Stories from Tuesday, September 15, 2015

A 50-year-old Greencastle man, found guilty last month on five counts of sexual misconduct with two minor girls, was sentenced Tuesday afternoon to 30 years in the Indiana Department of Correction. Mark D. Nichols was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Denny Bridges, who found the former ResCare employee guilty during a three-hour bench trial on Aug. 8. Judge Bridges ordered 25 of the 30 years executed with the remaining five years of the sentence suspended on probation...

The curtain will close on the 54th Putnam County Playhouse season this week with the mystery-comedy "The Game's Afoot." In a pivotal scene, Felix (played by Tim Good, right) and William Gillette (Jack Randall Earles) are surprised to discover the body of nosy gossip columnist Daria Chase (Karen Temple) during a holiday party at Gillette's home. ...

A lot can change in 51 years. When Pat Rady coached his first game in November 1964, the Beatles were all still clean shaven. The Supremes' "Baby Love" was in the midst of a four-week run as the No. 1 song in America. "Roustabout," starring Elvis Presley, was the No. 1 movie in the country...

Wayne Merriman, 82, formerly of Quincy, passed away Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015 at Methodist Hospital, Indianapolis. Born March 7, 1933 in Brown County, Ind., he was the son of the late Clarence and Hallie (Fleener) Merriman. He married Leoda (Burton) Merriman May 31, 1952...

County Jail Several people were booked into the Putnam County Jail recently. At 3:20 p.m. on Friday, Kellie Sue Morphew was arrested on a warrant for two counts of check forgery. At 2:45 a.m. on Saturday, Jonathan Cole Muse, 23, Cloverdale, was charged with domestic battery...

FILLMORE -- The 56th annual Fillmore Chicken Barbecue will have added meaning this weekend. Not only will the Fillmore Volunteer Fire Department be serving its traditional barbecue chicken and all the trimmings Friday and Saturday, but the event will also mark the dedication of the new Fillmore Fire Station...

Teresa Arleana Lawson, 53, of Roachdale, passed away Friday, Sept. 11, 2015 at Putnam County Hospital. She was born on Dec. 30, 1961 in Crawfordsville to the late James and Geraldine (Webb) Lawson On July 8, 1983 Teresa married Rick Burdine. They later divorced...

The great Russian cellist, conductor and composer Mstislav Rostropovich ("Slava" to everyone who met him in person) commissioned or otherwise inspired more than 100 major works for the cello, many of them sonatas for cello and piano. In the Wednesday, Sept. ...

The following cases were filed in Putnam County courts recently. Criminal Cases Timothy Ray Moore, 29, Cloverdale, Class A misdemeanor driving while suspended Rahul Batheja, 27, Indianapolis, Class C misdemeanor operating a vehicle while intoxicated, Class C misdemeanor operating with an ACE of .08 or more...

Homecoming princess and prince candidates at Greencastle High School include juniors (front from left) Gracie Foster, Logan Wood, Masey Ward, Jacob Crawley, Lindsey Bridgewater, Braden Pershing, Ruth Heithaus and Craig Helmers; sophomores (middle) Marin Nally, Cade Winslow, Rose White, Maggie Meyer, Lucas Gillen, Nicole Newgent, Jake Bennett and (not pictured) Luke Taylor; and freshmen (back) Ivy Wright, Ethan Mooney, Erin Thomas, Cauy Thomas, Abby Meyer, Trey Wood, Bailey Shuee and Alex Costin. ...

DANVILLE -- South Putnam tennis has seen a sluggish start to the season, but that all may change as the tide began rolling in favor of the Eagles Monday at Danville. Taking the match by a team score of 4-1, South Putnam saw both its number two and three singles players come away with a victory...

BRAZIL -- High finishes for Putnam County runners were the order of the day at the Northview Invitational on Tuesday. In the girls' race, Greencastle's Emma Wilson took top honors with a time of 18:36. She was joined in the top four by teammates Arianna Pershing in third and Seely Stoffregen in fourth...

ROACHDALE -- An early score turned into a gritty 1-0 win for the North Putnam boys' soccer team. While the Cougars played tough against Owen Valley the Patriots were able to keep the pressure on but unable to get any decent shots on goal. In fact, it was the defense of North Putnam that allowed Alex Krominaker the game-winning score...

Pat Rady, Cloverdale's head boys' basketball coach for the past 12 seasons has resigned. The announcement was made Monday at the regularly scheduled Cloverdale School Board meeting. Coach Patrick Rady Jr. was also announced as the new head boys' basketball coach...