A state court jury Wednesday acquitted an Orange County woman of possession of methamphetamine. 38-year-old Tiffany Lee Elmore had been indicted on the felony charge in September last year. The trial was held before 128th District Judge Courtney Arkeen. Defense attorney Paul Fukuda said Elmore was arrested by a Department of Public Safety trooper on October 3, 2015. Witnesses at a convenience store had told the trooper they had seen Elmore passing drugs to a passenger who threw them out a vehicle. However, during cross examination by Fukuda, the witnesses recanted their original stories … [Read more...] about Orange Woman Acquitted

The city of Orange Historical Preservation Commission Monday approved demolition plans for two different houses in the Old Orange Historic District. One of the houses is at 1304 West John Avenue. The house was damaged during Hurricane Ike and the owner-residents will be getting a new house built on the site through grants. Another house was abandoned after sustaining damage through hurricanes Rita and Ike. That house is at 304 Cherry Avenue. Members of the commission asked if the abandoned car in front of the house will also be removed. In addition, the commission approved changes to … [Read more...] about Two Homes Coming Down

  Certificate pay for sheriff’s deputies has been extended for at least another two weeks after action by the Commissioners Court Tuesday.  The extra pay for deputies was scheduled to be cut off if there was no new collective bargaining agreement in place by May 7. Commissioner John Gothia believed the contract negotiations were moving forward with progress being made towards reaching a new agreement and made the motion for an extension of the certificate pay to May 21.  The Court will have another review of the status of the collective bargaining talks on May 9 to consider a further … [Read more...] about Certificate Pay For SO Extended

A resident in the Navy Park neighborhood fended off a man from getting into his house by hitting him in the head with a metal kitchen skillet. The resident had been awakened at 3:44 a.m. Monday by the sound of his garage door opening. Orange police arrested a Dallas man who told officers he was "God." According to Officer G. McLean, the resident heard the garage door open and so he went to the attached garage. He found a stranger sitting inside the car parked inside. The resident told the man he didn't have permission to be in the garage and he needed to leave. However, the man … [Read more...] about Man Defends Himself With Skillet

Rejection of the preliminary plat for an upscale subdivision does not mean the project will not be built, Orange Planning Director Kelvin Knauf told the Orange City Council Tuesday. The council unanimously voted to follow the lead of the Planning and Zoning Commission earlier this month to reject the preliminary plat for Oak Allie subdivision on Allie Payne Road. Knauf said businessman David Hinds, who owns the property and submitted the preliminary plat, is working with his surveyor to meet the city requirements for the plat. Knauf, in a memo, outlined reasons the preliminary plat … [Read more...] about OPD Knauf Addresses City Council