Stories from Wednesday, September 23, 2009

LAFAYETTE - A former Cloverdale resident who molested and murdered a 10-year-old boy in 1993 and initially received the death penalty for the crime will not be executed. Around 8 p.m. Tuesday, Tippecanoe County Superior Court 2 Judge Thomas Bush ruled that Christopher Stevens, 37, would be sentenced instead to life in prison without the possibility of parole...

INDIANAPOLIS -- What will be the issues that dominate our debate in the 2010 session of the Indiana General Assembly? It is my hope that lawmakers will work to provide a resolution to the constitutional amendment, government reform, policies that will provide a cushion to small business, and ways to get Hoosiers back to work, since the most recent state unemployment figures show that more than 300,000 people are without jobs...

Greencastle High School homecoming candidates lined up recently for a photo in front of the school. Picture are (front, from left) juniors Brittany Girton, Kelsey Grzesiek, Alyssa Nichols, Kelsey Taylor, (second) Cameron Cash, Jesse Elkins, Keegan Remsburg, Clark Wilson, (third) sophomores Erynn Beck, Kara Birt, Paige Pickens, Hannah Wainman, (fourth) Kaden Faust, Brad Haussin, Matt Hendrich, Trevor Huber, (fifth) freshmen Rayleigh Amis, Jessi Covert, Hannah Dixon, Brookelyn Edgar, (back) Alex Asbell, Nate Christy, Rodney Ford and Mac Shuee.

To the Editor: In response to the Speak Out regarding the health care debate: First of all, the Republicans have offered input and an alternate plan, but Nancy Pelosi for one will not permit input by the Republicans. Second, the Democrats are so split on the proposed plans that there are not enough votes to pass any kind of bill...

To the Editor: I have e-mailed our distinguished Congressman about several issues in the recent months, all of which have been answered with platitudes that have no expectation to resolve a question or work to help this country. The latest was a question on the holdup of Congress doing something to punish Congressman Rangle...

GREENCASTLE -- An Indianapolis woman remained lodged at the Putnam County Jail Wednesday after being charged in Putnam County Superior Court of Class C felony trafficking with an inmate and Class A misdemeanor possession of marijuana. Joni M. Wood, 20, was arrested at the Putnamville Correctional Facility on Sept. 17...

GREENCASTLE -- Since 1896, local Putnam County children have benefited from new eyeglasses, shoes, medicine and other needed items made possible through the Mary Allison Children Trust. And it's no different today. Students at all nine county schools receive help from the fund. Sometimes it's clothing or glasses, often it's medicine; it all depends on the circumstances...

Elmer Loudermilk, 87, of Clayton, formerly of Greencastle, died Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009 at Hendricks Regional Health in Danville. Born May 5, 1922 in Williamsburg, Ky., he was the son of James E. and Margaret Owens Loudermilk. He was a 1940 graduate of Holmes High School and had attended the University of Cincinnati...

Robert E. "Bobby" Manion, 56, of Indianapolis, died Monday, Sept. 21, 2009. He was born Jan. 28, 1953 in Crawfordsville to the late Emmett and Mary Manion. Mr. Manion was employed in the summers, enjoyed working at the State Fair, and in his earlier years was also a farm hand. He had many passions, animals (especially dogs), people (never knowing a stranger), music and John Deere tractors...

Putnam County Jail Richard Rooker, 50, Bainbridge, was booked into the Putnam County Jail at 1:17 a.m. Saturday for public intoxication, operating while intoxicated, operating a vehicle in violation of a restricted driving permit and operating per se...

GREENCASTLE -- A Putnamville Correctional Facility inmate has been charged in Putnam County Circuit Court with Class B felony aggravated battery after he allegedly assaulted another inmate. An initial hearing for Debery Coleman, 38, has been set for Oct. 8...

GREENCASTLE -- A Monday night standoff between police and a Greencastle man ended without incident. Henry N. Wallen, 57, will be arraigned today in Putnam County Superior Court for two charges of Class D felony pointing a firearm and two charges of Class A misdemeanor resisting law enforcement. He has been lodged at the Putnam County Jail since his arrest...

GREENCASTLE -- A Greencastle woman remains lodged in the Putnam County Jail after an incident Saturday in which she allegedly injured four people with a knife. Treva J. Jackson, 35, is charged with four counts of Class C felony battery by means of a deadly weapon, each punishable by up to eight years in prison. She has entered not guilty pleas to all charges, and a pretrial conference in the case has been set for Nov. 12...

GREENCASTLE -- This Friday night all four Putnam County High Schools will set aside their rivalries as Greencastle plays North Putnam and Cloverdale faces off against South Putnam. Instead, the teams will work together to collect Coats for Kids. GHS and NPHS will face off against CHS and SPH to see who can collect the most coats during their Friday night football games...

The South Putnam seventh and eighth grade football team faced off with Rockville recently. The seventh grade squad defeated Rockville 44-12, while the eighth graders were victorious 32-6. In the seventh grade game, Lucas Lorian and Dakota Bunton scored three touchdowns each. Wes Riner had three touchdowns and Braden Patrick had a single touchdown in the eighth grade win...

TERRE HAUTE --The Greencastle High School volleyball team fell to Terre Haute North 3-0, 25-1, 25-11, 25-11. "This was a tough night for the Cubs," GHS coach Trish Lowe said. "We did a lot of standing around and watching. We must do a better job of moving and communicating to be competitive."...

By DAN SHELTON Sports Writer ROACHDALE -- The Lady Cougars' volleyball match with Bethesda Christian Tuesday night can be summed up in one phrase -- a beautiful nightmare. The Cougars lost the match 3-2 after taking a 2-0 lead, but in the midst of tough defeat the Cougars found themselves doing something beautiful...

GREENCASTLE -- A three goal onslaught within a six minute span in the first half helped propel the GHS boys' soccer team to a 7-1 victory over visiting Edgewood Tuesday. Greencastle got on the board at the 25:56 mark when Brandon Query sent a shot past Edgewood's keeper. Two minutes later, senior Spencer Moore found the back of the net, giving the Tiger Cubs a 2-0 advantage...

The 2009-2010 DePauw University Band will present its first concert of the year on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. in Kresge Auditorium in the Green Center for the Performing Arts. The performance, part of the University's Family Weekend festivities, is free of charge and open to the public...

Battle for Terra is a conundrum. It's that film that falls between age groups, resulting in a film that has no audience to call its own. Terra is a thought-provoking film that is too kiddie for adults and too uninteresting for children. Terra is a beautifully peaceful planet inhabited by swimmy, floating alien beings that lead a semi-primitive lifestyle. ...

As casual listeners, we often lack the insight into how songs are composed. Where did it start? How did it all come together? Why were these instruments chosen? On "How to Fall," the fifth track on the Early Day Miners' "The Treatment," released Tuesday on Secretly Canadian Records, we get a rare glimpse into this process...