A pair of West Virginia women could each face more than four decades in prison after allegedly attempting to traffic cocaine and fentanyl. The Union County Grand Jury has indicted Lynn Sue Tucker and Michelle Fay Saunders, both of West Virginia. Tucker, 56, is charged with one count each of trafficking in cocaine, falsification, possession of cocaine, tampering with evidence, trafficking in a fentanyl-related compound and possession of a fentanyl-related compound. Saunders, 21, is charged with two counts of tampering with evidence and one count each of trafficking in cocaine, falsification, possession of cocaine, trafficking in a fentanyl-related compound and…
Author: Mac Cordell
A local man, already serving a prison sentence for sexual conduct with a child, is again facing charges for rape. Jordan Daniel Butler, 35, is charged with one count each of rape and disseminating matter harmful to juveniles. According to court documents, between Oct. 1, 2013 and Oct. 31, 2013, Butler allegedly raped a 4-year-old boy. Union County Prosecutor Dave Phillips said that “for a time” Butler was living in the community with the child’s mother. He explained that on occasion Butler would watch the boy for his mother. Phillips said that on at least one occasion, “essentially, he tricked…
Marysville city officials say their conversations with school leaders are starting to pay off. They say the proof of that was on display in two pieces of legislation in front of council Monday. Council approved a moratorium on the creation of tax increment financing (TIF) agreements for single-family homes through the end of 2025. Council also heard the first reading of legislation that would allow the school district to collect 100% of the increase on residential properties, even those already in a TIF district, if it passes a new property tax. A TIF is an economic development tool that diverts…
This barn on Patrick Brush Run Road was one of more than 40 buildings in central Union County damaged by tornados earlier this month. Local, state and federal emergency management officials will be touring the community this week to assess damage in the area. (Journal-Tribune photo by Mac Cordell) — The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is expected to be in Union County this week assessing damage from the March 14 tornado that moved through central Union County. Brad Gilbert, executive director of the Union County EMA, said local officials will be escorting the federal inspectors as well as those…
The Eve family says that while some neighbors have concerns, many of their Mill Valley neighbors have said they appreciate having three horses in their neighborhood. Above, Olivia Eve walks her miniature horse, Oreo, near the family’s Creekview Drive home. Left, the Eve’s three miniature horses — Oreo, 38 inches tall, Marshmallow, 36 inches tall, and Cruz, 34 inches tall — graze in the family backyard. (Photos submitted) — — Tyler and Amelia Eve said they do not see themselves as nightmare neighbors, a response to a Journal-Tribune headline that ran in November detailing…
More than 27% of registered voters cast a ballot in Tuesday’s primary election. Above, election specialist Gretchen Kinney, left, unlocks boxes containing the poll pads used to check voters in while board of election members Jeff Robinson and Barbara Luke unload the cases as they come into the office from polling locations Tuesday night. (Journal-Tribune photo by Mac Cordell) —
Union County will have a new sheriff next year. According to unofficial results from the Union County Board of Elections, former deputy Mike Justice defeated incumbent Sheriff Jamie Patton in Tuesday’s Republican primary election. With no Democrat or Independent candidate filed, Justice will not have opposition for the position in the November General Election. Unofficial results list Justice with 5,093 votes, 52.6% of the vote, and Patton with 4,593 votes, 47.4% of the vote. “It’s very humbling, the support I received, from the people that supported me through the campaign to the people that reached out last night,” Justice said.…
A pair of Plain City juveniles has been charged with obstruction of justice after allegedly running from police. Plain City Police Chief Dale McKee said that at about 3:55 p.m. Tuesday, police received a call from a resident in the 200 block of North Chillicothe Street. He said an old barn behind his home had been broken into. An officer went to the scene to investigate. As the officer was returning to his car, he saw two teens walking on West First Avenue. “The two guys matched the description of two of the individuals from the caller,” McKee said. “He…
Union County elections officials are saying turnout for Tuesday’s primary election was higher than anticipated. According to information from the Union County Board of Elections, 12,424 of Union County’s 45,778 registered voters, 27.14%, voted in the primary election. “It was a higher turnout than we expected so that’s exciting,” said Brandon Clay, director of the Union County Board of Elections. Deputy Director Michelle Forrider said there were multiple 17-year-olds that voted in the primary. Under Ohio law, 17-year-olds that will be 18 before the General Election are permitted to vote for partisan candidates, but not issues. “That’s pretty cool to…
Law enforcement officials continue to investigate an incident over the weekend that left a Mansfield woman hospitalized. Union County Sheriff Jamie Patton said that at 1:58 p.m. Friday, deputies were called to a field near the intersection of routes 38 and 161, near Chuckery, on a report of an assaulted woman. When deputies and units from the Union Township and Pleasant Valley fire departments arrived they found an off duty doctor and another individual tending to a 39-year-old woman. The woman was taken to Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus for “advanced care,” Patton said, noting that the woman could not…
Officials from the National Weather Service have ruled that an EF-2 tornado touched down in central Union County on Thursday evening causing significant damage to the area in and around Broadway. One Road in Union County remains closed as crews work to remove wires and shore utility lines and poles. Above, crews work to restore utilities and repair storm-damaged infrastructure on Route 739 west of Broadway. (Journal-Tribune photo by Mac Cordell) — The National Weather Service has confirmed an EF-2 tornado touched down Thursday evening in Union County. Crews from the National Weather Service (NWS) were in Union County Friday afternoon.…
A trio of individuals is in custody after allegedly stealing hundreds of dollars’ worth of tools, then leading law enforcement officials on a high-speed chase into Dublin. According to police reports Joseph Lee Jones, 42; Dawn M. McCullough, 48; and Eddie Clifford Bevins, 38, all of Columbus, were arrested Friday evening in Dublin. Capt. Nate Sachs of the Marysville Division of Police said that at 6:02 p.m., Friday, employees from McAuliffe’s Ace hardware store, 1299 W. Fifth Street, called police to report a theft. The employees said a man and a woman, later identified as Jones and McCullough had walked…
A local man has been charged with allegedly attacking household members trying to keep him from getting behind the wheel. Robert Pierce Jordan, 55, of 14343 Bellepointe Road, has been indicted by a grand jury, charged with one count each of felonious assault, domestic violence, assault and operating a vehicle under the influence. According to court documents, at about 7:21 p.m., Feb. 17, the Union County Sheriff’s Office received an emergency call from a woman at a home in the 17000 block of Miller Road in York Township. Union County Prosecutor Dave Phillips said Jordan had been drinking and allegedly…
Local, state and federal officials are examining storm damage in and around Broadway after a powerful storm moved through the area Thursday night. Officials believe an investigation will reveal it was a tornado that caused much of the damage. Above, debris filled the yard of this wind-damaged home on Route 739. (Journal-Tribune photo by Mac Cordell) — Randy Trapp said his father moved to the family’s farm on Patrick-Brush Run Road in 1947. “I’ve lived here my whole life. It’s a generational farm,” Trapp said. Trapp said that if his family and his parents want to continue to live…
A Richwood man could be facing more than four decades in prison after allegedly giving meth to three children. The Union County Grand Jury has indicted Matthew R. Wurtsbaugh, 36, of 56 E. Bomford St., charging him with three counts of corrupting another with drugs, three counts of endangering children and one count of discharge of a firearm on or near a prohibited premises. Union County Prosecutor Dave Phillips called it “a very serious situation that could have had a very serious outcome.” Phillips said that on Jan. 27, Wurtsbaugh was hanging out with three girls, all of them 12…