Top 10 stories of 2020
Staff Reports
comes down
One limb at a time, the locally famous leaning tree came down Sept. 3. For more than 150 years, the tree stood at a 30-degree angle about 3 miles south of Franklin in the 3500 block of Airport Road. The tree’s removal was initiated after a citizen submitted a formal complaint asking the highway department to look into the safety of it. On June 4, Airport Road, also known as Nineveh Road, was closed after an initial inspection determined the tree was unsafe to drive under. Then, in June, two master arborists determined the tree was at “extreme risk” of falling. So, the Johnson County Board of Commissioners voted 3-0 to remove the tree. County officials and local artisans are still looking at ways to preserve the tree, such as a memorial.
Two men are facing felony charges in relation to the shooting death of an 18-year-old woman in Johnson County back in August.
According to the Warrensburg Police Department, 25-year-old Evan R. Lanigan, of Warrensburg, and 28-year-old Christian J. Harrison, of Knob Noster, have been charged with the murder of Maliyah Lakey.
Officers were called to a residence in the 400 block of Grover to investigate a shooting on August 1. Upon arrival, officers discovered three shooting victims. An 18-year-old female- Lakey, of Warrensburg- was dead at the scene from an apparent gunshot wound. A 20-year-old male and a 17-year-old female were transported to an area hospital for treatment of what appeared to be non life-threatening injuries from gunshots.
Two area residents charged with the murder of a teenager earlier this year and are being held without bond are scheduled to have court proceedings scheduled to be held on Wednesday, December 16.
Evan Lanigan, age 25, of Warrensburg, and 28-year-old Christian Harrison, of Knob Noster, are charged with the murder of 18-year-old Maliyah Lakey, of Warrensburg, on August 1.
The Warrensburg Police Department says officers were called to a residence in the 400 block of Grover where they discovered three shooting victims, including Lakey, who was dead at the scene. A 20-year-old male and a 17-year-old female were transported to an area hospital for treatment of gunshot wounds.
A Warrensburg man facing multiple felony’s following a search warrant that was executed at his home in June.
On June 24, investigators with the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control’s Digital Forensic Investigative Unit executed a search warrant at the home of a 39-year-old fifth-grade school teacher in the Chilhowee School District, Ronald John Booker. As a result of the search, investigators seized child pornography and computer equipment. Booker was arrested and transported to the Johnson County Jail.
According to the probable cause statement Booker allegedly uploaded images on March 12, that depicted children between 8 and 16 years old. Booker admitted to uploading the images, according to the statement, but told investigators he received them from another user on a chat site and was attempting to report the user by uploading them.