WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) – member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee and of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies – today applauded Senate passage of S.2372, The John S. McCain III, Daniel K. Akaka, and Samuel R. Johnson VA Maintaining Internal Systems and Strengthening Integrated Outside Networks, or VA MISSION Act, of 2018, by a vote of 92-5.
Following passage, Sen. Moran released the following statement:
“I’m proud the Senate overwhelmingly supported this legislation that empowers our veterans and provides our nation’s heroes with the timely and quality healthcare they deserve. It has been an honor to work alongside my friend and colleague Senator John McCain to reform access to community care in the VA and to provide greater choice for veterans. Named after Senator McCain, the VA MISSION Act includes provisions we have both pursued to establish access and quality standards for veteran eligibility to care in the community and strategic planning to improve the VA’s integrated healthcare system. I look forward to the president signing this bill as we celebrate Memorial Day.”
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Kansas City man who used his smart phone to pass a note to a teller was sentenced Tuesday to 37 months in federal prison for robbing a bank, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.
Cothern-photo Johnson Co.
Ryan Michael Cothern, 41, Kansas City, pleaded guilty to committing a robbery Oct. 3, 2017, at US Bank at 9900 W. 87th Street in Overland Park.
Cothern reportedly robbed the bank because he was thousands of dollars in debt from a drunken driving case. The robbery netted just $615.
Prosecutors said Cothern handed a teller his cell phone with a message that read, “Put the 100s, 50s and 20s in the bag.” When the teller hesitated, Cothern said, “Don’t do anything you shouldn’t do.” The teller put cash and a GPS monitoring device in the bag before pulling the alarm. Cothern was arrested near the 8300 block of Melrose Street.
KANSAS CITY (AP) — Federal prosecutors are alleging that two Topeka businessmen and a Kansas City-area man operated a $352 million business fraud scheme that involved using minority or disabled military veterans to obtain federal business contracts.
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In a civil action filed in Kansas City, federal prosecutors allege Matt Torgeson, president of Torgeson Electric Co., and Matthew McPherson, president of McPherson Contractors, both based in Topeka, worked with Michael Patrick Dingle to create what are sometimes called “Rent-A-Vet” companies. They allege they received more than 60 fraudulent small-business government contracts beginning in 2009.
According to court documents, the men set up businesses called Zieson Construction and Simcon Corp. to obtain contracts meant for minority or disabled veterans and then used the money for themselves or their businesses, The Topeka Capital-Journal reported .
Under federal law, minority or disabled veterans are to manage the daily operations of businesses that receive “set aside” contracts for small minority-run businesses. Torgeson, McPherson and Dingle are not disabled or minorities and prosecutors say Dingle managed two of the fraudulent businesses.
A third front company, Onsite, was formed after Zieson was growing too large to qualify for the small business contracts, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors are asking that properties and bank accounts owned the co-conspirators be forfeited because they were proceeds of the alleged fraud.
In the court filing, federal prosecutors contend millions of federal dollars were paid to Zieson and Simcon and then funneled to Torgeson, McPherson and Dingle. Prosecutors allege that between April 2010 and January 2018, the government paid about more than $300 million in “illicit funds” to Zieson, Simcon and Onsite, and others associated with the alleged fraud.
The lawsuit also names veterans or minority individuals whose names were used to set up the front company and who signed paperwork contending they were managing the companies. No criminal charges have been filed.
In an emailed statement, McPherson Contractors said it was working with authorities on the investigation. Matt Torgeson told KSNT-TV that his company also is cooperating with the investigation. A phone number listed for Dingle went unanswered.
Sioux Falls, SD – A Kansas man accused of selling large quantities of methamphetamine throughout South Dakota has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, according to United States Attorney Ron Parsons.
Morales -photo KDOC
Justin Morales, also knows as Speedy, 36, Wichita, who was convicted of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison
Morales’s three decades in prison will be followed by 10 years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $100 to the Federal Crime Victim’s Fund.
Federal law enforcement officials learned that Morales was selling methamphetamine in early 2016. During a controlled purchase for five ounces of methamphetamine between Morales and a cooperating witness, Morales was recorded telling the cooperator that he and others sold methamphetamine in several South Dakota cities, and at least one Indian reservation within the state.
Morales said that his plan was to get a house in Sioux Falls that could be used exclusively to store methamphetamine for distribution.
In September 2016, the cooperator met with Morales again, and Morales was recorded telling the cooperator he was preparing to ship 20 pounds of methamphetamine to Sioux Falls, and that he had rented a small house on the west side of Sioux Falls to store the methamphetamine. That same day, law enforcement was able to recover three pounds of marijuana, two pounds of methamphetamine, and a semi-automatic pistol that was connected to Morales and his co-conspirators, Chase Guzman and Daniel Guzman. All three men were arrested in Sioux Falls.
Morales and both Guzmans were indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2016. Both Chase Guzman and Daniel Guzman pleaded guilty. Chase Guzman was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison and Daniel Guzman was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison. Morales was found guilty by a federal jury in Sioux Falls on February 7, 2018.
This is Morales’s second felony drug conviction. He has many other arrests and convictions in a criminal career spanning nearly 24 years, including a domestic battery charge that is still pending in Wichita.
Morales has been in custody since his arrest, and was returned to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service following the sentencing.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Federal prosecutors have indicted two online gamers and the California man accused of making the hoax calls that led a police officer to fatally shoot an unarmed man in Kansas.
Barriss- photo courtesy Glendale, Calif. police
The indictment unsealed Wednesday charges Tyler Barriss with conspiracy, false information and hoaxes, cyberstalking, interstate threats and other charges.
Gamers Casey Viner, of Ohio, and Shane Gaskill, of Kansas, face conspiracy, obstruction of justice and wire fraud charges.
Court documents do not list attorneys, and Barriss’ attorney in a related Kansas case did not immediately return a message. First court appearances for all three men are set for June 13.
Police body camera images of The December 28, fatal response to a hoax call -courtesy Wichita Police
Barriss is accused of calling Wichita police from Los Angeles on Dec. 28 to report a shooting and kidnapping at a Wichita home. A responding officer fatally shot 28-year-old Andrew Finch after he opened the door.
If districts suing the state get their way, the Kansas Legislature could be back in Topeka within weeks to add another half a billion dollars to school budgets in time for the coming academic year.
The districts hope the Kansas Supreme Court will also tell the state to phase in hundreds of millions beyond that in the years to come.
“We’re not there yet.”
Last winter the Legislature commissioned a study suggesting Kansas could need to add as much as $1.8 to $2.1 billion to close achievement gaps, graduate 95 percent of students from high school and ensure most are prepared for college or careers after that.
“The constitution requires suitable funding, adequate funding, and we’re not there yet,” attorney Alan Rupe said.
The state argued a five-year plan lawmakers passed this spring to ratchet up school spending over the next half decade — ultimately adding more than half a billion dollars in annual state aid to schools — is enough to provide children the public education guaranteed in the state constitution.
Kan. Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss during Tuesday’s debate on school funding.
Even if the court concludes otherwise, solicitor general Toby Crouse said, it shouldn’t force lawmakers to fix the situation before they return to Topeka for the 2019 legislative session.
“At the end of the day the state of Kansas believes that schools should open,” Crouse said.
The school districts want the matter resolved by June 30 and the court has indicated it will rule by then.
If the court orders more spending this summer and the Legislature doesn’t comply, the justices could effectively shutter schools by striking down current funding as unconstitutional and stopping disbursements of state aid.
“Déjà vu”
As Crouse fended off the findings in the study the Legislature commissioned, he said the expert’s calculations were based on hitting aggressive academic targets that no state has yet achieved — including that 95 percent graduation rate.
Doing so would effectively mean bringing all school districts to the level of Johnson County’s Blue Valley, one of the state’s richest, best performing districts. The plaintiff school districts argue that’s not unreasonable.
One justice called the state’s position “déjà vu.” He pointed to studies lawmakers had commissioned in the past that also recommended increasing spending on schools — and that also met with legislative resistance.
“Here you all are always battling your own expert,” Justice Eric Rosen said.
Crouse replied that the Legislature had opted to mimic funding standards set by the court back in the Montoy v. Kansas case of the mid-2000s, rather than following the latest study.
“We have to be right, and the safest thing to do was go back to Montoy,” he said.
That met with skepticism from the justices, who questioned whether the five-year plan achieves even that. They also wondered why they should trust the state and lawmakers to follow through on the plan.
The state wants the court to dismiss this latest lawsuit, but, justices said, a few years after they dismissed the Montoy case, the state reneged on its multi-year plan to increase school funding. It’s been out of compliance ever since.
If something similar were to happen again, Crouse suggested, school districts could file a new lawsuit.
Chief Justice Lawton Nuss pushed back. In 2010, schools filed the current lawsuit, Gannon v. Kansas, because the Montoy plan had fallen apart. The case is still going nearly eight years later.
“Your position is, a repeat of that process is the way things should happen?” Chief Justice Lawton Nuss asked. “That’s just the process, in your view, and that’s satisfactory?”
“Well, I don’t know whether it’s satisfactory,” Crouse said. “I’m not trying to duck the question. I think that’s the process.”
Loyd Eugene Frazey, the oldest son of Bruce G. and Irene (Bomgardner) Frazey was born July 28, 1923 near Bogue, Kansas.
He graduated from Bogue High School in 1946. After graduation he moved to Denver, Colorado where we worked until returning to Hill City, Kansas. He managed the Hill City Locker plant until he enlisted in the Air Force in 1950. He was honorably discharged in 1958 after spending 3 years in England.
He married Nola Voss, June 20, 1953. To the union 4 children were born: David, Nancy, Cindy and Roxanne. After his discharge he lived in Gravette, Arkansas for a short time then moved to Graham County Kansas where be became a farmer and stock-man. After retirement he lived in Hays, Kansas, Decatur, Texas and Andover, Kansas. He and Nola enjoyed traveling in their RV until his health failed.
He was a member of the Assembly of God Church, serving several terms as a deacon.
He is survived by his wife Nola; son: David (Catherine) Frazey of Decatur, Texas; daughters: Nancy Guthrie, Ellis, Kansas, Cindy Fugate, Greeley, Colorado and Roxanne (Guy) Cox, Towanda, Kansas; brothers: Leo and Donald; seven grandchildren; twelve great grandchildren and five step great grandchildren. He loved his family and was a special grandpa.
Private family memorial services for Jeanie Siler, 78, Prairie Village, will be held at a later date. Burial will be at Memorial Park Cemetery. She passed away Friday, May 11, 2018 at Menorah Medical Center in Overland Park, KS.
Jeanie was born July 1, 1939 in Larned, KS, the daughter of Ross N. and Agda (Pierson) Morrow.
She studied Elementary Education at Fort Hays State University before settling down as a Homemaker to her family. Her education fueled a lifetime of interest in psychology, sociology, health, nutrition and philosophy. She continued to take classes and study a variety of topics throughout her life.
She married Ken Boomhower on August 21, 1960 in Garfield, KS. He preceded her in death in May 1973. She then married Dr. Eugene T. “Gene” Siler on November 27, 1976 in Wichita, KS. ,He preceded her in death April 13, 2008.
Survivors include her two daughters, Cheryl Commerford, Prairie Village, KS, Kristi Mills, Pismo Beach, CA; five grandchildren, Ross, Jane, Amelia Commerford, Julian Mills and Christian Coleman. She was preceded in death by her daughter, Kimberly Boomhower, one sister, Audrey Morrow and one brother, Norman Morrow.
Memorial Contributions may be made in her name to Smile Train or 20/20/20 and may be sent in care of Warren-McElwain Mortuary.
In response to a request made by the City of Hays, the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s Division of Water Resources has issued a control order restricting the watering of lawns and other vegetation from private wells between noon and 7 p.m. from June 1 through Sept. 30.
The order was signed into effect on April 6.
This measure is part of a greater interest to reduce water waste and to improve conservation practices in the Intensive Groundwater Use Control Area (IGUCA) located in Hays, Kansas.
The IGUCA in Hays was established in 1985 at the request of the City to help implement water conservation measures. It provides a mechanism to address preventable water waste by privately-owned wells.
Currently, the City of Hays prohibits the following: the washing down of sidewalks, parking lots and driveways; the known loss of water through breaks or leaks in plumbing systems and the escape of water from private property onto public property such as sidewalks or into the street guttering from landscape irrigation; in addition to outdoor water use between noon and 7 p.m. from June 1 through Sept. 30.
By restricting daytime outdoor water use, including the watering of landscapes and gardens, unnecessary water loss due to wind and evaporation can be reduced, thus conserving the resource for more efficient use.
All citizens are encouraged to practice the conservation of natural resources, including water, and look for ways to improve conservation measures in our homes and businesses, both indoors and out.
Dr. Tisa MasonThis year 4,533 students received degrees at Fort Hays State University. How exciting it was to be a part of these record-setting commencement exercises! These newly conferred academic degrees are gateways to new beginnings for our most recent alumni. These graduates are full of promise and hope, and it was with both pride and confidence that I conferred degrees.
The pride comes from valuing the hard work and the many accomplishments of our students. The confidence emanates from the knowledge that Fort Hays State University is truly a student-centered institution. Our students work hard to earn their degrees, but it is often our faculty and staff who inspire their dreams, help them discover their talents, and fuel their passion in this leg of their journey through life.
My remarks during the ceremony centered on the theme of change and how a Fort Hays State University education prepares our alumni for a world of constant change – equipping them to be agents of change. As the famous saying goes: “Be the change you want to see in the world.”
While I was preparing my remarks, I took a moment to ask our graduates to share with me their stories of change. To my delight, I received many emails from our graduates, sharing their stories of change and impact. Here are a few of their stories:
Hezekiah Herrera –
I’m a 32-year-old, single father of two. I, like many others in my position, decided to return to school. It was having my first child that motivated me to complete my degree. Two years into my studies, I would welcome my second child. All the while, I had experienced intimate partner violence throughout the course of my marriage until a heartbreaking divorce during my final academic year … Despite these setbacks, with the support of G-d, family, friends, and faculty at FHSU, I was able to walk across the stage to greet you in front of both of my children – I wanted them to see with their eyes that anything is possible and what defines us is not our past, but our future.
Kristi Rodriguez –
The leadership courses have expanded my ability and shown me the passion I have for leadership. These courses gave me an excuse to take the risk to do the things that I never put as a priority. Since taking these courses, I have created a community project partnering with six other agencies, taught a professional training course for my organization, and made the time to truly reflect and build on my abilities as a leader and a follower. … I began like an amateur ball player who just ended her season with a grand slam!
Trevor Shankle –
Change can be difficult at times, but without change life becomes stagnant and predictable. I leave this university ready to face whatever change the world may throw at me. I cannot imagine my life without Fort Hays State University, and I am forever grateful to be a part of the Tiger Family.
Faith Burdine –
I never thought that I would be earning my master’s degree by 22 years old; I never thought I would be as mature as I have become. FHSU has enabled me to change from an emotionally charged, impulsive teenager to a rational (with some emotion), logical thinker. I still have days where I eat cookies for breakfast and ice cream for dinner, and sometimes my emotions can cause me to want to react impulsively, but with the help of some of my wonderful professors at FHSU, I know that I am still becoming the person (and eating a balanced diet) I want to be and that FHSU has been and will be my alma mater and home.
Douglas Lindsay –
I have obtained my bachelor’s degree in nursing at 47 years old. Neither of my parents were high school graduates, and obtaining a degree was never really emphasized. Unfortunately, it took me a while to discover the value of an education. That all changed when I became a nurse. I finally found a place in which I excelled and thoroughly enjoyed my work. Prior to that profession, it was usually one or the other. The field placed a high value on education and learning. So, I continued my education. I graduated summa cum laude from FHSU in December 2017. I have already begun my advanced degree to become a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. I could not be more thrilled. So, the changes I have experienced at FHSU are not only mine. I have changed the trajectory of my life. I have changed the trajectory of my family’s life. I have changed the trajectory of my son’s life, who is 4 years old. In my profession, I effect change every day. I have the opportunity to heal and educate people and change the trajectory of their health and lives, thereby affecting all of the people they know.
So as I looked out at the graduates, faculty, and staff in the coliseum, I knew that our faculty and staff prepared our students well to be agents of change and engaged global citizens. Fort Hays State University delivers more than a degree, it provides a passport to the future – and it fills me with a great sense of optimism.
ATLANTA (AP) — NFL owners have approved a new policy aimed at addressing the firestorm over national anthem protests, permitting players to stay in the locker room during the “The Star-Spangled Banner” but requiring them to stand if they come to the field.
The decision was announced Wednesday by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell during the league’s spring meeting in Atlanta.
In a sign that players were not part of the discussions, any violations of the policy would result in fines against the team — not the players. The NFL Players Association said it will challenge any part of the new policy that violates the collective bargaining agreement.
The owners spent several hours addressing the contentious issue — which has reached all the way to the White House.
Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in 2016, a quiet but powerful protest against police brutality and racial inequities in the justice system.
SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a robbery and have two suspects in custody.
Police on the scene of Tuesday’s robbery and shooting-photo courtesy KWCH
On Tuesday, police responded to a liquor store in the 900 Block of South Woodlawn in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.
Store employees reported two men walked into the business, showed a gun and demanded money. The manager followed the men out of the store and fired several shots. An 18-year-old suspect was hit in the leg, according to Davidson.
Police detectives and the FBI followed up on the case and developed some leads. They found a suspect’s white Ford Focus at a residence in the 1600 Block of North Oliver in Wichita.
Officers conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle and made contact with a 17-year-old female driver. A short time later, officers arrested a 19-year-old man in the 600 Block of North Hydraulic. He is being held for aggravated robbery, according to Davidson.
The injured 18-year-old remains hospitalized, according to Davidson. Upon his release, the teen will be booked into jail for aggravated robbery.
Police believe these individuals are connected to previous robberies.
The 17-year-old driver was not arrested, according to Davidson.
