SIMPSON, Kan- A Kansas woman was injured in a single-vehicle accident just after 2 p.m. on Thursday in Cloud County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2008 Mazda driven by Shaila Danielle Ritz, 21, Salina, was westbound on U.S. 24 two miles west of Simpson. The driver made an evasive maneuver and over corrected.
The vehicle entered the north ditch, struck an embankment and a fence post.
Ritz was transported to Mitchell County Hospital. A passenger in the vehicle Stephen James Kajka, 24, Salina, was not injured.
The KHP reported both were properly restrained at the time of the accident.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A former cook at an eastern Kansas detention facility has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for not reporting that an inmate with whom she had an intimate relationship had escaped.
U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom’s office says 34-year-old Jessica Wilmer-Davis pleaded guilty in April and was sentenced Thursday on one count of misprision, or failing to report a federal crime.
In her plea agreement Wilmer-Davis acknowledged getting involved in a romantic relationship with inmate Joshua Spurgeon in November at Grossman Center in Leavenworth, where she was a contract cook.
She also admitted knowing that he left the detention center without permission on Dec. 9 to avoid an upcoming drug test, and that she saw him on Dec. 11 after he had escaped.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – A National Transportation Safety Board report on an Oklahoma plane crash that killed two Kansas men says a part of the aircraft was found more than a mile from the crash site.
The April 7, 2013, crash killed retired gynecologist Ronald Marshall of Manhattan, Kansas, and Chris Gruber, the development director for the college of veterinary medicine at Kansas State University in Manhattan.
The NTSB factual report released Wednesday says the fiberglass belly skin panel of the plane was found about 1.4 miles from the site. It does not offer a suspected cause of the crash.
The report says the single-engine Mooney M20J piloted by Marshall took off from Tulsa International Airport at 5:47 p.m. and crashed about 13 minutes later in the back yard of a vacant home near Collinsville.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Washington-area group with ties to veteran Republican operatives is spending at least $246,000 on radio and television advertisements in Kansas praising Gov. Sam Brownback in the final weeks before the state’s primary election.
The Alliance for Freedom ads are scheduled to run statewide on radio and cable and broadcast television through the Aug. 5 primary. They support a proposed coal-fired power plant in southwest Kansas and criticize the federal Environmental Protection Agency.
But the ads also praise Brownback for supporting the coal plant and fighting the EPA.
Tax records available online show the alliance formed in 2010, and it lists GOP consultant Barry Bennett as president and an Alexandria, Virginia, address. He has a consulting firm with Mary Cheney, a daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney.
NASHVILLE (AP) – Jason Aldean says he’s dreamed of playing in major league baseball stadiums since he was 6. Now his dream comes true. Aldean plays Progressive Field in Cleveland tomorrow, the first of five baseball stadiums in which he’ll stage concerts. Aldean says it’s “wild” to stand on the pitcher’s mound when the crew is loading in and watch an empty park come to life with his show. He says he looks forward to the next two weeks with “unbelievable pride and gratitude.”
Beginning Thursday, July 17, 2014 at 5:00pm, Main Street from Elm to 3rd Street and the 100 blk of West 3rd Street will be closed for the events surrounding the 6th Annual Blues and BBQ.
Vehicle traffic in the 300 blk of Main Street will also be closed to through traffic, but access to the Hays Aquatic Park parking lot will be permitted.
Traffic control devices will be in place to direct the traveling public. The road should be open again on Saturday at 7:00 PM.
The City of Hays regrets any inconvenience this may cause to the public.
If there are any questions, please call the Police Department at 625-1030.
Beginning Monday, July 21, pavement repairs will begin at 29th and Oak.
Traffic will be restricted to one lane on Oak Street.
Signs will be in place to direct the traveling public.
The traveling public should use caution and if at all possible avoid this area. This section of work should be by the end of the week on Friday, July 25, 2014 – pending weather conditions.
The City of Hays regrets any inconvenience this may cause to the public.
If there are any questions, please call the Public Works Service Division at 628-7353.
TOPEKA — The Kansas Department for Children and Families is letting foster parents know that it has hired an ombudsman to hear their concerns.
Niomi Burget, a former aide in Gov. Sam Brownback’s office, started July 1.
“Foster parents do a tremendous service by caring for Kansas children,” DCF Secretary Phyllis Gilmore said in a prepared statement. “They deserve to have their needs met promptly so they are fully prepared and equipped to provide a loving temporary home to foster children.”
Later this month, DCF plans to send informational packets, including a newsletter, to an estimated 2,500 foster homes throughout the state, reminding foster parents of their rights.
A sampling of these rights:
• To be treated with dignity and respect.
• To be paid on time.
• To be adequately trained.
• To receive timely, accurate and pertinent information about the children in – or soon to be in – their care.
• To have input in the case planning process and to attend court hearings.
• To be able to contact their DCF worker after 5 p.m. in the event of an emergency.
• To be considered as a placement option when a child formerly in their care re-enters the system.
Theresa Freed, a DCF spokesperson, said the agency’s decision to hire an ombudsman and to distribute the packets was driven, in part, by several foster parents who earlier this year urged Kansas legislators to pass Senate Substitute for Senate Bill 394, a measure they called the foster parents’ bill of rights.
The bill passed the Senate but stalled in the House Judiciary Committee.
Many of the foster parents who testified in support of the bill were members of the Midwest Foster Care and Adoption Association, which has offices in Olathe and Kansas City, Mo.
On Wednesday, the association’s executive director, Lori Ross, cautiously endorsed DCF’s decision to hire an ombudsman. “It’s definitely progress, and it’s better than nothing,” she said. “But the rights that they’re proposing leave out some of what was in the foster parents’ bill of rights. We’d like to see those gaps filled.”
With SB 394, foster parents would be given a say in whether a child in their care should be returned to a parent’s or family member’s care, would be kept informed about a child’s well-being and whereabouts after he or she was removed from their care, and would be given 30-day notice before a child is removed from their home in non-emergencies. The bill also called for creating an eight- to 10-member board to advise DCF on foster care and adoption issues.
None of these proposed measures are cited in the DCF packets.
“We’re working with DCF on this,” Ross said. “We’re trying to come up with a compromise because these things are important and need to be in there.”
Ross said she plans to participate in a “bill of rights work group” that DCF has put together. Others in the group include state officials, young adults who have been in foster care, child protection workers, service providers, and members of the Kansas Foster and Adoptive Parent Association.
Saundra Hiller, president of the parent association, testified against SB 394 earlier this year. Attempts to reach Hiller for comment Wednesday were unsuccessful.
“This is a good conversation for us to have,” said Melissa Ness, a longtime children’s advocate and a member of the DCF work group. “There are some foster parents out there who don’t believe they’ve been involved enough, and there are some who feel they’ve been involved just the right amount. So we need to keep listening and try to understand what the concerns are that they feel aren’t being addressed. This is an ongoing process.”
Kansas privatized most of its foster care services in 1996, after the state-run system failed several court-ordered reviews. Between 1997 and 2013, the state paid as many as six nonprofit organizations to oversee its foster care, adoption and family preservation efforts.
Last year, DCF opted to contract with just two organizations: KVC Behavioral Healthcare of Olathe and St. Francis Community Services of Salina.
Ness, who’s also a lobbyist, represents St. Francis Community Services.
According to DCF records, more than 6,000 children were in the state’s foster care system in March, April and May – the most in state history.
The number of licensed foster homes in Kansas has remained virtually unchanged – between 2,400 and 2,500 – for the last five years.
As ombudsman, Burget’s annual salary is $52,000.
Freed said foster parents are encouraged to contact Burget at [email protected] or (844) 279-2306.
Hedrick’s Racing Pigs race for cookie Wednesday evening at Ellis County Fair.
By KARI BLURTON Hays Post
The fact that pigs love rain is probably no surprise, and definitely a good thing for “Pork Barrel Annie,” the race announcer for Hedrick’s Racing Pigs.
The pig races, like most events at the Ellis County Fair, have continued through rain and shine at this week’s fair in Hays.
As the pigs raced around the track to reach the coveted Oreo cookie at the finish line, the pigs seemingly did not notice the wet weather at all Wednesday night.
“The pigs love the rain, you can hear them grunting and snorting and running in circles,” Annie said.
She and the pigs travel the country “coast to coast” and border to border.
“Everywhere you go, people love to see little piggies run around the track,” Annie said with a laugh.
Kids watch the pig races
Hedrick’s Racing pigs, based out of Nickerson, just got back from a trip to Hawaii a few weeks ago.
Hedrick’s Racing Pigs will be at the Ellis County Fair through Friday with races beginning at 6:00 p.m.
For more about the Ellis County Fair, visit the website HERE.
HAYS, Kans. — Political science educators at Fort Hays State University are celebrating. Their online program has been ranked No. 11 of in the country’s top 15 by Social Science Careers, a guide to careers and educational programs in the social sciences.
Social Science Careers compiled the list based on each school’s six-year-graduation rate, which is 43 percent at FHSU. Ties were then broken by tuition price, with the lower price given the higher rank.
Socialsciencecareers.org said that FHSU’s program provides a balance between theory and practice, giving students the basics for success in their chosen fields.
“We make every effort to offer a predictable and timely sequence of courses so that students can progress without delays or disruptions,” said Dr. Shala Mills, chair of the Department of Political Science.
She credited the success of the program to methods in which the online, full-time faculty and adjuncts approach their work — with a focus on helping students succeed. This includes both political science, general education, language and elective course instructors, she said.
A new favorite among 4-H’rs participating in the Ellis County Fair is the Food Challenge.
Similar to the television show “Chopped” on the Food Network, contestants have a limited time to create a “delish dish” from ingredients unknown to the young chefs until it’s time to start.
Mike Koerner of Eagle Community Television visited Thursday morning with Ellis Sunflowers 4-H Food Leader Kim Befort and some excited 4-H’rs:
A second 4-H Food Challenge will take place Friday morning 10 a.m.-12 p.m. in theDeutschfest Hall & Unrein Family Building Kitchen.
A complete list of the 2014 Ellis County Fair events is online.
