Homicide #50: Woman found in car

Update 6 p.m.:

• Donna J. Riley, black/female, 08/08/1969, Kansas City.

From Kansas City police 9:53 a.m.:

• Today at about 7:30am, KCMO Police Officers were dispatched to 72nd and Prospect on a dead body.
• On arrival they contacted a worker at the business there (Haile’s Automotive Repair) who advised that when he arrived for work he noticed a vehicle there at the shop for repair, that had its windows down. He remembered that when he last saw the vehicle it had the windows rolled up. As he approached the vehicle, he found the body of a black female dead laying inside.
• Homicides Detectives and Crime Scene Investigators are at the scene and are investigating this as a Homicide. Anyone with information is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 474-TIPS (8477).

'Sorry, sir, I have to take your camera'

Was the guy arrested for snapping shots of a drug arrest in Philadelphia right or wrong? Interesting reader discussion of the issue on tech site slashdot.org, including lots of links to documentation.

Hat tip to reader James B.!

Murder 1 charge in KC homicide #49

Update from police 3:50 p.m.:

• The victim has been identified as Ramon L. Walzer, black/male, 7/27/1960, of Kansas City.

Man killed in Saturday shooting
A 46-year-old man was found dead about 1:45 a.m. Saturday at a residence in the 3200 block of East 20th Street, Kansas City police said. The shooting victim’s name wasn’t released. Anthony R. Freeman (photo, right), 27, has been charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action.

This is the 49th homicide for 2006 as compared to 66 at this time in 2005.

KS to probe handling of starved-girls case

Sebelius orders probe into deprivation case
WICHITA - Gov. Kathleen Sebelius on Monday ordered an investigation into what she called the state's failure to help two Wichita girls who police say were starved and tortured for months.
The statement doesn't detail what failures the governor wants investigated. But Wichita school Superintendent Winston Brooks told The Wichita Eagle last week that administrators at the girls' school notified the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services twice in the past year of concerns they had that the girls, aged 6 and 7, were being abused.
Police have charged their father, Alex A. Wood, 28, and stepmother, Jennifer L. Wood, 27, with two counts of felony child abuse, saying the girls suffered torture, beating and inhumane treatment for around 10 months. Jennifer Wood also was charged with aggravated battery.
Authorities say the two girls became emaciated after being denied food and water.

Previous post:
'Worst case of malnutrition'

'Disappointed' bank robber get 5 years

Unhappy robber gets 5 years
A 38-year-old bank robber who said he was disappointed in his haul of small-denomination bills got a medium-denomination sentence today of five years in federal prison without parole.
Daniel M. Fuentes of Topeka said he saw the bills while examining his duffel bag of loot for dye packs. He was arrested about 10 minutes after the robbery. The bag contained $4,288, prosecutors said.
His presentence memorandum talks a lot about mental problems.

Source: U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren's office in Kansas, PACER

The indignity! Boy George to pick up trash

NEW YORK (AP) - Boy George will perform his court-ordered community service by picking up trash on city streets in the August heat, a sanitation spokesman said.
The one-time Culture Club singer will be issued a shovel, broom, plastic bags and gloves when he reports Aug. 14 for five days of work.

Born George O'Dowd, the 45-year-old singer has struggled with drug problems for years. He was arrested after calling in a phony burglary report and police found cocaine instead.
He could be assigned to pick up streets in Chinatown, Little Italy, Nolita or parts of the Lower East Side.
O'Dowd became an '80s icon with his androgynous appearance and vocals on hits such as "Karma Chameleon" and "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?" A Manhattan judge threatened the singer with jail time if he failed to complete his five days of community service before Aug. 28.

6 DUIs, 1 robbery warrant in Indy check

From Independence police a while ago (July 22, 4:45 AM):

The Independence Police Traffic Safety Unit conducted a sobriety checkpoint along eastbound US 40 Highway east of Lee's Summit Road. The operation began on Saturday 07/22/06 at 12:30 AM and ended at 4:00AM.
The checkpoint was staffed by 21 officers.
During the three and one half hours of operation (222) cars were checked with the following results:
(6)   DWI arrests
(5)   Driving without a valid operator license
(3)   Miscellaneous traffic violations
(2)   Narcotics violations
(6)   Outstanding arrest warrants (1 felony robbery)

1 in 8 drivers arrested at KC checkpoint

Police arrest 35 at weekend checkpoint

More than 1 in 8 drivers were arrested at a sobriety checkpoint Saturday night in Kansas City - the highest percentage in recent memory.
Only a third of the arrests, however, were for driving while intoxicated. The rest were for outstanding traffic warrants and a drug possession charge.
The checkpoint took place 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. in the eastbound lanes of Independence Avenue in the 5900 block east.

Reader Big Al weighed in on this in an email:

• Why did over half the cars pulled over on Indep. ave over the weekend have their info. ran and cars searched? I thought sobriety checkpoints were just to see if you have any alchohol on the breath??!!!
• 22 arrests of people that were just driving home, and minding their own business. I would like to know the numbers of white vs. latino and blacks. I was there and it looked awful funny to me.
• And why do they have time to run all these people? Is there some kind of constitutional law that this violates??

Pit bull roundup roundup

Dogs are man's best friend, but the relationship was particularly rocky on this blog last week. Check out the passion, pride and prejudice:

New York police kill pit bulls, injure selves (57 comments)
Police remove 68 pit bulls from Wichita home (43 comments)
71-year-old woman killed by dog (244 comments)
Colorado dad: A pit bull saved my son (50 comments)

And in the news:
KCK authorities catch pit bulls
Police picked up eight pit bulls Sunday afternoon, a day after they captured 20 others. Animal-control staff received 22 tips from the pit bull hot line. Two pit bulls were voluntarily dropped off at the city’s animal control center.

Pit bull crackdown: KCK seizes 20 dogs
Animal-control officers in Kansas City, Kan., had rounded up 20 pit bulls by Saturday afternoon, the Police Department reported. The Unified Government on Friday announced a crackdown on pit bulls after Jimmie Mae McConnell, 71, died after a dog attack Thursday.By Saturday afternoon, a pit bull hot line — (913) 573-8911 — had received 44 tips.

Charges follow fatal dog attack VIDEO
Derick D. Lee, 32, of Kansas City, Kan., was charged Friday with involuntary manslaughter in the pit bull attack that killed a 71-year-old woman in her back yard.

Grandview police fire tear gas

Home invasion investigated
Fast action last night in the 11900 block of Smalley Avenue in Grandview after a reported home invasion and robbery at 12:15 a.m.:

• Forty-five minutes later, three people run from the house and say the bad guys are still inside.
• Police set up a perimeter, call in the SWAT team and use a bullhorn.
• At 3:40 p.m., they fire tear gas, but the house is empty.

Man shot by police, critically wounded

From Kansas City police, 2:01 a.m. Sunday:

• Two officers were driving in the area of 83^rd Terrace and Troost when they observed a male and a female involved in a disturbance on the side of Troost.  When the officers stopped to investigate, the male ran away from the officers.  One of the officers pursued the man.
• When the man was in a parking lot on the northeast corner of 83^rd Terrace and Troost he reached his hand into his pocket, turned his body, and pointed what the officer believed was a gun at him (at the time of this e-mail we have not confirmed what exactly the male pointed at the officer since we did not immediately find a gun).
• Fearing for his life, the officer shot the man.  The man was taken to an area hospital where he was being treated for his injuries.  The man was believed to be in his 30’s and was in critical condition at the hospital.  The officer has been with the department since January of 1999.

Child-sex predators' "insatiable appetite"

Journalist warns of Internet predators
NY Times reporter Kurt Eichenwald found a teenager running a child-porn Website - of himself. His story helped put a cottage-industry of such sites out of business, the reporter says - but the teens have just moved to YouTube.

“People have to understand that we live in a new world,” Eichenwald said. “And in this new world, kids are in danger. You have a class of adults that virtually live online. They spend their days hunting for children and for children’s images. It seems to be an insatiable appetite.”

This has been on Oprah and Good Morning America.

Eichenwald will speak here Thursday in a benefit for child-abuse prevention center Sunflower House.

No pix of police allowed in Philly?

Cell phone picture called obstruction of justice
A 21-year-old Philadelphia man was arrested and jailed for photographing a drug arrest with his camera phone, police came into his backyard to do it and weren't any too nice about it, his family says. They ain't happy.

Hat tip to reader BS Steve, who actually linked to this conspiracy site.

Mel Gibson grappling with demon rum

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Despite an apology by Mel Gibson, Hollywood insiders and the star's fans sought more details about his reported anti-Semitic tirade during an arrest for drunken driving and whether sheriff's deputies gave him preferential treatment.
A leaked arrest report quoted Gibson as saying "The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world," and asking an arresting officer, James Mee, "Are you a Jew?"

• Driving 87 in a 45 at 2:36 a.m. in a 2006 Lexus.
• Bottle of tequila in car, 75% full.
• Had "a little", blew 0.12% BAC, a no-excuses zone.

Good story, photo and sheriff's report on entertainment site www.tmz.com

AP: Gibon's Gibson's remarks in spotlight after arrest

(Photo: In this booking photo released by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, actor-director Mel Gibson is seen in a booking photo taken Friday, July 28, 2006. An official police report on Gibson's arrest on drunken driving charges on Friday substantiates claims that he made anti-Semitic remarks and threatened a deputy, a law enforcement official said Monday, July 31. (AP Photo/Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department)

Open thread Monday: Back!

This is the place to come for discussion of off-topics topics. It's also a good place to bring crime-related story ideas, especially with a link or hint to where I can find it.

Today: Ah, vacation - all the fun the law would allow. Thanks to my colleague, cops reporter James Hart, for filling in. And thanks to everyone for visiting on what looked like a busy week on the blog (365 open-thread comments Friday?!)

Partial email catch-up/to-do list:

07/23: How does the KC media rationalize not reporting a  drive-by shooting in Westport on a Saturday night?

07/24: I'd heard Saturday that someone was arrested for stealing cars in the West Bottoms of Kansas City.  I work there.  We recently had a break in.  Do you know anything about this?

07/24: I thought you might find the information below regarding the recent blackouts in St. Louis and Queens useful.  Please contact me for any additional information.

07:24: Do you know the title of article that was to be in the Saturday paper on Ally Francis ? I can't seem to find anything on it other than your blog. By the way what ever happened to Tits Mc Gee??

07/25: Who was the 80th homicide in Sept. 2005 and why was he killed?

07/26: I was wondering why the website hasn't been updated more recently regarding potential check points and results?

07/28: I was writing to inquire about your posting the sobriety checkpoint info on the KC Star webpage.  I used to see that information on there, but have not seen it lately.  Have you/The Star changed your policy and don't post that anylonger, or did a bunch of people whine about it, and you don't post it anymore.

07/29: Around 10pm were about 6 or more police cars with all lights flashing parked in front of house on 93st  just east of Roe. I believe this was a drug house previously. Would like to know what happened since I live nearby.

Amber Alert: "There is no more baby"

From Kansas City police:

Police have issued an Amber Alert for 10-month-old Eunice Ross, is believed to be with her non-custodial father, Eddie Ross, black/male, 06/21/1986.
Ross was involved in a drive-by shooting of the home where the child’s mother (Michelle R. Sullivan, black/female, 12/26/1987) is living at 9524 Ditman Court at about 8 pm Sunday.
Eddie took the child from the mother at about 730 pm from the Apple Market at Bannister and James A. Reed Road.  At the time of the shooting Eddie Ross was occupying a silver or gray four-door car, possibly a Nissan Maxima with Kansas plates.
Eddie Ross has threatened to harm the child, telling the mother “there is no more baby.”  He has a history of domestic violence and poses a risk of serious injury to the infant.
Call the TIPS hotline at 816.474.8477.

Convicted killer lays claim to 48 victims

Robert Charles Browne, a 53-year-old convicted of murdering a teenage girl, now says he killed as many as 48 people between 1970 and 1995.

He says he killed in Louisiana, Colorado, Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, California, New Mexico and Oklahoma, Washington state and South Korea. Investigators have been able to corroborate his claims in six cases. So far, the authorities haven't listed any potential victims from Missouri or Kansas.

The Gazette of Colorado Springs has a special site with stories, map and court records.

Update on fatal dog attack in KCK

A lot of developments in Thursday's dog attack on a 71-year-old woman in KCK ...

- A 32-year-old man's been charged with involuntary manslaughter. My coworker, Bob Cronkleton, interviewed Derrick D. Lee on Friday, when he was in court for an unrelated case. Lee said he hadn't been staying in the neighborhood for months, and he denied responsibility for Thursday's attack.

- The victim, Jimmie Mae McConnell, had extensive bites, but the county coroner says preliminary autopsy reports indicate she died from cardiac arrhythmia, brought on by the trauma of the attack.

- KCK is announcing a pit bull amnesty for owners to turn over their dogs. It'll last two weeks. Details below:

The Kansas City, Kansas Police Department Animal Control participated in a press conference at the Police Headquarters at 700 Minnesota announcing the Pit Bull Amnesty Program. The program consists of extended hours for the relinquishing of ownership of illegal Pit Bulls.

The Animal Control Center is located at 3301 Park Drive, Kansas City, Kansas, and will continue to operate the normal business hours of: 8:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. – Monday through Friday.

The Pit Bull Amnesty Program hours are: 8:00 a.m. through 9:00 p.m. Monday through Friday; 8:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m. – Saturday and Sunday.

This program starts immediately and will last for two weeks. The phone number for Animal Control is 913-321-1445. A hotline established for this program the number is 913-573-8911.

Procedure for relinquishing custody of illegal animal under City Ordinance 7-130:

- upon arrival to the Animal Control Center, please keep the illegal animal in your vehicle.

-contact Animal Control Staff and follow their direction as to what needs to be done with the animal.

- the State of Kansas requires a very brief form signed by the owner to relinquish custody of the animal.

- the extended hours of operation are ONLY for the relinquishment of illegal animals under KCK City Ordinance 7-130. All normal Animal Control operations will continue during this amnesty program.

Nebraska sticks with electrocution

Snip from the AP: The state Supreme Court on Friday rejected an inmate’s appeal that the electric chair amounts to cruel and unusual punishment, leaving Nebraska as still the only state with electrocution as its sole means of execution.

No American court has ever ruled that electrocution amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. But as legal challenges were mounted against its use, others states adopted alternative methods of execution, primarily lethal injection.

"Nebraska ... now is alone in the United States, actually in the whole world, in still requiring electrocution," Carey Dean Moore’s lawyer, Alan Peterson, argued to the court. "Nebraska is the last holdout for this universally rejected and condemned sole means of capital punishment."

Miami paper manipulated image of police ignoring prostitutes

Snip from the AP story:

The Miami Herald’s Spanish-language sister paper acknowledged Friday that it manipulated two photos to make it appear that two Cuban police officers were ignoring prostitutes gesturing to a tourist.

The image, which appeared June 25 in El Nuevo Herald, combined two previously published pictures — a 1994 photo of the officers by El Nuevo Herald photographer Roberto Koltun, and a 1998 picture of the women and tourist by John Moore, then a photographer for the Associated Press.

Executive Editor Humberto Castello said the newspaper failed to explain to readers that the picture did not depict a real event.

Teens get high on gumballs

Marijuana gumballs, it should be noted. A DEA official told reporters: "When it comes to drug dealing, you're only limited by your imagination."

UPDATED: Cell-phone jury can't make a decision

The judge has declared a mistrial in the case of Marlon Brando Gill, the man accused of shoving a cell phone down his girlfriend's throat. The jury deliberated about seven hours over two days, but couldn't reach a verdict. Prosecutors want to retry, so Gill is staying in jail for now.

(Sorry about the delay on the update, everyone.)

Las Vegas: No mobile soup kitchens for you!

Las Vegas has made it illegal to feed homeless people in city parks. It basically targets mobile soup kitchens. Officials hope the law will clean up the parks and divert homeless people to centers and charities with mental-health and jobs programs. The ACLU says it's unconstitutional.

Update on starved Wichita girls

Earlier this week, Wichita police found two starving sisters, ages 6 and 7, in a basement, where they hadn't been fed for an extended period of time. One police officer called it "the worst case of malnutrition I've ever seen."

On Thursday, their father and stepmother were charged with several counts of child abuse.

Town just says no to liquor license for inmate

An inmate in Vermont applied to the town liquor board for a license to serve hooch, you know, behind bars. He listed "700 Charlestown Road" as his address, leaving out the part about that being the location of the Southern State Correctional Facility. Denied!

There were a lot of problems with his plan -- the guards were going to be suspicious when the beer truck pulled up -- but city leaders note that he forgot to fill out his application correctly.

Open Thread ... Friday, Sweet Friday

Welcome to Crime Scene KC. Please add any off-topic comments, story ideas, etc., in the space below. Thanks again, and have a good day. (Continuity Note: I'm James Hart, one of The Star's police reporters, and I'm filling in while Greg's on vacation.)

New ad effort on Hispanic youth meth use

It's not often you can see gory pictures on the White House website. But the government is taking a head-on approach to reduce meth use among Hispanic youth, and those pictures are part of that campaign:

• The Partnership for a Drug-Free America, along with the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, has introduced a new communications campaign aimed at preventing use of the illicit drug methamphetamine in the Hispanic community.
• The English and Spanish-language campaign messages, which include public service advertisements for television, radio and print, will receive national distribution, making this the largest scale Spanish-language anti-meth effort to date.

Methamphetamine stats for Hispanic youth:

• Hispanic teens are almost twice as likely to have tried meth than White or Black teens. 12.8 percent of Hispanic teens grades 7-12 reported lifetime trial of meth in 2005 versus 7.1 percent of White and 6.2 percent of Black teens.
• 1 in 3 Hispanic teens grades 7-12 reports having close friends who use meth, versus 1 in 5 among White or Black teens
• Only 49 percent of Hispanic teens—less than half—see "great risk" in trying meth once or twice.

New! Improved! Crime prevention

What if crime prevention were advertised like toothpaste? What if you couldn't turn on the TV, radio or drive down the highway without being assaulted, so to speak, with ads for crime prevention?

Here's a new 84-page federally-funded study that says, well, crime prevention advertising by police can do some good:

• Developing innovative efforts to reduce crime and social disorder is an integral part of modern police work. Police agencies that undertake such interventions should consider advertising their work and ideas. Departments can help remove crime opportunities by teaching and encouraging the public to adopt better self-protection measures, or they can warn offenders of increased police vigilance or improved police practices. When designed properly, publicity campaigns can offer police departments another problem-solving tool in the fight against crime.

Blue Springs man pleads guilty to kiddie porn, again

George M. Bass, Jr., 59, of Blue Springs, pleaded guilty in federal court to distributing and receiving child pornography over the Internet. This is the second federal child-porn case against Bass, who was sentenced in the first one earlier this month.

KCK investigates fatal shooting

From KCK police, via Officer Jackie Waters

HOMICIDE – 3300 block of Delevan Avenue

Kansas City, Kansas – At approximately 12:42 a.m. on Thursday, 07-27-2006, officers with the Kansas City Kansas Police Department responded to the 3300 block of Delevan Avenue on reports of a shooting. When officers arrived they discovered a black male who had been shot.

The victim was pronounced dead at the scene and he has been identified as Brandon Franklin, 03-14-1984, a Kansas City, Kansas resident. The victim’s family has been notified. The shooting is being investigated by the Kansas City Kansas Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division and the Crime Scene Investigation Unit.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Criminal Investigation Division at 913-573-6020 or the Tips Hotline at 816-474-TIPS. There is nothing further to report at this time.

71-year-old woman killed by dog

KCK police say it was a pit bull, which the city bans.

UPDATE: Police are now saying they aren't sure about the breed of the dog.

Teens get high on mothballs

From Reuters: Doctors were mystified what was making a pair of twins sick ... then a cleaning lady found a bag of mothballs in their hospital room. Apparently, they got high by breathing deeply from the bag for 10 minutes a day; they learned how from some classmates.

Update on 82nd-Wornall shootings

A city official told The Star that party organizers Monarch Entertainment didn't have the right permits to host the event Saturday night at 82nd and Wornall. Two college students, Nathan Buie and DeMarco Harvey, were killed by gunfire in the parking lot outside a Knight of Columbus Hall; several others were injured. (Buie and Harvey's funerals will be Saturday.)

A Monarch organizer says he had a business license and didn't know he needed anything else. The story also talks about why Hickman Mills School District canceled another Monarch event in June.

Worst. Date. Ever.

Police arrested a naked 18-year-old outside an elementary school in Albuquerque late Tuesday night. Apparently, the teen and his girlfriend were in a bathroom inside the school, when they heard noises. He panicked and ran outside, forgetting to bring his clothes with him. At some point, he discovered he'd locked himself out of the building.

The teen climbed on the roof, so he could get back in through a skylight. That's when the ceiling collapsed.

The good news? The police let him get his clothes before they hauled him to jail.

(Hat Tip: You're a mean drunk R2D2 -- many thanks, R2!)

Agents raid N.C. zoo

Authorities raid a zoo in North Carolina, where they find drugs, guns and 10 illegal video poker machines, as well as several reptiles and birds that didn't have the right paperwork. Apparently, you need state and federal permits for birds of prey. (The story doesn't mention what kind of drugs; just pills. Ditto for the guns.)

The story mentions the zoo owner is a "controversial figure in the exotic animal community." In the past, he's been cited for illegally keeping a cougar in his house, and he's gotten into trouble for not feeding animals the approved food and for keeping shelters in disrepair.

Colorado dad: A pit bull saved my son

A man -- authorities think it might be a sex offender -- tried to grab a 9-year-old boy from his back yard, but the family pit bull scared the man away.

Did a killer take your picture?

Bill Bradford was convicted back in 1987 of killing two aspiring models, but authorities in Los Angeles are worried he may have killed others. At his sentencing, Bradford told jurors: "Think of how many you don't even know about."

Investigators recently went back through his files found photos of 50 unknown women, taken back when Bradford had an amateur photography business. They released those shots to the public, hoping people would help identify them. So far, about 14 of 50 have been ID'd as alive.

A lot of the women are believed to be from southern California, but authorities also listed Kansas as one of the states where the women might be from.

Carjackers steal veteran's van

From KSHB: Carjackers steal and wreck a van belonging to a disabled Vietnam vet. He's about 64 years old.

Open Thread

Please post any off-topic comments, story ideas, etc., in the space below. Greg Reeves is on vacation this week. My name is James Hart, one of the Star's police reporters, and I'm filling in. Thanks again, and have a good day.

Federal Webcast today on campus violence

Campus violence, and helping victims of campus crime, will be the topic of a Webcast today at 1 p.m. sponsored by the Department of Justice's Office of Victims of Crime (OVC).

Assisting Victims on College and University Campuses
Join guest host S. Daniel Carter  for an OVC Web Forum discussion on campus victimization and assistance services. Mr. Carter is Senior Vice President of Security On Campus, Inc., a nonprofit organization devoted to assisting victims of violence on college campuses and to improving campus security.

New federal study on fight against gun violence

Above: Marchers protest along 24th Street against gun violence in Kansas City, Aug. 2, 2004. Pictured: Rachel Riley, whose son was shot dead in 2003. (Star photo by Norman Ng)

A new 40-page report from the Department of Justice on Atlanta’s successful fight to reduce gun violence – with lessons, they say, for other cities:

• Atlanta’s goal was to preempt juvenile gun violence by breaking the chain of illegal events leading up to these crimes— disrupting illegal gun supply, demand, and carrying, and rehabilitating offenders.
• In its final form, the Atlanta gun violence project consisted of a small but determined coalition of Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies and prosecutors, with the Atlanta Police Department (APD) in a central role.
• Tactics ranged from traffic stops and directed patrol to Federal prosecution of adult gun traffickers.
• The key to problem solving is ongoing, communitywide action involving multiple public agencies and private organizations. Because this approach is data driven, researchers work side by side with practitioners.

BOLO: Donald L. Spring, 54

KC police are looking for Donald L. Spring, 54, who's accused of shooting his girlfriend in the face with a shotgun on Monday. She got hit with pellets on the left side of her face and neck, but she survived.

Yates not guilty by reason of insanity

Andrea Yates will be sent to a mental hospital, instead of a life sentence in prison. She'll receive periodic hearings to see if she should be released at some point.

Police remove 68 pit bulls from Wichita home

Two kids, 11 and 5, also lived in the house. A social worker and police made the discovery when they were following up on a tip. Authorities think the animals were being sold on the Internet. No word on the dogs' condition, though some of them had scars from fighting. The story says dozens of them were kept in plastic cages inside the house, which didn't look that big. Dad's been charged with child endangerment, resisting arrest and obstructing the legal process.

Man who fled checkpoint now charged with 2nd-degree murder

A 20-year-old man has been charged with second-degree murder after authorities said he tried to flee from a DUI checkpoint and instead crashed into a light pole and another car near the Plaza. The crash killed the 20-year-old's passenger.

Missing woman located

From KCK police via Officer Jackie Waters

MISSING PERSON (ADULT)

***UPDATE***

The Kansas City, Kansas Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division has advised Samantha J. Hinkle has been found.  She was located with the assistance of friends who had seen her picture on television.  Miss Hinkle was found in Kansas City, Kansas and is in good health. The circumstances regarding her disappearance are unknown at this time but she is back with her family and her two young children. There is nothing further to report at this time.

Missing: Anthony L. Hamby, 51

From KC police via Officer Darin Snapp Subject is Anthony L. Hamby, b/m, 3-10-1955. Subject left his home 4611 Wabash on 6-19-2006 and has not been seen since. He is the primary care giver for his ailing mother. Hamby has a history of drug abuse and has been depressed recently. If located, notify FAAS 816-234-5239. G: Sorry about the funky styling earlier. Thanks for the heads-up.

Exotic dancer has exotic hobby

A stripper from New Jersey was arrested after police found six human skulls and a severed human hand in her house. They were looking for a guy who was trying to kill himself with a hammer, but he wasn't there, and yes, this all actually happened. It is quite possibly the Best Crime Story Ever Told.

A couple of roommates told Newark's Star-Ledger, which broke the story, that an admiring med student had given the hand as a gift. (It's not clear where the skulls came from, but apparently, you can order them off the Internets.)

The hand's nickname was "Freddy." The suspect's mom told reporters, "She has a flair for the dramatic."

Tips sought in one of KC's worst shootings

Not a lot of developments yet in the big shooting this weekend in south KC, which killed two college students, Nathan Buie and DeMarco Harvey, and injured several others. Police say at least 57 rounds were fired into a large crowd outside a Knight of Columbus hall. Activists had a prayer vigil Tuesday at the scene, urging people with info to come forward. The Star's multimedia desk was there. (Launches video.)

Lee's Summit barricade, shooting

While Lee's Summit police were negotiating with a man barricaded in a house on Tuesday, an officer shot a different man in the same neighborhood during an unrelated altercation.

Cell phone assault goes to trial

Marlon Brando Gill, a man accused of shoving a cell phone down his girlfriend's throat, was in court Tuesday. His attorney suggested the victim, Melinda Abell, swallowed it so Gill couldn't see the numbers she'd been calling. Abell testified that she'd been abused by Gill, but said she couldn't remember writing a statement to police after the incident.

Man accused of stealing whiskey, going back for more

Authorities accuse a Claycomo man of breaking into a Liberty store, stealing two bottles of whiskey and then -- about five hours later -- returning for more illicit hooch. The store's owner, though, was there; you know, cleaning up from the first break-in? He chased away the intruder, but police say the suspect is a guy who called paramedics a few hours later. Charges were filed Tuesday.

"The power of Christ compels you to freeze, dirtbag"

Two nuns in the Netherlands tried -- and sadly, failed -- to catch a guy who'd been stealing money from their chapel. The chase would've been great to see, though -- both women were in full habit and on bicycle.

These are some wily nuns. One of them tried to get the bad guy to come inside for a drink while signaling the other to alert police.

Officers are still investigating, but it sounds like they really need to bring in an expert.

Open Thread ... Good morning, Internet!

Crime Scene KC's Open Thread lives to do your bidding. Please post any off-topic comments, story ideas, etc., in the space below. As always, we appreciate your patronage.

All about violence against women

We've missed Sexual Assault Awareness Month (April), but the federal Office on Violence against Women (OVW) wants you to know about its new Website, with added sections on:

• President’s Family Justice Center Initiative
• Faith-Based and Community Initiatives
• The Safety for Indian Women Demonstration Initiative
• OVW’s Measuring Effectiveness Initiative.
• New links to domestic violence and sexual assault hotlines, state coalitions, and other Federal agencies with violence against women programs.

Peru's female traffic cops targeted

Peru's Female Traffic Cops Face Backlash
LIMA, Peru (AP) - When traffic cop Maria Luisa Calderon ordered a taxi driver to move on as he picked up a passenger in heavy traffic, his reaction bordered on homicidal: He turned on his high beams and floored it, slamming her to the ground and ripping her face and ankle as he sped away.
It was typical of a macho backlash on Lima's streets, where most male traffic officers were replaced by women in the late 1990s in an effort to give law enforcement a kinder, gentler and less corrupt face.
Eighteen months after her brush with death, 29-year-old Calderon says her foot still swells up. "The gentleman got away," she said. "They never captured him because I couldn't get his license plate number."
The "gentleman"? Yes. The policewomen are trained to keep their cool, never pull a gun, and always address the driver as "el senor."
But it doesn't seem to be working. Eighty percent of the 405 incidents reported in the past two years have involved one of the capital's 1,031 female police, meaning roughly a third of them have been cursed, shoved, punched, dragged, run over or taken hostage by angry men. Cabbies and bus drivers are the worst offenders.
Lima isn't the only Latin American city to have tried using women to tame its wild drivers, based on studies concluding they are less likely to be corrupt. Mexico City attempted it and gave up.
Of 10 police abducted in 2004 and 2005, nine were women.

Charges in Clark murder

Miami County has charged Roger Ratliff, 46, with the murder and rape of Alieghya Clark, whose remains were found Friday. Clark Ratliff went to church with Clark, lived around the corner and was one of the last people seen with her before her disappearance in May.

NY police kill pit bull, injure selves

In New York, police fired 26 shots at a pit bull that had wrapped its jaws around a fellow officer's leg. That killed the dog, but three other police officers were grazed by the bullets.

(Thanks, BS Steve, for correcting the number of shots fired.)