KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A decision by the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas to deny enrollment to the kindergarten child of gay parents has prompted thousands of people to sign dueling petitions.
A recent online petition supporting the archdiocese’s decision has received more 7,000 signatures. An earlier petition signed by almost 2,000 members of Kansas City-area Catholic parishes asks officials to change their minds.
Local parishioners learned of the decision when the Rev. Craig J. Maxim of St. Ann Catholic Church wrote a letter to parents last month telling families the archdiocese said the child’s parents cannot “model behaviors and attitudes consistent with the Church’s teachings.”
Maxim wrote this creates a conflict for those children and could be a source of confusion for other children.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for killing a 34-year-old man and wounding the victim’s father outside a Topeka home.
Towner -photo Shawnee Co.
30-year-old John Towner Jr. apologized in court Thursday before he was sentenced for voluntary manslaughter and attempted second-degree murder in the January 2018 shooting.
During the trial, Towner contended he shot John Austin Jr. and John Austin Sr. in self-defense. Jurors acquitted him of attempted aggravated robbery and a more serious first-degree murder charge.
After the hearing, John Austin Sr. said he didn’t understand how Towner could get only 14 years when authorities had witness testimony, statements from Towner about his involvement in the shooting and the gun. Austin said Towner should have received a life-term.
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BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (AP) — A Russian-American crew arrived at the International Space Station on Friday, five months after a botched launch led to an emergency landing for two of the three astronauts.
Five months after being forced to abort his first launch to space, @AstroHague is now where he’s destined to be: aboard the @Space_Station. During his 6.5 month mission, he will perform the first spacewalk of his career, conduct experiments & more. Watch: https://t.co/ZuxLDtzW9cpic.twitter.com/lNcVe101M6
This time, the Russian Soyuz rocket carrying NASA astronauts Nick Hague of Hoxie, Kansas and Christina Koch along with Roscosmos’ Alexei Ovchinin lifted off precisely as planned from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 12:14 a.m. Friday (1914 GMT Thursday).
Six hours later, their capsule docked at the orbiting outpost.
On Oct. 11, a Soyuz carrying Hague and Ovchinin failed two minutes into flight, activating a rescue system that allowed their capsule to land safely. That accident was the first aborted crew launch for the Russian space program since 1983, when two Soviet cosmonauts safely jettisoned after a launch pad explosion.
On Friday, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine congratulated the crew on a successful launch. “So proud of Nick Hague for persevering through last October’s launch that didn’t go as planned,” he tweeted.
Speaking at a pre-launch news conference at Baikonur, the astronauts said they trusted the rocket and fully believed in the success of their mission.
“I’m 100 percent confident in the rocket and the spacecraft,” Hague said. “The events from October only helped to solidify that and boost confidence in the vehicle to do its job.”
The trio will join NASA’s Anne McClain, Roscosmos’ Oleg Kononenko and David Saint-Jacques of the Canadian Space Agency who are already on the space station. They will conduct work on hundreds of experiments in biology, biotechnology, physical science and Earth science.
When one of the four strap-on boosters for their Soyuz failed to separate properly two minutes after their launch in October, Hague and Ovchinin were jettisoned from the rocket. Their rescue capsule plunged steeply back to Earth with its lights flashing and alarms screaming, subjecting the crew to seven times the force of gravity.
Hague emphasized Wednesday that they were well-trained for the emergency.
“The nature of our profession is we spend 90-95 percent of our time practicing what to do when things go wrong,” he said. “And so we spend all that time training, running through all those scenarios. And because we do train that way, like in October when things like that happened, we were ready to do what we need to do to come out successfully.”
The October failure was the first aborted launch for the Russian space program in 35 years and only the third in history. Each time, the rocket’s automatic rescue system kept the crew safe.
A Russian investigation attributed October’s launch failure to a sensor that was damaged during the rocket’s final assembly. The next crew launch to the space station in December went on without a hitch.
Ovchinin recalled that they felt “more annoyed than stressed” when their rescue capsule touched down in the barren steppes of Kazakhstan. “It was disappointing and a bit frustrating that we didn’t make it to the International Space Station,” he said.
NASA and Roscosmos praised the crew’s valor and composure in the aborted launch and promised to quickly give them a second chance into space.
“We don’t accept the risk blindly, we have mitigated it as much as we can, and we always plan to be successful,” Hague said.
Ovchinin stressed that the aborted launch in October was an “interesting and very useful experience” that “proved the reliability of the emergency rescue system.”
Since the 2011 retirement of the U.S. shuttle fleet, Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft have been the only vehicles that ferry crews to the space station.
NASA, however, is counting on SpaceX and Boeing to start launching astronauts later this year. The SpaceX ship Dragon returned Friday from a six-day test flight to the space station and could take astronauts there on its next flight as early as this summer.
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BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (AP) — A Russian-American crew of three has blasted off to the International Space Station, making a second attempt to reach the outpost after October’s aborted launch.
Expedition 59 crewmembers Nick Hague of NASA, top, Christina Koch of NASA, center, and Alexey Ovchinin of Roscosmos wave farewell prior to boarding the Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft for launch, Thursday, March 14, 2019 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Hague, Koch, and Ovchinin will spend six-and-a-half months living and working aboard the International Space Station. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)The Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft is launched with Expedition 59 crewmembers Nick Hague and Christina Koch of NASA, along with Alexey Ovchinin of Roscosmos, Friday March 15, 2019, Kazakh time (March 14 Eastern time) at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Hague, Koch, and Ovchinin will spend six-and-a-half months living and working aboard the International Space Station. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
A Russian Soyuz rocket carrying NASA astronauts including Hoxie, Kansas native Nick Hague and Christina Koch along with Roscosmos’ Alexei Ovchinin lifted off as planned from the Baikonur cosmodrome at 1:14 p.m. CDT Thursday (in Kazakhstan at 12:14 a.m. Friday)
Their Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft reached a designated orbit about nine minutes after the launch, and the crew reported they were feeling fine and all systems on board were operating normally. They are set to dock at the space station in about six hours.
On Oct. 11, a Soyuz that Hague and Ovchinin were riding in failed two minutes into its flight, activating a rescue system that allowed their capsule to land safely. That accident was the first aborted crew launch for the Russian space program since 1983, when two Soviet cosmonauts safely jettisoned after a launch pad explosion.
Speaking at a pre-launch news conference at Baikonur, the crew said they trust the rocket and fully believe in the success of their mission.
“I’m 100 percent confident in the rocket and the spacecraft deliver us to the space station and bring us home safely,” Hague said. “The events from October only helped to solidify that and boost confidence in the vehicle to do its job.”
The trio will join NASA’s Anne McClain, Roscosmos’ Oleg Kononenko and David Saint-Jacques of the Canadian Space Agency who are currently on the space station. They will conduct work on hundreds of experiments in biology, biotechnology, physical science and Earth science.
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Expedition 59 crew members Christina Koch of NASA, Alexey Ovchinin of Roscosmos and Nick Hague of NASA during pre-launch training for launch March 14, U.S. time, on the Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan for a six-and-a-half month mission on the International Space Station. Credits: NASA
Hoxie, Kansas native Nick Hague is set for another attempt to reach the International Space Station Thursday afternoon. He and a fellow cosmonauts were forced to abort a launch in October.
According to a media release from NASA, two American astronauts including Hague and a Russian cosmonaut are set to join the crew aboard the International Space Station on Thursday.
NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Christina Koch, and cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin of Roscosmos, are set to launch aboard the Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft at 2:14 p.m. CDT (12:14 a.m. March 15 Kazakhstan time) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on a six-hour journey to the station.
Live coverage will air on NASA Television and the agency’s website.
The trio’s arrival will return the orbiting laboratory’s population to six, including three NASA astronauts. This launch will also mark the fourth Expedition crew with two female astronauts.
The new crew members will dock to the Rassvet module at 8:07 p.m. Expedition 59 will begin officially at the time of docking.
About two hours later, hatches between the Soyuz and the station will open and the new residents will be greeted by NASA astronaut Anne McClain, station commander Oleg Kononenko of Roscosmos, and David Saint-Jacques of the Canadian Space Agency. The current three-person crew just welcomed the first American commercial crew vehicle as it docked to the station on March 3, amidst a busy schedule of scientific research and operations since arriving in December.
The crew members of Expeditions 59 and 60 will continue work on hundreds of experiments in biology, biotechnology, physical science and Earth science aboard the humanity’s only permanently occupied microgravity laboratory.
McClain, Saint-Jacques, Hague and Koch also are all scheduled for the first spacewalks of their careers to continue upgrades to the orbital laboratory. McClain and Hague are scheduled to begin work to upgrade the power system March 22, and McClain and Koch will complete the upgrades to two station power channels during a March 29 spacewalk. This will be the first-ever spacewalk with all-female spacewalkers. Hague and Saint-Jacques will install hardware for a future science platform during an April 8 spacewalk.
Hague and Ovchinin are completing a journey that was cut short Oct. 11, when a booster separation problem with their Soyuz rocket’s first stage triggered a launch abort two minutes into the flight. They landed safely a few minutes later, after reaching the fringes of space, and were reassigned to fly again after McClain, Kononenko and Saint-Jacques launched in early December. This will be Ovchinin’s third flight into space, the second for Hague and the first for Koch. Hague, Koch, and McClain are from NASA’s 2013 astronaut class, half of which were women—the highest percentage of female astronaut candidates ever selected for a class.
OAKLEY – A stolen vehicle has been recovered close to the city of Oakley, according to the Oakley Police Department.
In a news release and a social media post Thursday evening, the department is asking Oakley citizens to pull keys from vehicles, lock their vehicles and residences, and use extra vigilance in case someone is looking to steal a different vehicle.
The public is urged to call Oakley Police or the Logan County Sheriff if they see something suspicious.
BARTON COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas felon and another suspect after a traffic stop assisted by a K9 officer.
Just before 6:30 p.m. Monday, a Great Bend Police Officer stopped a vehicle for traffic violations in the 900 block of Monroe, according to a media release.
Bolz -photo Barton Co.Meredith -photo KDOC
During the stop the Great Bend Police K-9, Lazar, was deployed. Lazar then indicated there was an odor of illegal narcotics coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was searched and drugs were found.
Kristina Bolz and 40-year-old Douglas Ray Meredith II were arrested for possession of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. Both subjects were booked at the Barton County Jail in lieu of bond with charges pending in Barton County District Court.
The Barton County Sheriff’s Office booking log shows both Bolz and Meredith were booked with $10,000 bonds. The traffic violations for Bolz included illegal tint, stop lamps, and windshield.
Meredith has eleven previous convictions that include burglary, theft, forgery, criminal damage, interference with law enforcement and drugs, according to the Kansas Dept. of Corrections.
SHAWNEE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities are investigating suspects on numerous charges after a traffic stop.
Riis -photo Shawnee Co.
Just after 9:30p.m. Wednesday, police from the Community Response Unit conducted a traffic stop in the area of 10th and SE Branner in Topeka, according to LT Manuel Munoz.
Officers determined that the driver had a revoked driver’s license and the tag did not belong on the vehicle. Further investigation by the officers revealed that the passengers had warrants.
Officers located methamphetamines and a loaded handgun on one of the passengers. Valerie Riis, 30, was transported to Shawnee County Department of Corrections for Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and a warrant for her arrest.
This is the 28th case in 2019 with a charge involving a felon in possession of a firearm reported by the Topeka Police Department.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Two Republican-controlled committees of the Kansas Legislature have stripped Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s proposed state spending for Medicaid expansion out of budget legislation.
The Senate Ways and Means Committee voted 7-6 on Thursday to remove $14 million from a proposed budget for the state health department for the fiscal year beginning in July. The money represented Kelly’s initial estimate for the state tax dollars needed to draw down federal funds for the first six months after expanded Medicaid coverage started in January.
Medicaid expansion has bipartisan support, but GOP leaders strongly oppose it. They argue that supporters are underestimating the state’s potential costs.
The House Appropriations Committee voted 13-9 on Wednesday to remove not only the state tax dollars but the entire $509 million for expanded Medicaid coverage.
SALINE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas felon arrested after a chase in Salina.
Bolin photo KDOC
On Tuesday, police were called to what was supposed to be a vacant house in the 100 block of South 11th Street in Salina, according to Police Captain Paul Forrester.
A neighbor reported seeing a man smoking a cigarette inside the house. Police did not find anyone. The daughter of the property owner reported that a spare key that was kept in the mailbox was missing.
Just before 4p.m. on Wednesday, police were called back to the vacant house after a report of a man sitting on the porch. Again, no one was there when police arrived. Police suspected that 25-year-old Donald Ray Bolin was involved.
A short time later, an officer on patrol observed Bolin in the 1600 Block of South Ninth Street. After running on several streets and an alley, police ultimately arrested Bolin in the 1200 block of South Santa Fe on requested charges of interference with a law enforcement officer/obstruction, improper pedestrian crossing, and possession of stolen property, in addition to the outstanding warrants.
At the time of the arrest, he had in his possession a key that fit the lock for the vacant house on South 11th, according to Forrester.
Bolin has five previous convictions that include forgery, theft, battery, interference with law enforcement and drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Xavier Snead scored 19 points, none bigger than a 3-pointer as the shot clock sounded in the final minute, and No. 15 Kansas State rallied from a slow start to beat TCU 70-61 on Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament.
Barry Brown added 12 points, Kamau Stokes had 11 and Makol Mawien had 10 for the tournament’s top seed, which advanced to play No. 5 seed Iowa State in the semifinals Friday night.
The Wildcats (25-7) played without forward Dean Wade, who is sidelined once again with a foot injury. The senior watched the game from the sideline with a boot on his right foot, and probably had a hard time not leaping from his seat when Kansas State seized control in the second half.
Desmond Bane had 16 points to lead the eighth-seeded Horned Frogs (20-13), who split with the Wildcats in the regular season. Alex Robinson added 12 points and Kevin Samuel had 11.
Now, coach Jamie Dixon’s team must wait for Sunday to find out whether it has done enough to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. The Horned Frogs held on to beat Oklahoma State in the tournament’s opening round, but they went just 7-11 against the league during the regular season.
TCU was in the flow right from the tip, perhaps having benefited from that down-to-the-wire win over the Cowboys. The Horned Frogs were hot from the arc and solid on defense, and soon had built a double-digit lead on the regular-season champs.
They also took a crowd tinted Kansas State purple right out of the game.
The Wildcats finally clawed back into the game, getting a big lift from Cartier Diarra, their backup guard who returned after missing several weeks with a hand injury. He slammed an alley-oop dunk to ignite the crowd, and Sneed’s buzzer-beating 3 got the Wildcats within 34-32 at the break.
They used a 15-2 run to take their first lead midway through the second half.
The Wildcats’ lead eventually reached 10 before TCU mounted a comeback of its own. But after Mebane’s basket made it 55-52 with 5 1/2 minutes to go, Snead buried his third 3-pointer while getting fouled. He converted the free throw and gave Kansas State some breathing room again.
The Horned Frogs were never able to catch all the way up.
WADE WATCH
Kansas State coach Bruce Weber said Wade was unlikely to play this weekend, and would instead get treatment on his injured. Weber is hopeful the All-Big 12 forward is ready for the first round of the NCAA Tournament, but he refused to commit to it earlier this week.
BIG PICTURE
TCU was likely out of the NCAA Tournament if it lost to Oklahoma State. Now, the question is whether a win over the Cowboys and a competitive loss to Kansas State is enough to get in.
Kansas State spent the first 10 minutes as if in a post-title malaise, and the last five minutes trying to hold on for dear life. In between, the Wildcats looked capable of playing with anyone.
UP NEXT
Kansas State plays the fifth-seeded Cyclones in the first semifinal Friday night.
SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating an armed robbery and asking the public for help to identify a suspect.
Photo courtesy Wichita Police
Just after 9a.m. Tuesday, police responded to an armed robbery at the Dollar General located in the 1900 block of E. Pawnee in Wichita, according to officer Kevin Wheeler.
Employees reported that a man came in armed with a handgun and demanded money from the cashier. Money was given to the suspect who then fled on foot and was last seen going northeast of the business. The suspect is described as a light skinned black or Hispanic male in his thirties. He was wearing a black leather jacket, black bottoms, a black stocking cap, black sunglasses, and slide on flip flops.
No one was injured during this incident.
If you recognize this individual or have any additional information please call Crime Stoppers at 316-267-2111 or WPD Detectives at 316-268-4407.
WEATHERFORD, Okla. – Fort Hays State women’s basketball senior Tatyana Legette has been named a D2CCA All-Central Region performer, announced Thursday (March 14). Legette was one of five players in the region to earn a spot on the first team.
Legette is in the midst of a stellar senior season, adding All-Region honors to her MIAA Player of the Year and MIAA Championship Tournament Most Outstanding Player awards. She leads the team with 13.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game, ranking in the top 13 in the MIAA in each category. She scored in double figures 22 times through the MIAA championship, compiling nine double-doubles in the process. Legette was named MIAA Athlete of the Week three times.
For her career, the Topeka, Kan. native has amassed 1,210 points, ranking 11th on the all-time list, and 841 rebounds, good for fourth in program history. Her career totals also rank in the top seven in team history in blocks (122), field goal percentage (50.9 percent), free throws made (352) and free throw attempts (463).
Legette helped lead the Tigers to a 30-1 record entering the NCAA Championship tournament, the fewest losses in the regular season in program history. FHSU captured both the MIAA regular season and MIAA tournament championships, becoming the first team to do so since 2012. The Tigers earned an automatic bid into the 2019 NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Championship, their fifth trip to the big dance. As the No. 1 seed in the region, FHSU will host the Central Regional inside Gross Memorial Coliseum beginning Friday (March 15). The Tigers open the tournament against conference rival Pittsburg State at 5 p.m. Friday.
Sports information directors from NCAA Division II Central Region schools and conferences selected the D2CCA all-region teams. Legette will now move on to the All-American ballot, with selections announced later in the month.
