Missouri joins five other states in a regional speed-enforcement campaign starting Friday. They’re hoping to catch speeding drivers in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

The campaign will run Friday through Sunday.

Officers will be concentrating on high traffic roadways in the effort to reduce speeding-related auto crashes.

Authorities say 27 percent of crash fatalities nationwide in 2015 were related to speeding of driving too fast for conditions and that 86 percent of all speeding-related traffic fatalities were on roads where the posted speed limits were 55 miles per hour or lower.

(staff and wire reports)

A crash in Harrison County early Friday morning sent an 87-year-old Wisconsin woman to the hospital.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol says a semi crashed into the rear of a car along I-35 near Bethany at about 12:15 a.m. Two people in the car were hurt.

According to the crash report, the passenger, Mary Ann Johnson, 87, of Heartland, Wisconsin suffered moderate injuries, and was transported to the Harrison County Community Hospital.

The driver of the car, 56-year-old Paula Knuth of Grafton, Wisconsin, complained of neck and back pain, but refused medical treatment at the scene.

The driver of the semi was not hurt.

St. Joseph Police say a 15-year-old suspect is in custody in connection with the crash of a stolen vehicle early Wednesday morning.

Capt. Jeff Wilson says a juvenile was taken into custody shortly after the incident.

On Wednesday, officials said the suspect spotted a police officer and sped off, later crashing the stolen vehicle in the 3100 block of Woodbine Road, and fleeing on foot.

The case has been turned over to the Buchanan County Juvenile Office.

A St. Joseph man appeared in court Thursday for arraignment on one count of second degree murder in connection with the fatal shootings of Kevilee Villegas and Raymond Gonzalez on Safari Drive in July. Through an interpreter and his attorney, Omar Martinez-Velez entered a plea of not guilty. Judge Daniel Kellogg scheduled the case for trial setting November 17.

The defendant is one of five people charged with the killings. All five are being held without bail.

He is the third of the five suspects to be bound over to Circuit Court after waiving their preliminary hearings. Luz Figueroa-Castillo is scheduled for a trial setting September 26, while Luis Omar Robles-Vargas is scheduled for circuit court arraignment September 29.

Preliminary hearings scheduled for Alexi Martinez-Andino and Raymond Jimenez Bencebi Jr. have been continued.

According to court documents all five of the defendants were in the area of Lion Rd. and Safari Dr. on the morning of July 17. Multiple rounds were fired from several weapons striking and causing the death of the two victims. Each defendant is accused of firing numerous rounds at the victims striking both of them.