New Kentucky driver’s licenses coming in March

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky says it will begin issuing new driver’s licenses in March.

Kentucky drivers can choose between two options. One is a standard driver’s license. The other is a “voluntary travel ID” that complies with new federal travel rules.

Kentucky drivers must choose between the two options. They cannot have both. Beginning in October 2020, only people with a voluntary travel ID will be allowed to board domestic flights. Anyone who does not have a voluntary travel ID will have to show other forms of identification to board domestic flights, such as a passport.

The new licenses will be available on a county-by-county basis beginning in March. State officials have posted the rollout schedule to the website drive.ky.com.

As Kentucky legislature convenes, 1 seat still uncertain

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A Democrat elected to Kentucky’s House of Representatives by a one-vote margin is preparing for a potential confrontation with the GOP-controlled legislature as he tries to take his seat amid an ongoing election challenge.

Jim Glenn says he will show up for work on Tuesday when the state House of Representatives gavels in for the first time in 2019. But Republican DJ Johnson, who lost to Glenn, has asked the House to conduct a recount.

Glenn says Republican leaders won’t say if they will let him take his seat on Tuesday while the recount is pending.

House GOP spokeswoman Laura Leigh Goins would not say if Republican leaders would allow Glenn to take his seat. She said the caucus will handle the recount in a legal, ethical and appropriate manner.

Edelen promises ‘modern Kentucky’ in campaign for governor

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s former state auditor has officially declared his candidacy for governor.

Adam Edelen made the announcement on Monday in Lexington with running mate Gill Holland, a Louisville businessman and developer. Edelen is the fourth Democrat to declare for the race, setting up a spirited campaign season ahead of the May 21 primary. The winner will likely face Republican Gov. Matt Bevin, who has said he will seek a second term.

Edelen said he wants to build a modern Kentucky, declaring “climate change is real” and saying the state can produce thousands of jobs by investing in renewable energy sources.

Other candidates in the race include Attorney General Andy Beshear, House Minority Floor Leader Rocky Adkins and Geoff Young, a former state employee who has run for governor before.

5 former jail deputies plead not guilty in inmate’s death

CATLETTSBURG, Ky. (AP) — Five former Kentucky jail deputies have pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from an inmate’s death.

The Independent reports Zachary Messer of Ashland, Brad Roberts of Westwood, Colton Griffith of Flatwoods, Jeremy Mattox of Grayson and Alicia Beller of Putnam, West Virginia, appeared in court Friday for arraignment.

Court records show Messer, Griffith and Roberts are charged with manslaughter while Beller and Mattox are charged with complicity to commit manslaughter. The charges stem from the Nov. 29 death of 40-year-old Michael L. Moore, an inmate at the Boyd County Detention Center.

Kentucky State Police said they found Moore deceased in the jail’s restraint chair. Police said Moore was intoxicated and that five jail deputies intentionally abused him or knowingly permitted his abuse and that the mistreatment caused Moore’s death.

Man pleads not guilty to hate crimes in Kroger shootings

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A white man accused of fatally shooting two black people at a Kentucky grocery store has pleaded not guilty to federal hate crimes.

The Courier Journal reports 51-year-old Gregory Bush entered the plea Monday in U.S. District Court. He’d already pleaded not guilty to state charges in the Oct. 24 killings of 69-year-old Maurice Stallar and 67-year-old Vickie Lee Jones.

Bush had stopped at a historically black church near the Kroger in suburban Louisville before heading to the grocery, where Stallar and Jones were shot at close range.

U.S. Attorney Russell Coleman declined to say if he has recommended seeking the death penalty.

Chief Federal Public Defender Scott Wendelsdorf says his office hasn’t yet assigned a public defender.