Stories from Friday, June 8, 2007

GLADSTONE, Mo. (AP) -- A fire that killed an elderly couple in their suburban Kansas City home of 50 years was accidental, authorities said Friday. The fire started in the bathroom where the space heater ignited some nearby combustibles, said Gladstone Public Safety spokesman Richard King...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) -- A Springfield middle school teacher and Boy Scout troop leader was charged Friday with possession of child pornography after a computer repair shop alerted police to images on a hard drive. Greene County prosecutors charged Gary Rademacher, 53, with 10 felony counts of possessing pornographic pictures and films of boys younger than 14. Rademacher is a former Springfield elementary school principle and now an eighth-grade history teacher, they said...

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Four days after a federal appeals court ruling opened the way for restarting executions in Missouri, Attorney General Jay Nixon on Friday asked the state Supreme Court to set execution dates for 10 condemned inmates. Nixon's motions actually renew requests for execution dates for five men. He filed new motions in five other cases...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The director of the state Workers' Compensation Division said Friday that she was forced to resign, though she believes she had "done a terrific job." Pat Secrest submitted her resignation Thursday, a spokeswoman for the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations said...

A 31-year-old woman reported being forcibly taken early Friday from the streets of downtown Cape Girardeau to a secluded location in the northeast part of the city where she was raped, police spokesman Sgt. Barry Hovis said. Police were still investigating the report, Hovis said. "We are completing all the things we do with a rape," he said...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Gov. Matt Blunt on Friday signed into law new legal protections for doctors, health care providers and volunteers who help during state emergencies. The measure bars most lawsuits and administrative penalties against licensed caregivers who are deployed in Missouri during officially declared emergencies. It would still permit penalties for injuries caused by "willful and "wanton" mistakes...

Seaman Apprentice Justin Burns of Cape Girardeau was arrested May 26 at his mother's home on charges of desertion. He is back at the Norfolk, Va. naval base. On Wednesday, Burns wrote this letter to Rudi Keller of the Southeast Missourian. It has been edited for grammar and to conform to style...

There we were, last Sunday afternoon, plodding through the clover and tall grass in the parklike area between the new overlook where the old bridge used to be and the parking lot under the new bridge where the trail starts that skirts the area between the River Campus and the mighty Mississippi River...

A fire at a Cape Girardeau County storage unit Thursday destroyed one of the business' buildings and all the belongings of a local family. "I had everything in that unit," said Sharon Burton as she sorted through what was left of her belongings at C&G Mini Storage on Highway 34...

The Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce board of directors endorsed the implementation of two Leadership Cape projects at its Tuesday meeting. The two projects, Complete the Streets and the Self-Guided Audio Tour, will now be forwarded to the city of Cape Girardeau and the Convention and Visitors Bureau for consideration...

National Guard equipment shortages "should set off alarm bells," according to Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., co-chair of the Senate National Guard Caucus. Bond said Wednesday it was past time the White House and Pentagon ensured that the Guard was adequately equipped to do its job...

In the May 31 edition of the Economist, Britain's prime minister Tony Blair reflects on the lessons of his decade in office. The following are some excerpts, and I highly encourage you to read (in print or online) all of his remarks, which include his domestic issue observations...

We're not quitters; Outrageous rents; Justice system; No comparison; Troop strength; Wait and see; Increasing fees; Paying for incompetence; Taking out Iran; Safe drinking

WASHINGTON -- The National Archives on Thursday unveiled a handwritten note by Abraham Lincoln exhorting his generals to pursue Robert E. Lee's army after the battle of Gettysburg, underscoring one of the great missed opportunities for an early end to the Civil War...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Gov. Matt Blunt is seeking federal assistance for farmers in 29 counties affected by last month's Missouri River flood. In a letter sent to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns, Blunt asked that farmers in western and central Missouri be eligible for federal money to compensate them for lost potential income...

A late-night canine search for a parole absconder came up empty-handed Thursday. Officers of the Cape Girardeau Police Department unsuccessfully searched the Rockwood Drive area for more than an hour for Todd Lemont Williams, 34, of Springfield, Mo. The Cape Girardeau Fire Department assisted...

A think tank will be formed to develop a system for small businesses in Southeast Missouri to help lower health-care costs through consortiums. Sen. Jason Crowell and Steve McPheeters, communications superintendent with Noranda Aluminum, facilitated a forum at the Glenn Auditorium on the Southeast Missouri State University campus Thursday to make health care more affordable for the area's workforce. ...

OVERTON, Mo. -- Scientists, government officials and environmentalists agree that a two-decade-long project to restore Missouri River habitat helped reduce flooding last month. They just don't know how much. Although the Missouri River had flooded since the U.S. ...

Cape Girardeau's proposed $10,070,863 budget for the 1982-1983 fiscal year doesn't quite have enough money in it to please everyone; at a public hearing last night, a subsidy of more than $15,000 was requested to help underwrite the operation of Channel 10, the city's local cable access channel, and a $25,000 request was presented for the purchase of new lighting systems for several softball diamonds at Arena Park...

OLATHE, Kan. -- A man with a page on the popular Internet networking site MySpace.com bears a striking resemblance to Edwin R. Hall, the man accused of kidnapping and killing a teenager, and describes his interests as "eating small children and harming small animals," photography and painting...

ST. LOUIS -- A report from the St. Louis Fire Department said a delay in allowing paramedics into the city jail and "substandard" emergency care may have contributed to the death of an inmate who suffered an asthma attack, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Thursday...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A federal lawsuit over an eastern Kansas school district's restrictions on a Fellowship of Christian Athletes group has been settled, with the district agreeing to recognize the club and extend it the same privileges as other student groups...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- State revenue continue to climb higher than expected for the year but dipped slightly last month compared with a year ago, the state Office of Administration reported Thursday. With just one month remaining in the fiscal year ending June 30, state coffers grew 4.9 percent to $6.93 billion this year. But revenue in May dropped 1.5 percent compared to last May. State officials' revenue projection, updated in January, counts on revenue to grow by about 4 percent...

Missouri is blessed with popular streams and lakes that attract thousands of visitors who enjoy water sports, camping and fishing. Unfortunately, how some individuals have a good time has made it all but impossible for others to enjoy themselves, particularly on weekends when some rivers and coves become enclaves of drinking, drugs, profanity and nudity -- not exactly the right atmosphere for a family outing...

WASHINGTON -- Consumer borrowing posted the smallest increase in six months in April as Americans actually paid off some of their credit card debt. The Federal Reserve reported Thursday that consumer borrowing rose at an annual rate of just 1.3 percent in April, down from a 7 percent rise in March. It was the weakest showing since consumer debt rose at a tiny 0.1 percent rate last October...

WASHINGTON -- The Democratic-controlled Congress passed legislation Thursday to loosen restraints on federally funded embryonic stem-cell research, but the bill's supporters lacked the votes needed to override President Bush's threatened veto. The 247-176 House vote marked the second time in recent weeks that Democratic leaders have chosen to confront Bush over an issue on which they command widespread public support, following a veto struggle over a proposed troop withdrawal timetable from Iraq.. ...

SAN FRANCISCO -- As heated as the debate over the immigration overhaul is on Capitol Hill, the divisions may run even deeper among immigrants themselves. The measure is pitting computer-science Ph.D.s against strawberry pickers, legal immigrants against illegal ones, and those who want it all against those who are grateful for whatever the bill offers...

MATTHEWS, Mo. -- Reinterment and memorial service for former Matthews resident Charles Ray Burnett will be held at 10 a.m. Monday at Missouri State Veterans Cemetery in Bloomfield. The Rev. John Goodwin of Hunter Memorial First Presbyterian Church will officiate...

Lloyd Carlton, 86, of Pompano Beach, Fla., formerly of Cape Girardeau, died Saturday, June 2, 2007, at Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was born April 8, 1921, at Brownwood, Mo., son of Ora and Anna Mae Gibbs Carlton. He first married Juanita "Skeets" Johnson, who died in 1990. He and Gloria Gearing were married Sept. 9, 1999...

Suzanne Williams, 67, of Jackson died Thursday, June 7, 2007, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson is in charge of arrangements.

Kay K. Scharenborg, 64, of Jackson died Thursday, June 7, 2007, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson is in charge of arrangements.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- Charles Odell Miller, 90, of St. Joseph, formerly of Scott City, died Wednesday, June 6, 2007, at Missouri Veterans Home in Cameron, Mo. He was born Oct. 17, 1916, in Illmo, son of Charles Anthony and Luvada Harmon Miller. He and Rosemary Ball were married Aug. 2, 1947, at Scott City...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Herbert A. "Bun" Wilburn, 99, of Perryville died Wednesday, June 6, 2007, at Perry Oaks Manor. He was born Feb. 13, 1908, near Sikeston, Mo., son of Benjamin Franklin and Mamie Ellen Turner Wilburn. He and Opal Lee Berry were married Feb. 24, 1934. She died Nov. 23, 1989...

BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- Thelma Juanita Watson Robertson, 90, of Elsberry, Mo., died Thursday, June 7, 2007, at Elsberry Healthcare Center. She was born Jan. 3, 1917, at Bloomfield, daughter of John and Atha Norton Bolin. She married Earl Watson, who preceded her in death...

ANNA, Ill. -- Hazel Redcloud, 90, of Anna died Thursday, June 7, 2007, at Union County Hospital. She was born Oct. 2, 1916, in Pulaski County, Ill., daughter of Homer and Amanda Manus Beaver. She and Orville H. Redcloud were married Oct. 1, 1932. He died Jan. 6, 1982...

n At 4:43 p.m., emergency medical service at 741 Giboney Ave. n At 7:05 p.m., emergency medical service at 2901 Hawthorne Road. n At 7:18 p.m., an illegal burn at 2827 S. Sprigg St. n At 8:10 p.m., emergency medical service at 500 Emerald St. n At 3:50 a.m., a police assist at Rockwood Drive and North Henderson Avenue...

DWIs; Jackson: DWI

LOS ANGELES -- Paris Hilton's release from jail may be short-lived. Hours after she was sent home under house arrest Thursday for an undisclosed medical condition, the judge who put her in jail for violating her reckless-driving probation ordered her into court to decide if she should go back behind bars...

MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- Simmering tensions in the Alabama Senate boiled over Thursday when a Republican lawmaker punched a Democratic colleague in the head before they were pulled apart. Republican Sen. Charles Bishop claimed that Democratic Sen. Lowell Barron called him a name with an expletive...

HEILIGENDAMM, Germany -- Group of Eight leaders including President Bush agreed Thursday to call for substantial global emissions reductions to fight global warming and cited a goal of a 50 percent cut by 2050. European leaders hailed the deal as progress in the wrangling between Europe and the United States over global warming, with the Europeans pushing mandatory cuts and the United States resisting...

PARISHEV, Ukraine -- Two decades after an explosion and fire at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant sent clouds of radioactive particles drifting over the fields near her home, Maria Urupa says the wilderness is encroaching. Packs of wolves have eaten two of her dogs, the 73-year-old says, and wild boar trample through her cornfield. And she says fox, rabbits and snakes infest the meadows near her tumbledown cottage...

Local rockers Drivin' Rain have played with the likes of L.A. Guns, Skid Row and others. But the band's success was recently overshadowed by the death of guitarist Tommy DeWolf. Timexx Nasty, the singer, and Skully, the remaining guitarist, talk about what's next for one of Cape Girardeau's biggest bands...

Evening Optimists endow arts scholarship; Art students win prizes at Paducah Art Show; Casting call goes out for local movie 'Fire Lily'; City of Roses festival dates announced; Casino Aztar schedules barbecue festival; Valle house presents French veillee; Alto Vineyards holds shrimp, barbecue fest; Local student selected for Fine Arts Academy; -- From staff reports

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The sound was never exactly polished, but it had plenty of soul, and the Memphis sound created at Stax Records has found its own special place in the history of American music. Some of pop's most cherished recordings came out of the Stax studio, including Sam & Dave's "Soul Man," Otis Redding's "(Sitting On) The Dock of the Bay," and Isaac Hayes' Oscar-winning "Theme from Shaft."...

NEW YORK -- A bronze sculpture of the Roman goddess Artemis fetched $28.6 million Thursday at auction, a world-record auction price for a sculpture of any period, Sotheby's said. "Artemis and the Stag," dating from the first century B.C. to first century A.D., was purchased by London art dealer Giuseppe Eskenazi on behalf of "a European private collector," according to Sotheby's spokeswoman Lauren Gioia...

New at the theaters: 'Hostel: Part II'; 'Ocean's 13'; 'Surf's Up'; STILL PLAYING: 'Disturbia'; 'Knocked Up'; 'Mr. Brooks'; 'Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End'; 'Shrek the Third'; 'Spider-Man 3'; 'The Waitress'; 'Wild Hogs'

LOS ANGELES -- The next "Indiana Jones" flick will not be another father-son affair. Sean Connery says he will not return to play dad to Harrison Ford's globe-trotting adventurer Indy. Connery played Indy's father in 1989's "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," the third installment of the franchise directed by Steven Spielberg and produced by George Lucas...

SIKESTON -- Lance Young spent Thursday night preparing the scouting report on the Union City Greyhounds. Tonight, Young will try to implement the plan when he heads to the mound for the Sikeston Bulls. The Bulls won their home opener Thursday, beating Union City 6-1 to improve to 3-3 for the season...

Southeast Missouri State men's basketball coach Scott Edgar has filled out his staff by hiring somebody he once recruited. Rodney Hamilton will join the Redhawks after serving the past two seasons as an assistant at Crichton College, an NAIA program in his hometown of Memphis, Tenn...

There is a new milestone in baseball -- 500 saves. Trevor Hoffman became the first big leaguer to reach that mark when he got a save in the San Diego Padres' 5-2 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday night. Hoffman set the career record with his 479th save on Sept. 28 against Pittsburgh, breaking Lee Smith's old mark of 478. Hoffman finished the 2006 season with 482...

PARIS -- Maria Sharapova's serve was shaky and her strokes were off. Her customary grit was nowhere to be found. Time and again, she'd shank an easy shot, turn her back to the court and fiddle with her racket strings, searching for an answer. She never found one...

David Price is bringing his blazing fastball to Tampa Bay. The hard-throwing left-hander out of Vanderbilt was selected by the Devil Rays with the No. 1 pick in the baseball draft Thursday. "I knew that I had the talent to be that type of player," Price said. "So, I just had to put the talent and the mental game together."...

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Stan Van Gundy was hired Thursday as coach of the Orlando Magic, who acted quickly after their days-old agreement with Billy Donovan collapsed. The hiring ends a chaotic two weeks in which Orlando fired Brian Hill, hired Donovan and then had to find another replacement because he changed his mind and returned to the Florida Gators...

The TPC Southwind and gusty wind gave anyone wanting a tuneup for next week's U.S. Open a grinding preview. With only seven players breaking par, Adam Scott survived a rough start to shoot a 3-under 67 for a share of the lead with Fredrik Jacobson in the toughest opening round ever in the Stanford St. Jude Championship in Memphis...

Cape Senior Babe Ruthsweeps Chaffee The Cape Girardeau Senior Babe Ruth team swept a doubleheader against the Chaffee 16-year-old team on Thursday at Capaha Field. Cape won the first game 13-9 and the nightcap 12-1 in five innings. Cape improved to 3-0...

When you're 5 years old, basic school rules like raising your hand to ask a question or walking single file in the hallway can be a challenge. But for 59 children entering kindergarten in the Cape Girardeau School District this fall, the start of classes will be a lot easier thanks to a prekindergarten program this month at Franklin Elementary School...

By R.B. FALLSTROM The Associated PRess ST. LOUIS -- After a miserable stretch, Kyle Lohse is dominating hitters. Lohse came within two outs of his second shutout in three starts and the Cincinnati Reds got home runs from Ken Griffey Jr., Edwin Encarnacion and Adam Dunn in a 5-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday night...

By TOM WITHERS The Associated Press SAN ANTONIO -- One of the most anticipated debuts in NBA finals history was way, way off the mark. A LeBrick, if you will. LeBron James couldn't solve San Antonio's stifling defense and the pick-and-rolling Spurs, as fundamental and selfless as ever, outclassed Cleveland in an 85-76 win over the Cavaliers in Game 1 on Thursday night...

ST. LOUIS -- Intangibles beyond the raw numbers led the St. Louis Cardinals to select Oklahoma high school shortstop Pete Kozma with the 18th overall pick of the baseball draft on Thursday. Kozma, 18, batted .522 his senior year with 11 home runs and 55 RBIs, and only five strikeouts in 113 at-bats. His solo homer was the only run in the Class 6A title game for Owasso High...

The odds for local success at the 23rd annual Kelso Klassic got a boost with the addition of a third Kelso squad in the 14-team field, but without a title in more than 10 years it will continue to be an uphill battle for Kelso Fastpitch, Kelso JAMCO and Kelso Supply when play begins today...

Minivans don't have quite the same appeal that they did more than 20 years ago when they debuted. But one minivan -- the Honda Odyssey -- has been reliably racking up annual sales records until this year. It appears the 12 percent drop in Odyssey sales in the first five months of 2007 comes as shoppers turn to Honda's smaller vehicles, like the Civic and Fit cars and CR-V sport utility vehicle...

One half star (out of 4 stars) Maybe the movie should be renamed "Knocked Out," as in 10-count, bloody nose, black eyed, broken jaw. This movie was painful to watch. At the risk of sounding like a prude, this movie had no redeeming quality. Or maybe just one. As if the world doesn't have enough social problems, let's glorify and try to make light of drug abuse, anti-Semitism, premarital sex and using abortion as contraception. Did I leave any of our social dysfunctions out?...

WASHINGTON -- A reading score that rates a fourth-grader "proficient" in Mississippi would be a failing score in Massachusetts, according to a report Thursday by the Education Department. The wide variations found in how states assess student progress are certain to fuel debate about whether the federal No Child Left Behind law should be overhauled to make standards more uniform from state to state...

Crushing debt from the birth of a child and an illness suffered by his wife -- not a desire to avoid military service -- led Seaman Apprentice Justin Burns to leave the Norfolk, Va., naval base and return home to Cape Girardeau, he said Thursday. In an interview and lengthy e-mail to the Southeast Missourian, Burns laid out the circumstances he said led to his being arrested May 26 on desertion charges. ...

Dear Tom and Ray: I recently bought a Honda Fit. I love the car, and the dealer even gave me a few hundred dollars for my Metro. I really like the Fit and want to take care of it. The Fit has a feature that shows the oil usage as a percentage. ...

CHARLESTON -- It didn't take long for the Plaza Tire Capahas to pretty well assure themselves of a sixth straight win to begin the season. The Capahas jumped on the host Charleston Riverdogs for eight first-inning runs and cruised to a 16-4 victory Thursday night at Hillhouse Park in a game stopped after seven innings by the 10-run rule...

Cape Girardeau's proposed $10,070,863 budget for the 1982-1983 fiscal year doesn't quite have enough money in it to please everyone; at a public hearing last night, a subsidy of more than $15,000 was requested to help underwrite the operation of Channel 10, the city's local cable access channel, and a $25,000 request was presented for the purchase of new lighting systems for several softball diamonds at Arena Park...