Frontier League takes charge of Freedom

FLORENCE - The Frontier League took over operations of the Florence Freedom, the city's minor-league baseball team. The team's ownership group, Northern Kentucky Professional Baseball, asked the league to take over so the owners can focus on raising money to pay off $3.1 million in liens.

Ten contractors who worked on the still-unfinished stadium filed the liens, saying they have not been paid.

Connie Hildebrant, wife of part-owner Chuck Hildebrant, was also removed as general manager. League officials and other teams' general managers will fill in until a permanent general manager is hired after the season.

The team is facing an Aug. 22 deadline to pay off the liens, which violate the team's lease with the city of Florence.

Cross-burning suspect faces federal charges

In a rare move, U.S. attorneys will prosecute a teenager accused in a Boone County cross burning. The juvenile will face delinquency charges under the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act and could be sentenced to a juvenile detention center.

U.S. Attorney Gregory Van Tatenhove said the gravity of the July 2 cross burning in a Burlington black family's yard convinced him to handle the case federally. The family moved out of the county.

No further details of the juvenile case were released.

Walton-Verona weighs drug tests for athletes

Student athletes in the Walton-Verona school system may begin their sport seasons this year with a drug test. The school board will vote as early as next month on a policy that would:

• Require each sports team to have a preseason meeting with parents and students, at which students sign an anti-drug contract.

• Require each team member to be tested for drugs at the outset, with random testing throughout the rest of the season.

• Require students who test positive to enroll in a 10-day drug intervention program and be suspended from their sport until they finish the program and pass another drug test. .

Student athlete Megan Huellemeier, a senior at Walton-Verona High School, said she is "totally for it. People look up to student athletes as role models. If we can cut (drugs) out there, it will at least kind of control it."

Area Democrats party at Boston convention

Northern Kentucky Democrats helped nominate the presidential ticket of John Kerry and John Edwards at last week's Democratic National Convention in Boston. And they had a good time doing it.

Serving as delegates were Covington lawyer Bob Sanders, labor leader Brad Burtner, U.S. Rep. Ken Lucas and Sara Sidebottom, a lawyer with Northern Kentucky University. Party leader Jeanelle Fuson was an alternate delegate.

Delegates are now focused on bringing the party's message back to Kentucky to help elect Kerry and Edwards in the fall.

"The Bush administration has alienated our allies and destroyed America's reputation and position as the moral leader of the world," Sanders said. "John Kerry is much better suited and prepared to be our commander-in-chief."

Political conventions are also great for the many parties held throughout the week. Lots of celebrities, political and otherwise, are attracted to the nominating conventions. Sanders saw actors Ben Affleck and Kevin Bacon, filmmaker Michael Moore, newscaster Ted Koppel, rock band Goo Goo Dolls, California Sen. Diane Feinstein and Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg.

"You get invited to so many parties, you can only hit about 20 percent of them," Lucas said.