TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Vancouver, Washington-based nonprofit has given Kansas a grade of “C” for its legislation addressing domestic child sex trafficking.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that Shared Hope International’s rating places Kansas 29th in the country.

The state Legislature passed a package of bills to protect and support victims in 2013. Deputy Director of the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit for the Kansas Attorney General’s Office Jennifer Rapp says it also increased penalties for traffickers and buyers.

Rapp says the Legislature passed a bill this year allowing victims of human trafficking to seek restitution from convicted traffickers.

In October, seven Topeka residents were indicted on allegations of running an interstate sex trafficking ring that included recruitment of a minor, and the Wichita area reported 44 cases of human trafficking. Wichita had 29 total cases last year.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway says the most common Sunshine Law violations in the state include closed-session discussions on issues that should be open to the public.

Galloway’s Monday report reviews violations of the state’s open records and open meetings laws from January 2014 to June 2015.

Galloway’s office found governmental bodies sometimes discussed issues improperly during closed sessions or did not adequately document the reason for a closed meeting. Galloway also says governmental bodies didn’t always properly disclose what decisions were made in closed session.

Issues were found mainly in county governments, school districts and cities.

Galloway recommends only discussing topics allowable under state law in closed session. She also is calling for better record keeping.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Relatives of a civil rights attorney being honored posthumously with a Presidential Medal of Freedom for challenging treatment of Japanese Americans during World War II are alarmed by recent opposition to Syrian refugees resettling in the U.S.

Sixty-four-year-old Laurie Yasui, of Kansas City, said her father, Minoru Yasui would be “stomping his feet and shaking his fist” at the political response to the Paris attacks. She and other relatives will be at the White House on Tuesday when her father and 16 others are honored with the nation’s highest civilian award.

More than half of U.S. governors have said they want to halt resettlement of Syrian refugees.

His granddaughter, 31-year-old Chani Hawkins, says the nation is again at a crossroads where “fear and hysteria” are influencing decisions.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A new St. Louis police officer has been injured during a struggle with an armed man. The 24-year-old probationary officer was patrolling with a sergeant in a marked car around 9:45 p.m. Sunday when they saw a man acting suspiciously in the Fairground neighborhood.

The man ran, and officers chased him through an alley. As the officer and the man struggled, the man fired a gun, which struck the officer. The officer then drew his own weapon and fired three times.

The 23-year-old man was not hit, but officers arrested him.

St. Louis Police Chief Sam Dotson says the injured officer was taken to a local hospital with a non-life-threatening wound in the left neck and shoulder area.

The officer graduated from the police academy October 29th.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A high school mathematics teacher from Dodge City is the 2016 Kansas Teacher of the Year. Justin Coffey’s selection was announced by Kansas Commissioner of Education Randy Watson during a ceremony Saturday night in Wichita. He received $4,000, free enrollment to several Kansas universities for life and other prizes.

Coffey received a business administration degree from the University of Wyoming and a transition to teaching certification in 2011 from Fort Hays State University. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in education.

He is part of his school’s leadership team, the moderator of a monthly Twitter chat for educators and the co-founder of an annual Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics camp. He’s also the head wrestling coach at Dodge City Middle School.

Coffey was chosen from among eight finalists.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers are preparing for a tight budget in next year’s session, with a projected $110 million revenue shortfall that could force them to cut services or tap the state’s rainy-day fund.

That gap could grow or shrink when the Nebraska Economic Forecasting Advisory Board meets in February, but lawmakers still have to balance the budget in next year’s session.

Speaker of the Legislature Galen Hadley says he’s concerned about the shortfall and isn’t yet sure whether it’s just a “blip” in the economy or a sign of trouble ahead.

Senator Heath Mello of Omaha, whose committee oversees the budget, says he’s confident lawmakers will find a way to balance the books but acknowledges it could be more difficult if the shortfall widens.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Efforts to provide cannabis oil to some Missourians with a severe type of epilepsy are starting slowly, primarily because most neurologists in the state are unable or unwilling to certify patients to try it.

The Missouri Legislature in 2014 legalized cannabis oil to treat intractable epilepsy, which can’t be controlled by other medications. The state issued two licenses to grow the industrial hemp needed to extract the oil, with estimates the treatments would be ready by September.

But with only 15 Missourians certified to receive the treatment, the two people who received the licenses are scaling back their plans and now hope to have CBD oil available in January.

Other obstacles have included difficulty with financing and a lack of FDA approval of cannabis oil.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A St. Louis house fire has killed three children, seriously injured a man who tried to rescue them and forced several people to jump from the home’s upper floor.

The fire started around 4 a.m. Sunday in the northern part of the city. Fire Captain Greg Favre says seven people were able to escape, with some jumping and others forced out the front door.

Favre says the child victims ranged in age from 10 months to 6 years. The hospitalized man was injured when he tried go back inside the home for the children but was pushed back by the heat.

Authorities believe the fire started with a space heater.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Advocates for Syrian refugees are planning a candlelight vigil in to show support for people who are fleeing persecution today.

The vigil is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday at Tower Square in downtown Lincoln. Religious leaders from a variety of faiths will speak at the event.

This vigil is sponsored by the group Nebraska Appleseed, the Center For People In Need, Refugee Empowerment Center, the Asian Community and Cultural Center and the Faith Coalition of Lancaster County.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Thanksgiving is a time when many overindulge, and the Humane Society of Missouri warns that dogs, cats and other pets can also become sick from what they eat over the holiday.

The Humane Society says even the smallest table scraps can be harmful to pets, who should never eat anything that are not used to.

Poultry and ham bones can be especially harmful. Chicken and turkey bones shatter easily and the shards can get caught in the pet’s throat. Ham bones contain enough salt to cause an upset stomach for dogs and cats.

Some people pour fat drippings from a turkey pan on pet food as an added treat, but it can make the animals sick. Pumpkin can cause diarrhea.