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Light rain with sunny skies on the way

weather-5-1The upper level storm system that was the cause of the heavy rain this weekend is finally moving through the area this morning bringing some light showers. However, showers will come to an end by this afternoon and we may even see some sun. High will still be cool in the 50s. Tuesday we will see a break in the rain with highs climbing up into the 60s. Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service: 

Today: A slight chance of showers before 11 a.m. Cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 56. Breezy, with a west northwest wind 16 to 23 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 44. West southwest wind 6 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 67. West northwest wind 7 to 9 mph.

Tuesday Night: A slight chance of showers after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48. North northwest wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Wednesday: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 61. East wind 3 to 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Wednesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 45.

Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 66.

Thursday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 46.

Friday: Sunny, with a high near 67.

Friday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 46.

Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 73.

Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 52.

Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 72.

 

Planned Road Work for northwest Missouri, May 1 – 7

road closed constructionST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The following is a listing of general highway maintenance and construction work in the Northwest Missouri region planned for the week of May 1 – 7 from the Missouri Department of Transportation. In addition to the work listed below, there may be pothole patching, bridge maintenance, striping, brush cutting, guardrail repairs and other road work conducted throughout the region. Many of these will be moving operations and could include lane closures with delays. All scheduled maintenance and construction projects are subject to change with weather conditions.

MoDOT reminds the public to stay alert, watch for road work, buckle up, slow down, and drive with extreme caution through work zones and in changing weather conditions.

Atchison County

  • Interstate 29 – Pothole patching, May 1 – 2
  • U.S. Route 136 – From Route O to Route M for culvert maintenance, May 1 – 5

Buchanan County

  • Route M – CLOSED from route 116 to the Platte County line for a chip seal, May 1, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
  • U.S. Route 36 – One mile east of Route AC for a bridge project, May 1 – 5
  • Route Z – CLOSED from Route 6 to Hurlingen Road for a culvert replacement, May 2, 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m
  • U.S. Route 36 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, May 2 – 4

Carroll County

  • Route Z – Pothole patching, May 1
  • U.S. Route 10 – From Route FF to the city limits of Carrollton for pothole patching, May 2 – 3

Chariton County

  • Route 129 – From Route D to Route O for pothole patching, May 1 – 2
  • Route 139 – From Route RA through Livingston County to the Carroll County line for pothole patching, May 1 – 3
  • U.S. Route 24 – From Route 5 to the Randolph County line for a resurfacing project, May 1 – 5
  • Routes U and W – Pothole patching, May 3 – 5

Daviess County

  • I-35 – From the city limits of Bethany to the city limits of Eagleville for shoulder work, May 4

DeKalb County

  • U.S. Route 36 – Night work at the I-35 Overpass Bridge for painting, May 1 – 5, 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.
  • I-35 – Night work at the U.S. Route 36 interchange for painting, May 1 – 5, 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.
  • Routes F and H – Pothole patching, May 1 – 5
  • Route EE – From Wamsley Road to Grindstone Road for a culvert replacement, May 3 – 4, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Harrison County

  • I-35 – Sweeping and flushing bridges, May 1 – 5
  • Route N – From U.S. Route 69 to Route B for sealing, May 1 – 5
  • Route 46 – From U.S. Route 69 to the city limits of Grant City for pothole patching, May 2 – 5

Holt County

  • I-29 – Pothole patching, May 1 – 5

Linn County

  • Route 139 – From U.S. Route 36 to Route B for pothole patching, May 1 – 2
  • U.S. Route 36 – From Route 11 to Route 139 for pavement repair, May 1 – 4

Livingston County

  • Route 139 – From Route RA (Chariton County) to the Carroll County line for pothole patching, May 1 – 3
  • Route 190 – At the Thompson River Bridge for maintenance, May 3 – 5

Mercer County

  • Route E – CLOSED from Intrepid Street to Haystack Place for a culvert replacement, May 2, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
  • Route M – CLOSED from Route W to County Road 352 for a culvert replacement, May 3, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Nodaway County

  • Route 46 – From the city limits of Parnell to the city limits of Grant City for shoulder repair, May 1 – 5
  • U.S. Route 71 – Pothole patching and shoulder repair, May 1 – 5
  • Route AC – Sealing, May 4

Putnam County

  • Route CC – CLOSED at the South Branch Shoal Creek Bridge for a bridge replacement project. The bridge will be closed through May 2017.

Sullivan County

  • Routes E, MM and ZZ – Drainage work, May 1 – 4
  • Route 129 – Pothole patching, May 1 – 5

Worth County

  • Route W – Sealing and pothole patching, May 1 – 5
  • Route 46 – From the city limits of Grant City to the city limits of Parnell for shoulder work, May 1 – 5
  • Route 46 – From the city limits of Grant City to U.S. Route 69 for pothole patching, May 2 – 5

Upcoming clinics offer rabies vaccinations for pets

dog-1023933_1920Multiple rabies vaccination clinics will be held in the next couple weeks that will also offer opportunities to get registration tags for pets and more.

All dogs and cats over three months old are required to be vaccinated against rabies and registered with the city. The clinics will include the opportunity for owners to get their pets vaccinated for rabies along with a combination vaccination. Another option for owners will be the opportunity for microchipping.  

Kappy Hodges with the Friends of the St. Joseph Animal Shelter said getting your pets vaccinated is also important this time of year if you’re interested in taking your dog to the dog park.

“The dog park is very fun and as the weather is nicer and you’re looking for someplace to let your dog loose to run around and play, you might check that out, it’s over there by Corby Pond, just north,” Hodges said. “There’s some rules and regulations to follow and some dog park etiquette, so you need to become a member of the dog park. That means your animals is fixed, either spayed or neutered because we don’t want to have any fights… and they need to be up-to-date on their vaccinations and have their city license. So those are the kind of things you need to provide to the city and then they give you a special little tag that means you’re a dog park member and it goes on their collar.” 

All clinics will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. 

Monday at Lindbergh Elementary School – 2812 St. Joseph Avenue

Tuesday at Hosea Elementary School – 6401 Gordon Street

Thursday at First Church of the Nazarene – 2102 South 22nd Street

Tuesday, May 9th at Skaith Elementary School – 4701 Schoolside Lane

Thursday, May 11th at Mark Twain Elementary School – 705 South 31st Street

 

Dogs must be on a leash and cats must be in a carrier. Owners should bring cash or check.

For more information, click here.

Solar Camp to be held in St. Joseph this summer

solar-campAs the City of St. Joseph gears up for this summer’s total solar eclipse the St. Joseph Museums is offering kids a camp to learn about totality.

A total solar eclipse will take place August 21 and officials anticipate it will likely be the most-viewed ever.  St. Joseph is the 5th largest city along the path, viewers will experience just over 2 minutes and 38.6 seconds of totality, only 1.4 seconds short of the maximum time possible along the path.   In an effort to give children a chance to learn about the upcoming eclipse the St. Joseph Museum said it will host a Solar Science Camp where campers can experiment with Newton’s Laws of Motion, see the solar system, and learn more about the total solar eclipse and St. Joseph’s location in the path of totality. The camp will be held for students entering the 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade from August 9 through August 11. Camp will begin at 12 p.m. and end at 3:30 p.m. Snacks will be provided each day of camp.

Space for Solar Science Camp is limited and paid reservations are required for the camp by July 31. The cost of the camp is $50, which includes snacks, the camp t-shirt, all activities, supplies, and solar eclipse glasses. Children can be registered for the camp at the St. Joseph Museum, 3406 Frederick Avenue, or the registration form can be printed from the Museum website at stjosephmuseum.org/events and mailed to the St. Joseph Museum, P.O. Box 8096, St. Joseph, Missouri, 64508. For more information or to make a reservation by phone, call the St. Joseph Museum at 816-232-8471.

Area locations available for disposing unused medications

medicine prescription drugsThere will be area locations available for residents to safely dispose expired, unused or unwanted prescription drugs during “National Take Back Day.”

According to a news release from the Brown County Sheriff’s Office, this is a national event to encourage the public to clean out their medicine cabinet of unused, unwanted or expired medication and to provide safe and secure local drop off points. According to the news release, more than 46,000 Americans die each year from drug-related deaths. According to the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 6.5 million Americans abused controlled prescription drugs and a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained through family and friends, including from their home medicine cabinets. 

The Sheriff’s Office will be accepting medications Saturday, April 29, at 709 Utah Street in Hiawatha. They do not accept needles/syringes or injectable medications. The Brown County Sheriff’s Office is also a year-round drop off location for unused or expired medications. For more information, call (785) 742-7125. 

The Drug Free Community Coalition, along with St. Joseph Youth Alliance, the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Department and the St. Joseph Police Department are sponsoring a drug take back event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday in the East Hills Parking Lot, by Sears. They will be accepting controlled, non-controlled, over the counter substances and sharps. For more information, call (816) 232-0050.

Missouri lawmakers look to finalize a budget that doesn’t include midyear cuts

Jefferson city, Missouri Capital(Missourinet) – There’s now confidence that lawmakers in Jefferson City will meet a deadline to complete a state budget. At this point, they’re trying to ensure the final product can withstand fluctuations in the supply of money and thus, avoid painful cuts in the next year.

Republican Governor Eric Greitens withheld $146 million shortly after taking office in January, while previous Democratic Governor Jay Nixon held back a total of $200 million in 2016

A week ago, cobbling together a spending plan seemed uncertain after Republican Senator Rob Schaaf of St. Joseph ground his chamber to a halt with a one man filibuster.

But the Senate approved a budget with relative ease over two days this week, which makes House Budget Committee Chairman Scott Fitzpatrick (R-Shell Knob) rest easier.

“There’s a lot of suspicion that some of the folks who were frustrated in the Senate were going to try to target the budget, and it appears that they have not done that yet” said Fitzpatrick. “Now, they could still do it…because the Senate will have a vote on the budget again before it’s all said and done. But I feel better now than I did a week ago for sure.”

Now that the Senate’s completed its initial portion of the budget writing process, members of both chambers will enter into a conference committee to hash out differences between the houses. And at the get-go, Fitzpatrick contends the Senate budget is out of balance by a substantial sum.

“It’s certainly more than $50 million. I can tell you that with 100% certainty. There’s no question that it’s more than $50 million. I think that almost certainly more than $100 million. I don’t know if it quite elevates to $150 million or not.”

Fitzpatrick’s Senate counterpart, Dan Brown (R-Rolla), thinks the figure is somewhat less, but won’t say how much.

Brown notes part of the discrepancy is the fact that the Senate is fully funding the state employee retirement fund while the House is not.

“I really believe that we really need to keep up to date on funding the retirement program” said Brown. “There are so many thousands of Missourians dependent upon that. I don’t want to see that fund get behind and get in trouble.”

Fitzpatrick thinks there’s likely a great deal of hidden costs in the Senate’s numbers that’ll contribute to it being out of balance.

“There could be things that they did that make their budget look smaller than it really is. And those are the things we have to identify and uncover so we can see what the real differences are.”

One way to hide the true cost of an item in Missouri budgets is to place an “E”, which stands for estimate, at the end of a spending figure on a spreadsheet.

Fitzpatrick notes that with one expenditure, the Senate budget allocates $1 followed by an “E”, while the House spending plan allots $25 million for the same expenditure. Fitzpatrick did away with all E’s in this year’s House budget.

Brown thinks there could be a snag in negotiating differences in the supplemental budget, which is a fund used for “unexpected expenses”.

“We didn’t have quite as much booked for supplemental as the House, and that may be a point of contention” said Brown.

Cost overruns have led to at least $100 million in state money coming out of the supplemental budget in most years. Fitzpatrick has placed almost $200 million in that fund this year, while the Senate has set aside between $106 and $108 million for it.

Brown says he won’t negotiate a couple of items in the budget, including DUI checkpoints and highway patrol pay. He also says that he brought no “personal projects” to the budget and thinks Fitzpatrick also did not.

Brown and Fitzpatrick each will lead five member sides in a conference committee to hash out their differences starting early next week.

Fitzpatrick tells Missourinet he’s confident their finished product will be approved by both houses, and a final budget can be sent to the governor by next Friday’s deadline.

Missouri Western approves tuition hike

MWSU, Missouri WesternA tuition and room and board increase is coming for students at Missouri Western State University.

Western’s Board of Governors approved tuition and room and board rates for the 2017-2018 school year.

For undergraduate, in-state students, tuition will rise 2.4 percent, or $4.77 per credit hour, to $204.14 per credit hour. The increase is in line with limits set by state statute. All other rates, including out-of-state undergraduate and all graduate, online and KC Northland campus tuition rates, will rise between .5 and 2.5 percent.

Room rates will increase between 2.5 percent and 3 percent, or $68 to $96 per semester, depending on the hall chosen. Board rates will increase between 2 and 4 percent, or $37 to $66 per semester, depending on the meal plan chosen. The 21 meal plan will now include all-access meals, keeping the dining hall in Blum Student Union open 12 hours per, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Currently, the dining hall is open a total of 7.5 hours per day.

An undergraduate student taking 15 in-state credit hours living in the least expensive residence hall with the least expensive meal plan would see an increase of $205 per semester, or 2.8 percent.

Also Thursday, the Board of Governors accepted a bid from Allegiant and Avaya Cloud Services of Overland Park, Kansas for a fully hosted Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP, phone system to replace Missouri Western’s current AT&T Plexar telephone service. The five-year cost of the Allegiant Avaya system will be $816,547.

As part of the VoIP bid service, Missouri Western audited its phone line usage among departments on campus and will eliminate 140 phone lines, from 973 to 833. The cost per line of the VoIP system is 4.2 percent lower than the current landline, resulting in a total annual savings of approximately $40,000.

Rain and possible flooding in some areas this weekend

weather-4-28Light to moderate rainfall is expected this morning. However, the heavy rain will approach the area after midnight tonight and continue through the weekend with the heaviest of the rain falling Saturday night into Sunday morning. By Sunday night, precipitation amounts of 2 to 4+ inches are forecast which will lead to flooding along area rivers, streams and, creeks as well as localized flash flooding. If you see water across roadways do not drive through it. Turn around, don’t drown! Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:

Today: Showers, mainly before noon. High near 60. East wind 8 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.

Tonight: Showers likely, mainly after 4 a.m. Cloudy, with a low around 47. North northeast wind 10 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.

Saturday: Showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 1 p.m. High near 50. Northeast wind 15 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.

Saturday Night: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Low around 45. Northeast wind 13 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.

Sunday: Showers likely, mainly before 1 p.m. Cloudy, with a high near 56. North northeast wind 8 to 13 mph becoming south in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.

Sunday Night: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Monday: A chance of showers before 1 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 56. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 43.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 65.

Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 45.

Wednesday: Partly sunny, with a high near 64.

Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 45.

Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 64.

 

St. Joe woman jumps bail in two separate burglary cases

Shannon Shremser
Shannon Shremser

Two judges issued arrest warrants Thursday for a St. Joseph woman who failed to show up for hearings in two separate burglary cases.

Shannon Schremser faces felony second-degree burglary charges in two separate cases filed in February. As we reported earlier, police and prosecutors accuse Schremser and co-defendant Jeff Pendleton of breaking into a home in the 2300 block of Mansfield Road on February 7.

A court document asserts the pair took numerous items from the home including a 2000 Lexus parked outside. Police said they recovered the property and arrested the pair at their residence.

Just a day after posting bail in that case, Schremser was charged with burglary again. In that case, authorities said she was found in possession of financial documents belonging to a man’s deceased wife which were reported missing in a home burglary Feb. 17 at a home on S.E. Horn Road. (click here)

On Thursday morning, Schremser was due in court for a trial-setting before Judge Daniel Kellogg. When she didn’t appear, Judge Kellogg revoked her $1,000 cash bail, issued a warrant for her arrest and set a new bond at $50,000 cash or surety. Thursday afternoon, she was due in court for a preliminary hearing before Judge Keith Marquart. Judge Marquart revoked her $10,000 bond, which required a $1,000 cash deposit.

Last month, Marquart removed a requirement that Schremser wear a GPS location device when she posted bail. When she failed to appear Thursday, Marquart set bail at $100,000 cash, and added the GPS device back to the bond requirements.

Pendleton is scheduled for a preliminary hearing May 23 on charges stemming from that first burglary. He also faces charges of first-degree burglary, 2nd degree property damage and 1st degree trespass in Andrew County. Pendleton is scheduled to for a trial setting in Andrew county May 22.

No charges to be filed in SJPD ‘officer-involved’ shooting

The Buchanan County Prosecutor’s Office announced Thursday that it will not be filing charges in an officer involved shooting which resulted in the death of Jason Fanning earlier this year.

As we previously reported, Fanning, 27 of St. Joseph was fatally wounded in the shooting incident that took place Feb. 20 at the intersection of 20th and Charles St.

According to a news release, the prosecutor’s office conducted an extensive investigation into the incident. Prosecuting Attorney Dwight Scroggins said a law enforcement officer is allowed to use deadly force if that officer has a reasonable belief that the use of such force is necessary to protect another from serious physical injury or death.  Therefore, no criminal charges are being pursued.

Scroggins said on Feb. 20 an officer with the St. Joseph Police Department and an unarmed Sheriff’s Department Reserve Officer passenger were on routine patrol around 2:30 in the morning when their attention was drawn to the vehicle driven by Fanning.  After checking the license plates it was discovered that the registered owner, Fanning had an oustanding warrant.

“Officers had not yet attempted a vehicle stop when the Fanning vehicle turned south on 20th Street.  The officers also turned south,” Scroggins said. “One block south at 20th and Charles Street, the subject vehicle made a belated turn into a private driver.  The SJPD officer stated he believed the individual was going to attempt to exit the vehicle and either go into the house or attempt to flee.”

Scroggins said the officer did not turn on his emergency lights at that time and therefore the dash camera in the vehicle was not activated.

“The Officer also pulled into the driveway, quickly got out of his vehicle and approached the Fanning vehicle.  He identified himself as a law enforcement officer,” Scroggins said. “Fanning did not exit the vehicle has instructed by the officer.  He again pulled forward and appeared to put the vehicle in park.  Mr. Fanning still did not exit the vehicle as the officer continued to instruct him to do.”

Scroggins said Fanning then appeared to place the vehicle in reverse and began to attempt to back around the patrol vehicle to leave.

“The reserve officer ride-a-long, whose presence was likely unknown to Mr. Fanning, had also exited the police vehicle and was standing toward the front of the police vehicle.  This officer was standing in the area toward which Mr. Fanning was moving,” Scroggins said. “There is no evidence to indicate Mr. Fanning was attempting to injure the officer or even that Mr. Fanning was aware of the second officer’s presense.  However, the SJPD Officer was aware of the second officer’s presence, that she was outside the police vehicle and he stated he determined the moving vehicle was an immediate threat to the ride-a-long officer.”

When the vehicle began moving backward, Scroggins said the St. Joseph Police Officer fired a total of eight shots, one bullet fatally hitting Fanning and three grazing gunshot wounds identified.

Capt. Jeff Wilson Thursday confirmed the officer referred to in the release as St. Joseph Police Officer Justin Bever.

The St. Joseph Post is posting the release in its entirety.  See the images below:

media-release-1 media-release-2

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