WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Kansas authorities say they’ll appeal a state district court’s decision ordering them to remove a child molester’s name from the offender registry. Attorney General Derek Schmidt said Thursday he will fight for the integrity of the state’s offender registry law. He says his office will also appeal a ruling that allowed the plaintiff anonymity. Schmidt says the registry is designed to protect the public, particularly children. Shawnee County Judge Larry Hendricks ruled Tuesday that Kansas law ostracizes offenders and requires them to remain registered longer than necessary. But his ruling applied only to the man who sued…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) More Kansas counties are signing up to participate in a 2011 state program aimed at luring new residents to rural counties with declining populations. Grant and Gray counties in southwest Kansas have recently voted to participate in a student loan program where new graduates can receive assistance in retiring college debt. The two counties were among 23 counties added to the state’s Rural Opportunity Zone program created by Republican Gov. Sam Brownback. The program offers student loan repayment and an income tax credit for new residents moving to participating counties that have lost at least 10 percent…
GARDEN CITY, Kan. (AP) Federal regulators have given Lee Richardson Zoo in Garden City a year to fix a problem with open and unattended gates. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which regulates zoos, says the zoo has to find a way to have the gates attended at all times when the zoo is open, or to have them be self-closing. Zoo director Kathy Sexson said Wednesday the primary concern is animals escaping, or people or animals getting into the zoo and causing problems. The Garden City Telegram reports the zoo hasn’t budgeted for the proposed changes, which could cost several…
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) The Kansas City, Kan., Board of Public Utilities says work on scores of downed power lines prevented it from quickly responding to a similar call in June about line at a city park, where a man was electrocuted. BPU spokesman David Mehlhaff issued a statement Wednesday explaining why it took more than 11 hours to respond to the downed power line at Rosedale Park after the June 15 storm. Twenty-seven-year-old Nicholas Moeder of Shawnee was electrocuted on June 16 as he played disc golf in the dark with a friend. The Kansas City Star reports that…
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) A Leavenworth man is charged with involuntary manslaughter in the shooting death of another man while they were riding in a pickup truck. Justin M. Driscoll, 26, appeared in court Wednesday after being charged in the Saturday death of Dick Mathis, 30. Police say Mathis was shot when a gun discharged and a bullet hit him in the chin. He was one of four men including Driscoll riding in the truck when the shooting happened. Driscoll and another man took Mathis to a hospital, where he died. The Leavenworth Times reports the criminal complaint alleges reckless behavior…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A judge has ruled that former cadets who sued a Kansas military school didn’t violate a protective order when their attorney disclosed in a filing that 339 students had complained of being beaten, hazed, harassed or abused over the past five years. U.S. Magistrate Judge Kenneth Gale ruled Wednesday that the confidential list was properly filed under seal, while the public motion referenced only the number. But the judge said portions of deposition transcripts from some witnesses that the plaintiffs publicly filed as exhibits violated the court’s protective order. He ordered those exhibits immediately sealed. Gale also…
IOLA, Kan. (AP) A Canadian company planning to build a 600-mile oil pipeline from Illinois to Oklahoma is coming to eastern Kansas to discuss the project. Enbridge Inc. of Calgary, Alberta, hopes to begin construction early next month on its Flanagan South pipeline. The company has scheduled a series of open house sessions this week in Illinois, Missouri and Kansas. The Iola session is Thursday at the North Community Building from 5-7 p.m. Attendees will be able to review project maps and meet with Enbridge employees in an informal session. Enbridge officials say they expect to receive an expedited permit…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Seventy foreign military officers are planning to tour the Kansas Statehouse as part of a program about state government and the state’s court system. The officers scheduled to visit Topeka on Thursday are students at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth. Students at the 119-year-old college frequently become high-ranking military officers or civilian officials in their nations, and 26 graduates have become heads of state. The 65 nations represented this year include Afghanistan, Brazil, Egypt, Kenya, Korea, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Spain, and Uganda. Secretary of State Kris Kobach is scheduled to speak…
Future capital projects and partnerships was the only topic of discussion during Thursday’s Riley County/Pottawatomie County/Manhattan City Commission meeting. Riley County submitted the topic for the agenda, as they have been looking into options as far as facilities, and extra space. Courtrooms are of a main concern, as there is talk of adding another magistrate judge in the future. Manhattan Mayor, John Matta commented “I like the idea of joining courts”, during a discussion about combining city and county courts in one building. It was brought up that this venture would also decrease public confusion, as there would be one…
“A giant step” is how U-S Senator Pat Roberts describes proposed funding for the National Bio and Agro-Defense facility, to be built in Manhattan. Senator Jerry Moran serves on the Senate appropriations committee, which has matched the U-S house’s proposed funding of 404 million dollars toward the facility’s construction. The two Senator from Kansas held a joint teleconference Thursday morning, with Roberts indicating this gets us, along with the state’s contribution, about halfway toward funding the project. Roberts reminds us the project has been worked on for 12 to 14 years. Roberts has praise for fellow Senator Moran…