WKDP – WCTT Local News

Twin 6-week-old girls were flown to UK Hospital Tuesday after a DUI crash in Knox County.

It happened around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday on KY 1304.

According to the Knox County Sheriff’s office, Shannan Messer was under the influence when she wrecked her car.  According to witnesses, the crash caused one one of her 6-week-old daughters to be thrown from her baby carrier and into the front floor board of the car.  The other infant was found still inside her carrier, though it had fallen out of the car when the door opened.

Both girls were flown to UT Hospital where they were admitted into the Intensive Care Unit.

Messer was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries before being trasferred to the Knox County jail on a charge of Operating a Motor Vehicle Under the Influence and two counts of first-degree Wanton Endangerment.

A Rockcastle County man, who lead police on a chase just days ago, found himself in trouble again Monday night, but this time, he shot himself rather than surrendering. 

Police were called to Chris Bailey’s home in Mount Vernon Monday night following a complaint of drug activity.  When they arrived, they noticed the strong chemical odor of methamphetmine coming from the home, and found Bailey barricaded in the garage.  When officials opened the garage door, Bailey shot himself in the mouth.

Bailey was flown to UK Hospital.  His condition is not known.

Police say Bradley is the same man who ran from authorities just days ago when he was found with a one-step meth lab inside his car.  He was picked up by police, but had since bonded out of jail.

A revised anti-meth bill was introduced Tuesday in the state Senate that would limit the amount of cold medicines with pseudoephedrine a person can buy without a prescription.

Under Senate Bill 3, someone could buy up to 3.6 grams of pseudoephedrine a month or 15 grams a year.  (A generic box of pseudoephedrine with 48 pills, each with a 30-milligram dosage, contains 1.44 grams of the medicine.)  Those who wish to purchase more would need a prescription to do so.  Gel caps would be exclused in the bill, as they are not used to manufacture meth.

The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Robert Stivers of Manchester, thinks this bill has a better chance of passing than the bill he withdrew from the Senate floor last week. 

The bill will be heard Thursday by the State Judiciary Committee.

A western Kentucky lawmaker has proposed a statewide ban on synthetic drugs.

Rep. John Tilley, a Democrat from Hopkinsville, said the General Assembly tried to ban synthetic drugs 20 years ago by banning certain formulas, but chemists got around the law by altering those formulas. 

Tilley’s legislation would correct that problem by banning whole classes of compounds that can be used in different ways to create drugs. The bill is similar to leglisation enacted in Kansas and Tilley says it has support from lawmakers in both parties.

Morehead State University’s president told legislators Tuesday that there’s no need to turn the University of Pikeville into a publicly funded school.

Wayne Andrews told the House Education Committee that the area is already well-served by current universities and colleges, and that adding another public instution would only deprive existing schools of scarce resources.

Andrews says, rather than using money to convert the Pikeville school, that money should instead be used to give students scholarships that can be applied toward any state university.

The legislation is HB 260.

Gov. Steve Beshear pushed a new initiative Tuesday aimed at combating the state’s higher rates of cancer.

Beshear was accompanied by several physicians in the state’s Capitol this morning when he announced the formation of the Kentucky Cancer Foundation to generate money to cover the cost of screenings for thousands of uninsured Kentuckians.

Besheaer has asked lawmakers to appropriate $1 million for the foundation, which would put up another $1 million to pay for the screenings.

Kentucky is one of the worst states in the nation for cancer.   Beshear said Kentucky sees more than 24,000 new cases of cancer each year, and some 9,500 Kentuckians who are diagnosed with cancer die each year.

A heating unit was the cause of a small fire at Lynn Camp High School Tuesday afternoon.

According to Knox County Dispatch, a small heating unit shorted out in a classroom, causing a small fire.  No one was injured firefighters had the flames under control within 10 minutes.

The Kentucky State Police is now accepting applications from Kentucky high school seniors who are intereste in qualifying for a $1000 scholarship.

The Trooper Island Scholarship Fund is open to all graduating seniors in Kentucky who plan to attend college or technical/vocational school this fall.

This is the second year that KSP has offered this financial aid.  Last year, Amber Nicole Turner of Barren County High School and Devon Wharton of Trigg County High School, were each awarded a $1,000 scholarship.

To be considered, applications must be submitted by April 1, 2012.

For more information, visit the KSP website at www.kentuckystatepolice.org.

House Republicans have filed a bill that would require releasing the redistricting plan to the public before a vote can be taken.

The proposal would require any proposed legislation dealing with redistricting for state and congressional districts be released to the public and press five days before a vote can be taken in the General Assembly.

HB 460, sponsored by Jill York of Grayson and C.B. Embry of Morgantown, would coer any and all proposals regarding redistricting.

Crews were busy Monday installing full-body scanners at Blue Grass Airport.

The controversial new scanners generate a generic image, revealing any hidden items or possible weapons.  Some people feel the scans are too intrusive, but others say they feel safer with the added security.  Critics also say the scanners put out a high level of radiation, but the TSA insists they are safe.

The scanners won’t be operational until later this week or the beginning of next week.