Public safety bill approved by Missouri House would increase penalties for rioting, put St. Louis Metropolitan Police under state control
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - Crime reform is one step closer to reality in Missouri.
Thursday, the Missouri House of Representatives ed an expansive public safety bill that covers immigration, rioting and much more. Public safety and criminal reform was named the number one priority of the super-majority Republican party by Gov. Mike Kehoe. The bill now heads to the Missouri Senate, where lawmakers expect more changes and possibly more additions to be added to an already expansive bill.
The bill ed Thursday, carried by St. Louis Republican Rep. Brad Christ, would accomplish many of the goals laid out by the governor, including increasing punishments for burglary, sex trafficking and organized retail theft.
Some other pieces of this bill are:
- Enhanced Penalties for Stunt Driving and Street Takeovers: Repeat offenders will now face felony charges, aiming to curb dangerous driving behaviors.
- Strengthened Child Welfare Protections: First-degree child endangerment will be classified as a “dangerous felony,” especially when involving fentanyl or other drugs.
- School Safety Committee: A new Committee on School Safety will be created to develop guidelines to prevent school firearm violence.
Many of the measures in this bill are popular with both Republicans and Democrats, but ultimately this did not get any Democratic because of two measures: one to put the St. Louis Metropolitan Police under state control and one to increase the punishment for rioting.
“If you were to remove the St. Louis PD portion, if you were to remove the portion on rioting, I think you’d find a lot of broad bipartisan on this bill, but with those two things still in it there’s just no way,” said Rep. Mark Sharp.
One of the provisions unpopular with Democratic increases the penalty for rioting to a felony punishable with several years of jail time. Rioting is defined in the bill as, “a person assembling with six or more persons and thereafter violating any of the criminal laws of this state or of the United States.”
“We’re all for the First Amendment and protesting, but when you break the law and riot, that’s really what we’re trying to eliminate,” Christ said.
This bill would remove the need to prove prior planning, also called conspiracy when charging someone with rioting.
“If we go to Mardi Gras and have a couple drinks we can be proposed to a felony. That’s public intoxication,” argued Rep. Marlon Anderson, who serves as the assistant minority floor leader.
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