A former North Vernon police detective was arrested Monday, accused of stealing items from the evidence room and faking doctor’s reports.

43-year-old Brandy Blevins is facing preliminary charges of official misconduct, forgery and theft in the investigation going back to last winter.

Indiana State Police are reporting that troopers were called in to investigate in February after an internal audit revealed discrepancies between the property stored in the evidence room and what was supposed to be there. Blevins is accused of taking unidentified items from the evidence room.

Police also say that Blevins allegedly altered medical records from Schneck Medical Center during an internal investigation in December, and submitted those to the police department.

Blevins resigned from the police department in February. A warrant was issued for her arrest yesterday and she was taken into custody without incident says Sgt. Stephen Wheeles, spokesman for the state police.

Columbus police arrested 37-year-old Angela Pugh on drug charges after a traffic stop Sunday night near Seventh Street and Central Avenue.

Officers stopped the vehicle at about 10 p.m. because it didn’t have working taillights. Police say that Pugh, a passenger in the vehicle, was acting strangely and a police dog alerted to the smell of narcotics.

Meth and drug paraphernalia were allegedly found in a bag she was carrying She was arrested on preliminary charges of possessing the drug, a smoking device and paraphernalia.

A Columbus man was arrested Saturday after driving his Corvette into a utility pole.

Columbus police are reporting that officers were called at about 12:55 a.m. to the accident in the 5800 block of East County Road 50N. They found 53-year-old Gordon T. Gray in the crashed 1981 sports car, which had left the road and struck the pole.

Gray suffered facial injuries in the crash and officers allegedly noticed his speech was slurred and there was a smell of alcohol on his breath.

He was taken to Columbus Regional Hospital for treatment but he refused a blood draw to test for alcohol. Police obtained a search warrant for the test and after he was released from the hospital Gray was arrested on a preliminary charge of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated.

Jackson County deputies arrested two Edinburgh men yesterday on drug and weapon charges following a traffic stop on U.S. 50.

Deputies report that they stopped an SUV that was driving recklessly heading west from Seymour at about 4 a.m. Sunday.

The driver, 23-year-old Gerardo Jimenez was found to be carrying a loaded handgun without a permit. A search of the vehicle allegedly revealed another handgun, money, methamphetamine, scales and a ledger.

Gerardo Jimenez and a passenger, 30-year-old Bernardo Jimenez, were arrested on preliminary charges of dealing meth, possession of meth, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a handgun without a permit.

Police say that the men gave conflicting stories on how they are related, and of where they were going.

Just as a 9-11 remembrance ceremony was finishing on the steps of Columbus City Hall Sunday morning, Columbus firefighters were called to a structure fire on 13th Street.

According to reports from the fire department, residents quickly extinguished a fire on a stove in the Central Park Place apartments. It was caused by scented wax air freshener that was left on the stovetop when the resident left the apartment. A neighbor, Steve Chapple, grabbed a fire extinguisher and fought through heavy smoke to put the fire out. He was taken to Columbus Regional Hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation.

The fire caused about $1,000 in smoke damage to the apartment and filled the building with smoke. Firefighters used exhaust fans to clear the air in the apartment building.

Bartholomew County and Columbus law enforcement officers and firefighters held a somber ceremony on the front steps of Columbus City Hall Sunday morning memorializing those who lost their lives in the Sept. 11 attacks 15 years ago.

The ceremony included the ringing of a fire bell, bagpipes and a radio call from emergency dispatchers timed to coincide with the moment of the first plane crash.

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Columbus Fire Chief Mike Compton explained that a close family friend worked in the World Trade Center complex and lost his life on Sept. 11th, leaving behind his wife and children.

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Indiana’s Bicentennial torch is on its way to Indianapolis in a 36-day trip through every county in the state.

It will be in Bartholomew County on Sunday and events are planned along the route, from Hartsville to Columbus. Lynn Lucas, organizer of the county’s bicentennial torch relay, says that about 20 booths and activities will start on the Bartholomew County Public Library Plaza at about 2 p.m.

Musical entertainment will start at 4:30 p.m., Lucas said.

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The torch is expected to arrive at about 7 p.m. There will be an acceptance of the torch by COunty Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz and the reading of a proclamation by Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop, followed by a children’s choir organized by the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Lucas said that the torch will actually be staying in Bartholomew County longer than most Indiana counties:

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The CSX Safety Train: Emergency Response to Railroad Incidents, a mobile training facility, will be rolling into Columbus to provide hands-on safety training to local firefighters, police officers, emergency medical technicians and other first-responders.

The Safety Train, which is equipped with a rolling classroom and specialized railroad equipment, is designed to teach first-responders how rail cars work and how to respond to incidents involving trains. Sponsored by the Louisville & Indiana Railroad Company and taught by CSX hazardous materials specialists and specialized contractors, the training provides first-responders with the information they need to be safe around active railroads, unique safety features of modern rail tank cars and specialized techniques for responding to railroad incidents involving hazardous materials. The Safety Train provides educational opportunities throughout the year along CSX’s 23-state network.

Capt. Mike Wilson, with the Columbus Fire Department, says that while local first-responders have received training for railroad incidents, this is a special opportunity…

Wilson says the train will be parked in the area of 983 South Marr Road on Monday and Tuesday, before heading to Seymour on Wednesday to for training with first-responders there.

The Bartholomew Consolidated School Foundation has announced the continuation of the “Read by 3” program. Ethan Crough, BCSF Executive Director, says the continuation of the program was made possible through a $5,000 donation from the Duke Energy Foundation.

Crough says that the Read by 3 program is modeled after a pilot launched in the 2011-2012 schools year in five Indianapolis Public Schools by the M.A. Rooney Foundation. It consists of systematic and explicit, multi-sensory teaching for phonics instruction. He says that the teaching methodology is based on extensive research and has shown great success in the IPS system.

Crough says that the impetus for launching the pilot in Columbus came from a parent created grassroots organization called R.E.A.D.S., (Recognizing Educating and Advocating for Dyslexic Students) who helped highlight the need to help dyslexic children in the community.

In BCSC schools during the 2014-2015 school year, the pilot year of the program, 89 percent of the 140 participating kindergartners were reading at grade level by the end of the school year, compared to the 81 percent of kindergartners at the identified schools reading at grade level by the end of the 2013-2014 school year, said Crough.

The BCSF says that the program was implemented at the start of the 2014-2015 school year and was piloted in six kindergarten classrooms at Taylorsville Elementary and Columbus Signature Academy-Lincoln Campus. For the 2015-2016 school year, the program expanded to include first grade classrooms at Taylorsville Elementary. Crough says that a dedicated full-time coach administers the program and works with teachers at each of the schools.

The City of Columbus will observe the 15 year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks with a remembrance ceremony Sunday on the steps of City Hall.

Captain Mike Wilson, Columbus Fire Department spokesman, says the ceremony will include a broadcasted dispatch tribute to recognize the first responders and citizens that lost their lives following the attacks at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and the passengers and crew of flight 93 that crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The attacks resulted in the loss of nearly 3,000 lives. The Columbus Fire and Police Color Guard will take part in the ceremony. In addition, Wilson says that a traditional tribute to fallen firefighters will also take place. He adds that area school children are also taking part…

Sunday’s ceremony will begin at promptly at 8:40 a.m. and is scheduled to last approximately 30 minutes. You are encouraged to take part.