Two people are under arrest after an interrupted  burglary led to a gun being drawn yesterday in downtown Columbus.

Police were called to a report of a robbery with a weapon in the 1600 block of Union Street at just before noon Monday. A homeowner said he caught two people breaking into his detached garage and loading his property into their vehicle.

One of the suspects, later identified as a 16 year old, grabbed a handgun from the vehicle, cocked the weapon and threatened to shoot the homeowner. The suspects then fled.

At around 5:20 p.m., the suspect’s vehicle was found in the 700 block of California Street. Two suspects were taken into custody and the stolen property, including a 60 inch television, were recovered and returned to the victim.

19 year old Mary L. Snyder is facing preliminary charges of burglary while armed with a deadly weapon and theft of $750 or greater.

The 16-year-old was taken to the Bartholomew County Youth Services Center and is facing charges of burglary while armed with a deadly weapon, robbery while armed with a deadly weapon, intimidation with a deadly weapon and theft of $750 or more.

The officers also recovered the weapon used in the robbery which turned out to be a BB gun.

The head of the Columbus area landlord’s association is raising concerns about a plan by Columbus City Council to crack down on junk vehicles on rental properties.

The council is scheduled to vote on the ordinance change tonight, which Brad Grayson, president of the county landlords group, says puts landlords in a hard spot, unable to take actions against vehicles which they do not own and have no legal right to have removed, while facing fines from the city for not getting rid of the vehicles.

He said that taking someone else’s vehicle without permission could be seen as grand theft auto and that most tow companies would not even consider a landlords’ request to remove a vehicle that the landlord does not own. Further, he said that police will not “yellow tag” a vehicle that is not in the public right-of-way.

Grayson also said that the ordinance will do little but increase local rent costs, as landlords make plans to cover the expense of getting fined.

He said that the ordinance change has been flying under the radar and sent out an e-mail yesterday asking the council to reconsider the approval and to put off the vote until they get more input.

He said that despite the landlords’ involvement in writing ordinances under the previous mayor, there was no discussion with landlords about the current proposed changes.

The council meets at 6 p.m. tonight at Columbus City Hall.

The University Library of Columbus has begun a program aimed at promoting critical thinking and discussion.

Bethany Messersmith,  director of Ivy Tech Library Services in Columbus, says that these “TED Talks” began on Tuesday…

She says that TED Talks aren’t just for students…

She says that TED Talks are popular among academia, and the public in general. You are welcome and invited to attend these sessions.

The TED Talks presentation are being held every Tuesday, from 11:30 to noon, through Dec. 5th at the library in the Columbus Learning Center on Central Avenue.

Two people were arrested on drug charges after suspicious vehicles were seen overnight at a Jonesville Road business last week.

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s department reports that a deputy noticed a vehicle behind the business in the 6000 block of South Jonesville Road at just before midnight Thursday and knew that there had been recent break-in attempts there.

The driver of the car, claimed that there were mechanical problems leading to the stop at the store, but other passengers offered differing stories. A second vehicle then arrived on the scene, with the driver saying that a passenger from the first SUV needed a ride.

After backup arrived, a sheriff’s department police dog alerted to the smell of drugs in the vehicles and a portable lab was discovered, according to police reports. Deputies arrested 22-year old Kristan Nigh on charge of possession of a controlled substance, syringe and drug paraphernalia.

Bryan Tucker, the driver of the second vehicle, was arrested on preliminary charges of having an illegal drug lab possessing two or more reactants, possession of methamphetamine and paraphernalia.

Columbus will be observing the Sept. 11th anniversary again this year.

The 16th anniversary of the 9-11 attacks will be remembered Monday with a ceremony at Columbus City Hall. That will start at 8:40 a.m. and the city is inviting members of the community to attend. A moment of silence will be held at 8:46 a.m. to commemorate the moment, when the first plane hit the Twin Towers in New York City. There will also be a message sent over emergency radios by the dispatch center, commemorating the first responders and citizens who lost their lives in the attacks.

There will be a presentation by the city fire and police color guards and comments by city officials. Eighth graders from CSA Central Middle School will place flags on the lawn of City Hall in commemoration of the attack.

The ceremony is expected to last about half an hour.

The Hope area is remembering a long-time local educator and former school superintendent.

Glen S. Keller died Friday at his home. He was 84. Keller served as principal at Clifford and Petersville elementaries, as Hauser High School principal for 20 years and then as superintendent of the Flat Rock-Hawcreek School Corp. for 10 more, from 1985-1995.

After his retirement he remained involved in local community efforts, and was instrumental in having the Simmons one-room schoolhouse moved to the school campus and restored.

His funeral will be at 2 Thursday at Hope Moravian Church.

You can get more information at normanfuneralhome.net

Monday is Labor Day and most government offices are closed and services are suspended.

In Columbus, there will be no city trash, recycling or yard waste collections on Monday The collections will run one day behind the rest of the week with normal Friday collections held on Saturday, Sept. 9th.

Columbus Transit will not be running ColumBUS routes on Monday.

The Bartholomew County Solid Waste Management District offices as well as the Columbus Recycling Center and Bartholomew County landfill will all be closed on Monday due to the holiday.

Columbus City Utilities offices will be closed Monday. If you have a problem with your water or sewer service you can call 812-372-8861 and follow the instructions.

The Bartholomew County Commissioners and County Council work session meetings, normally held on Mondays, will be held on Tuesday next week at their regular times.

There will be no postal service on Monday.

City offices in Seymour and Nashville have also announced closings on Monday.

Two Decatur County residents are facing murder charges for their involvement in an alleged conspiracy to rob a man, which police say led to the shooting death. “The Greensburg Daily News” is reporting that police arrested 29-year-old Rachael M. Smith and 36-year-old Matthew R. Carroll, both of Greensburg, Thursday on charges of Murder and Conspiracy to Commit Armed Robbery in the Aug. 15th shooting death of 32-year-old Jason G. Owens.

The report states that police allege that Smith, Carroll and Owens concocted a plan to rob 37-year-old George L. “Bo” Griffith Jr., in an attempt to retrieve property Smith said belonged to her and money Carroll said Griffith owed him. According to a probable cause affidavit, Smith attempted to set up a drug deal at Vista Village Mobile Home Park, where Carroll and Owens planned to confront Griffith.

Greensburg Police told the paper that Carroll, armed with a handgun, and Owens, who carried a baseball bat, approached Griffith’s car as he arrived at the mobile home park. Smith reportedly told police that Griffith got out of his car and warned them to stop approaching or he would shoot.

Smith said Owens dropped the bat and stopped, but Carroll continued to move toward Griffith. Police say that Griffith fired two shots at the men, one of which struck Owens in the chest. Owens died approximately two hours later at Decatur County Memorial Hospital.

The paper says that police arrested Griffith and charged him with a felony count of Carrying a Handgun without a License. Griffith reportedly admitted to shooting Owens, but he claimed that it was in self-defense. According to the report, Griffith told police that Carroll had attacked one of his relatives less than a day before the shooting and left voicemails warning Griffith was “a dead man.”

Police told the newspaper that Smith, Carroll and Owens were aware that Griffith, a convicted felon, was known to carry a handgun. Nonetheless, the two men armed themselves and approached him, “exposing all of the participants to the danger of death,” police said in court documents. Police say that act constitutes murder, even though neither Carroll nor Smith pulled the trigger of the gun that killed Owens.

Greensburg Police told the paper that the investigation into Owens’ death is ongoing.

For more on this story, visit greensburgdailynews.com.

The Columbus movie officially opens to the public in Columbus this evening. The film begins airing at Yes Cinema this afternoon and tonight’s shows will feature a taste of a Hollywood movie premiere.

Diane Doup with Yes Cinema explains:

Festivities tonight will will include a red carpet and repeating movie banner. Doup said the red carpet and banner will be in place all weekend if people want to stop by and take a photo, even if they don’t have tickets.

Question and answer sessions with the cast and crew will follow the 5:30 and 8:01 p.m. showings today.

Doup talked about her experience seeing the movie for the first time.

Although the public premiere is tonight, there were festivities yesterday for local dignitaries and officials. The film’s director Kogonada, talks about the ways the architecture of Columbus affected him.

Actress Haley Lu Richardson said that when she attended a screening in New York City, she got to meet architect Deborah Burke who designed some of the community’s famous buildings– The First Financial Bank branch on Creekview Drive and the Hope Branch of the Bartholomew County Public Library.

Doup pointed out that Yes Cinema is operated by the not-for-profit Lincoln Central Neighborhood Family Center and any proceeds from its shows go to benefit the community center and its programming.

If you can’t make the showings of the films this weekend, Doup points out that it will be airing at Yes Cinema for several weeks.

For more on the film, this evening’s festivities or to buy tickets visit yescinema.org