ST. CLAIR COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating an officer involved shooting in St. Clair County.

Just after 3:30 p.m. Sunday, a St. Clair County deputy was trying to pull over a vehicle for failure to yield, according to a media release from the sheriff’s department. The vehicle finally stopped approximately one and a half miles east of Highway E and Highway A intersection.

Upon making contact with the subject, the deputy noticed a weapon. The subject allegedly reached for the weapon. The deputy drew his county issued service weapon and fired one shot that struck the driver. The deputy was not injured.

A helicopter transported the driver to an area hospital in critical condition, according to the release. The deputy involved has been placed on administrative leave per St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office policy The Missouri State Highway Patrol is assisting with the investigation.

 

 

 

MONTGOMERY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a homicide and have a suspect in custody.

Just after 7p.m. Saturday, police responded to report of a battery at 905 W. 9th Street in Coffeyville, according to a media release. At the scene, officers found 71-year-old Steven L. Lucas of Coffeyville unconscious. Lucas was transported by EMS to CRMC where he died of his injuries.

Police arrested a person of interest identified as Ralph Hayward, 47, of Coffeyville, He is being held in the Coffeyville jail without bond.

Police also were able to identify the owner, occupants of a black SUV for additional information in the case, according to the release. 

CRAWFORD COUNTY — One person died in an accident just after 11a.m. Sunday in Crawford County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2000 Suzuki Intruder driven by Shawn T. Lafferty, 53, Leasburg, was northbound on Highway JJ just south of Bourbon. The vehicle left the road, struck a ditch, overturned and the driver was ejected.

Lafferty was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Hutson Funeral Home. He was wearing a helmet, according to the MSHP.

WICHITA —Kansas 4th district democrat party leader James Thompson announced on Facebook Sunday that he has cancer.

Thompson, a Wichita attorney was the party’s congressional candidate and was defeated by Ron Estes  in 2017 and 2018.

In his social media post, Thompson wrote, “First, I want to say thank you to everyone who encouraged me to run for office again, whether it was Congress, Mayor, Senate, or District Attorney. I can’t really express how much your support means to me. Your enthusiasm and kindness inspired me to keep going during the campaign and to continue after it was over. 

Unfortunately, it is unlikely that I will ever have the opportunity to run for office again. I just found out, I have a rare cancer called a carcinoid tumor with accompanying carcinoid syndrome. The tumor metastasized into multiple lesions/tumors on my liver, which means I am in the later stages. The carcinoid syndrome causes severe head and torso flushing, dizziness, fuzzy headedness, and extreme fatigue. The good news is this is a “slow moving” cancer that I have probably had for many years and will probably be able to live for at least a few more. We are fortunate that Obamacare allowed us to have insurance. Hopefully, it continues. 

For those of you who know me personally, you know that I am a stubborn SOB. I have a 14 year old daughter who I plan to see graduate high school, and the lord willing, walk down the aisle. I also have a 19 month old daughter and I want her to remember me as her father and our good times and laughter.I fought for my country, I fought for you, and you can sure as hell bet I will fight to live. 
As you can imagine, my availability to attend events will depend on how I am feeling. I plan to continue in my role as the 4th Congressional District Democratic Chair, and practice law to the extent I am able, although I can no longer take on the stress of civil rights litigation. 

I appreciate your prayers, warm thoughts and general encouragement as I and my family go through this as so many others in our country do everyday. Thank you for allowing me the honor of twice having been your nominee for U.S. Congress. I have a dark sense of humor. I joke that I may run for Congress or Senate as “Terminal Thompson” because I have built in term limits. (Not everyone thinks this is funny, but like I said, dark sense of humor. I bet this scares the hell out of Estes. LOL) 

KDP Chair @VickiHiatt: “I know @JamesThompsonKS to be a fighter and he will give his all to step up to this new challenge. I speak for all the members of the KDP family in wishing James and his loved ones the strength to fight through this.” https://t.co/c6l4Eifj7r pic.twitter.com/fWwWzyHlqA

— Kansas Dems (@KansasDems) June 10, 2019

 

“My one wish is that people step up to take the baton and continue fighting for a better Kansas. Knock doors, make phone calls, get involved in campaigns for candidates who inspire you, and most importantly, run for office at every level. Sitting on the sidelines is no longer an option. Let them know you are here and you want a just, decent, and empathetic society. Inspire people to empower themselves and make a better city, Kansas and country. Make people understand the definition of diversity must also include diversity of opinion. Don’t allow the politics of hatred to override the sense of decency I know resides in everyone who supported me. I am so sorry this happened but Kansas is worth fighting for. What do we say to cancer?  Not today!”

KANSAS CITY – Two men were sentenced in federal court Friday for their roles in a drug-trafficking conspiracy that led to a man’s kidnapping and torture, according to the U.S. Attorney.

Gerald L. Holmes, also known as “Jerry” or “Joker,” 27, and Richard M. Phoenix, also known as “Snake,” 77, were sentenced in separate appearances before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays. Holmes was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison without parole. Phoenix was sentenced to five years in federal prison without parole.

On Aug. 17, 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.

During the conspiracy, which lasted from May 1 to Sept. 13, 2016, co-defendant Jeremy R. Bond, 40, of Independence, 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 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 co-defendant Michael C. Borrusch, also known as “Birdie,” 43, of Lakewood, Colo., for which they made more than a dozen trips between Colorado and Kansas City. Holmes paid Borrusch between $1,600 to $2,400 per pound, depending on the type and quality of marijuana available. Holmes’s father and co-defendant, Randal G. Holmes, also known as “Peckerwood” or “Wood,” 54, of Kansas City, Mo., 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, Gerald and Randal Holmes agreed to kidnap C.H. because he stole $16,000 that was intended for the purchase of marijuana. C.H. spent the money in Las Vegas, Nev.

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 met Phoenix, who was living with Randal Holmes and his wife. C.H. was taken to the basement, where he was assaulted with fists, a hammer, and tin snips/clippers. Gerald Holmes attempted to remove the victim’s pinkie finger and a toe. During the assault, Randal 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 with instructions to shoot him if he got off the desk he had been sitting on.

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.

Gerald Holmes and Phoenix are the final defendants to plead guilty and be sentenced in this case. Randal 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 to two years and six months in federal prison without parole.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A prominent donor to Republican causes has contributed $1 million to a newly formed political action committee aimed at overturning Missouri’s restrictive new abortion law.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that a filing with state campaign regulators shows David Humphreys of Joplin contributed to the Committee to Protect the Rights of Victims of Rape & Incest. Humphreys’ is the first known contribution to the PAC, and comes after he had said he would back a referendum asking voters to overturn the new law if Republican Gov. Mike Parson signed it.

Humphreys and his family are longtime conservative donors and contributed more than $14 million to Republicans during the 2016 election cycle.

Humphreys publicly urged Parson to veto the abortion bill, saying the lack of exceptions allowing for abortion in cases of rape and incest “is bad public policy and bad for Missourians.”

The new law bans abortions at eight weeks with exceptions only for medical emergencies. If Roe v. Wade is overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, that ruling would trigger another provision in Missouri’s law outlawing nearly all abortions at any stage of pregnancy.

Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft said last week that he rejected two referendum petitions aimed at repealing the sweeping abortion law — one backed by the ACLU of Missouri and the other backed by Humphreys. Ashcroft cited a provision in the Missouri Constitution that prohibits referendums on legislation that has already taken effect.

Most new laws in Missouri automatically take effect on Aug. 28 of each year, as the ban on abortions at eight weeks of pregnancy will.

The Republican-led Legislature, though, voted to make a section of the bill that changed parental consent laws for minors seeking abortions take effect as soon as Parson signed it into law.

Ashcroft, the state’s top election official, said that effectively blocked the two efforts to repeal the law through a public vote. He cited a provision in the constitution that prohibits referendums on “laws necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety.”

The ACLU is suing to overturn Ashcroft’s ruling, and Humphreys’ attorney says he will also.

Humphreys and the ACLU want the referendums to be approved so backers can start collecting signatures to place a question on the November 2020 ballot.

If the courts reverse Ashcroft’s action, and the language is approved, proponents of a referendum will have until Aug. 28 to turn in more than 100,000 signatures to the secretary of state in order to suspend the law until voters weigh in in 2020.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas health officials say every county in the state is at moderate risk of West Nile virus infections.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment said Friday no human cases have been reported as of May 25.

The virus can cause fever and other symptoms. About one out of 150 infected people develop swelling of the brain or brain tissue that in some cases can cause death. The virus cannot be transmitted from human to human.

The health department says people should remove standing water from their property. To avoid being bitten, people should wear insect repellant, long sleeves and pants, especially at dawn and dusk when mosquitoes are most active.

LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. (AP) — Authorities say a pilot suffered only minor injuries when his small airplane crashed at the Lee’s Summit Airport.

The crash happened Friday evening. Emergency responders called to the airport just east of Kansas City found the single-engine plane just off the runway at the northeast edge of the airport. It was unclear whether the crash happened during landing or takeoff.

Lee’s Summit police Sgt. Chris Depue says damage to the plane was extensive, but that the pilot — the only person in the plane at the time of the crash — was treated at a hospital for minor injuries.

The pilot’s name has not been released.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the cause of the crash.

CHICAGO (AP) — Some younger workers aren’t particularly thrilled to see a rising share of older Americans forgo retirement and continue working, according to a recent poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

The poll found that workers under the age of 50 were significantly more likely to view America’s aging workforce as a negative development when compared with their older counterparts. About 4 in 10 respondents ages 18 to 49 and 44% of the youngest respondents ages 18 to 29 said they consider the trend to be a bad thing for American workers. Just 14% of those age 60 and over said the same.

“I don’t think in things like IT and medicine you’re as effective a worker (at 65 years old) as you are at 50,” says Katie Otting, a 29-year-old living near San Diego. “If some 65-year-old is in a position that he’s not ready to quit because he wants a better pension and there’s someone else ready to take that job, they’re not going to replace him.”

An aging population, elevated health care costs and lingering financial uncertainty following the Great Recession all are believed to be contributing to America’s steadily graying workforce. Nearly 20% of Americans over the age of 65 were employed or actively looking for work last year, up from less than 12% two decades prior, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

But the increased prevalence of older workers has led some to believe seniors are holding back the country’s economic momentum by remaining in the workforce. Men were slightly more likely than women to cite the aging workforce as a problem for U.S. workers (32% to 27. And about a third (34%) of more affluent respondents earning more than $100,000 annually said the same, slightly more than the 24% of those earning less than $30,000 who said so.

By contrast, about 6 in 10 Americans age 60 and over say the trend has actually been a good thing for the economy, compared with 3 in 10 Americans under 30 who think that.

About a third of Americans under 50 who have noticed the trend in their own workplace believe the aging workforce has negative implications for their own careers.

“One of the myths that’s out there causing younger and older people to butt heads is the idea that ‘Oh, it’s because these older people are on the job preventing me from getting the job I want,'” says Steve Burghardt, a 74-year-old professor of social work at the City University of New York who thinks Americans are “looking for someone younger or someone older to blame” for inequality, job displacement and other economic problems.

Research is mixed on the aging workforce’s overall impact on the U.S. economy. Adam Ozimek, a senior economist at Moody’s Analytics, says his prior research efforts have suggested a growing population of older workers can slow productivity and ultimately hamper wage growth for the rest of the labor market.

But he says there’s little evidence to suggest that the presence of older workers is “crowding younger workers out of promotions,” noting that many of the workers who would naturally move up and replace positions currently held by baby boomers are not millennials but rather middle-aged members of Generation X.

“In anxious times, we look for scapegoats. And old people are a ready scapegoat, especially if you are forced out of having a public presence or are forced (out of a job),” says Ashton Applewhite, a New York-based writer and ageism activist.

The idea that older workers are keeping jobs away from younger Americans, preventing them from moving up the corporate ladder into higher ranking, higher paying positions, is not a new one. But economists say it doesn’t have much basis in economic reality.

“The more of those seniors continue to work, that means they’re also spending. And that spending helps build a rich economy that gives you jobs and lots of opportunities,” says Andrew Chamberlain, chief economist at employment hub Glassdoor.

But Chamberlain and Ozimek say it might be easier to believe older workers are holding back their younger counterparts when looking at the economy on a smaller scale. One particular company, for example, may only employ one chief of marketing. Should that person choose to remain in the workforce until he or she is 80 years old, lower ranking employees may perceive a lack of upward mobility.

A comparable job may be ripe for the taking elsewhere, Chamberlain says, but it may be at another company or in another city that would require a move that many employees may be unwilling to make.

“They feel like their opportunities are only within that firm,” Chamberlain says. “I think it’s just simple confusion. I think people are mixing up (opportunities) just inside one company versus the overall job market.”

Meanwhile, many older workers are coming to terms with the fact that they’ll need to remain in the workforce to keep their heads above water or maintain their current lifestyles.

Mitch Rothschild, 61, lives and works in New York City and says he expects he is “probably going to have to work until I die.” He says the aging workforce is less of an economic problem and more of a financial reality to which workers of all ages need to adapt.

“Hey, look, I wished I’d been skiing in the Alps since I was 40,” he says. “But you think I’m going to stop working a year from now and rely on Social Security for the next 20 years? No.”

___

EDITOR’S NOTE — Andrew Soergel is studying aging and workforce issues as part of a 10-month fellowship at The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, which joins NORC’s independent research and AP journalism. The fellowship is funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

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The AP-NORC Center survey of 1,423 adults was conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research with funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. It was conducted Feb. 14 to 18 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.

Respondents were first selected randomly using address-based sampling methods and later were interviewed online or by phone.

By NOMIN UJIYEDIIN

The state spending review panel is freeing up some of the money the Kansas Department of Corrections asked for to place inmates in county jails and private facilities. Prison officials say it’s a last resort.

Desperate to relieve the strain on state prisons that are already over capacity, officials appealed to the State Finance Council to spend about $10 million on contracts with outside facilities to house as many as 400 inmates.

All that money is in the state budget, but the Finance Council, which includes top legislative leaders and the governor, only agreed to unleash $4.4 million at a meeting Wednesday. They expressed concerns about the quality and safety private prisons out of state.

“Conditions could be worse there,” said Senate President Susan Wagle, “than what we have in Kansas.”

Roger Werholtz, who retired from his second stint as corrections secretary less than a week ago, returned to the Statehouse to make the case for the spending.

He told the panel that the money will cover the housing, food, and basic medical costs for 160 inmates. But, speaking with reporters later, he said it won’t be enough to alleviate the effects of overcrowding.

“The major issues for which we need beds did not get resolved,” Werholtz said. “I don’t know what they think is going to happen with these folks.”

Corrections officials say there’s been a spike in violent incidents and that access to healthcare, counseling, and job training for inmates is inadequate. Inmates are being swapped in and out of solitary confinement because there’s not enough space. Maximum security inmates are being double-bunked, with two inmates in one cell. Staff are overworked.

The department still wants another $5.47 million for contracts to cover an additional 200 prison beds at outside facilities. The Finance Council decided to schedule a meeting at a later date to consider that spending.

The Department of Corrections began taking bids for prison bed contracts from out-of-state prisons and Kansas county jails in May.

Werholtz told the council that department staff had visited a private prison in Arizona that had submitted a bid. The department declined to specify to reporters the location or the company that owns that prison.

A spokesman for private prison company CoreCivic would not confirm the officials had visited one of its prisons in Arizona, but did confirm that the company had bid for contracts in Kansas.

But the legislative leaders on the Finance Council want the corrections department to put inmates in county jails first.

“At least let’s do that,” Denning said, “before we go the private route.”

Werholtz said the corrections department was already prioritizing housing inmates in Kansas’s county jails because they’re closer and easier to manage, but the jails don’t have the space to alleviate much of the crowding at state prisons.

“We’re then passing our overcrowding problem back to the county jail,” he said. “That’s going to be the consequence.”

Interim Corrections Secretary Chuck Simmons said the department received bids from four county jails located in Kansas, and had developed contracts with three: Cherokee, Wilson and Kiowa Counties. The department already has contracts with jails in Cloud and Jackson Counties.

Gov. Laura Kelly said contacting with private prisons isn’t the ideal solution, but that Kansas is out of options.

“We don’t have much of a choice at this point.” she said. “I am really, truly, very concerned about staff safety and inmate safety.”

As a condition of releasing the funds, the Finance Council is requiring the Department of Corrections to keep open a cell block at the El Dorado Correctional Facility. The department wanted to close the block to reduce strain on corrections officers, many of whom work double shifts for days on end.

“We are absolutely burning those staff out and it’s not sustainable,” Werholtz said. “We’re having to lock people down right now because of their violent behavior, instead of working with them to change that violent behavior.”

Kelly declared a state of emergency at that prison in February. Werholtz said staff there had worked more than 2,000 double shifts since. But the panel still argued that every block at the prison should remain open.

“We need a commitment from the administration that they’re going to be open at this time,” said House Speaker Ron Ryckman.

The council also nixed the spending of $3 million to reduce crowding in the women’s prison by moving 120 inmates to the state’s juvenile facility.

It did, however, authorize spending $9 million to raise the salaries of the state’s overworked prison staff and $4.5 million to pay for Hepatitis C treatment for inmates.

Werholtz warned that the strain on the prison system could get worse as the prison population is projected to grow by hundreds of people over the next decade.

“We’re either looking at increasing costs or changing policy,” he said. “There’s going to have to be a substantial change in sentencing policy.”

Nomin Ujiyediin reports from Topeka for the Kansas News Service. You can send her an email at nomin at kcur dot org, or reach her on @NominUJ