Kentucky News Now

FATAL MOBILE HOME FIRE

Body found inside burned home near Henderson is identified

HENDERSON, Ky. (AP) — The person whose body was found inside a home after a fire in western Kentucky has been identified.

Kentucky State Police say 41-year-old Roxanna J. Jones lived at the home that burned.

Police say the fire happened in the Smith Mills community about eight miles west of Henderson. Jones' body was found inside the mobile home after the fire was extinguished, and police said an autopsy was scheduled Wednesday in Louisville.

Police said investigators aren't sure yet whether the fire was accidental. The investigation continues.

The fire was reported around 4:30 p.m. CDT Monday.

HIV OUTBREAK-INDIANA-ARRESTS

4 arrested in connection with southern Indiana HIV outbreak

JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. (AP) — Authorities say four men have been arrested after allegedly distributing drugs that have fueled the largest HIV outbreak in Indiana history.

The Drug Enforcement Agency says Michael Elkins of Cartersville, Georgia, distributed pills of the painkiller Opana in southern Indiana's Scott County, where officials say needle-sharing among people injecting a liquefied form of Opana has driven the HIV outbreak in which about 170 people have tested positive.

The DEA says Elkins and John Morgan were arrested June 16 in Henryville with about four ounces of methamphetamine and 19 Opana pills. They're charged with dealing in methamphetamine, possession of a narcotic and possession of Opana. They were being held Tuesday in Jeffersonville along with two other men.

Online court records don't list a hometown for Morgan or attorneys for the four.

CHARLESTON SHOOTING-CONFEDERATE SYMBOLS

After Charleston, South revisits its many Confederate images

ATLANTA (AP) — Calls to remove Confederate imagery are multiplying across the South after the killing of nine black churchgoers in South Carolina.

But the efforts targeting statues, flags and license plates pale in comparison to the legions of monuments and other memorials across the states of the Old Confederacy and beyond.

The sudden push to take down the tributes has made converts out of politicians who long supported or stood silent about such symbols. Longtime opponents say it's past time to remove the painful reminders.

Confederate heritage groups call the outcry an overreaction to photos showing the suspected church gunman holding the rebel flag.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT LAWSUIT

Attorney: Kentucky resolves sexual harassment lawsuit

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky's legislative leaders have resolved sexual harassment lawsuits involving Democratic lawmakers and three state workers.

Thomas Clay, the attorney for Yolanda Costner, Cassaundra Cooper and Nicole Cusic said the cases have been resolved to the satisfaction of the parties. He declined to elaborate.

Costner is a former aide to House Majority Whip Johnny Bell. Cooper still works for Bell while Cusic is a nonpartisan employee in the state Senate. Costner and Cooper filed a sexual harassment lawsuit alleging former Democratic state Rep. John Arnold touched them inappropriately and that the Legislative Research Commission did not do enough to protect them. Cusic sued Democratic state Rep. Will Coursey, saying he retaliated against her after she complained about his inappropriate behavior toward others.

An attorney for the Legislative Research Commission said the settlement should be finalized in the next 30 days.

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This story has been corrected to show that Nicole Cusic filed a lawsuit against state Rep. Will Coursey.

MCCONNELL-JEFFERSON DAVIS STATUE

McConnell: Ky.'s Jefferson Davis statue should be in museum

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Kentucky needs to remove a statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis from the state Capitol's rotunda.

McConnell said Davis' only connection to Kentucky is he was born there. Davis later moved to Mississippi, and Kentucky never officially joined the confederacy. McConnell suggested a better place for the statue would be at the Kentucky History Museum in Frankfort.

Leaders in states across the country have taken steps to remove Confederate symbols following the shooting deaths of nine black people in a South Carolina church last week. A 21-year-old white man has been charged with the murders.

Kentucky's Republican nominee for governor, Matt Bevin, and the Republican president of the state Senate, Robert Stivers, have also said the statue should be removed.

DOGS-AIR CONDITIONING

Lexington Humane Society needs new A/C for dogs

(Information in the following story is from: Lexington Herald-Leader, http://www.kentucky.com)

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — The Lexington Humane Society has reached its goal of raising $35,000 for a new air-conditioning unit for its dog kennels.

The center set up a donations pages on Monday, and hours later, more than $20,000 was collected. Less than 24 hours after creating the donations page, more than $35,000 had been raised.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports Fayette Heating & Air Conditioning is covering $10,000 of the cost of replacing the 20-ton unit that failed.

A spokeswoman at the Lexington Humane Society says workers are there around the clock checking on the dogs every few minutes.

She says there is a six-week turnaround once the order for the new unit is placed. In the meantime, Big Ass Fans lent seven fans so the facility could cool down the dogs and keep the floors dry, allowing the adoption center to remain open.

JEFFERSON DAVIS STATUE

Bevin: Kentucky should remove Jefferson Davis statue

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky's Republican nominee for governor says the state should remove a statue of Jefferson Davis from the Capitol rotunda.

Matt Bevin said he applauded South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley for asking lawmakers to remove the Confederate flag from the statehouse grounds following the shooting deaths of nine black people at a Charleston church last week. Bevin said it would be equally appropriate for Kentucky to remove the statue of Davis, the only president of the Confederacy during the Civil War.

Bevin also said he would be donating $500 to the Warren County NAACP scholarship fund after Politico reported he accepted a $500 campaign donation in 2013 from a white supremacist.

Democratic nominee Jack Conway also agreed with Haley's decision but said he would have to think about whether he would support removing the statue.

KENTUCKY GOVERNOR-JOBS

Conway offers plan for job growth in Kentucky

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jack Conway has released a jobs plan that includes promoting Kentucky's homegrown industries and expanding broadband access to rural areas lacking the links with high-speed Internet service.

Conway on Tuesday called for phasing out the state's portion of the inventory tax as a way to lower business costs and spur more investment.

He said he wants to build on Kentucky's strengths in agriculture, manufacturing, logistics, mining, tourism, horses and whiskey production.

Conway and Republican businessman Matt Bevin are competing for the governor's office in the November election.

Conway opposes right-to-work legislation backed by Bevin that would allow employees represented by unions to opt out of paying union fees.

Bevin's plan for job growth also calls for revamping the state's tax code.