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Author: Associated Press

McCaskill bill addresses northern Missouri mailing quirk

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Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) (Courtesy Missourinet)

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill has introduced a bill that would put an end to a Postal Service quirk requiring some rural northern Missouri residents to have Iowa mailing addresses.

Details of the bill were announced Wednesday.

For years, some Missourians in Atchison, Clark, Harrison, Mercer, Putnam, Schuyler and Scotland counties have been assigned Iowa mailing addresses. The Postal Service has not explained why, and even impacted residents have said they’ve never been given a good explanation.

McCaskill sent a letter to Postmaster General Megan J. Brennan in November seeking immediate action to rectify the addresses.

Missourians with Iowa addresses have said it causes confusion on emergency calls, forces some residents to cast provisional ballots at the polls, and creates uncertainty in filing taxes.

Man charged with crash that killed Northwest student

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Catterson -photo Nodaway Co.

MARYVILLE, Mo. (AP and Post) – A Maryville man is charged with crashing a vehicle into a bar and killing a Northwest Missouri State University student.

According to court documents, 21-year-old Alex Allen Catterson was charged Sunday with first-degree involuntary manslaughter in the death of 19-year-old Morgan McCoy.

As previously reported, around 12:40 a.m. Sunday, McCoy, a sophomore elementary education major from Liberty, was hit when Catterson’s pickup truck crashed into The Palms at 422 North Buchanan Street. The truck ended up partially inside the building. McCoy was transported to St. Francis Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

No attorney is listed for Catterson in online court records. Bond is set at $50,000.

Police said his blood alcohol level of 0.207 was more than twice the legal limit.

 

Missouri GOP wants competing right-to-work ballot measure

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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri Republicans are trying to get a proposal on November’s ballot to constitutionally ban mandatory union fees and dues.

Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft on Friday announced right-to-work supporters can start collecting signatures. A Republican State Committee official filed the series of petitions.

Voters will already have a chance in November to decide whether to adopt a law banning mandatory union fees and dues. Unions are also trying to get a measure on the ballot to constitutionally ban right-to-work.

That could make for a potentially confusing vote if Republicans get enough signatures to add their competing measure to the ballot.

The right-to-work fight already is drawing in big money. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports a nonprofit promoting Republican Gov. Eric Greitens’ agenda donated $750,000 Friday to a right-to-work campaign.

Gubernatorial uncertainty, prison unrest among year’s top stories in Kansas

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Ks. Gov. Sam Brownback – courtesy photo.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The uncertainty surrounding Gov. Sam Brownback’s departure after his nationally watched tax experiment came to an end was among the top 10 stories in Kansas in 2017.

President Donald Trump nominated Brownback for U.S. ambassador at large for international religious freedom at the end of July. But the post was in limbo after the U.S. Senate failed to vote on confirming him before finishing its business for year, lengthening an already awkward transition to a new governor.

Also making the list were prison disturbances, an allegedly racially motivated bar shooting, wildfires, the release of two wrongfully convicted inmates, questions about the state’s child welfare agency, a closer-than-expected Congressional race, a small town sexual assault case, the discovery of human remains in a storage unit and a revenue department shooting.

St. Louis protests, GOP gains among Missouri’s top stories

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Stockley acquittal sparks violence, vandalism in St. Louis. Photo courtesy Missourinet.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Protests that erupted after a white St. Louis officer’s acquittal in a black suspect’s shooting death was among the top 10 stories in Missouri in 2017.

Hundreds of people were arrested at demonstrations after Jason Stockley was found not guilty in the 2011 shooting death of Anthony Lamar Smith. Allegations of heavy-handed action by police led to an ACLU lawsuit and an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The Missouri State Capitol Photo courtesy Missourinet

Another major story was Republicans rising to unprecedented power in Jefferson City. The 2017 legislative session marked the first time in Missouri history that the GOP controlled the governor’s office while holding supermajorities in both legislative chambers.

Also making the list was controversial Facebook posts about assassination and hanging by two lawmakers and the slaying of a transgender teen.

Public reprimand recommended for Platte County prosecutor

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Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A disciplinary panel is recommending that Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd be publicly reprimanded for professional misconduct.

The panel’s recommendation now goes to the Missouri Supreme Court for a final decision.

KCUR reports a complaint was filed against Zahnd over his reaction to residents of a northwest Missouri town defending a convicted child sex offender. Zahnd reportedly threatened people who wrote letters supporting the offender before his sentencing. He then sent out a news release publicly naming the residents after the man was sentenced.

A public reprimand does not limit Zahnd’s right to continue practicing law. If the state Supreme Court follows the recommendation, the reprimand would become a public record.

Zahnd said he disagreed with the panel’s recommendation and is still determining what his response will be.

One wounded, officer injured in shooting in Smithville

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SMITHVILLE, Mo. (AP) – Clay County authorities are investigating an officer-involved shooting in Smithville that left a suspect in stable condition.

Details surrounding the shooting Saturday night have not been released but it began when three Smithville officers responded to a report of a disturbance.

The suspect was taken to a hospital in stable condition. One officer suffered minor injuries.

The officers involved have been placed on paid administrative leave pending an investigation, which is typical procedure.

Business conditions index slips but still shows good signs

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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Economists say a business conditions index for nine Midwest and Plains states dropped over the past month but also say it still suggests that regional economic conditions continue to improve.

A report released Friday says the Mid-America Business Conditions Index slipped to 57.2 in November from 58.8 in October. The September figure was 58.2 in September.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says the manufacturing sector has reported consistent growth over the past several months.

The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth in that factor. A score below that suggests decline.

The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

Forest Service hiring nearly 1,000 temporary jobs in region

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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The U.S. Forest Service is taking applications for over 900 temporary jobs that will be filled in the region next year.

The Forest Service plans to hire that many temporary workers to help at national forests and grasslands in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming next year.

The jobs include a variety of duties, including firefighting, wildlife, recreation, forestry and administrative support.

Applications can be submitted for firefighting and other early-season jobs from Dec. 15 to Dec. 21. Applications for the other jobs will be taken from Jan. 26 to Feb. 1.

The job listings are available online. Applications can be submitted at usajobs.gov.

Effort seeks to fix quirk: Missourians with Iowa addresses

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ST. LOUIS (AP) — A quirk in the mail delivery system is forcing some residents of rural northern Missouri to have Iowa mailing addresses, causing problems when they vote, pay taxes and even when they die.

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill calls it “one of the dumbest things” she’s seen and has sent a letter to Postmaster General Megan J. Brennan, asking that issue be resolved. The agency says it’s working with the Missouri Democratic senator on the issue.

Local officials have been asking for help for years. In Missouri’s Clark County, residents launched a petition drive this summer to get address changed because a new 911 system will need accurate addresses.

The Iowa addresses aren’t recognized in Missouri’s voting system. And some affected residents have been asked to file taxes in the wrong state.

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