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70-year-old man beaten outside Campisi’s in January sues over inadequate security, lighting in parking lot

It’s been 10 months since Luis Rocha Sr. was savagely beaten outside Campisi’s restaurant on Mockingbird Lane and Greenville Avenue, and Dallas police have yet to arrest any of the three men the 70-year-old told police attacked him that January night while he was on a pizza run for his wife.

But today, Rocha is suing three parties he and his attorney claim are partially to blame for the attack: Campisi’s, the next-door Radio Shack and the landlord, Corinth Properties. Specifically, says the suit, the parking lot in the strip shopping center is dimly lit, “devoid of adequate security” and “posed an unreasonable risk of harm” to Rocha and other customers. The suit, filed by attorney Larry Friedman, is asking for unspecified damages.

“This crime was preventable,” says Friedman in an interview. “It was foreseeable and preventable.”

Friedman compares Rocha’s beating to the 1991 shooting of major league umpire Steve Palermo as he tried to stop four men from robbing two waitresses at gunpoint at 1 in the morning in the Campisi’s parking lot. He insists that stretch of Mockingbird is “known for its violent crime,” and refers to the 2011 shooting in the Burger Street parking lot across the street that left two dead.

Luis Rocha, after the attack and subsequent surgeries (Ben Russell/NBC 5)

“This is a high violent-crime area, and over the years they have known about it,” says Friedman, referring to the defendants. Friedman says he did not talk to them before filing the suit today, and, indeed, Corinth Properties’ founder Frank Mihalopoulos said “this is the first I’ve heard of it” when asked about the lawsuit. Messages have also been left for the other defendants.

Rocha says he had no choice but to file the complaint: He’s been in and out of surgery since the attack, with more likely in the near future. For starters, Rocha says, he’s had multiple surgeries to the right side of his face, which doctors had to reconstruct using titanium plates and screws. He also says his eyelids do not function properly, which will likely necessitate further operations. He says he’s also suffering from nerve damage and contiuing to take pain pills because of injuries to his back.

“I am recovering by the grace of God and some unbelievable physicians,” Rocha says. “”I have nothing against anyone, but I have to take care of myself and family.” Continue reading →

Groups seeking immigration reform demonstrate outside Dallas courts building

The Rev. Pedro Portillo, who asked that political leaders show compassion for the families of immigrants. (Paige Kerley/Staff)

Staff writer Paige Kerley reports:

A coalition of community groups calling for immigration reform demonstrated in Dallas on Thursday.

Representatives from Mi Familia Vota and the Texas Organizing Project gathered on the steps of the Frank Crowley Criminal Courts Building to bring attention to the plight of Latino immigrants both in the Dallas area and nationwide.

Following Tuesday’s midterm elections, the power of the vote was at the center of the demonstrators’ attention, and they specifically called on President Barack Obama to take action.

“Democrats take us for granted, and Republicans don’t take us seriously,” said Laura Mendoza, an advocate with Mi Familia Vota.

Continue reading →

Two-alarm fire at Arlington apartments displaces 12 people

The fire broke out shortly shortly before 1 a.m. Thursday.(@EllenBryanNBC5)

Staff writer Paige Kerley reports:

Twelve people lost their homes Thursday morning when a two-alarm fire damaged an Arlington apartment building.

Around 1 a.m., Arlington police noticed smoke coming from the roof of a building at the Stone Canyon Apartments building, located in the 800 block of Cottoncreek Circle. They called the fire department, and when firefighters arrived, they immediately upgraded the situation to two alarms.

Firefighters began evacuating families before putting out the flames, said Lt. Lee Tovar, Arlington Fire Department spokesman. He said five of the six apartments in the building were occupied.

“Units began evacuating apartments and attacked the fire on the second floor,” Tovar said.

Fire crews managed to contain the fire to one building and successfully put out the blaze, but not without damage to the building.

“Most of the units suffered heavy damage on the second floors, minimal damage to the first floor, and the attic was completely burned,” Tovar said.

There were no injuries to any firefighters or residents, but the fire left some families without a place to go. Tovar confirmed that the Red Cross was called to assist the four families displaced.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Dallas Odd Fellows lodge will celebrate 160 years of service tonight

It’s been a mere 160 years since the Independent Order of Odd Fellows of Texas brought its mission of helping others to Dallas. Time enough for a celebration tonight.

Dallas Lodge #44 was chartered on July 4, 1854, two years before its fledgling hometown was incorporated. The first members met above a carpenter’s shop near the town center. It was a “gloomy attic, accessible only by a ladder,” as a history of the lodge puts it.

The group’s first leader, or Noble Grand, was John J. Good, who would serve the Confederacy during the Civil War and go on to become a district judge and mayor of Dallas. Good Street in Dallas bears his name. Other notables included U.S. District Judge T. Whitfield Davidson; Charles Kahn, an organizer of the Dallas Volunteer Fire Department; and Texas Lt. Gov. Barney Gibbs.

Lodge membership grew through the years before declining as has the ranks of other fraternal organizations. Its home moved to Main and Austin streets, then to Pearl and Young streets in 1924 and on to 1808 S. Hampton Road in Oak Cliff in the 1970s.

The lodge has 59 dues-paying members ranging in age from the mid-20s to late-80s. And it is growing with eight new members initiated in recent weeks, reports John Slate, the city’s archivist and a former lodge Noble Grand.

The men and women of Lodge #44 will gather there from 6:30 to 8 p.m. this Thursday evening to honor tradition and mark those 16 decades of public service. The public is invited.

A Dallas County commissioners court resolution congratulating the lodge will be read.

And lodge members will look ahead and remember the Odd Fellowship command to “visit the sick, relieve the distressed, bury the dead, educate the orphan and protect and care for the aged and widowed.”

Worthy and timeless goals indeed.

At least three injured in crash involving DISD bus

Updated at 9:02 a.m.: The bus was rear ended by another vehicle during its morning commute to L. G. Pinkston High School, said David Escalante, a spokesman for the company that runs the bus service.

About 50 students were on board at the time of the crash, Escalante said. He said a few of the students were transported to the hospital for minor injures, but he could not specify how many.

Jason Evans, a spokesman for Dallas Fire-Rescue, said at least three were transported.

“I can not confirm the nature, or seriousness of those injuries, but I can tell you that at least three people were taken to a local hospital to be evaluated,” he said in an email.

Dallas County Schools, the bus company, operates more than 1900 buses for 11 school districts in the Dallas area.

Original post at 8:43 a.m.: Three people were injured in a crash involving a Dallas ISD bus around 8 a.m., according to Dallas Fire-Rescue.

A dispatcher said the crash happened on Loop 12 and Singleton Boulevard. Three people were taken to Parkland Memorial Hospital.

The dispatcher didn’t know the cause of the crash or the extent of the injuries.

More soon.

Woman found dead under Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge

A woman was found dead overnight under the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge.

Her body was found about 3:30 a.m. Thursday under a ramp from Riverfront Boulevard onto the signature span just west of downtown.

There were no obvious signs of trauma, so police will label it an unexplained death until an autopsy can be performed.

The woman’s identity has yet to be released.

Police say 87-year-old woman found safe

Updated Thursday at 7:16 a.m.: Patrol officers “safely located” Green overnight, Dallas PD said.

Original post Wednesday at 11:08 p.m.: Dallas police need the public’s help locating a woman who they said may be confused and lost.

Cora Green, 87, was last seen driving her sedan westbound on East Camp Wisdom Road from University Hills Drive in southeast Oak Cliff. She is described as a 5-foot-6, 190 pound black woman, with brown eyes and gray hair. Green was wearing a blue Dallas ISD mechanic jacket with blue jeans when she went missing.

Police said Green is confused and is not believed to know how to find her way home.

She is driving a 2008 gold Pontiac G6 with Texas license plate 4HDMT.

Anyone who sees Green should contact 911 or the DAllas Police Department at 214-671-4268.


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Ebola survivor Amber Vinson defends decision to fly in ‘Today’ show interview, says she was not reckless

Amber Vinson, a Texas nurse who contracted Ebola after treating an infected patient, speaks to the media on Oct. 28 during a press conference after being released from care at Emory University Hospital. (Daniel Shirey/Getty Images)

Dallas nurse Amber Vinson says she felt “terrible” that people criticized her decision to fly on an airplane with what turned out to be the early symptoms of Ebola.

“Because that’s not me, I’m not careless. I’m not reckless. I’m an ICU nurse,” Vinson told Matt Lauer in an interview set to air Thursday on NBC’s Today show. “I embrace protocol and guidelines and structure because in my day-to-day nursing it is a matter of life and death.

“And I respect that. I would never go outside guidelines or boundaries or something directly from the CDC telling me that I can’t go, that I can’t fly,” she said.

Vinson said she had been in contact with members of the Texas Department of Health and Human Services once fellow Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas nurse Nina Pham was diagnosed with Ebola. They gave her a list of symptoms to watch for and numbers to call if she showed any, she said.

Before leaving Cleveland on a Frontier Airlines flight, Vinson said she called officials.

“Because I was so afraid of what could potentially happen I did ask them ‘Is there anything you guys can do to send for me? Do I need to leave earlier?’ Because I was worried,” she said.

Vinson was ultimately cleared to fly because her temperature was below 100.4 degrees. Dozens of people on the flight were later placed on an Ebola watchlist.

Vinson and Pham were treated at hospitals out of state but have been declared Ebola-free and have returned to Dallas. Vinson is moving into a new apartment shortly, KXAS-TV (NBC5) reported Wednesday. Her mother and fiance have been cleared from the Ebola watch-list.

Euless man killed early Wednesday in car crash near D/FW airport

Staff writer Caitlyn Jones reports:

A 63-year-old Euless man was killed early Wednesday in a single-car crash near the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.

Allan Amer was driving westbound on Highway 183 near the airport exit when he lost control of his Isuzu, causing it to roll several times and crash into a pillar, Fort Worth police said. Amer was pronounced dead at 1:53 a.m., according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner.

The incident remains under investigation, but police believe Amer may have been driving too fast on slick roads.

Woman in a wheelchair and her husband struck crossing the street Tuesday night in Garland

Staff writer Jehadu Abshiro reports:

A woman in a wheelchair and her husband were struck by a vehicle while crossing the street Tuesday night in a Garland intersection.

George Lewis, 37, was pushing his wife, 35-year-old Jennifer Lewis, across the street around 10:30 p.m. in the intersection of 1st Street and Miller Road. A 2012 Nissan Altima was driving northbound on 1st Street and struck the couple, Garland police spokesman Joe Harn said.

The driver of the Nissan Altima had a green light, and the couple was not crossing with a pedestrian walk signal. After the crash, the couple was transported to Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, Harn said.

George Lewis remains hospitalized with injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening. Jennifer Lewis has been released, police said.

No charges will be filed against the driver.