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Susan Smith-Harmon

Susan Smith-Harmon

Fifth anniversary of Kirkwood City Hall shootings

Thursday, 07 February 2013 03:40 Published in Local News
Tonight is the fifth anniversary of the horrific Kirkwood City Hall shootings.

On February 7th, 2008, disgruntled Kirkwood resident Charles "Cookie" Thornton gunned down six public servants during a city council meeting before being shot and killed by police.

Two police officers, two council members and the city's public works director also died that night. Several months later, Kirkwood Mayor Mike Swoboda died from his injuries.

Thornton, a Meecham Park resident, had reportedly been upset because his company was denied the contract on a development in his neighborhood. Thornton had accused city leaders of bias in the racially divided city.

Since the shootings, several community groups have worked to try to bridge the divide.

There are no plans for a formal commemoration at tonight's city council meeting. Instead, Mayor Arthur McDonnell says they'll take a moment to remember the fallen at the end of the meeting.
A 13 year old could face charges for bringing a gun to a St. Louis elementary school. The weapon was found yesterday at Jefferson Elementary on the near North side.

The sixth grade suspect had allegedly used the weapon to terrorize several students over the past few days, even pointing it at some and making threats.

Two students spoke with Fox 2 news about their ordeals. A third grader said he thought he was going to die, "He came out of nowhere with a gun. He had put it to my head." The boy says the sixth grader pulled the trigger, but the gun clip fell out.

The victim's fourth grade cousin says the suspect threatened to shoot anyone who told on him. "I didn't tell nobody because I was scared to," the boy said. "I thought he was fixing to shoot me."

District spokesman Patrick Wallace acknowledged that a gun had been found at the school, but says the district can't comment because it involved a juvenile and it's still being investigated. Wallace did say the school is now reevaluating security.

Error means new bridge ramp must be torn up, repoured

Thursday, 07 February 2013 02:11 Published in Local News
A 400 yard stretch of concrete that was recently poured as part of the new Mississippi River Bridge project is now being dug back up. That's because it doesn't meet the Illinois Department of Transportation's code.

IDOT District 8 project implementation leader Jeff Church says the ramp is being torn out and redone because it didn't meet certain safety requirements pertaining to the slope. "The slope that they had was not, high enough," Church said. He said if the slope on a curve isn't high enough, it's hard for cars to stay on the road.

Church told Fox 2 News that the contractor, Fred Weber construction, will absorb the cost of the re-do because it was their mistake. But, he says, it isn't expected to delay completion of the project.

The ramp will connect Illinois drivers to the new Mississippi River bridge when it opens in January 2014.

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