Associated Press

NTSB: Ship's Crew Ignored Warnings Before Western Kentucky Bridge Collapse

Associated Press — Tue, 14 May 2013 21:03:14 +0000

Federal investigators have concluded that the crew of a cargo ship ignored radioed and visual warnings about lights being out on a western Kentucky bridge in the moments leading up to a wreck.

National Transportation Safety Board investigators said on Tuesday that the crew of the Delta Mariner used only visual cues and went under the wrong span of the Eggner's Ferry Bridge near Aurora, Ky., in January 2012. The wreck tore down a 322-foot span of the bridge over the Tennessee River.

Investigators also concluded that white warning lights on the bridge had been out for several years and other lights shorted out before the wreck. The missing span halted traffic on U.S. 68 between the western shore of Kentucky Lake and the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area.

Survivors of Infamous Drunk Driving Crash to Attend Anniversary Service

Associated Press — Tue, 14 May 2013 18:02:52 +0000

Survivors of the nation's deadliest alcohol-related highway crash are expected to attend a public memorial service in a central Kentucky town on the 25th anniversary of the tragedy.

The service is set for Tuesday evening at North Hardin High School at Radcliff.

Twenty-seven people died when the church bus they were in was hit by a drunken driver on May 14, 1988, along a rural stretch of Interstate 71 near Carrollton, Ky.

Forty people, mostly youngsters, escaped the burning bus. The group had spent the day at Kings Island amusement park in Ohio and was headed home to Radcliff when their bus was hit by a pickup truck driven by Larry Mahoney.

Mahoney survived and was convicted of assault, manslaughter and wanton endangerment. He was released from prison in 1999.

Glass Door Maker Opening Facility in Todd County, Adding 100 Jobs

Associated Press — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:14:29 +0000

A company that makes glass doors will create 100 full-time jobs when it opens its manufacturing plant in western Kentucky.

Glass Door Solutions LLC is a new company that plans to lease a facility in Elkton in Todd County with an investment of $3.5 million.

The state has given preliminary approval to tax incentives of up to $1.95 million for the project.

Gov. Steve Beshear helped announce the plan on Monday.

Beshear's office said Glass Door Solutions will make glass doors for display cases in grocery and convenience stores.

Trial Starts Monday for Barren County Sheriff, Others Accused of Using Excessive Force

Lisa Autry and Associated Press — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 18:41:00 +0000

Barren County Sheriff Chris Eaton, a deputy sheriff, and a detective go on trial Monday on charges of civil rights violations and lying to federal investigators. The case stems from a 2010 arrest in which the three officers were accused of using excessive force.

Jury selection begins Monday at 9:00am in U.S. District Court in Bowling Green for Sheriff Chris Eaton, Deputy Aaron Bennett, and Barren-Edmonson County Drug Task Force Detective Eric Guffey.

According to the federal indictment, a 13-year old girl was at a Glasgow church on the night of February 24, 2010, when she looked out the window and saw suspect Billy Randall Stinnett struggling with the local sheriff and several deputies.

In testimony to the FBI, the girl and four other teenagers present say they saw Eaton and the deputies beating Stinnett to the point where they thought he was being murdered.

Environmental Attorney Considers U.S. Senate Bid

Associated Press — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 14:48:27 +0000

Environmental attorney Tom FitzGerald says he may seek the Democratic nomination to run for U.S. Senate next year but perhaps not if Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes gets in the race.

FitzGerald said he's not sure a costly Democratic primary would be a good idea considering the huge amount of money that the Republican incumbent, Mitch McConnell, has raised.

McConnell has banked $13 million.

The Courier-Journal first reported FitzGerald's plans.

FitzGerald said if he runs, he will give up his job as executive director of the non-profit Kentucky Resources Council, which has put him at the center of environmental debates for nearly three decades.

The 58-year-old said he will talk with Grimes before he decides in the next couple of weeks. Grimes said Tuesday she still hasn't decided.