A traffic stop early Friday morning came to a close after a driver tried fleeing police by heading off-road through farm fields and yards.
An Indiana State Police trooper was traveling east on State Road 10 near County Road 500 East around 7:30 a.m. this morning when he noticed 1998 Chevrolet S-10 pickup drive off the road. The trooper activated his emergency lights, and rather than stop, the pickup accelerated and cut through a yard onto County Road 600 East before proceeding into a farm field, where he made a U-turn.
Here is a look at some of the news that made the news in the Kankakee Valley this week:
Stephen Suthard
No details have been released by police as to what led to the deaths of two Culver residents Wednesday night. 44-year-old Michael Price and 16-year-old Culver High School Sophomore Stephen Suthard were found dead in a home at 419 W. Madison Street by Price’s wife. They died from apparent gunshot wounds. Crime Scene Technicians assisted in the investigation led by the Culver Police Department and Chief Wayne Bean. Autopsies on the pair will be conducted by Forensic Pathologist Dr. Joseph Pralow on Monday. A community gathered together last night at the Wesley United Methodist Church to offer support. Continue reading →
The investigation continues into two shooting deaths in Culver Wednesday night. Police were called to 419 W. Madison St. around 10:41 p.m. in regards to two male subjects found deceased, and when officers arrived, they found 44-year-old Michael Price and 16-year-old Stephen Suthard dead in the home from apparent gunshot wounds.
Culver police and Marshall County Sheriff’s deputies secured the interior and exterior of the residence, and the Indiana State Police assisted with crime scene processing while Culver police and Marshall County deputies continue interviews and investigate all leads. Police have not released details as to what led up to the shootings. Autopsies will be conducted on Monday.
Suthard was a sophomore at Culver Community High School.
The Culver community gathered last night at the Wesley United Methodist Church to support friends and family of the victims.
The Culver Police Department was assisted by the Culver EMS, Marshall County Sheriff’s Department, Indiana State Police, and the Marshall County Coroner.
After 20 minutes of deliberation, the jury in the Starke Circuit Court trial against Alan Balchunas of Monterey reached a verdict of not guilty of Domestic Battery and Strangulation. Balchunas was accused of choking and beating his ex-wife, Pamela Balchunas, following an argument that led to a physical altercation.
During the course of the trial, Pamela testified that Balchunas had put her into a headlock and beat the left side of her face and head. She said he then put his hands around her throat and started to choke her, so she reached for a baseball bat to fend him off. After hitting him twice in the head, Balchunas stumbled back and she said she then left the home.
The preliminary autopsy results are in for a Pulaski County jail inmate who had been found dead in his bunk. Pulaski County Coroner Steve VanDerAa said the report revealed a pulmonary embolism, or blood clot, in his lungs and heart. The coroner is attributing the death to natural causes after William Olson’s body was taken to Lafayette for the autopsy Thursday afternoon.
Pulaski County jailers stumbled upon the body on Nov. 26, when they found Olson unresponsive in his bunk. Pulaski County EMTs were called to the jail, but they were unable to revive him.
Olson, 53, had been incarcerated in the jail since Sept. 2, 2010, having been convicted of Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated and a probation violation. He had only four months left of his sentence. Olson was a work-release inmate and worked at Vanquard Trailer Company in Monon.
The MPI Corporation has been sold. Headquartered in Michigan, and with a factory in Knox and three others in the country, MPI is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of automatic transmission products, supplying automotive original equipment manufacturers with clutch plates, separator plates, and backing plates.
A New York private equity fund focused on value investing and business improvement has acquired the assets of MPI from Revstone Industries, LLC. Mark Mitchell, the CEO of MPI, stated in a press release that Monomoy Capital Partners will provide MPI with the necessary resources and capital to expand and improve operations.
Two juveniles were taken into custody by LaPorte County Sheriff’s deputies Wednesday after they allegedly shot and killed three cows at a rural LaPorte County farm.
Deputies were called to a farm in the 5100 S. block of County Road 425 West after shots were reportedly fired. Deputies met with a farmer who discovered that three of his cows were killed. He told police that he heard five gunshots and got into his vehicle and found the suspect’s vehicle and wrote down the numbers on the license plate. That information was relayed to police and the vehicle was later located by police.
Ryan Risner (left) and Jonathan Lynch (right) returned home to Starke County yesterday.
After spending a year overseas, two young Starke County men were escorted home by police and members of the fire department, American Legion, and VFW. Ryan Risner and Jonathan Lynch returned to a hero’s welcome as family, friends, and veterans lined up and down U.S. 35 and Main Street in Knox to show their support.
A reception was held at the Knox VFW for the returning soldiers, and friends and family packed into the building to shake hands, hug, and congratulate the pair.
Several offenders appeared for initial hearings before Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall Wednesday afternoon.
William Lamphier pleaded not guilty to charges of Burglary as a Class C Felony and Receiving Stolen Property as a Class D Felony. Lamphier, of Walkerton, was arrested on Nov. 27 after he allegedly broke into a home in North Liberty and stole tools, a gas can, a weedeater and other items.
Several members of organizations vital to the success of the welding program were awarded welded plaques.
The SCILL Center in cooperation with Vincennes University hosted an open house yesterday evening at the Knox Middle School for their welding program. Director Jerry Gurrado was quick to decline any credit for the program; rather, Gurrado said it was an unbelievable cooperative effort that made the welding program a possibility.
Gurrado explained that an overwhelming number of organizations and businesses came together to bring the welding program to life. The Starke County Economic Development Foundation, the welding subcommittee, the superintendents of area schools, the Vocational Co-Op, SCILL board members, the Center for Workforce Innovation – the list goes on and on. Even Vincennes University helped to make the program a success, as the provided not only a day instructor, but also a night instructor and textbooks for the course. The Starke County Commissioners played a role; KVREMC, NIPSCO, and factories like Sabre, Kruze, Galbreath, Braun, and countless others helped shape the welding program.
The Knox City Council this week realized they will need to make some changes to their water services policy, as it was brought to the attention of the council that the city sends, on average, 200 water disconnect notices per month. Tack on a cost of more than $5 for each certified letter, and that adds up to an expense of more than $1000 per month to remind customers to pay their bills.
The Department of Homeland Security and FEMA have awarded Starke County with $11,412 to supplement emergency food and shelter programs in the county.
The Starke County Emergency Food and Shelter Board will determine how the funds will be distributed among the programs within the county that are run by local service agencies in the area.
Public or private voluntary agencies interested in applying for Emergency Food and Shelter Program funds must contact Joan Haugh at Community Services of Starke County at (574) 772-7070 for an application. Completed applications must be received by Dec. 17 at 4 p.m.
Two Starke County soldiers will be returning home today after a tour of duty in Afghanistan.
Ryan Risner and Johnathan Lynch will be escorted to town by police and members of the American Legion and VFW from Indianapolis. They will arrive in Knox around 3:30–4 p.m. today. You are encouraged to stand along U.S. 35 or Main Street in Knox and welcome them home!
A reception for Ryan Risner and Johnathan Lynch will be held at the Knox VFW following the caravan through Knox.
The middle school students in Starke County will be collecting items for victims of Hurricane Sandy.
On Sunday, Dec. 2 from 10 a.m. to noon, students will be collecting personal hygiene items, socks, blankets, diapers and writing paper, envelopes and stamps to those who need help after being displaced by the hurricane.
Starke County Emergency Management Agency Director Ted Bombagetti has about 20 all-hazards alert radios that are available to residents facing economic hardships, including residents in mobile homes, to help receive severe weather updates.
The radios were distributed by the Indiana Department of Homeland Security to local emergency management agencies throughout the state thanks to a federal grant.
No rest for the wicked, or at least that’s the way it seems to be with scams. Yet another series of phishing text messages have been sent out to unsuspecting cell phone users. The fraudulent text messages claimed to be sent by Alliance Bank were actually attempts by criminals to persuade recipients to divulge card and account information.
Alliance Bank customers and non-customers alike received the messages, but the bank has announced that no information has been compromised. The messages referenced an account number using a common card number prefix in an attempt to gain the rest of the card number from the scam target.
Another step has been completed in the process of building a new Starke County jail as the commissioners yesterday morning decided to proceed with the site across from Sabre Manufacturing on Highway 8 near 550 East.
The commissioners had been looking at four to five sites as possibilities before ultimately deciding on this location. Commissioner Dan Bridegroom voted against the motion and said that the building that his fellow commissioners were in favor of is larger than necessary. He said the extra square footage will result in higher heating and cooling bills, which could add up to an expense of millions of dollars over the years.
A trial is set in the Starke Circuit Court this morning at 9 a.m. for a man accused of battering his ex-wife in front of their two children, ages six and seven. Alan Balchunas was arrested on July 1 on charges of Domestic Battery, Strangulation, Battery, and Possession of Marijuana after he allegedly choked and shoved his ex-wife during an altercation concerning the conditions of their home.
