WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Kansas residents will decide in November whether to reduce property taxes for boat owners. Supporters say the constitutional amendment on the November ballot will make the state’s tax rates on boats similar to surrounding states. They say Kansas rates can sometimes be eight times higher than those in adjoining states. Opponents say the amendment is being pushed mostly by sports fishermen who want to save money on expensive boats. They say regulations in Kansas have helped create a strong market for used boats. The Wichita Eagle reports boats in Kansas currently are classified in the “other” category…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The Kansas Supreme Court has upheld a state law imposing a $250,000 cap on damages that can be awarded for pain and suffering in personal injury lawsuits. The court ruled Friday against Eudora resident Amy Miller, who challenged the 1988 law imposing the cap on non-economic damages. Miller sued her doctor for removing the wrong ovary from her during surgery in 2002. Business and medical groups had urged the court to uphold the law, saying it keeps insurance premiums affordable. Miller’s attorneys had argued that the cap violated the Kansas Constitution’s guarantees of a right to trial…
SALINA, Kan. (AP) Kansas health officials say they’ve identified a likely cause of a chemical smell that Salina residents complained about this week. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment says in a release that the smell was likely from a chemical called mercaptan, which gas companies use in natural gas lines. KDHE says mercaptan was detected after its crews began testing the area Wednesday. The Salina Journal reports that residents complained the odor was giving them headaches. The health department says it’s conducting more tests, but the spilled chemical poses minimal risk and cleanup is expected to be completed…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A Wichita mail carrier says he’s extremely grateful for a letter he recently received. William Fox says he had been searching frantically for a wallet that went missing on Sept. 12, shortly after he cashed his paycheck. He was convinced someone stole it. Then Fox received a letter in the mail a few days ago. It was from Flying Donuts in Wichita, telling him to stop by. The Wichita Eagle reports when Fox went to the store, owner Tricia Davis handed him the wallet, with all the money inside. Davis says Fox left the wallet but it…
JUNCTION CITY, Kan. (AP) Officials from Kansas, Colorado and Nebraska meet later this month to discuss water-related issues and activities within the Republican River basin. The Republican River Compact Administration’s annual meeting is Oct. 16 in Junction City. Among the topics up for discussion is compliance with the compact. A work session is also planned Oct. 15. Both meetings are open to the public. The compact was created to provide for the equitable division of the basin’s waters and promote interstate cooperation.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) An exhibition of artwork by fourth- and eighth-graders opens Friday night at the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka. “The Ray of Hope” consists of quilts and murals inspired by Aaron Douglas, considered a forefather of African-American art and a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance. The featured artists are fourth-graders at Williams Science and Fine Arts Magnet School in Topeka and eighth-graders from Liberty Central Middle School in Lawrence. They created their art with the help of nationally known quilter Marla Jackson. She is serving as an artist-in-residence at the Brown site.…
KINGMAN, Kan. (AP) The trial of a former Kansas police instructor accused of killing his wife has been moved from December to next May. Brett Seacat, 36, of Kingman, is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated arson and child endangerment. His 34-year-old wife, Vashti Seacat, was found dead with a gunshot wound in the neck after a fire at their home in April 2011. Prosecutors say Brett Seacat shot his wife and set the fire before escaping the house with their two young sons. The defense contends Vashti Seacat set the fire and shot herself. A judge on Thursday rescheduled the…
A man tried to help his grandson, but ended up losing a lot of money along the way. William Lockhart, 82, of Manhattan was contacted by unknown people in Mexico saying that his grandson was in trouble and needed his help. Lockhart ended up sending $20,000 in money grams. The incident turned out to be completely fraudulent.
President Barack Obama is challenging Republican Mitt Romney’s candor the morning after their first debate, saying: “If you want to be president, you owe the American people the truth.”
Pentagon Press Secretary George Little says the U.S. military respects Turkey’s right to defend itself, in response to a reporter’s questions about a skirmish between Turkish and Syrian forces on the countries’ shared border.