Five stories that have North Texas talking: Tonya Couch is out of jail; an update on the McKinney pool party; remembering David Bowie; and more.
The mother of a Texas teenager who used an "affluenza" defense after killing four people in a drunken wreck has posted a reduced bond and was released from jail Tuesday morning. In a tweet late Monday night, Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson said Tonya Couch had posted $75,000 bond and was expected to be released. She's to be fitted with a GPS monitor. A judge decreased Couch's bond Monday from $1 million to $75,000. She was brought back to Texas last week after being caught with her son, 18-year-old Ethan Couch, in the Mexican resort town of Puerto Vallarta. She's now charged with hindering the apprehension of a felon. [Associated Press]
- If you win the $1.4 billion Powerball jackpot Wednesday night, billionaire Mark Cuban offers some advice. The Dallas Morning News tracked down the Dallas Mavericks owner, who says you should first hire a tax attorney. Don’t take the lump sum. “If you weren’t happy yesterday you won’t be happy tomorrow. It’s money. It’s not happiness.” Read more of his tips.
- The Texas Rangers have completed their investigation of the McKinney pool party. WFAA-TV reports: “The Texas Rangers have completed their investigation into the actions of former McKinney police officer Eric Casebolt. He was seen on video last summer taking down a 15-year-old girl and unholstering his weapon during a neighborhood pool party. The case will now be turned over to the Collin County district attorney. The findings of the Texas Rangers haven't been released.”
- North Texans remembers David Bowie. The rock legend died of cancer. He was 69. North Texans on the music scene share memories of what Bowie means to them. The Dallas Observer looks at five times that Bowie crossed paths with Dallas.
- Houston firefighters rescued two window washers whose cleaning rig became disabled and dangled precariously near the top of the city's highest skyscraper. The 75-story Chase Tower in downtown Houston is just over 1,000 feet tall, making it the tallest building in Texas and one of the tallest in the nation. Crews removed a window that allowed the two men to crawl to safety Monday into an office about five stories from the top of the five-sided structure. The scaffolding rig is against one of the walls of the building and appeared to be tilted at about a 45-degree angle. The fire department says a motor on the washing rig malfunctioned at the 71st floor and the men radioed that they were stuck. No one was hurt. [Associated Press]
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
