Local News
At age 34 (he turns 35 in October), Ozark County Sheriff-elect Cass Martin says some people may think “my maturity level is not enough to take on this job.” But he believes he has the energy and drive to “do what’s great” for Ozark County and hopes to be the same kind of successful officer as Douglas County Sheriff Chris Degase, Mountain Grove Police Chief Danny Bledsoe or former Ozark County Sheriff Steve Bartlett. He’s shown here with his wife, Andrea, and their four children, from left, Branch, 4; Isabelle, 10; Jacob, 9; and Rhett, 5.
Dora resident Cass Martin said Friday his “phone hasn’t stopped ringing” since the night of Aug. 4, when he won the primary election for Ozark County Sheriff by 148 votes over challenger Curtis Dobbs, 1,563 to 1,415.
“And I got 70 text messages,” Martin said, laughing. “I spent all day texting...
OC still has one of the lowest COVID case counts in the state
Since last week’s Times went to press, Ozark County has more than doubled its confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Ozark County Health Department administrator Rhonda Suter confirmed Tuesday afternoon that the county had received its 15th...
Tylor Rynard, Ozark County Jail photo.
Squires resident Tylor Rynard, 34, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and first-degree robbery Aug. 7 in connection with the April 21, 2018, murder of 73-year-old Lawrence C. Brostedt in Ozark County. Rynard made the plea in Phelps County Court, where the case was transferred on a change of...
Stephanie Bade is pictured in her canoe garden at Sunburst Ranch, a river outfitter with campground, cabin and canoe rentals on the North Fork of the White River off H Highway near Patrick Bridge. Stephanie and husband Bryan purchased the riverside business last year from former owners Justin and Amy Spencer, who owned the resort for 15 years.
Editor’s note: Sunburst Ranch was severely damaged after the North Fork of the White River swelled to unprecedented depths in April 2017, completely covering the campground and resort and causing devastating destruction. The resort’s riverhouse, camp store, bathhouse, sleeper cabins and barn were...
Thornfield School will start its 2020-2021 school year Aug. 24 “as normal as possible,” administrator Melissa Campbell said last week in responding to the Times’ emailed questions about the school’s plans for reopening in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The school’s stated objectives will be to...
Ozark County schools are planning to open the 2020-21 school year facing what Bakersfield superintendent Amy Britt, in a recent letter to parents, called “an unprecedented challenge” amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. “However,” Britt encouraged, “it is in these challenges that new ideas and...
For the first time in recent history, all Ozark County School Districts and also nearby Mark Twain School, in Taney County west of Theodosia, are providing school supplies for students.
Bakersfield School District
Bakersfield School District announced in a July 10 Facebook post that all school...
(Editor's note: Shortly before 10 a.m., Wednesday, Aug. 5, Ozark County Health Department Admisitrator Rhonda Suter posted that Ozark County had a 10th case of COVID-19. No details are available at this time but will be posted as they become available.)
Ozark County’s seventh case of the COVID-19...
Ozark County Clerk Brian Wise, left, hands over a CARES funds check for $148,041.33 to Ozark County Ambulance District administrator Stacy Raney, who said the money would “replace front-line salaries” and also help reimburse the district for replenishing supplies and paying employee taxes and benefits. The money comes from the county’s allotment of approximately $1.7 million in federal funds appropriated by Congress in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) act, aimed at offsetting expenses related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Raney said the district’s finances “took a pretty big hit” during the early part of the pandemic, when fear of catching the virus kept many people from calling the ambulance and seeking medical transport to area hospitals. “We dropped down to 30-35 percent of our normal call volume in March and April,” Raney said. “We’re doing good now; we’re on solid footing again. And we’re very grateful for these funds.” (Times photo/Regina Mozingo)
The Ozark County Commissioners, at their Monday morning meeting, said more checks from the county’s CARES funds allotment have been distributed to reimburse Ozark County government and nonprofit groups, agencies, schools and businesses who have submitted complete requests, including receipts and...
This 2015 photo of Rebecca Ruud and Robert Peat Jr. was posted on Rudd’s Facebook page. She indicated in the comments that the photo was taken during their first date. The pair are now charged with murdering Ruud’s 16-year-old daughter Savannah Leckie in July 2017.
Recent court documents in the case against Theodosia resident Rebecca Ruud, who is charged with murdering her 16-year-old biological daughter Savannah Leckie and disposing of her body in July 2017, reveal a surprise in the high-profile case.
The Ozark County Sheriff’s Department is now in...