The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 74, No. 33, Ed. 1 Friday, December 8, 1995 Page: 1 of 16
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I
31
Weather
Nation 8-A
What’s Inside...
Today: Mostly cloudy, with a 60-percent chance of
showers and thunderstorms. Lows tonight in upper 30s.
Saturday: Mostly sunny, cool and windy.
Weather art by Travis Stanley of Highlands Elementary. [ wu Mini
An unselfish gift
Lucky winner of contest gives
prize money to cancer hospital
,3A
,...2A Obituaries..
,...2A Opinion......
,...8B Police Beat
.3-5B Sports........
,...5A Television...
Bible Verse......
Calendar..........
Comics............
Classifieds........
From Sun Files.
......4A
,2A
...........1B
,7B
paptoton Ikm
50 Cents Per Copy
Baytown, Texas 77520
Friday, December 8,1995
SHBBBBBBBBBBi
Telephone Number: 422-8302
Volume 74, No. 33
brutal stabbing
Suspect arrested in
ly offered a reward for information leading
to an arrest in this case! “Since my baby will:
never see a Christmas, I hope he (Mitchell)
spends a lot of them in jail,” Todd said when
he heard of the arrest.
Police said that because the house was so
dark when the attack took place, none of the
residents could identify the assailant. But
police later got the break they needed.
“We received some new information in
the case,” said Detective Randy Rhodes.
“And it was enough to obtain a warrant for
his arrest.”
Police said there may be additional
charges filed against Mitchell.
knife while they slept in a back bedroom on
Aug.15.
Julie Wright, 19, was taken to a Houston
hospital after she was found near the front
door of the home — stabbed several times
to the torso and stomach.
One of the blows to her abdomen killed
the unborn baby girl, later named Janie
Marie Todd. Because the child was unborn,
the attacker, under Texas law, can only be
charged with an assault on the mother.
According to police reports, Mitchell told
friends he would do anything to keep
Wright from having another man’s baby.
The baby’s father, Jack Todd, had original-
ByRACHELANN FERRIS
The Baytown Sun
Nearly four months after a brutal stabbing
left a woman seriously injured and her un-
born baby girl dead, Baytown police have ar-
rested a suspect in the case.
Billy Mitchell, 29, faces charges of bur-
glary of a habitation with intent to commit a
felony, which carries up to a life sentence in
jail. He is being held on a $100,000 bond.
Police believe Mitchell, the stabbing vic-
tim’s ex-boyfriend, is the man who broke
into a home in the 1200 block of West Miri-
am Street and attacked four residents with a
Goodfellows:
Going gets tough
with additional
mouths to feed
Biily Mitchell
■7
BPDaims
at offering
handgun
course
$4,279.75
The Gary M. Brown Family, in honor of Lynn
.$20.00
$200.00
.$25.00
$100.00
.$15.00
Gloria and Foxy Matheme, in memory of their
fathers, Buck Johnson and Bob Matheme ...
. .$100.00
... .$5.00
.. .$50.00
.. .$25.00
$4,819.75
..$30,000
Previous total
Blackwell ...............
Helen and Tasker Haynes ...
Nellie and Leonard Derden Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Ivan L. Bums .
Mack Tapp ..............
m
¥ 1
»
....
Claudia P. Williams —.....
Dianne and Robert Wesselhoft .
Chaparral Village Garden Chib
gr
f
1
Total
"j
Goal
By JANE HOWARD
The Baytown Sun
h
By CHIEF G00DFELL0W
Darrell, 6, and Denesha Williams, 10, are
just a couple of youngsters, but they’re already
old enough to know that life sometimes lets
kids down.
Darrell and Denesha (not their real names)
are living in Baytown with their aunt, uncle
and two cousins. That’s because their mother
is in jail, where she’ll probably stay for quite
some time. Their father never was around
much — they don’t even know his name.
With their mother in jail, Darrell and Dene-
sha are finally learning what a family can be.
Since they began living with their aunt and
uncle, there’s someone there when they come
home from school (and someone to make
them go to school each morning). There’s also
hot food on the table and cold milk in the re-
frigerator — and just that much gives them a
life like they’ve never known.
But the years have taught them a cruel les-
son no child should have to learn. They’ve
learned to live without hope.
They’ve finally quit saying things like
“when my momma gets back.” They don’t say
anything about Santa Claus either. In the last
few years they’ve learned not to expect much,
if anything, out of him.
But this year will be different
Enlarging the family by two has made
things hard on their aunt and uncle... two ex-
tra mouths to feed always does. Darrell and
Denesha’s mother used to get food stamps to
help feed them, but that was cut off when she
went to jail. Now the only benefit the children
receive from the government is Medicaid.
Their aunt does everything she can to make
things happy for Darrell and Denesha, but
“they get real down sometimes,” she said.
“They know where their momma is,” she said.
She wants to make Christmas better for
them this year than it ever was before, so she
signed the children up for Goodfellow toys.
You can help make the holiday happy for
Darrell and Denesha and many other children
who, like them, might otherwise receive no
gifts for Christmas. The simple toys that
Goodfellows gives them lets them know that
someone in the community cares.
Be that someone. Send a donation, large or
small, to Goodfellows, care of The Baytown
Sun, PO. Box 90, Baytown, Texas, 77522, or
drop it off at The Sun office at 1301 Memori-
al.
There’s also a need for more volunteers. If
you can help, call Goodfellows Chairman
Tessie Cox at 573-9132.
Spf\
With only weeks to go before licensed Texans can
legally tote concealed handguns, the Baytown Police
Department has announced plans to join those offer-
ing a state Handgun Licensing Course to the public.
The law takes effect Jan. 1 when, for the first time
since the 1870s, permit-carrying Texas residents
may begin carrying concealed weapons. Anyone
who applies for the permits must first complete the
licensing course.
Some state officials expect that after Jan. 1, fewer
than 25,000 of some 18 million Texas residents will
likely be licensed, but others estimated that eventual-
ly about 2 percent — or 360,000 Texans — ulti-
mately will hold the license.
The police department’s course will utilize the
same instructors and offer much of the same infor-:
Hi®
......m—
Photo by Jimmy Bagent
Santa sits high atop an antique City of Baytown fire engine in last night’s city Christmas parade.
The event had Baytonians lined up shoulder to shoulder on both sides of Market Street and Texas
Avenue, the parade’s route. Timely arrival of cool weather was enjoyed by parade goers.
HE SEASON
mation and skill-training that was part of the depart-
ment’s civilian firearms familiarization course,
which they’ve taught to almost 17,000 people since
its inception in 1978.
.»
Baytown kicks off holidays with Christmas Parade
That course will also be taught during 19%, but
will not qualify participants for the gun-carrying
permits.
The first licensing course will be conducted in
January with an additional 10 courses to be offered
in the next six months.
By JIMMY BAGENT
The Baytown Sun
floats in the event.
Chris and Chandra Griggs of Baytown brought
their three children out to see the parade attrac-
tions.
Santa Claus came to town a little early this year,
riding atop an antique fire buck in the city’s annu-
al Christmas Parade on Thursday night.
01’ Saint Nick may have been what every child
lining the parade route wanted to see, but parade-
goers were treated to a variety of sights and
sounds.
Lee and Sterling high schools’ marching bands
played classic Christmas tunes, and the Shriners
were a big crowd pleaser -- along with the many
“I thought it was great,” said K.C. Griggs. “I
liked the horses best of all — and I liked Santa
The fee for the course is $100. It will include 12 to
15 hours of classroom instruction, followed by a fir-
ing range examination.
Students must pass a written examination and a
practical examination, both with scores of at least 70
percent.
The classroom portion of the courses will be con-
ducted Monday tough Thursday, from 6:30 to 8:15
p.m., at Baytown Community Center, 2407 Market.
The range examination will be on the following
Saturday morning.
A preliminary course has been scheduled for De-
cember but quickly filled without public announce-
ment.
Additional courses will be offered beginning in
January with start dates of Jan. 22; Feb. 5; Feb. 19;
March 4; March 18; April 15; April 22; May 6; May
13; June 3; and June 17.
Students must furnish their own handguns, which
must be .38-special or larger size if a revolver-style,
or a 9mm or larger if it is a semi-automatic pistol.
Students must also furnish 150 rounds of ammuni-
tion, but should wait until attending the class to pur-
chase the ammunitioa No reloads will be allowed
Students will also be responsible for ear and eye
protection. The police department will furnish all
targets used for the course.
Each course will be limited to 40 students.
too.’
K.C.’s older sister Addie said she liked the hors-
es as well. Their brother Joshua liked one of the
more eye-catching parade attractions.
“I liked the cars that jumped up and down,” said
Joshua when referring to the many custom cars
driven in the parade by a local car club.
Lee ‘Powder Puff’ game set for Dec. 16
Former Gander football stand-
outs Jimmy Herndon and Chris
Crooms will serve as honorary
head coaches for the junior and se-
nior girls, respectively.
Herndon, who graduated from
Lee in 1990, earned first team all-
district honors his senior year and
is a standout at the University of
Houston. Crooms, a 1987 Lee
graduate, is a former NFL player
with the Los Angeles Rams and
now plays for the Barcelona Drag-
ons of the World Football League.
He is a graduate of Texas A&M.
leader antics and half-time activi-
ties featuring a mock-Homecom-
ing during which the Powder-Puff
King and his court will be
crowned.
Nominees to the court, who
were selected in a school-wide
election this week, will solicit
“votes” through donations from
family and friends through Dec.
Falling temperatures and leaves
once again signal it’s time for an-
other Gander Powder Puff Football
game, which will be held at 4 p.m.
Dec. 16 at Robert E. Lee High
School’s Memorial Stadium.
Proceeds raised during the
fourth annual flag football game
between the junior and senior girls
will go to Project Graduation,
which is co-chaired by Susan
Mohnke and Shirley Musfy.
While the ladies battle on the
field, the Lee boys will help enter-
tain the crowd with their cheer-
14.
Tickets, which will be sold at the
gate, are $4 for adults and $2 for
students. Children under 6 get in
For more information, or to register by telephone,
call Lee College at 425-6311.
free.
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Dobbs, Gary. The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 74, No. 33, Ed. 1 Friday, December 8, 1995, newspaper, December 8, 1995; Baytown, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1158198/m1/1/: accessed July 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Sterling Municipal Library.