Post Staff – Page 506 – St. Joseph Post Archive

Planned road work for northwest Missouri, May 7 – 13

Posted on May 6, 2018May 4, 2018

Missouri Department of Transportation Northwest District.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The following is a listing of general highway maintenance and construction work in the Northwest Missouri region planned for the week of May 7 – 13 from the Missouri Department of Transportation. In addition to the work listed below, there may be pothole patching, shoulder work, bridge maintenance, striping, brush cutting, guardrail repairs, litter pick up and other road work conducted throughout the region. Many of these will be moving operations and could include lane closures with delays. All scheduled maintenance and construction projects are subject to change.

MoDOT reminds the public to stay alert, watch for road work, buckle up, slow down, and drive with extreme caution through work zones and in changing weather conditions.

For more information about a project, please contact MoDOT at 1-888-ASK-MoDOT (888-275-6636) or visit modot.org/northwest. You can also follow MoDOT’s Northwest Missouri District on Twitter @ModotNorthwest and on Facebook.

Andrew County

Interstate 29 – Bridge deck replacement project at the Nodaway River Bridge. Traffic is head to head in the northbound lanes. This traffic pattern will be in place through August and includes a 13-foot width restriction.
U.S. Route 71 – Resurfacing project from Route 48 to Route A (Nodaway County), May 7 – 12

Atchison County

I-29 – Flushing bridges, May 7 – 11. This includes a 12-foot width restriction.
U.S. Route 275 – Drainage work, May 9 – 11

Buchanan County

Route DD – Pothole patching at 43rd Service Road, May 7 – 8
I-229 and U.S. Route 36 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, May 7 – 10
Route 752 – Sidewalk project at Pryor Avenue, May 9 – 11

Caldwell County

U.S. Route 36 – Pavement repair from Grindstone Creek (DeKalb County) to Sale Barn Road east of Cameron, May 7 – 11
Route 116 – Shoulder work from Route A to U.S. Route 69 (Clinton County), May 7 – 11
Route A – Shoulder work, May 7 – 11
U.S. Route 36 – Bridge maintenance at the Long Branch Bridge, May 7 – 12

Carroll County

U.S. Route 65 – Pothole patching from the city limits of Carrollton to County Road 368, May 7 – 9
U.S. Route 65 – Bridge maintenance at Shootman Creek Bridge, May 7 – 10. This will include overnight lane closures and a temporary traffic signal has been installed to direct traffic.
Route NN – Shoulder work from Route 139 to the end of state maintenance, May 10 – 11
Route D – Pothole patching from Route C to U.S. Route 36 (Livingston County), May 10 – 11

Chariton County

Route E – Pothole patching from Route 5 to the Macon County line, May 10 – 11

Clinton County

Route 116 – Shoulder work from Route A (Caldwell County) to U.S. Route 69, May 7 – 11

DeKalb County

U.S. Route 36 – Pavement resurfacing and realignment project at the Route 33 North/Route M junction. Traffic is head to head in the eastbound lanes. This traffic pattern will be in place through July 3 and includes a 14-foot width restriction.
U.S. Route 36 – Guardrail improvements from the Buchanan County line to 1.4 miles west of Route N near Stewartsville, May 7 – 11
U.S. Route 36 – Pavement repair in the eastbound lanes from SW Taylor Road west of Stewartsville to the Route 33 North/Route M junction, May 7 – 11
U.S. Route 36 – Pavement repair from Grindstone Creek to Sale Barn Road east of Cameron (Caldwell County), May 7 – 11

Gentry County

Route V – CLOSED for pavement resurfacing from Route AA to Route H, May 9, 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Route V – CLOSED for pavement resurfacing from Route AA to U.S. Route 169, May 10, 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Grundy County

U.S. Route 65 – Resurfacing project from the north city limits of Chillicothe to the Iowa state line, May 7 – 11. This includes a 12-foot width restriction.

Harrison County

Route EE – CLOSED for a bridge replacement project at the Muddy Creek Bridge. The road will be closed through May.

Holt County

I-29 – Bridge deck replacement at the Nodaway River Bridge. Traffic is head to head in the northbound lanes. This traffic pattern will be in place through August and includes a 13-foot width restriction.
U.S. Route 59 – CLOSED for a bridge replacement project at the Davis Creek Bridge. The road will be closed through June.

Linn County

Route B – Pothole patching from Route 5 to Route 139, May 7
Route WW – Pothole patching from Route 5 to the Macon County line, May 9
Route V – Pothole patching from Route M to Route C, May 9 – 10
Route C – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route M to Harbor Drive, May 10, 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Livingston County

Route C – Pothole patching from Route Z to U.S. Route 36, May 7
U.S. Route 65 – Resurfacing project from the north city limits of Chillicothe to the Iowa state line, May 7 – 11. This includes a 12-foot width restriction.
Route DD – Pothole patching from Route C to Route D, May 9
Route D – Pothole patching from Route C (Carroll County) to U.S. Route 36, May 10 – 11

Mercer County

U.S. Route 65 – Resurfacing project from the north city limits of Chillicothe to the Iowa state line, May 7 – 11. This includes a 12-foot width restriction.

Nodaway County

Route 148 – Pothole patching from U.S. Route 71 to the end of state maintenance, May 7
Route 246 – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route AC to Leopard Road, May 7, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
U.S. Route 71 – Resurfacing project from Route A to just north of Route 48 (Andrew County), May 7 – 12
Route 246 – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Route AC to Leopard Road, May 9, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Route NN – Pothole patching from Route 46 to Route E, May 9
U.S. Route 71 – Shoulder work, May 9 – 11
Route 246 – CLOSED for a culvert replacement from Lion Road to Mercury Road, May 10 – 11, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily
Route NN – Pothole patching from Route E to Route 148, May 10 – 11

Sullivan County

Route 129 – Resurfacing project from Route 6 to Route H, May 7 – 12. This includes a 10-foot width restriction. A pilot car and flaggers will direct traffic through the work zone.

Worth County

Route M – Shoulder work from Route C to Route EE, May 9 – 11
Route 46 – Drainage work at Indigo Road, May 10
Route F – Drainage work one mile north of Route 46, May 11

Kansas elections to see more third-party donors

Posted on May 6, 2018May 6, 2018

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Races for the Kansas Legislature and other state offices this year will be flooded with campaign spending from third-party organizations that can spend unlimited amounts of money without having to disclose their donor lists.

Four former governors, including two Democrats and two Republicans, are supporting the Save Kansas Coalition, a network of 11 separate groups dedicated to electing more Democrats and moderate Republicans to the Legislature.

Some of the groups include the MainStream Coalition, Stand Up Blue Valley, Game On for Kansas Schools, Women for Kansas, and Reroute the Roadmap.

“We got involved — we, the former governors — by joining in and being supportive of what they were doing. We didn’t put it together,” said former Gov. John Carlin, a Democrat who served from 1978 to 1987. “These groups put it together.”

Carlin said one of the coalition’s main goals is to counter the large amounts of third-party money that is already being spent by conservative groups, including the Kansas Chapter of Americans for Prosperity.

He said the coalition was established out of frustration over the 2014 election, when a large number of moderate Republicans had united behind Democrat Paul Davis of Lawrence, hoping to unseat incumbent Gov. Sam Brownback.

Both the Save Kansas Coalition and AFP are organized as nonprofit, tax-exempt “social welfare” organizations under a federal tax code that allows them to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money, as long as they don’t spend more than half their funds on political activity.

NE Kansas woman dies in ATV accident

Posted on May 6, 2018May 6, 2018

MARSHALL COUNTY — One person died in an accident just before 4a.m. Sunday in Marshall County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2008 Yamaha ATV driven by Adams D. Weston, 27, Frankfort, was in a field east of U.S 87 and five miles south of U.S. 36.

The ATV left the field and entered the roadway from the east ditch traveling southbound.

The driver turned around and began traveling northbound on U.S. 87, crossed into the east ditch and rolled.

The passenger Arianna Lynn Martin, 22, Frankfort, was ejected. The ATV came to rest on top of her, according to the KHP.

Martin was transported to Community Memorial Health Care where she died. Authorities released no additional details.

Police: St. Joseph man dies in alleged road rage incident

Posted on May 6, 2018May 6, 2018

Lee’s Summit, Mo. —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a road rage incident involving a St. Joseph man.

This is the victim’s 2003 Chevrolet Silverado extended cab Z71 edition. At the time of the incident, the victim had a large, zero turn mower in the bed of the truck-photo courtesy Lee’s Summit Police

Just after 7:30 p.m. Saturday, emergency crews were dispatched to the area of northbound M-291 Highway near the Interstate 470 merger on the report of a man stumbling in traffic, according to Lee’s Summit Police.

When crews arrived they found a man who had collapsed in the inner median; the man identified as 24-year-old Cody M. Harter of St. Joseph was pronounced dead at the scene. At this point investigators have the man’s truck which was found on the shoulder of the roadway.

Detectives have interviewed a handful of witnesses who described what they saw as a possible road rage incident. They reported seeing another vehicle stopped in front of Harter’s vehicle, according to a media release from police. Harter and the suspect were arguing outside of their vehicles. It is believed that Harter suffered a single stab wound to the chest during the altercation and stumbled back into the lanes of traffic where he died.

Cody M. Harter is a member of the USAF Reserves and had been deployed overseas.-photo courtesy Lee’s Summit police

The suspect and suspect vehicle then fled north on I-470. Police are asking anyone that was travelling along I-470 Saturday night around 7:30 p.m. or anyone that may have seen the victim’s vehicle travelling north on M-291 from 50 Highway to call and speak with Detectives. The number to call is 816-969-1705.

Mo. AG must pay to send investigator to Mexico for man accused in 2-state murder spree

Posted on May 6, 2018May 6, 2018

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A judge will allow lawyers for a man accused of a two-state murder spree to send an investigator to Mexico to research the man’s childhood and background, and he has ordered the attorney general’s office in Missouri to pay most of the cost.

Pablo Serrano-Vitorino goes to trial in October in the March 2016 death of a Montgomery County, Missouri, man. He also is accused of killing four men in Kansas. He could face the death penalty in the Missouri case.

Serrano-Vitorino is a Mexican nationally who was in the U.S. illegally when the killings occurred.

Judge Steven Ohmer has ruled that the attorney general’s office must pay up to $40,000 of the estimated $59,000 price for the investigation in Mexico.

MDC to offer free Loess Hills Timber and Prairie Field Day

Posted on May 6, 2018May 5, 2018

Loess hills bordering the Missouri River valley in northwest Missouri have forest, woodland, and prairie habitats. The prairie’s have native plants normally found in grasslands in states further west, such as the pink blooming locoweed. Photo courtesy Bill Graham, Missouri Department of Conservation.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The loess hills of northwest Missouri offer unique topography and native plant communities.

Landowners can see examples of how to manage both timber and grasslands on the steep slopes or ridge tops when the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) hosts the free Loess Hill Timber and Prairie Field Day beginning at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 12, at the Jamerson C. McCormack Conservation Area in Holt County.

According to a press release, loess hills in Holt and Atchison counties are a unique geographic landmark. Sometimes the slopes are covered in forest dominated by oak and hickory trees, or they may be more open woodlands. Also the west-facing slopes are hosts to Missouri’s only dry-land prairie remnants, natural areas that often have prairie species normally found farther west.

MDC foresters will begin the workshop by taking participants on a walk through forest. They will cover topics such as timber stand improvement, timber sales, and how to obtain a forest stewardship plan.

Photo courtesy Bill Graham, Missouri Department of Conservation.

A free lunch will be provided by MDC. The McCormack Conservation Area is located off U.S. 159 highway south of Loess Bluffs National Wildlife Refuge near Mound City.

The afternoon session will focus on loess hill prairie restoration. A walking tour will showcase what MDC has accomplished preserving and restoring prairie species. The benefits and challenges associated with prairie restoration will be covered. MDC staff will also discuss cost share opportunities for both forest and prairie improvements.

For more information and to RSVP, contact Jim Pierson, MDC private land conservationist, 660-442-3173, ext. 114, or jim.pierson@mdc.mo.gov.

MDC has several programs to assist private landowners with wildlife and habitat improvements on their property. For more information, visit mdc.mo.gov/property.

Kan. Sheriff’s Deputies Driving Hours To Get Kids A Place to Sleep

Posted on May 6, 2018May 5, 2018

By MADELINE FOX & SAM ZEFF

In the last year, the number of Cherokee County Kansas children in state custody shot up by roughly half.

The places available for those kids to stay, meanwhile, hasn’t changed.

So that’s meant shipping them two hours away — and regularly taking deputies from the 19-person sheriff’s department off patrol to drive the children to Andover, Kansas — the closest place available with any room.

Cherokee County Sheriff David Groves took his frustration to Twitter this week after he had to dispatch a deputy four counties away so a child flagged for possible entry into the state’s care could have a place to sleep.

Groves said that was the sixth time he’d had to pull one of his deputies for that drive in just over a week.

“Our kids deserve better & our community deserves to have cops that are able to serve them,” he said in the Tweet.

Pulled another deputy off the road last night to spend hours driving a child to Andover, due to lack of area foster homes. Our kids deserve better & our community deserves to have cops that are available to serve them. This is the 6th time in just over a week. #ksleg @DCFKansas

— Sheriff David Groves (@SheriffGroves) April 29, 2018

Children can land in police protective custody for a variety of reasons. Maybe they’re found wandering unsupervised, or both parents are in jail. Perhaps a car accident injured all their caretakers.

They can stay in police protective custody for 72 hours, excluding weekends and holidays. To go from there to the Department for Children and Families’ custody, they need to appear before a judge who decides whether to hand them off to the agency.

In the past, the Cherokee County sheriff’s office was able to lean on local resources to keep those kids closer to home. Local foster homes, local family members or other adults the kids trusted could offer them a home for a few days.

Cherokee County Undersheriff Terry Clugston said that started changing in January. In the past month, the department has been transporting children to Andover — or occasionally as far away as Topeka — at least once a week.

“It’s just continued to progress to where it’s like everyone that we pick up now is going out to central Kansas,” Clugston said. “Which has, in turn, caused us to have to call out officers to cover shifts and endure the extra overtime and manpower issues with transporting these kids so far away.”

The number of foster homes in Cherokee County hasn’t changed much. A DCF spokeswoman said there are 40 homes in the county as of Wednesday, one more than a year before.

That hasn’t kept pace with the number of kids in care.

Last fiscal year, 48 children in the county entered DCF custody. This year, it’s up to 62 in just the first nine months. That doesn’t include kids pulled into police protective custody who didn’t end up in DCF’s care.

At the same time, kids aren’t leaving DCF custody fast enough to keep up.

A spokeswoman for KVC, the contractor managing foster placements in the eastern half of the state, said their 40 foster homes in the county are nearly all at or over capacity.

Families can open their homes to kids in police protective custody without having to go through the full licensing process necessary for a foster home.

In roughly the past year, neighboring Crawford County has added 10 homes that will take in kids in police protective custody. The faith-based nonprofit Global Orphan Project helped recruit families there. It’s consulted with counties across the state to set up similar programs.

Tate Williams, the state director for Global Orphan, said Cherokee County can do the same — local law enforcement would just have to set rules for designating someone an “appropriate adult” to take a child in police protective custody.

Williams said in other counties where the Global Orphan Project has helped set up homes, that’s included a background check, a home walk-through, and a one-day training in handling traumatized kids and the basics of the child welfare legal system.

A spokeswoman for DCF said the agency is aware of the ongoing need for more foster families across the state.

“All areas of the state are in need of additional placement options, Cherokee County included,” she said in an email.

She added that DCF is actively seeking additional homes and facilities in that region.

Sam Zeff is KCUR’s Metro Reporter. You can follow Sam on Twitter @samzeff.

Madeline Fox is a reporter for the Kansas News Service. You can reach her on Twitter @maddycfox.

Mo. woman dies after motorcycle crash at gas station fuel pump

Posted on May 5, 2018May 6, 2018

MONTGOMERY COUNTY — One person died in an accident just after 10:30 a.m. Friday in Montgomery County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2012 Harley Davidson Switchback motorcycle driven by Robin L. Rupp, 52, Danville, was southbound on Missouri Highway 61 in Danville.

The motorcycle traveled onto the gas station property into the fuel pump island, overturned and ejected the driver.

Rupp was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Schlanker Funeral Home in Montgomery City.

Columbia police: Officer fired gun at suspected shooter

Posted on May 5, 2018May 5, 2018

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – Police in central Missouri say a Columbia officer fired his service weapon at a suspect after officers responding to a disturbance encountered gunfire.

Columbia police say the officers were approaching a crowd of people early Saturday in a parking lot when shots rang out. Police say a 31-year-old man was shot, and officers engaged a 27-year-old suspect, with one officer firing his weapon. The suspect fled to nearby woods and was later found with a gunshot wound.

Both injured men were taken to a hospital and are expected to recover.

Police say it’s unclear whether the suspect was shot by the officer or someone else. Internal affairs and the Criminal Investigations Division are investigating. No arrests had been made by Saturday afternoon.

Kansas man arrested for alleged phone harassment

Posted on May 5, 2018May 5, 2018

JACKSON COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect on multiple charges following an arrest.

On Thursday evening, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office Deputies arrested Dave Lamoine Dugan, 54, of Hoyt. Dugan was arrested at his residence on an outstanding Jackson County District Court warrant for telephone harassment, according to Sheriff Tim Morse.

At the time of the arrest, deputies began to investigate possible drug activity at the residence located at 9410 T.4 Road.

Deputies seized drug related items from the property. Dugan was booked into the Jackson County Jail on the following charges: possession of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana, cultivation, possession of drug paraphernalia, distribution of marijuana, interference with law enforcement, and telephone harassment. Dugan was released on $10,000.00 bond.