Note: This story has been updated.

A swimmer has died after being recovered from 17 feet of water yesterday evening in Shelby County.

Indiana Conservation officers are reporting that 19-year-old Lucius Chitty of Georgia. was pronounced dead at Major Health Partners Hospital in Shelbyville. An autopsy is scheduled today to determine his cause of death.

Indiana Conservation Officers say that the incident was reported at 6:03 p.m.  after Chitty went missing for about five minutes at White Rock Park. Conservation officers, State police, Shelby County Sheriff’s Department and the Shelbyville Fire Department began search and rescue operations and recovered him near the docks about an hour and 15 minutes after he went missing.

A new agreement between Indiana University and Ivy Tech Community College will mean lower costs to earn a degree according to university officials.

The two colleges announced last week that they had reached an agreement that provides a clear pathway to an IU degree for transfer students. According to IU, the Guaranteed Admissions Agreement means Ivy Tech associate degree graduates are guaranteed admission into certain programs at IU regional campuses. The agreement means there will be no loss of credits with the transfer, allowing students to minimize costs while completing their bachelor’s degrees on time.

The agreement spells out necessary coursework toward degree requirements at both institutions. There will also be a waiver of application fees for the campus transfers.

Ivy Tech President Sue Ellspermann said that community college students can enroll in their first two years at the school in one of the program areas covered by the agreement. And they will know that they will be accepted into the four-year regional campus as long as they finish their associates degree with the required GPA.

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According to the most recent update from the Indiana State Department of Health, there are 37,397 total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Indiana, an increase of 417 cases since Saturday’s report.

There have been 2,121 deaths in Indiana as of Sunday afternoon’s update, an increase of 11 deaths from the previous numbers.

Bartholomew County has 534 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and has had 40 deaths, an increase of one since last week.

In other area counties, Decatur County has had 231 cases and 32 deaths, Jennings 132 cases and 4 deaths, Jackson 403 cases and 2 deaths, Brown 34 cases and 1 death, Johnson 1,133 cases and 114 deaths and Shelby 398 cases and 22 deaths.

A Newbern area mobile home was a total loss after a Sunday afternoon fire in eastern Bartholomew County.

Hartsville Volunteer Fire Department first responded to the blaze at about 5:14 p.m. Sunday in an older, single-wide trailer in the 16000 block of East County Road 265N. They were assisted at the scene by firefighters from Hope, Clay Township, Columbus Township and Elizabethtown according to Hope 1st Assistant Chief Adam Mathis.

The homeowner escaped without injuries and told firefighters that the fire started as a grease fire, Mathis said. Heat from the blaze damaged a neighboring trailer.

First they marched around the Bartholomew County Courthouse. Hundreds of supporters of Black Lives Matter and racial justice then crossed over to City Hall to rally for the cause. Many carried signs, including those recognizing African Americans who have died at the hands of police.

City officials estimate that up to 700 people took part in the Solidarity rally organized by the Bartholomew County NAACP and the African American Pastors Alliance.

Olisa Humes, head of the local NAACP, said she was grateful to the crowd, which filled the City Hall steps, lawn and Washington Street, spilling out across Third Street. She said that her heart was full because the community showed that it cares.

Jerone Wood, the first black City Council member in Columbus history, spoke about his experience growing up here.

Bartholomew County Sheriff Matt Myers came out strongly against the actions captured on video in Minneapolis with the death of George Floyd.

Other speakers included Mayor Jim Lienhoop, Pastor Felipe Martinez of First Presbyterian Church, Pastor Charles Sims of Calvary Community Church, Jeanine Lee Lake, Democratic candidate for 6th District Congressional Candidate, Phil Murray of the Columbus Justice Resource Center and Pastor Mark Teike of St. Peter’s Lutheran Church

Columbus city workers are mourning the loss of of one of their own. The city announced that a Columbus City Utilities employee, Brandon S. Hendershot, was killed when the dump truck he was driving was hit by a Louisville & Indiana train Wednesday afternoon near Indianapolis and Long roads. That is at the Shelby Materials plant.

The city says that Hendershot was a water distribution laborer who had worked for the city since last September.

Mayor Jim Lienhoop said “our hearts go out to everyone who has been a part of Brandon’s life. My wife, Pam, and I both offer our sincere prayers and support to Brandon’s family.”

The accident happened at about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday and a Lifeline helicopter was called to the scene. Traffic was tied up for several hours.

Two men were arrested in Columbus Monday afternoon on drug charges after fleeing from a traffic stop.

Columbus police say that a city officer and Bartholomew County deputy pulled over a vehicle at 11th at Chestnut streets at about 3:30 Monday afternoon because the vehicle had an expired license plate and cracked windshield. A police dog alerted to the smell of drugs inside the vehicle and the driver allegedly sped away and officers began chasing the vehicle.

The driver, identified as 39-year-old Matthew B. Herron of Columbus ignored several stop signs and traffic signals and drove into oncoming traffic, before eventually stopping in the 8100 block of 25th Street. A search revealed methamphetamine and counterfeit money, police report.

Herron is facing charges of possession of methamphetamine, resisting law enforcement with a vehicle, reckless driving, reckless driving in a construction zone, criminal recklessness and counterfeiting

A passenger, 30-year-old Timothy A. Mose, of Crawfordsville, is being accused of possession of methamphetamine

According to the most recent update from the Indiana State Department of Health, there are 35,712 total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Indiana, an increase of 511 cases since Tuesday’s report.

There have been 2,032 deaths in Indiana as of this afternoon’s update, an increase of 10 deaths from the previous numbers.

Bartholomew County has 522 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and has had 38 deaths.

In other area counties, Decatur County has had 230 cases and 31 deaths, Jennings 131 cases and 4 deaths, Jackson 394 cases and 2 deaths, Brown 33 cases and 1 death, Johnson 1,120 cases and 110 deaths, and Shelby 398 cases and 22 deaths.

People from Seymour and the surrounding areas gathered Monday and Tuesday to hold an organized, peaceful, protest against the death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis.

The death that has shocked and captivated the nation over the past few weeks.

The protest was held as a combined effort between the Seymour Police Department and local organizers who sought to not only show their support for the Black Lives Matter protest movement, but to also show the local communities that peaceful protests are possible and not all protests end in violence or destruction.

Mercedes Seniours, one of the original organizers for the protest explains why she believes the peaceful protest was necessary.

Chelsie Davis, one of the protest’s organizers had this to say about working with the police who approached them about helping out their planned protest.

Seymour police officer Jeremy Helmsing had nothing but praise for the protestors and event.

Even though the event was planned and held peacefully, there were still threats and counter-protestors against the event.

Chelsie Davis,  had this to say about a pedestrian who disagreed with their protest:

Despite protests that have turned violent and destructive over the past week, Protest Organizer Kaitlyn Lowry hoped that their positive demonstration showed local areas that protestors working with police for the greater good is possible.

The protests were held at the Seymour Farmer’s market located downtown Seymour on North Walnut Street on Monday and Tuesday.

— By Bryan Watson, for White River Broadcasting