Liquor-store clerk, 70, chases down teen shoplifter

Did I mention the part where she runs marathons?

13 DUI arrests at KCMO sobriety checkpoint

From the KCPD release: The Kansas City Missouri Police Department conducted a Sobriety Checkpoint on April 27, 2007 from 2300 hours to 0400 hours at 34th and Broadway. Northbound traffic was checked with a total of 622 vehicles stopped. A total number of 13 DUI arrests were made, along with 2 hazardous moving violations, 3 other traffic charges, 2 possession of marijuana, and 1 city warrant.

Update on Pot 2.0

Turns out I wasn't the only one with questions about Pot 2.0 -- a lot of people complained to Reuters about the use of the term "medical emergencies." Now, the news service has updated its story to say that it's used to mean the patient mentioned using pot, but that pot wasn't necessarily the cause of the accident or condition.

Hat Tip: Many thanks to Bill from LEAP!

Life stinks in the Hutchinson jail

Inmates have now been limited to four rolls of toilet paper to month. Maybe the jail has dodged a budget crisis, but something tells me they're going to have a completely new kind of problem pretty soon. (Via Tony's Kansas City.)

St. Louis woman convicted of kiddie porn

St. Louis woman, 60, pleads guilty to child pornography. She was the board president for the local chapter of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The U.S. Attorney's office in St. Louis says they've prosecuted about 100 cases of kiddie porn in the past five years. This is only the second female to be convicted.

Open Thread ... Weekend Edition

Welcome back to the Open Thread! We'll be back on Monday with regular postings. Thanks for hanging out, and have a good day. Oh, and about the Powerpuff Girls, which were recommended by several readers. (Two.) The girls fight monsters, and monster rampages are a form of disorderly conduct and property damage.

The Urdang Gang Rides Again ... To Prison

From The Star: Two sisters, Hannah Urdang, 19, and Amelia Urdang, 22, both of Kansas City, have been sentenced to 10 years in prison for robbing a Northland pizza delivery business and attempting to rob a gas station.

According to authorities, Hannah Urdang on Oct. 24 tried to rob the Valero Gas Station at 6250 NW Barry Road. She brandished a knife and threatened the clerk. She fled without getting any money.

Less than 15 minutes later, both sisters went to the Northern Lights Pizza Shop located at 7711 N.W. Prairie View Road. They ordered an employee to open the cash register. One of them walked around the counter and pointed a knife at the employee while the other ripped the store’s phone cords and handsets from the receivers. When another employee approached, one of the sisters threw a phone at him and another chased him to the back with a knife.

KCK searches for murder suspect

Bob Cronkleton's got a story about the killing last weekend of Indio Inglehart, who was found dead near 22nd and Riverview. KCK police are looking for suspect Tommy Mackey, 38, who police said was in custody but actually wasn't.

The telltale T-shirt

Fleeing suspect seeks refuge in a 70-year-old woman's house, even offers $500. She hightails it out of there, but is able to ID him later because he cleverly thought to disguise himself by stealing one of her shirts. From the story: "It made me mad because my daughter had just sent me that T-shirt from Florida," Rowells said.

Hat Tip: Thanks, kmb!

Where is Tabitha Brewer?

From The Star: Tabitha Brewer, 16, and Nicholas Travis, 18, left Brewer’s home nine years ago today. That was the last time they were seen alive. Travis’ body and Brewer’s half-burned purse were found four months later in a backyard in Kansas City. Last year, Brandon B. Howell was charged with their murders.

But Brewer’s body has not been found. Her father, Tom Brewer, said many of the people who might know something that could help find her were young and probably too scared to talk to authorities when she first disappeared.

Now, with Howell in the Jackson County Jail awaiting trial, Brewer hopes anyone who knows something will come forward. Anonymous tips can be given to the TIPS Hotline at (816) 474-TIPS (474-8477).

(I interviewed Tom and the rest of Tabitha's family a few years ago -- it was the fifth anniversary of Tabitha's disappearance. They said, by that point, they knew that Tabitha was dead. They just wanted to be able to bury her.)

The high cost of crime

KCPD has compiled estimates on how much it costs to handle a typical murder, robbery and other crimes.  One homicide, for example, costs about $7,837 in salaries, though they say that's a conservative guess.

Police Chief Jim Corwin is using the figures as an argument of why it might be more cost-effective to spend money earlier in a potential crook's life -- before he commits a crime. KCPD is working with UMKC on a study of career criminals, to see if there's anything that could've been done to prevent them from going into crime. Christine Vendel's got a pretty interesting story here. From Corwin:

“If somebody could have intervened in some of these people’s lives earlier, like spending $10,000 for early education and at-risk programs, could we have avoided spending a quarter-of-a-million dollars later, when you consider the cost of prosecution and prison?"

To protect and observe

A Detroit police sergeant is accused of pulling over couples and forcing them to have sex while he watched, or he'd write them a big ticket. The sergeant's suspended, and he's pleaded not guilty.

Teen, 16, sues to stay off sex offender list

St. Louis boy, 16, has consensual sex with girlfriend, 14, and tapes it. Shows tape to friends. Gets caught and pleads guilty to public display of explicit sexual material.

A few months later, a new law makes that a charge that can land a person on the sex offenders list -- and the state says the teen's name should be added retroactively. Teen sues to keep himself off the list, and now the case has gone before the Missouri Supremes, who sound like they agree with him.

Thieves steal camping equipment from Boy Scouts

About $4,000 in camping equipment was stolen from Troop 312, which had stowed its gear inside a trailer at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Independence, KMBC reports. (The trailer was recovered out near Buckner.) The kids have a campout in a few weeks, but no tents. Anybody with info on the case is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at (816) 474-8477 (474-8477)

Child Protection Center exec wins award

Julie Donelon, who heads up the Child Protection Center, has won this year's Crystal Kipper & Ali Kemp Memorial Award, given every year during National Crime Victims' Rights Week, U.S. Attorney John Wood's office reported. The center helps conduct forensic interviews of children who've been sexually assaulted and advocates for young victims of abuse.

Police arrest student for writing "disturbing" essay

From Chicago ... A straight-A student was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct after he wrote an essay that his creative-writing teacher found "violently disturbing," though it didn't threaten anyone in particular. The student, who is a senior, is not being allowed to attend classes at that school, though he's not been officially expelled or suspended. (Via Fark.)

From the story: Cary Police Chief Ron Delelio said the charge was appropriate even though the essay was not published or posted for public viewing.
 
Disorderly conduct, which carries a penalty of 30 days in jail and a $1,500 fine, is filed for pranks such as pulling a fire alarm or dialing 911. But it can also apply when someone's writings can disturb an individual, Delelio said.

Man, 67, murders teen who walked on his lawn

Remember Charles Martin? He's the 67-year-old who shot and killed a 15-year-old neighbor who stepped on his lawn. An Ohio jury convicted him Thursday. His defense attorney said the dead kid and other teens would harass Martin and constantly walk on his lawn, which he mowed five times a week sometimes. With a shotgun, Martin shot the kid once in the chest and once in the back when he tried to escape.

Betrayed by a kiss ... and a security camera

Two teenage girls from Washington State kiss each other in their high school's commons -- a quick peck, one of them says. But the school's security cams recorded it. And since one of the girl's parents asked the school to report any unusual behavior on her part, an administrator showed them the recorded kiss. They transferred the girl to another school.

Now the girls are crying foul, saying their privacy was invaded. The school says it did nothing wrong, though it's changed its policy to only use the cams for safety and security. Plus, the school noted, PDA is against the rules, and the girls shouldn't have had any expectation of privacy because they kissed in a crowded public place.

Open Thread ... Friday

Welcome to the Open Thread! This is the blog's spot for off-topic comments, socializing, etc. If you see something interesting elsewhere on the Internet, feel free to share the link. Thanks for hanging out, and have a great weekend! (We'll also have an Open Thread up and running on Saturday morning.)

Man pleads guilty to pimping girl

A St. Louis man has pleaded guilty to pimping out a girl so she could pay off a drug debt.

A different kind of "Happy" Meal ... Toy included!

A New Zealand grandma is upset after finding a condom (still in the wrapper) in her 7-year-old granddaughter's Happy Meal.

Hat Tip: Thanks, vamp85 and The_DB!

Critical shooting at 63rd and Swope in KC

From The Star: A shooting victim showed up at Research Medical Center on Thursday night with life-threatening injuries, police said.The victim, who arrived at the hospital after 8 p.m., apparently was wounded in a shooting west of the Southeast Community Center at 63rd Street and Swope Parkway.

Life "Dorf," but with public urination

Tennessee mom who lives next to city-owned golf course, sick of drunk golfers urinating near her house, starts videotaping the festivities after the authorities do nothing.

Hat Tip: Many thanks to The_DB

Charges in KCK homicide on S. 22nd

From The Star: A 38-year-old was arrested and charged with first-degree murder Thursday for the shooting death of Indio Inglehart.

Tommy Mackey was also charged with criminal possession of a firearm in Wyandotte County District Court. Authorities have said Inglehart, 30, was shot once in the head on April 22 near 10 S. 22nd St.
Authorities surrounded a house near 17th Street and Riverview Avenue yesterday, where they believed Mackey was hiding. Police blocked off the area, but he wasn’t inside when they entered the dwelling.

Police: Two OP men sexually abused girl, 14

Two Overland Park men, ages 33 and 49, have been accused of molesting a 14-year-old girl.