TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Topeka man with a long criminal record was sentenced to life in prison for a fatal traffic accident that occurred while he was fleeing police.

Sixty-three-year-old Sherman Norman Jenkins was sentenced Monday for first-degree murder in the February 2016 death of Mia Holden. Jenkins won’t be eligible for parole for 25 years.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports Jenkins had 33 offenses dating back to 1972 in his criminal record.

Holden, the mother of six children, was killed when the stolen pickup truck Jenkins was driving hit a vehicle she was riding in as Jenkins was fleeing from police.

The police chase began when officers tried to stop the truck because its tail lights weren’t working.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President Donald Trump nomination of Neil Gorsuch to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court (all times EDT):
8:04 p.m.
President Donald Trump has nominated federal appeals judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.

The 49-year-old Gorsuch has served on the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver since 2006, after being appointed by President George W. Bush. He once worked at the Supreme Court as a law clerk.

If approved by the Senate, Gorsuch would take the seat left vacant since Justice Antonin Scalia died last year. Republicans refused to consider President Barack Obama’s nominee for the seat, saying the choice should go Obama’s successor.
He would be the youngest justice since Clarence Thomas joined the court in 1991 at age 43.
Trump made the announcement Tuesday in a prime-time address from the White House.

MARION COUNTY  – Two people died in an accident just after 11p.m. on Monday in Marion County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1997 Ford F350 driven by Jason T. Johnson, 51, Lincolnville, was southbound on U.S. 56 two miles south of Lincolnville.

The pickup crossed the center line and collided with a 2000 Ford Expedition driven by Jayme R. Beldzig, 33, Junction City head-on.

Johnson and Beldzig were pronounce dead at the scene and transported to Zeiner Funeral Home.

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MARION COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Marion County are investigating a fatal crash just after 11 p.m. on Monday 7 miles north of Marion.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a vehicle southbound on U.S. 56 and Vehicle 2 crossed the centerline and stuck another head-on.

Check the Post for additional details as they become available.

ST. JOHN, Kan. (AP) — The Sunflower Foundation has approved a statewide pilot program to help fund community-based strategies for addressing food access in rural Kansas.

The $120,000 pilot project called Project HERO — Healthy Eating: Rural Opportunities is planning to initially fund efforts in eight communities.

The 12-month pilot is allowing St. John to receive a $60,000 Sunflower grant to open a grocery store in the town of less than 1,300 people. Stafford County Economic Development Executive Director Carolyn Dunn says that after the town’s only grocery store closed almost one year ago, residents have had to drive 12 miles into Stafford to find the closest grocery.

GROW Hodgeman and the Harvey County Food and Farm Council are also receiving HERO grants.

OSAGE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Osage County are investigating two suspects on burglary charges.

Just after 11:30 pm Sunday, the Osage County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call from a resident in the 3000 block of East 137th Street reporting a burglary in progress at his home, according to a media release.

The victim arrived home to find two women inside of his residence attempting to remove property. As the suspects fled, the victim provided descriptions of the suspects and their vehicle to dispatchers.

Within four minutes of the 911 call, an Osage County Sheriff’s deputy spotted a vehicle matching the description of the suspect’s and conducted a car stop at 137th Street and south California Road.

Deputies took the two suspects into custody. They were identified as Jaime Lee Cowan, 36, Topeka, and Laura Ann Barnhart, 31, Hiawatha.

They were booked into the Osage County Jail on charges of aggravated burglary. Barnhart was also charged with interference with law enforcement after giving a false name.

Cowan was released on a $10,000 bond. Barnhart remains in custody.
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TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A lieutenant colonel in Kansas’ Civil Air Patrol said in a Facebook post that a state lawmaker should “swing from a tree” for introducing a bill that would undo a law allowing concealed weapons on college campuses starting in July.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that Jonathan Holder affirmed he was the person who posted the message earlier this month. Holder said in the initial post that he was offended that Republican Rep. Stephanie Clayton, of Overland Park, proposed legislation that would undermine his constitutional rights.

Kansas Adjutant General’s Department spokeswoman Katie Horner said the agency “does not condone the statements.” The department oversees the Air Patrol’s budget but not its operations.

Overland Park Police Officer John Lacy says the case remains under investigation. No charges have been filed.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man accused of plotting to attack Somali immigrants has asked a judge to free him pending trial.

A defense motion filed Tuesday asks U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren to review the detention order for Patrick Stein, whom prosecutors say was the leader of a militia group called “The Crusaders.”

In October, U.S. Magistrate Judge Gwynne Birzer had ordered Stein held in jail until his trial, finding he poses “a grave danger” to the community.

Prosecutors say Stein along with co-defendants Gavin Wright and Curtis Allen conspired to detonate truck bombs at an apartment complex where 120 Somali immigrants live in the meatpacking town of Garden City. One unit is used as a mosque.

They have pleaded not guilty to conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction.