First responders on the scene of Monday crash-photo Barton Co. Sheriff
BARTON COUNTY — A Kansas teen was injured in an accident just after 3p.m. Monday in Barton County.
A 2001 Cadillac Deville driven by Ashley F. Vanaman, 17, Hoisington, failed to stop before entering U.S. 281 at north East 30 Road, according to the Barton County Sheriff’s Department.
The Cadillac collided with a southbound 1998 Buick Century driven by Janel S. Tracy, 35, Great Bend.
The Cadillac continued eastbound, crashed through a fence and came to stop in a pasture. Hoisington EMS transported Vanaman to Great Bend Regional Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the sheriff’s department.
U.S. 281 was blocked for about one hour while the accident was investigated.
Robert “Bob” L. Miller, 85, of Hays, KS, passed away on Monday, February 12, 2018, at the Good Samaritan Society in Ellis, KS.
A memorial visitation will be held on Friday, February 16, 2018, from 10-11:00 AM followed by a memorial service at 11:00 AM, both being held at the Brock’s-Keithley Funeral Chapel, 2509 Vine St., Hays, KS 67601. Inurnment will follow at the Kansas Veteran’s Cemetery in WaKeeney at 1:00 PM. A complete obituary is pending.
Phillip Smith-HanesBy JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT Hays Post
The Ellis County Commission began the early stages of the 2019 budgeting process at Monday’s commission meeting with a look at a five-year outlook.
According to County Administrator Phillip Smith-Hanes, the county will start 2018 with an additional $350,000 but is projected to spend $3 million dollars more that it brings in in 2019.
Smith-Hanes said the reason for the increase is transfers to various funds — another $490,000 will go toward building projects and $280,000 is for advanced repayment of a lease purchase agreement.
All three are one-time expenditures and make up about $2.5 million of the additional spending. They could also be cut to help balance the budget.
The county also could have raised another $150,000 under the tax lid if the commission has raised the mill levy.
Smith-Hanes also, with the help of department heads, laid out a five-year projection that showed the county could be facing a projected deficit of $11 million in five years.
The budget for 2019 is balanced, but the projections are based on assumptions and Smith-Hanes said it’s hard to project five years in the future.
“The farther out you go, the less true those assumptions are likely to be,” said Smith-Hanes.
The county’s budget is affected by a number of different factors. Those include, on the expenditure side: salary and benefits, health insurance costs, the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System, and department spending.
Revenues are also hard to predict, he said. Currently, the tax lid is capped at 1.4 percent and property tax is the number that has the greatest effect.
Smith-Hanes showed that a slight change in any of the expenditures or revenues it can change the bottom line dramatically.
“It’s really difficult to construct a set of scenarios that gets us back into a positive position for an ongoing basis,” he said.
Smith-Hanes said the presentation was a cautionary tale and not a “crisis.”
The commission will continue working on the budgets for 2019 and beyond later this year.
In other business, the Commission Chair Dean Haselhorst read a proclamation declaring February as teen dating violence awareness month in Ellis County.
The commission also honored employees for years of services and had an executive session with EMS Director Kerry McCue to discuss rates of pay for non-elected personnel.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A child care worker has been charged with sexually assaulting a second child at a YMCA in Wichita.
Gaston-photo Sedgwick Co.
Caleb Gaston was charged Monday with aggravated indecent liberties with a 3-year-old girl. He had been free on bond on charges that he raped a 4-year-old girl on Jan. 29 when the younger child was identified as a possible victim of a Jan. 24 assault. Gaston was arrested again last week and is jailed on $1 million bond.
Gaston’s attorney, Steve Ariagno, said in an email that Gaston “denies any and all allegations of wrongdoing.”
As part of the investigation, authorities are reviewing YMCA camera footage. Plymouth Congregational Church said in a statement that Gaston was terminated in October from its preschool after an inappropriate touching complaint.
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A judge is weighing a man’s claim that that a deadly Lawrence shooting was self-defense.
Drake- photo Douglas County
The preliminary hearing for Steven Drake III ended with a judge taking the case under advisement. Drake is charged with first-degree murder charge in the killing of Bryce Holladay.
The shooting happened in September after Holladay began rummaging through items in a home where Drake was living with roommates. Holladay is accused of throwing punches as several people tried to push him out.
Drake told police he gave Holladay “fair warning.” At the time, Holladay was awaiting trial in an unrelated auto burglary and theft case.
Prosecutors argue that deadly force wasn’t reasonable because no one was at risk of great bodily harm or death. Drake knew Holladay.
Robert L.Walters, 63, of Russell, Kansas died on Friday, February 9, 2018 at the Russell Regional Hospital in Russell, Kansas.
Robert was born on June 02, 1954, in Russell, Kansas, the son of William R. and Clarice L. (Metz) Walters. He grew up in Russell and graduated from Russell High School in the class of 1972.
After high school, he attended Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas. He met, fell in love and was united in marriage to LuAnn L. Schulze on June 04, 1977, in Norton, Kansas. From this union Robert and LuAnn were blessed with three sons, Luke, Steven and Tristan. Robert began his career working beside his father and grandfather at Russell Automotive Supply. At the time of his passing, he was a parts buyer for S&W Supply in Russell, Kansas, having recently completed 20 years with the company. He was a longtime member of First Congregational Church and Trinity United Methodist Church. He was also a member of the Russell Masonic Lodge, Russell Shrine Club and Isis Shrine Temple.
Robert was the 1968 National Spelling Bee Champion. He loved music and enjoyed singing bass with the 4-Told Quartet, traveling the country and attending quartet sing fests. Robert enjoyed hunting and fishing with his family and friends. In recent years, he volunteered at Trinity Community Thrift Store. He was especially gifted at telling jokes and had a special talent in remembering all of them. Most of all Robert enjoyed spending time with his family, especially his children and grandchildren.
Surviving family include his wife LuAnn from the home; sons Luke Walters (Bern) of Kansas City, MO, Steven Walters (Jenny) of Hays, KS and Tristan (Ammi) of Wichita, KS; brothers William Clay Walters (Jean) of Topeka, KS and John Matthew Walters (Janell) of Manhattan, KS; sister Phoebe Walters of Salina, KS; six grandchildren Willem and Theron Walters, Magnolia and Giovanni Hayes, Anniston and London Rudisell. He was preceded in death by his parents.
A celebration of Robert’s life will be held at 11 A.M. on Thursday, February 15, 2018, at Trinity United Methodist Church in Russell, Kansas. Masonic services will follow and be performed at the church. Services will conclude at the church. Visitation will be from 9 A.M. to 8 P.M. on Wednesday, February 14, 2018, at the mortuary. Family will greet guests from 6 P.M. to 7 P.M. Wednesday evening. Memorials may be given to the Community Thrift Store and sent in care of the mortuary. Pohlman-Varner-Peeler Mortuary of Russell, Kansas, is in charge of the funeral service arrangements.
Emma Louise Wiesendanger Yanda, age 94, of Sun City West, Arizona, passed away after a brief illness on February 3, 2018. She was born in Randolph, Kansas on September 28, 1923, to J.J. and Marie Elizabeth Peterson Wiesendanger.
She graduated from Salina High School in 1941 and Kansas City Art Institute in 1946. On September 4, 1948, Emma married Albert Yanda in Salina, Kansas. Emma owned her own Graphic Design Studio for 30 years, retiring in Del Mar, California for six years prior to moving to Sun City West. While in Sun City West, she began weaving, and taught and gave presentations on the art of weaving throughout Arizona, and had her work published in Handwoven Magazine.
Emma and her late husband of 55 years, Albert, traveled extensively throughout the world. Emma moved to Grandview Terrace in 2004, and was elected Vice President of the Grandview Terrace Community Service Foundation and Funds Developer until prior to her death.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Albert, an Architect; and her parents. Survivors include her sister, Mary Elzea of Lawrence, Kansas; brother, James Wiesendanger of Salina, Kansas; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Graveside service will be at 11 AM on February 24, 2018 at Christ the King Catholic Cemetery, WaKeeney, Kansas. There will be no visitation as cremation was chosen.
A memorial gathering will also be held at Grandview Terrace in Sun City West, Arizona on March 28, 2018 from 2:30 – 4:30 PM.
Memorials are suggested to The Grandview Terrace Scholarship Fund, Sun City West, Arizona. Contributions may be left at the service or sent to Schmitt Funeral Home, 336 North 12th, WaKeeney, KS 67672.
David Charles Cozad, son of Rex and Merle (Knutson) Cozad was born January 7, 1945 in McCook, Nebraska and passed away at his home in Holly Lake Ranch, Tx on February 12, 2018 at the age of 73.
David grew up in Decatur County, Ks and attended the Spring Branch School for the first 8 years of his education. He then attended high school in Norcatur graduating in 1963. On January 30, 1965 he married his high school sweetheart Karen Jackson, they were married in the Maple Grove Church of the Brethren northwest of Norton, KS. January 30, 2018 they celebrated their 53rd wedding anniversary.
David was a man of many talents and did many things in his 73 years; he farmed until moving to Norton in 1976 where he was in construction building homes. For a few years he owned and operated a commercial laundry in Norton until he pursued a life long dream of learning to fly. Once he got his private pilot license he continued on to achieve his instrument rating and then a commercial license. He taught ground school and several of his students went on to get their private licenses under his direction. While flying brought about many numerous experiences, his favorite part of it was crop dusting. That aspect of flying combined things he loved best – farming and flying and being outdoors.
When he physically could no longer crop dust, he left aviation and worked for the Kansas Dept of Correction for 5 years. He had an opportunity then to buy an automotive sales route business which he continued for several years. When he retired he went back to construction and remodeled his parents old home place into a cabin for family and friends to gather for reunions and hunting and just enjoying life in the country.
In the fall of 2014, Karen and David moved to Texas to be closer to their grandchildren. His health started deteriorating soon after but he loved his time in Texas. He attended numerous activities involving the grandchildren and enjoyed the times they visited in Holly Lake. He was able to watch numerous birds, deer and other wildlife from his patio. His family remembers him as a very special father and grandfather, and have lots of memories of how much he loved them.
Survivors include: his wife Karen of the home; one daughter, Tracy and Dan Engelhardt of Norton; two sons, Jon and Maria Cozad and their children Jack and Jennica of North Richland Hills, Tx; Jeremy and Claire Cozad and their children Lucy and Rose of Tyler, Tx; his mother, Merle Cozad of Lee Summit, Mo; one sister, Mary Lynn and Bill Vanderburg of Clinton, MO; two nephews and six nieces and their families; many other relatives and friends.
David was preceded in death by his father, Rex; one sister, Beverly Morton; one brother, John Cozad; his paternal grandparents, Bert and Naomi Cozad; maternal grandparents, Elmer and Helen Knutson.
FUNERAL SERVICE – Friday, February 16, 2018 –10:30 A.M.
PLACE – Enfield Funeral Home – Norton, Kansas
VISITATION – Thursday, February 15, 2018 from 5:00 P.M until 7:00 P.M.
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas father and husband who is fighting efforts to deport him to Bangladesh was taken off a plane that was flying him back to his native country and is being held at a detention center in Hawaii, his attorneys said Tuesday.
Federal immigration officials put Syed Ahmed Jamal, who has lived in Kansas for 30 years, on the plane Monday before a federal immigration panel granted a temporary stay in the case. He was taken off the flight when it stopped to refuel in Honolulu, the firm representing him, Sharma-Crawford Attorneys at Law, posted on its Facebook page. Attorney Rekha Sharma-Crawford didn’t immediately reply to messages left Tuesday seeking further details, and it’s unclear what the next step will be for Jamal, who is hoping to remain in the U.S. with his wife and three children, who are all U.S. citizens.
It was the latest dramatic turn for Jamal, who has been battling deportation since Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested him Jan. 24 at his family’s home in Lawrence.
A federal immigration judge early Monday removed a temporary stay he issued last week for Jamal, who was being held in a detention center in El Paso, Texas. His attorneys immediately sought a new stay from the Board of Immigration Appeals in Virginia, which granted one later Monday, but not before Jamal was put on a flight to Bangladesh, Sharma-Crawford said Monday.
Jamal’s possible deportation had prompted 94,000 people to sign a petition in his support. Rep. Emauel Cleaver, a Democrat from Missouri whose office was flooded with calls about the case, took up Jamal’s cause, even visiting him in El Paso over the weekend. On Monday, before the second order was issued, he issued a statement saying he would continue with plans to draft a bill prompted by Jamal’s case that shows how “this broken and unfair” immigration system affects families who have deep ties to their communities.
Rep. Lynn Jenkins, whose Kansas district includes Lawrence, also said before the second stay was issued that she supported Jamal’s efforts to have his immigration case reopened.
“My heart aches for his wife and children,” Jenkins said. “I cannot imagine what they are going through during this very difficult time.”
Jamal has worked as an adjunct professor and researcher at Kansas City-area colleges. He entered the U.S. legally in 1987 to attend the University of Kansas but overstayed his visa while pursuing a doctorate. He was ordered deported in 2011 but had been allowed to stay in the U.S. and check in regularly with immigration authorities.
Sharma-Crawford said Jamal has a work permit that is valid until October 2018 and that he was trying to work within what she said was a complicated immigration system.
ICE officials have consistently declined to explain why they chose to enforce the order in late January.
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LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A man who has lived in Kansas for 30 years was already on a plane being deported back to his native Bangladesh when a federal immigration board issued a new stay Monday that his supporters hope will allow him to be returned to Lawrence, his attorneys said.
It was a dramatic day for the family and supporters of Syed Ahmed Jamal, 55, who have been battling deportation since he was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Jan. 24 in Lawrence at a home he shares with his wife and three children, who are U.S. citizens.
A federal immigration judge early Monday removed a temporary stay he issued last week for Jamal, who was being held in a detention center in El Paso, Texas. His attorneys immediately filed a new motion for a stay with the Board of Immigration Appeals in Virginia, which granted the motion later Monday.
Before the second order was issued, Jamal was placed on a plane back to Bangladesh, said his attorney, Rekha Sharma-Crawford. The plane is scheduled to refuel in Hawaii and Sharma-Crawford said she was hopeful he would be taken off the plane and be sent back to the U.S., KMBC reported.
Jamal’s possible deportation had prompted 94,000 people to sign a petition in his support. Rep. Emauel Cleaver, a Democrat from Missouri whose office was flooded with calls about the case, took up Jamal’s cause, even visiting him in El Paso during the weekend. On Monday, before the second order was issued, he issued a statement saying he would continue with plans to draft a bill prompted by Jamal’s case that shows how “this broken and unfair” immigration system affects families who have deep ties to their communities.
Rep. Lynn Jenkins, whose Kansas district includes Lawrence, also said before the second stay was issued that she supported Jamal’s efforts to have his immigration case reopened.
“My heart aches for his wife and children,” Jenkins said. “I cannot imagine what they are going through during this very difficult time.”
Jamal is a native of Bangladesh. While in the U.S., he has worked as an adjunct professor and researcher at Kansas City-area colleges
Jamal entered the U.S. legally in 1987 to attend the University of Kansas but overstayed his visa while pursuing a doctorate. He was ordered deported in 2011 but had been allowed to stay in the U.S. and check in regularly with immigration authorities. Sharma-Crawford said Jamal has a work permit that is valid until October 2018 and that he was trying to work within what she said was a complicated immigration system.
ICE officials have consistently declined to explain why they chose to enforce the order in late January.
5:15 p.m.
A federal immigration board has granted a new stay of removal for a Kansas chemist who is battling efforts to deport him to Bangladesh.
That came Monday afternoon, hours after a federal immigration judge dissolved a temporary stay he had issued last week for 55-year-old Syed Ahmed Jamal, who was arrested in late January in Lawrence.
Jamal’s attorneys quickly filed a new motion for a stay with the Board of Immigration Appeals in Virginia, which granted it late.
The chemist and adjunct professor has lived in the U.S. for more than 30 years. He and his wife have three U.S. native children live in Lawrence.
His arrest and possible deportation sparked protests and criticism, including from Missouri Rep. Emanuel Cleaver.
Immigration officials have not explained why they decided to arrest him Jan. 24.
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LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A judge has denied a stay that would keep a Kansas chemist in the U.S. while he battles immigration officials’ efforts to deport him to Bangladesh.
Attorneys for 55-year-old Syed Ahmed Jamal said a federal immigration judge on Monday dissolved a temporary stay issued last week, meaning Jamal could be deported at any time. Jamal’s attorneys immediately filed a new motion for stay with the Board of Immigration Appeals in Virginia.
Jamal, who has lived in the U.S. for more than 30 years, was arrested Jan. 24 in Lawrence.
His attorneys at the Sharma-Crawford firm in Kansas City said Monday it was unclear whether Jamal was still at a detention center in El Paso, Texas.
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri and Rep. Lynn Jenkins of Kansas issued statements Monday saying they were disappointed in the judge’s decision.
Agra resident Merle L. Barnes passed away, February 10, 2018 at the Phillips County Hospital in Phillipsburg at the age of 86.
He was born October 20, 1931 in Gretna, KS the son of Harold D. & Alma J. (Underwood) Barnes.
On February 1, 1957, he was united in marriage to Lela May Patterson in Phillipsburg, KS. She survives of Agra.
Other survivors include his son, Micky Barnes & wife, Janet; daughter, Linda Dougherty & husband, Daryl all of Agra; 8 grandchildren; and 8 great grandchildren.
Funeral services will be 2:00 p.m. Saturday, February 17, 2018 in the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, Phillipsburg, with Robert Keesee officiating. Burial with military honors conducted by the Agra American Legion Post No. 357 will follow in the Agra Cemetery, Agra.
Mr. Barnes will lie in state from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday & Friday, with family receiving friends Friday evening from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., all at the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, Phillipsburg.
Memorial contributions may be made to the “Know Your Bible” program or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
KANSAS CITY (AP) – Applebee’s has temporarily closed a restaurant and fired three employees accused of falsely accusing two black women of “dining and dashing.”
The Kansas City Star reports that Applebee’s said in a statement that it doesn’t “tolerate racism, bigotry or harassment.” The statement said it was closing the restaurant in the Independence Center shopping mall so employees can “regroup, learn and grow.”
There’ve been more than 2 million views of the video Alexis Brison posted Saturday to Facebook of her and a friend denying allegations that they previously left the Applebee’s without paying. Brison, of St. Louis, began recording after being confronted by a police officer, mall security guard and an Applebee’s manager.
She can be heard saying in the video, “This is what black people have to deal with.”
