Parents of murdered children pray for CT families

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- While most parents hope what happened at Sandy Hook never happens to them, the sad reality is there are parents all over our area whose children have been murdered. They've created a support network that helps them cope.

We were with parents who look forward to the third Tuesday of every month, when they know they'll be among friends who truly know what they've been through. But on this Tuesday night, their hearts ached even more.

In the basement of Grace United Methodist in the Heights, there's a group no one wants to join. But it's also one everyone is grateful exists.

"The holidays are some of the roughest times," mother Carolyn Hardin said.

Parents of murdered children met Tuesday night for their monthly meeting, not only carrying their pain of losing a child but also weighted down with more grief.

"It's been almost 15 years, I still hurt everyday of my life," Hardin said.

"It's like reliving it again, except my son was 23, and these poor innocent babies were just babies, they were angels," mother Maria Castro said.

Sure the circumstances are worlds apart. But they all can relate.

"I think about my son and I know what the mothers and fathers are going through," Hardin said.

Each mother and father here shared their story and also said a few words about the victims of Sandy Hook Elementary, starting with a prayer.

Because for most here, like Hardin, if she could be there she would.

"I'd like to just be able to hold them and tell them we're here for you," she said.

There is a chapter of Parents of Murdered Children in New York, but it's near Newtown. Parents here hope families in Connecticut will take advantage of it.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local, jessica willey

View the original article here

Cypress mom accused of being drunk, endangering children in hot car

Constance Lois Long, 28, is charged with endangering a child.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Cypress mother is accused of being passed out drunk with her young children in a hot car.

Court documents show on September 19 Constance Lois Long was found unconscious and seated in the driver's seat of her vehicle parked on private property with the motor running. Her two children, ages 4 years and 18 months old, were in their car seats in the back seat.

A witness was alerted when the 4-year-old honked the horn. Investigators say the child tried to wake Long, but couldn't.

According to court records, the witness observed an open bottle of vodka to be two-thirds empty on the front passenger floor board, as well as a water bottle in the center console with clear liquid one-third full that smelled of alcohol.

The alcohol was within reach of the older child and the car's air conditioner was not running, making the interior very hot, court documents state.

Police say Long was unresponsive and smelled of alcohol that resembled the odor in the vodka bottle. They say she refused a field sobriety test or to provide blood or breath specimen.

She was arrested the same day.

Long, 28, is charged with endangering a child. Bond was set at $2,000.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here

Houston woman accused of beating children with broom, extension cord

Diana Torres, 31, is charged with two counts of injury to a child.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Houston woman is accused of beating two children with household items.

Diana Torres is charged with two counts of injury to a child. Court documents state on September 11 Torres beat one child with an extension cord and another child with a broom. Both children, who are under the age of 15, suffered bodily injuries.

Torres, 31, was taken into custody on the same day. She faces a total bond of $10,000.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here

2 children airlifted to hospital after ATV crash

  BAYTOWN, TX (KTRK) -- Two children were injured Sunday evening in a four-wheeler crash near Baytown.

It happened around 5:45pm at David G. Burnet Park, officials said.

According to the Harris County Sheriff's Office, a seven-year-old and 13-year-old were both taken by Life Flight to an area hospital in unknown condition. Their injuries were reported to be minor.

No other details were immediately released.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
Get more Local »

local
// perform JavaScript after the document is scriptable.OTV.common.modules.promoCarousel.promoCarouselInit("/ktrk/xml?id=5758258&ptnr=promoCarousel");

(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");

View the original article here

Missing Texas City children found safe

The family provided these photos of 5-year-old Kerry Anglin (left) and his 8-year-old sister Karly Mooris

  TEXAS CITY, TX (KTRK) -- Authorities in Texas City called off their search for two missing children Saturday night when the kids showed up at home, authorities said.

Five-year-old Kerry Anglin and his eight-year-old sister, Karly Mooris, went missing just before 7pm in the 2500 block of 37th Avenue North, police said.

The children were dropped off at their home around 10pm, police said. According to officials, they had been with their grandmother at a chuch revival.

A phone alert to Texas City residents was issued around 8:40pm.

Police set up a command post where the children were last seen and conducted a search of the area.

Officials said their great-aunt reported them missing. She is their guardian.

A family member tells us the grandmother told a relative she was taking the kids with her, but that person did not hear her.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here

Children rebuild playground destroyed by wildfire

  MAGNOLIA, TX (KTRK) -- The tri-county wildfire raged through Grimes, Montgomery and Waller counties last September, scorching thousands of acres, burning down homes and forcing mass evacuations.

A playground in Magnolia's Ranch Crest subdivision was part of what was burned to the ground. On Saturday, some of Montgomery County's youngest citizens came together and led an effort to rebuild it with Project HOPE.

You notice the devastation first -- scorched trees and grass. But look farther and you can see a little bit of hope.

"The park was all the bad things in the world, and when we rebuild it, it's going to be like hope brought back into our community," Noah Bryson, 11, said.

Magnolia ISD middle schoolers who are part of Project HOPE (Helping Others Play Everyday) were planting trees, spreading mulch and even shoveling dirt.

"It's the right thing to do, and I just want to help out my community," 10-year-old Logan Purbis said.

And he had plenty of help.

Parents and volunteers from local businesses and the Texas Forest Service were getting their hands dirty as well.

The kids earned a $15,000 grant for Project HOPE and collected $20,000 in donations to help pay for new playground equipment, benches, picnic tables and landscaping for the park.

"They need someplace to be a kid. So when we saw this park was burned, we saw the playground and we knew that we had to do something," 11-year-old Emily Ashlock said.

What once was an active playground serving children in several neighborhoods was left with a melted red plastic roof and a scorched play area. You can still see the charred and burned trees -- reminders of wildfires that swept through the area for three weeks last September.

Firefighter James Bryson helped contain the flames. Now he's watching his son, Noah, volunteer to rebuild the park.

"I had no idea what this little guy could do," Bryson said of his son. "Him and a bunch of his friends, a bunch of sixth and seventh graders. So, to me, it was a little bit overwhelming coming here."

"These kids have been an inspiration to me to not quit, to not give up," Cherrie Edwards said. "Adults tend to kind of become so mature or jaded and just not believe that dreams can really come true, and the kids have taught me that it can."

The participating students meet each week after school to participate in the Community Problem Solving Program, which is a branch of the Texas Future Problem Solving Program funded by the Texas Education Agency. Project HOPE is in the running for several national community service awards.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here

Hearing to be held for 2 children living in bus

  CONROE, TX -- A judge is expected to decide whether two Houston-area children found living in an old school bus will remain in foster care.

A custody hearing is set for Wednesday in Conroe.

Child Protective Services took the children into custody in March after a postal worker raised concerns about their not being in school and living in deplorable conditions.

CPS would like the children to remain in its custody.

At the time they were put into foster care, the children were being cared for by an aunt. Their parents were in prison for embezzling money from victims of 2008's Hurricane Ike.

Their mother, Sherrie Shorten, is now out of prison and is working to regain custody. The children's father remains in prison.

(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

conroe, local

View the original article here

Mom of kids found on school bus got to visit with children at custody hearing Friday

  SPLENDORA, TX (KTRK) -- A mother whose children were found living alone in a bus while she was in prison got to see her children.

Sherrie Shorten saw her 11-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son at a custody hearing Friday in Montgomery County. Shorten just got out of prison and is trying to get custody of her children.

The girl and boy were found living alone in a school bus in Splendora. The bus has electricity and running water. The children are in foster care for the time being.

"Went very good. Kids are very excited. They were asking when they can come home and when they can, you know, be back with mom and dad. And they're healthy, they're happy, they're like I said very excited," Shorten said.

She says is fixing up the bus so she can reunite with her kids.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
Get more Local »

local
// perform JavaScript after the document is scriptable.OTV.common.modules.promoCarousel.promoCarouselInit("/ktrk/xml?id=5758258&ptnr=promoCarousel");

(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");

View the original article here

Roundup to target people who hurt children

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- More than a hundred officers are participating in a warrant roundup targeting people who hurt children.

Authorities in Montgomery County are searching for two hundred people with outstanding warrants. Most of them are accused of crimes against children.

The roundup is part of National Child Abuse Awareness Month. Authorities are going after people with both felony and misdemeanor warrants.

More than 20 municipalities and law enforcement agencies are participating.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here

Man charged in home invasion attack where grandmother, small children were victimized

Ivan Jayasi, 22, is charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A Houston grandmother was terrorized in her own home last week, and now a man is facing charges.

On March 6, the woman was at her home in the 900 block of Eubanks in north Houston with her two small grandchildren when two men wearing bandanas over their faces burst into the house. Court documents state that Ivan Jayasi, 22, grabbed the woman, while another man pointed a shotgun at her.

While the other man searched the house, Jayasi reportedly held the gun on the victim and her granddaughter. The woman told police that when the men didn't find what they were looking for, they ordered her and her grandchildren into a bathroom. After a time, they came out and the men were gone. They apparently stole only a suitcase containing a typewriter.

The victim told police she believed she recognized Jayasi as an acquaintance of her daughter and son-in-law. A neighbor who witnessed the men go into the home with a shotgun and bandanas over their faces identified him to police as well.

Jayasi is charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. Bail has been set at $50,000.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
Get more Local »

local
// perform JavaScript after the document is scriptable.OTV.common.modules.promoCarousel.promoCarouselInit("/ktrk/xml?id=5758258&ptnr=promoCarousel");

(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");

View the original article here

Local children enter 'Future City' competition

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Local middle school students are using their own ideas to build cities of the future.

The students showed off their projects at the Future City competition Saturday.

With an engineer as a mentor, teams of kids designed model cities with computer software and built scale models with recycled materials.

They focused on renewable energy sources and eco-friendly designs.

Winners of the regional competition advance to the national finals in Washington D.C. next month.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here

HCSO: Man exposed himself to children near schools

Matthew R. Straw, wanted for indecency with a child

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Deputies are looking for a man who is accused in court documents of exposing himself to children at and near local schools.

Matthew R. Straw is charged with felony indecency with a child in the most recent case against him. He is accused of exposing himself to a 12-year-old girl near her school bus stop.

The girl told investigators she was walking home from the school bus drop-off near her home on November 16. She was on Golden Manor Lane at Hartcrest Drive when an older-model white sedan drove past her and her friends, then turned around and approached them again.

According to the affidavit, the girl said she saw the driver exposing himself and committing a sexual act while he was staring at her with "an angry and mean look on his face."

Harris County Sheriff's Office deputies took the girl's description of the suspect and determined that it was Straw, who is wanted in an open indecent exposure case where he is accused of exposing himself near school grounds and crosswalks.

The 12-year-old girl picked Straw out of a photo lineup, court documents state.

Straw remains at large. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call HCSO or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
Get more Local »

local
// perform JavaScript after the document is scriptable.OTV.common.modules.promoCarousel.promoCarouselInit("/ktrk/xml?id=5758258&ptnr=promoCarousel");

(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");

View the original article here

Pasadena parents accused of nearly starving children

PASADENA, TX (KTRK) -- A Pasadena father and mother are now facing charges after their baby boy was found to be severely malnourished, and we spoke with the grandmother and great grandmother of the six children who were removed from the couple's home.

Nicholas and Andrea Murrey are the parents of the 8-week-old baby boy. Each is wanted on a charge of injury to a child by omission. No one answered the door at their home on Friday, but Eyewitness News was able to track down Andrea's grandmother.

"What can you say? They're my grandchildren," said Andrea's grandmother who asked us not to identify her.

She says she told her granddaughter to feed her children more, but detectives found something else.

"The child weighed seven pounds when it was born, and when our officers made entry into the home and CPS got involved, the child still weighed seven pounds," Pasadena Police Department Spokesman Vance Mitchell said.

It all began last August when Andrea brought her four-year-old daughter for treatment at Bayshore Medical Center. Doctors say the girl was dirty and had bruises, so police were called. Soon, CPS moved the girl and her three siblings out of the home.

"You think they're better off in CPS custody?" we asked the great grandmother.

"I do. And I know it hurts so bad, because for some reason, we can't even see them for ourselves," she said.

Investigators say at one point, there were six children inside the house. The Murreys had four, and Nicolas Murrey's girlfriend also live there with her two kids.

"Her father and I don't appreciate her being there, but she's her own person, and we can't stop her. She doesn't live with us, we can't tell her what to do; but I'm in charge of her children," said Bobbie McCoy, the grandmother of the other two children.

McCoy is now raising the toddlers even as her daughter still lives with the Murreys, a couple that the great grandmother describes, as unfit parents.

"They couldn't provide for them; it's why they would be in a better place," the great grandmother said.

While family members cope with what's happened, police are hoping the suspects will turn themselves in.

(Copyright ©2012 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
Get more Local »

local, miya shay
// perform JavaScript after the document is scriptable.OTV.common.modules.promoCarousel.promoCarouselInit("/ktrk/xml?id=5758258&ptnr=promoCarousel");

(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");

View the original article here

Dad killed, children tied up during home invasion

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A home invasion near Katy has left a family without a father and a husband. Whoever killed Russell Lopez and tied up his two young children in their home is still at large.

It all happened at a duplex on Plantain near Deermoss in the Silver Mill subdivision in Katy just before 10pm Tuesday night.

There is a small memorial building outside the home where Lopez was killed. His friends tell Eyewitness News they're devastated and his family says they just want some answers.

"My son was taken from us way too early," said Lopez's mother, Cherie Duszynski. "My grandson had said that his dad wouldn't wake up."

It's been an emotional day for Duszynski and her family, huddled outside the house where deputies say a group of unknown people tied up her three grandchildren and murdered her son.

"Some animals came and had a plan and they executed it," said Duszynski. "The thought that we're never going to see him again is killing me right now."

Lopez's wife discovered the horrific scene at their home on Plaintain Drive when she arrived from work late Tuesday night. Investigators say the 31-year-old father was found in the kitchen covered in blood. The suspects left his 7-year-old son and 6-year-old niece bound in their bedroom. His 6-month-old baby was found safe in her crib.

"Five, six-year-old kids, to tie them up like that, it's unhuman," said his victim's uncle, Rick Lopez.

One neighbor told deputies she saw a couple of guys kicking in the family's door, then drive from the house in Lopez's black truck a short time later.

"The neighbor's little daughter was outside walking her dog and she saw two dudes kicking the guy's door and a couple of minutes later they burned off in his truck," said one neighbor.

The victim's close friend Omar Souheil told us Lopez had no enemies.

"That right there, that was a break-in. And this place here it's not uncommon to have break-ins," said Souheil.

For now, the victim's family is pleading with the public, hoping for answers that could lead to suspects.

"If you know of anybody that may talk about what they did, please don't keep it to yourself," said Duszynski. "We have to stop them. We have to get them before they do it to somebody else."

Deputies are now collecting evidence to try to track down the suspects while family members worry about the little ones who now have to live with what they saw.

"I was talking to his son earlier this morning after they released him from the police station," said Lopez. "He was playing his Gameboy and he was just kind of into that. He made a couple of comments about his dad and stuff but right now it is not affecting him just yet."

None of the children were hurt. Sheriff's deputies are speaking to the two older children to see what or who they may have seen.

Authorities have not confirmed any suspect's descriptions but believe they may have fled in the victim's black Chevy Tahoe with license plate 03S-HS6.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Harris County Sheriff's Office or Crime Stoppers.

(Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here

Woman, 3 children killed in mobile home fire

The remnants of a charred mobile home stand in Conroe where three children and one adult died in a fire

  CONROE, TX (KTRK) -- An early morning mobile home fire in Conroe killed a woman and three children and left three others injured, officials said Sunday.

The Conroe Fire Department responded around 2:45am Sunday to the 1900 block of 1st St. at Patricia Ln.

The mobile home was completely engulfed in flames. They found three victims outside who had escaped the blaze alive, but others were reported to still be inside the home.

Firefighters searched the only bedroom that was not on fire and removed two young children. Medics were unable to revive them, officials said.

Once the fire was pushed back, an additional search was completed and firefighters found the bodies of another child and an adult female.

The ages of the deceased children were reported to be from three to eight years old. Officials said the woman was about 27.

The three who were escaped the fire were an adult man and woman and a seven-year-old girl.

Fire officials said the man had cuts to his arms and smoke inhalation from his efforts to rescue the others within the home. The woman and little girl were both suffering from smoke inhalation.

They were all transported to Conroe Regional Hospital for treatment. According to authorities, the man and woman were in stable condition. The child was moved to Hermann Hospital with breathing difficulties, officials said.

It took firefighters about two hours to get the fire under control. They are currently investigating the cause.

Autopsies were ordered for the deceased. Their names were not released, pending notification of next of kin.

Please stay with Eyewitness News and abc13.com for more information as it becomes available.

(Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) Get more Local »

local

View the original article here