Stories from Friday, May 23, 2014

By DAVID SILVERBERG Associate Editor The National Weather Service at Paducah, Ky., honored the Poplar Bluff Severe Weather Response Team during a Butler County Commission meeting recently. Rick Shanklin, NWS warning coordination meteorologist, commended the PB team members for "valuable contributions of storm spotting and communications with the NWS for the April 3 tornado event."...

By TYLER GRAEF SEMO News Service Ladies and gentlemen, get your haggling pants on. But if you don't have haggling pants, don't sweat it. You'll surely be able to find a pair at the 100-Mile Yard Sale this weekend. This Friday, Saturday and Sunday, vendors of all stripes will line up along Highway 25 between Jackson and Kennett, Mo., for the 16th annual Memorial Day event. ...

By EMILY PRIDD SEMO News Service BONNE TERRE, Mo. -- The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday halted the execution of convicted murderer Russell Bucklew. Less than six hours before Bucklew's death warrant was set to expire, the high court issued an order granting his application for a stay of execution pending appeal in the federal Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals...

By MARK BLANTON SEMO News Service Three people were charged with second-degree robbery and felonious restraint in connection with the robbery of First Commercial Bank in Morley, Mo., on Tuesday. Pamela M. Lathon, 46, Tyrice G. Royston, 26, and Alexander T. Trotter, 31, all of St. Louis, were arrested in connection with the robbery, according to a news release from the Scott County Sheriff's Department...

By MICHELLE FRIEDRICH Associate Editor With more motorists expected to be the roadways for the unofficial "kick off" to summer over the Memorial Day holiday, Missouri State Highway Patrol officials urge caution as the state again is experiencing an increase in its number of traffic-related deaths...

By DONNA FARLEY Staff Writer Plans for a new event center at Three Rivers College continue to inch forward following a 5-1 decision Wednesday by the Board of Trustees, who also agreed in a split vote to purchase a building at Kennett, Mo. Trustees have authorized Dr. ...

Expand Medicaid [website] If you could save a life of a stranger would you? If you could save the life of your neighbor, would you? It is time we, the citizens, of Missouri come together to address a pressing issue affecting each of us. It is time for Missouri to expand Medicaid. Currently over 877,000 Missourians are living without health insurance. Many of these people are hard working Missourians trying to make ends meet...

By GEORGE F. WILL MINNEAPOLIS -- Minnesota says it has 10,000 lakes. The state also has, according to Anthony Sanders, "10,000 campaign finance laws." He exaggerates, but understandably. As an attorney for Minnesota's chapter of the Institute for Justice, a libertarian public-interest law firm, Sanders represents several Minnesotans whose First Amendment rights of free speech and association are burdened by an obviously arbitrary, notably complex and certainly unconstitutional restriction...

By MICHELLE MALKIN Look out, everyone: The nation's school lunch lady, Michelle Obama, is mad. With her federal nutrition program under fire across the country and now on Capitol Hill, Mrs. Obama put out a "forceful" call to arms this week to "health activists," according to The Washington Post...

The month of May features Mother's Day, blooming irises, and end-of-school graduations. According to the Vegetable Planting Calendar, it's also the time to plant summer squash. You may plant anytime between May 1 and 30. People have loved the taste of squash for over 10,000 years. Christopher Columbus was the first westerner to discover this veggie and cultivation began in Europe shortly after the discovery of America...

Cheryl Allen, Brenda O'Connor, and Lisa Hackworth are the recipients of the John J. Pershing VA Medical Center's "Excellence in Nursing" awards. The awards, given at the end of National Nurses Week (May 6-12), are the culmination of a week-long effort to recognize the contributions of nurses in the care of America's Veterans...

Nominations currently are being accepted for Missouri's 24th Annual Outstanding Older Workers of the Year contest. Nominations must be Missouri residents who are age 60 or older, employed at least 20 hours a week at a Missouri job site while also being dependable and dedicated, with demonstrated success in learning new skills and job training. Regional winners will be selected from across the state and recognized in September during a two-day awards day ceremony in Jefferson City...

Today is Thursday, May 22, the 142nd day of 2014. There are 223 days left in the year. Today's Highlight in History: On May 22, 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson, speaking at the University of Michigan, outlined the goals of his "Great Society," saying that it "rests on abundance and liberty for all" and "demands an end to poverty and racial injustice."...

CHARLESTON -- After losing eight seniors from last year's district champion team, Scott City found a way to repeat by handing the ball to a freshman. With Braden Cox on the mound, the Rams beat Clearwater 5-2 in the MSHSAA Class 3 District 2 final Wednesday...

MALDEN -- One team took advantage of consecutive walks that loaded the bases after the other couldn't Wednesday in the MSHSAA Class 3 District 1 championship game. New Madrid Central escaped a bases-loaded jam, then broke a scoreless tie in the third inning with a pair of 2-run hits as the Eagles beat top-seeded Malden 6-1 to defend their title...

Ray named to Dean's List Ronnie Ray of Piedmont, Mo. was named to the College of the Ozarks Spring 2014 Dean's List. Ray is a Clearwater R-I High School graduate. To qualify for the Dean's List, students must maintain a 3.6 minimum grade point average during the semester and carry at least 15 credit hours...

James Collins NEELYVILLE, Mo.--James Junior Collins, 69, of Oxly Mo., died Tuesday, May 20, 2014 at his residence. Visitation will be at 6 p.m. Saturday at Fowler-Sullivan Memorial Chapel in Neelyville. Funeral service will at 2 p.m. Sunday in the chapel. Burial will be in Hvam Cemetery...

BERNIE -- Bernie's hit parade against state-ranked teams continued in the MSHSAA Class 2 District 3 final Wednesday afternoon. After scoring 18 runs against ninth-ranked Greenville in the semifinal Monday, the Mules matched that, plus four more runs as they ran away with their first district title since 2009 in a 22-10 beating of the second-ranked Chaffee Red Devils...

Wallace Bean DEXTER, Mo.--Wallace Gayle Bean, 93, of Dexter, died Monday, May 19, 2014, at the Bickford of Rockford Senior Living Center in Rockford, Ill. Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. Monday at Rainey-Mathis Funeral Home in Dexter. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday in the chapel with Dr. Steve Easterwood officiating...