A three-vehicle crash on Friday afternoon resulted in a Lawrence County man being flown to a Louisville hospital. Bartholomew County Sheriff Matt Myers says that just before 4 p.m., deputies responded to the crash on State Road 11 at the Bartholomew/Jackson County line. While responding, deputies were informed that the crash was a head on collision with entrapment. Due to the uncertainty of which county the collision occurred in, Myers says that Jackson County Deputies, Fire and EMS personnel also responded to the scene.

Authorities arrived to find a car and an SUV stuck together in the southbound lane of State Road 11. In the northbound lane, deputies found a pickup truck with damage to his John boat and trailer. The three involved vehicles were blocking both lanes of State Road 11. Myers says that one of the drivers, 26-year-old Caleb Meadows, of Bedford, was trapped inside his car. Meadows was successfully extricated in a joint effort by County Fire/EMS agencies, then flown by Stat helicopter to University of Louisville Hospital. His condition has not been released.

Myers says that the driver of the SUV, 17-year-old Alexander Royalty, of Seymour, went to the hospital for a complaint of pain. The driver of the pickup truck, 32-year-old Jared Shepherd, of Seymour, as well as his passenger, were not hurt.

Investigators say that their investigation revealed that Royalty’s SUV rear-ended to the truck and boat, causing it to move into the southbound lane of State Road 11, into the path of Meadow’s car.

A crowdfunding effort is underway to install new play equipment, an outdoor classroom and a gathering space outside of CSA Lincoln Elementary in downtown Columbus.

The campaign, sponsored by the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority and offered through the crowdfunding platform developed by Patronicity, is being run by The Linden Project Committee.

Organizers say that if the campaign reaches its crowdfunding goal of $32,000 by November 3rd, The Linden Project will receive a matching grant from IHCDA’s CreatINg Places program. They say that the funding raised during this campaign will allow The Linden Project Committee, supported by the Bartholomew Consolidated School Foundation, to install new play equipment, an outdoor classroom and a gathering space outside of CSA Lincoln Elementary in Downtown Columbus.

Organizers say that the new equipment will replace the current out-of-date play set with an engaging space that honors the original design of the school and outdoor play area from when the Lincoln Elementary first opened 50 years ago.

For more information, or to donate, visit http://bit.ly/2xuEFHa.

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department is inviting county students, in grades K through six, to take part in a poster contest marking Crime Prevention Month in October.

Sheriff Matt Myers says that posters should be on 8 ½ X 11 paper and reflect a crime prevention theme. Entries can be made in pen, pencil, colored pencil, crayon, paint and felt pen. However, department officials are asking that students not submit computer generated works. Students should include their name, school, grade and telephone number on the back of their poster.

Posters may be dropped off during regular business hours, October 2nd through the 31st, at the Bartholomew County Jail. Posters may also be mailed to the jail, located at 543 Second Street in Columbus. The deadline for submitting a poster is 5 p.m., October 31st. Students may submit more than one poster.

Winners will be selected by the department’s command staff and the winner, or winners, will be announced on or before November 9th. The winning students will have their photograph taken with Sheriff Myers and posters will be displayed in BCJ’s administrative offices.

The Indiana Department of Transportation says that maintenance personnel have been scheduled to begin work placing a high-friction wearing surface on State Road 46, between Bloomington and Nashville, on Monday. INDOT says the installation of the surface is taking place “as an extra measure of safety at select curve sites along the scenic highway.”

INDOT Bloomington Subdistrict crews are scheduled to begin work at 8:30 a.m. on Monday and wrap-up around 6 p.m. the same day. Work is scheduled to continue through daytime hours on Tuesday. In all, seven curves will be treated. INDOT says that drivers should expect delays, as traffic will be reduced to a single lane in affected areas.

This work is dependent on the weather and may be rescheduled if needed.

One person was hurt after a Friday afternoon crash involving a school bus and another vehicle. Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the Columbus Police Department, says that the crash occurred at about 3:45 p.m. near 15th Street and Gladstone Avenue. He says the driver of the vehicle, an unidentified female, suffered serious head injuries when her vehicle slammed into the bus and became lodged underneath it. She was transported to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis via Lifeline helicopter. Harris says that there were eight children on the bus at the time of the crash. Neither they, nor the bus driver, were hurt.

Columbus Police say that Gladstone Avenue, from 10th Street to 17th Street, remain closed as investigators reconstruct the accident and crews clean up the site.

We’ll have more information, including the identity of the driver, as it is released by the Columbus Police Department.

A Columbus man is facing an attempted murder charge following an incident last month where he allegedly attacked a Decatur County Sheriff’s Department inmate transport officer. “The Greensburg Daily News” is reporting that 26-year-old Joshua B. Stam attacked the officer as they arrived at the Miami County Correctional Facility on Aug. 30th.

According to the report, Stam had made a pre-trial court appearance on a local burglary charge Aug. 28 and was set to be returned to prison ahead of another local appearance scheduled for Oct. 17 in Superior Court. But as the transport vehicle arrived at the prison, Stam, having freed one hand from his handcuffs, climbed across the police car’s center console, punched the officer in the face and strangled him to the point of unconsciousness with a piece of cloth, police say. The report says that Stam also tried to take the officer’s gun, but was unsuccessful. The officer said he awoke to find Stam attempting to put the transport car into gear to potentially drive away, but two other officers arrived and detained the suspect.

The newspaper is reporting that Stam now faces felony charges of Attempted Murder, Aggravated Battery, Attempt to Commit Escape, and Battery Resulting in Bodily Injury to a Public Safety Officer. The report says that prosecutors are also seeking to classify Stam as an habitual offender, which could add even more time to a possible prison sentence.

The paper is reporting that Stam is currently serving a sentence on charges of Resisting Law Enforcement, Burglary, Theft, Receiving Stolen Property and Attempted Theft and/or Attempt at Receiving Stolen Property. That sentence was handed down in Bartholomew County in April.

For more on this story, visit greensburgdailynews.com.

A Columbus man will spend five years behind bars for throwing chairs across a courtroom in February. One of the chairs hit a Bartholomew County prosecutor on the leg. Network Indiana is reporting that 21-year-old Jordan Rhoades, who admitted to the judge that he has used meth and heroin, has also been ordered to go through a drug treatment program.

Rhodes is facing additional charges for an incident earlier this month where he allegedly damaged a cell door at the Bartholomew County Jail and used metal rods from it to attack Jail staff. That incident was followed by other inmates flooding their cell blocks. Sheriff Matt Myers says the incidents caused thousands of dollars in damages.

Officials from Bartholomew County REMC and Jackson County REMC dedicated a new solar array Thursday in Ogilville. Jim Turner, CEO of the Bartholomew County REMC, says that the solar array is the product of work done by Hoosier Energy, the electric cooperatives’ power supplier.

Turner explains the goal of the array.

Officials say that additional solar and wind projects are needed to reach the 10-percent renewable energy mark. Turner says that one mega-watt is capable of producing enough electricity to power about 150 homes annually.

Turner says the site is visible from the Interstate, just south of Columbus.

Turner notes that the array is very efficient.

While the official ribbon-cutting ceremony was Thursday, Turner says the site has been producing electricity for the last few weeks. He added that everything is working smoothly.

The Columbus Police Department is now accepting applications for prospective police officers. Department spokesman Matt Harris says that applicants must be at least 21 years of age and less than 36 years of age when hired. Prospective applicants must have a minimum of a high school diploma or equivalent and complete all aspects of the hiring process and training program. Harris says that college graduates and military veterans are encouraged to apply.

Officials say the starting salary for a Patrol Officer is $48,458. Benefits include: assigned “take home” patrol car, 8.5 hour shift with two weekends off per month, vacation time and paid holidays, shift differential pay, college credit allowance, military incentive pay, longevity pay, clothing allowance and specialty unit pay. PERF retirement is available after 20 years of service.

Additional details can be found online at columbus.in.gov/police/about/careers/. Applications will be accepted until October 31st. The first step of the testing process, a written test, will be offered on Saturday, November 11th.

Harris says that applications can be downloaded online or picked up in the Personnel Office and the Columbus Human Rights Office inside of Columbus City Hall.

Work continues on the former Premiere Ag property at 785 South Marr Road. The Columbus City Council approved a rezoning request from the Bartholomew County Commissioners for the site, which had been zoned “Heavy Industrial” to “Light Industrial.”

Commissioners President Carl Lienhoop explains that the county bought the property to house some government offices after a plan to replace the former county annex on State Street fell through.

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Lienhoop says that additional work at the site is ongoing.

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Lienhoop says that a remnant of Premiere Ag staff remains at the Marr Road location as a new company headquarters is being built in Seymour.

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Lienhoop notes that Premiere Ag is paying rent to the county for the portion of the building that the company is still using.