James Earl Eackles was sentenced to life in prison Monday for beating his longtime girlfriend to death last year.

Eackles, 46 pleaded guilty in Buchanan County Court to felony second degree murder.

As we previously reported, in February of 2015 officers with the St. Joseph Police Department responded to the 2200 block of S. 15th St. to find Carol Cunningham, 40 dead in the home

The probable cause statement said Eackles admitted to striking his girlfriend several times. Officers found her with significant injuries to her face and body which resulted in her death. Eackles and the victim have lived together for several years.

The Trenton Fire Department said it is not yet for sure what is causing unexplained booming noises at night in the Trenton area.

“To put it bluntly, we do not know what is causing them – and neither does anybody else,” the department said Monday on Facebook. “This also does not appear to be a local phenomena- these sounds have been reported in different areas of the US for a while now.”

Fire Chief Rick Morris said the noises started about three weeks ago.

“They’re bigger than an M-80 that’s fore sure. They’re more like an M-100 or an M-500,” Morris said. “We’re trying to triangulate it down and we think that we’re close then all of a sudden they appear to come from another direction too.  So it’s mobile like somebody’s driving around or someone is moving around.”

Morris speculates that the noises are due to illegal fireworks.

“It’s a ground burst it’s not up in the air,” Morris said. “If we have some illegal fireworks out there we want to confiscate them and stop this because somebody could hurt themselves or hurt somebody else.”

At this point Morris said he has not yet even found a residue of the blast or any leftover markings on the ground.

“I’ve been suspicious it might be what they call a sparkler bomb,” Morris said. “The thing is usually there’s debris leftover from that like wire and stuff but we haven’t even found that.”

He said the loud noises are happening randomly and all over town.

“The first ones seemed to appear in the northern part of the city and then we had one over in the extreme eastern side,” Morris said. “I go out at night whenever I hear them and drive around and I’m suspicious of any cars that are leaving the area quickly but we’re not finding any location.”

The department said on Facebook that it’s just as curious as the public to the explanation of the sounds and they plan to post any information that becomes available.

AAA said Monday that the national average price of gas has increased for six consecutive days for the first time since early November.

The company is attributing the higher moving gas prices to refinery maintenance season and some refineries cutting production in response to abundant supplies.

The national average for gas has climbed by four cents per gallon in a week to around $1.75/gallon.  Prices are likely to continue to rise as the spring refinery maintenance season ramps up. Monthly and yearly savings persist and drivers are saving five cents on the month and 65 cents on the year.

In Missouri the average is $1.59/gallon, 14 cents higher than last week. St. Joseph’s average is up 11 cents to $1.60/gallon.

AAA said global crude oil supply remains front of mind and the price of oil continues to swing in response to shifting expectations of future supply and demand. The world’s top oil producing nations recently have considered potential agreements that would freeze production levels to stabilize prices. Despite these discussions, many of these countries rely on oil profits to finance national operations and social programs, and thus any agreement faces significant headwinds as countries look to fill budget deficits by producing oil at higher levels. Both global benchmarks, Brent and West Texas Intermediate, managed to post weekly gains, though market fundamentals continue to point to abundant supplies.

You couldn’t ask for a better February day to “feel the Bern.”

Dozens turned out to Civic Center Park in St Joseph Saturday to enjoy spectacular weather, show support and enlist supporters for the presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Derek Evans helped sign up donors and volunteers. He said the event sprang from a post on social media, and said he was delighted with the turnout, which exceeded the count on Facebook. We counted about 80 people ranging in age from grandparents to youngsters in strollers.

The group basked in sunshine and 70 degrees, drew campaign slogans in chalk on the sidewalk, and heard several speeches from supporters. Then they marched through the downtown area to the Tiger’s Den bookstore and bar at 519 Felix. There, Mr Evans said volunteers would get a snap training course and then strike out across the city canvassing for their candidate.

Organizers said the campaign plans to open an office in St Joseph, calling that a work in progress. The Missouri presidential preference primary is March 15.

The City of St. Joseph Health Department is hosting a fourth open meeting for the public to learn more about “Bicycle Friendly Communities.”

The Meeting will be held Tuesday, March 1st. The meeting will take place at the City of St. Joseph Health Department, 904 South 10th Street, in the second floor conference room. The discussion will begin at 7:00 p.m. and is scheduled until 8:30 p.m.

This is the 4th in a series designed to educate the public on the attributes of becoming a Bicycle Friendly Community. Tuesday’s meeting will focus on “Encouragement”. The conversation will revolve around opportunities, promotions and incentives which are being considered to encourage, inspire, and enable people to ride bikes in St. Joseph.

The public is encouraged to attend. Bicyclists have an obvious interest, but becoming a Bicycle Friendly Community will impact everyone who uses the streets and hike and bike trails in St. Joseph.

The Friends of the Animal Shelter is gearing up for its 2nd annual run/walk for the Paws 5k and funds raised from the event could go towards the beginnings of a new shelter in St. Joseph.

“The Friends of the Animal Shelter are going to benefit from this walk,” said Kappy Hodges with the Friends of the Animal Shelter. “The person putting it on wants it to go into a capital fund for a new animal shelter. Friends of the Animal Shelter have been thinking about trying to raise money for a new animal shelter for some time and it looks like it’s going to happen.”

Hodges said the current animal shelter located at 701 SW Lower Lake Rd. is difficult to find and needs some upgrades.

“Our shelter is kind of old and it’s been around awhile and it has just basic stuff that you need. It’s not dirty but it’s not advanced in any way,” Hodges said. “There are so many improvements in animal shelters in the many years since that was built.”

She said it will take millions of dollars to build a new shelter. Also the location of where to put the new facility is still in the works.

“We’re scouting out new sites. If you are out there and you know an awesome site for a new animal shelter send us an email,” Hodges said. “Or if you know somebody who wants to give us the space that would be even better cause then we could use the money for the shelter itself instead of buying the land.”

She said an easy to find location is preferred.

“The current one we have people can’t find,” Hodges said. “I can’t tell you how many people I’ve given directions and they’ll drive up and back and forth on the main street right in front of it and they still can’t see it.”

The Paws 5K will be held April 16th at 9 a.m. outside Bode Ice Arena on the Southwest Parkway.  Individuals interested in taking part can enter the event by CLICKING HERE.  Hodges said participants are encouraged to bring their dogs along the day of the event.

St. Joseph, Mo. —Financial aid professionals from Missouri Western State University will offer free assistance to families filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, during a “FAFSA Frenzy” event from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday inside Remington Hall.

“In 2013-2014, Missouri college students received $3.8 billion in financial aid from the federal government and other sources,” said Marilyn Baker, Missouri Western director of financial aid. “The first step in accessing that aid is filling out the FAFSA, and we are happy to be able to help.”

Families who bring their completed 2015 income tax returns will be able to complete their 2016 FAFSA on-site. Those who haven’t completed their tax returns will still learn valuable information to help them finish the FAFSA at home.

Students attending one of nearly 100 FAFSA Frenzy events across the state can enter for a chance to win a scholarship for the 2016 fall term at a Missouri college, university or other postsecondary education institution.

The FAFSA deadline for Missouri is April 1. However, the priority deadline for Missouri Western is March 1, so Baker encourages students to apply early.

This is the 13th year that Missouri has participated in College Goal Sunday, a national effort to help students apply for financial aid. Since 2004, FAFSA Frenzy has helped more than 16,000 Missouri students complete the FAFSA.