LEXINGTON — More than two years after the death of a jail inmate, jury selection begins today for the trial of the former Jefferson County corrections officer who is charged with the killing.

        Adrian Reynolds, who is African-American, died Jan. 6, 1998, of a blunt head injury during a struggle with white corrections officers. The officers said they intervened to prevent Mr. Reynolds from killing himself. Timothy Barnes was the only officer charged. In January of this year, an arbitrator cleared other officers of administrative charges.

        The death caused extensive publicity because of the racial differences between Mr. Reynolds and Mr. Barnes. In January, Jefferson Circuit Judge Anne O'Malley Shake agreed with both sides that media coverage might influence opinions about the trial and said the trial would be moved to Lexington.
       

Taoist shrine
dedicated in Louisville

               LOUISVILLE — About two dozen members of the Louisville Taoist Tai Society dedicated a Taoist shrine in what used to be a Catholic school classroom in the Clifton Center.

        The center was formerly the schoolhouse for St. Frances of Rome Church. It has been home to the Taoist society for several years and Saturday it also became one of only six dedicated Taoist shrines in the United States.

        Leila Faucette, president of the 60-member society in Louisville, said the Saturday dedication marked the Louisville society's 10th anniversary and makes the shrine a holy place for followers of the society's philosophy.

        Members from the society's national headquarters in Tallahassee, Fla., came to assist in the ceremony. Steve Lee, the Taoist equivalent of a priest, came from Toronto, site of the society's international headquarters, to lead the ceremony.

        The Taoist society's philosophy blends elements of Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism, and places great emphasis on physical movements as part of its practice.
       

Man planting trees
dies in accident

               SMITHLAND — A Smithland man died from injuries in a crane accident on his property, Kentucky State Police said.

        Steven P. Smith, 42, was using his crane to plant trees when part of the boom broke and struck his head, police said.

        Livingston County Coroner Harry Van Smith pronounced Mr. Smith dead at the scene late Saturday afternoon.
       

2 adults, teen-ager
held on drug charges

               WAVERLY — Two adults and a juvenile were arrested after Kentucky State Police executed a search warrant at their home near Waverly.

        Police said they seized a large amount of methamphetamines, marijuana, drug paraphernalia, items used in the manufacturing of the same drugs and firearms Saturday.

        Brenda S. Wilson, 45, and David A. Wilson, 48, are charged with manufacturing methamphetamines, trafficking in marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, trafficking a controlled substance in the first degree and wanton endangerment in the first degree. The man and woman are being held in the Union County Jail, police said.

        The 15-year-old female is charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance in the first degree. She has been turned over to court offices, police said.
       

Neighbor dead
in accidental shooting

               ALBANY — A Clinton County man is dead after an accidental shooting, authorities said.

        Kentucky State Police said Basil Rigney Jr., 42, of Albany had bought a new Derringer gun and was showing it to his neighbor, James Tuggle.

        Mr. Rigney dropped the weapon on a table and it discharged, striking him in the upper lip at Mr. Tuggle's home.

        Mr. Rigney was pronounced dead at 4:50 p.m. EDT Saturday.
       

Jefferson County kids
whizzes at technology

               LOUISVILLE — In a celebration of computer-aided learning, Jefferson County students at 15 schools put on a display at Jefferson Mall of what they can do with technology.

        The participants Saturday, ranging from elementary to high school, are members of the Jefferson County Public Schools' student technology leadership program.

        Pat Meurer, who oversees student technology programs for the district, said the number of schools participating in such programs has grown from about 30 to more than 100 in four years.

        At Wheatley Elementary, pupils have been putting together a video and a brochure that will promote their school to prospective students.

        Students at Eastern High had five projects, including how to upgrade an outdated personal computer, how to use software to create individual graphic designs and incorporate them into a Web page, and a demonstration of an attendance program they created for Eastern.

        The Brown School showed basic video-editing techniques; Engelhard Elementary pupils showed how they had created a database of students' body measurements and used it to correlate arm span and height.
       

Volunteers give
kids place to play

               LOUISVILLE — More than 1,000 volunteers from GE Appliance Park transformed the campus of St. Joseph Children's Home into a yard that children can enjoy.

        The team of volunteers built two gazebos, a baseball diamond and a storage shed. They constructed picnic tables, painted classrooms and the gymnasium, tore out and replaced old fencing and landscaped the 40-acre campus with shrubs, trees and other plants.

        The workers are members of Elfun, a volunteer organization at GE that stands for “electric fun.”

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