An investigation into money found missing from an evidence storage locker at the Winamac Police Department has unearthed a suspect.
Daymond Hartley, a Winamac officer on the night shift, allegedly admitted to Winamac Police Chief Michael Buchanan that he took $6,352 from the storage locker while working a shift during the last week of March. The money had been collected as evidence after a fatal accident involving Jamie Sheets of Winamac.
The Monterey Bridge project is moving along despite the water issues experienced in April.
Bret Smiley, construction manager with United Consulting, said there was a bit of a flooding issue at the southern end of the bridge project, but that isn’t affecting the work being done this week on the north side of the bridge. The south side of the bridge project had been underwater and the workers have been working around that issue. LaPorte Construction built up a makeshift berm to help with erosion issues and to push back the river water.
Rain dates were built into the original construction schedule so Smiley noted the project is on schedule. They are drive piling the north side of the bridge so beams can be set this week and situating the crane so it can safely operate. Smiley said the ground is swelled with water and unstable so they are creating a safe platform for the crane.
Smiley said the retaining walls will be built in the next week or so.
While the Knox City Police Department is still short one police cruiser, Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston said he’s still working on a possible grant to help cover the rest of the cost of a new squad car. Houston said that because of the per-capita income for the city, they may be eligible for a larger grant than what he had originally anticipated.
Schuldt said the resolution merely confirms that the corporation will perform a reduction in force by five teachers, but no specifics have been decided – that is, the board has not made a decision as to who will be cut nor what buildings will be affected. He said the board will know by their meeting in mid-June which teachers’ contracts will be canceled by the board.
Several sentencing hearings were held in Starke Circuit Court Wednesday.
Tiffany Woodard Wireman pleaded guilty in a plea agreement with the state in two different cases to charges of Visiting a Common Nuisance as a Class B Misdemeanor and Escape as a Class D Felony. On the misdemeanor charge, she was sentenced to 60 days in the Starke County Jail. On the Escape charge, she was sentenced to 18 months in the Department of Corrections with six months suspended to be served on probation. The sentences will be served consecutively. She had removed her electronic monitoring device while serving time with Starke County Community Corrections.
“We’re a little bit behind schedule, but everything is still on track for maximum yield potential,” said Rushing. “Planting is delayed. Corn is usually at about 20 percent planted by now and it’s about one percent across the state.”
Dog owners are reminded not to let the warm weather take a tragic turn by leaving four-legged friends in the car with the windows rolled up. Temperatures inside a car can spike quickly, even if it’s parked in the shade. On a 78-degree day it feels like 90 degrees inside a car, and dogs can quickly overheat. Experts say even 60-degree days can get too warm for animals to be shut inside a car for very long. They advise against rolling windows down, because animals can escape and owners may be liable if they bite someone. Leaving the air conditioning running is discouraged because it can possibly fail or shut off and lead to a preventable tragedy. If you do take them along, bring plenty of water in a dish for them and don’t leave them alone for more than 15 minutes at a time. Also be sure any outdoor pets have adequate shade and plenty of fresh drinking water, and bring them inside when temperatures get too warm.
Four new Court Appointed Special Advocates, or CASA, members were sworn into service by Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall in a special ceremony Tuesday.
Katlyn Foust, Patricia Camp, Rebecca Berg, John Wampler each completed 30 hours of classroom training plus an hour of observing cases. They all passed four separate background checks, including a federal fingerprint search.
Two Lafayette Central Catholic students are fighting side-by-side against leukemia, but they’re not alone in their battle. Last fall, Lafayette Central Catholic senior Patrick Mackey helped organize donations and garner support from the community for the family of Cooper Fulmer, the brother of senior Gavin Fulmer. Mackey learned that Cooper was beginning his treatments for leukemia, a condition Mackey takes very seriously due to the loss of his 15-year-old sister Clair to the disease in June 2011. In light of that, during the regional game against Lafayette Central Catholic last fall, Mackey and several other students made donations and lent their support to the Fulmer family.
Oregon-Davis students will be collecting money for the American Cancer Society and walking in a mini-relay event at the school.
The mini-relay will be on Friday, May 10 beginning at 7:20 a.m. CT and the students will be walking during school for one class period to help raise money in the fight against cancer and learn about ways to stay healthy.
Senate Enrolled Act 1, co-authored by Arnold, seeks to increase safety for Hoosier school children by assisting schools in hiring more school resource officers and dictates how to implement resource officer programs. The act requires individuals to complete training sessions for law enforcement officers as well as receive 40 hours of certified school officer training.
As part of Learn More Indiana’s annual Cash for College initiative, the organization will provide person-to-person help on Saturday to families and students rushing to make final corrections to their Free Application for Federal Student Aid forms. The financial aid form which qualifies students to receive financial aid from colleges, the state, the federal government and several other sources was due on March 10 but corrections are accepted until May 15, giving applicants time to correct any issues.
Community service organizations throughout the area are celebrating Older Americans Month throughout the month of May, and Pulaski County Human Services as well as Community Services of Starke County have events planned to recognize older Americans and their impacts on the community. Joan Haugh, director of Community Services of Starke County, said the month honors seniors and makes an effort to inform them of the services available for their aid.
“As most people know, May has always been known as Older Americans Month, and this probably started way back in 1965, and it is just an opportunity to recognize seniors for all the value that they give to our community and try and make sure they realize where services that can improve their lives,” said Haugh.
Minor flooding is occurring in the Ora area and some residences have been affected.
The Winamac Town Park is closed while river waters have spilled into the park. Park Superintendent Rick Dilts says water remains on the roads in the lowest part of the park, which is located by the baseball diamonds. The ticket booth for the power show is about halfway underwater and the 4-H buildings in the back of the park are reportedly suffering flooding issues. Dilts indicated that there won’t be many tree branches or other debris to pick up and not a lot of damage is predicted.
Following their failure to reach a quorum at their regularly-scheduled meeting on April 23, the Knox City Council last night met in a special meeting to conduct the business they were unable to conduct the week prior – particularly the re-establishment of the cumulative capital development fund for the city. Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston explained that because the fund is rate-driven rather than levy-driven, the percentage of funds going toward the cumulative capital fund decreases over time.
Jack Parker reportedly told police that he had a few drinks at a Bass Lake establishment and lost control of his moped on U.S. 35 just south of the Knox city limits. He was attempting to get back onto the moped when the officer arrived at the scene.
The event has not always been self-supporting which has initiated the committee’s need to conduct fundraisers in an effort to defray costs incurred by the city of Knox. One fundraiser is set for May 18 at 10 a.m. at the Knox Southside Fire Station. Nelson’s Port-a-Pit Chicken will be sold. The cost for half of a chicken is $7 and Pit-Tatoes will be $3. Pre-sale tickets are available at the Knox Mayor’s Office.
