Lawrence School Board Delays Possible School Closures, for Now
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - The idea of closing certain Lawrence public schools is off the table, for now. Monday night, the Lawrence School Board decided not to close any schools for this year or next. Instead, the board will look elsewhere to close a budget gap estimated by district officials to be around $7 million. It's not clear yet where that money will come from but one likely source involves cutting school programs. Faced with declining enrollment and reduced funding, six local schools had been targeted for possible closure, but at least for now, that won't happen.
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Democrats, ACLU Sue over New Kansas Congressional Districts
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas officials face two lawsuits over a Republican redistricting law. The lawsuits filed Monday challenge a map that costs the state’s only Democrat in Congress some of the territory in her Kansas City-area district that she has carried by wide margins. A team of attorneys led by prominent Democratic attorney Marc Elias's firm filed a lawsuit in Wyandotte County District Court in the Kansas City area. The American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas filed another lawsuit shortly afterward. The lawsuits argue that the map enacted last week is unacceptable because it splits Kansas City, Kansas, and decreases the number of minority voters in Kansas Congresswoman Sharice Davids’s district. Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt has promised a vigorous defense of the new map.
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Kansas Republicans Tie Remap Law to Pro-Ivermectin Measure
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Top Kansas Republicans appeared to get the new congressional district lines they wanted this week through horse-trading in the Legislature. Then, hours after the new map became law, the GOP leader who supposedly struck the deal seemed to go back on it. The sparring between Senate President Ty Masterson and Senator Mark Steffen highlighted tensions among conservatives in the Kansas Legislature. Steffen is a Hutchinson anesthesiologist and an advocate for allowing the controversial drug, ivermectin, to be prescribed for COVID-19. Health officials say the drug is ineffective against COVID-19 and possibly dangerous. Steffen said Masterson secured his and another crucial vote to override Democratic Governor Laura Kelly's veto of the GOP redistricting plan after what Steffen called a mutual agreement. COVID-19 legislation pushed by Steffen came out of committee. But Masterson quickly sent it back and stripped Steffen and two other Republicans of committee assignments.
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Democrats Eye Key Governors' Races as Backstop Against GOP
UNDATED (AP) – Wisconsin is one of four states emerging as top priorities for Democrats in an election year when the party is facing fierce political headwinds. Wisconsin as well as Kansas, Michigan and Pennsylvania have Republican-controlled legislatures and Democratic-held governorships. And those governorships are on the ballot in the fall. If the governorships switch parties, a flood of GOP legislation that has been blocked so far would likely become law. If Democrats hold the northern trio of states that helped Democrat Joe Biden become president, Democrats improve their chances of holding them in the race for the White House in 2024.
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Missouri Senate GOP Divided over Gerrymandering Attempts
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP/KPR) - The Missouri Senate met in a rare Saturday session as lawmakers continued to work on a new legislative redistricting map. The Kansas City Star reports after a five-hour filibuster, the Senate adjourned without reaching an agreement, with no plans to return until Tuesday afternoon. A rally and truck convoy by conservative activists is scheduled for Monday in Jefferson City. The rally is in support of a map that would give Republicans a shot at winning seven of the eight congressional seats in Missouri; Republicans currently hold six of the eight seats. A redistricting plan passed by the Missouri House is projected to continue that 6-and-2 ratio.
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Kansas Legislature Approves $1 Billion-plus Offer of Breaks to Mystery Firm
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas legislators have signed off on the state’s largest-ever taxpayer-funded incentives to attract thousands of new jobs. They did so even though most didn’t know the name of the company or what it plans to make. The measure also cuts the state’s corporate income taxes. The Kansas Senate voted 31-9 to approve a bill to create a new incentives program offering a single company hundreds of millions of dollars in breaks once this year and another company a deal in 2023. The House approved it Tuesday, so it goes to Governor Laura Kelly. Her administration says it is pursuing a $4 billion project, but the secrecy rankles some lawmakers.
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Wyandotte County to Offer Local IDs to Undocumented Immigrants, Others
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP/KNS) — Wyandotte County will begin offering municipal photo IDs to illegal immigrants and other vulnerable residents without state-issued IDs and prohibit police cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, unless public safety is threatened. The Unified Government of Wyandotte County board voted 6-4 Thursday night to offer the IDs under what was dubbed the "Safe and Welcoming Wyandotte Act." The measure will allow immigrants, the homeless, the elderly and others without ready access to state-issued photo IDs to get a local photo ID. The move was backed by a coalition of advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas and the Immigrant Justice Advocacy Movement. The advocacy groups say 20% of Wyandotte county’s residents do not have a photo ID.
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Kansas Attorney General Seeks Ban on Municipalities Loosening Immigration Enforcement
TOPEKA, Kan.(KNS) - Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt is asking the state Legislature to ban local municipalities from loosening enforcement of immigration laws. Schmidt’s comments come after Wyandotte County passed an ordinance on immigration enforcement. The ordinance blocks local police from enforcing immigration laws, or working with federal immigration agencies, unless there’s a danger to public safety. Wyandotte County officials hope it will encourage people who are undocumented to report crimes, because they won’t fear local police will question their immigration status. Schmidt says state lawmakers should specifically block these types of ordinances because it creates a patchwork of immigration laws in Kansas. He says local governments should not be able to choose which laws they want to enforce.
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Kansas Senator Marshall Floats Proposal to Require Mental Health Exam for President Biden
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) -Kansas Republican Senator Roger Marshall says if the GOP wins control of Congress, they’ll consider legislation requiring Democratic President Joe Biden to take an annual cognitive test. Marshall raised the possibility during an interview Sunday on Fox News. Marshall says he’s discussed the idea with other conservative Republicans including Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and Ohio Representative Jim Jordan. Marshall, a physician from Great Bend, says he sees signs of deterioration in the 79-year-old president’s mental capacity. A neurological exam done in November as part of Biden’s annual physical found no evidence of impairment. Polls show that concerns about Biden’s mental fitness are common among Republicans publicly aligned with former President Donald Trump.
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Unvaccinated Medical Workers Turn to Religious Exemptions
UNDATED (AP) – As the remaining vaccine mandates for medical workers get set to be implemented this week in 25 mostly conservative states, it is once again becoming clear how widespread the use of religious exemptions is in the U.S. At one rural hospital near Yellowstone National Park, about 200 of the 620 staffers have put in requests for religious exemptions, most of which have been granted. Montana Governor Greg Gianforte pledged his support to the unvaccinated last week and urged them to consider seeking exemptions. And West Virginia lawmakers have advanced a proposal that would allow workers who are denied an exemption and then quit to collect unemployment benefits.
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Infant Killed in House Fire in Suburban Kansas City, Kansas
SHAWNEE, Kan. (AP) — Officials say an infant has died in a house fire in suburban Kansas City, Kansas, and a person has been taken into police custody as part of the investigation. Fire officials say the fire was reported early Sunday morning in Shawnee. Arriving fire crews found the house fully engulfed in flames and called for assistance from surrounding departments to help extinguish the blaze. Firefighters later found an infant boy dead inside the home. Authorities have not released the baby's name. The Shawnee Police Department says one person has been taken into custody, but did not release the person's name or give any other new details about the fire.
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Police Shoot Armed Suspect After Standoff in Leavenworth
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) - Authorities are investigating after police officers shot and critically wounded a man in Leavenworth. Officers from several departments went to an area near 4th and Miami streets around 5 am Sunday because a man had a gun. Authorities blocked traffic in the area and began to negotiate with him. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said 31-year-old Donald Barden Jr. ignored officers' commands, waved his gun around and made suicidal statements during the standoff. Then around 6:20 am, he ran toward officers and pointed his gun at them, and two officers shot at him, wounding him. Barden was taken to a hospital in critical condition. He remained in stable condition Sunday.
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California Man Killed in Small Plane Crash at Johnson County Airport
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) _ Authorities say a California man was killed when the small plane he was piloting crashed at an airport in Olathe. The Kansas Highway Patrol identified the pilot as 51-year-old Robert Douglas Ming, of Laguna Niguel, California. Officials say the crash happened as the single-engine Piper Aircraft attempted to take off around 10:30 am Sunday at the Johnson County Executive Airport in Olathe, headed for Albuquerque, New Mexico. Witnesses say the plane crashed and erupted in flames. Ming was the only person aboard the plane. The Olathe Fire Department responded and put out the flames and a small grass fire. Kansas Highway Patrol spokeswoman Trooper Tiffany Bush said the plane crashed between the airport and 151st Street. A large section of 151st Street between Pflumm and Quivira was closed Sunday after the crash.
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UPDATE: Details Emerge of Flight Diverted to KCI Due to Unruly Passenger
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — An American Airlines plane was diverted to Kansas City, Missouri, when a large, unruly passenger allegedly tried to force open a door before he was subdued by a coffee pot across the head, a punch to the jaw and zip ties and duct tape. A federal affidavit released Monday spelled out the harrowing details. The incident happened Sunday afternoon on American Airlines flight 1775, which was heading from Los Angeles to Washington. The plane landed safely at Kansas City International Airport and the suspect, 50-year-old Juan Remberto Rivas, was taken into custody. Rivas was charged Monday with one count of interference with a flight attendant.
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Flight Diverted to Kansas City Due to Unruly Passenger
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) _ A plane flying from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., was diverted to Kansas City, Missouri, after an unruly passenger reportedly tried to open a door on the aircraft. American Airlines says flight 1775 landed safely Sunday afternoon at Kansas City International Airport and law enforcement met the plane upon arrival. The FBI said in a statement that the passenger was ``interfering with the flight crew'' and was taken into custody. Details about the person weren't immediately released. The Association of Professional Flight Attendants said on Twitter that the passenger attempted to open a forward passenger door and passengers helped subdue the person. The flight, which had originated at Los Angeles International Airport, later continued on to Reagan National Airport.
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Coaches: Kansas College Wanted Fewer Black Athletes
HIGHLAND, Kan. (AP) — Three former coaches at a Kansas community college allege in a lawsuit that the school wanted to reduce the number of Black student-athletes on campus. KCUR Radio reports that the lawsuit filed in federal court last week contends Highland Community College in northeast Kansas asked coaches not to recruit Black athletes, discouraged Black students from attending the college and intimidated Black athletes into leaving. Highland officials deny the allegations. Fewer than 6% of Highland's 3,200 students are Black. This week, The Kansas City Star disclosed that Highland's president compared a Black football player to Hitler, whom she called "a great leader."
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Man Admits Threatening Black Man with Harm in 'White Town'
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Federal authorities say a 27-year-old Kansas man pleaded guilty to threatening a Black man with a knife and telling him to get out of his “white town.” Colton Donner pleaded guilty to a federal hate crime. The U.S. Justice Department said Donner admitted that he saw the victim walking through a residential area in Paola on September 11, 2019. According to court documents, Donner got out of his car, threatened the man with a knife, yelled racial slurs and told him that Paola was a “white town.” Donner faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the civil rights crime.
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Kansas Principal Told to Apologize over White Privilege Video
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas high school principal was told to apologize after he showed a video discussing white privilege to his school's staff. Derby High School Principal Tim Hamblin showed the four-minute video during a staff in-service day last month. A teacher who was at the meeting later complained to a school board member that the video was offensive and created a hostile work environment. The board member told Hamblin to apologize, which he did in an email to staff. In response, some teachers gathered signatures to show support for Hamblin.
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Wichita State, KU Split $11 Million Scholarship Gift
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Wichita State University and the University of Kansas will split an $11 million gift from a former Wichita resident. Both schools will receive $5.5 million to provide full-ride scholarships through a bequest from the estate of Richard “Dick” Smith, who graduated from the University of Kansas and lived in Wichita for years. Smith, who died in January 2021, founded the Range Oil company in Wichita in 1964. At Wichita State, undergraduates in any field of study will be eligible for the scholarships. At KU, the money will be divided between general scholarships and scholarships for students studying geology.
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Jury Convicts Suspect in 2020 Robbery, Killing of Topekan
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Shawnee County jury has convicted Todge Anderson for the 2020 robbery and gunshot killing of a Topeka man. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that jurors returned guilty verdicts Friday against Anderson for first-degree murder committed during an inherently dangerous felony, intentional second-degree murder, aggravated robbery, marijuana distribution and the criminal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The crimes stem from the robbery and killing of 38-year-old Christopher S. McMillon on October 3, 2020. A family member found McMillon deceased at his home after he failed to appear at a youth basketball game.
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KC Police Officer, Suspect Injured After Intentional Crash
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Authorities say a police officer and suspect were taken to the hospital with minor injuries after the driver of a fleeing vehicle intentionally hit a police vehicle in Kansas City, Missouri. Police say the incident began when officers responded on Friday afternoon to a report of a suspicious vehicle at a La Quinta Inn. The Kansas City Star reports that responding officers found a van that may have been involved in a shots fired call earlier that day. Its driver fled with officers in pursuit. The suspect swerved across lanes on I-435, striking a police vehicle which was on the side of the highway and not actively involved in the pursuit. The chase continued until the vehicle became disabled on an exit ramp. Police captured the suspect after a brief foot chase.
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Wichita Man Fatally Shot Outside Sedgwick County Home
HAYSVILLLE, Kan. (AP) — The Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office is investigating the death of a man after his body was found outside a suburban Wichita home. Investigators say deputies were called early Friday morning to a house in Haysville to check on the well-being of a man reported to be lying on the ground next to the home. Arriving deputies discovered the man was dead and had suffered a gunshot wound. Officials have not released the man's name, but say he was a 23-year-old resident of Wichita. Detectives spent the morning collecting evidence at the scene and interviewing potential witnesses.
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Kansas City, Missouri, Police Identify Victim of Apartment Building Shooting
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Police have identified the victim of a fatal shooting at the Willow Wind Apartments in Kansas City, Missouri. Police said in a news release Saturday that officers responding to a reported disturbance with a weapon on Thursday found 62-year-old Samuel Zamudio suffering from apparent gunshot wounds in the foyer of the apartment building. Emergency responders pronounced him dead a the scene.
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These area headlines are curated by KPR news staffers, including J. Schafer, Laura Lorson, Kaye McIntyre, and Tom Parkinson. Our headlines are generally posted by 10 am weekdays, 11 am weekends. This news summary is made possible by KPR listener-members. Become one today!