New bike-share law, defunded fire department in Rockwall County, scam artist back to prison: Your weekend roundup

Here is a look at the top headlines of the weekend so far. [Here is a look at the top headlines of the weekend so far.] January 07,  2018 By Holly Rusak Good morning! Here is a look at the top headlines of the weekend so far. 🌧️ Weather: Morning drizzle then cloudy and windy. Showers developing in the afternoon. Few thunderstorms also possible. High: 60 degrees. 🔎 Prefer the online view? It's [here](. LimeBike rentals lie one on top of another in a line along Young Street in downtown Dallas on Tuesday, December 19, 2017. (Louis DeLuca/Staff Photographer) transportation Highland Park's new bike-share law lets town round up and auction off 'urban litter' Rent-a-bikes might be allowed to pile up in pastel pyramids on the sidewalks of Dallas. But in Highland Park?  [You know better.]( The town's residents and elected officials have seen Dallas' brightly colored clutter stretch into their streets and sidewalks and parks, and they are not pleased. A new ordinance approved by the Town Council makes that abundantly clear, because rather than regulating the rental bikes that have been dropped by the thousands on Dallas in recent months, Highland Park's ordinance essentially outlaws them altogether. Long ordinance short: Get those bikes out of town by nightfall or else. Commentary: With Dallas drowning in rental bikes, [City Hall prepares to crack down,]( writes City Columnist Robert Wilonsky. Mobike, no problem? Fifth bike-share company pulls into Dallas, [with more on the way.]( special offer [special offer digital access]( Captain Kenny Griffith and firefighter Jordan Dillard prepare to leave to fill the tank up with gas Thursday at the McLendon-Chisholm Volunteer Fire Department. (Vernon Bryant/Staff Photographer) rockwall county Rockwall County town to defund fire department, leaving half-million-dollar homes' fate to volunteers The fire department that has served McLendon-Chisholm for more than 40 years [is facing the heat of political change]( sweeping through the Rockwall County community. The town of about 2,500 people and the independent McLendon-Chisholm Volunteer Fire Department have been without a service contract since Jan. 1. But after four budget years in which the town increased spending from $23,000 to more than $320,000 to have paid firefighters on duty 12 hours a day, six days a week, the council now wants to revert to an all-volunteer system. Since Jan. 1, the department has been using its reserve funds and keeping its four paid firefighters at their posts. Eventually, that course of action will lead to the fire department's demise, city and fire officials say. Analysis: Coming to D-FW in 2018, [smaller rent increases and slower home price growth,]( writes Real Estate Editor Steve Brown. Texas politics: Texas will have $248 million [to keep kids covered under CHIP]( through March. Mauricio Aguirre forged this letter from former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher around 2005 to trick a pen dealer into thinking she used one of its pens. He actually kept the pen for himself, prosecutors said. (Federal court case) courts Forger and scam artist just can't seem to give up his trade Mauricio Aguirre’s appreciation for rare and expensive fountain pens [has once again landed him in federal prison](. And once again, to obtain the prized collectibles, he tapped the elaborate fantasies swirling in his head. The notorious scoundrel who once charmed his way into a college deanship in Dallas was sentenced Friday to 15 months in prison for creating counterfeit presidential and U.S. government memorabilia to trade for bejeweled custom pens worth thousands. He received 57 months in federal prison in 2006 for a nearly identical con. This time, Aguirre forged a John F. Kennedy bronze presidential seal and authentication documents that he used to obtain pens from four dealers while posing as a lobbyist based blocks from the White House, prosecutors say. A creative and prolific impostor, Aguirre, 49, of Dallas, has not been able to stop. He has three previous federal fraud convictions and has used a host of aliases, false identities and other fictions to pull off his scams. He said in a motion for a lesser sentence in 2006 that he “can’t control himself.” Who with the what now? A Katy couple who pleaded guilty to enslaving a Nigerian woman and forcing her to work nearly 20 hours a day without pay for two years [were ordered to pay her more than $121,000 in restitution.]( Human smuggling: A Texas truck driver [pleaded guilty to smuggling an undocumented immigrant inside a toolbox,]( where he died. Advertisement (Rose Baca/Staff Photographer) Photo of the Morning Close your eyes and picture the State Fair of Texas. Now swap out the corny dogs for beef jerky,  hot tubs and massage chairs for guns and antler chandeliers, Big Tex for a towering display of taxidermied exotic animals (like these racoons in a canoe) and [you have the Dallas Safari Club Convention and Sporting Expo.]( opinion roundup - Editorial: We can all agree that 'fake news' is bad, [but how 'complicit' are you in its spread?]( - Opinion: Forget treason, Bannon [opens a window on the serious possibility of money laundering,]( writes contributor Timothy L. O'Brien. - Commentary: Corporations will [always be under cyberattack and there's no such thing as online privacy,]( writes Editorial Writer Jim Mitchell. - Editorial: It's past time our government [was representative of the women it serves.]( - Commentary: The off-duty officer who murdered a teen [should be held to higher standard when his sentence is decided,]( writes columnist Jacquielynn Floyd. - Opinion: The NFL [will survive the kneeling era,]( writes Robert Ehrlich, a former Republican Maryland governor. Around The Site - Only YOU can prevent grass fires: A grass fire that burned more than 65 acres Saturday in Denton County [may have started from some coals on a resident's property,]( fire officials said - Apartment fire: Residents were displaced Sunday [after a fire at a three-story apartment complex]( in Lake Highlands. - Back again: A plane bound for DFW International Airport from Illinois [turned around midflight Saturday]( after a possible mechanical issue, American Airlines said. - Retail: Parker School Uniforms, a major supplier of uniforms for private schools, [has abruptly closed.]( - People: Pioneering astronaut John Young, the first to fly into space six times, has died. [He was 87.]( - Politics: President Trump [demanded funding for a border wall]( in exchange for a deal to protect so-called "dreamers." - Music: Jason Isbell [let his songs do the talking]( at engaging Dallas concert. Nita Negrete, 37, is the youngest flu victim in Dallas County this season. (GoFundMe) Finally... Family of Dallas County's youngest flu victim urges sick to seek help fast What started as a light cough on Christmas Eve [snowballed into a fatal illness for 37-year-old Nita Negrete]( of Oak Cliff, who is the youngest flu victim in Dallas County this season. Family members of the Dallas woman told WFAA-TV (Channel 8) on Friday that she was a devoted mother of three and said they're all stunned by her sudden death on Wednesday. Negrete's mother, Josie Garza, told WFAA her daughter tested positive for the flu. Two days after a doctor sent her home with some medicine, things took a turn for the worse and Negrete was rushed back to the hospital. "It was the flu, then it became pneumonia," said Jazmyn Garza. "Then it just went downhill from there." Advertisement 👋 That's all for this morning! For up-to-the-minute news and analysis, check out [DallasNews.com](. 💖 Share the love! 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