Kansas City Today

For a year and a half, Kansas City activists have been calling for the city to retake authority over its police department — which since 1939 has been controlled by the state of Missouri, under the auspices of the Board of Police Commissioners. KCUR’s Peggy Lowe reports that so far there’s been little progress.

Racially restrictive covenants were used for decades to keep Black families out of white neighborhoods. In 1948, a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision made those covenants unenforceable, and 20 years later they were outlawed. In St. Louis, restrictive covenants are still tied to some 30,000 properties, most without the homeowners’ knowledge. St. Louis Public Radio’s Corinne Ruff has the first of a two-part series on these covenants.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and edited by Gabe Rosenberg & Lisa Rodriguez

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

On Friday, a Jackson County judge found Kansas City police detective Eric DeValkenaere guilty of involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action in the fatal shooting of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb, a Black man.

DeValkenaere is believed to be the first Kansas City law enforcement officer since 1941 to have stood trial for the fatal shooting of a Black man, and the first ever to be convicted in such a case. KCUR reporter Dan Margolies was in the courtroom and breaks down what the verdict means.

Every 10 years, states redraw the boundaries of districts for state legislatures and Congress based on new U.S. Census data. Right now, Kansas City is also undergoing the important but contentious process of redistricting of its six Council seats. KCUR contributor Lynn Horsley talks to us about how the changes are expected to affect everything from political power dynamics to how tax dollars get spent on infrastructure.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and edited by Gabe Rosenberg & Lisa Rodriguez

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are projecting a nearly 20% jump in overdose deaths in Missouri this year. In the first half of 2021 alone, almost 800 Missourians died of an overdose. KBIA health reporter Sebastián Martínez Valdivia says experts attribute the spike to the prevalence of the synthetic opioid fentanyl.

Across the country, journalists are struggling to get public documents that involve private companies. Places like Kansas are even letting corporations black out public records, and that makes it harder to scrutinize government actions. Celia Llopis-Jepsen of the Kansas News Service reports.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and edited by Gabe Rosenberg & Lisa Rodriguez

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

For months, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker has agued that Kevin Strickland, a Black man from Kansas City, is innocent of the triple murder that put him behind bars in 1978. His fate currently rests in the hands of a judge. But as KCUR's Luke Martin reports, one retired judge says more African American representation in the criminal legal system could have kept Strickland out of prison in the first place.

For both mothers and their newborns, the bonding experience is an important one. But when the mother is incarcerated, their baby is often ushered away shortly after birth, and likely to end up in the foster care system. In a conversation with Steve Kraske on Up To Date, Missouri state Rep. Bruce DeGroot makes the case for nurseries in prisons.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and edited by Gabe Rosenberg & Lisa Rodriguez

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate

Kansas City's Park Hill South High School made headlines two months ago when students allegedly passed around a petition calling for the return of slavery. One student was expelled from the school, and three others were punished.

But a different side of the story has recently emerged, as the disciplined students sued the school district with the help of a prominent civil rights lawyer. According to KCUR’s Dan Margolies, the lawsuit claims the petition began as a joke between a biracial student and a Black student on the football team.

Months after a court ordered Missouri to expand Medicaid, enrollment has been slow. An estimated 275,000 newly eligible residents could benefit from the public health care program. But KCUR's health reporter Alex Smith found that Missouri is lagging in its outreach efforts, even compared to other GOP-led states.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and edited by Gabe Rosenberg & Lisa Rodriguez

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate