The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1471951
$1.00 20 PAGES 4 SECTIONS TWO INSERTS PETERSBURG, IN 47567-0068 WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29, 2022 PIKE PUBLISHING VOLUME 152, NUMBER 26 NEWS TIPS Phone: ���������������������812-354-8500 Email ����� editor@pressdispatch�net INSIDE Local ����������������� A1-6 Sports �����������������B1-2 History �������������������B3 Home Life ��������������� C1 Opinion ������������� C2-3 Classifieds ���������� C4-6 Church �������������� D1-3 Obituaries ���������������D4 USPS 604-34012 Couple's spat escalates into attempted murder charge By Andy Heuring Editor editor@pressdispatch.net A couple's quarrel late Friday night escalated into an attempted murder charge after police claim the boyfriend set his house on fire with his girlfriend and children trapped inside. Terr y L ynn Loveless, 30, of 305 S. Martin St., Petersburg was ar- rested on charges of attempted mur- der, a level 1 felo- ny; arson, a level 4 felony and criminal confinement, a lev- el 6 felony. Police received a 911 call at 11:55 p.m. Friday from Alexandra Curtis telling police Love- less was intoxicat- ed and yelling at her, according to a probable cause. Petersburg officer Taylor Deffendoll and Sheriff's Sgt. Jared Simmons responded and found Loveless outside the house. Loveless told police he and Curtis had been in an argument and he was just tr ying to leave. According to the affidavit Loveless told police he had not been drinking. Officer Deffendoll said Curtis told her Love- less had received threatening texts and that had him upset. She said Loveless had grabbed her by the arm but he had not hurt her or left any marks. Then he went outside and she locked him out of the house and he then started beat- ing and kicking the door, and that was when she called 911. Curtis told police "all she wanted was for him (Loveless) to leave for the night." Fireworks safety tips from Pike County Fire Chief Ross Elmore By Sherri Sebella News Editor sherri@pressdispatch.net Pike County Fire Chief Ross Elmore wants to see ever yone stay safe over the Fourth of July holiday weekend and shared the following infor- mation for our community: Dates and Times Generally, state statute prohibits a person from igniting, discharging, or using consum- er fireworks after 11 p.m. or before 9 a.m. On holidays, as defined in Indiana Code 1-1-9-1(a), a person may not ignite, discharge or use con- sumer fireworks after midnight or before 9 a.m. Simmons injured in truck vs ATV crash By Andy Heuring Editor editor@pressdispatch.net A rural Winslow man was in- jured early Thursday morning when the ATV he was riding was hit by a pickup truck on River Road. Bradley Simmons, 52, of 5270 S. Old State Road 64, Winslow was riding a 2000 Yamaha Timber wolf ATV east on River Rd., nor th of Peters- burg. James T. Elliott, 33, of Washington was driving a 2002 Chevrolet pickup west on River Road, when they met on a blind cur ve. Pike County Sherif f 's Depu- ty Buck Seger said Elliott hit his brakes and star ted to slide sideways on the rock road and slid into the path of Simmons, who collided into the side of the pickup tr uck. The collision ejected Simmons from the ATV and broke of f one of the ATVs front wheels. Simmons complained of neck and leg pain and was taken to the hospital by Pike County EMS. According to the accident re- port Elliott did not have insur- ance. 4th of July 4th of July Jefferson Township Ruritan Jefferson Township Ruritan Celebration LOCAL A5 Winslow moves town council meetings back to Town Hall By Sherri Sebella News Editor sherri@pressdispatch.net During Monday's Winslow Town Council meeting, board members voted unanimously to move their meetings back to Winslow Town Hall. Town Council member Dick Brewster moved to return the meetings back to Town Hall due to all their records being there. Town Council Vice President Dee Fiscus seconded the motion. President Deb Lamb asked the residents who were present how they felt about that idea and many were concerned over the space limitations of Winslow Town Hall. The council members said they could have the meetings in the lobby of Winslow Town Hall, if the need arose. The motion was passed 3-0. A second reading of the new Camper Ordinance and Of f- road Vehicle Ordinance was read by Lamb and accepted, 3-0. In the Recreational Vehicles and Travel Trailers amendment, the council added restrictions on the use of such recreational vehi- cles to include that recreational vehicles or travel trailers may not be placed on any lot or parcel greater than seven (7) consecu- tive days unless the placement is in an RV park or campground for that purpose. Anyone wishing to extend that time may contact the Town Hall and make a request to the council members under cer- tain circumstances for them to consider. Recreational vehicles or travel trailers may also not be placed on any lot or parcel on a continuous basis for use as a weekend, vaca- tion, or summer residence. Under no circumstances shall sewer connections be made with a recreational vehicle or travel Winslow filing deadline is noon Thursday By Andy Heuring Editor editor@pressdispatch.net The deadline for anyone seeking election to the Winslow Town Council is noon Thursday, June 30 in the County Clerk's office. Lana Griffith said candidates wishing to r un must file their petition for candidacy by then. She added each petition must have the signa- tures of at least six registered voters. Winslow candidates have until July 15 to file their written consent and statement of economic interest along with the cer tified pe- tition. Currently, there are four candidates who have filed for the three at-large positions, which will be on the general election ballot. Those candidates are: Joni Stafford, Jeffrey Powers, Barr y Parker and Timothy Ennis. Beth Bennett has filed to seek the Clerk-Trea- surer position. So far none of the incumbents have filed for re-election. Fatal hit and run investigation enters year two By Andy Heuring Editor editor@pressdispatch.net On June 16, 2021, Owen Gar- retson, 91 of 5927 N. CR500E, Pe- tersburg, was killed in a hi-and- run accident between 5:30 and 8 p.m. More than one year and 20 warrants later, investigators are still tr ying to find answers and bring justice and closure to Gar- retson's family. "This one has been a roller coaster ride," said Pike County Prosecutor Darin McDonald of the investigation. Investigators have used some high tech methods in their in- vestigation including: searches of geo data from cellphones and a geofence. Cellphones provide data on where they are located at set times. A geofence warrant provides information about all cellphones that entered a given area during a given time frame. "The biggest issue we have right now is we are in a tug of war with Google, tr ying to get them to disclose specific information about this phone data. They claim they are not required to release it. They are not ver y re- sponsive," said McDonald. Pike County first used this type of data in the Ed Fox murder trial with success. "Unlike in the Fox trial where the data was ver y straightfor- ward, this has been a much more tedious process," said McDon- Backpack Buddies Madison Lee carries a box of food to a family picking up food from Backpack Buddies at the Winslow Elementar y School last Wednesday. She was one of several volunteers helping with the program. (See stor y on page A-3.) See SAFETY on page 2 See FATAL on page 3 See WINSLOW on page 2 See CHARGE on page 3 "All purchases by the Street Department were approved by Josh (Popp), myself or Dick (Brewster), except for some minor purchases. The $912 that was questioned was a simple restocking of signs." -Deb Lamb Pike County Deputy Sheriff Buck Seger and a Pike County EMT sur vey the scene at an ATV and pick- up truck accident on River Road. Bradlwy Simmons, 52, of 5270 S. Old State Road 64, Winslow was trans- ported to the hospital complaining of neck and leg pain.