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Clinton County - page 14

Free Day at Landfill Scheduled

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CLINTON COUNTY, Ind. – Republic Services Walnut Creek Landfill has announced its Free Day to Clinton County Residents for the 2022 Spring Clean-up on Saturday, April 30, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Please use only pick-up trucks, family van, or car loads when bringing items out.

No trailers or dump trucks – no exceptions.

Items not allowed on Free Day:

No electronics (tv, computer, etc.)
No roofing
No appliances (washer, dryer, stove, refrigerator, etc.)
No tires
No batteries
No yard waste
No liquid

 

Traffic Pattern Changes for State Road 28 Occur Next Week

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CLINTON COUNTY, Ind. – The Indiana Department of Transportation announces traffic pattern changes will occur next week on State Road 28 in Frankfort, Ind. The right turn lane from State Road 39 southbound to S.R. 28 westbound will close on Monday, March 21 through June 18. The left turn lane on S.R. 39 northbound to S.R. 28 westbound will close Thursday, March 24 through the end of the day on Saturday, March 26. This is for construction work in the intersection.

The eastbound lanes of S.R. 28 remain closed between McKinley and Jackson Streets. The official detour follows I-65 to S.R. 47 to S.R. 39 and back. Westbound traffic on S.R. 28 remains open.

Clinton County Sheriff Rich Kelly and Jail Matron Ashley Kelly each Enter Pleas of Not Guilty

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Clinton County Sheriff Rich Kelly (R) leaving the Courthouse with wife Jail Matron Ashley Kelly after each entered not guilty pleas on four criminal charges.

FRANKFORT, Ind. – Clinton County Sheriff Rich Kelly and Jail Matron Ashley Kelly each entered pleas of not guilty today on each of the four individual criminal charges, filed March 4th, during an approximately eight minute long initial hearing in front of Senior Judge Peggy Lohorn in Clinton County Circuit Court.

Judge Lohorn set May 12, 2022, as a pre-trial date with June 14, 2022, as the tentative trial date.

The Kellys each face 1 count each of the following:

  1. as public servants knowingly or intentionally had a pecuniary interest in or derived a profit from a contract connected with their governmental entity served by the public servant;
  2. engaged in a violation of the criminal Conflict of Interest statute;
  3. engaged in a violation of the Criminal Conversion statute (IC 35-43-4-3 (a) by Richard L. Kelly receiving commissary funds through his ownership in Leonne LLC; and
  4. signed under penalties of perjury statements related to their relationship with each other, in violation of the criminal offense of Perjury

Sheriff Kelly and Matron Kelly facing Criminal Charges

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FRANKFORT, Ind. – A special prosecutor assigned to Clinton County filed criminal charges against Clinton County Sheriff Rich Kelly and his wife Ashley, who is both the Jail Matron and Commissary Manager on Friday, March 4.

This action comes a little over one-year after [Clinton County Prosecutor Tony Sommer] contacted the Indiana State Police regarding “allegations of criminal activity by two sworn police officers” according to the probable cause affidavit affirmed by ISP Sgt. Joseph White. The Kellys each face three counts of official misconduct and one count of criminal conflict of interest.

“Given the timeline of events, this is nothing more than a political farse,” stated Sheriff Kelly via a press release. “The items being contested are still in civil litigation in Tippecanoe County Court and are the same contained in the SBOA findings from last year and our subsequent response.

“My wife and I look forward to continuing our efforts to increase public safety with the hiring of new deputies and jail staff, made possible by the nearly $1,500,000 federal inmate project that we brought into the community in 2020. We plan on announcing our medical savings to the county of over $388,000 for 2021 in the next week. We also look forward to expanding our jail programs to a Jail Chemical Addiction Program (JCAP) that will incorporate more services to the recovery of inmates. We will continue our successful programs, saving taxpayers money, reducing recidivism and providing state of the art technology, equipment and training to all members of our agency.”

The three-member Board of Commissioners (Jordan Brewer, Josh Uitts, and Bert Weaver) released a statement via Commissioner Josh Uitts’ Facebook page.

“This is a sad and unfortunate day for Clinton County. Nobody wants to wake up and face a day knowing that criminal charges have been filed against an elected official in the highest role of law enforcement within the community. We take these charges very seriously and are very concerned about the integrity of Clinton County.

“We also understand the criminal justice system and that individuals are innocent until proven guilty; however, these allegations are extremely serious and very disturbing for individuals that are still in their elected office and appointed position. We hope and pray that Clinton County will become stronger and more resilient from this dark day in our county’s history.”

Online court information does not show if the Kellys have been arrested or any future court dates. In Indiana, only coroners have the official capacity to arrest a sheriff.

Civil litigation in Tippecanoe County Court is set to be heard on March 31, 2022.

Motivational Speaker Chris Herren to Speak to All Clinton County High School Students at Case Arena

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FRANKFORT, Ind. – The City of Frankfort and Frankfort Street Department has scheduled motivational speaker and basketball legend, Chris Herren, to Case Arena at Frankfort Senior High School. The program will start at 9:00 am on Tuesday, April 5, 2022, and will include all Clinton County High School students. The program is not open to the public.

“I started looking into ways that we can help our youth with decision making and how addiction can affect them. I wanted to find a way that even if we change just one student from making the wrong decisions, then we have made a difference,” said Street Superintendent, Jason Forsythe. “I met with Mayor (Judy) Sheets and the Board of Works in 2020 to see what we could do to make this possible.” The program has been canceled twice due to Covid.

Chris Herren had the NBA within reach when he decided alcohol and substance abuse were going to ruin those dreams. Chris almost lost everything including his life and decided to get sober. Today, Chris has shared his story with over 1 million students and community members nationwide. “I am excited to have Chris Herren at Case Arena. I hope that our students can connect with Chris’ message and that they realize the negative impacts of drugs and alcohol. It not only affects their life but also their family,” stated Mayor Sheets. “Thank you to Jason Forsythe for putting this program together for our youth.”

“Many people get sober and want to forget,” stated Herren. “I find great inspiration in people who have been at certain levels in life and come back from it. I’m blessed to be in long-term recovery and to be able to be out in front of people and share my story.”

Partnering with The City of Frankfort to bring Chris Herren program: Community Foundation, Center Township, Healthy Communities of Clinton County, State Farm-Susan Kaspar, Kaspar Broadcasting, Eagles Lodge 976.

Frankfort Fire Department Responds to Two Fires in Last 24 Hours

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FRANKFORT, Ind. – Frankfort Fire Department Units were busy Tuesday evening and early Wednesday morning responding to two separate fires – no injuries or loss of life was reported at each of the events.

“We had a busy night, but our firefighters did an outstanding job working both incidents and extinguishing the fires safely,” stated Assistant Chief Ed Cripe via a press release issued by the City of Frankfort.

Units were first dispatched at 9:40 p.m. Tuesday to a fire alarm at the Christian Life Church, located at 2501 E. Wabash, and upon making entry into the building firefighters located a small fire in a light fixture in the kitchen. The building sprinkler system contained the fire to the kitchen and allowed firefighters to quickly have the situation under control.

Then Wednesday, at approximately 1:30 a.m., units were dispatched for a possible trailer fire at 1555 Rossville Avenue, Lot 19. Engine 3 was the first to arrive and found a fully involved trailer fire. Firefighters immediately began fire suppression tactics as other units responded. Battalion 1 called for a second alarm. A total of six firefighters were called in to man the city while on-duty firefighter personnel and apparatus were on the scene at Rossville Avenue.

Tankers were used for fire suppression due to the absence of hydrants located within the trailer park. Firefighters had the fire under control within 20 minutes but remained on the scene to conduct salvage and overhaul. Units cleared the scene at approximately 3:30 a.m. No firefighter or resident injuries were reported.

The Rossville Avenue fire is under investigation by the Frankfort Fire Department. More information will be released once the investigation has been completed.

Frankfort Parks To Open Aviary, Petting Zoo, and Splash Pad on Saturday, May 29th

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FRANKFORT, Ind. – On Saturday, May 29, Frankfort Parks Department will be opening its aviary, petting zoo, and splash pad to the public. No fee is charged to visit any of these attractions but donations are accepted. These features will remain open, weather permitting, through Labor Day.

The aviary and petting zoo are both located at TPA Park, 1 Adrian Marks Dr in Frankfort. The petting zoo and aviary will be open 7 days a week from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., weather permitting.

The splash pad is located at Prairie Creek Park, 260 E Washington St in Frankfort. Splash pad hours will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The splash pad will also be open 7 days per week, weather permitting.

All weather-related closures for park facilities will be reported on the Frankfort Parks Department Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/FrankfortParksDept

Everett N. Case Historical Marker Dedication Set

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FRANKFORT, Ind. – In recent weeks, Clinton County’s only Historical Marker was erected outside of Case Arena on the grounds of Frankfort High School. A fitting location, as the marker is dedicated to the Hot Dogs legendary basketball coach, Everett Case.

The official dedication is set for Wednesday, April 28th at 4 p.m. in front of the historical marker.

The two-sided historical marker captures a brief history of the coach that led the Hot Dogs to four state basketball championships over the 1920s and 1930s.

The front reads: “Hall of Famer Everett Case, known for his basketball strategies and promotion of the sport, began his high school coaching career at age 19. After stints at Columbus and Smithville, he coached Frankfort for 17 seasons starting in 1922. He led his teams, known as the “Hot Dogs,” to state titles in 1925, 1929, 1936, 1939. Case coached at his alma mater Anderson, 1931-33.”

The back reads: “As a Naval officer during WWII, Case coached aviation cadet teams at DePauw and in Iowa. From 1946-1964, he coached the North Carolina State “Wolfpack” to six Southern and four Atlantic Coast Conference titles. The animated “Old Grey Fox” was a three-time conference coach of the year. He popularized basketball in North Carolina through his success and showmanship.”

Coach Case was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 1968 and the Basketball Hall of Fame on May 3, 1982.

Coach Case pictured in Agromeck 1951, NC State yearbook

Sheriff Kelly Sought Legal Ruling On Merit Board Member

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FRANKFORT, Ind. – Just days before Clinton County Commissioner Jordan Brewer made the motion for the Board of Commissioners to file suit against Clinton County Sheriff Rich Kelly and Jail Matron & Commissary Manager Ashley Kelly, Commissioner Brewer’s father, Kent Brewer, was resolving a lawsuit filed by Sheriff Kelly.

According to court documents, the elder Brewer, a member of the Clinton County Sheriff’s Merit Board, faced a legal claim by Sheriff Kelly filed on August 31, 2020, asking the Clinton County Superior Court to declare Kent Brewer was in violation of Article 2, Section 9 of the Indiana Constitution – “no person may hold two lucrative offices at the same time.” Kent Brewer was also serving as a member of the Frankfort Utility Service Board at the same time. Brewer later filed a motion to dismiss the suit.

On January 27, 2021, Judge Thomas Busch denied Brewer’s motion to dismiss writing:

“1. A member of the Sheriff’s Merit Board may be removed for cause by a declaratory judgment of the Superior Court. Ind. Code 36-8-10-3(b).
2. No person may hold two lucrative offices at the same time. Ind. Const. Art. 2, Sec. 9.
3. The Complaint herein alleges that Defendant holds two lucrative offices, one of which is as a member of the Sheriff‘s Merit Board.
4. If defendant holds two lucrative offices he is in violation of the Constitutional provision.
5. Plaintiff is the Sheriff of Clinton County.
6. Plaintiff, as Sheriff, has standing to bring a declaratory judgment action under Ind. Code 36-8-10-3 (b) seeking defendant’s removal for cause from the Sheriff’s Merit Board.”

According to a court document dated March 3, 2021, the case was dismissed: “Plaintiff, Richard Kelly, in his official capacity as Clinton County Sheriff, and Defendant, Kent Brewer, and as a result of Kent Brewer’s retirement from the Clinton County Sheriff’s Merit Board hereby stipulate to the dismissal of Plaintiff’s claim against Defendant in this action, without prejudice, with each party to bear its own costs.”

The Board of Commissioners voted 3-0 on March 16, 2021, to bring a suit against Sheriff Kelly and Matron Kelly. The suit was filed on March 19, 2021, with the Commissioners scheduling a special meeting on March 25 to discuss the pending lawsuit.

Sheriff Kelly filed a suit on March 19, 2021, against the Commissioners in a Montgomery County Superior Court seeking a declaratory judgment against the Commissioners after the Board voted to amend the county smoking ordinance in an attempt to prohibit inmates from using tobacco-free products at its March 16 meeting.

COVID-19 Vaccinations Moved To Clinton County Fairgrounds

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FRANKFORT, Ind. – The Clinton County Health Department announced today that beginning Tuesday, January 26th all Covid vaccines will be given at the Clinton County Fairgrounds, 1701 S Jackson St, Frankfort. They will be located in the Edward Jones building (the 4-H Building).

When you arrive, please park on the South side of the building in the parking lot. You will use the East side entrance.

The appointments do include all second dose appointments that begin February 9, 2021.

The decision to move to this location is to expand their operation for the vaccinations. Please disregard any reference to the 1234 Rossville Ave, Frankfort location in your reminder notices.

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