WASHINGTON (AP) — Amid all the debates on Capitol Hill, lawmakers are also wondering whether driving cars after smoking marijuana is dangerous.
Among the unanswered questions is: Would drivers who are ‘high’ travel too fast or too slow for safety?
Congressman John Mica, a Florida Republican, convened a hearing Thursday of a Transportation subcommittee. He says he’s worried that growing numbers of drivers are impaired, increasingly with a mix of drugs and alcohol. But he says it’s nearly impossible to gauge the danger. Unlike with alcohol, there there’s no way to quickly test drivers.
Congressman Gerald Connolly, a Virginia Democrat, says it’s just as possible that pot doesn’t pose as much a risk as alcohol. He says drivers who are high on marijuana may even drive slower.
AUBURN, Kan. (AP) — The city of Auburn has filed a civil lawsuit against a former city clerk who pleaded guilty to a federal embezzlement charge.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that Auburn is seeking more than $200,000 in its civil lawsuit against 61-year-old Alice Riley. Riley pleaded guilty Tuesday to the federal charge and is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 17.
Federal prosecutors said Riley embezzled at least $186,000 from Auburn, where she managed payroll and other accounts as the city clerk for several years.
In the civil lawsuit filed July 23 in Shawnee County District Court and served to her Tuesday, the city of Auburn is seeking $196,000, as well as reimbursement in excess of $20,000 for the cost of investigation to determine the amount of the theft.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Former Kansas Supreme Court Justice Nancy Moritz has formally joined the federal appeals court that handles cases from six western and Plains states.
U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren administered the oath of office to Moritz on Wednesday in Topeka. The Denver-based 10th Circuit Court of Appeals says in a news release that Moritz’s temporary chambers will be in Lawrence.
President Barack Obama nominated Moritz in August 2013. Her nomination was confirmed by the Senate in May.
Moritz will fill the vacancy created in 2011 when Judge Deanell Tacha, a Kansan, retired and became dean of the law school at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California.
Her departure gives conservative Republican Gov. Sam Brownback his first appointment to the state’s highest court.
NEW YORK (AP) — A judge has ruled against Microsoft Corp., saying U.S. law enforcement can force the company to turn over emails it stores in Ireland.
Loretta Preska, a federal judge in New York, ruled from the bench Thursday after hearing oral arguments.
The Redmond, Washington-based software company has said rulings forcing it to turn over emails threaten to rewrite the Constitution’s protections against illegal search and seizure. It says it can also damage U.S. foreign relations. Its arguments were joined by four large technology companies including Apple Inc., Cisco Systems Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and AT&T Inc.
The judge agreed to stay the effect of her ruling to give the company time to appeal.
Preska said she agrees with a magistrate judge who signed a warrant in December.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration says it will begin regulating laboratory-developed tests, a growing class of medical diagnostics that have never before been subject to federal oversight.
The agency says its proposal is designed to make sure the tests — which are used to diagnose various diseases and conditions — are safe, accurate and reliable.
While the FDA has long reviewed test kits made by manufacturers, it has never exercised authority over tests developed and used in medical laboratories. Generally these tests were simple and not widely used.
But the FDA says laboratory tests have become increasingly sophisticated, often testing for genetic information, and now compete with manufactured tests that have undergone rigorous FDA review.
Under its proposal, FDA would review higher-risk laboratory tests before they could be marketed.
Washington, D.C. – Kansas 3rd District Congressman Kevin Yoder Wednesday praised the work of the House Energy and Commerce Committee for passing H.R. 1575, the Kelsey Smith Act, out of committee. Representative Yoder introduced the Kelsey Smith Act in 2013, and the bill will now move forward for possible consideration by the full House of Representatives. Although the bill was first introduced in 2009, the Kelsey Smith Act has never been passed out of a full House Committee until today, a major step forward in the legislative process.
“Today we are one step closer to making the Kelsey Smith Act the federal standard, greatly improving the chances of locating loved ones who have gone missing or who have been abducted. When every second matters, the Kelsey Smith Act means lives will be saved, and law enforcement will shave precious time off their response to missing persons by working hand in hand with telecommunications companies,” stated Congressman Kevin Yoder. “I thank Kelsey Smith’s parents, Greg and Missey, for their steadfast resolve in advocating for this legislation. And I thank my House colleagues in the Energy and Commerce Committee for their work in passing this bill and moving it forward.”
“We continue to be amazed at how our daughter Kelsey is still making a difference. It is humbling that one eighteen year old girl has impacted the nation in a way that will save lives. We would like to thank Congressman Yoder for his efforts, the wireless providers for their cooperation, and the committee for passing the bill. This is a great day,” said Kansas State Senator Greg Smith.
On June 2, 2007, Kelsey Smith an 18 year old graduate of Shawnee Mission West High School, after shopping at an Overland Park department store was abducted, raped, and murdered. Her car was found in a nearby parking lot. A search for her began immediately. There were many difficulties in law enforcement being able to locate her cell phone location information. Once that was released and the cell coordinates narrowed, Kelsey was found in about 45 minutes.
The Kelsey Smith Act would help law enforcement and telecommunication officials work together quickly in cases of emergency to the locate cell phones of missing persons. Passing the Kelsey Smith Act will codify federal legislation that is already law in sixteen states, including Kansas. Companion legislation has been introduced in the U.S. Senate by Kansas Senators Jerry Moran and Pat Roberts.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A suburban Kansas City youth soccer coach has pleaded guilty to secretly videotaping young girls while they changed their clothes in his daughter’s bedroom.
The U.S. Attorney’s office says 40-year-old Joel D. White, of Lee’s Summit, pleaded guilty Wednesday to three counts of attempting to produce child pornography. White remains in federal custody to await sentencing.
White coached girls’ under-12 and under-15 soccer teams through the Lee’s Summit Soccer Association, which cooperated in the investigation.
Prosecutors said White videotaped 11 children, ages 11 and 12, in his daughter’s bedroom between May and October 2012. He also admitted recording himself touching one girl while she slept.
The investigation began when authorities in Commerce City, Colorado, searched White’s backpack for soccer merchandise he was suspected of stealing during a tournament there.
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas school district has completed the $17-million transformation of a megachurch into an educational complex.
The Kansas City Star reports Wednesday that the Hilltop Campus in Overland Park will be ready for class on Aug. 18.
The Blue Valley School District bought the First Family Church for $9 million in 2012 after the property went into foreclosure.
Principal Kendall Burr says the building has grown to 126,000 square feet since the district added a tornado shelter. The 51-acre campus houses an early childhood learning center, a conference center and various programs.
Burr says the learning center will serve about 1,000 families, especially those within the south and southwest area of the district.
