(Missouri Independent) – Despite increasing legal access to medical and recreational cannabis in states across the U.S., veterans face unfair treatment and stigmatization because the U.S. refuses to recognize marijuana as a viable treatment option. While the VA has embraced the federally illegal status of the drug, agency policy does not allow discrimination against veterans […]
(Missouri Independent) – Kevin Strickland was hopeful Thursday was going to be his first step towards freedom after 40 years in prison. A new law that went into effect on Aug. 28 gave Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker a legal avenue to free Strickland, who she says is innocent and wrongly incarcerated. But opposition […]
The following is a list of general highway maintenance and construction work the Missouri Department of Transportation has planned in North Missouri for the week of September 6 – 12. All road closures and planned roadwork may be viewed on the Traveler Information Map. Inclement weather may cause schedule changes in some of the planned […]
Mercer County Public Water Supply District has issued a boil advisory until further notice for the area west of Modena. The advisory affects those from Highway 136 to the Grundy County line and from the Harrison County line to the junction of Jaguar Place and Route D.
(Missouri Independent) – Clay LaRue, superintendent of the Van Buren R-1 School District, made a tough decision Sunday. With COVID-19 cases spiking in Carter County in southeast Missouri, and many of those infections among very young children, LaRue shut down the district’s pre-kindergarten program for two weeks. He had previously directed faculty, staff, and students […]
A Missouri man was sentenced in federal court for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and illegally possessing a firearm. Maxwell L. Fleming, 25, of Springfield, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 15 years in federal prison without parole. On April 7, 2021, Fleming pleaded guilty to one count […]
The Mercer County Sheriff’s Office reports charges have been filed against the victim of a gunshot in an incident on August 30, 2021. David Walton has been charged with the felonies of second-degree kidnapping, armed criminal action, third-degree domestic assault, and unlawful use of a weapon. He also faces misdemeanor fourth-degree domestic assault. The sheriff’s […]
Trenton R-9 Director of Supportive Services Kris Ockenfels reports the school district and Apple Bus Company are experiencing difficulty providing drivers for all bus routes. The difficultly is due to multiple factors, the most prominent of which is an area-wide driver shortage for public school transportation. Ockenfels asks patrons to bear with the district and […]
Grundy County Public Water Supply District has issued a precautionary boil advisory for the northwest portion of Grundy County following repairs to a water main break. A spokesman listed the boundaries as the Mercer County line on the north, Thompson River on the east, Highways 146 and 190 for the south, and the Daviess-Harrison County […]
A Missouri man who fled from police officers on a stolen motorcycle and fought with several officers as he resisted arrest was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm. Michael S. Reaves, 35, of Independence, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to five years in federal prison without parole. […]
A Missouri man pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally possessing a firearm. Desmond L. Washington, 22, of Kansas City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to possessing a firearm after previously being convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. Washington was arrested on Sept. 7, 2019, when Kansas City police officers […]
(Missouri Independent) – Federal education officials have launched civil rights investigations in five Republican-led states that have prohibited school districts from mandating mask-wearing, saying those policies could amount to illegal discrimination against students with disabilities. The Biden administration notified the education chiefs in Iowa, Tennessee, South Carolina, Utah, and Oklahoma of the investigations through formal letters Monday. The new investigations will examine […]
The Missouri Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics is responding to Attorney General Eric Schmitt suing to block mask mandates in Missouri’s K-12 public schools. Schmitt, a Republican running for U.S. Senate, says a mask mandate “flies in the face of science, especially given children’s low risk of severe illness and death and their […]
The Mercer County Sheriff’s Department reports it received a 911 call Monday night, August 30, about a male individual who had been shot. The sheriff’s department and Mercer County Ambulance District responded to the scene, but that location was not identified by authorities. Upon arrival, the sheriff’s office discovered a male was suffering from a […]
(Missouri Independent) – New cases from the Delta variant wave that has killed more than 1,150 Missourians since June 1 have plateaued, but hospital ICUs continue to fill — and small, rural hospitals are among the hardest hit. There were 690 patients in ICU beds across the state on Tuesday, the most recent day reported by the state Department of Health […]
A man pleaded guilty in federal court to the armed robbery of a female Z-Trip driver whom he shot approximately 26 times with a rifle from the back seat. Derron D. Nevels, 20, of Kansas City, Missouri, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to one count of robbery and one count of […]
Mercer County Public Water Supply District has issued a boil advisory due to water main repair. Customers asked to boil water until further notice include those from Highway 136 to the Grundy County line and from the Harrison County line to Route A. A boil advisory has been lifted that was issued earlier this week […]
Updated COVID-19 contact tracing and quarantine guidelines have been released for the Trenton R-9 School District. The guidelines say a positive case will be isolated for 10 days from symptom onset. Close contact will be quarantined at home for 10 days from contact with the positive case. Students who are six feet or closer to […]
A Mexican national was sentenced in federal court today for illegally selling more than a dozen firearms and a large amount of methamphetamine and heroin to undercover federal agents. Heladio Lezama-Palma, 36, a citizen of Mexico who was residing in Kansas City, Missouri, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 15 years […]
Information has been released for Trenton Middle School students who are quarantined due to COVID-19 exposure. Principal Daniel Gott says those students are asked to check Google Classrooms on a daily basis. They will receive attendance credit when assignments have been submitted. Students who have not received an invite for their Google Classroom should contact […]
