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Kansas man jailed for fatal Easter Sunday stabbing

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal stabbing and have suspect in custody.

Thurman -photo Sedgwick County

Just after 3a.m. Sunday police responded to report of the stabbing in the 3400 Block East Munger in Wichita, according to Captain Brent Allred

Upon arrival, police located 62-year-old Albert Thomas of Wichita with multiple stab wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Allred.

Investigators learned that Thomas and suspect 53-year-old Keith Thurman lived at this residence with two others including a 57-year old woman and a 50-year-old woman.

They were at home cooking for Easter Sunday when Thomas and Thurman got into an argument that turned into a physical altercation outside the residence. Thurman stabbed Thomas multiple times, according to Allred. The 57-year-old woman was also stabbed in the arm and treated at a local hospital, according to Allred.

They arrested Thurman on requested charges of second-degree murder.

Police are still working to determine what led to the altercation. They expect to present the case to the district attorney later this week, according to Allred.

Dighton man injured in southeast Saline Co. accident

A Dighton, Kan., man was injured in a one-vehicle accident on Kansas Highway 4 (K-4) in Saline County Saturday afternoon.

Alan Randecker, 67, was riding a 2003 Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail motorcycle northbound on K-4 southeast of Gypsum when he failed to negotiate the curve near Tinkler Road, Saline County Sheriff Roger Soldan said. The motorcycle left the road and Randecker was ejected, Soldan said.

Randecker complained of side and back pain and was transported to Salina Regional Health Center with non-life-threatening injuries, Soldan said.

Update: 2 dead after vulture struck driver in head before crash

BARBER COUNTY —Two people died in an accident just after 3p.m. Saturday in Barber County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2015 Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by Brandon Husband, 42, Fowler, was southbound East on River Road thirteen miles northwest of Medicine Lodge.

A vulture came out of the north ditch and struck the driver in the head. The vehicle traveled off the road into the north ditch, struck a barbwire fence and over turned.

Husband was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Larison Funeral Home. A passenger Jennifer Husband, 43, Fowler, was transported to Wesley Medical Center where she died. They were not wearing helmets, according to the KHP.

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BARBER COUNTY — The Kansas Highway Patrol is investigating a fatal accident that occurred just after 3p.m. Saturday in Barber County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a vehicle was traveling southeast on River Road thirteen miles northwest of Medicine Lodge.

A vulture came out of the north ditch and struck the driver in the head. The vehicle traveled off the road into the north ditch, struck a barbwire fence and overturned.

Authorities released no additional details early Sunday.

Everett Rex and Leota Jewel Owen

Memorial service for Everett Rex Owen and Leota Jewel Owen will be at 10:00 AM on Friday, April 26th at First Christian Church in Dighton.

Burial will follow at Dighton Memorial Cemetery. Boomhower Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Kansas zookeeper attacked by tiger improving, moved from ICU

TOPEKA — The director of the Topeka Zoo says a the prognosis for the recovery of a zookeeper who was attacked by a Sumatran tiger is good.

The zookeeper was attacked Saturday while in the outdoor tiger habitat of Sanjiv, a 7-year-old male tiger.

Zoo director Brendan Wiley said the zookeeper was talking Saturday night.  She was moved out of the intensive care unit, according to a statement from city of Topeka spokesperson Molly Hadfield early Monday.

The woman has worked at the zoo since 2002 and has several years of experience with tigers.

Sanjiv photo Topeka Zoo

Wiley said the zoo is conducting an investigation and will determine what protocol changes might be needed after talking to the injured employee.

The zoo has no plans to euthanize Sanjiv, who was back on display Sunday.

Salina city leaders explore possibility of plastic bag ban

SALINA, Kan. (AP) — Salina city leaders are exploring the possibility of a ban on plastic shopping bags.

City staff was briefing commissioners Monday on other communities with bans and what it would take to gather public input on such a policy.

Salina City Commissioner Joe Hay proposed the ban. He told KAKE-TV earlier this year that the city should be a leader in the state. He says the bags fly like kites and blanket fences and trees after a wind storm.

California and Hawaii already ban disposable plastic bags. So do many cities including Chicago, Seattle and more than a dozen local communities in New York state.

Sen. Moran to be in Ellis on Friday

U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS)

Office OF Sen. Moran

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., today announced he will visit Ellis as part of his Kansas Listening Tour on Friday.

Moran will be at VFW Post No. 9139, 813 Jefferson, Ellis, from 10:45 to 11:45 a.m.

Area residents are encouraged to attend and share feedback with Moran on the critical issues facing Kansas and the nation.

The issues Sen. Moran focuses on and the work he does in Washington are largely based on the conversations he has with Kansans during these Listening Tour stops.

Police find cocaine, arrest driver after SW Kan. head-on crash

SEWARD COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a weekend head-on crash that sent on man to the hospital and another to jail.

emergency responders were dispatched to the 200 block of West Pancake Boulevard for a reported injury accident. Responding officers found a pickup and semi truck had collided head on.

Just after 11:30 p.m. Saturday, a 2012 Ford F-250 driven by a 24-year-old man was eastbound on Pancake Boulevard in Liberal, according to Police Captain Patrick McClurg.

 The Ford crossed the center line in the path of a westbound 2008 Peterbilt semi-tractor and trailer. The vehicles collided head on. The 32-year-old male driver of the Peterbilt was transported to Southwest Medical Center with non life-threatening injuries.

Investigators determined the driver of the Ford showed signs of impairment related to the consumption of alcohol. He was subsequently arrested. During a search subsequent to the arrest, a small quantity of suspected cocaine was located.

Police booked him into the Seward County Jail for aggravated battery, driving under the influence with a prior conviction, possession of cocaine, possession of drug paraphernalia, driving with a suspended license, driving left of center, and no seat belt. An affidavit was submitted to the Seward County Attorney’s Office seeking formal charges.

McClurg did not release names of the drivers.

Battle of the Brews: Win Brews on the Bricks tickets!

Stop in at Kaiser Liquor and purchase these four different brews available in singles…then vote for your favorite at HaysPost.com. At the end of four weeks, somebody is going to win a pair of tickets to Brews on the Bricks.

It is your chance to purchase just a single bottle or can and not the whole six pack. Who knows? You might find a new favorite.

Battle of the Brews at Kaiser Liquor…your chance to buy these unique beers in singles this week at Kaiser Liquor!

Michael Leroy Gebhart

Michael Leroy Gebhart, age 65, of Ogallah, passed away, Sunday, April 21, 2019, at his home.

Services are pending with Schmitt Funeral Home, WaKeeney.

OPINION: On farms and ranches, every day is Earth Day 
 

State Executive Director
USDA Photo by Preston Keres

By DAVID SCHEMM
Kansas Farm Service Agency State Executive Director
and
KAREN WOODRICH
Natural Resources Conservation Service Kansas State Conservationist

At USDA, we celebrate Earth Day 2019 by offering big thank-yous to farmers and ranchers here in Kansas for all they do. Every day we see their efforts to conserve natural resources while producing food, fiber and fuel for people in their communities and around the world. They are doing what needs to be done to make sure we all enjoy the benefits of clean and plentiful water and healthy soils, ecosystems and wildlife habitat.

This year’s Earth Day theme, “Protect Our Species,” highlights the responsibility we share in supporting wildlife. Two-thirds of the land in the continental United States is privately owned, and the decisions that farmers and ranchers make for their land can impact wildlife.

Working lands are what Kansas is made of.  These lands work to support healthy families by providing abundant food, healthy soils, clean water and abundant wildlife. Kansas farmers, ranchers, and forest owners are keenly aware of the value of crop production, prairie ecosystems, and forests and have made great strides to protect their natural resource in harmony with day-to-day operations.  Earth Day provides an opportunity to recognize the conservationists we have in our backyards, our neighborhoods, and up and down our beautiful landscape.

We at USDA believe people and wildlife can thrive together. USDA’s Farm Service Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service assist agricultural producers with adopting conservation practices that benefit not only farms, ranches and forest lands but wildlife species. In Kansas as well as across the nation, producers and landowners have played and continue to play important roles in helping wildlife species flourish, rebound or recover.

Kansas landowners have been instrumental in preserving the largest remaining population of Lesser Prairie Chicken within their original five state native range of the species.  Through Farm Service Agency, Kansas landowners enrolled over 1.1 million acres of native grass cover into the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in the heart of the Lesser Prairie Chicken native range, thus helping to remove the species from the endangered listing. Native covers under the CRP program offers Lesser Prairie Chicken ideal habitat for brood and nesting habitat especially when located adjacent to native rangeland and cropland.

NRCS’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program through a Regional Conservation Partnership Program with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation provides a great opportunity for ranchers and farmers to develop and improve working lands for Monarch butterflies. Monarch butterfly migration is under way and the first monarch was spotted in Kansas on April 7, according to Journey North. If you see a monarch now and its color seems a little pale or faded, there is a good chance it has flown in from Mexico.  Monarch butterflies are a species with a declining population that need milkweeds to lay their eggs and wildflowers to feed on their nectar.  Kansas rangelands, roadsides, and odd areas are typical places to find milkweeds. To learn more about managing your land for monarchs or pollinators, contact NRCS at your local USDA Service Center.

USDA offers a wide array of Farm Bill programs to help Kansas producers make wildlife-friendly improvements to croplands, grazing lands and working forests, as well as benefit agricultural operations. Programs include the Conservation Reserve Program, the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program. USDA also offers free conservation advice as well and financial assistance to help implement conservation practices.

If you farm or ranch, we encourage you to reach out to your local FSA and NRCS representatives at your nearest USDA service center to see if there is a program right for your operation. If you’re not a farmer or rancher, on this Earth Day please thank one for the work he or she does to put food on our tables and to conserve our natural resources and support our nation’s wildlife.

Alice A. (Weeks) Pratt

Alice A. (Weeks) Pratt passed away on Wednesday, April 17, 2019 at the Sheridan County Health Complex LTC, after a lifetime of living in Sheridan County. Alice was born March 10, 1927 to Clarence and Pearl (Godfrey) Weeks, the third of seven children. She attended school in Hoxie graduating from Sheridan County High School. Alice attended Fort Hays State University to obtain a teaching certificate during war years and taught in several rural schools in the area.

Alice married James “Jimmy” E. Pratt on May 17, 1948 in Seguin, Kansas. Two children, Charles “Chuck” and Karen completed the family. After marrying, Alice joined the Catholic Church and was a member of Sodality. The family lived on the family ranch for the first years of their marriage and later moved to Hoxie.

Alice always enjoyed working and her jobs. She babysat until her own children graduated from high school. She worked for many years for the Hoxie Sale Barn cooking the meals on sale days. She was a clerk at the Ben Franklin Store and at the Hoxie Stop 2 Shop. She enjoyed seeing and visiting with the people who came into the businesses. At the Stop to Shop, Alice opened the store early in the morning. The regulars enjoyed seeing her each morning. After retirement, Alice would mention how she loved to work and had a wish to go back to work. When she was not working, she loved to cook and taught many to make pies. She was a seamstress and enjoyed sewing and making clothes for her children. She liked flowers especially red roses

Alice is survived by her son, Charles “Chuck” and his wife Diane of Hoxie, Kansas; daughter, Karen Deibert of Hoxie, Kansas; brothers, Bill Weeks of Hoxie, Kansas, and Murl Weeks and wife Anita of Oklahoma; sister-in-law, Judy Weeks; five grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren; and friends.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Jimmy; parents, Clarence and Pearl Weeks; Infant Grandson, Shane Pratt; brother, Al Weeks; sister, Violet Rogers, Marge Thaden, and infant sister, Nellie Weeks.

A Mass of Christian Burial is planned for Tuesday, April 23, 2019, 10:30 A.M. at the St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Church in Hoxie, Kansas. A visitation will be held on Monday, April 22, 2019, at Mickey-Leopold Funeral Home from 2:00 P.M. until 8:00 P.M. with a Vigil Service at 7:00 P.M. There will be a private family inurnment at a later day. The family has chosen the Sheridan County Health Complex LTC or the Sheridan County Benefit Walk as memorials. Memorials may be sent in care of Mickey-Leopold Funeral Home, PO Box 987, Hoxie, Kansas 67740. Online condolences may be left at mickeyleopoldfuneral.com

Alice loved to work, her family, visiting with people, and especially “doing things her way”. She has gone home to be with the Lord Jesus Christ. Every step of the way she did ‘things her way”.

Anthony Souchek

Saturday, March 31st, 1945 – Sunday, April 21st, 2019

An obituary and services are pending with Baalmann Mortuary.

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