Missouri
Courts in Nebraska and Missouri weigh arguments to keep abortion measures off the ballot
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — With ballot deadlines approaching, courts in Nebraska and Missouri are weighing legal arguments that could take measures seeking to expand abortion rights out of the hands of voters.
The Missouri Supreme Court will hear arguments this week in an appeal over a proposed amendment to enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution. And on Monday, the Nebraska Supreme Court heard arguments in three lawsuits that seek to keep one or both of the state’s competing abortion initiatives off the ballot.
One initiative would enshrine in the Nebraska Constitution the right to have an abortion until viability, or later to protect the health of the pregnant woman. The other would write into the constitution Nebraska’s current 12-week abortion ban, passed by the Legislature in 2023, which includes exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the pregnant woman.
Two lawsuits — one brought by an Omaha resident and the other by a Nebraska neonatologist who both oppose abortion — argue that the measure seeking to expand abortion rights violates the state’s prohibition against addressing more than one subject in a bill or ballot proposal. They say the ballot measure deals with abortion rights until viability, abortion rights after viability to protect the woman’s health and whether the state should be allowed to regulate abortion, amounting to three separate issues.
But lawyers opposing the abortion rights measure spent much of their time challenging the language of the proposal, with attorney Brenna Grasz insisting that its wording that “all persons” shall have a fundamental right to abortion would extend abortion rights to third parties. An example would be parents seeking to force a minor child to get an abortion.
“Is this a single-subject argument?” Chief Justice Mike Heavican asked.
Attorney Matt Heffron with the conservative Chicago nonprofit Thomas More Society, which has filed lawsuits across the country to challenge abortion rights, argued that the Protect Our Rights initiative logrolls competing subjects into one measure. It would force voters who support abortion up to the point of fetal viability to also support abortion after that point to protect the health of the mother, which they may not want to do, he said.
“This is a sea change in the current Nebraska law, which was popularly enacted by representatives, and each one of these should be voted on by the voters separately,” Heffron said.
Heavican countered that “virtually every bill that has gone through the Legislature” dealing with abortion has also included the subjects of exceptions and state regulation.
Heffron answered that lawmakers had the benefit of time and expertise to “hash out the terms” of those bills and that voters will go into the voting booth much less informed. But the justices noted that a nearly identical single-subject argument on an abortion rights ballot measure before the conservative Florida Supreme Court earlier this year failed.
An attorney for the lawsuit challenging the 12-week ban initiative argued that if the high court finds that the abortion rights measure fails the single-subject test, it must also find that the 12-week ban initiative fails it, too.
Attorney David Gacioch, of Boston, said that under the theory floated by opposing attorneys, the 12-week ban measure would loop in at least six separate subjects to include regulating abortion in the first, second and third trimesters and separate exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.
Gacioch acknowledged that insisting on separate ballot measures for each of those issues would be as specious as trying to break down the abortion rights measure into separate issues.
“We don’t think that’s what this court has articulated under a single-subject test,” Gacioch said. “We think that would frustrate the rights of the voters to pass constitutional amendments as reflected in the Constitution.”
The state’s high court has offered a mixed bag on single-subject law challenges. In 2020, the Nebraska Supreme Court blocked a ballot initiative seeking to legalize medical marijuana after finding that its provisions to allow people to use marijuana and to produce it were separate subjects that violated the state’s single-subject rule.
But in July, the high court ruled that a hybrid bill passed by the Legislature in 2023 combining the 12-week abortion ban with another measure to limit gender-affirming health care for minors does not violate the single-subject rule. That led to a scathing dissent by Justice Lindsey Miller-Lerman, who accused the majority of applying different standards to bills passed by the Legislature and those sought by voter referendum.
The court agreed to expedite Monday’s hearing as state law requires the November ballot to be certified by Friday.
In Missouri, the state’s high court will hear arguments Tuesday in its proposed abortion rights initiative, following that state’s enactment of a near-total abortion ban in 2022. The proposal had been slated for the November ballot, but a judge ruled Friday that the abortion-rights campaign did not properly inform voters during the signature-gathering process about the range of abortion laws the amendment could undo.
Tuesday is also the deadline to make changes to Missouri’s November ballot, so judges will have hours to rule on whether abortion will go before voters this year.
Abortion is currently on the November ballot in nine states. Additionally, a measure in New York would bar discrimination based on pregnancy outcomes but does not mention abortion specifically.
Abortion rights advocates have historically prevailed most of the time it’s been before voters – including on all seven ballot measures since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022 and ended a nationwide right to abortion. Since the ruling, most Republican-controlled states have implemented bans or restrictions – including 14 that now bar abortion at all stages of pregnancy.
With such high stakes, there have been court fights over most of the measures. An Arizona Supreme Court ruling is letting the state refer to an embryo or fetus as an “unborn human being” in a pamphlet; courts in Arkansas found paperwork problems with initiative submissions and kept the measure off the ballot. A measure is on the ballot in South Dakota, but an anti-abortion group is trying to keep the votes from being counted.
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Associated Press writer Summer Ballentine contributed to this report from Columbia, Missouri.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Homicide detectives in Kansas City, Missouri, were called to the scene of a deadly shooting Saturday morning.
Just before 7 a.m. Saturday, police received a reported shooting call near E. 4th Street and Holmes Street.
When officers arrived, they located an adult male in the street who had been shot.
Paramedics transported the victim to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.
A police spokesperson said detectives believe the victim had an interaction with one or more suspects in a vehicle when one of the suspects opened fire, striking the victim.
The spokesperson said the incident happened in an area with several apartment residences – detectives are interviewing potential witnesses for additional information.
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If you have any information about a crime, you may contact your local police department directly. But if you want or need to remain anonymous, you should contact the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers Tips Hotline by calling 816-474-TIPS (8477), submitting the tip online or through the free mobile app at P3Tips.com. Depending on your tip, Crime Stoppers could offer you a cash reward.
Annual homicide details and data for the Kansas City area are available through the KSHB 41 News Homicide Tracker, which was launched in 2015. Read the KSHB 41 News Mug Shot Policy.
The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 8, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from May 8 drawing
37-47-49-51-58, Mega Ball: 16
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from May 8 drawing
Midday: 4-6-2
Midday Wild: 6
Evening: 1-3-0
Evening Wild: 6
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from May 8 drawing
Midday: 1-1-1-9
Midday Wild: 3
Evening: 8-8-9-9
Evening Wild: 8
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash Pop numbers from May 8 drawing
Early Bird: 13
Morning: 11
Matinee: 15
Prime Time: 07
Night Owl: 13
Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Show Me Cash numbers from May 8 drawing
02-18-20-23-36
Check Show Me Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All Missouri Lottery retailers can redeem prizes up to $600. For prizes over $600, winners have the option to submit their claim by mail or in person at one of Missouri Lottery’s regional offices, by appointment only.
To claim by mail, complete a Missouri Lottery winner claim form, sign your winning ticket, and include a copy of your government-issued photo ID along with a completed IRS Form W-9. Ensure your name, address, telephone number and signature are on the back of your ticket. Claims should be mailed to:
Ticket Redemption
Missouri Lottery
P.O. Box 7777
Jefferson City, MO 65102-7777
For in-person claims, visit the Missouri Lottery Headquarters in Jefferson City or one of the regional offices in Kansas City, Springfield or St. Louis. Be sure to call ahead to verify hours and check if an appointment is required.
For additional instructions or to download the claim form, visit the Missouri Lottery prize claim page.
When are the Missouri Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
- Pick 4: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
- Cash4Life: 8 p.m. daily.
- Cash Pop: 8 a.m. (Early Bird), 11 a.m. (Late Morning), 3 p.m. (Matinee), 7 p.m. (Prime Time) and 11 p.m. (Night Owl) daily.
- Show Me Cash: 8:59 p.m. daily.
- Lotto: 8:59 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday.
- Powerball Double Play: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Missouri editor. You can send feedback using this form.
A Jackson County judge on Friday denied Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway’s attempt to immediately stop Kansas City-based CBD American Shaman and several affiliated companies from selling kratom products.
The motion for a temporary restraining order, which was filed alongside the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, took particular aim at the more potent 7-OH products, which Hanaway argues are “hazardous opioids” banned by state and federal law.
Jackson County Circuit Judge Charles McKenzie’s ruling Friday stated there are “competing affidavits” from experts on both sides of the argument, following a hearing on the motion earlier this week.
“The court cannot find, based on the oral argument of the parties, the respective competing affidavits presented and the pleadings, whether the plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits at this juncture in the proceedings in order for the court to grant relief in the form of a temporary restraining order,” McKenzie’s order states.
Hanaway’s argument was backed by sworn statements from an undercover narcotics officer with the highway patrol who said 7-OH is being used to cut fentanyl and a woman whose brother died from a kratom overdose. Her office also submitted a FDA report that points to 7-OH as “a potent opioid that poses an emerging public health threat” and state health data showing synthetic 7-OH was involved in at least 197 Missouri deaths.
American Shaman submitted statements of its own from five toxicology and addiction experts, who largely said there wasn’t enough evidence to show that 7-OH and kratom posed a public health risk. One who researched narcotics said she had never heard of 7-OH being used to cut fentanyl.
Company owner Vince Sanders’ statement detailed how he came up with the idea to create 7-OH products, which now has an “enormous” demand particularly among people who need pain management.
Sanders could not be reached for comment about the ruling Friday.
McKenzie denied a temporary restraining order “without prejudice,” meaning that he would like to see more evidence.
“It is because of this finding that the court determines it necessary to hold an additional hearing,” he wrote, “where it can consider the parties respective positions with the potential of testimonial evidence and other properly introduced evidence, all as more fully developed by the parties, in order to further analyze these issues.”
The judge will consider “other injunctive relief sought in the pleadings at a future hearing to consider the issues,” the order states.
Hanaway filed a similar lawsuit Thursday against Relax Relief Rejuvenate Trading LLC, and its owners Dustin Robinson and Ajaykumar Patel.
The group received a warning letter from the FDA for producing 7-OH products last year similar to one received by Shaman Botanicals.
“This is another step in our ongoing crackdown on kratom manufacturers who flout the law and try to justify endangering Missourians in the name of profit,” Hanaway said in a press release Thursday. “Our mission is to safeguard Missourians from unregulated and addictive substances, and we will continue to pursue every legal tool available to protect public health and safety.”
This story was originally published by the Missouri Independent.
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