HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The City of Houston says its hands are tied when it comes to a firefighter who showed a nude video of a female firefighter to their colleagues.

John Barrientes was found liable in a civil trial last year and was ordered to pay former firefighter Melinda Abbt $250,000. City Council is considering approving an $850,000 payment to Abbt to settle a separate federal lawsuit related to the matter.

Yet some council members question why Barrientes has been allowed to keep his job.

The city points to an obscure Texas law governing police and fire departments.

“If you’re looking to terminate someone’s employment because of a past act, the statutory scheme in Texas requires that that occurs within six months of the act,” City Attorney Michel Arturo said.

But that’s not how other attorneys see it.

“I’m not aware of any law that says you have to fire someone within 180 days of the misconduct,” employment attorney Michael Lombardino said.

Arturo sent Eyewitness News a copy of the Texas Local Government Code. Under a heading titled ‘Indefinite Suspensions,’ it reads:

“In the original written statement and charges and in any hearing conducted under this chapter, the department head may not complain of an act that did not occur within the six-month period preceding the date on which the department head suspends the firefighter or police officer.”

Lombardino said that should only apply to indefinite suspensions, which he said are different than terminations.

“Sometimes you need to be able to conduct an investigation, so putting a time limit on when you would be able to terminate an employee doesn’t really make sense,” he said.

Arturo told council members that firing Barrientes could give him grounds for a wrongful termination suit. Some worry about the lawsuits the city could face by keeping him.

“If we have another incident that comes up, aren’t we in more legal jeopardy because we are aware of this behavior?” Councilman Fred Flickinger asked.

Council won’t vote on whether to approve the settlement with Abbt for at least another week.

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Texas football senior and offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. was nabbed as one of the four finalists for the Lombardi Award, a trophy that celebrates the best offensive or defensive lineman in college football.

Among Banks Jr. in the other finalists spots are LSU’s offensive tackle Will Campbell, Penn State’s defensive end Abdul Carter and South Carolina’s EDGE defender Kyle Kennard.

This is just another award for the offensive tackle. After the Mississippi State win, Banks Jr. was named SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week and repeated that award against Oklahoma. In addition, Banks Jr. also was named the Outland Trophy’s National Player of the Week for his performance against the Sooners.

Before the season, Banks Jr. was called First Team All-America by the Associated Press, CBS Sports, ESPN, Sporting News, and The Athletic as well as the preseason First Team All-SEC team by both media and coaches.

The Texas offense has been successful partially because of Banks Jr., he is ranked as the highest Texas player on the PFF Big Board at 11.

According to the official Texas Longhorns website, the Longhorns rank ninth nationally in team passing efficiency (162.81), 12th in passing offense (288.6), 13th in completion percentage (67.9) and scoring offense (37 ppg), and 18th in total offense (450.2 ypg).

These stats have also helped propel the Longhorns offensive line to be a semifinalist for the Joe Moore Award earlier this month.

If Banks Jr. wins, this would be the fourth time a Longhorn has won the Lombardi Award. The other three to win are Kenneth Sims (1981), Tony Degrate (1984), and Brian Orakpo (2008).

This year’s award dinner will take place on Dec. 11th after the regular season concludes.

In the meantime, Banks Jr. and the Longhorns face the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday for their next opponent.

The game in Austin will kickoff at 2:30 on ABC.

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North Texas is known for its generally mild winters, but the area has nonetheless experienced some exceptionally frigid days.

These cold spells can include challenges such as icy roads and heightened energy demands, and some terrible accidents that have included fatalities.

According to the National Weather Service, here are the five coldest days in North Texas.

1. Feb. 12, 1899: minus 8 degrees

A severe arctic blast affected much of the country during the first half of February in 1899. Temperatures fell below zero in every state. A century later, records from that coldest day remain unchallenged.

Between Feb. 4-13, only eight hours with temperatures at or above freezing were reported, according to the National Weather Service’s office in Fort Worth.

With winds blowing at over 30 mph, the thermometer marked a low of minus 8 degrees the morning of Feb. 12.

Dallas went down to minus 10 degrees and Grapevine fell to minus 12 degrees.

2. Feb. 16 2021: minus 2 degrees

A historic winter storm and arctic outbreak hit North Texas. It affected most of the state and many parts of the country. Records were broken across Texas, and winter storm warnings were issued across the entire state.

A freezing drizzle created a thin coating of ice on many roadways that led to numerous cars sliding off the road, including a pileup of over 100 vehicles that resulted in several fatalities on Interstate 35W in Fort Worth.

According to the weather service, 5 inches of snow was reported at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. The area spent 93 consecutive hours at or below freezing, from 5 p.m. Feb. 9 to 2 p.m. Feb 13.

3. Dec. 23, 1989: minus 1 degree

A cold wave brought several surges of arctic air into the central and eastern United States, beginning in mid-December and lasting until Christmas.

The city of Dallas suffered $25 million in damage caused by broken pipes, along with losses at manufacturing plants. Other areas in the southeast U.S. had similar damage from frozen pipes.

The cold wave brought snow to some areas of Florida, giving many parts of the state their first White Christmas on record.

4. Jan. 12, 1912: 1 degree

North Texas was gripped by two cold waves, one on Jan. 6 and the other on Jan. 12.

Temperatures plummeted across the state with each cold wave, leaving little time for preparation. Unprotected vegetation died, and the weather was linked to widespread agricultural losses.

According to The Dallas Morning News archives, local temperature dropped at 11 a.m. from 55 degrees to 24 degrees in the afternoon. By 7 p.m., temperature had dropped to 14 degrees. After 7 p.m., when the cold wave really hit North Texas, pushing the temperature to just 1 degree.

5. Feb. 8, 1933: 2 degrees

According to The News archives, a winter blast hit North Texas and part of Oklahoma, dropping temperatures to 7 degrees by 6 p.m. Heavy snow blanketed the city. Snow continued through the night for several hours.

At 11:30 p.m., the thermometer at Dallas Love Field dropped to 4 degrees, before dipping overnight to 2 degrees.

Two Texans died as a result of the winter storm, which was blamed for heavy damage to fruit, and other crops.

An 18-year-old boy and a 62-year-old doctor died during the cold wave, and according to the coroners office, their deaths were caused by exposure.