A program aimed at helping the vulnerable has received a boost locally.

Project Lifesaver is described as “a program of proactive involvement and specialized operations that respond to incidents of victims of Alzheimer’s, Autism, Down Syndrome, and related disorders who have wandered from a safe location and cannot find their way back to safety.”

TRIAD, a branch of the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office, and Sgt. Jim Stevens applied for and used a grant from the Custer Nugent Foundation to get the Project Lifesaver program up and running.

The sheriff’s department says that 50 transmitters were purchased and will be assigned to clients. A total of six receivers, used pinpoint the location of the transmitters, were also purchased. Three of the receivers will be kept at the Sheriff’s Office and three will be assigned to the Columbus Fire Department.

Authorities say that, so far, 10 clients have signed up for Project Lifesaver and have been fitted for transmitters.

If you would like to learn more about the program or inquire about transmitter fittings, contact triad@bartholomew.in.gov.

Duke Energy customers in and around Hope can expect disruptions to their service.

The utility says it is making upgrades and improvements on the main
transmission power line that serves that area. They explain that the town is served by a single feed out of the substation with the same name on East County Road 600 North in Bartholomew County. Duke says that once finished, this improvement work will reduce the future risk of longer unplanned outages.

In order for crews to safely complete the upgrade, Duke must de-energize the power line. This will result in two separate seven-hour outages affecting these customers.

The first outage is planned from 11 p.m. on Tuesday, June 11th until 6 a.m. on Wednesday, June 12th. The second outage is planned from 11 p.m. on Tuesday, July 2nd until 6 a.m. on Wednesday, July 3rd.

Duke Energy customers in the Hope area will receive an automated reminder phone call a few days prior to the outages.

Customers who have questions about this outage can call (800) 820-9362.

Police in North Vernon arrested a Madison woman after a disturbance early Monday morning. At approximately 1:13 a.m., officers responded to a reported battery in the 300 block of South Gum Street.

After police arrived, they investigated and arrested 20-year-old Mary Boldery on preliminary charges of Possession of Methamphetamine, Battery with a Deadly Weapon and False Informing.

The Bartholomew County Council will be asked to consider adding 13 new employees to the county’s payroll over the coming year-and-a-half. Bartholomew County Auditor Pia O’Connor gave a brief presentation on the requests during Monday evening’s council work session.

County department heads are asking for the following:

IT Dept. – IT Suppert Technician (1)
Parks – Facilities Coordinator/Support (1)
Assessor – Field Technician (1)
Sheriff – Detective (1)
Jail – Addiction Treatment Counselor (1)
E-911 – Dispatchers (6)
Health Dept. – Part-time nurse to full-time
Corrections – Residential Officer/Recovery Specialist (1)

If all of these new positions were filled, total expenses for salaries and benefits are expected to exceed over one-million dollars. Due to grants and partnerships with the city of Columbus, the county’s portion would be just over $660,000 per year.

Council members stressed that the requests for all of these new hires won’t neccessarily be approved. Councilman Mark Gorbett, a former Sheriff, reminded his fellow members about the tight finances faced by the county over the years due to inadequate planning. He was adadmant that money raised to deal with public safety issues be used for that purpose and not for covering shortfalls elsewhere. “In the past, We’ve robbed Peter to pay Paul,” said Gorbett. “We can’t do that again.”

The council will consider adding three of these new employees, an addiction treatment counselor and two new dispatchers, at its regular meeting next week. The remaining requests will be considered later this summer as the council prepares its 2020 budget.

Council meets next on Tuesday, June 11th at 6 p.m. at the County Government Building.

Jennings County is partnering with Rose Acre Farms for a new program to find jobs for inmates.

The sheriff’s department announced this week that representatives from the Jackson County-based Rose Acre Farms will be coming to the Jennings jail and picking up select inmates to work at the farm for a day. While there, they will be paid the same wage as a normal farm employee and will be able to keep 100 percent of what they earn. And the inmates will be considered employees of the farm during their labor.

According to the sheriff’s department, Rose Acre Farms runs a similar program in Iowa and they approached the county in January with the offer.

There are restrictions on which inmates are allowed to participate, such as not being convicted of a violent crime and having had no disciplinary actions against them while in jail. And the inmate must be approved by the judge and prosecutor before they can participate.

There will be a drama camp for children held in Hope next week that will end with a Friday student showcase performance.

The drama camp is for students in first through 12th grades and participants will learn about the basics of acting, writing and improv. Grades 1 through 3 will be from 10 a.m. to noon starting Monday and from 12 to 3 p.m. for fourth grades and up. Classes will be held at the Hauser Auditorium. You should use door 11.

The drama camp is free. To register, call 812-546-5226.

Correction: An earlier version of this story did not include the complete tax abatement request being made by Cummins Inc. 

Cummins will be asking the city of Columbus tonight for tax breaks on building improvements and equipment it will be buying for its new electrification business headquarters here.

Cummins will be requesting a tax abatement on $3.3 million in building improvements and $29.7 million in new equipment at the plant on Central Ave. According to paperwork filed with the city, the move is expected to retain 67 jobs and create 75 new ones with an average wage of over $30 per hour.

According to calculations by the city, Cummins would save just over $2 million dollars in future property taxes with the proposed 10-year-abatement, but the community would still net about $3.5 million in new property taxes from the expansion over the same period.

Columbus City Council meets at 6 p.m. tonight at city hall.

The traffic signals at the intersection of Rocky Ford and Middle Road will be out of service part of the day Tuesday. The Columbus Engineering Department says that the signals will be out from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Temporary four-way stops will be installed while repairs are made to the signal cabinet, which was damaged in an accident.

City officials ask you to use caution in this area. You should expect delays. Take another route if possible.

A child molestation case in Jackson County may be over after an Indiana Supreme Court ruling regarding Miranda warnings.

Ernesto B. Ruiz was accused of Child Molesting for allegedly touching the nine-year-old friend of his daughter, who was staying overnight at Ruiz’s home in October of 2015. A few days later, Seymour Police detectives asked Ruiz to come to the station to be questioned about the incident. When he arrived at the Seymour Police Department, Ruiz was taken into a windowless room and questioned by one detective who informed Ruiz that he could leave at any time. Minutes later, a second detective joined the interrogation. During questioning, prosecutors say Ruiz made statements that could result in his conviction.

Ruiz was formally charges with Level 4 Child Molesting a few weeks later. Two days before the start of the December 2017 trial in Jackson Circuit Court, the defense team filed a motion to suppress Ruiz’s statement to police. After the jury was seated, Judge Richard Poynter heard the defense argument and agreed that Ruiz’s statement was inadmissible.

The Indiana Supreme Court ruled Monday that Ruiz, who was not born in the U.S., should have been read his Miranda rights. They say a communication barrier could have been an issue, as Ruiz may have felt compelled to answer police questions. The court specifically takes Seymour Police to task for having the second detective, who was in plain clothes, aggressively question Ruiz without indicating that the first detective’s statement that Ruiz could leave at any time was still in effect. In fact, Ruiz was told multiple times by detectives during the interview to “sit tight.” The court also pointed to detectives lying about the alleged victim having passed a lie-detector test. They add that questions were asked in an accusatory fashion, not exploratory. All of these factors, says the court, would reasonably allow someone to believe they are being held in police custody. In these cases, suspects must be made aware of their Miranda rights.

In a filing with the Indiana State Supreme Court, prosecutors noted that without the suppressed evidence, they could not proceed on the charge against Ruiz.

The Indiana Supreme Court voted to uphold the lower court’s decision to throw out Ruiz’s statement.

A corrections officer at the Bartholomew County Jail was attacked over the weekend while attempting to remove an inmate from his cell. The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department says that at approximately 2:18 p.m. Saturday, Bradley McRae attacked a female officer by punching her in the back of the neck and head before he was detained by other officers.

Bartholomew County Sheriff Matt Myers says incidents like these will not be tolerated. “If we need to lock down every block in the jail and adhere only to federal guidelines as to the amount of time that inmates can leave their cells each day, then that is what we will do.” Myers adds that can be as little as one hour per day. “I take the safety of our employees seriously and I will make sure that we take all necessary measures to keep them safe.”

McRae is in jail on preliminary charges of Dealing in a Narcotic Drug and Driving while Suspended with a Prior Conviction. He was also wanted on a warrant for Dealing in a Narcotic Drug. Authorities say McRae was arrested May 24th by the Bartholomew County Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team for bringing heroin and fentanyl into the community out of Cincinnati.

The officer was treated and released. She has returned to work.

Authorities say a detailed report of the attack will be sent to the Bartholomew County Prosecutor’s Office for appropriate charges.