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KSP Electronic Crime Branch investigation leads to Elizabethtown man’s arrest

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A Hardin County man is in custody on child sexual abuse charges.

Joseph Blake Bowling of Elizabethtown faces 10 counts of Class C Felony Distribution of Matter Portraying a Sexual Performance by a Minor Under 12-Years-Old following his arrest Thursday.

According to the Kentucky State Police, Bowling was arrested as the result of an undercover Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force investigation. The KSP Electronic Crime Branch began an investigation of Bowling after it was discovered he was allegedly sharing images of child sexual exploitation online. Bowling was interviewed by investigators on April 10, and equipment used to facilitate the crime was seized and taken to a forensic laboratory for examination. Bowling was placed under arrest following the interview.

Bowling was lodged in the Hardin County Detention Center, where he is being held on a $250,000 cash bond. He is due to appear for a video arraignment Monday morning. The KSP’s investigation is ongoing.

Hardin County Justice Center set to reopen Monday

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After being out of commission for a week, activity is set to return at the Hardin County Justice Center.

“The Hardin County Justice Center will be reopening on Monday, April 14 after having been closed for flooding that we had as a result of the rain event, and we were closed for a week because of that,” said Hardin Chief Circuit Court Judge David John Simcoe. 

Simcoe thanked State Representative Steve Bratcher and State Senator Matt Deneen for helping get assistance from the state to help get the justice center ready for reopening.

Despite reopening, work on the justice center is ongoing.

“The remediation process in the basement is probably going to continue for about three weeks,” Simcoe said. “We had a lot of files in the basement as well as some mechanical stuff, and so we’ve had to have some inspections done. We are having the files removed, cleaned, and they will ultimately be returned to us through Servpro.”

The courts are rescheduling cases that were affected by the closing.

“Anyone who had court will be receiving a court notice of their new trial date or their new court appearance date, and they should be getting those, probably, in the next week or two,” Simcoe said. “No bench warrants or failure to appears will have been issued as a result of missing court last week.”

Anybody with questions should contact the circuit clerk’s office or their attorney.

I-65 on ramp at Cedar Grove road closed; WKP reopened in White Mills

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Drivers heading north on Interstate 65 this weekend should be on the lookout for a closure in Bullitt County.

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District Five says the I-65 North on-ramp at KY 480 (Cedar Grove Road) will be closed from 7 p.m. Friday until 5 a.m. Monday. The ramp closure is for asphalt work that is part of the I-65/KY 480 Interchange Reconstruction Project.

Drivers should follow the signed detour by taking Cedar Grove Road westbound to KY 61 northbound, then continue on KY 44 eastbound to the I-65 interchange.

Work is weather permitting. Check with KYTC District Five for project updates.

Meanwhile, KYTC District Four says traffic is flowing normally on the Western Kentucky Parkway at the White Mills exit. Water has been drained from both the eastbound and the westbound lanes, and drivers no longer need to use the on and off ramps to get through. Traffic has also returned to normal configurations at the WKP/I-65 interchange at Exit 91. Visit the KYTC District Four Facebook page for the latest update on roadways still impacted by flooding.

Enforcement date for Real ID law less than a month away

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The Real ID enforcement date is now less than a month away. 

Beginning May 7, all Kentuckians 18 and older will need a Real ID or another acceptable form of identification to travel domestically and access certain federal facilities such as military bases.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says in order to apply for a Real ID, residents must visit a Driver Licensing Regional Office and present one proof of identity document, one proof of Social Security document, and two proofs of residency. The KYTC website has a checklist of documents that qualify for each requirement. Real ID licenses are available for four-year or eight-year credentials.

After the enforcement date, standard licenses will still be valid for driving, as proof of identity, age, and residence for voting, and for age-restricted purchases. The standard license will also allow access to federal facilities such as VA hospitals.

Officials are reminding Kentuckians that May 7 is an enforcement date rather than a deadline. You will still be able to apply for a Real ID after May 7. Visit drive.ky.gov and click on the Real ID tab for more information.