U.S. Attorney General Touts Operation LeGend in Kansas City
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — U.S. Attorney General William Barr says a federal task force working with local and state law enforcement officials to combat violent crime has been making a difference since it was launched last month. Barr stopped in Kansas City Wednesday to tout Operation LeGend, an anti-crime task force named after a 4-year-old Kansas City boy who was fatally shot June 29 while he slept. The program has since expanded to eight other cities, including St. Louis. Officials say the operation in the Kansas City area has already resulted in the arrest of 18 homicide suspects and the seizure of more than 70 firearms. In St. Louis, 25 defendants have been charged with federal crimes under the program. Barr said more than 1,500 arrests have been made nationwide. The operation has also allocated $78.5 million in grants to fund more police officers and, in some cities, more prosecutors. Federal money has also been used to improve crime-fighting technology, particularly in firearms crimes. Some civil rights organizations in the Kansas City area have criticized the effort, saying the focus should be on the root causes of violent crime, with funds moved from law enforcement to social programs and education. Barr went on to say the work on Operation LeGend in Kansas City is just getting started. While September was a projected end date for the program, KMBC TV reports that Barr said federal resources will not be pulling out of Kansas City in September and federal authorities will continue to have a strong presence in the area.
Kansas City police and federal agents involved in Operation LeGend arrested a suspect in LeGend Taliferro's death on August 13. Ryson Ellis, 22, of Kansas City, has been charged with second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action. LeGend's parents have been staunch supporters of Operation LeGend, and his mother, Charron Powell, said at Wednesday's news conference that she appreciated law enforcement's efforts to make an arrest. She urged community members to help law enforcement solve other murders.
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Ex-Trump Adviser Steve Bannon Charged in Border Wall Scheme
NEW YORK (AP/Kansas News Service) — Former White House adviser Steve Bannon has been arrested on charges that he and three associates ripped off donors to an online fundraising scheme to build a privately funded wall on the Mexico border. The charges were contained in an indictment unsealed Thursday in Manhattan federal court. Prosecutors say the organizers of the “We Build The Wall” group portrayed themselves as eager to help the president erect the barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border, as he had promised during the 2016 campaign. The group raised more than $25 million from thousands of donors and pledged that 100% of the money would be used for the project. Former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, the group’s general counsel, has not been accused of wrongdoing. Kobach touted the wall-building effort on the campaign trail. He recently lost the Republican primary for a U.S. Senate seat.
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Kansas Reports Nearly 36,000 COVID-19 Cases, 411 Deaths
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP/KPR) _ State health officials say 35,890 coronavirus cases, including 411 deaths, have been identified in Kansas since the pandemic began. The latest numbers from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment were released Wednesday. All but one of the state's 105 counties have recorded cases of COVID-19. Johnson County, in suburban Kansas City, and Sedgwick County, surrounding Wichita, have the most. Wallace County, in western Kansas, has zero cases. An updated list of coronavirus cases in Kansas will be released online Friday.
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Fraternities, Sororities Linked to KU Coronavirus Cases
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — The University of Kansas says early testing as students and staff return to the campus has turned up 89 coronavirus cases, with a large majority involving fraternities and sororities. KMBC-TV reports that 87 students and two faculty or staff members tested positive. Entry testing upon return to campus before the beginning of activities and classes showed a positivity rate of 1.25% for the 7,088 tests conducted so far. Testing is mandatory for students, faculty, and staff who plan to be on the university's campuses in Lawrence or Overland Park before September 7. The university plans to do targeted testing and random sampling later.
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Trump Targets Goodyear over Company's Policy Against Political Attire, MAGA Apparel
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump posted a tweet urging people to boycott Goodyear tires. He was responding to a report that the Ohio-based manufacturer had banned MAGA hats at its factories. The tweet immediately sent the company's stock downward on Wednesday. Trump's tweet came after Fox Business News and other media outlets called attention to a report from WIBW TV on Goodyear's apparent policy concerning political attire in the workplace. The stock lost about 3.8% percent of its value in mid-day trading. Goodyear responded to Trump with a tweet of its own. The company said it simply asks employees to “refrain from workplace expressions in support of political campaigning for any candidate or political party, as well as similar forms of advocacy that fall outside the scope of racial justice and equity issues.”
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Kansas Athletics Seeking $20 Million Emergency Line of Credit
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — University of Kansas Chancellor Douglas Girod is seeking permission to obtain a $20 million, short-term line of credit in case the coronavirus pandemic significantly modifies the 2020 football and basketball seasons. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that Girod said in an email calling an emergency meeting of the governing board that oversees Kansas Athletics that the line of credit is just to provide “emergency liquidity.” Girod said the credit would also allow Kansas Athletics to continue its operations in such a scenario without having to ask the university for financial assistance. The university is facing a budgeting shortfall of at least $120 million on its own during the current fiscal year.
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Kansas Celebrates 50th Anniversary of Completion of I-70
KANORADO, Kan. (AP) — Kansas officials and a granddaughter of President Dwight Eisenhower are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the completion of Interstate 70 across the state. Mary Eisenhower joined state Transportation Secretary Julie Lorenz and other dignitaries Thursday in unveiling a new highway sign for east-bound I-70 as it leaves Colorado during an event near the border. The sign welcomes motorists to Kansas, notes that it was President Eisenhower’s home and commemorates the June 17, 1970 completion of I-70. President Eisenhower pushed for construction of the interstate highway system in the 1950s. The first stretch of I-70 just west of Topeka was finished in 1956.
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Lawrence Police Arrest Man on Suspicion of Kidnapping
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - Lawrence police have arrested a man suspected of kidnapping an acquaintance. Just before 9 am today (THUR), officers responded to a disturbance call in the 2500 block of West 6th Street. While respodning to the scene, police received information that a female individual was being held against her will by an armed man. The victim, who was known to the suspect, was located unharmed at the scene. Police arrested the suspect, 36-year-old Michael James Edwards, on suspicion of kidnapping. He also faces weapons charges. An affidavit is being prepared for the Douglas County District Attorney.
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Suspicious Death Investigation Underway in Greenwood County
GREENWOOD COUNTY, Kan. (KPR) – The Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office are investigating the death of a Eureka man who was found dead in his home Wednesday night. Around 10:15 pm, the Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office was called to conduct a welfare check at the home. When deputies arrived, they discovered the body of 78-year-old Danny Shue inside. The KBI was asked to assist in the case and is now providing special agents and a Crime Scene Response Team. Anyone with information related to this case is asked to call the KBI at 1-800-KSCRIME.
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Kansas City Man's Death No Longer Believed to be Result of Hit-and-Run Crash
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Authorities are trying to determine what killed a man who was initially believed to be the victim of a hit-and-run crash. Police Captain David Jackson says officers responded shortly before 3 am Thursday after the man was found lying in the street covered in blood. The Kansas City Star reports that the man, who was in his early 20s, was badly injured but was still breathing. He was taken to a hospital where died a short time later. Originally officers thought the victim was injured in a hit-and-run crash. But Jackson said his injuries appeared to be "more suspicious." The man's death is being investigated as a homicide.
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Police Investigate Deadly Shooting of Woman in Wichita
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities are investigating a deadly shooting in Wichita. KWCH-TV reports that police said the shooting happened around 9:20 pm Wednesday. Police Lt. Scott Moon said witnesses have been cooperative. Police are collecting surveillance footage from nearby businesses. No other details were immediately released, including the name of the slain woman.
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Kansas City Officers Plead Not Guilty to Felony Assault in Arrest Case Caught on Camera
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Two Kansas City police officers have pleaded not guilty to felony assault charges arising from their arrest of a Black transgender woman. Officers Matthew Brummett and Charles Prichard entered their pleas this week in the May 2019 arrest of Breona Hill, which was caught on video. The officers originally were charged with misdemeanor fourth-degree assault but the charges were upgraded to felony third-degree assault after a grand jury found the officers pinned Hill to the ground and slammed her head into the pavement while she was handcuffed. A witness who filmed the arrest was convicted of a municipal violation but was later pardoned by Mayor Quinton Lucas.
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Law Enforcement Officers in Lawrence Justified in Fatal Shooting of Homicide Suspect
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas prosecutor has ruled that law enforcement officers were justified in fatally shooting a man linked to two Nebraska killings. Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson announced his findings Tuesday, after reviewing the deadly June 15 shooting of 31-year-old Nicholas Hirsh. Authorities have said they believed Hirsh had been in Kansas since June 12 when a car was stolen from Clay Center. The Marshals Service was helping to look for the vehicle when the Kansas Highway Patrol spotted it near Perry Lake. Troopers pursued the vehicle into Lawrence, where gunfire was exchanged, and Hirsh was killed.
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Second Teen Dead After Kansas Rollover Crash
HAVENSVILLE, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a second teenager has died after a weekend rollover crash in Kansas. The Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s said in a Facebook post that 18-year-old Keaton Blaske died Tuesday. Blaske and 19-year-old Quinton Norris, of Onaga, were ejected when the vehicle in which they were riding went off the side of Kansas 63 early Sunday in rural Havensville. Norris died Sunday at a hospital. It was unclear who was driving. The accident is under investigation.
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Former Fort Riley Soldier, Self-Described "Satanist" Sentenced to 2.5 Years in Bomb Plot
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A former U.S. soldier described by prosecutors as a Satanist has been sentenced to 2.5 years in federal prison for distributing information through social media about building a bomb and making napalm. Twenty-four-year-old Jarrett William Smith has also been linked to a neo-Nazi group by the Anti-Defamation League. On Wednesday, a federal judge rejected a request from Smith's attorney for a lenient sentence of 15 months. Smith pleaded guilty in February to two felony charges of distributing explosives information. Prosecutors have said Smith distributed the information “for the glory of his Satanist religion" and had a plan to overthrow the U.S. government.
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Investigators Continue Search for Oklahoma Girls Missing Since 1999
PICHER, Okla. (AP) — Investigators will continue searching in the former northeastern Oklahoma town of Picher for the remains of two girls who disappeared in 1999. A search for the remains of Ashley Freeman and Lauria Bible at the site of an old root cellar yielded nothing on Tuesday, frustrating investigators who are hoping to bring closure to the girls' families 20 years after they went missing. After failing to find the girls' remains in the root cellar, investigators say they are next planning to search three mine shafts. This week, searchers began excavating a vacant lot in Picher for the remains of the two girls who haven't been seen since December 30, 1999, after Ashley Freeman's parents were found murdered in their burned out mobile home in Welch. The location of the search, in what is today a ghost town, was provided by Ronnie Busick of Wichita. In July, he pleaded guilty to accessory to murder in the case. As part of a plea deal, he is required to provide information leading to the recovery of the remains of the girls, who were both 16 when they vanished.
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Kansas State University Seeks to Improve Wheat Through Gene Editing Technology
MANHATTAN, Kan. (KPR) — Kansas State University and the University of Saskatchewan are teaming up to improve wheat using genome editing technology. World-Grain.com reports that the two schools will cooperate using a $650,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. KSU’s work on the project will be led by Eduard Akhunov, a wheat geneticist. He will work with Harold Trick, a professor in KSU’s Department of Plant Pathology, and his research team. Both will join researchers at the University of Saskatchewan in using genome editing technology to improve productivity and nutrition in the world’s wheat lines. Akhunov said the genome editing is based on technology called CRISPR, which stands for “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats.” The goal of the partnership is to use CRISPR technology to introduce domesticated traits into wild wheat relatives.
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President's Top Virus Adviser Meets with Missouri's Governor
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s top coronavirus adviser has called on everyone to wear masks and refrain from attending parties. After meeting with Missouri's Republican Governor Mike Parson this week, the nation's Coronavirus Response Coordinator, Dr. Deborah Birx, said Democrats and Republicans in Missouri must all wear masks to slow the spread of COVID-19. Birx talked to Parson about enacting a statewide mask mandate similar to one in Texas. The Republican governor in that state, Greg Abbott, issued an order in July requiring masks in counties with 20 or more confirmed coronavirus cases. Parson didn't say if he would enact such a policy for Missouri but said local officials already require masks in the state's hot spots.
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Got Blood? The Community Blood Center of Kansas City Needs Your Donation
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KPR ) — Blood supplies are running low in eastern Kansas and western Missouri. Officials with the Community Blood Center (CBC) are calling on community members to make appointments to visit donor centers. Officials say COVID-19 has fundamentally changed the process of donating blood. Before the pandemic, mobile blood drives hosted by high schools, colleges, businesses and other organizations made up about 70% of the region’s incoming blood supply, but the number of mobile drives has dropped by two-thirds this year as these groups can no longer host them. CBC officials say the start of a new school year presents new and unprecedented challenges. Blood donations typically drop off during the summer and the return to school usually helps make up the difference and stabilize the blood supply. In the past, school and college drives have collected 4,000 blood donations during each school year. “We’ve always relied on the fall to provide a boost in blood donations from high school and college blood drives that are large and well-attended, but we know that’s not happening this time,” said Kim Peck, Senior Executive Director of Community Blood Center. Peck says blood from volunteer donors is needed every two seconds to help meet the daily transfusion needs of cancer and surgery patients, accident and burn victims, newborns and mothers delivering babies, AIDS and sickle cell anemia patients, and many more.
To make an appointment to donate blood, click here. CBC also needs more partners to help host drives in large venues. If you have a space available and would like to host a blood drive, please contact Kay Reeves at (816) 213-2728 or email her at kreeves@cbckc.org. The Community Blood Center of Greater Kansas City serves hospitals in the Kansas City metropolitan area, as well as eastern Kansas and western Missouri.
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Kansas City Chiefs to Prohibit Native American Imagery at Arrowhead Stadium
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs will prohibit the wearing of Native American headdresses, face paint and clothing at Arrowhead Stadium and are discussing the future of the iconic tomahawk chop as they address what many consider racist imagery associated with their franchise. The announcement Thursday comes on the heels of the NFL team in Washington choosing to drop Redskins as its nickname after a long and often contentious dialogue with fans and the public.
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