Local News

The city of Gainesville is publishing its final notice and explanation of a proposed creek bank stabilization project in this week’s legal section on page 10.  The notice is in connection with the city’s proposal to reconstruct the damaged areas of Lick Creek to help curb further erosion of a bank...

The wreaths and the rest of the courthouse display is dramatic at night.
The Gainesville square is trimmed in its best Christmas season displays, thanks to the coordinated effort of many hands and hearts.  “I don’t think I’ve ever seen it looking better than it is this year,” said Ozark County Chamber of Commerce vice president Douglas Hawkins. Among the elements of the...
The Bakersfield Festival Committee will host “A Toyland Christmas” event and parade Saturday, Dec. 4.  The event begins with breakfast with Santa in the Bakersfield School cafeteria from 9 to 11 a.m. The menu includes pancakes, sausage, milk and coffee for $2. Parents are encouraged to bring a...

Rebecca Ruud and Savannah Leckie
Rebecca Ruud is now set to stand trial March 7, 2022 for the 2017 alleged murder of her 16-year-old daughter Savannah Leckie and the disposal of the girl’s body in a burn pile on Ruud’s off-the-grid farm near Theodosia.  Ruud has requested a bench trial, which will be held before 31st Judicial...

Alfred Newton, 75, killed this bighorn ram last year in Wyoming, drawing a hunting license for it after applying for a tag for 20 years. He had the ram mounted on a pedestal so it could be moved around, and the completed mount finally arrived last month.
For 20 years, Gainesville resident Alfred Newton applied for a permit to hunt bighorn sheep in Wyoming and never drew a tag. Finally, last year, his 21st year of applying, “I had enough preference points built up that I was a sure draw,” Newton, now 75 and retired from his family’s water-well...

Photo courtesy of JB Duke A mobile home on Hensley Road off County Road 546 in Caulfield was destroyed in a Nov. 19 fire. Area responding volunteer fire departments say that poor radio communication has complicated their fire response in recent years, resulting in fewer volunteer firefighters hearing calls and therefore fewer responding to help.
A mobile home owned by Laura June Mapes-Hensley at 40 Hensley Road, off County Road 546 in Caulfield, was lost in an early morning fire Friday, Nov. 19. The cause of the fire is thought to have been an electrical issue within the home.  According to the Ozark County Sheriff’s Department call log,...

Rebecca Ruud
The Missouri Supreme Court has ruled that a taped audio recording made by Theodosia resident Rebecca Ruud, who is charged with murdering her 16-year-old daughter Savannah Leckie in 2017 and disposing of the girl’s body, is admissible as evidence. The decision was announced in a Nov. 9 press release...

Brandon Adams
A warrant has been issued for Bakersfield resident Brandon J. Adams, 39, in connection with an incident in which he’s alleged to have violated an ex-parte order of protection, hit a woman, unwillfully restrained her to a bed, threatened to kill her and touched her in a sexual manner without her...

Tina Lisinski
Four cases were filed recently charging suspects with possession of methamphetamine in various Ozark County incidents over the past year.  While some residents may wonder about the delay in filing charges linked to the original incident, Ozark County Prosecuting Attorney John Garrabrant explained...

The Ozark County Collector’s website, www.ozarkcountycollector.com, allows tax payers to complete online payments with an e-check option, which uses checking account and bank routing number, or with debit or credit cards.
Ozark County Collector Darla Sullivan says the county’s annual tax statements have been mailed to most area residents, with the exception of a few statements that are being held back pending the transfer of ownership of property. The delay is due to an unusually high volume of real estate sales...

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Ozark County Times

504 Third Steet
PO Box 188
Gainesville, MO 65655

Phone: (417) 679-4641
Fax: (417) 679-3423