UPDATE: Suspects Identified in Fatal Gas Station Shooting in Johnson County
MISSION, Kan. (WDAF) — WDAF TV reports that the male suspect who was shot and killed Sunday in Mission has been identified as 40-year-old Shannon Wayne Marshall, of Ashland City, Tennessee. The female suspect has been identified as 32-year-old Andrea Rene Cothran, of Goodlettsville, Tennessee. She's being held at the Johnson County Adult Detention Center on a charge of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer. The Fairway police officer who was wounded remains hospitalized in critical condition.
(Earlier reporting...)
Suspect Killed, Officer Hospitalized in Kansas Shooting
MISSION, Kan. (AP) — A shooting early Sunday at a Kansas convenience store left a suspect dead and a Kansas police officer shot and hospitalized. Lenexa police say they were searching for a stolen car. When they found the vehicle, police say the driver struck a patrol car and fled the scene. Police chased the vehicle on I-35 until two suspects got out of the vehicle and ran to a QuikTrip convenience store in Mission. Police from multiple agencies were trying to arrest the suspects when gunfire broke out. A male suspect was shot and killed, and an officer from Fairway, Kansas, was shot and hospitalized. Another suspect, a female, was arrested. Lenexa police have not yet identified either of the suspects or the injured officer.
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$1,000 Grants for Educational Help Available for Kansas Students
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) — As a new school year approaches, the state of Kansas is giving away $1,000-per-student to eligible families to help them pay for school supplies and other education materials. Kansas recently expanded a program that can help families save money on a multitude of educational goods and services. The Kansas Educational Enrichment Program, or KEEP, provides each student with a one-time $1,000 award. The money can be used to purchase a variety of academic enrichment goods and services, including educational materials, school supplies, or tutoring. The money can even be used for musical instruments and lessons. Income guidelines apply. More information can be found online at keep.ks.gov.
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Wichita School District Keeps Extra Security Officers, Counselors, Social Workers in Place
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS/KMUW) — The Wichita school district plans to keep extra security officers, counselors and social workers hired during the pandemic on the job. Wichita schools received about $262 million in federal funding intended to address the impact of COVID-19. Part of that money paid for seven new security officers at Wichita high schools, along with 19 counselors and eight social workers. Wichita school board member Stan Reeser says the district will pick up the cost for those positions — about $2.3 million — after COVID funding runs out next year. “That is no small feat for the small increase that we are going to have in this budget," he said. "We made that a priority.” Schools have reported more unruly behavior since the pandemic, and a greater demand for mental health services.
The school district's budget director, Addi Lowell, says school safety and mental health are priorities in the district's $1 billion budget. “We can pretty much do anything we want with a billion dollars, but we can’t do everything," she said. "We can’t meet every need that all 88 of our attendance centers have, so we have to make choices.”
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Report: More than 50% of Rural Hospitals At-Risk of Closing
WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) — More than half of the rural hospitals in Kansas are at risk of closing. Kansas Governor Laura Kelly says the issue is now at a crisis level. KWCH TV reports that 60 of the state's 104 rural hospitals are at-risk of closing. Twenty-nine of those hospitals are at immediate risk of closing.
The governor thinks the best way to fix the problem is by expanding Medicaid, just as most states - including the four surrounding Kansas - have done. Kansas is one of 10 states that has not. Kelly has presented a bill to expand Medicaid to state lawmakers five times already, but it’s failed each time. “I’m not going to give up. I will be presenting to the legislature my 6th proposal when they come back in January. I will continue to advocate aggressively for Medicaid expansion," she said.
Expanding Medicaid would raise the cutoff for income requirements which would allow more people to use it. Kelly says if the state expanded the program, about 150,000 more Kansans would be eligible. The Federal Government would pay 90% of the costs of the program, the state would cover the other 10%.
Under Medicaid expansion, a would need to make less than $20,000 a year to qualify. For households with more people, the income requirement goes up.
Expanding Medicaid wouldn’t just help low-income Kansans. Brian Barta, the CEO of William Newton Hospital in Winfield, said it would also take pressure off hospital systems to come up with the money if a person can’t afford to pay for services and doesn’t have health insurance. “The cost of us providing care for uninsured and under-insured individuals is about 2 and a half million dollars, and that’s our cost just to break even." she said. "So, expanding the coverage to individuals, it’s not going to solve our problems but it’s going to help reduce that burden,” he said.
"We have a lot of facilities that are currently at-risk of closing," Barta said. "We’ve seen a number of them close over the last five, six years. We expect there to be more."
Many Republican lawmakers remain opposed to Medicaid expansion. Most of them cite the cost of expansion as the main reason for their opposition.
A 2022 survey by Fort Hays State University indicated more than 70% of Kansans support Medicaid expansion.
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Man Killed and Child Struck in KCK Shooting
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KC Star) — Police say one man was killed and a child was wounded during a weekend shooting in Kansas City, Kansas. Officers responded to the 1500 block of North 5th Street Saturday afternoon, where they found a man and child who had been shot. Both victims were taken to a hospital for treatment. The Kansas City Star reports that the man died from his injuries, and the child is now in stable condition. This incident marked the 15th homicide of the year in Kansas City, Kansas.
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1 Dead After Crash Involving a Train in Harper County
WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) — An 81-year-old man has been killed after crashing into a train in south-central Kansas. The Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP) says James Robb, of Danville, Kansas, was driving north of Danville Saturday morning and struck the side of a moving train. KWCH TV reports that Robb drove through the crossing arm, struck the train and rolled into a ditch. The Highway Patrol says he was not wearing his seatbelt.
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KCK Police Solve 100% of Homicide Cases in 2023
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KCTV) - The Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department recently reached an historic milestone when it comes to violent crime. As of last Friday, the city's police department had solved every single homicide case so far this year. KCK Mayor Tyrone Garner made mention of that fact of his Facebook page. KCTV News reports that the mayor also congratulated Police Chief Karl Oakman for leading his officers as they produced a nine year low in violent crime.
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Kansas Bar Where Gunfire Wounded 9 Last Month Closes Permanently
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The Wichita bar where nine people were wounded by gunfire last month has permanently closed. An attorney for City Nightz told the Wichita Eagle that the club owner felt he had no choice but to close because of all the negative publicity and because police blamed the bar for the shooting. The city suspended City Nightz's liquor license for 30 days after the shooting, and the year-old club never reopened.
Nine people were shot July 2 and two others trampled in the chaos afterward. No one died. Police have said that the seven men and two women who were shot ranged in age from 22 to 34. Several people have been arrested but the investigation continues.
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EPA Revising Approach to Herbicide Use
UNDATED (HPM) — The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in the middle of retooling their approach to agricultural herbicides and how they affect federally endangered species. Harvest Public Media reports that the EPA’s Pesticide Program has fallen behind on its obligations to the Endangered Species Act. Steve Thompson, Vice President of Public Policy for the Oklahoma Farm Bureau, says the EPA's plan to catch up could have serious economic consequences for farmers. "The de facto effect of those mitigation procedures are just are just not workable, they're not reasonable, they're not cost effective," he said. In the past, the EPA’s failure to meet its requirements under the Endangered Species Act has resulted in more than 20 lawsuits. Public comment on the draft plan is open through early September. The EPA plans to release a similar insecticide plan sometime next year.
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Southeast Kansas Town Struggles with Water Emergency
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — The City of Sedan in southeast Kansas is struggling with a water emergency. Drought conditions, which prompted the emergency, have caused the Sedan city lake level to drop seven feet below normal. KSNW TV reports that officials have banned all outdoor watering. The goal is to reduce overall weekly water consumption by at least 25% until the situation improves.
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Kansas Will Need More Health Care Workers as Population Ages
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (KNS) — Older Kansans are going to need more health care services as their population continues to grow. One healthcare expert recently told state lawmakers that Kansas is not prepared. A third of people over 65 are expected to need long-term health care services. And the 2020 U.S. Census showed people 60 and older are the largest age group in most Kansas counties. Dr. Bruce Troen, of the University of Kansas Medical Center, says the state is ill prepared. KU Med is currently exploring a national training program to increase the eldercare workforce. “This is particularly targeted in both educational and recruitment efforts to get more people to help take care of older adults," he said. Part of the program will focus on treating rural residents.
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Four New License Plates Coming Soon, Depicting Kansas Wildlife
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Four new Kansas license plates are coming soon. The plates will help fund conservation efforts for wildlife and fish at state parks. KSNW TV reports that the Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks has posted photos of the license plates on its Facebook page. One plate features a deer, another features a fish. Although officials haven't said when they will be released, the KDWP Facebook page says the plate that has the most support, or comments on its post, will be released first.
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Could Winter Make a Comeback in Kansas?
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WDAF) — The Farmers’ Almanac, which provides a forecast every year, is predicting winter weather will make a comeback after a warmer cold season last year. WDAF TV reports that the Farmer's Almanac is calling for below-average temperatures and a lot of snowstorms, sleet, ice and rain for much of the Midwest. The Almanac's extended weather forecast, which is based on a mathematical and astronomical formula, predicts winter in the Great Plains will usher in plenty of cold temperatures and occasional bouts of storminess, bringing widespread rain and snow. What about a White Christmas? According to the Farmer’s Almanac, the Kansas City metro has a 10% to 25% historical probability of having one.
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Chiefs' Chris Jones Continues Holdout as Preseason Opener in New Orleans Approaches
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — Time is getting short for defensive tackle Chris Jones and the Kansas City Chiefs. The All-Pro’s holdout has now stretched well into training camp, and those $50,000 fines for each day he misses climbing for each game, beginning with their preseason opener Sunday in New Orleans. Under terms of the collective bargaining agreement, the fines increase to a game check for each game he misses. That means about $1.1 million for Jones, who is entering the final year of his four-year, $80 million deal. The Chiefs also want to see him on the field after learning last week that defensive end Charles Omenihu has been suspended for the first six weeks of the regular season. He violated the NFL's personal conduct policy with an arrest in January.
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KU Men's Hoops Loses First Exhibition Game Since 2012 to Bahamian National Team
BAYAMON, Puerto Rico (AP) — The University of Kansas had its 35-game exhibition winning streak in men's basketball snapped Monday by the Bahamian national team, which got big performances from NBA stars Buddy Hield and Eric Gordon in an 87-81 victory at Ruben Rodriguez Coliseum.
Hield scored 19 points and Gordon had 12 for the Bahamas, which is preparing for the upcoming FIBA World Cup.
The Jayhawks, who had not lost an exhibition since 2012, routed a select team from Puerto Rico to begin a three-game tour of the Caribbean last Thursday. Their new-look lineup led by Michigan transfer Hunter Dickinson and returning starters Dajuan Harris Jr., KJ Adams Jr. and Kevin McCullar Jr. proceeded to hold off the Bahamas 92-87 in their second game Saturday.
Gordon, who signed with the Suns last month, joined the Bahamian squad for the matchup Monday. He previously played for the U.S. in international competition but has been cleared to play for the Bahamas because his mother is originally from Nassau.
Harris scored 23 points and McCullar had 19 in the tour finale for the Jayhawks, who are expected to be No. 1 when the preseason AP Top 25 is released later this year. Dickinson added 16 points and nine rebounds while Nicolas Timberlake scored 13.
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This summary of area news is curated by KPR news staffers, including J. Schafer, Laura Lorson, Tom Parkinson and Kaye McIntyre. Our headlines are generally posted by 10 am weekdays and updated throughout the day. These ad-free headlines are made possible by KPR members. Become one today. You can also follow KPR News on Twitter.