Bartholomew County voters will be making a choice in the Nov. 5th election between six candidates for the three at-large seats on the County Council.

Republicans Marcus Speer, Kim Bennett and Michael Bell are running against Democrats Michelle Carr, Dr. Nancy Merbitz and Zack Patchett.

No matter which way the vote goes, there will be new faces on the Bartholomew County Council after the elections, as none of the three Republican incumbents decided to seek re-election.

We interviewed the candidates  and why they decided to run for County Council. Marcus Speer said:

We talked to the candidates about what challenges the county will face

Speer said:

We also asked the candidates about the integrity in the voting process here:

Speer said:

You can hear Speer’s entire interview here:

Early voting is underway now in Bartholomew County. You can vote on weekdays from 8 to 5 at Donner Center off of 22nd Street in Columbus. The county is adding Saturday hours starting this weekend, both at Donner Center and at the Bartholomew County Governmental Office Building on Third Street from 8 to 3 on Saturday and on Nov. 2nd.

Early voting wraps up by noon on Monday, Nov. 4th with Election Day on Nov. 5th. In Bartholomew County you will be able to vote at any of 14 vote centers throughout the county from 6 to 6.

We will have more from all the County Council candidates next week.

Attorney General’s office Press Release:

Amid ongoing concerns from community members and elected officials, Attorney General Todd Rokita has issued civil investigative demands (CID) to the Seymour and South Bend police departments seeking information on whether their immigration policies comply with state law.

“We are working to ensure units of local government are following the law,” Attorney General Rokita said. “We are putting Hoosiers first – not illegal aliens.

In the CID, Attorney General Rokita states his office is asking for information regarding both police departments’ immigration-related communications, cooperation and enforcement policies.

Indiana law limits the attorney general to investigating and enforcing local government entities that have policies that restrict or limit communication or cooperation with federal immigration authorities or the enforcement of federal immigration law.

Attorney General Rokita has instructed Seymour and South Bend police to produce all documents responsive to his inquiry by November 8, 2024.

“A failure to comply with the CID may result in legal action,” Attorney General Rokita said. “If the documents produced show that either police department has unlawful immigration policies on the books, we will take action as warranted to ensure compliance with state law.”

On top of issuing the CIDs, Attorney General Rokita is currently suing the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department for its refusal to rescind its unlawful immigration policies and recently sent demand letters to officials in Lake and St. Joseph counties warning them of impending legal action if they fail to come into compliance with state law.

Earlier this year, Attorney General Rokita sent similar letters to officials in the cities of East Chicago, Gary, and West Lafayette, which all worked to rescind their unlawful immigration policies to comply with state law after receiving these communications.

Attorney General Rokita said his office will continue to evaluate other local governments.

Response from Seymour City Attorney Christina Engleking:

“The Seymour Police Department and its officers are dedicated to fulfilling their duties and oaths of office. They are relentless in their support of the Constitution of the United States and of the State of Indiana, and faithfully and impartially serve their community. The SPD has a long history of working alongside Federal immigration authorities, sharing information and resources with its Federal partners. There is no legal or factual basis to support any accusation that the SPD is in violation of Ind. Code 5-2-18.2-3 or Ind. Code 5-2-18.2-4. The SPD looks forward to demonstrating its adherence to Federal and state law and will continue its dedicated service to the people of Seymour.”

On Saturday, October 26th, 2024, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) along with the Indiana State Police,  is sponsoring the 27th nationwide “Prescription Drug Take Back Day”. This initiative seeks to prevent prescription drug abuse and theft through proper disposal of prescription drugs.

Collection sites will be set up nationwide for expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs which will be properly disposed of without threat to the environment. This program is for liquid and pill medications. Vaping pens without batteries and vaping cartridges will also be taken. Needles, new or used, WILL NOT be accepted for disposal. This service is free and anonymous with no questions asked.

Any unwanted medications may be dropped off at any Indiana State Police Post, except for the Toll Road Post on October 26th between the Hours of 10am and 2pm.

Bartholomew County organizations are receiving more than $400 thousand dollars in grants to expand access and quality of early childhood care in the community.

The Lilly Endowment recently announced $60 million in grants across the state for its Early Years Initiative, meant to improve early child hood care with an emphasis on families in low-income households, communities of color, and where very young children are multi-language learners.

In Columbus, Children Inc. is receiving $350,000 to expand its current childcare program, providing 18 additional infants and toddlers with care in new family child care homes. The funding will also allow Children Inc. to provide staff with professional development, and create a parent education program for fathers using a curriculum from the National Fatherhood Initiative .

The Community Education Coalition received a $70,000 grant to partner with Learn by Heart. Through the program, new and emerging childcare providers can receive mini-grants, relationship-based coaching, and professional development opportunities. The Community Education Coalition will focus on increasing access to high-quality care for Latino- and Spanish-speaking families.

Researchers say that a child’s brain develops most between birth and the age of 3. Neural pathways developed in those early years will form the basis for all future learning and development.

Bartholomew County voters will be making a choice in the Nov. 5th election between a long-serving incumbent and a relative political newcomer in the race to oversee county government.

County Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz, a Republican, has held the District 1 seat on the board for 30 years, first getting elected in 1993. He is facing Democrat Josh Burbrink who ran for the County Council two years ago.

We interviewed the candidates and talked to them about why they are running for office.

Kleinhenz said:

Burbrink said:

We asked the candidates about what they see as challenges ahead.

Kleinhenz said:

Burbrink said:

We i asked for their thoughts on the integrity of our voting process.

Kleinhenz said:

Burbrink said:

The complete interviews with the candidate (possibly edited for time)

Larry Kleinhenz on News & Views

Josh Burbrink on News  & Views

In the District 3 race for County Commissioner, Republican Tony London is unopposed in his first re-election run.

Early voting is underway now in Bartholomew County. You can vote on weekdays from 8 to 5 at Donner Center off of 22nd Street in Columbus. The county is adding Saturday hours starting this weekend, both at Donner Center and at the Bartholomew County Governmental Office Building on Third Street from 8 to 3 on Saturday and on Nov. 2nd.

Early voting wraps up by noon on Monday, Nov. 4th with Election Day on Nov. 5th. In Bartholomew County you will be able to vote at any of 14 vote centers throughout the county from 6 to 6.

Thrive Alliance will be offering a free workshop next month on managing stress for family caregivers.

Thrive Alliance is offering the workshop for relative caregivers so they can learn self-care strategies and techniques to increase relaxation and to reduce stress. Organizers say that caregiving for a child can be stressfully and the workshop will help caregivers learn how to manage the daily stresses they face.

The workshop will be from 11 to 12:30 on Thursday, Nov. 14th at the Doug Otto United Way Center on 13th Street in Columbus. Boxed lunches are being provided by Voelz, Reed and Mount, Attorneys.

You should register to make sure a lunch will be available. You can find more information on our website or Register by calling 812-372-6918, ext. 2402 or 2404.}

State Road 135 in Brown County will be closing temporarily over the next few days as INDOT crews replace culverts on the highway.

According to INDOT, the work will start today and will take about four days and will be going on from 8:30 to 3:30 each day, weather permitting. The closures will be south of Story between Christiansburg Road and Mt. Nebo Road.

INDOT reminds you to slow down, to drive without distractions and to use extra caution to worker safety in all work zones.

Firefighters say there was about $5,000 in damages after an electrical fire yesterday in a Columbus apartment.

Columbus Fire Department was called to the Bloomfield Apartments on Sims Court at about 2:39 p.m. yesterday afternoon after a resident noticed the smell of smoke inside their apartment and called for help. Firefighters discovered light smoke on the balcony and thicker smoke inside the third floor apartment, but no flames were visible. They tracked the smoke down to a power outlet and after shutting off the power, they cut into the outside wall to find charred wood and burned electrical lines inside. The fire damage was confined to the space between the interior and exterior walls.

Firefighters say that a fire alarm was activated and everyone was evacuated from the building and no one was injured.

The cause of the fire is undetermined.

Seymour police have arrested a North Carolina man, accused of sex crimes involving a minor.

According to the Seymour Police Department, officers were contacted last week by a mother who said her daughter had been sexually assaulted.

The investigation led to the Friday arrest of 25-year-old Mark A. Ballinas of Clayton, North Carolina. He is facing charges of rape and sexual misconduct with a minor.