Local | Journal Gazette

Ex will face murder charge

Holly Abrams — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The ex-husband of a missing Whitley County woman was charged with murder Friday as officials continued searching for her body. Debra Houser, 49, was reported missing Wednesday by a man who walked into the Whitley County Sheriff's Department. That man told officials that Houser's ex-husband, Rodney Houser, had confessed to killing the woman.

City vows to be good neighbor, cuts aside

Benjamin Lanka — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Mayor Tom Henry pledged to keep a good relationship with city neighborhoods even as he has been forced to lay off half his neighborhood advocate staff.

Broadway brightens up

Benjamin Lanka — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A balmy November night and a hunger to get the holidays started led to a record crowd at this year's tree-lighting ceremony on Broadway.

County approves Monroeville store

Amanda Iacone — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The Allen County commissioners approved a rezoning request Thursday that would allow a planned Dollar General store to move forward in Monroeville. The plan commission last month recommended that property at Indiana 101 and Monroeville Road be rezoned to limited commercial to allow the retailer to build a 9,000-square-foot store.

Civilian 9/11 trial infuriates Souder

Benjamin Lanka — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The decision to bring accused Sept. 11 terrorists to trial in federal court in New York City is outrageous and could lead to those detained being freed on a technicality, Rep. Mark Souder, R-3rd, said Friday.

Two gunmen hold up butcher on Calhoun

Journal Gazette — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Two men robbed a south-side butcher shop at gunpoint Wednesday.

Allen, Wells set flu vaccine clinics

Journal Gazette — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Local health departments have scheduled additional flu vaccination clinics for the coming weeks. •The Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health will conduct clinics from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Monday and from 9 a.m. to noon Wednesday at the Carew Medical Park, 1818 Carew St.

Felony report

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The following people were recently booked into the Allen County Lockup on felony charges - either on preliminary charges after arrest or after being moved from another facility - or were formally charged with a felony in Allen County. Any misdemeanor charges they face are also listed.

Construction

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

SPY RUN EXTENDED Closed at Dunnwood Avenue Nov. 23 to Nov. 25. LEY ROAD Lane restrictions at Lima Road through Dec. 4.

Missing woman's ex-husband charged with murder

Holly Abrams — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:03:00 EST

The former husband of a missing Columbia City woman has been charged with murder in connection with her disappearance and suspected death, according to a statement released Friday by the Whitley County Prosecutor's Office.

Fans' wait long, brief greet sweet

Benjamin Lanka — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The parking lot was full, the lines were long, but people crammed into the Meijer store on Maysville Road to meet a Northern hero other than Santa.

City kills sharing of offices

Amanda Iacone — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Mayor Tom Henry has declared the possibility of city and county governments' sharing space dead.

Washington Blvd. now set to open at 1 p.m.

The Journal Gazette — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The detour uses Harrison Street, Berry Street and Fairfield Avenue.

Capital board seeks clarity on revenue

Benjamin Lanka — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The new capital improvement board will seek tweaks to its governing law before it begins receiving millions of dollars for local projects.

City initiative gives kids a Safe Haven

Benjamin Lanka — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

In an effort to create a safe place for children in trouble, Mayor Tom Henry on Thursday announced the start of the city's Safe Haven program.

Pizza robbery suspect caught

Journal Gazette — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Fort Wayne police have arrested one suspect in the robbery of a pizza delivery driver this month.

Library OKs 1 percent raises

Amanda Iacone — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Allen County Public Library employees will receive 1 percent pay increases next year and will see no increase in health insurance costs. The library's board of trustees approved the pay and benefit changes during its monthly meeting Thursday.

Plan board OKs disputed retail center

Amanda Iacone — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A controversial strip mall planned for Gump and Coldwater roads was given the green light Thursday.

Rape count dismissed as part of plea deal

Jeff Wiehe — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A Fort Wayne man accused of breaking into a woman's home over the summer will have charges of rape, criminal deviate conduct and battery against him dropped as part of a plea agreement with Allen County prosecutors.

Hope for woman fades

Holly Abrams — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

New: Missing woman's ex-husband is charged with murder.

Construction

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

SPY RUN EXTENDED Closed at Dunnwood Avenue Nov. 23 to Nov. 25. LEY ROAD Lane restrictions at Lima Road through Dec. 4.

Fans endure long wait to meet Palin

Benjamin Lanka — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:04:00 EST

The parking lot was full, the lines were long, but people crammed into the Meijer store on Maysville Road to meet a northern hero other than Santa.

Imagine board goes public

Kelly Soderlund — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

In a public meeting Wednesday, the Imagine MASTer Academy board approved a series of measures related to two charter schools in Texas.

Jurors find convict guilty of '08 slaying

Jeff Wiehe — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A suspected gang member charged in three separate shootings over the course of a few months last year might be spending the rest of his life in prison.

Henry asks civic leaders to endorse merge plan

Benjamin Lanka — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

As doubts arise over city and county governments jointly occupying two large downtown buildings, Mayor Tom Henry this week reached out to business and community leaders seeking support for the proposal.

Hunt ends for Whitley mom

Holly Abrams — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A man was being held for questioning after police called off a search for a missing Whitley County woman Wednesday.

Prayer service set in fatal shooting

The Journal Gazette — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:30:00 EST

The group that conducts Heal the Land prayer services at the site of each homicide in Fort Wayne has set the latest one for 12:15 p.m. Saturday at the intersection of Hanna and Senate streets.

Palin signing underway

The Journal Gazette — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:47:00 EST

Journal Gazette city reporter Benjamin Lanka is at the Maysville Road Meijer store covering former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s book-signing. These are some of his observations as of noon today:

Hundreds line up to meet Palin

Associated Press — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:15:00 EST

She is expected to arrive just before noon at Meijer, 10301 Maysville Road, and sign her autograph for three hours.

Imagine has dibs on EACS building

Kelly Soderlund — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Imagine Schools wants to open its third charter school in Fort Wayne at the former Village Woods Middle School, but East Allen County Schools must first decide whether it wants the building.

Area prof acclaimed state's best for 2009

Devon Haynie — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The head of Manchester College's environmental studies program will accept an award as Indiana professor of the year in Washington, D.C., today.

6.8% of Hoosiers get H1N1 vaccine

Amanda Iacone — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Less than 7 percent of Indiana residents have been vaccinated against the H1N1 flu strain since early October.

County panel OKs 2 home businesses

Amanda Iacone — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The Allen County Board of Zoning Appeals granted two home businesses Wednesday. The board granted Michael Dye a one-year variance to continue operating a roofing business from his home at 6430 Adams Center Road.

City hires firm for sewer master plan

Benjamin Lanka — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Over the next year, the city will pay a consultant to examine how to best reduce sewer overflows downtown.

Scott's grocery robber appears tipsy

Michael Zennie — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A soft-spoken man might have been drunk when he robbed a near-northeast-side Scott's grocery store at gunpoint Tuesday.

Victim, 85, fights car thief

Michael Zennie — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A Hicksville, Ohio, woman tried to fend off another woman more than 60 years her junior during a carjacking Tuesday. The thief got away with the 85-year-old's 1995 Oldsmobile Intrigue, but not before she got a detailed description of her attacker.

Medical copters honored

Journal Gazette — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Mayor Tom Henry on Wednesday honored the 20th anniversary of Parkview Hospital's helicopter service by proclaiming it Parkview Samaritan Day. The emergency transport service began Nov. 18, 1989, in Fort Wayne, with a second helicopter starting a year later in Rochester.

Construction

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

KINNERK ROAD Closed between Winchester Road and Boggs Avenue today, Nov. 19, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Shaw praised as loyal, respectful

Devon Haynie — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

One by one, police cars pulled into the Warsaw Community Church parking lot on Tuesday. Some came from Portage, South Bend, Mishawaka and Evansville. Others came from as far away as Illinois and Tennessee.

Area doctors won't switch screenings for breast cancer

Angela Mapes Turner — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

When Nancy Ehmke heard about a federal task force's new recommendations for breast cancer screening, she had 25 women on her mind. That's how many newly diagnosed breast-cancer patients younger than 50 Ehmke has seen this year in her position as oncology clinical nurse specialist at Parkview Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Colts to honor Riley patients

Kelly Soderlund — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

It's champions honoring champions. One group fought for a Super Bowl championship. Another group is fighting a harder and longer battle.

Imagine board goes public

Kelly Soderlund — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 23:11:00 EST

In a public meeting Wednesday, the Imagine MASTer Academy board approved a series of measures related to two charter schools in Texas.

Imagine has dibs on EACS building

Kelly Soderlund — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 23:07:00 EST

Imagine Schools wants to open its third charter school in Fort Wayne at the former Village Woods Middle School, but East Allen County Schools must first decide whether it wants the building.

85-year-old woman defies carjacker

The Journal Gazette — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:45:00 EST

Rather than complying with a carjacker's demand to drive elsewhere, an 85-year-old woman drove around the block and stopped at city hall.

City to hire help for sewer project

Benjamin Lanka — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Fort Wayne will use consultants to help manage its $240 million federally mandated plan to reduce the amount of sewage flowing to area rivers.

Manchester honors nun

Kelly Soderlund — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Mother Antonia Brenner has never met a prisoner she hasn't loved. Most of the men and women inside Tijuana, Mexico's La Mesa prison come from misery and poverty, Brenner said. They weren't born under circumstances that afforded them many opportunities, she said.

Convict on trial in 2008 slaying

Jeff Wiehe — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Allen County prosecutors stacked what looked like a mountain of evidence against Anthony A. Parish on Tuesday, accusing him of the shooting death of 30-year-old Antoine J. Woods.

Victim of fiery crash was father of 2

Holly Abrams — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A Convoy, Ohio, man who died Monday in a crash near Woodburn was a father of two.

Area students aid veterans' mission to D.C.

Kelly Soderlund — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The 91-year-old Army veteran had been to three continents, traveling by land and by sea but never by air.

Detention for doctor in attack on maid

Jeff Wiehe — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A pathologist formerly working in Bluffton will spend the next year on home detention after admitting to charges he sexually battered a housekeeper and held her against her will.

3 held in 200-lb. pot haul

Journal Gazette — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Three men were arrested Tuesday on felony drug charges after Fort Wayne police searched a delivery truck and found more than 200 pounds of marijuana inside, police said.

Gas line break clears downtown Bluffton

Holly Abrams — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A four-block area of downtown Bluffton, including the Wells County Courthouse, was evacuated Tuesday after an underground natural gas line was damaged.

New Haven snaps up deal on trash pickup

Amanda Iacone — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Beginning in January, New Haven residents can opt for a smaller garbage can or recycling bin and still spend less on garbage collection than they do now.

Pork donation starts at food bank

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The goal of the campaign, in conjunction with Feeding Indiana’s Hungry Inc., is to provide 1 million meals annually to the needy.

County adds 3 H1N1 clinics

Amanda Iacone — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health has scheduled three additional H1N1 vaccination clinics this week.

Construction

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

WEBSTER STREET Closed to all traffic between Jefferson and Washington Boulevards today, Nov. 18, for four weeks.

Hospitals lift visitor restrictions

Amanda Iacone — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Just a few weeks after flu activity in Indiana hit record highs, local flu cases are on the decline - spurring Allen County's top health official to recommend that hospitals and nursing homes lift visitor restrictions.

Mayoral speaker resigns amid flap

Benjamin Lanka — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Less than three months after becoming Mayor Tom Henry's top spokesman, Vince Robinson resigned just before he was to appear in court over allegations of violence between him and his former girlfriend.

Westbound lanes of Superior to close

The Journal Gazette — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:43:00 EST

The westbound lanes of Superior Street are scheduled to close between Clinton and Calhoun streets from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday.

Natural gas leak causes Bluffton evacuations

Anne Gregory — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:59:00 EST

A natural gas leak in Bluffton has resulted in several downtown buildings being evacuated.

Webster to close downtown

The Journal Gazette — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:42:00 EST

Webster Street is scheduled to close to all traffic between Jefferson and Washington boulevards beginning Wednesday.

Driver dies as car hits ditch, rolls

Holly Abrams — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

One person is dead after a Monday morning single-vehicle crash just east of Woodburn, according to Allen County police.

No ifs or butts about it

Kelly Soderlund — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Smokers nationwide will be encouraged to quit Thursday as part of the Great American Smokeout, but Ivy Tech Community College-Northeast is taking it a step further.

Air board hires firm to promote vacant hub

Amanda Iacone — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The airport authority has hired a professional site-selector firm to help market the cargo hub vacated by Kitty Hawk. The Fort Wayne-Allen County Airport Authority board voted Monday to hire Pollina to help find a new tenant for the air cargo facility, which includes a 240,000-square-foot warehouse.

Panel to promote Southtown area

Benjamin Lanka — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

In an effort to better lure business and other development to Fort Wayne's southeast quadrant, Mayor Tom Henry on Monday announced the creation of committee of community stakeholders.

IPFW lecturer faces welfare fraud charge

Holly Abrams — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A Fort Wayne man faces a felony charge of welfare fraud after investigators say he lied about his income to get food stamps, according to Allen Superior Court records filed Monday.

Dollar store robbed on Broadway

Holly Abrams — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Fort Wayne police investigated an armed robbery at a Family Dollar store just south of downtown, a report said.

Suspect tagged in city bank heist

Rebecca S. Green — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

Hours after police say he robbed a Fort Wayne bank, a 33-year-old Fort Wayne man was arrested on a single federal charge of bank robbery.

Hunter 'critical' after tree stand fall

Journal Gazette — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:11:00 EST

A Markle man was critically injured Saturday when he fell from a tree stand while hunting, according to Indiana conservation officers.

Ex-manager admits to $500,000 theft

Journal Gazette — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:03:00 EST

A 37-year-old Fort Wayne woman pleaded guilty to theft Monday morning, admitting to stealing more than $500,000 from her employer.

Defendant facing 20 years for kid porn

Journal Gazette — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

A 34-year-old Fort Wayne man arrested in a federal child pornography sting pleaded guilty Monday to sexual exploitation of children.

Construction

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

STATE LINE ROAD Closed between Dawkins and Edgerton roads through Nov. 20 to replace railroad crossing.

Felony report

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST

The following people were recently booked into the Allen County Lockup on felony charges - either on preliminary charges after arrest or after being transported from another facility - or were formally charged with a felony in Allen County. Misdemeanor charges are also listed if the person is charged with a felony.