Brian Hauswirth, Author at Missourinet

Standing-room only crowd expected for Thursday’s Albright speech in Fulton

September 19, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

A capacity crowd of at least 1,500 people is expected Thursday afternoon for former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s lecture at Westminster College in mid-Missouri’s Fulton.

Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright speaks Thursday afternoon in Fulton (undated photo courtesy of Westminster College in Fulton)

Her speech begins at 1:30 p.m, and she’s expected to speak for about an hour.

Dr. Albright served as President Bill Clinton’s (D) Secretary of State from 1997-2001, the first female Secretary of State in American history. She also served as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations from 1993-1997.

As the 64th Secretary of State, Dr. Albright advocated for democracy and human rights across the globe.

“This is a tremendous honor to welcome a world leader of Dr. Albright’s stature to Westminster. I have asked that her lecture further articulate her ideas about democracy’s future prospects, and how humanity might once again break down the walls that divide us, and join together, in a spirit of hope, to confront the challenges that lie ahead,” Westminster President Dr. Fletcher Lamkin said, in a written statement.

In 2012, President Barack Obama (D) honored Dr. Albright with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.

She is currently the chair of global strategy firm Albright Stonebridge Group. Her latest book, titled “Fascism, a Warning” was published in April and debuted at #1 on the “New York Times” bestseller list.

Dr. Albright’s lecture will be the final part of Westminster’s 12th annual Hancock Symposium, a two-day event that includes lectures, panel discussions and presentations.

The theme of this year’s symposium is “Breakthrough.” It ties-in with the Breakthrough sculpture that’s on the Westminster campus in Fulton. The sculpture is adjacent to Champ Auditorium, where Dr. Albright will be speaking.

The Churchill statue at Fulton’s Westminster College (2017 file photo from Missourinet’s Ashley Byrd)

This is the 30th anniversary of the Berlin Wall’s fall.

Previous Green Lecture speakers at Westminster have included former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1946), former President Harry Truman (1954), President Gerald Ford (1977), Vice President Hubert Humphrey (1967), Vice President George H.W. Bush (1986), former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (1996) and former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev (1992).

The 1946 Churchill event was the famous “Iron Curtain” speech. Then-President Harry Truman joined Churchill that day. The 1946 speech drew about 30,000 people to Fulton.

Fulton Police Chief Steve Myers tells Missourinet that his officers will be providing security for Thursday’s event, as they do for all VIPs who visit Westminster.

The Green Foundation Lecture began in 1937, and was established by a gift from Eleanor Green to honor the memory of her husband, St. Louis attorney John Findley Green. He graduated from Westminster in 1884 and served on the Westminster Board of Trustees for 27 years.

Missouri lawmaker warns of economic impact of Kansas City’s violent crime

September 18, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

The top Democrat on the Missouri House Special Committee on Tourism says violent crime is hurting business in his hometown of Kansas City.

State Rep. Richard Brown, D-Kansas City, briefs Capitol reporters in Jefferson City on September 10, 2019. House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, is at right (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Kansas City Police say there have been 110 homicides in 2019, and five of the victims were children. State Rep. Richard Brown, D-Kansas City, tells Capitol reporters the time for action is now, adding that God wants state lawmakers to take action instead of praying.

“In Kansas City in the month of August, we had a double homicide in the Power and Light district,” Brown says. “A patron was shot and killed in the 18th and Vine Jazz District.”

The popular Power and Light District includes restaurants, bars, live music and shopping.

Representative Brown, who’s the treasurer of Missouri’s Legislative Black Caucus, notes Kansas City is trying to attract the World Cup. The city is one of 17 finalist cities to host 2026 World Cup matches. Brown says fans won’t come if they don’t feel safe.

“Patrons who attend the Westport entertainment district now have to go through metal detectors on the weekend, and right now the (Country Club) Plaza is on life support because of the lack of patronage to the businesses on the weekends because of past violence,” says Brown.

He says a meaningful conversation must take place at the Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City.

Meantime, Governor Mike Parson (R) told Capitol reporters Friday afternoon that he’ll be meeting soon with Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas (D) and others about the issue of violent crime. The governor says it will take a coordinated effort among federal, state and community leaders.

“This will never be fixed by one agency,” Parson says. “It won’t. It’s going to take a lot of people a long time to try to fix this problem.”

That is the governor’s position as well on the crime issue in St. Louis City and County. 13 children have died from shootings in St. Louis City in 2019, and the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” reports six children in St. Louis County have died from gunshot wounds since January.

Parson met recently at the Statehouse with Representative Brown and other Black Caucus leaders. State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, D-Kansas City, says Kansas City and St. Louis have consistently ranked in the top ten deadliest cities for at least a decade.

Missouri’s governor warns about shortage of police officers; “Back the Blue” plates unveiled

September 17, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri Governor Mike Parson (R) says law enforcement agencies across the state are having a difficult time finding enough officers.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson briefs Capitol reporters on September 13, 2019. (Brian Hauswirth photo)

The governor spoke Friday afternoon at the Statehouse in Jefferson City, telling Capitol reporters it’s a dangerous job.

“If you talk to any county, any city police department, especially St. Louis (and) St. Louis County, you’re hundreds of people short of being able to put them in uniforms,” Parson says. “Simply because people are not wanting to work in that arena.”

Governor Parson says it’s important to “have the officers’ backs,” saying they are the front-line defense for Missourians.

He’s signed legislation into law, that gives Missourians the opportunity to obtain “Back the Blue” license plates. The plate is entirely voluntary.

State Rep. Sara Walsh, R-Ashland, who chairs the House Subcommittee on Appropriations for Public Safety, sponsored the “Back the Blue” bill, which was House bill 898.

Walsh spoke at the recent license plate unveiling ceremony, noting that a $10 donation will be collected from each license plate applicant for the Missouri Law Enforcement Memorial Foundation.

“This will help ensure the memorial that stands behind us (near the Capitol in Jefferson City) continues to stand in memory of Missouri’s fallen law enforcement officers,” says Walsh.

David and Beverly Thomas, the parents of murdered Columbia police officer Molly Bowden, help State Rep. Sara Walsh (left) unveil the “Back the Blue” license plate on September 10, 2019 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The memorial is located on the river side of the Statehouse.

House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon, also spoke at the ceremony. Wiemann is praising the new plates, saying they give residents the opportunity to show support for law enforcement officers. He notes some of his family members are law enforcement officers and first responders.

“This license plate I think will do a lot to help out our men and women in blue, and I’m just honored to be part of this ceremony,” Wiemann says.

Walsh and Wiemann were joined at the ceremony by House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, Missouri Department of Public Safety (DPS) Director Sandy Karsten, Missouri State Highway Patrol Colonel Eric Olson, Ashland Police Chief Lyn Woolford and several other state lawmakers and law enforcement officers.

Walsh became choked-up during the ceremony when she introduced David and Beverly Thomas of Rocheport. They are the parents of former Columbia Police Officer Molly Bowden, who was killed in the line of duty during a 2005 traffic stop.

Missouri governor: meeting with Krewson and Page “was about boots on the ground”

September 15, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri’s governor is expected to announce details of his plan to battle violent crime within the next week or so. The plan will involve state, federal and local coordination.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson briefs Capitol reporters on September 13, 2019. He was joined by State Rep. Becky Ruth (left) and State Sen. Wayne Wallingford (Brian Hauswirth photo)

Governor Mike Parson (R) briefed Capitol reporters Friday afternoon in Jefferson City, saying his recent meeting with St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson, St. Louis County Executive Sam Page and the city and county police chiefs was not a summit.

“That meeting the other day (last week at City Hall) that we had in St. Louis was about boots on the ground, it was about people on the enforcement side of it,” Parson says. “That’s all it was about. We didn’t discuss prosecution, we didn’t discuss anything. We were trying to figure out how can we get more people on the ground.”

Parson plans to send state troopers to St. Louis within the next month.

The governor says he’ll be meeting soon with both St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner and St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell, who are both Democrats.

13 children have been killed in shootings in St. Louis City in 2019, and the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” reports six children in St. Louis County have died from gunshot wounds since January.

Governor Parson is expressing his condolences to the families of the children who’ve been killed by gun violence in the St. Louis region and across the state. Parson became emotional when speaking to Capitol reporters on Friday.

“My heart goes out to them (families). You know, I’ve lost an officer in the line of duty, I’ve lost a brother-in-law in the line of duty. I know what it’s like to lose somebody,” says Parson.

The governor says the issue won’t be fixed by one agency, adding that it will take a coordinated effort among federal, state and community officials.

Meantime, Governor Parson is criticizing comments made last week by House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, about the special session.

Quade told Capitol reporters on Wednesday that “it makes no sense to prioritize tax breaks for a few over the lives of Missourians who die nearly everyday due to gun violence.”

Parson tells Missourinet that Leader Quade’s comments are “political hype.”

“And I’ll be frank with the Minority Leader that made that statement,” Parson says. “I didn’t know she … what she should have done was have a press conference a month ago when children were dying in the street, but unfortunately she came here to Jefferson City when it was convenient for her to start talking about this issue.”

Quade and House Democrats asked the governor to add the gun violence issue to the special session. State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, D-Kansas City, notes Kansas City and St. Louis have ranked in the top ten deadliest cities for at least a decade.

As for Governor Parson, he emphasizes that he’s not comparing the car sales tax issue with gun violence.

Schmitt to issue Friday report about clergy abuse in Roman Catholic Church in Missouri

September 12, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri’s attorney general will release a long-anticipated report Friday morning in St. Louis, regarding allegations of clergy abuse statewide within the Roman Catholic Church.

Then-State Treasurer Eric Schmitt speaks to former House Minority Leader Gail McCann Beatty on June 11, 2018 in Jefferson City (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Attorney General Eric Schmitt (R) has called a press conference for Friday at 10 a.m. at the old Post Office in downtown St. Louis.

His report will include all four Missouri dioceses: the Archdiocese of St. Louis, the Diocese of Jefferson City, the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau and the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.

The investigation has been going on for about a year.

Former Attorney General Josh Hawley’s office told Missourinet in September 2018 that all four Missouri dioceses had agreed to independent reviews conducted by the attorney general’s office.

Hawley resigned as attorney general after his November election to the U.S. Senate, and Schmitt was appointed to the post by the governor.

The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP) held a Statehouse press conference last September, the same day Hawley’s office spoke to Missourinet about the four dioceses agreeing to independent reviews. SNAP said then that there were at least 113 publicly-accused Catholic priests in Missouri, although SNAP believed the number is higher.

Diocese of Jefferson City Bishop Shawn McKnight briefs reporters in Jefferson City on August 24, 2018 (Brian Hauswirth photo)

SNAP has called on the Missouri attorney general’s office to use subpoenas and to question Missouri Catholic church officials under oath.

Diocese of Jefferson City Bishop Shawn McKnight held a press conference last August, where he said Mr. Hawley had called to express his gratitude for the bishop’s request that the AG’s office review diocese files about clergy abuse.

During that August 2018 press conference, Bishop McKnight was critical of previous Roman Catholic Church leaders.

“Their active cover-up or passive silence when clergy abusers were continued in the ministry or promoted in office gravely compromised the credibility of the hierarchy, and by extension, the whole Church,” McKnight told mid-Missouri reporters that day.

Bishop McKnight described sexual abuse of children as “a crime and a sin,” adding that the Diocese of Jefferson City has no tolerance for those who intentionally harm children.

Missourinet’s Jill Enders is covering General Schmitt’s Friday morning press conference in St. Louis.

20 House Democrats vote for vehicle sales tax bill pushed by Missouri GOP Governor

September 12, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri House has voted to give final approval to bipartisan legislation in Jefferson City that involves a complicated state Supreme Court ruling about vehicle sales taxes.

House Transportation Committee Chair Becky Ruth, R-Festus, speaks on the Missouri House floor on September 11, 2019 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Wednesday’s vote was 126-21, and more than a dozen House Democrats voted for the bill. It’s sponsored by House Transportation Committee Chairwoman Becky Ruth, R-Festus.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, tells Capitol reporters there’s a lot of support for the bill’s merits.

“Anytime you have a special session, there’s a lot of people that say ‘what about this issue’, ‘what about that.’ But on the actual issue that we were debating (the Ruth bill), we had across (bi)partisan support since the beginning,” Haahr says.

Governor Mike Parson (R) called this week’s special session, following the summer court ruling.

House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, also briefed Capitol reporters following Wednesday’s vote. She is critical of the special session, saying it’s wasting tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars.

“It makes no sense to prioritize tax breaks for a few over the lives of Missourians who die nearly everyday due to gun violence,” says Quade.

Despite Leader Quade’s comments, 20 House Democrats voted for the bill. It involves using the sale proceeds of a vehicle as a credit against the purchase price of a new vehicle when calculating sales tax.

The bill now heads to the Senate Ways and Means Committee for a hearing Thursday morning at 11:15 at the Capitol. State Sen. Andrew Koenig, R-Manchester, chairs Ways and Means.

No overrides at Missouri legislative veto session

September 11, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Missourians who ride motorcycles will still be required to wear helmets for at least another year, after the Missouri Legislature sustained all six of Governor Mike Parson’s (R) vetoes on Wednesday at the Statehouse in Jefferson City.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, (left) and Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, speak on the House floor on September 11, 2019 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Lawmakers gaveled-in at noon for the constitutionally-required veto session, which took less than 45 minutes in both chambers.

The motorcycle helmet bill is a perennial issue that’s been debated annually in Jefferson City for at least the past 20 years.

The organization “Freedom of the Road Riders” says it’s an issue of freedom, and that motorcyclists should have the option of riding without a helmet.

Governor Parson vetoed the bill, expressing safety concerns raised earlier by the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) about crashes and injuries.

While there were no override attempts in the Senate, State Rep. Deb Lavender, D-Kirkwood, unsuccessfully called on the House to override a veto on a health care bill, which was sponsored by State Rep. Chuck Basye, R-Rocheport.

Lavender says Basye’s bill is needed, noting that eight rural Missouri hospitals have closed.

“I believe our number is up to eight rural hospitals that we’ve lost in our state,” Lavender tells House colleagues. “So yes, this would be one of the ways that we would be able to at least provide some type of health care.”

Representative Lavender predicts revenue will increase, if Medicaid expands.

As for Representative Basye, he tells the House he was focused on the autism/disability portion of the vetoed bill. That portion passed in a separate bipartisan bill, and has been signed into law by Parson. Basye and Lavender teamed up on that bill.

Basye opposed an override attempt, and Lavender’s motion was defeated 105-37, with the 37 votes to override. Under the Missouri Constitution, it takes a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers to override a veto.

Another high-profile bill that was vetoed involves outdoor cremations, which are known as “Viking funerals.” Governor Parson vetoed legislation from State Sen. Jason Holsman, D-Kansas City, that would have allowed outdoor “Viking funerals.”

Holsman’s bill would have allowed funeral directors to perform cremations at an outdoor human cremation facility. Under the bill, only a licensed funeral director could have performed a cremation at an outdoor facility.

In his veto message, Governor Parson expressed concerns about health and safety issues, and called on lawmakers to do more vetting on the issue.

The overall bill was briefly discussed on Wednesday by State Rep. Sarah Unsicker, D-Shrewsbury. She talked about the importance of reducing maternal and infant mortality in Missouri, an issue contained in a separate portion of the bill. Infant and maternal mortality have been priority issues for Unsicker.

There was no attempt to override that veto.

Viking funeral and motorcycle helmet bills headline Missouri veto session (AUDIO)

September 11, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri lawmakers are back in Jefferson City on Wednesday for the constitutionally-required veto session. No overrides are expected.

Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, speaks on the House floor on May 17, 2019 in Jefferson City (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The state Constitution requires lawmakers to convene Wednesday at noon for the annual veto session. The Senate and House will both gavel-in at the same time.

Governor Mike Parson (R) vetoed six bills this year. The two most high-profile bills involve outdoor cremations and allowing motorcyclists to ride without a helmet.

Parson vetoed both of those, expressing safety concerns.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, spoke to Missourinet Tuesday afternoon on the Capitol lawn, following a “Back the Blue” license plate ceremony. Speaker Haahr tells Missourinet he doesn’t expect any veto overrides.

“The House bills that were vetoed, we’ve talked to each one of the (bill) sponsors and each of them have indicated that they don’t plan to offer theirs for a vote,” Haahr says. “And so I don’t anticipate any overrides this session.”

On the other side of the Capitol building, State Sen. Denny Hoskins, R-Warrensburg, tells Missourinet he doesn’t expect any override attempts in either the House or Senate.

It takes a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers to override a veto.

The governor vetoed legislation from State Sen. Jason Holsman, D-Kansas City, that would have allowed outdoor “Viking funerals.” Senator Holsman told the “Kansas City Star” this summer that Viking funerals “have been around since the dawn of man.”

In his veto message, Governor Parson expressed concerns about health and safety issues, and called on lawmakers to do more vetting on the issue.

“The burial of our loved ones or the disposal of their remains is deeply personal and should be treated with the utmost care and respect. Without more thorough vetting to ensure that outdoor cremations can be conducted in a manner that fully disposes of the entire remains while also addressing the health and safety concerns of individuals who may be impacted nearby, I am not comfortable with allowing these types of ceremonies to be conducted in our state,” Parson’s July veto message reads, in part.

As for the motorcycle helmet bill, that’s a perennial issue that’s been debated annually in Jefferson City for at least the past 20 years.

The organization “Freedom of the Road Riders” and lawmakers like State Rep. Andrew McDaniel, R-Deering, support allowing motorcyclists the option of riding without a helmet, if they have health insurance. They say it’s an issue of freedom.

Governor Parson vetoed the bill, expressing safety concerns raised earlier by the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) about crashes and injuries.

Governor Parson is the third governor to veto the bill in the past 20 years.

Then-Governor Mel Carnahan (D) vetoed a similar motorcycle helmet bill in 1999, and then-Governor Jay Nixon (D) vetoed a similar bill in 2009. Those two vetoes were not overridden.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full two-minute interview with House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, which was recorded on the Missouri Capitol lawn on September 10, 2019:

MSP tours in Jefferson City to resume, following May tornado (AUDIO)

September 10, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

You’ll have the opportunity again soon to tour the old Missouri State Penitentiary (MSP) in Jefferson City, about four months after an EF-3 tornado struck the facility.

The Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City’s front entrance (2019 file photo courtesy of Jefferson City Convention and Visitors Bureau)

Jefferson City Convention and Visitors Bureau (JCCVB) spokeswoman Brittney Mormann says modified tours will be offered.

“We are actually going to start tours beginning October 1 and we’ll run those through November 30, which is typically our end of tour season,” Mormann says.

The modified tours will include access to housing units one and three and the old gas chamber, where 40 Missouri inmates were executed between 1937 and 1989.

It will also include the popular “ghost tours.”

Mormann tells Missourinet the CVB has lost $308,000 in revenue since the tours stopped, because of the tornado.

She says more than 33,000 people toured MSP in 2018, with some coming from different states and countries. Mormann says that resulted in a $2.5 million economic impact on Jefferson City.

MSP was one of about 240 Jefferson City area structures struck by the tornado. Mormann encourages residents to take a fall tour, noting the tornado will be mentioned.

“Our tour guides are going to do the best of their ability to tell you about the history as well as that new layer of history with the (May) tornado coming through on the property,” says Mormann.

MSP, which was known as the “Bloodiest 47 Acres in the United States”, housed high-profile inmates like James Earl Ray and boxer Sonny Liston.

You can find more tour information at missouripentours.com. Net profit from tour ticket and merchandise sales goes back into the preservation of MSP, which opened in 1836.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full interview with Jefferson City Convention and Visitors Bureau spokeswoman Brittney Mormann, which was recorded on September 9, 2019:

A snapshot of the Missouri Legislature’s special session this week

September 9, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri lawmakers will return to the State Capitol in Jefferson City on Monday for a special session involving a complicated State Supreme Court ruling about vehicle sales.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson signs legislation on July 10, 2019 (file photo courtesy of Governor Parson’s office)

While it’s not officially on the special session agenda, Democrats in both the House and Senate will have an opportunity to speak on the respective floors about the issue of gun violence, which is a top priority for the Legislative Black Caucus.

Governor Mike Parson (R) announced in August that he’s calling the special session over the Supreme Court’s “Kehlenbrink vs. Department of Revenue” case.

“After reviewing the court’s decision, we’ve decided to call a special session because it’s simply the right thing to do for the people of our state,” Parson announced in August. “The enforcement of this decision would create a financial burden on Missouri taxpayers and unnecessary government red tape that we can proactively prevent.”

The Supreme Court’s summer ruling involves using the sale proceeds of a vehicle as a credit against the purchase price of a new vehicle when calculating sales tax. Essentially, the Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that state law unambiguously permits the sale proceeds of only one vehicle as a credit against the purchase price of a new car, for the purposes of calculating sales tax.

“And really, the simple version of it (the Supreme Court’s ruling) is when you trade cars in, for example if you trade two cars in, you get a credit back on those two cars or for that model if you’re buying another one. There was a ruling by the Supreme Court that says you can only do one,” Parson told Missourinet on August 15 at the State Fair in Sedalia. That was the first time the governor had spoken publicly about the issue.

Parson says the ruling impacts about 2,000 to 3,000 Missourians, adding this is money out of their pocket.

GOP leaders in both chambers indicate the special session should end by Friday.

House Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, has released a schedule indicating the House will have a technical session on Monday, with floor debate and discussion expected Wednesday morning and afternoon. The House is expected to give final approval to the vehicle tax bill on Wednesday.

Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, tells Missourinet he expects the Senate to take possession of the bill on Thursday. A Senate hearing would take place Thursday, and Schatz expects the Senate to approve the bill on Friday.

Under the state Constitution, both chambers will also hold the annual veto session Wednesday at noon, which means they will stop the special session and then reconvene it after veto session ends.

Governor Parson vetoed six bills this year. State Sen. Denny Hoskins, R-Warrensburg, tells Missourinet he doesn’t expect any override attempts in the House or the Senate.

As for the Legislative Black Caucus, they support legislation allowing cities with high gun violence, like St. Louis and Kansas City, to approve their own gun control legislation. They wanted Governor Parson to include the issue in this week’s special session.

The governor opposes that, saying there are “many different opinions on how to find a solution.” Governor Parson met with State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, D-Kansas City, and other Black Caucus leaders behind closed doors last week at the Capitol. Representative Manlove says the governor is pushing for improved job opportunities in St. Louis and Kansas City.

The governor told Missourinet’s Jill Enders in St. Charles last week that he plans to send Missouri state troopers to St. Louis within the next 30 days. Parson also supports working with churches, to help prevent violence.

Manlove and other Black Caucus members will have an opportunity to discuss the issue on the floors of the House and Senate. Manlove tells Missourinet children are still dying, noting there have been more than 100 Kansas City homicides in 2019.

She says gun violence is “ravaging our streets,” and notes Kansas City and St. Louis have consistently ranked in the top ten deadliest cities for at least a decade.