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Missouri House gives initial approval for stricter sex trafficking laws

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

Missouri’s laws surrounding the trafficking of minors might be changing after a bill received initial approval by legislators Tuesday.House members debated a bill proposed by Rep. Jeff Coleman, R-Grain Valley, that would modify the offense of “enticing a child.”The current statute defines a victim as a child less than 15 years old, but this legislation would increase that age to less than 17.Currently, penalty distinctions for patronizing prostitution are under the age of 14 and older than 14. This bill would increase the age to 15, and make the under the age of 15 distinction a Class B felony rather than a Class D felony.According to World Population Review, Missouri ranks 5th in human trafficking with 4.3 cases per 100,000 people.Rep. Barbara Phifer, D-St. Louis, questioned why 17-year-olds are not included in this legislation. According to Coleman, they cannot be included because of Missouri’s current age of consent.Under current Missouri law, the age of consent is 17 y...

St. Charles lotto player wins $480,000 jackpot

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

ST. CHARLES -- A Missouri Lottery player hit the jackpot after buying a ticket at the St. Charles Moto Mart on South 5th Street for the February 24th drawing. The player regularly purchases a ticket after dropping his child off at school.The Show Me Cash ticket matched all the winning numbers drawn. Jackpots in this game start at $50,000 and grow until won. The player won $480,000 during this drawing. The chances of that happening are about one in 575,000.“At first, I didn’t believe it,” he tells the Missouri Lottery. “It was very exciting. The kids were going crazy!”The man plans to use some of the money to buy a motorcycle and to take a family vacation. He tells lotto work, "It just doesn’t seem real!."Tonight’s Show Me Cash jackpot is $211,000. The overall chances of winning a prize is around 1 in 4.21.

FBI offering reward for information on Kansas City teen missing for over a month

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Federal Bureau of Investigation is offering a $5,000 reward for anyone who can provide information on the whereabouts of a Kansas City teen who has been missing for over a month. The Kansas City division of the FBI is working with Kansas City police in the search for 13-year-old Jayden Robker. Robker was last seen in the area of Northwest Plaza Drive and Northwest Plaza Avenue around 3 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 2.  He was last seen wearing a green camouflage hoodie, grey sweatpants and black Puma tennis shoes while riding his black razor skateboard.Anyone with information on Robker’s whereabouts is asked to call the FBI's Kansas City Field Office at (816) 512-8200 or Kansas City Crime Stoppers at (816) 474-TIPS.

Lawmakers chip away at Parson’s plan for I-70 improvements

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

The biggest single building project in Gov. Mike Parson’s budget – $859 million to widen three sections of Interstate 70 – will have to be pared back if lawmakers divert funds to other highways, Department of Transportation Director Patrick McKenna said Tuesday.McKenna spent part of the day answering questions about MoDOT appropriations as the House Budget Committee works through Parson’s $51.6 billion spending plan for all of state government. The goal, Chairman Cody Smith said, is to be ready to amend the budget when lawmakers return after their upcoming mid-session break.The funding for the I-70 project would be almost 20% of the proposed $4.8 billion MoDOT budget for the coming fiscal year. In subcommittee work, amendments to take $48 million from the I-70 plan passed, with the money being redirected to a five-mile project on Interstate 44 in Springfield and an environmental impact study for improvements to the entire I-44 corridor.Widening I-70 to three lanes in each direc...

It’s always a fun afternoon with wine blogger, Megan Greco

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Megan Greco is back for another segment of Wine Down Wednesday. Be sure to educate yourself about wines for the upcoming Spring season! Her blog is If You Pour it, They Will Come!IfYouPourItTheyWillCome.com

Grandview’s Sienna Betts named Gatorade Colorado girls basketball player of the year

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

For the third straight year, a member of the Betts family has been crowned the Gatorade Colorado girls basketball player of the year.Grandview sophomore Sienna Betts on Wednesday received the honors, following in the footsteps of her sister Lauren, a 6-foot-7 freshman at Stanford who won the award each of the last two seasons.Related ArticlesPreps | Battle-tested Arapahoe eyes first state title in Class 6A girls Final 4: “We’re not done yet” Preps | PHOTOS: 2023 Colorado high school basketball state tournament quarterfinals Preps | Scouting the Class 6A Great 8 basketball games at Denver Coliseum Preps | Colorado state basketball tournaments 2023 Class 4A Great 8 results and coverage Preps | Glenwood Springs upsets top-seeded George Washington in Class 5A Great 8 as Demons eye first girls basketball title The younger Betts, who stands at 6-4, is averaging 21.6 points, 16.3 rebounds and ...

New Avalanche center Lars Eller has a Stanley Cup-winning goal on his résumé. But he says it’s not even his most important goal.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

The national television screens cut from the ice in Las Vegas to the streets in Washington, D.C., where throngs were already starting to celebrate 7:37 before it became official.In the weeks and years that followed, Lars Eller would encounter fans in Washington who thanked him. He noticed a distinct increase in his local recognizability.“I’d talk to fans that would say, ‘Oh, I’ve been a fan since ’75.’ You know, like, 15 years before I was even born,” Eller told The Post.The Colorado Avalanche’s new third-line center was beloved at his previous stop for scoring the game-winning goal that clinched the Washington Capitals’ first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history, 43 years after their 8-67-5 debut season in 1974-75. But Eller argues it’s not even the most important goal of his 14-year career.“I think you carry that with you,” he said. “It’s one of the best memories in your career. So that’s tough to beat, of course. I think it...

Bystander sues Denver police officer who shot her in LoDo last summer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

One of the five bystanders erroneously shot by a Denver police officer as bars let out in Lower Downtown last year filed a lawsuit against the officer this week.Angelica Rey was among the bystanders shot by Officer Brandon Ramos on July 17 near Larimer and 20th streets. The officer, who was suspended after the shooting and is facing criminal charges, was aiming at a man with a gun but missed and hit the bystanders on a crowded street. Five were shot and one additional bystander was injured, police have said.Rey, who was 23 at the time and out celebrating a promotion at work, was shot in the leg. She bled profusely and was “nearly trampled” when the crowd around her panicked after the shooting, she alleges in the lawsuit, which was filed in Denver District Court on Tuesday. A tourniquet was used on Rey’s leg, and she later learned the bullet had severed a nerve, leaving her with a permanent injury and loss of function, the lawsuit says.She is seeking an unspecified ...

Interview with a Saitama blockchain Industry Expert Russell Armand

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

I recently had the pleasure of speaking with a Saitama blockchain industry expert Russell Armand (https://www.saitamatoken.com/) about the potential of Bitcoin, regulation, CDCBs, and the use case of their company - writes CEO of CoinReporter Dimitar YankovWhen asked about the potential of Bitcoin, the Saitama expert spoke about its long-term potential and how it paved the way for other cryptocurrencies to take its place. They believe that Bitcoin could potentially become a global digital currency, which is what we all want in a fast-paced society where we need borderless currencies and digital currencies.On the topic of regulation, Russell Armand stated that if everyone can agree on things, it'll be regulated just like everything else. Each country will have its own restrictions surrounding it, but the finite line item there is the global currency. They feel that once those parameters are set, it should be smooth sailing.When asked about the impact of CDCBs on the cryptocurrency ma...

Powerball jackpot winner purchases mansion in Hollywood Hills

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:04:12 GMT

The winner of last year's record-setting $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot has made his first major splurge.Edwin Castro, who came forward to claim the prize in February, has apparently used a chunk of that life-changing money to purchase a mansion in the Hollywood Hills.The mansion sold for a whopping $25.5 million, according to Jack Flemming of the Los Angeles Times, citing property records. Zillow lists the sale date as March 1. It's the most expensive sale in Hollywood Hills this year and one of the most expensive homes ever sold in the area, Flemming reports.The home was built in 2022 by developer Roman James, according to Dirt.com. The 5-bedroom, 7-bath mansion (with a footprint of 13,578 square feet) overlooks both the Sunset Strip and Chateau Marmont.The mansion sold for a whopping $25.5 million, according to Jack Flemming of the Los Angeles Times, citing property records (Berlyn Photography)The mansion sold for a whopping $25.5 million, according to Jack Flemming of the Los A...