Bill Barajas

A 16-year-old boy in recovering after he was carjacked and shot in the chest in front of his mother Tuesday night.

Investigators said the gunman shot, and carjacked the 16-year-old in front of his mother and was captured shortly after a chase in southwest Houston.

The identity of a 14-year-old boy who was found shot to death inside a car Saturday afternoon in Spring Branch area has been released.

A Houston gas station clerk was shot and killed during a robbery on Wednesday morning.

David McKinney, 32, was hit killed by a man in a Chevy pickup after trying to break up a fight in North Houston.According to the Houston Police Department it happened around 5 a.m. in a gas station parking lot on Veterans Memorial drive and Gulf Bank Road. At some point, police say an unidentified suspect got into his truck and ran McKinney over, killing him and it was all caught on video.“This morning, when I came he was laying on the ground he was still there with a sheet over him and it was a pretty sad moment,” said friend Crytal Roberts. The community honored McKinney by putting together a makeshift memorial in the same location he took his final breathe.“He was a good dude. He helped people out that didn’t even deserve it,” said a friend named Wade.Police told KPRC 2 they have identified the suspect after finding his wallet on scene but have yet to release his name.They are also searching for the vehicle he was seen using in the video which is described as a 2003 Chevy Silverado with a Texas license plate reading: TDY9548.Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

A search is underway for a hit-and-run driver after police say he was killed while trying to break up a fight.

The Tarkington Volunteer Fire department is praising one of their own after he responded to a call on his own in hopes of saving a Grandmother and baby girl believed to be about nine months old.Captain Doc Sikes said he was at home when he got alerted to a mobile home on CR 2198 near Cleveland.“I know the area, I know the members of the department and where they live I was going to be the only one coming to this station anyway just because of work schedules,” Sikes said. “So I knew me waiting around for hopefully somebody else to show up would be pretty much out of the ordinary so I pretty much had it pre-determined that once I got to the station, I was just going to put my stuff on and go,” said Sikes.Sikes’ arrived on scene in a matter of minutes.“Any firemen that I know, that I pride myself in knowing would have made the exact same call,” Sikes saidTarkington Fire Chief Paul Gregory said Captain Sikes immediately went to work.“He put a ladder in the window where they confirmed the victims were last and made entry, found the Grandmother, pulled her to the window and that’s was about the same time the engine from here arrived and was able to assist getting her out to no avail, she was already deceased,” said Chief Gregory.Captain Sikes and his fellow firefighters went back in the mobile home to search for the baby girl but she too had died.“This is a very unfortunate circumstance for the fire department, for the family involved,” Sikes said.Chief Gregory told KPRC 2 He was proud of Sikes decision making.lot of times they say you should wait, but you have victims, especially a baby. These guys aren't waiting,” said Chief Gregory.Chief Gregory added that counselors and chaplains will be made available to anybody in his department who needed them.

Three Texas Medical Center institutions have agreed to pay a record $15 million settlement to resolve claims they billed for concurrent heart surgeries in violation of Medicare teaching physician and informed consent regulations, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced.Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center (BSLMC), Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) and Surgical Associates of Texas P.A. (SAT) are the three institutions that have agreed to the settlement.Court records show an investigation into the intuitions and three of its surgeons began in August of 2019 when a whistleblower filed a complaint.“Well it became apparent looking at the document that there was a whistleblower who was inside, looking at the organization and seeing that these very prominent doctors were going from operating room to operating and even to another operating room and charging for doing the complete procedure when they could not have done the complete procedure, just from a pure time standpoint but they certified that they did those procedures and that’s what the government alleged, and whistleblower alleged,” said Attorney Randy SorrelsThose prominent surgeons named in court documents include Dr. Joseph Coselli, 71, Houston, and Dr. Joseph Lamelas, 63, Miami, Florida. SAT is a medical practice group affiliated with various cardiothoracic surgeons, including Dr. David Ott, 77, HoustonThe U.S. attorney’s office said the allegations also included the doctors delegating key aspects of extremely complicated and risky heart surgeries to unqualified medical residents.and failing to attend the surgical “timeout”— a critical moment where the entire team would pause and identify key risks to prevent surgical errors, according to the allegations,”“Yeah, These are some of the most well known heart surgeons in the country and so students would come to Baylor to learn from the very best, and they would be putting their hands literally inside the chest of patients. And you should have the attending physician there, But the allegations are as they weren't there and present at all times,” Sorrels said.Sorrels said it’s important that patients know, they can try and keep that from happening by advocating for themselves.What you want to do as a patient, especially before you go under anesthesia, is let it be known in the paperwork, Only the attending physician, the doctor that, you know, does the entire procedure,” said Sorrels.KPRC 2 also asked Sorrels if there’s anything that can be done if you’re a former patient and believe your life was put at risk.“Yeah, Texas law is not very patient friendly. The allegations were between 2013 and 2019. And Texas law requires you to bring a claim against a doctor within two years. So if you didn't bring your claim by 2021 at the latest, you can't bring a claim against any of these doctors or Baylor itself,” said Sorrels.Sorrels added that after examining the settlement it appears nobody would be criminally charged.“This $15 million payments is to settle all issues,” Sorrels said.

The River Plantation neighborhood in Conroe is still recovering from severe flooding more than a month ago.

A closer look at the data shows other years had greater growth in all subjects except Biology

President Joe Biden unveiled his plans to enact significant restrictions on migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen extensive tree damage to homes and businesses in our area. On May 16th a mother of 4 in southeast Houston was killed when a tree fell on her car.so, that got us thinking about tree safety and when it might be appropriate to cut or trim your trees. KPRC 2 met up with Master Arborist Brad Phillips the owner of ArborTrue for a “Q&A” type interview: WHATS YOUR NUMBER ONE PIECE OF ADVICE WHEN IT COMES TO TREE SAFETY?Hire an arborist certified by the ISA (International Society of Arboriculture). Attempting to perform tree work is a great way to end up in the emergency room. It’s the most dangerous industry in North America.WHEN MIGHT WE CONSIDER TRIMMING OR CHOPPING DOWN A TREE ? Remove a dead or dangerous tree any time of year and as soon as you notice it. Waiting to remove a dead tree is extremely dangerous. Trees in warm humid climates do not stand very long after death. Regular maintenance pruning can be done any time of year on most trees. For flowering trees, like Magnolias, wait until the flowers are done, in fall. Pine trees are best pruned in winter or in summer, avoid spring and fall pruning as it will make sap run down the tree and attract pine bark beetles. For heavy pruning (removal of more than 25% of the canopy) wait until winter to reduce the stress.WHAT ARE THE A FEW THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR?Look for fungal growth around the base of the tree, on the trunk. Don’t be bothered with mushrooms growing in the grass, those are usually beneficial to the tree. Never use a weed killer or weed and feed if you have trees. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU SHOULD BE INSPECTING THE TREE/LIMBS OR BRANCHES FOR?Look for “U” shaped branch unions, we like strong “U” shaped unions. “V” shaped branch unions are likely to break.Look for branches that are crossing over and rubbing on each other. That creates weakness in the crown (canopy) of the tree.Look for dead limbs to remove, especially those that are large enough to cause injury or damage when they fall.Look for Mistletoe in winter, it is parasitic and will kill the tree over time.IS THERE ANY TYPE OF TREE OR TREES WE SHOULD BE CONCERED ABOUT?Post Oaks have been dying off in Texas since the drought of 2011 due to constantly changing weather patterns. Slow growing trees don’t adjust well to rapid change. Arizona Ash, Water Oak, Laurel Oak, Willow Oak only live about 50 years and die rather suddenly. In the last quadrant of life they shed large heavy limbs that pose a serious risk to property and health. Silver Maples, they are soft and they break easily in Houston winds. They are also highly susceptible to various diseases.Italian Cypress, not much of a risk to property but they are a poor choice for the Houston heat and humidity. IS THE WEATHER THE BIGGEST CONTRIBUTOR TO TREES/BRANCHES FALLING? There are many causes co-occurring and most of them are probably caused by climate change. The increasing summer temperatures followed by record low winters, floods and droughts are making tree safety and health challenging. Fewer and fewer tree species are able to fight the insect and disease pressures presented with the whacky and extreme weather conditions. WHEN WE ARE CONSIDERING TREE TRIMMING SERVICES, WHAT SHOULD A CONSUMER TAKE INTO ACCOUNT?Hire an ISA Certified Arborist and read the online reviews. Look for a company that happily shares its address publicly and has more than 20 reviews. IF YOU SEE SIGNS THAT YOUR NEIGHBORS TREE IS POISING A DANGER TO YOUR HOME OR OTHERS IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN DO?Hire an ISA Certified Arborist to visit with you and your neighbor. They can help develop a cohesive plan to mitigate or remove the risk. If that is not an option, a certified letter can be sent to the neighbor informing them of the risk. That will usually produce action. In the event the tree fails and damages property after notice has been received and “reasonable” time to rectify has expired, liability for the tree damage will be placed on the notified owner of the tree. Remember, if any part of the tree trunk is on both properties, the tree is owned 50/50 by both parties.