John Dillinger in Starke County in 1934?

Posted on Author WKVI
John Dillinger

There have been many stories about John Dillinger being in Starke County. The famous outlaw may well have been in Starke County on this date 77 years ago. He may not have been here long, as the Dillinger gang held up the Merchants’ National Bank in South Bend just before noon.

The man identified as John Dillinger entered the bank carrying a machine gun and announced the holdup. Dillinger fired the machine gun into the ceiling creating panic as he and his gang members took $28,500. Once on the street, they encountered Patrolman, Howard Wagner, and killed him.

They escaped and their getaway car was later found in Newton County in Goodland, about 100 miles away.

Goodland is southwest of Starke County and very well could have been on the escape route.

Starke County Coroner Completes Autopsy in Drowning Incident

Posted on Author WKVI

Starke County Coroner Kris Rannells has released the preliminary autopsy report on the victim of the drowning incident in Knox early Sunday morning.

Rannells said preliminary cause of death is being ruled as asphyxiation because of drowning.  Mercan Lyncook, of Parma, Ohio, drowned after jumping off the abandoned train bridge near the historic Depot located on State Road 35.

Pulaski Memorial Hospital Plans Building Project

Posted on Author WKVI
Rick Mynark

Pulaski Memorial Hospital is entering into a building project.

“The Board has approved the construction of a 6,400 square foot medical office building to be located just south of the hospital and connected to the main hospital by a covered walkway for patient access,” said Hospital CEO, Rick Mynark. “There will be two suites within the building, one for Dr. Clint Kaufman, who does the vast majority of our OB deliveries. He will have an opportunity to be located on campus and much more accessible to the maternity unit as he’s needed. The other part of the building, about 2,800 square feet, will be allocated to what we call a group practice. This will eventually expand to consist of three or four physicians as the feature develops. Right now, there will be one physician in there when the building is completed with perhaps a Nurse Practitioner to assist him.”

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Jury Trial Set for Jack Haut

Posted on Author WKVI
Jack Haut

Jack Haut appeared in the Starke Circuit Court yesterday afternoon for a final status hearing, and his jury trial has been scheduled for July 20 at 9am. Haut is charged with Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated Causing Death, and Reckless Homicide. Haut told the court that he plans to have six witnesses, and will provide the court with a list of these witnesses by Friday, July 1. The jury status hearing for this case is set for July 8 at 9am.

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Teacher Contract Approved at Knox Community Schools

Posted on Author WKVI
Gary Dulin, Jerry Fletcher, Harold Welter, Mary Lynn Ritchie, Kirk Bennett, Nathan Marcum, Mike Yankauskas, Superintendent A.J. Gappa

The teacher contract has been ratified by the Knox Federation of Teachers and the Knox Community School Board and Superintendent A.J. Gappa said the Board approved the contract Monday afternoon.

“Our old contract with the teachers actually ran out December 31st, 2010, so we’ve been working as a status quo contract for the last six months,” said Gappa. “We got together with the teachers and maybe had one of the shortest negotiation that we’ve ever had, but everybody was proactive and in agreement and we worked together. The teachers had a meeting Friday morning and they ratified the contract and then we had a special board meeting Monday afternoon and the Board voted to approve the agreement between the KFT and the Knox Community School Corporation.”

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Culver to Remove 100 Tons of Sludge from Sewer System

Posted on Author WKVI
Culver Town Council Members Ed Pinder, Ralph Winters, Ginny Bess, Sally Ricciardi
Culver Town Council Members (from left to right) Ed Pinder, Ralph Winters, Ginny Bess, Sally Ricciardi

One hundred tons of sludge needs to be removed from sludge beds in Culver, in order to allow them to upgrade their sewer system. Because of the increase in volume, the system is in need of an increase in capacity. This involves upgrading some of the headworks and an equalizer tank. When the project was done just last year, the cost was roughly $30,000.

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West Central Moves Forward with Wind Turbine Project

Posted on Author WKVI

The West Central School Board is moving along with the wind turbine project. According to Superintendent Charles Mellon, the next big hurdle will be cleared next week.

“We will be selling the bonds on July 6th,” said Mellon. “With that, we anticipate getting the funding for the project on July 20th. We anticipate some type of groundbreaking in the first part of August as equipment will begin to be delivered and the project completion can be as early as November. We signed the contract a week or so ago and we’re looking for some paperwork from the NIPSCO company and then we will be ready to proceed.”

Starke County Sheriff’s Department Investigates Burglary

Posted on Author WKVI

The Starke County Sheriff’s Department responded to a burglary incident at Hines Salvage in Grovertown on Sunday, June 26th.

The owner told police that he found a knife laying on the ground by the office door, which he thought the suspect(s) used to get into the business. Once the unknown suspect(s) were inside the business, it appeared several drawers were gone through and weapons were taken. Also taken from the office were bolt cutters that were used to cut off six locks that were on trailer doors and garage doors. 6-7 car radiators were stolen, along with 4-5 catalytic converters and several feet of copper wire.

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Bella Vita Offers Classes to Area Women

Posted on Author WKVI
Tona Miller

Tona Miller, one of the councilors at the Bella Vita Pregnancy Resource Center has said that to date, over 35 women have entered classes at the facility.

“I think that they are very interested in our classes,” said Miller. ” We have a program called the ‘Earn While you Learn’ program and what this program does is every class that you come to, prenatal or parenting, you earn what we call baby bucks. With these baby bucks, you can purchase items out of our store. We have clothing, diapers, cribs, walkers, strollers, anything baby related. You also earn the baby bucks for going to your doctor’s visit or WIC appointments. I think most of the girls are very interested in this program because it helps them in a financial way.”

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Last Day to File for Knox Municipal Election is Thursday

Posted on Author WKVI

Thursday at 12:00 p.m. CT is the deadline for the Knox municipal election sign-up.

Any office that does not have a candidate that was selected in the Primary Election can be filled. So far, only Thom Morin has signed up to fill a position on the ballot. He has signed as a Republican for the General Election. Morin will oppose Don Kring for the City Council seat that is currently held by President Ed Blue who is not running for re-election.

Residents Reminded of Fireworks Ordinance

Posted on Author WKVI

Fireworks season has started and you are to be reminded of the fireworks law within city limits. The use, discharge or ignition of consumer fireworks by any person or other entity is prohibited in the corporate limits of the City of Knox, Town of North Judson and the Town of Hamlet, except during the following periods: Between the hours of 5pm and two hours after sunset on June 29th and 30th, July 1st-3rd, and July 5th-9th; between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and midnight on July 4th; and between the hours of 10:00 a.m. on December 31st and 1:00 a.m. on January 1st.

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Vandalism Reported at Monterey Elementary School

Posted on Author WKVI
Monterey Elementary School

The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department received a vandalism complaint at the Monterey Elementary School on Thursday, June 23rd.

A staff member told police that she noticed paint on the side of the school building. Words were painted on the brick wall and on a window. A small hole was made on the corner of the window but it is unknown if it had been shot or if a rock had hit it. When police investigated, the words were recognized as being associated with gang activity.

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Knox Resident Arrested on Cocaine Charges

Posted on Author WKVI
Gerald Boyd

Gerald Boyd, of Knox, was arrested on Saturday on cocaine related charges.

A Knox City Police officer was out on routine patrol when he saw Gerald Boyd. The officer ran his information and found he had a valid warrant for his arrest through Starke Circuit Court. When officers conducted a pat-down, the officer noticed something in a small pocket near his waist. Boyd then turned to run from police. As he turned, the officer grabbed the small pocket and ripped it open. Something reportedly fell out of the pocket. Boyd was apprehended and taken to the Starke County Jail. Police found seven small bags that had come out of his pocket and a straw, according to the report. Inside the baggies was a white powdery substance that field tested positive for cocaine.

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Fireworks Celebration this Saturday at Starke County Airport

Posted on Author WKVI

The Knox City Council, Fireworks Committee and Knox Mayor Rick Chambers invites all to this year’s fireworks display at the Starke County Airport this Saturday, July 2nd.

The gates open at 4:00 p.m. and the gate fee is $5.00. There will be numerous food booths and various clubs selling items for fundraisers. A DJ will be playing music up until the fireworks display at dusk. A Cruise-in will be held on the runway. A BMX Bike demonstration is scheduled, along with a HAM Radio and Airplane Club demonstrations.

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Attorney Status Hearing Set for Hobart Givens

Posted on Author WKVI
Hobart Givens, Jr.

An attorney status hearing is scheduled in the Starke Circuit Court this afternoon for Hobart Givens, Jr., 21, of Knox. Givens is charged with one count of Stalking, a Class D Felony, and Possession of Marijuana after being apprehended by police following a complaint.

On June 13th, police received a complaint from a resident who said that their 11-year old daughter was harassed by a male subject driving an older maroon Ford Taurus with lightning bolts on both sides. The girl told police that she had been walking her dog on Potter Street when the subject pulled up next to her and asked her how old she was. When she didn’t respond, he asked her if she needed a ride, at which point she immediately picked up her dog and ran home. When police arrived on scene, the victim was “very scared and upset.”

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Fire Department Officers Participate in Training Sessions

Posted on Author WKVI
Mike Bucy and Joe Short from the Washington Township Fire Department

Local Fire Department officers participated in a two-day training session facilitated by Mike Bucy, Chief of the Stevens County Fire District #1 near Spokane, Washington. The sessions were held at the Washington Township Fire Department.

Bucy was asked about what the information he was giving to the officers.

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Pulaski County Man Arrested on Intimidation Charges

Posted on Author WKVI

Officers from the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department were called to 5110 W. and 400 N. regarding an intimidation incident on Thursday.

Keith Powers told police that he was standing outside and he heard dogs barking near his residence and people talking through the woods. Powers said his dogs had begun to run toward the woods and Powers went inside his residence to retrieve a gun. He told police that he shot multiple rounds into the sky. Powers said his dogs return when he fires his weapon. He said he got into his truck and looked for the people in the woods. He found raccoon hunters and told him to stay off his property. Powers said that one of the hunters reached into his truck and Powers said he would defend himself if necessary.

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Plymouth Police Investigate Vandalism at St. Michael’s School

Posted on Author WKVI

They can’t keep the basketball backboards from being shattered at St. Michael’s School in Plymouth. Police have been called to the school three times. On June 5th, a subject called to report that two juveniles were throwing rocks and had shattered the backboard. The backboard was fixed, but on June 24th, another one was shattered.

Police in Plymouth are asking the public for help in solving this vandalism. Call (574) 936-2126.