Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and the Texas Attorney General’s Office have prevailed over the Biden Administration for a 3rd time in their lawsuit over the “Remain in Mexico” policy as the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Missouri and Texas in a 6-3 denial of the Department of Justice’s appeal for an emergency stay. […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt joined a 20-state coalition led by West Virginia and Arizona in arguing against the Biden administration’s proposed regulation of firearm parts. In addition to joining the coalition’s comment letter, the Missouri Attorney General’s Office filed a separate, but similar, comment letter. The coalition’s comment letter can be found at this […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced that Cory Richards, 33, was arrested for allegedly defrauding customers in connection with his businesses, Metro Home Rehab and All Hands on Deck Outdoor Restoration. Richards was arrested in a sting operation coordinated by the Missouri Attorney General Consumer Protection investigators and the Clay County Fugitive Apprehension Unit. Richards […]
An Iowa woman was sentenced on two hate crimes charges for attempting to kill two minor victims because of their race and national origin. Nicole Poole Franklin, 42, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephanie M. Rose to 304 months in federal prison on each count, with the sentences to run concurrently to each other […]
The state Public Defender System is on track to have its largest staffing increase since 1989. The Missouri Legislature passed a state budget this year that includes hiring a total of 53 new public defenders statewide. The Missouri Public Defender System has already filled 32 of those positions. The System has been understaffed […]
A man was convicted at trial by a federal jury of attempting to meet a law enforcement officer, posing online as a 14-year-old girl, for illegal sexual activity. Darren Wade Lasley, 32, of Columbia, Missouri, was found guilty of attempting to entice a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity. On June 14, 2017, Lasley […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced that John L. Cazzell, 72, was sentenced last month for felony charges of defrauding customers in connection with his business, Four Seasons Lawn & Landscape. Cazzell promised extensive landscaping services in exchange for large advance payments. After taking money from several consumers, including elderly Missourians, Cazzell never followed through […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced that his office, along with the Texas Attorney General’s Office have prevailed in their lawsuit against the Biden Administration over President Biden’s cancellation of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), or “Remain in Mexico” policy. A federal court in northern Texas, where the case was filed, issued a nationwide permanent […]
(Missouri Independent) – Missourians who qualify for benefits under Medicaid expansion can begin enrolling. Still, it may take up to two months until they will find out if their eligibility has been verified and their application has been approved. In a news release Wednesday, Gov. Mike Parson announced that in response to a Cole County […]
A federal grand jury in Kansas City, Missouri, returned a two-count indictment charging a Missouri man with hate crime and firearm violations for shooting a teenager with the intent to kill because of the victim’s sexual orientation. According to court documents, Malachi Robinson, 25, is charged with violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. […]
(Missouri Independent) – Legislative leaders of both parties said Tuesday that a special session is likely not needed to appropriate additional funds following a court order to begin covering Missourians who are eligible under voter-approved Medicaid expansion. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Dan Hegeman, R-Cosby, Senate Minority Leader John Rizzo, D-Independence, and Rep. Peter Merideth, D-St. Louis and […]
(Missouri Independent) – The Missouri Department of Social Services must allow newly eligible residents that qualify for benefits under voter-approved Medicaid expansion to enroll and cannot impose greater restrictions on them, a Cole County judge ruled Tuesday. Cole County Circuit Court Judge Jon Beetem sided with the plaintiffs who urged him to allow Medicaid expansion to take […]
(Missouri Independent) – Unlicensed youth residential facilities across Missouri are expected to submit materials notifying the state of their existence by mid-October, but background checks for facility staff required under a new law likely won’t be completed by that time. That’s because the Department of Social Services (DSS) is still working to make hires in […]
A Missouri man has been sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing methamphetamine and a firearm. Charles D. Kessler, 41, of Ava, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips on July 29, 2021, to 10 years in federal prison without parole. On July 2, 2020, Kessler pleaded guilty to one count of possessing […]
Four alleged members of La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) have been charged in a federal superseding indictment with a racketeering conspiracy involving multiple murders, kidnappings, and burglaries, as well as drug trafficking. The individuals charged in the superseding indictment are: Luis Reynaldo Reyes-Castillo, 27, aka Molesto; David Arturo Perez-Manchame, 22, aka Herbi, aka Walter Melendez; Joel […]
A St. Louis couple has been pardoned after they pointed guns at protesters last summer. Governor Parson has pardoned attorneys Mark and Patricia McCloskey. The Central West End pair made international headlines after they pointed guns at social justice protesters walking down their private street in 2020. The St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office […]
(Missouri Independent) – Melissa Pashia is hoping for any kind of good news today. The federal eviction moratorium ended Saturday, and she’s got her fingers crossed one of her clients will finally get approved for the rental assistance that they applied for in April through the State Assistance for Housing Relief Program (SAFHR). The aid approval […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt today announced that his office has received a term sheet from Johnson and Johnson and multiple distributors (McKesson, Amerisource Bergen, and Cardinal Health), setting the stage for the largest victim-centric settlements the State of Missouri has ever seen and tentatively securing roughly just over half a billion dollars of funding […]
Judge Paul C. Wilson assumed the role of chief justice beginning July 1. His term as chief justice will run through June 30, 2023. He succeeds Judge George W. Draper III, who remains on the Court. A Jefferson City native, Wilson earned his undergraduate degree from Drury College in Springfield and his law degree, cum […]
Missouri Attorney General joins a coalition of 26 states to protect Americans’ right to self-defense at the United States Supreme Court. The states filed an amicus brief in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, urging the justices to declare New York’s subjective-issue, or “may issue,” firearm license regime unconstitutional and reverse the […]
