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VOL 6 No. 51
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2013
P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land
THE ELVES AT SANTA’S EXCHANGE. Santa’s Exchange was a huge success thanks to Co-chairs Farha Ahmed and Kevin Barker, and Carolyn Tarver from Project S.M.I.L.E. Santa’s Exchange has been going on since 1995. It began with Carolyn Tarver who started Project S.M.I.L.E. (Stan’s Memory Includes Loving Everyone) after her teenage son was killed in an accident. She wanted to spread cheer to needy families at Christmas time. The Exchange Club of Sugar Land and Sugar Land Rotary have been helping her provide gifts to thousands of children for 18 years. The clubs partnered with Toys for Tots and were able to serve over 5,000 children this year. Parents in need were sent invitations to visit Santa’s Exchange and “shop” for three new toys for each child. The kids had a chance to sit on Santa’s lap and “elves” entertained them with crafts and games. Hundreds of volunteers from local community service clubs, high schools, boy scouts and churches assisted on the day of the project. Photo by Ed Lee.
Deputies find lost dogs, return them to their owner Two Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office deputies did their best in taking care of two county residents earlier this month, but the residents weren’t people, they were dogs. On the afternoon of Thursday, Dec. 5, Patrol Deputy David Connolly was patrolling in the Grand Lakes subdivision in the Katy area when he came upon two dogs. Connolly trailed the dogs for a bit and then, for assistance, called Deputy Tamica Humphrey, who was in the vicinity. The deputies were able to lure the two dogs into a patrol car using tortillas. Then, they drove around the area, knocking on doors to see if they could find the owners of one pit bull and a German Shep-
herd. When that strategy fell short, they drove the dogs over to the nearby Pet Medical Center of Katy, and asked if they would scan the dogs for microchips. The deputies and the dogs hit paydirt. Anna Ortiz, a veterinarian technician at the clinic, conducted the scan and quickly found the dogs’ owner. Armed with a name, an address and contact number, the deputies drove the dogs home for a reunion with a relieved owner. “She was happy to have her dogs back home,” said Humphrey. “She wasn’t sure how they got out.” “The pit bull was very friendly,” said Connolly, “but the German Shepherd wasn’t
Pryor shower
real sure about us.” Fortunately, both of the dogs liked tortillas and they had no problem in hopping into a Sheriff’s Office cruiser. “Our deputies exhibited an excellent example of judgment and community service. Instead of immediately driving the dogs to Animal Services, they went beyond the call of duty in finding the owner and delivering the two dogs safely to their home,” said Sheriff Troy E. Nehls. “It’s a great story, particularly for the holiday season.” Humphrey and Connolly are both veterans with the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office. Humphrey has been with the Sheriff’s Office for 5 ½ years Featured (L to R): (Standing) Mary Gayle Brindley, Girl Scouts of San Jacinto Council CEO and Connolly has been with Mary Vitek, Billie Wendt, Ragan Richardson, Dawne Proffitt, Dee Koch, Stacy Methvin and Rothe S.O. for four years. berta Terrell. (Seated) Vona Morefield, Vicki Ward and Sandra Billingsley. A Fort Bend honorary camping crew hosted a Girl Scouts of San Jacinto (GSSJC) Council camp shower in November for the expansion of GSSJC’s Camp Myra S. Pryor located near El Campo, Texas. Proceeds from the shower will be used to purchase camp necessities, including tables and chairs for classrooms and a new auditorium. GSSJC is in the process of raising more than $10 million to complete expansion projects for the 277-acre property that will be home to progressive boating instruction, an equitation program, archery and a 1,000 square foot nature observatory overlooking the Colorado River. A ribbon cutting ceremony for the first phase of Camp Pryor’s expansion, The Ranch Site, is planned for late January. To read more about Camp Pryor’s expansion, visit www.gssjc.org.
Arrest in Italy for child pornography leads to Sugar Land man
Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office Deputies Tamica Humphrey, left, and David Connolly are shown with the dogs they found and returned safely to their owner.
Handful of races contested in the March party primary elections By SESHADRI KUMAR A handful of local races in the Republican Party are contested in the March primary elections, while Democrats have fielded candidates to nearly all positions in the November general elections. In the local Republican primary, for the open County Court at law No. 1 seat, Chris Morales, Rick Forlano and Maggie Jaramillo have filed. Incumbent Bud Childers is not seeking re-election. Warren Diepraam of Sugar Land has filed for County Court at Law Judge No. 4. The incumbent Republican is Judge Sandy Bielstein.
District Attorney John Healey has drawn an opponent in Dawn Zell Wright of Richmond in the Republican primary. Incumbent District Clerk Annie Rebecca Elliott faces Candace Cagle of Richmond in the Republican primary. Incumbent Justice of the Peace Precinct 1, Place 2, Republican Mary S. Ward faces Billy Guerrero III in the party primary. Derek A. Anthony of Richmond has filed in the Republican primary for State Senator Dist. 17. The incumbent Republican is Joan Huffman. In the State Board of Educa-
tion Dist. 7, incumbent David Bradley faces Rita Ashley in the Republican primary. On the Democratic Party side, Frank Briscoe of Richmond and Mark Gibson of Missouri City have filed for U.S. Congress Dist. 22. The winner will face incumbent Republican Pete Olson. Fort Bend County Democratic Party Chair Steve Brown has filed for Railroad Commissioner. Another Democrat in this race is Dale Henry of Lampasas. Incumbent Justice of the Peace, Pct. 2 Joel Clouser is opposed by Tanisha Green. See PRIMARY, Page 3
Authorities in Italy arrested a man there who had received child pornography via the internet from the United States. The investigation into the domestic case by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office traced the source of the images to D.J. Lowe’s residence in Sugar Land. When officers executed a search warrant at the defendant’s residence, they discovered computers and photographic equipment containing many images and/or videos of child pornography. The victims, ranging in age between two and ten years old, were identified by officers and interviewed at the Fort Bend County Children’s Advocacy Center. “To save one child from continued child abuse was worth the effort,” said Fort Bend County District Attorney John Healey, as he got word that 400th District Court Judge Clifford J. Vacek sentenced D.J. Lowe to 75 years in prison for aggravated sexual assault of a child at Lowe’s residence in 2010. The 39-year-old Sugar Land man plead guilty to the indict-
Lowe ment in August, but asked the court to decide his fate at a hearing on Dec. 6. According to Assistant District Attorney Michael Hartman, this case began as a child pornography investigation which uncovered the manufacture of child pornography in Sugar Land, the international distribution of child pornography, and the aggravated sexual assault of child. “Studies show that a high percentage of offenders that collect child pornography have sexually abused children as well,” said Hartman, “which is why it is so important to investigate beyond
the initial pornography we discover. It can happen anywhere and you never know how many victims you will find or how extensive the network of pornography is.” “This conviction was a result of the collaborative efforts of the Italian authorities, the FBI, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, the Sugar Land Police Department, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office,” said Hartman, “and everyone would agree that the tremendous efforts to investigate this case were worth it.” Lowe was prosecuted locally for the Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child, a first-degree felony, which carries the punishment range of 5-99 years or life in prison. Lowe also plead guilty in federal court to the Sexual Exploitation of Children, Distribution of Child Pornography and Possession of Child Pornography for which he was sentenced to 540 months in federal prison. The sentences will run concurrently. Attorney Mark Racer represented the defendant.