Kentucky News Now – July 25th 2014

KENTUCKY SENATE-ENDORSEMENT

UAW backs Grimes in Kentucky Senate race

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes has picked up an endorsement from the United Auto Workers in her bid to unseat Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in the November election.

Mark Dowell, head of the Kentucky UAW's political arm, says Grimes would be a "strong voice" for working Kentuckians if she's elected to the Senate.

He says the Democratic challenger shares the UAW's vision for a thriving middle class.

Grimes' campaign says the UAW has more than 40,000 active and retired members in Kentucky.

It's the latest labor endorsement for Grimes. Last year, she was endorsed by the Kentucky AFL-CIO.

The McConnell-Grimes matchup is one of the country's most closely watched Senate races.

McConnell is seeking a sixth Senate term. Grimes is in her first term as Kentucky's secretary of state.

ONLINE COURT RECORDS

Kentucky pushing court records online

COVINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky is pushing to digitize court records and eventually make them more accessible to the public.

State Supreme Court Justice Michelle Keller says the goal is to get all 120 Kentucky counties and all types of cases operating on a single system by the end of 2015. Keller, chair of the courts' Technology Governance Committee and leader of this effort, says e-filing simplifies work for court clerks, judges and attorneys.

Keller told The Kentucky Enquirer all of these efficiencies will reduce the cost of doing business in the courts.

She does not believe it will cost court employees their jobs because most offices are already understaffed.

Kenton County went online Wednesday, joining Boone, Campbell, Gallatin and Franklin counties providing the service for civil cases.

PET FOOD PLANT

Pet food plant to open in Kentucky

AUBURN, Ky. (AP) — A Canadian pet food company has broken ground on a planned manufacturing plant in southern Kentucky.

Champion Petfoods held a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday in Auburn for Kentucky Kitchens, the first establishment in the United States that will follow the company's mission of using local ingredients to make their pet food.

The Daily News reported that Champion will invest $85 million in the project.

Kentucky Kitchens is expected to employ 147 people and use ingredients from local farmers.

The facility is set to open Jan. 1, 2016.

Gov. Steve Beshear says the new facility shows the company's confidence in the community and state.

BAKERY-LISTERIA RECALL

Lab finds no risk from bacteria at Ohio bakery

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (AP) — An independent lab has found that bacteria discovered at a commercial bakery in northeast Ohio poses no risk to public health.

Production at the Schwebel Baking Co. facility in Youngstown was stopped Tuesday after environmental sampling conducted by the company found an undetermined species of listeria, a naturally occurring bacteria.

The bakery reported the findings to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and immediately initiated a voluntary withdrawal of all products shipped to markets in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, New York, Michigan, West Virginia and Kentucky.

Test results found the listeria poses no health threat to workers or consumers.

Company president Paul Schwebel tells The (Youngstown) Vindicator that full production will resume soon.

KENTUCKY EXECUTIONS-JOHNSON

Condemned Kentucky inmate seeks new trial

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A death row inmate from eastern Kentucky has asked a federal judge to throw out is conviction and sentence, saying a judge erred in accepting his guilty plea.

In a petition filed in federal court in Lexington, 47-year-old Donald Herb Johnson says a judge in Floyd County didn't recount all the rights he'd be giving up by admitting to stabbing Helen Madden to death on Oct. 30, 1989. Johnson also claims he may not have been competent at the time to enter the plea.

Madden was attacked at the Bright and Clean Laundry in Hazard where she worked. Johnson entered the guilty plea on Oct. 1, 1997.

Kentucky is currently under a court order suspending all executions in the state.

SCHOOL-BOTTLE BOMBS

Kentucky school finds crude bottle bombs on campus

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — A bottle bomb exploded at a Lexington school, chasing band members inside and bringing police to the scene.

Fayette County Public Schools canceled all student activities at Lafayette High School after the detonation Wednesday. District spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall told the Lexington Herald-Leader that two other bombs were also found on campus and deactivated.

Deffendall says a search turned up no bombs at other schools and no one was injured by the explosion.

The bombs were made out of soda bottles and the explosion happened at about 8:30 a.m. as the school's marching band color guard practiced on a parking lot behind the school.

Superintendent Tom Shelton says there was no warning phone call or social media message received by the school.

PROCESSING CENTER

New processing center planned in Mount Sterling

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A company plans to open a data processing center in Mount Sterling and create 100 new jobs in the eastern Kentucky town.

Gov. Steve Beshear said Wednesday that Data Dimensions Corp. plans to invest $3.2 million in the project in Montgomery County.

The document management company will process financial transactions at the Mount Sterling facility.

Hiring is expected to start this fall and grow to 100 employees over the next year.

To encourage the investment and job creation, the state has preliminarily approved tax incentives up to $1 million for the company.

The performance-based incentives allow a company to keep a portion of its investment through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets.

ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE

Ky. electric cooperative receives loan guarantee

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A north-central Kentucky electric cooperative has received a $30 million loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Gov. Steve Beshear's office says Owen Electric Cooperative is one of eight rural electric cooperatives to receive such funding.

Beshear says the loan guarantee will help Owen Electric build or improve 228 miles of line and make other system improvements.

His office says more than $3.4 million of the loan will be used for smart grid projects. That will allow the cooperative to better manage and improve operational efficiencies, especially during peak demand time.

Owen Electric Cooperative serves 57,710 customers.

Nationally, the USDA is investing $263.3 million in eight projects to improve the reliability of rural electric systems in eight states.

DANCE WITH FATE DIES

Blue Grass winner Dance With Fate euthanized

DEL MAR, Calif. (AP) — Blue Grass Stakes winner Dance With Fate has been euthanized after the colt severely injured his leg in a training accident.

A veterinarian at the seaside track said Thursday that Dance With Fate ruptured two of the three large patella ligaments in his right rear leg earlier in the morning.

Dr. Helmuth Von Bluecher says the injury was complicated by possible infection and further injuries in the area, which meant the colt would not be able to bear weight.

Dance With Fate was galloping at 5:30 a.m. when he bolted to the outside fence near the far turn, crashed into the fence and fell, dumping exercise rider Joe Durant, who was hospitalized with unknown injuries. Dance With Fate was taken by horse ambulance to trainer Peter Eurton's barn, where the colt was put down about 5 1/2 hours later.

LOUISVILLE-SCHEDULE

Cardinals to face Kentucky, Cal in non-league play

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Louisville will prepare to enter the Atlantic Coast Conference with a non-conference schedule featuring Final Four participant Cal and in-state rivals Kentucky and Western Kentucky.

The Cardinals will face seven 20-win teams among 11 postseason participants last spring. Louisville opens on Nov. 14 at IUPUI, a WNIT participant, before starting a six-game home stand Nov. 16 with UT-Martin, which went 24-10.

A Nov. 20 meeting against Belmont begins a five-game stretch over 10 days and includes Ball State, WKU (Nov. 25), Lafayette and at Valparaiso. Louisville hosts Iowa on Dec. 4 in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge before hosting Kentucky three days later.

After facing Old Dominion on Dec. 15, Louisville heads west to meet Grand Canyon (Dec. 18) and Cal (Dec. 21) before closing 2014 against Evansville on Dec. 28.