OVERLAND PARK — A Kansas City man has been charged in a shooting near a Kansas elementary school that killed one man and left another critically injured. The Kansas City Star reports that 32-year-old Anthony Grable was charged Thursday with premeditated first-degree murder and seven other counts. His bond was set at $1 million. The shooting occurred Tuesday morning outside Sunrise Point Elementary School in Overland Park, Kansas. Grable and the two victims were contractors installing new turf on the school’s playground. Police say 48-year-old Todd Davis, of Lee’s Summit, Missouri, died after the shooting. Fifty-four-year-old Efren Gomez remains in…
Author: KMAN Staff
KANSAS CITY — A former Crawford County deputy alleges in a lawsuit she was fired after the sheriff told her she was too old and too feeble to do the job. Mary Mays spent more than 20 years at the sheriff’s office before she was fired last fall after failing a firearms test. The lawsuit alleges younger deputies were allowed to retake it if they didn’t pass. The Pittsburg Morning Sun says the lawsuit accuses the county of age discrimination. She was 59 at the time she was fired. County officials declined to comment. The lawsuit names the as defendants…
Area firefighters were busy over the Fourth of July Wednesday. In Manhattan, fireworks started a 3.5 acre grass fire Wednesday night. Manhattan Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief Ryan Almes told KMAN Thursday morning crews were called at 9:33 p.m. and the blaze started near 1836 Grand Vista Lane. Two fire engines and a brush truck had the fire controlled within a hour. Almes said the MFD was called to five other grass and brush fires throughout the day. The Junction City Fire Department responded to nearly a dozen fireworks related calls, according to a press release from the department Thursday…
Thursday’s guests were Dr. Timothy Shaffer, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at KSU and Assistant Director of the K-State Institute for Civil Discourse and Democracy, and Perry Wiggins, Executive Director of the Governor’s Military Council and former 1st Infantry Division Commanding General.
LAWRENCE — University of Kansas students and faculty can no longer use tobacco or vaping products on campus under a new policy pushed by health-conscious students. The Kansas City Star reports that the university banned smoking, vaping or using any other tobacco products on school grounds as of July 1. State law already bans smoking inside and immediately outside campus buildings. The new school policy comes more than five years after a student survey found that 64 percent favored stricter tobacco policies. Faculty who responded at the time to an Office of Institutional Research and Planning survey agreed. The new…
TOPEKA — Fire investigators say a fire that destroyed a house near Topeka began when fireworks thrown in the trash reignited. The Kansas State Fire Marshal’s office says both residents inside the home just south of Topeka city limits escaped the early Thursday fire after being awakened by smoke detectors. Firefighters rescued a dog and cat inside the home. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports firefighters responded to the fire near Lake Sherwood early Thursday. The fire has been ruled accidental. Fire investigator Tony Celeste says the fireworks were put in a trash bin near the house after they were shot off…
OVERLAND PARK — Police say a man who died in a shooting near a Kansas elementary school was a 48-year-old man from Missouri. Overland Park police on Wednesday identified the victim of Tuesday’s shooting in Overland Park as Todd Davis, of Lee’s Summit. A second man, 54-year-old Efren Gomez, whose hometown was not available, was critically injured in the shooting. A suspect is in custody pending charges. Police say the suspect and the two victims were working for a contractor putting in new turf at an elementary school when the shooting occurred. The motive remains unclear. No children were at…
TOPEKA — Kansas’ Department for Children and Families is facing criticism from some in the child welfare community over its decision to loosen requirements for some staff positions. Under new rules, the state will hire people with bachelor’s degrees to investigate claims of abuse and neglect. Formerly only licensed social workers were hired for the jobs. Critics say loosening the restrictions amounts to lowering standards for important jobs that require a high level of knowledge and ethics. State officials note a growing number of children in foster care and high turnover in the investigator jobs, which can be emotionally taxing.…
OVERLAND PARK — One of the two contract workers injured in a shooting outside a suburban Kansas City elementary school has died. Overland Park, Kansas, police spokesman John Lacey says the victim died Tuesday afternoon, several hours after he and a co-worker were shot at Sunrise Point Elementary School. The second victim remains in critical condition. The names of the men have not been released. The suspect was arrested at a home where authorities found a sport utility vehicle that was carjacked after the shooting. Formal charges have not been filed. Police Chief Frank Donchez says the home belonged to…
WICHITA — Authorities say an off-duty Wichita officer was wounded and a suspected home intruder killed in an exchange of gunfire. KWCH-TV reports that Wichita Police Chief Gordon Ramsay says 24-year-old Christian Webb shot the officer in the leg after entering the officer’s home through an unlocked door. The officer then returned fire, hitting the Webb several times. Webb died at a hospital. The officer was treated and released. Ramsay says the officer’s wife and children were home at the time of the shooting and are shaken up but uninjured. Ramsay says some cars had been broken into near where…