JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A lobbyist whose son was expelled from college under a federal sex-discrimination law successfully enlisted a Missouri state lawmaker to introduce a bill that would overhaul how such complaints are handled — a measure that one opponent called “revenge legislation.”

Republican Rep. Dean Dohrman said lobbyist Richard McIntosh asked him to sponsor the proposal , which would change how Missouri colleges handle alleged violations of Title IX, the federal law that bans sex-based discrimination in education.

Dohrman said he learned about the son’s expulsion from Washington University from McIntosh, who told him it was related to a Title IX complaint.

The lawmaker declined to say whether he knew about the family’s situation before filing his bill. He said he did not ask McIntosh for “a bunch of details” and did not “necessarily want to know a bunch of details.” Dohrman said he’s pushing the legislation because he supports the policy.

“The situation with the McIntosh family is immaterial to my position,” said Dohrman, who represents a rural area east of Kansas City. “I believe there needs to be changes in due process of Title IX. That’s why I filed the bill.”

The allegations against the son are not public. Title IX complaints can include accusations of sexual harassment, sexual assault or other infractions.

The link between the lobbyist’s son and the legislation was first reported by the Kansas City Star.

McIntosh has previously declined to comment when asked by The Associated Press about his son’s expulsion. He did not return an AP request for comment this week.

The Kansas City Star report sparked outrage among the bill’s critics, including state Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, a St. Louis Democrat who said “revenge legislation should have no place in this Capitol.”

“How dare you bring in legislation to the body and try to change the whole structure of Title IX simply because one person” was accused, Nasheed said.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden, who supports some changes to Title IX, said the McIntosh family’s involvement in the legislation is “not a particularly good look” for lawmakers.

Editors note: The story has been updated to include a statement released late Friday from Senator Pat Roberts.

WASHINGTON – Members of the Kansas congressional delegation issued statements Friday after the Kansas Supreme Court declared the state constitution protects abortion rights. The Kansas decision prevents the state from enforcing a 2015 law that could have greatly limited second trimester abortions.

In a statement Friday afternoon, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran said.

“I am saddened by today’s State Supreme Court decision. An unborn child is a distinct human being and our laws should defend its right to life. This decision underscores the urgent need for federal legislation that will protect innocent life at all stages, and I will continue working to see such legislation achieved.”

I am disappointed in the activist Kansas Supreme Court’s decision that in Kansas an unborn child has, literally, no right to life.

— Senator Pat Roberts (@SenPatRoberts) April 27, 2019

Today, the Kansas Supreme Court violated the sanctity of life and denied the rights of the unborn in our state. It’s plain wrong and deeply shameful. (1/3

— Dr. Roger Marshall (@RogerMarshallMD) April 26, 2019

Today, radical and out-of-touch justices on the Kansas Supreme Court have cleared the way for the barbaric practice of dismemberment abortions and opened the door for even more extreme late-term abortions in our state. https://t.co/0Ry9w4zneR

— Rep. Ron Estes (@RepRonEstes) April 26, 2019

The Kansas Supreme Court ruling on abortion is another example of moral degradation in our country. I will continue to fight for federal legislation to protect our most vulnerable. #ksleg #ks02 #prolife

— Rep. Steve Watkins (@Rep_Watkins) April 26, 2019

Rep. @ShariceDavids: “Today’s ruling reaffirms a woman’s fundamental right to make her own decisions about her body and health care…I continue to fight to ensure Kansas women and families have access to a full range of health care services they need.” https://t.co/pYGqVuS7aZ

— Kansas Dems (@KansasDems) April 26, 2019

The court ruling clears the way for legal challenges to a string of abortion restrictions approved in recent years by state lawmakers under past Republican governors.

The court said vague language protecting “equal and inalienable rights” in the first section of the Kansas Constitution’s Bill of Rights grants a “natural right of personal autonomy” that includes the right to “control one’s own body.” Because that right is independent of the U.S. Constitution, Kansas courts could strike down restrictions that have been upheld by the federal courts.

“This right allows a woman to make her own decisions regarding her body, health, family formation, and family life — decisions that can include whether to continue a pregnancy,” the court’s unsigned majority opinion said.

Justices ruled 6-1 on the language in state constitution. Justice Caleb Stegall, the only appointee of a conservative Republican governor, declared in his dissenting opinion that the ruling “fundamentally alters the structure of our government” to “arbitrarily grant a regulatory reprieve” for abortion.

The ruling immediately prompted abortion opponents to call for amending the state constitution. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, who took office in January, is a strong abortion-rights supporter, but the Legislature still has solid anti-abortion majorities.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Friday a local prosecutor has reopened a domestic violence investigation involving suspended wide receiver Tyreek Hill after a TV station broadcast an audio recording in which Hill and his fiancee discuss injuries to their 3-year-old son.

Reid made the comment as the Chiefs introduced a new draft pick, but he and general manager Brett Veach both declined comment about Hill’s case and potential next steps. The prosecutor, Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe, did not immediately return a message.

Police were called to the Hill home twice last month and determined the child had been injured. On Wednesday, Howe said he would not file charges against Hill or Espinal even though his office believed a crime had occurred. He said available evidence didn’t establish who had hurt the child.

“As a prosecutor, as a father of four, yes, it frustrates me when someone hurts a child and you can’t do anything about it,” Howe said then. “One of the elements of a crime is you have to prove who that person is who committed the act.”

A day later, KCTV in Kansas City aired part of an 11-minute audio filein which Espinal tells Hill earlier this year that when the boy was asked about his injured arm he replied: “Daddy did it.”

Hill denied any role in what happened to the child, saying: “He says Daddy does a lot of things.”

Espinal also tells Hill their son is “terrified of you.”

Hill replies, “You need to be terrified of me, too, bitch.”

Later, Espinal asks Hill, “What do you do when the child is bad? You make him open up his arms and you punch him in the chest.”

Howe has not responded to requests for comment about the audio recording, which the TV station said has been provided to his office. KCTV said the recording is believed to have been made in March when the parents were walking through an airport in Dubai. The station said Espinal sent it to at least one friend and was shared with KCTV “by someone who is concerned about the welfare of the couple’s child.”

Several media outlets reported that Overland Park police went to the home of Hill home on Thursday night after receiving an anonymous call from someone worried about Espinal. According to the reports, Espinal was fine and officers were at the home for only a short time.

The Chiefs have suspended Hillwhile the team looks into the developments. The NFL could also punish Hill under its personal conduct policy.

Hill’s history with Espinal is well known. In 2015, he pleaded guilty to domestic assault and battery by strangulation in an incident involving his then-pregnant girlfriend the previous year. The incident resulted in his dismissal from the Oklahoma State football team and he was put on probation until August 2018. He wound up playing at tiny West Alabama, where he juggled school and football with counseling sessions and other court-mandated service work until the NFL came calling.

Hill, a fifth-round pick who is a two-time Pro Bowler, was part of a controversial draft class by the Chiefs and then-general manager John Dorsey in 2016.

The Chiefs also spent a third-round pick that year on cornerback KeiVarae Russell, who missed an entire season for violating Notre Dame’s honor code in an academic misconduct case; a fourth-round pick on wide receiver Demarcus Robinson, who was suspended four times at Florida for drugs and other violations; and a sixth-round pick on Virginia Tech linebacker Dadi Nicolas, who was once charged with larceny and suspended for bumping an official. Among them, only Robinson is still on the roster.

Last year, the Chiefs released star running back Kareem Hunt following a video that showed him pushing and kicking a woman in a hotel hallway. Hunt is suspended for the first eight games of the upcoming season but has signed a one-year deal with Cleveland under Dorsey, the Browns GM who signed Hunt while he was with the Chiefs.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — The union representing service and maintenance workers at the University of Missouri and University Hospital is seeking a minimum wage of $15 for its workers.

In advance of negotiations starting Friday, union members staged a rally Thursday in support of the wage hike.

Union field representative Eric Scott noted that voters last year approved a proposition that will create a $12 an hour minimum wage statewide within a few years. He says the city approved $15 an hour for most of its workers.

By Dewey Terrill

JC Post

GEARY COUNTY —A Kansas sheriff accused of felony theft and misdemeanor misuse of public funds has entered a no contest plea.

On Friday Geary County Sheriff Tony Wolf entered the plea deal and that saw the court dismiss two other felony counts with prejudice. They cannot be refiled.

The recommended sentence for Wolf is 12 months probation on the misdemeanor and in the other allegation a presumptive probation matter with the probation in both cases to run concurrently at the same time, with no jail time. Wolf must also make restitution totaling $2,200 in the theft case.

Formal sentencing has been scheduled on June 28th.

Wolf will be also be required to forfeit his position as Geary County Sheriff effective immediately. A letter of resignation must be submitted to the governor.

According to the factual basis outlined in court on Friday, Wolf authorized an expense of $530 against a County credit card to purchase tires for a friend’s vehicle. He claimed it was a payment to a confidential informant for drug information which was false.

There was a reference to a text which Wolf told the friend, “This is what friends do for each other.” Wolf later admitted to a KBI agent the tires were purchased for a friend. Those funds were credited by the vendor back to the credit card and Wolf later paid the vendor.

In the second case Wolf used state asset forfeiture funds to purchase items ranging from weapons, ammunition and a scope. Wolf turned in a list on those, but it did not include six items including a scope. He will make the $2,200 restitution in that case.

In court Friday Wolf appeared with his attorney, Barry Clark, Manhattan while Assistant Dickinson County Attorney Darryl Hawkins served as the Special Prosecutor in the case. During the proceedings Wolf acknowledged he understood the charges and waived his right to a preliminary hearing. The jury trial scheduled in the case that on the misdemeanor count, plus a felony theft charge that has now been dismissed, was scheduled May 8th and 9th in District court. It will be withdrawn from the court docket.

Wolf was first elected Geary County Sheriff in 2012 and reelected in 2016. He began working for the Sheriff’s Department as a corrections officer in 1996 and later moved to the patrol division.

NIXA, Mo. (AP) — A southwest Missouri woman who was 17 when she sold prescription drugs to a classmate who died of an overdose has been sentenced to 120 days in jail and five years of probation.

Alexandra Gonzalez, of Nixa, also was ordered Thursday to perform 300 hours of community service for selling Xanax to 18-year-old Austin Clark. He died in June 2016 after ingesting toxic amounts of the anti-anxiety drug as well as methadone.

Gonzalez’s attorney, Joseph Passanise, says his client had been racked with guilt and didn’t intend for Clark to die.

Clark’s parents say their son was battling a drug addiction but he had been clean for months. His father, Brett Clark, said it “feels like a part of my soul has been ripped out.”

___

By JOHN HANNA 

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas’ highest court ruled for the first time Friday that the state constitution protects abortion rights and blocked a first-in-the-nation ban on a common second trimester method for ending pregnancies.

The state Supreme Court’s ruling represented a big victory for abortion rights supporters in a state with a Republican-controlled Legislature hostile to their cause. It comes with other, GOP-controlled states moving to ban most abortionsin direct challenges to the U.S. Supreme Court’s historic 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortions across the nation.

The Kansas decision prevents the state from enforcing a 2015 law that could have greatly limited second trimester abortions. But even worse for abortion opponents, the ruling clears the way for legal challenges to a string of abortion restrictions approved in recent years by state lawmakers under past Republican governors.

The court said vague language protecting “equal and inalienable rights” in the first section of the Kansas Constitution’s Bill of Rights grants a “natural right of personal autonomy” that includes the right to “control one’s own body.” Because that right is independent of the U.S. Constitution, Kansas courts could strike down restrictions that have been upheld by the federal courts.

“This right allows a woman to make her own decisions regarding her body, health, family formation, and family life — decisions that can include whether to continue a pregnancy,” the court’s unsigned majority opinion said.

Justices ruled 6-1 on the language in state constitution. Justice Caleb Stegall, the only appointee of a conservative Republican governor, declared in his dissenting opinion that the ruling “fundamentally alters the structure of our government” to “arbitrarily grant a regulatory reprieve” for abortion.

The ruling immediately prompted abortion opponents to call for amending the state constitution. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, who took office in January, is a strong abortion-rights supporter, but the Legislature still has solid anti-abortion majorities.

“The liberal, activist Supreme Court showed just how out of touch they are with Kansas values,” Senate President Susan Wagle, a conservative Wichita Republican, said in a statement issued minutes after the decision. “We understand that life is sacred, beginning at conception, and we must always stand and defend the most vulnerable among us, the unborn.”

In previous cases, Kansas’ highest court avoided the question, allowing U.S. Supreme Court decisions to determine what restrictions would be allowed. But a state district court judge ruled in issuing an injunction to block the 2015 law that the Kansas Constitution grants its own protections.

The Supreme Court sent the case back to the lower court for a trial on the lawsuit challenging the law but kept the judge’s injunction in place, saying the lawsuit was likely to succeed in invalidating the law.

The decision Friday comes two years after the Kansas court heard arguments from attorneys, an unusually long delay for a ruling. Iowa’s Supreme Court issued a similar decisionin 2018.

The Kansas Bill of Rights says residents’ natural rights include “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” and that “free governments” were created for their “equal protection and benefit.”

The state’s attorneys argued there is no evidence that when the state constitution was written in 1859, its drafters contemplated abortion rights. In the Kansas Territory, abortion was illegal except to save a woman’s life, and that policy carried over in the new state’s laws.

The Kansas law at issue would bar physicians from using forceps or similar instruments on a live fetus to remove it from the womb in pieces, using the non-medical term “dismemberment abortion” to describe the procedure. Such instruments are commonly used in dilation and evacuation procedure, which the Center for Reproductive Rights has described as the safest and most common abortion procedure in the U.S. in the second trimester.

The Kansas law was model legislation drafted by the National Right to Life Committee. The group says similar bans have been enacted in 10 other states — Oklahoma, West Virginia, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas, Kentucky, Ohio and North Dakota.

Abortion providers reported performing 484 dilation and evacuation procedures in Kansas in 2018, according to state health department statistics. That was 6.9% of the state’s total abortions; most pregnancies were terminated during the first trimester.

The lawsuit against the Kansas law was filed by Drs. Herbert Hodes and Traci Nauser, a father and daughter who operated a women’s health center together in the Kansas City suburb of Overland Park. Hodes has since retired.

After the district judge’s ruling put the law on hold, the Kansas Court of Appeals split 7-7, allowing the judge’s decision to stand.

————–

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Supreme Court is preparing to rule on whether the state constitution protects abortion rights.

The court announced that it would issue a decision Friday in a lawsuit filed by two abortion providers in 2015 against a Kansas law banning a common second-trimester procedure.

A trial-court judge ruled that the state constitution’s Bill of Rights provides protections for abortion rights that are independent of protections under the U.S. Constitution.

If the Kansas Supreme Court agrees, state courts could invalidate abortion restrictions upheld by the federal courts. Such a decision also would likely spur an attempt from abortion opponents to amend the state constitution.

The law’s fate also is at issue. It was the first of its kind in the nation in 2015 but has yet to be enforced.

LONGTON, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say one of two brothers hurt in an all-terrain vehicle crash in rural southeast Kansas has died from his injuries.

Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper Rick Wingate identified the boy as 6-year-old Owen Cannon, of Longton. His 9-year-old brother was driving the ATV when it crashed into a pickup truck on April 18 while cresting a hill on an Elk County gravel road.

Both boys were flown away from the wreck. The truck driver wasn’t hurt. A GoFundMe says the older boy had a broken leg, while Owen had swelling on his brain and cracked vertebrae in his neck.

Wingate says the investigation is ongoing.