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Flood advisory this morning in SE Missouri
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
PADUCAH, Ky. -- The heaviest rain has moved out of our area, for now. This morning the National Weather Service in Paducah, Ky., put out a flood advisory for select counties in Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois. That advisory is set to expire at 11 a.m., and weather service forecasters have no plans to issue another...
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Cooper gets 15 months in prison
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
ST. LOUIS -- Former state Rep. Nathan Cooper was sentenced Monday to 15 months in a federal prison by a U.S. District Judge Jean C. Hamilton. From her St. Louis courtroom, Hamilton also ordered Cooper to pay a $6,000 fine and go on supervised release for two years following his prison term. Hamilton handed down the sentence in a short court hearing attended by dozens of Cooper's family and friends...
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More than 100,000 without power in Missouri, with second ice storm expected
(State News ~ 12/10/07)
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- More than 100,000 customers remained without power Monday morning after an ice storm swept through much of Missouri, and forecasters predicted another bout of freezing rain that could be even more severe. The Missouri State Highway Patrol said a motorist was killed Sunday evening after he got out of his vehicle to check on a previous accident on U.S. ...
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Mo. developer discovers graveyard on home site
(State News ~ 12/10/07)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- A few days after Mike Bauer bought 96 acres at Longview Lake near Grandview five years ago, a neighbor asked him if knew about the graveyard and the old man who periodically visited. Bauer, who had paid $400,000 for the land and planned to build his dream home there, said he did not...
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Tens of thousands without power in wake of Missouri ice storm
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
ST. LOUIS -- Tens of thousands were without power and the governor declared a state of emergency in the wake of an ice storm that glazed roads and snapped power lines as it moved across Missouri on Sunday. Gov. Matt Blunt also activated state emergency operations and the Missouri National Guard to aid communities affected by a storm that was expected to continue through midweek...
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'Remember the Titans' coaches to speak at MLK Day event
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Herman Boone and Bill Yoast, the inspiration behind the 2000 movie "Remember the Titans," were more than coaches, said Dr. Loretta Prater, a Southeast Missouri State University dean. When they speak at Southeast's annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Dinner on Jan. 23, they will talk about being relationship builders as well, said Prater, co-chairwoman of the event...
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Jackson man chosen as club's president
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Being president never occurred to Don Sievers. When he answered the phone call that told him he was nominated to be the 2008-2009 president of the Optimist International he thought it was a crank call he said. "This was not on my radar screen," Sievers said...
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Owner hopes renovation will help clean up neighborhood
(Column ~ 12/10/07)
In the 1880s, Cape Girardeau merchant J.F. Schwepker built a large two-story brick home at the corner of Lorimier and Good Hope streets. Over the years, the house has seen good and bad. When most recently occupied, the home had been broken up into eight small apartments, some not much bigger than a closet...
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Illinois inmate Timothy Krajcir confesses to 5 unsolved Cape murders
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Brenda and Mary Parsh. Sheila Cole. Margie Call. Mildred Wallace. Timothy W. Krajcir has confessed to all of them. Krajcir pleaded guilty this morning to the 1982 rape and murder of Deborah Sheppard, a Southern Illinois University-Carbondale student. It was a crime that had gone unsolved for over two decades. With his admission of guilt in the Sheppard killing, police prepare to close the books on five other unsolved murders here in Cape Girardeau...
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Nun: Don't use these words
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
GROSSE POINTE PARK, Mich. -- Sister Kathy Avery won't put up with swearing on the playground at her school, and she's not above repeating the language to make sure everyone understands which words she won't tolerate. The principal of St. Clare of Montefalco Catholic School had students stay after a Mass and informed the fifth- through eighth-graders she has a zero-tolerance policy for cursing...
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Speak Out 12/10/07
(Speak Out ~ 12/10/07)
Farm subsidies; Appropriate separation; Doctors' scheduling; Purses in cars; Too much PC; Comparing scores; GOP outrage; Defensive reaction; War ratings; Imperial presidency; Presidential wars; Guardian angel; Get it right; Religious minds
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Acts of kindness
(Editorial ~ 12/10/07)
A group of 24 students and four adults, as part of an initiative run by the Community Caring Council, is trying to make our region a better place by performing three acts of kindness a day -- not collectively, but individually. That will be more than 10,000 acts by the end of the school year...
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Private utility talks could become more public
(State News ~ 12/10/07)
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- When a utility executive briefed Missouri's top utility regulator about the proposed sale of his company last January, it wasn't the first time an industry official had given a regulator a private heads up about a hot topic...
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Sick and disabled senior citizens could use holiday cheer
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
The Christmas for the Elderly program is intended to help seniors who typically don't have a family, lack basic supplies and can't spend money to treat themselves to a Christmas. Donations can be dropped off at the Southeast Missourian office at 301 Broadway and should include the identifying letter of their recipient...
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Santa's helpers
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Room 316 in the Grauel Building at Southeast Missouri State University looks more like a toy store than a classroom. Jennifer Icaza-Gast's students and students in other departments have filled the room with gifts meant to make needy children smile Christmas morning...
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Gingerbread expert 'throws down' on TV
(State News ~ 12/10/07)
JOHNSTON CITY, Ill. -- Former Johnston City resident Johanna Rosson wasn't too surprised when the Food Network called and asked her to be on an upcoming show featuring holiday talent. Rosson is a gingerbread artist who was featured in Paula Deen's show on the Food Network in 2005 and was commissioned by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library to replicate Springfield's Union Station in gingerbread...
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Out of the past 12/10/07
(Out of the Past ~ 12/10/07)
Prompted by reports of looting in the flood-stricken areas of Cape Girardeau and Allenville, the County Court has imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew in two areas of Cape Girardeau bordering the Mississippi River, in the Egypt Mills-Neelys Landing and the Dutchtown-Allenville areas; the river crests early this morning at 43.5 feet at Cape Girardeau...
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11 Minn. slaughterhouse workers get rare illness
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- On the slaughterhouse floor at Quality Pork Processors Inc. is an area known as the "head table," but not because it is the place of honor. It is where workers cut up pigs' heads and then shoot compressed air into the skulls until the brains come spilling out...
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Charles Travers
(Obituary ~ 12/10/07)
LCDR Charles W. Travers passed away on Thursday, Dec. 6, 2007, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. Charles was born in Puxico, Mo., on June 3, 1934, to Henry and Alma Siler Travers. His parents and his older brother, James M. Travers, preceded him in death...
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Cape/Jackson police report 12/10/07
(Police/Fire Report ~ 12/10/07)
Cape Girardeau The Cape Girardeau Police Department reported the following incidents. Arrests do not imply guilt. Summons n Carla Lovetta Westbrook, 37, 25 N. Benton St., received a summons for possession of concealed contraband in jail...
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Trudy Tate
(Obituary ~ 12/10/07)
Trudy Tate, 90, of Cape Girardeau died Saturday, Dec. 8, 2007, at the Monticello House in Jackson. She was born Dec. 25, 1916, in Dongola, Mo., daughter of Albert J. and Lillie W. Anderson Watson. She and Billy M. Tate were married May 26, 1972, in St. Louis...
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Norma Jones
(Obituary ~ 12/10/07)
Norma Jones, 85, of Columbia, S.C., formerly of Jackson, died Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2007, at National Healthcare Parklane in Columbia. Jones was born Aug. 2, 1922, at Holdrege, Neb., daughter of Jesse A. and J. Augusta Alstorm Davis. She was married Sept. 13, 1947, to Henry L. "Heine" Jones in Denver. He died March 1, 1979...
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Clarence Seabaugh
(Obituary ~ 12/10/07)
Clarence Seabaugh, 78, died Sunday, Dec. 9, 2007, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. Ford and Sons Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
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Venita Evans Morris
(Obituary ~ 12/10/07)
Venita Evans Morris, 88, of Cape Girardeau, died Friday, Dec. 7, 2007, at Fountainbleau Lodge in Cape Girardeau. She was born Feb. 1, 1919, in Cape Girardeau, daughter of Charles T. and Josephine Stillwell Clark. She married William B. Evans on March 21, 1936, in Cairo, Ill. He died April 13, 1972. She later married Edwin Morris in Wisconsin on Aug. 25, 1973. He died Nov. 28, 1977...
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Cape/Jackson fire report 12/10/07
(Police/Fire Report ~ 12/10/07)
Cape Girardeau Firefighters responded to the following calls Saturday n At 4:16 p.m., a motor vehicle accident in the 2000 block of Big Bend Road. n At 7:45 p.m., responded to South Silver Springs Road and William Street. n At 5:57 p.m., emergency medical service in the 1700 block of Ridgeway Drive...
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Bottle of whiskey sells for $54,000
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
NEW YORK -- A bottle of 81-year-old Scotch sold for $54,000 at New York's first liquor auction since Prohibition. An anonymous collector bought the pricey potable at Christie's sale of wines and spirits Saturday. The auction sold a total of $304,800 worth of rare wine and liquor...
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Arthritis run/walk planned for Saturday
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Arthritis and chronic joint symptoms affect 46 million Americans, or one out of three adults and about 300,000 children, according to the Eastern Missouri Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation. In order to help combat arthritis and related conditions, the Arthritis Foundation is holding its annual Jingle Bell run/walk at locations across the country, and those in Southeast Missouri are invited to take part Saturday...
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Sikeston church plans living Christmas display this week
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
SIKESTON, Mo. -- Children and adults will take part in living Christmas scenes from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in the First United Methodist Church parking lot at 1307 N. Main St. in Sikeston. The free drive-through experience is in its 16th year...
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Men's group to host chili and soup dinner
(Community News ~ 12/10/07)
The Cornerstone Assembly of God men's group will host a chili and soup dinner from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday at 922 Koch St. in Cape Girardeau. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 335-4456...
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Police: Two Colo. shootings may be linked
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- A gunman shot four staff members at a missionary training center near Denver early Sunday, killing two, after being told he couldn't spend the night. About 12 hours later and 65 miles away, a gunman fatally shot a parishioner at a megachurch and wounded four other people before a guard killed him, police said...
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Pressure growing to shorten Army tours as conditions in Iraq improve
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
WASHINGTON -- As security improves in Iraq, pressure is building to reverse one of the most onerous decisions Defense Secretary Robert Gates made to enable President Bush's troop buildup to go forward this year: extending the tours of active-duty soldiers from 12 months to 15 months...
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Space shuttle launch off until January due to repeated fuel gauge problem
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA on Sunday delayed the launch of space shuttle Atlantis until January after a gauge in the fuel tank failed for the second time in four days. With only a few days remaining in the launch window for the shuttle's mission to the international space station, senior managers decided to stand down until next month in hopes of better understanding the perplexing and persistent fuel gauge problem...
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Obama, Oprah campaign in early voting South Carolina
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- The Oprah and Obama tour hit South Carolina on Sunday, with the talk show host and media mogul exhorting nearly 30,000 people to ignore Barack Obama's detractors and help him capture the Democratic nomination and the presidency. "South Carolina -- January 26th is your moment," Winfrey said, referring to the state Democratic primary date during a campaign stop alongside the Illinois senator. ...
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Unemployment rate holds steady for November
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
WASHINGTON -- It was far from a hiring spree. But with the economy buffeted by speculation that another recession looms, the fact that the nation's payrolls are still growing -- however modestly -- is a reason to breathe a sigh of relief. A Labor Department report, released Friday, showed that employers added a net 94,000 new jobs to their payrolls last month. ...
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Data company uses offline files to target online ads
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
NEW YORK -- Information about your online and offline activities, formerly kept separate for marketing purposes, is starting to blend, perhaps without you even realizing it. Marketing data provider Acxiom Corp. is bringing to the Internet the consumer profiles for which it and other data providers are known among direct-mail companies and telemarketers -- who prize knowing where to find "early parents," "penny pinchers" and other types of households for credit-card promotions and other offers.. ...
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Up for sale: Area foreclosures saturate housing market
(Business ~ 12/10/07)
I n a home on the north side of Cape Girardeau, pencil marks on a closet doorway chart the growth of a child since 1999. In the kitchen, the stove is missing. And in the living room, deep impressions in the carpet recall an entertainment center now gone. The walls tell tales as well -- someone painted around the entertainment center, leaving an outline so clear it is as if it left a shadow behind...
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Memo 12/10/07
(Business ~ 12/10/07)
Lights contest looking for nominations The annual Holiday of Lights contest sponsored by the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce is underway. Judges will select two residential and one commercial winner from each of seven sections of the city. Nominatons are due by Tuesday and may be made by contacting Lynn Winslow at the chamber office at lwinslow@capechamber.com or by calling 335-3312. Judging will be held Wednesday...
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People on the move 12/10/07
(Business ~ 12/10/07)
Real estate companies hire new agents Divine Homes Realty and Commercial Real Estate Specialist Inc. announced the addition of two new agents. Jane Perry is a licensed real estate agent for Divine Homes. She is also chief operating officer of Buellis Construction, a builder of custom homes. Brandon Farmer has joined the staff of Commercial Real Estate Specialist Inc. A veteran of the U.S. Air Force, Farmer is also a reserve officer with the Cape Girardeau Police Department...
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Police: 40 women killed this year by Iraqi vigilantes
(International News ~ 12/10/07)
BAGHDAD -- Religious vigilantes have killed at least 40 women this year in the southern Iraqi city of Basra because of how they dressed, their mutilated bodies found with notes warning against "violating Islamic teachings," the police chief said Sunday...
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Community digest 12/10/07
(Community News ~ 12/10/07)
River Heritage Quilters' Guild to hold meeting; Parent group to hold presentations on toys; Democrats make plans for Christmas party; Nature Center looking for new volunteers; Breakfast with Santa planned at Arena Park ; Ramsey Creek Village to hold open house; Child asks for donations to pediatric patients; Girl Scout troop makes donation to hospital; Toy donations can earn Charter installation; Celebration to benefit children's fund; Benefit for stroke victim planned for Dec. 22 ; Benefit tailgate planned for basketball game
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Police arrest wife of man accused of faking death in insurance scam
(International News ~ 12/10/07)
MANCHESTER, England -- Police arrested a British woman on suspicion of fraud Sunday after she claimed her husband died five years earlier in a canoeing accident and cashed in his life insurance. The husband reappeared last weekend. British police arrested Anne Darwin, 55, once her flight from Atlanta touched down at Manchester airport. They said they hoped she could shed new light on her husband's whereabouts since he was declared officially dead from a capsized canoe in the North Sea in 2002...
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Canadian farmer, accused serial killer, found guilty of murder
(International News ~ 12/10/07)
NEW WESTMINSTER, British Columbia -- A pig farmer accused of being Canada's worst serial killer was found guilty Sunday of six counts of second-degree murder, which carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison. The verdict ended the trial of Robert "Willie" Pickton on the first six of 26 murder charges in the deaths of women, most of them prostitutes and drug addicts from a seedy Vancouver neighborhood...
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Scientists tout seaweed as part of solution to global warming
(International News ~ 12/10/07)
BALI, Indonesia -- Slimy, green and unsightly, seaweed and algae are among the humblest of plants. A group of scientists at a climate conference in Bali say they could also be a potent weapon against global warming, capable of sucking damaging carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere at rates comparable to the mightiest rain forests...
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Opposition party will take part in Pakistani parliamentary elections
(International News ~ 12/10/07)
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- The party of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced Sunday that it would participate in Pakistan's parliamentary elections next month after failing to convince rival Benazir Bhutto to join a boycott. Greater participation will make the balloting look more open, bolstering President Pervez Musharraf's democratic credentials, which took a hit over his Nov. 3 declaration of a state of emergency and his dismissal of independent-minded judges...
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Early copy of Magna Carta to be sold at Sotheby's auction
(Entertainment ~ 12/10/07)
NEW YORK -- In the year 1215, a group of English barons handed King John a document written on parchment. Put your royal seal on this, they said. John did, and forever changed the relationship between the monarchy and those it governed. The document was the Magna Carta, a declaration of human rights that would set some of the guiding principles for democracy as it is known today...
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Charleston grabs top seed for Southeast Missourian basketball tournament
(High School Sports ~ 12/10/07)
The Charleston Bluejays were awarded the top seed in the annual Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament that will be played at the Show Me Center. Charleston, which has won the tournament 15 times but has not reached the title game the past four years, will kick off the tournament against No. 16 Delta at 9 a.m on Dec. 26...
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McDonald's settles flap over coffee costs by offering to pay expenses
(National News ~ 12/10/07)
OAK BROOK, Ill. -- McDonald's Corp. has agreed to pay its franchisees 40 percent of the expense of outfitting U.S. restaurants to serve specialty coffees after the restaurant owners resisted the hefty new costs. The fast-food chain acknowledged its commitment Friday in releasing a statement of support from a group representing franchisees, who own a majority of its restaurants...
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Avalanche bury Blues with nine-goal outburst
(Professional Sports ~ 12/10/07)
DENVER -- Milan Hejduk notched his fifth-career hat trick and added three assists to lead the Colorado Avalanche past the St. Louis Blues 9-5 on Sunday night. Paul Stastny had two goals and three assists, Ryan Smyth had a goal and two assists and Wojtek Wolski had two goals for the Avalanche, who won the 1,000th game in franchise history and did it with the highest goal tally in the league so far this season...
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Bengals slosh past Rams
(Professional Sports ~ 12/10/07)
CINCINNATI -- Rain pelted Brock Berlin's face as he settled in for his first regular-season snap in the NFL. He called signals in misty breaths, then got decked when he let go of a pass. So, this is what it's like. Berlin collected himself and kept going, making it through his debut without any major gaffes. He didn't make any big plays, either, and that made the difference...
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Patriots spoil Steelers' 'guarantee,' improve to 13-0
(Professional Sports ~ 12/10/07)
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Tom Brady threw four touchdown passes, shattering Steelers safety Anthony Smith's guarantee of a victory. Randy Moss caught two of them and New England crushed Pittsburgh 34-13 on Sunday. The lopsided victory against the Steelers (9-4) followed a two-game struggle in which the Patriots (13-0) needed late comebacks to beat teams with losing records, Philadelphia and Baltimore...
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Redhawks jump out of gate with pair of OVC wins
(Sports Column ~ 12/10/07)
It would be hard to imagine a better opening week of Ohio Valley Conference play for the Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team. For the first time since the 1999-2000 season, the Redhawks are off to a 2-0 OVC start. By the way, that aforementioned squad is the only Southeast men's hoop team to win an OVC title and make the NCAA Division I tournament...
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1977 profile of murder suspect describes introvert, obsessive compulsive
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
In 1977, psychologists from Saint Francis Mental Health Clinic teamed up with the Cape Girardeau Police Department to develop a personality profile of a suspect in the Parsh murder. Read what the team determined in this memorandum from then-chief Henry Gerecke...
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Looking back: Former police chiefs reflect on unsolved crimes
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Henry Gerecke was the police chief in Cape Girardeau when women began being murdered in the city during the late 1970s. Gerecke retired in September 1981 agonizing over his inability to solve the crimes. He had a 35-year career in the U.S. Army before becoming police chief here in 1974. ...
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Suspect pleads guilty in 1982 Carbondale killing
(State News ~ 12/10/07)
MURPHYSBORO, Ill. (AP) -- A man with a long history of sexual misconduct has been sentenced to 40 years in prison after admitting he strangled a Southern Illinois University student in 1982. Timothy Krajcir (KRY'-chur) pleaded guilty Monday in Jackson County Circuit Court to one count of murder. Prosecutors dropped three other murder counts as part of a plea deal...
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Police, others reflect on fear five murders invoked in Cape
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
In July 1982, police Sgt. John Brown stood before the Cape Girardeau Business and Professional Women's Club talking to members about how to keep themselves from being murdered. Mildred Wallace, a 65-year-old member of the club, had been found shot to death in her home less than a month earlier, the fifth woman in the city in five years to become the victim of an unsolved homicide. ...
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Cape police to announce solving of 5 murders
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
At 2 p.m. today, the Cape Girardeau Police Department and Cape Girardeau County prosecuting attorney's office will conduct a joint news conference to announce the filing of charges against one person for the murders of Mary and Brenda Parsh in August 1977; the murder of Sheila Cole in November 1977; the murder of Margie Call in January 1982; and the murder of Mildred Wallace in June 1982...
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Suspect Timothy Krajcir has long history of crime, sexual deviancy
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Before he killed in Cape Girardeau, he raped in Pennsylvania. Timothy W. Krajcir is 63 years old now, a confessed serial killer, a convicted rapist. He's from a small Pennsylvania town called Laury's Station. According to a psychologist letter sent to a Pennsylvania courthouse in July of 1983, he was raised by a single mother. Abandoned by his father at birth. Moved at least a dozen times in his early childhood...
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Cooper to receive sentence today
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Four months after pleading guilty to two federal immigration fraud counts, former state representative Nathan Cooper will learn today whether he will spend time in prison. Cooper will go before U.S. District Judge Jean C. Hamilton at 12:30 p.m. in St. Louis. The sentencing, delayed three times, will be the final action in the fall of an ambitious Republican politician and lawyer...
- Filing of charges against Krajcir announced in press conference (Local News ~ 12/10/07)
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Waylon Sparkman
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
Waylon Sparkman, Perryville Position: Linebacker Year: Senior Season stats: 114 tackles, 5 sacks Plans for next year: Going to college, but I don't know if I will play or what I will study Favorite moment this season: Beating Ste. Genevieve Pregame ritual: Yelling at each other in the locker room...
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Bell City's Abner selected Southeast Missourian Volleyball Player of the Year
(High School Sports ~ 12/10/07)
Bell City senior Jessica Abner made one simple change that helped her play better volleyball this fall than her first three high school seasons. She improved her attitude -- period. "I know in the past years I hadn't tried as hard as I could, and during preseason, I worked a lot harder because I wanted to be the best," Abner said. "I don't know really what I did. I just know every time I got on the court, I would try to do my best...
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SOLVED: Timothy Krajcir confesses to five local murders
(Local News ~ 12/10/07)
In 1982, then-Sgt. John Brown told a group of worried Cape Girardeau residents that he was sure the police department would find the killer of five local women. And they have - 25 years later.
Stories from Monday, December 10, 2007
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