TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas House members are uneasy about a proposal to allow parents to temporarily give up custody of their children to others as an alternative to putting the youngsters into foster homes overseen by the state.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the proposal emerged from negotiations between the House and Senate. But the House rejected the measure and its move forces additional negotiations if a bill is to pass this year.

Supporters said the bill would set up a less expensive alternative to foster care by allowing parents to designate someone they trust to care for their children for up to a year.

But critics said the system would be unregulated and the risk of troubled parents giving custody to irresponsible adults would be too high.

SEDALIA, Mo. (AP) — SWAT teams searched three Sedalia homes but didn’t find a man suspected of killing his former girlfriend and her 17-year-old son in a western Missouri community about 45 miles away.

Assistant Clinton Police Chief Sonny Lynch says a car used by 46-year-old victim Sandra Sutton was found early Thursday outside a hospital in Sedalia. Police believe 47-year-old James Barton Horn Junior left the vehicle there.

Lynch says surveillance video shows a man believed to be Horn walking away from the car and toward nearby houses at 4:15 a.m.

One of the houses was where Horn allegedly kept Sutton confined in a wooden box, letting her out only when he was home.

Sutton and her son, Zachary Wade Sutton, were found shot to death early Thursday in a relative’s Clinton home.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A Missouri woman is facing multiple charges after crashing on Interstate 55, allegedly with a syringe of heroin still in her arm while her 3-year-old child was in the back seat.

The accident happened Tuesday in St. Louis. KMOV-TV  reports that 33-year-old Mandy Schlef of DeSoto is charged with endangering the welfare of a child, unlawful use of drug paraphernalia, and driving under the influence of a drug.

Schlef is jailed on $50,000 bond.

Police say Schlef fell asleep and struck a median. Officers say was asleep when they arrived and had a spoon and mirror in her lap and a syringe in her right arm. Capsules were found on the driver’s seat.

A probable cause statement did not say if the child was hurt in the accident.

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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Republican candidate for Missouri secretary of state is pushing an initiative petition that would allow the Legislature to require voters to present photo identification at the polls.

St. Louis attorney Jay Ashcroft on Thursday filed a proposed constitutional amendment with the secretary of state’s office to permit voter photo ID requirements.

Aschroft entered the race after current Secretary of State Jason Kander, a Democrat, announced a bid for the U.S. Senate seat held by Republican Roy Blunt.

Republican Sen. Will Kraus, of Lee’s Summit, also is seeking the GOP nomination for the 2016 secretary of state race and has introduced measures to place voter ID on the ballot.

Republican proponents have pushed for photo ID requirements since the state’s Supreme Court struck them down as unconstitutional in 2006.

DETROIT (AP) — Exploding air bags made by Takata Corp. are so dangerous that U.S. safety regulators want to manage a massive recall so cars can be fixed faster.

On Tuesday Takata doubled the size of its recall to 33.8 million air bags, making it the largest recall in U.S. history.

The air bags can inflate with too much force, sending metal shrapnel into drivers and passengers. So far the problem has caused six deaths worldwide.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the recall involving 11 manufacturers has created a patchwork of solutions that may not fix the problem fast enough.

The agency has started the legal process seeking to control production and delivery of replacement inflators. It would be the first time the agency has used the power.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A 36-year-old Kansas City woman has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of her 2-year-old daughter.

The Jackson County prosecutor’s office said in a release Wednesday that Marie Chishahayo also faces four counts of child abuse or neglect in the case, which includes allegations she also abused and neglected a 3-year-old girl.

A grand jury indicted Chishahayo, upgrading previous charges filed by the prosecutor’s office.

Police officers were called to the family’s home in March to investigate a call about a child with burn injuries. They found the 2-year-old dead with burns over her body. They also found a severely injured 3-year-old girl.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s unemployment rate increased slightly to 5.7 percent last month while the economy lost several thousand jobs.

The state Department of Economic Development released data this week showing the seasonally adjusted jobless rate increased from 5.6 percent in March.

Unemployment fell to 5.4 percent in December — its lowest rate since April 2008. That rate has gone up slightly since January, although the jobless rate in April still was slightly lower than at the same time last year.

Data show the state also lost about 5,700 jobs in April.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Officials with the U.S. Forest Service are cautiously optimistic that a new treatment may help bats survive a deadly disease known as white-nose syndrome that has claimed the lives of millions of bats.

About 60 brown bats found with the disease last fall but successfully treated were released Tuesday at the Mark Twain Cave complex near the northeast Missouri town of Hannibal.

The disease has killed up to 6 million bats in 28 states and Canada, caused by a white fungus that appears on the noses of bats. Experts with the Forest Service and Georgia State University believe native soil bacteria produce natural volatiles that inhibit growth of the fungus.

They treated diseased bats in labs and found marked improvement in their health, including the bats released near Hannibal.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Authorities say three large reptiles that are similar to alligators have been found at a Kansas City home.

The Kansas City Star reports an AT&T worker saw the 3- to 6-foot long caimans while working on cable lines in the backyard of the home. Caimans are typically found in Central and South American and can grow up to 8 feet in length.

Officers were called to the home around 10 p.m. Tuesday and were allowed inside. One of the caimans lived in the basement but was able to get into the backyard through a cutout in the door. A police report said animal control workers will determine if the animals can be kept at the house.

CLINTON, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri woman who authorities said had been held captive in a wooden box for months before being freed about three weeks ago has been found shot to death, along with her 17-year-old son.

Clinton police say 46-year-old Sandra Kay Sutton and her son, her son, Zachary Wade Sutton, were found early Thursday.

Lt. Sonny Lynch says Sedalia authorities are searching for Sutton’s former boyfriend, 47-year-old James Barton Horn Jr. Horn was charged earlier this month with kidnapping, armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon for allegedly keeping Sandra Sutton in a wooden box for four months. Lynch said Horn is “absolutely” a suspect in the deaths.

He says Sandra Sutton had moved away from Sedalia, where she had lived with Horn, to live with relatives.