WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Participants in the winter wheat tour are forecasting low crop yields in fields along northern Kansas counties that they looked at during the first day.

The industry group Kansas Wheat reports that the expected average yield of 34.3 for the first day was slightly lower than last year’s estimate for the first leg. It was the lowest first day average since 2001.

The tour’s estimate reflects the findings of the 92 participants who traveled in 21 vehicles along six routes to inspect 284 fields on Tuesday before ending up for the day in Colby.

Participants in the annual Wheat Quality Tour are finding drought stress, stripe rust disease, winter kill and pest infestations.

The tour continues Wednesday across western Kansas.

Its statewide forecast is announced Thursday in Kansas City, Missouri.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A St. Louis woman is suing a cable company for failing to televise the boxing match between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao (PAK’-ee-ow).

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports Anna Ralphs filed a lawsuit Tuesday against Charter Communications, alleging breach of contract and seeking class-action status. Ralphs says she was one of thousands of Charter pay-per-view customers in St. Louis who missed the fights leading up to the championship bout and much of the main event because of a cable outage on Saturday.

Many cable and satellite systems were overwhelmed by the amount of pay-per-view orders.

Charter declined to comment, saying that it does not comment on pending legal issues.

On Sunday, Charter representatives told customers who called the company’s help line that refunds would be issued for those affected by the outage.

WARRENSBURG, Mo. (AP) — A woman accused of second-degree murder after her baby’s body was found in a cave in northwest Missouri is back in jail after she didn’t attend a pretrial hearing.

Twenty-year-old Latasha Wilson was arrested Monday after she did not show up for a court hearing. She is scheduled for trial June 4.

Prosecutors allege Wilson gave birth to a boy in January 2014 in a bathroom at work. They contend the baby was born alive but drowned in a toilet. Authorities say she and another person took the body to a research cave on the University of Central Missouri campus, where two students found it, partially burned, on March 4, 2014.

The Warrensburg Daily Star-Journal reports Wilson is being held at the Johnson County jail on $250,000 cash-only bond.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri woman has pleaded guilty to her role in the fatal poisonings of her father and brother and an attempt to kill a sister with antifreeze.

As part of her plea Tuesday, 24-year-old Rachel Staudte, of Springfield, agreed to testify against her mother, who is also charged in the deadly plot.

The Springfield News-Leader reports that Staudte pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder, one count of armed criminal action and one count of first-degree assault. She agreed to serve two life sentences and testify against her mother, Diane.

Staudte’s father, Mark, and her brother, Shawn, died in 2012, and her sister, Sarah, became ill but survived. An anonymous tip led authorities to investigate the deaths.

Staudte’s mother, Diane, is scheduled for trial in November.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Ride-hailing company Uber says it is getting out of Dodge, and the rest of Kansas, after the state Legislature voted to override Gov. Sam Brownback’s veto of new regulations.

The company said in a statement shortly after Tuesday’s House vote that it was ceasing operations in the state. Both legislative chambers comfortably surpassed the two-thirds majority votes needed for the override.

Uber’s statement said it was saddened by the loss of jobs and transportation choice for consumers.

The measure requires drivers for ride-hailing companies to undergo state background checks and hold additional auto insurance coverage.

Uber connects drivers to riders through a mobile app, and was operating in Wichita and Kansas City.

The Uber app displayed a message saying “KANSAS JUST SHUT DOWN UBER” to Kansas users after the Senate vote.

On April 20, Governor Sam Brownback vetoed House Substitute for SB 117, The Creation of Kansas Transportation Network Company Services Act, more commonly referred to as the “Uber bill.” The Governor issued the following statement in response to Tuesday’s override of that veto.

“As I said when I vetoed this bill, Kansas should be known as a state that welcomes and embraces innovation and the economic growth that comes with it. Over-regulation of businesses discourages investment and harms the open and free marketplace. Uber, and other innovative businesses, should be encouraged to operate, grow and create jobs here in Kansas.”

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A measure that would block immigrants who are illegally in the U.S. from receiving money under Missouri’s A+ scholarship program is headed to Gov. Jay Nixon’s desk.

The Missouri House gave final approval Tuesday, 108-38, to the bill supporters say is meant to limit the number of people receiving scholarships in order to preserve them for Missouri residents.

Democratic opponents and advocates for immigrants say it would cause financial hardship for hardworking students seeking to get a college education and contribute to society.

Democratic Rep. Lauren Arthur, of Kansas City, says students brought to the U.S. as children should not be punished because legislators have created a funding problem for the scholarship program.

CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) — A friend who was with Michael Brown when the 18-year-old was shot and killed by a Ferguson police officer is suing the city, the officer and the former police chief.

Dorian Johnson contends in his lawsuit filed last week that Officer Darren Wilson initiated the confrontation that ended in Brown’s Aug. 9 death.

Johnson says Wilson used excessive force and “acted with deliberate indifference or reckless disregard” for Johnson’s rights.

A grand jury and the U.S. Justice Department declined to charge Wilson, who has left the police force. Neither Wilson’s attorney nor the former chief responded to messages seeking comment Tuesday.

Ferguson’s city attorney said she was unaware of Johnson’s lawsuit and couldn’t immediately respond.

Brown’s parents filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the defendants on April 23.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri Senate has passed a bill to prevent cities from banning plastic bags and stop them from raising the minimum wage.

The measure passed 24-10 on Tuesday amid heightened tensions between Democrats and Republicans as the May 15 deadline to pass bills approaches.

The bill now goes back to the House, which had passed a different version earlier this year.

 

Democratic senators have argued in favor of allowing cities to implement their own wage requirements in excess of state standards and to prohibit plastic bags.

Republican lawmakers have opposed that. They said their legislation will help businesses. For example, Republican Sen. Mike Kehoe of Jefferson City says different local ordinances on plastic bags could cost grocers money.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has vetoed a measure that would cut the weeks of unemployment benefits available to workers who lose their jobs.

Nixon’s veto Tuesday returns the bill to the Republican-controlled Legislature, where leaders have already said they plan to try to override the Democratic governor’s veto.

Republicans hold at least a two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate. But the measure fell short of the 109 votes that would be needed for an override in the House when it was sent to the governor last month. It passed with just 88 votes.

The measure could reduce unemployment benefits from the current 20 weeks to as low as 13 weeks by linking the maximum number of weeks to the statewide average employment rate.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri lawmakers have overridden a veto to enact a law removing several thousand low-income families from a welfare program.

The votes by the Republican-led Senate and House will reduce Missouri’s lifetime limit for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families cash-assistance program from five years to three years and nine months.

The new law also imposes stricter work requirements. It goes into effect in January.

Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon had vetoed the bill, citing concerns that it would punish children for the actions of their parents. The Senate overrode the veto on Monday, and the House acted Tuesday.

Republican supporters say the measure could end dependency on welfare by encouraging people to get jobs.

The program pays up to $292 a month to a parent with two children.