SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating an aggravated battery and have a suspect in custody.
Just after 6:30p.m., police were dispatched to a walk-in shooting at the fire station 15, 7923 East Lincoln in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.
Police made contact with a 27-year-old woman with a gunshot wound to her chest and a 21-year-old man with a non-life-threatening stab wound to his arm.
Both were transported to a local hospital. The woman was reported in serious condition, according to Davidson.
An investigating revealed that the two had an argument at a nearby apartment. She cut him on the arm with a knife and he shot her. They went to the fire station for help.
Police arrested the man identified as Kody Wade Bacon, according to the Sedgwick County Booking report and booked him for aggravated battery, domestic violence and marijuana possession, according to Davidson.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The federal government is threatening to cut off funding for patient care at the state mental hospital in western Kansas, saying the facility is not complying with federal rules.
The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services said Friday that the federal government is giving the state a month to correct problems at a 104-bed unit of Larned State Hospital. The government is threatening to cut off the funding in January.
Aging and Disability Services Secretary Timothy Keck told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview that the state agency expects to spend about $1 million making renovations designed to decrease the risks of patients hanging or strangling themselves.
He said in addition to those risks, the hospital also was cited for one case each of verbal and minor physical abuse of a patient by staff.
Keck said most problems have already been addressed.
ELLSWORTH COUNTY — One person was injured in an accident just after 10a.m. Friday in Ellsworth County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2017 GMC U-Haul driven by Donald Ray Blackwell, 31, Florida City, FL., was traveling northeast on Kansas 156 just southwest of Third Street in Ellsworth.
The vehicle rear-ended the trailer of a semi driven by Alejandro Chaves Ramos, 33, Mesa, Arizona. After the collision, the U-Haul traveled into the ditch.
Blackwell was transported to the hospital in Ellsworth.
Ramos and a passenger were not injured. All three were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A federal judge has refused to release pending trial a Kansas man accused of plotting to bomb a mosque and an apartment complex housing Somali refugees.
U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren ruled Friday that Gavin Wright is a flight risk and a danger to the community.
Wright and co-defendants Patrick Stein and Curtis Allen are charged with conspiring to detonate truck bombs at an apartment complex in the meatpacking town of Garden City in western Kansas. Wright also faces a separate count for allegedly lying to investigators.
They’ve pleaded not guilty.
Melgren says the evidence suggests Wright was deeply involved in planning these atrocities and intended to carry out the plan to fruition. He says few charges are more serious than that of planning to commit an act of terrorism.
The four teenagers running for Kansas governor faced questions from students at Lawrence Free State High School during a Thursday forum. JIM MCLEAN / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
LAWRENCE — The four teenagers running to be the next governor of Kansas were tested Thursday at a forum organized by their peers at Lawrence Free State High School.
Standing at the center of the Free State gym, they fielded questions on gun control, race, drugs, abortion and a host of other divisive issues.
They answered forthrightly. Honestly. Not by pivoting to talking points like more practiced politicians.
“There’s the art of not answering questions, but what good does that do for voters and our democracy?” asked Tyler Ruzich, a 17-year-old Shawnee Mission North student from Prairie Village who is determined to be on the Republican primary ballot.
Candidates have a “moral and ethical” responsibility to share their true beliefs so that voters can make informed choices, Ruzich said.
“That’s something I think is pretty important,” he said. “That’s what we’re here for. We’re here for change. Younger people want answers.”
Tyler Ruzich is a 17-year-old Shawnee Mission North student from Prairie Village running for Kansas governor as a Republican. CREDIT JIM MCLEAN / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
The Free State students certainly did.
They pushed the high-school hopefuls for their positions on issues that many politicians are reluctant to discuss.
In addition to Ruzich, Jack Bergeson and his lieutenant governor running mate, Alexander Cline, both students at The Independent School in Wichita, participated in the forum along with Ethan Randleas, a student at Wichita Heights High School, and Dominic Scavuzzo, who lives in Leawood but attends Rockhurst High School in Kansas City, Mo.
A question about gun control touched off a lengthy debate.
Randleas, a Libertarian, said he was opposed to stricter gun control laws. Instead, he said decriminalizing drugs would reduce gun and gang violence “exponentially.”
Bergeson, the first of the four teen candidates to announce, said he differed with most other Democrats on the issue.
“I am very much for Governor (Sam) Brownback’s conceal-carry law,” Bergeson said. “But I am for banning automatic weapons and semi-automatic weapons.”
Cheers erupted when Ruzich, a self-described moderate Republican whose parents are Bernie Sanders Democrats, said he favored “getting guns off of campuses and universal background checks.”
That’s what Free State senior Paul Jesse wanted to hear. He’s strongly opposed to recent changes in state law that allow students, faculty and visitors to carry concealed handguns on university campuses.
“I’ve lived in Lawrence my whole life, and one of the reasons I’m not going to KU is because of that,” Jesse said. “It has definitely changed my point of view on the state itself.”
Other teenage candidates include Democrat Jack Bergeson, center, and his lieutenant governor running mate, Alexander Cline, left, both students at The Independent School in Wichita. At right is Libertarian Ethan Randleas, a student at Wichita Heights High School. CREDIT JIM MCLEAN / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
Varied policy priorities
As he did throughout the forum, Randleas held fast to his Libertarian views.
“There’s a lot of trigger words here like guns off of campuses,” he said, arguing that it’s “asinine” to suggest that someone’s Second Amendment rights are suspended when they step onto a college campus.
The role of government also proved to be a point of contention, with Randleas arguing for smaller government and the elimination of individual income and corporate taxes and the others calling for increased investment in education, health care and infrastructure.
“I understand the idea of hands-off, laissez-faire economics, but it’s just not realistic,” Ruzich said. “We tried it in this state and it has miserably failed.”
Reducing political corruption and improving access to health care topped Bergeson’s list of priorities. In addition to calling for implementation of a single-payer “Medicare for all” health care system, he said campaign finance reforms are needed to curb the corrupting influence of “big corporate donors”
“I support publicly financed elections but believe that system will only work if there is a national framework behind it,” he said, pledging to set an example by accepting only individual donations of $500 or less for his campaign.
There was relative harmony on some issues, including LGBT rights.
“I think this is something we all agree on, and that’s pretty cool,” Randleas said.
Scavuzzo, a Catholic, said his religious beliefs make it difficult to support laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation, but he said he is personally opposed to it.
“People just need to be more accepting,” Scavuzzo said, adding that he would “try to appoint” members of the LGBT community to his Cabinet if elected.
Likewise, the candidates were in lockstep on the need to legalize, or at least decriminalize, marijuana. Several promised if elected to release inmates serving time in state prisons for non-violent drug offenses.
Bergeson said he would push to add Kansas to a growing list of states that have legalized medical marijuana.
“In my opinion, it is despicable that the law in this state forces people with certain illnesses to choose between abiding by the law … or living a healthy life,” he said.
‘There was no fear’
Ella Keathley, the Free State student who organized the forum, said the event exceeded her expectations, particularly the level of student involvement.
“That was the thing I was worried about,” Keathley said. “Are they going to feel like this was a waste of time? But I really do feel like they got very interested.”
The level of student involvement at Thursday’s forum pleased organizer Ella Keathley, a student at the school. CREDIT JIM MCLEAN / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
The teacher who helped Keathley pull the event together also was pleased.
“I thought it came off great,” said Blake Swenson, who teaches government, history and social studies at Free State.
In particular, Swenson said he was struck by the maturity of the candidates and their direct answers to tough questions
“I was impressed. When the questions came, there was no fear,” he said.
Kansas is one of a handful of states that doesn’t require candidates for governor to be of a certain age.
Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach wants to change that.
“I think it’s both amusing and encouraging that high school students are throwing their name into the governor’s race, but it is appropriate to have minimum ages for the governor’s office,” Kobach told the Kansas City Star in September.
But Keathley said there is no reason that Kobach, who is running for the Republican nomination for governor, or anyone else should be threatened by the wave of teen candidates.
An effort to impose an age requirement now that Kansas teens have engaged in the political process would “just show that they’re cowards,” she said.
There are four people running for three positions on the Hays school board in the Nov. 7 general election.
Lance Bickle, incumbent, Mike Walker, and Sophia Young will be on the ballot, and Kevin Daniels is running as a write-in candidate.
Each elected board member will serve a four-year term.
Hays Post talked to each candidate, asking why they are running and what are their opinions on the upcoming $78.5 million bond issue, which is also up for a vote Nov. 7, school funding, district accreditation and other issues they feel are pressing for the school district.
Bickle, 40, a consultant, is serving in his first term on the school board. He is the current school board president and has served as president three of the four years he has been on the board.
Bickle is a graduate of Hays High School and Fort Hays State University.
He lives in Hays with his wife, Amanda. He has two children, ages 8 and 6 who attend third grade and first grade at Wilson Elementary School.
In his interview, Bickle talks about fiscal responsibility and the need for facility improvements at the district’s schools.
Advance voting begins Monday, Oct. 23 in the Ellis County Administrative Center, 718 Main St., Hays, through noon Monday, Nov. 6. Polls for the Tuesday, Nov. 7 general election are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. throughout Ellis County.
There are five people running for the three open positions on the Hays city commission in the Nov. 7 general election.
The candidates are Chris Dinkel, incumbent Sandy Jacobs, John Mayers, incumbent and current mayor Shaun Musil, and Dustin Roths.
The two people with the highest number of votes will be elected to four-year terms. The person with the third highest vote total will serve a two-year term. The mayor is selected by the commission members.
Hays Post has talked to each candidate, asking why they are running and what they consider to be the most important issues facing the city of Hays.
John Mayers, 38, is a political newcomer. He and his wife Melissa have two children, the oldest of whom attends Wilson Elementary School.
Mayers is a realtor at Landmark Realty and also works for Westhusing’s Inc., based in Stockton. He previously worked in the oil field but was laid off when oil prices began a dramatic plunge.
“I feel I’m not personally well-represented on the Hays City Commission,” Mayers said. “I’ve worked with my hands as a laborer. I’m middle-class and blue collar.”
He wants to represent residents who live paycheck to paycheck.
“When city commissioners make a decision and say ‘This will only raise your taxes or fee $5 a month,’ that $5 is a lot of money for some people,” Mayers contends.
He’s not necessarily against taxes.
“Taxes aren’t a bad thing. They’re inevitable,” he said. “But we need to make sure they’re being spent wisely, where they need to go, including infrastructure. I’m a realist.”
Mayers says he’s “always thought Hays is a heavily regulated city” and would like to see elimination of some regulations. He was pleased with the commission’s recent decisions to approve the easing of requirements in the Unified Development Code (UDC) regarding breezeways and property setbacks and to allow large lot developments within a portion of the 3-mile Extraterritorial Jurisdiction (ETJ).
More affordable housing and increased economic development are Mayers’ top two concerns. He calls the failure two years ago of the Big Creek Travel Plaza to locate north of I-70 a “missed opportunity and a decision that still hurts Hays. We haven’t shown we’re an inviting town.”
In his interview, Mayers also talked about the need for better paying jobs and the importance of listening to constituents concerns and exchanging city-related information with them. Much of his election effort concentrates on door-to-door campaigning “letting residents get to know me.”
Advance voting begins Mon., Oct. 23 in the Ellis County Administrative Center, 718 Main, Hays, through noon Mon., Nov. 6. Polls for the Tue., Nov. 7 general election are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. throughout Ellis County.
MANHATTAN — The Kansas Department of Agriculture has been awarded $296,405.62 through the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Marketing Service. The purpose of the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program is to increase opportunities for specialty crops, which are defined by the USDA as “fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture and nursery crops, including floriculture.” KDA has selected several other recipients to further utilize the funds.
The following is a list of Kansas projects which will be funded by the grant:
Kansas 4-H Foundation, Rock Springs Specialty Crop Learning Center, $51,930.45 – A living classroom at Rock Springs 4-H Center will provide hands-on learning opportunities for youth and educators. Staff will assist with the establishment of the specialty crops, development of educational programs, and harvesting/production process to utilize the crops in the Center dining facilities.
Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation – Bird City, Expanding Vegetable Production in Western Kansas, $44,000.00 – The Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation and additional partners will expand assistance to growth-oriented vegetable producers, providing support to core growth producers for preparation in delivery to institutional markets, as well as increased specialty crop production in the High Plains food shed.
Kansas Rural Center, Linking Specialty Crop Farmers, $51,775.00 – Five regional workshops will assist beginning specialty crop growers gain access to necessary educational information. Additionally, experienced and novice growers will be paired to facilitate the transfer of success stories and foundational learning methods.
Kansas Department of Agriculture, Meet Me at the Market, $62,134.40 – Market managers and vendors will receive resources to increase awareness of specialty crops available at their markets through promotional events, marketing templates and educational workshops.
Kansas State University, Effective Packing Practices, $70,086.00 – A scientific study will analyze the effectiveness of utilizing a coating for cardboard flats for antimicrobial purposes. A cost-benefit economic analysis will calculate the value of the technology to fruit growers, and interviews with small fruit crop farmers will help understand current packing practices and acceptability of coated cardboard as a tool for shelf-life extension of berries.
Volleyball fans will have the opportunity to watch Hays High and TMP Sub-State Volleyball LIVE this Saturday right here at Hays Post. The Lady Indians are the #3 seed in the 4A-Division 1 Ulysses Sub-State and will face the host and #2 seed Ulysses around 3pm on Saturday. If they win that match Hays High will face the winner of McPherson and Buhler around 4pm for the sub-state championship and a trip to Salina for the 4A-D1 State Tournament.
The Lady Monarchs will host the 3A Sub-State at Al Billinger Fieldhouse in Hays. TMP is the #1 seed and will open up with Goodland at 1pm. With a victory the Lady Monarchs would move on to the semi-finals around 5pm to face either Lakin or Cimarron. A victory in the semi-finals would put TMP in the finals around 7pm.
Catch all of the exciting post season volleyball action right here at www.hayspost.com
