POSEY COUNTY 4-H FAIR RESULTS SPECIAL INSIDE
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Since 1882 ~ Successor to The Poseyville News and The New Harmony Times • New Harmony, IN Posey County’s locally-owned newspaper
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
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Volume 133 Edition 29
Valentine faces 30 years after home invasion, assault
By Dave Pearce According to Posey County Prosecutor Travis Clowers, an Evansville man has been sentenced to 30 years in prison as the result of a Posey County home invasion and assault case from April of this year. The sentencing was part of a plea agreement made last month in the case of 25-year-old Adrian Valentine. Police say Valentine and four other men forced their way into a Mount Vernon home on April 23, assaulted Jerome Stewart, threatened a woman and her young son and stole money. Valentine was also ordered by the judge to pay Stewart $10,000 in restitution for the money he stole and he was ordered to pay an additional $5,000 towards Stewart’s
medical bills. According to the probable cause affidavit, on April 23, 2013, Posey County resident’s JeValentine rome Stewart and Danielle Moore called 911 to report that several unknown men had forced their way into their home, located on Lee Drive in Mount Vernon, Ind., and had seriously assaulted Jerome Stewart. Danielle Moore also reported that two of the unknown men, at least one of which was armed with a handgun, threatened her and her
son’s lives and demanded to know where Jerome Stewart had hidden money in the home. Stewart and Moore further reported that the men then found $10,000 that had been hidden in a Christmas tree box in their bedroom closet and that the men then fled their home. Mount Vernon Police Detective Thomas Rueger was assigned to investigate the robbery and burglary and Valentine was subsequently identified as having been involved in the crimes. Jerome Stewart identified a photo of Valentine and reported that he was the first unknown male who forced his way into their home and who physically assaulted him with a handgun. Rueger located and arrested Valentine on April 25, 2013. At the
time of his arrest, Valentine agreed to speak to Detective Rueger and ultimately admitted that he had been involved in the burglary and robbery of Jerome Stewart and Danielle Moore. Valentine admitted in his statement that he drove to Mount Vernon, Indiana with four (4) other males whom he knew only by their nicknames. Valentine admitted that he and the other unknown males discussed ‘hitting a lick’ or committing a robbery of a person who they believed possessed a large sum of money and who lived in Mount Vernon. Valentine claimed that he stood outside Jerome Stewart’s home and served as a ‘look out’ while the other males entered the home, assaulted Jerome Stewart, threatened
Fertilizer plant in Posey is ‘done deal’
Myriad of good news comes to North Posey By Valerie Werkmeister North Posey School Board members received good news during their monthly meeting last Monday, July 8. The corporation has received a $38,160 juvenile accountability grant that will help fund a social worker position. Without the grant, Superintendent Dr. Todd Camp says the corporation may not have been able to retain the position. Camp requested approval of a revised reduction in force/recall (RIF) policy to align with a new state law that states school corporations may not use years of service and experience as a reason for a RIF. The reason must be based on the individual teacher’s evaluation and licensure. The board approved his request. The non-resident transfer policy was also revised to be in accordance with new state legislation. Indiana Code 20-26-11-32 states schools must set capacities by grade level and post on the school’s website. Schools have the option to approve or not approve transfer requests. Camp stated North Posey has always operated on the premise they would accept transfers from outside the district. Action on a new athletic eligibility policy was tabled for further review. The policy deals with allowing home school student participation in athletics in accordance with a recent IHSAA ruling. The board approved a hold harmless resolution that states: the corporation will pay, indemnify and save harmless any administrative employee of MSD of North Posey County for the amount of any penalty assessed against such employee as a result of the failure of the School Corporation to comply with the performance standards or requirements of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and/ or the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. Camp gave a brief update on the construction projects currently in progress. He stated the rain has delayed some of the work which may cause them not to be completed by the start of school. A large portion of the work will be done and weather permitting, will hopefully not take long to finish. The projects include a new bus barn and central office addition and a new roof at the high school. Camp advised board members that budget will be advertised in August and a special budget hearing of August 26, has been set. The new budget will be adopted at their September 9, meeting. In other business, the board approved the following: • A one year contract renewal with Komputrol Software Systems for $7,765. The software is used at the central office for budgets and payroll.
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Danielle Moore and her young son and then stole money. Valentine claimed that they only stole approximately $5,000 and that he was only given $1,500. Posey County Prosecutor, Travis Clowers, stated that he “appreciated the hard work of Detective Thomas Rueger in identifying and locating Adrian Valentine so quickly.” Prosecutor Clowers further stated that he was “pleased with the 30 year sentence” and “with the speed in which this violent felon has been removed from our Community.” Prosecutor Clowers vowed that his office would “continue to work closely with and to assist all local law enforcement agencies in their continued pursuit of similar violent offenders.”
Mount Vernon to prepare for ‘boom’
Members of the first North Posey 10-year-old baseball team ever to win the District 13 Championship prepare for a Sunday afternoon ride on the Poseyville fire truck. Pictured are, in front, Kyle LaVanchy, Jayden Wehmer, GaigeKihn, and Draike Farrar. In the second row are Clay Will, Austin Todd, Ian Heinlin, Jonathan Ricketts, Cody Wright, and Lucas Mavel. Atop the truck are Coaches Jeff Will, Jeremy LaVanchy, and Donnie Reidford. Photo by Dave Pearce
Grant approved for Poseyville Library By Valerie Werkmeister Poseyville Town Council members met for their monthly meeting last Wednesday and learned about a few positive projects in store for the town. Heather McNabb, Poseyville Carnegie Public Library Director, informed the council that the state approved their additional $75,000 appropriations request. McNabb appeared before the board last month to inform council member of their expansion plan and receive their approval. The number of users has almost tripled in the past two years and the library would like to purchase the property directly behind it, 56 S. Locust Street. They believe the property will soon be in a foreclosure sale and would like to use it to build an addition to their current building.
McNabb stated they will wait about a month and then contact the mortgage company regarding the property’s status. Devin Kiesel, a member of Boy Scout Troop 387, presented his plan for an Eagle Scout project to town board members Bruce Baker and Ron Fallowfield. Kiesel proposed a beautification project for the ‘Welcome to Poseyville’ signs at each town’s entrance. He plans to paint the fence posts, add rocks and paving stones and possibly solar lighting and flowers. He intends for the landscaping around the sign to be as low maintenance and long-lasting as possible. Baker and Fallowfield commended his idea and gave their nod of approval. Kiesel will gather a project cost
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Performance, promises land rebates By Valerie Werkmeister Promises of economic growth and continued employment helped to secure tax abatements for three large global companies located in Posey County. The Posey County Council heard the tax abatement requests from Bristol Myers Squibb, Cargill and Sabic during their monthly meeting on Tuesday, July 9. Representatives from Sabic presented requests for two different projects. The first relocated a laboratory and added 39 employees while the second involves the expansion of manufacturing pharmaceutical lines that has added 25 employees. The company has also invested $60 million in new equipment for the project. The council approved each of the abatement requests that exempt the companies from tax payments over the duration of each project. Cargill representative, Brandon Nordemeyer, gave a report on their tax abatement previously approved in 2011. He stated the $5.7 million investment purchased new manufacturing equipment and retained
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25 employees. The project is now complete and the abatement is in its second year. Of the $5.7 million dollar investment, 50 percent of it is subject to abatement over three years. In addition, $3.1 million in real estate is subject to abatement over a seven year declining scale. The council approved the abatement. Sabic Senior General Manager, Joe Castrale, requested the company’s first tax abatement since the facility was built in 1950. The company intends to purchase $50 million in equipment to modernize its processes. Castrale said the current equipment is obsolete and they will be able to retain 22 employees. Council president Bob Gentil explained that an Economic Revitalization Area (ERA) must be created since this is Sabic’s first abatement request. Council members approved the nine-year abatement pending the ERA. A notice of the ERA will be published in the
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Inside this issue... Retrospective ................... A4 Community .......... A5 Social ...................... A6 Legals .......................... A10 Deaths ................ A3 Sports .................. A8-9 Classifieds .................. A11-12 Church .................. A6 Bus/Ag .....................A7
By Lois Mittino Gray Posey County Director of Economic Development John Taylor enthusiastically invited members of the Mount Vernon Common Council at the July 11 meeting to walk a golden path with him to the new fertilizer plant. “Let’s go down the Yellow Brick Road together on this project,” the Executive Director of the Posey County Economic Development Partnership said. “On July 1, $2.6 billion traded hands and it’s getting done.” In his report to the Council, Taylor predicted that the next ten years may see the plant’s construction and production result in a nine billion dollar economic impact in this area. “I see changes happening here like those that happened in Princeton when Toyota came to town. At first they didn’t want it, but look at the good it has done for them.” Taylor alluded to the battle originally started by Governor Pence’s state funding objections to the project which now has his okay and financial bonding from county officials. “The Governor threw up roadblocks, but elected officials listened to the people and our community leaders about what we wanted and fought for us,” Taylor noted. He thanked Mayor John Tucker and the Board for its positive work on the project. In talking with the CEO of the Pakistani firm building the plant, Taylor said it will hire an estimated 2,500 employees for construction and would like most of them to be local. Taylor would like to see three or four more fast food places and some nicer restaurants built in town to feed these workers. Right now the CEO is looking to fill three lead positions for the fertilizer plant: Chief Financial Officer, Human Resources Director and Director of Sales. Those positions will be based in Indianapolis as there is closer access to a major airport. There will be a human resources office here locally for hiring. Three sites are being considered for the location of the plant and that has not been decided as yet. In other board action: --Sewer Superintendent Rodney Givens presented a pictorial report to the Council answering Council Member Andy Hoehn’s earlier question about getting gravity fed lines out to the area north of 62 and the junction of 69 near Super 8 and the Expressway Automart. Givens and Danny Moss looked at several area businesses there and their present sewage situations and lift stations.
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