Prosecutor takes to links to get judge's signature

Late Tuesday, a local judge found himself sitting on the fairway at the local golf course issuing a search warrant while his golf ball lay hidden somewhere in the trees.

Cape Girardeau's prosecuting attorney, Morley Swingle, needed a search warrant signed in a hurry so his evidence wouldn't walk away and when he learned one of the judges was playing golf, Swingle simply commandeered a golf cart to reach him.

"The search warrant itself was a routine application," said Swingle. "What became unusual was when it was typed up we couldn't find a judge."

Though four judges live in the area, one was tied up in a trial, one was out-of-town and a third was en route to his home.

The only judge Swingle could locate was Associate Circuit Judge Gary A. Kamp, and he was busy playing the 13th hole at Kimbeland County Golf course. Swingle called Kamp's cell phone and told him he was on his way.

By the time Swingle arrived, Kamp was nowhere in sight because he was in the woods looking for his golf ball. Kamp stopped his search, sat down on the green, reviewed the papers, finding everything in order signed them, and then went back to his game.

It wasn't the first time, Swingle found himself tracking down a judge after hours, but it was a very different experience from his usual high-speed ride to take papers to a judge.

"The police lieutenant was driving and I was riding shotgun as we putted along... it took a long time to get to the 14th hole," Swingle said.