Stories from Wednesday, November 13, 2013

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Amid a late fall cold snap, Missouri officials are advising residents to prepare for winter weather. The State Emergency Management Agency, Department of Health and Senior Services and other agencies are promoting Nov. 20 as "winter weather awareness day."...

TACLOBAN, Philippines -- Relief operations in this typhoon-devastated region of the Philippines picked up pace today, but the minimal amounts of water, food and medical supplies reaching the hardest-hit areas were causing increasingly desperate survivors to take matters into their own hands...

ST. CLAIR, Mo. -- The Humane Society of Missouri has removed more than 250 animals from an eastern Missouri property amid concerns the animals were neglected. Humane Society officials on Tuesday removed 192 domestic rabbits, 25 goats, 21 chickens, 10 cats, four dogs and a duck from the property near St. Clair in Franklin County. Authorities say the animals were living in filthy conditions and some had no shelter from the weather...

ST. LOUIS -- The attorney for a man convicted in a series of killings fueled by his hatred of blacks and Jews asked the Missouri Supreme Court on Tuesday to halt the inmate's execution, citing concerns about the state's plan to use a drug obtained from a compounding pharmacy...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon called Tuesday for a moratorium on his state's ongoing tug-of-war with neighboring Kansas over efforts to lure companies across the border, arguing the Kansas City metro area would attract more jobs if the states work as partners rather than rivals...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A Christian charity organization in Kansas City has rejected an atheist group's offer to help distribute Thanksgiving meals to the poor and elderly this year. An official with the Kansas City Rescue Mission said the group wants to share its Christian message with people who receive the meals, and it does not believe the Kansas City Atheist Coalition would support that effort, The Kansas City Star reported...

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- A Missouri man freed Tuesday after his murder conviction was overturned thanked what he described as "an army" of supporters who backed his claims of innocence through nearly a decade behind bars for the death of a newspaper sports editor...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri schools and local governments could have saved $43 million over four years if they had injected competition into bond issuances instead of handpicking firms to manage them, according to an audit released Tuesday. The report by State Auditor Tom Schweich reaffirms recommendations made by auditors more than a decade ago that Missouri should change its laws to require public entities to use a competitive process to select bond underwriters in most issuances...

The sentencing for Dr. Byron Glenn of Cape Girardeau was continued Tuesday. Glenn originally faced felony charges of mail fraud and passing more than $950,000 in bogus money orders and checks during the last half of 2012. Federal prosecutor Morley Swingle dropped the felony charges and asked Glenn be sentenced to time served in exchange for his guilty plea...

A structure fire at 1217 N. Spanish St. caused an estimated $10,000 in damage Monday night, according to a news release from the Cape Girardeau Fire Department. The fire was called in at 11:32 p.m. One of the occupants was taken to a hospital by Cape County Private Ambulance with possible smoke inhalation, according to the news release. The fire department did not disclose the name of the person or the hospital...

A town-hall meeting featuring local elected officials will be tonight at the Cape Girardeau Public Library. The event, hosted by the League of Women Voters of Southeast Missouri, the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce and the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce, will include state representatives Donna Lichtenegger and Kathy Swan, Cape Girardeau County Presiding Commissioner Clint Tracy, Cape Girardeau Mayor Harry Rediger and Jackson Mayor Barbara Lohr...

Adoption of Jacque Waller's triplets by her family became official Tuesday. Jacque Waller was slain June 1, 2011, by her estranged husband, Clay Waller, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence after pleading guilty earlier this year to murder charges. ...

A Cape Girardeau County circuit judge on Tuesday rejected a defense request for a change of venue in the case against a Jackson man accused of engaging in a shootout with police during a June 2012 confrontation. Lawrence Guthrie, a Gulf War veteran and former Marine, faces charges of domestic assault, armed criminal action and assault on a law enforcement officer...

A circuit judge set a January 2015 trial date Tuesday for a Cape Girardeau man accused of gunning down two people at their apartment after an altercation on a sidewalk. Kenneth Bell, 23, faces charges of first-degree murder and armed criminal action in connection with the Feb. 7 shooting deaths of Misty Cole and Shannon James...

A young man sustained a gunshot wound to the abdomen Tuesday afternoon at an unoccupied house in the 900 block of Bloomfield Street -- the second time shots were fired in the area in as many days. Details were sketchy Tuesday evening, but the victim was conscious and responsive, said Darin Hickey, public information officer for the Cape Girardeau Police Department...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Adding pressure to fix the administration's problem-plagued health care program, former President Bill Clinton says President Barack Obama should find a way to let people keep their health coverage, even if it means changing the law...

The nation's first new guidelines in a decade for preventing heart attacks and strokes call for twice as many Americans -- one-third of all adults -- to consider taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs. The guidelines, issued Tuesday by the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology, are a big change. ...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Frigid temperatures Tuesday evening did little to cool off a red-hot Perryville soccer team. The Pirates scored four first-half goals on their way to a 6-0 whitewash of De Soto in a Class 2 sectional at the Perryville Soccer Complex...

The roughly 500 people that gathered at the Show Me Center on Tuesday night had one thing in common: a love of shoes. Specifically, TOMS shoes. Southeast Missouri State University students and community members packed the seats, many sporting the lightweight cloth shoes most often associated with TOMS, to listen to a lecture from the company's founder and "chief shoe giver" Blake Mycoskie...

A walk through Cape Girardeau's police station shows a need for offices and computers. For closets, cabinets and even garages to store reports and evidence. For space to hold meetings of major case squads. For room to house prisoners, do their laundry and prepare their meals. For places investigators can use to interview suspects, witnesses and victims...

The murder case against George Joseph is headed to trial in September, a judge announced Tuesday. Joseph, 48, faces charges of first-degree murder and armed criminal action in connection with the May 30 deaths of his wife, Mary, and 18-year-old son, Matthew, at their home on West Cape Rock Drive...

Next month, the Jackson School District will begin accepting declarations of candidacy for three positions on the school board. Filing dates and times were approved during Tuesday's regular meeting for the April 8 election, with filing to begin Dec. 17 and ending at 5 p.m. Jan. 21 at the district office, 614 E. Adams St. in Jackson. Hours will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m...

I caught this picture with the sun setting in the field beside my home. Reminding me of the beautiful state we live in.

It may take a village to raise a child, but it takes dedicated volunteers to build a school, such as the "Lowe's Heroes," posing at Clippard Elementary School on Hopper Road. Clippard is the recipient of an "outdoor makeover," courtesy of the Lowe's Heroes program...

Today is Wednesday, Nov. 13, the 317th day of 2013. There are 48 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On Nov. 13, 1982, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, designed by Maya Lin, was dedicated on the National Mall in Washington, D.C...

I make several trips a day through the roundabout at Mt. Auburn and Lexington. I just want the city and MoDOT to know it's a great improvement over what we had. It's much safer. The traffic flow is good. The only thing, there's a few people who still have problems knowing what to do once they get in the roundabout, but when they get that straightened out and learn how to use it, it is really going to be an asset to everybody. ...

This is in response to the column entitled "Military upset with administration," which appeared in the Nov. 8 Southeast Missourian. It cited a statement by retired Gen. Patrick Brady, who won the Congressional Medal of Honor while serving in Vietnam. General Brady said that President Obama will never fight if there is any reason to avoid it, that he is intent on emasculating the armed forces, and will fire anyone who disagrees with him...

A new program being implemented in several Jackson schools and one in the Cape Girardeau Public School District intends to connect students with extra educational support if they need help with schoolwork. Southeast Missourian educator reporter Ruth Campbell recently reported on the program ICU. It's based on the book "The Power of ICU," a reference to a hospital intensive care unit...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The flood-prone village of Newtok near Alaska's storm-battered coast is running out of time as coastal erosion creeps ever closer to the Yup'ik Eskimo community. As residents wait for a new village to be built on higher ground nine miles away, a dispute over who is in charge has led to a rare intervention by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which ruled the sitting tribal council no longer represents the community of 350 as far as the agency is concerned...

CHICAGO -- The new World Trade Center tower in New York will replace Chicago's Willis Tower as the nation's tallest building when it is completed next year, an international panel of architects announced Tuesday. The Height Committee of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat said because the needle atop the New York skyscraper is a permanent spire and not an antenna it can be counted when measuring the structure's height...

NEW YORK -- There was a flamboyant pop star. A legendary singer. A TV star, some supermodels and one of the world's most powerful philanthropists. Even a former secretary of state who may soon be running for president. But of all the prominent women who appeared onstage Monday night at the Glamour Women of the Year awards, no one received more acclaim and adoration than a teenager whom no one had heard of little more than a year ago -- 16-year-old Pakistani education activist Malala Yousafzai.. ...

JERUSALEM -- Israel's Housing Ministry said Tuesday it has launched plans for potential construction of thousands of new homes the West Bank, including development of a contentious area outside of Jerusalem, prompting a Palestinian threat to walk out of Mideast peace talks...

BEIRUT -- For nearly three weeks, kidnappers held Lebanese pharmacist Wissam Khatib, threatening to kill him and his children if his family didn't pay a ransom of tens of thousands of dollars. During his captivity, Khatib -- often shackled and blindfolded -- went through depression, terror and pain. But, he says, the trauma was not a surprise. A well-to-do pharmacist in the eastern Lebanese city of Zahleh, the 40-year-old Khatib knew he was a target...

WASHINGTON -- After a drunken driver on a California highway in 1968 slammed into a bus carrying passengers to Las Vegas, killing 19, investigators said a lack of seat belts contributed to the high death toll. But 45 years later, safety advocates are waiting for the government to act on seat belts and other measures to protect bus passengers...

WASHINGTON -- Senate Republicans blocked another of President Barack Obama's picks for one of the nation's top courts Tuesday, the latest skirmish in a nominations battle that has intensified partisan tensions in the chamber. The vote derailed Obama's selection of Georgetown University law professor Cornelia Pillard to fill one of three vacancies on the U.S. ...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Glenda Irene Fulton, 69, of Perryville died Monday, Nov. 11, 2013, at Perry Oaks Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She was born April 25, 1944, in Poplar Bluff, Mo., daughter of Glen and Irene Spencer Grindstaff. She and Jerrold R. Fulton were married Jan. 1, 1971...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Donald F. Hoffman, 75, of Perryville died Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013, at Independence Care Center of Perry County. He was born Dec. 20, 1937, in Perry County, son of Eli F. and Rosella C. Balsman Hoffman. Donald had been a handyman. He was a member of St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church...

Kenneth L. Rowley, 68, of Jackson passed away Monday, Nov. 11, 2013, at Southeast Hospital in Cape Girardeau. He was born Aug. 14, 1945, in Kansas City, Mo., son of Roy Wilbur and Winnifred Opal Edwards. He and Dorothy Muster Crites were married Jan. 3, 1987, in Jackson...

BENTON, Mo. -- William Harold "Bill" Laub, 86, of Benton passed away peacefully at his home Monday, Nov. 11, 2013, surrounded by family. He was born March 25, 1927, at Benton, to Jake and Virginia Kirby Laub. He and Iva Mae Bohannon were married April 3, 1948, in Kewanee, Mo. She preceded him in death May 1, 2002...

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- Dorothy Mae Swan, 88, of Marble Hill died Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2013, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Born on May 25, 1925, near Grassy, Mo., she was the daughter of Louis and Lury Octavia Lyke Estes. She was married to John Swan, who preceded her in death March 29, 1980...

Richard L. "Red" Thompson Sr., 66, of Cape Girardeau died Monday, Nov. 11, 2013, at his home. A service will be at a later date. Ford and Sons Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

DONGOLA, Ill. -- Carol Corzine, 60, of Dongola died Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013, at her home. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Crain Funeral Home in Dongola. The funeral will be at 11 a.m. Thursday at the funeral home, with the Rev. Paul Sadler officiating. Burial will be in American Legion Cemetery at Dongola...

The Cornerstone Chorale of Thompson Center, a professional choir and brass ensemble based in St. Louis, presents two performances of a Thanksgiving concert at Centenary United Methodist Church; sponsored by the Cape Girardeau Ministerial Alliance, the event benefits FISH Ministries and Habitat for Humanity...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Robert W. "Crowbar" Wuebbels, 65, of Perryville died Friday, Nov. 8, 2013, at his home. Visitation and celebration of life service will be from 10 a.m. until service time at 1 p.m. Saturday at Young and Sons Funeral Home. Shane Chandler will officiate...

*** JACKSON Firefighters responded to the following call Monday: * Emergency medical service on Ridge Road. *** Firefighters responded to the following call Tuesday: * A citizen assist on Mulberry Street.

The Jackson Police Department has released the following items. Arrests do not imply guilt. Theft Miscellaneous...

The Cape Girardeau Police Department released the following items. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests Summonses Assaults Thefts Miscellaneous...

Firefighters responded to the following calls Monday:...

ST. LOUIS -- Mike Smith is used to facing plenty of shots, so this was nothing new. Smith made 37 saves and Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored 56 seconds into overtime to give the Phoenix Coyotes a 3-2 win over the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night. Coming into the game, Smith had seen the most shots of any NHL goalie (516). St. Louis added 39 more to that total, including 13 in the third period...

The Tigers turned a one-point halftime lead into a 72-59 victory

NEW YORK -- In the many years he spent as a trader at Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, David Kugel learned that investments that Madoff claimed to be making for clients were fiction. Kugel, 68, knew that because he was instrumental in concocting the phony trades. But he always kept his mouth shut...

CAIRO -- A court declared that Egypt's 3-month-old state of emergency expired Tuesday, two days earlier than expected, but the military and security officials held off from implementing the ruling and lifting a nighttime curfew, amid worries the measures' end will fuel protests by supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi...

The Southeast Missouri State volleyball team played its final home match Tuesday night. Fittingly, the Redhawks' four seniors went out with a bang as Southeast beat Tennessee-Martin 26-24, 26-24, 25-9 to avenge a recent road loss...

O Father God, may we spend time in prayer with you and read the Bible daily. Amen.

Make and model: 1966 Oldsmobile F-85 Deluxe Station Wagon Owner(s): Lee and Melissa Parks Owner's hometown: Cape Girardeau Original 330 V8, 77,000 miles with a 2-speed transmission. It has had one repaint and some minor mechanical updates. My car's name: Betty White...