Student stabbed at Ky. high school during fight

PAINTSVILLE (AP) — Officials say a student has been stabbed during a fight at a high school in eastern Kentucky.

Johnson County Central Principal Noel Crum told media that there was altercation Friday morning between two students that led to the stabbing.

Crum told WOWK-TV that the injured student was conscious when he was taken to an area hospital. He says another student was taken into custody by police.

WSAZ-TV cited the Johnson County sheriff in reporting that the student responsible for the stabbing was detained and the weapon recovered.

The school was placed on lockdown, but Crum says operations have resumed as normal and there is no threat to other students.

House GOP replaces 3 committee chairmen after allegations

FRANKFORT (AP) — Kentucky’s House Republican leadership has replaced the chairmen of three legislative committees following sexual harassment allegations.

A news release from four Republican leaders says Rep. Jerry Miller will replace Rep. Brian Linder as chairman of the Public Pension Oversight Board. House leaders say two other chairmen have been replaced by vice chairmen.

Linder was one of four state lawmakers involved in a sexual harassment settlement with a member of the House GOP Caucus’ staff. The others are Reps. Jim DeCesare and Michael Meredith. Rep. Phillip Pratt would replace DeCesare as chairman of the Economic Development and Workforce Investment Committee and Rep. Rob Rothenburger would replace Meredith as chairman of the Local Government Committee.

Former House Speaker Jeff Hoover was also part of the settlement. He resigned his leadership position Sunday.

TVA boosts pay of nation’s highest-paid federal employee

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Valley Authority is raising the pay of its CEO after the utility lowered its carbon emissions, injury rates and costs.

News outlets report TVA’s board of directors voted Thursday to increase Bill Johnson’s salary by 5.5 percent. Johnson was paid nearly $5 million in fiscal 2016, with a reported base salary of roughly $995,000.

The compensation package for Johnson, the highest-paid federal employee in the nation, is more than $6 million, including retirement and other benefits. The board says Johnson’s pay is still low compared to salaries of utility companies not in public service.

The Knoxville-based TVA was established by an act of Congress in 1933 to help the Tennessee Valley overcome environmental and economic problems. TVA provides power for Tennessee and parts of six bordering states.

Ky. city sues drug companies for opioid addiction costs

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — A Kentucky city is suing more than a dozen drug manufacturers and distributors to recoup the escalating cost of dealing with drug addiction.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports the city of Lexington filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday, alleging the companies helped cause an opioid addiction epidemic by flooding the city with pain pills.

Councilman Richard Moloney, who encouraged the merged city-county government to join more than 30 other counties in suing drug wholesalers, says they’re focusing on recovering the costs to the city and aren’t joining the state’s lawsuit, which is going after fines.

The city’s total costs haven’t been tallied, but it spends more than $1 million a year on drug treatment.

The senior vice president of the Healthcare Distribution Alliance, John Parker, called the lawsuits misguided in September.

Court stays order striking down medical review panel law

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — The Kentucky Court of Appeals has stayed a lower court’s ruling striking down a state law requiring a panel of doctors to review medical malpractice cases before going to trial.

Franklin County Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd’s Oct. 30 order prevented state officials from enforcing the law. Republican Gov. Matt Bevin’s administration asked the appeals court for an emergency stay until the case can be heard on appeal.

The court noted 89 cases are pending before the medical review panels, and if it did not order a stay, the statute of limitations would expire on at least one of those cases.

Bevin spokesman Woody Maglinger said the Bevin administration is encouraged by the ruling and is ready to resume enforcing the law.

Police chase ends with 2 people fatally shot

FLATWOODS, Ky. (AP) — Officials say a police chase in eastern Kentucky ended with two people being fatally shot.

Kentucky State Police Trooper Michael Murriell told news outlets that several law enforcement agencies were chasing the vehicle Thursday night in Greenup County. Murriell says the chase ended at an intersection in Flatwoods and shots were fired. He says both people in the vehicle were killed. No officers were hurt.

He declined to immediately release further information about what led to the chase and shooting.

Area resident Melanie Kersey told WSAZ-TV that she saw a car go through a neighbor’s yard to try to go around a roadblock and shortly afterward heard several gunshots.