A lawyer on Friday asked a judge to reduce a shooting suspect’s bail so he can become a jail trusty. Assistant Public Defender Mitchel Jenkins said during a hearing Friday that his client Owen Roberts will not be able to afford bail. But, with bail denied in the case, Jenkins says Roberts can’t get the trusty position.

Associate Circuit Judge Keith Marquart refused to set bond in the case, saying Roberts poses a continuing danger to the community.

Roberts now faces four felony counts for the shootings of Ricky Snedden and Terry Madewell in May of last year. Both victims suffered serious injuries from the shootings at 924 Prospect Ave. As we reported June 16, prosecutors filed enhanced charges against Roberts after the defendant insisted on taking the case to trial.

Mitchel requested a preliminary hearing in the case, now scheduled July 18 at 3 pm.

Roberts is being held without bail in the Buchanan County Jail.

An unusual firearms case advanced to Buchanan County Circuit Court Friday.

Curtis Hagey is being held without bail on one count of unlawful use of a firearm, for an incident June 6 in St. Joe. Police say Hagey fired a shot into the air from his SUV outside a woman’s apartment, then shot himself, and then threw his gun out of his car window.

In a probable cause statement, police say Hagey admitted to “consuming and using drugs” prior to the shooting. “He tested positive for marijuana, methamphetamine, benzo’s and opiates,” according to the statement.

In the statement, St. Joseph Police Det. Jeff Pearl said Hagey went to the parking lot of an apartment building on Lafayette where his child’s mother lives. He then allegedly “…shot one bullet from a handgun into the air from his 2014 Nissan Pathfinder.” The affidavit said that after firing a shot in the air “…he shot himself in the leg with a second bullet, causing himself physical injury.”

“He left the scene and threw his gun out of his car window,” the court statement said. “His .38 caliber Colt revolver was located by officers in the 3300 block of Messanie Street.”

In a hearing Friday, Hagey waived his preliminary hearing and asked the judge to set bond in the case. Associate Circuit Judge Keith Marquart refused. The judge noted court documents asserting Hagey’s seven arrests for failure to appear in court, and an active warrant for failure to appear when he was arrested.

But for Marquart, it went beyond that. “When people misuse guns, it needs to be taken seriously,” Marquart said. “You are a danger to the community.”

The judge certified the case for trial or plea in Circuit Court. Arraignment is scheduled July 17 before Circuit Judge Patrick Robb.

A corrections officer appeared in a Buchanan County courtroom Friday to face felony charges involving the alleged sexual abuse of a seven-year-old girl over the course of five years.

Roger Briggs, 35, is charged with first-degree sodomy, an unclassified felony which carries a mandatory 30-year minimum sentence and a possible life prison term upon conviction. As we reported, a probable cause statement filed in the case asserts that Briggs “…has been sexually abusive to the victim spanning a 5 year period of time,” and has said in messages that he “…would like to remain in the victim’s life.”

Bail in the case remains set at $75,000 with a $25,000 cash deposit. Associate Judge Keith Marquart read the charge to Briggs during an initial court appearance Friday. Briggs said he has applied for a public defender. He remains behind bars awaiting a preliminary hearing docket call July 14 at 11 am.

A judge has now certified for Circuit Court the child-molestation charges against a St. Joseph man. A judge on Friday refused to reduce the bail set earlier for Ryan Frye. The 19-year-old St. Joe man is charged second-degree child molestation, a class-b felony. The charge carries a range of punishment on conviction of from five to 15 years. Frye is accused of molesting a young girl under the age of 12.

Bail was set earlier at $50,000 with a $5,000 cash deposit. During a preliminary hearing docket call Friday, Associate Judge Keith Marquart refused to reduce bail.

Frye waived his preliminary hearing. Judge Marquart scheduled arraignment July 20 at 8:30 am before Circuit Judge Daniel Kellogg.

A judge on Friday refused to change his mind on bail for two St. Joe parents charged with child endangerment. Margaret and Edward Maples appeared on the preliminary hearing docket before Associate Judge Keith Marquart, who had raised bail for each defendant during their first appearance. In April, their young child was discovered with severe bleeding and infections on her feet.

Prosecutors say the youngster required emergency surgery and could have lost some toes to the infection. Officials say the victim and a sibling have been taken into state custody several times in the past.

The parents were arrested earlier this month. On Friday, both defendants waived their preliminary hearings and were certified for trial or plea in Circuit Court. Arraignment is scheduled July 17.

A St. Joe teen charged after an incident involving the death of his baby waived his preliminary hearing Friday.

Franklin Skeen, 17, is charged with possession of a controlled substance. Police say he and the mother tested positive for marijuana and benzodiazepines, according to court documents. Police seized what officials called “Xanax bars” from the couple’s home.

On the day of his arrest, authorities say Skeen cursed and threatened officers as he pushed his way back into the house, emerging later with what turned out to be a bb gun.

Skeen’s baby died on June 1, allegedly from “overlay” from co-sleeping with the parents. The mother, Kyla Watson is charged with child endangerment. Watson was freed on $15,000 bail earlier this week. She’s scheduled for Circuit Court arraignment August 10.

Bail was denied for Skeen, and on Friday Associate Circuit Judge Keith Marquart denied a motion to set bail in the case. Marquart ruled earlier that Skeen was a danger to the community, after learning of the threats to police, as well as firearms and drugs found in the house. Officials say the crib may never have been used, but in it they found an AK-47.

Skeen waived his right to a preliminary hearing in the case. Marquart scheduled Circuit Court arraignment for the defendant July 20 before Judge Daniel Kellogg.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reports a close call for a Gentry County man during this week’s flooding.

Troopers responded to a call for assistance from the Gentry County Sheriff’s Department shortly after 9am Thursday. The man had been walking along 285th Street west of Route B when he was swept into the flood water. He was found clinging to a tree above the water line.

A trooper wearing swift-water gear entered the water and threw the man a life jacket and rope. Just after 10 am, the Missouri Department of Conservation arrived with a boat. Two agents and one trooper retried the man. The victim refused medical attention.

The patrol says situations like this have ended in tragedy in the past. They say pedestrians should never attempt to wade through moving flood waters.