(Richmond, IN)--On Thursday, the Richmond Police Department issued a statement about an incident which left a man seriously injured last weekend at Veterans Memorial Park in the Whitewater Gorge in Richmond.  A man now identified as 48-year-old James Hamilton was found with a head injury that resulted in him being flown to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton.  Investigators said Thursday that no suspect is being sought and that the injuries were accidental – not the result of any type of beating by another person.  Hamilton’s current condition has not been released.

(Richmond, IN)--A Richmond man was captured Thursday after allegedly causing a crash while highly intoxicated and with children in his vehicle.  The crash happened at around noon Thursday on Richmond Avenue.  Officers later located 37-year-old Jordan Bruns driving a vehicle with heavy damage.  There were also allegedly open, cold beer cans in the vehicle and at least one child.  Scanner traffic indicates Bruns’ blood alcohol content was .370, which is more than four times the legal limit.  No one was hurt in the crash.

(Richmond, IN)--As expected, the man captured during a manhunt in woods and fields south of Richmond on Tuesday was officially charged with an armed robbery.  Andrew Allen of Centerville had been originally jailed for possessing methamphetamine and for a burglary warrant in Fayette County.  Wednesday afternoon, charges of armed robbery and criminal confinement were added.  Allen allegedly used a gun to rob Richmond Scrap Processors off North 8^th Street on Tuesday.  He escaped the initial search, but was found later after the report of a suspicious person near Abington Pike.

(Winchester, IN)--A hearing is set to take place Thursday morning in the case of a Randolph County man accused of killing his own two-year-old son.  It was two and a half years ago that Zaydon Gray died.  Investigators say his biological father, Joshua Null, struck the boy multiple times causing his death.  Null was originally charged with murder.  The young boy’s family members this week are campaigning to keep the charges from being reduced to involuntary manslaughter.

(Wayne County, IN)--A Centerville man was captured Tuesday after a manhunt through woods and farm fields just south of Richmond, but, by 7 a.m. Wednesday, had not been charged with an armed robbery that took place at Richmond Scrap Processors.  The suspect used a handgun to rob the business in the Whitewater Gorge.  Police were unable to find him during an initial search.  But then, hours later, a man now identified as 38-year-old Andrew Allen was seen just south of the area.  When Allen was captured, he allegedly had methamphetamine.  He is also wanted in Fayette County for burglary.  No one was hurt in the robbery.  More information was expected to be released later in the day on Wednesday.

(Whitewater Valley)--An agricultural newsletter says that crops in the Whitewater Valley are in the worst shape they’ve been in for a long time.  The USDA now rates just 32% of our area’s corn as good.  27% is rated as poor.  Everything else is just fair.  It’s all due to a very wet spring.  At one point this April and May, Richmond had measurable rainfall on 23 of 31 days.

(Richmond, IN)--A couple was taken into custody Wednesday morning and is now facing numerous drug-related charges.  40-year-old Shane Aslinger of Richmond and 41-year-old Deanna Duncan of New Paris were taken into custody in the 2000 block of South L Street.  Both are charged with dealing controlled substances.  Aslinger was charged with dealing marijuana.  Duncan was charged with dealing cocaine.  Drug paraphernalia was also recovered.  There’s no word yet on the quantity of drugs located.

(Wayne County, IN)--Here’s an updated look at the number of people that work at Wayne County employers.  According to the EDC, the entity that employs the most people in Wayne County is Reid Health, and it’s not even close.  Reid now employs 2600 people, which is more than three times as many people as the next highest employer.  That’s Richmond Community Schools at 723 people.  The county’s biggest manufacturer is Belden, which currently employs 707.  There are currently 37 Wayne County entities that employ at least a hundred people.

(Whitewater Valley)--Last week, we told you that new statistics showed that 45% of Wayne County’s population – meaning the total population – is currently working.  It’s a statistic that’s widely considered to be a measure of both demographics and economic well-being.  The county in our area that has the highest percentage of its population working is Franklin County, which has 55%.  Franklin County is also the Whitewater Valley’s most affluent county.  The lowest in our area is Fayette County, where just 37% of the entire population is currently working.  Here are the figures for all area counties: Wayne, 45%.  Union, 51%.  Fayette, 37%.  Franklin, 55%.  Randolph, 45%.  Henry, 44%.  Preble, 50%.  Darke, 49%.  Butler, 51%.

(Eaton, OH)--Eight years in prison was the sentence handed down Monday to an Eaton mother who severely beat her own four-month-old daughter.  22-year-old Holly Gray-Lapple caused a skull fracture, a brain bleed, and a collapsed lung to her baby back in January.  She told doctors at the Preble County Emergency Room that the child had had a seizure, then claimed she accidentally hit the girl’s head against the wall.  The baby had to endure multiple surgeries as a result of the abuse.

(Wayne County, IN)--It’s been a year now since Wayne County experienced an explosion in cases of hepatitis A.  At one point, Wayne County was in the top ten counties in the entire country.  Here’s an update to where the county stands today.  According to the state’s health department, Wayne County currently has 143 cases.  That number has held steady for roughly the last six months.  The county no longer leads the state in cases.  Marion County has seen its own explosion of hepatitis A and now has more than twice as many cases as Wayne County.  Delaware County has now nearly equaled Wayne County.

(Fayette County, IN)--There was a water rescue on the Whitewater River Sunday night in Fayette County.  According to the Everton Volunteer Fire Department, a man had become stuck in chest-deep mud at the canoe ramp near Veterans Memorial Parkway.  First responders were able to free the victim and assist those who were trying to help him out of the river.  The victim was checked out by medics at the scene but was not hurt.

(Richmond, IN)--One Richmond woman was jailed after allegedly stabbing another over the weekend.  The victim was stabbed in the hand during an incident near South 11^th and B Street.  25-year-old Tessa Rettinger was taken into custody and charged with aggravated battery.  Other details of the incident have not been released.  Rettinger has a lengthy criminal record.

(Richmond, IN)--Richmond Common Council has been dealing this week with the city’s budget for next year.  It’s a budget that has presented challenges.  There is an expected $800,000 shortfall in tax collections.  And, because of the way the calendar falls, there’s an extra pay period for city employees in 2020 that will cost the city more than $600,000.  Richmond Mayor Dave Snow has called the situation an anomaly and said that city services will not be cut.  The city’s cash balance is expected to drop by about a million dollars.

(Richmond, IN)--A Richmond man was taken into custody Friday morning after what began as a domestic incident in the 1900 block of North 14^th Street.  Police stopped a man later identified as 24-year-old Darrion Taylor at Chester Boulevard and Sim Hodgin Parkway.  Taylor is now charged with felony domestic violence and intimidation.  He was arrested three years ago after allegedly shooting a woman with a BB gun in another domestic dispute.  Other details of Friday morning’s incident have not been released.

(Richmond, IN)--A Richmond business is closing its doors.  McFarling Foods is telling its clients that the facility on North West 5^th Street will close by the end of next week.  McFarling is a wholesaler that provides food products and supplies to numerous restaurants and other outlets across the area.  There was no specific reason given for the closure, and there’s been no word about how many employees will be affected, although the EDC lists the number of employees at 14.

(Cambridge City, IN)--Wayne County this week offered a million dollars to help expand wastewater treatment at the Gateway Industrial Park near Cambridge City.  That’s twice what the county offered just last month.  Now, the sewer board is considering reducing the size of a new plant to reduce the project’s cost.  The county’s offer would require three seats on the sewer board.  The EDC has not been able to market the park for three years because of the wastewater issue.  The county has invested a total of roughly $7 million into the park.  The park’s largest tenant, SugarCreek, currently employs 269 Wayne County residents.

(Camden, OH)--Students at Preble Shawnee are describing what it was like to be on a school bus Wednesday with an allegedly intoxicated driver behind the wheel.  "She was really slurring her words," said one student.  Investigators now say that 44-year-old Amy Jones was not drunk, but was under the influence of something else.  During her sobriety test, she can be heard saying “I can’t do sober.”  No children were injured in a minor collision with a sign on Camden Road.  Jones is charged with OVI and child endangering.

(Wayne County, IN)--300 people left Wayne County’s workforce last month.  That’s according to newly released numbers from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.  The number of Wayne County residents with jobs has now dipped below 30,000 after a drop last month of 373 people listed as employed.  It also means that only about 45% of all Wayne County residents have jobs.  The county’s unemployment rate has ticked up to 3.9%.

(Wayne County, IN)--State Road 1 just south of Milton was closed Tuesday as the result of a semi crash that claimed the lives of over a hundred pigs.  The driver lost control on a curve near Nickel Plate Road, took out about 75 yards of guardrail, and ended up down a steep embankment.  He was taken to Reid Health Connersville for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.  Only about 20 of 170 pigs are estimated to have survived.  Emergency management was also involved due to a diesel fuel leak.

(Eaton, OH)--A Preble County man has been found guilty of gross sexual imposition.  Cameras were installed by 56-year-old Eric Kaye to monitor caregivers as they administered care to Kaye’s disabled female family member.  But those same cameras captured Kaye having sexual contact.  Kaye’s wife, who has since filed for divorce, found the video and turned it over to investigators.  He’ll be sentenced on September 18.

(Richmond, IN)--On Monday night, members of Richmond Common Council got an update on The Loop bicycle path project.  The highlight of the update is that East Main Street between 5^th and 7^th Street will reopen this week.  The street had been closed longer than originally anticipated due to a delay in installing street lights.  The entire first phase of the project is expected to be done in two weeks.  That will be followed by work to fix some intersections that experience high water during heavy rains.  Phase II of the Loop project is set to begin in four years.  Business owners affected by that construction will meet with developers next month.

(Union and Franklin County, IN)--The Whitewater Valley has made it through 2/3 of summer without a warning about lake water, but that’s now come to an end with a blue-green algae advisory having been issued for both Brookville Lake and the lake at Whitewater Memorial State Park.  The state’s health department is recommending that people not swallow the water or allow their pets in it.  Swimming and boating is still permitted, but people are encouraged to shower afterward.  Our area’s other two large lakes – Acton Lake at Hueston Woods and Lake Lakengren – currently have levels well below the advisory level.

(Randolph County, IN)--A fatal Randolph County crash is now being blamed on an allegedly drunken driver.  A news release Sunday indicates that 29-year-old Audriana Hardwick of Winchester caused the death of 69-year-old Charles Miller of Fountain City on U.S. 27 on Sunday night.  Witnesses say Hardwick crossed the center line and struck Miller head-on.  He was pronounced dead at the scene.  Hardwick and a passenger were not seriously hurt.

(Preble County, OH)--One person was killed and three others were injured in a crash on eastbound I-70 in Preble County Thursday night.  Four females were riding in a convertible when a tire blew out and caused the driver to lose control.  Witnesses also said the car was traveling at a high rate of speed.  The person killed was one of the passengers and was not wearing a seat belt.  The other three victims were all taken to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton.  At least one was in critical condition.  The victim has been identified as a 21-year-old resident of central Indiana.  Eastbound I-70 was closed for more than an hour Thursday night.

(Williamsburg, IN)--Investigators are looking into a string of home burglaries in the Williamsburg area.  Two of the homes are on Water Street.  Another resident who lives near Sycamore Street reported that coins and a pistol with a broken firing pin were taken from her home on Thursday.  There was no suspect information Friday morning.

(Muncie, IN)--A Randolph County mother who was drinking whiskey while driving with her four young children in her car was found guilty Thursday of most of the charges related to the crash that killed her six-year-old daughter.  A jury took only three hours to convict 30-year-old Jessica Skeens.  Skeens had also been using marijuana and cussed out first responders at the scene who were trying to save her children.  Skeens will be sentenced to at least 20 years in prison – and as much as 40 years – when she’s sentenced at the end of next month.

(Richmond, IN)--Richmond is again one of the cheapest places in the country in which to live.  That’s according results of a newly released study by Yahoo Finance, which looked at 257 cities across the country and measured things like the cost of housing, utilities, groceries, and health care.  Of those 257, Richmond ranked fifth cheapest.  Some of the statistics, though, are questionable.  For instance, the study claims Richmond’s average rent is $1432.

(Union City IN/OH)--The search for a missing Union City mother appears to have come to a tragic end.  33-year-old Shawna Ressler had not been seen for ten days after leaving her home for an appointment 35 miles to the north.  On Wednesday, Ressler’s SUV was found in a deep roadside ditch in Mercer County covered with vegetation.  The body found inside is thought to be Ressler.  The coroner’s office is working to confirm the identity.

(Richmond, IN)--New plans for a downtown Richmond building were revealed Tuesday during a meeting of the Richmond Redevelopment Commission along with a request for a million and a half dollars.  The building is known as the Dudas Inspiration Venue for the Arts, or DIVA, and it’s in the 700 block of East Main.  A six-phase renovation would include a gallery and reception area and a community conference room on the lower floors.  The third and fourth floors would include a lobby, box office, and kitchen.  The final phase would create a rooftop party deck.  The Commission took no action Tuesday.

(Webster, IN)--Four people were injured in a two-vehicle crash that closed U.S. 35 in Wayne County Tuesday night.  First responders were sent to the area of 35 and Webster Road on the report that a minivan and an SUV had each rolled over at around 9:30 Tuesday night.  The names of those involved, their current conditions, and details about what caused the crash have not been released.  35 was closed for about an hour.  Traffic was diverted onto State Road 38.

(Richmond, IN)--Wayne County Sheriff Randy Retter issued a release over the weekend that addresses a variety of issues.  Retter said that a review of crime and crash statistics indicate that the number of incidents investigated by the department are at some of the lowest levels in recent history.  Last week, the department received an award at a national conference in New Orleans.  The local jail has become the only jail in Indiana to receive a Level One accreditation.

(Wayne County, IN)--New numbers are out from the Indiana Department of Child Services about the number of confirmed cases of child abuse and neglect in Wayne County.  Last month, there were 27 new confirmed cases, including two cases of confirmed sexual abuse.  That number represents a modest six percent drop from the same point last year.  Fayette and Franklin County each had ten cases last month.  Union County had four.

(Preble County, OH)--Preble County man has now been charged with rape and the alleged victim is just 13 years old.  The victim told investigators that she had been talking through social media to a man now identified as 19-year-old Devin Tutt, who lives in the Gratis area.  They agreed to meet.  Tutt allegedly drove her to a secluded area and raped her.  Detectives now say there may be additional victims.

(Richmond, IN)--The city of Richmond will likely now take another look at allowing off-road vehicles on city streets.  The city had taken up the issue this spring, but put it on hold until the county decided the issue.  This week, the county gave its approval for vehicles like golf carts and snowmobiles to operate on county roads.  It will go into effect in about a month.  The city’s public safety committee was given the task of weighing the pros and cons of allowing ATV’s on city streets.

(Richmond, IN)--A Richmond man was jailed late Thursday night after allegedly pointing a firearm at a south-side bar.  The bar calls itself a zero-tolerance bar for guns and weapons.  29-year-old Taylor Morrison allegedly entered with a gun, was told to leave, and then pulled a knife.  Scanner traffic indicates a woman was punched, although there are no charges related to that.  There was no report of any injuries.

(Connersville, IN)--On Thursday, Wayne and Preble County first responders took part in a Hazmat drill at the Union County Co-op.  On Saturday, another disaster drill will take place in Centerville.  The Centerville Fire Department, Red Line Ambulance, and Reid Health will all be involved in a drill at Ambassador Health Care.  Centerville leaders want the community to know they’ll see lots of emergency vehicles at Ambassador Saturday, but it’s only a drill.

(Richmond, IN)--A bridge used by many in the Pleasant View neighborhood to get into Richmond was ordered to be closed immediately Wednesday.  Wayne County Commissioners closed the North 24^th Street bridge just off New Paris Pike after hearing from an engineer that the bridge has serious structural issues.  The bridge was scheduled to be replaced in two years and will now remain closed until it can be replaced.  Local leaders will now try to get the time frame moved up.

(Lynn, IN)--The water tower in Lynn has been filling overnight Wednesday night and into Thursday morning.  A leak Wednesday drained the tower and left Lynn residents without any water.  Wednesday night, the leak was located under U.S. 27 and was repaired.  While there will be water Thursday, a boil advisory will remain in place for at least the next 24 hours.  The water must pass two separate tests before the boil advisory can be lifted.

(Richmond, IN)--It’s back to school for students in the Richmond Community School District on Wednesday.  As they return, they’re seeing additional security features that have been put into place over the summer.  "Additional doors that are really...the way that they work with people coming in and locking the doors so that the students can't come through that lobby when parents or whoever might be coming into the building has been really exciting," said RCS Superintendent Todd Terrill.  Terrill described another new safety feature.  "We've added privacy screens to all the entrances to our buildings so that people from the outside can't see directly into the entranceway but, from the inside, you can see out just like nothing is there."  Several other Whitewater Valley schools were also back in session for the first day Wednesday.

(Hamilton County, OH)--The Tri Village High School community and New Madison are remembering a beloved recent graduate who was killed Tuesday.  18-year-old Austin Bruner was killed when his pickup truck crossed the center line and hit an oncoming vehicle head-on on State Route 128 just outside of Cincinnati.  Investigators said that speed, drugs, alcohol were not factors.  Austin was a standout athlete who had just graduated from Tri Village a few months ago and was to have attended Bluffton University.

(Richmond, IN)--The city of Richmond has now joined Wayne County, Centerville, and Cambridge City in opposing an INDOT plan to reconfigure U.S. 40 to one lane in each direction with a turn lane in the middle.  Richmond Common Council Monday night unanimously passed a resolution opposing the idea.  On Tuesday, Richmond Mayor Dave Snow will send a letter to INDOT that had been drafted even before Council met Monday night stating the city’s opposition.  INDOT had already said that they would not pursue the reconfiguration if local entities opposed it.

(Richmond, IN)--Richmond Common Council Monday night pulled an abatement early after a company failed to meet its obligations.  Six years ago, Finance System of Richmond was given a ten-year tax abatement based in part on a projection of adding 30 jobs.  That level of expansion has not occurred, so Council Monday night ended the abatement.  Finance System is a collection agency that operates in the former Ryan’s Restaurant on National Road East.

(Eaton, OH)--The two men accused of recently robbing Verizon stores in both Eaton and Oxford have been captured.  Oxford police said Monday that the two men are part of a multi-state group that had been operating in the Midwest.  Federal agents became involved in the investigation.  The two were caught in Illinois.  No local charges have been filed yet.  There were no injuries in either robbery.

(Richmond, IN)--A semi crashed into a garage and house after a collision at the intersection of Industries Road and Union Pike in Richmond late Thursday night.  The initial report was that the semi driver was headed west on Industries Road and did not stop at the stop sign.  Latisha Schutte saw the semi hit a female driver.  "Out of nowhere, he just smashed into her.  He didn't even stop at the stop sign.  Her car started spinning toward us," Schutte said.  The semi then struck the house near the intersection.  The Schuttes helped the driver get out of her smoking car.  There was no immediate indication of serious injury to anyone in the crash or in the house that was hit.

(Richmond, IN)--Results of a wage and benefits survey conducted by IU East for East Central Indiana have been released.  139 employers were surveyed across some Whitewater Valley counties, including Wayne.  The highest paying occupations in 2018 were administrators, executive directors, and managers with an average annual salary of $60,000.  People working industrial jobs in our area made an average of $36,450 annually with an average hourly wage of $17.52.  A whopping 94% of companies surveyed offered health insurance.  And, nearly every company – 97% - offered some type of retirement benefit.  The survey also measures how people commute.  2249 Wayne County residents leave the county to work somewhere else, but nearly 3900 non-Wayne County residents enter the county to work

(Fort Wright, KY)--Centerville native Mike Staats got quite the surprise Thursday night.  Staats now works in Cincinnati and was having dinner at a Skyline just across the river in Fort Wright, Kentucky when in walked Vice President Mike Pence.  Staats said that he had a nice conversation with Pence about his hometown of Centerville and other aspects of Wayne County.  Pence was there Thursday night for President Trump’s rally at U.S. Bank Arena.  Pence did not get a three-way or anything else to eat.  He had a Diet Pepsi and talked with customers.

(Richmond, IN)--A man who was being held in a Dayton jail cell was returned to Richmond Wednesday on a charge of conspiracy to commit murder.  41-year-old Larry Blackstock is accused of arranging a contracted killing of a confidential informant who was going to testify in Blackstock’s drug case.  Blackstock allegedly conspired  with Ryan Carpenter and Bradi Louden, who are already jailed on conspiracy to commit murder charges.  Police say Blackstock offered up to $30,000 for Louden to kill the informant.  The plan was to give the informant a deadly concoction of heroin and fentanyl so that the informant would fatally overdose.

(Richmond, IN)--The long-time leader of the Wayne County Foundation will call it quits at the end of the year.  Steve Borchers has been the executive director of the foundation since 2005, but announced Wednesday that he will resign at the end of 2019.  Under Borchers’ tenure, the foundation has seen significant growth in its level of annual distributions.  A search committee has been organized to find Borchers’ successor.