State briefs 9/5/17

St. Louis, KC pay protests held

Hundreds of protesters in both of Missouri's big cities on Monday called for higher pay and better treatment during Labor Day rallies. More than 300 protesters turned out in Kansas City for a "Fight for $15" rally. In St. Louis, several people protested outside a downtown McDonald's before the annual Labor Day parade. St. Louis enacted a $10 minimum wage in May. Kansas City voters approved a measure last month raising the city's minimum wage to $10 an hour. Both efforts were voided Aug. 28 by a new state law prohibiting local minimum wages above the state's $7.70.

Vigil held before shooting verdict

ST. LOUIS -- The mother of the man shot to death by former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley was among those at a vigil in anticipation of a verdict in Stockley's first-degree murder case. The vigil was Monday night near the site where Anthony Lamar Smith died December 2011. Stockley is charged with killing Anthony Lamar Smith, a drug suspect, after a chase. Stockley's trial ended Aug. 9. It remains unclear when Judge Timothy Wilson will rule.

-- From wire reports