JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Supporters of medical marijuana in Missouri have hired a prominent political consultant to help with a campaign to put a proposal on the 2016 ballot.

New Approach Missouri’s new consultant Jack Cardetti met this week with marijuana advocates at an event at Busch Stadium.

Cardetti worked on Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon and Secretary of State Jason Kander’s campaigns.

Cardetti says New Approach Missouri plans to hire people to collect enough voter signatures to get the medical marijuana proposal on next year’s ballot.

Medical and recreational marijuana proposals failed in 2012 and 2014 to collect enough signatures.

National Narcotic Officers’ Associations’ Coalition Vice President Jason Grellner says he doesn’t think there’s voter support for marijuana measures in Missouri.

But hiring Cardetti and signature collectors could boost the medical marijuana campaign.

NEBRASKA CITY, Neb. (AP) — A January trial has been scheduled for a 20-year-old man accused of stabbing to death a Nebraska City resident.

Sebastien Hall pleaded not guilty Tuesday to second-degree murder and a weapons charge. The trial is set to begin Jan. 6.

Prosecutors say Hall killed 21-year-old Jacob Adams on July 19. Prosecutors say Adams was fighting with Hall and another man, 22-year-old Dylan Boyle, when Adams was stabbed.

Boyle has pleaded not guilty to an assault charge.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A man who marred his ex-girlfriend’s “Happiness is a warm gun” tattoo when he shot her has been ordered to pay $100,000 for her pain and suffering.

Paul Boye is serving 10 to 15 years for assault stemming from the Feb. 2, 2014, shooting of Andrea Eberspacher.

She sued him, and in June he was found civilly liable and was ordered to pay nearly $20,000 for her medical bills. Another trial was set to determine whether he should pay more money for her pain, suffering, inconvenience and loss of companionship.

A jury awarded her $100,000 on Tuesday.

Her attorney has said an incision made for treatment of her abdominal wounds left a scar that bisected the tattoo.

DETROIT (AP) — U.S. auto safety regulators are holding a public meeting next month as they move toward taking control of the massive Takata air bag recall.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration hearing will take place Oct. 22. It’s a step toward managing production and distribution of replacement air bag inflators.

At least eight people have been killed and more than 100 injured by Takata inflators, which can explode with too much force and spew shrapnel. The problem affects 11 automakers.

So far about 23.4 million driver and passenger air bag inflators have been recalled on 19.2 million U.S. vehicles. But only about 4.4 million inflators have been replaced.

The agency has said the recalls created a patchwork of solutions that may not fix the problem quickly enough.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas officials say a review of the state’s new welfare law shows it doesn’t conflict with federal rules governing state child care programs.

Kansas Department for Children and Families economic and employment services director Sandra Kimmons also said Tuesday that federal officials haven’t indicated that there’s a problem.

The Kansas City Star reports that the issue arose after a child advocacy group raised concerns that several aspects of the new welfare reform law could collide with federal rules, jeopardizing more than $40 million a year in federal funds. The law, called the HOPE Act, was approved by the Legislature last session.

Shannon Cotsoradis, president and CEO of Kansas Action for Children, maintains there could be a problem with certain state work requirements for parents and subsidy cutoffs for noncompliance.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Thousands of Syrian refugees are fleeing the Middle East, but so far, few are making their way to St. Louis.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the St. Louis region has accepted 29 Syrian refugees so far this year. Maggie Crane, a spokeswoman for Mayor Francis Slay, says another 20 are expected by the end of the year.

The exodus of Syrians from the Middle East has accelerated in recent weeks, with Europe the predominate destination. Germany has said it could take in more than 50,000 refugees a year.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — A sorority at Missouri State University in Springfield is opening its doors to transgender students.

The Springfield News-Leader reports that the Xi Omnicron Iota sorority voted Aug. 30 to change its bylaws to accept students who identify as female. The change took effect immediately and was made public this week, just days ahead of the sorority’s fall recruitment push, which begins Sunday.

The local Greek chapter currently has 75 active members, and several sorority leaders say they don’t know of any transgender student attempting to join in the past.

The college’s student government association officially recognized the Xi Omnicron Iota sorority in 2002. It’s a local chapter, unique to the university and isn’t affiliated with a national organization.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Missouri’s governor and top law enforcer are asking a federal judge to throw out a lawsuit by a group of Satanic worshippers who allege the state’s abortion restrictions violate their religious beliefs and should be scrapped.

Attorneys for Gov. Jay Nixon and Attorney General Chris Koster filed a motion Tuesday to dismiss the suit filed in June by The Satanic Temple and a Missouri member identified only as “Mary Doe.”

The lawsuit questions a Missouri law requiring abortion providers to give pregnant women information about the physical characteristics of the fetus and the fetus’ ability to feel pain by at least 22 weeks. The law also requires a 72-hour waiting period after providing the woman with an opportunity to view an ultrasound and hear the fetus’ heartbeat.

OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s fire marshal says investigators are not able to determine the cause of an August fire in Osage Beach that killed four children.

A fire investigator’s report released Tuesday found the damage was so extensive he could not determine whether the fire was started by cigarette butts in a can or by electrical wiring from an air conditioning condenser on the condo’s landing. The can was on the floor of the landing between the condenser and a wall.

The children killed in the fire at the Compass Pointe Condominiums ranged in age from two to five. They were in bed when the fire broke out. An adult with them escaped and said he tried to return to rescue the children but became disoriented.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A terminal at Kansas City International Airport was partially evacuated after a passenger began acting suspiciously on a flight before it landed.

Airport spokesman Joe McBride says in a news release that the male passenger was aboard an American Airlines flight Tuesday from Chicago to Kansas City. The crew alerted airport police, who met the passenger when the plane landed. He was taken into custody for questioning.

McBride said part of Terminal C was evacuated “out of an abundance of caution.”