Kansas Close to Allocating $1 Billion to Shore up Pension System
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican legislators plan to use up to $1 billion in surplus state funds to shore up the Kansas pension fund for teachers and government workers. They're close to passing a proposal despite bipartisan misgivings about that move ruling out some tax cuts. Both chambers approved their own measures Wednesday, and negotiators are set to draft a final version. The votes were 28-12 in the Senate and 113-5 in the House. A few conservative Republicans worried that the move would limit options for cutting taxes. Democrats feared that it would doom Kelly’s proposed income tax rebate as well as her plan to eliminate the state’s 6.5% sales tax on groceries.
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Fort Riley Deploys Additional Troops to Europe
FORT RILEY, Kan. (KPR) - An additional 300 troops from Fort Riley will soon be deployed to Europe. They'll join other soldiers from the First Infantry Division already stationed in Europe. These soldiers are part of the 7,000 additional troops that the Pentagon said last month would be sent to support America's allies, especially on the eastern flank of NATO countries, to ensure deterrence and defense.
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GOP's Kansas Senate Map Creates 2 Districts with 2 Incumbents
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republicans are moving to redraw the boundaries of Kansas Senate districts so that a GOP and Democratic senator would face running against each other. Their map also would have the Redistricting Committee's chair drawn into a district with a GOP colleague. The chamber expects to vote on a map next week. The GOP plan puts Redistricting Chair Rick Wilborn of McPherson into the district of GOP Senator Michael Fagg of El Dorado. That suggests Wilborn doesn't plan to seek reelection this year, but his office is not commenting. Republican Senator Beverly Gossage of Eudora would be in a district with Democratic Senator Tom Holland of Baldwin City.
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Kansas Woman Charged in Baby's Death Faces New Charges
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — A 28-year-old Johnson County woman charged in the death of her baby in a house fire is now facing charges of intimidating a witness. Karlie Mae Phelps, of Shawnee, was charged Thursday with violating a protective order and intimidation of a witness, both misdemeanors. The Kansas City Star reports Phelps's attorney entered a not guilty plea for her during a court hearing on Friday. Phelps was charged in February with involuntary manslaughter and endangering a child after her son died in a fire at her home. The child's father, Nicholas Adam Ecker, is charged with first-degree murder and aggravated arson in the boy's death.
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Family of Black Man Shot by Kansas City Police Sues for $10 Million
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) _ The family of a Black man shot and killed by a white Kansas City, Missouri, police officer in 2020 is suing the officer and the Board of Police Commissioners for at least $10 million. The Kansas City Star reports that Donnie Sanders's family alleges in the federal lawsuit filed Thursday that officer Blayne Newton used excessive force when he shot Sanders in March 2020. Sanders was not armed. The lawsuit also accuses the board, which oversees the Police Department, of failing to properly train officers in the use of deadly force. Kansas City civil rights activists often cite Sanders' death in pushing for police reform. The Police Department said it does not comment on pending litigation.
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Man Dies at Wichita Water Plant Construction Site
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) _ Wichita Water Partners says a man has died at a construction site of a new water plant. Company spokeswoman Meghan Jansen said the man died at the Wichita Northwest Water Facility plant on Thursday. She did not say what happened, or identify the man. Jansen said the man was working for a subcontractor at the plant. All work on the site was stopped until further notice.
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Man Pleads Guilty in Shooting Death of Woman in Linwood
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) — A 67-year-old rural Linwood man has pleaded to a lesser charge in the shooting death of his girlfriend in 2018. Dan Flannagan pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter on Friday. He was originally charged with second-degree murder and was scheduled to go to trial March 21. Prosecutors say Flannagan shot Constance Perryman and then reported her missing on April 5, 2018. Her body was found the next day on property south of Linwood. Flannagan is scheduled to be sentenced April 8.
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Man Who Repeatedly Shot Kansas City Ride-Share Driver Draws 13-Year Prison Sentence
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A 21-year-old Kansas City man who shot a female zTrip driver about 26 times has been sentenced to 13 years in federal prison. Derron Nevels was sentenced Wednesday for robbery and discharging a firearm during a violent crime. Prosecutors said he was picked up by a zTrip driver in Kansas City in December 2014. When he arrived at his destination, Nevels held a gun to the driver's head and demanded all her money. The driver struggled with Nevels and was shot about 26 times. Nevels and another person returned to the car about 10 minutes later and retrieved a cellphone but left the driver, who survived.
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Officials Arrest 26 People in Kansas City-Area Drug Ring
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Law enforcement officers arrested 26 people this week for their alleged roles in a drug-trafficking conspiracy in Jackson County. Federal prosecutors said in a news release that more than 200 officers from federal and Kansas City-area police departments arrested the defendants on Tuesday and Wednesday. Prosecutors say officers seized 27 firearms, more than 1,800 rounds of ammunition, drugs and $35,000 in cash. The federal indictment alleges the 26 defendants conspired since January 28, 2019, to distribute crack cocaine, fentanyl, cocaine, and marijuana in Jackson County. All but one of the defendants are from Kansas City and they operated mostly in east Kansas City.
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Plan to Make Raising Taxes Harder in Kansas Clears Committee
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A proposal backed by conservatives to amend the Kansas Constitution to make it harder for lawmakers to increase taxes has received a state Senate committee’s approval. The Senate Assessment and Taxation Committee’s voice vote Thursday on the measure sends it to the full Senate for debate. The measure would require two-thirds majorities in both chambers starting in July 2023 to pass any bill that would either increase a state tax or impose a new tax. Currently, only simple majorities are required. Conservative lawmakers see the proposal as a way to limit the growth of state government. But Democratic state Senator Tom Holland, of Baldwin City, called it “anti-democratic” and “dangerous.”
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Ex-Johnson County Court Worker Charged in Embezzlement
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — Federal prosecutors have charged a former Johnson County District Court employee with embezzling more than $1 million. KSHB-TV reports Dawna Kellogg was charged last week with eight counts of wire fraud and three counts of making a false federal tax return. The alleged crimes occurred between January 2007 and June 2017. Prosecutors allege Kellogg stole cash meant for the court’s bank account and diverted them to her personal accounts. They also allege Kellogg did not report the stolen funds as taxable income in three years.
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Kansas Hopes to Use Numerous Assets, Including Geographic Location, to Attract More Business
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - Positioned right in the middle of the country, Kansas may be perfectly placed to grab more business from all ends of the nation. That's the assessment of Business Facilities magazine, which writes that "the state offers a plethora of benefits, including an educated workforce, low taxes and a low cost of living. With Topeka, the capital, and Wichita, its largest city, making a lot of positive news — plus Kansas City just across the border — Kansas is a magnet for many across the Midwest." ( Read more.)
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Authorities Identify Man Killed in South-Central Kansas Wildfire
HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) — Authorities in south-central Kansas have identified a man who was killed in a wildfire over the weekend that also destroyed 35 homes. The Reno County Sheriff’s Office tells station KAKE that the body of 45-year-old Chadwick Penner was found in a wooded area that had burned on Sunday. The fire began Saturday in eastern Reno County. Besides the homes burned, it also destroyed 92 outbuildings and 110 vehicles as it spread across 12,000 acres. Officials say investigators determined the cause of the blaze was a brush pile fire that was left unattended. The Hutchinson Fire Department said Wednesday morning that the fire was 85% contained, and firefighters expected it to be fully contained sometime between now and Saturday.
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Kansas Man Arrested for Making Alleged Terroristic Threats in Linn County
MOUND CITY, Kan. (AP) — A 67-year-old man is jailed after authorities said he made threats that led to the temporary closing of the Linn County Courthouse in December. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Linn County sheriff's office announced that Albert C. Hinds, of Pleasanton, was arrested Wednesday on possible charges of terrorism and criminal threat. He was arrested at a grocery store in Mound City. Authorities allege that Hinds made threats against banking personnel and law enforcement officers. He is being held in the Bourbon County Jail. No other information was released.
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Leavenworth Man Sentenced for Shooting Death of Kansas City Boy
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) — A 26-year-old Leavenworth man has been sentenced to nearly 17 years in prison for the shooting death of a 12-year-old boy. Darvon Thomas was sentenced Wednesday for second-degree murder in the April 2021 death of Brian Henderson Jr., of Kansas City, Missouri. Police say the shooting happened in the parking lot of a Leavenworth pharmacy during a gun purchase. Evidence showed the firing occurred when the buyers determined the gun was a BB gun. Henderson was sitting in a car that was shot during the argument. Another man, Jaylen L. Johnson, is scheduled to go to trial May 9 on a first-degree murder charge in Henderson's death.
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Kansas Gas Prices Average $3.79, up 40 Cents in One Week
MANHATTAN, Kan. (The Mercury) - The average price for a gallon of regular gas in Kansas reached $3.79 on Wednesday, according to the latest data from the American Automobile Association (AAA). That's lower than the national average of $4.25 per gallon, but still up from an average of $3.39 per gallon in Kansas last week. The Manhattan Mercury reports that the average price of gas one year ago in the state was $2.63. Crude oil prices have risen amidst Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, pushing prices to more than $110 per barrel. Officials with AAA say consumers can expect the current trend at the pump to continue as long as crude oil prices climb.
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Kansas State Fair Could Soon Allow Drinkers to Roam
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — People attending the Kansas State Fair this fall will be able to stroll the grounds with a beer, a glass of wine or even a cocktail if some Kansas legislators get their way. House and Senate negotiators are set to draft the final version of legislation expanding the sale of alcohol on the fairgrounds in Hutchinson. During the fair, patrons 21 and older already can consume beer and wine in designated buildings and areas. But other states allow fairgoers to roam outside those areas with their drinks, and the Kansas fair wants to follow suit. The big issue for lawmakers to settle is whether to allow hard liquor sales.
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25% of Missouri Public School Districts Headed to Four-Day School Week
MARSHFIELD, Mo. (AP) — A southwestern Missouri school district that struggles to fill teacher vacancies plans to go to a four-day week starting next fall. The Springfield News-Leader reports that the Marshfield district is among at least nine in Missouri planning to switch to the shorter week in the fall, pushing the total number of districts in Missouri using the truncated schedule to a record 128 — 25% of the state’s school districts. Marshfield Superintendent Mike Henry says the change will mean hourly pay rates will rise substantially. Marshfield has enrollment of 3,100 students, making it the second-largest district in the state to go to a four-day week.
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Kansas Teacher Sues District over Preferred Pronouns Policy
UNDATED (AP) - A Kansas middle school teacher is suing the district where she works after she was disciplined for refusing to use a student's preferred first name and gender pronouns. Fort Riley Middle School math teacher Pamela Ricard was suspended for three days last year. Ricard's federal lawsuit was filed Monday. She cited her constitutional rights and religious beliefs for her decision. She said the district refused to accommodate her Christian beliefs. The school district did not immediately return requests for comment on the lawsuit. Ricard was reprimanded in April 2021 for addressing a student as "miss'' to avoid using the student's preferred first name after being told the student used he/him pronouns.
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Chief: Second Joplin Police Officer Won't Recover from Shooting
UNDATED (AP) - The police chief in Joplin, Missouri, says an officer who was among three shot on Tuesday “will not recover” from his injuries. Police Chief Sloan Rowland announced Thursday that patrol officer Jake Reed's family says he was being prepared to be an organ donor. Another officer, Benjamin Cooper, died Tuesday. The third officer who was shot, Rick Hirshey, was in serious but stable condition on Thursday. Rowland says the suspected gunman, 40-year-old Anthony Felix, was shot and killed by Captain William Davis shortly after Hirshey was shot. Reed joined the Joplin police force in 2017.
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Joplin Mayor: Rally Behind Slain and Wounded Officers
JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) — The mayor of Joplin, Missouri, is urging residents to pull together in the wake of shootings that left one police officer dead and two others badly wounded. Mayor Ryan Stanley says Wednesday that support would be just as people did 11 years ago when a massive tornado devastated the city. Joplin Police Chief Sloan Rowland says the officer killed Tuesday was Benjamin Cooper, a husband and father of two daughters. He had been with the southwestern Missouri department since 2003. Another officer was hospitalized in critical condition and a third was in serious condition. The suspected shooter, who died in an exchange of gunfire with police, was identified as 40-year-old Anthony Felix.
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Planned Parenthood Sues Missouri for Defunding Clinics
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Planned Parenthood is suing Missouri over an effort to defund it. Planned Parenthood sued Thursday to force the state to continue reimbursing it for health care for Medicaid patients. Planned Parenthood says defunding is set to take effect if the courts don't intervene. The Republican-led Legislature in February passed a bill blocking any public funding from going to Planned Parenthood, including money for clinics that don't provide abortions. The Missouri Attorney General's Office didn't immediately respond to an Associated Press request for comment Thursday.
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GOP Split on Alternative to Eric Greitens in Missouri Senate Race
ST. LOUIS (AP) — For all their angst about the possibility of former Missouri Governor Eric Greitens winning the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, GOP leaders haven’t coalesced behind an alternative. Greitens resigned in 2018 while facing multiple investigations, including one into whether he blackmailed a woman during an extramarital affair. Yet the former Navy SEAL officer maintains a base of GOP support, has solid fundraising numbers and remains a threat to win a multi-candidate primary. That worries Republican leaders, who fear Greitens would be a weak candidate in the general election and lose to the Democratic nominee, costing Republicans a seat and potentially control of the U.S. Senate.
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KU Women Fall to No. 21 Oklahoma in Big 12 Tourney Semifinals
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Madi Williams had 19 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, Taylor Robertson also scored 19 points and No. 21 Oklahoma beat Kansas 80-68 to advance to the Big 12 Conference tournament semifinals. Fourth-seeded Oklahoma, which picked up its first conference tournament victory since 2016, avenged a 73-67 loss at home against the Jayhawks five days ago in the regular-season finale. Liz Scott added 11 points and eight rebounds for Oklahoma. Williams and Robertson, who were unanimous selections to the All-Big 12 first team, each had six field goals, three 3-pointers and four free throws. Zakiyah Franklin scored 15 points with five assists for Kansas (20-9). Thomas finished with 13 points and Ioanna Chatzileonti had 11.
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No. 6 KU Cruises Past West Virginia 87-63 in Big 12 Quarterfinals
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Ochai Agbaji led the sixth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks with 18 points in a 87-63 victory over West Virginia in the quarterfinal round of the Big 12 Tournament. Mountaineers coach Bob Huggins picked up two technical fouls and was ejected 10 minutes into the game. The top-seeded Jayhawks, who also beat the Mountaineers twice in the regular season, will play fifth-seeded TCU on Friday night for a spot in the title game. Christian Braun added 11 points and 15 rebounds, Jalen Wilson had 15 points and Mitch Lightfoot 10 for KU. Malik Curry led West Virginia with 19 points.
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WVU's Huggins Ejected in First Half of Big 12 Tourney Game
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — West Virginia coach Bob Huggins was ejected from the Mountaineers’ quarterfinal game against No. 6 Kansas in the Big 12 Tournament after he was given two technical fouls in quick succession by referee Doug Sirmons. Jalen Wilson made five of the six free throws awarded for the three technical fouls with 9:55 left in the first half. Larry Harrison, the Mountaineers’ longtime associate head coach, took over when Huggins walked to the locker room.
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Bruce Weber Resigns as Head Men's Basketball Coach at Kansas State
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Bruce Weber has resigned as the basketball coach at Kansas State. The move came one day after the Wildcats lost to West Virginia in the opening round of the Big 12 Tournament to cap a third straight losing season. He led the Wildcats to five NCAA tournaments in his first seven seasons, including a share of two Big 12 regular-season titles. He took Illinois to the 2005 national champion game and his career record is 407 wins against 301 losses, with 13 appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Weber made headlines following the loss to the Mountaineers at T-Mobile Center on Wednesday night when he lambasted the NCAA over its handling of the FBI investigation into college basketball corruption. Weber said he had refused to cut his hair until schools that were identified in the probe were punished, which some took as a swipe at rival Kansas. "We won titles. We did it the right way," said Weber, who led the Wildcats to a share of two Big 12 regular-season titles in 10 seasons in Manhattan. "I'm on the NCAA ethics committee. I was told they were going to take care of the people in the FBI stuff, so I told somebody I'm going to grow my hair until something happens. Obviously, it's still growing," he said.
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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!