Staff report

BEAUMONT — A Port Arthur man was indicted Wednesday for racing, an incident that ended in a vehicular crash and a person seriously injured.

According to the arrest warrant, Misrael Cortez, 30, was driving a white Chevrolet truck that witnesses said they saw leaving the red light at 39^th Street and Ninth Avenue headed south alongside a black truck. The two trucks tried to outpace each other at a high rate of speed, witnesses said, ending in a crash into the side of a Toyota sedan on March 27.

The driver of the Toyota, a 71-year-old man, was seriously injured, police said.

 

Prostitution case leads to indictment

Staff report

BEAUMONT — A Jefferson County grand jury on Wednesday indicted Joseph Edward Chavis Jr., 54, of Beaumont on a charge of aggravated promotion of prostitution.

A lengthy investigation ended in early 2019 and Chavis was accused of promoting the prostitution of multiple women in Beaumont during an investigation that included undercover operations and a confidential informant as well as undercover officers.

He reportedly created sexually explicit ads for both the confidential informant as well as an undercover Beaumont police officer and posted them to a website.

 

Indictments returned June 5 in Jefferson

The following people were indicted by a Jefferson Count by grand jury:

• Joseph Edward Chavis Jr., 54, of Beaumont was indicted for aggravated promotion of prostitution for an incident that occurred Dec. 6.
• Sherman James Wyckoff Jr., 24, unknown address, was indicted for aggravated assault for an incident that occurred May 7.
• Misael Cortez, 32, of Port Arthur was indicted for racing for an incident that occurred March 27.
• Ardarien Rashard Davis, 22, of Beaumont was indicted for burglary of a habitation for an incident that occurred March 19.
• Robert Ryan Huffman, 48, of Nederland was indicted for felony theft for an incident that occurred March 12.
• James B. Wheeler, 24, of Beaumont was indicted for burglary of a habitation for an incident that occurred May 12.
• Sylinthia Wilson, 39, of Silsbee was indicted for felony theft, aggregation amounts, for an incident that occurred between Feb. 17, 2017 and May 16.
• Ronald Issac Barnes, also known as Barnes Oronaldo, 27, of Beaumont was indicted for felony theft of a firearm for an incident that occurred May 7.
• Solomon Everfield III, also known as Solomon Everfield Jr. and Derick Wiltz, 42, of Port Arthur was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine, for an incident that occurred March 9, 2018.
• Cara Gail Jefferson, 21, of Nederland was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine, for an incident that occurred March 9, 2018.
• Heath Ray Baker, 32, of Beaumont was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine, for an incident that occurred Sept. 30.
• Huey Ray Martin, 28, of Beaumont was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, cocaine, for an incident that occurred Nov. 16.
• Huey Ray Martin, 28, of Beaumont was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, cocaine, for an incident that occurred Nov. 12.
• Serjio Alejandro Velasquez, 22, of Amarillo, was indicted for harassment of a public servant: correction or detention facility for an incident that occurred Dec. 30.
• Christopher Wayne Clark Sr., 54, of Beaumont was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine, for an incident that occurred Sept. 27.
• John Foutz, 35, of Beaumont was indicted for evading arrest/detention use of a vehicle for an incident that occurred Nov. 28.
• John Allen Hal, 32, of Port Arthur was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, cocaine, for an incident that occurred Oct. 17.
• Jake Knight Jones, 37, of Port Arthur was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine, for an incident that occurred Nov. 4.
• Angela Lee Smalley, 32, of Beaumont was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine, for an incident that occurred Nov. 6.
• Christopher Tadd Wright, 38, of Beaumont was indicted for possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine, for an incident that occurred Nov. 12.

 

See also: Jefferson County Indictments 5-30-19