A St Joseph man who pleaded guilty to murder charges Thursday was charged on Friday with assault for another shooting a month earlier that left a local woman in critical condition.

Buchanan County prosecutors filed the new case against Calvin Ford Jr., 24, in connection with the shooting of Genea Weston.

 

Weston was found in a car at 15th and Angelique shortly before midnight on October 25th, 2010.

A month later, on November 30th, Ford fatally shot 18-year-old Jordan Bartram during a drive by shooting in the 2900 block of Lafayette.

Armon Thompson, 22, also faces charges faces in Ms. Bartram’s death and the shooting of Ms. Weston.

Ford pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the Bartram homicide.  She was sitting in a car outside a home in the 2900 block of Lafayette when she was shot.

Ford told Circuit Judge Dan Kellogg that he fired at the home, not the car. He said he didn’t know anyone was sitting in the car.

He remains in custody pending formal arraignment on the new charge. Ford will be sentenced for the murder on June 28.

From MIG to an F-22 Raptor, from antique aircraft to the latest technology, from wing-walkers to a wall of fire: The Sound of Speed is Back at Rosecrans Airport.

The Sound of Speed International Edition air show is scheduled Saturday and Sunday at Rosecrans Memorial Airport in St Joseph.

The St. Joseph Development Corporation Charitable Fund, an outreach of the St. Joseph Metro Chamber, is the non-Federal sponsor of the air show and open house. After the fund’s inaugural 2010 event, over $38,000 dollars was distributed to over 20 different non-profit groups and local charities

This year, organizers are kicking off the “Hear Us” Campaign. The campaign will give local residents a unique opportunity to support the Sound of Speed financially while also gaining a campaign T-shirt, reserved event seating, and other special perks for themselves. All proceeds from the “Hear Us” campaign will go directly into the contingency fund.

Organizers remind us that some items will not be allowed on the grounds including

Among the items not allowed on the grounds are coolers (except small coolers for infant food), backpacks, briefcases, rucksacks, spray paint, magic marker pens, silly string, bicycles, scooters, skates or skateboards, masks, signs and banners. For a complete list of prohibited items, go to the air show website.

USDA has announced measures to better protect consumers from foodborne illness in meat and poultry products.

USDA says the measures will significantly improve the ability to trace contamination in the supply chain, act against contaminated products sooner and establish the effectiveness of food safety systems.

Ultimately – USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. Elisabeth Hagen says the additional safeguards will strengthen the nation’s food safety infrastructure.

USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service intends to implement new traceback measures in order to control pathogens earlier and prevent them from triggering foodborne illnesses and outbreaks. FSIS is also implementing three 2008 Farm Bill provisions that require establishments to prepare and maintain recall procedures, notify FSIS within 24 hours that a meat or poultry product that could harm consumers has been shipped into commerce and document each reassessment of their hazard control and critical control point system food safety plans.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – A Missouri senator has successfully killed a bill that would have authorized a government database to track people’s prescription drug purchases.

Republican Sen. Rob Schaaf and his allies led an eight-hour filibuster Thursday against the legislation before supporters finally caved in. Schaaf, a family physician from St. Joseph, had denounced the bill as an infringement on individual liberties.

Supporters said the database would have helped stop “doctor shopping,” in which people get prescriptions from multiple doctors to feed their drug habits.

The legislation died in an odd procedural way. Senators capitulated to Schaaf’s demand to attach a referendum clause to the bill. But then Senate Majority Leader Tom Dempsey declared that the bill would not receive a final vote before the legislative session ends May 18.

 

The St Joseph School District is moving forward this week on construction of two new schools approved by voters last month.

On Friday, May 4, the St. Joseph School District Board of Education will hear presentations from five architectural groups. The Board is expected to select an architect or architects for the construction of two new schools at its May 14 meeting.

The presentations will be in the Board room, 925 Felix St. The public is invited.

Friday afternoon’s presentation schedule is as follows:
2:00 Warner Nease Bost
2:40 Goldberg, Sullivan & McCrerey
3:20 Ellison-Auxier/ACI Frangkiser Hutchens
4:00 River Bluffs/BLDD
4:40 Creal Clark Seifert/DLR Group

 

A Missouri lawmaker has announced he’s gay. Republican House member Zachary Wyatt says he came out to denounce a so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

The bill would ban schools from talking about homosexuality outside of a scientific discussion. Wyatt is a first-term Representative from Kirksville, a beef producer and an Air Force veteran.