At least two people who rode in the last year on the same Kansas waterslide where a 10-year-old boy was killed say nylon shoulder straps came loose during the raft ride featuring a 17-story drop. It’s unclear whether the straps ...
Read More »Staples gum up case but motion still dismissed
The entire Missouri judiciary is finally using e-filing, but the Missouri Supreme Court still finds itself wrestling with what to do with motions that are stapled together. In a highly technical 5-2 ruling, the court on Tuesday dismissed a criminal ...
Read More »Campaign donation limits, tobacco taxes on Missouri ballot
Missouri voters will be able to weigh in on proposed cigarette tax hikes and campaign contribution limits during the November election, Secretary of State Jason Kander announced Tuesday. Kander’s office determined those measures and another to prohibit sales taxes on ...
Read More »Judge denies Blagojevich’s bid to lighten 14-year sentence
A federal judge on Tuesday upheld Rod Blagojevich’s 14-year prison sentence on corruption counts, setting aside pleas for leniency by the former Illinois governor’s wife and daughters during his resentencing hearing. U.S. District Judge James Zagel said it’s an “unfortunate ...
Read More »Led Zeppelin loses fight for legal fees in ‘Stairway’ case
Led Zeppelin may have won the copyright war over its creation of “Stairway to Heaven,” but it lost its battle Monday to recoup nearly $800,000 in defense fees. Judge R. Gary Klausner ruled that the band’s songwriters, record label and ...
Read More »Cheap fix could end $1 million fight over heat on death row
The state of Louisiana has spent more than three years and over $1 million in taxpayer money to fight a lawsuit that claims three death row inmates are exposed to dangerous heat levels in their cells. A possible low-tech solution ...
Read More »Missouri governor defends record on public defender budget
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon on Monday defended his budget record for the state’s public defender system after the office’s director appointed him to a case in protest of recent funding restrictions. Missouri State Public Defender Director Michael Barrett in a ...
Read More »Judge keeps Spencer Fane on suit against Martin
UPDATED An Illinois judge says the law firm of Spencer Fane can continue to participate in a lawsuit against its former client, St. Louis attorney Ed Martin. Martin, a longtime figure in Missouri Republican politics, filed a motion in June ...
Read More »Family of Muslim teen arrested for homemade clock files suit
The family of a Muslim boy who was arrested after bringing a homemade clock to school filed a federal lawsuit Monday against Texas school officials and others, saying the incident violated the 14-year-old boy’s civil rights, prompted death threats and ...
Read More »Judge: Missouri must pay $156K in legal fees in clinic suit
A federal judge who quashed Missouri’s push to revoke a Planned Parenthood clinic’s abortion license has ordered state taxpayers to pay more than $156,000 to cover the organization’s legal bills tied to the dispute. U.S. District Judge Nanette Laughrey this ...
Read More »Election could determine transgender case at Supreme Court
The Supreme Court’s order blocking a transgender male from using the boys’ restroom at his Virginia school underscores how the presidential election results will shape the high court. One of the court’s nine seats has been vacant since Justice Antonin ...
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