WKU Public Radio | The Public Radio Service of Western Kentucky University

Bowling Green City Commissioner Arrested on Alcohol Charge

By Lisa Autry • 21 hours ago

Bowling Green City Commissioner Slim Nash is out of jail following his arrest Thursday night for public intoxication.

According to the arrest citation, a Warren County sheriff's deputy was working a special detail at the Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center when he noticed Nash who appeared "extremely intoxicated."

The deputy stated that he saw Nash get into his vehicle with his daughter and start the engine. Nash told the deputy that he wasn't planning to go anywhere.

Generations of Veterans Dealing With Invisible Wounds of Vietnam War

By Lisa Autry • May 23, 2019

Monday is Memorial Day, a time when the nation will pause to remember the men and women who died while serving in the military. More than four decades after the Vietnam War, some veterans in Kentucky and elsewhere say the conflict is still claiming casualties.

“This guy here, he and I were on the same team in Vietnam, said Hardin County veteran Denzil Lile. "That’s Billy Smith, he was the first one to get killed from Metcalfe County. Me and him was drafted on the same day.”

Denzil Lile looked through a scrapbook at the kitchen table in his apartment in Elizabethtown. There's one of him with a black Labrador Retriever.

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3:59

LRS Live Replay: Nikki Lane, Howlin' Brothers & Leslie Weiler Meng

By Emil Moffatt • May 23, 2019

The season finale of Lost River Sessions LIVE featured Nikki Lane, a Nashville singer-songwriter who blends country, rock and blues. Mike LoPinto played alongside Lane on guitar and she was also joined for part of her set by The Howlin' Brothers and Leslie Weiler Meng.

Fruit of the Loom Losing About 100 Jobs, Most in Kentucky

By Associated Press • May 23, 2019

Fruit of the Loom says it is cutting about 100 jobs, mostly at its headquarters in Kentucky.

News outlets report the Bowling Green-based company said it is transferring information technology services to Wipro Ltd., an India-based company that specializes in IT, consulting and business process services.

The company said in a news release Wednesday that the transition starts immediately and continues through March. The move will result in the loss of about 100 positions, most of which are in Bowling Green.

Glasgow High School Team Headed to National Quiz Bowl

By Barbara Deeb • May 23, 2019

The National Academic Quiz Tournament Championship is like a game of Jeopardy for high school students with bragging rights and a trophy as the grand prize.

This weekend, five Glasgow High School students and Academic Team Coach Todd Garrison will compete against more than 300 other schools in the 2019 Championship Tournament in Atlanta.

Food Bank Director Says Families Often Don't Fit Expected Image of Hunger

By Rhonda Miller • May 23, 2019

The director of a Kentucky food bank told members of the Bowling Green Noon Rotary Club on May 22 not to assume they know what a hungry person looks like.

A person who doesn’t have enough to eat might have had a medical emergency or car problem that used up their already tight budget.

Jamie Sizemore is executive director of Feeding America Kentucky’s Heartland, a food bank that serves 42 counties. She said there is hunger in communities across Kentucky and it often occurs when there's a family crisis and rent, utilities, car payments and gas to get work work take priority over food.

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1:21

Kentucky Man Acquitted in 4-Year-Old Foster Son's Death

By Associated Press • May 23, 2019

A jury has acquitted a Kentucky man who was accused of killing his 4-year-old foster son.

News outlets report the Elizabethtown jury returned the verdict Wednesday for 34-year-old Billy Embry-Martin after deliberating for about five hours.

Hunter Payton died two years ago from head injuries. He was removed from his parents' home by the state just two months earlier over alleged drug abuse and neglect.

Bevin And Beshear Win Gubernatorial Primaries, Will Face Off In November

By Ryland Barton • May 22, 2019

Incumbent Republican Gov. Matt Bevin has won a closer-than-expected primary election and will face Attorney General Andy Beshear during this year’s race to be Kentucky’s next governor.

The two men have been political rivals since taking office more than three years ago with Beshear, a Democrat, filing a series of lawsuits against Bevin over executive orders and a controversial pension bill.

Incumbent Quarles To Face Conway In Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture Race

By Liz Schlemmer • May 22, 2019

Kentucky’s incumbent Commissioner of Agriculture has won the Republican nomination in his bid for reelection.

Ryan Quarles was the first winner to be called in Tuesday night’s primary election. Quarles received than 82 percent of the votes with 92 percent of precincts reporting. He defeated challenger Bill Polyniak, a cannabis farmer from Fayette County.

Quarles has supported the rise of hemp as an agricultural product in Kentucky, and his administration led a statewide initiative to study and address hunger. He has also worked to expand Kentucky’s international export market, by resuming live equine exports to China.

Democrat Michael Bowman To Face Incumbent Republican Allison Ball In Treasurer Race

By Ashlie Stevens • May 22, 2019

Michael Bowman has won the Democratic primary for the office of Kentucky state treasurer. The race was called by the AP with nine percent of precincts reporting; Bowman got 64 percent of the vote against John Mers. Incumbent Allison Ball was uncontested in the Republican race.

Bowman is a branch manager for U.S. Bank in Louisville and worked within Louisville Metro Council as a legislative assistant. In 2018, Bowman ran as a Democrat in the race for Jefferson County Clerk; he lost to Republican Bobbie Holsclaw.