Police: Man carjacked, forced to drive gunman

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The search is still on this morning for a man who carjacked a driver and forced him to drive at gunpoint.

This happened around 1am at a gas station on Eldridge near Bellaire. The victim then crashed the car a short time later on Belknap near Old Richmond.

The victim, a man in his 20s, was on his way to work, but stopped to put air in the tires of his Infiniti. The victim told Eyewitness News a man with a gun approached him at the gas station, took his wallet and then forced him to get back in his car and drive them both.

The victim said during the drive, the gunman fired two shots in the car, but didn't hit him. The victim then says he crashed his car into a dirt mound at a construction site. That's where both men jumped out and the suspect ran off. The victim called 9-1-1.

He was not injured. If you have any info on suspect, you're being asked to call authorities.

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

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Murder suspect who forced lockdown of four Houston area schools earlier this month arrested in Virginia

On Wednesday, police in Virginia arrested Zumbotha Newsome.

  HOUSTON (KTRK) -- We have an update on the search for a murder suspect who forced the lockdown of four schools earlier this month.

On Wednesday, police in Virginia arrested Zumbotha Newsome. Deputies have been searching for Newsome in connection to a deadly road rage incident in April. He disappeared in north Harris County earlier this month.

Four Klein ISD schools were locked down as deputies searched an area where he was possibly sighted.

It's not yet clear when he will be transferred from Virginia to Texas.

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

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Hitchcock HS reopens after fire forced cancellation yesterday

  HITCHCOCK, TX -- A Southeast Texas school has reopened a day after a clothes dryer fire sent smoke into the building and forced cancellation of classes.

Classes resumed Wednesday at Hitchcock High School.

The Galveston County Daily News reports a malfunctioning clothes dryer caused a fire Tuesday morning. Hitchcock police say students and staff were evacuated, nobody was hurt and damage was limited to the dryer area.

Authorities say the school's sprinkler system helped douse the flames. Superintendent Lee Knapp says repairs were needed to the building's sprinkler system before classes could resume.

Hitchcock is 30 miles south of Houston.

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

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Houston church forced to relocate services

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The Evangelist Temple Church of God and Christ had to move its church services Sunday after their air conditioning units were gutted by suspected copper thieves.

The stolen units did not prevent the congregation from worshipping. They just did it in a cooler place.

Deacon Randy Brown directed church members to a nearby fellowship hall at Cullen Missionary Baptist Church. The neighboring church welcomed them since they have no air conditioning at their church home.

In the past week, nine A/C units were stolen at Evangelist Temple Church of God and Christ, and this was not the only church that was targeted in the area. Police say criminals have recently hit at least three area churches.

The thieves even broke through security cages.

The church is working to get new A/C units, but they will also add security to help prevent this from happening again. They estimate the losses at as much as $50,000.

"We're not quite sure what the insurance company is going to do, but we have to have the air conditioners. It's impossible to have church without it. You know, God will make a way. God will make a way," Brown said. "It's going to be a tremendous expense."

Brown said they are hopeful they can have services back at their church next week, but that will depend on if they can get the air conditioning units replaced by then.

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

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Future teachers forced to diversify resumes

 HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The budget crunch has many soon-to-be college graduates rethinking their career plans. With hundreds of teachers being laid off, future teachers are caught in a flooded job market, so they're making changes.

Jobs in teaching have traditionally been plentiful. Normally, students graduating next month would be able to step into a classroom right away and even have options about what school they want to work in. This year is different; the jobs just aren't as plentiful. We wanted to see where the graduates are going and what the alternatives are available to a job market that's shrinking. This isn't what Demetra Gregg thought she'd be doing. A recent TSU graduate, she hoped to be in a classroom, teaching. Instead, she's working on her resume by earning a master's degree. "I'm scared that I won't be able to have a job -- not that I don't have the requirements but because there's just not any money," Gregg said. Gregg's situation is typical of what we found happening to local college graduates. Billions of dollars in state budget cuts to education have meant thousands of local teachers are being laid off. The jobs that used to be so plentiful for graduating teachers just don't exist. "The jobs may not be out there as they used to be, but the more certifications they have, the more training they have, the broader they are in what they offer," TSU education professor Dr. Danita Bailey-Perry said. Be open to out of state hiring, says dr. Perry, and open to teaching alternatives, such charter and private schools. Just down Wheeler Avenue at the UH campus, UH professors say even recent teacher graduates are vulnerable. "I have four in Katy ISD and Katy is really taking a hit financially and they're letting some teachers go and some of the schools have opted to let first- and second-year teachers go," said Dr. Susan Williams, associate professor at the UH College of Education. UH grads are being counseled to do more than drop off a resume. "We've talked to them also about being pragmatic; they might have to take a teacher's aide position for a year and get known at the school," said Melissa Pierson, director of teacher education at UH. That's what Amber Finley is doing. She's a student teacher in the Fort Bend school district. She graduates next month and hasn't been offered a job. Finley and her classmates are nervous, but not giving up. "That's kind of the attitude I'm trying to get toward. If I get something then I'm just happy to have a job because I'm going to be in a classroom teaching kids and that's what matters," Finley said. "I know that is kind of scary that we are losing teachers, but I'm very passionate about this, so if I have to keep looking I will," UH student Izabel Hlayhel said. TSU is planning a teaching summit to help place graduating teachers as well as previous graduates who've been laid off. Meanwhile, both UH and TSU are emphasizing diversity in their student's resumes and a willingness to work outside the public school system. (Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

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