Week of Feb. 13-19

Feb. 16, 1981

Farmer takes grain as marshals look on

By Tim Landis

Missourian Staff Writer

NEW MADRID, Mo. -- A Puxico, Mo., farmer today began taking 30,000 bushels of soybeans he claims are his from the Ristine elevator near here.

Wayne Cryts and about half a dozen other farmers pried open a seam in a sheet metal grain bin and used a vacuum device to suck the grain into a truck.

About 600 farmers, from the area and also from a number of other states, were there, as were about six U.S. marshals.

There was no violence and the farmers were not obstructed.

The development this morning is the latest in a continuing controversy over the ownership of grain stored in certain Ristine elevators, whose owner had declared bankruptcy...

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Feb. 17, 1994

Hazing alleged in death of fraternity pledge

By Cathryn Maya

Staff Writer

Five members of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity have been charged with involuntary manslaughter in the hazing death of a man pledging the fraternity.

Cape Girardeau County Coroner John Carpenter declared Michael Davis, 25, of St. Louis, dead at Saint Francis Medical Center shortly after 2 p.m. Tuesday. Carpenter said Wednesday that the cause of Davis' death was blunt trauma to the head. He declined any other comment about injuries suffered by the victim, citing the ongoing police investigation.

By 9 p.m. Tuesday, Cape Girardeau police activated the Cape Girardeau/ Bollinger County Major Case Squad, assigning about 20 regional investigators to the case. As a result of their efforts...

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Feb. 16, 2001

Rust turns newspaper reins over to sons

Southeast Missourian

The media landscape in Southeast Missouri is changing as Gary W. Rust retires from the day-to-day operations of Rust Communications, owner of the Southeast Missourian. Jon K. Rust and Rex D. Rust, two of his sons, were named co-presidents at a company meeting Thursday.

Gary Rust will continue to be active as chairman of the Rust Communications board, which has ownership interests in more than 40 newspapers in seven states. An airplane pilot, Rust plans to spend more time visiting individual newspapers.

"Our father has always been a hero to us and to many others in the newspaper industry," said Jon Rust...