Plymouth Man Pleads Guilty to Meth Charge, Sentenced to Ten Years

Nathaniel White
Nathaniel White
A Plymouth man will be spending ten years in the Indiana Department of Corrections after pleading guilty in a plea agreement with the state to a charge of Dealing in Methamphetamine, a Class B felony.

Nathaniel White, 26, admitted in open court to dealing in methamphetamine on several occasions out of a residence on West Washington Street in Plymouth.

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Workers’ Compensation Benefits Raised, But That Doesn’t Help Knox Fireman

Knox City Council
Knox City Council

A volunteer fireman for the city of Knox who was injured on the job is still out of luck regarding his workers’ compensation. Wayne Noah was injured while investigating a fire when a change in pressure forced him off of the house floor and onto the ground, twisting an ankle and preventing him from working his full-time job. The fireman is employed at a factory and was unable to work due to his injury.

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Marshall County Commissioners Approve Pay Raise for County Attorney

  
 
The Marshall County Commissioners approved a pay raise for the county attorney.

Commission President Kevin Overmyer brought up the recommendation at the conclusion of the commissioner’s meeting last week and stated Jim Clevenger has undertaken quite a few assignments by the commissioners and has done a good job in working for the county. As an example, Clevenger is working on a minimum of 12 intergovernmental agreements for the county for the upcoming Metronet agreement and more may be required. Overmyer said Clevenger has gone above and beyond to help the county in necessary legal matters.

Overmyer suggested raising Clevenger’s pay to $140 per hour, which is a $10 per hour increase. The suggestion was made into a motion and unanimously approved by all three commissioners: Kevin Overmyer, Jack Roose and Deb Griewank.

Winamac Considering Tax Abatement for New Business

Winamac Town Hall
Winamac Town Hall
The town of Winamac is considering the possibility of tax abatements for a new business in the town. According to Town Manager Jim Conner, the town council responded favorably to the idea, but a public hearing will need to be held in February before any official decision is made. Conner said Antares is a specialty container manufacturing business, a new business for the city, and this abatement could have positive effects for the town.

Conner also said a local boy scout is working on designs for a possible skate park in the town. He said the youth gave the council an update on the project, and with $27,000 raised toward the project, he hopes to have construction done by July. However, he is still looking into a few more possible grants.

Pulaski Commissioners Address Auction Advertisement Issues

Pulaski County Commissioners Larry Brady, Vice President Terry Young, and President Tracey Shorter
Pulaski County Commissioners Larry Brady, Vice President Terry Young, and President Tracey Shorter
The Pulaski County Commissioners responded to a man who brought up some concerns during the public comment portion of their regular meeting Friday night. The man told the commissioners that he works with an auction company and he claimed the county sold items at auction without advertising the items to be sold.

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Pulaski Council Approves Encumbrance For Highway Department

  
 
The Pulaski County Council this week approved an encumbrance for the highway department to allow them to take the delivery of salt that they were previously unable to store. Highway Superintendent Mark Fox requested the council approve the encumbrance of $9524 for the salt, saying the department had nowhere to put the salt when they planned to purchase it in 2013.

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Knox School Board Approves Secured School Safety Grant Matching Funds

Superintendent A.J. Gappa
Superintendent A.J. Gappa
At their recent meeting, the Knox Community School Board members discussed the school safety grant the corporation received late last year

The matching grant was presented by Governor Pence in November and Superintendent A.J. Gappa said the school board is trying to be frugal in making a decision on how to spend that money since half of the money must come from the corporation.

“We’re using our grant money for entryway security and upgrades in video surveillance systems throughout the corporation for those that need it,” explained Gappa. “We’re actually going to spend about $55,000. Our half comes to about $27,500. The board approved taking the necessary money from the Rainy Day fund. When the grant money comes in. we’ll just replace it in that fund.”

West Central School Board Receives Positive Update on Wind Turbine Use

West Central School Superintendent Charles Mellon
West Central School Superintendent Charles Mellon
West Central School Superintendent Charles Mellon gave a positive report to the school board regarding the corporation’s wind turbine.

“It produced enough in the month of December that once again we just had our $20 service fee to NIPSCO. That’s all we had to pay for our electricity. That is a good thing through the winter months. We normally accumulate credits that we can use through the summer when the air conditioners are running and we’re using more electricity. It was good to be able to present that information to the board,” stated Mellon.

Schools Waitng for Waiver Approval to Enact Make up Days

  
 
Most area schools are waiting to see if a waiver is approved before they start invoking snow days into the calendar.

The state offered an opportunity for schools to submit a waiver to excuse two days of instruction due to the severe weather last week. Schools were forced to close as a state emergency declaration was enacted preventing travel on roadways on Monday and Tuesday, Jan. 6 and Jan. 7.

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Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department Had Productive Year in 2013

Pulaski County Sheriff Michael Gayer
Pulaski County Sheriff Michael Gayer
The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department had a successful and busy year in 2013.

Sheriff Michael Gayer revealed that deputies responded to 361 total crashes; 45 of which were personal injury accidents, 204 involved deer and three accidents resulted in a fatality.

There were 5,348 calls for service which breaks down to a call every 1.6 hours of the day, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. 37 battery cases were investigated, 33 burglary incidents were investigated, 114 thefts occurred and 70 drug investigations were conducted.

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Interview: Pro Sean Rash Talks Bowling

Sean Rash been on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) circuit for nine years and keeps his competition “on the ball”. Fresh off of a win at the World Tour Bowling Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada, the 2012 Player of the Year tells WKVI’s Anita Goodan his rich history in the sport and how leagues can increase player count. Anita gives Rash a tip as well:  Sean Rash

Michael Campbell Receives Ten-Year Prison Sentence

 
 

Michael Campbell was sentenced in Starke Circuit Court on Monday on a charge of Dealing in Methamphetamine, a Class B felony.

Campbell pleaded guilty to the charge in a plea agreement with the state and Judge Kim Hall sentenced Campbell to ten years in the Indiana Department of Corrections. He was ordered to serve a mandatory six year sentence before he could petition the court to modify his sentence. The only way he can petition the court for sentence modification is if he successfully completes drug rehabilitation classes while incarcerated.

Marshall County Sheriff’s Contract Approved, Sheriff Asks for Change in Health Assistance at Jail

  
 

The Marshall County Commissioners discussed the sheriff’s salary contract for 2014 during their recent meeting.

The salary is approved each year and this year’s proposed salary is $82,215.38, which mirrors last year’s agreed sum.

The commissioners approved the contract and the Marshall County Council took action to approve the contract during their meeting Monday morning.

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Winamac Town Council Holds First Meeting of New Year

Winamac Town Hall
Winamac Town Hall

The Winamac Town Council this week performed some appointments necessary for the new year, but according to Town Manager Jim Conner, no big changes were made. He said the yearly appointments for the department heads were made with no changes, and several appointments were made to local boards, the planning commission, zoning board and other boards – also with no major changes.

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Knox Woman Sentenced to 16 Years

Starke County Courthouse
Starke County Courthouse

A Knox woman received a 16-year prison sentence after pleading guilty in a plea agreement with the state to several charges.

Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall sentenced Sherry Wireman, 51, to ten years in the Indiana Department of Corrections on a charge of Dealing in Methamphetamine, a Class B felony. She was also sentenced to three years on Class D felony charge of Possession of Methamphetamine and an additional three years on a Class D felony charge of Possession of Precursors or Chemical Reagents.

The sentences were ordered to run consecutively for a total of 16 years. She was ordered to have purposeful incarceration and if she successfully completes a drug rehabilitation program while incarcerated, she may petition the court for a sentence modification.

Pulaski Council Increases Comp Time Hours for Employee

  
 

The Pulaski County Council Monday night approved a motion extending the maximum allowed comp time hours to 179 as a one-time only solution for the 911 dispatch supervisor. Carol Crist approached the council and explained that she had accumulated the hours after three of her dispatchers couldn’t make it to work for medical reasons, prompting her to work those extra shifts to keep the emergency services available.

The council also approved additional appropriations that were required due to a technical error; Auditor Sheila Garling said a document had the wrong fund number listed, causing a line item to run in the red until February.

The council approved a motion to advertise for $10,765 to pay wages for 911 dispatchers.

Oregon-Davis School Board Reorganizes, Security Officers Begin Work at Corporation

Greg Briles
Greg Briles

Oregon-Davis School Superintendent Greg Briles indicated that the start of 2014 has been a little hectic with the weather, but it’s been productive for the students and staff as they settle into the second semester.

The school board met in special session Monday afternoon to reorganize for the new year. Briles said there were no changes made in the makeup of the board.

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