A pedestrian was struck and killed Wednesday night in an accident on Indianapolis Road.

According to Columbus Police Department reports, 38-year-old Victoria N. Hagan of Edinburgh was struck by a car and pronounced dead by the Bartholomew County Coroner’s office at the scene near the intersection with Acadia Drive at about 8:15 p.m. Wednesday night.

The driver of the vehicle, 28-year-old Bersain J. Ozaeta of Columbus told officer that he struck the woman while she was walking southbound on the road.

The road was closed for about five hours so the crash could be investigated and the scene cleaned up.

Columbus police were also assisted at the scene by Bartholomew County deputies, Edinburgh Police, Columbus Regional Health medics and the Columbus Fire Department.

You could see Columbus firefighters in action today through Saturday near 21st Street and Central Avenue. But they are using a residential structure for training, not battling an actual fire.

Capt. Mike Wilson spokesman for the department, says that the training will be happening both inside and outside the building. They will be training on forcible entries, search and rescue and ventilation techniques. There will be a smoke generation machine active at times, but no actual fire is being used for any portion of the training.

If you are in the area, Wilson asks you to use caution while the training is going on.

Columbus native Mike Pence appears to be hinting at a possible run for the White House in 2024.

The former Vice President appeared at Georgetown University on Wednesday and was asked if he would vote for Trump in the next election. Pence said:

Pence reiterated that he has full confidence in the Republican party to choose the right candidate.

He also said that all of his focus has been on the midterm elections, but added, “after that, we’ll be thinking about the future.”

Pence has been visiting states that figure prominently into the presidential primaries including New Hampshire and Iowa.

Pence also says President Biden’s latest oil release is happening because his energy policies have failed.

Speaking after Biden announced another release from the nation’s oil reserves, Pence added gas prices aren’t high because of Russia’s war in Ukraine; rather, they’re high because Biden is engaged in a war on energy. Pence claimed he and former President Trump made America energy independent during their time office.

Story courtesy of our news-gathering partners at TTWN Media Networks Inc.

Bartholomew County authorities are hosting a regional meeting on best practices for the Indiana Sex Offender Registry.

Convicted sex offenders are required to annually register information to authorities including their address, phone number, vehicles they own or operate and have valid ID or driver’s license with their current address. Failing to complete those registration requirements is a felony.

Bartholomew County Sheriff Matt Myers says that you can use the registry online to track sex offenders in your area. You can choose a local address and the registry will provide a list of all registered county sex offenders living within a one-mile radius within the county selected.

Myers encourages residents to take advantage of the online option for free email notifications. When a sex offender registers with the county Sheriff’s Office in Indiana, you will be alerted if the offender’s address is within one mile of the address you have entered on your subscription.

He says the registry is designed to increase community safety and awareness, but not to take action against anyone on the list. The sheriff says that anyone taking illegal action against a registered sex offender is opening themselves up to arrest and prosecution.

Myers said that since 2018, tracking of sex offenders in Bartholomew County is up 111 percent. He credited Rudy Olivio, the department’s sex offender coordinator and with deputies who aggressively track offenders who live or work in Bartholomew County.

Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center is looking for first-time homebuyers to take part in a free workshop this weekend.

The center is organizing the workshop by Apprisen under the Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Homebuyer Program. It will be from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Saturday at YES Cinema, on Jackson Street in downtown Columbus.

Topics for the workshop will include preparing for homeownership, working with a real estate agent, understanding budgets and credit history, finding and working with a lender, home inspections and home maintenance and preventing loan defaults. Attendees will receive a HUD homebuyer certificate of completion.

The workshop is being held in partnership with First Financial Bank and the Southern Indiana Housing and Community Development Corporation.

The deadline to sign up is noon today.

You can get more information or register by calling Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center at (812) 379-1630 or by email [email protected].

Legal Aid will be holding an in-person walk-in clinic in Bartholomew County Tuesday.

Legal Aid offers the clinics for low-income residents of its eight-county district.

If you take part you will have up to a 10-minute consultation with a volunteer attorney to answer general questions, to offer legal information or to receive other advice.

Legal Aid is hosting the walk-in legal clinic from 3 to 5 p.m. at their offices in the United Way Building on 13th Street in Columbus.

From 4 to 5 p.m. there will be a clinic on evictions, where you can get free legal advice on those issues.

Jennings County deputies have made 9 arrests in an investigation into unregistered sexual offenders in the county.

According to reports from the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department, deputies began making random home checks of known sex and violent offenders in the county. Those offenders are required to report information to authorities including their address, phone number, vehicles they own or operate and to have valid ID or driver’s license with their current address.

During the course of the investigation, deputies also found evidence of child solicitation and sending material harmful to minors.

Among those arrested were 59-year-old Richard Bunch of Columbus, on charges of Child Solicitation, Possession of Methamphetamine, Disseminating Harmful Material to Minors and Possession of Paraphernalia.

35-year-old Cody Powel of Attica is being accused of Child Solicitation, Disseminating Harmful Material to Minors and Resisting Law Enforcement by Fleeing.

43-year-old Tilden Slone of Seymour was arrested on charges of Child Solicitation and Disseminating Harmful Material to Minors.

30-year-old Brandon Strickland of North Vernon and 29-year-old Yeison Calderon of Westfield were both arrested on charges of Child Solicitation.

Five others were arrested on charges of failing to register as a sexual or violent offender. Those were:

• Matthew Sowers, 49, North Vernon.
• Michael Brown, 51, North Vernon.
• Richard Cain, 62, North Vernon.
• Jonathan Moore, 34, North Vernon.
• Joseph Wright, 54, North Vernon.

The last of Schneck Primary Care’s Jackson County drive-in flu shot clinics for October will be on Saturday.

The vaccine is available in regular dose and high dose for those 65 and older. The cost of the flu vaccine is covered by most insurance plans or self-pay. You should bring your identification and your insurance information.

The clinic will be Saturday from 8 to noon on Level 4 of the Schneck Professional Building Parking Garage in Seymour.

The vaccines will be available on a first come, first served basis. For more information, call 812-522-1613.

Bartholomew County deputies and Columbus police rescued seven people from a home fire on Union Street Saturday.

According to reports from the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, deputies and officers were in downtown Columbus working on an investigation, when a woman told deputies that her neighbor’s house might be on fire. She said a smoke alarm had been going off and she believed that people were still inside.

Deputies went to the home in the 800 block of Union Street and found smoke coming from inside. They tried to alert the residents, but no one opened the door. Deputies broke in and found a man who appeared confused and who wasn’t able to get out on his own. The deputies pulled him from the home. He was taken to Columbus Regional Hospital to be treated for minor injuries.

Columbus police used a fire extinguisher to put out a small kitchen fire.

More officers arrived on the scene and evacuated six people from the rear of the home.

Columbus firefighters finished extinguishing the fire and ventilated the smoke from the building.

Sheriff Matt Myers praised the deputies, saying this is “an example of the pinnacle of public service, courageous action that ends up saving someone’s life.”

Nominations are being accepted for next year’s Edna V. Folger Outstanding Teacher Award.

Full-time elementary or secondary school teachers or educators working in a public, private, or parochial school in Bartholomew County are eligible. That includes classroom, special education, or specials teachers; certified educators; counselors; and administrators. Anyone or a group may nominate an educator to receive the award.

The award is sponsored by the Community Education Coalition and the IUPUC Center for Teaching and Learning. Traditionally, the award is presented at the Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting.

You can find nomination forms at the IUPUC Center for Teaching and Learning, the Bartholomew Consolidated administrative offices and in the main offices of schools in the county.

The deadline for nominations is Friday, January 20th. You can also find the nomination form here.