Prosecution and defense attorney’s gathered at the Riley County courthouse Friday for another motions hearing in the case of 24-year old Luis Aguirre, who is being charged for the 2009 murders of 18-year old Tanya Maldonado and the couple’s 13-month old son Juan. Defense attorney Jeffrey Wicks put before Judge Meryl Wilson a number of motions that attempted to suppress evidence. The first motion dealt with items – specifically clothing believed to belong to Tanya and Juan – that police obtained following a search of Aguirre’s storage shed in Austin, Texas, from Oct. 28 through Nov. 2, 2009. Police seized 57 items during the…
Author: KMAN Staff
DODGE CITY, Kan. (AP) A federal grand jury has indicted 23 suspected gang members on racketeering charges in only the second case in which the federal racketeering law has been used against a Kansas gang. U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom says the indictment against the Norteno gang also charges four of the men with the June 2009 murder of Israel Peralta and attempted murder of at least three other men in Dodge City. The indictment was obtained by The Associated Press before its official release. Former U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren first used the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act to prosecute…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) House and Senate negotiators have resumed talks on their differences over the proposed $14 billion Kansas budget for 2013. Three House and three Senate members met briefly Friday to exchange their latest offers. Friday was scheduled to be the final day of this year’s session but legislative leaders are expecting the session to be extended. The budget calls for spending some $6 billion in state tax dollars and fees in the fiscal year beginning July 1. It covers the expenses of most government programs. Negotiators are at odds over how to fund increases in public schools, including…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Some Kansas senators are criticizing proposed changes to a contract for groups that serve domestic violence victims. The Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services wants to require victims to undergo psychological evaluations. It also seeks to limit lifetime services to 18 months and have 90 percent of victims hold jobs after 18 months. The proposals prompted The Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence to drop negotiations last week on the contract. On Thursday, members of the Senate budget committee criticized the SRS’s proposals, saying they did not reflect the reality faced by domestic violence victims.…
COUNCIL GROVE, Kan. (AP) Zebra mussels are causing water problems in Council Grove. City Administrator Danny Matthews on Thursday night asked residents not use any city water for the time being because the city’s water tower is nearly empty. Matthews says zebra mussels are clogging the tower’s intake from Council Grove City Lake. Crews are working to clear the intake. Matthews says it will take eight to 10 hours to fill the water tower again once the intake work is done. WIBW reports citizens are being asked to avoid using any city water so the water still in the tower…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site is marking the 58th anniversary of the civil rights ruling with a push to capture decades-old memories from Topekans. People are invited to visit the site May 17 and learn about the park’s new Oral History Project. Park staff will be on hand to sign up those willing to share their stories in later interviews. Officials especially want to hear from people who were teachers or students at Topeka schools before and after the Supreme Court decision that declared segregated schools unconstitutional. Speaking at the event will be…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The Kansas Legislature appears all but certain to miss Friday’s deadline for completing the annual session in 90 days. The Kansas Constitution calls for 90-day sessions in even-numbered year, unless two-thirds of each chamber vote to extend the session. Legislative leaders conceded Thursday that with the state budget, redistricting and taxes still unresolved, the session will probably stretch through the weekend and into next week. The House and Senate both approved a resolution March 30 authorizing extra days. The resolution set April 25 as the start of the wrap-up session and June 1 as the final possible…
Today brought another announcement of intent to run for re-election. Riley County Clerk Rich Vargo made the announcement Thursday morning. Vargo has served the county for four terms leading up to the announcement. ” I just really enjoy working at Riley county. We’re a very progressive community and enjoy working with all of the county commissioners here and all the elected and non-elected department heads here at the county. I feel like we have a great group,there’s always something new going on here at Riley County, and its just been a good experience.” stated Vargo. Vargo has been a Riley County resident…