Woman Killed in D.C. Shooting Grew up in Prairie Village
UNDATED (KCUR) – One of the victims of a fatal shooting in Washington D.C. Wednesday night grew up in Johnson County. KCUR reports that the victim worked for the Israeli embassy. Police say a gunman shot and killed two people outside the Capital Jewish Museum on Wednesday: Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky. Milgrim, who was 26, grew up in Prairie Village. Her father, Robert Milgrim, told KCUR that he thinks education is important to stopping these acts of violence. “Many different people live in the US. There's no reason to hate one another. You know, this hate cannot divide us, we need to overcome it,” he said. Milgrim added that his daughter and Lischinsky were dating, and Lischinsky was planning to propose to her on an upcoming trip to Israel.
Sarah Milgrim was a 2021 graduate of the University of Kansas. Both KU Chancellor Douglas Girod and Kansas Governor Laura Kelly issued statements of condolence on Thursday.
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Wichita Health Clinic Reports 2024 Cybersecurity Breach
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) – Hunter Health Clinic in Wichita says a cybersecurity incident last year compromised personal information of up to 31,000 people. The Kansas News Service reports that the clinic says an unauthorized party gained access to an employee email account. The compromised information includes personal health information like medical records, as well as financial account information and social security numbers. Hunter says the information was stored in the employee email account and may have been viewed or acquired by the unauthorized party. Hunter learned about the breach in September and began notifying those impacted last week. In a statement, Hunter says it is committed to maintaining the privacy of personal information and has taken additional precautions to protect it in the future. Hunter has three Wichita clinics and provides care to under-served populations, including American Indian and Alaskan Native patients.
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Douglas County OKs $55 Million in Bonds to Upgrade Judicial and Law Enforcement Center
LAWRENCE, Kan. (LJW) - The Douglas County Commission has issued a nearly $55 million bond sale to renovate the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center and build a new Public Safety Building. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that the $55 million in bonds will be used along with $25 million from the county's cash reserves to fund the project. County officials say this will not result in a tax increase.
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KDHE Reports 2 More Measles Cases in Kansas in Last Week
UNDATED (KMUW) – State health officials say two more measles cases were reported in the last week. That brings the total number of cases to 58 this year. KMUW reports that nearly all of them are associated with an outbreak in southwest Kansas. Sedgwick and Reno counties also recently announced their first cases. More than 60 percent of the cases are in children aged 10 or younger. One case involves someone older than 55. Officials say vaccination is essential to avoid catching and spreading the respiratory virus. Babies as young as 6 months of age can receive the vaccine.
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Some Kansas Lawmakers Question Police Search and Surveillance Powers
UNDATED (The Beacon) – Some Kansas lawmakers are worried the state hasn’t done enough to protect Kansans from unreasonable searches. They are considering legislation next year to limit certain surveillance powers. The Kansas City Beacon reports that police can put cameras on utility poles and they don’t need a warrant. Law enforcement can get permission from the utility company and install a camera that is recording 24/7. That’s concerning to Senator Kenny Titus, who said “...I just feel like it oversteps the protections we have to protect people from being constantly monitored.”
Titus is considering introducing a bill that limits when these cameras can be used if there's no warrant. But he isn’t sure what legislation could look like when lawmakers return in 2026. Police say utility pole surveillance is necessary because it’s used in drug cases and violent crime investigations.
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Salmonella Outbreak Prompts Nationwide Cucumber Recall
UNDATED (KPR/NPR) – The Food and Drug Administration is recalling cucumbers due to a salmonella outbreak that has sickened more than two dozen people in multiple states, including Kansas. The FDA announced the recall Monday for cucumbers grown by South Florida-based Bedner Growers between April 29 and May 19.
Fresh Start Produce Sales distributed the cucumbers to retailers, distribution centers, wholesalers and food service distributors nationwide, making people sick in 15 states. It is unclear exactly where else the cucumbers may have ended up.
The cucumbers have been linked to what the FDA calls a "multistate outbreak" of Salmonella Montevideo, a bacterial disease that affects the intestinal tract. As of Tuesday, the cucumbers have made 26 people sick, nine of whom required hospitalization, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The cases have been reported in 15 states: Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. (Read more.)
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Former Residents of Apartment Complex Suing Building Owners
UNDATED (KCUR) – Former residents of a Gardner, Kansas, apartment complex are suing the owners after the buildings were condemned by the city. Earlier this month, Gardner gave the Aspen Place tenants 48 hours to move out. The city deemed the apartments uninhabitable the day after a fire truck sank into the street outside the complex. KCUR reports that residents are alleging that they complained for years about leaky pipes, mold, and sewage drainage issues, but the landlords did nothing to fix the problems. The residents demand damages for back rent, property loss and emotional distress. They are also seeking class action status so other former tenants can join the lawsuit - with potentially more than 1,000 people eligible.
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Ag Secretary Announces Proposal to Aid Family Farmers
UNDATED (HPM) – After a day of tours across Nebraska this week, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced a ten-point proposal to support small family farmers. "There's been a lot of conversation around what and how we keep America strong, how we bring prosperity back to rural America. And at the base of all of that, the foundation is our small family farmer," Rollins said. The proposal, dubbed Farmers First, contains some technical actions, like digitizing paper forms through the U.S. Department of Agriculture and combining some loan programs. It also includes loftier goals, like reforming certain environmental regulations, and building a strong legal workforce through nonimmigrant visas… which allow people to come to the U-S for a specific, time-limited purpose. According to a 2021 report from the USDA, 89 percent of the country’s farms are classified as small family farms.
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Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic Continue to Plague Kansas Schools
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) – It’s been five years since COVID-19 shut down schools in Kansas, and educators say they’re still seeing effects of the pandemic. The Kansas News Service reports that fifth-grade teacher Susie Kelley says many of her students...who were kindergartners when the pandemic began...are still behind academically. She’s also seeing more absences and behavior problems. “Those formative foundational skills and those years were lost. It’s going to take us time to get it back. And so, even though it was five years ago, we're still behind,” she said. Time on screens also spiked during the pandemic. Experts believe that affected kids’ attention spans and fine motor skills.
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Mexican National, Previously Deported 4 Times, Sent to Prison
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV - A Mexican national, previously deported four times, is now headed to prison. KCTV reports that the 33-year-old man was sentenced in federal court Wednesday for a pair of crimes. Prosecutors say Jehu Jaziel Carranza-Rangle was given 4.5 years in prison without parole for illegally possessing a gun and for illegally re-entering the U.S. after previously being removed. He pleaded guilty to the charges last November.
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Secretary of Agriculture Okays Nebraska's Request to Ban Some Foods from SNAP Coverage
UNDATED (HPMP) – Nebraska is the first state to have a waiver approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to restrict certain food items from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. Other states are likely to do the same in the near future. The Nebraska waiver will prohibit SNAP benefits from being used to buy soda and energy drinks in the state. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said other states, including Kansas, have either formally submitted a waiver request or expressed interest, adding that "...we’ve had some great states, great conversations, we’ve made a lot of great progress, but I have in my hand here the actual waiver that I will be signing...that puts Nebraska at the front of the pack." A pilot program in Nebraska will go into effect in January and last for two years. Advocacy groups and grocery associations have long opposed restrictions to SNAP benefits. (Read more.)
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Farmers Scrambling After USDA Program Cuts
UNDATED (HPM) – Over the past four months the Trump Administration has made sweeping changes to many federal agencies. Harvest Public Media reports that rapid changes at the agriculture department have left farmers scrambling for answers. The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition is one of many organizations creating resource guides for farmers who’ve lost government contracts, need legal or immigration support, or want details on what Trump’s executive orders mean for agriculture. The Coalition’s Stef Funk is among those compiling and sharing information. “We keep it as up-to-date as possible, in terms of any new directives from the administrative branch we're learning about, any new contract terminations, any funds that have been released, and also possible litigation efforts,” she says. Funk also says she expects USDA’s staff cuts and reorganizations to continue in the coming months, which could further affect farm programs and funding.
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Jacque Vaughn Named KU Men’s Basketball Assistant Coach
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) — Jacque Vaughn, a former All-American basketball player for the University of Kansas Jayhawks, has been hired as an assistant coach at KU. Head men's basketball coach Bill Self announced the hire Wednesday. Vaughn, who played as a point guard for KU from 1993 through 1997, was named Academic All-American of the Year in 1997. His number 11 was retired by the university in 2002, and his jersey hangs in the rafters of Allen Fieldhouse.
Vaughn served as an NBA head coach for more than five seasons with the Orlando Magic and Brooklyn Nets, and has more than 15 years of NBA coaching experience overall. Vaughn will replace Norm Roberts, who retired earlier this month, on the KU coaching staff.
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