Author: Brandon Peoples

Jury selection begins Monday in Riley County for a 31-year-old California man accused in a 2020 shooting near Aggieville. Travell Hairston is charged with attempted first-degree murder, stemming from a Feb. 8, 2020 incident in the 1100 block of Laramie Street. Responding officers found an unoccupied car that had been shot at. A further investigation determined Hairston had allegedly fired several rounds at a 27-year-old male victim. Hairston has been jailed since January 2022, after being extradited from Sacramento County Jail in California on separate charges. He’s also on trial for four counts of aggravated assault, criminal discharge of a…

Riley County Commissioners heard an update Thursday from Extension Director Gary Fike regarding the newly created fairgrounds task force. Fike, who chairs the task force, says there has been great interest among committee members working through the process. Fike says a study was commissioned last year by the Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce for a new multimillion dollar event center to host the annual Kaw Valley Rodeo. That study was put on hold after K-State’s announcement last year of a new indoor arena to be constructed near the Stanley Stout Center. The proposed event center would include space for barns…

The Manhattan-Ogden School Board gave approval Wednesday night to exceed the revenue neutral rate for all mill levy funds for the proposed 2023-2024 budget. The proposed mill levy is 60.072, a decrease of about a half a mill from fiscal 2023. The primary reason for the mill levy going down is a slight drop in the mill for bond and interest payments as well as the local option budget. Superintendent Eric Reid says there are other contributing factors, including a roughly 10 percent increase in valuations. One mill in the fiscal 2024 budget is equal to about $867,000 compared to…

One person was injured Wednesday following a rollover crash in southern Riley County. The Kansas Highway Patrol says a dump truck was traveling westbound on K-18 near Moore’s Lane around 12:30 p.m., when it left the roadway and entered a ditch. The truck overturned, lost it’s load, traveled through a fence and into a culvert, striking the embankment. Authorities say 25-year-old Cole Story, of Wichita, was transported to Stormont Vail Hospital for treatment of serious injuries.

Two Junction City teenagers have been arrested in connection to a pair of shootings last summer in southeast Manhattan. The Riley County Police Department says 16-year-old Shaan Hyman and 17-year-old Marvin Fernandez were both arrested Monday by Junction City Police on their Riley County District Court warrants. Hyman is charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated assault and one count of criminal discharge of a firearm. RCPD says the charges are alleged from two separate incidents from June 20, 2022 and July 11, 2022 in the 700 block of Colorado Street. No injuries were reported…

A 28-year-old Manhattan man was arrested this week for a violating terms of his offender registration. The Riley County Police Department says Ronald Haywood was charged Tuesday with two counts including an aggravated count thereof. He remains jailed on a $50,000 bond. According to Kansas Department of Corrections records, Haywood has past convictions from Geary County for aggravated robbery, drug possession and criminal restraint.

The annual Battle of the Badges blood drive wrapped up Tuesday at St. Thomas More Church with the Red Cross collecting 136 pints of blood. While falling short of its goal of 210 pints, Red Cross spokesperson Kristi Ingalls tells KMAN they appreciate the support they received and noted the blood collected will help up to 408 patients in need. The annual blood drive pits local first responders in a friendly competition to collect votes for best agency. This year the trophy will go to the Riley County Police Department, which collected 52 votes, beating out Riley County EMS and…

State officials cut the ribbon Tuesday to formally celebrate the grand re-opening of Fancy Creek Shooting Range at Tuttle Creek State Park. Demolition and construction of the range began in July 2021, with the range officially re-opening to the public last month. Fancy Creek now boasts concrete baffles, sidewalls and firing line covers consisting of a 14-position, 100-yard rifle range, a 12-position 50-meter handgun and rifle range and two 15-position, 15-yard handgun ranges. The shooting range is open the first and third Saturdays of each month and is staffed by two NRA certified officers. Tuesday’s ribbon cutting included remarks from…

Riley County recently welcomed a new Budget and Finance Officer. Brittany Phillips took on the role July 6th. Before joining Riley County, she served as board treasurer for the USD 473 Chapman School District. Phillips has also spent time in municipal budgeting for the city of Chapman. Her responsibilities will include preparing and coordinating budgets for the county programs and departments and working closely with commissioners, department heads and the county clerk to lead budget discussions. Phillips succeeds Darell Edie, who retired from the position in June.

A Manhattan man was among three injured in a crash this week in Marshall County. The Kansas Highway Patrol says it happened around noon Wednesday at the junction of US-36 and K-99 involving an SUV and a pickup. Authorities say the SUV was southbound when it missed a stop sign at the junction and was struck on the passenger side by the the eastbound pickup. The driver and passenger of the SUV both sustained serious injuries and were transported to Bryan Medical Center in Lincoln for treatment. They were identified in the crash report as 57-year-old Ning Wang, of Stillwater,…