|
Post by ClayLive on Apr 18, 2013 20:23:14 GMT -5
Joel Heuring and Emily Burchell
perryvillenews.com Burchell-Heuring engaged
Ron and Patty Heuring of Perryville, Missouri announce the engagement of their son, Joel Nathaniel Heuring of Perryville, to Emily Carson Burchell of Mount Pleasant, S.C. Emily is the daughter of Pat Burchell and the late Robert W. Burchell II of Manchester, Ky. Emily received her Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy. She is employed as a pharmacy manger for Wal-Mart in Mount Pleasant, S.C. Joel received a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Westminster College. He is employed as an estimator/project manager for Richardet Floor Covering in Perryville. A May 3, 2013 wedding is planned in Mount Pleasant at the Creek Club at I’ON. The couple will reside in Mount Pleasant. www.perryvillenews.com/lifestyle/engagements/article_ce2a7290-a845-11e2-94b6-001a4bcf6878.html
|
|
|
Post by Press Release on Apr 23, 2013 15:41:28 GMT -5
Former Agriculture Commissioner Indicted for Misappropriating Department Funds U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Kentucky
A federal indictment was unsealed today charging former Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Richard Dwight Farmer Jr., with misusing and misappropriating money and property belonging to the Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) during his tenure. The indictment, filed Friday, April 19, charges Farmer, 43, with four counts of misappropriating property and funds of the KDA, a state agency that receives more than $10,000 annually in federal funds. Each of the four counts covers alleged misconduct occurring in separate calendar years beginning with 2008 and ending with 2011. Farmer is also charged with one count of soliciting property of value in exchange for intending to be influenced in KDA matters. According to the indictment, Farmer abused his authority throughout his tenure, using KDA funds to obtain rifles, clothes, hotel rooms, computer equipment and home appliances, all for himself, friends and family. One example of Farmer’s alleged misuse of funds occurred in 2008, at the Southern Association of State Departments of Agricultural Conference held in Kentucky. The indictment alleges Farmer bought a surplus of gifts for participants and conference workers, such as rifles, watches, case knives, and personalized cigar boxes, and then kept the excess gifts for his personal use. The indictment also alleges that Farmer misused his position to secure jobs for his friends. According to the indictment, Farmer directed the KDA to create several paid “Special Assistant” positions. He hired friends for these positions, and he ensured that they operated with little oversight and performed minimal official work. Some of these “Special Assistants” received state government salaries in exchange for performing home improvement projects and other personal services for Farmer. Additionally, on multiple occasions, Farmer allegedly bought hotel rooms at the Kentucky State Fair for extended family using KDA’s money. Another count in the indictment alleges that Farmer solicited and accepted property from an eastern Kentucky motor vehicle dealership, intending to be influenced in the decision in which he attempted to award KDA grant money to the dealership. The U.S. Government is seeking the forfeiture of $450,000, which represents the approximate total amount of KDA money that Farmer allegedly misused. The KDA is a state government agency that is funded, in part, with money provided by the federal government. The indictment alleges that the KDA receives millions of dollars annually in federal money. Farmer was elected to two terms as Commissioner of Agriculture and was responsible for the supervision and administration of the KDA from January 2004 until January 2012. Kerry B. Harvey, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Perrye Turner, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, and Jack Conway, Kentucky Attorney General jointly announced the indictment today. The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office and the FBI. The indictment was presented to the grand jury by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth R. Taylor and Andrew T. Boone, and trial attorney Sean Mulryne with the Public Integrity Section of the United States Department of Justice. A date for Farmer to appear in court has not yet been scheduled. Each count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine. However, any sentence following a conviction would be imposed by the Court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statutes. Any indictment is an accusation only. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Apr 27, 2013 8:23:22 GMT -5
The Courier-Journal Kentucky's Appalachian Challenge Academy offers dropouts a chance to complete school by Chris Kenning
After dropping out of high school in Clay County, David Bowling spent his days smoking pot, abusing pills and avoiding a troubled home — all the while edging closer to a dead-end future in a corner of Appalachia where jobs are scarce. But today, the 17-year-old has a buzz cut and a pair of fatigues and rises at 5 a.m. in a spartan, military-style bunk dorm at the foot of a mountainside. He spends 16-hour days in class, doing physical training and community service before his commandant calls “lights out.” Bowling is a student at Kentucky’s new Appalachian Challenge Academy, a quasi-military, last-chance program opened this academic year for troubled dropouts from depressed coal-mining counties where officials say too many teens fail to finish high school. Modeled on a 14-year-old program at Fort Knox and sponsored by the National Guard, the academy allows dropouts to get back on track to a diploma, careers or college with 22 weeks of tough-love schooling, fitness and life skills that emphasize respect and self-discipline, followed by another year of off-site mentoring. It’s voluntary, and as many as 300 at-risk students a year are identified through schools, churches and community groups. Supporters say the program works by taking students out of troubled environments and surrounding them with strict but caring adults who challenge them to succeed. “I wanted to quit at first, I hated it,” said Bowling, who is working on his GED and wants to join the military and study photography in college. “It changed my views. I didn’t really think highly of myself, didn’t think anybody really cared about me. I never had anybody to motivate me.” The program, which allows students to catch up on classes to return to school or earn a diploma, is one of 34 in more than two dozen states that the Guard has sponsored since the 1990s for ages 16-18. In Kentucky the program is funded by the U.S. Defense Department and the state. Nationally such programs have served more than 100,000 youth who “have lost their way (or) given up,” said retired Col. John Wayne Smith, who runs the Fort Knox academy, founded in 1999. Read the entire article at: www.courier-journal.com/article/20130426/BETTERLIFE03/304260151/Kentucky-s-Appalachian-Challenge-Academy-offers-dropouts-chance-complete-school
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Apr 27, 2013 8:26:00 GMT -5
Kishore Kumar Jadhav
TheTimesTribune.com Kismore Kumar Jadhav gets 18 years in prison By John L. Ross
Eighteen years in prison, 15 years of supervised probation and a lifetime on the sex offender registry — that’s the official sentence handed down in U.S. District Court in London Thursday to a man charged with producing child pornography. Kismore Kumar Jadhav, 51, a former Manchester doctor who in September pleaded guilty to one count of a multi-count indictment against him, stood handcuffed with his defense attorney before U.S. District Judge Gregory F. Van Tatenhove in a tan prison outfit and orange “crocs.” In addition to serving an 18-year prison sentence, he will also be required to undergo mental health and sex offender treatment, submit to random polygraph tests, and never be permitted in places around children. He was also ordered to pay a total of $105,100 in fines and restitution. Read the entire article at: thetimestribune.com/x2002132920/Ex-doctor-gets-18-years-in-prison
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Apr 28, 2013 13:09:28 GMT -5
About the author: Sylvia Ryerson of Letcher County is a journalist for WMMT 88.7 Mountain Community Radio, a project of Appalshop.
Federal Prisons have not unlocked prosperity in Eastern Kentucky By Sylvia Ryerson
Hal Rogers recently announced major progress for efforts to bring a new maximum-security federal prison to Letcher County, one of the many Eastern Kentucky counties hard hit by the declining coal industry. The Federal Bureau of Prisons awarded a contract to conduct an environmental impact study on two selected sites. But even as that process moves forward, no funding has yet been allocated for construction of the proposed $250 million to $350 million project. If built, this will be the fourth new federal prison to come to Eastern Kentucky, and the sixth federal prison built in Central Appalachia, since 1992 — in addition to new state and private prisons. Indeed, in the last quarter-century of skyrocketing incarceration, Central Appalachia has become one of the most concentrated areas of prison growth in the country. Each prison came with the promise of hundreds of jobs and broad-scale economic growth. So as Letcher County waits, we should ask, what happened in these other prison-host communities. Did the promises come true? McCreary County, where a federal prison opened in 2004, provides one example. Officials were told the prison would have an operating annual budget of $25 million, with 80 percent of the money spent locally, and that it would bring hundreds of jobs. So the county rolled out the red carpet to ensure the prison's arrival — running new sewer lines, paving roads, building a whole new water treatment plant. But it wasn't until 2001 — a year into the prison's construction — that the qualifications needed for getting a prison job became apparent. All applicants would be drug-tested and background checked, need a clean credit history and no prior criminal record, have to pass a rigorous physical exam and be younger than 38. County residents would be given no preference in the hiring process, and a four-year college degree and previous institutional experience were "highly recommended." Transferring employees filled the vast majority of positions and most chose to live in nearby cities outside the county. They did not buy local real estate, shop at local businesses or put their children in county schools. The prison purchases supplies from national wholesalers, not local businesses. And the county's property tax base was permanently reduced when the prison land transferred from private ownership to the federal government. It's been almost a decade since the prison opened in McCreary County, and it remains one of the poorest counties in one of our nation's poorest congressional districts. The situation is so dire the school board is facing a $1 million shortfall in the upcoming year, and one proposal is to cut kindergarten to a half-day. Clay and Martin counties, where federal prisons opened in 1992 and 2003, also rank among the 10 poorest counties in the state. Kentucky's experience is not unique. One 2010 study analyzed data on every rural county in the country from 1969 to 2004 and found no evidence that prison construction leads to economic growth, and furthermore that the poorest counties are the most likely to have a net loss from prison construction. Read more here: www.kentucky.com/2013/04/28/2618196/ky-voices-prisons-wont-unlock.html
|
|
|
Post by In The News on May 2, 2013 4:21:56 GMT -5
lex18.com Missing Clay County Man Found In Jackson County
A Clay County man who hadn't contacted his family for about two weeks was located Wednesday evening in Jackson County, police say. According to police someone contacted Johnny Hacker's sister with information of his whereabouts. Police have not released any other details about the case. Hacker was reported missing on Tuesday, but his relatives hadn't heard from him since about two weeks before that. Hacker's family told LEX18 on Wednesday they were worried about him. www.lex18.com/news/missing-man-found-in-jackson-county
|
|
|
Post by In The News on May 6, 2013 3:57:50 GMT -5
Herald-Leader Head-on crash takes life of Clay County driver
A Clay County woman died Sunday in a two-vehicle crash, Kentucky State Police said in a news release. Patricia Lou Hyde, 43, of Goose Rock was taken from the scene to Manchester Memorial Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Hyde was driving a 1997 Ford Mustang that collided head-on with a Dodge Durango, state police said. The driver of the Durango, Tommy Henson, 33, of Waynesburg, also was taken to Manchester Memorial Hospital, as was an unidentified passenger. The crash was reported at 4:41 p.m. Sunday on U.S. 421 about three miles west of Manchester. No alcohol or drug use was suspected of either driver, state police said. Read more here: www.kentucky.com/2013/05/05/2628993/head-on-crash-takes-life-of-clay.html
|
|
|
Post by In The News on May 6, 2013 20:57:26 GMT -5
The Times-Tribune DPA social worker program changes lives, but lacks funding By Ronnie Ellis
The DPA, the public defenders’ office works with offenders in Laurel, Whitley, Knox, Clay and Leslie counties. Last Wednesday, DPA’s social worker alternative sentencing program was recognized as one of the 25 most innovative government programs in the country by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. The program saves the state and county governments thousands of dollars and it turns around lives lost in the dark despair of drug addiction. Ed Monahan, the state’s Chief Public Advocate, estimates that every dollar spent on the program saves the state $3.25, or about $100,000 for each of the eight social workers. Read the entire article at: thetimestribune.com/x319978531/DPA-social-worker-program-changes-lives-but-lacks-funding
|
|
|
Post by In The News on May 7, 2013 15:52:27 GMT -5
Hazard Herald Clay County farmers take advantage of Hazard Farmers Market
The Hazard-Perry County Farmers Market is scheduled to open again next week and run through late October. The farmers market first opened in the Perry County Park eight years ago, allowing local and regional farmers an opportunity to sell produce and handmade products. Last year, 31 members traveled from areas like Campton, Hyden, and Manchester, as well as Perry County, to offer produce for sale. This year’s market will open on Wednesday, May 15 at picnic shelters four and five in the Perry County Park. The market will be open every Wednesday and Saturday from 7 to 3 p.m. through Oct. 30. Cancellation dates this year are June 1, Aug. 24, and Sept. 28. Anyone wishing to sign up to sell at the market can contact the Hazard-Perry County Tourism office at 606-487-1580 or 1-888-857-5263. Membership is free. Read more: www.hazard-herald.com/view/full_story/22480692/article-Farmers-market-to-reopen-next-week
|
|
|
Post by Press Release on May 16, 2013 19:40:47 GMT -5
Travis Davis of Manchester to be on CMT's "Redneck Island"
Wrestling hall of famer Steve Austin is back for a rowdier-than-ever third season of REDNECK ISLAND, premiering Wednesday, June 5 at 10:30 p.m., immediately following the 2013 CMT MUSIC AWARDS. Set in a remote tropical paradise, REDNECK ISLAND will pit 15 contestants — completely out of their element—against one another in CMT’s ultimate redneck-style competition series for a shot at $100,000. Travis Davis of Manchester will be one of three contetants from Kentucky. This season, romantic alliances form early among the castaways, and one surprise dismissal will keep the rednecks “politicking” throughout the 15 beer-packed episodes. The second episode of REDNECK ISLAND will premiere in its regularly scheduled timeslot Saturday, June 8 at 9:00 p.m.. REDNECK ISLAND season three contestants from Kentucky, which were revealed on the series’ official Facebook page earlier this week, include: * Travis Davis (Manchester, Ky.) – An avid guitar-player and NASCAR-watcher, 31-year-old Travis is a mechanic who also loves turtle hunting and tailgating. * Bayly Risen (Brandenburg, Ky.) – Bayly is a 22-year-old retail banker who loves putting on her camouflage overalls and heading to the horse stables. * Stacey Schuler (Shepherdsville, Ky.) – Stacey, a 26-year-old recovery specialist, isn’t into pink and says she can outhunt and outdrink any man. REDNECK ISLAND is executive produced by Cris Abrego and Fred Birkhead from 51 Minds Entertainment and Clay Newbill from 310 Entertainment, along with Steve Austin from Broken Skull Ranch Productions. Jayson Dinsmore and Melanie Moreau serve as executive producers for CMT. tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2013/05/16/redneck-island-set-to-return-to-cmt-for-an-all-new-season-on-june-5/183008
|
|
|
Post by In The News on May 22, 2013 11:44:25 GMT -5
thetimestribune.com Clay County Bail jumper arrested in Laurel County
A Garrad man who tried to elude deputies by hiding behind couch cushions was arrested Friday, according to Laurel County Sheriff John Root. Matthew Collett, 33, is charged with first-degree bail jumping out of Clay County. He also has six other outstanding bench warrants. Collett’s arrest came after Root’s department got a tip he was at a home along Farley Road. Deputies Josh Scott, Kevin Berry and Mikey Ashurst responded. Another person, Nancy K. Collett, 33, of Manchester, was also at the home and was arrested after she told deputies Matthew Collett was not in the house. She is charged with second-degree hindering apprehension. Both Matthew Collett and Nancy Collett were jailed in the Laurel County Correctional Center. thetimestribune.com/local/x2002155710/Police-Roundup-May-22-2013
|
|
|
Post by Press Release on May 30, 2013 5:48:51 GMT -5
US Natural Gas Corp Reaches Agreement to Acquire 17 Producing Wells in Clay County US Natural Gas Corp. Press Release
US Natural Gas Corp (OTC Pink:UNGS), an energy exploration company with operations in the Appalachian Basin is pleased to inform shareholders that it has entered into terms to acquire 17 producing oil and natural gas wells in Eastern Kentucky. The 17 wells are located in Clay County, Kentucky on a four hundred acre lease. The wells are currently shut-in by the selling Operator, but have a history of production from the original completion date through 2011. The wells average 1800' TD ("total depth") with production occurring from the Knox formation. Previous production records show that the field of 17 wells produced on average 20-25 BOD ("barrels of oil per day"). The Company's plans are to purchase new pump jacks and above ground completion components for all wells. The installed rods and tubing are in adequate condition to allow for the wells to be placed into immediate production once the above ground fixtures are installed. The Company anticipates that it will take 45-60 days to complete this work and have the wells on pump. Revenue recognition from production will be realized in the third quarter. From past production history and surrounding production, the Company's projections are for initial production of 25-30 BOD tapering down to 18-22 BOD. The Company will have an opportunity to deliver the natural gas production from this field to one of two intrastate transmission pipelines. Daily pressure volumes will be monitored to determine the most feasible route for delivery. "The addition of these 17 wells will immediately impact our revenue with little capital expenditure," said Wayne Anderson, President of US Natural Gas Corp. "We are continuing with our goal of adding proven and producing crude and natural gas properties to avoid the uncertainty of wildcat drilling." US Natural Gas Corp is an independent energy company principally engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of mature long-lived oil and natural gas properties. The company's current operations are concentrated in the Appalachian Basin within the states of Kentucky and West Virginia with core assets consisting of 17,000 acres of mineral rights leases and interest in approximately 150 oil and gas wells. More information on US Natural Gas Corp can be found on the Company?s website at: www.usnatgascorp.com
|
|
|
Post by In The News on May 30, 2013 21:29:43 GMT -5
courier-journal.com Louisville doctor tied to Clay County death can not prescribe controlled substances
The Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure has ordered Louisville physician Dr. John Baird not to prescribe controlled substances after a pharmacist alleged he was prescribing large amounts, and one patient to whom he prescribed them died of a narcotics overdose. The “emergency order of restriction” means Baird, a specialist in physical medicine and rehabilitation who works at Healing Options Wellness and Lifestyle Center on Eastpoint Parkway, can’t prescribe or dispense controlled substances until the complaint is resolved or until the board orders otherwise. A hearing is scheduled for late August, but it may be several months before a final decision is made about whether further sanctions are warranted, said C. Lloyd Vest II, general counsel for the licensure board. Vest said the board has been seeing more cases alleging prescribing problems since the General Assembly passed a law cracking down on prescription drug abuse in 2012. Baird has come to the board’s attention before. A board inquiry panel reviewed an investigation into inappropriate prescribing of controlled substances in 2010, but failed to find a violation, instead issuing a letter of concern to Baird. In September 2011, the board received the grievance from the pharmacist, who alleged that Baird was prescribing large amounts of controlled substances, and combinations of several of these drugs, and that patients were getting early refills of those prescriptions. In February 2012, the board received a toxicology report from the Clay County Coroner on the death of a patient. The report ruled the death accidental due to acute combined narcotic drug toxicity, named Baird as one of his providers, for fentanyl and oxycodone, and said: “My opinion is this patient was consuming prescription medications in large quantities on a regular basis.” The web site for Healing Options describes Baird as a native Louisvillian who graduated St. Xavier High School and the University of Louisville. It says he integrates alternative therapies into his practice, including acupuncture, natural hormone replacement therapy and age management medicine, and that he has extensive training in Botox, laser therapies and cosmetic fillers. www.courier-journal.com/article/20130530/BUSINESS/305300056/Louisville-doctor-ordered-stop-prescribing-controlled-substances
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jun 7, 2013 9:48:31 GMT -5
CNN-Wire/Atlanta Medical helicopter crashes after taking patient to hospital
A medical helicopter crashed in Kentucky, killing all three crew members as they returned to their base after transporting a patient, authorities said Friday. The crash occurred late Thursday night in Clay County. No patients were aboard the flight, CNN affiliate WYMT reported. The crew members killed are pilot Eddie Sizemore, paramedic Herman “Lee” Dobbs and flight nurse Jesse Jones, according to the affiliate. A statement from the helicopter company, Air Evac Lifeteam, said the crew had just transported a patient to a hospital in London, Kentucky. The base is in Manchester. “We are devastated at the loss of these crew members who we consider family,” the company said on its Facebook page. “We have no details regarding the cause of the accident, but will be working with the National Transportation Safety Board in coming days as they conduct their investigation.” myfox8.com/2013/06/07/medical-helicopter-crashes-after-taking-patient-to-hospital/
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jun 9, 2013 15:20:53 GMT -5
WYMT-TV Funeral arrangements set for the men killed in Air Evac helicopter crash
Funeral arrangements have been set for the three men killed when the Air Evac helicopter they were in crashed late Thursday night. Pilot Eddy Sizemore, paramedic Lee Dobbs and flight nurse Jesse Jones were killed in an aircraft accident in Clay County around 11pm Thursday night.
Visitation for Jesse Jones will be held on Tuesday June 11th from 4pm – 8pm at Creech Funeral Home. The funeral will be held at 8pm at the Creech Funeral Home chapel. Graveside services will be held at 11am Wednesday June 12th at the Maiden Cemetery in Frakes Kentucky where professional honors will be given at the grave site. All arrangements are being handled by Creech Funeral Home in Middlesboro.
Funeral services for Herman Dobbs will be Thursday June 13th at 10am at Hawk Creek Church in London.
Funeral services for Eddy Sizemore will be Tuesday June 11th at 2pm at First Baptist Church of London. Burial will follow at Locust Grove Cemetery. www.wkyt.com/news/headlines/Funeral-arrangements-set-for-two-of-the-men-killed-in-Air-Evac-helicopter-crash-210753531.html
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jun 12, 2013 6:03:49 GMT -5
Las Vegas Sun Helicopter that crashed in Clay County had been completely refurbished
The crash of a medical helicopter that killed three crewmembers in southeastern Kentucky on Thursday was the fourth deadly accident in the past decade for Air Evac Lifeteam, a Missouri-based company that operates from 114 locations in 15 states. The helicopter that crashed Thursday night crash in Clay County had been completely refurbished just over a year ago making it "more powerful and capable of carrying higher gross weight," company spokeswoman Julie Heavrin said. There was no patient on board. WHAS radio reported that the helicopter, a Bell 206 LongRanger, came down in the parking lot of Paces Creek Elementary School outside Manchester, which is about 90 miles southeast of Lexington. Witnesses described a light fog, though forecasters said there was no severe weather in the area. The last fatal Air Evac Lifeteam crash was in Arkansas in 2010. All three crew members were killed when that helicopter, a Bell 206 built in 1978, went down in Van Buren County. Heavrin said Air Evac Lifeteam has had two other fatal crashes in recent years. One in Indiana in 2008 killed all three crew members, as did the other in Alabama in 2007. There have been 32 crashes in the U.S. involving Bell 206 helicopters since June 2011, with a total of 12 fatalities occurring in seven of the crashes, according to data from the National Transportation Safety Board. The most recent crash recorded was May 10 in Hartford, Ky. The pilot was not injured after the craft struck a power line. The company identified the crewmembers as pilot Eddie Sizemore, flight paramedic Herman "Lee" Dobbs and flight nurse Jesse Jones. They were on their way back to base in Manchester after transporting a patient to a hospital in London, Ky. Laurel County Sheriff's spokesman Gilbert Acciardo told the Lexington Herald-Leader that Sizemore had retired as a deputy from the sheriff's office, but returned in 2011 before leaving the position to become a pilot for Air Evac Lifeteam. Air Evac Lifeteam President and CEO Seth Myers said the company is devastated by the loss of the crew. The Missouri-based company has been providing medical transportation for 26 years. Its flight crews typically consist of a pilot, registered nurse and paramedic. Besides its fleet of helicopters, Air Evac Lifeteam also uses planes, including one based at the nearby Williamsburg-Whitley County Airport in southeastern Kentucky. Blair Marie Beggan, a spokeswoman for the Association of Air Medical Services, said the United States now has about 850 medical helicopters in service full-time and that they transport about 400,000 critically ill and injured patients each year. Read more: www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/jun/12/us-medical-helicopter-crash/#ixzz2Vzx1r8yK
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jun 13, 2013 6:09:30 GMT -5
Cindy Pinson
Charleston Daily Mail House Call Doctor of the Year serves patients from Cincinnati to Clay County by Candace Nelson, Staff writer
Carrying a small black handbag with a stethoscope and thermometer stuffed inside, Cindy Pinson makes her daily rounds through the tri-state area, visiting patients in their homes. The house call era took a nosedive after its peak in the '60s, and only about 14 percent of physicians in the United States now visit homes. It's a dying form of medical care because it can be seen as time-consuming and less efficient. But to Pinson, it's worth it. The population she serves — West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky — includes a majority of elderly people. Pinson, a native of China who now lives in Huntington, founded Travel MD in 2005 after realizing she wanted to spend more time with her patients. Travel MD was built on the idea of providing care to an elderly and homebound population and now has eight providers covering nine nursing homes, 20 assisted living facilities and five personal care homes and fields 400 house calls per month. Pinson and three other doctors and four nurse practitioners travel Boone, Lincoln, Kanawha and Cabell counties and areas from Cincinnati, Ohio, to Clay County in Kentucky. Because of that dedication, Pinson was recently named as the 2013 House Call Doctor of the Year by the American Academy of Home Care Physicians. Pinson's travels have put just under 4,000 active patients on her list. Most of her patients suffer from diagnoses like hypertension, heart disease, arthritis, dementia, diabetes, high cholesterol and obesity — the same issues that plague the rest of the local population. All Pinson needs to treat her patients is in her bag — thermometers, blood pressure monitors, gloves and other basic supplies. Read the entire article at: www.dailymail.com/Business/201306120194
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jun 14, 2013 16:07:01 GMT -5
Werner Grentz
thenewsjournal.net Former Clay County doctor gets 18 months in prison for income tax evasion by Dean Manning
A local doctor who admitted to failing to pay more than $900,000 in federal income taxes over more than decade was sentenced to 18 months in prison and must replay the taxes along with interest an penalties. Werner Grentz, 64, who worked as an independent physician contractor at the hospital and also a medical office in London, was facing five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 after pleading guilty to one count of tax evasion. Based on a presentence investigation, which took into account things such as his criminal history, the recommended prison sentence was 30 to 37 months and a fine of $6,000 to $60,000. Under federal law, the judge is not bound to sentence within that range. When given the opportunity to address the court, Grentz broke down in tears as he apologized and asked the court for mercy. In arguing for the court to be lenient, Grentz’s attorney, Michael Murphy, noted that Grentz had not used the money to support an addiction or on frivolous items, but had, instead gone to various charitable causes. In addition, Murphy noted that Grentz had voluntarily surrendered his license to practice medicine and would need to go through the recertification process to regain his license. Grentz must wait two years to begin that process. Grentz has agreed to pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $900,068. thenewsjournal.net/details/7316/Local-doctor-gets-18-months-in-prison-for-income-tax-evasion#comments
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jun 25, 2013 6:29:01 GMT -5
Courier-Journal David Murray files lawsuit against Cumberland County Schools
A finalist for the job of superintendent of Cumberland County Schools claims in a lawsuit that he lost the job after a last-minute intervention by then-Senate President David Williams. David Murray, now principal at a school in Clay County, says in his lawsuit filed in Franklin Circuit Court that he and the Cumberland school board chairman had agreed to and even signed a contract giving Murray the job on May 7, 2012, and that the chairman assured Murray he had the support of a majority of the school board. But the suit says that “then State Senator David Williams intervened” with board members on behalf of a local finalist, Glen Murphy, whom the board voted to hire on May 9. Williams is not a defendant in the suit, which Murray filed earlier this year against the Cumberland County Board of Education. In it, Murray says that any meetings by board members “either together with or serially with” Williams would have violated the state Open Meetings Act and any later board action stemming from an illegal meeting would be void. He asks that Murphy’shiring be declared void and seeks actual monetary damages because he said he withdrew from two other superintendent searches because he’d been assured he had the Cumberland job. Read the entire article at: www.courier-journal.com/article/20130624/NEWS01/306240068/Educator-alleges-ex-Sen-Williams-cost-him-job
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jul 8, 2013 22:22:24 GMT -5
washingtonexaminer.com Disability has become a Way of Life in many American counties
In the mountains of Kentucky, in the coal country 100 miles east of Lexington, there's something in the water, something between defeat and government largesse. In Breathitt County, 4,000 of its 14,000 residents, or 28 percent, are drawing a government check because they've been ruled disabled. The monthly checks in the tiny county where bodies seem to have failed en masse total $2.8 million each month, amounting to more than $200 for every man, woman and child it houses. For as far as the eye can see from the wooded mountaintops, this is life in rural Kentucky and places like it. Of the more populous Pike County's 65,000 residents, 14,000 are on disability, for a total of $12 million in monthly federal payments. In Clay County, it's 27 percent of residents. This area is also the most prominent on the accompanying EXography map of the U.S. showing the percentage of disability recipients among residents of each of the nation's more than 3,100 counties. Some are likely miners injured toiling underground, though government disability programs are different than workers' compensation. But with coal jobs and other heavy industry work in decline, the absence of those jobs has probably motivated more residents to file for government disability than black lung ever did: Unlike unemployment insurance and welfare, there are no limits on the duration one can draw a check for being disabled. Indeed, whether many of the residents are really disabled at all is an open question. When asked by the U.S. Census Bureau whether they had specific disabilities, only half the number of people collecting disability checks said yes. Another condition has hit the Kentucky area like a plague, though it's not the sort of thing typically regarded as the result of too much dangerous work: obesity. Most in Clay and neighboring counties who had little to no work history are drawing from Social Security funds they never paid into, as opposed to the disability trust fund for which onetime workers are eligible. It is, in short, welfare. In Clay, the average person on the Social Security Disability Insurance rolls -- those who have a work history and paid in at least partially -- gets $910 each month. Disabled who have hardly ever worked, those on the Supplemental Security Income program, get $554 in an area where the average home can be bought for $46,000. washingtonexaminer.com/disability-has-become-a-way-of-life-in-many-american-counties/article/2532763
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jul 12, 2013 13:35:36 GMT -5
hazard-herald.com Clay County women have a low life expectancy by Cris Ritchie, Editor
Poor health news continues to mount locally as a study published Wednesday shows women in Clay County have one of the lowest life expectancy's in the nation. The study, published online in the journal Population Health Metrics, compares the change in life expectancy at the county level between 1985 and 2010, and also contrasts that data with figures from other countries. Most of the bottom 20 counties recording the lowest rates of life expectancy are located in either Central Appalachia (Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia) or the Deep South (Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia). According to the study, females in Perry County in 2010 had a life expectancy of 72.65 years, lower than females in Vietnam, and contrasts to Marin County, Ca., where women have an average life expectancy of 85.02 years, the highest in the nation and comparable to nations such as Switzerland and France which record some of the world’s highest averages of life expectancy. Other Eastern Kentucky counties included in the bottom were Clay (74.12), Leslie (74.12), and Harlan (74.86). Men in Perry County in 2010 had a life expectancy of 66.52 years, or the third lowest in the nation, according to the study. Floyd County followed with a rate of 66.59 years. Pike, Owsley, and Breathitt counties also made the bottom 20. The study notes that Floyd County was the only county with a significant decline in life expectancy for men between 1985 and 2010, while 72 counties were noted for women, including Perry, Leslie, and Clay. These declines can be related to different factors, the authors note, including migration from disadvantaged counties to counties with higher life expectancy. Socioeconomic factors such as poverty also have been shown to play a significant role in poor health, though others such as poor quality health care and behavioral factors such as tobacco use also contribute. This study likely will not come as welcome news to many in Perry County, which earlier this year was ranked second to last in the state in terms of health. That study, released in March, took into account factors such as obesity, rates of high school graduation and smoking, and access to a primary care physician. The full study on life expectancy can be found online at: www.pophealthmetrics.comwww.hazard-herald.com/printer_friendly/23102826
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jul 15, 2013 5:37:08 GMT -5
David McGill
Harlan Daily Enterprise McGill appointed KEMA vice president
Harlan County Emergency Management Director, David McGill, was appointed vice president of the Kentucky Emergency Management Association (KEMA) for counties within the Kentucky Emergency Management Agency (KYEM) Regions 9 and 10 on July 10 at the KEMA business meeting in Paintsville. David will represent the voices and concerns of the local emergency management agencies within 22 counties. These counties include, Adair, Bell, Casey, Clay, Clinton, Cumberland, Green, Harlan, Jackson, Knox, Laurel, Lee, Leslie, Lincoln, McCreary, Owsley, Pulaski, Rockcastle, Russell, Taylor, Wayne and Whitley. The Kentucky Emergency Management Association is a Kentucky-based non-profit corporation that seeks to develop professionalism among those individuals in Kentucky who are actively engaged in emergency management activities and to provide a forum and support for discussion of the common experience, ideas and suggestions of its members related to emergency management. McGill has been in emergency services for approximately 14 years and has been the emergency management director for Harlan County for six years. He intends on scheduling a meeting with each of the 22 counties to personally meet the county directors so that he may represent them to the best of his ability. www.harlandaily.com/view/full_story/23120742/article-McGill-appointed-KEMA-vice-president?instance=popular
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jul 17, 2013 14:46:30 GMT -5
courier-journal.com Federal appeals court overturns convictions in Clay County vote fraud case
Eight people from Clay County will get new trials after a federal appeals court overturned their convictions in what prosecutors described as a massive vote buying scheme. The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday concluded that U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves allowed jurors to hear some evidence that should not have been admitted and erred in his handling of transcripts of secret tape recordings that an informant made during the FBI investigation. The ruling written by Judge Karen Nelson Moore means former Clay County Circuit Judge R. Cletus Maricle, former school superintendent Doug Adams and six other defendants will get a second chance to contest the allegations stemming from the 2002, 2004 and 2006 elections. Moore concluded that the errors taken alone might not have hurt the defendants’ ability to get a fair trial. But, Moore wrote, the cumulative effect of the mistakes tainted the legal proceedings. The unanimous decision by a three-judge panel means Maricle, Adams, former county Clerk Freddy Thompson; former Magistrate Stanley Bowling; Charles Wayne Jones, who was the county’s Democratic election commissioner; William E. Stivers, an election officer; and Bart and Debra Morris, a couple who owned a garbage business that had contracts with Manchester and Clay County will each get a second chance at a trial. Reeves handed down lengthy sentences in the case, including 24-years for Maricle, 69, who is being held at a federal prison in Beaumont, Texas. www.courier-journal.com/viewart/20130717/NEWS01/307170057/U-S-appeals-court-overturns-convictions-Kentucky-vote-fraud-case
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jul 25, 2013 5:43:58 GMT -5
herald-leader.com Federal judge recuses himself from Clay County case By Valarie Honeycutt Spears
U. S. District Judge Danny C. Reeves has recused himself in the cases of eight Clay County residents whose convictions in a vote-buying conspiracy were struck down by an appeals court. The cases were transferred on Wednesday to Chief U.S. District Judge Karen K. Caldwell, according to a federal court order signed by Reeves. The order outlining the recusal and transfer of the cases did not provide further explanation. Earlier this month, a three-judge panel of the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that former Circuit Judge R. Cletus Maricle, former county school Superintendent Douglas Adams and six others convicted in the case should get a new trial. The appeals panel said Reeves committed errors in his handling of the trials. Reeves admitted some evidence that jurors shouldn't have been allowed to hear and improperly made changes to transcripts jurors were given of secret tape recordings made in the investigation, the appeals panel said. The appeals judges noted the trial was exceptionally difficult to manage and commended Reeves for his close attention to arguments and his thoughtful opinions. However, the appeals panel said the combined effect of the errors meant the eight defendants did not get a fair trial. In other action in the case, Maricle and six of his co-defendants have asked to be released from prison while they await a new trial. Read more here: www.kentucky.com/2013/07/24/2729849/federal-judge-recuses-himself.html
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jul 27, 2013 8:52:22 GMT -5
WKMS-TV Kentucky Senate President backs McConnell By Phillip M. Bailey
Kentucky state Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, says candidates like Mitch McConnell's Tea Party backed primary challenger would rather see the federal government explode and be destroyed than work towards a limited government approach. The comments come as more GOP state office holders are voicing their support for McConnell over Louisville businessman Matt Bevin. In public appearances and campaign messages, Bevin, who is endorsed by the United Kentucky Tea Party, has ripped McConnell for not being conservative enough. Arguing Kentucky deserves better, the Bevin campaign points to McConnell's vote for the bank bailouts, Patriotic Act and debt limit increases as prime examples of him talking like a conservative in the state and caving to Democrats in Washington. But Stivers says McConnell doesn't control all of what goes on in Washington and has to make difficult choices as leader of the 45-member GOP caucus in the Senate. The endorsement of McConnell is little surprise given Stivers is one of the GOP leader's fiercest defenders, who is also married to a McConnell staffer. But the comments do reveal that state GOP leaders are pushing back against the "not conservative enough" attack line from tea partiers. Other state GOP officials such as Agriculture Commissioner James Comer and state Senator Damon Thayer, who is the Senate floor leader, have urged primary voters to remain loyal to McConnell. Asked about the primary election outcome, Stivers says Bevin's personal wealth won't help either due to a lack of name recognition in places like his southeastern district. He predicts Bevin will be defeated by at least a 2-to-1 margin. wkms.org/post/kentucky-senate-president-says-matt-bevin-wants-government-explode-and-be-destroyed
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jul 27, 2013 8:53:19 GMT -5
sentinel-echo.com Two from Manchester airlifted to U.K. hospital By Carol Mills, Staff Writer
A one-vehicle crash Wednesday around 4 p.m. on Ky. 830 sent two passengers to the University of Kentucky Medical Center with serious injuries. The driver of a dark gray Explorer, Arnold D. Smith, 49, and a passenger in the front seat, Russell Smith, 42, were not injured. Russell’s brother, Lansford Smith, 44, and his girlfriend, Rosemary Senters, 46, both passengers in the back seat were airlifted to U.K. from the scene. Lansford Smith and Senters had to be extricated from the vehicle. Laurel County Sheriff’s Deputy Ernest Rudder said the group was from Manchester and were heading to Corbin for an appointment when the right front wheel locked up and threw the SUV off the road. The vehicle turned in the opposite direction, went through an electric fence, rolled over on its top, and landed next to a utility pole in a field. Assisting at the scene were Ambulance Inc. of Laurel County and the London-Laurel County Rescue Squad. See more at: www.sentinel-echo.com/local/x1724758796/Two-airlifted-to-U-K-hospital#sthash.dJ1AWNNw.dpuf
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Jul 27, 2013 8:54:08 GMT -5
Lee Robinson
courier-journal.com Louisville designer Lee Robinson inspired by “very stylish” grandparents in Manchester
Beige is not in Lee Robinson’s color family. Since 1999, when he incorporated his Lee W. Robinson Co. in St. Matthews, Robinson, 50, has been helping clients in Louisville, New York, Palm Beach and beyond focus on what inspires them in order to create their ideal environment. His company’s research indicated that the majority of people are drawn to one of three aesthetics. In 2006, he developed three lifestyle lines that reflect these aesthetics: The McDowell: “Very hunt country, equine, kind of an Anglophilic look.” The Thruston: “A very modern aesthetic; SoHo-chic, hip.” The Owsley: “Very Park Avenue, very opulent; an eclectic mix of antiques and fine art.” Each lifestyle is supported by custom furnishings, fabrics, paint colors and a signature fragrance. The lines are named for Robinson’s sons, who in turn were named for ancestors of Robinson and his wife, Babs Rodes Robinson. Robinson’s own tastes also run to the opulent, eclectic Owsley lifestyle. They are exemplified in Malvern House, the Upper River Road estate designed in 1914 by noted American architect Ogden Codman where he lives with his family, with its dramatic black-and-white marble floors, rich wall colors and grounds designed by the Olmsted Brothers firm. Wearing a cheerful green sports coat and sitting in the sunny yellow music room at Malvern House, he says his interest in design began early — and, like most things in his life, had a connection to family. Hooked early
While visiting his “very stylish” grandparents in Manchester, Ky. (his grandmother’s family bred the iconic Walker fox hound), Robinson, who grew up in Harrodsburg, would pore over their books about antiques and the so-called shelter magazines they subscribed to — Architectural Digest and Southern Accents among them. By the age of 6 or 7, he was building scale models of houses out of poster board and drawing Boiserie paneling on their walls. His family indulged his interest in art with seven years of private art lessons, but the expectation was that, like the rest of his family, he would eventually go into business. Read the entire article at: www.courier-journal.com/article/20130720/SCENE05/307200026/lee-robinson-interior-designer-design-academy
|
|
|
Post by Press Release on Aug 5, 2013 6:13:18 GMT -5
Kentucky junior Senator Rand Paul will visit Clay County Friday August 9. He will speak to the Manchester-Clay County Chamber of Commerce at the Clay Community Center at noon.
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Aug 9, 2013 22:43:42 GMT -5
Paul visits Manchester By Jeff Noble, Staff Writer
U.S. Senator Rand Paul was in Clay County Friday to address the Manchester-Clay County Chamber of Commerce. The senator began his day in Leslie County, speaking at a town hall meeting in Hyden. During his visit to Corbin Thursday Paul pounced on the economy, the health care situation, and the state of government . In a speech before the Corbin Rotary Club, Kentucky’s junior U.S. Senator told them the nation still faces enormous economic problems. Before he spoke to the Rotary Club, Paul visited the SEKRI, Inc. (Southeastern Kentucky Rehabilitation Industries) plant in Corbin. There, he spoke with employees while they were at work, and later toured the facility, which manufactures and sells garments and protective gear to the U. S. Military. SEKRI’s Corbin facility employs 126 persons. Founded in 1971, the non-profit company creates jobs for people with significant disabilities. Paul commended SEKRI employees and staff on their skills and capabilities. After the tour, he said non-profits like SEKRI were competing with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons in making military gear and garments for the Armed Forces. The senator felt the federal agency should do less of it or none of it, giving more jobs to non-profit organizations. When asked about the region’s economy and his swing through southeastern Kentucky on Thursday, Paul said the region’s dealt with an anemic economy, especially with the loss of jobs related to the coal industry. After his Rotary Club speech, Paul went to Barbourville to participate in a roundtable event with Knox County and Barbourville area pastors. That was followed by stops in Pineville, Middlesboro and Harlan. See more at: thetimestribune.com/local/x1981932194/Sen-Paul-visits-Corbin#sthash.iCDXjgsV.dpuf
|
|
|
Post by In The News on Aug 14, 2013 12:29:50 GMT -5
|
|