WICHITA (AP) — Wichita State University’s aviation research program has landed a $33 million contract for the Army’s high-speed missile program.
The Wichita Eagle reports that the three-year contract calls for the National Institute for Aviation Research to make the missiles lighter and cheaper while improving performance.
Wichita State interim president Andy Tompkins said in a news release Tuesday that the contract will give students, both undergraduates and graduates, “an advantage no other university in the country can match.”
The university previously was awarded a three-year, $23.5 million Air Force contract develop technology for automated, in-service inspection of military aircraft.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) – both members of Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee – introduced the Paul Benne Specially Adaptive Housing Improvement Act of 2019 to expand Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) eligibility for seriously injured or ill veterans. This legislation is named after Spring Hill, Kan. native, Army Colonel (Ret.) Paul Benne, MD, MPH.
U.S. Representatives Gus Bilirakis (FL-12), David Roe (TN-01) and Mike Levin (CA-49) introduced companion legislation, the Ryan Kules Specially Adaptive Housing Improvement Act of 2019, in the U.S. House of Representatives.
In 2013, Col. Benne developed a medical condition that led to his retirement from the U.S. Army after 23 years of service. Col. Benne was rated 100 percent disabled at the time of his retirement. In 2016, Col. Benne was fitted by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for a wheelchair and applied for an SAH grant, as neither the Benne’s home nor vehicle could accommodate his new wheelchair. After more than a year of navigating the VA, Col. Benne and his wife, Christine, contacted Sen. Moran’s office for assistance. Within three months of Sen. Moran’s office working with Col. Benne to engage the VA, Col. Benne was given a favorable decision on his adaptive housing claim and provided SAH grants.
This legislation – developed to prevent future difficulties similar to those Col. Benne faced while trying to access an SAH grant – would give seriously ill veterans priority consideration for SAH grants, with the definition of “seriously ill” to be determined by the secretary of the VA; would double the maximum number of awarded grants from 3 to 6 per veteran; and would increase the number of authorized applications per Fiscal Year from 30 to 120.
“This legislation will serve veterans who may need similar assistance to that received by Colonel Benne by expanding SAH eligibility qualifications for seriously ill or injured veterans,” said Sen. Moran. “This modernized and expanded grant program will allow veterans to utilize vital SAH grants in a way that best fit their needs – providing greater support and improving the quality of life for many of our nation’s veterans. Thank you to Colonel Benne and his wife, Christine, for their decades of selfless service to our nation and for their advocacy, resiliency and willingness to share their story, which will undoubtedly help many veterans in the future.”
“Many veterans carry wounds from their service that make everyday life more challenging,” said Sen. Sinema. “That is why our bill is so important; it breaks down barriers and helps veterans access the specially adaptive housing benefits they’ve earned.”
“Sen. Moran is good about putting veterans first,” said Army Colonel (Ret.) Benne, MD, MPH. “This SAH grant has given me the ability to stay at home and my family the ability to better care for me. As my disease continues to change, the ability to change my surroundings will be met with this legislation.”
“We are pleased with the introduction of S. 2022,” said Paralyzed Veterans of America Executive Director Carl Blake. “This legislation is very important to PVA members because it will provide critical improvements to the Specially Adaptive Housing benefits that help them live healthy, productive lives in homes that meet there needs in their communities. We look forward to its swift passage.”
“S. 2022 will improve the quality of life for many wounded warriors and their families by helping ensure their homes fit their abilities,” said Wounded Warrior Project CEO Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Mike Linnington. “We are grateful to Sen. Jerry Moran for sponsoring this bill and to Sen. Kyrsten Sinema for co-sponsoring, and we thank them both for their leadership and great fidelity to our nation’s wounded warriors.”
“Wounded warriors face unique challenges in recovering from their injuries,” said Wounded Warrior Project Combat Stress Recovery Program Director Former U.S. Army Capt. Ryan Kules. “The Specially Adapted Housing benefit has helped me tremendously, and renewing this benefit every 10 years will help ensure wounded veterans’ homes can be adapted as our needs change throughout our lives.”
Col. Benne, a Spring Hill, Kan. native and University of Kansas School of Pharmacy graduate, served on both Fort Riley and Fort Leavenworth during his 23 years of service in the United States Army, most recently as chief of the Department of Public Health at Irwin Army Medical Hospital on Fort Riley. He and his wife, Christine, reside in Manhattan, Kan.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Kansas Highway Patrol, the Ford County Sheriff’s Office, the Hays Police Department and the Ellis County Sheriff’s Office coordinated efforts to arrest a Hays man for suspected distribution of methamphetamine.
On Sunday, July 7, at approximately 1 a.m., Fernando Amezquita, 43, Hays, was arrested along U.S. Highway 56, west of Dodge City, after authorities reported finding approximately 6 pounds of methamphetamine in his vehicle.
Amezquita was arrested for distribution of methamphetamine, and three counts of child endangerment, since his three young children were passengers in the vehicle at the time of his arrest. He was then booked into the Ford County Jail. Bond was set at $150,000.
This operation represented a coordinated law enforcement effort to combat drug violence and reduce the accessibility of illegal drugs impacting western Kansas.
— HPD
HUTCHINSON — The main suspect involved in the June 20 shooting that led to a six-hour standoff is out of the hospital and has been formally charged by the state.
Brendan Jones is charged with aggravated battery, criminal possession of a firearm and felony interference with law enforcement.
Also charged in the case is 18-year-old Tyson Samuels. He is also charged with aggravated battery for the wounding of Jacob Foley.
Samuels and Jones are accused of being at a home in the 300 block of West Eighth and planning to fight with the victim. During the course of that fight, a handgun was pulled from a fanny pack, and Jones allegedly fired several shots. Foley was struck by a bullet in his left thigh.
Later in the morning, police got word that Jones was at a home in the 300 block of West 16th, where the standoff occurred. Samuels eventually surrendered, but Jones got to the door and allegedly began shooting at officers. Ten officers returned fire, striking Jones.
Jones was taken to a Wichita hospital for treatment of his wounds. He is now back in Reno County on a bond of $750,000. More charges could be coming after the KBI completes its review of the shooting.
DENVER (AP) — Wildlife officials have confirmed at least one gray wolf from Wyoming was spotted in northern Colorado.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife said Wednesday the animal reported near Walden in Jackson County was a male from the Snake River wolf pack.
It was wearing a radio collar and was last recorded Feb. 12 around South Pass in west-central Wyoming.
Parks and Wildlife spokeswoman Rebecca Ferrell says biologists were unable to confirm whether a second animal reported in Grand County was also a gray wolf.
Gray wolves were native to Colorado but were hunted to near extinction by the 1940s. The most recent previous confirmed wolf sightings in the state were also near Walden, in 2015.
About 6,000 of the animals live in the Northern Rockies, Pacific Northwest and Western Great Lakes.
A chase that began near Hays led to the arrest of two individuals and the recovery of a stolen vehicle following a high-speed pursuit that ended in Ness County.
At 1:57 p.m. Tuesday, a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper attempted to pull over 2009 Chevy Impala on Interstate 70 near the Highway 183 Alternate exit, according to Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper Tod Hileman.
The Impala was clocked at 99 mph, and when the trooper ran a check on the license plate, it was found to have been stolen.
Initially, the driver of the Impala, Ian M. Sinnett, 39, Salina, stopped the vehicle on U.S. 183 Alternate. However, neither Sinnett nor a passenger in the vehicle, Valerie Jo Waggoner, 37, Salina, would comply with officer commands, and Sinnett again started driving south.
Waggoner
They traveled on U.S. 183 to County Line Road then began turning west and south on various county roads while being pursued until around 2:30 p.m. when the vehicle came to a stop at the intersection of GG Road and Kansas Highway 4, Hileman said.
After stopping, the suspects complied with officers and were taken into custody.
Sinnett was found to have two active warrants from Reno County and has a criminal history that includes theft and burglary dating to 2014.
In 2017, he was convicted of felony theft stemming from two separate felony cases that were charged against him after he tried to sell automotive parts that he had stolen to the brother of the victim.
He was released on parol on March 25, according to Kansas Department of Corrections records.
Along with the 2017 convictions, Sinnett was also found guilty of falsely reporting a crime in 2015 and theft in 2014.
The police pursuit is expected to lead to Sinnett being charged with allegedly fleeing and attempting to elude law enforcement, along with several traffic and speeding violations, according to Hileman.
“Two subjects, one male and one female that I met earlier in the day on the northeast side of Topeka, were staying at the Days Inn in Lawrence,” the report said.
“While I was in the bathroom, the female subject yelled that they were taking my car to go to McDonald’s. Before I was able to tell them no, they grabbed my keys from a table in the room and left with my car and did not return.”
The victim believed at the time they might be heading to Portland, Ore.
“The car was a gift from my father who passed away a little over two years ago,” the report said. “It was his pride and joy. I’m a disabled man with congestive heart failure.”
DALLAS — Dancers from Jackie Creamer’s The Dance Studio won numerous awards at the Legacy Dance Championships this week in Dallas.
Earning awards for their performances were:
First Overall Mini Duo, Hit The Road Jack: Anaya Creamer, Kenley Callahan
First Overall Junior Duo, Fabulous: Ruby Fields, Izabel Schmidt
First Overall Teen Duo, Two: Lauren Wagner, Adelyn Wagner
First Overall Senior Duo, Lay Me Down: Jenna Romme, Jillian Lowe
First Overall Mini Small Group, Expensive: Anaya Creamer, Kenley Callahan, Alexa Seib, Allie Gier, Jenny Molstad, Addison Karlin
First Overall Petite Small Group, Girls Will Be Girls: Anaya Creamer, Kenley Callahan, Delia Dixon, Alexa Seib, Arianna Ayarza
First Overall Junior Small Group, Awoo: Molly Buckles, Elizabeth Cunningham, Ruby Fields, Sienna Lummus, Lillian McGaughey, Annika Nichols, Leah Reed, Izabel Schmidt, Jaci Schmidt
First Overall Senior Small Group, Byegone: Avery Jones, Jillian Lowe, Jenna Romme, Ella Voth, Lauren Wagner, Kassidi Yost, Samantha Zimmerman
What Are You Looking At
First Overall Junior Large Group, Heavy In My Arms: Jenna Brull, Molly Buckles, Elizabeth Cunningham, Ruby Fields, Briley Haynes, Makayla Koerner, Katie Linenberger, Sienna Lummus, Lillian McGaughey, Mykayla Romme, Izabel Schmidt, Jaci Schmidt, Kyla Schmidt, Aliya Seib, Adelyn Wagner, Nevaeh Weigel
First Overall Teen Line, Game Of Survival: Hannah Durham, Ruby Fields, Avery Jones, Makayla Koerner, Katie Linenberger, Jillian Lowe, Sienna Lummus, Lillian McGaughey, Jenna Romme, Mykayla Romme, Izabel Schmidt, Jaci Schmidt, Kyla Schmidt, Adelyn Wagner, Lauren Wagner, Nevaeh Weigel, Kassidi Yost, Shyanne Yost
First Overall Teen Production, What Are You Looking At: All Company Members
These dances received the National Championship in the Showdown of the Legends.
• Mini Small Group, Expensive, National Champions
• Petite Small Group, Girls Will Be Girls, National Champions
• Junior Small Group, Awoo, National Champions
• Teen-Senior Line, Game of Survival, 1st Runner-Up
Jillian Lowe was named Miss Senior Legacy, and Adelyn Wagner was named Miss Junior Legacy.
The studio also was the Legacy Award for highest-scoring studio in both the 12 & younger and 13 & older categories.
In the Top Ten, The Dance Studio received 11 first overall, 10 second overall, four third overall, four fourth overall, two fifth overall, one sixth overall, two seventh overall, one eighth overall, one ninth overall, and one tenth overall, totaling 37 dances placing in the Top Ten in their category.
— Submitted / photos courtesy Jackie Creamer’s Dance Studio except where noted
Game of Survival / photo courtesy Jenne RommeAwoo / photo courtesy Christina SchmidtExpensive
IRVING, Texas (AP) – Oklahoma is the favorite to win another Big 12 football title, according to the conference’s preseason media poll released Wednesday.
The Sooners have won the league the last four years and 12 Big 12 championships overall. Oklahoma also made the College Football Playoff three of the past four seasons.
Texas was picked second by media covering the league. The top two teams will meet in the conference championship game on Dec. 7. The Longhorns lost to the Sooners in the title matchup in 2018.
Iowa State, TCU and Oklahoma State round out the top five picks.
The Big 12 will have four new head coaches in 2019 with Les Miles at Kansas, Chris Klieman at Kansas State, Matt Wells at Texas Tech and Neal Brown at West Virginia.
2019 outside agency funding and 2020 requests / click to expand
By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays Post
Outside agencies that have traditionally received funding from Ellis County are feeling the county’s budget crunch this year in the form of cuts.
Although the county has not approved its final budget, commissioners recommended $124,000 in cuts for the 16 agencies that requested funds for the 2020 fiscal year.
Some of the agencies said they would attempt to raise more private funds. Others suggested they might have to cut staff or programming.
Hays Arts Council
Proposed county funding for outside agencies for 2020 with cuts
The Hays Arts Council requested $3,385, and its funding, along with the funding for the Ellis Jr. Free Fair, was cut entirely.
Brenda Meder, HAC director, said the agency’s funding from the county has been steadily decreasing over the last several years.
She said the agency has planned to make a push for more memberships in attempts to make up for the county funding cut. The HAC will also look at its reserve funds or adding a fundraiser, she said.
Meder said she was disappointed to see the funding cut completely.
“There is something to be said in being validated as a community entity that is truly there to serve the broadest needs of the community in regards to quality of life,” Meder said.
DSNWK
Two DSNWK clients weave as a part of the Collaborative Arts Project.
Developmental Services of Northwest Kansas had its funding reduced from $240,000 to $215,000. It also manages the community’s general public transportation service, ACCESS, which was cut from $60,000 to $50,000.
Because ACCESS funds are matched, the service will lose another $23,000 in matching funds.
Jerry Michaud, DSNWK president/CEO, said the agency is already stressed trying to make up the difference between the actual cost of services for community members with developmental disabilities and state reimbursement rates.
“We can’t go to the state and say we’ve lost $57,000 and can you help fill that gap,” Michaud said. “It is not the way it works. We have to figure out how do we stretch something that is already stretched. It’s a challenge.”
The agency is still required to serve the same number of people and provide the same level of services, but with less money.
Michaud said DSNWK will strive to not allow the cuts to affect staff or services.
“What we have is what we need, and [we] need more,” he said. “Potentially for crisis types of needs, we may look at donations as a way to supplement, but that’s not a long-term solution. Generally donors, I can’t speak for all, donors are not interested in paying for your light bill. They are not interested in paying for those types of things.”
Michaud mentioned in his presentation to commissioners that the agency has struggled to recruit and retain care professionals because of low wages and a shortage of workers in the labor pool. He said the county cuts will not improve the agency’s staffing challenges.
High Plains Mental Health
High Plains Mental Health received the second largest cut in terms of dollars. It received $281,646 in 2019 and will receive $260,000 in 2020 if the budget passes with the commissioners’ current recommendations.
The county is required to fund HPMH per an interlocal agreement; however, Director Walt Hill said the agreement does not specify the amount.
The county mental health agency recommends a dollar amount annually based on a formula that is in part based on the counties residents’ use of the High Plains’ services.
Hill said although the cut is significant, county funding from all of the counties the mental health agency only accounts for about 8 percent of the agency’s budget.
“One of the things we are headed to is focusing on individuals paying their share of the cost of services — making sure we focus on people paying their bills as they go,” he said. “Anymore as you go to the doctor’s office, you are asked to pay for the service for the day, and I think we may have to move more and more in that direction.”
About half of the clients HPMH sees have family incomes of less than $25,000 per year. HPMH offers a sliding-fee scale and allows clients to extend payments, so Hill said payment should not be a barrier to receiving services.
“Our budget won’t happen until December, so we will know what counties will do and then we work around what resources we have in terms of if we can give raises to staff, in terms of what we can afford in capital outlay next year,” Hill said.
Conservation District
The Ellis County Conservation District was so concerned about the effects of its cut of more than $17,000, it went back to the county commission to ask some of the funding be restored.
Sandra Scott, district manager, said the county cut would mean the district would have to eliminate a decades-long cost-sharing program that supports terracing and soil conservation efforts at local farms. The county money pays for an average of six projects per year, depending on the size of the projects.
The commissioners told district officials Monday night it would not reinstate any of the funding.
Humane Society
Humane Society of the High Plains shelter manager Betty Hansen said the Humane society was expecting the cut. It reduced its request from $4,500 to $3,000, and the commissioners recommended $2,600.
The agency will attempt another fundraiser to try to make up the difference in funding. They are planning an event with Defiance Brewing Co. in September.
“We work with what we are given is the way we look at it,” Hansen said.
The community has been responsive to the funding need. Several people have dropped donations at the shelter in a response to the news of the county cut, Hansen said.
Hansen said she was concerned about the long-term effects of funding cuts. The other alternative would be to charge for strays that are surrendered from the county.
The shelter is using the county money to pay for the care of strays. Shelter officials don’t want to charge people who surrender those animals because workers are concerned people will stop bringing in the strays, and the animals will be left to die or run wild.
“It is not that you have to pay,” Hansen said. “It is the animal needs help, and we are going to do it one way or the other. We will figure it out. If someone is kind enough to pick up puppies out of a ditch and bring them to us, we are going to take care of them.”
Although the Humane Society’s donors have been generous, Hansen said there is a limit to the amount of money any agency can raise, and all the nonprofits that requested funds from the county are being affected in the same way.
NWKP&DC
The Northwest Kansas Planning and Development Commission wrote the grant that secured $1 million in funding for a new pool in Ellis, but its funding was cut from $38,877 to $22,500.
Randall Hrabe, development commission director, said Ellis County will likely not be the only county that cuts the development commission’s funding for 2020.
He said the agency offers about $20 million in business loans across northwest Kansas as well as oversees low-income housing projects across the the region. Two homes are being prepared for sale in Hays through a development commission project.
“I would like to see everyone support it,” Hrabe said. “If Ellis County has to cut $2 million from its budget, somebody’s got to get cut.”
Grow Hays
Grow Hays did not receive any funds from the Ellis County last year. However, it requested $50,000 for 2020. Director Doug Williams told the commission, the economic development organization would no longer be able to operate after the 2019 fiscal year if it was not at least partially funded by local municipalities.
All economic development organizations in the state are at least partially funded by local governments with many of them funded 100 percent with taxpayer money.
Grow Hays requested $50,000 from the county, but the commissioners cut that to $27,500. The agency has also requested $100,000 from the city of Hays, $4,000 from the city of Ellis and $1,000 from the city of Victoria.
Williams said the agency’s budget will hinge on what the city of Hays comes back with in the next couple of weeks. He noted the city of Hays and Ellis County both provided more than $100,000 each to the the organization in the past. Those ties were temporarily cut during a recent reorganization. The organization, in the interim, has relied on reserves and private funding.
Williams said that model is not sustainable.
Williams said he thought Grow Hays is not only important to the economic health of Ellis County, but all of northwest Kansas.
“We face a lot of challenges out here in terms of population loss and trying to maintain the businesses we have and attract others. The funding of our organization to do those type of things is critically important,” he said.
Ellis County Historical Society
Area in one of the Ellis County Historical Society Buildings where plaster collapsed June 1.
Lee Dobratz, director of the Ellis County Historical Society, said she did not want to comment for this story.
However, she said during her presentation to the county commission, the historical society would have to cut a staff member if its funding was cut.
Dobratz raised concerns about the historical society’s facilities. Part of the historical society’s collection had to be temporarily moved recently when a section of plaster fell from a wall due to water damage.
She said the organization is working on a strategic plan, which could include a new building. The agency also hopes to begin fundraising for an endowment, Dobratz told the commissioners.
Epstein / Palm Beach County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Department
By DÁNICA COTO Associated Press
CHARLOTTE AMALIE, U.S. Virgin Islands — Ask about Jeffrey Epstein on St. Thomas and rooms go quiet. Some people leave. Those who share stories speak in barely audible tones.
The 66-year-old billionaire bought Little St. James Island off this U.S. Caribbean territory more than two decades ago and began to transform it — clearing the native vegetation, ringing the property with towering palm trees and planting two massive U.S. flags on either end. When guides took scuba divers to spots near the island, security guards would walk to the water’s edge.
It was off-putting to residents of St. Thomas — a lush tropical island east of Puerto Rico with winding roads through mountains dotted with dainty Danish colonial-era homes. Then, when Epstein pleaded guilty in a 2008 to soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution, his need for privacy began to appear more sinister.
“Everybody called it ‘Pedophile Island,’ ” said Kevin Goodrich, who is from St. Thomas and operates boat charters. “It’s our dark corner.”
Many people who worked for Epstein told The Associated Press this week that they had signed long non-disclosure agreements, and refused to talk. One former employee who declined to be identified said Epstein once had five boats, including a large ferry in which he transported up to 200 workers from St. Thomas to his island every day for construction work.
The man said he saw a handful of young women when he was on Epstein’s property but he believed they were older than 18.
“When he was there, it was keep to yourself and do your thing,” the man recalled, adding that Epstein paid well and would give away older machinery and surplus including lumber to his employees.
Epstein built a stone mansion with cream-colored walls and a bright turquoise roof surrounded by several other structures including the maids’ quarters and a massive, square-shaped white building on one end of the island. Workers told each other it was a music room fitted with a grand piano and acoustic walls. Its gold dome flew off during the deadly 2017 hurricane season. Locals recalled seeing Epstein’s black helicopter flying back and forth from the tiny international airport in St. Thomas to his helipad on Little St. James Island, a roughly 75-acre retreat a little over a mile southeast of St. Thomas.
Government documents and ledgers show that Little St. James Island was once known as Mingo Cay. In April 1998, a company called L.S.J. LLC bought it for $7.95 million. Additional documents showed that Epstein is the sole member of L.S.J., with his signature reminiscent of an infinity loop.
Epstein later bought neighboring Great St. James Island, which once was popular with locals and tourists for its main attraction, Christmas Cove, a place where you could hang out and order pizza and have it delivered via boat.
“He wasn’t well received,” recalled Spencer Consolvo, a St. Thomas native who runs a tourist shop near a large marina. “People think he’s too rich to be policed properly.”
According to public records obtained by the AP, the island was once worth $3 million and owned by a woman who died in a chalet in Switzerland. The island had been divided into parcels and given to three people and was later sold to Epstein.
Federal authorities consider the smaller of the two islands to be Epstein’s primary residence in the United States, a place where at least one alleged victim said in a court affidavit that she participated in an orgy, as well as had sex with Epstein and other people. She said she saw former U.S. President Bill Clinton on the island, but that she never saw him having sex with anyone. A Clinton spokesman issued a statement saying he never visited there.
A day after he pleaded not guilty in a New York courtroom to charges of sexually abusing dozens of underage girls, there was scant movement on the Caribbean island. Hurricane shutters covered the windows, locals hadn’t seen any lights at night and a lone worker drove a bright blue golf cart around the property.
At a nearby office that locals say Epstein owns in a seaside strip mall, a man in a T-shirt and sunglasses on his head opened the door a crack, shook his head vehemently when asked about Epstein and locked the door. The firm, Southern Trust Company Inc., hired Cecile de Jongh, wife of former Gov. John de Jongh, as its office manager, according to records with the U.S. Virgin Islands Economic Development Authority.
Meanwhile, Epstein’s arrest also prompted the U.S. Virgin Islands representative in Congress, Stacey Plaskett, to announce she would give the money Epstein had donated to her campaigns to charitable groups.
Now that Epstein has been arrested a second time, locals say tourists are increasingly asking about his islands when they visit St. Thomas. A woman who did not want to be identified for fear of losing her job running a charter company said she was elated when Epstein got arrested but is now vexed at tourists’ curiosity, saying she reluctantly shares whispered details of his case to prying adults if children are around.
Some of that fascination aggravates Vernon Morgan, a taxi driver and St. Thomas native.
“It brought some kind of notoriety to the Virgin Islands,” he said. “We would much rather that the Virgin Islands be seen in a different light.”
