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FISHING ORANGE COUNTY

Sports

OUTDOORS

Kaz’s Korner

Capt. Chuck Uzzle

Commentary

Capt. Dickie Colburn Page 1B

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Hunting & Fishing

RELIGION & LOCAL CHURCH GUIDE Page 6B

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The     Record TheRecordLive.com

Vol. 58 No. 6

Distributed FREE To The Citizens of Bridge City and Orangefield

Week of Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Joshua Latham finally heads to prison

Tami Higgenbotham’s family rejoices

n

Debby Schamber For The Record

A hearing on Thursday and Friday for a motion to impose guilt finally has 29-year-old Joshua David Latham, of Mauriceville, going to prison. He was sentenced to the maximum sentence of 20 years and it will run consecutively to his five year term he recently received in Newton County for failure to appear. Although this case was not for the murder of Tami Higgenbotham, 41, of Vinton, her family was elated to see some sort of justice served. Latham’s numerous violations on the terms of his probation for the second degree felony of burglary of habitation caused his probation to be revoked. Latham’s eyes filled with

Latham

tears as Judge Dennis Powell told the defendant the charge was “true” that he knowingly and willingly caused the death of Tami Higgenbo-

Tommy Mann Jr. For The Record

“And we know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

H THE RECORD DIGITAL EDITION ONLINE NOW

TheRecordLive.com

case and handed it to me in a gift box,” Walker said. “This is a day that makes me feel so blessed and humbled to be a prosecutor.” The maximum sentence along with the $10,000 fine said to Walker,” the judge believed in the case.” Staci Robinson, Tami’s sister, said they were finally be-

ing treated in Orange County like “this was a real case.” In Newton County, the district attorney dropped the murder charge and only charged Latham with failure to appear. Defense attorney, Dennis Horn, stated Latham failed to appear for the murder trial because he was “scared” and wanted to “spend more

time with his family.” Latham was discovered three days after he failed to appear by a team of officers behind a residence in Louisiana. He was dressed in camoflauge and covered in mud in a “wooded, swampy” area, according to Texas Ranger Bob-

LATHAM Page 2A

Roccaforte honored, Mott takes pledge

tham. “We were jubilant to hear the judge say that he is guilty of murder,” said Bill Maudlin. ‘We haven’t smiled in three years, but, we can smile now.” Other charges the judge said were true was Latham failed to submit to a urinary analysis as required, did not report to the probation department, left Texas without consent from the probation department among other violations. How-

BCISD to begin band hall project The first of what could be many upgrades and renovations is set to begin soon in the Bridge City Independent School District. The Board of Trustees of the Bridge City Independent School District approved the recommendation to award a $1.2 million project to G&G

ever, the judge did not find the driving while license suspended to be true or the charge of failure to provide a change of address. Orange County District Attorney Krispen Walker said she could not have done so well if it weren’t for her team of investigators. “They worked hard on this

Lintzen

Enterprises Construction Corp. for the renovation of the band hall at Bridge City High School during a school board meeting this past Monday

evening. Todd Lintzen, superintendent of Bridge City ISD, said the band hall has already been cleared and work is set to begin as soon as possible. “The band hall is an instructional venue and it is one that is used every day by middle school and high school students,” Lintzen said. “So, that is why it was important to get started on this project as soon as possible.” Lintzen said permits were being pulled for project on Tuesday and work would begin as quickly as possible. The building was cleared in May in advance of the project being approved and is anticipated to be complete by December. “The students will be displaced during most of the fall, but, fortunately, they do most of their preparation and work outside at that time,” Lintzen said in reference to marching band. “The band students will utilize the old girls gym through the fall while the work is being completed.” Part of the renovation project includes the addition of a Virtual Acoustic Environments (VAE) sound system. The VAE system allows the user to enable the acoustics of their respective rehearsal space to match the acoustics

BCISD Page 2A

Former Bridge City Mayor and current Place 1 councilperson Kirk Roccaforte, at left, was presented a plaque by Mayor David Rutledge during the city council meeting on Tuesday (June 7, 2016). Roccaforte was recognized for his more than 20 years of dedication and service to the community, including 10 years as Mayor from 2006-2016. RECORD PHOTO: Tommy Mann

Kevin Mott, facing camera, takes his oath of office from Bridge City Mayor David Rutledge during Tuesday’s city council meeting. Mott, was appointed to the vacant Place 1 council seat at the May 17 council meeting following the election of Rutledge as Mayor, served on council previously from 2006 to 2015. RECORD PHOTO: Tommy Mann Jr.

BC’s Dorothy Breaux celebrating 90 years Jennifer Clarke For The Record

While the world may have changed significantly over the past nine decades, Dorothy Breaux will celebrate her 90th birthday surrounded by one thing in her life that has been a consistent source of joy and pride: her family. Born in Lacassine, Louisiana, on June 11, 1926, Dorothy and her family moved to Orangefield, Texas when she was nine years old. “My mother’s sister married a man named Granger in Orangefield, and so my family followed her there,” notes Mrs. Breaux. She graduated from Orangefield schools in 1942.

Dorothy Fox married Leroy Breaux, and they moved to Bridge City. Her uncle, a local resident, insisted that she find Breaux a property that was at a high elevation. They found a one room house on Center street. “There was just a division for what was the eating area, and the rest was our bedroom,” Dorothy recalls. She lived there with her husband the entirety of their life together, and her husband built on to the home one room

at a time as their family continued to grow. Once completed, she had a ten room, two bathroom home of which she was exceedingly proud. She remained in the home until Hurricane Ike. She got involved in her community through her husband. He was a Boy Scout leader and a firefighter. Leroy worked with the Bridge City Volunteer Fire Department from the young age of twenty-five. Dorothy helped establish a Ladies Auxiliary for the BCVFD, through which she and other women would provide drinks, towels, and support whenever they were needed. Her biggest joy was “being helpful to the

firemen when they needed it. We took care of fireman,” Dorothy beams. As a volunteer fireman, Leroy Breaux was the town Santa in the Bridge City Christmas parade, and Dorothy Breaux eventually joined him as Mrs. Claus. She and her husband held this special post for many years up until his retirement, at which time her son Don and daughter-in-law Angie took over the position. Together, Dorothy and Leroy Breaux had eight children. Mrs. Breaux delights in her family and enjoys every one of her seventeen grandchildren and twelve great grandchil-

DOROTHY Page 2A

‘Cops and Kids’ cancelled this year Tommy Mann Jr. For The Record

One of the most popular children’s events of summer has been canceled for 2016. The 22nd Annual Cops N Kids Picnic, which was originally set to be held on Friday, June 10, at Claiborne West Park, has been canceled due to recent weather events which have left the park grounds too saturated. “We were reviewing the park earlier (Tuesday) and the grounds are just too wet still,” said Orange County Sheriff

Keith Merritt. “Without a doubt, we would do more damage than good with all of the equipment we have to bring in and the vendors and their equipment.” The Orange County Sheriff’s Office sponsors the event every year, but, according to Merritt, this is the first time during his terms as Sheriff that he has been forced to cancel the event. “We thought about rescheduling the event, but we contacted the weather service to see what the forecast is for the next couple of weeks and it

doesn’t really look any better,” he added. “There’s a lot of rain in the forecast next week and some the week after.” When asked about the option of another location, Merritt said it was temporarily considered. “There really is no other location we could make plans to use in such a short time,” Merritt continued. “We will look at having a backup plan next year to consider an alternate location, but Claiborne West Park really suits our needs the best and is the best place to have this event every

year.” Merritt said safety of all guests, especially the children, was a big concern. “The pond at the park is overflowing from all of the rain we’ve had, and that’s a concern,” Merritt explained. “Another problem is everything is so wet, that snakes and other wildlife are on the move. We just can’t take that chance.” Merritt expects to bring the event back in 2017 and offer the public another fun event.


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