Rural Kansas Lawmakers Push Farm Bureau Health Coverage Plan
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Rural state lawmakers are pushing a plan to allow the Kansas Farm Bureau to offer health insurance coverage to members without having to comply with federal mandates. Backers of the Farm Bureau's bill hope that the influential agriculture group can offer lower-cost coverage. But the proposal is drawing strong criticism from Democrats because the Farm Bureau would not be required to cover people with pre-existing medical conditions. Critics of the Farm Bureau's bill worry that it could lure healthy individuals away from other plans, making them less affordable. The state Senate approved the bill Wednesday on a 28-11 vote , sending it to the House. GOP lawmakers argue the bill would give consumers another choice after spikes in health insurance rates that they blame on the federal Affordable Care Act.
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Kansas House Panel Rejects Same-Day Voter Registration Bill
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Republican-controlled legislative committee has rejected a Democratic proposal to allow Kansas residents to register to vote on the same day they cast their ballots. The House Elections Committee's vote Thursday was 7-5 against the measure. The state's current registration deadline is three weeks before an election. Republicans argued Thursday that the change would increase costs for county election offices. They've worried in the past about potential voter fraud. Same-day registration is a longstanding goal of Democrats and voting-rights groups. They see it as a way to boost turnout. Democratic Representative Tim Hodge of North Newton said: "Why do we want to keep people from voting?" Republicans control the committee because they have a House majority. GOP Rep. J.C. Moore of Clearwater joined the committee's four Democrats in supporting the bill.
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Kansas Man Charged in Death of Mother Who Weighed Just 58 Pounds
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — A suburban Kansas City man who is charged with first-degree murder told investigators that he didn't seek medical care for his ailing mother before she died weighing just 58 pounds and suffering from open bed sores, according to court records. According to the Kansas City Star, the 51-year-old Raymond McManness, of Olathe, also faced a charge of mistreatment of a dependent adult in the death of 75-year-old Sharon McManness. He was jailed on $1 million bond. His attorney didn't immediately return phone or email messages from The Associated Press. His mother, who had dementia, was pronounced dead in January in her Olathe home after McManness called police to report that she wasn't breathing. Police described her as "very emaciated" and said one of her bedsores was "open to the bone," according to the charging documents released Wednesday. McManness told police that he was his mother's primary caregiver and that she refused to be treated by doctors. He said he had been living with her but moved out about six months before she died because she kept him awake at night. He told police he checked on her before and after work, bringing her food as she became bedridden and forcefully opening her mouth in an attempt to get her to eat on the day before she died, the documents say.
Weeks earlier, McManness went to the Kansas Department of Aging and was told he needed to take his mother to a doctor, the records said. But he told police he didn't take her "because he was busy due to the holiday season, and he was scared because he had not been taking adequate care of her," according to the records. Police who searched her home found no medications, no clean clothing, no working telephone and minimal food. They found dog feces and urine throughout the house. Court records say soiled clothes that appeared to be cut off the victim were found in a trash can in the driveway. Preliminary findings from the medical examiner's office said the woman likely died from an infection caused by bed sores. She also was malnourished and dehydrated, and the examination showed she had bruising on her jaw area, wrists and the upper part of her head.
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Remains Identified as Chanute Woman Missing Since 2017
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas authorities say remains found last summer in Neosho County are those of a 39-year-old woman who has been missing since 2017. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said Wednesday that the remains were identified as Marissa Craft, who disappeared from her home in Chanute in December 2017. The remains were found in August in a Neosho County field. The KBI says Craft was last seen on December 15, 2017, when she left her mobile home with three men in a white Dodge pickup. The investigation of Craft's death is continuing.
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Weather-Related Traffic Fatality Reported Near Manhattan
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Highway Patrol says 67-year-old Kansas woman died when she lost control of her vehicle because of snow and ice. The patrol says Ann Marie Lochner, of Manhattan, died early Wednesday when her Chevrolet Blazer left the road because of snowy conditions and overturned in a ravine. The accident occurred in a housing division east of Manhattan. The storm that dropped several inches of snow as it moved across Kansas on Tuesday and early Wednesday prompted schools, businesses and government offices to close or have late start times. Governor Laura Kelly issued a delayed start for non-essential employees in the Capitol's Shawnee County. Several school districts, as well as Emporia State University, the University of Kansas and Baker University started late Wednesday, as did the Army's Fort Riley.
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Mike Pompeo Says He's "Ruled Out" Kansas Senate Bid in 2020
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo appears to be ruling out a Kansas Senate race in 2020. Pompeo, who represented Kansas' 4th Congressional District from 2011 to 2017, says he'll serve as secretary of state as long as President Donald Trump wants him to. Pompeo was asked on NBC's "Today" show Thursday if he's interested in running for the Senate and replied, "I love doing what I'm doing." When an interviewer said Pompeo sounded as though he wasn't ruling it out, Pompeo said, "It's ruled out." Last month, Pompeo deflected speculation he might run for retiring Republican Sen. Pat Roberts' seat, telling Fox News he was focused on his current job.
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GOP Resistance Means New Kansas Governor Off to Rocky Start
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's election created a national buzz about a possible shift to the left in Kansas politics. But many Republicans remain unimpressed and feel little pressure to take up her big initiatives. The GOP-dominated Legislature has yet to have committee hearings on her plan to expand the state's Medicaid health coverage for the needy. It has ignored her call to approve an increase in public school funding by the end of this month. Top Republicans are pursuing a tax relief bill she considers fiscally reckless. Many Republican legislators treat Kelly's victory as a fluke. She won with 48 percent of the vote and her political strength was concentrated in relatively few populous counties. Conservative Republican state Rep. Brenda Landwehr of Wichita said: "She wasn't given a mandate."
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Man Pleads Guilty in Attacks at Larned State Hospital
LARNED, Kan. (AP) — A 22-year-old Kansas man has pleaded guilty in two attacks at the Larned State Hospital. The Pawnee County Attorney said in a news release that Anthony Ruiz-Hernandez, of Topeka, pleaded guilty Wednesday to attempted first-degree murder. Hays Post reports the charge stems from Hernandez's attack on two other patients at the hospital in October 2018. One victim suffered severe head trauma in the attacks. Investigators say the attacks were done partly to improve Ruiz-Hernandez's standing in a prison gang. All the people involved were at the hospital for forensic evaluations. In exchange for the plea, two counts of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and one count of aggravated battery were dropped. A co-defendant in the attacks, Andres Gustavo Barrientos, of Leavenworth, will be arraigned on March 14.
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Girl Charged as Juvenile in Overland Park Teen's Death
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — A 17-year-old Olathe girl has been charged along with an adult suspect in the death of an Overland Park teenager. The girl was charged as a juvenile with first-degree felony murder in the January death of 17-year-old Ben Workman-Greco, who was fatally shot at his apartment. Prosecutors have filed notice that they will seek to have her tried as an adult. The Kansas City Star reports prosecutors allege Workman-Greco was killed during a robbery. Her co-defendant, 21-year-old Alan MIchael Hicks, is charged in Johnson County District Court with first-degree felony murder. He was arrested in Las Vegas last week and booked into the Johnson County jail Wednesday night. Hicks made his first court appearance Thursday. He's being held on $1 million bond.
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Affidavit: Former Kansas Coach Catalogued Stolen Underwear
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Court documents say a former volunteer volleyball coach at the University of Kansas stole dozens of pairs of underwear from players and catalogued them in labeled plastic storage containers. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that the police affidavit released Wednesday says that a search of 23-year-old Skyler Yee's home uncovered a 40-drawer clear plastic storage container. Drawers with underwear tucked inside were labeled with the names of current and former university players and one member of an under-18 volleyball league that he coached. The search also yielded other storage containers, shoes, bras and sex toys from "unidentified owners." Yee was charged earlier this month with 15 counts, including burglary and theft. He resigned last month from his university coaching duties. Defense attorney Casey Meek said previously that Yee maintains his innocence.
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Man on Bicycle Hit, Killed While Crossing Kansas Highway
GALENA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Highway Patrol say a 47-year-old man died when he was struck by a vehicle while riding his bicycle across a highway.The patrol says David Furry, of Galena, died after the collision Wednesday evening on Kansas 66 west of Galena. Furry died at the scene. KAKE-TV reports the 50-year-old woman who was driving the vehicle was not injured.
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Man Charged with Killing 17-Year-Old in Kansas City Suburb
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a 21-year-old man has been arrested in the fatal shooting of a suburban Kansas City teen. The Kansas City Star reports that court records show that Alan Hicks, of Olathe, is jailed on $1 million bond after he was taken into custody Wednesday night. He was charged last month with first-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Ben Workman-Greco. The teen was killed January 23 in an Overland Park apartment, where he had moved about two weeks earlier. No attorney is listed for him in online court records.
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University of Kansas Endowment Raises More than A Million Dollars in One Day
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) _ Officials with the KU Endowment say the organization raised more than $1 million in 24 hours to benefit the University of Kansas. Endowment officials announced Thursday that the 24-hour fundraising event on Wednesday _ known as ``One Day. One KU'' _ raised $1.08 million from 2,635 donors. It was the second 24-hour fundraiser. This year's total raised and number of donors surpassed last year's total of a little more than $730,000 from 1,898 gifts. The largest gift received this year was $100,000. KU Endowment is a separate nonprofit organization from the university, but is the official fundraising organization for the school.
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Man Sentenced for Wounding Teen Amid Fireworks Fray
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A Lawrence man has been sentenced to 17 months in prison for shooting and wounding a 17-year-old girl as several people shot fireworks at him. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that 21-year-old Rashan Gill apologized at Tuesday's hearing, saying through tears that he "will never forget" what happened and that he could have killed the girl. In the early morning hours of July 5, 2018, he shot at a group of people who were firing Roman candle fireworks at him and his apartment. One of the shots hit the girl who was in the group's car. She suffered serious injuries but survived. After a judge rejected Gill's argument that he was justified in the shooting under Kansas's stand-your-ground law, he pleaded no contest in January to attempted aggravated battery.
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Man Arested in Drug-Related Shooting at Wichita Motel
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a man has been arrested in a deadly drug-related shooting outside a south Wichita motel. The Wichita Eagle reports that 34-year-old Justin Gaston was identified Tuesday as the victim. Thirty-one-year-old Christopher Daniel Kemmerly was booked into jail Monday on suspicion of first-degree murder in Gaston's Sunday night killing in the parking lot behind the Citi Host Motel. Kemmerly also was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence. Wichita police Capt. Brent Allred said Tuesday that Kemmerly, Gaston and a 34-year-old woman were all in a car that pulled into the motel parking lot on Sunday evening. An argument broke out over meth, and Gaston was shot. Kemmerly had past convictions for crimes that included aggravated arson, criminal use of explosives, criminal damage to property and a weapons violation.
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Kansas City Zoo Polar Bear with Liver Cancer Euthanized
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City Zoo officials say a polar bear at the zoo has been euthanized because she was suffering from liver cancer. The officials said in a written statement that the bear, Bam Bam, was euthanized Tuesday night after tests showed she had untreatable liver cancer. Zoo officials said Bam Bam, who was 31, was healthy until recently. Preliminary tests done this week showed her liver was failing and further tests confirmed the illness. The bear came to Kansas City last spring from Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo, where she was born in November 1987. She joined Berlin, a 29-year-old female, in Kansas City.
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State Donates $10 Million in Unused Equipment to Kansas State
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The state has given Kansas State University $10 million in unused computer equipment that was bought in a failed effort to develop a centralized storage system for computer information. The university says in a news release that it will use the equipment for research, education and to assist with technology issues created after a fire last year in its main library. The state bought the equipment in 2016, but then decided the proposal to create a Kansas GovCloud storage system was too expensive. The unused computer equipment had been in storage for several years in the Docking State Office building as the state tried unsuccessfully to find buyers. The equipment recently was delivered to Kansas State, which plans to put it into use in coming months.
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Lawrence Moves Step Closer to Feral Cat Colonies
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Lawrence city leaders are moving closer to allowing feral cat colonies in the city. The City Commission on Tuesday approved a first reading of an ordinance change that would allow for a trap-neuter-release program for feral cats . The proposal from the Lawrence Humane Society would allow people to catch feral cats, which would then be neutered, vaccinated and returned to where they were first captured. The Lawrence Journal-World reports Assistant City Attorney Maria Garcia said the program would rely heavily on Lawrence volunteers. They would trap the cats, take them to a veterinarian to be neutered and vaccinated and then return them. The cats would have an ear clipped so they can be identified. The commission will vote on a second reading of the ordinance at a future meeting.
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Survey: Banks Raising Farm Loan Collateral Requirements
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A monthly survey of rural bankers in parts of 10 Plains and Western states shows nearly two-thirds of banks in the region have raised farm loan collateral requirements on fears of weakening farm income. The Rural Mainstreet survey for February showed nearly one-third of banks report an increase in the farm loan rejection rate for the same reason. The survey's overall index dropped to 50.2 from January's 51.5. Any score above 50 suggests a growing economy in the months ahead, while a score below 50 indicates a shrinking economy. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey, says the rural economy appears to be expanding outside of agriculture, but that tariffs and low agriculture commodity prices continue to weaken the farm sector. Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.
