READING, Kan. (AP) The spokeswoman for the city of Reading since it was damaged by a May 21 tornado says she’s stepping down from the position. Barbara Schlobohm will give up the public information job on Friday. City employees will take over the work. Since the tornado, Reading paid Schlobohm for 35 hours of work per week, but she usually put in 50 to 60 hours. The Emporia Gazette reports that Reading officials thought the Federal Emergency Management Agency would pay for the public information job. But the city paid Schlobohm, which it could no longer afford. The public information…
Author: KMAN Staff
SALINA, Kan. (AP) Saline County commissioners continue to find places to send inmates from the county jail. The commissioners on Tuesday approved a contract with Ottawa County to house inmates for $30 a day. That comes after the commission last week approved a contract with Junction City to hold inmates for $40 a day. And Sheriff Glen Kochanowski said he plans to ask commissioners next week to approve a contract to house inmates in Mitchell County for $30 a day. The Salina Journal reports that Ottawa County will hold up to 20 inmates. Kochanowski said the county plans to send…
EUDORA, Kan. (AP) A 29-year-old man who was linked to 18 burglaries in Eudora will serve two years of probation. District Judge Kay Huff on Tuesday also ordered David Allen Thomas to undergo a mental health evaluation as part of his probation. He also must pay $820 in restitution. Thomas pleaded no contest in November to three felony counts and eight misdemeanor charges. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that Eudora police in July linked Thomas to 18 burglaries of vehicles and sheds. Two other Eudora residents were charged in the case. If Thomas violates his probation, he faces 13 months in…
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) The University of Kansas athletics department has collected nearly $500,000 so far of the estimated $2 million lost in a ticket scandal involving seven employees. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that $250,000 comes from the department’s insurance policy against employee theft. The newspaper says defendants convicted in federal court as participants in the scheme have paid nearly $250,000 in restitution so far. The seven employees, including top business officials in the athletics department, were convicted in the thefts of more than 17,000 Jayhawk basketball tickets and at least 2,000 football tickets. The tickets were illegally sold to brokers…
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) A 23-year-old woman found shot to death over the weekend in Kansas City, Kan., has been identified as Ebony Turner, a recent graduate of a nursing assistant program. Now, friends tell KSHB-TV that Turner had been dating 22-year-old Claude Hudson when he was shot and killed four months earlier outside a nightclub in the city. Turner’s friend Tamika Pledger says the young woman had been struggling to cope with her boyfriend’s death. Turner’s body was discovered Sunday in car that police say had been involved in an accident. Assistant Police Chief Terence Hall says investigators don’t…
SALINA, Kan. (AP) A break-in at a storage unit has proven costly to a Salina man who kept some valuable collections at the business. The Salina Journal reports the theft occurred sometime between Sunday evening and Monday afternoon. The total loss is estimated at $5,400, including some hand tools, a television set and a lock that was cut from the unit. But the real haul was a collection of about 15,000 football, baseball and basketball cards valued at $3,000, and a stamp collection valued at $2,000. Salina police hope to hear from anyone with information about the burglary.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Gov. Sam Brownback says he wants to give local school boards in Kansas greater flexibility in how they spend their dollars as well as unfettered power to raise property taxes. The school finance plan outlined Wednesday would take effect in July 2013. It would junk a two-decades-old practice of linking some of districts’ spending authority to the number of students at risk of failing or the number who don’t speak English well. Brownback’s promises that none of the state’s 283 school districts will see its overall state aid decline. Brownback dropped a proposal his administration had outlined…
GARDEN CITY, Kan. (AP) Representatives from the Ogallala Aquifer Advisory Committee met in Garden City to discuss proposed water policy legislation with local officials and residents. The Garden City Telegram reports the proposal includes amending the appropriation act of “use it or lose it” for groundwater rights in some areas. It also includes developing additional groundwater water banks for a market-based program to reallocate water use and provide conservation in water-short areas. The Ogallala Aquifer, a vast underground resource for several states, has been declining for years. The advisory committee’s chairman, Gary Harshberger, said at the meeting Tuesday that the…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas anglers say new rules designed to protect the state’s waterways from invasive Asian carp and zebra mussels will have a big impact on how they go after catfish. Topeka fishing guide R.R. Shumway notes that Kansas is home to the current world-record flathead, a 123-pounder. Shumway says rules restricting movement of live-caught bait from one body of water to another starting Jan. 1 will hurt those who use the bait to catch the giant flatheads. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports members of the Kansas Wildlife, Parks and Tourism Commission realize the rules have stirred up emotions. But…
The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) named K-State middle blocker Kaitlynn Pelger an honorable mention All-American. The 6′ 2″ sophomore from Olathe helped lead K-State to a 10-win improvement this season with a 22-11 record, and a berth in the Sweet 16. Pelger was third in the Big 12 with 4.13 kills pet set, finished with a .304 hitting percentage, served 33 aces, had 2.79 digs per set, and averaged one block per set. She was previously named first team all-Big 12, and first team all-Central Region. The Big 12 placed three players on the AVCA all-American first team: Rachel Adams…