Ryan Krull

Police Board budget demand goes from ‘crippling’ to ‘catastrophic,’ mayor says Last week, Mayor Cara Spencer had a disagreement with the rest of the Board of Police Commissioners, to the tune of as much as $72 million. But since then, the parties have only gotten further apart. ...

The Police Board has upped their ask to $333M, mayor says in a letter. By @sarahfenske.bsky.social and me

www.stlmag.com/news/police-...

State Police Board seeks to limit civilian oversight of officer misconduct in St. Louis With the new state-appointed board now running the city’s police department, civilian review of complaints against St. Louis officers could potentially be on its way out—as the State Board’s lawyer su...

Civilian oversight of police is going to look a lot different, and likely be greatly diminished, in this new era of state control

www.stlmag.com/news/st-loui...

St. Louis treasurer voided his own parking tickets In the past three years, the man who controls parking in the City of St. Louis has forgiven eight of his own parking tickets.  Parking in the city is the domain of the Treasurer’s Office, an entity th...

Update to @ryankrull.bsky.social's story yesterday about St. Louis Treasurer Adam Layne failing to enforce parking violations by booting cars: Layne has voided 8 of his own tickets, plus fees www.stlmag.com/news/st-loui...

Disciplinary hearing for former circuit attorney offers low stakes, high intrigue At a Clayton courthouse yesterday it was as if a game of legal musical chairs had gone off the rails: a former circuit attorney sitting at the equivalent of the defendant’s table, a federal prosecutor...

The latest chapter in the Kim Gardner saga includes a TV judge. www.stlmag.com/news/discipl...

Disciplinary hearing for former circuit attorney offers low stakes, high intrigue At a Clayton courthouse yesterday it was as if a game of legal musical chairs had gone off the rails: a former circuit attorney sitting at the equivalent of the defendant’s table, a federal prosecutor...

The disciplinary hearing for former St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner offered low stakes, high intrigue. @ryankrull.bsky.social reports on the drama in the courtroom today www.stlmag.com/news/discipl...

Waymo is coming to St. Louis—but the cars will have drivers (for now) The autonomous rideshare company is making moves to expand to a dozen more places, including the Gateway City.

Get ready, St. Louis: Waymo is coming to town (via @stlmag.bsky.social) www.stlmag.com/business/way...

Screenshot 1 from St. Louis Magazine's St..Louis Daily newsletter. Text: Around Town THE JURY IS OUT Nearly two years after she was expelled from the Missouri Democratic Party for boasting on social media about sharing lemonade with a notorious alt-right troll, former state Senator Sarah Unsicker (D-Shrewsbury) on Monday filed a lawsuit on her own behalf alleging a years-long conspiracy against her. Unsicker writes in her 33-page filing that she was a warrior against "corrupt practices" in the St. Louis County family court system. But, she says, her efforts were stymied as far back as March 2023, when a group of "court insiders" met with her privately and "chastised" her for her reform efforts.

Screenshot 2 from St. Louis Magazine's St..Louis Daily newsletter. Text: Later that year, she posted a photo on social media documenting her meetup with Twitter commentator Eric Garland and right-wing activist Chuck Johnson, who has questioned the Holocaust. (More than a year later, Unsicker wrote that she regretted her association with Johnson, calling him a "master con artist.") But in the lawsuit, Unsicker says she was defamed when a now defunct alt-weekly wrote about the meetup. This, she alleges, led to her expulsion from the state Democratic caucus. Her plan to run for governor collapsed after Democrats refused to accept her filing fee, and she apparently later moved to Vermont. Since then,

Screenshot 3 from St. Louis Magazine's St..Louis Daily newsletter. Text: Unsicker's own child custody case began in the very St. Louis County Court she has long alleged is corrupt. She accuses Judge Joan Gilmer, as well as the two attorneys representing her ex-husband, of a "conspiracy to engage in procedural due process violations" and retaliation against her for her acts as a public official. She's seeking $10 million in damages. The case may have a familiar ring: Two summers ago, Unsicker's ally, Garland, also filed a federal lawsuit against Gilmer, this one stemming from his own travails in St. Louis County's family court system. U.S. District Judge John A. Ross soon dismissed the lawsuit in a way that would allow Garland to file, but he has not yet done so. —Ryan Krull

Sarah Unsicker may now be Vermont's problem. @ryankrull.bsky.social has the dirt.

For St. Louis airport, homeless “sweeps” are a nightly ritual A fatal shooting last week at St. Louis Lambert International Airport has put a bright light on the persistent issue of homelessness at the airport, with a source familiar with its operations telling ...

Homeless “sweeps” are a nightly ritual at Lambert
www.stlmag.com/news/st-loui...

For St. Louis airport, homeless “sweeps” are a nightly ritual A fatal shooting last week at St. Louis Lambert International Airport has put a bright light on the persistent issue of homelessness at the airport, with a source familiar with its operations telling ...

For the St. Louis airport, "sweeps" moving along homeless visitors are a nightly ritual -- and may have been a factor in last week's fatal shooting. @ryankrull.bsky.social has the story www.stlmag.com/news/st-loui...

Could Latty Avenue settlement provide a roap map for West Lake’s cleanup? Earlier this year, the Army Corps of Engineers reached an agreement with Cotter Corporation and Norfolk Southern Railway Company wherein those two companies and the federal government would pay a comb...

Could good news for a West Lake clean up be on the horizon?

www.stlmag.com/news/latty-a...

For those familiar with sheriff’s many scandals, trial feels like ‘Groundhog Day’ The trial to remove St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery got off to an exciting enough start. The sheriff entered the courtroom handcuffed and looking haggard, wearing a charcoal suit less flashy than ...

Day one of Sheriff Alfred Montgomery’s trial was variously described as “torture” and “Groundhog Day.”

www.stlmag.com/news/alfred-...

Elvis-loving St. Charles County judge forced to retire after dressing like his idol A St. Charles County judge who traded his black robes for an Elvis jumpsuit is being forced into retirement—and his mania for The King is partly to blame. Disciplinary charges accuse Judge Matthew Tho...

A St. Charles County judge has been forced to retire after dressing like Elvis Presley in his courtroom ... and also talking politics with litigants before him. Via @stlmag.bsky.social www.stlmag.com/news/matthew...

Will Sheriff Alfred Montgomery be able to attend his own quo warranto trial? Still an open question. One of his attorneys says, "We don't know yet." Trial starts in one minute.

Anheuser family heirs hit with $56M verdict over Kirkwood energy company Two descendants of a co-founder of Anheuser-Busch and their family trusts were part of a group ordered on Friday to pay tens of millions of dollars to a company whose investors they allegedly swindled...

Anheuser family heirs hit with $56 million jury verdict, with the son of former Gov. Jay Nixon taking the lead in representing disgruntled investors in their suit over “a company built by many, stolen by few.” @ryankrull.bsky.social has the scoop www.stlmag.com/business/anh...

Anheuser family heirs hit with $56M verdict over Kirkwood energy company Two descendants of a co-founder of Anheuser-Busch and their family trusts were part of a group ordered on Friday to pay tens of millions of dollars to a company whose investors they allegedly swindled...

It was Anheuser heirs versus a former governor’s son in a trial that played out in secrecy

www.stlmag.com/business/anh...

The Peacemaker

The Peacemaker follows a chilling suicide cluster at Truman State University. Hosts Ben Westhoff and ryankrull.bsky.social investigate Brandon Grossheim's unsettling connection to the victims, unraveling shocking truths and lingering questions about influence and accountability.

Judge hints at dismissal as Bar:PM criminal trial looms The owner of a South City gay bar accused of assaulting a police officer after a police SUV slammed into his bar is set to go to trial in two weeks—that is, if the case isn’t dismissed first.  Judge R...

Update: the criminal case against Bar:PM co-owner Chad Morris has been dismissed. Almost two years ago, he was arrested after a police SUV slammed into his business late at night.

www.stlmag.com/news/barpm-c...

Well, that was quick. I am being told former SLMPD police chief John Hayden is now interim sheriff.

Judge removes St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery—for now Alfred Montgomery is no longer the sheriff of the city of St. Louis—at least for a little while.  At a hearing today in the Missouri Attorney General’s ongoing effort to remove Montgomery from office,...

"The judge, like a lot of St. Louisans, was skeptical that Montgomery was able to serve as the city’s sheriff from a jail cell." @ryankrull.bsky.social with a gift for understatement www.stlmag.com/news/sheriff...

Judge removes St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery—for now Alfred Montgomery is no longer the sheriff of the city of St. Louis—at least for a little while.  At a hearing today in the Missouri Attorney General’s ongoing effort to remove Montgomery from office,...

An interim sheriff will be chosen by the court’s presiding judge, the city’s police chief, and Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore.

www.stlmag.com/news/sheriff...

The Peacemaker True Crime Podcast · Weekly Series · The Peacemaker podcast explores a harrowing suicide cluster that unfolded in a rural college town. Hosted by BEN WESTHOFF and RYAN KRULL, this series is set at Tru...

My twin girls were freshmen at Truman during the "suicide cluster". One of the victims sat behind my daughter in Speech & his death affected her because she was going through stuff herself.
"I hope they mention he wore their clothes." - Kay
@ryankrull.bsky.social
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

Sheriff’s Office attorney says he's been suspended for cooperating with authorities There’s more turmoil at the St. Louis Sheriff’s Office, as staff attorney Blake Lawrence says he was just suspended without pay for cooperating with authorities investigating the agency. Lawrence came...

Staff attorney Blake Lawrence says Judge David Mason suspended him without pay for cooperating with authorities investigating the agency. Mason says Lawrence was intimidating the media.

www.stlmag.com/news/blake-l...

Secretive hearing weighs fate of workers caught up in St. Peters ICE raid Several of the men and women scooped up in ICE’s September raid of a Chinese buffet in St. Peters were set to be deported yesterday. However, after a secretive hearing in federal court, they will be s...

When they kick you out of court, loiter in the lobby.

www.stlmag.com/news/golden-...

They do have a good online system that makes is easy to order ahead.

Rene Knott quit KSDK after HR probe focused on his comments Longtime KSDK morning news anchor Rene Knott says he resigned at the station’s request last week after becoming the focus of an HR investigation. Knott says his supervisor told him not to come in on O...

New at @stlmag.bsky.social, by me & @ryankrull.bsky.social: Rene Knott confirms he was asked to resign from KSDK after an HR probe into comments he'd allegedly made (he denies saying anything inappropriate) www.stlmag.com/news/rene-kn...

Asked and answered thanks to @ryankrull.bsky.social

Rene Knott parts ways with KDSK in sudden split Morning show anchor Rene Knott wasn’t on air this morning at KSDK (Channel 5)—and while reporter Mercedes MacKay told the audience she was filling in for 21-year station veteran, the reality appears t...

KSDK told staff that they've parted ways with longtime morning news anchor Rene Knott. @ryankrull.bsky.social and I have the details for @stlmag.bsky.social www.stlmag.com/news/rene-kn...

St. Louis sheriff ordered to jail after trouble with guns, burner phone St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery got burned by his own burner phone today and is now headed to jail as the criminal case against him works its way through court.  Montgomery, already on house arres...

Sheriff got burned by his own burner phone.
www.stlmag.com/news/alfred-...

St. Louis sheriff ordered to jail after trouble with guns, burner phone St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery got burned by his own burner phone today and is now headed to jail as the criminal case against him works its way through court.  Montgomery, already on house arres...

St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery has been ordered to jail while he awaits his day in court .... but, bizarrely, he remains the sheriff. @ryankrull.bsky.social has the details: www.stlmag.com/news/alfred-...

St. Louis sheriff now faces witness tampering, retaliation charges St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery is on house arrest after being hit with five new felonies—and may be headed to jail as early as Tuesday. Montgomery was in court today after being hit with a supers...

5 new felony charges have been filed against St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery, and these are a lot more serious. @ryankrull.bsky.social has the details www.stlmag.com/news/sheriff...