ATCHISON, Kan. (AP) — A former Atchison teacher was sentenced to more than five years in prison for trading sexually suggestive text messages with a 14-year-old boy.

The St. Joseph News-Press reports 39-year-old Robert Bulk, who taught at Atchison Middle School, was sentenced Monday on two counts of sexual exploitation of a child.

Atchison police arrested Bulk in July after the victim’s family alerted them to text messages the child exchanged with Bulk during June. The crime did not involve any physical contact.

Bulk said in a letter to the court that he was addicted to pornography. He apologized to the boy and several others.

He worked for the Atchison district for more than a decade before resigning after his arrest.

FORD COUNTY – Thirteen people were injured in an accident just before 4p.m. on Monday in Ford County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1999 Chevy Suburban driven by Chelsea E. Bradfield, 33, Wright, was Eastbound on U.S. 50., one mile east of Dodge City.

The Suburban ran into a 1999 Ford Windstar driven by Alejandrina V. Tagle, 41, Dodge City, that was stopped facing eastbound attempting to make a left turn onto 112 Road.

Bradfield and 2 children from Ensign and 2 from Dodge City in the Suburban were transported to Western Plains Medical Center.

Tagle and 7 children from Dodge City in the Ford were transported to Western Plains Medical Center. Two of the children were transported by private vehicle.

All were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — An Overland Park police officer will not face charges after shooting at a man who allegedly rammed a truck into the officer’s vehicle and then turned the vehicle in the officer’s director.

Johnson County Attorney Steve Howe said Monday the officer was justified in firing shots at the man last month.

The Kansas City Star reports the man was not injured in the Dec. 21 confrontation.

Casey Lee Smith is charged in Johnson County District Court with aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and felony theft.

SALINE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Saline County are investigating a suspect on drug theft and other charges.

A 33-year-old Salina man is arrested Sunday afternoon on charges of theft, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, and leaving the scene of an accident.

Just after 10 a.m. on Sunday, deputies were sent to the area of Salemsborg Road and Simpson Road after the report of a vehicle on its top, still running and no one around, according to Saline County Sheriff Roger Soldan.

They found a 2005 Isuzu Asender owned by Jason and Crystal McKellips of Salina that had been taken Jason Swisher, 33, on January 2nd at the Pilot Travel Center, 1944 N. 9th Street in Salina.

Swisher had been with Crystal McKellips inside the travel center and told her he would wait for her in the SUV. He drove off.

Crystal McKellips reported the vehicle stolen after learning it had been in an accident.

Swisher was taken into custody about 4:15 Sunday afternoon when he was walking along South Ohio Street.

Deputies found drug paraphernalia and personal use methamphetamine at the scene of the accident.

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — A government lawsuit seeks to ban a popular memory loss dietary supplement marketed to seniors, saying there’s no scientific evidence to support its claims.

Democratic New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and the Federal Trade Commission filed the lawsuit Monday against Madison, Wisconsin-based Quincy Bioscience, maker of Prevagen. The lawsuit seeks a ban on further claims about Prevagen’s effectiveness, refunds for consumers and civil penalties.

Prevagen is sold at major retailers and is advertised as being “clinically shown” to support “clearer thinking” and to “improve memory within 90 days.”

Schneiderman says Quincy Bioscience based its claims primarily on a study that failed to show a statistically significant improvement in memory.

Quincy Bioscience says it “vehemently disagrees” with the allegations. It calls the lawsuit an “example of government overreach and regulators extinguishing innovation.”

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Wildlife experts are trying to determine whether Kansas’ deer population is contracting an unusual type of contagious foot disease at a higher than average rate.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism is working with the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study lab at the University of Georgia’s College of Veterinary Medicine. The question is whether the condition is foot rot and why it appears to be more prevalent.

Counties with reports include Butler, Lyon, Woodson, Neosho, Phillips, Cowley, Wilson, Bourbon, Anderson, Geary, Dickinson, Elk, Osage and Decatur.

Hunters and other members of the public are asked to report any potential cases of foot rot to the wildlife disease coordinator for the state.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Latest on the opening day of the Kansas Legislature’s annual session (all times local):

Chief Justice Lawton Nuss says the Kansas Supreme Court hopes to have a decision on whether the state’s spending on public schools is adequate.

But Nuss wouldn’t say Monday exactly when the high court expects rule in a lawsuit filed against the state in 2010 by four local school districts.

The Legislature expects to work this year on a new formula for distributing $4.1 billion a year in aid to the state’s 286 school districts. The court’s decision could shape lawmakers’ work.

GOP legislators junked a per-student formula in 2015 in favor of stable “block grants” for districts but that law is set to expire June 30.

The Supreme Court is considering whether the state spends enough money on its schools overall. It heard arguments from attorneys in September.

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Kansas House leaders plan to have a new and usually large budget subcommittee work on a new public school funding formula.

House Speaker and Olathe Republican Ron Ryckman Jr. appointed a 17-member K-12 Education Budget Committee ahead of Monday’s opening of the Legislature’s annual session.

GOP Gov. Sam Brownback has said he wants lawmakers to approve a new formula this year.

The House previously had five Appropriations subcommittees and one handled both public school and higher education spending. Ryckman split the education subcommittee into two panels.

The other Appropriations subcommittees have nine members.

House Majority Leader and Dighton Republican Don Hineman said Monday that the intent is to have one committee focus on public school funding.

Senate Republican leaders have not decided how they’ll handle school funding legislation.

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PITTSBURG, Kan. (AP) — A 20-year-old man will serve at least 25 years in prison for his role in the death of a Pittsburg State University student.

Brian Bridges was sentenced Monday to life without possibility of parole for 25 years in the 2014 death of Taylor Thomas during a home invasion in Pittsburg.

The Pittsburg Morning Sun reports Bridges pleaded no contest in November to first-degree murder.

Prosecutors say Taylor was shot and killed when Bridges and two other men broke into his home to rob his roommate.

Bridges was later captured in Mexico.

During the hearing, Bridges said in a written statement that he was responsible for Taylor’s death and apologized for his role in it.

Thomas’ father, Tom Thomas Jr., also spoke and called his son’s killing “cowardly.”

BARTON COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Barton County are investigating a suspect on drug and traffic violations.

Just before 11:30 p.m. Saturday, Deputy Sheriff Sierra Thorne conducted a traffic stop in the 200 block of Main Street in the city of Great Bend for vehicle equipment violations, according to a media release.

The deputy discovered the driver Jesse Crumm, age 51, Stafford, was driving on a revoked license and is a habitual violator.

He also had various insurance and registration violations and was allegedly in possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.

Crumm was arrested and booked into the Barton County Jail for the drug-related charges and the applicable traffic charges.

Crumm posted a $10,000 bond and was released.

By ANDY MARSO

As they gavel in Monday for the 2017 session, Kansas legislators are considering delaying juvenile justice reforms enacted last year.

Last year’s bill was intended to steer low-level juvenile offenders into diversion and treatment programs rather than group homes and detention facilities. It had broad bipartisan support, and Gov. Sam Brownback called it the premier legislation of the 2016 session when he signed it in April.

But Rep. Russ Jennings, a Republican from Lakin who will chair the House Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee this year, said the timeline — which called for some of the bill to be implemented by Jan. 1 — has been difficult for the state’s judicial branch and corrections system.

“There’s been some delays, administratively, in getting this done,” Jennings said.

Jennings said he would meet with judges, probation officers, prosecutors and corrections officials during the first week of the session to get their thoughts on a new timeline. At least one revisionary bill likely will be offered, he said.

Jennings, the former commissioner of the Kansas Juvenile Justice Authority, said the implementation struggles were not a surprise given the scope of the bill.

“Some of this sounds great on paper, but it’s very difficult to do,” he said.

A memo from Randy Bowman, director of community-based services for the Kansas Department of Corrections, showed progress toward several of the bill’s benchmarks although few had been completed.

Download the Kansas Department of Corrections Memo on Juvenile Justice Reforms

For example, the department had awarded a number of contracts for diversion and treatment programs, but some of the contractors are not expected to be fully operational until February.

Six of the 30 regional Juvenile Corrections Advisory Boards set up across the state had not yet verified that they have a juvenile defense attorney included in their membership. Two of the boards had yet to submit their first report on local programming to the department.

Last year’s reform bill was the result of months of study and a strong push by two conservative Republicans, Rep. John Rubin and Sen. Greg Smith, who are no longer in the Legislature.

Rubin, from Shawnee, decided not to run for re-election last year and Smith, from Olathe, was defeated in the Republican primary.

Rubin said he’s OK with delaying some of the bill’s deadlines if it means a smoother implementation.

“As with all comprehensive legislation, it’s important to get it right,” Rubin said.

The Kansas County and District Attorneys Association, which represents the state’s prosecutors, opposed the bill last year, saying the reforms weren’t properly funded and could undermine public safety.

But Rubin said they were carefully vetted and based on well-constructed studiesthat showed the treatment and diversion programs making communities safer. He said if there’s a push to repeal last year’s bill rather than just delay it, he would be in Topeka testifying against repeal.

“I intend to fight those efforts in any way I can as a private citizen,” Rubin said.

Andy Marso is a reporter for KCUR’s Kansas News Service, a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio and KMUW covering health, education and politics in Kansas. You can reach him on Twitter @andymarso. Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished at no cost with proper attribution and a link back to kcur.org.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An internal investigation of the Kansas National Guard has raised alarms about “toxic leadership.”

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the investigation started in 2013 amid renewed allegations that Guard recruiters were pressured by superiors to forge documents to clear unqualified applicants or speed processing of paperwork. The inquiry was closed in 2015.

The lieutenant colonel who started the inquiry concluded that five Guard members warranted dismissal from military service, demotion in rank or relief from assigned duties.

Official reports of the probe emphasize that Maj. Gen. Lee Tafanelli was urged to end a management culture that protects wrongdoers. Tafanelli declined to be interviewed but responded in an opinion page column submitted to The Capital-Journal that the Guard works to “thoroughly and impartially investigate” wrongdoing.

WABAUNSEE COUNTY – A Kansas woman was injured in an accident just after 9:30 a.m. on Monday in Wabaunsee County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by Sharon R. Dorminey, 72, Junction City, was westbound on Interstate 70 approximately 2 miles west of the Maple Hill exit.

The vehicle left the roadway and the driver overcorrected

The SUV traveled across the center median and rolled into the eastbound lanes.

Dorminey was transported to the hospital in Topeka.

She was properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

SALINE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Saline County are investigating a suspect on drug charges.

Just before 1:30 on Monday, a Saline County deputy stopped a Ford F-150 pickup traveling westbound on I-70 just west of the Hedville-Culver exit. The truck was traveling at 86-miles-per hour, according to Saline County Sheriff Roger Soldan.

During the stop the deputy discovered the driver David W. Buck, 50, Las Vegas, NV., was in possession of methamphetamine, and drug paraphernalia.

During a further search, the deputy discovered $37,700 in cash in the bed of the pickup.

Buck was booked into the Saline County Jail on requested charges of possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.