Stories from Wednesday, January 20, 2016

By PAT PRATT Staff Writer Poplar Bluff and surrounding areas may see the first accumulating wintery precipitation of the season Tuesday night into early Wednesday. Meteorologists predict accumulations of 1-3 inches of locally. A National Weather Service (NWS) winter weather advisory is in effect from 9 p.m. Tuesday until noon Wednesday. The advisory covers all of Southeast Missouri as well as portions of southern Illinois and Kentucky...

By MICHELLE FRIEDRICH Associate Editor STE. GENEVIEVE, Mo. -- A judge declared a mistrial last week in the case of a Doniphan, Mo., man charged in connection in the 2010 deaths of two elderly couples whose bodies were found in their burned homes. Presiding Circuit Judge Michael Pritchett issued his ruling after it was determined not enough jurors remained after questioning by the state and defense to select a jury of 12 and alternate(s) for the trial of Keith A. Boyles...

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor Andrew Jefferson, the keynote speaker, and a panel of seven Poplar Bluff students emphasized focusing on the future during the 30th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration at Wheatley School Monday. Jefferson, pastor of the Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church, reviewed the achievements of Dr. King and others involved in the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960s...

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor Dedication of the new grand staircase at the Poplar Bluff Historic Train Depot is being planned for Friday, May 13. Board members of the Poplar Bluff Historic Depot Restoration Corporation approved the date following the group's annual membership meeting at The Bread Company Friday...

DEXTER -- The Dexter varsity girls basketball team met its match for the first time since Nov. 28. The top-ranked Park Hills Central got a 25-point performance from 6-foot center Megan Skaggs as it extended its winning streak to 43 games with a 55-42 road win Monday night at the Bearcat Event Center...

Naylor's shooting performance early Monday night was as cold as the temperature outside Peters Gym. Poplar Bluff rebounded but wasn't able to build a lead until four consecutive turnovers by the Lady Eagles. By the time Naylor's shots started to fall in the fourth quarter, the Mules were able to keep pace for a 65-59 win...

For 24 years, Wilbur Thornton gave his time to Three Rivers athletics as the "Voice of the Raiders". He volunteered his time announcing games on the radio, allowing the booster club to sell ads and turn an expense into a fundraiser. He took vacation time from his job with the U.S. Postal Service in order to travel with the team on long road trips...

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO. -- Matt Adams never has been and never will be a small human being. That will never change, even if the St. Louis Cardinals first baseman trimmed down during the offseason. It was never more evident than when he spent part of Monday evening seated next to his new, pint-sized bodyguard for much of a question-and-answer session during the Cardinals Caravan event at the Osage Centre...

HOLCOMB -- Tied at 82 with 15 seconds left, Holcomb's potential game-winning 3-pointer hit the rim and rattled out before Bernie's Nate Dillinger hauled in the rebound and drew a foul. Dillinger split a pair of free throws and the Mules added two more in the final 5 seconds on their way to an 85-82 victory over the Hornets Monday night...