Author: Brandon Peoples

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly has won another four year-term, narrowly defeating Republican Attorney General Derek Schmidt by a 49 to 48 percent margin. “Kansans voted for strong schools, for economic growth, for balanced budgets. And yes, they voted for a woman’s right to make her own healthcare decisions,” Kelly said to supporters late Tuesday night, when the election at the time was too close to call. Kelly edged Schmidt by over 14,000 votes, in one of the more competitive governor races in the country. Schmidt had sought to tie Kelly to President Joe Biden and blamed both  for high inflation.…

USD 475 board members will wait until next week to decide on a site for a proposed new early childhood center. The board met Monday and removed from its agenda a staff recommendation for the board to approve the retention of the former Junction City High School site, at 900 Eisenhower Drive, for the proposed facility. It was removed at the request of board member Dr. Anwar Khoury, who could not attend Monday’s meeting. It will instead be considered at the Nov. 17 meeting. Former school board president Rina Neal spoke during public comment, supporting the recommendation on behalf of the…

Advance voting ended Monday, with more than 8,600 voters in Riley and Pottawatomie counties casting the ballots ahead of Election Day. Riley County Clerk Rich Vargo reported 6,354 Riley County residents voted in-person and by mail. That number was down from the last mid-term election, in 2018. Vargo noted Monday there were still 800 paper ballots that had yet to be returned. Advance voting was up in Pottawatomie County, with Clerk Dawn Henry reporting 2,263 advance ballots were cast both in-person and by mail. That exceeds the 1,972 early ballots cast in the 2018 mid-terms. Polls are open until 7 p.m.…

A Manhattan man was struck and killed Monday evening while riding an electric motorbike in the Northview area of town. According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, the bike collided with an SUV shortly before 6:30 p.m. near the intersection of Tuttle Creek Boulevard and Griffith Drive. The SUV had made a left turn onto Griffith and as the bike traveled northbound, it struck the side of the SUV. The driver of the motorbike, 31-year-old Erik Dedrickson, of Manhattan, was transported to Ascension Via Christi, where he was pronounced dead. Authorities say Dedrickson was not wearing a helmet, but rather only…

Riley County Police are investigating after a truck was found on fire early Saturday, hours after an altercation was reported between two men, including the owner of the truck. Officers filed a report for aggravated battery Friday evening in the 12000 block of Blue River Hills Road, listing a 43-year-old male victim when a 54-year-old male suspect used his 2020 Dodge Ram to hit the victim’s 2014 Toyota FJ Cruiser parked on the side of the road following an argument between the two. Police later filed an arson report around 1 a.m. Saturday in the 3800 block of West 69th…

Authorities are looking for information following a recent theft of tools from a Habitat for Humanity build site in Ogden. The Riley County Police Department says a report for theft was filed Thursday morning after thieves on Wednesday took Dewalt and Milwaukee brand saws, chargers, air nailers and other miscellaneous tools from a trailer in the 200 block of South Elm Street. The total estimated loss is about $5,000. Anyone with information can contact RCPD or Manhattan Riley County Crime Stoppers. Manhattan Area Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Josh Brewer tells KMAN that the organization is trying to recoup as…

As the holiday season approaches, one local organization is sekeing additional businesses and groups to participate in its annual Adopt A Family program. The Junior League of the Flint Hills says the requests for help currently exceeds existing donors. The program was created in 2012 by the Flint Hills Breadbasket to aid families with infants and children up to the age of 18 by providing gifts during the holiday season. The organization partners with a number of local agencies including Big Brothers Big Sisters, the FIT Closet and Shepherd’s Crossing. Qualifying families must live in Manhattan or surrounding areas and…

A North Carolina man is jailed in Wabaunsee County after authorities allege he flew out to meet up with a child he met online. The Wabaunsee County Sheriff’s Office says 20-year-old Derrick Mayfield was arrested Monday at a residence at Lake Wabaunsee. Evidence discovered on scene led to Mayfield being charged with aggravated indecent liberties with a child, contributing to a child’s misconduct and unlawful visual depiction of a child. He remains jailed on a $100,000 bond. The child was placed into protective custody.

A Junction City man was seriously injured following a wreck on K-18 Wednesday morning, involving three vehicles. The Kansas Highway Patrol says all three vehicles were traveling eastbound on K-18, around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday about a mile west of Seth Child Road. As one of the vehicles moved into the right lane, a passenger car driven by 66-year-old Theodore Thomas attempted to pass the other vehicle on the left shoulder. His vehicle then lost control, striking the other vehicle, then spun across the left lane and into the right lane striking the third vehicle. Thomas’ car rolled coming to rest…

Riley County saw 35 new cases of COVID-19 recorded during the final week of October. That was enough for the county to remain in KDHE’s moderate incidence category, with a rate of 47.1 per 100,000 people. The local health department reports that one patient was hospitalized Wednesday with COVID-19, but was not being treated in the hospital’s intensive care unit. As for vaccines, the health department noted that the Moderna bivalent boosters are now available for children 6 and older. The Pfizer bivalent booster is available to those 5 and older. Neither have yet been approved for children under the…