Police: Man Upset with Mask Mandate Threatened Wichita Mayor
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a retired firefighter who was upset with a mask ordinance in the city of Wichita has been arrested on suspicion of threatening to kidnap and kill the mayor. The Wichita Eagle reports that police say 59-year-old Meredith Dowty could face a charge of criminal threat. Democratic Mayor Brandon Whipple said someone had read him text messages received by another city official that asked about the mayor’s address and threatened his life. Whipple says the suspect talked about tyranny in the messages and was upset about the mask mandates and not being able to see his mother because of coronavirus restrictions.
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Kansas Counties Face Patchwork of COVID Mask Rules for Poll Workers
BELLE PLAINE, Kan. (AP) — Kansas counties are making their own rules about whether to require poll workers to wear masks as the public votes. Secretary of State Scott Schwab has not issued a mandate requiring masks for poll workers statewide, even though the state spent $1.28 million to buy personal protective equipment for every polling location. Schwab's spokeswoman says every county election office works with its local health department to determine COVID-19 protocols. That's created a patchwork of masking practices around the state. While the state’s more urban counties generally require poll workers to mask up, rural counties often don't.
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Police Officer Shot, Another Man Wounded in Lyons Shooting
Authorities say a police officer and another man were injured by gunfire in Kansas. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation says the Lyons police officer was shot after responding to a 911 call Friday afternoon from a man who said he had been threatened with a gun. The bureau says 36-year-old police officer Cory Ryan was shot multiple times by a man who lived there. Two bystanders who saw the shooting drove the officer to a hospital in their vehicle. Additional officers then found a 56-year-old Lyons man outside who had also been shot. Ryan was listed Saturday in critical, but stable condition.
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Kansas Deputy Shoots Colorado Driver of Stolen Vehicle
COLBY, Kan. (AP) — Law enforcement authorities say a Thomas County sheriff’s deputy shot and wounded the driver of a stolen vehicle at a rest stop in northwest Kansas. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said in a news release The deputy was responding Friday night to a report of a stolen vehicle from the Pilot Travel Center. The deputy located the vehicle about 10 miles west of Colby, Kansas. The deputy shot 24-year-old Jackson Bayer of Colorado during the encounter. Bayer is in stable condition with non-life threatening injuries.
