Stories from Friday, July 31, 2009

A search for a missing boat on the Mississippi River has ended. The drift boat was found near Chester, Ill., Cape Girardeau fire chief Rick Ennis said. No one was inside the boat when it was found. Chester police are expected to issue a press release later in the day.

CARUTHERSVILLE, Mo. -- A 21-year old contractor was killed in an electrocution accident on Thursday morning after the bucket truck he was in made contact with a high-power line. According to Caruthersville Police Chief Chris Riggs, at approximately 7:20 a.m., Caruthersville resident Roger Forrester was using a boom on his truck to lift a load of plywood onto the roof of Pylate's Machine Shop, located at 815 W. 3rd St., when the boom hit a main power line, electrocuting Forrester...

Residents along East Cape Rock Drive and North Main Street will have the best view of bicycle racers arriving Sept. 8 in Cape Girardeau for the finish of Stage 2 of the Tour of Missouri bicycle race. Organizers of the cross-state race this morning announced the detailed routes each stage of the seven-stage race. Cape Girardeau will host the finish of the second stage and the first day of over-the-road racing...

When Jenny McCord began homeschooling her daughter about a year ago she starting looking for a support group to help her with the new endeavor. "I was very intimidated by the whole idea," she said. Her daughter was in the third grade at the time, and she wanted to make sure she was taking advantage of all the available resources. She found the Southeast Missouri Homeschoolers organization...

Where most cyclists carry radios and energy gel in every pocket of their jersey, Matt Brooks devotes one of the pockets on his purple and green jersey to diabetes management devices. Brooks, a cyclist with Team Type 1, made a stop at HealthPoint Jackson Thursday to talk to 22 children at Camp DAY Break, a two-day camp where children with diabetes and their friends learn more about managing the disease and living a full life...

The Cape Girardeau County Commission voted unanimously today to apply for the purchase of the old federal courthouse building. After a 45 minute closed session the commission announced their decision to vote 3-0 on the matter. The commission will now send its application and a down payment to the General Services Administration via overnight mail.

Free concert to benefit the Jackson Ministerial Alliance Food Pantry Sunday, August 2nd beginning at 6PM at Crossroads Fellowship in Jackson, Missouri. Scheduled performances by Awakening, Christy Shinn, Beth St. John, Jeff Hankins, Jeremy Verhines, and Jordan Cox. Free will love offering/can food will be accepted to benefit the Jackson Ministerial Alliance food pantry. All are welcome to join in on this great night of music and fellowship!...

A new flag was donated by Herb Nance for the Hoover Eldercare/Senior Alive Center located at 805 N. Sprigg in Cape. Pictured receiving the flag are participants at the center beginning with the back row: Helen McCarty, Geraldine Love, Anita Hahs-Administrative Assistant, Barbara Warren, Elsie Jarvis (partially hidden), Mary Squires, Herb Nance (contributor of flag), and Cherie Herbst-Senior Alive Instructor/Program Coordinator. ...

The Charleston Fighting Squirrels Senior Babe Ruth baseball team that will shoot for its second straight regional championship on its home field has a small but distinct Cape Girardeau flavor. Coach Michael Minner, a 1998 Central High School graduate, has built from scratch the Charleston squad into Missouri's premier Senior Babe Ruth program that has won the last three state titles...

A man in his 70s was killed on Interstate 55 late Thursday when he was struck by a semitrailer.

The Southeast Missouri Children's Museum has gutted the first floor of what used to be the Walther's building at 502 Broadway in Cape Girardeau. The space eventually will become the Discovery Playhouse with hands-on displays that will be both fun and educational...

Concern for providing future generations with the ability to enjoy life on this planet as much as do we is not a Republican-versus-Democratic issue, nor a conservative-versus-liberal issue, unless we argue that one or other political philosophy is against future generations. Climate change must be addressed by all tenants of this planet, as it affects us all...

Obama bias; ACORN funds; Team leadership; Recycling worry

Cape Girardeau: Arrests; Summons; Thefts; Burglaries; Property damage; Miscellaneous; Jackson: Arrests; Summons; Thefts; Property damage; Miscellaneous

Cape Girardeau Firefighters responded to the following calls Wednesday: Firefighters responded to the following calls Thursday: Jackson Firefighters responded to the following calls Wednesday: Firefighters responded to the following call Thursday:...

Raymond C. Pulliam, 82, of Cape Girardeau passed away Wednesday, July 29, 2009, at his home. He was born May 27, 1927, near Millersville, son of John C. and Frona Looney Pulliam. He and Norma "Jean" McBay were married in December 1947. Raymond attended school in Sedgewickville and served in the U.S. Army...

Jesse Harold Dunlap, 85, of Cape Girardeau died Wednesday, July 29, 2009, at Saint Francis Medical Center. He was born March 10, 1924, in Cape Girardeau, son of Jesse Everett and Virginia Willeford Dunlap. He and Norma Margaret Chezem were married Aug. 13, 1973, in Jackson. She preceded him in death Nov. 5, 2000...

Felter; Hager; Luttrull; Way; Huskey; Bowden; Moyers-Warren; Husk; McCarty; Edwards

Graveside service for Dr. Don Myers of Rolla, Mo., formerly of Oak Ridge, will be held at 2 p.m. today at Old Goshen Cemetery in Oak Ridge. A gathering of family and friends will follow at 3 p.m. at New Salem United Methodist Church in Daisy. Myers, 69, died Sunday, July 26, 2009...

25 years ago: July 31, 1984 KELSO, Mo. -- Two area men were injured here yesterday afternoon when the tanker truck they were working on at the Tucker Truck Service Garage exploded, destroying the truck and most of the garage; both were treated for burns at Southeast Missouri Hospital and released...

Help us, O God, to spread cheer and hope to all who cross our path today. Amen.

Friday "Aliens in the Attic," Rated PG @Town Plaza Cinema "The Collector," Rated R @Cape West 14 Cine "Funny People," Rated R @Cape West 14 Cine Saturday Sunday Next Week "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," PS3, Xbox360, PSP, DS, PS2, Wii...

SEATTLE -- An Oregon man who was the victim of a 35-year-long identity theft said Thursday he's so happy about an arrest in the case that he could kiss the special agent who handled it. "I can't believe this has finally come to a head after all these years -- it's like I've been released from prison," said Tom Lesh of Coos Bay. "I was just talking to Special Agent Matt Lavelle, and I want to kiss him."...

DECATUR, Ga. -- Authorities are investigating two Atlanta-area police officers accused of using government computers to run a criminal-background check on President Barack Obama. DeKalb County police spokeswoman Sheila Edwards confirmed Thursday that officers Ryan White and C.M. Route have been placed on paid administrative leave while the July 20 incident is investigated. She said both officers have worked for the department for about two years...

LOCKPORT, N.Y. -- Police say a Buffalo-area tow truck driver was juggling two cell phones -- texting on one and talking on another -- when he slammed into a car and crashed into a swimming pool. Niagara County sheriff's deputies say 25-year-old Nicholas Sparks of Burt admitted he was texting and talking when his flatbed truck hit the car Wednesday in Lockport...

ATLANTA -- Americans spend more than a 10th of their out-of-pocket health care dollars on alternative medicine, according to the first national estimate of such spending in more than a decade. Chiropractors, massage therapists, acupuncturists and herbal remedies are commanding significant consumer dollars as people seek high-touch care in a high-tech society, the report released Thursday by the government shows...

BAGHDAD -- July is on track to be the least deadly month for American troops and one of the quietest for Iraqis since the war started, a decline in violence that has led the U.S. to consider stepping up its withdrawal plans just a month after pulling its combat forces back from Baghdad and other cities...

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iranian police fired tear gas and beat protesters to disperse thousands chanting "Neda lives!" Thursday at a memorial for victims of post-election violence held at the grave site of the woman whose death made her an icon of the pro-reform movement, witnesses said...

PALMA DE MALLORCA, Balearic Islands -- A powerful bomb on the Spanish resort island of Mallorca killed two police officers in their patrol vehicle Thursday, the second attack blamed on Basque separatist group ETA in two days. Police found a second bomb under another police jeep later Thursday in the same area and carried out a controlled explosion. Authorities temporarily blocked all outgoing flights and ships from leaving Mallorca as part of a manhunt...

LISBON, Portugal -- A fugitive murderer spent 16 years hiding in caves around his home village in northern Portugal before he was recaptured looking "like Robinson Crusoe," police said Thursday. Manuel Cruz, 54, had a deep tan and a long beard when he was arrested in the forested hills where he once had been a shepherd, Inspector Carlos Gomes said...

SEOUL, South Korea -- You want kimchi with that? The first fast-food joint has opened in North Korea, serving up burgers, fries and beer in Pyongyang, and the locals are lovin' it so much that more are planned for the communist capital. And it's not just junk food. Other symbols of Western capitalism are sprouting up -- including a beer commercial on state TV and a convenience store that reportedly was visited in April by leader Kim Jong Il...

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria -- The leader of the Islamist sect blamed for days of violence in northern Nigeria has been shot and killed while in police custody, officials said Thursday. The police commander of Borno state announced on state radio that Mohammed Yusuf, the leader of the sect some call the Nigerian Taliban, has "died in police custody."...

WASHINGTON -- Crab cakes and fish sticks won't be disappearing after all. Two years after a study warned that overfishing could cause a collapse in the world's seafood stocks by 2048, an update says the tide is turning, at least in some areas. "This paper shows that our oceans are not a lost cause," said Boris Worm of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, lead author of both reports. "I'm somewhat more hopeful ... than what we were seeing two years ago."...

WASHINGTON -- With mugs of beer and more-carefully chosen words, President Barack Obama tried to push himself and the nation beyond an uproar over race, chatting in his garden Thursday with the black professor and the white policeman whose dispute had ignited a fierce debate...

"Orphan" is a twisted movie put together by Jaume Collet-Serra, director of "House of Wax." The story starts with two parents, Kate and John Coleman, who decide to adopt a child. Kate (Vera Farmiga) is battling with her addiction to alcohol after her last baby was stillborn. ...

REDMOND, Wash. -- Microsoft Corp. CEO Steve Ballmer is trying to improve the bad feeling Yahoo Inc. investors have about the companies' search-advertising partnership. Yahoo's shares plummeted 12 percent Wednesday after the deal was announced, and they continued dropping Thursday, ending 4 percent lower at $14.60...

NEW YORK -- The stock market is a day away from locking in its best July in 20 years. Stocks added to the run Thursday as another round of earnings reports gave investors new reasons to be optimistic. The Dow Jones industrial average rose its highest level in nearly nine months with a gain of nearly 84 points and the Nasdaq composite index traded above 2,000 for the first time since October...

NEW YORK -- Herman Joseph's eyes light up when he lists some of his favorite clothing lines: True Religion. Rock & Republic. 7 For All Mankind. Once, he even paid $300 for a pair of black and silver Gucci dress shoes. "I used to like to be fly," the 19-year-old said of his pricey wardrobe. "It gave me confidence in myself."...

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Soured on the real estate market, Columbia broker Bob Walters has found what he hopes is a more fruitful pursuit: growing grapes for wine. Downsized banker Mary Becker also is dabbling in the business, planting vines on the 120 acres south of Kansas City, Mo...

JOPLIN, Mo. -- A Farmington, Mo., lawyer has added Joplin to a list of Missouri towns he has sued over what he says are illegal taxes. Tom Burcham sued the city of Joplin last week, alleging that it could not collect a 1-cent general sales tax and a half-cent sales tax for public safety at the same time. Burcham is seeking an injunction to stop collection of the public safety tax...

Scholarships The following students received scholarships to attend Southeast Missouri State University for the 2009-2010 academic year: -- From staff reports ...

WASHINGTON -- The White House said Thursday it was reviewing what has turned out to be a wildly popular "cash for clunkers" program amid concerns the $1 billion budget for rebates for new auto purchases may have been exhausted in only a week.

Did you know you could use the juice from a lemon to write a secret message? Materials: Instructions: STEP 1: Squeeze the lemon juice into the plate. STEP 2: Dip the cotton swab into the lemon juice. Use the cotton swab to write a message on the paper...

For enthusiasts who want to experience the Tour of Missouri route from the seat of their bicycle, Velo Girardeau will host a "Ride the Route" event Sept. 6, two days before the professional cyclists take the road from Ste. Genevieve to Cape Girardeau...

The Kelly School District will be holding enrollment starting Monday. Students who are new to the district can enroll from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday. They must bring proof of residency and a parent or guardian must present a picture ID. Juniors, seniors and middle-schoolers can enroll from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday...

Due to a source error, an article about five people arrested on suspicion of trespassing on downtown roofs incorrectly stated that all five were issued summonses to appear in municipal court. Shana K. Gemoules, 21, 16 N. Park Ave., was arrested but was not issued a summons, Sgt. Jason Selzer of the Cape Girardeau Police Department said. Her case is under review by the municipal prosecutor, Selzer said...

What a year this is for nekkid ladies. That said, this column could go in many directions. Don't let your imagination lead you too far astray. Many of you, particularly those who like to get dirt under your fingernails while working in the garden, know that if you say "nekkid ladies" at the end of July or early August, you're talking about a flower -- a particularly striking one at that...

The Associated Pres FARMINGTON, Mo. -- Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster said a judge was correct in dismissing a lawsuit over the Pledge of Allegiance. Last week, Judge Bernhardt Drumm Jr. dismissed a suit against another judge, Kenneth Pratte of St. Francois County, over Pratte's practice of beginning each day in court with the Pledge of Allegiance...

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- A rash of campus shootings in recent years has made surveillance cameras and emergency locks nearly as common as blackboards in today's classrooms, said educators at a school safety conference Thursday. "It's a rude awakening to the realities out there," said Maureen Dixon-Sullivan, a St. Louis Community College student and aspiring elementary school teacher. "The world today is so different from when we went to school."...

WASHINGTON -- Fewer people are claiming jobless benefits, leading economists to project that next week's employment report will show a sharp drop in job losses for July compared with June. Claims for jobless aid, which track layoffs and firings, are trending downward in a modest sign of improvement in the labor market, economists note...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Agriculture Department is helping struggling dairy farmers by raising the price paid for milk and cheddar cheese through a dairy price support program. The department estimates the increases will boost dairy farmers' overall revenue by $243 million. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the price increase will provide immediate relief and keep dairy farmers on the farm while they weather what he called "one of the worst dairy crises in decades."...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Housing Development Commission is weighing new ethics rules after a state audit raised concerns about conflicts of interest. The state housing agency uses tax credits and tax-free bonds to help finance construction of affordable houses and apartments. A state audit released in June noted ethics issues, including commissioners with business ties to developers...

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama will award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 16 people, including political ally Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, tennis legend Billie Jean King and Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa. The White House announced the list of recipients Thursday...

WASHINGTON -- The House raced today to pass legislation pouring an additional $2 billion into the popular -- but financially strapped -- "cash for clunkers" car purchase program. Reps. Sander Levin, D-Mich., and Betty Sutton, D-Ohio, said the House planned to consider the additional funding after lawmakers from the two states were assured by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood that the program would continue while the Obama administration looked for more money...

WASHINGTON -- The government's popular "cash for clunkers" program may be running out of money after only a matter of days as car shoppers flock to dealerships to take advantage of the rebates. The White House said Thursday it was assessing its options amid concerns the $1 billion budget for rebates for new car sales may have been depleted. The program officially began last week and has been heavily publicized by automakers and dealers...

WASHINGTON -- Tens of thousands of unsafe or decaying bridges carrying 100 million drivers a day must wait for repairs because states are spending stimulus money on spans that are already in good shape or on easier projects like repaving roads, an Associated Press analysis shows...

ST. LOUIS -- Matt Kemp hit a two-run single in the 10th inning for his third hit, helping the Los Angeles Dodgers end a season-worst four-game losing streak with a 5-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday night. Casey Blake had four hits and is 7 for 10 over the last two games for Los Angeles, which avoided a four-game sweep. ...

ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Rams on Thursday signed offensive tackle Jason Smith, the second overall pick of the draft, a day before the entire team opens. The 6-foot-5, 306-pound Smith is expected to be an immediate starter for the Rams, 2-14 last season and with only five wins over the last two seasons...

NEW YORK -- Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz became the latest star implicated in baseball's ever-growing drug scandal, acknowledging Thursday that the players' union confirmed he tested positive in 2003. Shortly after hitting the go-ahead home run that beat Oakland 8-5, Ortiz responded to a story on The New York Times' Website that he and former teammate Manny Ramirez tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs six years ago...