JOHNSON COUNTY — A Kansas animal shelter is celebrating a world record.

According to Unleashed Pet Rescue and Adoption, one of their Chihuahuas surprised her foster family with 11 puppies breaking the Guinness World Records for number of puppies born to a Chihuahua.

The “mommy’ dog named Laugh out Loud was one of a herd of Chihuahuas recently rescued by the organization on an outreach call in Kansas City.

She was obviously expecting and due any minute so their Foster Manager rushed to find her a foster.

Her foster family came to the rescue and took this momma and her soon-to-be family into her home to foster.

Not long after, on none other than— National Puppy Day, “LOL” gave birth to what the shelter thought was 10 puppies.

The next day, after mom was all done and settled in with her brood, foster mom Josie got the puppies out to check genders. When she ended up with 8 boys and 3 girls, she realized something didn’t add up.

According to a Facebook post, “She quickly recounted several times and realized she was indeed correct— “LOL” had 11 puppies.

Amid some Google searches, foster Mom discovered this was a world record for a Chihuahua.

Momma “LOL” is relieved this will be her last litter ever, but is amazing us with what a wonderful momma she is. All 11 puppies are doing fantastic and have made it to 3 days old!”

Anyone interested in adopting can fill out an application on the organization’s website.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Missouri House has endorsed a bill that would ban most abortions after a fetus is 20 weeks old.

The legislation given initial approval Monday includes an exception only when a woman’s life is endangered or she is at “serious risk of substantial and irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function.”

Supporters of the bill said their goal was to prohibit most abortions after an age at which they believe fetuses can feel pain.

The Guttmacher Institute, which supports abortion rights, said that as of the end of last year there were 18 states with laws banning most abortions at 20 weeks after fertilization.

Some opponents of the bill said abortions should remain an option for women whose fetuses develop extreme abnormalities after 20 weeks.

ST. LOUIS (AP) – The Latest on allegations against Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (all times local):

4:45 p.m.

A Missouri judge has rejected a request to dismiss an indictment charging Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens with felony invasion of privacy for allegedly taking and transmitting a nonconsensual photo of a partially nude woman.

The decision Monday by St. Louis Circuit Judge Rex Burlison was one of three that went against the Republican governor. The judge also denied Greitens’ request to have him decide the case instead of a jury and refused to disqualify a special assistant prosecutor.

Greitens is scheduled to go to trial May 14.

He has acknowledged have an extramarital affair with his hairdresser in 2015 as he was preparing to run for governor but has not directly answered questions about whether he took a photo of her and has denied any criminal wrongdoing.

ST. LOUIS (AP) – Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens’ request that a judge, not a jury, determine his fate in a criminal case has been rejected.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Circuit Judge Rex Burlison denied the request for a bench trial after a hearing Monday. Greitens was indicted in February on felony fourth-degree invasion of privacy for allegedly taking an unauthorized partially-nude photo of a woman with whom he was having an affair in 2015, before he was elected. Greitens has admitted to the affair but denied criminal wrongdoing, accusing Democratic Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner of a politically motivated investigation.

Greitens’ attorneys had sought the bench trial citing the high amount of publicity the case has received, but the prosecution objected. Greitens’ trial is set for May 14.

DOUGLAS COUNTY- Law enforcement authorities are investigating an armed robbery and looking for suspects.

Just after 9:30 p.m. Sunday, the Lawrence Police Department responded to Sonic Drive In, 1015 E. 23^rd Street after receiving reports of an armed robbery that had just occurred.

Responding officers made contact with victims inside the business who reported 2 males had entered the business with their faces covered, at least one of whom was armed with a firearm. The suspects demanded money and fled the scene with an undisclosed amount of cash. No injuries were reported during the incident. It is believed the suspects fled to the south to a vehicle on 24^th Street.

9:00 p.m. Final (Four) update:
0 Arrests
0 Citations#RCJH

Have a safe night, #DriveSober, and see you all next week. FILL IT UP AGAIN!

— Lawrence Police (@LawrenceKS_PD) March 26, 2018

Please note. Do not drive your RANGE ROVER through a crowd of thousands. Or really any car for that matter. #BodyShop pic.twitter.com/cqSlOGBCNp

— Lawrence Police (@LawrenceKS_PD) March 26, 2018

The investigation into the armed robbery is ongoing. No suspects are in custody at this time. Anyone with information, or who may have witnessed the incident, is asked to contact the Lawrence Police Department at (785)832-7509, or Crime Stoppers of Lawrence and Douglas County at (785)843-TIPS (8477). Tips made to Crime Stoppers may remain anonymous.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a 29-year-old woman has died in an early morning fire at a rental house in Lawrence.

Fire Marshal James King of says a passerby called about 6:10 a.m. Monday to report the fire.

First responders encountered heavy fire when they arrived. The entered the house where they found the woman in a bedroom.

She was taken to the hospital where she died apparently of smoke inhalation.

The fire gutted the one-story, wood-frame house and burned through a large portion of the roof.

By MADELINE FOX

Kansas Lawmakers moved last week to make a bill to release information about the deaths of children in state custody more transparent.

In response to several high-profile cases where a child had been brought to the attention of the Department for Children and Families and later died, the bill requires the agency to release information about kids who die as a result of abuse or neglect.

Under terms of the bill, an open records request would require DCF to release the child’s age, gender, when they died and a summary of any reports they’d gotten about abuse or neglect in the child’s case. It would also have to report what the department had done in response to those reports.

Lawmakers amended it to apply those same requirements to any child who dies in the state’s custody.

Another amendment says that if the secretary or anyone else asks the court to seal records, anyone requesting the records would be notified. That would allow them to make their case to a judge about why those records should be public.

Rep. John Carmichael, who proposed the amendment, related it to the recent case of Evan Brewer. Carmichael said the media filed requests for information about the death of Evan, a 3-year-old from Wichita whose remains were found encased in concrete. But the didn’t get a chance to go before a judge and argue that it should get access to the records.

The House Judiciary Committee passed the bill, with its amendments. The measure must pass the full House and the Senate to get to the governor’s desk.

Madeline Fox is a reporter for the Kansas News Service. You can reach her on Twitter @maddycfox. 

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Raytown, Mo., man has been sentenced in federal court for engaging in a bankruptcy fraud scheme in order to prevent dozens of rental properties from being sold by the county for failure to pay property taxes, according to a media release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Kenneth Mabrie, 68, of Raytown, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes on Thursday, March 22, 2018, to five years of probation. The court also ordered Mabrie to pay $92,040 in restitution.

On Sept. 14, 2017, Mabrie pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting bankruptcy fraud.

Mabrie was an intercity landlord who did not pay his Jackson County property taxes nor the city assessments on the properties he owns and rents. When the properties went into foreclosure by Jackson County in 2009 and again in 2011, Mabrie filed a Chapter 13 bankruptcy proceeding shortly before the sale of the properties at the annual August auction. The bankruptcy petitions were soon dismissed for failure to file required information, but prevented the foreclosure and Mabrie continued to collect rent from the properties (including money from the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program, also known as the Section 8 tenant-based assistance program).

According to court documents, Mabrie’s conduct had a broader negative impact on the community. In a letter to the court, the Director of Neighborhood Housing Services for the City of Kansas City, Mo., stated that “Kenneth Mabrie, and his associated limited liability companies and business entities, have failed to maintain their properties for many years. His failure to maintain its properties has resulted in both a quantifiable monetary loss to taxpayers and pervasive blight throughout the city.”

Co-defendant Curtis Jones, 55, of Kansas City, Mo., also pleaded guilty to his role in the scheme and was sentenced to three years of probation.

Jones filed for bankruptcy on Aug. 22, 2012, five days before the date of the auction sale. Jones listed 31 tax delinquent properties in his bankruptcy petition. Jones was deeded 17 of those properties from Mabrie one day prior to the filing. Seven of those properties were included in Mabrie’s 2011 bankruptcy petition. An additional two properties listed by Jones were privately owned by Mabrie at the time of the filing. The remaining 12 properties were deeded to Jones one day prior to filing from other persons. The majority of the remaining 12 properties had some sort of nexus to Mabrie; for example, of the remaining 12 properties, Mabrie owned 10 of the properties previously, and one of the properties was deeded from Mabrie’s daughter. Jones’s bankruptcy petition was dismissed on Sept. 7, 2012, for failure to file information.

Jones filed for bankruptcy again on Aug. 23, 2013, the same day of the auction sale. Jones listed 29 tax delinquent properties in his bankruptcy petition. Two of those properties were deeded from Mabrie on the day of the filing and 26 of the properties had been included in the 2012 petition. This bankruptcy petition was dismissed on Sept. 13, 2013, for failure to file information.

The loss amount to Jackson County was $92,040, for which the court ordered Mabrie to pay restitution. This represents only the most recent tax bill as included in the bankruptcy filings (2010 or 2011 or 2012), less any money Mabrie or Jones paid to Jackson County following the bankruptcy filings (as of September 2015).