Eric Besson
Beaumont Enterprise
Beaumont, TX, United States
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Past articles by Eric:
Hardin County constable indicted
Hardin County constable Tim Moody was indicted Thursday on a misdemeanor charge of abuse of official capacity, officials said. Moody, 53, is an investigator in the county attorney's office who is serving his second term as constable in the Saratoga area. → Read More
Autopsy: Police shot Port Arthur man 4 times in back
A Port Arthur man killed by police in June following a suspected armed robbery at a Walgreens was shot four times in his back, according to an autopsy report obtained by The Enterprise. The Jefferson County District Attorney's Office has completed its investigation into the shooting and will present the case to a grand jury within the next few weeks, normal procedure for officer-involved… → Read More
Texas AG: Fine Alabama-Coushatta bingo hall $10K per day
Paxton's filing officially resurrects the legal battle over tribal gaming rights in Texas, just two months after the state won in its quest to have an El Paso tribe remove sweepstakes games from its entertainment centers. "Texas law does not permit the gaming at issue - fully automated, essentially instantaneous electronic bingo games that start and end with a single push of a button - for any… → Read More
Convicted fake cop pleads guilty to federal weapons charges
A Beaumont man serving prison time after pleading guilty to impersonating police admitted to a federal judge on Wednesday that he previously possessed 34 guns despite being a convicted felon. Michael Jon Gelagotis, who will be sentenced at a later date, faces an additional 10 years in prison, which a federal judge could stack on top of his existing state prison term or order him serve it… → Read More
Voter registrars ready to pound the pavement in Jefferson County
"A lot of people my age aren't even registered to vote," said the 20-year-old business marketing major "deputized" Monday as a volunteer voter registrar. Escobedo is one of what is expected to be almost 200 volunteers canvassing the county this cycle as political and nonpartisan efforts to improve the county's voter registration target schools, churches, neighborhoods and community events. Less… → Read More
First Zika case reported in Beaumont
First Zika case reported in Beaumont The Beaumont Public Health Department declined to release any identifying information, including the person's age or gender, citing medical confidentiality and personal privacy. → Read More
Lawyers finance judicial contests
Walston collected $115,700 from practicing private attorneys in that cycle, a chunk of the $367,000 lawyers have spent on four Jefferson County civil judgeship races since 2013, a review of finance reports found. Given the amount of money it takes to run a successful campaign and the limits on lawyers and law firms, I'm not terribly concerned about there ever being an undue influence. Texas, one… → Read More
Sabine River Authority appoints board replacement after email scandal
Nearly three months after a Sabine River Authority board member resigned for sending an inappropriate email during severe Deweyville flooding, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has appointed Gregg County's auditor as her replacement. Fish resigned in April, days after apologizing for an email she sent referring to Southeast Texas flooding as an "economic development initiative" for her northeast Texas… → Read More
Jefferson County sees rise in drowning deaths amid statewide spike
The surge has renewed experts' calls that parents not only supervise their children around water but teach them as early as infancy how to swim or float without inflatable aid. At least 83 children have drowned in Texas this year, putting the state on pace to have its most child drowning deaths since at least 2010, when officials began tracking the data. CPS spokeswoman Shari Pulliam said… → Read More
3-year-old drowns at Beaumont motel
Authorities are investigating the suspected drowning of a 3-year-old boy who was discovered at the bottom of a Beaumont motel pool Monday night, the Beaumont Police Department said. Romilio Madina was at the Super 8 Motel pool with three of his mother's friends when he was discovered underwater in the pool's deep end, officer Carol Riley said. → Read More
Sen. Ted Cruz pays visit to Port of Beaumont
Weeks after declining to endorse Republican rival Donald Trump for president and amid the long run-up to his 2018 re-election bid, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz visited Beaumont on Monday to meet with port officials. Cruz, who conceded the Republican Party presidential nomination to Donald Trump in May after a hotly contested campaign, is less than two years away from his previously announced Senate… → Read More
Mental health, criminal justice are priorities for Southeast Texas legislators
How to fund education, better treat mental health issues and improve the criminal justice system are emerging as priorities for local legislators as the 2017 lawmaking session draws closer. Local prosecutors, judges and defense attorneys have long sought a regional DNA lab so that evidence could be processed - and cases decided - more quickly. State Rep. James White, R-Hillister, is focused in… → Read More
Proposed $20.2 million Hardin County budget retains tax rate, employees
Hardin County Commissioners have proposed a $20.2 million spending plan that keeps the tax rate steady for 2017 while all but eliminating a recurring budget gap. County Judge Wayne McDaniel said commissioners and elected officials worked together to propose a "realistic budget" that also includes minor line-by-line spending cuts. Revenue is projected to climb by about $200,000, or 1 percent, a… → Read More
Missing Kountze man found dead in Tyler County
William H. Gant Sr. was found at about 1:30 p.m. in the same hunting club that his truck and pet dog were discovered Tuesday night, Cain said. Helicopters, ATVs and search dogs were deployed to the hunting club following the Tuesday night discovery, which came three days after Gant was reported missing. → Read More
Traffic stop leads to felony pot bust
A 26-year-old Brownsville man was arrested on a felony charge Monday after Jefferson County deputies found 475 pounds of marijuana in the bed of his pick-up truck. Deputies asked Zamarripa for permission to search his vehicle after smelling an "overabundance" of air freshener, which officers believe can be used to mask the scent of pot, McLellan said. → Read More
Services set for former Jasper mayor
Former Jasper Mayor R.C. Horn will be laid to rest Saturday, Aug. 6, at Indian Creek Cemetery in Jasper County, a funeral home said. Horn, the small town's first black mayor who was credited helping calm racial tensions after the 1998 hate murder of James Byrd Jr., died Saturday. → Read More
Search for missing Kountze man moves to Tyler County
The search for an 83-year-old Kountze man last seen Saturday has moved to Tyler County, where the man's truck and dog were found Tuesday night at a hunting club. Deputies are searching woods near the hunting club with help from the Tyler County Sheriff's Office and Texas Department of Corrections, whose search dogs have not yet picked up a trail as of Wednesday morning, Cain said. → Read More
R.C. Horn, Jasper's first black mayor, dies
Horn, a former Marine, served two terms as the city's mayor and remained involved in public affairs after he was term-limited in 2004, Norsworthy said. Funeral arrangements are pending at Robinson Community Funeral Home in Jasper. → Read More
Photos: Ex-military warcrafts lurk in Neches River
[...] part of its purpose remains to serve as the final rest stop for sea-based artifacts destined for destruction. On Nov. 16, 1963, the storied and well-traveled Observation Island hosted Kennedy in what a sailor aboard that day remembers as a symbolic moment in world affairs. Kennedy stood on deck with a pair of binoculars to view a test launch of a submarine-fired missile capable of carrying… → Read More
Golden Pass clears hurdle for $10B project
Golden Pass obtained its final environmental impact statement Friday, a significant step in its quest to secure government approval to export liquefied natural gas out of its Sabine Pass terminal. The EIS examines short- and long-term impacts to water, soil, air, wildlife, wetlands, recreation and other environmental concerns.For example, it notes that construction would impact about 388 acres… → Read More