for Less with an
EdenPure Infrared Heater CMYK
Heats up to 1,000 SQ feet, costs about $1.50/day
SAVE big bucks over LP gas, Fuel oil, electric heat Repair service available for EdenPure Heaters
• Scale Rid Water Treatment Systems was $299 NOW $150 1984 Martin D 35: $995 • 2010 Martin D 28: $2,100 Bargains on children’s acoustic & electric guitars (several colors); 1922 Gibson Banjo $1,100
DALLAS MUSIC “Where Great Deals are Made”
9961 S.R. 73 • 7 miles North of Hillsboro • (937) 763-1593
THE BROWN COUNTY
PRESS
The Brown County Press Sunday, November 22, 2015 • Volume 43 No. 16 Serving Brown County, Ohio since 1973
Sun Group NEWSPAPERS
www.browncountypress.com bcpress@frontier.com Phone (937) 444-3441 Fax (937) 444-2652
Holding cells at jail could reopen BY Wayne Gates The Brown County Press The holding cells in the Brown County Jail could be back in operation soon. Brown County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Carl Smith said that the Fraternal Order of Police and the County Risk Sharing Authority have both approved the use of the holding cells. Smith said that the final step was approval of the cells for use by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. A representative from the ODRC was scheduled to visit the jail Nov. 20 to conduct an inspection. Using the holding cells for up to 12 hours at a time for a prisoner would cut down on the number of trips made to and from the Butler County
Jail, saving the county money. The Brown County Commissioners have said that they do not want the jail to be used until it’s deemed safe. “We’re not jail experts. We are going to have people come in and inspect. Let’s see what they say, align that with CORSA’s recommendations and see if we can move forward,” said Commissioner Barry Woodruff. “If we bring in the department of corrections and they deem the holding cells as a safe place to house prisoners based on state jail standards, we won’t have a problem.” Brown County Sheriff Dwayne Wenninger told The Brown County Press on Nov. 19 that final authority for operation of the jail rests with him, according to Ohio Law.
Ohio Revised Code 341.01 states “The sheriff shall have charge of the county jail and all persons confined therein. He shall keep such persons safely, attend to the jail, and govern and regulate the jail according to the minimum standards for jails in Ohio promulgated by the department of rehabilitation and correction.” “I am confident that the condition of our holding cells will meet state requirements,” Wenninger said. He added that even though inmates are no longer being housed overnight in the jail, it is still a busy place. “We average about 160 people being booked in every month. Even though the main jail is closed, those CONTINUED ON PAGE 10
Wayne Gates/THE BROWN COUNTY PRESS
Holding cells at the Brown County Jail could be back in operation as soon as this week.
Three levies defeated, G’town officer Kumpf recounts pending on two to return to work BY Wayne Gates The Brown County Press Three levies on the November ballot that were the subject of close votes all appear to have failed. The Brown County Board of Elections included provisional ballots and certified the election results on Nov. 17. The Sterling Township fire levy replacement originally failed by two votes, with 457 voting against and 455 voting in favor on election day. Following the provisional ballots, the final official total is 465 against and 460 in favor, failing by five votes. The Mt. Orab additional fire tax levy failed by ten votes, 413 to 403 on Nov. 3. With the addition of the provisional ballots, that levy failed with 426 voting
against and 415 voting in favor. An additional levy for current expenses in Higginsport failed 39 to 35 on election day. Following the addition of the provisional votes, the measure is actually tied with 42 votes each. A tax levy must have a majority vote to pass, which means that the measure would fail with a tie vote. The Brown County Board of Elections is planning a recount of the Sterling Township and Higginsport elections next week. The Village of Mt. Orab is already moving ahead following the levy failure in the village. The village council has begun the process to get the issue before the voters again in March of next year. “I’m disappointed that the levy didn’t pass because of the long term needs that we
have to address. I’m hoping that the voters will approve it next March when they have all the facts,” said Mt. Orab Mayor Bruce Lunsford. The measure next year will be a two mill levy for a five year period of time, as opposed to the continuing additional levy on the ballot this November. Lunsford said that some in the community were against the levy because they viewed it as a “permanent” tax. “There is no such thing as a permanent tax increase. The levy was an additional continuing levy, but it could be removed by the village or voter petition at any time,” Lunsford said. The Mount Orab Port Authority made up for some of the money that would have CONTINUED ON PAGE 10
CMYK
HEAT Your House
BY Wayne Gates The Brown County Press A Georgetown police officer will be returning to work next week after being arrested on a first degree domestic violence charge in September. Patrolman Kendall Kumpf was arrested at his home on Sept. 7 following a fight with his stepson, 18 year old Trenton Carrington. Carrington was also arrested on the same charge. Kumpf pleaded “no contest” to a lesser charge of Persistent Disorderly Conduct before visiting Judge Alan Foster in Brown County Municipal Court on Nov. 12. The charges against Carrington were dismissed by Foster at the request of the
state. Kumpf was fined $200 plus court costs by Foster. He was not sentenced to community control. Georgetown Police Chief Robert Freeland said that further punishment of Kumpf by the village is still being considered. “This is an unfortunate situation,” Freeland said Nov. 17. “His actions put the village in a bad light and we are still talking about further disciplinary actions.” Freeland said that Kumpf could return to work as early as Saturday, Nov. 21. Details of the fight were listed in a probable cause affidavit filed in Brown County Municipal Court by Brown County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jason Huff. Huff wrote that the con-
flict began after Kumpf approached Carrington outside the home, asking him if the two had a problem. “Trenton stood up from his chair and bumped into (Kumpf),” the affidavit reads. “Kendall grabbed a hold of Trenton and Trenton tried to punch him. Kendall held him to the ground while Trenton was punching him in the face. I asked Kendall how Trenton got scratches on his neck. He stated that (Trenton) went to sleep for a couple of seconds, implying that he was strangling him. When Trenton started blacking out, he let him go and everyone started separating them.” The Brown County Prosecuting Attorney’s office conducted the investigation.
B R O A D S H E E T O D D
Chief Joey Rockey briefs Georgetown council Georgetown Fire Chief Joey Rockey updated members of the Georgetown Village Council meeting, Nov. 12, regarding billing, vehicle maintenance and recent runs by his department. “At council’s last meeting, I was asked to bring in an annual report on the department, so I have passed out a copy of that,” Rockey said. “You can see the difference in the numbers from 2014, compared to this years
numbers, and we still have two months left in this year.” Rockey said his payroll is about a thousand dollars off from last year, but that everything has gone up including payroll, operating expenses, maintenance costs
and equipment costs. “Revenue is down,” he said, “and that’s for two reasons. This year we switched the way we bill. Before all our reports were hand-written, one copy stayed at the CONTINUED ON PAGE 10
Martha B. Jacob/THE BROWN COUNTY PRESS
“Olaf” and his friends from the children’s movie “Frozen was a big hit last year in the Mt. Orab Christmas Parade, and he will be returning this year on Saturday, Nov. 28 at 6 p.m.
Mt. Orab Christmas Parade set for Nov. 28
Index Classifieds....17, 18 Court News.........15 Death Notices.......6 Legals .................15 Opinion .................4 Sports ...........13, 14
BY Martha B. Jacob The Brown County Press Martha B. Jacob/THE BROWN COUNTY PRESS
219 South High St. Mt. Orab, OH 45154
Joey Rockey, fire chief for the village of Georgetown talks to Georgetown Council members about billing changes in his department.
The floats are nearly ready, the decorations and Christmas lights are going up all over the village in preparation of this years
Mt. Orab Christmas Parade. On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Nov. 28 at 6 p.m. this year’s parade will begin its journey from Western Brown High School parking lot, travel
to the center of town where it will make a right and travel south on High Street. According to Missy Schneider, one of the members of the Mt. Orab Parade CONTINUED ON PAGE 10
CMYK
CMYK
BY Martha B. Jacob The Brown County Press