WKVI Information Center

An eighty-year-old Valparaiso woman was found dead in a pond near her home yesterday. Indiana Conservation Officers say they were called to assist in a multi-agency effort to locate Ethel Bottom, who was reported missing by relatives when she could not be located at her home. Family members told police that Bottom suffered from dementia.

Members of the Porter County Sheriff’s Department, Valparaiso Police Department, Morgan Township Fire Department, District One Task Force, and Porter County EMA began desperately searching the area near her home. The Lake County Sheriff’s Department began an overhead search of the area with a helicopter, and police soon discovered what appeared to be a body floating in a nearby pond.

The body was identified as Bottom, and she was pronounced dead at the scene by the Porter County Coroner’s Office. Officials say the death remains under investigation.

Trial Date Set For Vierke, Charged With Child Molesting, Incest

A trial date has been set for a Winamac man who faces charges of Child Molesting and Incest.

Daniel Vierke, 38, was arrested on the charges in March after Pulaski County Prosecutor Stacey Mrak filed a probable cause affidavit and a warrant was issued for his arrest. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and has a no-contact order with the victim.

During a pre-trial conference in Pulaski Circuit Court on Thursday, the State of Indiana filed a motion for a jury trial setting which was granted to begin Jan. 15 at 8:30 a.m. ET.

The final pre-trial and plea agreement deadline is set for Dec. 17.

North Judson Man Receives Sentence For Domestic Battery

Wesley Joseph Hurley, of North Judson, pleaded guilty to two counts in a plea hearing and was sentenced in Pulaski Circuit Court on Wednesday.

He pleaded guilty in a plea agreement to Domestic Battery in the Presence of a Child, a Class D Felony. A Class C Felony count of Criminal Confinement and a misdemeanor charge of Interference with Reporting a Crime were dismissed.

Plymouth Woman Sentenced For Conspiracy To Manufacture Meth

A Plymouth woman was recently sentenced in U.S. District Court in South Bend after pleading guilty to the felony offense of Conspiracy to Manufacture Methamphetamine.

Shayla Montague, 20, was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment in federal prison and four years of supervised release for the felony charge.

Two Plead Not Guilty To D Felonies in Starke Circuit Court

starke-county-courthouse — Starke County Courthouse

Two initial hearings were heard in the Starke Circuit Court on Thursday for two men accused of Class D felonies.

Donald Dickson, Jr., of Plymouth faces charges of Theft after he allegedly stole a red moped from Behind Bars Motorsports in Knox. He pleaded not guilty last week to the charges, and requested a bond reduction, but the state disagreed. Dickson is held on a $20,000 surety bond in the Starke County Jail. He requested a court-appointed attorney, and his attorney status hearing was set for Sept. 21 at 11 a.m. Dickson, 30, is also prohibited from entering Behind Bars Motorsports.

Thirty-year-old Steven Pastorcik, Jr., of Knox pleaded not guilty to charges of Possession of Methamphetamine on Thursday as well. He requested a bond reduction from Judge Kim Hall, but the state objected to the reduction, saying it should instead be increased. Judge Hall increased the bond to $1500 cash, and set Pastorcik’s pre-trial conference for Oct. 31 with a plea agreement deadline of Nov. 29. Pastorcik told the court that he will be retaining Timothy Lemon as his attorney. The state also requested that Pastorcik’s suspended sentence from a previous case to be executed, which would place him in jail for 18 months.

Record Preservation Company To Begin Scanning Marshall Co. Documents

A records preservation company is expected to start scanning all of the Marshall County Recorder’s records today, pending the county attorney’s final review and approval.

Recorder Marlene Mahler had presented the contract with Fidlar at the most recent Marshall County Commissioners meeting, but County Attorney James Clevenger found that there is no warranty information and no security agreement on paperwork that must be transported off-site for scanning.

Marshall County Rezoning Proposal To Be Discussed Today

The Marshall County Commissioners will revisit discussion today that involves the rezoning of Cargill, Inc. in LaPaz.

At the last commissioners’ meeting, the company requested a property zoning change from T-1 to Heavy Industrial for use as open-pile corn storage. The request also includes seven parcels in a subdivision which have been used in the elevator operation for years but were never rezoned.

Starke County Environmental Management Website Launched

A new website has been launched to help you find more information on how to make your environmental assessment payment and recycling in Starke County.

Visit www.starkeenvironmental.com where the hours for the Starke County Environmental Management District are listed, as well as the location and more information on district events. Also, learn how to recycle the items that are otherwise difficult to properly dispose of.

Knox Teenager Killed in Single Car Accident

September 2, 2012September 2, 2012WKVI

On Saturday September 1st,2012 at 11.26am the Starke County 911 Center received a call of a single vehicle traffic accident with injuries on US 35 just South of County Road 200 North in Starke County.

Officers arrived on scene and found one victim of the accident had been ejected from the car and was lying on the ground. A Starke County EMS team arrived on scene and transported the patient to I.U. Health Starke. Taylor Wagner age 17 of Knox later died at I.U. Health Starke from her injuries.

Investigating Officers say a witness following the vehicle told them that the vehicle went off the roadway on the right side for an unknown reason, continued into the ditch and began rolling over. The witness stated the driver was ejected from the vehicle while the vehicle was rolling over.

The driver was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident and neither alcohol or drugs are believed to have been involved.

Six Arrested in Meth Bust at Local Motel

September 2, 2012WKVI

On Saturday September 1st, 2012 at 9.10pm Oficers from the Knox Police Department arrived at the Super Value Inn motel located on Danker Street in Knox to serve an arrest warrant on Jeremiah Johnson who local police had received information indicating that he was staying at the motel.

Knox Police Officers went to the room where Johnson was suspected of being in and then encountered several individuals inside the motel room in the process of manufacturing methamphetamine. Officers alertly noticed a chemical smell and smoke coming from the room and requested a seach warrant which was granted and the police at that point performed a search of the premises.

During the search an active meth lab was discovered and several prescription medications along with marijuana.

Upon discovering these items the Police arrested six individuals who are presently being held in the Starke County Jail with no bond being set at this time.

Arrested were James Borton age 47, Richard Garrison Jr age 34, Lolus Johnson age 51, Jeremiah Johnson 25, Shiela Johnson age 49 and Deborah Clemons age 44 all of Knox. All six suspects has been charged with manufacturing Methamphetamine, a class B felony, illegal drug lab a class D felony, posseession of methamphetamine a class D felony and possession of marijuana a class A Misdemeanor. In addition Shelia and Lolus Johnson were charged with possession of controlled substances.

Boldry Pleads Not Guilty To Child Seduction Charges

Todd Boldry appeared in the Starke Circuit Court for his initial hearing yesterday morning, where he faces charges of Child Seduction and Official Misconduct as Class D felonies.

Boldry pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, and his first pre-trial conference date has been set for Oct. 31 at 8 a.m. His second pre-trial conference date, and plea agreement deadline, has been set for Nov. 15 at 8 a.m.

Rensselaer Man Sentenced To 30 Years In Prison For Child Pornography

A Rensselaer man was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison and lifetime supervised release after pleading guilty without the benefit of a plea agreement to the manufacture of child pornography.

Thirty-eight-year-old Randall Ray Fletcher was charged with five counts detailing his exploitation of children over a period spanning approximately seven years.

Marshall Co. Coroner Says Alcohol, Drugs a Factor in Fatal Moped Crash

The results of a toxicology test taken on an Argos man who was killed in a moped accident on Saturday, Aug. 25 have been released.

Marshall County Coroner Bill Cleavenger indicated that Jack R. Moriarty tested positive for alcohol and drugs at the time of the accident.

Moriarty crashed his moped into a fence post on 19th Road in Marshall County on Saturday. He was ejected from the moped and was not wearing a helmet. He died instantly from blunt force trauma. Cleavenger said there was evidence at the scene that Moriarty was impaired at the time of the accident but testing had to be done to confirm that finding.

District Two Task Force On Alert For Possible Emergency Situation

Starke County EMA Director Ted Bombagetti has announced that the District Two Task Force has been placed on “Alert” status for possible deployment in support of southern Indiana. Bombagetti says southern Indiana is expecting five to nine inches of rain over the weekend from Hurricane Isaac, and he says they are ready to deploy should flooding occur.

The task force has a swift water rescue and tactical rescue team within the unit, and Bombagetti says these teams are ready to be mobile when called. He says the teams can be on the road in a matter of hours, and they’ve been preparing for events such as this for several months.

BP Says Off-Spec Fuel Situation Under Control

The greater Indianapolis area recently had a BP gasoline recall as midgrade and premium gasoline were off specification. Some of that gasoline was sold in the Knox and Culver BP stations. The regular unleaded gasoline was not affected and meets quality standards after testing.

BP officials indicated that the source of the problem was identified and it has been fixed.

Drivers who suspect they may have purchased off-specification premium or midgrade fuel in the Indianapolis area or at the Knox or Culver BP gas stations are encouraged to call 1-800-599-9040 to make a claim.

The company stated that BP sells more than 50 million gallons of quality gasoline in the U.S. every day and they are committed to working with affected BP consumers to make good on that guarantee.

State Police To Increase Patrol Efforts This Weekend

The Indiana State Police will be participating in Operation C.A.R.E. this weekend.

The Combined Accident Reduction Effort will be patrolling and looking for motorists who are drinking and driving, speeding, following too closely and driving aggressively. Troopers will also be enforcing all seat belt and child restraint laws.

This patrol is in addition to the Operation Pull Over Blitz which continues until Monday, Sept. 3.

The Indiana Department of Transportation will be ceasing roadwork until the morning hours of Tuesday, Sept. 4 to allow you to travel safely and efficiently this weekend. Some closures and restrictions will remain on larger projects that cannot safely reopen to traffic.

Week in Review for August 27-31, 2012

Here is a look at some of the news that made the news in the Kankakee Valley this week.

Special Prosecutor Michael Krebes filed 10 counts against former North Judson Clerk-Treasurer Connie Miller last week in Starke Circuit Court. Nine counts are for Theft and one is for Official Misconduct, all Class D Felonies. The charges stem from a special report by the State Board of Accounts from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2011 which cites financial discrepancies of $74,408.67. The counts allege that Miller kept money from equipment purchases, employee reimbursements, police department receipts, ordinance violation payments, utility customer receipts, and a number of other receipts from the town of North Judson. St. Joseph County Superior Court Judge Jerome Frese will now be presiding over the criminal case involving former North Judson Clerk-Treasurer Connie Miller. Miller’s attorney, Todd E. Wallsmith, is related to the wife of Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall so by Indiana law, Judge Hall has to disqualify himself from the case. All court hearings will now be heard in St. Joseph County Superior Court. Continue reading →

Festival Weekend Continues – Many Events Planned

The busy festival weekend continues today.

Enjoy the town-wide yard sales at the Monterey Days Festival today, the MRZ Mobile Reptile Zoo from 9–10 a.m., Loehmer’s Hardware Pedal Tractor Pull and the Lion’s Club Ham and Beans at 11 a.m. followed by the Monterey Days Parade at 5:30 p.m.