WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A judge will mostly leave it to a jury to decide whether the operator of a Wichita abortion facility had reasonable grounds to seek a protection-from-stalking order against an abortion protester.

U.S. District Judge John Broomes partially granted on Thursday the request from clinic operator Julie Burkhart to throw out some claims in the lawsuit filed by pro-life activist Mark Holick.

The dustup stems from pro-life protests in 2012 and 2013 near Burkhart’s home. She subsequently got a temporary protection-from-stalking order against him that was dismissed two years later.

Holick then filed a federal lawsuit alleging malicious prosecution and abuse of process.

Broomes dismissed the claim the petition seeking protection from stalking was an abuse of process, but left it to jurors to decide whether the facts constituted malicious prosecution.

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged sexual assault.

Just after 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, police responded to an assisted living facility in the 5800 block of North 8th Street in Wichita, according to officer Paul Cruz.

A 91-year-old woman told police she was sexually assaulted. Police have reported no arrest and there is no threat to the public at this time, according to Cruz.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Five more state attorneys general announced legal filings Thursday seeking to hold the company that makes OxyContin responsible for an opioid addiction crisis that has become the biggest cause of accidental deaths across the country and in many states.

The company, Connecticut-based Purdue Pharma, blasted the claims. “The states cannot link the conduct alleged to the harm described, and so they have invented stunningly overbroad legal theories, which if adopted by courts, will undermine the bedrock legal principle of causation,” Purdue said in a statement.

The new filings in Kansas, Iowa, Idaho, Maryland, West Virginia and Wisconsin mean 46 states have now taken legal action in recent years against Purdue. Michigan announced last week that it’s looking for law firms to help it sue the industry, too.

All the new filings but the one in Kansas also named Richard Sackler, a former company president and a member of the family that owns the Connecticut-based firm, as a defendant. Maryland named other members of the Sackler family in its administrative action.

Some states have also sued other drugmakers or distributors as the fallout from the crisis moves increasingly to courthouses.

“There’s far too much senseless death in West Virginia and many ruined lives,” that state’s Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said Thursday. “We cannot and will not tolerate companies that allegedly use false and misleading information to deceive medical personnel and patients.”

States’ suits are among the highest-profile claims in flood of litigation over the crisis. Opioids, including prescription painkillers and related drugs such as heroin and fentanyl, were involved in nearly 48,000 deaths in the U.S. in 2017 — more than AIDS killed at the peak of that epidemic and more than auto accidents kill annually. The death toll since 2000 is 391,000.

The states and about 2,000 local and tribal governments that have sued assert that Purdue and other companies downplayed the addiction dangers of the drugs and used sales representatives to encourage doctors to prescribe even more of them.

But the legal cases are complicated. Purdue points out that the majority of the recent deaths are linked to heroin or fentanyl — not prescription drugs. States say most users, though, start with prescription pills, whether they’re prescribed to them or diverted.

A judge in North Dakota last week dismissed all of that state’s claims against Purdue, perhaps the company’s biggest court win in a round of litigation. In a written ruling that the state says it will appeal, Judge James Hill questioned the idea of blaming a company that makes a legal product for the deaths. “Purdue cannot control how doctors prescribe its products and it certainly cannot control how individual patients use and respond to its products,” the judge wrote, “regardless of any warning or instruction Purdue may give.”

Mark Cheffo, a lawyer for Purdue, said he’s hoping other judges will reach similar conclusions as they delve into the cases.

All the cases filed by state governments except one are working their way through state courts. Alabama’s case is among about 1,500 in federal court and being overseen by one federal judge based in Cleveland. He has rejected arguments to dismiss the suits and has scheduled an initial trial in October for the claims of two Ohio counties.

The looming trial could put pressure on Purdue and other companies to settle the cases — something the judge has said he wants to see.

In March, Purdue and the Sackler family, which owns the company, settled with Oklahoma for $270 million. Purdue also settled with Kentucky in 2015 for $24 million. A handful of other companies have entered deals with states in the last few years, including drug distribution firms that have agreed to pay West Virginia a total of $84 million.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, one of the leaders of a multistate investigation of the opioid crisis, announced a lawsuit earlier this week against Purdue, saying the company was not working in good faith on a settlement. Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller also said lack of progress in talks was a factor in filing a lawsuit now. “There was a hope that the negotiations would yield a settlement for all the states,” he said. “And may still.”

Cheffo, the Purdue lawyer, disputed that in a phone interview Thursday. “While we recognize the complication of a resolution process involving so many different parties and interests and certainly cannot get into the details of them, we remain optimistic and believe that both sides are participating in good faith in an effort to try to reach some resolution that is in the best interests of the parties and the public health.”

A lawyer representing members of the Sackler family has said the family would also like to settle.

For some states, there’s a political element in deciding to join the litigation now.

For instance, Wisconsin didn’t sue earlier because Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel opted to join a multistate investigation instead. Schimel argued that it would be a faster way to hold them accountable. But Schimel was defeated in November by Democrat Josh Kaul, who campaigned on a platform that included filing opioid lawsuits.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President Donald Trump’s immigration plan (all times local):

3:20 p.m.

President Donald Trump says that if Democrats won’t adopt his merit-based immigration plan, he’ll get it passed after the election.

We are here on this beautiful spring day to unveil our plan to create a fair, modern & LAWFUL system of immigration for the U.S. If adopted, our plan will transform America’s immigration system into the pride of our Nation and the envy of the modern world. https://t.co/YqyTYgTByD

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 16, 2019

Trump on Thursday unveiled his proposal in a Rose Garden news conference with little hard-line rhetoric. He says he wants to recruit the “most brilliant” people to live in the U.S. through a system that rewards talent and brains.

Trump is seeking to put a softer facade on the signature issue from his first campaign as he eyes a 2020 reelection. He said Thursday it was time to “restore national unity.”

He suggested the plan could get passed after the 2020 election if necessary because the House could flip back to the GOP.

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3 p.m.

President Donald Trump says the immigration plan he’s proposing would prioritize “totally brilliant” immigrants.

Trump on Thursday laid out a merit-based plan that would give preferential treatment to high-skilled workers. He says right now the U.S. immigration laws “discriminate against genius” and “discriminate against brilliance” because most of the green cards are given to low-skilled people who would make low wages.

Under the plan, the country would award the same number of green cards as it now does. But far more would go to exceptional students, professionals and people with high-level and vocational degrees. Factors such as age, English language ability and employment offers would also be considered.

Far fewer green cards would be given to people with relatives already in the U.S. Fifty-seven percent would be awarded on merit as opposed to the current 12%.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — After years of setbacks and stalemates, President Donald Trump will lay out yet another immigration plan on Thursday as he tries to convince the American public and lawmakers that the nation’s legal immigration system should be overhauled.

The latest effort, spearheaded by Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, focuses on beefing up border security and rethinking the green card system so that it would favor people with high-level skills, degrees and job offers instead of relatives of those already in the country.

A shift to a more merit-based system prioritizing high-skilled workers would mark a dramatic departure from the nation’s largely family-based approach, which officials said gives roughly 66% of green cards to those with family ties and only 12% based on skills.

But the plan, which has yet to be embraced by Trump’s own party — let alone Democrats — faces an uphill battle in Congress, where efforts to overhaul the immigration system have gone nowhere for three decades amid deeply divided Republicans and Democrats. Prospects for an agreement seem especially bleak as the 2020 elections near, though the plan could give Trump and the GOP a proposal to rally behind, even if talks with Democrats go nowhere.

The plan does not address what to do about the millions of immigrants already living in the country illegally, including hundreds of thousands of young “Dreamers” brought to the U.S. as children — a top priority for Democrats. Nor does it reduce overall rates of immigration, as many conservative Republicans would like to see.

Trump will nonetheless deliver a Rose Garden speech Thursday throwing his weight behind the plan, which has thus far received mixed reviews from Republicans in the Senate.

In briefings Wednesday that attracted dozens of journalists, administration officials said the plan would create a points-based visa system, similar to those used by Canada and other countries.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to outline the plan before Trump’s announcement, said the U.S. would award the same number of green cards as it now does. But far more would go to exceptional students so they can remain in the country after graduation, professionals and people with high-level and vocational degrees. Factors such as age, English language ability and employment offers would also be taken into account.

Far fewer green cards would be given to people with relatives already in the U.S. and 57% versus the current 12% would be awarded based on merit. The diversity visa lottery, which offers green cards to citizens of countries with historically low rates of immigration to the U.S., would be eliminated. Officials insisted diversity would be addressed in other ways.

The officials offered fewer specifics on border security, which is expected to remain a key focus for Trump as he campaigns for reelection. Trump has been furiously railing against the spike in Central American migrant families trying to enter the country, and he forced a government shutdown in a failed effort to fulfill his 2016 promise to build a southern border wall.

As part of the plan, officials want to shore up ports of entry to ensure all vehicles and people are screened and to create a self-sustaining fund, paid for with increased fees, to modernize ports of entry.

The plan also calls for building border wall in targeted locations and continues to push for an overhaul to the U.S. asylum system, with the goal of processing fewer applications and removing people who don’t qualify faster.

While the officials insisted their effort was not a “political” plan, they nonetheless framed it as one they hoped Republicans would unite behind, making clear to voters what the party is “for.”

“I don’t think it’s designed to get Democratic support as much as it is to unify the Republican Party around border security, a negotiating position,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a close ally of the White House.

Indeed, the plan drew immediate criticism from Democrats as well as immigration activists, who remain deeply skeptical of Trump after past negotiation failures.

Democrats and some Republicans tried crafting a compromise with Trump last year that would have helped young Dreamer immigrants and added money for border security. But those talks collapsed over White House demands to curb legal immigration and a dramatic Senate showdown in which lawmakers rejected three rival proposals that aligned with the “four pillars” immigration plan Trump unveiled that year.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer criticized the White House for failing to engage in talks with Democrats over the latest proposal.

“Don’t come up with a plan that Stephen Miller rubber stamps and say, ‘Now, pass it.’ It’s not going to happen,” Schumer, D-N.Y., said, referring to Trump’s hard-line policy adviser.

Lisa Koop, director of legal services at the National Immigrant Justice Center, also criticized the various planks of the proposal, including its failure to address those brought to the U.S. illegally as children who are currently protected from deportation by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy, or DACA, which Trump has tried to end.

“A plan that forces families apart, limits access to asylum and other humanitarian relief, and doesn’t contemplate a path to citizenship for DACA recipients and other undocumented community members is clearly a political stunt intended to posture rather than problem-solve,” she said.

Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates for lower immigration rates, applauded a “very positive effort” on legal immigration, but said it was “undermined by the embrace of the current very high level of immigration.”

Republicans on the Hill, too, voiced skepticism, even as administration officials insisted the plan had been embraced by those who briefed on it. A PowerPoint presentation shared with reporters Wednesday referred to the plan as “The Republican Proposal,” even though many GOP members had yet to see it.

Graham, who rolled out his own proposal Wednesday to address the recent flood of migrants seeking asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border, said he had advised Trump to try to cut a new deal with Democrats and believed Trump was open to that.

“I am urging the president to lead us to a solution,” he said.

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PAWNEE COUNTY – A Pawnee County jury has found rial was conducted Tuesday and Wednesday in the Pawnee County District Court regarding a felony criminal complaint against Lyle W. Miller, 39 of Larned.

During this week’s trial, the jury heard testimony that on July 2, 2018, the Edwards County Sheriff’s Department received a report that a sixteen-foot bass boat was missing from a shed in rural Edwards County, according to a media release from the Pawnee County Attorney.

The owner testified he suspected Miller as possibly involved in the theft because he had recently worked for the owner and was responsible for locking up the shed the last time they’d been out there.

Additional testimony was presented that on the evening of July 27, 2018, the owner’s nephew had been at Miller’s home in Larned, saw the boat in Miller’s Garage and that Miller asked him to forget what he saw.

The nephew further testified that he then called the owner’s stepson and Miller’s younger brother and asked what they thought he should do. Neither individual wanted to get involved. Both individuals testified confirming the telephone conversations. The next morning, the nephew called the owner’s wife and they decided he should just go retrieve the boat because he was friends with Miller. The nephew’s nine-year-old son testified he went with his dad that morning to “Lyle’s house to get Uncle Bill’s Boat” and that his dad told him to call 911 if he saw any trouble.

Law enforcement was later called when the family discovered the boat was damaged and all of the identifying marks had been ground off.

Miller took the stand in his own defense and testified the nephew was never in his house on the night of July 27 or the morning of July 28 and that while he knew the boat was missing it was never at his house.

The jury of eight women and four men deliberated for approximately 35 minutes before returning a guilty verdict of Felony Theft of Property worth at least $1,500, but less than $24,999.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 20, 2019 at 2 p.m.. The defendant remains free on bond. Depending on his criminal history, Miller’s faces between 5 and 17 months in the custody of the Department of Corrections.

SEDGWICK COUNTY — The two suspects being held in connection with the death of a man whose body police found in a stolen RV Monday will make their firs court appearance Thursday afternoon, according to  the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s office.

Just before 3:30p.m. Monday, sheriff’s deputies responded to report of an auto theft in progress at Englewood and MacArthur involving a stolen trailer and vehicle, according to Wichita Police Lt. Jeff Gilmore.

The investigation led authorities to a residence in the 1300 Block of South Greenwood where officers located a stolen truck and a pull-behind RV in the driveway of the home. Suspects later identified as 25-year-old Royce Thomas and 24-year-old Micaela Spencer both of Wichita were inside the truck and arrested without incident, according to Gilmore.

While investigating the stolen vehicles, officers located 50-year-old William “Billy” Callison inside the RV with multiple stab wounds. Callison who had been reported missing over the weekend was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police booked Thomas on requested charges of first-degree murder and possession of stolen property and Spencer on requested charges of first-degree murder, possession of stolen property and outstanding warrants, according to Gilmore.