CRIME & SAFETY

There will be some news passengers riding the school bus in Lebanon next week: Police officers. The Lebanon Police Department is working with the local school district to launch a new program to enhance the safety of students riding the bus. On Monday, the police department plans to kick off its Cop on a Bus program. An officer will ride on a Lebanon R-3 school district bus to address safety concerns, including stop arm violations. Sergeant Kacie Springer says as it now stands, it’s hard to cite people for not stopping when a bus has its stop arm sign extended.

A Laclede County man is facing multiple charges following an incident in the southern part of the county. Laclede County 9-1-1 received a call about a man inside a home with a shotgun. The caller said that she told the man to leave but he would not. Someone else arrived and told the man to leave and he did. The same person called 9-1-1 again and reported that she had let the same man, identified as Jonathan Bradley Meade, use her phone, and he left with it. Authorities then were contacted on September 15 about Meade being on another person’s property and allegedly making threatening remarks. Two more deputies were at another location and had taken Meade into custody after which Meade allegedly broke out a window of a patrol car while being transported to the Laclede County Sheriff’s Office. During the investigation, deputies recovered the phone that had been taken from the first caller, but it had been broken. Meade is charged with trespassing, resisting arrest, and property damage. His next court date is set for September 27th.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol (MSHP) is actively seeking the public's help to identify a vehicle involved in a fatal I-44 hit-and-run incident near Lebanon, Laclede County, on September 16. Crystal Hassett was the victim, having been hit by an unidentified vehicle, possibly a dark SUV, after an initial accident left her stranded on the freeway. William Breshears, her son and the driver in the initial accident, expressed deep sorrow over his mother's death.

A Lebanon man is facing charges after allegedly being caught on camera at a laundry mat. According to the Lebanon Police Report, on Friday an officer responded to Jefferson Street Laundry where someone was breaking into the coin operated machines. When the officer spoke with the suspect, Alexander James Fasick, he pulled a pair of wire cutters from inside a washing machine, after which the officer took pictures of the damage to the washer. According to the report the estimated damage is over a thousand dollars. Fasick is charged with felony property damage.

LEBANON, Mo. (KY3) -A teenager was flown to a Springfield hospital after a crash Sunday night. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the 16-year-old driver ran off Park Drive, became airborne and then hit a tree. The patrol says he was wearing a seatbelt. The teen is being treated...

Laclede County, Missouri, has experienced a significant drop in crime rates, widely attributed to the success of expanded neighborhood watch programs. Originally starting as small group initiatives, these programs have grown into larger, community-wide efforts. They primarily focus on preventing burglaries and thefts and have reduced these property crimes remarkably. There have been reported decreases of 65% in burglaries and 60% in thefts in the last year alone.

One person was seriously injured in a car crash that happened late last night (Friday). 81-Year-old Republic Missouri resident Warren Farmer was driving eastbound on US 60 at Clinton Street in Seymour when he failed to stop at a red traffic light signal.That failed stop caused Farmer’s 2001 Jeep Renage to collide with 23-year-old Lake City, Florida resident Joshua Robertson’s 2014 Nissan Frontier. Farmer was transported to Mercy Hospital in Springfield, Missouri, with serious injuries, and Farmer was not wearing his seatbelt, whereas Robertson was.

Two incidents occurred in Lebanon, Missouri this week. In the first incident, a 59-year-old man from Lebanon was arrested in Laclede County on a felony warrant for failing to appear on a drug charge in Camden County. He is currently held in the Laclede County Jail with no bond. In the second incident, a 29-year-old man from Houston, Missouri, was seriously injured in a crash on Highway 32 in Laclede County. The driver lost control of his vehicle, struck a dirt embankment and a fence before overturning. He was taken to Lake Regional Hospital for treatment.

In 2017, the Laclede County Sheriff’s Office began an effort to engage the community in neighborhood watch. Sheriff David Millsap says the efforts are paying off. He said that in the first nine months of 2023, there has been a 65% decrease in the number of burglaries reported in the county. In addition, the Sheriff’s Office has seen a 59% decrease in the number of stealing reports. “In 2017, we started with a neighborhood watch in the Eldridge area. Since then, we have developed 21 programs county wide. Most of our watch programs are very active. Each of the watch programs, except for one, has a Facebook page. Members communicate with each other about what is going on in their neighborhoods. We communicate with the groups through Facebook. Each week the neighborhood watch receives an update about crime in the county,” said Millsap. For more on this story, see the LCR.

At 4:02 p.m. a call came into Nebo-Falcon Fire Chief Doug Christlieb when a search and rescue operation began Wednesday, Sept. 13. A teenaged girl, riding with her youth group from Oklahoma, fell from her horse and was kicked. The incident took place on the secluded Gold Diamond Trail near the Cole Creek campsite off Village Road. Lebanon City Fire, Hazelgreen Fire, Competition Fire, Mercy EMS, OEM and the Laclede County Sheriff’s Department were called in as well. For more on this story, see the LCR.

LEBANON, Mo. (KY3) - In Lebanon, the gateway to Commercial Street reads, ‘Our Town, Your Town.’ But it should also say ‘Home Town to Mrs. Missouri American.’. “No matter what happens in life,” Hayden said, “no matter what gets a hold of you, you can fulfill your dreams.”

UPDATE 9/12/23: Griffin entered a guilty plea on September 12. The sentencing date will be on September 27 at 9:00 a.m. WEBSTER COUNTY, Mo. – A Webster County man is expected to be in court today, March 10, for a bond hearing. Police say Michael Griffin tried to kill Marty Osborn earlier this year by […]

A man from Arkansas has been charged after leading several law enforcement agencies on a multi-county chase while driving on the wrong side of Highway 60 Saturday afternoon.

WRIGHT COUNTY, Mo. (KY3) - Multiple law enforcement chased a white truck through several counties Saturday afternoon. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, around 1 p.m., a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper began pursuing a person in a white truck on Highway 60 in Webster County. The suspect drove...