Stories from Monday, February 4, 2008

BRUMLEY, Mo. (AP) -- A 32-year old central Missouri woman is jailed on murder charges in the death of a toddler at their home. Miller County Sheriff Bill Abbott says Roshell Johnson of Brumley was taken into custody over the weekend in the fatal beating Tuesday of a 20-month old girl. Abbott said the child died Wednesday at University Medical Center in Columbia...

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Snow on the streets in St. Louis means it's taking a little longer than usual for crews to clean up from this year's Mardi Gras, which drew huge crowds. Hundreds of thousands of people descended on the Soulard neighborhood, and organizers estimate the celebrations generated about 20 million dollars for the regional economy...

Voting for Missouri's presidential primary and locally for the 158th district Missouri House of Representatives seat will take place from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday. The Southeast Missourian will update election results as they come in on our Web site, semissourian.com, including a precinct-by-precinct breakdown of the 158th district race and county-by-county numbers in the presidential primary...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- A United flight from Washington to San Francisco made an emergency landing in Kansas City Monday after smoke was reported in the cabin area. United flight 871 landed safely about 10:20 a.m., said Joe McBride, spokesman for Kansas City International Airport...

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- The St. Louis region, which has a storied aviation past, has lost two popular air shows in as many years. The St. Louis County Fair and Air Show called an end to its event last week. The amount of development in the suburb of Chesterfield was making it difficult to find enough parking; organizers also had to ask some residents and businesses to vacate during the shows to follow rules designed to keep people safe on the ground...

CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) -- The suspect in the murder of former St. Louis Post-Dispatch editor Nancy Miller was arraigned Monday on four charges. Brian Michael Walters, 27, is charged with murder, rape, burglary and armed criminal action. At his hearing in St. Louis County, Walters entered a plea of not guilty and asked for a public defender. KMOV-TV reported that Walters has been placed on suicide watch, and that he appeared slightly disoriented during the hearing, yawning when charges were read...

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- A group of St. Louis-area legislators is pushing a new bill to give the city local control over its police department. The Board of Aldermen recently expressed its support for local control. Now, the St. Louis delegation wants to pursue it in the state Legislature...

Presidential primaries in Missouri, a full primary slate in Illinois and a special legislative election in Cape Girardeau are driving up turnout among absentee voters, area county clerks said Monday. Polls open in Missouri and Illinois at 6 a.m. Tuesday. Polls in Illinois close at 6 p.m., while Missouri voters have until 7 p.m. to cast their ballots...

Curtis Pickering, one of three men charged with felonies associated with an alleged dogfighting ring in Stoddard County, Mo., pleaded not guilty at an arraignment in Cape Girardeau County Monday morning. Stephen Walsh, attorney for Pickering, argued to reduce the $125,000 cash bond for his client, citing Pickering's steady employment and lack of prior criminal history...

Thunderstorms and possible floods are being predicted by the National Weather Service office in Paducah, Ky. Missouri counties included in the hazardous weather outlook are Cape Girardeau, Scott, Bollinger, Stoddard, Perry, Ripley, Butler, New Madrid and Mississippi; as well as Alexander County, Ill...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Voter interest appears high for Missouri's presidential primaries. The number of delegates at stake is high, too. But until this weekend, the candidates' interest in Missouri, particularly by Republicans, seemed comparatively low...

Today marks the first day of school for Deputy Cody Windbigler of the Cape Girardeau Sheriff's Department, as this week the sheriff's department introduces its first ever full-time student resource officer. "It always came down to not having enough money," Sheriff John Jordan said of the student resource officer program...

For 18 years, Mary Kasten worked in a legislative minority in the Missouri House of Representatives. While she was given important committee posts, including a seat on the powerful House Budget Committee, the realities of being a member of the smaller party meant Kasten had few opportunities to attach her name to important legislation...

Want to get a close-up look at the original flex-fuel vehicle? Cape Girardeau residents and visitors will get that chance in September when the Heart of the Ozarks Model T Ford Club brings its annual "Hillbilly Tour" to town over the Labor Day weekend. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the introduction of the Model T, or "Tin Lizzy," the car that was built to be affordable to every household...

For anyone interested in the history of Cape Girardeau, there is good news about the Reynolds House in the 600 block of North Main Street. The house is one of the oldest structures still standing in the city. At one time there was a commanding view of the Mississippi River from the house, which was built for a prominent businessman...

The dean of Cape Girardeau lawyers takes listeners on a verbal journey back to the early years of this century; Rush H. Limbaugh, who came to Cape Girardeau as a Normal School student in 1907 and who has been practicing law here for 67 years, is the speaker at the monthly Chamber of Commerce First Friday Coffee...

School concerns; Why we donate blood; Pedestrian code; Delta needs school; Complaining voters; Delta school; Not so greedy; Thanks for purse; China is the winner; High school morals; Create more jobs; Getting greedy?; On the map

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Like many a lady of a certain age, Tiki feels the cold these days. So workers at the Oakland Zoo are having a custom-fit coat made to keep the giraffe cozy this winter. At age 18, venerable for giraffes, Tiki is subject to the vicissitudes of age, and coping with the effect of Bay Area winter chills on the African mammal had baffled keepers...

A faulty fireplace destroyed a home just outside Miner, Mo., on Sunday afternoon. Firefighters arrived within eight minutes of being called to find flames shooting from the roof of the two-story stone and wood house at 137 Fox Meadows Drive, just north of the city limits, said Randy Allen, Miner's fire chief. No one was injured...

TINLEY PARK, Ill. -- Authorities stepped up their hunt for a gunman Sunday as they released the names of five women killed inside a suburban Chicago clothing store during a robbery attempt gone awry. Police were tightlipped on the status of their investigation and gave no indication they were any closer to finding the man -- described as a stocky black man, about 5-foot-9, who was wearing a black winter coat, a knit cap and dark pants -- suspected in Saturday's brazen attack...

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. -- Authorities on Sunday charged a recently paroled burglar with first-degree murder in the rape and slaying of a former writer and editor for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Brian Michael Walters, 27, was charged in the stabbing death of Nancy Miller, 59. St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert P. McCulloch said authorities did not know if Miller and Walters knew one another...

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Governor Rod Blagojevich says 32,000 senior citizens have pre-registered to receive free rides on public transportation. Illinoisans aged 65 and older qualify for the free rides. Madison County is set to begin offering the senior service on Monday to those with an Illinois driver's license or state-issued ID...

WASHINGTON -- The top presidential candidates and their big-name supporters campaigned from coast to coast Sunday, but one contender seemed atop everyone's mind:~ For years the New York senator has been an object of fascination, mystery and sometimes scorn by Americans...

Obama airs TV ad during Super Bowl WASHINGTON -- Pigskin and politics. It's an audience Barack Obama couldn't ignore. Obama, neck and neck with Hillary Rodham Clinton heading into Tuesday's nominating contests, is airing ads during the Super Bowl in television markets serving 24 states that are in play on Super Tuesday and beyond. ...

Lester "June" Wilfong, 77, of Burfordville died Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. He was born June 15, 1930, in Perryville, Mo., to Lester B. and Nellie J. (Ruesler) Wilfong. He and Wanda Hahn were married Sept. 9, 1956...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- James Eugene "Jake" Spies Sr., 72, of Scott City died Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008, at Chaffee Nursing Center. He was born Feb. 7, 1935, in Fornfelt, Mo., son of Charles James and Delia Ann Young Spies. He married Mary Jane Merritt on April 1, 1955, in Crab Orchard, West Va...

LEOPOLD, Mo. --June E. Merlo, 86, of Leopold died Friday, Feb. 1, 2008, at her home. She born Dec 8, 1921, daughter of Ed and Mattie Whitehurst. She married Charles Louise Merlo. Survivors include two daughters, Terry Tobin and Deborah Bommarito; five grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren...

NEW ORLEANS -- It won't just be wide receiver Plaxico Burress shouting "throw me something, mister" Sunday evening. While hometown hero Eli Manning is leading Burress and the New York Giants against the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, conflicted Carnival revelers will try to balance their desire to see the big game with watching the big parade...

Lulabelle Lane, 68, of Alto Pass, Ill., died Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008, at Jonesboro Healthcare Center. Survivors include a son, Albert Lee Lane of Murphysboro, Ill., two daughters, Elizabeth Wright of McClure, Ill., and Katherine Logsdon of Alto Pass; three grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and brothers and sisters...

n At 6:36 p.m., emergency medical service in the 1700 block of Cape Meadows Circle. n At 8:16 p.m., emergency medical service in the 2900 block of Beaver Creek Drive. n At 8:24 p.m., emergency medical service in the 300 block of North Sprigg Street...

DWI; Summonses

Coryell; Dickerson; Dorris; Lutes; Mullally

NEW ORLEANS -- Despite competition from the Super Bowl, thousands of revelers lined up along streets Sunday as New Orleans wrapped up a big Carnival weekend with another day of parades leading up to Tuesday's finale. A second round of gunfire that marred Saturday night's parade did not appear to deter Sunday's merrymakers...

THE HAGUE, Netherlands -- Hidden camera footage broadcast on television in the Netherlands on Sunday showed Dutch student Joran van der Sloot saying he was with Natalee Holloway when she died on a beach in Aruba, and that he asked a friend to dispose of her body at sea...

OMAHA, Neb. -- For the fourth month in a row, wholesale inflation increased in nine Midwestern and Plains states, slowing economic growth to a crawl in January, according to a survey of supply managers and business leaders released Friday. "December's upturn now appears to be an aberration," Creighton University economics professor Ernie Goss said. ...

SEATTLE -- Critics thought it was over the top when Amazon.com Inc. expanded from books into music in 1998. When the Web retailer let competitors start selling things alongside its own inventory in 2000, they said Amazon had gone nuts. In both cases, Amazon proved them wrong. Media sales now total in the billions each quarter, and third-party merchandise, more profitable for Amazon than its own wares, makes up nearly a third of everything sold through the site...

Program on legislature, other issues planned Associated Industries of Missouri will conduct a "Legislative Boot Camp" on Feb. 11 in Cape Girardeau for businesses to learn about the top issues facing the Missouri Legislature in 2008. The program will include information on communicating with lawmakers and the effect of election year politics on the outcomes. ...

Police: Carnival driver runs over, kills brother MARKSVILLE, La. -- A driver towing a float in a Carnival parade ran over his 16-year-old brother, killing him, state police said. Clay Michael Sayer was standing between Kain N. Sayer's pickup truck and the float behind it, talking to riders on the float during a brief stop around 5 p.m. ...

COCKEYSVILLE, Md. -- A 15-year-old boy fatally shot his parents and two younger brothers as they slept, then spent more than a day with friends before returning home and calling 911 to report that his father was dead, police said Sunday. Police went to their suburban Baltimore home and later charged Nicholas Waggoner Browning after he admitted to the slayings, Baltimore County Police spokesman Bill Toohey said...

WASHINGTON -- The Sept. 11 commission's executive director had closer ties with the White House than publicly disclosed and tried to influence the final report in ways that the staff often perceived as limiting the Bush administration's responsibility, a new book says...

BAGHDAD -- Iraq's presidency council issued a law Sunday that will allow thousands of Saddam Hussein-era officials to return to government jobs, legislation viewed by the Bush administration as central to mending deep fissures between minority Sunni Arabs and Kurds and the majority Shiites who now wield power...

WASHINGTON -- In the nation's first-ever $3 trillion budget, President Bush seeks to seal his legacy of promoting a strong defense to fight terrorism and tax cuts to spur the economy. Democrats, who control Congress, are pledging opposition to Bush's final spending plan -- perhaps even until the next president takes office...

Formed in 2000, the United Way of Southeast Missouri's Youth United Way program has grown from five to six high schools and from three to six representatives per school. "With students so involved in other groups, it was important to recruit more representatives in the event that schedules made the grade-level representatives unable to attend," said Nancy Jernigan, executive director of the United Way of Southeast Missouri. "We have added another high school this year as well, Oak Ridge."...

Five generations gathered to welcome Grant Michael Hindman of Cape Girardeau, born Nov. 28, who was pictured in the arms of his great-great-grandmother, Juanita Riggs of Cape Girardeau. Pictured from left were great-grandmother Veroncett Gerlach of Cape Girardeau, grandmother Joleda Moyers of Jackson and mother Erica Hindman of Cape Girardeau...

Cape Girardeau County AARP to meet today The Cape Girardeau County AARP will meet at 1:30 p.m. today at Grace United Methodist Church at Broadway and Caruthers Avenue. The program will be "Driver Safety," presented by Sharee Galmore of the Cape Girardeau Police Department Safe Communities program. There will be a drawing for a door prize...

The competitive blood drive between Boy Scouts in Cape Girardeau and Jackson is on. More than 30 units from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts to Venturers in Cape Girardeau and Jackson are competing in an event to recruit eligible blood donors called the "Would You Be My Hero Program."...

St. Joseph plans annual sausage breakfast St. Joseph Home and School will hold its 19th annual sausage breakfast from 8 to 11:30 a.m. Feb. 17 in the school gym. The menu includes link sausage, pancakes, scrambled eggs, biscuits and gravy, mixed fruit, coffee and milk. Children ages 6 to 12 are eligible for a discount, and children 5 and younger eat free. For more information, call 573-264-2600...

This year marks Jackson Homecomers centennial. Mark your calendars for a slew of special events from July 22 through 26. Homecomers started with the dedication of the county courthouse and coincided with the inception of Jackson High School's football team...

NEW YORK -- The Super Tuesday presidential primaries this week top off an unexpectedly thrilling and profitable month for television news with a super mystery. One day, primaries in nearly half of the states and two contested races -- it has never happened before, certainly not on this scale. November election nights are massive undertakings, but networks generally know from experience what to plan for...

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Turns out David Tyree was saving up for one game. One really, really big game. Little more than a special teams player all season, Tyree became an All-Pro in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl. First, he shook loose over the middle to catch a 5-yard touchdown pass from Eli Manning that put the New York Giants ahead. Then Tyree topped himself, making a tumbling, circus grab to set up a last-second score and a 17-14 stunner Sunday night over the mighty New England Patriots...

Tiger Woods watched his 25-foot putt race down the slope and bend toward the cup, then he skipped backward and punched the desert air in celebration when it disappeared into the cup for a final birdie. So ended his spectacular charge Sunday to win the Dubai Desert Classic in United Arab Emirates. Woods birdied his last two holes, and five of his last seven, for a 7-under 65 to start his season with two victories that looked nothing alike...

Nice swimming; No apologies; Overrated Redhawks; Bad call; What rights; Outdoors coverage

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Move over, Peyton. Make room in the Manning family trophy case, Archie. Baby boy Eli is coming home with hardware all his own -- an MVP trophy to place alongside the one his big brother brought back only a year ago. The youngest son of a great quarterback and the baby brother of an even better one came into his own Sunday night in the desert, proving cooler than the falling temperatures by leading the Giants 83 yards on a final scoring drive to stun the Patriots 17-14 and cap one of the greatest upsets in sports.. ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Mike Anderson has zero interest in a game of connect the dots. Missouri's coach knows better than to try to concoct a positive scenario for tonight's game at Kansas based on events of the last few days. Missouri's 77-74 upset of No. 22 Kansas State on Saturday with three players still under disciplinary suspension, Anderson said, has no relation to the Wildcats' once-in-a-generation victory over the Jayhawks three days earlier...

Elements of Bush's budget President Bush is sending Congress a $3 trillion budget for 2009. Here is a look at some of its elements: -DEFICITS: The plan will claim deficits in the $400 billion range for this year and next. For the 2009 budget year covered by the Bush plan, deficits are likely to rise higher than Bush predicts after additional war costs are added...

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- With the Super Bowl on the line, look who had the perfection thing down pat:~ Eli Manning leadsNew York to a 17-14 upset of New England, ending the Patriots' season at 18-1. Eli Manning and the road-conquering New York Giants. And what a beauty their 11th straight road victory was, a 17-14 Super Bowl win Sunday that shattered the New England Patriots' unblemished season...

What a roller coaster of an Ohio Valley Conference season it has been for the Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team. Last week, which consisted of two games at the Show Me Center, was a perfect example. After Tuesday's thrilling triple-overtime win over Austin Peay, the Redhawks again seemed to be on top of the ride...

The construction stakes are planted for Cape Girardeau's street project. Drivers can expect, before spring, to see construction crews revamping 6,160 feet of Independence Street, from Pacific Street to North Kingshighway. It's the last project using Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) 2 funds, according to Ken Eftink, the city's development services director. He said it's a two-part project...

When 1,800 workers lost their jobs after a Maytag appliance factory and headquarters closed last year in the small town of Newton, Iowa, a wind turbine blade company saw opportunity -- an available, skilled workforce in the middle of one of America's hardiest wind energy production regions...

Auto Trim Design hires two new employees Dale Brown, owner of Auto Trim Design, 606 S. Kingshighway, announced the addition of Gregory Vaughn and Kevin Brown to head up their new mobile electronics division. Vaughn will be in charge as division manager and Brown will take a lead role as installation manager. ...