State digest 12/21/03

Jackson man injured in Highway 177 accident

A 64-year-old Jackson man received serious injuries in a one-vehicle accident Saturday. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Frank Hujber was three miles east of Fruitland on Highway 177 when his 2003 Chevrolet went off the left side of the road and overturned several times, ejecting him from the vehicle. He was taken by ambulance to St. Francis Medical Center.

Woman gets three years in child sex case

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A Kansas City woman was sentenced Friday to three years in prison for allowing her boyfriend to have sex with her daughter. Jackson County Circuit Judge Charles Atwell ordered the prison sentence for Theresa Smith, 36, after she pleaded guilty to one count of endangering the welfare of a child. In exchange for the plea, prosecutors dropped 17 other counts that alleged Smith acted in concert with Kevin Donovan, 26. He pleaded guilty earlier this month to multiple counts of raping and sodomizing the sisters and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Springfield college alters policy on demonstrations

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Faced with a pending federal lawsuit, Southwest Missouri State University has loosened regulations on how protests, demonstrations and rallies can be held on campus. The changes went into effect immediately after Friday's board of governors meeting. The revisions will allow debates, rallies and demonstrations almost anywhere on campus. The old policy required groups to register in advance if they planned to protest, demonstrate or hold any other kind of public forum. All such forums were to be confined to an area immediately north of the Plaster Student Union.

Doctor convicted for resisting arrest

LEBANON, Mo. -- A central Missouri doctor, who claimed she was fearful of law enforcement after criticizing medical care for Camden County jail inmates, was convicted Friday of resisting arrest. Jurors recommended that Dr. Ramona Miller, 46, serve six months in jail and pay a fine. But the jurors found Miller innocent of the charges that led to her arrest -- speeding, failing to yield to emergency vehicles and failing to drive on the right half of the road.

Former sheriff gives up law enforcement license

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- Former DeKalb County Sheriff Brad Mefford gave up his Missouri law enforcement license. Mefford resigned in September following an investigation by the Missouri Attorney General's Office into accusations of missing money and evidence, receiving mileage reimbursements for trips made in county vehicles, improperly executing a search warrant and sexual misconduct. Officers who voluntarily surrender their licenses may not regain another, according to state law.

-- From wire reports