Crime in the United States continued to fall in 2024, according to two new federal reports from the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, with declines in both violent and property offenses even as some states had higher-than-average crime rates. Crime data often lags by months or even years at the national and subnational levels. Updated […]
An initiative petition campaign seeking to enshrine a “fundamental right” to public education in the Missouri Constitution is abandoning its efforts to get on the November ballot, promising a return in 2028. The Missouri Right to Education campaign had only collected around 35,000 signatures — one fifth of the minimum required for constitutional amendments — […]
Most of the time, landlords win. When I was evicted from my Chicago apartment in 1999, I had no legal rights to defend myself against all my furniture being thrown to the curb, leaving me, my daughter, and baby grandchild out in the cold. This year though, my fellow tenants and I at Bowen Tower […]
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Wednesday in a case that could reshape the understanding of who is American by birth. The case, Trump v. Barbara, challenges President Donald Trump’s executive order that redefines citizenship to exclude children born to parents who either do not have legal status, or hold temporary legal […]
Public school districts will be encouraged to limit elementary school student use of iPads and laptops in the classroom under a Missouri House bill approved in a 143-10 vote Monday. Originally, the legislation set out to place a 45-minute cap on students’ screen time in schools and mandate cursive instruction. This raised concerns among educators […]
A Missouri Senate committee on Monday gave a warm reception to a bill intended to bar candidates from raising money with automatically recurring donations, a practice the sponsor of the legislation called “appalling.” The bill has three main provisions, said state Rep. Jim Murphy, a St. Louis County Republican. The first would require campaigns to […]
As the United States of America marks its 250th anniversary this year, the relationship between the states and the federal government is approaching a breaking point. Led by a bellicose president, the executive branch has moved to dominate states, resulting in more than a year of escalating confrontations between the two levels of government. President […]
Pedestrian deaths fell 11% in early 2025 over the previous year, the largest drop since the Governors Highway Safety Association began reporting them 15 years ago, but remain higher than pre-pandemic levels in 2019. It could be evidence that recent state action could be having an effect, ranging from new technology to protect pedestrians to […]
All 41 states that expanded Medicaid eligibility under the Affordable Care Act will see fewer people covered due to new federal work requirements and more frequent eligibility checks. But the percentage of recipients who lose coverage will vary greatly from state to state, depending on how state officials implement the new rules, according to a […]
Republican state Sen. Mike Henderson believes he has the support to advance a bill that would impose age limits on kratom sales and ban the stronger opioid-like products known as 7-OH. The legislation is a priority for Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hathaway, who’s said it would strengthen her office’s enforcement authority to go after makers […]
Three months before Missourians narrowly voted to legalize abortion, a small group led by Tom Estes gathered in a living room and came up with a plan to rally voters against the amendment.. The effort that emerged — MO Protects — was improvised, underfunded and, by its own telling, forced to make up for a […]
Sam Graves’ retirement announcement Friday marked the exit of one of the few Missouri politicians in Washington who had turned time in office into real institutional power. Graves said this will be his final year in Congress, ending a career that began in the Missouri House in 1992, moved quickly through the state Senate and […]
Missourians will head to the polls in April for municipal elections, and voters across the country have already begun casting midterm primary ballots. But before November arrives, Congress may decide whether registering to vote becomes harder for millions of eligible Americans. The SAVE America Act, the top priority of the Trump Administration and currently moving […]
Thousands gathered across the state Saturday for the third nationwide No Kings protest, part of a global demonstration against the Trump administration. It was one of 3,000 protests expected to organize across the country in opposition to policies they view as dictatorial. It was the third widespread No Kings protest in less than a year […]
WASHINGTON — Large crowds took to the streets Saturday in the nation’s capital for the third No Kings protest, rallying with others across the United States against what organizers say is an unprecedented expansion of power by President Donald Trump. Thousands of people carrying signs and playing music began the day at Memorial Circle below […]
Submitting signatures to force a referendum on a state law is not enough to suspend a new state law, a Cole County judge ruled Friday in a decision that means Missouri’s gerrymandered congressional map is in effect. The referendum petition submitted by the political action committee People Not Politicians could still put the law on […]
The U.S. Department of Justice confirmed in court Thursday that it is sharing sensitive voter data with the Department of Homeland Security in a search for noncitizen voters. But a DOJ lawyer denied the department is building a national voter database. The Justice Department has demanded states provide full copies of their voter lists, including […]
One online grocery shopper got charged $3.99 for a box of Wheat Thins, while another — buying from the same store at the same time — got charged $4.89. A consumer watchdog detected this price discrepancy during an investigation last September in Seattle. The grocery app Instacart used an artificial intelligence-powered algorithm that charged customers […]
Missouri lawmakers advanced legislation this week to create a clear pathway for adults with severe mental illness to receive court-ordered treatment in their communities before they end up hospitalized or incarcerated. It would establish procedures for doctors, legal guardians and public health directors to petition courts to order up to two years of outpatient treatment […]
WASHINGTON — The two chambers of Congress, both controlled by Republicans, were at odds Friday over how to fund the Department of Homeland Security, prolonging the shutdown that began in mid-February. The Senate voted before dawn to approve a funding bill that would have reopened every agency within the department impacted by the funding lapse. […]
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