SEDGWICK COUNTY —Crime Stoppers of Wichita – Sedgwick County announced a campaign Thursday aimed at assisting law enforcement with the arrests of wanted persons with felony warrants in Sedgwick County, according to officer Kevin Wheeler.

The campaign called “Flip-A-Felon” will target specific known individuals who have warrants for
violent crimes and/or felony weapons warrants. This campaign is in collaboration with the
Wichita Police Department, Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office, and the Kansas Department of Corrections. Each agency has provided Crime Stoppers with a list of some of their most wanted
persons featured in this campaign.

“Crime Stoppers always looks for ways to partner with law enforcement to help solve crime and to help locate wanted individuals,” said Crime Stoppers Advisory Committee Chair Stacey
Kluge. “These campaigns have proved to be successful in the past, and we will assist in the best ways possible to help make our community safer.”

During the month-long campaign, Crime Stoppers will assist law enforcement in locating and arresting the wanted persons by providing anonymous tips that are sent to the program.

If they are arrested based off a tip through Crime Stoppers, the tipster is eligible for a cash reward starting at $500 and up to $2,500.
Tipsters should submit tips in one of three ways:  Call the Crime Stoppers hotline at 316-267-2111,  Submit a tip by downloading the FREE P3 app; or Submit a tip online at www.wichitasedgwickcountycrimestoppers.com

MONTGOMERY COUNTY— One person died in an accident just before 12:30p.m. Thursday in Montgomery County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2001 International Straight Truck driven by Taylor Lee Edwards, 20, Independence, was eastbound on U.S. 160 two miles east of U.S. 75.

The truck’s tire blew out. The truck traveled into the west bound lane, into the ditch, rolled multiple times and the occupants were ejected.

Edwards was pronounced dead at the scene. EMS transported a passenger Marty Ray Brown, 52, Independence, to Freeman Hospital. They were not wearing seat belts, according to the KHP.

By NOMIN UJIYEDIIN

The federal Bureau of Prisons will provide opioid addiction treatment for a prisoner at the Leavenworth penitentiary, according to a settlement reached Wednesday.

With the help of the medication, Crews had not used drugs for 15 months prior to entering Leavenworth.

An ACLU press release said Crews and the Bureau of Prisons reached a settlement agreement in which Crews would start getting buprenorphine on Wednesday evening.

“When he was deprived of medication for the last week, until we were able to reach this agreement with the Bureau of Prisons, he’d been suffering tremendously,” said Lauren Bonds, legal director of the ACLU of Kansas. “He’s dealt with withdrawal from the medication he was receiving, so it’s very important for our client’s health.”

The ACLU had argued that denying inmates access to buprenorphine treatment is a violation of the 8th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which forbids cruel and unusual punishment. The group also contended a denial ran afoul of the Rehabilitation Act, which bans federal programs from discriminating against people with disabilities.

The settlement does not address treatment for other inmates in the federal system. The ACLU said in the release that it’ll pursue lawsuits in the future to get other prisoners access to opioid treatment.

Bonds said in a phone interview that ultimately, the organization will push for a change in the Bureau of Prisons’ policy,

“Then we wouldn’t have to deal with this on such an ad hoc, case-by-case basis,” she said. “It would just ensure everyone who needs this medication is just getting it.”

Bureau of Prisons officials didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.

The suit alleged that the agency denied Crews access to buprenorphine as part of a policy to only give inmates the medication while they are detoxing and to wean them off the medication after several days.

That lawsuit said Crews is recovering from a decade-long addiction to opioids following a car accident and had been taking buprenorphine throughout his recovery.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ latest data from 2004, about half of the people incarcerated in federal prisons had symptoms of substance abuse or dependency.

Nomin Ujiyediin reports on criminal justice and social welfare for the Kansas News Service.  Follow her on Twitter @NominUJ or email nomin (at) kcur (dot) org.

DAWSON COUNTY, Neb. — Law enforcement authorities are investigating four suspects after a traffic stop on Wednesday.

At approximately 7:45 a.m., a trooper with the Nebraska State Patrol observed a Hyundai Sonata traveling eastbound at 98 miles per hour on Interstate 80 near North Platte, according to a media release.

The trooper performed a traffic stop and detected the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle.

Troopers searched the vehicle and located 3 pounds of marijuana, 39 THC vape cartridges, 59 grams of THC edibles, 2000 mg of THC syrup, and drug paraphernalia.

The driver, Eric Robinson, 19, and passengers, Anthony Davis, 22, and Amere Thomas, 21, all of New York state, were arrested for possession of marijuana – more than one pound, possession with intent to deliver, possession of drug paraphernalia, and no drug tax stamp. All three were lodged in Lincoln County Jail.

Later Wednesday, at approximately 7:30 p.m., a trooper observed a Ford Transit fail to signal a turn at the I-80 exit at mile marker 231 near Darr. During the traffic stop, a K9 from the Dawson County Sheriff’s Office detected the odor of a controlled substance coming from inside the van.

A search of the van revealed 198 pounds of marijuana, 800 dosage units of THC edibles, 79 THC vape cartridges, 18 ounces of psilocybin mushrooms, 2 vials of anabolic steroids, 1 vial of human growth hormone, and a loaded handgun.

The driver, Brent Lorenz, 50, of Fargo, North Dakota, was arrested for numerous drug charges, including possession of marijuana – more than one pound, possession of controlled substances, possession with intent to deliver, possession of a firearm during a felony drug violation, and no drug tax stamp. Lorenz was lodged in Dawson County Jail.