SEDGWICK COUNTY — A 19-year-old Kansas man who was shot in February during a drug deal in the parking lot of a Wichita grocery store has died.
Police on the scene of the shooting investigation-photo courtesy KWCH
Just before 3a.m.February 19, Chris Coley was found with a gunshot wound to the head. He was taken to a hospital in critical condition and died Monday, according to Officer Paul Cruz.
The case is the eighth homicide of the year.
Police say Coley was at Dillon’s with a woman to sell marijuana to a 21-year-old man. The man allegedly shot Coley in the head during the transaction and then drove away from the scene.
The suspect was arrested Feb. 20 on suspicion of attempted first-degree murder and other potential charges.
OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — A man charged with fatally shooting an Indian immigrant last year at a suburban Kansas City bar pleaded guilty Tuesday to murder in the slaying that fanned fears of anti-immigrant violence following President Donald Trump’s election.
Witnesses said Adam Purinton, who is white, yelled “Get out of my country!” before firing at two men who had stopped for an after-work drink at Austin’s Bar and Grill in Olathe, Kansas.
Srinivas Kuchibhotla was killed in the Feb. 22, 2017, attack. His friend Alok Madasani was wounded. The men, both 32, had come from India to the U.S. as students and worked as engineers at nearby GPS-maker Garmin.
Another man, Ian Grillot, was wounded when he tried to intervene.
Purinton faces life in prison with no chance of parole for 50 years when he is sentenced May 4 for premeditated first-degree murder.
At the time of the shooting, officials in India expressed concern about their citizens’ safety in the United States.
Kuchibhotla’s widow, who was not present at the hearing, issued a statement saying she hoped the guilty plea would “send a strong message that hate is never acceptable.”
“We must understand and love one another,” Sunayana Dumala said.
According to court documents, Purinton was asked to leave the bar when he made derogatory comments. He returned a short time later with a gun.
Madasani told detectives that the gunman asked the men if their “status was legal” before he opened fire, according to an affidavit released last year.
After the shooting, Purinton drove 70 miles (110 kilometers) east to Clinton, Missouri, and stopped at a restaurant, where he allegedly confessed to the killings to a bartender, who called police.
Purinton, a 52-year-old Navy veteran, was a regular customer at Austin’s. Neighbors in the Olathe cul-de-sac where he lived told The Associated Press after the shooting that he became “a drunken mess” following his father’s death about two years before the shooting and had physically and mentally deteriorated.
He still faces federal hate crime charges in the slaying. Federal prosecutors have not determined whether they will seek the death penalty.
Ellis County
UPDATE – 9:05 p.m.
The fires this evening in Ellis County are still working fires and the Ellis County Fire Department continues to have multiple fire crews working two fires. The first fire at the approximate location of Interstate 70 Mile Marker 160 is 99% contained, however fire crews are monitoring hot spots. The second, and larger fire located at Toulon Avenue and Homestead is about 90% contained.
Controlled fires will be monitored throughout the evening hours into tomorrow morning to ensure the fires do not spread. At this time, the fire has looked to have burned approximately 8,000-10,000 acres. Firefighters will remain on scene to monitor flare-ups from safe locations throughout the night hours to maintain safety levels in the dangerous terrain.
Preliminary reports show that all residential structures have been saved, however some may have received damage. Throughout the incident one firefighter was treated by Ellis County EMS and is being treated at Hays Medical Center for smoke inhalation.
The Ellis County Fire Department greatly appreciates the help of all the local volunteers, local businesses, and farmers who have generously donated food, water, and support to all the firefighters working the scene. The help from the Kansas Highway Patrol, Ellis County Sheriff’s deputies, Ellis County Public Works, Ellis County EMS, Hays Fire Department, Kansas Forestry Service, multiple surrounding county fire departments, and the Kansas National Guard has had a profound effect on the outcome of this fire.
Donations of water, sports drinks and non-perishable snack foods to support fire crews will be accepted at the Emergency Services Building, 1105 E. 22nd Street in Hays starting again tomorrow morning at 8:00 AM. No cash donations are being accepted.
Ellis County residents are reminded that a burn ban is in place for unincorporated portions of the county.
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An estimated 100 firefighters from Ellis, Rooks, Russell and Trego counties – with helicopter support from the Kansas National Guard – are battling a blaze that stretches for approximately five miles across the northeastern section of Ellis County. Ellis County Director of Fire and Emergency Management Darin Myers estimates the blaze is currently only 25 percent contained.
“Every time I think we’ve got the upper hand, the wind shifts again,” said Myers.
At least one of those wind shifts has been positive for area residents. Emergency officials earlier considered evacuating the community of Catharine, but have no plans to do so at present.
“The smoke is blowing away from Catharine at this point,” said Myers.
Myers anticipates that fire crews will be on scene most of the night. Donations of water, sports drinks and non-perishable snack foods to support fire crews are being accepted at the Emergency Services Building, 1105 E. 22nd Street in Hays. No cash donations are being accepted at this time.
Ellis County residents are reminded that a burn ban is in place for unincorporated portions of the county.
A pair of high-scoring guards who also share the ball with their teammates highlight The Associated Press All-Big 12 men’s basketball team.
Kansas senior Devonte’ Graham and Oklahoma freshman sensation Trae Young, the league’s top two in both scoring and assists, were the only unanimous picks on the AP All-Big 12 first team released Tuesday. They also took the top individual awards.
Graham was named the Big 12 player of the year with his 17.6 points and 7.2 assists per game while helping lead the Jayhawks win their record 14th consecutive conference title this season. He ranked second in the league in both categories behind top Big 12 newcomer Young, the national leader with 27.5 points and 8.9 assists per game .
Kansas’ Bill Self took his fourth consecutive coach of the year honor, and seventh in 13 seasons.
Texas Tech senior Keenan Evans, West Virginia senior Jevon Carter and Texas freshman post player Mohamed Bamba were the other first-team picks in voting by a panel of 18 journalists who regularly cover the Big 12 in the league’s five states. Bamba is the Big 12 rebounding leader with 10.6 per game.
Graham got nine of 18 votes for player of the year, while Young got seven and Evans two. Young was listed as top newcomer on 14 ballots, including five that also had him as the top overall player.
Self got 10 votes for top coach, while Chris Beard of Big 12 runner-up Texas Tech got seven. The remaining vote went to first-year Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton after the Cowboys became the first team with a regular season sweep of a Self-coached Kansas team.
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The 2018 AP All-Big 12 team, with players listed with school, classification, height, weight, class and hometown (“u-” denotes unanimous selections):
FIRST TEAM
u-Devonte’ Graham, Kansas, Sr., 6-2, 185, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Jimmie L. Jeffery, age 82, passed away on Tuesday, March 6, 2018 at the Scott County Hospital in Scott City, Kansas.
He was born on October 28, 1935 in Black River Falls, Wisconsin, the son of Roy & Beth Hein Jeffery. A resident of Scott City, Kansas since 1960 moving from Wisconsin, he was a Paint Contractor and Roofer.
He was a member of the United Methodist Church in Scott City, Kansas.
On March 24, 1956 he married Nathella McLaughlin in Merrillan, Wisconsin. She survives.
Survivors include his Wife – Nathella Jeffery of Scott City, Kansas, One Son – Wade & Shawn Jeffery of Hays, Kansas, Two Daughters – Jimalene & Randy Haddon Of Ellinwood, Kansas, Nathella & Calvin Humburg of Ness City, Kansas, Six Grandchildren and Three Great Grandchildren
He was preceded in death by his Parents.
Memorial Services will be held at Price & Sons Funeral Home in Scott City, Kansas at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 10, 2018 with the Rev. Robert Nuckolls presiding.
Memorials may be given to the Park Lane Nursing Home or Scott County Hospital in care of Price & Sons Funeral Homes.
The Ellis County Commission approved a rebuild of a 30-year-old Caterpillar scraper at Monday’s commission meeting.
The scraper, which has been used at the landfill for moving dirt for the sports complex and for work on the Hays Airport runways, has more than 15,000 hours on it and was used for 385 hours in 2017, according to Public Works Director Bill Ring.
According to a quote from Foley Caterpillar of Great Bend, a 2018 scraper would cost $743,505. To have Cat complete a certified rebuild of the scraper will cost $346,728.
The rebuild will be a complete overhaul of the piece of equipment. According to Ring, it will include a remanufactured engine and transmission, a new paint job, new cab interior and more.
Keith Backman with Foley said, “When you get it back it will be like a new machine.”
He also said that because the cost of equipment continues to go up, more governmental entities are having the rebuilds done to save money.
The commission also gave the Public Works Department approval to work with the city of Hays on its 2018 chip seal project. County crews have worked with Ellis and Victoria on similar chip seal projects in the past.
In other business, the commission approved a payment from the Courthouse Preservation Committee to Kansas Granite for exterior granite.
Fire Chief Darin Myers presented the commission with the 2017 Annual Fire Report.
TOPEKA – Because of increased wildfire risk in Kansas this week, Ken Selzer, CPA, Kansas Commissioner of Insurance, offers the following considerations for personal safety and risk reduction for property damage and farm buildings:
· Do a survey of the landscape surrounding your house. Move plants or trees that are too close to your dwelling or burn easily. Clear dead leaves or tree seedlings away from your roof, gutters, decks or fence lines.
· Evaluate openings around your house to see if they can be sealed temporarily. This can keep embers from getting into your structure.
· Store away patio furniture, decorations or other flammable outdoor material.
· Remove landscaping mulch from near your house.
· If evacuation is ordered, shut all doors and windows tightly. Decide in advance what type of emergency kit your family would need, including first aid, blankets, personal hygiene items, prescriptions, cell phones and clothing. Turn off the gas to your house and hose it down if you have time.
· Keep communication equipment charged and in working order. Be sure your family members know how to contact each other.
· Make sure you have accessible copies of your insurance policies, cards and contact numbers.
The Kansas Insurance Department in January sent copies of the booklet, “Wildland Fire Action Guide,” to emergency management coordinators in all 105 Kansas counties. Also included in the information to the emergency personnel were copies of the department’s “Personal Home Inventory” booklet and the latest version of the “Auto and Homeowners Insurance.” Both can be downloaded for consumer use at the department’s website, www.ksinsurance.org.
Representatives staffing the insurance department’s Consumer Assistance Hotline, 800-432-2484, can also assistant insurance policyholders who need questions answered or assistance in dealing with coverage or damage claims.
“The Kansas Insurance Department stands ready to assist Kansans in insurance-related considerations for wildfire safety,” said Commissioner Selzer. “Last year’s devastating fire loss throughout the state was a wake-up call for homeowners and property owners to be proactive in reducing the possibility of damage.”
JUNCTION CITY — Another Kansas high school student has been arrested after bringing a handgun to school.
In addition to the arrest in USD 266 Derby Monday, police arrested a Dodge City student and 6 students in USD 475 Junction City over the past two weeks.
On Monday night, police public information officer Capt. Trish Giordano issued a statement on the student arrests.
In Derby on Monday, High school administrators brought a student in for questioning after receiving a tip, and the gun was found.
The school resource officer arrested the sophomore without incident. No threat was made to students or staff, according to the alert sent by the district.
Derby spokeswoman Katie Carlson didn’t say if the student was in class with the weapon, or what time the student was arrested.
Sheryl M. Fuss, 75, of Hays, KS, passed away on Tuesday, March 6, 2018 at the Good Samaritan Society-Hays, KS. Funeral services are pending and will be announced at a later date.
Arrangements are by Brock’s-Keithley Funeral Chapel & Crematory, 2509 Vine St., Hays, KS 67601.
A Kansas law that blocked tens of thousands of voter registrations goes on trial this week in federal court — testing whether fraud is common enough to warrant tougher registration rules.
Tougher voter registration rules championed by Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach go on trial this week. FILE PHOTO / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach wants to prove his oft-made and much-challenged assertions that voter fraud isn’t just a risk, but a real and widespread problem.
If he fails in court, the state will no longer be able to block voter registrations at driver’s license offices for failing to show such things as birth certificates or passports to prove citizenship.
Rick Hasen, a professor of law and political science at UC Irvine, says a Kobach win would allow other Republican-controlled states to impose their own stricter voter registration laws.
The case will also draw attention because of Kobach’s national role in promoting the idea that immigrants game the American electoral system.
“Here’s a case where that very issue is going to be put on trial,” Hasen said.
Kobach’s statements have made national headlines, especially after he began talking to President Donald Trump about overhauling federal election law and backed his assertion that millions of illegal voters may have cost him the popular vote to Hillary Clinton.
Claims by Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach that voter fraud is rampant and warrants tough registration standards is on trial in federal court this week. CREDIT NADYA FAULX / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
Though Politifact dubbed that idea “Pants on Fire” false, Kobach argues that Democrats turn a blind eye to the problem of noncitizens casting ballots.
“It does seem that many in the Democrat party — hopefully not all — seem to think that it’s OK if aliens vote,” Kobach told Fox News ahead of this week’s trial. “Heck, it helps the Democrat party.”
Now comes the trial in Kansas City. It could last more than a week and is one of several legal challenges that have tied up Kobach’s Secure and Fair Elections, or SAFE, law in state and federal courts.
Since 2013, that law has required Kansans who want to vote to back up their assertion of American citizenship with papers.
Opponents of Kobach’s law say it disenfranchises people who lack such documents — especially the elderly, people living in poverty and younger voters, such as college students who are far from home without their birth certificates.
The American Civil Liberties Union represents the League of Women Voters — a nonpartisan, progressive civic engagement group that Kobach has called communist— and several Kansans who were blocked from voting. They took Kobach to court.
ACLU lawyers say some of the plaintiffs didn’t have documents showing citizenship and some did, but were still blocked despite having shown these at the DMV.
Dale Ho, who’s litigating the Kansas case for the ACLU, says Kobach’s law allowed him to hold back tens of thousands of voter registration applications without good reason.
“He’s been talking for years about supposed hordes of non-citizen immigrants registering to vote and corrupting American elections,” Ho said, “but he hasn’t been able to show an iota of evidence.”
The would-be registrants tended to be young and politically unaffiliated, compared to the general electorate.
This week’s trial gives ACLU a chance to scale back Kobach’s law by leaning on the 1993 National Voter Registration Act — often called the Motor Voter Act. That law says swearing your citizenship under penalty of perjury is sufficient for registration. Liars risk prison, fines and deportation.
If the organization succeeds, Judge Julie Robinson of the US District Court for the District of Kansas will block the Kansas law when it comes to anyone registering through the DMV process created by that 1993 law.
That motor-voter process, which boosted voter registration nationally, allows streamlined registration while getting or renewing a driver’s license. One-third of Americans who register to vote use the DMV process. In Kansas, the ACLU says, that figure tops 40 percent.
Kobach already faces other roadblocks to implementing his SAFE law in full.
Pending Robinson’s decision, he is barred from requiring birth certificates or other such documents from DMV voters. Kobach is already blocked by a separate federal lawsuit — from making that demand of voters who register using a federal paper application.
As many two in five Kansans register to vote when they get a driver’s license. CREDIT CELIA LLOPIS-JEPSEN / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
A state court ruling, meanwhile, has stopped Kobach from circumventing this by allowing people who register through the DMV or federal form to vote just in federal elections and not state or local elections.
Kobach’s office didn’t respond to repeated requests for an interview for this story.
In court filings, he argues the motor-voter process isn’t rigorous and lets non-citizens slip through.
“The SAFE Act was what finally provided a tool to prevent non-citizens from registering to vote,” he wrote.
Under a higher court’s decision that laid out what Kobach needs to prove in order to win this week’s trial, he has to show more evidence of non-citizens gaming the system. Judges have made clear his evidence so far doesn’t cut it.
Kobach’s briefs indicate at least 43 suspected non-citizens registered in Kansas since 2000, and 11 voted. Kansas has about 1.8 million people on its voter rolls.
In this round of the fight, Kobach will present statistical estimates and other research that he argues point to much higher rates of fraud existing without being detected. The ACLU will challenge his numbers as junk science.
If Kobach convinces Robinson with his evidence, he will then also have to prove that the only way to prevent the illegal voting is by requiring more documents from people — instead of, for example, working to make sure the DMV doesn’t mistakenly offer foreigners voter registration.
Wendy Weiser, director of the democracy program at New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice, doubts Kobach has the proof he needs.
“Voting by non-citizens turns out to be incredibly rare,” she said, “because there are real strong safeguards in place.”
By contrast, she said, a study by the center concluded 7 percent of Americans don’t have easy access to the type of documents Kobach is seeking from voters. That rate is higher among the poor.
The Brennan Center represents the plaintiffs in a separate lawsuit that currently prevents Kansas from applying its SAFE law to people who register with a federal paper form.
Whatever the outcome following this week’s trial, it could feed into court challenges elsewhere or clear the way for more states to mimic what Kobach has done in Kansas.
Arizona, Georgia and Alabama have laws similar to the one in Kansas, though the latter two aren’t currently implementing theirs.
Hasen, the law professor, says the narrow victory by George W. Bush over Al Gore in the 2000 presidential race underscored for Republicans and Democrats that “the rules of the game matter.”
“We’ve seen the emergence of what I call red state election law and blue state election law,” he said. “States with Republican legislatures and governors have been passing laws that make it harder to register and vote. States with Democratic governors and legislatures have been passing laws that make it easier to register and vote.”
Why? Hasen says the theory, at least, is that the people hindered or helped by these laws are likely to vote Democrat.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A conservative official’s claim that scores of noncitizens are voting in Kansas will be put on trial Tuesday in a legal challenge to a law requiring people to show proof of citizenship to register to vote in the state.
Kansas Sec. of State Kobach at meeting of President Donald Trump’s commission on election fraud
At issue in the bench trial unfolding in federal court in Kansas City, Kansas, is the fate of a law championed by Republican Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach requiring people to provide citizenship documents such as a birth certificate, naturalization papers or passport when they register.
U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson must decide whether Kobach has legal authority to demand such paperwork for people who register at motor vehicle offices. If he’s to win, Kobach will need to show that Kansas has a significant problem of noncitizens registering to vote.
Kobach, the vice chairman of President Donald Trump’s recently disbanded commission on election fraud, argues the law is necessary to prevent voter fraud and says even a small number of noncitizens voting could sway a close election. Critics say incidents of noncitizens registering to vote are extremely rare and argue that such Republican-backed laws hurt voter registration efforts and disenfranchise minorities and college students who may not have the documentation readily available.
Kansas has about 1.8 million registered voters. Kobach has told the court he has been able to document a total of 127 noncitizens who at least tried to register to vote since 2000. Forty-three of them were successful in registering, he says, and 11 voted.
The law in question went into effect in 2013. In its first three years, about one in seven voter registration applications in Kansas were blocked for lack of proof of citizenship — with nearly half for people under the age of 30, according to court filings.
Robinson in May 2016 temporarily blocked the law’s implementation for people who register at driver licensing offices, a ruling that was upheld by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.
FORD COUNTY — A Kansas teen has been charged with first degree murder in the weekend shooting of a woman at a Dodge City motel.
Boswell-photo Ford Co.
Police arrested Boston Cole Boswell, 18, Dodge City, on Sunday for the alleged shooting death of Shantel Rose Winkler, 27, from the rural Ford County community of Howell, according to Dodge City Police Chief Drew Francis.
Late Sunday morning, authorities discovered Winkler’s body at a motel in the 1700 Block of West Wyatt Earp Boulevard. She had a single gunshot wound to the head.
Boston made a first court appearance Monday to face the murder charge and a charge for theft of a firearm, according to Francis.
A preliminary hearing in the case is scheduled for March 15, according to Ford County Attorney Kevin Salzman.
With this fast-paced and highly competitive world, it is advantageous to be looking for all different ways to get a leg up wherever possible.
To give Hays High School students more advantages for when they start their professional lives, instructor Lora Gallegos-Haynes has been advocating for a biliteracy award and starting a chapter of the Foreign Language National Honor Society.
“Biliteracy is something that the Kansas Department of Education has urged schools to consider for their students,” Gallegos-Haynes said. “I have talked with administration about offering the Biliteracy Seal for graduating students and starting a Foreign Language National Honor Society chapter.”
For students to be eligible for the Biliteracy Seal, they must be considered biliterate in English and another language. Literacy is defined as reading, writing and speaking two languages well, according to Gallegos-Haynes.
If a student is considered biliterate, at graduation they will get a seal on their diploma and a medal to wear with their cap and gown.
The requirements for determining a student biliterate varies from state to state. However, Gallegos-Haynes believes the Kansas Department of Education will use the English portion of the ACT to test for English literacy and the Seal of Biliteracy organization’s test for literacy in Spanish.
“Students must pass both tests with an intermediate to mid-level proficiency,” Gallegos-Haynes said. “This is equivalent to level two and level three language classes.”
In addition to the Biliteracy Seal, Gallegos-Haynes said the Foreign Language National Honor Society would be very similar to our school’s national honor society.
“Members would have some community service and some projects and things they could do to help the community,” Gallegos-Haynes said. “They would just focus more on non-English speaking areas of the community or at offices translating paper work.”
Hays High would be the first school in Kansas to get a FLNHS chapter if it gets approved by administration.
“We are shooting to get this program out before the 2018 graduation,” Gallegos-Haynes said. “I have to have all the information put in by March.”
Gallegos-Haynes encourages any level three or level four students of Spanish, German or Latin or ESL students if they are comfortable enough with the English to look into the Biliteracy Seal and FLNHS.
