The St. Joseph Police Department has seen an increase in domestic violence reports since the introduction of Text 9-1-1 in 2016.

Chief Chris Connally said through the end of September this year, there were 1,400 total assaults reported.  Of those, he said more than 1,000 were domestic related.  Connally said assaults saw a spike in June and July.

“When we went to Text 9-1-1 we started reaching some groups we haven’t reached in the past,” Connally said. “We’re finding that we’re getting some cases that are probably being reported that might not otherwise be reported.”

Connally said some of the text reports are coming in from children or victims who would otherwise have trouble making a phone call. As we reported, Buchanan County introduced Text 9-1-1 in 2016.

Connally said police are trying to reduce domestic violence incidents. He said the police department entered a partnership with the YWCA and the Buchanan County Prosecutor’s Office about a year ago to try to reduce the number of domestic violence issues.

“When we respond to a domestic assault it’s a questionnaire that the officer goes through and it’s scored at the end.  It’s scored based on a risk assessment,” Connally said. “When it scores high, one of the things our officers do is we actually contact a resource counselor on the telephone… If the victim will take the phone call, we turn the phone over to the victim.”

Connally said they have also seen a high number of domestic violence reports in certain apartment complexes.

“The ones that are high with domestic violence calls we’ve actually gone door-to-door handing out resources as well, to try to get that information out,” Connally said.

Connally said domestic violence takes place across in all classes of society. However, he said reports may be more common in lower socioeconomic areas.

“When it comes to domestic assaults we really find it all over the scale and all age groups.  I think it might be under reported in some areas,” Connally said. “It may be reported more in lower socioeconomics just because of living conditions.  If you live in an apartment you have people right there that may call it in.  If you live in a more affluent neighborhood and you don’t have close neighbors then you may not have the neighbor to call in the dispute when they hear something going on or see something going on.”

For information on victim services provided by the St. Joseph YWCA CLICK HERE.

New patrol vehicles will be added to the St. Joseph Police Department’s fleet again next year.

Commander Mike Wilson said six Ford Tauruses and two Ford Explorers will likely be delivered in January.

“The purchase order just came through. Once that’s done, Anderson Ford will order them. So probably in January is when they will show up and we will start the process of getting them ready for spring or maybe early summer,” Wilson said.

The fleet has around 25 patrol vehicles. Wilson said every year vehicles are either auctioned off or removed from service to become parts vehicles.

“They’re just replacing some of our older vehicles. We have some of them that have 100 or 120-plus miles. When they’re driven every day those are pretty hard miles in the city,” Wilson said. “We drove 1.4 or 1.5 million miles on the whole fleet last year. It’s gone up.”

Wilson said once the vehicles come in they will have to be outfitted with gear and decals before they hit the road.

“We do a lot of that work in house,” Wilson said. “Other then putting the radios in; we do the camera installs, we put the back seat in, we do the decals, we get the lights. We have two in fleet maintenance and they are the ones that help get the cars prepared and set up.”

Wilson said they will not have any new vehicle models hitting the road next year that are not already in service.

“We do research and we try to buy the best vehicles we can buy for what’s budgeted,” Wilson said.

The department is currently working on getting an Explorer that was purchased last year into service. Wilson said it is still waiting on decals.

A Chillicothe man has been arrested for investigation of driving while intoxicated after an ATV crash in Livingston County.

According to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol, 36-year-old Matthew Curtis was operating a 2004 Honda ATV with a 14-year-old passenger shortly before 4 p.m. Tuesday on east 10th Street, just east of Chillicothe.  The Patrol said Curtis failed to slow reasonably to navigate the corner onto Missouri Avenue and the ATV overturned. Both Curtis and his passenger were thrown from the 4-wheeler.  Curtis and the 14-year-old boy were transported to Hedrick Medical Center for treatment of what was described as moderate injuries.

An arrest report from the MSHP, shows Curtis was arrested for investigative charges of driving while intoxicated causing serious physical injury to another, operating an ATV on a highway, unlawfully operating an all-terrain vehicle carrying a passenger when not designed to do so and driving while suspended.  As of 9:30 a.m. Wednesday charges were not filed on online court documents.

(News release) MARYVILLE, Mo. – Northwest Missouri State University has announced details for a bell ringing ceremony to remember a student who died on the campus earlier this month.

The University will host the bell ringing for David Nkenchor at 11 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 19, at the Bell of ’48. The ceremony is open to the public.

Nkenchor, 18, a freshman geology major from Maryland Heights, Missouri, was found dead Oct. 1 in his residence hall. The cause of his death remains under investigation, although no foul play is suspected.
The Bell of ’48, located near the front of the Administration Building, is rung in memory of any member of the University community and to announce other events deemed important by Student Senate and the administration.

Northwest reminds the campus community that counseling is available at Wellness Services from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and by calling 660.562.1348. Individuals needing assistance outside of regular office hours are encouraged to contact University Police at 660.562.1254. Faculty and staff should call the University employee assistance program at 800.964.3577. A county counseling support line also is available to members of the Northwest community at 888.279.8188.

(Missourinet) – In 2016, more than 3,500 teens were killed in car crashes nationwide, including in Missouri. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports about a quarter of the teen drivers involved in fatal crashes had been drinking alcohol.

This week is National Teen Driver Safety Week and Matt Nasworthy, a spokesperson for AAA, says car crashes remain the leading cause of death for teens across the country.

“As an age group, teen drivers get involved in more crashes than anyone else on the road,” Nasworthy says.

Although distracted driving is dangerous for anyone, regardless of age, Nasworthy says it appears to be a bigger problem for teens. The distraction doesn’t always involve a cell phone.

“We see that almost six out of 10 of their crashes are caused by distraction…and the number one distraction for teen drivers is having other teen passengers in the car,” Nasworthy says.

Teenage passengers are being encouraged to help the driver keep their focus on the road.

“What we want teens to do is to make sure they’re not getting involved in unnecessary conversations, not pulling the driver’s attention away from the road to look at something else, or text or answer a phone,” Nasworthy says.

A passenger can also assist the teen driver by handling the controls of the radio and the air conditioner or heat.

The St. Joseph Police Department is asking the public for help locating a man wanted for a parole violation.

Christian Jordan Banks, 24 of St. Joseph is being sought by authorities. Capt. Jeff Wilson said officers believe Banks is in the St. Joseph area.  Little other information was provided.

Anyone with information as to Banks’ whereabouts is asked to contact police or call the TIPS Hotline at (816) 238-TIPS.

Law enforcement agencies through the nation including Missouri are taking part in heightened traffic safety enforcement and education outreach this week to urge motorists to drive safely in and around commercial vehicles

According to a news release, Oct. 15-21 is the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliances’s Safe Driver week. The Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety, said throughout the week, enforcement personnel will identify and issue warnings and/or citations to commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers and passenger-vehicle drivers exhibiting unsafe driving behaviors on roadways.

Speeding, distracted driving, texting, failure to use a safety belt, traveling too closely, improper lane change, failure to obey traffic control devices and other issues are things the coalition said law enforcement personnel will be tracking throughout the week.

The coalition said, 132 people were killed and 4,034 injured in Missouri traffic crashes involving a CMV in 2016. The agency offers some safety tips to help keep everyone safe when sharing the road with large commercial vehicles:

• Don’t cut off large trucks or buses when passing. Make sure you can see the top of the truck or bus in your rearview mirror before moving back into your original lane.
• Stay out of the “No Zone.” Big trucks have large blind spots on either side and up to 200 feet behind a vehicle. Pass only on the left side.
• Watch your following distance. Keep a 20-25 car length distance around trucks. Can you see the driver in the truck’s side mirrors? If not, the driver cannot see you.

For more information on the Operation Safe Driver Campaign CLICK HERE.

(Photo with story corrected)