Two incidents involving teenagers were worked by Riley County Police Tuesday. Keith Smith, 19, of Ogden was arrested Tuesday afternoon at the Courthouse and charged with a felony of criminal possession of a weapon. Bond was listed at $10,000 thousand dollars. Also taken into custody Tuesday were Kyler Nations, 16, of Ogden for battery and 17 year old Preston Peters of Manhattan for aggravated assault. Both juveniles were released to parents/guardians. Officers are investigating the incident which involved a pocket knife being brandished during a verbal and then physical altercation in the 2100 block of Poyntz Avenue. No significant injuries were listed. Police describe…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA — Lawmakers are expressing concerns that Kansas won’t be able to quickly catch up with $100 million in delayed contributions to public employee pensions. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that members of the Joint Committee on Pensions and Investments discussed their concerns Monday. The pension payments were delayed this spring to address budget shortfalls. Under the plan, the delayed payments were to be repaid with interest by 2018. Republican Rep. Steven Johnson, of Assaria, says he’s “not optimistic” about the prospects of the money being paid back in time. Committee members note that the state faces budget difficulties that lawmakers must confront…
A man previously sentenced for life in prison for the 2009 double-murder of his 1-year-old son and girlfriend in Ogden was back in the Riley County District Courthouse Tuesday afternoon. Luis Aguirre, who will have a new trial after the Kansas Supreme Court reversed his conviction in May of 2015, was present for his motions hearing. Aguirre was convicted of killing Tanya and Juan Maldonado, but after his appeal, the high court ruled 4-3 that investigators continued to question Aguirre after he invoked his Miranda rights protection against self-incrimination. Aguirre’s defense asked Chief Judge Meryl Wilson Tuesday to prohibit antemortem photos of the victims…
It’s no figment of imagination that the wait for Kansas State’s first home game of the season has been longer than usual. After a loss at No. 8 Stanford in the season opener and a bye week, the Wildcats are impatiently waiting for the program’s latest home opener since 2001. The wait is almost over, however, as K-State welcomes Florida Atlantic to Manhattan on Saturday afternoon. “It’s not normal for us to have a hundred practices without playing at home,” head coach Bill Snyder said at Tuesday’s press conference. “I can sense some anxiety from the players. I have a…
The Big Blue and Kansas Rivers Floodplain Management Plan, developed by a collection of local agencies, is now available for review and comment. The City of Manhattan, Pottawatomie County and Riley County developed the plan with support from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Kansas Hazard Mitigation Team to provide guidance for managing and reducing flood hazards along the Big Blue and Kansas rivers. The proposed plan is available online at http://cityofmhk.com/blueriverplan. “We think we have identified effective strategies for minimizing flood risk along the Big Blue River and the Kansas River, and now we’re anxious to hear…
OKLAHOMA CITY — State and federal regulators say 32 disposal wells in northeastern Oklahoma must shut down because they are too near a newly discovered fault line that produced the state’s strongest earthquake on record. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission said Monday that 27 wells under its jurisdiction would cease operations, along with five wells in Osage County, which is covered by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rules. A magnitude 5.8 quake at Pawnee, Oklahoma, on Sept. 3 shook several states, including Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas. Shortly afterward, geologists speculated on whether the temblor occurred on a previously unknown fault. In a standard energy…
OLATHE — One of the four men charged with first-degree-murder in the killing of a suburban Kansas City gun store owner is arguing that he acted in self-defense. The Kansas City Star reports that De’Anthony Wiley, of Kansas City, Missouri, says he was wounded and had tried to surrender when 44-year-old Jon Bieker was fatally shot while defending his wife. She suffered minor injuries during the January 2015 robbery at the couple’s Shawnee, Kansas, store. Video of the fatal shooting was shown Monday during a hearing in Johnson County District Court. Co-defendant Nicquan Midgyett, who also was wounded, is joining Wiley’s motion…
Today’s guest on In Focus was Riley County Commissioner Robert Boyd. Brady Bauman was the host.
A Louisville man was arrested by Riley County Police on Monday. Mark Hecker, 21, was arrested on warrants for failure to appear and probation violation. Hecker was released to the Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Department. In a separate incident, police arrested 46-year old Wendy Montgomery for charges including criminal possession of a weapon and possession of depressants. Bond was set at $8,000.
Jennifer M. Farr, a fifth-grade teacher at Lincoln Elementary School in Junction City, and Lori J. Stratton, a high school English and reading teacher at Wamego High School, were named Region 1 finalists for the 2017 Kansas Teacher of the Year award during a ceremony held Saturday, Sept. 10, in Salina. This award recognizes excellent teaching in the elementary and secondary classrooms of the state. As finalists for the Kansas Teacher of the Year distinction, Farr and Stratton each received a $2,000 cash award from Security Benefit, the major corporate partner for the Kansas Teacher of the Year program. In…