DERBY, Kan. (AP) — The police chief in Derby says his department will outfit its four school resource officers with body cameras as part of a pilot project.
Derby Police Chief Robert Lee says the department will spend about $7,400 on the cameras, and he anticipates the school resource officers will be equipped by March. The Wichita Eagle reports the pilot project is expected to last a year.
Lee says the police department is considering equipping all 47 of its officers with body cameras. He says cameras “are a good thing for law enforcement,” but that there are concerns over costs.
According to estimates given to department in 2014, Lee says it would cost around $170,000 to equip all officers with cameras and buy server space for the first several years of footage.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A judge has delayed the trial for a former lottery official accused of fixing jackpots in several states.
Former Multi-State Lottery Association security director Eddie Tipton had been scheduled to stand trial Jan. 6 in Des Moines.
But Tipton waived his right to a speedy trial last week, and his attorney asked for a delay. Judge Jeffrey Farrell last week reset the trial for July 18.
Tipton has pleaded not guilty to charges of ongoing criminal conduct and money laundering.
Prosecutors allege that he used his access to random number generators to fix jackpots in Colorado, Wisconsin, Oklahoma and Kansas, and worked with associates to play winning numbers and collect prizes.
A jury in July convicted Tipton of fraud for fixing a $16.5 million Hot Lotto jackpot in Iowa.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback says he’s not second-guessing a new state law that would require the state’s college campuses to allow concealed weapons.
The Republican told the Lawrence Journal-World that the law is in accordance with the Constitution’s Second Amendment’s right to bear arms.
In 2013, Kansas lawmakers passed and Brownback signed a bill mandating that concealed weapons be allowed in nearly all public buildings unless adequate security is in place to prevent anyone from bringing in a weapon.
Public colleges and universities were given until 2017 to come into compliance with that law.
The University of Kansas’ chancellor and 70 of that school’s distinguished professors publicly have spoken out against the law.
POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Pottawatomie and Riley County are investigating three suspects on drug charges.
Just after 3:45 a.m., on Sunday, Pottawatomie County Sheriff Deputy William Cline stopped a green 1994 Chevrolet Camaro near Enoch Lane and Frontage Road in Manhattan, Pottawatomie County, according to a sheriff’s department media release.
During this traffic stop an occupant of the vehicle fled on foot.
Sheriff Deputies later captured this suspect identified as Joseph Luven Pham-Gardner, 28, Onaga, along with the assistance of the Riley County Police Department.
Pham-Gardner was taken into custody for criminal possession of a firearm, interference with law enforcement, possession of a hallucinogenic drug, possession of a stimulant drug and possession of drug paraphernalia.
The driver of the Camaro, Patrick Arrow, 22, Louisville, Kan., was taken into custody for possession of a hallucinogenic drug, possession of a stimulant drug, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a hallucinogenic drug with intent to distribute, possession of a stimulant drug with intent to distribute, possession of medication with intent to distribute, criminal use of a firearm and transporting an open container. Arrow remains at the Pottawatomie County Jail on a $25,000 bond.
The third occupant of the Camaro, Seth Lightfoot, 21, Blaine, was taken into custody for possession of a hallucinogenic drug, possession of a stimulant drug and possession of drug paraphernalia. Pham-Gardner, Arrow, and Lightfoot remain at the Pottawatomie County Jail on a $25,000 bond each.
During this stop a quantity of marijuana and methamphetamine were also seized as well as the vehicle.
Law enforcement on the scene of the Christmas Eve standoff in Hutchinson
HUTCHINSON — The man arrested after a domestic incident and nearly six-hour standoff with Hutchinson Police on Christmas Eve made a first court appearance on Monday.
Charles Mendenhall III faces charges of aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault, criminal threat and two counts of aggravated endangerment of a child.
He was taken into custody without incident Thursday following the standoff after the alleged woman victim inside the residence in the 700 Block of Pierce Street was released unharmed.
There were some children in the home when the violence started around 6:30 a.m., but they apparently left the home and the daughter contacted police.
She told police that she woke to the sound of dishes breaking and then saw the defendant pointing a gun to her mother’s head.
She said one the suspect threatened to blow her mother’s brains out. According to statements made in court, he may have also fired the weapon at least three times.
Mendenhall is jailed on a $113,000 bond and a request to have the bond lowered was denied. He’ll be back in court on January 5, to see if the state has filed formal charges.
HARVEY COUNTY- Slick roads are responsible for numerous accident across the state on Monday.
One person was injured in an accident just after 9a.m. in Harvey County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2005 Chevy passenger car driven by Elizabeth Ann Ourecky, 28, Garland, TX., was southbound on Interstate 135 just north of the Kansas 15 Junction.
The driver lost control of the car due to the ice.
It traveled through the median into the northbound lane and was hit by a northbound Peterbilt semi.
Ourecky was transported to Wesley Medical Center. The semi driver Scott Alan Heslop, 50, Park City was not injured.
Just before 9 a.m., a 2003 Chevy Van driven by Marlon Amaya, 41,Wichita, was northbound on Interstate 35 four miles north of Waverly.
The driver lost control of vehicle on the ice-covered roadway,
It entered the ditch on the south shoulder and overturned.
A passenger in the van Ricardo Adan Garcia, 35, Honduras, was transported to Ransom Memorial Hospital. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.
SALINE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Saline County are investigating an alleged case of criminal damage to property following a disagreement between siblings.
Deputies arrested Tyler Wolf, 24, McPherson, on Saturday after he allegedly jumped on the hood of a Pontiac G6 while it was parked at Outlaws, 1676 State Street in Salina just after 2a.m.
Wolf damaged the hood, kicked in the windshield, tried to rip off a windshield wiper, and kicked the sides of the car, causing dents, according to deputies.
He became upset while leaving the club.
The car is owned by Ashley Walton of Salina. She is Wolf’s sister.
Wolf was booked into the Saline County Jail on requested charges of felony damage to property.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An effort to improve large, blighted shopping centers in Topeka, Kansas, is getting a $500,000 boost.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the Joint Economic Development Organization’s board has approved a 2016 budget for the use of revenue from a countywide, half-cent sales tax. Revenue from the tax is used to finance infrastructure improvements and economic development.
That budget includes setting aside $500,000 to finance a new business initiative to enhance the attraction of blighted shopping centers.
Go Topeka is the economic development arm of the Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce. It administers the use of the tax’s economic development revenue.
Go Topeka’s plans call for the incentive program to provide a 25 percent match in funding for developers who invest in any of the locations.
Image Flighwaware over Kansas at 9:15 a.m. on Monday
The Associated Press
The latest developments on the severe storms across the U.S. (all times local):
8:45 a.m.
Over 900 flights have been canceled across the U.S. and another 500 have been delayed due to the large storm system moving through the middle part of the country.
Flight-tracking service FlightAware showed that more than a third of the cancellations were at Chicago’s two main airports. Another large chunk came from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport; several tornadoes touched down Saturday in the Dallas suburbs.
Other cities with an unusually large number of cancellations included Houston, Denver, Detroit, Kansas City, Missouri, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and Lubbock, Texas.
A typical day sees about 150 cancelations and 4,000 delays.
Heavy rain and strong winds, like forecast for parts of Missouri, Illinois and Arkansas on Monday, are often more troubling for airlines than snowfall.
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8:35 a.m.
The Texas Department of Transportation says many roadways across West Texas and the Panhandle have been closed due to ice and blizzard conditions, with traffic coming to standstill where Interstate 10 splits into Interstate 20.
The department said early Monday morning Interstates 40 and 27 were closed and that travelers should expect long delays across the region.
Vito Randazzo, of Alpine, California, is driving across the country and was among those who got stuck on Interstate 10.
He said Monday morning that he’d been sitting on the icy interstate since 8 p.m. Sunday and that “everybody’s just sleeping in their cars.”
He also said he couldn’t believe the “road was left in this condition” — snow-packed and icy — and that he had water, but not food.
National Weather Service officials say that while the snow has stopped across the area, temperatures are to remain near or below freezing.
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7:35 a.m.
Authorities say more than 180 Missouri roads are closed because of flooding.
The Missouri State Department of Transportation says the closures include eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 in St. Charles County. Though both lanes closed Sunday because of rising flood waters, the westbound lanes reopened Monday morning.
Several bridges in southeastern Missouri counties also are closed because of flooding.
The National Weather Service said three to six inches of rain fell during the weekend, and up to four inches more is expected through Monday.
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7:25 a.m.
Officials in Birmingham, Alabama, say more than 70 structures sustained some type of damage after a tornado touched down on Christmas.
City spokesman April Odom said a preliminary assessment found the storm damaged 72 structures in the Jefferson Avenue area, ranging from minor damage to full destruction.
Other parts of the city saw damage, too, and assessments will be completed this week.
Forecasters more storms are in the forecast for most of Alabama on Monday, and a tornado watch is in effect until noon CST for more than 30 counties.
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8 a.m.
Officials in Mississippi are reporting downed trees across a highway and a roof blown off a house from a storm about 20 miles northwest of Hattiesburg.
Covington County Emergency Manager Greg Sanford says the damage happened before dawn Monday near the town of Seminary. The area was under a tornado warning at the time, but no tornado has been confirmed.
Warnings were posted as a squall line moved west to east across Mississippi.
Statewide, more than 6,800 power customers lacked electricity at 6 a.m. Monday.
Northern Mississippi residents are still cleaning up from a tornado that struck Wednesday and killed 10 people in the state.
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6:50 a.m.
Oklahoma highway officials say many roads are impassable because of wintry weather, downed power lines or flooding.
Parts of western and central Oklahoma are under a winter storm warning until midday Monday, while flooding is a major concern in the southern and eastern part of the state.
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation says roads in northwest Oklahoma and Interstate 35 in central Oklahoma are slick and hazardous.
The National Weather Service says “disastrous” flooding will occur in eastern Oklahoma, where some areas received up to a foot of rain over the weekend. The state DOT says high water has caused the closure of some roads in counties in the southern and eastern part of the state.
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6:30 a.m.
Parts of 11 states in the middle of the country are under a winter storm warning as the weather system that spawned tornadoes in Texas and flooding in Missouri moves on.
Meanwhile, the National Weather Service has issued a flash flood warning for southern and eastern parts of Missouri, including St. Louis, and a small section of northern Arkansas. Most of Arkansas, eastern Oklahoma, central Missouri and central Illinois are under a flood warning.
Forecasters say Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and parts of Minnesota, Illinois, Missouri, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas will see winter weather conditions ranging from heavy snow to ice, accompanied by gusty winds.
Parts of the Southeast will see rain, while severe weather is possible in Mississippi.
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2:30 a.m.
Blizzard-like conditions have led to the closure of most of Interstate 40 from Albuquerque east across the Texas Panhandle.
New Mexico State Police spokeswoman Sgt. Elizabeth Armijo said Sunday night that the stretch of interstate from Albuquerque to the Texas border would be closed through at least Monday afternoon. She urged travelers passing through New Mexico to use Interstate 10 instead.
In Texas, the Texas Department of Public Safety says only a small section of the highway around Amarillo remains open. Texas State Trooper Cindy Barkley says deteriorating conditions forced authorities to indefinitely close the highway for about 100 miles east of Amarillo to Oklahoma.
I-40 is the main east-west highway through the state’s Panhandle.
The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning until 9 a.m. Monday for the Panhandle and several counties in New Mexico. Authorities say that even in areas where the warning has expired, residual blowing and drifting is expected and will make conditions dangerous.
HUTCHINSON– Fire officials in Reno County are investigating the cause of a fire just after 9p.m. on Sunday in an apartment in the 500 Block of East First Street in Hutchinson.
When firefighters arrived, they found heavy smoke coming from the rear of the structure.
Initial crews were also confronted by one of the occupants who could not account for his wife, according to a media release from the Hutchinson Fire Department.
Crews entered the structure and were met with heavy fire.
A search of the apartment was done and no occupants were found. They were then notified later that the occupant was found safe at another location.
The fire took one hour to control.
High winds at the time caused the fire to spread through the attic area. The apartment sustained major damage to three rooms and the roof.
Damage is estimated at $30,000, with the cause undetermined.
No injuries were reported with crews on scene for three hours.
Dr. Randy Watson became Kansas Commissioner of Education, overseeing the Kansas State Department of Education that spends 51 percent of state tax revenues in our schools across the state. Commissioner Watson had been Superintendent of USD #418, the McPherson Public School district, one of the first districts to negotiate alternative assessments under U.S.D.E. Secretary Duncan’s “Race to the Top” program that was enforcing No Child Left Behind testing.
After a statewide tour, Commissioner Watson advocated for the importance of soft skills in addition to tested subjects. Exactly how these will be measured or promoted is yet to be seen. However, the outcomes for the “Kansans Can” vision and the hyperbole of “Kansas leads the world in the success of each student” reminds many teachers of the unrealistic platitudes of NCLB (100 percent proficient by 2014) and the just-passed bipartisan “Every Student Succeeds Act.”
Meanwhile, teachers had to look hard to find any positive state or federal legislative actions that halted the decline in K-12 education support in Kansas or across the nation. The Kansas Legislature moved to block-grant funding, bragging that this increased school funding. In truth, the alleged increase incorporated restoring KPERS funding. Some Kansas schools had to end their school year early. And Kansas courts found the new plan unconstitutional.
The 2014 Kansas Legislative action removing teacher due-process (tenure) continued to have an impact on Kansas student teacher production, especially in the sciences. For the first time, some rural Kansas school districts faced shortages in applicants for elementary and vo-ag teachers. The science and special education teacher shortage is now so severe that many superintendents have given up finding qualified candidates. In a few cases where local USD contracts permit it, Kansas science teachers are being hired at higher than pay scale—in effect, the first cases of differentiated teacher pay in the state.
While Kansas was the second state to eliminate tenure, pushed by ultra-conservatives, California eliminated teacher tenure a few months later due to efforts from liberals who are pushing the same effort in New York. Yet again, teachers have no political party on their side.
Six schools joined the Coalition of Innovative School Districts, an arrangement allowed by recent Kansas legislation that would allow up to 20 percent of Kansas USDs (up to 56 USDs) to hire individuals who lack the professional qualifications for teaching to be fully-paid teachers. The reward for the CISD is a pot of money set aside for being innovative. The Kansas City Kansas Superintendent explained how she wanted the money to buy college dual credits for her remaining poor high school students while Blue Valley wanted to continue a variety of innovations they already do. The other four districts reflect the plight of rural Kansas schools who want legitimacy for hiring local untrained folks without using the alternate routes to teaching credentials already available. Their real motivation lies in the fact that these would be locally-“licensed” teachers who could not teach elsewhere, essentially in servitude to the local district. Despite total opposition in public forums, the State Board of Education approved the CISD system. It would take but one small amendment in the Legislature to un-cap the CISD and make Kansas the first state to totally de-professionalize teaching.
The growing atmosphere of disrespect toward the teaching profession contributed to an increased migration of Kansas teachers to nearby states. Missouri took advantage of teacher dissatisfaction by erecting billboard advertising for teachers along the state boarder. The Kansas governor pointed out that both Oklahoma and Missouri have lower pay scales, an action again highlighting how many politicians fail to understand the teaching profession.
The number of schools abandoning print textbooks and adopting one-to-one computing in the form of personal digital devices accelerated across Kansas. There was often minimal-to-no teacher involvement in these top-down decisions. While parents no longer had a textbook rental fee, there was a far higher cost to the schools for these devices that rarely last more than three years. Teachers have extra work to develop digital materials to replace the textbooks and load them onto computers for those students who do not have broadband access at home. Student learning time is cut. And in many cases, the online materials provide students with unreviewed and erroneous content.
The ink is barely dry on the Every Student Succeeds Act just passed in Washington, DC. The NCLB testing regimes remain embedded in the laws of 43 states although many federal penalties were removed. But new ESSA actions promote alternate route programs. And those new rookie teachers are to be hired at masters-level pay—a whole new federal overreach into state education.
Finally, high school graduation rates for both Kansas and the nation are significantly higher than a decade ago. Unfortunately, the more genuine measures of academic attainment provided by NAEP scores and college graduation rates are down. While islands of quality teaching remain, overall it is becoming harder for a bad student to fail. And fewer of our graduating students are prepared to succeed in college-level work.
WICHITA- Four people were injured in a pair of accidents blamed on the weather after 11p.m. on Sunday in Sedgwick County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1999 Ford van driven by Julio A. Madrid-Moncayo, was southbound on Interstate 135 just south of the Harvey County line.
The driver lost control on the icy roadway and struck a 2013 Kia driven by Nicole M. Stephens, 33, Newton, on the shoulder.
Madrid-Moncayo was transported to St. Francis Medical Center. Stephens was transported to Wesley Medical Center.
Just after 11:30 p.m. a 2015 Dodge pickup driven by Joenicion J. Compton, 39, Houston, TX., was northbound on Interstate 135 and 77th Street North in Park City.
The driver lost control of the truck and struck a 2015 Chevy Malibu driven by Sylvester M. Bosserman, 70, Lake Havisu City, AZ
Bosserman and a passenger Patricia M. Bosserman, 63, Lake Havasu City, AZ., were transported to St. Francis Medical Cener. Compton was not injured.
All were properly restrained at the time of the accidents, according to the KHP.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Turnpike Authority has approved contracts for two-year bridge projects in Wichita and between Topeka and Emporia.
The Wichita Eagle reports that the $7.19 million project in Wichita was awarded to Iowa-based A.M. Cohron & Son of Atlantic.
The Turnpike Authority says the project will widen and replace decks on the two Arkansas River bridges at a location just west of K-15, near MacArthur.
Another $4.48 million project in Osage County was awarded to King Construction of Hesston.
The Turnpike Authority says the project will reconstruct two bridges and remove two bridges about halfway between Emporia and Topeka.
DERBY, Kan. (AP) — The police chief in Derby says his department will outfit its four school resource officers with body cameras as part of a pilot project.
