St. Charles County Business Record, MO articles from January 2008

St. Charles County Business Record, MO archives from January 2008

Outdated and unenforceable, Missouri provision still remains.
January 1, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese Like several other states, Missouri for years provided women an automatic exemption from jury duty based solely on gender. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled nearly 30 years ago that a Missouri law making that exception was...

St. Louis Family Dourt refocuses truancy efforts.
January 1, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese St. Louis Family Court officials are refocusing their efforts at fighting truancy by targeting younger children. The court's truancy project has the basic goal of getting absent children to attend school regularly. In...

Law firms turn to nonlawyer scientists.
January 2, 2008... Byline: Julia M. Johnson and Allison Retka Law firms are finding themselves in greater need of technical expertise than ever, and they're turning to nonlawyer scientists for help. With starting salaries for associate attorneys on the rise,...

St. Louis circuit court judge to consider defendant's right to speedy trial.
January 3, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese More than 18 months after being arrested on vehicle tampering charges, a man who has repeatedly asked for a speedy trial got a court hearing Wednesday but no immediate resolution. Tracy McKee, 43, of St. Louis, went...

'I've lost nothing' says Kansas City attorney working part-time for past seven years.
January 3, 2008... Byline: Betsy Lee After Lori Buck gave birth to her daughter, Avery, she knew something had to change. "Almost immediately, I realized I wanted to spend more time with her," said Buck, an attorney with Blackwell Sanders. "So I approached...

Long-term St. Louis defendant heads home to mother.
January 4, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese A judge on Thursday allowed a man to stay with his mother while awaiting trial as the judge considered whether there even will be a trial. Tracy McKee, 43, of St. Louis, has made repeated requests for a speedy trial...

Husch Blackwell Sanders chosen as Missouri law firm's name.
January 4, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Husch & Eppenberger won a literal coin toss to put the law firm's first name in front of Blackwell Sanders when the two firms merge. The combined firm will be known as Husch Blackwell Sanders, the firms announced...

Missouri lawyers weigh study on heart deaths from delayed responses.
January 4, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka Plaintiffs' attorneys are taking note of a report from a Kansas City researcher who found that hospitals don't necessarily offer the best chance of survival for heart attack sufferers. Limited staffs, a shortage of...

St. Charles County homes sales drop 11 percent in 2007.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Kathleen T. Brady The numbers of home sales for the year are in, and they're not pretty. The number of home sales in St. Charles County declined a total of 11 percent in 2007 compared to 2006, according to the year-end sales...

Study: Outlook for St. Charles County bright, but . . .
January 7, 2008... Byline: Mike Trask The St. Louis metropolitan area, including St. Charles County, still is capable of generating a great deal of growth. But to reach its full potential, the area needs to overcome some long-time challenges. Those are some...

New cafeteria plan regs in Missouri seen as deterrent.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Kathleen T. Brady Employers who pay for any portion of their employees' health-care coverage are now required to offer a cafeteria plan starting Jan. 1. But employers who don't pay a portion of their employees' health benefits...

St. Charles Chamber of Commerce installs officers.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff St. Charles Chamber of Commerce directors have elected and installed the chamber's officers for 2008. They are: Dr. David Wallace of ADIO Family Chiropractic, board chairman; Sandra Meranda of Coldwell Banker...

St. Charles County Exec. Steve Ehlmann wants Schnur to fill finance post.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff St. Charles County Executive Steve Ehlmann has picked a former councilman to become the next finance director. If confirmed by the County Council, Bob Schnur would start his new job Feb. 1. Schnur, a CPA,...

St. Charles County affiliate of Habitat for Humanity opens ReStore.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff The St. Charles County affiliate of Habitat for Humanity recently opened Restore, a retail outlet that sells new and used building and home improvement materials that were donated to the not-for-profit. The...

Missouri Public Service Commission to investigate AmerenUE.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff The Missouri Public Service Commission last week directed its staff to investigate AmerenUE's storm preparation and power restoration efforts following the December that mostly affected the northern and...

Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources says millions wasted in landfills.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff The Missouri Department of Natural Resources says a recent study found a significant percentage of municipal waste deposited in the state's landfills could have been recycled. The study found that nearly 45...

BCI Foundation honors builder Tom Hughes at gala.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff The BCI Foundation, the nonprofit arm of Boone Center Inc., an agency that employs disabled adults, will honor home builder Tom Hughes at the foundation's Mardi Gras Gala 2008 for his years of support. Many of...

Ameristar Casinos promotes Michelle Shriver VP operations in Las Vegas.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Ameristar Casinos Inc. promoted Michelle Shriver to senior vice president of corporate operations in Las Vegas. Shriver served as senior vice president and general manager of Ameristar Black Hawk in Colorado....

Youth In Need to honor owners of The Newberry Group in St. Charles in 2008.
January 7, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Youth In Need will honor Brenda and Maurice Newberry, owners of The Newberry Group in St. Charles, at the 2008 Celebration of Youth dinner and auction. The Newberrys are long-time champions for children and...

Long-term St. Louis defendant will face charges.
January 8, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese A St. Louis man incarcerated for about 19 months on vehicle-tampering charges must still face trial, a judge ruled Monday. Circuit Judge John Riley in his ruling called the delay in the man's case "unfortunate," but...

Missouri Secretary of State Carnahan to appeal ballot wording.
January 8, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese Even as supporters start gathering signatures, Secretary of State Robin Carnahan plans to appeal a judge's ruling tossing summary language for a ballot measure limiting use of affirmative action in government. A Cole...

St. Louis County judge blasts payday lenders for contract clause.
January 8, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka The hard-to-read fine print of a payday loan contract has paralyzed the legal rights of Missouri consumers, a St. Louis County judge has ruled. About 400,000 Missourians signed loan contracts with the payday lender...

Settlement over Kirksville plane crash nearing approval.
January 8, 2008... Byline: St. Charles County Business Record Staff In a closed hearing before U.S. District Judge Jean C. Hamilton on Friday, lawyers for American Airlines discussed final details on a settlement on a 2004 plane crash in Kirksville. Because...

Voter ID spurs political clashes in Missouri.
January 9, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka The Show-Me State stopped asking voters to show their photo IDs in 2006. But if the U.S. Supreme Court upholds a similar Indiana or Georgia requirement, Missouri lawmakers may push the issue harder. The federal high...

Cole County Circuit rules cities need not pay police overtime.
January 9, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese Fire and police departments can safely follow their old schedules thanks to a judge's ruling that the year-old minimum wage law does not apply to them. For the second time in as many days, Cole County Circuit Judge...

U.S. District Court judge rules Iron County schools can't allow Bible distribution.
January 9, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter A federal judge barred a southeastern Missouri school district from allowing Bibles to be distributed to elementary students. The purpose of allowing the Bible distribution is to promote Christianity and had the...

St. Louis police settle discrimination suit for $95,000.
January 10, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter Three women who sued the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department over gender discrimination dropped their case last week in exchange for a $95,000 settlement. Officers Gena Duckworth, Tamatha Fisher and Sandra Delaney...

St. Louis-area lawyers on the move because of two-year shutdown of Highway 40 for major construction.
January 10, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Attorneys Stephen Schultz and Carl Lang moved closer to their firms' offices. Mark Rudder moved his office closer to his home. The three made their real estate decisions partly because of the two-year shutdown of all...

Courts respond differently to new law.
January 11, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese A new state law that closes parts of certain court records has St. Louis and state court officials struggling with how to comply. The law requires courts to close certain information that could identify a victim of...

Booted law student sues Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
January 11, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter A former law student has sued Southern Illinois University Carbondale, claiming the school discriminated against her by re-enrolling others with worse grades, but not her. Lisa D. Rittenhouse was one of six law...

Rep. John Bowman pleads guilty to bribery.
January 11, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka State Rep. John Bowman, D-St. Louis, must resign from the Missouri House as part of a plea agreement with federal prosecutors over his involvement in a credit card fraud scheme. The lawmaker appeared before U.S....

St. Charles Convention Center spurs development.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Mike Trask The St. Charles Convention Center is not only spurring increased business for nearby hotels, restaurants and other attractions, but it also is spurring nearby redevelopment. The owner of a 6-acre site fronting Veterans...

Health care, transportation topics for St. Charles County Day at the Capitol.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Kathleen T. Brady The rising cost of health care and continued transportation funding are two topics that will be emphasized when business professionals and city officials attend this year's St. Charles County Day at the Capitol....

O'Fallon-based Doran Fitness tries to out run the competition.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Victoria Siegel Doran Fitness is bulking up its athletic enhancement programs. The O'Fallon-based shop is adding a program to train people who want to run or walk in marathons or half marathons. "There are a lot of people who want...

Protecting yourself, your assets, your heirs.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Larry VandeVen, CLU, ChFC The following is a guest commentary from a St. Charles County-involved business professional. Send questions or comments to rick.jackoway@molawyersmedia.com. After a lifetime of planning and saving for...

New businesses develop in St. Charles.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff The following businesses applied in November and December for licenses from the city of St. Charles. They are as follows: *Arby's, 3786 Elm St. Phone: 636-925-3181; *Chaffin's Home Improvement, building...

St. Charles Insurance gets 'Elite' designation.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Columbia, Mo.-based Missouri Employers Mutual recently designated St. Charles Insurance Agency as an Elite Signature Partner. MEM said in a news release that it has partnered with St. Charles Insurance since...

Southwest adds flights to Lambert-St. Louis International Airport.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Southwest Airlines will add five flights to Lambert-St. Louis International Airport beginning May 10. The airline will make its debut into Denver International Airport from St. Louis with three nonstop flights...

More complained to BBB in St. Louis in 2007.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff The Better Business Bureau in St. Louis handled 24,423 complaints in 2007, a 6 percent increase from the previous year. The television cable and satellite companies topped the list of industries receiving the...

Cort Schneider appointed to St. Charles County Assn. of Realtors board.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Cort Schneider of Schneider Real Estate has been appointed to serve on the St. Charles County Association of Realtors board of directors. Schneider, 27, has been a Realtor in the county for eight years,...

Laveda Roy named director of Women's Services at SSM in St. Charles.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Laveda Roy, RN, recently accepted the position of clinical director of Women's Services at SSM St. Joseph Health Center in St. Charles. She is responsible for labor and delivery operations, patient...

Dave Towne named information officer for North East Community Action Corporation.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Dave Towne was recently named public information officer of the not-for-profit North East Community Action Corporation, headquartered in Bowling Green, Mo. He replaces Brent Engel, who left the agency to join...

Glantz & Associates gets contract for Bellemeade in St. Peters.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff The architectural firm Glantz & Associates will create two home designs for McKelvey Homes' Bellemeade development at Mid Rivers Mall Drive and Mexico Road in St. Peters. One design will be a three-bedroom,...

Missouri's Walton Construction adds, appoints staff.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Michael Braun, Bill Butler and David Gregory recently joined Walton Construction as superintendents. And Dan Frisbee was appointed the new chief executive officer of Walton Construction Co. Braun, Butler and...

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville retains Kwame Building for renovation.
January 14, 2008... Byline: Business Record Staff Southern Illinois University Edwardsville has contracted with Kwame Building Group Inc. for construction management of various renovations and new construction projects related to the university's facilities...

Federal courts ramp up for resentencing.
January 15, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter Harold Simmons is ready to spread his wings. Sentenced in 2006 to 37 months in prison for possession with the intent to distribute crack cocaine, he asked a federal judge in St. Louis last week to resentence him to 30...

Tickets available for Scalia lecture in Warrensburg.
January 15, 2008... Byline: St. Charles County Business Record Staff U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia will give a lecture March 4 at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg. Free tickets are available now for faculty, staff,...

Missouri Supreme Court rules man must prove retardation to overcome death sentence.
January 16, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter Criminal defendants who allege mental retardation to avoid the death penalty must prove the disability, the Missouri Supreme Court said Tuesday. The court's 4-3 ruling affirmed the death sentences of Ernest Lee...

Missouri Supreme Court tosses conviction in casino case.
January 16, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese A divided Missouri Supreme Court has tossed out a man's conviction for violating a Missouri gambling law, saying his conduct did not fall under the law he was charged with breaking. Eric Winfrey admitted while pleading...

Missouri Supreme Court seeks comments on child support guidelines.
January 16, 2008... Byline: St. Charles County Business Record Staff The Missouri Supreme Court is asking lawyers and others to comment on the state's child support guidelines. State and federal law requires a review every four years, a task undertaken by the...

Money flows for judicial showdown in Missouri.
January 17, 2008... Byline: James Goodwin A group that aims to keep sitting judges from becoming sitting ducks raised more than $70,000 last quarter to aid in their defense. Meanwhile, another group involved in the successful effort to oust a Cole County...

Missouri governor's budget holds the line for courts, public defenders.
January 17, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese Slight increases, but no dramatic new hires or initiatives, are in line for the state's courts and public defenders, if Gov. Matt Blunt's budget plan ultimately wins approval. The state's public defenders have said for...

Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis's Gwen Byrd dies.
January 17, 2008... Byline: St. Charles County Business Record Report Gwen Byrd, director of continuing legal education at the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, died Wednesday after a long battle with cancer. She joined the organization in 1991 and...

Property rights advocates flank Arnold dentist at Missouri Supreme Court.
January 18, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka A single line in the state constitution was the only issue in dispute Thursday as the Supreme Court considered the condemnation of an Arnold dentist's clinic. That was all property-rights advocates needed. They...

Federal panel considers class action against Bank of America.
January 18, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Trust clients are trying to get a class action lawsuit against Bank of America back in court after it was tossed by a federal judge. A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments...

St. Genevieve taxpayer challenges now-repealed weapons law.
January 18, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka A Ste. Genevieve County taxpayer wants the Supreme Court to declare that a 2003 conceal and carry weapons act was an unconstitutional unfunded mandate from the state government. The high court did just that in a 2004...

Former St. Louis Blues hocky player Rob Ramage appeals sentence.
January 18, 2008... Byline: St. Louis Daily Record Staff Report Former St. Louis Blues hockey player Rob Ramage was sentenced Thursday by a Canadian judge to four years in prison for the 2003 crash that killed passenger Keith Magnuson, a friend of Ramage and a...

Ladue School District re-enrolls student.
January 18, 2008... Byline: St. Charles County Business Record Staff Report The Ladue School District has agreed to re-enroll a 17-year-old student who was bounced for allegedly living outside the district. In a document filed Tuesday with the St. Louis-based...

Rapper Nelly talking with St. Charles about site for his sports complex.
January 21, 2008... Byline: Mike Trask Talks are still very much in the preliminary stages, but the possibility exists that hip-hop artist Nelly may decide to build a multi-million-dollar athletic complex somewhere in St. Charles. In November the St. Louis...

O'Fallon-based CitiMortgage sues dozens over loan 'defects'.
January 21, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter CitiMortgage Inc. hopes to find in court some protection from the thrashing it received in the housing market. And the mortgage-loan servicer has chosen as its possible sanctuary the St. Louis County Circuit Court. The...

Renewed emphasis on levee construction slows start of work on Premier 370 in St. Peters.
January 21, 2008... Byline: Mike Trask There seems to be little doubt that the Premier 370 business park in St. Peters will be developed. Developers Gundaker Commercial Group and Duke Realty already have invested millions of dollars in infrastructure work...

St. Charles County real estate market steady, home building declines.
January 21, 2008... Byline: Mike Trask Residential real estate agents have been preaching the same sermon for the past year. Now they have some statistics to support their message that the local real estate market is in relatively good shape. A report...

Missouri Attorney General asked to resolve bar cussing dispute.
January 21, 2008... Byline: St. Charles Business Record Staff St. Charles attorney and City Councilman Richard Veit is asking the state to resolve an issue over the First Amendment as it applies to local bars. Veit drafted an ordinance aimed at reducing rowdy...

St. Charles County Convention and Sports Facilities Authority extends Global Spectrum contract.
January 21, 2008... Byline: St. Charles Business Record Staff The St. Charles County Convention and Sports Facilities Authority and St. Charles City have extended by one year their three-year contract with Global Spectrum to manage the convention center. The...

Snap Creative in St. Charles wins award.
January 21, 2008... Byline: St. Charles Business Record Staff Summit International Awards recently recognized Snap Creative in St. Charles for its work in emerging media. Snap received Summit's Innovator Award for its Informed Workplace Web site. Informed...

St. Charles-based Executive Personal Computers raises money for autism.
January 21, 2008... Byline: St. Charles Business Record Staff St. Charles-based Executive Personal Computers recently presented a check for $10,600 to the Center for Autism Education. The company raised the money during its sixth annual EPC Classic Carfest,...

Results of St. Peters audit to be released.
January 21, 2008... Byline: St. Charles Business Record Staff State Auditor Susan Montee is scheduled this Wednesday to deliver a report on the state audit of the city of St. Peters. Montee has scheduled a public meeting to discuss the audit for 7 p.m. in...

Anne Klein elected president of Great Rivers Greenway District's board.
January 21, 2008... Byline: St. Charles Business Record Staff The Great Rivers Greenway District's board of directors has elected Anne Klein as their president. Klein works as director of policy development for St. Charles County government. The directors also...

Q&A with Ernie Dempsey, owner of St. Charles restaurant Pio's.
January 21, 2008... Byline: Wm. Stage Ernie Dempsey became a restaurateur in the time-honored tradition: He married into the business. Ernie started at Pio's part-time in 1968, tending bar. By 1970, his father-in-law, Pio Pedrucci, had brought him in as a...

Dr. Schoch joins SSM St. Charles Clinic Medical Group.
January 21, 2008... Byline: St. Charles Business Record Staff SSM St. Charles Clinic Medical Group has added of Peter Schoch, MD, to the Medical Group's adult primary care/internal medicine department. Dr. Schoch (pronounced "Shuck") is board certified and...

Kara Steinhour joins Missouri's Brown Smith Wallace.
January 21, 2008... Byline: St. Charles Business Record Staff Kara Steinhour has joined Brown Smith Wallace as staff accountant in the insurance and reinsurance services group. Steinhour is responsible for carrying out audits of insurance companies as well as...

St. Charles Convention Center workers ready to meet guests' needs.
January 21, 2008... Byline: Mike Trask The people at the St. Charles Convention Center are obviously ready to do whatever it takes to meet their guests' needs. In order to accommodate a gathering of some 850 Orthodox Jews at the facility Dec. 20-24, the...

CitiMortgage seeks legal relief in St. Louis County Circuit Court.
January 21, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter CitiMortgage Inc. hopes to find in court some protection from the thrashing it received in the housing market. And the mortgage-loan servicer has chosen as its possible sanctuary the St. Louis County Circuit Court. The...

Suit filed over failed deal.
January 22, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole The owner of the downtown St. Louis building that houses Lewis, Rice & Fingersh's headquarters is suing for more than $16 million over a soured deal to sell the structure. Sharon Sklarov is seeking the money because...

Lawyers hired at two firms.
January 22, 2008... Byline: Daily Record staff Sedey Harper, a St. Louis employment law firm, has added two members, associate John D. Lynn and attorney Robert G. Johnson as of counsel. Lynn is an appellate attorney who has argued employment cases in federal...

Suit filed over failed real estate deal in St. Louis.
January 22, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole The owner of the building that houses Lewis, Rice & Fingersh's downtown St. Louis office is suing for more than $16 million over a soured deal to sell the structure. Sharon Sklarov is seeking the money because...

U.S. Supreme Court backs Washington University in St. Louis.
January 22, 2008... Byline: St. Charles County Business Record Staff The U.S. Supreme Court sided today with Washington University in a case filed by a former researcher who left and wanted to take with him cancer tissues he had collected while there. Without...

Missouri governor declines to seek re-election.
January 23, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese In a surprise announcement via a news release and a YouTube video, Gov. Matt Blunt said Tuesday that he's not running for re-election. Blunt said he has achieved what he set out to accomplish when he was elected in 2004...

Metro in Missouri to pay $6M, instead of $27M, in attorneys' fees.
January 23, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka Metro agreed in a settlement with the fired builders of its light-rail extension to Shrewsbury to pay just $6 million in attorneys' fees. The Cross County Collaborative, which in November won a case filed by the...

State of Missouri cannot restrict prisoner access to abortions, court rules.
January 23, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter A federal appeals court on Tuesday threw out a Missouri policy against transporting female inmates to receive an abortion except to protect a mother's health. The ruling came exactly 35 years after the U.S. Supreme...

Open season: With Missouri's governor moving on, supporters push forward with court plan effort.
January 24, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese Supporters of a plan to overhaul the way Missouri selects judges for its highest courts are pressing ahead even as a major critic of the current system steps aside. Bill Placke, a lawyer and president of the Federalist...

Seven attorneys exiting Doster Mickes James Ullom Benson & Guest to start a new firm.
January 24, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Education attorney Tom Mickes is exiting Doster Mickes James Ullom Benson & Guest with six other attorneys to start a new firm. The attorneys, whose practices also include labor and employment and commercial...

Judges in Missouri continue clearing speedy trial requests.
January 24, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter After 18 months in jail, Michael Leicht finally got his day in court. Facing felony charges for stealing a copper downspout, the 48-year-old waived his right to a jury trial on Wednesday and stood before St. Louis...

Commentary: New laws no solution to assisted-living problems.
January 24, 2008... Byline: Justin P. Hauke It's disturbing to think of nursing home abuse. Many of us have elderly family members or friends living in assisted-living facilities and naturally turn to government regulation to protect them. But before passing...