State News

OSAGE BEACH, Mo. -- Daryl Barker was passionately against a COVID-19 vaccination, and so were his relatives. Then 10 of them got sick, and Barker, at just 31, ended up in a Missouri intensive care unit fighting for his life. It's a scenario playing out time and again at Lake Regional Hospital in Osage Beach, where 22 people died from the virus in the first 23 days of July. ...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- More than a dozen high-risk Missouri residents who were vaccinated against COVID-19 were among those who died amid a surge of cases that has led the University of Missouri to reinstate a mask mandate and some St. Louis restaurants to permit only the immunized to eat indoors...

ST. LOUIS -- Former Gov. Jay Nixon will not run for the U.S. Senate in 2022, dashing hopes of some Democrats who thought Nixon had the best chance to beat a Republican in the increasingly conservative state. Nixon, a lawyer, said in a statement he believes he "will be more effective outside of this partisan back and forth."...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri's Republican Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick on Thursday announced he's running for state auditor. Republican Gov. Mike Parson appointed Fitzpatrick state treasurer in 2018 after Republican Josh Hawley left the Missouri Attorney General's Office to serve in the U.S. Senate, prompting the governor to fill a series of vacant statewide offices...

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Mo. -- Six chimpanzees have been removed from their caretaker under a court order after People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals claimed in 2016 the chimps were being held in inadequate conditions. The chimps were removed Wednesday from a Festus, Missouri-area facility. Jefferson County sheriff's deputies and the U.S. Marshals Service oversaw the removal of the chimps out of concern their caretaker, Tonia Haddix, or others would try to block the effort...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri must pay more than $1 million in legal fees for failing to follow federal voting laws, an appeals court has ruled. A 2018 lawsuit filed by the St. Louis and Kansas City chapters of the League of Women Voters and the A. Philip Randolph Institute accused the state of failing to automatically update voter information after residents changed addresses, which violates the National Voter Registration Act...

WASHINGTON -- In a major step against climate change, President Joe Biden is proposing a return to aggressive Obama-era vehicle mileage standards over five years. He's then aiming for even tougher anti-pollution rules after that to forcefully reduce greenhouse gas emissions and nudge 40% of U.S. drivers into electric vehicles by decade's end...

The St. Louis area has become one of the first in the country to reinstate mask requirements amid a rise in cases that health officials are blaming on low vaccination rates and the highly contagious delta variant. Despite pushback from some elected officials, face coverings became mandatory Monday in indoor public places and on public transportation in St. ...

CHAMOIS, Mo. -- Two people were found dead in front of their central Missouri home over the weekend, and another man has been arrested and charged in the deaths, authorities there said. The Osage County Sheriff's Department said deputies were called around noon Saturday to a home north of Linn for a report of two deaths. Arriving officers found a Chamois couple -- Leonard Gerloff, 59, and Pauline Gerloff, 56 -- dead from gunshot wounds...

California and New York City announced Monday they would require all government employees to get the coronavirus vaccine or face weekly COVID-19 testing, and the Department of Veterans Affairs became the first major federal agency to require health care workers to receive the shot...

ST. LOUIS -- The new mask mandate in the city and county of St. Louis taking effect this week is being criticized by several state and local elected officials. Starting today, masks will be mandatory in indoor public places and on public transportation for everyone age 5 or older, even for those who are vaccinated, officials said in a news release Friday. Wearing masks outdoors will be encouraged, especially in group settings...

O'FALLON, Mo. -- St. Louis city and county officials say they will require masks in some public places starting Monday., citing a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases spurred by the delta variant. Masks will be mandatory in indoor public places and on public transportation for everyone age 5 or older, even for those who are vaccinated, officials said in a news release on Friday. Masking outdoors "will be strongly encouraged," especially in group settings...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- As the delta variant of COVID-19 makes its way through the Kansas City area, the region's medical leaders appear to be on the verge of calling for new mask mandates. Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer at the University of Kansas Health System, said that region is seeing a big increase in patients, the Kansas City Star reported...

ST. LOUIS -- The Missouri Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a challenge to the state's voter-approved Medicaid expansion plan, overturning a lower court's ruling the constitutional amendment would wrongfully force lawmakers to set aside additional money...

An official with the Kansas City school district says students will likely be required to wear masks when classes begin next month Students and staff in the Kansas City public school district will likely be required to wear masks when school starts next month because of an uptick in COVID-19 cases in the region, a district official said...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The state attorney general on Thursday said Missouri could get as much as $500 million to help victims of the opioid epidemic as part of a tentative settlement with the three biggest U.S. drug distribution companies and the drugmaker Johnson & Johnson...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri's Republican Gov. Mike Parson received roughly $6,300 for his beef cattle ranch through a federal program designed to help small businesses during the pandemic. Parson in March was approved for a $6,288 loan, The Kansas City Star reported...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- With the delta variant causing a surge of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in southwestern Missouri, health officials have taken to going door-to-door in an effort to encourage vaccinations. The Kansas City Star recently followed along as health officials knocked on doors in Springfield, handing out brochures. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Campaign finance records show Missouri's disgraced former governor, Eric Greitens, has raised roughly $350,000 for his run for U.S. Senate. That means Republican Attorney General Eric Schmitt raised the most out of any Missouri Senate candidate during the latest quarter...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri treasurer on Monday sued the secretary of state over a proposed constitutional amendment dealing with expanded powers for the treasurer's office. Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick sued fellow Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported...

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- A full federal appeals court panel has decided to rehear a case over Missouri abortion restrictions. The U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals last week decided to take up the case on its own motion. At issue is a 2019 state law to ban abortions as soon as eight weeks into pregnancy and prohibit abortions based on a Down syndrome diagnosis...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Missouri legislative committee on Monday held a hearing on how educators teach K-12 students about race and racism without hearing from any Black Missourians. No Black parents, teachers or scholars testified to the Joint Committee on Education during the invite-only hearing on critical race theory...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The St. Louis area is facing a third wave of COVID-19 that could cause more deaths and serious cases if residents don't get vaccinated and return to wearing masks in public, the head of the region's pandemic task force said Tuesday...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Four civil lawsuits alleging sexual and physical assault by the owners of a Southwest Missouri reform school have been settled. An attorney for four former Circle of Hope Girls Ranch students, identified only as Jane Does, told The Kansas City Star the settlement amounts are confidential...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson said the state will “probably” provide funding for a site to help handle the overflow of COVID-19 patients in Springfield, where hospitals are struggling to keep up with a surge driven by the delta variant and vaccination hesitation...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Gov. Mike Parson suggested Tuesday some Southwest Missouri health officials who are publicly discussing a marked increase in COVID-19 cases are trying to find someone to blame and want to scare people into getting vaccinated. Health officials should try to encourage people to get vaccinated but should not resort to "trying to force people to take a vaccine or literally just scare them into taking a vaccine because we know that doesn't work," Parson said during a stop in Kansas City.. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Lawyers arguing over the implementation of Medicaid expansion on Tuesday told Missouri Supreme Court judges the voter-approved constitutional amendment should stand. Judges are considering a circuit judge's decision last month to overturn the constitutional amendment to expand eligibility for the state's Medicaid program. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Attorney General's Office on Monday said it believes longtime inmate Kevin Strickland is guilty of killing three people in Kansas City and should remain in prison, despite several other prosecutors saying they believe he is innocent...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri college and university officials will be able to raise tuition as much as they want under legislation Gov. Mike Parson is signing. Spokeswoman Kelli Jones said the Republican governor was signing the bill Tuesday. Currently, public colleges and universities can only raise tuition a limited amount to keep up with inflation, compensate for cuts in state aid or keep up with the average tuition rates across the state...

ST. LOUIS -- A former St. Louis police officer was sentenced Tuesday to more than four years in prison for his role in the beating of a Black, undercover police officer during a protest. Randy Hays, 34, pleaded guilty in November 2019 to using unreasonable and excessive force during the confrontation with undercover officer Luther Hall. He was sentenced to 52 months in prison...

CHICAGO -- Rising COVID-19 infections in other states have prompted Chicago to restart a travel order after several weeks without travel restrictions, city officials announced Tuesday. The Chicago Department of Public Health said starting Friday unvaccinated travelers from Missouri and Arkansas have to either quarantine for 10 days or have a negative COVID-19 test...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Three of Missouri's top health officials said Friday trusted local leaders and community representatives must be the primary influencers in the state's efforts to reduce a surge in COVID-19 cases. During a virtual news conference, Robert Knodell, acting director of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, said the state continues to have a strong relationship with federal health experts but they all believe local health department workers and community representatives are the best avenue for persuading residents to be vaccinated.. ...

ST. LOUIS -- Trial has been set for a former suburban St. Louis teaching assistant accused of sexually assaulting a 7-year-old student, then conspiring to kill the boy and his mother. Deonte Taylor's trial was set for Aug. 9 on Thursday after plans for him to plead guilty to charges in the case fell through, the St. ...

HELENA Mont. -- Wildlife officials said they shot and killed a Montana grizzly bear Friday that had pulled a California woman from her tent and killed her earlier this week in the middle of a small Montana town. The bear was shot by federal wildlife workers wearing night vision goggles shortly after midnight, when it approached a trap set near a chicken coop about 2 miles (3 kilometers) from Ovando, where Leah Davis Lokan, 65, of Chico, California, was killed early Tuesday morning, said Greg Lemon with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.. ...

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Whether dribbling a basketball or identifying obscure Latin or Greek roots, Zaila Avant-garde doesn't show much stress. The 14-year-old from Harvey, Louisiana, breezed to the championship at the Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday night, becoming the first African American winner and only the second Black champion in the bee's 96-year history...

NEW YORK -- Fast-moving Tropical Storm Elsa hit the New York City region with heavy rain and high winds Friday, toppling trees and hindering some rail service as it churned its way toward New England. Maximum sustained winds from the storm peaked near 50 mph as it moved past New York City and across the eastern tip of Long Island, the National Hurricane Center said in an 11 a.m. update...

SURFSIDE, Fla. -- The death toll in the collapse of a Miami-area condo building rose to 78 on Friday, a number the mayor called "heartbreaking" as recovery workers toiled for a 16th day to find victims in the rubble. Another 62 people remain unaccounted for...

DEXTER, Mo. — Tyson Foods is recalling almost 4,500 tons of ready-to-eat chicken products after finding the products may be tainted with listeria bacteria, federal officials announced Thursday. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the recall a month after two consumers reported falling ill with listeriosis. ...

KANSAS CITY, MO. -- Federal officials are pushing back after Gov. Mike Parson said he doesn't want government employees going door-to-door in the state to urge people to get vaccinated, even as a COVID-19 outbreak overwhelms some hospitals. Missouri asked for help last week from newly formed federal "surge response" teams as it combats an influx of cases public health officials are blaming on fast-spreading delta variant and deep-seated concerns about the vaccine. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday decried the Missouri Labor Department's decision to offer clemency for some federal unemployment overpayments as too little, too late. Democrat St. Louis Rep. LaKeySha Bosley said the state should have acted months ago to forgive the federal chunk of the unemployment overpayments. The agency's action Tuesday still leaves thousands of workers on the hook for the state portion of those overpayments...

JOPLIN, Mo. -- Law enforcement officers and a cybersecurity firm have been called in to investigate a "network security incident" that caused Joplin city government's computer system to shut down, officials said Thursday. The computer problem was discovered early Wednesday and the systems were not operating as of Thursday afternoon...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri's new budget is off to a roaring start, with more money in the bank than ever before. The state began its 2022 fiscal year July 1 with a general revenue cash balance of nearly $2.4 billion, the state budget office said Wednesday...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri restaurants will be able to sell to-go cocktails permanently under a bill signed into law by Gov. Mike Parson on Wednesday. When restaurants had their indoor capacities limited during the coronavirus pandemic, the Missouri Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control temporarily relaxed rules so they could sell mixed drinks to go...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Gov. Mike Parson's administration floated the idea of a statewide COVID-19 vaccination incentive program and the possibility of a "substantial grand prize" during a meeting of health officials, a newspaper reported. The Kansas City Star said it obtained notes from a June 25 Zoom meeting of the Missouri Center for Public Health Excellence during which a senior state Department of Health and Senior Services official shared the potential program...

BRANSON, Mo. -- Health officials working to boost lagging COVID-19 vaccination rates in Missouri are growing anxious as the Fourth of July weekend approaches, creating ripe conditions for the fast-spreading delta variant to send hospital numbers climbing...

More than half of all U.S. states have enacted police reforms in the 13 months since George Floyd's death, but critics contend a Missouri measure would go the other way by reducing police accountability while increasing criminal penalties for some protest activities...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A new Missouri law banning police from enforcing federal gun rules has some law enforcement agencies pulling officers off federal taskforces and others trying to figure out what is allowed. Emails obtained by The Kansas City Star show federal prosecutors in the eastern part of the state have asked at least a dozen police departments whether they will stop participating in federal gun crime investigations. ...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider an appeal of a ruling striking down new restrictions on when abortions can occur. Schmitt said he filed a request Thursday for the nation's highest court to hear arguments on a 2019 state law banning abortions as soon as eight weeks into pregnancy and also prohibits abortions based on a Down syndrome diagnosis...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri Supreme Court Judge Paul Wilson took over as the state's chief justice Thursday, beginning a two-year term atop Missouri's judicial system. Wilson succeeds Chief Justice George Draper, who remains a member of the Supreme Court. Missouri's chief justice position rotates among the seven members of the court...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Gov. Mike Parson on Wednesday said Missouri wants to increase the state’s lagging vaccination rate for COVID-19, as it deals with a big spike in cases and hospitalizations. The state health department on Wednesday reported 854 newly confirmed cases — one of the largest one-day totals since February — and nine new deaths. The increase is driven largely by a jump in cases in southwestern and northern Missouri, areas hit hard by the fast-spreading delta variant...