JIM SUHR, Associated Press

OSKALOOSA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas judge has overturned a man’s conviction in his sister-in-law’s 1999 shooting death after attorneys introduced new DNA testing that implicated the man’s late brother.

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OSKALOOSA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas court is considering whether to overturn a Kansas man’s conviction in his sister-in-law’s 1999 killing after new DNA testing was conducted.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that 39-year-old Floyd Bledsoe appears in court Tuesday afternoon. He was convicted of first-degree murder, aggravated kidnapping and aggravated indecent liberties in the death of 14-year-old Camille Arfmann. He’s been imprisoned for more than 16 years.

A new report finds that sperm from Arfmann’s body likely belonged to Bledsoe’s brother, Tom Bledsoe, who initially confessed before blaming Floyd Bledsoe. Tom Bledsoe was found dead of an apparent suicide soon after the DNA results were made public.

Arfmann disappeared from the mobile home she shared with Floyd Bledsoe, her sister and their two children after coming home from school.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), member of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, on Monday announced that the 931st Air Refueling Group – the Air Force Reserve associate unit with the active-duty 22nd Air Refueling Wing (ARW) at McConnell Air Force Base (AFB) – will officially be designated as the 931st Air Refueling Wing as early as January 2016.

The designation is a result of the expanding responsibilities of the 931st Air Refueling Group, particularly as a result of McConnell AFB’s selection as the United States Air Force’s first home of the new KC-46A tanker.

“I am pleased that the 931st Air Refueling Group at McConnell Air Force Base will receive the well-deserved recognition of an Air Refueling Wing next year,” Sen. Moran said. “Along with the 22nd Air Refueling Wing at McConnell, the 931st plays a critical role in our nation’s air mobility with thousands of hours deployed around the world. With military construction well underway, the 931st is also preparing for the upcoming arrival of the KC-46A refueling tankers. The Wing designation will make certain the 931st receives the resources and manpower necessary to meet the air refueling demands of our Armed Forces for years to come. I have long advocated for the transition of the 931st to Wing status, and I am proud the Air Force recognizes the hard work and value of the men and women at McConnell.”

In order to accommodate the anticipated fiscal year 2016 arrival of the first KC-46A tankers, the 931st is slated to increase their manpower by more than 400 positions. This anticipated increase in personnel and new classification as a Wing will give the 931st the resources and personnel necessary to carry out their air mobility missions with the new KC-46A tankers.

In 2013, Sen. Moran joined members of the Kansas Delegation in sending a letter to Air Force Chief of Staff General Mark Welsh regarding the potential designation of the 931st Air Refueling Group. In April 2015, the senator asked Air Force Reserve Chief Lieutenant General James Jackson about the Wing designation during a Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee hearing. At that time, Lt. Gen. Jackson spoke about the excellence of the 931st Air Refueling Group and projected the Wing classification for the 931st would be in place by 2017 or 2018.

In June 2015, Sen. Moran also met with Colonel Mark Larson, who commands the 931st at McConnell AFB, to discuss this matter. The Colonel was pleased to report that the 931st met the threshold to transition into a Refueling Wing.

SALINE COUNTY- A Kansas man was injured in an accident just before 11p.m. on Monday in Saline County.

A pickup driven by Larry Goppert, 57, Assaria, was eastbound on Kansas 143, according to Saline County Sheriff’s Captain Roger Soldan.

The pickup left the road, crossed Old Highway 81, went into the ditch and rolled.

A nearby resident who heard screaming and cries for help notified the sheriff’s office.

Goppert was taken to Salina Regional Health Center for treatment of cuts and possible broken ribs and a collapsed lung, according to Soldan.

An investigation of the accident continues and citations may be issued.

GREELEY COUNTY- Law enforcement authorities in Greeley and Scott County are investigating a series of weekend thefts.

Seventeen cars were broken into and valuable stolen on Friday in Scott City, according to a report from the Greeley County Sheriff.

On Saturday night residents in Leoti reported 15 vehicles were entered and valuables were stolen.

Officials are reminding citizens to lock cars, hide or remove valuables and report suspicious activity.

Great Bend Post

BARTON COUNTY -More information continues to flow in on Barton County’s new oil well placed at the county landfill.

Seismic work was done last summer by RJM Oil of Claflin to determine if there was a chance to drill for oil north of the landfill.

When tests came back positive, RJM determined it would be in the county’s best interest to drill a well and begin pumping oil.

County Administrator Richard Boeckman, the county is slowly getting a better idea of what they have.

“I think they intend to pump ten to fifteen barrels a day for foreseeable future,” said Boeckman.

The location of the drilling is near the storm water runoff ponds and does not interfere with day-to-day operations of the landfill.

Barton County Commissioners will eventually have to determine what they want to do with the revenue that comes from the well.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House is poised to crack down on visa-free travel to the U.S., aiming to ensure that the Paris attacks won’t be repeated here.

Legislation denying visa-free travel to anyone who’s been in Iraq or Syria for the past five years is set for a vote in the House on Tuesday. It is likely to pass by a wide, bipartisan margin. The bill also makes a series of other changes to the visa waiver program, which allows citizens of 38 countries to travel to the U.S. without a visa for stays of 90 days or less.

Around 20 million visitors come to the U.S. each year on the visa waiver program. Most of the Paris attackers were citizens of Belgium and France, countries that participate in the visa waiver program.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Police are searching for two teenagers who have been charged in the fatal shootings of two men outside a Kansas City convenience store.

The Jackson County prosecutor’s office announced Monday that 18-year-old Louie S. Guana, of Kansas City, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Pablo Lopez and Jorge Calderon-Ruiz.

The probable cause statement says surveillance video captured Guana shooting the victims in October on a sidewalk in front of the entrance to a BP gas station. The shooting followed an argument.

A 17-year-old from Kansas City, Kansas, is accused of driving Guana away from the scene in a vehicle that was later set on fire. The younger teen is charged with hindering prosecution of a felony and tampering with physical evidence.

JUNCTION CITY, Kan. (AP) — A Junction City man’s sentence of life in prison for trafficking cocaine has been reduced.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that 33-year-old Albert Dwayne Banks was resentenced Monday to 30 years in federal prison.

Last month’s sentence was reduced based on the judge’s consideration of aggravating factors in the sentence.

Banks was convicted in June for conspiracy to distribute more than 280 grams of crack cocaine and distributing crack cocaine.

Prosecutors presented evidence from an investigation by Kansas Bureau of Investigation agents and Junction City Police Department detectives into a large crack cocaine trafficking organization in Junction City and Manhattan in 2012 and 2013.

Prosecutors say Banks and co-defendant Anthony Thompson acquired drugs from three different suppliers and sold them to distributors who resold them on the streets.

DODGE CITY, Kan. (AP) — The body of a missing man has been found in Dodge City.

The Dodge City Daily Globe reports that police were called to a remote area around 11 a.m. Sunday after a family member of 25-year-old Rudy Anthony Gonzales found his body.

Deputy Chief of Police Drew Francis says Gonzales had been missing since Wednesday.

An investigation is ongoing with a pending autopsy into the cause of death. No obvious external injuries were found.

Gonzales had been released in December 2014 from an Oklahoma State Correctional facility, where he had been serving a sentence since June 2010. He had been found guilty of felony charges of aggravated battery or causing reckless great bodily harm to a person in a 2009 shooting of two victims in Dodge City.

BARTON COUNTY- Law enforcement authorities in Barton County are investigating a report of a bullet entering a man’s windshield.

On Saturday, Barton County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to the area near the diversion dam on the Arkansas River southwest of Great Bend, according to Sheriff Brian Bellendir.

A local resident was in the area in his pickup truck, when a bullet entered the windshield and exited through the back glass of the truck.

The subject stated he did not hear a gunshot and did not see anyone in the area.

Based on investigation, it is believed the shot was a stray round fired by someone hunting or target shooting.

The Sheriff’s Office strongly advised anyone discharging firearms, whether hunting or target shooting to exercise caution, observe basic firearms safety rules and always know where your bullet is going to stop.

Many large caliber rifle rounds are lethal for more than 2 miles.
Hunting and target shooting are popular sports. We all need to be responsible and enjoy this activity in a safe manner.

MANHATTAN – A Kansas man appeared in Riley County Court on Monday afternoon for an arraignment in front of Judge Wilson.

Jase Derek Stanton, 29, Manhattan, was arrested for aggravated criminal sodomy on June 9, 2015, after an investigation into a report by a 19-year-old and a 22-year-old male victims who were involved in unwanted sexual activity on June 7, 2015.

Stanton pleaded not guilty to three counts of aggravated criminal sodomy, and a 3-day trial was scheduled for March 8-10.

Barry Disney, representing the State, filed a motion to revoke Stanton’s $50,000 bond, after Stanton was arrested on a $10,000 bond for violating the offender registration act on November 25.

During the court proceedings it was made aware by Stanton’s attorney that Stanton’s arrest for failing to register as an offender came about because he left out two email addresses in his registration that he used to participate in social media applications Grindr & Kik for consensual sexual activities.

The State argued that his failure to list the email addresses and resulting felony should be grounds to revoke bond, since he is participating in the sexual activity as a offender that could not be monitored.
Judge Wilson decided not to revoke bond, stating that it was sufficient enough to ensure Stanton would appear for future court dates, and his failure to disclose the email addresses was not a threat because the use of them was revealed and is now documented.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss is removing himself from a lawsuit that involves the high court’s administrative power and the judicial branch’s entire budget.

The other six justices are not stepping aside, despite a request from Attorney General Derek Schmidt.

Nuss announced Monday in an order from the court that he is stepping aside even though the court does not think it’s required by ethics rules. The Supreme Court is hearing arguments Thursday.

The lawsuit challenges a 2014 law stripping the Supreme Court of its power to appoint chief judges for district courts and giving it to the local judges. Legislators passed another law this year nullifying the judiciary’s entire budget if the policy is struck down.

Nuss took responsibility for public statements criticizing the 2014 law.