OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — Veterans court programs have sprung up in 40 states since 2008, an alternative to jail for some veterans who get into trouble. Kansas may be next.

The Kansas City Star reports that planning has begun for a veterans court in Johnson County, and a committee ordered by the Kansas Supreme Court will propose standards and study costs.

About 250 veterans court programs exist nationwide, specifically for those whose drug habits, injuries or stress related to military service may have contributed to civilian trouble with the law.

On the Missouri side of the Kansas City area, about 80 veterans are enrolled in treatment instead of being jailed. Kansas’ delay in adopting the program puzzles some, given the state is home to three large military posts and about 220,000 veterans.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Hunters have killed more than 11,000 Missouri deer this season with crossbows, spear-throwers and other alternative weapons.
The Missouri Department of Conservation on Wednesday reported that hunters killed almost 1,000 fewer through alternative methods compared to the last deer hunting season.
Alternative methods include using center-fire pistols, bows and muzzle-loading firearms.
That portion of the season ran from Dec. 20-30.
Top harvest counties for this year were Oregon with 269 deer, Franklin with 248 and Howell with 244.
The archery hunting portion of the season is next and runs through Jan. 15.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — Police in the Kansas City suburb of Overland Park, Kansas, are seeking clues in the shooting death of a 49-year-old man.

KMBC-TV  reports that Steve Sawyer was found dead in the middle of the street about 6 a.m. Wednesday. Police say he had been outside warming up his car.

People living nearby heard up to a half-dozen shots fired. It wasn’t clear if Sawyer was targeted or if he was killed in an attempted carjacking.

Sawyer was an Air Force veteran.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri man sentenced to death for stabbing his neighbor to death is set to be executed Feb. 11.

On Wednesday, the Missouri Supreme Court set the execution date for Walter Timothy Storey. The St. Charles man was convicted of killing Jill Frey in 1990. The 36-year-old social worker had her throat slit, six ribs broken and multiple face and head wounds.

Storey was retried after the Supreme Court ruled in 1995 that the prosecutor committed four “egregious errors.” Storey was re-sentenced in 1997 but again had his conviction overturned, this time over a procedural error by the judge. He was sentenced to death a third time in September 1999.

This is the second execution scheduled for 2015, after a state record 10 inmates were put to death in 2014.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas says its tax collections in December fell $15 million short of expectations and the state’s top revenue official is blaming lower-than-expected corporate income tax revenues.

The Department of Revenue reported Wednesday that the state collected $553 million in taxes during the month when it expected to take in $568 million. The difference is 2.7 percent.

Corporate income tax collections in December were $56 million, or nearly $20 million short of expectations. Revenue Secretary Nick Jordan said such tax collections are volatile.

For the fiscal year beginning in July, tax collections were $12 million, or four-tenths of 1 percent, less than anticipated. During those six months, the state has collected $2.7 billion in taxes.

The December tax-collection shortfall could complicate efforts to address state budget shortfalls.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City is poised to finish 2014 with its lowest number of homicides in nearly five decades.
As of early Dec. 31, the city recorded 76 homicides this year. The last time the murder count was lower was in 1967, when 66 people were killed.
Only 10 years since 1967 have ended with fewer than 100 homicides. Last year, 106 people were murdered in the city.
City law enforcement leaders say a 2-year-old anti-violence program called the Kansas City No Violence Alliance, or NoVA, helped but they caution the city’s historically high murder rate is far from under control.
NOVA relies on “focused deterrence,” in which police talk to members a criminal network — including those who haven’t yet committed serious crimes — about the possible consequences of their actions.

WYANDOTTE COUNTY- A Missouri woman was injured in an accident just after 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday in Wyandotte County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2009 Nissan Altima driven by Eugene F. Deshazo, 70, Prairie Village, was northbound on Interstate 35 just north of Southwest Blvd.

The driver swerved to miss road debris and struck a 2004 Pontiac Grand Am driven by Chloe G. Almanza, 21, Pleasant Valley, Missouri.

The collision caused the Pontiac to spin out and hit the median wall.
Almanza was transported to KU Medical Center. Deshazo was not injured.

The KHP reported both drivers were properly restrained at the time of the accident.

JEFFERSON CITY (AP) – A report from the Missouri Department of Transportation says tolls could pay for much-needed repairs to Interstate 70.

The report released Wednesday says the state doesn’t have the money needed to widen and fix the interstate. The project would cost at least $2 billion.

Earlier this month, Gov. Jay Nixon revived the possibility of using tolls to makeover the heavily traveled road.

Voters in August defeated a proposed three-quarter-cent sales tax that would have helped finance a $1.5 billion rebuilding of I-70.

The transportation department report estimated that drivers would need to pay $20-40 for a trip across the state to fully fund a rebuilding. Truck drivers would pay $40-90.

The report also raises the possibility of a public-private partnership to fix the roadway, which also likely would include tolls.