Top Stories of 2020
These were some of the most-viewed stories on KMOV.com in 2020.
CLAYTON, Mo. (KMOV.com) -- Missouri Governor Mike Parson announced the first confirmed coronavirus case in the state was found in St. Louis County.
Parson said a 20-year-old St. Louis County woman tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday. Officials said she was studying abroad in Italy and flew to Chicago O'Hare International Airport Monday and then took an Amtrak to St. Louis on Wednesday, March 4.
[READ: St. Louis coronavirus: Following the first patient's timeline]
The woman started feeling sick on Wednesday and went to Mercy Hospital St. Louis complaining of a fever and breathing issues on Friday. The coronavirus test came back ‘presumptive positive’ Saturday afternoon. Parson said she is currently in isolation at home with her family. Local health department officials said the woman was kept away from other patients and was not sick enough to stay at the hospital.
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The sample was sent to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for further testing. Results are expected to return within five days.
Villa Duchesne and Oak Hill School in Frontenac said the patient is the older sister of a Villa Duchesne student. In response, classes were cancelled for Monday so the school can work with local health officials.
[READ: Local school cancels classes after learning student is sister of coronavirus patient]
Amtrak released a statement on Sunday saying Amtrak train 303 that the patient boarded on March 4 has been taken out of service as a precaution. The train along with the St. Louis and Chicago stations will be cleaned and disinfected.
"We are working in close contact with public health and emergency management teams to have the best available information to be able to share with our customers and employees who might be affected. Amtrak is notifying passengers and employees who may have been on the same train," the statement read.
The City of St. Louis said the woman traveled through Amtrak's downtown station at the Gateway Transportation Center. The city released the following statement, saying they are following proper guidelines:
Today, we learned that the presumptive-positive COVID-19 (coronavirus) patient from St. Louis County traveled via Amtrak through the Gateway Transportation Center in the City of St. Louis. We are glad to learn that the patient’s symptoms did not warrant hospitalization and she is recovering in quarantine at home with her family.
The Gateway Transportation Center is following guidelines to assure the cleanliness of our facility.
We encourage everyone—travelers and citizens alike—to be mindful and follow guidelines for prevention of COVID-19 spread, such as those posted by the City of St. Louis Department of Health.
Travelers who have questions about Amtrak service to/from St. Louis should contact 800-872-7245.
"I am confident that the [Department of Health and Senior Services] will continue to take all steps necessary to protect the health and safety of Missourians and Missouri communities," Parson said.
Parson said the St. Louis County Department of Public Health will follow CDC guidelines to limit the spread of the infection.
[WATCH: News 4 had a one-on-one interview with a local health official on the first coronavirus case]
“St. Louis County is prepared for this challenge," St. Louis County Executive Sam Page said in a statement. "We are responding quickly, professionally, and effectively to these test results."
Senator Roy Blunt said in a statement "while Missourians will understandably be concerned about today’s announcement, there is no need to panic. Governor Mike Parson and St. Louis County Executive Dr. Sam Page are well prepared to meet this public health challenge."
He continued to say that under the law, "Missouri will receive at least $9.9 million to support response efforts, including additional test kits, protective equipment, and other necessary supplies."
Nationwide, the number of novel coronavirus cases in the United States continued to mount on Saturday, bringing the nationwide total to more than 400. At least 19 people have died.
Positive tests are coming from all over the country, including Washington, DC, which confirmed its first presumptive positive case on Saturday, according to Mayor Muriel Bowser. The patient has no travel history outside of the US and there is no evidence of widespread community transmission of coronavirus in Washington, DC, Bowser said.
But most of the cases were in communities in Washington state, New York and California. Authorities were working to contain the spread of the virus on a cruise ship off California's coast.
For more information on the virus and safety guidelines, visit the CDC’s website at cdc.gov/coronavirus. The St. Louis County Health hotline is 314-615-2660 or visit the county's website at stlcorona.com to learn more.
(CNN) -- Basketball legend Kobe Bryant and one of his daughters were among nine people killed Sunday morning when a helicopter crashed into a hillside in Calabasas, California, sources and officials said.
The helicopter crash, about 30 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles, caused a brush fire, Los Angeles County Fire Department Chief Daryl Osby said. The crash killed all nine people aboard, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said.
Earlier, the sheriff's department said five people were killed in the crash. While police have not released the names of the people on board, family members of some victims have confirmed their loved ones' deaths.
Tony Altobelli told CNN his brother, Orange Coast College baseball coach John Altobelli, 56; John's daughter Alyssa and wife Keri were killed in the crash. Altobelli was a former assistant baseball coach at the University of Houston, the school said.
Alyssa and Gianna were teammates, Tony Altobelli said.
Christina Mauser, an assistant girls basketball coach at Harbor Day School in Corona del Mar, California, was killed in the crash, her husband Matt Mauser, wrote on his Facebook page.
"My kids and I are devastated. We lost our beautiful wife and mom today in a helicopter crash," he wrote.
Sarah Chester and her daughter, Payton, were also passengers aboard the helicopter, according to a Facebook post by Todd Schmidt, principal at Harbor View Elementary School, where Payton once attended.
"While the world mourns the loss of a dynamic athlete and humanitarian, I mourn the loss of two people just as important...their impact was just as meaningful, their loss will be just as keenly felt, and our hearts are just as broken," said Schmidt.
LA County Fire Department Capt. Tony Imbrenda said he didn't immediately have any information about whether the Sikorsky S-76B helicopter radioed a distress signal.
"Individuals that saw the aircraft said it was coming down at a fairly significant rate of speed and impacted the ground on the hillside," he told reporters.
Imbrenda said he didn't know where the helicopter came from or where it was headed.
The helicopter was built in 1991, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. It was registered to Island Express Holding Corp, according to a FAA registry database.
Calls to Island Express were not answered Sunday. The company is based in the Southern California city of Fillmore, according to the California Secretary of State database.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash, the FAA said in a tweet. An NTSB team is expected to arrive in Calabasas on Sunday evening, the NTSB said in a tweet.
There was extremely low visibility at the time of the crash and conditions were foggy and cloudy with a drizzle, according to CNN Meteorologist Michael Guy. Pictures taken shortly after the crash showed fog in the area.
A heralded career
Bryant's death comes a day after LeBron James passed him as No. 3 on the NBA all-time scoring list when he reached 33,643 points.
"Continuing to move the game forward @KingJames. Much respect my brother," Bryant tweeted Saturday night.
Born in Philadelphia, Bryant started playing basketball when he was 3 and went on to become one of the NBA's greatest champions. He was drafted to the NBA straight out of Lower Merion High School near Philadelphia in 1996. He was the youngest player in NBA history at that time, at 18 years, 2 months and 11 days.
Bryant played his entire professional career with the Los Angeles Lakers and won five NBA championships.
Bryant has two Olympic gold medals for men's basketball.
Bryant retired in April 2016 after scoring 60 points in his final game. He said his "body knew it was time to say goodbye."
"In many ways he was the Los Angeles Lakers. When you think of Kobe Bryant, it's sports, but it's more than sports. He was part of our culture, Olympic teams, Hollywood, the father of four daughters," CNN sports analyst Christine Brennan said. Bryant was seen at women's sporting events including the US women's soccer team and WNBA games with his daughters, and he was "all about the empowerment of young women," she said.
Brennan said Bryant "become a cultural icon and not just about sports, but about our culture and a huge piece of Americana and that's why this news is absolutely tragic."
Mourning Kobe
Everyone from current and former NBA players to former President Barack Obama mourned Bryant's death.
NBA clippers coach Doc Rivers, who has known Bryant for many years, was emotional when discussing his death. "He means a lot to me, obviously. He was such a great opponent. ... It's what you want in sports," Rivers said.
Rivers said Bryant "had that DNA that very few athletes can ever have. The Tiger Woods and Michael Jordans."
Former Los Angeles Laker great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who has known Bryant since he was a boy, said Bryant was an athlete and leader who inspired generations of young athletes.
"He was one of the first ones to leave high school and come to the NBA and do so well, dominating the game and becoming one of the best scorers that the Los Angeles Lakers has ever seen," Abdul-Jabbar said in a video posted online.
Rest in peace, young man, Abdul-Jabbar said. "This loss, it's just hard to comprehend."
On the court Sunday, the Atlanta Hawks held a moment of silence Sunday as a tribute to Bryant before their game against the Washington Wizards. Following the moment of silence, Hawks guard Trae Young started the game wearing a No. 8 jersey to honor Bryant, then switched back to his No. 11. On the opening possession, the Hawks took an 8-second backcourt violation and the Wizards followed by taking a 24-second shot clock violation.
Bryant wore both No. 8 and No. 24 in his NBA career.
WATCH: Kobe Byrant reading his new fantasy novel with students
When he learned of Bryant's death, retired NBA player Dwyane Wade tweeted: "Nooooooooooo God please No!"
Former NBA player Scottie Pippen tweeted: "I'm stunned. Words can't even come close to describing it. Just an incredibly sad and tragic day."
NBA icon Shaquille O'Neal tweeted: "There's no words to express the pain Im going through with this tragedy of loosing my neice Gigi & my brother..."
"Kobe was a legend on the court and just getting started in what would have been just as meaningful a second act. To lose Gianna is even more heartbreaking to us as parents," Obama tweeted.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti called Bryant a "giant who inspired, amazed, and thrilled people everywhere with his incomparable skill on the court -- and awed us with his intellect and humility as a father, husband, creative genius, and ambassador for the game he loved.
"He will live forever in the heart of Los Angeles, and will be remembered through the ages as one of our greatest heroes."
President Donald Trump tweeted about Bryant's death, saying, "He loved his family so much, and had such strong passion for the future. The loss of his beautiful daughter, Gianna, makes this moment even more devastating...."
A love of helicopters
Ten years ago, GQ Magazine wrote about how Bryant regularly took his own helicopter to work:
"He takes a private helicopter from Orange County, where he lives with his wife and two children, to every home game. It's a nice dash of glitz, a touch of showbiz (but) Bryant says the helicopter is just another tool for maintaining his body. It's no different than his weights or his whirlpool tubs or his custom-made Nikes.
"Given his broken finger, his fragile knees, his sore back and achy feet, not to mention his chronic agita, Bryant can't sit in a car for two hours. The helicopter, therefore, ensures that he gets to Staples Center feeling fresh, that his body is warm and loose and fluid as mercury when he steps onto the court."
The chopper was adorned with his logo.
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) --- Loved ones said their final goodbyes to David Dorn, a retired St. Louis police captain, Wednesday at a funeral held in St. Louis.
Public visitation was held Tuesday from 1 p.m. - 7 p.m. at Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church at 915 North Taylor Ave. The following day, family and police personnel gathered for a private funeral at Saint Louis Friendly Temple on Martin Luther King Drive at 10 a.m.
The church was filled to capacity and social distancing restrictions meant many mourners had to remain on the sidewalk to pay their respects.
After a night of protests against police brutality, Dorn, 77, was shot and killed by looters outside of Lee's Pawn and Jewelry in North City Tuesday night. He spent 38 years with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department before becoming the police chief in Moline Acres.
There was no media coverage allowed inside the church during the service, which was followed by a funeral procession to Valhalla Cemetery in north St. Louis County.
Dorn helped out the owners of Lee's Pawn and Jewelry due to his extensive background in police work. When the business' alarm would go off, Dorn would check it out.
Helen Martin said she became friends with Dorn and he helped her come up with ways to protect her business on Washington Avenue and her customers.
"I broke out in tears immediately because I couldn't believe that something that devastating and horrible could happen to such a wonderful and incredible human being," Martin said.
Wednesday, St. Louis Mayor Lydra Krewson was among the mourners, along with Police Chief John Hayden, Public Safety Director Judge Jimmie Edwards, Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson, St. Louis County councilmember Tim Fitch and St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell.
"He was a real hero so my prayers go out to his family and the entire police department family who knew him," Mayor Krewson said.
"I knew a lot of people who knew Captain Dorn and I never heard one ill word said about him," Bell added.
All of those who attended Tuesday's public visitation described Dorn as selfless, kind and humble.
"David Dorn is my son's father-in-law," Emma Washington said. "And I knew him for years and years. We were just like one family all together."
The line to get inside the chapel Tuesday stretched down the block.
"He is such a wonderful, caring person. He wanted to do anything for everybody," Washington said. "If we needed anything done he would do it. He would come and help us."
Donations can be made to a memorial fund, CrimeStoppers, and BackStoppers.
Masks were mandatory to attend both ceremonies and social distancing was implemented due to health concerns.
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) -- A husband and wife made national news when photos captured them pointing guns at protesters Sunday night outside of their Central West End home.
During the protest, images and videos showed Mark McCloskey, 63, holding a rifle and his wife Patricia McCloskey, 61, pointing a handgun at the crowd of about 300 protesters around 7:30 p.m.
The protesters were marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson's home to demand her resignation.
The McCloskeys said they were “in fear for our lives” and that’s why they pulled the guns out.
“It was like the storming of the Bastille, the gate came down and a large crowd of angry, aggressive people poured through,” Mark McCloskey said. “I was terrified that we’d be murdered within seconds. Our house would be burned down, our pets would be killed.”
Mark said they called 911 and grabbed their guns as they heard the crowd approaching their private, gated community on Portland Place.
"A mob of at least 100 smashed through the historic wrought iron gates of Portland Place, destroying them, rushed towards my home where my family was having dinner outside and put us in fear for our lives," Mark McCloskey said, and shared photos of the destroyed gate.
Despite his claims, video circulating on social media shows protesters opening and walking through the unbroken gate. It is unclear when it was actually damaged or who destroyed it.
The couple also claims to have received death threats from the crowd.
“One fellow standing right in front of me pulled out two pistol magazines, clicked them together and said 'you’re next.' That was the first death threat we got that night,” Mark McCloskey said.
The McCloskeys hired attorney Al Watkins to represent them, and Watkins said the couple grabbed their weapons after the threats were made.
However in an interview with News 4 Monday, McCloskey said he and his wife grabbed their weapons as the crowd was walking toward their home, not after being threatened.
"Uh, the threats happened probably after we got the guns," he said.
In a separate statement from their attorney, the McCloskeys said they support the Black Lives Matter movement and that “peaceful protesters were not the subject of scorn or disdain by the McCloskeys. To the contrary, they were expecting and supportive of the message of the protesters,” the statement reads.
Additionally the statement says:
“Both Mr. and Mrs. McCloskey acted lawfully on their property which sits on a private gated lane in the City of St. Louis. Their actions were borne solely of fear and apprehension, the genesis of which was not race related. In fact, the agitators responsible for the trepidation were white.
‘The Black Lives Matters movement is here to stay, it is the right message, and it is about time,’ said Albert S. Watkins, legal counsel for Mr. and Mrs. McCloskey. ‘The McCloskeys want to make sure no one thinks less of BLM, its message and the means it is employing to get its message out because of the actions of a few white individuals who tarnished a peaceful protest.’”
Rasheen Aldridge helped lead the protest organized by a group called ‘Expect Us.’ He said protesters were peaceful and no threats were ever made.
When asked why the group marched on private property, Aldridge said, “Just like in many disobedient protests, even in the 60s, you break laws, make people feel uncomfortable. We’re not doing anything where we’re hurting anyone or putting anyone in danger.”
Could the McCloskeys be criminally charged?
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner said her office is investigating the incident, adding that protesters should not be met with violence.
"I am alarmed at the events that occurred over the weekend, where peaceful protesters were met by guns and a violent assault. We must protect the right to peacefully protest, and any attempt to chill it through intimidation or threat of deadly force will not be tolerated," Gardner tweeted.
Gardner was also referring to an investigation into protest that happened Saturday on Art Hill in front of the King Louis IX statue.
Who are the McCloskeys?
Mark and Patricia McCloskey are personal-injury lawyers who work together in the McCloskey Law Center in St. Louis.
According to their attorney, the McCloskeys “are lawyers whose professional careers have [sic] punctuated by their long standing commitment to protecting the civil rights of clients victimized at the hands of law enforcement. This commitment of time and resources to this cause continues today in the Isaiah Forman case.”
The couple is receiving both praise and criticism online: some people are supporting them for protecting their property.
A petition is calling for the McClockseys to be disbarred for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The Change.org petition also claims Patricia is part of the Board of Election Commissioners and asks people to contact the organization, but late Monday night the Board of Election Commissioners said the couple is not connected to the organization.
What was the protest about?
The roughly 300 protesters were marching down Portland Place to Mayor Lyda Krewson’s house and calling for her resignation. Although Krewson does not live on Portland Place but a few blocks away.
Krewson read the names and addresses of demonstrators calling for police reform during a Friday afternoon Facebook Live video.
Krewson grabbed submitted letters and read them, including the names and both partial and full addresses of those calling to defund the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.
The video has since been deleted and Krewson issued an apology later that day. A spokesperson for the mayor said she will not resign.
"Tonight, I would like to apologize for identifying individuals who presented letters to me at City Hall as I was answering a routine question during one of my updates earlier today. While this is public information, I did not intend to cause distress or harm to anyone," Krewson said in a statement. "The post has been removed and again, I sincerely apologize."
Later in the night, protesters painted "RESIGN" on the street in front of the mayor's house.
The names and addresses submitted are public record. For example, comments submitted to the St. Louis County Council must include names and addresses and all the information is read aloud.
An online petition demanding Krewson’s resignation has gained more than 40,000 signatures. Those calling for her to step down say she doxed people by reading those letters, meaning she made private or identifying information public on the internet with malicious intent.
Elected officials, organizations react to Krewson’s Facebook Live
St. Louis Alderwoman Megan Ellyia Green, who is also running for a seat in the Missouri Senate, said in a tweet "So not cool to doxx my constituents who support #DefundThePolice on your FB live. It's a move designed to silence dissent, and it's dangerous"
The ACLU of Missouri released a statement saying what Krewson did was "shocking and misguided," saying reading the information aloud "serves no apparent purpose beyond intimidation."
St. Louis City Treasurer Tishaura Jones also tweeted saying "The Mayor's actions not only endanger her citizens, it is also reckless," echoing calls for Krewson's resignation.
Alderwoman Cara Spencer, who is challenging Krewson in the Democratic primary in the 2021 mayoral election, stopped short of calling for Krewson’s resignation.
"It's a tough time to be a mayor but it's our job as elected officials to rise to the challenge," Spencer said.
Congressman Lacy Clay released the following statement:
“The rights of non-violent protestors are guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and should never be subject to the threat of deadly force, whether by individuals or by the police.
The incident which occurred last night on Portland Place was shameful, irresponsible, and could have easily ended in another tragedy.
The young Americans who are on the streets in St. Louis and across the nation deserve constitutional policing and a government that is as good as they are. I stand with them.”
News 4 reached out to the mayor for further comments, but a spokesperson said the mayor is not interested in talking, saying "she’s apologized, acknowledges she made a mistake and has absolutely no intention of resigning."
If Krewson resigns Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed would assume the role.
(CNN) -- America has chosen Democrat Joe Biden as its 46th president, CNN projects, turning to a veteran voice who has projected calm and compassion, promised a more empathetic and scientific approach to the pandemic, and pledged to stabilize American politics after four years of Donald Trump's White House chaos.
Biden, who turns 78 at the end of this month, will become the oldest president when he is inaugurated in January in the midst of the worst public health crisis in 100 years, the deepest economic slump since the 1930s and a national reckoning on racism and police brutality that is still unresolved.
His election will end Trump's tumultuous hold on Washington and condemn the Republican, who has had a lifelong obsession with winning, to the ranks of chief executives who lost after a single term.
America, I’m honored that you have chosen me to lead our great country.The work ahead of us will be hard, but I promise you this: I will be a President for all Americans — whether you voted for me or not.I will keep the faith that you have placed in me. pic.twitter.com/moA9qhmjn8
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) November 7, 2020
In a cinematic twist, it was Biden's boyhood state of Pennsylvania that put him over the 270 electoral vote threshold and delivered the White House. Trump had held a wide lead over Biden on the night of the election, but as election officials counted hundreds of thousands of mail-in ballots, the race shifted dramatically in Biden's favor, infuriating Trump and his allies, who knew the President's path to the White House was over without the commonwealth.
That the Keystone State was the last hurdle in Biden's path to the White House was a fitting end to a hard-fought race given that the former vice president has long cultivated his image as "middle-class Joe" from Scranton. In a visit that now seems almost prophetic, he had made a final trip to his childhood home in the city on Election Day after spending much of the campaign promising to prioritize the livelihoods of the many working-class voters whom Hillary Clinton lost to Trump in her 2016 bid.
On one of the living room walls in the house where he grew up, he wrote: "From this House to the White House with the Grace of God," signing his name and the date,"11.3.2020."
This election is about so much more than @JoeBiden or me. It’s about the soul of America and our willingness to fight for it. We have a lot of work ahead of us. Let’s get started.pic.twitter.com/Bb9JZpggLN
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) November 7, 2020
In the final days of the race, Biden's team redoubled their efforts to rebuild the Democrats' "blue wall" -- and that gambit paid off with Biden winning Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, according to CNN projections, while holding Minnesota, which the President made a priority in his reelection push.
As he watched his hopes of reelection being strangled with each tranche of votes in Pennsylvania, Trump lashed out on Twitter during the tense vote count, attempting to undermine democratic institutions with demands like "STOP THE COUNT."
The President falsely claimed the election was being stolen from him as many mail-in ballots, which were often counted after Election Day votes, landed in the column of his opponent.
Facing a deeply polarized country, Biden had tried to project comity and patience, and his desire to unite America.
"There will not be blue states and red states when we win. Just the United States of America," Biden said Wednesday afternoon. "We are not enemies. What brings us together as Americans is so much stronger than anything that can tear us apart."
Biden again asked for patience from his supporters on Thursday afternoon. "Stay calm. The process is working," he said in Wilmington, Delaware. "Each ballot must be counted. ... Democracy is sometimes messy. It sometimes requires a little patience, as well. But that patience has been rewarded now for more than 240 years with a system of governance that is the envy of the world."
Part of Trump's frustration stemmed from the fact that his campaign's finely tuned ground game did in fact succeed in turning out many more of the so-called "hidden Trump voters" than expected, making the race a much tighter contest than pre-election polls suggested.
Ultimately, Biden carved out his route to 270 Electoral College votes by holding most of the states that Clinton won and adding Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin to his column. Ballots are still being counted in the key states of Nevada and Arizona.
Trump continued to cast aspersions on the electoral process -- wrongly suggesting that there was something nefarious about the fact that the vote count in key states continued well after Tuesday night, as is customary in US elections. Meanwhile, his team mounted a series of lawsuits in several states, including Pennsylvania, looking to stop vote counting in some areas while challenging how closely observers can monitor officials counting the votes in others. The Trump campaign also said it would demand a recount in Wisconsin, where Biden led Trump by some 20,000 votes, even though historically a margin of that magnitude is unlikely to be reversed.
A career-long quest realized
The victory of Joseph Robinette Biden Jr., who forged a 50-year career as senator and vice president from his Delaware homestead, is a full circle moment that comes more than 30 years after his first presidential campaign. His running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris, will make history as the first woman, the first Black person and the first person of Southeast Asian descent to become vice president.
Biden's life of tragedy — he buried his first wife and his first daughter, and his adult son Beau, who died in 2015, survived two brain aneurysms and stayed in politics after two failed White House campaigns — shaped his image as a man of resilience and decency. Those qualities made him America's choice as a president who could shoulder the grief of a nation traumatized by the loss of more than 234,000 citizens to Covid-19, with millions unemployed in an environment of intense economic uncertainty.
Biden's victory means that Trump's rage-filled presidency — powered by his nationalism, toxic racial appeals, incessant lying and assault on democratic institutions — may come to be seen as a historical aberration rather than a new normal.
But Biden faces a huge task in uniting the country and addressing America's disillusionment with establishment figures like him, which led to the current President's political rise as an outsider who was elected on a wave of populism in 2016.
Biden is pledging to restore America's "soul," which he says was compromised by Trump's divisive approach, and to purge the President's "America First" foreign policy and rebuild Washington's traditional position of global leadership.
But Democrats dreaming of a "New Deal" style era of reform on health care, the economy, climate change, race and possibly even expanding the Supreme Court will see their ambitions tempered by their lack of gains in the balance of power in Congress and the need for the Biden administration to halt a pandemic that is getting worse. Health experts at the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation project say the virus could claim nearly 400,000 Americans lives by the time Biden is sworn in.
A future dominated by a pandemic and uncertainty
A country weary of nearly a year of lockdowns, separation from family and friends, and economic deprivation will need to be mobilized to adopt aggressive new steps to conquer a pandemic that Biden argued the Trump administration essentially gave up fighting.
The much-anticipated arrival of a vaccine that experts hope would be widely available in 2021 is a potential ray of hope, though it will be many months before life is back to normal. That means that Biden's first year — the time when a new President's power is maximized — will be dominated by the coronavirus.
And it remains uncertain whether Biden's pragmatic instincts, his lonely belief that a new era of cooperation is possible with Republicans, and his desire to preserve a winning coalition that included moderates and Never Trumpers could lead to early clashes with Democratic progressives.
Biden's task is complicated by inheriting a political climate intensely polarized by Trump's presidency. After months of predictions by the President that the election will be "rigged," Trump's supporters see the Democrat's victory as illegitimate, confounding his hopes of forging national unity.
A battle for the future ideological direction of the Republican Party between the President's partisans and more traditional conservatives in the post-Trump era could sow further discord in Washington. And the chances that Trump will simply fade into history seem minimal given the real estate mogul's history of controlling the news cycle as he weaponizes his Twitter feed to settle political grievances.
Biden's international aspirations also face challenges. The world has moved on during four years of American distraction. China has accelerated its power plays in Asia and around the world, and a new Cold War looms. US allies wonder whether America can be trusted anymore and how long the internationalist restoration in Washington will last. Confrontations with North Korea, Iran and Russia are even more acute than when President Barack Obama left office.
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) -- Missouri Governor Mike Parson signed an Executive Order to declare a State of Emergency in Missouri due to civil unrest on Saturday.
The Missouri National Guard and the Missouri Highway Patrol will stand ready to support local authorities.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic death of George Floyd. We are also saddened by the acts of violence that have transpired across our nation and state in response to this event,” Parson said in a statement. "At this time, we are taking a proactive approach to protect Missouri and its people."
[READ: 7 officers hurt after Ferguson protesters hurl rocks, fireworks at police]
According to the governor, some areas around the state have witnessed distress and hazards situations threatening the safety of resident. Officials said a limited number of guardsmen and women assisted in Kansas City Saturday night.
Troopers from the Missouri State Highway Patrol assisted law enforcement in Kansas City and St. Louis. Seven officers were injured in Ferguson Saturday night as a peaceful protest turned violent after the initial organizers left and a different group of people arrived to the Ferguson Police department.
The order puts the guard and state police on alert.
[READ: Man dragged by FedEx truck dies during night of George Floyd protests in St. Louis]
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) – Peaceful, tense and late night violent protests continue to break out across the St. Louis region as part of a renewed nationwide movement to bring awareness to police brutality against black citizens.
Curfew for St. Louis begins Tuesday night amid looting, violence and arrests
St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson on Tuesday said a curfew will be in place from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Krewson said she expects the curfew to be in place a few days.
Chief Hayden said his department made 25 arrests during the violence that lasted for nearly eight hours overnight. In all, 36 people have been arrested in two days. Police reported that 55 buildings had been broken into or looted during the night.
The St. Louis Police Department released an initial list of buildings and businesses that were either looted or sustained property damage. The list is expected to grow throughout the day.
Public Safety Director Jimmie Edwards had a warning for looters Tuesday.
"To the criminals, we have your surveillance pictures we will count every freckle on your face to bring you to justice," Edwards said.
St. Louis County officer-involved shooting
According to officials, St. Louis City officers were responding to reports of looting near Natural Bridge and Union around 2:30 a.m. when someone inside a maroon Chevrolet Impala began firing shots at them.
The suspects then sped off, leading police on a chase on Interstate 70 near Goodfellow. Officers from St. Louis County joined the chase when they drove through Jennings.
"Three people exited that vehicle and fled. At least two of them were armed," Sgt. Ben Granda of the St. Louis Police Department said. "An officer discharged his weapon in defense of himself and those with him, striking the suspect."
Police said a 21-year-old was wounded and taken to a hospital for life-saving treatment.
A second suspect, described as a 25-year-old man, was taken into custody, while a third fled into a wooded area, police said. Two handguns were founded nearby.
Retired St. Louis Captain killed as North City pawn shop is looted
A retired St. Louis City police captain was shot and killed outside of a looted North City pawn shop overnight.
Around 2:30 a.m. Tuesday, police found 77-year-old David Dorn shot dead outside of Lee's Pawn and Jewelry store in the 4100 block of Martin Luther King Dr. St. Louis police also noted that the pawn shop had been looted.
In 2008 Dorn was hired as the police chief of Moline Acres after spending 38 years with the St. Louis Police Department.
Four St. Louis officers shot amid rioting, looting
Four police officers were shot in downtown St. Louis amid ongoing violent protests Monday night; a shooting Police Chief John Hayden said was carried out by "cowardly" individuals.
The shooting happened near St. Louis police headquarters, around 16th and Olive, where a group of protesters and police had been clashing repeatedly throughout the night.
All four officers are expected to be okay.
A very emotional chief John Hayden addressed the shooting last night outside of the hospital. "Can we make some sense out of this? ... This is horrible.” Watch his remarks here.
Looters set fire to 7-Eleven in downtown; clash with St. Louis police
Police and protesters clashed in downtown St. Louis Monday night, throwing fireworks, breaking windows and doors, looting and, eventually, setting fire to a 7-Eleven.
The tension came as the sun went down, after thousands of demonstrators marched peacefully through downtown St. Louis Monday afternoon.
After hundreds gathered outside of police headquarters on Olive Street, police formed a line and began pushing protesters away from the main entrance of the building.
Video showed a firework exploding very near officers outside the police headquarters, and police deploying tear gas, which sent dozens of protesters running.
Shortly after that, looting of the 7-Eleven began, which was eventually set on fire leaving employees out of a job.
"It just started to get crazy around here, gun shots, sirens, we heard yelling it sounded like explosions," employee Sierra Shields said. "Like my whole world just fell. That was all I had, my job. It just felt like somebody was taking something from me and I couldn't do anything about it."
Click here to hear more from Shields and the owner.
Huge crowd marches on Market Street in downtown St. Louis, then closes Highway 40
A crowd, estimated as a couple thousand people, marched from the St. Louis City Justice Center down Market Street Monday afternoon.
The "Expect Us" protesters, which was peaceful, chanted and and carried signs, calling for justice.
The crowd marched to the arch, then marched onto the westbound lanes of Highway 40 in downtown. St. Louis officers block traffic at the Poplar Street Bridge to ensure safety.
Protesters damage Brentwood stores; block traffic and set off fireworks near the Galleria
Some stores in the Brentwood Square shopping center were closed Monday after protesters broke windows and caused damage inside. Nordstrom Rack, REI, AT&T were seen boarded up and with repair crews on site Monday. Around the same time Sunday night, dozens of protesters congregated at the St. Louis Galleria, at times blocking Brentwood and Clayton roads.
News 4 crews saw at least one man setting off fireworks in the nearby CVS parking lot. Police were seen escorting one person in handcuffs.
St. Louis police scramble to keep up with early Monday morning break-ins
First responders were busy overnight investigating a string of break-ins and a fire in St. Louis.
Two Sprint stores were broken into near downtown St. Louis and in the Central West End. Several people were gathering around the Sprint store on Washington Ave.
News 4 crews also saw shattered glass at their Central West End store on Lindell. It is unknown if anything was stolen from either location.
Police were then called to STL Grillz in the Delmar Loop where every window was shattered. The owners said nothing was stolen.
For second night in a row, peaceful protests turn violent, destructive in Ferguson
Demonstrators gathered around the Ferguson Police Department for a second night in a row Sunday. Some protesters threw rocks and fireworks at officers just after 9 p.m. and Ferguson police officers gave them verbal warnings to disperse.
The St. Louis County Police Department then said the situation has become an unlawful assembly as protesters refused to stop and continued attacking the officers. Two officers were injured as a result.
Several Ferguson businesses were broken into and News 4 cameras were rolling as two small explosions occurred within those businesses. Police also said a Molotov cocktail was thrown in their direction. A total of six people were arrested. St. Louis County said there were reports of shots fired at officers.
Sunday night, St. Louis County police made six arrests; three for assault on law enforcement officers, one for destruction of property, one for unlawful possession of an explosive weapon, and one for an active warrant. Each are adult men from the St. Louis area.
National Guard stands ready
Missouri Governor Mike Parson signed an Executive Order to declare a State of Emergency in Missouri due to civil unrest on Saturday.
The Missouri National Guard and the Missouri Highway Patrol will stand ready to support local authorities.
Troopers from the Missouri State Highway Patrol assisted law enforcement in Kansas City and St. Louis. Seven officers were injured in Ferguson Saturday night as a peaceful protest turned violent after the initial organizers left and a different group of people arrived to the Ferguson Police department.
Protest, a thousand people strong, moves through streets of Clayton and University City
A huge peaceful protest moved through the streets of Clayton and University City Saturday.
The protest started around 3:00 p.m. when around 1,500 Protesters blocked intersections and made their way onto Forest Park Parkway and walked east, first in the westbound lanes, then on both sides of the road.
"We need to do something about this, they got to stop killing us," one demonstrator said. Demonstrators then sat down on the road at its intersection with Big Bend near the Washington University campus before they marched north on Big Bend to the Delmar Loop.
Peaceful protests brings families together in Edwardsville
About 300 people marched in front of the Madison County Court House Sunday afternoon joining the nation in protest of police brutality.
"We're still having to deal with innocent people getting killed in the street for absolutely no reason at all," organizer Haylee Cathorall said. Cathorall, an 18-year-old, organized the gathering and said it all started with a simple post on Facebook.
"I wanted to organize this because black lives do matter, and it doesn't sound like it from around the community we need to hear our voices," she said.
Peaceful protests aim to fight injustice through prayer in Ferguson
Before the aggression and violence in Ferguson Sunday night, a calmer seen unfolded on South Florissant Avenue.
Ferguson pastor Jonathan Tremaine, a leader of Sunday's peaceful protest, wanted to the world to see what the people of Ferguson stand for.
A community came together to fight injustice through prayer.
For 22-year-old Chad Bennett, George Floyd was the tipping point that inspired him to make a sign and stand in protest outside of the Ferguson Police Department.
“I am sick and tired of the violence's effect on our people,” Bennett said.
Ferguson protests turn violent Saturday night
The George Floyd protest in Ferguson took a turn Saturday night as people started throwing rocks and fireworks at the Ferguson Police Department. News 4 crews saw people throw several items at the building just before 10:30 p.m. Several windows of the police station were shattered. Tear gas was deployed by officers as more fireworks were set off by the demonstrators.
Protests and demonstrations turn deadly
Protests were held in downtown St. Louis Friday night and a man was killed after being dragged by a FedEx truck as people filled the streets. A crowd of protesters surrounded the truck, police said two people standing on the passenger side footboard pointed guns at the driver.
Fearing for his safety, police said the driver sounded his horn and then drove off, but someone caught by a trailer tire was pulled under and run over. The victim was taken to a hospital where he later died.
(CNN) -- On the night Vice President-elect Kamala Harris made history, she recognized the long battle women had faced for the right to vote and to break into the highest ranks of American politics -- and said that "every little girl watching" across the country now knows they can do so, too.
In a speech Saturday night in Wilmington, Delaware, before she introduced President-elect Joe Biden, Harris also thanked Black women, saying they are "too often overlooked, but so often prove that they are the backbone of our democracy."
"While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last," Harris said. "Because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities."
"And to the children of our country, regardless of your gender, our country has sent you a clear message: Dream with ambition, lead with conviction and see yourself in a way that others might not see you, simply because they've never seen it before. And we will applaud you every step of the way," she said.
A history-making figure as the first woman, the first Black person and the first South Asian elected vice president, Harris began her speech with a nod to Georgia Rep. John Lewis, the civil rights icon who died this year.
Harris was the fourth woman to appear on a major political party's presidential ticket, following Democratic vice presidential nominee Geraldine Ferraro in 1984, Republican No. 2 Sarah Palin in 2008 and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016. She is the first to win.
In her speech, Harris also expressed her gratitude to Biden and his family, thanking the President-elect and his wife, Jill Biden, "for welcoming our family into theirs on this incredible journey." She also mentioned Beau Biden, the President-elect's late son, who Harris first got to know when they were state attorneys general.
Harris recognized a new generation of women who cast their ballots in 2020, and remembered her mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, who immigrated to the United States from India as a young woman.
"When she came here when was 19, she could not have imagined this moment," Harris said of her mother, who died in 2009. "But she believed in an America where moments like this are possible."
"I'm thinking about her and about the generations of women -- Black women, Asian, White, Latina and Native American women -- throughout our nation's history who have paved the way for this moment tonight," she said. "Women who fought and sacrificed so much for equality, liberty and justice for all, including the Black women, who are too often overlooked, but so often prove that they are the backbone of our democracy."
She wore a white suit, a nod to suffragettes 100 years after women's constitutional right to vote was guaranteed.
"Tonight I reflect on their struggle, their determination, and the strength of their vision to see what can be, unburdened by what has been. And I stand on their shoulders," Harris said. "And what a testament it is to Joe's character that he had the audacity to break one of the most substantial barriers that exist in our country and select a woman as his vice president."
NEW YORK (AP) — Hall of Famer Lou Brock, one of baseball’s signature leadoff hitters and base stealers who helped the St. Louis Cardinals win three pennants and two World Series titles in the 1960s, has died. He was 81.
Dick Zitzmann, Brock's longtime agent and friend, confirmed Brock's death on Sunday, but he said he couldn't provide any details. The Cardinals and Cubs also observed a moment of silence in the outfielder's memory before their game at Wrigley Field.
Brock lost a leg from diabetes in recent years and was diagnosed with cancer in 2017.
I had the pleasure of meeting Lou Brock on his Birthday earlier this summer and you couldn’t help but smile when he smiled. Rest In Peace to a legend on and off the field. #STLCards https://t.co/JneVgMolT2
— Brooke Grimsley (@BrookeGrimsley) September 6, 2020
“Over my 25-plus years of being his agent, he was perhaps the happiest Hall of Famer I've ever encountered,” Zitzmann said.
The man later nicknamed the Running Redbird and the Base Burglar arrived in St. Louis in June 1964, swapped from the Cubs for pitcher Ernie Broglio in what became one of baseball’s most lopsided trades.
Brock stole 938 bases in his career, including 118 in 1974 — both of those were big league records until they were broken by Rickey Henderson.
Brock's death came after Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver died Monday. Brock and Seaver faced each other 157 times, the most prolific matchup for both of them in their careers.
Along with starter Bob Gibson and center fielder Curt Flood, Brock was an anchor for St. Louis as its combination of speed, defense and pitching made it a top team in the ’60s and a symbol of the National League’s more aggressive style at the time in comparison to the American League.
We join the @Cardinals organization and all @MLB in mourning the passing of Hall of Famer Lou Brock. pic.twitter.com/VNqalvEHwp
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) September 6, 2020
The Cards were World Series champions in 1964 and 1967 and lost to the Detroit Tigers in seven games in 1968. Opposing teams were warned to keep Brock off base, especially in the low-scoring years of 1967-68 when a single run often could win a game. But the speedy left fielder with the popup slide was a consistent base-stealing champion and run producer.
A lifetime .293 hitter, he led the league in steals eight times, scored 100 or more runs seven times and amassed 3,023 hits.
Brock was even better in postseason play, batting .391 with four homers, 16 RBIs and 14 steals in 21 World Series games. He had a record-tying 13 hits in the 1968 World Series, and in Game 4 homered, tripled and doubled as the Cardinals trounced Detroit and 31-game winner Denny McLain 10-1.
Brock never played in another World Series after 1968, but remained a star for much of the last 11 years of his career.
He was so synonymous with base stealing that in 1978 he became the first major leaguer to have an award named for him while still active — the Lou Brock Award, for the National League’s leader in steals. For Brock, base stealing was an art form and a kind of warfare. He was among the first players to study films of opposing pitchers and, once on base, relied on skill and psychology.
In his 1976 memoir “Lou Brock: Stealing is My Game,” he explained his success. Take a “modest lead” and “stand perfectly still.” The pitcher was obligated to move, if only “to deliver the pitch.” “Furthermore, he has two things on his mind: the batter and me,” Brock wrote. “I have only one thing in mind — to steal off him. The very business of disconcerting him is marvelously complex.”
Brock closed out his career in 1979 by batting .304, making his sixth All-Star Game appearance and winning the Comeback Player of the Year award. The team retired his uniform number, 20, and he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985 in his first year of eligibility.
The soft-spoken Brock was determined no matter the score and sometimes angered opponents and teammates by stealing even when the Cards were far ahead. He also made two damaging mistakes that helped cost St. Louis the ’68 World Series.
After his playing career was over, Brock worked as a florist and a commentator for ABC’s “Monday Night Baseball” and was a regular for the Cards at spring training. He served as a part-time instructor while remaining an autograph favorite for fans, some of them wearing Brock-a-brellas, a hat with an umbrella top that he designed.
Brock had been a nominal churchgoer since childhood, but his faith deepened after enduring personal struggles in the 1980s and he and his third wife, Jacky, became ordained ministers serving at Abundant Life Fellowship Church in St. Louis. He would speak of having “a “Holy Ghost-Filled Alarm Clock” whenever tempted to resume his previous ways.
“Your old lifestyle’s not going away; it’s going to be around you for a long time. But you’ll find it has no room to enter,” he once told The Christian Broadcasting Network.
Brock was married three times and had three children, among them Lou Brock Jr., a former NFL cornerback and safety.
The seventh of nine children, Lou Brock Sr. was born in El Dorado, Arkansas, and grew up in a four-bedroom shack in rural Collinston, Louisiana. His introduction to baseball came by accident. Brock had spat on a teacher and for punishment had to write a book report about baseball, presumably to teach him about life beyond Collinston.
A star athlete in high school, he was accepted into Southern University on a work-study scholarship, nearly failed, but remained with the college when a baseball tryout led to an athletic scholarship. Brock signed with the Cubs as an amateur free agent in 1960, made his major league debut late in the following season and was in the starting lineup by 1962.
After batting just .251 with Chicago at the time he was traded in 1964, Brock hit .348 with 33 steals the rest of the way, helping St. Louis overtake Philadelphia and win the pennant. Meanwhile, Broglio was finished by 1966. He was an 18-game winner in 1963 but, as the Cubs would discover, had ongoing arm problems and never reached double digits in victories again.
”(Broadcaster) Brent Musburger was just out of college when the trade was made,” Brock told MiLB.com in 2010. “They sent him in to do the story. It was his first assignment. The content of the interview led to a headline in the paper, ‘Cubs pull off greatest steal since the Brink’s Robbery.’
“So every time I see Brent, that’s our connection. He wrote that, so every time I see him I say, “You still think that was the greatest steal since the Brink’s Robbery?’”
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AP Sports Writer Jay Cohen in Chicago contributed to this report.
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More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) – The statue of Christopher Columbus was taken down in Tower Grove Park Tuesday after years of controversy.
The statue used to be the first thing you saw when you entered the park. It stood in the park for over 140 years.
Officials with the Tower Grove Park board posted the following statement to their Facebook page Tuesday morning as the statue was being removed:
"Tower Grove Park celebrates the diversity of our community every day and serves as the centerpiece of the region’s most vibrant neighborhoods. When a statue of Christopher Columbus was placed in the park 140 years ago, its purpose was to celebrate the contributions of immigrants in this region. But now, for many, it symbolizes a historical disregard for indigenous peoples and cultures and destruction of their communities.
In order to ensure a safe, inclusive and pleasant environment for park visitors and team members alike, the Park’s Board of Commissioners has authorized the removal of the Columbus statue to begin the week of June 15. By taking this action, Tower Grove Park reaffirms its commitment to being a place of welcome, and to caring for the people’s park in the best way possible."
The statue’s removal comes during a growing push across the country to take down controversial statues, including Christopher Columbus. In some states, statues of the European explorer have been torn down, beheaded and dumped into water.
Historical records reveal Columbus forced many natives to be slaves. According to History.com, Columbus treated them with 'extreme violence and brutality,' a far cry from the story many learned growing up of the Italian explorer who became a hero after discovering America in 1492.
“He’s not the person that we thought he was or that we were taught he was. Maybe the history has been out there all along but our educational system prioritizes the stories that benefit those in charge," said Mary Schum, who supports removing the Christopher Columbus statue in Tower Grover Park.
Last week, a petition had over 1,000 signatures to remove the statue that sat at the entrance of Tower Grove Park near Grand Avenue.
There have been calls to remove the statue for years. Last year, the park's board announced the statue would stay and said it would post signs “with important historical context about Columbus and the history of the park’s land.”
Tempers flared this morning after a crew with a crane removed the 140-year old statue. Nick Gartelos was one of those people who was saying it was wrong to take down a statue that was a source of national pride for Italian-Americans.
"This, in and of itself may be innocuous and completely harmless, but now where do we draw the line," said Gartelos.
One person at the park, who asked to not be identified, said he thinks the statue represents our country's history and supports leaving it in Tower Grove Park.
Before the statue’s removal, the park's executive director told News 4:
"Tower Grove Park is a place of inclusion and diversity. All three statues in the park were placed there approximately 140 years ago to celebrate the contributions of immigrants to this region."
"He wasn’t even the first person to land here so I don’t really understand putting him on a statue in the first place so if it offends people, yeah, just get rid of it," said Josey Rodrigquez, who signed the petition to remove the statue.
"I think it's great. I think if a lot of people took note and quit glorifying any historian of genocide. I think that would be a move in the right path," said Pat Davis.
A protest was planned for June 23rd at Piper Palm House where the Tower Grove Park Board of Commissioners is scheduled to meet.
The statue has been a controversial one for years in St. Louis and was vandalized in 2016 on Columbus Day. The same thing happened in 2017 when someone spray-painted "murder" and "Black Lives Matter" on the statue.
"We Italians are just tired of it," a protester said at the time. "There's no reason to be rude, disgraceful, or even just ... Horrible. There''s just no reason for it."
People gathered around the statue in 2018 on Columbus Day and demanded its removal because of his treatment to indigenous people. In October, 2019, Tower Grove Park's board decided to keep the statue until the decision was reversed on June 16, 2020 after the death of George Floyd.
Other members of the Italian community were upset after its removal on Tuesday.
"I'm very saddened, I'm sure, as most Italian Americans," Rio Vitale said.
Vitale says the statue went up 140 years ago in reaction to discrimination against Italian immigrants.
"Now with that said in today's times, I think it's an appropriate thing to take the statue down. But that doesn't make me happy," Vitale said.
Two years ago, the Tower Grove Park Board formed an advisory task force to study the statue's future.
The board released a statement saying: "When a statue of Christopher Columbus was placed in the park 140 years ago, its purpose was to celebrate the contributions of immigrants in this region. But now, for many, it symbolizes a historical disregard for indigenous peoples and cultures and destruction of their communities.In order to ensure a safe, inclusive and pleasant environment for park visitors and team members alike, the park’s board of commissioners has authorized the removal of the Columbus statue to begin the week of June 15."
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) – In July, Cori Bush was viewed as a long shot to unseat an entrenched incumbent; only five months later, she is heading to Capitol Hill.
Bush easily defeated Republican Anthony Rogers Tuesday to become the Congresswoman for Missouri’s 1st District.
"This is a night to remember," Bush said after the call was made, addressing her supporters. "Thank you for showing up. It's one thing to support on paper and social media and it's another by showing up. I thank every single one of you that stood by me."
The first district is composed of the entirety of St. Louis City, most of North County, and mid and inner ring suburbs such as Clayton, University City and Maplewood. It is the safest Democratic seat in Missouri.
Bush, a progressive activist, tried unseating Clay in 2018 but didn’t have the money or name recognition to spark a legitimate challenge, losing by 20 percent. She was able to pull out the victory winning 49%-46% in August's primary.
The seat had been held by a member of the Clay family since 1969, when Clay’s father Bill was first elected. The younger Clay won the seat in 2000.
WASHINGTON, Mo. (KMOV.com) -- Peyton Baumgarth, 13, is being remembered by family and friends as someone who was kind and compassionate, but a real jokester.
The eighth grader in Franklin County died over the weekend from complications caused by the coronavirus, marking the first death under the age of 18 in the state.
Stephanie Franek, his mother, told News 4 that she tested positive for the coronavirus on October 26 and that Baumgarth was presumed to have the virus because he was showing symptoms. She said he didn't have any underlying condition, but his condition declined rapidly.
"He just wasn't getting any better and his condition was getting much worse, to the point he needed medical attention," said Franek.
Franek said Peyton was admitted to SSM Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital on Thursday and died on Saturday.
"This is just something that no parent should ever have to do, and I don't even know how to take a breath, let alone get through the next days and weeks and months and years without him," she said.
Baumgarth was an 8th grader at Washington Middle School.
"We extend our heartfelt sympathy to the family," school officials said in an email sent to parents and staff.
The school will bring in additional counselors on Wednesday when students return to the middle school for support.
"Because we know this will impact our school community emotionally, we encourage you to be especially sensitive and prepare to offer support to your child(ren) during this difficult time," the email reads.
A friend of the family created a GoFundMe account to help with medical costs and funeral expenses.
Franek says that if any good can come from her her son's death it's that people will follow the safety guidelines and take the pandemic seriously.
"Wear a mask when you're in public, wash your hands and know that COVID is real," she said.
On Sunday, the Franklin County Health Department reported 44 new cases, seven of which were children who tested positive. They range from a 3-year old boy in Leslie to a 16-year old girl in Gerald.
Over the last 10 days, according to health department data, 16 children have tested positive, including a 1-year old boy in the Sullivan area.
According to Missouri's health department, five people between 18 and 24 have died from the virus so far in the state. The state's coronavirus dashboard doesn't show anybody under 18 has died, Peyton's death would be the first.
A total of 16,915 Missourians under the age of 18 have been infected by the virus statewide so far.
[Updated Wednesday with new statement from Brown and Brown]
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) -- Attorney Charles "Ed" Brown, well-known as half of the prominent St. Louis legal team Brown and Brown, has passed away, according to a statement from his firm.
Exact circumstances of his death are not known at this time, but police sources indicate he likely died by suicide.
Around 4:30 p.m. Monday, police and emergency workers were called to the Gateway Tower building after a body was discovered. The man was pronounced deceased and later identified as Brown.
The Gateway Tower also houses KMOV studios.
Brown, who appeared with his brother on many billboards and broadcast commercials, was often most recognized for his eye patch, covering an injury he said he received as a child.
“We are shocked and devastated," a statement from the firm said. "We request the privacy of the family is respected during this most difficult time.”
A statement Wednesday from the firm said Brown wanted the community know he was "sick and dying" and that led to his suicide. No other details were released, other than to say he was not dying of COVID-19.
He and his brother Dan Brown also filmed infomercials, which often aired in the overnight hours, talking about their love for St. Louis.
According to their website, Brown was a principal partner at Brown and Brown after forming the law firm in 1993. He handled thousands of traffic tickets and criminal cases. The firm’s website says Ed was fluent in Russian and enjoyed sports.
If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, call 1-800-273-TALK or visit http://suicidepreventionlifeline.org
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) -- One of the police officers shot Saturday in south St. Louis City while responding to a shooting call has died from his injuries.
Officials with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said Officer Tamarris Bohannon responded to a shooting call Saturday when a man shot him in the head. Bohannon was taken to a hospital and died from his injuries on Sunday.
He was 29 years old and was on the force for three and a half years. He leaves behind a wife and three children.
"It is with the heaviest of hearts that we report that our critically injured officer has died... You will be deeply missed," the department said on Twitter. "We cannot express how much we appreciate the hospital staff who continuously treated both officers for their injuries."
Bohannon is the first St. Louis City officer killed in the line of duty since Daryl Hall's 2011 shooting death.
The shooting
St. Louis Police Chief John Hayden said Bohannon and other officers were responding to a shooting call in the 3700 block of Hartford Street shortly before 6 p.m. Saturday just south of Tower Grove Park. While they were looking for a victim, they heard gunfire and Bohannon was hit in the head and went to the ground.
The gunman shot a second officer in the leg when he and others were going to assist Bohannon. The officer, who is 30 years old, was taken to a hospital and later released on Sunday.
"These officers, all they're trying to do is their job and try to help a person who's wounded and they come under fire themselves," Hayden said.
[READ: Couple speaks after gunman shot two police officers in their South City home]
Hayden said the suspect ordered homeowners Steve and Mimi Haag out of their home and barricaded himself inside.
“I’m looking at my husband and I’m seeing this man … I didn’t look at his hand but I saw something dark in his hand and he said, 'Ma’am, hang up your phone," said Steve's wife Mimi Haag. "I can’t believe this happened and that we walked out of that house without that man shooting us … standing there in our foyer with his gun.”
Investigators were able to take the 43-year-old gunman into custody around 4:45 a.m. Sunday.
"Our officers have been going through a lot this summer," Hayden said to reporters outside St. Louis University Hospital. "We've had a surge in violence."
Hayden said eight officers have been shot in the line of duty since early June in the city.
What we know about the suspect
Sources told us 43-year-old Thomas Kinworthy has a lengthy criminal history, including a conviction in 2001 for aggravated battery with a firearm out of Florida.
[READ: Man accused of shooting two St. Louis police officers has a long criminal history, spanning decades]
He is currently facing charges of sexual battery and kidnapping for an incident in Florida last year, according to sources. He's been out on bond but a warrant had been issued for his arrest for failing to appear to court in that case.
He has also had other traffic and drug convictions out of Missouri.
Community leaders react
"Teresa and I are deeply saddened to hear of the loss of one of our SLMPD Officers," Gov. Mike Parson said on Twitter. "Officers across Missouri protect us every day without hesitation and they and their families deserve our support."
St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson said she is heartbroken over the officer's deaths.
"This is a horrific reminder of the dangers our brave men and women willingly face everyday to keep us safe," Krewson said. "I ask that everyone please continue to keep Officer Bohannon, his loved ones, friends and colleagues, and the entire St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department in your thoughts and prayers."
The U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri Jeff Jensen said his team is aware of the shooting and is available to assist.
"We offer thoughts and prayers to the officers and their families. I, along with the men and women of this office, stand ready to help local law enforcement if needed," Jensen said.
The shooting happened the same day widow of retired Police Captain David Dorn led a march in the city calling for peace and healing. Dorn was shot and left to die outside a pawn shop early June by violent looters.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a diminutive yet towering women’s rights champion who became the court’s second female justice, died Friday at her home in Washington. She was 87.
Ginsburg died of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said.
Her death just over six weeks before Election Day is likely to set off a heated battle over whether President Donald Trump should nominate, and the Republican-led Senate should confirm, her replacement, or if the seat should remain vacant until the outcome of his race against Democrat Joe Biden is known.
Chief Justice John Roberts mourned Ginsburg’s passing. “Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her — a tireless and resolute champion of justice,” Roberts said in a statement.
Ginsburg announced in July that she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment for lesions on her liver, the latest of her several battles with cancer.
Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court’s liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace the court’s Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the Notorious RBG, for her defense of the rights of women and minorities, and the strength and resilience she displayed in the face of personal loss and health crises.
Those health issues included five bouts with cancer beginning in 1999, falls that resulted in broken ribs, insertion of a stent to clear a blocked artery and assorted other hospitalizations after she turned 75.
She resisted calls by liberals to retire during Barack Obama’s presidency at a time when Democrats held the Senate and a replacement with similar views could have been confirmed. Instead, Trump will almost certainly try to push Ginsburg’s successor through the Republican-controlled Senate — and move the conservative court even more to the right.
Ginsburg antagonized Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign in a series of media interviews, including calling him a faker. She soon apologized.
Her appointment by President Bill Clinton in 1993 was the first by a Democrat in 26 years. She initially found a comfortable ideological home somewhere left of center on a conservative court dominated by Republican appointees. Her liberal voice grew stronger the longer she served.
Ginsburg was a mother of two, an opera lover and an intellectual who watched arguments behind oversized glasses for many years, though she ditched them for more fashionable frames in her later years. At argument sessions in the ornate courtroom, she was known for digging deep into case records and for being a stickler for following the rules.
She argued six key cases before the court in the 1970s when she was an architect of the women’s rights movement. She won five.
“Ruth Bader Ginsburg does not need a seat on the Supreme Court to earn her place in the American history books,” Clinton said at the time of her appointment. “She has already done that.”
On the court, where she was known as a facile writer, her most significant majority opinions were the 1996 ruling that ordered the Virginia Military Institute to accept women or give up its state funding, and the 2015 decision that upheld independent commissions some states use to draw congressional districts.
Besides civil rights, Ginsburg took an interest in capital punishment, voting repeatedly to limit its use. During her tenure, the court declared it unconstitutional for states to execute the intellectually disabled and killers younger than 18.
In addition, she questioned the quality of lawyers for poor accused murderers. In the most divisive of cases, including the Bush v. Gore decision in 2000, she was often at odds with the court’s more conservative members — initially Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and Justices Sandra Day O’Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony M. Kennedy and Clarence Thomas.
The division remained the same after John Roberts replaced Rehnquist as chief justice, Samuel Alito took O’Connor’s seat, and, under Trump, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh joined the court, in seats that had been held by Scalia and Kennedy, respectively.
Ginsburg would say later that the 5-4 decision that settled the 2000 presidential election for Republican George W. Bush was a “breathtaking episode” at the court.
She was perhaps personally closest on the court to Scalia, her ideological opposite. Ginsburg once explained that she took Scalia’s sometimes biting dissents as a challenge to be met. “How am I going to answer this in a way that’s a real putdown?” she said.
When Scalia died in 2016, also an election year, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell refused to act on Obama's nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to fill the opening. The seat remained vacant until after Trump's surprising presidential victory. McConnell has said he would move to confirm a Trump nominee if there were a vacancy this year.
Reached by phone late Friday, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, declined to disclose any plans. He said a statement would be forthcoming.
Ginsburg authored powerful dissents of her own in cases involving abortion, voting rights and pay discrimination against women. She said some were aimed at swaying the opinions of her fellow judges while others were “an appeal to the intelligence of another day” in the hopes that they would provide guidance to future courts.
“Hope springs eternal,” she said in 2007, “and when I am writing a dissent, I’m always hoping for that fifth or sixth vote — even though I’m disappointed more often than not.”
She wrote memorably in 2013 that the court’s decision to cut out a key part of the federal law that had ensured the voting rights of Black people, Hispanics and other minorities was “like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.”
Change on the court hit Ginsburg especially hard. She dissented forcefully from the court’s decision in 2007 to uphold a nationwide ban on an abortion procedure that opponents call partial-birth abortion. The court, with O’Connor still on it, had struck down a similar state ban seven years earlier. The “alarming” ruling, Ginsburg said, “cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this court — and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women’s lives.”
In 1999, Ginsburg had surgery for colon cancer and received radiation and chemotherapy. She had surgery again in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and in December 2018 for cancerous growths on her left lung. Following the last surgery, she missed court sessions for the first time in more than 25 years on the bench.
Ginsburg also was treated with radiation for a tumor on her pancreas in August 2019. She maintained an active schedule even during the three weeks of radiation. When she revealed a recurrence of her cancer in July 2020, Ginsburg said she remained “fully able” to continue as a justice.
Joan Ruth Bader was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1933, the second daughter in a middle-class family. Her older sister, who gave her the lifelong nickname “Kiki,” died at age 6, so Ginsburg grew up in Brooklyn’s Flatbush section as an only child. Her dream, she has said, was to be an opera singer.
Ginsburg graduated at the top of her Columbia University law school class in 1959 but could not find a law firm willing to hire her. She had “three strikes against her” — for being Jewish, female and a mother, as she put it in 2007.
She had married her husband, Martin, in 1954, the year she graduated from Cornell University. She attended Harvard University’s law school but transferred to Columbia when her husband took a law job there. Martin Ginsburg went on to become a prominent tax attorney and law professor. Martin Ginsburg died in 2010. She is survived by two children, Jane and James, and several grandchildren.
Ginsburg once said that she had not entered the law as an equal-rights champion. “I thought I could do a lawyer’s job better than any other,” she wrote. “I have no talent in the arts, but I do write fairly well and analyze problems clearly.”
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) -- The XFL suspended operations Friday morning, reportedly laying off nearly all of its staff and currently has no plans to return in 2021. The league has yet to release any formal announcements but some BattleHawks players said they heard the news through social media.
Former BattleHawks and Mizzou wide receiver L’Damian Washington found out the XFL was done through Twitter but he wasn't shocked that the league couldn't financially withstand the coronavirus pandemic.
“I can honestly kind of see why," Washington said. "Especially now that they're not bringing in any revenue. For me it is kind of heartbreaking but more so for the younger guys that [were] in this league trying to get film out and hopeful for a shot at the NFL."
[READ: XFL suspends operations, has no plans to come back]
St. Louis native and now former BattleHawks offensive lineman Brian Folkerts said he was hopeful the XFL would return next year after their season was cut short. Now he's dealing with the fact that he likely won't be able to play in front of his hometown fans again.
"For a lot of guys the dream is over," Folkerts said. "It's just kind of a punch in the gut. We're all just in a bit of a shock I would say. You can't help but feel that you were cheated out of something great."
[READ: XFL shutdown deals sizable economic blow to St. Louis]
While Washington would like to hear from the league, he understands that many of them have just lost their jobs as well, with ESPN reporting that only a handful of executives remain employed.
"It would be selfish of me to be like 'I wish that somebody from the XFL or somebody from the BattleHawks had reached out to me,'" Washington said. "They have families, they're just finding out this news for themselves about losing their job."
As for what's next for Washington, he's happy with how his football career spanned out and has no regrets about playing for the XFL.
"I can be upset but I'm honestly not. I was pretty much at the tail end of my career," Washington said. "I was lucky enough to be on seven NFL teams, played in Canada, AAF and XFL."
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