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NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
CRIME
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2009
Parents plead for return of daughter
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ORANGE PARK, Fla. Authorities searching for a missing 7-year-old north Florida girl said they found the body of a young child in a Georgia landfill Wednesday, but it has not yet been identified
Clay County, Fla., Sheriff Rich Beseler first said the body was
a female, but then corrected himself and said he couldn't yet confirm the gender. The parents of Somer Thompson, who has been missing since Monday, have been notified.
"We want to find who did this and bring them to justice."
The body was found by Clay County detectives who followed garbage trucks from the girl's neighborhood to Folkston, Ga., just north of the Florida state line.
Beseler said investigators searched through 100 tons of garbage before finding the partially covered body. He did not give any other details about the discovery.
RICK BESELER Clay County, Fla. Sheriff
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation was helping with the investigation and planned to conduct an autopsy on the body Thursday in its Savannah office, spokesman John Bankhead said.
"We all need to say a prayer for Somer's family." Florida Gov.
Charlie Crist said at a press conference announcing the discovery.
Orange Park is a suburb of jacksonville just south of
Somer vanished on her mile-long walk home from school Monday in Orange Park. She was squabbling with another child, and her sister told her to stop. The girl got upset, walked ahead of the group and wasn't seen again.
Jacksonville Naval Air Station. The area where the girl disappeared is a heavily populated residential area with homes, apartment complexes and condominiums.
Investigators said before the body was discovered they sus- tended to lie in a cooler.
disappearance
"We want to find who did this and bring them to justice," the sheriff said.
Earlier Wednesday, the girl's parents made emotional pleas for their daughter to be returned home safely.
"Somer, you're not in trouble — if you're scared, just come home," Diena "Thompson said on NBC's "Today" show Wednesday. "And if somebody has her, please, please bring her back to us. She belongs with her family."
Father Sam Thompson, who lives in Graham, N.C., also pleaded for her safe return.
Diana Thompson, mother of 7 year old Somer Thompson, speaks during a morning television news conference. Thompson's daughter disappeared Monday.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BUSINESS
Students can vote best in Lawrence
BY JESSE BROWN
jbrown@kansan.com
It's about that time of year again — the time of year when students can voice their opinions about the best of the best in Lawrence.
Starting next week, students will be able to vote for their favorite places in Lawrence, including Best Overall Restaurant and Best Overall Bar. The winners will be featured in the Top of the Hill section of the University Daily Kansan on Dec. 2.
Fabian Conde, promotions and special sections manager of The Kansan, said the Top of the Hill celebrated the diversity in Lawrence and served as a guide to freshman or anyone else unfamiliar with what Lawrence has to offer.
Quinton's Bar and Deli, 615 Massachusetts St., won a variety of awards last year. Students voted the bar third place in the Best Sandwich category and first place in both the Best Overall Bar and Best Bar Customer Service categories.
"We felt pretty good," Peter Malbom, bar manager at Quinton's, said. "We hope to be voted best again this year."
Malbom also said that the Top of the Hill brought in a lot of business last year.
Follow Jesse
Brown at
twitter.com/
jessebrownthe
JimmyJohn's, 922Massachusetts St., won first place in both the Best Restaurant Delivery Service and Best Sandwich categories.
Brian Schraeder, general manager of Jimmy John's, said the popular support given through Top of the Hill was a nice recognition.
"It was pretty sweet," Schraeder said. "We feel we are the fastest delivery service."
Despite having repeated commercials on the radio and television, Schraeder said it was a surprise to find out how many people didn't know that Jimmy John's delivered. He said the Top of the Hill provided a boost in business.
Conde said the Top of the Hill was important because the selections were made by the students.
"It's a way to give back to the community," Conde said.
The Kansan will set up tables on Wescoe Beach where students can vote. Students can also vote online at www.kansan.com.
Edited by Jonathan Hermes
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