The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2009-05-22 Euless Articles DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE l 0 ' 11. ♦ Q �. MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRIM MCKAMIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN fO - YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CN1 • DATE DISTRIBUTED 5 / / 05. DATE OF ARTICLE V �Lii /D / NEWSPAPER FWST APPRAISALS L Tarrant County - pr®pe values slow down but .. . . - still risingare . , . ..ew construction and gas drilling propel the 4.6% Appraisals up and down growth,but foreclosures cause losses in some areas. `- Many cities and school districts saw their taxable values increase,although most were single-digit ANTHONY SPANGLER aspangler@star-telegram.com gains.Most budget officials expect a drop of 1 to 3. PI/4 WORTH .Despite;a downturn in the economy,tax- percent by the time the Tarrant Appraisal District able property values rose 4.6 percent in Tarrant County in completes the protest process. _ 08,slightly above expectations but still about half of pre-; About 129,000 homeowners received notices )us years'increases,according to preliminary figures re this month that their appraisals increased,about rased Friday by the Tarrant Appraisal District. 128,000 homeowners'values decreased,and the The county's overall market value rose 4.1 percent to rest remained the same.The protest deadline for $141.2 billion, while the most is June 1. . , ,-1 What do you think? net taxable property val- Appraisals are used to determine tax bills,based /®\ Join the debate at ue rose 4.6 percent to on government bodies'tax rates.The official fig- +-1r-telegram.com/comments $130.4 billion, TAD re- ures used are published July 25 after the majority cords show.Market of protests are completed.value - r , —Jased on what homes are sellingfor,whilethenettaxable Forest Hill and Everman were hit hard,by rising. value isthe amount remaining after subtracting exemp- foreclosuresand tumbling home prices,and their t- ns and tax freezes available to property owners. • taxable values dropped 8.2 percent and 6.3 per- If not for$4.4 billion in new residential and commercialcent,respectively.But,Law said,no city or school ienstruction and$1.2 billion in taxes on gas drilling,prop district was immune fromforeclosures. ertyvalues in Tarrant County would have fallen. "It was very disappointing,"said Clifford.Black- "1People need to understand that Texas is faring this re well,Forest Hill finance director."I was expecting it.jsion a lot better than other areas in the country"said them to be a little bit closer to where they were Jeff Law,Tarrant County Chief appraiser. =_ last year because we've had a couple`of new hotels In cities where values increased slightly, like Arlington go up in our city. d.Fort Worth,and in those where they dropped,budget vials were scrambling Fridayto plans to stave Tarrant County _ off cuts and layoffs and discussing ways to cut spending now to avoid tax rate hikes next year. Last month,Tarrant County commissioners ap- "We are going to have a slightly greater shortfall than we predicted," said Karen Mont- proved a plan to curb spending for the restof the gLnery,Fort Worth assistant city manager. _ fiscal year to prepare for a budget crunch.Com- missioners said that no new positions would be added,other than for a planned new criminal court.and that capital expenditures�.,o 1.1 1,,:r.'to be cut. u The county already faces$10.2 million in new spending for next year because of promised pay raises and hikes in health insurance costs.The 4.6 percent increase will help the county offset other k revenue losses such as investment earnings and fees. "There is a concern there about where this is am taking us,"County Administritor G.K.Maenius said. DISTIUB UTED TO: PAGE�OF �. MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRM MCKAIYIIE RID GW;4Y DECK BROWN YOUNG MYIcDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCIIELL LIBRARYAD.111.V LIBRARYREF ANIMAL CNTR - DATE DISTRIBUTED S / /O DATE OF ARTICLE S � /C l NEWSPAPERST Property values The Tarrant Appraisal District assesses property values for the Tarrant County portions of 70 taxing Fort Worth entities. Here is a sample from the report released Friday. Find the full list at star-telegram.com City officials are preparing for at least five years of • tough budgets,regardless of the new appraisal - City/school district 2009 net taxable value Pct.change figures. Arlington $18.9 billion +2.5 The city's spending grew faster than revenue for Arlington ISD $21.6 billion +1.5 -several years,and the city has been hit with big Bedford • $3.1 billion • +2.1 increases in its retirement costs. Last year,the city Benbrook $1.5 billion +6.2 eliminated more than 100 positions,merged two Birdvjlle!$D $7.8 billion +3.1 departments and turned over its health depart- Carroll ISD $5.7 billion +5.5 ment to Tarrant County to cut spending. Officials - Colleyville $3.9 billion +6.1 have predicted about a$50 million gap between Crowley $787 million +12.5 taxes and spending next year.The City Council is Crowley ISD $4.9 billion +5:1 expected to get more details Tuesday. Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD $6.6 billion +6.6 Arlington Euless - $2.8 billion +2.0 Arlington's property tax appraisals rose 2.5 per- Everman $134 million -6.3 Everman ISD $1.1 billion cent,which could mean no gain after protests. Forest Hill +6.5 "I'm OK with it bein flat,"Mayor Robert Cluck $385 _ million -8.2 g Y Fort Worth $42.7 billion +4.6 said."Our sales tax revenues are down.Seeing a big decline in both would be a problem for us." Fort Worth ISD $27.9 billion +4.6 Grapevine $6.7 billion Some of the big appraisal drops include the +6,8 General Motors plant on Abram Street,a$23 mil- _ Grapevine-Colleyville ISD $11.4 billion +6.0 lion decline,and The Parks at Arlington mall,which Haltom City $1.7 billion +2.0 H E B ISD +1 1 fell$7 million. $9 billion Hurst $2.4 billion +1.4 Arlington is facing a$4 million budget shortfall Keller $4.1 billion +5.8 this year because of a 4 percent decline in sales tax - Keller ISD $11.4 billion +6.9 revenues and is projecting an$11 million shortfall Mansfield $4.1 billion +3.4 next budget year. Mansfield ISD $8.9 billion +5.64 ` City administrators and the City Council hope to North Richland Hills $4 billion +3.5 avoid layoffs. Northwest ISD $4.6 billion +11.0 - Mansfield Saginaw . $1.2 billion +2.0 Southlake $5.5 billion Mansfield officials were projecting flat Natau +3.5 revenues overall for the upcoming 2009- - $1.1 billion +1.2 P g Nhite Settlement ISD 10 budget but were pleased with the $1.6 billion +7.2 rowth. Tarrant County $130.4 billion +4.6 g Property values grew by$136.9 mil- _ lion to$4.13 billion. New construction accounted for$173 million in new value, more than offsetting a decline in existing property values,Finance Director Peter - Phillis said.Commercial properties ac- counted for the bulk of new construc- tion. Budget officials have been sounding - alarms about a•revenue slowdown, caused mostly by a stark decline in hous- ing-permit fees.To help address budget shortfalls,the city froze vacant and newly - ctafF nncitinnc n"d ..rricrorl department heads to trim an additional 3 percent from their operating budgets. • DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE 3 OF 3 LMAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRIM MCKAMIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN YOUNG MCDONALD COLLINS C.BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR LDATE DISTRIBUTED / / ./DATE OF ARTICLE if 7/Ci1 / O / NEWSPAPER FWST School districts The state's school funding formula,en acted by the previous Legislature,holds each district's funding at a preset per'- student erstudent level. It is determined by each district's per-student rate in 2005,but it has not changed and it varies by district;_; If property values go up,then the state's share is reduced from previous years'contribution,an official said. "Given the current finance funding L instrument,changes in property values don't have a significant impact on the district's revenue,"said Cindy Powell,the Arlington district's associate superin- tendent of finance. lios Property appraisals in the cash- strapped Crowley school district show a L 5.1 percent gain,where officials predict a $4 million shortfall for the 2009-10 school year. Staff and program cuts are possible, and teachers and staff will not get pay raises this year. Revenues on the debt-service part of the budget are not capped,and any in- crease of funds there from property revenues helps to paydown bond debt. "On the debt-service side,it helps if there's some growth,but not much on the operations side,"said Hank Johnson of the Grapevine-Colleyville district, • which saw a net taxable gain of 6 percent. If Grapevine-Colleyville could capture$5 Lmillion in new revenue,it could mean a 3 percent pay increase for teachers and staff,Johnson said. Jon Graswich,chief financial officer. for the Northwest district,saw an 11 percent increase in property values. "I am glad to see that there appears to L be an upward trend because that will help us pay off bonds,"he said,noting that the district projected a conservative 2.5 percent increase to supportbond payments. Staff writers Jessamy Brown,Shirley Jinkins,Mike Lee and Susan Schrock and correspondent Robert Cadwallader contributed to this report. ANTHONY SPANGLER,817-390-7420 L L DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF iVIAYOIR CITY CNCL CITYATTNY CRM MCKAMIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C.BARKER GETCHELL LIBR4RFADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR DATE DISTRIBUTED / 1(C) / DATE OFARTICLF_ /(e/ NEWSPAPER FWST CAPITOL BRIEFS Campaign regulation OK'd — AUSTIN —The House passed stricter regulation of corporate and union campaign contributions by a 71-63 vote —, Friday. House Bill 2511 would close what its author,Rep.Todd Smith, R- Euless, has called an "absurd" loophole that enables corporations and unions to escape a century-old ban against political donations by paying for"issue ads"that stop short of endorsing or opposing a candidate. Under the bill, — donations from corporations and unions could go only toward a political party's or political action committee's _ administrative costs.The opponents, mostly conservative Republicans,ar- gued that the measure would restrict free speech.This is Smith's third try — with the bill. It was voted down in 2005 and 2007.The current setup"isn't right. It's immoral, It's corrupt,"Smith said."I've been doing this for six years,and I've been opposed every step along the way by people who support the status quo." —Aman Batheja • DISTRIBUTED TO: PACE / OF / MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRIM MCKAMIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR DATE DISTRIBUTED �J l a / DATE OF ARTICLE /l I o 1 NEWSPAPER FWST CRIME I SHOOTING Euless woman accused . of killing her husband L _ By BILL MILLER in Online exclusive went inside,'; and;. sure ,wminer@star-telegram.corn /®\ Want more crime news? enough, the:.husband was EULESS - A 51-year-old Get your fill with our daily deceased." , woman was in the city jail Crime Time blog,where you can The shooting was report Friday night, accused of fa- search crimes by neighborhood; ed at 11:27:a.m_at the Oak tally shooting her husband, .at www.star-telegram.com. mont of Bear Creek Apart- ■- police said. ments, 2121 Bear Creek Patricia The husband's body was Parkway,Williams said. Her Jeffress fac- found in a garage Friday af- 59-year-old husband had a z es a murder ter his wife told employees single gunshot wound in his ifz, charge, at an apartment complex head,Williams said. "N said Lt. that she shot him police There had no previ- John Wil said. ous reports of disttirbances g ., •_4_ hams, apo "The lady went to the of- at the address, ;Williams '. Jeffress lice spokes- ;fice this morning and told said. man. Bail the staff that she killed her had not been set. husband," Williams said. Staff writer Mitch Ntitchell contribut- Police declined to release ;"She went back and;was ed to this story. her•husband's name until outside her apartment ther relatives are notified.. when the cops arrived..They BILL MILLER,817-390-7684 L L L L L L L DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF / • I. MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CR1111 NICKAIYIIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR 6.1 DATE DISTRIBUTED .3 /a / 0 / DATE OF ARTICLE .S // 7 /C7 NEWSPAPER FWST 7 Bloomfield Homes Zero down move in Bloomfield Homes is offering; Courtyards, Bloomfield Homes' master planned community of for`us to be innovative from the USDA loans in four new com', newest community,is located in Creekwood in north)~ort Worth, .beginning of the home buying munities that allow' approved Euless off Pipeline Road,just east where lots are beingre-sold experience through — P � comple- buyers to move in for no money of FM .157. It features attractive with prices beginning .in „the tion." out of pocket.Mortgage rates are :homes;which'start in the$200s.."'$140s. ' " :- :' 'After 700 successful home at a 50-year low.You can own a Bloomfield Homes: is also Bloomfield Homes'vice pres-- sales,ifs very apparent much is new Bloomfield home with pay; prbud to announce new-model ident of sales and marketing. being done right To contact the merits as low as $1,100 per homes in the Fox Glen commu- speaks very confidently of the Neighborhood' Specialist in the' month (including taxes and in- nity of Mansfield.Take Business current home market. -community,call Felix Blanchard'. surance). Some Bloomfield 287 south of Heritage Parkway to `Safes in our communities at972-877-1508 and view details Homes' customers have been see the veryattractive Paintbrush have been brisk Tough condi- at Wwwbloomfieldhomes.net able to move in for zero down 'and Dewberry decorated mod- dons gave birth to Bloomfield 'where you will also find direc- and qualify for the $8,000 first- :els,which start in the$130s: Homes in North Texas, and dons to their 10 Metroplex time homebuyer tax credit.The Not to be overlooked is the ',tougher conditions have called .neighborhoods. . -- H �, a 1"a' ' i 4, J Y 3 r .. %- ✓ - '" t t."7.1 mss.` .. — X " - 44..,,...4,40-<,-- ,7141 -ww -,,". is 0' to. "`' ; Bloomfield Homes is offering USDA loans in four.new communities: , DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY GRIM MCK4MIE RIDG W4 Y DECK BROWN • YOUNG Mc•DONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBR4RYAD[YIIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR DATE DISTRIBUTED S/ /°C? DATE OF ARTICLE .S // 7 / (J / NEWSPAPER FWST NORTH TEXAS North Arlington hit by a 3.3 earthquake No damage or•injuries are reported from the quake,which is felt as far away as Grapevine. By MITCH MITCHELL mitchmitchell@star-telegram.corr7 A minor earthquake centered in north Arlington shook residents as far, — a'way as Grapevine late Saturday Morning, but no damage or injuries L were reported. The earthquake registered a mag- nitude of 3.3, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. That.is enough to disturb pictures hanging on the wall but not much else, said JesseMoore,,a.meteorolo- gist with the National Weather Ser vice. "Most people would not have real- 'ized it,"he said. 'We did get a dozen reports or so about the ground shak ing sand that sort of thing.You;gener=, ally don't start seeing any sort of damage until it's a 5." The Geological Survey listed the coordinates of the epicenter as 32.796 degrees north and 97.091 degrees west.That placed it in undeveloped north Arlington east of Collins Street and north of the Trinity River.The survey reported the time as 11:24:06 a.m. L j It was the third North Texas tremor in less than seven months. Tivo small jolts hit southwest Irving late Oct.30 and early Oct.31. The first was a 2.5,the second a 3.0.They awakened residents in -.Fort Worth,Irving,Euless and Grand Prairie. "We do get earthquakes in this area, but they are relatively rare,"Moore said. "We are not in an area with a lot of tectonic activity.Most of the earthquakes will be in West Texas." L Robert Budack,who lives in Irving,told The Associated Press that he was on his bed and got bounced to the wall but was not hurt.Budack said he felt an aftershock that"was enough to make the couch and chairs shake." " L C. _..,�..»..,u.u�.b...uaC oliuniiivYdS due to one OI SeVBIal ...thunderstorms that rumbled through the area Saturday.The Na- tional Weather Service recorded 0.46 inch of rain at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport just befpre 5 p.m. L This report includes material from the Star-Telegram arcIives and The Associated • Press. L L DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF / MAYOR CITY CNCL CITYATTNY CRIM MCKAMIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN . YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C.BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR dm DATE DISTRIBUTED / / O DATE OF ARTICLE ,5 // dt /O NEWSPAPER FWST EULESS 1.1 Police: Dead husband's ' body was kept inn garage `. Patricia'Jeff ress,51, is in reap examiner's 'office._fiad not're1 custody on suspicion of , 'leased his name, pending notifica murder. , tion of relatives: Relatives could,not be_ reached. By DOMINGO RAMIREZ JR. _Sunday for'comment : . leased his name, pendin• 77e ess remained in the Euless, EULESS—`A woman accused city Jail on Sunday on suspicion of of killing her husband left his ;murder.Bail had not been set. , 1:, body inthe garage for a day.or(' :;Police had not released a motive , -I two before fOr the shooting. - she alerted ""'There had been no previous re- " eapartmentyees, ports ofsdisturbances at the address; mplo :y ;lliams said. : 4� ,,A,> police said. "I went back four to five years. Sunday, looking at reports,and there's noth .,W Patricia ,"he said. ,Jeffress Jeffress "Williams said Sunday that Jef- - walked into fess was cooperating with investi- 'anapartment complex office_ gators. Friday_morning, Euless police -'`Her husband, who _was::retired ` — Lt.John Williams'said. - 'Mira the military,had several weap-. "We don't believe she told _this in the apartment;Williams-said. anyone else about-the shoot- Dile of her handguns was 'into the ..used.in the shooting, police said ing until she walked, office,' Williams said. Sunda,j. 'I believe that .handgun was Information.was not avail 70 found iri<the apartment and not in able Sunday on what.Jeffress arae„ — did while her husband lay Erie ess'�h husbanddied from a sin dead in the,couple's garage. ve.gunshot wound-to the head, ac- Police arrived shortly be- aiding to police reports. fore 11:30 a.m..Friday. 7 Jeffress, 51, was arrested aDOMINGO RAMIREZ JR.,817-390-7763 few minutes later after police,- found the body of her 59-year- old husband at the Oakmont "'! of Bear Creek: Apartments, I 2121 Bear Creek Parkway. The Tarrant-County medic 1 DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE l OF A'LAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY GRIM IYICK4111IE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN YOUNG MCDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARYADAIIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR D. TE DISTRIBUTED /a I 0 o DATE OF ARTICLE s/& I NEWSPAPER FWST .ARBA BRIEFS s Arrest made after fatal stabbing EULESS—A 33-year-old man was fatally stabbed during an argument early Wednes- day, police reported.An acquaintance,Jason Walker,38,was arrested and was in the Euless Jail on Wednesday facing a murder 'charge, police said. Bail had not been set late Wednesday.The man who was stabbed had arrived at the apartment Tuesday to visit Walker and his girlfriend,police said.The men got into a fight later,police said.A.911 call reporting a disturbance at the Oakwood Crest Apartments in the 200 block of Martha Street was received about 5:30 a.m.,police said. —Domingo Ramirez Jr. Man in Euless slaying is identified EULESS-The Tarrant County medical examiner's office has identified the man found dead in a garage at an apartment complex last week as Joe Bob Jeffress,59. He had been shot in the head,and his death was ruled a homicide,the office reported. Jeffress'wife, Patricia Jeffress,51,was in the Euless Jail on Wednesday with bail set at 550,000.She faces a murder charge. In- vestigators think Patricia Jeffress shot her husband and then waited a day or two be- .,fore she alerted officials at Oakmont of Bear treek Apartments. —"DomingoRamirezJr. PAGE lDISTRIBUTED TO: OF MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRIM MCKAMIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN ' YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C.BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR — DATE DISTRIBUTED 5 / a a / D 9 DATE OF ARTICLE S/a 0 9 NEWSPAPER FWST At least 15 people have Tarrant medical examiner. Help lines died in 2009,including a In each ofthe reported •Recovery Resource new user and a member of Tarrant cases, heroin was; Council:817-332-6329 a prominent family. taken by itself or in combina- ■Narcotics Anonymous: •.• tion with other drugs or also- 817-624-9525 . By DOMINGO RAMIREZ JR. hal. . •Federal Substance Abuse , ramirez@star-telegram.com Test results are pending -.and Mental Health Services, Three more .heroin-related on at least one more Tarrant Administration:800-662- deaths in- Tarrant County County case that police.be- 4357 . " were confirmed in the past neve is heroin-related>. •■Phoenix Associates week, bringing the total this Law enforcement officials Counseling Services,Fort. year to at least 15,which out- worry that potent black-tar. Worth:,817:338-0311 — paces the • heroin could be a factor in source.star-T 2008 rate, the increase. Last month, • r/J reports several grams with a purity as one in Arlington,one in Ben- — show. 4' high as 47 percent. ;were brook and one on the Tarrant �/ Investi- ,� seized in Euless. County side of Grand Prairie. C ' gators are , , A dose -of heroin that is Christopher Johnson, 28' 1:11:14• trying to - • .more than 10percent pure is of Fort Worth was found dealt — determine Dubrocq . . deadly,authorities have said. in his home April 7.Johnson whether a - In recent years, street-level was the- great-grandson of new,purer form of the drug is heroin in -Tarrant County Star-Telegram: , ';,founder' ›...4to •blame. rarely tested at more than 6 Amon G. Carter and - This.year's deaths include percent pure, local drug en grandson of Ruth Carter RP.; ji= a member of one of Fort forcenient officials said.: venson. `' Worth's most .prominent - — families and a teenager from Most recent deaths The trends Euless whose family said he The three heroin-related Eight of the 15 who died were had been using the drug for deaths confirmed in the past under 30, with the youngest' AA) wilmj less than six months: week, according to the.med- being a 17-year-old:Sout ' Theyillustrate two trends ical examiner's office,are: ' lake girl,Kathleen Arendt. involving heroin: Users are •Jared Howze; 20,-of Keller,. A 2008 state report mdl ft,1:1•1 . getting younger and more di- whose mother found him sated that heroin usersare` verse,obselvers'say. . :dead at homeApril6.He died getting younger. ` =C1; — 11:14 "Availability and market- from heroin intoxication,ac- The report, "Substance,. mg has opened it up to every- cording to an autopsy result Abuse Trends in Texas," ret Vi one,"said Michael Hathcoat, released Wednesday lied on data from multiple; F, • Ilml . ^- director of the Cenikor Foun- - ■Alexander Dubrocq; 19, of agencies, law.enforcement; — Z 0tO dation's drug treatment sen- Euless,who was also found in and drug treatment centers ter m Fort Worth."Historical his home April 6.His mother, "What we're seeing is- `t..) ly,[heroin usel had been hm Vera Dubrocq, told the Star-._;more people starting heroin _ E• ited to the music culture or` Telegram last month that her When they are younger,' lir. street-level people,but that's son had started using the _Jane,-Maxwell of the Addie-' not the case anymore.", drug in the fall because of tion Research Institute at tli.' a If the current rate Contin- family and financial difficul- University of Texas at Austlii �Q., 7:i ues, Tarrant County could ties. • said when the report was relc see at least 45 heroin-related "I had wanted to move leased."We need more effec=' deaths. in 2009, compared him-from here to get away, five: treatment -to.. target.:I" with 39 in 2008. -but we will move now with-- younger population."- 'k — Through the first four out him,"she said. Although hernin-related utolldIs of tuna, mere were •Jacob Cooley, 27, of Waco, deaths are on the rise, pre", 11 deaths. Four occurred who died April 12 died at a scription pills proved -mom within seven days in April. Bedford residence from a deadly in Tarrant in 200k — The Star-Telegram calcu- mixture of drugs that includ- There were 86 such death; lated the. 15 deaths through ed heroin. - according to the medical e-t- Wednesday based on police Except for Dubrocq's aminer's office.. . reports and information pro- mother,families ofthe others This report includes material from thg, — vided by the Tarrant County either declined to comment Star-Telegram archives. medical examiner's office. or could not be reached. Previous news reports count- Seven of the heroin users — ed deaths in surrounding died in Fort Worth.Five died DOMINGO RAMIREZ JR., counties also covered by the in Northeast Tarrant County, 817-390-7763 DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF L MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRIM MCKAiWIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN ' YOUNG McDONALD COLLINSJC. BARKERC� GETCHELL LIBR4RYADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR LDATE DISTRIBUTED 5 / a / 0 J DATE OF ARTICLE S /a l l 0 9 NEWSPAPER FWST CLAW ENFORCEMENT L Major .carne fed , , .. ... for most big Tarrant cities L _ L _. Texas'overall crime,rate 7ki.: 1�4- m Online exclusive. -Game •statistics ell nearly 3 percent in'2008. t�: ,i®\ Crime Time:Want more .• - •Crimes forselectedctieswipopfioisaf50,000orMore , ,` = ; F n =' crime news. See our blog at 1DEANNA BOYDCrimes i By Crimes' `Murders Rapes Chanpam Change in : star-telegram.Com/blogs dboyd@star-telegram.com • city 2008* 2007* 2008/07 2 #jlofcrlmes crimerates»t' ' � ., r Search crimes by neighborhood Major crime fell across Texas Arlington 22,411 23,667 23/13 :273/328 -5.31% - ' 5.64% -at dfwcrime.star-telegram.com in 2008 and in most Tarrant d'ounty'cities'with popula- Dallas 87,179 97,210 170/200 499/51,1 :10.32% -1018% the announcement of Hal- m tions over 50,000,with'the ex- ::Denton 3,666 3,862 0/2 68/76 -5.08% •:6.14% stead's hiring. ceptions of Euless and Grape- Euless •' 7,985 1,844 :0/2 18/0 7.65% 7.25% "There could° have been a vine;according to annual sta F lot of delay time in specific tistics released Wednesday by Fort Worth 39,835 41,104 49/58 350/335 3.09% -5.43% crime-suppressing::goals be L :the Department,'of -Public Grapevine 1,856 ;1,603; r% ,14/1;.1 .15.78%• , 13,85% ing set," Halstead said. "The Safety. •N.Richland - r employees that completed the ,/".. While Fort Worth; Arling- • Hills 2,469 2,517• 2/2 ''20/28 -1.91°A• -2.43% mission are the :ones that ton and North,Richland Hills '1 .. 'stayed on track and main- 'CrimesinMutlemurderfirape�re ,,rya$gravatedassault,burglary larceny theft, reported -a: drop; in major motoruenrcl theft t ,& tained their focus.I think they r"crlmerate+s.nuntbitticritnespdr00,o0cpopulat as crimes,Grapevine saw a jump ' Sources:Grimes inTexasannual report,star-re/egram research can take a lot of compliments L ,of 15.78 'percent, spurred STARTELE in achieving these decreases." ,of by-increases'in;aggra- • Halstead also credited the ,vated assaults, burglary.and .theft and motor vehicle theft. `2008; and 'one,case initially department's summer crime larcenythefts,statistics-show ' Texas' overall crime rate thought to involve an acciden- initiative, which.deployed re Major crimes reported in or the numberof crimes per tal death. sources to combat the violent I, .Euless increased by 7.65 per- 100,000 residents—fell nearly In Fort Worth, decreases in and property crimes that can tent,but Euless police Lt.John 3 percent in 2008;With the vio- murders—its lowest:number usually spike during that time, L frWilliams Said DPS had the lent crime rate decreasing 0.6 in more than four'decades- as well'as overtime positions Gvrong information for the ci- percent - and the property and larceny thefts apparently funded through the Crime. 's'rape statistics.DPS figures crime rate by 3.2'percent. offset increases in rapes, rob- Control Prevention District. t 'shows that•Euless, had. _=no Arlington .recorded de- beries, aggravated assaults, He said he hopes the de- Lgrapes in 2007 and 18 in 2008, creases in every crime catego- -burglaries and-motor vehicle clines will continue this year '14-ut Williams said the depart- ry in 2008 except burglaries, 'thefts,according to the staffs- with the creation of initiatives rherit actually :recorded. 13 which increased •by'14;''and tics. . .. - such as, a criminal-tracking- '..',,,,./,rapes in 2007. ; ' murders, which increased,by Fort Worth Police Chief Jeff unit thatworks with neighbor- LThe figures, collected by 10. Arlington officials have Halstead said he was pleased ing jurisdictions, to monitor 'rfhie.DPS!,-Uniform Crime Re- previously said that the mur- that the city saw a decrease in offenders across city lines.,_, orting program from partici- der statistic is deceptive and crime, especially in a year "When you- compare the prating law enforcement agen- includes four cases-that car- where so. many changes were first four months of;09 to,'08, L .iic , s3Tc:::.-1:5, a_ _.r y�e , • r i' ,. _ ,. :to:op, `� U...,.1�.-µJ,.ice r�-�+ �•�u �+ ♦a c.�'v, —IVYV uiu� iiiuuc: �.r'vauiLi flit YldV.G LG'- VVG LCiU VV lli� a 1p.� j�dl%cilC ''tally with seven crimes: mur- were initially reported asmiss- partment,including the retire- decrease in violent 'crime," `der, rape, robbery aggravated ing persons; one person who ,ment of its chief,.'the place- Halstead said. • assault,-- burglary ' larceny!' was shot in.2007 but 'died in `ment of an interim chiefand ' Other findings by the Texas' L - ' • L L PAGE OF c DISTRIBUTED TO: MAYOR CITY CNCL CITYATTNY CRIM MCKAMIE RIDGWAY DECK BROWN YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBR4RYADAIIN/ LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR DATE DISTRIB UTED 5— l l o /gDATE OF ARTICLE /a / / ° 9 NEWSPAPER FWST Uniform Crime Reporting Pro- ; 1 gram: ■The number of Texas offi- cers assaulted in 2008 in- creased by 17.9 percent oven. the previous year. Three state :law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty'be- _ cause of criminal action, and nine lost their lives in duty-re- lated accidents, is The number of arsons in Texas in rose 6 percent,with more than $128 million in property damage total. •More than $2billion worth of property was stolen in bur- glaries, larceny/thefts . and motor vehicle thefts,in 2008. State law.enforcement"agen :cies recovered stolen property_ valued at more than$552 mil lion. - Hate crime offenses report- ed in the state rose 1.2 percent, -,with the number of victims in- creasing by 10 percent. Racial Issues'motivated 53 percent of the crimes. Family,violenceM incidents ;'increased 2.1;'percent across the state in 2.008.Almost half of the crimes involved marital relationships, including corn- mon-law spouses and ex-hus- band and wives. : Online:tinyurl.corn/tx-crime-report''' Domingo Ramirez Jr.contributed•to this _ report. • DEANNA BOYD,817-390-7655