MURRAY MAN CHARGED IN HUMAN TRAFFICKING PROBE
A Murray man is among those charged after an undercover human trafficking investigation led to the arrest of 5 people in Union City over the weekend. The TBI, the Tennessee Human Trafficking Task Force, Department of Homeland Security, and two police departments began an undercover operation aimed at those seeking sex acts with minors. Arrested were 31-year-old Kevin Jackson of Paducah, 28-year-old Abraham Labastida of Murray, 52-year-old Lewis Harris of Memphis, 44-year-old Shannon Palmer of Union City, and 54-year-old Eddie Robbins of Paris. Jackson, Palmer, and Labastida were charged with two counts of trafficking for a commercial sex act. Harris was charged with two counts of trafficking for a commercial sex act and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Robbins was charged with two counts of trafficking for a commercial sex act, the introduction of contraband into a penal institution, and possession with the intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell. All were lodged in the Obion County Jail.
CCHD REPORTS ZERO COVID-19 CASES
The Calloway County Health Department reported no new cases of COVID-19 from Sunday and Monday. The total number of county cases during the pandemic to 3,373. Of that total, 3,286 have recovered, 38 are isolated at home, 1 is hospitalized, and there have been 48 deaths. The Graves County Health Department announced 2 new cases yesterday. Calloway County’s Incidence Rate per 100,000 on Monday was 10.6% which was the same as Sunday’s rate. While most of the counties in west Kentucky are outside the red zone, Lyon County’s rate of 358.4% remains the highest in the state, and is almost nine times higher than second place Rowan County’s rate of 38.6.
STATE POSITIVITY RATE CONTINUES TO FALL
At Monday’s COVID-19 update for Kentucky, 526 new cases and 13 deaths were reported, raising the total to 4,829 Kentuckians who are listed as COVID-19 deaths. As of Monday, there have been over 4.6 million coronavirus tests performed in Kentucky with a positivity rate of 4.06%, which is lower than last Monday’s rate of 4.84%. There are 539 Kentuckians hospitalized which is 180 less than last Monday, including 156 in ICU, which is 24 less than one week ago. At least 48,174 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.
MHS SPEECH TAM CLAIMS TITLE
The Murray High School Speech Team won first place this weekend in the virtual Speech sweepstakes at the Kentucky Catholic Forensic League State Speech Tournament. Murray High also took third in the state in overall Speech and Debate sweepstakes. MHS Speech members, Ella Brown-Terry and Caroline Koenig were named individual state champions in Dramatic Performance and Extemp respectively. The team qualified eleven students for nationals. The NCFL National Tournament will be held online over Memorial Day weekend.
CCMS MATHCOUNTS TEAM MEMBER NAMED TOURNEY CHAMPION
The Calloway County Middle School MathCOUNTS team competed at the Kentucky invitational tournament this past weekend. Amber Wu, Aubrey Naber, and Connor Pile scored high enough to move on to the Kentucky state tournament to be held later this month. Wu was named invitational tournament champion and earned over $4500 in scholarships.
MMS ACADEMIC TEAM TAKES REGION 2 TITLE
This past weekend, the Murray Middle fourth and fifth grade academic team claimed the Region 2 Championship title, placing first overall in the Governor’s Cup Region 2 competition. Additionally, the MMS Quick Recall Team placed 2nd, Edward Utgaar claimed 1st place in Language Arts, and Carrie Mills took 1st place in Arts & Humanities.
CALLOWAY TEAMS ADVANCE
The Calloway County Middle School History Bee and Science Bee Teams have qualified for the regional finals sponsored by the International Academic Competitions organization. All fourteen Calloway entries placed high enough to be selected for the next round of competition to be held later this month. The Lakers will be competing for a chance to qualify for the National Finals to be held later this summer.
GAS PRICES CONTINUE TO RISE
Gas prices in West Central Kentucky are six cents higher this week at $2.58 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report. The average in the region is 51 cents higher than at the beginning of the year. With a nickel increase on the week, the national gas price average has reached $2.77, which is a 31-cent jump in the last month. Every state average has climbed by double-digits since February, resulting in 1 in 10 gas stations with pump prices that are $3/gallon or more. With refinery utilization at a record low, gasoline supplies tightening, demand modestly increasing, and crude prices on the rise, prices are likely to remain this high. The national average is nearly 40 cents more expensive compared to a year ago, which was right before state lockdowns and working and school from home started.
IN AND AROUND KENTUCKY
FRANKFORT—Kentucky U.S. Senator Rand Paul has announced his strong support of Kentucky House Bill 574, a wide-ranging election reform measure that enhances both voter access and election integrity. State Rep. Jennifer Decker is a former staffer for Senator Paul, and is the measure’s lead sponsor. The bill’s provisions include Creating three days of early in-person voting, including a Saturday, with no excuse required. Transitioning toward universal paper ballots, statewide. Permitting counties to establish vote centers, where any voter in the county may vote regardless of precinct. Expressly prohibiting and penalizing ballot harvesting. Retaining the signature cure process, so absentee voters whose signatures have changed over time have a chance to prove identity and have their ballots counted. The bill passed the House by a 93-4 vote on February 26 and awaits consideration in the Senate.
LEXINGTON—Those impacted by flooding in Eastern Kentucky are getting some much needed relief. The Appalachia Rises telethon televised by a Lexington station raised over one-point-one-million dollars last night. AppHarvest Founder and CEO announced that he would be contributing 500-thousand dollars to the relief effort. Other major donations were made by Toyota Kentucky and Joe and Kelly Craft. Some corporate and nonprofit contributors included The Hinkle Family Foundation, Blue Grass Community Foundation, The Jenna and Matthew Mitchell Foundation, Kiran Bhatraju and Sara Adland, Keeneland Association, and Appalachian Wireless. The initiative was brought together by more than half a dozen organizations.
OWESNBORO—The Bishop of the Owensboro says Catholics can receive the Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. Bishop William Medley of the Diocese of Owensboro says he stands with the Vatican and United States Conference of Catholic Bishops on the issue and says the vaccine is morally acceptable. The vaccine does not contain aborted fetal tissue or cells, but was developed using cells multiplied over 35 years that originally came from an aborted fetus. Bishop Medley says the church’s stance against using stem cells from aborted fetuses in research remains strong.
CORBIN—One person is hospitalized after a collision between a Corbin school bus and an SUV. The crash happened yesterday afternoon at the intersection of Highway 25 West and Kentucky 830. The driver of the bus and the SUV were not injured, but a female passenger in the SUV was flown to the hospital with serious injuries. Three children in the SUV were taken to the hospital for treatment. There were no children on the school bus.
UNDATED—Several Kentucky communities are receiving state funding for park upgrades. Governor Andy Beshear announced 12 projects yesterday that will receive over 692-thousand dollars in funding from the Recreational Trails Program to upgrade parks and recreational spaces across the commonwealth. Beshear says safe outdoor spaces are “critically important” to Kentuckians and will help the commonwealth attract tourism.
HENDERSON—A man is under arrest after he allegedly tried to run someone down in a hospital parking lot in Henderson. Police say surveillance video and a witness account confirm that 57-year-old Steven Ashby tried to run over someone yesterday morning in the parking lot of Deaconess Hospital. Ashby claimed to police that someone hit him several times and damaged his truck. No one was injured. Ashby is charged with wanton endangerment.
BARDSTOWN—The death of Kentucky’s former unemployment insurance director is being investigated. Muncie McNamara was found dead in Bardstown on Sunday. The 39-year-old’s obituary says he died “after a battle with chronic depression.” McNamara was fired after serving just four months and his hiring criticized after it was learned he didn’t have any experience with unemployment systems or state government.
TENNESSEE—There are nearly 430 new coronavirus cases in Tennessee. The Tennessee Department of Health reported 420 new COVID-19 cases yesterday, bringing the total since the outbreak began to over 783-thousand-900. Close to ten additional COVID-19-related deaths were reported, bringing the total number of coronavirus-attributed deaths statewide to over eleven-thousand-550. There are less than 730 COVID-19 patients hospitalized statewide.
TENNESSEE—Businesses across the state are signing a letter opposing what they’re calling anti-LGBT bills in the state legislature this session. Nearly 40 corporations and over 100 small businesses are asking state lawmakers not to pursue the 15 pieces of legislation they say are harmful. Among them is a bill that would ban transgender girls from playing on middle and high school girls sports teams. Governor Bill Lee says allowing transgender kids to play on girls teams would destroy women’s sports and deny biological girls opportunities.
TENNESSEE—A final vote on the future of the bust of KKK leader Nathan Bedford Forrest at the State Capitol is expected to be held today. Last summer, State Capitol Commission members voted to remove the bust and move it to the Tennessee State Museum. They also voted to remove statues of Civil War Union Admiral David Farragut and World War One Admiral Albert Gleaves. The debate over whether the bust of the Confederate general should remain at the Tennessee State Capitol has been going on for years.
TENNESSEE—The University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s College of Nursing is offering a Doctor of Nursing Practice Nurse-Midwifery option. The UTHSC College of Nursing says it’s received a four-year pre-accreditation from the American College of Midwifery Education. It anticipates admitting its first class in August. It’s the only program of its kind at a public university in the state.
ILLINOIS—A massive Illinois education reform bill is now law after Governor Pritzker signed the measure yesterday. Members of the Legislative Black Caucus were there to witness the signing of the Education and Workforce Equity Act. The law includes a phased plan for expanded graduation requirements, the expansion of the state’s Black history curriculum, and reforms to university equitability in scholarship matching programs. Caucus members and Pritzker say there is still work to do to improve education for all students.
