Fire-safety house to be dedicated

        INDEPENDENCE — A new fire-safety house to help teach children how to escape fires will be dedicated at 1 p.m. today at the Kenton County Courthouse.

        The house allows firefighters to take children through exit drills in simulated fire conditions. The fire-safety house, sponsored by the Kenton County Fire Chiefs Association, will travel among 15 different fire departments in Kenton County.

        Kenton County Judge-executive Dick Murgatroyd will dedicate the fire safety house in a brief ceremony today.

Bunnings to receive award from county GOP

        CRESTVIEW HILLS — U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Kentucky, and his wife, Mary, will be honored during Sunday's Kenton County Republican Party Annual Spring Brunch.

        The Bunnings will receive the party's Lifetime Achievement Award, said party chairman Greg Shumate.

        Mr. Bunning has served in the Senate, the U.S. House, the Kentucky Senate and on Fort Thomas City Council. He is also a member of Major League Baseball's Hall of Fame. Mrs. Bunning has been active in all of her husband's campaigns and is involved in several community and charitable organizations, including the Thomas More College Foundation, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Cincinnati and the Kentucky Arts and Crafts Foundation.

        The brunch will be noon to 1 p.m. at the Four Seasons Country Club, 345 Thomas More Parkway, Crestview Hills.

        Tickets are $40. For more information or reservations, call (859) 491-2323.
       

Judge reprimanded after DUI conviction

        FRANKFORT — A Kentucky Supreme Court justice who admitted driving while drunk was given a reprimand last week by the state Judicial Conduct Commission.

        Justice Martin Johnstone of Louisville was stopped in Jefferson County on Feb. 6. His blood alcohol reading was 0.22, compared with the legal limit of 0.08, according to police.

        The arrest citation said Justice Johnstone was weaving on Interstate 71 while driving his state-supplied Ford Crown Victoria.

        Justice Johnstone pleaded guilty to drunken driving the following day.

Health facility construction ban stays

        FRANKFORT — The state will extend its prohibition on construction and expansion of some health facilities and programs, though not under a formal moratorium, which expired this week.

        The newly revised health plan provides better management, while allowing the state to “balance the number of health-care facilities necessary to meet the needs of Kentucky,” said Marcia Morgan, secretary of the Cabinet for Health Services.

        Under the plan, Ms. Morgan said, the state may not approve new construction and expansion of health facilities or programs unless the project is necessary for a facility to meet safety regulations or an emergency need.
       

Louisville priest relieved of duties

        LOUISVILLE — A Roman Catholic priest has been relieved of his pastoral duties within the Archdiocese of Louisville.

        The Rev. Joseph Stoltz was relieved of any sacramental or pastoral ministry at St. William parish in Louisville on Monday, according to a statement from the archdiocese. In 1991, Father Stoltz was accused of sexually abusing a minor in the 1970s.

        The dismissal comes on the heels of a new policy adopted by bishops during the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops last weekend in Dallas.

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