Smithville Woman Kidnaps Daughter at Gunpoint
The Smithville Times
• Rosalie Carter, 71 of Smithville, was taken to the Bastrop County jail and charged with aggravated kidnapping for attempting to kidnap her daughter at gunpoint near a Smithville school. Carter’s daughter told police that around 6:15 a.m. on August 9 she was opening her driveway gate to pull out her vehicle to go to work when she saw Carter walk toward. Carter was wearing all black clothing, gloves and a mask and pulled a gun from her jacket pocket and told her to get into the car, according to Carter’s arrest affidavit.
The daughter got into the driver’s seat of the car with Carter getting in the back as Carter began giving her directions, eventually leading her down the street to the Tiger Academy. At the back of the school building, Carter told her daughter to park behind an old car. As the daughter followed Carter’s commands, Carter told her that she was going to cut her throat. That was when the daughter decided to ram the other vehicle with hers and when she struck the other vehicle Carter dropped the gun on the floorboard.
The daughter then got out of the vehicle and began fighting her mother while attempting to find the dropped gun. Carter then pulled a knife out of her pocket and the two women fought for control of the blade. The daughter was able to get control of the knife and she then “poked Carter with the knife in the leg and butt area,” the arrest affidavit said. Carter made one more attempt to grab the gun but failed. The struggle continued after the two women fell onto the ground and Carter continued trying to get control of both weapons while sticking her thumbs and fingers in her daughter’s eyes and telling her that she was going to kill her and herself.
The daughter was eventually able to throw both weapons out of Carter’s reach and sat on Carter while she reached for her phone and called police. When questioned by police, Carter confessed to the kidnapping and said that the incident was spurred by anger over several real estate transactions from which her daughter would receive money.
The Examiner
• Navasota Police Department is grief-stricken as news came in that one of its young officers lost his life in a motorcycle accident while vacationing in South Dakota. William Cooper lost his life Monday, Aug. 10. Cooper, age 22 from Anderson, graduated from TEEX Police Academy in December 2019. He began working with Navasota Police Department on Dec. 13, 2019. Cooper previously worked for Grimes County Sheriff’s Office. Navasota Police Chief Shawn Myatt who has served NPD as chief for nearly 15 years stated this is the first officer he has lost. “There is a deep sadness here at Navasota Police Department,” explained Myatt. “Our thoughts and prayers go to Cooper’s family and friends. Cooper was a very good up and coming officer that was well-liked among his peers. He will be greatly missed.”
Giddings Times & News
• A full beer can was used to break a plexiglass window at the McDonald’s drive-thru just before midnight on Monday, August 3. Giddings police officers were called at 11:58 p.m. about a possible intoxicated subject, who became upset with the wait time for his order. The subject began cursing at the employees and demanded his money back. Once the suspect obtained his money, he then circled the business and came back around to the drive-thru window. The suspect then threw a full beer can at the window, which broke the temporary COVID plexiglass in front of the drive-thru window. The subject was gone by the time the caller contacted the police department.
• In planning for the 2021 budget, what the county commissioners learned at the Monday, August 10 meeting is that sales tax revenue took a sudden large spike in 2020, $1.7 million more than the same time last year. “We’ve blown every other area county away with our figures,” said Judge Paul Fischer. Although none of the county officials have been able to fully figure out what caused this spike in sales taxes in Lee County, County Auditor Jared Albrecht and County Attorney Martin Placke believe that it’s from the oil and gas pipelines that were brought across the area.
• A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Thursday, August 13 for Lexington ISD’s new cafeteria and remodel of the existing cafeteria into classrooms. The new cafeteria includes a full kitchen with 360 seating capacity and restrooms. The existing cafeteria will be remodeled to include two classrooms, a theatre black box, an art room and a restroom.
The Colorado Citizen
• Mayor Gobert moved the August 10 Columbus City Council meeting outdoors to accommodate the large crowd of about 45 individuals waiting to be heard. A standing-room-only group calling themselves Barn Builders wore name badges that had “100% OPEN” written on them. The unmasked group was present to speak during the public comment portion of the meeting. The Barn Builders are a grassroots, state-wide group with seemingly no real organizational structure. The group sprung up following COVID-19 business shutdowns and the mandates that the group felt hampered businesses and the free movement of citizens. The group said their goal is to assist local and state governments in making policies regarding the COVID-19 situation, be a constructive force, a community unifier and support first responders and law enforcement.
The Bastrop Advertiser
• Bastrop County deputies on August 9 busted a cockfighting ring in a heavily wooded area east of Elgin and arrested the owner of the property where the fights were held. Jerry Bradshaw, 49, is facing a cockfighting charge, a Class A misdemeanor, after a deputy arrived on the property, Bradshaw allegedly claimed he was having friends over for “barbecuing and showing chickens.” However, a man standing at the front gate of the property in the 100 block of Norwood Lane told the deputy they were having “chicken fights.” Bradshaw denied the allegations of cockfighting and showed the deputy around the 12-acre property. As they reached the back of the property, multiple people began running off into the woods and there were also multiple vehicles trying to leave but were stopped by other deputies. Deputies discovered two large wooden fighting rings, several boxes used for transporting chickens, bags of spurs used on fighting roosters’ talons and a weighing scale. Bradshaw claimed he had set up barbecue equipment to sell food to the people there to “show chickens.”
• Investigators with the Texas Forest Service said the cause of a 28-acre wildfire at Bastrop State Park was mechanical. “Anything that produces heat or can make a spark can start a fire just as easily,” said Texas Forest Service Firewise Coordinator Kari Hines. “Whether it’s a lawnmower blade hitting a rock, parking or driving on dry grass, a chain saw blade finding embedded metal in a tree, welding or grinding outside, metal hitting the road as a car drives down or so many other things — we implore residents to think about how they can prevent wildfires and have a plan in case one starts while they are working outside.”
Elgin Courier
• On July 31, Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services and the Round Rock Police Department (RRPD) responded to a body found in a field at the 14000 block of FM 1100, located in the Kimbro area west of Elgin. The next day, the remains were identified as Christopher Branham, a 26-year-old missing man who had last been seen in Round Rock on June 24. On August 5 RRPD announced that two arrests had been made in connection with Branham’s homicide, with the help of the Texas Rangers and the U.S. Marshals Service. According to inmate information from the Travis County Sheriff’s Office, Kyle Wayne Cleveland was arrested and booked on August 5 while 26-year-old Anthony Gevante Davis was arrested by RRPD and booked on August 5. As of last Monday morning, both Cleveland and Davis have been charged with a first-degree felony, but the charge description is unavailable.
What the Neighbors Are Talking About
A look at what’s making news just over the county line.