By KERA News & Wire Services
Dallas, TX – Travis County prosecutors are looking into double-billing by a North Texas lawmaker who took taxpayer reimbursements for travel his campaign had already funded.
Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg said her office has begun an initial review into state Rep. Joe Driver's travel expenses. Her office is responsible for ferreting out fraud and corruption in state government.
Driver has said that for years he has been submitting the same receipts - for luxury hotels, airline tickets, meals and fees - to his campaign and to the Texas House of Representatives.
The Garland Republican says any errors were unintentional and he promises to rectify any errors.
Dallas Symphony President Resigns
Douglas Adams has resigned as president of the Dallas Symphony. Adams took the job two years ago, but he's had to commute from Denver because he and his wife have been unable to sell their Colorado home.
Adams told the symphony staff that he will remain as president through Sept. 15 to help with the transition to Paul Stewart, who is currently the symphony's chief operating officer.
Man faces capital murder charge in woman's death
A Texas man accused of kidnapping a woman in College Station, dumping her body in Fort Worth and crashing into a police cruiser has been charged with capital murder.
College Station police say they obtained the warrant Monday night after Stanley Wayne Robinson confessed.
He has been hospitalized in police custody in Fort Worth since the crash, with bond set at $1.5 million. Police say he'll be jailed in College Station after he recovers.
Police say Robinson called his ex-girlfriend Friday and told her he had kidnapped her mother from a College Station store and stabbed her. Early Saturday, Fort Worth police spotted and pursued his vehicle until Robinson crashed into a police car, injuring an officer.
The body of 59-year-old Annie Mae Toliver was later found in a Fort Worth parking lot.
Dallas County Commissioners Reject Tax Hike
Dallas County Commissioners are not raising the tax rate this year. Commissioner Maurine Dickey urged better management instead of higher taxes on the heels of a recession.
Dickey: I believe we can balance the budget because we need to look at Dallas County finances in a more creative way. We need to look at the system as a whole.
Dickey says, for one thing, there are four different H-R Departments operating in the county.
The one-and-a-half cent tax hike failed on a 3-2 vote. Commissioners will consider 23 million "more" in cuts next week. They've already tentatively approved 26 million in reductions and 203 layoffs.
Burn Ban In Tarrant County
Tarrant County is now under a "burn ban" because of the hot, dry conditions.
This morning, County Commissioners approved a 90 day ban on all outdoor burning.
Grilling outdoors is allowed, but open flames must be covered, and charcoal or wood-burning grills must be on concrete, gravel or dirt, and five feet away from any combustibles.
Violation of the burn ban is punishable by a 500 dollar fine.