(Richmond, IN)--Four people were jailed during a Richmond drug bust Tuesday afternoon.  Officers took them into custody in the 200 block of South 14^th.  51-year-old David Lawman was charged with dealing meth, maintaining a common nuisance, and a host of other drug-related charges.  Trudy Grimes, Christina Parks, and Sierra Riddle face many of the same charges.  Meth, cocaine, syringes, and drug paraphernalia was also recovered.  Quantities have not been released.  Lawman has already been classified as a habitual substance offender.  According to online records, Parks already had four pending criminal drug cases before Tuesday’s arrest.

(Richmond, IN)--Shortly after Kicks 96 and 101.7 The Point News reported Tuesday that layoffs were coming to Lifestream this week, that organization released a statement.  Lifestream is the aging and disability resource center for East Central Indiana.  Lifestream said that a proposed rate for service would not have covered the actual cost of providing the service and would have put other services in jeopardy.  They say they’ll be unable to provide service coordination to individuals transitioning to the Indiana Pathways for Aging program after the July 1 implementation.

(Winchester, IN)--The identity of the person who died as a result of the March tornado in Winchester was released Tuesday.  73-year-old Robert Blansett died recently at a Muncie hospital.  Blansett was a 44-year employee of Anchor Hocking Glass and had served in the U.S. Army.  He was also an assistant preacher at Maxville Christian Church.

(Winchester, IN)--It’s been a month and a half since a tornado devastated Winchester.  No one died as an immediate result.  But now, a Randolph County death is being directly attributed to the tornado.  In a statement Monday, the National Weather Service indicated that a Randolph County resident who was injured in the tornado has now died.  That person’s identity has not been released.  The weather service also released some other updated numbers.  38 other people were hurt in the tornado.  163 building sustained damage, including 47 that were destroyed.  575 volunteers checked in to help people rebuild.

(Richmond, IN)--A Centerville teenager has been sentenced to 55 years in prison for killing his own father.  19-year-old James Burkhart killed his father, with whom he shares his name, back in December of 2020 at a home on South First Street in Centerville.  Audio from a surveillance camera indicated Burkhart killed his father because of the way he had treated his mother.  He was 16 at the time of the shooting.  19-year-old Lucas Benkert, who also took part in the murder, will be sentenced Tuesday afternoon.

(Richmond, IN)--Layoffs are coming to Lifestream this week.  Lifestream is the aging and disability resource center for East Central Indiana.  According to a local leader close to the situation, the layoffs are the result of a budget miscalculation by the Family and Social Services Administration.  The layoffs will impact local residents over 60 with the elimination of case managers.  The total number of layoffs has not been released, and Lifestream has not yet released any formal statement.

(Wayne County, IN)--Primary voting ramps up Monday with the opening of four vote centers across Wayne County.  From 10 until 7 this week, votes can be cast at the First Bank Kuhlman Center and First English Lutheran Church in Richmond, at the Golay Center in Cambridge City, and at the New Testament Church in Hagerstown.  All of the contested races in Wayne County involve Republicans.  State-issued photo ID’s are required to cast a ballot.

(Richmond, IN)--Details of a recent incident at Richmond State Hospital have become available through court documents.  According to an affidavit, Aaron Reid became upset when staffers tried to separate him from a female patient.  He then pulled two box cutters from his jacket and held one to his throat.  Four state hospital employees were injured in the struggle to disarm Reid.  None of the injuries were life-threatening.

(Richmond, IN)--A new event is coming to Richmond that will help to honor the legacy of fallen canine Officer Seara Burton.  On May 25^th, the inaugural “Seara’s Legacy K9 Trials” will be held at the Wayne County Fairgrounds.  There will be various competitions involving the canines…things like Best Nose and Obstacle Course Champion.  Law enforcement canine teams from across the region are expected to take part.

(Connersville, IN)--There was to have been a hearing this week to force the owner of a Fayette County property to allow searchers to look for the remains of Denise Pflum – the Connersville teen who went missing back in 1986.  Up until now, Erika Johnson had refused to allow the search to take place.  That hearing did not take place this week.  Now, Denise’s parents have indicated that attorneys for both sides have agreed to structure the language in an agreement to proceed with the search of the property in question.  A new hearing has now been set for May 3.

(Darke County, OH)--A Richmond woman is being blamed for a Darke County crash on Thursday that has left three people, including two children, in serious condition at two different Dayton hospitals.  Investigators say Melissa Leonard of Richmond turned in front of an oncoming car on State Route 121 at Weavers – Fort Jefferson Road.  Leonard was not seriously hurt, but 24-year-old Mary Funk was Careflighted to Miami Valley.  A six-year-old girl and a two-year-old boy both went to Dayton Children’s.  Three separate medical helicopters responded to the scene.

(Liberty, IN)--Earlier this week, Kicks 96 and 101.7 The Point News reported that lots of Union County residents had expressed concern over police canine Ice.  They claimed that the dog’s original handler recently took another position outside of the department and that the police canine was placed in the local shelter.  Thursday, the Sheriff’s Departments of Union and Fayette County indicated that the two departments had reached an agreement that will send Ice to serve in Fayette County.

(Richmond, IN)--The numbers are up for the percentage of Richmond Community School teachers and employees in terms of job satisfaction.  The results of an annual cultural survey were discussed at Wednesday afternoon’s RCS Board meeting.  Just over 250 RCS employees responded to the survey.  61% say they’re satisfied with their jobs.  Another 34% are somewhat satisfied, and that’s up from last year.  "You can see a 3.8% growth in job satisfaction from 'somewhat satisfied' to 'satisfied'," explained   Jamie Bolser with RCS.  As for staffers who are not satisfied, here are the reasons:  "student discipline and behavior and a lack of effective communication," Bolser said.  79% of RCS staffers say they would recommend working for the district.

(Wayne County, IN)--A police officer was struck in Dayton Wednesday night, and officers caught the suspect after a chase that ended in Wayne County.  Officers from multiple agencies chased the suspect west on I-70 through Montgomery and then Preble County.  Stop sticks were successfully deployed.  The man was driving on all four rims as he passed the Chester Boulevard exit with sparks flying.  He was taken into custody west of the U.S. 35 exit.  The officer who was struck in Dayton was not seriously hurt.

(Richmond, IN)--Richmond fire crews battled a house fire Wednesday night.  The call came in at around 10:30 to a house in the 1100 block of North West 6^th Street.  "The first crew arrived and advised there was heavy smoke showing.  We made a quick attack and got it knocked down and under control in 15 minutes," said Battalion Chief Chuck Powell.  No one was home at the time and there were no injuries.  There’s no word yet on what started the fire, which consumed most of the house.

(Richmond, IN)--On Tuesday, Kicks 96 and 101.7 The Point News reported that new numbers from the state show that Wayne County has lost 700 members of its labor force since this time last year.  Now, here’s a look specifically at the city of Richmond.  Richmond has lost 312 members of its labor force in the last year.  More eye-opening, though, is the fact that there are 445 fewer Richmond residents who are employed as there were a year ago.  The city’s unemployment rate stands at five percent.

(Richmond, IN)--Richmond police caught a man classified as a sexually violent predator who is now also an alleged burglar Tuesday.  50-year-old Christopher Cones was taken into custody in the 100 block of South West 4^th Street.  Details of that burglary have not been released.  Cones was convicted of first-degree rape in Oklahoma back in 1998.  In Wayne County, this now makes his fifth criminal case in the last ten months.  The previous four involve trespassing and theft.

(Richmond, IN)--33 years in prison is the sentence for a former Richmond woman who was responsible for the death of a two-year-old boy in 2019.  Pamela Barger operated a babysitting service.  Barger failed to seek medical attention in a timely manner after the toddler suffered blunt force trauma to the head.  A co-defendant, Todd Volker, had previously been sentenced to 25 years for his role in the boy’s death.

(Richmond, IN)--Last week, Richmond Common Council denied rezoning that would have advanced the plan to create a large housing development called Smith Hill located near the intersection of South 37^th and Backmeyer Road.  The property is owned by an LLC formed by Craig Kinyon and Reid Health.  Reid incidated the property had been purchased to help solve a housing shortage in Richmond that makes it difficult to recruit and retain employees.  Monday, a Reid Health spokesperson issued a short statement on what Reid will do with the land now that zoning was rejected.  The statement said simply that Reid is exploring other options, but did not indicate what those options entail.

(Wayne County, IN)--Numbers released by the state Monday show that Wayne County is holding steady at its highest employment rate in the last three and a half years.  Wayne County’s rate remained at 4.6% Tuesday morning.  Most other area counties in Indiana saw a slight decline.  The number of people listed as unemployed and the number of people in Wayne County’s workforce remain nearly identical to last month.  But, Wayne County’s labor force has shrunk by nearly 700 people since this time last year and now stands at just under 29,000 people.