Stormy Weather Expected Across Eastern Kansas
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) — It could be a stormy day across eastern Kansas. The National Weather Service in Topeka says there's a 50 to 70% chance of storms Wednesday afternoon and evening and some of the storms could be severe. Stay Weather Aware.
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Storm Carrying Massive 'Gorilla Hail' Threatens Parts of Kansas and Missouri
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Volatile weather is expected to hone in on parts of Kansas and Missouri Wednesday night, and the biggest worry is the potential for massive chunks of hail. Some are calling it “gorilla hail” because it has the potential to be so big, said Alex Sosnowski, senior meteorologist at AccuWeather. The Kansas City metro area is at the center of the worry zone. “Gorilla hail” is a term coined by Reed Timmer, a storm chaser who calls himself an extreme meteorologist, Sosnowski said. In this case, the term might fit: Some hail from north-central Kansas into north-central Missouri could be as big as a baseball. “When you get up to tennis ball, baseball-sized or God forbid softball-sized, that can do a tremendous amount of damage, and if you get hit in the head, that could be fatal,” Sosnowski said.
Cars are especially vulnerable to damage, so Sosnowski encouraged people to try to find a place to park under a roof, if possible. Beyond the hail, heavy rain is possible in the same corridor. The National Weather Service warned of a risk for flash flooding. A slight threat exists for a tornado.
By Thursday, the storm moves to the east, forecasters said. The hail threat lessens, but heavy rain and high winds still are possible from northeastern Texas through central Missouri. The biggest threat on Friday is for torrential rain — perhaps up to 4 inches in some spots — in a line from central Louisiana up through central Arkansas, Sosnowski said.
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Kansas Turnpike to Remove Storm Shelters
WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) — Right now, storm shelters can be found at most toll plazas along the Kansas Turnpike. But those shelters will soon go away. KWCH TV reports that the shelters were mainly intended to be used by workers at the toll plazas but those workers will be going away as cashless toll booths are installed. A majority of storm shelters at toll plazas will be closed in July.
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3 Men Face Firearms Charges After Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl Parade Shooting
UNDATED (AP) — Three Missouri men have been charged with federal firearms counts after a shooting at last month's Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade and rally left one person dead and roughly two dozen others injured, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. The charges were filed Monday and unsealed Wednesday, after the men were arrested, a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Kansas City said.
It said those charged were 22-year-old Fedo Antonia Manning, Ronnel Dewayne Williams Jr., 21, and Chaelyn Hendrick Groves, 19, all from Kansas City. Manning is charged with one count each of conspiracy to traffic firearms and engaging in firearm sales without a license, and 10 counts of making a false statement on a federal form. Williams and Groves are charged with making false statements in the acquisition of firearms, and lying to a federal agent.
Court documents that were part of the complaint said 12 people brandished firearms and at least six people fired weapons at the Feb. 14 rally attended by an estimated 1 million people. The rally was just wrapping up when gunfire erupted and people ran for cover. The shooting happened when one group of people confronted another for staring at them, police said.
Two other men, Lyndell Mays, of Raytown, Missouri, and Dominic Miller, of Kansas City, Missouri, were earlier charged with second-degree murder and several weapons counts. Authorities also detained two juveniles on gun-related and resisting arrest charges.
Authorities have said a bullet from Miller’s gun killed Lisa Lopez-Galvan, who was in a nearby crowd of people watching the rally. She was a mother of two and the host of a local radio program called “Taste of Tejano.” The people injured range in age from 8 to 47, according to police.
According to online court records, Manning made his initial appearance Wednesday. He did not have an attorney listed, but asked that one be appointed for him. The online court record for Williams and Groves also did not list any attorneys to comment on their behalf. A phone call to the federal public defender’s office in Kansas City on Wednesday went unanswered.
The new complaints made public Wednesday do not allege that the men were among the shooters. Instead, they are accused of involvement in straw purchases and trafficking firearms. “Stopping straw buyers and preventing illegal firearms trafficking is our first line of defense against gun violence,” U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore said in the news release. “At least two of the firearms recovered from the scene of the mass shooting at Union Station were illegally purchased or trafficked.”
Federal prosecutors said that one weapon recovered at the rally scene was an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 .223-caliber pistol, found along a wall with a backpack next to two AR-15-style firearms and a backpack. The release said the firearm was in the “fire” position with 26 rounds in a magazine capable of holding 30 rounds — meaning some rounds may have been fired from it.
The affidavit stated that Manning bought the AM-15 from a gun store in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, a Kansas City suburb, on Aug. 7, 2022. It accuses him of illegally trafficking dozens of firearms, including many AM-15s.
Also recovered at the scene was a Stag Arms 300-caliber pistol that the complaint said was purchased by Williams during a gun show in November. Prosecutors say Williams bought the gun for Groves, who accompanied him to the show but was too young to legally purchase a gun for himself.
Prosecutors say Manning and Williams also bought firearm receivers, gun parts also known as frames that can be built into complete weapons by adding other, sometimes non-regulated components.
The complaint said Manning was the straw buyer of guns later sold to a confidential informant in a separate investigation.
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Kansas Will Pay $1 Million over the Murder of Boy Torture Victim Whose Body Was Fed to Pigs
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas will pay $1 million to settle a lawsuit over a 7-year-old boy's murder in 2015 alleging that the state's child welfare agency should have removed him from an abusive home before he was starved and tortured and his body was fed to pigs.
Gov. Laura Kelly and top leaders of the Kansas Legislature approved the settlement during a brief public meeting Tuesday after conferring with state Attorney General Kris Kobach's top deputy in private for 30 minutes. The lawsuit was filed in 2017 in Wyandotte County in the Kansas City area by the boy's mother, maternal grandmother and adult sister, and a district court trial was scheduled for April 2025.
The boy, Adrian Jones, was living with his father, Michael Jones, and his stepmother, Heather Jones, in Kansas City, Kansas, when he died. Both are serving 25 years-to-life prison sentences for his murder, and authorities said the boy was beaten and locked naked in a shower stall for months as a closed-circuit surveillance camera recorded his deteriorating condition.
The Kansas Department for Children and Families received reports that Adrian was being abused several years before his death, but its last physical contact with him was almost four years before his death, according to more than 2,000 pages of records released in 2017 by the agency. The records showed that the three of them moved frequently between communities in Kansas and Missouri.
“This has been a long journey for Adrian's family,” said Matt Birch, an attorney representing the family members. “The most important thing for the family was to hopefully make a change and make this less likely to happen in the future.” The family members' lawsuit argued that the state and social workers could have “stepped in and rescued” Adrian “at any point during the child's lengthy, unimaginable ordeal” but “chose to act like disinterested bystanders.” The Kansas agency argued that frequent moves made it difficult to keep tabs on the boy.
Kansas Senate Minority Leader Dinah Sykes, a Kansas City-area Democrat and one of the lawmakers who approved the settlement, said Wednesday that she believes the state faced “a lot of liability” legally for what happened. But Kelly told reporters Wednesday at the Statehouse that the issue wasn't the potential damages in a lawsuit but the litigation distracting it from “the mission at hand” of improving the child welfare system. “It really had to do with wanting to get that settled and not spend time litigating in courts for what could be definitely months, maybe even years,” she said. The resolution approving the settlement, made public Wednesday, shows that the department will pay half of the settlement and the other half will come from a special state fund that covers damages in lawsuits.
An attorney and its employees in the lawsuit did not immediately return a telephone message Wednesday seeking comment. Kobach's office also did not comment.
The Democratic governor and leaders of the Republican-controlled Legislature approved the settlement during a public meeting, but its open portions totaled less than five minutes before and after the closed session with Chief Deputy Attorney General Dan Burrows.
While Kelly read the lawsuit's title before the vote, neither she nor the lawmakers discussed details publicly Tuesday, following what has been a standard practice for years. Typically, there is no formal follow-up announcement to the public.
Told about the $1 million settlement Wednesday, state Rep. Susan Concannon, a Republican from western Kansas who chairs the Legislature's Joint Committee on Child Welfare Oversight, said: “I am a little bit surprised that it's not more than that.”
A multiyear legislative review of the child welfare system followed the boy's death. In 2021, “Adrian's Law” created the committee Concannon heads and required officers and caseworkers to visually observe children who are alleged victims of abuse or neglect. The state also has moved to improve doctors' training in recognizing abuse and to provide “wrap-around” services for troubled families.
Birch said that he and the family hope that through the lawsuit and 2021 law “there will be more eyes on these kids.”
Adrian's family members also filed a lawsuit in 2017 in Jackson County, Missouri, also in the Kansas City-area, against officials in that state. The case was settled in 2020, but the details were not immediately available, and Birch said he couldn't comment.
Adrian's remains were found in November 2015 in a pigsty on his father and stepmother's rental property after officers responded to a domestic violence call. Heather Jones accused Michael Jones of beating and choking her, according to affidavits and search warrants later released by authorities.
According to court records the Joneses used increasingly severe methods to control the boy's behavior, including strapping him to an inversion table, handcuffing him and shocking him with a device called a Zap Enforcer. He also suffered from “extreme starvation,” court records said.
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Kansas House Advances Bill to Ban Gender-Affirming Care for Transgender Teens
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — The Kansas House of Representatives advanced a bill Tuesday that would prevent transgender youth from receiving gender-affirming health care. Transgender Kansans under 18 would lose access to puberty blockers, hormone therapy and some other care if the bill becomes law. Proponents say teenagers might regret the treatments later. But LGBTQ advocates say banning them could exacerbate already-high depression and suicide rates among transgender youth. The bill is now headed to the state Senate. Democratic Governor Laura Kelly has said she would be likely to veto such a bill. Lawmakers fell one vote short of overriding her veto of a similar proposal last year.
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Kansas Lawmakers Consider Abortion Coercion Law
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — Kansas lawmakers are considering making it a crime to coerce someone into getting an abortion. A bill in the Kansas House would make it easier for police to charge partners, family members and doctors for compelling someone to get an abortion after they’ve said they do not want one. Anti-abortion groups say they’ve heard from women who fear they could lose financial support or housing if they do not get an abortion. Jeanne Gawdun is a lobbyist for Kansans for Life. “For those who believe that abortion should be a woman's choice, I asked you to join us in support of House Bill 2813 to ensure that it truly is her choice, and not someone else's," she said. The Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence says the bill does not adequately address other forms of reproductive coercion, like destroying birth control or controlling someone’s access to abortion.
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Leavenworth Police Officers Ruled to Be Justified in Lethal Shooting
UNDATED (KNS) – A prosecutor has determined that Leavenworth police officers were justified when they shot and killed a 25-year-old man who was running from an alleged rape scene last summer. The Kansas News Service reports that Johnathan Heath-Taylor of Leavenworth died after being shot on Highway 92 in Platte County, Missouri, last August. Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd said in a statement Wednesday that Heath-Taylor “repeatedly refused officers’ commands” and pulled out what they believed was a gun. Zahnd said officers fired to protect themselves and other motorists. Zahnd said he will not consider taking any action against the officers involved.
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Offender Escapes from Johnson County Correctional Center
GARDNER, Kan. (KPR) — A minimum-security inmate has escaped from a Johnson County correctional facility. Authorities say 49-year-old John Evans Johnson, Jr. was placed on escape status Tuesday afternoon. Authorities also say Johnson should be considered dangerous. He's been serving time for a burglary conviction.
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Handgun Found in Kansas City Student’s Backpack
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KSHB) — A handgun was found in a student's backpack at Park Hill South High School in Kansas City Tuesday morning, KSHB TV reports that the discovery came as the school was conducting regular safety protocols in an unrelated incident. School officials say there was no immediate threat and that all students and staff are safe. The handgun was secured and local law enforcement was made aware of the incident immediately. The school worked with local police to remove the student from the school. Park Hill South administrators said they will be guided by law enforcement as the investigation continues. School officials say counselors and social workers will be available throughout this week to help support students.
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Kansas School Tries to Address Problem Behavior, Absenteeism in the Classroom
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS/KMUW) — Teachers are still struggling with post-pandemic behavior problems and absenteeism in their classrooms. One Kansas elementary school is trying to combat negative behavior by pairing kids with mentors and putting them to work. Teachers at Woodman Elementary School have started a new program called Meaningful Work, which aims to pair students with a mentor, in this case a teacher, counselor or other school employee. The adult mentors then offer students something constructive to do on a regular schedule — a simple task like feeding fish or making copies. Essentially, they give the kids a job. (Read more.)
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Kansas Lawmakers Consider Education Tax Credits
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) - Kansas lawmakers have advanced a bill that would give families a tax break for sending their child to a private school or home school. The Kansas News Service reports that supporters say the bill would give more families an alternative to public schools by letting them recoup some costs with tax credits. Opponents say it would divert money away from public schools. The credits could cost the state up to $75 million the first year. James Franco with the conservative Kansas Policy Institute says parents should decide what school is right for their child. “Whether that is in a high-performing public school, whether it is a private school, a micro school, a home school, whatever it is, this bill ultimately is about whether or not we trust parents to act in their kids’ best interests,” he explained. Kansas lawmakers passed a similar measure last year but failed to override a veto by Democratic Governor Laura Kelly.
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Survey: Kansas Teachers Say Their Opinions Not Valued by School District Leaders, Lawmakers
EMPORIA, Kan. (KNS) — Most teachers in Kansas say their opinions are not being valued by district leaders or lawmakers. A new survey by Emporia State University shows that Kansas teachers are concerned about low pay, student behavior and their own emotional health. They’re also worried about society’s view of the teaching profession. Many say policymakers don’t listen to their input on education issues. Emporia State researcher Bret Church says teacher turnover remains a concern, and districts should focus on keeping teachers in the classroom. Church told the Kansas State Board of Education that districts should start shifting their focus from recruiting new teachers to retaining the teachers they already have.
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Kansas City Woman Accused of Decapitating Son and Dog Found Competent to Stand Trial
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – A mother accused of killing her 6-year-old son has been determined to be competent, some two years after she was ruled mentally unfit to stand trial. She will appear in court later this month. KCTV reports that in February of 2022, police received a call from a woman “saying she was concerned someone was trying to harm her. The woman told police she believed the devil was trying to attack her. She denied having any mental illness and hung up the phone, officials said.” When officers went to the woman's residence and found blood leading up to the front door and could hear the woman singing. An officer reportedly looked inside the house and saw the child’s decapitated head. Officers then forced their way into the home, finding the decapitated child inside. They later found a decapitated dog in the basement.
Tasha Haefs, who was 35 years old at the time, was found with blood on her legs and feet. Haefs admitted that the child, 6-year-old Karvel Stevens, was biologically hers and that she had killed him. The Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office charged Haefs with first-degree murder and armed criminal action, but in June 2022 she was ruled mentally unfit to stand trial.
She was placed in the custody of the Missouri Department of Mental Health, but reportedly refused to take her medications or cooperate with her treatment plan.
In August 2023, she was removed from court after creating a disturbance, calling the judge and other people in the courtroom “demented monsters.” Earlier this month, a motion was filed, ruling Haefs as competent to stand trial nearly two years after she was first placed in the state’s custody. Her first court date is scheduled for March 29.
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New Museum of Children’s Literature Opens in North Kansas City
NORTH KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCUR) — A new museum called The Rabbit Hole has opened in North Kansas City. It's dedicated to children’s literature. The Rabbit Hole Museum has been under wraps for the past 6 years, as artists and fabricators built immersive exhibits based on characters and scenes in books like “Goodnight Moon,” “Madeline,” and “Caps for Sale.” Tuesday's opening was artist Grant Kelso’s first chance to see how children and parents react. “Finally, (we're) getting to see everybody really enjoy it. Seeing all the kids, just watching the monkeys in the trees and playing," he said. "It really makes us all proud of the work that we've done.” The 45 featured exhibits represent more than a century of children’s literature in America. (Read more.)
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Federal Labor Department Recovers Back Wages for KCK Supermarket Employees
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (WIBW) — The U.S. Labor Department said Tuesday that it has recovered more than $155,000 in back wages from a Kansas City supermarket for overtime violations. The fine was levied against Supermart El Torito, in Kansas City, Kansas. An investigation by the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division recovered $155,990 representing $77,995 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages for 158 employees of the store. WIBW TV reports that the division also assessed Supermart El Torito with $187,546 in civil penalties for repeated violations of Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime provisions.
Labor Department investigators found that the store paid employees overtime at time-and-a-half the employee’s rate of pay as required when they worked between 41 and 58 hours a week. However, officials said, when an employee worked more than 58 hours per week, the employer paid the additional time at the worker’s straight-time hourly rate in cash.
By law, Supermart El Torito should have paid workers time-and-a-half their hourly rate for all hours over 40 in a workweek. Additionally, Department of Labor officials said, Supermart El Torito failed to record and retain accurate employee time records. The Department of Labor cited Supermart El Torito for violations found at its Kansas City, Kansas location. The company also has a store in Topeka which was not cited in the investigation.
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Big 12 Men's and Women's Tournaments to Remain in Kansas City Through 2031
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Big 12 men's and women's basketball tournaments will remain at T-Mobile Center through 2031, commissioner Brett Yormark said. He made the announcement shortly before Texas and Iowa State played for the women's championship there for the first time Tuesday night. The women had long played down the street at smaller, antiquated Municipal Auditorium. Yormark also said that the women's Big 12 soccer championship would be played at CPKC Stadium. The home of National Women's Soccer League club Kansas City Current is scheduled to open Saturday with a game against Portland.
One of Yormark's priorities after taking over leadership of the Big 12 was to raise the profile of the women's tournament, and that meant moving it to the T-Mobile Center. That also required moving the dates of the championship, with early-round games occurring last week and the title game Tuesday night following the first two games of the men's tournament. "I think I said to many last year, when I came here the first time to the community, met with many of the leaders, it was a real easy decision when I went back to Dallas that we needed to double down on this community," Yormark said. "It feels like a Super Bowl each time we're here. The fan support is tremendous. The community is tremendous."
The men's and women's tournaments were scheduled to be played in Kansas City through 2027, so the extension amounts to four years. But it also comes as the league expands its footprint west with Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah replacing Oklahoma and Texas in the league, and that gave the Big 12 other hosting options such as Las Vegas and Phoenix.
In fact, the Big 12 will be holding its football media days in Las Vegas later this year. "We are a national conference now. We're in 10 states, four time zones," Yormark said. "When it comes to men's and women's basketball, and women's soccer, this needed to be our home. We're going to football media day in Vegas, which we are excited about, and there will be other opportunities to move closer to that footprint, but we needed to be in Kansas City."
Along with the basketball tournaments, Yormark announced that the Big 12 women's soccer championship was moving to CPKC Stadium. The first stadium facility built for a women's professional soccer club in the U.S. — in this case, the Kansas City Current of the National Women's Soccer League — is scheduled to open Saturday when the Current plays Portland. "It's an amazing time to be in Kansas City, and it's an amazing time to invest in Kansas City," said Mayor Quinton Lucas, who has been supportive of an April ballot issue to renew a sales tax that would help fund renovations to Arrowhead Stadium, the home of the Super Bowl champion Chiefs, along with a new downtown ballpark for the Royals. "The Big 12 Conference is part of Kansas City's DNA. We all have stories about the Big 12, or if we're old enough, the Big Eight here in Kansas City," Lucas said. "We're excited to continue to share the story in Kansas City."
In other news, Yormark said the lame-duck status of Oklahoma and Texas, which are departing for the SEC after this season, has not created any challenges even as the Big 12 looks toward the future as a revamped 16-team league. "Texas and Oklahoma, great contributors to the conference. Been here since Day 1," Yormark said. "They're finishing strong, obviously, and when the time comes, we'll wish them well. But there's never been a better time to be part of this conference."
Yormark also indicated that he would be in favor of expanding the NCAA Tournament. "I read what you read, and from what I've been told, and what I'm reading, there could be modest expansion. I think 76 is the number that has been out there," he said. "The data shows if you expand to 76, the power-four conferences will benefit mostly, and that includes the Big 12. I'm all about access. We have the deepest conference in America."
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AP Source: Chiefs Restructure Mahomes Contract for Salary Cap Relief
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have restructured quarterback Patrick Mahomes's contract, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Wednesday, giving the Super Bowl champions some much-needed salary cap space.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the financial details were not public.
By restructuring the contract, which would have counted more than $58 million against the cap for the upcoming season, the Chiefs created more than $21 million to use elsewhere. That could include a much-publicized pursuit of help at wide receiver, their need for a new left tackle to protect Mahomes' blind side, or in re-signing their own free agents.
Mahomes also adjusted his 10-year, $450 million contract in 2021 to help the Chiefs with their financial situation.
The Chiefs already signed All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones to a five-year, $158.75 million contract, which included $95 million guaranteed over the first three years. But that deal was structured so that it only cost $7.35 million against the cap this year.
Backup linebacker Drue Tranquill also signed a three-year, $19 million deal to return before Wednesday's official start to free agency, and defensive tackle Mike Pennel returned to the Chiefs on a one-year deal after playing well in their Super Bowl win.
The creation of some additional salary cap space also could mean that L'Jarius Sneed, who quietly emerged as one of the NFL's best cornerbacks last season, could remain in Kansas City. The Chiefs used the franchise tag on him, which would equate to a one-year, $19.8 million deal, but many expected them to ultimately trade Sneed for draft compensation and salary cap relief.
Now, the Chiefs could keep him at the tag number or use their newfound wiggle room to sign him to a long-term deal.
“There isn't much of a recruiting pitch that needs to be made with Kansas City,” Tranquill said Wednesday. “You have incredible leadership, top to bottom. You have a culture that's a winning culture, that is not about egos or self or guys getting paid; we all want our guys to get paid, but everything at the Chiefs and in our organization is about winning, and it's about hoisting the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season.”
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