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The pardon was the first in Brownback's term.

Governor Warns Against BurningTOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Governor Sam Brownback is warning Kansas residents against lighting outdoor fires because of the state's severe drought. But he told reporters yesterday he's not ready to impose a statewide ban on burning. All 105 Kansas counties are now covered by a drought disaster declaration, and 67 have imposed burning bans.========================================Rancher Sues Beef GroupWICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas rancher has filed suit claiming the National Cattlemen's Beef Association is improperly using "beef checkoff" funds to influence government action and policy. The federal lawsuit by Michael Callicrate names the U.S. Agriculture Department, the Cattlemen's Beef Promotion and Research Board and three other defendants. The filing was announced yesterday in Kansas City, Missouri.========================================Police Testify in Walmart Parking Lot CaseLAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas police officer says a 7-year-old girl found bound in the parking lot of a Kansas Walmart told police she was hitting her siblings and asked to be tied up and blindfolded. Officer James Miller testified yesterday during a preliminary hearing for Deborah and Adolfo Gomez Junior, an Illinois couple who were arrested in June after two of their children were found tied up outside the family's SUV.========================================Emporia Mother Sentenced in Infant MurderEMPORIA, Kan. (AP) — An Emporia woman has been sentenced to nearly 13 years in prison after being found guilty earlier of putting her newborn son in a trash bin. KVOE-AM reports that Lyon County District Judge Merlin Wheeler yesterday sentenced 26-year-old Christina Devine to 155 months in prison. She was convicted in July of attempted first-degree murder.

Here's a look at the latest Kansas news headlines from the Associated Press, as compiled by KPR.

Campaign Spending Heats Up as Election ApproachesTOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Seven groups have spent a total of nearly $167,000 over seven days to help Democratic candidates as campaigns for the Kansas Legislature near their end. With Tuesday's election approaching, the Bluestem Fund political action committee spent almost $72,000 on mailings, phone banks and other get-out-the-vote efforts.======================Democratic Leader Calls on Brownback to Pay for BrochureTOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas House Democratic Leader Paul Davis says Republican Governor Sam Brownback's campaign fund should reimburse the state for the costs of a brochure about income tax cuts mailed to 146,000 business owners. Davis held a news conference yesterday to criticize the brochure and suggest it represents electioneering. The Department of Revenue began mailing them Wednesday, six days before next week's election.=======================Court Rejects Appeal of Murder SentenceTOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The state Supreme Court has affirmed the conviction and life sentence of an eastern Kansas man in the beating and shooting death of a store manager. Twenty-six-year-old John Backus of Bonner Springs listed six grounds for appeal in the case. The high court on Friday rejected them all.========================Computers Stolen from KU LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Campus police are investigating this week's theft of 18 expensive computers at the University of Kansas. The Lawrence Journal-World reports the laptops are valued at more than $30,000. Investigators aren't sure when it happened, but someone reported it to public safety officials around 9:30 a.m. Tuesday. Authorities say someone cut a lock off a cart to steal the computers.

Grants Announced to Help Disabled Look for JobsOVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — The first grants under a United Healthcare initiative aimed at helping disabled Kansas job seekers are going to groups with a collective presence across the state. The health insurer said yesterday (FRI) it will provide $1.5 million in "Empower Kansas" grants over the next three years to community groups. The first five recipients were announced at a news conference in Overland Park.==========Convict Charged in 2009 Highway Shooting DeathKANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A 32-year-old man is charged in the fatal shooting of a Kansas government attorney on a Kansas City highway in July 2009. The Jackson County prosecutor's office announced yesterday (FRI) the indictment of Calah (kah-LAH') Johnson on charges of second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon. Johnson is currently in a federal prison serving a 20-year sentence on a drug charge.==========Plea Entered in Junction City Apartment FraudTOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Topeka man faces sentencing in December after pleading guilty to bank fraud in connection with plans to build an apartment complex in Junction City. The U.S. Attorney's office said yesterday (FRI) that 52-year-old John Duncan Junior entered the pleas this week to two counts of bank fraud and two related counts.==========NCAA Declares KU Player IneligibleLAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — The NCAA has ruled that Kansas cornerback Kevin Short is academically ineligible and will have to redshirt this season. Short, a transfer from Fort Scott Community College, started fall camp late after completing his academic work. He was listed as co-starter but was held out of Kansas' season opening win against South Dakota.

The justices reject the use of race to assign public school enrollment, block the execution of a mentally ill inmate and free manufacturers and retailers to set price floors.

American journalist Roxana Saberi was released Monday from an Iranian prison, where she had been held since January. Sen. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, where Saberi grew up, says the Iranian government has rectified a "terrible miscarriage of justice," and officials said she is now free to leave the country.

A municipal judge on Wednesday found Russell guilty of two misdemeanor charges. The ruling came after Russell's attorneys agreed to "stipulate and appeal" the case, moving the case to circuit court.

Murder, corruption and political intrigue all feature heavily in A Death in the Lucky Holiday Hotel, by Pin Ho and Wenguang Huang. It chronicles an episode that's still reverberating through China's Communist Party.

Reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley were found guilty of conspiring to defraud community banks. Speaking at the Republican National Convention, their daughter, Savannah, blamed "rogue prosecutors."