Regional Summary, Thursday 1/17

Indiana Summary: Daniels Defends Property Tax Plan Before House Committee (Indianapolis) -- Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels says he is representing Indiana tax payers in the effort to reform the states property tax structure. Daniels testified Wednesday before the House Ways and Means Committee, which is considering his proposal. The governor wants to cap property taxes for homeowners at one-percent of assessed value. He says the basis for the plan is removing unrealistic burdens in the system. Caps for rental properties would be two-percent, and the ceiling for business property is proposed at three-percent. Democratic lawmakers Carolene Mays and Win Moses both questioned the equity in capping taxes on apartments higher than houses. The governor contends most property will fall well below the tax ceilings. Daniels added that he is open to new suggestions. He refuted the potential that schools could lose needed funding if a change to referendums is approved. Daniels said he is "confident" that residents understand the value of education. He opposes a state income tax increase, but an amendment likely to be offered Thursday will explore that idea. --- Bill Outlawing Hostile Annexations Approved By Senate Committee (Indianapolis) -- A state Senate committee has approved a bill that would outlaw so-called hostile annexations in Indiana. Senate Bill 114 now moves to the full Senate for a second reading. Senator Jeff Drozda of Westfield authored the measure, which comes amidst a high-profile annexation fight in Hamilton County. Involuntary annexation can currently be put to a vote if 65-percent of the residents sign a petition. The Senate bill would reduce that requirement to 51-percent. It would also no longer be necessary for a community to win support from neighboring municipalities before incorporating. --- Father Faces Charges After Son Shot In Indianapolis (Indianapolis) -- Police have arrested 19-year-old Adam Chavez after his one-year-old son was shot and critically wounded yesterday. Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Captain Phil Burton says that Chavez was holding a handgun that discharged, the bullet hitting the boy in the head and thigh. Investigators are looking to see if one bullet or two bullets were fired. Police were called to the address of 82 Addison Street after the mother of the child ran down the street yelling that her child had been shot. Investigator say that Chivez was visiting from Texas. --- Coatesville Man Arrested In Child Molesting Case (Greencastle) -- Indiana State Police have arrested a Coatesville man on two charges that include child molesting. Gregory Howard allegedly had sexual contact with a 13-year-old girl last summer. An investigation which started last October concluded with Howards arrest this week. He is being held in the Puntam County Jail on 30-thousand-dollars bond. The 31-year-old is also charged with a felony charge of vicarious sexual gratification. --- American Red Cross Designates Flooded Counties Disaster Areas (Indianapolis) -- Northwest Indiana counties affected by flooding have been declared national-level disaster areas by the American Red Cross. Dozens of volunteers from across the country are assisting residents as they cleanup from the record high water. The organization was initially enlisted to provide shelter and supplies to people forced from their homes. More than five-inches of rain fell early in the morning on January 8th. The Tippecanoe and Wabash Rivers approached 100-year flooding in the days afterwards. --- Teenager Invited To Patriots Game (Stratham, NH) -- A 14-year-old girl laughed off the boos she received last weekend when she appeared, wearing a New England Patriots jersey, at an Indianapolis Colts game. Now shes getting some honors from the Pats. Anna Grant from Stratham, New Hampshire was the winner of her division last weekend in the NFL Pepsi Punt, Pass & Kick title. The finals were held during Sundays Indianapolis Colts-San Diego Chargers game. Thousands of Colts fans booed her because of her jersey. The Patriots have invited Grant and her family to attend Sundays playoff game against the San Diego Chargers. She says shes especially excited the team wants her down on the field for the coin toss. Kentucky Summary: (Bullitt County, KY) -- Yesterday was the one-year anniversary of the CSX train derailment that turned northern Bullitt County into a major disaster area. Two dozen cars of a CSX train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed and burst into flames. The explosion caused hundreds of residents to be evacuated. An investigation into the disaster determined that a faulty bolt caused the derailment. (Louisville, KY) -- A student was sent to the hospital yesterday after a car slammed into a Jefferson County school bus along West Broadway. Officials say the student, who attends Stuart Middle School, was transported from the scene with minor injuries. Nearly a dozen students who were headed to the school were put on a different bus and taken to Stuart Middle School. (Louisville, KY) -- Democrat Greg Fisher says hes entering the race for U.S. Senate, challenging Senator Mitch McConnell. The Louisville businessman says hes not a career politician but a "problem solver." Louisville attorney and retired Marine Andrew Horne, David L. Williams of Glasgow and Oldham County physician Michael Cassaro have also declared their candidacy. (Louisville, KY) -- The Kentucky Humane Societys SNIP Clinic is reporting six-thousand spay and neuter surgeries in its first year. The Humane Society opened the clinic in February of last year as a way to fight the pet overpopulation problem. Officials say the benefits of spaying and neutering pets in the area help reduce the overpopulation problem. In honor of the societys one-year anniversary, the SNIP clinic will host a month-long special to beat the heat before kitten season begins in the Spring. During February, pet owners can have their female cats spayed for only 20-dollars. Anyone wanting more information can visit kyhumane.org. (Louisville, KY) -- A Louisville man pled guilty yesterday in court after police discovered drugs in his possession after a home invasion. Officials say they found crack, cocaine, and a firearm at Michael Bradleys home in December of 2006. Police say they were responding to a call about a home invasion at Bradleys home, during which at least one shot was fired in a residential neighborhood. Bradley will be back in court in April and is facing a seven-million-dollar fine and a maximum of 24-years in prison. (Louisville, KY) -- The Louisville Veterans Affairs Medical Center has opened a new inpatient unit. The centers new unit will accommodate bariatric and spinal cord injury patients. Renovations began in 2006 at the center. Features will include a new wireless computer system, medical gas system, and work stations in many of the patients rooms. (Frankfort, KY) -- Nominations are being accepted for the 2007 Governors Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Service. The awards created to honor people, who largely unnoticed and without compensation, give to improve the lives of others. More information and nominations forms can be found at volunterky.ky.gov. Illinois Summary: --- Full General Assembly Expected To Vote On Transit Bill Today (Springfield) -- Today could be the day Chicago commuters have been waiting for. Governor Blagojevich is urging members of the full General Assembly to vote "yes" today in favor of a Chicago-area mass transit-funding plan which includes the Governors amendment giving free rides to seniors. This comes after the Illinois House Mass Transit Committee approved the plan on Wednesday. The CTA, RTA and Metra threatened massive service cuts, fare increases and layoffs on Sunday if state lawmakers do not provide long-term funding. --- Mayor Daley Confident About Olympic Finances (Chicago) -- Mayor Daley says he is "confident" the financial projections for bringing the 2016 Summer Olympic Games to Chicago are accurate. Bid Chairman Patrick Ryan said earlier this week that building new and temporary venues would cost at least 900-million-dollars, a figure that is expected to rise as the Games get closer. Planning officials also project an estimated two-point-five-billion-dollars in domestic revenue if Chicago lands the event. The "Chicago Tribune" reports the city would be on the hook for as much as five-hundred-million-dollars if the Games dont make a profit. --- Day-Care Fire Kills Baby Boy (Chicago) -- An investigation is underway after a toddler was found dead following a fire at a home day-care center in Chicago. Darjon Taylor, who was about 22-months-old, died in the fire on the 84-hundred block of South Saginaw Avenue which happened around 10 oclock yesterday morning. The owner of the facility has been licensed to have a home day-care business at her house since 1996. --- Gang Members Suspected In Fatal Shooting Of Teenager (Chicago) -- Chicago police are looking for as many as three suspects in connection with the shooting death of a teenager in the Little Village neighborhood. Authorities say 16-year-old Roky Uriostegui was shot three times as he was walking home in the 26-hundred block of West 23rd Place around 7:45 on Tuesday night. Police say they believe the suspects are gang members, but say Uriostegui had no gang affiliation and they do not know why he was shot. --- Lawyer Says Stacy Petersons Cell Message Gives Possible Evidence Of Affair (Bolingbrook) -- The attorney for former Bolingbrook police Sergeant Drew Peterson says he has evidence his clients missing wife may have been having an affair. The "Chicago Tribune" reports the attorney says there was a racy text message sent to Stacy Petersons cell phone more than a month before she disappeared. The lawyer said the message further supports Drew Petersons claims that Stacy left him for another man. Drew Peterson has surrendered the phone to authorities. He remains a suspect in his wifes disappearance, but has not been charged. --- Cold Days Are Coming (Romeoville) -- Get ready, its going to get very cold. The National Weather Service says the coldest weather of the season is headed to the Chicago area. The coldest day is expected to be Saturday, when temperatures could drop into the lower single-digits and zero or even lower in some areas West and Northwest. Wind chills could be in the minus-20 to minus-30 range. Were also expecting precipitation, with some rain changing to snow Thursday with an inch or so accumulation possible. More snow could hit Friday. --- Few Tickets, Lots Of Complaints, More Questions About Illinois Smoking Ban (Springfield) -- State officials say theyre happy with Illinois new smoking ban, despite many more problems than tickets. Only a handful of people have been busted for lighting up but Illinois Public Health Director Damon Arnold says theyve gotten more than 500 complaints. Lawmakers havent approved the final rules for the new law, which is one of the reasons why there havent been many tickets. Without the final rules the only way the smoking ban can be enforced is if a police officer catches someone with a cigarette in hand. --- Abortion Rate Drops Across Country, Illinois (Chicago) -- The abortion rate in the U.S. has dropped to its lowest level in more than 30 years, with Illinois seeing a larger decline than most states. The "Chicago Tribune" reports that information being released today by the journal "Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health," says the abortion rate in Illinois dropped 19-percent from the year 2000 to the year 2005. The research says that, nationally, the abortion rate was about 19 per one-thousand women age 15-44 in 2005, the last year for which information is available. Abortions were at their highest number, nationally, in 1981, when the rate was about 29 per one-thousand women, up from about 19 in 1974. --- Ash Borer To Cost More Wilmette Trees (Wilmette) -- North Shore communities continue to feel the effects of the emerald ash borer. The "Chicago Tribune" reports a 50-foot ash tree on Lake Avenue in Wilmette was taken down this month, the first of at least 90 trees slated for removal there. Skokie and Winnetka also have plans to remove trees, while Evanston removed 130 last year. The green beetle is responsible for destroying nearly 25-million ash trees in the U.S. and Canada and was first spotted in Kane County and Wilmette in 2006. --- Woman Says Toes Were Licked During Eye Exam (Chicago) -- A woman has filed a lawsuit claiming someone licked her toes during an eye-exam visit. The "Chicago Tribune" reports the suit names Skokie eye doctor Tamara Wyse and her former assistant, Joseph Vernell Jr., who is the one who is actually accused of licking the womans toes last year. Vernell was eventually fired and court records show he pleaded guilty in August to misdemeanor battery in the incident and was sentenced to one year of probation. The lawsuit seeks more than 50-thousand-dollars in damages. (Copyright 2008 by Newsroom Solutions) RNS-01-17-08 0703CST