KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) A man who was abandoned in a phone booth in Kansas City, Kan., in 1972 is on a quest to identify his birth parents and why they left him. Bill Atkinson, who now lives in suburban St. Louis, was found covered in nothing but a blanket in the phone booth on June 7, 1972. Doctors thought he was about 12 hours old when he was found. Now a 41-year-old husband and father of three, Atkinson says the couple who adopted him gave him a great life. But he says having his own children has made him…
Author: KMAN Staff
MARYSVILLE, Kan. (AP) Officials with northeast Kansas counties damaged by tornadoes and flooding in May are waiting to hear if the region will be eligible for disaster relief. An EF-2 tornado hit Marshall County on May 27, causing significant damage to a business and 28 homes in Marysville. Tornadoes also touched down in Nemaha County on May 28 and flooding was reported across the region after rains of 9 to 12 inches. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the storms did not cause any serious injuries, but a preliminary estimate determined the storms did between $5 million and $6 million damage. Marshall…
ASHLAND, Kan. (AP) A small rural Kansas church is celebrating what some might consider a gift from God. A minister of the Presbyterian Church in Ashland says she was sorting through some boxes at the church when she found one filled with some unusual Bibles. The 15 Bibles found by Minister Marsha Granberry were printed in several languages including Eskimo, Slavic, Cherokee, Russian, Chinese and Yiddish. Most of the Bibles were printed in the 1920s and 1930s, except the Cherokee version, which apparently was printed in 1860. Granberry says the Bibles are in pristine condition, with no watermarks, tears or…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Wichita area officials are trying to determine if they will seek a six-month exemption from a new state law that will allow permit holders to carry handguns in public buildings. Both the city council and the Sedgwick County commissioners will take up the issue this week. The Wichita Eagle reports the new state law goes into effect July 1, allowing permit holders to take concealed handguns into public buildings, including courthouses, police stations and libraries. On Tuesday, city council members will vote on whether to seek the six-month exemption. County commissioners on Wednesday will consider whether to…
PITTSBURG, Kan. (AP) A judge has ruled a southeast Kansas woman will be tried for involuntary manslaughter, rather than murder, in the death of her 4-month-old son. District Judge A.J. Wachter ordered Heather L. Buckalew, 25, bound over for trial last week. Buckalew was originally charged with second-degree murder in the August 2012 death of Memphis Cash Harvey. The Joplin Globe reports that testimony at a preliminary hearing in May indicated that Buckalew fell asleep after drinking beer with her boyfriend. When he got up to go to work, he found the baby face down on a pillow near his…
OTTAWA, Kan. (AP) A restaurant in northeast Kansas is the focus of an investigation by federal immigration officials. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that the El Mezcal Mexican restaurant in Ottawa was closed Friday amid an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, a branch of the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. Shawn Neudauer, a spokesman for Homeland Security Investigations, confirmed that special agents from Homeland Security conducted an operation at the restaurant Friday, with help from local law enforcement agencies. He says the agency could not provide details about Friday’s events because it was part of an ongoing criminal investigation.
ROSSVILLE, Kan. (AP) Rossville has been awarded a $532,000 federal grant to help improve its downtown streetscape. The Kansas Department of Transportation announced it has chosen 35 projects in Kansas to receive federal transportation enhancement funding, which KDOT will administer. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the Rossville project was picked from among 91 applications. Applicants have to pay at least 20 percent of the project’s costs. Rossville city clerk, Linda Gentry, says the downtown streetscape project is expected to cost $665,000, which puts the city’s share at $133,000. Gentry said the Rossville City Council will likely consider issuing bonds to cover…
STRONG CITY, Kan. (AP) The annual Flint Hills butterfly census is coming up, and officials at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve are inviting the public to take part. The daylong count is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, starting at the preserve’s stone barn on Kansas 177 just north of Strong City. Officials say no experience with identifying butterflies is necessary. Volunteers are asked to bring binoculars, water, sunscreen and bug spray. Last-minute walk-ins will be welcomed as volunteers are divided into groups for a full or half-day of counting. The Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve is located in eastern…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A longtime opponent of the Kansas death penalty plans to bicycle 100 miles through northeast Kansas to push legislators to repeal the law. Bill Lucero will attempt to make the ride Tuesday around Topeka and Shawnee County. He is expected to be joined by other death penalty opponents and members of a local bicycling club. Lucero, whose father was murdered 40 years ago, has been a volunteer for several years with the Kansas Coalition Against the Death Penalty. Kansas reinstated the death penalty in 1994. No one has been executed under the law, which would take place…
UFM Community Learning Center held a World’s Largest Swimming Lesson event, Tuesday morning in the K-State Natatorium. 30 participants of all ages took part in an effort to break the World record, which was set in 2012 at 24,873 participants. “The Guiness World Record is the largest simultaneous swimming lesson across the world,” said Kayla Oney, education coordinator for UFM. UFM also took the opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of swimming lessons, especially for children. Research shows participation in formal swimming lessons can reduce the risk of drowning by 88% among children aged 1-4. In the summer, most kids…