Removal Disputes
Recently Steve Shaffer of Ironton, Ohio removed the rock from the bottom of the Ohio River. The Army Corps of Engineers said the rock belongs to Kentucky, and when it was removed, the group from Ohio violated the Federal Rivers and Harborment Act of 1899. In addition, Greenup County, Kentucky Commonwealth's Attorney Cliff Duvall has stated that the Shaffer's removal of the rock from the river may violate Kentucky’s Antiquity Act, which is a Class D felony and carries a sentence of one to five years in state prison. On June 19, 2008, a Greenup County grand jury issued an indictment against Shaffer for violating the Kentucky's Antiquity Act by removing Indian Head Rock, which was registered by the University of Kentucky as a protected archaeological object in 1986, without a permit. In addition, Judge William Marshall of the Scioto County Court of Common Pleas sustained an earlier ruling by Greenup County Circuit Judge Bob Conley that then-Portsmouth, Ohio Mayor Jim Kalb and witness Bill Glockner were material witnesses in the case. Based on these rulings, Marshall ordered both men to appear before the Greeunp County grand jury. Kalb and Glockner were scheduled to testify on July 24, 2008.
On Thursday, July 24, 2008, Shaffer appeared before Conely for arraignment in Greenup County Circuit Court. He agreed to appear before the court to avoid being extradited from Ohio. Shaffer's attorney, Michael Curtis, entered a plea of not guilty on Shaffer's behalf to the charge of removing a state registered antiquity without a permit. Shaffer was released on a $5000 signature bond. A pre-trial hearing has been set for October 16, 2008. In addition, Duvall also announced that the grand jury had also issued an indictment against diver David Vetter of Portsmouth. Vetter was also charged with one count of violating the Kentucky Antiquity Act. An arraignment date for Vetter has not been set. Duvall stated that along with the indictments; the grand jury, which has since expired, issued a recommendation that future grand juries continue the investigation.
Read more about this topic: Indian Head Rock
Famous quotes containing the word removal:
“If God now wills the removal of a great wrong, and wills also that we of the North as well as you of the South, shall pay fairly for our complicity in that wrong, impartial history will find therein new cause to attest and revere the justice and goodness of God.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)