Wednesday, October 26, 2016 TEXAS—Report: In this file photo, a Texas State Trooper is shown sitting in his vehicle in Eldorado, Texas. Drivers in Texas busted for drunken driving, not paying child support or low-level drug offenses are among thousands of “high-threat” criminal arrests that officials have touted in defense of a nearly $1 billion mission to secure the border with Mexico, an Associated Press analysis has found. Having once claimed that conventional crime data doesn’t fully capture the dangers to public safety and homeland security, the Texas Department of Public Safety classified more than 1,800 offenders arrested near the border by highway troopers in 2015 as “high threat criminals.” But not all live up to that menacing label or were anywhere close to the border. In response to the AP’s findings, the Department of Public Safety said it will recommend removing child support evaders from the “high threat” list and signaled a willingness to stop classifying other arrests as “high threat.” However, it defended the data overall, saying it isn’t intended to measure border security, even though the figures are included in briefings to lawmakers. “It’s deceptive to say the least,” Democratic state Rep. Terry Canales, from the border city of Edinburg, said of the data. “I would say it’s shocking that a person arrested with a small amount of cocaine in Odessa is used to show supposedly high-threat criminal arrests on the Texas-Mexico border.” CALIFORNIA—A horrific crash Sunday morning in California left 13 people dead and dozens more injured after a tour bus collided with a semi-truck. The accident occurred at 5:17 a.m. in the westbound
lanes of the 10 Freeway at Indian Canyon in the Desert Hot Springs area. The big rig driver, hauling food products, had only moderate injuries and police said he reported feeling “a thump in the back, but that’s all he really knew.” “The speed of the bus was so significant that when it hit the back of the big-rig trailer, the trailer itself entered about 15 feet into the bus,” California Highway Patrol Border Division Chief Jim Abele said during a Sunday
Hill Country Herald Page 13
By Elaine Padgett Carnegie
afternoon news conference. “So you can see there was a substantial impact.” All 44 people on board the bus were believed to be adults, said Abele, who wouldn’t say if officials expected the death toll to rise. “By the grace of God nobody else will pass away,” he said. No cause of the crash was immediately identified, but Abele said many modern buses had “some kind of black box” that might aid authorities. Any influence of drugs, alcohol or driver fatigue had not been ruled out. MOSUL—Kurdish forces have carried out new attacks on positions of so-called Islamic State (IS) in northern Iraq to retake the town of Bashiqa, near Mosul. Kurdish Peshmerga commanders said they made large advances into IS territory and secured part of a highway that will limit IS’s freedom of movement. Turkey joined the fight against IS on Sunday, directing artillery fire at jihadist positions in Bashiqa. The Iraqi PM had rejected an offer of Turkish involvement on Saturday. Kurdish fighters killed dozens of IS militants, cordoned off eight villages and blocked IS’s ability to supply Mosul with reinforcements. The top US commander in Iraq, Lt Gen Stephen Townsend, told reporters there had been “considerable success” in Bashiqa on Sunday. But he cautioned: “I have not received a report that says every house has been cleared, every Daesh [IS fighter] has been killed and every IED [roadside bomb] has been removed.” Journalists have not yet been allowed into the town. CLINTON—Hillary Clinton has vaulted to a double-digit advantage in the inaugural ABC News 2016 election tracking poll,
boosted by broad disapproval of Donald Trump on two controversial issues: His treatment of women and his reluctance to endorse the election’s legitimacy. Likely voters by a vast 69-24 percent disapprove of Trump’s response to questions about his treatment of women. After a series of allegations of past sexual misconduct, the poll finds that some women who’d initially given him the benefit of the doubt have since moved away. PORT AUPRINCE (AFP) - At least 100 inmates, some of them armed, escaped a Haitian prison near the capital Port-au-Prince during a mutiny, killing at least one guard, a source close to the investigation said Sunday. Local media, citing police, said 172 prisoners had fled the Arcahaie facility, located on the coast northwest of the capital Port-au-Prince. A preliminary investigation indicates a guard forgot to lock a door Saturday as the inmates were eating. The prisoners left the cafeteria and armed themselves with police weapons, the source said on condition of anonymity. The US Government is warning Americans to avoid the area. SCIENCE & TECH-Archaeologists say they’ve found evidence of a battlefield from the Roman emperor Titus’ siege of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Recent excavations revealed a section of the so-called “Third Wall” of Jerusalem that Titus’ army breached on its way to conquering the city, according to the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA). Outside the wall, the archaeologists found that the ground was littered with large ballista stones (stones used as projectiles with a type of crossbow) and sling stones, suggesting that this area had been under heavy fire from Roman siege engines. TRUMP-The Clinton campaign’s recent attacks on Donald Trump for his comments about a beauty queen’s weight problems were months in the making, according to an opposition research report uncovered in emails released by WikiLeaks on Sunday. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton invoked those comments during the first presidential debate on Sept. 26. Near the end of the showdown, Clinton cited the case of Miss Universe 1996 Alicia Machado. WikiLeaks Trump responded: “Where did you find this?” The answer is: in a 157page opposition research file that Clinton’s campaign had been using since at least Dec. 19, 2015, the day research director Tony Carrk emailed it – and research files on Sens. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio – to Clinton Campaign Chairman John Podesta. Podesta’s emails were subsequently hacked and more than 25,000 of them have been released so far by anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks.
Quail Season Begins October 29 Quail season opens statewide on October 29 and ends February 26, 2017. The daily bag limit for bobwhite, scaled (blue) and Gambel’s quail is 15, and the possession limit is 45. Legal shooting hours for all quail are 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset. A Perfect Storm of Quail This year, excellent range conditions, insect crop and nesting cover have come together to create a perfect storm of quail in some areas of the state. Forecasts by region: Rolling Plains: Exceptional, highest survey numbers ever recorded Trans Pecos: Exceptional, highest survey numbers ever recorded South Texas Plains: Very Good, mixed reports Gulf Prairies: Below Average, populations affected by rainfall If you want to take advantage of this quail boom, but aren’t sure exactly where to go, check out the Public Hunting Lands. One million acres is available for your use with a $48 permit. Search by area and game animal, use the interactive map for hunt area information, then head out on your quail hunting adventure in a new locale. What You’ll Need You should carry 3 things when you hunt quail in Texas: proof of Hunter Education, a valid hunting license and an Upland Game Bird Endorsement. Every hunter, including those from out-of-
state, born after Sept. 2, 1971, must carry proof of Hunter Education on their person while hunting. If you’ve misplaced your certification card, go online and print a replacement for free. You can also purchase your license and endorsement online. Your purchases go toward supporting the wildlife and habitat management that help to create these boom seasons. Taking Action for Quail Conservation Texas is considered one of the best places in the country to hunt quail. But quail management has its challenges, and the help of landowners is critical. Bobwhite quail have all but disappeared from some regions of our state due to changes in available grassland habitat. But we’ve been working successfully with landowners and conservation partners to prove that, with the right conditions, a bob-
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white comeback is possible. We’ve learned that when supplied with good habitat, quail will capitalize on it and fill it up. And if quail habitat needs can be met on a large enough scale, bobwhite restoration is possible. Safety: Bird Dogs in the Field If you’re hunting with bird dogs in your party, congratulations! Hunting with dogs is an ageless tradition, and it’s awe-inspiring to watch them work. To keep the bird dogs safe (and the rest of your hunting party too), everyone must establish a safe zoneof-fire which takes the dogs into account, and stick to it. When you’re hunting quail, this is especially important because quail will flush in unpredictable directions. So take special care not to shoot directly over the dogs. Putting a blaze orange vest, tail tape or collar on your bird dog can also help keep it safe by making the dog easier to see, and thus out of the sights of a gun.
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