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The St. Louis Cardinals have designated veteran pitcher Erick Fedde for assignment following a prolonged stretch of struggles in the starting rotation.

EAST ALTON - Have you caught the summer cold? A local nurse practitioner shares tips on how to feel better, faster. Elizabeth “Betsy” Dykeman operates Airline Care Clinic at 33 East Airline Drive in East Alton. She shared that while many people experience flu-like symptoms in the summer, these symptoms are usually the result of a virus or allergies. “Your body kind of reacts the same way if you’re fighting off a virus or if you’re fighting off allergens,” she explained. “There’s just a number of viruses that you can get that can get you to feel like you have the flu.” Unlike influenza, which usually affects people during the winter months, there is no vaccination against viruses like enterovirus, adenovirus or rhinovirus. But these viruses can mimic the flu, with symptoms like fever, body aches, chills and congestion. These viruses are airborne. Some people are also affected by summer allergies, which can turn into sinus

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BELLEVILLE — Tynika McKinzie was taken into custody on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, by Belleville detectives for outstanding felony warrants related to a shooting incident at a McDonald’s restaurant on July 16, 2025, the Belleville Police Department said on Wednesday, July 23, 2025. McKinzie was booked at the Belleville Police Department and later transported to the St. Clair County Jail pending further court proceedings. The incident that involved McKinzie unfolded at approximately 4:45 p.m. on July 16 at the McDonald’s located at 125 South Belt East in Belleville. Police responded to a disturbance call and were informed that an employee had discharged a firearm inside the restaurant. According to police reports, the altercation began when Kathy M. Bledsoe, 44, the manager on duty, instructed a juvenile employee to take out the trash. After the employee refused, police said Bledsoe told her to clock out and go home. The situation escalated, resulting in a shooting

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A recent news report about Secret Service surveillance of former FBI Director James Comey suggests that the Trump administration is abusing its spying powers.

You may remember that the Secret Service and Department of Homeland Security launched an investigation into Comey for posting a picture on Instagram during his beach vacation of seashells spelling out “8647.” Conservatives claimed that Comey’s post was a threat to our 47th president, Donald Trump. Never mind that “86” is slang for banning someone or something, not killing them. There’s also that whole First Amendment thing.

Then, The New York Times reported earlier this month that the Secret Service, as part of its investigation, had Comey “followed by law enforcement authorities in unmarked cars and street clothes and tracked the location of his cellphone” as Comey returned home from his vacation, even though he had already submitted to a phone interview and agreed to an in-person interview.

As the Center for Democracy & Technology’s Jake Laperruque pointed out, that kind of surveillance — real-time location tracking based on cellphone data — generally requires court approval. Although the Supreme Court hasn’t ruled on whether it requires a warrant, several other courts have held that it does.

There’s an important exception, however, to the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement. Known as exigent circumstances, it allows for warrantless searches in emergencies. Sources told the Times that the Secret Service invoked that exact exception to justify following Comey.

But Reason Magazine does a good job explaining why that rationale is bunk:

“‘A variety of circumstances may give rise to an exigency sufficient to justify a warrantless search, including law enforcement’s need to provide emergency assistance to an occupant of a home…engage in ‘hot pursuit’ of a fleeing suspect…or enter a burning building to put out a fire and investigate its cause,’ the U.S. Supreme Court wrote in Missouri v. McNeely (2013).

“None of those factors apply here: Comey was on the move, but he was not ‘fleeing’—he was coming home from vacation. If the Secret Service really thought he warranted further scrutiny, it had plenty of time to get a warrant from a judge.”

At least three federal appeals courts have permitted warrantless tracking of real-time cellphone location in emergencies. In one case, a man with a criminal history broke a window at his former girlfriend’s home with a gun and threatened to kill her, her seven-year-old, and other family members before fleeing. In another, a man running a drug operation murdered a potential informant, leaving police concerned that other informants who had infiltrated the operation were at risk. And in the third case, a gang member previously charged with drug crimes threatened to “shoot up” an informant.

These cases are a far cry from posting a picture of seashells on social media. And even if authorities truly believed Comey intended to threaten Trump, he had no way of carrying out that threat at the time he was tracked, since Trump was in the Middle East.

In other words, in Comey’s case, the Trump administration expanded the exigent circumstances exception beyond recognition. But it isn’t the only recent example of the government abusing its power to spy using cellphone data. A recent investigation by Straight Arrow News also detected evidence of a cellphone tracking device commonly known as a “stingray” at an anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protest, despite DHS policy requiring a warrant for its use except in — you guessed it — exigent circumstances.

These reports should raise red flags for everyone concerned about surveillance — including journalists and their sources. We already know that the government has tracked at least some physical movements of journalists in past leak investigations. Cellphone location data tracking allows even more all-encompassing surveillance.

If authorities are willing to claim that Comey’s social media post is an emergency justifying warrantless real-time cellphone location tracking, it’s not hard to imagine that they could make a similar (bogus) claim about a suspected whistleblower or a journalist who reports critically on the administration. It wouldn’t be any more meritless than their claims that journalism is inciting crimes or threatening national security.

Concerningly, there’s very little constraint on the government if it decides to abuse the exigent circumstances exception to make emergency requests to cellphone providers for users’ location information. While courts can suppress evidence obtained through illegal searches, they can’t undo the illegal search itself, and officers and officials who abuse the Fourth Amendment face no personal repercussions.

Cellphone providers also seem unable to detect and refuse bogus emergency requests. The three major cellphone carriers — AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile — receive thousands or tens of thousands of emergency requests every year. While they require a certification of emergency from the government authority making the request, clearly that process isn’t foolproof if something like the Comey “emergency” can slip through the cracks.

That makes public scrutiny of real-time cellphone location tracking and the government’s reliance on the exigent circumstances exception all the more important. The Fourth Estate — and confidential sources like those who spoke to the Times — may be our most powerful remaining check on the surveillance state.

A judge had ordered NorthSide Regeneration to repair the historic building near Page and Grand boulevards.

When you’re shooting for 3,000 arrests a day, it seems kind of pathetic to complain about being mildly bruised a few times a week. DHS and ICE have constantly used a supposed massive increase in assaults on ICE officers to justify ICE’s tactics: the masks, the unmarked vehicles, the refusal to present IDs or warrants, […]

Hawley returned to a round of applause, brushing off the protest as "just another day in the Senate."

EDWARDSVILLE - The work of these three featured artists - Rachel Newell, Venus Cramer, and Darren Miller - will have their work showcased at the Edwardsville Arts Fair set for Sept. 26-28, 2025, at Edwardsville City Park. Artist #1: Artist Name: Rachel Newell Medium: Mixed Media Artist Statement: "My work is colorful, surreal, and sometimes absurd. When creating, I hope to give life to unique, dreamlike worlds by combining hundreds of various pieces into something that feels whole. "My work is often described as 'busy,' but it’s a direct reflection of how I feel, think, and experience the world. My intention is for my work to resonate with others — and hopefully bring some joy, wonder, and laughter to those who see it." Artist #2: Venus Cramer Medium: Jewelry Artist Statement: "My primary style of creating contemporary jewelry is fabrication. I use traditional materials such as silver, gold, and gemstones, as well as non-traditional mediums

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Can Democrats mobilize against Israeli war crimes?

ALTON - Alton Police were called to the 300 block of East Ninth Street in Alton on Tuesday morning, July 22, 2025, after a report that a man had punctured his chest with an unknown object, according to an initial investigation. Alton Police Chief Jarrett Ford said witnesses at the scene confirmed that the man caused the injury to himself. "The male refused medical treatment and was ultimately transported to Gateway Regional Hospital for mental health care," Chief Ford added. If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org .

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On This Day, July 23, 1989….Ringo Starr launched his first tour since his days with The Beatles, backed by an All-Starr Band that included Billy Preston, the Eagles’ Joe Walsh and…

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U.S. House member Budzinski behind bill that will officially establish office aiming to improve services and communications between veterans, government.

ILLINOIS – Today, grid operator PJM announced results in its capacity auction that threaten to send electricity rates soaring for consumers in the ComEd region in Illinois. The overall cost of capacity, which PJM procures to ensure adequate resources to meet energy needs, jumped from $269.92 to $329.17. The Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition released the following statement: “The results of PJM’s capacity market auction are sobering, particularly when Illinois ratepayers are already facing skyrocketing energy bills. As Big Tech’s energy-hungry data centers sap up more and more power and President Trump’s Big Bill rolls back clean energy tax incentives that could save families hundreds, it is clear we need immediate action to protect Illinois consumers. While grid operators like PJM and MISO are slow to connect cost-effective clean energy to the grid and help meet growing demand, the Trump Administration is moving fast to bail out the fossil fuel industry at

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ALTON – Early last year, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the 2024 National Diabetes Statistics Report. This report estimated that, as of 2021, more than 38.4 million people of all ages – or 11.6% of the U.S. population – had diabetes. With this number expected to continue climbing, the role of nurse-delivered diabetes education will become even more important for patient’s long-term success. OSF Medical Group – Diabetes and Endocrinology (Alton) is introducing its diabetes education program, led by Jennifer Adcock, RN, BSN, CDCES (certified diabetes care & education specialist). Jennifer has been an OSF Mission Partner (i.e. employee) for the last nine (9) years and worked in the OSF Medical Group - Diabetes and Endocrinology office since 2017. Adcock says how patients living with diabetes can benefit from her diabetes education program is through her personalized approach. “Diabetes education is not one-size-fits-all.

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A man recently hauled in the catch of a lifetime from the Missouri River, a "monster" 86-pound blue catfish near Washington, Missouri.

For more than 150 years, St. Louisans have entrusted the Missouri Historical Society with countless objects: photographs, diaries, home movies, clothing, books – items that future generations can turn in […]

The post Collected: St. Louis History Brought to Life appeared first on Explore St. Louis.