Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 91. North northeast wind 6 to 11 mph.
Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 63. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light and variable after midnight.
Saturday Sunny, with a high near 90. Light and variable wind becoming east northeast 5 to 8 mph in the morning.
Saturday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 65. East wind 3 to 8 mph.
Sunday Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. Southeast wind 5 to 9 mph.
Sunday Night Isolated showers and thunderstorms after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 66. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
MondayScattered showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 85. Chance of precipitation is 40%.
THOMAS COUNTY— One person was injured in an accident just after 7p.m. Thursday in Thomas County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2005 Dodge Ram 1500 Driven by Esteban I. Ramos, 31, Oakley, was southbound on U.S. 83 one miles east of Gem.
The driver lost control of the vehicle. It traveled into the north ditch and rolled.
Ramos was transported to the hospital in Colby. He was properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Texas woman was charged Wednesday with escaping from custody at a halfway house where she was serving a sentence for fraud, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.
Rippey -photo Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office
Chrystal Rippey, 38, formerly of Marshall, Texas, is charged with one count of escaping federal custody. In May 2015, she was sentenced to five years in federal prison for wire fraud. She pleaded guilty to defrauding a couple who gave her more than $22,000 as part of a plan to adopt her unborn twins. In fact, Rippey lied to the couple and she was not pregnant.
On July 17, 2018, Rippey turned up missing from the Grossman Residential Reentry Center in Leavenworth, Kan. She was arrested later in Monroe, La.
If convicted, she faces up to five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Marshals Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley is prosecuting.
NEODESHA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man has been sentenced to more than 19 years in prison for a 2016 death in Neodesha.
Schlegel -photo Wilson County
The Kansas Attorney General’s office says 37-year-old DeJay Lynn Schlegel, of Neodesha, was sentenced Wednesday in the December 2016 death of Michael Elam.
Schlegel pleaded no contest in May to second-degree murder, arson, interference with law enforcement and theft.
Elam was found dead inside his home after it burned down. Investigators say Schlegel and his girlfriend, 25-year-old Hayley Hurst, broke into Elam’s home.
Hurst has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and theft.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A suburban Kansas City woman is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the June deaths of a woman and the victim’s unborn child.
Mendoza -photo Wyandotte Co.
Wyandotte County, Kansas, prosecutors announced charges Thursday against 26-year-old Alora Mendoza of Kansas City, Kansas. She is also charged with attempted aggravated robbery.
Jocelyn Ybarra and Ybarra’s unborn child were killed on June 2. Relatives say Ybarra was 12 weeks pregnant when she was fatally shot.
Mendoza has been in custody for about a month on unrelated charges.
EDWARDS COUNTY —One person was injured in an accident just after 4p.m. Thursday in Edwards County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2017 Ford F150 driven by Jeremy Jarvis, 38, Kinsley, was southbound on 290th Avenue. The driver failed to yield at the uncontrolled intersection at I Road. An eastbound 2003 Ford Taurus driven by Channi Miller, 27, Russell collided with the F150.
Miller was transported to the hospital in Kinsley. Jarvis and two children in the Taurus were not injured. All four were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
William A. “Billy” Nondorf of Colby, Kansas passed away August 4, 2018 at Prairie Senior Living Complex in Colby, Kansas at the age of 68. Billy was born March 14, 1950 to Wilfred “Willie” and Betty Dautel Nondorf in Goodland, Kansas.
Billy graduated from Goodland High School. He farmed for the Urban Brothers and worked at various odd and end jobs until diabetes put him in PSLC in 2010. Billy loved to hunt, fish and raise a garden and build things. He loved to tell his nieces and nephews wild stories. Billy”s motto was “Jesus Saves”
Billy was never married and had no children. He was preceded in death by his parents, 2 great nieces and 2 great nephews. He is survived by 2 brothers, Jim/Priscilla of Altus, OK and Joe of Greeley, Co. 6 Sisiters, Linda/Mike Damon of Colby, KS Marge/Ralph Bretton of McCook, NE Judy/Steve Schroeder of Salina, KS Patty/Quentin Alberhasky of Las Vegas, NV Lucy Rooney of Benkleman, NE and Janet Nondorf of Wichita, KS. 39 nieces and nephews , 47 great nieces and nephews and 17 great great nieces and nephews.
Graveside services will be held at 2:00 p.m., at Mount Calvary Cemetery, Friday, August 17, 2018 in Atwood, KS. Memorials in Billy’s name in care of Kersenbrock Funeral Chapel – 745 S. Country Club Dr. – Colby, KS 67701
GEARY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting.
Locations of the fatal shooting -google map
Just before 2a.m. Thursday, police were called to 713 West 12th Street in Junction City for a report of shots fired, according to Police Captain Trish Giordano.
First responders found a 21-year old man identified as Darian White of Junction City who had been shot. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Giordano confirmed an autopsy will be done in the case. At this time no one has been arrested and no motive is known for the shooting.
Police are asking for the public for help in providing information in the case. You can call the JCPD or Crimestoppers.
This is the first homicide in Junction City since January of 2016, according to Giordano.
How can a politician as flawed as Kris Kobach be elected governor? Easy—just divide and conquer.
A lot of politicians with deep pockets and deep ambition see 2018 as their moment to shine. Consequently, Kobach enjoys the major advantage of having “too many” opponents, letting him squeak through to the governorship with relatively few voters.
Patrick R. Miller is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Kansas.
This was evident in the Republican primary results. On election night, Kobach had a 191 vote lead over Governor Jeff Colyer, with Jim Barnett and Ken Selzer playing major spoiler roles. Provisional ballots are yet uncounted, but let’s assume Kobach wins the nomination. Logic dictates that to stop Kobach with his deep core of conservative support, circle the wagons to give one candidate a clear run at him. But since when is Kansas politics logical?
Kobach is counting on a repeat in November. Kobach’s biggest advantage is Independent Greg Orman. Kansas City Star editorialists have scolded Orman for dodging specifics about many major issues. For example, when the Shawnee Mission Post offered candidates space for 500 word essays on school funding, Orman ignored them, but then his campaign attacked local media for engaging in “multiple choice journalism demanding yes or no answers.” Seriously? On issues like school funding and taxes, Star editorialists call Orman’s message “vague promises and platitudes.”
Orman’s message is mostly jabs at the two-party system, though to his credit he has stated support for several relatively uncontroversial ideas on government transparency. But Orman made a silly gaffe when he criticized state-supported party primaries based on the factually incorrect belief that parties are private organizations. In fact, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that parties are not private and that state supported primaries are appropriate. For someone who talks big about parties, Orman gets a lot about them wrong.
When reporters pin Orman down on issues, his positions do not match his advertising. He fancies himself a centrist, but based on his past statements, on issues like Medicaid, abortion, guns, LGBT rights, and environmental regulations, Orman is liberal. And his supporters spent much of this campaign trying to out-liberal Democratic nominee Laura Kelly, attacking her from the left on guns and voter regulations. So who is the real centrist—Orman or Kelly, a candidate his camp evidently thinks is too conservative?
As the campaign evolves, it is fair to ask how Orman and Kelly actually differ on issues. In 2009, Orman gave Kelly $1,000 for her exploratory campaign against Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins, which Kelly later dropped. Clearly, Orman saw common ground with Kelly then. Not anymore?
Orman repackages liberalism in moderate wrapping paper. The recipient of this gift is Kobach, currently on track to become governor without winning a majority. The first general election poll shows Kelly 36%, Kobach 35%, and Orman 12%. Of course, Orman was polling ahead of Senator Pat Roberts on election day 2014, but then lost by 11%. So who knows what his real vote will be. But most of Orman’s support likely comes from voters who would prefer Kelly in a two-person race. That makes Orman a spoiler, and the kind of second-tier candidate who handed Kobach his election lead on primary night.
If Orman has something distinct to offer, then he should bring it clearly and authentically. Otherwise, he is running a campaign based on generics that do not seem to represent his policies. That kind of campaign is probably not launching a political revolution, but it can elect a no-mandate Governor Kobach and flip Kansas to something even more extreme than Brownback-era politics. Is that worth it for Kansans? Kobach is depending on it.
Patrick. R. Miller is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Kansas.
JACKSON COUNTY, Ill. — A Jackson County (Illinois) grand jury returned a superseding indictment Thursday charging Alex. B. Karcher, 24, Salina, with charges related to the shooting of Carbondale Police Officer Trey Harris on July 31, 2016, according to a media release from the Jackson County Attorney.
Karcher -photo Jackson County, IL
Karcher was previously indicted with four others for conspiracy to possess with the intent to deliver more than 5,000 grams of a substance containing cannabis in Jackson and Williamson counties.
The trial on that case was scheduled to begin Monday but was continued considering the additional charges returned by the grand jury, according to the release.
In addition to the charge of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute more than 5,000 grams of Cannabis, Karcher now faces one count of aggravated battery and six counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm, all of which are Class X felonies.
The Indictment alleges that Karcher, while acting together and in concert with others and being legally accountable for the actions of each other, without legal justification, knowingly discharged a .223 caliber firearm, thereby causing injury to Trey Harris, a person he knew to be a peace officer performing his official duties. The six counts of aggravated discharge of a Firearm allege that Karcher fired six shots which did not hit the officer from a .223 caliber firearm in the direction of a vehicle he knew to be occupied by a peace officer while the officer was engaged in the execution of his official duties.
The sentences that may be imposed range from 15 to 60 years on the aggravated battery charge, and from 10-45 years on each charge of aggravated discharge of a firearm. Probation is not available for these charges.
Karcher is currently being held in the Jackson County jail with bond set at $2.5 million dollars and will appear on Friday in Jackson County Circuit Court on the superseding indictment.
The investigation is ongoing and is being pursued by the Illinois State Police, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, the Carbondale Police Department, the Metro-East Forensic Science Lab, the Southern Illinois Enforcement Group, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, and Salina Police Department. State’s Attorney Michael Carr is responsible for the prosecution.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach’s lead over Gov. Jeff Colyer in the Republican primary has shrunk to only 91 votes after election officials discovered a mistake in the listing for one county’s results in the state’s tally of votes.
Kobach during Wednesday’s post election press conference
The lead is minuscule when compared with the 311,000 votes cast.
The final, unofficial results posted on the secretary of state’s website show Kobach winning Thomas County in northwest Kansas, with 466 votes to Colyer’s 422. But the tally posted by the Thomas County clerk’s office shows Colyer with 522 votes, or 100 votes more for him, a number the clerk confirmed to The Associated Press on Thursday.
Bryan Caskey, state elections director, said county officials pointed out the discrepancy Thursday following a routine request for a post-election check of the numbers to counties by the secretary of state’s office.
County election officials have yet to finish counting late-arriving mail-in ballots or provisional ballots provided to voters at the polls when their eligibility wasn’t clear.
“This is a routine part of the process,” Caskey said. “This is why we emphasize that election-night results are unofficial.”
Thomas County Clerk Shelly Harms said it’s possible that her handwriting on the tally sheet faxed to the secretary of state’s office was bad enough in the rush of primary-night business that the number for Colyer wasn’t clear.
“They just misread it,” she told The Associated Press.
Kobach is perhaps President Donald Trump’s closest political ally in the state, and he’s a vocal advocate of tough policies on immigration and strict voter identification laws who served as vice chairman of Trump’s now disbanded commission on election fraud. The president tweeted his endorsement of Kobach on Monday, less than 24 hours before the polls opened.
