William H. Freivogel is director of the School of Journalism at Southern Illinois University Carbondale and a professor at the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute. Previously, he worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch for 34 years, serving as assistant Washington Bureau Chief and deputy editorial editor. He covered the U.S. Supreme Court while in Washington. He is a graduate of Kirkwood High School, Stanford University and Washington University Law School. He is a member of the Missouri Bar.
The Justice Department has the authority to subpoena the telephone records of news reporters, legal experts say, but its secret subpoena of the records of 100 AP reporters is unprecedented in scope.
Vernon Bowman's challenge to Monsanto Co.'s patent on its Roundup Ready soybean seeds was billed as a David vs. Goliath contest. Goliath won and won big. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that an Indiana soybean farmer had violated Monsanto's patent on its genetically engineered soybean seeds.
The American people are "both passionately engaged in their own view of the Constitution and woefully ignorant" about it, says the historian who helped develop PBS's new series "Constitution USA."
Missouri can keep protesters 300 feet away from around a funeral without violating free speech rights, a federal appeals court in St. Louis ruled on Friday.The Missouri law had been challenged by the Westboro Baptist Church, which has held hundreds of anti-gay protests around the country in recent years.
The unprecedented events in Boston -- the lockdown of a major U.S. city during a manhunt for a terrorism suspect -- demonstrated the amazing power of the media to help and sometimes hinder a criminal investigation.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that Missouri couldn’t force a Cape Girardeau man suspected of drunken driving to submit to a blood alcohol test without obtaining a search warrant.
The Missouri Supreme Court ruled unanimously that St. Louis Circuit Judge Robert H. Dierker Jr. erred when he ruled in 2010 that the St. Louis ordinances authorizing the huge plan did not set out a “defined development project."
Historic Supreme Court cases, like last year’s health-care decision and this year’s same-sex marriage cases, raise fundamental and enduring questions about the proper role of the court in interpreting the Constitution and influencing social change.
Clarence Earl Gideon was a life-long low-level criminal who was arrested for a pool-hall break-in, convicted and sentences to five years. His request for a court-appointed attorney was turned down. In March 1963, the Supreme Court ruled that a person charged with a felony had a right to an attorney. Today, state budgets can determine how well the right is upheld.
Five U.S. Supreme Court justices seemed ready on Wednesday to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), but they didn’t agree on the reason. Passed in 1996, DOMA defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman, preventing same-sex couples from receiving federal benefits.
Affordable Care Act · gay rights · gun violence · First Amendment · Gay marriage · Fourth Amendment · gun control · 1963 Connect the Dots · Urban redevelopment · Northside Regeneration Project
Greg Magarian · Michael Wolff · Bruce La Pierre · Vernon Hugh Bowman · Joel Goldstein · John Roberts · Roger Goldman · Charles "Cookie" Thornton · Mary Ziegler · Harriet Patton
U.S. Supreme Court · Monsanto · American Civil Liberties Union · Missouri Legislature · U.S. Department Of Justice · AP
2012 election · Whistleblower Protection Act · Boston Marathon
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Meeting in St. Louis next week, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious will have its first opportunity as an assembled group to consider what to do after the Vatican issued a mandate for change this spring. It calls on the conference to reorganize and more strictly observe church teachings.
When a family of four goes to the St. Louis Zoo, they can be forgiven for not knowing it will cost them $60, $72 if they park. If they can't pay, the alternative is to tell the kids they can't do what kids do at the zoo.
Missouri House Speaker Steve Tilley gave reporters less than a half-hour’s notice today when he announced that conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh’s sculptured bust will be formally installed in the Capitol at 1 p.m.
Developers on the south side come in all shapes and sizes, with ambitions that vary from single buildings to entire city blocks. In the first of a two-part story, Jason Deem talks about building community.
Author M.M. Costantin, who has lived near the Loop for more than 40 years, compiled a photo book that shows Delmar when it was bustling, when it was dangerous and when it came back to life.
They arrived four years ago as fifth-graders, behind in their work and not used to rigorous classes, but they've advanced rapidly and have a strong academic grounding for high school.
The Beacon's Mary Delach Leonard and Rob Koenig extensively covered flooding in 2011 in Missouri. Now this coverage is compiled in an iBook. Read the stories.
This year’s 13th Shakespeare Festival production is a lucky one for local orchestra ensemble “The Rats & People Motion Picture Orchestra," chosen to compose the music for "Twelfth Night."
“We speak in old language in a new witty way with contemporary feel,” Sean Curran said about the OTSL production of "Pirates of Penzance," which is set in the 1870s. Much of the Gilbert and Sullivan satire, however, focuses on still-relevant human foibles, government officials’ ineptitude and opera excesses.
The feeling is openness, with soaring, airy spaces planned for easy and logical circulation and planned to reveal art not only to its best advantage but also appropriately and respectfully. Still, the building is notable more for its architectural reticence than its audacity.
Donna Korando is the Beacon's arts and features editor. You can contact her at dkorando@stlbeacon.org.
Developers on the south side come in all shapes and sizes, with ambitions that vary from single buildings to entire city blocks. In the first of a two-part story, Jason Deem talks about building community.
Speaking to reporters at Monsanto, Howard Buffett warned that future generations would foot the bill for irresponsible soil use. He urged leaders to address thorny issues such as malnutrition and environmental destruction.
Twenty winners will split a million dollars and a wide array of professional services after this year's Arch Grants competition. Victors will also see one-on-one business mentoring in their prize package. The diverse group includes everything from biotech concerns to fashion enterprises.
Innovation and entrepreneurial activity are on the rise in St. Louis, especially in bioscience, technology and alternative energy. The Beacon's InnovationSTL section focuses on the people who are part of this wave, what they're doing and how this is shaping our future. To many St. Louisans, this wave is not yet visible. InnovationSTL aims to change that. We welcome you to share your knowledge, learn more about this vibrant trend and discuss its impact.
The Academy of Science-St. Louis hosts tours of EarthDance, an organic farm, and the Monsanto Agronomics and Breeding Facility May 21-22. The workshop is meant to prompt discussion and answer questions about these two competing philosophies of food production.
Speaking to reporters at Monsanto, Howard Buffett warned that future generations would foot the bill for irresponsible soil use. He urged leaders to address thorny issues such as malnutrition and environmental destruction.
Vernon Bowman's challenge to Monsanto Co.'s patent on its Roundup Ready soybean seeds was billed as a David vs. Goliath contest. Goliath won and won big. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that an Indiana soybean farmer had violated Monsanto's patent on its genetically engineered soybean seeds.
Sally Altman is the Beacon's Health and Science editor. You can contact her at saltman@stlbeacon.org.
Paying professors less, increasing online courses and raising class size might make the bill cheaper, but the value of the degree will be less, as well. It's not that there are no solutions, but the easy ones create their own problems.
When the Civil War broke out, Grant rejoined the military. He may not have liked it, but it was what he was good at: fighting. The battle that cemented his reputation began 150 years ago yesterday.
Democracy is our answer to perhaps our most difficult ethical problem: How do we ethically protect the social cooperation that makes our society strong, while respecting the rights of individuals to pursue vastly divergent visions of the good life and deeply conflicting moral and political beliefs?
Donna Korando is the Beacon's Voices editor. You can contact her and submit opinion pieces for possible publication at dkorando@stlbeacon.org.