Stories from Thursday, December 26, 2013

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri's Supreme Court on Tuesday sided against three men previously convicted of a sex crime and facing a new criminal charge under a law making it illegal for them to be near certain parks. The cases are the most recent to focus on a portion of the Missouri Constitution barring retrospective and ex post facto laws. ...

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- A St. Louis man is jailed without bond on charges that he fatally shot a woman whose body was found in a car trunk in southwestern Illinois. Prosecutors in St. Louis have charged 39-year-old Glynn Smith with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the Nov. 25 death of Sybil Brandon, also of St. Louis...

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- A Columbia woman is recovering after being by struck by a bullet fired into a home on Christmas Eve. Police say several adults and children were in the house when the woman was wounded around 10 p.m. Tuesday. Several rounds were fired into the home, but only the 41-year-old woman was hit by a bullet that came through a wall...

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Three people are OK after being rescued by firefighters from a burning office building in north St. Louis. The rescue happened Christmas morning. KSDK-TV ( http://on.ksdk.com/1cB8ENZ ) reports that the owner of the building allowed the three people to sleep there in exchange for keeping an eye on the warehouse. A space heater apparently sparked the fire...

KENNETT, Mo. -- New charges have been filed against a former Kennett police officer. Dunklin County Prosecuting Attorney Stephen Sokoloff filed the charges Monday afternoon against Jeremy Crawford. One felony count of stealing, one count of D felony tampering with physical evidence, and one count of D felony public servant acceding to corruption were filed, stemming from a Dec. ...

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. -- A St. Louis man and a 6-year-old boy were found shot to death Tuesday night in an apparent murder-suicide at a house on South Hanover Street. Cape Girardeau police identified the victims as Demetrius Beasley, 40, of St. Louis and Markell Beasley, 6, of Jefferson City, Mo...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon on Tuesday released $40.1 million that he previously had frozen for projects at the Capitol and state parks and for several state government programs. The largest share goes to repairs at the Capitol, where years of water infiltration has taken a toll on the roughly century-old building. ...

WASHINGTON -- Mailing a letter is about to get a little more expensive. Regulators on Tuesday approved a temporary price increase of 3 cents for a first-class stamp, bringing the charge to 49 cents a letter in an effort to help the Postal Service recover from severe mail decreases brought on by the 2008 economic downturn...

JANUARY 2--The first child born in Cape Girardeau of 2013, was the daughter of a Bloomfield couple. Ashley and Jacob Goodin of Bloomfield were the proud parents of Finley Elizabeth Goodin, born on New Years Day. 2--Holcomb ends Kennett's reign with annual Bloomfield Christmas Tournament win...

FISK, Mo. -- An earlier domestic altercation between a Fisk, Mo., stepfather and his stepson resulted in the men wrestling in the roadway Saturday night, where they were struck by a truck and killed, according to authorities. Dustin A. Binkard, 18, and his 29-year-old stepfather, Charles A. ...

As a young man, Gale Slinkard had no idea what direction he wanted to take in life and likely wouldn't have predicted the path he's taken. Slinkard was born in Fredericktown, Mo., where he and his family lived until he was in second grade. At that time, Slinkard's father took over as elementary principal for Bernie Schools...

Irene L. Barker, daughter of the late Alvin and Eva Blocker was born on May 9, 1925, in Stoddard County and died on Dec. 22, 2013, at her residence in Bernie. Mrs. Barker was a member of the First Baptist Church in Bernie and was a homemaker. On Oct. 18, 1940, she was united in marriage to Billy Joe Barker in Malden, Mo. Mr. Barker preceded her in death on Aug. 20, 1996...

Patricia Ann Gallamore, 65, of Beloit, Wisc., died Dec. 18, 2013. Pat was born to the late Andrew and Opal (Fowler) Stewart of Bloomfield, Mo. Pat is survived by her husband of 47 years, Roger Gallamore. She was an active member of Berean Baptist Church and served wholeheartedly. Her favorite pastimes were quilting, gardening and watching her grandchildren at various activities in which they participated. A kindhearted, humble woman, her greatest joy came in serving her family and the Lord...