WQXE News

Two Hart County men were sentenced in federal court Thursday. 

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky says Dominick Woods of Bonnieville was sentenced five years in prison followed by four years of supervised release for one count of Conspiracy to Distribute More Than 40 Grams of Fentanyl and one count of Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.

Meanwhile, Joshua Sanders of Cave City was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for one count of Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl and one count of Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.

Woods and Sanders faced charges related to a July 2023 incident in which they attempted to smuggle fentanyl pills into the Hart County Jail. The firearms charges were based on previous convictions, for Woods a 2020 Enhanced Trafficking in Marijuana charge out of the Hardin Circuit Court and for Sanders multiple charges from 2009 to 2019 out of the Barren, Hart, LaRue, and Warren circuit courts.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Kentucky State Police, and the Greater Hardin County Narcotics Task Force as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. There is no parole in the federal system.

Baptist Health Hardin President Rob Ramey says the hospital and health system is still “building for a bright future” following the opening of the new medical pavilion at the hospital. That includes the opening of new facilities in Elizabethtown and Nelson County and evaluating new uses for properties that saw their facilities moved to the medical pavilion.

“We’ve moved a lot of things out, so it gives us a chance now to continue to assess and grow to meet our patients’ needs, but even more importantly, make it more accessible, make it easier for our patients,” Ramey said.

Ramey was the featured speaker at the Hardin County Chamber of Commerce’s February luncheon Wednesday. He says Baptist Health Hardin provides services to more than 400,000 patients, which is equal to one-tenth of the state’s population. Ramey says serving the fastest-growing region in the state means adapting to the needs of a rapidly changing population.

“If we can’t provide the service well, we’re not going to provide the service,” Ramey said. “We’re going to recruit excellent physicians. We’re going to provide the right care team around them to make sure that we’re providing an excellent service, which is why we’re glad and proud that we’ve been able to grow to provide all of these services within our hospital.”

Ramey touted innovative technology available at the hospital, including a 4D mammography clinical trial in partnership with Duke University and Calidar Inc. and three new cardiac catheterization labs. Ramey asked Dr. Aaron Mulhall to discuss the hospital’s ion bronchoscopy technology, which uses a 2 millimeter camera to check for lung cancer less invasively and more effectively.

“One out of five Kentuckians still smoke, so it’s like 17 to 20 percent,” Mulhall said. “We had the most cases of lung cancer in the United States last year and we’re still one of the worst in mortality, so for five-year survival we’re in the bottom, I think, five or six still.”

Ramey said the hospital has 300 certified beds, including 15 specifically designated for behavioral health.

The Tony Award-winning musical, Mel Brooks’s The Producers, opens at the Hardin County Playhouse on Friday.

The Producers is a Broadway musical based on the 1960’s Mel Brooks movie of the same name. Ron Blair, who plays Max Bialystock in the production, says that the show is hilarious.

“This is going to be one of the funniest shows the Hardin County Playhouse has ever done in its 55-year history,” Blair said. “It’s just an incredible show, it’s incredibly clever, and the songs are absolutely phenomenal.”

The story revolves around Bialystock and Leo Blum, played by Jackson Smith, who want to produce a Broadway flop in order to fleece investors, but of course things go awry, creating comedy gold. The songs are one of the things that drew Blair to the project.

“More than anything, the songs that Bialystock sings, they’re just fun,” Blair said. “As a performer, I have a really good time with them. They’re very difficult songs, and that probably lends itself to my enjoyment of them because they were a challenge, so yeah, that really drew me to it, and just the character playing a con man, a funny con man, I have a lot of great bits in the show.”

The Hardin County Playhouse is a non-profit organization that has been producing award-winning theatrical entertainment for 55 years with a goal of fostering local talent in all areas having to do with theatre.

“We have a focus on educating young performers and artists in every aspect of theatre, which can include lighting design or set design, painting sets, costuming,” Blair said. “There are so many jobs within the theatre, and we try to have all of those represented whenever we do shows.”
The Producers is not for children under 15. It opens Friday at 7:00 p.m. and runs for two weekends at the ECTC Science Building auditorium. For more information and to get tickets, go to www.hardincountyplayhouse.com.