Stories from Friday, January 4, 2008

NEW HAVEN, Mo. (AP) -- Police in eastern Missouri are investigating a report of an attempted abduction in New Haven. A girl told police she was walking near Highway 100 Thursday afternoon when a man tried to get her into his car. She says she ran into a nearby store for help and was not physically harmed...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The death toll in a Kansas City house fire has risen to three. Fire Department spokesman Joe Vitale said Friday that a man and woman found unconscious inside the eastside home have died. One woman was found dead in the living room Thursday night and the man and woman were unconscious in separate bedrooms...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- A Texas youth wrestling coach was sentenced to 10 years in prison Thursday for molesting two wrestlers on a charter bus as they headed back from a national meet. Timothy Daniel Morriss, 44, of Weir, Texas, must serve 10 years of supervised release after serving the prison time. During his sentencing in federal court in Kansas City, Morriss also was ordered to pay more than $51,000 in restitution to the two female victims...

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- A Crawford County farmer is dead, after suffering head injuries inflicted by a bull. Officials say 72-year-old Charles Cassidy of Cherryville was pronounced dead early this morning at a St. Louis-area hospital. He was injured Wednesday evening on his property 100 miles southwest of St. Louis...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- A former Kansas City councilwoman was sentenced Friday to two months in prison and four months of home detention for mortgage fraud. Saundra McFadden-Weaver, who lost her re-election bid after being indicted in January, was convicted in August of one count of conspiracy and six counts of wire fraud...

BENTON, Mo. -- The earth over Stanley Frank Hagan's grave in Scott City's Lightner Cemetery is still fresh enough to have no grass growing on it. But Hagan died more than three months ago, and during that time Scott City police were quietly investigating the cause of the head injuries that led to his death in late September...

A short time after 18-year-old Marcus A. Bowers of Scott City allegedly murdered 45-year-old Stanley Frank Hagan in a Scott City trailer park, he was awarded for his patriotic writing by the local VFW post. Bowers was the 2007 winner of the Scott City VFW post's Voice of Democracy essay contest. ...

Mildred Close applied for a liquor license and posted the public hearing notice on her the window of her business, at 821 Broadway. She says she's been getting some surprising reactions. Some passing by her new shop, The Life of Jesus Religious Supply Store, see the notice of a public hearing for her permit to see 5 percent beer by the drink. ...

A few weeks ago, my wife's aunt, in her 90s, was the victim of a brutal assault during a home invasion. Aunt Minnie doesn't live in some urban neighborhood known for its crime statistics. She lives in Sedalia, Mo., a quiet town where such events are front-page news...

The marquee of the historic Esquire Theater on Broadway in Cape Girardeau is being dismantled. Workers were on the job Thursday afternoon, removing the collision-damaged and time-worn marquee. The sidewalk under the marquee has been barricaded by owner Phil Brinson since early October, when a tractor-trailer turning out of an adjacent alley struck the overhanging structure...

On Monday, Jackson aldermen intend to learn just how an industrial recruiter spends the city's $24,269 annual payment. Mitch Robinson, executive director of Cape Girardeau Area Magnet, is scheduled to appear at the board of aldermen's study session. He has not reported to the board for more than a year...

When Congress passed the alternative minimum tax in 1969, the aim was to make sure 155 of the nation's wealthiest families would pay taxes instead of using deductions to avoid all federal income-tax liability. But the AMT hasn't been modified in those years to keep up with inflation. So last year more than 4 million taxpayers were subject to the AMT. This year, more than 20 million tax returns would have been affected...

Protecting our homes; Service to Cincinnati; Young deadbeats; Fighting terrorists; Tactics that work; Pallbearer honor; Deadbeat moms

Cape Girardeau police continue to investigate the motive in a shooting that occurred in the parking lot of a Cape Girardeau convenience store early Tuesday morning. Police responded to a report of shots fired at Rhodes 101 Stop at 546 S. Sprigg St. around 1:30 a.m., following an initial call for police presence to break up a crowd gathering in the gas station lot...

Thousands of good-intentioned people will flock to gyms this month, enthused by fresh New Year's resolutions to get fit or eat healthier. And Southeast Missouri health clubs are already seeing an increase in patrons. "I've been busy all morning with people redeeming gift certificates. Members who have quit for a couple of months have come back today. There's been a real coming back, starting today especially," said Starrla Azinger, a fitness coach for Curves...

Airplanes parked this winter at the municipal airport will share part of their ramp with some nonflying vehicles; the Cape Girardeau City Council yesterday authorized a lease agreement with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which will permit that agency to store as many as 150 mobile homes at the airport; the mobile homes will be used for temporary housing by residents of a 30-county area affected by recent flooding...

CLAYCOMO, Mo. -- Governor Matt Blunt says he will push tax incentives designed to increase the sale of ethanol in vehicles that can use the alternative fuel. Blunt spoke Thursday at the Ford Motor Co. plant in the Kansas City suburb of Claycomo. His initiatives would provide $2 million to increase the number of Missouri gas stations able to sell E-85 fuel, which is a blend of ethanol and standard gasoline. He also would offer up to $500 a year in tax credits for consumers who bought E-85 fuel...

The Cape Girardeau Board of Education will hold an information session for prospective board members to explain what the task entails at 7 p.m. Monday in the administrative offices at 301 North Clark. There are three positions open on the board, and four people have filed so far...

Southeast Missourian The "Go, Diego, Go Live!" touring show based on the popular Nickelodeon channel's children's program will be at the Show Me Center at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 27. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Jan. 11. In 2007 more than 600,000 children and parents saw the "Go, Diego, Go Live!" tour, according to Nickelodeon. This year the tour will visit 40 markets across the U.S. and Canada...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A Missouri appeals court panel has ruled that public defenders in the state do not have official immunity from legal action by former clients. In the ruling issued Wednesday, the Western District of the Missouri Court of Appeals overturned a Boone County judge's decision to dismiss a Missouri prisoner's lawsuit. The decision marked the first time that the court had addressed the immunity issue...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A booming whitetail deer population in Missouri could mean longer hunting seasons to give hunters more opportunities to take deer. State officials will be in Springfield on Tuesday for the first of 16 meetings statewide to get input from hunters on possible changes that could boost the number of deer killed. Current estimates put the state's deer population around 1 million...

JENNINGS, Mo. -- A woman who fatally shot her two daughters before killing herself this week was homeless, unemployed, in debt and without hope she could turn things around, police said. LaRhonda Mason, 29, was relying on friends for temporary housing, moving from place to place with Teleanna, 11, and Jazelyn, 3. Jennings police Sgt. Shawn Lane said that by all accounts, she did her best to make sure the girls were fed and clothed...

When 45-year-old Stanley Frank Hagan died after five days in the hospital, his family thought his injuries and subsequent death had been caused by a nasty fall down some stairs resulting in his head hitting a mobile home tie-down stake. "We were just so upset by the fact that it had happened," said his sister, Susan Koerber of Gordonville. "When the burial was over with, things just started to settle down."...

WASHINGTON -- Tax preparers will have to make the fine print a little less fine and obtain customer consent for offshore work under new Internal Revenue Service rules aimed at giving taxpayers more control over their private information. The final rules issued by the IRS and the Treasury Department on Thursday update regulations from 1974, before the age of electronic filing, that require tax professionals to get informed consent before disclosing tax information to third parties or using it for nonreturn purposes.. ...

Eve Nichole McNeely was born at 7:25 a.m. and passed away at 9:17 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2008. She was born 14 inches long and weighed 5 pounds, 8 ounces, daughter of Richard Wayne and Jessica Nichole Horman McNeely of Scott City. Survivors include her parents; a brother, Adam Coloway McNeely of the home; maternal grandparents, Susan Horman of Scott City and Delbert Horman of Osage Beach, Mo.; paternal grandparents, David and Lucita McNeely of Cape Girardeau; maternal great-grandparents, Bernard and Virginia Elfrank of Scott City and Bonnie Horman of Chaffee, Mo.; and paternal great-grandparents, Adam and Viola McNeely of Thebes, Ill.. ...

After fighting a two-and-a-half-year heroic battle against melanoma, Robert J. Sonntag of Zionsville, Ind., surrendered to the disease in the presence of his friends and family Monday, Dec. 31, 2007, at 7 p.m. Born and raised in Farmington, Mo., Bob celebrated his 50th birthday Nov. 21...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Edward "Eddie" Schetter, 81, of Chaffee died Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008, at Southeast Missouri Hospital. He was born June 10, 1926, at New Hamburg, Mo., son of Otto Charles and Mamie Katie Westrich Schetter. He and Wilhelmina "Willie" Kluesner were married July 1, 1950...

By Mark W. Hendrickson The U.S. housing market is hurting, as you undoubtedly know. Home foreclosures are the highest since record-keeping began 35 years ago; 1.69 percent of all outstanding mortgage loans have entered the foreclosure process. The median price of an American house in October 2007 has fallen more than $20,000 this year...

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- Charles C. Stanger, 83, of Marble Hill died Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008, at Eldercare in Marble Hill. He was born July 20, 1924, at Madison, Ind. Stanger served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He attended the Community Church at Marble Hill...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Floy Litzelfelner, 89, of St. Ann, Mo., formerly of Chaffee, died Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2008, at Missouri Baptist Medical Center in St. Louis. She was born June 20, 1918, in Oran, Mo., daughter of Harvey "Hub" and Agnes Stone Malone. She and Wilbur Litzelfelner were married Dec. 20, 1935. He died March 5, 1981...

PATTON, Mo. -- Kenneth Wilson Martin, 80, of Patton died Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2008, at his home. He was born March 12, 1927, in Ironton, Ohio, son of William H. and Melda B. Ball Martin. He and Lillian Emma Martin were married in August 1989. Martin retired as a packer from Procter & Gamble in St. Louis...

Jacqueline Joyce Hurte, 73, of Washington, Mo., died Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2008. She was born April 11, 1934, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of Vannus Albert and Arizona "Ruth" Bridges Moore. Hurte lived in Cape Girardeau most of her life. She was a clerical worker 30 years at Southeast Missouri State University. She was a member of Red Star Baptist Church and sang in the choir...

ANNA, Ill. -- Paul Sharp, 82, of rural Anna died Wednesday Jan. 2, 2008, at his home. He was born Jan. 7, 1925, in Elco, Ill., son of Rando J. and Della N. Brimm Sharp. He married Norma A. Jordan July 19, 1945, at Pocahontas. She died Sept. 19, 1999...

MALDEN, Mo. -- Robert Aaron "Bob" Ayers, 76, of Malden died Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2008, at Malden Nursing Center. He was born Jan. 5, 1931, in Bragg City, Mo., son of Fitch and Julia M. Williams Ayers. He and Alberta Simpson were married in 1949. He and Essie Mae Thomas were married in 1972. She died in 1988...

Davis; Popp; Stovall; Burger; Noble

Arrests; Miscellaneous

n At 5:25 p.m., an alarm sounding on South Minnesota Avenue. n At 7:11 p.m., emergency medical service at 7900 Beaver Creek Drive. n At 7:30 p.m., an illegal burn at 700 S. Pacific St. n At 7:47 p.m., emergency medical service in the 400 block of North Frederick Street...

How much attention did you pay to pop culture -- or perhaps we should say tabloid news -- in 2007? Don't worry, this quiz only counts in lunch table conversations. Test your and your friends' 2007 pop culture IQ. -- Staff and wire reports...

1. b, 2. b, 3. b, 4. a, 5. a, 6. c, 7. c, 8. c, 9. c, 10. c

Mood swings, slammed doors, sneaking out at night and an all-around bad attitude toward life in general -- just a typical teenager, right? Wrong, say some teens and national data. According to a survey by Students Against Destructive Decisions, most teens feel pretty good about themselves, have an open relationship with their parents and a lot of them are generous with their free time, often volunteering for different organizations...

Have you ever wondered why a hen can sit on her eggs and never break them? If so, here's an experiment that will show you why. Ingredient 1 uncooked egg Instructions STEP 1: Remove all rings from your fingers. Place one uncooked egg in the palm of your hand...

LAS VEGAS -- Consumer electronics aren't exactly easy on the environment: They consume electricity that contributes to global warming, and toxins leach out of them when they end up in landfills. But the industry that's inviting us to get a new cell phone every year and toss out that old TV in favor of a great new flat panel is also trying to show that it cares...

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Sen. Barack Obama, bidding to become the nation's first black president, captured the Iowa caucuses Thursday night, the opening test in the race for the 2008 Democratic nomination. Mike Huckabee rode a wave of support from evangelical Christians to victory in the Republican caucuses...

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- The Israeli army stepped up a broad offensive in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing at least nine Palestinians with airstrikes and shelling attacks after militants fired a rocket that struck deep into Israel. Palestinians accused Israel of poisoning the atmosphere ahead of President Bush's visit to the region next week...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Nine days after a tiger mauled three visitors, the San Francisco Zoo reopened Thursday with safety improvements and more signs warning people not to pester animals such as the 350-pound Siberian tiger that killed a teenager. The zoo's big-cat enclosure will remain closed indefinitely, but many visitors Thursday said they wanted to show their support for the facility...

MANCHESTER, England -- "Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe, who captivated moviegoers as the bespectacled schoolboy wizard, has donated the first pair of glasses he wore as a child to an exhibition marking the horrors of the Holocaust. The British actor joins Yoko Ono, talk show host Jerry Springer, former British prime minister Tony Blair and other celebrities and members of the public whose spectacles will be linked together in the shape of a railway track -- recalling the trains that carried many of the Nazis' victims to concentration camps throughout Europe. ...

It's exciting enough for Eugene Amano that he's about to participate in his first National Football League playoff game. The fact the contest will come in his hometown makes the situation even sweeter. Amano, a former Southeast Missouri State All-American, is having the most productive season of his four-year NFL career...

Central football coach Lawrence Brookins denied reports Thursday that he has filled out resignation papers to step down as the Tigers' leader. But all signs point to Brookins resigning sometime next week. Brookins said he has been dealing with the death of his mother, Wonna Dean Brookins, 70, who died Dec. 31...

ST. LOUIS -- Matt Clement and the St. Louis Cardinals agreed to a $1.5 million, one-year contract Thursday with a club option for 2009. Clement missed last season while recovering from shoulder surgery. He last pitched for the Boston Red Sox in 2006...

NEW YORK -- Spygate be damned! Bill Belichick of the unbeaten New England Patriots is The Associated Press 2007 NFL Coach of the Year. With the Patriots motivated by a spying scandal -- and owning the deepest talent base in football -- Belichick guided his team to the first 16-0 regular season in league history...

KAPALUA, Hawaii -- Opening day on the PGA Tour was filled with oddities, starting with Nick Watney leading the Mercedes-Benz Championship on Thursday with a 5-under 68 that featured only one bogey amid a mixture of sunshine and rain. Newcomers are supposed to be at a disadvantage on the Plantation Course at Kapalua with its mammoth greens and severe grain, but Watney kept it simple and poured in enough putts to take a one-shot lead over Daniel Chopra and get his 2008 season off to a good start...

MIAMI (AP) -- The surprising Kansas Jayhawks achieved the unexpected again Thursday - they won the Orange Bowl with defense. While their high-powered offense was stymied most of the night, the Jayhawks came up with three interceptions and beat Virginia Tech 24-21 in the Orange Bowl to cap one of the finest seasons in school history...

Art lovers have several viewing options tonight when local art galleries and studios host their first First Friday receptions of the new year. Receptions will take place at the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri's galleries (including the Visual Arts Cooperative gallery), Craig Thomas' Black Door Gallery, the Community Counseling Center, the Edward Bernard Gallery, Garden Gallery, the Untitled Gallery and the Westray gallery that features the work of the Cat Ranch Art Guild members...

ATLANTA -- The groundbreaking vaccine that prevents cervical cancer in girls is gaining a reputation as the most painful of childhood shots, health experts say. Health officials have touted the Gardasil vaccine as an important new protection against a cancer-causing sexually transmitted virus. In recent months, they've also noted reports of pain and fainting from the shot...

Bret Steffens went to work early, scoring eight points in the first quarter, to help lead the Saxony Lutheran boys basketball team to a 57-47 victory at Oran on Thursday. Steffens finished with a team-high 17 points and 12 rebounds. Max Wieser added 12 points and Ben Courtois 11. Austin Kwikkel chipped in 13 rebounds for the Crusaders (9-2)...

SEYMOUR, Mo. (AP) -- Two Fort Leonard Wood soldiers have been charged with having sex with a 13-year-old southern Missouri girl. Jessie F. McCormick and John A. Koelle, both 20, were arrested on New Year's Day after the girl's father told authorities he suspected McCormick was involved with his daughter...

At last week's Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce First Friday Coffee, U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson pivoted her prepared remarks neatly from agriculture policy to energy. The importance of developing alternative power sources was stressed: wind, hydro, nuclear, even ethanol derived from algae. But the need to drill for oil in areas of the United States currently off-limits was her central theme...