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Dear God, on this Memorial Day weekend, please help us to remember and give thanks for those who have given their lives in the service of our country. When the need was greatest, they stepped forward and did their duty to defend the freedoms that we enjoy, and to win the same for others. These honored dead gave the most precious gift they had, life itself, to promote that most just cause. Help us to honor their memory by caring for the families they have left behind, by ensuring that their wounded comrades are properly cared for and by being watchful caretakers of the freedoms for which they gave their lives. O Dear Lord, help us to remember that freedom is not free. There are times when its cost is, indeed, dear. Never let us forget those who paid so terrible a price to ensure that freedom would be ours to cherish and enjoy. Though their names may fade with the passing of generations, may we never forget what they have done. Help us to be worthy of their sacrifice. Please Dear God, help us to be worthy. Amen

Thank you to all those who gave their lives so that I could raise my family under the freedoms they protected. I am so proud to be an American and I am forever grateful to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice so that America lives on.

Freedom is paid for in blood, and must be paid for periodically lest it is lost. We all owe a great debt to the men and women who put down their lives for this country and the ones who served or still serve. Thank you

Thanks to those who have served and are still serving this great country and their families. We are especially grateful to the families who have loved ones that served and gave their lives so we can have the freedoms they have given us. We owe you a debt we can never repay.

My cell is 409-719-7042. Give me a call when you’re concerned about deliverables or budget. If it’s a real concern, I’ll at least tell you what I know in lieu of speculation. So far, no issues with stadium portion of bond. Just can’t fit the design and construction of press box, bathrooms, seating, etc. in before Fall 2020 season. No need to rush it OR hold out on turf installation. So many programs get to benefit by moving forward with the turf - our huge 300+ band, twirlers, flags, cheer, and westernaires won’t have to stay in the stands just because it’s a mud pit on the field. These groups put hours and hours in. Thankful they’ll get to showcase their talents too.

Okay... they can’t bring about prior arrest records and such of the defendant(s) as they’d be prejudicial towards them. In this case where we’re talking about the victim, it’s all fair game (as I understand it). In rape cases, they don’t wait until the punishment phase to sling mud at the accuser. Has you or anybody you’ve worked with or trained with been sued for wrongful arrest after a person was found not guilty? Or by an arrestee who eventually had their charges dropped? If that was the case, you’d run out of enrollees at the academy. I disagree with your “bop on the nose” scenario. What if I defend myself with a bat? Is that reasonable? Or am I, when criminally assaulted, only allowed to match my assailant’s weapon of choice? He hits me, I can hit him back. But I’d better not use a weapon. However, if my assailant pulls a weapon of his own, now I am willing to engage him with a like weapon, but if I have a bigger stick, or match his knife with my gun, I’ll face murder charges. And I guarantee that if I bop a cop on the nose, I’d be lucky to get out with just a felony and not a couple of bullet wounds. You, as a police officer, have no more rights to defend yourself than do I. Lastly... what is the generally accepted definition of deadly force? Do you believe that brandishing a weapon is considered deadly force, or does that come it when the weapon is used? Because my interpretation of deadly force would be when the weapon was actually used. In this case that didn’t happen until the struggle over the weapon... and in instance deadly force would be completely usable beyond question. Deadly force wasn’t used to stop anybody from jogging or fleeing. There was a mortal struggle initiated by the deceased when deadly force was used. Unless my definition is too restrictive. I think of that cop from SC that shot a man in the back from about 50 feet away on camera. He’s rightfully in jail now. There was a brief struggle and the victim made a break for it. He might have gotten the best of the officer in the struggle. It was just a traffic stop, nothing criminal if my memory is correct. THAT was wrong all of the way around.

Some of these side bar arguments and questions are mostly a diversion to prove one way or the other. It didn’t matter if there is a video showing Arbery arguing with the cops two years earlier. It doesn’t matter if he wasn’t completely stable mentally, it doesn’t matter about race relations and who has the most violent community, it doesn’t matter if he was jogging and so on. What matters is GA law on citizen arrest (CA), what the required knowledge is to justify such an arrest and what force or threats can be used. These are the questions that in my opinion matter. Was Arbery committing a crime that GA law allows for a CA? If that existed, did the men have the required direct knowledge of the crime? What force does GA law allow for a CA and is displaying a firearm lawful without provocation of deadly force by the suspect? If the men unlawfully displayed a weapon to apprehend Arbery for a non-violent, did Arbery have the right of self defense and stand your ground against the men? Short of knowing these answers......

people go into homes under construction in my neighborhood all the time Steve. Although I own a home in this area, I look at the new homes also.

Didn’t I say, “that’s just me”?

I agree completely on video. I have intervened when I have seen officers trying to drop someone from making a video. The only issue is if the person gets too far into a scene. When a person is so close as to interfere with an officer, that isn’t legal but not because of the video. I think it was earlier in this thread or maybe even another forum but I said that the video guy was reported to have take post in the attempted apprehension of Arbery. It was not from taking video. The three men were reported to have been all together in trying to arrest Arbery. Of course that is just from reports that I read which isn’t evidence In what GA calls immediate knowledge, I think Texas calls “in his presence”. Texas law says an arrest can be made if within his presence or view. Obviously within view is to actually witness the crime but I think in his presence means close enough to know it is happening right now. Like a person hears glass break and turns a corner and sees a man standing next to a broken window and a hammer is on the ground. The crime wasn’t within view but it was within the person’s “presence”. I think that the GA law is similar. Immediate knowledge means you are close enough to know that a crime has been committed. If aneighbor calls you 5 minutes later about a possible crime, is that immediate? I think not but I don’t feel like looking up GA case law.

Folks have a short memory when thinking of HJ. I see returners Sears an Porter mentioned but not Wirth and Austin S. Throw in some kids that got a ton of playing time last year on the varsity district co championship team and you got a heckuva group to build on. Add some solid kids off a JV that won the district and I like the Hawks chances in that district. I still like Silsbee in the other district even though they are young. Lumberton graduated really heavy and didn’t have much promise moving up . Also really like the Sophomore kid up in Woodville.

I agree with your sentiment that we should look for solid evidence of a person's background an intentions before drawing conclusions about their motivations. My disagreement is in the highlighted portion above. I can't think of a single scenario where a person's skin color, all other things being equal, is sufficient indication that a person is up to no good. The example you provide applies equally to any skin color. If you see anyone slow rolling in an area known to be a place to replenish one's supply of drugs and prostitutes, it is reasonable to assume they might be there for such things, but they might also be lost, or particularly interested in the scenery, or having a heart attack, or a million other things that might cause someone to drive slowly. I know I'm splitting hairs, but your statement requires hair-splitting. The fact that would make you think someone is looking for illegal activities by slow rolling is that they are slow rolling in that specific place, not the skin color of the person slow rolling. Unless Simmons Dr in Orange is closed to non-whites?

So 90% of Texas high school coaches are in trouble? Prepared work out routines. Had Zoom meetings. The list goes on.

Haynes has done nothing shady, so let me give you a little history. This is all coming from School Board President who wanted his son to start at QB and since he didn't start, he has made it his mission to get rid of Haynes and the Superintendent is nothing but his puppet.

You think a pandemic would get in the way of our super secret Spring game...not a chance

going by what ? Past history? As far as I know there isn't any history. This isn't BISD.