SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a drive by shooting.
At approximately 10:30 p.m. on Wednesday, police responded to a drive-by shooting call at a residence in the 2500 block of north Burns in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson. Upon arrival, officers observed bullet strikes to the home and shell casings.
A 34-year-old woman had transported her 15-year-old son to an area hospital who had been shot in his body for treatment of a non-life-threating injury. Several other individuals were at the home at the time of the incident but were not injured.
Frank Marcum, 86, passed away Tuesday, September 17, 2019 at Solomon Valley Manor in Stockton. He was born September 15, 1933 in Turon, Kansas to Otto and Mildred (Riggs) Marcum. Frank graduated from Hutchinson Junior College with an Associate’s Degree in Geology. He served his country in the Navy from 1950-1953 and the Army from 1953-1955. On July 25, 1957 he was united in marriage to Gladys Ruth Stevenson in Alva, Oklahoma. Frank worked as an oil well pumper for Petroleum Incorporated for many years.
Frank was a member of the VFW and the Plainville Coin and Gun Club. He enjoyed going fishing and camping, but what he enjoyed most was spending time with his family.
Left to cherish his memory is his wife Gladys of the home in Plainville; son Terry Marcum and wife Phyllis of Colorado Springs, CO; daughter Susan Thornton and husband Bill of Lorraine, KS; sister Crystal Burrows of Adams, TN; grandchildren, Brad and Dustin Higdon, Shaun and Brett Thornton, and Sandra Jean; 12 great-grandchildren; and 2 great-great grandchildren.
Frank is preceded in death by his parents, Otto and Mildred; daughter Patricia Swanson; brother, Keith Marcum; and sisters, Lois Walters and Martha Ray.
There will be no public services. Memorials are suggested to KU Medical Center and may be sent in care of Plumer-Overlease Funeral Home, 320 SW 2nd ST. Plainville, KS 67663. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.plumeroverlease.com
KANSAS CITY (AP) — An Alaska Airlines flight was forced to land at Kansas City International Airport after an unruly passenger threatened the safety of the aircraft.
Photo courtesy KCI
A statement from Alaska Airlines said flight 411 landed safely in Kansas City Thursday afternoon and the passenger was taken into custody.
The flight was bound from New York to Los Angeles with 177 passengers and six crew members aboard.
The airline said the passenger threatened crew members and the aircraft’s safety.
Federal officials interviewed crew members and continue to investigate the incident. No further details were immediately available.
H. Edward Flentje is professor emeritus at Wichita State University.
A couple weeks ago Governor Laura Kelly made good on her commitment to initiate a comprehensive review of the Kansas tax structure by establishing a Council on Tax Reform, co-chaired by two former state senators, Republican Steve Morris of Hugoton and Democrat Janis Lee of Kensington.
Kelly called on the Tax Council to consider reforms that advance “adequacy, equity, and stability” in taxes and “return to the ‘three-legged stool’…a sensible balance of income, sales, and property tax revenue.” The Council met for the first time earlier this week and is scheduled to deliver an interim report to the 2020 legislative session and a final report to the 2021 legislative session.
Kelly’s action follows up on her veto of multi-million dollar tax cuts favoring big business interests during the recent legislative session and successfully blocking an attempt to override her veto. She immediately drew flak from tax-cutters who claimed that the Council would become a vehicle for tax increases.
So, what is the best path forward on tax policy?
As its first order of business, the Council should affirm the wisdom of the “three-legged stool” of Kansas tax policy, as Kelly prescribed. Balance and diversity in taxes assure lower tax rates overall, reduce competition with other states, and promote fairness based on income.
Actions taken by lawmakers from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s achieved near-perfect balance in state tax structure by the turn of the century. However, the reckless tax experiment threw tax policy out of balance beginning in 2013. Lawmakers moved to rectify the resulting financial mess by abandoning the experiment in 2017, but restoring that balance should guide recommendations of the Tax Council.
The Council should adopt “revenue neutrality” as its second order of business. In other words, current revenues and realistic projections of current revenues should establish an overall cap on recommended revenue adjustments. Revenue neutrality will never mollify the tax-cutting crowd but should help the Council and Kelly establish credibility with the public.
The Council should embrace as its third principle the long-standing benchmark for tax reform espoused by the conservative Tax Foundation, that is, “broaden the tax base and cut tax rates,” which according to the Foundation, simplifies the tax code, removes unfair tax preferences, and creates economic growth.
Easier said, than done, of course.
However, members of the Tax Council should have as required reading the “Tax Expenditure Report,” prepared by the Kansas Department of Revenue. This 30-page report lists nearly $10 billion in various deductions, credits, and exemptions that narrow Kansas tax bases, primarily sales and income tax bases. Many of these make economic sense, but others have outlived their usefulness. Separating the wheat from the chaff among these provisions will require difficult work as each has a political constituency but could open ways forward on tax policy.
Finally, the Tax Council should tell the real “windfall” story and bury the issue for Kelly. Many businesses were gifted their first windfall with total exemptions from state income taxes during the discredited tax experiment, 2013 through 2017, and then their second windfall through trillion-dollar tax cuts at the national level in 2017.
No such businesses should be awarded a third $100 million windfall as the Kansas State Chamber and its dark money allies now shamelessly propose. Their advocacy of more corporate welfare serves neither tax fairness nor economic growth.
H. Edward Flentje is emeritus professor at Wichita State University and served with former Kansas Governors Bennett and Hayden.
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — A man has pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a 13-year-old old while the two were staying overnight at a Kansas child welfare office.
Hamer is accused of the sex assault -photo Johnson County Sheriff
Twenty-year-old Michael Hamer accepted a plea deal Thursday to two counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child. The second charge of indecent liberties with a child was added in exchange for prosecutors dropping a rape charge.
Prosecutors said Hamer assaulted the girl in May 2018 while they were both in the foster system and spending the night at a KVC Health Systems office in Olathe.
The girl was sleeping in the conference room when Hamer assaulted her. The social worker who was supervising them is no longer working for KVC.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man charged in the shooting death of a former Washburn University football player and the wounding of current New York Giants cornerback Corey Ballentine has pleaded not guilty.
The pleas were entered Thursday on behalf of 18-year-old Francisco Mendez, who faces 12 charges after the April 28 shooting that killed Dwane Simmons.
Mendez is charged with first-degree murder, four counts of attempted murder and seven counts of aggravated robbery. Simmons, Ballentine and three other Washburn players were shot at as they celebrated after Ballentine was drafted by the Giants earlier in the day.
The robbery charges stem from crimes prosecutors say were committed before and after the shooting.
Investigators have said at least three guns were used in the shooting and the investigation is continuing.
Western Plains Arts Association announces that it is among a select group of regional artists and organizations to receive a Mid-America Arts Alliance Regional Touring grant.
This award will support Jana Jae and her band at the Cultural Arts Center in Colby on Sunday, Oct. 13, at 3 p.m. CDT. Jana Jae will also be involved in an outreach works-shop which will be held in the CCC Choir Room at 1 p.m., Oct. 13.
Funding for Jana Jae through the M-AAA Regional Touring grant is drawn from generous underwriting by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission, and foundations, corporations, and individuals throughout Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas.
Mid-America Arts Alliance is the nation’s oldest regional arts organization and was founded in 1972 for cultural growth in heartland communities. Mid-America Arts Alliance strengthens and supports artists, cultural organizations, and communities throughout our region and beyond. They are especially committed to enriching the cultural life of underserved communities by providing high quality, meaningful, and accessible arts and cultural programs and services.
Todd Stein, M-AAA Chief Executive Officer, and Western Plains Arts Association is to be commended for their commitment to serving the northwest Kansas community with this distinctive event. Audiences in northwest Kansas will have the opportunity to see the exciting work of Jana Jae, many for the first time. Mid-America Arts Alliance is proud to help support this work.
For further Western Plains Arts Association event information, check www.wpaa.us.
For more information about Mid-America Arts Alliance, visit them online at www.maaa.org.
This Saturday’s Fort Hays State University football game against Missouri Southern starts at 7 p.m. at Lewis Field.
Reserved tickets on the west side cost $16, general admission tickets on the east side or behind the end zones cost $12, and kids K-12th grade general admission tickets cost $5.
Tickets can be purchased at the door, online at fhsuathletics.com, or in the Athletic Department located in Cunningham Hall 138.
Once the game is over, there will be a 10 minute countdown until the lights are turned off and the fireworks show will start behind the south end zone.
Sponsors of this year’s show are the Hays Convention and Visitors Bureau, Horizon Appliance and Electronics, and J.DAY Fireworks.
GEARY COUNTY — One person died in an accident just before 3p.m. Thursday in Geary County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2017 Ford Explorer driven by Nancy C. Barnaby, 72, Manhattan, was northbound on Kansas 177 highway.
The SUV crossed over the center line, traveled into the west ditch, hit a culvert and went air bound.
After striking the ground, the SUV rolled and caught fire.
Barnaby was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Johnson Funeral home. Her seatbelt usage is unknown due to fire but suspected to be wearing it, according to the KHP.
U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos on Thursday recognized 362 schools as National Blue Ribbon Schools for 2019. The recognition is based on a school’s overall academic performance or progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups.
“We recognize and honor your important work in preparing students for successful careers and meaningful lives” said U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos in a video message to the honorees. “As a National Blue Ribbon School, your school demonstrates what is possible when committed educators hold all students and staff to high standards and create vibrant, innovative cultures of teaching and learning.”
O’Loughlin Elementary School, 1401 Hall, was among the honorees in the exemplary high-performing schools category and one of only six Kansas schools receiving the designation.
The other Kansas schools are Central Plains Elementary School, Holyrood; Clear Creek Elementary School, De Soto; Corinth Elementary School, Shawnee Mission; Lakewood Elementary School, Blue Valley; and Holy Rosary-Wea Catholic School, Bucyrus.
The coveted National Blue Ribbon Schools award affirms the hard work of educators, families and communities in creating safe and welcoming schools where students master challenging and engaging content.
Now in its 37th year, the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program has bestowed recognition on more than 9,000 schools. On November 14 and 15, the Secretary and the Department of Education will celebrate with 312 public and 50 non-public school honorees at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C.
The Department recognizes all schools in one of two performance categories, based on all student scores, student subgroup scores and graduation rates:
Exemplary High Performing Schools are among their state’s highest performing schools as measured by state assessments or nationally normed tests.
Exemplary Achievement Gap Closing Schools are among their state’s highest performing schools in closing achievement gaps between a school’s student groups and all students.
Up to 420 schools may be nominated each year. The Department invites National Blue Ribbon School nominations from the top education official in all states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Department of Defense Education Activity, and the Bureau of Indian Education. Private schools are nominated by The Council for American Private Education (CAPE).
FINNEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas man wanted on felony warrants after a standoff in Finney County.
Morales photo Finney Co.
On Wednesday afternoon, police were called to the area of 112 W. Kansas Avenue in Garden City for a disturbance involving a woman running into the store and a man, later identified as Javier Morales, chasing her, according to Sergeant Lana Urteaga.
Officers were able to track Morales to an apartment building at 1309 N Main Street in Garden City.
Officers were notified Morales held two outstanding Felony Warrants out of Ford County for Possession of Amphetamines, Possession of Methamphetamines, Aggravated Domestic Violence Battery, Aggravated Battery, and Possession of Paraphernalia, according to Urteaga.
The area was secured at 1:30 PM. The Garden City S.W.A.T. team made entry into the residence around 3p.m. and Morales came out of the residence just after 4p.m.. without incident.
The 1300 block of Main Street was not accessible to the public from 1:30 P.M. to 4:30 P.M. The Garden City Police Department notified the school district of the situation. The schools in the area were not locked down. Horace Good Middle School exited the school from alternate doors located away from the incident following the release of school, according to Urteaga.
Finney County EMS was on scene as a precaution. However; there were no injuries reported during this incident. An affidavit will be filed with the Finney County Attorney’s Office requesting the charge of Interference with a Law Enforcement Officer.
SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a stabbing and have made an arrest.
Akers photo Sedgwick Co.
Just after 9:30p.m. Tuesday, police responded to a disturbance call at a motel in the 5700 Block of West Kellogg in Wichita, according to officer Paul Cruz.
Officers located a 25-year-old man with multiple stab wounds and a 26-year-old woman with a minor hand injury. EMS transported the man to a local hospital for treatment. He remains hospitalized in serious condition.
Investigators determined a suspect identified as 31-year-old Garrett Akers of Douglas arrived at the motel room occupied by his 26-year-old ex-girlfriend, a 25-year-old man, a 32-year-old woman and a 40-year-old man. A physical disturbance ensued and Akers pulled a knife, stabbed the man and fled on foot.
Police arrested Akers and he is being held on requested charges of aggravated battery.
