The Schulenburg Sticker (Schulenburg, Tex.), Vol. 123, No. 22, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 5, 2017 Page: 1 of 10
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JANUARY 5. 2017
VOLUME 123
NUMBER 22
SCHULENBURG: FAYETTE COUNTY, TEXAS 78956
10 PAGES
75c PER COPY
Search warrant executed at residence
hit-and-run
-
2016 rainfall
.j
X
Drug charges
filed after
By Lisa Mederos
Schulenburg Sticker Staff
Bulletin Board.............
Church-Charity...........
Classifieds..................
Courthouse Report.....
Footprints of Fayette..
Government-Business
.....Page 10 Meetings.....................
......Page 3 News From Long Ago
.. Pages 8-9 Obituaries...................
......Page 7 Police Report..............
Pages 2 & 9 Society........................
......Page 7 Sports.........................
Shown above are the illegal drugs, including cocaine and marijuana, that were
confiscated after a search warrant was executed at a residence in Schulenburg
on Dec. 23.
...Page 10
.... Page 2
.... Page 3
...Page 10
.... Page 6
Pages 4-5
** Horns place third in local tournament;
Lady Horns win Silver Bracket in Shiner
Upon arrival Chief Jeff Proske
and Dennis Lebeda applied the
cutter and, in less than 10 seconds,
removed the bottle cap. With
circulation returning, the boy’s
finger quickly regained its natural
color and the firefighters relumed
to the station.
The ring cutter was donated
to the SVFD in 2004 by Patricia
Greeson and her late husband,
Bob.
SVFD person-
nelusedaringcut-
ter (shown above)
to remove a plastic
bottle cap (shown
at right) from the
finger of a young-
ster on Dec. 27.
Photos Courtesy
of the SVFD
0.89”;
2.22”;
0.08”;
0.12”;
0.07”;
0.29”;
0.06”;
0.09”;
0.29”.
located inside the residence. Mari-
juana and miscellaneous pieces
of drug paraphernalia were also
found. As officers were conclud-
ing their investigation on scene,
the suspect arrived at the residence
and claimed the narcotics found
during the search warrant.
Jamira Houston, 18, and Kathy
Houston, 42, of Schulenburg
were arrested for possession of
marijuana. Ray Houston, 38, of
Schulenburg, was arrested for pos-
session of a controlled substance
and possession of marijuana. One
subj ect was later released without
charges being filed.
The three appeared before Pre-
cinct 4 Justice of the Peace Dan
Mueller, who set bonds totaling
$5,000.
According to the Fayette Coun-
ty Sheriff’s Office, the residence
where the search warrant was
served is located in the northwest
part of Schulenburg.
2574, along with many local busi-
nesses, showed their appreciation
by donating items and serving a
meal to all law enforcement and
their families at the Knights of
Columbus Center in La Grange.
The Court approved the convey-
ance from Fayette County of Lots
4,5,6, and 7, Block 62 (along with
contiguous alley), Town (or com-
munity) of Ledbetter, to the Led-
better Volunteer Fire Department,
Inc., for the purpose of emergency
firefighting and emergency rescue
services.
A proclamation was signed pro-
claiming April 10-16 as National
Public Safety Telecommunicators
Week. The County has nine dis-
patchers that handle all the calls
that come in from the residents and
all emergency responders, which
can total up to 5 0 calls per day and
350 calls per week. In 2015, they
received 19,000 calls.
The Court approved the cleaning
of the exterior of the Courthouse
and the Veterans Memorial.
An agreement between the
Lamar County (Ga.) Sheriff’s Of-
fice and Fayette County Sheriff’s
Department was approved. This
agreement is part of the working
relationship of drug interdiction.
Any seizures of cash occurring
(See COUNTY YEAR IN REVIEW,
Back Page)
Oe g>djulenburg Sticker
Three arrested on drug charges
Three people were arrested
on drug charges following the
execution of a search warrant at
a residence in Schulenburg on
Friday, Dec. 23.
The search warrant was served
by the Fayette County Sheriff’s
Department and Schulenburg
Police Department, according to
Sheriff Keith Korenek.
It was determined that illegal
narcotics were being sold from
the residence, after an extensive
investigation by the Fayette
County Sheriff’s Department with
assistance from the Schulenburg
Police Department.
Three subjects were subse-
quently detained when the search
warrant was executed and it was
determined the suspect named in
the search warrant was not at the
residence.
Nearly 5 0 grams of powder and
crack cocaine, with a street value
of approximately $5,000, were
Tool donated to SVFD in 2004, along with
a little good fortune, saves boy’s finger
Almost 13 years ago a local
couple donated a ring cutter to
the Schulenburg Volunteer Fire
Department and it had sat idle until
just recently.
On Tuesday, Dec. 27, a 9-year-
old boy had inserted his finger into
the opening of a plastic bottle cap
at a residence on the north side of
town. The “flip-top” cap locked
onto the finger, causing it to swell
and turn blue.
When efforts to remove the
cap failed, a call was made to the
Fayette County Sheriff’s Office
dispatch for an ambulance. At the
time ofthe call, all EMS units were
out of the county with the clos-
est unit reporting that they were
returning from Columbus.
By a stroke of luck, firefight-
ers Daniel Kubala and Dennis
Lebeda were at the SVFD station
performing equipment inspection
and overheard the radio traffic.
Kubala, foreman of Company No.
4, mentioned that the SVFD had
a ring cutter on Rescue 4 and the
two radioed the county’s dispatch
requesting that the SVFD be paged
to the incident.
The formula for the distribu-
tion of nearly $500,000 in tax
revenue, earmarked for Fayette
County’s 10 volunteer fire de-
partments, was approved by a
3-2 vote of the Commissioners
Court at its meeting on Tuesday,
Dec. 27.
The additional revenue was
created by a two-cent increase
included in the 2016 property tax
rate of $0.4489 per $100 of valu-
ation which was unanimously
approved at the Sept. 26, 2016
meeting of the Commissioners
Court.
After debating two options for
the distribution of the funding
for the VFDs, a 50/50 formula
was approved. Fifty percent
of the revenue, approximately
$250,000, will be split evenly
among the 10 volunteer fire
departments with the remain-
ing 50 percent to be distributed
based on a formula of each fire
department’s call volume and
population served.
Precinct 1 Commissioner
Jason McBroom and Precinct 2
Commissioner Gary Weishuhn
were in favor of a two-third,
one-third split of the tax revenue
and voted against the 50/50
split. In that plan, two-thirds of
the $500,000 would be divided
evenly among the department
with call volume and population
determining how each would get
from the remaining one third.
Wei shuhn said he preferred the
option of a two-third/one third
split as the smaller departments
have a higher cost in vehicle and
personnel insurance per person
than the larger fire departments
and the larger departments could
make up the difference in call
volume percentage.
McBroom said the two-thirds
split would better benefit the
smaller departments.
Seven departments (Carmine,
Ellinger, Fayetteville, Ledbet-
ter, Muldoon, Round Top-
Warrenton, and Winchester) do
not receive funding from a city
government while Schulenburg,
Flatonia, and La Grange do.
La Grange Fire Chief Frank
Menefee said that you can’t
compare “apples to apples” and
the larger fire departments have a
higher cost to protect their cities.
“The whole dynamics are dif-
ferent,” Menefee said. “There is
no comparison.”
Stripes robbed at gunpoint;
suspects caught in Weimar
The Stripes convenience store,
located at 708 North Kessler Ave.
(Highway 77) in S chulenburg, was
robbed at gunpoint by a group of
male subjects wearing hoodies
and masks on Saturday, Dec. 24
at approximately 4 a.m., according
to a press release issued by Schu-
lenburg Police Chief Troy Brenek.
Information was later received
that stores in the Weimar, Waelder
and Seguin areas had also been
victims of the same type of rob-
beries within the same general
time frame.
Later that morning, a Weimar
patrol officer witnessed a vehicle
traveling eastbound on Interstate
10 matching the suspect vehicle
description and the officer con-
ductedatraffic stop on the vehicle.
Five male subjects, wearing
clothes matching the suspect de-
scriptions, occupied the vehicle.
During a search of the car, the
weapon was located as well as the
money taken in the robberies, ac-
Funding formula for VFDs
approved 3-2 after debate
Schulenburg Fire Chief Jeff
Proske was also in attendance
at the meeting and said the 10
volunteer fire department chiefs
had previously met and were all
in agreement on the approved
50/50 split.
Precinct 3 Commissioner
Harvey Berckenhoff', Precinct 4
Commissioner Tom Muras, and
County Judge Ed Janecka voted
in favor of the 50/50 formula.
Previously, the County had
budgeted $150,000 to go to
the departments and used that
formula to divide the funds. The
Schulenburg VFD received ap-
proximately $18,000 under that
funding. With the tax revenue, the
SVFD is projected to get around
$70,000.
Janecka thanked the fire depart-
ments for the job they do every
day, adding that he wished the
amount could be more. Janecka
also said the money could not be
spent on personnel and asked the
fire departments to submit a letter
at the end of the year outlining
how the money was utilized.
Also at the Dec. 27 meeting,
the Commissioners Court ap-
proved a resolution authorizing
the submission of a Texas Com-
munity Development Block
Grant Program application to the
Texas Department of Agriculture
for the Community Development
Fund. Janecka was authorized
to act as the County’s executive
officer and representative in all
matters pertaining to the block
grant program.
The Commissioners Court
also:
• authorized Ellinger Sewer
and Water Supply Corporation to
install new water lines on specific
street rights-of-way within the
Community of Ellinger;
• authorized Janecka to sign
paperwork involving the repairs,
permits and damages in all four
County precincts resulting from
the 2015 and 2016 flooding
events;
• approved a plan of Colorado
Valley Telephone Company to in-
stall new buried copper telephone
lines within corridors of specific
roads in precincts 1 and 4;
• authorized the county audi-
tor to advertise for an additional
position of county inspector/des-
ignated representative for sew-
age and subdivision regulation
inspection enforcement officer;
• approved the 2017 Fayette
County attorney forfeiture fund
budget.
Fayette County Sheriffs De-
partment deputies responded to
a possible hit-and-run accident
on Interstate 10 near Schulen-
burg and subsequently arrested
an illegal alien on drug charges
on Christmas Day, Sunday, Dec.
25, according to Sheriff'Keith
Korenek.
Deputy Colin Godmintz re-
sponded and later located a blue
2005 Chevy pickup matching
the description of the culprit
on Highway 77 near the Hostyn
cutoff
Deputy Godmintz initiated
a traffic stop and made contact
with the driver. Godmintz ob-
served open alcoholic beverage
containers in the vehicle along
with drug paraphernalia. God-
mintz also detected the distinct
odor of burnt marijuana coming
from the vehicle. Godmintz de-
tained the suspect and, upon the
arrival of Deputy Marc Bennett,
a probable cause vehicle search
was conducted.
Deputies discovered mari-
juana and additional drug para-
phemaliainsidethevehicle. The
vehicle also had body damage
consistent with the reported
accident. Arrested and charged
with possession of marijuana
less than two ounces was an
undocumented illegal immi-
grant, 27-year-old Francisco
Ortiz, currently residing in New
Caney.
Deputies were assisted by
Department of Public Safety
Trooper Darrell Kolek.
and black helicopter from Texas
Wildlife Services.
Fayette County Tax Assessor-
Collector Rosalinda Adamcik
opened a new substation at the
Round Top Mercantile in Round
Top, in addition to the existing
Main Street Pharmacy substation
in Flatonia and the Chromcak
Insurance Agency substation in
Schulenburg. Citizens now have a
substation in each precinct where
they can get their registration
renewal for vehicles and trail-
ers with the exception of farm
trailers and license plates. These
items can be renewed at the Tax
Assessor-Collector’s Office in the
Courthouse or by mail or online.
A resolution was signed ap-
proving the submission to the
Office of the Governor, Criminal
Justice Division, for a grant for
body cameras for the Fayette
County Sheriff’s Office. These
body cameras will help to ensure
the safety of the deputies.
Once again, the Court signed
a proclamation proclaiming the
first week in March as “Law
Enforcement Appreciation Week
in Fayette County.” This was
done to show appreciation for
the outstanding dedication and
the sacrifices made by all law en-
forcement officers to preserve and
protect. The Knights of Columbus
cording to the press release from
Chief Brenek.
Weimar police detained the five
suspects as investigation in the
case continued.
Officers from the Schulenburg
Police Department, along with
the Weimar Police Department,
questioned the suspects and re-
ceived full confessions from four
of the five individuals who were
detained. These individuals also
confessed to a robbery in Weimar
earlier in 2016.
Three of the suspects are adults
and two are 16-year-oldjuveniles.
All five suspects live in the north-
east Houston area.
The adults arrested are Domo-
nique Houston, 24, Alfred Dorsey
Jr., 21, and Jamarcus Clintion
Wallace, 22.
The suspects were incarcerated
and faced multiple felony charges
in four different jurisdictions when
the press release was issued by
Chief Brenek last week.
jp
SMC(
Judge reviews county happenings during 2016
Editor s Note: Fayette County
Judge EdJanecka gives the follow-
ing review of County happenings
during 2016. It is the first of a
two-part series. The second part
will appear in next week's issue.
The resignation of Virginia
Wied as Fayette County’s district
clerk was accepted by the Court
on Dec. 28, 2015, effective Dec.
31, 2015. Wied served Fayette
County for 44 years, first as a
deputy district clerk for 12 years
and then as district clerk for 32
years. Linda Svrcek was appointed
as her replacement.
The Commissioners Courtheard
a presentation from Skip Cald-
well, Fayette County Regional
Airport manager, that the Texas
Department of State Health Ser-
vices conducted another airdrop
of baits containing the rabies
vaccine for skunks within the con-
trolled areas of Bastrop, Fayette,
Colorado, Wharton, Fort Bend,
Austin, Washington, Lee, Burle-
son, Grimes, Madison, Walker,
Montgomery, and Waller counties.
The planes left the Fayette County
Regional Air C enter on Jan. 12 and
there were eight to 16 flights per
day. The planes flew at a level of
500 to 1,000 feet. These planes
consisted of four white with blue
and red trim Beechcraft King Air-
planes and a Hughes 500 yellow
totals 46.41 ”
Schulenburg received a sur-
plus of 8.48 inches of rainfall
in 2016. According to local
weather observer Elroy Dier-
inger, the y ear ’ s total was 4 6.41.
For December, Dieringer re-
corded4.11 inches. Onaverage,
Schulenburg gets 2.87 inches in
December.
Dieringer’s measurements
last month:
• Dec. 3..
• Dec. 4..
• Dec. 5..
• Dec. 7..
• Dec. 16
• Dec. 23
• Dec. 25
• Dec. 26
•Dec. 31
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Prause, Diane & Vyvjala, Darrell. The Schulenburg Sticker (Schulenburg, Tex.), Vol. 123, No. 22, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 5, 2017, newspaper, January 5, 2017; Schulenburg, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1246226/m1/1/: accessed July 10, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Schulenburg Public Library.