WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is “absolutely not leaving” the Cabinet even as top Republicans make a pitch for him to run for the Senate in Kansas. Pompeo served four terms in the House and was Trump’s CIA director before moving to the State Department. The decision by longtime Republican Sen. Pat Roberts to retire has prompted an effort by other GOP senators to recruit Pompeo for 2020. He’s said that push has included a call from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. Trump tells CBS’ “Face the Nation” that McConnell may have…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA — Kansas says it collected $49 million less in taxes than anticipated in January, giving Gov. Laura Kelly and lawmakers a dose of bad news as they consider budget issues. The Department of Revenue reported Friday that the state collected $646 million in taxes last month when its fiscal forecast predicted more than $695 million. The shortfall was 7.1 percent. Continuing monthly shortfalls would cloud the debate over a plan from Kelly to boost education funding and a Republican proposal for tax relief. The state has collected $4 billion in taxes since its current budget year began in July.…
LEAVENWORTH — Prosecutors are researching an appeal after a Kansas judge found that a 13- and 14-year-old girl were partly to blame for a sexual encounter with a 67-year-old man and reduced his prison sentence. The Kansas City Star reports that Leavenworth County District Judge Michael Gibbens said that “the victims in this case, in particular, were more an aggressor than a participant in the criminal conduct” before sentencing Raymond Soden to five years and 10 months in prison. Prosecutors sought 13-plus years because Soden had prior convictions for battery and for sexual battery In ordering a lighter prison term…
LAWRENCE — A recent study says most Americans tend to overestimate how many people own guns, a finding that some experts say could have political ramifications nationwide. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that University of Kansas political scientists Don Haider-Markel and Mark Joslyn examined the results of a 2016 nationally representative survey of nearly 1,300 American adults. The researchers found that more than 75 percent of those who responded to the survey overestimated what percentage of Americans own guns. The researchers say approximately 25 percent of Americans are gun owners, but most of the survey’s respondents believed that slightly over half…
Officers filed a report for burglary in the 500 block of Kearney in Manhattan on February 1, 2019, at approximately 12:10 PM. Officers listed Reginald Herring, 36, of Manhattan as the victim when it was reported an unknown suspect took an Xbox and PS4 gaming systems from his home. The estimated total loss associated with this case is approximately $1,358.00. 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…
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. visited Kansas State University on Jan. 19, 1968 where he spoke to a crowd of 7,000 at Ahearn Field House about racial inequality in the United States and advocating non-violent actions to bring about change. Many from K-State and the community came out to keep his memory alive at a wreath-laying ceremony at the bust of Dr. King outside of Ahearn Friday. The ceremony capped off a week full of observances around campus and was preceded by a procession leading from the Multicultural Student Organization Office, through the University Student Union Courtyard, before arriving at…
KANSAS CITY — Wyandotte County District Attorney Mark Dupree plans to seek the death penalty against a man charged with killing two sheriff’s deputies. Dupree said Friday during a hearing for 30-year-old Antoine Fielder that he will pursue the death penalty. Fielder is charged with capital murder in the deaths of Wyandotte County sheriff’s deputies Patrick Rohrer and Theresa King. They were killed last June while they were transporting Fielder and another prisoner between the jail and a court hearing. Fielder allegedly disarmed them but details of the incident have not been released. Fielder also was injured during the confrontation.…
Friday’s guests included Manhattan Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Karen Hibbard. She talked about the groundbreaking on the Johnny Kaw Plaza project — coming up Monday, Feb. 4 — as well as a reception honoring Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Lyle Butler on Feb. 21. Butler’s last day before retirement is Feb. 28. Riley County Research and Extension Family and Consumer Sciences Agent Megan Dougherty stopped by to talk about Walk Kansas, which runs from March 17 through May 11. Then Junction City Commissioner Phyllis Fitzgerald closed out the program talking about multiple projects she’s involved in…
TOPEKA — State game wardens have confirmed a mountain lion carcass was found in north-central Kansas. The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism reported Thursday that hunters found the female lion’s remains in Rooks County, just north of Hays. The agency said the group of hunters contacted a local game warden. The incident is still under investigation. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports it is the first mountain lion spotting in Kansas since 2016, though several unconfirmed sightings have been reported. It is the 21st confirmed sighting in Kansas since 1990, though there were no confirmed sightings between 1990 and 2005.
JUNCTION CITY — About 100 people responded to public pleas to attend the funeral of a 63-year-old Junction City veteran. Army soldiers and members of the public braved frigid weather Wednesday to attend services for Servando “Kiko” Silva-Jimenez, who served as a medic in the U.S. Army. He died Jan. 15 at Geary Community Hospital in Junction City. The Manhattan Mercury reports officials with the Johnson Funeral Home tried for days to find Silva-Jimenez’s relatives. Social media posts began circulating asking that people attend Silva-Jimenez’s services at the Kansas Veterans Cemetery. However, at the last minute, cemetery manager Cecelia Shellnute…