An inmate at the prison in Moberly has been diagnosed with active tuberculosis. As a precaution, the entire inmate population as well as staff of the facility will be tested for TB beginning Friday. In the meantime, all offenders receiving visits through the weekend will be screened for TB. Recently released inmates are also being notified of the discovery.
FEC Clears Talent Of Allegations He Violated Campaign Finance Laws
December 31, 2003 By
The Federal Elections Commission says Senator Jim Talent violated no federal campaign finance laws by setting up a committee before officially announcing his candidacy. The Democratic Party had complained that Talent accepted excessive salaries from Washington University and a Washington D.C. lobbying firm while he investigated whether to run for the Senate. Talent was paid $90,000 a year for teaching three courses at the University, and got $230,000 from the lobbying company. A spokesman for the State Democratic Party says the Commission let Talent off the hook and is too weak to enforce campaign finance laws.
President Visiting Missouri For Fundraiser
December 31, 2003 By
President George W. Bush will visit Missouri next Monday. He’ll hold his first major fundraising event of 2004 in St. Louis. It will be his 15th trip to this state since he became President.
Former Death Row Inmate Faye Copeland Dies At 82
December 31, 2003 By
Faye Copeland, who once was the oldest woman in the nation under a death sentence, has died at a nursing home in Chillicothe. She was 82. Her death sentence was commuted by a federal court in 1999 to life in prison. She was paroled 16 months ago to the nursing home after suffering a stroke. She and her husband Ray were convicted of killing five transients who worked on their farm in the late 1980s. Both were sentenced to death. He died in prison in 1993 before he could be executed.
Concerns Raised Over Program Providing Home Heating Assistance To Poor
December 31, 2003 By
Missouri’s program to help low-income people keep the heat on is seeing some worrisome trends before the coldest part of winter really hits. The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, LIHEAP, provides people living below or just above the poverty line with financial help in paying heating bills. Last year, 122,000 households got the help. This year, 76,000 people have applied for help. At the Social Services Department, Janel Luck says the program is on track for similar numbers as last year. Forty percent of those seeking help were not in the program last year, and many are in crisis situations. Community Action Agencies work with those facing cutoffs to develop payment plans with utilities. The entire LIHEAP program is operating under some uncertainty. Congress has not renewed its authorization, nor has it passed a budget bill guaranteeing its funding. The latest $17-Million allotment of federal funds is coming in under a continuin resolution, which holds this year’s spending at last year’s levels.
