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Mayors from four St. Louis County cities introduced a plan last week to consolidate the prosecutor's offices for St. Louis City and County as one unit. The effort appears to have support from others neighboring St. Louis County.

Bloomberg Law reported last month that the weight loss brand was seeking a buyer as it faced cash flow pressures.

GLEN CARBON - More than 16 million Americans suffer annually from rosacea, a chronic skin condition. Local aesthetic physician, best-selling author of “Live Life Beautifully (With a Little Help)” and owner of Ooh La La Spa, Anti-Aging & Wellness, Kristen M. Jacobs, MD is educating people about the symptoms and treatments for this disease during April, Rosacea Awareness Month. Some symptoms of rosacea include facial flushing or blushing, swollen bumps, a burning sensation, eye problems and skin thickening. This skin condition can impact anyone but it’s more common in middle-aged women. Although there is no cure, certain treatments can help reduce the signs and symptoms. “Our patients living with rosacea often say it can be embarrassing and it doesn’t need to be,” said Dr. Jacobs. “If you are frustrated with over-the-counter products not working, we offer several laser treatments and products that can help minimize the appearance of rosacea.

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Artists Vicente Telles and Brandon Maldonado are forging new links in the chain of the continuing story of the people of New Mexico. Telles is firmly rooted in the santero tradition

The post Vicente Telles and Brandon Maldonado: Cuentos Nuevomexicanos appeared first on Explore St. Louis.

The Edwardsville location, slated to open this summer, will be the seventh Hi-Pointe Drive-In.

Both core and headline PCE inflation were down in March: Headline PCE was way down in March, and even on a trendline basis was only barely above 2%. Core inflation was more stubborn, coming down to only 3.4% and remaining around 4% on a trendline basis. (On a year-over-year basis, headline inflation was 4.2% and ...continue reading "PCE inflation drops sharply in March"

Deciding whether to buy or lease your next car can be a tough decision, especially with today's higher car prices.

Missouri’s reputation for extreme conservatism harms St. Louis, Mayor Tishaura Jones says.  The mayor sat down with the Riverfront Times a day after she railed against “far right-wing Republicans” in Jefferson City during her second State of the City address earlier this week. 

by Robert Faturechi

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published.

Investigators discovered photos of nude children, estimated to be as young as 8, in an email account they said was associated with South Dakota billionaire T. Denny Sanford, according to previously sealed records released Thursday.

The records — which ProPublica had been fighting to make public for almost three years — shed light on the origins of the child pornography investigation into Sanford, a credit card magnate and philanthropist who has donated vast sums to children’s causes.

In 2020, ProPublica first reported that South Dakota authorities were investigating Sanford and had referred the matter to the U.S. Department of Justice. Last year, the South Dakota attorney general announced it closed its investigation without filing charges.

The status of a federal investigation into the matter remains unclear. A DOJ spokesperson declined to comment Thursday when asked whether the department’s inquiry remains open.

The investigation of Sanford started after AOL’s parent company sent a tip to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which passed it on to authorities in South Dakota, according to the new documentation. The center is a private nonprofit that operates a tip line where people and companies can report images of suspected child sex trafficking and abuse. The organization’s staff reviews the tips and refers them to law enforcement.

The material provided to the organization included 36 image files with child pornography in an AOL account that investigators linked to Sanford, according to the documents released Thursday.

Sanford’s attorney, Stacy Hegge, released a statement Thursday that said various other people had access to Sanford’s electronic devices and that prosecutors ultimately decided against filing criminal charges in the case. “Mr. Sanford appreciates that after a thorough investigation the authorities concluded there exists no prosecutable offense. Here, because there is no prosecutable case or further action to be taken, the court records being released contain only allegations. These preliminary allegations were provided to law enforcement prior to law enforcement’s exhaustive investigation and its realization that various individuals had documented access to the electronic devices at issue, including signs of hacking. While some claim releasing affidavits that reiterate these allegations constitute transparency, releasing preliminary allegations made prior to completing the full investigation only misinforms people and obscures the investigation’s conclusions that no prosecutable offense occurred.”

Sanford’s lawyers did not respond to further detailed questions.

Investigators with the South Dakota attorney general’s office obtained five search warrants in 2019 and 2020 for Sanford’s email, phone and internet data. The newly released documents are investigators’ sworn affidavits in support of those warrants.

According to the new records, agents believed they had found probable cause that a crime had occurred involving Sanford, who is one of the nation’s leading philanthropists.

The affidavit said that while many of the images were duplicates, an agent had found three unique photos, all of nude girls. The agent estimated one to be between 8 and 12 years old, another to be between 12 and 15, and a third to be between 10 and 15.

The law enforcement records include descriptions of the images. One photo is of “a nude juvenile female standing facing the camera. Her breasts and vagina are visible in the image. There is snow in the background and her hair is brown. The estimated age of the juvenile is 8 to 12 years old.”

The records seem to suggest Sanford’s email account sent the emails with the images, but because of redactions, it’s not clear. The identity of the email account receiving the message was also redacted. At least one of the images, according to the agent’s description, appears to be a photo taken of another screen.

“I feel that the content of the image files described above fit the definition of child pornography as described in South Dakota Codified Law,” an investigator wrote.

Geolocation data the agents reviewed pointed to locales where Sanford has homes, including La Jolla, a suburb in San Diego; Scottsdale, Arizona; and Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

ProPublica won access to the search warrants in the case and the affidavits detailing the cause for the warrants after litigation that reached the state’s highest court. Sanford unsuccessfully asked the courts to block release of the records, which are supposed to be publicly accessible under state law, and constrain ProPublica’s reporting on the case. He was represented during part of that time by South Dakota’s ex-attorney general, whose former office launched the investigation, and who has since again been elected to the job again.

ProPublica’s general counsel, Jeremy Kutner, lauded the release of the records: “We are delighted that the court has, for the second time, vindicated the public’s essential rights to monitor law enforcement and the criminal justice system, rights clearly enshrined in law. But the baseless delays foisted on the public by Sanford and his attorneys throughout this case are a testament to how fragile those rights can be. This ruling is a reminder that the predilections of the powerful should never override the law.”

Who’s that kid that can travel through time? It’s you!   Follow the adventures of three friends as they travel back in time to learn from real-life inspirational heroes when

The post Xavier Riddle and The Secret Museum: The Exhibit at The Magic House appeared first on Explore St. Louis.

Take an overseas adventure in this immersive exhibit that transports families to China, a country where a quickly changing modern lifestyle intersects with ancient values. Explore what life is like

The post Children’s China – The Magic House appeared first on Explore St. Louis.

Deli Divine Is Here at Last Chef Ben Poremba’s new restaurant debut has all the fanfare of a Broadway opening night. Foodies and fans have been waiting for months in anticipation. I’ve laid awake nights, wondering when a bowl of Ben’s matzo ball soup might be available to sooth my innards and brighten my day.... 

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The post A Divine Deli Comes to Delmar appeared first on Good Food St. Louis.

WASHINGTON, D.C – Today, U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL-02), along with U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), reintroduced two bills to expand and increase access to employment opportunities for underserved youth. The Helping to Encourage Real Opportunity (HERO) for Youth Act and the Assisting in Developing (AID) Youth Employment Act, which was previously titled the Creating Pathways for Youth Employment Act, will increase federal resources for communities seeking to create or grow employment programs and provide tax incentives to businesses and employers to hire and retain youth from economically distressed areas. “Lack of investment in our communities perpetuates a cycle of poverty, and unfortunately violence, that leaves too many young people without opportunities to reach their full potential,” said Kelly. “The HERO for Youth Act and the Assisting in Developing Youth Employment Act will help

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CHICAGO – The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation ("IDFPR") announced today it received 2,693 applications for the upcoming Social Equity Criteria Lottery ("SECL"). This lottery will distribute the next round of 55 conditional adult use cannabis dispensary licenses across the 17 Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Regions. The list of applicants participating in the SECL may be found on IDFPR’s website here . Applicants are encouraged to review the list and confirm that they have been properly listed for any BLS Region in which they applied. The SECL will be conducted by IDFPR with the Illinois Lottery in early- to mid-May. The date will be announced by IDFPR as soon as possible. “Our simplified online application process increased the accessibility for individuals of all backgrounds and from all over Illinois to have the opportunity to write the next chapter of the most equitable cannabis industry in the country,” said IDFPR Secretary

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The Missouri Senate passed a proposal raising the threshold for passing constitutional amendments Thursday but rejected an alternative that would have quieted well-funded opponents. Under the measure sent back to the House, any constitutional amendment proposed by initiative would need 57% of the vote or a simple majority statewide and in five of eight congressional districts. When the measure passed the House in February, the threshold was set at 60% with no alternative majority possible. The…