A shooting range in southern Bartholomew County is on hold for at least six months.

Watson Chambers Defense Institute had filed a conditional use request for the agricultural properties off of the 15000 block of South Jonesville Road. That would have allowed the company to operate commercial shooting ranges for handguns and rifles.

However, dozens of neighbors and opponents turned out last night to protest the application. They packed the council chambers at Columbus City Hall shoulder-to-shoulder, spilled over into the hallway and into a neighboring conference room set up with a video feed of the proceedings.

In documents filed with the planning department, neighbors and others said they were concerned about the safety of the range, citing a lack of 20-foot tall earthen backstops, 8-foot-tall side berms and other structures recommended by the National Rifle Association.

But Bartholomew County Board of Zoning Appeals Chairman Roger Glick said that the shooting school had withdrawn its rezoning request. That request can not be refiled for six months and the company cannot use the property for the shooting range in the mean time, according to code enforcement officer Bill Klakamp.

Because of the withdrawal, the county BZA did not take any testimony from the applicants or the public.

The city-county planning department staff had recommended a continuance of the proposal before last night’s meeting, as they felt they had not received information needed to make a recommendation.

Facebook ads for the company have advertised a mile-long range for precision rifle shooting.

Update:

A search has been canceled for a missing Columbus woman.

The Bartholomew County Emergency Operations Center sent an alert over the Everbridge system at about 2 a.m. this morning, saying a woman in a wheelchair was missing in the east Columbus area. Police say she has since returned home safely.

Earlier:

The Bartholomew County Emergency Operations Center announced this morning that Columbus police are looking for a missing woman.

Columbus Police are searching for 56-year-old, Linda Eisenmenger. She is a white woman in a wheelchair —  5 feet 4 inches tall and 120 pounds with white hair and brown eyes. She was last seen yesterday around 5 p.m. at 504 Pence St. in Columbus.

If you have any information on her whereabouts, you should call 911.

The alert was sent over the Everbridge system at about 2:15 a.m. this morning.

Families in Jackson County are mourning the death of four teens in a car crash over the weekend.

The Jackson County Sheriff’s Department says that around 11 p.m. Saturday, an SUV driven by 37-year-old Cara Selby was westbound on State Road 258 in Cortland when it broke down about a block from her home. Authorities say that the family was having a slumber party and the kids taking part came out to push the vehicle to the house. While the teens were doing this, they were struck from behind by a second SUV driven by 24-year-old Elizabeth Watson, of Seymour. The Sheriff’s Department says that eight children were struck:

– 14-year-old Nevaeh Law of Brownstown was pronounced dead at the scene;
– 14-year-old Jenna Helton of Seymour was pronounced dead at the scene;
– 15-year-old Brittany Watson of Brownstown was pronounced dead at the scene;
– 16-year-old Martin Martinez of Seymour was flown to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. He died upon arrival;
– 15-year-old Victoria Valdivia of Seymour was injured and flown to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis;
– 14-year-old Courtney Arthur was injured and flown to Riley Children’s Hospital;
– 15-year-old Allerika Henline of Brownstown was injured and flown to Nortons of Louisville;
– 15-year-old Victoria Burchard of Medora was treated at Schneck Medical Center and released;
– 12-year-old Starlit Watson of Brownstown was a passenger in Selby’s vehicle. She was treated at Schneck Medical Center and released;

Jackson County officials say the investigation is ongoing. They ask anyone who witnessed the crash or has information about it to call the Sheriff’s Department at (812) 358-2141.

A Columbus man died after being struck by a vehicle driven by his wife early yesterday morning.

34-year-old Justin L. Smith was unconscious when police arrived on the scene at State and South Beatty streets shortly before 3 a.m. Monday morning. He later died at Columbus Regional Hospital.

Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the Columbus Police Department, says investigators determined that the victim’s wife, 34-year-old Angela D. Smith, of Columbus, was driving the vehicle. There is no word yet on how the accident unfolded.

Harris said the investigation is ongoing and Columbus Police are asking anyone with information to call the department at 812-376-2600. Tips and information can be left anonymously.

Indiana State Police troopers are planning a sobriety checkpoint in Jennings County this weekend. The agency announced that they will have the checkpoint at an undisclosed location Friday and Saturday.

If you find yourself in line at the checkpoint, troopers say that you should have your license and registration ready to present to the troopers. Assuming you have not been drinking you should only be stopped briefly.

Police will be looking for drivers who are alcohol or drug impaired. If you see such a driver, you can call 911 and make sure to report the description of the vehicle, where you saw it and which way it was headed. Reports can be made anonymously.

A Hauser student’s death last week was caused by an acute heart related issue, according to the Bartholomew County Coroner’s office.

An autopsy was performed Friday in the death of 18 year old Trevor “T.J.” Frazee. Frazee was brought to the emergency room by ambulance after a 911 call at 11:55 a.m. Thursday. That was after the teen complained of difficulty breathing. He died at the hospital, according to Coroner Clayton Nolting.

Services for the Hauser senior will be at 11 a.m. tomorrow at Norman Funeral Home in Hope. Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. today and from 10 a.m. until the services tomorrow at the funeral home.

A Columbus man was arrested on drunk driving charges after he tested at more than twice the legal alcohol limit.

Police say that they were called to the scene of a disturbance Saturday evening and stopped a car leaving the scene in the 2800 block of 17th Street at 11:45 p.m. that night. The driver, 30-year-old Adam W. Reynolds, was allegedly slurring his words and police noticed a strong scent of alcohol on his breath.

Field sobriety tests revealed a blood alcohol level of .168 percent. He was arrested on a preliminary charge of operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol level of .15 percent or higher.

A Jackson County photographer won the “On the Farm” category in the Indiana State Department of Agriculture’s 2018 Indiana agriculture photo contest. Luke Schnitker, of Seymour, was victorious with his “Soybean Harvest” photograph.

The winning photos were chosen from hundreds of entries submitted by Hoosiers across the state.

Photos were placed into agri-tourism, conservation, faces of agriculture and on the farm categories, with two winners selected in each category, along with two winners overall.

A Hauser High School senior has passed away. Flat Rock-Hawcreek Superintendent Shawn Price announced that 18-year-old Trevor Frazee, died from cardiac arrest associated with a recent illness. The Bartholomew County Coroner’s Office is calling the death “sudden” and “unexpected.” Frazee was a senior at Hauser’s alternative program.

Two local men were arrested Friday morning on felony drug charges after a traffic stop led to their arrest. Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the Columbus Police Department, says that shortly after midnight, a truck occupied by 30-year-old Isaiah A. Perry and 27-year-old Jacob A. Burch, of Columbus, was stopped for a minor violation near 14th Street and Cottage Avenue. While speaking with Perry and Burch, the officer noted that the pair were visibly nervous. A police K9 was requested and later alerted to the odor of narcotics coming from the vehicle.

Harris says that a search of the truck resulted in the discovery of a syringe as well as drug paraphernalia and methamphetamine. Both Perry and Burch were taken into custody and transported to the Bartholomew County Jail. Upon arriving at the jail, the officers and corrections staff reported finding additional drug paraphernalia and methamphetamine that Burch attempted to conceal in his underclothes.

Burch is facing preliminary charges of Obstruction of Justice, Possession of Methamphetamine and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Perry is facing preliminary charges of Possession of a Legend Drug Injection Device, Possession of Methamphetamine and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.