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A convicted sex offender is eluding police tonight.
William Niehaus is wanted on more charges, but Missouri law could spare him from ever serving a tough sentence for his crimes.
Fox 2's Julie Geier explains in our first story at 6.
Him over there exposing himself, you know, I think kids should be protected against that type of thing.
Janie Howard expected to see her neighbor, William Niehaus, in St. Charles County Court on Monday, but he didn't show.
Niehaus was arrested three weeks ago for exposing himself to Howard's daughter and two other teenage girls in the town west mobile home park.
Niehaus has been convicted once for exposing himself, and this third offense was committed while on probation for a previous charge.
Howard's daughter wants him put away.
She was very nervous Monday. She really didn't want to go through all this stuff, but, you know, it's something that she has to do because, you know, we have to get people like that out of here.
Police are looking for Niehaus because he didn't appear in court.
Meanwhile, residents fear he'll claim more young victims.
While Niehaus' offenses are serious, the troubling fact is flashing or exposing is only a misdemeanor.
Police agree with victims the punishment is not enough.
All these violations, if convicted on those, his maximum penalty would be about one year in jail.
Police say someone like Niehaus can continue to commit sexual misconduct and be slapped with up to 20 misdemeanors without ever serving any hard time.
Some state legislators say that makes any type of persistent offender law on the books worthless.
Kelly, once victimized by a flasher, is afraid repeat offenders will eventually take risks. She wants a tougher law.
I mean, if they're crazy enough to expose themselves to anybody, then he could go for others.
Julie Geyer, Fox 2 News.
Once Niehaus is arrested, he'll go to jail and be held unless he can make the full $50,000 bond.
One Missouri lawmaker tells Fox 2 this case is the determination he needs to strengthen sex crime laws next session.
The FBI's Fugitive Task Force is now involved in helping catch a man wanted for running down a St. Louis County police officer.
Police say that 41-year-old John Childers is armed and dangerous.
Childers may be traveling in a 1998 blue Mercury marquee with Missouri license plates.
Investigators believe Childers' companion on the road is a miniature Doberman Pinscher.
He reportedly had the dog tucked under his arm when he allegedly carjacked a pickup truck that he used to run down the officer in North St. Louis County Tuesday night.
Two other people were also struck, but none of the injuries is life-threatening.
The FBI says it's joining the search because Childers has a history of assaulting police officers.
Right now, this is the FBI's Fugitive Task Force number one priority, and we're not going to stop until this guy is in custody.
Now, the FBI says Childers' last known address was the home of his mother and stepfather in Florissant.
Agents also say that Childers uses two aliases, John Coulin and Steve Stout.
The FBI got involved in the case because Childers has a long criminal record, including specifically macing a Chesterfield police officer.
A reward is being offered for information that leads to his arrest.
Striking workers in Godfrey, Illinois get support from the Reverend Jesse Jackson.
As Fox 2's Benita Cornute shows us, Jackson came to town today to lend his support to the workers who want their voices heard.
He's gained international recognition as a stellar negotiator in difficult disputes.
But Reverend Jesse Jackson's offer to mediate the labor dispute at Beverly Farms went nowhere,
nor did he get to talk with the head of the agency that's placed temporary workers there.
We were turned down, and that was reality. And from 7 to Montgomery was reality.
Whenever we fight and fight together, and our cause is just, and we're unified, if we're morally right, we'll win.
The director at Beverly Farm is attending a conference out of town.
Council 31 of the American Federation of State, County, Municipal Employees claims it's been unable to negotiate a contract
for workers at the residential care facility for the developmentally disabled in Godfrey, Illinois.
Jesse! Jesse! Jesse!
Union organizers and more than 80 striking workers gathered near the facility for a rally where Jackson was the keynote speaker.
We must find a way to move from battleground to common ground.
We must work together to make Beverly Farm work for everybody.
Workers say this rally was necessary. One woman told me that she's been forced to work as many as 16 hours a day.
She believes that Reverend Jackson's presence will help their cause.
I think it will have an effect on a lot of people. Hopefully it will have an effect on the people that's inside, still crossing.
Hopefully they decide to come out.
Managers at the facility claim most of the people at the rally are not employees of Beverly Farm. Instead, they are other union workers in Godfrey, Illinois, for need to coordinate Fox News.
Jackson says he will ask Illinois Governor George Ryan to mediate the Godfrey workers' dispute.
Civil rights activists are asking for a new prosecutor in the murder trial of a St. Louis police officer.
Robert Dodson is charged in the beating death of burglary suspect Julius Thurman.
The WNACP now wants the Attorney General's office to take over the case.
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Dee Joyce Hayes told Fox 2 News last night she has no plans to hand over the case.
But the civil rights group says that's the only way to ensure justice is served.
The fact that the other officer on the scene during the beating of Julius Thurman had the charges dropped against him when he was probably the most credible witness there.
And those charges could have been used to leverage truthful testimony from him.
And now the only leverage seems to be the leverage that would come from the police officer's association.
A spokesman for the Attorney General's office says that Jay Nixon would have to be asked to take over the case by the circuit attorney's office.
Officer Dodson's attorney is asking for a change of venue.
A state representative from Baldwin is blasting Governor Carnahan's agreement with a minority group that engaged in civil disobedience.
Representative John Loudon says the governor's agreement with MOCAN sets a dangerous precedent.
Loudon says any group that's upset can now just shut down a highway and demand a meeting with the governor.
MOCAN and its supporters did block traffic on Interstate 70 in north St. Louis last month.
The group then threatened to shut down Highway 40.
But Governor Carnahan stepped in then and agreed to a job training program.
New highway construction projects are suspended until federal transportation officials complete a study on hiring goals for disadvantaged businesses.
Representative Loudon wants the state legislature to hold hearings on the problem.
A St. Louis minister is trying to stop Wednesday's execution of mobster David Leisure.
He's scheduled to die by lethal injection on September 1st.
Of all those involved in the bloody Lebanese wars during the early 80s, only David Leisure got the death penalty.
He was convicted of planting a bomb under the car seat of Jimmy Michael Sr.
That killing took place in September of 1980.
Reverend Larry Rice spent much of the day on the city hall steps handing out a letter from Michael's grandson, Jimmy Michael III.
The letter to Governor Mel Carnahan asked that Leisure's life be spared.
I respect this family for what they have done.
I can't say enough about them.
And I just pray that Governor Carnahan had the political courage to stop this execution.
Reverend Rice also asked for signatures on petitions to spare Leisure's life.
A spokesman for Governor Carnahan says he is unavailable to comment.
A Collinsville woman pleads not guilty to charges that she killed her sister.
Today, a Madison County grand jury indicted 22-year-old Sandra Maryfield on the first-degree murder charge.
Prosecutors claim that Maryfield killed her sister Josie so that she could claim her sister's newborn child as her own.
The trial is set for October 4th.
Maryfield is being held in the Madison County jail.
Jury selection is underway for one of two men accused of killing a mother and her two young children.
The murder happened in Vichy, Missouri, about 100 miles southwest of St. Louis.
Mark Christensen faces first-degree murder charges in the deaths of Susan Brooke, her 9-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter.
Their bodies were found in a farm pond near their home in February of 1998.
Prosecutors say Christensen and Jesse Carter killed Brooke and her two children and stole some of their belongings.
They were captured a few days later in California.
Christensen is being tried in Nevada, Missouri.
Carter is expected to go on trial this fall in Phelps County.
A fatal fraternity house fire at the University of Missouri in Columbia has them making some changes.
All fraternity and sorority houses at Mizzou will now conduct fire drills at least once each semester this school year.
They will also have to designate house fire marshals.
The drills are in response to a fatal fire at the Sigma Chi house last May.
One student died in the blaze.
The Columbia Fire Department is responsible for monitoring the changes.
Labor unrest could disrupt school for hundreds of students in Metro East.
We'll show you what's at stake.
And if your children ride a school bus, a simple alarm system may give you some peace of mind.
Find out how it works when Fox 2 News at 6 returns.
The Nuns who try not to make a habit on a falling down. See them on the next real TV.
Tonight at 6 30 on Fox 2.
Well, it's possible that a labor dispute will disrupt classes for about 800 students in Madison County.
Teachers in Lebanon could strike at any time as Fox 2's Nancy Pasternak reports money is a key issue.
The first day of school in Lebanon began with a lesson in labor disputes.
Teachers carried signs and walked picket lines.
They claim the school board's final contract offer isn't fair.
62 teachers threatened to strike. Parents worry about their kids' education.
Hopefully they'll just get it over with quick so we don't have to go through that.
All the other schools that I've seen in the past that are in St. Louis and that went through that, it seems hard on them.
The teachers have been negotiating with the school board since April.
In that time, the two sides were able to hammer out all issues except for salaries.
Out of the seven areas, seven schools in the area that are comparable in size, we come out six out of seven ranking as far as salaries.
A new teacher with a bachelor's degree makes about $26,000 here.
The school district says its new contract offers an average 4% salary increase.
Teachers say that's misleading. They say that figure includes a 2% increase that already exists.
They want a true 4.5% raise.
Levin and school just got off the state's financial watch list.
That's why a board spokesman says the district's final offer stands.
The board is looking at spending their money in prudent manner and in the best interest of the community.
Teachers say raises are needed to attract and keep quality teachers.
They don't want students caught in the middle, but they're ready to strike to teach the school board a lesson.
Nancy Pasternak, Fox 2 News.
The union says the teachers in the Levin and school district have never gone on strike before,
and more than half of its teachers have worked in Levin and schools for more than 10 years.
If teachers strike, they say they will give parents notice.
Well, it happens every school year.
A child is mistakenly left behind on a school bus, but a new alarm system demonstrated today in St. Louis could change that.
It's called Bus Scan.
The alarm reminds drivers to check for students who may still be on the bus.
Maybe they fell asleep in one of the seats.
The bus horn sounds until the driver resets the system.
The alarm will be installed on all school buses used in the St. Louis school district.
Three thousand General American Life Insurance employees in St. Louis are getting a new boss.
New York-based Metropolitan Life Insurance Company is buying General American.
The deal, worth $1.2 billion, was made official today.
MetLife says it will keep its headquarters in St. Louis.
Missouri's director of insurance must approve the buyout.
General American has been looking for a buyer after investors staged a run on $5 billion in contracts earlier this month.
A radio announcer wants to put a freeze on muscular dystrophy.
We'll show you his big chill.
And historic trains go from rails to mail.
We'll show you the new postage stamps when we come back.
And there are some big-time thunderstorms rumbling out over western Missouri.
I'll let you know if they're headed our way.
Plus, let's check that allergy alert forecast for tomorrow, Friday.
Wrapping up the week, high levels of mold, ragweed and nettle.
Other weather forecasts into the weekend next.
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Well we woke up this morning with some fog around town and with the strong August sunshine we typically burn the fog off, turn it into haze during the afternoon.
That's why the milky sunshine stayed with us for most of the day.
But temperature wise not all that bad.
Readings in the mid to upper 80s.
Now down to the sunshine state, their eyes are on the tropics as they are across most of the weather world.
We're watching Hurricane Dennis.
It's the closest of three systems to the United States right now.
So we'll focus with this.
The center is in the northeastern Bahamas right now.
Hurricane warnings are in effect for all of the Bahama chains north of the center.
And as this moves to the west northwest, folks from Miami up to Jacksonville are worried.
But I wouldn't be too worried if you're traveling down to Florida.
Because right now as we go to the track it appears that all the steering mechanisms are going to take Dennis on that northwest track just east of Florida.
And then start to curve it back to the north.
If I were heading to the Carolinas I'd be a little more concerned.
Especially by the time we get to Sunday.
That appears to be the most likely time for the closest approach of Dennis.
Which by then could be a medium sized hurricane with winds up to about 90 to 100 miles per hour.
As it is, it's a very weak hurricane.
75 to 80 mile per hour winds right now.
But it could gather some strength as it moves into a slightly more favorable environment here off the Carolina coast.
And then gets pushed off to the north.
So we'll keep an eye on that.
Meanwhile we're enjoying our very pleasant weather with 86 degrees.
Moderate humidity with a dew point of 64. And east wind 8 miles per hour and the pressure 29.91.
For the record our high temperature 2 degrees above where we are right now.
We've reached 88.
Low temperature this morning was 65.
And that record low of 53 sounds real nice.
But no 50s in the foreseeable forecast future.
As far as our air check today, mold spores at 3400.
And bad news tomorrow without much wind to move the air around.
Air quality will be poor on Friday.
Here's the way things look from outer space as we look down.
Not much to show you except the weak little low pressure system which is dropping to the southeast through western Missouri.
That's where the storms are right now.
And for tomorrow this weather system will head to the southeast.
And by tomorrow afternoon should be down across Louisiana and Arkansas.
Leaving behind not much motion in the atmosphere.
So we stay hazy and relatively warm.
I think highs tomorrow will get well into the 80s and probably see a push into the low 90s across most of the viewing area.
Mid to upper 90s as you work further south into southwest Missouri and parts of Oklahoma.
So our forecast for tonight, it's clear, it's dry.
Could be some late night fog developing once again.
68 degrees, the low temperature with light winds.
For tomorrow, a partly sunny day, hazy and warm but dry.
Winds will be light, a little bit warmer than today.
That high temperature near 90.
And tomorrow night could see the fog redevelop again under a clear sky.
We'll take the low down to 70.
Next several days, looks dry heading into the weekend.
Tomorrow's high near 90.
Saturday we're going to throw in a chance for a thunderstorm.
A very, very, very weak weather system will move through Saturday afternoon.
That's the chance for the storm.
Otherwise, the weekend is dry.
Sunday, just a couple degrees cooler.
But all in all, pretty close to normal for the weekend.
So these hurricanes and tropical storms really aren't affecting us.
No, once they develop way out in the Atlantic, they very rarely make it this far west.
Okay, very good.
Thanks, Chris.
America's rich heritage of railroading is captured and preserved in a new series of stands.
The new 20th Century train stands were unveiled today at the Museum of Transportation.
The 25 celebrate Art Deco passenger trains of the 1930s and 40s.
The stands were created to pay tribute to American industry and design.
Well, the Blues hope they have solved their net questions.
And sports director Pete Petersen is ahead with the details.
And Sammy has an unfair advantage today as he pulls away from Big Mac in the home run race.
Pete explains next in sports.
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Well, back in June, goalie Roman Turek was skating around with a Stanley Cup in his arms.
A day later, he was disappointed to find out he had been traded to the St. Louis Blues.
But he is smiling again today after signing a two-year contract with the Blues and an option for year three.
Turek played in 26 games between the Pipes for the Stars last season and lost only three of them.
He ranked fifth in the NHL with a 2.02 goals against average.
So Turek will battle Grant Spear for the starting job and plans to see a lot more action than he did in Dallas.
I don't know if Grant will be playing good.
I think he is a very good goaltender.
I don't know, it's hard to say for me something like it now.
And in case you didn't catch that hint of an accent Roman is from the Czech Republic, he led his country to a gold medal in the World Championships in 1996.
While Darryl Duran is out, Jamie Swanner is now in as head coach of the St. Louis Ambush.
After five years in the net for the Bush, Swanner moves to the bench full-time.
Swanner is a long-time player coach, Darryl Duran, who helped build the franchise into a power in the NPSL.
But Darryl has moved on to the WISL as head coach of the new Steemers now.
So Swanner takes over and will be a full-time coach.
I always thought that having a player coach is a mistake.
And I always thought that. I kind of want to step out there. Can I go out there?
Obviously I can't. But I think having the veteran players on the team we have and given the opportunity of being involved vocally, I think I can handle it quite well.
Well the closest thing to a real game is coming up on Saturday for the Rams.
Third preseason ball game is usually a true dress rehearsal for the regular season opener.
So they spent some time preparing for the Chargers today.
Don't know if they prepared for this though. All-pro linebacker Junior Sayow now a double threat.
He's actually been lining up on the offensive side of the line and has taken some reps at tight end.
He's a heck of an athlete so no big surprise that he can catch that football.
Yeah it's fine. It's fine to jump on the offensive side, help him out.
Obviously we're practicing on some wrinkles here and there. And on my part it looks like it's doing well.
Sayow at tight end, tune in to find out.
10.35 Saturday night right here on FOX 2, your home of the Rams.
And if you're not a night person, we'll replay the Rams-Chargers tilt for you Sunday morning at 11.
We are here to serve you.
Well the Redbirds' recent road trip is now just a bad memory.
Dropping five of six, including an embarrassing sweep at Montreal.
Cards get back to work tomorrow at Bush against the Braves.
And while Big Mac sleeps, Slam and Sammy continues to knock them deep.
Fifth inning against the Giants. Wrigley Field, LeVon Hernandez in the wheelhouse.
Number 53 for Sammy. He is now two ahead of McGuire.
And to make it even sweeter, the Cubs avoid the sweep, beating San Francisco 11-10.
So the Cubbies are now just 21 games under 500.
Things aren't going so well for the Cubs. Could be worse for the Redbirds.
But Big Mac has his work cut out for him if that's the kind of thing you look at.
All right Pete, thank you. No arguments about it. Ken Hall is the coolest disc jockey in town.
We'll tell you about that story in just a minute.
We sure will. And we'll tell you also that the FBI is starting to change its story about what really happened in Waco.
Tonight on Fox 2 News at 9, we'll look at what was said then and what is being said now.
Even Attorney General Janet Reno wants to know why the truth is just coming out six years later.
That's tonight on Fox 2 News at 9.
Well now we're going to tell you about Ken Hall.
The afternoon dry personality for K-Hits is on ice for the next 48 hours.
Hall is frozen alive in 5,000 pounds of solid ice outside Pops and Sauget.
All are invited to see him through a special monitor.
There's plenty of entertainment, food, drink and ice.
Ken decided to spend some time on ice in an effort to put a freeze on muscular dystrophy.
How does he do that?
I don't know. Go check him out and you'll know.
We thank you for making Fox 2 your news choice.
We'll be back at 9 and 10.