St. Louis Observer: June 10, 2022
County jail admin faces COVID fraud indictment; MO witness protection fund mostly unused in 2021; City corrections officer sentenced for brutal jail beating
Editor’s Note
“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.”
Albert Einstein
In the News
Police, prosecutorial, and judicial accountability
A former St. Louis City corrections officer who allowed two detainees to brutally assault another has been sentenced to the maximum penalty of four years after pleading guilty to violating the victim’s civil rights. Demetria Thomas told a fellow corrections officer that she allowed the attack to happen because the victim had been “disrespectful” to her. [Riverfront Times/Ryan Krull]
For the second year in a row, the Missouri legislature-established “witness protection fund” has gone mostly unused. Only 13 of the state’s 600 law enforcement agencies have signed up to participate in the fund and $14,647 of the program’s annual $2 million budget has actually been spent.[Missouri Independent/Rudi Keller]
A former St. Louis County jail official also faces federal charges, related to fraudulently applying for COVID-19 relief funds on behalf of a business in exchange for a cut of the funds received. Anthony Weaver was a “jail change management coordinator” who was approached about COVID funds by the same businessman involved with the federal indictments of former aldermen Lewis Reed, Jeffrey Boyd, and John Collins Muhammad. [Riverfront Times/Ryan Krull]
Economic development & housing
A bill that would remove an estimated 100,000 racially-restrictive covenants from Missouri homes awaits Governor Mike Parson’s signature in order to take effect. Prior to the bill’s enactment, tens of thousands of homes - mostly in St. Louis and Kansas City - include provisions written into deeds that prohibit persons of any race but white from owning those properties.[Missouri Independent/Rebecca Rivas]
A Kansas City chef is launching a food-based project as a solution to urban hunger and unemployment. This fall, Shanita McAfee-Bryant plans to open The Prospect KC, a training kitchen that helps individuals to build culinary skills, create restaurant and employment opportunities, and expand knowledge about nutrition. [KCUR/Luke X. Martin]
The St. Louis Regional Business Council has released a report, underscoring the need to fill gaps in the fiber network and expanding internet access to under-served urban & rural communities. Factors considered in the report are coverage (including 250-300,000 households in the City and County); quality of coverage; service affordability; device affordability; and mentoring & improved digital literacy. [St. Louis American/Alvin A. Reid]
Further reading
The Missouri Developmental Disabilities Council has allocated $275,000 to fund a series of “restorative justice trainings” for educators and school resource officers with the intent of disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline. Program goals include the re-evaluation and creation of policies that expand access to instructional time and equitable inclusion in classrooms. [Jefferson City News Tribune/Joe Grimm]
Beyond the Paywall
To read these below articles in full, please visit SLPL.org and access these articles through the Digital Content tab. St. Louis City & County residents can read these publications for free using their library cards.
“Former Missouri police chief sentenced for excessive force,” by Associated Press, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“Family seeks justice on anniversary of St. Louis man’s death during no-knock raid,” by Dana Rieck, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“St. Louis County jail audit this month to include records on deaths, including 2015 case, director says,” by Nassim Benchaabane, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“New Missouri law helps boost national effort to report when police use force,” by Josh Renaud