OSKALOOSA, Kan. (AP) A fire in the northeast Kansas town of Oskaloosa damaged three businesses and a Masonic Lodge but no injuries were reported. The fire Monday night extensively damaged a cafe and realty office and did minor smoke damage to a bank branch. Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Herrig says the Masonic Lodge about the cafe also was damaged. The cause of the fire is still under investigation but Herrig said it apparently started in the basement of the cafe. The Lawrence Journal-World reports no damage estimates were available Tuesday.
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Kansas Senate committee is taking up proposed changes in the state’s murder statutes, including tougher penalties for attempted capital murder. Bills before the Judiciary Committee on Wednesday are byproducts of a 2013 special session when legislators rewrote the procedure for imposing the “Hard 50” sentence for premeditated first-degree murder. The new proposal would change the presumptive sentence for the crimes to a minimum of life without parole eligibility for 50 years, with juries weighing evidence that could reduce the sentence to a minimum of 25 years to life. Legislators also will consider whether to increase the…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Kansas health officials say the state is seeing a high number of influenza cases, with three deaths directly attributed to flu since Sept. 1. The state Department of Health and Environment reported Tuesday that 5 percent of visits to clinic sites it monitors were due to influenza-like illness. The agency says flu or pneumonia contributed to 510 deaths during the current season, which began Sept. 1. The season has seen the re-emergence of the A/H1N1 strain as the dominating virus. The same strain caused a pandemic in 2009, hitting children and young adults especially hard. Health officials…
ATCHISON, Kan. (AP) Police in northeast Kansas are asking the public’s help in finding a 70-year-old man missing since Dec. 31. Atchison Police Chief Mike Wilson told KAIR-FM on Wednesday his department has received several leads since a Silver Alert for Garry Clyde Sandy was issued Jan. 10. Wilson said there was a possible sighting of Sandy’s gold-colored 2005 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck early Saturday in Newton, about 160 miles southwest of Atchison. Investigators are following that lead, among others, while also watching for any financial transactions. Sandy is described as 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighing 200…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback says the state’s path to growth relies on education, family and a sound economy. Brownback emphasized those themes Wednesday night in his annual State of the State address to a joint session of the House and Senate. The Republican governor said the recent cuts in the state’s income taxes and other initiatives enacted under his administration have brought Kansas out of the Great Recession. Brownback also said the budget plan he will release Thursday will include money to pay for all-day kindergarten and stable funding for higher education. The Democratic response was given…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Topeka teenager has been charged with four counts of soliciting first-degree murder for allegedly planning to shoot students at a local high school. Shawnee County District Attorney Chad Taylor says his office filed the felony charges against the 17-year-old, but the investigation is ongoing. Taylor was expected to give further details at a news conference Wednesday morning.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Two Kansas elementary school teachers are national finalists for a math and science award. The Kansas State Department of Education says the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching is given annually to outstanding teachers from across the country. The Kansas finalists are Shawnee Mission school district science teacher Lindsay Constance and Wamego school district math teacher Cathy Wilbur. They’ll get an invitation to Washington, D.C., for an awards ceremony and visit with members of Congress and President Barack Obama’s administration. A panel of scientists, mathematicians and educators pick the winners following an initial selection…
On today’s InFocus, Cathy talks with Gordon Hibbard, President and CEO of the Kansas 4-h Foundation, and Michelle Schrader, the Kansas 4-H Foundation’ss Fund Development Director, followed by Kevin Ingram, Manhattan Christian College President.
At about 1:30 pm Wednesday, an email was distributed from Greg Hoyt, Manhattan High School Principal. Below is the contents of that email. “Parents, I wish to take a moment to share with you some information out of Topeka this morning, certainly not to alarm you, but just as a means to communicate and share information. From the WIBW website: ‘Shawnee County District Attorney Chad Taylor announces that his office has filed charges against a 17 year old Topeka youth alleging four counts of Murder in the First degree: Solicitation, all of which are level 3 person felonies. These charges…
President Barack Obama speaks on his American Jobs Act legislation at North Carolina State University, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2014, in Raleigh, NC.