Projected Costs of New Kansas City Airport Project Lowered
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Developers of a new single-terminal airport in Kansas City say the project will be completed for less than originally expected. Airline and city aviation officials said Thursday the airport will be built for $1.5 billion, rather than $1.64 billion. The Kansas City Star reports that news came a day after six of the eight airlines reached a long-awaited agreement on what they could spend to build the terminal. After years of debate, voters in November 2017 overwhelmingly approved replacing the three-terminal Kansas City International Airport with a single-terminal airport. The city has said no taxpayer money will be used on the project, and airlines will be responsible for cost overruns. The project had been delayed while officials waited for the airlines to reach consensus on their costs for the terminal.
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Sex Abuse Case Not Only Time Kansas Judge Showed Leniency
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas judge who blamed two teenage girls for a sexual encounter with a 67-year-old man has spent a decade on the bench overseeing mostly sealed juvenile and child-in-need-of-care cases behind closed doors. Since Leavenworth County Judge Michael Gibbens took over the criminal docket for a retiring district judge last summer his rulings have drawn more scrutiny and criticism. In a widely panned decision in December, the judge eased a man's sentence after saying the sex abuse victims, ages 13 and 14, were "more an aggressor than a participant." Court documents reviewed by The Associated Press show it's not the first time Gibbens substantially departed from Kansas sentencing guidelines in handing down lenient punishments. In one case he gave probation for battery of a police officer.
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Kansas Democrats Attack GOP Tax Plan as Corporate Give-Away
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas Governor Laura Kelly's fellow Democrats are attacking a Republican tax relief plan as a give-away to large corporations. The plan was approved by the GOP-dominated Senate 26-14 on Thursday. GOP leaders have acknowledged that big businesses would benefit but see that as helping the economy. The bill goes next to the Republican-controlled House. It is designed to prevent Kansas residents and businesses from paying higher state income taxes because of changes in federal tax laws at the end of 2017. Most of the relief would go to businesses in the first year. Many Republicans expect Kelly to veto it. GOP leaders fell one vote short of a two-thirds majority in the Senate necessary to override a veto when two moderate Republicans voted no.
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20 Inmates Charged in November Larned Prison Riot
LARNED, Kan. (AP) — Twenty inmates at the Larned Correctional Mental Health Facility face felony charges after a riot at the prison in November. Pawnee County Attorney Doug McNett charged the inmates after a state prison official completed an investigation of the November 6 uprising. McNett said in a news release Wednesday the 20 inmates were primarily responsible for the riots. He says he saw no evidence that inmates breached individual housing units in the prison's Central Unit, and his office is treating the case as four self-contained riots occurring at the same time. State prison officials say Kansas spent $113,000 to repair damage and replace equipment. The Hutchinson News reports the inmates are charged with incitement to riot, criminal damage to property and rioting. The riot was one of several at Kansas prisons in 2017 and 2018.
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Woman Dies After Hitting Snow Plow Amid Latest Winter Blast
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A wintry mix of snow and ice has closed schools, government offices and several universities and caused another deadly wreck in Kansas. The Kansas Highway Patrol says 51-year-old Dana Michelle Thowe was killed early Thursday when she crashed into a snow plow on Interstate 70 in Topeka. The crash happened two days after another driver was killed after losing control on a slick Miami County bridge. Governor Laura Kelly announced she was closing state offices in the Capitol's Shawnee County after the National Weather Service issued a combination of ice storm warnings and winter weather advisories for a large swath of the state. Dozens of districts canceled classes, including Topeka, Lawrence, Wichita and several in suburban Kansas City. Also closing was Emporia State University, the University of Kansas and Pittsburg State University.
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KBI: Father and Son's Death Were Murder-Suicide
REXFORD, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Bureau of Investigation says the deaths of a Kansas father and son were a murder-suicide. Rawlins County emergency responders found the bodies of 74-year-old Gary Withers and 41-year-old Daniel Withers Feb. 1 on a farm in northwest Kansas. The KBI said in a news release Wednesday that preliminary autopsies revealed the elder Withers was killed by a gunshot wound and his death was a homicide. The autopsy findings indicated Daniel Withers died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The KBI says evidence suggests that Danny Withers shot his father, Gary Withers, and then shot himself. The investigation is continuing.
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Wichita Police Investigate Deadly Shooting Near Health Club
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Wichita police are asking for the public's help as they investigate the shooting death of a 22-year-old in northwest Wichita. Officer Paul Cruz says police were called Wednesday evening to investigate a shooting in the parking lot of a Genesis Health Center. Cruz said the caller found Lorenzo Wade lying on the ground and tried to provide help until emergency responders arrived. KAKE-TV reports Wade was pronounced dead at the scene. No arrests have made. Police are working to determine where Wade was shot.
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Ex-Kansas Volunteer Volleyball Coach Charged in Burglaries
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A 23- year-old former volunteer volleyball coach at the University of Kansas is charged with several burglaries and thefts of items such as underwear and swimming suits. Skyler Yee was charged Wednesday with 15 total counts, including four felony counts of burglary. The Kansas City Star reports Douglas County District Court records show the break-ins occurred four times between December 2017 and January of this year at two addresses in Lawrence. Yee was released on bond after a court appearance Wednesday. He was ordered to have no contact with the Kansas volleyball team and members of a Lawrence youth volleyball club. Yee has served as a volunteer assistant volleyball coach for several years. He resigned in mid-January. Defense attorney Casey Meek said Thursday Yee maintains his innocence.
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Nebraska Man Found Dead in Car in Kansas
CLAY CENTER, Kan. (AP) — Kansas authorities say a Nebraska man who was reported missing earlier this week was found dead in his car. Clay County Sheriff Chuck Dunn says the body of 66-year-old Rick Kubes, of Auburn, Nebraska, was discovered Wednesday evening about 3 miles north of Clay Center on Kansas 15. Dunn says an official cause of death hasn't been determined but it appeared Kubes had a medical issue because his vehicle had drifted off the road. The sheriff says Kubes left a home in Clay Center early Sunday to drive to a hospital in Auburn because he was suffering from back pain. A statewide silver alert was issued on Monday when after he didn't arrive at the hospital.
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Koch Family Not Pressing Charges over Gate-Crashing
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The family of conservative billionaire Charles Koch isn't pushing for property damage charges against a man who's accused of driving through the private gate of a home.
The Wichita Eagle reports that 40-year-old Aron James White is charged with ramming an officer's patrol car last month. The collision injured an officer and passenger. But court records show that the residents requested that no charges be filed for damage to their property. Police at the crime scene said White also rammed a private security vehicle before driving through a security gate. Authorities hadn't publicly identified the Kochs as victims in the case, but records show that Chase Koch, the son of Charles Koch, lives at the address listed in police reports.
Koch Industries spokesman Rob Carlton declined a request for comment.
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Kansas City, Missouri, Courthouse to Remain Closed Until February 19
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Jackson County officials say the county courthouse in downtown Kansas City will remain closed until February 19 because of extensive water damage from leaking water lines. The courthouse has been closed since January 31 after it was flooded with more than 10 feet of water and thousands of pounds of mud when a water line broke. The debris poured into the courthouse basement, causing water damage and power outages. Initially, officials expected to open the courthouse within a few days but another water line break occurred on the upper floors, causing water to drain to the floors below. Jackson County Executive Frank White and 16th Circuit Presiding Judge David M. Byrn said Thursday the courthouse is extensively damaged. The Kansas City Star reports the county's insurance will pay for repairs. The county's courthouse in Independence remains open.
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