PIKEVILLE, Ky. — Two Knott County residents were taken to jail on a variety of charges, after being pulled over in Pike County.

Police say Daniel Haines, 49, of Mousie, and Jacqueline Holbrook, 36, of Leburn, both appeared under the influence when they were pulled over on a motorcycle for having no valid plate.

Officers reported finding meth, cocaine, and a stolen gun on Haines, while Holbrook allegedly tried to hide a bag of oxycodone pills by tossing it under the police car.

Haines is now charged with trafficking in meth and cocaine, receiving stolen property, DUI and a number of traffic violations. Holbrook is charged with tampering with physical evidence, possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia and public intoxication.

Both are being held in the Pike County Detention Center.

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GRUNDY, Va. — A southwestern Virginia coal company will lay off 72 workers over the next two months, according to WARN notices filed with the Virginia Department of Workforce Development and Advancement.

Wellmore Energy Company has announced layoffs at three locations in Buchanan County. According to the notices, 28 workers at Grundy and 27 workers at Hurley will be laid off, effective Sept. 6.
Another 17 workers will be laid off in Big Rock on Oct. 4.

Wellmore Coal Company is a subsidiary of United Coal Company, which has more than 900 employees in Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia.

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JACKSON, Ky. — A Breathitt County mother who was charged with manslaughter after she faked her 10-year-old son’s disappearance has now seen that charge upgraded to murder.

And the child’s step-father has also been charged in the case.

Felicia Gross, 33, of Jackson, has been indicted on charges of murder, filing a false report, and two counts of witness tampering. Joshua Gross, 41, has been charged with complicity to those same charges. Both are additionally charged with abuse of a corpse and evidence tampering.

Jayden Spicer was reported missing Aug. 6. Authorities and volunteers searched for the boy for nearly a week, before Felicia Gross confessed that he had died after having a reaction to sleeping medicine and she buried him in a shallow grave 20 miles from home.

Felicia and Joshua Gross are each being held on $1 million cash bonds.

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PAINTSVILLE, Ky. — A former Paintsville police officer has been indicted for DUI and other charges for an incident we first reported back in May.

Former patrolman James Clifford Bradley, 37, of Paintsville, turned himself in Monday morning, following his indictment on Friday. Bradley was out on bond, following his arrest May 18.

Back then, police pulled him over on a side-by-side coming out of the Taco Bell drive-thru, after they received a call from the store saying he appeared to be intoxicated. According to the police report, in addition to Bradley, there was one other adult and five children on the ATV.

When officers approached, they reported smelling a strong odor of alcohol, but Bradley said hadn’t had anything to drink for about two hours. After Bradley failed a field sobriety test, he was taken to Paintsville ARH to have blood drawn to determine his impairment level.

Police say Bradley refused to give blood and scuffled with officers, before finally allowing blood to be drawn.

In an interview with Mountain Top News, Bradley gave a different version of events, while maintaining he is innocent. He said he was the victim of a plot by four officers who wanted him off the force, but said he would provide evidence of at a later time.

On Friday, he was indicted on charges of DUI, two counts of assaulting an officer, five counts of wanton endangerment and other charges.

He is currently being held on a $25,000 cash bond.

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UPDATE, 4:15 p.m.: Police have now identified the man killed in an armed standoff this morning in Harold.

Henry Foster, 33, of Raven, Va., has been identified as the man killed following a two-hour standoff with police outside of the Harold Dollar General store.

In a statement issued by Kentucky State Police, officers were called to the store around 8 a.m., because Foster was trying to get into cars in the parking lot and asking people for a ride out of the area.

When police arrived, they say Foster pulled a gun and began threatening to shoot himself. Police attempted to negotiate a peaceful resolution to the standoff.

But just before 10 a.m., a state trooper discharged his weapon. The state police statement does not indicate what prompted him to fire his gun.

Police say life-saving measures were employed but unsuccessful, and Foster died at the scene.

The Kentucky State Police Critical Incident Response Team is continuing to investigate the incident.

ORIGINAL STORY: HAROLD, Ky. — A suspect is dead following a two-hour standoff with police at the Harold Dollar General, along Route 680, in Floyd County

Floyd County Sheriff John Hunt told Mountain Top News that it all began Sunday night. Hunt said the man was involved in a crash on Route 1426, but ran away on foot, leaving an injured female passenger behind.

Hunt said the man remained on the run throughout the night, but police were called to Dollar General around 8 a.m. Monday, over a report of a suspicious person in the parking lot. Kentucky State Police, the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office and Prestonsburg Police responded to the scene, and from that point on, the man held officers at bay with a gun, while police tried to negotiate his surrender.

Just after 10 a.m., five shots rang out and an ambulance was called to the scene. Hunt said he did not know the events that prompted the shooting.

No officers were injured during the standoff.

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The Jenny Wiley State Resort Park will be undergoing renovations that will involve temporarily closing the lodge and marina. However, boat owners in the marina are claiming that the park is demanding that their boats be removed within a tight deadline or moved to a temporary dock with a hefty fee.

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McDOWELL, Ky. — The Kentucky Public Service Commission launched an investigation Friday into Floyd County’s Southern Water and Sewer District, alleging the utility has been charging customers a fee without approval.

Southern currently has a case before the PSC, seeking to raise its rates by 15 percent. In order to do so, the utility needs approval from the PSC, which has been going over Southern’s financials to determine if the increase is warranted.

It was during that examination that the PSC discovered Southern has been charging customers a “disconnect charge” that was never approved.

If the PSC determines that Southern’s manager, Randy Conley, and five commissioners, Bob Shepherd, Donnie Daniels, Rick Roberts, Steve Dawson and Leslie Byron Scott, willfully broke the law, they could each be ordered to pay a civil penalty of up to $2,500 and be removed from their positions.

Conley and the commissioners have been ordered to submit individual written responses to the allegations within 20 days.

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FRANKFORT, Ky. — If the Kentucky Public Service Commission agrees to allow East Kentucky Power Cooperative and its member co-ops to raise rates, they won’t go into effect until next year. That’s because of an order issued Thursday by the PSC, finding that an investigation of the rate case is necessary.

East Kentucky Power Cooperative, which supplies electricity to the co-ops, is asking for a 7.5 percent increase to its wholesale rate. East Kentucky Power says it needs the rate hike to account for inflation and higher interest rates.

The co-ops have also asked the PSC to allow them to pass along that cost to customers. If granted, Big Sandy RECC says the increase would amount to $6.73 more on the average residential bill.

On Thursday, the PSC delayed the effective date of the rate increase until Jan, 31, to give the commission time to fully investigate the request. A full public hearing on the request will be set at a later time.

If the PSC allows an increase, it will be the second rate hike for Big Sandy RECC customers in less than a year. In June, the PSC allowed the utility to raise rates 12.8 percent.

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Breaks staff has hopes that EV charging station will increase the number of visitors to the park.

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Judge states the Johnson County man must serve no less than 85 percent of his overall sentence.

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