Stories from Friday, March 29, 2013

Three Poplar Bluff, Mo., men allegedly were caught in the act of breaking into storage units Wednesday night and later admitted to hitting nearly 30 units at facilities across Butler County this week. Arrested were: Rocky Brandon Nicholson, 27, of the 300 block of Valley, Franklin Eugene Williams, 58, and Bradley Eugene Williams, 32, both of the 100 block of Windy Ridge Circle...

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor Residents of 14 cities in six area counties will decide 23 contests in Tuesday's election. There are five contests for mayor, 16 for alderman or trustee and two for police chief. The mayors (except in Doniphan), aldermen (except Campbell) and trustees will be elected to two-year terms and the police chiefs to four-year terms...

NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. -- The Three Rivers baseball team had one more hit, two fewer errors, struck out less and walked more, but still scored half as many runs as Pasco-Hernando. The Raiders lost 6-3 Wednesday after scattering eight hits across nine innings and failing to take advantage of four errors. Three Rivers (4-13) also had five walks and left seven runners on base...

By CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER WASHINGTON -- The proposition that entitlement curbs are the key to maintaining national solvency is widely accepted, though not by many congressional Democrats. President Obama, however, has endorsed it on various occasions. And he could make it happen...

BERNIE, Mo. -- Christine May Mayberry, 96, died Tuesday, March 26, 2013 in Golden Living Center, Malden, Mo. She was born on April 11, 1916 in the Vinson Community, rural Bernie. Her parents, George Barker and May Techiner Barker preceded her in death. Mrs. Mayberry was a homemaker, had enjoyed Home Extension Clubs during her lifetime and was a member of the First Baptist Church of Bernie...

Poplar Bluff Senior High School has named its Students of the Month. One of the students is Bi Nguyen who plays high school football. His hobbies are football, video games and hanging out with friends. He plans to attend Three Rivers College for two years and then transfer to a university...

One of the first vegetables that you will be harvesting this spring will probably be asparagus. This delicious food has been eaten for more than 2,000 years. Like many other foods, it was first used as a medicine. It's a member of the lily family and is related to onions and leeks...

CORNING, Ark. -- Ezra Ellis, 86, of Corning died Tuesday, March 26, 2013 at John J. Pershing VA Medical Center in Poplar Bluff, Mo. Visitation will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday at Ermert Funeral Home. The funeral service will be at 3 p.m. Saturday at Apostolic Fellowship Church in McDougal, Ark., with Rev. Paul Quinn, Rev. Rick Humphreys, and Pastor Herbert Ellis officiating. Burial will follow at Gravel Hill Cemetery in St. Francis, Ark., under the direction of Ermert Funeral Home of Corning...

To the Editor: On March 12, 2013, the Missouri Department of Social Services held a hearing and later reported that claims against long-time Poplar Bluff R-I School District employee Mr. Jim Brown were "unsubstantiated." It is imperative to distinguish that the role of the DSS was to decide whether Brown violated Missouri statute on child abuse and neglect, while the Board of Education's responsibility was to determine whether Brown violated board policy - two separate matters completely...

DEXTER, Mo. -- Larry Junior Jones, 65, of Dexter died Tuesday, March 26, 2013. A memorial service will be conducted at the Southwest Church of the Nazarene at 11 a.m. Saturday with Rev. Brandon Powell officiating. Arrangements are being handled by Rainey-Mathis Funeral Home of Dexter...