Kansas.com: State

Travel for history, stories and music

BECCY TANNER — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 06:55 CDT

This is a weekly series on day trips and weekend getaways within easy driving distance of Wichita

Tales of the Old West, pioneer African-Americans and chuckwagon dinners.

Wherever your interest takes you, you can find a spot in Kansas to draw your attention.

Ellsworth

Distance: 128 miles

Coffeyville: One year later

TIM POTTER — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 03:05 CDT

A year ago, crude oil and floodwater swamped the Loomis family home on Moon Street and hundreds of other houses around it.

Now, the house that Charlie Loomis kept adding on to is gone -- bought and demolished in a buy-out program by Coffeyville Resources refinery, the source of the oil.

Loomis' 40-year-old son, Brian, still returns to the place where the family's lives played out over 35 years. On a recent evening, Brian Loomis stood in the street by the lot where the home sat, where his mother's tiger lilies still bloom.

"I come down here too often," he said. "I need to let it go. But I can't."

It's still home, with imprints of their former lives. A flag-stone walkway. A sun-baked concrete pad -- remains of his father's beloved garage. A rusted screwdriver his father once held.

Parachutist lands feet first in military band

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

A parachutist went off course Thursday at the start of a military review, dropped feet-first into the 1st Infantry Division's band and injured three members.

Several thousand people watched the first of two parachutists landed successfully, but the second dropped on the 30-member division band, about 50 yards off target. A gasp went up from the crowd, followed by silence as a few rushed over to help.

"I hear, 'Oh, expletive,' and immediately, I hear a crash," said the band's commander, Chief Warrant Officer Scott MacDonald.

The three injured band members were treated and released from Irwin Army Community Hospital. The parachutist, Scott Hallock, refused treatment at the scene.

One band member, Sgt. Rachel Boggs, was knocked unconscious and had a fractured jaw, hospital spokeswoman Lisa Medrano said. Another, Sgt. Andrew Spinazzolla, suffered minor neck and head injuries and had a fractured ankle, Medrano said. The third, Staff Sgt. Mark Lucero, sustained what Medrano called a minor leg injury.

After complaints, Roberts tweaks ads

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

Democrats' complaints prompted Republican Sen. Pat Roberts to modify his latest television ad, but he hasn't dropped a theme that could be helping his re-election campaign in the short term.

Roberts' campaign made what spokeswoman Molly Haase described as "two small tweaks" over questions of whether the 30-second spot complied with a federal "Stand by Your Ad" requirement.

The questions were raised by Mike Gaughan, the Kansas Democratic Party's executive director, in a complaint to the Federal Election Commission.

Democrats continued Thursday to criticize the GOP incumbent because the ad attacks former Rep. Jim Slattery, the Democrats' leading Senate candidate. And a Slattery aide acknowledged that Roberts' advertising may have widened the gap between the two candidates in recent weeks.

"Anytime you spend hundreds of thousands of dollars running negative ads against your opponent, they will likely have some effect," said Slattery spokeswoman Abbie Hodgson.

Texas religious group to host Kline events for clergy

DIANE CARROLL — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

A conservative organization based in Texas is reaching out to pastors and their churches in Johnson County before the Aug. 5 primary.

Rev. Rick Scarborough, who founded Vision America, said this week that his group will not be endorsing any candidate. But Johnson County District Attorney Phill Kline, who is seeking a full four-year term, is expected to share his faith at three of four events set up for clergy and at a public rally July 28.

Scarborough said Kline will appear not as a candidate but as district attorney.

"We can't endorse a candidate and don't, but we do hope people will vote not as Republicans or Democrats but as followers of Christ," Scarborough said. "We try to get Christians to vote their biblical values."

Kline faces former prosecutor Steve Howe in the Republican primary. The winner will face Democrat Rick Guinn in November.

FEMA gets mixed marks in state

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

The head of the Kansas National Guard told Senate lawmakers Thursday that he is pleased with the federal response since a tornado demolished most of Greensburg last year, but he also said there is room for improvement.

Maj. Gen. Tod Bunting praised Federal Emergency Management Agency officials for moving quickly to build temporary shelters, install communications systems and help remove tons of debris.

But Bunting said there has been some confusion and inconsistency in how the agency processes disaster payments. That has caused a delay in starting some reconstruction projects, such as work on the new county courthouse.

He blamed the problem on excessive staff turnover in FEMA's Public Assistance program.

"I think things have gotten better, but there still is a challenge of lengthy debates about who's going to pay for what," Bunting told the Senate Homeland Security subcommittee on disaster recovery. "As such, the net result is work doesn't get done."

McCain stumps in Kansas City

DAVE HELLING AND SCOTT CANON — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 03:01 CDT

Sen. John McCain on Thursday renewed his call for a brief gas tax holiday -- and quickly ran into a political fender-bender with his new Missouri campaign chairman, Sen. Kit Bond.

The Republican told an estimated 1,200 people at Union Station that suspending the federal tax on gasoline and diesel fuel would help put millions of dollars into the hands of businesses and lower-income Americans.

Such a holiday, he later told the Kansas City Star, could be justified by cutting wasteful spending: "The most pork-barrel-laden aspect of everything we do are the highway bills."

One of the most vocal supporters of past highway bills? Bond, appointed this week as McCain's state chair.

"Sen. Bond and I have strong disagreement -- have strong disagreement on pork-barrel spending," McCain said. "We have fought on the floor of the Senate, and I think the American people are fed up with earmark, pork-barrel spending, which has caused corruption."

Obesity up in U.S. and Kansas

KAREN SHIDELER — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 03:08 CDT

More than one-fourth of all Americans are obese, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday, a number that has grown by almost 2 percentage points since 2005.

In only one state -- Colorado -- are fewer than 20 percent of the residents obese. The rate is above 30 percent in three states: Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee.

In Kansas, 27.7 percent of residents were obese in 2007, up from 25.9 percent in 2006.

The numbers come from the 2007 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey. Researchers calculated body mass index, or BMI, based on weights and heights reported by survey respondents.

Having a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is considered optimal, 25 to 29.9 is overweight and 30 or greater is obese. A 5-foot-7 man or woman would be overweight at 159 pounds and obese at 191 pounds.

Iraq-born soldier sues for citizenship

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 01:40 CDT

An Iraq-born U.S. soldier who applied for U.S. citizenship more than a year ago has filed suit, claiming federal officials ignored their own deadlines for processing citizenship applications.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed the lawsuit Tuesday in the U.S. District Court of Kansas on behalf of Army Spc. Julian Polous Al Matchy, who it says is a member of the 1st Brigade's Military Transition Team at Fort Riley.

Named as defendants are Attorney General Michael Mukasey; the heads of the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; and a district director for the Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Spokespeople for most of the agencies didn't immediately return phone calls for comment. Kevin Steck, spokesman for the FBI's Kansas City office, said he couldn't comment as it involved pending litigation.

The suit said Polous Al Matchy immigrated in 2001 and received permanent legal resident status in 2005. He joined the Army in March 2006 and was sent to Iraq as an interpreter.

Addison, Aiden top baby names

JEANNINE KORANDA — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 01:40 CDT

Never mind Dick and Jane. Future students are more likely to answer to Aiden, Kaden, Addison or Emma, judging by the state's most popular baby names.

The list of the top 25 names for boys and girls, released Wednesday by the state Department of Health and Environment, showed Aiden as the top boy's name and Addison the most common girl's name.

The annual list is developed from birth certificate information that the Center for Health and Environmental Statistics' Office of Vital Statistics keeps on file.

The list counts names with the same pronunciation, even if there are several different spellings. The ninth most popular girl's name -- Kaylee -- had 31 spellings, for example, while Kaden showed up with 28 variations.

Legislators to study gas prices

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 01:40 CDT

Legislators aren't sure how much -- if anything -- they can do about high gasoline prices, but a committee will study the issue later this year to make sure they aren't missing something.

Legislative leaders have assigned the topic to the Special Committee on Energy and Environmental Policy. The committee hasn't set its first meeting, but its review and any recommendations would come before the legislative session starts in January.

"We wanted to make sure that there's not some barrier that we've got that we've set up artificially that's hampering prices in Kansas," Senate President Steve Morris, R-Hugoton, said Wednesday.

Rep. Joe Patton, R-Topeka, requested such a study. He said that with gasoline prices hovering around $4 a gallon, he's receiving plenty of questions from constituents as he campaigns for re-election. He said he sees a duty to respond.

"I'm going door to door; they're saying, 'What about these gas prices?' " he said. "I don't know, quite frankly, whether Kansas public policy is influencing gas prices or not."

Coal firm wants ruling from Supreme Court

DAVID KLEPPER — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

Since state lawmakers couldn't help, a western Kansas utility has taken its fight to build two new coal plants to the courts.

Sunflower Electric Power Corp. hopes the Kansas Supreme Court will overturn a state regulator's rejection of its project. But that may be too late to head off another fight in the Legislature next year.

A judge in Finney County dismissed two of Sunflower's lawsuits Tuesday, saying he didn't have jurisdiction. State law says that when an environmental permit is denied by the state, the appeal should start in a higher court.

"That issue is decidedly within the hands of the Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court," said District Judge Philip Vieux, according to a transcript of the hearing.

Last fall, state Health and Environment Secretary Rod Bremby blocked Sunflower's proposal to build two 700-megawatt plants near Holcomb. Bremby cited the plants' carbon emissions and their impact on global climate change.

KU wins lawsuit over T-shirt sales

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

A federal jury ruled Monday that a Lawrence clothing store must pay the University of Kansas $127,000 for trademark infringement for selling unlicensed Jayhawk-related merchandise.

After two days of deliberations, the eight-person jury ruled that Larry Sinks, owner of Joe-College.com, had infringed on the university's trademark by selling unlicensed T-shirts online and through his store.

"We agree with the jury that all three defendants willfully infringed on and diluted our marks," Kansas athletic director Lew Perkins said in a statement. "This is an important victory for the University of Kansas, its reputation and its students, who receive approximately $1 million annually in scholarships from trademark revenue."

The award, though, was well below the $500,000 the school had sought. The jury also ruled that about 75 percent of the 206 shirts Joe-College.com sold did not violate any trademark.

An attorney for Joe-College.com said the store will remain in business, though the judge said she would enter an injunction prohibiting the further sale of the infringing shirts.

Dad spreading word on lightning

STAN FINGER — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:23 CDT

Nathan Sullivan had recently bought himself a car, he was blossoming in his new job, and he'd just gotten a raise.

Just before the 20-year-old from Raymore, Mo., left for a Memorial Day weekend camping trip to Pomona Lake State Park south of Topeka, "he told his grandmother and a friend that he was the happiest he had ever been," said his father, Troy Sullivan.

Perhaps it was fitting, he added, that his son died with a smile on his face.

Nathan was struck and killed by lightning as he stood beneath a tree outside his tent at about 3 a.m. on May 24. Nathan was smiling when his body was found later that day, and his father suspects the grin sprouted because Nathan felt the hair standing up on the back of his neck -- not realizing it was a sign that a lightning strike was imminent.

Nathan is one of 16 people killed by lightning around the nation so far this year, and Troy Sullivan wants others to learn lessons from his son's death.

Mo. troopers get immigration training

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

Ten state troopers completed special immigration training Friday, allowing the officers to start enforcing federal immigration laws in Missouri.

Six troopers -- two each from Kansas City, Springfield and St. Louis -- will be used to speed up processing after traffic stops, and the other four will be assigned to casinos in Kansas City and St. Louis. Their training at a federal police training center in Charleston, S.C., began last month.

Even without immigration training, Missouri police can use a federal database maintained in Vermont to check the immigration status of a stopped motorist. But that means waiting for federal immigration authorities to take custody of an illegal immigrant and begin the deportation procedures.

Now, a state trooper will be able to contact one of the specially trained officers to take custody of an illegal immigrant and start paperwork to begin deportation procedures.

State immigration legislation passed this year and signed by Gov. Matt Blunt requires the Missouri State Highway Patrol to seek the federal immigration training whenever there is enough money to pay for it. Federal immigration authorities pay for only the training sessions, with the state responsible for everything else, such as the officers' salaries and travel expenses.

Holcomb man wants to build Clutter memorial

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

A man with a connection to the 1959 slayings of the Clutter family is working to erect a memorial in time for the crime's 50th anniversary.

Bob Rupp has approached the Holcomb City Council, saying he has been contacted by people from all over the world asking about a memorial for the Clutters, the murdered family of four at the center of Truman Capote's book "In Cold Blood."

"There is no memorial," Rupp said. "That's what I tell them."

Aside from the former Clutter house, the only marker is the family's graves at Valley View Cemetery.

Rupp wants to change that and asked the City Council last week for its thoughts on erecting a memorial to honor the family. Rupp said the memorial could serve tourists and provide information to those interested in the story.

Two world records set with pennies

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

Fort Scott has added its name to the Guinness Book of World Records twice, breaking marks for laying the longest line of pennies and laying a mile of pennies faster than anyone else.

The second record -- laying 40 miles of pennies, eclipsing the old mark of 34.57 miles -- was achieved at 7:40 p.m. Friday, three days after the first coin was laid on the ground Tuesday evening.

"They set the record for the longest line of coins and the whole community came together," said Kaoru Ishikawa, Guinness record manager. "It's been quite a moving time."

On Thursday night, volunteers and members of the Fort Scott Youth Activities Team put down a mile of pennies in a time of 2:23.01 -- just 74 seconds faster than the previous record of 2:24.15 set in February by teachers and pupils in Rickmansworth, United Kingdom, Ishikawa said.

On Friday, hundreds of volunteers from 32 community groups completed the longest line of pennies to beat the old record by more than five miles. The previous record had been set on Aug. 6, 1995, in Malaysia.

Legislature cuts its own spending

JEANNINE KORANDA — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

TOPEKA _ Legislative leaders responded to declining state revenue by cutting the Legislature's current budget by 2 percent.

The move, announced Friday by the Legislative Coordinating Council, will save about $600,000, said House Speaker Rep. Melvin Neufeld, R-Ingalls, who chairs the council.

"In spite of the Legislature's hard work to limit new spending, recent revenue reports show bigger decreases than expected and we need to do more to keep our state's budget in line," he said.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius told state agencies to find 1 to 2 percent cuts in their budgets.

Specific cuts have not been announced.

Slattery earnings, income made public

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

Democratic candidate Jim Slattery would see a dramatic cut in his salary if he's elected to the U.S. Senate this fall.

The former congressman from Topeka earned $585,000 last year working for a major Washington law firm. That's more than three times what he would earn if he unseats incumbent Republican Sen. Pat Roberts.

The information comes from a personal financial disclosure form filed with the Senate this week. The form offers a peek into the wealth Slattery has acquired as a lawyer and lobbyist since leaving the U.S. House in 1996, an issue Roberts has raised in negative ads during the campaign.

In all, Slattery disclosed assets worth at least $4.2 million and as much as $9.4 million. The forms report assets and liabilities in broad ranges that make it impossible to determine exactly how much a candidate is worth.

Most of those assets are in mutual funds and retirement accounts. He also owns an office building in Topeka worth between $500,000 and $1 million, a farm in Atchison worth between $250,000 and $500,000 and two townhouses in Topeka worth $100,000 to $250,000.

Michelle Obama hosts event in KC

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 01:39 CDT

Sheila Johnson is the single mother of two with one grandchild. She's also caring for an aging mother and trying to pay off more than $100,000 in student loans.

While her job as a sales executive pays around $75,000, the increasing cost of gasoline, food and other daily expenses has curtailed her ability to save money, and she is afraid things may get worse.

"I have never, ever experienced the crunch I'm feeling now," the 40-year-old Johnson told Michelle Obama during a roundtable discussion of women's issues Thursday at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. "And I cannot imagine families who have not been as blessed as I am. How are they surviving, how are they able to make it from one day to the next?"

The roundtable discussion was one of a series of such gatherings Obama is holding to listen to women's concerns and promote the presidential campaign of her husband, Democrat Barack Obama.

The five women chosen to talk to Obama were from varying economic situations, but they all discussed how difficult the current economy has made it to pay bills and provide good lives for their children.