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Headlines for Thursday, February 6, 2020

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UPDATE: KBI Identifies Man Killed During Officer-Involved Shooting in Topeka

TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) — The Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) has identified the man who was shot Wednesday during an officer involved shooting in Topeka.  The KBI says 33-year-old Gaston A. Nava-Saucedo, of Topeka, was shot during the incident. He died from his injuries.  The investigation is ongoing. The KBI says no further information will be released at this time.

Earlier reporting -

Kansas Trooper Injured, Suspect Shot During Traffic Stop

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper who attempted to arrest a male driver during a traffic stop was dragged by the fleeing car before firing multiple shots at the subject. Both were transported to a local hospital, where the trooper was treated for his injuries and released. The driver's condition wasn't immediately available. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation says the driver briefly exited his vehicle before fleeing. Preliminary information indicates the trooper was dragged by the fleeing car and during the struggle fired at the driver.

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Abortion Measure Appears Short of Passage in Kansas House

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A measure aimed at preserving the Republican-controlled Kansas Legislature's power to regulate abortion appears to be short of the support it needs to pass the state House and get on the ballot. The House gave first-round approval today (THUR) to a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution to overturn a Kansas Supreme Court decision last year protecting abortion rights. Today's (THUR) vote was 80-41 and sets up another, final vote Friday to determine whether the amendment is put to a statewide vote in the August primary election. But supporters need a two-thirds majority of 84 votes in the 125-member House on Friday.

Earlier reporting...

Vote to Put Abortion Measure on Kansas Ballot Seen as Close

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas legislators are expecting a close vote on a measure aimed at preserving their power to regulate abortion. Backers aren't sure they have enough support yet to get it on the ballot. The Kansas House is set to debate a proposed amendment to the state constitution to overturn a Kansas Supreme Court decision declaring access to abortion a "fundamental" right under the state's Bill of Rights. House members expect a final vote Friday to determine whether the measure goes on the August primary ballot after the Senate passed it last month. Approval by a simple majority of voters would change the constitution.

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Abortion is Unlikely Complication in Senate Race in Kansas

OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — A fight in the Kansas Legislature over protecting its power to restrict abortion has become an unlikely complication in the Republican primary race for an open U.S. Senate seat even though the top GOP candidates all oppose abortion. Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle is campaigning for higher office as state lawmakers seek to put a proposed anti-abortion amendment to the state constitution on the ballot. Wagle has been pointing to her work for the amendment to boost her campaign. Meanwhile, many Republicans see the GOP race as a contest between immigration hardliner Kris Kobach and Kansas Congressman Roger Marshall of Great Bend.  

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Part of Hutch Prison on Lockdown Following Inmate Disturbance

HUTCHINSON, Kan. (KPR) - Part of the Hutchinson Correctional Facility remains on lockdown with weekend visitation canceled.  Officials announced today (THUR) that the Central Unit was placed on lockdown following an inmate disturbance on Tuesday.  The disturbance resulted in the battery of five correctional officers.  Starting Saturday, weekend visitation has been canceled for the Central Unit only.

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Man Accused of Killing Wisconsin Brothers Appears in Court

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) - A man accused of killing two brothers from Wisconsin made his first in-person court appearance in Missouri. Garland Joseph Nelson did not speak during today's (THUR) hearing. A preliminary hearing date was set for March 24. Nelson, of Braymer, is accused of killing 35-year-old Nick Diemel and 24-year-old Justin Diemel, 24, of Shawano County, Wisconsin. A probable cause statement says the brothers visited Nelson to collect a $250,000 debt. Their remains were found in Missouri and Nebraska. The brothers were reported missing July 21 after they failed to show up for a flight home.

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Kansas Lawmaker Pursues Bill on Transgender Youth in Sports

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A conservative legislator in Kansas is pursuing a proposal to prevent transgender high school and middle school students from playing on sports teams aligned with their gender identities. LGBTQ rights advocates are trying to kill it even before he can formally introduce it. The LGBTQ rights group Equality Kansas had a Statehouse news conference today (THUR) to denounce the proposal from Republican Representative Michael Capps, of Wichita. Capps told reporters that his goal is "athletic protection for girls." But Kansas City-area Democratic Representative Brandon Woodard called the bill "repugnant" and said, "Bills like this are why young LGBTQ kids die by suicide."

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Plan for Work Requirement is Focus of Kansas Medicaid Debate

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republicans expect to consider a work requirement when a Kansas legislative committee this week begins debating a bipartisan bill for expanding Medicaid, and that's despite opposition to the idea from a GOP leader. The Republican-controlled Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee is starting its debate Thursday on a bill containing an expansion plan from Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning, a Kansas City-area Republican. A final committee vote on the entire bill is expected next week. Denning acknowledges that work requirements are "a popular idea in Medicaid expansion," but he and Kelly are urging lawmakers to reject the idea now.

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Kansas Case Spurs U.S. House Panel Inquiry on Judicial Harassment

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The U.S. House Judiciary Committee questioned the adequacy of the protections against workplace harassment and misconduct in the judicial branch after a federal judge in Kansas was publicly reprimanded for sexually harassing female employees and having an extramarital affair with an offender. The Judicial Council for the 10th U.S. Circuit admonished U.S. District Judge Carlos Murguia last September for subjecting employees to sexually suggestive comments, inappropriate text messages and  non-work contact.  Today (THUR), the committee said in a letter to the Judicial Conference of the United States and to Chief Judge Julie Robinson of the District of Kansas, that the Judicial Council's findings "document very troubling workplace behavior by an active judge that was never reported."

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Remains of Kansas Man Killed During Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor Identified

SOUTH HAVEN, Kan. (AP) — The remains of a Kansas man who was killed 78 years ago when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor have been identified. The Wichita Eagle reports that U.S. Navy Fireman First Class Rex Wise will be buried in April near his home in South Haven, near the state's southern border with Oklahoma. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced Tuesday that Wise was accounted for in fall 2019. The 21-year-old was serving aboard the USS Oklahoma when torpedoes hit the ship, killing 429 people aboard.

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UPDATE: Wichita Woman Convicted of Beheading Ex-Boyfriend's Mother

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) - A Wichita woman has been convicted of first-degree murder in the decapitation death of her ex-boyfriend's mother, whose head she left in the kitchen sink. Prosecutors say Rachael Hilyard cut off 63-year-old Micki Davis' head using two steak knives on April 9, 2017. Hilyard was convicted today (THUR)
and sentencing is set for March 27. A prosecutor said the 38-year-old Hilyard attacked Davis without provocation then grabbed a knife "to finish what she started." Hilyard testified that she thought Davis was dead when she cut off her head. Her defense attorney says his client made bad decisions with horrible consequences.

Earlier reporting...

Kansas Woman on Trial in Beheading of Ex-Boyfriend's Mother

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas woman is on trial for murder in the decapitation of her ex-boyfriend's mother whose body was discovered in the suspect's garage and her head was dumped in the kitchen sink. Rachael Hilyard, of Wichita, is charged with first-degree murder in the April 2017 killing of 63-year-old Micki Davis. The trial got underway Tuesday. The Wichita Eagle reports that prosecutors said they would introduce evidence including testimony from the police officers who discovered Davis' body in Hilyard's garage, a taped law enforcement interview with Davis' 9-year-old grandson who called 911 when Hilyard attacked his grandmother, and photos of the crime scene.

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Body Found in Cowley County Likely that of Wichita Murder Victim

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) - Wichita police say they believe a body found in Cowley County is that of a 50-year-old homicide victim from Hutchinson. Police spokesman Charley Davidson says the body was found during an investigation into the death of Jerry Jones. KAKE-TV reports the body was found in a structure in northwest Cowley County. Forensic scientists will make a positive identification. Fifty-three-year-old Jefferey Hill is charged with second-degree murder in Jones' death.Police have said a man reported Hill's involvement in a homicide in December and said Jones' body was buried at an unknown location outside of Wichita.

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Kansas Man Takes Deal in Nebraska Car Crash that Killed 4 Iowans

OGALLALA, Neb. (AP) — A Kansas man charged with the Nebraska collision deaths of four Iowa motorcyclists has taken a plea deal. Jeser Cisneros-Hernandez, of Liberal, pleaded no contest Tuesday in Ogallala to reckless and willful vehicular homicide. Prosecutors dropped three more counts and two other charges in return for his pleas. His sentencing is scheduled for April 3. Prosecutors have said Cisneros-Hernandez's vehicle hit two motorcycles carrying two people each on July 1, 2017, near Ogallala, Two of them were Sheila and James Matheny, from Bedford, Iowa. The other motorcyclists were Michal and Jerolyn Weese, who lived in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

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Kansas Insurance Agent Sentenced to Probation for Fraud

SMITH CENTER, Kan.  (AP) — A Kansas insurance agent has been sentenced to three years of probation and fined $3,000 for fraud that included filing false claims against the insurance policies of her customers and keeping the payments for herself. The Kansas attorney general's office announced in a news release that 42-year-old Trisha Wiehl, of Smith Center, was sentenced Wednesday for several dozen counts, including insurance fraud, theft and forgery. Besides filing false claims that netted her $100,000, Wiehl also took money from the city of Smith Center and a local business and kept the money for herself instead of submitting the money as payment for insurance premiums.

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KC Police Chief Lauds Officer Restraint During Car Chase at Chiefs' Parade

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Kansas City officials are praising the decision-making and restraint shown by the officers who stopped an allegedly impaired driver who led police on a chase along the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl parade route. Prosecutors on Thursday charged 42-year-old Addae Doyle, of Kansas City, Kansas, with resisting arrest, possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor driving while intoxicated. Kansas City Police Chief Rick Smith said at a news conference that the arresting officers avoided hitting the speeding car along the route or shooting the driver because they didn't want the car to veer off course and hit fans. No one was hurt and the parade went off hours later without a hitch.

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Head Coach Andy Reid Tells Parade-Goers the KC Chiefs Will Win Again Next Year

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of Kansas City Chiefs fans braved sub-freezing wind chills to celebrate the team's first Super Bowl victory in 50 years. If head coach Andy Reid is to be believed, they'll be back for an encore next year. Fans lined the 2-mile parade route on Wednesday to thank their football heroes for bringing the Lombardi Trophy back to Kansas City and ending a Super Bowl drought that began after the Chiefs won Super Bowl IV in 1970. Hours before the parade, police stopped a car driven by an apparently impaired driver who drove through a barricade and along the parade route. The driver and another person were arrested.

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Winter Storm Blamed for Multi-Vehicle Pileup in Missouri

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A winter storm has caused a multi-vehicle pileup on an Interstate 70 bridge in central Missouri but mostly missed a parade to celebrate the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory. The National Weather Service initially predicted 2 inches to 3 inches of snowfall Wednesday along the parade route. But National Weather Service meteorologist Jimmy Barham said the storm shifted slightly, sparring fans from all but a few flurries. Snowfall was heavier to the east, where several tractor-trailers and passenger vehicles collided around noon on a Rocheport bridge, shutting down westbound traffic on the interstate.

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Snowfall Blankets Texas, Oklahoma; Deep South Expects Storms

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — A winter storm is bringing snowfall as far south as El Paso, Texas, while areas of the Deep South are at risk of severe weather including tornadoes and torrential rains. The National Weather Service says winter storm warnings and advisories are in effect from eastern New Mexico to the St. Louis metropolitan area on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Storm Prediction Center says severe storms are possible across much of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama later in the day. In Oklahoma, the heavy snow prompted the closure of the state Legislature, and dozens of traffic wrecks were reported in the Oklahoma City area.

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Project Preserves Historic Kansas Public Radio, TV Programs

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A collaborative effort is underway to preserve and make accessible historic television and radio programs produced by public media stations in Kansas. KMUW Radio and The American Archive of Public Broadcasting said in a news release Wednesday that the online collection will be digitized from deteriorating and obsolete formats. It will showcase statewide coverage of social issues, commentary, public reporting and history from more than 70 years of archival collections in the state. More than 3,000 programs are expected to be preserved during the two-year Kansas Public Media Preservation Project.

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U.S. Army Corps Increases Water Flow into Lower Missouri River

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - The amount of water being released into the Missouri River from Gavins Point Dam has been increased to free up more space in the reservoirs upstream before spring. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Thursday that the amount of water flowing out of Gavins Point on the Nebraska-South Dakota border had been increased to 35,000 cubic feet (991.09 cubic meters) per second. The current releases from Gavins Point dam are more than double what is typical for this time of year. The Corps is working to clear out as much space as possible in the reservoirs ahead of what is expected to be another wet year.

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