PITTSBURG, Kan. (AP) — Pittsburg police say a man is being held on $100,000 after he allegedly tried to start a homeless woman’s blankets on fire while she slept.
Dickerson -photo Crawford Co.
Police say in a news release that the woman, Chrystal Thompson, originally thought a hand warming device accidentally set her blankets on fire Thursday night while she slept in the alcove of a business.
The business owner told police Friday that surveillance video showed a man intentionally setting Thompson’s blankets of fire and walking away.
The blankets burned briefly before the fire went out.
The suspect, 60-year-old Richard Lee Dickerson, of Pittsburg, was arrested Saturday. He is facing potential charges of attempted murder, aggravated arson and criminal damage to property.
PRATT – The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) has sponsored legislation proposing limits on select license and permit fees. Senate Bill 50, if passed, would not raise any hunting or fishing license or permit fees and no fee increases are under consideration.
Hunting and fishing license and permit fees are approved by the Kansas Wildlife, Parks and Tourism Commission only after a public hearing process, but the fees cannot exceed the upper limits set by statute. However, some of the current fees are at or near the statutory fee caps, most of which were set in 2001. Adjusting fee caps now would give the Commission the authority and flexibility to incrementally increase some fees in the future if, and when needed, but not without first holding a public hearing.
License and permit fee increases implemented in 2016 marked the first time resident deer and turkey permit fees had increased since 1986, and the first time hunting and fishing license fees had increased since 2002. Those fee increases were necessary due to inflation and the desire to maintain crucial wildlife and fisheries programs and services to hunters and anglers.
The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) receives no State General Fund support. In addition to hunting, fishing and furharvesting license and permit revenue, KDWPT funding comes from federal dollars returned to Kansas from the federal excise taxes hunters and anglers pay on equipment purchases.
KDWPT leverages license and permit revenues and federal dollars to benefit wildlife, fish, anglers and hunters. Popular programs such as Walk-In Hunting Access (WIHA), Fishing Impoundments and Stream Habitat (FISH), and the Community Fisheries Assistance Program (CFAP) are notable examples. Other programs funded with a combination of federal funds and license revenues include state wildlife areas, state fishing lakes, education and aquatic nuisance species monitoring.
SB 50 was introduced into the Senate on January 28 and was referred to the House Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources. A hearing date has not been set.
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A woman has been convicted of killing her ex-boyfriend whose body was found inside a burning home near Lawrence.
Tria Evans stands next to her attorney Carol Cline during an appearance before Judge Kay Huff on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2018 in Douglas County District Court-photo by Nick Krug courtesy Lawrence Journal World
Jurors deliberated 1½ hours Friday and Monday before finding 39-year-old Tria Evans guilty of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, arson and aggravated burglary in the November 2017 killing of 34-year-old Joel Wales.
Evans and Wales had a child together and a history of domestic disputes. Prosecutors say text messages show that she plotted his death with a friend for more than a month. One text between the women reads: “This needs done this week.”
A murder charge is pending against the friend, 38-year-old Christina Towell. She is accused of driving Evans to the scene.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a Hutchinson man was arrested on suspicion of using counterfeit bills to purchase electronics because the fake Facebook profile he’s accused of using to arrange the transactions included a real picture.
Joshua Downey -photo Reno County
The man identified as Joshua Downey was arrested last week and booked into jail on suspicion of counterfeiting, theft and drug charges. Police say that last month, he used a counterfeit $100 bill to purchase a computer and five fake $20 bills to buy an iPhone 6.
Minutes after posting the photo from the suspect’s fake Facebook profile online, a parole officer called to say the man was a client. Police say he had a powdery substance in his pocket that is believed to be methamphetamine when he was arrested. His bond is set at $9,500.
SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas felon on new charges.
Houston -photo Shawnee Co.
Just after 1:30 a.m. Monday, police were dispatched to the 200 block of SE Lawrence in Topeka in reference to a suspicious vehicle with two people in it who did not belong in the area, according to Lt. Manuel Munoz.
Officers located 29-year-old Frank E. Houston sleeping in the vehicle with a handgun on his lap.
Houston lied about his name and attempted to flee on foot.
Police chased and took him into custody. Houston was transported to Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges of Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Possession of Marijuana, possession of Paraphernalia, Interference with a Law Enforcement Officer and Traffic Contraband into a Penal Institution, according to Munoz.
Houston has nine previous convictions that include theft, burglary, stalking, aggravated battery, criminal damage to property and drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.
This is the 13th case in 2019 with a charge involving a felon in possession of a firearm reported by the Topeka Police Department.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Fifty-five Kansas lawmakers are co-sponsoring a bill that would ban discrimination in the private sector based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
The bill introduced Monday would protect LGBTQ residents in employment, housing and services.
This morning, @SusanRuiz_KS23 and I, along with 36 co-sponsors, introduced HB2130, which adds gender identity and sexual orientation to the Kansas Act Against Discrimination. Kansas is no place for discrimination. #ksleg#YesWeKansaspic.twitter.com/pVu2HwfdLD
38 representatives and 17 senators are co-sponsoring the bill.
Rep. Susan Ruiz, a Democrat from Shawnee who is one of the state’s two openly gay legislators, said the legislation would help attract outside businesses to Kansas.
The bill would amend the Kansas Act Against Discrimination to add sexual orientation and gender identity to a list that includes race, religion, color, sex, disability, national origin and ancestry.
Tom Witt, executive director of Equality Kansas, said the law already exempts religious institutions, and concerns by people who support those institutions are unfounded.
CLAY COUNTY – The Clay County Sheriff’s Department requested the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) issue a statewide Silver Alert for a missing 66-year-old Nebraska man. Mr. Kubes was last seen Sunday morning in Clay Center, according to the Sheriff’s Department.
Mr. Kubes -Photo courtesy Clay Co. Sheriff
He was last seen wearing dark long sleeve shirt with a dark green windbreaker, blue jeans. a red/white ball cap, red in the front with mesh in the back and wearing glasses and large mustache. He is 5-foot-10, and weighs 175 pounds. He has white hair and a white mustache.
He was heading to his home in Auburn, Nebraska from Clay Center.
Mr. Kubes travels from Clay Center north on K-15 to Highway 36 then East bound on 77 then North to Beatrice Nebraska and then east on 136 to Auburn. His family states that he doesn’t travel outside this normal route.
He is driving a 2010 Ford Super Ranger pickup, silver in color. The back window has an “N” Nebraska sticker and a pass thru window. The front has a black bug guard. There is also a cooler and red two wheel appliance cart in the back.
The tag that is on the vehicle is Nebraska KUMFISH.
Kubes was in pain when he left Clay Center and was headed to the hospital in Auburn. He does have a phone but is not answering it.
Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Law Enforcement Center of Clay Center Kansas at 785-632-5601 opt #5.
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) — Prosecutors are researching an appeal after a Kansas judge called two teenage girls the “aggressor” in a sexual encounter with a 67-year-old man and eased his prison sentence.
Soden -photo Leavenworth Co.
Leavenworth County District Judge Michael Gibbens sentenced Raymond Soden in December to five years, 10 months in prison. Prosecutors sought more than 13 years behind bars because Soden had prior convictions.
Gibbens said at the sentencing that the girls were “more an aggressor than a participant,” citing as a reason that the girls had voluntarily gone to Soden’s house and taken money for sexual favors.
Harleigh Harrold with the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault tells the newspaper children don’t have the ability to understand the consequences of such an act.
Michelle Herman, president and CEO of the child advocacy center Sunflower House, says “sexual assault is never the victim’s fault.”
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LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) — Prosecutors are researching an appeal after a Kansas judge found that a 13- and 14-year-old girl were partly to blame for a sexual encounter with a 67-year-old man and reduced his prison sentence.
Leavenworth County District Judge Michael Gibbens said that “the victims in this case, in particular, were more an aggressor than a participant in the criminal conduct” before sentencing Raymond Soden to five years and 10 months in prison. Prosecutors sought 13-plus years because Soden had prior convictions for battery and for sexual battery
In ordering a lighter prison term than what sentencing guidelines called for, the judge noted at the Dec. 4 hearing that the two girls had voluntarily gone to Soden’s house and had taken money for sexual favors.
Depending on whom you talk to, either definition might apply to the way the Kansas Farm Bureau is proposing to rescue farmers and ranchers priced out of the health insurance marketplace set up under the federal Affordable Care Act.
Farmer Tim Franklin, holding his son during a Senate committee hearing, told lawmakers he needs a more affordable health coverage option for his family. JIM MCLEAN / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE
It’s either a bold and daring move. Or, it’s presumptuous, bordering on brazen.
The powerful ag lobbying organization is petitioning lawmakers for what amounts to carte blanche authority to develop and market health coverage free of state and federal oversight.
Opponents are warning of dire consequences for consumers if lawmakers okay the proposal.
But Terry Holdren, CEO of the Kansas Farm Bureau, said the failure of traditional insurers and government to address the plight of farm and ranch families left the organization with little choice but to step forward with a potential solution.
“Had current providers in the marketplace taken the initiative to… develop more affordable solutions, we wouldn’t be here today,” Holdren said Wednesday in testimony to the Kansas Senate committee considering the Farm Bureau’s bill.
Most farmers and ranchers make too much to qualify for federal subsidies that help low-income people purchase individual coverage in the ACA marketplace, Holdren said. Still, many can’t afford the rapidly rising cost of non-group coverage.
In his testimony, Holdren cited a national survey in which 65 percent of farmers identified the cost of health insurance as the “most significant threat” to their livelihood.
It’s a big worry for Tim Franklin, who grows corn and wheat on a fourth-generation family farm near Goodland. Testifying in favor of the Farm Bureau bill, Franklin told lawmakers that he’s paying nearly $24,000 in premiums this year to cover his family. Out-of-pocket expenses could amount to another $10,000.
“To say that providing workable and affordable health coverage for our family is challenging is a bit of an understatement,” Franklin said.
Insurance that isn’t
The bill under consideration would allow the Farm Bureau, which already sells property and casualty insurance, to market health coverage that isn’t technically insurance.
That technical distinction would exempt the organization from federal rules that, among other things, require insurers to offer coverage to anyone regardless of the health status.
“This legislation… would give us the ability to say ‘no’ to folks if they don’t meet our underwriting standards,” Holdren said when briefing members of the Legislature’s Rural Caucus.
In addition to rejecting people with costly, life-threatening conditions such as heart disease and cancer, Farm Bureau could deny coverage to those with chronic ailments like diabetes and high blood pressure.
The ability to screen policyholders — a standard insurance company practice prior to enactment of the ACA — would help keep the cost of Farm Bureau plans relatively low, Holdren said.
“We believe that we can offer products to our members that are 30 percent or lower than the cost of Affordable Care Act products,” he said.
The ACA requires insurers to cover “10 essential benefits.” In addition to hospitalization and preventive office visits, they include maternity care, emergency services and prescription drugs.
Exactly what the Farm Bureau plans would cover hasn’t been decided, Holdren said. But, he told lawmakers, it was safe to assume they would include many but not all of the ACA-mandated benefits.
Playing by different rules
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas, the state’s largest insurer, is urging lawmakers to reject Farm Bureau’s proposal.
“We think the whole concept is unfair,” BCBS lobbyist Brad Smoot told the Senate insurance committee.
Unfair to both consumers and other insurers because it would allow the Farm Bureau to set prices based on its ability to reject potentially costly applicants.
“Nobody else can do that,” he said.
Likewise, Smoot said, the Kansas insurance commissioner would have no authority to review the Farm Bureau’s rates or resolve consumer complaints.
“I just wonder who they’re going to call,” he said. “If they can’t call the insurance department, they may have to call you (lawmakers).”
Rising health care costs are pushing up the cost of coverage, Smoot said. Allowing a single player in the marketplace to suspend the rules and return to practices that exclude those who most need coverage won’t solve that problem, he said.
Medica, a nonprofit Minnesota-based insurance company that competes with BCBS in Kansas’ ACA marketplace, is also fighting Farm Bureau’s entry into the market.
Noah Tabor, a lobbyist for the company, said allowing the ag organization to “siphon” healthy people out of the insurance pool would force costs up for everyone else and leave people with preexisting conditions fewer affordable options.
“What about the farmer with cancer?” Tabor asked members of the committee. “Who is going to stand for him or her?
“We encourage the committee to look at options… that include all Kansans,” he said.
Those options include several bills under consideration that would make it easier to establish and participate in association health plans, which Tabor said would be subject to state and federal rules.
Medica is working with the Nebraska Farm Bureau to gain legislative approval for such a plan, he said. The Iowa Farm Bureau is also seeking legislative approval to market plans exempt from state and federal rules.
The Tennessee Farm Bureau has sold coverage since the mid-1990s similar to what its Kansas counterpart is proposing. It provides similar levels of coverage to traditional health plans at lower costs because it can exclude applicants with preexisting conditions.
BARTON COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities continue their investigation involving the death of a baby girl in Barton County and are waiting for the result of an autopsy.
On January 28, emergency crews responded to an apartment in the 1300 block of Cherry Lane in Great Bend in reference to an unresponsive 5-month-old, according to a media release.
The infant was then transported to the emergency room at the hospital in Great Bend. Life saving measures were attempted on scene and at the hospital.
The infant was then transferred by air ambulance to Wesley Medical Center in Wichita where she remained in critical condition.
On Thursday, the baby died as a result of her injuries. Detectives expect to receive the result of an autopsy this week, according to Great Bend Police Chief David Bailey.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation is assisting with the investigation.
SALINE COUNTY — A Kansas high school police resource officer was arrested early Sunday morning after a traffic stop.
Amanda Londono. Photo Saline County Sheriff’s Office
Just before 2a.m. a Saline County deputy traveling southbound on Interstate 135 noticed the car in front of him attempt to pass a car.
The white 2018 Honda Accord pulled into the passing lane and then kept moving left, driving on the inside shoulder, according to Saline County Sheriff Roger Soldan.
The deputy stopped the car, which was occupied by four people, near the Crawford exit. The deputy detected the odor of alcohol in the vehicle, according to Soldan.
The car was driven by Amanda Londono, who Soldan said was a Salina Police Department school resource officer at Salina High School Central.
The deputy tried for 20 minutes to get Londono to step out of the car, but she refused, so she was arrested on suspicion of interference with a law enforcement officer, Soldan said.
Salina Police Captain Paul Forrester said Monday that the department was aware of Londono’s arrest and was conducting an internal affairs investigation.
The other three occupants of the car were not arrested and made arrangements for someone to pick them up, according to Soldan.
Just after 10a.m. Wednesday, police responded to a vehicle fire at 561 NE Sardou Street in Topeka, according to Fire Chief Michael Martin.
Upon arrival, fire crews reported a fully involved vehicle fire located behind the residence. While in route to the fire, crews were informed that an individual later identified as 54-year-old Russell Dean Harris, Sr. had self-evacuated from the vehicle.
As fire crews began an attack on the fire, emergency crews found Harris and transported him to local hospital. On Monday authorities reported Harris had died.
The Topeka Fire Department Investigation unit determined the fire was accidental associated with a space heater within the vehicle. Harris was living in the vehicle, according to Martin.
SHAWNEE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities are investigating a robbery and have a suspect in custody.
Cowan -photo Shawnee Co.
Just before 3p.m. Sunday, police were dispatched to 904 SW Lincoln in Topeka in reference to an aggravated robbery to an individual, according to Lt. Robbie Simmons.
Officers located someone matching the description of the suspect at 8th and SW Fillmore. This suspect attempted to flee and elude officers but was captured shortly thereafter.
This suspect was identified as 48-year-old Christopher Cowan. He was found to be in possession of a firearm and methamphetamines. Cowan was transported to Shawnee County Department of Corrections of requested charges of Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Obstruction. The robbery is still under investigation, according to Simmons.
Cowan has seven previous convictions that include possession of burglary tools, unlawful possession of firearms, violation of offender registration, flee and attempt to elude police, DUI and drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.
This is the 12th case in 2019 with a charge involving a felon in possession of a firearm reported by the Topeka Police Department.
