News

A bill filed in the General Assembly would allow some Kentuckians convicted of one or more class D felonies to have those convictions deleted from their record. The aim is to remove a barrier many ex-criminals face in gaining employment.

The Messenger-Inquirer reports a measure sponsored by Campbellsville Rep. John Carney and Covington Rep. Arnold Simpson would require a person convicted of one or more Class D felonies stemming from a single incident to complete his or her sentence and wait ten years before asking a court to expunge the offenses.

A judge would then consider recommendations from the Commonwealth’s Attorney, who would conduct interviews with victims of the crimes perpetrated by the felon.

Under the bill, if the convictions did not involve sexual offenses or any crimes against juveniles, and if the felon had no prior convictions, the judge could decide to expunge that person’s record.

Owensboro filmmaker P.J. Starks is set to launch a new film series called "Unscripted Xperience", which allows audiences to meet and offer live commentary with filmmakers and actors. Starks donates to charity most of the money raised from the events, and he hopes the "Xperience" will help raise the profile of independent filmmakers in the Daviess County region.

WKYU-PBS is planning to tape the Feb. 1 film series session and produce a piece for the program Main Street that will likely air in early March.

The Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer has this profile piece of Starks and his upcoming film series.

Charlie Strong has officially joined the ranks of the highest-paid college football coaches in the country. The University of Louisville has approved a new contract for Strong. It's an eight-year deal that pays him $3.7 million per season. 

U of L Athletics Director Tom Jurich says Strong is well-deserving.

"I think he's already lived up to it and earned it. In every aspect of his coaching ability, he's got an A-plus from me," Jurich said.

The contract includes a buyout if Strong leaves early for another job. He must pay Louisville $5 million dollars if he leaves after the first year of the contract. Strong is now among the ten highest-paid coaches in college football.

A Tennessee judge has ruled that the state’s Department of Children’s Services must make public more information about the deaths of young people known to the agency.

A group of Tennessee media outlets, led by The Tennessean newspaper, filed suit against the Department of Children’s Services, alleging the department violated the law by refusing to provide records concerning children who died after being brought to the agency’s attention. At first, the DCS said it would make more records available, but then cited state and federal confidentiality laws as a reason to withhold the documents.

Two high-ranking Tennessee Republicans, House Speaker Beth Harwell and Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, recently announced they would seek legislative hearings into DCS practices.

The media outlets seek records related to 31 Tennessee children who died in the first half of 2012, as well as the cases of 206 young people involved in fatal or near-fatal incidents dating back to 2009.

The 2013 Kentucky General Assembly reconvenes February 5 to take up some major pieces of legislation. Lisa Autry spoke with Governor Steve Beshear about his priorities for the session. The two discussed state pension reform, the prospects of legalizing industrial hemp, Beshear's stance on increasing gambling in the commonwealth, and other topics.

On the subject of casino gambling legislation, Gov. Beshear told WKU Public Radio he isn't optimistic such a bill will pass in this year's General Assembly. The session is only 30 days, leaving little time for the much-discussed issue.

Unlike in the past, however, the Governor says future casino discussions may not focus just on the horse industry. Past legislation called for placing casinos at the state's racetracks, but Beshear says there isn't enough support that idea in the legislature.

He says he's willing to look at having free-standing casinos in the Bluegrass State. Opponents of expanded gaming say the state shouldn't depend on gambling to raise revenue, and some question what they consider overly-optimistic projections of how much money more gaming would really bring to the Bluegrass State.