The Springfield News-Leader from Springfield, Missouri • Page 1

BUSINESSINSIDE GIRLS' BASKETBALL: KICKAPOO BEATS HILLCREST 68-46 ID ft --li hi. 0ZARKSM0BILE.COM Springfield, Missouri Tuesday, January 13, 2009 75c a A JL Iif Jf fcwV "ft 7, Document: Read the I formal complaint, secre-: C0M tary of state's order and a motion for temporary custody with this story online. Gallery: See 3 ST. JOHN'S St. John's cuts employees St.

John's laid off 19 workers at its Lebanon hospital Friday to contain costs. Statewide, clinic and hospital volume was down about 7 percent' in December (from the previous year); it's down 12 percent in Lebanon. 5B ONLINE NOW more images Gov. Jay Nixon is sworn in Monday by Chief Justice Laura DenvirStith in Jefferson City with his wife and sons looking on. The ceremony was on the Capitol's south steps.

JEROME T. NAKAGAWA NEWS-LEADER from Monday's inaugural events. Video story: Watch video of the inauguration and the Strafford band in the inaugural parade at News-Leader, comvideo rvt JkokSfimmme, STEVE J.P. LIANG NEWS-LEADER Ladybug Learning Center has been closed since last week. it i i ii iiii.iniiiiiiniH nff ITrilliii.iiiiiiiianiMiiiiiiiii.iii riii) Day care closure shocks parents Arrest, run-ins with state agencies suggest an array of problems.

STEVE KENDRICK Meet Karma, the shop dog at Sunshine Automotive Repair. Share your pet photos Check out the Ozarks Pet fh'', Photos gallery, where more than 240 furry family members, like Karma the shop dog, are pictured. Add your own photos to that gallery, and others, by going to Data-Leader Data-Leader: School incidents Our Data-Leader section keeps track of databases and reports on our community. Newly updated: Our archive of Springfield school district incident reports. Check them out at News-Leadec comData-Leader YOUR COMMUNITY Man suspected of sex crime A man allegedly taped and photographed his 14-year-old stepdaughter and a 15-year-old boy having sex.

2A It's Get Organized Month Need help in the new year? Experts offer tips to keep you organized. Smart Living, 1C Phony money found lately Local merchants are on the lookout for fake bills after they were passed at six local businesses. 3A PSC, state law don't mesh A new rule by the state Public Service Commission regarding alternative electrical energy systems seemed to contradict state law. Our Voice, IB OTC breaks enrollment record OTC registered 10,342 students Monday, a record for spring semester. ZA How it came to be: Calendars Calendars began as a way to mark feast days and payments due.

NIE, 4A iyf 1 ll JEROME T. NAKAGAWA NEWS-LEADER Jeremiah W. "Jay" Nixon and wife Georganne enter the Missouri State Capitol Building on Monday just moments after the inaugural parade Jr'ferson City. The parade began at the Missouri River Regional Library on Adams and Miller streets and proceeded to the Missouri State Capitol. New governor seeks unity as state fights economic difficulties.

p1 By Amos Bridges Parents whose children attended Ladybug Learning Center were shocked Friday when the day care center abruptly closed and a woman the owner, parents say was taken into police custody. Information uncovered Monday is unlikely to go down any easier. A search of public records shows the day care, incorporated in 2001 as Ladybug Learning Center had been legally dissolved by the secretary of state's office more than a year ago. But other state and local agencies that licensed the facility apparently were not aware of the change until very recent- ly. Other documents retrieved by the News-Leader indicate the day care's owner, Carrie Beckenholdt, had faced mounting problems both personal and professional during the past year.

Inspections of the day care center had turned up an increasing number of problems and a complaint had been filed alleging Beckenholdt, also the day care's director, had not been spending the required amount of time at the facility. Her bank account had been garnished by the state Division of Employment Security, apparently for failing to pay unemployment insurance taxes. Parents say employees, too, had not been paid. Perhaps of more concern to parents Beckenholdt on Thursday lost custody of her own children and was required to submit to drug testing after her estranged husband filed an emergency request. The motion for temporary custody, filed and granted Thursday, alleges Beckenholdt abused prescription medicine See Center, Page 7A 4 -a Potluck meal feeds 1,000 Nixon backers By Chad Livengood Jefferson City Bluegrass music, baked beans, hot dogs, hamburgers, potato salad and ice tea.

Those were the key ingredients for the Inaugural Potluck Dinner for newly inaugurated Gov. Jay Nixon. Just hours after being sworn into office, Nixon made good on the first of his many campaign promises. During a long campaign to be Missouri's chief executive officer, the native of a small town in Jefferson County often said his inauguration would feature "the largest potluck inaugural dinner in (Missouri) history." It's unclear if it was the largest in state history, but Nixon's campaign put on a feast to feed 1,000 supporters at the Capitol Plaza Hotel. There were 1,000 hamburgers and hot dogs, 250 pounds of baked beans, 125 pounds of tossed See Meal, Page 5A By Chad Livengood JEFFERSON CITY In his first address as Missouri's 55th governor, Democrat Jay Nixon called on lawmakers to put aside partisan power struggles that have engulfed state government in recent years.

After being sworn into office before a frigid crowd of several thousand, the longtime attorney general promised "a new day for Missouri" as the state faces economic troubles. "To bring about a new day in Missouri, we'll need to implement new policies. But this new day will not be possible unless there is a new tone in Jefferson City," Nixon said. "Because for too many years, politics and partisanship have stood in the way of progress. And the people of Missouri are tired of it." After 16 years in office, Nixon is the state's longest serving attorney general.

For the past four JEROME T. NAKAGAWA NEWS-LEADER Former Gov. Matt Blunt (right) shakes hands with predecessor Jay Nixon at Monday's ceremony. years, Nixon was often in the middle of the same battles he now seeks to end with Republican Gov. Matt Blunt.

Nixon, 52, easily defeated Republican U.S. Rep. Kenny Hul-shof in November by nearly 19 percentage points. Blunt chose not to run for re-election after one term. Nixon, who will share power in Jefferson City with a Republican-controlled House and Senate, called on legislators to put "our shared principles ahead of our political differences." See Nixon, Page 5A Index Automotive Business Classified Comics Crossword Daily Planner 1C 1C Dear ADoy Deaths 6C Merchandise 7C 5B Movies 6D 6C NationWorld 3B 5C NIE 4A 4C Pet Doctor 4C Real Estate 4C For Sale 8C 6A Rentals 8C Sports 10 4C Television 6D 1C Voices IB 2A Weather 7A Weather Employment 6C 6C Horoscope Living Smart Lottery Conviction costs injured veteran free home Scott West pleaded guilty to drug charge 30 Partly sunny and much colder 210 today; partly cloudy tonight.

7A Precipitation: 25 A GANNETT NEWSPAPER VOL 119, NO. 13 2009, NEWS-LEADER MS If end a project if it is clear the veteran has committed a felony criminal act." West was hailed as a hero and featured in numerous media stories; he appeared in the Dec. 21 News-Leader as the first Missouri soldier to receive a house from Homes for Our Troops. News of his guilty plea did not come out until after that stoiy was published. See Home, Page 5A Statement from president of Homes for Our Troops.

5A of charge, for severely injured soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. "We take very seriously our obligations to our donors and volunteers," said John S. Gonsalves, founder of Homes for Our Troops. "That is why our agreements with servicemen and women include a provision that allows us to mum of 15 years in prison. Taney County Prosecutor Jeffrey M.

Merrell said the judge has the power to give West probation or sentence him to the maximum. West lost both legs while serving in Iraq when his Humvee hit an improvised explosive device. He was slated to receive a free house from the nonprofit organization based in Massachusetts that builds houses, free By Juliana Goodwin Homes for Our Troops has decided to rescind an offer to build a house for a Branson soldier after he was convicted of a felony. Scott West pleaded guilty Dec. 11 to a Class felony for possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.

A Class felony carries a minimum of five years and a maxi ST JOHN'S POWERFUL MEDICINE NEWS-LEADER FILE PHOTO Scott West with fiancee Samantha Eubanks..