ST. LOUIS (AP) — Two St. Louis-area mothers whose sons were fatally shot by police say unrest in places like Ferguson, Baltimore and St. Louis won’t stop until police work with, instead of against, the black community.

Toni Taylor and Alice Willis spoke at a news conference Thursday to show support for Baltimore demonstrators and call for communities to give blacks more input into police operations. The news conference was at the corner where Taylor’s son, Cary Ball Jr., was shot by two St. Louis officers in 2013. Willis’ son, Michael Willis, was fatally shot by a Jennings officer in September.

Taylor says young black men are dying at the hands of police at an alarming rate, but officers are seldom held accountable. Willis says black children shouldn’t have to grow up fearing police.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has vetoed a bill that would cut the amount of time low-income families can receive welfare benefits.

Nixon announced his veto Thursday while describing the legislation as “a misguided measure that punishes children.”

The bill would reduce the lifetime limit for benefits under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program from five years to three years and nine months, starting next January. The Department of Social Services estimates more than 3,100 families would lose benefits.

It also would drop people from the program for failing to meet work requirements.

Republicans who control the Legislature say the cutbacks could spur parents to become self-sufficient while saving the state money.

A veto override would require a two-thirds vote of both chambers.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A guest invited to stay at someone’s home in Missouri would have a legal defense for using deadly force against an intruder under a measure approved by the House.

The Missouri House Thursday endorsed a measure that opponents say does not make sense in urban areas where gun violence is a bigger problem than rural areas.

The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Joe Don McGaugh, a Republican, says the measure would allow a grandparent or relative who doesn’t own the property to protect children staying in the house when they are endangered.

The measure was approved by a vote of 112-34 and now goes to the Senate.

NEVADA, Mo. (AP) — American Standard Brands says it will close its plant in southwest Missouri, costing 133 people their jobs.

The New Jersey-based company says its plant in Nevada will close June 30. It will relocate its production of chinaware products, such as toilets and bathroom sinks, to other plants.

The Springfield News-Leader reports plans for the existing plant were not disclosed.

The Nevada plant opened in 1970 by Crane Plumbing and has been a major employer in the community since then.

Crane Plumbing was merged with AS America, Inc., and Eljer, Inc., in 2008 to form American Standard Brands.

American Standard Brands is now part of LIXIL Water Technology, based in Luxembourg, with manufacturing across 50 plants worldwide.

STEELE, Mo. (AP) — A southeast Missouri woman has been awarded $20 million in a wrongful death lawsuit filed after her husband died in a collision with a train in 2012.

A jury returned the verdict Tuesday in favor of Sherry Spence against BNSF Railway. Her husband, 53-year-old Scott Spence, died in a collision with a BNSF train in October 2012 on a rural Stoddard County road. Court records indicate the crossing had only a railroad crossing sign.

The Southeast Missouri reported the family argued the crossing did not have safe sight distance, lights or gates, had obstructed visibility and that the train crew was negligent.

BNSF said in a statement that no evidence showed negligence by the railroad and the trial clearly showed Spence did not stop at the crossing.

By Mike Lear (Missourinet) – A state representative doesn’t like how a state energy plan is being developed and wants to require that the legislature gets to sign off on it.

Governor Jay Nixon (D) launched in June an effort to create a plan for how Missouri will generate and use energy.

Representative Rocky Miller (R-Lake Ozark) says he doesn’t like that the plan is being developed by a steering committee, facilitated by a contractor, and with information gathered at public meetings, all without the involvement of a single legislator. He says he was told the legislature would be shown the plan once its developed.

He’s proposing that the plan should need legislative approval.

“The whole idea behind the bill is so that I get to see it all. I don’t want to be brought a little piece and go, ‘Here, we need you to pass this,’” Miller told a Senate committee.

Senator Jason Holsman (R-Kansas City) says involving the legislature could keep the plan from being implemented.

“The general assembly in the last five years has been unable, incapable, or unwilling to pass legislation that deals with the future of Missouri’s energy,” said Holsman.

Miller’s language is being considered as a part of several bills.

By Kyle Loethen (Missourinet) – Some Missouri lawmakers say a system that tracks the purchase of pseudoephedrine is helping law enforcement crack down on those trying to make meth. At least one narcotics law enforcement officer disagrees.

NPLEx is a real-time electronic logging system used by pharmacies and law enforcement that tracks and limits how many times an individual buys medicine that has pseudoephedrine, the key ingredient used in making meth. The Combat Meth Act was passed by the federal government in 2005 and requires that every purchase of pseudoephedrine products are logged. The Missouri legislature passed the NPLEx system in 2010 and it was implemented in 2011. State law allows the purchase of 3.6 grams per day, 9 grams per 30 day, and 108 grams annually.

State Representative Kurt Bahr said the NPLEx system is more efficient than the previous log book method in which pharmacies tracked purchases by logging information by hand in written books. Bahr said last year the NPLEx system stopped 3,500 boxes of pseudoephedrine from being sold to those who would be improperly using it.

“It’s a point of sale security measure to make sure people aren’t purchasing too much pseudoephedrine, so that we curb the production of methamphetamines,” said Bahr.

Some states require a prescription for drugs containing pseudoephedrine, but State Representative Travis Fitzwater said lawmakers are thankful Missouri has the NPLEx system rather than requiring a prescription for those drugs.

“We want to make sure that there’s nobody pushing to make this an RX only thing because it prevents patients from getting the medications that are necessary in this really annoying time of the year where everybody kind of gets drilled with allergies,” said Fitzwater.

Lieutenant of the Franklin County Sheriffs Office and President of the Missouri Narcotics Association Jason Grellner said the NPLEx system is not enough to fight the production of meth and believes the state should adopt a prescription only method.

“The NPLEx system can’t stop smurfing in which we see day in and day out,” said Grellner. “We even see large scale smurfing among gangs in St. Louis where gang members will stand on the parking lots of Walgreens and shoulder tap individuals going inside, giving them cash to purchase pseudoephedrine.”

Grellner said “smurfing” is where multiple people purchase pseudoephedriene in order to make meth and said an upwards of 60 to 70 percent of pseudoephedrine sales go directly to meth labs. Grellner said there are 74 counties and cities that require prescriptions for drugs containing pseudoephedrine.

“What we have seen in those communities that have gone prescription only is up to an 80 or 90 percent drop in meth labs along the southeast portion of Missouri where we have the most cities and counties with prescription only requirements,” said Grellner.

Bahr said requiring a prescription would make purchases of pseudoephedrine impossible to track.

“Once you become a prescription only you’re subject to HIPAA law,” said Bahr. “So, now the sheriff can’t go in and take a look at the log book because that’s now a HIPAA violation and so he doesn’t know whose buying pseudoephedrine in his own county.”
Grellner said the NPLEx system is paid for by the industry that manufactures pseudoephedrine products that are sold to the public.

“The problem is it’s a $1.2 billion a year gross industry that we’re up against and we’re up against a lot of strong lobbying from the industry that stands to lose that money,” said Grellner.

Some experts say 90 percent of the meth purchased in the United States is cooked in Mexico, where precursor chemicals are easier to obtain.

“I would rather work on methamphetamine trafficking than meth labs that explode, endanger the lives of Missourians, endanger the environment, and endanger children throughout the state of Missouri and law enforcement officers that have to work in those environments,” said Grellner.

BONNER SPRINGS, Kan. (AP) — A 15-month-old has been flown to a hospital after being struck by a lawn mower in Leavenworth County.

Authorities say the toddler suffered injuries to the lower body in the Wednesday night incident.

According to the Leavenworth County Sheriff’s Office, the victim, who was taken to Children’s Mercy Hospital, lives at the home where the incident occurred.

Further details were not released.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Voters would get to decide whether any governments in Missouri should be able to use red light cameras under a measure moving forward in the Missouri House.

The House on Wednesday gave initial approval to a bill that would place a question on the 2016 ballot banning automated traffic enforcement.

Supporters of the ban say red light cameras are used by cities to generate revenue and that there is limited evidence on whether they improve safety.

The measure comes up at a time when legal cases challenging the use of red light cameras in the state are awaiting a decision by the Missouri Supreme Court.

The bill was approved 141-14 and faces another vote before heading to the Senate.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri Senate has passed a bill to limit police use of deadly force, an effort to address issues raised following the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown.

Senators on Wednesday voted 32-2 in favor of the measure.

Current law justifies deadly force when an officer believes a suspect has committed or attempted a felony, is escaping with a deadly weapon or poses a serious threat of danger to others.

The bill would change part of that law to allow deadly force only if police reasonably believe the suspect has committed or tried to commit a violent felony.

The measure now goes to the House. Lawmakers have until May 15th to pass legislation.