The Lewisville Texan Journal, October 24, 2018 by The Lewisville Texan Journal

Fr ee

The

Lewisville Texan Journal

Vol. 4, No. 43

L ife and L iber ty in the L one Star State

L ewisvilleTexan.or g

Wednesday, October 24, 2018

This edition of The Lewisville Texan Journal is a printed recap of our online stories from the past week. For timely updates on Lewisville happenings, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/LewisvilleTexanJournal or Twitter at twitter.com/LewisvilleTexan.

EL ECTI ON 2018

911 hoax caller caught

Gar r ison Anthony Ware, 18, was ar rested on char ges of making a false repor t to 911.

October 20, 2018 By STEVE SOUTHWEL L

Beto O'Rour ke photo cour tesy O'Rour ke campaign. (CC_BY_ND 2.0). Ted Cr uz photo cour tesy M ichael Vadon (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Ear ly voting for 2018 Texas sees huge tur nout blows past pr ior year s on fir st day of ear ly voting October 22, 2018 By STEVE SOUTHWEL L editor@LewisvilleTexan.com

Early voting started Monday at a brisk pace in

Denton County, with numbers exceeding the 2016 presidential election, a rarity for a midterm election, and a Continued on P2

October 22, 2018 By Allyson R Waller The Texas Tribune

Tens of thousands of Texas voters turned out across the state to cast their

ballots on Monday, the first day of early voting for the 2018 midterm elections. The state's largest counties all saw much larger Continued on P2

Several times recently, Lewisville police have responded to hoax 911 calls reporting fake crimes. Friday night, police arrested a suspect. Thursday night, someone called in a shooting. Friday morning, it was a call saying that students were in a second-floor restroom in Lewisville High School with guns. Continued on P5

L I SD talks online classes, discipline

New details in school rezoning plans

October 24, 2018 By L EOPOL D K NOPP

Words like ?boundaries? and ?continuity of services? echo off cafeteria walls, squat lunch tables and low elementary school ceilings as Lewisville ISD begins to educate parents on the proposed rezoning plans to address next year?s closures of Hedrick and College Street elementary schools. In a series of meetings that started Oct. 20 and will extend into the coming weeks, chief schools officer Joseph Coburn presented and will continue to present proposed boundary adjustments directly to parents inside the seven affected elementary schools. Three meetings took place Oct. 20 at Hedrick, Lewisville and Central elementaries. Another was the following Monday night Oct. 22 at Central, and the next is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday Oct. 25 at College Street Elementary. Both of these closures, as well as College Street?s replacement by an as-yet-unnamed elementary school being built on Mill Street, were approved in the 2017 bond package. Questions about rezoning, particularly surrounding how Hedrick Elementary students

The Lewisville ISD Board of Trustees heard updates on the district?s virtual learning academy and restorative disciplinary practices during a work session Tuesday, Oct. 23. District officials personally implementing them discussed the successes and potential pitfalls of these relatively young programs. Virtual Learning Academy Directors of virtual learning Donna Henry and Chris Bigenho, as well as assessment director Sarah Fitzhugh, said that the Virtual Learning Academy is filling many of its intended purposes and ready to expand, but student awareness will be key for continued growth. The Virtual Learning Academy is LISD?s hub for online class offerings. The trio reported that the Virtual Learning Academy now boasts more than 1,800 students across 15 courses, all of which are developed in-house by LISD personnel. This is important because, while online courses already exist elsewhere, courses developed in-house can be offered to LISD students for Continued on P5

October 24, 2018 By L EOPOL D K NOPP

Knopp@LewisvilleTexan.com

The proposed rezoning for Hedr ick Elementar y. The beige area would be zoned for Degan Elementar y, the green area would be zoned for Vicker y Elementar y and the blue area would be zoned for Par kway Elementar y. Rezoning for Hedr ick students must take place this year, and no other option has been proposed. (M ap cour tesy L ewisville I SD)

will be rezoned, stretch all the way back to before that election, but have gone mostly unanswered. The board did not discuss the rezoning proposals publicly until Sept. 24 of this year, and even then, there are several draft maps surrounding Hedrick?s rezoning that have not been made available to the public. The Lewisville Texan Journal is currently pursuing those maps. With both closures imminent, the board is

expected to vote on the proposed rezoning plans at

Uptown Funk L ewisville up, P6

its next regular meeting Nov. Continued on P4

Election

Texas sees huge ear ly voting tur nout Continued fr om P1

first-day turnout than they did in the previous midterm elections in 2014. Dallas County?s combined in-person and mail-in votes topped out at 55,384 on Monday, almost 26,000 more than were cast in 2014, according to The Dallas Morning News. In Bexar County, The San Antonio Express News reported that as of 4 p.m. Monday more than 24,000 people had voted in person, compared to 13,436 who voted in person first day in 2014. Bruce Elfant, Travis County Tax Assessor-Collector and Voter Registrar, reported on Facebook Monday night in-person and mail-in votes for Travis County totaled 47,405, compared to 17,181 first-day in-person and mail-in votes in 2014. Smaller counties also saw big turnout. Midland County Election Administrator Deborah Land said out of 84,945 registered voters in her county, 3,546 had voted by 4 p.m. Monday ? compared to just 756 who voted the first day in 2014. ?We had a line at the elections office all day,? Land said. ?Most of the time it was extending down the hallway.? About 15.8 million Texans are registered to vote in this year?s midterm elections, according to the Texas Secretary of State?s website. ?It?s very impressive for a state that hasn?t done real well in voter registration and turnout,? said Renée Cross, senior director for the Hobby School of Public Affairs at

the University of Houston, of the first-day numbers. Cross credits passion from both Republicans and Democrats this election cycle as reason for record turnout. ?We see so much anger or enthusiasm about candidates in much higher numbers than we?ve ever seen,? Cross said. ?From a political standpoint, I think there?s just as much energy that we?ve seen in presidential years.? U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke, the Democrat challenging U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, spent the day crisscrossing the Houston area to lead groups of supporters to the polls. The early vote push began before the sun was fully up, with O'Rourke making a 7 a.m. stop in central Houston. More than 63,000 in-person votes were cast in Harris County, The Houston Chronicle reported, compared to 20,215 in 2014. "This is our moment, this is our chance," O'Rourke told the crowd assembled across the street from the polling place. "This is our message to the people of the future. While we can still get it right, we stood up to be counted and we did." Some supporters had been waiting to vote early at the site longer than others. Among them: a group that had camped out in a tent with "BETO" written on it to ensure they would be among the first to vote Monday morning. O'Rourke briefly ducked into the tent and spoke with the supporters. In El Paso County, O'Rourke's home county, a

File photo by Steve Southwell

record 17,131 voters turned out Monday as of 7 p.m., said Melissa Rosales, the county's elections information and resource coordinator. Rosales said this year?s high turnout could have been attributed to excitement surrounding O?Rourke and traction from social media. ?We were expecting it,? Rosales said. ?By 9 a.m., we already had a really good turnout, and we were already getting calls of lines of voters. We are hoping we get the same traffic [throughout early voting]. We have the equipment and the pool to be prepared for the number of voters we?re going to see.? The increased enthusiasm came with some hiccups. U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro and state Sen. José Menéndez, both San Antonio Democrats, held a news conference Monday afternoon to decry reported

problems with early voting. At some polling locations, election workers were understaffed and overwhelmed by the turnout, leading to long wait times, Castro said. At one polling location, he said, a system glitch had forced workers to write information for voters by hand rather than rely on a printer to do the job. Cross said first-day early voting numbers could be indicative of the high number of voter registrations Democrats have garnered this election season in hopes of a "blue wave" giving them control of Congress. However, Cross said it is still too early to tell what the outcome will be on Election Day. ?If you look at the increase in the number of voters, number of registrations ... of those people the common sense tells you those new voters

are going to be Democrats. If that?s the case, their overall numbers will increase substantially, but is it enough to overtake the Republican control?? Cassi Pollock and Patrick Svitek contributed to this report. Disclosure: The University of Houston has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. This story was first published at by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans ? and engages with them ? about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

Strong tur nout in Denton County for ear ly voting Continued fr om P1

possible indicator of voter enthusiasm. Voters posted on Facebook about long lines at early voting locations across the county. The wait time at Lewisville Municipal Annex ranged from 45 minutes to 1.5 hours on the first day of

early voting. Lines spilled out of the community room, snaking through the lobby. Voters also reported long wait times in Flower Mound. Denton County Elections reported that 19,045 voters took advantage of early voting today. That number exceeds 2016, a presidential election, year by 12 percent. On the first day of early

Publisher Steve Southwell steve@LewisvilleTexan.org Managing Editor Leopold Knopp knopp@LewisvilleTexan.org Business Manager Jennifer Southwell jen@LewisvilleTexan.org Send letters to the editor to editor@LewisvilleTexan.org Send local calendar events to calendar@LewisvilleTexan.org

voting, 2016, Denton County had 16,955 early voters. These numbers only include in-person votes. Mail-in totals mirrored the increase. In 2016, there were 5,030 mail-in ballots received on the first day of early voting. Monday, there were 5,650, a 12 percent increase.

The L ewisville Texan Jour nal

Early voting continues through Nov. 2. Lines tend to get shorter as the early voting period progresses.

Update ? 10/24, 7:50 a.m.: The second day of early voting was even stronger in Denton County with 19,617 votes cast in person, 572 SM

State SM

L ife and L iber ty in the L one Star L ewisvilleTexan.or g -- 469-322-4265

more than the first day, making for a total of 38,662 so far. There have been 7,081 mail-in ballots returned so far. In 2014, the last midterm election, there were 145,032 ballots cast, a voter turnout of 35.43%. In 2014, over 75,000 ballots were cast in early voting.

Subscribe The Lewisville Texan Journal is not yet taking subscriptions for this print edition, but will soon offer it. Stay tuned.

I SSN 2380-7253 (Pr int) ? I SSN 2380-7261 (Online)

The Lewisville Texan Journal

Support Lewisville Public Media Corporation publishes this paper as a nonprofit community service. Consider a monthly sustaining donation. Visit LewisvillePublic.org for more info.

Please share, reuse or recycle after reading

Elections

LTJ guide to local representative r aces On immigration, he says he will not support legislation that will implement an amnesty program, as he?d rather focus efforts in gaining control of the U.S. borders. At a town hall meeting in August, Burgess expressed his support for Trump?s ideas for strengthening the borders. At the same town hall, when asked about Russian interference in the 2016 elections, he said ballot integrity is the responsibility of local and state municipalities and assured the audience area counties have improved their processes. In May earlier this year, Burgess voted yes on a bill making targeted attacks on law enforcement officers a federal crime. He also

supported legislation in March that would provide funding for measure to prevent school violence, including training for officials and threat protection. Both bills were referred to the Senate Judiciary committee. Fagan, born and raised in Keller, is a single mom running ?to champion the causes of [her] community,? according to her website. She has never held a political office before. She began her own consulting business in online analytics, worked at a tech incubator and ran global alliances and sales for an IT compliance firm. On her website, Fagan says she will fight for equal treatment of women and oppose cuts in funding women?s health clinics. She supports Medicare expansion to create affordable healthcare and also supports

health insurance companies offer mental health benefits in the same manner they other medical benefits. Parker is focusing his efforts on promoting fiscally responsible government spending, border security, providing a stronger education system and mental health advocacy, according to his website. Parker has received endorsements from the Texans for Lawsuit Reform and the Dallas Morning News. Laura Haines, a 15-year resident of Flower Mound,

was inspired by the 2016 election to create change, as she explains on her website. When speaking to The Lewisville Texan Journal for an article earlier this year, Haines said some important issues to her are LGBT equality, Medicare expansion, women?s health and fully funding education. ?I have passion,? Haines said. ?I have an earnest desire to do right and a willingness to fight for what?s right.? Haines graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor?s degree in applied arts and

would have established a voucher-like system specifically for disabled students. He also supported HB21, the $1.8 billion school finance bill passed in August 2017. Simmons said last year he is a common sense conservative businessman applying his expertise in Austin. ?We must preserve Texas as a place where we have proven that a conservative governing philosophy results in jobs, opportunity, and an economy that is the envy of the nation,? he said. Simmons has received endorsements from the National Rifle Association, Dallas Morning News and Denton County Conservative Coalition. He is the co-founder and chairman of Retirement Advisors of America, an investment services firm based in Addison. Simmons ran against Democrat Alex Mendoza in

both his two re-elections, winning with around 56 percent of the vote in 2016 and about 64 percent in 2014. Simmons? opponent is Michelle Beckley, a born and raised native of Carrollton. After graduating from Newman Smith High School in Carrollton, she earned a degree in biomedical science from Texas A& M. The 48-year-old moved home and is now the second-generation owner and manager of Kookaburra Bird Shop. Beckley ran for mayor of Carrollton in the May 2017 election, winning 23 percent of the votes, placing her third of the four candidates on the ballot. Now running her second political campaign, she raised more than $24,000 by the end of September, according to her campaign finance report filed in early October. ?Most of [it] I raised myself with calling, texting

Congressional Distr ict 26 By CEL ESTE GRACI A celeste@LewisvilleTexan.org

Republican incumbent Michael Burgess in Texas? 26th congressional district is running opposed by Democrat Linsey Fagan. Burgess has served as a congressman since 2003. According to Five-Thirty-Eight, a political analysis website, Burgess votes in line with President Donald Trump nearly 96 percent of the time. According to his website, Burgess believes repealing the Affordable Care Act will increase patient choice and reduce healthcare costs. Burgess also says he advocates for environmental policies that ensure safe and affordable energy production that maintain jobs.

Texas Distr ict 63 By CEL ESTE GRACI A

Republican incumbent Tan Parker in Texas House District 63 is running opposed by Democrat Laura Haines. Tan Parker is also running for Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. In his 2016 reelection, Parker ran unopposed. He has served as a state representative since 2006. In the last regular legislative session, Parker co-authored HB 10, which passed and now ensures

Texas Distr ict 65 By CEL ESTE GRACI A

Incumbent Republican Ron Simmons in Texas House District 65 is running against Democratic candidate Michelle Beckley. Simmons has served in this position since 2013. According to his website, he supports pro-life legislation and wants to improve public education while making higher education more affordable. He also wants to promote jobs and a strong economy and stop illegal immigration. In the 2017 special legislative session, Simmons wrote the two house ?bathroom bills? - HB 46 and HB 50, requiring transgender people using public bathrooms according to their gender assigned at birth. Simmons called it a common sense solution. Simmons filed HB 253 in the special session, which

Wednesday, October 24, 2018 ?

a path to citizenship for Dreamers, immigrants under DACA. She says she will protect programs like Social Security and Medicaid. The Denton Record Chronicle reports one of Fagan?s top priorities is to reduce the influence of corporate campaign donations on the political process. ?Where Republicans and

Democrats can disagree on a lot of things, we can certainly in a lot more cases come to some common ground if there wasn?t as much corporate money involved,? Fagan told the DRC. ?I know that I have more work cut out for me.? Fagan has been endorsed by Moms Demand Action, Texas Young Democrats and Our Revolution Texas.

sciences with a focus in psychology, behavioral analysis and social work. Before 2016, Haines said

she voted Republican, even having voted for incumbent Parker.

or emailing,? Beckley said. ?We [didn?t] have a democratic infrastructure so we have had to build it.? When asked why she was running for this specific position, she said she felt like she is in a good position to do so. ?I feel like state representative is where I belong,? Beckley said. ?My business is stable and established.? She wants to focus on efforts toward expanding Medicaid. She said she hears

from voters how healthcare is a common concern. She also wants to improve the public education system, saying Texas should have more public colleges. ?What?s important to me is that everybody has healthcare and everybody can get an education,? Beckley said. Beckley has received endorsements from Mom Demands Action, Planned Parenthood Texas Votes and Texas Democratic Women.

469-322-4265 ? LewisvilleTexan.org

Education

L I SD discusses details in rezoning proposals Continued fr om P1

12. Of the Saturday meetings, the Hedrick one was broadly attended, but the Lewisville and Central meetings saw sparse attendance. The Monday night meeting at Central was more crowded. On Saturday, almost none of the attendees spoke English. Spanish translators were on-hand, as was a Chin translator at Hedrick. At the Hedrick Elementary meeting, Coburn introduced the issue at hand. Under the proposal, Hedrick students would be split between Degan, Vickery and Parkway elementary schools, although some students may need to be sent elsewhere still in order to accommodate their language needs. ?Back in May of 2017, a little more than 62 percent of our voters in Lewisville ISD supported a bond package that included an opportunity to build a brand new middle school to serve the Hedrick community,? he said. ?Part of the construction of the new middle school meant the retiring of Hedrick Elementary School and an opportunity to use nearby campuses to be able to be sure that we provide a great education and services to everybody at Hedrick Elementary and that they would come back to a brand new shiny middle school.? Coburn said the proposed plan would send a little more than 100 Hedrick students to Degan, a little more than 125 to Parkway and between 250-300 to Vickery. He said nearby Garden Ridge and Forest Vista elementary schools were considered, but keeping

feeder patterns pure ? in other words, making sure that all students going to the same elementary schools were zoned to go to the same middle and high schools, such that the same group of students stays together through its entire education ? was important to the board, and those schools are zoned for Flower Mound High School instead of Lewisville. Hedrick Elementary offers several special services to its population that are unique across the school district, and the board and LISD administration has repeatedly emphasized throughout the process that those services will be implemented at whatever schools Hedrick students are rezoned to. Coburn said that process is already underway. In a follow-up email, he said the district is partnering with national non-profit Communities in Schools to make that happen. The most common question among attendees is what would happen to current Hedrick students who, like the vast majority of the meeting?s attendees, do not speak English and would not be ready for an English-only classroom. Coburn said that bilingual education services would also follow the students that need them, but that may mean going to yet another different school, one that they will not be zoned for even under the current proposal. Coburn said the district would provide busses in these cases. ?We are prepared to make sure that those services continue for all of our students. We do not currently have that program at Degan

Dozens of parents, almost none of whom speak English, attend a meeting at Hedr ick Elementar y detailing how the school's population will be rezoned Oct. 20. (Photo by L eopold K nopp)

Elementary School, so we are looking at some of the other very nearby schools that we have to make sure that we provide that service. We?re finalizing those numbers right now to make sure that we got those students in the very best possible place, and that information will be shared very shortly,? he said. ?If it is in a zone that is different from the zone you live in, transportation will definitely be provided to that school if we have to ask you to go to a different school in another zone.? Coburn said in his follow-up email that details on this plan, including how many students would need to be bussed and where they would be bussed to, will be provided at the Nov. 12 board meeting where a vote on the overall proposal is expected. The Oct. 20 meetings at Lewisville and Central

elementary schools were much more sparsely populated, though the Oct. 22 night meeting at Central was a much fuller crowd according to Facebook posts from board member Jenny Proznik. At Lewisville Elementary, Coburn said the new school on Mill Street, which has not yet been named, would relieve capacity issues in Old Town. The new school will have a capacity of 400 more students than College Street Elementary, which it replaces. Capacity for College Street Elementary is just 280 students, as opposed to 915 at Central Elementary. At the Sept. 24 meeting where these maps were first discussed, Coburn said there are students who can literally throw a rock from their backyard and hit College Street, but are zoned for Central because the schools? capacities are so disparate.

Lewisville Elementary also projects to exceed its capacity in the short-term future, which the zoning proposal should avoid. A triangle of apartment complexes bordered by Business 121 to the west, I-35E to the north and east and Southeast Parkway to the south is being rezoned from Lewisville to Central Elementary as part of the proposal. Coburn addressed how grandfathering, or remaining at a school a student has been zoned away from, will work under the proposal. Students in the tract being rezoned for Central who are entering fourth or fifth grade next year, as well as any younger siblings, will be guaranteed the right to remain at Lewisville Elementary, but that the district will not provide transportation across Business-121. Other students may apply for a transfer to remain at Lewisville, but that transfer will not be guaranteed. Meetings on the rezoning proposals, where the public may ask questions directly to Coburn and superintendent Kevin Rogers and at which LISD trustees will be present, will continue right up until the vote. A final meeting on the College Street/Central/Lewisville rezoning plan is scheduled for 6 p.m. Oct. 25 at College Street Elementary, and two more meetings on the Hedrick rezoning plan are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Oct. 29 at Vickery Elementary and 6:30 p.m. Nov. 1 at Parkway Elementary. The board is expected to vote on these zoning plans at its next regular meeting Nov. 12.

Sever al students and parents attend a meeting at Centr al Elementar y Oct. 22. (Photo cour tesy boar d member Jenny Proznik)

The Lewisville Texan Journal

Please share, reuse or recycle after reading

News

L I SD discusses online cour ses, restor ative discipline Continued fr om P1

free. Courses purchased through the statewide Texas Virtual Schools Network can cost upward of $300 to enroll in. Henry said 87 other charter schools and school districts across Texas use LISD-designed courses. Henry said students who took online courses were performing better in the relevant subject, but were less likely to take AP tests. Fitzhugh said LISD students were surveyed as to why they signed up for the online courses. 35 percent of students said they wanted to work more on their own time, and 28 percent wanted to open up their schedule, which Fitzhugh said was in line with the primary reasons for why the virtual learning academy was created. The main hole in the program was awareness. The courses are open to LISD high school and middle school students ? though

only high-school level courses are offered ? Henry and Bigenho say enrollment is low, particularly at Hebron High School. Fitzhugh questioned whether or not students were fully aware that the courses were available to them. Board member Jenny Proznik said firmly that they were not. ?My daughter was there four years, I never knew it was available to her there while she was there,? Proznik said. ?I knew about it, I?ll be blunt, because I was on the board and I had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Henry.? Bigenho said that the next steps for the academy would be to expand its course catalogue further, particularly with courses in Spanish and other languages, and hopefully prepare to offer a full-time online credit option in the future. Superintendent Kevin Rogers said offering online courses is an essential job for

the district. ?This is their better way of learning for some kids,? Rogers said. ?And we know that in their future, they?ll be asked to learn this way whether its at college for for other venues.? Restorative Discipline The board also heard an update on its restorative discipline practices from student services director Rebecca Clark. Restorative discipline practices were adopted by the district two years ago in order to add more options to deal with poor behavior. The practices involve talking through behavior with students with a greater emphasis on understanding rule violations than simply punishing them. Clark emphasized repeatedly that restorative discipline is not intended as a replacement for traditional methods, and includes several proactive methods of community building and framing rule-breaking

behavior as an act of disrespect toward that community. The methods she discussed included talking over how poor behavior affected peers and agreement on a classroom behavior contract, a sort of covenant between the students themselves on how they treat each other. Clark also discussed some teachers involving a special greeting at the start of class to put students in the particular frame of mind associated with that class. These ranged from special high-fives given to every student as they walk in to handing out awful puns to every student and seeing who could perform them the most creatively at the beginning of class. Clark said this sort of community building, making students feel like they?re a part of a community that they don?t want to disrespect, is the core of restorative discipline. She

said that while the practices are not a magic wand and do not replace traditional discipline methods, they work much better for some students. ?We know that students have to feel part of a community, otherwise they?re not going to engage in the way we want,? Clark said. ?If we have a kid, and you?ve suspended him five times, and nothing has changed, what is that sixth time going to do?? Board member Katherine Sells said discipline practices that focus on reminding students that they?re all on the same team are vital. ?I?m not in favor of anything that tears down our kids,? she said. ?For whatever reason, education kind of swung to the pendulum of zero tolerance being so non-tolerant that we allowed our kids to believe that it was us against them in some manners.?

Police ar rest man who made false 911 calls, high school threat Continued fr om P1

The latter call resulted in a large police response and panic by some students and parents, campus lock-down and thorough search. Responding officers in each case determined it was a

hoax. According to a press release from Lewisville Police Department Saturday, police officers and dispatchers investigated the recent false calls, and were able to identify and locate the suspect.

According to the arrest blotter, Garrison Anthony Ware, 18, was arrested Friday night and charged with false alarm. He is held in Lewisville Jail in lieu of $7,500 bond. Detectives served a search warrant to Ware?s

house, where they recovered several phones they say were linked to the calls. LPD says Ware confessed to the calls, and told them there were never any students with guns at the campus. Gar r ison Anthony Ware, 18, was ar rested on char ges of making a false repor t to 911.

Repor ts of L ewisville High School shooter likely a hoax October 19, 2018 By L EOPOL D K NOPP

Lewisville High School, both main and Harmon campuses, were put on lockdown this morning when police received a phone call claiming someone had brought a gun to the school. Police quickly determined the threat was a hoax and are investigating the source of the call.

LPD Capt. Jesse Hunter said the call came from a dead phone, and that tracing it will be difficult, requiring a series of subpoenas and warrants. The incident remains under investigation. Hunter?s report has not been completed, but there are several laws the unknown caller could be running up against, including laws against making a false

police report, a class B misdemeanor, and making terroristic threats, which is a third degree felony. Hunter noted that in Texas, even exhibiting or threatening to exhibit a firearm on school grounds constitutes a third degree felony, though police have decided they will not invoke that law in this case. This is at least the third time this year that fears have

been stoked about a shooting at an LISD school. Attendance at Marcus High School was at less than 60 percent Feb. 15 and 16 when threats of a shooter circulated on social media, and a Lewisville High School student was said to have threatened to shoot classmate in March. Anxiety about school shootings has been acute after the Feb. 14

shooting in Parkland County, Florida and the April shooting in Santa Fe, Texas. Lewisville ISD has taken specific steps to address school safety, even assembling a school safety task force which met over the past two months. Policy decisions affected by that task force may be coming soon.

Rains push sever al L ewisville events indoor s, to later dates October 19, 2018 By L EOPOL D K NOPP

In addition to several recently cancelled events, the annual Spooktacular Trails and Glow Run and Battle of the Badge events are being pushed back due to the rains of the past two weeks. The first two Rocktober concerts, the Lewisville High School Homecoming parade and the Shared Table charity event were all either cancelled or moved indoors, and several events have been pushed

back this weekend. Now, the Battle of the Badge fundraising softball tournament and Keep Lewisville Beautiful?s make-a-difference day event, both initially scheduled for tomorrow Oct. 20, have been moved off that date and next weekend?s spooktacular glow run has been moved indoors. The 16th Battle of the Badge softball tournament, in which police and fire teams from across North Texas will meet at Lone Star Toyota of Lewisville

Railroad Park for a charity tournament benefiting the Children?s Advocacy Center of Denton County, will now be held Nov. 17. The opening ceremony is scheduled for 7:30 a.m., and Lewisville?s own fire and police departments are scheduled to square off at 7:45. Teams from as far away as Garland and Arlington are scheduled to compete. The annual Spooktacular Trails Glow Run is still scheduled for Oct. 27, but it

Wednesday, October 24, 2018 ?

will move indoors to the Frederick P. Herring Recreation Center, 191 Civic Circle Drive, with the Glow 5K and Monster Mile runs both cancelled, as well as the haunted hayride. A haunted house, carnival games, trick-or-treat trail and costume contest will go on as scheduled from 5 to 10 p.m. Keep Lewisville Beautiful?s make-a-difference day has not yet been rescheduled.

469-322-4265 ? LewisvilleTexan.org

The area r adar for Oct. 8. L ewisville has exper ienced consistent r ains since the cold front came in. (I mage cour tesy NOAA)

Photos

Br uno M ar s tr ibute band Uptown Funk played Tuesday night to a big cr owd at Wayne Ferguson Plaza. The fr ee concer t was par t of the city's Rocktober ser ies. The pr evious concer ts have been cancelled or moved indoor s due to r ecent rains (Photos by Steve Southwell)

The Lewisville Texan Journal

Please share, reuse or recycle after reading