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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-06-11 Euless Articles Woman charged with murder in fatal shooting of boyfriend in dispute, Euless police say By: Nicole Lopez Published: May 29, 2024 7:23 PM A woman faces a murder charge after she told authorities she shot her boyfriend in a dispute, according to Euless police. At around 10:30 p.m. Sunday, officers responded to a motel in the 100 block of Airport Freeway after a witness reported a man had been shot and was lying on the ground. When officers arrived at the scene, they found a man who had been shot once in the chest. Paramedics arrived and confirmed the man was dead, according to police. Authorities identified him as 40-year-old Jorge Lara Pulido. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled his death a homicide. Bridget Leitao told officers the victim was her boyfriend, according to police. She was arrested at the scene after police say she told officers that she shot the victim in a dispute, police say. Leitao is being held at the Tarrant County jail on a murder charge. Her bond has not yet been set. Elmer Boyd, investigator of JFK assassination, mourned by family By Hojun Choi | 7:01 AM on May 31, 2024 Any time Donna Roach and her sisters heard someone tell their father, Elmer Boyd, he was a “hero” or a “legend” for his part in the JFK assassination investigation, he’d respond with the same line. “He’d always tell them, ‘I’m just a old country boy from Blooming Grove,’” Roach said. Boyd, who died last week, was the last living Dallas police detective who investigated President John F. Kennedy’s assassination in 1963, according to his obituary. He was 96. Roach recalled how she and her family were at her grandmother’s house in Irving watching the television as Jack Ruby shot Lee Harvey Oswald. She said her father had worked multiple overnight shifts and had been sent home. He and his partner, Richard Milton Sims, on Nov. 22, 1963, had been assigned to guard Oswald. Despite his connection to one of the most notorious moments in U.S. history, his daughters say their father wanted to be remembered for his commitment to his family. “He never talked about the assassination, probably, for 40 years, and then, he started talking and doing interviews,” Roach said. “He told the same story. He never wavered. He didn’t exaggerate. He believed Oswald acted alone, and he never tried to change anybody’s mind.” Boyd was born September 1927 in Cryer Creek, according to his online obituary. He moved to Blooming Grove in 1946 and graduated high school there. Boyd then served in the U.S. Navy from 1946 until 1948. By the time he joined Dallas police in 1952, he had started a fami ly with his sweetheart, Yvonne. The pair met at a skating rink in Irving, Roach said. They married in 1950, and stayed together until her death in 2015. In the mid-1950s, the Boyds lived on Dutton Drive in Oak Cliff, Roach said. On many summers, the family would take trips to Blooming Grove to her grandfather’s house. She remembered how her parents would only play country music on the way — something she and her siblings fought. They were more interested in listening to The Beatles or the Rolling Stones. “W e’d lose that battle every time,” Roach said. Boyd had a soft spot for his three daughters, however. He bought a vinyl record player for Roach’s older sister, Pamela Boyd. Her younger sister, Toni Rhyne was still very young, she said. They’d go into a living room where the record player was kept and close the door so they could jam out with their favorite songs. That’s when their father, dressed in turquoise flip flops and his “dad wear,” would come into the room and sing the words to some of their favorite songs, ruining them. “I remember it aggravated so when he would do that, and I remember him just acting silly with us,” she said. “We would tell him to ‘Go on!’ He’d have a harmonica and he’d start playing his harmonica and dancing around.” Rhyne, 65, remembered how routine-oriented her father was. “Until the day he died, he set his alarm for 6 o’clock, he got up, he shaved and got dressed for the day. Later on, he’d have aids to come help him, but he did the exact same thing daily,” she said. Rhyne said she thinks her father tried his best to make sure her and her older sisters grew up without worries and troubles. He didn’t let the stress of his job as a homicide detective affect how he treated his family. “When he loved, he loved with his whole heart,” she said. Pamela Boyd said jested that her father “tried” to be strict, but that the sisters gave their father a “hard time.” “We all had our moments with him, but he was always there for us no matter what,” she said. Pamela Boyd said her father loved to te ll stories and had an impeccable memory: “His stories never changed; they were always the same.” Fishing was one of her father’s favorite hobbies, she said. Some of her fondest memories of her father were his fish fries during vacation. When he turned 91, he finally let some of the other men in the family manage the cookout duties — but he always kept a close watch. Boyd retired the Dallas Police Department in 1978, and in October that year, joined the Euless police as a warrant officer, according to his obituary. He retired from the Euless Police Department in 1989, when he and Yvonne moved to Navarro Mills Lake. In January 1999, the couple moved to Blooming Grove. Pamela said her father was always loving to her mother. When Yvonne fell ill, Elmer Boyd was her primary caretaker. In his last days, Pamela Boyd and her sisters got to play their father his beloved country songs. “I got out his Marty Robbins CDs and played it for him, and he kept on saying, ‘I saw his last concert with my wife,’” she said. Early voting for runoff elections in North Texas starts Monday. Here’s what to know By Sarah Bahari | 6:00 AM AM on Jun 3, 2024 Early voting starts Monday and runs through June 11 for local runoff elections. Voters in Allen, Lewisville, Irving and other cities will decide on city council races and one race for a county appraisal district. Election day is June 15. Here’s what you need to know. What’s on the ballot? In Dallas County, voters will decide an Irving City Council race for District 4 betwe en Susan Motley and Luis Canosa and a Lewisville City Council race for Place 2 between William J. Meridith and Penny Mallet. In Tarrant County, voters will decide a Euless City Council race for Place 5 between Annabel Jones Eads and Joseph A. Robinson; North Richland Hills City Council race for Place 4 between Matt Blake and Jeff Arwine; and Kennedale City Council race for Place 2 between Matthew Dyer and Thelma Kolbeck. Collin County voters will decide Allen City Council races for Place 3 between Dave Cornette and Ken Cook and Place 5 between Dave Shafer and Carl Clemencich; and an Anna City Council race for Place 4 between Kelly Herndon and Bruce Norwood. Denton County voters will decide a Lewisville City Council race for Place 2 between William J. Meridith and Penny Mallet. That district overlaps with Dallas County. Voters in Ellis County will decide on Place 1 for the Ellis Appraisal District between Bevery Gatlin and Paula R. Baucum and Midlothian City Council Place 6 between Wayne Shuffield and Hud Hartson. In Rockwall County, voters will decide a Fate City Council race for Place 1 between Cinnamon Krauss and Codi Chinn. I’m not sure whether I registered to vote. How do I check? You can check your voter registration status through the Texas Secretary of State’s website or your county elections office: Dallas County Tarrant County Collin County Denton County Can I still vote if I have not registered? No. Texas required voters to register by May 16 to vote this election. Unlike Texas, 22 states and Washington, D.C,. allow same-day registration, which permit eligible residents to vote and register and cast a ballot at the same time. What do I need to vote? Voters will need one acceptable form of ID. This includes a Texas identification card, Texas driver’s license, state handgun license, U.S. passport, U.S. military ID with photograph or U.S. citizenship certification with photograph. Can I vote by mail? Applications to request a mail-in ballot are due June 4. Mail ballots must be postmarked by 7 p.m. on June 15 (election day) and must be received by the county by June 17. They can also be delivered in person to polling places on election day. Texas does not have no-excuse mail voting. Voters must meet have at least one of the following criteria to vote by mail: ▪ be 65 years or older ▪ be sick or disabled ▪ be out of the county on election day and during the period for in-person early voting ▪ be expected to give birth within three weeks before or after Election Day ▪ be confined in jail, but otherwise eligible When and where do I vote early? It depends on which county you live in. Voters can cast ballots at any early voting location in their county. Dallas County 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through June 7 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 8 Noon to 6 p.m. June 9 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 10 through June 11 See Dallas County early voting locations at dallascountyvotes.org. Tarrant County 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 3 through June 7 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 8 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 9 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 10 through June 11 See Tarrant County early voting locations at tarrantcountytx.gov. Collin County 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 3 through June 8 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 10 through June 11 See Collin County early voting locations at collincountytx.gov. Denton County 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 3 through June 8 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 9 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 10 through June 11 See Denton County early voting locations at votedenton.gov. Ellis County 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 3 through June 7 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 8 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 10 through June 11 See Ellis County early voting locations at co.ellis.tx.us. Rockwall County 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 3 through June 5 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 6 through June 7 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 10 through June 11 See Rockwall County early voting locations at rockwallvotes.com. Man evading arrest crashes into Euless apartment building, police say By De'Anthony Taylor • Published June 8, 2024 • Updated on June 8, 2024 at 6:49 pm A man is in custody, and multiple residents were forced to move after a wild police chase in Euless ended with a car being lodged against an apartment building on Saturday. According to the Euless Police Department, officers tried to serve an arrest warrant for 41-year-old Carl Finstad at his home on Donley Drive on Friday. Finstad reportedly evaded arrest and was approached the next day by a Euless police officer, who attempted to pull him over during a traffic stop in the 100 block of W. Ash Lane. Police said Finstad instantly sped off in his vehicle, and because he was traveling at a high rate of speed in a residential area, the officer did not chase after him. The same officer continued driving westbound on W. Ash Lane and came across the site of a car crash, authorities said. Finstad allegedly crashed into a parked car and ran into the corner of an apartment building before fleeing the vehicle on foot and jumping over several fences. There were no injuries reported in connection with the crash. Euless Police said that three apartments were significantly damaged in the crash, and the residents had to be relocated. With the help of Bedford Police and a drone, the suspect was later apprehended by Euless Police and taken into custody without incident. Finstad is charged with assault, strangulation with a previous conviction, and two counts of evading in a vehicle with previous convictions.