Thursday, July 10, 2014
The
www .spring town-epigr Volume 51, Number 12
Fourth of July
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Next school year holds several rules changes
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Springtown, Texas 76082
Slain toddler found south of Springtown Locals making bridge a memorial for 19-month-old girl By Natalie Gentry A small unassuming bridge on Sarra Lane, located a quarter mile west of Old Agnes Road in Springtown has taken on the tragic moniker of “grave site.” It is in a space under the bridge that 18-month-old Tylea Moore was buried after she was killed by her mother’s boyfriend. Local residents have quietly been tying ribbons and stuffed animals on the bridge in memory of the toddler. According to the Arlington Jail inmate list, Joshua Beard, 20, of Arlington has been charged with capital murder in connection with the death. He was already in the Arlington jail
for unrelated traffic charges. The child’s mother Alexis Botello, 17, has been charged with felony tampering with, or fabricating physical evidence (human corpse) and injury to a child. According to the search warrant affidavit, Botello, 17, told police that after Beard beat the toddler to death he put her body in the trunk of Botello’s car in order to dispose of it. The couple, both graduates of Weatherford High School, then drove to Walmart in Weatherford and bought shovels and gloves. They were looking for a bridge in a remote area when they found the PLEASE SEE BRIDGE, PAGE 2A.
Boy recovering from accidental shooting 13-year-old in good spirits By Natalie Gentry boys removed it from a gun cabinet. The bullet hit Carl in the abdomen. A 13-year-old Springtown boy has The teen was airlifted to Cook Chilspent the last few days at Cook Children’s Hospital in Fort Worth recover- dren’s Hospital where doctors had to ing from a gunshot wound he received repair wounds to his colon. “He had two July 1. punctures in his Carl Davis was small intestines and at his friend’s home two in his large innear Briar in Wise testines,” Tammy County at County Davis said. “The Road 4764 Tuesdoctor said if the day afternoon when bullet had hit even he and his friends a millimeter to the spotted a snake. Tammy Davis right, it would have Tammy Davis, boy’s mother hit a major artery Carl’s mother, said and he’d be dead. the snake had bitten “One of the first things Carl said afa friend’s dog, so Carl and one of his friends went inside to retrieve a gun to ter the surgery is he didn’t want us to file charges. He is worried about his shoot the reptile. According to Wise County investi- friend who has been really upset. He gators, the .22 rifle discharged as the PLEASE SEE 13-YEAR-OLD, PAGE 4A.
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A millimeter to the right...and he’d be dead.”
A small elephant attached to a bridge southwest of town on Sarra Lane is perched above the area where a murdered toddler was buried. Photo by Mark K. Campbell
Making every SISD cent count CFO oversees $25.5 million by mark k. campbell Gary Shaw, Springtown ISD’s chief financial officer (CFO), knows he has a big responsibility. He’s the person who directs the school district’s funds; for the upcoming 2014-15 year, that will mean properly taking care of $25.5 million. Shaw detailed to the Springtown Optimist Club July 8 just how the average dollar is spent annually. By far the biggest chunk of each dollar – 57.5 cents – goes to “Instruction.” That means salaries and benefits
for teachers and aides. Another 1.5 cents goes toward training and curriculum, so that’s 59 cents out of every dollar quickly accounted for. The next greatest expenditure, at 9.4 cents, is maintenance services. Shaw said that could be everything from replacing air-conditioners to parts approval. “There are hundreds of air-conditioner units on district buildings,” Shaw said. Getting children to school takes up
the next biggest chunk of the budget at 6.5 cents. “We give kids rides if it’s too far or there are unsafe conditions,” he said. Keeping the buses running is a substantial expense, Shaw noted. “Campus leadership” – administrative supervisors handling day-today “operational details” – tallies 5.2 cents. Shaw said the 4.8 cent “Utilities” budget has been lowered in recent years. PLEASE SEE CFO, PAGE 4A.
LaJunta Fire
Firefighters from LaJunta, Springtown, and Azle Fire Departments responded to a structure fire call in the 100 block of Canyon Valley Lane July 8 at approximately 7:17 p.m. that resulted in the total loss of the home. While the family was not at the house at the time the fire started, the male homeowner received minor burns and smoke inhalation after he attempted to put it out once they arrived. He was taken by ambulance to Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Azle. One firefighter was treated on the scene for overheating. Preliminary investigation revealed a possible overloaded circuit as the probable cause of the fire. Photo by Natalie Gentry
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