Madison County

Eleven people have been indicted by the FBI after drug raids in Clark, Madison and Fayette counties earlier this month. According to the indictment, Rondale Lamont McCann has been charged with two counts of distributing crack cocaine in Clark County in 2012, and Jennifer Leanna Rawlings has been charged with one count of distributing crack cocaine in Clark County, also in 2012. Bruce Harrison was charged with selling oxycodone in Clark County in February. McCann and Rawlings also were charged with distributing crack cocaine in Madison County, along with Dawn Cloud, Marcus T. Williams, Jason Leon Bledsoe, Bassam M. Alfroukh, Susan Ladosha Strickland, Kelly Marquet Stewart, Zerockia Z. Keene, Dustin Harrison and Bruce Harrison, beginning July 2012.

A Winchester man died Thursday from injuries he suffered in a motorcycle accident Wednesday in Madison County. According to a Kentucky State Police report, Roger Coston, 59, of Coffee Springs Lane, died early Thursday morning at the University of Kentucky Medical Center, where he was taken after the accident, which happened around 4 p.m. Thursday on Red House Road near Stony Run Road. According to the report, Coston lost control of his 1957 Harley Davidson motorcycle, ran off the road and into a ditch.

Michael Stacy and his wife spent a year having their home in the Reserve at Chrisman Mill built and settled in about a year ago. Now, the couple and their 3-year-old might face the prospect of once again relocating. “I can't imagine having to go through it all again,” Stacy said in an interview. Stacy was one of hundreds of Jessamine County and Madison County residents who turned out last Thursday for a public meeting held by the state transportation cabinet to learn more about and voice their opinions on a proposed I-75 connector road that would link the two counties.

Activities for members of the LLL Club of Central Baptist Church were announced at the Oct. 17 potluck luncheon meeting held at the church. Billie Pace, senior adult director, announced that the "Out to Lunch" will be a trip to Acres of Land in Madison County at 10:30 a.m. Nov. 7. The November luncheon meeting will be held at 10:30 a.m. Nov. 14, a week early, due to the Thanksgiving holiday. The meeting was conducted by Marsha Chasteen, president, and Dwight Ferguson gave the opening prayer.

Clark and Madison County voters are sending David Perdue and Earl Ray Neal to the November general election in the race for the 25th Judicial District - 3rd Division.Perdue and Neal garnered the greatest support from voters in the two counties during Tuesday's primary amid a crowded field that included five other candidates. Perdue received 2,440 votes in Clark County and 2,984 votes overall. Neal chalked up 781 votes locally and another 3,222 in Madison County for a total of 4,003.

A home and barn, located on Ky. 52 in Richmond, were destroyed when an F3 tornado ripped through Madison County last Friday. The storm left two people dead and damaged more than 100 homes. Keith Taylor/ktaylor@winchestersun.com

First Settlers to have Christmas luncheon The First Settlers Hoemakers Club will have its Christmas luncheon Wednesday, Dec. 5, at Acres of Land Winery in Madison County. The group will meet at 10:45 a.m. at the Forest Grove Christian Church, Old Boonesboro Road, to carpool.

A strong voter turnout in Madison County gave District Judge William Clouse his promotion to the 25th Circuit bench Tuesday night. Clouse defeated challenger and Family Court Judge Jeff Walson by 2,748 votes, 22,084-19,336, between Madison and Clark counties. A voting machine problem in one of the Berea precincts kept Madison County's number from being calculated until late Tuesday night. In Clark County, Walson handily defeated Clouse, 10,550-3,153. To see how your precinct voted, download the election grid for this race.

A vehicle driven by Megan Jones, Hazard, Ky., struck a vehicle driven by John W. Walker III, Paint Lick, Ky., Saturday at 4:21 p.m. The two drivers were in Madison County. Jones was traveling westbound on Tates Creek Road, about 12 miles outside of Richmond, when she overcorrected and crossed the center line, where she struck Walker. Both vehicles sustained severe damage and both drivers were taken to Pattie A. Clay Hospital in Richmond.

Even though he took a commanding 77 percent lead in Clark County, circuit judge candidate Jeff Walson fell to opponent William Clouse after Madison County's votes were tallied. Clouse ended up with 22,084 votes to Walson's 19,336. The results of the judge's race were delayed because of a technical glitch with a Berea voting booth. See Wednesday's edition of The Winchester Sun or www.winchestersun.com for the full story.

Eleven people have been indicted by the FBI after drug raids in Clark, Madison and Fayette counties earlier this month. According to the indictment, Rondale Lamont McCann has been charged with two counts of distributing crack cocaine in Clark County in 2012, and Jennifer Leanna Rawlings has been charged with one count of distributing crack cocaine in Clark County, also in 2012. Bruce Harrison was charged with selling oxycodone in Clark County in February. McCann and Rawlings also were charged with distributing crack cocaine in Madison County, along with Dawn Cloud, Marcus T. Williams, Jason Leon Bledsoe, Bassam M. Alfroukh, Susan Ladosha Strickland, Kelly Marquet Stewart, Zerockia Z. Keene, Dustin Harrison and Bruce Harrison, beginning July 2012.

Michael Stacy and his wife spent a year having their home in the Reserve at Chrisman Mill built and settled in about a year ago. Now, the couple and their 3-year-old might face the prospect of once again relocating. “I can't imagine having to go through it all again,” Stacy said in an interview. Stacy was one of hundreds of Jessamine County and Madison County residents who turned out last Thursday for a public meeting held by the state transportation cabinet to learn more about and voice their opinions on a proposed I-75 connector road that would link the two counties.

STANFORD - Lincoln County Superintendent Karen Hatter has said she looked at the potential for cutting central office positions while considering which budget cuts to recommend, but found that the central office was not overstaffed. An analysis by The Interior Journal of district data profiles from the Legislative Research Commission found no evidence contradicting Hatter's assessment. Hatter told board members earlier in March she contacted other area districts about the size of their central office staffs and determined Lincoln County's central office has an appropriate level of staffing.

Elsie Dallasanta, 97, of Madison County, formerly of Winchester and Hazard, widow of Arnold Dallasanta, passed away Monday at the Berea Health Care Center. A native of Breathitt County, she was born Feb. 13, 1916, to the late Jonah and Margaret Pelfrey Thomas. She was a sales clerk for T.G. & Y. in Hazard and member of the Church of God. She is survived by two daughters, Barbara Ivey of Berea and Charlene (Charles) Baker of Hazard; brothers, Elmer Thomas of Winchester and Vernon “Bobby” (Minnie)

After several years on the drawing board, engineers have identified eight possible zones that may be the route selected for the proposed connector road that will directly link Jessamine County to I-75 in Madison County. “From our professional judgement, these are the eight zones that would have the least impact on the area,” said Jerry Leslie, project engineer with the Lochner Design Team. The eight zones will be presented to the Citizens' Advisory Committee (CAC), made up of 19 public officials and residents from Jessamine, Fayette and Madison counties, on March 26 at Jessamine County Cooperative Extension Office near the fairgrounds.

FRANKFORT - The Democrat-led House of Representatives passed a redistricting bill Wednesday in a move that some local legislators believe is politically motivated. Under the redistricting, the areas represented by state Rep. Jonathan Shell, R-Lancaster, and Rep. Mike Harmon, R-Boyle, would become one seat. Shell, a Garrard County farmer and first-term representative, and Harmon, who has served in the legislature since 2003, have not worked together long but already have formed a close bond, both men said during separate telephone interviews Wednesday.

LANCASTER - Elections in Garrard County went off without any major issues Tuesday night, according to County Clerk Kevin Montgomery. “One of our machines went down this morning,” Montgomery said, explaining that they resolved the problem pretty easily. Otherwise, the only major problem was “we ran out of stickers.” One of the more closely watched races was between local farmer Jonathan Shell and Berea businessman Bradley “Bud” Montgomery, who were vying for the 36th District state representative seat.

The worst of the Blue Grass Army Depot's “accident” missed Clark County. In the annual CSEPP (Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program) exercise, the plume of chemical smoke headed south from Richmond, affecting two zones in Madison¿County. While this made the exercise somewhat easier for Clark County emergency personnel, Clark¿County Emergency Management Director Gary Epperson said, the Clark County crews were still hard at work. The army depot is a storage facility for conventional munitions and chemical weapons.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) this month will host two public workshops as part of the preliminary design and environmental studies process for the U.S. 27 to I-75 Connector (I-75 Connector) in Jessamine and Madison counties. The workshops will be from 6-8 p.m. Aug. 21 in Jessamine County at East Jessamine Middle School and Aug. 23 in Madison County at B. Michael Caudill Middle School. The public is invited to participate in the open-house-type sessions. A number of exhibits will be set up to share information, and officials from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, the Federal Highway Administration and the Lochner Design Team will be available to answer questions and receive comments.

Dear editor, Saturday, June 16, I was in Paris and Sunday June 17, I was in Clay City. Both places, gas was 15-20 cents cheaper than Winchester. In fact, it was $3.27 in Clay City and $3.45 in Winchester. Why? Does it cost more to deliver to Winchester or are the gas station owners greedier? Greedy, I think. It's always been pushed to buy local. Well, my local gas stations are now in surrounding counties due to the cost. On the average, it is usually cheaper in Madison County, and since I work there, my gas money gets spent in Madison, not Clark, County.