Last week the horrible news broke of a young lady cut down in the prime of her life in downtown St. Louis. A 16 year-old high school student from Tennessee lost both her legs after being struck by a reckless driver. She was in town for a volleyball tournament and instead of having warm memories of our state she will remember it as the place where her life was permanently changed. One of the worst things about the incident is that it could have been prevented.
We learned that the driver of the vehicle was currently out on bond for armed robbery. His trial had been delayed because St. Louis’s prosecutor, Kim Gardner, was unprepared. The defendant violated his bond conditions 50 times but the prosecutor never filed a motion to revoke his bond and put him in custody. Therefore, he was out on the streets endangering the lives of citizens.
This is just the latest in the ongoing list of unacceptable failings from the St. Louis prosecuting attorney. As I previously mentioned, the violent crime that results makes St. Louis residents and visitors alike feel unsafe on its streets. Because she has failed to hold violent criminals accountable, I supported legislation to allow a special prosecutor to step in to ensure justice. I now join with our Attorney General, Andrew Bailey, in calling for her resignation or removal from office.
As the hub of our state’s largest metropolitan area, and a major tourist center, what happens in St. Louis affects every single Missourian. I want to ensure that my constituents are safe when visiting St. Louis, and this is not currently the case. The rough estimate of homicide cases in St. Louis is twice that of Chicago. We have a problem and what we are currently doing is not working. The rising crime rate is also affecting economic competitiveness, hindering businesses’ ability to attract people to the state and businesses to the state. Businesses do not like to be in a top 10 state for personal and property crime.
No one should have to move out of their own neighborhoods to feel safe. We need to make sure when individuals commit crimes they get prosecuted. Many of those who voted for Kim Gardner now regret their decision. Since St. Louis City voters do not have the ability to recall the prosecutor, there is little recourse except having a special prosecutor assume her powers or removing her from office, and I support both solutions.
Car buyers would pay their sales tax at the dealership rather than a fee office under a piece of legislation approved by the House. With a first-round voice vote, lawmakers approved the bill that would streamline the process for consumers and help eliminate approximately 90 percent of the temporary tag abuse seen in the state.
The bill’s sponsor said, “The way the process will work is that you will go into the dealership, you’ll do all of your paperwork. You will leave with a temp tag, but that will start the ball rolling for DOR to issue your plates and you will receive them in the mail.”
HB 415 simply states that licensed motor vehicle dealers would collect and remit sales tax on all motor vehicles sold. The sponsor noted that vehicle sales tax is the only sales tax not collected at the point of sale. He said his legislation would put Missouri in line with the other 47 states who require dealerships to collect the vehicle sales tax.
May God bless and keep you and our great nation.
Hardy Billington represents District 152, which includes Butler county.