20170420 tmt 00 a 001 a by Carlina Villalpando

THURSDAY APRIL 20, 2017 JOIN THE CONVERSATION

TYLERPAPER.COM

VOLUME 88, ISSUE 110: $1.00

TYLER | SLIGHT INCREASE

Police department releases 2016 crime statistics Increased reports of violent crimes, robberies, DUIs in Tyler AUGUSTA ROBINSON

augustarobinson@tylerpaper.com

The number of crimes reported in Tyler increased slightly in 2016 compared to the previous year, in part because of a rise in reported robberies, illegal drug violations and driving under the influence reports. The Tyler Police Department

released its annual crime statistics Wednesday. The data is divided into two categories, including one that encompasses violent and property crimes and a separate category for all other crimes combined. The total number of reported crimes in 2015 was 8,870, compared to 9,143 in 2016, an increase of about 3 percent.

VIOLENT AND PROPERTY CRIMES IN TYLER

According to the report, the number of violent crime reports increased by about 18.7 percent, from 375 reported cases in 2015 to 445 in 2016. The number of property crimes decreased by about 3 percent, from 4,149 cases reported in 2015 to 4,031 in 2016. Tyler Police Chief Jimmy Toler said the department monitors CRIME

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Homicide Sexual Assault Robbery Aggravated Assault Violent Crime total

2012 5 45 93 355 498

2013 6 43 86 344 479

2014 1 43 106 277 427

2015 4 50 66 254 375

2016 5 63 107 267 445

% change +25% +26% +62.12% +5.12% +5.12%

Burglary Theft Auto Theft Property Crime total

986 3337 134 4457

873 3401 204 4491

640 3305 174 4119

668 3271 220 4159

678 3192 161 4031

+1.50% -2.4% -26.82% -3.08%

Overall total

4995

4970

4546

4533

4476

-1.26%

MURDER TRIAL

EDUCATION | CALVARY BAPTIST CHURCH

Deadline for death penalty pursuit today in Kayla case EMILY GUEVARA

eguevara@tylerpaper.com

CHELSEA PURGAHN/STAFF

EMI RUTLEDGE, 11, colors a mandala during art class Monday at the Bridgemark Center in Tyler. Bridgemark Center specializes in education for children with learning disabilities such as dyslexia, dysgraphia and dyscalculia.

Learning Different Tyler’s Bridgemark Center works to bring confidence, results to students with learning disabilites

“DYSLEXIA” By Anna Hall

I am Dyslexic I wonder if I can I hear “you aren’t trying” “try harder” I see jumbled up letters on my page I want to read like the other kids I am Dyslexic

CORY MCCOY

comccoy@tylerpaper.com

I pretend I can I feel I can’t I touch my head and think if I still have a brain

nna Hall’s dyslexia used to make her feel as if she would never be good enough. After just one week at Bridgemark Center, the 11-year-old already felt her confidence improving. Bridgemark specializes in reaching students with dyslexia, dysgraphia and dyscalculia. The school is modeled after the Shelton School in Dallas, a pioneer in teaching students with learning disabilities. Bridgemark operates under Calvary Baptist Church, much like an arm of the church’s ministry, Executive Director Jaime Warren said. Warren said Bridgemark began when she and Wendy Baker saw a need schools simply weren’t able to fill. They needed to find a way to bring students into a low-stress environment where they didn’t feel inadequate. Every instructor at Bridgemark is trained to teach students with learning disabilities. A day in the life of students at Bridgemark starts with SCHOOL

I worry I’m not gonna ever read I cry when I feel dumb I am Dyslexic I understand I learn diﬀerently I say I can do it I dream I read like a pro I try thinking of things I can do when I feel frustrated I hope I go to a good college I am Dyslexic

If the prosecution wants to seek the death penalty in its case against the man accused of killing 10-yearold Kayla Gomez-Orozco, it must let the court know by Thursday. Gustavo Zavala-Garcia, 24, is charged with capital murder in Kayla’s death. Kayla’s body was found Nov. 5, four days after she went missing, in a well on the property where Zavala-Garcia ZAVALAGARCIA lived in the 22100 block of Farm-to-Market Road 2493 (Old Jacksonville Highway) in Bullard. Zavala-Garcia, who was related to Kayla by marriage, was reportedly among the last people to see her before she went missing from TRIAL

“But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” (1 Corinthians 15:20)

City officials talk free new registry for disaster aid to disabled, elderly FAITH HARPER

fharper@tylerpaper.com

The city of Tyler will begin participating in a statewide initiative to help find elderly and disabled people during disasters. On Wednesday, emergency response personnel from across the county met to discuss the county’s severe weather and tornado response plan. The six-page document is updated annually with input from multiple groups including the Smith County’s Fire Marshal’s Office, Tyler Fire and Police Departments, local hospitals, the Red Cross and Tyler Junior College. Representatives from these agencies and others met in the Rose Garden Center to discuss changes

CHELSEA PURGAHN /STAFF

ANNA HALL smiles as she stands next to a poem she wrote at the Bridgemark Center on Monday in Tyler.

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INSIDE TODAY

OBITUARIES 6A

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PLAN

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