(AP) – A spokesman for Kathleen Sebelius says the U.S. health and human services secretary has no knowledge about the shredding of abortion reports by the Kansas health department while she was governor.

Spokesman Richard Sorian (SOR’-ee-uhn) said Wednesday Sebelius can’t comment on a criminal case in Johnson County against a Planned Parenthood clinic. A judge dismissed 49 of 107 criminal charges against the clinic Wednesday because copies of the reports, considered key evidence, were destroyed.

The clinic filed the reports on individual abortions in 2003 with the Kansas health department as required by state law. The agency shredded them in 2005.

The clinic had been accused of failing to maintain copies of the reports, as required by law, and producing false copies later.

Sebelius was governor from 2003 to 2009.

(AP) – Federal investigators have joined the search for the cause of a massive weekend fire that destroyed a Manhattan apartment complex under construction.

WIBW-TV reports  that Manhattan Fire Chief Jerry Snyder says authorities aren’t ready to say if the fire early Sunday is considered suspicious.

The 96-unit Strasser Village Apartments had been expected to open sometime next fall. The luxury complex had been valued at $7 million, and Snyder calls the fire the most expensive in Manhattan’s history.

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is taking part in the investigation. ATF Special Agent in Charge Jeff Fulton said Wednesday the agency has 35 to 40 people working on the case.

The complex is located near a retail development, where the roofs of several stores were damaged by flaming debris.

(AP) – The son of a woman who was left so long in a chair that her skin had fused to it said he was honoring his mother’s wishes to die in her home in the Kansas City suburb of Independence.

A fire captain said in court documents that skin was left behind when the 74-year-old woman was pried from her reclining chair so she could be taken to an Independence hospital on Oct. 27. The woman was described as a “rotting corpse that was still breathing.”

The woman has since died. Her son told a state worker he didn’t help his mother use the bathroom or bathe because he was following her wishes.

The Jackson County prosecutor’s office says no decision will be on filing charges until the autopsy is completed.

(AP) – A U.S. official says the State Department is considering a plan that would reroute the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada away from environmentally sensitive areas of Nebraska, an action that could delay a final decision on the project until after the 2012 election.

The official told The Associated Press on Wednesday that rerouting the pipeline was one issue that came up during public meetings. The official asked not to be identified because no decision has been made.

TransCanada is seeking to build the $7 billion pipeline to carry oil from Alberta, Canada, to refineries in Texas. A portion would pass through Nebraska’s Sandhills region and the massive Ogallala aquifer, which supplies water to eight states.

(AP) – A Kansas judge dismissed felony charges against a Planned Parenthood clinic, following the disclosure that state documents later sought as evidence were destroyed.

The ruling came after a hearing Wednesday in Johnson County District Court.

Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe said he had no choice but to seek dismissal of the most serious felony counts against Planned Parenthood, which accused the clinic of falsifying records. Howe said the documents had been shredded.

Of the 107 overall charges against the clinic, 49 were dismissed — including 23 felonies. The remaining 58 charges accuse Planned Parenthood of failing to follow state law in late-term procedures.

Planned Parenthood denies any wrongdoing. Its attorneys say the shredding was mandated under state regulations. But abortion opponents are suspicious because the shredding occurred during the administration of former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, an abortion rights Democrat.

(AP) – A coalition of Roman Catholic and Protestant bishops in Kansas is joining the public discussion on illegal immigration.

The six bishops say they’re offering a faith-based perspective on how the nation balances the desire for secure borders with the right of individuals to emigrate from their homelands.

More details of the coalition’s position are expected to be discussed at a Statehouse news conference Wednesday. Kansas Area United Methodist Bishop Scott Jones and Archbishop Joseph Naumann of the Diocese of Kansas City in Kansas are scheduled to speak.

The bishops are calling for the federal government to adopt comprehensive immigration reforms and for voters to advocate for humane treatment of immigrants already in the country.

(AP) – Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback is proposing reorganizing several agencies that handle Medicaid clients to curb the state’s health care costs.

Changes announced Tuesday by Brownback and his Cabinet include contracting with a private firm to manage care for some Medicaid recipients.

The new system will be called KanCare. It will be created primarily through executive orders signed by Brownback. Kansas will be able to make the changes without federal approval, though a waiver will be sought for expansion of certain parts of the program in the future.

Medicaid is the state’s health care program for disabled, elderly and low-income residents. It’s one of the largest and fastest-growing expenditures in state government, accounting for nearly $2.8 billion in overall spending.

(AP) – A northeast Kansas woman has pleaded no contest to involuntary manslaughter and other charges in the death of a man who was struck and killed while helping a stranded motorist.

The Leavenworth Times reports that 53-year-old Frankie Meza entered the pleas Monday, the same day her trial was to start in Leavenworth County District Court.

Meza was charged in the March 11 death of 21-year-old Leavenworth resident John Matthew Groves. Groves and a friend were pushing were struck from behind by Meza’s SUV as they pushed a car for a driver who had run out of gas.

Besides involuntary manslaughter while driving under the influence, Meza also pleaded no contest to reckless aggravated battery and leaving the scene of a fatality accident. The Leavenworth woman will be sentenced Dec. 16.

(AP) – The Topeka city council is being asked to create a domestic partners registry to make it easier for unmarried couples to legally acknowledge their relationships.

The Topeka chapter of the Kansas Equality Coalition held a news conference Monday to ask the council to establish the registry by the end of the year.

“Domestic partners” generally refers to unmarried adult couples, regardless of gender, who are in a committed relationship. Registering can make it easier for the couples to get benefits such as health care and hospital visitation rights.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that Topeka Councilman Andrew Gray says he’ll bring the ordinance before the council at a work session next week. He says a registry is a
way to show that Topeka is a tolerant city.

(AP) – A Garden Plain teacher and football coach made his first court appearance to face three felony sex-related charges.

Prosecutors say 39-year-old Todd Puetz tried to entice a child he believed to be 15 into sex acts.

He was 1 of 7 men arrested in late October who police say used electronic media to try to meet underage girls for sex.

Puetz’s attorney, Dan Monnat, said after Monday’s hearing that Puetz is ready to go to court to prove his innocence.

The Wichita Eagle reports that Puetz, who taught physical education, remains on administrative leave with pay.

He has been released on a $50,000 bond. His next hearing is Nov. 21.