Thursday, October 22, 2026

U. S. marshals arrest sex offender on Dade County warrant

(From the Dade County Sheriff's Office)

On October 22, 2026, Robert D. Hopkins, a registered sex offender with an active Dade County felony probation violation warrant, was taken into custody in Greene County, Missouri, with the assistance of the United States Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force.

Earlier today, I was contacted by members of the U.S. Marshals Service, who advised they had developed information regarding Hopkins' whereabouts in Greene County.

I requested their assistance in apprehending Hopkins, and members of the Fugitive Task Force successfully located and arrested him.

Hopkins was wanted on a capias warrant issued October 15, 2026, by the Dade County Circuit Court for alleged probation violations related to a felony resisting or interfering with arrest conviction.
The warrant was issued with NO BOND.

I would like to personally thank the U.S. Marshals Service Fugitive Task Force for their quick response, professionalism, and assistance in bringing this individual into custody.

As Sheriff, I believe strongly in working alongside our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners. These partnerships are especially important in rural communities where manpower and resources are limited.

Just because someone leaves Dade County does not mean they are beyond the reach of law enforcement. We will continue working with our law enforcement partners to locate and apprehend individuals wanted on outstanding warrants

Agenda posted for Joplin City Council special meeting

SPECIAL JOPLIN CITY COUNCIL MEETING
Monday, October 26, 2026
5:30 P.M.
602 S. Main Street, Joplin MO
5th Floor Council Chambers

AGENDA

Call To Order

Roll Call

Reading Of Special Call

Ordinances - Second Reading And Third Reading

COUNCIL BILL NO. 2026-528

AN ORDINANCE adopting new step pay plans by reference the City Salary Administration Plan; establishing the annual salary of certain Classified and Unclassified positions and Part-Time/Seasonal positions for Fiscal Year 2026-2027; adopting a new step pay plan by reference Police Salary Administration Plan establishing the annual salary of certain police positions; adopting and establishing pay rates for certain Unclassified Council Employees; and, setting a date when this Ordinance shall become effective.

Documents:

Adjourn

State auditor calls on USDA to crack down on wasteful, fraudulent spending in Missouri

(From State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick)

After years of identifying inadequate oversight that has allowed millions of dollars in wasteful and fraudulent spending in a federal food program administered by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, Missouri State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick is now calling on federal officials to intervene and provide guidance that will motivate the department to finally take the simple but important steps necessary to protect taxpayers.

Fitzpatrick today sent a letter to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) calling on the department to perform audit resolutions to validate the audit findings issued by Fitzpatrick's office that identified insufficient controls and procedures in the administration of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS). In his letter, Fitzpatrick said action from the USDA would provide critical information needed for future audits and potentially save taxpayer funds from waste or outright fraud.

"Year after year we have given the DHSS recommendations to clean up a program that has been plagued by fraud and year after year the department has ignored our calls for increased oversight. My message to federal officials is you get what you tolerate and the truth is they're getting a program that has seen millions of dollars misused because they tolerate a lack of accountability in how the program is administered," said Auditor Fitzpatrick. "If state officials won't take our message seriously then we need the federal government to send a clear, decisive message that turning a blind eye to wasteful and fraudulent misuse of taxpayer dollars won't be tolerated."

The Statewide Single Audit released by Auditor Fitzpatrick's office found the DHSS, which oversees the CACFP, does not have sufficient controls and procedures to ensure reimbursements to child and adult care facilities and sponsors are allowable and supported with sufficient documentation. Over the last 3 years the error rate has increased so that erroneous and unsupported reimbursements now represent 12% of meal reimbursements tested. The audit also found DHSS subrecipient monitoring procedures are not sufficient to ensure CACFP subrecipient compliance with program requirements. As a result, significant unallowable and unsupported reimbursements continue to be made without being prevented or detected on a timely basis, and monitoring reviews identified significant errors, noncompliance, disallowances, and overclaims.

While the DHSS adjusted subsequent claims to recoup or reimburse for overclaims and underclaims identified in the audit, unallowable costs could be significant if similar errors were made on the remaining population of CACFP meal reimbursements totaling approximately $69.9 million. The recommendation to enhance procedures related to identification and recoupment of overclaims, as required by federal regulations, and expand testing when significant errors are identified, have been in included in the audit report for the last 3 years, but the DHSS has continued to ignore the recommendations, which will likely allow significant improper payments to subrecipients to continue.

Fitzpatrick also released an audit in 2025 that identified how lacking oversight by the DHSS may have played a significant role in allowing the misuse of millions of dollars reimbursed to organizations such as New Heights and Sisters of Lavender Rose, which led to federal indictments.

Kehoe announces Operation Show Me the Money

(From Gov. Mike Kehoe)

Today, during a press conference at the Missouri State Capitol alongside Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri Thomas C. Albus, and United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri R. Matthew Price, Governor Mike Kehoe announced Operation Show-Me the Money, an unprecedented partnership between the State of Missouri and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to aggressively identify, investigate, and prosecute fraud involving taxpayer-funded benefit programs.

Operation Show-Me the Money will focus on state programs that distribute federal funds to entities and individuals, bringing together state and federal resources to better identify potential fraud, strengthen oversight, and ensure taxpayer dollars are being used for their intended purpose.

"Missouri is no place for fraud, and those who think they can cheat the system and steal from hardworking taxpayers are going to be held accountable," said Governor Kehoe. "From day one, my administration has made it a priority to crack down on criminals and protect taxpayer dollars. Through Operation Show-Me the Money, we're bringing the full force of state and federal law enforcement together to send a clear message: If you're stealing from Missouri taxpayers, we're coming after you."

Operation Show-Me the Money is a collaborative effort between the Kehoe Administration, the Missouri Attorney General's Office, and the DOJ, expanding existing partnerships for cross-departmental data sharing to help identify suspicious activity and pursue prosecution.

The initiative will bring together dedicated staff from the Missouri Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the DOJ to strengthen coordination and investigative efforts.

“Missouri will not be a safe haven for anyone who steals from taxpayers or exploits public programs," said Attorney General Hanaway. "We have won many major victories against consumer, contractor, and Medicaid fraud, but our work is not finished. We thank Governor Mike Kehoe and U.S. Attorneys, Tom and Matt, for their leadership as we work together to root out fraud and protect taxpayer dollars across our state.”

The operation will utilize a three-pronged approach, first drawing on referrals from existing state agency investigations and tips from frontline program staff. Second, investigators will conduct targeted reviews of individual benefit programs—beginning with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)—to identify suspicious activity and vulnerabilities.

The third component will use data across multiple state agencies and programs to detect patterns of potential fraud that might otherwise go unnoticed. By examining information across systems, investigators can identify emerging trends and determine where further inquiry is warranted.

“This operation will provide better access to data and information on these benefit programs and better communication between our agencies, helping us ensure that tax dollars won’t be siphoned away from these valuable programs by fraudsters,” said Thomas C. Albus, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri. “I look forward to working with our state and federal partners on this valuable new initiative.”

“By combining federal investigative and prosecutorial resources with the state’s knowledge and oversight of its benefit programs, we can detect fraud sooner, build stronger cases, and hold offenders accountable,” said R. Matthew Price, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri. “Hardworking Missouri taxpayers deserve better, and we are committed to protecting the integrity of these programs, following the money, and using every available federal law enforcement tool to bring those who commit fraud to justice.”

In addition to pursuing fraud, the operation will help identify weaknesses in existing programs and opportunities to strengthen oversight. Findings may inform future administrative changes, program improvements, or legislative solutions to better safeguard taxpayer dollars and prevent fraud before it occurs.

Operation Show-Me the Money builds on ongoing state and federal efforts to crack down on fraud and protect taxpayer dollars. Governor Kehoe recently joined Vice President JD Vance in signing the Pledge to Protect Americans from Fraud, reinforcing Missouri's commitment to holding fraudsters accountable.

For more information on federal efforts to combat fraud, visit justice.gov/fraud.

The press conference was livestreamed on Governor Kehoe’s Facebook, X, and YouTube pages. Photos will be available on Governor Kehoe's Flickr page.

First Joplin signing for When Jesse James Came to Pineville Saturday at Always Buying Books

The first Joplin signing for my book When Jesse James Came to Pineville is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at Always Buying Books, 5357 N. Main Street.

The signing is part of owner Bob Wolfe's two-day birthday sale that begins Friday, October 23 and includes the following specials:

-New books 10 percent off

-Classics 25 to 50 percent off

Children and Young Adult books- 50 percent off

Book Tok New- 10 percent off

Book Tok Used 25 percent off

Christian and Christian Fiction 50 percent off

Puzzles 25 percent off

Modern Fiction 25 percent off

An under-the-tent sale is scheduled 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday with t-shirts by Redeemed and Radiant..

In addition to When Jesse James Came to Pineville, copies of my earlier books will be available during the Saturday signing, including Justice for Rowan Ford, Sharing Memories With My Friends, Running Circles Around the Globe: 20 Years of the Turner Report, The Buck Starts Here: Harry S. Truman and the City of Lamar and the 10th anniversary edition of 5:41: Stories from the Joplin Tornado.

Wednesday, October 21, 2026

Public meeting scheduled for last part of Joplin Main Street streetscaping

(From the City of Joplin)

The Main Street streetscaping project that will transform 8th through 15th Streets is set to begin soon, and a final public meeting to review the project is scheduled for next week.

The public meeting about the project will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 27. The meeting will be held on the 5th floor Study Room of Joplin’s City Hall, 602 S. Main Street.

The meeting will include City engineering staff and consultants as well as representatives from Sprouls Construction, the construction contractor for the project.

The streetscaping plan – the third and final phase of improving Main Street all the way from 1st to 32nd Streets – includes elements like new street surfaces, sidewalks with decorative concrete, lighting improvements, benches and trees, and its own unique Midtown motif. The portion of the project north of the railroad tracks at 10th Street will match the current Downtown motif, and the motif south of the railroad tracks to 15th Street will have the Midtown style.

The $5 million project is set to begin this fall and will take approximately nine months to complete. The work is being funded through Community Project Funding (CPF) grant funds administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

For more information on the public meeting or the streetscaping project, contact Rob Beachner at 417-624-0820 ext. 1543.

Carthage R-9 Board hears report on Performing Arts Center progress, accepts three teacher retirements, one resignation

(From the Carthage R-9 School District)

The Carthage R-9 Board of Education met in regular session on Monday, October 19, 2026, 6:00 pm, at the Carthage South Technical Center – Community Room. Present were Board members Ms. Niki Cloud, Mr. Ryan Collier, Mrs. Lora Phelps, Dr. Mark Westhoff, Mr. Jeff Jones, Ms. Maria Sanchez,
and Dr. Robin Blair. Ms. Niki Cloud led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Mr. Salvador Prado, Director Bands, and band students shared successes from their marching band
season and competitions.

The Board approved the Consent Agenda for the purpose of approving the meeting agenda, minutes of previous open session meeting and work session, payment of bills, district financial report, student
ridership count and bus routes for 2026-2027, and purchase of a 2027 CanAM Defender DPS CAB or
2027 Polaris Ranger XP1000 CAB.

Dr. Matt Huntley, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction, Mrs. Michelle Hensley, Fairview Elementary
Principal, Mrs. Lindsay Mikhail, Fairview Elementary Assistant Principal, Mr. Dustin Perkins, Carthage
High School Athletic and Activities Director, Mr. Zach Canfield, Carthage Junior High School Athletic
and Activities Director, provided the Board information regarding CSIP Priority 1: Developingm Successful Students report.

Dr. Huntley provided the Board an update on Carthage online learning.

Mrs. Crystal Brown provided a Carthage R-9 School Foundation update to the Board.

Dr. Holley Goodnight, Assistant Superintendent for Business, Mr. Joel Gundelfinger, Navitas LLC,
Business Development Market Manager, and Mr. Luke Lindesmith, Navitas LLC, Business
Development Manager, provided the Board information regarding the HVAC bid by Navitas LLC, and
the energy savings performance contract.

Dr. Goodnight and Crossland Construction Company Inc., provided the Board an update on them progress of the Carthage Performing Arts Center.

Dr. Boyer presented his report to the Board.

The Board met in closed session immediately following the regular meeting to discuss legal, personnel, and student matters in compliance with Section 610.021 (1), (3), and (6) of the Revised Statutes of Missouri.

In closed session the Board approved the following personnel actions:

Approved the employment of support and substitute staff as presented contingent upon receiving a
clear criminal record check from the Missouri Highway Patrol and Federal Bureau of Investigation, and
a clear check of the Adult Abuse/Neglect Registry maintained by the Missouri Department of Social
Services for all employees new to the district:

Support hire

Lilis Sandoval Loredo, evening custodian, Carthage High School

Katherine Starr, special education paraprofessional, Columbian Elementary

Joshua Lindsey, bus aide, Transportation

Michaela Freeman, cook, Steadley Elementary

Jaiden Ball, evening custodian, Carthage Intermediate Center

Gerardo Fuentes Elias, grounds/maintenance, Maintenance Department

Kevin Fields, bus driver, Transportation

Kelli Needham, Title I instructional assistant, Steadley Elementary

Substitute Hire

Katelyn Williamson, substitute cook

Kimberly Son

Abigail Jensen

Ethan Coble

Maria Aguilar

Christy Clark

Taylor Pritchard

Pamela Teed

Johnathan Ensor

Alaynna Berry

Support Transfer

Heather Cowin, deaf interpreter, Carthage Junior High School

Heather Hunt, administrative assistant, Carthage Technical Center-North

Substitute Modification

Kelli Tandy, substitute bus aide

Certified Retirement

Kenneth Brown, ISS, Carthage High School

Cara Goetzinger, ECSE teacher, Early Childhood Center

Brenda Brown, special education teacher, Steadley Elementary

Certified Resignation

Andrea Read, Title I teacher/instructional coach, Mark Twain Elementary

Support Resignation

James Bischoffer, bus driver

Substitute Resignation

Adelaide Goracke

Brooke Ehlers

New interim commissioner selected for DESE

By Rudi Keller

Missouri Independent

A day after the surprise resignation of Missouri’s interim commissioner of education, the State Board of Education announced a new interim leader for the state’s public school oversight agency.

Lisa Sireno, deputy commissioner of learning services, will lead the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, according to a news release from the board. Sireno has worked at the department since 2015 and assumed her current position in July.

Sireno will be the department’s third chief administrator this year. Karla Eslinger retired in May after only two years on the job. And on Tuesday, interim Commissioner Stacey Preis delivered her resignation to the board.

Choking back tears as she spoke to reporters, Preis said she resigned “after much consideration” because she thinks “the board’s agenda is better served by a different commissioner.” Asked whether her resignation was prompted by the possibility of being fired, Preis said no one on the board had suggested that she would be voted out of her position if she didn’t resign.

Asked if anyone else had suggested that to her, Preis responded, “No, not directly.”

The news release stated Preis “unexpectedly resigned” with the “resignation taking immediate effect.”

Board President Brooks Miller said after the meeting that he did “not know much” about Preis’ reason for resigning.

The search for a new permanent commissioner was formalized Tuesday with the selection of The K12 Search Group to screen candidates and announcement that the search would be funded by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Greater Kansas City Community Foundation, Regional Business Council, The DeBruce Foundation and Town Branch Foundation.

According to its website, The K12 Search Group has “focused almost exclusively on CEO and senior leadership searches for charter schools and mission-driven K-12 education organizations.”

State Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O’Laughlin has been talked about frequently as a potential candidate for the commissioner’s job and told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch last month that she was interested.

State law requires the commissioner to “possess an educational attainment and breadth of experience in the administration of public education.”

O’Laughlin’s Senate biography says she has experience “as a school bus driver, an administrator at a local Christian school and as a member of her local school board.” She also chaired the Senate Education Committee.

Before becoming deputy commissioner, Sireno was assistant commissioner in the Office of Quality Schools. Prior to going to work for the department, Sireno was associate director of the University of Missouri’s Assessment Resource Center.

The Missouri National Education Association, the state’s largest teachers’ union, called on Sireno to seek full funding for the school foundation formula and to halt the development of the “A” to “F” grading system for school districts being developed at the direction of Gov. Mike Kehoe.

The board on Tuesday approved adjustments to the grading system and will send out data to school districts for review before making the results public later this year.

“A-F grading is the same top-down, cookie-cutter approach that has failed our students for decades,” said Rebeka McIntosh, president of Missouri NEA. “It treats students as data rather than individuals. It can’t see the counselor who keeps a student coming to school or the teacher who stays late to help a child catch up.”

Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com.

Lawsuit allegation: Mercy Joplin nurse used patient records in vendetta against boyfriend's former wife

A class action lawsuit filed against Mercy Health today in Jasper County Circuit Court claims a nursed used patient records to conduct a personal vendetta against her boyfriend's former wife.

The Jasper County woman who filed the lawsuit was married to a security guard at Mercy Joplin who had an affair with a nurse, according to the petition. When the woman found out about the affair, she divorced her husband. The nurse is also named as a defendant.

Beginning in August 2025, the woman, who was being treated for mental health issues, according to the petition, "received an Instagram message from an account she had never seen before telling her that she was “legitimately crazy”, that “grown men don’t want a drunk bitch who is always high on her ‘anxiety pills’ ”, and that her kids would “learn the truth one day.”

"The same account messaged her on August 24, 2025, telling her that “there is something seriously wrong with [her].”

The woman received another message in October 2025 referring to her as a "psycho:" with no friends. She didn't recognize the Instagram account that was messaging her, but she attempted to sign into Instagram with the user name and hit the "forgot password" button.

The e-mail that came up belonged to the Mercy nurse, according to the petition.

Since the woman's doctor worked at Mercy and the nurse would have access to records, the woman contacted Mercy to see whether her records had been improperly accessed.

Mercy responded on April 24, months after being contacted and said the woman's records had been improperly accessed "by one of their employees without a legitimate need."

The lawsuit claims the nurse was never "disciplined, suspended or subjected to remedial training for her actions."

Because Defendant faced no discipline for her actions she continued accessing other people’s confidential medical records.

Defendant began routinely accessing {the woman's} daughter's medical records.

The daughter was pregnant with her first child and being treated by a doctor at Mercy, the petition said. The daughter wanted to keep the child's gender a secret and hadn't even told her mother, when she began receiving messages from friends and relatives congratulating her on having a girl.

When the daughter examined her records, she discovered the emergency contact information in her records had been changed to her father. She had not changed the contact information, nor had her immediate family or care team, according to the petition.

The daughter who is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit, changed the contact records, then discovered they had been changed back to list her father. The nurse was still in a relationship with the father, the petition said.

The lawsuit claims Mercy failed to exercise control over confidential patient record, has allowed other employees access to records and "failed to send patients adequate notice of these repeated breaches."

The action, which was filed today by St. Louis attorney Benjamin S. McIntosh, alleges eight counts:

Count 1 (against the nurse)- Public disclosure of private facts

Count 2 (against the nurse) Tortious imtrusion on seclusion

Count 3 (against Mercy) Negligence- Class action claim

Count 4 (against Mercy) Negligent supervision- Class action claim

Count 5 (against Mercy) Breach of fiduciary duty of confidentiality- Class action claim

Count 6 (against Mercy) Unfair business practices- Class action claim

Count 7- (against Mercy) Breach of implied contract- Class action claim

Count 8- (against Mercy) Negligence- Class action claim

The plaintiffs are asking for actual damages, compensatory damages, attorney fees and expenses and demanding a jury trial on all counts.

Second man charged in Joplin City Jail drug distribution

A second man was charged today in connection with the drug distribution in the Joplin City Jail October 12 that led to seven inmates being taken to local hospitals for overdoses.

Edward Ian Turner (DOB 1983), Duenweg, was charged with three counts of delivering a controlled substance. His bond was set at $50,000, cash or surety.

From the probable cause statement:

On 10/12/2026 and 10/13/2026, Edward Turner committed the offense of delivery of a controlled
substance at 303 E 3rd St in Joplin, Jasper County, Missouri. Under Miranda, Edward Turner admitted
to receiving methamphetamine from Kenneth Carter.

Turner then distributed the methamphetamine to fellow inmates Kore Thomason, Daniel Rendon, James Johnny, and a fourth as-yet unidentified inmate.

On 10/13/2026, Edward Turner received more items in baggies which he believed to be cocaine.
Turner stated he gave these to James Johnny.

Johnny then distributed the substances to inmates Daniel Rendon, Derick Cartwright, Richard Cannon,
Loren Checkley, Kore Thomason, and Samuel Lane, who shortly thereafter were transported to
hospitals with symptoms of fentanyl overdose.

James Johnny, 49, Neosho, was charged with six counts of delivering a controlled substance.

The Turner Report