Stories from Thursday, March 20, 2014

Caleb Kester is "happily engaged." As part of his senior theology class at Notre Dame Regional High School, Kester will be among 80 couples tying the knot in a mock wedding in a couple of weeks in the school chapel. The spring semester of the class, which is for seniors only, centers on Christian lifestyles -- single life, religious life and married life, said teacher and campus minister Sarah Strohmeyer...

The Scott City School District will end its year May 28, under a revised calendar approved by the board at its Monday meeting, according to a meeting summary provided by the district. Makeup days for the rest of the year are Monday, April 21, May 21 to 23, and May 27 and 28, the information said. A current version of the calendar is available at http://scschools.k12.mo.us/district/calendars/yearly-calendar, the information said...

Three Rivers College's board of trustees approved increases to faculty and employee compensation at its meeting Wednesday, a college news release said. The board cited cost-of-living adjustments and a desire to bring faculty salaries into line with regional standards, the release said...

The Higher Learning Commission, a regional accreditation organization, announced Three Rivers College has successfully eliminated weaknesses in strategic planning and student outcomes assessment, a college news release said. According to the HLC, the college has removed weaknesses that threatened its accreditation status, the release said...

Marcus Engel, a best-selling author and speaker, will present "The Other End of the Stethoscope -- A Tribute to Health Care Professionals" at 2 p.m. April 14 in the Rose Theatre at Southeast Missouri State University, a news release said. Engle's story of recovery after being blinded and catastrophically injured by a drunken driver challenges people to achieve success by making intelligent choices, the release said. ...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Zoo officials and the city's mayor don't want to see an end to free-admission days at the zoo, but after several fights broke out Tuesday, followed by gunshots in the facility's parking lot, they say something needs to change...

GRAY SUMMIT, Mo. -- A Franklin County zoning panel has approved plans to build a concrete plant near the Shaw Nature Reserve. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that county zoning commissioners on Tuesday voted 6-4 in favor of the Landvatter Ready Mix concrete company's expansion plans...

ST. LOUIS -- Officials at the St. Louis Zoo say they're saving millions of gallons of water, thanks to new automated controls and sustainability efforts. The zoo says it saved 15.5 million gallons of water in 2013 compared with 2012. Much of that is the result of the Life Support System facility. ...

OZARK, Mo. -- A southwest Missouri police checkpoint aimed at drunken drivers on St. Patrick's Day instead snared 10 people suspected of possessing methamphetamine. The Springfield News-Leader reported 12 arrests stemmed from the checkpoint Monday in Christian County, of which only one was for driving while intoxicated. The remaining arrest was for possession of marijuana...

HOUSTON -- Texas has obtained a new batch of the drugs it uses to execute death row inmates, allowing the state to continue carrying out death sentences once its existing supply expires at the end of the month. But correction officials will not say where they bought the drugs, arguing that information must be kept secret to protect the safety of its new supplier. ...

ST. LOUIS -- A death row inmate has asked the Missouri Supreme Court for a new trial, saying new evidence undermines a conviction that was key to his death sentence and that investigators whose questionable conduct led to the overturning of another capital case also mishandled his case...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas and Missouri lawmakers have joined the national debate on whether young people should be allowed to use tanning beds that critics say increase the odds of getting skin cancer. In Kansas, legislators are considering a measure that bans minors from indoor tanning, while their counterparts in Missouri are considering a bill to require anyone younger than 17 to get a parent's permission before tanning...

LAURA SIMON ~ lsimon@semissourian.com Lusaka, a three-year-old Columbian red tailed boa constrictor, sticks her tongue out for the camera, Wednesday, March 19, 2014. Lusaka, who is around seven feet long, was going for a stroll in the sun with her owner....

A Cape Girardeau teenager was arrested early Wednesday morning after fleeing from officers during a traffic stop, police reported. Devon J. Smith, 17, was in custody Wednesday on charges of felony unlawful use of a weapon and misdemeanor resisting detention, said Darin Hickey, public information officer for the Cape Girardeau Police Department...

A Cape Girardeau man was arrested Tuesday on a charge of first-degree statutory rape, police reported Wednesday. Greggory M. Brown, 41, is accused of having sexual intercourse with a girl younger than 14, online court records show. Police responded to a hospital about 3:45 p.m. Tuesday and spoke with a juvenile who was there with a parent, said Darin Hickey, public information officer for the Cape Girardeau Police Department...

ADAM VOGLER ~ avogler@semissourian.com ABOVE: Tate Young, 7, of Cape Girardeau works with clinical coordinator Brandy Dallas on Wednesday at the Kenny Rogers Children's Center in Sikeston, Mo. ...

Through social media, mass emails and just word-of-mouth, the CT Jungle -- the CT being for Cape Tigers -- gets students hyped up for sporting events. A time-honored tradition, the jungle each year elects a king, a main person to lead chants and cheers through an acoustic megaphone, and a flag runner, who enters with the flag before the kickoff or tipoff...

The Missouri Budget Project, a not-for-profit policy analysis organization, has concluded that shortchanging the state's education system is depriving students of receiving the world-class education they need to compete in today's global economy. The organization's report, "A Shaky Foundation: Missouri Underfunding the School Formula," released Wednesday, said Missouri is underfunding kindergarten through 12th-grade schools by $656 million, or almost 20 percent below the required level. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri cancer patients could soon find it more affordable to take chemotherapy pills under legislation signed by Gov. Jay Nixon on Wednesday. Starting in January, patients could not be charged more than $75 for a 30-day supply of oral cancer drugs. The measure is intended to make the cost of oral chemotherapy, which typically has fewer side effects, more comparable to traditional intravenous treatments...

Olivia Floyd, St. Vincent De Paul 8th gr, participated in the individual exhibit category at the Regional History Day competition held at SEMO on March 14. Hundreds of Southeast MO junior and senior high students participated in this event.

This is not to be printed but is a request for coverage. Hundreds of southeast Missouri students participated in this regional competition held at SEMO on Friday March 14. Please contact the history dept. at SEMO for the details. students participated in group and individual events including exhibits, papers, documentaries and websites. top three winners in each category advance to the state competition to be held on April 16th in Columbia, MO...

St. Vincent De Paul 8th graders Lt. to Rt. Hannah Dodson, Andrew West, Makenzi Kinder, Ms. Virginia Sander, Cassandra Caragine Regional competition held at Immaculate Conception School, Jackson on March 15

From left to right: Coach Rick Schmidt, Abigail Schiwitz,Erin Ireland, Hannah Wray, Kalei Schmidt, Olivia Nguyen, Isabel Vandeven, Asst. Coach Sean Ireland, not pictured Marissa Buehler.

As America loses its farmers, it also loses sight of how food gets from a farm to a kitchen table, according to a panel of agriculture experts who spoke about humane and sustainable agriculture Wednesday at the Cape Girardeau Public Library. The event, hosted by the Humane Society of the United States Missouri Agriculture Council, featured panelists opposed to the direction the agriculture industry is heading, which includes Missouri's Right to Farm Act that was sponsored by state Rep. ...

HAVCO Wood Products employs 225 people and is on the verge of hiring 50 more to accommodate demand for its products, but it could be doing even better without so much government regulation, its chief executive officer said Wednesday. "If we could get D.C. out of the way, we would do better," Bruce Bader, CEO of HAVCO Wood Products, told U.S. Rep. Jason Smith...

A "feel good" flash mob danced in the parking lot of the Southeast Cancer Center on Friday afternoon, March 14, to bring a little cheer to patients undergoing infusion therapy. The "mob" consisted of dance students from Southeast Missouri State University...

The Redhawks are 7-0 against conference opponents this season and will look to win their first MIC Championship since 2011.

It's something we find in the bathroom, but the toilet plunger isn't just for unclogging the toilet. STEP 1: Press the two plunger cups together. STEP 2: Attempt to separate the plunger cups. Suction occurs when there is a difference in air pressure. You created this difference when you pressed the two plunger cups together. By doing this, you forced out the air from inside each plunger cup reducing the pressure from within, creating a low pressure system...

Jade Ray Samanta, a student at Trinity Lutheran School in Cape Girardeau, recently won his second consecutive Regional Spelling Bee in Poplar Bluff, Mo.

Today is Thursday, March 20, the 79th day of 2014. There are 286 days left in the year. Spring arrives at 12:57 p.m. EDT. Today's Highlight in History: On March 20, 1852, Harriet Beecher Stowe's influential novel about slavery, "Uncle Tom's Cabin," was first published in book form after being serialized...

Two major events will take place this weekend in Cape Girardeau. About 1,200 people are expected to attend Cape Comic Con Friday through Sunday at the Arena Building in Cape Girardeau. The annual event, now in its ninth year, has been a major attraction for the city. More than 100 tables of comics and merchandise will be on hand...

Be careful this year. They're talking about redoing the state Medicaid. They want to extend it to allow another 300,000 people on it. All they keep saying is that "we paid this money into the federal government and it's going to other states." True, we would get a little bit of money back for the first couple years. ...

The Southeast Missouri State softball team lost both games in a doubleheader against Indiana State on Wednesday. The Redhawks were defeated 3-2 and 2-0 at Price Field in Terre Haute, Ind. Indiana State (16-9) picked up two runs on three hits in the bottom of the first inning before the Redhawks tied it in the fourth inning of Game 1...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Former Florida governor Jeb Bush on Wednesday urged Tennessee officials to follow through on Common Core education standards despite what he called an "avalanche" of criticism from those who oppose them. Bush said at an education forum with Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., that the standards are key to improving educational achievement around the country...

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Supreme Court reversed the convictions of a former nurse accused of trolling the Internet for suicidal people and encouraging two to kill themselves, ruling Wednesday that part of a law banning someone from "encouraging" suicide is unconstitutional...

DETROIT -- General Motors, beware. Wednesday's announcement that Toyota will pay $1.2 billion to avoid criminal prosecution for hiding information in a recall case could be a glimpse into your future. It's also a warning to anyone selling cars in the U.S.: Although the federal government's road-safety watchdog doesn't have big fangs, the Justice Department does...

NEW YORK -- Jerome Murdough was just looking for a warm place to sleep on a chilly night last month when he curled up in an enclosed stairwell on the roof of a Harlem public housing project where he was arrested for trespassing. A week later, the mentally ill homeless man was found dead in a Rikers Island jail cell that four city officials say had overheated to at least 100 degrees, apparently because of malfunctioning equipment...

JERUSALEM -- Israeli warplanes unleashed a series of airstrikes on Syrian military posts early Wednesday, killing one soldier and wounding seven in one of the most serious clashes between the countries in the past four decades. The airstrikes came in retaliation for a roadside bombing a day earlier in the Golan Heights that wounded four Israeli soldiers on patrol along the tense frontier with Syria. ...

KIEV, Ukraine -- Russian forces seized military installations across the disputed Crimean Peninsula on Wednesday, prompting Ukraine's security chief to announce that his country will hold joint military exercises with the United States and Britain...

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- The FBI joined forces with Malaysian authorities in analyzing deleted data on a flight simulator belonging to the pilot of the missing Malaysia Airlines plane, while distraught relatives of the passengers unleashed their anger Wednesday -- wailing in frustration at 12 days of uncertainty...

WASHINGTON -- Janet Yellen tried at her first news conference as Federal Reserve chairman to clarify a question that's consumed investors: When will the Fed start raising short-term interest rates from record lows? Yellen stressed that with the job market still weak, the Fed intends to keep short-term rates near zero for a "considerable" time and would raise them only gradually. ...

Lord Jesus, we praise you for you are the Light of the World. Amen.

LOS ANGELES -- The new "Star Wars" has an official timeline and one confirmed returning character: robot R2-D2. Director J.J. Abrams will begin shooting in May on "Star Wars: Episode VII," which is set three decades after 1983's "Return of the Jedi," Disney CEO Bob Iger said Tuesday...

Twin sons to Shaun Michael and Nicole Randall Lee Steger of Oran, Mo., Saint Francis Medical Center, Monday, March 3, 2014. Elijah Cole was born at 7:45 a.m. and weighed 6 pounds, 4 ounces. Ethan Michael was born at 7:46 a.m. and weighed 5 pounds, 11 ounces. ...

Cape Girardeau police are investigating how three city residents came to have a tombstone and other apparent graveyard property in their apartment; they hope to find the origin of a small, marble tombstone and white, 165-pound angel statue and small cross; police found the items while serving a search warrant at 129 S. Lorimier St...

Administrative Office Building 1 Barton Square, Jackson 9 a.m. today Open session Communications/reports, other elected officials Public comments Routine business Action items Appointments and possible action items Discussion and possible action Discussion and possible action: County advisory boards...

The Jackson Fire Department responded to the following calls Tuesday: The Jackson Fire Department responded to the following calls Wednesday:...

The Jackson Police Department released the following items. Summonses...

The Cape Girardeau Fire Department responded to the following calls Monday:...

The Cape Girardeau Police Department released the following items. Arrests do not imply guilt. Arrests The Department of Public Safety released the following items. Arrests do not imply guilt. DWI...

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- Maxine P. Wilkinson, 79, of Marble Hill passed away Tuesday, March 18, 2014, at Southeast Hospital in Cape Girardeau. She was born Dec. 8, 1934, in Oran, Mo., daughter of Eugene Carl and Pearl Seabaugh Fisher. She and Edward Eugene Wilkinson were married April 18, 1954. He passed away Oct. 8, 1996...

Pauline A. Richter, 75, of New Wells passed away Monday, March 17, 2014, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. She was born March 18, 1938, near New Wells, daughter of Albert H. and Elda F. Gerler Meyr. She and Edward H. "Ebs" Richter were married June 6, 1959, at Immanuel Lutheran Church in New Wells...

Alene Proctor, 89, formerly of Jackson, passed away Tuesday, March 18, 2014, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. She had resided five years in the assisted living and skilled facilities at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. She was born Sept. 20, 1924, in Millersville, daughter of Hubert F. and Dessie Mae Sebaugh Hartle. She and Elmer L. Proctor were married Aug. 23, 1945, in Jackson. He passed away Jan. 21, 1999...

Kenneth L. "Ken" Marston, 67, of Jackson died Tuesday, March 18, 2014, at his home. He was born April 12, 1946, in Chicago, to Earl L. and Vickie Sorensen Marston. He and Donna Stone were married April 12, 1969, in Chicago. Ken was of the Catholic faith. He was an auto body repairman, and was considered a very talented artist and musician. He had a big heart and will be missed by all who knew him...

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- Elnora C. Lee, 100, of Chaffee passed away Tuesday, March 18, 2014, at Chaffee Nursing Center. She was born Feb. 18, 1914 in Zalma, Mo., to Earl V. and Bertha A. Abernathy Seabaugh. She married Charles A. Lee on Jan. 2, 1932. He preceded her in death Oct. 5, 1977...

Loretta Marie Haupt, 94, of Cape Girardeau died Tuesday, March 18, 2014, at Saint Francis Medical Center. She was born June 30, 1919, in New Hamburg, Mo., to Louis M. and Mary M. Miederhoff Halter. She and John Albert Haupt were married April 25, 1945, at Chaffee, Mo. He passed away June 18, 1991...

Lenard "Clay" Clayton, 84, of Cape Girardeau died Sunday, Feb. 23, 2014, at Southeast Hospital. Friends may call from 1:30 p.m. to service time Saturday at McCombs Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau. A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Saturday at the funeral home...

Kevin Brent Ammon, 55, of Cape Girardeau, formerly of Fredericktown, Mo., passed away Monday, March 17, 2014. He was born Oct. 17, 1958, in Bonne Terre, Mo., son of Raymond and Wilma Umfleet Ammon. Kevin attended the House of Hope Church in Cape Girardeau. He was proud to be a member of Fredericktown High School class of 1977. He enjoyed competing at barbecue cook-offs, wine making and playing softball...

Solving the mystery of the missing Malaysian plane is proving to be as easy as cracking a homicide without a body. Or a witness. Or a motive. All while billions of people are waiting for the kind of quick and clear resolution that we've come to expect in the information age -- and speculating in sometimes wild ways when that resolution doesn't come...

NEW YORK -- Osama bin Laden's son-in-law offered a rare glimpse of the al-Qaida leader in the hours after the Sept. 11 attacks, recounting during surprise testimony Wednesday in a Manhattan courtroom how the two met that night in a cave in Afghanistan...

CHICAGO -- The candidates for Illinois governor laid out their different visions Wednesday on how to revive the state's lagging economy, as national labor unions and other outside groups with much riding on the outcome began making their presence felt and promised to keep doing so through the November election...

Submitted The Scott City Elementary School Honor Choir performs for Southeast Cancer Center staff and patients March 13 in Cape Girardeau....

LONDON -- There is good luck, outrageous good fortune -- and now there is the case of the scrap metal dealer who found one of the eight missing Faberge imperial eggs at a flea market in the American Midwest. A London antique dealer said Wednesday that the scrap metal entrepreneur bought the egg for about $14,000, thinking he could make a small profit by reselling the piece for its gold content...

JUPITER, Fla. -- St. Louis' Carlos Martinez and Minnesota's Kyle Gibson each enhanced their chances of earning a spot in their team's rotation with solid outings, and the Cardinals beat the Twins 3-1 on Wednesday. Martinez cruised into the fifth, holding the Twins to one hit, but Jason Bartlett had an RBI single to right-center in the sixth that ended the right-hander's scoreless string at 14 innings...

CHICAGO -- Corey Crawford stopped 23 shots for his second shutout this season, backstopping the Blackhawks to a physical 4-0 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday night that gave Chicago coach Joel Quenneville his 700th NHL win. It was a costly victory for the Blackhawks, though. Leading scorer Patrick Kane left the game at 7:56 of the second period, favoring his left leg as he headed to the dressing room following a collision with Brenden Morrow...

Owens scored a game-high 27 points to help lead the Scott County Central boys basketball team to a 69-39 win over Meadville in the Class 1 state championship game at Mizzou Arena.