Kentucky News Now – September 15th 2015

TROOPER KILLED

Trooper's death starts tragic chain of events

EDDYVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Police say a Kentucky state trooper who made a seemingly routine traffic stop when the driver sped off opened up a tragic chain of events that led to the shooting deaths of the lawman and the suspect.

Thirty-one-year-old Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder was shot by the suspect during a second stop late Sunday in rural western Kentucky, said state police spokesman Jay Thomas.

Thomas says the suspect, 25-year-old Joseph Thomas Johnson-Shanks of Florissant, Missouri, ran away and was found hours later after a massive overnight manhunt in a wooded area miles from the initial stop. The spokesman says the suspect was fatally shot when he drew a weapon at a trooper and ignored commands to drop the weapon.

TROOPER KILLED-NIECE CHARGED

Authorities: Niece of suspect charged following trooper death

EDDYVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky State Police have arrested an 18-year-old Missouri woman following a manhunt for a suspect in the shooting death of a state trooper.

Police said Ambrea R.J. Shanks of Florissant, Missouri, was jailed on a charge of first-degree hindering prosecution or apprehension. Police say she is a niece of Joseph Thomas Johnson-Shanks, the suspect in the death of Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder on Sunday night in western Kentucky.

Police say the 25-year-old Johnson-Shanks of Missouri was shot by police Monday morning when he refused to drop his weapon. Another woman and two children in the car were not charged.

GAY MARRIAGE-KENTUCKY

Kentucky governor: New marriage licenses valid

MOREHEAD, Ky. (AP) — Gov. Steve Beshear says the altered marriage licenses issued in Rowan County from the office of an embattled clerk are considered valid.

Beshear said Monday that the licenses issued "are going to be recognized as valid in the Commonwealth."

Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis has refused to authorize licenses for same-sex couples because of her religious beliefs. She spent five days in jail for refusing to follow a federal judge's ruling ordering her to issue the licenses.

On Monday, her office altered the marriage licenses to remove her name and deputy clerks — not Davis — granted them instead.

NURSES STABBED

Authorities: Kentucky patient accused of stabbing nurses in Tennessee

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Authorities say a Kentucky patient accused of stabbing two nurses at a medical center in Knoxville, Tennessee, is facing attempted murder charges.

The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that 40-year-old Gary M. Smallwood attacked the nurses around 6:30 a.m. on Monday with scissors and a knife in his hospital room at Tennova-Physicians Regional Medical Center. Smallwood, who police say has a Kentucky address, has been charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder.

Police say a male nurse and a female nurse were injured. Their names have not been released. Officials say they're both in stable condition.

Smallwood was brought to the medical center on Sunday after police were called to investigate his belligerent behavior at a Greyhound bus station. Police didn't elaborate, but they said he suffers from a medical condition and seems to be unsure of his surroundings.

ATTORNEY GENERAL-BESHEAR ADS

Andy Beshear's first TV ads feature his governor father

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear is appearing in a pair of TV ads for his son as he seeks to follow his father's path by becoming Kentucky's attorney general.

Andy Beshear's campaign began airing the ads Monday on broadcast TV statewide. One ad features Andy Beshear's wife talking about her husband's plan to toughen penalties for child abusers, adding that he is "honest and caring like his dad."

Another ad shows Steve Beshear and his wife Jane walking hand in hand while Andy Beshear says his parents taught him family values. Andy Beshear then says "I'll stand up for Kentucky, just like my dad."

Steve Beshear was attorney general from 1979 to 1983. Polls show he is popular with voters as he prepares to leave office in December. He cannot seek re-election because of term limits.

UTILITIES SCAM

Utilities say businesses targeted in bill scam

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities say businesses are being asked in a telephone scam to pay their utility bills over the phone.

The utilities say customers should report the behavior if someone contacts them and claims to represent their utility.

The companies say a caller claims to be a utility employee and asks for immediate bill payment by credit card or prepaid money card. The caller may be using technology to make the incoming phone number appear to be from the utility. The caller then threatens to disconnect electric or natural gas service if the customer doesn't cooperate.

The utilities advise customers affected by the scam to report it to police. Anyone who receives a suspicious phone call, email or letter should contact the utility to verify communication.