KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Authorities found a frail 17-year-old boy handcuffed to a pole in his parents’ Kansas City basement, where he said he’d been kept since his father withdrew him from school in September....
He told police that his father would wake him each day at 4 a.m. to use the bathroom and give him a packet of dried oatmeal. In the afternoon, he would again be allowed to use the bathroom and would get a packet of noodles. Later, he would get two bologna sandwiches and a glass of water.
Another adult in the home told police that the teen was ‘‘locked downstairs because in December they let him upstairs and he ate almost an entire bowl of fruit at one time.’’
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"Midwest thaw gives way to deep chill" by Alan Scher Zagier | Associated Press, January 30, 2013
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Midwesterners who had briefly swapped puffy coats for sandals and shorts switched back Tuesday as balmy conditions gave way to severe storms that carried a risk of tornadoes, freezing rain, and, later, snow.
Record high temperatures across a swath of the central United States were being followed by thunderstorms and strong winds from Texas to Alabama and as far north as Michigan.
The temperature in the central Missouri college town of Columbia reached 77 degrees on Monday, a record for January, and students exchanged their winter coats for shorts and flip-flops as freezing rain gave way to spring-like conditions. Foul weather made a quick return, however, with a Tuesday downpour that flooded some streets near the University of Missouri campus. Snow was expected early Wednesday morning.
Chicago residents also have been whiplashed by recent weather extremes....
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"Man charged in financial aid shooting" by JIM SALTER | Associated Press, January 17, 2013
ST. LOUIS — A part-time student with a history of crime and mental health issues was charged Wednesday for allegedly shooting an administrator at a downtown business school in a dispute over financial aid, then turning the gun on himself.
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce charged Sean Johnson, 34, of St. Louis, with first-degree assault, armed criminal action, and two firearms violations for the shooting on Tuesday at Stevens Institute of Business & Art. Both Johnson and the shooting victim, financial aid director Greg Elsenrath, remain hospitalized....
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