new vales

1. Timeliness  -- i choose this story because it was the latest one and the most recent. 
2. Patience, diplomacy key to charging ex-officer 
   With charges filed against ex-cop and friend, clock starts on securing indictment 
   By PhilipJankowski and Tony Plohetski pjankowski@statesman.com   tplohetski@statesman.com  
      BASTROP — Kimberly Dean sat silently, sometime making notes, beside a gaggle of law enforcement officers who gathered Thursday as Bastrop County District Attorney Bryan Goertz spoke about the complex case of her daughter Samantha’s slaying. 
      It was with patience, Goertz said, that investigators untangled the web of technical evidence linking former Austin police officer VonTrey Clark and his friend, Kevin Leo Watson, to the death of Samantha Dean. 
      Nearly seven months after Samantha Dean, a victim’s services coordinator at the Kyle Police Department who was found shot in the head on a chilly February morning outside of Bastrop, Goertz announced capital murder charges against Clark and Watson, his suspected accomplice.    At this milestone in the investigation, authorities said both Clark and Watson could face the death penalty if convicted of killing Dean, 29, who investigators say was seven months’ pregnant with Clark’s child when she was killed. 
      Whether prosecutors seek the death penalty will be up to Goertz. 
      “I think that this makes it very clear that no one is above prosecution if they commit a crime, whether they are an APD officer or whatever their background is,” Goertz said. 
      Clark and Watson will make their first appearances in court at an arraignment, which is still pending. 
      A third man named in court documents as a participant in Dean’s killing, Freddie Lee Smith, 29, hasn’t been charged, Goertz said. 
      Clark, 32, was in the Bastrop County Jail without bail after federal authorities returned him to the United States on Wednesday and handed him over to Bastrop County authorities. Watson, 31, was in the Harris County Jail with bail set at $1 million, officials said. 
      The district court Thursday afternoon unsealed arrest warrants for Clark and Watson. The documents provided few new details in the case because a large amount of evidence against the two had already been released in previous search warrants. 
      They showed the meticulous cellphone tracking required to trace Clark and Watson to the killing 
      — and a threatening text that led police to the man who would name the two suspects responsible for her death. 
      That man, Aaron Lamont Williams, told authorities that Clark offered $5,000 for someone to kill Dean and that Clark wanted her dead to avoid paying child support. He said that Clark drove Dean to the site where she was found dead, and that Watson and Smith had killed her. 
      Goertz noted the complexity of the case and thanked the Dean family for their patience as investigators unwound the evidence. “I think everyone is relieved to be at this point,” he said. 
      “Taking our time and working the evidence was very important in this case,” Goertz said. 
      At all times, Goertz said, he worked to keep the Dean family informed about the lengthy investigation: “They’re wonderful people.” 
      Clark’s attorney, Bristol Myers, said the judicial process would shed light on what so far has been a one-sided conversation. 
      “Making accusations in affidavits and press conferences is much easier than proving accusations in a courtroom,” Myers said in a statement Thursday. “Let’s see what happens when investigators finally have to face cross-examination, procedural missteps are exposed, and evidence favorable to officer Clark is brought to light. Officer Clark did not kill Ms. Dean, and he is not legally responsible for her death.” 
      FBI special agent Dan Snow touted his agency’s ability to bring Clark back to Texas from 10,000 miles away. 
      “This sends a message that if you are a violent criminal in the U.S., the FBI has the reach around the world to get you,” Snow said. “We will use the resources and the relationships we develop to do just that, and we will bring you back for the sake of justice.” 
      The United States has no extradition treaty with Indonesia, Snow said, so the FBI relied upon diplomatic and legal attachés’ relationships with Indonesian police. 
      Federal authorities canceled Clark’s passport, and Indonesian police decided to expel him. With no way for Clark to leave the country, he was forced to remain in custody in Bali until FBI agents could retrieve him. 
      At the same time, federal authorities needed Bastrop County officials to file a charge against Clark in order to charge him with a federal charge of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. That charge will likely be dismissed now that Clark is in the hands of Bastrop County authorities, a federal law enforcement source said. 
      Court documents indicated that prosecutors had all the evidence mentioned in the arrest affidavit since at least June 11, including Williams’ statements that indicated Clark had offered money for Dean’s death. 
      Looking ahead, prosecutors no longer have the virtue of patience. Filing charges against Clark and Watson started a 90-day clock for Goertz to seek their indictment. 
      “The state is always ready,” he said. 
      Contact Philip Jankowski at 512-445-3702. 
      Contact Tony Plohetski at 512-445-3605. 
   

   The airplane carrying VonTrey Clark arrives from Indonesia at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport just before midnight Wednesday. JAYJANNER / AMERICAN-STATESMAN 
   
   

   Samantha Dean was found shot in the head on a February morning outside of Bastrop. 
   
   

   Former Austin police officer VonTrey Clark is escorted into the Bastrop County Jail on Thursday after being extradited from Indonesia. RODOLFO GONZALEZ / AMERICAN-STATESMAN 
   *Found at the american statesmen*
   
   
3.  Proximity – i choose this story because the bats under the congress bridge in austin.
4. Love bats? So does wind power 
   JOHN ANDERSON 
      Austin has a rich heritage of celebrating bats, and the city has been called one of the best places in the world to watch them. Friday is National Wildlife Day, so there’s no better time to talk about the importance of protecting and preserving our flying friends. 
      Austin, with the rest of Texas, is pretty familiar with wind energy and many of the economic and environmental benefits it brings. The state ranks first in the country in both electricity generated from wind and — with 18,000 employees — in jobs supported by wind power. 
      The Lone Star State may be less familiar, however, with American wind power’s legacy of care when it comes to wildlife and the environment. Wind is the cleanest source of utility-scale electricity, and the wind industry does more to study, avoid, minimize and mitigate any wildlife impacts than any other industry. 
      There’s no better example of this environmental stewardship than the industry’s announcement this week of a new best management practice for operating turbines, which is expected to reduce wind energy’s impact on bats by up to 30 percent. 
      Over the past decade, the U.S. wind industry has worked with bat biologists and others in the conservation and academic communities to identify and test a variety of methods to protect bats during their critical fall migration season, when evidence shows they are most at risk. 
      As a result of that collaboration, the industry has decided to take a meaningful step toward voluntarily reducing impacts to bats by limiting turbine operations to less than 1-3 revolutions per minute, depending on blade length, throughout the fall migration. 
      This decision by U.S. wind farm owners is not without consequence. Understanding that climate change poses the biggest threats to bats and all wildlife, the electrons lost from wind energy may be replaced by others from far more impactful fossil fuel generation. 
      In turn, the benefits to bats from wind energy generation are diminished. 
      And, the industry stands to lose out on millions of dollars’ worth of wind-generated electricity. Meaning this is one industry that’s willing to take in less money to keep more bats alive. 
      This agreement to limit turbine operations is the best bang for the buck, as it strikes a balance between protecting and preserving bats when they are most at risk while allowing wind energy to continue producing reliable, zero-emissions electricity the rest of the year. 
      While by far the greatest risks to bats are white nose syndrome — a fatal disease that has led to millions of bats dying since its emergence in 2006 — and climate change-driven habitat loss and related impacts, the wind industry has recognized the need do its collective part in directly aiding the bats’ conservation. 
      It is our sincere hope this announcement will encourage other energy industries — and all businesses, for that matter 
      — to take steps to reduce their impacts on the environment in their respective communities. 
      Regardless, pollution-free, renewable wind energy will keep building on its legacy of care. 
      Americans must choose how to generate the electricity to power our modern society — and to do so in the least impactful way. 
      With the adoption of this protocol, the wind industry is once again showing it is indeed the right choice. 
      Anderson is senior director of permitting policy and environmental affairs at the American Wind Energy 
      Association. 
   

   U.S. wind farmers will begin reducing turbine speeds during bats’ fall migration in order to minimize the threat to the bat population. RALPH BARRERA / AMERICAN-STATESMAN 2005
   i found at austin americans statesmen 
    Prominence – i choose this story because its the most worthy to parents and kids every were.
   
   

   New school bus cameras bring optimism among Eanes officials 

   By Katie Urbaszewski kurbaszewski@statesman.com  

      This school year, motorists who drive around school buses while the bus stop sign arm is out and lights are flashing could be ticketed at a higher rate in Austin, Rollingwood and Westlake. 

      That’s because the Eanes school district has signed a contract with a Dallas-based vendor that will install cameras on the inside and outside of its school buses to catch violators. 

      The cameras will catch violators’ license plates, and if the violation happens in Austin, those drivers will be mailed a $300 ticket. Fines could be mailed in Rollingwood and West Lake Hills, if the respective city councils decide to approve an ordinance amendment similar to the one that the Austin City Council recently approved. 

      No matter the area, any driver who goes around an Eanes school bus will receive a stern letter alerting them that what they did is illegal. 

      “It’s not about the money,” Eanes Transportation Director Tim Wysong said. “It’s about reducing the risk.” 

      About four years ago, Eanes officials attached cameras to buses’ stop arms to track how many people blew through it when buses were dropping off children, Wysong said. The data shows that, as the Central Texas population grew, so did the number of people illegally passing buses. 

      In 2013, Eanes officials had the agency with which they’ve since contracted — Dallas County Schools 

      — attach cameras to one of the buses. In one week, an average of two drivers a day passed the bus while kids were being dropped off or picked up, Wysong said. 

      A major piece of research that influenced Wysong was that, according to Dallas County Schools, districts using the cameras saw reductions of 15 percent to 40 percent in violations the second year, he said. Only 1 percent of drivers received a second violation. 

      “It changes motorists’ behavior,” Wysong said. 

      The program will be implemented at no cost to the Eanes school district. The provider’s revenue comes from fees charged to violators. 

      Though violations seem to decrease over time, it’s still a viable business model, said Mark Little-field, speaking for Force Multiplier Solutions. The company partnered with Dallas County Schools to produce the technology. 

      “Dr. Rick Sorrells, the superintendent of Dallas County Schools, he’s been very clear. He hopes to recoup the investment he has made in the technology and the program,” Littlefield said. “If he recoups what he’s spent, then he’s happy. He’s looking forward to answering to his board, to say we didn’t make any money last year because nobody passed buses.” 

      Contact Katie Urbaszewski at 512-445-3707. 

   

   Eanes Transportation Director Tim Wysong points out the cameras with which all the district’s buses soon will be equipped. KATIE URBASZEWSKI / WESTLAKE PICAYUNE 

   *i found at austin america statesmen.*

    Impact – i chose this story because a lot of people watch sports and he was suspended for a reason and it got lifted. 

   
   

   Brady’s suspension lifted 

   Judge nullifies Patriots QB’s four-game ban; NFL appeals ruling. 

   Associated Press 

      NEW YORK — Tom Brady learned Thursday he will start the season on the field after a judge lifted the league’s four-game suspension of the star quarterback for a scandal over deflated footballs, saying he was treated unfairly by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. The league quickly appealed. 

      U.S. District Judge Richard 

      M. Berman criticized Good-ell for dispensing “his own brand of industrial justice” as he found multiple reasons to reject the suspension one week before New England’s Sept. 10 opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

      The Super Bowl MVP has insisted he played no role in a conspiracy to deflate footballs below the allowable limit at last season’s AFC Championship game, a 45-7 rout of the Indianapolis Colts. 

      The judge cited “several significant legal deficiencies” in the league’s handling of the controversy, including no advanced notice of potential penalties, a refusal to produce a key witness and the apparent first-ever discipline of a player based on a finding of “general awareness” of someone else’s wrongdoing. 

      “Because there was no notice of a four-game suspension in the circumstances presented here, Commissioner Goodell may be said to have ‘dispensed his own brand of industrial justice,’” Berman wrote, partially citing wording from a previous case. 

      He said a player’s right to know what constitutes violations and what penalties are was “at the heart” of the collective bargaining agreement “and, for that matter, of our criminal and civil justice systems.” 

      “The court finds that Brady had no notice that he could receive a four-game suspension for general awareness of ball deflation by others,” the judge wrote. 

      Goodell said it was necessary to appeal “to uphold the collectively bargained responsibility to protect the integrity of the game.” 

      He called the need to secure the game’s competitive fairness “a paramount principle.” 

      Hours after Goodell issued his statement, the league appealed to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan with a one-page notice from NFL attorney Daniel Nash. 

      NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said the league would not seek an emergency stay, freeing Brady to play while the case is appealed. It could be months before the court considers the case, since the league would have to show it would suffer irreparable harm to speed up the timetable. 

      The union’s executive director, DeMaurice Smith, said in a statement the ruling proves the contract with the NFL doesn’t grant Good-ell “the authority to be unfair, arbitrary and misleading.” 

      Berman said the league was wrong to discipline Brady as if a deflating ball accusation was equal to using performance enhancing drugs. 

      Brady was also denied equal access to investigative files, including witness interview notes, and wasn’t permitted to examine one of two lead investigators, the judge said. 

      The Patriots were fined $1 million and stripped of two draft picks. 

   … On fantasy football 

      This is the last weekend to hold fantasy football drafts before the season starts next Thursday. How does this impact fantasy football? 

      Brady should jump into top-eight quarterback status. He’ll almost surely be better than Russell Wilson and probably even better than Tony Romo.And the Patriots’ top receivers’values also all increase. 

      It helps Reggie Wayne, who won’t have to wait until Week 6 to get game experience with Brady, and this certainly will make Rob Gronkowski owners happy. Brady started very slowly last year but hit an amazing stride afterWeek 5 — for 10 straight weeks, he threw at least two touchdowns every game, and from Weeks 6-9, he threw for 1,309 yards and 16 scores. 

      If he gets off to a good start, he could even be a top-five fantasy quarterback when all is said and done. 

      — CAT VASQUEZ 

   

   

   Judge Richard 
   

      M. Berman (left) said Roger Goodell issued “his own brand of industrial justice” 

   

   Tom Brady is cleared to play when the Patriots kick off the regular season Thursday night against the Steelers. It could be months before the NFL’s appeal is heard in court. MADDIE MEYER / GETTY IMAGES 

   *i found this at austin american statesmen*

    Conflict- i choose this story because she doesn't want to do the same sex marriage license. 

   Ky. clerk jailed; deputies to issue marriage licenses 

   ByAdam Bean Associated Press 

      ASHLAND, KY. — A defiant county clerk went to jail Thursday for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, but five of her deputies agreed to end the church-state standoff in Rowan County, Ky. 

      U.S. District Judge David Bunning said he had no choice but to jail Kim Davis for contempt after she insisted that her “conscience will not allow” her to follow federal court rulings on gay marriage. 

      “God’s moral law conflicts with my job duties,” Davis told the judge before she was taken away. “You can’t be separated from something that’s in your heart and in your soul.”    The judge later tried to keep Davis out of jail, saying she could go free if her staff agreed to comply with the law and she agreed not to interfere. 

      But Davis rejected the offer. With that, the hearing ended, and gay and lesbian couples vowed to appear at the Rowan County clerk’s office yet again Friday to see if the deputy clerks keep their promises. 

      “We’re going to the courthouse tomorrow to get our marriage license and we’re very excited about that,” said April Miller, who has been engaged to Karen Roberts for 11 years. 

      As word of Davis’ jailing spread outside the federal courthouse, hundreds of people chanted and shouted, “Love won! Love won!” 

      But Davis’ lawyer, Roger Gannam, compared her willingness to accept imprisonment to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s sacrifices to advance civil rights, and said “everyone should lament and mourn the fact that her freedom has been taken away for what she believes.” 

      Laura Landenwich, an attorney for the plaintiffs, rejected the comparison. 

      “Ms. Davis is in an unfortunate situation of her own creation. She is not a martyr. No one created a martyr today,” Landenwich said. “She is not above the law.” 

      Speaking earlier from the bench, Bunning said it would set up a “slippery slope” to allow an individual’s ideas to supersede the courts’ authority. 

      “Her good-faith belief is simply not a viable defense,” Bunning said. “I myself have genuinely held religious beliefs ... but I took an oath.” 

      “Mrs. Davis took an oath,” he added. “Oaths mean things.” 

      Davis is represented by the Liberty Counsel, which advocates in court for religious freedom. Before she was led away, Davis said the U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing gay marriage nationwide conflicts with the vows she made when she became a born-again Christian. 

      Miller and Roberts have been denied a marriage license four times by Davis or her deputies since the June ruling. Miller testified that one of the deputy clerks told her to apply in another county. 

      “That’s kind of like saying we don’t want gays or lesbians here. We don’t think you are valuable,” she said. 

      Rather than be fined, jailed or lose their jobs, five of the clerks told the judge they would issue the licenses. Her son, Nathan Davis, refused, but the judge said that wouldn’t matter and he wouldn’t be punished, as long as the others complied. 

      “I don’t really want to, but I will comply with the law,” said one of the deputies, Melissa Thompson. “I’m a preacher’s daughter and this is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my life.” 

      Davis, an Apostolic Christian whose critics mock her for being a three-time divorcee, stopped issuing marriage licenses for all couples after the Supreme Court ruling in June. Many supporters and even some Republican presidential candidates have rallied behind her. 

      “People are calling the office all the time asking to send money,” Davis testified. 

      She said she hopes the Legislature will change Kentucky law to allow her to keep her job while following her conscience. But unless the governor convenes a costly special session, lawmakers won’t meet until January. “Hopefully our Legislature will get something taken care of,” she told the judge. 

      Until then, Bunning said, he has no alternative but to keep her behind bars. 

      “The legislative and executive branches do have the ability to make changes,” Bunning said. “It’s not this court’s job to make changes. I don’t write law.” 

      Davis served as her mother’s deputy in the clerk’s office for 27 years before she was elected as a Democrat to succeed her in November. As an elected official, she can be removed only if the Legislature impeaches her, which is unlikely in a deeply conservative state. 

      Former Republican President George W. Bush nominated Bunning for a lifetime position as a federal judge in 2001 when he was just 35 years old. 

      But Bunning has been anything but a sure thing for conservative causes, ruling against a partial-birth abortion ban and in favor of a gay-straight high school club. 

   

   A man waves a gay pride flag in front of the federal courthouse in Ashland, Ky., on Thursday. As word of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis’ jailing spread, hundreds of people chanted:“Love won! Love won!”TYWRIGHT / GETTY IMAGES 
   

   

   Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis rejected an offer from a judge that could have kept her out of jail. 
   

   

   Edgar Orea speaks to gay marriage supporters outside the federal building in Ashland, Ky., on Thursday. Rowan County deputy clerks agreed to issue licenses to same-sex couples. 
   

      TIMOTHY D. EASLEY / AP

   *found in austin america statesmen*

    Human Interest- i choose this story a lot of people are interested in how  our next president will be. 

   Trump vows no third-party bid 

   Billionaire promises to back the GOP primary winner. 

   ByKathleen Hennessey Tribune News Service 

      WASHINGTON — Donald Trump has signed a pledge not to launch an independent bid for the White House should he lose his quest for the GOP nomination. 
   

      Standing in the opulent lobby of Trump Tower in New York, Trump said he believes the best way for a Republican to win the White House is for Trump himself to secure the party’s nomination and face off directly against a Democrat. 

      “For that reason, I have signed the pledge,” Trump said, lifting a piece of paper emblazoned with his signature in black ink. 

      Republican Party officials circulated the pledge to all 17 candidates this week, but the effort was aimed squarely at Trump. The billionaire celebrity was the only top-tier candidate who would not publicly promise not to run as an independent in the general election when asked at the first primary debate last month. 

      The prospect of Trump funding his own third-party sent shivers down the spines of the GOP establishment, who believe Trump would likely pull voters away from the GOP nominee and hand the victory to Democrats. 

      Trump said he agreed to endorse the party’s nominee and forgo a write-in, third-party or independent candidacy because the Republican Party leaders, specifically Chairman Reince Priebus, had treated him fairly. “That’s what I’ve wanted,” he said. “I just wanted fairness from the Republican Party.” 

      Trump met with Priebus privately shortly before the afternoon news conference and handed over the document. He told reporters he “got absolutely nothing” in return for his signature and he has “no intention of changing my mind.” 

      Trump’s promise is the most reassurance party officials can hope for from a famously unpredictable and untraditional candidate. The party’s document does not mention any repercussions if the vow is broken. 

      The document asked candidates to pledge to “endorse the 2016 Republican presidential nominee regardless of who it is.” Further, it demanded that each vow “that I will not seek to run as an independent or write-in candidate, nor will I seek or accept the nomination for president of any other party.” 

      Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who angrily challenged Trump at the debate over the pledge, took credit for what he termed Trump’s “capitulation.” 

   

   Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump shows a signed pledge Thursday at a news conference in Trump Tower in New York. Trump ruled out the prospect of a third-party White House bid and vowed to support the Republican Party’s nominee. AP 

   *i found this on austin america statesmen*

    Novelty- i choose this story because people like weird interest that gets there attention.

   
   

   Iran’s top leader: Deal off unless sanctions go 

   Ayatollah says suspending them isn’t good enough. 

   By Nasser Karimi Associated Press 

      TEHRAN, IRAN — Iran’s supreme leader said Thursday “there will be no deal” if world powers insist on suspending rather than lifting sanctions as part of a landmark nuclear agreement, and said it is up to Iran’s Parliament, and not him, to approve or reject it. 

      His remarks, read aloud by a state TV anchorman, mark the first official comment on the deal since President Barack Obama secured enough support to prevent the Republican-led Congress from blocking it. 

      Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has yet to express a clear opinion on the deal clinched in July, which would curb Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for relief from crippling sanctions. 

      Khamenei said some U.S. officials have spoken of the “suspension” of sanctions, which he said is unacceptable. 

      “If the sanctions are going to be suspended, then we will also fulfill our obligations on the ground at the level of suspension and not in a fundamental way,” he said. 

      In response, White House press secretary Josh Earnest reiterated the Obama administration’s stance that it would focus on Tehran’s actions and not its words. 

      Washington has been “crystal clear about the fact that Iran will have to take a variety of serious steps to significantly roll back their nuclear program before any sanction relief is offered,” he said. 

      Iran’s supreme leader has traditionally had the final say on all important matters, but Thursday Khamenei said lawmakers should decide on the deal. 

      “It is the representatives of the people who should decide. I have no advice regarding the method of review, approval or rejection,” he said. 

      President Hassan Rouhani is opposed to letting Parliament vote on the deal, which he insists is an understanding with world powers and not a treaty. Last week he warned that if Parliament votes on the deal, its provisions would be legally binding. 

      A special parliamentary committee has begun studying the deal, but it’s unclear how far the process will go since the government has not prepared a formal bill. It’s also unclear how much support the deal has in Parliament. 

   THREE MORE DEMOCRAT SENATORS PLEDGE SUPPORT FOR NUCLEAR DEAL 

      Now a done deal, the Iran nuclear agreement gained critical backing from three more Democratic senators Thursday, deflating opponents and boosting White House hopes of blocking a disapproval resolution in the Senate and sparing President Barack Obama from resorting to a veto. Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Mark Warner ofVirginia and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota announced their support for the deal that aims to curb Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for wide relief from economic sanctions.The announcement from Booker was closely watched because he was under immense pressure from segments of the Jewish community in NewJersey to oppose the deal. New Jersey’s other Democratic senator, Bob Menendez, is an outspoken opponent. 

      — ASSOCIATED PRESS 

   

   Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks at a meeting of experts in Tehran on Thursday. Khamenei said world powers must lift the international sanctions against his country, not merely suspend them. OFFICE OFTHE IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER / ASSOCIATED PRESS 

   *i found this i austin america statesmen*