JACKSON TEEN-AGERS' PRANK VOTED TOP NEWS STORY; PLANT CLOSINGS NO. 2

Stories that touched emotions, shattered lives, and fueled disputes around the region topped the news in 1999.

A teen-age prank upset an entire community, forcing many to question school policies. Jobs were lost in an attempt to operate more efficient companies. An arrest by police broke into a riot, and the region went on a manhunt for a serial killer riding the rails. Questions arose over school district boundaries as the district talked of opening the newest elementary school in 1999.

Southeast Missouri State University made changes, both academically and athletically, during a year of sesquicentennial celebrations.

The Southeast Missourian staff voted on the stories from front pages of 1999. Our list is by no means inclusive, and incredibly unscientific.

But here are the results:

1. Jackson teens pull prank

A group of Jackson teen-agers pulled a "prank" on a friend in March, kidnapping the boy and terrorizing him with the roar of a chain saw while he was tied to a cross. Several parents of the boys involved knew about the incident and even participated.

Seven boys, all ages 15 and 16, were prosecuted on misdemeanor assault charges. The leader was placed on formal probation.

No adults were charged, primarily because the victim's family wished to protect his privacy. The victim was so distraught over the incident that he moved out of Jackson to live in another part of the state with an aunt.

Rumors about the event spread through Jackson and divided the town. A series of stories explaining what happened were published in September.

School board members later voted to suspend a student, whose identity was not given nor was the length of the suspension, after learning more about the incident at a Sept. 14 meeting.

2. Area plants close; 2,000 lose jobs

Nearly 2,000 people are laid off by area plant closings. Three plants in Southeast Missouri announced closings in 1999 at a time when the area saw its unemployment rate sink to some of the lowest levels ever.

Florsheim Shoe Co. was the first area factory to announce its closing Aug. 31. The plant, which closed Dec. 20, had operated in Cape Girardeau since the turn of the century.

Closing the Cape Girardeau plant was part of an effort to reduce costs and become more efficient, officials said. The factory jobs -- about 300 -- will be consolidated in a joint venture with a manufacturing partner in India.

Employees at Columbia Sportswear Co. in Chaffee were surprised to learn in October that they would soon be without a job. The plant is slated to close in the spring and will help reduce costs. The Chaffee plant is the only one owned by Columbia and employs 185 people.

Huffy Bicycle Co. announced in late September that it would cease operations in Farmington. The bicycle manufacturing company employed 440 people and opened in 1993.

Other closings in the region included Fleming Grocery Warehouse in Sikeston, Trimfoot Shake at Farmington, a hospital at Pilot Knob, a tool distribution company at Malden and a sewing preparation facility, totaling nearly 1,000 jobs lost.

3. (tie) Good Hope melee; Search for murderer

There was a tie for third place, both stories involving local police but under much different circumstances.

An arrest attempt by a Cape Girardeau police officer turned into a near riot on South Good Hope Street June 11. Police believed that two men were making a drug deal when they attempted to arrest them.

Six officers were injured in the fight that drew a crowd of nearly 150 people who threw bricks and cinder blocks at police.

Nine people were arrested, including two brothers who fought with police during the 30-minute melee.

A town meeting helped get both sides talking, though for some it was a heated debate, about how to solve the racial tensions in South Cape Girardeau. Police Chief Rick Hetzel asked the FBI to investigate possible violations by police in the fight, after black civic leaders suggested that an independent inquiry was necessary.

In the other story, people from across the region and nation kept an eye on passing trains for fear the boxcars carried the "railroad killer." This followed the murder of a father and his daughter at their Gorham, Ill., home near the railroad tracks. A nationwide manhunt for alleged serial killer Rafael Resendez-Ramirez led several law enforcement agencies on searches throughout Southern Illinois and Southeast Missouri. The man was later identified as Angel Maturino Resendiz; he had been using his uncle's name as one of his many aliases.

Debra Ann Poch, 44, of Cape Girardeau was shot to death June 24 by her neighbor because he thought she was the serial killer breaking into his home.

Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle declined to charge David Charles Booher, 33, with either manslaughter or murder in Poch's death.

Swingle said Booher was justified in defending his home, particularly considering his mood and that of residents who feared the killer. Booher, a naturalist at Trail of Tears State Park, had spent an afternoon prior to the shooting scanning the park for signs of Ramirez.

4. Hospital merger talks called off

After talk of joining forces in late 1998, St. Francis Medical Center ceased the discussions in early January.

Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon opposed the idea of a merger because it would harm competition in the local health-care market, he said. Nixon threatened to file suit should the hospitals continue to pursue the merger.

The board of directors at St. Francis Medical Center unanimously agreed to end the talks after Nixon's announcement. However, that didn't preclude the hospitals from working together on cooperative efforts like the hospitalist program, which provides medical care to patients without a local doctor.

5. Voters defeat right-to-carry initiative

Missouri voters defeated initiative that would have allowed residents to apply for permit to carry concealed weapons, but Southeast Missouri showed strong support at the polls in April.

Statewide, voters rejected the measure by a 4 percent margin. Ballots showed the measure passed in the 26 counties of the 8th Congressional district.

Supporters of the measure said it would be a way to curb violent crimes while opponents said it would only create more mayhem. Missouri was the first state to seek public approval of the issue instead of legislative action.

6. School boundaries dispute

School boundaries were again a controversy as the Cape Girardeau Board of Education talked about opening Blanchard Elementary School and shifting boundaries to accommodate the change.

Proposals made in late February to shift the existing school boundaries in an effort to improve diversity and make good use of building capacity were met with resistance from parents of students at Alma Schrader, Clippard and Franklin schools.

None of the proposals eliminated neighborhood schools, but parents feared it would uproot students, estimated at 350, and alienate them from neighborhood friends.

The board opted to leave the boundaries as they were outlined in 1997, making only minor adjustments at Franklin and Blanchard schools.

7. Mumford resigns SEMO football job

John Mumford resigned in November as head football coach of the Southeast Missouri State University Indians.

Mumford resigned at the end of his 10-year career at the university, with a 40-70 win-loss record. Mumford said his resignation was in the best interest of the university team and his family, since he didn't meet specific performance criteria outlined in 1998 when his contract was extended but another year.

Tim Billings was hired Dec. 22 as the head football coach. He is leaving a post as defensive coordinator at Marshall.

8. SEMO changes presidents

Southeast Missouri State University President Dr. Dale Nitzschke resigns; Dr. Ken Dobbins chosen as new president.

Nitzschke will remain with the school for two years as chancellor. In that new role, he will oversee development of the River Campus visual and performing arts school and the Polytechnic Institute.

Dobbins took the helm as university president July 1; he signed a three-year contract. As part of Dobbins' promotion from executive vice president, the board of regents eliminated that job title and split the duties into two positions: a vice president for administration and enrollment and a vice president of finance.

Nitzschke was an education consultant when he was hired by the regents in 1996. Dobbins has been at the university since 1991. Both men came to the university from Ohio.

9. (tie) Blanchard School completed; Lutherans to open high school; Pope, Graham visit TWA Dome

Again a tie -- this time among three stories.

Cape Girardeau opened its newest elementary school Dec. 27 when school officials signed an occupancy permit. Construction delays pushed the opening back nearly 18 months from original plans. With the opening of the school, the district will close two of its oldest buildings, May Greene and Washington elementary schools.

Another new school announced its formation in 1999. Saxony Lutheran High School should open its doors next fall. Students will meet at St. Andrew Lutheran Church until a permanent site is chosen and building is constructed. More than 20 area Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod congregations joined together to form the school association.

Hundreds of area Catholics flocked to St. Louis in January for a glimpse at the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II. The visit was likely the aging pontiff's last to the United States.

During the two-day event, young people marched in the streets and presented the pope with gifts during a rally. Nearly 500,000 celebrated Mass inside the Trans World Dome. In October, thousands of area Protestants went to hear the Rev. Billy Graham preach at the TWA Dome during a four-day crusade.

There wasn't really a single story that garnered enough votes to count as No. 10. So here are the other stories selected by the staff that received votes as a top story:

* Cape Girardeau and Jackson schools name new superintendents for the 1999-2000 school year. Dr. Dan Steska took the helm at Cape Girardeau public schools, while Dr. Ron Anderson took the reins at Jackson. Both districts began the year with a search for new leaders.

* In February, authorities found the body of an 18-year-old Cape Girardeau woman in rural Union County. Ricky Joe Franks, 26, of Michigan was convicted in the death.

* Southeast men's basketball team was beaten at the buzzer in the OVC championship game in March, denying the Indians their first appearance in the NCAA Basketball Tournament.

* Southeast Missouri State University celebrated its 125th anniversary throughout the year with special events, including two performances by magician David Copperfield in April.

* Summer heat and lack of rain created a drought, forcing many areas to enforce a no-burn order.

* A crowd of nearly 300 people gathered at a morning rally Aug. 12 at the Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority when George W. Bush, Republican presidential contender visited Cape Girardeau. Bush spent an hour visiting with Millie Limbaugh, mother of conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh on the night prior to the rally.

* Cape Girardeau continued work on a sewer project, upgrading lines and separating the city's stormwater and sewer systems. Rising construction costs, inflation and a right-of-way delay meant the city needed more money to finish the work. The City Council approved an election seeking an addition $8.5 million in bonds needed for the work.