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Month: September 2017

KS Supreme Court’s new statewide centralized case management system is ‘evergreen solution’

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KS SUPREME COURT

TOPEKA — The Kansas Supreme Court announced today it has selected a vendor to provide a centralized case management system that will allow all district and appellate case data to reside on a single web-based platform and transform the way the state court system serves the people of Kansas.

The court selected the Odyssey Case Manager™ developed by Tyler Technologies of Plano, Texas, paving the way for the project to move into contract negotiations.

“Of the options offered, the Odyssey system most closely meets the needs of our district and appellate courts, the legal community, and the public,” said Chief Justice Lawton Nuss. “It will require some customization, as we would expect with any off-the-shelf product, but it’s an evergreen solution that won’t require us to make costly upgrades every few years.”

Odyssey was recommended by the eCourt Steering Committee, which was formed in 2015 to identify key requirements for a centralized case management system and to review proposals made by vendors through a competitive bid process. Justice Dan Biles serves as chair of the committee and its members include representatives of the appellate and district courts, including justices, judges, court administrators, clerks, and information technology staff. eCourt subcommittees with wider ranging representation of court personnel and members of the legal community focused on specific areas such as infrastructure, requirements, and rules, and their findings were reported to the steering committee.

“Odyssey will integrate well with our existing electronic document filing system to create a central case processing environment amounting to a statewide web-based courthouse,” Biles said. “We anticipate this will improve overall court efficiency and ensure that judges have complete, real-time information with which to make the most effective dispositions.”

Tyler Technologies said it will offer at a discount its prosecutor module within the Odyssey suite to any district or county attorney offices that want to use it. This will encourage greater statewide usage of the technology for a significant portion of the court’s caseload.

The installation of the centralized case management system is a key component in the Kansas Supreme Court’s eCourt plan. It will complete the conversion from local, paper-driven processes to a statewide electronic one. It will provide attorneys, judges, and court personnel using an internet connection immediate access to authorized case information, details, and records from across the state.

The primary goals of the centralized case management system implementation are to:
Improve case processing in the district and appellate courts.
Increase the efficiency of information delivery to district and appellate court judges.
Increase operational efficiency and effectiveness through automating certain activities and streamlining other operations.
Improve data quality and integrity.
Improve performance measurement, analysis, and reporting through enhanced information collection, storage, retrieval, and analysis.
Enable work sharing between district courts, primarily among clerks and court services officers.
Maintain and improve data sharing between various governmental and public entities.
Maintain and improve the ability to process electronic payments.
Enable web-based sharing of public information.
The conversion to the centralized case management system is expected to take three to four years. Once the system is designed and completed, it will be launched in pilot courts before a statewide rollout.

The 2014 Legislature established the Electronic Filing and Case Management Fund with deposits from docket fees dedicated to finalizing the efiling project and implementing centralized case management under the Supreme Court’s eCourt plan. By statute, each year through fiscal year 2019, the first $3.1 million received in docket fee revenue will be deposited into that fund. In fiscal year 2020 and later years, the first $1 million in docket fee revenue is directed into the fund for things such as maintaining eCourt components.

Kansas gas prices fall another 5 cents, sixth lowest in U.S.

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Average pump price drops to $2.40 in Kansas; national average falls five cents to $2.62

TOPEKA – Kansas is among the majority of states across America with declining gas prices this week, as the nation’s gasoline supply and distribution continues to recover after hurricanes Irma and Harvey. Kansas’ average price at the pump dropped five cents this week to an average of $2.40 a gallon, the sixth lowest state average in the country, reports AAA Kansas. This week’s five-cent drop follows last week’s four-cent gas price decline. The state’s average per-gallon price is 22 cents less than the national average.

This week’s Kansas cities with the state’s gas price extremes are:
HIGH: Glen Elder (Mitchell County) – $2.70
LOW: Waverly (Coffey County) – $2.21

According to AAA Kansas, Wichita, with a $2.31/gallon pump prices ranks as the 12th lowest metro area in the nation. Of the 10 Kansas cities regularly highlighted by AAA Kansas (see chart below), all of their gas prices fell in the past week, except Emporia ($2.48), which saw a two-cent increase. Salina (-12 cents), Lawrence (-10) and Wichita (-8) led the way with the largest price declines.

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National Perspective
As South and Southeast states recover from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, motorists in 45 U.S. states are paying less for a gallon of gas on the week. At $2.62, today’s national gas price average is the cheapest in 14 days and five cents less than last week.

“Gas prices are dropping as the situation with refineries, pipelines and gasoline deliveries is positively progressing,” said Jennifer Haugh, AAA Kansas spokesperson. “It looks like pump prices will continue on this declining trend into the coming weeks as the regions affected by Irma and Harvey resume normal operations.”

Midwest motorists are benefiting the most with a few states – Indiana, Michigan and Ohio – seeing gas prices plummet by the double-digits inside of seven days. Meanwhile, some states in the West Coast and Rockies are seeing gas prices increase.

As gas prices drop for the majority of the country, so does the nation’s gasoline inventory. The latest Energy Information Administration (EIA) report identifies the latest draw of 8.4 million bbl as the highest on record, much of which can be attributed to motorist fueling up in the droves in anticipation of Hurricane Irma.

“Next week’s EIA report may bring another record-demand level as a continued result of Irma, but demand is expected to sharply decline across the country by the end of September,” added AAA Kansas’ Haugh.

Florida Gas Supply & Gulf Coast Refineries
Last week, at $2.73, Florida’s saw its highest gas prices since December 2014. The spike came as many gas stations faced outages as power was down and roads impassable. The good news is that in the last seven days, the state’s average has shaved off one cent. In addition, ports are open and receiving steady streams of tanker shipments as state officials continue to work with gasoline trucker and shippers to ensure timely delivery of product to retail stations. Reports indicate that the gas station gasoline outage situation is improving as stations receive deliveries.

Similarly, positive progress is being seen in the Gulf Coast. According to the Department of Energy, a total of six Gulf Coast refineries are operating at reduced rates, which is one more refinery than last week. These six facilities make-up 13 percent of refining capacity in the U.S. Five refineries continue to operate at reduced rates and three remain shut down, which represents a total of 10 percent of U.S. refining capacity.

It will likely be a few more weeks before the regions affected by Irma and Harvey are back to normal operations.

Great Lakes and Central States Report
The Midwest and Central states are seeing some of the largest declines in gas prices: Indiana (-18 cents), Michigan (-15 cent), Ohio (-11 cents), Illinois (-10 cents), Kentucky (-10 cents), Missouri (-7 cents) and Wisconsin (-7 cents). The region is also selling some of the cheapest gas in the country: Missouri ($2.34), Ohio ($2.37), Kansas ($2.40) and Indiana ($2.41). Parts of the region saw gas prices spike alongside Harvey hitting the Gulf Coast. However, with pipelines resuming operations as of late, motorists are seeing gas prices tumble. As we move into fall and gasoline demand drops-off, gas prices could reach the lowest of 2017.

NW Kan. mail carrier going to prison for theft of cash, gift cards

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WICHITA —A former mail carrier in Sheridan County was sentenced Monday to six months in prison for stealing mail he was supposed to deliver, according to U.S. Attorney Tom Beall.

The defendant was ordered to pay $4,000 in restitution.

James N. Stephenson, 25, formerly of Hoxie, Kan., and now living in Basehor, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of mail theft. In his plea, he admitted the crime occurred while he was employed at the Post Office in Hoxie, Kan. He stole mail containing cash, gift cards and prepaid debit cards. He said he looked for birthday and anniversary cards that were likely to contain items of value.

After serving his sentence, Stephenson will spend two years on supervised release.

Tigers move up to No. 18 in AFCA Division II Poll

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WACO, Texas – Fort Hays State moved up three spots in the latest AFCA Division II Top 25 Poll, released on Monday (Sept. 18). The Tigers are now No. 18 in the national rankings, fresh off a 31-24 road win at Central Oklahoma last week. The Tigers are now in the top 20 of the AFCA for the first time in program history.

Fort Hays State moved into the top 25 of the AFCA poll for the first time in program history last week, debuting at No. 21. FHSU needed a late touchdown at Central Oklahoma to keep its top 25 status as MIAA Offensive Athlete of the Week Monterio Burchfield delivered a 64-yard touchdown reception with 42 seconds remaining in the game to break a 24-24 tie and push the Tigers to 3-0 on the season.

Fort Hays State joins Northwest Missouri State and Emporia State as the three top 25 ranked teams from the MIAA. The two-time defending national champion Bearcats continue to hold the No. 1 ranking, the only other squad in the conference besides the Tigers to remain undefeated for the season. Emporia State slipped down one spot to No. 15 in the poll after a seven-point win over Missouri Southern.

Fort Hays State is the featured team in the headline of the official AFCA release. SEE HERE.

Fort Hays State hosts Northeastern State (0-3) this Saturday at Lewis Field Stadium in Hays at 2 pm.

Below is the AFCA Division II Top 25 Poll for September 18, 2017.

Rank School Points Record Previous Ranking
1 Northwest Missouri St. (34) 850 3-0 1
2 Ferris St. (Mich.) 811 2-0 2
3 Texas A&M-Commerce 779 3-0 3
4 Shepherd (W.Va.) 737 2-0 4
5 California (Pa.) 693 3-0 5
6 Indiana (Pa.) 673 3-0 6
7 Sioux Falls (N.D.) 619 3-0 7
8 Minnesota St. 607 3-0 8
9 LIU-Post (N.Y.) 572 3-0 9
10 North Alabama 547 1-1 10
11 Colorado Mesa 501 3-0 11
12 Grand Valley St. (Mich.) 456 2-1 12
13 Midwestern St. (Texas) 443 2-0 13
14 Indianapolis (Ind.) 402 3-0 15
15 Emporia St. (Kan.) 367 2-1 14
16 Arkansas Tech 300 3-0 19
17 Delta St. (Miss.) 268 3-0 24
18 Fort Hays State (Kan.) 259 3-0 21
19 Colorado St.-Pueblo 257 2-1 18
20 Central Washington 247 3-0 23
21 Slippery Rock (Pa.) 166 3-0 25
22 Humboldt St. (Calif.) 77 2-0 NR
23 Bowie St. (Md.) 72 3-0 NR
24 Assumption (Mass.) 60 3-0 NR
25 Catawba (N.C.) 54 3-0 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Ashland (Ohio), 47; Albany St. (Ga.), 41; West Georgia, 35; Winona St. (Minn.), 24; Central Missouri, 18; Azusa Pacific (Calif.), 10; Minnesota-Duluth, 10; Southeastern Oklahoma St., 8; Washburn (Kan.), 8; Wingate (N.C.), 8; Carson-Newman (Tenn.), 7; Florida Tech, 6; North Greenville (S.C.), 3; Tuskegee (Ala.), 3; West Texas A&M, 3; Bloomsburg (Pa.), 1; Easten New Mexico, 1.

Patricia L. “Patty” Moran

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Patricia L. “Patty” Moran, 58, McCracken, Kansas, died Sunday, September 17, 2017, at her home.

Patty was born February 28, 1959, in La Crosse, Kansas, the daughter of Robert E. “Bob” and JoAnn T. (Seaman) Huber. She was a lifelong resident of Rush County, Kansas. A 1977 graduate of La Crosse High School, La Crosse, Kansas, she was a homemaker and farm wife.

She was a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church, McCracken, Kansas; a board member for Rush County Memorial Hospital, and a board member for Rush County NRCS, both of La Crosse, Kansas.

On August 9, 1980, she married Thomas “Tom” Moran at St. Michael’s Catholic Church, La Crosse, Kansas.

Survivors include: her husband, Thomas “Tom” Moran, McCracken, Kansas; one son, Andrew Moran, and his fiancé, Lashain Shaw, Rush Center, Kansas; one daughter, Katherine “Kate” Simon, and her husband, Adam Simon, Andale, Kansas; five grandchildren, McKylie Lari, Massimo Lari, Grayson Moran, Isabelle Simon, and Pete Simon; her mother, JoAnn T. Huber, La Crosse, Kansas; and one brother, Randy Huber, and his wife, Julie Huber, La Crosse, Kansas.

She was preceded in death by her father; an infant son, Phillip Moran; and two sisters, Katherine Huber, and Diana Huber.
Memorial service will be Friday, September 22, 2017, at 10:00 A.M. at the Janousek Funeral Home, La Crosse, Kansas, with Father Eric Gyamfi officiating. Inurnment will be in the St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery, McCracken, Kansas.

In lieu of flowers and plants, Patty’s family requests memorials to Hospice at Hays Medical Center, Hays, Kansas.

Condolences or remembrances may be left for the family at www.charterfunerals.com/locations/janousek-lacrosse.php. Arrangements were by Janousek Funeral Home, 719 Pine Street, P O Box 550, La Crosse, Kansas 67548, 785-222-2517.

Sheriff identifies Kansas teen who died in 3-vehicle crash

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POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY —  Law enforcement authorities have identified the teen who died in a weekend 3-vehicle accident.

Just before 5p.m. Saturday, a Volkswagen Jetta driven by Daniel McDonald, 18, Wamego, was eastbound on Highway 24 just east of Schoeman Road, according to Sheriff Greg Riat.

The vehicle crossed the center line and was then struck by 2 west bound vehicles including 2006 Volvo V50 driven by Corey Swisher, 44, St. Mary’s and 1997 Ford Expedition driven by Joshua Asbury, 35, St. George.

McDonald was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Riat. Asbury was transported to the hospital in Manhattan. Swisher was not injured.

GILLILAND: Of all the Rotten Muck!

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It was 5:45 AM and still pitch black as we trekked through the McPherson Valley Wetlands on our way to the small waterhole my exuberant teenage guide had found the day before.

Steve Gilliland
We trade experiences and knowledge; I teach him to trap and he takes me waterfowl hunting; this morning was opening day of teal season in Kansas.

Trudging and weaving our way through a sea of thick viney pickerel plants and waterlillys, then finding the shortest route around patches of cattails taller than my 6 foot 3 inch frame is tough enough in broad daylight, let along attempting said march in the beam of a flashlight, all the while doing our best to keep the oozy, sucking mud from extracting the boots right off our feet.

I packed a shotgun, ammo & gear bag and a small camp chair; Jared carried a shotgun and ammo plus a dozen assorted duck decoys. Four pickups were already parked when we got there, and we could hear other hunters setting up camp here-and-there as we sloshed along.

Jared had set a waypoint on the GPS of his phone and I lost count of the number of times he told me “It’s not much farther now!” Finally at his chosen pool, he let me get settled while he deployed the decoys in a tiny pond that in the dark looked no bigger than a backyard fish pond.

He suggested I sit amongst a small patch of weeds near the pool, and when I unfolded my camp chair I quickly discovered that every inch of ground not truly under water was still covered with several inches of oozy mud. There was no way of getting my chair even remotely stable in the mud, as each time I sat down it sunk into oblivion. I finally figured the chair was as good as it was gonna’ get and Jared found a comfortable spot to kneel amongst the muck as we waited for the sun’s arrival and for that magic hour of 30 minutes before sunrise that signaled legal shooting time.

In the quiet blackness we could hear the hollow clank of plastic decoys banging together as another hunter walked somewhere near, then the splashes of decoys being tossed into water. Finally absolute silence enveloped the marsh as hunters watched their time-pieces and the sky.

As just enough morning light dripped over the horizon to show us the sky above, flocks of birds coming from every direction began to fill the sky. Waves of slow flying herons, egrets and pelicans lumbered past, occasionally interrupted by a few ducks zipping by. Jared had no sooner whispered “Its legal time,” than shotguns bellowed from all over the marsh; some nearby and some a quarter mile away, all trained on the small colorful Kansas ducks called blue winged and green winged teal that zoom and zip overhead like tiny fighter jets.

They mainly stood apart from all the other fowl overhead and from other ducks by their small size and speed. We would hunker down until a flock of them suddenly sped toward us from who-knows-what direction, then attempt to rise from the marsh in time to connect with one as they zipped past. I’m not the best wing shooter to start with, but my style was seriously hampered by the muck that was everywhere. When I did succeed in rising from my sinking chair, the teal were long gone before I got my footing in the slippery ooze. Jared on the other hand dropped 3 of them in the first 20 minutes.

That’s life when your hunting partner is 17, works out every day, is a crack shot with a shotgun and has reflexes that are quicker on a bad day than mine ever were.

Finding downed birds in a wetland environment is tricky at best, and a good dog is those settings is worth a king’s ransom to a water fowl hunter. As it got daylight we could see that our little pool was one end of a narrow area of water that snaked its way around through the marsh above us.

A pair of hunters a couple hundred yards away had a black lab retriever with them, and we watched it find several ducks for them that had tumbled down into the mass of greenery around them. After much hard work Jared managed to find all 3 of his harvested teal.

As the sun rose fully, the flocks of teal became scarce with just an occasional 3 or 4 racing by. The shooting also became sparse, with just a shot or too from somewhere every few minutes.

We gave it awhile longer then collected our decoys and headed for the truck. In the daylight we could see everything we missed in the dark. Muskrat lodges the size of pickup beds built from mud and cattails now sat on dry ground in the middle of tall cattail patches, the main trails leading to their entrances now mere channels in the mud.

We even found an area about the size of a dining room table that was full of dead tadpoles; evidently that was the last bit of water in the dried-up pool and they all congregated there until the sun baked them. Despite the slimy muck that covered the marsh (and finally did succeed in sucking off one of my boots) the trip was worth every second even though I harvested no teal.

Like I said, that’s life when your hunting partner is 17, works out every day, is a crack shot with a shotgun and has reflexes that are quicker on a bad day then mine ever were!…Continue to Explore Kansas Outdoors.

Steve can be contacted by email at [email protected].

HPD Activity Log Sept. 15-17

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kbyw-november16

The Hays Police Department responded to 6 animal calls and 21 traffic stops Fri., Sept. 15, 2017, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Driving Under the Influence–300 block of E 27th St, Hays; 2:22 AM
Fire–2000 block Walnut St, Hay; 3:16 AM
Suspicious Person–2000 block MacArthur Rd, Hays; 7:53 AM
Drug Offenses–2300 block E 13th St, Hays; 7:56 AM
Animal At Large–2700 block Cottonwood Ln, Hays; 8:19 AM
Abandoned Vehicle–1300 block E 19th St, Hays; 8:33 AM
Search Warrant–100 block E 24th St, Hays; 9 AM
Welfare Check–2200 block Drum Ave, Hays; 10:04 AM
Contempt of Court/Fail to Pay–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 11:14 AM
Contempt of Court/Fail to Pay–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 11:14 AM
Contempt of Court/Fail to Pay–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 8/2 8 AM
Contempt of Court/Fail to Pay–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 8/8 8 AM
Contempt of Court/Fail to Pay–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 8/16 8 AM
Contempt of Court/Fail to Pay–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 8/1 8 AM
Contempt of Court/Fail to Pay–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 7/26 8 AM
Lost Animals ONLY–1100 block Centennial Blvd, Hays; 12:52 PM
Theft (general)–100 block W 15th St, Hays; 9/12 8 AM; 9/15 2 PM
Dead Animal Call–2400 block Main St, Hays; 2:35 PM
Trash Dumping–300 block E 6th St, Hays; 2:55 PM; 3:04 PM
MV Accident-City Street/Alley–500 block W 27th St, Hays; 3:13 PM
Found/Lost Property–3600 block Vine St, Hays; 3:52 PM
Assist – Other (not MV)–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 4:03 PM
MV Accident-City Street/Alley–13th St and Fort St, Hays; 7:15 PM
Disorderly Conduct–1200 block Haney Dr, Hays; 9:23 PM
MV Accident-Personal Injury–27th and General Hays, Hays; 9:21 PM; 9:24 PM
Criminal Trespass–2500 block Vine St, Hays; 10:57 PM

The Hays Police Department responded to 5 animal calls and 22 traffic stops Sat., Sept. 16, 2017, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Driving Under the Influence–700 block of E 6th St, Hays; 1:54 AM
Found/Lost Property–500 block W 7th St, Hays; 1:59 AM
Suspicious Activity–400 block Santa Fe, Hays; 1:39 AM
Mental Health Call–1400 block E 29th St, Hays; 4:02 AM
Unwanted Person–1000 block E 41st St, Hays; 4:59 AM
Suspicious Person–2700 block Broadway Ave, Hays; 6:58 AM
Found/Lost Property–600 block Fort St, Hays; 8:08 AM
Animal At Large–20th and Allen St, Hays; 9:37 AM
Suspicious Activity–300 block W 17th St, Hays; 8/11 2 AM; 3 AM
Mental Health Call–1400 block E 29th St, Hays; 10:15 AM
Unattended Death–2500 block Sherman Ave, Hays; 11:21 AM
Drug Offenses–2500 block E 7th St, Hays; 9:51 AM
MV Accident-Co Road/St Hwy–2700 block Thunderbird Dr, Hays; 1:45 PM
Welfare Check–300 block E 16th St, Hays; 1:53 PM
Theft (general)–200 block Ash St, Hays; 9/15 11:15 PM; 9/16 1:30 AM
Animal At Large–20th and Main St, Hays; 5:41 PM
Abandoned Vehicle–2000 block Ash St, Hays; 7:37 PM
Liquor Offense, sell, furnish, transport–200 block W 7th St, Hays; 11:34 PM

The Hays Police Department responded to 4 animal calls and 25 traffic stops Sun., Sept. 17, 2017, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Driving Under the Influence–13th and Vine, Hays; 12:33 AM
Underage Possession of CMB/LIQ–200 block W 10th St, Hays; 12:48 AM
Violation of Restraining Order/PFA–200 block W 10th St, Hays; 12:30 AM; 1:21 AM
Contempt of Court/Fail to Pay–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 1:30 AM
Theft (general)–3rd and Fort St, Hays; 2:23 AM
Harassment, Telephone/FAX–1300 block W 43rd St, Hays; 9/16 11:30 PM; 9/17 2:30 AM
Suspicious Activity–1600 block Allen St, Hays; 3:16 AM
Lost Animals ONLY–400 block W 5th St, Hays; 4:03 AM
Intoxicated Subject–1000 block Elm St, Hays; 5:24 AM
MV Accident-Co Road/St Hwy–5th and Fort, Hays; 10:05 AM
Suspicious Activity–300 block Milner St, Hays; 10:12 AM
Lost Animals ONLY–400 block W 13th St, Hays; 11:09 AM
Animal Bite Investigation–2000 block Eisenhower St, Hays; 11:14 AM
Welfare Check–1700 block Haney Dr, Hays; 12:11 PM
Found/Lost Property–1100 block E 27th St, Hays; 3:31 PM
Welfare Check–300 block W 17th St, Hays; 6:38 PM
Suspicious Activity–400 block Santa Fe St, Hays; 9:35 PM
Suspicious Activity–500 block E 6th St, Hays; 1:30 AM
Drug Offenses/DUI–800 block Vine St, Hays; 11:48 PM; 11:49 PM

kbyw-november16

FHSU’s Burchfield named MIAA Offensive Athlete of the Week

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State junior receiver Monterio Burchfield earned MIAA Offensive Athlete of the Week honors for his efforts in the 31-24 win at Central Oklahoma this past Saturday. This is the second time in three weeks a player from FHSU earns the Offensive Athlete of the Week honor and is the fourth Athlete of the Week honor for FHSU in football so far this year.

Burchfield had 217 receiving yards on eight catches and the game-winning touchdown with 42 seconds remaining to lift Fort Hays State to a 31-24 win at Central Oklahoma. The game-winner was a 64-yard score as he stiff-armed his defender to the ground, then scampered from midfield to the endzone outrunning the rest of the defense. He also had the key reception on Fort Hays State’s game-tying drive moments earlier, rising over his defender for a 40-yard reception on 3rd-and-12 to put FHSU in field goal range. FHSU converted a 24-yard field goal to tie the game with 3:44 remaining. Burchfield averaged 27.1 yards per catch and helped push quarterback Jacob Mezera past the 400-yard passing mark for the game. Mezera was 27-of-37 for 401 yards.

Burchfield joins Logan Thompson (Defensive Athlete of the Week) from Emporia State and Juante Baldwin of Pittsburg State (Special Teams Athlete of the Week) from Pittsburg State as the weekly conference honorees.

Fall Hort Night is Tuesday

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KSRE

The annual fall Horticulture Night will be held Tuesday, September 19th at 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. This is an open invitation to the public to attend various presentations in the gardens at the K-State Agricultural Research Center in Hays. Daylight in the autumn evenings is short so presentations will be brief.

This is the 20th and last year for the Prairie Star bedding plant trials at K-State and the Hays Research Center due to budget limits. From those years, 1,877 varieties have been trialed at the Hays site with only 421 selected as worthy of being on the Prairie Star List. The Prairie Star List only includes flower varieties available on the market and that perform well throughout Kansas.

A segment of how to collect a representative soil sample for the garden will be presented by Augustine Obour, KSU Ag Research Center soils scientist. He will also discuss the interpretation of test results and soil amendments. Holly Dickman, the new water conservationist for the City of Hays will comment on the program regarding water-smart landscaping. Ellis County Master Gardeners, Pat Phillips and Terry Pfeifer will report preliminary harvest results of the performance vegetable trials. There will be sampling tables. This is the first year for the Backyard Demonstration Garden. Ellis County Master Gardener, Mary Lou Mastin, will share the experience of establishing and maintaining a sustainable garden.

Bring along your friends and neighbors! Property and homeowners are encouraged to attend.

Questions about flowers, vegetable gardening and soil tests will be addressed but it is not limited to these topics. Registration begins at 5:30 p.m. with the program starting at 6 p.m. The Research Center is located south of Hays at 1232 240th Avenue. For more information phone: 785-625-3425 or check Facebook or Twitter.

Police: Suspect held on $100K bond for alleged bomb threat at Kan. hotels

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SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a report of bomb threats called into hotels in Wichita on Friday.

Police arrested 63-year-old Roger L. Haynes and booked him into jail for alleged terrorism, according to Officer Charley Davidson with Wichita Police.

Haynes is being held on a $100,000 Bond, according to the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Department booking report.

The case against Haynes will be presented to the Sedgwick County District attorney’s office Tuesday.

Police: 3-year old Kan. boy flown to hospital after near drowning

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FINNEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a child’s near drowning.

Just after 4 p.m. Saturday, police were dispatched to the 600 block of Emerson Street in Garden City reference a 3-year- old male child that had fallen in an above ground swimming pool, according to a media release.

The investigation revealed that several children were playing in the backyard when one of the children pulled a chair over to the pool making the pool accessible by the child. Family members removed the child from the pool and began performing CPR and were able to revive him.

Finney County EMS transported the child to St. Catherin’s Hospital. Life-saving efforts continued by hospital staff until the child was stable enough to be flown to Wesley Medical Center in Wichita.

Police did not release an update on  the child’s condition early Monday.

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