Kevin O’Connor Kommentary March 28

Restrooms at College Station High School (CSHS) are equipped with sensors to detect vaping. That was disclosed in the arrest report of a Brazos County sheriff’s deputy who last Friday (April 11) arrested a student for the second time in three months for possessing a THC vaping device. The deputy says a CSHS administrator saw 17 year old Pharoh Clark in the restroom at the time the sensor was activated. The deputy tested the vape device and determined it contained THC. At the time of last Friday’s arrest, Clark was out on an $8,000 dollar bond following a February 5th arrest on the same charge. Clark was released from the jail on the new charge the day after he was arrested after posting a $16,000 dollar bond. A College Station ISD spokesman tells WTAW News that federal privacy laws prevents the district from saying if Clark has been allowed to return to classes.   Mumford ISD has not issued a statement on its website or Facebook page about the arrest last Friday (April 11) of a student for threatening to blow up the school last Thursday. The arrest that was shared on the Robertson County sheriff’s office Facebook page also said officials learned of the threat last Wednesday but school was held the rest of the week. The sheriff’s office did not release the name or the age of the student. Reaction to the Robertson County sheriff’s office news release included a parent saying they were not notified until two days after the threat was reported, and a Mumford ISD employee saying there was a deputy in each building and they thought the district did a great job of not putting employees and students in a panic.

A shoutout is given to Bryan ISD security and Bryan police for handling a suspicious situation outside Bonham elementary school while classes were being held. BPD officer Seth Waller said last Thursday (April 10), the BISD security employee noticed a car circling around Bonham’s parking lot. Waller said the security employee approached the driver, got him to stop, and got the keys from the driver. Suspecting the driver was under the influence, Waller said the security employee notified Bonham administrators, who in turn contacted two BPD school resource officers who responded from neighboring Sadberry Intermediate. Waller said the driver “didn’t have anybody at the school (Bonham), really didn’t know where he was at this time, kind of disoriented (and) agitated, kinda all those things that we (police) see coming with an impaired driver at 8:45 in the morning.” Waller praised the security officer “from observing the vehicle (and) knowing something wasn’t right, protecting the kids, (and) protecting the building from an impaired driver (from) driving into the building (and/or) trying to escape or flee police”. The driver, a 52 year old man from Houston, was arrested for DWI. Waller says if anyone sees erratic behavior from a driver to call 9-1-1. Click below to hear comments from Seth Waller, visiting with WTAW’s Bill Oliver. Listen to “Shoutout given to Bryan ISD and Bryan police in their response to suspicious activity outside an elementary school” on Spreaker.

Bryan police arrest two drivers with lengthy driving histories on new charges of driving without a valid license with prior convictions. One BPD arrest report says an officer last Thursday (April 10th) pulled over a SUV with unconfirmed insurance. The 55 year old driver from College Station had a driving history that includes 29 convictions and 22 suspensions. That led to Johnny Duron’s 37th trip to the Brazos County jail since December of 1989. As of April 14, he remains held in lieu of bonds totaling $7,350 dollars on charges of driving with an invalid license with five convictions, possession of cocaine, and possessing drug paraphernalia. Jail records show Duron no longer has a hold from Bryan municipal court on five warrants and no longer has a hold on three warrants from the justice of the peace precinct four court. Also last Thursday (April 10th), a BPD officer pulled over a car that did not have a front license plate. The driving history of a 38 year old man from Bryan who was arrested shows 24 convictions and eight suspensions. Tyrone Bernard Williams, who was arrested for driving with an invalid license with six convictions, is out of jail after posting a $2,000 dollar bond.