A hearing to talk about a tax rate increase will be held Monday by the St. Joseph School District.

“We have the yearly tax rate hearing.  You’re required to do this by statute before September 1 to set your rates for the upcoming fiscal year, 16-17 in this case,” said Dr. Robert Newhart, Superintendent with the St. Joseph School District. “We’ve taken a hard analysis and a hard look at our financial and our tax rate structure.”

Newhart said the district is looking to increase its debt service levee by 26 cents which would bring it up to a total of 57 cents.  The suggested increase does not need voter approval.

“Part of the reason they were able to keep that levee at the present 31 cents from the 15-16 school year was that they were subsidizing it from operating, in the tune of 500 to $750,000,” Newhart said.

Newhart said the increase is needed to help offset the difference the debt service is needing to make payments for not only this year but calendar years 2017 and 2018.

“What I want to make sure the public understands is we’re trying to be as transparent as possible with this and it’s a corrective action step that is a responsible step that the board has authorization to make,” Newhart said. “It would take our debt service up to the debt service ceiling which needs to be done.”

Newhart said it’s necessary because the operating funds need to be used for operating and not for the debt service.

“26 cents on $100,000 assessed valuation is roughly $260 a year or $21 a month,” Newhart said. “It all is relevant to the property you own.”

The tax rate hearing will be held Monday at 6 p.m. at the St. Joseph School District downtown office located at 925 Felix St in the Board Conference Room.  After the hearing the floor will be opened up for public comments.

“This can be done by statute, by board approval, they have the legal authorization to do it and they have the legal responsibility to be responsible to the school district’s debt and it’s a determination they can make and should make,” Newhart said. “After this anything else.  An increase in any operating or debt service would have to be by voter approval.”

 

The Buchanan County Clerk’s Office said it’s only seen around 50 voter sign-ups as it makes a push for the November election.

Clerk Mary Baack-Garvey said her office has been working to encourage people to register to vote. She said since the beginning of the summer voter registration drives have been held at different events around the area.

“We started out at the Sounds of Summer at Felix Street Square on Friday nights and we set up voter registration booths there, and then we did other events like Parties on the Parkway, we were at the Hurlingen Picnic, we did the Mexican Fiesta that St. Patrick’s Church puts on every year and we’ve also been at Chiefs Training Camp every day while that was going on,” Baack-Garvey said.

As of Thursday, she said they have only registered 47 people. She said many people may not even realize that they’re not already signed-up to vote.

“We have a lot of voters that are in the system but they are deleted due to inactivity,” Baack-Garvey said. “The state mandates us to delete voters if their initial voter card comes back deliverable from the post office they go into an inactive status. Then if they miss two general elections in that inactive status the state mandates us to delete them.”

She said if someone hasn’t voted in awhile or if they have changed their address to make sure and double check their voter registration with her office.

“There’s roughly 50,000 voters, roughly 12 to 13,000 are deleted,” Baack-Garvey said.

The deadline to register to vote for the Nov. 8th Presidential Election is by Oct. 12.  For more information visit the Buchanan County Clerk’s Office by CLICKING HERE.

A mother and a son are facing misdemeanor charges after a call of shots fired Wednesday night in St. Joseph.

Griselle Torres-Perez, 48 is charged with a misdemeanor for tampering with physical evidence. Cristian Pizarro-Torres, 21 is charged with a misdemeanor for unlawful use of a firearm.

As we previously reported, officers with the St. Joseph Police Department responded to a call of shots fired at Cottonwood Creek Apartments off of Gene Field Rd. Wednesday night after witnesses reportedly observed a man hanging out of a vehicle firing a gun into the air.

According to court documents, a witness observed a group of four Puerto Rican men and one woman standings between two buildings drinking alcoholic beverages.  One of the men allegedly went into an apartment with the woman and came out carrying a large pistol and got into the passenger seat of the vehicle.

“The male was described as wearing a red shirt and black pants.  Another Puerto Rican male got into the driver’s seat and they drove off sprinning their tires with the passenger firing 4-5 shots out the window,” said Officer Steve McClintick with the St. Joseph Police Department. “While officers were still on scene the described suspect returned to the scene.  One witness still on scene positively identified Cristian Ivan Pizarro-Torres as the armed male that fired off all of the shots from the handgun in the parking lot.”

Court documents identified Griselle as Cristian’s mother.

“Officers arrested him and while in the process of this his mother began to interfere with the arrest,” McClintick said. “She was pulling on her sons clothing and trying to reach into his pockets while he was in handcuffs.  They were carrying on a conservation in Spanish as well and officers did not know what was being said.”

Griselle allegedly pushed the officers arm out of the way and pulled out a cell phone from her son’s pocket.

“Officers directed her to stop and turn over the phone as it was evidence and was to stay with the arrested person.  Griselle then extended her arm above her head and slammed the cell phone to the ground, smashing it.  The phone broke apart into three pieces and shattered the screen,” McClintick said.

McClintick said according to witnesses the family terrorizes the rest of the residents in the complex and they are afraid to report the incidents due to fear of retaliation and being shot.

Both were reported to have been born and raised in Puerto Rico and have only been in St. Joseph since Dec. of 2015.

Pizarro-Torres is being held without bail. Torres-Perez is being held on $10,000 cash only bail. Both are set for arraignments in Buchanan County Court Tuesday.

A Buchanan County Sheriff’s Deputy has been recognized for his efforts in drug-trafficking investigations over the past five years.

Deputy J.D. Roberts was honored Thursday during the 14th Annual LECC Training Seminar in Springfield, Mo. with the Guardian of Justice Award.

Roberts is a Buchanan County Drug Strike Force investigator and is assigned to the Drug Enforcement Administration as a task force officer. In a press release, Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District said Roberts began a drug-trafficking investigation in 2010 that, over the course of five years, culminated in 151 defendants charged in nine separate federal indictments. To date, there have been three jury trial convictions and dozens of guilty pleas. Additionally, there are still active spin-off investigations and indictments expected this year.

Defendants were charged with participating in conspiracies to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, or other controlled substances and money laundering. Many were charged with various firearm offenses. Money judgments into the millions have been obtained and more will be obtained when the related cases are resolved. These investigations successfully dismantled at least three intertwined multi-jurisdictional drug-trafficking organizations, with three others at least disrupted via the pending charges.

The geographic scope of this investigation initially was limited to the Buchanan County area; however, Roberts worked with DEA partners and the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force to expand into a large area of northwest Missouri, parts of southern Iowa and Nebraska, the Kansas City metropolitan area and Kansas. Roberts also partnered with Midwest HIDTA, the FBI, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and police departments in Kansas City, Mo., Independence, Mo., and Kansas City, Kan.

Also honored during the conference with the Guardian of Justice Award was ICE Agent James D. Holdman for his work deporting a man from the Philippines back to the United States and seeing him placed behind bars for 120 years for sexually abusing five children and producing child pornography.

The annual Guardian of Justice Award recognizes a state or local officer as well as a federal agent for investigative excellence, selfless collaboration, tireless trial support, commendable diligence and professionalism, and noteworthy assistance to prosecution.

A St. Joseph man has been charged after a series of home invasions around town earlier this week that prompted police responses.

20-year-old Jabin Bullock is charged in Buchanan County with a felony for first-degree burglary.

According to court documents, on Monday at a home in St. Joseph two men forced entry into a home and stole items after displaying a firearm to the victim.

“The victim identified this defendant from a photo lineup as being one of the two males involved,” said Det. Doug Howard with the St. Joseph Police Department. “A search warrant was executed in St. Joseph, MO where items stolen during the robbery were recovered.”

Howard said Bullock has prior arrests for robbery and assault.

Since Sunday night, authorities have said there have been four home invasions and a fifth situation that took place Monday evening at a home on S 16th where Bullock was allegedly taken into custody.  Capt. Jeff Wilson has previously told us the home invasions are not believed to be random at this time.

Police also arrested a juvenile Tuesday afternoon at a home in the 900 block of Corby in connection with the recent events.  As of 10 a.m. Wednesday morning the Juvenile Office said a case has not been submitted.  Also, Wednesday morning Capt. Wilson said a third person of interest is still being sought.  He said police may send out additional details later in the day.

Bullock is being held without bail.  An arraignment is set for Friday.

The St. Joseph Police Department said two suspects are in custody and a third is being sought as a person of interest after five situations around town that prompted police responses in the past 36 hours.

Capt. Jeff Wilson said police are investigating a series of four home invasions since Sunday evening and a fifth situation that took place Monday evening at a home in the area of 16th and Olive where a man was arrested.

Two suspects, a 20-year-old and a juvenile have since been taken into custody in connection with the incidents. A third person of interest is currently being sought by police.

“They started off Sunday evening around 11 o’clock,” Wilson said. “We received a call of a home invasion in the area of Highland Meadows.  During that incident a couple of subjects entered the residences and assaulted the occupants there resulting in minor injuries.”

Then shortly after 1 a.m. Monday another home invasion was reported in the 6600 block of Washington.  The individuals were reported to have been armed with weapons and demanded items from the residents inside.

Around 8 a.m. Monday officers responded to the 800 block of Park Lane for another home invasion. Weapons and other items were reported stolen during that incident.

Shortly after, another call of a home invasion was reported on S 13th St. During that home invasion a man was shot several times and transported for treatment of what police described as non life-threatening injuries.  Wilson said the victim is believed to be recovering at this time.

Wilson said a man reported being shot Monday while walking down the street in the midtown area and hit in the buttocks during crossfire between two vehicles.

“The particulars as to how he was shot at this time remain questionable,” Wilson said. “He is in our custody at this time.”

A fifth incident at a home in the 900 block of S 16th was reported Monday night around 7 p.m. where the 20-year-old St. Joseph man who claimed to have been shot during the crossfire was arrested in connection with the series of home invasions.

“This was not a home invasion per se, we believe that these individuals were there to see somebody else and were maybe even possibly invited there but there was several subjects there and one of them was reported to be armed with some weapons,” Wilson said. “A resident there had left their home and went to the neighbor’s home and reported that several individuals had walked into their home and were armed with weapons.”

Tuesday afternoon around 12:30 police surrounded a home in the 900 block of Corby where a 16-year-old not from St. Joseph was taken into custody in connection with the home invasions.

Police are currently searching for a third person of interest in the case. Wilson said at this point in the investigation authorities don’t believe the home invasions are random, nor is there a motive that is being released.

 

 

Police took one man into custody after a disturbance Monday night in midtown.

Capt. Jeff Wilson with the St. Joseph Police Department said around 7 p.m. officers responded to the 900 block of S. 16th.

“Some of the people that live in the house came out and went to the neighbor’s house and said call the police one of the individuals has guns,” Wilson said.

Wilson said some of the individuals in the home were believed to be connected to incidents that took place earlier in the day around St. Joseph that led to  police responses.

Authorities blocked off roads in the area for about 45 minutes. Three men surrendered to authorities. Wilson said a 20-year-old man was arrested and several guns were seized. The investigation continues.

A press conference it scheduled for 1:30 p.m. to talk about situations that took place around St. Joseph yesterday that prompted police responses.  However, in-depth details are not expected as Wilson said it’s an ongoing investigation.