Yes.
From across the Rio Grande Valley, taking action for you.
This is action for you at six.
Supposedly there's a list that if you're bisexual, homosexual or friends of them,
that you're on the list.
A student is speaking out tonight.
He says he was attacked because of the people he hangs out with.
Tonight's action four news investigates.
Good evening everyone. Thank you for being with us tonight.
I'm Michael Brooks.
I'm Marta Benavides. Good evening everyone.
Muy buenas tardes.
We begin tonight because we've been receiving many, many calls into our action four newsroom claiming there's a high school hit list.
Well now police are looking into possible hate crimes at a Brownsville school and administrators are increasing campus security.
Tonight's action for news reporter April Norris investigates.
Teens attacking other teens because of their perceived sexual preference or just because of who they're friends with.
Well, that's what Brownsville police are trying to determine here at Pace High School.
And one boy says for whatever reason he was targeted.
Supposedly there's a list that if you're bisexual, homosexual or friends of them, that you're on the list and that they're going to go after you.
This 17 year old did not want us to show his face, fear something else might happen to him.
He's not homosexual, but has friends who are.
He was attacked last week during lunch at a park near Pace.
I thought they were going to ask me for like a lighter or something and they end up jumping me.
He was punched and kicked too many times to recall.
He says another boy was also attacked.
They come up to him, throw him a couple punches and then run off.
And he has fractured ribs already from swimming or something like that.
And so they found out that he has a fractured ribs and they go after his ribs.
School administrators searched campus computers looking for this alleged hit list, but haven't found anything.
Brownsville investigators are working with school police looking into whether these could be hate crimes.
A couple of months ago, lawmakers passed a bill protecting homosexuals under the Federal Hate Crime Act.
It gives people protection under that. So obviously some very serious issues.
Now Brownsville police do have a 17 year old in custody for allegedly assaulting the teen that we interviewed.
But the suspect denies that it had anything to do with a hate crime.
But in the meantime, if you know anything about this alleged hit list that's apparently going around here at Pace, you should call police.
In Brownsville, April Norris, Action 4 News.
Okay April, thank you very much. Well officers also say that this alleged hit list could just be a bad rumor.
But these days they say that they have to take everything very seriously.
Well the call about this alleged hate crime, KB, into our Listens line. If you have any issue you'd like us to investigate,
you can call for action at 1-877-457-7867 or you can email us at Listens at KGBT4.com.
Now to some startling developments out of McAllen. A Halloween suicide investigation from last night has turned into a murder investigation.
McAllen police believe that they have arrested the killer.
Action 4 News reporter Ray Pedraza is tracking this story for us. He joins us now with the latest on this story. Ray.
Hey Michael, well the call initially came in as a suicide, but after McAllen police started interviewing people who knew the victim,
an acquaintance admitted to strangling her with his hands and stabbing her in the neck with tweezers.
Late this afternoon, 22-year-old Oscar Rodriguez of Mission was charged with a crime of murder.
It's a first degree felony and he faces life in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Last night, officers responded to the 4800 block of South 29th Street after the victim,
19-year-old Nidia Maldonado was found dead inside her home.
Those who knew Rodriguez told police that he had a short temper and had thought about killing Nidia when she would upset him.
Well that's part of the case investigation. I know it's used in the affidavit here for the probable cause.
And it's something that has to be considered and looked at, but there is some evidence against him at this point.
Subsequently, now he has been arrested.
Rodriguez also admitted to being very upset with Nidia because he allegedly saw her with someone else over the weekend,
but he initially denied killing her.
At his arraignment, Rodriguez immediately told the judge he wanted an examining trial to review the evidence against him.
At no tops, he has been ordered on the victim.
As for Rodriguez, he was transported to the Hidalgo County Jail. Bond was set at $1 million.
Reporting in our Hidalgo County newsroom, Ray Pedrasa, Action 4 News.
Okay Ray, thank you. Also in the news this evening, Hidalgo County deputies and the Texas Rangers are digging for some remains.
And a possible murder from seven years ago.
Now the dig site near 107 and Giles Road in Penitas is the same place McAllen Police and the Rangers recovered a body only a month ago.
A spokesman for the Sheriff's Office says the murders are unrelated and so far they have not recovered any evidence.
A tip from an informant led them to the remote site where they have been digging throughout the day.
A Brownsville couple is in jail tonight.
Police say they're responsible for abusing their little boy, leaving him in critical condition.
Action 4 News reporter Jennifer Cabazos joins us live with more.
Martha Angel Moreno is fighting for his life tonight, severely abused with burns, bite marks and bruises.
His mother and her boyfriend were arrested today in connection with that abuse.
When the mom was coming out with the baby and crying.
Maria Gonzalez has lived in this Brownsville neighborhood for about a year.
She was stunned to find out her neighbors of three months had been arrested in connection with severely abusing a one year old boy.
I guess I've been there.
I got surprised when one of my neighbors told me that he was struggling to survive.
Cameron County Sheriff's Department says Angel Moreno was taken to Valley Baptist Medical Center with bite marks and burn marks.
Last night when the one year old baby was taken away, neighbors were told he'd had an asthma attack.
He had asthma.
She said it was an asthma attack.
She knew he was sick on Sunday.
I don't know why she didn't take him to the hospital or or the clinic.
Moreno's mother, 25 year old, Acela and her boyfriend, 41 year old Manuel Vellis, were arrested today.
Both are facing charges of injury to a child and are being held on a $350,000 bond each.
In the newsroom, Jennifer Cavazos, Action 4 News.
Also new tonight, an apparent accident at the Dodge Arena claims the life of a valued employee.
Action 4 News is learning Florentino Quintanilla was killed after something fell on him.
The incident happened last night.
The company expressed its sympathies to the Quintanilla family and say a thorough investigation is underway.
We have some developing news tonight on a high school student killed in a hit and run.
Now as police continue searching for new leads, we can tell you neither the driver nor the truck that hit Veronica Martinez has been found.
Her sister, Rosio, survived.
She has numerous broken bones.
But funeral services for Veronica are going to be held tomorrow at 10 in the morning.
Burial will follow immediately at the Valley Memorial Gardens.
All new at 6, construction.
You just can't avoid it.
And tonight, another long stretch of road is shut down.
So city crews want to tell you about it so you can avoid that area.
A new sewer line is being installed.
29th Street from Expressway 83 Frontage Road North to Lindbergh Avenue is now closed to all traffic.
Textodad is advising all motorists to avoid the area.
Folks who live around the streets are being asked to drive cautiously and watch for crews and heavy machinery.
President Bush is asking Congress for more than $7 billion to help fight the possible spread of the bird flu.
Bush warned Americans today that a flu pandemic is not out of the realm of possibilities.
Part of the president's bird flu strategy calls for not only stockpile vaccines and medication,
but to get local, state and federal officials prepared to handle a widespread disease.
Edoggo County health officials say they're glad the president is taking such a proactive stance.
It's been summed as a flu.
I would not consider it like the regular flu that we get every year.
This is a deadly virus, okay?
This should not be taken lightly.
The bird flu has already killed hundreds of people in Asia and it's spreading to parts of Europe.
However, no cases have been reported here in the U.S.
Families in the Valley who use the WIC program will soon be able to shop a little bit smarter.
Next year, the Department of State Health Services will roll out new electronic cards.
They will replace the paper voucher system to receive WIC-eligible foods.
The program was first tested in El Paso.
Cards will be issued next November.
Well, it has been a gorgeous, gorgeous first day of November.
It's certainly been a nice way to start the month.
I almost didn't come in to work. It was so nice outside.
But I'm here as is the chief.
Brian, it's hard to come to work on days like this.
It really is. Last night you had to nail it down to keep Mother Nature from blowing it away.
Today you get to kick back and enjoy.
Enjoy the fruits of Mother Nature's labor.
The front pushed through last night and ushered in cooler, drier air.
And we are enjoying just gorgeous weather.
73 at Corpus Christi, 73 at San Antonio and Brownsville at this hour.
77 at Laredo. High pressures in charge, folks.
That means clear weather for the next several days.
We go on into the weekend. Temperatures increase a little.
Humidity increases a little. Just in time for another chance for showers.
We have all of that for you coming up in your Superdoppler forecast.
Well, Brian, the Valley is really responding to our Halloween giveaway yesterday.
But now people are calling in, wondering how they can look at all the pictures we took.
Up next, we're going to tell you how to get those photos on demand.
And the demand to get a judge removed is answered.
We'll have that story as well. So stay with us.
Taking action for you.
This is Action 4 News at 6 with Michael Brooks,
Martha Benavidez, chief meteorologist Brian Hale,
and Sports with Clay Williams.
Sports, where local sports always come first.
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They have served our country and defended our freedom.
Now the City of Harlingen, the Marine Military Academy, and KGBT-4 want to honor our veterans.
November 11th, join us at the Marine Military Academy Yuckel Auditorium.
Tickets to this free event are available at the Municipal Box Office.
And at 4, join us at the Iwo Jima Monument for a Veterans Day Parade.
We will never forget the sacrifices they have made.
So help us salute our veterans. November 11th at the Marine Military Academy.
A man wanted for aggravated robbery is arrested.
Border Patrol agents were checking buses.
At the Valley Transit Bus Company in Harlingen, they found 28 grams of cocaine on a passenger.
A fingerprint scan later pulled up a warrant for his arrest.
That same day, agents at the checkpoint along Highway 281 found more than a thousand pounds of marijuana inside a truck.
DPS troopers used road spikes to stop the vehicle after it refused to pull over.
The driver is now in custody.
There are new changes tonight for the Texas Lotto Game.
The Lottery Commission today approved guaranteed Lotto Texas jackpots.
The new rule means grand prize winners will be paid either the advertised jackpot or the jackpot based on sales, whichever is greater.
Lotto ticket sellers say this change was definitely needed.
Alright, well a Democratic judge is not going to be deciding the fate of Republican Congressman Tom DeLay.
Just today, a senior judge decided that Judge Bob Perkins should not hear the case because he's donated to Democratic candidates in the past.
Now an administrative judge will appoint a new judge for the conspiracy and money laundering trial.
DeLay, who claimed he's innocent, had no comment as he left the courthouse in Austin.
And we have some new information on the man accused of giving fake flu shots to 1,600 workers at Exxon Mobil in Houston.
The FBI is now identifying him as 35-year-old Iyad Abu El Hawa.
He's accused of Medicaid fraud.
Today in court, a special agent testified he saw El Hawa throwing away some syringes.
Preliminary reports show those syringes contained purified water, not flu vaccine.
The attorney general has also frozen the assets of El Hawa's companies.
Well, everyone that stopped by yesterday for the Trick or Treats or Treats for Tricks giveaway thought that you guys were the real thing.
Chewbacca, Darth Vader, and Anakin, they really did.
Well, we aimed to please. We certainly had a lot of fun doing it.
Of course, I want to thank everybody at Henry's Party Supply in Harlingen for letting us have those costumes that were just absolutely fantastic.
But look at the kids. And I'll tell you what, Chad was Darth Vader, but it was like going back to 1978.
We had a ton of Darth Vader's, and some of them really looked good.
Actually, all of them looked good, but some of them were just absolutely to die for.
Oh, and the pictures that we took. There is a way you can get them.
That's right. If you have one of your pictures taken there, like with that silly guy, you can go ahead and go to our website, KGBT4.com,
and all the pictures are in our picture gallery there, so it's not too hard to navigate.
And then you can just download it, print it, save it, do whatever you want with it.
So good luck, and thanks again for coming by and partaking of our confectionary treats.
We're talking about a great day today and an even better day tomorrow.
We will notice temperatures on the rise and humidity levels on the rise.
We'll look at this in detail coming up.
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Take me where the food is flavory, hot and fresh, and savory.
Cheese me, tease me with toppings that'll please me.
Peter Piper Pizza's the one, where the food is good as the fun.
Bring the whole family into Peter Piper today for two large one-topping pizzas
made with real cheese and fresh ingredients. Now just $13.99.
Peter Piper Pizza's the one, where the food is good as the fun.
Bart and he at StormTracker got a workout last night as that front blew through winds in excess of 47 miles an hour.
Now it's all downhill. That's good stuff. We're going to talk about it coming up.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
Catch your half-off hotel certificates from discounts for hotels on KGBT4.com.
More and more people prefer the user-friendly phone book. Let's find out why.
It has larger print, so it's more readable.
I like the tab. It's a lot easier to use.
I knew the menus because I've used the menus before because I've got three boys.
Which phone book do you prefer?
User-friendly.
So much more readable. We had this one in work. I was using it the other day.
I love this phone book. I'll do all these.
The user-friendly phone book.
The layout seems to be more user-friendly.
There you have it. The user-friendly phone book.
What phone book do you prefer?
From the Valley's most experienced weather team comes another first.
The Valley's first 24-hour local weather channel.
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Access to the only live television radar.
24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year.
The Valley's only live television radar.
This is your Super Doppler forecast.
Your weather, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year.
It's great on Channel 752.
It beats calling me in the middle of the night on my cell phone.
I get groggy and cranky, so you can go ahead and go right to that on digital cable.
It's great.
Take a look at 55 degrees by midnight. That's great, too.
48 degrees by midnight.
Take a look at 55 degrees by midnight. That's great, too.
48 degrees overnight tonight with clear skies.
That's what's going to allow us to get so cool.
Calm winds for the most part.
And clear skies.
All that warmth of the day is just going to waft out into space.
74 right now, 75 the high, north wind at 13, 25% humidity.
That's nice.
30.23 the barometer reading.
That tells us high pressure is in charge.
High pressure loves to do two things rather well.
It likes to keep the skies clear of clouds and shut off any chance for rain.
So if you got some rain last night from the big old front,
well, then that's about all you're going to see for several days.
74 at Sebastian right now, Lynn 76, Roma 76, 73 at Rancho Viejo,
and Arroyo City calling in at 74.
Across the state of Texas, likewise, just beautiful.
High pressure in charge of the whole state, the whole region.
And that means that everybody's enjoying some really nice weather.
The front brought down that cooler, dryer air all the way across the country,
across Texas and across the valley.
Futurecast says we're just going to sit back and enjoy this.
Look at those north to northeast winds.
Even on in through tomorrow you have northeast winds,
but then that's about 5 o'clock tomorrow.
Northeast winds 5 to 10, maybe up to 15 by afternoon.
And then Thursday, wind shift back to out of the southeast.
That brings us back into higher humidity and slightly warmer.
So we'll feel a little more seasonal.
Right now, I mean, temperatures in the 70s, that's below the norm.
Normal temperature would be about in the low 80s for this time of year for the valley.
So we're doing well.
Overnight tonight, 48 San Benito, 47 Mission, 50 Brownsville,
with those clear skies.
And then tomorrow with lots of sun, 81 at Westlaco, 78 at Brownsville.
And you can see for another overnight cool event, 49 for Rio Grande City,
but not quite as chilly as we'll get overnight tonight.
And Futurecast shows that, yes, with the southeast winds returning,
temperatures start ramping back up as well.
Humidity levels will, and it will feel a little more seasonal.
48 tonight, mostly clear, nice and cool.
North winds 5 to 10.
Then you have tomorrow with 80 degrees and sunny skies and ooh la la,
as they say in France.
Seven-day forecast.
They also say, like, omelette du fromage, don't they?
Cheese omelette if you're going to order something in Paris.
Seven-day forecast shows another front comes through Sunday to Monday
and gives us a chance for a shower, a thundershower.
It's all the French I know.
All I have to say is ooh la la to 48 tonight and 80 tomorrow.
Wow.
That's pretty good.
Beautiful good weather out there for you to have fun.
Great weather and some great football going on,
but we've got a bit of a problem with one local football team.
Another forfeit because of an ineligible player.
We'll tell you which team might have had their playoff hopes ruined
here in the Valley.
We hope not, but maybe so.
Plus, San Antonio Spurs back from being the world champions
and ready to start over again.
We'll talk about their game tonight coming up next in sports.
The Wheel of Fortune's got all of your NBA action with an all-star lineup
like Charlotte Bobcats, a Mecca Okafor, Chicago Bulls, Ben Gordon,
and Detroit Pistons, Richard Hamilton.
It's good to play.
Tonight at 630 on KGBT4.
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See you guys.
Bye.
Later.
Okay.
Who's riding shotgun?
I'm good.
Yeah, we're good.
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Company back there?
The Dodge Ram Mega Cab, yeah, it's that big.
Teachers and students, your class can be a part of the SuperDomper4 Weather Team.
Learn about weather safety and mythology from around the world with StormTails.
Teachers go online to KGBT4.com to download your StormTail Scramble and Curriculum.
Winners of the StormTail Scramble will be announced on Action 4 News Sunrise.
And don't forget to send us your weather observations so we can use them in our forecast
to highlight your classroom.
StormTails is sponsored by Sylvan Learning Center and South Texas College.
Murders, drug smuggling, and weapons trafficking.
Thursday at 10, we take a look at how local law enforcement officers are fighting back.
Here in the valley, we're the doorway up into the bigger cities.
What are local authorities doing to control the growing gang problem in the valley?
Since they popped up on our radar, we've been tracking them to gather intelligence.
We're taking action to keep you and your family safe.
Thursday night at 10 on Action 4 News.
Now, where local sports always come first, this is Action 4 Sports.
Forfeit is the toughest way to lose a game. It has nothing to do with how you played.
Most times, just who you played.
Harlingen South became the first football team to forfeit a game in several years
here in the valley earlier this month. Today, Santa Rosa became the second.
Last Friday's game with the Bishop Badgers, a 34-22 win by Hostin Santa Rosa,
has just been awarded back to Bishop after it was discovered an ineligible player was on the field for the Warriors.
This dropped Santa Rosa back into a tie for third in the District 32-2A District standings,
meaning this week's big rivalry at LaVia just got bigger for the Warriors.
A win in Santa Rosa is back in a loss, and they will need a Primont loss to Hebronville to make the postseason.
The Rio Grande Valley Dorados have a new coach, Marty Hammond.
A new division as the team moves back to the Midwest where they played in year one.
And a new rival, the Amarillo Dusters. They are the only other team in the A-F-2 from the Lone Star State
after the Laredo Law went dark last season. And as of today, a brand new schedule.
Take a look at the first games for the Dorados in 2006.
They will open on the road at the Central Valley home opener April 7th at home against Tulsa,
then at Birmingham, and then back home against Arkansas.
This schedule goes a little strange. It's basically one away and one home,
no matter how you look at it, all the way up until the end of the season.
There you see the Dorados at Amarillo on May 20th until the end of the season.
That's when June 23rd would be Oklahoma City at the Dorados.
And then the final four out of the five games will be back home in the Dorados home camp, Spokane,
on July 29th, the final game.
The Dallas Cowboys have a week off, but they're still making moves.
Today they signed safeties Tony Dixon and Lynn Scott.
If you remember their names, that's because they were at strong safety a year ago.
Also joining the team, Cheryl Crowe. No, she's not a strong safety.
She'll be singing during the Thanksgiving halftime show when Dallas takes on the Denver Broncos on Thanksgiving.
That's a game you'll see right here on KGBT.
And of course, they're not looking to replace their quarterback.
Drew Bledsoe has been fantastic the first half of the season, leading the Cowboys to a 5-3 record.
He is the number one ranked quarterback in the NFC.
Only three quarterbacks have thrown more touchdowns, thrown more yards in the entire NFL.
This is a guy who was supposed to be a reclamation project,
but it looks to me like he is making the Cowboys his project.
You know, I don't know. I mean, it's kind of week to week, isn't it?
You know, I mean, we've done well through the first half of the season,
but, you know, all it takes is a couple of down weeks in a row, and all of a sudden that's right back.
You can protect him pretty well, and you know, you have enough diversity with him.
But I don't think that that's untrue for any quarterback that's played at a high level,
and he has played at a high level at one point in his career.
Hard to believe it's been four months, but it has,
since the San Antonio Spurs won the NBA title on their home floor tonight.
They will raise the banner and get their rings.
The San Antonio Spurs open up the 2005-2006 season at home against the Denver Nuggets.
The Spurs, well, they even got better. Hard to believe, but they only lost Devin Brown.
They have added Nick Van Exel and Michael Finley to a team that took it over the Detroit Pistons in seven games.
So it looks like we could be in for a Spurs dynasty.
They are the team to beat according to all the preseason prognosticators.
Let's talk about volleyball tonight. We've got four games in 5A.
Talk about by-district, Hannah at Edinburgh, Harlingen at Edinburgh North.
Meanwhile, Mack High and Laredo Martin will play at Roma.
Sheryland and Laredo Nixon will play in Zapata.
3A by-district tonight, Hidalgo takes on Zapata at Rio Grande City.
Valley View takes on Corpus Christi Westoso at Falfurious.
And in 4A area, it will be Mission Veterans versus Beeville Jones.
That game tonight in Alice.
And we will have all the scores and some of the highlights from those volleyball games tonight at 10.
You better get started right now.
I probably better.
We'll be right back.
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Give us more of this gorgeous weather.
Isn't it nice? Yeah, we will have more of it tomorrow.
But we are going to tick upward day by day back to the mid-upper 80s.
And the humidity levels will increase as well toward the weekend.
But you know, 82 there on Thursday, that is the valley average norm for this time of year.
So we're doing well for ourselves.
And again, another chance for showers Sunday to Monday of next week as a frontal boundary comes on down our direction.
And we want to remind everyone who was photographed during our candy giveaway yesterday
that they can take a look at those pictures and get a hold of those pictures. How?
On our website, KGBT4.com. And you can see there, it's pretty easy to navigate.
And you'll be able to download those pictures without any problem.
I've also been assured that the pictures, while they are of nice printable size, are also of manageable bit size.
So you won't be struggling if you're on dial-up.
We even have one of the fairy princes. A beautiful fairy prince.
When you went as a hockey player, that was great. Blacked out teeth.
Hilarious. Good stuff. I don't want to perpetuate any stereotypes about hockey players.
In the old days, when I was a kid, they didn't wear helmets.
Thanks for watching. We are back at 10 o'clock, everybody.
Yes, we'll see you tonight at 10. Adios for now.