A former Riley County Police Department officer dismissed from the department in July 2025 has now been convicted of phone harassment and unlawful computer acts after entering a plea agreement with county prosecutors on July 23. Stephen Benjamin Clark, 43, of Manhattan, was found guilty of harassment by a telecommunication device and unlawful computer acts by Riley County District Court Judge Grant Bannister, after Clark entered “no contest” pleas. In return for the plea, the Riley County attorney’s office dropped two felony charges of breach of privacy. To view the full article visit theMercury.com.
Author: Rose Gruenbacher
Otis Elevator service technicians repaired the larger of two elevators in Manhattan Housing Authority’s Apartment Towers building Wednesday afternoon, almost 24 hours after it was thought to have been fixed on Tuesday. MHA executive director Aaron Estabrook said service was restored to the elevator at 2:15 p.m. Wednesday. He said MHA is “cautiously optimistic” the repair will last. “A few residents will stay in hotels tonight on our expense to ensure the elevator remains working longer than it did yesterday before moving folks back,” Estabrook said. To view the full article visit theMercury.com.
A Manhattan man who was scheduled to have the first day of his attempted murder trial begin on Monday instead now looks to his sentencing next month. Clayson Joyce entered a plea deal with the state on June 22 during a pretrial conference two weeks before his scheduled trial. Joyce, 23, faced charges in Riley County District Court connected to a shooting on December 1, 2024. He pleaded guilty to attempted 1st degree murder, two counts of criminal discharge of a firearm, three counts of aggravated battery and aggravated child endangerment against four children. To view the full article visit…
Both elevators in the Manhattan Housing Authority’s Apartment Towers building are still out of service after an act of vandalism nearly two weeks ago rendered them inoperable to staff and residents. MHA executive director Aaron Estabrook said Thursday the outage was in its 13th day. A vandal on the evening of June 19 pushed the call buttons out of both elevators, damaging the elevator controls and circuit boards. Estabrook said staff members filed a report with the Riley County Police Department. RCPD representatives confirmed the report and said an investigation was requested, but the case is not yet assigned to…
A traditionalist sect of the Catholic Church defied Pope Leo XIV Wednesday as it ordained four new bishops, including a St. Marys priest, without papal mandate. The Society of Saint Pius X now faces possible excommunication from the church. The Society of Saint Pius X, or SSPX, was founded in 1970 and opposes the Second Vatican Council, which modernized the Church and allowed reforms such as the celebration of Mass in vernacular languages. It consecrated four original bishops in 1988, which resulted in excommunication from the Church for a schismatic act. To view the full article visit theMercury.com.
A Manhattan man charged with rape in Riley County District Court entered a plea deal with the state on Tuesday for lesser charges. Michael Dean Nash, 46, pleaded no contest to charges of aggravated sexual battery, aggravated battery and unlawful request for emergency services. If Nash hadn’t entered the deal, his case was scheduled for a four-day jury trial beginning July 20. To view the full article visit theMercury.com.
A man who died in custody of the Riley County Jail last week died by suicide, Kansas Bureau of Investigations officials have told members of the man’s family. Riley County emergency responders pronounced Michael Lee Stanfield, 60, of Manhattan dead at 9:51 p.m. Thursday after corrections officers found him unresponsive less than 30 minutes earlier. EMS arrived seven minutes after Stanfield was found and administered life-saving measures to no avail. In an interview with News Radio KMAN, Shania and Andrea Stanfield said a KBI agent told them he’d reviewed evidence from Michael Stanfield’s death which showed him dying by hanging…
A Manhattan man’s arraignment was postponed Monday after his new defense attorney said the previous lawyer provided ineffective counsel. Griffin Dean Day, 24, faces charges in Riley County District Court of rape, aggravated sexual battery and aggravated battery alleged to have occurred between Jan. 22 and 23. The victim in all counts is a woman born in 1972 who was incapable of giving consent because she was under the effects of drugs of alcohol and unconscious or physically powerless. Day is held in the Riley County Jail on a $200,000 bond. To view the full article visit theMercury.com.
The jury in a Riley County District Court trial got an inconsistent recounting of the events that led to charges against a Manhattan man Thursday during opening statements from attorneys on opposing sides. Keonte Concepcion-Summers, now 25, is charged with aggravated domestic battery, aggravated battery and domestic battery. Assistant Riley County attorney Michael Blackburn and defense attorney Shawn Lee agreed that the incident that led to Thursday’s trial took place in the early morning hours of April 28, 2025, but that was essentially the only similarity in their differing versions of events. To view the full article visit theMercury.com.
A Manhattan woman is held in the Riley County Jail after her arrest Thursday for human trafficking for forced labor. Lashenna Renitia Dye, 36, was arrested at 4:10 p.m. at 1300 Marlatt Ave #805, for human trafficking by causing or threatening to cause physical injury. She is held in jail on a $200,000 bond. Police said the victim involved is a 25-year-old woman. Dye’s arrest stems from a report filed in May. A charging document filed in Riley County District Court describes Dye’s charge as taking place between September and March, and details that she trafficked the woman for involuntary…