Latest news with #Wethington
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
New designs unveiled for Mount Vernon riverfront project
MOUNT VERNON, Ind. (WEHT) — Plans for a new-and-improved riverfront make headway in Mount Vernon. City officials unveiled two concept designs for Sherburn Park during a public input meeting on Tuesday. They say the goal was to get as many residents as possible to share their thoughts on the plans. The public came prepared to share their opinions on the two designs, 'The Sherburne Porch' and 'The Rejuvenation.' Some key differences between the two designs include the location for parking and the site of park's boat ramp. Brian Wethington is an architect for Sasaki, the company behind the designs, who says they have been working on these concepts for the past month. The designs were conceptualized after a previous survey was shared to residents. 'We really want the community to look at the elements of the plans and share what they're most excited about,' says Wethington. Ashley Diekmann is the River Vision Advancement Director for the Evansville Regional Economic Partnership who says this park's remodel is part of a strategic plan for riverfront's along the Ohio River. In January, new designs were unveiled for the Evansville riverfront. 'We're able to take our most valuable asset, which is the riverfront, and be able to build upon that and really showcase that it is the front door, and we welcome everyone,' says Diekmann. The next design is set to be unveiled in July. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Helping those who won't help themselves: Casey's Law advocates for family seeking to require treatment
GRAYSON 'The bottom line is this, people have to be alive to recover.' Charlotte Wethington said this to attendees during a breakout session of Tuesday's Bridges Out of Addiction seminar at ACTC. 'Casey died and an advocate was born, and that is me, I am Casey's mother,' Wethington said. The session taught about the law and how the law works. It is a tool that allows parents, relatives and/or friends to push for treatment for a person with substance use disorder, even those without criminal charges. 'People who have the disease of addiction need and deserve treatment as much as anyone else who has a chronic, progressive, potentially fatal disease,' Wethington said. 'Addiction is a brain disease, not a crime. 'We are still fighting that word. That is almost as dangerous as the drugs themselves,' Wethington asked. 'Stigma is what keeps people in secret, it is what keeps us from talking about the fact it is a disease and treating it as such.' Wethington was spurred to action after being unable to get treatment for her son and the difference her husband, who had a terminal disease, and her son got. Wethington said she hoped her son would have gotten in trouble with the law, but he never faced any major time. He was arrested with marijuana and paraphernalia, but his charges never got to court. 'He finally got a summons on the day of his funeral,' Wethington said. Her son never had court-ordered treatment — something she fought for — so others have legal recourse to get treatment for their loved ones. With Casey's Law there are three requirements users must meet. They must suffer from substance use disorder, must be a danger to themselves or others, or likely be one in the near future, and they would benefit from treatment. 'It is a hopeful option,' Joan Arlinghaus, advocate, said. 'It is not a guarantee, not a silver bullet. It gets them into treatment and hopefully gets them to realize it is working for them.' Wethington said the rights of those addicted are protected. Once the paperwork is filled out, the law requires two evaluations, one from a doctor and a second from a doctor or therapist. When filling out paperwork, those two evaluations need to be set up, Arlinghaus said. The person is then summoned with the dates and times to those appointments. Arlinghaus said the court summons ensures the user goes to the appointments. 'If you are filling this out on someone you should be willing to help them, get them to appointments. This is a civil case between the petitioner and the respondent,' Arlinghaus said. She said sometimes the respondent chooses not to have contact with the filer. The person has the right to ask for a jury or bench trial. 'They have always had the right to ask for those things, determine proof of probable cause, now it is beyond a reasonable doubt, the respondent is entitled to legal representation,' Arlinghaus said. The paperwork asks what evidence the petitioner has about drug use. 'If necessary, attach additional pages,' Arlinghaus said. 'All the information you have about their drug use, not just 'They are using drugs.' The more information the better.' The petition is provided to the professionals, to provide background information. 'They can't make an evaluation just on the petition, but it gives them things to question them about. Sometimes it encourages them to be much more forthcoming,' she added. The petition can be made against those in treatment, but not in compliance, Arlinghaus explained. 'It is a great opportunity to file, they are not able to do this on their own,' she added. While most of the filings are from parents for their children, Arlinghaus said they are seeing children filling on their parents as well as friends filling on friends. 'You have the right to know if they are in compliance or not,' Arlinghaus said. The paperwork has a clause regarding guarantee of payment. Arlinghaus said that most of the people filled against qualify for low or no cost treatment. 'Usually before you file Casey's Law, the person has nothing left,' Arlinghaus said. 'We have advocates if the county is not supportive,' she added. 'Casey's Law works; if there are offices where people want it to work, it does.' Kentucky is one of two states that has Casey's Law or something similar. Florida has a similar program that is working, Arlinghaus said. 'Ohio has Casey's Law, but it is not working, it is flat out not working,' Arlinghaus said. A similar law was talked about in West Virginia but did not come to fruition. '(It) always comes back to the person's rights,' Arlinghaus said. 'We are trying to give the right to live, to be a parent.' People's rights are protected in Casey's Law, Wethington stressed. 'Families don't just do this on a whim,' Wethington said. 'Nobody who doesn't care about the person is going through the process. While it is not a difficult process, it's a time-consuming one. This is a last resort, gives them hope that maybe this will be the thing that gets their loved one into recovery.' 'We have over 4,000 who have been ordered into treatment because of Casey's Law,' Arlinghaus said. 'There is not a way to follow up on that,' Arlinghaus said when asked about success rate of Casey's Law. She did share of a story where a couple met because of being ordered to treatment by Casey's Law and finding sobriety. 'The family can know even if their loved one doesn't survive, they have exhausted every possible way they have,' Wethington said. 'I still feel guilty. I know I didn't cause it, I know I couldn't cure it,' Wethington said. 'Acceptance is hard.' For more information visit or find them on Facebook.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Yahoo
Wethington announces resignation as circuit judge
Daviess Circuit Judge Jay Wethington, who was Commonwealth's Attorney before becoming a judge in 2007, resigned from the bench as of Friday. With Wethington's retirement, the Administrative Office of the Courts can begin the process of filling the Division I seat for the rest of Wethington's term. The process calls for the Administrative Office of the Courts to appoint a nominating commission which will take applications and forward recommendations to the governor for an appointment. Whoever is chosen will have to run for election in 2026. Wethington suffered an injury from a fall in March of 2024, and Wethington's division has been covered by other judges since. In a letter submitted to state Chief Justice Debra Hambree Lambert, Wethington said while he was hoping for full recovery, 'my expectations and hopes were too high,' and that he is currently 'unable to resume my duties as circuit judge to the extent I know the position requires ...' While Wethington said Friday his health has improved since the accident, he is looking forward to traveling with his wife in the future. The decision to resign was difficult, he said. 'Not because of my injury, but in my heart it was a hard decision to make, because I liked it, I was good at it, and people responded to things I wanted to do,' Wethington said. 'There's more to it than sitting on the bench,' Wethington said. Wethington, a former Atlanta Constitution reporter, started his law career in private practice before being hired as an assistant commonwealth's attorney by then Commonwealth's Attorney Tom Castlen. 'We go way back. We were friends even in grade school,' Castlen, who is now a retired Circuit judge, said. Later, he said, 'Our careers have paralleled one another over the years. 'He's a good attorney and he's a good person,' Castlen said. When Castlen became Circuit Judge and Wethington became commonwealth's attorney, Wethington was an strong supporter of the creation of a drug court program, Castlen said. 'I'm not so sure, when I was Commonwealth's Attorney, if I would have been as receptive' to the idea of Drug Court, Castlen said. 'But Jay was very supportive and got on board ... He knew the alternatives that needed to be explored for people with substance abuse.' Wethington said the prosecutor is an important part of Drug Court, because prosecutors have to agree to send a defendant to the court-monitored substance abuse program. People in drug court receive substance abuse treatment and services, with the court monitoring their progress. Wethington, who later presided over Drug Court after becoming a circuit judge, said 'Drug Court has been good for me as a judge.' 'My first attitude was, 'if you miss up, you're going to prison,' ' Wethington said. But Wethington learned that addicts will relapse. Drug Court, 'helped me understand about addiction,' Wethington said. Wethington said some of the cases he handled as Commonwealth's Attorney that created new state law. For example, a local case that rose through the appeal process resulted in the justices ruling that a person could be found guilty of homicide if they supplied drugs to a person who died. Another case, which Wethington handled as a special prosecutor, made law when the Supreme Court ruled commonwealth's attorneys also had a right to appeal in criminal cases. Wethington argued the case before the Supreme Court. Wethington said his judicial philosophy was 'to stay out of the way.' '(Judges) call balls and strikes,' Wethington said. Later, he said, 'The hardest thing for me was to shut up and let the lawyers win or lose their case. They know the case better than you, so stay out of it.' State Court of Appeals Judge Lisa Payne Jones was hired by Wethington to be an assistant commonwealth's attorney when Wethington ran the CWA's office. 'He helped me get litigation experience under my belt,' Jones said. 'He took the mentor role,' Jones said, and that, 'he guided me on buying a house. He didn't just care about you as a lawyer, he cares about you as a person.' Retired Daviess Circuit Judge Joe Castlen, who was Division II judge for years while Wethington was in Division I, said, 'I always liked Jay being on the other end of the hall' at the judicial center. 'I could always ask his opinion,' Joe Castlen said. 'We always confided on different matters, and it was great to have a good working relationship like that.' Wethington said, as a prosecutor, 'I didn't care about wins and losses, because that's not the point of the job. The job is justice.'
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sinclair gets students workforce ready with clothing closet
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Sinclair Community College is giving students the tools they need to land a job; but it's not just about acting the part, it's also about looking the part. Beyond the typical interview questions, using LinkedIn, searching for jobs, and networking, they're helping students with another aspect of career readiness. Tartan Threads is a new free resource helping students and alumni dress for success. It's a walk-in closet within the Student and Community Engagement (SCE) Department 'I think it's not really something that students really think about when they're coming to the end of graduation and they're getting ready to go into that workforce,' states Felicia Wethington, Coordinator of Career Development at Sinclair Community College. The idea started when the school recognized the need for more accessible and professional clothing. The clothes are all donated by staff and faculty. Easing stress and the financial burden, professional outfits prepare students for interviews or even the first day on the job. 'That's kind of why we launched it. We just want students to be prepared for their future and just have one less thing to worry about,' states Wethington. More than a dozen students have already taken advantage of the extra support, with clothing giving them the confidence they need to look and feel their best as they enter the job market. Tartan Threads is available through appointments. For more information, call 937-512-2426 or email Sinclair is hosting a Career Fair on April 9. It's not just for students, but for anyone who wants to attend. It will take place in Building 12 from noon until 3 p.m. Dozens of employers are expected to be there. Visit Sinclair's Student and Community Engagement webpage for more information. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
