This is TPR's roundup of the latest headlines and news developments. It provides a summary of the stories TPR is following.
Today's weather: Expect a high today of 84 with mostly sunny skies, some wind, and a low tonight of 65. The weekend will see similarly pleasant conditions. Monday's high will be 72 with a slight chance of rain.
SAPD fire on downtown car theft suspects
San Antonio Police said they opened fire on a pair of car theft suspects who tried to run down officers near City Hall on Thursday afternoon.
Assistant Police Chief Robert Blanton said police used tire spikes to stop the vehicle. The suspects' vehicle rammed other vehicles.
Blanton said two officers on foot opened fire: "When the suspects drove towards their officers, they were in fear and they discharged their firearms. One suspect is deceased at the scene, and the other suspect was transported to a local hospital in very critical condition."
The suspects' vehicle burst into flames after it rammed into a building next to the Spanish Governor's Palace.
The officers involved have been placed on routine administrative leave. One is a five-year veteran and the other a three-year vet.
San Antonio pauses metal recycling task force
A task force set up to write new rules around metal recyclers has been paused because of a lack of community involvement.
The task force was created after a series of fires at the industrial sites catalyzed residents of the Southwest Side to demand more be done to regulate the businesses last year.
The fires were not found to be a result of any code violations, the largest was caused by a lithium-ion battery — a growing problem at recycling facilities across the country.
The task force, made up of both community members and metal recycling owners, was charged with reviewing a city code that was last updated in 2012.
It met nine times in four months, but city officials said activity was paused because of attendance issues with community members.
City Council District 5 Communications Director Amador Salazar said they need to ensure residents are heard.
"There's a potential for that vital voice to be lost within the process," he said.
Salazar said he did not view the attendance issue as a loss of faith in the process.
Border Patrol chief mocks idea of agents checking students' immigration status
U.S. Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks said the idea that agents could board school buses to check students’ immigration status was “absurd.”
Alice ISD — about 45 miles west of Corpus Christi — sent a letter to parents Wednesday warning them that students traveling for extracurricular activities could be stopped at highway checkpoints and detained.
Banks pushed back against the claim during an appearance on Fox and Friends.
Alice ISD has now removed all references to the letter from its website and Facebook account.
Poll: Most Texans support total abortion ban
A new poll from the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs found that the state's near total abortion ban had the support of most Texans.
Despite this, it also found that Texans support exceptions in cases of rape, incest, and fetal anomaly.
Eighty-four percent of 1,200 Texans polled said the law should make exceptions for fetal anomaly. Eighty-three percent supported exceptions for abortions of pregnancies that are results of rape and incest.
The law has been under scrutiny, and some OBGYNs said it needs clarification.
Bexar County commissioners approve plans for Valero Texas Open in March
Bexar County commissioners approved plans this week for the upcoming Valero Texas Open at The Oaks course at TPC San Antonio. The Oaks Course is part of the JW Marriott Hill Country Resort and Spa.
The event from March 31 to April 6 attracts some of the world's best golfers who compete for a $9.5 million purse. The winner receives $1.7 million.
The open is more than a century old and last year raised $24 million for more than 400 charities.
Larson Segerdahl, the open's executive director, told commissioners the tournament puts San Antonio on a global stage: "We set all sorts of records last year with attendance, with revenue, TV ratings. This event is also broadcast internationally, domestically on NBC, but internationally to more than a billion homes worldwide and more than 24 languages across the globe."
Akshay Bhatia won last year's open.
San Antonio hosts free landfill day
San Antonio offers a free landfill day from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Marcus Lee with Solid Waste Management listed the eligible items: “It is really for bulky items. Things like appliances, furniture, mattresses, carpet, water heaters. We do take tires. There's a limit of six.”
But Lee said they won’t take everything: “We would not be taking brush items or construction material, like roofing material or sheet rock lumber, commercial industrial waste.”
People must bring a latest CPS bill. If it has an ‘environmental fee’ on it, the landfill lets them in for free.
Learn more at SARecycles.org.
