Rachel Lippmann
Justice ReporterRachel Lippmann covers courts, public safety and city politics for St. Louis Public Radio. (She jokingly refers to them as the “nothing ever happens beats.”) She joined the NPR Member station in her hometown in 2008, after spending two years in Lansing covering the Michigan Capitol and various other state political shenanigans for NPR Member stations there. Though she’s a native St. Louisan, part of her heart definitely remains in the Mitten. (And no, she’s not going to tell you where she went to high school.)
Rachel has an undergraduate degree from the Medill School of Journalism, and a master’s in public affairs reporting from the University of Illinois at Springfield. When she’s not busy pursuing the latest scoop, you can find her mentoring her Big Brothers Big Sisters match, hitting the running and biking paths in south St. Louis, catching the latest sporting event on TV, playing with every dog she possibly can, or spending time with the great friends she’s met in more than nine years in this city.
Rachel’s on Twitter @rlippmann. Even with 240 characters, spellings are still phonetic.
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Aldermen made major changes to the pension systems for St. Louis firefighters in 2012 to cut costs. They included setting an age requirement of 55 to receive full retirement benefits, regardless of years of service. A proposal would adjust that.
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The restrictions only apply in unincorporated areas of St. Louis County. They had the backing of the police chief and the union representing police officers.
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The regulations include requiring short-term rental operators to get a permit before leasing out their properties on Airbnb and other platforms.
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Lawmakers in Jefferson City refused to consider any gun restrictions during the 2023 legislative session, despite pleas from students affected by the south St. Louis school shooting. Members of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen have tried to fill in the gaps with their limited power.
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Mayor Tishaura Jones appointed Charles Coyle to the role on an interim basis in January.
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The issue is on the Nov. 7 ballot. If a majority of voters in both Manchester and the proposed annexation area vote yes, it would take effect May 7, 2024.
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The weekly classes at five of the city’s recreation centers will be supported for the next two years by a grant from the Missouri Arts Council. Circus Harmony hopes to secure funding to make them permanent.
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George Draper will be the chief training officer for the St. Louis circuit attorney’s office. He worked as a prosecutor for 10 years at the beginning of his long legal career.
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Jean Peters Baker is named as a respondent in a lawsuit challenging Missouri’s near-total ban on abortion. She is asking the judge for permission to raise her own legal challenges to the law.
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Marcellis Blackwell faces similar charges in state court. His license to be a police officer in Missouri has been suspended.
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The social workers are based at five St. Louis County Library branches. The program was conceived in 2021, but the process of signing contracts and hiring staff took longer than expected.
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The members of United Auto Workers Local 2250 were the first employees of General Motors to go on strike. They have since been joined by colleagues at 38 other GM and Stellantis facilities.