Kansas Lawmakers Struggle over School Aid, Medicaid, Taxes
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas lawmakers have hit the halfway point of their annual session and they haven't had a hearing on a Medicaid expansion plan or pushed an education funding bill out of committee in the face of a court mandate to boost spending on public schools. And the GOP-dominated Legislature doesn't just appear to be slow-walking new Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's big initiatives. Despite Republican supermajorities, an income tax relief bill that GOP leaders consider an urgent priority hasn't cleared both chambers. Top Republicans began a long weekend Thursday by arguing that lawmakers' annual 90-or-so-day session is not unusually sluggish and that committees have laid a foundation for key debates in March and early April. But the first big votes on a wide range of big issues — including school funding, Medicaid expansion and even abortion — aren't coming until after the second half starts next week.
The lack of movement on school funding raises the most questions about whether lawmakers are dawdling too much. The Kansas Supreme Court ruled last year that funding isn't sufficient, and the state must tell the court by April 15 how it fixed the problem. The Republican attorney general urged lawmakers to pass a bill by March 15; Kelly called on them to do it by Thursday. "I don't know that I'm happy with the amount of work we've done," said state Sen. Randall Hardy, a moderate Republican from central Kansas. "I would have preferred to see school finance dealt with already. I would have liked to have had a discussion about Medicaid expansion."
Kelly took office last month promising a bipartisan governing style , joining new Democratic governors in Michigan and Wisconsin in breaking the GOP's lock on their state governments. Her supporters believe voters repudiated her GOP predecessors' conservative fiscal policies and want quick action to help schools and expand the state's Medicaid health coverage for the needy. Yet the new governor seemed destined to clash with top Republicans. The Legislature emerged from last year's elections more conservative, and GOP leaders are a formidable obstacle to Medicaid expansion and other Kelly initiatives. Republican leaders' top priority is seeing that individuals and businesses don't pay more in state income taxes because of changes in federal tax laws at the end of 2017.
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Man Shot, Wounded Outside Suburban Kansas City School
FAIRWAY, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a man has been shot and wounded after exchanging gunfire with police across the street from an elementary school in suburban Kansas City. KCTV reports that the shooting happened around 3:10 p.m. Friday at a Fairway, Kansas, house that is located directly across the street from Highlands Elementary School in the Shawnee Mission School District. Video shows a man exiting the home and firing shots before officers shot him. The school was on lockdown for what the Johnson County Sheriff's Office described as a "firearms complaint" when gunfire erupted. Police weren't returning phone messages about the man's condition.
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Man Charged After He Was Found with Topeka Theater Castmate at Colorado Hotel
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A 47-year-old man who was arrested with a former 14-year-old cast member from a Topeka community theater production is facing three charges. Shawnee County District Court records show Michael Fitzgerald, of Topeka, was charged Wednesday with indecent liberties with a child, indecent solicitation of a child and electronic solicitation. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the girl was reported missing January 22. She was found two days later with Fitzgerald at a hotel in Cortez, Colorado. The two were both cast in the Topeka Civil Theatre production of "Elf: The Musical" before they went missing. Fitzgerald remains in custody on $250,000 bond.
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Suspect Freed in Deadly Shooting of Topeka Woman
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Charges have been dropped against one of the suspects in the deadly shooting of a Topeka woman. Thirty-year-old Justin Lee McCoy was released Wednesday. He had been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Patricia Sanders, whose body was found last May in her Topeka home. Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay announced Thursday that new information was turned over that requires more investigation. He noted the charges were dismissed in such a way that they could be filed again. It's the second time McCoy has been freed. He and another suspect, 27-year-old Rahnel Erik Rayford, were released previously after a judge found there wasn't probable cause to hold them. A grand jury then indicted them. Rayford is set to be tried next month on a murder charge.
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Sedgwick County Commissioner's Trial Goes to Jury
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The fraud case of Sedgwick County Commissioner Michael O'Donnell is now in the hands of jurors. The judge gave jurors an hour to get organized and begin deliberations before he dismissed them for weekend. O'Donnell faces 23 counts of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering related to his state and county campaigns. Prosecutors allege he put $10,500 in campaign funds into his personal checking account and gave some to friends. O'Donnell testified the payments were legitimate campaign expenses. The Wichita Republican was elected to the Kansas State Senate in 2012 for a term that ended in January 2017. He did not run for re-election and instead ran for and won a term on the Sedgwick County Commission that began in 2017 and is set to expire in 2020.
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Case Involving Shooting at Police Officers Ends in Hung Jury
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — State prosecutors are seeking a retrial after a jury could not reach a verdict on one charge against a 37-year-old Manhattan man charged with trying to kill three law enforcement officers. Prosecutors say Mark Harrison fired 33 shots during a standoff with police in January. The Manhattan Mercury reports a Riley County jury could not reach a unanimous decision Thursday on an attempted capital murder charge involving the shooting of Riley County police Sgt. Pat Tiede, who was hit in the leg. The jury found Harrison not guilty of two attempted murder charges stemming from Harrison shooting at a SWAT vehicle with two officers inside. He was found guilty of criminal damage to property. Prosecutors say Harrison fired at Tiede, then barricaded himself inside his home and surrendered after a three-hour standoff.
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Supreme Court Orders Sex Offender Sentenced for 3rd Time
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Supreme Court has issued a rare order directing the Brown County District to sentence a sex abuse offender for a third time, saying the man was a victim of "judicial vindictiveness." County District Judge John Weingart sentenced defendant Wyatt Brown to 30 years in prison for aggravated sodomy. Brown's lawyers appealed the sentence, saying it was incorrectly articulated. The Supreme Court agreed and ordered a resentencing. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports Weingart responded by adding one year to Brown's sentence after the victim's family said they were traumatized by an appellate process forcing them to relive the crime. Smith's attorneys appealed again. The Supreme Court ruled Friday that Weingart effectively punished Brown for exercising his right to appeal, and ordered him to be sentenced for a third time.
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Kansas DCF Might Not Renew Ombudsman Position
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The future of the ombudsman position at the Kansas Department for Children and Families is unclear. In the past, the ombudsman was available for parents who were frustrated with the agency for some reason. The department's new leaders plan to expand its team devoted to responding to foster families. Spokesman Mike Deines said Wednesday the team may not include an ombudsman because there are other ways to address families' concerns. The Wichita Eagle reports the ombudsman position has been controversial. Because the ombudsman was a DCF employee, skeptics suggested the position did not have the independence to hold the agency accountable. Deines said people have several ways to bring concerns to the department, including through its customer service office, a regional service center or the agency's partners.
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University of Kansas Expands Transgender Student Health Care
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — The University of Kansas is expanding care for transgender students at its health center so students no longer have to leave campus to seek hormone therapy. Transgender students will now be able to start and continue hormone therapy through the university's student health center, Watkins Health Services, the Kansas City Star reported. The university's student health insurance plan will cover the services performed at the health center, said Doug Dechairo, director for Watkins Health Services. The center will also coordinate treatment with counseling staff. The center's health care offerings were very limited for transgender students, who often could only get prescriptions for medication filled. Students had to leave the Lawrence campus in order to get evaluations and lab work needed to begin the gender transition process. Some were forced to take buses or find rides to Kansas City for doctor's appointments, said Noah Ries, president of the university's Student Senate. Ries said Dechairo approached student government leaders about expanding transgender care when the group was looking to better support transgender students and to make campus more inclusive for LGBTQ people. Student leaders have been working to give students access to an HIV prevention drug and covering the cost for transgender students to get new IDs to reflect their gender identity.
"It was almost serendipitous," Ries said. "Perfect timing."
Ries said the challenge is making sure that students know about the health center's expanded services.
"Because the service is so new, I've been spending most of my time making sure students are aware of it," Ries said.
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Judge Sets New Sentencing Date in Kansas Swatting Death Case
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A federal judge has set a new sentencing date for the California man who admitted making the hoax call that led police to fatally shoot a Kansas man following a dispute between two online gamers. A court notice posted Friday shows 26-year-old Tyler R. Barriss will be sentenced on March 29. The hearing had been initially scheduled for Friday but was delayed when an unrelated trial took longer than expected. Barriss pleaded guilty in November to 51 charges related to fake calls and threats across the nation. The most serious one is for making a false report about a shooting and kidnapping that resulted in the December 2017 shooting death of Andrew Finch in Wichita. Prosecutors are seeking a 25-year prison sentence, the defense is asking for a 20-year term.
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Sprawling Sprint Campus in Overland Park Sold
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — Sprint officials say they have a deal to sell the company's sprawling campus in Overland Park, Kansas. CEO Michel Combes said in a note to employees on Friday that the deal with Occidental Management is expected to close in the coming months. The terms of the deal were not released. The Kansas City Star reports Occidental will lease part of the campus that Sprint still uses back to the company. Combes told employees campus operations will continue as they currently are after the sell is complete. Occidental Management is a Wichita-based company with property holdings in the Kansas City area. As of late last year, 6,000 Sprint employees and contractors worked at the Overland Park campus. Sprint occupies 11 of the 20 campus buildings.
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Man Apprehended After Fleeing Scene of Deadly Wreck
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a man was apprehended after fleeing from the scene of a fatal wreck in suburban Kansas City. The Kansas City Star reports that the crash happened Friday morning when the suspect's vehicle veered off U.S. 69, went down an embankment and struck a pickup truck as it traveled along an Overland Park, Kansas, road. The truck's 20-year-old driver was ejected and died at the scene. His name wasn't immediately released. Police Officer John Lacy says the suspect then left on foot. He was caught near a trail that's behind a hotel. Lacy says it's not clear yet what caused the suspect's vehicle to leave the highway.
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New Kansas City Airport Step Closer to Construction
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — After a seven-year process, construction of a new single terminal at Kansas City International Airport could begin within weeks. The City Council on Thursday approved a development agreement between the city and developer Edgemoor. It also approved goals for women-and minority-owned business participation and community benefits for Kansas City's construction workforce. The Kansas City Star reports a fourth document, agreed to by the city and seven airlines, outlines the scope of the project, its $1.5 billion costs, and oversight of airport development and construction. Geoffrey Stricker, managing director for Edgemoor, said early demolition work on the site could start within two weeks. In November, Kansas City voters overwhelmingly approved demolishing the current three-terminal airport and replacing it with a single terminal.
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Wichita Thieves Posing as City Workers to Steal Copper
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Wichita police say thieves are posing as city workers to steal copper from city buildings. KAKE-TV reports the thieves hit the Cow Town Museum Center last week, stealing the metal from air conditioning units. Wichita officer Paul Cruz says if people who appear to be working at city buildings don't have the City of Wichita logo, witnesses should call police. The thefts are occurring because copper prices have reached about $2.75 per pound. Wichita had a scrap metal database to track sells of scrap metal until 2015. When state lawmakers created a statewide database for law offices, Wichita disbanded its system. But the state never funded its database, so no tracking system is currently in place.
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Ex-Wichita YMCA Employee Pleads No Contest to Rape of Child
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A former Wichita YMCA employee accused of sexually assaulting two young girls at the center has pleaded no contest to rape charges. KAKE-TV reports that the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office confirmed 22-year-old Caleb Gaston entered the pleas on Friday. Gaston is accused of raping a 4-year-old girl and sexually assaulting a 3-year-old in January 2018. The alleged assaults happened in the Kid Zone at the downtown YMCA in Wichita. Gaston worked at the facility as a part-time employee for five years before his arrest, which came after a woman reported her daughter had been molested. Gaston has been jailed on a $1.1 million bond for more than a year. He will be sentenced April 26.
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Missouri Proposes Truce with Kansas in Business Battle
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri lawmakers want to give Kansas a second shot at a truce in a long-running battle over businesses in the Kansas City area. The Missouri Senate passed legislation Thursday that would re-open a two-year window for the states to agree to quit offering tax incentives for Kansas City area businesses to move across the state line. Missouri passed a similar measure in 2014, but Kansas never agreed, and the truce offer expired in 2016. The new legislation would give Kansas a second chance to reciprocate before the offer again expires on August 28, 2021. The bill now goes to the Missouri House. The Kansas City Star previously reported that research by the Hall Family Foundation found Kansas spent $184 million and Missouri $151 million over the last decade enticing Kansas City area businesses to relocate.
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Survey Suggests More Economic Growth for Midwest, Plains, Kansas
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new report says the Mid-America Business Conditions Index in February hit its highest level since September, signaling solid economic growth over the next three to six months for nine Midwest and Plains states. The report issued Friday says the index rose to 57.9 last month from 56.0 in January. The September figure was 57.5. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says even stronger growth was hampered by shortages of skilled workers and international trade tensions. The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth. A score below that suggests decline. The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.
Kansas data: The state's overall index hit 55.2 in February, compared with 53.3 in January. Index components were new orders at 53.1, production or sales at 51.2, delivery lead time at 60.5, employment at 56.2 and inventories at 55.2. Kansas is estimated to have exported $674.9 million in goods to China for 2018. Those exports supported about 6,800 Kansas jobs, Goss said.
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KCK's Schlitterbahn Water Park Has Offseason Cash-Flow Shortage
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A public filing says a Kansas water park where a 10-year-old boy was decapitated has cash flow troubles. The Kansas City Star reports that EPR Properties said Thursday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it agreed to advance Schlitterbahn additional amounts under the mortgage, which has an outstanding balance of nearly $180 million. The report noted an off-season shortfall and the cost of legal issues. It was released almost one week after a judge dismissed criminal charges stemming from Caleb Schwab's 2016 death. It's unclear whether Schlitterbahn has received advances in previous off-seasons. EPR's annual report from a year ago made no mention of advancing money. Schlitterbahn hasn't announced plans for the park in 2019. EPR and Schlitterbahn officials couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
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Spokeswoman: Planned West Virginia Foster Student College Campus Abandoned
MONTGOMERY, W.Va. (AP) — A plan to create a college campus in a West Virginia city specifically for students aging out of foster care has been abandoned. Jenny Kutz with KVC Health Systems tells the Charleston Gazette-Mail there was good "verbal support," but public and private financial support didn't become available. After West Virginia University decided to move its tech school from Montgomery to Beckley, KVC chose to rent and purchase most of the campus over a 25-year period. KVC is a Kansas-based nonprofit that serves families and children in several states. Kutz said Thursday the need for facilities improvements and repairs to start the initiative were more extensive than expected. Rob Alsop, a WVU vice president, says the buildings that KVC was to use will now revert to the school's responsibility.
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Salvador Perez Hurts Elbow, May Need Season-Ending Surgery
SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Kansas City Royals All-Star catcher Salvador Perez damaged the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, raising the possibility the 2015 World Series MVP may need Tommy John surgery and miss the season. Perez was hurt during a workout Wednesday, and the team said a MRI on Thursday revealed the damage. Perez will travel next week to California for a second opinion from Los Angeles Dodgers head team physician Dr. Neal ElAttrache. The 28-year-old has been an All-Star for six straight seasons and won Gold Gloves in five of the last six years. He hit .235 last year and had 27 home runs and 80 RBIs for the second straight season. He has a $10 million salary this year and is owed $13 million in each of the following two seasons. Cam Gallagher and Meibrys Viloria are the other catchers on Kansas City's 40-man roster. Gallagher, who appeared in 35 games during the past two years, has a .218 career average with two home runs and 12 RBIs. Viloria, 22, was a September call-up last season and has appeared in only three major league games, his only experience above Class A. Drew Butera, the Royals' primary backup the past three years, was traded to Colorado on Aug. 31 and signed a minor league contract with Philadelphia last month. Martin Maldonado, a 2017 Gold Glove winner, is available as a free agent.
