TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Kansas lawmaker says there’s no need to talk about new home schooling requirements, despite plans made last month by the state Board of Education to have that discussion. House-Senate Legislative Educational Planning Committee chairman Steve Huebert says several board members have heard of children being kept at home to baby-sit younger siblings. But he told the Lawrence Journal-World that current state law is adequate to investigate such claims without having to consider new laws to address the issue. Board of Education member Sue Storm says board members have been “hammered” by people who support home schooling.…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas officials say incidents of sexual misconduct against inmates at the state’s prison for women have been rare since the start of 2011. Corrections Secretary Ray Roberts said Friday he was surprised by a finding from the U.S. Justice Department that characterized such problems at the Topeka Correctional Facility as rampant. The finding was contained in a letter Thursday to Gov. Sam Brownback. Brownback said Friday the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division didn’t take into account what he called aggressive steps taken since January 2011 to address the problems. The prison’s warden, Hope Cooper, said since the…
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) A Kansas man’s complaint about money getting lost in the mail didn’t quite get the result he hoped for. Federal prosecutors say the Lawrence man told postal authorities that he mailed about $10,000 to California, but the cash somehow went astray. According to court documents, investigators learned the man was allegedly buying marijuana from California by mail, then distributing it in Kansas. State and federal agents raided his home in April and reported finding about $7,100, plus more than a pound of marijuana and drug sales paraphernalia. Federal prosecutors filed a civil lawsuit Thursday seeking forfeiture of…
SALINA, Kan. (AP) A 42-year-old central Kansas man has been sentenced to nearly 19 years in prison for killing his wife and attempting to kill his sister-in-law. The Salina Journal reported that Judge Rene Young heard emotional statements from the victims’ families and friends Friday before imposing the maximum sentence against Michael Andrew Paulson. Paulson was convicted in July of second-degree murder in the 2010 stabbing death of Valerie Paulson. He also was found guilty of attempted second-degree murder for injuring his sister-in-law, Jessie Putman. Prosecutors said Paulson was facing the prospect of divorce and hid with a knife in…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Kansas Congressman Mike Pompeo says conservative victories in the state are a model for the rest of the nation. Pompeo and other members of the state’s all-Republican congressional delegation appeared Friday at a joint meeting of the Kansas Chamber of Commerce and the Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce. Campaign money from the two business groups helped conservative Republicans defeat moderate members of the GOP in last month’s Kansas primaries. Pompeo says the nation faces a clear choice in the November elections, much as Kansas faced in the Republican primary. Several other members of the delegation agreed with…
Several drivers had to be pulled from their vehicles around Phoenix by fire crews.The National Weather Service issued flash flood warnings Friday for parts of Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix.
Republicans are fueling their attacks on President Barack Obama Friday with the latest job numbers, which show that fewer than 100,000 jobs were created last month.
Hours after a horrific collision between a Tractor Trailer rig and an SUV which sent two drivers to the hospital, Interstate 70 in Wabunsee and Shawnee Counties fully reopened to traffic late Friday night. As of 11:50 p.m. the Kansas Department of Transportation announced in a press release that all lanes of the interstate had reopened after the completion cleanup of fuel that had spilled onto the roadway following the crash. According to KDOT, the accident happened around 7 p.m. near Mile Marker 342 at Maple Hill. All lanes of the interstate were shut down as a result and traffic…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The private organization formed during controversy last year over state funding for the arts has raised nearly $105,000 in its first year, but made no allocations to local arts groups. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports documents submitted to the IRS show the Kansas Arts Foundation had 2011 revenue of $104,900. The foundation was formed before Gov. Sam Brownback vetoed legislation last year that allocated $700,000 in state aid to the Kansas Arts Commission, making Kansas the only state in the country without a state-funded arts organization. The records show the foundation had $16,800 in operating expenses, with almost…
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) An Overland Park woman pleaded guilty to participating in a national tax fraud scheme that brought conspirators more than $3.5 million. Seventy-one-year-old Shirley J. Oyer, owner of ABC Seamless Siding in Kansas City, pleaded guilty Thursday to writing false claims for tax refunds. The government says the scheme started in Kansas City and spread across the country. Fourteen conspirators are accused of seeking more than $96 million in fraudulent returns, and received more than $3.5 million. Prosecutors say Oyer promoted the scheme and recruited at least a dozen people to participate. Her plea agreement calls for…