A Missouri, man who led police officers on a chase in a stolen car, causing a collision with another vehicle, was sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing a firearm. Cameron D. Smith, 25, of Independence, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 10 years in federal prison without parole. On Jan. 27, […]
Tag: federal law
Groups urge Missouri legislators to renew Medicaid provider tax
Budget experts warn if Missouri doesn’t renew its Medicaid provider taxes, the state will have to come up with roughly $1.6 billion to make up for it, and cuts would extend to services beyond Medicaid. A bill to renew the tax on hospitals, nursing homes, pharmacies, and other providers stalled before the legislative session concluded […]
Audio: St. Louis region fights “Second Amendment Preservation Act”
The St. Louis region is pushing back against a new state law that prohibits local police from working with federal investigators – in cases involving gun ownership rights. Bill sponsors named it the Second Amendment Preservation Act, which among other things opens local law enforcement to be sued if they join in a […]
Special session on tax crucial for Medicaid in doubt over Planned Parenthood amendment
(Missouri Independent) – Last Tuesday, Republicans appeared to have reached a fragile consensus around extending a tax crucial to Missouri’s Medicaid finances — opening the door for Gov. Mike Parson to call lawmakers into a special session this week. By Friday afternoon, June 18, that consensus appears to have been derailed, at least temporarily, by disagreements […]
Audio: Missouri Public Defender System prepares to hire 53 new attorneys, biggest staffing increase since around 1989
If Gov. Mike Parson does not make changes to the Missouri Public Defender System’s next budget, the office is on track to get its largest staffing increase since about 1989. Director Mary Fox tells Missourinet 53 new public defenders would be hired statewide. “This is going to make a huge difference in terms […]
Audio: US Justice Department says “not so fast” to new Missouri law that supersedes federal gun laws
The US Justice Department is warning officials in Missouri that the state can’t ignore federal law after the governor signed a bill that bans police from enforcing federal gun rules. The St. Louis Post Dispatch reports that the U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy Clause outweighs the measure that Gov. Mike Parson signed into law. The […]
Audio: Missouri leaders respond to Department of Justice’s warning about state’s new gun law
Missouri has responded to the U.S. Justice Department’s warning about a new gun bill signed into state law. The US Justice Department says Missouri cannot ignore federal law after Governor Parson signed a bill last weekend that bans police from enforcing federal gun regulations. Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton says the law […]
Audio: Northeast Missouri gun dealers pleased with Second Amendment Preservation Act’s signing
Gun dealers in northeast Missouri are praising the governor’s signing of the Second Amendment Preservation Act (SAPA), describing it as a win for Second Amendment rights. Reporter Dylan Austin from Missourinet Quincy affiliate WGEM has the story: SAPA declares that it’s the duty of the courts and law enforcement agencies to protect the […]
After winter cold snap drove up natural gas prices, utilities grapple with who should pay
(Missouri Independent) – Penalties that Spire Missouri issued to suppliers who failed to provide natural gas during a February cold snap that forced power outages across the Midwest could drive bills for hospitals, schools, and businesses to astronomical levels, according to a trio of complaints pending before state regulators. During the worst of the cold snap in February, […]
Audio: Missouri’s Governor signs Second Amendment Preservation Act into law; House Democratic Leader Crystal Quade slams SAPA
Legislation that declares it’s the duty of the courts and law enforcement agencies to protect the rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms has been signed into law by Missouri’s governor. GOP Governor Mike Parson signed the Second Amendment Preservation Act (SAPA) Saturday in Lee’s Summit, where he was joined by the bill […]
Missouri lawmakers passed a host of reforms aimed at keeping kids out of jail
(Missouri Independent) – Retired St. Louis Judge Evelyn Baker once sentenced a 16-year-old Black boy to 241 years in prison for two armed robberies. No one was seriously injured in the robberies, but the boy “didn’t express any remorse,” Baker said, remembering the sentencing hearing. Now, when she thinks back, Baker deeply regrets the sentence […]
Audio: Missouri’s Governor to sign Second Amendment Preservation Act on Saturday
Legislation establishing a Second Amendment Preservation Act will be signed into law Saturday afternoon by Missouri’s governor, in the Kansas City suburb of Lee’s Summit. Governor Mike Parson will sign SAPA Saturday at 2 p.m. at Frontier Justice. House Bill 85 is sponsored by State Rep. Jered Taylor (R-Nixa) and State Sen. Eric Burlison (R-Battlefield). They say […]
Livingston County Route C bridge available for reuse
The Missouri Department of Transportation is accepting proposals until the end of this year for the reuse of the Pony Truss, Warren alternating vertical bridge on Livingston County Route C over Shoal Creek, currently located 1.4 miles northwest of Dawn. The Shoal Creek Bridge is a 1933, rigid-connected, 178-foot long bridge with a 100-foot Warren […]
Audio: Missouri could join 49 other states by improving access to mental health services
In 2008, Congress passed and then-President George W. Bush signed into law a bill requiring health insurance companies to cover mental health the same as any other health problems. Thirteen years after the measure became law, Missouri is the only state not yet enforcing that law. Two bills pass this year would ban insurance companies […]
Couple who falsely claimed to be farmers sentenced to prison in $1.1 million COVID-relief fraud
A couple was sentenced to prison for their participation in a scheme to file four fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $1.1 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. Latoya Stanley, 38, […]
Four plead guilty to multi-state dogfighting conspiracy
Four defendants pleaded guilty to federal dogfighting and conspiracy charges for their roles in an interstate dogfighting network across the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and New Jersey. The Honorable John A. Gibney Jr., U.S. District Judge in Richmond, Virginia, accepted the following pleas: On June 1, Odell S. Anderson Sr., 52, of the District […]
Missouri industrial hemp amendments approved
The Missouri Department of Agriculture announced federal approval of the state’s amendment to the Industrial Hemp Plan. With the approval, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agriculture Marketing Service affirmed that Missouri’s amended plan complies with federal law and regulations. The entire amended Missouri State Plan can be reviewed here. Key changes include: Increasing the pre-harvest window […]
Judge sentences bookkeeper who defrauded Plattsburg Special Road District
The former secretary/treasurer of the Plattsburg Special Road District has been ordered to pay restitution of more than $100,000 for defrauding taxpayers. Ava L. Langner was sentenced on the charge of theft brought by the U.S. Attorney. After receiving a whistleblower complaint, a 2019 audit by Auditor Galloway’s office detailed how Langner defrauded the district in […]
Missouri medical marijuana companies win tax relief from state lawmakers
(Missouri Independent) – Missourians voted to legalize medical marijuana in 2018. But under federal law, growing, transporting, or selling marijuana remains a crime. Unsurprisingly, that dynamic has created a lot of headaches for the fledgling industry. One notable example: Unlike every other legal business in the state, marijuana companies are prohibited from deducting business expenses […]