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Reward offered in Melissa Peskey I-70 murder after nine months and no arrests

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The family and friends of a woman killed on I-70 nine months ago are offering a $10,000 reward for tips that lead to an arrest.

The Missouri Highway Patrol is still trying to find the murderer of Iowa native Melissa Peskey, who was shot and killed was killed on I-70 near mile marker 96 near Boonville, Missouri. Her two children, 5 and 11 years old, were found alive in the backseat of her crashed Ford Flex. She was on her way to visit a friend in South Carolina and was on the phone with her sister when she was shot from outside her car.

Dateline NBC featured the details of the case, for which there have been no arrests so far.

The Missouri Highway Patrol posted on Facebook: “If you have information on this case & haven’t spoken up, now is the time.
MSHP (573) 751-1000”

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

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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.

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Two more children killed Thursday as St. Louis region awaits a plan from governor, city and county leaders

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Tuesday, St. Louis County Chief of Police Jon Belmar sat at a conference table with Gov. Mike Parson, St. Louis County Executive Sam Page and St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson as they sought solutions to the area’s increase in violent crime. Video of meeting press conference. 

Belmar (left), St. Louis Police Chief John Hayden, MO Public Safety Dir. Sandy Karsten with Parson at St. Louis City Hall September 10, 2019.

Thursday, two youngsters died from gunshot wounds in north St. Louis County: a toddler who found his father’s loaded gun and a 13-year-old who was walking through an apartment complex. According to the St. Louis Post Dispatch, six children have died from gunshot wounds in St. Louis County this year, and 13 children have been killed by gunfire in the city of St. Louis this year.

Belmar told the press Thursday, “It’s heartbreaking for the families and those involved and I will tell you it is also heartbreaking for the police officers who are involved in this.”

Gov. Parson has promised to announce the first steps of a state-local plan within the week. He says he will also meet with county and city prosecutors soon.

“I’m not the fix-all to everything, I’m not. But I want to support everybody at the table today. I want to come up with solutions.”

“As somebody who has been in law enforcement for 22 years and I am standing up here with these fellow officers who are up here today to try to figure out how do we deal with this terrible situation in our state. And the bottom line is how do we protect those children who are out there being killed in the streets every day.”

Meanwhile, Democrat lawmakers who were in the state capital for a special session this week asked for an interim committee to address gun violence across the state. Kansas City Senator Kiki Curls asked her chamber, “Maybe there is some gray area, some middle ground so that we can make sure that folks that are using firearms and guns lawfully are not impacted by it.”

Senate President Dave Schatz, a Republican from Sullivan, near St. Louis, says he will consider the idea as long as it “does not take guns away from law-abiding citizens.”

Missouri Attorney General seeks prosecution for 12 former Catholic clergy after statewide investigation

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Attorney General Schmitt at press conference in St. Louis September 13, 2019 (photo Jill Enders)

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt is referring twelve former clergy members accused of sexual abuse for prosecution. Schmitt’s office has concluded a year-long investigation into the four Catholic dioceses in the state.

In a Friday press conference in St. Louis, Schmitt said, “For decades, faced with credible reports of abuse, the church refused to acknowledge the victims and instead focused their efforts on protecting priests.”

The Missouri Attorney General’s Office must refer the cases to local prosecutors.

“In cases in which local prosecutors should seek our assistance, we stand ready and willing to help, he said Friday. “To the victims: you didn’t deserve any of this. None of what happened to you was your fault. This report, our referrals for criminal prosecution, our aggressive and substantive suggestions for reform, will not change what happened in the past. But, they can change the trajectory of the future and ensure that this never happens again.”

Schmitt, who is also Catholic, also outlined recommendations for church leaders: “Diocese [sic] should  assume greater responsibility and oversight over all religious order priests and priest visiting or relocating from other dioceses; number two, the diocese should ensure that their independent review boards are composed entirely of laypeople and that the determinations of credibility and sanctions will be given authoritative weight with respect to the ability of the offending priest and minister in its diocese.”

The investigation, initiated by the previous Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley, reports that 163 clergy members were accused of sexual misconduct against minors. Of those, 80 have died, according to previous news reports.

Archbishop Robert Carlson released this statement in response to the investigation:

“The Archdiocese of St. Louis has cooperated in full transparency with the Missouri Attorney General’s Office throughout their investigation and will continue to cooperate fully with civil authorities on cases of clergy abuse of a minor. The Attorney General’s report confirms the progress the archdiocese has made in implementing the protocols to protect our children; and while we cannot predict nor control all human behavior, those protocols have resulted in no acts of physical sexual abuse since the Charter of 2002. We are taking the Attorney General’s recommendations to the Catholic Church into careful consideration and will continue to evaluate and enhance our safe environment programs for the safety of all of our families.”

Steven Spaner of the Survivors Network of those Abused By Priests (SNAP) says the investigation did not go after all of the evidence.

“They say they asked for the documents but they should have asked for subpoena power from the Legislature so that they could truly ask for the documents that are what they call ‘secret archives.'”

Reported by Jill Enders and Ashley Byrd

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

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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.

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

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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.

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(VIDEO) Gov. Parson, Mayor Krewson press conference in St. Louis, promise a plan in 10 days

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Governor Mike Parson, St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson and County Executive Sam Page held a press conference after meeting with law enforcement and other city leaders about the area’s continued spike in violent crime. The governor calls it “a crisis in our state” and promises to have a plan in place in 10 days.

Watch the entire press conference below:

Missouri Lottery: I-44 corridor highlights problem with illegal slot machines

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The Missouri Lottery’s executive director testified Thursday in Jefferson City that illegal slot machines are hurting public education in the Show-Me State.

The Missouri Lottery logo (courtesy of Missouri Lottery)

Former State Rep. May Scheve Reardon testified before a House interim committee, telling lawmakers there’s a major issue with illegal slot machines along the I-44 corridor. She talks about one Lottery sales representative whose territory goes from St. James to Lebanon.

“Down that I-44 corridor alone in six months, her route alone was down $800,000,” Scheve Reardon testifies. “That’s an estimated $3.2 million sales lost for six months.”

She says the average monthly Lottery sales lost, per retailer with the alleged illegal machines, is $90,000.

Illegal slot machines can be found in bars, restaurants, gas stations and convenience stores.

Scheve Reardon testified during a 90-minute hearing before the House Special Interim Committee on Gaming, which is chaired by State Rep. Dan Shaul, R-Imperial.

Shaul tells the audience that illegal slot machines cost Missouri education at least $50 million last year. He says the alleged illegal slot machines are hurting the Lottery, thereby impacting classrooms.

“The (Missouri) Lottery is losing revenue here, because of these alleged illegal machines. So are the (Missouri’s 13) casinos, so is everybody across that’s funding the state. The state is losing money because of these,” says Shaul.

Missouri House Special Interim Committee on Gaming Chairman Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, speaks on August 22, 2019 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Chairman Shaul tells Missourinet the public will have the opportunity to testify at the next hearing, which is October 10 in Jefferson City.

Thursday’s hearing was the committee’s second in two weeks. The Missouri Gaming Commission testified before the committee on August 22, saying the state needs a coordinated effort to stop the illegal machines.

“We’re trying to coordinate efforts among law enforcement and prosecutors, trying to educate prosecutors on how to prosecute those cases,” Gaming Commission Executive Director David Grothaus testified in August.

Grothaus notes there’s one pending criminal case in western Missouri’s Platte County, in the Kansas City area.

Scheve Reardon says the Missouri Lottery generated more than $306 million for education in fiscal year 2018.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

New Missouri law aims to shrink the number of offenders locked up

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The Missouri Legislature passed and Gov. Mike Parson signed into law this year a bill intended to reduce the number of offenders being locked up in local jails and state prisons. House Bill 192, sponsored by Rep. Bruce DeGroot, R-Chesterfield, wipes out mandatory minimum sentences for some nonviolent crimes.

Brian Munzlinger

Brian Munzlinger is a former state Senator from northeast Missouri’s Williamstown. He is also a new member of the State Probation & Parole board.

Munzlinger tells Missourinet the law requires the parole board to evaluate whether those serving required minimums for nonviolent crimes should go free.

“A lot of that would be drug charges – minor drug charges,” says Munzlinger.

The law, which took effect Aug. 28, also intends to block the practice of throwing people back in jail for not paying for their previous jail bills.

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Nasheed: Missouri senators should hear testimony from parents of murdered St. Louis children (AUDIO)

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A key state senator from St. Louis is calling on Missouri’s GOP Senate leader to create an interim committee to study gun violence, saying it’s a public health crisis.

State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, briefs Capitol reporters in January 2018 (file photo courtesy of Missouri Senate photographer Harrison Sweazea)

State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, notes 13 children have been killed in St. Louis city shootings in 2019. She tells Missourinet she wants the Senate committee to hold a hearing in St. Louis.

“And begin to hear all of the tragic incidents that have occurred due to gun violence from the surviving parents of those children that were killed,” Nasheed says.

Nasheed describes the gun violence in her hometown as an epidemic. She’s also calling for increased protection of crime witnesses, saying they are fearful for their safety.

Governor Mike Parson (R) signed legislation from Senator Nasheed into law this spring, which gives prosecutors discretion to redact personal identifying information about crime witnesses.

Senator Nasheed, who serves as the Democratic Minority Caucus Whip in the State Senate, says by forming a Senate committee now, policies can be ready for discussion when lawmakers return to Jefferson City in January.

She says lawmakers must also pass “concrete policy changes” to improve outcomes for police and prosecutors, when they return to the Capitol in January for the 2020 session.

“Outstate (rural Missouri), they hunt animals,” says Nasheed. “And in the city (of St. Louis), all we have been seeing throughout the summer is humans hunting humans, killing humans.”

Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, says he’s open to having a conversation about an interim committee. He says he’ll discuss the issue with GOP state senators next week.

However, Pro Tem Schatz tells Missourinet that if it’s about restricting the rights of law-abiding gun owners, then it’s a “non-starter” for him.

Lawmakers will return to the Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City on Monday for a special session on vehicle taxes. The annual veto session is next Wednesday.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full interview with State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, which was recorded on September 4, 2019:

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