On Wednesday, November 18, 2020, an investigation led by the Indiana State Police Internet Crimes against Children task force (ICAC) resulted in the arrest of a Charlestown, Indiana man for possession and dissemination of child pornography. Two counts of child molesting were added Thursday as the investigation continued.  

The investigation began in October of this year when Indiana State Police Investigators received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. That investigation led investigators from the Sellersburg ICAC Task Force to interview Justin Allen Freytag, 36, of Charlestown. Officers also requested and were granted a search warrant for his residence. 

As a result of the initial interview and investigation, Freytag was arrested and charged with Possession of Child Pornography, a level 6 felony, and Dissemination of Child Pornography, a level 5 felony. Officers then requested a second search warrant based on information gathered during the initial search. Justin Freytag was remanded into the Clark County Jail on Wednesday; however, the investigation continued. 

On Thursday, November 19, 2020, acting on new information gathered during the search warrants, officers charged Justin Freytag with one count of Child Molestation, a level 1 felony, and one count of Child Molestation, a level 4 felony.  

This investigation is ongoing. Freytag’s bail has been set at $100,000 full cash.  

The Washington County Health Department has seen a recent rapid spread in Covid-19 cases within our community.

Washington County has had 187 cases since November 1 and the State of Indiana has 90,318 total cases in that same time. 

Currently, the county falls in the orange zone, which means the community spread is approaching high levels and a county point score of 2.0 – 2.5, according to the health department.

The health department would like the residents and businesses of Washington County to continue to follow the Executive Orders, Governor Eric Holcomb signed on Nov. 13 regarding wearing mask and the enforcement by businesses. 

All Indiana businesses are expected to display signage alerting employees and customers that masks are required to be worn, according to Gov. Holcomb’s new pandemic-related executive order that went into effect on Sunday.

The latest order, which Holcomb signed Friday, requires all businesses to place “clearly visible signage at their public and employee entrances notifying that face coverings are required for all individuals entering the business.”

Businesses are also required to re-evaluate any existing COVID-19 response plan and “update it to reflect current business practices and safeguards,” the order says.

In May, Holcomb initially ordered businesses to create COVID-19 action plans, which were expected to include an employee screening process, cleaning and disinfecting procedures, and the availability of hand sanitizer or hand-washing supplies.

Businesses are also encouraged to suspend any sick leave policy that requires a doctor’s note.

The new restrictions and recommendations from Holcomb replace the five-stage reopening plan his administration unveiled in May and are in place through Dec. 12.

Most of the restrictions are based on the level of infection in each county. The state has developed a color-coded system that assesses the rate of infection and assigns one of four colors to each county.

Executive Order 20-48 (# 3 Section e. Face Covering Requirements)

• Every individual within the State of Indiana shall wear a face-covering over the nose and mouth when:
  • i) Inside a business, a public building, or other indoor places open to the public. This does not extend, however, to private offices, private workspaces, or meetings in which six (6) feet of social distancing can be achieved and maintained between individuals not in the same household;
  • ii) In an outdoor public space wherever it is not feasible to maintain six (6) feet of social distancing from another person not in the same household; or
  • iii) Using public transportation or while in a taxi, private care service, or ride-sharing vehicle  

This means that when customers come into a business, they should be wearing a mask properly. 

All of Washington County, Indiana businesses shall follow the directives of the Indiana Executive Orders.

Executive Order 20-48 (# 4 Section b. Face Covering Requirements)

• • i) Signage: All Hoosier businesses are required to place clearly visible signage at their public and employee entrances notifying them that face coverings are required for all individuals entering the business.
  • ii) Employees: Businesses shall require employees to wear face coverings,
  • iii) Customers, Clients and Visitors: Businesses should only admit those customers, clients, vendors, and other visitors who wear face coverings. 

This means that businesses should have a sign on the outside of the business asking the public to wear a mask when entering the business and the businesses should also require the customers to actually wear the masks. 

When drafting a legal document (such as an executive order) the term shall is used to say that something must be done, as opposed to the term may which simply means that something is allowed (i.e. that it can be done, but does not have to be done)

“Until vaccines are available, we are requesting every business/ individual within Washington County to do their part in slowing down the spread of Covid-19 within our community,” said Maggie Bordon of the Washington County Health Department. 

Please refer to the full document for the rest of the Executive Order 20-48. https://www.in.gov/gov/files/Executive_Order_20-48_Color-Coded_County_Assessments.pdf

Refer to this link for an in-depth description of the requirements for all Hoosiers and targeted restrictions for counties based on color code metrics:  https://www.in.gov/gov/files/Coronavirus_Response_Requirements.pdf

SpeechVive Inc. announced Thursday (Nov. 19) it is making its remote calibration software and training available free during the COVID-19 global health crisis. The software and training are available to all speech-language pathologists and their patients, as well as Veterans Affairs medical centers and veterans with Parkinson’s disease.

Jessica Huber, a professor of speech, language, and hearing sciences and associate dean for research in Purdue University’s College of Health and Human Sciences, decided to investigate the use of remote technology to calibrate the SpeechVive, an ear-worn device that provides immediate speech volume and clarity improvement for people with Parkinson’s disease. Huber wanted to find a way to serve patients in rural and remote areas. 

“We would get calls from people in rural communities who had to travel over two hours each way to find a qualified clinician,” Huber said. “I wanted to make communication more accessible.”

Ashleigh Lambert, vice president of clinical development and co-principal investigator for the telehealth trial, said, “In no way was a pandemic a reason we ever considered for use of our telehealth platform.”

The remote calibration software platform was developed and studied with funding from a National Institutes of Health small business innovation and research grant. Huber’s Purdue Motor Speech Lab studied the use of calibrating the SpeechVive remotely as compared to programming the device in-person.

The research showed that remote calibration is just as effective as in-person device programming sessions.

SpeechVive now partners with speech-language pathologists and neurologists to provide training and remote device programming for people with Parkinson’s disease.

 “We’ve found that many people with Parkinson’s disease have delayed intervention for their speech during COVID-19 because the clinics are closed or have limited capacity to see patients as a social-distancing precaution,” Lambert said. “We’re providing our software platform free-of-charge to clinicians and customers to access SpeechVive from their homes. We believe communication is more important now than ever for people with Parkinson’s, and we are part of the solution.”

SpeechVive is an Indiana startup company based on Huber’s research. The company has developed a wearable medical device to improve the speech clarity of people with Parkinson’s.

“The SpeechVive device, which fits behind the patient’s ear, detects when a patient is speaking and elicits louder and clearer speech through an involuntary reflex known as the Lombard Effect,” said Huber, inventor and co-founder. “Approximately 89% of people with Parkinson’s disease will have speech issues. Access to SpeechVive for those patients will make a significant improvement in their quality of life.” 

A lengthy investigation by the Indiana State Police, with assistance from the South Bend Police Strategic Focus Unit, culminated with search warrants and the arrest of a South Bend, IN man on charges of dealing a narcotic drug and methamphetamine.

The Indiana State Police executed a search warrant at 207 North Dixie Way Apartment 320 Roseland, IN on the morning of November 18, 2020.

This warrant was the result of a lengthy investigation that began after the Indiana State Police received a citizen tip concerning drug dealing throughout St. Joseph County, IN.

As a result of this investigation, William Pollard, 40 of South Bend, IN was arrested preliminarily for Dealing Cocaine or a Narcotic Drug, Dealing Methamphetamine, Possession of Cocaine or a Narcotic Drug, and Possession of Methamphetamine.

Troopers located two handguns, numerous items associated with drug dealing and distribution, United States Currency, and plastic bags containing suspected heroin.

Pollard was transported to the St. Joseph County Jail following his arrest.

Citizens can report suspected drug activity by calling the Indiana State Police Bremen Post at 574-546-4900

Globally about 50 million people have been diagnosed with COVID-19, 1.2 million have died from the virus and 36.5 million have recovered, according to the World Health Organization.

People recovered from the most severe cases may face new long-term health challenges. The Mayo Clinic reports that the aftereffects of COVID-19, often caused by sepsis, include brain tissue damage that can cause strokes, bring on seizures and increase the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. Other organs shown to have permanent damage suspected of being caused by the virus include the lungs and heart.

“The long-term health challenges arising from sepsis and other potential complications experienced by patients recovering from the severe cases of COVID-19 are devastating, but medical professionals and researchers are diligently working to reduce these cardiovascular and neurological aftereffects,” said Hyowon (Hugh) Lee, associate professor in the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. “We are beginning to understand the effects of coronaviruses, and there are many therapeutics in progress to help treat the effects of  COVID-19 and other diseases that can help patients recover today and in the future.”

Sepsis is the body’s extreme response to an infection and a life-threatening medical emergency known to cause a reaction that can damage organs and could cause organ failure.

Purdue University scientists and other researchers are building on decades of research to retool known and developing health solutions for recovering COVID-19 patients.

“Purdue is a renowned global research institution, and the treatment of neurological issues is a top priority. The available technologies we have in this field show great promise in treating brain diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, as well as brain traumas,” said Brooke Beier, vice president of the Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization. “These potential treatments show great promise in helping people who have recovered from COVID-19 and who now face new health disease complications. We are always working diligently to move these treatments from the laboratory to the public.”

One of Lee’s collaborative research projects was recently published in Applied Materials and Interfaces, a magazine of the American Chemical Society. The other two Purdue scientists working in this project are Shriram Ramanathan, professor of materials engineering; and Alexander Chubykin, assistant professor of biological sciences.

The technologies developed to treat neurological and other organ damage or diseases that have been published in peer-reviewed journals include a:

• ‘Library’ of broad-spectrum coronavirus treatments in advanced stages of research that includes 48 peptidomimetic compounds designed work as inhibitors for SARS, MERS and other coronaviruses.

• Technology that could improve sepsis control in early-state treatment and endotoxin reduction. The treatment may be administered before an infection causes the body to react in an extreme response that can lead inflammation, permanent damage and potential failure of organs.
• Novel glutamate-sensing material that could provide earlier detection of neural degeneration and enable earlier treatment that could improve prognosis and outcomes.
• Group of dopamine receptor agonists that support physiological responses to treat neurological brain disorders and are shown to reverse drug-induced and age-related deficits in memory.
• New pupillary light reflex technology, shown to provide real-time, automated monitoring of neurological changes due to disease, provides a noninvasive, expedient method to diagnose neurological degeneration and provide earlier treatment. The technology is compatible with any imaging platform and eye color.
• Group of energy-efficient electrode designs that reduce power and extend the functionality of implantable neuroprosthetic devices that help people with diseases and injuries, including epilepsy, spinal cord trauma, chronic pain and other neurological issues. The technology works with existing platforms or in a stand-alone system.

Purdue scientists also are working on new technologies to address the long-term health impact on the lungs and hearts of patients who have recovered from the severe cases of COVID-19.

For information on licensing available technologies, contact the Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization at otcip@prf.org.

About Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization

The Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university’s academic activities through commercializing, licensing and protecting Purdue intellectual property. In fiscal year 2020, the office reported 148 deals finalized with 225 technologies signed, 408 disclosures received and 180 issued U.S. patents. The office is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, which received the 2019 Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Award for Place from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. In 2020, IPWatchdog Institute ranked Purdue third nationally in startup creation and in the top 20 for patents. The Purdue Research Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Contact otcip@prf.org for more information.