Pulaski had serene holiday

Local News

May 27, 2008

By CHRIS HARRIS, Staff Writer The Commonwealth Journal Tue May 27, 2008, 06:49 PM EDT

Somerset — A warm and sunny — mostly sunny, that is — Memorial Day weekend was made all the more pleasant for Pulaski County by virtue of the fact crime and other emergencies weren’t a huge problem, according to local law enforcement agencies.

In the city, Somerset Police units kept busy, responding to 205 calls for service between 6 p.m. Friday and midnight Monday.

“It was about normal for a holiday weekend,” said SPD detective Shannon Smith. “Comparing the number of calls we had with last year, we actually had an increase of one call.

Smith said that’s an indication that patrol officers kept “a good handle” on situations around town.

“I know the times I was on U.S. 27, I saw a high visibility of units out there,” said Smith. “Increased visibility usually translates into keeping a good, tight hand on things.”

Four arrests were made for driving under the influence, and there were four arrests for alcohol intoxication. Three arrests were made for drug-related charges, and four people were lodged for having outstanding warrants.

There were eight non-injury accidents — the one injury accident occurred at 10:04 p.m. on Monday night on North U.S. 27 near the Somerset Plaza.

Fredrick Freels, 41, of Dayton, Ohio was driving a 2006 Chevrolet pickup northbound on 27. He was attempting to make a left turn when he pulled into the path of a 1998 Chevrolet Cavalier operated by Teresa Wesley, 42, of Eubank. Wesley's vehicle struck a 1983 Wellcraft boat being towed by Freels.

Wesley was treated at the scene by the Somerset Fire/EMS and transported to the Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital. Freels and his passenger, Laura Freels, also of Dayton, Ohio were uninjured. Seat belts were in use at the time of the accident.

The accident was investigated by Lt. Randy Goff.

The police department added that there no major incidents occurred in the city, despite a busy day and evening Saturday with Somernites Cruise.

In the county, you wouldn’t have even known it was the Memorial Day holiday, according to Pulaski County Sheriff Todd Wood. The sheriff said that activity was “fairly normal for any other weekend.”

From noon on Friday until midnight Monday, the Sheriff’s office answered 269 calls for service. 86 citations were issued and 28 individuals were lodged in the Pulaski County — 13 of those for drug-related offenses, seven for DUIs, and the rest for theft, alcohol intoxication, and other offenses.

Five injury accidents were worked by the Sheriff’s Department, along with 16 other on-road collisions. Wood said that none of the wrecks were life-threatening in any way.

Wood said that the influx of visitor for holiday tourism didn’t make much of a ripple in the 9-1-1 log.

“Calls for service might be up a little bit, but (Memorial Day traffic) certainly wasn’t felt all that much from the road units,” said Wood. “They reported that activity was normal.”

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Local News

Pulaski carries Girdler to win

In the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s primary election, it was impossible to miss the colorful signs dotting nearly every Pulaski roadway. The names in the race for the 15th State Senatorial District seat popped out: A.C. Donahue. Chris Girdler. Mark Polston.

Once citizens hit the ballots, however, the results mirrored the dimensions of the signs themselves: Chris Girdler stood the tallest.

Girdler, deputy district director for Congressman Harold “Hal” Rogers, ran away with the votes inside Pulaski County’s borders, earning 3,926 votes for 62.05 percent of the total number cast.

That number more than doubled the next highest vote-getter, businessman Mark Polston, who raked in 1,624 votes for 25.67 percent.

However, Polston — who owns Classic Carpet, a home-flooring business located just off the southern 914 bypass — can claim a moral victory ... three of them, in fact. In all three counties in the district other than Pulaski — those being Adair, Casey, and Russell Counties — Polston actually edged out Girdler.

In Adair, Polston beat Girdler 629 to 394. In Casey County, it was 538 to 417, and in Russell, it was 1,862 to 1,038.

Polston said he just “couldn’t pull it out with the numbers” and that “the machine worked for” Girdler in Pulaski County.

“I think that was their strategy — I think they had a Pulaski County strategy all along,” said Polston. “They played the political game well.”

Polston said the difference between his and Girdler’s campaigns was that “mine was a very, very grass roots campaign,” he said. “I did not have a political machine behind me. I understand how this process works, and in this instance, he prevailed.”

As for why Girdler didn’t take three of four counties, the winning candidate — since there are no Democrats in the race, winning the Republican primary was effectively a final victory for Girdler — said he didn’t have an answer for that.

However, “I believe things happen for a reason and I hope the long and strenuous campaign will only heighten my desire to move beyond the bitterness and partisanship of the recent past,” said Girdler.

“Regionalism is a goal of mine, and I look forward to helping all four counties,” he added, noting that he campaigned heavily in each of them.

Sen. Vernie McGaha, the long-time state senator whose seat the candidates were vying for, actually supported Polston after Liberty’s Todd Hoskins dropped out of the race earlier this month.

Donahue, a local attorney, got 556 votes in Pulaski County, 8.79 percent of the vote. He only received 145 votes in Russell County, 74 in Adair County, and 75 in Casey County, where hometown candidate Hoskins almost matched him with 71 votes despite no longer being officially in the race.

Polston said he’s “still digesting” what happened, and though “the process has been a very good experience for me,” he wouldn’t commit to running again in the future. “I wouldn’t shut the door to anything, but I’m not opening any doors either.”

Still, “I think I got a lot of people involved in the process that had not been involved before and would not have been otherwise,” he said. “A lot of people got out and worked really hard, got motivated to talk to friends and neighbors. I think a lot of people became involved through this campaign that are going to be involved for a long time.”

Girdler stressed his “positive message” and said that Rogers is a “mentor and good friend” that he would turn to for advice in dealing with a frequently combative legislative body in Frankfort, one for which Girdler hopes to help change the culture.

Girdler said that he was “confident and optimistic” during the day Tuesday because he’d “worked extremely hard.” Nevertheless, the realization that he’d won gave him “chill bumps,” he said.

“I’m absolutely honored,” said Girdler. “The position of state senator is more than an honor, more than an office. It’s a charge to keep, and I will give it my all.

“I pledge to be the people’s state senator,” he added. “I look forward to working with everyone to move this region forward.”

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