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McKinney High School resumes operations after ‘precautionary’ lock down, spokesman says

Updated at 2:23 p.m.: McKinney police said the lock down was related to a burglary at a nearby residence Tuesday morning.

A law enforcement duty belt, which included a taser and a 9 mm handgun, was reported missing after the burglary, said Officer Sabrina Boston, a spokeswoman for McKinney police. She said she was not sure whether the burglarized home belonged to a law enforcement officer.

Wednesday morning, students found the belt near the McKinney High School campus and notified police.

The handgun was missing from the belt, prompting the lock down at the high school while police investigated, Boston said.

One person was taken into custody. Details about the arrest were not released Wednesday afternoon.

Original post at 12:19 p.m.: McKinney High School has resumed operations after a brief lock down earlier today, according to officials.

Cody Cunningham, the McKinney ISD spokesman, said the lock down was precautionary. It began around 11:20 a.m., after officials received a report of an incident near campus that could be a threat to students.

Students began speculating the cause of the lock down and some of them took to Twitter to air their suspicions, fueling concerns about the school’s safety.

But officials could not substantiate the concerns and lifted the lock down around 11:40 a.m., Cunningham said.

“By the time we started to investigate the matter, it became pretty apparent that the claims were erroneous,” Cunningham said.

School officials will send emails and automated phone calls to parents about the lock down.

Cunningham referred questions about the incident that led to the lock down to McKinney police, who could not immediately be reached for comment.

Video: The Dallas Zoo welcomes a 6-foot-tall baby giraffe born on Sunday

Moments ago the Dallas Zoo dispatched this video of its latest resident: a male giraffe born Sunday. And, apparently, it wasn’t an easy delivery.

Per zoo spokesperson Lydia Jennings’ heads-up moments ago, 6-year-old Chrystal went into labor on Sunday, but it abruptly stopped after two hours. At that point, says the missive from the zoo, vets moved her into “a special, custom-built chute in the giraffe barn [where] keepers were able to restrain her without using anesthesia, a risk they wanted to avoid for the health of both mom and calf.” From the release, a few more details:

With Chrystal safely ensconced in the chute, the veterinary team moved in quickly. Jan Raines, D.V.M., determined that the calf’s head and neck were positioned to the side of the front legs, instead of aligned with them. Raines was able to move the calf’s head and neck into the correct position, and Lynn Kramer, D.V.M., and the giraffe keeper team delivered the newborn. They gently lowered it more than 6 feet to the ground. Then they moved the calf into the barn’s maternity stall, equipped with extra layers of soft sand and overhead video cameras. Chrystal immediately joined the calf, licking him and nudging him. Soon he stood on wobbly new legs, and began to nurse shortly after.

So far, both mother and child seem fine, though it’s been close to four years since the zoo last delivered a giraffe, so they’re keeping a close eye on things.

“A new giraffe is always a reason to celebrate,” Kramer says in the release. “They’re remarkable animals, and are seriously threatened in the wild. Conservation is a key mission of our zoo, and this calf’s birth will allow us to offer a timely teaching message about the efforts being made on their behalf.”

We’re not going to see calf for a while: Staffers are watching to make sure it nurses and meets what it called “appropriate developmental milestones.” It could go intot he feeding habitat as early as next week, says the release, but for the next three months mother and son will stay inside during the evening — “until the calf is big enough to be with the herd at nighttime.”

Look, it’s been a long month. Reward yourself with a look-see at the video.

Chrystal and her calf at the Dallas Zoo on Tuesday (Courtesy the Dallas Zoo)

Collin College picks senior VP of academic affairs as interim president

Colleen Altaffer Smith

The Collin College board of trustees named Colleen Altaffer Smith as interim president at a meeting Tuesday night.

The move follows the resignation of Cary Israel, who said he wants to spend more time with his family and explore new challenges. Israel has led the college for 15 years and overseen the growth of the student population to 52,000.

Smith joined Collin College in 2010 as district senior vice president of academic affairs and student development. Before that, she was president at Cisco College, which is about 140 miles west of Dallas. The interim president has more than 30 years of experience in teaching and administration.

Smith will assume her new role Nov. 10.

The board plans a national search to look for a permanent replacement to Israel.

Woman missing since Saturday found dead in her Pleasant Grove home Tuesday, police say

Staff writer Caitlyn Jones reports:

Police are searching for clues regarding the death of a 24-year-old woman found in her home Tuesday.

Ruby Mendoza was found dead in her bathtub around 3 p.m. by a neighbor in the 2000 block of Gaylord Drive near Bruton Road in Pleasant Grove, police said. Mendoza had not been seen since Saturday.

Mendoza’s neighbor noticed a broken window and heard water running in the house. After pushing through the front door, the neighbor found Mendoza’s body and called 911, police said.

The Dallas County medical examiner will determine the cause of death. Police are investigating but have not said whether they believe a crime was committed.

Two families displaced by early morning fire at Vickery Meadow apartments

Firefighters responded to a call early Wednesday at Vickery Meadow apartment complex. (NBC 5 KXAS-TV)

[This post has been updated.]

Staff writer Caitlyn Jones reports:

Two residents were injured in an apartment fire early Wednesday morning in Northeast Dallas.

Dallas firefighters responded to a call around 4:30 a.m. at the Holly Bend Apartments in the 7100 block of Holly Hill Drive. The blaze started in a second-floor apartment and spread to the third floor, damaging the roof and breezeway of the apartment building, Dallas Fire-Rescue officials said.

Firefighters extinguished the fire within an hour, fire officials said in a news release.

The fire started after an accidental electrical short and caused $2,500 in damages, officials said.

The apartment where the fire started was occupied by two women who were injured while fleeing. Both were taken to a local hospital, one for smoke inhalation and the other for burn injuries.

Both remain in stable condition, officials said.

Pedestrian killed in accident on I-30 Tuesday

Updated at 2:35 p.m. Wednesday: A pedestrian died while crossing Interstate 30 after sunset Tuesday, according to the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department.

The man was crossing the interstate at Jim Miller Road about 7:30 p.m., when a car slammed into him. The driver of the car stopped to help, but an 18 wheeler traveling westbound also hit the man.

The 18 wheeler did not stop.

A sheriff’s spokeswoman described the victim as a white male, and said he has not yet been identified.

Original post at 9:45 p.m. Tuesday:

Drivers may experience delays because of a major accident that shut down parts of Interstate 30 on Tuesday night.

All lanes and both shoulders are closed by the St. Francis Avenue exit near North Buckner Boulevard. The accident occurred about 7:20 p.m. and was cleared by 9 p.m.

At 9:45 p.m., traffic was still stalled and cars were being directed to the Buckner exit.

No one was transported from the scene, Dallas Fire-Rescue said.


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Dallas County voters under movement restriction because of Ebola allowed to vote via email

Dallas County voters being monitored for signs of Ebola will be able to cast their ballot for the Nov. 4 election via email.

County Elections Administrator Toni Pippins-Poole filed the petition Monday. It was granted on Tuesday in the 192nd Civil District Court.

As of Tuesday, there were 92 people who are under restrictions while they are being monitored for signs of the virus.

The voters will have to acknowledge they are aware their vote will not be secret to a small number of people who will process the application and ballot. Those people will be appointed by the county and will have to sign a nondisclosure agreement.

All documents, which will be hand-delivered Wednesday, will have to be scanned or photographed and then emailed or faxed to the Dallas County Elections Department no later than 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 2.

Voters will need to have access to a computer, tablet or smartphone with an internet connection, a digital camera or scanner and a printer. Those without access to any of those things should contact the elections department by phone at 214-819-6359, or email at vbynum@dallascounty.org

Those who do not live in Dallas County can contact their county’s election department or the DCED for help reaching their election department.

A 2.4-magnitude earthquake rolled through Irving early Tuesday morning

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, a small earthquake registering 2.4 on the Richter scale rattled Irving early this morning.

It was during the wee small hours of the morning — at 2:15:01 a.m., to be precise. It occurred at the State Highway 183-114 split near the Trinity River — not far from the University of Dallas campus, and not far from where a 2.9-magnitude tremor rolled through Irving in September

Apparently not a lot of folks felt it: The USGS only registered two reactions, and it would appear Twitter users slept right through it.

But Earthquake Track is there to remind you that this morning’s quake wasn’t just a random occurrence.

Press release plays role in Dallas federal sexual harassment case

When legal disputes are settled, both sides usually try to avoid publicity. But when the dispute involves a federal regulatory agency, a press release is likely going out.

That policy derailed settlement talks earlier this year in a federal sexual harassment case involving EmCare, a Dallas company that provides physicians and other staffing for hospitals nationwide. EmCare didn’t want one. But the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s policy requires press releases.

In the end it didn’t matter. On Friday, the EEOC won a $499,000 jury verdict against the company and sent out its press release.

The jury found after a five-day trial that three former EmCare employees were victims of sexual harassment and retaliation.

Jurors awarded former executive assistant Gloria Stokes $250,000 in punitive damages for being sexually harassed by her supervisor, Jim McKinney, a former division CEO.

The jury also found that EmCare fired two employees who tried to report a sexually hostile work place in a division of the company. Jurors awarded $82,000 to Bonnie Shaw, an EmCare credentialer, and $167,000 to Luke Trahan, a recruiter.

The verdict was a victory for the government, which was unable to reach a settlement with EmCare. In May, both sides reported their stalemate to the judge in the case.

“The EEOC has a practice of issuing a press release following every settlement that essentially leads the public to believe the defendant is guilty as charged and has acquiesced to the government’s position,” an attorney for EmCare wrote. “This is contrary to the spirit of compromise resolution and such negative press is unacceptable to EmCare.”

EmCare’s attorney said in court papers that the company denied the allegations but was willing to negotiate on all aspects of the case as long as the EEOC didn’t publicize a settlement.

“It is solely the government’s need to ‘toot its own horn’ that is standing in the way of resolving this matter,” the attorney said.

The EEOC said its policy requires press releases because it is a public agency with a responsibility to the public.

“The EEOC does not vary from this policy in any circumstances,” its lawyer said, adding that EmCare did not offer even one dollar to settle the case after three years of litigation.

Evidence in the trial showed that the employees were subject to “constant lewd sexual comments” from McKinney and other managers in the office. That included comments about female body parts, derogatory references to women and sexual jokes. Shaw and Trahan reported to human resources that McKinney made an inappropriate comment to Shaw’s then 15-year-old daughter at a “Bring Your Child to Work Day.” Six weeks later, both were fired.

Meaghan Shepard, an EEOC attorney, said human resources allowed McKinney to create a “pervasive sexual environment” in the office.

“Their complaints were ignored, and instead of getting support from HR, Ms. Shaw and Mr. Trahan were fired for daring to speak out against the division CEO,” Shepard said in the press release.

Parkland gets the keys Friday to its new futuristic hospital

Construction on the new Parkland Memorial Hospital ends this week. (DMN/Photo)

Keys to the new Parkland Memorial Hospital are expected to be handed over to its top administrators Friday, signaling the end of construction and the start of another important step for the $1.3 billion project.

“We are the owners of a new hospital. We need to pat ourselves on the back,” Parkland board member Patricia Rodriguez Gorman said Tuesday. She heads the committee that has overseen the massive project for the past four years.

Now, the hospital staff must learn how to operate the new, cutting-edge facility, a process that will take at least eight months.

“Starting in November, the staff goes in to practice using the building,” said Kathy Harper, vice president of clinical coordination for new Parkland. “It’s totally different than the building we’ve been using for 60 years.”

The new 2.1-million-square-foot campus is twice the size of the current Parkland hospital. It has 865 beds instead of 770 and towers 17 floors above Harry Hines Boulevard, instead of 10.

In coming months, 2,400 nurses must become familiar with work stations positioned in the hallway between patient rooms, instead of sharing office space. Hundreds on the housekeeping staff must determine how best to clean the larger spaces in the new hospital and how long it will take them. Therapists must practice moving medical equipment from storage areas to patient rooms.