There is still time to sign up for this weekend’s Hope Heritage Days parade.

The annual festival in northeastern Bartholomew County is celebrating its 50th year and organizers hope to make this the best parade ever. Michael Dean, CEO with Heritage of Hope, explains.

Dean says that you can still sign up in several categories, including horse-drawn entries, fire trucks and parade floats.

This year’s grand marshals will be former clerk-treasurers John and Shirley Robertson.

Dean gave credit to shop owner Adora Paetzel, who is organizing the parade for the first year.

Hope Heritage Days kicks off on Friday. The parade is Sunday with the military plane flyover at 2:15 p.m. and the parade itself starting at 2:30 p.m.. You can sign up online at hopeheritagedays.org

An electrical fire damaged a Columbus home Sunday afternoon.

The resident had just finished baking a cake when she noticed flames coming from behind the stove at about 3:55 p.m. Sunday in the 500 block of Gladstone Avenue. Firefighters extinguished the fire and it immediately reignited, leading firefighters to believe it might be electrical.

They shut off power to the home and were able to quickly put the fire out, says Capt. Mike Wilson, spokesman for the fire department.

When officers went to the basement they found charred flooring and evidence that a short had caused the fire. Damage was estimated at $5,000.

Wilson said the home did have smoke alarms, but they did not sound because they were more than 10 years old. Firefighters installed three new alarms in the home.

Two adults and an 11-year-old escaped from the fire unharmed.

A bomb threat led to the evacuation of the Columbus Target store on National Road, but no bomb was located.

Police later determined that Targets across the country received similar threats.

At about 9:45 p.m. Saturday night, Columbus police were called to the store. Employees were already evacuating the store as police arrived.

The Columbus police bomb squad search the building and found nothing unusual says Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the department.

Harris said police found that several other Target stores across the country received similar threats on Saturday.

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department has announced a number of promotions among staff at the jail. The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Jail Commander, Major John Martoccia, announced that they are:

Lieutenant Nichole Kinman promoted to Captain.

Martoccia says that Capt. Kinman has been with the jail for 13 years. She is a 2003 graduate of Columbus East High School. Capt. Kinman earned a BS in Criminal Justice from IUPUI’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs, a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice with a Criminal Behavior concentration from Tiffin University and a second Master’s degree in Homeland Security.

Sergeant Tyler Stillabower has been promoted to Lieutenant.

Martoccia says that Lt. Stillabower has been employed by the jail for almost 10 years. He is a 2008 graduate of Jennings County High School.

Correction’s Officer Kyle Weaver has been promoted to Sergeant

Martoccia says that Sgt. Weaver has been employed by the jail for two-and-a-half years. He has an Associate’s Degree in Criminal Justice.

“These are excellent choices,” said Sheriff Matt Myers. He added that the three “have the experience they need and this is a good opportunity to advance their leadership skills.”

Two Jennings County residents were arrested on burglary charges earlier this week after an observant neighbor noticed suspicious activity.

The Jennings County Sheriff’s Department says that the 911 dispatch center received a call on Sunday, Sept. 10th about a suspicious vehicle parked in a neighbor’s driveway in Geneva Township. Deputies were able to intercept the vehicle and stopped it. They say that the vehicle’s trunk was open, exposing an air compressor and a weed eater. Authorities determined that the air compressor, weed eater and a gas can were stolen from an outbuilding behind a residence located on County Road 740 North.

Deputies arrested 35-year-old Jeremiah Anderson, of North Vernon, and 35-year-old Jerry L. Woodson, of Scipio. Authorities say that both men are facing preliminary charges of Burglary, Theft and Criminal Trespass.

The recovered property was returned to the owner.

Timothy K. David

A Columbus man was arrested Wednesday night on drug charges after Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a report of suspicious activity in the 600 block of Collier Street in Columbus. Judy Jackson, spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Department, says that when deputies arrived shortly after 11:30 p.m., they called out to a man in the area. They say that man, 46-year-old Timothy Kristian David, picked up a bat and began walking toward them. After several commands to “drop the bat”, deputies say that David complied.

Deputies report that as they spoke with David, one of them noticed a syringe with an orange cap sticking out of David’s sweatshirt pocket. David was then taken into custody. A search allegedly revealed a plastic baggie from David’s front sweatshirt pocket containing a large amount of a white crystal-like substance believed to be methamphetamine. The baggie also contained three additional baggies with green leafy substances inside, which appeared to be marijuana.

After being taken to Columbus Regional Health for clearance, David was arrested on preliminary charges of:

Resisting Law Enforcement,
Possession of Methamphetamine,
Possession of Marijuana, and
Possess of a Legend Drug Injection Device.

Jackson says that David is being held without bond.

Nathan M. Burns; photo courtesy of Columbus Police Dept.

A Columbus man was arrested Thursday night on a number of felony charges. Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the Columbus Police Department, says that at 6:10 p.m., officers saw 43-year-old Nathan M. Burns riding a bicycle near 15th Street and Chestnut Street. He says that Burns was a suspect in a domestic violence incident that occurred in Columbus earlier in the evening.

Harris says that after Burns was placed in handcuffs, he became verbally abusive towards officers and refused to walk under his own power. Officers eventually used a Taser to get Burns under control and into a patrol car. Burns was taken to Columbus Regional Health before being booked in the Bartholomew County Jail on a 48 hour hold. He is facing preliminary charges of:

Strangulation (Level 6 Felony)
Domestic Battery (Level 6 Felony)
Criminal Confinement (Level 6 Felony)
Intimidation-Threats to Commit Forcible Felony (Level 6 Felony)
Resisting Law Enforcement (Class A Misdemeanor)

More than $10,000 was raised last night at the annual Community Dinner to support the Bartholomew County 4-H Fair.

Funds raised from the sale of street names at the fairgrounds for next year’s fair will go to build a new goat barn.

Parker Newsom was honored with the Rural Service Award. The award has been given out annually since 1954.

Bartholomew Consolidated Schools superintendent Jim Roberts was the featured speaker. He provided an overview of the school system.

The event was organized by the Bartholomew County 4-H Fair Board and the Bartholomew County Farm Bureau.

A Columbus teen was the victim of a fatal crash yesterday morning in Brown County.

18-year-old Kate Beckley was driving west on State Road 46 when she lost control and crossed into the path of a tri-axle dump truck being driven by 44 year old Anthony Wagler of Nashville. That’s according to the Brown County Sheriff’s Department. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The accident happened Thursday at about 9:35 a.m. in the morning in the 1600 block of State Road 46.

The crash remains under investigation. Wagler was taken to Columbus Regional Hospital to have his blood drawn, a standard procedure in fatal accidents according to the sheriff’s department.

The Veterans Affairs administration is going to be using Saturday’s Community Day at Camp Atterbury as a chance to reach out to local veterans and help them get the benefits they are entitled to.

VA representatives will be set up with several other veterans organizations at the new barracks area on the base starting tomorrow morning. Alison Quinn from the Indianapolis Veterans Health Administration office explains.

Quinn said they will be able to help veterans sign up for their benefits on site and educate them on what benefits they qualify for.

The new barracks area is just across from the main entrance to the base near the Wakeman VA clinic.

Quinn said this is part of a larger push to better address veterans needs.

Pete Scoville, spokesman with the Veterans Health Administration, said that they are finding that many veterans, especially younger veterans, get out of the service and don’t try to access any of the benefits they have earned.

Events at Camp Atterbury tomorrow start at 730 with signups for a 5k run to raise awareness of suicide among members of the military and veterans. The veterans ceremony is at 9:30 at the memorial near the main gate..

There will be a live fire demonstration on the Camp Atterbury ranges starting at 3 p.m. But, you should be at the barracks area at 2 p.m. to catch a bus if you want to attend the live-fire demonstration.