TOPEKA, KAN. – A Kansas City man pleaded guilty Tuesday to a federal bank robbery charge and admitted threatening employees with a gun and dragging a woman by her hair, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.

Clifton B. Cloyd, 54, Kansas City, Mo., pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during the robbery. On Oct. 29, 2014, he and another man robbed the Bank of America at 9500 Mission in Overland Park, Kan. In his plea, Cloyd admitted:

He and his accomplice held five bank employees and one customer at gunpoint.
Cloyd, who was carrying a handgun, grabbed one of the bank employees and pulled her by the hair and scarf to the teller station. He struck her in the face with a handgun.
Cloyd struck a customer so hard her glasses flew off and she was knocked to the floor.
Cloyd struck a male bank employee with such force that his head started bleeding.
Sentencing is set for Sept. 14. He faces a penalty of not less than 10 years and not more than 25 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on the bank robbery charge, and a penalty of not less than seven years and a fine up to $250,000 on the firearm charge.

Co-defendant Steve A. Watts, 55, Mo., is awaiting trial.

(Missourinet) – The sound of fireworks can prompt traumatic memories for many men and women who have served in war. Dr. Thomas Demark with the Kansas City Veterans Administration Medical Center says Independence Day is in part a time to honor those in uniform, but it can be a difficult period for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.

“The sound of the fireworks would act as a trigger. So, firecrackers may sound like small arms fire. Some of the bigger fireworks might sound like mortars or explosions.”

Demark says fireworks act as a trigger to some extent for the majority of veterans.

“For some veterans the fireworks are a severe trigger and for some veterans it’s a moderate or mild trigger. There’s a whole spectrum on how much it triggers.”

Demark says the triggers also depend on how close veterans are to fireworks displays. He says veterans are told to prepare for the expected and unexpected sound of fireworks.

“It’s the fireworks the week or two before and the fireworks the week or two after the holiday that act as an even bigger trigger.”

Demark says PTSD can cause increased anxiety, irritability, anger and can trigger flashbacks. He encourages Missourians to be respectful if there are veterans in your neighborhood and try to light off fireworks away from their homes.

(Missourinet) – Eleven of the 12 floodgates at Bagnell Dam on The Lake of the Ozarks are open. The Lake’s owner, Ameren Missouri, is trying to ease its levels after three inches of rain fell Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.

The Lake has been near capacity since before Memorial Day Weekend. Engineer Alan Sullivan said those gates were opened at 10 percent.

“The Lake of the Ozarks has risen from 659.19 at midnight to 660.5 at 10 a.m. The rain continues and the Lake continues to rise,” Sullivan said. “We’ve increased plant discharge to our maximum turbine capacity … and at the same time requested Truman Dam to shut down completely.”

The National Weather Service is predicting more heavy rain tonight, with two- to four inches of rain possible in parts of central and southern Missouri.

Sullivan says floodgates on the Bagnell Dam will be left open as long as possible to stabilize the level of the Lake.

(Missourinet) – Two counties in Missouri are not issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and one of them is citing a religious objection.

LGBT advocacy group PROMO says officials in Schuyler County are citing religious reasons for not issuing licenses in such cases. Recorder of Deeds Linda Blessing declined to comment, even to verify that she is declining to issue licenses.

PROMO says Schuyler County has refused to issue licenses to same-sex couples out of a violation of conscience, and said, “We think the Supreme Court is trying to play God.”

In Cape Girardeau County, Recorder of Deeds Drew Blattner told Missourinet affiliate KZIM his lawyers advised him to wait until 25 days have passed since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on Friday.

“The decision takes place 25 days after the date that it’s decided in case there’s a motion to reconsider or if there’s any further deliberations,” said Blattner, “So it’s best just to hold off ’till the end, because it’ll be settled once and for all.”

The legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri, Tony Rothert, said his organization is waiting to take action against both counties.

“We are ready to represent someone who is turned away in any Missouri county. They have a right to a marriage license. The Supreme Court’s made that clear,” Rothert told Missourinet. “We think that we’d be able to get an injunction requiring the recorders to follow the Constitution right away.”

Rothert says the 25-day wait does not relieve a recorder of deeds from following the Constitution.

PROMO Director A.J. Bockelman says any official with a religious objection to a procedure he or she is called to carry out as an employee of a state office must still carry out that duty.

“They are required to perform those basic functions,” said Bockelman. “It’s not necessarily that they’re issuing a judgment or a statement in support. It’s simply issuing a document that is a legal document that the individuals have a right to have.”

Any complaint brought against either county would have to originate with a couple who is denied a marriage license. A PROMO spokesperson says a couple has been turned away in Schuyler County, but doesn’t want to pursue the matter legally “out of fear.”

(Missourinet) – The Missouri Recorder of Deeds Association is telling Missouri counties they don’t need software upgrades to start issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples. President Jan Jones says counties can make the changes the old-fashioned way.

“They can mark through the information that’s on a license or an application that’s incorrect. It’s not going to change its validity and so therefore they can go ahead and start to issue licenses.”

Jones says it provided counties with the tools to make changes in a timely fashion.

“The updated form was made available to everybody prior to the end of last year and we encouraged people to start talking to their software provider.”

As of July 1, 13 Missouri counties have not started issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, though the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled such marriages are legal.

(Missourinet with some Post contributions)

(Missourinet) – Consumers will be able to buy call-blocking services in the future to try and prevent robocalls and phone scams. The FCC has ruled that phone companies must offer the services to consumers.

Joe Bindbeutel with the Missouri Attorney General’s office says the ruling will go a long way for consumers.

“It will allow consumers to decide who gets to call them. The phone will no longer be just an open vessel which every telemarketer can use.”
Bindbeutel says there’s a market for the services.

“A lot of consumers want these calls to stop and they are willing to obtain the kind of technology it takes to stop these unwanted, repetitious and harassing calls.”

Bindbeutel says he’s not sure when phone companies will have to start offering the services to consumers, but his office is calling on phone carriers to
act quickly. He believes there’s a significant demand for these services and consumers will drive down the cost.

Bindbeutel says his office receives about 50,000 complaints a year from Missourians who are on the Do Not Call registry.

By Mike Lear (Missourinet) – The conservators at the Missouri State Archives have finished reviewing the contents of the Missouri State Capitol time capsule. One item that has caught the public’s attention is a brass tube, placed in the capsule by the masons and not on the list of items expected to be inside.

Director of Local Records John Korasick said his staff won’t be opening it.

“Speculation has been that there was oil in the tube or there may be an apron in the tube,” said Korasick, who said that either would have been part of the Masonic ceremony that went into laying the time capsule.

One of the things found with the time capsule in the Missouri State Capitol was not in it, but fastened to a board inside the chamber where the capsule was sealed. It was a stiff card about the size of a business card, and covered in plaster.

Korasick said it turned out to be a ticket that got an attendee at the 1915 cornerstone laying ceremony onto the platform.

“This is the only one we’ve heard of or found, so we’re starting a social media campaign to see if anybody else has one of these in their family treasures; an intact one,” said Korasick.

The ticket had several names on the back that are believed to have been workmen, who wanted to be remembered when the capsule was opened.

A new capsule will be placed in the Capitol in a ceremony on Friday.

By Mike Lear (Missourinet) – The National Weather Service has confirmed that at least three tornadoes touched down in east-central Missouri, Sunday.

The strongest of the three was rated an EF-2 and touched down northwest of St. Peters about 8:04. Its winds are estimated to have reached up to 122 miles per hour. Over about five minutes it took part of the roof off of one home and damaged others, destroyed some outbuildings and snapped trees and power poles in a damage path up to 400 yards wide and about 2.26 miles long.

Tornadoes west and northwest of Eolia snapped tree limbs and other minor damage, and were rated EF-1 and EF-0, with winds estimated up to 100 and 80 miles per hour, respectively. Those touched down at about 6:23 and 6:34 Sunday night.

There were numerous reports of funnels in central Missouri near the Callaway Nuclear Reactor and New Bloomfield. At least one is reported to have touched down and blown a vehicle around on a highway. The Weather Service is asking anyone who knows of damage to contact it.

By Alisa Nelson (Missourinet) – There is disagreement over when Missouri counties should begin issue marriage licenses to same sex couples. The Missouri Recorder of Deeds Association has released a statement saying counties have 25 days after Friday’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling to start issuing marriage licenses for same sex couples, although recorders may begin at any time. Katie

Stuckenschneider with LGBT advocacy group PROMO disagrees. She says all counties in Missouri should already be implementing the change.

“They can keep dragging their feet but this is something that they’re going to have to be doing,” said Stuckenschneider. “Especially when counties are saying they can’t do it, and the county over started issuing them immediately on Friday.”

Stuckenschneider said out of the 114 counties in Missouri, 30 are not issuing the licenses. She said PROMO will continue to pressure counties who still need to begin the licensing process.