Stories from Wednesday, April 11, 2012

GREENVILLE -- The Chaffee Red Devils improved to 11-1 with an exciting 7-1 road win over Greenville in 11 innings on Tuesday afternoon. "It was a good game," said Chaffee coach Brian Horrell. "It was a big game with a lot of big situations. I'm proud of the way our guys battled."...

EAST PRAIRIE -- They didn't take their foot off the gas this time around. A day after allowing the Dexter Lady Bearcats to close a 16-run lead to three, the New Madrid County Central Lady Eagles made quick work of the East Prairie Lady Eagles Tuesday in a 14-4 win at East Prairie...

DEXTER -- With his team's big one-run win over Sikeston coming a day earlier, Dexter Bearcat head coach Brian Becker had concerns his team might suffer a letdown when visiting Charleston came to town on Tuesday. Those fears were alleviated, however, when the Bearcats belted out 12 hits to beat the Bluejays 8-0 for their eighth win of the season...

DEXTER -- Eloise LaRue, 96, died April 9, 2012, at her home in Dexter. Born Jan. 19, 1916, in Frisco, daughter of the late Charles LaRue and Anna Barker LaRue, she was a former receptionist at the YMCA in Pontiac, Mich., former waitress at the Hickory Log Restaurant in Dexter and attended the Second General Baptist Church in Dexter...

SIKESTON -- Richard Thomas Evans Sr., 73, died April 10, 2012, at Southeast Health Center in Cape Girardeau. Born Dec. 7, 1938, in Scott County, to the late Elvis and Mary Williams Evans, he retired from the City of Miner Water Department. He served in the U.S. Army in the 101st Airborne Division and was of the Baptist belief. He was a former member of the VFW, American Legion Post 333 and the Sikeston Jaycees...

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Claudia Ramell Smith, 81, died March 23, 2012, at her home. Born July 9, 1930, in No. 8, a small community in Southeast Missouri, to the late William C. and Flossie Clark, she graduated from Kewanee High School in 1949. In 1956, she moved to Portland where she lived until her death...

EAST PRAIRIE -- Barbara Jackson Organ, 75, died at 12:49 a.m. April 11, 2012, at her home in East Prairie. Arrangements are incomplete at Shelby Funeral Home in East Prairie.

PIEDMONT -- The Rev. Howard F. Welches, 87, formerly of Fredericktown and Charleston, died April 9, 2012, in Piedmont. Born Aug. 5, 1924, in Kokomo, Ind., son of the late Howard F. and Elise Anderson Welches, he was a member of the Church of the Nazarene...

BLOOMFIElD -- Mary Bostic, 80, died April 9, 2012, at her son's home in Bloomfield. Born July 10, 1931, in Kewanee, daughter of the late Willie and Lillian Henson Cox, she had worked at Elder's Manufacturing in Bloomfield as a presser and attended the Beech Grove General Baptist Church. She spent four years in California and the rest of her life in Bloomfield...

PORTAGEVILLE -- Eve E. Meador, 81, died April 10, 2012, at the Golden Living Center in New Madrid. Born July 29, 1930, in Steele, she was the daughter of the late Rosa Lee Riddick and Herbert Roscoe Hall. On Sept. 16, 1950, in Truman, Ark., she married William A. Meador, who preceded her in death July 12, 1991...

MINER - A Charleston man is in custody after leading Miner Police on a high-speed chase which ended in Mississippi County. Early Tuesday morning, Miner Police stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation on South Interstate Drive in Miner. Miner Police Chief Chris Griggs said while officers attempted to determine the name of the driver, later identified as Ned Curtis Watts, 54, he left the scene at a high rate of speed...

CARUTHERSVILLE -- A Pemiscot County man is recovering from a gunshot wound to his leg following an altercation at his home near Holland. According to Pemiscot County Sheriff Tommy Greenwell, deputies received a call Monday afternoon to a residence on County Highway 479, just outside Holland's city limits, where a fight was in progress...

SIKESTON - With the installation of the two new public warning devices, the Sikeston Department of Public Safety is conducting extensive testing to ensure they are programmed correctly. According to Lt. Jim McMillen, public information officer with DPS, over the next several days, the public will likely hear these sirens being tested a number of times...

SIKESTON -- Sikeston R-6 School District said goodbye to its longtime board attorney and secretary during the regular Board of Education meeting Tuesday at the board office. After 21 years as secretary and attorney for the Board of Education, Rice "Pete" Burns Jr. said about a year ago he made his decision to retire because he just felt it was time to do so...

SIKESTON -- The Sikeston R-6 Board of Education reorganized and welcomed two new members during its monthly meeting Tuesday at the district office. New members Chris Hodgkiss and David L. Jones took their oaths of office for three-year terms. Outgoing board members Toni Kellett and Jill Hopson, who each served a one three-year term, didn't seek re-election to the board...

CHARLESTON - An investigation is under way into a fatal shooting. Charleston Public Safety Director Robert E. Hearnes said his officers were called to 706 Grand Ave. at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday to investigate a shooting. At the scene they found the victim, Gregory Gary, 27, of Tacoma, Wash...

BENTON -- Scott County commissioners were surprised by figures presented to the Sikeston City Council Monday but are still hopeful a 911 consolidation can be worked out. During their Tuesday meeting, commissioners reviewed a spreadsheet prepared by Sikeston city staff which shows anticipated costs associated with the creation and operation of a joint dispatching center...

Work on the new 50,000-square-foot facility to house FedEx is under way in the Sikeston Business Education and Technology Park. The small-package distribution center is being built by Hunter Equity of Dallas, Texas, and is expected to be in operation by this summer, depending on the weather, according to officials,...

With a Supreme Court decision on Obamacare looming large in the background, this current administration is running full speed ahead to implement as much of the controversial law as possible, despite a host of political and legal objections. Just last week, the Obama administration - with no fanfare - quietly funneled $300 million to the Internal Revenue Service to hire new agents to help implement the new law. ...