Knox Man Arrested For Threatening Girlfriend With a Gun

Posted on Author WKVI

Police arrested a Knox man Wednesday after he allegedly went berserk, knocking over furniture before grabbing a shotgun and threatening his girlfriend.

At around 12:25 p.m. on Halloween, Police were dispatched to 6611 E. Toto Rd. in response to a female caller who advised her boyfriend had “destroyed” the residence, broke her cell phone so she could not call police, and then left the residence with a shotgun. She told police when they arrived that she and her boyfriend, Brent Komon, had been arguing all morning, but he became belligerent and knocked over a five-foot-tall cabinet. The victim told police that she then left the residence to take her son to a doctor’s appointment, but as she was leaving, she noticed him carrying a gun into the residence.

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General Election Tomorrow; School Board Races Competitive

Posted on Author WKVI

It’s almost here! The 2012 General Election is tomorrow and millions of Americans will head to the polls to elect their leaders and representatives and make their voices heard.

A number of local school board races are contested and the voters will make their choices tomorrow. The Eastern Pulaski School Board has four candidates vying for three open positions in Monroe and Jefferson townships: Larry L. Beach, Deke A. DeMarco, Kevin Tankerslee and Rhonda L. Heims. Terri A. Johnston is running unopposed for Van Buren Township’s seat.

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Juvenile’s Stillbirth Leads to Arrest of 55-Year-Old Man

Posted on Author WKVI
Charles E. Barber

An investigation into a stillbirth in Porter County has led to the arrest of a Marshall County man.

On Oct. 4, the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department received information that a juvenile female gave birth to a stillborn child and an investigation found that the juvenile had a sexual relationship with a 55-year-old Marshall County man. The cause of death of the stillborn child remains under investigation.

Charles Barber was arrested at a Marshall County residence on charges of Sexual Misconduct with a Minor and his bond has been set at $50,000 cash.

This case remains under investigation with the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department.

West Central Honored with North Central Accreditation

Posted on Author WKVI
West Central School Superintendent Charles Mellon

The co-chairs of the North Central AdvancED Accreditation for the West Central School Corporation, Don Street and Marci Kennedy, presented the West Central School Board this week with a banner and a plaque they received at a conference as the corporation was one of nine schools in the state that received the District Accreditation.

Superintendent Charles Mellon said it’s important to be accredited in some form.

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Week in Review for Oct. 29-Nov. 2, 2012

Posted on Author WKVI

Here is just some of the news that made the news in the Kankakee Valley this week:

Starke County EMA Director Ted Bombagetti (L) and Sheri Gaillard from the Pulaski County Sheriff's Department assist other responders in the command center in Baltimore

Members of the the District 2 Emergency Management Team arrived in Baltimore Monday where the group of firefighters, law enforcement, emergency managers, and health department representatives provided the City of Baltimore with damage assessment and debris management support after Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast. They have now been redeployed to Long Island, New York to assist with recovery efforts. Several ambulance teams from Indiana were also in the New York and New Jersey areas providing assistance this week. They were sent back to Indiana on Thursday. The District 2 Task Force is expected to be in the New York area throughout the next week.  Continue reading →

LaPorte County Man Arrested For Driving While Intoxicated, Causing Death

Posted on Author WKVI

The LaPorte County Sheriff’s Department and LaPorte County Fatal Alcohol Crash Team (FACT) have announced the arrest of a LaPorte County man for his involvement in a crash early Thursday morning that left one person dead.

LaPorte Circuit Court Judge Thomas Alevizos found probable cause to charge 29-year-old Thomas Drnek II with Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated as a Class A misdemeanor, and Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated Causing Death, a Class B felony.

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Francesville Man Arrested On Child Pornography Charges

Posted on Author WKVI
Christopher Adam Wilhite

A Francesville man was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of possession of child pornography.

The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department conducted an investigation and confiscated computers belonging to 32-year-old Christopher Adam Wilhite. An initial forensic examination of those computers showed incriminating evidence of child pornography. This violates the terms of his probation as a convicted sex offender.

Wilhite was placed on the Sex Offender Registry on Nov. 7, 2011 and that probation runs until November 2021.

Wilhite was arrested on a preliminary charge of Possession of Child Pornography. This case has been forwarded to the Pulaski County Prosecutor’s Office for further review.

District 2 Task Force Lends Helping Hand in New York

Posted on Author WKVI

Members of the Incident Management Team from the Indiana District 2 Task Force, which includes volunteers from Starke and Pulaski Counties, were redeployed to the Long Island, New York area this week to assist in recovery efforts. Public Information Officer, Al Kirsits, said they will start work this morning and will join forces with Indiana District 7 Task Force in recovery efforts. They will remain there for at least a week.

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Pulaski County Economic Development Board Discusses Upcoming Plans

Posted on Author WKVI

The Pulaski County Economic Development Board earlier this month discussed upcoming events and priorities for economic expansion in Pulaski County. Community Development Commission Executive Director Nathan Origer explained to the board that he will be joining his counterparts from Newton and Starke Counties to meet with representatives from the Northwest Indiana Forum and Ivy Tech Northwest to discuss the relationship between Ivy Tech Northwest and four rural counties in the region.

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Property Tax Payments Due Nov. 10

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Treasurer Linda Belork assists a customer over the phone

With the Starke County Treasurer’s Office once again open and ready to receive payments, Treasurer Linda Belork wants to remind Starke County residents that tax payments are due in just over a week.

Though there was some confusion in the treasurer’s office in October when the Starke County Commissioners closed the office after Belork was reinstated to her position, Belork explained that tax payments have been coming in at a steady pace. She said a lot of people have been calling the office to ensure they are, in fact, open, and others have resorted to using the outside night drop as well, allowing taxpayers to make payments on the weekend and after hours.

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Dr. Fritz Joins Staff At Knox-Winamac Community Center

Posted on Author WKVI
Walter Fritz
Dr. Walter Fritz

Long-time physician Dr. Walter Fritz is now seeing patients at the Knox-Winamac Community Center on Edgewood Drive in Knox.

According to interim CEO Kyle Small, the office is a Federally Qualified Health Care (FQHC) center that provides a high quality of care to under-insured and underprivileged patients, and the addition of Dr. Fritz to the staff will help in the goal in providing that care.

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Knox Superintendent Explains Corporation’s Varying DOE Grades

Posted on Author WKVI
Superintendent A.J. Gappa

The Department of Education released every school corporation’s report card this week for the 2011-2012 school year and at the Knox Community School Corporation, the Knox Community High School received an A, the middle school got an F, and the elementary school received a C.

Superintendent A.J. Gappa explains how each school got their grade.

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Tippecanoe River State Park to Be Closed to Allow Hunting Operation

Posted on Author WKVI

Over a dozen state parks in Indiana will be temporarily closing their gates to visitors in November to allow hunters to take out deer threatening native plant life. Every year, state wildlife biologists evaluate state parks and determine which of them are in need of a deer population reduction, based on previous deer-killing rates and each park’s habitat.

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Indiana School Grades Announced By Department of Education

Posted on Author WKVI

The grades are in and looking good for the majority of Hoosier schools. According to the Department of Education, more than 61 percent of schools in Indiana received A or B letter grades for the 2011-2012 school year.

Department of Education Superintendent Tony Bennett announced that 40.9 percent of schools earned A’s, 20.1 percent of schools earned B’s, and 20.3 percent of schools earned C’s. He said only 18.6 percent of schools earned a D or lower, similar to last year’s percentage. Fortunately, this is lower than in the 2009–2010 school year, and 207 schools received A’s for the first time this year.

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Knox Man Arrested For Allegedly Battering Girlfriend

Posted on Author WKVI

A Knox man was arrested Tuesday after an alleged battery incident.

The victim told police that she and her boyfriend, Chaney Campos, reportedly had a verbal argument a few days prior to this incident and he allegedly caused injury to her arm after he squeezed it. The next day, they were arguing and he reportedly pushed her off the bed, injuring her. On Tuesday, she and Campos got into an argument once again and she walked away from him. He then allegedly pushed her up against a wall in the kitchen and grabbed her throat, restricting her breathing. They continued to argue and he then kicked her out of the apartment they shared.

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Town of Culver Continues Downtown & Comprehensive Plan Projects

Posted on Author WKVI

The town of Culver is continuing with its two big projects, and Town Manager David Schoeff explained those projects are keeping them busy.

Schoeff said the town is still working on the downtown project, and he’s hoping to get the concrete work wrapped up within the next few weeks before buttoning up until next spring. Alongside that, he said the town board is waiting to receive some proposals for the comprehensive plan, but until those are received, they’re on hold.

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