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Missouri House Republicans scramble for slice of governor’s I-70 money for other projects

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

On one end of the Missouri Capitol, House Republicans seem poised to divvy up the money Gov. Mike Parson wants to use widening portions of Interstate 70 on a bunch of smaller projects.Across the rotunda in the Senate, Appropriations Chairman Lincoln Hough is looking for ways to pour more money into the project to finance a statewide expansion of the highway.On Tuesday, House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith released his ideas for revising Parson’s $51.6 billion budget proposal. He chopped out one a one of the governor’s biggest priorities: $859 million to widen about 55 miles of I-70 in the Kansas City, Columbia and St. Louis regions.Smith, R-Carthage, didn’t kill the proposal outright, but said the appropriation can wait for the capital spending bill that includes other big-ticket, multi-year building projects. And he said House members may have ideas for substitute projects.One of those members is Rep. Don Mayhew, a Republican from Crocker who said Wednesday that he is prepari...

Webster Groves man charged with child sex crimes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

WEBSTER GROVES, Mo. - A Webster Groves man was charged earlier this month amid allegations of raping a child.According to a spokesperson for the Webster Groves Police Department, investigators were notified on March 3 of a possible sexual assault involving a minor. On March 6, police arrested Aaron Pratt for multiple child sex crimes. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News SIGN UP NOW The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office charged Pratt, 37, with one count of sexual exploitation of a minor, possession of child pornography, first-degree statutory rape of a person less than 12, and first-degree statutory rape of a person less than 14. Pratt remains jailed on a $200,000 bond.Law enforcement and prosecutors did not release any additional information o...

Analysis: St. Louis among the worst places in the U.S. for air pollution

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Large tracts of the St. Louis metro area are awash in air pollutants 30 times smaller in diameter than a single human hair, according to analysis from The Guardian newspaper.Researchers from the University of Washington and Virginia Tech took modeling and data from the Center for Air, Climate and Energy Solutions, and applied that to metropolitan areas across the contiguous United States. According to the analysis, neighborhoods or regions with a higher population of persons of color suffer greater air pollution.Illustration courtesy of the Environmental Protection AgencyThe analysis uses publicly available data from 2011 to 2015 on the levels of "fine particulate matter," also known as PM 2.5. The Guardian says those years are the most recent on record that can be applied to a national model. Racial demographic data was used from the same time period for the sake of consistency.What is PM 2.5? The Environmental Protection Agency defines it as "fine, inhalable particles,...

Missouri legislation seeks to allow guns in places of worship

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

Missouri Republicans are making a push to allow firearms to be carried inside religious establishments and lessen restrictions on access to firearms.House Bill 485, heard in the House Emerging Issues Committee Wednesday evening, would override existing Missouri law that restricts the possession of a concealed carry firearm in places of worship without consent or knowledge of persons in charge.Rep. Ben Baker, R-Neosho, is sponsoring the bill, which he said the purpose of the bill is to ensure Missourians “constitutional right” to carry firearms when attending places of worship.Private property rights would still stand, and if religious organizations want to not allow firearms in their spaces they may still choose to do so by posting signage outside, under the bill. Opponents questioned if that would put them at further risk.William Bland spoke in support of the bill, stating that mass shootings in churches are real and would allow other concealed carry permit holders to strengthen th...

Legal questions, inquiries intensify around rural Missouri hospital closures

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

A year after private equity-backed Noble Health shuttered two rural Missouri hospitals, patients and former employees grapple with a broken local health system or missing out on millions in unpaid wages and benefits.The hospitals in Audrain and Callaway counties remain closed as a slew of lawsuits and state and federal investigations grind forward.In March, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey confirmed a civil investigation. He had previously told local talk radio that there was an “ongoing” investigation into “the hospital issue.”Bailey’s comment came weeks after the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration notified executives tied to Noble Health, a startup, that they had violated federal laws and asked them to pay $5.4 million to cover unpaid employee health insurance claims, according to a 13-page letter detailing “interim findings” that was obtained by KHN.The January letter confirms KHN’s previous reporting, which was informed by employees and p...

Lawmakers consider bill switching Missouri back to a presidential primary

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

Like a lot of Missourians, Shelley Swoyer of Jefferson City was surprised to see that the state had switched from its long-used method of selecting presidential primary candidates to a caucus system last June.“I’m just a voter. I encourage people to vote, I register people to vote. We live in a democracy that extols public participation by voting,” she said. “We should make voting easier and we shouldn’t be creating barriers.”Last year, the legislature opted to switch back to a caucus system, where members of established political parties meet and divide into groups according to which candidate they want to win. At the end, the number of voters in each group decides how many delegates each candidate wins.In Missouri, there is currently no rule bounding delegates to their candidates.Rep. Rudy Veit, R-Wardsville, said that he planned to introduce a bill reversing the switch from the moment the bill was signed.Consequently, a special committee on public policy met Wednesday to hear two...

Missouri AG launches form amid STL pediatric transgender center investigation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has launched an online form for reports of questionable gender transition interventions.Bailey's office says the form stems from an investigation into the St. Louis Pediatric Transgender Center at Children's hospital. Top story: St. Louis car wash customers upset over monthly bills The center has been accused by a whistleblower of using experimental drugs on children, distributing puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones and giving children life-altering drugs without parental consent.The online form is available through the Missouri Attorney General's website.

Juvenile investigated for allegedly firing a shot at a Denver police officer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

A juvenile who allegedly fired a shot at a Denver police officer is being held for investigation of attempted first-degree murder.The incident happened about 8:45 p.m. Tuesday when officers responded to the 3000 block of Gilpin Street on a report of shots fired and a ShotSpotter alert, police said in a news release.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Superintendent vows to put armed officers in Denver high schools even though it “likely violates” board policy Crime and Public Safety | Denver East students, parents struggle with ongoing violence: “High school shouldn’t be like this” Crime and Public Safety | Teens charged as adults in shooting near Brighton schools Crime and Public Safety | Thornton police investigate Tuesday night shooting as a homicide Crime and Public Safety | 2 administrators shot at Denver’s East High School; body found near suspect’s vehicle in P...

Free, low-cost emergency contraceptives to be available at CU Boulder after student government vote

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

The University of Colorado Boulder’s student government unanimously passed a bill this week to launch a pilot program that would fund and supply free and subsidized emergency contraceptives on campus.The program, a year in the making and based off a similar program offered in New York City schools, intends to provide free emergency contraceptive medication at the university’s Wardenburg Health Center pharmacy and sell contraceptives for a few dollars at several food and convenience store locations throughout campus, according to the legislation.Unintended pregnancies are highest in women aged 18 to 24, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nimisha Mallela, the CU Student Government’s health and safety chair, said the program was created to combat those statistics.Emergency contraceptive pills are available through the university pharmacy, Mallela said, but can cost as much as $50.“College students already have a lot of financial struggl...

Death investigation underway after body found inside burned truck off Brea road

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:50:54 GMT

A death investigation is underway in Brea after a body was found inside a burned-out truck off a roadway early Thursday.The vehicle fire was reported around 5:40 a.m. at East Carbon Canyon Road and North Olinda Drive, according to Brea police. Arriving officers found the vehicle parked along the road and engulfed in flames. The fire was eventually extinguished and a body was discovered inside, police said. Detectives are working how the fire began, the person's identity as well as the cause and manner of death. A full closure of Carbon Canyon is expected for several hours for the investigation, Brea police indicated in a tweet.Motorists are asked to avoid the area.Aerial video from Sky5 showed authorities investigating a burned-out pickup off the roadway.No further details about the incident have been released.Anyone with information the incident is asked to contact Detective Sergeant Jason Celmer at 714- 990-7741 or [email protected].