Here are the stories we discussed today on Byline (full audio below):

At the top - The murder of Indiana teenager Tara Rose Willenborg. R.G. Dunlop from the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting tells us how her accused killer was out of jail despite a history of violent crime and six felony convictions.

Louisville Downtown Partnership has called off the monthly Downtown First Friday Trolley Hop event tonight. No additional trolleys will run downtown, 5-11 p.m., tonight.

University of Louisville basketball player Antonita Slaughter will miss the rest of the season after being diagnosed with a blood clot in her lung.

Coach Jeff Walz says doctors determined the senior had a cardiac event when she collapsed while on the bench early in Tuesday night's victory against Missouri State. The clot was discovered during hospital testing.

Slaughter will immediately begin taking blood thinners that will end her season. Walz says "we're very fortunate this was discovered through testing."

A little over an hour north-west of Louisville is a town called Medora, Indiana. Population less than one-thousand. And little Medora High School, with only 33 male students, fields the worst basketball team in the league, the Medora Hornets. As of the start of the 2010-11 season, they were in the middle of a years-long losing streak. Filmmakers Davy Rothbart ("FOUND" magazine) and Andrew Cohn moved to Medora and filmed the season.

The political action committee tied to Facebook has apparently given Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell's re-election campaign an excessive amount in contributions.

This is the second letter from the Federal Election Commission this week questioning if the McConnell campaign received more than the legal limit in donations from various individuals and groups.

Officials say they’ve received 15 letters of intent so far from groups or individuals who want to design the next Jefferson County public school.

The district announced its School of Innovation Design Competition last month, which allows anyone to submit ideas that JCPS staff could potentially help become a reality.

The Louisville Metro Council is losing one of its most outspoken progressive voices. Democrat Tina Ward-Pugh won't seek re-election next year.

Ward-Pugh served on the old city Board of Alderman, and was an inaugural member of the Metro Council since 2002. She represents District 9, which includes the Crescent Hill and Clifton neighborhoods.

While serving on the council, Ward-Pugh sponsored and co-sponsored several proposals for increased ethics and more transparency and accountability in government, including the Ohio River Bridges Project.

On Byline today, we'll hear about an investigation into the Indiana justice system's handling of a repeat offender—and an eventual murder—plus an interview with MSNBC host Chris Matthews, and a consideration of college football as the regular season winds down.

First up, our colleagues from the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting looked into the case of Richard Hooten. Investigative reporter R.G. Dunlop writes:

The Louisville Cardinals have accepted a bid to play in the Russell Athletic Bowl later this month in Orlando, Florida.

U of L wrapped up the regular season with an overtime win last night at Cincinnati to finish with an overall record of 11-1 and a 7-1 mark in the American Athletic Conference.

The Russell Athletic Bowl will be played Saturday, December 28 at 6:45pm in Orlando.   The Cards’ opponent will come from the Atlantic Coast Conference, which U of L will join next season.     The opponent will be announced on Sunday.

As it did with "Hunger Games: Catching Fire," the locally based Jennifer Lawrence Foundation is hosting a  benefit early screening of one of the Louisville native's films.

The screening of director David O. Russell's "American Hustle" will be on Dec. 16 at Baxter Avenue Filmworks. Tickets will be $65 and will include a cocktail reception and silent auction.

The screening benefits the West End School, a free private school for at-risk boys.