State briefs 1/18/16

3 dead in apparent murder-suicide

CARTHAGE, Mo. -- Authorities said a southwest Missouri man apparently killed his two children and then killed himself. The Jasper County Sheriff's Department said in a release Tony Kernel shot his 9-year-old son, Wesley, and 7-year-old daughter, Timber, before fatally shooting himself. The department said no one else was at the family's home late Friday when the shootings occurred. Deputies were called to the scene Saturday after a neighbor went to the house because Kernel did not show up for work. Sheriff Randee Kaiser told The Joplin Globe it's unclear what may have prompted the apparent double murder-suicide.

Mizzou, union approach mediation

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The University of Missouri System will begin mediation with a labor union that represents service, maintenance and custodial employees. The university system and LiUNA Laborers' Local 773 haven't reached an agreement since their contract expired at the end of August. University system spokesman John Fougere told The Columbia Daily Tribune on Friday the mediation set for Jan. 25 and 26 was agreed upon mutually. The university implemented its most recent contract offer earlier this school year after the two groups couldn't reach an agreement. Union members voted against it in September. As part of that proposal, the university changed union workers' pay model to a merit-based system in which pay increases are tied to employee evaluations. Union members previously worked under a system that tied pay increases to longevity of service.

Man allegedly killed dad near restaurant

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A 19-year-old man faces charges accusing him of fatally shooting his adoptive father outside a suburban Kansas City fast-food restaurant where both men worked. The Jackson County prosecutor's office said in a release Saturday that Shaquil Roland of Kansas City is charged with second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the shooting death Friday of his adoptive father, 33-year-old Antonio Dennis. Dennis was the manager of the Lee's Summit, Missouri, restaurant, where Roland worked. The prosecutor's office said Dennis was shot Friday outside the restaurant after he and Roland had an argument inside the restaurant and moved outside. The victim was found in the restaurant's parking lot and died at a hospital. Prosecutors have requested a bond of $200,000 cash.

Cyclist dies after being hit by car

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A bicyclist has died after being struck by a car in Springfield. Springfield police said 27-year-old Darion L. Sands of Springfield died after he was hit by a car late Saturday. He died early Sunday. The Springfield News-Leader reported Sands was thrown from the bike, and the car that hit him ran off the roadway and rolled over. The driver was seriously injured. Police said the crash is being investigated.

-- From wire reports