Annual White River Clean-up: September 17, 8 am-Noon at Muncie’s Westside Park
The annual White River Clean-up will take place on September 17, from 8 am-noon at Muncie’s Westside Park. Since 2006, Muncie-Delaware Clean & Beautiful and the Muncie Sanitary District have organized over 4,900 volunteers to remove 150,000 pounds of trash from the White River. Crew leaders are especially needed this year. To learn more and register as a volunteer, visit: beautifulMuncie.org
More local news briefs are below…
According to a Star Press report, a Madison County jury has found a 20-year-old Anderson man guilty of murder in the 2021 slaying of a former Muncie resident. Demareyon Robinson was charged in connection with the October 2020 shooting of 25 year old Quincy M. Malone, in a house on 21st Street on Anderson’s west side. The former Muncie man was shot in the chest, and died the next day in an Indianapolis hospital. In Indiana, a murder conviction carries up to 65 years in prison.
A sentencing hearing for an ex-Muncie police officer who pleaded guilty to battering an arrestee has been reset for early 2023. 31 year old Jeremy Gibson, had been scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 9. However, Judge Tanya Walton Pratt in recent days agreed to reschedule the sentencing hearing for Feb. 8, 2023, according to the StarPress.
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management has announced the availability of $500,000 in grant funding for recycling and household hazardous waste collection and disposal from the agency’s Community Recycling Grant Program. Counties, municipalities, solid waste management districts, universities, schools, and non-profit organizations in Indiana are eligible to submit a Community Recycling Grant application requesting $1,000 to $100,000 in funding. Applications will be accepted through Oct. 6, 2022. Visit in.gov/idem for more information.
Taylor University broke ground last week on its newest academic building: the Horne Academic Center. The Center will house Taylor’s growing Film and Media program. The program has gathered over 700 external awards by distinguished graduates who are transforming the film and television industry with their work. The new facility will also have dedicated space to support Taylor’s educational offerings in entrepreneurship, a growing area of focus for the University. The 45,000-square-foot facility will begin construction this fall with occupancy expected late summer, 2024.
Bier Brewery has been working with the City of Noblesville to open a new 6,000 square foot taproom at 1618 S. 10th Street in Noblesville. Located on 4 acres of property, the new family-friendly establishment will serve BIER, wine, cider, cold brew coffee, wine slushies and food. The plan also includes a dog park, kids’ playground, covered outdoor seating and more. The new taproom is expected to open in the summer of 2023.
The cheapest gas in the state can be found in Boonville, according to gasbuddy.com. You can fill your tank at the Circle K for 3.18 per gallon. In Evansville, you can fuel up at Chuckles and Murphy USA for 3.36 per gallon. And in Indianapolis, you can get ready to drive at Costco for 3.56 per gallon. In Muncie, Murphy USA on 29th Street is currently $3.82 a gallon.
A Muncie man accused of causing a motorcycle-SUV crash that killed a Henry County man has received a December 5th trial date. 50 year old Nathan M. Lacy is charged with causing the death of 73 year old Richard Patterson of Mount Summit while driving intoxicated, a Level 4 felony carrying up to 12 years in prison. According to a starpress report, Lacy acknowledged he had consumed three beers. A breath test measured his blood-alcohol content at 0.114. In Indiana, a motorist with a BAC of 0.08 or higher is considered intoxicated.
September is National Recovery Month for Mental Illness and Addiction. One in five Americans experience a mental health condition in a given year, yet 56% of those individuals do not receive treatment. Many have co-occurring “mental illness and substance abuse disorder.” Today, 9.5 million adults in the U.S. report having both a substance abuse disorder and a mental illness, with substance use disorders alone affecting over 20 million Americans aged 12 and over.
Ball State Economist Michael Hicks says due to the COVID pandemic, there are 3.6 million fewer people in the labor force. The largest decline came from baby boomers, or those aged 55 and older. Baby boomers saw the biggest loss of life during COVID and experienced the most morbidity. Hicks says 70 percent of the total loss of workers post COVID came from Baby boomers.
The Indianapolis Colts beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-10 in their preseason finale at Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday night. Quarterback Matt Ryan played the entire first quarter, leading the Colts to a touchdown on his final series. Ryan connected with Michael Pittman for a 17-yard gain before Deon Jackson scored on a one-yard run. Ryan finished 5 for 7 for 59 yards and 11of 17 for 117 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions in his two preseason appearances.The Colts will open up the regular season in Houston against the Texans on September 11th at 1:00 p.m.
Honda and South Korea-based LG Energy Solutions are teaming up to build another EV battery manufacturing plant somewhere in the Midwest. Most reports say that Ohio is the front runner for the plant, but that Indiana may be close behind. The potential Indiana site lies in Greensburg near Honda’s existing car manufacturing facility where they manufacture the Honda CR-V and other popular models. LG Energy Solutions is already investing in building EV batteries in Indiana. Last week they announced a partnership with Ultium Cells, Inc to build an EV battery plant in New Carlisle in northern Indiana.
The annual Old Washington Street festival will take place on Saturday September 17th from 11am to 6pm. The festival event is put together each year by the East Central Neighborhood Association in Muncie. Streets in the neighborhood will be lined with artists, makers, food vendors, home tours, and entertainers. The event is free. For more information search for “Old Washington Street Festival” on Facebook.
A Fort Wayne woman was arrested Friday evening for driving impaired while her kids were in the car. 33-year-old Justa Shinn was headed west on I-64 when she drove off the road and ran into the tree line, overturning her car. She was trapped and had to be extricated by firefighters. Firefighters were able to get the children out without issue. All three were taken to the hospital and later released. Shinn was arrested and is now in the Warrick County Jail. The results of her blood test are pending.
Victoria Spartz, (R-IN 5th District) feels the Justice Department was out of bounds in raiding former president Donald Trump’s home. On the One America News Network, she likened the raid to a KGB style tactic. The KGB was the Soviet Union’s version of the CIA during the Cold War. Spartz, grew up in Soviet Ukraine.
The state’s new abortion law goes into effect in September 15th. IU Heath, the state’s largest hospital system is getting ready. IU Health Executive Vice President David Ingram says they’ve started a response team to be able to tell doctors whether a decision they’ve made is legal or not. The state’s new abortion law makes most abortions illegal. Ingram says IU Health has lost potential employees who dropped out of the running for employment, because of the new law. Most residents in IU’s School of Medicine consider the law a factor when deciding if they want to stay on after they finish their residency.
On Friday, Indiana’s attorney general Todd Rokita announced a $15 million settlement with Frontier Communications over slow internet speeds. Indiana was among six states that joined the Federal Trade Commission in a lawsuit last May, claiming the company was not delivering the internet speeds it promised and charged customers for a more expensive service than they were receiving. Under the settlement, Frontier will spend $15 million over four years to improve its internet infrastructure in the state.
On Monday, Sept. 5th, 50 Indiana counties were classified in the high-risk category for spreading COVID-19, down slightly from 53 roughly one week ago. The central Indiana counties listed on the CDC data map as having a “high” community risk of spreading COVID-19 include Bartholomew, Blackford, Cass, Decatur, Delaware, Henry, Johnson, Putnam, Randolph, Rush, Shelby, and White. Over the past seven days, Indiana has recorded 13,272 new cases and 76 deaths.
WTHR reports actor Actor Johnny Depp will show off his musical talents next month at the Brown County Music Center. Depp will join legendary guitarist Jeff Beck at the Nashville, Ind. venue on Oct. 19. The duo released a musical collaboration in July. The album features original songs by Depp, along with covers of songs from artists including John Lennon and the Beach Boys and musical styles ranging from Celtic to Motown.
