The trial of four local men charged in connection with the 2009 death of a 20-month-old boy has been delayed until April.

Jury selection for the trial of Bryan Daniels, Larry Branham, James Hunt and Danny Ray Anderson II was set to begin on Wednesday, September 14 in Wayne Circuit Court, but was delayed after Circuit Judge Vernon Miniard, Jr. heard several motions in chambers that morning.

Daniels, the father of the toddler, Hunt and Anderson are facing murder charges in connection with the May 2009 death of Kayden Branham.

The 20-month-old drank drain cleaner that officers say was used to make methamphetamine.

The three men also face charges of manufacturing meth, controlled substance endangerment to a child and engaging in organized crime.

Branham, the toddler’s grandfather, is charged with controlled substance endangerment to a child, complicity to manufacture meth and engaging in organized crime.

Wayne Circuit Clerk Richard Morrow said that a circuit jury panel and all district jurors were summoned on Wednesday, September 14 for the start of jury selection.

A second circuit jury panel was scheduled to report the following day, as jury selection was scheduled for about three days with the trial to be held next week.

Morrow said all jurors were released from service at about 11 a.m. on Wednesday, after the judge and the attorneys for the four defendants emerged from chambers.

At that point, Miniard continued the case and set jury selection for April 19, 2012, with the trial to begin April 23.

Miniard also stated that further motions in these cases will be heard on September 29 at 1 p.m. in Wayne Circuit Court.

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Bond for Kayla Lord and Jared Futrell was increased to $500,000 cash each, after the two were indicted earlier this month for murder in connection with the death of 17-month old Staten Stephenson.

Lord and Futrell were arrested on July 27, the day after the toddler died at the University of Kentucky Medical Center.

Officials have stated the boy suffered several injuries as a result of blunt force trauma and arrived at the local hospital unresponsive on July 16. He was transported to the University of Kentucky Medical Center where he died 10 days later.

Originally, bond for Lord, the boy’s mother, and Futrell was set at $100,000 cash each.

Both remain lodged in Wayne County Detention Center.

Lord and Futrell are scheduled for arraignment in Wayne Circuit Court on October 4.

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Cable television rates will increase in the next two to three months for customers of Community Telecom Services.

The increase is needed to help offset the rising costs of programming to the local cable company, according to discussions by the Telecommunications Board during its regular meeting September 14.

Customers who have the basic package will see an increase of $3 per month on their bill, making it $19.50 before taxes are added.

Customers who also have the expanded package will see another $2 increase in their bill, making the total $43.79 before taxes.

The board looked at a number of different options for increasing revenue and stopping a negative cash flow for the cable operation.

Board chairman Greg Latham noted that the cable system could realize about $104,000 negative cash flow during the current year.

Rising programming costs is the main culprit for the financial crunch. In 2004, cable programming costs for the local system totaled about $275,000 per year. This year, programming will cost the system about $449,272.

For the past several years the cable company has covered that increased cost without passing it on to the customer, but it has now become impossible to continue that.

“We can’t keep eating that $173,000 a year and keep our heads above water,” Latham told the other board members.

In addition to the rate increases, the board also looked at several digital channel packages that will become available within the next couple of months.

There will be a larger package that includes approximately 47 digital channels that can be subscribed to in addition to basic or expanded services.

An additional digital package that includes 16 channels can also be added to a subscription.

A third package of Hispanic channels will also be available to purchase.

No specific prices for these packages were discussed at the meeting. It will take approximately two to three months before the digital packages become available.

Digital channels are an option for the cable system because of upgrades made in Phase One of the fiber project.

That portion of the project also will allow the cable system to change the internet service it provides.

Instead of wireless internet, customers will receive internet service through the cable system. That change should be available by the first of next year.

The board authorized borrowing $120,000 to go ahead and make necessary upgrades to the plant in order to provide the internet service.

The cable company will also be able to offer telephone service because of these upgrades, which will allow customers to bundle all three services.

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A local woman was arrested on Thursday, September 15, following an investigation into a meth lab.

According to Sheriff Charles Boston, the investigation was being conducted by his department and the Lake Cumberland Area Drug Task Force on North Highway 1275.

Arrested was Elizabeth Miller, 40, of Monticello. Miller was charged with manufacturing methamphetamine and lodged in Wayne County Detention Center.

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Attorneys involved in the case of a Wayne County man facing sexual abuse, rape and incest charges discussed the possibility of prior allegations in another state during court proceedings two weeks ago.

Kenneth Edward Frazier, 37, of Monticello, appeared in Pulaski County Circuit Court Thursday, September 15 for a pretrial hearing, and it was during those proceedings that Frazier’s defense inquired about “additional records” containing allegations of charges similar in nature of what Frazier’s facing now, according to Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Jeremy Barley, who said the alleged acts occurred in Indiana.

Frazier was arrested in July of this year after he was indicted by a Pulaski County Grand Jury on numerous sexual abuse, rape and incest charges stemming from allegations made in October and November 2010. Those charges stem from alleged acts that took place at a residence in the Antioch-Tateville area in late July, stated Bartley, who is prosecuting the case.

The indictment, filed on July 11, alleges that Frazier carried out the sexual acts on four victims, and they currently range in age from 12 to 16 years old, according to Bartley.

Frazier is charged with two counts of incest, first-degree rape, and four counts of first-degree sexual abuse.

Frazier pleaded not guilty to those charges. No other allegations have been made against Frazier involving other children, and Bartley told The Commonwealth Journal in late July that he’s also not aware of any other children who were in the home at the time the alleged acts occurred.

Frazier appeared before Pulaski County Circuit Judge Jeffrey T. Burdette, who set another pretrial hearing for October, Bartley said. A trial date will be set for sometime in January 2012. Frazier’s bond is still set at $100,000 cash.

He remains lodged in Pulaski County Detention Center.