TOPEKA — A Kansas state senator has switched to the Democratic Party to become the fourth moderate suburban Kansas City lawmaker to leave the Republican Party in a week. State Sen. Dinah Sykes of Lenexa said Wednesday that she could either fight to change the GOP or fight for her constituents. She won her seat in 2016. Rep. Stephanie Clayton of Overland Park also switched parties Wednesday. Clayton was first elected to the House in 2010 and said she could best support public schools by becoming a Democrat. Clayton has been an outspoken GOP moderate who was first elected to…
Author: KMAN Staff
PRAIRIE VILLAGE — The Prairie Village City Council has approved an ordinance that shields LGBTQ individuals from many types of discrimination within the city. The council’s unanimous approval on Monday night came after more than three months of sometimes contentious public debate on the issue. The Kansas City Star reports that the measure bans discrimination based on a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity when it comes to housing, employment or receiving public services from stores, restaurants or other businesses. The City Prosecutor’s office will investigate discrimination claims, with possible fines up to $1,000 per violation. The ordinance doesn’t apply…
OLATHE — Kansas will pay $1.1 million to a Missouri man who spent nearly 17 years in prison for a robbery that he argued was committed by his doppelganger. Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt announced Tuesday that a settlement had been reached with 42-year-old Richard Anthony Jones, of Kansas City, Missouri. Schmidt said Jones was the first to settle a payout under a new state law that provides compensation to people who are wrongly imprisoned. Jones also was granted a certificate of innocence. Eyewitness testimony sent Jones to prison for an attack and robbery in the parking lot of a…
TOPEKA — Federal regulators have proposed fining Kansas’ only nuclear power plant $232,000 over what regulators say was retaliation against an employee reporting a possible safety issue. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Tuesday that it found the Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corp. violated federal regulations. The Wolf Creek plant is 55 miles south of Topeka. The NRC said that during a fall 2016 refueling outage at the plant, a contract employee reported a safety concern. The NRC said the employee was placed on paid administrative leave. Wolf Creek said it has refined its reviews of personnel actions and has taken…
Officers filed a report for criminal damage to property in the 100 block of Pine Dr. in Manhattan on December 18, 2018, at approximately 10:00 AM. Officers listed a 17-year-old female as the victim when it was reported an unknown suspect damaged her Chevy Malibu. The estimated total loss associated with this case is approximately $2,500.00. Police ask that anyone with information contact RCPD or the Manhattan Riley County Crime Stoppers. Using the Crime Stoppers service can allow you to remain anonymous and could qualify you for a cash reward of up to $1,000.00. Officers filed a report for theft in…
Tuesday’s guests on In Focus were Manhattan City Mayor Mike Dodson and City Manager Ron Fehr.
Ariel Starcher, 20, of Manhattan was arrested while in the 2100 block of Fort Riley Blvd. in Manhattan on December 17, 2018, at approximately 11:45 PM. Starcher was arrested on offenses of aggravated assault, criminal threat and criminal restraint. Starcher was issued a total bond of $10,000.00 causing her to remain confined at the time of this report. Officers filed a report for sexual exploitation of a child, criminal threat and electronic solicitation in Manhattan on December 14, 2018. Officers listed a 17-year-old female as the victim and an unknown male as the suspect. Due to the nature of the crime…
LAWRENCE — A 26-year-old Missouri woman who intentionally drove her vehicle into the Kansas River in Kansas has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder. The Lawrence Journal-World reports Scharron Dingledine, of Columbia, Missouri, entered the plea Monday. As part of the plea, she won’t be eligible for parole for 25 years. Prosecutors say Dingledine drove a car into the Kansas River near downtown Lawrence in August in an effort to kill herself and her children. Rescuers pulled Dingledine and her 1-year-old son, Elijah Lake, from the water but were not able to save her 5-year-old daughter, Amiyah…
WICHITA — Human remains found in Wichita have been identified as a man who was reported missing more than a year ago. A Kansas hunter found the bones last month in south Wichita. Wichita police spokesman Charley Davidson said Monday the remains were those of 56-year-old Donald Cook, of Wichita. He was reported missing on May 15, 2017. The Sedgwick County Regional Forensic Science Center identified the remains. The investigation is continuing.
LAWRENCE — A Douglas County judge is weighing the sentence for a man convicted in a fatal shooting outside a Eudora bar. Judge Peggy Kittel was scheduled to sentence 37-year-old Danny Queen on Monday for the death of 32-year-old Bo Hopson but instead took the matter under advisement. The Lawrence Journal-World reports Queen was convicted Aug. 1 of second-degree murder after Hopson was shot outside the D-Dubs Bar and Grill. Both men are from Eudora. Hopson was working security at the bar when Queen was thrown out. While bar patrons tried to calm him down, Queen pulled out a handgun…