(AP) – A judge has ruled that a central Missouri sheriff accused of stalking a woman will stand trial.

The Jefferson City News-Tribune reports Phelps County Associate Circuit Judge Ronald White ruled Friday there’s enough evidence to support a trial for Osage County Sheriff Michael Dixon. Dixon has pleaded not guilty to a felony charge of tampering with a vehicle and four misdemeanors, including sexual misconduct.

Authorities accuse Dixon of stalking and harassing a woman, who alleged that Dixon drove away with a four-wheeler belonging to the woman’s fiance in June.

Dixon’s attorney, Travis Noble, requested the preliminary hearing, which was held after the Missouri Supreme Court appointed a different special judge to hear the case. All judges in the 20th circuit recused themselves from hearing any phase of the case.

 (AP) — The Missouri 4-H Dairy Judging Team is headed to an international competition next year.

Team members Steven Nelson of Grove Spring; Tucker Peterson, of Mountain Grove; and Bailee Whitehead, of Conway, will take part in the 2014 International Dairy Judging Tour of Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland. The tour takes place from June 18 to July 2.

The University of Missouri Extension says in a release it’s the first time a Missouri 4-H dairy judging team has been invited to compete internationally.

The team is working to raise $20,000 to finance the trip.

They were invited because of their high-ranking results from the National 4-H Dairy Judging Contest at World Dairy Expo in October.

SHAWNEE, Kan. (AP) — Police in suburban Kansas City say two people have been found dead in an apparent murder-suicide.

Police called to the home in Shawnee on Sunday night found the two bodies inside the house. Police said both people had been shot and that one person’s wounds appeared to be self-inflicted.

Both people lived at the residence. Their names were being withheld until family could be notified.

(AP) — A University of Kansas researcher is studying the effectiveness of using urban churches to fight colorectal cancer.

Assistant professor Crystal Lumpkins and her colleagues have met with more than 130 pastors and congregants of urban churches in Kansas City, Kan., and Kansas City, Mo., as part of a five-year, $600,000 National Cancer Institute grant. They found that pastors were willing to include health information as part of their mission. But they indicated that they hadn’t thought about becoming the primary source of colorectal cancer prevention information for their congregation before the study.

The mortality rate for colorectal cancer among African-Americans is disproportionately high, and many participants in the study were unaware of its risks and symptoms. Participants also reported distrust of the medical profession and barriers to health care.

A successful bipartisan effort led by U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.), Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.), and U.S. Representatives Joe Courtney (Conn.), Chris Gibson (N.Y.), and Annie Kuster (N.H.), has resulted in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) planning to revise regulations and seek additional comments from the public before finalizing the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) rules.

The FDA’s announcement comes less than a month after the lawmakers led a bipartisan coalition of 75 members of the House and Senate expressing concern about the impact of proposed FDA rules on farmers and businesses, which re-proposing the regulations for public comment could help alleviate.

“I’m pleased the FDA has agreed to issue a second draft of proposed rules and give farmers and businesses the opportunity to provide additional input,” Blunt said. “I thank Senator Shaheen and my colleagues in the House and Senate for their work to alleviate the impact of these burdensome regulations on farm families in Missouri and nationwide.”

In March, the FDA issued two proposed rules implementing FSMA, a 2011 law that overhauled food safety laws to increase the safety of our domestic food supply. These rules addressed preventive controls for human food and standards for the growing, harvesting, packing, and holding of produce for human consumption.

As proposed, the 1,200-page rules have left food producers and processors across the country concerned about a number of issues including those specifically surrounding facility compliance and environmental standards. The FDA’s announced plan to re-propose key rule language will allow farmers and stakeholders to lend critical input toward the FDA-rulemaking process.

For more information on the letter signed by 75 members of Congress and sent to FDA on November 25, 2013, please click here.

During the past several months, the CDC has been working hard to take steps to increase HPV vaccination coverage among 11-12 year olds, including actively communicating with clinicians and parents about the benefits and safety of this cancer-preventing vaccine. We want to also be open and timely in sharing any problems or concerns related to HPV vaccines as they arise.
On December 16, 2013 CDC was informed by Merck that the company planned to implement a voluntary recall of one lot (lot J007354) of Gardasil® [Human Papillomavirus Quadrivalent (types 6, 11, 16, and 18) Vaccine, Recombinant], due to the potential for a small number of vials to contain glass particles as a result of breakage during the manufacturing process. There were 743,360 vials in the affected lot. Merck estimates that approximately ten of those vials could have glass particles in them. Vaccines from the affected lot were distributed between August 20, 2013, and October 9, 2013. No other lots are affected.

What this means for anyone who has recently received HPV vaccine
People who have recently received an HPV vaccine or their parents do not need to take any action as a result of this recall. If a vaccine containing glass particles (tiny enough to get through a needle) is given to a patient, mild reactions routinely seen after vaccination may occur (for instance, redness or swelling at the injection site). To date, no adverse events related to this lot of HPV vaccine have been reported other than these types of mild reactions. We do not expect delayed side effects to occur. If you or your child recently received HPV vaccination, there is no need to be revaccinated. The vaccine’s effectiveness is not impacted by this problem.
What this means for clinicians who administer HPV vaccines
Merck is contacting offices or clinics who received vaccine from lot J007354 and providing them with procedures to return any of the vaccine that has not been used. This voluntary recall does not affect the supply of vaccine. Clinicians’ offices who have administered this vaccine do not need to re-vaccinate anyone. As always, clinicians should report adverse events following vaccination to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS).
This recall was caused by an isolated problem in the vaccine manufacturing process. HPV vaccine continues to have a strong safety record and CDC continues to recommend that all preteen girls and boys receive three doses of the vaccine at age 11 or 12 years.
For more information go to:
www.merckvaccines.com