A wide-ranging anti-crime bill will soon be Missouri law.
Gov. Mike Kehoe is scheduled to sign the bill into law Wednesday. It will take effect immediately because lawmakers added an emergency clause before final passage.
HB 495 will return control of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department to the state, which will put together a board made up of the mayor and a group of St. Louis residents picked by the governor and confirmed by the State Senate.
The department was underneath state control for more than a century, dating back to the Civil War, before Missouri voters in 2012 approved a statute returning control to the city.
There have been complaints from Republican leaders in recent years about crime rates in St. Louis and the lack of criminal prosecutions under former Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, who resigned last year. That contributed to a renewed push for the state to retake control of the St. Louis Police Department. Democratic leaders in St. Louis, including Mayor Tishaura Jones, strongly opposed that part of the bill, accusing Republican legislative leaders and the governor of wanting to take control of the city.
The bill will also boost penalties against organized crime groups that ransack retail stores. So-called smash-and-grab robberies have been on the rise across the country, and there have been several such robberies in the St. Louis area.
Another provision requires law enforcement to report the immigration status of suspects arrested for certain crimes. Other provisions include:
- Banning the use of restraints on pregnant women in their third trimester who are in jail, with some exceptions
- Outlawing street racing and stunt driving on public roadways
- Allowing victims who’ve filed restraining orders to be immediately notified when the offender being electronically monitored crosses prohibited boundaries
- Creating the “Missing and Murdered African American Women and Girls Task Force”
Gov. Kehoe is scheduled to sign the bill Wednesday morning in his state Capitol office.
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