SALINE COUNTY —A teen driver received only minor injuries after the pickup he was driving traveled off of Interstate 70 and down a steep embankment Monday in Saline County.

A 2007 GMC pickup driven by Alec Sappington, 18, Guymon, OK., was eastbound on Interstate 70 just west of the Hedville exit when he fell asleep, drove through a guardrail, down a steep embankment, and impacted the ground before coming to rest next to railroad tracks, according to Saline County Sheriff’s Lieutenant Sean Kochanowski
EMS transported Sappington to Salina Regional Health Center after he complained of minor facial injuries. The pickup had front-end and undercarriage damage,

Sappington was properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to Kochanowski.

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SALINE COUNTY — The Kansas Highway Patrol responded to a minor injury crash along Interstate 70 in Saline County Monday morning

It’s believed the driver fell asleep at the wheel and the vehicle dropped off the roadway to the railroad tracks below, according to Trooper Ben Gardner.

Lieutenant Riedel responded to this minor injury crash along I-70 in
Saline county.

County deputies are handling the call.

It’s believed the driver fell asleep at the wheel and dropping off the roadway to the R&R tracks below. pic.twitter.com/r33HwRsbyk

— Trooper Ben (@TrooperBenKHP) August 26, 2019

Authorities released no additional details early Monday.

SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a stolen car suspect after a chase.

Just after 6:30 a.m. Monday, Shawnee County Sheriff deputies responded to a report of a stolen vehicle from the parking lot of the Petro Deli, 3603 NW 46th Street in Topeka, according to Sgt. Todd Stallbaumer.

The victim had left a Nissan Rogue unlocked and running and entered the business.

The victim had left a cell phone in the vehicle that was  tracked.

Deputies located the Nissan near NW 46th and Brickyard Road and attempted a traffic stop. The suspect failed to stop for the deputies and drove the Nissan west on NW 46th and committed several traffic violations.

A deputy was able to successfully deploy spike strips near NW Valencia Road and 24 Highway. The vehicle was then stopped near NW Docking Road and 24 Highway.

Deputies with assistance from the Kansas Highway Patrol arrested 26-year-old Jesse L. McCormick, 26, of Topeka and transported to the Shawnee County Department of Corrections.

The Shawnee County Sheriff K9 officers were also able to locate a 9mm handgun near the location of the vehicle stop.

McCormick is being held on requested charges that include, Felony Theft, Felony Fleeing and Eluding, Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Various Traffic Charges.

McCormick has numerous convictions that include theft, obstruction, flee and attempt to elude and drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

KANSAS CITY,– A former Kansas City Chiefs football player, who was tasered twice while struggling with officers and resisting arrest, was charged in federal court Monday with illegally possessing firearms, according to the United State’s Attorney’s office.

Saousoalii P. Siavii, Jr., also known as “Junior,” 40, of Independence, Missouri, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., with three counts of being an unlawful drug user in possession of firearms. Siavii remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing, which has not yet been scheduled.

Monday’s federal criminal complaint alleges that Siavii, an unlawful user of illegal drugs, has been arrested on three occasions in which he was in possession of both illegal drugs and loaded firearms. Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who is an unlawful drug user to be in possession of any firearms or ammunition.

According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Siavii was arrested on Saturday, Aug. 24. Independence, Missouri, police officers responded to parking lot on U.S. 40 Highway, where a witness said he located his friend’s stolen 2017 Jeep Wrangler Sport. The witness told police he saw a man later identified as Siavii getting out of the driver’s seat of the vehicle.

Officers contacted Siavii, the affidavit says, who disregarded their commands, and an officer deployed his Taser on Siavvi. Siavvi, who is six feet, five inches tall and weighs approximately 330 pounds, fell to the ground and officers attempted to gain control as he began to actively resist arrest. Siavii began pushing himself up off the ground, at which time a loaded Smith and Wesson 9mm pistol fell directly in front of him within his reach. An officer drew his duty weapon and put it to Siavii’s back, due to him not being under physical control, while another officer grabbed Siavii’s firearm and threw it several feet away. Officers continued to fight with Siavii, the affidavit says, while giving him commands to stop resisting and to place his hands behind his back. An officer deployed his Taser on Siavii again with little effect. Siavii was able to get on top of the officer, who was on the ground at this point. Another officer was eventually able to put Siavii in a neck restraint and render him unconscious long enough to handcuff him. Siavii continued to resist even after being handcuffed.

Officers searched Siavii’s backpack and found additional ammunition, 5.2 grams of methamphetamine, 12.2 grams of marijuana, and drug paraphernalia.

In addition to the Aug. 24 incident, today’s complaint cites two more incidents in which Siavii was arrested while in possession of illegal drugs and firearms.

On Aug. 4, 2019, Independence police officers were dispatched to the area of 24 Highway and Jennings on a stolen auto report. A 2019 Chevrolet Silverado had been stolen in Sugar Creek, Missouri, and was being tracked by On-Star to the parking lot of the Great Western Motel. When officers arrived, Siavii was walking away from the stolen vehicle, the affidavit says, and fled on foot when he saw the officers. Officers attempted to take Siavii into custody, but he resisted and fought with officers. Siavii was lying on his stomach and constantly reached towards his waistband. After a prolonged struggle with Siavii, officers were able to take him into custody. When officers rolled him to his side, a loaded Sturm Ruger handgun was located underneath him. Officers searched Siavii and found 4.4 grams of methamphetamine. Officers searched the stolen Silverado and found a Cobra Enterprises .32-caliber handgun and drug paraphernalia.

On April 7, 2019, Independence police officers attempted a traffic stop in the area of 24 Highway and Lee’s Summit Road on a silver Ford Fusion for an improperly registered license plate. The vehicle, driven by Siavii, had been observed at a known drug house. Siavii failed to stop and a pursuit was initiated. During the pursuit, Siavii’s vehicle reached speeds up to 101 m.p.h. Siavii’s vehicle eventually left the roadway on Maywood Avenue and he was seen running northbound; he was located by officers and taken into custody. Officers found a loaded Phoenix Arms .22-caliber handgun in the front cup holder of the vehicle. Also found in the vehicle was 3.8 grams of marijuana, two baggies that contained a total of .6 grams of methamphetamine, ammunition, and drug paraphernalia.

The complaint also cites two earlier incidents in which Siavii was in possession of illegal drugs when he was stopped by police officers. Siavii was arrested on Jan. 17, 2019, following a traffic stop. According to the affidavit, when he got out of his vehicle, he pulled away from officers, causing the officers to take him to the ground where he continued to resist. Officers searched him and found a Xanax pill; they also found a prescription bottle that belonged to another person and contained more pills and marijuana. Siavii also was arrested on April 21, 2018, for driving under the influence. According to the affidavit, he was in possession of a straw that contained cocaine residue.

The charges contained in this complaint are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

HARVEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities and USD 439 school district officials are investigating an alleged school threat.

On Monday evening, the Sedgwick Police Department and the Sheriff’s Office investigated a threat of potential violence against Sedgwick Public Schools, according to a social media report from the sheriff’s office. The suspect in that threat, a 14-year-old juvenile, was identified and taken into custody for alleged criminal threat.

This was an isolated incident. There is no active threat.  Authorities released no additional details late Monday and there was no word of additional police at the school  Tuesday. A portion of the city of Sedgwick is located in Harvey County.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — From huge rewards to calls for allowing Missouri cities to enact their own gun laws, leaders in Kansas City are grappling with a troubling rise in shooting deaths, especially those involving children.

This past weekend was especially violent. In Kansas City, four men were killed Sunday, including two in a drive-by shooting in a popular entertainment district. In St. Louis, six people were killed in shootings, including 8-year-old and 10-year-old girls and a 15-year-old boy.

Many of the victims of violence in the state’s two largest cities are black, and black Missouri lawmakers are asking Republican Gov. Mike Parson to allow the House and Senate to consider during a special session next month legislation that would let cities adopt their own gun control measures. In a letter dated Saturday, state Rep. Steven Roberts Jr. a St. Louis Democrat who chairs the 19-member Missouri Black Caucus, told Parson that local leaders need the autonomy to act as they see fit on “this pressing crisis.”

Kansas City — Missouri’s largest city with 490,000 residents, about 30% of whom are black — has recorded 97 homicides this year, on pace to top last year’s homicide rate of 143. Sixty-eight of this year’s victims were black.

St. Louis has seen about 128 homicides this year, also on pace to top last year’s total of 186. The vast majority those killed this year — 112 victims — were black in a city where about half of the 320,000 residents are black.

At least a dozen children have been shot to death in St. Louis since April, many of them in drive-by shootings, and the city is offering $25,000 rewards for information in five recent fatal shootings of children.

“We ask you and our rural colleagues to recognize that the slaughter of children in our state, and the hundreds of other victims of gun violence, demand immediate solutions that will produce results for our communities,” Roberts wrote in his request to Parson.

In a statement, Parson said that while there are many opinions on how to find a solution to reduce violence, a special session is not the “correct avenue.”

“If we are to change violent criminal acts in Missouri, it will take all of us at the federal, state, local, and community levels working together,” the governor said.

Republican Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz doubted the Legislature would take up the proposal.

“I think we would all agree we would like to find a way to end the type of gun violence that we see going on, but you’re going to have to show proof of something that’s been effective and worked somewhere, and not doing something just for the purposes of doing something,” Schatz said.

“Guns don’t do these acts,” Schatz said. “People do them, and unfortunately they use guns to do some of these horrific things.”

Republican House Speaker Elijah Haahr didn’t immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment.

Top St. Louis officials also believe Missouri’s lenient gun laws are a factor in the upsurge of killings. Mayor Lyda Krewson noted that Missouri, in 2017, became the first state to allow people to carry guns without a permit.

“Now almost anyone can carry a gun almost anywhere, anytime,” Krewson said. “That makes the job for police officers particularly difficult.”

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner blamed lax gun laws as well as a “sense of hopelessness” in many neighborhoods that has “fostered an environment where too many young people have little or no regard for their own lives or the lives of others.”

Krewson said city officials hoped the unusually high rewards for information leading to the arrests of suspects in child shootings would spur reluctant witnesses who may fear retaliation to come forward. Ninety-three of the city’s homicides this year remain unsolved.

This month alone, the victims have included Xavier Usanga a 7-year-old boy shot in the yard of his home on Aug. 12; 8-year-old Jurnee Thompson, killed Friday when gunfire erupted after a high school football exhibition; and, Nyla Banks, a 10-year-old girl found dead Saturday evening along with two adults inside an apartment building.

St. Louis saw just four killings last year involving children 16 or younger, according to police statistics.

Kansas City leaders are alarmed by a rise in homicides in the city’s popular nightlife areas, including the early Sunday deaths of Austin Michael Quijas and Leo Moreno Jr. in the Power & Light District downtown.

State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, a Kansas City Democrat, called it shameful that St. Louis and Kansas City both consistently rank among the deadliest U.S. cities.

“This is now a public health crisis,” Manlove said in a statement.

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Kansas man pleaded guilty  Monday to crashing a car into a Cabela’s store in hopes of stealing guns, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.

Kyle Mendez, 30, Kansas City, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to steal guns from a licensed firearms dealer and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. In his plea, Mendez admitted he crashed a car into an exterior door of a Cabela’s store in Kansas City, Kan. He and co-defendant Brenda Tosh, 27, Kansas City, Kan., took rifles from a firearms section and loaded them into a shopping cart. When police arrived, Mendez fled from the store while police arrested Tosh.

Mendez admitted he had a .45-caliber Taurus handgun in his car during the break-in. He was prohibited from having a gun because of a prior felony conviction.

Mendez is set for sentencing Nov. 26. Both parties have agreed to recommend a sentence of four years in prison.

Co-defendant Tosh pleaded guilty and is set for sentencing Sept. 30.

By JOHN HANNA

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican Rep. Steve Watkins got heat Monday from frustrated eastern Kansas constituents who pressed the freshman congressman to publicly endorse tougher gun laws following recent mass shootings.

Several people left a Watkins town hall meeting in Topeka unhappy that he didn’t commit himself during the event to backing stronger background checks for firearms purchases or a “red flag” law that would allow authorities to seize guns from people deemed a danger to themselves or others. Members of the audience of about 40 interrupted Watkins when he tried to defend the GOP’s record on gun issues.

Watkins told reporters after the meeting that he’s open to looking at a red flag law and at steps to improve existing background checks because he’s willing to consider “what could make a difference.” But he also said he’s still “unequivocally” a supporter of gun rights.

Some of his constituents were unimpressed by what he said during his town hall meeting, such as expressing support for mental health funding or grants to make schools more secure.

“He had no answer,” said Steve Waugh, a retired Topeka resident and unaffiliated voter. “I wasn’t happy with his response.”

Watkins, a former Army officer and military contractor, was a political unknown when he emerged from a crowded GOP primary last year to win the 2nd District seat by less than a percentage point. In 2016, Donald Trump easily carried the district, which has Democratic enclaves in its largest cities of Topeka and Lawrence but also heavily Republican rural areas.

Many Kansas Republicans have long played up their support for gun rights and profited politically by doing so. The state allows gun owners to openly carry their firearms in public and to carry them concealed without a state permit.

But Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, who was elected last year, recently endorsed universal background checks for gun purchases after supporting a red flag law. Her endorsement of stronger background checks came during a Statehouse rally following mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, in which more than 30 people were killed.

Watkins said after his town hall meetings that he likes the idea of stronger background checks if it involves “different databases communicating better.”

As for gun control, Watkins said after the meeting, “There’s clearly no definitive solution.”

Watkins touched on a wide variety of issues during the meeting, including illegal immigration, veterans’ issues and a new trade agreement between the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Gun safety arose as an issue during a question-and-answer period when Danielle Twemlow, a local leader of the Moms Demand Action gun-control group, urged Watkins to support stronger background checks and a strong red flag law.

“Access to guns is really the issue,” she told Watkins.

She also pressed Watkins to explain his vote in April against a measure that passed the House to reauthorize a 25-year-old lawthat helps victims of domestic and sexual violence, the Violence Against Women Act. Another audience member gasped in disbelief.

Watkins replied that the measure had contained “poison pills,” prompting a few audience members to challenge him. Republican leaders have said Democrats politicized the measure by attaching gun control proposals designed to embarrass gun rights supporters.

Watkins did have supporters in the crowd. Mel Adams, a retired financial planner from Topeka and a Republican, acknowledged that he was skeptical of Watkins when he ran for office last year because Watkins didn’t have a record, but that, “He’s won me over.”

Adams said he could support a red flag law but worries that it would be written too broadly, so that guns could be removed from people who aren’t a danger to themselves or others.

SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a drive-by shooting and looking for suspects.

Just before 12:30 p.m. Monday, deputies were dispatched to the 7600 block of SW Urish Road for a disturbance, according to Sgt. Todd Stallbaumer.

The homeowner reported an unknown black, four door vehicle arrived at the residence with four or five armed individuals who were looking for an acquaintance of the homeowner.

The homeowner described the suspects as males, all in their twenties, wearing ski masks or handkerchiefs.

The homeowner told deputies that the suspects shot an unoccupied vehicle multiple times that was parked in the driveway of the residence.  The black vehicle then left the residence prior to deputies arriving.

Deputies were still processing the scene and interviewing witnesses late Monday afternoon, according to Stallbaumer.

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — A judge on Monday found Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiaries helped fuel the opioid crisis in Oklahoma and ordered the consumer products giant to pay $572 million to clean up the problem.

Cleveland County District Judge Thad Balkman’s ruling followed the first state opioid case to make it to trial and could help shape negotiations over roughly 1,500 similar lawsuits filed by state, local and tribal governments consolidated before a federal judge in Ohio.

“The opioid crisis has ravaged the state of Oklahoma,” Balkman said before announcing the verdict. “It must be abated immediately.”

The companies are expected to appeal the ruling to the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

Before Oklahoma’s trial began May 28, Oklahoma reached settlements with two other defendant groups — a $270 million deal with OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma and an $85 million settlement with Israeli-owned Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

Oklahoma argued the companies and their subsidiaries created a public nuisance by launching an aggressive and misleading marketing campaign that overstated how effective the drugs were for treating chronic pain and understated the risk of addiction. Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter says opioid overdoses killed 4,653 people in the state from 2007 to 2017.

Mike Hunter has called Johnson & Johnson a “kingpin” companythat was motivated by greed. He specifically pointed to two former Johnson & Johnson subsidiaries, Noramco and Tasmanian Alkaloids, which produced much of the raw opium used by other manufacturers to produce the drugs.

“They’ve been the principal origin for the active pharmaceutical ingredient in prescription opioids in the country for the last two decades,” Hunter said after the trial ended July 15. “It is one of the most important elements of causation with regard to why the defendants … are responsible for the epidemic in the country and in Oklahoma.”

Attorneys for the company have maintained they were part of a lawful and heavily regulated industry subject to strict federal oversight, including the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and the Food and Drug Administration, during every step of the supply chain. Lead attorney Larry Ottaway said during closing arguments that opioid drugs serve a critical health need — to address chronic pain that affects thousands of Oklahomans every day.

“This problem of untreated chronic pain afflicts people here in Oklahoma,” Ottaway said.

Oklahoma pursued the case under the state’s public nuisance statute and presented the judge with a plan to abate the crisis that would cost between $12.6 billion for 20 years and $17.5 billion over 30 years. Attorneys for Johnson & Johnson have said that estimate is wildly inflated.

FORD COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating and alleged school threat and have made an arrest.

Early Monday, police were made aware of a possible threat of violence to the high school in Dodge City, according to a media release.

Following an investigation, officers arrested an 18-year-old student and two 17-year old-students on requested charges of felony criminal threat, according to the release.

The charges will be filed with the Ford County Attorney’s Office.

Police thanked the high school staff for their quick action and assistance in this case.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — Authorities are investigating after two men were killed in a drive-by shooting near a popular entertainment district in downtown Kansas City.

Police have identified the victims as 22-year-old Leovardo Moreno Jr. and 28-year-old Austin Quijas. They were cousins.

Witnesses told investigators that a vehicle pulled up alongside a group of people and opened fire around 2:15 a.m. Sunday near the Power & Light District.

Police spokesman Jacob Becchina says it doesn’t appear that the shooting was random.

Quijas’ father, Alexander Quijas, said that the victims apparently were on their way to their vehicle after getting a drink at a bar in the area. He says he doesn’t know who would have shot the men, but he pleaded for witnesses to step forward.

SALINE COUNTY— Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect after a weekend altercation at a bar.

Just after 1a.m. Saturday,  deputies were called to Outlaws, 1676 W. State Street, in Salina after report of a fight inside the establishment., according to Saline County Sheriff Roger Soldan.

When the first deputy arrived, he was directed to the back of the bar, where he found an upset Tayler Smyth, 26, of Moundridge. Smyth had multiple cuts to his face and bruising on his left eye and nose.

Smyth pushed the deputy and they both ended up on the floor, according to Soldan. That led to an arrest.

EMS transported Smyth to Salina Regional Health Center before being booked into the Saline County Jail on requested charges of disorderly conduct and battery of a law enforcement officer, according to Soldan

Deputies continue to search for another man who was allegedly involved in the incident.