WQXE NEWS

The Radcliff City Council met for their second meeting of the month Tuesday.

The council approved on second reading an ordinance that approves the operation of medical cannabis facilities in the city, as outlined by a Kentucky law that went into effect this year. 

“The cannabis business is any entity licensed under Kentucky statutes or administrative regulations as a cultivator, dispensary, processor, producer, or safety compliance facility,” said Radcliff City Attorney Mike Pike, reading from the ordinance. “Please find the full ordinance on the website www.radcliff.org, or by contacting the Radcliff City Clerk by email at Ashley.Russo@radcliffky.gov.”

That’s Radcliff City Attorney Mike Pike reading from the ordinance. Council Member Jerry Brown said the council had weighed the good and the bad, and after speaking with a pharmacist he said he believes the good outweighs the bad.

“He said there’s all these positive things and very little downside,” Brown said. “We’ve had to do a lot of research. We talked about this. I feel like this is the right thing to do.”

The first reading was held on an ordinance that will amend the city’s budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. Radcliff Mayor JJ Duvall said the budget adjustment is standard for the end of a fiscal year.

Council Member Pamela DeRoche encouraged area businesses and organizations to sign up for the Radcliff Days Festival and parade, which is coming up on September 21.

“That starts at 4 p.m. with vendors, and then the parade at 5, so we are looking for parade entries,” DeRoche said. “We’re looking for vendors. I’ve got several vendors already lined out. We’ve got food booths.”

The Radcliff City Council will next meet September 9.

Drivers should be aware of work happening at the Interstate 65/Western Kentucky Parkway interchange happening the next two nights.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says crews will be placing a microsurface on the southbound I-65 ramps at Exit 91 to the WKP and U.S. 31W Tuesday and Wednesday nights. Work will also be taking place along the parkway between the interstate interchange and the U.S. 31W Bypass interchange.

KYTC District Four Public Information Officer Chris Jessie says the work is being moved to the evening to best get out of people’s way.

“We’re doing this work at night,” Jessie said. “It minimizes traffic disruption, obviously, when traffic volumes are lower on I-65 and the parkway. Folks will have to follow those detours signs closely to get to where they need to go, but just follow them. You may have to do several loops on the clover leaf interchange there, but you’ll be able to get to your destination if you’ll just follow those signs.”

Ramps will be closed and lane closures will be in place from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Tuesday and Wednesday Signs and message boards directing drivers to a short detour will be in place. Work is weather permitting.

UPDATE 8/20/24: The Elizabethtown Police Department has confirmed that Christopher Elder died Monday evening as a result of injuries he sustained from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head during a standoff with police.
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Two people are dead and another is injured following a shooting in a parking lot across from the Hardin County Justice Center Monday, and the suspect is hospitalized after a vehicle pursuit ended with him shooting himself.

The Elizabethtown Police Department said Christopher Elder is currently hospitalized in critical condition.

Elizabethtown Police Chief Jeremy Thompsion said during a press conference that shortly before 9 a.m. Monday 911 calls came in reporting the shooting. 

“We were on scene within a minute, and located three victims while we were down there, and the suspect had fled the scene, obviously armed and dangerous,” Thompson said. “We began working to find that individual. We later identified him as Christopher Elder.”

The EPD said 37-year-old Erica Riley of Elizabethtown was pronounced dead at the scene. Her mother, 71-year-old Janet Riley of Hardinsburg, died as a result of her injuries at an area hospital. A third victim is currently hospitalized in stable condition.

Thompson said Elder had been in a relationship with one of the victims, later identified as Erica Riley.

“At no time was this a threat to anyone other than the individuals that were involved,” Thompson said. “This was a domestic-related incident. There was a hearing at the courthouse this morning stemming from previous incidents, and we believe it was isolated to the individuals that were involved.”

Thompson described the shooting as an ambush-style attack, and Elder’s vehicle had been seen waiting around the area ahead of the shooting.

The Hopkinsville Police Department said in a Facebook post that their officers along with officers from the Christian County and Muhlenburg County sheriff’s offices and the Kentucky State Police pursued a male subject, identified by the EPD as Elder, after he fled the Elizabethtown area. The HPD said that at multiple times during the pursuit Elder pointed a rifle at pursuing officers. Elder then pointed the rifle at himself after pulling into a church parking lot near the intersection of Greenville and Judges Chapel roads, and after about 90 minutes of negotiations with police he shot himself in the head. Elder was transported to Vanderbilt Hospital.

The EPD is investigating the shooting, while Kentucky State Police Post 2 is investigating the pursuit and standoff.