The fire chief in Leavenworth, Kansas was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident Wednesday night.

Chief Mark Demaranville was the sole occupant of a motorcycle that crashed along US 73 highway near County Road 18 / Edwards Road.

Captain Andy Dedeke of the Leavenworth County Sheriff’s Office says the accident was first reported at 9:45 p.m.  Dedeke says their investigation continues, as they seek to confirm another vehicle was involved.

Demaranville was taken by private vehicle to Providence Hospital, and later transferred to the University of Kansas Medical Center.

A nursing supervisor at the KU Medical Center would neither confirm nor deny Mr Demaranville was at the hospital.

Leavenworth Mayor Larry Dedeke says he was briefed on the accident Thursday morning, along with other city officials.  Mayor Dedeke said they were told Chief Demaranville was in stable condition, with surgery scheduled Thursday.

Assistant Fire Chief Mark Nietzke will be in charge of the department’s day-to-day operations until Demaranville recovers and returns to work.

 

Livingston County Sheriff Steve Cox says the murder suspect held briefly in his jail was not involved in the shooting in Dawn, Missouri, or any other criminal investigation in Livingston County.

Cox says he received a request from the sheriff from Kimball County, Nebraska to house Mr. Vencile L. Ash in the Livingston County Jail overnight. The Nebraska sheriff was on a lengthy prisoner transport with Mr. Ash. The request was granted.  They left Livingston County on Thursday on their way back to Kimball County where Mr. Ash will answer allegations of Murder 1st Degree.

Sheriff Cox and the LCSO received several inquiries due to the murder charge.

“We hope this helps resolve any rumors,” Cox said in a news release. “This type of assistance is routine for law enforcement passing through our area on prisoner extraditions.”

The Livingston County Sheriff reports the arrest of a man involved in an assault on several people at the Catholic cemetery on Livingston County Road 232 Wednesday afternoon.

Sheriff Steve Cox tells us the suspect, Donald Walker, was arrested and charged with Felony Assault in 2nd Degree and Felony Possession of Controlled Substances.

Cox says in a news release that more charges may be pending. Walker is being held under $50 thousand cash bond. His next court appearance is September 26 at 9:00 a.m.

No one was seriously hurt during the incident.

 

Witnesses reported hearing a woman screaming for help and one witness reported seeing Mr. Walker on top of the female who was on the ground. A female witness who did not know either of these people went to help and was allegedly punched in the face. A male witness who did not know the couple in the cemetery ran to the area to assist, but told investigators he was with two children, and that he retreated when it appeared Walker was reaching for a gun.

The witnesses say Mr. Walker then quickly drove out of the cemetery and nearly hit the male witness. The investigation shows over 132 feet of acceleration marks on the gravel road leaving the cemetery and on Liv 232 where the victim was standing. The man said he had to jump out of the way of the fast-moving vehicle.

Bishop Robert Finn today became the highest-ranking U.S. Catholic official convicted during the church’s decades-long child sexual abuse scandal.

Jackson County Circuit Judge John Torrence found Finn guilty of one misdemeanor count and not guilty on another.   Finn was accused of failing to report suspicions of child abuse stemming from the church’s handling of the Reverend Shawn Ratigan.

Diocesan officials reported Ratigan months after they found lewd photographs of young girls on his laptop.

Judge Torrence separated Finn’s case from similar charges filed against the Kansas City St Joseph Diocese.  Those charges could be dropped.

Prosecutors opted for a bench trial to spare the victims the lengthy testimony and cross-examination during what was expected to be a two-week jury trial.

Finn told the court he was sorry.  The judge gave him a suspended sentence of two years of probation and required him to undergo training for reporting suspected abuse.

Prosecutors said after the Finn verdict that they would drop the charges against the diocese.  The judge was expected to rule on that issue Friday.

The Buchanan County Sheriff’s Department will join law enforcement across the country for a special enforcement effort as part of Child Passenger Safety Week (September 16-22).

Officials all over will crack down on child safety seat law violators, in an effort to reduce highway fatalities and injuries to children. Missouri law requires all children under the age of eight to be in an appropriate child safety seat or booster seat unless they are 80 lbs or 4’9” tall.

Car crashes are the number one killer of kids. Nearly 73 percent of all child restraints are not used correctly. Is your child safe?

Sheriff Mike Strong said regular child safety seat and safety belt use is the single most effective way to protect people and reduce fatalities in motor vehicle crashes.

For more information, visit www.saveMOlives.com.

To make an appointment to have your child safety seat inspected, call one of the numbers below:

Missouri State Highway Patrol, 816-387-2345
St. Joseph Safety and Health Council, 816-233-3330
Missouri Department of Transportation, 816-387-2437
YWCA, 816-232-4481

For assistance outside the St. Joseph Area go to www.nhtsa.gov and click on “Child Seat Inspection Station Locator”

A multiple-vehicle accident involving a semi in Atchison County, Kansas has claimed the life of a 72-year-old Effingham woman.

The Kansas Highway Patrol identifies the victim as Marcia A. Rygaard.

According to an online crash report, Rygaard was stopped at the intersection of US 59 and K-116 highways shortly before 9 a.m.

Investigators say she pulled her Ford Ranger into the path of a semi tractor-trailer.  The driver of the semi, William Tatum, 66, of St Joseph, was not hurt.

The accident closed a long stretch of both highways for nearly five hours, but by 2 p.m. Thursday both routes had reopened, according to KDOT.

A domestic dispute led to a shooting incident in Dawn, Missouri late Wednesday night, but it was the assailant who was hospitalized.

Livingston County Sheriff Steve Cox says just before midnight, a man opened fire with a rifle at the home of a woman he used to have a relationship with.

But the “other man” sitting on the porch, returned fire and hit the assailant, who was hospitalized.

Cox says the man fired three shots at an unoccupied truck before taking aim at the couple on the back porch. He says two children were asleep inside the home when the incident happened. There were no other injuries. No charges have been filed as of yet, and no names were released.

The 24th Annual Krug Park Fishing Derby will be held at the lagoon on Saturday, September 8, 2012, from 10am to noon.

Registration will begin at 9:30 a.m. at the lagoon. It’s a great day of fishing at the park.

Two age groups will compete for prizes; kids aged 10 & under and ages 11-15.

Prizes are for first fish caught, biggest fish, most catches, best marked fish, and most unusual catches for each age division. There will be many door prize drawings as well.

Children should bring their fishing gear and a dollar. The Fraternal Order of Police will set up their bait station for those who don’t have their own special bait. Each angler will get a hot dog and soft drink, as well as all the fish you can catch. Parents are encouraged to accompany their child, but are not allowed to fish; kids only at this event. There will be adults on hand to provide assistance to the young anglers. The fire department will be on hand to help the kids and the organizers.

The derby is presented by the Fraternal Order of Police, Northend Community Association, Southside Progressive Association, St. Joseph Fire Department, and St. Joseph Parks, Recreation and Civic Facilities.

For more information, please contact Sharon Ritchey at 816.271.5500.