JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The chief of staff of Missouri Sen. Justin Brown is facing two misdemeanor charges after his gun fell to the floor during a bar fight.

45-year-old Jared Brown, of Malden, was charged Thursday with unlawful use of a weapon and peace disturbance.

Jared Brown was arrested March 7 after the disturbance at the Spectator’s Bar and Grill in Jefferson City. He was released after posting $5,000 bond.

Jefferson City police say Brown told officers that he was “highly intoxicated” at the time, and that the 9 mm Ruger pistol recovered at the bar was his.

Sen. Brown, R-Rolla, said Wednesday that Jared Brown is taking a leave of absence to get “the help he needs.” The two men are not related.

Online court records don’t name an attorney for Jared Brown.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s Revenue Department Director Joel Walters is resigning following criticism over his agency’s handling of tax changes.

Gov. Mike Parson on Friday announced current department Chief Operating Officer Ken Zellers will take over as acting director when Walters steps down March 22.

Walters’ resignation comes after lawmakers repeatedly slammed him for not communicating better about tax changes that will mean some Missourians get smaller refunds or owe more when they file their taxes this year.

Walters did not specify why he’s leaving in his resignation letter to Parson.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Missouri woman was sentenced in federal court Thursday for illegally possessing a firearm.

According to the United State’s Attorney, Tracy Arlene Smith, 48, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 19 years and seven months in federal prison without parole.

On Sept. 25, 2018, Smith was found guilty at trial of one count of being a felon and an unlawful user of cocaine and methamphetamine in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

According to evidence introduced during the trial, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Smith’s residence located in Joplin, on June 22, 2017.

During the execution of the search warrant, members of the Ozark Drug Enforcement Team seized Smith’s purse, which contained a CDM Prod. Inc., .22-caliber pistol, loaded with six rounds of .22 caliber ammunition. Officers also seized drug paraphernalia.

FAIRWAY, Kan. (AP) — Court records indicate a 26-year-old man who was shot by police near a Kansas elementary school said he wanted officers to kill him.

The records say Dylan Christopher Ruffin was charged after he shot at Highlands Elementary School during the school day on March 1.

Police say three officers shot at Ruffin when he pointed a handgun at them outside his home, which was across from the school in suburban Kansas City. He was treated at a hospital and is jailed in Johnson County.

Court records say at the hospital, Ruffin talked about having police kill him and said he wished they had shot him in the head.

Students were being released from the school when the shooting occurred. No students, parents or school employees were injured.

Ruffin is jailed on $500,000 bond.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Three men have been sentenced in federal court this week for their roles in a drug-trafficking conspiracy that led to the kidnapping and torture of an Independence, Mo., man.

According to a media release from the United State’s Attorney, Randal G. Holmes, also known as “Peckerwood” or “Wood,” 54, of Kansas City, Mo., and Michael C. Borrusch, also known as “Birdie,” 43, of Lakewood, Colo., were sentenced today in separate appearances before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays. Holmes was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Borrusch was sentenced to 3 years and 10 months in federal prison without parole.

Jeremy R. Bond, 40, of Independence, was sentenced on Wednesday, March 13, 2019, to two years and six months in federal prison without parole.

On July 10, 2018, Holmes pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, one count of kidnapping, one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 kilograms or more of marijuana and one count of brandishing firearms in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. Borrusch and Bond pleaded guilty to their roles in the drug-trafficking conspiracy.

Holmes’s son and co-defendant Gerald L. Holmes, also known as “Jerry” or “Joker,” 27, and co-defendant Richard M. Phoenix, also known as “Snake,” 77, both of Kansas City, Mo., have also pleaded guilty and await sentencing.

During the conspiracy, which lasted from May 1 to Sept. 13, 2016, Bond invested $10,000 into the marijuana operation. In return, he received $1,000 a week as interest and free marijuana until the entire principal investment was repaid in full. This investment allowed Gerald Holmes and a co-conspirator, identified in court documents as “C.H.” (who had made four trips to Colorado with Gerald Holmes), to purchase greater quantities of marijuana per trip. Once it reached the greater Kansas City metropolitan area, the marijuana was then resold by Gerald Holmes and C.H.

Conspirators purchased at least 120 pounds of marijuana from Borrusch, for which they made more than a dozen trips between Colorado and Kansas City. Gerald Holmes paid Borrusch between $1,600 to $2,400 per pound, depending on the type and quality of marijuana available. Randal Holmes received $100 for every pound of marijuana brought back to Kansas City because of his prior connection to Borrusch, who was previously his supplier.

On Sept. 12, 2016, Randal and Gerald Holmes agreed to kidnap C.H. because he stole money that was intended for the purchase of marijuana.

They arrived at the Independence, Mo., residence of the victim’s father, identified as “W.H.,” on Sept. 12, 2016. During their conversation, Gerald Holmes removed a firearm from his waistband and placed it on a table in front of W.H. They told W.H. to call C.H. and tell him he was being held at gunpoint and that C.H. needed to come to the residence right away. When C.H. arrived at the residence, Randal Holmes pointed a firearm at him and told him to get into his vehicle. While in the vehicle, Gerald Holmes struck, punched and choked C.H. as Randal Holmes drove away.

They took C.H. to Randal Holmes’s residence, where they were met by Phoenix. C.H. was taken to the basement, where he was assaulted with fists, a hammer and tin snips/clippers. During the assault, Holmes repeatedly demanded that C.H. disclose where the duffle bag containing the money was located. Randal and Gerald Holmes left to retrieve the duffle bag while Phoenix held C.H. at gunpoint.

Randal Holmes later drove C.H. to a rural residence near Edwards, Mo. As Randal Holmes drove them to the residence, Gerald Holmes continued to strike C.H. with fists and the butt of a firearm. When they arrived at the residence, C.H. was told to call his father and to tell him that he was okay, that he had taken a beating, that he would be home in a couple of days and that he deserved what had happened.

Law enforcement officers were able to trace the telephone call and on Sept. 13, 2016, officers were able to locate C.H. and arrest the conspirators. Officers observed that C.H. had suffered multiple, visible injuries to his face, head, hands and feet. Officers noted that C.H. had trouble walking, that his face was black and blue, as well as swollen with traces of dried blood. Upon receiving medical treatment, it was determined that C.H. had also suffered a fracture in his left hand.

Officers found a Jimenez Arms 9mm pistol in Randal Holmes’s vehicle and a Hi-Point 9mm pistol in the residence where C.H. had been held. Officers also found an FN Herstal .40-caliber pistol, a Remington .270-caliber rifle, an RG .22-caliber revolver, a Ruger .22-caliber rifle, a Mossberg .20-gauge shotgun, 36.4 grams of marijuana and drug paraphernalia in another residence.

By JOHN HANNA

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican legislators in Kansas helped advance Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s plan to boost funding for public schools Thursday before sending her an income tax relief bill that could make it harder for the state to sustain the new spending.

The GOP-controlled Senate voted 32-8 to approve Kelly’s proposed education funding increase of roughly $90 million a year, sending the plan to the House. Top Republican senators backed the plan as the most straight-forward fix, putting them at odds with conservatives who want new money tied to policy changes , including a voucher program to allow bullied students to move to new schools, public or private.

Kelly’s plan is designed to satisfy a Kansas Supreme Court order last year requiring legislators to increase the state’s education funding, currently at more than $4 billion a year. Attorneys for four local school districts that sued the state in 2010 are pressing for a larger increase and Democrats who voted as a bloc for Kelly’s plan Thursday had supported the districts. Top Republicans argue that even Kelly’s plan would be a financial stretch.

But the Senate also approved, on a 24-16 vote, a bill pushed by GOP leaders and aimed at preventing individuals and businesses from paying higher state income taxes because of changes in federal tax laws at the end of 2017. Republicans said the issue is fairness, while Democrats excoriated the bill as a budget buster, particularly after senators approved more money for public schools.

“How you turn around and vote for this thing, I don’t understand,” said Sen. Tom Holland, a Baldwin City Democrat. “It doesn’t add up.”

The tax measure is headed to Kelly because the House approved it last week. She and other Democrats have said the bill would repeat the failed fiscal policies of her Republican predecessors.

Kelly stopped short Thursday night of saying she would veto the measure but said it would create a “self-inflicted budget crisis.” Neither chamber passed the bill with the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto.

“Our recovery is tenuous; our budget is fragile,” Kelly said in a statement. “This is not the time to make significant changes to our tax code.”

Republican leaders see no contradiction in considering Kelly’s school funding plan and the tax relief bill at the same time. GOP lawmakers argue the tax bill heads off an unlegislated tax hike that would occur otherwise because the state and federal tax codes are tied. They also argue that tax relief will stimulate the economy.

“I hope we have a strong economy for a long time so we can afford the school funding bill,” Senate President Susan Wagle, a conservative Wichita Republican, said before the chamber’s debates.

Wagle and other Republicans contend the income tax measures would merely keep Kansas from getting a “windfall” in revenues it isn’t collecting now.

“This bill keeps companies, individuals and families in business, and a vote against this bill is a vote for a tax increase,” Wagle said during her chamber’s debate.

Kelly’s administration sees the potential revenue picture differently, projecting that the state would give up $209 million during the budget year beginning in July.

Much of the tax savings are going to large businesses with operations outside the U.S. The bill also would provide relief to taxpayers who have claimed itemized deductions on their state returns in the past but no longer can because of federal changes discouraging itemizing on federal returns.

Before approving the bill, the House married its Senate-approved income tax measures to a cut in the state’s sales tax on groceries to 5.5 percent from 6.5 percent. Kelly pledged during her successful campaign for governor last year to lower the tax on groceries.

Still, legislators in both parties expect Kelly to veto the bill after she repeatedly urged them to hold off on considering tax proposals and focus instead on quickly meeting the court mandate on schools.

The state Supreme Court has ruled six times since 2013 that legislators weren’t fulfilling their duty under the Kansas Constitution to provide a suitable education for every child. A 2018 law phased in a $548 million increase in education funding by the 2022-23 school year, but the court ruled that it didn’t adequately account for inflation.

GOP conservatives remain frustrated with the continued demands from the Supreme Court and the school districts suing the state for more money.

“It’s ‘Peanuts,’ Charlie Brown. Every time you go to kick the ball, Lucy pulls it away,” said Sen. Ty Masterson, a conservative Andover Republican, referring to the classic comic strip. “I can see the lawyers laughing at us all the way to the bank.”

___

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican legislators in Kansas helped advance Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s plan to boost funding for public schools Thursday before sending her an income tax relief bill that could make it harder for the state to sustain the new spending.

The GOP-controlled Senate voted 32-8 to approve Kelly’s proposed education funding increase of roughly $90 million a year, sending the plan to the House. Top Republican senators backed the plan as the most straight-forward fix, putting them at odds with conservatives who want new money tied to policy changes , including a voucher program to allow bullied students to move to new schools, public or private.

Kelly’s plan is designed to satisfy a Kansas Supreme Court order last year requiring legislators to increase the state’s education funding, currently at more than $4 billion a year. Attorneys for four local school districts that sued the state in 2010 are pressing for a larger increase and Democrats who voted as a bloc for Kelly’s plan Thursday had supported them. Top Republicans argue that even Kelly’s plan would be a financial stretch.

But the Senate also approved, 24-16, a bill pushed by GOP leaders and aimed at preventing individuals and businesses from paying higher state income taxes because of changes in federal tax laws at the end of 2017. The measure is headed to Kelly, who has said the bill repeats the failed fiscal policies under her Republican predecessors.

“We’re excited that they’re actually talking about school finance — that’s good,” said Lt. Gov. Lynn Rogers, a former Democratic state senator. “It’ll be difficult to balance the budget and repair the damage of the last years with the tax bill.”

Republican leaders see no contradiction in considering Kelly’s school funding plan and the tax relief bill at the same time. GOP lawmakers argue the tax bill heads off an unlegislated tax hike that would occur otherwise because the state and federal tax codes are tied. They also argue that tax relief will stimulate the economy.

“I hope we have a strong economy for a long time so we can afford the school funding bill,” said Senate President Susan Wagle, a conservative Wichita Republican, adding that the tax bill “keeps Kansas business-friendly.”

The House approved the tax bill last week after marrying its Senate-approved income tax measures to a cut in the state’s sales tax on groceries to 5.5 percent from 6.5 percent.

Wagle and other Republicans contend the income tax measures would merely keep Kansas from getting a “windfall” in revenues it isn’t collecting now. Kelly’s administration sees it differently, projecting that the state would give up $209 million during the budget year beginning in July, with much of the tax savings going to large businesses with operations outside the U.S.

Legislators in both parties expect Kelly to reject the bill. She has said repeatedly that legislators should “let the dust settle” on tax policy and focus on meeting the court mandate on schools.

The Supreme Court has ruled six times since 2013 that legislators weren’t fulfilling their duty under the Kansas Constitution to provide a suitable education for every child. A 2018 law phased in a $548 million increase in education funding by the 2022-23 school year, but the court ruled that it didn’t adequately account for inflation.

SHANNON COUNTY — One person died in an accident just before 6p.m. Thursday in Shannon County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2009 Cadillac CTS driven by Kevin D. Howell, 36, Eminence, was northbound on U.S. 60 at intersection of Mo. RT 19 North Winona. The driver pulled into the path of a 2019 Freightliner semi driven by Martha P. Dodd, 67, Joplin.

Howell was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Yarber Funeral Home. Dodd was transported to Ozark Medical Center. Both drivers were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the MSHP.