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The University of Missouri’s redefined stalking and threat policies use language from a June Supreme Court decision that might make it more difficult to punish people who engage in stalking or make threats. The UM System Board of Curators voted Sept. 7 to approve amendments to the UM System’s Collected Rules and Regulations, specifically the […]

The post Revised stalking, threat policies at University of Missouri may make punishment more difficult appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A civil case that could have settled whether video games that offer cash prizes to players are illegal gambling devices won’t settle anything. At least not any time soon. On Monday, with a trial set to begin Tuesday morning, Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green dismissed the lawsuit seeking to stop the Missouri State Highway […]

The post Judge tosses Torch lawsuit seeking to block Missouri Highway Patrol gambling investigations appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Republican and Democratic lawmakers are searching for a way to clear more aid for Ukraine, after Congress approved a short-term spending bill that didn’t include any additional money for the country. President Joe Biden on Sunday said that U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed to find the votes needed to pass a supplemental […]

The post Next battle in Congress over Ukraine aid, as Biden presses House speaker for vote appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Max Gruver spent the early morning hours of Sept. 14, 2017, heavily intoxicated and passed out on a couch inside the Phi Delta Theta chapter house at Louisiana State University. He had been forced to repeatedly chug 190-proof Diesel liquor in a hazing ritual called “Bible Study,” during which pledges are quizzed on fraternity facts. […]

The post It’s hazing season on college campuses. State safeguards are uneven appeared first on Missouri Independent.

MOBERLY – Nestled between the offices of a small loan company and an insurance brokerage, Hot Shots Internet Cafe offers neither internet access nor any sort of nourishment.  But what Hot Shots does offer is more than a dozen games that look like slot machines offering cash prizes to anyone willing to risk a dollar.  […]

The post Gaming parlors are popping up across Missouri. Courts have yet to determine if they are illegal appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Becoming a registered Republican was the worst decision B.J. Adams says he ever made. Adams, a resident of Burlington, North Carolina, isn’t upset with GOP policies. And he loves former President Donald Trump.  But when the 87-year-old conservative who grew up a Democrat finally switched his party registration, he said it unleashed a torrent of […]

The post Out-of-state donors fuel pair of GOP candidates running for Missouri governor, AG appeared first on Missouri Independent.

In this political season, where it seems that anything is up for interpretation and speculation — truths, codes of ethics, rules of law — where do we turn for a sense of direction or best decision-making? The craziness occurring in our nation’s capital, or our state legislatures, is not all there is. What craziness, you […]

The post Reclaiming our voices of reason amid all the craziness appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Congress approved a bill Saturday night that would stave off a government shutdown until at least mid-November, though the measure doesn’t include Ukraine aid backed by both Republicans and Democrats. The bipartisan 88-9 vote in the U.S. Senate, just hours before a midnight deadline, took place after the U.S. House earlier in the […]

The post Congress clears bill to avert shutdown, with vote promised later on Ukraine aid appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — A sweeping government shutdown appeared inevitable on Friday, with the U.S. Senate stuck in a procedural holding pattern on its bipartisan stopgap bill and divided U.S. House Republicans unable to pass their short-term spending bill. Both chambers of Congress must approve and President Joe Biden must sign government funding legislation before midnight on […]

The post Government shutdown nears: U.S. House GOP fails to pass one-month spending plan appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A huge chunk of pandemic relief funding that kept child care programs afloat for the past few years is set to run out Saturday, and policy advocates say the economic impact will be profound — with the ripple effect hurting labor force participation and consumer spending at a time when the country is still trying […]

The post Women workers could bear economic brunt as federal child care funding ends appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — A looming partial government shutdown will put added pressure on an already strained system — U.S. immigration courts. Canceling or rescheduling court cases that many immigrants have awaited for years will cause even more backlogs, immigration attorneys and judges have warned. “Where we’ll really kind of see the backlog continue to build will […]

The post Shutdown would mean even more delays in overwhelmed U.S. immigration courts appeared first on Missouri Independent.

States are seeing an alarming surge in cases of congenital syphilis, a preventable infection that can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, newborn death — or lifelong complications such as blindness or deafness. Congenital syphilis, which occurs when a pregnant mother infected with the sexually transmitted infection syphilis passes it on to her fetus, disproportionately affects Black and […]

The post Congenital syphilis rates are soaring, but resources to stem infections are lacking appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Earlier this year, Oregon Democrats pushed through state legislation that allows local governments to require setbacks between neighbors and factory farming operations. The law prohibits farms from drawing unlimited amounts of free groundwater and requires farmers to apply for a permit before applying manure to their fields. It’s the kind of state regulation at risk […]

The post Congress takes aim at state animal welfare laws appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The federally-funded organization responsible for protecting the rights of people with disabilities in Missouri believes a proposed change in how the state pays for at-home care could violate the law.  Missouri Protection and Advocacy Services, which was established in 1977, said in a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that it is […]

The post Advocacy group tells feds Missouri’s proposed disability changes could violate law appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Complaints about student debt relief scams are increasing as the date approaches for borrowers to restart payment on their student loans after more than a three-year pause. Consumer protection advocates say that the Biden administration’s student debt relief efforts, the subsequent halting of those policies by the courts, and the restart of student loan payments […]

The post Student debt relief scams on the rise. Here’s what borrowers need to know appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The next legal wrestling match over what Missouri voters would see if an abortion-rights initiative petition makes next year’s ballot is scheduled for Oct. 30 before judges of Western District Court of Appeals. A three-judge panel will hear oral arguments that day on Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s appeal of Cole County Circuit Judge Jon […]

The post Appeals court sets hearing date on Missouri abortion rights initiative ballot title appeared first on Missouri Independent.

St. Louis’ largest health system, BJC HealthCare, plans to merge with Kansas City’s second-largest, Saint Luke’s Health System, uniting more than 28 hospitals on both sides of Missouri by the end of this year. The merger, which would span markets 250 miles apart and include facilities in neighboring Kansas and Illinois, is just one of […]

The post Who polices hospitals merging across markets? States give different answers appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — U.S. senators said during a Wednesday hearing that foreign ownership of farmland is a national security threat that should be further examined. The U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry discussed foreign ownership of the nation’s agricultural lands, with testimony from experts and Senate colleagues who have been taking the lead on […]

The post Foreign ownership of farmland probed at U.S. Senate hearing appeared first on Missouri Independent.

KANSAS CITY, Kansas — A sea of red surrounded the local United Auto Workers union Wednesday afternoon. The UAW Local 31 hosted a “red shirt rally” and food drive in support of local auto workers who have been laid off because of the national strike against major car makers. Hundreds of supporters came out to […]

The post ‘This is what democracy looks like’: Kansas City rally supports laid off union autoworkers appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Artificial intelligence could be used to disrupt U.S. election campaigns, members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration said during a Wednesday hearing. But the hearing showed that imposing laws and regulations on campaign content without violating constitutional rights to political speech will be difficult. Elections pose a particular challenge for AI, an […]

The post U.S. Senate panel weighs free speech and deep fakes in AI campaign ads appeared first on Missouri Independent.