A Madisonville woman charged with eight counts of illegal voting over three elections is seeking a plea bargain with the Hamilton County prosecutor's office.

Melowese Richardson, 58, who was a poll worker at the Madisonville Recreation Center's polling place last fall, appeared in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Thursday morning, where her lawyer, William Gallagher told Judge Robert Ruehlman that he was negotiating plea agreement.

Cincinnati City Manager Milton Dohoney Thursday presented his proposed budget for the new fiscal year that begins on July 1st.   His plan included layoffs for 201 city employees, but that’s down from the 344 he first discussed last month.

Dohoney’s budget plan was given to Mayor Mark Mallory, who now has ten days to review it and make changes before sending it to City Council.

"Let the games begin," said Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones and Cincinnati Police Chief James Craig. Listen to them talk smack at a news conference Thursday as they announced the Kentucky Speedway's First Top Cop Challenge, May 16th, as part of Police Memorial Week.

Officers representing Cincinnati, Butler County, Hamilton County, Florence, Lexington, Gallatin County, Oldham County and the Kentucky State Police will open the competition with a two-officer team.

Cincinnati Police James Craig said Thursday morning he is interested in taking the Detroit Police Chief job if it is offered.

"I'm excited about the probability of going to Detroit and becoming the police chief. I'm very excited about that."

He made those comments at a news conference announce a Kentucky Speedway race with various police and sheriff's departments.

When WVXU asked about a timetable he said he didn't know, but, "I'm sure it is going to happen soon."

Local bicyclists now have an easier way to report harassment and collisions.  Cincinnati has added a "Bicyclist Incident" form on its customer service website, 5916000.com.  It's also on the city's mobile app, Cincinnati City Hall Mobile, which is GPS-enabled so cyclists can accurately report their location.  (The app is available through Apple's App Store and Google Play.)

Undergraduate students at Northern Kentucky University who are Kentucky residents will see their tuition increase by 2.7 percent in the 2013-2014 academic year.

Graduate students from Kentucky will see a 9.3 percent tuition hike, while graduate students from Ohio and Indiana will see their tuition go up by 9.4 percent.

NKU’s board of regents approved the increase Wednesday by a unanimous vote. It will mean a $9 per credit hour tuition hike for resident undergraduates. Their tuition will jump from $328 to $337.

The Ohio Supreme Court has refused to hear a case that will allow the City Gospel Mission to relocate its facility to Queensgate.  The homeless shelter is planning to move from Over-the-Rhine to property located on Dalton Avenue.  

Just weeks after Senator Barbara Boxer, D-Calif, proposed federal legislation mandating nurse staffing levels, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center is out with a study on the effect of nurse staffing ratios to hospital re-admissions.

Here are some links to local election results:

Hamilton County Board of Elections:

Butler County Board of Elections:

Warren County Board of Elections:

Clermont County Board of Elections: