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City Hall Plan Passes 8–7 After Emotional Testimony and a Divided Council
In one of the closest and most contentious votes in recent Lexington memory, the Urban County Council on Tuesday approved an $86 million plan to move City Hall to 200 W. Vine St., advancing a long-discussed project after nearly two hours of impassioned public comment warning that the city was prioritizing workspace for government…
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New city hall deal could give Gen Z its own “CentrePit” moment
Tonight at 5 p.m., in a too-small council chamber inside a too-old former hotel, Lexington’s leaders will decide whether to move City Hall into a gleaming bank building on Vine Street. If they vote yes, we’ll get a renovated “Government Center” at 200 West Vine — and a whole new generation will finally get…
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Defendant in federal witness killing released to home of officer she allegedly utilized for gang intel
A federal magistrate judge has ordered the release of Casey Allison Morris, the woman prosecutors say tried to leverage her relationship with a Richmond police officer to glean inside information about a violent home-invasion investigation while her alleged gang associates plotted the murder of a federal witness. In a 15-page memorandum opinion signed Nov.…
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Lexington Wanted a Miracle. It Got a Markup Instead.
If you listened closely at last week’s press conference—the one where Vice Mayor Dan Wu announced $12.6 million in medical debt had vanished from Fayette County—there was a faint sound underneath all that civic cheer. A tiny ka-ching. Because by the time the Herald-Leader’s Adrian Paul Bryant peeled back the wrapping paper, Lexington’s feel-good…
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FCPS Tries to Muzzle Its Own Board. Of Course It Backfires.
It takes real talent to look at the summer FCPS just had — the audit, the budget fiascos, the public fury, the payroll-tax side hustle in a trench coat — and decide the next big move should be silencing elected officials. But here we are. Again. The latest stroke of genius arrives in the…
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New Defendant Added in Federal Witness-Killing Case; Trial Paused as DOJ Weighs Death Penalty
LEXINGTON, Ky. — A newly unsealed superseding indictment has added an eighth defendant, Casey Allison Morris, 29, to the federal case accusing members of a Lexington drug network of plotting and carrying out the 2023 killing of Kristopher Lewis to stop him from testifying. Morris, who pleaded not guilty during her Nov. 12 court…
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Man busted in Nicholasville drug probe now faces federal gun charge
LEXINGTON, Ky. — A Fayette County man already facing a slate of state drug-trafficking and fleeing charges was indicted Thursday in federal court on a single count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. A federal grand jury charged Quavon Megal Winslow, 29, with knowingly possessing a Glock 19x 9mm pistol on…
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When politicians and developers want a luxurious new City Hall, the public just gets the bill.
On Tuesday night, a Lexington resident summed up the vibe in the Council chambers with a shrug: “Feels like they picked out the drapes before asking if we even wanted the house.” Hard to argue with her. Because in the span of just two weeks, Lexington’s government has sprinted toward a deal that would…
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Former FMC Lexington staffer admits to sexual contact with inmate, taking $500 in illicit payments, plea deal says
LEXINGTON, Ky. — A former recreation specialist at the Federal Medical Center in Lexington admitted Friday that she engaged in sexual contact with an inmate under her supervision and accepted $500 in payments in exchange for smuggling contraband and shielding him from discipline, according to a newly filed plea agreement. Ariell L. Zulewski, who…
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Eastern Kentucky pastor admits using COVID relief loan to buy himself a mobile home, then lied in bankruptcy filing
LONDON, Ky. — A southeastern Kentucky pastor pleaded guilty Thursday to making false statements in a federal bankruptcy case after prosecutors said he used a $200,000 COVID-19 disaster loan to buy himself a mobile home, then tried to wipe out the debt while hiding more than $100,000 in remaining funds. Ray Dean Jr., a…