On Thursday, special agents of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation arrested a Russell man for his alleged involvement with child pornography.
On Thursday at approximately 11:30 a.m., Kenneth D. Herd, 54, Russell, was arrested at Enersys where he was employed in Hays, according to the Sedgwick County booking report.
Herd was arrested for transportation of child pornography, and possession of child pornography. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in Lyons.
The arrest follows a Jan. 30 federal grand jury indictment for the child pornography related offenses. After his arrest, Herd was transported to Wichita where he was booked into the Sedgwick County jail.
The United States Attorney’s Office will prosecute the case.
WASHINGTON— Conservation groups filed a notice today of their intent to sue the Trump administration for failing to protect severely imperiled lesser prairie chickens under the Endangered Species Act.
The groups petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the birds in September 2016. The agency promised to make a decision on that protection by the end of summer 2017, but failed to do so.
“The Trump administration’s foot dragging is placing these unique, dancing birds at serious risk of extinction,” said Noah Greenwald, endangered species director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “The Endangered Species Act has saved more than 99 percent of the species under its protection. It can save the lesser prairie chicken too, but only if the birds are listed as a threatened or endangered species.”
In 2014 the Fish and Wildlife Service listed the lesser prairie chicken as threatened. But protection was overturned on procedural grounds after a lawsuit from the Permian Basin Petroleum Association and four counties.
The bird lives in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. It is severely threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation caused by oil and gas development, cropland conversion, livestock grazing and roads and power lines.
“Listing the lesser prairie chicken as threatened or endangered is the first step toward recovering this iconic species,” said Jason Rylander, senior counsel at Defenders of Wildlife. “The lesser prairie chicken has waited long enough for Endangered Species Act protection. It’s time for the Trump administration to act.”
In addition to habitat loss, the lesser prairie chicken is threatened by climate change. The summer of 2011 saw some of the hottest and driest conditions on record in the Southern Plains, with ground temperatures exceeding 130 degrees Fahrenheit, a critical threshold above which lesser prairie chicken eggs cannot survive.
The following year prairie chicken populations plummeted to their lowest levels in decades. Overall, global warming is expected to drive a four-fold increase in the number of 100-plus degrees days on the Southern Plains.
“These incredible birds deserve better than continuing neglect from the Trump administration,” said Taylor Jones, an endangered species advocate at WildEarth Guardians. “Threats from climate change and habitat loss continue to grow, and this species needs the strongest legal protections possible to escape extinction.”
The lesser prairie chicken — an icon of the Southern Plains — once numbered in the millions but has declined to just roughly 38,000 birds across less than 17 percent of its original range. Experts estimate the population of lesser prairie chickens at 3 million birds before the beginning of Euro-American settlement on the Great Plains.
The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.4 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.
Defenders of Wildlife is dedicated to the protection of all native animals and plants in their natural communities. With over 1.8 million members and activists, Defenders of Wildlife is a leading advocate for innovative solutions to safeguard our wildlife heritage for generations to come.
WildEarth Guardians protects and restores the wildlife, wild places, wild rivers, and the health of the American West.
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A man and a woman from Kansas were indicted Wednesday on federal charges of crashing a car into a Cabela’s store and stealing guns, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.
Tosh -photo Wyandotte Co.Mendez-photo Wyandotte Co.
Kyle Mendez, 29, Kansas City, Kan., and Brenda Tosh, 27, Kansas City, Kan., were charged with one count of conspiring to steal guns from a federally licensed firearms dealer. In addition, Mendez was charged with two counts of unlawful possession of firearms by a convicted felon and one count of transporting a stolen 2014 Dodge Challenger across state lines. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Nov. 6, 2018, in Kansas City, Kan.
The indictment alleges the defendants entered the Cabela’s store in Kansas City, Kan., by crashing a car through an exterior door. Mendez smashed through a locked door to get into the store’s Gun Library. The defendants took long guns from the firearms section of the store and placed them into a shopping cart. The guns included two 12-gauge shotguns, a .22-caliber rifle, a .308-caliber rifle and a .223-caliber rifle.
Before the defendants could get away with the guns, however, law enforcement officers arrived at the store. Tosh was arrested at the scene. Mendez fled from the store and was arrested later.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Unlawful possession of firearms by a felon (count one and count two): Up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.
Theft from a federally licensed firearms dealer (count three): Up to five years and a fine up to $250,000.
Transporting a stolen car (count four): Up to 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas has terminated grants to two nonprofit agencies for services for troubled families and plans to renegotiate the grant terms to four agencies for services for foster children, Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly announced Thursday.
The moves made by Kelly’s interim leader at the Department for Children and Families undo key decisions made at DCF under former Republican Gov. Jeff Colyer. The new governor had criticized the grants and the department for forgoing the normal state contracting process.Kelly’s announcement came a day after media reports that newly released state documents showed one grant recipient had earned low scores in an internal review and didn’t even apply for $17 million of the work. But Kelly had publicly pressured DCF into putting the grants on hold before she took office last month.
“It was crucial that my administration had the opportunity to review the grants before they moved forward,” Kelly said during a Statehouse news conference. “There were clear flaws and inconsistencies in the grants that were awarded.”
In recent years, the department has faced questions about several high-profile deaths of abused children after DCF was alerted to problems. Until September, some children in state custody slept overnight in foster care contractors’ offices, including a 13-year-old girl who in May was raped in an office.
The grants were awarded to a total of five nonprofit agencies only days before Kelly was elected governor and were to last four years, starting July 1. They committed Kansas to higher spending on services aimed at preserving troubled families and services for abused and neglected children in the state’s foster care system.
Under the grants, the state was set to spend a total of $245 million on foster care services during the budget year beginning July 1. The increase would be $35.5 million, or 17 percent.
The governor said DCF will extend existing contracts for foster care services for another three months, through September, so that it can negotiate the new grants with the four agencies that received them.
Interim DCF Secretary Laura Howard said the department wants to make sure the grants line up with the department’s new focus of working to keep children out of foster care.
Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning, an Overland Park Republican, said he’s comfortable with the changes if DCF is getting “a better deal” for taxpayers and its clients while avoiding lawsuits.
“I’m just assuming she’s got those bases covered,” Denning said.
Kelly said DCF will extend existing contracts for family preservation services for another six months, through the end of this year, so that it can take bids using the state’s normal contracting process. The grants had gone to Eckerd Connects, based in Clearwater, Florida, and Cornerstones of Care, based in the Kansas City area.
Cornerstones President and CEO Denise Cross said in a statement that the decision to take new bids for the family preservation grants was “disappointing” because it was planning to provide “trauma-informed care” for children in northeast Kansas.
But Cross added, “We plan to pursue every opportunity to help ensure safe and healthy communities for Kansas’ children.”
Eckerd was to provide family preservation services in the rest of Kansas, 100 of 105 counties, even though it didn’t apply for work in western and central Kansas.
And more than 13,000 pages of records released to The Star this week by Department of Children and Families show that in the other two areas, the agency’s bids and review scores were considerably lower than the agencies the review panel recommended.
Ellen Standlee, operations director for Eckerd’s Kansas programs, said the state has the authority to cancel the grants “for convenience” and “we respect their decision to do so.”
“Eckerd Connects looks forward to continuing to partner with the Department and serve the children and families of Kansas,” Standlee said in a statement.
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TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas awarded millions in grants to a troubled Florida agency to provide child welfare services, even though it earned low scores in an internal review and didn’t apply for some of the work.
Eckerd Connects was selected last year to provide services in the state’s east, west and Wichita regions under a grant process. In the past child welfare funds were typically distributed through contracts.
For the western region, Eckerd Connects was awarded $17 million, even though it didn’t initially apply. Documents show that in the other two areas its bids were considerably lower than the agencies the review panel recommended.
The Department for Children and Families officials says it’s reviewing the family preservation grants awarded during the previous administration.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man accused of threatening to “blow up” the White House has been sentenced to 10 months in federal prison.
Koss is being held in Butler County
A court filing shows Brandon Koss of Wichita was sentenced Wednesday on a misdemeanor charge of willful interference with the protective work of a Secret Service agent.
Prosecutors agreed to drop a felony charge of threatening the president after Koss pleaded guilty in December to the lesser offense.
Koss admitted in his plea deal that he called the White House in January 2018, used a profanity when addressing the woman who answered the phone, and said: “I’m going to blow up the White House.” He also admitted that he lied to a Secret Service agent about who made the phone call to the White House.
TOPEKA – Barbara Wasinger, 111th District Rep. (R – Hays), together with Ken Rahjes, 110th District Rep. (R – Agra), is pleased to host Kansas Commerce Secretary David Toland and Deputy Secretary of Transportation Lindsay Douglas in a tour of critical infrastructure and economic development projects in Ellis County on Friday, February 22.
Mr. Toland and Ms. Douglas, together with the two Representatives, will be joined by officials of Ellis County, the City of Hays, GrowHays, and the Northwest Kansas Economic Innovation Center in meeting with business leaders from Midwest Energy and Hess Services as they tour the growing businesses along the Northwest Business Corridor Route connecting I-70 to US 183 via 230th Avenue and Feedlot Road.
“Local officials in Ellis County have been working to design and secure funding for improvements to this route for a number of years,” said Wasinger. “I am pleased to help Ellis County get the attention in Topeka that is warranted by the businesses in this Corridor, and I know that both Representative Rahjes and Rick Billinger, 40th District Senator (R – Goodland), share in my appreciation for this visit from officials of Governor Kelly’s Administration. This is a perfect example of how both political parties can work together for the common good.”
The group is also expected to view the North Vine Street project for which the City of Hays recently received a federal BUILD grant and hear about other economic development opportunities in Ellis County. While final details are still being confirmed, a full agenda for the visit will be released by the County no later than Wednesday, Feb. 20.
RENO COUNTY —Authorities at the Hutchinson Correctional Facility (HCF) confiscated a large amount of contraband including inmate-made weapons Tuesday during an unannounced search of HCF’s largest housing unit.
According to a media release, the search involving more than 1,000 general population inmates in HCF’s Central Unit was conducted by officers from HCF who were assisted by officers from Ellsworth Correctional Facility, Larned Correctional Mental Health Facility and the Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP).
The search yielded 46 weapons, numerous pills and packages of illicit drugs, drug paraphernalia, 10 cell phones and eight phone chargers.
“The introduction of these items into any facility threatens the safety and security of the facility itself, staff and inmates,” Corrections Secretary Roger Werholtz said. “We are very appreciative of the thoroughness and professionalism of the officers conducting the search.”
“These items are typical of what we find in a correctional facility, but the facility is absolutely safer when we can stem the flow of contraband.”
Inmates found in possession of contraband will receive disciplinary reports although not all items could be connected to a specific inmate.
While Tuesday’s search involved special security officers from other correctional facilities and KHP troopers, HCF regularly conducts searches, HCF Warden Dan Schnurr said.
The facility recently had to halt visitation privileges temporarily and restrict the movement of inmates in its Central Unit due to several inmate fights that broke out among two to three inmates in each incident.
“The facility was already in the process of organizing a large-scale search prior to the incidents,” Schnurr said. “However, the incidents did prompt us to move up the schedule.”
The search Tuesday also marked the first time that the Kansas Highway Patrol joined in on a search at HCF.
“This kind of collaboration helps all involved gain additional knowledge and demonstrates how we can work together to keep Kansas safer,” Schnurr said.
SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities continue their investigation into a Sunday hotel fire that sent one man to the hospital.
Fire crews on the scene of Sunday’s hotel fire -photo courtesy KWCH
As fire crews arrived to the Best Western Hotel in the 4700 Block of South Emporia in Wichita they found the man hanging from a third-story window and smoke coming from the room, according to Lt. Jose Ocadiz.
The man, who has not been identified, fell and was transported for treatment for injuries primarily due to the fall. He remains hospitalized. Ocadiz had no update on the man’s condition early Thursday. Authorities have not reported an arrest.
Crews and the hotel sprinkler system were able to contain the fire to the room of origin.
The cause of the fire is believed to have been intentionally set due to some tampering with the sprinkler system, according to Ocadiz.
Most of the $100,000 in damage at the hotel was from the sprinkler system. Damage to contents was estimated at $25,000.
This past week I added my testimony of support for a bill that was put forward in the House Education Committee requiring that financial literacy be added to the State’s educational curriculum. As a former legislator, I was always somewhat reluctant of proposed legislation that added some sort of new regulation and/or requirement and I understand why some could be skeptical of the mandate HB 2166 imposes. However, after nearly two years serving as the Kansas State Treasurer, I have seen how families in our communities face a host of difficulties, many of which are rooted in a common source… Money.
Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan once said, “The number one problem in today’s generation and economy is lack of financial literacy”. I have come to strongly agree with Greenspan’s statement. Educators who teach financial literacy witness the positive impacts of the knowledge they instill on their students and the financial skills they impart become a shield against many of the financial problems faced in our communities and our nation.
Imagine if every Kansas student who graduated was well-versed in interest rates. Would that knowledge make them a little more judicious when spending student loan money? Would it help them be a little more strategic in the homes or vehicles they purchase and from whom they make those purchases?
Imagine if every Kansas student was well informed of the practices of predatory lending. Would knowing and understanding these traps make them less likely to fall prey to predatory lenders?
Imagine if every Kansas student knew about credit scores. Would that knowledge help them make the kinds of behavioral choices that studies show could save them hundreds of thousands of dollars in the course of their lifetime?
Imagine if every Kansas student was aware of the benefits of a Learning Quest 529 education savings account. A generation who knows and understands the value of saving for the future and passes that knowledge on to their children perpetuates a culture of responsibility and increased opportunities. As Mothers and Fathers they will pass on the gift of planning ahead. By setting up 529 accounts for their children, they will help them alleviate massive student loan debt that stunts the professional and personal development of too many Americans.
Imagine if every Kansas student knew about compound interest and how to make their money work for them. Teaching our kids before graduation that investing as low as $20 a paycheck from high school graduation until retirement can build them several hundred thousand dollars in savings thanks to the help of compounding interest. We can take big steps towards addressing our society’s retirement savings problem when our teachers help create light bulb moments for students about how small investments over time return great dividends and create secure futures.
Imagine if every Kansas student knew the importance of creating a budget and balancing their household checkbook. More money smart households means Kansans who know how to live within their means and expect the same of their elected officials who are handling revenue and spending issues at the local, state and nation level.
This is our opportunity to get ahead of the curve. To give the next generation the proper tools that set them up for success. Everyone is going to face money problems throughout their lifetime, but there are so many money problems that can be avoided by first knowing the traps and the pitfalls. Mandating financial literacy before graduation is a gift not only to our kids, but also our state, and our nation.
While I certainly support HB 2166, I also stand ready to help advance other efforts to increase financial literacy in Kansas. Our children deserve every opportunity to succeed and taking steps to help them learn more about the financial sector will help on their path to success.
Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and Kansas Department of Transportation officials outlined plans Wednesday for putting a state highway program abandoned by former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback back on track.
Gov. Laura Kelly with Transportation Secretary Julie Lorenz at a news conference announcing plans to resume at set of unfinished highway projects. JIM MCLEAN / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
Years of lean budgets prompted annual raids of the state highway fund. With more than $2 billion siphoned off since 2011, it became known as the “bank of KDOT.”
“By reducing transfers from the state highway fund, we move closer to closing the bank of KDOT,” Kelly said at a news conference staged at the transportation agency.
Kelly said her plan to stop diverting highway dollars would pave the way for restarting T-WORKS. The 10-year transportation program was launched in 2010, but stalled a few years later when Brownback’s tax cuts tanked the state budget.
The new governor’s proposed budget reduces KDOT transfers by $160 million in the coming budget year with a goal of phasing them out entirely by 2023.
“To be clear, we still have a long way to go in order to get our transportation system where we want it to be,” Kelly said. “But this is an important incremental step.”
The immediate infusion of cash, said KDOT Secretary Julie Lorenz, would allow the agency to resume work on four of the delayed T-WORKS projects.
Work to expand a section of US-54 in Seward County and modernize a stretch of US-169 in Anderson County would start this fall. Work to modernize a portion of US-281 in Russell County and to expand a section of US-50 in Lyon County would begin in the spring of 2020.
Those projects are first in line, Lorenz said, because they are, “the only four we have ready to go immediately.”
Another 17 projects remain on the unfinished list.
The loss of funding made it impossible for the agency to complete all the preliminary work needed to get those shovel ready, Lorenz said.
“We need assurance that we’re going to continue to have stable, reliable funding so that we can continue to push forward to complete the designs and acquire the right-of-way for the remaining T-WORKS projects,” she said.
A special legislative task force on transportation recently issued its recommendations. At the top of the list was increasing funding for the “heavy maintenance” work that KDOT does to preserve roads and bridges.
The agency needs $500 million a year to keep up with the needs on the system, the secretary said. It currently has only $350 million, but Kelly is proposing an additional $50 million in her budget.
That’s enough, Lorenz said, to maintain another 200 miles of roadway.
Sen. Carolyn McGinn, the chair of the task force and the Kansas Senate’s budget writing committee, said the funding restoration proposed by the governor are the first steps in a long rebuilding process.
“Today is a new day,” said McGinn, a Wichita Republican. “I’m excited that we’re moving forward.”
In addition to the four major projects and the additional maintenance, the plan outlined Wednesday includes money to help cities maintain the state highways that pass through them.
That’s welcome news to Donald Roberts, the mayor of Edgerton, a Kansas City suburb that serves as a freight distribution hub for railroads and trucking companies.
“We’ve got to start somewhere,” Roberts said, emphasizing the need to get KDOT’s maintenance funding back to adequate levels.
“That’s a ‘pay me now’ or ‘pay me a lot more later’ situation,” he said.
Phillipsburg resident Cynthia A. Brashear passed away Wednesday, February 6, 2019 at the Hays Medical Center, Hays, KS at the age of 80.
She was born August 27, 1938 in Phillipsburg, KS the daughter of William D. and Nada (Townsend) Smith.
Cynthia was united in marriage to Truman Brashear on August 21, 1959 in Phillipsburg. To this union three girls were born: Lisa, Teresa and Gillian. She and Truman later divorced.
Cynthia worked in Arizona and Wichita as an engineering technical writer for the aeronautical industry for many years. Following her retirement she returned to Phillipsburg and worked at the Sawyer’s Ace Hardware.
Survivors include her three girls, Lisa Brashear of Chandler, AZ, Teresa Brashear of Phillipsburg and Gillian Brashear of Chatsworth, CA; a brother, William Smith of Georgetown, TX; two sisters, Jill Neese of Dodge City, KS and Sherry White of LaQuinta, CA; and four grandchildren.
Cremation was planned. Friends may sign the register book from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Thursday and Friday, February 21st and 22nd at the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, 1115 2nd Street, Phillipsburg, KS 67661.
In Lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the World Wildlife Fund c/o Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel.
City commissioners will vote Thursday night on the proposed bid awards for the 2019 Street Maintenance program.
The recommendations from city staff total $774,456.39, which would be funded out of Special Highway.
• Circle C Paving and Construction, LLC in the amount of $153,535.20 for Seal Coat
• Proseal Inc. in the amount of $84,466.84 for Asphalt Rejuvenator
• Vance Brothers, Inc. in the amount of $71,159.05 for Micro-Surfacing
• J Corp., Inc. in the amount of $100,566.30 for Curb and Brick Repair
• J Corp., Inc. in the amount of $189,229.00 for Ash Street Major Rehab
• J Corp., Inc. in the amount of $175,500.00 for concrete shoulders
Other agenda items include annexation of property at Highway 183 Bypass and West 33rd Street owned by Robert and Sondra Swift. The couple has plans for an RV park on the land.
Commissioners will also consider approving a 3.0% pay increase of the base salary for City Manager Toby Dougherty and will recognize employee promotions and new hires.
Chad Ruder, IT director, will review the layout and efficiencies of the city’s new website design.
