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Erin Brockovich Urges Missouri Senate to Reject Pesticide Bill

Published

9 months ago

May 6, 2024

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Renowned environmental activist Erin Brockovich wrote a letter to members of a key Missouri Senate committee, urging them to vote against a bill that she says would grant immunity to pesticide manufacturers.

Brockovich’s letter to the Missouri Senate Agriculture, Food Production and Outdoor Resources Committee addresses House Bill 2763, saying she’s “gravely concerned” about the harm it could cause. The bill has already passed the Missouri House and is scheduled to be heard in executive session with the committee today.

“The bill would grant immunity to all pesticide manufacturers whose products cause cancer by allowing them to hide behind a deeply flawed and inadequate labeling procedure from the EPA,” Brockovich writes.

As passed by the House, HB 2763 stipulates that companies selling pesticides are required only to use the EPA-mandated warnings for carcinogenicity, no other warning labels needed.

Brockovich says that’s highly concerning because pesticides obviously do not, and ethically cannot, undergo human testing before hitting store shelves. She cites Bayer AG’s weed-killing product Roundup (developed when the company was still St. Louis-based Monsanto), which lawsuits have linked to the development of various cancers in those who were exposed to it.

There were approximately 17 witnesses in support of the bill and 16 against it as of Monday afternoon, according to records with the legislature. One supporter was a Bayer employee; another was attorney Catherine Hanaway, the former U.S. Attorney for Missouri’s Eastern District, who attested that she was there to represent the company.

“We know all too well that some pesticides, after years of use by people, are discovered to be harmful to human health,” Brockovich writes.

Bayer has argued that exposure to Roundup does not pose a threat to human health. The company has won some lawsuits from people claiming the exposure led to their cancer and other maladies — but has also lost or settled many more.

The company did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. We’ll update this post if we hear back.

Brockovich urges members of the committee to vote against the legislation.

“In my many years as an advocate for people harmed by chemicals and environmental catastrophes, there is one pattern that remains consistent — companies that know about the damage their products can cause do everything they can to try to avoid being responsible for the destruction they unleash,” she writes. “That is exactly what is happening with HB 2763.”

What is most frustrating, she adds, is that so much of the harm caused by these chemicals could have been avoided if companies were honest about their products.

“But they weren’t, and people are now suffering from cancer or have even died because of their decisions,” Brockovich writes. “Please do not allow their reckless decisions to cause even more harm to the citizens of your state by allowing them to avoid being responsible for their products.”

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Fenton Man Charged in Sword Attack on Roommate

Published

9 months ago

May 22, 2024

Natural Bridge

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A warrant is out for a Fenton man’s arrest after he allegedly attacked his roommate with a sword.

Police say that on Sunday, Angelus Scott spoke openly about “slicing his roommate’s head” before he grabbed a sword, raised it up and then swung it down at the roommate.

The roommate grabbed Scott’s hand in time to prevent injury. When police arrived at the scene, they found the weapon used in the assault.

The sword in question was a katana, which is a Japanese sword recognizable for its curved blade.

This isn’t the first time a samurai-style sword has been used to violent effect in St. Louis. In 2018, a man hearing voices slaughtered his ex-boyfriend with a samurai sword. His mother said he suffered from schizoaffective disorder.

As for Scott, 35, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office was charged yesterday with two felonies, assault first degree and armed criminal action. The warrant for his arrest says he is to be held on $200,000 bond.

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Caught on Video, Sheriff Says He’s Ready to ‘Turn It All Over’ to Deputy

Published

9 months ago

May 22, 2024

Natural Bridge

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Video of St. Louis Sheriff Vernon Betts taken by a former deputy suggests that the sheriff has a successor in mind to hand the reins of the department over to, even as Betts is in an increasingly heated campaign for reelection.

“I ain’t here for all this rigmarole,” Betts says in the video while seated behind his desk at the Carnahan Courthouse. “The Lord sent me here to turn this department around and I’m doing the best I can and I think I’ve done a good job. I’ve got about eight months and I’m going to qualify for my fourth pension.”

He goes on, “Right now I can walk up out of here and live happily ever after and forget about all this…and live like a king.”

The sheriff then says his wife has been in Atlanta looking at houses and that the other deputy in the room, Donald Hawkins, is someone Betts has been training “to turn it all over to him.”

Asked about the video, Betts tells the RFT, “My future plans are to win reelection on August 6th by a wide margin and to continue my mission as the top elected law enforcement official to make St. Louis safer and stronger. Serving the people of St. Louis with integrity, honor and professional law enforcement qualifications is a sacred responsibility, and I intend to complete that mission.”

The video of Betts was taken by Barbara Chavers, who retired from the sheriff’s office in 2016 after 24 years of service. Chavers now works security at Schnucks at Grand and Gravois. Betts’ brother Howard works security there, too.

Chavers tells the RFT that she was summoned to Betts’ office last week after Betts’ brother made the sheriff aware that she was supporting Montgomery. It was no secret: Chavers had filmed a Facebook live video in which she said she was supporting Betts’ opponent Alfred Montgomery in the election this fall. “Make the judges safe,” she says in the video, standing in front of a large Montgomery sign on Gravois Avenue. “They need a sheriff who is going to make their courtrooms safe.”

In his office, even as Chavers made clear she was filming him, Betts told Chavers he was “flabbergasted” and “stunned” she was supporting Montgomery.

“I don’t know what I did that would make you go against the preacher man,” he says, referring to himself. He then refers to Montgomery as “ungodly.”

Betts goes on to say that not long ago, he was walking in his neighborhood on St. Louis Avenue near 20th Street when suddenly Montgomery pulled up in his car and, according to Betts, shouted, “You motherfucker, you this, you that. You’re taking my signs down.”

Montgomery tells the RFT that he’s never interacted with Betts outside of candidate forums and neighborhood meetings.

“I don’t think anyone with good sense would do something like that to a sitting sheriff,” Montgomery says.

Montgomery has had campaign signs missing and on at least two occasions has obtained video of people tearing them down. (Chavers notes that the sign that she filmed her original Facebook video in front of is itself now missing.)

One man who lives near Columbus Square says that he recently put out two Montgomery signs, which later went missing. “If they keep taking them, I’ll keep putting them up,” he said.

Betts says he has nothing to do with the missing signs. In the video Chavers filmed in Betts’ office, Betts says that his campaign isn’t in a spot where it needs to resort to tearing down opponents’ signs.

“If you sit here long enough, a man is getting ready to come across the street from City Hall bringing me $500, today,” Betts says. “I’m getting that kind of support. I don’t need to tear down signs.”

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St. Louis to Develop First Citywide Transportation Plan in Decades

Published

9 months ago

May 21, 2024

Natural Bridge

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The City of St. Louis is working to develop its first citywide mobility plan in decades, Mayor Tishaura Jones’ office announced Tuesday. This plan seeks to make it easier for everyone — drivers, pedestrians, bikers and public transit users — to safely commute within the city.

The plan will bring together other city projects like the Brickline Greenway, Future64, the MetroLink Green Line, and more, “while establishing new priorities for a safer, more efficient and better-maintained transportation network across the City,” according to the release.

The key elements in the plan will be public engagement, the development of a safety action plan, future infrastructure priorities and transportation network mapping, according to Jones’ office.

The overarching goals are to create a vision for citywide mobility, plan a mixture of short and long-term mobility projects and to develop improved communication tools with the public to receive transportation updates. In recent years, both people who use public transit and cyclists have been outspoken about the difficulties — and dangers — of navigating St. Louis streets, citing both cuts to public transit and traffic violence.

To garner public input and participation for the plan, Jones’ office said there will be community meetings, focus groups and a survey for residents to share their concerns. The city will also be establishing a Community Advisory Committee. Those interested in learning more should check out at tmp-stl.com/

“Everyone deserves to feel safe when getting around St. Louis, whether they’re driving, biking, walking or taking public transit,” Jones said in a news release. “Creating a comprehensive transportation and mobility plan allows us to make intentional and strategic investments so that moving around St. Louis for jobs, education, and entertainment becomes easier, safer and more enjoyable.”

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