An Amtrak train carrying 243 passengers has derailed near Mendon Missouri. There are reports of multiple injuries and possible fatalities.
According to Amtrak officials the train hit a dumptruck while travelling between Los Angeles and Chicago.
This is a breaking story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
Robert Audrain III from St. Louis set a state record by catching a 4-ounce long ear sunfish.
“I was fishing off my father-in-law’s dock at a private lake a little south of Eureka,” he explained. “I was with my 12-year-old son and we knew there was some good-sized sunfish in the lake. I was using my handline and it was the first line I threw in when we caught the fish.”
The previous record of largest long ear sunfish weighed in at 3 ounces and was set in 1993. “It’s funny because most of my friends thought it was a joke. Because of the fish’s size, they really didn’t think that it was a record” Audrain said.
I have covered this story before here, but to recap, Mark and Patricia McCloskey defended their home against a mob of BLM supporters that had broken down a gate and charged their home. St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, who has a backlog of 134 murder cases, decided to press charges against the couple. The McCloskeys have been charged with a felony and misdemeanor charge of unlawful use of a weapon each.
Now to today’s update on this mess.
It turns out that the pistol wielded by Patricia was inoperable at the time she turned it in. Why is that an issue? KDSK explains:
In Missouri, police and prosecutors must prove that a weapon is “readily” capable of lethal use when it used in the type of crime with which the McCloskeys have been charged. At the request of Assistant Circuit Attorney Chris Hinckley, crime lab staff members field stripped the handgun and found it had been assembled incorrectly. Specifically, the firing pin spring was put in front of the firing pin, which was backward, and made the gun incapable of firing, according to the documents. Firearms experts then put the gun back together, per Hinckley’s request, in the correct order and test-fired it, finding that it worked, according to the documents. Crime lab workers photographed the disassembly and reassembly of the gun, according to the documents.
The crime lab was ordered to make the gun operable. Hinckley swore in the complaint filed that it was “readily capable of lethal use” when it was used in the incident. Seems like a pretty clear cut case of prosecutorial misconduct from where I’m sitting.
See also: Oh No she dident. . .
According to the McCloskey’s attorney, Joel Schwartz, the gun was inoperable during the incident in question with the protesters and couldn’t have hurt anyone. The McCloskeys, who are both attorneys, had used the gun as a prop during a trial. Schwartz went on, “disheartening to learn that a law enforcement agency altered evidence in order to prosecute an innocent member of the community.”
Mark and Patricia McCloskey have been charged by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner. The couple face a felony and misdemeanor charge for “unlawful use of a weapon.”
“Today my office filed charges against Mark and Patricia McCloskey following an incident involving peaceful, unarmed protestors on June 28th. It is illegal to wave weapons in a threatening manner at those participating in nonviolent protest, and while we are fortunate this situation did not escalate into deadly force, this type of conduct is unacceptable in St. Louis. The decision to issue charges was made after a thorough investigation with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department,” St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner released in a statement. “I am open to recommending the McCloskey’s participate in one of my office’s diversion programs that are designed to reduce unnecessary involvement with the courts. I believe this would be a fair resolution to this matter.”
No matter how you slice it, this is a politically motivated prosecution. Nowhere in Gardner’s statement does it mention the mob the McCloskeys confronted had broken a gate and rushed their home. Nor does it mention the fact that Missouri is a stand your ground state or that it is also a “castle doctrine” state.
Related: Of Ankle Monitors and House Arrest
Missouri governor Mike Parson has already signalled his intention to issue a pardon to the pair if they were indicted. President Trump also weighed in on the matter. He suggested Attorney General Bill Barr look into the prosecutor on this case.
