Latest news with #EighthCircuitU.S.CourtofAppeals
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Yahoo
Louisiana bounty hunter sentenced for kidnapping Missouri woman
ST. LOUIS – A bounty hunter from the New Orleans area appeared in federal court Tuesday and was sentenced for abducting a St. Peters, Missouri, woman and taking her across state lines against her will. Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said Wayne D. Lozier Jr., 46, has been in custody since March 31, 2022. He was originally convicted in September 2023 on one count of kidnapping and one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and sentenced to 10 years in prison. However, his conviction and sentence were overturned by the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals due to an issue with a jury instruction. Rather than face retrial, Lozier pleaded guilty to the same charges in March 2025. The U.S. District Court judge overseeing the case sentenced Lozier to the three years he's already spent behind bars, meaning Lozier will be released with time served. In May 2019, Lozier and his partner, Jody L. Sullivan, drove from Louisiana to Missouri to find the victim and take her to St. Tammany Parish (in Louisiana, a 'parish' means 'county,' in simple terms), where the victim had an outstanding warrant for four misdemeanors. They'd been hired by a bond service. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now On May 9, 2019, Lozier and Sullivan found the victim at her friend's home in St. Peters. They handcuffed the victim, put her in their SUV, and left. The homeowner called the police. St. Peters police called Lozier and told him he was breaking the law and needed to return the victim. Lozier ignored the police. During a stop in Sullivan, Missouri, the victim sought help from employees at a gas station and asked them to call St. Peters police. However, Lozier used a Taser and shocked the victim multiple times and pulled her hair. Lozier and Sullivan dragged the victim back to their vehicle by the chain connecting the woman's handcuffs and legs. St. Peters police again contacted Lozier and told him to return the victim, but Lozier refused. Neither Lozier nor Sullivan held licenses from Missouri's Department of Commerce and Insurance to operate as bounty hunters in the state. Ultimately, Lozier left the victim at a detention facility in Mississippi before returning home, where he received $500 plus expenses. The victim remained at the detention facility for approximately a week before her release. Both Lozier and Sullivan admitted to taking the woman against her will and bringing her across state lines. Sullivan, 57, pleaded guilty in September 2023 to the kidnapping and conspiracy charges. She was sentenced in December 2023 to five years of probation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former legislators could immediately become lobbyists under Senate bill
People are seen on the third and fourth floors of the Montana Capitol building on Wednesday, February 12, 2025. (Nathaniel Bailey for the Daily Montanan) Former legislators could immediately become lobbyists under legislation from Sen. Greg Hertz, R-Polson. Under Montana law, state legislators, elected state officials, department directors, appointed state officials, and members of elected official's personal staff are not allowed to be licensed as lobbyists if they've served in any of those positions over the previous two years. Senate Bill 222 would remove the statute entirely. Speaker of the House Rep. Brandon Ler, R-Savage, and Sen. Wylie Galt, R-Martinsdale, are co-sponsoring the bill. Hertz argued Wednesday that the ban was unconstitutional, and an Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision had already ruled on the topic. The court ruled in Miller v. Ziegler, a Missouri case, a two-year ban on former elected officials becoming lobbyists was unconstitutional, essentially saying it burdened political speech and that such a ban must be narrowly tailored. The idea behind the lobbying rules is to prevent corruption. Say, for example, a member of the legislature is promised a lobbying position in exchange for a vote or other political favor. 'The Court recognized lobbying is a form of political speech and warranting strict scrutiny and the most rigorous standard at the judicial level,' Hertz said in a Senate State Administration Committee meeting. 'They acknowledged Missouri's legitimate interest in preventing corruption, but the court found the two-year ban to be excessive. 'The ruling emphasized that less restriction, less restrictive measures, could effectively address corruption concerns without duly infringing upon individual free speech.' The bill had support from some lobbyists, several of whom said they had to deal with the ban themselves, or have seen it play out. Frank Cote, the state's deputy insurance commissioner, who was speaking for himself, described a situation where it was an issue. Cote said his predecessor was a classified employee and could lobby immediately after leaving his position. However, since Cote was appointed, he could not. 'The law as it stands today is all hat and no cattle and was, quite frankly, built on a house of cards,' Cote said. 'The dirty little secret is not the thick steaks and whiskey. That's just another red herring. I'm not sure if the current law was crafted by Darth Vader, the Chinese Communist Party, but I do know it has Stalinist tactics in it.' The bill passed off the Senate floor by a 42-8 vote. It is currently in the House State Administration committee.
