Kassebaum Supports Democrat Kelly in Kansas Governor's Race
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Former U.S. Senator Nancy Kassebaum, a longtime Republican star in Kansas, is endorsing Democratic nominee Laura Kelly rather than Republican Kris Kobach in the state's gubernatorial election. Kassebaum said in a news release Tuesday that Kelly has displayed bipartisan leadership while serving in the Kansas Senate since 2004. Kassebaum, who served three terms in the U.S. Senate, told The Kansas City Star that she believes Kobach has focused on ways to achieve his goals that are not best for Kansas. Former GOP Governor Bill Graves and more than two dozen other Republicans announced their support for Kelly last week. In response, Kobach's campaign called Kassebaum part of a group of "tired has-beens" who are pretending to be Republicans but who actually left the party a long time ago.
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18-Year-Old Charged with Rape at Kansas Child Welfare Office
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — An 18-year-old has been charged with sexually assaulting a 13-year-old at a suburban Kansas City child welfare office where children have been kept overnight because of a shortage of beds. The Kansas City Star reports that Michael Anthony Hamer was charged last week with rape and aggravated indecent liberties of a child. Bond is set at $500,000. His attorney didn't immediately respond to a message from The Associated Press. Kansas lawmakers and child advocates have been raising concerns for months about keeping children overnight in child welfare contractors' offices. Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe says authorities have dealt with many troublesome issues at the KVC Behavioral Healthcare office in Olathe, where the rape was reported in May. KVC spokeswoman Jenny Kutz says the agency takes "this situation very seriously."
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Kansas Senators Moran, Roberts Want Review of Kavanaugh Allegations
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas Republican senators are backing plans to examine sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. Senators Pat Roberts released a statement Monday saying he agreed with the plan to investigate the allegation. He also said he thinks Democrats have made the nomination process partisan, which he called unfortunate. Professor Christine Blasey Ford says Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were in high school more than 30 years ago. Kavanaugh denies the allegations. Roberts says neither Kavanaugh nor Ford have been treated appropriately by the Democrats. Fellow Kansas Senator Jerry Moran said people who come forward with allegations of abuse or misconduct deserve to be heard. He said he appreciates that Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley plans to hear directly from both Kavanaugh and Ford.
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Missouri Senators Want Review of Claims Against Kavanaugh
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri's U.S. senators want a review of sexual misconduct allegations made against President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Republican Senator Roy Blunt on Monday said the Senate Judiciary Committee should examine the claims before any further action is taken. The committee was set to vote Thursday. Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill says she's "deeply troubled" by allegations raised by Christine Blasey Ford. Ford says Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her more than 30 years ago when they were in high school. Kavanaugh denies the claims. McCaskill is among 10 Senate Democrats up for re-election in states Trump won. She hasn't said how she will vote on Kavanaugh. McCaskill's Republican challenger, Josh Hawley, said sexual misconduct claims shouldn't be disregarded and said Ford and Kavanaugh should be heard under oath immediately.
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ACLU Files Kansas Action Seeking Provisional Ballot Lists
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — The American Civil Liberties Union has petitioned a court seeking lists of Johnson County voters who cast provisional ballots and lists of advance mail ballots rejected because signatures did not match their voter record. Its petition under the Kansas Open Records Act was filed Monday in the name of a liberal activist who challenged Secretary of State Kris Kobach's listing as the GOP nominee for governor on the November ballot after he argued that hundreds of legal votes were not counted in the primary election. It names Johnson County Elections Commissioner Ronnie Metsker as defendant. Election officials did not immediately return messages. The ACLU says people should know whether their vote counted or if people faced any unnecessary barriers to voting. It argues the public interest is in transparency.
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Kansas Takes Over Nursing Home That Couldn't Pay Its Bills
DERBY, Kan. (AP) — Kansas has taken over a nursing home after an inspector found that it was struggling to pay for food, medicine and utilities. The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services said the takeover was necessary to ensure the well-being of the 39 residents of Westview of Derby after the inspector found that the facility had hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid bills. Westview facility administrator told the department that the facility doesn't pay utility bills "until disconnect notices are received" and that he had used his personal credit card "as a back up to ensure the food and pharmacy services are not discontinued." The Wichita Eagle reports that the nursing home is now being operated by Walnut Creek Management. Vice president of operations Michael Levitt says vendors have been notified.
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Man Jailed After Shooting, Standoff in Northeast Kansas
HOLTON, Kan. (AP) — A man is in jail after a fatal shooting and standoff in northeast Kansas. The Jackson County (Kansas) sheriff's office says deputies went to a home in Holton about 3 a.m. Tuesday after a woman reported her son had shot her husband and she was barricaded in a bedroom. Deputies were able to help the woman escape the home. Sheriff Tim Morse said he spoke with the suspect for several hours but the man refused to leave the home. Morse said the suspect fired toward deputies before coming out of the home at 8:30 a.m. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports 73-year-old Gaylen Bohnenkemper of Holton was found dead inside the house. The arrested man was identified as 49-year-old Derrick Bohnenkemper of Holton. He is being held in the county jail.
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2nd Teenager Dies After Car Crashes into Creek near Atchison
ATCHISON, Kan. (AP) — The second of two teenagers trapped inside a car that landed upside down in an Atchison creek on Sunday has died. Sixteen-year-old Regan Moger, of Houston, Texas, died Tuesday at the University of Kansas Hospital, where she was flown after the wreck. Moger was a passenger in the car driven by 16-year-old Zachary Armontrout, of Rushville, Missouri, who died Monday. Three other students in the car escaped serious injury when the vehicle went into Independence Creek. All the teenagers were students at Maur Hill-Mount Academy Catholic High School in Atchison. MSC Radio News reports the school confirmed Moger died Tuesday while surrounded by loved ones. Atchison County Undersheriff Toby Smith said the vehicle crashed through a guardrail before landing in the creek.
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Sheriff: Suspect in Kansas Deputy's Death was Violent Drug Felon
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A man with a history of drug convictions has been identified as the suspect in the fatal shooting of a Kansas sheriff's deputy. The Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office announced Monday that 29-year-old Robert Greeson tussled with Deputy Robert Kunze Sunday afternoon about 20 miles west of downtown Wichita. The deputy was shot once and died at a hospital. Greeson was found dead at the scene with two gunshot wounds. Kansas Department of Corrections records show Greeson had convictions for selling and distributing drugs and for aggravated battery. While incarcerated, he had multiple disciplinary infractions, including for fighting. Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter says the shooting happened as Kunze responded to a report about a man in a stolen black truck who was lurking around two all-terrain vehicles and another pickup.
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Topeka Homicide Trial Ends in Hung Jury
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Prosecutors plan to retry a Kansas man for a deadly shooting after his first trial ended in a hung jury. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that jurors announced Friday that they couldn't reach a verdict on first-degree murder and aggravated robbery charges in the case against Luqman Keys. Shawnee County District Court Judge Mark Braun says Keys was acquitted of the one other charge he faced, which was aggravated burglary. The charges stem from the June 2017 shooting death of 18-year-old Arden King. Topeka police say King and at least one other person had been in an apartment when King was fatally shot. Keys was the only person arrested in King's death. He pleaded not guilty.
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Kansas City Revokes Officers' Award for 2013 Fatal Shooting
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Police Department has rescinded commendations given to two officers involved in the fatal shooting of an unarmed man. The commendations were awarded after Ryan Stokes was shot to death in 2014. The certificates say the victim had a handgun but police have acknowledged since then that Stokes was not armed when he was shot. The Board of Police Commissioners voted on Monday to rescind certificates given to officers William Thompson and Tamara Jones. The Kansas City Star reports Thompson shot Stokes after a foot chase near the Power & Light District. Jones was on the scene but didn't shoot. Stokes' mother, Narene Stokes-James, has sued the police department in her son's shooting. No criminal charges were filed and a grand jury declined to indict Thompson.
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Topeka Police Chief Pledges More Transparency After Shooting
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Topeka's police chief says a man's shooting death by two officers last year has transformed law enforcement in the city. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the Topeka Police Department would now handle the aftermath of a police shooting differently compared to the case of Dominique White. The 30-year-old was shot by two officers September 28. The officers didn't face any criminal charges. Police Chief Bill Cochran says the department would like to be in contact with the agency investigating the case to increase transparency with Topeka residents. The department is collaborating with other eastern Kansas law enforcement agencies and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation on handling police shootings. Cochran says Topeka police want to be more responsive and accessible to the public in the future.
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Haskell to Celebrate Native American Veterans of World War I
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Haskell University's Cultural Center and Museum is planning to celebrate Native Americans who served in World War I. The center's director, Jancita Warrington, said 415 Haskell students, faculty and alumni enlisted in the war, even though they could not claim citizenship until six years after the war ended. The celebration, "Keeping Legends Alive," will be held Sept. 21 and 22, hosted by the center and the city of Lawrence. The Lawrence Journal-World reports the event will include a celebration of veterans, a powwow and several other activities. It also will remember the 1926 dedication of Haskell Memorial Stadium, which was one of the biggest events in the city's history. At the time, Haskell Institute was a boarding school for Native American children. It became accredited in 1927.
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Dirty Kanza Bike Race Sold to Minnesota Company
EMPORIA, Kan. (AP) — The founder of a popular gravel bicycle race in Kansas says the race has been sold to a Minnesota company. Dirty Kanza co-founder Jim Cummins announced that the event, which begins and ends in Emporia, will be owned by Life Time Fitness, based in Chanhassen, Minnesota. The company operates athletic resort destinations and athletic events across the country, including other cycling events. Cummins said he and the current operating board will continue to lead the race. The Dirty Kanza race began in 2006, with 34 participants. By 2018, the event attracted so many riders that participation was capped at 2,750 riders. It offers participants a chance to ride four distances — 200, 100, 50, and 25 miles.
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6-Year-Old Hit by Softball Comes Home from Hospital
FORT SCOTT, Kan. (AP) — A 6-year-old Kansas girl who was hit in the head by an overthrown softball has come home after spending two months in the hospital. KOAM-TV reports that Paizlee Crumby, of Fort Scott, was rushed to Children's Mercy Hospital on July 14 after being knocked unconscious. Doctors removed the right side of her skull to remove a blood clot. They also operated twice to drain fluid from on her brain. Now that Paizlee is home, she spends her time with her kittens and playing the game "Trouble." Paizlee says she wins "all the time." She is being homeschooled until she undergoes an operation to replace the right side of her skull. For now, a helmet protects the exposed part of her brain. She also will need speech and physical therapy.
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Kansas Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Child Sex Crimes
COLUMBUS, Kan. (AP) — A 28-year-old Kansas man has been sentenced to life in prison for sex crimes involving a child. Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt say Timothy Russell Frobish, of Galena, was sentenced Tuesday to life without the possibility for parole for 25 years. Frobish was found guilty by a Cherokee County jury in January 2015 of several sex and drug-related crimes, with three of the counts subject to Jessica's Law, which allows the sentence Frobish received. Frobish also will be subject to lifetime post-release supervision and electronic monitoring. Prosecutors say the crimes occurred in February 2013.
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Riley County Officer Named Hutchinson's New Police Chief
HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) — A longtime officer of the Riley County Police Department will become Hutchinson's new police chief. The Hutchinson News reports Jeffrey Hooper, who is currently a captain in Manhattan, will take over the chief's job on October 22. He succeeds Dick Heitschmidt, who retired. Hooper has been with the Riley County Police Department for 27 years, including the past 14 as a captain. He has also been an officer, detective, sergeant, and lieutenant. The Riley County Police Department is a combined law enforcement agency for the city of Manhattan and Riley County. Hooper has a bachelor's degree in Sociology/Criminal Justice from Kansas State University and is a graduate of the 213th FBI National Academy.
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Shortage of Long-Haul Truck Drivers has Industry Considering 18-Year-Olds
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A nationwide shortage of truckers has some industry officials and national lawmakers supporting a plan to allow 18-year-olds to become long-haul drivers. But some industry officials, like Jeffrey Steinberg, director of the APEX CDL Institute in Kansas City, Kansas, thinks that's a bad idea, even though the institute trains truckers and would likely see an increase in enrollment. The Kansas City Star reports bills are before both the U.S. House and U.S. Senate that would allow under-21 holders of commercial drivers' licenses to take cargo across state lines. The Senate bill was co-sponsored by Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas. The Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association, headquartered in Grain Valley, Missouri, agrees with Steinberg. It has joined more than a dozen traffic safety groups in protesting to a congressional committee that will consider the idea.
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