Shortly after final Senate passage, the Senate sponsor -- Sen. Jim Mathewson -- collapsed and was rushed to a hospital where he was reported in good condition from the effects of a cold.
Sen. Jim Mathewson, a Sedalia Democrat first elected in 1980, voted for the measure because, he said, Missourians were swept up in a national movement.
First, Sen. Jim Mathewson, D-Sedalia, offered an amendment that would reduce the fines to a maximum $5000. He also wanted to make it illegal only if the suspect knowingly didn't provide the information. Maxwell's bill would make it a crime to intentionally or unintentionally not hand over public information.
"It will take that long to pass this bill and set that in process," thundered Sen. Jim Mathewson, D-Sedalia. Assembled legislators abruptly left the room en masse soon after reporters pressed for specifics, including a specific timetable.
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