Category Archives: Regional News

     (AP) – The Delta Regional Authority says it supplied $37,000 to Cotton Plant to restart the community’s water system.      Repairs completed on Monday restored electrical power to the system, which was damaged by a fire last month.

     (AP) – Arkansas State Police say two people have been killed in separate accidents on state roads.      Police say 70-year-old Sandra Wagner died after being struck by a vehicle on U.S. 64 in Alma and 47-year-old Lloyd

     (AP) – Little Rock police say a man was found shot to death in the front seat of a car parked outside his home near the Arkansas State Fairgrounds.      Police spokesman Lt. Steve McClanahan said Monday that

     (AP) – Arkansas lawmakers have given their final approval for a monument at the state Capitol in honor of families who have lost loved ones serving in the armed forces.      The House on Monday voted 96-0 for

     (AP) – Authorities say officers have shot and killed a man after he pointed a weapon at them in Kansas City.      Police said in a news release that officers responded Saturday night to a report of gunshots

     (AP) – A significant landmark in the history of education of black students is in its final stages before being added to the National Register of Historic Places.      The Joplin Globe reports historic preservation consultant Deb Sheals

     (AP) – Sikeston police say a woman and her boyfriend are charged with murder in the death of the woman’s 1-year-old son.      Sikeston police spokesman Sgt. Jon Broom said Monday officers were went to a Sikeston home

     (AP) – St. Louis homicide and child abuse detectives say it appears a 6-year-old girl was shot to death by another child while her mother and the woman’s boyfriend were sleeping.      The child’s 27-year-old mother and the

     (AP) – A man has been charged with first-degree murder for a shooting outside a rural southeast Missouri nightclub that left one man dead and six others wounded.      Travis Ware II was also charged Monday with armed

Justices of the peace in Washington County are debating whether the county’s chief administrative officer should have hired a former justice of the peace whose husband now serves on the Quorum Court. Sharon Lloyd is the county’s

     (AP) – Arkansas State Police say a Mississippi man has been killed in a two-vehicle crash on Interstate 55 near Turrell.      Police say 23-year-old Mario Ruiz of Byhalia, Mississippi, died in the accident Saturday.      A police report

     (AP) – The oldest known gorilla in the world now lives at the Little Rock Zoo.      The national Association of Zoos and Aquariums says it believes the gorilla Trudy is the oldest following the death at age

     (AP) – Revenue to The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery in January fell by $21.7 million from the record collections of January 2016 and the amount raised for college scholarships fell by $5.9 million.      A report to Gov. Asa

     (AP) – It took weeks of meetings, including a marathon session Friday, but a bill providing millions of dollars in city money to renovate the home of the St. Louis Blues has been approved.      Aldermen approved issuing

     (AP) – Supporters, and opponents, of Planned Parenthood have turned out in large numbers for rallies in St. Louis.      Anti-abortion activists staged rallies around the country Saturday calling for the federal government to cut off payments to

     (AP) – The American Civil Liberties Union says it is suddenly awash in donations and new members as it does battle with President Donald Trump over the extent of his constitutional authority.      The nearly century-old organization says

     (AP) – Authorities are investigating the death of a Missouri man who identified himself as an “imperial wizard” of the Ku Klux Klan.      Washington County Sheriff Zach Jacobsen told the Park Hills Daily Journal that the body

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson has announced the resignation of the state’s Department of Veterans Affairs director.      Hutchinson’s office says Matt Snead submitted his resignation to the governor on Friday. His resignation is

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – State police officials say two Arkansas residents have died in separate car crashes.      Preliminary crash summaries issued by the Arkansas State Police say both crashes happened Friday.      In the first, 55-year-old Enola

     LEADWOOD, Mo. (AP) – A Missouri man who identifies himself as the “imperial wizard” of the Ku Klux Klan is missing, and police call the circumstances suspicious.      The Park Hills Daily Journal reports that 51-year-old Frank Ancona

     JENNINGS, Mo. (AP) – St. Louis County police are investigating a shooting that killed one man and left another badly injured.      Police Sgt. Shawn McGuire says the shooting happened Friday night on the parking lot of an

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – It took weeks of meetings, including a marathon session Friday, but a bill providing millions of dollars in city money to renovate the home of the St. Louis Blues has been approved.      Aldermen

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – Three men are dead in unrelated shootings in St. Louis.      Police say all three killings were Friday.      A young man was found dead shortly after 4 p.m. after police responded to reports of

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – Supporters, and opponents, of Planned Parenthood have turned out in large numbers for rallies in St. Louis.      Anti-abortion activists staged rallies around the country Saturday calling for the federal government to cut off

     COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – University of Missouri System curators have approved an increase in rates for student housing and dining at the system's four campuses.      The Columbia Daily Tribune reports the system governing board met on University

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – The Arkansas Board of Education has removed the Blytheville School District and 10 individual schools from its academic-distress list after they made gains in their students’ performance.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported the

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – An Arkansas lawmaker says information about police forces on college campuses and at the state Capitol should be kept under wraps.      Sen. Gary Stubblefield fears society has “disintegrated” and that police need

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – The state has approved budget cuts for the Little Rock School District that will close three schools and repurpose a fourth as a way to cut about $4 million in expenses.      The

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Amazon says it will begin collecting sales taxes on purchases in Arkansas, a move that lawmakers have said could bring millions in additional revenue to the state.      A spokeswoman for the e-commerce

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – The Arkansas House has approved legislation aimed at preventing kid-friendly advertising and packaging of medical marijuana, and may soon consider banning any pot ads altogether.      The House on Friday approved by an

     SHELBYVILLE, Mo. (AP) – A recorded conversation between a central Missouri prosecutor and his attorney will not be heard at the prosecutor’s trial on assault and leaving the scene of an accident charges.      Circuit Judge Frederick Tucker

     KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – A California-based automotive data analysis company is moving its headquarters to Kansas City, Missouri.      Republican Gov. Eric Greitens announced AutoAlert’s decision on Friday.      The company will get as much $9.2 million in

     KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Kansas City police say man wounded on New Year’s Eve is now considered a homicide victim.      The victim, 51-year-old Timothy Woods, died from gunshot wounds a few days after he was dropped

     KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – A Kansas City lawyer admitted conspiring with his former law partner to steal money from St. Luke’s Health Systems.      Mark Schultz pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy. His former law partner, Alan Gallas,

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – A 22-year-old St. Louis woman is hospitalized after being shot, apparently in retaliation for using a broomstick to hit a man.      St. Louis police say the investigation is ongoing following the shooting Thursday

     CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) – A teenager is facing first-degree murder charges for allegedly killing a 71-year-old St. Louis County man who refused to give up his car keys.      The shooting happened in September but charges were filed

A skull found along the Red River in southwestern Arkansas in 2014 has been identified as that of a 17th-century Native American. Hempstead County Sheriff James Singleton told the Texarkana Gazette the Center for Human Identification at

     (AP) – A Cleburne County sheriff’s deputy has been fired over an ethics violation after giving conflicting information about driving past a stopped school bus.      Sheriff Chris Brown tells the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that Deputy Todd Maxey was

     (AP) – A state Senate committee has advanced legislation that would leave the decision on whether to allow licensed medical marijuana dispensaries to grow their own pot up to a state commission.      The Senate Public Health, Welfare

     (AP) – An Arkansas lawmaker says information about police forces on college campuses and at the state Capitol should be kept under wraps.      Sen. Gary Stubblefield fears society has “disintegrated” and that police need protections that weren’t

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens' pick for health department director has been embroiled in controversy over well water safety in his home state.      Greitens announced Thursday he's tapped North Carolina's former public health

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – A threat that caused an American Airlines flight to be diverted to St. Louis has been deemed not credible by law enforcement, though the incident prompted an FBI investigation and use of bomb-sniffing

     ST. CHARLES, Mo. (AP) – Lawyers for a suburban St. Louis woman accused of killing a man to shift attention away from herself in another killing are seeking an outside jury for her murder trial.      Pamela Hupp

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – A Springfield manufacturer plans to lay off 140 people later this year.      The layoffs at the Reckitt Benckiser plant in north Springfield will begin in April. The company, which manufactures French’s mustard and

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri’s Republican Senate leader is proposing an overhaul of a state consumer-protection law under which the company of a top donor of his is being sued.      Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard

A judge says he will not transfer a murder suspect’s case to juvenile court because of the “aggressive and violent” nature of the crimes that the 19-year-old is accused of committing. Faulkner County Circuit Judge Troy Braswell

     (AP) – Does an Arkansas law allow husbands to sue doctors to prevent their wives from undergoing a newly banned abortion procedure?      Abortion opponents say no. A group preparing to challenge the ban says such a lawsuit

     (AP) – Eviction notices posted at Little Rock homeless camps have provoked a protest and debate at City Hall.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports the Little Rock Code Enforcement posted signs at three homeless camps that gave occupants

     (AP) – A Helena-West Helena police officer is disputing the allegations after he was arrested on suspicion of false imprisonment.      Authorities say Officer Charles Byrd was arrested on the misdemeanor charge in connection with an incident last

     (AP) – A former medical office manager has been convicted of stealing more than $611,000 from businesses that handled expenses for doctors in Little Rock.      Court records show that 52-year-old Lynn Alisa Espejo of Sherwood was convicted

     (AP) – Police say one person was killed and three others injured in a shooting in southwest Little Rock.      A police report says officers responded just after 11:15 p.m. Tuesday to an apartment near the interchange of

(Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com) CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) – An 18-year-old is facing more charges in connection with the shooting death of a St. Louis County police officer. Trenton Forster already had been charged with first-degree

     (AP) – The University of Missouri is planning a mass immunization clinic next week as it works to control a mumps outbreak that has grown to more than 320 confirmed and probable cases.      Spokesman Christian Basi says

     (AP) – Missouri State University is withdrawing as host of this year’s Missouri Valley Conference men and women’s track and field championships.      The championships will instead be held at Wichita State University. Missouri State officials say it

     (AP) – A settlement has been reached in a lawsuit filed after a firefighter died in a walkway collapse at a University of Missouri-run apartment complex.      The Columbia Daily Tribune reports a judge will consider whether to

     (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens says his budget plan won’t take a “single penny” out of K-12 classrooms.      But school administrators from across the state say a 34 percent reduction in busing aid might keep districts

     (AP) – Federal prosecutors say a Missouri woman was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison for stealing nearly $400,000 from her employer.      Abbie Martin Stemper, of Versailles, also was ordered Wednesday to pay

     (AP) – A convicted sex offender from Delaware who came to Missouri to have sex with a 16-year-old girl he met through Facebook has been sentenced to 23 years in federal prison.      Federal prosecutors say 39-year-old Aaron

     (AP) – Tyson Foods says it's being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission, likely in connection over lawsuits alleging that the poultry company and others engaged in price fixing activities.      The Springdale, Arkansas company says in

     (AP) – Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson has signed a bill giving a tax break to retired military veterans and imposing additional taxes on digital downloads, treats and unemployment benefits.      The $13 million exemption is intended to boost

     (AP) – Attorneys general from Arkansas and six other states are supporting the University of Arkansas’ request to dismiss a former student’s lawsuit against the school.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge filed

     (AP) – The Arkansas House has approved legislation that’s aimed at recovering millions of dollars in tax revenue from Amazon and other online retailers that supporters say the state is missing out on each year.      The House

      (AP) – An Arkansas House panel has rejected an effort to cut off state funding to colleges and universities that don’t cooperate with federal immigration authorities.       The House Education Committee on Tuesday rejected by a voice vote

      (AP) – Gov. Eric Greitens’ current budget proposal for the state’s 2018 fiscal year won’t fund the new expansions for the University of Missouri Medical School.       The Columbia Missourian reports that the information comes on the heels

     (AP) – A second person has come forward with a claim that a woman charged with luring a man to her suburban St. Louis home to kill him by pretending to be a “Dateline” producer tried the

         (AP) – A Georgia man charged with manslaughter withdrew his guilty plea on the day he was to be sentenced in Boone County.      The Columbia Daily Tribune reports 47-year-old Anthony West withdrew the plea Monday. Circuit

     (AP) – The University of Missouri is launching a new Institute for Korean Studies.      Co-directors will be assistant history professor C. Harrison Kim and assistant political science professor Sheena Greitens, who is Gov. Eric Greitens’ wife.      The

     (AP) – Opponents of Missouri’s new right-to-work law are trying to put it to a public vote.      Missouri AFL-CIO President Mike Louis filed a referendum petition to do so with the secretary of state Monday, the same

     (AP) – A former longtime sheriff of Saline County, Missouri, who embezzled thousands of dollars, has been sentenced to nine months in prison.      Wallace Newman George Jr. was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty to stealing nearly $79,000

     (AP) – Two Missouri men who robbed people responding to phony Craigslist ads were sentenced to federal prison.      Federal prosecutors said 27-year-old Thomas Thorpe, of Kansas City, was sentenced Tuesday to 27 years in prison, while 23-year-old

     (AP) The suspected getaway driver for a Leachville woman who pleaded guilty to killing a rural grocery store manager in northeast Arkansas has also pleaded guilty to first-degree murder.      Prosecutor Scott Ellington tells the Jonesboro Sun 53-year-old

     (AP) Two students in Conway have been arrested over the past week for reportedly making threats against local schools on social media.      Conway police say the two incidents aren't connected. On Monday, police arrested a 14-year-old boy

     HELENA-WEST HELENA, Ark. (AP) – The Walton Family Foundation is sending $750,0 to a loan fund to increase business lending in parts of the Arkansas and Mississippi Delta regions.      The money was loaned to Southern Bancorp Community

     TEXARKANA, Ark. (AP) – A consolidated federal lawsuit stemming from a 2010 flood at Albert Pike Recreation Area that killed 20 people is now pending before a judge.      The Texarkana Gazette reports U.S. District Judge Susan Hickey

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – The Arkansas House says judges in the state's courtrooms should use only American-based laws when making decisions, despite complaints that the proposal addresses a problem that doesn't exist.      The bill by Rep.

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – An effort to build a satanic monument near the Arkansas Capitol would effectively be blocked unless lawmakers approve the statue under a measure that's advancing in the Legislature.      The bill that passed

     (AP) – A victims’ support group that helped force the Roman Catholic Church to confront the problem of child-molesting priests is going through upheaval of its own, including the resignations of two top leaders and a potentially

     (AP) – A Missouri man whose 8-year-old granddaughter died in a car wreck when he let her drive him home from church has been sentenced to one year of probation.      Dennis Meers, of St. Joseph, was sentenced

     (AP) – Passage of a right-to-work bill isn’t the end of Missouri Republicans’ efforts to regulate labor unions.      Proposals up for debate in the House and Senate would require public workers to annually opt-in instead of opt-out

           (AP) – The Missouri Highway Patrol has just appointed its first female superintendent in its 85-year history.      The News Tribune reports 53-year-old Lt. Col. Sandra Karsten was named the patrol’s 23rd superintendent Wednesday. She will hold

     (AP) – A Topeka man was sentenced to nearly four years in federal prison for conspiring to operate an interstate sex trafficking business.      U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said in a news release that 40-year-old Barry M. Johnson

     (AP) – Republican Gov. Eric Greitens is about to make Missouri the 28th state to ban mandatory union fees      Greitens plans to sign the right-to-work bill into law Monday then travel around the state announcing his support

A Missouri lawmaker wants to eliminate tenure for professors at all the state’s two- and four-year public colleges and universities. Rep. Rick Brattin, a Harrisonville Republican, says ending tenure would save public money, give the schools more

About 80 members of the Arkansas National Guard are headed to the Middle East for a deployment in Kuwait. A send-off ceremony was held Sunday at Camp Robinson for members of the 77th Combat Aviation Brigade. The

     (AP) – A Pine Bluff man who was 17 when he was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole has been re-sentenced to 25 years.      The Pine Bluff Commercial reported Saturday that

     (AP) – A Pulaski County judge is banning the state of Arkansas from changing the level of in-home services it provides to seven disabled Medicaid recipients.      The seven are suing the state Department of Human Services over

      (AP) – Arkansas State Police say two people have been killed in separate accidents on state roads.       Troopers say 30-year-old Richard Keck of St. Paul died in a head-on collision Saturday in Madison County and 68-year-old Theodore

     (AP) – Police say two people have been found shot to death inside a home in east Paragould.      Lt. Scott Snyder told KAIT-TV that officers investigating a reported shooting found the two dead Saturday afternoon. Police say

     (AP) – Gov. Asa Hutchinson has announced his intent to commute the 80-year prison sentence of a Bono man, making him immediately eligible for parole.      Hutchinson says he intends to commute the sentence of 58-year-old Jimmy Doyle,

     (AP) – Administrators at Missouri public colleges and universities say they are reluctant to consider raising tuition, but they might have no choice.      New Republican Gov. Eric Greitens proposed on Thursday a nearly 10 percent reduction in

     (AP) – Police fatally shot a man after a standoff that lasted nearly four hours when they say he emerged from the home carrying a weapon.      Kansas City Police say officers were called to the home in

     (AP) – A southwestern Missouri woman is accused of fatally hitting her husband on the head with a crowbar during a dispute.      The Springfield News-Leader reports that 46-year-old Jeanette Riddle was charged Friday with second-degree murder and

           (AP) – A Springfield man is jailed on $500,000 bond after being accused of fatally shooting a fellow 19-year-old in their southwestern Missouri city.      The Springfield News-Leader reports that Greene County prosecutors have charged Chase Dylan

     (AP) – Authorities are trying to determine who fatally shot a woman that a Missouri State Trooper found lying near a vehicle on the side of Interstate 29.      The trooper stopped at the 56th Street exit on

     (AP) – A suburban Kansas City attorney is going on trial for murder in the 2010 deaths of her millionaire father and his girlfriend.      The Kansas City Star reports that jury selection is expected to begin Monday

     PINE BLUFF, Ark. (AP) – A Pine Bluff man who was 17 when he was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole has been re-sentenced to 25 years.      The Pine Bluff Commercial

     FORT SMITH, Ark. (AP) – A psychologist reports that a man who shot himself twice in the head after allegedly killing his former father-in-law is mentally competent to stand trial for capital murder.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A Pulaski County judge is banning the state of Arkansas from changing the level of in-home services it provides to seven disabled Medicaid recipients.      The seven are suing the state Department of

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – Police in Springfield, Missouri, say a man accused of purposely starting a string of fires in cars and trash containers near a low-income housing complex told investigators he set the blazes at times

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – A Springfield, Missouri, neighborhood is on edge after two killings in a span of less than a week.      Police were called just after 2 a.m. Wednesday to a home and found the body

     CHICAGO (AP) – The founder of the group that advocates for priest abuse victims has stepped down after three decades of campaigning to force the Catholic Church to recognize the extent of the scandal and compensate thousands

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Administrators at Missouri public colleges and universities say they are reluctant to consider raising tuition, but they might have no choice.      New Republican Gov. Eric Greitens proposed on Thursday a nearly 10

     COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – A central Missouri man with convictions of child molestation and child pornography possession has been declared a predator and likely will spend the rest of his life incarcerated.      The Columbia Daily Tribune reports

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri’s revenue collections are up and appear on pace to meet the state’s slashed budget.      State budget director Dan Haug on Friday announced net general revenues are up 3 percent so far

         LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson says he’s asking several agencies to make contingency plans for potential budget cuts after finance officials announced the state’s net revenue had fallen $57 million below forecast.

     FOUKE, Ark. (AP) – Police in south Arkansas have arrested a 12-year-old boy in the fatal shooting of a convenience-store clerk.      Authorities say a newspaper carrier found the clerk unresponsive early Thursday at a gas station in

     FORREST CITY, Ark. (AP) – Arkansas State Police officials say a trooper won’t be suspended after being accused of citing a police officer as retaliation for his son receiving a speeding ticket.      State Police spokesman Bill Sadler

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A federal appeals court panel has scheduled oral arguments for next month in the bribery case of former judge Michael Maggio.      A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – A St. Louis man has been sentenced to seven years in prison for fatally striking a bicyclist with his car while fleeing from a traffic stop.      The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that 23-year-old

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri lawmakers have sent the state’s new Republican governor a bill that would ban mandatory union fees.      House members on Thursday took a final vote on the so-called right-to-work bill.      Gov. Eric

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – Drury University says a member of its swim team died after she collapsed after a practice.      The university in Springfield says Wen Xu (whin SUH’) suffered a medical emergency Thursday afternoon and died

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – A man accused of killing a St. Louis-area woman and putting her body in a garbage container has a previous murder conviction, but one that was overturned in court.      The suspect, 51-year-old Paulren

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – Ferguson, Missouri, has dropped its appeal of a federal jury’s $3 million award to survivors of a naked, unarmed man who died after a police officer repeatedly shocked him with a stun gun

The University of Missouri Board of Curators has several vacancies after Gov. Eric Greitens withdrew the nomination of two of former Gov. Jay Nixon’s appointees. Greitens on Tuesday withdrew the nominations of Patrick Graham and Jon Sunvold.

     (AP) – An Arkansas House committee has approved a bill that would require state judges to use American-based laws when deciding cases, rejecting concerns the legislation might be unconstitutional and complaints that it targets Muslims.      The bill

     (AP) – An Arkansas Senate panel has advanced a proposal aimed at forcing Amazon to begin collecting state sales taxes, as lawmakers eye potential revenue from the e-commerce giant to pay for more tax cuts in two

     (AP) – Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson says he’s asking several agencies to make contingency plans for potential budget cuts after finance officials announced the state’s net revenue had fallen $57 million below forecast.      The Republican governor told

     (AP) – A Missouri public school boards group says proposed funding cuts by Gov. Eric Greitens could impact classrooms.      The Republican governor on Thursday proposed giving $3.3 billion in basic aid to public elementary and secondary schools

     (AP) – A Kansas City, Missouri, man is accused of a shooting death that authorities say was captured by surveillance video.      Jackson County prosecutors charged 53-year-old Thomas Midgette Jr. with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in

     (AP) – A second former football player at Missouri’s Southwest Baptist University is accused in connection with a videotaped beating of a teenager at a group home for children.      Polk County prosecutors charged 21-year-old Henry Epenesa with

     (AP) – The director of the Missouri State Parks division says he’s been removed from the job without explanation.      Bill Bryan told The Springfield News-Leader he was told Jan. 23 that his services were no longer needed.

     (AP) – Independence police detectives say three young children spent the night in the same home as their mother, who was allegedly stabbed to death by the children’s father.      The Kansas City Star reports that authorities were

     (AP) – Missouri lawmakers have sent the state’s new Republican governor a bill that would ban mandatory union fees.      House members on Thursday took a final vote on the so-called right-to-work bill.      Gov. Eric Greitens has promised

The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality has issued a consent administrative order against the city of Pine Bluff and its parolee- and prison-labor demolition program that was shut down last year. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports the city

The director of the Missouri State Parks division says he’s been removed from the job without explanation. Bill Bryan told The Springfield News-Leader he was told Jan. 23 that his services were no longer needed. He says

     (AP) – A state senator wants to ask Arkansas voters next year to reinstate a voter ID law that was struck down as unconstitutional.      Republican Sen. Bryan King on Wednesday filed a resolution that would place a

     (AP) – Authorities in east Arkansas say a 16-year-old boy fatally shot himself when a handgun he was putting in his waistband accidentally discharged.      The Crittenden County Sheriff’s Office says the fatal shooting happened Monday night at

     (AP) – The Fort Smith City administrator is recommending the city terminate its contract with two partners of a softball sports complex.      City administrator Carl Geffken made his recommendation to the Board of Directors on Tuesday. He

     (AP) – Pulaski Technical College’s merger with the University of Arkansas System is now official.      The college’s accrediting body approved the change of governance effective Wednesday. The school will now be known as University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical

     (AP) – Fayetteville has a gay pride parade that organizers tout as the largest in Arkansas and a reputation as a liberal haven in a conservative state. So the college town’s voters took what seemed like a

     (AP) – An Arkansas Senate panel has advanced a proposal aimed at forcing Amazon to begin collecting state sales taxes, as lawmakers eye potential revenue from the e-commerce giant to pay for more tax cuts in two

      (AP) – Authorities say a man has died in a shooting at a Springfield home.       Police said in a news release that a woman inside the home called 911 around 2 a.m. Wednesday. Nineteen-year-old Zechariah Miles, of

     (AP) – A 40-year-old man has been charged in a deadly hit-and-run crash in Springfield.      Shawn Bouley, of Reeds Spring, was charged Wednesday with leaving the scene of the crash that killed 45-year-old Bradley Bizzle. No attorney

     (AP) – The Missouri House has passed a bill that could overturn a Missouri Supreme Court decision pertaining to breath-test evidence in drunken driving cases.      The bill allows courts to use breath-test evidence gathered from December 30,

     (AP) – A former football player at Southwest Baptist University has been charged in an assault at a group home for children.      Viavia Manuma was charged Wednesday with one count of child abuse and two counts of

     (AP) – A Missouri prosecutor has filed a second-degree involuntary manslaughter charge against a Dairy Queen manager accused of bullying a 17-year-old employee who killed himself.      A special prosecutor filed the charge Wednesday against 21-year-old Harley Branham,

     (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens is laying out his plans for the state budget amid financial strain and lagging revenue.      Greitens is to announce his proposed budget Thursday at a Nixa public school. He broke from

An 18-year-old Missouri man accused of making terrorist threats and bringing a bomb-like device to Crowder College was placed on probation after pleading guilty to a reduced charge. The Joplin Globe reports Anthony Volkman, of Lockwood, pleaded

Authorities in east Arkansas say a 16-year-old boy fatally shot himself when a handgun he was putting in his waistband accidentally discharged. The Crittenden County Sheriff’s Office says the fatal shooting happened Monday night at a home

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A portion of Interstate 630 that leads into west Little Rock was shut down for several hours Monday night after a head-on collision that killed two people.      The collision happened on a

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – The pedestrian struck and killed by a car while crossing a southwest Little Rock road has been identified as a homeless man.      Police said Tuesday that 51-year-old Gerald Ferrell died in the

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – An Arkansas House panel has advanced a proposal requiring colleges and universities to allow concealed handguns on campus, despite complaints from school administrators and police.      The House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday endorsed

     KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – A Kansas City man who used his cane to beat a man who was attacking a Kansas City bus driver is being recognized for his actions.      Rodney Goldman said Monday he didn’t

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens is lashing out against two Republican senators who didn’t vote against a pay raise for themselves and other elected officials.      Greitens in a Tuesday Facebook post accused Sens.

     CARTHAGE, Mo. (AP) – Authorities say a 10-year-old southwest Missouri girl who was fatally shot died after a boy found a hidden handgun and “unintentionally” mishandled it.      Carthage police said in a news release Tuesday that two

     CLINTON, Mo. (AP) – A Missouri-based utility says it will appeal a state judge’s award of more than $10 million to a worker who said he developed respiratory issues at one of the company’s sites.      A judge

     BONNE TERRE, Mo. (AP) – A Missouri inmate who was executed for killing two children and their mother mouthed “I love you” to his brother and sister-in-law as he was being put to death.      A Department of

     (AP) – Arkansas' U.S. senators aren't criticizing President Donald Trump's immigration restrictions as protests spread throughout the country, including in Little Rock. Republican Sens. John Boozman and Tom Cotton issued statements Sunday regarding Trump's executive order that

     (AP) – The Arkansas Department of Corrections owed 50 percent less in reimbursements last year than it did in 2015 to county jails for holding state inmates amid prison overcrowding.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports the department owed

      (AP) – Police are investigating a homicide in the Kansas City suburb of Independence.       KSHB-TV reports that the victim was found dead inside an apartment Monday morning. Police say a person of interest is in custody.       The

     (AP) – Southwest Baptist University has dismissed two students over their alleged involvement in an assault at a group home for children.      The university said in a news release Monday that the university reported the allegations to

     (AP) – Missouri senators have taken the final step to deny pay raises for themselves and other elected officials. Senators voted 25-2 against the raises late Monday. They had until Wednesday to act.      The vote came after

     (AP) – A Missouri man convicted of killing a woman and her two children in 1998 has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to halt his execution.      Mark Christeson is scheduled for lethal injection Tuesday evening. If carried

     (AP) – State highway officials say construction work on Interstate 49 will cause overnight lane closures in Bentonville beginning next week.      The Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department says the lane closures begin Tuesday night and will

     (AP) – A 60-year-old Palestine, Arkansas, man has been killed in a car crash that also injured a second driver who was hit in the wreck.      A preliminary report from the Arkansas State Police says Allan D.

     (AP) – Police say a missing northwest Arkansas woman has been found dead near her home.      Huntsville Police Chief Todd Thomas told reporters that 72-year-old Sharon Sheppard was found Saturday morning less than a mile from her

     (AP) – A Hope, Arkansas, native is to become the first black chief judge of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals      Judge Lavenski Smith, now of Little Rock, is to become chief judge of the St.

     (AP) – Arkansas' first high school for adults is to open this summer in Little Rock.      Goodwill Industries of Arkansas has approval from the state Board of Education and the city of Little Rock for the Excel

     (AP) – Expense payments to Arkansas lawmakers dropped from $4.02 million in 2014 to $2.29 million in 2016 while their salaries rose from $2.13 million to $5.28 million.      2016 is the first full calendar year since a

     (AP) – Missouri Governor Eric Greitens says he met with Vice President Mike Pence at the White House.      Greitens announced on his Facebook page that he and the vice president met on Saturday.      He said he and

     (AP) – For the second straight week, people searching for a missing Missouri woman have found a man’s body.      Kansas City police say the Saturday discovery is being investigated as a suspicious death but released no details.

     (AP) – A St. Louis police sergeant randomly shot in the face while he sat in traffic in his department vehicle says he’s wrestling with whether he can remain in law enforcement.      Tom Lake tells the St.

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A 23-year-old Heber Springs man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for production of child pornography.      Federal prosecutors announced the sentence for Spencer Goudy on Friday.      Goudy was indicted in

     FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) – Gender transition treatments will no longer be covered by University of Arkansas System employee insurance plans.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports the school system's self-funded insurance plans for employees will cover the services until

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A retrial in a defamation and wrongful termination lawsuit filed against the state treasurer and his former chief of staff is scheduled to begin next week.      KATV reports that the new trial

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A Blytheville man who sued the city, its police chief and a patrol officer over claims authorities used excessive force by stunning him with a Taser has settled the suit.      The Arkansas

     BENTONVILLE, Ark. (AP) – State highway officials say construction work on Interstate 49 will cause overnight lane closures in Bentonville beginning next week.      The Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department says the lane closures begin Tuesday night

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A 60-year-old Palestine, Arkansas, man has been killed in a car crash that also injured a second driver who was hit in the wreck.      A preliminary report from the Arkansas State Police

     ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – Missouri Western State University says budget cuts will force it to suspend operations of its summer equity theater company.      The St. Joseph News-Press reports the college announced Friday that it would suspend

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – State conservation officials say they have confirmed the presence of the first female mountain lion in Missouri since 1994.      The Missouri Department of Conservation announced Friday that saliva left on a dead elk

     KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The University of Missouri has hired college sports attorney Mike Glazier to help its investigation into allegations of academic fraud.      Glazier is a managing member of the Overland Park-based law firm Bond,

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri Governor Eric Greitens says he met with Vice President Mike Pence at the White House.      Greitens announced on his Facebook page that he and the vice president met on Saturday.      He

     HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (AP) – A five-year-old case for the slaying of a Hot Springs Village police dispatcher scheduled to begin Monday has been stalled due to new DNA evidence.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports the first-degree murder

     SHERIDAN, Ark. (AP) – Authorities have arrested a 45-year-old man in connection with the fatal shooting of an Arkansas teenager.      The Grant County Sheriff's Office says Rusty Draper was arrested Thursday on suspicion of first-degree murder in

     FORDYCE, Ark. (AP) – An Arkansas sheriff’s deputy has resigned after he was accused of letting a drunken inmate drive his Hummer, which he crashed into a fence.      The Dallas County Sheriff’s Office says Chance Dodson resigned

     JONESBORO, Ark. (AP) – The president of the Arkansas State University System is opposing a bill that would require public universities to allow staff members to carry concealed handguns.      ASU President Chuck Welch joins University of Arkansas

     KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – A man was killed driving on a highway Thursday when a wheel from a trailer being towed broke loose and struck his windshield, causing him to crash into a concrete barrier.      The

     MARYVILLE, Mo. (AP) – A federal lawsuit says Maryville police allegedly punched and electroshocked an autistic man seven times.      The Kansas City Star says the suit was filed Thursday by the parents of Christopher Kramer, who was

     KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The man who has been the face of a national organization advocating for victims of abuse by clergy, especially those in the Catholic Church, has resigned from the organization.      The Kansas City

     KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – A Syrian man whose family was the first to be resettled in the U.S. as part of the U.S. “surge” refugee program says President Donald Trump should help topple Syria’s regime rather

     FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) – Ferguson officials have missed critical deadlines in the early stages of an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, but the beleaguered Missouri town’s city manager said the process is now moving “in

A partner at a global management consulting firm who was hired as Missouri’s first chief operating officer is set to begin his job of increasing state government efficiency next month. The Springfield News-Leader reports that the start

Authorities have arrested a 45-year-old man in connection with the fatal shooting of an Arkansas teenager. The Grant County Sheriff’s Office says Rusty Draper was arrested Thursday on suspicion of first-degree murder in the Jan. 19 shooting

LITTLE ROCK – Governor Asa Hutchinson today announced the following appointments: Lona McCastlain, Austin, to the Parole Board. Appointment expires January 14, 2024. Replaces James Wallace. Ray Dillon, Little Rock, to the Arkansas Forestry Commission. Appointment expires

     (AP) – Lawyers who won a $45 million settlement for Arkansas Marlboro Lights smokers will now receive a $1.9 million payment for the case.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox approved the reimbursement

     (AP) – An Arkansas man has pleaded guilty to charges of threatening seven mayors with hanging if they didn’t meet his demands that included putting prayer and the Ten Commandments back in schools.      The Texarkana Gazette reports

     (AP) – Arkansas lawmakers have given final approval to an effort to tap into $8.5 million in unused money from the 1999 settlement with tobacco companies to provide more services to the developmentally disabled.      The Senate voted

     (AP) – Planned Parenthood says it will support “any and all” efforts to defend its patients’ rights after Arkansas enacted a ban on a common second-trimester abortion procedure.      Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes President and CEO Laura

     (AP) – Just when it seemed that plans for a $200 million soccer stadium in St. Louis were dead, the proposal has new life.      The city Ways and Means Committee initially voted 6-2 Thursday against advancing a

     (AP) – Federal prosecutors say a former Fort Leonard Wood man pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a 6-year-old child at the fort.      The man, 67-year-old Paul Kickery, of Brattleboro, Vermont, pleaded guilty Thursday to aggravated sexual abuse

     (AP) – Missouri’s Republican-led Senate has passed a right-to-work bill to ban mandatory union fees.      Senators voted 21-12 on Thursday to send the bill to the House. House members last week passed an almost-identical bill.      Right to

     (AP) – Online retail giant Amazon will begin collecting sales tax in Missouri next month.      Amazon spokeswoman Jill Kerr told The St. Louis Post-Dispatch that the online company will start charging Missouri state sales tax Feb. 1.

     (AP) – As President Donald Trump rolls out plans to build a wall on the Mexican border, Missouri lawmakers are trying again to pass a bill cracking down on some immigrants living in the country illegally.      Deported

     (AP) – A Missouri representative says the nearly $1 million it costs to pay for cable TV in state prisons is too much.      But in a committee Tuesday, Rep. J. Eggleston’s proposal to take away cable service

   Lawyers who won a $45 million settlement for Arkansas Marlboro Lights smokers will now receive a $1.9 million payment for the case.    The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox approved the reimbursement for the

     (AP) – An effort to ban a common second trimester abortion procedure in Arkansas to heading toward a final vote in the state Legislature.      The Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee on Wednesday endorsed a proposal

     (AP) – A judge has ruled that incriminating statements an Arkansas man made to police after his arrest in 2001 will be inadmissible in his retrial.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports 59-year-old Rickey Dale Newman was granted Monday

     (AP) – An Arkansas panel wants the state Supreme Court to temporarily suspend a circuit judge arrested after state troopers said he drove drunk through a sobriety checkpoint in Johnson County.      The Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission

     (AP) – A St. Louis man convicted of killing a drug smuggling colleague has been sentenced to 30 years in prison.      The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Cedric Miller was sentenced Wednesday. He was convicted in October

     (AP) – Carl Edwards remains a hot topic in NASCAR, two weeks after his abrupt retirement as a full-time driver.      Terry Smith, a political science professor at Columbia College, speculated in a Wednesday piece for KBIA’s Talking

     (AP) – A Texas man and woman have been given prison sentences after pleading guilty in a 2015 alleged murder plot of a Morgan County man and his family.      Morgan County Prosecuting Attorney Dustin Dunklee tells the

     (AP) – Bible study groups that were previously halted in Joplin middle schools earlier this month are going to resume as early as next week.      The Joplin Globe reports that the groups were criticized from the American

     (AP) – Missouri utilities want lawmakers to pass a law to help them get money more quickly from customers to pay for infrastructure improvements.      Ameren Missouri and other utilities told a panel of state senators Wednesday that

     (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens is empaneling a committee to study and recommend how to reform the state’s tax rates and credits.      The state’s Republican chief executive signed an executive order Wednesday creating the 10-person “Governor’s

     (AP) – Missouri’s Republican-led Senate is advancing a right-to-work bill to ban mandatory union fees.      Senators voted 21-12 to give the bill initial approval Wednesday. It needs another vote to move to the House, which has already

     (AP) – The chancellor of the University of Arkansas’ flagship campus in Fayetteville is opposing a bill that would require public universities to allow staff members to carry concealed handguns.      Now, colleges and universities in Arkansas can

     (AP) – An outreach coordinator in Arkansas Treasurer Dennis Milligan’s office has resigned after social media posts surfaced that Milligan says were “insulting” to women and the LGBT community.      Milligan spokeswoman Stacy Peterson tells the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

     (AP) – An Arkansas House panel has endorsed a plan to link public college and university funding to performance goals such as the number of students who complete their degrees.      The House Education Committee on Tuesday advanced

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A proposal to make permanent Arkansas’ decision to move its primary to March is heading to the state Senate for a vote.      The Senate State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee endorsed legislation

     (AP) – A Missouri Republican wants people who donate to political campaigns to get up to $100 in tax credits.      Sen. Rob Schaaf said Tuesday that the goal is to increase small donors’ role in politics.      Schaaf’s

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri Chief Justice Patricia Breckenridge is calling for a review of the way courts hold people in jail before trial.      In her final State of the Judiciary address Tuesday, Breckenridge told lawmakers

     (AP) – A former suburban St. Louis nurse has been sentenced to life in prison for the 2014 shooting death of her brother-in-law.      The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports 63-year-old Denise Hein’s sentencing Tuesday in St. Louis County

     (AP) – Missouri lawmakers again are mulling a plan to cut the number of weeks the state’s unemployed can claim jobless benefits.      The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that a House panel on Tuesday heard testimony about the

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Two Missouri lawmakers are clashing after one accused the other of giving her an unwanted hug and calling her “boo,” which the other forcefully denied.      Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal on the Senate floor

     (AP) – The rideshare company Lyft says it will start providing services in Springfield, Missouri.      The announcement comes Tuesday after the Missouri House gave initial approval to statewide regulations for app-based transportation companies. Uber and Lyft say

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri’s new Republican attorney general says he doesn’t intend to live in Jefferson City, despite a state law that appears to require him to “reside” there.      Josh Hawley took office Jan. 9

     (AP) – A special election to fill a vacant Senate seat for west-central Missouri is scheduled for Aug. 8.      Gov. Eric Greitens announced on Tuesday the election date meant to fill Mike Parson’s vacant seat after Parsons

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) Arkansas-based Windstream Holdings says it has eliminated 164 jobs, including 25 in Little Rock.      Windstream spokesman David Avery says the job cuts came from various areas, including engineering, finance and information technology. Avery

     (AP) – An Arkansas woman whose nephew accidentally shot and killed himself with a pistol in her car was given a one-year suspended sentence as long as she gets therapy.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports 39-year-old Kenya Brevard

     (AP) – Little Rock police are responding to a shooting in a parking lot outside the Arkansas Department of Health.      Little Rock police say the shooting occurred at midday Monday near the department’s main offices on Markham

     (AP) – Arkansas-based Simmons First National Corporation says it plans to acquire Texas-based First Texas BHC, Inc., the parent company of Southwest Bank, in a transaction valued at about $462 million.      Under terms of an agreement announced

     (AP) – Doctors prescribing medical marijuana won’t have to tell Arkansas regulators that the benefits of marijuana outweigh the risks for their patients. The Arkansas Senate gave final approval Monday to a bill that says doctors don’t

     ST. CHARLES, Mo. (AP) – A court hearing has been delayed for a suburban St. Louis woman accused of killing a man in an effort to shift attention away from herself in another killing.      Pamela Hupp of

     HANNIBAL, Mo. (AP) – Police in the northeast Missouri town of Hannibal are investigating after two men were found dead inside a home.      Police were called just before 11 a.m. Saturday to a home on a call

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri’s new Republican secretary of state is defending his decision to appoint a securities industry insider to head a state watchdog division.      Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft in a Monday statement said

     ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – A proposed bill would impose penalties on Missouri gun owners who don’t report a lost or stolen firearm within three days of discovering the item is missing.      The St. Joseph News-Press reports

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – Some charter schools in St. Louis are starting to worry that their increased popularity is making it difficult for them to stay accessible to low-income students.      The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports City Garden

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Supporters of a right-to-work measure to ban mandatory union dues in Missouri are challenging ballot proposals that would undermine that policy.      The National Right to Work Foundation announced Monday it’s helping three

The city of Sherwood held a ceremony at the Sherwood Central Fire Station to honor a city firefighter who was fatally shot one year ago. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports Ronald Jason Adams, a volunteer with the East

     (AP) – With a federally-owned property continuing to stay vacant for at least several months more, the U.S. Health and Human Services Department has the opportunity to convert the Arkansas facility into a short-term shelter for migrant

     (AP) – Benton County officials have drafted a second set of bid documents as they search for a contractor to repair the 109-year-old War Eagle Bridge.      Documents will be sent to the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department

     (AP) – The Arkansas State Police say a 44-year-old Sherwood man has been killed in a car crash in Pulaski County.      State police said in a preliminary crash summary that Albert Anderson was killed Saturday afternoon after

     (AP) – The Arkansas State Police say a 44-year-old Sherwood man has been killed in a car crash in Pulaski County.      State police said in a preliminary crash summary that Albert Anderson was killed Saturday afternoon after

     (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens is making a school choice measure called education savings accounts a priority this legislative session.      The accounts, which transfer state dollars to parents through a bank account, can be used for

     (AP) – A central Missouri technical college plans to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to reinstate the school’s mandatory drug testing policy that federal appeals courts have deemed unconstitutional.      An attorney for State Technical College of Missouri

     (AP) – Thousands of protesters, mostly women, gathered in Missouri’s two biggest cities and Kansas’ capital city in disapproval of Donald Trump’s inauguration as U.S. president.      Packing a park across from Kansas City’s landmark Union Station, the

           (AP) – A University of Missouri professor hopes his invention of a new mug that maintains the coffee’s temperature longer percolates into hot sales.      The Columbia Missourian reports that Columbia professor Hongbin “Bill” Ma’s company, ThermAvant

     (AP) – A southwestern Missouri man is taking recycling to the extreme by building a house made from everything from old tires to cardboard and wood scraps from dilapidated barns.      The Joplin Globe reports that 36-year-old Jimmy

     (AP) – Missouri’s new governor, Eric Greitens, is pushing to give the state the country’s toughest penalties for attacking a police officer, reflecting similar efforts elsewhere.      The former Rhodes Scholar and Navy SEAL’s pledge has played well

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) _ Missouri's new governor, Eric Greitens, is pushing to give the state the country's toughest penalties for attacking a police officer, reflecting similar efforts elsewhere.      The former Rhodes Scholar and Navy SEAL's pledge

     BENTONVILLE, Ark. (AP) – Benton County officials have drafted a second set of bid documents as they search for a contractor to repair the 109-year-old War Eagle Bridge.      Documents will be sent to the Arkansas Highway and

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A study at a hog farm located 6 miles from the Buffalo River has found no evidence of a manure leak at the operation.      The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that the Arkansas Department

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Hundreds of women in Little Rock and other Arkansas cities joined hundreds of thousands more in cities around the world to rally for equal rights and to send President Donald Trump a

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens is making a school choice measure called education savings accounts a priority this legislative session.      The accounts, which transfer state dollars to parents through a bank account, can

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – A southwestern Missouri woman faces up to 23 years in federal prison after admitting in court that she embezzled more than $380,000 from her former employer.      Forty-seven-year-old Regina Allison of El Dorado Springs

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Arkansas' unemployment rate has dipped back below 4 percent in the final month of 2016.      The Arkansas Department of Workforce Services said Friday that the state's unemployment rate in December was 3.9

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Arkansas forestry officials say 2016 was a relatively quiet year for wildfires, but the fires still burned nearly 30 square miles in the state.      The Arkansas Forestry Commission says there was a

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Stormy weather is in the forecast for parts of southeast Arkansas this weekend.      The National Weather Service says the greatest risk for bad weather is Saturday night and Sunday. The Storm Prediction

     JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) – Gun sales in Missouri are seeing a spike while the number of permit applications fall, thanks to a new law that no longer requires residents to have a permit when carrying a concealed

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – A former Missouri State University student who claimed to be the victim of a so-called “knockout game” attack outside a fraternity party has been awarded $1.63 million in damages.      The Springfield News-Leader reports

     COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – A report from the Women’s Foundation and a University of Missouri researcher shows that women in Missouri continue to struggle to close the pay gap with men.      The Columbia Daily Tribune reports the

     UNION, Mo. (AP) – Authorities in eastern Missouri are investigating after a body was found in a river.      The Washington Missourian reports that the body was found just before 8 a.m. Friday in the Bourbeuse River. A

     NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Timex Group says it plans to close its distribution center in North Little Rock by the end of the year, which would leave 64 employees out of a job.      The Arkansas

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – The Arkansas House has approved tapping into $8.5 million in unused money from the 1999 settlement with tobacco companies to provide more services to the developmentally disabled.      The House on Thursday voted

     LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – An Arkansas legislative committee has voted to outlaw an abortion procedure that opponents call “savage” and “barbaric” while others deem it the safest way to end a pregnancy in the second trimester.

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – St. Louis police say a 79-year-old man fatally shot the assistant manager of an apartment for the elderly after accusing her of stealing his money.      The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the shooting happened

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – The man who was the face of Ferguson, Missouri, in the turmoil that followed the 2014 fatal police shooting of Michael Brown has opposition in his re-election bid.      The St. Louis suburb announced

     COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – A Missouri man who died of a gunshot wound during a traffic stop in Columbia was accused of exchanging gunfire with a state trooper days earlier.      The Missouri State Highway Patrol identified the

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens has made it clear he’s opposed to state funding for stadiums, yet a revised proposal for a $200 million soccer stadium in St. Louis calls for the state to

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – A southwest Missouri woman was sentenced to two years in prison without parole for selling more than $90 million worth of counterfeit cell phone parts.      Federal prosecutors say 59-year-old Sherrie Householder, of Nixa,

     (AP) – Monticello Mayor Zackery Tucker has resigned as he faces a felony charge of tampering with a public record and a misdemeanor count of abuse of office.      Tucker submitted a one-sentence letter Tuesday to City Attorney

     (AP) – Two makers of airguns are planning to expand the Daisy plant in northwest Arkansas.      Keith Higginbotham, the president of Rogers-based Daisy and Gamo Outdoor USA, joined Gov. Asa Hutchinson to announce the expansion of the

     (AP) – A Little Rock man who prosecutors say ran a brothel out of his home has been sentenced to nearly two years in prison for lying to the Social Security Administration about his ability to work.

     (AP) – Carroll County authorities say a man has been found dead inside a home in Carroll County and a 17-year-old has been arrested in the case.      The sheriff’s office said in a statement to reporters that

     (AP) – An Arkansas Senate panel has advanced Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s $50 million proposal to cut income taxes for more than 600,000 low-income residents.      The Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee on Wednesday endorsed the Republican governor’s proposal

     (AP) – An Arkansas Senate committee has advanced legislation to delay the launch of the state’s voter-approved medical marijuana program and a proposal to ease a restriction for doctors of eligible patients.      The Senate Public Health, Welfare

     (AP) – There’s new life for a plan to have St. Louis taxpayers help fund a new downtown soccer stadium.      Eight days after the public funding proposal was declared all but dead, Alderwoman Christine Ingrassia on Wednesday

     (AP) – Federal authorities say they’re investigating threats to Jewish centers nationwide.      A brief FBI statement Wednesday says it and the Justice Department’s civil-rights division are investigating “possible civil rights violations in connection with threats.” The statement

     (AP) – St. Louis police are investigating the shooting death of a 15-year-old girl.      Two masked gunmen with assault rifles fired at the girl as she sat in a car Tuesday night. A St. Louis Public Schools

     (AP) – The commissioner of Indiana’s Department of Environmental Management will move to Missouri to lead the Department of Natural Resources under Gov. Eric Greitens.      Greitens announced Wednesday that Carol Comer will be the newest addition to

(AP) – Missouri’s Republican-led House has pushed forward a proposal to make Missouri the 28th right-to-work state despite Democratic efforts to send the measure to a public vote. The House voted 101-58 Wednesday to give initial approval

     (AP) – The Missouri State Highway Patrol is investigating after a man died of a gunshot wound after a traffic stop in Columbia.      Boone County Sheriff Sgt. Scott White says the confrontation began Wednesday afternoon when Columbia

The former campus president of a Kansas City trade school says he was fired for letting a homeless student sleep overnight in the school’s library during a cold snap. Snow was on the ground and temperatures dipped

St. Louis police are investigating the shooting death of a 15-year-old girl. Two masked gunmen with assault rifles fired at the girl as she sat in a car Tuesday night. A St. Louis Public Schools spokesman on

A Pulaski County Circuit judge approved paying $29.1 million from a lawsuit settlement fund to more than 21,000 Marlboro Lights users and their attorneys. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports the $45 million settlement fund was set up to

     (AP) – A sign on the door of a post office in Springdale says the office was closed Monday for the birthday of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.      A U.S. Postal Service spokeswoman says post office workers

     (AP) – Arkansas would ban food stamps from being used to buy soda or junk food under a plan that's heading to the state House for a vote.      The House Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee on

     (AP) – Authorities say a North Carolina man wanted on assault charges has been arrested after a police pursuit in Arkansas.      Arkansas State Police say a state trooper pulled over a pickup truck in Little Rock at

     (AP) – The Arkansas House has approved delaying the launch of the state's medical marijuana program and legislation easing the requirements for doctors who certify a patient is eligible to use the drug.      The House voted 91-0

     ST. LOUIS (AP) – The wife of a fallen St. Louis County Officer is using social media to process her grief and humanize officers.      The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports 24-year-old Elizabeth Snyder has been making a series

     SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) – Drury University officials are acknowledging hazing occurred on the men's swimming team but say they do not believe a culture of hazing exists in the school's athletic department.      Evan Petrich says hazing he

      AUSTIN, Texas (AP) – Texas and 12 other states have asked a federal court to block final rules from President Barack Obama's administration designed to reduce coal mining's impact on streams.      Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton petitioned

     JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) – Budget cuts announced by Gov. Eric Greitens will suspend plans for a dental school at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin.      Missouri Southern planned to open the dental school in partnership with the

     JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Republican legislative leaders are planning to get to work quickly on some of the priorities outlined by Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens in his first State of the State address.      In a nearly

An Arkansas technical college will require legislative approval this session before it can merge with the University of Arkansas System. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that due to not having the “community college” name, Pulaski Technical College can

     TEXARKANA, Ark. (AP) The company that manages the Bi-State Justice Center in Texarkana is asking a judge to dismiss a civil lawsuit filed after the death of a 20-year-old inmate, who was diabetic.      Morgan Angerbauer was jailed