>> A group opposed to amendment 2 on school funding starts TV ads days after supporters took to the airwaves mass shooting at manhunt along a Kentucky interstate leads to school closings and other disruptions.

It comes as Kentucky schools try new ways to improve attendance.

Kentucky's attorney general wins approval of a campaign to KET kids away from opioids and he calls for warning labels on social media.

On this Friday.

The 13th as tropical weather rolls through.

You're in luck.

Comment is next on KET.

♪ ♪ Good evening.

I'm Bill Bryant and we welcome you to comment on Kentucky.

A look back and and some analysis of the week's news in the Commonwealth.

>> And the guests on our panel of Working Kentucky journalists tonight are Tessa Duvall Politics and public affairs editor for the Lexington Herald-Leader Sarah Ladd Health and policy reporter for the Kentucky Lantern and right on Barton, Kentucky Bay, senior editor for NPR.

Also tonight, a case of measles is confirmed at Western Kentucky University and Louisville confronts its homeless problem with the community care center that the mayor says is more than a shelter.

We have a lot to discuss tonight.

Kentucky is dealing with the aftermath of another mass shooting.

This time a gunman opened fire, hitting 12 vehicles or so on.

I-75 and injuring 5 people.

A manhunt has lasted for nearly a week.

Schools in the area closed for a time.

And when some of the district's did reopen, state troopers escorted buses to school.

Governor Beshear visited the area to thank those dealing with the situation and to comfort those affected.

>> Very grateful everyone from the sheriff's office to to the city of London, police to ksp to the FBI to fish and wildlife and so many others that are there and we have some of the best technology we have some of the best trained individuals out there.

We have bloodhounds that are in from Illinois.

Truly everybody doing everything they can to assure that community that we're going to bring this individual to justice, but also ensure their safety in the in the coming days.

>> Well, that S a little is known about why on Saturday afternoon, a gunman who had apparently just purchased the AR 15 ammunition randomly opened fire on the interstate.

But it has been a tough week.

We certainly know that for a people who are on age in that area.

>> Yeah, absolutely.

So as you said last weekend, a gunman, the suspect is named Joseph Couch.

She says in his 30's fired at a moving vehicles along.

I-75 from the hill kind of overlooking the interstate and in Laurel County and struck about 12 vehicles and injured 5 people in the process.

Thankfully, there have been no deaths reported from from this incident.

But yeah, there's there's really not a lot known.

The police have not been able to locate him.

As of now.

He did send a text to a woman about 20 or 30 minutes before he began firing saying that he intended to kill a lot of people and then and then kill himself.

And so the search is going on in Daniel Boone, National Forest, which we know is very, very dense.

How densely wooded area at their sinkholes caves.

It's it's not easy terrain.

Search by any means and you know, whether whether he's alive or dead or where he's at.

Police just don't know at this time.

>> And right when you just have to think about how settling this is to to people in that area and for that matter be on the area because of the unknowns.

>> Yeah, a terrifying situation with nobody knows where he is.

If he's even still in the area anymore.

Police have said that they they've gathered some evidence from his house, but they're not revealing everything at this point.

So we don't.

We don't tolling or thing.

If schools are many schools are still closed in the area of this is after a full week of school now and the beginning, the school year high school football games are canceled as well.

So it's been incredibly disrupted.

And, you know, this is also the the 300 89th bats shooting this year.

This is something that after a summer of concerning events which we saw the former president gets shot at during a rally at also school shooting just last week.

So it's it's a very frustrating and terrifying time for folks living area.

But also folks from the country been watching this and share.

There comes this question not only in that area, but certainly there.

>> You talk to kids about the situation.

Obviously, it's a very frightening to them.

>> Obviously, when you have a situation like this and especially when it bleeds over into schools closing and you have activities, children would be at not happening.

Kids can be very overwhelmed.

And, you know, feel fear, anxiety about these things.

And, you know, mental health organizations will put out guidance and they have put out guidance after this, too, basically saying parents should, you know, KET their kids talking and make sure they know they can ask any questions that they need that are on their heart.

Even if you don't have the answers, it's important to KET them talking and to really be patient and just watch out for any acting out behaviors that might indicate that they are not coping well with what's going on.

But they basically say, you know, give them space to voice their concerns and their fears.

>> The result we mentioned a $35,000 reward for the suspect being arrested.

The fact that the suspect Joseph capture apparently bought the AR 15 ammunition today of the shooting, of course, has led to the usual discussions about gun laws and Tessa of some are calling for more restrictions.

A gun advocate saying blamed the shooter, not the gun.

>> Right.

I mean, this is this has become a very quintessentially American conversation that happens in the wake of of every mass shooting, you know, is that the guns is person behind it.

So, you know, Second Amendment advocates say to restrict gun ownership would too, would infringe on the rights of law-abiding citizens and their ability to protect themselves.

Whereas gun control advocates question someone why someone like this was even able to buy a gun in the first place earlier this year he had been arrested for terroristic threatening for threatening a man and his dog saying you killed them.

But that case was ultimately dismissed.

But, you know, they're saying why can someone with this background walk into a gun store by high high powered weapon and 1000 rounds of ammunition and then go out and do this.

So it's it's it's it's a conversation that MS. Time and time again.

Well, people trying to wrap their heads around this particular situation, but they're certainly been reiland.

You added news nationally.

>> all too frequently your reporting on the similar stories.

>> Yes, similar stories in and we do normally see a similar of reaction from politicians.

And sometimes it's some conservatives who are still advocates for the Second Amendment calling for some form of gun safety law.

So so we just saw in Georgia after the terrible school school shooting that took place there last week.

The House speaker there is calling for some form of gun safety, simple requirement for people who have guns in the House will move kids in the house to KET them locked up.

There's been bills propose like that.

And Kentucky legislature for years and years and it never gets traction here.

It's really the simplest form of gun safety legislation and something like a red flag law.

We don't know the full details of when this suspect we're showing warning so that we do know immediately before him.

He was.

And that's something that I think there are a lot of Republicans, you know, people who own guns and celebrate Second Amendment rights say that they should.

There should be some way to identify or to temporarily take away firearms from folks who could be a danger to themselves or others.

But that off and just kind of get some trampled over and the the stampede of politics afterwards.

>> As Rylan mentioned, there have been proposals like this in Kentucky before, but they don't go anywhere.

This pass legislation legislative session.

We saw Senator Whitney Westerfield and Senator David Yates put forth us of a crisis, aversion rights retention similar to red flag law forward in the Senate and it.

It went nowhere as these things tend to do.

And we know that Senator Westerfield is not running for re-election.

So it's unclear if another Republican in the Senate or even in the House would be interested in taking this up because Kentucky is a very pro-gun rights state.

And we have lawmakers who are vehemently opposed to any of these kinds of restrictions.

>> The good news for the 5 victims have been released from the hospital.

The 5th is said to be doing OK, and it is expected that everybody will survive simultaneously with that massive disruption.

Several other schools had to deal with the threats this week.

The trouble for schools comes a time when leaders are trying to find a way to bring down absenteeism here in Kentucky.

And Sherry was a very concerning the number of schools that had a disruption this week.

>> Yeah.

And this, of course, as you mentioned, comes at a really bad time because school districts are already trying to grapple with absenteeism, which is soared in recent years.

I know we went from 30% of students being chronically absent to more than 50 currently.

So last day to I saw and to be chronically absent, you have to be missing.

At least 10% of the time you should be in school.

And so that has far-reaching effects.

You know, it can impact a student's ability to go on and get a high school diploma and a job and they're missing out on social skills and relationships.

They're supposed to be building.

And so you already have school districts trying to raise awareness that it's important to be in school and kind of combat those numbers.

And then you have these side forces.

Well, as the threat state police and the education commissioner issued a joint statement asking parents to be sure that students realize just how serious these that these threats are.

That was a that came this week as well.

>> Well, a former superintendent who now runs an educational co-op, a Kentucky educational develop.

Talk to me about this absenteeism issue and what schools are facing.

>> Pre-pandemic we were looking at about 5% of students that we would call chronically absent post pandemic.

We went to 77% and I will tell you it's not just a Kentucky problem.

It is a national.

It's on the national level.

We should schools down for 2 years and then we were coming back out of the pandemic.

We said if you have a sniffle, if you have a call, if you don't feel good, don't come to school.

And we tell those parents and guardians that so much that it became a ritual and they did send their study their kids.

>> So sorry, it is sort of whiplash what we've been through the last 4 years or so.

And and so, you know, at this and now the schools are saying it's time to come back and that Cole is not being heeded in that case.

>> Now you have a period of about 2 years where the constant messages the outside world is not a safe place to be.

And so it's hard to come back from that.

It's hard to feel safe going to school at that point.

And then you have other factors.

You have substance use disorder.

You know, parental abuse and neglect.

All sorts of things can can lead to this absenteeism.

But it's certainly concerning a lot of school officials.

>> And this whole social media, a part of it to test it with these threats and so on.

You know, the talk to your kids narratives out there.

And in that regard as well.

>> Absolutely.

I mean, we've seen several juveniles this week.

You know, 12, 14 are being charged with terroristic threatening for the results of these.

The stress that we've seen pop up in several counties across the state and now when you're when you're that age, you don't fully understand the repercussions of what it is that you're doing, you know, your your brain is not fully developed when you're a teenager.

So what they might think is a joke or just a social media post.

What have you is actually something that law enforcement and administrators have to take very seriously because of, you know, like what we saw in Georgia last week with school shooting.

I mean, you you can't not take these things serious.

And so relaying that message to kids that like you might think this is just a goof, but it's so much more than that.

>> Rylan taking away.

Foams comes up as a as one option.

But that is controversial as well.

It and actually special.

We're talking about school shootings.

That's something that parents worry about and times when they want to have to make sure their kids to have phones in those cases of emergencies.

But states and localities are starting to pass bans on kids using firms in schools just this school year.

Indiana's policy requiring districts to come up with disciplinary actions for using cell phones in schools except for emergencies or for classroom purposes.

Just one online.

And you have to mixed reviews so far are only a few weeks into the school year.

But you know, we're in a real brave new world.

The states of the kids having the ability to have smart phones in the classroom and and teachers not really knowing what to do with them and not really having the policies in place and the etiquette just quite isn't there yet.

So this is one way they're trying to do it.

But I think a lot of people are wrestling with it.

It's going to take a bit figure out how to do it right.

Big challenges out there low down on that issue and others.

It has also been an interesting week in politics.

>> The group opposing amendment to to the Kentucky Constitution started running ads.

It comes about a week after a group pushing the amendment one on TV.

We saw a clip from them last week this week.

Here's a snippet.

The ad from a group working to defeat the amendment.

>> As parents, we want to improve Kentucky schools that amendment 2 and vouchers are not the answer.

>> Amendment 2 would use public money to fund private schools.

90% of Kentucky students attend public schools.

Let's improve them.

>> All right.

To test that.

We now know that millions of dollars will be spent in this Both sides now on TV.

Those pushing the amendment say it is it to school choice and more options.

The opposition says it will hurt public schools.

This is a a hard fought battle.

Can we detect where voters may be heading out there?

>> Right.

This is the issue on on the Kentucky ballot come this November.

You know, we have a pretty good sense of how the presidential race will will play out in Kentuckyian same with, you know, the congressional districts.

So this is like the issue that everyone will will be voting on when they show up at the polls.

There's a general perception that because schools are such vital parts of rural communities, their large employers, you know that everybody goes football games.

This real sense of community around public schools that this amendment is a spike Lee to fail.

And for that reason we saw when the underlying bill that put this amendment or we'll put this amendment on the ballot was passed in the legislature.

There were some rural Republicans who voted against it.

I mean, when you look at an 80% super majority in the legislature, this was one of the closer bills we saw this past legislative session.

So there is some resistance to it.

Among Republicans.

>> All right.

So that certainly is going to be one to watch this fall.

Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd tonight, a motion this week that would have capped a state representative Nima Kulkarni off of the ballot in Louisville.

It came just before Secretary of state Michael Adams certify the ballots to be printed to for November.

She'd been renominated by Democrats after being disqualified after winning the primary because 2 Republicans had signed her Democratic registration Rylan.

So it's just, you know, where is this one?

And there really isn't the issue now on the ballot for good.

I thinks it's all about for now.

But from the valley mistake, he did refer this case to the Supreme Court to provide a final ruling on this.

So we will get another bite at this apple.

>> But there is at least a little bit more news out of it.

But those ballots should or should be heading to the headed to the printer soon.

As you said, this is going back and forth between lawsuits and rulings and all over all over the signature from somebody who is originally registered Republicans and switched their party affiliation.

In time before those candidate candidacy papers were filed.

But as it looks right now, so be the Democratic nominee about because the Jefferson County Democrats pictures the nominee at this point, Kentucky Democrats didn't time many challengers for Republicans who control both the House is in the legislature, but it appears.

>> They are trying to target a couple of seats in Louisville where Governor Beshear is getting involved in land.

A union leader, John Stovall, education advocate KET Farrow.

They're trying to unseat incumbents and the Republicans this has been an interesting situation in more metropolitan areas where Democrats think they can to make inroads A kind of person at the Kentucky went into a great profile on these races and it is.

>> You know, Republicans are at a bit of a high water mark right now are there at the high watermark that never had more seats than this.

And the state legislature tarter.

There's one sure we have that many seats.

It's going to.

You're on defense when it comes down to Democrats have long felt like they should be able to pick up some of these Louisville suburban districts and they're gonna make another pass this on to those issues that we've been.

Well, at least one of the U.S. is we're talking about that school Choice Amendment.

You know, one of the cake barrel to education advocate and that's what she's running a campaign a lot on and on.

You know, there's just this larger Democrats feel like there's a moment right now for increase interests around union activities.

So John Stove on that on that number.

Yeah, we've seen other places in the South you know, auto plants, for example, turning into becoming unionize finally and I think the Democrats are hoping to cash in on a little bit of that sentiment there.

And finally, you flip some of those seats, but we'll see.

This is a it is.

Yeah, there's Democrats in the Kentucky Legislature isolated to Lexington, Louisville.

This one in northern Kentucky.

There's one in southeastern Kentucky left no Democrats in the central time zone.

So they're you know, they're just really trying to chip away ever so slightly at the Republican overwhelming super super majority and again, lean into the urban areas.

Attorney General Russel Coleman had a busy week as Sarah Coleman won approval to spend nearly 4 million dollars on a three-part campaign to address opioid abuse.

>> Before start, yeah.

So.

>> He came before the opioid Abatement Commission this week in that commission is responsible for distributing settlement dollars.

Kentucky gets from opioid manufacturers and distributors and he asked for 3.6 million dollars specifically over the next 2 years.

0.8 million each year to do a couple things.

It's got 3 parts.

But a key part is this ad campaign that is targeted toward young people.

13 to 26 who national data shows us that those people are very vulnerable for developing addiction, especially to have a family history.

And so he got approval to spend the money.

They they voted unanimously, but he could spend the money on the side campaign and a key part of this is trying to make it cool to not ever try pills or any kind of drugs.

And so they're kind of leaning into you know, influencers that might appeal to a young demographic and colors and all sorts of to try to reach them before they were trying to stay away from the gate was right.

Right.

>> Coleman also told us that midweek that he's calling for a surgeon general's warning.

That is a U.S., you know, act of Congress on social media.

He and more than 40 other attorneys general sent a letter to Congress urging them to act to Colon, says what kids are seeing a social media.

He's very negatively impacting their lives.

>> and it was a bipartisan letter spent sent to the speaker of the House, Mike Johnson.

And yeah, it's basically asking for a warning to say social media can be dangerous and we know research shows us.

That's correct.

You know, the more time you spend as a young person, social media, the more likely you are to develop depression and anxiety and we already see really bad statistics for that for young people, especially young girls, teenage girls, high rates of anxiety and oppression.

So he sent this letter along with, as you said, more than 40 other attorneys general basically asking for that morning.

Just to get the word out, PSA type thing at the center.

And Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd has said the hearing late in September as he decides whether to unseal the case.

>> Involving the attorney general's office and to Louisville positions who previously provided abortion services.

A private clinic.

Debbie Yetter reported that for the Kentucky Lanter.

>> Yes, and this started last year with a former attorney General Daniel Cameron who wanted employment records for these employees who provided abortions at Mw Surgical Center in Louisville.

Basically trying to see if there was any overlap in their payments from U of L and the the the center, a judge initially rejected that.

And so it's kind of gone back and forth in the court a little bit.

But we do have a hearing September 27th and the Franklin judge did sort of open a window if you will, in this recent ruling saying that members of the public and press could file motions to unseal this case like to get involved in it.

So interesting to see if anyone we will let you know that.

>> The Kentucky a legislative Ethics Commission has voted to continue its investigation of State Representative Daniel Grossberg.

He's denied wrongdoing test of the Herald leader has a lead.

The reporting on live.

>> Wright since late late July, the Herald leader has reported about on several allegations may have made against Representative Grossberg concerning inappropriate text communications making these women feel uncomfortable and harassed.

And so shortly after the first Herald-Leader story, House Democratic leadership filed a complaint with the Legislative Ethics Commission and we saw the commission vote earlier this week unanimously to to take up and further investigate that because there is reason to believe that he has committed or could commit an ethical violation.

However, this is not a finding that he has done anything wrong at this time.

Just means that it warrants further investigation.

And for his part, the representative has denied any wrongdoing and says that through his attorney says that he looks forward to clearing his name through this official process.

>> Their leader reporting Kentucky's largest addiction.

Recovery providers close some facilities.

>> Right.

Diction recovery care, which is under arrest FBI investigation and has been for about a month earlier this week closed about 5 facilities and laid off a number of employees.

They're not saying how many they also relocated several clients to other facilities.

And, you know, as as you noted, they are under FBI investigation for potential Medicaid fraud.

And so former employees and clients have been urged to reach out to the FBI.

And so now there are a few more of those folks.

>> And they say they're fully cooperating with the investigation, say.

>> They do.

And they still have plans for other expansions for their part.

They say this is not connected to the FBI that this has to do with rate reductions and what's paid for the services.

>> Communities of all sizes are coming to grips with homelessness.

Louisville has a new community care campus and the smoke town area.

And the mayor there says, Sarah, that will be more than a shelter.

>> Yes, well, it's in progress.

Construction began this week and it basically came out of 100 million dollars at the General gave to Louisville to spend on a couple projects.

A Louisville took 23 million of that put it toward this community care campus.

Volunteers of America is running it.

It will offer housing, temporary housing for people who are moving from recovery into them back into their lives and it will offer shelter for families, food services.

Police will be there.

So there's a couple different things it's doing, but it is its goal is to decrease homelessness and Louisville.

>> Right on WFLA, Rendell, graphic of this week about how there are areas of Louisville where folks have to travel an hour for groceries.

You know, you might think that in rural areas, right?

Yeah.

I mean, this is a problem that you see across the country cities, especially Louisville size where >> the real urban core of the city grocery stores just slowly leave them in.

Anybody's lived in Louisville for a wild scene.

Just the the neighborhood grocery stores just one by one leave.

And it's in just kind of moving farther and farther out of town.

Folks have to go a lot farther, especially if you're taking the bus or something.

You don't have your own transportation.

It's a real pain to get grocery.

Sometimes the challenge Sarah confirmed case of measles at Western Kentucky University.

>> Attention getting in concerning briefly on live.

Yeah.

Western Kentucky University student traveled internationally got measles came back while infected attended a couple of community events so people could have been exposed around Bowling Green August.

28 29 30 is very contagious.

And you talk to a doctor if you think you are exposed.

>> University of Kentucky reporting record enrollment topping 36,000 students for the first time about a 7% increase from last year.

The freshman class also is the biggest ever in releasing the numbers?

UK President Eli Capilouto referred to historic strides in advancing the state in land.

Louisville won't be hosting the Sundance Film Festival in 2027.

It's the largest independent film festival in the U.S..

The Derby city made its pitch over the summer.

It did not make the shortlist.

It could still come.

Those closest Cincinnati.

His comment on Kentucky.

Thank you for joining us.

Make it a good week ahead.

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