Stories from Tuesday, January 16, 2007

BEAUFORT, Mo. (AP) Mitchell Hults is a young man of few words. But when it mattered most, he talked late into the night, giving authorities the information they needed to rescue his friend and another boy held captive. In a matter of days, Mitchell, 15, has gone from a quiet country boy to a teenager hailed as a hero on national television and in his hometown...

Curfew ordinances have become the norm in American communities, but their impact on crime is still an open question. In municipalities of more than 15,000 people, more than two-thirds have juvenile curfews on the books. Cape Girardeau is no different. The city enforces a weekday curfew of 11 p.m. and a weekend curfew of midnight for anyone 16 and under...

Robert Harris doesn't see his acts as anything extraordinary. Working with the soil, Harris plants a seed and hopes something will take root. "If you have a gift, you simply want to use it ... and see people have just a little bit of a better life," Harris said Monday after receiving the Dr. C. John Ritter Humanitarian Award for his work serving south Cape Girardeau...

In Washington, D.C., it's a startling development. Congressional leaders are saying Congress will work five days a week. Rep. Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat and the House majority leader, says members of Congress need to spend more time in the capital to pass laws and oversee federal agencies...

State Rep. Scott Lipke was the only returning committee chairman who wasn't put in charge of a House committee when Speaker Rod Jetton announced his selections last week. Lipke, R-Jackson, lost his job leading the House Committee on Crime Prevention and Public Safety and wasn't given another chairmanship despite an increase in the number of House committees from 35 to 48. ...

An early evening fire yesterday gutted an apartment in Cape Girardeau's west end, killing the tenant who had lived in the apartment for less than two weeks; the victim was identified at Marshall Northington, 50. State Rep. Jerry Ford of Cape Girardeau and state Rep. ...

Get rich quick. Find true happiness. Earn thousands of dollars a week. Triple your gas mileage. Stop those wrinkles. Never pay taxes again. Receive unclaimed inheritances. The eat-what-you-want diet. Wipe out credit-card debt. It doesn't matter what instant gratification is promised. If it's too good to be true, it's probably a scam...

Use paper and pencils; Mailbox access; Fighting wars; East Cape concerns; Postal costs; Garbage cans; Year-around spirit; Not baby-sitters; New faces filing; Christmas season; Government in charge; Inspiring movie

Jackson state trooper promoted to corporal Trooper Justin L. McCullough was promoted Jan. 7 to the rank of corporal and designated the assistant zone commander of Zone 7, Dent County. McCullough is a native of Jackson. McCullough was appointed to the Highway Patrol Academy in 2001 and upon his graduation was assigned to Crawford County in Troop I. ...

A Cape Girardeau woman accused of a rare offense in Cape Girardeau, educational neglect, is scheduled for arraignment Monday. Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle said Irma Barnes, of 319 N. Park Drive, Apt. 183, is charged with the misdemeanor offense, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 days in jail and a $300 fine if convicted...

Theresa L. Cox, 91, formerly of Johnston City, Ill., died at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 13, 2007, at her home. She was born June 24, 1915, in Marion, Ill., the daughter of Thomas C. and Margaret Dempsey Harris, and the youngest of seven children. She and Edward I. Cox were married Aug. 11, 1935. He died April 9, 1990...

Dr. Morris "Coach" Osburn of Cape Girardeau died Friday, Jan. 12, 2007, at Ratliff Care Center. He was 79. He was born May 13, 1927, in Shelbina, Mo., to O.R. and Helen Wedel Osburn. On June 1, 1953, he married Marlene Gilbert in Carl Junction, Mo...

ADVANCE, Mo. -- Carl "Sour" LaCroix, 84, of Advance died Friday, Jan. 12, 2007, in Muskogee, Okla. He was born Nov. 6, 1922, at Advance, son of Charles Henry and Ruth Margaret Davis LaCroix. He and Betty Jenkins were married March 18, 1951. She preceded him in death Feb. 28, 2001...

Roland B. Schoenebeck, 64, of Fruitland died Saturday, Jan. 13, 2007, at his home. He was born Nov. 13, 1942, in Fruitland, son of Karl and Trula Willa Schoenebeck. Schoenebeck was a graduate of Jackson High School. He served with the U.S. Army in Germany...

ANNA, Ill. -- Gerald L. "Buddy" Poole, 54, of Anna died Sunday, Jan. 14, 2007, at Good Samaritan Hospital in Mount Vernon, Ill. He was born Feb. 13, 1952, in Granite City, Ill., son of Otha Gerald and Betty May Lingle Poole. Survivors include his mother of Anna; two sisters, Sharon Heil of Marissa, Ill., Leetta Ervin of Dongola, Ill.; and maternal grandparents, Dariel and Martha Jordan of Anna...

S.D. Warford, 87, of Ste. Genevieve, Mo., formerly of Scott City, died Monday, Jan. 15, 2007, at Ste. Genevieve County Memorial Hospital. He was born Oct. 27, 1919, at Fornfelt, son of S.D. and Ruth Rose Warford. He first married Vivian Lottman, who preceded him in death. He later married Jean Shapiro...

Jeffrey S. Simmons, 39, of Scott City died Monday, Jan. 15, 2007, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Scott City is in charge of arrangements.

B.J. Smith is no longer officially a part of the Southeast Missouri State women's basketball program. But he knows the Redhawks and their fans will always have a special place in his heart. That's why the Redhawks' former head coach plans to be at the Show Me Center for the first time this season on Saturday...

KIRKWOOD, Mo. -- While his alleged kidnapper was at work, teenager Shawn Hornbeck apparently had access to a computer, and he -- or someone pretending to be him -- may have put photos of Shawn online and posted a chilling message on a site created by his desperate parents: "How long are you planning to look for your son?"...

NEWTONIA, Mo. -- Rep. Roy Blunt is again seeking congressional approval of a plan to study whether two Civil War battlefields in Newton County should become part of the National Park Service. The U.S. House approved the plan last month, but the Senate did not consider it in the final days of its last session...

ATLANTA -- The first Martin Luther King Jr. Day since the death of King's widow and the chief keeper of his civil rights dream was marked Monday with speeches, visits to the couple's tomb and the opening of a collection of his papers, including a draft of his "I Have a Dream" speech...

The Cape Girardeau Fire Department responded to the following call Sunday:n At 9:40 p.m., emergency medical service in the 1900 block of North Kingshighway. The Cape Girardeau Fire Department responded to the following calls Monday: n At 8:37 a.m., citizen assist at 107 S. Ellis St...

Property damage; Miscellaneous

Central students win poetry awards Three Cape Girardeau Central High School students had award-winning poems in the Poets and Friends 2006 Poetry Contest sponsored by the Missouri State Poetry Society. Zach Bowles took first place for his sonnet, "Rooted," Matt Hileman took second for his poem, "The Dance," and Renee Moreland won honorable mention for her free verse poem, "Snow." The students' poems now will be entered in the national Manningham Trust Student Poetry Contest...

BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday that new U.S. military moves in the Persian Gulf were prompted in part by signals from Iran that it sees the United States as vulnerable in Iraq. "The Iranians clearly believe that we are tied down in Iraq, that they have the initiative, that they are in a position to press us in many ways," Gates told reporters at NATO headquarters before flying to Afghanistan...

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. -- Investigators on Monday found the body of a ninth victim in the charred debris left from a fire that destroyed a five-story apartment building, authorities said. With the discovery of the man's remains, all of the building's residents were accounted for in the city's worst fire in nearly 50 years, authorities said...

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The Iraqi government's attempt Monday to close a chapter on Saddam Hussein's repressive regime -- by hanging two of his henchmen -- left many of Saddam's fellow Sunni Muslims seething after the former leader's half brother was decapitated on the gallows...

Allison Keiper doesn't know anyone who has been in an abusive relationship. But the Jackson High School student has some advice for teenage girls who are in a physically or verbally abusive relationship. "The ladies should kick the guy to the curb or get them arrested," Keiper said. "I understand a girl might be scared her boyfriend could hurt or even kill her if she tells, but if you stay in the relationship, you might wind up dead anyway."...

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- "Babel" won best drama and "Dreamgirls" was named best musical or comedy at Monday's Golden Globes, establishing them as potential front-runners for a showdown at the Academy Awards Some of the winners at the 64th annual Golden Globes:...

SAN DIEGO -- Marty Schottenheimer got a vote of confidence Monday from LaDainian Tomlinson. Unfortunately for Schottenheimer, the league MVP isn't going to be deciding whether he remains as coach of the San Diego Chargers following their shocking ouster well short of the Super Bowl...

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Long after the big-budget NASCAR teams pulled into the Daytona garage, a bright yellow hauler -- sans the logos and pricey paint scheme -- navigated its way through the gate. Perched behind the wheel of the big rig was 72-year-old James Hylton, whose decades-old image donned the side of the truck. He steered his way past Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth and the rest of today's NASCAR stars to his assigned-spot along the fence then went to work unloading his car...

HONOLULU -- The e-mail arrived two hours before Tadd Fujikawa teed off in the final round of the Sony Open. It was from a marketing agency, offering expert opinion on the kid's endorsement potential. Five days earlier, hardly anyone knew who he was...

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Tony Young led Southern Illinois with 16 points in a 72-62 win Monday night over Drake. The visiting Bulldogs (10-8, 1-6 Missouri Valley) stayed close in the first half, keeping the Salukis to a 29-25 lead at halftime. But Southern Illinois (14-4, 5-2) dominated the entire game in the paint, scoring 24 total points to Drake's 10...

METAIRIE, La. -- A former quarterback himself, Saints coach Sean Payton was not about to discount the abilities of the erratic Rex Grossman. Especially not after some of the throws he saw the embattled Chicago signal caller make in ousting Seattle from the playoffs...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Power companies were working Monday to get heat and light restored to a few hundred thousand people still in the dark after a storm lashed Missouri over the weekend, as the death toll climbed. The weather was expected to become drier, though remain cold, with lingering snow showers and flurries ending Monday, following a storm that dumped ice and sleet across much of the state throughout the weekend...

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Top-seeded Maria Sharapova avoided a stunning third-set collapse, overcoming the soaring heat and her own mistakes to beat Camille Pin 6-3, 4-6, 9-7 in the first round of the Australian Open. The heat -- it was 97 degrees and muggy at midday -- forced tournament officials to suspend play on the outside courts...

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Chris Webber will sign with the Detroit Pistons, returning to the area where he starred in college and was tarnished in a booster scandal. The five-time All-Star was waived by the Philadelphia 76ers last week. He becomes an unrestricted free agent after clearing waivers Tuesday, freeing him to sign a new deal...

Simply put, DARE is not successful for the majority of students who go through it. Even the Government Accountability Office found "DARE had no statistically significant long-term effect on preventing youth illicit drug use." And what full-blooded American could go against the U.S. Government Accountability Office? I mean, it has the words "government" and "accountability" in it for Pete's sake...

Florida is back at No. 1 in The Associated Press' college basketball poll for the second time this season. Virginia Tech is in the Top 25 for the first time in more than a decade. The Gators regained the top basketball ranking a week after Florida's football team won the national championship with a 41-14 rout of Ohio State...

ST. LOUIS -- Albert Pujols was honored as St. Louis baseball man of the year Monday at a dinner also featuring Ryan Howard of the Phillies, the player who beat him out for the NL MVP. Pujols has been honored as man of the year six straight seasons since his rookie year in 2001, sharing the award this year with manager Tony La Russa and general manager Walt Jocketty in the wake of the team's first World Series win in 24 years...

Southeast Missouri State basketball players Brandon Foust and Missy Whitney have been recognized as the Ohio Valley Conference newcomers of the week. Foust, a junior forward, earned the award on the men's side after he averaged a double-double in two games last week...

Filing for school board seats ends today. But voters already are faced with deciding contested races for school board in the Jackson and Cape Girardeau school districts. In Jackson, four people have filed for the two seats including incumbent Gerald Adams. The latest candidate to file is Brian Dameron, a mechanical engineer...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Three nights of freezing temperatures have destroyed up to three-quarters of California's $1 billion citrus crop, according to an estimate issued Monday as forecasters warned the weather could continue. Other crops, including avocados and strawberries, also have suffered damage in the cold snap, officials said...

Speakers at the 22nd annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast Monday morning challenged those who braved the morning rains to do more for their community. Organizers estimated 300 to 400 people attended the event, Cape Girardeau's oldest honoring King. ...

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Two teams that went from bad to a whole lot better in recent weeks squared off on Monday. Advantage to Phoenix by a whisker. Ladislav Nagy scored the deciding goal in a shootout to give the Coyotes a 5-4 victory over St. Louis, snapping the Blues' three-game winning streak...

LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Freshman Sherron Collins scored seven of his career-high 23 points in the final 21/2 minutes and No. 5 Kansas held off Missouri 80-77 on Monday night. Brandon Rush added 16 points and Julian Wright had 10 rebounds for Kansas (16-2, 3-0 Big 12), which won its 10th straight game and extended the Tigers' losing streak to four...

ST. LOUIS -- Busch Stadium in St. Louis will host baseball's All-Star game in 2009. Baseball commissioner Bud Selig made the announcement Monday night at the 49th annual dinner hosted by the St. Louis chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America...

There are separate lines for coffee, hot dogs, parking, pretzels and the bathroom at the New York-area auditions for the sixth season of Fox's "American Idol." Oh. And there's a line to audition, too. Thousands of wannabe Kelly Clarksons and Carrie Underwoods lined up at the Continental Airlines Arena at the Meadowlands Sports Complex last August for their chance to shine in front of producers...

The Notre Dame girls basketball team remained perfect in SEMO Conference play Monday night, rolling past visiting Poplar Bluff 67-49. Notre Dame improved to 9-5 overall and 4-0 in the league. Kristain Burger scored 26 points for the Bulldogs, while Meridith Medlin added 18...

A story in Monday's Southeast Missourian incorrectly identified the mother of Jack Oliver III. His mother is Rosemary Oliver of St. Louis. The Southeast Missourian regrets the error.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The leader of the Columbia School District told a court Tuesday that her district needs more money to overcome challenges such as crowded buildings and to afford interpreters for a growing number of students who don't speak much English...