The Missouri House speaker says lawmakers will take action if Gov. Jay Nixon fails to order the release of records in recent child tragedies.
The Kansas City Star reports that Republican Rep. Tim Jones of Eureka wants the state's child welfare system to resume releasing records after children have died or been seriously injured by abuse or neglect. He said Wednesday that releasing information is the only way to improve the system.
His comments came less than a month after The Star and the Springfield News-Leader delved into the issue in a joint investigation.
The newspapers reported that years of openness ended in June after a 10-year-old girl was freed from a Kansas City closet weighing 32 pounds. Child welfare officials previously had worked with her family.
