TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The chairman of the Kansas Senate’s redistricting committee proposes redrawing the state’s four U.S. House districts by moving Manhattan and Fort Riley into the 1st District. Sen. Tim Owens, an Overland Park Republican, offered the map Wednesday as the committee began redrawing the congressional districts and the 40 Senate districts. Manhattan and Fort Riley are now in the 2nd Congressional District of predominantly eastern Kansas. Owens proposes consolidating Douglas County into the 2nd District. It’s currently split between the 2nd and 3rd districts. Other changes include moving Montgomery County from the 4th District, which centers on Wichita,…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A top state official wants Kansans who are 65 and older to start paying for hunting and fishing licenses. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that Robin Jennison, secretary of the Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism, plans to introduce legislation ending the current exemption on the fees. State licenses for hunting and fishing both carry an $18 fee. Jennison told the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday that charging older residents the fees would help his agency maintain its finances. Jennison says the state adopted an exemption on the fees for Kansans 70 and older in 1937. The age…
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) A Missouri man convicted in a string of armed robberies in Kansas last year has been sentenced to 164 years in federal prison. The U.S. Attorney’s office says 32-year-old Abasi Baker, of Kansas City, Mo., was sentenced Wednesday on seven counts each of robbery, unlawful possession of a firearm and using a firearm in a robbery. Baker was convicted in September of robbing four payday loan companies, two Radio Shack stores and a Dollar Store from Jan. 6 to March 3 of last year. Three of the holdups took place in Kansas City, Kan. The others…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss is pushing legislators to repeal a law requiring the state to have at least one judge in each of its 105 counties. In his annual State of the Judiciary address Wednesday evening, Nuss said the Supreme Court needs more flexibility in administering the state’s judicial branch. The chief justice released the recommendations of a commission appointed by the court last year to study ways to make the judicial branch more efficient. Its proposals included repealing the one-judge-per-county rule. Nuss also said the court wants to create an electronic document filing…
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) A third Kansas City, Kan., police officer has now admitted stealing electronics from a home while serving a search warrant. The U.S. Attorney’s office said 34-year-old Jeffrey M. Bell pleaded guilty Wednesday to one count of conspiracy against civil rights. The statute makes it a crime for police to conspire to deny anyone’s civil rights. Bell admitted stealing a Nintendo DS handheld game system with a game cartridge while conducting a search. The FBI was monitoring the house as part of a sting operation on the officers. Bell also said he took a PlayStation and some…
BELOIT, Kan. (AP) A Beloit High School senior has won the Kansas Voice of Democracy contest for his essay titled, “Is There Pride in Serving our Military?” Brady True now will go on to Washington, D.C., where he will compete in March against 54 other state winners in the contest sponsored by the VFW and the Ladies Auxiliary. Before reaching the state final, True took first place in Mitchell County and in the district contest. Contest officials say 555 students in Kansas participated. First prize at the national level is $30,000 and a trip to the Freedoms Foundation at Valley…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Got an anonymous tip for the Wichita police department? Want to find a police substation or look up a police contact in the city? The department now has a smartphone app to find or share information. The Wichita Police Department unveiled the free app Wednesday. It can be downloaded from the Apple App Store, the Android Marketplace or the police department’s Facebook page. Police Officer Jerod Metcalf says the app, called “My Police Department,” is the agency’s latest innovation in ways to interact with the public.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution to ban abortion has been formally introduced by 25 state House members. The lawmakers filed their proposed “personhood” amendment Wednesday. The measure would amend the state constitution’s Bill of Rights to declare that Kansas guarantees the rights of every person, starting with fertilization of the human egg. Critics say it’s broad enough to ban common birth control methods. Even some abortion opponents are wary of the proposal, fearing its enactment would lead to a lawsuit and unfavorable court decisions. Two-thirds of both the House and Senate must approve the measure…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Economist Arthur Laffer is going before Kansas lawmakers to defend Gov. Sam Brownback’s proposed reforms in the state income tax code. Laffer was known for his work during President Ronald Reagan’s administration as an advocate of supply-side economics. Brownback’s administration hired him as a consultant to help develop the plan to cut income tax rates. He’s scheduled to speak Thursday to a joint meeting of the House and Senate tax committees. Critics have assailed the Brownback plan as “Robin Hood in reverse” because those in the lowest tax bracket would see their taxes rise, while upper brackets,…
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) A 41-year-old man died after being burned by a fire in an area where homeless people were sleeping in a tent. Kansas City, Kan., authorities say firefighters found him Monday after responding to a report of illegal burning or a grass fire. The department said firefighter crews were told that homeless people had been sleeping in a tent and a fire used for heat may have gotten out of control. The Kansas City Star reports that the victim suffered second- and third-degree burns to his upper body. He died Tuesday at a hospital.