The Buchanan County Sheriff’s Department has identified the body of a man pulled from the Platte River Saturday evening as 28-year-old Richard James Berry.
Authorities responded around 11:45 p.m. Saturday to the area of the Third Fork River on Easton/Saxton Road in reference to a body found in the river.
There, deputies found Berry deceased.
Buchanan County Sheriff Mike Strong said there was trauma to the body but he would not say if Berry was dead at the scene or died later after he was pulled from the river.
Authorities said a large blood stain was visible on the bridge.
The Department said evidence found at the scene indicates that Berry was murdered.
An autopsy is scheduled for later today.
Anyone with information about the incident or Berry’s recent whereabouts it asked to contact the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Dept. or the TIPS Hotline at (816) 238-TIPS (8477).
MARYVILLE, Mo. – A new feature that is tens of millions years old now greets students, faculty and visitors entering the Garrett-Strong Science Building at Northwest Missouri State University.
Northwest’s Loess Hills Student Chapter of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) on Friday, April 24, formally dedicated the grouping of five limestone fence posts in a flower bed in front of Garrett-Strong. The posts are arranged to represent a compass, which is an integral part of geologic mapping.
“We wanted to set something up that would look aesthetically pleasing and be kind of unusual,” said Dr. John Pope, an associate professor of geology at Northwest and the AAPG student chapter’s advisor.
Pope said the organization had sought to secure a set of limestone fence posts for the campus for several years. Through a University connection, the AAPG chapter finally made that vision a reality this year and organized fundraisers to pay for the fence posts. The sculpture at Northwest is believed to be the only one of its kind in the Midwest.
“It was awesome to see everybody get involved and rally around this because this is something that is really important and this is something that is going to be around the building for as long as this school is here,” Mary Carol Rose, the outgoing AAPG president and a senior geology major from Omaha, Neb., said.
Each post, while mounted and set on a concrete footing, stands about 5 feet tall and weighs 400 to 600 pounds.
Photos courtesy NWMS
A closer study of the fence posts, however, reveals a deeper story that dates back at least 70 million years to the Cretaceous Period. Fossils are captured up and down each post, showing evidence of mytiloid and inoceramid clams and cephalopod shells that inhabited a seaway covering parts of Kansas during the Cretaceous Period.
The rock formations, commonly known as Fencepost limestone, are quarried from a layer known as Greenhorn Limestone that measures about 1 foot thick and lies just a few feet below the surface.
During the mid-1800s, farmers began settling and raising crops across the ranges of Kansas. But with few trees available to cut fence posts, farmers began quarrying the limestone to cut instead. Eventually, 30,000 to 50,000 miles of limestone fencing was erected across the region, Pope said.
Pope estimates the fence posts installed at Northwest, which came from north central Kansas, are more than a century old, while notches from the wire fencing that once wrapped around them are sawed into their sides.
Northwest’s Loess Hills Student Chapter, founded by Pope, is one of about 50 to 70 AAPG student chapters throughout the world. With the support of fundraisers, scholarships and grants, the chapter works to foster scientific research, advance geology, promote technology and inspire high professional conduct.
The Opera Workshop at Missouri Western State University is presenting “La Tragédie de Carmen.”
It’s a 90-minute version of Bizet’s famous “Carmen,” adapted by famed stage director Peter Brook. It will be presented without intermission and in its original French, with English surtitles.
“‘Carmen’ is a very big opera, with a huge cast and chorus, and Brook was looking for a way to do the show in his small, intimate theater in Paris,” said Dr. Susan Carter, associate professor of music and director of the production. “So he went back to the novella on which Bizet based his opera and stripped it down to its essentials, with a cast of four singers and three actors. All of the famous music that people recognize even if they’ve never been to the opera remain, but ‘La Tragédie de Carmen’ is more intimate, challenging and direct.”
The performance will take place at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, May 1 and 2, and 3 p.m. Sunday, May 3 at the Restoration Church, 117 Francis Street in downtown St. Joseph.
Suggested donations for admission are $10 for adults and $5 for students and seniors.
The venue for Missouri Western’s production will provide its own “unique theatrical experience,” Dr. Carter said. Restoration Church meets in a former warehouse and natatorium (indoor swimming pool) that church members are restoring to a public space where people can experience and appreciate the city’s unique history.
“From the outside the building doesn’t look like much, but when you go inside, it’s huge,” Dr. Carter said. “I fell in love with the space. What they are doing there is truly phenomenal. We’ll have seats arranged in a semi-circle so everyone is very close to the action.”
A 10-piece orchestra conducted by Dr. Matthew Edwards, director of keyboard studies, will accompany a talented cast, including:
Carmen: Kaitlyn Christian, senior music major of St. Joseph
Don José: Donovan Jones, senior music major of Tarkio, Missouri
Micaela: Lauren Bergman, junior music major (Friday/Sunday) and Sarah Waters, 2014 music graduate (Saturday), both from St. Joseph
Escamillo: Dr. Eric Angerhofer, voice and musical theatre faculty
Zuniga: Thomas Delgado, junior theatre and cinema major from Kearney, Missouri
Lillas Pastia: Deir Montiel, junior education major from Mexico
Garcia: Turki Alqahtani, graduate student from Saudi Arabia
Several area bowling alleys are kicking off summer programs to give kids more affordable activities.
Belt Bowl and Olympia Lanes are taking part in the Kids Bowl Free program which provides coupons redeemable at the bowling alley for kids to bowl two free games each day.
“We have a lot of kids that came in last year,” Brenda Burks with Belt Sports Complex said. “This is something that they can do throughout the summer and if they’re having a good time and enjoying it they can get into a league and join a league in the fall and it’s something they can continue on with.”
Belt Bowl kicked its program off a little early this year. The program started April 1 and will run until September 30th.
“All they have to do is just show us their phone and we give them a pin number and they redeem their coupons right from their phone,” Burks said.
Olympia Lanes will also take part in the program. General Manager Michael White said they plan to run it from May 1 until the end of September.
“It’s free just to get the kids in here and enjoying the sport and giving them something to do and also giving them a place to come and get some exercise,” White said. “Youth is an essential part of our growth in in the industry. We have to have kids to take over for adults who retire or quit.”
To sign-up for the free bowling coupons from either bowling alley CLICK HERE.
Oak Grove Tree Planting. Courtesy SJSD/Stephanie Lux
Students at Oak Grove Elementary got a chance to celebrate Arbor Day with the planting of a tree.
In honor of National Arbor Day the city of St. Joseph, NW Regional Missouri Community Forestry Council and the Missouri Department of Conservation came out to help fourth grade students at Oak Grove Elementary plant a tree.
The tree was donated by Mike Myers.
St. Joseph was also recognized as a Tree City USA for the 22nd Year. According to the city in order to receive that designation a community must have a tree care ordinance, tree board or department, community forestry program with
Oak Grove Celebrates Arbor Day. Photo courtesy SJSD/Stephanie Lux
an annual budget of at least $2 per capita, and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation.
Hausman said the project currently has five businesses committed to locating in the development. Speedy’s World Headquarters is one of those expected to relocate to the development. Hausman was unwilling to share the names of the other commitments but said a major brand flag hotel with 108 rooms, several restaurants not already in St. Joseph, and retail establishments are also in the works.
Starting Monday Hausman said work will begin again.
“The bulldozers sitting here they’re turned loose,” Hausman said. “Come Monday they’re supposed to be running.”
Tuscany Village Project gained approval by St. Joseph City Council in 2005. However, due to the downward turn of the economy Hausman said the project was put on hold in 2007.
Streets and utilities are set to go in immediately. That is expected to be completed by fall of this year.
Hausman said buildings will then be constructed with some estimated for opening in late spring of 2016.
A sex offender was arrested Tuesday in Chillicothe after failing to register.
The Livingston County Sheriff’s Office said it began investigating from a tip that a local registered sex offender was allegedly not reporting accurate information and not living where he had reported and was actually living in close proximity to a school.
41-year-old Richard Lee Johnson Jr. was taken into custody in the 400 block of Calhoun St.
He was arrested on a warrant for two felony counts for failing to register as a sex offender and one felony count of alleged sex offender residing within 1,000 feet of a school/daycare.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s sex offender registry, Johnson was convicted in 2001 at the age of 27 for an offense of indecent exposure involving a 14-year-old girl in Iowa.
Johnson is currently in custody in the Daviess-Dekalb County Regional jail being held on $5,000 cash bond.
The St. Joseph Police Department is warning residents to be aware of a 911 spoof that has already impacted several in the area.
According to the SJPD several citizens have reported receiving calls from the department.
“The caller id made it appear that the calls came from the police department when they did not,” the dept. said in a news release.
The callers allegedly told the citizens that they had warrants for their arrest and needed to bring money to the police station to take care of the situation.
SJPD said if you are actually contacted by police in reference to outstanding warrants police will never ask you to send money anywhere.
The department said if anyone has questions about the validity of a phone call received from the police department that before taking any action to contact police to confirm the information presented.
Police said this scam is not isolated to the St. Joseph community but is also taking place in other jurisdictions.
Today
Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 5pm. Cloudy, with a high near 65. South southeast wind 13 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Tonight
Showers and thunderstorms. Low around 55. East southeast wind 11 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.
Saturday
A chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 63. Southeast wind 13 to 15 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 22 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Saturday Night
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 43. North northeast wind 11 to 13 mph.
Sunday
Partly sunny, with a high near 62. East wind 13 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph.
Sunday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 40.
Monday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 63.
Monday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 42.
Tuesday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 66.
Tuesday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 46.
Wednesday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 69.
Wednesday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 48.
