Mayor charged after hit-and-run injury accident

SOMERSET, Ky. (AP) — Police in Kentucky say they’ve identified a hit-and-run driver who injured a child on a bicycle: They say it’s the town’s mayor.

Kentucky State Police say Somerset Mayor Eddie Girdler has been ordered to appear in court on a charge of leaving the scene of an accident.

Police say the child was hit in Somerset Sunday evening and taken to a local hospital, and then flown to the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington. Police said Monday that they did not know the juvenile’s current condition.

Girdler did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Gov. Jim Justice gives Virginia GOP $20K, has tax debts in other states

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice has donated a combined $20,000 to the state Republican Party while his family businesses’ have tax debts in neighboring states.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports Justice and his wife donated the money to the GOP last month. The party disclosed the contributions in a report to the Federal Elections Commission published Saturday.

The Lexington Herald-Leader quotes Justice in an Aug. 9 report saying he would pay down the $2.5 million he owes across at least five Kentucky counties as soon as possible.

Rick Randolph is an Albemarle County, Virginia, supervisor. He says it’s disappointing to see Justice making political contributions before paying on his back taxes and penalties. Justice owes roughly $226,000 to the county.

A Justice spokesman didn’t respond to the Gazette-Mail’s requests for comment.

Lawmakers urged to update ethics law to combat harassment

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — An ethics commission is urging Kentucky lawmakers to update the state’s legislative ethics law to fill a void in the fight against sexual harassment cases that surface at the state Capitol.

The Legislative Ethics Commission recommended Tuesday that the ethics law be revised to specifically prohibit workplace harassment by lawmakers against their staff. The legislative ethics law currently does not include such language.

Commission members say the change would remove any questions about whether they have jurisdiction to investigate sexual harassment allegations against lawmakers.

The commission has investigated such cases in recent years — most recently in a case involving former House Speaker Jeff Hoover — by referring to another standard related to misuse of public office.

The commission’s recommendation will be submitted to lawmakers. The 2019 legislative session begins in early January.

Kentucky-Illinois bridge traffic to be restricted again

WICKLIFFE, Ky. (AP) — An Ohio River bridge between Kentucky and Illinois has resumed normal traffic flow this week but will have restrictions again starting next week.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says starting Monday, there will again be a lane and 10-foot load width restriction on the U.S. 51 Ohio River Cairo Bridge between Wickliffe, Kentucky, and Cairo, Illinois. The restriction is to allow a detailed inspection of the bridge.

The cabinet says motorists should prepare to encounter one-lane traffic and a strict 10-foot load width restriction between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. Monday through Friday next week.

The agency urges motorists to use caution where equipment, flaggers and inspection personnel are along the bridge deck in close proximity to traffic.

The bridge carries about 4,700 vehicles across the Ohio River each day.

Kentucky State Police cadets begin 25-week training course

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — The first week of the Kentucky State Police Academy’s latest cadet class is underway in Frankfort.

The agency says in a statement that 61 recruits reported for 25 weeks of training that started Sunday.

Cadets will complete more than 1,000 hours of study that includes criminal investigation, high-speed vehicle pursuit, weapons training, hostage negotiations and other topics.

State police Commissioner Rick Sanders said there were 56 retirements in July, so those who graduate the class will help replenish the ranks. Police said 55 cadets are male and six are female. One is Hispanic, and one is African-American. The agency says the training is mentally and physically challenging and that historically, 35 percent of cadets don’t complete the program.

The class is tentatively scheduled to graduate on Feb. 1.

Parole board postpones decision on police officer’s killer

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A parole decision for the killer of a police officer in Kentucky has been postponed.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports that 42-year-old John Paul Works was interviewed Tuesday by a two-member panel of the state Parole Board. He’s serving life in prison for the 1998 shooting death of Harrodsburg police officer 45-year-old Regina Nickles.

Board members Caroline Mudd and Lee VanHoose announced that the full nine-member board will decide what should happen with Works on Aug. 20.

Nickles was the Harrodsburg department’s first female police officer, and the first female officer in Kentucky killed in the line of duty. She was looking for a prowler in 1998 when Works rose up and fatally shot her. Works says he panicked and is truly “remorseful” for killing her.