BREAKING: Kentucky Lawmaker Facing Sexual Assault Allegations Kills Himself
Posted: December 14, 2017 Filed under: Breaking News, Crime & Corruption, Law & Justice, Mediasphere, Politics, U.S. News | Tags: Allegations, Bullitt County, Dan Johnson, Kentucky, Molestation, Suicide 1 CommentDan Johnson, a Republican state lawmaker in Kentucky, killed himself Wednesday night. He was 57.
Bullitt County Coroner Dave Billings said Johnson died of a single gunshot wound on Greenwell Ford Road in Mount Washington, Kentucky. Billings said Johnson stopped his car at the end of a bridge in a secluded area, then got out and walked to the front of the car. He said an autopsy is scheduled for Thursday morning.
“I would say it is probably suicide,” he said.
Johnson was elected to the state legislature in 2016, part of a wave of Republican victories that gave the GOP control of the Kentucky House of Representatives for the first time in nearly 100 years. He won his election despite Republican leaders urging him to drop out of the race after local media reported on some of his Facebook posts comparing Barack and Michelle Obama to monkeys.
“Bullitt County Coroner Dave Billings said Johnson died of a single gunshot wound on Greenwell Ford Road in Mount Washington, Kentucky. Billings said Johnson stopped his car at the end of a bridge in a secluded area, then got out and walked to the front of the car … “
The pastor of Heart of Fire church in Louisville, Johnson sponsored a number of bills having to do with religious liberty and teaching the Bible in public schools. But he was mostly out of the spotlight until Monday, when the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting published an account from a woman saying Johnson sexually assaulted her in the basement of his home in 2013.
At the time, the woman told police about the incident, who investigated but closed the case and did not file charges.
On Tuesday, Johnson held a news conference in the pulpit of his church, which he began by leading friends and family in singing a portion of the Christmas carol “O Come All Ye Faithful.” He said the allegations against him were “totally false” and said they were part of a nationwide strategy of defeating conservative Republicans. Read the rest of this entry »
THE GREATEST: Born Today, January 17, 1942: Cassius Clay, aka Muhammad Ali
Posted: January 17, 2017 Filed under: Entertainment, History | Tags: 1960s, Boxing, Cassius Clay, George Foreman, Heavyweight Championship, Kentucky, Louisville, Muhammad Ali, Muhammed Ali, Parkinson's disease, Sonny Liston Leave a commentJerry Mitchell writes: January 17, 1942: Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Muhammad Ali broke through racial barriers in the segregated South and became the best boxer in history, winning an Olympic gold medal in 1960 and the heavyweight championship in 1964. Three years, he was stripped of his title after he refused to be drafted into military service. In 1971, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction, and Ali fought again, winning back the heavyweight crown in 1974 when he defeated George Foreman. But the boxer formerly known as Cassius Clay is probably best remembered for his three matches against Joe Frazier. His boxing and his words became poetry, “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” Read the rest of this entry »
OH NO NOT AGAIN: Substitute Teacher Kasey Warren Busted for Sex with Two 16-Year-Old Male Students, Charged with Rape
Posted: August 20, 2016 Filed under: Crime & Corruption, Education, U.S. News | Tags: Carlisle County, Grand jury, Kasey Warren, Kentucky, Kentucky State Police, McCracken County, Rape, Students, Substitute teacher, Teacher, The Paducah Sun 1 CommentKasey Warren, 27, a former substitute teacher in Carlisle County Schools District, Kentucky, is accused of raping two 16-year-old male students on separate occasions in June.
A female substitute teacher has been charged with rape after she had sex with two male teenage students, police say.
Kasey Warren, 27, a former instructor within the Carlisle County Schools District, Kentucky, allegedly had sexual contact with two pupils aged 16.
One boy was allegedly attacked on or around June 3, police told Dailymail.com, while the other was attacked around June 14.
Police say she met the pair while working in the district in the latter half of the 2015-2016 term.
Cops revealed that both of the boys attended the same school, but said they will not be disclosing the name of the institution at this time.
Officers say the alleged attacks took place in neighboring McCracken County, but did not give any further details.
Cops say they received a report of the attacks on June 28, and a grand jury indicted Warren on Friday last week. Read the rest of this entry »
[VIDEO] Dashcam: That’s No Flying Reindeer! Deer Hit By Police Cruiser; Gets Up, Runs Off
Posted: December 1, 2015 Filed under: Mediasphere, U.S. News | Tags: Collision, Deer, Kentucky, media, news, Police Cruiser, video Leave a comment
Why Is This Woman Smiling?
Posted: November 4, 2015 Filed under: Breaking News, Mediasphere, Politics, U.S. News | Tags: African American, America, Election, GOP, Jenean Hampton, Kentucky, Lt. Governor, Matt Bevin, media, news, Tea Party, Twitter Leave a comment
[VIDEO] Kentucky Democrat Gives Bizarre Speech After GOP Victories: ‘Mary Did Not Ride An Elephant Into Bethlehem’
Posted: November 4, 2015 Filed under: Mediasphere, Politics, Religion | Tags: Democratic Party (United States), Greg Stumbo, Jesus, Kentucky, Kentucky State Police, Mollie Hemingway, State police, The Bible, Virgin Mary 1 Comment“I don’t know. Nobody knows. The Bible doesn’t tell us that, does it? But I believe the Bible is a book of parables … I don’t know whether Jesus would have been a Democrat or Republican, and nobody else does, but I know this. He was a carpenter and a teacher, and I bet every carpenter and teacher I know are pretty good Democrats.”
David Rutz reports: Kentucky’s Democratic House Speaker Greg Stumbo stumbled in a speech Tuesday night following big Republican victories, giving a bizarre speech covering Jesus, religion and the Bible and remarking that Mary “did not ride an elephant into Bethlehem” before giving birth to her son.
“Let me tell you. I am going to admit I have not read the holy book from front to finish like some of you probably have, but my reading of our Bible shows that the word Republican or Democrat isn’t used, and people sometimes ask me … ‘What would Jesus have been if he were alive? Would he have been a Democrat or a Republican?’
The Federalist‘s Mollie Hemingway reported on the odd moment that did not appear to be received well by the assembled Democrats, who offered muted applause to his remarks.
“And the other thing I know is that if in fact the Bible is a book of parables, like I believe it is, think about this: Mary did not ride an elephant into Bethlehem that night.”
He made his comments following a devastating night for Kentucky Democrats, as Republican Matt Bevin won a surprising victory for the governorship, and Republican Jenean Hampton became Kentucky’s first African American to hold statewide office with her lieutenant governor election.
Stumbo was upset by the notion, in his view, that Democrats were considered less “godly” than Republicans. Read the rest of this entry »
LIBERAL HEADS EXPLODE: Kentucky’s New Lieutenant Governor Jenean Hampton
Posted: November 3, 2015 Filed under: Breaking News, Mediasphere, Politics, U.S. News | Tags: African American, Air Force, Conservative, Detroit, GOP, Jenean Hampton, John Fund, Kentucky, Kentucky Election, Liberal, Liberal Heads Explode, Matt Bevin, National Review, Rochester, Single Mom, Tea Party, University of Rochester 24 CommentsJohn Fund continues:
…Both Bevin and Hampton are Tea Party activists who have never held elective office. Hampton’s path certainly represents triumph over adversity. Born in Detroit, the 57-year-old Hampton and her three sisters were raised by a single mom who lacked a high school education and couldn’t afford a television or a car.

Lt. Gov. Candidate Jenean Hampton shakes hands with Jenny Goins during the ceremony to celebrate the Class of 2015 Veteran’s Hall of Fame inductees.
But Hampton was determined to better herself. She graduated with a degree in industrial engineering and worked for five years in the automobile industry to pay off her college loans. She then joined the Air Force, retiring as a Captain.
[UPDATE – How Kentucky’s New Black Lieutenant Governor Became a Conservative – John Fund]
She earned an MBA from the University of Rochester, moved to Kentucky and became a plant manager in a corrugated packaging plant….(read more)
Source: National Review Online
Matt Bevin Elected Governor of Kentucky, Only the 2nd Republican Governor in 4 Decades
Posted: November 3, 2015 Filed under: Breaking News, Law & Justice, Mediasphere, Politics, U.S. News | Tags: Bellarmine University, Bernie Sanders, Center for Public Integrity, Daniel Craig, Federal Election Commission, Hillary Clinton, James Bond in film, Kentucky, Political action committee, WKYT-TV Leave a commentLOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) – UPDATED at 8:09: Matt Bevin elected governor of Kentucky, only the 2nd Republican governor in four decades.
The campaign for Kentucky governor concludes Tuesday as voters elect someone to replace a two-term Democrat in a race that has turned on health insurance for 500,000 people, marriage licenses for same-sex couples and public education for preschool children.
Republican Matt Bevin, Democrat Jack Conway and Independent Drew Curtis have contrasted sharply in a race watched closely for its proximity to the 2016 presidential election and for its competitiveness in one of the nation’s last two-party states.
The two major-party candidates and their allies have spent more than $14 million to air more than 41,000 TV ads in Kentucky, according to an analysis by the Center for Public Integrity. That does not include direct mail or ads on radio or local cable systems.
The governor’s race is considered to be one of the top tickets in the country. The race was featured Tuesday in the New York Times. The paper said the victor will largely be determined by who actually goes to the polls. There are more registered Democrats than Republicans in Kentucky, so Bevin could “eke out” a victory if he persuaded enough Christian conservatives to go to the polls. Read the rest of this entry »
Colonel Sanders, Born Today in 1890
Posted: September 9, 2015 Filed under: Entertainment, Food & Drink, History | Tags: chicken, Colonel Sanders, Fast food, Fried chicken, Kentucky, Kentucky Fried Chicken, KFC, The Economist, The South, video Leave a commentColonel Sanders, born #onthisday in 1890, wasn’t a real colonel. But he is an American icon
Kim Davis Shows Off Her New Prison Tats
Posted: September 9, 2015 Filed under: Art & Culture, Humor, Mediasphere | Tags: Kentucky, Kim Davis, Photography, Prison, Same-sex marriage, satire, Tattoos 1 Comment[VIDEO] BOURBAGEDDON: Lightning Strike, ‘Firenado’ at Jim Beam Kentucky Whiskey Factory, Rivers Flow with Flaming Liquor
Posted: September 7, 2015 Filed under: Food & Drink, Mediasphere | Tags: Bourbon whiskey, Fire, Fire whirl, Jim Beam, Kentucky, Lake, Lightning, Lightning strike, Retention basin, The Weather Channel Leave a commentFootage has emerged of the extraordinary blaze caused by lightning striking a whiskey factory – sparking a ‘firenado’ of flaming alcohol to be sucked up into the sky.
A Kentucky warehouse, which produces Jim Beam bourbon, was battered by lightning, heavy rain and strong winds simultaneously in 2003. Aerial footage taken during the blaze has been obtained by The Weather Channel and shows how a river of alcohol and flames spewed forth from the burning factory.
The combination of wind, rain and whiskey meant that water laced with alcohol was whipped into a funnel- sparking the fire which tore through the factory. Read the rest of this entry »
BREAKING: Kentucky Clerk Who Refused to Issue Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples Held in Contempt of Court
Posted: September 3, 2015 Filed under: Breaking News, Law & Justice, Politics, U.S. News | Tags: Activism, Contempt of court, Kentucky, Marriage License, NBC News, Same-sex marriage, SCOTUS Leave a commentBREAKING: Senate Blocks House Bill on NSA Surveillance, 2-Month Extension
Posted: May 22, 2015 Filed under: Breaking News, Law & Justice, Politics, U.S. News | Tags: Associated Press, Boston, Kentucky, Mitch McConnell, National Security Agency, Party leaders of the United States Senate, Patriot Act, Rand Paul, Republican Party (United States), United States 3 CommentsBREAKING NEWS – The Republican-led Senate blocked a House bill early Saturday that would have ended the National Security Agency’s bulk of collection on domestic phone records.
The vote was 57-42, short of the 60-vote threshold to move ahead. It leaves the fate of the key provisions in the Patriot Act in doubt with a June 1 deadline less than two weeks away.
The Senate also failed to advance a two-month extension of NSA programs as well. The vote also needed 60 votes to get to the Senate floor. The vote was defeated 54-45…(read more)
developing…
ANTI-SNOOPER Rand Paul Filibusters Against Patriot Act, Data Collection, NSA Surveillance
Posted: May 20, 2015 Filed under: Breaking News, Law & Justice, Politics | Tags: C-SPAN, Filibuster, Global Strategy Group, Kentucky, National Security Agency, Patriot Act, Political spectrum, Rand Paul, Republican Party (United States), United States, United States Senate 1 Comment

The Kentucky Republican’s speech, which began at 1:18 p.m., is not technically holding up any legislation because the Senate is actually currently debating a trade bill, but Mr. Paul said his move was a filibuster nonetheless, as he vowed to hold the floor until he couldn’t go any longer.
“It’s time to end the NSA spying,” his official Twitter account said in a post at 1:36 p.m., as he was on the floor.

[VIDEO] Rand Paul’s STOU Rebuttal
Posted: January 21, 2015 Filed under: Mediasphere, Politics, White House | Tags: Criminal justice, Kentucky, Liberal elite, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, Martin Luther King, President of the United States, Rand Paul, Stanford University, Two Americas 2 CommentsGood evening. I wish I had better news for you, but… All is not well in America. America is adrift. Something is clearly wrong.
“I think we should put limits on the terms of Congress and infuse our government with fresh ideas.”
America needs many things, but what America desperately needs is new leadership.
I’ve only been in office a short time, but one thing I’ve discovered is that there is no monopoly on knowledge in Washington.
“The war on poverty is 50 years old, and still black unemployment is twice that of white unemployment.”
The best thing that could happen is for us—to once and for all—limit the terms of all politicians. We already limit the President to two terms.
I think we should put limits on the terms of Congress and infuse our government with fresh ideas.
[Go to Breitbart to read the rest.]
Before I ran for office, I practiced medicine for nearly 20 years in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Liberal elites fly over my small town, but they don’t understand us. They simply seek to impose their will upon us—from what insurance we can buy, to what light bulbs we can use, to how we generate electricity.
Most of us in flyover country, and I suspect many who live in our big cities, think those in government take us for granted. Those of us who are actively pursuing the American Dream simply want government to get out of our way. Read the rest of this entry »
[VIDEO] How Bourbon is Made
Posted: December 8, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Food & Drink | Tags: America, American Whiskey Trail, Bourbon, Distillation, Distillery, Distillery District, Jim Beam, Kentucky, Maker's Mark, NRO, VA Viper, Whiskey 2 Comments
We toured 12 distilleries in a five-day blitz, asking everyone we met to walk us through the bourbon-making process. Here, you’ll find all of the steps that go into making America’s unique take on whiskey. Watch and learn.
Via VA Viper, via The Corner
Yes, Stupid Laws Can Kill People
Posted: December 4, 2014 Filed under: Law & Justice, Think Tank | Tags: Cigarette, CNN, Criminal justice, Grand jury, Kentucky, Law, MSNBC, New York, New York City, New York City Police Department, Police, Police officer, Politician, Rand Paul, Staten Island, War on Drugs 1 CommentDavid Harsanyi writes: After news of the baffling decision by the New York grand jury not to indict a police officer in the killing of Eric Garner, I sent out a (slightly) hyperbolic tweet that wondered why Americans would want to entrust their free speech and health care to an institution that will kill you over failure to pay a cigarette tax.
If they can kill you over a cigarette tax, why would you trust them to run the internet, regulate your speech and choose your health care?
— David Harsanyi (@davidharsanyi) December 4, 2014
Since then, I’ve seen numerous tweets discounting this argument as preposterous. It’s something akin to blaming jaywalking for the death of Michael Brown, we’re told. Rand Paul touched on the issue in an interview on msnbc yesterday and was, predictably, ridiculed for it by liberals – because mentioning the circumstances of a violent act is preposterous, apparently.
Though it certainly isn’t close to being the most important lesson of this inexplicable case, it’s not something that should be dismissed so flippantly.
Garner wasn’t targeted for death because he was avoiding taxes, but nonetheless, prohibitive cigarette taxes unnecessarily create situations that make events like this possible.
We frame violent acts and unintended consequences in this way all the time. When we discuss how illegal immigrant women can be the helpless victims of domestic violence, we also blame unreasonable laws for creating the situation. Read the rest of this entry »
Tuesday Night Doodles: Jake Tapper’s Sketch of Senator Mitch McConnell Just After CNN Projects His Election Victory in Kentucky
Posted: November 4, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Comics, Mediasphere, Politics | Tags: CNN, Election 2014, Illustration, Jake Tapper, Kentucky, media, Mitch McConnell Leave a comment
@jaketapper sketches Sen. Mitch McConnell just after CNN projects his re-election in Kentucky #kysen #CNNElection
Rand, Straightforwardly Libertarian, Gets a Warm Reception at Harvard
Posted: April 27, 2014 Filed under: Education, Politics, U.S. News | Tags: Boston Tea Party, Harvard Institute of Politics, Kentucky, National Review, Patriot Act, Rand Paul, Republican, Republican Party (United States) Leave a commentFor NRO, A.J. Kritikos writes: On Friday afternoon, Kentucky senator Rand Paul spoke at Harvard’s Institute of Politics. Despite the libertarian and conservative arguments he put forth to the Cambridge audience, he was received warmly, though his more detailed legal arguments on national-security issues need some fine-tuning.
Senator Paul’s prepared remarks primarily addressed privacy and national-security issues, beginning, appropriately enough, by alluding to the Boston Tea Party. After describing how the British used general warrants to harass colonists, and the subsequent writings of James Otis on the topic that helped catalyze opposition to the Crown, Senator Paul addressed privacy concerns that have arisen since 9/11. The checks and balances required by the Constitution, in his view, have been partially abandoned in response to the threat of terrorism, highlighting the Patriot Act as an example.
That law was part of counterterrorism efforts responding to 9/11 that Paul characterized as being marked by “hysteria.” While the law certainly was enacted rapidly, suggesting that America has been hysterical in its pursuit of al-Qaeda and its associates seems more reminiscent of his father than the more mainstream image Senator Paul has sought to cultivate. Read the rest of this entry »
[VIDEO] Snake-handling Pastor Bitten By Snake, Declines Treatment, Dies of Snakebite
Posted: February 17, 2014 Filed under: Breaking News, U.S. News | Tags: CNN, God, Jamie Coots, Kentucky, Middleborough Massachusetts, Pentecostalism, Practices, Snake handling, Snakebite, Venomous snake Leave a comment[Why take the risk? We recommend: Extra Heavy Duty Snake Handling Gloves – With Stainless Staples and Thick Leather, available at Amazon]
A Kentucky pastor who starred in a reality show about snake-handling in church has died – by snakebite. Jamie Coots died Saturday after refusing treatment…
Nightline‘s Spencer Wilking and Lauren Effron report:
The “snake handling” pastor of a small Pentecostal church in Kentucky died after being bitten by a rattlesnake during a weekend church service.
[Check out the book: Salvation on Sand Mountain: Snake Handling and Redemption in Southern Appalachia at Amazon]
Jamie Coots, the pastor of the Full Gospel Tabernacle in Jesus Name in Middlesboro, Ky., was handling a rattlesnake during a service when he was bitten on his right hand Saturday night. But when the ambulance arrived at 8:30 p.m., the EMS team found that Coots had gone home, according to a statement from the Middlesboro Police Department.
Middlesboro Police Chief Jeff Sharpe told ABC News that, according to people at the church, Coots verbally refused treatment at the church. He said Coots was unconscious when he got to his house. When the ambulance crew arrived at Coots’ home, his wife Linda Coots signed a form declining medical treatment, police said.
9 Perish, Including 8 Children, in Kentucky House Fire
Posted: January 30, 2014 Filed under: Breaking News | Tags: Kentucky, Kentucky State Police, LifeFlight, Muhlenberg County Kentucky, Nashville Tennessee, Vanderbilt University Medical Center 2 CommentsNine people were killed, including eight children, in a western Kentucky house fire early Thursday morning, News Channel 5 reported.
Greenville Assistant Fire Chief Roger Chandler says 11 people lived at the home in Muhlenberg County, and two were flown to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., for treatment. Multiple fire crews are at the scene.
News Channel 5 reported that an adult and child were able to escape from the fire and were transported on LifeFlight.
Unable to Withstand the Cold Temperatures, Escaped Inmate Turned Himself In
Posted: January 8, 2014 Filed under: Crime & Corruption, U.S. News | Tags: Blackburn Correctional Complex, Department of Corrections, Hartford Connecticut, Kentucky, Lexington Kentucky, Monday, Prison, Spokesperson 1 Comment
‘What are you looking’ at? Hey. It’s really f$*@&!!n COLD out there’
This item, from FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP), demonstrates that even hardened criminals aren’t as tough as they used to be.
Authorities said the inmate escaped from a minimum security facility in Lexington on Sunday. As temperatures dropped into the low single digits Monday, officials say the man walked into a motel and asked the clerk to call police.
Robert Vick, 42, of Hartford told the clerk he wanted to turn himself in and escape the arctic air, Lexington police spokeswoman Sherelle Roberts said.
Vick was checked out by paramedics and returned to Blackburn Correctional Complex, Roberts said.
“This was definitely of his own volition,” she said. “It’s cold out there, too cold to run around. I can understand why the suspect would turn himself in.”
Vick would have been dressed in prison-issued khaki pants, a shirt and a jacket when he escaped, Department of Corrections spokeswoman Lisa Lamb said. Wind chill readings were 20 below zero Monday in Lexington.
“The best whiskey is coming not from Scotland any more, but from Kentucky”
Posted: December 10, 2013 Filed under: Art & Culture, History | Tags: American whiskey, Bourbon whiskey, Jim Murray, Kentucky, Scotch whisky, Scotch Whisky Association, Scotland, Washington Times, Whisky 2 CommentsAmerican Bourbon Better than Scottish Whiskey?
Jessica Chasmar reports: Jim Murray, an English writer and one of the world’s top whiskey critics, believes Scottish malt is no match for American whiskey.
“Generally speaking, bourbon … has overtaken Scotch,” he said, according to the Telegraph.
Mr. Murray, who wrote “Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible,” argues that Scotland’s decrease in quality whiskey is due to the use of sulphur candles to sanitize some barrels that have been used to age sherry, giving it a “bitter finish.”
Bourbon, however, is aged in virgin oak casks, which do not require sulphur treatment, the Telegraph said.
“The best whiskey is coming not from Scotland any more, but from Kentucky,” he said, adding that Buffalo Trace, a bourbon distillery in Frankfort, Ky., is “arguably the best distillery in the world.”
[VIDEO] Six The Movie — Helen Smith
Posted: December 10, 2013 Filed under: Crime & Corruption, History, Mediasphere | Tags: Documentary film, Health, Helen Smith, Kentucky, Libertarianism, Marriage, Mental health, murder, New York, PJ Media 1 CommentDr. Helen Smith writes:
“I often get requests to see my video Six about a group of teenagers who killed a family in East Tennessee. I am no longer selling the documentary, but PJM has been kind enough to upload it to YouTube so that PJM readers can watch it if they wish. It is now almost a decade old but much of the complexity of mass murder still holds true today. I hope my readers find it of interest.”
With recent crimes and mass shootings, the national debate has shifted to questions of mental health, parenting, and the ability of the legal system to deal with troubled youths. These are all issues that PJ Media contributor Dr. Helen Smith addressed in an award-winning 2003 documentary. Her film “Six,” featured in programming on A&E and WeTV, tells the story of a group of Kentucky teens who murdered a family of Jehovah’s Witnesses despite clear warning signs. Though many want to blame violence on guns, the factors involving violence are much more complex than simply blaming a weapon. Watch the documentary, and see what happens when the system fails, as it all too often does.
SOCIAL MEDIA FAIL: Argument Over Facebook Ends With Woman Shooting Half-Sister In Head
Posted: October 10, 2013 Filed under: Crime & Corruption, Mediasphere, U.S. News | Tags: Ankara, Arica, Facebook, Kentucky, Lexington Kentucky, Mississippi 1 CommentJON DAVID KAHN reports: Police say an argument on Facebook resulted in a woman shooting her half-sister in the head. Officers arrived at Walton Pike in Dover just before noon on Wednesday, where they found 24-year-old Arica Woodruff with a gunshot wound to her head. She was taken to the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington but no information was given as to her condition.
Officers arrested her half-sister, 28-year-old Ankara Alvarado, and charged her with attempted murder.