Ruud, Peat plead not guilty to murder of Ozark County teen
It was a short court date Monday for a couple accused in the death of an Ozark County teenager. Ozark County Prosecuting Attorney John Garrabrant says 39-year-old Rebecca Ruud and 31-year-old Robert Peat, Jr., waived formal reading and pled not guilty to charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, abuse of a child resulting in death, tampering with evidence and abandoning a corpse.
Ruud and Peat were in the courtroom for a combined total of approximately five minutes to answer to the charges handed down Wednesday by an Ozark County grand jury. The two were indicted on suspicion of the murder of Ruud’s 16-year-old daughter, Savannah Leckie.
Leckie’s adoptive mother, Tamile Leckie-Montague, made the trip to Gainesville from Minnesota and sat in the courtroom as Ruud’s motion for a change of judge was granted. Circuit Judge Craig Carter was recused from Ruud’s case, and it will be referred to the Missouri State Supreme Court for assignment of judicial personnel. Prior to Ruud’s time in court, Peat appeared before Judge Carter and was ordered to reappear November 8th.
Leckie was born in Minnesota in 2001 but was adopted a few months later by Leckie-Montague and her then-husband, David Leckie. After her adoptive parents divorced, Savannah continued to live with Leckie-Montague until August of last year when a conflict developed with the adoptive mother’s boyfriend. Leckie then moved to Ruud’s remote 81-acre farm near Theodosia.
It was just over two months ago when Ruud contacted the Ozark County Sheriff’s Department to report her daughter missing. After an extensive search, investigators found burned human remains on Ruud’s propertey, and they were later identified as Leckie’s.
Ruud is currrently being held in the Ozark County Jail, and Peat is incarcerated in the Douglas County Jail at Ava. Both are held without bond.
___________________________________________________________________
Quorum Court to address proposed fix for sales tax ‘glitch’
Baxter County officials have a plan to address what Judge Mickey Pendergrass has called a “glitch” with the recently passed sales tax initiatives for funding expansion and operation of the county jail.
The plan will be presented in two ordinances when the Baxter County Quorum Court meets on October 3.
An alternate tax collection schedule was needed after the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration notified county officials collection of a sales tax at a local jurisdiction may only begin and end on a calendar quarter. Collection of the new sales taxes was set to begin on March 1 and November 1, 2018. The eight-month one percent tax for construction would have sunsetted on October 31, 2018, with the subsequent one-quarter maintenance and operation tax ongoing. Under the proposed new plan, the collection period for the one percent sales tax will be shorten to six months, starting one month later than the original plan and ending one month earlier.
Judge Pendergrass says the new plan has the blessing of DF&A and legal guidance at both the local and state level.
Listen:
Judge Pendergrass says officials will not know the full financial impact of the change until the project for the jail expansion goes to bid.
He says the biggest challenge in the development of an alternate plan was to ensure it would accomplish what voters had overwhelmingly approved in the special election.
Listen:
Judge Pendergrass says between anticipated growth in collections and utilizing funding from both sales tax initiatives, officials are hopeful to complete the construction plan as originally presented. He says the original ordinances had been written to allow the county to save any excess revenues needed beyond maintenance and operation of the jail for any future expansion. Now that the county will receive less revenue from the one cent collected sales tax for construction, the one quarter proceeds may be needed on the front end to complete payment of the expansion.
He says the track record of the construction manager and the architectural firm is another positive factor.
Listen:
Judge Pendergrass says stretching dollars is not new for the county. He says the plan for the expansion of the detention center is one officials developed to meet the needs of the county for the next 20-25 years.
___________________________________________________________________
Flippin Orscheln Farm and Home closing
Orscheln Farm and Home in Flippin is set to close its door on November 19.
Flippin Mayor Gerald Marberry says a representative from the company’s headquarters in Moberly, Missouri met with employees about two weeks ago to address the planned closing. The store employs a combined part-time and full-time workforce of about 13.
Mayor Marberry says it is his understanding the lease on the building is up for renewal. Out-of-state building owners and Orscheln officials were not able to successfully negotiate terms of a new lease agreement, leading to the planned closing. Work is underway to transfer inventory to the Mountain Home location and to other Orscheln Farm and Home stores.
The Flippin Mayor says the local Orscheln’s generates about $1.8 million in annual sales. He says the loss of the store will be a heavy blow to the city’s coffers.
Mayor Marberry says he does not intend to give up on efforts to keep Orscheln in the Flippin area. He says he was in conversation Thursday afternoon with a corporate representative offering to pursue construction of a facility for Orscheln, if land could be located. He says while the representative was favorable to the offer, others within the organization have to be consulted.
Mayor Marberry says Orscheln has occupied the Flippin location for about 12 years.
___________________________________________________________________
Bridge Bash reaches goal of 500,000 meals raised
Big Spring Park in downtown Cotter was the site for the seventh annual Bridge Bash benefitting the Food Bank of North Central Arkansas. Saturday’s fundraising event raised $100,001 to provide 500,005 meals to the Food Bank and its 75 member hunger relief agencies in Baxter, Boone, Fulton, Izard, Marion, Newton, Searcy, Sharp and Stone Counties.
Over 600 volunteers occupied the meal-packaging tent throughout the day to package 101,410 meals, and Food Bank President and CEO Jeff Quick says the volunteers were from all over the region.
Listen:
Meals provided through this year’s event are the equivalent of the anticipated food distribution for the upcoming months of October and November. It also brings Bridge Bash’s seven-year total to over 3.4 million meals provided to individuals and families in north central Arkansas.
Some of the Bridge Bash activities included the Paddle for Hunger, an 18-mile kayak race down the White River with the winnner clocking a time of one-and-a-half hours. Bridge Bash’s Car, Truck and Bike Show included 125 vehicles, and a 5k Run for Hunger was held earlier this month in Mountain Home.
Another activity was the Pedal for Hunger held in March. It raised over $4,000 for the Baxter County Back Pack programs for children.
Quick says the We Can Make a Difference Benefit Ride was held in July, and it’s also a big part of this year’s Bridge Bash.
Listen:
Quick adds his appreciation for all the musical talent involved including the Kentucky Headhunters.
Listen:
Individuals who were not able to participate in Bridge Bash, but would like to support the efforts of the event are invited to visit foodbanknca.org, click the donate now button and identify their gift as a Bridge Bash donation.
___________________________________________________________________
Ambulance stolen in Hollister, recovered in Harrison
A patient being treated by emergency personnel in Taney County is accused of taking the ambulance for a joy ride. According to the Taney County Ambulance District (TCAD), an unidentified male subject in his 20s was arrested in Harrison Monday after allegedly stealing the ambulance and leading authorities on a chase across the state line.
TCAD paramedics were called just before 11 a.m. to assist the Hollister Police Department with the subject on Knox Avenue. The paramedics were caring for the patient and getting information from the police when he suddenly jumped into the driver seat of the ambulance. Before personnel could react, the patient placed the ambulance in drive and sped away.
The ambulance was allegedly driven across the state line as the Hollister Police Department was assisted in the 45-minute chase by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Taney County Sheriff’s Office, Arkansas State Police and Harrison Police Department. The Arkansas State Police was able to end the chase near McDonald’s on Main Street in Harrison. With tracking technology on the ambulance, the TCAD Paramedics Communication Center was able to give law enforcement the location, direction of travel and speed of the ambulance during the chase.
TCAD Paramedics Chief Darryl Coontz says no one was injured, including the patient, and the ambulance was not damaged.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI