Over 41,000 COVID-19 Cases, 443 Deaths Reported in Kansas
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP/KPR) - The number of COVID-19 cases in Kansas continues to climb. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported another 1,111 confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases since Wednesday, with the death toll currently standing at 443. In total, state health officials say 41,048 coronavirus cases have been identified in Kansas since the pandemic began. An updated list of Kansas coronavirus caseswill be released online Monday.
(–Related–)
Kansas Sets New Pandemic Record for 7-Day Case Bump
HAYS, Kan. (AP) — Fueled in part by college students returning to classes, Kansas has set another pandemic record for a seven-day increase in coronavirus cases. The surge has prompted the Lawrence school district to put the brakes on some fall sports and Hays to extend its mask ordinance. Statewide, the number of new reported cases rose by 1,111 from Wednesday to Friday to bring the total to 41,048. The state Department of Health and Environment also reported an additional six COVID-19-related deaths, to put the pandemic total at 443. The average for the seven days ending Friday was 599, 3.6% more than the previous record.
Kelly: College Students Pose Risk of Being 'Super-Spreaders'
HAYS, Kan. (AP) — Fueled in part by college students returning to classes, Kansas has set another pandemic record for a seven-day increase in coronavirus cases. The surge has prompted the Lawrence school district to put the brakes on some fall sports and Hays to extend its mask ordinance. Statewide, the number of new reported cases rose by 1,111 from Wednesday to Friday to bring the total to 41,048. The state Department of Health and Environment also reported an additional six COVID-19-related deaths, to put the pandemic total at 443. The average for the seven days ending Friday was 599, 3.6% more than the previous record.
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University of Kansas Deploys Mobile Health System Units to Combat COVID-19
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (KPR) - Hoping to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus on its campuses in Lawrence and Overland Park, the University of Kansas has deployed four of Black & Veatch’s mobile Rapid Modular Health System (RaMHS) structures to assist with free COVID-19 testing of students, faculty and staff returning for fall classes. According to Businesswire, the modules were delivered in advance of the start of school and deployed on or near KU's primary campus in Lawrence. One of the mobile units has been positioned outside Watkins Memorial Health Center. The university says testing results should be available within 24 to 48 hours after the lab receives samples. KU officials say results of the initial testing will help determine the frequency and type of future screenings. The mobile units are scalable, intermodal containers transformed into sites for COVID-19 screening and other diagnostic purposes. According to Black & Veatch, the windowed modules come in various sizes and configurations, are electrical hook-up ready, weather-resistant, climate controlled, and lockable, providing security for personnel and equipment. The units can also be outfitted with the latest in COVID response technology from a variety of partners. The university’s rollouts of the mobile units coincide with the school’s “Protect KU” push to safeguard students and faculty, along with the communities where the university has a presence.
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Hays Votes to Extend Mask Ordinance for 5 More Weeks
HAYS, Kan. (AP) — Hays has voted to extend its face mask ordinance for another five weeks amid a rise in cases as students return to Fort Hays State University. The Hays Post reports that the ordinance had been set to expire Monday. But city commissioners voted 3-2 Thursday night to extend it through Oct. 5. Ellis County Health Services director Jason Kennedy said a vaccine is still at least four or five months away. He said: “Coronavirus is not going away. It’s part of society." Five residents spoke against the mandate. Commissioners also said they have been attacked personally on social media and through email.
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Missouri Reports More than 1,500 New Virus Cases, 1 Death
O'FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s health department reported more than 1,500 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, as the number of infections since the pandemic began nears 80,000. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services’s online dashboard showed 1,512 new cases of COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. That followed the Wednesday report with 1,449 new cases. Both are among the highest single-day numbers since the state began keeping track in March. Missouri also reported one additional death, bringing the total to 1,450. The total number of infections statewide is 79,574.
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Kansas Governor: State Will Apply for Extra Federal Benefits to Help Jobless Workers
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Governor Laura Kelly says Kansas will apply to participate in a federal program that provides additional benefits to workers who've lost their jobs because of the coronavirus pandemic. Her announcement Thursday came less than two weeks after she questioned its legality and suggested it could be difficult to administer. Kelly's office said the state would use a portion of its $1.25 billion in federal coronavirus relief funds to cover part of the additional benefits. President Donald Trump issued an executive order earlier this month offering an additional $300 a week in benefits to jobless workers and $400 a week if states chipped in the additional $100.
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Kansas Primary Turnout High; Mail Ballots Show Party Split
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas had a relatively high turnout in its primary election. Voting methods most preferred by Republicans and Democrats also appeared to reflect a partisan divide across the U.S. over the coronavirus. A state board on Friday certified election results showing that about 636,000 votes were cast in the Aug. 4 election. That means 34.2% of the state’s nearly 1.9 million registered voters participated, and it was the highest percentage in at least a decade. Some 41% of voters cast ballots by mail. The secretary of state’s office said roughly two-thirds of Democratic voters used mail-in ballots, while roughly two-thirds of Republicans preferred to vote in person.
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UPDATE: Kansas Girl's Killer 5th Federal Inmate Executed This Year
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) — A man who killed a Kansas girl more than two decades ago has been executed in Indiana, the fifth federal inmate put to death this year and second this week. Keith Nelson received a lethal injection Friday at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, after a higher court tossed a ruling that would have required the government to get a prescription for the drug used to kill him. Questions about whether the drug pentobarbital causes pain prior to death had been a focus of appeals. Nelson grabbed 10-year-old Pamela Butler off the street on Oct. 12, 1999, as part of a plan to find a female to rape and kill.
(–Earlier Reporting–)
Federal Execution of Kansas Girl's Killer on Track Once Again
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) — The scheduled federal execution of a 10-year-old Kansas girl's killer was back on track after an appellate panel tossed a lower court's ruling that would have required the government to get a drug prescription before it could use pentobarbital to kill the inmate. Questions about whether the drug causes pain prior to death has been a focus of appeals for 45-year-old Keith Nelson prior to his execution, set for Friday. A Washington-based judge said in a Thursday's ruling that laws regulating drugs requires the prescription for executions but a higher court later tossed that ruling. The dispute could still come down to a final decision by the U.S. Supreme Court if Nelson's lawyers appeal to the high court.
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Judge Will Decide Whether Records in Kansas Girl's Death Become Public
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A Wyandotte County judge is considering whether state records involving the death of a 3-year-old girl should be released to the public. Several media outlets have sought the records in the death of Olivia Jansen, whose body was found in a shallow grave in July. They are seeking information on how much contact the state's family and children's agency had with Olivia's family before she died. In a hearing this week, Wyandotte County officials argued the investigation into the girl's death would be hindered if the records are released. Judge Michael Russell took the case under advisement and said he hoped to rule within two weeks.
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Security Guard Convicted in Fatal Shooting Near Missouri Bar
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A second security guard has been convicted in the June 2018 fatal shooting a man who was sitting in a car near a Kansas City bar. The Kansas City Star reports that 24-year-old Markell Pinkins was found guilty Wednesday of second-degree murder in the killing of 45-year-old Kevin Thomas outside the Yum Yum Bar & Grill. Prosecutors say Jones and another security guard, Christopher Jones, shot Thomas, who was sitting in a car across the street from the bar. Court records say the guards repeatedly asked Thomas to get out of the car and shot at him when he moved the car “not even a foot.”
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Arrest Announced in 2003 Homicide in Kansas City Suburb
WESTWOOD, Kan. (AP) — Law enforcement authorities say a Kansas prison inmate is charged with killing a man in 2003 in a suburban Kansas City grocery store. Forty-year-old Eugene Clayton Keltner faces a first-degree murder charge in the death of David "Ray" Ninemire in Westwood. Ninemire was shot when he went to help a co-worker during a robbery at the grocery store. Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe on Thursday declined to say what evidence led to Keltner's arrest. Keltner is imprisoned in Lansing after being convicted of involuntary manslaughter in a 2004 shooting death in Kansas City, Kansas.
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Wichita Police Investigate Shooting of 10-Year-Old Girl
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Police are investigating what they say appears to have been the accidental shooting of a 10-year-old girl in a Wichita home. The shooting happened around 10:30 pm Wednesday, when officers were called to a Wichita home for a report of a shooting. Arriving officers found the girl with a gunshot wound to her upper body. She was taken to a local hospital with injuries not believed to be life-threatening. Police say an initial investigation showed that a 38-year-old male was handling a gun in a bedroom when the gun went off, hitting the girl, who was in an adjoining bathroom.
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Ex-Girlfriend: Kansas House Candidate Was Abusive Last Year
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A former girlfriend says she was slapped and choked in late December by a 19-year-old Kansas House candidate who has admitted to abusive online behavior toward girls when he was younger. Taylor Passow told The Kansas City Star and The Topeka Capital-Journal that she stopped seeing Aaron Coleman in January, before he launched his campaign for the Democratic nomination in a Kansas City, Kansas, district. Coleman narrowly won the August 4 primary. Coleman has admitted on Facebook that allegations of revenge porn and online harassment targeting several middle-school girls were true but said his actions were that of a troubled 14-year-old. Passow said Coleman was abusive to her last year.
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Lawrence Man Gets 10 Years in Prison for Sexually Abusing Young Girl for Years
LAWRENCE, Kan. (LJW/KPR) - A Lawrence man has been sentenced to more than 10 years in prison for sexually abusing a girl he babysat for four years. The abuse started when she was 4 years old. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that 32-year-old Johnie L. Saluto entered a plea in March to two counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child, both level-3 felonies. He had initially faced seven charges, including four felonies that were punishable by life in prison, known as Jessica’s Law crimes. The Journal-World previously reported that Saluto claimed he wasn’t sexually attracted to the girl, but he told police that being naked, masturbating and watching porn in front of her was “exciting” because he knew it’s something he isn’t supposed to do. He admitted to having the girl touch him while he did this. The girl described in detail to Lawrence Police Officer Lindsay Bishop what Saluto had been doing. She also described in detail some scenes from the pornographic videos he showed her, the Journal-World previously reported. Saluto had no criminal history and the sentence he received was the maximum allowable for the crime under Kansas sentencing guidelines. The offenses cannot be expunged.
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Kansas Red Cross Volunteers Deployed to Help Victims of Hurricane Laura
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – The American Red Cross in Kansas and Oklahoma deployed nearly 30 volunteers ahead of Hurricane Laura. KSNW reports some volunteers will have boots on the ground and others will be providing virtual relief. It's anticipated that more than 700 Red Cross volunteers and staff from across the nation have been or will be sent to the Gulf Coast to assist in disaster recovery. Contributions can be made to the American Red Cross by visiting Redcross.org.
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ATF Offers $5,000 Reward for Information on Kansas City Church Fire
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WDAF) — The Kansas City Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) are offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest of a suspect accused of setting a church on fire. According to FOX4 news, officials say around 3 am Wednesday, a man set a fire to the Beyond Thee Four Walls Outreach Ministry Church located at 5910 E. US 40 Highway. Police have released a short video of the suspect starting the fire. As seen in a video, the suspect appears to have long dreadlocks. Anyone with information is asked to call the Crime Stoppers TIPS Hotline at (816) 474-TIPS. All calls can remain anonymous. Those with information can also anonymously contact the ATF’s KC field division at 1-888-ATF-TIPS.
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Kansas Man Sentenced for Yelling Slurs, Kicking Black Child
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man who kicked a Black child and yelled racial slurs in a Wichita grocery store will be sent to prison after failing at rehabilitation efforts. Trace Riff was sentenced Thursday to two years and four months in prison. Prosecutors say he kicked the 1-year-old boy in December 2018 while the child was in a store with his pregnant mother and an older sibling. He pleaded no contest in May 2019 to attempted aggravated battery, disorderly conduct and drug charges. Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett said rehabilitation efforts for Riff had failed. Riff's family and attorney say he suffers from mental health issues and a drug addiction.
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Autopsy: Topeka Man Died When Caught in Recycling Truck
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An autopsy says a Topeka man died accidentally in March when the dumpster he was in was dumped into a recycling truck. An autopsy made public this week says 62-year-old Paul Vigil died from multiple injuries in a cardboard recycler. Vigil's body was found March 9 by landfill employees among recycling materials. The autopsy by county coroner John Ralston said Vigil suffered gaping cuts to his left back and left upper chest and fractures to his skull, bones, and multiple ribs. Foul play is not suspected. He died on a day when Topeka received almost an inch of precipitation and had a morning low of 36 degrees.
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Washburn University Removed Jefferson, Franklin Statues
LIBERTY, Mo. (AP) — Washburn University officials have removed statues of Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin from the school's campus in Topeka. School spokesman Patrick Early said Thursday that university officials were concerned the statues would be vandalized or become an embarrassment for their donors. He says the family of the statues' donor asked for their return. Statues of Jefferson and other historical figures have been targeted this year because they honor slaveholders. Early says students had questioned the propriety of the statues in the past but that their removal wasn't in response to a protest or student request.
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Former Emporia State Employee Wins Back Pay for Retaliation
EMPORIA, Kan. (AP) — A federal judge has awarded a former Emporia State employee about $64,000 in a lawsuit that contended her contract was not renewed when she complained about racial discrimination. Angelica Hale and her husband, Melvin Hale, who are Black, filed separate lawsuits in 2016 alleging the school retaliated against them for complaining after a note with a racial slur was found in their department. A judge ruled in Angelica Hale's favor in July 2019 but awarded her only $1 in damages. After further motions were filed, the judge on Thursday awarded Angelica Hale $64,303 in back pay and interest. Her husband's lawsuit against the school was dismissed in July 2019.
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Suit: Female Ex-Boy Scout Faced Harassment, Discrimination
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A 17-year-old who was at one time a female Boy Scout member alleges in a lawsuit against a Kansas City-area branch that she experienced sexual harassment and discrimination before she was fired as a staff member. KCUR reports the girl's lawsuit against the Heart of America Council says Boy Scout staff members engaged in drunken parties and barged in on women as they changed at camp. The girl, identified in the lawsuit as Jane Doe, contends she was punished for things male staff members got away with before she was sent home from the H. Roe Bartle Scout Camp after just 12 days. The Heart of America Council did not respond to a request for comment.
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Wichita Dad Walking to D.C. to Raise Awareness for Son
CUMBERLAND, Md. (KPR) — A man from Wichita, who set out on foot in June to meet with Kansas Governor Laura Kelly, then headed to Milwaukee, passed through Western Maryland this week on his way to this weekend’s Commitment March in the nation’s capital. The Cumberland Times-News reports that Michael Swapsy Sr. is walking to raise awareness of the guidelines that allowed for the abuse he said his then 8-year-old son suffered after an incident at his elementary school in February. Swapsy’s son, Micheal Swapsy Jr., who has a disability, was handcuffed for 13 minutes before then having his hands tied and a spit mask put over his head, Michael Swapsy Sr. said. The discipline stemmed from an incident where the boy was triggered during an assignment. “What you’ve got is restraint and seclusion, which I didn’t know anything about,” said Swapsy Sr., an Illinois native who recently moved to Kansas from Florida and was unaware of such policies until it happened to his child. “They did more than just handcuff him, they brutalized him, an 8-year-old with a disability. If I tie my kid’s hands up, I’m going to jail. So I don’t understand how the school system has the ability to do that to children.” Restraint and seclusion guidelines, which are supposed to be used to allow schools to restrain and separate students that pose a threat to other students and educators as a last resort, are often controversial, as there are no federal laws governing how they can be used.
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Former Kansas Insurance Department Building Goes on Auction Block
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) — An historic building in downtown Topeka is going up for auction next week. The state is selling the former Kansas Insurance Department building. It was constructed in 1924 as the Topeka Woman’s Club. It later housed the Insurance Department until that agency moved to a different location last year. The old building includes many stained glass windows, chandeliers, and lots of office space. Auctioneers say the building would be a perfect spot for a law firm, or any business with employees who need to interact with lawmakers. Marty Higgenbotham, Auctioneer, said, “There’s no buildings being built like it today, period. They just don’t come like this, you just don’t see the character being built today that this building exudes. Fabulous oak floors throughout the building as an example. I went all the way to the top, it’s concrete and steel, I mean this building is built to take on the weather.” The property has an appraised value of $1,464,900, according to the Shawnee County Appraiser’s Office. Higginbotham Auctioneers announced on its website that the auction will take place both live and online at 11 am Wednesday, September 2.
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Kansas City Won't Jail People for Unpaid Parking Tickets
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) _ Kansas City will end the practice of jailing people who don't pay tickets for parking violations or other non-moving citations. The City Council on Thursday approved a measure, which will take effect Oct. 15. It is the latest effort to reform local criminal justice laws to keep people out of jail for low-level offenses. Under the change, if a violator doesn't pay the fine, it becomes a personal obligation and the city can use other means to collect it. The city has already decriminalized most marijuana possession cases and is considering ways to divert people with mental health or addiction problems from jail.
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