Riley County’s emergency radio system upgrade is nearly paid off. Emergency Management Director Russell Stukey told county commissioners Thursday that 90 percent of the final payment has been issued to the contracted company. “We held back a little over $80,000 and about 10% in retention until they’ve completed their 173rd contract or obligations,” Stukey added, “We continue to meet with them typically once a week, if not 2 or 3 times a week. And they’re slowly making progress.” Stukey says there is training required as part of the overall project, which takes place in Virginia. Part of the training will…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA, Kan. — Topeka police say a police officer responding to a call was attacked by a man riding his bike past the scene. Police Sgt. Scott Scurlock says the officer was at a boarded up home Thursday morning when the bicyclist tried to get his attention. Scurlock says when the officer asked the man to wait, the suspect charged the officer, knocked him over and punched him several times. During the tussle, the man tried unsuccessfully to grab the officer’s gun. A bystander intervened and the suspect was arrested. The officer was not seriously injured. Later Thursday, 22-year-old Justin…
NEWTON, Kan. — Kansas plans to invest the nearly $85 million the state received in the federal coronavirus relief funds for infrastructure programs and services in every county, leaving no part of the state behind. Gov. Laura Kelly said Thursday that in deciding how to best invest the money it received, the state also decided on an approach that would invest the maximum amount of dollars into the economy in the least amount of time. It also is targeting economic opportunities in communities that have been hardest hit during the pandemic.
COVID-19 vaccines will soon be administered through select retail pharmacies across the state. Earlier this week, Kroger, the parent company of Dillon’s announced it had been selected to participate in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Partnership Plan, which will allocate vaccines to Kroger Health pharmacists in seven states including Kansas. One of those sites is the Westloop Dillon’s location, one of 22 in the state selected. The Dillon’s Store on Sarber Lane is not one of the sites that was chosen at this time. Appointments will be required and people can start scheduling appointments online Feb. 11.
GREAT BEND, Kan. — Barton County officials say a 20-year-old man died when he fell down an embankment into a creek. Sheriff Brian Bellendir said emergency crews were called to Wet Walnut Creek near Great Bend early Wednesday. Paramedics found Manuel Castillo in the creek and tried resuscitation but he was pronounced dead at a hospital. An investigation determined that Castillo fell about 40 feet down an embankment into the river. He was cut and bruised during the fall by rock, metal rods and corrugated steel used to prevent the embankment from eroding. That left him incapacitated in 2 feet…
TOPEKA, Kan. — Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s administration plans to begin giving COVID-19 vaccinations to state prison inmates next week. The move would ignore a call from the Republican-controlled Legislature to postpone the inoculations so that others can get them first. Spokesperson Carol Pitts said in an email that the state Department of Corrections has not yet vaccinated any inmates but would start giving them throughout its nine facilities. Her email came Thursday as the Kansas Senate was debating a resolution condemning a decision by Kelly to make inmates eligible for shots during the second phase of the state’s vaccine…
WICHITA, Kan. — The Wichita school board plans to discuss changing the North High School’s Redskins mascot name. The discussion scheduled for the board’s meeting on Monday comes as teams on all levels across the country are changing or reconsidering mascots considered to be culturally insensitive. The Wichita Eagle reports the district’s policy suggests initiating change if an existing theme becomes offensive or divisive. The board planned to discuss the issue last summer but delayed it because of the coronavirus pandemic. The agenda item said board members have received several letters asking them to consider changing the high school’s mascot,…
LAWRENCE, Kan. — A group of University of Kansas faculty met via Zoom to decry a new Board of Regents policy that makes it easier for university CEOs to fire, dismiss or suspend employees, including tenured faculty. The meeting Thursday night was organized by a group called OneKU and attracted about 200 participants. Speakers at the meeting said the policy would hurt the university’s stature and employee morale by damaging or ending tenure and shared governance. The University of Kansas is the only one of six public universities that plans to consider using the policy, although Provost Barbara Bichelmeyer said…
HOLTON, Kan. — A Kansas man who fatally shot his father while he was in bed has been sentenced to nearly 13 years in prison. Fifty-year-old Derrick Bohnenkemper, of Holton, was sentenced Friday in the death of his 73-year-old father, Gaylen Bohnenkemper at the family’s home in 2018. He was also sentenced to three years of post-relief supervision and must register as a violent offender. Authorities say Derrick Bohnenkemper’s mother called 911 and was able to escape from the home. Bohnenkemper barricaded himself inside the house for about five hours, and fired at officers before he was arrested. He pleaded…
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 identity theft and theft in the 100 block of S. Erpelding Ave. in Leonardville on February 4, 2021, at approximately 9:42 a.m. Officers listed a 50-year-old female and Riley…