Gold Point Road bridge now open
The wait is over: The bridge on Gold Point Road is now open to traffic.
Brown County Highway Superintendent Mike Magner announced the news at the Nov. 20 Brown County Commissioners meeting that the bridge was opened the day before.
The bridge had an emergency closure about a year ago after inspections revealed that it had deteriorated. The county had no say in the closure, Magner said. He had said the permitting process had slowed down the bridge reopening.
The new bridge will have a standard 80,000-pound weight limit, meaning any legal vehicle can cross it.
Nominations sought for public defender board
The Indiana Public Defender Commission is accepting nominations through Dec. 4 for an appointment to the Brown County Public Defender Board.
“When citizens are accused of a crime and cannot afford an attorney, both the Indiana and United States Constitutions require that they are entitled to an appointed attorney,” said commission Chair Mark W. Rutherford. “In Brown County, that system is managed by the Public Defender Board, and citizens are encouraged to take an active involvement in that board.”
Indiana statute states that the Brown County Public Defender Board is composed of three members: one appointed by the county commissioners, one appointed by the county judiciary and one appointed by the commission. The commission’s appointee must be a resident of Brown County.
Based on statute, appointees must be “persons who have demonstrated an interest in high-quality legal representation for indigent persons.” The board meets at least quarterly and has oversight responsibilities for the delivery of public defense services in Brown County. Members are appointed for a three-year term, which will begin in January.
Nominations are due by Wednesday, Dec. 4. Appointments will be made at the Dec. 18 Indiana Public Defender Commission meeting, which is open to the public.
Brown County has been participating since 2012 in the commission’s reimbursement program in exchange for following standards for the delivery of public defense services. The county has received approximately $250,000 since that time.
For further information or to submit a nomination, visit in.gov/publicdefender.
Brown County hosts preparedness training
The Terrorism and All Hazards Preparedness Committee of the Indiana Environmental Health Association sponsored a course at the Brown County Annex Building on Nov. 14 and 15 from the National Center on Biomedical Research and Training Anti-Terrorism Division from Louisiana State University.
This course was taught by four instructors from Montana, Florida, Spokane and New York with extensive backgrounds in response, emergency care, law enforcement and public health. Twelve people attended from nursing homes, public health, emergency preparedness, EMS, hospital security, law enforcement and mental health facilities. The diversity of the participants’ employment roles made for lively and informative facilitated discussion on possible disasters, procedures for mitigation of disaster effects, and the overall necessary response.
“The reaction to the course has been overwhelmingly positive,” reported Jennifer Heller of the Brown County Health Department. “The interchange of ideas and experiences and the general networking for all involved was extremely valuable in determining possible steps towards resolution of issues common in disasters.”
Attendees spent their time off exploring Nashville.
This class was provided by the Center for Domestic Preparedness as a Federal Emergency Management Agency course at no charge to the participants.
