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When it comes to payroll tax collections, can the folks in Frankfort do it better than local governments? The Corbin City Commission doesn’t think so. During its regular monthly meeting Monday, the Corbin City Commission unanimously passed a resolution opposing any bills brought forth during the 2025 Kentucky General Assembly session by any member of the legislature “in full or in part, that provides for mandated centralized collection of local occupational fees/taxes by the Commonwealth of Kentucky or other third parties.” Numerous local cities and counties throughout Kentucky have a local occupational tax, also known as payroll tax, and collect their own funds at the local level, including Corbin, Williamsburg, London,...

A Woodbine man is being held behind bars in the Whitley County Detention Center in lieu of a $1 million cash bond for allegedly killing his brother-in-law late Saturday evening. About 5:45 a.m. Sunday, Whitley County Sheriff’s Major Tony Dingess arrested John Robert Lang, 34, charging him with murder in the death of Richard Willoughby, 43, of Lexington, according to an arrest citation. (A sheriff's department release Wednesday evening indicated Willoughby is from Huntsville, Tennessee.) At 10:07 p.m. Saturday. Whitley County E-911 Dispatch received a call from a woman, who reported that her brother (Lang) had shot her husband inside Lang’s residence at 938 East KY-6 in Woodbine, Dingess wrote on...

The Kentucky General Assembly convened Tuesoday for the 2025 Legislative Session, marking a significant milestone: the 25th anniversary of Republican control of the Senate majority in the commonwealth. This marks a quarter-century of Republican leadership, with Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, now the longest-serving Senate president in Kentucky history, at the helm. “I’d like to thank the people of District 25 for their continued trust in me to serve them for another four years. I’m also honored by the opportunity to remain Senate president,” said Stivers. “I am mindful of the leaders who preceded me in this role, such as David Williams and Dan Kelly, who laid the foundation for...

Laurel County Sheriff's deputies are investigating a reported shooting, which occurred off Hopper Creek Road about nine miles southeast of London Thursday about 2:45 p.m. Sheriff's investigators were dispatched by the London-Laurel County 911 Communication Center to a complaint that a 43-year-old male had been shot there, according to a sheriff's department release. When investigators arrived at the scene, they found out that the man had been shot once in the hip. He was airlifted to the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington for treatment. Investigators are attempting to determine a possible suspect in the shooting. A shooter has not been determined at this time. Laurel Sheriff's Detective Taylor McDaniel is...

A shooting on I-75 in northern Laurel County involving a Woodbine man that drew national attention to the region for weeks, making plans to accommodate medical cannabis when it becomes legal in early 2025, and the end of the legal saga for a Corbin man that sodomized, strangled and murdered a three-year-old girl were some of the top stories in the year that was 2024. The following are the top 10 stories of 2024 as voted upon by the news staff at the News Journal. 1) I-75 shooting On the evening of Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, authorities responded to a call from the London-Laurel County 911 Dispatch Center concerning vehicles that had...

Donations are still being accepted for the 2024 Southeast Kentucky Empty Stocking Fund (SEKESF) Christmas program, which is took place Saturday. So far, $29,251 has been donated. The Corbin Rotary Club has announced the latest round of donations for the SEKESF Christmas program to benefit children in need throughout the tri-county area. Donors and the amounts given between Dec. 17 – Dec. 22 include: Danny and Marsha Barnett – $50. Johnny Woods and Donna Woods – $100. Previously listed donors include: M.C. Griffith of Barbourville Street – $100. Rebecca Daniel – $100. Larry Conley – $100. Tim and Deirdre Barnes – $100. Susan Smith – $100. Michael S. and Katherine B. Noble...

The Williamsburg Community Choir recently performed their Christmas concert at The Lane Theater.

The appeal for a Corbin man convicted in 2022 for fatally shooting three individuals at a Whitley County home has been denied. Paul Brock, 44, was arrested in 2018 in the shooting deaths of Mary Jackson, her pregnant granddaughter, Tiffany Myers, and Myers’ husband, Aaron Byers. A jury trial began in March 2022, which lasted for approximately four weeks, and ended with Brock being found guilty of three counts of murder, one count of fetal homicide and one count of tampering with physical evidence. Following the conviction, Brock accepted a sentencing agreement with prosecutors in lieu of leaving his fate to the jury that had convicted him. As part of that...

Williamsburg High School alumnus Joy Hamilton Marini, who graduated in 1979, has been inducted into the Western Kentucky University Hall of Distinguished Alumni. She was inducted during the Nov. 14 Hilltopper Excellence Awards that were presented by Franklin Bank & Trust at the Knicely Conference Center. Marini, who graduated WKU in 1983, served as a Global Director of three divisions of Johnson & Johnson over time, including Global Community Impact, Global Public Health and the Office of the Chief Medical Officer. Her strategic focus area was maternal and infant health, violence against women and gender inequality. She is one of 100 Save the Children U.S. Changemakers for Children, and she was recognized...

More donations are still needed for the 2024 Southeast Kentucky Empty Stocking Fund (SEKESF) Christmas program. So far, $23,001 has been donated. Last year the club collected $35,231.34 in cash donations in addition to several in-kind donations, and helped nearly 200 families and about 630 children. This year’s budget is $42,500, said Empty Stocking Fund President Joe Caldwell. Caldwell said that 635 children in 225 families have been signed up for this year’s program. An estimated 82 bicycles will be purchased for children ages 6-8, who have signed up for the program. The Corbin Rotary Club has announced the latest round of donations for the SEKESF Christmas program to benefit children in need throughout...