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1 case settled in Missouri duck boat sinking that killed 17

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The company that owned a tourist boat that sank in a Missouri lake and killed 17 people has reached a settlement with relatives of two brothers who were among the victims.

Lawyers for Ervin and Horace Coleman filed a settlement notice with Ripley Entertainment last week. Terms of the settlement are confidential.

The brothers were among nine members of an Indiana family who died when the duck boat sank in July on Table Rock Lake near Branson.

Several lawsuits against Ripley and other entities are pending in federal and state court. A spokeswoman for Ripley Entertainment says the company is continuing mediation with victims of the accident.

The lawsuits allege Ripley Entertainment launched the boat despite warnings of severe weather near the lake.

Trial set for August in shooting of NE Kansas police officer

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — A 38-year-old man accused of trying to kill a Manhattan police officer is now scheduled for trial in August.

Authorities on the scene of shooting and barricade situation photo courtesy WIBW TV

Mark Harrison faces one count of attempted capital murder of a police officer. Prosecutors say he fired 33 shots during a three-hour standoff with police in January 2018.

One shot hit Riley County Police Sgt. Pat Tiede in the leg. The defense has argued that shot hit Tiede after it ricocheted off a sidewalk.

In February, Harrison was found not guilty on two counts of attempted capital murder, stemming from shots that hit an armored SWAT vehicle with two officers inside. The jury couldn’t reach a verdict on the count involving Tiede.

Harrison’s new trial is scheduled for Aug. 6.

Agents seize $77 million of cocaine at U.S. port

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Customs agents have seized the biggest shipment of cocaine recovered at the ports of New York and New Jersey in 25 years.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection says 3,200 pounds of the drug in 60 packages were seized at Port New York/Newark on Feb. 28. The street value is estimated at $77 million.

It’s the biggest cocaine seizure at the ports since 1994.

A Customs spokesman says the container was recovered from a ship that originated in South America.

Customs officers turned the drugs over to federal Homeland Security officials for investigation.

New Medicaid expansion plan in Kan. includes key one-word change

By JOHN HANNA

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A “poison pill” in Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s plan for expanding Medicaid aimed at reassuring wary Republican legislators wouldn’t actually end the expansion if the federal government backed off its promises to cover most of the cost.

Kelly has said her proposal is based on an expansion plan that passed in 2017 with large, bipartisan legislative majorities, only to be vetoed by Kansas’ then-conservative GOP Gov. Sam Brownback. But the new Democratic governor’s “working group” of Medicaid advisers suggested a key, one-word change when it comes what would happen if the federal government backed off its commitment to cover 90 percent of the expansion.

The 2017 bill said the state “shall” end expanded Medicaid health coverage for tens of thousands of Kansas residents if the federal government drops its funding percentage. Kelly’s proposal says the state “may” end expansion — meaning she or a future governor could opt to continue with less federal money.

Documents obtained by The Associated Press through an open records request show that an initial draft of Kelly’s proposed legislation contained the 2017 “poison pill.” Kelly’s advisers on Medicaid expansion suggested the weaker language and it changed before Kelly released her proposal to the GOP-controlled Legislature.

“The working group wanted to provide the state with some flexibility in managing the new Medicaid program, while also protecting the state’s finances should federal funding be reduced,” Kelly spokeswoman Ashley All said Monday.

It’s not clear how many legislators are aware of the change. Top Republicans remain adamantly opposed to Medicaid expansion, viewing it as costly to the state despite the promised federal funding, and no committee has had a hearing on Kelly’s specific proposal.

House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins, a conservative Wichita Republican, said if the federal government backed off its funding promises, “screaming and the gnashing of teeth” over ending an entitlement program would prevent state officials from doing it.

“The only way it can be shut down is if it’s forced by law,” he said.

Kansas is one of only 14 states that have not expanded their Medicaid programs or had voters approve a ballot initiative. Supporters argue that expansion would cover thousands of struggling families and boost troubled rural hospitals.

The 2010 federal Affordable Care Act encouraged states to expand Medicaid by offering to cover almost all of the cost.

With conservatives questioning how long Congress would stand by its promise, given federal budget deficits, Kansas’ 2017 bill stipulated that if the federal government’s share of funding dropped below 90 percent, the state was required to end the expanded coverage within a year. A poison pill has been included in a majority of expansion proposals since 2013.

“I think that’s going to have to be an element of any bill,” said Rep. Russ Jennings, a moderate Lakin Republican who supports expansion. “Because of the cost implications.”

Emails released to the AP show that members of Kelly’s team were working on a draft of her bill in December. The Medicaid working group met Jan. 18 in a Statehouse conference room, four days after Kelly took office.

A suggestion to change the poison pill language came from that meeting, according to notes circulated to members by email afterward by a Kelly staffer. The notes did not say who suggested the change, but “shall” became “may.”

“There were a lot of little tweaks that were done, but that was the only substantive change, at least in my mind, from the 2017 bill,” said April Holman, executive director of the pro-expansion Alliance for a Healthy Kansas and a member of Kelly’s group.

Rep. Kathy Wolfe Moore, a Kansas City Democrat and another working group member, said it wanted to avoid ending expansion because the federal government “went down one point” on its funding percentage.

But she said she would support a full-strength poison pill “if that’s the hold-up between passing Medicaid expansion and not.”

Missouri House Democrats criticize plan to borrow for roads

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A top Democratic lawmaker Monday said Republican Gov. Mike Parson’s plan to borrow $350 million to repair bridges across the state is a “nonstarter.”

Rep. Kip Kendrick

Rep. Kip Kendrick, the top Democrat on the influential House Budget Committee, told reporters that House Democrats generally oppose using un-earmarked general revenue to fund infrastructure.

Road and bridge work has previously been funded primarily through the state’s gas tax, federal funding and fees.

Under Parson’s plan , the state would repay the $350-million loan with general revenue in $30-million-a-year payments over 15 years. The state would owe an estimated $100 million in interest.

“It’s no disrespect to the governor, he wanted to put a proposal out there that started the conversation,” Kendrick said. “I just think that proposal is a nonstarter.”

House Democrats have limited power in Missouri’s Republican-led Legislature. Their opposition is notable because it comes as other factions of lawmakers are also moving away from Parson’s plan and shifting to other possible sources of infrastructure funding.

Republican House Committee Chairman Cody Smith instead pitched setting aside $100 million in general revenue each year for road and bridge work, a plan that earned support from the Senate’s Conservative Caucus.

Kendrick said that plan won’t provide enough money to adequately address infrastructure maintenance for the state. He urged colleagues to consider long-term funding solutions, such as toll roads or asking voters again to increase the gas tax.

Kendrick said $100 million is significant, but “it does not get anywhere close to addressing this long-term problem.”

Parson spokesman Steele Shippy said the governor is sticking by his priority to fund infrastructure but noted that voters last year defeated a proposal to raise the state’s 17-cent gas tax to 27 cents per gallon.

“The people of Missouri spoke loud and clear about their position on an increase in the fuel tax,” Parson said. “The governor believes it’s our job as leaders to find solutions to meet our critical infrastructure needs.”

Honda to recall around 1M vehicles a 2nd time for dangerous air bags

DETROIT (AP) — Honda is likely to recall around 1 million older vehicles in the U.S. and Canada because the Takata driver’s air bag inflators that were installed during previous recalls could be dangerous.

Takata Air Bag Recall Photo Courtesy safercar.gov

Documents posted Monday by Canadian safety regulators show that Honda is recalling many of its most popular models for a second time. The models are from as far back as 2001 and as recent as 2010.

Canadian documents say about 84,000 vehicles are involved. That number is usually over 10 times higher in the United States.

Affected models include the Honda Accord from 2001 through 2007, the CR-V from 2002 through 2006, the Civic from 2001 through 2005, the Element from 2003 through 2010, the Odyssey from 2002 through 2004, the Pilot from 2003 through 2008 and the Ridgeline from 2006. Also covered are Acura luxury models including the MDX from 2003 through 2006, the EL from 2001 through 2005, the TL from 2002 and 2003 and the CL from 2003.

Transport Canada, the country’s transportation safety agency, said vehicles covered include those that were under previous recalls and others that had air bags replaced after collisions.

Takata used the chemical ammonium nitrate to create a small explosion to inflate the air bags. But the chemical can deteriorate over time due to high humidity and cycles from hot temperatures to cold. It can burn too fast and blow apart a metal canister, hurling shrapnel into drivers and passengers.

At least 23 people have died from the problem worldwide and hundreds more were injured.

The recalls are part of the largest series of automotive recalls in U.S. history. As many as 70 million will be recalled.

Honda spokesman Chris Martin wouldn’t give details Monday evening, but said the company is communicating with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration “and plans to issue a public statement tomorrow.” Messages were left after business hours Monday seeking comment from NHTSA.

Owners will be told to take their vehicles to dealers to have the inflators replaced.

Former worker at Kan. children’s facility sentenced for child porn

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Miami County man was sentenced Monday to nine years in federal prison on child pornography charges, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.

William Bresee, 32, Fontana, Kan., pleaded guilty to three counts of distributing child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography. At sentencing, the prosecutor told the court Bresee admitted that federal agents downloaded child pornography from his computer using an online file sharing program.

Bresee was a staff member at Lakemary Center in Paola, Kan., working an overnight shift when investigators tracked child pornography to an IP address at the center. Breesee no longer works there.

At the time of his conviction, Lakemary offered a statement on the case
“Lakemary Center was informed that William Bresee pled guilty to certain criminal charges in Federal Court. Mr. Bresee has not been employed at Lakemary since July of 2015 and Mr. Bresee never worked with the children served at Lakemary Center. When Lakemary was originally informed of his potential criminal activity in 2015, Lakemary fully cooperated with police and Federal authorities. Mr. Bresee was immediately terminated. At no time was any individual in the care of Lakemary Center affected by any actions by Mr. Bresee.”

Suspect in Kansas triple murder loses self-defense motion

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A judge has rejected a motion to drop charges against a 21-year-old man accused in a triple homicide in Lawrence.

Roberts-photo Douglas Co.

Douglas County District Court Judge Sally Pokorny on Friday ruled that Anthony Roberts Jr., of Topeka, had not provided evidence to justify his claim that he acted in self-defense during the shootings in October 2017.

Roberts’ trial is scheduled for June 10. He is charged with two counts of first-degree felony murder, second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder.

The shootings in downtown Lawrence involved two groups of Topeka men who had earlier confrontations. They fired about 20 shots, killing three and injuring two others.

One co-defendant is scheduled for trial in April. A third pleaded no contest last week to misdemeanor battery and was released from jail.

Missouri medical marijuana licenses in high demand

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Missouri plans to license more than 300 medical marijuana-related businesses this year, and if that’s not enough, the program director says more will be approved.

Missouri medical marijuana program director Lyndall Fraker told the hundreds of people attending a St. Louis conference Monday that the state will do what’s necessary to meet patient demand.

Many of those at the conference are among the 450 potential licensees who have already applied to grow, manufacture, dispense or test medical marijuana.

Voters in November overwhelmingly approved a state constitutional amendment legalizing marijuana and marijuana-infused products for patients who suffer from serious illnesses. Missouri is now among 33 states approving medical marijuana.

Missouri plans at the minimum 192 dispensaries, 60 cultivation facilities, 86 manufacturing facilities and two testing facilities.

Olathe Kansas cyclist dies during race at Cheney Reservoir

SEDGWICK COUNTY — An Olathe, Kansas man died during a cycling race at Cheney Reservoir over the weekend.

Riders during Saturday’s race -image courtesy Rage Against the Chainring

William “Craig” Henwood, 48, was racing in the Rage Against the Chainring gravel bicycle race on Saturday, according to the Reno County sheriff’s department.

Henwood started to drift left in front of a pack of riders when his bike left the road. He tumbled over the front of the handlebars and hit his head, according to the Sheriff’s department.

CPR was performed and Henwood responded to it for a short time, but was eventually pronounced dead at the scene. He was taken to the Wichita Forensics Center for more tests. It is not known at this time whether Henwood had a medical condition at the time of the accident.

The Rage Against the Chainring is a popular event that is part of a race series put on by the Kansas Cycling Association.

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