cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/27631935

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/27631878

Excerpt:

It has taken nearly a decade for St. Louis’ Civilian Oversight Board to find the footing needed to effectively investigate police misconduct and give residents the tools to hold police accountable, says board member Keith Rose. The city established the board in the years following the Black Lives Matter protests in nearby Ferguson, where grassroots organizers amplified calls to end police violence. But the board faced obstacles at every turn, from legal battles with police unions to the police department’s refusal to cooperate with investigations.

“It feels like we only just now got to the place where we have a path to do the work, after delays from lawsuits and police noncooperation. It finally feels like the board is ready to do the work,” Rose told Bolts.

But the state of Missouri is poised to wreck community oversight over policing in St. Louis. Governor Mike Kehoe on Wednesday signed a bill that ends the city’s ability to run its own police department, transferring control to the GOP-run state government. Going forward, the department will be led by a board mostly appointed by the Republican governor. The new law, which passed with the support of police unions, also requires St. Louis to commit 25 percent of its budget to policing by 2028.

“In order to prevent additional oversight, the police union has decided to go out and find representatives that do not represent the people of St. Louis and ask them to take over,” Rose said. “No reform is palatable enough for the police unions.”

There is a dark precedent for Missouri state officials seizing control of law enforcement in this city. On the eve of the Civil War, a secessionist governor took over the local police, worried that the city may otherwise resist his hopes of having Missouri join the Confederacy. He proceeded to pack the new state-run board with secessionist members, according to Chris Gordon, a historian with the Missouri Historical Society.

This state control then remained in place for well over 150 years. Only in 2012 did 64 percent of Missourians approve a measure to let St. Louis, which has a large Black population, run its own police force. The new law overrides that reform, returning control to the state leadership, which is largely white.

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cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/32236023

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10113707

50 PROTESTS - 50 STATES - 1 DAY #50501 - 2/5/25 - YOUR STATE CAPITOL Can't Travel? Your Country Still Needs You! Participate Wherever You Are; Check the Community Highlights for Info!

https://www.reddit.com/r/50501/

I was rushing to get these done between school and work, but I kept each of the 5 questions under 3 minutes if y'all are curious how I interpreted them! I heard lines might be longer than usual today, so make sure you've got water and some snacks. Hope to see you at the polls!

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.today/post/18356889

Hey y'all - I'm starting a video series breaking down our statewide ballot questions since I looked last week and had no idea about some of them. I'd really appreciate any support you can give, whether it's watching, commenting, or following my channel!

As someone on mastodon said, "I'm a little sad that I will never ever ever be as whimsical as this meteorologist was with this costume no matter how hard I try."

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/21425435

Missouri…once again, making it too easy for social media! It's like living in an Onion headline…without the satire.

A longshot Missouri gubernatorial candidat e with ties to the Ku Klux Klan will stay on the Republican ticket, a judge ruled Friday.

Cole County Circuit Court Judge Cotton Walker denied a request by the Missouri GOP to kick Darrell McClanahan out of the August Republican primary.

McClanahan is running against Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, state Sen. Bill Eigel and others for the GOP nomination to replace Gov. Mike Parson, who is barred by term limits from seeking reelection.

McClanahan’s lawyer, Dave Roland, said the ruling ensures that party leaders do not have “almost unlimited discretion to choose who’s going to be allowed on a primary ballot.”

Everything I say is a lie…
[email protected] ☆ [email protected] ☆ [email protected]

Last week I bought a used car. I got a title. I moved to Missouri in January, and I'll be moving back out of Missouri in a month. I have insurance on it. I've been looking at the papers I still need online, and at reviews of the different office I need to go to. Apparently, I need info from the assessors office to show that I'm exempt from property tax on the vehicle or to pay it.

It's gonna be an hours drive to get to the office. They dont have accurate info online on hours open, they don't answer the phone, and the voicemail says that they hope to open again on April 4th. It's April 15th. I figure it's gonna be another drive to get to DMV offices, and reviews on both offices show that there's 2 hours waits, and extremely unpredictable closing times. So I'm looking at having to take at least a day off of work, maybe more.

I make like $300 on a good day. The max fines for late registration look like $200, and for the traffic violation it's $50.50, if I understand right from my Google search. If I were able to even get a hold of somebody at either office during business hours, I'd go ahead and register. Honestly though, I'm struggling to justify the opportunity cost. I could get caught and fined twice in a traffic stop before it would be worth doing it.

Am I missing something? Is it financially worth registering my car? What if I just register when I move, in the new state?

Missouri House Republicans passed a resolution Wednesday that seeks to make it harder to amend the state constitution.

Lawmakers voted 106-49 to pass the resolution, almost strictly on party lines, with Majority Floor Leader Jon Patterson, R-Lee’s Summit, being the only Republican to vote no.

The resolution now goes to the Senate, which has already approved its version.

[...]

The resolution, if passed by both chambers, would ask voters whether it should be harder to amend Missouri’s constitution through the initiative petition process.

Even though this will likely pass both chambers, it still has to go to a plebiscite.

Hopefully Missourians are smart enough to vote down this attack on our rights. Luckily, voters have been pretty good about things like this (except for the rollback of the lobbying reform "Clean Missouri" act). Still, people need to be aware of this.

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/16271143

Under a Missouri statute that has recently gained nationwide attention, every petitioner for divorce is required to disclose their pregnancy status. In practice, experts say, those who are pregnant are barred from legally dissolving their marriage. “The application [of the law] is an outright ban,” said Danielle Drake, attorney at Parks & Drake. When Drake learned her then husband was having an affair, her own divorce stalled because she was pregnant. Two other states have similar laws: Texas and Arkansas.

[email protected] ☆ [email protected]