http://http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/index.xml News, sports, and entertainment from Kentucky.com en-us Copyright 2009 Kentucky.com State 60 Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:33:06 EDT http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss McClatchy Interactive's Workbench interactive-ops@herald-leader.com http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856185.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856185.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:27 EDT
The bills the military construction and veterans' affairs bill and the agriculture appropriations bill were approved Tuesday by a Senate committee.

The military bill includes an additional $5 million for the demilitarization of chemical weapons at Blue Grass Army Depot in Madison County, according to a news release from McConnell's office.

The agriculture bill includes $4.9 million for agriculture projects at the University of Kentucky. Those projects include UK's Advanced Genetics Technology Center, Health Education Extension Leadership Program and Precision Agriculture Research Unit, according to the release.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856811.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856811.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:32 EDT
The two, former Circuit Clerk Chester Jones and former Judge-Executive Sherman Neace, pleaded not guilty Wednesday.

One witness a woman who served as secretary of the county Democratic Party Executive Committee has expressed fear of Jones, and others have concerns about contact with him, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ken Taylor said during the hearing.

There was no information at the hearing about why one witness fears Jones.

Taylor did say, however, that Jones came to the federal courthouse at a time when the grand jury investigating the case was meeting, even though he wasn't directed to be there, and talked with witnesses.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856188.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856188.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:25 EDT
After the closed-door session in Lexington, Board Chairman Joe Brothers said the panel will continue to gather information and check the four finalists' backgrounds with the expectation of selecting a new commissioner on July 17 in Frankfort.

Brothers stressed that no favorite emerged during the interviews.

The four finalists are Terry Holliday, 58, superintendent of the Iredell-Statesville Public Schools in North Carolina; Catherine Cross Maple, 54, deputy cabinet secretary of the New Mexico Public Education Department; Michael Sentance, 58, former New England regional representative for the U.S. Department of Education; and Dennis W. Cheek, 54, senior fellow with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City, Mo.

All four told reporters at Wednesday's meeting that the Kentucky job is attractive because of the state's national reputation for education reform, and they said they would like to help carry reform forward.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856870.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856870.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:21 EDT
In addition, a former member of the department who had been dismissed as the result of a personnel action and a juvenile who was part of an "Explorer" training program also participated in setting fires, Sexton said. The juvenile has been suspended from that program.

No one was hurt in any of the eight fires in Boyle County or the five fires in neighboring Marion County, Sexton said during a Wednesday press conference. (Boyle County has a mutual aid agreement with Marion County to respond to fires there, particularly in the Gravel Switch area.) All the fires occurred within the past 18 months; most happened in the late evening.

The names of the suspects were not released Wednesday. Evidence will be presented to a Boyle County grand jury.

"The staff at Boyle County Fire Department doesn't tolerate this sort of thing," Sexton said.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/857076.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/857076.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:22 EDT
The Conway campaign called the fund-raising effort record-breaking, saying that no other Kentucky Democratic U.S. Senate candidate has raised that much money in one three-month period.

Lt. Gov. Daniel Mongiardo, who is Conway's key Democratic opponent in the Senate race, has not yet released his fund-raising total for the second quarter of the year. In his first 43 days of fund-raising Feb. 17 to March 31 Mongiardo garnered $429,552.

Democrat Darlene Fitzgerald Price, a former U.S. Customs agent, has said she has raised about $15,000 so far.

Stephen Voss, an associate professor of political science at the University of Kentucky, said a strong fund-raising effort in the second quarter shows that Conway is a serious contender.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856335.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856335.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:08 EDT
"KACo leadership is committed to offering your staff our full cooperation as you plan the audit of KACo's financial records," KACo President J. Michael Foster, the Christian County Attorney, said in a letter to Luallen.

Luallen announced last week that her office would examine spending and expenses at the non-profit association, which offers insurance and financing services to counties and provides lobbying, training and legal help. KACo's board of directors is made up of elected county officials from across the state.

Luallen's decision came after the Herald-Leader reported last week that the top five staff members at KACo spent $600,000 over two years for travel, meals and other expenses.

The auditor's office also will investigate spending at the Kentucky League of Cities. A Herald-Leader review found that the League's top three executives spent more than $300,000 since 2006. Travel by all League employees cost $457,000 in 2008.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856958.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856958.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:16 EDT
A small, bright-green insect from Asia the emerald ash borer has been found in Lexington, presenting people who already have ashes with a couple of unpleasant choices: Pay for expensive chemical treatments every year or two, or prepare for the trees' almost certain death.

There is a third option: If your ash tree is small, you might consider cutting your losses by taking it out now and planting something else.

On Wednesday, the Lexington Tree Board approved a resolution removing ashes from the list of approved trees that can be planted along streets and new developments, or anywhere else in the city.

It also recommended that the local government and private property owners treat their trees with insecticides "where feasible," meaning if the tree is of historic and aesthetic value and the city or landowner can afford it. Louisville already is injecting insecticides into hundreds of ash trees in that city's Waterfront Park.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856804.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856804.html Thu, 09 Jul 2009 06:07 EDT
Francis Baker was hired by the state court system in 2007, while still on parole for his multiple felony convictions.

On July 2, officials with the Administrative Office of the Courts completed an investigation of Baker, which produced inconclusive results, AOC spokeswoman Leigh Anne Hiatt said.

Still, officials are transferring Baker from his position as a pre-trial officer in Lexington to an administrative position in the agency's Frankfort office "out of an abundance of caution," Hiatt said. There, Baker will no longer have contact with people in custody.

"He was transferred because of his inability to effectively perform his job duties as a pre-trial officer in Fayette County," Hiatt said.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856796.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856796.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 18:29 EDT
Those methods could generate more than 8,750 new jobs, add more than $1.7 billion to the region's economy over the next three years and be cheaper than the proposed plant, according to the Kentucky Environmental Foundation, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth and Cumberland Chapter Sierra Club. They cited a report by the Ochs Center, a Chattanooga policy research group.

East Kentucky Power spokesman Kevin Osbourn said his company is following a "balanced approach" that relies on fossil fuels, renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Read the Ochs Center report at Kentucky.com.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856189.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/856189.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:46 EDT
Garrard County Fiscal Court will use the $500,000 from a federally funded Community Development Block Grant to help restore the Grand Theater. Local leaders hope to make the theater a destination that will host music and other artistic events. But they also want it to be available for use by schools and community groups.

When the Grand opened in 1925, it had 750 seats, plus a large pipe organ and piano in a pit in front of the stage. The venue closed in 1965, and at one time it housed apartments that have since been removed. Some surrounding buildings have already been torn down for parking. The restored building would have about 400 seats.

McKinley Dailey, president of the non-profit group heading the restoration effort, said work on the building could begin as early as September. Fiscal court recently opened three bids, which ranged between $1.7 million and $1.9 million, Dailey said.

In 2007, the project received a $500,000 federally funded grant for the restoration. By the time that grant had been announced, the non-profit group had already raised $250,000 in a Community Economic Growth Grant and $140,000 in private donations. The non-profit organization also plans a capital campaign to raise additional dollars.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855908.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855908.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 06:03 EDT
Fire claims 6th victim

A 7-year-old boy died Tuesday of injuries here received in a July Fourth house fire, raising the death toll to six. The youngster, Anthony Seargent, died at Kosair Children's Hospital. The cause of death was smoke inhalation. The fire that broke out early Saturday killed four children and two adults. The other children are Anthony's 5-year-old brother, Amarion, and two cousins: 3-year-old Anton and 10-month-old Ashton Seargent, who were brothers. The coroner's office on Tuesday released the name of Brandon Nellom, 21, who died of soot and smoke inhalation. Also killed was Gabrial Johnson, 21. Fire department spokesman Sgt. Salvador Melendez has said it could take weeks for investigators to determine a cause of the fire in the two-story house. Everyone was on the first floor when the blaze erupted, Melendez said. He has said investigators found a working smoke detector on the second floor, but the people in the house apparently didn't hear it because a door to the upper floor was closed.

lexington

Funeral for doctor]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855190.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855190.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 05:37 EDT
Richard Joseph Abshire faces one to five years in prison if convicted of conspiracy to promote gambling, the most serious charge of the three-count indictment.

The indictment says Abshire and Bubab LLC, the Louisiana company that owns Bayou Springs Club in Jeffersonville, south of Mount Sterling, "knowingly conspired with unknown and/or unnamed conspirators to advance or profit from gambling activities" by charging a fee to enter the property where the club "was engaged in and/or operating an active cockfighting operation."

Abshire, who lives in Louisiana, was not arrested but was to be served a criminal summons, said Montgomery County Commonwealth's Attorney Keen Johnson. Abshire is scheduled to be arraigned in Montgomery Circuit Court on July 24.

"We don't want anything operated that's illegal," Johnson said.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855122.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855122.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 06:05 EDT
Carolyn Sue Davis, 60, and Otis Davis, 76, of Pikeville, owners of J J Medical Inc., were sentenced July 1 to two years' supervised release, according to a news release from U.S. District Court in Louisville.

Carolyn Sue Davis was sentenced to eight months, to be served concurrently with a five-year sentence on a previous conviction in a 2005 fraud case. Otis Davis, also convicted in the 2005 case, was released in fall 2008. Each will be fined $800.

J J Medical received more than $55,000 from Life Medical Systems, the pharmaceutical mail-order company, from 2003 to 2004, court records said. Both companies received most of their income from Medicare and Medicaid, according to court records.

The operator and part owner of Life Medical, Dewayne Logan, 46, of Peebles, Ohio, also was sentenced to six months' home incarceration and two years' probation. He was fined $500.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855907.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855907.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 05:55 EDT
Galbraith, a Lexington lawyer who has run unsuccessfully for governor four times, has filed with the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance to run as an independent in the 2011 gubernatorial election.

His running mate is Dea Riley, a political consultant in Frankfort who has managed several campaigns in the state. She formerly was married to state Supreme Court Justice Will T. Scott.

"I believe we can raise over a million dollars and win this race," Galbraith said Tuesday in a telephone interview.

Galbraith said he was running for governor "to combat Kentucky's electile dysfunction. Nothing has happened in this state for years, and it's the fault of both major political parties. I want to help the electorate change that."]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855904.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855904.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 05:48 EDT
That means Grayson, a fellow Republican, must now decide whether to challenge his longtime political friend.

Grayson raised more than $600,000 in two months to explore a possible bid for the Senate seat now held by Bunning.

"More than $600,000 is more than enough to explore a candidacy," said Democratic political strategist Danny Briscoe of Louisville. "You have to go back to the days of Ferdinand Magellan and Balboa to see so much exploring."

Bunning, who has been in the Senate since 1999 and is considered vulnerable by many, said he does not think Grayson, whom he labeled "a friend," will run for his job if he stays in the race.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855631.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855631.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 05:38 EDT
Three KACo officials and an outside lawyer met Tuesday for more than an hour with regulators, including Insurance Commissioner Sharon P. Clark and representatives from the agency's legal office and division of financial standards and examinations, said Ronda Sloan, spokeswoman for the department.

"We discussed some issues, and we'll be having some follow-up conversations," Sloan said

She declined to describe the nature of the issues and said that the talks were informal "fact-finding discussions" and not a formal investigation.

Brent Caldwell, a Lexington lawyer who has represented KACo's insurance programs since 1997, said the insurance regulators wanted basic information about "operational issues, how the programs run and how they operate."]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855628.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/855628.html Wed, 08 Jul 2009 05:38 EDT
Mayor Ron Payne said he had become increasingly concerned about the League's spending on travel and meals, high executive salaries and a move two weeks ago to stop providing documents to the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The non-profit organization, which receives money from cities in the form of dues and payments for insurance and financing, reversed itself last week and agreed to provide the newspaper with records.

"When I look at the Kentucky League, they represent the cities in our state and they should be setting the example in terms of transparency and accountability," Payne said. "So I was very much concerned about this and still am."

The Herald-Leader reported last month that the top three League executives have charged more than $300,000 for travel, meals and other expenses since 2006. In 2008, travel by all League employees cost about $457,000. Sylvia Lovely, the League's executive director, has seen her salary grow by 25.5 percent since 2006 to more than $315,000 a year. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/854559.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/854559.html Tue, 07 Jul 2009 06:27 EDT
The four finalists are Catherine Cross Maple, deputy cabinet secretary for the New Mexico Public Education Department; Michael Sentance, former New England regional representative for the U.S. Department of Education; Dennis Cheek, senior fellow with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation; and Terry Holliday, superintendent of the Iredell-Statesville Schools in North Carolina.

The board plans to interview all four individually at a meeting on Wednesday. Board chairman Joe Brothers said Monday that the meeting will be held in Lexington.

Brothers said the board has set July 17 as a target date for making a final selection.

Meanwhile, some apparently think a Kentuckian should have been on the final list.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/854381.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/854381.html Tue, 07 Jul 2009 06:20 EDT
The threats turned out to be false. Tests showed the letters contained no harmful substances, authorities said.

Mike Klein, U.S. Marshal for the Eastern District of Kentucky, said he understood that an inmate at the Big Sandy federal prison in Martin County mailed 25 to 50 letters.

Klein said that the letters he was familiar with stated that whoever opened them had been exposed to anthrax.

Klein said he was told that the inmate later admitted that the substance in the letters was Sweet 'N Low artificial sweetener.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/854717.html http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/854717.html Tue, 07 Jul 2009 06:21 EDT
Beshear named three people to the University of Kentucky board to replace trustees whose terms expired. The three will serve until June 30, 2015. They are:

Carol "Bill" Gatton of Kingsport, Tenn., who will replace Phillip Patton of Glasgow. Gatton, a Kentucky native for whom the Carol Martin Gatton College of Business is named, owns car dealerships in Tennessee, Virginia, Texas and Alabama. He graduated from the UK in 1954 with a degree in business.

James W. Stuckert of Prospect, a stock broker with Hilliard Lyons. He replaces James F. Hardymon of Lexington. Stuckert earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from UK.

Barbara Young of Lexington, who will replace JoEtta Wickliffe of Harrodsburg.]]>