RENO COUNTY— A Kansas man serving time in prison for murder in Seward County has been convicted on a charge of aggravated battery of a corrections officer.

A court determined Eddie Nunez, 29, was  guilty of battering and causing injury to a female officer at the central unit of the Hutchinson Correctional Facility in January of 2016.

According to court testimony, the officer had given permission for Nunez cell door to be opened so he could empty his trash.

She was distracted by other inmates, turned and saw Nunez’s fist. She was struck repeatedly.

She testified that she went underneath a nearby stairway trying to escape, but he followed her and continued to hit and kick her.

During the altercation, she couldn’t get to her radio, so she finally started screaming. Help then arrived. She suffered a black eye and other bruising.

With the conviction, Nunez could receive a maximum sentence of over 11 years in prison added to what he is already serving for a second-degree murder conviction from 2005.

Sentencing is set for next month.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A woman who was struck in the head by a discus at a 2014 state track meet in Nebraska has been awarded $350,000 in a settlement.

The Omaha World-Herald reports that 83-year-old Bernice Gorecki filed a lawsuit in 2015 after being hit by a student-athlete’s discus while standing in the visitor area of the track meet at Burke High School in Omaha.

She and her husband sued the Omaha Public Schools and the Nebraska State Activities Association, alleging the entities failed in their duty to keep spectators safe.

District spokeswoman Monique Farmer says a spectator fence has now been pushed back farther.

Gorecki’s attorney, David Mullin, says he can’t comment on Gorecki’s injuries or her recovery.

SHAWNEE COUNTY -Law enforcement authorities in Shawnee County are investigating a suspect in connection with a shooting.

Just before 10:30p.m. Wednesday, police responded to report of a gunshots in the 700 Block of SW Polk in Topeka, according to a media release.

A man told police an unknown suspect shot at him. Police quickly found the suspect identified as 35-year-old Joyce Brown of Topeka.

She was taken in for questioning and arrested on charges of aggravated assault and firing a weapon into an occupied dwelling, according to police.

There were no injuries reported.

OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — The family of a 10-year-old boy who died while riding a waterslide at a Kansas water park has reached settlements with a general contractor and a consulting company involved in the project.

Rep. Scott Schwab testified Wednesday that he and his family agreed to the terms of the wrongful-death settlements involving his son, Caleb. The boy died in August on the 17-story Verruckt waterslide at Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Kansas City, Kansas.

The Kansas City Star reports terms of settlements with Henry & Sons Construction and National Aquatics Safety Company were not released.

Henry & Sons was the general contractor for Verruckt, a 168-foot waterslide that was promoted as the world’s tallest such ride.

National Aquatics, based in Dickinson, Texas, and its owner, John Hunsucker, consulted on the project.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a suspect was shot and killed by law enforcers after leading police on a three-county, south-central Kansas chase, firing at deputies and police along the way.

Investigators in Wichita say 25-year-old Charles Johnston was shot early Thursday near Udall after a vehicle in which he was riding became disabled after the chase. Authorities say he held a gun to a female passenger’s head outside of the car, then fired again at law enforcers as he tried to run away. Law enforcers returned fire, killing Johnston.

Neither the woman nor any law enforcers were injured.

Wichita Police Chief Gordon Ramsay said police had sought to arrest Johnston as a parole absconder.

Johnston was from prison in January and has prior convictions of aggravated battery, obstruction and fleeing law enforcement.

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UDALL, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say officers have fatally shot a man after he repeatedly fired at them during a south-central Kansas chase.

The Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter says the chase started late Wednesday when a Wichita police officer attempted to pursue a suspect with an active warrant.

The suspect began firing at officers when a patrol car that can shoot GPS tracking devices onto fleeing vehicles approached. The chase eventually came to an end near the Sumner-Cowley County line.

Sumner County Sheriff Darren Chambers says authorities killed the suspect when he got out of his vehicle and fired more shots at them. Chambers says authorities are interviewing a woman who was inside the suspect’s vehicle. Neither the woman nor any of the officers were hurt during the chase.

RICE COUNTY – Fire crews continue to monitor the fire at the Jacam Chemical Plant north of Sterling.

The fire started around 9 a.m. at one of the plants outer buildings, according to Gregg Klein Director of Rice County Emergency Management.

Some evacuations were suggested for properties just north of the facility.

Laura Snyder, spokesperson for Jacam says the building involved was used to produce organophilic clay, which is a dry powder that is mixed with other chemicals to product drilling mud for the oil industry.

While the material is not explosive, it does burn with a lot of heat according to Snyder.

Klein said air quality around the plant will be monitored for the next 24 hours, but the materials that were inside the building were non-toxic.

Snyder and Klein both said all procedures were followed during the incident. Everyone was accounted for that was inside the building.

No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Avenue Q from Kansas 14 to 17 Road was temporarily closed due to the fire, according to the Rice County Sheriff’s Department.

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RICE COUNTY – First responders are on the scene of a fire at a chemical plant in Rice County.

Just after 9a.m., officials reported the fire in just one building on the Jacam Factory property north of Sterling, according to the Rice County Sheriff’s Department.

Employees were evacuated and there are no injuries reported, according to the sheriff’s department.

Fire crews are carefully monitoring the situation. Jacam officials are working with authorities to perform a thorough investigation of the incident and take any corrective actions needed.

Avenue Q from Kansas 14 to 17 Road is temporarily closed due to the fire, according to the sheriff’s department.

LINN COUNTY- A Kansas man died in an accident just after 11 a.m. Thursday in Linn County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2004 Chevy Silverado driven by Eric Kleweno, 59, Pleasanton, was southbound on Holly Street at 7th.

The truck left the roadway to the west, crossed through a private lot, crossed 7th Street and hit a building.

Kleweno was transported to Mercy Hospital where he died.
He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

KANSAS CITY – A federal grand jury Thursday returned additional charges against a Lindsborg man accused of traveling to a foreign country to have sex with minors, according to U.S. Attorney Tom Beall.

Anthony Shultz, 54, Lindsborg, is accused of traveling to the Philippines, where he engaged in sex with minors, produced videos of sex acts with minors and distributed them on the internet.

The case began in April 2016 when the FBI received a tip that a U.S. citizen was sexually abusing minors in the Philippines, producing live-streaming videos and distributing videos via the internet to users who paid to see them. Investigators followed an electronic trail to Shultz, who was a commercial pilot and owned a home in Lindsborg. He initially was charged in July 2016.

Schultz is charged with the following counts:

Count one: Engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place with a minor victim (victim 1).
Count two: Production of child pornography (victim 1).
Count three: Sex trafficking of children (new count, victim 1).Count four: Engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place with a minor victim (new count, victim 2).
Count five: Production of child pornography (new count, victim 2).
Count six: Sex trafficking of children (new count, victim 2).
Count seven: Production of child pornography (new count, victim 3).
Count eight: Selling or buying of children (new count, victim 3).
Count nine: Distribution of child pornography.
Count 10: Possession of child pornography (new count).
Count 11: Identity theft

Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Counts one and four: Not less than five years and not more than 30 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.Counts two and five: Not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Counts three and six: Not less than 15 years and a fine up to $250,000.Count seven: Not less than 15 and not more than 30 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Count eight: Not less than 30 years and a fine up to $250,000.Count nine: Not less than five years and not more than 20 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Count 10: Not more than 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Count 11: Up to five years and a fine up to $250,000.

The FBI and investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart and Elly Pierson, a trial attorney with the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, are prosecuting.