Ladonia Man Gets Sixty Years For Having Firearm
43-year-old Ronald Hodges of Ladonia was sentenced to 60 years in prison for possession of a firearm by a felon. Hodges was picked up by Fannin County deputies responding to a domestic complaint on June 24. Officers found a handgun on him when they arrested him for family violence. Hodges has been to prison four times since 1982. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)

Lamar County Insurance Plans On Hold
Lamar County Commissioners will meet at 9:00 this morning to determine if the bid process for health insurance was conducted illegally. Commissioners will hear from Assistant District Attorney Larry Manninger and then will take appropriate action to ensure county employees are insured. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)

Paris Over Budget Before Budget Hearings
Paris City Department Heads have requested almost $44 million in their first budget predictions for next fiscal year. This would produce a deficit close to $1.5 million. Budget meetings have not been set yet but will begin by the end of this month. City Council members are already asking directors to look at their budgets and consider a 5 percent cut. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)

Texas High Schoolers May Be Required To Take Four Years Of Science
Texas high school students would fall under some of the most rigorous science requirements in the nation under a controversial plan being pitched by the State Board of Education. The proposal, whose estimated $200 million cost has raised concerns, would compel most high school students to take a minimum four years of science to graduate, a standard that is now in place in only three other states. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)

Houston Woman May Be Freed Following New Evidence
23-year-old Brandy Briggs is in jail serving a 17-year sentence for injury to a child in the death of her son. The Harris County medical examiner testified that he changed the autopsy report in the 1999 death to rule out homicide. Briggs hopes the new information could mean freedom for the crime that may turn out to be not a crime. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)

Four Year Old Texas Boy Dies After Beating
A 4-year-old boy who was allegedly beaten unconscious by his stepfather has died at an Austin hospital. Tyrone Fenner Jr. was taken to Brackenridge Hospital on June 22 with injuries to his head and abdomen. He was taken off life support and died Saturday morning. His stepfather will probably be charged with murder. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)

Texas Leads Nation In Sex Offenders Living In Nursing Homes
Texas leads the nation in the number of registered sex offenders living in nursing homes after being paroled from prison, according to a new study. A study by the Oklahoma-based advocacy group A Perfect Cause found 380 sex offenders living at nursing homes in 32 states by matching the addresses of sex offenders in state registries with government recognized nursing homes. Texas had the most, with 70 offenders at 57 nursing homes. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)

Health Officials Discuss Tracking Systems For Donated Organs
After an artery infected with rabies led to the death of a transplant patient, health officials have been discussing developing a better tracking system for donated vessels. The latest death, announced last week, was the fourth blamed on rabies transmitted during transplants at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. The first three deaths were traced through organ transplantation records to an Arkansas donor who had an undetected rabies infection. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)

Athlete Shot To Death In Dallas
A Midwestern State University football player was shot to death early Sunday after a dispute over a minor traffic accident, police said. Michael Erokwu, an offensive tackle at MSU, died about 3:30 a.m. after an argument at a north Dallas service station. The disagreement involved damage to a Chevrolet Impala struck by Erokwu's car as it left a nearby nightclub. (Reported: 2004-07-12, by dj)