EL PASO — Officials say an Army sergeant has been charged with murder in the death of his wife on a West Texas military base.

An Army spokesman says Staff Sgt. Amy Colbert died on April 6 at Fort Bliss, a base in El Paso. After an investigation, Sgt. Lance Colbert was charged with murder, threatening, stalking and using “indecent language” under military code on April 11. Details of the alleged killing were not released, and the Army declined to provide further information.

Amy Colbert enlisted in 2011 and served combat tours in Afghanistan and Kuwait. She was posthumously promoted from sergeant to staff sergeant.

Lance Colbert enlisted in 2012 and deployed to Afghanistan. He is being held in military custody and has not had a date set for his initial court hearing.

 

Texas man offered $200 to beat trans woman

DALLAS — Dallas police say a man was offered $200 to beat a transgender woman in an attack that was recorded as a crowd gathered to holler and watch.

A police affidavit released Monday says the woman accidentally backed into a vehicle before the driver of that vehicle pointed a gun at her and refused to let her leave unless she paid for the damage.

Police say that as a crowd gathered, someone offered $200 to 29-year-old Edward Thomas to beat the woman, who suffered a concussion, fractured wrist and other injuries.

Police say a second person stomped on the woman’s head in Friday’s attack but hasn’t yet been charged.

 

Agency identifies sailor killed at Pearl Harbor

LEAGUE CITY — A 19-year-old Houston-area sailor who died in the 1941 Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor has been identified.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency on Tuesday announced Navy Seaman 2nd Class Richard J. Thomson of League City has been accounted for 77 years after the attack.

Military officials say Thomson was assigned to the USS Oklahoma, which capsized during the bombing. The attack on the battleship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Thomson.

From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the remains of the deceased crew, which were interred in cemeteries in Hawaii.

Military officials in 2015 exhumed USS Oklahoma unknown remains for analysis, including DNA testing. That led to Thomson being accounted for in March.

 

Starbucks expanding solar to 360 Texas stores

HOUSTON — Starbucks Corp. has announced plans to expand its investment in solar farms and use the energy to power hundreds of its coffee-serving stores in Texas.

Seattle-based Starbucks on Monday announced the deal with Cypress Creek Renewables and U.S. Bank.

A statement says the companies are combining forces on solar farm operations throughout Texas. Terms weren’t released.

Two solar farms built and operated by Cypress Creek currently provide enough energy for the equivalent of 360 Starbucks in Texas, including sites in Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Plano and Arlington. Company officials say Starbucks is separately investing in six Cypress Creek-owned solar farms in Texas.

Starbucks and U.S. bank earlier worked to develop and finance a solar farm in Maxton, North Carolina.