Free Republic

LOUISVILLE (KSP / News Release) – Kentucky State Police (KSP) Post 1 in Mayfield has positively identified remains found nearly 25 years ago thanks to the help of advanced DNA technology. On May 6, 1999, human remains were discovered in Lake Barkley, Lyon County, Kentucky, by two fishermen. The individual was located wrapped in heavy tire chains and anchored with a hydraulic jack. At the time, investigators were unable to identify the male using traditional investigative techniques. In 2016, the body of the victim was exhumed in hopes that further examinations would help make an identification. Despite extensive efforts using...

A first-draft plan for Arkansas roadway spending shows lane additions to the Greenwood bypass and Arkansas 22 between Charleston and Fort Smith, as well as potential Interstate 49 construction in the Fort Smith area. Dubbed the CAP-2 draft by the Arkansas Department of Transportation, the Connecting Arkansas Program-2 list is a “data driven” starting point work that will largely be contingent on the continuation of a half-percent sales tax next year, according to ARDOT spokesperson Danny Straessle. “The governor proposes to make it permanent,” Straessle said. “This is a list of about 20 years of work.” In a recent meeting,...

With an estimated cost of about $787 million, a public-private partnership on a tolled four-lane Interstate 49 extension from Alma to Fort Smith with a bridge over the Arkansas River has been deemed “not viable” by the Arkansas Department of Transportation. Results of the I-49 Alternative Delivery Study, approved by the Arkansas Highway Commission in 2016, were presented Wednesday at the Frontier Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Policy Board meeting. Andrew Brewer, assistant division engineer for ARDOT, said a tolled 14-mile extension was deemed “not viable” based on projected costs and revenue. “The bottom line is assuming an optimal toll rate of...

One of Arkansas’ top priorities is finishing Interstate 49 in the western part of the state. A key component of that massive project, which is also massively expensive, is a 13.7-mile stretch near Fort Smith that includes a bridge over the Arkansas River to connect Interstate 40 with Interstate 49, which would then run from south Fort Smith to northwest Arkansas and up through the midsection of the nation. The project’s completion would connect with a 6.5-mile stretch of Interstate 549 that opened in 2015 and hooks up U.S. 71 with Highway 22 in south Fort Smith. The proposed 13.7-mile...

A toll feasibility study is up in the air for the future Interstate 49 bridge over the Arkansas River with extensions connecting Arkansas 22 to Interstate 40 at Alma. Following approval last year of $10 million in I-49 project development, the Arkansas Department of Transportation solicited bids for a consultant to conduct an I-49 toll feasibility study. They are currently in a negotiation phase, according to ArDOT District 4 Construction Engineer Jason Hughey. ArDOT selected HNTB on June 23 to conduct the “I-49 Alternative Delivery Study.” The negotiations are over the scope of work and process has been “fluid,” ArDOT...

“I think the worst thing is in our society is if you were there, you thought it was a better idea to film this other than intervene and stop, that's what's disturbing to me,” said Sgt. Daniel Grubbs. Williams said he has two kids who are almost teenagers. He said he won’t let them go to the mall alone until they are older. He said he shared his concerns with police and mall security. “They told me they were going to take measures to implement some more policies to prevent this in the future,” Williams said. He also added he...

At least two law enforcement officers were shot by a man on Wednesday (Aug. 10) in Sebastian County, according to the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office. One of the officers is a Sebastian County deputy and the other is the Hackett chief of police, Darrell Spells, the sheriff’s office said. Both officers were taken to Sparks Hospital in Fort Smith. Neither officer’s condition is known at this time.

SEBASTIAN COUNTY, Ark. — Two law enforcement officers have been shot near Fort Smith, Arkansas. Their conditions are not known at this time.

A Muslim couple were thrown out of a mall and branded as 'terrorists' on social media because their supposedly suspicious behavior caused concern among shoppers. Alan and Daphne Crawford, who were dressed in a thobe and hijab, were escorted from the Central Mall in Fort Smith, Arkansas, with their son on Saturday after customers saw them filming and alerted security. They had just finished buying $200 worth of Sperry shoes and a pair of Armani glasses from Lens Crafters when five police officers turned up to tell them they had to leave. Police officers showed up and told him he...

An Arkansas woman who went to pick up the class ring she ordered from Walmart left disappointed, after store officials told her the retailer's new policy barred them from turning the item over -- because it bore an image of the Confederate flag. Elaine Glidewell told KFSM someone from the store in Fort Smith called her to pick up the ring she'd ordered for her nephew, but when she arrived on Tuesday, a clerk told her she couldn’t have it. The ring had been ordered before Walmart stopped selling items bearing images of the flag, in the wake of controversy...

A Fort Smith School Board committee passed a motion Tuesday (June 23) to ban the “Dixie” song during the 2015-2016 school year and to replace the rebel mascot for the 2016-2017 school year. The motion passed five to zero. Susan McFerran, a member of the school board, said the decision comes after the mass shooting in Charleston, South Carolina and a recent class reunion. “There was a 30 year class reunion this weekend,” she said. “It came to our attention that the public has been pretty upset about the Confederate flag, which has already been removed, the rebel mascot [and]...

Violent Mexican drug cartels have been making headlines in recent weeks. And now comes word that the Department of Justice reports cartel organizations exist in 230 American cities. Of alarming note for Arkansans is that three cities on the list are in the Natural State: Little Rock, Fort Smith and Fayetteville. U.S. Senator Mark Pryor says coordination of counternarcotics enforcement among every level of government is critical in order to combat drug smuggling across the border and cartel infiltration of U.S. cities. He held a Senate hearing Tuesday, entitled “Counternarcotics Enforcement: Coordination at the Federal, State and Local Level,” where...

Man, 88, charged in wife's killing 08/07/2002 From Staff and Wire Reports FORT SMITH, Ark. - Authorities say George Hastings, 88, shot and killed his wife, Hazel Hastings, because he feared that she would be left without adequate care after his death. Ms. Hastings, 84, had Alzheimer's disease, and Mr. Hastings has terminal cancer, police said. After Mr. Hastings phoned 911 to tell police he'd shot his wife, police arrived and found her body. Mr. Hastings had shot himself twice. He was arrested on a charge of first-degree murder and taken to St. Edward Mercy Medical Center. He suffered...