Court News

Court news for the Associate Division of Grundy County Circuit Court for April 12, 2022

Four defendants waived preliminary hearings Tuesday in the Associate Division of Grundy County Circuit Court. Each had their cases bound over to the Division One court docket on Thursday. Jennifer Dee Tunnell of Trenton is charged with felony possession of a controlled substance/synthetic cannabinoid as of March 13th. Domanic James Lee Ratkovich of Trenton is […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson photo courtesy Wikipedia

Jackson wins 3 GOP votes as U.S. Senate advances her Supreme Court nomination

(Missouri Independent) – The U.S. Senate advanced Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s historic Supreme Court nomination in a 53-47 procedural vote Monday evening, hours after the Judiciary Committee deadlocked along party lines. Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Mitt Romney of Utah voted with all 50 Senate Democrats on the procedural […]

Drinking Water Fountain (Photo by Sean Musil on Unsplash)

Missouri House bill would cut down on poisonous lead in school drinking water

(Missouri Independent) – Missouri children would be better protected from lead poisoning under a state legislative bill to require schools to nearly rid their drinking water of the dangerous toxin. The bill, heard Monday by the House Conservation and Natural Resources Committee, would require schools to test drinking water, remove old coolers and filter water where […]

Trenton Building and Nuisance Board

Trenton Building and Nuisance Board takes action on several properties at March meeting

Trenton’s Building and Nuisance Board on Monday evening took action on several properties of concern while deciding to table others. Because progress was made by Jon Phillips on requested repairs and cleanup, the board voted to remove 1514 Mable Street from the nuisance list. 1429 Chestnut and 1013 Tindall Avenue were advanced to public hearings […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

U.S. Senate panel bickers over Supreme Court nomination but sets vote next week

(Missouri Independent) – The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee reopened partisan disagreements Monday as members scheduled a vote for April 4 on Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination to the Supreme Court. Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said Republicans’ criticisms of Jackson’s record and responses were either untrue or disingenuous. Meanwhile, ranking Republican Chuck Grassley of Iowa again raised […]

Audio: Senator Josh Hawley says he will vote “no” on Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson

Now that the confirmation hearings are complete, Senator Hawley says the Judge did nothing to assuage his concerns of what he claims is her record of leniency on sex criminals. Although the U.S. Sentencing Commission numbers show the majority of NON-production child pornography offenders in 2019 were sentenced to a punishment beneath the guideline ranges, […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson photo courtesy Wikipedia

Senate winds up grueling Supreme Court hearings on Ketanji Brown Jackson nomination

(Missouri Independent) –  Representatives of the American Bar Association reiterated their finding that Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is well qualified to sit on the U.S. Supreme Court, and law enforcement groups rebutted GOP accusations Jackson is soft on child pornographers during the final day of Jackson’s confirmation hearings Thursday. Republicans, however, called in witnesses to […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson photo courtesy Wikipedia

GOP senators attack and interrupt Judge Jackson in final day of questioning U.S. Supreme Court nominee

(Missouri Independent) – In the third day of hearings Wednesday on the nomination of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court, several Republicans on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee interrogated her about sentences she handed down for child pornography offenses, disagreeing vehemently with her judicial decisions. Republicans grilled her with questions she had already answered […]

National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women Website

Groups criticize racial undertones at Supreme Court confirmation hearing

Black leadership groups are speaking out about what they see as racially charged lines of questioning during the Supreme Court confirmation hearing for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman nominated to become a high-court justice. Conservative senators have implied Jackson may be soft on crime, friendly to terrorists at Guantanamo, and a proponent […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

Audio: U.S. Supreme Court nominee Jackson fires back at Senator Josh Hawley

U.S. Senator Josh Hawley took Wednesday’s opportunity to learn more about Supreme Court Nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson to instead hyperfocus on a handful of her sentences as a trial court judge. During the third and final day of Judge Jackson’s confirmation hearings, the Missouri senator continued to laser in on what he calls her lenient […]

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

Ketanji Brown Jackson defends her record under grilling from U.S. Senate Republicans

(Missouri Independent) – Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday sharpened their criticisms of U.S. Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, probing her work as a public defender on behalf of terrorism suspects, the judicial sentences she has handed down for child pornography offenses, and her views of critical race theory. Jackson defended her […]

Typical pen style CAFO ( Photo by Darrell Hoemann - Investigate Midwest)

As CAFO lawsuit heads to Missouri Supreme Court, counties weigh options

(Missouri Independent) – As a fight over who can regulate industrial hog and cattle operations awaits action by the Missouri Supreme Court, counties that sought more stringent protections against them wait in limbo.  The Missouri Supreme Court is expected to hear an appeal by county commissioners who sought to regulate concentrated animal feeding operations, or CAFOs, […]

Prison Sentence News Graphic

Missouri Couple sentenced to 35 years in prison for sexually assaulting children and producing child pornography

A Missouri, couple was sentenced in federal court for sexually assaulting two young children to produce child pornography, and for receiving and distributing child pornography. Mark John Millman, 37, a citizen of Great Britain and a legal alien resident, and his wife and co-defendant, Tara Sau Millman, 42, of Merriam Village, were sentenced in separate […]

Court News

Court news for the Associate Division of Grundy County Circuit Court for Tuesday, March 8, 2022

Preliminary hearings were waived by four defendants on Tuesday in the Associate Division of Grundy County Circuit Court. Trenton resident, Brandon Dean Bibee Burkhardt, has two drug-related counts as of March 1st: delivery of a controlled substance/synthetic cannabinoid and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. Chillicothe resident Jimmy Dean King is charged with forgery from May […]

2021 City of Chillicothe website 2021

Chillicothe Planning and Zoning Board, Board of Adjustments to meet March 7th

The Chillicothe Planning and Zoning Board and Board of Adjustments will hold public hearings next month. The Planning and Zoning Board will consider a conditional use permit application at the Chillicothe City Hall on March 7, 2022, at 5:30 pm. The application is from Nicholas Leadbetter to operate a home-based dog training business at 1208 […]

United States Supreme Court (Phot credit Laura Olson - States Newsroom)

Audio: U.S. Supreme Court to review “Remain in Mexico” policy

The U.S. Supreme Court plans to review in April the Biden Administration’s effort to unwind the Trump-era “remain in Mexico” border policy.     The program allows U.S. officials to send non-Mexican migrants to Mexico to await their U.S. immigration court hearings. Lower courts have rejected the president’s attempts to stop the program, forcing the […]

Burglary Graphic

Three face felony burglary charges in Harrison County

Three individuals face charges after a burglary investigation by the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department. Forty-one-year-old Mark Bottcher of Ridgeway has been charged with nine felony counts of stealing a firearm, explosive weapon, or ammonium nitrate and one felony count of stealing $750 or more. Thirty-eight-year-old Chad Service and 46-year-old Harlon Lee, both of Bethany, have […]

Donald Kauerauf, the director of the Department of Health and Senior Services, speaks during a press conference at the Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City on July 21, 2021

Before ouster, Missouri health director drafted a letter to senators that was never sent

(Missouri Independent) – On the Friday before a drawn-out confirmation battle ended with his ouster from office, Missouri state Health Director Donald Kauerauf wrote an impassioned letter meant to convince conservative legislators who were on the fence about his appointment.  The message: While he believed in vaccines and data and science, he didn’t believe in vaccine […]