Most of an animal cruelty case in Pottawatomie County KMAN news has been telling you about for almost a year has been resolved. Amanda Hoke (21) and Derrick Hoke (42) have entered into a diversion with the state on the 10 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty. Pottawatomie county attorney Sherri Schuck tells KMAN the state offered a diversion based on the lesser culpability of the defendants and the benefits to each party. Each defendant will be on diversion for 12 months, with certain terms and conditions that must be completed. Shuck adds a failure to complete the requisite terms and conditions could result…
Author: KMAN Staff
Authorities in Panama say more than 1,500 homes have been damaged or destroyed by flooding from heavy rains over the weekend. The Panamanian Red Cross says a mudslide may have buried two Red Cross workers.
Fireworks were on the agenda for the Manhattan City Commission meeting on Tuesday night, and the meeting had its share of explosive debates as the commission took on the issue at city hall. The commission heard from Fire Service Director Jerry Snyder on a new proposal to ban a certain type of firework called flying lanterns and proposing a new way of controlling situational bans on fireworks in the city with a joint decision from the mayor and city emergency staff. Commissioner Jim Sherow would like to see a ban on all fireworks for safety’s sake, and believes Manhattan’s public display is sufficient…
Investigators in northeastern Kansas are looking for links between recent arson fires at a partly demolished grain elevator and a nearby home. Officials have identified two people as “persons of interest” in the St. Marys fires. Pottawatomie County Fire Supervisor Bruce Brazzle told KMAN news the first blaze broke out around 2 a.m. Friday at the downtown St. Marys grain elevator owned by Nemaha County Co-op. The fire destroyed the elevator, which was being razed. It also scattered chunks of burning wood for several blocks and caused heat damage to nearby buildings. Late Sunday, another fire broke out at an…
EL DORADO, Kan. (AP) A judge has refused to let a southeastern Kansas woman withdraw her guilty plea in last year’s killing of her boyfriend’s grandmother. Lyndsey Giovinazzo and Jacob Hoyt were both 19 when they were arrested in December 2011 in the death of Loyce Cody. The 69-year-old teacher was found strangled in her Augusta home; her car and debit cards were missing. The El Dorado Times reports Giovinazzo was in Butler County District Court on Tuesday, seeking to change her plea of guilty to first-degree murder. Judge Jan Satterfield rejected the defendant’s arguments that she received poor advice…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Gov. Sam Brownback and members of his Cabinet are taking the lead in a weight-loss contest aimed at encouraging Kansans to fight obesity and adopt healthier eating habits. The Republican governor on Tuesday challenged other executive, legislative and judicial branch employees to field five-member teams that will compete to lose the largest percentage of body weight. The contest will run Jan. 15 through May 15. Brownback says the rising obesity rates in Kansas and the nation pose serious health risks. The governor said he’s recruiting four members of his Cabinet to join his team. Prizes will be…
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) A former teller at a northeast Kansas bank will spend 10 months in home confinement for embezzling more than $27,000 from the bank. The U.S. Attorney’s office says 23-year-old Brittney L. Crane will also serve two years of supervised release under the sentence she received Monday. Crane worked at a branch of US Bank in Kansas City, Kan. In a guilty plea she entered in August, she admitted processing forged counter withdrawal slips totaling $27,700 in late 2011. A video recording of one transaction showed her processing a forged withdrawal slip for 20-year-old Cierra Clayborn at…
PITTSBURG, Kan. (AP) Diving crews recovered the body of a southeast Kansas man in an old strip mining pit in a Pittsburg park. Police Lt. Cris Hatcher says the body of 22-year-old Mateo V. Lorenzo of Pittsburg was recovered Monday in a mining pit at Wilderness Park. A witness called police Saturday to say man had fallen into the pit. Crews from Pittsburg, Frontenac and Newton County searched the strip pits most of Sunday. The searchers found Lorenzo’s body Monday afternoon in about 14 feet of water. The Pittsburg Morning Sun reports an autopsy will be conducted. The pit where…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The official Christmas tree ornament for Kansas this year honors Washburn University’s 150th anniversary. Gov. Sam Brownback and first lady Mary Brownback unveiled the state ornament Monday at the governor’s mansion in Topeka. Twelve of the official ornaments will be sent to Washington D.C. to decorate the state’s tree, which is part of national Christmas tree display. The ornament bears Washburn’s 150th anniversary logo, which shows the school’s mascot, the Ichabod. The state seal is on the back of the ornament. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the state will also send a dozen ornaments made of wheat to…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Two leaders of the Kansas National Guard are in Armenia this week to help the former Soviet republic improve training of noncommissioned officers. Lt. Col. Brent Salmans and Command Sgt. Maj. James Moberly are taking part in a workshop with members of Armenia’s Defense Ministry. The goal is to develop training and leadership programs for Armenia’s enlisted personnel as the nation transitions to a Western-style military. Kansas has partnered with Armenia since 2003, exchanging delegations to share ideas and best practices for military and emergency management. The partnership is part of a National Guard Bureau program that…