KANSAS CITY—Authorities are investigating the cause of a fire at a hotel in Kansas City.

Just after 4p.m. Thursday, crews responded to a reported fire at the 4-story Days Inn hotel in the 8600 block of Hillcrest, according to Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins.

 On arrival crews reported fire showing from a second-floor room.&nbsp; Searches of the structure came back all clear. Fire had extended from the interior of the second-floor room to the exterior but was contained to the exterior.

EMS transported one occupant for evaluation due to smoke inhalation. No other injuries were reported.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1728007390438.png" alt="Photo courtesy KMBC TV" />
 <figcaption>Photo courtesy KMBC TV</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY—Authorities are investigating the cause of a fire at a hotel in Kansas City.Just after 4p.m. Thursday, crews responded to a reported fire at the 4-story Days Inn hotel in the 8600 block of Hillcrest, according to Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins. On arrival crews reported fire showing from a second-floor room.&nbsp; Searches of the structure came back all clear. Fire had extended from the interior of the second-floor room to the exterior but was contained to the exterior.EMS transported one occupant for evaluation due to smoke inhalation. No other injuries were reported.

One hospitalized after fire at hotel in Kansas City

KANSAS CITY– Two Kansas City men were sentenced in federal court Wednesday for their roles in the thefts of more than 100 firearms from numerous vehicles in the Westport entertainment district and elsewhere in the metropolitan area, which were later sold on social media accounts, according to the United State's Attorney.

Rayquan Duane Pettaway, 25, and Roy Rushing, 27, were sentenced in separate appearances before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays. Pettaway was sentenced to 11 years and eight months in federal prison without parole; the court ordered the federal sentence be served consecutively to Pettaway’s sentence in two unrelated cases in Cass County, Mo., and Harris County, Texas. Rushing was sentenced to nine years and two months in federal prison without parole; the court ordered the federal sentence be served consecutively to Rushing’s sentence in two unrelated cases in Jackson County, Mo., and Cass County. The court also ordered Pettaway and Rushing to pay $1,500 in restitution, for which all of the defendants in this case are jointly and severally liable.

On Oct. 26, 2023, Pettaway pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy to receive, possess, and dispose of stolen firearms and to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Pettaway admitted that he participated in a conspiracy to break into vehicles and steal firearms and other items. Conspirators used social media to advertise the stolen firearms for sale, which included sales to individuals who were prohibited by law from possessing firearms. According to court documents, Pettaway and his co-conspirators stole more than 100 firearms obtained from vehicle break-ins from June 18 to Nov. 19, 2021.

Pettaway also admitted that he was in possession of a Glock 9mm handgun and a Glock .40-caliber handgun when he was arrested on July 11, 2021.

Police patrol cars converged on a location in the Westport entertainment district when officers saw Pettaway and co-defendant Drevion Hooker, 22, of Kansas City, Mo., acting suspiciously. Hooker attempted to flee on foot but was detained. Pettaway fled in a silver Chevrolet Impala at a high rate of speed. Investigators attempted to follow and eventually located the Impala south of 39th Street and Central Street. Pettaway fled from the vehicle — which had sustained damage — and was apprehended. Officers found the Glock 9mm handgun on the floorboard of the driver’s seat and the Glock .40-caliber handgun in the front passenger’s seat of the vehicle.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Pettaway has a felony conviction for felony assault and unlawful use of a weapon.

On July 26, 2023, Rushing pleaded guilty to possessing stolen firearms. Rushing admitted he was in possession of a Radical Firearms AR-type rifle, a Glock .40-caliber handgun, and a Glock .45-caliber handgun, all of which had been reported as stolen, on Nov. 4, 2021. Federal agents found seven firearms, including the three stolen firearms, when they executed a search warrant at Rushing’s residence.

Hooker was sentenced on Sept. 4, 2024, to seven years and one month in federal prison without parole.

Co-defendant Bobby Lamb, 22, was sentenced on July 27, 2024, to 11 years in federal prison without parole after pleading guilty to his role in the conspiracy and to possessing marijuana with the intent to distribute, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, and possessing a stolen firearm.

The final defendant in this case, Treyon Bloodsoe, 22, of Kansas City, Mo., is scheduled to be sentenced on Thursday, Oct. 3. Bloodsoe pleaded guilty on Oct. 26, 2023, to his role in the conspiracy and to possessing a stolen firearm.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719436168113.png" alt="Co-defendant Bobby Lamb, 22, was sentenced on July 27." />
 <figcaption>Co-defendant Bobby Lamb, 22, was sentenced on July 27.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY– Two Kansas City men were sentenced in federal court Wednesday for their roles in the thefts of more than 100 firearms from numerous vehicles in the Westport entertainment district and elsewhere in the metropolitan area, which were later sold on social media accounts, according to the United State's Attorney.Rayquan Duane Pettaway, 25, and Roy Rushing, 27, were sentenced in separate appearances before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays. Pettaway was sentenced to 11 years and eight months in federal prison without parole; the court ordered the federal sentence be served consecutively to Pettaway’s sentence in two unrelated cases in Cass County, Mo., and Harris County, Texas. Rushing was sentenced to nine years and two months in federal prison without parole; the court ordered the federal sentence be served consecutively to Rushing’s sentence in two unrelated cases in Jackson County, Mo., and Cass County. The court also ordered Pettaway and Rushing to pay $1,500 in restitution, for which all of the defendants in this case are jointly and severally liable.On Oct. 26, 2023, Pettaway pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy to receive, possess, and dispose of stolen firearms and to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.Pettaway admitted that he participated in a conspiracy to break into vehicles and steal firearms and other items. Conspirators used social media to advertise the stolen firearms for sale, which included sales to individuals who were prohibited by law from possessing firearms. According to court documents, Pettaway and his co-conspirators stole more than 100 firearms obtained from vehicle break-ins from June 18 to Nov. 19, 2021.Pettaway also admitted that he was in possession of a Glock 9mm handgun and a Glock .40-caliber handgun when he was arrested on July 11, 2021.Police patrol cars converged on a location in the Westport entertainment district when officers saw Pettaway and co-defendant Drevion Hooker, 22, of Kansas City, Mo., acting suspiciously. Hooker attempted to flee on foot but was detained. Pettaway fled in a silver Chevrolet Impala at a high rate of speed. Investigators attempted to follow and eventually located the Impala south of 39th Street and Central Street. Pettaway fled from the vehicle — which had sustained damage — and was apprehended. Officers found the Glock 9mm handgun on the floorboard of the driver’s seat and the Glock .40-caliber handgun in the front passenger’s seat of the vehicle.Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Pettaway has a felony conviction for felony assault and unlawful use of a weapon.On July 26, 2023, Rushing pleaded guilty to possessing stolen firearms. Rushing admitted he was in possession of a Radical Firearms AR-type rifle, a Glock .40-caliber handgun, and a Glock .45-caliber handgun, all of which had been reported as stolen, on Nov. 4, 2021. Federal agents found seven firearms, including the three stolen firearms, when they executed a search warrant at Rushing’s residence.Hooker was sentenced on Sept. 4, 2024, to seven years and one month in federal prison without parole.Co-defendant Bobby Lamb, 22, was sentenced on July 27, 2024, to 11 years in federal prison without parole after pleading guilty to his role in the conspiracy and to possessing marijuana with the intent to distribute, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, and possessing a stolen firearm.The final defendant in this case, Treyon Bloodsoe, 22, of Kansas City, Mo., is scheduled to be sentenced on Thursday, Oct. 3. Bloodsoe pleaded guilty on Oct. 26, 2023, to his role in the conspiracy and to possessing a stolen firearm.

2 more sentenced for 100 guns stolen in KC and sold on social media

HOUSTON — The union representing striking U.S. dockworkers has reached a deal to suspend their strike until Jan. 15 to provide time to negotiate a new contract.

Workers were expected to return to work Friday.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727996714529.png" alt="Photo courtesy ILA" />
 <figcaption>Photo courtesy ILA</figcaption>
 </figure>HOUSTON — The union representing striking U.S. dockworkers has reached a deal to suspend their strike until Jan. 15 to provide time to negotiate a new contract.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FILAUnion%2Fposts%2Fpfbid09yphJDe2LCn4Be71qibtsJ6cmiaZP8rp9WW613EZHTCKFLSASZW1SnsvDiyQLUF8l&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="512" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div>Workers were expected to return to work Friday.

Port strike ends: Workers agree to tentative deal on wages, contract extension

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement are investigating another homicide in Kansas City and asking for help to locate a suspect vehicle.

Just before 10:30a.m. Thursday police responded to a shooting near East 55th Street and College Avenue, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.

When officers arrived to the area, they located a man in the middle of the street suffering from apparent gunshot trauma and unresponsive. EMS responded and declared the victim deceased on scene, according to KCPD Officer&nbsp;Alayna Gonzalez.

Investigators believed the victim and a suspect were involved in a verbal altercation that escalated to shots being fired and the victim was struck. Detectives are requesting assistance locating the suspect described as an adult black male, wearing all dark clothing, and occupying a burgundy over tan mid-2000s Ford F-150 pickup truck. The suspect left the area in an unknown direction in the pickup.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727981132348.png" alt="Police on the scene of the investigation photo Sheriff Daryl Forte" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the investigation photo Sheriff Daryl Forte</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement are investigating another homicide in Kansas City and asking for help to locate a suspect vehicle.Just before 10:30a.m. Thursday police responded to a shooting near East 55th Street and College Avenue, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727984542912.png" alt="-Burgundy over tan Ford F150 4-door Lic# 8FHB06 (MO). The vehicle was stolen with the bed cover rolled up and the tailgate down." />
 <figcaption>-Burgundy over tan Ford F150 4-door Lic# 8FHB06 (MO). The vehicle was stolen with the bed cover rolled up and the tailgate down.</figcaption>
 </figure>When officers arrived to the area, they located a man in the middle of the street suffering from apparent gunshot trauma and unresponsive. EMS responded and declared the victim deceased on scene, according to KCPD Officer&nbsp;Alayna Gonzalez.Investigators believed the victim and a suspect were involved in a verbal altercation that escalated to shots being fired and the victim was struck. Detectives are requesting assistance locating the suspect described as an adult black male, wearing all dark clothing, and occupying a burgundy over tan mid-2000s Ford F-150 pickup truck. The suspect left the area in an unknown direction in the pickup.This being investigated as a homicide.

KCPD asking for help to locate pickup, suspect in deadly shooting

RILEY COUNTY —The family of a woman injured&nbsp; in an&nbsp;incident that occurred near the Aggieville district in the early morning hours of Friday, August 30, are offering an additional $10,000 reward for information in the case, according to the Riley County Police Department.

The initial report received by police indicated the young woman identified as 22-year-old Kenna Hibbs, was found in the 800 block of Laramie Street after walking home from a local establishment.

&nbsp;Police are reviewing surveillance footage from Aggieville and surrounding areas and are following up on any leads to determine the cause of her injuries. Police encourage anyone who may have witnessed this incident or has any information to come forward and assist with the investigation. 

Tips may be called in directly to RCPD using 785-537-2112 or you can always contact Crime Stoppers at 785-539-7777 or toll-free at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Using Crime Stoppers allows you to remain anonymous.

In a media release on September 3, police said,&nbsp;"We understand the concerns that have been raised on social media regarding the safety of our community. It is important to note that based on the information available at this time, there is no evidence to suggest there is an ongoing threat to the public."&nbsp;

"While we take all reports seriously, it is critical to rely on verified information rather than speculation."&nbsp;

"At this time, we want to clarify that this incident is under investigation and we are working diligently to gather all relevant information."

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727977325305.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>RILEY COUNTY —The family of a woman injured&nbsp; in an&nbsp;incident that occurred near the Aggieville district in the early morning hours of Friday, August 30, are offering an additional $10,000 reward for information in the case, according to the Riley County Police Department.The initial report received by police indicated the young woman identified as 22-year-old Kenna Hibbs, was found in the 800 block of Laramie Street after walking home from a local establishment.&nbsp;Police are reviewing surveillance footage from Aggieville and surrounding areas and are following up on any leads to determine the cause of her injuries. Police encourage anyone who may have witnessed this incident or has any information to come forward and assist with the investigation. Tips may be called in directly to RCPD using 785-537-2112 or you can always contact Crime Stoppers at 785-539-7777 or toll-free at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Using Crime Stoppers allows you to remain anonymous.In a media release on September 3, police said,&nbsp;"We understand the concerns that have been raised on social media regarding the safety of our community. It is important to note that based on the information available at this time, there is no evidence to suggest there is an ongoing threat to the public."&nbsp;"While we take all reports seriously, it is critical to rely on verified information rather than speculation."&nbsp;"At this time, we want to clarify that this incident is under investigation and we are working diligently to gather all relevant information."

Family of woman injured in Manhattan offers reward for information

By ALLISON KITE <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

Customers of Kansas’ largest natural gas utilities will see their bills rise slightly next month after regulators approved a rate increase Thursday.&nbsp;

<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/tag/kansas-gas-service/">Kansas Gas Service</a>, which serves almost 650,000 residential customers, filed a request with the Kansas Corporation Commission this spring to increase rates. The requested rate increase would have boosted the utility’s revenue by $58.1 million annually.

But following negotiations with consumer advocates and staff of the KCC, which regulates monopoly utilities,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/briefs/kansas-gas-service-agrees-to-smaller-rate-hike-for-customers/#:~:text=By%3A%20Allison%20Kite%20%2D%20August%208%2C%202024%2012%3A12%20pm&amp;text=Kansas%20Gas%20Service%20agreed%20to,by%20the%20Kansas%20Corporation%20Commission.">Kansas Gas Service agreed to a $35 million increase</a>. For the average customer, that means monthly bills will increase by $3.83.&nbsp;

The three-member Kansas Corporation Commission approved the negotiated rate increase Thursday with little discussion. It takes effect Nov. 1.&nbsp;

Kansas Gas Services’ original request would have pushed bills even higher and created a tiered rate system, imposing a larger percentage increase on customers who use less gas. Customers with lower usage would have seen a 10.41% hike, or average $6.71 per month. Larger customers’ rates would have increased by 8.25%, resulting in an increase of $9.48 on their bills.

At a&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2024/06/14/theres-too-much-profit-customers-decry-proposed-natural-gas-rate-increase/">public hearing on the requested rate increase in June</a>, customers decried the requested rate increase as unnecessary and unconscionable.&nbsp;

The Citizens’ Utility Ratepayer Board, which advocates for residential and small commercial utility customers, recommended a much smaller increase in rates, to bring in $10.7 million. Staff of the KCC recommended $31.7 million before reaching the $35 million settlement.

Staff of the KCC said in a release that the settlement “strikes the proper balance between KGS’ desire for reasonable assurances that it will meet its financial obligations and the need to keep rates as low as possible for customers while still providing reliable natural gas distribution service.”&nbsp;

In an email, KGS spokeswoman Dawn Trip said the new rates would allow the utility to “recover upfront investments we made to continue providing safe and reliable service Kansans depend on.”

“We recognize that any increase in prices can be challenging for our customers,” Tripp said. “We encourage them to contact us for payment options if they have difficulty paying their natural gas bill.”

Information about financial assistance can be found at&nbsp;<a href="http://kansasgasservice.com/cares" target="_blank">kansasgasservice.com/cares</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727977882596.png" alt="Kansas Gas Service customers will see an increase in their bills next month under a negotiated increase approved by the Kansas Corporation Commission. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Kansas Gas Service customers will see an increase in their bills next month under a negotiated increase approved by the Kansas Corporation Commission. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>By ALLISON KITE <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>Customers of Kansas’ largest natural gas utilities will see their bills rise slightly next month after regulators approved a rate increase Thursday.&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/tag/kansas-gas-service/">Kansas Gas Service</a>, which serves almost 650,000 residential customers, filed a request with the Kansas Corporation Commission this spring to increase rates. The requested rate increase would have boosted the utility’s revenue by $58.1 million annually.But following negotiations with consumer advocates and staff of the KCC, which regulates monopoly utilities,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/briefs/kansas-gas-service-agrees-to-smaller-rate-hike-for-customers/#:~:text=By%3A%20Allison%20Kite%20%2D%20August%208%2C%202024%2012%3A12%20pm&amp;text=Kansas%20Gas%20Service%20agreed%20to,by%20the%20Kansas%20Corporation%20Commission.">Kansas Gas Service agreed to a $35 million increase</a>. For the average customer, that means monthly bills will increase by $3.83.&nbsp;The three-member Kansas Corporation Commission approved the negotiated rate increase Thursday with little discussion. It takes effect Nov. 1.&nbsp;Kansas Gas Services’ original request would have pushed bills even higher and created a tiered rate system, imposing a larger percentage increase on customers who use less gas. Customers with lower usage would have seen a 10.41% hike, or average $6.71 per month. Larger customers’ rates would have increased by 8.25%, resulting in an increase of $9.48 on their bills.At a&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2024/06/14/theres-too-much-profit-customers-decry-proposed-natural-gas-rate-increase/">public hearing on the requested rate increase in June</a>, customers decried the requested rate increase as unnecessary and unconscionable.&nbsp;The Citizens’ Utility Ratepayer Board, which advocates for residential and small commercial utility customers, recommended a much smaller increase in rates, to bring in $10.7 million. Staff of the KCC recommended $31.7 million before reaching the $35 million settlement.Staff of the KCC said in a release that the settlement “strikes the proper balance between KGS’ desire for reasonable assurances that it will meet its financial obligations and the need to keep rates as low as possible for customers while still providing reliable natural gas distribution service.”&nbsp;In an email, KGS spokeswoman Dawn Trip said the new rates would allow the utility to “recover upfront investments we made to continue providing safe and reliable service Kansans depend on.”“We recognize that any increase in prices can be challenging for our customers,” Tripp said. “We encourage them to contact us for payment options if they have difficulty paying their natural gas bill.”Information about financial assistance can be found at&nbsp;<a href="http://kansasgasservice.com/cares" target="_blank">kansasgasservice.com/cares</a>.

Regulators approve rate increase for Kansas Gas Service customers

KANSAS CITY—A Kansas City man has been charged in federal court with making a hoax telephone call that led to an IRS employee being detained and the IRS office on Pershing Road being locked down.

Anthony M. Alford, 46, was charged in a criminal complaint that was filed under seal in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., on Friday, Sept. 27. The complaint was unsealed and made public today following Alford’s arrest and initial court appearance. Alford remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing on Friday, Oct. 4.

The federal criminal complaint alleges that Alford placed a hoax telephone call to emergency services, falsely claiming that an individual was armed with a firearm and was threatening to shoot people in an IRS building.

According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Alford called 911 on Sept. 10, 2024, and reported that a person identified in court documents as “Victim One” had a gun and was threatening to shoot up the Internal Revenue Service building at 333 W. Pershing Road in Kansas City, Mo. Victim One is an employee of the IRS.

Kansas City police officers were dispatched to the building, where they contacted IRS security and Federal Protective Service officers. Victim One had been detained and searched for weapons based on the 911 call. Following the 911 call, the B-Wing of the IRS building was locked down. The IRS announced that there was an active shooter in the building and told those in the B-Wing to stay locked down.

Victim One was unarmed. Victim One told investigators she had been dating Alford for about a month and was trying to break up with him. Alford had never been violent, she said, but had exhibited controlling, possessive, and jealous behavior. Alford had repeatedly called and messaged her the previous night, she said, and earlier that morning sent her messages threatening to involve the police.

Investigators interviewed Alford afterward, according to the affidavit, and he told them Victim One did not threaten to shoot up the IRS Building, as he had said in the 911 call. Alford stated his intention when he called 911 was to instigate trouble for Victim One at work.

KANSAS CITY—A Kansas City man has been charged in federal court with making a hoax telephone call that led to an IRS employee being detained and the IRS office on Pershing Road being locked down.Anthony M. Alford, 46, was charged in a criminal complaint that was filed under seal in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., on Friday, Sept. 27. The complaint was unsealed and made public today following Alford’s arrest and initial court appearance. Alford remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing on Friday, Oct. 4.The federal criminal complaint alleges that Alford placed a hoax telephone call to emergency services, falsely claiming that an individual was armed with a firearm and was threatening to shoot people in an IRS building.According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Alford called 911 on Sept. 10, 2024, and reported that a person identified in court documents as “Victim One” had a gun and was threatening to shoot up the Internal Revenue Service building at 333 W. Pershing Road in Kansas City, Mo. Victim One is an employee of the IRS.Kansas City police officers were dispatched to the building, where they contacted IRS security and Federal Protective Service officers. Victim One had been detained and searched for weapons based on the 911 call. Following the 911 call, the B-Wing of the IRS building was locked down. The IRS announced that there was an active shooter in the building and told those in the B-Wing to stay locked down.Victim One was unarmed. Victim One told investigators she had been dating Alford for about a month and was trying to break up with him. Alford had never been violent, she said, but had exhibited controlling, possessive, and jealous behavior. Alford had repeatedly called and messaged her the previous night, she said, and earlier that morning sent her messages threatening to involve the police.Investigators interviewed Alford afterward, according to the affidavit, and he told them Victim One did not threaten to shoot up the IRS Building, as he had said in the 911 call. Alford stated his intention when he called 911 was to instigate trouble for Victim One at work.

Hoax 911 call in KC targeted IRS employee, led to lockdown

RILEY COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating a scam that cost a woman hundreds of dollars.

Just before 11:30a.m. Wednesday, officers filed a report of theft in the 3400 block of Chimney Rock Road, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.

A 27-year-old woman reported an unknown suspect sent emails and text messages posing as the victim's boss asking her to purchase gift cards and send pictures of the gift cards. 

Total loss associated with this report is $1,200. &nbsp;

Anyone with information can contact&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rileycountypolice.org/287/Crime-Stoppers">Crime Stoppers</a>. Using Crime Stoppers allows you to remain anonymous and could qualify you for a cash reward of up to $1,000.

RILEY COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating a scam that cost a woman hundreds of dollars.Just before 11:30a.m. Wednesday, officers filed a report of theft in the 3400 block of Chimney Rock Road, according to the Riley County Police Department activity report.A 27-year-old woman reported an unknown suspect sent emails and text messages posing as the victim's boss asking her to purchase gift cards and send pictures of the gift cards. Total loss associated with this report is $1,200. &nbsp;Anyone with information can contact&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rileycountypolice.org/287/Crime-Stoppers">Crime Stoppers</a>. Using Crime Stoppers allows you to remain anonymous and could qualify you for a cash reward of up to $1,000.

Police: Woman lost $1,200 in email, text message scam

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/ashley-murray/">ASHLEY MURRAY</a>&nbsp;AND&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/jennifer-shutt/">JENNIFER SHUTT</a>

WASHINGTON — U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan unsealed a lengthy and partly redacted motion Wednesday that charts special counsel Jack Smith’s final argument before November that former President Donald Trump acted in a private capacity when he co-conspired to overturn the 2020 election.

<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25182568-usa-v-trump-unsealed-govt-immunity-motion-1022024">Click here to read the new</a>&nbsp;motion ref. presidential immunity

Much of the motion concerns Trump’s interactions with individuals in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, as he sought to disrupt election results, Smith alleged.

The document, due on Chutkan’s desk late last month, is central to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trumps-jan-6-case-extend-beyond-election-day-under-timeline-laid-out-judge%C2%A0-2" target="_blank">reanimating the case</a>&nbsp;after months of delay as Trump argued for complete criminal immunity from the government’s fraud and obstruction charges related to his actions after the 2020 presidential contest, which Joe Biden won.

The U.S. Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/presidential-immunity-covers-some-official-acts-supreme-court-rules-trump-case" target="_blank">returned</a>&nbsp;Trump’s case to Chutkan after ruling that former presidents enjoy criminal immunity for core constitutional acts, presumed immunity for acts on the perimeter of official duties, and no immunity for personal ones. At that point it became clear that the case against the Republican presidential nominee would not be tried prior to Election Day.

Smith’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/special-counsel-smith-files-new-indictment-trumps-jan-6-case" target="_blank">superseding indictment</a>&nbsp;shortly thereafter retained all four felony counts against Trump, and Chutkan is tasked with parsing which allegations can stand in light of the Supreme Court decision.

In his unsealed 165-page&nbsp;<a href="https://documentcloud.org/documents/25182600-smithfiling" target="_blank">motion</a>, Smith outlines Trump’s alleged plots with private lawyers and political allies — names redacted — to ultimately deliver false slates of electors to Congress so that he appeared the winner over Biden in the seven states.

“Working with a team of private co-conspirators, the defendant acted as a candidate when he pursued multiple criminal means to disrupt, through fraud and deceit, the government function by which votes are collected and counted — a function in which the defendant, as President, had no official role,” Smith wrote.

Trump slammed the court filing on social media in numerous posts, writing in a mix of upper and lowercase letters that “Democrats are Weaponizing the Justice Department against me because they know I am WINNING, and they are desperate to prop up their failing Candidate, Kamala Harris.”

“The DOJ pushed out this latest ‘hit job’ today because JD Vance humiliated Tim Walz last night in the Debate. The DOJ has become nothing more than an extension of Joe’s, and now Kamala’s, Campaign. This is egregious PROSECUTORIAL MISCONDUCT, and should not have been released right before the Election,” he continued in just one of his many reactions on his platform, Truth Social.

Trump’s running mate, Ohio GOP Sen. J.D. Vance,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/tim-walz-and-jd-vance-tangle-wonky-largely-cordial-vice-presidential-debate-5" target="_blank">faced</a>&nbsp;Harris’ running mate, Tim Walz, in a vice presidential debate on Tuesday night.

Here are key arguments from Smith’s filing, which alleges efforts by Trump and allies to subvert voters’ will during the last presidential election:

Smith detailed calls to and communications with various Arizona officials, including the governor and speaker of the Arizona state House, arguing the interactions were made in Trump’s “capacity as a candidate.”

Smith plans to introduce into evidence Trump’s communications, in his personal capacity, with Georgia’s attorney general, including a call on Dec. 8, 2020, and to the secretary of state.

The document details an Oval Office meeting Trump held with Michigan’s Senate majority leader and speaker of the House on Nov. 20, 2020, during which Trump tried to acquire evidence of voter fraud in Detroit.

The filing said that directly following the 2020 election, Trump and his “private operatives sought to create chaos, rather than seek clarity, at polling places where states were continuing to tabulate votes.”

Smith will argue that Trump, outside his official presidential duties, tried to persuade political allies in Michigan to sway the election in his favor.

In Nevada, Trump allegedly ignored warnings about spreading lies about the state’s election results. Smith wrote: “Notwithstanding the RNC Chief Counsel’s warning, the defendant re-tweeted and amplified news of the lawsuit on November 24, calling it ‘Big News!’ that a Nevada Court had agreed to hear it. But the defendant did not similarly promote the fact that within two weeks, on December 4, the Nevada District Court dismissed Law v. Whitmer, finding in a detailed opinion that ‘there is no credible or reliable evidence that the 2020 General Election in Nevada was affected by fraud,’ including through the signature-match machines, and that Biden won the election in the state.”

In the Keystone State, officials warned Trump there was no smoke and no fire related to election fraud in the commonwealth, Smith wrote.

Smith wrote Trump ignored reality in Wisconsin as well.

Trump responded by rebuking the Wisconsin Supreme Court judge who had signed the majority opinion that rejected the lawsuit, forcing the state marshals responsible for the judge’s security to enhance protection due to a rise in “threatening communications.”

Smith alleged that as Trump and co-conspirators faltered at overturning states’ official election results, they turned their attention to fake slates of electors.

As early as December 2020, Trump and his allies “developed a new plan regarding targeted states that the defendant had lost (Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin): to organize the people who would have served as the defendant’s electors had he won the popular vote, and cause them to sign and send to Pence, as President of the Senate, certificates in which they falsely represent themselves as legitimate electors who had cast electoral votes for the defendant,” Smith wrote.

Trump and his allies lied to Vice President Mike Pence heading toward Jan. 6, “telling him that there was substantial election fraud and concealing their orchestration of the plan to manufacture fraudulent elector slates, as well as their intention to use the fake slates to attempt to obstruct the congressional certification.”

Trump’s alleged lies to Pence and the public “created a tinderbox that he purposely ignited on January 6.”

The filing details numerous people, including Trump, pressuring Pence for weeks to use his role overseeing Congress’ certification of the Electoral College vote to overturn the election results.

On the morning of Jan. 6, Pence, once again, told Trump he would not go along with the plan.

“So on January 6, the defendant sent to the Capitol a crowd of angry supporters, whom the defendant had called to the city and inundated with false claims of outcome-determinative election fraud, to induce Pence not to certify the legitimate electoral vote and to obstruct the certification.”

“Although the attack on the Capitol successfully delayed the certification for approximately six hours, the House and Senate resumed the Joint Session at 11:35 p.m. But the conspirators were not done.”

The filing alleges a co-conspirator once again urged Pence to “violate the law” by delaying the certification for 10 days. He refused.

Smith must prove that Trump’s pressure on Pence was outside of their official duties together, and therefore can not be considered immune from prosecution.

Smith plans to introduce evidence of private phone calls and conversations between Trump and his VP, including some with campaign staff, essentially tying their interactions to their interests as those seeking office again, “as running mates in the post-election period.” Smith also plans to highlight that Pence’s role in certifying the election was largely ceremonial and within the realm of the Senate, and strictly outside the bounds of the Oval Office.&nbsp; Among Smith’s points made in his motion:

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/9/1727719069573.png" alt="File photo Former President Trump during a visit to Georgia on Monday-image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>File photo Former President Trump during a visit to Georgia on Monday-image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/ashley-murray/">ASHLEY MURRAY</a>&nbsp;AND&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/jennifer-shutt/">JENNIFER SHUTT</a>WASHINGTON — U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan unsealed a lengthy and partly redacted motion Wednesday that charts special counsel Jack Smith’s final argument before November that former President Donald Trump acted in a private capacity when he co-conspired to overturn the 2020 election.<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25182568-usa-v-trump-unsealed-govt-immunity-motion-1022024">Click here to read the new</a>&nbsp;motion ref. presidential immunityMuch of the motion concerns Trump’s interactions with individuals in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, as he sought to disrupt election results, Smith alleged.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727903830272.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>The document, due on Chutkan’s desk late last month, is central to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trumps-jan-6-case-extend-beyond-election-day-under-timeline-laid-out-judge%C2%A0-2" target="_blank">reanimating the case</a>&nbsp;after months of delay as Trump argued for complete criminal immunity from the government’s fraud and obstruction charges related to his actions after the 2020 presidential contest, which Joe Biden won.The U.S. Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/presidential-immunity-covers-some-official-acts-supreme-court-rules-trump-case" target="_blank">returned</a>&nbsp;Trump’s case to Chutkan after ruling that former presidents enjoy criminal immunity for core constitutional acts, presumed immunity for acts on the perimeter of official duties, and no immunity for personal ones. At that point it became clear that the case against the Republican presidential nominee would not be tried prior to Election Day.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727958885785.png" alt="Trump" />
 <figcaption>Trump</figcaption>
 </figure>Smith’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/special-counsel-smith-files-new-indictment-trumps-jan-6-case" target="_blank">superseding indictment</a>&nbsp;shortly thereafter retained all four felony counts against Trump, and Chutkan is tasked with parsing which allegations can stand in light of the Supreme Court decision.In his unsealed 165-page&nbsp;<a href="https://documentcloud.org/documents/25182600-smithfiling" target="_blank">motion</a>, Smith outlines Trump’s alleged plots with private lawyers and political allies — names redacted — to ultimately deliver false slates of electors to Congress so that he appeared the winner over Biden in the seven states.“Working with a team of private co-conspirators, the defendant acted as a candidate when he pursued multiple criminal means to disrupt, through fraud and deceit, the government function by which votes are collected and counted — a function in which the defendant, as President, had no official role,” Smith wrote.Trump slammed the court filing on social media in numerous posts, writing in a mix of upper and lowercase letters that “Democrats are Weaponizing the Justice Department against me because they know I am WINNING, and they are desperate to prop up their failing Candidate, Kamala Harris.”“The DOJ pushed out this latest ‘hit job’ today because JD Vance humiliated Tim Walz last night in the Debate. The DOJ has become nothing more than an extension of Joe’s, and now Kamala’s, Campaign. This is egregious PROSECUTORIAL MISCONDUCT, and should not have been released right before the Election,” he continued in just one of his many reactions on his platform, Truth Social.Trump’s running mate, Ohio GOP Sen. J.D. Vance,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/tim-walz-and-jd-vance-tangle-wonky-largely-cordial-vice-presidential-debate-5" target="_blank">faced</a>&nbsp;Harris’ running mate, Tim Walz, in a vice presidential debate on Tuesday night.Here are key arguments from Smith’s filing, which alleges efforts by Trump and allies to subvert voters’ will during the last presidential election:<h2>Arizona</h2>Smith detailed calls to and communications with various Arizona officials, including the governor and speaker of the Arizona state House, arguing the interactions were made in Trump’s “capacity as a candidate.”<ul>
 <li>“The defendant and his co-conspirators also demonstrated their deliberate disregard for the truth — and thus their knowledge of falsity — when they repeatedly changed the numbers in their baseless fraud allegations from day to day. At trial, the Government will introduce several instances of this pattern, in which the defendant and conspirators’ lies were proved by the fact that they made up figures from whole cloth. One example concerns the defendant and conspirators’ claims about non-citizen voters in Arizona. The conspirators started with the allegation that 36,000 non-citizens voted in Arizona; five days later, it was ‘beyond credulity that a few hundred thousand didn’t vote’: three weeks later, ‘the bare minimum [was] 40 or 50,000. The reality is about 250,000’; days after that, the assertion was 32,000; and ultimately the conspirators landed back where they started at 36,000 — a false figure that they never verified or corroborated.”</li>
 </ul><h2>Georgia</h2>Smith plans to introduce into evidence Trump’s communications, in his personal capacity, with Georgia’s attorney general, including a call on Dec. 8, 2020, and to the secretary of state.<ul>
 <li>Trump “had early notice that his claims of election fraud in Georgia were false. Around mid-November, Campaign advisor [redacted] told the defendant that his claim that a large number of dead people had voted in Georgia was false. The defendant continued to press the claim anyway, including in a press appearance on November 29, when he suggested that a large enough number of dead voters had cast ballots to change the outcome of the election in Georgia.”</li>
 </ul><ul>
 <li>“In the post-election period, [redacted] also took on the role of updating the defendant on a near-daily basis on the Campaign’s unsuccessful efforts to support any fraud claims…. He told the defendant that if the Campaign took these claims to court, they would get slaughtered, because the claims are all ‘bullshit.’ [Redacted] was privy in real time to the findings of the two expert consulting firms the Campaign retained to investigate fraud claims — [redacted] and [redacted] — and discussed with the defendant their debunkings on all major claims. For example, [redacted] told the defendant that Georgia’s audit disproved claims that [redacted] had altered votes.”</li>
 </ul><h2>Michigan</h2>The document details an Oval Office meeting Trump held with Michigan’s Senate majority leader and speaker of the House on Nov. 20, 2020, during which Trump tried to acquire evidence of voter fraud in Detroit.<ul>
 <li>“Despite failing to establish any valid fraud claims, [redacted] followed up with [redacted] and [redacted] and attempted to pressure them to use the Michigan legislature to overturn the valid election result.”</li>
 </ul><h2>Michigan and Pennsylvania</h2>The filing said that directly following the 2020 election, Trump and his “private operatives sought to create chaos, rather than seek clarity, at polling places where states were continuing to tabulate votes.”<ul>
 <li>“For example, on November 4, [redacted]—a Campaign employee, agent, and co-conspirator of the defendant—tried to sow confusion when the ongoing vote count at the TCF Center in Detroit, Michigan, looked unfavorable for the defendant.”</li>
 </ul><ul>
 <li>“When a colleague suggested that there was about to be unrest reminiscent of the Brooks Brothers Riot, a violent effort to stop the vote count in Florida after the 2000 presidential election, [redacted] responded ‘Make them riot’ and ‘Do it!!!’ The defendant’s Campaign operatives and supporters used similar tactics at other tabulation centers, including in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the defendant sometimes used the resulting confrontations to falsely claim that his election observers were being denied proper access, thus serving as a predicate to the defendant’s claim that fraud must have occurred in the observers’ absence.”</li>
 </ul><h2>Michigan voting machines</h2>Smith will argue that Trump, outside his official presidential duties, tried to persuade political allies in Michigan to sway the election in his favor.<ul>
 <li>Among the evidence he will introduce: The former president held a meeting, “private in nature,” with Michigan legislators at the White House.</li>
 </ul><ul>
 <li>Smith also wrote that “In mid-December, the defendant spoke with RNC Chairwoman [redacted] and asked her to publicize and promote a private report that had been related on December 13 that purported to identify flaws in the use of [redacted] machines in Antrim County, Michigan. [Redacted] refused, telling the defendant that she already had discussed this report with [redacted] Michigan’s Speaker of the House, who had told her that the report was inaccurate. [Redacted] conveyed to the defendant [redacted] exact assessment: the report was ‘f—— nuts.’”</li>
 </ul><h2>Nevada</h2>In Nevada, Trump allegedly ignored warnings about spreading lies about the state’s election results. Smith wrote: “Notwithstanding the RNC Chief Counsel’s warning, the defendant re-tweeted and amplified news of the lawsuit on November 24, calling it ‘Big News!’ that a Nevada Court had agreed to hear it. But the defendant did not similarly promote the fact that within two weeks, on December 4, the Nevada District Court dismissed Law v. Whitmer, finding in a detailed opinion that ‘there is no credible or reliable evidence that the 2020 General Election in Nevada was affected by fraud,’ including through the signature-match machines, and that Biden won the election in the state.”<ul>
 <li>Trump continued to repeat false claims in tweets and speeches “as a candidate, not as an office holder,” Smith wrote.</li>
 </ul><h2>Pennsylvania&nbsp;</h2>In the Keystone State, officials warned Trump there was no smoke and no fire related to election fraud in the commonwealth, Smith wrote.<ul>
 <li>“Two days after the election, on November 6, the defendant called [redacted], the Chairman of the Pennsylvania Republican Party—the entity responsible for supporting Republican candidates in the commonwealth at the federal, state and local level. [Redacted] had a prior relationship with the defendant, including having represented him in litigation in Pennsylvania after the 2016 presidential election. The defendant asked [redacted] how, without fraud, he had gone from winning Pennsylvania on election day to trailing in the day afterward. Consistent with what Campaign staff already had told the defendant, [redacted] confirmed that it was not fraud; it was that there were roughly 1,750,000 mail-in ballots still being counted in Pennsylvania, which were expected to be eighty percent for Biden. Over the following two months, the defendant spread false claims of fraud in Pennsylvania anyway.”</li>
 </ul><ul>
 <li>“In early November, in a Campaign meeting, when the defendant suggested that more people in Pennsylvania voted than had checked in to vote, Deputy Campaign Manager [redacted] corrected him.”</li>
 </ul><h2>Wisconsin</h2>Smith wrote Trump ignored reality in Wisconsin as well.<ul>
 <li>“On November 29, a recount that the defendant’s campaign had petitioned and paid for confirmed that Biden had won in Wisconsin — and increased the defendant’s margin of defeat. On December 14, the Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected the Campaign’s election lawsuit there. As a result, on December 21, Wisconsin’s Governor signed a certificate of final determination confirming the prior certificate of ascertainment that established Biden’s electors as the valid electors for the state.”</li>
 </ul>Trump responded by rebuking the Wisconsin Supreme Court judge who had signed the majority opinion that rejected the lawsuit, forcing the state marshals responsible for the judge’s security to enhance protection due to a rise in “threatening communications.”<h2>Fake electors&nbsp;</h2>Smith alleged that as Trump and co-conspirators faltered at overturning states’ official election results, they turned their attention to fake slates of electors.As early as December 2020, Trump and his allies “developed a new plan regarding targeted states that the defendant had lost (Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin): to organize the people who would have served as the defendant’s electors had he won the popular vote, and cause them to sign and send to Pence, as President of the Senate, certificates in which they falsely represent themselves as legitimate electors who had cast electoral votes for the defendant,” Smith wrote.Trump and his allies lied to Vice President Mike Pence heading toward Jan. 6, “telling him that there was substantial election fraud and concealing their orchestration of the plan to manufacture fraudulent elector slates, as well as their intention to use the fake slates to attempt to obstruct the congressional certification.”Trump’s alleged lies to Pence and the public “created a tinderbox that he purposely ignited on January 6.”The filing details numerous people, including Trump, pressuring Pence for weeks to use his role overseeing Congress’ certification of the Electoral College vote to overturn the election results.On the morning of Jan. 6, Pence, once again, told Trump he would not go along with the plan.“So on January 6, the defendant sent to the Capitol a crowd of angry supporters, whom the defendant had called to the city and inundated with false claims of outcome-determinative election fraud, to induce Pence not to certify the legitimate electoral vote and to obstruct the certification.”“Although the attack on the Capitol successfully delayed the certification for approximately six hours, the House and Senate resumed the Joint Session at 11:35 p.m. But the conspirators were not done.”The filing alleges a co-conspirator once again urged Pence to “violate the law” by delaying the certification for 10 days. He refused.<h2>Pressure on Pence</h2>Smith must prove that Trump’s pressure on Pence was outside of their official duties together, and therefore can not be considered immune from prosecution.Smith plans to introduce evidence of private phone calls and conversations between Trump and his VP, including some with campaign staff, essentially tying their interactions to their interests as those seeking office again, “as running mates in the post-election period.” Smith also plans to highlight that Pence’s role in certifying the election was largely ceremonial and within the realm of the Senate, and strictly outside the bounds of the Oval Office.&nbsp; Among Smith’s points made in his motion:<ul>
 <li>“Because the Vice President’s role is and has always been ministerial, rather than substantive or discretionary, it is difficult to imagine an occasion in which a President would have any valid reason to try to influence it. As such, criminalizing a President’s efforts to affect the Vice President’s role as the President of the Senate overseeing the certification of Electoral College results would not jeopardize an Executive Branch function or authority.”</li>
 </ul>

Special counsel reveals new evidence against Trump in 2020 election case

TOPEKA—The Kansas Department of Agriculture and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment together advise Kansans to be alert to the human health risk caused by unvaccinated animals, following a second detection of rabies in a cat in the last two weeks, according to a media release from the Kansas Department of Agriculture.

The two cases were in Jewell County and Harvey County, and both involved outdoor cats which exposed multiple humans and other cats. The known human exposures have started rabies post-exposure prophylaxis, a series of five vaccinations to prevent rabies in humans.

Rabies is a viral disease transmitted by the bite or scratch from a rabid animal. There have been six positive cases of rabies in cats this year, as well as several cases in wildlife. Both of the cases this month were in unvaccinated outdoor barn cats.

“Rabies is not unusual in the wildlife population, and unfortunately this often means domestic animals that roam freely can be exposed to the virus,” said Animal Health Commissioner Justin Smith. “It is vital to vaccinate domestic animals against rabies, especially animals that interact with humans, because humans can be infected. Vaccinating pets and livestock against the virus protects both animal health and human health.”

Even if an animal is kept indoors, ensuring their vaccination against the virus is up-to-date serves as an important barrier if they are ever exposed to a wild or stray animal that could be carrying the disease. Those who have barn cats should have them vaccinated against rabies.

Many Kansas cities and counties have vaccination requirements; know what is required in your community and contact your veterinarian for more information about rabies vaccination.

Rabies attacks the brain and spinal cord and can take several weeks to months for symptoms to appear, but early treatment after an exposure can prevent rabies in both humans and pets that are up to date on vaccinations. The vaccination is highly effective.

If you notice unusual behavior in your animal, or you think your animal may have had contact with rabid wildlife, it is important to immediately contact your veterinarian to determine the next steps to take.

If you are a veterinarian, remember to always consider rabies as a potential diagnosis for neurologic animals.&nbsp;In Kansas, rabies is&nbsp;a reportable disease which requires a veterinarian to report a positive rabies test&nbsp;to the KDA Division of Animal Health.

In order to prevent the spread of rabies, people should teach children to be cautious around outdoor animals, wild or domestic, even if they look to be friendly; wash a wound from an animal encounter thoroughly with soap and water and get medical attention immediately; keep pet vaccinations current; and monitor pets when outside.

If you have concerns about rabies, please visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kdhe.ks.gov/1497/Rabies">www.kdhe.ks.gov/1497/Rabies</a>&nbsp;or call the KDHE Epidemiology Hotline at 877-427-7317.

TOPEKA—The Kansas Department of Agriculture and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment together advise Kansans to be alert to the human health risk caused by unvaccinated animals, following a second detection of rabies in a cat in the last two weeks, according to a media release from the Kansas Department of Agriculture.The two cases were in Jewell County and Harvey County, and both involved outdoor cats which exposed multiple humans and other cats. The known human exposures have started rabies post-exposure prophylaxis, a series of five vaccinations to prevent rabies in humans.Rabies is a viral disease transmitted by the bite or scratch from a rabid animal. There have been six positive cases of rabies in cats this year, as well as several cases in wildlife. Both of the cases this month were in unvaccinated outdoor barn cats.“Rabies is not unusual in the wildlife population, and unfortunately this often means domestic animals that roam freely can be exposed to the virus,” said Animal Health Commissioner Justin Smith. “It is vital to vaccinate domestic animals against rabies, especially animals that interact with humans, because humans can be infected. Vaccinating pets and livestock against the virus protects both animal health and human health.”Even if an animal is kept indoors, ensuring their vaccination against the virus is up-to-date serves as an important barrier if they are ever exposed to a wild or stray animal that could be carrying the disease. Those who have barn cats should have them vaccinated against rabies.Many Kansas cities and counties have vaccination requirements; know what is required in your community and contact your veterinarian for more information about rabies vaccination.Rabies attacks the brain and spinal cord and can take several weeks to months for symptoms to appear, but early treatment after an exposure can prevent rabies in both humans and pets that are up to date on vaccinations. The vaccination is highly effective.If you notice unusual behavior in your animal, or you think your animal may have had contact with rabid wildlife, it is important to immediately contact your veterinarian to determine the next steps to take.If you are a veterinarian, remember to always consider rabies as a potential diagnosis for neurologic animals.&nbsp;In Kansas, rabies is&nbsp;a reportable disease which requires a veterinarian to report a positive rabies test&nbsp;to the KDA Division of Animal Health.In order to prevent the spread of rabies, people should teach children to be cautious around outdoor animals, wild or domestic, even if they look to be friendly; wash a wound from an animal encounter thoroughly with soap and water and get medical attention immediately; keep pet vaccinations current; and monitor pets when outside.If you have concerns about rabies, please visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kdhe.ks.gov/1497/Rabies">www.kdhe.ks.gov/1497/Rabies</a>&nbsp;or call the KDHE Epidemiology Hotline at 877-427-7317.

State issues health alert after recent rabies cases in Kansas 

KANSAS CITY—Health officials in Kansas City are working with school officials after a confirmed case of <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/pertussis/signs-symptoms/index.html">whooping cough/ pertussis, </a>was confirmed in the Blue Springs School District, according to the Jackson County Public Health Department.

Pertussis is a contagious respiratory illness similar to the common cold. However it can have very serious complications, especially for infants or for those with chronic health conditions.

&nbsp;The school district is working with county health officials to prevent the spread.&nbsp; Jackson County Health officials haved seen increased numbers of cases over the past month.

According to the CDC, symptoms typically show up within seven to 10 days of being exposed. <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/pertussis/signs-symptoms/index.html">Click here for </a>additional details.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727920214855.png" alt="Pertussis-CDC image" />
 <figcaption>Pertussis-CDC image</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY—Health officials in Kansas City are working with school officials after a confirmed case of <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/pertussis/signs-symptoms/index.html">whooping cough/ pertussis, </a>was confirmed in the Blue Springs School District, according to the Jackson County Public Health Department.Pertussis is a contagious respiratory illness similar to the common cold. However it can have very serious complications, especially for infants or for those with chronic health conditions.&nbsp;The school district is working with county health officials to prevent the spread.&nbsp; Jackson County Health officials haved seen increased numbers of cases over the past month.Symptoms include:<ul>
 <li>Runny nose</li><li>Mild cough that gradually gets worse</li><li>Low-grade fever</li><li>Coughing fits that can cause vomiting or gagging</li><li>Whooping sound during coughing fits</li>
 </ul>According to the CDC, symptoms typically show up within seven to 10 days of being exposed. <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/pertussis/signs-symptoms/index.html">Click here for </a>additional details.&nbsp;

Whooping cough case confirmed at KC area high school

A complaint filed by a Republican state senator’s son accused Bailey of using the attorney general’s office for his own political gain

By ALLISON KITE&nbsp; <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2022/09/21/missouri-judge-once-again-delays-decision-on-closing-agape-boarding-school/">Missouri Independent</a>

The Missouri Supreme Court declined to force an investigation into donations to Attorney General Andrew Bailey connected to a witness in a case his office was handling.

In a filing Tuesday evening, the judges denied a request from Lucas Cierpiot —&nbsp;son of state Sen. Mike Cierpiot — to&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/11/gop-legislators-son-asks-supreme-court-to-order-inquiry-into-donations-to-missouri-ag/">require the disciplinary arm of the court to investigate donations</a>&nbsp;from Micheal Ketchmark and his law firm to a political action committee supporting Bailey.&nbsp;

Ketchmark, a prominent attorney and large political donor, was called as a witness in a disability discrimination case filed by Lucas Cierpiot’s brother, Patrick, against the Missouri Department of Economic Development. Bailey’s office was defending the state.

After Ketchmark’s law firm donated to the pro-Bailey Liberty and Justice PAC, Lucas Cierpiot filed a complaint with the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel, accusing Bailey of using his position as attorney general for personal political gain.

“No attorney can ever collect money from a case witness,” Cierpiot’s filing says. “The fact that there is not a rule spelling this out in-letter is due to the fact that it is so obvious.”

Cierpiot’s complaint was dismissed in March. He asked for further review, but it was dismissed again in May. He then&nbsp;<a href="https://www.courts.mo.gov/cnet/cases/newHeader.do?inputVO.caseNumber=SC100710&amp;inputVO.courtId=OSCDB0024_SUP&amp;inputVO.isTicket=false#docket" target="_blank">sought an order from the state Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;to force an investigation.

In an email, Bailey’s spokeswoman, Madeline Sieren, said the court “rightfully denied the frivolous petition” and that Bailey had not violated the rules of professional conduct for attorneys.

Cierpiot said in a text message that he was “very disappointed” by the court’s decision.&nbsp;

“Missouri really is the ‘Show Me State,’ Cierpiot said. “Isn’t it? ‘Show Me’ just how unethical the Missouri courts can be.”

Cierpiot’s was one of several accusations of unethical behavior by Bailey, who took office last year after being appointed by Gov. Mike Parson. Bailey is now running for a full term.&nbsp;

This summer, he&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/judge-dismisses-lawsuit-before-missouri-attorney-general-could-be-questioned-under-oath/">narrowly avoided being questioned under oath</a>&nbsp;about his contact with a defendant in his own case against Jackson County. One of Bailey’s deputies lost his license because of the meetings, according to a filing from the county’s attorneys.

Last year, Bailey&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/04/25/missouri-ag-drops-out-of-gambling-case-after-taking-donations-from-companies-suing-state/">withdrew from defending the Missouri State Highway Patrol</a>&nbsp;in a lawsuit filed by Warrenton Oil and Torch Electronics regarding video game machines that offer cash prizes. The attorney general’s office bowed out of the case following donations from PACs connected to the companies’ lobbyist. The patrol investigated the machines, believing that they were illegal means of gambling.&nbsp;

Bailey was also the focus of a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/hazelwood-schools-files-ethics-complaint-against-ag-bailey-over-dei-investigation/article_518f7ca0-07d2-11ef-a43d-9f3e0e63bf97.html" target="_blank">formal complaint about the behavior of his office</a>&nbsp;after he falsely blamed the Hazelwood School District’s diversity, equity and inclusion program for the off-campus assault of a student.

Patrick Cierpiot named Ketchmark as a witness in the underlying lawsuit in May 2022, saying he had urged a Parson staffer not to fire Cierpiot, who was recovering from a bicycle wreck and struggling to keep up with his workload.

The following January, Ketchmark donated $2,825, the maximum that an individual can give, to Bailey’s campaign. Bailey received a combined $16,950 from individuals with the last name Ketchmark or employed by the law firm Ketchmark &amp; McCreight P.C. by the end of the month.

Later in the spring of 2023, Ketchmark’s firm donated $125,000 to the pro-Bailey Liberty and Justice PAC. The firm then gave an in-kind donation of $9,216.53.

In August 2023, Bailey’s office withdrew from defending the Department of Economic Development and allowed the agency to hire a private law firm to handle the case. At the time, Sieren&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/04/25/missouri-ag-drops-out-of-gambling-case-after-taking-donations-from-companies-suing-state/">told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch</a>&nbsp;that the office was looking to outside firms to handle “complex litigation.” She said Bailey didn’t have a conflict of interest in the case.

In rejecting Lucas Cierpiot’s ethics complaint, the Office of the Chief Disciplinary Counsel said he failed to allege any violation of the rules of professional conduct. The complaint only outlined the donations from Ketchmark’s law firm to the pro-Bailey PAC, not the donation from Ketchmark to Bailey’s campaign committee. The ethics office drew a distinction between those.

“Corporations are legal entities separate and distinct from their officers and shareholders,” the office said in a court filing responding to Cierpiot’s petition to the Missouri Supreme Court.

The Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel said that before declining to investigate, officials verified that Ketchmark hadn’t contributed to Bailey’s campaign committee, apparently missing the January 2023 donations.

The Supreme Court’s order did not say why it was denying Cierpiot’s request.&nbsp;

This story was updated at 12:25 p.m. to include comments from Bailey’s office and Cierpiot received after its initial publication.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727949988495.png" alt=" Attorney General Andrew Bailey speaks at a press conference in the Missouri House Lounge, flanked by House Speaker Dean Plocher, left, and state Rep. Justin Sparks (Tim Bommel/Missouri House Communications)." />
 <figcaption> Attorney General Andrew Bailey speaks at a press conference in the Missouri House Lounge, flanked by House Speaker Dean Plocher, left, and state Rep. Justin Sparks (Tim Bommel/Missouri House Communications).</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>A complaint filed by a Republican state senator’s son accused Bailey of using the attorney general’s office for his own political gain</h2>By ALLISON KITE&nbsp; <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2022/09/21/missouri-judge-once-again-delays-decision-on-closing-agape-boarding-school/">Missouri Independent</a>The Missouri Supreme Court declined to force an investigation into donations to Attorney General Andrew Bailey connected to a witness in a case his office was handling.In a filing Tuesday evening, the judges denied a request from Lucas Cierpiot —&nbsp;son of state Sen. Mike Cierpiot — to&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/11/gop-legislators-son-asks-supreme-court-to-order-inquiry-into-donations-to-missouri-ag/">require the disciplinary arm of the court to investigate donations</a>&nbsp;from Micheal Ketchmark and his law firm to a political action committee supporting Bailey.&nbsp;Ketchmark, a prominent attorney and large political donor, was called as a witness in a disability discrimination case filed by Lucas Cierpiot’s brother, Patrick, against the Missouri Department of Economic Development. Bailey’s office was defending the state.After Ketchmark’s law firm donated to the pro-Bailey Liberty and Justice PAC, Lucas Cierpiot filed a complaint with the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel, accusing Bailey of using his position as attorney general for personal political gain.“No attorney can ever collect money from a case witness,” Cierpiot’s filing says. “The fact that there is not a rule spelling this out in-letter is due to the fact that it is so obvious.”Cierpiot’s complaint was dismissed in March. He asked for further review, but it was dismissed again in May. He then&nbsp;<a href="https://www.courts.mo.gov/cnet/cases/newHeader.do?inputVO.caseNumber=SC100710&amp;inputVO.courtId=OSCDB0024_SUP&amp;inputVO.isTicket=false#docket" target="_blank">sought an order from the state Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;to force an investigation.In an email, Bailey’s spokeswoman, Madeline Sieren, said the court “rightfully denied the frivolous petition” and that Bailey had not violated the rules of professional conduct for attorneys.Cierpiot said in a text message that he was “very disappointed” by the court’s decision.&nbsp;“Missouri really is the ‘Show Me State,’ Cierpiot said. “Isn’t it? ‘Show Me’ just how unethical the Missouri courts can be.”Cierpiot’s was one of several accusations of unethical behavior by Bailey, who took office last year after being appointed by Gov. Mike Parson. Bailey is now running for a full term.&nbsp;This summer, he&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/judge-dismisses-lawsuit-before-missouri-attorney-general-could-be-questioned-under-oath/">narrowly avoided being questioned under oath</a>&nbsp;about his contact with a defendant in his own case against Jackson County. One of Bailey’s deputies lost his license because of the meetings, according to a filing from the county’s attorneys.Last year, Bailey&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/04/25/missouri-ag-drops-out-of-gambling-case-after-taking-donations-from-companies-suing-state/">withdrew from defending the Missouri State Highway Patrol</a>&nbsp;in a lawsuit filed by Warrenton Oil and Torch Electronics regarding video game machines that offer cash prizes. The attorney general’s office bowed out of the case following donations from PACs connected to the companies’ lobbyist. The patrol investigated the machines, believing that they were illegal means of gambling.&nbsp;Bailey was also the focus of a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/hazelwood-schools-files-ethics-complaint-against-ag-bailey-over-dei-investigation/article_518f7ca0-07d2-11ef-a43d-9f3e0e63bf97.html" target="_blank">formal complaint about the behavior of his office</a>&nbsp;after he falsely blamed the Hazelwood School District’s diversity, equity and inclusion program for the off-campus assault of a student.Patrick Cierpiot named Ketchmark as a witness in the underlying lawsuit in May 2022, saying he had urged a Parson staffer not to fire Cierpiot, who was recovering from a bicycle wreck and struggling to keep up with his workload.The following January, Ketchmark donated $2,825, the maximum that an individual can give, to Bailey’s campaign. Bailey received a combined $16,950 from individuals with the last name Ketchmark or employed by the law firm Ketchmark &amp; McCreight P.C. by the end of the month.Later in the spring of 2023, Ketchmark’s firm donated $125,000 to the pro-Bailey Liberty and Justice PAC. The firm then gave an in-kind donation of $9,216.53.Cierpiot’s complaint was dismissed in March. He asked for further review, but it was dismissed again in May. He then&nbsp;<a href="https://www.courts.mo.gov/cnet/cases/newHeader.do?inputVO.caseNumber=SC100710&amp;inputVO.courtId=OSCDB0024_SUP&amp;inputVO.isTicket=false#docket" target="_blank">sought an order from the state Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;to force an investigation.In an email, Bailey’s spokeswoman, Madeline Sieren, said the court “rightfully denied the frivolous petition” and that Bailey had not violated the rules of professional conduct for attorneys.Cierpiot said in a text message that he was “very disappointed” by the court’s decision.&nbsp;“Missouri really is the ‘Show Me State,’ Cierpiot said. “Isn’t it? ‘Show Me’ just how unethical the Missouri courts can be.”Cierpiot’s was one of several accusations of unethical behavior by Bailey, who took office last year after being appointed by Gov. Mike Parson. Bailey is now running for a full term.&nbsp;This summer, he&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/judge-dismisses-lawsuit-before-missouri-attorney-general-could-be-questioned-under-oath/">narrowly avoided being questioned under oath</a>&nbsp;about his contact with a defendant in his own case against Jackson County. One of Bailey’s deputies lost his license because of the meetings, according to a filing from the county’s attorneys.Last year, Bailey&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/04/25/missouri-ag-drops-out-of-gambling-case-after-taking-donations-from-companies-suing-state/">withdrew from defending the Missouri State Highway Patrol</a>&nbsp;in a lawsuit filed by Warrenton Oil and Torch Electronics regarding video game machines that offer cash prizes. The attorney general’s office bowed out of the case following donations from PACs connected to the companies’ lobbyist. The patrol investigated the machines, believing that they were illegal means of gambling.&nbsp;Bailey was also the focus of a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/hazelwood-schools-files-ethics-complaint-against-ag-bailey-over-dei-investigation/article_518f7ca0-07d2-11ef-a43d-9f3e0e63bf97.html" target="_blank">formal complaint about the behavior of his office</a>&nbsp;after he falsely blamed the Hazelwood School District’s diversity, equity and inclusion program for the off-campus assault of a student.Patrick Cierpiot named Ketchmark as a witness in the underlying lawsuit in May 2022, saying he had urged a Parson staffer not to fire Cierpiot, who was recovering from a bicycle wreck and struggling to keep up with his workload.The following January, Ketchmark donated $2,825, the maximum that an individual can give, to Bailey’s campaign. Bailey received a combined $16,950 from individuals with the last name Ketchmark or employed by the law firm Ketchmark &amp; McCreight P.C. by the end of the month.Later in the spring of 2023, Ketchmark’s firm donated $125,000 to the pro-Bailey Liberty and Justice PAC. The firm then gave an in-kind donation of $9,216.53.In August 2023, Bailey’s office withdrew from defending the Department of Economic Development and allowed the agency to hire a private law firm to handle the case. At the time, Sieren&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/04/25/missouri-ag-drops-out-of-gambling-case-after-taking-donations-from-companies-suing-state/">told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch</a>&nbsp;that the office was looking to outside firms to handle “complex litigation.” She said Bailey didn’t have a conflict of interest in the case.In rejecting Lucas Cierpiot’s ethics complaint, the Office of the Chief Disciplinary Counsel said he failed to allege any violation of the rules of professional conduct. The complaint only outlined the donations from Ketchmark’s law firm to the pro-Bailey PAC, not the donation from Ketchmark to Bailey’s campaign committee. The ethics office drew a distinction between those.“Corporations are legal entities separate and distinct from their officers and shareholders,” the office said in a court filing responding to Cierpiot’s petition to the Missouri Supreme Court.The Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel said that before declining to investigate, officials verified that Ketchmark hadn’t contributed to Bailey’s campaign committee, apparently missing the January 2023 donations.The Supreme Court’s order did not say why it was denying Cierpiot’s request.&nbsp;This story was updated at 12:25 p.m. to include comments from Bailey’s office and Cierpiot received after its initial publication.

Mo. Supreme Court rejects request for ethics investigation into AG Andrew Bailey

KANSAS CITY— A Kansas City&nbsp; man has been charged in federal court with possessing hundreds of homemade devices to convert semi-automatic firearms into fully automatic machine guns, according to the United State's Attorney.

“Law enforcement agencies in our area and nationwide report a disturbing increase in the number of machine gun conversion devices that quickly and easily transform a semi-automatic firearm into a fully automatic machine gun,” said U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore. “Machine gun conversion devices are often cheap and homemade, just a small piece of metal or plastic that converts a run-of-the-mill firearm into a weapon of war. These dangerously lethal and illegal weapons pose a threat to both public safety and the safety of law enforcement officers.

“Using these devices is illegal. Selling these devices is illegal. And being in possession of these devices is also illegal,” added Moore. “The Department of Justice is making it a priority to combat the spread of these deadly weapons as a focus of our strategy to drive down violent crime.”

Dalton R. Johnston, 27, was charged in a three-count criminal complaint filed under seal in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday, Sept. 24. That complaint was unsealed and made public today following Johnston’s arrest.

According to an affidavit filed in support of the federal criminal complaint, Johnston used his 3-D printer to manufacture machine gun conversion devices, which he sold in the Kansas City metropolitan area.

Machine gun conversion devices, or MCDs, also known as a “switches” or “auto sears,” are used to convert semi-automatic weapons into machine guns that fire multiple shots automatically through a single pull of the trigger, enabling more rapid and often less accurate gunfire. Whether or not they are attached to a firearm, these devices constitute machine guns under federal law.

“In support of the DOJ’s newly established Action Network to Terminate Illegal Machine Gun Conversion Devices, ATF will continue to work nonstop to disrupt the manufacturing and possession of machine gun conversion devices,” said Bernard G. Hansen, ATF Special Agent in Charge, Kansas City Field Division.

“What ATF saw 10 years ago with the emergence of the ghost gun phenomena,” said Hansen, “is now what ATF is seeing with the emergence of machine gun conversion devices. These highly dangerous devices can transform a street corner into a combat zone, devastating entire communities and the brave members of law enforcement who put their lives on the line every day. Machine gun conversion devices are now the most frequently recovered type of illegal firearm. If you are manufacturing or in possession of these deadly devices, we will identify you and arrest you; we will not let up. ATF’s mission is to protect the public from violent crime, and getting these devices off the streets does just that.”

On Aug. 2, 2024, Johnston allegedly sold 10 Glock conversion devices and an AR-type conversion device for a total of $70 to an undercover agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. At the time of the transaction, the affidavit says, Johnston told the undercover agent the devices were incomplete as he did not manufacture the selector rod for them (though he later provided those to the undercover agent).

Johnston agreed to manufacture and sell 100 AR-type conversion devices for $250 after the undercover agent said he would be trafficking the devices to Chicago and selling them for a large profit. Johnston stated that he printed the machine gun conversion devices himself and it would take him approximately a week. Johnston also explained that he could manufacture AR-type firearms as well, but it would take him weeks to complete them.

On Aug. 15, 2024, Johnston met the undercover agent in a gas station parking lot on Blue Ridge Cutoff and gave him a clear vacuum-sealed package that contained 100 AR-type machine gun conversion devices. The undercover agent paid Johnston $250 for the devices. Johnston allegedly told the undercover agent he could manufacture and sell 300 AR-type conversion devices within the next two weeks for $750.

On Aug. 30, 2024, Johnston met the undercover agent in the same gas station parking lot on Blue Ridge Cutoff for the transaction. The undercover agent told Johnston he/she wanted to purchase 500 AR-type conversion devices in the next few weeks. Johnston said he could manufacture that many in approximately a week. Johnston explained that he can 3-D print 45 AR-type conversion devices at one time, and can print up to three batches per day. Johnston also told the undercover agent he could produce silencers, which he sells for $20, and agreed to manufacture a silencer for the undercover agent.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/9/1727549301701.png" alt="Johnson is being held in Kansas City" />
 <figcaption>Johnson is being held in Kansas City</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY— A Kansas City&nbsp; man has been charged in federal court with possessing hundreds of homemade devices to convert semi-automatic firearms into fully automatic machine guns, according to the United State's Attorney.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/9/1727548909076.png" alt="Photo U.S. Department of Justice" />
 <figcaption>Photo U.S. Department of Justice</figcaption>
 </figure>“Law enforcement agencies in our area and nationwide report a disturbing increase in the number of machine gun conversion devices that quickly and easily transform a semi-automatic firearm into a fully automatic machine gun,” said U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore. “Machine gun conversion devices are often cheap and homemade, just a small piece of metal or plastic that converts a run-of-the-mill firearm into a weapon of war. These dangerously lethal and illegal weapons pose a threat to both public safety and the safety of law enforcement officers.“Using these devices is illegal. Selling these devices is illegal. And being in possession of these devices is also illegal,” added Moore. “The Department of Justice is making it a priority to combat the spread of these deadly weapons as a focus of our strategy to drive down violent crime.”Dalton R. Johnston, 27, was charged in a three-count criminal complaint filed under seal in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday, Sept. 24. That complaint was unsealed and made public today following Johnston’s arrest.According to an affidavit filed in support of the federal criminal complaint, Johnston used his 3-D printer to manufacture machine gun conversion devices, which he sold in the Kansas City metropolitan area.Machine gun conversion devices, or MCDs, also known as a “switches” or “auto sears,” are used to convert semi-automatic weapons into machine guns that fire multiple shots automatically through a single pull of the trigger, enabling more rapid and often less accurate gunfire. Whether or not they are attached to a firearm, these devices constitute machine guns under federal law.“In support of the DOJ’s newly established Action Network to Terminate Illegal Machine Gun Conversion Devices, ATF will continue to work nonstop to disrupt the manufacturing and possession of machine gun conversion devices,” said Bernard G. Hansen, ATF Special Agent in Charge, Kansas City Field Division.“What ATF saw 10 years ago with the emergence of the ghost gun phenomena,” said Hansen, “is now what ATF is seeing with the emergence of machine gun conversion devices. These highly dangerous devices can transform a street corner into a combat zone, devastating entire communities and the brave members of law enforcement who put their lives on the line every day. Machine gun conversion devices are now the most frequently recovered type of illegal firearm. If you are manufacturing or in possession of these deadly devices, we will identify you and arrest you; we will not let up. ATF’s mission is to protect the public from violent crime, and getting these devices off the streets does just that.”On Aug. 2, 2024, Johnston allegedly sold 10 Glock conversion devices and an AR-type conversion device for a total of $70 to an undercover agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. At the time of the transaction, the affidavit says, Johnston told the undercover agent the devices were incomplete as he did not manufacture the selector rod for them (though he later provided those to the undercover agent).Johnston agreed to manufacture and sell 100 AR-type conversion devices for $250 after the undercover agent said he would be trafficking the devices to Chicago and selling them for a large profit. Johnston stated that he printed the machine gun conversion devices himself and it would take him approximately a week. Johnston also explained that he could manufacture AR-type firearms as well, but it would take him weeks to complete them.On Aug. 15, 2024, Johnston met the undercover agent in a gas station parking lot on Blue Ridge Cutoff and gave him a clear vacuum-sealed package that contained 100 AR-type machine gun conversion devices. The undercover agent paid Johnston $250 for the devices. Johnston allegedly told the undercover agent he could manufacture and sell 300 AR-type conversion devices within the next two weeks for $750.On Aug. 30, 2024, Johnston met the undercover agent in the same gas station parking lot on Blue Ridge Cutoff for the transaction. The undercover agent told Johnston he/she wanted to purchase 500 AR-type conversion devices in the next few weeks. Johnston said he could manufacture that many in approximately a week. Johnston explained that he can 3-D print 45 AR-type conversion devices at one time, and can print up to three batches per day. Johnston also told the undercover agent he could produce silencers, which he sells for $20, and agreed to manufacture a silencer for the undercover agent.

KC man accused of illegally making machine gun conversion devices 

SEDGWICK COUNTY—A Kansas jury found a man guilty of kidnapping and sexual assault of a 14-year-old who was rescued from a closed in Wichita.

This week, 37-year-old David Roark of Wichita was found guilty of kidnapping, child abuse, aggravated indecent liberties with a child, criminal sodomy and sexual exploitation of a child, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

Just after midnight Dec. 14, a detective with the White County, Arkansas Sheriff’s Office contacted Wichita Police requesting assistance locating a missing child from their jurisdiction, according to Wichita Police Officer Chad Ditch.

&nbsp; A 14-year-old girl had left her home in Arkansas in early November and not returned.&nbsp; A follow-up investigation by White County detectives revealed she had been&nbsp;seen in a convenience store&nbsp;with a man before leaving in a vehicle with the same man later identified as 35-year-old&nbsp;David E. Roark of Wichita. Police also learned Roark was wanted on two warrants from the state of Kentucky.

Additional information provided by White County suggested that Roark was possibly in the Wichita area.

The Wichita Police Exploited and Missing Child Unit and the Internet Crimes Against Children Unit began investigating and located an address in the 1800 block of N. Litchfield in Wichita, where they believed Roark was staying.

Police observed Roark leaving the home and took him into custody. Officers then found the missing girl in a closet inside the house. Police took both of them for additional interviews, where it was discovered further crimes had occurred in Wichita.

A search warrant for the residence was completed, and David Roark was booked into the Sedgwick County Jail.&nbsp;

Roark is scheduled for sentencing on November 18.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671221717558.png" alt="Roark photo Sedgwick Co." />
 <figcaption>Roark photo Sedgwick Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY—A Kansas jury found a man guilty of kidnapping and sexual assault of a 14-year-old who was rescued from a closed in Wichita.This week, 37-year-old David Roark of Wichita was found guilty of kidnapping, child abuse, aggravated indecent liberties with a child, criminal sodomy and sexual exploitation of a child, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671545735044.png" alt="Original charges -image Sedgwick Co. District Attorney" />
 <figcaption>Original charges -image Sedgwick Co. District Attorney</figcaption>
 </figure>Just after midnight Dec. 14, a detective with the White County, Arkansas Sheriff’s Office contacted Wichita Police requesting assistance locating a missing child from their jurisdiction, according to Wichita Police Officer Chad Ditch.&nbsp; A 14-year-old girl had left her home in Arkansas in early November and not returned.&nbsp; A follow-up investigation by White County detectives revealed she had been&nbsp;seen in a convenience store&nbsp;with a man before leaving in a vehicle with the same man later identified as 35-year-old&nbsp;David E. Roark of Wichita. Police also learned Roark was wanted on two warrants from the state of Kentucky.Additional information provided by White County suggested that Roark was possibly in the Wichita area.The Wichita Police Exploited and Missing Child Unit and the Internet Crimes Against Children Unit began investigating and located an address in the 1800 block of N. Litchfield in Wichita, where they believed Roark was staying.Police observed Roark leaving the home and took him into custody. Officers then found the missing girl in a closet inside the house. Police took both of them for additional interviews, where it was discovered further crimes had occurred in Wichita.A search warrant for the residence was completed, and David Roark was booked into the Sedgwick County Jail.&nbsp;Roark is scheduled for sentencing on November 18.

Jury: Kansas man guilty of abducting girl rescued from closet

BY:&nbsp;ANNELISE HANSHAW&nbsp; <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2022/09/21/missouri-judge-once-again-delays-decision-on-closing-agape-boarding-school/">Missouri Independent</a>

Missouri’s defense of a state law barring minors from beginning puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones will depend on whether the judge in the case puts stock in expert witnesses touting retracted studies and conspiracy theories about Jerry Sandusky.

Wright County Circuit Court Judge Craig Carter, who is presiding&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/27/patients-hurt-by-missouris-ban-on-gender-affirming-care-providers-testify/">over a lawsuit challenging Missouri’s gender-affirming care restrictions</a>, will have to weigh the credibility of expert witnesses alongside his judgment.

Questions of credibility came up Tuesday, when the Missouri Attorney General’s Office called as a witness John Michael Bailey, a psychology professor at Northwestern who testified about&nbsp;<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-023-02576-9" target="_blank">his now-retracted study entitled “Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria,”</a>&nbsp;which concludes that adolescents identify as transgender as a result of social contagion.

But it was his social media post about the accusers of Jerry Sandusky that appeared to concern Carter.

Sandusky, a former college football coach, was convicted of molesting young boys over a period of at least 15 years. Bailey&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/profjmb/status/1495045630871449601" target="_blank">repeatedly posted on social media</a>&nbsp;that he believes Sandusky is innocent.

“You believe the people testifying against Jerry Sandusky are lying?” Carter asked.

“I can see that if you are not familiar with the evidence that I am familiar with, you would be shocked,” Bailey told him.

Bailey said he had listened to a podcast and lauded the work of conservative commentator John Ziegler.

“Do you know (Ziegler)? Have you talked to anybody that was an eyewitness in that case?” Carter asked.

“I have read testimony, but I have not talked to anyone,” Bailey said.

Although the underlying case was not about Sandusky, the exchange may have chiseled away at Bailey’s credibility and showed a greater pattern of basing conclusions on secondary sources.

Bailey’s research on transgender youth has been retracted, which he chalked up to pressure from activists.

The academic journal that retracted his article cited an issue with informed consent protocol, meaning participants didn’t know their responses would be in an article. On cross-examination, the circumstances of his research became clearer.

To investigate his hypothesis of whether “rapid onset gender dysphoria” caused a rise in referrals to gender clinics, Bailey surveyed parents and guardians who interacted with the website ParentsofROGDKids.com, a website for parents who believe their child has rapid onset gender dysphoria.

He said the study’s co-author Suzanna Diaz isn’t a researcher, so she didn’t create the survey with typical informed-consent procedures. He didn’t explain that Diaz is a pseudonym.

He knew Diaz was associated with ParentsofROGDKids.com but didn’t know her real name and if she ran the website.

Diaz had created the questionnaire to “weed out troublemakers.”

When Bailey looked into detransitioners and desisters, which are people who have stopped or reversed gender-affirming care, he looked to the website Reddit and looked at groups titled “detrans” and “desist.”

Plaintiffs’ attorney Nora Huppert asked if he verified that participants had previously been diagnosed with gender dysphoria. Bailey admitted that he had not.

The other defense expert on the stand Tuesday was Dr. Daniel Weiss, an endocrinologist from Utah.

For 10 years in Ohio, Weiss accepted transgender adults as patients that needed cross-sex hormones, but later decided the intervention was harmful to prescribe.

“I’m opposed to it medically,” Weiss said of adults using cross-sex hormones to transition. “I think there’s no scientific evidence to support it. But if someone wants to do it, and they’re adequately informed, they can do it.”

His testimony included a look at adverse event reporting of puberty blockers, which he does not prescribe, and the discussion of risks to gender-affirming care.

When asked to compare the risks of puberty blockers to aspirin, he couldn’t make a direct comparison.

“It’s hard to compare,” he said. “With any intervention, you want to balance risk and benefit and look at all the treatment options.”

Gillian Wilcox, an attorney with the ACLU of Missouri, asked if he has published a peer-reviewed article on gender dysphoria. He hadn’t.

“My article, if I were to write one, would be rejected by most medical journals because there is no good treatment,” Weiss said. “I call it child-harming treatment. There is no good intervention.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1727904351590.png" alt=" ACLU of Missouri attorney Gillian Wilcox takes notes while a witness testifies in Missouri's gender-affirming care trial in Cole County Circuit Court (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent)." />
 <figcaption> ACLU of Missouri attorney Gillian Wilcox takes notes while a witness testifies in Missouri's gender-affirming care trial in Cole County Circuit Court (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent).</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;ANNELISE HANSHAW&nbsp; <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2022/09/21/missouri-judge-once-again-delays-decision-on-closing-agape-boarding-school/">Missouri Independent</a>Missouri’s defense of a state law barring minors from beginning puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones will depend on whether the judge in the case puts stock in expert witnesses touting retracted studies and conspiracy theories about Jerry Sandusky.Wright County Circuit Court Judge Craig Carter, who is presiding&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/27/patients-hurt-by-missouris-ban-on-gender-affirming-care-providers-testify/">over a lawsuit challenging Missouri’s gender-affirming care restrictions</a>, will have to weigh the credibility of expert witnesses alongside his judgment.Questions of credibility came up Tuesday, when the Missouri Attorney General’s Office called as a witness John Michael Bailey, a psychology professor at Northwestern who testified about&nbsp;<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-023-02576-9" target="_blank">his now-retracted study entitled “Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria,”</a>&nbsp;which concludes that adolescents identify as transgender as a result of social contagion.But it was his social media post about the accusers of Jerry Sandusky that appeared to concern Carter.Sandusky, a former college football coach, was convicted of molesting young boys over a period of at least 15 years. Bailey&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/profjmb/status/1495045630871449601" target="_blank">repeatedly posted on social media</a>&nbsp;that he believes Sandusky is innocent.“You believe the people testifying against Jerry Sandusky are lying?” Carter asked.“I can see that if you are not familiar with the evidence that I am familiar with, you would be shocked,” Bailey told him.“Mmhmm,” Carter replied.Bailey said he had listened to a podcast and lauded the work of conservative commentator John Ziegler.“Do you know (Ziegler)? Have you talked to anybody that was an eyewitness in that case?” Carter asked.“I have read testimony, but I have not talked to anyone,” Bailey said.Although the underlying case was not about Sandusky, the exchange may have chiseled away at Bailey’s credibility and showed a greater pattern of basing conclusions on secondary sources.Bailey’s research on transgender youth has been retracted, which he chalked up to pressure from activists.The academic journal that retracted his article cited an issue with informed consent protocol, meaning participants didn’t know their responses would be in an article. On cross-examination, the circumstances of his research became clearer.To investigate his hypothesis of whether “rapid onset gender dysphoria” caused a rise in referrals to gender clinics, Bailey surveyed parents and guardians who interacted with the website ParentsofROGDKids.com, a website for parents who believe their child has rapid onset gender dysphoria.He said the study’s co-author Suzanna Diaz isn’t a researcher, so she didn’t create the survey with typical informed-consent procedures. He didn’t explain that Diaz is a pseudonym.He knew Diaz was associated with ParentsofROGDKids.com but didn’t know her real name and if she ran the website.Diaz had created the questionnaire to “weed out troublemakers.”When Bailey looked into detransitioners and desisters, which are people who have stopped or reversed gender-affirming care, he looked to the website Reddit and looked at groups titled “detrans” and “desist.”Plaintiffs’ attorney Nora Huppert asked if he verified that participants had previously been diagnosed with gender dysphoria. Bailey admitted that he had not.The other defense expert on the stand Tuesday was Dr. Daniel Weiss, an endocrinologist from Utah.For 10 years in Ohio, Weiss accepted transgender adults as patients that needed cross-sex hormones, but later decided the intervention was harmful to prescribe.“I’m opposed to it medically,” Weiss said of adults using cross-sex hormones to transition. “I think there’s no scientific evidence to support it. But if someone wants to do it, and they’re adequately informed, they can do it.”His testimony included a look at adverse event reporting of puberty blockers, which he does not prescribe, and the discussion of risks to gender-affirming care.When asked to compare the risks of puberty blockers to aspirin, he couldn’t make a direct comparison.“It’s hard to compare,” he said. “With any intervention, you want to balance risk and benefit and look at all the treatment options.”Gillian Wilcox, an attorney with the ACLU of Missouri, asked if he has published a peer-reviewed article on gender dysphoria. He hadn’t.“My article, if I were to write one, would be rejected by most medical journals because there is no good treatment,” Weiss said. “I call it child-harming treatment. There is no good intervention.”He has testified in favor of state bans on gender-affirming care for minors. He told Wilcox that the Center for Christian Virtue, an advocacy group with anti-LGBTQ views, asked him to testify and he was paid to prepare his testimony.He does not have clinical experience with minors.In the state’s&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/20/lawsuit-seeking-to-block-missouri-ban-on-gender-affirming-care-for-minors-heads-to-trial/">pretrial brief</a>, Solicitor General Joshua Divine wrote that defendants will only need to prove “medical and scientific uncertainty” to show that state lawmakers are allowed to enact restrictions on gender-affirming care.Although the state has entered the trial confident in the task ahead, credibility may limit what the judge will consider from its experts.Other witnesses Tuesday included parents, one of which lives in Chicago, who disagreed with their children about their transition.