Stories from Saturday, May 28, 2005

For Nancy and Scott Kuse, both recent transplants from St. Louis, the second concert in the 2005 Tunes at Twilight concert lived up to the hype. The Kuses have been trying to immerse themselves in the culture of Cape Girardeau since moving here in August, and the couple's friends had told them about the Tunes at Twilight concerts that bring hundreds of listeners to the Common Pleas Courthouse lawn on summer Friday evenings...

A clerk in the Cape Girardeau County prosecutor's office was arrested Friday on charges of embezzling funds from the office's victim restitution fund. Monica Krauss, 36, who had worked in the office for four years, was charged with three counts of forgery and one of stealing $958.69 after an investigation by the Missouri State Highway Patrol...

Eva Childress couldn't see the twinkling of the tiny Christmas lights that lit the runway. She couldn't see the audience that clapped for her or the blue and white balloons that decorated the dining room at Fountainbleau Lodge. But she could feel the weight of the sparkling tiara as it was placed on her soft white curls, hear the song "You Are So Beautiful" playing in the background and smell the red roses placed in her arms, and that was enough for the 93-year-old. ...

The hilltop intersection of Missouri Avenue and Stoddard Street in Cape Girardeau worries neighborhood residents who say speeding motorists, line-of-sight problems and children at play could lead to a deadly accident. Christa Rhodes, who lives at 1407 Stoddard St. near the street's dead end just east of the intersection, wants Cape Girardeau city officials to take steps to protect the neighborhood from a traffic tragedy...

An officer of a Cape Girardeau car dealership was indicted in U.S. District Court last month on charges of arson and fraud in connection with a fire that destroyed the offices of the dealership, and the burning of two cars. Gregory Allen Sparkman, 44, a stockholder of West Park Motors Inc., was arrested and released on $10,000 bond about two weeks ago...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The question of what to do with more than 100 horses that authorities say were starved and neglected in southwest Missouri will be heard by the Missouri Supreme Court next month. The Humane Society of Missouri and the Carthage Humane Society are currently caring for the horses, which were taken taken from William Zobel's rural Republic ranch in January...

GREENDALE, Mo. -- At 71, Ora Wilcox has one bad knee, a total knee replacement and "a lot of weight to lose." So she rises every morning to lead a walk with her neighbors in the small municipality of Greendale. She's looking for better health, a more active life and greater familiarity with neighbors she didn't know...

PARIS -- Venus Williams sparkled from the diamond choker around her neck to the two bejeweled blue sweatbands around her left ankle. If only her tennis had shone so brightly. Williams' game looked leaden in the first and last sets of a 6-3, 1-6, 6-1 third-round loss at the French Open on Friday to 15-year-old Bulgarian Sesil Karatantcheva on a day when top-seeded Lindsay Davenport survived her third straight three-set thriller...

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Seth Johnston singled in two runs during a four-run fifth inning and Texas beat Oklahoma State 6-1 Friday to knock the Cowboys out of the Big 12 tournament. With the bases loaded, Johnston hit the first pitch from Oklahoma State starter Scott Richmond (3-6) through the right side to score Thomas Incaviglia and Robby Hudson and give the Longhorns a 3-1 lead. Chance Wheeless followed with a squeeze bunt to score Drew Stubbs from third...

CAIRO, Egypt -- Muslims spat on the American flag, threw tomatoes at a picture of President Bush and burned the U.S. Constitution in protests Friday from Iraq to Indonesia over the alleged desecration of Islam's holy book at Guantanamo Bay prison. Waving copies of the Quran, many of the thousands of demonstrators across the Middle East and Asia chanted anti-American slogans and demanded an apology from the United States, as well as punishment for those who treated the book with disrespect at the U.S. ...

WASHINGTON -- Personal incomes rose in April at the fastest pace in five months , helped by a big jump in employment, while consumer spending slowed a bit, the government reported Friday. The Commerce Department said incomes rose by 0.7 percent last month, the best performance this year. Analysts said it reflected the strong gain of 274,000 jobs last month and a rise in the workweek, which both boosted private wage growth...

WASHINGTON -- So much for the era of good feeling in the U.S. Senate. After weeks of fighting, a pact among Republican and Democratic moderates to forestall a meltdown over judicial nominees seemed to hold promise for a new period of cooperation. That was Monday. Three days later Democrats united to delay the confirmation of John R. Bolton as U.N. ambassador, and the recriminations started right up again...

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- King Fahd, whose efforts to strengthen ties between Saudi Arabia -- the world's largest oil exporter -- and the United States provoked the wrath of Islamic militants, was hospitalized Friday, apparently suffering from pneumonia...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Wisam Younis' sole ambition in life, he said Friday, is to kill Americans. So he claimed surprise when he discovered his car bomb had killed eight Iraqis and wounded more than 80 outside a Baghdad restaurant. Younis and brothers Badr and Yassin Shakir are charged with murder and face the death penalty in the May 23 attack...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A federal judge in Chicago has denied H&R Block Inc.'s proposal to settle a class-action lawsuit over its tax-refund loans for $360 million, the Kansas City-based company said Friday. The judge suggested both sides try again with an independent mediator. The judge rejected a proposed settlement in 2003...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Interstate Bakeries Corp. is giving itself more time to file more than a year's worth of delayed quarterly and annual reports of its finances. The bankrupt maker of Hostess Twinkies said Friday it had reached the agreement with its lenders...

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Speaking out for the first time in favor of controversial base closings, President Bush said Friday the nation is wasting billions of dollars on unnecessary military facilities and needs the money for the war on terrorism. Bush, who faces opposition from many states to shutting down bases, tried to be reassuring. He said the bases would be chosen fairly and the government would do all it could to help affected communities recover...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Central sophomore Tyler Terry wanted to jump at least 45 feet, 6 inches in his first appearance at the Class 4 state track meet in the triple jump. He came up three-quarters of an inch short. Terry jumped a personal best 45-5 1/4 and finished third on Friday in the Class 4 track and field state championships at Dwight T. Reed Stadium in Jefferson City...

ST. LOUIS -- Matt Morris was one of Darryl Kile's best friends on the St. Louis Cardinals. On the night his former teammate was honored, Morris kept his emotions and the Washington Nationals in check. Jim Edmonds homered, doubled twice and had four RBIs, and Morris remained unbeaten in nine starts this season to help the Cardinals beat the Nationals 6-3 Friday night for their fourth straight victory...

GENERAL SANTOS, Philippines -- Sixty years after the guns of World War II went silent, reports that two Japanese Imperial Army soldiers had been found in the mountains of the southern Philippines sent Japan's diplomats on a frantic mission Friday to try to contact them...

Cape Girardeau city staff have scrapped plans for a crosswalk on Henderson Avenue to save two on-street parking places in front of a rental home and resolve a dispute with the building's landlord. The crosswalk had been included in the Broadway widening project plans drawn up by a private engineering firm...

Red Cross extends hours over holiday weekend; Sheryl Crow impressed with aquatic center; St. Louis Zoo polar bear dies during surgery; Fate of starved horses going to high court; Feds say former Jackson Co. exec solicited bribe

Jeffrey S. Followell, 33, of Dutchtown died Wednesday, May 25, 2005, at BJC Hospital in St. Louis. He was born Jan. 11, 1972, in Cape Girardeau, son of J. Mike and Vickie Anderson Followell. He and Jaime Price were married March 28, 2004. From 1990 to 1996, Followell worked in the sanitation department for the City of Jackson. He then worked several years at Precision Painting in Cape Girardeau and was then self-employed in residential and commercial painting...

ANNA, Ill. -- Dorothy Elam Dillow, 84, of Anna died Thursday, May 26, 2005, at Union County Hospital in Anna. Friends may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at Lutz and Rendleman Funeral Home in Anna and after 10 a.m. Tuesday at the First Baptist Church in Anna...

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Shawn G. McCray, 27, of Springfield, formerly of Cape Girardeau, died Friday, May 27, 2005, at St. John's Hospital in Springfield. Arrangements are incomplete at Ford and Sons Funeral Home.

Frieda Rose Schott, 92, of Cape Girardeau died Thursday, May 26, 2005, at Ratliff Care Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born Dec. 24, 1912, in Old Appleton, Mo., daughter of Hugo and Victoria Unterreiner Wucher. She and Theodore Schott were married April 25, 1933, in Apple Creek, Mo. He died Dec. 7, 1977. She was a member of St. Mary Cathedral and the church's Women Sodality group as well as Whipporwill Card Club of Cape Girardeau County...

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- Carrie Mae Kirkpatrick, 86, of Marble Hill died Friday, May 27, 2005, at her home. She was born on March 20, 1919, in Lutesville, Mo., daughter of Henry Lee and Laura Langston Long. She and Orville Kirkpatrick were married June 29, 1939, in Patton, Mo. He died Feb. 15, 1987...

BENTON, Mo. -- James Eugene Uhrhan, 59, of Benton died Friday, May 27, 2005, at Jackson Manor in Jackson. He was born July 21, 1945, at Cape Girardeau, son of Albert "Junior" and Evelyn Blankenship Uhrhan. He and Linda Lou Riley were married Jan. 30, 1965, at Scott City...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Chalmer J. Weinkein, 74, of Perryville died Friday, May 27, 2005, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. He was born June 4, 1930, at Perryville, son of Glennon G. and Marie A. Gebhardt Weinkein. He and Venita M. Kline were married Feb. 11, 1950...

Marie Emerson Hahn, 88, of Cape Girardeau died Monday, May 23, 2005, at Cape Girardeau. She was born Nov. 3, 1916, at Cedar Hill, Mo., daughter of Frederick Wilhelm Gottlieb and Mary Elizabeth Dieckmann Reinemer. She and John Hahn were married, and he preceded her in death...

Thelma Aline Pipkin, 94, of Jackson died Friday, May 27, 2005, at her daughter's home in Jackson. She was born Jan. 9, 1911, daughter of Jess and Grace Edna Morton Strain, at the family farm near Summersville, Mo. She and Albert Newton Pipkin were married on Aug. 12, 1943. He died Aug. 6, 1961...

25 years ago: May 28, 1980 Cape Girardeau city officials hope the city's new disaster warning system will be completed by next week and the first full-scale test of the system can be conducted Monday; four of the system's 15 sirens haven't been installed, and it is uncertain whether they will be operational in time for the test...

Greenbacks for greens; Dangerous intersection; Buildings still in use; Special consideration; Presidential policies; Public acclaim; Don't talk and drive; Stealing gasoline; Flunking out; Inadequate power; Stop the vandalism; Personal economics; A good reread; Restoring help; Place to sleep; Get out while you can

Baseball...

Cape Girardeau Firefighters responded to the following call Thursday: * At 6:06 p.m., emergency medical service at 1126 N. Sprigg St. Firefighters responded to the following calls Friday: * At 8:04 a.m., citizen assist at 611 S. West End Blvd. * At 10:39 a.m., alarm sounding at 202 Linden St...

Cape Girardeau The Cape Girardeau Police Department released the following items Thursday. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests * Deandre M. Turner, 20, 323 S. Hanover St., was arrested on a Cape Girardeau County warrant for failure to appear on drug-trafficking charges, and on suspicion of possession of a controlled substance and tampering with physical evidence...

The Cape Girardeau Riverdogs began their baseball season Thursday night with a 9-4 loss to the visiting Evansville (Ind.) Outlaws in a game played at Hillhouse Park in Charleston. The Riverdogs actually had one more hit than the Outlaws -- 12 to 11 -- but Evansville took advantage of eight walks, one hit batter and two errors...

Moral, social, emotional and political questions get all mixed up in the debate over using human embryos to further medical research. The research has the potential to help people recover from spinal cord injuries, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Parkinson's disease and other serious illnesses. But much of this research is dependent on the destruction of human embryos, an act some right-to-life proponents view as abortion...

"Kingdom of Heaven," the current movie about the medieval Crusades, concludes with the Muslim commander Saladin nobly promising Christian defenders safe passage home to Europe in 1187 when they agreed to surrender Jerusalem. That's half true. Saladin did let many Christians escape -- but only if they paid ransom. Muslim historians say 15,000 Christians who lacked money were forced into slavery or sexual concubinage...

Stephanie Chartrau remembers thinking that the first nuns she saw wearing habits were simply adorable. And she told them so. Nearly three years later she's about to become one of them. Chartrau is a postulant at the St. Francis Convent in Alton, Ill. She will become a novice Aug. 15 during a ceremony at the convent. From that day forward, she will be known to the world as Sister Bernadette...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Notre Dame senior Katie Daniel fought through some bad weather Friday to capture two berths in today's event finals at the Class 3 and 4 state track and field championships at Dwight T. Reed Stadium. Daniel finished seventh in the 100-meter hurdles preliminaries and eighth in the 300 hurdles preliminaries to sew up two all-state medals when the Class 3 event finals take place today. ...

A Cape Girardeau idea aimed at putting shoes on the feet of Iraqi children and school supplies in their classrooms is spreading across the Missouri-Kansas border. James and Heidi LaFentres were inspired by Jess LaFentres, James' brother, who is serving with the National Guard in Iraq. Jess, 41, is a chief warrant officer...

A story in Friday's edition contained a mistake about George Todt's education. He attended Notre Dame Regional High School but did not graduate from the school. The Southeast Missourian regrets the error.

Fairview General Baptist to hold homecoming Fairview General Baptist Church will hold homecoming on June 5. Sunday school will be at 9:45 a.m. and worship service at 11 a.m. There will be a dinner at noon with an afternoon singing at 1:30 p.m. with Crossroads...

The ball sprayed wildly off Jerry Pate's 4-iron, a fat slice as wicked and as dreadful-looking as any an amateur can hit. Skittering barely 80 yards, it was the kind of shot that can unnerve even an accomplished pro and undo an excellent round. "That was the worst golf shot I've ever hit as a professional, bar none, other than whiffing the ball," Pate said. "It was ugly."...

INDIANAPOLIS -- The first time Bobby Rahal saw Danica Patrick race, he recognized talent, not gender. "She was in a race car with a helmet on and all I knew was that she could drive that car real well," said Rahal, a former Indianapolis 500 winner and three-time series champion who first spotted Patrick during the Formula Ford Festival in England in 2000...

TOULOUSE, France -- Germany became the ninth country to approve the European Union's new constitution Friday, but Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder didn't stick around to celebrate: He hopped on a jet to rally voters in France. The French appeared determined to rattle the continent and its leaders by saying "non" to the EU treaty in a referendum Sunday. If polls prove right, France will be the first country to vote down the charter strengthening the union it helped found...

WASHINGTON -- Federal health officials are probing reports of blindness among dozens of men who used Viagra and other impotence drugs -- but at the same time cautioning that the vision loss can be linked to the same illnesses that lead to impotence...

WASHINGTON -- The centerpiece of the Bush administration's Social Security overhaul -- letting workers set up personal investment accounts -- would "pose fiscal challenges," International Monetary Fund staff say. ...

"I'll never love anyone or anything again. I've lost too many people and objects I've cared about." I've heard that declaration from various people. But not long ago I gained a different perspective. A few years ago a relative's cat died. The cat was a beautiful multicolored animal and had been given excellent care by her owners, Sybil and John. Even though the cat was grouchy, they loved her and were heartbroken when she passed...

ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Cal Eldred could be close to a rehab assignment after facing hitters Friday for the first time since being sidelined in early April with a viral inflammation of his heart lining. "I don't think he's that far behind," pitching coach Dave Duncan said. "He probably needs to do what we did today at least another time, maybe a couple more times...

The two Redhawks were in good position to make the national meet. Southeast Missourian BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Southeast Missouri State's Miles Smith and Alonzo Nelson had impressive showings Friday as the NCAA Mideast Regional track and field meet began at Indiana University...