Nearly three months after suspending Indiana’s reopening plan, Gov. Eric Holcomb announced this afternoon that the state will move to the final phase, Stage 5, Saturday, as the statewide mask order remains in place indefinitely. 

The decision to reopen more of the state’s economy was announced at this afternoon’s weekly press conference with Holcomb and Dr. Kristina Box, the commissioner of the state Department of Health.

Stage 5 starts Saturday and is scheduled to be in effect until Oct. 17, providing that the numbers continue to trend downward.

In Stage 5, limits on the number of people who can gather in groups and capacity limits in nightclubs and bars are eliminated.

For a gathering of above 500, local health officials should be consulted.

Bars and nightclubs are still required to enforce social distancing measures, including asking that patrons remain seated.

Senior centers and meal sites can be reopened, but Holcomb again emphasized the use of precautions like social distancing and wearing a mask.

Both Holcomb and Box noted that the positivity rate of the novel coronavirus has declined from 6.4% in July to 3.9%.

The positivity rate refers to the number of people who test positive for COVID-19 out of the total number tested.

Box attributed the decline in part to the statewide mask mandate Holcomb put in place on July 27.

Holcomb and Box said the loosening of restrictions should not be taken as a complete return to the pre-pandemic normal.

“All it takes is one outbreak, or a group of people who don’t wear masks or don’t practice social distancing and those numbers can spike quickly,” Box said. “So, as we move into Stage 5, it is absolutely imperative to know that this is not a return to life the way we knew it in January.”

The mask mandate will continue, and Box explained that cloth masks have been proven not only to lessen the risk of spreading the virus from exhaled respiratory droplets, but they also prevent the wearer from inhaling large, infected droplets.

“Masks should be used as a part of a comprehensive strategy to suppress the spread of COVID-19 virus,” Box said.

In response to a question regarding regulations imposed on bars in Indianapolis by Mayor Joe Hogsett, Holcomb said the communication put out by his team is clear but he wants local officials to make decisions based on the data in their community.

Indianapolis is being sued by some bar owners who say the city’s restrictions are unconstitutional and are damaging their businesses.

Holcomb’s Democratic opponent for governor, Dr. Woody Myers, issued a news release late Wednesday afternoon saying that loosening pandemic restrictions are a mistake.

“Moving to Phase 5 is the wrong step — we need more vigilance, not less,” Myers said. “It was only recently that Indiana had the highest one day total of cases reported since the beginning of the pandemic. With the arrival of autumn, public health experts are warning we can soon expect a significant increase of new COVID-19 cases.”

Holcomb’s announcement came as the health department reported 728 new cases of COVID-19 Wednesday, for a total of 113,337, and 10 more death for a total with 3,305 deaths.

Box urged Hoosiers to ensure they get a flu shot as flu season approaches, as the disease has similar symptoms to COVID-19.

In addition to the move to Stage 5, an additional $25 million is being put towards workforce training, announced Teresa Lubbers, Indiana’s commissioner of higher education.

She encouraged Hoosiers to apply because the funding expires at the end of the year.

Cris Johnston, director of the Office of Management and Budget, announced that the deadline for businesses to apply for the state’s Small Business Restart Program has been extended from the end of the month to Nov. 1 in Marion County and Dec. 1 for the rest of the state.

Previously, the program was not available to businesses that have already received federal funding, but that restriction has been removed.

Holcomb’s next COVID-19 update is at 2:30 p.m. Sept. 30 and will be live on WSLM 97.9 FM and WSLM 1220 AM. 

A Kentucky grand jury has returned a three-count indictment against one of the three officers involved in the March 13 shooting death of Breonna Taylor.

Former Louisville police officer Brett Hankison was indicted by the grand jury on three counts of wanton endangerment in the first degree, defined as exhibiting extreme indifference to human life.  A $15,000 cash bond was set. 

Hankinson was fired from the Louisville police department in June for his part in the incident, during which it was determined he fired 10 rounds blindly into Taylor’s apartment during the execution of a so-called ‘no-knock’ warrant.  Hankinson has appealed his firing.

The grand jury did not indict the other two officers who were involved in serving the warrant.  In addition to Hankinson, Officers Myles Cosgrove and Jonathan Mattingly faced possible charges in Taylor’s death.

Hankinson faces a sentence of up to five years in prison per count, for a maximum possible sentence of 15 years should he be sentenced to the maximum on each count and serve each term consecutively.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who was appointed as special prosecutor in the case by Gov. Andy Beshear, is expected to hold a news conference later Wednesday to address the indictment.

The grand jury’s announcement followed a $12 million settlement Taylor’s family reached last week with the City of Louisville in a wrongful-death lawsuit Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, filed in April.  Taylor’s family had called for criminal charges to be filed against the three officers involved in the shooting.

The city of Louisville earlier this week declared a state of emergency in anticipation of today’s announcement. 

The Louisville Courier-Journal reported police officials canceled all days off for personnel, while a 25-block perimeter of downtown was closed to traffic.

Additionally, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer announced prior to Wednesday’s announcement that there would be a county-wide 72-hour curfew, from 9:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., beginning tonight. The curfew does not apply people going to and from work or houses of worship, or those seeking medical attention.

Governor Beshear also said he’s prepared to deploy the National Guard in the event Louisville sees the kind of sometimes violent demonstrations that other cities have experienced in recent months. 

On March 13, officers fired shots into 26-year-old EMT Breonna Taylor’s apartment, hitting her at least eight times and killing her as she slept in her bed.  During the incident, Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, heard the plainclothes police attempting to break down the door and believed it to be a break in. Walker fired his licensed gun in response, according to investigators, which is when police fired in response, killing Taylor.

Hankinson was fired from the police department on June 23 because of his actions during the incident.  Officers Cosgrove and Mattingly were reassigned to administrative duties as the investigation into the incident continued.

Louisville’s Metro Council unanimously voted on June 10 to pass Breonna’s Law, which bans no-knock warrants and requires officers to turn on their body cameras before executing any warrant.

The Orange County Commissioners have issued a burn ban, after over half of Indiana has been listed as abnormally dry according to the US Department of Agriculture.

All of the following are prohibited, with exceptions:

1. Campfires and other recreational fires UNLESS they are in a fire ring at least 23 inches in diameter and 10 inches high, or larger

.2. Open burning (control burns or brush burns) of any kind with conventional fuel such as wood or other combustible matter EXCEPT for charcoal grills or grills fueled by propane.

The burn ban will be in effect until 09-22-2020.

This will make the third county in southern Indiana to issue a burn ban as dry conditions continue throughout the State of Indiana. 

Both Martin and Lawrence Counties have issued burn bans so far. 

They are listed as DO – or Abnormally Dry in the Drought Monitor Index at droughmointor.org

Thirteen northern Indiana counties are listed as D1 Moderately Dry, which is the second step of a five-stage scale.