Holiday Fatalities Reported

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky State Police say preliminary statistics indicate 11 people died in five separate crashes on Kentucky roadways during the Christmas holiday period which began at 6:00 P.M. Friday, December 21st and extended through 11:59 P.M. Tuesday, December 25, 2012. The crashes occurred in Christian, Clark, Jefferson, Knox, and Pike counties. Preliminary statistics indicate that 729 people have lost their lives on Kentucky roadways during 2012. This is 16 more fatalities than reported for 2011. 

Lexington Center Signs Pepsi Contract

{Lexington, Kentucky}…Coca-Cola products have been served at Lexington Center since it opened in 1976. Beginning January 2nd, Pepsi beverages will be served at concession stands in Rupp Arena, the Shops at Lexington Center, the Lexington Opera House, Triangle Park and at Lexington Center events. G&J Pepsi-Cola Bottlers Inc. of Cincinnati signed a partnership agreement with the Lexington Center Corp. to become the official beverage provider at several facilities controlled by the company. The first major event where Pepsi will be served will be the University of Kentucky's men's basketball game against Eastern Michigan on January 2nd.

Lawmakers Concerned Over Crushable Narcotics

U.S. Representative Hal Rogers and Senator Mitch McConnell each sounded the alarm last week over patents expiring next month on prescription narcotics such as Oxycontin and Opana. Once the patents expire, generic versions of the two drugs will be allowed on the market. Rogers has asked the Food and Drug Administration to act before January 1st to require generic manufacturers to also implement tamper-resistant coatings. McConnell called Bill Schultz, acting general counsel for the Department of Health and Human Services, to his office last Wednesday to express his concerns, saying he has heard concerns from law enforcement, hospitals and health clinics in Kentucky that these generic crushable drugs lack the tamper-resistant gel coating of the brand name drugs.

Unemployment Rates Released

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…The Kentucky Office of Employment and Training reported Wednesday that jobless rates improved in 99 counties in November but worsened in 20 others. Woodford County had the lowest jobless rate in the state at 5.4 percent, while Magoffin County had the worst unemployment at 15.1 percent. Letcher County had a 13.3 percent unemployment rate. Harlan, Knott, Leslie and Letcher counties were all at 13 percent or above.

Nursing Home For Veterans Sought

{Bowling Green, Kentucky}…Ray Biggerstaff of Alvaton and Col. Robert Spiller of Oakland have spoken to Bowling Green commissioners and Warren County officials in their effort to bring a nursing home for veterans to the area. Biggerstaff and Spiller have gotten dozens of letters from supporters who include leaders like Warren County Judge-Executive Mike Buchanon, Bowling Green Mayor Bruce Wilkerson and Warren County Sheriff Jerry "Peanuts" Gaines. Biggerstaff says they are still working on getting enough land donated so that Bowling Green can get to the top of a list of cities competing for the next veteran's nursing home in Kentucky. He says a piece of land between 10 and 30 acres is needed.

Fatal Accident In Knox County

{Flat Lick, Kentucky}…Kentucky State Police have confirmed five people are dead following a crash near Flat Lick in Knox County on Christmas Eve. Police say, around 5:30 P.M. Monday, 31 year old David Vanderpool of Williamsburg, was traveling on U.S. 25 E when he lost control of his vehicle, went airborne over a median, and hit a southbound car head on. Sixty-one year old Gary Caldwell and 58 year old Patricia Caldwell, both of Putney, along with 29 year old Julia Robinson and 30 year old Brent Robinson, from Bradenton, Florida were in the second car. All five people in both cars were killed.

Sprint Settlement Approved

{Louisville, Kentucky}…U.S. District Judge Thomas B. Russell has approved a $1.4 million class-action settlement between Kentucky landowners and Sprint Communication. The settlement stems from a suit filed in June in federal court in Louisville accusing Sprint and Qwest Communications of trespassing on the landowners’ property, digging up the ground and putting the cables in without permission. A fairness hearing is set for June 18th.

Theft In Knox County

Knox County Sheriff's Deputy Claude Hudson says, while he was driving on Highway 225 Thursday, he noticed Earl Gray and Johnny Ray Jordan on a four-wheeler pulling a trailer with a large piece of steel metal on the back of a four-wheeler. Hudson questioned the men and was told they found it in the woods. Hudson discovered a bench warrant for Gray and arrested him. Friday morning, Mountain Ridge Drilling reported a metal theft. Deputies found the metal at a scrap yard and returned it to the owners. Gray was released on bond before he was charged with theft, and deputies are looking for both him and Jordan.

DNA For Inmates Proposed

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Republican state Senator John Schickel of Union, in northern Kentucky, has proposed allowing more inmates around the state to have access to DNA testing. The legislation would allow those accused of only the most serious felonies or crimes classified as violent to request testing. Currently, the state limits DNA testing to inmates on death row. Schickel says he thinks it is "kind of strange" to offer DNA testing to death row inmates, but not to others.

"Cram the Cruiser" Collects 52 Tons

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky State Police Commissioner Rodney Brewer says the "Cram the Cruiser" food drive netted 52 tons of food to help feed people during the holidays. This year's effort was more than double last year's take of 50,931 pounds of food. Brewer says employees at the Harlan post alone gathered nearly 11 tons of food.

Beshear Appoints Finance Director

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Governor Steve Beshear is appointing Republican State Representative 60 year old Danny Ford of Mount Vernon to become surplus property director in the Finance and Administration Cabinet, effective January 2nd. Ford has been in the state House since 1982 and is retiring at year's end. He is the longest-serving Republican House member since 1900. His 80th House District includes Lincoln, Rockcastle and part of Pulaski counties. Ford will make $85,000 a year in the state position that has been vacant since spring.

Beshear Calls For Moment Of Silence

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Governor Steve Beshear is asking Kentuckians to join in a moment of silence at 9:30 A.M. Friday morning for victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. Houses of worship and other buildings with bells are encouraged to sound them 26 times for the 20 first-graders and six adults that were killed. Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy has declared Friday a day of mourning in that state and asked other states to participate in a moment of silence.

Physicians' Network Plans To Cut Coventry Ties

More than 700,000 Kentuckians receive insurance through Medicaid. The Physicians' Network, a group of 550 independent physicians in Central Kentucky, has announced plans to cut its ties with Medicaid provider Coventry Cares of Kentucky. Dr. Ralph Alvarado, president of the network, says Coventry had told the group that it would begin to pay less than the established Medicaid rate in reimbursements, as much as 10 percent less for care from specialists. Alvarado says doctors now taking Medicaid are making a slim profit at best. Coventry says the decision would not take effect until March 7th, and it remains committed to continuing negotiations and trying to find common ground

Plea For USA Harvest Founder Delayed

{Louisville, Kentucky}…Thursday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Dave Whalin rescheduled a change of plea hearing for USA Harvest founder 63 year old Hugh "Stan" Curtis for January 31st. Curtis was charged in September with taking $183,354 from the charity and charging another $370,000 in personal travel expenses. Curtis, who founded the organization in 1989 as Kentucky Harvest of Louisville, faces charges of mail fraud, money laundering and filing false income tax returns. According to the information filed in a Louisville federal court, from September 2005 through September 2007, Curtis failed to report to the Internal Revenue Service about $553,891.67 in personal income he received from USA Harvest. 

Bluegrass Audit Released

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Auditor Adam Edelen says an audit has found executives at Bluegrass Regional Mental Health-Mental Retardation Board in Lexington awarded themselves benefits worth millions of dollars without scrutiny from the agency's board of directors. The audit found the agency has paid nearly $3 million in benefit contributions since 1997 to top executives at the CEO's discretion while most employees received little or nothing. The agency, among other things, manages Eastern State Hospital in Lexington and Bluegrass Oakwood in Somerset, both of which are owned by the state. Bluegrass CEO Shannon Ware said last week she plans to retire after four years of leading the agency.

Overdose Deaths On The Rise

{Lexington, Kentucky}…A study announced this week by the Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center at the University of Kentucky shows drug overdose deaths in Kentucky rose 282 percent between 2000 and 2010. The study found that drug overdose deaths increased from six per 100,000 residents in 2000 to 22.9 per 100,000 residents in 2010. The study says 53 percent of the deaths were from prescription drugs, with the highest fatality rates in eastern Kentucky.

Supreme Court To Hear Case

{Louisville, Kentucky}…The Kentucky Supreme Court agreed Thursday to hear a case that could determine what responsibility Kentucky State Police have when they employ a confidential informant. In July 1996, LeBron Gaither testified before a grand jury against Jason Noel, who was later indicted on a drug charge. The next day, detectives reunited Gaither and Noel for a controlled drug buy. Gaither got into a car in Taylorsville for the buy unaware a grand juror had tipped off Noel to his role as a police informant. Gaither was found dead in Casey County. He had been tortured, stabbed, beaten, dragged and killed. The Kentucky Board of Claims determined in 2009 that the state was 30 percent liable for Gaither's death and awarded Gaither's family $168,000, but a Franklin Circuit judge overturned that decision in 2011, and the Kentucky Court of Appeals rejected the award in May.

Kentucky Pride Fund Awards Grant

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Governor Steve Beshear has announced that approximately $2.1 million in grant funding has been awarded by the Kentucky Pride Fund for cleanup of 172 illegal dumps in 26 counties across the Commonwealth. As part of the grant funding, counties must agree to provide a 25 percent match when it costs less than $50,000 to cleanup an individual, illegal open dump. The Energy and Environment Cabinet may waive the 25 percent match. Funding comes from a $1.75 environmental remediation fee for each ton of garbage disposed of at Kentucky municipal solid waste disposal facilities.

The following counties received grants: Adair, Boone, Breathitt, Breckinridge, Cumberland, Fleming, Hardin, Harlan, Hart, Henderson, Lee, Leslie, Logan, Lyon, Madison, Magoffin, Mason, Meade, Monroe, Montgomery, Owsley, Pike, Powell, Warren, Whitley and Wolfe.

Kentucky Power Announces Plan

{Louisa, Kentucky}…Kentucky Power announced Wednesday it intends to close its primary generating unit at the Big Sandy Power Plant in Louisa and replace it with power generated in Moundsville, West Virginia. Under the plan, Kentucky Power would obtain 50 percent of the Mitchell Generation Station, in Moundsville, which is currently owned by AEP-Ohio. The cost of the transfer would be $530 million. If approved, consumers would see an 8 percent increase in electric bills. Kentucky Power is under a federal consent decree to bring the Big Sandy plant into compliance with the Clean Air Act by the end of 2015 or close the facility. Officials scrapped plans earlier this year to install a $1 billion scrubber, saying they wanted to “reevaluate alternatives” due to changes in the energy market. The construction would have caused electric bills to soar 31 percent.

Florida Doctor Convicted

{Ashland, Kentucky}…A federal court jury in Ashland has found 57 year old Dr. Clara S. Rodriguez-Iznaga, a Florida doctor, guilty of conspiring to illegally prescribe hundreds of thousands of pills and money laundering. Evidence presented at the trial revealed that, in a one year span starting in 2008, Rodriguez-Iznaga made approximately $641,000 in cash by unlawfully prescribing 600,000 Oxycodone pills to patients mostly from West Virginia, southern Ohio and eastern Kentucky. Rodriguez-Iznaga opened Florida Global Medical pain clinic in June 2008 with co-defendant Jody Robinson.

Park Clerk Indicted

{Grayson, Kentucky}…Shawn Knipp, 19, of Olive Hill, a clerk at the Carter Caves State Resort Park, has been charged with theft by unlawful taking. Police say Knipp reported a robbery on August 15th, telling authorities that he was assaulted and robbed. Detectives say they found several inconsistencies with his statement and evidence at the scene. The case was presented to a Carter County grand jury, and Knipp was indicted.

KY Joins HERO Campaign

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky has joined the HERO Campaign. Governor Steve Beshear signed a proclamation Tuesday encouraging people to participate in designated driver programs and drive sober. The HERO Campaign, which was inspired by Navy Ensign John Elliott, who was killed by a drunken driver in 2000, works with schools, businesses, law enforcement agencies and other organizations to encourage bars and restaurants to serve free soft drinks to sober designated drivers and asks schools to integrate the campaign into drunken driving prevention and educational programs.

Funding For School Safety Considered

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Funding for the Safe Schools Program in Kentucky has decreased from $10.4 million in 2007-2008 to $4.5 million in the current school year. The funding cut has led to fewer safety audits being performed at schools around the state by the Kentucky Center for School Safety. Some state lawmakers and educational leaders say the cuts need to be reviewed. Kentucky Education Commissioner Terry Holliday says he’s worried that the state can’t conduct as many audits as it would like to, and he thinks the funding cut should be reviewed, though he is confident that schools around the state are safe.

AAA Gearing-Up For Holiday Travel

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…About 39,000 motorists in West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio and western Pennsylvania are expected to call AAA East Central for help while traveling during the Christmas and New Year's holidays. While AAA expects it will replace more than 6,500 dead car batteries, change nearly 6,000 flat tires and retrieve nearly 4,800 sets of keys locked inside vehicles, it expects nearly 16,000 motorists will have to have their vehicles towed for problems that can’t be fixed by the roadside. Steve Popovich with AAA's Automotive Services says many breakdowns can be avoided by checking the antifreeze, tire pressures, the battery and belts and hoses before starting a trip.

Senate Democrats Choose Leaders

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky Senate Democrats have re-elected R.J. Palmer of Winchester as minority floor leader, Johnny Ray Turner of Prestonsburg as minority caucus chairman and Jerry Rhoads of Madisonville as minority whip. Republicans have a 23-14 majority over Democrats in the Senate, with one Independent. House Democrats and Republicans are expected to select leaders when the legislature meets January 8th for a 30-day session.

Synthetic Marijuana Ban Signed

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Tuesday, Governor Steve Beshear signed emergency regulations banning newly identified forms of synthetic marijuana. In the past, Kentucky lawmakers have passed laws banning drugs known as "bath salts" and synthetic marijuana, but this is the first time an administrative regulation has been used to outlaw synthetic substances, which mimic the effects of cocaine, marijuana and other illegal stimulants. Beshear says his regulation will allow the state to keep pace with "backyard chemists" who try to skirt the law by slightly altering formulas of such dangerous substances. Beshear's action stems from passage of legislation this year that broadened the scope of banned substances to include entire classes of synthetic drugs, not just compounds.

Lawmaker Wants Task Force To Study School Safety

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky State Representative Richard Henderson, D-Mount Sterling, says he will form a task force to look into whether the state can put armed officers and metal detectors in all of Kentucky's 1,245 public schools. Last week, Jon Akers, director of the Kentucky Center for School Safety, which helps schools develop state-mandated safety plans, said there are 221 public schools in the state with on-site school resource officers. Most of them carry firearms. Akers says metal detectors are only effective if they are installed at every school entrance, not just the main door.

Man Sentenced For Transporting Teen

{Owensboro, Kentucky}…Forty-six year old Archie M. Whalen of Hancock County, Maine, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for transporting a 13 year old Kentucky girl across state lines to engage in sexual activity. A jury convicted Whalen on July 26th of taking the girl in 2009 from her home in Owensboro to Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. Whalen met the girl when she and her mother lived briefly in Maine.

Gun Control Considered

{Washington, D.C.}…Gun control was a hot topic in the early 1990s, when Congress enacted a 10-year ban on assault weapons, but since that ban expired in 2004, few Americans have wanted stricter laws and some politicians say they don't want to become targets of a powerful gun-rights lobby. Gun-rights advocates say that needs to change. Democrats say meaningful action should be taken to include a ban on military-style assault weapons and to look at how the nation deals with individuals suffering from serious mental illness.

Kentucky's Health Care Exchange

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Beginning October 1, 2013, Kentuckians will be able to register for the state's new health care exchange, a key part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that will allow people who do not have insurance to shop for a benefits plan. Health insurance companies are expected to start filing plans for the exchange by February 1st. Consumers will be able to select from various levels, named after metals, among the plans offered: A bronze plan means that the premium the customer is charged is expected to cover 60 percent of the claim's cost; silver, 70 percent; gold, 80 percent; and platinum, 90 percent. The remainder would be paid by the consumer in co- payments, co-insurance and other fees.

UK Teachers Given Great Teacher Award

{Lexington, Kentucky}…Six University of Kentucky professors have been given the UK Alumni Association 2013 Great Teacher Award. The Great Teacher Award, which began in 1961, is the oldest continuous award that recognizes teaching at UK. The nominations are made by students. The recipients will be honored February 5th at the UK Alumni Association Great Teacher Award Recognition Dinner and will then be honored on center court of Rupp Arena during the South Carolina- Kentucky men's basketball game later that evening.

The recipients are:

Karen Badger, associate professor, College of Social Work.

Roberta Dwyer, professor, College of Agriculture.

Samuel Franklin, assistant professor, College of Medicine.

John Grove, professor, College of Agriculture.

Armando Prats, professor, College of Arts and Sciences.

Gerald Smith, associate professor, College of Arts and Sciences.

Trial Set For Catholic Priest

{Louisville, Kentucky}…Rev. James Schook, a Louisville Catholic priest with terminal cancer, is scheduled to go on trial June 24, 2013 to face charges he sexually abused two boys in the 1970s. Schook, who faces seven counts of sodomy, was indicted in June 2011. Attorneys had delayed the trial in May because doctors said there was a possibility Schook may not live to the end of this year. Jefferson County Commonwealth's Attorney John Balliet said Monday that he had spoken with a doctor who said it's possible Schook could live for several more years. 

KY Approved For Insurance Exchange

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…The Department of Health and Human Services announced Friday that the District of Columbia, Kentucky and New York have been granted conditional approval to operate state-based health insurance exchanges. The exchanges are a key component of the Obama administration's health care overhaul and are intended to make it easy for individuals and small businesses to buy health insurance. 

Kentucky Blood Center Offers Stocking Stuffers

It’s the Christmas season, and it’s time to give. The Kentucky Blood Center is providing blood donors an opportunity to snag a stocking stuffer while also helping to shore up the blood supply. Those who give at blood drives from December 17th through January 4th will receive a $10 gift card, while donors at KBC's four donor centers will receive two movie passes to an area cinema.

Donor center locations:

Lexington Beaumont Donor Center                                  

3121 Beaumont Centre Circle                          

Lexington, Kentucky

Lexington Andover Donor Center                                  

3130 Maple Leaf Drive
Lexington, Kentucky

Pikeville Donor Center

472 S. Mayo Drive
Pikeville, Kentucky

Somerset Donor Center

120 S. Highway 27
Somerset, Kentucky                                 

Kentucky State Parks…New Year’s Eve Parties

The Kentucky State Parks has several New Year’s Eve parties and events planned at resort parks across the state. Many parks are offering lodging packages that include entertainment and meals, among other things, for December 31st or around that date. For more details and park information, visit www.parks.ky.gov.

The parks include:

Barren River Lake State Resort Park, Lucas

Blue Licks Battlefield State Resort Park, Mount Olivet

Buckhorn Lake State Resort Park, Buckhorn

Carter Caves State Resort Park, Olive Hill

Cumberland Falls State Resort Park, Corbin

Dale Hollow Lake State Resort Park, Burkesville

General Butler State Resort Park, Carrollton

Greenbo Lake State Resort Park, Greenup

Jenny Wiley State Resort Park, Prestonsburg

Kenlake State Resort Park, Aurora

Kentucky Dam Village State Resort Park, Gilbertsville

Lake Barkley State Resort Park, Cadiz

Lake Cumberland State Resort Park, Jamestown

Pennyrile Forest State Resort Park, Dawson Spr

Exonerated Man Files Lawsuit

{Louisville, Kentucky}…Kerry Porter, a man who was exonerated of murder after serving 14 years in prison has filed a lawsuit against Metro Louisville and eight police officers. The suit alleges officers wrongfully conspired to convict Porter of a murder in 1996 by fabricating evidence, using improper identification procedures and hiding evidence that would have cleared him. The suit says the city condoned the behavior by failing to track and identify officers who were repeatedly accused of misconduct. Porter was freed from prison last year.

Man Sentenced On Attempted Murder

{Ashland, Kentucky}…Friday, 52 year old Thomas K. Biederman of Russell was sentenced to 40 years in prison after being convicted last month of attempted murder and using a weapon of mass destruction. A bomb detonated in a parking garage in Ashland on July 28, 2011, after Biederman’s wife, Janie Biederman, touched the vehicle's brake pedal. She suffered burns to her arms and legs. Biederman maintained his innocence, but prosecutors argued he had the motive of a $430,000 life insurance policy and the opportunity.

Paul Announces Senate Plans

U.S. Senator Rand Paul is insisting that he will seek re-election to the Senate in 2016, although he has acknowledged he's interested in a presidential bid. Republican strategist Mike Karem, a Louisville attorney, says Paul would find it difficult to raise money for his re-election if people think he's running for president.

Natural Gas Station In Somerset

{Somerset, Kentucky}…A natural gas station in Somerset has begun servicing vehicles. Mayor Eddie Girder says, after a credit card device that is order arrives, the station will be one of the first compressed natural gas fueling stations in Kentucky that is open to the public 24-7, and he expects between 200 and 300 cars per day to fill up at the station, which charges about $1.50 per gallon. The city also plans to change its fleet of about 75 vehicles from gasoline to natural gas.

Beshear Urges Passage Of River Legislation

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Governor Steve Beshear is urging U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell to sponsor and pass legislation that would force the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to release water from the Missouri River to raise the water level on the Mississippi where drought conditions could soon halt barge traffic. The three have warned of potentially negative economic consequences if the water level on the Mississippi River continues to fall.

State Chooses School District Manager

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…The state Department of Education announced Thursday that Larry Hammond, who has served as superintendent of Rockcastle County schools for 17 years, will begin his duties as state manager for the Breathitt County school district immediately. Hammond will be paid $700 a day for a maximum of 145 days, or $101,500, during fiscal year 2013, and for a maximum of 260 days, or $182,000,  in fiscal year 2014. His contract also calls for him to be reimbursed up to $1,500 per day for housing, travel and other expenses during the two fiscal years.

Conway Announces Drug Settlement

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Attorney General Jack Conway has announced that he has joined 32 other Attorneys General in reaching a $42.9 million settlement with Pfizer Inc. to resolve allegations that the company unlawfully engaged in unfair and deceptive practices in its promotion of its drugs Zyvox and Lyrica. 

Flu Season In Kentucky

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky Department for Public Health officials reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week that the influenza activity level in the state has increased from regional to widespread. Widespread activity is the highest level of flu activity, which indicates increased flu-like activity or flu outbreaks in at least half of the regions in the state. The activity levels for states are tracked weekly as part of the CDC's national flu surveillance system. The flu season can begin as early as October and last through May, and usually peaks between January and March.

Attorney General Warns Of Scams

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…As Kentuckians open their hearts and pocketbooks to help those in need this holiday season, Attorney General Jack Conway wants to make sure charitable donations end up where they are needed most and not in the hands of scam artists. The season of giving brings out the best and worst in people. Scam artists are working overtime to devise new schemes to take advantage of the generosity of others. Many scammers use a technique called phishing to gain access to someone's secure information. This is often done through emails that appear to come from a legitimate organization. Phishing emails may contain links to websites that are infected with malware that enable the scammer to gain access to user names, passwords, Social Security numbers and other personal data.

School Officials File Lawsuits

{Lexington, Kentucky}…Last week, the Kentucky Board of Education voted to give management of the Breathitt County school district to the state. Charles David Napier, assistant superintendent, and Steve Banks, transportation director, filed lawsuits Monday in U.S. District Court in Lexington against former superintendent Arch Turner, former board member George Daniel Strong, board members Shirley Hudson, Ina Southwood and Bobby Gross and Melanie Stevens, who was hired as interim superintendent after Turner was jailed in May but has since been suspended. The lawsuits say those who cooperated with the FBI during an investigation into vote fraud in Breathitt County were targeted for retaliation. 

KY Protecting Endangered Indiana Bat

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…The Kentucky Division of Forestry has signed an agreement with federal officials that will help protect the endangered Indiana bat. Lee Andrews, who supervises the Kentucky Field Office for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, says the agreement will assure that state forest lands will be managed in a way that is beneficial to the bat. Indiana bats have been encountered in five of the state's 10 forests, Big Rivers, Green River, Kentenia, Kentucky Ridge, and Tygarts State Forests.

Beshear Urged To Abolish Death Penalty

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Activists with the Kentucky Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty have delivered more than 1,500 postcards to Governor Steve Beshear asking that he sign no more death warrants and that he work to abolish the death penalty. Each of the cards said three decades of experience shows the death penalty is "a risky, arbitrary, unfair, ineffective and costly distraction from justice." Kentucky has executed three people since the reinstatement of capital punishment in 1976.

Homicides In Clay County

{Manchester, Kentucky}…Kentucky State Police in Clay County are investigating two homicides which occurred witin 48 hours. Thursday night, relatives found the body of 74 year old Earl Woods in his home after he had been robbed and beaten. Saturday afternoon, a burned body was found off a dirt road in the Crawfish community.

KY Man Dies In Virginia Accident

{St. Charles, Virginia}…Virginia State Police say 31 year old Jamie Collins of Baxter, Kentucky, died early Monday at Lee Regional Medical Center, and his passenger, 33 year old Jason H. Williams of Viper, Kentucky was transported to Kingsport, Tennessee after a CSX rail car loaded with coal derailed in St. Charles late Sunday. A van used to shuttle railroad employees was parked along the train tracks with the two men inside when the coal car overturned on it.

Man Turns Himself In To Authorities

{Lexington, Kentucky}…Twenty-eight year old Brandon Lamont Bailey went to WLEX's studios around 10:00 A.M. Monday, saying he wanted to turn himself in to police for the December 1st shooting death of 22 year old Anthony Logan, who was killed outside a Lexington apartment. Police say Bailey shot Logan after the two were involved in a fight. Bailey says he was planning to flee to Louisiana but family members convinced him to turn himself in because he shot Logan in self-defense.

Tax Amnesty Boosts General Fund Revenue

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Budget director Mary Lassiter said Monday General Fund revenue in November rose 7.6 percent to $784.2 million, largely the result of a 16.4 percent jump in property tax collections as a result of tax amnesty in Kentucky. Individual income tax revenue increased by 10.7 percent and sales tax receipts rose by 4.6 percent for the month. Some 16,000 delinquent taxpayers had accepted the amnesty offer by the time it expired on November 30th.

Paul…Judd Too Liberal

Kentucky Republican Senator Rand Paul isn't particularly excited about a potential Senate run by actress Ashley Judd. Paul says Judd, who may be considering running for Senate in 2014 or 2016 to represent Kentucky, is too out of step with voters in the state. Judd and her husband, Scottish race car driver Dario Franchitti, have a home in Scotland. Paul jabbed Judd for splitting her time between the U.S. and Scotland, saying he thinks she’d fit right in with the English Parliament because she’s too liberal for the U.S. or Kentucky. He wished her good luck bringing the “I hate coal” message to Kentucky.

Officials...School Buses Safe

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Data provided by the Kentucky Department of Education shows that the state's 10,000 school buses are involved in hundreds of incidents each year, ranging from major wrecks to simple scrapes with a mailbox. There was an average of 1,434 school bus incidents per school year in Kentucky from 2007-2008 to 2010-2011. During that time, two students riding buses were killed. The U.S. Department of Transportation says school buses are still the safest way to transport students to and from school. Ronna Weber, executive director of the National School Transportation Association, says children are almost 50 times safer riding in a school bus than driving themselves or with a teen driver, and almost eight times safer than traveling in the cars of parents or guardians.

McConnell… President Wants It His Way

{Louisville, Kentucky}…At the Kentucky Farm Bureau’s convention in Louisville Friday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell suggested President Barack Obama seems willing to take the country over the “fiscal cliff.” Republican leaders say they will agree to measures that would bring in more revenue, but they say it should be done by closing loopholes or reducing tax breaks rather than raising tax rates for the wealthy. President Obama contends their plan wouldn’t adequately rein in budget deficits. McConnell says President Obama is bound and determined to get his way, and, the way the law is constructed, it’s sort of stacked in his favor because Bush-era tax cuts for everyone are set to expire on January 1st, with automatic, across-the-board spending cuts set to kick in the next day.

State Police Opposed To Hemp

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky State Police Commissioner Rodney Brewer says his agency is opposed to proposals to grow industrial hemp in Kentucky. Brewer says it's incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to the casual observer or even the astute observer to tell the difference between hemp and marijuana as its being grown, and theproblem becomes even more difficult when police use helicopters to search for marijuana fields. Hemp and marijuana are the same species, cannabis sativa, but are genetically distinct. Hemp has a negligible content of THC, the psychoactive compound that gives marijuana users a high.

Beshear Urged To File Federal Declaration

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…U.S. Senators Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul have urged Governor Steve Beshear to seek a federal disaster declaration because of the potential economic consequences of a drought that has led to low water levels on the Mississippi River. McConnell and Paul said in a letter to Beshear that commercial traffic on the river could "come to a complete halt in coming days" unless the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers takes action to increase the water flow.

Former UK Employee To Appeal

{Lexington, Kentucky}…Former University of Kentucky employee 51 year old Mike Douglas Rieder, who was a truck driver for the University of Kentucky's Physical Plant Division, was sentenced to 10 years in prison Thursday in the April 2011 death of U.S. Marine soldier 29 year old James R. Muzic. Police say Rieder and Muzic had been at the Office Lounge bar on Eastland Parkway near New Circle Road, and Rieder had given Muzic a ride in his car before the two began arguing. Rieder pulled over at the gas station and told Muzic to get out. When Muzic refused, Rieder pulled him out of the car and pointed a gun at him. The gun discharged, killing Muzic. Rieder plans to appeal.

Industrial Hemp Getting Wide Support

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer says he sees widespread support building in the General Assembly and across the state for legislation pushing industrial hemp. The commission meets Friday, and Comer says members will discuss potential legislation and the possibility of a new economic study to evaluate the hemp market. State Senator Paul Hornback, R-Shelbyville, who supports legislation to move Kentucky to the forefront of potential hemp production and is widely expected to become the next chairman of the Senate agriculture committee,  says, if he is named chairman, he would call Comer's hemp bill for a vote.

Family Wants Killer Behind Bars

{Grayson, Kentucky}…Cheryl Young and  Gary Young were murdered in 2004 by Gary's son Andrew Young and his girlfriend Stephanie Griffith. The two robbed and killed the couple at their home in Grayson. Andrew is serving a life sentence, and Mullins' family has been working to keep Stephanie Griffith behind bars. A recent statewide jail change has moved Griffith's parole hearing from 2015 to December 2012. Brenda's daughter Cindy Shelby is fighting back by starting an online petition to keep Griffith in prison. The petition has more than 280 signatures, and the family hopes to have more than 1,000 signatures to show the parole board for Griffith's hearing on December 19th.

Grant For Waste Tires

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…The General Assembly established the Waste Tire Trust Fund in 1998 to receive fees collected from new tire sales. Projects to use recycled waste tires for athletic fields, playgrounds or other applications could be eligible for a grant from the Energy and Environment Cabinet. The cabinet says it will also consider funding research and development proposals for experimental practices or technologies that further the waste tire program's purposes, to protect human health, safety and the environment, or that help develop a market for Kentucky waste tires.

Applications must be in by 4:30 P.M. EST January 31st. For more information, contact Lisa Evans at 564-6716 or lisa.evans(at)ky.gov. More information and the application are available at http://waste.ky.gov/RLA/grants/Pages/default.aspx .

Blue Ribbon Commission Approves Plan

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…The Blue Ribbon Commission on Tax Reform says the report presented to Governor Steve Beshear on December 17th will include recommendations that could generate nearly $700 million a year. Some $485 million would come from extending the state's income tax to retirees who draw at least $30,000 a year. Social Security benefits would be exempt. Another $200 million would come from expanding the state's sales tax to household utility bills and other services that have traditionally been exempt in Kentucky. The plan approved Thursday by the commission would reduce revenue from corporate taxes by more than $90 million in hopes of making Kentucky more attractive to companies looking to relocate. Beshear has said he's not sure lawmakers will have time to pass tax reforms in the legislative session, which is scheduled to end in mid-March, but he's prepared to call a special session.

Meningitis Outbreak Update

Tennessee Health Commissioner John Dreyzehner announced Thursday that, since Thanksgiving, officials have identified 22 new cases of localized infections and one case of meningitis without a localized infection in patients who received tainted steroid injections. State health officials said just before Thanksgiving that about 900 patients had received injections from recalled lots of the steroid but hadn't developed meningitis. Nationally, at least 560 people have been sickened and 36 have died. Thirteen of those deaths were in Tennessee.

Beshear Won’t Challenge McConnell

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…During a Capitol press conference, Governor Steve Beshear announced Wednesday he has ruled himself out as a potential challenger to Republican U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell in 2014. Actress Ashley Judd hasn't ruled herself out as a potential challenger but neither has she said anything to suggest that she would enter the race. Although Beshear was complimentary of Judd on Wednesday, he said he has no inside information about whether she will decide to run. Beshear is the latest of several top tier Democrats who have said they won't challenge McConnell. That list includes Attorney General Jack Conway and former state Auditor Crit Luallen. With the election still nearly two years away, McConnell has banked more than $6.8 million. He spent some $20 million on his last election to defeat wealthy Louisville businessman Bruce Lunsford by 6 percentage points.

Cigarette Warnings Appeal Rejected

{Washington, D.C.}…Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington denied the government’s request to rehear a challenge to a requirement that tobacco companies put large graphic health warnings on cigarette packages. In August, a three-judge panel upheld a lower court ruling blocking the Food and Drug Administration requirement. Some of the nation's largest tobacco companies sued to block the mandate to include warnings to show the dangers of smoking and encourage smokers to quit lighting up, arguing the proposed warnings went beyond factual information into anti-smoking advocacy. The government argued the photos of dead and diseased smokers are factual. The government has 90 days to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Armed Robbery In Harlan

{Harlan, Kentucky}…Police in Harlan are investigating an armed robbery. They say Pizza Hut manager Dottie Brock was walking to her car around 1:45 A.M. Wednesday morning when she said two men wearing masks came up, pointed a gun at her, and demanded the night deposit money bag. Brock told police the two men also got her keys to the building and then ran behind the restaurant and over an embankment. Police recovered some clues in the woods behind the restaurant.

Amendment Gets Senate Approval

{Washington, D.C.}…U.S. Senator Rand Paul has gotten Senate approval for a measure that would ensure thousands of military personnel serving overseas get counted in the next census at the bases from which they were deployed. Paul's amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act would especially benefit Kentucky communities around Fort Campbell and Fort Knox.

Officials Discuss School Tests

Since test scores were released in November, critics have questioned why low-performing schools only have to move up one point next year to be considered improving. Some Kentucky board of education members asked Wednesday whether the goals set by the state are high enough to lift up low-performing schools. Commissioner of Education Terry Holliday said the new assessments evaluate schools on several factors to determine success. That differs from the No Child Left Behind Law, from which the state received a waiver. He also said the one-point goal is reasonable. The 2012 data showed 899 Kentucky elementary, middle and high schools needed improvement, 260 were proficient and 137 were distinguished.

Soldier To Be Buried With Military Honors

The Defense Department says the remains of Army Sgt. John R. Jones from Louisville will be buried Thursday in the Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. Jones was part of a U.S. team working with indigenous commandos to defend a radio-relay base in South Vietnam on June 4, 1971 when enemy forces attacked the site, and Jones and another soldier took cover in a nearby bunker. The next morning, Jones was reportedly killed and the other soldier was taken prisoner and held until 1973. DNA and other tools were used to identify the remains.

Marijuana Plants Confiscated

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies confiscated more than $1.5 billion worth of marijuana this year in central Appalachia. Ed Shemelya, head of marijuana eradication in the Appalachian High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, released preliminary figures Tuesday showing that aerial spotters guided ground crews to more than 760,000 plants during the 2012 growing season in Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia, nearly 430,000 of the plants found in Kentucky, 192,000 in West Virginia and more than 147,000 in Tennessee. They also arrested more than 400 growers in the region. The overall haul was down from last year, when law enforcement eradicated 1.1 million plants valued at more than $2 billion. But the total for this year is expected to rise. The final tally will be available by mid-January.

Debate Over Wild Horses

{Harlan, Kentucky}…County Humane Society President Marcella Chadwick says Sequoia Energy wants a pack of wild horses moved off a former surface mining site, but Chadwick says her group and the landowners who leased the coal rights to the mining company want the animals to be left alone. Chadwick says there are about 80 to 100 horses in the area, and the animals have been around there for decades. Chadwick says an official from Sequoia contacted the Humane Society about three weeks ago to seek help in moving the horses, which the company says are disturbing vegetation that has been planted as part of the company's federally-mandated reclamation of the surface mine site.

Former Officer Receives Award

{Ashland, Kentucky}…During a ceremony in Ashland Tuesday afternoon, former Ashland police officer Kevin Gunderson, who was shot in the line of duty, received the national Theodore Roosevelt Police Award. As part of the award, the Theodore Roosevelt Association made a $500 donation to the Putnam Stadium Restoration Project in Gunderson’s name. Gunderson, who  was left a paraplegic after he was shot in the neck while trying to serve a non-support warrant at a residence in Ashland on July 18, 1980, has been a City Commissioner in Ashland for more than 20 years. He was recently re-elected to a new two year term.

Highway Fatalities Down

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Preliminary statistics indicate 16 people died in 15 separate crashes on Kentucky's roadways from Monday, November 26th through Sunday, December 2, 2012. One double-fatality motor vehicle crash occurred in Floyd County. Two single-fatality motor vehicle crashes occurred in Pulaski County. One single-fatality crash also occurred in each of the following counties: Crittenden, Graves, Hopkins, Jefferson, Knott, Livingston, Lyon, Montgomery, Trigg and Webster. One bicycle rider was killed in Hardin County, and one pedestrian was killed in Jefferson County. Through December 2nd, preliminary statistics indicate 678 people have lost their lives on Kentucky roadways during 2012. This is four fewer than reported for this time period in 2011.

Former Wildcat Dies

{Georgetown, Kentucky}…John Lloyd Crigler, a forward on Kentucky's 1958 national championship basketball team under coach Adolph Rupp, died Saturday in Georgetown at the age of 76. Crigler scored 14 points in the 1958 title game against Elgin Baylor's Seattle team. He played with teammates Johnny Cox, Ed Beck, Vernon Hatton and Adrian Smith. Crigler had been a teacher, coach and athletic director at Scott County High School for more than 40 years. Crigler was born in Hebron in Boone County, but he spent much of his life in Scott County.

KY Featured In United Airlines Magazine

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Governor Steve Beshear's office says a 32-page editorial supplement on the state is being featured in Hemispheres, the onboard magazine of United Airlines. The governor's office says the supplement will be available to approximately 12.3 million passengers during December. The article is also available at http://www.hemispheresmagazine.com , as well as through the Hemispheres app for mobile devices.

Former Deputy Justice Secretary Faces Charge

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…In a meeting Monday, the Executive Branch Ethics Commission charged former Deputy Justice Secretary Charles Geveden with violating the state's ethics code by allegedly using his position to solicit campaign contributions for Governor Steve Beshear's re-election campaign last year. The Ethics Commission began investigating the case in September 2011. Ethics Commission Executive John Steffen says his agency's investigation found nothing to suggest Beshear knew what Geveden was allegedly doing. Geveden could face fines of up to $5,000 for each of three counts and a public reprimand in the case that could take months to resolve.

Project Collects Over 10.3 Tons Of Food

Over the recent Thanksgiving holiday, more than 10.3 tons of food was collected in food drives conducted by UNITE Service Corps (AmeriCorps) members and student members of school UNITE Clubs as part of the annual “Make A Difference Day.” Collected food, enough to feed 41,255 people in need an 8-ounce serving, was donated to Family Resource and Youth Service Centers, community charitable groups and/or church pantries in the communities where the food was collected. Eugene Newsome, director of the UNITE Service Corps initiative, says Majestic Elementary in Pike County, a school with just 147 students, collected enough food to give every child’s family a food basket that included a turkey. Newsome says this is the highest total in the food drive project’s history.

Attorney General Warns Of Seasonal Scams

 {Frankfort, Kentucky}…Attorney General Jack Conway is urging Kentucky consumers to be wary of seasonal scams and identity theft. Conway says a record number of consumers are turning to their smart phones, tablets and computers for their holiday shopping needs, and scammers working overtime to develop fraudulent emails and text messages to gain access to your personal information and your identity. Conway says shoppers should be leery of text messages or pop-up ads offering products such as iPads or gift cards for free or at heavily discounted rates. Conway's Office of Consumer Protection says some appear to come from a reputable store, while others involve sweepstakes. 

Two Plead Guilty In Iranian Case

{Louisville, Kentucky}…Hamid Asefi, a 68 year old Iranian citizen, and 53 year old Behzad "Tony" Karimian, a U.S. citizen living in Louisville who holds an Iranian passport and has worked as a Mesaba Airlines pilot, pleaded guilty Monday in a court in Louisville to a plot aimed at illegally shipping aircraft and aircraft parts to Iran in 2009 and 2010 for civilian use. The indictment says the two violated an embargo against Iran. Federal authorities say both men face up to 40 years in prison and fines of $500,000.

Escapees Captured

{Lexington, Kentucky}…Both inmates who walked away from Blackburn Correctional Complex in Fayette County are back in custody. Twenty-one year old Tyler Roberts was apprehended Monday morning walking along a road south of Lancaster, while 23 year old Christopher W. Melton, was arrested Sunday night in Garrard County after deputies received a call about a car parked in a church parking lot. The two were confirmed missing Saturday night.

Blackburn Correctional Inmates Escape

{Lexington, Kentucky}…Authorities say 23 year old Christopher Melton and 21 year old Tyler Roberts escaped from the Blackburn Correctional Complex in Fayette County Saturday night. Melton was serving a 6 year sentence for theft and evading police. He would have been eligible for parole in April 2013. He's described as a 6-foot-1 white male, with brown hair and blue eyes. Roberts was serving a 10 year sentence for burglary, theft, arson, tampering with evidence, and possession of a handgun by a convicted felon. He would have been eligible for parole October 2013. He's about 5-foot-9, with black hair and brown eyes.

State Takeover Of School Recommended

{Frankfort, Kentucky}…Kentucky Education Commissioner Terry Holliday has recommended a state takeover of the Breathitt County school district. An audit released in October found that former superintendent Arch Turner took 10 instructional days out of the school calendar but paid teachers more than $525,000 for time not worked. School board members announced in November that they had hired a consultant to find a permanent replacement for Turner after suspending interterm Superintendent Melanie Stevens and appointing another person to fill the role temporarily. Turner resigned earlier this year after pleading guilty in a federal vote-buying conspiracy.