Latest news with #TishauraJones
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hancock & Kelley: St. Louis area politicos weigh in on new pope
ST. LOUIS – It was another Sunday morning of sometimes heated but always civil political debate on Hancock and Kelley for Sunday, May 11, 2025. Republican consultant John Hancock and Democratic consultant Michael Kelley discussed the following topics: The College of Cardinals selected an American as the next leader of the Catholic Church. Pope Leo XIV, born in Chicago, once lived in St. Louis while preparing for the priesthood. Local politicians are weighing in on the historic decision. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited Springfield, Illinois, and ripped Governor J.B. Pritzker over illegal immigration and sanctuary cities. FOX 2's Andy Banker lands a one-on-one, in-depth interview with new Mayor Cara Spencer. Our Quote of the Week is from former Mayor Tishaura Jones, who says race was factor in her landslide defeat last month. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Daily Mail
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Black female mayor unleashes on white voters after being booted from office
A Missouri mayor publicly criticized her white voters, accusing them of turning their backs on Black women in leadership after voting her out in favor of a new, white candidate. Tishaura Jones, the former St. Louis mayor, suffered a staggering 28-point defeat to Mayor Cara Spencer last month, marking one of the worst losses for an existing mayor in the city's last 50 years, St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. However, the 53-year-old politician blamed her loss to racial bias amongst her voters, accusing them of booting her from office because she is Black. 'I think St. Louis needs to have a conversation with itself about why it no longer trusts Black women to lead,' Jones said in an interview with St. Louis Public Radio on Thursday. 'My dad always told me - and it's an old phrase - that Black women have to work twice as hard to get half as much,' she added. 'Well, I feel like we work five times as hard and get nothing in return.' Just four years ago, voters from St. Louis's north side and its white progressive neighborhoods rallied behind Jones, propelling her into the mayor's office. Fast forward to last month's re-election, and Jones' voter base had ultimately crumbled - white progressive neighborhoods that once championed her shifted their support to Spencer, the very candidate Jones defeated in 2021. Explanations for the shift varied - disappointment in her activist base, missteps with grant programs, etc. However, voters on both the north and south sides repeatedly voiced frustration with Jones' handling of basic city services - from trash pickup to pothole repairs - as well as her response to the massive snowstorm that hit the state in January. What may have swayed voters was Spencer's straightforward yet resonant promise to St. Louis: a swift return 'back to basics', Post-Dispatch reported. Yet Jones believes that even her Black voter base on the north side turned away from her, claiming they held unrealistic expectations during her four years in office. In the radio interview published Thursday, Jones expressed frustration that voters overlooked a major achievement during her tenure - the city's homicide rate dropped by 40 percent from a record high in 2020 to a 10-year low last year. 'That's what the people wanted back in 2021,' Jones' said during the segment. 'And then they moved the goalposts to potholes and trash and snow removal.' She also emphasized her efforts to begin revitalizing north St. Louis after decades of decline, but said she was never truly given the opportunity to deliver lasting change for city residents. 'There's no patience there,' Jones said. 'The expectations there are so high to deliver and deliver immediately to address the decades of neglect in four years, and that is impossible.' In last month's re-election, Jones' voter base had ultimately crumbled - white progressive neighborhoods that once championed her shifted their support to Spencer, the very candidate Jones defeated in 2021 But for Jones, it wasn't just about the city's day-to-day issues. She believes her loss had far more to do with race - and the face that Spencer is a white woman - than with her record in office. During the interview, Jones shared that when she campaigned in south city - a neighborhood that supported her in the previous election - no one could provide a clear reason for why they were voting her out of office. 'And if you can't give me a reason or something that I have particularly done, then the only default is race,' Jones said, according to the Post-Dispatch. Jones' ousting follows the loss of three other Black female leaders from office, a point she highlighted during the interview. Cori Bush, a former US Representative, was voted out of office in 2024. Darlene Green, the former Comptroller, also lost re-election last month. Kim Gardner, the former circuit attorney, resigned in 2023 in the midst of a controversy. Jones asserted that not only do the residents of St. Louis need to reflect on their views of Black women in power, but the Democratic Party - especially the progressive Democrats - must also have that same conversation. She said she wasn't sure about the future of the progressive movement she once led, adding that she didn't know anyone who could carry on the work she had already started. According to her, others lack consistency and loyalty, according to the Post-Dispatch. Despite her comments on the radio show, Jones revealed that she has mostly tuned out of politics since her defeat, Post-Dispatch reported. Although she teased a 'comeback' on social media, she never hinted at anything political. Additionally, she shared that she's almost finished with a children's book she began writing while in office and is now exploring new career paths, including consulting, writing another book or starting a podcast.
Business Journals
25-04-2025
- Business
- Business Journals
$80K went missing from St. Louis' tow lot, audit says
By submitting your information you are agreeing to our Privacy Policy and User Agreement . Some $80,000 in cash went missing from St. Louis' tow lot last year, an audit says, highlighting more problems in the city's Streets Department under its previous mayor. Story Highlights $80,000 in cash went missing from St. Louis' tow lot, an audit says. Audit reveals "material weaknesses" in towing operations under Streets Department. Tow tickets and vehicle inventory records are alleged to have been poorly maintained. Some $80,000 in cash went missing from St. Louis' tow lot last year, an audit says, highlighting more problems in the city's Streets Department under its previous mayor. The review, from then-Comptroller Darlene Green's office, was quietly released March 26, before the April 8 election that saw her and Mayor Tishaura Jones lose their re-election bids. The review was for the period July 2022 through Sept. 30, 2024. GET TO KNOW YOUR CITY Find Local Events Near You Connect with a community of local professionals. Explore All Events Green didn't immediately respond to questions, nor did Jones' chief of staff, Jared Boyd. The new mayor, Cara Spencer, who took office April 15, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Nor did the new comptroller, Donna Baringer. Spencer has said she'll look to replace the Streets Department chief, Betherny Williams, who's still in her post and faced scrutiny amid a poor response from the government to winter storms in January. The audit said there are "material weaknesses" in towing's operations, under the Streets Department, and that its financial reports therefore "lack integrity." "Management has had the opportunity to improve the situation but has not acted on it," the audit said in a conclusion. "Failure to implement positive change places the City of St. Louis at great risk of economic loss." The audit recommended that no cash transactions be processed at the tow lot, 7410 Hall St., in the North Riverfront neighborhood. The city takes towed vehicles there, and collects money from tow fees and auction proceeds, estimated at $1.8 million and $2.2 million, respectively, in fiscal 2023. The audit said that during a visit to the lot from an auditor in September 2023, a large amount of cash was sitting on top of an open safe in the office. The cash was in a clear, unmarked plastic bag, it said. Other small stacks of cash were in the other office unmarked. The cash totaled $80,000. The auditor told a towing supervisor that daily deposits of cash must take place on the same day the cash is received, per the city's charter. "There was no explanation of why a deposit had not already been made," the audit said. "There was no documentation indicating where the cash originated either." When the auditor returned the next day, the review said that the cash was gone, staff said it had been deposited, but there was no evidence that it had been deposited with the city treasurer's office. Auditors also tested cash handling by comparing the cash received from towing by the city's accounting system, versus daily reports of redemptions kept by towing staff. The towing staff reports from July 2023 through December 2023, showed $86,000 more taken in than what the city ended up receiving, according to the audit. Williams the Streets Department director, in a response dated March 10, wrote that auditors also should have considered another report, called vehicle collections, to "obtain a more accurate number." The audit also alleged that "a substantial portion of the revenue generated from the auto auctions could not be verified." Sale logs, buyer information and payment receipts "were either incomplete or missing, and could not be reconciled to" an auctioneer's log, it said. It alleged that there's a $295,900 discrepancy in auction fees from July 1, 2023, through Dec. 31, 2023. In other words, the city recorded receiving $295,900 less from auctions than was recorded in tow lot records. Auditors also projected an additional loss of $347,355 for the remaining 27 auctions held in 2023, the audit said. Williams wrote that auditors also should have considered a vehicles collection report, but auditors countered that they requested a copy of procedures for auctions, including criteria for auctioning a vehicle, but received none. Tow tickets missing The report said that auditors sought tow tickets, which are created when a vehicle comes to the lot and include the make/model/year, the type, the reason for the tow and notations describing the vehicle's condition. Auditors randomly selected 221 tow tickets in a tow lot records system, and found that 72 of the tickets were either missing, incomplete or had the incorrect amount listed. "Much of the operations within the office involves paper – especially paper tow tickets," the review said. "Since there is no good order to the filing of tow tickets it takes longer to search for them and the ticket may never be located." Missing tickets could mean lost revenue and unaccounted cash, the audit said, plus the possibility of fraud. It recommended preparing procedures for an office filing system and assigning record-keeping to one employee. Williams, Streets Department leader, responded to the audit saying that changes have been implemented since the audit, with filing cabinets added and staff designated to perform filing. The audit also said that vehicle inventory records are not being maintained, and Williams conceded that "this is an issue, and steps are being taken to obtain software to improve." She added that inventory checks are done twice a quarter. Past controversy at tow lot The daughter of a past St. Louis police chief, Joseph Mokwa, used vehicles previously impounded at the tow lot from St. Louis Metropolitan Towing, which had a towing contract with the police department. Mokwa denied wrongdoing, but retired in 2008. Federal prosecutors charged others but not him. KSDK in recent years has reported on consumers' complaints involving the lot, including allegations that the lot was skimming money off the proceeds of vehicle sales. A 2022 Missouri audit, under then-Auditor Nicole Galloway, found the Streets Department's operations "fair," but said that the towing division's "accounting controls and procedures for recording and reconciling payments collected were poor."
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
St. Louis County voters reject Proposition B
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – St. Louis County voters rejected a key measure in Tuesday's municipal election. Proposition B, a proposal that would have expanded the St. Louis County Council's authority, has failed. Had it passed, Proposition B would have granted the St. Louis County Council the authority to remove department heads with a 'super majority' vote, or approval from five of the county council's seven members. Instead, the vote failed. A majority of voters (61.8%) voted 'no' on Proposition B, while only 38.2% voted 'yes.' More than 94,000 people cast votes on the measure, per the county's preliminary election results. The proposition faced a great amount of scrutiny from St. Louis County department heads, even to the point of it reaching the Missouri Supreme Court. A lawsuit against the county council claimed that the ballot language was misleading to voters and failed to explain how the proposition would 'radically amend' St. Louis County law. Cara Spencer elected mayor; defeats Tishaura Jones in political rematch The Missouri Supreme Court ultimately sided with the county council to allow Proposition B to stay on the ballot. Leading up to the election, St. Louis County Executive Sam Page had also been accused of improperly using public funds for fliers in opposition to Prop B. Page shared the following statement via social media on voters rejecting Proposition B: 'Prop B was a bad idea. Voters saw through the deceptive language and saw it for what it was: an attempt to disrupt county government and make it harder to get business done. It is time to move on and focus on issues important to the daily lives of St. Louis County residents.' Greater St. Louis, Inc. Interim CEO Dustin Allison issued the following statement on Proposition B: 'As the voice of the St. Louis region's business community, Greater St. Louis, Inc. expressed our strong opposition to Proposition B and encouraged St. Louis County voters to cast a 'no' vote. We are proud to stand with the voters of St. Louis County who voted down Proposition B. 'We look forward to working with the leaders of St. Louis County to drive growth and create more opportunity for the future.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Yahoo
Hotline, gun locks offered to support Crime Victims' Rights Week
ST. LOUIS – National Crime Victims' Rights Week is being observed this week, with a focus on 'kinship' to support survivors and victims of crime. National Crime Victims' Rights Week has been around since 1981 and is celebrated every April. In St. Louis, a hotline is available from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at 314-539-6855 for those seeking support this week. Additionally, to ensure safety in homes, 100 gun locks are being distributed at the Thomas F. Eagleton Courthouse, located at 111 South 10th Street in downtown St. Louis, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. throughout the week. Anyone interested is encouraged to come to the reception area on the 20th floor of the Courthouse. Cara Spencer elected mayor; defeats Tishaura Jones in political rematch The St. Louis Police Department reports a decrease in homicides, with 23 recorded so far this year compared to 42 at this time last year and 38 the year before. Overall, crime in the city is also at its lowest in the past three years. All facts from this article were gathered by KTVI journalists. This article was converted into this format with assistance from artificial intelligence. It has been edited and approved by KTVI staff. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
