BY ANDY MARSO

Gov. Sam Brownback sought to refocus Kansas’ anti-poverty programs this week, hosting a group of regional experts to bring in new ideas and convening a new policy council to decide what to implement in the state.

The 13 members of the Governor’s Social Services Policy Council include community leaders as well as the secretaries of the Kansas Department for Children and Families, Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services, Kansas Department of Health and Environment and Kansas Department of Corrections.

The governor intends for the council to coordinate, analyze and review the state’s social service policies. He likened it to his Council of Economic Advisors.

“Don’t know if it’s ever been done in the state before,” Brownback said. “But we’re going to try.” The council convened for the first time Wednesday in the luxury suites area at Sporting Park, the Kansas City, Kan., home of the Sporting Kansas City soccer team.

At the end of the hourlong meeting, the council decided to focus on obtaining data about criminal recidivism and the breakdown of the family structure. Shannon Cotsoradis, president and CEO of the Topeka nonprofit Kansas Action for Children, observed the council meeting.

She said she heard some promising things about addressing the “cliff effect” that makes it difficult for families to adjust to moving off social services as they begin to earn more money.

But Cotsoradis said action must follow discussion for change to occur.

“My concern would be, will this be just be another yearlong dialogue much like the child poverty task force was, with lots of recommendations but limited implementation?” she asked. Before the council meeting, the governor hosted a two-day Midwestern Governors Association summit on “Exploring Poverty Reduction Strategies and Advancement Opportunities in the Midwest.”

The summit was closed to the media.

“We’re all kind of focused on how do you get people out of poverty and recognizing that you’ve got to get all of your services coordinated and you’ve got to serve the whole person,” Brownback said.

He said he wants to focus on removing barriers to employment, such as how a prison record can affect a Kansan’s ability to get a job. The connection between poverty and health problems is increasingly well-documented as public health advocates nationally focus more on connecting the dots between social issues and health issues.

Social determinants of health were the topic of the keynote address at the Kansas Public Health Association’s annual conference earlier this month, and this week the Washington Post reported on a new study that shows a growing gap in life expectancy between rich and poor Americans.

Low-income Americans are more likely to smoke or be obese, but the researchers also said that some of the age expectancy gap may be due to the “toxic stress” that comes with being poor. After participating in the Midwestern Governors Association summit, Eloise Anderson, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families, said being poor can put people at risk for mental health problems, which in turn leads to habits that harm their physical health.

“There’s a feeling of helplessness or hopelessness, which means there’s some sort of depression sitting there,” she said.

“I think when people have bad habits, they’re usually medicating themselves in some way. Cigarettes are a drug, as is alcohol. Food can be a drug.” Andrew Szalay, director of state and local relations for Habitat for Humanity, also participated in the summit.

He called the argument of whether financial security leads to good health or whether better health helps improve income “a great chicken-or-egg question.”

His response to such situations is to choose a policy strategy and “start plowing ahead.” “In my case, with Habitat, we’re going to start building houses, we’re going to start doing weatherization,” Szalay said.

“We’re going to get other people involved, we’re going to get volunteers, we’re going to show up to help someone else. Hopefully there will be a new relationship that starts up that (makes someone say) ‘I want to be healthier.’”

 

Andy Marso is a reporter for Heartland Health Monitor, a news collaboration focusing on health issues and their impact in Missouri and Kansas.

REPUBLIC COUNTY –A hunter was injured in a fall from a tree stand in Republic County this week. The hunter, whose name has not been released, received substantial injures, according to game wardens with the Kansas Department of Wildlife Parks and Tourism,

Officials suggest hunters check, repair or replace the straps holding the tree stand before it is used. The most important thing is to always wear a tree stand safety harness.

In addition, a tip from the public is credited with helping game wardens catch someone hunting illegally, according the Kansas Department of Wildlife Parks and Tourism.

The hunters in Republic County were where issued for taking furbearers out of season x 2, illegal method of take (use of artificial light) x 2, no fur harvester license x 2 and no fur harvester education x 2.

Furharvester season opens in November.. see more here

 

POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Pottawatomie County continue to investigate a fatal accident that claimed the life of a Kansas woman over Labor Day weekend.

The Pottawatomie County Sheriff Greg Riat reported that just after 4p.m. on September 7, officers responded to Macy Place Drive and Elm Slough road in Rural Wamego after a caller indicated a woman was found lying in the road and bleeding from the head.

Deputies along with Emergency Services found the body of Shannon Chebultz, 45, Blaine, near a pickup at the location. She had been seriously injured and later died.

At this point, the investigation indicates the victim appears to have fallen from a moving vehicle, sustaining fatal injuries, according to the sheriff.

Authorities say if you have any information on the case, contact the The Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man accused of helping a Topeka police officer’s killer escape is scheduled to go on trial next year.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the trial of 31-year-old Randy Allen Ridens Jr., of Topeka, will begin Feb. 29. The date was set Thursday during a hearing in Shawnee County District Court.

Ridens is charged with obstructing apprehension of Ross Preston Lane, who pleaded guilty in July in the September 2014 slaying of Jason Harwood. The 40-year-old police corporal was shot three times after stopping Lane’s car for speeding.

Prosecutors allege Ridens helped Lane escape by giving him a ride on a stolen motorcycle. Ridens also is charged with possession of a stolen motorcycle.

Ridens wasn’t in court, but was represented by an attorney from the firm handling his case.

TOPEKA – Every year, the Kansas Highway Patrol hosts an informational booth at the Kansas State Fair. This year’s fair came after a few particularly difficult weeks for law enforcement, with several officers killed in the line of duty throughout the U.S.

During the fair, an unplanned event became a unique attraction and took center stage at the Patrol’s booth. On the first day of the fair, one kind act was all it took to get the momentum building for what became a touching and humbling time for KHP personnel, as well as those in other law enforcement agencies. Someone came into the booth and placed a Post-it note with a kind word of thanks on it. Word spread through social media, and more people came in to leave their notes, some even emailing words of support when they could not attend the fair.
“I felt honored and humbled by the support the people of Kansas have shown for THEIR Highway Patrol,” said Technical Trooper Tod Hileman, KHP Public Resource Officer from the northwest Kansas area.

The Patrol’s public resource officers from across the state, who staff the booth during the fair, had come prepared to talk to members of the public about traffic laws, car seats, buckling up, and other safety related items. They were also focused on recruiting new Kansas state troopers, however the focus of their days soon changed from providing information to talking about the job, hearing encouragement from the public, and in turn, thanking the public for their support.
“I looked at all those notes and found myself laughing, smiling, and sometimes shedding a tear,” said Technical Trooper Ben Gardner, KHP Public Resource Officer from the north central Kansas area. “I, like so many other law enforcement officers across America, love helping the public, being a servant to them. It felt amazing reading and seeing the support the public has towards all of us.”

The Post-it note car became a topic of discussion. Early in the fair, one community member delivered stacks of new Post-it notes to keep the momentum going. The entire experience was one that touched the men and women of the Kansas Highway Patrol, and the greater law enforcement community. Men and women, girls and boys, people of all ages came to the booth to deliver their messages of support.
The kind words left on the notes were not taken for granted, and left such a positive impact that each and every note was saved. A photo of the car covered in notes was framed with the notes surrounding it, one for each of the Patrol’s seven field troop offices across the state. These will be displayed in the offices, a reminder of the support from the public that we serve, and to help keep perspective for the duties handled every day. Several messages are also being scanned and saved for use with other projects.
Officials with the patrol acknowledge the many acts of kindness to their personnel over the last few weeks, and noted a humble thank you for your kindness, acknowledgment, and support. We are fortunate to serve in a state, whose communities remind us every single day of the reasons why we chose to serve. Thank you!

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Public defenders are seeking to block a television crew from filming a prison documentary at the Sedgwick County jail.

The MSNBC = show “Lockup” has been filming there since Sept. 8 for a show profiling life in prison.

The Wichita Eagle reports  that the objections come from the Sedgwick County Public Defender’s Office, the Sedgwick County Conflicts Office and the Death Penalty Defense Unit. Their motion filed Thursday seeks a court order that prohibiting the TV crew from entering the facility to interview and record inmates.

Defense attorneys fear defendants could incriminate themselves.

44 Blue Productions referred comment Friday to its public relations firm, which did not immediately return a message.

Sheriff Jeff Easter says everyone who appears on the show must sign a waiver agreeing to be filmed.

ELLINWOOD, Kan. (AP) — A 37-year-old central Kansas man accused of leading law enforcement on a slow-speed chase in a stolen combine and ramming two patrol cars with it is charged with aggravated assault of a law officer.

Barton County prosecutor Doug Matthews also charged Kenneth Lamb Jr. of Ellinwood on Friday with theft, vehicle burglary, criminal damage to property and reckless driving in the Tuesday incident.

Lamb is accused of stealing a combine from a farmer’s field and driving it erratically through Ellinwood, striking power poles and a pickup truck. The ensuing pursuit ended when two officers fired 18 shots into the machine to disable it after it rammed a deputy’s patrol car outside of town.

Lamb’s attorney didn’t immediately return a call left after his office was closed Friday afternoon.