JIM SALTER

Jim Salter is the AP correspondent in St. Louis.

People celebrate the St. Patrick's Day parade on Sunday, March 17, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. This year's theme was "50 Cheers for 50 Years." The parade marks one of the first mass gatherings following the deadly shooting at last month's Super Bowl champion Chiefs rally in Kansas City. (APhoto/Nick Ingram)

Undeterred: Kansas City crowds go to St. Patrick’s Day parade, month after violence at Chiefs’ rally

The memory of the deadly shooting at the last month’s Super Bowl rally in Kansas City, Missouri, was still on the minds of many at the St.

Spectators lined Broadway Boulevard at Westport Road for the St. Patrick's Day Parade, March 17, 2022, in Kansas City, Mo. Kansas City, Missouri is preparing for its annual St. Patrick's Day parade on Sunday, March 17, 2024. It will be the first big mass gathering in Kansas City since Feb. 14, when gunfire erupted as about 1 million people attended a rally celebrating the Chiefs' Super Bowl win. Organizers say extra police will be on hand Sunday, along with many other precautions. (Jill Toyoshiba/The Kansas City Star via AP)

St. Patrick’s parade will be Kansas City’s first big event since the deadly Super Bowl celebration

Hundreds of thousands of people are expected at this weekend’s St. Patrick’s Day parade in Kansas City, where they should expect much tighter security measures than in past years due to last month’s deadly mass shooting at the Chiefs’ Super Bowl celebration.

FILE - A law enforcement officer looks around the scene following a shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs NFL football Super Bowl celebration in Kansas City, Mo., Feb. 14, 2024. Kansas City, Missouri is preparing for its annual St. Patrick's Day parade on Sunday, March 17, 2024. It will be the first big mass gathering in Kansas City since Feb. 14, when gunfire erupted as about 1 million people attended a rally celebrating the Chiefs' Super Bowl win. Organizers say extra police will be on hand Sunday, along with many other precautions. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, file)

Facts about straw purchases of weapons, and what’s being done to stop them

It’s a scenario that plays out over and over again at American crime scenes: The investigation reveals that the shooter didn’t get his firearm legally from a store or gun show, but instead obtained it from someone who did.

In this image provided by Jeremy Crabtree, large chunks of hail are shown, Wednesday night, March 13, 2024, in Shawnee, Kan. Volatile weather was honing in on parts of Kansas and Missouri Wednesday night, with some storms bringing massive chunks of hail. (Jeremy Crabtree via AP)

Storm carrying massive ‘gorilla hail’ hits parts of Kansas and Missouri

Massive chunks of hail have pelted parts of Kansas and Missouri and brought traffic to a standstill along Interstate 70.

FILE - Police clear the area following a shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs NFL football Super Bowl celebration in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. Three men from Kansas City, Mo.,, face firearms charges, including gun trafficking, after an investigation into the mass shooting during the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade and rally, federal prosecutors said Wednesday, March 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann, File)

3 men charged with federal firearms counts after Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting

Federal prosecutors have charged three men from Missouri with federal counts related to the illegal purchase of high-powered rifles and guns with extended magazines after last month’s shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade and rally left one person dead and roughly two dozen others in

A sign for Fontbonne University is displayed Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at its campus in Clayton, a suburb of St. Louis. The 100-year-old university in Missouri will shut down next year, its president said Monday, March 11, 2024, citing declining enrollment and ongoing budget problems that made it impossible to keep going. (Christine Tannous/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)

Fontbonne University in Missouri to close due to budget problems and declining enrollment

A century-old university near St. Louis will shut down next year. The president of Fontbonne University, in Clayton, Missouri, said Monday that the school will close due to declining enrollment and ongoing budget problems.

FILE - A no trespassing sign hangs on a fence around the West Lake Landfill Superfund site on Friday, April 21, 2023, in Bridgeton, Mo. The Senate has passed legislation that would compensate Americans exposed to radiation by the government by renewing a law initially passed more than three decades ago. The bill passed the Senate 69-30, with 20 Republicans and all but two Democrats voting in favor. But its prospects in the House are uncertain. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

Senate passes bill to compensate Americans exposed to radiation by the government

The Senate has passed legislation that would compensate Americans exposed to radiation by the government by renewing a law initially passed more than three decades ago.

This photo provided by David Clohessy shows the entrance of ABM Ministries, a Christian boarding school in Piedmont, Mo. The owners of ABM Ministries were arrested over the weekend and charged with kidnapping. The arrest followed allegations of abuse by several former students who attended the school (David Clohessy via AP)

A Missouri boarding school employee is charged with abuse

An employee of a rural Missouri boarding school is accused of bloodying a boy’s face while boxing. The man is the third person associated with the same school to be charged this month.

FILE - Coldwater Creek flows Friday, April 7, 2023, in Florissant, Mo. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is testing soil beneath a few homes in St. Louis County to determine if the houses are sitting atop nuclear contamination. The homes are near Coldwater Creek, which was contaminated with nuclear material in the 1960s. Activists have long said that homes near the creek should be tested. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

Homes near St. Louis County creek are being tested after radioactive contamination found in yards

A federal agency is examining soil beneath homes in a small suburban St. Louis subdivision to determine if residents are living atop Cold War era nuclear contamination.

This photo provided by David Clohessy shows the entrance of ABM Ministries, a Christian boarding school in Piedmont, Mo. The owners of ABM Ministries were arrested over the weekend and charged with kidnapping. The arrest followed allegations of abuse by several former students who attended the school (David Clohessy via AP)

The owners of a Christian boarding school in Missouri are jailed and charged with kidnapping crimes

The husband and wife owners of a Missouri boarding school for boys have been jailed and charged with felony crimes after a lengthy investigation by a county sheriff.

FILE - Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey speaks to reporters in Jefferson City, Mo., Jan. 3, 2023. Bailey filed a lawsuit on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024, that seeks an injunction against Planned Parenthood Great Plains. The suit accuses the organization of transporting minors to Kansas for abortions without parental consent, in violation of Missouri law. (AP Photo/David A. Lieb, File)

Missouri is suing Planned Parenthood based on a conservative group’s sting video

Missouri’s attorney general has filed a lawsuit accusing Planned Parenthood of illegally taking minors into Kansas to obtain abortions without parental consent.

FILE - Protesters march in the street as lightning flashes in the distance in Ferguson, Mo., Aug. 20, 2014, following the shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed Black teen, in the St. Louis suburb on Aug. 9. A legal nonprofit announced Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024 that Ferguson has agreed to pay $4.5 million to settle a so-called debtors' prison lawsuit that accused the city of making money for its coffers over fines and court costs. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

Ferguson, Missouri, agrees to pay $4.5 million to settle ‘debtors’ prison’ lawsuit

The St. Louis suburb where Michael Brown was fatally shot by a police officer has agreed to pay $4.5 million to settle a class-action lawsuit that accused it of operating a so-called debtors’ prison.

Metro High School students leave the building as a fleet of Missouri Central school busses line up to transport some after dismissal, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024, in St. Louis, Mo. St. Louis Public Schools said driver walkouts at Missouri Central left 56 routes uncovered Tuesday morning, and caused the school district to cancel after school activities for the second day in a row. A Black mechanic for the company that provides school bus services for the St. Louis school district said he found a noose at his workstation, leading at least 100 drivers to stop work in a show of support. (Christian Gooden/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)

A work stoppage to support a mechanic who found a noose is snarling school bus service in St. Louis

School bus service has been snarled in St. Louis for two days because of a work stoppage that’s a show of support for a Black mechanic who says he found a noose at his workstation.

FILE - A person views a memorial dedicated to the victims of last week's mass shooting in front of Union Station, Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. Missouri prosecutors said Tuesday, Feb. 20, that two men have been charged with murder in last week’s shooting that killed one person and injured multiple others after the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

Chiefs parade shooting could be a new test of expanded ‘stand your ground’ protections

Court documents say the man accused of firing the first shots at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl rally told authorities he felt threatened, while a second man said he pulled the trigger because someone was shooting at him.

FILE - Road signage is posted just outside of Emerson, Manitoba, Jan. 20, 2022. A second man, Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel, is now facing federal charges connected with a human smuggling operation in which a family of four from India froze to death at the border of Canada and Minnesota. Patel was arrested Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (John Woods/The Canadian Press via AP, File)

A smuggling arrest is made, 2 years after family froze to death on the Canadian border

A second man is facing federal charges in connection with a human smuggling operation in which a family of four from India froze to death trying to enter the U.S. from Canada.

Three individuals holding flowers approach one of three memorials outside the Burnsville Police Department and City Hall building in Burnsville, Minn., on Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024. Two police officers and a firefighter who responded to a domestic situation at a suburban Minneapolis home were killed early Sunday. (Kerem Yücel /Minnesota Public Radio via AP)

Three slain Minnesota first responders remembered for their commitment to service

Two young police officers and a firefighter-paramedic were killed in a burst of gunfire over the weekend as they responded to a domestic disturbance call in the Minneapolis suburb of Burnsville.

Flowers, signs and other items are gathered in front of Union Station on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. The memorial is for the victims of a shooting that took place following a Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl victory rally on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Nick Ingram)

2 juveniles charged in mass shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade

Authorities say two juveniles have been charged with crimes connected to the mass shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl rally.

Missouri Rep. Jim Murphy, left, speaks with Monica Kelsey, founder of the Safe Haven Baby Box, right, before a news conference on Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, at the Mehlville Fire District Station 2 in south St. Louis County, Mo. A newborn baby is healthy and in state custody after being left in the station's box on Thursday, Feb. 8. (Christine Tannous/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)

Baby girl OK after being placed in ‘safe haven’ box at Missouri fire station

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A baby girl is doing well and will be put up for adoption after being surrendered at a “Safe Haven Baby Box” at a Missouri fire house, the fire chief said Monday.

FILE - This photo provided by Kira Dunn shows Christopher Dunn. A Missouri prosecutor on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024, filed a motion to vacate the conviction of Dunn, imprisoned for more than 30 years for the shooting death of a 15-year-old boy — the second time in two weeks that a St. Louis-area prosecutor has challenged a longstanding murder conviction.(Kira Dunn via AP)

Missouri prosecutor seeks to vacate murder conviction, the 2nd case challenged in 2 weeks

A Missouri prosecutor has filed a motion to vacate the conviction of a man imprisoned for more than 30 years for the shooting death of a 15-year-old boy.

FILE - Headstones are seen at the cemetery of the U.S. Army's Carlisle Barracks, June 10, 2022, in Carlisle, Pa. When two Native American boys from Nebraska died after being taken to the notorious boarding school hundreds of miles away in Pennsylvania, they were buried there without notice. Nearly 130 years later, the tribe wants the boys' remains back home. So far, the Army has refused to return the remains of Samuel Gilbert and Edward Hensley. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)

Two Native American boys died at a boarding school in the 1890s. Now, the tribe wants them home

When two Native American boys from Nebraska died after being taken to a notorious boarding school hundreds of miles away, they were buried there without notice.

St. Louis County prosecuting attorney Wesley Bell speaks during a news conference July 30, 2020 in Clayton, Mo. The Missouri prosecutor has filed a motion to overturn the conviction of a man who has spent more than two decades in prison for a killing that the prosecutor now believes he didn't commit. Bell filed a motion Friday, Jan. 27, 2024 to vacate the conviction of Marcellus Williams, 55, who has long claimed innocence in the death of Lisha Gayle, who was stabbed multiple times during a robbery in 1998. (Chris Kohley/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP, file)

Missouri prosecutor seeks to overturn the conviction of an inmate who has spent decades on death row

A Missouri prosecutor now believes that inmate Marcellus Williams is innocent of the crime that landed him on death row and very nearly cost him his life, and is seeking to overturn his conviction.

FILE - A man loads things into his car outside Northview Village Nursing Home in St. Louis on Saturday, Dec. 16, 2023. A new Missouri inspection report highlighted the chaos that ensued as St. Louis’ largest nursing home closed without warning last month, forcing more than 170 residents to be evacuated, many in the middle of the night. Northview Village closed suddenly on Dec. 15 as the company that owned it struggled to meet payroll.(Vanessa Abbitt/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP, File)

A Missouri nursing home shut down suddenly. A new report offers insight into the ensuing confusion

A new Missouri inspection report highlights the chaos that ensued after St. Louis’ largest nursing home closed without warning last month, forcing more than 170 residents to be evacuated.

Bounty hunter sentenced to 10 years in prison for abducting Missouri woman

A bounty hunter has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for kidnapping a suburban St. Louis woman — an abduction he claimed was part of his job. A federal jury in St.

FILE - Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft speaks to reporters on June 29, 2022, at his Capitol office in Jefferson City, Mo. Ashcroft on Tuesday, Jan. 23m 2024, refuted the state auditor's claim that Ashcroft violated state law by not releasing information on cyber security reviews of the state's 116 local election authorities. Ashcroft said at a news conference that the reviews included confidential material that he could not release. (AP Photo/David A. Lieb, File)

Missouri secretary of state pushes back at a state audit claiming a violation of state law

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft is on the defensive after the state auditor claimed he violated state law by withholding records.

FILE - Lamar Johnson, pictured at a law office in Clayton, Mo., Feb. 17, 2023, is now free after spending nearly 28 years in prison for the death of a St. Louis man. Johnson filed a lawsuit on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, alleging that St. Louis police officers “detained, arrested, and framed him for a murder he did not commit.” (AP Photo/Jim Salter, File)

Missouri man who spent nearly 28 years in prison on a wrongful conviction sues St. Louis, police

A Missouri man who spent nearly 28 years in prison until a judge determined he was wrongfully convicted filed a lawsuit on Wednesday, alleging that St.

An American flag is seen fixed to a farm fence along US Highway 20 during a blizzard near Galva, Iowa, Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

A weekend of intense winter weather could see low-temperature records set in the US heartland

A continuing wave of Arctic storms threatens to break low-temperature records in the nation’s heartland and spread cold and snow from coast to coast.

Graphic designer Emily Brewer shovels out her driveway in order to drive to work in Sioux City, Iowa, early on Friday, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Snow, ice, wind and bitter cold pummels the northern US in dangerous winter storm

A dangerous winter storm swept the northern U.S. on Friday, with blinding snow in some places, freezing rain in others, and bitter cold temperatures and whipping winds across several states.

A former resident of Northview Village nursing home walks in an alley just north of Kingshighway Boulevard and Natural Bridge Avenue on Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023, four days after the nursing home abruptly closed. On Jan. 3, 2024, a St. Louis Police detective identified the man as Frederick Caruthers, and said authorities have been unable to find him. (Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)

61-year-old with schizophrenia still missing three weeks after St. Louis nursing home shut down

A 61-year-old man with schizophrenia is still missing three weeks after the St. Louis nursing home where he lived abruptly closed.

FILE - Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., questions witnesses during a hearing of a special House committee dedicated to countering China, on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023, in Washington. Luetkemeyer will not seek reelection, though his departure in what is considered a safe Republican district is unlikely to impact the balance of power after the 2024 election. Luetkemeyer announced his decision Thursday, Jan. 4. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

Blaine Luetkemeyer, longtime Missouri Republican congressman, won’t seek reelection

Missouri Republican U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer will not seek reelection, though his departure in what is considered a safe Republican district is unlikely to impact the balance of power after the 2024 election.

FILE - Protesters march in the street as lightning flashes in the distance in Ferguson, Mo., Aug. 20, 2014, following the shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed Black teen, in the St. Louis suburb on Aug. 9. On Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2024, a St. Louis-based public interest law firm announced that the city of Florissant, Mo., will pay nearly $3 million to settle a so-called debtor's prison lawsuit that accused Florissant and six other St. Louis suburbs of violating the constitutional rights of residents by jailing them and forcing them to pay fines and fees amounting to millions of dollars. Florissant was among several St. Louis County cities whose policing and court practices fell under scrutiny after the fatal police shooting of Brown. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

‘Debtor’s prison’ lawsuit filed against St. Louis suburb resolved with $2.9 million settlement

A Missouri city will pay nearly $3 million to settle a lawsuit accusing it of violating the constitutional rights of residents by jailing them and forcing them to pay fees, often for minor traffic violations.