Missouri

The Death Penalty Is Anti-American. Marcellus Williams’ Execution Is More Proof Of That.

Published

2 years ago

September 28, 2024

The Death Penalty Is Anti-American. Marcellus Williams’ Execution Is More Proof Of That.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but Mike Parson, the governor of the benighted state of Missouri, committed a murder on Tuesday. He allowed to state to kill a 55-year old man named Marcellus Williams in retribution for a murder that Williams almost surely did not commit. Parsons did so with the support of the carefully manufactured conservative majority on the United States Supreme Court, and against the opposition of, among other people, the local prosecutor, and the family of the victim. From Parson’s chair, it was an altogether imperfect crime.

On August 11, 1998, a former St Louis Post-Dispatch reporter named Felicia Gayle was brutally stabbed to death in her home. It was a terrible, messy crime scene thick with biological evidence. DNA abounded. There were bloody footprints all over the kitchen floor and bloody fingerprints everywhere else. The knife was still in the victim’s neck.

Williams, a career criminal who already was serving a long prison term for a robbery, was fingered for the crime by a jailhouse informant and a former girlfriend. The jury took less than an hour to convict Williams of the murder.

But…DNA. Years after the conviction, a test of DNA found on the murder weapon revealed that the prosecutors’ team had mishandled the knife. The only evidence on it was from their team. Seven years ago, then-Governor Eric Greitens, whom nobody ever confused with Clarence Darrow, was so shaken by this that he triggered an obscure Missouri statute and created a board of inquiry to study the evidence from the trial. But Greitens lost his gig due to a baroque welter of personal scandals. Upon ascending to the governorship, Parson simply dissolved the panel that Greitens had created and re-scheduled Williams’ execution, which took place this week.

When he dissolved the board of inquiry, Parson explained that the search for truth in the case of Marcellus Williams had gone on long enough to suit him. From the Washington Post:

“We could stall and delay for another six years, deferring justice, leaving a victim’s family in limbo, and solving nothing,” Parson said in a press release last year. “This administration won’t do that.”

Thus do we have yet another example that the death penalty is inconsistent with all the constitutional guarantees that exist in our criminal law, that it is a surrender to passion, and not to reason, that it is entirely an act of vengeance, not justice, and therefore, it is in every way anti-American. As Albert Camus wrote in 1957:

Whoever has done me harm must suffer harm; whoever has put out my eye must lose an eye; and whoever has killed must die. This is an emotion, and a particularly violent one, not a principle. Retaliation is related to nature and instinct, not to law. Law, by definition, cannot obey the same rules as nature. If murder is in the nature of man, the law is not intended to imitate or reproduce that nature. It is intended to correct it.

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Missouri

SEMA sets info sessions for FEMA Public Assistance for late-April storms

Published

2 hours ago

July 10, 2026

Press Room

SEMA sets info sessions for FEMA Public Assistance for late-April storms

The Missouri State Emergency Management Agency will conduct applicant briefings for local governments and nonprofit agencies applying for Public Assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

President Donald Trump approved Missouri’s request for a major disaster declaration for storms that hit the state between April 23-28.

The following counties are included in the federal disaster declaration: Carroll, Chariton, Greene, Holt, Howard, Monroe, Randolph, Saline and St. Francois, according to the news release.

The five mid-Missouri counties included in the Public Assistance request experienced tornadoes on April 27 that damaged homes, businesses, farms and infrastructure, according to previous KOMU 8 reporting.

FEMA’s Public Assistance program provides financial assistance to local governments and qualifying nonprofits for the repair of damaged roads, bridges and other public infrastructure as well as reimbursement of associated emergency response and recovery costs.

Five counties in mid-Missouri hit by severe weather in late April will get assistance from FEMA for impacts to infrastructure.

SEMA strongly encourages all eligible agencies that plan to apply for assistance in the 10 declared counties following the federal disaster declaration to attend one of the briefings, according to a Missouri State Emergency Management Agency news release.

Briefing information

The briefings will take place July 14-16 and explain program changes, eligibility information, the federal reimbursement processes and documentation requirements, according to the news release.

Applicant briefings are not for the general public; they are for FEMA’s Public Assistance program only, according to the news release.

Two applicant briefings will be held in mid-Missouri: one in Marshall and one in Moberly.

The briefing in Marshall will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. July 15 at Marshall City Hall, 214 North Lafayette Ave.

The briefing in Moberly will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. July 16 at Moberly Area Community College – Activity Center, 101 College Ave.

In-person applicant briefings can last up to four hours and provide an opportunity to meet with FEMA personnel, begin the required paperwork and ask questions, according to the news release.

Any government agency, including special districts such as road, water or sewer districts, or nonprofits in the declared counties that incurred disaster-related expenses should attend, including those that are unsure of their eligibility status, according to the news release.

Attendees should bring their organization’s Unique Entity Identifier and federal Employer Identification Number, to register in a timely manner, according to the news release.

All requests for Public Assistance must be submitted to FEMA within 30 days of the June 30 disaster declaration date, or July 30, according to the news release.

Applicants should plan accordingly as Public Assistance must first be received by SEMA before being submitted to FEMA by the August deadline, according to the news release.

Those who are unable to attend the briefing may watch a recorded informational video on SEMA’s website.

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Missouri

Missouri Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 winning numbers for July 9, 2026

Published

12 hours ago

July 10, 2026

Press Room

The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at July 9, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Pick 3 numbers from July 9 drawing

Midday: 3-9-1

Midday Wild: 4

Evening: 7-7-1

Evening Wild: 1

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from July 9 drawing

Midday: 0-5-3-2

Midday Wild: 8

Evening: 4-9-6-9

Evening Wild: 7

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from July 9 drawing

Early Bird: 11

Morning: 13

Matinee: 08

Prime Time: 05

Night Owl: 10

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Show Me Cash numbers from July 9 drawing

08-09-20-23-32

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.

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Missouri

Missouri realtors hold statewide rally to vote no on Amendments 4 & 5

Published

23 hours ago

July 9, 2026

Press Room

Missouri realtors hold statewide rally to vote no on Amendments 4 & 5

COLUMBIA — Hundreds of Missouri realtors were in Columbia Thursday to show their opposition to a couple of proposals on the August 4th ballot. The Missouri Association of Realtors hosted a statewide rally against Amendments 4 & 5. Realtors distributed tens of thousands of yard signs, bumper stickers, buttons, and literature.

More than 26,000 Missouri realtors want Missourians to vote no on Amendments 4 & 5. They said the proposals ignore tax restrictions that Missouri voters put into the Missouri Constitution. Amendment 4 would modify the current requirements for a simple statewide majority vote. Amendment 5 would require the phase out of the individual state income tax. Matthew Becker is the Treasurer-Elect for the Missouri Board of Realtors and said Amendment 5 would give too much power to state government.

Becker said, “Amendment 5 is nothing more than a bait and switch. Amendment 5 literally wants to go out and give our legislature a blank checkbook for the next 5 years.”

Jefferson City Realtor Logan Gratz said Amendment 4 favors politicians and destroys majority rule for Missourians.

Gratz said, “Realtors have always been major advocates of property owners, of property rights, good business, and good tax policy.”

Springfield area State Representative Bishop Davidson said Missouri realtors were wrong when they opposed Amendments 4 & 5. Davidson said Amendment 5 would improve Missouri’s tax system.

Davidson said, “Right now, the way our tax structure works is old and archaic. It discourages economic growth. When it comes to Amendment 4, what I would say is protecting our Missouri Constitution is important.”

Governor Mike Kehoe’s communication director sent KRCG a statement that said, “Governor Kehoe supports Amendment 5 because it is a revenue-triggered, constitutionally protected path to eliminating Missouri’s individual income tax, allowing workers to keep more of every paycheck.”

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