Region digest 08/25/04

Man faces up to 10 years on ammunition charge

Shamir Houston, 22, of Cape Girardeau pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court Tuesday to a felony count of being a felon in possession of ammunition. Houston, who was involved with his brother, Samuel, in the January shooting at the Taste after-hours club that left one man dead, now faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He will be sentenced Nov. 15. After the Taste shooting on Jan. 1, Shamir Houston was taken to a hospital. A nurse discovered a pistol in his pants and summoned police. An officer seized the pistol and .32-caliber ammunition. The pistol was determined to be an antique and not a prohibited weapon. Houston had been previously convicted in 2001 for unlawful use of a weapon and attempted kidnapping. Samuel Houston pleaded guilty earlier this month to his involvement in the Taste shooting and was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Cape police arrest man for Sikeston shooting

Cape Girardeau police arrested a Sikeston, Mo., man who was wanted there in connection with a weekend shooting that injured two. James Edward "Booty" Pratt III, 23, was arrested on Scott County warrants for two counts of first-degree assault and two counts of armed criminal action. Sgt. Rick Schmidt said Cape Girardeau police received a tip Tuesday as to Pratt's whereabouts, and arrested him without incident at 1:20 p.m. Pratt was wanted in connection with a Sikeston shooting that happened around 1 a.m. Saturday at the corner of Westgate and West North Street.

Shot at dog leads to man's guilty plea

A Scott County man pleaded guilty Tuesday in U.S. District Court to being a felon in possession of a firearm. In January, a Scott County sheriff's deputy received a report that Bobby B. Klingel, 48, of Vanduser, Mo., had fired a shotgun at a dog at his home. Klingel admitted that he had borrowed a shotgun and shot at the dog in his back yard, then returned the gun to the owner. Klingel had previously been convicted of tampering with a motor vehicle in Cape Girardeau County, the same offense in Scott County and of driving while intoxicated in Scott County. He faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He will be sentenced Nov. 15.

State accredits Oak Ridge child center

Oak Ridge School District's early childhood center recently earned state accreditation. To become accredited, the center had to meet standards in areas such as interactions with children, physical environment, curriculum, family connections, administration and health/safety. The center is licensed for 40 children ages 3 to 5 and has been in operation since 1999.

Trees cause two power outages in Cape Monday

More than 1,700 residents in the northwest section of Cape Girardeau were without power Monday night, some for as long as five hours, due to two separate incidents. Mike McCleary of AmerenUE in Jefferson City said the first outage occurred around 10:15 p.m. and left 1,728 customers without power for about two hours after a tree fell on a power line. Around 1 a.m., another outage put 328 customers out of service for about two hours after a branch fell onto a power line.

-- From staff reports