Kentucky
Kentucky lawmakers to consider state Supreme Court justice’s impeachment
FRANKFORT, Ky. — Lawmakers in the Kentucky House have formed an impeachment committee to take up three petitions seeking to remove elected officials from office, including a state Supreme Court justice.
Legislators announced the committee had been launched on Jan. 20, with its first meeting set for Jan. 21.
Three impeachment petitions were filed before the start of the 2026 General Assembly. One concerns Ballard County Jailer Eric Coppess, and another is centered around Marshall County Family Court Judge Stephanie K. Perlow.
The most notable, though, is an effort to impeach state Supreme Court Justice Pamela Goodwine, who was endorsed by Gov. Andy Beshear ahead of her landslide win in the 2024 election. She is the first Black woman to be elected to the state Supreme Court and had served as a judge on lower courts for 25 years ahead of her election win.
The petition was filed by Jack Richardson IV, a Louisville lawyer and Republican Party of Kentucky executive committee member, and alleges Goodwine had a conflict of interest as she ruled on a recent court case that found 2022’s Senate Bill 1 — which took power from the Jefferson County Board of Education and gave it to the Jefferson County Public Schools superintendent — was unconstitutional. That 4-3 ruling, with Goodwine in the majority, was a reversal of a previous ruling that took place before she was in office that found the bill was legally sound.
The seven-page petition for impeachment argues Goodwine “breached the public trust and engaged in a variety of inappropriate acts” by not recusing herself from the case.
Her endorsement from Beshear drew public concern from the Kentucky Judicial Campaign Conduct Committee, though she said she would “continue to adhere to the highest ethical standards,” and her campaign drew six-digit contributions from PACs associated with Beshear, along with the Kentucky Education Association and the Jefferson County Teachers Association’s PAC.
A representative for the state Supreme Court did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The decision overturning the previous ruling drew strong criticism from Attorney General Russell Coleman along with Justice Shea Nickell, who wrote in his dissent that the court’s vote amounted to “a brazen manipulation of the rehearing standard.”
State Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Middletown, will serve as the committee’s chair but will recuse himself from Goodwine’s case because Richardson has previously donated to his campaign — he believes he could make an unbiased decision but wanted to avoid the appearance of impropriety. State Rep. John Blanton, R-Salyersville, is vice chair and will serve as chair in Goodwine’s case. The committee will be made up of seven Republicans and four Democrats.
Richardson is the former chair of the Jefferson County Republican Party. He made headlines last year when he filed a symbolic resolution with the state GOP to censure U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie amid his feud with President Donald Trump.
“It’s time for the court system in this country to have some accountability,” Richardson said in October in an interview with Louisville Public Media. “They hold everybody else to account, but nobody oversees them. And it’s time for there to be some radical judicial reform in this country, and it’s going to have to start with the courts and start with the judges.”
The legislature took up an impeachment petition aimed at Beshear in 2021, but the effort was eventually dismissed. In 2023, the state took up its first impeachment trial in more than 100 years and barred former state prosecutor Ronnie Goldy from holding elected office in the state in the future over improper exchanges with a female defendant who sent him nude images at his request for court favors. Goldy was later convicted and sentenced to more than three years in prison.
Reach Lucas Aulbach at laulbach@courier-journal.com.
Ohio tornado warnings: what residents should know
Severe storms June 17 in Ohio: know tornado watch vs. warning, safety steps, shelters and alerts.
A tornado was confirmed to have ripped through the Florence area during the overnight storms June 18.
The National Weather Service in Wilmington released a statement June 20 saying a tornado traveled eastward 6.2 miles across the Northern Kentucky city, 10 miles south of Cincinnati. It had estimated peak winds of 100 mph, which classifies it as an EF1 “moderate” tornado on the Enhanced Fujita Scale.
The tornado’s path goes mostly through residential areas, and the first evidence was found on Landings Way where several trees were snapped at their trunks, the weather service reported.
The tornado progressed east, crossing Interstate 71/75 and then seemingly dissipating on Tallwood Circle where multiple large branches were downed, the final known instance of damage.
Along the way, the tornado uprooted multiple trees and snapped branches, damaged several buildings and businesses, and snapped a large power pole near the intersection of U.S. 42 and Dream Street, according to the weather service.
How many tornadoes have been confirmed in Greater Cincinnati, beyond?
As of 1 p.m. June 20, the weather service has confirmed that apart from the one in Florence, two other tornadoes touched down in Greater Cincinnati on June 18:
- An EF2 “significant” tornado that traveled about 9 miles from Dearborn County, Indiana, to Boone County, Kentucky.
- An EF2 “significant” tornado that traveled just over 5 miles from Franklin County, Indiana, to Butler County, Ohio.
A few other tornadoes have been confirmed outside the Greater Cincinnati region, including an EF2 that traveled 23.6 miles from Scott County, Indiana, to Trimble County, Kentucky; an EF2 that traveled 9 miles across Pike County, Ohio; and one in Grant County, Kentucky, just north of Williamstown.
The weather service said details on the Grant County tornado will be released later on June 20.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Louisville celebrated Juneteenth with music, dancing and a parade highlighting Black culture, history and unity.
The Kentucky Black Festival’s Juneteenth Unity Parade brought hundreds of people to west Louisville, with marching bands, dancers, community organizations and families joining together to honor the meaning behind the holiday.
“Seeing the families having a good time seeing everyone dancing, with everything that’s happening in this city and happening in the world, a moment to just take a breath and smile and relax your shoulders is what this is all about,” said Walter Murrah, executive director of the Kentucky Black Foundation.
Juneteenth marks the day in 1865 when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued.
For organizers, the celebration is about more than a parade. It’s about recognizing the history that paved the way for future generations.
“Celebrating Juneteenth is more than just dancing and singing. It’s also reaching back and looking at the giants that paved the way for us, but also taking a moment to just celebrate our blackness because I think oftentimes it’s looked down upon, left out, overlooked, and those kind of things,” Murrah said. “And so being Black is beautiful. Being Black is, you know, it should be celebrated, and that’s what Juneteenth is about, is, you know, marrying the history but also looking ahead to what’s in the future.”
Attendees said the event created a space to celebrate their heritage and come together.
“We’re not celebrated enough, so with this being Juneteenth for freedom and unity to come together, this is the day for us to do that,” said Tara Britt.
Community members also emphasized the importance of teaching younger generations about the holiday and its history.
“It’s very important because if we don’t tell them, they won’t know. We have to get educated to educate them because it’s not in the schools right now,” said Shannon Gilbert. “So we get all the knowledge and give it back to them and make sure they’re educated because they’re the future.”
Organizers said the goal is to make sure Juneteenth is not only remembered but experienced through community celebrations like the parade.
Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021, but communities across the country have recognized and celebrated the day for decades.
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