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“In general, companies that have more diversity of backgrounds, ideas and lived experiences make it a better place to work,” said Jerome Larkins, manager of the Immersion Diversity Internship program for Veterans United Home Loans.

The newest carrier to begin service at St. Louis Lambert International Airport plans to add nonstop service this spring to the hub of the "Grand Strand," 60 miles of beaches.

ALTON - Junior Hayden Sherman recently completed a highly successful boys bowling season. The Marquette Catholic boys’ varsity team had a really great season, with a 13-4 overall record. "I bowled anchor for the varsity team, which is an honor," Sherman said. "My average this season was 204 - a personal best. At regionals I bowled a 1356 series, averaging 226, and placed second individually. This personal best performance, along with awesome games from our whole team, led to our second-place finish at regionals, advancing us to sectionals. We qualified for sectionals for the first time in Marquette’s bowling history." Hayden is the Tucker's Automotive Male Athlete of the Month for Marquette Catholic. Hayden extended thanks to several who have helped shape his bowling career: "I’d like to thank my brother, Logan, for introducing me to the sport; my mom, dad, and grandparents for supporting me; Coach Dave Meyers who coached my 8th-grade year at Alton Middle; and Coach

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In June 1961, DeVerne Calloway sat down at her typewriter to write a column about the uncertain future of the Freedom Rides organized by the activist group Congress of Racial …

No one cuts cops more slack than other cops. You really have to be an impressive kind of awful to lose the support of your Thin Blue Line brothers and sisters.

But the police department in Brookside, Alabama has managed to do exactly that. For years, no one had heard of or cared that the town of Brookside even existed… and that possibly includes a percentage of the town's 1,253 inhabitants.

That all changed when a new sheriff rolled into town, so to speak. It wasn't a sheriff (because the county already had one) but a new police chief, Mike Jones. Where town leaders may have seen nothing more than a vacancy in its two-employee department, Jones saw opportunity. He soon turned Brookside into Nottingham, Alabama, patrolling nearby highways to hit drivers passing by the small town with multiple fines and fees. Officers also engaged in unnecessary towing of vehicles over minor traffic violations, and apparently made up laws to justify stops, seizures, and traffic citations.

Chief Jones was hired in 2018. From 2018 to 2020, fines and fees from traffic citations rose 600%. This windfall went directly to expanding the revenue stream. Chief Jones hired seven more officers, obtained two drug dogs, one MRAP, and the disdain of nearby law enforcement officials. He also incurred the wrath of an untold number of Alabama residents, who were soon making trips to Brookside to attend once-a-month traffic court sessions -- sessions that resulted in Brookside officers being forced to route traffic and oversee parking for this monthly influx of out-of-towners.

The county sheriff had already received several complaints about the traffic enforcement extortion being performed by Brookside officers, who often operated in unmarked vehicles while wearing uniforms that gave no indication which law enforcement agency employed them. A nearby district attorney called the town a "black hole" where drivers are subjected to rights violations, harassment, and bogus citations.

National exposure caused this real life Boss Hogg to resign his position as police chief. And the Brookside PD is experiencing something most law enforcement agencies never do: criticism from their supposed brothers in arms.

As a local lawmaker held a second town hall to focus on policing in the tiny town of Brookside, the stories kept coming. Many told about being stranded on the side of the road. People spoke of stolen money, seized guns, towed cars and lost jobs. People shared stories of getting 11 or even 12 tickets in one traffic stop.

And the sheriff of Jefferson County, Mark Pettway, encouraged them to fight the charges in court.

“If you have a ticket and have not gone to court yet,” he told the crowd, “when you do go to court, plead not guilty.”

Again, he said, “When you go to court, plead not guilty.”

When other cops are telling civilians how to beat the rap, you know you've fucked up. The fact that "multiple state agencies" are now investigating the department is another clue.

It's not just cars Brookside cops were after. They'd take any property they could get their hands on.

One man, Jordan Cole, said Brookside was investigating his brother for car theft but ended up seizing his family’s home and arresting his elderly and disabled mother on a charge of hindering prosecution.

“They made us leave and we were told that if we step foot back on the property, we would be arrested,” Cole said. He said his family had to find somewhere else to live and ended up renting a run-down mobile home.

So far, the small town's governance has yet to turn on the PD. In fact, the town's officials have refused to step down, offering their far-from-tacit approval of the abuses that went on under Chief Jones. Not that their endorsement of the PD matters at this point. The exposure of the PD as a group of thieves and thugs wandering nearby roads has been enough to result in the resignation of most of the police force. Brookside will have to adjust to being just another insignificant dot on the road map, rather than an insatiable predator willing to convert residents of other towns into ATMs the PD's band of thieves could hit again and again.

Police said Erik Zerr got on an app frequently used by teens to meet up with the child. They're concerned more victims could be out there.

Today on TAP: Different stresses for different folks

Cherokee Street hosted the inaugural Brass Band Blowout on Saturday February 12th, 2022. For the first time ever, St. Louis's top brass bands shared the stage together, featuring Saint Boogie Brass Band, Red & Black Brass Band and Funky Butt Brass Band. The sold-out show was hosted by Cherokee Street Foundation, the street's nonprofit organization […]

The post Photos: Cherokee Street’s Brass Band Blowout appeared first on Cherokee Street.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced that new federal investments are expected to help several rural businesses and communities across Illinois create 170 jobs and save 328 additional jobs. Today’s investments come through multiple United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Programs. “I’m proud to see this federal support helping create and save good-paying jobs in rural communities and glad that the Biden Administration is committed to helping uplift local businesses in Illinois,” said Duckworth. “Federal support like this helps create economic opportunities that can empower working families, and I’ll continue working with Senator Durbin and others to make sure hardworking Illinoisans throughout our state receive the resources they deserve.” “These USDA grants and loans will help create jobs, support small businesses, and spur economic development

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ST. LOUIS – Katie’s Pizza & Pasta Osteria’s next Giveback Tuesday event will take place on Tuesday, February 22nd in Town and Country, Missouri. Funds raised from the day will be donated to Girls on the Run St. Louis (GOTR-STL), a nonprofit organization that inspires girls to lead joyful, healthy, and confident lives through an experience-based curriculum that creatively integrates running. Every month, Katie’s Pizza & Pasta Osteria features a local nonprofit organization and donates 100% of profits from the entire day to the charity. So far, Katie’s Pizza & Pasta Osteria has donated $297,725 to local nonprofit organizations. Girls on the Run St. Louis will use the funds raised from Giveback Tuesday to fund their scholarships, since the program is open to all girls who want to participate, regardless of their financial status. Families unable to pay the registration fees can request financial assistance, and in the past year, GOTR-STL provided more than

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Ask the experts from the Missouri Department of Transportation, St. Louis and St. Charles counties and St. Louis City your questions about highways and roads. The live chat starts at 1 p.m. on Wednesday.

A new report from the St. Louis County Department of Public Health (DPH) shows a significant increase in Omicron cases and deaths among those living in long-term care facilities.

Pretrial reports include details on the number and types of charges are filed monthly in St. Louis Circuit Court and provide data on defendants afforded bail or jailed without as they await trial.

Soulard's Mardi Gras parade is Feb. 26, but there's plenty of partying happening before then.

Just 26 days after the region set a record with more than 1,400 COVID-19 hospitalizations, the St. Louis Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force reported Wednesday 472 people were currently hospitalized for the virus, a 66.8% decrease in less than a month.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (NEXSTAR) -- In his first public appearance since a bipartisan panel of lawmakers voted to suspend the statewide mask mandate in schools, Governor J.B. Pritzker again urged school districts not named in a pending lawsuit to continue enforcing the mask requirement, citing his emergency powers. "The executive order requiring masks is still in [...]

Fontbonne, based in St. Louis for nearly 100 years, has shed an alarming number of students and recorded growing deficits, raising questions about its long-term viability. The university's president lays out its multipronged turnaround strategy.