WICHITA, Kan. (AP) – Wichita recorded this year’s 56th homicide on Monday, one short of the record set in 1993. Wichita Police Chief Gordon Ramsay says the city is like many others across the country that have seen a sharp rise in violent crime this year. Ramsay attributes the increase to a variety of sources, including stress caused by the coronavirus pandemic, record levels of unemployment, COVID-19-related delays in court proceedings and an surge in gun violence. Ramsay said 42 of the deaths have been attributed to guns. Another 11 involved drugs and 12 were related to domestic violence. Wichita…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – COVID-19 deaths have surged in Kansas in the past week and nearly every part of the state has lost people to the disease caused by the coronavirus, health statistics show. Kansas averaged a record 45 new reported COVID-19 deaths per day for the seven days that ended Wednesday, according to state Department of Health and Environment data. The department reported 144 new deaths since Monday, pushing the state’s pandemic death toll to 2,253. Like other states, Kansas received its first shipment of a vaccine made by Pfizer on Monday and began getting it to health care…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – The six state universities in Kansas will not raise on-campus housing and dining fees next year. The Kansas Board of Regents on Wednesday voted to keep those fees flat, despite higher costs and fewer students because of the coronavirus pandemic. University officials told the regents the schools need to keep costs affordable for students. The regents also appointed a committee to begin the search for a new Wichita State president. Former president Jay Golden resigned abruptly in September, after he was criticized for retracting an invitation to Ivanka Trump to speak at the university.
The deadline for the art and writing contest held by Manhattan’s Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Committee is nearing. Every year during their MLK celebration, the Manhattan MLK Committee holds an art and writing contest for K-12 students. Rachel Shivers, committee secretary, says the contest is one of the premiere parts of the community celebration where the community gets to see what is in the hearts and minds of the young people in terms of diversity and inclusion. Committee member, Paulicia Williams, says each year there is a different theme for the contest. “The theme this year is ‘What is…
The following summary of calls for service/reports filed by the Riley County Police Department is a portion of those received by police. Some names, addresses, and case details are withheld to follow local, state, and federal law as well as in an attempt to protect community members from being victimized further. Those arrested are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. MANHATTAN, KAN. – Officers filed a report for theft by deception in the 300 block of N. Seth Child Rd. in Manhattan on December 16, 2020, at approximately 9:22 a.m. Officers listed Waters True Value as the…
Thursday’s program featured the latest update from Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Jason Smith. Pawnee Mental Health Executive Director Robbin Cole joined us as well to recap Driving the Dream and look ahead to its new teen center starting up in January and Pancakes for Pawnee in February.
Ascension Via Christi in Manhattan became one of the first Kansas hospitals of its size on Wednesday to administer the new COVID-19 vaccine made by Pfizer. About 30 doses were given out to hospital staff, which will be followed up by a second dose on Jan. 6. Staff who are first in line to receive the vaccine are those who interact directly with COVID-19 positive patients. “For us, that’s our emergency room, our ICU, our medical unit in particular, but then also kind of all the other support departments because our respiratory therapist, our pharmacist, our house keepers – everyone…
Hotel occupancy rates Fourth-quarter hotel occupancy rates for Manhattan are showing a clear dip when compared to past years. Year-to-date occupancy through October stands at 42.6 percent, down from 64.3 percent in 2019. The month of October alone was down about 16 percent from this time last year. Karen Hibbard, Manhattan Convention and Visitors Bureau director, told the Manhattan City Commission during a meeting Tuesday that the dip resulted in an approximately $1.3-million drop in revenue from the previous year. “The revenue per room, year-to-date, is at $37.50, a loss of $27.45 compared to year-to-date October 2019,” Hibbard said. Manhattan…
PLEASANTON, Kan. — A former Kansas high school student sexually abused by her school’s resource officer is suing the former sheriff and school for not stopping the abuse. The Kansas City Star reports the plaintiff on Monday filed a federal lawsuit against Linn County’s former sheriff and the Pleasanton Unified School District 344. Former Deputy Sheriff David Huggins pleaded guilty to aggravated indecent liberties with a child in January 2019 for his abuse of the victim beginning in 2017. She was 15 when he impregnated her. He was 44. Huggins was sentenced to more than 15 years for the crime.