Kansas Governor Proposes Ending State Sales Tax on Groceries
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Governor Laura Kelly is proposing to eliminate the Kansas sales tax on groceries. The plan outlined by the Democratic governor Monday would save many families hundreds of dollars a year and consumers a total of $450 million a year. She unveiled her proposal three days after Republican Attorney General Derek Schmidt called on the GOP-controlled Legislature to reduce or eliminate the tax next year. Schmidt hopes to unseat Kelly in the 2022 governor’s race. Their support is likely to make reducing or ending the 6.5% state sales tax on groceries a top issue for lawmakers once they reconvene in January. Kansas has the second-highest state sales tax rate on groceries.
(– Additional Coverage –)
Governor Pushing to End High Kansas Sales Tax on Groceries
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Many Kansas families would save hundreds of dollars a year under a proposal from Democratic Governor Laura Kelly to eliminate the state’s sales tax on groceries. The proposal outlined Monday by Kelly would save consumers $6.50 on every $100 of groceries they buy and a total of roughly $450 million a year. The governor unveiled her proposal three days after GOP Attorney General Derek Schmidt called on lawmakers to cut or eliminate the 6.5% tax. With both of them supporting the idea, it's more likely to pass the Legislature after lawmakers reconvene in January. Kelly promised in her 2018 race for governor to reduce or eliminate the tax.
==========
Kansas Lawmakers Meet to Battle Federal Vaccine Mandates
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — A federal appeals in court Louisiana temporarily halted one of Democratic President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates over the weekend. But Kansas lawmakers looking for ways to fight it and an earlier mandate will continue their work Tuesday. A special committee formed by Republican legislative leaders to fight the mandates is ready to start formulating recommendations to the full Legislature. They’ll start that process by getting briefings on both of Biden’s orders. The first, which remains in force, covers federal contractors. The second, the one stayed by the appeals court, covers private businesses with more than 100 employees. Kansas Republican Attorney General Derek Schmidt, a candidate for governor, has joined multi-state lawsuits against both mandates. Democratic Governor Laura Kelly has also come out against the latest order, saying it’s ill-timed and won’t be effective. The Biden administration says it’s confident of winning in court.
==========
Kansas City Leaders Rescind Mask Mandate Outside of Schools
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City, Missouri, City Council has rescinded its order requiring masks in public places to stop the spread of the coronavirus. The City Council voted 11-2 last week to continue to require masks in school buildings and on school buses through December 2. A mask order for everyone 5 years and older expired Thursday afternoon. Mayor Quinton Lucas said the COVID-19 case numbers for adults have trended down, while numbers for children have gone up. The city health department says nearly 49% of Kansas Citians have been vaccinated. There continue to be mask rules in place for city buildings, federal buildings and the Kansas City International Airport, and private businesses still can choose to require them.
-Related -
KC Businesses Hope End of Mandate Means Return of Customers
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Business operators in Kansas City, Missouri, are hopeful that the end of the city’s mask mandate will mean a return of more customers. The Kansas City Council voted last week to rescind the mask order, though it kept the mandate for children and adults in school. Businesses may still ask patrons to wear a mask indoors. Big Mood Natural Wines owner Richard Garcia told the Kansas City Star that the initial response when the business began requiring proof of vaccination was “overwhelmingly positive.” But he says that over time, pandemic fatigue set in.
==========
Kansas Schools Offering Pay Boosts to Keep Teachers
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — School districts in Kansas are scrambling to hold onto teachers and keep classrooms staffed this school year. The Wichita school district will give employees a 1.5% bonus next month (DEC) and another 1% in March in appreciation for sticking it out during the pandemic and an incentive to keep working. For teachers, that’s in addition to a 2.5% raise and 4% bonus they’ll get as part of this year’s contract. It’s an effort to attract and keep workers during a nationwide labor shortage and lingering pandemic. Wichita could spend up to $9 million on the bonuses, which will come from funds budgeted for unfilled positions. The Topeka district announced in September that it’s giving an extra $5,000 to many full-time workers, including custodians and school secretaries. Schools in Salina and Lawrence are also offering retention pay.
==========
Report: Much Kansas Tap Water Contains Toxic Chemicals
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — An environmental advocacy group says drinking water across Kansas contains potentially dangerous levels of chemicals that can cause cancer and birth defects. The Environmental Working Group's new tap water database highlights harmful chemicals, from arsenic to chloroform, that show up statewide. The most common contaminant is nitrate, which has been shown to cause cancer. Levels of nitrate, which can come from fertilizer runoff, are already over the federal limit in some small towns. The report says that as water sources like the Ogallala aquifer are depleted, those harmful chemicals become even more concentrated. That forces treatment plants to add more disinfectants, which increases costs and adds new chemicals byproducts to the water. The environmental group says the rules for chemicals in tap water were set decades ago and haven’t been updated to account for new chemicals or new understanding of the harm they can do. The report shows elevated levels of nitrate in more than 800 Kansas water districts, from Kansas City to Hutchinson to Garden City.
==========
Lawyers Seek to Clear Kansas City Inmate in Three 1978 Killings
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kevin Strickland was convicted of killing three people in 1978 and for more than 40 years, he's been serving time in a Missouri prison. His attorneys will argue in court Monday that he didn't commit those crimes and that he should be released from his cell. Strickland's attorneys are not the only ones who think their client is innocent. Many people, including the Jackson County, Missouri prosecutor, believe Strickland didn't commit the murders and they believe he should be exonerated. The new hearing in his case comes after months of delays caused by legal procedures and canceled hearings. Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, a Republican running for Senate, has said he believes Strickland is guilty. The 62-year-old man has been in prison since his conviction in 1979 in the fatal shootings of Larry Ingram, John Walker, and Sherrie Black in Kansas City.
==========
Culture War Fight Finds Mixed Success in School Board Races
MISSION, Kan. (AP) — School board candidates opposing mask mandates and lessons about racism in U.S. history won in red states and some politically divided districts, but often came up short in their bids to shape policy for school districts over the newest culture war issue., The political tracking website Ballotpedia identified 96 school districts across more than a dozen states where race education and masking were part of the debate. It found that at least one anti-critical race theory or anti-mask candidate prevailed in 35 of the 86 districts in which it has determined winners, or 40%.
==========
Police: 1 Woman Killed, Another Wounded in Wichita Shooting
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Police in Wichita say one woman has died and another has been wounded in a shooting outside a home. Police say the shooting happened around 10:30 p.m. Sunday just west of Highland Cemetery following a disturbance. Arriving officers found two women who had been shot in front of a home. Both were rushed to a hospital, where one of the women died from her injuries. Police have not released the women's names. Wichita Police Lt. Roderick Miller told television station KAKE that investigators were interviewing neighbors and the surviving woman to learn more details of the shooting.
==========
Topeka Man Sentenced for Fatal Crash During Police Chase
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Topeka man convicted of fleeing from police that led to another driver's death has been sentenced to life in prison. Brandon Jordan was sentenced Friday in the death of 69-year-old Dennis Affolter of Topeka. Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay said the chase in November 2019 began after officers received a report of a man trying to pass forged checks at a Topeka bank. The suspect's car eventually ran a red light and hit a vehicle driven by Affolter, who later died of his injuries. Jordan was convicted in August of first-degree murder and several other charges.
==========
Detectives Reopen I-70 Killings Cold Case
ST. CHARLES, Mo. (AP) — A series of killings that happened nearly three decades ago throughout the Midwest and largely along Interstate 70 is getting a new look. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that detectives and federal agents from Wichita, Raytown, Missouri, and the Indiana cities of Indianapolis and Terre Haute met last week with detectives in St. Charles, Missouri, to see if forensic technology and a fresh review could help solve all six crimes. Authorities believe one man, dubbed the “I-70 killer,” was responsible. Most of the victims were women working in shops within views of Interstate 70 and I-35.
=========
Kansas Man Accused of Letting Children Be Sexually Assaulted
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A Lawrence man is accused of allowing children in his care to be sexually assaulted in exchange for rent. A Douglas County judge has ruled that 42-year-old Cormick Ferrell, of Lawrence, should stand trial on two counts of aggravated human trafficking. Prosecutors say Ferrell allowed a former landlord to sexually assault two children in exchange for rent during a period of more than three years. The children were 6 and 7-years-old when the alleged assaults began. Ferrell's attorney, Branden Smith, argued in court that there was no documentation showing Ferrell received any rent assistance in exchange for letting the landlord assault the children. The landlord, Mark Strand, is also facing charges but he's currently in federal prison following a conviction in an unrelated case that involved a minor and sexual activity.
==========
Man Working on RV Dies When It Rolls on Top of Him
NEWTON, Kan. (AP) — Authorities in Harvey County say a 66-year-old Wichita man died when a recreational vehicle rolled off its safety equipment and onto him. The accident happened Saturday afternoon, killing Robert Brooks. Harvey County authorities say Brooks was making repairs to the RV that was partially lifted off the ground with a floor jack and wheel chocks. Brooks was underneath the RV when it rolled onto him. Another person called 911, but Brooks was pronounced dead at the scene.
==========
St. Louis County Man Charged in 2 Deaths, Under Investigation in KCK Homicides
ST. LOUIS (AP) — A St. Louis County man is charged with two separate killings, and police are trying to determine if he was involved in at least four other homicides in Missouri and Kansas. Perez Deshay Reed is suspected of killing a 16-year-old girl and a 40-year-old man in September in St. Louis County. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, citing a police affidavit filed in federal court, says Reed could be tied to at least four other homicides and additional shootings. Police are investigating if Reed killed two people whose bodies were found earlier this month in an apartment complex in Kansas City, Kansas. He is also suspected in at least two St. Louis city killings.
==========
Six Arrested After Fight Breaks Out at Wichita High School
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Six people have been arrested after a brawl outside of South High School in Wichita — the second big fight there in nine days. KAKE-TV reports that four juveniles and two adults were arrested Friday. In the latest incident, a school district spokeswoman says two students were in a fight that was broken up, but relatives of the students went to the school and began fighting in the parking lot, and their students joined in. Police say those arrested are accused of disorderly conduct, battery of a law enforcement officer and interference with law enforcement. Three students wre arrested after a fight at the school nine days earlier.
==========
Eudora Man Dies After SUV Rolls in Southwest Kansas
STANTON COUNTY, Kan. (AP) - A 28-year-old Kansas man has died after his SUV rolled into a ditch in the southwest corner of the state. The Kansas Highway Patrol said Bryce Stude of Eudora was driving a 2001 Chevrolet Tahoe east on U.S. Highway 160 in Stanton County when the crash happened around 11:40 p.m. Friday. The Highway Patrol said Stude overcorrected after the vehicle left the road, and the SUV rolled several times before landing in the ditch. Stanton County is near the Colorado border in southwestern Kansas.
==========
White Kansas City Officer on Trial in Black Man's 2019 Death
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A trial is underway for a Kansas City, Missouri, police officer accused of involuntary manslaughter in a 2019 shooting — the first time that a white officer from the city has been criminally accused of killing a Black man. Officer Eric J. DeValkenaere also is charged with armed criminal action in the death of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb. The officer says he shot Lamb after Lamb pointed a gun at another detective. But DeValkenaere's partner told a grand jury he did not see Lamb with a weapon. The killing was often evoked in protests last year against racial injustice in Kansas City. The Kansas City Star reports the bench trial is expected to last a week.
CORRECTION:
The Associated Press issued a correction to this story on November 19, 2021. The AP, based on a story from The Kansas City Star, reported that the case was the first in which a white officer in the city was charged in the death of a Black person. It was not. Such a case also happened in 1942.
=========
Wichita Police: One Woman Killed, Another Wounded in Shooting
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) _ Police in Wichita say one woman has died and another has been wounded in a shooting outside a home. Police say the shooting happened around 10:30 p.m. Sunday just west of Highland Cemetery following a disturbance. Arriving officers found two women who had been shot in front of a home. Both were rushed to a hospital, where one of the women died from her injuries. Police have not released the women's names. Wichita Police Lt. Roderick Miller told television station KAKE that investigators were interviewing neighbors and the surviving woman to learn more details of the shooting.
==========
Feds Propose Threatened Status for Alligator Snapping Turtle
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing threatened status for alligator snapping turtles -- huge, spike-shelled beasts that lurk at the bottom of slow waterways, luring prey to their mouths by extending a wormlike lure. Every state in their range now protects them, but the lingering effects of catching the reptiles for turtle soup are among reasons their numbers are now so low. They once were found in Kansas and Indiana, but their territory now spans 12 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. The federal agency on Monday posted a preview of a Federal Register notice planned Tuesday.
==========
Kansas and Missouri Drivers Warned to Watch Out for "Lusty" Deer
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Police officials and the AAA auto club are urging drivers to be especially cautious this time of year as collisions with deer become more frequent. The Kansas City Star reports that cooler weather and shorter daylight hours mean it’s breeding season for deer. Kansas City, Missouri, police said on Twitter that “lusty deer” are on the move “and won’t let your car get in the way of their quest for loving.” In 2020, the Missouri State Highway Patrol cited 3,639 crashes involving deer, killing five people and injuring 348. In Kansas, 9,670 deer crashes killed four people and injured 471 others.
=========
Olathe Football Team Wins, Mourns Assistant Coach's Death
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — An Olathe high school football team’s latest win was an emotional one, coming the day after the death of a beloved assistant coach. The Kansas City Star reports that Olathe North beat Olathe Northwest 49-13 on Friday to advance to the Kansas Class 6A sectional round. Just a day earlier, Olathe North assistant Josh Dirks died after a lengthy battle with pneumonia. He was 39 years old. He had been the team’s offensive line coach since 2020. Head coach Chris McCartney said after the game that the win “means everything.”
==========
Kansas City Chiefs Beat Packers at Arrowhead
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KNS) — The Kansas City Chiefs held on to beat the Green Bay Packers yesterday (SUN), 13-7, to win back-to-back games for the first time this season. The Chiefs, who did all their scoring in the first half, got their only touchdown on a one-yard pass from quarterback Patrick Mahomes. For the Packers, Jordan Love played quarterback in place of Aaron Rodgers, who tested positive for COVID last week. Love threw a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter for the Packers.
==========
Big 12 Hoops Could Be a Winner in Latest Conference Shuffle
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Nobody disputes that conference realignment has been driven by the big money from football. But while losing Oklahoma and Texas takes some shine off the Big 12, the league’s basketball coaches believe the addition of Houston, Cincinnati, BYU and Central Florida could make what already is one of the toughest leagues in the country even tougher. Nothing comes without consequences, though, and the Big 12′s gain will have ripple effects on mid-majors from the east coast to the west.
==========
Paralympic Games Wheelchair Tennis Champ Nick Taylor Retires
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Three-time Paralympic wheelchair tennis champion medalist Nick Taylor has announced his retirement. Taylor won 11 Grand Slam doubles titles with David Wagner — seven at the U.S. Open and four at the Australian Open. At the Paralympic Games, they won gold medals in 2004, 2008 and 2012, along with a silver in 2016. Taylor also won the quad singles bronze in 2012. The pair played together at an event at the USTA National Campus in Orlando over the weekend, and it was Taylor’s farewell to competition. Taylor, who is from Wichita and is an assistant tennis coach at Wichita State University, turns 42 this week.
==========
New-Look Jayhawks Ready for Michigan State in New York
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — The University of Kansas men's basketball team returned just about everyone from last year’s NCAA Tournament team. Yet somehow, the third-ranked Jayhawks look completely different heading into Tuesday’s Champions Classic opener against Michigan State in New York City. Their only significant loss was floor leader and defensive stopper Marcus Garrett. And the Jayhawks replaced him by bringing in a group of transfers led by Arizona State star Remy Martin, along with a group of talented freshmen that could see the floor right away. Coach Bill Self expects his team to be nervous against the Spartans.
==========
These area headlines are curated by KPR news staffers, including J. Schafer, Laura Lorson, Kaye McIntyre and Tom Parkinson. Our headlines are generally posted by 10 am weekdays. This news summary is made possible by KPR listener-members. Become one today!