IU Columbus will be offering voting information on campus today as part of its celebration of Constitution Day and Voter Registration Day later this month.

You will be able to check your voter registration and who will be on your ballot, find your voting locations, and view a voting booth used in Bartholomew County elections. There will also be snacks, button making and opportunities to ask questions about the upcoming elections.

The activities will be held in the Landing at the Columbus Learning Center at 4555 Central Avenue from 10 to 2 p.m.

A group dedicated to growing the Columbus area economy and encouraging business development will be holding its annual meeting next week.

The Greater Columbus Economic Development Corporation will be holding the meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 25th at The Commons. The featured speaker will be Dr. Jim Bullard, inaugural Dean of the Mitch Daniels, Jr., School of Business at Purdue University. Bullard was the longest-serving Federal Reserve Bank president while at the St. Louis Fed. His talk will be a fireside chat format about the state of the economy.

There will also be presentations on the local economy by Jason Hester, president of the Greater Columbus Economic Development Corporation and by Tom Dowd, chairman of the corporation’s board.

The event will be from 11 to 1 at The Commons.

Ticket sales for the event have ended. you can get more information at columbusin.org

Seymour Community School routines were disrupted Monday after a rumor spread on social media over the weekend.

According to the Seymour Police Department, a situation raising concerns about school safety was brought to the attention of Seymour High School staff, school resource officers, and the police department over the weekend. Police say the situation was swiftly investigated and investigators concluded that the information spreading was not credible.

And while the situation was resolved, there was an increased police presence Monday at Seymour High School as a precaution.

Schools around the state have recently faced unsubstantiated threats disrupting the education of students. In Bartholomew County, a threat at Parkside Elementary School led to an arrest of a young girl.

Flat Rock-Hawcreek Schools in Hope also said that they were looking into rumors of threats spreading on social media, and determined that there was no credible threats locally.

Authorities have given updates on two shooting incidents in Columbus Sunday night that led to the Columbus and Bartholomew County SWAT team being called out twice and two people arrested.

According to the Columbus Police Department, the first incident started around 9 p.m. when police were called to a shooting on Coles Drive. A 53-year-old man was shot in the abdomen at a home in the 4400 block of Coles Drive, before being driven to a nearby Columbus Fire Department station for treatment.

The SWAT team arrived at the home, along with the crisis negotiation team and other officers. Police worked to talk the suspected shooter, 78-year-old Stephen Funkhauser into surrendering and he eventually left the home and was taken into custody. He is facing a preliminary felony charge of battery with a deadly weapon.

The victim was flown to an Indianapolis hospital for treatment.

The second shooting incident led to an alert for nearby residents to stay safe in their homes on Silver Fox Drive at about 11:30 p.m. Sunday night.

Police say that there was a domestic dispute between a man and woman at a home in the 2900 block of Silver Fox drive at about 10:28 p.m. The woman ran from the home and police say that the man fired shots from a handgun. She reached a neighbor’s home and called for authorities.

Police discovered multiple bullets that had hit the neighbor’s home.

The alleged shooter, 59-year-old Brent Clayburn, of Columbus initially barricaded himself inside the home and refused to come out, but eventually surrendered.

Clayburn was arrested on felony charges of domestic battery with a deadly weapon, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and criminal confinement with a deadly weapon.

The Bartholomew County Commissioners have declared a burn ban in the county, until at least next week.

Citing continuing dry and dangerous conditions the commissioners enacted the burn ban Monday morning. It specifically prohibits campfires and other recreational fires, open burning of any kind with the exception of grills fueled by charcoal briquettes or propane, the burning of debris, such as timber or vegetation and the use of burn barrels for any open burning at residential structures.

The burn ban also urges you to make sure any charcoal is fully extinguished before removing it from a grill and discourages the use of fireworks.

You could see some nighttime lane closures on Interstate 65 between Seymour and Scottsburg this week, as crews work on patching in the area.

According to INDOT, there will be overnight lane closures starting tonight. The work is expected to take up to four nights and will be going on from 6 p.m. in the evening to 7 a.m. in the morning each night. The work schedule is dependent on the weather.

Crews will begin work in the right lane of southbound I-65 south of Seymour and will continue to move south to near the Scottsburg exit. Crews will then begin work in the right lane of northbound I-65 and head back toward Seymour.

INDOT asks you to slow down, to drive without distractions and to be alert to worker safety in all work zones.

A shooting threat against a local elementary school has led to an arrest and an increased police presence at schools today.

The Columbus Police Department announced last night that a juvenile girl had been arrested and taken to the Bartholomew County Youth Services Center on charges of intimidation and false informing.

The incident began Friday evening with a threat on social media against Parkside Elementary school saying that there would be a shooting at the school today. Columbus police began investigating immediately and believe the threat came from an elementary school student. Officers determined that the threat was not credible and the student does not have access to firearms, Police said that the child would not be attending school while police work with school officials and the Bartholomew County Prosecutor’s office to determine the next steps.

Police say that the protection of school is their our number one focus and additional school resource officers will be in place at Parkside Elementary School. Columbus police are coordinating with the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office and the Indiana State Police to ensure safety at all schools.

Authorities are also stressing the need to teach children about responsible internet use and for parents to actively monitor their online activity. And they warn about the dangers of sharing unverified information online.

11:30 a.m. update

The Columbus and Bartholomew County SWAT team was called out twice Sunday on shooting incidents.

According to the Columbus Police Department, the first incident started around 9 p.m. when police were called to a shooting on Coles Drive. A 53-year-old man was shot in the abdomen during at a home in the 4400 block of Coles Drive, before being driven to a nearby Columbus Fire Department station for treatment.

The SWAT team arrived at the home, along with the crisis negotiation team and other officers. Police worked to talk the suspected shooter, 78-year-old Stephen Funkhauser into surrendering and he eventually left the home and was taken into custody. He is facing a preliminary felony charge of battery with a deadly weapon.

The victim was flown to an Indianapolis hospital for treatment.

The second shooting incident led to an alert for nearby residents to stay safe in their homes on Silver Fox Drive at about 11:30 p.m. last night.
Police say that shots were fired during a fight between a man and woman at a home in the 2900 block of Silver Fox drive at about 10:28 p.m. The woman ran from the home and police say that the man fire shots from a handgun. She reached a neighbor’s home and called for authorities.

Police discovered multiple bullets that had hit the neighbor’s home.

The alleged shooter, 59-year-old Brent Clayburn, of Columbus initiatally barricaded himself inside the home and refused to come out, but eventually surrendered.

Clayburn was arrested on felony charges of domestic battery with a deadly weapon, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and criminal confinement with a deadly weapon.

Original story

The Columbus and Bartholomew County SWAT team was called out twice Sunday on shooting incidents.

Columbus police say that few details are available yet and more information will be released soon.

The SWAT team was called to the 4400 block of Coles Drive and found one man who had been shot in the abdomen. He was taken to an Indianapolis area hospital. A suspect is in custody.

The second incident led to an alert for nearby residents to stay safe in their homes on Silver Fox Drive at about 11:15 p.m. last night. In that incident an armed man barricaded himself into a home. Shots were fired in that incident but only property was damaged. He eventually came out of the home peacefully and was taken into custody.

Columbus Police Department Press Release Sunday, 8:30 p.m.

As Columbus Police Department (CPD) investigators continue to look into the threats made to our local schools, an  arrest has been made. In the evening hours of September 15, 2024, CPD has taken a juvenile female into custody and  remanded her to the Bartholomew County Youth Services Center for intimidation and false informing. Even with the  arrest, we are still coordinating with the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office and the Indiana State Police to ensure  safety at all Bartholomew County schools tomorrow. 

Columbus Police Press Release Sunday 3:30 p.m.

The Columbus Police Department (CPD) and our community continue to make school safety a top priority. All students  deserve to learn in a safe and nurturing environment. Many of our officers have children and family attending or working within our schools. CPD has an extensive history of working with the Bartholomew Consolidated School  Corporation (BCSC) to provide that safe environment, even before we started a full-time School Resource Officer (SRO)  Program in 2014. Our officers routinely conduct school security checks outside of the 5 full-time SRO’s assigned to BCSC  schools. 

On September 13th, 2024, we immediately began to investigate when it was reported to us that there was a shooting threat being sent through social media about Parkside Elementary School. That investigation is still ongoing. The  information provided leads us to believe the threat was communicated by an elementary school student. With the  investigation still going and the age of the involved parties, we can only release limited information. We can say that the  student will not be attending school while we work with BCSC and the Bartholomew County Prosecutor’s Office to  determine the best course of action at the conclusion of the investigation.  

With the protection of our schools being our number one focus, we will have additional SROs at Parkside Elementary School. Collaborating with the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office and the Indiana State Police, we have reallocated  resources to ensure the security of all Bartholomew County Schools. 

It’s important to note that we are not the only community experiencing these types of threats for Monday. We have and  will continue to address these threats with the utmost seriousness. In alignment with national best practices, we must  not let a person’s careless actions or words detract from all the work our community is doing to provide the best  learning environment for our children.

Columbus Police Press Release Saturday 7:17 p.m.

Following a school shooting threat made on Friday night, Columbus Police Department (CPD) investigators have determined that the threat is not credible. The individual involved does not have access to firearms, and CPD will continue to investigate the incident in partnership with Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation (BCSC).

School safety remains a top priority in our community. While we appreciate the public’s willingness to assist with school security, we ask that you allow law enforcement to manage these efforts. It’s important to note that carrying a firearm on school property is a felony.

This incident underscores the need to teach our children about responsible internet use and for parents to actively monitor their online activity. It is also critical that we all remain cautious when posting or sharing unverified information.

Thank you to all our community members who reached out with information to help us keep Columbus safe.

Columbus Police Department Press Release Friday 9:10 p.m.

The Columbus Police Department is continuing to investigate a threat of a shooting at a local school. At 6:53 pm, officers were called about a shooting threat made against Parkside Elementary School. The message that was sent via social media indicated it would take place on Monday, September 16th.

Our officers and detectives are actively investigating the origins of the message. At this point, it is unknown if this incident is related to any other threats made in other communities.

Anyone with information on the person who sent this message is encouraged to contact us at 812-376-2600.

Fans of independent coffee shops will have the chance to win prizes by completing a tour of southeastern Indiana cafes.

And five of the stops are in Bartholomew County this year.

The Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce is announcing the community participation in the Southeast Indiana Coffee Trail promotion. By stopping at the 21 businesses across seven counties and getting your Coffee Trail passport punched, you can earn a Trail T-shirt, an insulated travel mug and coupons and discounts at the area coffee shops.

Participating Bartholomew County locations include Gramz Bakery & Café, the two Lucabe Coffee Co. locations, and the two Sojourn Coffee Co locations. Also in our area is The Branch Gathering Place + Coffee House in Decatur County and Hos Coffee in Jennings County. Coffee shops in Dearborn, Jefferson, Ripley and Franklin counties are also taking part.

The challenge runs through December of next year. Tourism official say that this is a great way to showcase and support all of these businesses, along with their specialty coffees, other drinks and amenities.

You can start the tour and pick up your passport at the Columbus Area Visitors Center, Visit Greensburg and Join Us in Jennings in North Vernon.