Authorities on the scene investigating an explosive device Friday in Topeka-photo WIBW TV
SHAWNEE COUNTY -Law enforcement authorities are investigating an explosive device.
Just after 9a.m. Friday, police were notified of a suspicious device north of First and Jackson in Topeka, according to a media release.
A contracting company exploring ground for a project found what appeared to be an old military ordanance.
The Topeka Police Bomb squad unit and the Fort Riley Explosive Ordinance Battalion were on the scene. Streets in the area were blocked off to ensure safety.
Searchers found no similar objects in the area, according to police.
The team from Fort Riley took the device away for proper disposal. There were no injuries reported.
FRANKLIN – One person died as a result of injuries from an accident just after 4p.m. Thursday in Franklin County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a Winnebago pulling a Jeep Wrangler and
driven by Chester P. Sobota, Apache Junction, AZ., was northbound on Interstate 35 just north of Georgia Road.
The vehicle traveled off the left side of the roadway, briefly became airborne and came to a stop in the median.
Chester Sobota was transported to Overland Park Regional Medical Center.
Passengers in the vehicle Timothy Sobota, 43, and Darlene Sobota, 67, both of Apache Junction, AZ., were transported to Ransom Memorial Hospital.
All three were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
LANSING, Kan. (AP) — A man who escaped from the Lansing Correctional Facility has been recaptured in Topeka.
The Kansas Department of Corrections says 34-year-old James Stewart II was arrested in Topeka Friday about two hours after he was seen driving away from the prison in a state of Kansas vehicle.
The corrections department said Stewart was a minimum-security inmate.
Stewart was convicted of aggravated robbery in three cases in Shawnee and Jefferson counties in 2003 and 2013.
He was apprehended by members of the U.S. Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force as well as the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office and the Kansas Highway Patrol.
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LANSING, Kan. (AP) — Authorities in Lansing say they are a looking from a man who escaped from the Lansing Correctional Facility.
Police say 34-year-old James Stewart II escaped early Friday. Details on how he escaped were not immediately released.
Stewart is described white, 6-foot tall, 179 pounds, with brown hair and green eyes. He is driving a silver Impala with Kansas tags.
Stewart has used the names Jamesson Fuerebjorn and Jim Stewart as aliases.
He was in prison for an aggravated robbery conviction in Jefferson County in 2013. He was also convicted for two 2013 aggravated robberies in Shawnee County.
RILEY COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect for alleged multiple sex crimes.
Just after 9 a.m. Thursday, police arrested Ryan James Mcallister, 36, Manhattan, in the 3000 Block of Tuttle Creek Boulevard.
He is being held in the Riley County jail on requested charges including “1 count of Attempted Aggravated Criminal Sodomy; Person/Animal Force, 3 counts of Aggravated Criminal Sodomy; Person/Animal Force and 35 counts of Aggravated Indecent Liberties w/Child; Fondling,” according to the Friday booking report from police.
Mcallister is being held on $100,000 bond. Police released no additional details.
One bill would strip federal dollars from self-proclaimed “sanctuary” cities that shield residents from federal immigration authorities, while a separate measure would stiffen punishments for people who re-enter the U.S. illegally.
Busy Thursday in the U.S. House Chamber-Image CSPAN
The sanctuary measure was approved 228-195, while the bill to punish deportees was approved 257-167. The bills now go to the Senate.
Trump, who often railed against illegal immigration during his presidential campaign, is hailing passage of the House bills and urging the Senate to act “save American lives.” Trump met at the White House this week with more than a dozen family members of those killed by people in the country illegally.
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6:10 p.m.
President Donald Trump is hailing passage of two House bills that seek to crack down on illegal immigration, a key priority for the president and his voting base.
One bill would strip federal dollars from self-proclaimed “sanctuary” cities that shield residents from federal immigration authorities. A separate measure would stiffen punishments for people who re-enter the U.S. illegally. The House approved both bills on Thursday.
Trump is urging the Senate to follow the House’s lead, saying that implementation of the policies “will make our communities safer.”
Trump says he is “calling on all lawmakers to vote for these bills and to save American lives.”
Democrats counter that the bills are feel-good measures intended to make lawmakers look tough on crime and would not have the intended affect.
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5:55 p.m.
The House has approved two bills that seek to crack down on illegal immigration, a key priority for President Donald Trump.
Lawmakers supporting the legislation, most of them Republicans, warn of threats to public safety and national security posed by immigration problems.
One bill would strip federal dollars from self-proclaimed “sanctuary” cities that shield residents from federal immigration authorities. A separate measure would stiffen punishments for people who re-enter the U.S. illegally.
The bills now go to the Senate for consideration.
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5:35 p.m.
The House has approved a bill to stiffen punishments for immigrants who re-enter the United States illegally.
The bill is the second of two immigration measures the House passed Thursday as it moves to crack down on illegal immigration, a key priority for President Donald Trump.
A separate measure would strip federal dollars from “sanctuary” cities that shield residents from federal immigration authorities.
Trump often railed against illegal immigration during his presidential campaign, and his support for tougher immigration policies is crucial to his voting base.
The bill imposing harsher prison sentences on deportees who re-enter the United States is known as “Kate’s Law.” It is named after Kathryn Steinle, who was shot and killed in San Francisco in 2015 by a man who was in the country illegally.
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5:25 p.m.
The House has approved a bill to strip federal dollars from “sanctuary” cities that shield residents from federal immigration authorities.
The bill is one of two immigration measures the House was considering Thursday as it moves to crack down on illegal immigration, a key priority for President Donald Trump. A separate measure would stiffen punishments for people who re-enter the U.S. illegally.
Trump often railed against illegal immigration during his presidential campaign, and his support for tougher immigration policies is crucial to his voting base.
The sanctuary measure was approved, 228-195. It would bar states and localities that refuse to cooperate with immigration authorities from receiving certain Justice Department and Homeland Security grants, including some related to law enforcement and terrorism.
A Kansas Department of Corrections spokesman said Thursday evening that officers at the El Dorado Correctional Facility worked during the day to get a group of inmates to return to their cells.
Todd Fertig said in an email that a group of inmates refused to return to their cells Thursday morning.
Fertig said the situation was resolved around 5 p.m. Thursday, after backup personnel were called from other facilities.
“KDOC responded by ensuring the security of the facility and methodically returning the offenders to their cell houses, which occurred without any use of force by staff,” Fertig said.
There were no injuries and the department will conduct a review of the event, he said.
Robert Choromanski, with the Kansas Organization of State Employees, said earlier Thursday that members of the union told him the facility is on lockdown.
“It started out basically with the inmates taking over the gym,” he said. “The prison at El Dorado had to activate the special response team, basically like a SWAT, tactical team.”
Choromanski is concerned staffing shortages at the maximum-security facility could have played a part in the situation. The Wichita Eagle recently reported that prison guards at the El Dorado facility would begin working 12-hour shifts because of a lack of workers.
“The inmates can see that there are staffing shortages,” he said. “When they can see that the correctional staff is not prepared in numbers to maintain control of the facility, they are going to take advantage of the situation.”
Choromanski said there are more than 100 job vacancies at the El Dorado prison, which has an inmate capacity of 1,511. El Dorado is about 35 miles northeast of Wichita.
Stephen Koranda is Statehouse reporter for KPR a partner in the Kansas News Service.
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5:50 p.m.
The Kansas Department of Corrections says that an incident at a maximum-security prison has been resolved and inmates are back in their cells.
Department spokesman Todd Fertig said in a statement Thursday that no injuries to staff or prisoners occurred and that inmates did not obtain access to any weapons.
Fertig confirmed that staff from other prisons were called to help deal with the incident but said that’s normal procedure. He said inmates were returned to their cells with no use of force.
The department had reported that inmates were refusing to return to their cells but Fertig said he did not have additional details.
An official with the union representing corrections workers had said inmates controlled parts of the prison that included the gym, the yard and the kitchen.
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4:35 p.m.
The leader of a union that represents Kansas corrections workers says he’s receiving reports that inmates still control parts of a maximum-security prison in southern Kansas.
Robert Choromanski is executive director of the Kansas Organization of State Employees. He said in an email Thursday afternoon that a prison worker said areas under inmate control at the El Dorado prison include the gym, the yard and the kitchen.
The Department of Corrections said some inmates are refusing to return to their cells but that the prison has been secured. Department spokesman Todd Fertig says there have been no reports of violence or injuries. He says he’s awaiting more details about the incident.
The El Dorado Correctional Facility is the state’s second largest prison. It’s about 30 miles (48 kilometers) east of Wichita.
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BUTLER COUNTY- Department of Corrections officials are downplaying reports of an incident
at the maximum security El Dorado Correctional Facility.
In an email, Kansas Department of Corrections spokesperson Tod Fertig reported, “On Thursday morning, a group of offenders at El Dorado Correctional Facility refused to return to their assigned cell houses.
No incidents of violence have occurred, and there have been no injuries to offenders or staff. The facility is secure, and measures to return the offenders to the cell houses are ongoing. KDOC will then conduct a review of the incidents.
Again, there have been no injuries and no acts of violence, and the facility is secure.”
The union representing prison workers says it has received reports from corrections officers that the prison has been on lockdown.
The Kansas Organization of State Employees has said in the past that the prison is understaffed and its officers are being required to work 12-hour shifts.
Among well knows inmates at the El Dorado Correctional Facility are serial killer Dennis Rader know as BTK, and Johnathan and Reginal Carr, convicted of murder and numerous other crimes, according to the KDOC.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the Trump administration’s revived travel ban for visitors from six mostly Muslim countries (all times EDT):
The Trump administration has apparently altered its definition of a “bona fide” relationship, adding fiancés of people in the U.S. to its list of people who are exempt from its travel ban from six mainly Muslim nations.
The administration had set criteria for visa applicants from the six nations and all refugees that require a “close” family or business tie to the United States. The guidelines sent to U.S. embassies and consulates on Wednesday said applicants from the six countries must prove a relationship with a parent, spouse, child, adult son or daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law or sibling in the U.S.
Briefing on implementation of EO 13780 – Protecting the nation from foreign terrorist entry Into the United States: https://t.co/G4LokrA9PV
Guidance released Thursday by the State Department and the Homeland Security Department adds “fiancé” to that definition of “close familial relationship.”
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9:30 p.m.
Los Angeles International Airport has been relatively calm after a new travel ban took effect Thursday, but some visitors are still nervous.
Hanadi Al-haj of Diamond Bar, California, came early to pick up her mother, 65-year-old Amal Bagoon, who was in Yemen but has a U.S. green card.
There were no problems, but Al-haj says she still worried about how the ban might affect other relatives.
Her father, two sisters and other relatives left war-torn Yemen but are stuck in Jordan. Last year, U.S. officials denied their requests for entry.
Al-haj says, “They want to come here to visit me but we have war in Yemen. They will not allow it.” she said. “They reject (them) right away.”
Al-haj, a 15-year resident, says, “It makes me sad as an American.”
TOPEKA–The Office of the State Fire Marshal with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and Safe Kids Kansas remind Kansans of the importance of safety around fireworks. Fireworks can be dangerous to both adults and children if not handled properly.
According to the Kansas Syndromic Surveillance Program, in 2016 there were 123 reported fireworks-related injuries. Injuries to hands were involved in 39 percent of incidents and 34 percent involved injuries to the eyes, face and head.
The most common victims of fireworks injuries are adult males and children. According to statistics from the Kansas Fireworks Injury Survey, a voluntary reporting system for Kansas hospitals, adult males represented 40 percent of all reported fireworks-related injuries, with another 40 percent of reported fireworks injuries affecting children under the age of 18.
“While shooting your own fireworks can be a thrill, they can also cause serious injuries and fires if not handled properly,” says Doug Jorgensen, Fire Marshal for the State of Kansas. “The safest approach to enjoying fireworks is to visit public fireworks displays conducted by trained professionals who know how to properly handle fireworks. We want all our Kansas kids to enjoy this summer’s festivities as safely as possible.”
To help the public celebrate safely, the Office of the State Fire Marshal and Safe Kids Kansas offers the following tips for the safe use of fireworks:
· Always purchase high quality fireworks from reliable and legitimate sources
· Always read and follow label directions
· Have an adult supervise all fireworks activities
· Always ignite fireworks outdoors
· Have water nearby
· Never experiment or attempt to make your own fireworks
· Light only one firework at a time
· Never re-ignite malfunctioning fireworks
· Never give fireworks to small children
· Store fireworks in a cool, dry place
· Dispose of fireworks properly
· Never throw fireworks at another person
· Never carry fireworks in your pocket
· Never shoot fireworks in metal or glass containers
In addition, bottle rockets and M80s are dangerous and illegal in the State of Kansas. The use or sale of these banned fireworks is considered a crime under Kansas law.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Prosecutors have charged a fired Wyandotte County sheriff’s deputy with official misconduct.
The prosecutor’s office said in a news release that 38-year-old Jay Pennington also was charged Thursday with unlawful acts concerning computers, forgery and theft. Pennington was a team leader for the offender registration unit at the time of the alleged misconduct.
The release said Pennington was fired and arrested Thursday. He later was released from jail after posting $20,000 bond. Pennington doesn’t have a listed phone number, and the news release didn’t say whether he has an attorney.
The prosecutor’s office didn’t immediately return a phone message from The Associated Press seeking more details. A news conference is scheduled for Friday morning.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Topeka man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for killing a passenger in another vehicle during a February 2016 police chase.
KSNT-TV reports that 21-year-old Marcos Cruz Jr. was sentenced Thursday for five felonies, including second-degree murder.
A witness at a preliminary hearing testified that a speeding car ran a red light and hit another car, which was forced into a fence at the Topeka Zoo. A passenger in that car, 69-year-old Edward Greene of Tecumseh, died at the scene. The driver was injured.
Cruz’s 8-month-old son was in his car but wasn’t seriously injured.
HOLTON, Kan. (AP) — Another woman has testified against a northeast Kansas man who is facing a string of sexual assault allegations that have divided his tight-knight hometown.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the woman told jurors Thursday that 22-year-old Jacob Ewing, of Holton, sodomized her and forced her to perform oral sex after a September 2014 party.
She is among five women the former state football champion is charged with sexually assaulting. She said things became “blurry” after she drank two beers and a shot. She later recalled being naked on a floor.
The trial is the second for Ewing and involves two of his accusers. He was acquitted during an April trial of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl when he was 19. Trials involving other women are scheduled later this year.
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that it reached a settlement agreement with Panda Restaurant Group, Inc. (Panda Express), a restaurant chain with over 1,800 locations in the United States, including Kansas. The agreement resolves the department’s investigation into whether Panda Express discriminated against non-U.S. citizens in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) when reverifying their permission to work.
The department’s investigation concluded that Panda Express unnecessarily required lawful permanent resident workers to re-establish their work authorization when their Permanent Resident Cards expired, while not making similar requests to U.S. citizen workers when their documents expired. The investigation also revealed that Panda Express routinely required other non-U.S. citizen workers to produce immigration documents to reverify their ongoing work authorization despite evidence they had already provided sufficient documentation. The antidiscrimination provision of the INA prohibits such requests for documents when based on an employee’s citizenship status or national origin.
Under the settlement, Panda Express will pay a civil penalty of $400,000 to the United States, establish a $200,000 back pay fund to compensate workers who lost wages due to the company’s practices, train its human resources personnel on the requirements of the INA’s anti-discrimination provision, and be subject to departmental monitoring and reporting requirements.
“Employers should ensure that their reverification practices comply with laws that protect workers against discrimination,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Tom Wheeler of the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department applauds Panda Express for its cooperation during this investigation and its commitment to compensating workers who may have lost wages due to its documentary practices.”
Work-authorized, non-U.S. citizens who lost work at Panda Express between May 31, 2014, and June 28, 2017, due to Panda Express’ documentary practices may be eligible for back pay for the wages they would have earned. For more information, email [email protected].
The division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER), formerly known as the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. The statute prohibits, among other things, citizenship, immigration status, and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral for a fee; unfair documentary practices; retaliation and intimidation.
For more information about protections against employment discrimination under immigration laws, call IER’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); call IER’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); sign up for a free webinar; email [email protected] (link sends e-mail); or visit IER’s English and Spanish websites.
Applicants or workers who believe they were subjected to different documentary requirements based on their citizenship, immigration status, or national origin; or discrimination based on their citizenship, immigration status, or national origin in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral, should contact IER’s worker hotline for assistance.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The 2017 winter wheat harvest has been a mixed bag for Kansas so far as farmers race to bring in the crop amid damaging spring storms that have pounded some crops with hail.
Justin Gilpin, chief executive officer for the industry group Kansas Wheat, says fields around Norton and Goodland in northwest Kansas were hit by hail earlier this week. That comes on the heels of a lot of hail last week around Garden City and Deerfield in southwest Kansas.
A common theme with this year’s wheat crop has been variability.
Yields have ranged from 10 to 70 bushels per acre. Protein levels have gone up in heat-stressed crops in western Kansas. But hail has also destroyed some crops and some fields had so much disease they were not harvested.
