RFT 📰

One of the most disturbing outcomes of war is the displacement of people from their homes. Philip Boehm's heartfelt The Good Ship St. Louis tells the story of Jewish people seeking a new home and an opportunity to live without persecution. Produced by Upstream Theater, the world premiere play with music by Anthony Barilla is, at times, incredibly evocative and haunting.

Welcome Neighbor STL is hosting an Afghan Drive-Thru event at STL Foodworks (408 North Sarah Street). Guests can purchase a six-course Afghan lunch that will be delivered curbside. The event will take place Saturday, November 12, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Five months ago, St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones banned e-scooters downtown. The mayor cited crime concerns with a ban initially portrayed as a stop-gap measure — but she soon extended it into 2023. [content-1] But even though there’s been little outcry, the scooter desert the city has created in downtown St. Louis and Downtown West is an inequity and an inconvenience for those who live, work and visit St. Louis.

A popular neighborhood restaurant is getting a second lease on life thanks to new owners. Benton Park Cafe (2901 Salena Street), the 15-year-old south St. Louis breakfast and lunch spot, has been bought by local entrepreneurs Elicia Eskew and Gavin Haslett, two longtime patrons of the restaurant who look forward to carrying forth its legacy. Though no firm opening date has been set, the business partners hope to reopen the restaurant sometime this coming winter, hopefully no later than January.

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department is looking for a thief who stole catalytic converters from a scrapper that buys catalytic converters. Well, well, well. Isn't it ironic in the most Alanis Morissette definition of the word?

Former hip hop producer turned insurance salesman Waiel "Wally" Yaghnam was sentenced to three years in prison today for helping reality TV star Tim Norman fraudulently take out a life insurance policy on his nephew Andre Montgomery. Earlier this year, Norman was found guilty of orchestrating the murder-for-hire plot against Montgomery. Norman and Montgomery starred on the Oprah Winfrey Network hit reality TV show Welcome to Sweetie Pie's.

There are many concerns in this ass-backwards state. And when it comes to voting, choosing the right candidate in Missouri to represent your views can be a difficult task — even if you’re a Republican. Most Missouri elected officials are not particularly known for their smarts or their forward-thinking ways, so when it came to “The Big Lie,” plenty of candidates on Missouri ballots were eager to get in on the action.

After months of conflicting surveys, recent polls suggest recreational-use marijuana legalization may pass in Missouri. The newest poll by SurveyUSA found that 61 percent of voters support the initiative, with 28 percent against and 11 percent undecided, with a margin of error of 4 percentage points. The pollsters interviewed 791 voters from October 27 to November 1.

On Friday, a St. Louis jury returned a not guilty verdict in the murder trial of Christopher Endicott, 31, who shot and killed 37-year-old Jarrett Greene outside the Soulard bar Molly's in 2016. This was Endicott's third time on trial on charges related to that shooting. At Endicott's initial trial in 2018, the jury was unable to reach a verdict, resulting in a mistrial.

This past weekend a St. Louis jury reached a mixed verdict in the triple murder trial of 19-year-old Prinshun McClain, finding him guilty of murder in the second degree in the case of one victim and unable to reach a verdict on charges related to the other two. The jury determined McClain had murdered Victoria Manisco, a 26-year-old aspiring actress. McClain was accused of shooting and killing her in the Carondelet neighborhood on the night of August 10, 2021, after stalking her as she travelled home on a city bus.

Three WashU students from Indiana, Georgia and Texas highlight issues with voter ID laws and other voter-suppression tactics in light of the midterm election tomorrow. In 2021, a mural of John Lewis on the Washington University campus was vandalized by the Patriot Front, a white supremacist group.

Thanks to a beloved local sports figure, St. Louis has a new destination for fresh seafood: Koibito Poke, a fast-casual poke bowl destination from former St. Louis Cardinals' pitcher Todd Stottlemyre that opened on September 24th in Des Peres. This is the first Koibito Poke in the St. Louis area, though a second location is slated to open next Spring in Ballpark Village.

The ridiculously buff co-host of America's Got Talent, Terry Crews, will be visiting three elementary schools in St. Louis this week to talk to kids about his new graphic novel, Terry's Crew. The Brooklyn Nine-Nine star will visit Marion Elementary, Buder Elementary (in the Ritenour School District) and Halls Ferry Elementary on Friday, November 11. The 650 kids Crews meets will get a free copy of his book, donated by the Noble Neighbor.

Here we go again. It’s the city of Chesterfield’s turn to spin the wheel of the fortunate.

Yesterday, on the third day of the triple murder trial of Prinshun McClain, looks of disbelief came across the faces of many in the courtroom when the 19-year-old defendant announced he'd be taking the stand in his own defense. McClain is accused of murdering 26-year-old aspiring actress Victoria Manisco on the night of August 10, 2021, in the Carondelet neighborhood after stalking her as she travelled home on via a city bus.

A lawsuit regarding two men who were cited for feeding the homeless isn’t over yet, despite an early October loss. Dave Roland, director of litigation for the Freedom Center of Missouri, says his clients plan to continue the case –– either appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court or taking it to Missouri state court. At the center of the suit are questions of religious freedom and public health.

A Missouri coroner is raising the alarm after discovering a horse tranquilizer in the system of an inmate who died in the South Central Correctional Center in Licking in September. Licking is in Texas County, Missouri, where coroner Marie Lasater says that she found fentanyl and a drug called xylazine in Terrell Dawson, 42, who died in SCCC on September 1. Dawson was one of seven inmates who died in the prison at Licking over the course of one month.

Okay, so maybe we’re just a little bit simple here in Missouri. We like drinking.

As part of an ongoing investigation into St. Louis' enduring but endearing trashiness, the RFT presents Dumpster Watch, an exhaustive look at our city's oft-neglected and ever-overflowing refuse receptacles. Let's dive in: Date and time: October 27, 4:25 p.m.

Juan Thompson is headed back to prison. The 37-year-old from St. Louis attained infamy in 2016 when, as a reporter for The Intercept, it was revealed that he fabricated quotes and sources on multiple stories. One of the most egregious fabrications happened in the wake of the Emanuel AME Church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, when Thompson created out of whole cloth an interview with shooter Dylann Roof's cousin, Scott Roof.