By MADELINE FOX

Kansas’ child welfare agency wants to hire a second full-time investigator to track down kids missing from the state’s foster system.

The move comes in the wake of reports last October, when the Department for Children and Families was run by Phyllis Gilmore, that the agency had lost track of three sisters who’d run away from a Tonganoxie foster home.

DCF is taking that one step further by requesting $150,000 for its annual budget to hire a second investigator to bring back missing kids. Currently, DCF has one full-time investigator, but the money the agency is requesting would bring a second person on board, and give both a dedicated travel budget.

This is the first time DCF has asked to set aside money for travel to specifically look for runaway youth, according to DCF spokeswoman Theresa Freed. More than $90,000 of the requested amount would go toward travel for the two investigators and any other staff who might be needed to bring missing kids home.

Rep. Barbara Ballard, who brought DCF’s budget requests to the House’s budget-writing committee, said travel costs are expected to be high because travel is often last-minute and costly. When the state locates missing children, a DCF employee would usually have to catch a plane or otherwise hurry to get to the child before he or she runs or is taken elsewhere.

Some lawmakers on the House Appropriations committee balked at the requested amount, but ultimately agreed to fund a smaller amount for this year, and the full $150,000 for successive years.

The number of kids missing from care has varied since this time last year, averaging 82 kids missing per month and peaking in November, at 93 children.

Madeline Fox is a reporter for the Kansas News Service. You can reach her on Twitter @maddycfox.

ELKHART, Kan. (AP) — Game wardens say they have solved an antelope poaching case discovered last October in southwest Kansas.

Wardens were called in October about two antelope found dead in Morton County. Evidence indicated the animals were shot with a rifle and left to rot in the field.

The suspects also drove across a freshly drilled winter wheat field to kill the animals.

The Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism said Wednesday that three people were arrested and have confessed to the poaching.

No charges have been filed.

The department said tips from the public helped solve the case.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a woman has been charged with helping to orchestrate the killing of her mother’s boyfriend at a northeast Kansas lake and her mother with helping cover up for her.

Eighteen-year-old Ashlyn Hemmerling is jailed on $1 million bond on a first-degree murder charge in the death of 22-year-old Taylor Sawyer, whose body was found March 14 at Perry Lake. Hemmerling’s mother, 37-year-old Sarah Hemmerling, is jailed on $100,000 bond on an obstruction charge.

Ashlyn Hemmerling’s boyfriend, 22-year-old Jonathan Blevins, also is charged with first-degree murder.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Herrig says authorities believe Blevins pulled the trigger, Ashlyn Hemmerling helped orchestrate the homicide and Sarah Hemmerling helped her daughter disseminate a false story.

The suspects’ attorneys didn’t immediately return phone messages from The Associated Press.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas lawmakers are considering legislation that would prevent the state from forcing faith-based adoption agencies to place children into homes that violate their religious beliefs. Critics predict the bill would lead to discrimination against would-be LGBT parents.

Two identical bills, each dubbed the Adoption Protection Act , are under consideration in House and Senate committees, and each panel finished two days of hearings Wednesday. The bills would allow faith-based agencies contracting with the Department of Children and Families to deny adoptions to applicants based on sexual orientation or gender identity without fear of punishment from the state.

Republican Rep. Susan Humphries of Wichita co-sponsors the bill and said a primary purpose behind it is to get Kansas a step ahead of potential lawsuits that have been filed against faith-based agencies in other states.

“In some states just the threat of legal action has caused agencies to shut down because they can’t afford to fight the battle,” said Austin Vincent, a Topeka attorney who supports the bill.

Tom Witt, lobbyist for the LGBT-rights group Equality Kansas, said the bill would allow private entities to receive taxpayer dollars even as they discriminate against same sex Kansans.

“These private agencies want to turn families away that don’t meet their religious definition of what a family is,” Witt said. “In other words, Jesus told them we’re not good enough.”

The bill says its provisions would not apply to current contracts between adoption agencies and DCF, but Witt said those contracts will soon expire.

DCF contracts directly with two of the state’s 31 licensed adoption agencies, KVC Behavioral Health Care and Saint Francis Community Services, but others help place abused and neglected children in state foster care into adoptive homes.

Secretary Gina Meier-Hummel told both committees in written testimony that the department supports the bill, even though she also has publicly pledged to legislators that DCF will not discriminate against same-sex couples.

Supporters of the bill said it is not intended to limit anyone’s rights but to help guarantee religious freedom for faith-based agencies and those who seek them out.

“This is not a bill that adds burdens,” Humphries said. “This is a bill that takes them away.”

Meier-Hummel said the lack of protections for faith-based groups may keep some adoption agencies from coming to Kansas.

Other supporters said rejecting the bill will increase the load on Kansas’ already overburdened foster care system by potentially reducing adoptions. If faith-based institutions have to choose between violating their religious beliefs or shutting down, they will likely choose the latter. If they don’t choose to shut down, litigation brought against them will force it, Vincent said.

Several states have passed similar legislation, recently including Alabama, South Dakota and Texas. Despite the new Texas law, two female Texas A&M professors sued in February , alleging they were turned away from adopting refugee children on religious grounds from an agency receiving public funds.

In other parts of the country, the American Civil Liberties Union has taken adoption agencies to court over similar policies. ACLU of Kansas says it would be willing to do so as well.

“This act is an effort to try and limit the constitutional protections for LGBTQ people as much as possible,” Vignesh Ganapathy, ACLU of Kansas policy director, said in an interview. “It will open up the possibility of significant litigation as they try and determine what counts as a sincerely held religious belief.”

Ganapathy said the bill would put an agency’s faith before its function of doing what is best for the individual child.

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Fire crews in and around Topeka are mourning the loss of the Topeka Fire department’s Accelerant Detection K-9 (Webster) to a sudden illness.

Webster was found suffering from an unknown illness on Wednesday morning and was taken to his local veterinarian for treatment.  Webster was transferred to Kansas State University Animal Hospital where he died at approximately 1pm.

Webster began his service with the Topeka Fire Department in 2014 and was certified by the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Department of Justice as an Accelerant Detection K-9.  Webster responded throughout the City of Topeka and the State of Kansas to assist investigators in the detection of ignitable liquids at fire scenes.  He participated in many local events to promote the fire department and educate the public in fire safety. K-9 Webster was 6 ½ years old.

He was a valued member of the Topeka Fire Department and will be missed.