Missouri

With Roe overturned, Missouri’s anti-abortion advocates focus on new goals

Published

2 years ago

January 20, 2023

With Roe overturned, Missouri’s anti-abortion advocates focus on new goals

JEFFERSON CITY — Anti-abortion advocates met their purpose final yr of overturning Roe v. Wade, however that doesn’t imply they’re finished but.

As tens of hundreds gathered Friday in Washington, D.C., for the annual March for Life, nationwide organizers have already got been mapping the subsequent steps of their technique to bar the process throughout america, a transfer that will require motion by Congress.

Even in states like Missouri, which moved instantly to implement among the many most restrictive abortion legal guidelines within the nation after the U.S. Supreme Courtroom’s Dobbs choice in June, the anti-abortion motion continues to be lively.

However the playbook in Jefferson Metropolis, the place it has held appreciable clout for many years, has shifted.

“Extra regulation of abortion, that’s not as a lot of a difficulty right here in Missouri, a minimum of from the pro-life perspective,” stated Sam Lee, who has spent greater than 20 years lobbying state legislators on behalf of Marketing campaign Life Missouri. “It’s what can we do to extend help for pregnant and new mothers?”

In a state Capitol the place payments handed almost each session whittling away abortion entry in Missouri, abortion opponents can commit extra time to different points they hope can cut back the attraction of an abortion — which Missouri ladies can nonetheless entry in clinics simply throughout the border in Kansas and Illinois.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, simply this month signed broad new abortion protections into regulation, together with easing restrictions on out-of-state suppliers who search medical licensing. Two suppliers within the Metro East — Deliberate Parenthood and Hope Clinic — joined forces final yr to help out-of-state sufferers, together with many from Missouri and the South. To date, 14 states have enacted legal guidelines banning or vastly proscribing entry to abortion for the reason that Dobbs choice.

“It’s not a brand new problem for the pro-life motion, however there’s a larger consciousness amongst pro-lifers that simply altering the legal guidelines in your state doesn’t imply abortion ends,” Lee stated.

Already, the Legislature is tackling measures this session to prop up youngster care suppliers and lengthen Medicaid protection for brand new moms, which advocates hope will make it simpler for girls to resolve to hold their pregnancies to time period — and put a dent in Missouri’s dismal maternal mortality numbers.

On youngster care, the anti-abortion motion has discovered frequent trigger with the state’s Chamber of Commerce and even Democrats. Gov. Mike Parson, a Republican, in his State of the State speech Wednesday known as for $79 million in new tax credit and subsidies for youngster care within the state. The state’s Chamber has known as on lawmakers to behave on the expense and lack of kid care that retains many dad and mom out of the workforce.

Marketing campaign Life Missouri is backing laws sponsored within the Senate by Travis Fitzwater, R-Holts Summit, and within the Home by Wendy Hausman, R-St. Peters, that will authorize a property tax exemption for youngster care suppliers.

“Little one care is a big situation for younger mothers and younger households, even to the purpose of deciding whether or not to have further kids,” Lee stated. “There are a big variety of ladies who make that call based mostly on the provision of kid care.”

A bipartisan plan from Sen. Elaine Gannon, R-De Soto, to increase Medicaid protection for low-income moms from the present 60 days to a complete yr already obtained a committee listening to Wednesday.

Nationwide group Susan B. Anthony Professional-Life America has circulated a memo recommending related proposals lawmakers can pursue in states the place abortion is now unlawful. Amongst different legislative proposals, it cites one from U.S. Rep. Jason Smith, R-Missouri, to increase the federal youngster tax credit score to pregnant moms. Smith this month turned chairman of the highly effective Home Methods and Means Committee.

Carmelite Srs. Maria Josefa, from far left, Mary Michael, and Magdelene Therese sit with others on Friday, Jan. 20, 2023, on the 2023 Era Life rally for youthful Catholics at Chaifetz Enviornment. The gathering of an estimated 1400 largely teenagers was hosted by the Archdiocese in St. Louis to coincide with the annual anti-abortion March for Life going down in Washington, D.C. Picture by Christian Gooden, cgooden@post-dispatch.com

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The Archdiocese of St. Louis, the place Cardinal John J. Carberry fashioned one of many first “pro-life” diocesan committees within the nation following the 1973 Roe choice, has additionally shifted its focus following the Dobbs choice. Quite than specializing in a “pilgrimage” to Washington for the rally, the Archdiocese Workplace of Youth Ministry hosted a Friday rally at Chaifetz Enviornment that included a Mass with Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski.

Final weekend, the church held a “Celebration of Life Mass” on the Cathedral Basilica to mark the overturning of Roe.

“Now that (abortion) is illegitimate in Missouri and we’re technically an abortion-free state for now, we thought this was a superb alternative for everyone to rejoice, to come back out and unify for all life points,” Cynthia Haehnel, director of the Respect Life Apostolate, instructed the Archdiocesan St. Louis Evaluate earlier this month.

However Haehnel famous that abortion-rights advocates are prone to ask voters to reinstate some entry to the process by amending the Missouri Structure. Missouri voters have tended to lean additional left than the GOP-led Legislature, and different states, akin to Kansas, have seen measures supporting entry to abortion win handily in statewide votes.

“We don’t know what’s going to occur in 2024,” Haehnel instructed the Evaluate. “We now have been listening to from others that there’s going to be proposals to alter the structure in Missouri to make abortion a constitutional proper like Kansas. So we will’t again down. We are going to rejoice and refocus, after which look ahead to the 2024 election.”

Lee, in Jefferson Metropolis, additionally expects that to be the subsequent combat within the state, and so do its donors, who he stated haven’t let up their help for Marketing campaign Life Missouri for the reason that Dobbs choice.

“They know the work won’t ever finish,” Lee stated. “They’re conscious of this and that’s partly why they proceed to donate.”

Youth gather in St. Louis on Roe v. Wade anniversary — Advertisement

Kenrick-Glennon Catholic seminarians, left, to proper, Paul Brungardt, Alexander Schmitt, Jake Rosenmeyer and Benjamin Baker hear on Friday, Jan. 20, 2023, to keynote speaker Krista Corbello on the 2023 Era Life rally for youthful Catholics at Chaifetz Enviornment. The gathering of an estimated 1400 largely teenagers was hosted by the Archdiocese in St. Louis to coincide with the annual anti-abortion March for Life going down in Washington, D.C. Picture by Christian Gooden, cgooden@post-dispatch.com

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Missouri

Mizzou ends inches away from Braggin' Rights win

Published

5 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Mizzou ends inches away from Braggin’ Rights win

ST. LOUIS – Down to the wire, the Missouri Tigers kept fighting.

Missouri fell behind 10 late, but came back to take the lead and eventually tied the game again with a minute to play, but two final 3-pointers fell off the mark as the Illinois Fighting Illini won a new Braggin’ Rights classic in St. Louis on Sunday.

“It was a great atmosphere, both staffs, both coaches, I have tremendous respect for the program, but I wish we could have come away with a win,” Missouri coach Dennis Gates said. “It was a great NCAA Tournament atmosphere, that’s what it looked like to me.”

Neither team had a double-digit lead at any point until Kylan Boswell hit a couple of free throws with 6:33 left to create a 67-57 advantage.

Then the Tigers played with some chaos.

“Nobody does that better than Missouri,” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said.

Tamar Bates drove to hit a fading midrange jumper, then Tony Perkins grabbed a defensive rebound and was fouled, which sent him to the line where he hit both shots.

Trent Pierce then grabbed a defensive board and flipped it ahead to Mark Mitchell who found Jacob Crews in the left corner for the Tigers’ second 3 of the game to cut the lead to 67-64 with 5:27 left.

Bates hit two more free throws, then forced a steal that led to a Pierce layup, giving the Tigers a 68-67 advantage with 4:13 left, their first lead since late in the first half.

“The thing we didn’t do is hang out head, and we kept fighting,” Gates said. “We kept our foot on the shovel and we kept digging. And that’s the sign of a good team.”

But the lead lasted about 18 seconds as Tre White hit a jumper to retake a 69-68 lead for the Illini.

The Tigers would not lead again.

“We cut the lead two or three times … and each time, Illinois made a tough shot, made a tough shot, so they had timely execution,” Gates said. “… Sometimes players just make big plays and you can’t, can’t do nothing about it.”

But they would tie it again, first at 72 with 2:29 left, then at 75 with 1:14 to go and again at 77 with 45 seconds left.

But each time, the Illini hit the shot they needed, going up 75-72 on a Kasparas Jakucionis 3, then 77-75 on two Boswell free throws and taking the lead for good on a Jakucionis jumper with 28 seconds to play.

With Illinois leading 79-77, the Tigers turned to Mitchell, who hit a late 3 in the Border War to hold off kansas’ charge and maintain Mizzou’s advantage, but this time, the shot was off and Boswell came down with the rebound.

A foul sent him to the line, where he made just one, leaving the lead at 3 with 8 seconds left.

The Tigers charged down the floor and gave an open look to Crews from the right wing, but it clanged off the back iron as time expired to give Illinois its second consecutive Braggin’ Rights win.

“I thought we had a great look, could have called timeout, but I wasn’t going to get an open shot, more open than what we got with two-versus-one against a set defense,” Gates said. “I trust our players and trust what they do, and ultimately, it was in and out.”

After consecutive blowouts in the St. Louis matchup the past three seasons and the most recent close game played in Columbia, the 2024 edition gave fans all the excitement they could hope for from the rivalry.

“Missouri’s got unbelievable history, they’ve got unbelievable tradition,” Underwood said. “I, again, I have so much respect for programs that have that. Not everybody has that. … When you get those two teams together and you get them in the unique circumstances, you get a crowd like today.”

The Tigers jumped out to the game’s initial lead, going up 5-0 as Mitchell and Bates each hit a layup and Mitchell added a game-opening free throw, but the Illini fought back to tie at 7 and took Illinois’ first lead at 10-7 with 14:50 left in the first half.

The Illini held the lead through much of the first half, but the tigers chipped away with this season’s bread and butter, the free-throw line.

Two Perkins free throws cut the lead to 24-22, then Marques Warrick grabbed a defensive rebound and dished it ahead to Perkins for a transition dunk to tie the game at 24.

A Mitchell free throw gave the Tigers the lead again at 25-24, then a Mitchell and-1 layup put the Tigers ahead 28-24 with 4:48 left before halftime as the Tigers attacked the paint again and again, scoring 34 points in the paint.

But as it did every time Missouri gained momentum, Illinois got the shots it needed. A jumper from Tre White and a second-chance jumper from Morez Johnson tied the game at 28, then Johnson added a layup before White hit two free throws to extend the lead to 32-28.

Mizzou came back to tie on a Mitchell layup and two free throws, but a five-point Illinois run ended the half with the Illini up 37-32.

“They ended the half with an unbelievable run in a minute and 30 seconds,” Gates said.

Illinois maintained a lead throughout most of the second half, building to the 10-point advantage late, but the physicality of the game got out of hand at points, helping lead to a combined 60 free throws and a rare Gates technical foul with 16:53 left.

After a very physical sequence with bodies clanging together under the basket and Ant Robinson falling to the floor after trying to pass following a steal, Gates sprang onto the floor in the middle of the play and got in the face of the official, earning a technical that allowed Illinois to go up 42-34 after the two free throws.

“I didn’t mean to get a tech, but I had to,” Gates said. “I had to, I had to get a tech and our guys responded from that technical foul. Because if, if I did not get a technical foul on that, Lord knows what would have taken place the entire game. What I do know was right in front of me, Ant Robinson fell, I don’t think he fell on his own, but that was after a couple other situations that took place.”

Missouri (10-2) ends its winning streak at 10 games and will look to get back in the win column as it plays its final non-conference game following a break for Christmas. The Tigers will host Alabama State at 6:30 p.m., Dec. 30.

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Missouri

Bombshell update in horrific decades-old cold case murder of Missouri teen

Published

13 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Bombshell update in horrific decades-old cold case murder of Missouri teen

A woman’s ex-boyfriend has been arrested for her murder 32 years after she was found shot to death in her car in Missouri.

Leon P. Lamb, 52, was charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action for the murder of Mischelle Lawless, who died at the age of 19 in November 1992.

Lawless’ case was reopened in June 2023 and 18 months later, investigators gathered enough evidence to bring an indictment against Lamb.

The ex-boyfriend was arrested in Conway, Arkansas, and is being held without bond.

He was the last person to see Lawless and the pair had an on-and-off-again relationship, according to The Standard-Democrat.

Another man, Josh Kezer, was charged and convicted for the crime in 1994, but was later acquitted in 2009.

He was convicted after Mark Abbott testified he saw Kezer at a payphone near the exit ramp.

Several jailhouse witnesses also testified he had confessed to the murder at party, where Chantelle Crider, said she saw him arguing with Lawless the week before, according to Southeast Missourian.

Leon P. Lamb, 52, was charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action for the murder of Mischelle Lawless, who died at the age of 19 in November 1992. The ex-boyfriend was arrested in Conway, Arkansas , and is being held without bond

He was the last person to see Lawless and the pair had an on-and-off-again relationship

After Kezer’s exoneration, Abbott’s name was pushed forward as a suspect, as people said he had confessed to the murder, with one witness saying he told him: ‘I took care of that bitch.’

Lamb was also a suspect early on as his DNA was found underneath her nails, but he told investigator the pair had sex and she had scratched his back, according to the outlet.

He also told investigator that Lawless had left his house in a good mood before she was found dead off the highway exit.

Lamb also passed a polygraph test, according to Southeast Missourian.

Allen Moss was named special prosecutor of the case last year, and he brought investigator David James out of retirement to help him find Lawless’ killer, he told KFVS 12 at the time.

Neither had any ties to the case when they started, but were certain they’d find who they were looking for among the thousands of pages in the teen’s case file.

Lawless had been out with friends in Sikeston on November 7, 1992 and she never made it home.

She was found by a couple driving of I-55. Off an exit ramp, sat her red car with the engine still running and the lights on near the guardrail.

Lamb was a suspect early on as his DNA was found underneath her nails, but he told investigator the pair had sex and she had scratched his back

She was found by a couple driving of I-55. Off an exit ramp, sat her red car with the engine still running and the lights on near the guardrail

Deputies arrived around 1:30am and found Lawless’ body in the car. Blood was found on the guardrail (pictured)

Allen Moss (right) was named special prosecutor of the case last year and he brought investigator David James (left) out of retirement to help him find Lawless’ killer

Deputies arrived around 1:30am and found Lawless’ body in the car.

‘And it looked like there had been a confrontation at the car of some sort,’ James said in 2023. ‘Her window was down on her car partially. And they found evidence of blood on the guardrail.

‘There’s blood on the ground. And so it looked like and appeared that there was a struggle of some sort that either started at the car or ended at the car.

‘But somehow or another she was over the guardrail and down the embankment. She ends up back in the car. And once inside the car, she is shot several times.’

Early on in the reinvestigation, James visited Lawless’ grave to talk to her, where he told the dead teen that he was ‘sorry’ for what happened to her and that he was ‘here to try and find out what happened.’

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Missouri

Illinois vs. Missouri Prediction, Odds and Key Players for Sunday, December 22

Published

21 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Illinois vs. Missouri Prediction, Odds and Key Players for Sunday, December 22

Illinois and Missouri meet in a semi-neutral floor meeting on Sunday with each team looking for a strong non-conference victory.

The Tigers are enjoying a bounceback campaign this season that already features a win against Kansas. Can the team score another victory against a team with Final Four aspirations in Illinois? The Fighting Illini have thrived on the defensive end, but are still searching for consistency on offense around star freshman guard Kasparas Jakucionis. Can the team find it against Missouri?

Here’s our betting preview.

Spread

Moneyline

Total: 154.5 (Over -108/Under -112)

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Illinois

Kasparas Jakucionis: The 6’6” point guard has thrived to start his college career, averaging 16 points, six rebounds and nearly six assists per game. Jakucionis is a deft three-point shooter as well, hitting 42% of his threes for the perimeter oriented Fighting Illini offense.

Missouri

Mark Mitchell: The Duke transfer has thrived in the new setting, averaging 13 points with five rebounds per game while also providing strong defense as an interior presence with more than a block per game to go with a steal.

Missouri’s heavy ball pressure defense will be a test for Jakucionis, who does have a near-27% turnover rate, but overall this Illinois offense rates out as a strong unit at protecting the ball, ranking top 60 in turnover rate.

With the Tigers aggressive defense, it is vulnerable to letting up second chances, bottom 30 in the country in defensive rebounding rate, which is impactful with the Illinois’ offense elite at generating offensive rebounds, top 30 in the nation.

Missouri’s defense is a bit of a boom-or-bust unit, and I also believe the offense is due to regress after starting the season posting a top three effective field goal percentage in the country at nearly 60% while posting a top three free throw rate.

Illinois’ defense has a ton of length and shuts off the perimeter for opponents, allowing a bottom 40 three-point rate while ranking top five in effective field goal percentage allowed.

This may be an up-and-down affair, but I like this matchup for Illinois to hand Missouri a well overdue loss.

PICK: Illinois -3.5

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

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