The Missouri Legislature’s state budget negotiators are recommending the hiring of 53 attorneys for the state Public Defender System. During negotiations, Senate Minority Floor Leader John Rizzo of Independence says his wife corrects some cases handled at the local level by overworked attorneys. The system has nearly 400 lawyers handling about 90,000 cases […]
A Chillicothe man faces two felonies after an incident in the 600 block of Webster Street in Chillicothe on May 3rd in which he allegedly threatened to shoot his neighbors. Thirty-five-year-old Chamen Richard Bell has been charged with first-degree burglary and first-degree harassment. Bond was set at $50,000 cash only, no surety, and Supervision Services. […]
An Iowa woman pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court to hate crime charges for attempting to kill two children because of their race and national origin. According to admissions Nicole Poole Franklin, 42, made during the hearing, on the afternoon of December 9, 2019, Poole Franklin was driving her Jeep Grand Cherokee on Creston Avenue […]
(Missouri Independent) – A third attempt to get a bill that funds one-quarter of Missouri’s Medicaid program through the state Senate failed Tuesday night when a new anti-abortion issue was injected into the legislation. Sen. Dan Hegeman, R-Cosby, brought the bill that has been in limbo since late March to the floor just a few […]
Jon Schaffer, 53, of Columbus, Indiana, admitted that he breached the Capitol on January 6, 2021, wearing a tactical vest and armed with bear repellent, and pleaded guilty to unlawfully entering the U.S. Capitol to obstruct Congress’ certification of the U.S. presidential election results. “On this 100th day since the horrific January 6 assault on […]
(Missouri Independent) – As bills expanding charter schools and creating new scholarship accounts for private school tuition make their way through the process, one piece of legislation is trying to give students more options within the public schools that already exist. House Bill 543, sponsored by Rep. Brad Pollitt, R-Sedalia, would establish the “Public School […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed suit against President Joe Biden, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas, and several other members of President Biden’s administration to reinstate the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) enacted by President Trump and work toward combating migrant trafficking, securing the border, and ending the border […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, as part of his Office’s Hope Initiative, in a press conference announced four civil lawsuits have been filed against illicit massage businesses operating in Missouri. The four illicit massage businesses that were sued are A Little Massage in Laclede County, Blue Lotus Asian Massage in Cole County, Shangri-La Massage in […]
In 2019, the Missouri Supreme Court began restricting when judges can require bail. Currently, judges can only charge bail fees for safety reasons or to help ensure defendants appear in court. The Missouri House has given preliminary approval to Lake St. Louis State Representative Justin Hill’s bill that would undo the high court’s bail rules. […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt joined a coalition of thirteen states in filing suit against the Biden Administration for imposing a moratorium on future oil and gas leasing and drilling permits on federal land. The lawsuit contends that the moratorium on leasing through the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) and the Mineral Leasing Act […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt joined 20 other state attorneys general in filing suit on Wednesday, led by Montana and Texas, in United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas challenging President Joe Biden’s cancellation of the permits for the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. The lawsuit argues that President Biden’s administration […]
Amid the rapidly escalating crisis along the southern border, U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.) and dozens of his colleagues joined U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, in sending a letter to Government Accountability Office Comptroller Gene L. Dodaro highlighting President Joe Biden’s suspension of border wall […]
A Missouri man whose lost cell phone containing child pornography was found at a truck stop was sentenced in federal court. Christopher Lee Caven, 40, of Belton, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to 15 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Caven to 12 years of supervised release […]
A dual U.S.-Mexican citizen pleaded guilty today to willfully engaging in financial dealings with Mexican companies that had been identified as Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). According to court documents, Jessica Johanna Oseguera Gonzalez, 34, of Guadalajara, Mexico, violated the criminal penalties of […]
Two Chillicothe residents face multiple charges following a well-being check in February on a female juvenile who law enforcement reports sent text messages to her grandmother that she did not feel safe. Thirty-eight-year-old Eric Wayne Suddith has been charged with the felonies of sodomy or first degree attempted sodomy and enticement or attempted enticement of […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt led a coalition of 12 states in filing suit against President Joe Biden’s administration over a massive expansion of federal regulations through executive order, potentially impacting nearly every aspect of the economy and Missouri household. “Manufacturing, agriculture, and energy production are essential to Missouri’s economy and employ thousands of hard-working […]
The Missouri Department of Agriculture issued a consumer alert to advise Missourians that the Corn Xpress Bulk Corn Vending Machine is not-legal-for-trade in the state of Missouri. The machine is advertised as an agricultural vending machine that can dispense products such as corn, wheat, protein pellets, and rock salt. The Missouri Department of Agriculture’s Weights, […]
It would not take away the authority, says Bill sponsor Jim Murphy of St. Louis County but allows for an appeal after 15 days and the intervention of local elected bodies. St. Louis County restaurants and businesses fought closures and sometimes violated them in protest.
Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation, a major broiler chicken producer based in Greeley, Colorado, has pleaded guilty and has been sentenced to pay approximately $107 million in criminal fines for its participation in a conspiracy to fix prices and rig bids for broiler chicken products, the Department of Justice announced today. According to the plea agreement entered […]
The Grundy County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest of two Trenton residents on February 11th on probation violations. Thirty-two-year-old Domanic James Lee Ratkovich was arrested on a capias warrant. His original charge was felony possession of a controlled substance except 35 grams or less of marijuana or synthetic cannabinoid. His bond is $5,000 cash only. […]
