The Index from Hermitage, Missouri • 1

595 7196 ST HlSIftlUL CORNER HITT AND LOHRT ST COLUMBIA no b'20l THURSDAY MARCH 28 1996 VOL 112 NO 1 IN THREE 8ECDON8 "Serving Hickory County and the Lake Pomme de Terre Area1 EriabSihedm S2SS2SE Conservation Pool 8390 MSL Full Pool 8790 MSL Elevation Today 83826 MSL Discharge to River 30 cu ft icc 373 gal tec Tunnel Outlet Temperature 43 Lake Surface Temperature 43 Water Condition: Clear D3C2K3? Tiinr 2 szsz 'Tt'--' Caaiuv'I oVwijf its- 'I' -y ''j 4- 1 0 BOX 127 HERMITAGE MO 65668-0127 Phone 417745-6404 417745-6244 Fax 417 745-2222 50 PLUS TAX USPS 261500 NS'Jfr'f WZfrvO-ttrtvtPi 2 W- Guilty verdict in Darby murder First defendant gets life plus 1 5 years March 30 Easter egg hunt Bobby Davis Park in Urbana for children ages 1 2 and under Rain date is April 13 31 Pomme de Terre Community Choir performs Easter cantata Hermitage Park Regional Care Center 2 pm and Wheatland Baptist Church at 7 pm April 2 Pomme de Terre Community Choir performs Easter cantata at Olive Point Baptist Church Preston 7 pm 5 Community Good Friday services Hermitage First Baptist Church 12:00 pm luncheoon following 5 PommedeTerreCommunityChoirperformsEastercantataatHerm'it-age Christian Church 7 pm 6 Cross Timbers 4-H Easter egg hunt games and visit from Easter Bunny 6 Pomme de Terre Community Choir performs Easter cantata at Bethel Southern Baptist Church Road Pittsburg 6 Galmey community Easter egg hunt for children 10 and under and lunch with the Easter bunny 7 Cross TimberscommunitysunriseservicesandEasterpageantatThe Cross Timbers Methodist Church 7 am 7 Elkton community sunrise services 7 am Elkton Baptist Church with fellowship foHowing murders at Clinton and at Nevada Those victims have never been found but information in Rush's letters led investigators to buried items believed to have belonged to at least one of those victims The Camden County jury was seated Thursday and the trial was held Friday Saturday and Monday with Camden County Prosecutor Jim Iccnoglc presenting evidence against him Rush had been certified to stand trial as an adult although he was a juvenile at the time he allegedly participated in the murder and kidnapping The cases were submitted to the jury just before noon Tuesday and they returned their guilty verdicts by midaflcmoon A spokesperson for the prosecutor's office said an investigation is continuing into connections between Rush's involvement in the Darby murder and the two other missing women at Nevada and Clinton Rush and his half-brother Marvin Chancy 35 were arraigned in Camden County Associate Court in June 1995 At that time Tim McQueen a Camden County resident testified that Rush and Chaney had detailed their crime in a jail-house confession McQueen has been convicted of the second degree murder of his wife and has a 15-year prison term He admitted pushing his wife off a cliff at Ha Ha Tonka State Park in October of 1993 In the preliminary hearing June 8 1995 McQueen said Chaney and Rush told him how the men had kidnapped Darby had taken her to a barn in Dallas County and raped her and then had shot her once at the bam and a second time at the Erickson's Ford on the Little Niangua River in Hickory County The bam later burned according to Sheriff Tipton McQueen testified that the men admitted burning the bam several days after death to cover their tracks McQueen said the men told him Chancy shot Darby at the bam After throwing her nude body in the river the men had to wade into the stream to push her body out of an eddy into a current that would take it downstream where local deputies later discovered it Camden County chief juvenile officer Tammy Waldon had testified at the preliminary hearing that Rush had told her a story very similar to McQueen's testimony in October 1994 That interrogation occurred at the Eldon police station agama October 9 and 12 Darby's son Waylon told investigators that his mother was working alone at the store on the evening she disappeared She called him about 10 pm and described a strange man outside the store and asked her son to come to the store When the son arrived minutes later he found the store open and no sign of his mother other than her purse and jacket Two days later her nude body was found in Hickory County with two gunshot wounds to the head trial is set to begin in November of this year Icenogle has not ruled out other suspects in the case Rush and Chaney both have Hickory County connections according to Sheriff Ray Tipton as well as connections to Nevada and Clinton where the other two women are still missing Tipton said both were suspects from the beginning but investigators didn't have enough evidence to file charges until they were jailed on other charges and began providing information about the killing through conversations with other prisoners and through Rush's letters Tuesday Cross Timbers voters will elect a south ward alderman north ward alderman and marshal Anna Mae Hensley the only candidate on the Cross Timbers ballot is seeking the south ward position The other positions will be filled by write-in votes At Wheatland no one is seeking the office of mayor Dorothy Vaughn and Linda Payne are competing for the office of north ward (Continued to Page 6A) 8 After more than five years of investigation a man has been victcd and sentenced for the January 19 1991 abduction and murder rif Trudy Darby 42-year-old Macks Creek resident Darby a former Hickory County resident was abducted from the Market at the Highway 54-73 intersection west of Macks Creek about 10 pm Saturday January 19 1991 Her body was found floating in the Little Niangua River in eastern Hickory County Monday afternoon January 21 Jess Rush who was 15 when the kidnapping and murder occurred was convicted by a Camden County jury Tuesday afternoon on a charge of kidnapping and first degree murder He was sentenced to life in prison without parole on the murder charge and received a 15-year prison term on the kidnapping charge Instrumental elements of the case against Rush were his earlier confession to an investigator and several letters he had written after he was jailed on the murder charge In the letters written to another inmate Rush revealed details of the murder and abduction He also reportedly implicated himself and another suspect in abductions and County audit being conducted Three auditors from the office of State Auditor Margaret Kelly have begun a three-year audit of Hickory County's records Operating in the office of the Hickory County Commissioners the three wil check records of all county offices departments and funds for compliance with state statutes and accepted accounting and management practices The audit ww cover fiscal years 1993 1994 and 1995 and should be completed this summer When the audit is complete the auditors wil have an exit conference with county officials prior to presenting their findings to the State Auditor for preparation of the audit report that should be available later this year School Three school board terms of three years each will be filled in the annual school elections set for next Tuesday April 2 At Hermitage Emery Davis and Jan Pitts whose terms expire are not seeking re-election Candidates for the positions are incumbent Bob Acker former school board members Bill Gunter Mike Freeman and Gary Simpson former superintendent Harold McCoy along with Darlene McLerran and Melvin Havens At Weaublcau Dan Whittington Paul Peterman Ruth Ann Wctts and Dorothy Welch are candidates for three-year terms Marc Cooper is the only candidate for a two-year unexpircd term caused by the resignation of Don Rees In the Wheatland School District five candidates are seeking the three three-year board positions R-2 alumni banquet to be May 4 The 1993 Wheatland School's alumni banquet will be held Saturday May 4 at the school gymnasium Fellowship will begin at 3 pm dinner at 6 and a brief program at 7 Reservations for the event may be sent to Wheatland Alumni PO Box 1 Wheatland Mo 63779 with information on whether the reservation is for a full table for a special class celebration is a reservation for an individual or individuals the year graduated and the total number of seats to he reserved The cost of the meal is $3 per person to be made at tltc banquet not in advance Alumni President Debra McCaslin says the alumni planning committee is encouraging more Wheatland graduates to assist in planning and participation in this annual event and is requesting volunteers to fill the 1997 offices of vice president and sccretarytreasurcr and individuals to serve on the planning committee for the 1997 banquet Interested individuals should write to the alumni association Candidate forum planned at R-1 The Skyline School's Community Teachers Association and Parent Teacher Organization are sponsoring a Meet the Candidates forum Thursday March 28 at 7 pm in the all purpose room of the school Candidates for the Hickory County R-I School Board will be fielding questions on a variety of topics The public is invited Fire school courses offered The Northern Ozarks Fire Protection Association will be hosting free University of Missouri Fire School courses on farm rescue and strategics and tactics Certified education units will be available for the farm rescue class The courses will be held March 29-30 at the Galmey Fire Department Additional information is available from Frank Pierce at Pittsburg Pre-registration is recommended R-2 to hold candidate forum The Wheatland PTSO will host a school board candidate forum Friday March 29 at 7 pm This program will ofTcr patrons of the Wheatland R-2 School District an opportunity to meet the candidates who will be available to answer questions The meeting will be held in the school cafeteria West and Long recognized Skyline High School Sophomores Stacy West and Carrie Long have received state recognition for their basketball performances this season West a 6-0 center was named to the All State first team and Long a forward was named to the All State second team The girls led their team to the state first place trophy West scored 488 points and pulled down 236 rebounds this season She shot 699 percent from the field and 721 percent from the frce-throw line She is the daughter of Tim West and Wendy West Long scored 341 points had 234 rebounds 162 assists and 168 steals for the season She is the daughter of Lynn and Susan Long Cong Skelton to visit area Congressman Ike Skelton will he in Hermitage Saturday March 30 Skelton will visit with area residents as he has lunch at Jack and Virginia's Restaurant in west Hermitage at 12 noon The public is invited Basketball players honored Five area high school basketball players were selected for All-District honors by coaches and officials in southwest Missouri Selected were Stacy West 6-0 sophomore center from Skyline Sue Ann Wilson 5-9 senior center from Hermitage Amanda Hampton 5-1 1 senior forward from Wheatland James Butterfield 6-3 senior forward Gimax Springs and Tommy Huntington 5-10 senior guard from Wheatland city elections are dates seeking those offices Fifteen city positions will be filled in Weaublcau Wheatland Hermitage and Cross Timbers At Weaubleau Linda Sue (Susie) Mathicsen Andro (Bud) Floyd and Elba A Blevins are seeking the office of mayor Unopposed candidates include Terry Cook for west ward alderman James Taylor for east ward alderman and Amos (AD) Ball for an unexpircd one-year term as east ward alderman They include Lowell Pearson Tim Brenner Colter Spradling Rick Kellison and Brenda Harter Smith In the Skyline School District candidates are incumbents Nathan Wars tad Jerry Bybce and Melvin Green Jim Reynolds and Dennis Crawford Only three contested races are on the area's four city ballots for the annual election April 2 Four positions will be filled with no candi.