SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities continue the search for a driver who fled a traffic stop  and dragged a Kansas deputy with an SUV.

She is believed to be in Central Kansas, according to a media release from Barton County Sheriff Brian Bellendir.

On Sunday afternoon, a Sedgwick County Deputy was making a traffic stop on 45-year-old Melissa Jean Heinzman for a felony warrant. During the initial interaction with her, she took off dragging and running over the deputy, according to a social media report.

Authorities continue the search for Heinzman  who is described a 5-foot-3, 120 pounds with blonde hair and brown eyes. She  was last seen wearing a black tank top and blue pants.

Authorities found her 1999 Ford Explorer Monday.

Heinzman has felony warrants and is the suspect in an aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer case.

HARVEY COUNTY – Three people were injured in a Thursday morning house fire in Newton.

Just before 10:30 a.m., fire crews from Newton and Halstead responded to the fire at 501 Southeast 3rd Street, according to Erin McDaniel for Newton Police.

Three residents were in the home at the time of the fire and crews had to rescue one. All three were transported to a hospital for treatment of non-critical injuries, according to McDaniel.

The residence is considered a total loss. Cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Kansas Corporation Commission

TOPEKA — Some Kansas newspapers recently printed an article focused on the number of abandoned oil and gas wells in the state. The article cites the Kansas Corporation Commission’s annual report to the Legislature as the data source used. The KCC, the agency responsible for regulating oil and gas activities in the state, wants the public to know the numbers used in the article were misinterpreted. The report shows 5,530 wells requiring action, not 22,000 as stated in the article.

The Kansas Abandoned Oil and Gas Well Count contained in the 2019 Abandoned Oil and Gas Well Report to the Legislature does include a reference to 21,922 well “records”. However, as noted in the report, that is not the same as saying there are 22,000 abandoned wells in Kansas.

When a well is entered into the KCC’s database as requiring action it becomes part of the permanent record and is never deleted. Instead, well records are assigned specific codes as they are addressed and removed from “requiring action” status.

For example, of the 21,922 well records in the report, 5,530 wells were designated as requiring action. The remaining 16,392 well records were classified based on their status. To provide a few examples: 10,257 were plugged using the Abandoned Well and Site Remediation plugging fund, 1,262 were assigned to new operators, 1,161 were plugged by operators and 1,033 were duplicates in the database.

The KCC recognizes the importance of plugging abandoned wells and is committed to responsible environmental regulation with effective enforcement. Changes in the Conservation division staffing model and efforts to increase the number of plugging contractors to complete projects faster are also putting the agency in a better position to address abandoned wells.

To summarize the information above, the actual number of abandoned well records requiring action in the Abandoned Well Database for the 2019 Legislative Report was 5,530, not 22,000. Steps are in place to improve the processes for plugging abandoned wells and real progress continues to be made. These steps, along with other ongoing compliance efforts by KCC Staff, are designed to protect the citizens of Kansas and the environment in which they live.

The 2019 Abandoned Oil and Gas Well Status report to the Kansas Legislature can be viewed on the Commission’s website at https://www.kcc.ks.gov/images/PDFs/legislative-reports/2019-Abandoned-Wells-Report.pdf.

GARDNER, Kan. (AP) — A cat named Meow has been reunited with her suburban Kansas owners after she went missing nearly three years ago.

Meow escaped after Taylor Jezik moved to a new apartment complex in Gardner, Kansas. Jezik searched for Meow in her old neighborhood, posted pictures on Facebook, called animal shelters and looked along roadsides for dead cats. She says her young son, Charlie, was devastated.

Then Tuesday, she received a text message, saying her cat had been found. Gardner police said the cat was spotted outside after a rainstorm and taken to an animal hospital, where employees scanned Meow’s microchip.

Jezik recalled that she “instantly started crying” when an animal control officer sent her a picture of Meow. She says she’s “still in shock.”

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A former Kansas City Chiefs player and now businessman who has served on local and state government boards is running for the U.S. Senate in Kansas.

Dave Lindstrom, who lives in the Kansas City suburb of Overland Park, launched his bid for the Republican nomination with an event Thursday in Goodland in Kansas’ northwestern corner. He said he chose the site to show that agriculture is important and because he’s helped organize charity golf tournaments for the local medical center there.

Four-term GOP Sen. Pat Roberts is not seeking re-electionin 2020, and at least 15 potential candidates have expressed an interest in running, most of them Republicans. Lindstrom said supporters have encouraged him for months to consider running, pointing to his business experience. He said that and his professional football career give him a “unique background.”

“With Democrats hell-bent on unraveling President Trump’s agenda, it is critical that Republicans hold Sen. Roberts’ seat,” Lindstrom said in announcing his candidacy.

So far, only state Treasurer Jake LaTurner is actively campaigning for the GOP nomination, but potential Republican candidates include western Kansas Rep. Roger Marshall, state Attorney General Derek Schmidt, Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle, former Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer and former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach.

Some Republicans fear the possibility of Kobach winning the nomination because he lost the governor’s race last year to Democrat Laura Kelly. The GOP hasn’t lost a Senate race in Kansas since 1932.

Earlier this year, some top Republicans nudged U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, a former Kansas congressman, to enter the race. He said he was focused on his job as the nation’s top diplomat.

Kelly Arnold, a former Kansas Republican Party chairman, said the GOP has multiple potential candidates who would make good nominees, but many of them need to jump into the race quickly.

“Some candidates are going to need to start fundraising soon,” Arnold said.

Lindstrom, 64, played professional football as a defensive end. He was with the Chiefs for eight years. He retired in 1986.

He worked in real estate and as a developer and owned and operated four Kansas City-area Burger King franchises.

Lindstrom also served on the Johnson County Commission and is an elected trustee for Johnson County Community College. He is chairman of the nonprofit Kansas Leadership Center’s board in Wichita and chairman of the Kansas Turnpike Authority, which oversees the state’s toll road.

He ran for lieutenant governor in 2002 with then-state Treasurer Tim Shallenburger, who lost the general election to Democrat Kathleen Sebelius.

Lindstrom said he’s entering the Senate race partly because he’s concerned about what he sees as a growing embrace of socialism and “I think our country’s under attack.”

“People are making promises with other people’s money and resources that they cannot keep, that they understand are not sustainable — that will create an environment in this country, of one of entitlement, as opposed to hard work,” he said during an Associated Press interview before launching his campaign. “That’s what I mean when I talk about socialism.”

—————-

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A former Kansas City Chiefs player and now businessman who has served on local and state government boards is running for the U.S. Senate in Kansas.

Dave Lindstrom, who lives in the Kansas City suburb of Overland Park, planned to launch his bid for the Republican nomination with an event Thursday in Goodland in Kansas’ northwestern corner. He said he chose the site to show that agriculture is important and because he’s helped organize charity golf tournaments for the local medical center there.

Four-term GOP Sen. Pat Roberts is not seeking re-electionin 2020, and at least 15 potential candidates have expressed an interest in running, most of them Republicans. Lindstrom said supporters have encouraged him for months to consider running, pointing to his business background.

“I’ve signed both the front and back of checks,” he said during an Associated Press interview before launching his campaign. “I would be an outsider.”

So far, only state Treasurer Jake LaTurner is actively campaigning for the GOP nomination, but potential Republican candidates include western Kansas Rep. Roger Marshall, state Attorney General Derek Schmidt, Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle, former Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer and former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach.

Some Republicans fear Kobach winning the nomination because he lost the governor’s race last year to Democrat Laura Kelly. The GOP hasn’t lost a Senate race in Kansas since 1932.

Earlier this year, some top Republicans nudged U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, a former Kansas congressman, to enter the race. He said he was focused on his job as the nation’s top diplomat.

Kelly Arnold, a former Kansas Republican Party chairman, said the GOP has multiple potential candidates who would make good nominees, but many of them need to jump into the race quickly.

“Some candidates are going to need to start fundraising soon,” Arnold said.

Lindstrom, 64, played professional football as a defensive end. He was with the Chiefs for eight years. He retired in 1986.

He worked in real estate and as a developer and owned and operated four Kansas City-area Burger King franchises.

Lindstrom also served on the Johnson County Commission and is an elected trustee for Johnson County Community College. He is chairman of the nonprofit Kansas Leadership Center’s board in Wichita and chairman of the Kansas Turnpike Authority, which oversees the state’s toll road.

He ran for lieutenant governor in 2002 with then-state Treasurer Tim Shallenburger, who lost the general election to Democrat Kathleen Sebelius.

Lindstrom said he’s entering the Senate race partly because he’s concerned about what he sees as a growing embrace of socialism and “I think our country’s under attack.”

“People are making promises with other people’s money and resources that they cannot keep, that they understand are not sustainable — that will create an environment in this country, of one of entitlement, as opposed to hard work,” he said. “That’s what I mean when I talk about socialism.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the Supreme Court and the 2020 census (all times local):

1:50 p.m.

President Donald Trump is suggesting the census be delayed indefinitely as he blasts a Supreme Court decision putting a hold on his administration’s effort to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census.

…..United States Supreme Court is given additional information from which it can make a final and decisive decision on this very critical matter. Can anyone really believe that as a great Country, we are not able the ask whether or not someone is a Citizen. Only in America!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 27, 2019

Trump tweeted Thursday that it “Seems totally ridiculous that our government, and indeed Country, cannot ask a basic question of Citizenship in a very expensive, detailed and important Census.”

And he says he has asked government lawyers if they can delay the Constitutionally-mandated Census, “no matter how long” until the Supreme Court is given additional information “from which it can make a final and decisive decision.”

Federal law states the census must begin April 1.

The high court on Thursday maintained a hold on the administration’s efforts to add the citizenship question. Opponents say there’s no time to revisit the issue before next week’s start to the printing of census forms.

___

Noon

The Supreme Court has put a hold on the Trump administration’s effort to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census, leaving it unclear whether the question will ultimately appear on the form that’s supposed to start printing next week.

The Census Bureau’s own experts predict that millions of Hispanics and immigrants would go uncounted if the census asked everyone if he or she is an American citizen. And immigrant advocacy organizations and Democratic-led states, cities and counties argue the citizenship question is intended to discourage the participation of minorities, primarily Hispanics, who tend to support Democrats, from filling out census forms.

They argued to the Supreme Court they would get less federal money and fewer seats in Congress if the census asks about citizenship because people with noncitizens in their households would be less likely to fill out their census forms.

10:45 a.m.

The Supreme Court is forbidding President Donald Trump’s administration from adding a citizenship question to the 2020 census for now. The court says the Trump administration’s explanation for wanting to add the question was “more of a distraction” than an explanation.

It’s unclear whether the administration would have time to provide a fuller account. Census forms are supposed to be printed beginning next week.

The court ruled 5-4 on Thursday, with Chief Justice John Roberts joining the four liberals in the relevant part of the outcome.

A lower court found the administration violated federal law in the way it tried to add a question broadly asking about citizenship for the first time since 1950.

The Census Bureau’s own experts have predicted that millions of Hispanics and immigrants would go uncounted if the census asked everyone if he or she is an American citizen.

___

SALINE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas man on child sex allegations.

After an investigation that lasted a couple of weeks, deputies arrested Christopher L. Moody, 35, Lincoln, on Wednesday at his place of employment in Salina, according to Lt. Mike Ascher.

He is accused of inappropriate sexual contact with an 11-year-old rural Saline County girl.

Moody is being held on requested charges of aggravated indecent liberties with a child and aggravated intimidation of a witness.

Moody is an acquaintance of the girl’s family, according to Ascher.

FORD COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects after a southwest Kansas traffic stop.

Just after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, a deputy conducted a traffic stop on U.S. 54 just east of Bucklin, according to a media release. During the interaction with the driver, the K-9 deputy smelled the odor of raw marijuana.

During a search, the deputy found 80 cellophane-wrapped packages of crystal meth hidden strategically throughout the vehicle and a small amount of marijuana, according to the release.

The estimated value of the suspected methamphetamine is $1.2 million.

Deputies arrested as 30-year-old Nelson Alvarez-Castillo and 24-year-old Anthony Yapul both of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

SHAWNEE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities are investigating an attack by a dog on two children.

Just before 3:30p.m. Monday, Animal Control and officers and police were dispatched to Chesney Park in 1800 block of SW Buchanan in Topeka on reports of a dog bite, according to Lt. Jennifer Cross.

Witnesses called reporting that a tan colored dog bit a juvenile boy before being removed from the area by the owner.

While Animal Control was investigating, authorities learned that the same dog had bitten a second child.  The two boys were treated at a local hospital, according to Cross.

On Wednesday, police reported they found the dog and it is currently being quarantined at the city’s veterinarian office.  The canine was positively identified by several individuals as the same that bit the two children, according to Lt. Andrew Beightel.

Animal control officers are still in the process of attempting to identify and locate the owner of the dog for further questioning.

Anyone with information regarding this crime is encouraged to contact the Topeka Police Criminal Investigation Bureau at (785) 368-9400 or Shawnee County Crime Stoppers at (785) 234-0007. You can also make anonymous tips online at www.p3tips.com/128. All persons charged with a criminal offense are presumed innocent until proven

KANSAS CITY (AP) — A man accused of threatening to shoot people in an underground business complex in Kansas City is charged with making a terrorist threat.

Clay County prosecutors charged 45-year-old Kevin Becknal on Wednesday.

Becknal, of Orrick, had been fired days earlier from one of the businesses at the Hunt Midwest SubTropolis, which is a massive subterranean network of businesses in old limestone mines.

The Kansas City Star reports that court records say Becknal returned to the complex Tuesday and told a former co-worker to call a supervisor. He said he had 45 bullets to “shoot people around here.”

Becknal drove off about 10 minutes later but police didn’t know, so they closed the caves and told workers to remain in their offices.

Becknal was arrested later in Prairie Village, Kansas, and remains in the Johnson County jail on a bond of $50,000.

MEADE COUNTY — One person died in an accident just after 6p.m. Wednesday in Meade County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix driven by Kevin D. Glaze, 38, Minneola, was southbound on Meade County Road 26 three miles north of Fowler.
The Pontiac crossed the center line and struck a northbound 2004 Kenworth semi driven by Christopher R. Miller, 33, Ashland

Glaze was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Ziegler Funeral Home. EMS transported Miller to the hospital in Meade. Glaze was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

TOPEKA, KAN. – A woman who operated massage parlors in Lawrence and Topeka was sentenced Wednesday to three years on federal probation for operating a prostitution business, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.

In addition, the defendant agreed to pay a $650,000 judgement, which represents the proceeds of the crime.

Weiling Nielsen, 54, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy. Nielsen owned and operated Naima Asian Massage and Serenity Health Spa in Lawrence, as well as Jasmine Massage in Topeka. In her plea, she admitted the massage parlors provided sexual services to customers for payment in cash. Nielsen and others advertised the services on the internet. Nielsen and her husband deposited cash into various bank accounts and purchased money orders for deposit in bank accounts in California.

McAllister commended the FBI, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, the Topeka Police Department, the Salina Police Department and Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Kenney for their work on the case.