JEFFERSON CITY – Snow is not in the local forecast yet, but the Missouri Department of Transportation wants to be ready when winter weather is here. To prepare, MoDOT will test its readiness for the upcoming winter season with a statewide drill on Wednesday, Nov. 4.
The drill tests MoDOT’s winter battle plan to ensure its readiness to get travelers back on Missouri roadways as quickly as possible after winter storms.
“Over 3,500 MoDOT employees are involved in our winter operations, including every maintenance crew across the state,” said State Maintenance Engineer Becky Allmeroth. “The annual drill helps to make sure we all know our roles during a storm, and we can do our jobs successfully.”
During the drill, MoDOT employees will react to a simulated forecast of significant snow for the entire state. The department’s emergency operations centers will activate and maintenance employees will be deployed to their trucks.
“One of the most valuable parts of the drill is to measure our snowplow circuits by driving routes we may have modified since the previous winter season. As we open new roads and lanes we must modify our snow removal plans.” said Allmeroth. “It also allows our newest snow fighters the opportunity to drive a snowplow over some of their proposed routes so they are aware of obstacles and obstructions that might be hidden in a storm by snow or ice such as curbs and raised islands.”
Motorists may notice increased numbers of MoDOT vehicles on state routes during the drill. In rural areas, crews will deploy after 8 a.m. In urban areas, the drill will not begin until after 9 a.m. The exercise should be completed by 3 p.m.
The drill isn’t the only element to MoDOT’s winter weather operations. All maintenance employees complete an annual winter skills training that serves as a refresher course for plowing snow. The training assures that proper equipment operation, plowing techniques and safety measures are fresh on employees’ minds as winter approaches. Every piece of equipment – every truck, motor grader, snow blower, and tractor – is inspected to ensure proper operation.
“Our ultimate goal is to handle the first snowfall like we’ve been plowing snow all year,” said Allmeroth. “Careful planning and preparation mean our crews can mobilize when needed and our equipment will be ready.”
The Missouri Department of Transportation annually spends about $47 million to keep roads clear in the winter and help ensure motorists get to their destinations safely and quickly.
JEFFERSON CITY – Caution is urged today as kids in costumes his the streets with candy bags in tow.
The Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety is asking drivers to take it slow.
“It’s important for adults and drivers to be even more alert during Halloween because so many kids are out and they may not be watching for cars,” said Bill Whitfield, executive committee chair for the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety.
During the 2014 Halloween holiday Missouri had one fatality and four injuries involving pedestrians under the age of 16. To avoid real-life Halloween horrors the coalition asks drivers to remember the following:
• Stay alert. Neighborhoods that don’t normally have a lot of pedestrian and bicycle traffic may experience an increase on Halloween night.
• Remember that kids are excited and may be trying to visit as many houses as possible in a short amount of time. They may forget to stop, look and listen as they cross the street.
• Be cautious in areas where cars are parked along the side of the street. Trick-or-treaters may suddenly dart into traffic from between parked cars.
• Wear bright, reflective clothing or decorate costumes and bags with reflective tape/patches.
A sale is pending on a vacant lot owned by the St. Joseph School District.
The district made the announcement Friday that a sale is pending on a lot located on Arrowhead Drive. The St. Joseph Board of Education identified this vacant land as surplus property on the Board of Education Priority Checklist, #13 (CLICK HERE to view the list). The item on the list was for the board to review all district owned real estate and focus on undeveloped properties for potential liquidation.
The sale on the lot is expected to close December 21, 2015.
The District said the local real estate developer with the contract on the property would like to remain anonymous until the sale closes.
Frank Leone with Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Stein & Summers Real Estate handled the listing of the property and placed it on the market on October 13, 2015 for $114,000. The appraised value of the property was $106,508.
The Platte County prosecutor is expressing his disappointment with community members that supported a confessed child predator over the victim now that the man has been sentenced to serve 50-years in prison.
Darren L. Paden, 52 of Dearborn was sentenced Friday for sexually abusing a girl over the period of a decade beginning when she was five or six years old. He pleaded guilty in August to two counts of first degree statutory sodomy.
Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd said something was different—and deeply troubling—about the case: the number of community members who continued to disbelieve the young girl, even though the defendant admitted his guilt within the first couple of hours of his police interview and then pleaded guilty.
“There are certainly a few good people in this community who have offered support to this young victim,” Zahnd said. “It is shocking, however, that many continue to support a defendant whose guilt was never in doubt. If it takes a village to raise a child, what is a child to do when the village turns its back and supports a confessed child molester?”
At the sentencing hearing, the girl read a lengthy statement to the court that described not only the abuse she suffered at the hands of Paden, but also how she felt rejected by her own community after disclosing the sexual abuse she suffered.
Among her comments:
I couldn’t face the world, and I couldn’t face this town that made me feel like I was unwanted by everyone. . . . I was genuinely terrified to go into our new café in town because I was scared someone was going to yell at me or refuse to serve me. I was even scared they would tamper with my food. I feel so unwelcomed in a town that I have grown up in. I feel like an outsider that just strolled in and everybody is giving their own analysis on; and making up gossip that people believe instead of just coming up and talking to me. . . . Try dealing with that on top of being called a liar every day. . . .
To say you support someone who has done this sort of thing makes me wonder how some would react if a son/daughter told you they were a victim of these behaviors. Would you sign a petition then? Would you write letters of support still? I have little faith some would cease support of these acts, even if it was to their own flesh and blood.
The girl also said she transferred out of her public school because she “felt as if a teacher would snap on me any second in front of my peers.” Ultimately, a school board member from the victim’s school testified in support of the Defendant. Two retired teachers and three other school employees also wrote letters in support of Paden.
Paden told the psychologist hired by his criminal defense attorney that he sexually abused the girl two or three times a month over a period from 2001 to 2012. Paden told the girl it was “their little secret” and that she should not tell her mother or anyone else.
Paden told his psychologist that he fantasized about incest and had sexual interest in children “both in reality and in dreams and fantasies.” The psychologist diagnosed Paden as a pedophile.
When Paden was interviewed by detectives with the Platte County Sheriff’s Department in December 2012, he admitted his guilt within two hours of the beginning of questioning. Paden also wrote letters apologizing to the victim and his family for what he had done. Despite the confession and apology letters, Paden refused to plead guilty to his crimes for more than two years.
Instead, Paden admitted to a Missouri Probation and Parole Officer that he told people the girl was lying about the allegations. At his guilty plea, however, Paden confirmed the girl “was, in fact, truthful.”
Nevertheless, many members of the Dearborn community wrote letters on Paden’s behalf following his guilty plea. Prosecutors met with most of them to make sure they understood that Paden had fully confessed to his crimes, yet many of those community leaders continued to members stand behind Paden.
Zahnd’s office said those writing letters or testifying on behalf of Paden included:
Michele Paden-Livengood, Member, North Platte School Board
Donna Nash, Former Platte County Collector
Karlton Nash, Nash Gas
Jerry Hagg, Former President, Platte Valley Bank
Sheila S. Goodlet, Former Teacher, North Platte School District
Paige Newby, Former Teacher, North Platte School District
Diana Blankenship, Secretary to the Superintendent, North Platte School District and Elder, New Market Christian Church
Sherri Ambler, Employee, North Platte School District
Missy Stephenson, Employee, North Platte School District
Gene Blankenship, Trustee, New Market Christian Church
Beckie Moore, Nurse Practitioner, St. Luke’s Health System
Darla Hall Emmendorfer, Construction Engineer
Peggy Bloss
Jim Anderson
Francisco Escobar
Dixie Wilson
“It is said that we can be judged by how we treat the least of those among us,” Zahnd said. “It breaks my heart to see pillars of this community—a former county official, a bank president, church leaders, a school board member, current and former school employees—appear to choose the side of a child molester over the child he repeatedly abused.”
Judge James Van Amburg sentenced Paden to 25 years each on two counts of first degree statutory sodomy involving a victim under age 12. By law, those sentences must be run consecutively, resulting in a 50-year prison sentence.
Today
A chance of rain, mainly after 5pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 56. Light south southwest wind becoming south southeast 5 to 10 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Tonight
Rain. Low around 46. Southeast wind around 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Saturday
Rain likely before 7am, then a chance of showers between 7am and 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 57. Southeast wind 5 to 7 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Saturday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 42. South southwest wind around 5 mph.
Sunday
Sunny, with a high near 73. Light south wind becoming south southwest 5 to 9 mph in the morning.
Sunday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 47.
Monday
Sunny, with a high near 73.
Monday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 49.
Tuesday
Sunny, with a high near 74.
Tuesday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 52.
Wednesday
Mostly sunny, with a high near 70.
Wednesday Night
A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 53. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Thursday
A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 64. Chance of precipitation is 40%.
The Plymouth Building which was once a pool hall in downtown St. Joseph has been donated to Mosaic Life Care.
The building located at 521 Felix St. was formerly operated as the Shooters Pool Hall. It was donated to the hospital by Robert Anderson.
“Mosaic Life Care is very grateful for the generosity of Mr. Anderson and his family,” said Mark Laney, MD, CEO of Mosaic Life Care. “Repurposing the use and investing into The Plymouth Building will be another step forward for downtown revitalization.”
The Mosaic Life Care Board of Trustees approved moving forward with investing $300,000 into the building for immediate improvements to stabilize walls and repair the leaking roof. The hospital said future plans for the use and development of the building are yet to be determined, but will ultimately have a focus on retail space and clinical services to address the needs of St. Joseph downtown residents.
After Mosaic Life Care’s announcement of moving some of their operations into the German American Bank Building, the Anderson family approached the organization with the idea of donating The Plymouth Building. The family was interested in preserving the building and moving downtown St. Joseph forward even more quickly.
“We are taking a good look at what sort of services or needs we can place into The Plymouth Building that would best serve downtown St. Joseph,” said Laney. “It will be three to four years before building renovation would be complete and open to the public regardless of what the end use is determined to be.”
Mosaic Life Care’s future investment into The Plymouth Building, is not a part of the organization’s current proposal before city leaders regarding Tax Increment Financing (TIF) for the German American Bank Building downtown project.
Authorities have arrested 30-year-old David Manus who was wanted for allegedly enticing a child into his vehicle in Trenton.
The Trenton Missouri Police Department said Manus was taken into custody in Johnson County Kansas Thursday afternoon. He was charged Wednesday in Grundy County with felonies for enticement of a child, sexual misconduct or attempt involving a child, and child kidnapping. Law enforcement officials have been searching for Manus for nearly two days.
According to authorities on Tuesday Manus allegedly picked up a 9-year-old girl near a bus stop. According to KTTN, court documents state that morning after coaxing the girl into his vehicle she was taken to the Missouri State Conservation grounds west of Trenton, where the man allegedly exposed his genitals to the child. After she became upset he then reportedly took her to the Hodge Presbyterian Church driveway and let her out of the vehicle.
Manus is a registered sex offender.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Sex Offender Registry, in 2003 Manus was convicted of first-degree statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl. Manus was 18 at the time of the offense.
Manus will be extradited back to Grundy County to face the new charges.
Anyone with information into the current case is still asked to contact the Trenton Police Department at (660) 359-2121 or the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office at (660) 359-2828.
The St. Joseph Police Department is searching for three men after a home invasion Wednesday night when a victim was robbed at gunpoint by men wearing Halloween masks and carrying weapons.
Police responded to the 2000 block of N. Woodbine after 11 p.m. after Cmdr. Eric Protzman said the suspects entered a home in the area wearing masks and dark clothing.
Protzman confirms one of the suspects pinned one of the residents down and held him at gunpoint while the other suspects wearing masks took property from the victim.
Two people were home at the time of the incident but one was asleep.
No injuries were reported.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the tips hotline at (816) 238-TIPS
A 30-year-old Trenton man is at large and facing several charges after allegedly enticing a child into his vehicle.
David Wayne Manus is charged in Grundy County with felonies for enticement of a child, sexual misconduct or attempt involving a child, and child kidnapping.
The charges stem from an incident that took place Tuesday in Trenton when a student was picked up near a bus stop and let out later and continued on to school.
As of 4 a.m. Thursday police had still not taken Manus into custody.
The Grundy County Sheriff’s Office said Manus has been in contact with the Sheriff Rodney Herring but refuses to divulge his location or surrender himself.
“Manus is in the company of Kathryne “Kate/Katie” Ward-Ashworthy, who is aiding Manus in avoiding capture,” Sheriff Herring said.
Manus is a registered sex offender.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Sex Offender Registry, in 2003 Manus was convicted of first-degree statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl. Manus was 18 at the time of the offense.
Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact the Trenton Police Department at (660) 359-2121 or the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office at (660) 359-2828.
