children to miss school. Over the past year, he has jailed many students and parents on contempt of court charges for continued absences. Last week he held a court session for many more students and parents who did not attend the last months of school. On this court date, five were jailed on contempt charges. However many thought they slipped through the cracks by just not showing up in court. This was not the first time it has happened and Failure To Appear Warrants were issued each time.
Today Judge Metts Staff along with the Precinct 4 Constables Office, New Caney ISD Police, Splendora ISD Police, and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office participated in a warrant round up to clear some of these warrants. Deputies fanned out throughout Montgomery County arresting these people and bringing them to jail. After all, was said and done over twenty people were placed in the Montgomery County Jail. Many others came in to pay their fines.
As most were being booked in and the holding cells filled one young lady, Trina Mitchell Hill of Splendora thought different from being there. She walked out of the building. It was noticed immediately and deputies fanned out around the courthouse area in an attempt to locate her. About thirty minutes later she was located across the freeway from the annex and was taken back into custody. She now faces an additional charge of escape.
AUGUST 4, 2012
MONTGOMERY COUNTY PRECINCT 3 CONSTABLE SWORN IN
At noon Friday outgoing Montgomery County Precinct 3 Constable Tim Holifield who after sixteen years in that office resigned and swore in newly elected Constable Ryan Gable. Gable who has spent the last nineteen years with Harris County was elected after Constable Holifield did not seek re-election. Besides Gable and his family which includes his father who is a Harris County Sheriff’s Department Sergeant, Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Ron Hickman, Montgomery County Precinct 1 Chief Deputy Hatcher, several other friends and co-workers attended. Judge Sadler told the group that it was rare to have newly elected officials in Montgomery County. When Gable was asked to say a few words he referred the task to his wife Heather who thanked all the supporters. Tim Holifield will now take over Animal Control as the director and has also been appointed by Commissioners as Montgomery County Animal Cruelty Investigator.
AUGUST 4, 2012
LEGAL RED TAPE AVOIDED HOME DEMOLISHED IN MAGNOLIA
Mamie McLachlan and her sister, Ruby Reyes, grew up in on Roy Street in Magnolia then moved away. Her mother remained, but lost her home to a fire many years ago. Since many of her children were returning home from time to time, the mother had a home moved in. After she died, the home fell into disrepair and it wasn’t long before scrappers removed the home’s metal roof. Soon the remaining roof began to collapse, followed by some of the walls and the floor. The cost of demolition was more than the sisters could afford.
The Magnolia City Council asked Police Chief Ibarra what could be done. When he was in Corpus Christi, many homes needed to be removed, and he learned ways it could be accomplished. But for the city, the legal expense alone to condemn the property and prepare it for demolition would have been nearly $40,000.
Then on April 11, Chief Ibarra saw a story on KHOU in Houston that focused on the over 8,000 Houston homes that needed to be demolished. After a controversial ruling by the state supreme court in January, it will take even longer to remove the homes. The ruling entitles property owners of structures deemed dangerous and a public nuisance to an independent judicial review before a city can tear them down.
Some Texas cities have put a halt to all demolition work. But Mayor Annise Parker has established a demolition assessment panel to identify buildings the city can level without the threat of a lawsuit. The Chief said he would love to be part of her panel. It caused him to start looking at alternatives. Volunteer organizations and the community coming together to remove these building wasn’t included in the ruling.
Just about that time Summer Foltz and Jill Gabriel, both recent graduates of the Magnolia Police Department Citizens Police Academy, walked into his office. The two were looking for a project. Within months, the red tape was cut. The owners of the property agreed to sign off on the demolition. Local Attorney Steve Crews handled the legal work on his own time, at no charge. Jill’s husband, Daniel Gabriel, with DLG Timber, provided the equipment to demolish the home.
Before any work could begin, Texas Star Propane had to remove the old propane tank and its supply lines. WCA Waste provided at least four roll-off containers and covered the landfill fees to dispose of the home. North Houston Trucking agreed to provide transportation to get the equipment to the site. Then, after talking with local merchants, Food Basket and Brookshire Brothers provided food, water, and snacks for all the volunteers of the Keep Montgomery County Beautiful organization.
Many other volunteers signed on, both neighbors and church groups. What started out small turned into an unusual and huge block party. Magnolia Fire Department stood by to wet surfaces down, preventing large amounts of dust. The Magnolia Police Department provided security and traffic control, and a throwing arm from time to time as one officer passed the football to several youngsters in the area.
Minutes after 8 a.m. Saturday, everyone gathered for prayer, and moments later the demolition began. With the first swing of the bucket, much of the house fell in. Within an hour, the entire house was loaded in the containers to be hauled away. Several dead and dangerous trees were also removed. The Chief said there are a few more homes like this in the city he would like to remove.
AUGUST 4, 2013
BENEFIT FOR EXPLOSION VICTIMS
On June 11, 2013, the explosion of a home in Dobbin, Texas which is in far west Montgomery County killed Jennifer Mock and Lena Knight. Both were initially flown to the hospital with severe burns. Little Wyatt Smith was also flown to the burn center but is out of the hospital now and was nothing but smiles today as friends put together a benefit to assist the family with funeral expenses and medical bills.
The benefit which has been in the planning stages for over a month was held today at the Lone Star Community Center in Montgomery.
Almost 2 tons of brisket was cooked along with 1000 pounds of sausage. Crowds today were estimated at almost 2000 people. Many came by to get to-go meals, some purchased $75 briskets and many others just stopped by to donate.
The ones that stayed were treated to a live auction and the music of several including Josh Ward, Bri Bagwell, and Clayton Gardner.
Some of the auction items included a signed JJ Wyatt Jersey, a signed basketball by Jeremy Lin, and much more.
It continues until 7 pm tonight and there are briskets still available.
Lone Star Community Center is located on Lone Star Parkway west of FM 149 and north of SH 105.
The Montgomery County Fire Marshal’s Office and Texas Railroad Commission are still investigating how the propane built up under the house. They feel that when the stove was turned on it ignited the gas.
AUGUST 4, 2013
DPS PURSUIT TAKES 2 MORE DRUNKS OFF THE ROAD
Between 2a, and 3 am Sunday morning Conroe Police and other agencies started getting calls of a red or maroon Mustang racing up and down FM 1488 near I-45 and also in and out of the Mansions area. As Conroe Police responded a DPS Trooper on routine patrol on FM 1488 also saw them. One patrol unit had clocked the vehicle at 108 mph. The trooper initiated a pursuit which went to Mansions Drive then south. The Mustang tried to enter one of the driveways for the apartments but was stopped due to the security gate.
It was at that point the Trooper had caught up with him and pulled in behind him. That is when the Mustang rolled back into the troopers patrol unit doing very minor damage. Conroe Police were right behind the troopers as were Montgomery County Sheriff’s units.
The officers pulled one suspect from the front right door who appeared to be the driver. The other suspect was in the back seat.
After extensive questioning of what was thought to be the driver even though he denied it troopers learned he actually wasn’t the driver.
The suspect in the back seat was the driver.
After reviewing the dashcam video and talking with the passenger it was learned that Michael Murphy Scott, 22, of Larue, Texas had been driving.
When the standard transmission Mustang pulled up to the security gate, Scott, the driver jumped into the backseat, hoping his buddy would be put in the drivers seat by officers. Scott was in such a hurry he forgot to set the brake causing the vehicle to roll back into the patrol unit.
Michael Murphy Scott is charged with evading arrest, and driving while intoxicated.
His passenger Brandon Blake Airheart 23, who was from Athens, Texas was also arrested for public intoxication. He claimed he was there visiting his girlfriend who lived at the complex. Future visits may be difficult as both were issued criminal trespass warnings by Conroe Police. If they should set foot on the property again they will be arrested. When Airheart arrived at the jail he gave them the address of 2733 FM 1488 in Conroe.
Many calls came in and several witnesses who were at the Valero said they witnessed the Mustang go in and out of the complex several times at a high rate of speed with the loud exhaust. When they reached FM 1488 they would complete doughnuts across all five lanes of the road.
At one point they crossed I-45 on the overpass and returned at a high rate of speed almost flipping the vehicle.
AUGUST 4, 2018
MONTGOMERY COUNTY FIREFIGHTERS DEPLOY TO CALIFORNIA
After waiting several days for orders, North Montgomery County Fire Department and Porter Fire Department were given deployment orders to the California Wildfires. The trucks that are being sent are trucks obtained on a grant with the agreement that they would be manned and deployed as needed wherever needed. Over the years that has mostly been Texas. This is the first deployment outside Texas for the departments. Saturday afternoon they delivered the trucks to Webster where they are being loaded on 18-wheelers for the 2500 mile trip. Along with their trucks are Galveston, Webster and Baytown. Baytown just picked their new truck up 3-days ago and will be its first mission. The crews for the trucks are being flown to Sacramento, California where their trucks will meet them. The current plan is 18-day rotations on the crews. The equipment will remain but a fresh crew will be flown out. Currently, thousands of acres are on fire in the Western United States with no end in sight.
AUGUST 4, 2020
FIREFIGHTERS RESCUE WOMAN FROM BURNING HOME
At 12:16 am a reported house fire came into Montgomery County 911 Center from a home in the 12600 block of Ridgecrest Drive in the Lake Conroe Hills Subdivision. The caller stated a teen was trapped in a bedroom. North Montgomery County Fire Department responded to the scene. The first truck which is stationed within a mile of the fire was first in and reported heavy fire on a single-story brick home. A search was immediately started and at one point firefighters had to exit the structure due to the intensity of the fire. A crew went back into the burning structure and after a short time found an 18-year-old female in a closet. She was brought out and CPR was initiated. They were able to get a pulse back and transported her to Conroe Regional Hospital with second and third-degree burns over 50 percent of her body. A 31-year-old female was able to escape the blaze with a laceration to her leg. In addition, three small children were able to escape. The Montgomery County Fire Marshal’s Office is on the scene investigating. North Montgomery FIre was assisted by Conroe and Montgomery Fire Departments.
AUGUST 4, 2020
CRATER LAKE STOLEN VEHICLE RECOVERY
Last week Montgomery County Auto Theft Task Force had information of a vehicle in Crater Lake in the oil fields off FM 3083. After deploying side-scan sonar they discovered an unknown vehicle in 30-feet of water. This morning Detectives with the Auto Theft Task Force along with divers from the Montgomery County Precinct 1 Marine Division and Caney Creek Fire Department went back to the location to recover the vehicle. Divers were put into the black water and were tasked with connecting a cable from a Texas Towing and Recovery wrecker to the vehicle. After about an hour the vehicle was pinpointed and cables were connected. Slowly the silver 2013 Dodge Dart came to the surface and was removed. This has not been the first vehicle recovered from the lake over the years which has also yielded several bodies since the lake was created in the 1930s. Once divers were out of the water they had to be decontaminated and scrubbed down. Additional details later today.
AUGUST 4, 2020
LAKE CONROE DROWNING
Just after 8 pm crews were dispatched to Willowbend Road in Walden. It was reported a 39-year-old male jumped into the water and did not surface. Montgomery Firefighters were first on scene and immediately put two firefighters in the water. North Montgomery County Fireboat responded as did Montgomery County Precinct 1 Lake Patrol. Within 30 minutes the victim was recovered near where he went down. MCHD Medics pronounced the victim deceased. According to Constable Cash, the male jumped off a dock of a home they were renting in Walden. He jumped into 6-feet of water and did not resurface. Montgomery County Precinct 1 Justice of the Peace Wayne Mack responded for an inquest and ordered Eickenhorst Funeral Directors to transport the victim to the Montgomery County Forensic Center for autopsy.
AUGUST 4, 2021
I45 AUTO PED FATAL IN FRONT OF HERMANN HOSPITAL MEDICAL CENTER DRIVE
A little after 2 pm the driver of a Ford F250 pickup was leaving Hermann Hospital. As he got to the feeder he looked to the left for clear traffic and then pulled out. He did not see the 63-year-old male walking northbound on the feeder. He struck him at first thinking it was the curb but then realized it was a pedestrian. The feeder has been closed southbound between Research and Hermann Hospital since 2 pm. It will be opening in just a few minutes. The victim was transported by Eickenhorst Funeral Directors to the Montgomery County Forensic Center for autopsy.
