Articles written by Jim Salter & Summer Ballentine


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  • Lake of the Ozarks business owner defends actions

    JIM SALTER and SUMMER BALLENTINE|May 27, 2020

    O'FALLON, Mo. (AP) — The owner of a business that hosted crowded pool parties over the Memorial Day weekend at Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks says no laws were broken and safety measures were in place to protect against the spread of the coronavirus. Social media postings over the weekend showed large crowds of mostly young people without masks and not adhering to social distancing guidelines at pools along the central Missouri lake that is a popular weekend getaway for people in the state and the surrounding region. Many of photos and videos s...

  • Missouri rejects license renewal for lone abortion clinic

    JIM SALTER and SUMMER BALLENTINE|Jun 21, 2019

    ST. LOUIS (AP) — Missouri's only abortion clinic lost its license to perform the procedure on Friday, though it remains open at least temporarily under a judge's order. The state health department notified the Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis that its abortion license will not be renewed. A letter from the state cited "serious and extensive" deficiencies. The state's decision came at the deadline set by St. Louis Circuit Judge Michael Stelzer. During a brief hearing, Stelzer said a preliminary injunction he previously issued would remain...

  • Judge: Doctor testimony not needed in Missouri abortion case

    JIM SALTER and SUMMER BALLENTINE|Jun 5, 2019

    ST. LOUIS (AP) — A St. Louis judge ruled Tuesday that testimony from non-staff doctors at Missouri's only abortion clinic will not be necessary for a hearing that will determine if the clinic can remain open. Circuit Judge Michael Stelzer agreed to throw out subpoenas for four doctors who worked briefly at the Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis during their training. Stelzer's ruling also set a hearing for Wednesday to consider Planned Parenthood's request for a preliminary injunction to stop the state from forcing the clinic to close. S...

  • Judge considering Missouri abortion clinic license case

    JIM SALTER and SUMMER BALLENTINE|May 31, 2019

    ST. LOUIS (AP) — A judge is deciding whether to ensure Missouri's only abortion clinic can keep its license past Friday, the latest development in a decades-long push by abortion opponents to get states to enact strict rules on the procedure. Like many states, Missouri over the years enacted a series of regulations, ranging from waiting periods before women can receive abortions to rules on the width of clinic doors. Abortion-rights supporters say the rules are arbitrary and are intended to shutter abortion clinics, while abortion opponents s...

  • St. Louis faith leaders urge peace, justice amid turmoil

    JIM SALTER and SUMMER BALLENTINE|Sep 20, 2017

    ST. LOUIS (AP) — Leaders of several faiths on Tuesday called for peace and justice amid the turmoil that followed the acquittal of a white former St. Louis police officer in the 2011 death of a black man. Several hundred people gathered on a hot, unshaded public plaza for an interfaith service followed by a march to City Hall. The service came after four days of protests that followed a judge's decision Friday to acquit Jason Stockley of first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Anthony Lamar Smith. Speakers at the service includ...

  • 2nd day of St. Louis protests calm at malls, restaurant area

    JIM SALTER and SUMMER BALLENTINE|Sep 17, 2017

    ST. LOUIS (AP) — Noisy demonstrators disrupted shopping at upscale suburban St. Louis shopping malls and marched through a popular district of bars and restaurants Saturday in peaceful protests over the acquittal of a white St. Louis police officer who fatally shot a black man, and there was little sign of the sporadic vandalism and violence that marred the rallies a night earlier. A few hundred people shouted slogans such as "black lives matter" and "it is our duty to fight for our freedom" as they marched through West County Center mall in th...