Transcript

4.9.26 · The Mountain Eagle

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Speaker 1: Now we turn to the Mountain Eagle to read news
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from Whitesburg.
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Speaker 2: Your reader today is Bill van Arsdale. We will begin
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with the.
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Speaker 1: Edition dated April eighth, twenty twenty six, which the publishers
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have donated to a RADIOI as a reminder. RADIOI is
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a reading service intended for people who are blind or
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have other disabilities that make it difficult to read printed material.
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The first item is a photograph and the caption is
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Club helps move books into Fleming Neon Library. More than
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a dozen members of the Neon Lions Club were at
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the Fleming Neon Public Library to help move books into
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the newly renovated building. The library took on more than
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five feet of water during the flood of twenty twenty two,
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destroying the interior and its contents. The library district has
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been buying books and accepting donations, and then cataloging books
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and storing them in the main Herey M. Caudle Library
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in Wisburg while the design and construction of the Fleming
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Neon renovations was underway. An opening date will be set
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later for when librarians finish putting the more than ten
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thousand volumes on the shelves. The next headline is road
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plan calls for forty million dollars to be spent on
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leisure projects. Letcher County is slated to receive more than
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forty million dollars in highway improvements over the next three
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years under Kentucky's newly approved six year road Plan, with
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additional major projects lined up beyond twenty twenty eight. The
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funding is part of House Bill five oh two, which
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establishes the state's twenty twenty six twenty eight biennial highway
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construction Plan, part of a broader transportation budget to totaling
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about three point four to one billion dollars in fiscal
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year twenty twenty six twenty seven and three point six
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two billion dollars in twenty twenty seven twenty eight across
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Kentucky's one hundred twenty counties. The plan combines large scale
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highway improvements, bridge replacements, local road resourfacing, and safety upgrades,
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many of them tied to recovery efforts following the July
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twenty twenty two flood. US one nineteen dominates near term funding.
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The largest share of funding in Lecture County is directed
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toward improvements to US one nineteen. Projects include a ten
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million dollar effort to improve sections of the highway through making,
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along with additional work aimed at improving safety and traffic
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flow between Pine Mountain and Whitesburg. In total, more than
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twenty million dollars in the three year plan is tied
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to US one nineteen improvements bridges, Jenkins access and safety
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work included. The plan also funds two bridge projects, one
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on Kentucky nine thirty one over the north fork of
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the Kentucky River and another on Kentucky twenty thirty six
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at Rockhouse Creek, totally nearly four million dollars combined. In Jenkins,
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a one point twenty five million dollar project on Kentucky
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eighth five is designed to ease congestion and bring the
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roadway up to modern standards. In addition, dozens of guardrail
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installation projects are scattered across the county on routes including
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Kentucky seven, Kentucky three seventeen, Kentucky four sixty three, Kentucky
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five eighty eight, Kentucky nine thirty one, and Kentucky eleven
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O three. Many of those projects addressed damage or safety
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concerns highlighted by the July twenty twenty two flood. Local
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road funding included. Separate from major highway projects, Leccher County
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will also receive funding through the Local Assistance Road Program
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that includes four hundred thirty eight thousand dollars to resurface
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the Southeast Road, a county road between Rock Sanna and
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Line Fork, providing direct improvements to local infrastructure. More projects
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planned beyond twenty twenty eight. State planners have also identified
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major additional projects for Letcher County in the later years
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of the six year plan and beyond. Those include potential
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widening and reconstruction of US one nineteen, including new alignments,
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additional improvements to Kentucky eighth five near Jenkins, safety and
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visibility upgrades on Kentucky nine thirty two, and intersection improvements
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and spot roadway upgrades. Some of those long range projects
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carry projected costs in the tens of millions of dollars,
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indicating continued investment in the county's transportation network. Multi year
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investment funding for current projects is spread over three fiscal years,
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about thirteen point four million dollars in twenty twenty six,
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about ten point six million dollars in twenty twenty seven,
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and about sixteen point seven million dollars in twenty twenty
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eight Leser County Road projects at a glance. Major highway
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work US one nineteen improvements making and surrounding areas ten
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million dollars. Additional US one nineteen safety and widening projects
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twenty plus million dollars. Bridge projects Kentucky nine thirty one
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North Fork Kentucky River two point one million dollars. Kentucky
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twenty thirty six, Rockhouse Creek one point seven nine million dollars.
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Jenkins Area, Kentucky eight five congestion and roadway improvements one
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point twenty five million dollars. Local road funding, Southeast Road
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resurfacing four hundred thirty eight thousand dollars. Safety improvements, guardrail
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installation on multiple routes including Kentucky seven three, seventeen, four,
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sixty three, five, eighty eight, nine thirty one, and eleven
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o three. Future projects beyond twenty twenty eight. Major US
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one nineteen widening and reconstruction projects, Additional Kentucky eight oh
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five improvements Kentucky nine thirty two, safety upgrades, intersection and
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spot improvements across the county. Total twenty twenty six to
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twenty eight approximately forty million plus dollars. The next story
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is Jenkins council cops can help ICE. The Jenkins City
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Council has voted to sign a task force agreement with
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US Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE, allowing Jakins City Police
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to be deputized as federal immigration officers. ICE has also
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approached the Lesser County Sheriff's office about joining the two
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to eighty seven g program, but Sheriff Billy Jones said
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the office is still reviewing the proposal. It is unknown
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whether Fleming Neon has been approached. Wachburg Police received a
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message about the program, but have no additional information. Assistant
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Chief Justin Hunsucker said Prestonsburg, the Laurel County Sheriff's Office,
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and several agencies in western Kentucky have already joined. The
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council voted unanimously in favor of the agreement after Jenkins
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Police Chief Jim Stevens said the program would provide funding,
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including seven five hundred dollars for equipment and up to
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one hundred thousand dollars for vehicles, as well as covering
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officers' salaries and overtime related to ICE duties, including transporting
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prisoners to London or assisting with operations if they call
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and say hey, we need you to come to Carolina
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and help us with a raid. They will pay my
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salary while I'm gone. Stephen said, they'll cover the salary,
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the benefits, and the overtime, so we don't actually owe anything.
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I asked what the catch was, because it sounds pretty good.
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Speaker 2: He said.
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Speaker 1: The main issue is people hear ICE and think here
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they go, They're going to start targeting everybody. That's not
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what we're to do. Stephens said officers would not initiated
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immigration enforcement actions on their own, but could check immigration
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status when interacting with individuals for other reasons, such as
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a dui stop. When a council member questioned how dui
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stops would relate to ICE operations, Stephens said the department
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could also be asked to assist ICE on operations such
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as accompanying agents during a raid and a business where
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undocumented workers are suspected. He emphasized that local officers would
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not conduct independent immigration raids and would only assist ICE
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when requested. Stephens said a regional ICE supervisor told him
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officers would not be asked to approach businesses such as restaurants,
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solely to check employees immigration status. Unfortunately, that's the way
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it works for us as local law enforcement, Stephen said,
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we can't just walk up to somebody and say, hey,
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I need to see your immigration status. Nobody has their
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own feelings about that, but my thought is if that's
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another way to get somebody who is already committing crimes,
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someone we've already caught, then that's something we can use
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to hold them. Critics of the nine eighty seven G
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program say it effectively turns local officers into immigration agents
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and can include incentives tied to immigration arrests. Those arrests
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are often based on administrative warrants issued by ICE, rather
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than judicial warrants signed by a judge. City Attorney Calvin R.
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Tackett asked Stephens how administrative warrants would interact.
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Speaker 2: With existing criminal charges.
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Speaker 1: Stephens said the department could choose to pursue state charges
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first or allow immigration proceedings to take priority. He said
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he sees no negative aspects of the program, aside from
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potential public perception. Stevens added that participating in ICE operations
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would not interfere with local policing duties. He said that,
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as with other assignments outside the city, such as serving warrants,
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in neighbouring counties, his shift would be covered if he
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were asked to assist ice. In the next headline, ex
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fire chief can't escape conviction, appeals court rules, the Kentucky
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Court of Appeals has upheld the conviction of a former
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Kings Creek fire chief who was sentenced to five years
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in prison for first degree sexual abuse. Robert Wayne Mead,
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also known as Bill Meade, was eighty one years old
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when he was convicted on September nine, twenty twenty four.
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Mead was the longtime chief of the King's Creek Volunteer
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Fire Department, and some of the actions described in the
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criminal case allegedly took place inside the same firehouse. According
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to testimony, Mead took a fourteen year old girl to
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a community dress giveaway to find a dress for her
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eighth grade dance. She testified that on the way back,
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Mead repeatedly placed his hand on her knee. She said
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that when she told him to stop and said he
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was making her uncomfortable, he began asking whether any one
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in her family or any one else had ever touched
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her before. When they arrived at the firehouse where she
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was supposed to help, Mead's step son wash a fire
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truck to earn money for the dance. She learned the
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step son was in trouble and would not be there.
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She turned on an audio recorder on her phone when
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she arrived. According to the Court of Appeals ruling, the
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audio is sometimes difficult to hear, but a man's voice
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can be heard. After some rustling, the victim can be
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heard exclaiming, don't touch my boobs, and the man responds okay.
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The ruling states that the man then asked if she
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wanted a doctor pepper. After she said no, she can
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be heard talking to herself in a frightened tone before
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realizing her phone was still recording. At trial, the victim
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testified that during the recorded interaction, Mead had reached under
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her shirt and touched her breasts. The victim said that
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she was scared and confused by the encounter. The ruling says.
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Mead appealed, arguing that the court aired in allowing the
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recording because parts of the recording where Mead allegedly engaged
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in sexual contact were not sufficiently comprehensible. The ruling noted
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that the Kentucky Supreme Court has held that a judge
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has discretion to decide whether an entire recording should be
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excluded because portions are inaudible, depending on whether it is
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sufficiently comprehensible. In this case, while we agree with Mead
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that portions of the record are unclear due to background
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noise and static, the portions revealing Meade's criminal conduct are not.
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Speaker 2: The ruling states.
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Speaker 1: The opinion notes that a man's voice on the recording
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clearly says, come here now, baby, I won't hurt you,
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I promise. The defense raised several additional arguments, including that
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the victim's statements to herself on the recording constituted hearsay,
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that she improperly interpreted the recording for the jury, and
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that the prosecutor improperly suggested a pattern of behavior that
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was not charged. The Court of Appeals rejected each of
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those arguments. Mead's attorney also argued that the court aired
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in allowing the victim to testify that Need touched her leg.
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Because the incident allegedly occurred in a moving car, the
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defense argued it could not be determined whether it took
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place in Perry County or Electter County. A three judge
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panel of the Court of Appeals unitedimously upheld the conviction.
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The next story is Lady Cougar's pick up wins to
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improve to seven and six softball mark. The Lecher County
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Central Lady Cougar's fast pitched softball team improved to seven
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and six on the season after picking up wins Monday
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at Hazard and earlier in the week in Myrtle Beach,
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South Carolina. Statistics for the Lady cougars five to four
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win over Hazard were not available at press time. Letcher
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Central also earned a decisive fifteen to nothing victory over
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Lake Center Christian of Hartville, Ohio on April third during
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play in the Ripken Classic. The Lady Cougars took control
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early and never looked back, scoring fifteen runs on nine
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hits in a dominant offensive performance. Scarlett Stamper led the
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way at the plate, going two for three with two
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RBIs and.
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Speaker 2: Scored three runs.
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Speaker 1: Katie Combs added two hits and an RBI while scoring
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three runs, and Kaylee Bentley contributed a hit and drove
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in a run. Several players added to the offensive effort,
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including Lauren Richardson, Amira Cook, and Hayla Ambergy, each recording hits.
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The Lady Cougars also showed aggressiveness on the base paths,
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piling up thirteen stolen bases in the win. In the circle,
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Stamper delivered a strong performance, tossing a three inning shutout
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while allowing just one hit and striking out six. Letter
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Central continues to build momentum as the season progresses and
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will look to carry that success into upcoming games. And
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the next headline is Lady Calves start strong. The Jingins
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Lady Cavaliers fast pitched softball team is off to a
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strong start, carrying a six to one record into Wednesday
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night's home game against Hazard. Jenkins picked up two recent wins,
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including an eleven to one victory in five innings over
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Not County Central on April sixth Arianna Brown led the
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Lady Calves at the plate, going two for four with
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three RBIs, including a triple. Hailey Thacker added a perfect
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day at the plate, going two for two with two RBIs,
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while Addie Bailey and Ella Sutherland each collected two hits.
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Johanna Banks also had two hits and drove in a run,
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while Gracie Cornett and Isabella Holbrook contributed key hits in
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a balanced offensive effort.
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Speaker 2: That produced fifteen total hits.
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Speaker 1: Banks was dominant in the circle, earning the win by
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allowing just one run on three hits over five innings
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while striking out six. The Lady Cavaliers also earned a
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decisive fifteen to nothing win over Jackson City on April third.
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Kaylee Sturgel paced Jenkins with three hits, while Isabella Holbrook
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added two hits and an RBI, Arianna Brown went two
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for two with an RBI, and Haley Thacker drove in
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three runs. Elli Sutherland contributed a hit and three RBIs,
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while several players added to the offensive surge. As Jenkins
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finished with twelve hits, Banks was nearly untouchable in the circle,
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tossing a five inning no hitter with eleven strikeouts and
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just one walk. Jenkins has shown strength on both sides
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of the ball, outscoring opponents twenty six to one in
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its last two games while combining for twenty seven hits.
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The Lady Cavaliers will travel to Pipe County on Thursday
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to face east Ridge High School, followed by a trip
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to Ewing, Virginia on Friday for games against Thomas Walker
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High School and Farragut, Tennessee. Jenkins will return home next
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week for consecutive games against Leslie County and Prestonsburg on
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Monday and Tuesday. First pitch for both games is set
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for six pm. And in the next story, LCC Boys
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improved to eight and five. The Letcher County Central Cougar's
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baseball team picked up back to back wins to improve
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to eight and five on the season. The Cougars, coached
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by Chris Ambervie, opened their forty game schedule on March twentieth,
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and have gained momentum with recent victories over Powell County
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and mcgoffin County. Lecher Central's latest win came Monday at
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Alice Lloyd College in Peppa Passes, where the Cougars defeated
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the mcgoffin County Hornets six to two. Jaden Ambervie led
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the Cougars at the plate, going two for three with
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an RBI. Kolby Watts added a hit and drove in
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two runs, while Dylan Eldridge and Jayden Wright each contributed
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hits and RBIs. On the mound, Mason b earned the win,
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allowing two runs on three hits over four innings while
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striking out three. Eldridge closed out the game with three
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scoreless innings, giving up just one hit and striking out one.
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On Saturday, April fourth, the Cougars earned a high scoring
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fourteen to eleven win over host Powell County. Dylan Eldridge
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had a big day offensively, going four for four with
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three RBIs. Mason Boggs added three hits and two RBIs,
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while Colby Watts contributed two hits and an RBI. Davin
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Ratliffe also added a hit and drove in a run,
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and several Cougars contributed to a balanced offensive effort that
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produced fifteen hits. Wright and Colton Mullins handle pitching duties.
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Wright worked four innings, allowing six hits and four runs
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while striking out two. Mullins pitched three innings, giving up
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seven hits and four earned runs while striking out. As
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a team, the Cougars showed strong offensive production in both games,
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combining for twenty runs and twenty hits. Lecher Central returns
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to action Friday on the road at Lawrence County. The
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Cougars will then host Hazard at six pm on Monday,
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April thirteen, before traveling to Pikeville for a six pm
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game Tuesday. The next story is award winning science teacher
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is remembered for her work in lecture. A celebration of
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the life of Regina Donawer will be held this weekend
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in Samantha, Alabama. A celebration of the life for former
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Lectra County School teacher Regina Donahour will be held April
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eleventh at the North Side Lions Club in Samantha, Alabama.
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Miss Donour, aged seventy, passed away on March tenth after
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a courageous six year battle with erdheim Schester disease. Miss
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Donaer dedicated over twenty years of her life to teaching science,
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most of them at Letcher County Central High School, where
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she profoundly impacted the lives of countless students. Known for
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her innovative, hands on approach to education, she brought learning
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to life through field work, experiential projects, and programs that
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earned recognition and support beyond her classroom. Her passion for
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discovery extended far beyond the classroom, and she delighted in
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sharing that curiosity with others. An avid traveler, Regina shared
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her love of the world with both her children and
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her students, leading summer trips to Europe that created lasting
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memories and broadened perspectives. Regina was a woman of curiosity, generosity,
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and quiet strength, instilling in those around her a deep
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appreciation for education, exploration, and adventure. In November two thousand seven,
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Miss Donauer was named High School Science Teacher of the
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Year at the Kentucky Science Teachers Association Annual Awards program
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in Lexington. She received a Bachelor of Science in biology
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from the University of Alabama, a Master of Art degree
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in secondary education from Moorhead State University, and a Master
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of Science degree in Natural science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
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She also had a National Board certification in Adolescents and
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Young Adulthood Science. Miss Donauer was also named the Kentucky
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Association of Environmental Educations two thousand and five Kentucky Environmental
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Educator of the Year. In addition to serving as Lecter
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Central's academic coach, she was an adjunct chemistry professor at
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Southeast Community College, a member of the Teacher Advisory Board
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for the National Energy Education Development, a member of the
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management team for the National Science Foundation, the Kentucky Science
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Teachers Association, the National Science Teachers Association, and the Kentucky
24:10
Association of Environmental educators. She is survived by her siblings,
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Denise and w c, her children Owen, Donauer and Meg,
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and her beloved grandchildren Beverly, Remy, Catherine, Penelope and Zaid.
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The family extends their heartfelt gratitude to all who supported
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her throughout her illness. In lieu of flowers, Those wishing
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to honor Regina's memory may make a donation to the
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Erntheim Chester Disease Global Alliance. The next story is defense
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has renewed effort to oust judge in Stein's case. The
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murder case against former Electric County Sheriff Sean Mickey Steins
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is continuing as his attorneys make another effort to remove
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Special Lecturer Circuit Judge Christopher Koran from the case. The
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latest filing includes language an entical to a previously filed
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motion seeking Koran's disqualification, but this time is submitted as
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an affidavit initialed by Steins. Koran, who serves as a
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circuit judge in Bulling Green, was appointed to the case
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after Lecturer Circuit Judge James W. Craft stepped down. Steins
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is accused of firing at least eight shots into District
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Judge Kevin Mullins as Mullins sat at his desk one
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floor below Craft's office. Koran is the third judge assigned
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to the case. Retired Judge Rupert Wilhoyt of Carter County
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presided over Steines's initial appearance, followed by retired Fayette County
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Judge Julia Adams. The affidavit filed by Steins's defense argues
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that Koran should be removed because he and Mullins both
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served on the Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health. It
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claims the two sat inches apart during a meeting of
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the seventy five member commission, and that Koran appears to
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nod in approval of a point in Mullens's report. Video
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from that meeting shows Koran entered more than an hour
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after Mullins and sat two chairs away from him at
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a long table. The two do not appear to acknowledge
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one another. The Kentucky Supreme Court previously rejected the motion
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and returned the matter to Koran for a ruin. Koran
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denied their request on March sixth, stating he could not
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recall any formal or informal professional or personal interaction with
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Judge Mullins on any occasion, I fully believe that sharing
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no more than the same area at a professional meeting
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with dozens of other individuals in attendance, no one would
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reasonably consider it relevant to a possible motion for disqualification,
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Koran wrote. The affidavit filed last week contains the same
27:03
arguments included in the earlier motion. The next headline is
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Letcher Schools start nationwide superintendent search. The Letcher County Board
27:15
of Education has begun a nationwide search for a new
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superintendent following the announcement by Denise Yance that she will
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retire at the end of June. The board began advertising
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the position through the Kentucky School Boards Association this week
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and will pay the k s B a seven thousand
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dollars plus mileage to handle the logistics of the search.
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Tim Eaton of the k SBA, who has assisted the
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district with superintendent searches twice before, told the board Thursday
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that a six member screening committee will be formed. The
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committee will include a board member, a principal elected by
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principals in the district, two teachers selected by the Kentucky
27:58
Education Association of affiliate it, a parent from a school
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with a parent teacher organization and a classified employee. The
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screening Committee will review applications and recommend the candidates it
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considers most qualified. The Board will interview those candidates, along
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with any applicants from Letcher County who are not selected
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by the committee. This concludes the reading of the Mountain Eagle.
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Your reader has been Bill then Arsenale. Now please stay
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tuned for continued programming on behalf of everyone here at Radio.
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Speaker 2: I thank you for listening, and have a good day.