News Blog

In case anyone forgot what guns look like, the Missouri GOP brought several.

Missouri GOP Celebrates Nullifying Gun Laws With Pile of Guns

By Danny Wicentowski on May 14, 2021 at 3:25PM

This isn't the first time Missouri's GOP has attempted to use the legislature to attack future gun regulations, despite concerns by law enforcement as well as legal experts who warn that trying to "nullify" federal laws is, at best, a symbolic gesture. In February, former Missouri Supreme Court Judge Michael Wolff told St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he believed the proposed law, if passed, would be "clearly unconstitutional."

St. Louis County Executive Sam Page and St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones announced the end of mask mandates for vaccinated people.

St. Louis Ends Mask Mandates for Vaccinated People

By Doyle Murphy on May 14, 2021 at 12:53PM

, keep wearing it," Jones said. "I know I will.

Free Vaccines Offered at Busch Stadium for All People Age 12 and Older

By Jaime Lees on May 13, 2021 at 2:08PM

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Missouri Gov. Parson Abandons Plans to Implement Voter-Approved Medicaid Expansion

By Rudi Keller on May 13, 2021 at 10:51AM

This story was originally published by the Missouri Independent. Missouri will not expand Medicaid coverage to working-age adults on July 1 because lawmakers refused to include funding for the health care program in the state budget, Gov. Mike Parson announced Thursday.

Dale Glass, St. Louis commissioner of corrections, is leaving his job at the end of the month.

St. Louis Jail Supervisor Resigning After Recent Uprisings, Criticism

By Doyle Murphy on May 12, 2021 at 12:30PM

The head of St. Louis' jails is resigning as controversies over conditions at the city's two facilities rage. City Corrections Commissioner Dale Glass will leave his post at the end of the month, Mayor Tishaura Jones announced this morning.

Gov. Parson to End Federal Unemployment Aid to Out-of-Work Missourians

By Rudi Keller on May 11, 2021 at 4:47PM

This story was originally published by the Missouri Independent. Unemployed Missourians who are receiving federal payments to supplement their state benefits will lose that extra money after June 12, Gov. Mike Parson announced Tuesday.

St. Louis County police are looking for a suspect in a carjacking.

St. Louis County Car Thief Forced a Mom With 5-Year-Old to Help Him Escape

By Doyle Murphy on May 11, 2021 at 6:43AM

A man wanted in a car theft ran from police and carjacked a second vehicle, forcing the woman who was behind the wheel to drive him while her five-year-old child was along for the ride, St. Louis County police say. Minutes after 6 p.m. on Monday, county police detectives were on the trail of the first stolen vehicle.

Ex-St. Louis cop Dustin Boone walks into federal court in 2018.

The Big Mad: Bad Apples With Badges, the Bums' Rush and a Black Bear's Lament

By Daniel Hill on May 11, 2021 at 6:25AM

Welcome back to the Big Mad, RFT’s weekly roundup of righteous rage! Because we know your time is short and your anger is white hot:

Ex-St. Louis police Officer Dustin Boone is fighting to hide his texts from the public.

Ex-St. Louis Cop Wants Prosecutors Sanctioned for Revealing Racist Texts

By Doyle Murphy on May 10, 2021 at 1:51PM

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Medicaid Expansion could be headed to the courts next.

Missouri Republicans Won't Fund Medicaid Expansion in Budget, But Fight Isn't Over

By Doyle Murphy on May 7, 2021 at 5:58PM

Rep. Peter Merideth of St. Louis is the ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee and has fought heated battles through the session to expand Medicaid, pointing out that the state would be leaving billions of dollars on the table by spurning the federal match. After today's vote, he said in a public statement that Republicans had dismissed the will of voters — "The GOP legislature basically gave them the middle finger today."

Golden Gems Leaving Cherokee Street, Moving to Midtown

By Jaime Lees on May 7, 2021 at 12:47PM

The sisters behind Golden Gems say they’ve outgrown their small Cherokee Street shop and are relocating their business to Midtown. Amanda Helman and Susan Logsdon’s lifestyle brand can no longer be contained to a small storefront, so they’re moving the whole operation to 3108 Locust Street, the former home of Fubar, a music venue that closed in February 2020.

Vaccination Clinic Open on Cherokee Street Until 3 p.m. Today

By Jaime Lees on May 7, 2021 at 11:59AM

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St. Clair County Taps Gilbert Gottfried to Deliver Vaccine Information

By Jaime Lees on May 6, 2021 at 3:53PM

The future is now and having access to video-sharing services like Cameo means that you can pay pretty much any celebrity to say anything in a video recording for you. For a fee, you can hire a celebrity to send a friend a birthday greeting or (for a much heftier fee) drop in on a Zoom call or any number of digital services.

A QuikTrip in Dutchtown on April 30 missing roller grill items — but they're coming back.

QuikTrip's Roller Grill and Fountain Drinks to Return to St. Louis City

By Danny Wicentowski on May 6, 2021 at 1:00PM

Follow Danny Wicentowski on Twitter at @D_Towski. E-mail the author at Danny.Wicentowski@RiverfrontTimes.com

Kayla Reed is the executive director and co-founder of Action St. Louis.

The Ferguson Movement Is on the Cusp of Revolutionizing Political Power in St. Louis

By Rebecca Rivas on May 6, 2021 at 11:43AM

Jones took her oath as mayor April 20. Her plan for public safety includes redirecting 911 calls related to mental health and drug addiction away from the Police Department.

Protesters march through St. Charles in 2017 following the acquittal of ex-St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley.

Missouri House Passes Bill to Criminalize Protesters Blocking Traffic

By Tessa Weinberg on May 5, 2021 at 2:43PM

This story was originally published by the Missouri Independent. A bill criminalizing protesters that intentionally block roadways and shielding police disciplinary records from public view grew even more controversial on Tuesday, with the House adding dozens of amendments before sending it back to the Senate for consideration.

St. Louis 5th Graders' Fandom for Jeff Goldblum Finds a Way

By Danny Wicentowski on May 4, 2021 at 12:46PM

Along with visual expressions of the Goldblumian oeuvre, some students submitted written works that captured not just the warm irreverence of the man himself, but the confidence. "It was a sunny day in Jeff Goldblum town," begins one short story, in which the effortlessly cool actor demonstrates how to answer the phone ("This is Jeff Goldblum who is this?") and later becomes so enamored with riding a "Fancy Horse" that he gives away his car.

The Big Mad: Made-Up Neighborhoods, a Rooster A.G. and Kroenke

By Daniel Hill on May 4, 2021 at 8:53AM

Welcome back to the Big Mad, the RFT’s weekly roundup of righteous rage! Because we know your time is short and your anger is white hot:

Rashard C. Lovelace was still employed by the police department at the time of his death.

St. Louis Police Officer Dead of Apparent Suicide After Domestic Assault Arrest

By Jaime Lees on May 3, 2021 at 4:14PM

Local witnesses told St. Louis’ Fox 2 that Lovelace died in the yard of his south St. Louis home and that the couple had three children. Lovelace's next court appearance was scheduled for May 18.

Ferguson protest leader Brittany Ferrell helped gather people together to chant, "It is our duty to fight for our freedom," during a protest in South St. Louis on Nov. 23, 2014. The chant is based on a quote by Black Power activist Assata Shakur. Before leading the chant, Activist Ashley Yates told the group, "We know Black lives matter, and we know that we must fight to prove that.”

‘The Fight has to Change’: Why Ferguson Activists Ditched Police Reform

By Rebecca Rivas on May 3, 2021 at 11:44AM

Gardner first pushed legislation to move investigations out of the Police Department back in 2018, and it’s been strongly supported by the activists who wrote the Civilian Oversight Board bill. In a hearing, the police union’s attorney, Brian Millikan, warned that an independent investigative unit would have a hard time earning the trust of the police officers or persuading them to give “voluntary statements,” which are crucial in criminal investigations.

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