WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Drought-stricken Kansas is asking the Corps of Engineers to halt releases of water from three of its small reservoirs for downstream navigation. During a drought conference Wednesday, Gov. Sam Brownback asked U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts to help get the Corps to stop releases from the Milford, Perry and Tuttle Creek reservoirs while some upstream reservoirs remain at flood stage. The governor also asked Roberts to support expanding the Kanopolis reservoir to hold 2 more feet of storage, which could help central Kansas during a future drought. Brownback says he has allowed pumping from all of the state’s…
Author: KMAN Staff
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) A northeastern Kansas man who stole a neighbor’s purse after finding her dead in her home has been sentenced to two years in prison. KCTV reports that 38-year-old Bryan Keylon, of Leavenworth, was sentenced Wednesday for burglary. He pleaded guilty to the charge in June. Keylon admitted breaking into the 54-year-old woman’s home in January 2012 and finding the body in a bedroom. He took her purse, then called 911. Leavenworth County Attorney Todd Thompson said the woman was found to have suffered a massive heart attack, and Keylon had nothing to do with the death. Keylon…
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) A Kansas woman’s victory in a religious freedom case came too late for her to get a life-saving liver transplant. Mary Stinemetz of Hill City is terminally ill with chronic liver disease. The 65-year-old woman is a Jehovah’s Witness, a religion that forbids blood transfusions. She won a legal battle last year that forced the state to pay for a transplant in Nebraska that did not require a blood transfusion. Kansas officials had argued that a bloodless transplant was not a medical necessity, and Steinmetz’s religion should not determine insurance coverage. The Kansas City Star reported…
SALINA, Kan. (AP) A Salina man admits he spanked his fiance’s 14-month-old son with a 10-inch piece of board but insists he did not kill the child. Antonio M. Brown pleaded not guilty Tuesday to the October 2011 death of Clayden Lee Urbanek. He is charged with first-degree murder, child abuse and interference with law enforcement. The Salina Journal reports Brown admitted in an interview with police that he caused severe bruising on the boy’s bottom by spanking him with a board. But he insisted he didn’t know how the boy suffered fatal injuries to his abdomen or bruises covering…
MERRIAM, Kan. (AP) Police say a train ran over a man in Johnson County early Wednesday. Merriam, Kan., police say the train conductor saw the man lying on the tracks but wasn’t able to stop the train before striking him. Drivers are being diverted near the scene of the man’s death, along a busy Johnson County street. The empty train was on Burlington Northern Santa Fe tracks.
GARDEN CITY, Kan. (AP) A Finney County jury found that a Garden City police officer didn’t use excessive force when a police dog was used to subdue a man during a traffic stop. The jury deliberated only 45 minutes Tuesday before reaching a verdict in the lawsuit filed by former Garden City resident Jack Nemechek against Garden City and police officer David Wheet. The Garden City Telegram reports Nemechek was stopped in February 2004 by three police officers for a traffic violation. Police say Nemechek was combative and the officers eventually released the police dog to help subdue him. Wheet…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The Kansas Corporation Commission says it needs more time to investigate a house explosion that killed a Topeka woman. WIBW reports the KCC was to present its findings Tuesday in the January blast that killed 81-year-old Lucinia Tolliver. But the corporation says it needs additional time to complete the investigation. Investigators have said digging in a yard west of Tolliver’s home caused a natural gas service line to separate from the main line underground. The natural gas migrated into Tolliver’s home, which exploded. She suffered severe burns and died about a week after the explosion.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The City Council in Topeka has chosen an Arizona official as the new city manager. Jim Colson has been deputy city manager since 2009 in Glendale, Ariz., a community about 226,000 residents. He’ll be the permanent successor to Norton Bonaparte, who served as Topeka city manager from March 2006 until he left in July 2011 under a severance agreement. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the City Council voted 6-3 Tuesday night to grant Colson a two-year contract that pays $170,000 a year. He’ll start work in late August. Colson is a native of Michigan. He holds a bachelor’s…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Sen. Jerry Moran plans to tour northeast Kansas next month to highlight water use and conservation. The Kansas Republican will begin the two-day tour Aug. 16, with a full schedule of stops to be announced next week. Moran plans to look at the effects of drought on farmers and ranchers in the region. The tour will also cover regulatory matters, agriculture research and other issues affecting Kansas agriculture.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback plans to visit with reporters to review the state’s finances as the books are closed on the latest fiscal year. Brownback scheduled a news conference Wednesday to discuss where the state’s finances stood when the 2012 fiscal year ended on June 30. The governor also is expected to discuss the state’s ability to retire some of its bond debt ahead of schedule. Brownback has made debt reduction a priority since he took office in January 2011. Kansas ended the fiscal year with a revenue surplus, although the precise amount has not been disclosed.…