SEDGWICK COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Sedgwick County are investigating a report of a missing Kansas man and searching for a suspect.
On Sunday, officers with the Valley Center Police Department were dispatched to a disturbance in the 1300 block of South Meridian in Valley Center, according to a media release.
Through follow-up investigation it was determined that Scottie W. Goodpaster Jr., 33, was missing and foul play is alleged.
It was determined a white 2001 Chevy Quad Cab truck that the Sheriff’s Office was looking for has been located. The truck had been in the Newton, Hesston and rural areas of Harvey County.
Deputies are looking for 1 person of interest–Willie Earl Morris, 55, Wichita.
Three suspects have been arrested including Heidi Hillard, 42; Jeff Hillard, 49, both of Valley Center. Both suspects were booked for 2 counts of Aggravated Kidnapping, 2 counts of Aggravated Battery and 1 count of Rape.
White pickup involved in the investigation
A 3rd suspect, Brian Bussart, 39, Wichita, was booked for 2 counts of Aggravated Kidnapping, 2 counts of Aggravated Battery.
Morris-photo Sedgwick Co.
If anyone has any information of the whereabouts of Willie Earl Morris or observed the white Chevy truck in the Newton, Hesston or Harvey County on Sunday afternoon, please call the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office at 660-5300, 911 or Crime Stoppers at 267-2111.
Monday morning fatal accident in Reno County-photo courtesy KWCH
RENO COUNTY- Two people died in an accident just before 7:30 a.m. on Monday in Reno County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2014 Chevy Cruz driven by Esther G. Jenkerson, 21, Datil, NM., was northbound on Sego Road fourteen miles west of South Hutchinson.
The driver pulled out from the Stop sign on Sego Rd. in front of a semi that was westbound on U.S. 50.
The semi hit the passenger side of the Chevy.
The Chevy entered the north ditch and overturned.
Jenkerson and a passenger Bradford, Xavier C. Bradford, 25, Lancaster, CA., were pronounced dead at the scene and transported to the Sedgwick County Forensics Center.
The semi driver Lehmann, Edwin G. Lehmann, 59, Lehigh, was not injured.
All three were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
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RENO COUNTY – First responders were on the scene of a fatal accident just before 7:30 a.m. on Monday in Reno County.
The accident occurred on U.S. 50 at Sego Road, according to the Reno County Sheriff’s Department.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reports that the accident did involve a semi and a second vehicle.
Few details were available just before 10 a.m.
Check Hays Post for more information as it becomes available.
Just over half of Kansas voters say they would be less likely to vote for an elected official who favors eliminating state funding for Planned Parenthood, according to a new survey of 817 Kansas voters.
Thirty-two percent say they would be more likely to vote for such an official, 10 percent say it wouldn’t make a difference and 5 percent say they are not sure.
Half the voters surveyed say they have a very unfavorable view of Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback and another 15 percent say they have a somewhat unfavorable view. Only 14 percent say they have a very favorable view of the governor and 16 percent say they have a somewhat favorable view.
Brownback has sought to eliminate Planned Parenthood’s Medicaid funding. A federal judge blocked the state’s attempt to do that and the case is now on appeal.
The survey, which was conducted by Public Policy Polling on Oct. 26-27, was commissioned by Planned Parenthood and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points.
Other results from the survey:
30 percent of surveyed voters say abortion is wrong and should be illegal. Another 30 percent say it should remain legal. An additional 38 percent say they may not choose abortion for themselves or their families but the government should not prevent a woman from making that decision herself.
Slightly more than 6 out of 10 of those surveyed say they support Planned Parenthood receiving federal and state funds for reproductive and preventive health services. Thirty-five percent say they oppose such funding. Four percent are not sure.
56 percent of Kansas voters have a very or somewhat favorable view of Planned Parenthood; 38 percent have a very or somewhat unfavorable view.
47 percent have a very or somewhat favorable view of Kansans for Life, an anti-abortion group; 38 percent have a very or somewhat unfavorable view.
49 percent have a very or somewhat favorable view of Democrats in the Kansas Legislature; 44 percent have a very or somewhat unfavorable view.
44 percent have a very or somewhat favorable view of Republicans in the Kansas Legislature; 52 percent have a very or somewhat unfavorable view.
56 percent have a very or somewhat favorable view of the National Rifle Association; 38 percent have a very or somewhat unfavorable view.
The survey’s results accord with other polls showing strong support for Planned Parenthood. A recent poll conducted for Politico by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health found that even 48 percent of self-described supporters of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump want to keep funding Planned Parenthood.
Dan Margolies is editor of the Heartland Health Monitor team. You can reach him on Twitter @DanMargolies.
SUV fire on Monday in Saline County-photo courtesy Saline County Sheriff
SALINE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Saline County are investigating a vehicle theft and fire.
Just before 2a.m. on Monday, a group of Kansas State-Polytechnic students found an SUV on fire in the 4800 block of South Centennial Road, according to Saline County Undersheriff Roger Soldan .
There was no tag on the Chevy Yukon. The SUV’s owner Jennifer Vermillion reported it stolen to Salina Police Monday morning.
She said the last time she saw it was around 11p.m. Sunday night.
For fashion seekers looking for stylish attire, vintage lovers and antique collectors, GypsyRose, 1012 Main, romantically located in beautiful downtown Hays, hopes to be your destination.
GypsyRose has two sister locations — Salon Ten O Seven, 1007 Main, and Rock Haven Spa & Salon, 1530 Smoky Hill River Road.
Owner Dereama Allenbaugh has always thought about doing a consignment store, according to Laurie Dinkel, general manager, so the two came together and came up with the idea of GypsyRose.
“Dereama has always thought about a consignment store, and we always loved doing boutique items,” Dinkel said.
When Salon Diva and Salon Ten O Seven combined, it created limited space for all the boutique items, so GypsyRose is an extra location for all the extra fun things, said Dinkel.
GypsyRose officially opened its doors Nov. 1 with a soft opening, and the response early on has been positive, she added.
“Business has been great so far, with how fast we got our store full and the deals with the consignors,” Dinkel said.
A grand opening is scheduled for Nov. 11 from 4 to 7 p.m., which will feature a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Downtown Hays Development Corporation will present GypsyRose with a brick, and cocktails and appetizers will be available.
Dinkel said there will be special deals, as well, to be announced closer to the event.
GypsyRose is regularly open 10 a.m.to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday, but will stay open later for the grand opening.
They are also open 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays and are closed on Mondays.
GypsyRose will also be putting a twist on their items with high quality second-hand items being available.
“Since there is no back step between your closet or say someplace like Goodwill, this is a nice alternative to getting rid of your clothes,” Dinkel said.
Dinkel said people can come to them with their unwanted clothing that is in good condition and they will sell it for you.
“It’s just easier,” Dinkel said. “If you have ever tried to sell something online, it can be time-consuming checking your messages or trying to find a time to meet with someone — so we just take care of all of it.”
GypsyRose will also be selling second-hand furniture, antique furnishings and art.
Dinkel said art will play a big role of the store.
All of the art in GypsyRose is from local artists on a sell-on-consignment basis.
“We love art, and we help support local artists by selling some of their art here in the store,” Dinkel said. “Hays has an amazing art culture, which is great for a small town.”
For more information, check out the GypsyRose Facebook.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The political action committee of the Kansas State Rifle Association says its automated phone pitch urging voters to oust “anti-gun” Kansas Supreme Court justices is based on past statements but not on any court rulings.
In the automated call, the Kansas State Rifle Association PAC warns that federal courts in the state are moving to restrict the right to bear arms before pivoting to hit at the state Supreme Court. The Topeka Capital-Journal obtained a recording of the call.
The Kansas judicial retention contests on the ballot Tuesday have been closely-watched this year because the court’s makeup could change considerably if there are ousters. But so far the fight over retention of five state Supreme Court justices has focused mostly on abortion cases and death penalty decisions.
Kids Voting Kansas will be open on Election Day, Nov. 8, from 7a.m. to 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. until 7 p.m.
Kids Voting Kansas is for students of all grades and ages that are not eligible to vote. Students can cast a Kids Voting ballot at any of the local polling sites when they accompany a registered voter.
Kids Voting Kansas, an affiliate of Kids Voting USA, was created as a solution to citizen apathy and poor voter turnout.
Dr. Edward Larson lectures to an FHSU class last week.
By RANDY GONZALES FHSU University Relations and Marketing
A self-described “bunch of old guys” brought Dr. Edward Larson to Hays, America last week.
Larson, a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, best-selling author and history professor at Pepperdine University in California, was the speaker at Wednesday’s Keith Sebelius Lecture Series at Fort Hays State University. Larson also spent Thursday and Friday on campus, talking to FHSU students on a variety of topics. He came to Hays through the efforts of a local informal group of retired men.
Five men who go to the same church have met on Wednesday mornings for the past two years to discuss topics of interest. It might be politics, or history, or science, or religion. The group watched one of Larson’s presentations at one of their meetings, and they got in touch with him afterward.
“They contacted me out of the blue,” Larson said. “They asked me to respond to several questions from one of the things I had done before.”
That led to a Skype session with Larson, and an invitation to come to Hays.
“We were so impressed with his range of knowledge of history, law, biology and political science,” said Armin Kelly, a group member and retired veterinarian who lives in Plainville. “We wanted to have a discussion with him.”
The group helped coordinate a series of lectures on campus and had the idea Larson would be a good candidate for the Sebelius Lecture Series. Kelly said FHSU officials agreed.
“With their help and our support, we got him to come to the Sebelius lecture and to talk to students on campus,” Kelly said. “I consider it a success. Some of the guys worked pretty hard to get this done.”
Larson said he was impressed with what he saw at FHSU.
“It seems to be a place on the move,” Larson said. “When you’ve got so many other places you go, they’re in retreat.”
After giving a lecture on the origin of politics as part of the Sebelius Lecture Series on Wednesday night, Larson gave lectures on campus Thursday about the creation-evolution debate, about human evolution and a question-and-answer session about elections and the origin of politics. That evening, Larson lectured at the Hays Public Library about science and religion. On Friday, Larson gave a lecture on George Washington and the Constitution, followed by another question-and-answer session.
“It’s fun,” Larson said. “I like teaching. It’s fun to come in and talk with classes. The students get a chance to see you more than once.”
A hot topic was the current presidential election. Pundits who think this is the worst election cycle ever don’t have a sense of history, according to Larson.
“As a historian, you roll your eyes,” he said.
Larson pointed to other presidential elections where the parties got down and dirty, most notably the 1800 campaign, when Thomas Jefferson defeated John Adams.
“We’ve had them this partisan in the past,” Larson said.
Larson thinks this election is the most partisan since the 1964 battle between President Lyndon Johnson and Republican challenger Barry Goldwater. Like 1964, Republicans and Democrats both worry about what will happen if the other party wins Tuesday.
“Both sides honestly fear that catastrophe lies ahead if the other person’s elected,” Larson said. “That’s what people thought in 1964.
“People didn’t feel that way in Bush vs. Gore,” he added. “People didn’t feel that way in Romney vs. Obama. Sure, there was negative campaigning, but it wasn’t the same.”
Larson said the winner of this election can learn a lesson from Jefferson after he won a bitter contest 216 years ago.
“What we learned from Jefferson — and what we’re going to seek — is when Jefferson did become president after a catastrophe of an election, he realized it was a catastrophe,” Larson said. “Being a statesman, he reached out to the losing party even though they had no faith in him.
“The question is, does either candidate — if they win — have the fortitude, courage and the sense of America to be like Jefferson was? That, we don’t know yet.”
A workshop on managing employee absences will be offered in November as part of the fall workshop series from the Management Development Center at Fort Hays State University.
“Absence Management: The Balancing Act — Address the Issues and Stay Legally Compliant” will be from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 15, in FHSU Memorial Union Stouffer Lounge.
The workshop is for supervisors, managers and human resource representatives who want to learn the nuts and bolts of managing employee absences. Participants will learn how to identify excessive levels of absence and effective practices to address them.
In today’s world of compliance requirements, employers often feel paralyzed in making decisions best for the company. In this workshop, participants will learn to overcome fear of litigation by making solid management decisions that are in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Real-life application will be provided in sample documents and mock case studies.
Ruth Bealer, organizational development manager at Midwest Energy Inc., will facilitate.
“Every industry is vulnerable to employee absences, whether due to long-term injuries, chronic illness, or an employee who calls in with little reasoning too frequently,” said Bealer. “It’s a sensitive topic for employers, but understanding the legalities of it will help an organization to manage the situation for the best outcome.”
Each person who completes the workshop will receive a completion certificate. The cost is $119. Registrations received prior to Nov. 11 are appreciated. Hays Area Chamber of Commerce members are eligible for a 15-percent discount.
Registration is available online at www.fhsu.edu/mdc/workshops. To learn more about this workshop or receive discount codes, contact Conni Dreher by phone at (785) 628-4121 or by email at [email protected].
When I came home last weekend, I found a packet of fliers on my porch.
Included in it were information telling me to vote “no” on the retention of many of the Kansas Supreme Court Justices along with Judges with the court of appeals. Scattered among this was also information related to reelecting Sue Boldra as my state representative.
Sue Boldra has made her position related to retention of the Kansas Supreme Court very clear.
She does not feel that four of the five Justices should be retained. She points to seven different occasions the Kansas Supreme Court has been overturned and in a recent debate stated that this is an unacceptable number of times to be overturned.
Representative Boldra’s position on this shows two important points: one, she has no knowledge of how frequently even the best judges in the country are overturned on appeal; and two, Sue is unable to escape the political talking points Governor Sam Brownback has been emailing her since she was elected to the state legislature.
Not retaining the Supreme Court Justices has had a lot of talking points on both sides.
Despite these different talking points, the real question for voters is if they would rather have the Justices they have now, or some unknowns that Brownback would get to appoint. Personally, I believe our current Justices, although imperfect, are better than leaving it in the hands of Brownback to appoint.
What is extremely disappointing is that Sue Boldra has shown her true colors. She claims she
isn’t aligned with the Governor, and routinely stands up to him. Her actions say otherwise. By
stating her opinion that four of the five Justices should not be retained, she has made a much
bigger statement: she still stands with Governor Brownback and his extreme agenda. Isn’t it
ironic that the one justice Sue Boldra supports to retain, Caleb Steigel, is the only Brownback appointed Justice up for retention?
When I cast my ballot on November 8th, I will be voting for Eber Phelps.
Eber has a proven track record of standing up for Ellis County, even when his own party says otherwise. In addition, I will be voting to retain all of the Justices on the Kansas Supreme Court and all of the judges on the court of appeals. None of the people I am voting for are perfect. They’re human, just like I am. All of them are better than the alternative. Eber will put aside party politics to do what is in my best interest, which is more than I can say for Sue Boldra.
RILEY COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Riley County are investigating a hunting violation and asking the public for help.
On Saturday, a buck was reported to Operation Game Thief after it was found near the Manhattan Airport, according to a social media report from Kansas Game Wardens.
Evidence indicates it was shot with a small caliber rifle.
The Ellsworth County Game Warden is seeking public assistance in identifying those responsible for the poaching of a deer in late October in northern Ellsworth County.
Photo KDWP&T in Ellsworth County
Anyone with additional information about these crimes is asked to call Operation Game Thief at (877) 426-3843.
Most of Ellis County received a healthy dose of rainfall overnight.
Most of Hays reported just less than an inch of rain, with reports ranging from 0.7 inches ot 0.92 inches.
Ellis saw a report of 0.7 inches, while the Victoria area had just more than a half-inch of rain in the gauge Monday morning.
Russell County saw reports ranging from 0.43 to 0.67 inches, while the rain tapered off to the west. Eastern Trego County had a report of 0.65 inches, while the western portion of the county received just a tenth of an inch.
Showers are expected to continue through Monday morning, with another round of precipitation possible Monday evening.
Native Kansan Karen Madorin is a local writer and retired teacher who loves sharing stories about places, people, critters, plants, food, and history of the High Plains.
One of my favorite pastimes is using primary sources such as letters, diaries, old account books, and news stories to interpret the past. Learning about history directly from someone who lived it sparks an interest that brings that era to life better than any textbook can. You can imagine the fun a retired English teacher and self-professed Cather geek is having reading The Selected Letters of Willa Cather.
Once I got over the guilt of reading postings my favorite author never intended for public consumption, I’ve relished every letter. I particularly enjoyed those offering insights into O Pioneers! My Antonia, A Lost Lady, The Professor’s House, Song of the Lark, and Death Comes for the Archbishop.
Her business correspondence reveals how involved this artist was involved in everything from the selection of covers, paper, fonts, and artwork and fascinates me. More personal missives disclose that she loved the West and those who called it home. Here’s a woman who left Nebraska to spend most of her life navigating life in the world’s largest cities. Despite her urban prowess, she tells one mail recipient that she’s “just a corn farmer.” In other notes, she details Southwest adventures and how she hopes her novels set in that locale make its beauty clear to those who’ve never visited.
Her letters aren’t terse communications. She writes so that you sense you’re eavesdropping on private conversation. I loved when she explained how novels poured from her pen. In one passage she mentions how writing is akin to channeling as if she’s the receiver of otherworldly signals. Though she’s been gone decades, I feel like I’m chatting with a friend to learn how her artistic process works.
In addition to insights into this Nebraska novelist’s published collections, Cather offers tidbits about life in the early 1900s. Her readers view Pittsburg, New York, Europe, and Red Cloud to learn about theater, opera, magazine editing, setting up apartments, socializing, and eventually World War I through her observant lens. Her commentary about editing is so frank that I’m sure she’s spinning in her grave to think private words are now public. Her anecdotes about France after the war personalize that tragedy more clearly than anything except battlefield photos can.
As I savor this peek into the past, it makes me wonder what future students of history will lose now that so few of us compose beautifully written conversations with friends, loved ones, and colleagues. Digital contacts are typically brief and to the point, sharing few insights into a writer’s character. Besides, once a computer program is outdated, it’s difficult to access stored material. How many of us have floppy discs we can’t open?
It’s a thrill to crawl inside the mind of a writer I’ve loved since I was a teen. However, this time machine made of postal notes sets off noisy alarms. Good historical research requires access to primary sources. If we have no well-written letters and journals for future historians to examine, scholars lose personal perspectives into the era they study. What a loss!
Native Kansan Karen Madorin is a local writer and retired teacher who loves sharing stories about places, people, critters, plants, food, and history of the High Plains.
FHSU University Relations and Marketing
When I came home last weekend, I found a packet of fliers on my porch.
