Stories from Saturday, May 12, 2007

JONESBORO, Ill. -- In the early hours Tuesday, two people lured Roy Easton, a mentally retarded man, to an abandoned building in Jonesboro. A larger group then attacked the 21-year-old, possibly using a wood two-by-four and a broken beer bottle. All to steal little more than $100...

Eldon Nattier and James Coley used to be only in the bed and breakfast business, until the Rose Bed Inn co-owners noticed something missing in Cape Girardeau on Sundays. "On Sunday afternoon there's really not much in the way of live entertainment going on," Coley said...

Area police officers honored 18 fellow officers Friday.The 18 served law enforcement in Southeast Missouri at one point and died in the line the duty either here or elsewhere. The annual Law Enforcement Memorial Service took place at the conservation center at Cape County Park North. Nearly 200 people attended, including police and sheriffs from Bollinger, Stoddard, Scott and Cape Girardeau counties...

The price of a first-class stamp will rise 2 cents Monday, but postal patrons can avoid future increases with the new Forever Stamp. The Forever Stamp will always cover the cost of a one-ounce letter, no matter what the price is. Other postage rates will also change Monday...

Area lawmakers are assuring Cape Girardeau city and county officials that they will find a way to protect the local sales tax base despite passage of an economic development bill that could cost the county more than $365,000 a year. In the twisting course of writing legislation, Cape Girardeau County Presiding Commissioner Gerald Jones thought he had succeeded in a lobbying effort to limit a sales tax exemption for manufacturers. ...

What a difference a year made for David Berry and the Central boys tennis team. Last year, the Tigers won one match in the entire district tournament and finished seventh as a team. It was a different and much happier story this spring. Central turned things completely around, winning the team title at the Class 2 District 1 tournament on Friday evening...

Southeast Missouri State women's basketball coach John Ishee is one step closer to filling out his staff after recently hiring a second assistant coach. Chris Harris, who has been a Division I assistant coach and a head coach at the NAIA and junior college levels, will be Ishee's lead assistant...

Injuries are a part of the game. Few teams in the area know that better than Jackson's girls soccer team, which had its dominating start to the season slowed by injuries. Still, the Indians (12-2-2) remain the top seed and a favorite for their sixth straight district title when play begins Monday at Jackson in the Class 2 District 1 tournament...

LOS ANGELES -- Smoking will be a bigger factor in determining film ratings, the Motion Picture Association of America said Thursday, but critics said the move does not go far enough to discourage teens from taking up the habit. MPAA chairman Dan Glickman said his group's ratings board, which previously had considered underage smoking in assigning film ratings, now will take into account smoking by adults, as well...

Beck; McIntyre; Lappe; Winston; Kennedy; Musgrave; Pattengill; Head; Rollet; Garner

n At 6:19 p.m., medical assistance at the intersection of Bienville Avenue and West Cape Rock Drive. n At 4:28 a.m., a motor vehicle accident at 1008 N. Kingshighway. n At 5:50 a.m., medical assistance in the 1200 block of South Ellis Street. n At 7:55 a.m., emergency medical service in the 1000 block of North Sprigg Street...

DWI; DWI; Theft

Loy Edward Seabaugh, 87, of Jackson died Friday, May 11, 2007, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. He was born March 17, 1920, at Sedgewickville, Mo., son of Jesse Morton and Myrtle Anne Seabaugh. He and Maxine Fulcher were married April 30, 1987. She died Nov. 22, 1991. He and Emmalene Knott were married Sept. 20, 1997. She died May 6, 2003...

MCCLURE, Ill. -- Gary Sronce, 63, of McClure died Friday, May 11, 2007, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. He was born Jan. 13, 1944, in East St. Louis, Ill., son of Cletus and Lurabell Hutchison Sronce. Formerly of Clarksville, Tenn., he worked 24 years for the city of Clarksville Parks and Recreation Department. He had also been a prison guard...

Mary Howard Palmer, 74, of Summerville, S.C., widow of Jesse Leon Palmer Jr., died Thursday, May 10, 2007, at her home. Graveside service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday at Dorchester Memory Gardens, 11000 Dorchester Road, Summerville. Friends may call from 1 p.m. to service time Sunday at the graveside...

JONESBORO, Ill.-- Mary Helen Robertson, 77, of Jonesboro died Thursday, May 10, 2007, at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale in Carbondale, Ill. She was born June 7, 1929, at Thomasville, Ill., daughter of Curt and Martha J. Shepard Robertson. Survivors include a daughter, Patsy Robertson of Jonesboro...

Students at Southeast Missouri State University will see a hefty increase in fees next school year, but slightly less than originally proposed by school officials. The board of regents, meeting for the first time in the new music recital hall at the River Campus, voted Friday to raise tuition and general fees by $14 a credit hour for in-state students. In doing so, the regents trimmed $1.50 from the proposed general fees increase...

Nearly five years after being built, Southeast Missouri State University's newest residence hall has its official name. The board of regents voted Friday to name the residence hall on Henderson Avenue after the school's fifth president, Willard Duncan Vandiver, who later coined the "Show Me State" slogan...

Road closure, lane reduction planned SIKESTON, Mo. -- Old Toll Road in Jackson will be closed from Monday to Friday as work continues on phase two of the Route 34/72 widening project, weather permitting. Closure is expected at 7 a.m. Phase two of the project is from one mile west of the Route 25 intersection to 2.2 miles west of Route 25. ...

The death of a 4-month-old baby for no apparent reason led Friday to a warning for parents -- don't sleep in the same bed with an infant. The Cape Girardeau Child Fatality Review Team investigated the February death of the infant, reviewing autopsy reports, police records and the coroner's report and was unable to reach a conclusion about the death, Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle said...

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Four Perryville residents were being held Friday on large cash-only bonds following a raid on a methamphetamine lab, Perry County Sheriff Gary Schaaf said. The arrests followed a months-long investigation that culminated with a raid May 5 on West North Street in Perryville, Schaaf said. "We finally got enough information to justify a search warrant."...

The board of regents on Friday named Southeast Missouri State University's visual and performing arts school in honor of Earl and Margie Holland of Fort Myers, Fla. Their cash donation -- the largest single donation in school history -- helped fund development of the River Campus, school officials said...

JERUSALEM -- A weekly children's show on a Hamas-run TV station featuring a Mickey Mouse look-alike preaching Islamic domination was broadcast as usual Friday, two days after the Palestinian information minister said it would be suspended immediately...

WOOLDRIDGE, Mo. -- As the swollen Missouri River continued to peak eastward across the state Friday, some residents of a mid-Missouri town worked do undo a state agency's effort to release floodwaters to promote birds and plants in a wetland habitat...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Authorities charged four people Friday in connection with bringing women from China to the Kansas City area for prostitution after an investigation that led to raids at a string of Kansas businesses billed as massage parlors. Authorities say they took 15 women from the businesses. The women, all employees, are not facing charges, FBI spokesman Jeff Lanza said...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Lawmakers gave final approval Friday to a tax cut that exempts more Social Security and retirement benefits from the state income tax. The tax cut would start this year and be phased in through 2012. It's estimated to cost the state $154 million when fully implemented...

FOLKSTON, Ga. -- On Friday firefighters battled the second Georgia wildfire to burn more than 100,000 acres as gusty winds spread the fast-moving blaze further into northern Florida and toward the tiny city of Fargo west of the Okefenokee Swamp. Officials said the wildfire, ignited by lightning striking the swamp May 5, had grown so rapidly that after six days it already rivaled a fire that has scorched 116,480 acres of southeast Georgia forest and swampland since April 16 -- the state's largest wildfire on record.. ...

AVALON, Calif. -- Firefighters turned back flames that threatened Santa Catalina Island's main city and some residents planned to return to their homes Friday after thousands were forced to evacuate a day earlier. The wildfire was 4,000 acres, or more than 6 square miles, and was only 10 percent contained early Friday. ...

LAS VEGAS -- Two men were arrested Friday in a deadly Las Vegas Strip bombing that police believe was tied to a tangle of romantic relationships. Authorities arrested Omar Rueda-Denvers, 32, on charges of murder with the use of a deadly weapon, attempted murder with the use of a deadly weapon and possession of an explosive device...

Southeast Missouri State will try to stay in the hunt for an Ohio Valley Conference regular-season title and also send its 10 seniors out with some fond Capaha Field memories this weekend. The Redhawks (28-19, 13-7) close out their home schedule with a three-game series against Morehead State (15-31, 8-13)...

Money for police; Adjusting to increases; Abusing the system; Do as they please; Turning in circles; Protecting sewers?; Too many gadgets; Double parking; Living on credit; Appreciating teachers; A stacked deck; Dogs with bad reps; Not my fault; Go to jail; Blocking the view; Gene is there

Leaders of the Main Street Levee District decided Friday that the Themis Street floodgate will remain open following a new Mississippi River crest prediction that lowered the expected water level by 1.5 feet. The district had planned to close the gate Saturday afternoon, as the river approached 35 feet, said Andy Juden, president of the district board of directors. But with the river now expected to crest Tuesday at 36 feet, the water won't reach the gate, he said...

Winning a national award for almost anything is exceptional. Winning a national award for teaching means the teachers and their school district are doing something very right. Barb Egbert teaches kindergarten at Franklin Elementary School, and Becky Hicks teaches second-graders at Blanchard Elementary School. Both have been named recipients of the 2006 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching. This is the top national award for math and science teachers...

Missouri Gov. Kit Bond yesterday personally kicked off the campaign in Cape Girardeau for passage of his $600 million bond issue proposal to upgrade state facilities, saying it would generate more than $2 billion in economic activity and an estimated 57,000 jobs throughout the state...

Christian Women's lunch to be held Monday The WVA Christian Women's luncheon will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday at the Gaslite Square restaurant, 2301 E. Malone Ave. in Sikeston, Mo. The speaker will be Jeannie Williams of Purs-N-ality in Sikeston. She will give a message, purse show and personality test. For reservations, call Kathy Cullins at 573-471-5817...

There is going to be silence in some households this Mother's Day. There will be no cards. There will be no flowers. Finger-painted pictures of dogs, houses and flowers will not prominently grace the refrigerator. For these homes, Sunday will come as any other Sunday. Coffee will be brewed and sipped. The morning paper will be skimmed. Church will be attended. Lunch will be served...

"What should I get for Mom this year" is a question many ask around Mother's Day. As the holiday approaches, most people's thoughts turn toward mom. I am the mother of three wonderful children whom I cherish beyond words. However, I have a different perspective on motherhood than many...

Living a holy life can be a challenge. The Rev. Thomas D. White of TZ Ministries in Cape Girardeau wants to break it down for you. "Let Me Break It Down" is the title of the book he recently published. In the book, White touches on aspects of life that challenge people: discovering who we really are, sex, living a holy life, coping with outside pressures, failure and forgiveness, death, integrity, miracles and being accountable for one's life...

Mother's Day came a day early for Catherine Wright. The Jackson woman graduated from Southeast Missouri State University on Saturday. But her real joy came in watching her son, Aaron, walk across the same stage at the Show Me Center to get his college diploma...

St. Vincent moved to 5-1 in Jefferson County Conference play on Friday with a 3-2 soccer victory over De Soto. The Indians improved to 17-6 overall. The win will force Perryville to make up a conference game with St. Pius, as Perryville is currently undefeated in conference play...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Some of the roughly 700,000 Missourians lacking health insurance could find it a little more affordable to get. But people who don't pay their medical bills could lose their state income tax refunds under legislation sent Friday to the governor...