$2.5 million bond for man accused of killing police officer
FRANKFORT (AP) — A judge has set a $2.5 million bond for the ex-convict accused of ambushing and killing a central Kentucky police officer last week.
Thirty-four-year-old Raleigh Sizemore Jr. was arraigned Monday and pleaded not guilty to charges including murder of a police officer, attempted murder, unlawful imprisonment and possession of a handgun by a felon.
Thirty-three-year-old Richmond police Officer Daniel Ellis went to an apartment Wednesday morning while investigating a robbery. Police reports say Sizemore, who had absconded from parole, hid in the bedroom of the apartment and shot Ellis in the head as soon as he entered the room. Ellis died two days later.
Madison County Attorney Marc Robbins says the three others arrested in connection with the incident also pleaded not guilty.
All are scheduled to return to court Nov. 18.
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Fort Campbell sending 500 to Iraq, Kuwait next year
FORT CAMPBELL (AP) — The military says about 500 soldiers from the 101st Airborne headquarters at Fort Campbell are deploying to the Middle East to support military actions against the Islamic State group.
The post says the soldiers will leave early next year for a nine-month rotation in Iraq and Kuwait, where they will replace troops from the 82nd Airborne Division headquarters.
The military says the soldiers will provide command and control of coalition troops and training, advising and assisting Iraqi Security Forces.
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Governor orders flags lowered to honor fallen police officer
FRANKFORT (AP) — Kentucky’s governor has ordered flags at state office buildings lowered to half-staff to honor a Richmond police officer who was killed in the line of duty last week.
Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear said the flags would be lowered Wednesday, the day of Richmond Police Officer Daniel Ellis’ funeral. Ellis died Friday, two days after he was shot while searching an apartment while looking for someone suspected in a robbery. Ellis had been with the Richmond Police Department for seven years and leaves behind a wife and a 4-year-old son.
Ellis’ funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Eastern Kentucky University Alumni Coliseum. Visitation will be Tuesday night from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the coliseum.
Beshear encouraged businesses and individuals to join in lowering their flags that day to honor Ellis.
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Republican Party of Ky. names next chairman
FRANKFORT (AP) — Mac Brown is the next chairman of the Republican Party of Kentucky.
The vice president of Louisville-based Brown-Forman Corp. replaces Steve Robertson, who announced his resignation earlier this year. Brown is also the chairman of Gov.-elect Matt Bevin’s transition team.
Brown said he was “humbled” by the vote of confidence from Republican leaders. He said his goals are to elect a Republican president, support Sen. Rand Paul’s re-election campaign and work to wrest control of the state House of Representatives from Democrats.
Paul, Bevin and U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell were among the state Republican leaders who praised Brown’s selection in a news release issued by the party.
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Triple shooting leaves 1 dead, 2 injured
CAMPTON (AP) — Kentucky State Police say one person is dead and two others injured in a shooting in eastern Kentucky.
Trooper Joe Veeneman said state police were contacted about midnight Sunday in reference to a shooting at M&S Log Cabins near Campton in Wolfe County.
Veeneman said 54-year-old Brenda Hatton was found dead and 63-year-old David L. Spencer was found injured inside a residence on the property. Spencer’s son, David M. Spencer, who lived in a basement in the business, was also shot and injured.
Veeneman said 26-year-old Preston Wilson, who lived next door to the property, was taken into custody about 11 a.m. Monday in Hazard on a charge of first-degree assault.
The shooting and its motive remain under investigation.
Meanwhile, Wolfe County schools canceled classes Monday because police were still searching for the suspect when classes were scheduled to start.
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Bevin to have inaugural worship service at Buck Run Baptist
FRANKFORT (AP) — Kentucky Gov.-elect Matt Bevin will hold his inaugural worship service at Buck Run Baptist Church in Frankfort.
The invitation-only service will be at 8 a.m. on Dec. 8. The church’s pastor, Hershael York, will deliver the message.
The decision is a break from tradition as previous governors have held inaugural worship services at churches or facilities in downtown Frankfort. Buck Run Baptist Church is on Georgetown Road between Frankfort and Georgetown.
York is the Victor and Louise Lester Professor of Christian Preaching at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville. Bevin donated money to the school to establish a training center for missionaries that opened in 2012. The center is named after his oldest daughter, who was killed in a car accident in front of the school in 2003.
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Report: Child care agency given top marks despite violations
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A newspaper reports a for-profit child care operator with centers in Kentucky and Indiana was allowed to open more facilities in Middle Tennessee despite safety violations in the other states stretching back more than a decade.
The Tennessean reports Never Grow Up Inc. operates 12 child care centers in Middle Tennessee under The Academy and Holly Tree brands, adding an investigation found the agency continued to violate health and safety rules.
In one case, an unsupervised 5-year-old child suffered a shock to the hand and burns after inserting a bobby pin into an electrical outlet, the paper said. It added that violation records posted online by the Tennessee Department of Human Services also describe an incident at another Never Grow Up facility where discipline administered by caregivers was said to have been “frightening and potentially injurious” and to have “caused bodily pain.”
However, in spite of these and other violations, DHS gave all but one of the Never Grow Up facilities with violations in Davidson, Williamson and Sumner counties a two- or three-star rating, the newspaper reported. Three stars is the highest quality rating the state confers on child care centers.
In total, Never Grow Up operates nearly 30 child care centers. The report said that in Kentucky and Indiana inspectors have documented cases of insect and rodent infestations, infants put to sleep with potentially suffocating blankets and bibs, and multiple instances of unsupervised children, including a 4-year-old girl left forgotten on a cot under a basement stairway for up to 30 minutes before she woke up “shaking and crying.”
In comments to The Tennessean about the reported violations, Never Grow Up owner and operator Dwight Derringer said: “I think that, as with everything, when we find an issue we report, we go forward, we terminate, we retrain and we address.”
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Former attorney willing to settle with ex-clients
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS (AP) — A former attorney who won a $200 million settlement for diet drug clients has acknowledged that he owes money to his former clients.
Stan Chesley and his lawyers recently told the Cincinnati Enquirer that Chesley is willing to settle with his former clients. The clients say fees were inappropriately charged or stolen from the original $200 million they were awarded in the 2001 fen-phen settlement.
Chesley says he owes his clients money, but disputed the notion that he owes the $76 million that the lawyer representing those former clients is seeking.
Chesley took more than $20 million in attorney’s fees from the 2001 settlement, which exceeded the amount established by contract.
A Boone County judge last month issued a bench warrant for Chesley’s arrest late last month after he failed to appear in a hearing.
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Man charged with murder after shooting confession
HOPKINSVILLE (AP) — Authorities say a man who called police after fatally shooting another man in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, has been charged with murder.
According to WSMV-TV in Nashville, police say officers were sent to a Hopkinsville residence late Friday night after receiving a phone call from 29-year-old David Markle, who told them he had just shot someone.
When the officers arrived on the scene, they found Markle and the body of 27-year-old Justin Fish. Police say Fish had been shot multiple times. A handgun was also found at the scene.
Markle was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. He was being held Sunday at the Christian County Jail on a million dollar bond.
Online court records do not show if Markle has a lawyer who can comment on the case on his behalf.
The case remains under investigation.
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Kenton Co. golf manager fired after irregular finances
COVINGTON (AP) — A manager in charge of Kenton County’s public golf courses has been fired and officials are investigating financial irregularities at the courses.
The Kentucky Enquirer reports Dan Moening was fired by the county administrator after running the Kenton county’s three courses since 2012. The dismissal was announced on Friday.
Moening earned a salary of $52,031 plus commission on pro-shop sales that totaled about $30,000 annually.
Kenton County Judge-executive Kris Knochelmann says there were “enough violations of policies it was appropriate to investigate and then terminate” Moening. The county would not release details about the irregularities, citing the ongoing investigation.
Kenton County has three public courses, Fox Run, Pioneer and Willows in Independence.
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Car lot owner indicted on sex charges arrested in Tenn.
BOWLING GREEN (AP) — A Bowling Green car lot owner indicted on charges he had sex with a juvenile has been arrested in Tennessee.
Randy Huff was arrested by Gallatin police on a fugitive warrant Friday, The Daily News in Bowling Green reported.
Huff, the 49-year-old owner of Southside Auto Sales, was indicted Oct. 28 in Warren County on two counts of unlawful transaction with a minor and two counts of promoting a sexual performance by a minor under 18.
The investigation that led to Huff’s arrest began in June when police said they found a runaway teen girl in a Bowling Green apartment. Police say the girl was being driven around to have sex for money. One of the locations was Southside Auto Sales.
Huff’s attorney Alan Simpson declined to comment.
Two other men were indicted with Huff. Daryl K. Williams, 42, was first arrested in June after police found the girl hiding in his apartment, according to his arrest citation. He was released from jail on bond a month later. He is facing six counts of unlawful transaction with a minor and one count each of custodial interference and possession of drug paraphernalia.
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Military, veterans get in free at Churchill Downs, museum
LOUISVILLE (AP) — Veterans and active duty military personnel are invited to visit the Kentucky Derby Museum and Churchill Downs free of charge on Wednesday in honor of Veterans Day.
The track is offering free general admission for racing, and the museum and track gift shops will offer a 10 percent discount.
A military ID will be needed for entry.
The museum is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday.
For more information, visit http://www.derbymuseum.org or call (502) 637-1111.