Courts
Battling experts: Qualifications of witnesses a key in Missouri gender-affirming care case
A case that will determine whether Missouri can continue restricting adolescents’ access to gender-affirming care began Monday in Cole County Circuit Court. The plaintiffs — which include transgender minors, gender-affirming care providers and loved ones — will argue that medical treatments for gender dysphoria are “safe and effective,” attorney Omar Gonzalez Pagan said in opening […]
Lawsuit seeking to block Missouri ban on gender-affirming care for minors heads to trial
A lawsuit filed by transgender children and their parents challenging a one year-old Missouri law restricting minors from accessing cross-sex hormones and puberty blockers heads to trial in Cole County Circuit Court beginning Monday. Plaintiffs are asking Circuit Court Judge Craig Carter, who typically serves in Wright County, to block the law’s enforcement. Pretrial briefs […]
GOP legislator’s son asks Supreme Court to order inquiry into donations to Missouri AG
Eight months into his term as Missouri’s attorney general, Andrew Bailey withdrew his office from defending a state agency being sued by a legislator’s son for disability discrimination. A few months earlier, his campaign and an affiliated political action committee accepted more than $150,000 in donations connected to a witness in the case. Incensed by […]
Missouri town ordered to vote on tax hike to pay judgment for civil rights, Sunshine violations
A small Missouri city must deplete its bank accounts — except for enough money to keep the police force intact — to pay a judgment that found it violated a resident’s First Amendment rights and the Missouri Sunshine Law, a court ruled last week. Phelps County Circuit Judge John Beger directed Edgar Springs to pay […]
Missouri Supreme Court rules amendment legalizing abortion will remain on ballot
Missourians will have the opportunity to vote to enshrine abortion in the state constitution this November, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled Tuesday. In a decision published less than three hours before the constitutional deadline to remove a question from the ballot, the Supreme Court reversed a lower court’s ruling that recommended the measure be stripped […]
Attempt to block Missouri sports betting amendment lacks evidence, judge rules
A Cole County Circuit Court judge rejected an attempt to invalidate an initiative petition on sports betting Friday, allowing voters to decide whether to enshrine sports wagering in Missouri’s Constitution on the November ballot. “Lawsuits seeking to remove an initiative petition from the ballot after it has been certified as sufficient by the secretary (of […]
Voter records put under microscope in Missouri sports betting amendment trial
A Cole County Circuit Court judge must soon decide whether Missouri voters will be able to enshrine sports betting in the state’s constitution. A lawsuit brought by two political strategists questions the validity of the signature verification process used by the Secretary of State’s Office. The proposal was certified for the November ballot after being […]
Trump’s Jan. 6 case to extend beyond Election Day under timeline laid out by judge
WASHINGTON — Exactly two months out from the presidential election, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan plans to move ahead with the case accusing former President Donald Trump of subverting the 2020 presidential election results, telling Trump’s attorneys that she is “not concerned with the electoral schedule.” Chutkan released a timeline for the case late Thursday […]
Republican nominee for Missouri lieutenant governor drops defamation lawsuit
The Republican nominee for lieutenant governor has dropped a defamation lawsuit he filed before the Aug. 6 primary against the corporate owner of Missouri television stations and one of his political rivals. David Wasinger filed the lawsuit on Aug. 2 claiming that a television ad run by another Republican vying for the lieutenant governor nomination […]
Missouri judge puts Lake of the Ozarks casino proposal on November ballot
A proposal to allow a new casino to be licensed on the Osage River near the Lake of the Ozarks will be on the November ballot, a Cole County judge ruled Friday. The initiative, which was initially found to be 2,031 signatures short in the 2nd Congressional District, actually did have enough valid signatures, Secretary […]
St. Louis judge sets trial date for defamation case against Gateway Pundit
A St. Louis judge this week set a trial date of next March 10 for the defamation lawsuit against the owners of the far-right conspiracy site Gateway Pundit over false allegations of election fraud against two Georgia poll workers. Although trial schedules can always be amended, the Aug. 26 order by Judge Elizabeth Hogan appears […]
DOJ looks to revive classified documents case against Trump, argues judge’s dismissal was ‘flawed’
WASHINGTON — U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked a federal appeals court to reverse the dismissal of a case alleging former President Donald Trump mishandled classified documents at his Florida home after he left the Oval Office. The appeals process could take months, likely closing the door on any movement in the classified documents […]