Shelby Smithson
Reporter
Lexington, Ky.
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Shelby Smithson is happy to be back in her home state telling stories that matter to you.
Originally from Hopkinsville, Kentucky, she joined WKYT in August 2019, after working as a multimedia journalist for nearly two years at KAIT in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
Shelby found her love for journalism while in college at Murray State University, where she majored in T.V. Production with a minor in Journalism.
Her favorite part about reporting is being out in the community and meeting so many new people every day.
When she’s not working, you can find Shelby at the dog park playing with her pup, Blue.
If you have a story idea for Shelby, email her at shelby.smithson@gray.tv.
Not a global pandemic, or snow covered streets could stop people from celebrating this Christmas Eve.
A new grant relief program in Mount Sterling is aimed at helping small businesses that have taken hits from the COVID-19 pandemic.
A Lexington coffee shop is back open Monday serving food and drinks. You may remember Brewed. The shop continued indoor dining despite Governor Beshear’s mandate.
Police in Madison County are still investigating a crash that happened early Saturday morning, killing 18-year-old Jordan Ledford.
The cruiser parked outside of the University of Kentucky Police Department headquarters isn't there to stop speeders or catch people texting and driving. It's there to signal the fourth annual UKPD Cram the Cruiser event.
Tuesday, Fayette County Judge Thomas Travis issued a temporary restraining order against Brewed that meant the coffee shop needed to stop serving food and drinks to patrons.
Zachary Nielson started this when he was ten years old, and as he learned more about electricity, the display grew.
A Lexington coffee shop is defying orders from the governor and the health department.
Stores across the country are beginning to see empty shelves as COVID-19 cases surge, and that’s happening here in the bluegrass, too.
A group of parents and students are protesting outside of central office ahead of the Fayette County School Board meeting.
Employees at Sayre have switched gears from preventing the virus from entering the doors to stopping the spread from the inside.
As students across the commonwealth are heading back into the classroom, school leaders are looking to the state's COVID-19 daily case incident rate maps for guidance.
While quarantined, Governor Andy Beshear announced the largest number of cases of COVID-19 ever reported on a Monday.
The 48 t-shirts on wooden crosses in the Madison County Courthouse lawn represent the Kentuckians who died in the last year due to domestic violence.
Lincoln County Schools are on fall break this week. But when students return, they’ll go back to online learning.
Kentucky State Police and Scott County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating a shooting in a neighborhood off Homestead Parkway. KSP says one person was killed.
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A heated Kentucky Debate tonight transpired between Republican Representative Andy Barr and Democrat attorney Josh Hicks.
Kentucky Theatre played classics like Cool Hand Luke and Casablanca for its final showings Sunday night.
Even with 34 years of experience in the judicial system, Lexington attorney Scott White still had a few questions after Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s explanation of the indictment.
Patti Bridge lives in Georgetown and was vacationing in Gulf Shores, Alabama when Hurricane Sally hit.
In Fayette County, school board members are talking about what the remainder of the fall semester might look like after Governor Andy Beshear said he would leave the choice up to the districts.
Fayette County students are on week three of virtual learning, and some say they’re ready to get back in the classroom.
Just hours before the first soccer game of the season, FCPS officials released the guidelines for fall sporting events:
Organizations using Suicide Prevention Month to raise awareness, inspire action in veteran community
September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and it's a different kind of pandemic that hits the veteran community especially hard.
This Missouri family’s story traveled across state lines through a friend of a friend to 2009 Miss Kentucky Mallory Ervin.
Overnight, the video got nearly 3,000 retweets and more than 9,000 likes
There have been several incidents of violent crime in Georgetown just in the last week.
That effort started with a community conversation Wednesday night at the Unity Worship Center.
They say that starts with a conversation and an open invitation to the Unity Worship Center where they’ll talk about a new program they’re hoping to get off the ground called From Boys to Young Men, targeting middle school-aged kids to get to them before they can get to the streets.
Fayette County Public Schools decided the district will follow the guidelines set by the KHSAA for fall sports.
There were students representing several different schools within the district there, each wearing their school colors, holding signs that say “let us play.”
Jakob Aton was a soldier stationed in Fort Hood, Texas when he was hit and killed by a car while trying to direct traffic around a separate crash.
At Scott County High School, they wanted to make sure new students got at least one quick face to face visit with their new teachers. So, they held a drive-thru open house.
Emergency crews were dispatched to several different locations across the city for calls of trees down on top of power lines and houses.
UK officials shut down a student organization's weekend event for a "lack of adherence" to CDC guidelines.
Logan Avritt fears that the lack of the routine of going to school will mean more at-risk kids getting into trouble.
Madison County Schools will start the 2020-21 school year virtually on Sept. 2.
The new normal of wearing face masks makes recognizing suspicious behavior more difficult for business owners and identifying suspects more challenging for police departments.
Toyota helps Bullard increase production capacity for PPE like face shields, respirators, and hoods.
A close friend and coworker of Shana Cunningham-Terrill is hoping to raise money for her daughter, two grandkids, and mother as they mourn her loss.
A public defender showed the percentage of black versus other races who are charged with certain misdemeanors and felonies-- numbers that indicated black citizens his office represented have been more likely to face harsher charges.
McReynolds' goal is to help at least four families get caught up on rent payments.
Telehealth services have been a part of healthcare for years, but the COVID-19 pandemic really highlights their benefits.
Police say it happened Tuesday afternoon at the Thorntons at the intersection of Broadway and Loudon.
Devine Carama is trying to use music to inspire people to continue to fight for justice.
Dr. Steltenkamp said data is showing that nationally, regionally, and in her own practice that well-child visits and immunization numbers are significantly down this year.
After hearing about some inaccuracies with rapid test results, Thomas Ware got retested for COVID-19 and confirmed he was negative for antibodies and the virus.
The local chapter of the NAACP is asking leaders to “remedy police wrongdoing.”
People can walk up or drive up to First African Baptist Church to get a hot meal on the first and third Monday of each month from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Two Lexington pediatricians say they are getting more phone calls from parents as reports of COVID-19 in kids increase.