REEDS SPRING, Mo. (AP) – A Missouri educator awarded $500,000 over claims that the superintendent sexually harassed her is suing again, alleging that school board members poisoned her effort to find a new job.

Jodi Heckler was principal of an intermediate school in the Reeds Spring School District near Branson. She resigned in March as part of a settlement.

Meanwhile, superintendent Mike Mason – the man she accused of harassment – was given a raise and contract extension. The lone dissenting vote was cast by the only female board member.

Heckler says in a second lawsuit that despite a sterling job record she applied for more than 60 jobs before finally being hired as a fifth-grade teacher. She says her efforts were hurt by board members saying bad things about her.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Sixteen public safety responders and two civilians have received the Missouri Medal of Valor and four new Department of Public Safety awards.

Gov. Eric Greitens presented the awards and also declared Saturday Missouri Public Safety Officers Recognition Day.

The Medal of Valor is the state’s highest award recognizing public safety officers for exceptional courage in trying to protect human life. The Public Safety awards recognize bravery in situations that endangered the public.

Among recipients from across the state was retired Lake Saint Louis police chief Michael Force, who was recognized for being an innovative chief as his department grew from 11 officers to three times the number of officers before he retired in August. He also was honored for his work with young people and service with law enforcement organizations.

BY JIM MCLEAN

A female former legislative staff member is charging that sexual harassment is widespread at the Kansas Statehouse.

Abbie Hodgson, who served as chief of staff to former House Minority Leader Tom Burroughs from 2014 to July of 2016, was one of several women quoted in an article about sexual harassment in Statehouses across the country published Wednesday by The Hill, a Washington, D.C., publication that covers government and politics.

In an interview Wednesday with the Kansas News Service, Hodgson said sexual harassment was “rampant” during her time in the minority leader’s office. It ranged from inappropriate comments and touching to explicit demands for sex, she said.

“It rose to a level which I found shocking both in terms of the number of individuals who were perpetrators and how often it occurred,” Hodgson said.

Hodgson, who now works for a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization, said she also was “shocked” to learn that some lawmakers routinely had interns, many of them underage and female, chauffer them to after-hours social events.

“I can’t tell you how incensed I was when I found out that legislators were doing that,” she said. “This is supposed to be an educational opportunity for these young women and young men, and the fact that legislators were taking advantage of them and asking them to do that alarmed me, particularly given the predatory nature of the legislators who did it.”

Burroughs told The Hill that as soon as he learned of the practice he stopped it.

“Allegations were brought to our attention over the years, yes,” Burroughs said. “Although there’s no formal procedures when allegations of that type come forward, these are issues I take very seriously.”

But Hodgson said Burroughs didn’t do enough.

“I didn’t find his responses to be satisfactory at the time and I don’t find them to be satisfactory now,” she said. “He was in a position of leadership. And I think he had an obligation to the staff, to the interns and other legislators to do more than to simply tell someone to ‘knock it off.’”

Burdett Loomis, the emeritus professor of political science who runs the University of Kansas’ legislative intern program, said no one alerted him that students were being pressed into service as designated drivers.

“I’m not saying nothing happened, but nothing was reported to me,” Loomis said.

Jim McLean is managing director of the Kansas News Service, You can reach him on Twitter @jmcleanks.

PHILLIPS COUNTY —Authorities have identified a teenage driver who died in an accident early Friday in Phillips County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a Ford F350 driven by Jacob Paul Roos, 19, Ashton, IA., was west bound on U.S. 36 four miles east of Phillipsburg just after 5 a.m.

The truck went left of center, traveled into the south ditch, hit the guard rail, continued westbound in the south ditch, hit a creek embankment and came to rest in the bottom of the creek.

Roos was transported to Olliff-Boeve Funeral Home. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

RILEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a homicide and have identified the victim.

Just after 12:30p.m. Saturday, police responded to a report of a body found in rural Southern Riley County, according to a media release.

When officers arrived on scene, they located a deceased middle-aged white female identified as Carrie Alicia Jones, 48, of Junction City.

Initial investigation revealed Jones was the victim of an apparent homicide.

Police did not release a cause of death or additional details early Sunday.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Riley County Police Department at (785) 537-2112 or Crime Stoppers at (785) 539-7777. Using the Crime Stoppers Service allows you to remain anonymous and could qualify you for a cash reward of up to $1,000.00

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RILEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a homicide.

Just after 12:30p.m. Saturday, police responded to a report of a body in rural Riley County, according to a media release.

When officers arrived on scene, they located a deceased middle-aged white female. Initial investigation revealed the subject was the victim of an apparent homicide.

Police released no information on the location of their investigation or further details late Saturday.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man who pleaded guilty in the death of his 7-year-old son whose body was fed to pigs wants a new trial.

The Kansas City Star reports court records show 46-year-old Michael Jones will appear in court Friday seeking to withdraw his guilty plea in the 2015 death of Adrian Jones.

Jones was sentenced in May to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years after a trial that detailed horrific abuse Adrian suffered from his father and stepmother before he died. Jones pleaded guilty in March to first-degree murder.

His stepmother, Heather Jones, also is serving life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.

The boy’s maternal grandmother, Judy Conway, says he was buried last week at a Lawrence cemetery.

DAN ELLIOTT, Associated Press

DENVER (AP) — Scientists say they have more evidence that an increase in earthquakes on the Colorado-New Mexico border has been caused by wells that inject wastewater from oil and gas production back underground.

It’s the latest report to link wastewater injection wells to earthquakes. Quakes in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas also have been linked to the practice.