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TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES
Zika prevention strategy unaltered Recent Florida cases won’t change state officials plans By Madeline Conway and Edgar Walters TH E TEXAS T RI BUNE
News that four people in South Florida likely caught the Zika virus from mosquito bites presented a new milestone for the disease in the continental United States, where previous cases had been related to international travel.
But in Texas, health officials aren't sounding new alarms. They say they’ve been anticipating and preparing for local Zika transmission — and that the news does not change their plans. “This is exactly what we’ve been on alert for in Texas,” Carrie Williams, a spokeswoman for the Texas Department of State Health Services, said via
email. “We have a strong plan in place, and we’ve been blanketing the state with information about how people can protect themselves.” Williams said if mosquito-tohuman transmission of the virus begins in Texas — a scenario that public health officials have said is likely to happen on a small scale — the state will quickly announce where the geographic risk areas are. So far, there is no evidence of local transmission in Texas. “Our central focus is ultimately protecting unborn babies from Zika and the damage
MEXICO
it can do, and we’ll move fast to protect people if we detect local transmission here,” Williams said. There have been 84 reported cases of Zika in Texas to date, and all are related to overseas travel in areas with active transmission of the virus. In one case, a man who had contracted the disease abroad transmitted it sexually to a man in Dallas County. Researchers have linked the Zika virus in pregnant women to microcephaly, a condition causing babies to be born with abnormally small brains and
skulls. A small proportion of Zika infections may also trigger Guillain-Barré syndrome, an illness that targets the nervous system, scientists say. William Schaffner, the chairman of the preventive medicine department at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said the Florida news confirms what health experts had “all anticipated,” given that “we can’t put up a wall to keep Zika out.” Schaffner described the response in Florida as “prompt and comprehensive” and warned against panic. “The Zika continues on A12
WORLD RECORD ATTEMPT
FLYING HIGH OVER TEXAS Glider began in Zapata SPECIAL TO THE TIME S Hector Guerrero / Getty Images
Mexico's Federal police members stand guard outside the federal maximum security prison.
Drug lord ordered to house arrest By Peter Orsi A S S OCIAT E D PRE SS
MEXICO CITY — Drug lord Ernesto “Don Neto” Fonseca Carrillo, who was convicted in the 1985 killing of a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent, was transferred from prison to house arrest Thursday to serve out the remainder of his sentence. The 86-year-old co-founder of the Guadalajara Cartel was taken overnight to a house in Mexico State, which borders the capital, and was entrusted to the care of his wife, federal prisons chief Eduardo Guerrero said in comments broadcast by the Televisa network. Guerrero said Fonseca will be required to wear an electronic bracelet and the home will have four guards posted around the clock, as well as closed-circuit cameras monitoring the perimeter. He said officials fought for over a year to keep Fonseca in prison but ultimately had to obey a judge’s order of house arrest. “From the government’s perspective, we believe it is not right that someone who did so much damage to this country is today serving the end of this sentence on the outside. ... He did a lot of damage to society and he should still be, according to all the studies, inside a federal prison,” Guerrero said. The prisons chief added that authorities made various security checks at the house including ensuring there was no tunnel through which Fonseca could potentially escape. Fonseca, who was convicted in the 1985 kidnapping, torture and murder of DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, has nearly 10 years remaining on his 40-year sentence. His family successfully petitioned a judge to grant him house arrest for the remainder due to his poor health and advanced age. “We exhausted all legal recourses we had at our disposition to prevent Ernesto Fonseca from getting out,” said Guerrero, adding that he had no knowledge of whether Fonseca may still be dangerous or involved in a criminal organization. Yoanna Fonseca, “Don Neto’s” daughter, said Arrest continues on A12
Michael Clark / Red Bull Content Pool
Professional hand glider Jonny Durand took to the skies of west Texas to break the world record for longest open distance flight, starting in Zapata, Texas on June 23.
Several weeks ago professional hang glider Jonny Durand took to the skies of West Texas to break the world record for longest open distance flight. The Australian had the goal of flying for nearly the entire length of the Lone Star State from south to north. After several attempts during consistently unfavorable weather conditions, Jonny had to abort the World Record attempt after a still-impressive final flight of 9.5 hours in the air and 302 miles traveled, short of his 475-mile goal. The 35-year-old glider knew breaking the record would be a tall order. Unlike many other world records where conditions are static, this particular record attempt had enough atmospheric variables to make a meteorologist’s head spin. When taking into account all factors, Mother Nature would’ve had to cooperate with near-perfect conditions to make the day-long Flying continues on A12
CRYSTAL CITY, TEXAS
Brothers plead guilty to bribery By John MacCormack SAN ANTONIO EXPRE SS-NEWS
Former City Council members Roel and Rogelio Mata became the latest Crystal City defendants to plead guilty to federal charges stemming from a three-year investigation of public corruption. The brothers were among six people indicted early this year as FBI agents conducted a predawn raid on the city, 130 miles south of San Antonio, making arrests and seizing city documents. Roel, 44, and Rogelio, 43, pleaded guilty in federal court in Del Rio Thursday to one count each of bribery. Sentencing has not
Rogelio Mata
been set. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison plus fines and monetary judg-
ments. According to the U.S. attorney’s office, the defendants admitted using their official positions to enrich themselves by soliciting and accepting cash bribes from people seeking to do business in Crystal City. In June, Ngoc Tri Nguyen, a North Texas businessman who operated an eight-liner parlor in Crystal City, pleaded guilty to bribing a city official in
exchange for favors. He is set to be sentenced in November. The relatRoel ed cases of Mata three other former city officials, Mayor Ricardo Lopez, City Manager James Jonas III and Councilman Gilbert Urrabazo, remain unresolved. The central figure in the corruption case is Jonas, who was charged with one count of conspiracy and three counts of bribery. Jonas was a down-on-his luck lobbyist when he surfaced in Crystal City in 2012 as its new city attorney. He later also became city man-
ager, earning $216,000 a year and deep resentment in the low-income city of 7,500 residents. Each of the other city officials was charged with a single count of conspiracy and a single county of bribery. Their arrests in February and subsequent ousters from the council ended a long-running political crisis in Crystal City. Since then, residents have elected a new mayor and three new council members. Urrabazo is set to appear before U.S. District Judge Alia Moses on Aug. 25, apparently to make a plea, while Jonas and Lopez are set for trial on Nov. 15 in Del Rio.