stLouISTDierbergs plans new 73,000-square-foot store as anchor for St. Charles retail development
Dierbergs Markets plans a 73,000-square-foot store in St. Charles, anchoring a new 100,000-square-foot retail development set to open in fall 2026.
Aggregator
Third Defendant Sentenced For Multi-County Vehicle Fraud Operation
BENTON — A federal judge has sentenced Alen Saric, 36, of St. Louis, to 87 months in prison for his role in a $1.7 million vehicle sale fraud scheme that targeted private sellers in Madison, Jasper, Bond and Fayette counties in southern Illinois. Saric pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, interstate transportation of property obtained by fraud, and aggravated identity theft. The scheme involved using counterfeit cashier’s checks to purchase vehicles on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist from 2018 until August 2023. According to court documents, Saric and co-conspirators issued more than $1.7 million in fake checks printed on security-enhanced paper bearing real bank names and logos but with fraudulent routing numbers. After acquiring vehicles with these bogus checks, the group resold the vehicles for cash before victims could discover the checks were worthless. Co-defendants Valentino Colic, 34, and Almir Palic, 25, also of St. Louis, previously
World's First 7 Story Observation Tower Made from Structural Engineered Bamboo could Rise in St. Louis
Judge To ICE: No, You Can’t Actually Kidnap Students For Writing Op-Eds
Correction/Update: In this original article, I included a quote from DHS that I thought was in response to today’s order, which implied DHS believed they could still detain Ozturk, but it appears it was in response to the earlier ruling on Wednesday when she was first ordered to be transferred. We have removed that quote […]
Automation company says tariffs, tax cuts, deregulation could lead to manufacturing boom
A Lincoln County automation company is eyeing major growth opportunities, but its success hinges on upcoming policy decisions in Washington.
The Prospect Weekly Roundup: Republicans’ Impossible Jigsaw Puzzle
On our live show, David and Harold Meyerson look at the one big beautiful bill, crypto, the pope, and more.
How many pairs of glasses does Elton John actually have? Here’s the answer
Elton John's been a superstar for more than 50 years, and during that time, he's sported endless pairs of glasses, some of which were incredibly elaborate. He recently had to…
The Democrats’ Great Debates
Today on TAP: How to contain Trump and defend democracy? What to stand for affirmatively as an opposition party?
FPF proves the administration is lying about leaks
Dear friend of press freedom,
A judge ordered Rümeysa Öztürk’s release today. But it's still the 45th day she spent incarcerated by the U.S. government for writing an op-ed. Hopefully this shameful chapter in First Amendment history is nearing a close. Other press freedom news below.
Memo obtained by FPF shows DOJ’s new anti-press policy is based on lies
Last week, we argued that Attorney General Pam Bondi’s reversal of her predecessor’s policy restricting subpoenas of journalists will help President Donald Trump lie to the public.
This week we proved it. A memorandum released following a public records request by Lauren Harper, our Daniel Ellsberg chair on government secrecy, confirmed prior reports that U.S. intelligence agencies don’t believe Trump’s claims that Venezuela’s government controls the Tren de Aragua gang. Bondi’s memo cited that same reporting as an example of damaging fake news that results from leaks.
As it turns out, the journalists who reported the intelligence agencies’ position got it exactly right, and the leaks in question only damaged Trump’s reputation by exposing the deception behind his invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to ship Venezuelans to gulags in El Salvador. What better way to further our late co-founder’s legacy than exposing presidential lies to justify atrocities abroad? Read our press release and the New York Times report.
Attacks on law firms and nonprofits endanger the press
It doesn’t take a law degree to see that Trump’s attacks on law firms and nonprofits could also do irreparable harm to press freedom.
To learn more about what’s at stake, we spoke to legendary First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams; general counsel for The Intercept, David Bralow; and Albert Sellars, partner Kendra Albert. Read about and watch the conversation here.
Ed Martin should be disbarred
Ed Martin, interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, was mostly in the news for palling around with white supremacists when Trump pulled his nomination for the permanent job as top prosecutor in Washington. But he’s also spent his career making a mockery of the ethical rules governing attorneys.
That’s why Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) and Demand Progress filed a comprehensive disciplinary complaint against Martin. As our Advocacy Director Seth Stern explained, Martin’s antics, like sending “bogus letters and tweets to intimidate people exercising First Amendment rights and his threats to target news outlets President Trump dislikes, should disqualify him from practicing law, full stop.” Read more here.
Lights, camera, national security crisis!
Trump’s recent announcement that he plans to impose a 100% tariff on movies made outside the United States has created more confusion than the ending of “Inception.”
What is Trump talking about when he claims that making movies abroad threatens national security? When Trump claims to be protecting the homeland from foreign adversaries, he is often actually protecting his own false narratives from domestic scrutiny. Read more here.
Administration seeks to appoint itself the sole arbiter of truth
Trump’s vilification of the press should be seen in the context of his larger agenda to discredit any arbiter of fact and fiction that has not kissed the ring.
The goal is to make Trump’s “alternative facts” the only facts. That’s why the administration is going after not only journalists, but everyone from prestigious universities in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to small medical journals in Glenview, Illinois. Read Stern’s op-ed in the Daily Beast here.
What does Fullerton, California, have to hide?
We joined First Amendment Coalition in a letter objecting to a ban on newspaper distribution in government buildings by the city of Fullerton, California.
As the letter explains, “The ban sends the message … that the city is hostile to the free press and discourages criticism of its policies, preferring that residents only read government-approved messaging.” Read the letter here.
What we’re reading
Fear and intimidation at Newark airport (Al Jazeera). A Palestinian-American journalist was interrogated at the border about her reporting, but she refuses to stay silent. Journalists must continue to speak up about these abuses.
Jury orders NSO to pay $167 million for hacking WhatsApp users (Ars Technica). NSO Group has a long history of helping dictators and authoritarians spy on journalists and activists. Hopefully, this multimillion-dollar verdict will finally get their attention.
Montana governor signs landmark bill, as state becomes the 37th to enact anti-SLAPP protections (Institute for Free Speech). Legislatures in red and blue states alike understand there’s nothing partisan about protecting journalists, activists, and everyone else from anti-speech lawfare.
Takeaways from AFPC-USA’s 2025 World Press Freedom Day panel (The Association of Foreign Press Correspondents USA). FPF’s Seth Stern’s “remarks painted a stark picture of press freedom under direct political attack. He warned that without structural protections, the First Amendment itself is being tested, and norms that were once assumed unbreakable are now being shattered.”
A student journalist covered a pro-Palestine protest. Soon, her graduation came under threat (Columbia Journalism Review). Columbia hit a new moral low by targeting a student journalist for her reporting on a pro-Palestinian sit-in before changing course. Lesson learned? Nope. The university then stooped even lower by suspending student journalists for covering protests.
Man dies while serving life sentence at Missouri prison
From St. Louis to the Met Gala: Local performer joins groundbreaking all-Black male chorus
Restaurant reccs - patio, accessible for disabilities
Special Victims Unit Closes Investigation With Predatory Criminal Sexual Assault of a Child Charges in Godfrey Case
GODFREY - On March 27, 2025, the Madison County Sheriff’s Office was notified of a report alleging that a minor was sexually assaulted approximately seven years ago at a residence in Godfrey. The report prompted an investigation by the Madison County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Unit and Digital Forensics Division. Madison County Deputy Sheriff Marcos Puldio said over the following month, investigators conducted multiple interviews, executed several search warrants, and examined numerous items of digital evidence related to the case. The investigation culminated in charges being filed against Andrew S. Masiero, 47. Masiero faces four counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, classified as Class X felonies; two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, classified as Class 2 felonies; and two counts of sexual exploitation of a child, classified as Class 4 felonies. He is currently in custody at the Madison County Sheriff’s Office. The case has bee
States push to combat human trafficking amid federal funding cuts
For help, call 1-888-373-7888 or text *233733 for the 24/7 National Human Trafficking Hotline, a national, toll-free hotline. States are moving to strengthen protections against human trafficking, but some advocates warn that federal funding cuts could undermine efforts to support survivors. This year, lawmakers in several states have introduced bills to expand education, strengthen penalties […]
MoDOT commission sued for fatal winter crash on I-44
A lawsuit has been filed against the Missouri Highway and Transportation Commission nearly four months after a crash on Interstate 44 that killed a McKendree University coach, due to what the suit claimed as negligence to properly clear the shoulder of snow.
Lambert International airport
Alton, Granite City Men Among Area Burglary Suspects
ALTON/GRANITE CITY – Residents of Alton, Granite City, and more have been charged in separate cases with burglarizing properties and vehicles around Madison County. Richard A. Schrader, 42, of Granite City, was charged with a Class 2 felony count of burglary on April 28, 2025. Schrader allegedly entered a building which was property of Morrissey Construction Company in the 700 block of Washington Avenue in Alton, knowingly and without authority, with the intent to commit a theft. The Alton Police Department presented the case against Schrader, who was granted pretrial release from custody. Kienny Pierson, 49, of Alton, was charged on April 30, 2025 with a Class 3 felony count of burglary. Pierson reportedly entered a 2021 Jeep SUV without authority, intending to commit therein a theft, on March 15, 2025. He was granted pretrial release from custody in the case presented by the Alton Police Department. Oscar K. McGee, 47, of St. Louis, was charged with a Class 1 felony count
IRS-ICE Immigrant Data Sharing Agreement Betrays Data Privacy And Taxpayers’ Trust
In an unprecedented move, the U.S. Department of Treasury and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently reached an agreement allowing the IRS to share with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) taxpayer information of certain immigrants. The redacted 15-page memorandum of understanding (MOU) was exposed in a court case, Centro de Trabajadores Unidos v. Bessent, which seeks to prevent […]
Pink Floyd lands seventh UK #1 with ‘Pink Floyd at Pompeii – MCMLXXII’
Pink Floyd has landed a new #1 album in the U.K.The recently released soundtrack to the band’s 1972 concert film, Pink Floyd at Pompeii – MCMLXXII, tops the U.K. Albums…
Daily Deal: LabsDigest Subscription
LabsDigest is built for those who learn best by doing. Whether you’re preparing for a CompTIA certification or diving into Python development, our platform offers interactive labs that simulate real-world tasks—no passive watching or reading, just real experience. Work through performance-based exercises for CompTIA A+, Network+, Security+, and more, or sharpen your coding skills with […]