- Wise County active cases: 22 (-8 from yesterday). Hey, that gets us close to the "under 20" threshold were state mandates don't apply to us if the county elects to be exempted.
- Texas numbers: I was right yesterday! The death numbers are officially wonky this week due to both the way the are counted and an "automation error". That's was I'm the most trusted man in 'Rona Reporting.
- Speaking of lack of trust in the numbers, a faithful reader pointed out that Wise County briefly had a resurrection yesterday according to the official state numbers when we went down from five deaths to four. It's back up to 5 this morning.
- We may have nine marines dead in a training accident.
- I cannot believe that 4A Texas high school schools are starting practice next week and plan to play a full schedule beginning August 27th. I'm on record saying there is no way that's going to happen, and I still think their plan is going to derailed in the very near future.
- Breaking: The Brewers/Cardinals game just got cancelled for tonight due to a COVID outbreak on the Cardinals side.
- Even in the SEC, where football comes before guns and Bibles, they announced yesterday they would modify their season and delay the start until September 26th. Heck, even those boys aren't even crazy enough to start in games in late August/Early September. They want to see how the NFL and other conferences are going to pan out first.
- The death of Herman Cain from COVID-19 should shock some people into reality.
- Compare and contrast yesterday.
- Trigger Warning: Every NBA player took a knee last night during the National Anthem as the season resumed.
- The Parker County Commissioners were not kneeling when they voted on this.
- When he poisoned those trees, I seriously feared for his life in Alabama. But I had forgotten he was outed because he was dumb enough to call into a radio show and admit doing it because "I guess I got too much 'Bama in me."
- Legal Probation Revocation Crash Course:
- This Wichita Falls story got my attention because of this sentence: "A 34-year-old Holliday man who seriously injured another person in a drunk-driving crash was sentenced to three years in prison Tuesday, according to court records. The man who was later convicted spent 15 minutes at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting that day before going to a bar, according to court filings."
- What actually happened was that he actually had been placed on probation but was now having his probation revoked. He had negotiated a six year prison term but that sentence was probated. (The story doesn't say how long the probation was -- it could have been for a maximum of 10 years. He didn't last long.)
- He had that probation revoked because of the following alleged violations.
- The State just had to prove one of those violations. If done, the the guy was subject to the prison time that had been probated: 6 years.
- He's was entitled to a hearing before a judge. He's couldn't get a jury.
- The judge could have found that he violated the probation and still not revoke his probation. He could modify him to additional terms. It's completely the judge's call
- This is what he was looking at: If the judge did want to send him a prison (he did) he doesn't have to sentence him to the six years in prison that was probated (he didn't). He can pick a number of years from the maximum (6 in this case) to the minimum sentence allowed by law for his offense (in this case, 2 years for DWI-Serious Bodily Injury.)
- The guy got a 3 year sentence. I can't actually tell from the story if the judge sentenced him to that or if that was part of a plea bargain. Yep, you can even plea bargain at the probation revocation stage.
- Some people just admit to the violations (they are normally easy to prove with just a probation officer taking the stand) and beg for mercy. This is called a "Plea But." Yes judge, I'm pleading true to the violations but please don't send me to prison.
- Could he have been revoked if the State just proved "admitted to using alcohol?" Yep, there are a couple of cases out there which allow an admission alone to be sufficient proof to revoke. Drinking alcohol isn't illegal. But not drinking alcohol was a condition of his probation.
- Could he have been revoked for "testing positive for methamphetamine?" Technically, yes, assuming the test results are admissible. They rarely are.
- Can he be revoked if the State just proved he failed to pay probation fees? Haven't we outlawed debtor's prisons? Yes, he can be revoked for that, but only if the State proved he had the ability to pay, and even then there are more restrictions before someone can be revoked. You rarely see someone get revoked just for money issues.
- Very technical: Can paying the fine be a "term of probation?" I don't think so. That's should be separate obligation to the clerk which you can't be revoked for.
- What's the one allegation this guy was accused of that makes a judge and prosecutor (and even the defense lawyer) shake their heads at? Failing to report.
- Messenger: Above the Fold
- Wise County active cases: 30. Right after the outbreak occurred in the spring, we quickly hit a death toll of five people. That number hasn't changed in months. Anyone believe that?
- Texas: New cases are down, but we did set a new record high in deaths yesterday. It's so high that even I think there's something wonky with the number reporting. But a handful of other states had new death records as well yesterday.
- I keep talking about how he speaks in code. It's not even code any longer. Good lord. I'll say it again: Is he trying to lose?
- My timeline just got flooded minutes ago with this economic news. We knew it was coming, and now we finally see it.
- More breaking: Oh, my! Moments after the economic news came out, Trump tweeted this! Are there Vegas odds on whether the U.S. military will have to physically remove him from the White House in January of next year?
- "Democracy Dies In Darkness" is not an exclusive method of demise. Trump just tried to kill it in broad daylight. At the very least, he has now become a clear and present danger to its continued existence.
- The the Mayor of Simpleton, Louie Gohmert, got the COVID, and he thinks it's because he's been forced to wear a mask. "I can’t help but wonder if by keeping a mask on and keeping it in place, if I might have put some… of the virus on the mask and breathed it in.”
- Gohmert's district should have been mentioned as support of my belief that East Texas is part of the South.
- The Mavericks are in the news again. Compare and contrast what I wrote two weeks ago.
- Three past presidents will attend the funeral of Rep. John Lewis today. One is missing because of health issues. One is missing because he doesn't care.
- They've spent $1.2 million on that system in the last year. They also can afford gun boats on the Rio Grande. But heaven forbid you have to go down to the DPS office and talk to a human being.
- When you see a random real estate story from New York and immediately want to know the back story.
- It's 2020 when you can glance up at the TV and even this doesn't cause you to blink an eye.
- The ACC announced yesterday that it thinks they can pull off an 11 game schedule by making it conference only + 1. It's not exactly a bubble they'll be playing in. I just happen to have a map, such as:
- I just mentioned yesterday that the University of Texas was planning on 50% capacity this fall, but by the time I hit the publish button the Evil Empire threw me a curve ball:
- I've got it on pretty good authority that because of a policy of the Wise County Jail during the pandemic -- a policy regarding who they will and will not accept -- that there are hundreds of Class A and Class B misdemeanor warrants that are being held by various Wise County towns which remain voluntarily unexecuted. The thinking is: Why arrest someone if there is no place to put them?
- Wise County: 30 active cases
- Texas: Clearly headed downward (as is most of the nation.) Prediction: This downward trend will continue throughout August. Unknown: (1) How the opening of school and colleges in September will impact it. (2) Will there be a "second wave" which was already predicted.
- Anyone else curious why Trump is obsessed with hydroxychloroquine? It's flat out weird.
- Junior was the subject of discipline yesterday for the first time in his life. (I absolutely triple despise him.)
- Didn't expect "demon sperm" to be on my bingo card yesterday.
- So local school boards trump county officials in deciding if and when schools will open? AG Ken Paxton is a nutcase, but he's also a political genius. Rumors are that he has his eyes on the governorship and, if true, what better plan that to issue a legal opinion that will get every single Texan to say his name yesterday. No one will care about the fine print that the opinion, like all of his opinions, are not binding.
- Senior-in-the-House to me last night: "Who is this Ken Paxton guy and what is the Tea Party?" Oh, my. Pull up a chair, darlin'.
- I'll say it again, watch the documentary 13th and you'll know this is just a political code:
- I've never even been remotely tempted to open up a suspicious email link but, I've got to admit, I'd sit there and stare at these Chinese seeds a long time as I contemplated secretly planting them.
- I'm very interested in how college football will handle their season. There was a pretty wild update yesterday: Ohio State will limit seating to 20% with no tailgating. (UT has announced it will be 50%.)
- Watch Luka almost get the business end of an automated moving camera.
- I read (the very short) story which was more than Fox 4's social media headline writer did.
- That was a wild video showing New York police abducting a person off a bicycle and throwing them in an unmarked car. Police actions look a lot different when they are stripped of their badges and uniforms. And all this was for damaging property? (And the cops weren't "assaulted with rocks and bottles.")
- The "Umbrella Man" who incited violence in Minneapolis after the killing of George Floyd was a white supremacist.
- In a new interview, Trump says he hasn't confronted Putin about Russia paying bounties to the Taliban in exchange for the lives of U.S. soldiers despite having eight recent conversations with him. But he lets us know he's got it all figured out.
- Where is Jerry Jones?
- Messenger: Above the Fold
- Wise County active cases: 39 (-1 from Thursday).
- Texas: All we got yesterday were the lower weekend numbers, but the death numbers really plummeted even factoring that in.
- This is consistent with the TEA guidelines issued in the first week of July, and all schools will require it.
- But, man, the bigger news is that Decatur voted last night in a 4-3 vote to prohibit those kids who opt for virtual learning to participate in extracurricular activities.
- Since the UIL has given all 4A schools and below the OK to play football beginning at the end of August, do they have to wear masks since they have to do so in the classroom? Anyone else see a little bit of a problem here?
- None of the restrictions in Texas issued on July 2nd apply to counties with less than 20 active cases. Right now, there are 53 counties on the list (which includes bordering Jack and Montague counties.)
- After the PAC 10 and Big 10 rocked college football by announcing conference only football schedules, the Big 12, SEC, and ACC are still planning on playing full football schedules. Opening games are set for 30 days from now. Man, that's bold.
- Me to Mrs. LL this weekend: "This planet has too much gravity. It could be reduced by 50% and we'd be just fine and life would be more pleasant." Think about it.
- Trump quick hits:
- Is he trying to lose?
- How many times do people in the West Wing look at each every day and utter the question, "He just said what?"
- No, in the America you want it to be illegal to say negative things about you.
- There was a widely circulated false video claiming a cure for the coronavirus. It was so bad that even Facebook had to ban it. Then, last night, Trump found it and retweeted it on Twitter. Twitter had to delete it from Trump's feed.
- Look what I got in the mail! And please note the word "executive." (And that's some credit card quality plastic they used.)
- It's not for everyone, but CNN is doing a four part series on this last term at the Supreme Court with insider information. We are hearing stuff we normally don't. Remember we oddly just learned of Justice Roberts fall that put him in the hospital in June when it wasn't publicly released? Someone's talking. Part 1. Part 2.
- I finally watched the first Coen brothers film, Blood Simple, over the weekend. It's good stuff. It stars the very young Frances McDormand (the female cop from Fargo), Dan Hedaya (Mr. Butabi from A Night at the Roxbury ), and the great M. Emmet Walsh (who I will always remember from Raising Arizona with the line "No, not that mother-scratcher! Bill Parker!")
- I'm now into Season 3 of The Leftovers, and I'm waiting for the end before a give a smokin' hot TV opinion about it. But in the first episode of the season, it opened with an extended mysterious scene accompanied with the background song of I Wished We'd All Been Ready. I was giddy. I was able to mouth every single word of one of the darkest, fear-jolting Christian songs I ever learned as a kid.
- Below: Not surprisingly for that guy, but the Denton County Sheriff may not know how to run a jail. (Side note: Have we not had one reported case of the coronavirus at the Wise County Jail? If no one has asked, I'm asking.)
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