JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – A Kansas man has been convicted of manslaughter in the drunk-driving crash that killed a western Missouri county commissioner.
Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley on Friday announced the conviction of 30-year-old Wesley Michael Hays of Pleasanton, Kansas. He was also convicted of second-degree assault and failing to keep on the right side of the roadway in the 2014 wreck that killed Bates County Commissioner Larry Berry.
Sentencing will be Dec. 7. Hays could face up to life in prison. The case was tried by the Attorney General’s office.
Jurors were told that Hays consumed 10 alcoholic drinks before driving his GMC Sierra that crossed the center line on Route A near Hume, Missouri, striking Berry’s Ford Taurus. Berry’s 20-year-old son was injured.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — The Latest on a hearing reconsidering the case of a Kansas man who was convicted in a 1994 double homicide. (all times local):
5 p.m.
A man who served 23 years in prison for a double murder in Kansas City, Kansas, walked out of court a free man, after charges in the case were dismissed.
Lamonte McIntyre was freed Friday after Wyandotte County District Attorney Mark Dupree Sr. announced the county would no longer contest McIntyre’s innocence.
The decision came on the second day of what was expected to be a weeklong hearing to reconsider McIntyre’s conviction in the 1994 shooting deaths of two cousins in Kansas City, Kansas.
McIntyre, 41, walked out of the courthouse late Friday afternoon and greeted his mother and other joyful supporters. He was 17 when the homicides occurred.
A key witness to the homicides recanted her testimony, saying she was pressured to accuse McIntyre. Others testified that investigators ignored witnesses who said McIntyre was the wrong suspect and never connected him to the victims or the site where they were killed.
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3:45 p.m.
A man who always insisted he was innocent in a 1994 double murder in Kansas City, Kansas, has won his freedom.
A hearing began Thursday on a motion to reconsider the conviction of 41-year-old Lamonte McIntyre, who has been serving two life sentences since his conviction in the deaths.
The hearing was scheduled to last into next week but on Friday the Wyandotte County District Attorney said in a news release that he found a “manifest injustice” in McIntyre’s case. McIntyre is scheduled to be released Friday evening.
The Kansas City Star reports the district attorney said new information — such as that a key witness recanted her testimony that McIntyre was the killer — would likely mean a jury today would have reasonable doubt about McIntyre’s guilt.
Testimony indicated investigators who worked the case issued no search warrants, arrested McIntyre after 19 minutes of interviews and never discovered a link between McIntyre and the victims, who were gunned down in broad daylight.
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Noon
A Kansas man who has spent more than half his life in prison for a double homicide is getting a chance at freedom with support from several people — including relatives of the two men who were killed.
A hearing began Thursday in Wyandotte County to reconsider the case against Lamonte McIntyre, who was sentenced to consecutive life terms in the 1994 deaths of Doniel Quinn and Donald Ewing. They were shot in broad daylight as they sat in a car in a drug-infested neighborhood.
McIntyre, 41, has always said he was innocent. His case returned to court after a motion by his legal team, including Kansas City attorney Cheryl Pilate and representatives from the Midwest Innocence Project and Centurion Ministries Inc., which work to free those wrongfully convicted. Pilate and Centurion have been researching the case for about eight years, The Kansas City Star reported.
Thursday school bus crash in Topeka-photo courtesy WIBW TV
SHAWNEE COUNTY — A Kansas school bus driver is on administrative leave following an accident in Topeka.
Just after 8 a.m. Thursday, James George was driving a Meadowlark Elementary bus with 24 students on board.
The bus hit another vehicle and crashed into a house at First Street and SW Franklin, according to Topeka Public School Communication Director Misty Franklin.
Police cited George for failure to stop at a stop sign. None of the students on the bus were injured. George and the other driver also avoided injury.
On Friday, George’s employer Durham Transportation confirmed he is on administrative leave.
BROWN COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating another new scam in Kansas.
Residents are reporting they are receiving phone calls and phone messages stating they are about to have their property foreclosed, according to the Brown County Sheriff’s Department. They are then given a number to call to satisfy the order of foreclosure.
Several residents have stated they knew it was a scam and did not respond. However, some received a call from an individual following up on the automated call notifying the resident they owed back taxes on the property and unless immediate payment was made, the property would no longer belong to them and they would be evicted immediately.
The caller wanted bank account information to obtain a payment and also wanted a social security number for verification. At that point this resident knew it was a scam and hung up the phone. The number given to call back on this scam was a California phone number.
The sheriff reminded residents should never give out any personal information over the phone or computer.
RILEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating after more skimmers are found on gas pumps in Kansas.
On Wednesday, police found two skimming devices on a gas pump in the 400 block of Riley Avenue in Ogden, according to a social media report.
Officers received a report of fraudulent activity on a citizen’s financial card. An officer who responded was able to locate two skimming devices on the pumps.
On Thursday, police reported finding skimmers on gas pumps in Junction City.
In March police in Manhattan responded to separate calls from local gas stations reporting they had found “skimmers” or devices that can be used to obtain credit or debit card information from customers paying at the pump.
According to police there is a chance there may be other skimmers that haven’t been seen. Officials are encouraging residents and those who drive through Riley County to be vigilant and monitor your bank statements closely.
Photo Riley Co. Police
In July police reported skimmers on Bank ATMs in Garden City and Salina.
There are different types of skimmers: Some are external on gas pumps or ATMs, but can blend in, while others are internal and steal your information electronically
Police reminded there are different types of skimmers. Some are external on gas pumps or ATMs, but can blend in and other are internal and steal your information electronically.
They encouraged motorist be aware when you fill up, and notice if something is different at the pump
Look to make sure security seals are not broken, watch your bank statements regularly and Report criminal activity when it happens
SALINE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a murder and have made an arrest.
Just after 10a.m. on Sunday, September 10, police were sent to 721 Seneca in Salina in reference to a deceased person in a vehicle, according to a media release.
Upon arrival, they found a silver colored 2003 Lincoln Town Car parked in the driveway. Inside the car officers found the body of Raul Lopez-Vargas, 52, of Solomon, Kansas.
The case was determined to be a homicide.
Just after 3:30 p.m. Thursday, police arrested Leobardo Velasquez, 38, of Salina in the 200 block of South 7th Street and booked him into the Saline County Jail on one count of First Degree Murder.
Police are encouraging anyone with information to contact the Salina Police Department at 826-7210. If you wish to remain anonymous you may contact the Salina/Saline County Crimestoppers hotline at 825-TIPS. If your information leads to an arrest, you may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000
The rebuilt Sukkah after it was disassembled and reassembled. Many of the poles were badly bent – photo by Glen Buickerood
MANHATTAN —The Kansas State University Police Department has concluded the investigation of damage to a Sukkah and vehicles and determined that severe weather caused the damage. A Sukkah is a temporary Jewish gathering place.
K-State Police received a report of damage to a Sukkah and multiple vehicles between Marlatt and Goodnow halls on Friday, Oct. 6. The investigation began as a possible criminal damage to property report, but after interviews, research and further investigation, police determined that the damage was caused by Friday night’s thunderstorms, heavy rain and high winds. No malicious intent was discovered.
Police were contacted by eyewitnesses who saw the Sukkah tumbling in the wind during the storm with no people around it. A witness saw the Sukkah resting on a vehicle in the adjacent parking lot. Police have determined this took place between 10 p.m. and 10:09 p.m. on Friday based on witness statements and time stamps on photos shared with police. The investigation uncovered damage to additional vehicles parked in the area.
photo courtesy Glen Buickerood
“We now consider this case closed and have determined no crime has taken place,” said Lt. Bradli Millington, K-State Police public information officer.
UNDERWOOD, Iowa — Law enforcement authorities are investigating two Kansas man on numerous charges after a high-speed chase in in which gunshots were fired at a sheriff’s deputy in Iowa.
Just before 4 a.m. Thursday, the Pottawattamie County Iowa Sheriff’s Office reported in a media release that one of its deputies tried to stop a car matching the description of a stolen car.
The car sped off west on Interstate 80. The car left the interstate at the Underwood exit and was forced into a ditch on a rural road, where it stopped.
The two men fled on foot, but the driver identified as 25-year-old Brandon J. King of Scranton, Kansas was soon caught. The Sheriff’s Office says the passenger 18-year-old John P. Detimore of Burlingame, Kansas. entered a pickup truck but was caught after the pickup got stuck in a cornfield.
Detimore – photo Pott Co.
Authorities say the deputy was not hit by the gunshots. Court records don’t yet show charges against the men.
The White House said late Thursday it would immediately halt payments to insurers under the Obama-era health care law.
The subsidies help lower copays and deductibles for people with modest incomes. Stopping the payments would trigger a spike in premiums for next year unless Trump reverses course or Congress authorizes the money.
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5:50 a.m.
President Donald Trump is inviting congressional Democrats to “call me to fix” America’s health care system, as he prepares an order ceasing federal subsidy payments to health insurers.
In a pre-dawn post on his Twitter account Friday, the president reiterated his oft-stated argument that “Obamacare is imploding.”
Addressing Democrats, he tweeted that “massive subsidy payments to their pet insurance companies has stopped. Dems should call me to fix!”
Since his presidential campaign and nearly nine months in office, Trump has persistently called for getting rid of the 2010 Obama law. His fellow Republicans joined him in that cause, but neither Trump nor the GOP has been able to muster sufficient strength to get the repeal bill through the Senate.
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3:40 a.m.
In a brash move likely to roil insurance markets, President Donald Trump will “immediately” halt payments to insurers under the Obama-era health care law he has been trying to unravel for months.
The Department of Health and Human Services made the announcement in a statement late Thursday. “We will discontinue these payments immediately,” said acting HHS Secretary Eric Hargan and Medicare administrator Seema Verma. Sign-up season for subsidized private insurance starts Nov. 1, in less than three weeks, with about 9 million people currently covered.
In a separate statement, the White House said the government cannot legally continue to pay the so-called cost-sharing subsidies because they lack a formal authorization by Congress.
RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas teen for possible sexting charges.
On October 5, police in Manhattan filed a report for aggravated unlawful transmission of a visual depiction of a child.
A 13-year-old boy sent an inappropriate picture of himself to a 12-year-old girl from Manhattan and a 14-year-old girl from Phoenix, Arizona, according to police.
On October, 6, based on information at the time, police originally reported a 10-year-old girl received the photos. A 10-year-old girl was not involved, according to police.
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RILEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas teen for possible sexting charges.
According to the police, they filed a report for aggravated unlawful transmission of a visual depiction of a child.
On Thursday a 13-year-old boy in Manhattan allegedly sent pictures of himself to a 10-year-old girl, according the Riley County Police incident report.
Authorities did not release details on the relationship between the children or their names.
Due to the nature of the crime reported, police released no additional details early Friday.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – A Kansas man has been convicted of manslaughter in the drunk-driving crash that killed a western Missouri county commissioner.
