On the same day that friends and family will say goodbye to Joplin High School senior Jamison Alexander, the man accused of driving over him, then leaving the scene of the accident will be arraigned.
Court records indicate that Travis Wyrick, 18, Joplin, will be arraigned at 8 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 27, before Judge Richard Copeland in Division 5 at the Jasper County Courts Building in Joplin.
Copeland has granted a media request that camera be allowed in the courtroom.
Wyrick is charged with a felony, leaving the scene of an accident, according to court records.
Funeral services for Mr. Alexander, 18, will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 27, at the Joplin Family Worship Center. Visitation is scheduled from 4 to 6 p.m. today (Jan. 26) at the Worship Center.
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Keep good records.
That's the credo of any good reporter. You never can tell when that one little piece of information will turn out to be the piece that makes your story.
When I worked at The Carthage Press and The Lamar Democrat I kept comprehensive files on my old stories (and I still have a lot of those, though many of them had to be sacrificed when I moved to Joplin five months ago). Sometimes I could go back to an old story and find a quote that seemed to be at variance with what a public official was saying, or find some link between two people that might otherwise have been overlooked.
The Joplin Globe missed a golden opportunity this morning to add a critical piece of information to its otherwise extremely well-done article on the selection of new Neosho R-5 Superintendent Richard Page.
Wally Kennedy, who has been one of the best reporters in southwest Missouri for the last two decades did the legwork for the story, no doubt about it. He covered all of the bases.
Except one.
Kent Wilson, a member of what was purportedly a screening committee (its recommendations were totally ignored by the R-5 Board) told The Globe, "It's apparent now they have been grooming Dr. Page for the job. Superintendent Mark Mitchell, who said he was not involved in the process, wrote a letter of recommendation for Page. The board president, Steve Marble, said months ago he supported Page. The whole thing was pre-planned."
It was one thing to have Kent Wilson saying that Steve Marble supported Richard Page. It would have been far better to get those same words out of Steve Marble's mouth...and The Globe had them.
In The Turner Report last week, it was mentioned that in the Oct. 27, 2004, Globe, before the search process had really started, Marble expressed his support for Page.
In the article, Marble was quoted as saying, "I certainly wouldn't speak for the board, but there's no doubt in my mind that Dr. Page is my first look." Marble also told the Globe that Page had been groomed for the position.
The omission doesn't take away from the solid reporting done by Kennedy. Most likely it comes because of the departure of Dena Sloan, the reporter who wrote the Oct. 27 article. It is not easy to jump onto a story that was begun by another reporter.
I would still like to see something mentioned about the apparently illegal nature of the meeting in which the screening committee was selected. The Globe has not touched on this and even though the information came out initially in The Neosho Daily News, there was no indication from the Daily's article if its reporter realized he was witnessing a Sunshine Law violation.
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School activities are the heart and soul of a small community, which was why I was so disappointed to see the way The Lamar Democrat handled the crowning of the Lamar High School Basketball Homecoming queen last week.
When I was at The Democrat, and for a long time afterward, the Homecoming was considered to be a major event. A photo (or two) of the queen being crowned was featured prominently on page one, not just because it was a big story for the community, but also so the community knew that we recognized that fact.
Apparently, it no longer is as important as routine meetings of the Barton County Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees or the Lockwood City Council.
That's sad.
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One of the top trade associations in the United States is quickly slipping from the upper echelon.
Furniture Today reported that Leggett & Platt, the Fortune 500 company based in Carthage, has withdrawn its membership from the International Sleep Products Association, joining earlier departures by Sealy and Serna.
“It is with regret that we no longer feel that continued membership in the association can be justified and is therefore not in the best interest of our shareholders,” L&P Executive Vice President Karl Glassman said in a letter to ISPA President Dick Doyle today. “In many respects, we believe that ISPA has become a supplier that is no longer meeting our needs.” The letter was reprinted by Furniture Today.
The company has almost always been the largest exhibitor at ISPA’s trade shows, the Furniture Today article said. In his letter, Glassman said Leggett & Platt will not exhibit if it is not a member.