WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A man who helped kidnap a 9-year-old girl in Wichita and assisted her killer is up for parole for the fifth time. The Wichita Eagle reports that Bo Shoemaker told members of the Prisoner Review Board on Wednesday that 56-year-old Donald Wacker should remain behind bars for failing to help his daughter, Nancy Shoemaker. Wacker has a parole hearing next month. He’s already spent 27 years in prison for helping Doil Lane kidnap Nancy near her south Wichita home in 1990. After the abduction, the men drove Nancy to a Sumner County field where Lane raped…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas officials say law enforcement agencies have nearly eliminated a backlog of 2,200 sexual assault kits that had gone untested after the evidence had been collected from victims The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said Thursday that law enforcement agencies have had 2,000 of the kits tested by forensic labs and that the remaining 200 should be tested by the end of the month. Officials say the additional testing allowed 373 biological profiles from the evidence to be entered into a computerized DNA database and resulted in 243 hits that could provide leads. They say two cases…
Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce Director of Membership Sharla Meisenheimer and Military Community Liaison Janet Nichols joined us for an update on the recent AUSA Conference in Washington, D.C., leadership and educational opportunities for businesses coming up from now into early 2020 and a reminder to shop local this holiday shopping season.
A KDOT project will expand a sidewalk on the northside of a K-18 bridge over Wildcat Creek in partnership with the City of Manhattan. The state project will replace the two bridges into one, install longer turn lanes onto Poliska and raise the bridge two to three feet — which is approximately four feet higher than the creek level during the 2018 flash flood. It was originally planned for 2015, but budget cuts caused multiple delays. The state agreed to widen the sidewalk beyond the standard plan on the bridge from six to 10 feet and install a road-side guardrail…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An anti-abortion group is opposing two candidates for a Kansas Supreme Court vacancy before a state commission selects finalists for Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. Kansans for Life announced Tuesday that it opposes state Court of Appeals Judge Melissa Taylor Standridge and Shawnee County District Judge Evelyn Wilson. The move comes as conservatives seek to overturn a Supreme Court decision protecting abortion rights and to require state Senate confirmation of the justices. A nominating commission is set to interview 20 applicants Thursday and Friday. After it picks three finalists, Kelly will appoint one, with no role for…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas legislator who defected from the Republican Party last year is running for the U.S. Senate next year as a Democrat. The Kansas City Star reports that State Sen. Barbara Bollier, of the Kansas City suburb of Mission Hills, promised an independent approach in kicking off her campaign Wednesday. The 61-year-old retired anesthesiologist also condemned dysfunction in Washington as she seeks to replace retiring Republican Sen. Pat Roberts. Republicans haven’t lost a U.S. Senate race in Kansas since 1932. But Democrats are heartened by the victories last year of U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids in a…
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A 45-year-old Lawrence man has been sentenced to 11 years and four months in a case in which the reasons for the charges remain unclear. BJ Lauri was sentenced Wednesday for kidnapping and sexual battery. The Lawrence Journal-World reports an affidavit detailing the allegations against Lauri were sealed after a judge determined the victim’s mental or emotional well-being could be jeopardized by its release. Police previously said that in January, a woman told a Hy-Vee employee she had been heled against her will several “criminal events” occurred during that time. Lauri was originally charged with human…
Manhattan’s long-time clerk will be stepping down after 18 years on the job, but more than 20 with the city. Gary Fees was promoted to clerk in 2001, overseeing city commission procedure and the satisfaction of state requirements of city governments. Mayor Mike Dodson thanked and acknowledged Fees for his service, saying he is the first to arrive at meetings and the last to leave. “He’s really made an impact on all of us,” “We’ve redone the meeting format, the meeting is conducted in what I think is a very professional way and Gary is an integral part of doing…
Aiming to reduce the financial risk from potential lawsuits, Manhattan took the first step toward amending its ordinance prohibiting women from being topless in public Tuesday. A widely publicized preliminary injunction from the 10th Circuit Court of Appeal in a case against Fort Collins, Colorado “strongly” stated the court would likely find such laws unconstitutional over equal rights for prohibiting women from going topless, but not men. Fort Collins, which spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees on the case, settled and amended their laws to resolve the issue before the case reached a conclusion. That leaves cities…
The following summary of calls for service/reports filed by the Riley County Police Department is a portion of those received by police. Some names, addresses, and case details are withheld to follow local, state, and federal law as well as in an attempt to protect community members from being victimized further. Those arrested are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Officers filed a report for motor vehicle theft in the 1800 block of Hunting Avenue in Manhattan on October 15, 2019, at approximately 10:05 AM. Officers listed a 21-year-old male as the victim when he reported…