KANSAS CITY(AP) — A Kansas City man has been found guilty of raping a 16-year-old girl while recording the crime on her cellphone.

A Platte County jury on Wednesday found 20-year-old Martese Johnson-Winters guilty of first degree rape, first degree sodomy and sexual exploitation of a minor. Platte County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Zahnd said Johnson-Winters forced the girl to have sex while pointing what she believed to be a gun at her.

Johnson-Winters’ attorney did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment on his behalf. Sentencing is set for Dec. 5.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — Authorities say a tractor-trailer hauling cattle has overturned on a Kansas City highway, causing several other crashes as more than 40 animals broke free.

The rig flipped around 1 a.m. Thursday on Interstate 29 near the Interstate 635 interchange.

Police say another tractor-trailer and at least one car hit loose cattle. Police say another driver crashed into a police cruiser. No drivers were injured, but traffic was disrupted for hours as crews cleaned up the mess and rounded up the loose cattle.

Police say several head of cattle had to be euthanized at the scene.

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A man who wore a fake mustache and a hospital mask when he robbed a bank in Overland Park was sentenced today to four years in federal prison, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.

Steven D. Lavy, 56, pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery. According to court records, he robbed the Bank of the West at 12080 Blue Valley Parkway in Overland Park on June 21, 2017. During the robbery, he wore a yellow striped polo shirt, khaki pants, a fake mustache, a blue and white hospital mask, a straw hat and sunglasses. He also had his left arm in a sling.

Police spotted his getaway car a few minutes after the robbery and there was a chase during which Lavy drove on sidewalks and twice rammed a police car. Police found the fake mustache on the dashboard of his car when they arrested him.

 

By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – A 31-year-old Albany, Mo., woman accused of punishing a child by keeping her in a cage and starving her for months has been sentenced to 22 years in prison.

Jennifer Reed had faced 42 felony charges in the case until she pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree kidnapping and two counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child.

A 52-year-old Albany man, also implicated in the case, has been sentenced to 18 years in prison. Raymond Burks entered a similar plea deal, getting slightly less than the maximum sentences.

Prosecutors say Reed and Burks abused an 11-year-old girl in their care from July of 2017 through February of last year, handcuffing her to a cage and withholding food as a form of punishment.

A third defendant in the case, Lonnie Johnson, will be sentenced in November.

WICHITA — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a registered sex offender on new charges in Kansas.

According to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister, 41-year-old Shawn Richard Seburn of Hutchinson, is charged with one count of transporting child pornography through a Tumblr account via the internet.

The crime is alleged to have occurred in August and September 2018 in Reno County.

Seburn has previous child porn convictions from Illinois in 1999, Missouri in 2007, according to the Kansas offender registry.

If convicted, he could face a sentence of not less than five years and not more than 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000, according to McAllister.

SHAWNEE COUNTY —A dog is at a local veterinarian receiving treatment following an incident in which it charged at officers in Topeka, according to police spokesperson Gretchen Koenen.

Just after 10:30 a.m. Thursday, the Shawnee County Emergency Communications Center began receiving reports of a domestic disturbance near SE 10th and Locust.

Police responded to the scene and made contact with an adult male witness. The man had an unleashed dog with him that began to charge at officers. Officers gave multiple commands to stop the charging dog, but it continued. One officer fired his department issued firearm, striking the rear of the dog.

Topeka Police Animal Control officers transported the dog to a local veterinarian for treatment. No officers were injured in the incident. The suspect from the domestic incident has been identified as 18-year-old John B. Bowman III. He was taken into custody at SE 10th and Lawrence and is being booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on domestic battery and criminal damage charges.

HUTCHINSON — The USDA has expanded a recall of chicken, sold at stores nationwide, because of a possible listeria contamination. That includes all Dillons stores in Kansas.

Tip Top Poultry has recalled an undetermined amount of ready-to-eat poultry products that were used in additional products, including possibly being served from a deli counter in grocery stores.

The frozen cooked, diced or shredded, RTE chicken products were produced between Jan. 21 and Sept. 24. The products subject to recall can be found at www.fsis.usda.gov.

There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions because of consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider.

By ANDREA TUDHOPE
Kansas News Service

A former high-ranking official of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, was sentenced Wednesday for misdemeanor battery against a female employee.

Former General Services Director Tib Laughlin faces 12 months of probation, and must attend anger management classes and continued mental health counseling.

After Laughlin’s conviction, UG Public Relations Director Mike Taylor told KCUR that UG officials were surprised by the jury’s verdict, because they had conducted an internal investigation of the incident, and “came to a different conclusion than the jury.”

Waldeck, however, felt that the UG condoned the harassment and physical assault she faced. In August, she sued the Unified Government, saying Laughlin engaged in a pattern and practice of gender discrimination, harassment and retaliation, and that the UG “failed to discipline” Laughlin, despite Waldeck’s repeated complaints.

Waldeck told KCUR the two years she worked with Laughlin were the “most stressful and heartbreaking of her professional life.” But in her victim impact statement Wednesday, Waldeck said it wasn’t entirely Laughlin’s fault.

“When an animal that hasn’t been trained properly repeatedly has an accident on the carpet, you don’t blame the animal. You blame the owner who didn’t take the time to show the animal there is a right way to do things and a wrong way to do things,” she said. “The Unified Government failed me. It failed Mr. Laughlin. It failed my family. And it failed our community.”

For his part, Laughlin said in his statement Wednesday that it had become “painfully clear” to him that pushing his employee against a wall was wrong. He made eye contact with and apologized directly to Waldeck, who he called a “valued colleague,” until the judge told him to turn around and address the court.

He called his behavior “stupid, impulsive and obviously wrong.”

“I let down friends, colleagues and myself. They all, especially Maddie, deserve better,” he said.

Waldeck told KCUR after the hearing that she appreciated Laughlin’s apology and that he accepted responsibility for his actions.

“I would like to hope what he said was true,” Waldeck said.

Andrea Tudhope is a reporter in conjunction with the Kansas News Service. Email her at [email protected], and follow her on Twitter @andreatudhope.