Post Staff – Page 186 – St. Joseph Post Archive

Teenager pleads guilty to assault charge

Posted on May 24, 2017May 24, 2017

A St. Joseph teenager pleaded guilty Tuesday to an assault charge stemming from an altercation at Hyde Park in March involving a gathering of young people.

As we reported, police said Dakota Polley threatened a group of people at gunpoint demanding they return his drugs.

Polley’s attorney said the gun in question was not loaded, and no drugs were found. Polley, 18, pleaded guilty to a class-a misdemeanor charge of 4th-degree assault before Associate Circuit Judge Rebecca Spencer.

Judge Spencer followed the plea bargain and ordered two years probation, plus 20 days of shock time. Polley had already been in jail for 27 days, and was released Tuesday.

Temps in the 60s and 70s through the weekend

Posted on May 24, 2017

Below normal temperatures will continue today with isolated showers possible east of the greater Kansas City area. High pressure will build in overnight which will yield warmer and drier conditions on Thursday. Rain chances will return both Friday and Saturday with drier weather anticipated for the latter half of the upcoming weekend. Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:

Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 64. North wind 9 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph.

Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 47. North northwest wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm in the evening.

Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 76. Light south southeast wind becoming south 5 to 10 mph in the morning.

Thursday Night: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 60. Southeast wind 5 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Friday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1 p.m. Partly sunny, with a high near 78. Northeast wind 3 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

Friday Night: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 61. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Saturday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 75. Chance of precipitation is 40%.

Saturday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms before 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 55. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 75.

Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 55.

Memorial Day: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 75. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 53.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 73.

Police continue to investigate Quick Stop robbery

Posted on May 23, 2017May 23, 2017

The St. Joseph Police Department is searching for two suspects after a gas station was robbed Monday night.

Commander Eric Protzman said around 7:30 p.m. two suspects described as possibly black men robbed the Quick Stop located at 26th and Frederick. Protzman said the suspects threatened the cashier and got away with an undisclosed amount of money. He said it’s unknown if weapons were involved in the incident. Little other details were provided.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Tips Hotline at (816) 239-TIPS.

Accused accomplices in Eagle Fields break in appear in court

Posted on May 23, 2017May 23, 2017

Two men charged with misdemeanor stealing for a break in at Eagle Field May 15 appeared in court Tuesday. Michah Boykin and Allen Roach are each charged with one class-a misdemeanor count of stealing. Boykin appeared Tuesday before Associate Circuit Judge Rebecca Spencer. During the hearing, Boykin said he has applied for a public defender.

Judge Spencer entered a plea of not guilty on Boykin’s behalf, and scheduled the case for a trial-setting hearing on June 6. Boykin remains in custody, unable to post $5,000 cash bail.

Allen Roach appeared Tuesday before Associate Circuit Judge Keith Marquart, who scheduled the case for June 2. Roach said he would apply for a public defender. Judge Marquart entered a plea of not guilty. Roach also remains behind bars, unable to post $5,000 cash bail.

As we reported, the alleged mastermind appeared in court last week. Kallista Allen is scheduled for trial setting June 1.

First-degree murder trial underway in Buchanan County

Posted on May 23, 2017May 25, 2017

For the first time in nearly a decade, a criminal defendant is going on trial on a charge of first degree murder in St. Joe.

Charles Coats is charged in connection with the fatal shooting of Jason Ginn on August 1, 2015. The first degree murder charge includes an alternative count of second-degree murder.
He is also charged with armed criminal action.

Jury selection got underway Tuesday in the courtroom of Circuit Judge Patrick Robb. Trial evidence is expected to wrap up Thursday or Friday.

A pool of 42 potential jurors filled Judge Robb’s courtroom Tuesday, as lawyers asked them about any possible predispositions they might have, or their personal experience with crime.

As we reported, witnesses told police the pair were arguing in the 300 block of South 15th Street. An autopsy indicated Ginn was hit four times in various parts of his body, and died from a gunshot wound to the head.

He was originally charged with second-degree murder, but an amended complaint upgraded that charge to first degree murder.

A first-degree murder charge is rare in Buchanan County. The last time one went to trial was in 2009. Orlando Cruz was found guilty in the 2009 killing-for-hire of 23-year-old Antonio Maravilla-Vargas. Cruz was sentenced to life in prison without parole for first-degree murder and 100 years for armed criminal action.

Truck driver sentenced for huge cocaine delivery

Posted on May 23, 2017May 23, 2017

A truck driver was sentenced Monday to nearly four years in federal prison for hauling more than 44 pounds of cocaine through Kansas.

U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said Erick Omar Rios, 37, San Ysidro, Calif., pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine. In his plea, he admitted he was operating a tractor pulling a refrigerated trailer when he was stopped by the Kansas Highway Patrol.

Troopers found 10 vacuum wrapped packages containing 44 pounds of cocaine hidden in a cooling unit on the trailer. They learned Rios had picked up the load in Los Angeles to deliver to Plainfield, Ind. He was expecting to be paid $4,000 when he returned to Los Angeles.

On Monday a U.S. Judge in Kansas City, Kansas sentenced Rios to 46 months in federal prison.

Accused car thief appears in court

Posted on May 23, 2017May 23, 2017

A Wathena woman accused of taking a St. Joe man’s car, by swiping the keys from his house appeared in a Buchanan County courtroom Tuesday.

Kylie Barmann, 23, is charged with one felony count of stealing a motor vehicle. According to court documents, she was inside the victim’s home on North 20th Street May 12. The victim went into another room, he told police the defendant, his car keys, and his car were gone.

Barmann appeared via video conferencing before Associate Circuit Judge Keith Marquart. The judge entered a plea of not guilty on her behalf and scheduled the case for the preliminary hearing docket June 16. She will apply for a public defender.

Barmann is being held in the Buchanan County Jail, unable to post $7,500 bail.

Tuesday Tails: Kittens in need of foster homes (Video)

Posted on May 23, 2017

Man turns himself into police after child injured in alleged hit-and-run

Posted on May 23, 2017May 23, 2017

A 19-year-old has turned himself into authorities after a hit-and run incident that injured an 8-year-old girl Sunday on the south side of St. Joseph.

Commander Eric Protzman with the St. Joseph Police Department said Khaury Elamin has been issued city summons’ for leaving the scene, careless driving, and no insurance. He was also arrested for a municipal warrant. Elamin surrendered to authorities Monday afternoon.

As we previously reported, police began searching for a man after a child was hit Sunday around 7:30 p.m. while trying to cross the street in the 6400 block of S. 24th St. to meet her mother. The impact spun the child around and injured her foot. She was taken to the hospital for treatment of what was described as a moderate injury. The vehicle left the scene.

Chance of rain continues through Wednesday

Posted on May 23, 2017

Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms will persist today as an upper-level storm system moves over the area. Lingering rain showers are possible on Wednesday before high pressure brings improving conditions and warmer temperatures by Thursday. Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:

Today: A slight chance of showers, then scattered showers and thunderstorms after 1 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 62. North northwest wind 8 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

Tonight: Isolated showers before 10 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49. North northwest wind 8 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Wednesday: A slight chance of showers before 1 p.m. Partly sunny, with a high near 65. North northwest wind 8 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 48. North wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm in the evening.

Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 75. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 9 mph in the morning.

Thursday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 59. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

Friday: Partly sunny, with a high near 79.

Friday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 61. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Saturday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 75. Chance of precipitation is 40%.

Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 57.

Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 75.

Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 55.

Memorial Day: Mostly sunny, with a high near 76.