Hundreds Turn Out for "Vote No" Rally in Topeka
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) - Hundreds of abortion rights supporters turned out Saturday for their largest rally at the Kansas Statehouse since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that demonstrators were urging Kansans to vote no on Tuesday's constitutional amendment on abortion. Supporters of the amendment held their own event earlier in the day at the Value Them Both coalition offices in Topeka.
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KCI Sees Major Increase in Confiscated Weapons
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KPR) - Kansas City International Airport is seeing a dramatic rise in the number of guns people are trying to take through security. KCTV-5 reports that TSA agents at KCI confiscated a near-record 67 guns in 2021. They're already up to 51 guns so far this year. The number of guns confiscated at Missouri airports has increase by 59% over the past four years, well above the nationwide increase of 41%. Eighty-six percent of those guns were loaded.
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Man Sentenced in Leavenworth Bridge Shooting
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (KPR) - A Missouri man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for shooting at drivers on a bridge over the Missouri River in Leavenworth. KCTV-5 reports that 39-year-old Jason Westrem of Houston Lake, Missouri, fired more than 20 rounds at construction workers and drivers stopped on the Centennial Bridge in May 2020. Authorities said Westrem was shooting an AR-15 style weapon and a handgun. In May, he pleaded no contest to attempted first-degree murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He was stopped when an active-duty soldier at Fort Leavenworth struck Westrem with his vehicle.
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Pedestrian Run Over by KC Bus
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KPR) - A man is hospitalized in critical condition after being run over by a Kansas City bus. The Kansas City Star reports that the man allegedly grabbed at a Ride KC bus as it was pulling away from a bus stop Saturday afternoon, slipped and fell, and was run over by the rear wheels of the bus. The man's name has not been released. Kansas City police are investigating the accident.
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Wichita Low-Income Clinic Temporarily Closes
WICHITA, Kan. (KPR) - A clinic for low-income pregnant mothers, infants, and children in Wichita is closing amid a staffing shortage. The Wichita Eagle reports that the Stanley Clinic of the Sedgwick County WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) program will be closed until the county can hire three registered dietitians and one registered nurse to operate the clinic. In a news release, the county did not say when the clinic would reopen but that the closure is temporary.