Yesterday, the Kentucky Supreme Court heard a case involving Jefferson County Circuit Judge Olu Stevens and his dismissal of a jury because the jury was lacking racial diversity.

The arguments from attorneys were focused on two questions: 1. Can a black defendant receive a fair judgement from a jury composed of all white people; and 2. Did Judge Olu Stevens have the authority to dismiss a jury because of its racial make-up?

According the US Supreme Court, jury pools must be selected randomly. According to the Constitution, juries must represent the community. This allows, potentially, for legal problems since a random selection is not likely to accurately represent the diversity within a given community.

This hearing is separate from the Judicial Conduct Commission hearing that Judge Olu Stevens will have to attend in the future regarding his suspension from the bench.

Gregory Mathis, age 43, has pleaded guilty after an investigation found that he was using Facebook and Kik Messenger to solicit underage girls for nude photographs and videos.

Kentucky Attorney General, Jack Conway, and the Cybercrimes Unit have only been able to identify seven of the girls involved; they range in age from 10 – 15. The Cybercrime Unit has been working with police in multiple other states, including Oklahoma, Utah, New York, and Virginia, to help contact the victims.

Mathis’ deal gives him 15 years in prison for pleading guilty to 36 counts, including:

• 4 counts of promoting a sexual performance by a minor under 16 years old, Class B Felonies with a penalty of 10-20 years
• 3 counts of criminal attempt to promote a sexual performance by a minor under 16 years old, Class C Felonies with a penalty of 5-10 years
• 3 counts of prohibited use of an electronic communication system to procure a minor for a sex offense, Class D Felonies with a penalty of 1-5 years
• 26 counts of possession of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor, Class D Felonies with a penalty of 1-5 years.

Mathis will be formally sentenced in August. For more information on how to protect your children from internet predators, visit Cybersafety in Kentucky. To report cyber abuse, call the Cyber Tipline at 1-800-843-5678.

Last year, the local Fourth of July celebration had be cancelled due to budget cuts. The event will be returning this year at the Waterfront Park in downtown.

The event will be held Sunday, July 3rd and it will start at 5:00 PM with music by the Louisville Orchestra and the band Houndmouth.  There will also be two original scores performed by the #SingfortheCity contest winners. The fireworks are sponsored by Louisville bats. The event is free and will feature a Fifth Third Family Fun Zone, food, and more. Families are encouraged to being one recyclable item that will be transformed in a musical instrument, which will then be used by children to accompany the orchestra for a song.

More than 20 sponsors helped make the event possible:

• Thorntons
• Louisville Metro
• Louisville Orchestra
• Waterfront Development Corp.
• Courier Journal
• Fifth Third Bank
• Galt House Hotel
• Louisville City FC
• WHAS 11
• Louisville Bats
• Louisville Downtown Partnership
• Greater Louisville Convention and Visitors Bureau
• LG&E
• Brown-Forman and Old Forester
• River City Distributing
• Yum! Foundation and KFC
• Waterside at RiverPark Place
• WUOL Classical 90.5
• The Belle of Louisville
• Bearno’s Pizza
• Friends of the Waterfront
• Simon Signs
• The Boys and Girls Club of Kentuckiana
• Jug Band Jubilee
• Kentucky Science Center
• Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft
• Nugent Sand Company
• Louisville Water Company

School starts back August 10th and the district-wide supply list has been released. Specific information will be provided at a later date by the individual schools.

K-2 list

• 1 backpack – no wheels
• 3 glue sticks
• 24 pencils
• 1 box of 24 crayons
• 1 box of 8 washable markers
• 5 notebooks
• 1 pencil box or pouch
• 5 two-pocket folders
• 1 pair of scissors

3-5 List

• 1 backpack – no wheels
• 3 glue sticks
• 24 pencils
• 1 box of 24 crayons
• 1 box of 8 washable markers
• 7 notebooks
• 1 pencil box or pouch
• 5 two-pocket folders
• 1 pair of scissors
• 2 ink pens
• 1 pack wide-ruled loose leaf paper

6-8 List

• 1 pack loose leaf paper
• 1 box of colored pencils or markers
• 7 notebooks
• 7 two-pocket folders
• 24 pens/pencils

Schools may determine specific items (e.g. spiral bound notebook vs composition book), but may not request specific brands.

For a second year, the University of Louisville baseball team has earned a national seed in the NCAA tournament. The Cardinals were ranked #2 overall and it is the third time the seed has been ranked nationally.

The Cardinals will also host the Regional and Super Regionals here in Louisville. The first game for the Cardinals will be Friday, June 3rd at 6:00 PM against Western Michigan. The baseball team is 310-91 at home and 19-6 in the Regional and Super Regional games at home.

JCPS has agreed to pay a family $1.75 million for an incident in which a child was injured. In 2014, a 16 year-old student at Binet School was restrained. According to witness, the teen, who is autistic, was being disruptive and a teacher grabbed him from behind and moved him from a chair to the floor using a technique called a cradle-assist. During the encounter or shortly after reaching the floor, both of the teen’s femurs were broken.

Three investigations into the incident did not find any evidence of abuse, but the femur is the strongest bone in the body and the injuries were difficult to explain. A state panel that that investigates child abuse deaths and injuries is still looking for more information and they will take up the case at their next meeting in July.