BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>.&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

Action didn’t stop as lawmakers endorse plates for Royals, Sporting KC, Current

TOPEKA — Members of the Kansas Senate thought it was such a super idea to issue a special license plate for the Kansas City Chiefs, they kept piling on.

Before the dust settled Wednesday on the Senate floor, distinctive plates for the Chiefs, Kansas City Royals, Sporting Kansas City, Kansas City Current and Sedgwick County Zoo had been included in Senate Bill 359. The bill was approved 36-2 and forwarded to the Kansas House.

Sen. Kellie Warren, a Leawood Republican, said she was asked by a friend who worked for the Chiefs to introduce a bill authorizing a special license plate for the NFL franchise in Kansas City, Missouri. The process began long before quarterback Patrick Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce and their teammates defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl on Feb. 11.

“Being a lifelong Chiefs fan and seeing the unity of the community, of the state and the region that the Chiefs bring, of course, I said, ‘Yes,'” Warren said.

The measure pulled together by the Senate Transportation Committee’s bill would designate the Hunt Family Foundation as recipient of revenue from Kansans acquiring a Chiefs license plate for use on passenger cars and trucks.

The committee altered Warren’s game plan by including a plate tied to the professional soccer club Sporting Kansas City, with proceeds going to the Kansas City Soccer Foundation for the Victory Project. The committee also endorsed a distinctive plate supporting the Sedgwick County Zoo.

Sen. Rob Olson, an Olathe Republican, said during Senate debate on the bill that he’d been a Chiefs fan all his life and would likely acquire one of the new plates for his own vehicle. But he didn’t want to leave out the other occupant of Truman Sports Complex. He offered an amendment authorizing a plate honoring the Kansas City Royals, which was accepted by the Senate.

“Right now there are a lot of Chiefs fans,” Olson said, “but at the right periods it seems like there is a lot of Royals fans, too.”

Sen. John Doll, the Garden City Republican, said he wasn’t keen on showering Missouri with cross-border affection.

“Supporting one Missouri team hurts. Supporting two really hurts,” he said. “Hopefully, next year we can do some tags for New Mexico and Colorado and Wisconsin — all of them.”

Sen. Dinah Sykes, D-Lenexa, secured approval of an amendment creating a license plate for the Kansas City Current, part of the National Women’s Soccer League.

Under terms of the bill, supporters of each license plate must secure commitments for a minimum of 250 plates and sponsors must pay up to $5,000 for development costs. The license plates couldn’t be transferred from one person to another, but permission could be granted by the Kansas Department of Revenue to transfer a plate from a leased to a purchased vehicle.

During Senate consideration of the bill, members didn’t focus attention on the Feb. 14 shooting at the Super Bowl parade and rally for the Chiefs that left one person dead and two dozen wounded. The injured ranged in age from 8 to 47, police said.

On Tuesday, Gov. Laura Kelly directed flags in Kansas be flown at half-staff from sunrise until sunset Saturday in honor of Elizabeth “Lisa” Lopez-Galvan of Johnson County, who was killed outside the city’s historic Union Station when shots were fired into the crowd.

“Kansans and the entire Kansas City community are mourning the loss of Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a DJ and mother of two from Shawnee. I’m grieving for her family and for all the victims and their loved ones,” Kelly said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1708541290426.png" alt=" Sen. Kellie Warren, a Johnson County Republican, started with a bill creating a distinctive Kansas license plate honoring the Kansas City Chiefs. Before the Senate got through with the bill, it also honored the Royals, Current, Sporting KC an a zoo. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> Sen. Kellie Warren, a Johnson County Republican, started with a bill creating a distinctive Kansas license plate honoring the Kansas City Chiefs. Before the Senate got through with the bill, it also honored the Royals, Current, Sporting KC an a zoo. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>.&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a><h2>Action didn’t stop as lawmakers endorse plates for Royals, Sporting KC, Current</h2>TOPEKA — Members of the Kansas Senate thought it was such a super idea to issue a special license plate for the Kansas City Chiefs, they kept piling on.Before the dust settled Wednesday on the Senate floor, distinctive plates for the Chiefs, Kansas City Royals, Sporting Kansas City, Kansas City Current and Sedgwick County Zoo had been included in Senate Bill 359. The bill was approved 36-2 and forwarded to the Kansas House.Sen. Kellie Warren, a Leawood Republican, said she was asked by a friend who worked for the Chiefs to introduce a bill authorizing a special license plate for the NFL franchise in Kansas City, Missouri. The process began long before quarterback Patrick Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce and their teammates defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl on Feb. 11.“Being a lifelong Chiefs fan and seeing the unity of the community, of the state and the region that the Chiefs bring, of course, I said, ‘Yes,'” Warren said.The measure pulled together by the Senate Transportation Committee’s bill would designate the Hunt Family Foundation as recipient of revenue from Kansans acquiring a Chiefs license plate for use on passenger cars and trucks.The committee altered Warren’s game plan by including a plate tied to the professional soccer club Sporting Kansas City, with proceeds going to the Kansas City Soccer Foundation for the Victory Project. The committee also endorsed a distinctive plate supporting the Sedgwick County Zoo.Sen. Rob Olson, an Olathe Republican, said during Senate debate on the bill that he’d been a Chiefs fan all his life and would likely acquire one of the new plates for his own vehicle. But he didn’t want to leave out the other occupant of Truman Sports Complex. He offered an amendment authorizing a plate honoring the Kansas City Royals, which was accepted by the Senate.“Right now there are a lot of Chiefs fans,” Olson said, “but at the right periods it seems like there is a lot of Royals fans, too.”Sen. John Doll, the Garden City Republican, said he wasn’t keen on showering Missouri with cross-border affection.“Supporting one Missouri team hurts. Supporting two really hurts,” he said. “Hopefully, next year we can do some tags for New Mexico and Colorado and Wisconsin — all of them.”Sen. Dinah Sykes, D-Lenexa, secured approval of an amendment creating a license plate for the Kansas City Current, part of the National Women’s Soccer League.Under terms of the bill, supporters of each license plate must secure commitments for a minimum of 250 plates and sponsors must pay up to $5,000 for development costs. The license plates couldn’t be transferred from one person to another, but permission could be granted by the Kansas Department of Revenue to transfer a plate from a leased to a purchased vehicle.During Senate consideration of the bill, members didn’t focus attention on the Feb. 14 shooting at the Super Bowl parade and rally for the Chiefs that left one person dead and two dozen wounded. The injured ranged in age from 8 to 47, police said.On Tuesday, Gov. Laura Kelly directed flags in Kansas be flown at half-staff from sunrise until sunset Saturday in honor of Elizabeth “Lisa” Lopez-Galvan of Johnson County, who was killed outside the city’s historic Union Station when shots were fired into the crowd.“Kansans and the entire Kansas City community are mourning the loss of Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a DJ and mother of two from Shawnee. I’m grieving for her family and for all the victims and their loved ones,” Kelly said.

Kan. Senate tackles challenge of bill authorizing license plate honoring KC Chiefs

SEDGWICK COUNTY — The man captured after his abduction of a 6-year-old Kansas girl is going to prison.

Last week, Judge Eric Williams sentenced 35-year-old Benjamin Brady to 4-years and 8-months in prison, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

In Nov. 22022, police responded to the 2300 block of N. Amidon in Wichita for an auto theft, kidnapping in a liquor store parking lot, according to Officer Trevor Macy.

A 35-year-old man reported that while he had gone into the store, an unknown man, later identified as Brady, stole his&nbsp;gold/tan Lexus Rx330 with his 6-year-old daughter still inside.

Officers immediately began checking the area for the vehicle and the juvenile and&nbsp; utilized Flock cameras and other License Plate Reader (LPR) technology and learned that the vehicle had entered the Kansas Turnpike headed South.

Neighboring counties, the Kansas Highway Patrol, Oklahoma Highway Patrol, and the Tulsa Police Department were notified of the circumstances and the vehicle's last known location.

Troopers with Oklahoma Highway Patrol were able to stop the car approximately 22 miles south of the Kansas/Oklahoma state line and recover the girl.&nbsp;&nbsp;Brady, was taken into custody by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and booked into the Kay County, Oklahoma jail.

Brady pleaded guilty to attempted kidnapping and felony theft.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/11/1669067284425.png" alt="Brady photo Ssedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Brady photo Ssedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY — The man captured after his abduction of a 6-year-old Kansas girl is going to prison.Last week, Judge Eric Williams sentenced 35-year-old Benjamin Brady to 4-years and 8-months in prison, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.In Nov. 22022, police responded to the 2300 block of N. Amidon in Wichita for an auto theft, kidnapping in a liquor store parking lot, according to Officer Trevor Macy.A 35-year-old man reported that while he had gone into the store, an unknown man, later identified as Brady, stole his&nbsp;gold/tan Lexus Rx330 with his 6-year-old daughter still inside.Officers immediately began checking the area for the vehicle and the juvenile and&nbsp; utilized Flock cameras and other License Plate Reader (LPR) technology and learned that the vehicle had entered the Kansas Turnpike headed South.Neighboring counties, the Kansas Highway Patrol, Oklahoma Highway Patrol, and the Tulsa Police Department were notified of the circumstances and the vehicle's last known location.Troopers with Oklahoma Highway Patrol were able to stop the car approximately 22 miles south of the Kansas/Oklahoma state line and recover the girl.&nbsp;&nbsp;Brady, was taken into custody by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and booked into the Kay County, Oklahoma jail.Brady pleaded guilty to attempted kidnapping and felony theft.&nbsp;

Kan. man who stole SUV with 6-year-old inside is going to prison

JOHNSON COUNTY—One person died in an accident just before 7a.m. Wednesday in Johnson County.

The two-vehicle crash occurred in the 7200 block of eastbound Interstate 435 Highway, according to officer John Lacy.&nbsp;  One of the vehicles left the roadway and rolled. The unrestrained driver was ejected from the vehicle. 

EMS transported the driver to an area hospital where he later died from his injuries. 

The Overland Park Police Traffic Safety Unit is in charge of the investigation. Police released no additional details.

JOHNSON COUNTY—One person died in an accident just before 7a.m. Wednesday in Johnson County.The two-vehicle crash occurred in the 7200 block of eastbound Interstate 435 Highway, according to officer John Lacy.&nbsp; One of the vehicles left the roadway and rolled. The unrestrained driver was ejected from the vehicle. EMS transported the driver to an area hospital where he later died from his injuries. The Overland Park Police Traffic Safety Unit is in charge of the investigation. Police released no additional details.

Man dies after ejected in 2-vehicle Kansas crash

&nbsp;SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities continue their investigation of a January murder in Wichita.&nbsp; According to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office, police will present their case Wednesday against a second suspect identified as 27-year-old Robert Howland in the death of 35-year-old LaDonte Ostrander.&nbsp; 

On January 22, Yancy Hermosillo, 27, was charged with 2nd degree murder in the&nbsp; shooting, according to the District Attorney's office.

On Jan. 16, police responded to a 911 call reporting gunshots in the 1000 block of S. Market, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.&nbsp; 

In the 900 block of S. Market Street, first responders discovered Ostrander with a gunshot wound to his lower extremities. Sedgwick County EMS transported him in critical condition to an area hospital where he was later pronounced deceased.

&nbsp;On January 18, police arrested Hermosillo, a<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/InmateSearch/Details.aspx?Id=397415">ccording to online arrest</a>&nbsp;records.

Just after 2a.m. January 20, police arrested 27-year-old Robert Howland in the 1300 block of S. Santa Fe in Wichita in connection with the death of Ostrander.

Hermosillo <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/InmateSearch/Details.aspx?Id=230072">remains jailed on bond</a>s totaling over 10 million dollars, according to online jail records.

Hermosillo has previous felony convictions for domestic battery, criminal threat,&nbsp; and aggravated interference with parental custody, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/1/1705588462988.png" alt="Hermosillo-photo Sedgwick Co." />
 <figcaption>Hermosillo-photo Sedgwick Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>&nbsp;SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities continue their investigation of a January murder in Wichita.&nbsp; According to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office, police will present their case Wednesday against a second suspect identified as 27-year-old Robert Howland in the death of 35-year-old LaDonte Ostrander.&nbsp; On January 22, Yancy Hermosillo, 27, was charged with 2nd degree murder in the&nbsp; shooting, according to the District Attorney's office.On Jan. 16, police responded to a 911 call reporting gunshots in the 1000 block of S. Market, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.&nbsp; In the 900 block of S. Market Street, first responders discovered Ostrander with a gunshot wound to his lower extremities. Sedgwick County EMS transported him in critical condition to an area hospital where he was later pronounced deceased.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/1/1705851796859.png" alt="Howland-photo Sedgwick Co." />
 <figcaption>Howland-photo Sedgwick Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>&nbsp;On January 18, police arrested Hermosillo, a<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/InmateSearch/Details.aspx?Id=397415">ccording to online arrest</a>&nbsp;records. Just after 2a.m. January 20, police arrested 27-year-old Robert Howland in the 1300 block of S. Santa Fe in Wichita in connection with the death of Ostrander.Hermosillo <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/InmateSearch/Details.aspx?Id=230072">remains jailed on bond</a>s totaling over 10 million dollars, according to online jail records.Hermosillo has previous felony convictions for domestic battery, criminal threat,&nbsp; and aggravated interference with parental custody, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.&nbsp;

Police to present case against 2nd suspect in Kansas murder

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-hur-garland-classified-documents-836b99fe9cbef9ba7d32602f4928efec#:~:text=WASHINGTON%20(AP)%20%E2%80%94%20A%20special,criminal%20charges%20were%20not%20warranted.">avoided criminal charges around his handling of classified documents</a>&nbsp;in part because of his answers during a lengthy interview with the special counsel investigating him. But the sit-down also opened Biden up to fresh scrutiny over his age and memory, and now the public release of a transcript of that discussion is being sought by both Biden allies and critics seeking political advantage.

(click below to watch Biden answer questions about his memory)

The five-hour interview over two days, led by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/who-is-robert-hur-special-counsel-biden-d715ffd26adc75f2ba740d1960936a09">special counsel Robert Hur</a>, helped establish that Biden didn’t intend to retain most of the sensitive records from his vice presidency that were found at his home and personal office. But Hur’s report also repeatedly impugned Biden’s memory in a deeply personal way, suggesting, for example, the president couldn’t remember when his own son had died.

The transcript, if released, could provide a fuller picture of the conversation.

The White House has the ultimate say over whether to make public the transcript or audio recording of the interview or to claim executive privilege and keep the interview private. There's precedent for documents related to White House investigations to ultimately become public — but also to be withheld.

A transcript of President Bill Clinton’s 1998 grand jury appearance related to allegations of a sexual relationship with intern Monica Lewinsky was included as part of Independent Counsel Ken Starr’s massive report, which was delivered to the House and subsequently released to the public by Congress following a vote.

The Starr team debated extensively how much to disclose in the report, mindful of the graphic and sensitive nature of the findings, said Robert Bittman, who served as a Starr deputy during the investigation. Recognizing that it was ultimately up to the House to decide what to public public, the team gave “all the information (to Congress) that we had so they can make their own decisions.”

President George W. Bush, on the other hand, invoked executive privilege to block Congress from seeing the FBI report of an interview with Vice President Dick Cheney and other records related to the administration's leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity in 2003. The move angered Congress.

Bittman said he did not think it was “necessarily a good thing” for investigative reports to be made public. But now that the Hur report has been disclosed, he said, it would be helpful to release the transcript of Biden’s interview “so that people can judge for themselves about whether Hur’s opinions about what President Biden said and what he remembered and what he didn’t remember is justified.”

“If you see that the White House objects to it, it probably suggests that the transcripts are not good for the White House,” Bittman said, “and if they support release of it, then I suspect that that suggests the transcripts are good for the White House or President Biden.”

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-trump-transition-archives-classified-documents-0962248067aa95ae129287c4b400f999">The White House</a>&nbsp;is weighing whether or not to release it.

Biden's interview text and the audio recording are classified, because they include a discussion of highly sensitive documents. Any potential release could happen either by a decision of the White House or through the Justice Department working to comply with congressional oversight requests. Both would follow nearly identical procedures.

Once a decision to pursue release of the interview was made, the sensitive parts of the document would be sent to the intelligence community to assess what could be declassified and what would need to be redacted. A further review would be warranted to determine if anything discussed about the security of the president’s home might impact protective measures.

Finally, the White House would need to weigh in, with the advice of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, on whether to recommend that Biden invoke executive privilege over what others had cleared for publication.

Though Biden didn’t invoke executive privilege over the full report, the transcript could well be a different story. Among the documents found in Biden’s home were records of deliberations over&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/b76f5d92b38d429c877564ad9ff9661a">a potential U.S. troop surge during the Afghanistan war</a>&nbsp;and other conversations within the White House — an area that presidents are particularly loath to have publicly discussed.

The interview with Biden was conducted over two days last October, right after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-rockets-airstrikes-tel-aviv-11fb98655c256d54ecb5329284fc37d2">Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel.</a>

Hur and his deputy, Marc Krickbaum, a former Trump-appointed U.S. attorney from Iowa, asked all of the questions. Biden was joined by White House Counsel Ed Siskel, the counsel’s office investigations leader Richard Sauber and the president's personal lawyer Bob Bauer. Several other individuals from both sides were in the room as well, according to a person familiar with the interviews who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss them.

Separately, House Republicans have reached out to Hur and his representatives on the possibility of Hur testifying before Congress, and he has expressed a willingness to do so, according to two people who were not authorized to speak publicly about the request and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Republicans and Democrats alike are interested in more complete details about what went into the report. Biden and his allies say a full transcript would show the president is mentally sharp and will prove that Hur cherry-picked moments solely to make him seem feeble. Biden’s attorneys raised their concerns to Attorney General Merrick Garland, who nonetheless decided to keep the report as is and made it public.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-memory-classified-documents-election-9a519ea3f9ec514187d10e758c6535ac">Bauer, speaking on CBS’s “Face the Nation” over the weekend,</a>&nbsp;offered an anecdote that didn’t make it into the report but that would be in a transcript. He said Hur acknowledged that sometimes he asked imprecise questions — ones that Biden picked apart.

“Now, everybody in the room recognized that was the case, that showed the president was listening carefully and understood precisely what was wrong with those questions," Bauer said. "I didn’t come away from the special counsel’s failure to ask precise questions and think to myself, ‘he has mental acuity problems,’ I just thought he was asking bad questions.”

Republicans, meanwhile, have also requested that the audio of the interviews be made public and want to know more on why Hur chose not to prosecute Biden, particularly when they noted in their report that some evidence showed he held onto and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-ghostwriter-mark-zwonitzer-classified-documents-case-8ad6e560c2eb54e25db149a2d01ad545">shared with a ghostwriter</a>&nbsp;highly classified information.

Hur said in his report that he did find evidence that Biden had willfully mishandled classified records but not enough evidence for a criminal prosecution like the one against former President Donald Trump.

Trump, in addition to being charged with intentionally hoarding top-secret documents after he left office, is also accused of obstructing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-classified-documents-justice-department-maralago-cd3b59e50d33eea942772186111c240e">FBI efforts to get them back and of asking staff to conceal evidence from investigators.</a>

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/classified-documents-biden-trump-special-counsel-b5589ea8f066ede51c8138665f108f7a">Biden and his team, by contrast, alerted law enforcement officials</a>&nbsp;after locating classified records, willingly handed over documents to the government and cooperated with investigators by allowing the FBI to search his properties for any additional files.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707440990814.png" alt="File- President Biden answered questions last week about his age and memory- White House image" />
 <figcaption>File- President Biden answered questions last week about his age and memory- White House image</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-hur-garland-classified-documents-836b99fe9cbef9ba7d32602f4928efec#:~:text=WASHINGTON%20(AP)%20%E2%80%94%20A%20special,criminal%20charges%20were%20not%20warranted.">avoided criminal charges around his handling of classified documents</a>&nbsp;in part because of his answers during a lengthy interview with the special counsel investigating him. But the sit-down also opened Biden up to fresh scrutiny over his age and memory, and now the public release of a transcript of that discussion is being sought by both Biden allies and critics seeking political advantage.(click below to watch Biden answer questions about his memory)<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FWhiteHouse%2Fvideos%2F690627529895091%2F&show_text=false&width=560&t=243" width="560" height="314" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707478982378.png" alt="From the Special Counsel Report" />
 <figcaption>From the Special Counsel Report</figcaption>
 </figure>The five-hour interview over two days, led by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/who-is-robert-hur-special-counsel-biden-d715ffd26adc75f2ba740d1960936a09">special counsel Robert Hur</a>, helped establish that Biden didn’t intend to retain most of the sensitive records from his vice presidency that were found at his home and personal office. But Hur’s report also repeatedly impugned Biden’s memory in a deeply personal way, suggesting, for example, the president couldn’t remember when his own son had died.The transcript, if released, could provide a fuller picture of the conversation.The White House has the ultimate say over whether to make public the transcript or audio recording of the interview or to claim executive privilege and keep the interview private. There's precedent for documents related to White House investigations to ultimately become public — but also to be withheld.A transcript of President Bill Clinton’s 1998 grand jury appearance related to allegations of a sexual relationship with intern Monica Lewinsky was included as part of Independent Counsel Ken Starr’s massive report, which was delivered to the House and subsequently released to the public by Congress following a vote.The Starr team debated extensively how much to disclose in the report, mindful of the graphic and sensitive nature of the findings, said Robert Bittman, who served as a Starr deputy during the investigation. Recognizing that it was ultimately up to the House to decide what to public public, the team gave “all the information (to Congress) that we had so they can make their own decisions.”President George W. Bush, on the other hand, invoked executive privilege to block Congress from seeing the FBI report of an interview with Vice President Dick Cheney and other records related to the administration's leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity in 2003. The move angered Congress.Bittman said he did not think it was “necessarily a good thing” for investigative reports to be made public. But now that the Hur report has been disclosed, he said, it would be helpful to release the transcript of Biden’s interview “so that people can judge for themselves about whether Hur’s opinions about what President Biden said and what he remembered and what he didn’t remember is justified.”“If you see that the White House objects to it, it probably suggests that the transcripts are not good for the White House,” Bittman said, “and if they support release of it, then I suspect that that suggests the transcripts are good for the White House or President Biden.”<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-trump-transition-archives-classified-documents-0962248067aa95ae129287c4b400f999">The White House</a>&nbsp;is weighing whether or not to release it.Biden's interview text and the audio recording are classified, because they include a discussion of highly sensitive documents. Any potential release could happen either by a decision of the White House or through the Justice Department working to comply with congressional oversight requests. Both would follow nearly identical procedures.Once a decision to pursue release of the interview was made, the sensitive parts of the document would be sent to the intelligence community to assess what could be declassified and what would need to be redacted. A further review would be warranted to determine if anything discussed about the security of the president’s home might impact protective measures.Finally, the White House would need to weigh in, with the advice of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, on whether to recommend that Biden invoke executive privilege over what others had cleared for publication.Though Biden didn’t invoke executive privilege over the full report, the transcript could well be a different story. Among the documents found in Biden’s home were records of deliberations over&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/b76f5d92b38d429c877564ad9ff9661a">a potential U.S. troop surge during the Afghanistan war</a>&nbsp;and other conversations within the White House — an area that presidents are particularly loath to have publicly discussed.The interview with Biden was conducted over two days last October, right after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-rockets-airstrikes-tel-aviv-11fb98655c256d54ecb5329284fc37d2">Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel.</a>Hur and his deputy, Marc Krickbaum, a former Trump-appointed U.S. attorney from Iowa, asked all of the questions. Biden was joined by White House Counsel Ed Siskel, the counsel’s office investigations leader Richard Sauber and the president's personal lawyer Bob Bauer. Several other individuals from both sides were in the room as well, according to a person familiar with the interviews who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss them.Separately, House Republicans have reached out to Hur and his representatives on the possibility of Hur testifying before Congress, and he has expressed a willingness to do so, according to two people who were not authorized to speak publicly about the request and spoke on condition of anonymity.Republicans and Democrats alike are interested in more complete details about what went into the report. Biden and his allies say a full transcript would show the president is mentally sharp and will prove that Hur cherry-picked moments solely to make him seem feeble. Biden’s attorneys raised their concerns to Attorney General Merrick Garland, who nonetheless decided to keep the report as is and made it public.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-memory-classified-documents-election-9a519ea3f9ec514187d10e758c6535ac">Bauer, speaking on CBS’s “Face the Nation” over the weekend,</a>&nbsp;offered an anecdote that didn’t make it into the report but that would be in a transcript. He said Hur acknowledged that sometimes he asked imprecise questions — ones that Biden picked apart.“Now, everybody in the room recognized that was the case, that showed the president was listening carefully and understood precisely what was wrong with those questions," Bauer said. "I didn’t come away from the special counsel’s failure to ask precise questions and think to myself, ‘he has mental acuity problems,’ I just thought he was asking bad questions.”Republicans, meanwhile, have also requested that the audio of the interviews be made public and want to know more on why Hur chose not to prosecute Biden, particularly when they noted in their report that some evidence showed he held onto and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-ghostwriter-mark-zwonitzer-classified-documents-case-8ad6e560c2eb54e25db149a2d01ad545">shared with a ghostwriter</a>&nbsp;highly classified information.Hur said in his report that he did find evidence that Biden had willfully mishandled classified records but not enough evidence for a criminal prosecution like the one against former President Donald Trump.Trump, in addition to being charged with intentionally hoarding top-secret documents after he left office, is also accused of obstructing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-classified-documents-justice-department-maralago-cd3b59e50d33eea942772186111c240e">FBI efforts to get them back and of asking staff to conceal evidence from investigators.</a><a href="https://apnews.com/article/classified-documents-biden-trump-special-counsel-b5589ea8f066ede51c8138665f108f7a">Biden and his team, by contrast, alerted law enforcement officials</a>&nbsp;after locating classified records, willingly handed over documents to the government and cooperated with investigators by allowing the FBI to search his properties for any additional files.

🎥Will the White House release transcript of Biden's special counsel interview?

JOHNSON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged road-rage incident and have a suspect in custody.

Just after 8a.m. Tuesday, police responded to a road rage incident in the area of College Blvd. and Cody Street in Overland, according to Officer John Lacy.

The victim reported the original road rage incident took place at Shawnee Mission Parkway and Interstate 35 Highway.   The victim reported the road rage incident to dispatch and followed the suspect vehicle.  At College Blvd. and Nieman the male suspect driver fired several rounds at the victim’s vehicle, according to police.

 The suspect then sped off and then crashed at College Blvd. and Cody Street.

Police took the adult male suspect into custody.  There were no injuries. 

    If you witnessed this incident or have any further information please contact the Overland Park Police Department at 913-895-6300 or the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.   Officer John Lacy #653Overland Park Police Public Information Officer

JOHNSON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged road-rage incident and have a suspect in custody.Just after 8a.m. Tuesday, police responded to a road rage incident in the area of College Blvd. and Cody Street in Overland, according to Officer John Lacy.The victim reported the original road rage incident took place at Shawnee Mission Parkway and Interstate 35 Highway. The victim reported the road rage incident to dispatch and followed the suspect vehicle. At College Blvd. and Nieman the male suspect driver fired several rounds at the victim’s vehicle, according to police. The suspect then sped off and then crashed at College Blvd. and Cody Street.Police took the adult male suspect into custody. There were no injuries. If you witnessed this incident or have any further information please contact the Overland Park Police Department at 913-895-6300 or the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS. Officer John Lacy #653Overland Park Police Public Information Officer

Suspect arrested for Kansas road rage shooting 

KANSAS CITY —The Jackson County Prosecutor's Office will hold at least two more counseling sessions this week, the first on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, at CPC (Child Protection Center) from 3 to 6 p.m., according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jan Peters Baker.

Meanwhile, the prosecutor's office also maintains a hotline number for persons who want to call and talk to someone. The hotline number is 816-881-1540.

CPC is located at 2940 Main Street in Kansas City. Mental health professionals and advocates will be available for persons who come to CPC. The center specializes in helping children.

A second event is being organized for Saturday, Feb. 24, at a location on Kansas City's westside. Check the Post for additional details on this event when it becomes available.

The prosecutor's office initiated these counseling sessions last week in the wake of the shootings at Union Station following the rally and parade. Since then, numerous churches, non-profit service providers and staff from the prosecutor's office have joined to help to bring counseling and some comfort to persons impacted emotionally by the tragic violence at the public event. The prosecutor's office extends its gratitude to all who have helped make these sessions valuable.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1708018810884.jpeg" alt="Emergency medical technicians walk around the scene after the shooting following the Kansas City Chiefs victory parade in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)." />
 <figcaption>Emergency medical technicians walk around the scene after the shooting following the Kansas City Chiefs victory parade in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel).</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —The Jackson County Prosecutor's Office will hold at least two more counseling sessions this week, the first on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, at CPC (Child Protection Center) from 3 to 6 p.m., according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jan Peters Baker.Meanwhile, the prosecutor's office also maintains a hotline number for persons who want to call and talk to someone. The hotline number is 816-881-1540.CPC is located at 2940 Main Street in Kansas City. Mental health professionals and advocates will be available for persons who come to CPC. The center specializes in helping children.A second event is being organized for Saturday, Feb. 24, at a location on Kansas City's westside. Check the Post for additional details on this event when it becomes available.The prosecutor's office initiated these counseling sessions last week in the wake of the shootings at Union Station following the rally and parade. Since then, numerous churches, non-profit service providers and staff from the prosecutor's office have joined to help to bring counseling and some comfort to persons impacted emotionally by the tragic violence at the public event. The prosecutor's office extends its gratitude to all who have helped make these sessions valuable.&nbsp;

More counseling services offered following KC rally shooting

FINNEY COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities and USD 457 are investigating a criminal threat at Garden City High School.

Just after 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, Garden City High School received a phone call from an unknown individual indicating there was a bomb inside theschool. Out of an abundance of caution, all students and staff were immediately evacuated and law enforcement was notified.

The Garden City Police Department, Finney County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas Highway Patrol, Finney County Emergency Management, Garden City Fire Department, and Finney County Emergency Medical Services responded accordingly and searched the school to ensure the safety of students and employees.

After a thorough investigation by law enforcement, no threats to the students, staff, or school were discovered, and Garden City

High School was released at its normal dismissal time. The scene was cleared around 3:30 p.m., and no explosives were located.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1708478304551.png" alt="photo Garden City Police" />
 <figcaption>photo Garden City Police</figcaption>
 </figure>FINNEY COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities and USD 457 are investigating a criminal threat at Garden City High School.Just after 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, Garden City High School received a phone call from an unknown individual indicating there was a bomb inside theschool. Out of an abundance of caution, all students and staff were immediately evacuated and law enforcement was notified.The Garden City Police Department, Finney County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas Highway Patrol, Finney County Emergency Management, Garden City Fire Department, and Finney County Emergency Medical Services responded accordingly and searched the school to ensure the safety of students and employees.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">UPDATE (3:30 P.M.): No threats to the students, staff, or school were discovered, and the scene is clear. A formal media release is forthcoming.&mdash; Garden City (KS) Police Department (@GCPD) <a href="https://twitter.com/GCPD/status/1760054600327938087?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">UPDATE (2:45 P.M.): Garden City High School will dismiss at its normal time. First Responders remain on scene continuing their investigation and are directing traffic at dismissal time. We will provide updates when available.&mdash; Garden City (KS) Police Department (@GCPD) <a href="https://twitter.com/GCPD/status/1760042888644182094?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">UPDATE (1:50 P.M.): First Responders are investigating a possible criminal threat at Garden City High School. The high school continues to keep students and staff out of the building. Please avoid the area as the investigation continues. We will provide updates when available.&mdash; Garden City (KS) Police Department (@GCPD) <a href="https://twitter.com/GCPD/status/1760029869524566200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fgckschools%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0DV9uoPEPVVPiz38Nc6NGjC7S7t6CumWHDpqhSJwsLJUNgMkY2hu8cqGtcy1WMjLxl&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="189" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div>After a thorough investigation by law enforcement, no threats to the students, staff, or school were discovered, and Garden CityHigh School was released at its normal dismissal time. The scene was cleared around 3:30 p.m., and no explosives were located.

Bomb threat forced evacuation at Kansas high school

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Despite a month of U.S.-led airstrikes,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-attacks-iran-ships-retaliation-houthis-d770a3fb0fab4c4b72e2459771833e11">Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels</a>&nbsp;remain capable of launching significant attacks. This week, they seriously damaged a ship in a crucial strait and downed an American drone worth tens of millions of dollars.

The continued assaults by the Houthis on shipping through the crucial Red Sea corridor — the Bab el-Mandeb Strait — against the backdrop of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip</a>&nbsp;underscore the challenges in trying to stop the guerrilla-style attacks they have used to hold onto Yemen's capital and much of the war-ravaged country's north since 2014.

The campaign has boosted the rebels' standing in the Arab world,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-middle-east-sanaa-houthis-religion-5e62561f8070441412ed52d222c950e3">despite their human rights abuses</a>&nbsp;in a yearslong stalemated war with several of America's allies in the region. Analysts warn that the longer the Houthis' attacks go on, the greater the risk that disruptions to international shipping will begin to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/red-sea-houthi-attacks-shipping-inflation-124d5445bec8ce6864112e3095646308">weigh on the global economy</a>.

On Monday, both the Houthis and Western officials acknowledged one of the most serious attacks on shipping launched by the rebels. The Houthis targeted the Belize-flagged bulk carrier Rubymar with two anti-ship ballistic missiles, and one struck the vessel, the U.S. military's Central Command said.

The Rubymar, which reported problems with its propulsion in November, apparently became inoperable, forcing her crew to abandon the vessel.

Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed on Monday night that the Rubymar sank. However, satellite images from Planet Labs PBC analyzed by The Associated Press showed the Rubymar still afloat at 2 p.m. local time Tuesday just north of the Bab el-Mandeb. A large oil slick trailed the vessel.

The Rubymar attack marked one of a few direct, serious hits by the Houthi rebels on shipping. In late January, another direct hit set&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthi-red-sea-israel-hamas-war-attacks-f36fc8911e069a5b4dbc4d9e67f31e50">a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker ablaze</a>&nbsp;for hours.

Meanwhile, the Houthis early Tuesday released footage of what they described as a surface-to-air missile bringing down a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone off the coast of Hodeida, a Yemeni port city they hold on the Red Sea. The footage included a video of men dragging pieces of debris from the water onto a beach.

Images of the debris, which included writing in English and what seemed to be electrical equipment, appeared to correspond to known pieces of the Reaper, usually used in attack missions and surveillance flights. Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told journalists in a briefing the Houthis shot down the drone.

In November, the Pentagon acknowledged the loss of an MQ-9, also shot down by the rebels over the Red Sea.

Since the Houthis seized the country’s north and its capital of Sanaa in 2014, the U.S. military has lost at least four drones to shootdowns by the rebels — in 2017, 2019 and this year.

Meanwhile, the Houthis claimed an attack on the Sea Champion, a Greek-flagged, U.S.-owned bulk carrier full of grain bound for Aden, Yemen, carrying grain from Argentina. Central Command said the carrier “has delivered humanitarian aid to Yemen 11 times in the past five years” as the country remains on the edge of famine amid the war there.

The rebels separately claimed an attack on the Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier Navis Fortuna, a ship that had been broadcasting its destination as Italy with an “all Chinese” crew to avoid being targeted. Private security firm Ambrey reported that the vessel sustained minor damage in a drone attack.

The U.S. shot down 10 bomb-carrying Houthi drones, as well as a cruise missile heading toward the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Laboon over the last day, Central Command said Tuesday. The U.S. military also conducted strikes targeting a Houthi surface-to-air missile launcher and a drone prior to its launch.

The Houthis acknowledged the drone attacks and claimed other assaults not immediately acknowledged by the West.

Since November, the rebels have repeatedly targeted ships in the Red Sea and surrounding waters over Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. They have frequently targeted vessels with tenuous or no clear links to Israel, imperiling shipping in a key route for trade among Asia, the Mideast and Europe. Those vessels have included&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-ship-missile-houthi-rebels-attack-bab-elmandeb-strait-999b911c916f9266c07a6d29cc020e9e">at least one with cargo for Iran</a>, the Houthis' main benefactor.

The European Union has launched its own campaign to protect shipping, with member France saying on Tuesday that it shot down two Houthi drones overnight in the Red Sea.

So far, no U.S. sailor or pilot has been wounded by the Houthis since America launched its airstrikes targeting the rebels in January. However, the U.S. continues to lose drones worth tens of millions of dollars and fire million-dollar cruise missiles to counter the Houthis, who are using far cheaper weapons that experts believe largely have been supplied by Iran.

Based on U.S. military statements, American and allied forces have destroyed at least 73 missiles of different types before they were launched, as well as 17 drones, 13 bomb-laden drone boats and one underwater explosive drone over their monthlong campaign, according to an AP tally. Those figures don't include the initial Jan. 11 joint U.S.-U.K. strikes that began the campaign. The American military also has shot down dozens of missiles and drones already airborne since November.

The Houthis haven't offered much information regarding their losses, though they've acknowledged at least 22 of their fighters have been killed in the American-led strikes. Insurgent forces including the Houthis and allied tribes in Yemen number around 20,000 fighters, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies. They can operate in small units away from military bases, making targeting them more difficult.

The Houthis may view the costs as balanced by their sudden fame within an Arab world enraged by the killing of women and civilians by Israel in Gaza.

In the past, others — including the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden — have used the Palestinians' plight to justify their “actions and garner support,” wrote Fatima Abo Alasrar, a scholar at the Washington-based Middle East Institute.

“It legitimizes the Houthis’ actions in the eyes of those who sympathize with the Palestinian cause, distracts from the more immediate issues associated with the Yemen conflict and the failures of Houthi governance, and potentially broadens the base of their support beyond Yemen’s borders,” Alasrar added.

If the Houthi attacks continue, it could force the U.S. to intensify and widen its counterattacks across an already volatile Mideast.

“Without a cease-fire in Gaza, the Houthis could be tempted to further escalate against U.S. interests in the Red Sea and in the region,” wrote Eleonora Ardemagni, a fellow at the Italian Institute for International Political Studies.

For Washington, “deterrence options” are getting narrower, she added.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/12/1701652753204.png" alt="File photo U.S. Central Command" />
 <figcaption>File photo U.S. Central Command</figcaption>
 </figure>DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Despite a month of U.S.-led airstrikes,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-attacks-iran-ships-retaliation-houthis-d770a3fb0fab4c4b72e2459771833e11">Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels</a>&nbsp;remain capable of launching significant attacks. This week, they seriously damaged a ship in a crucial strait and downed an American drone worth tens of millions of dollars.The continued assaults by the Houthis on shipping through the crucial Red Sea corridor — the Bab el-Mandeb Strait — against the backdrop of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip</a>&nbsp;underscore the challenges in trying to stop the guerrilla-style attacks they have used to hold onto Yemen's capital and much of the war-ravaged country's north since 2014.The campaign has boosted the rebels' standing in the Arab world,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-middle-east-sanaa-houthis-religion-5e62561f8070441412ed52d222c950e3">despite their human rights abuses</a>&nbsp;in a yearslong stalemated war with several of America's allies in the region. Analysts warn that the longer the Houthis' attacks go on, the greater the risk that disruptions to international shipping will begin to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/red-sea-houthi-attacks-shipping-inflation-124d5445bec8ce6864112e3095646308">weigh on the global economy</a>.On Monday, both the Houthis and Western officials acknowledged one of the most serious attacks on shipping launched by the rebels. The Houthis targeted the Belize-flagged bulk carrier Rubymar with two anti-ship ballistic missiles, and one struck the vessel, the U.S. military's Central Command said.The Rubymar, which reported problems with its propulsion in November, apparently became inoperable, forcing her crew to abandon the vessel.Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed on Monday night that the Rubymar sank. However, satellite images from Planet Labs PBC analyzed by The Associated Press showed the Rubymar still afloat at 2 p.m. local time Tuesday just north of the Bab el-Mandeb. A large oil slick trailed the vessel.The Rubymar attack marked one of a few direct, serious hits by the Houthi rebels on shipping. In late January, another direct hit set&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthi-red-sea-israel-hamas-war-attacks-f36fc8911e069a5b4dbc4d9e67f31e50">a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker ablaze</a>&nbsp;for hours.Meanwhile, the Houthis early Tuesday released footage of what they described as a surface-to-air missile bringing down a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone off the coast of Hodeida, a Yemeni port city they hold on the Red Sea. The footage included a video of men dragging pieces of debris from the water onto a beach.Images of the debris, which included writing in English and what seemed to be electrical equipment, appeared to correspond to known pieces of the Reaper, usually used in attack missions and surveillance flights. Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told journalists in a briefing the Houthis shot down the drone.In November, the Pentagon acknowledged the loss of an MQ-9, also shot down by the rebels over the Red Sea.Since the Houthis seized the country’s north and its capital of Sanaa in 2014, the U.S. military has lost at least four drones to shootdowns by the rebels — in 2017, 2019 and this year.Meanwhile, the Houthis claimed an attack on the Sea Champion, a Greek-flagged, U.S.-owned bulk carrier full of grain bound for Aden, Yemen, carrying grain from Argentina. Central Command said the carrier “has delivered humanitarian aid to Yemen 11 times in the past five years” as the country remains on the edge of famine amid the war there.The rebels separately claimed an attack on the Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier Navis Fortuna, a ship that had been broadcasting its destination as Italy with an “all Chinese” crew to avoid being targeted. Private security firm Ambrey reported that the vessel sustained minor damage in a drone attack.The U.S. shot down 10 bomb-carrying Houthi drones, as well as a cruise missile heading toward the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Laboon over the last day, Central Command said Tuesday. The U.S. military also conducted strikes targeting a Houthi surface-to-air missile launcher and a drone prior to its launch.The Houthis acknowledged the drone attacks and claimed other assaults not immediately acknowledged by the West.Since November, the rebels have repeatedly targeted ships in the Red Sea and surrounding waters over Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. They have frequently targeted vessels with tenuous or no clear links to Israel, imperiling shipping in a key route for trade among Asia, the Mideast and Europe. Those vessels have included&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-ship-missile-houthi-rebels-attack-bab-elmandeb-strait-999b911c916f9266c07a6d29cc020e9e">at least one with cargo for Iran</a>, the Houthis' main benefactor.The European Union has launched its own campaign to protect shipping, with member France saying on Tuesday that it shot down two Houthi drones overnight in the Red Sea.So far, no U.S. sailor or pilot has been wounded by the Houthis since America launched its airstrikes targeting the rebels in January. However, the U.S. continues to lose drones worth tens of millions of dollars and fire million-dollar cruise missiles to counter the Houthis, who are using far cheaper weapons that experts believe largely have been supplied by Iran.Based on U.S. military statements, American and allied forces have destroyed at least 73 missiles of different types before they were launched, as well as 17 drones, 13 bomb-laden drone boats and one underwater explosive drone over their monthlong campaign, according to an AP tally. Those figures don't include the initial Jan. 11 joint U.S.-U.K. strikes that began the campaign. The American military also has shot down dozens of missiles and drones already airborne since November.The Houthis haven't offered much information regarding their losses, though they've acknowledged at least 22 of their fighters have been killed in the American-led strikes. Insurgent forces including the Houthis and allied tribes in Yemen number around 20,000 fighters, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies. They can operate in small units away from military bases, making targeting them more difficult.The Houthis may view the costs as balanced by their sudden fame within an Arab world enraged by the killing of women and civilians by Israel in Gaza.In the past, others — including the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden — have used the Palestinians' plight to justify their “actions and garner support,” wrote Fatima Abo Alasrar, a scholar at the Washington-based Middle East Institute.“It legitimizes the Houthis’ actions in the eyes of those who sympathize with the Palestinian cause, distracts from the more immediate issues associated with the Yemen conflict and the failures of Houthi governance, and potentially broadens the base of their support beyond Yemen’s borders,” Alasrar added.If the Houthi attacks continue, it could force the U.S. to intensify and widen its counterattacks across an already volatile Mideast.“Without a cease-fire in Gaza, the Houthis could be tempted to further escalate against U.S. interests in the Red Sea and in the region,” wrote Eleonora Ardemagni, a fellow at the Italian Institute for International Political Studies.For Washington, “deterrence options” are getting narrower, she added.

Pentagon admits Iran-back rebels downed U.S. drone worth millions of dollars

NEW YORK (AP) — A curious criminal case involving&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hotel-california-lyrics-manuscript-trial-eagles-henley-973e74e795416821e6f022895b47b78e">handwritten lyrics to the classic rock megahit “Hotel California”</a>&nbsp;and other Eagles favorites is going to trial in a New York courtroom, with opening statements set for Wednesday.

The three defendants, all well-established in the collectibles world, are accused of scheming to thwart Eagles co-founder Don Henley’s efforts to reclaim the allegedly ill-gotten documents.

The trial concerns more than 80 pages of drafts of the words to songs from the “Hotel California” album, the 1976 release that stands today as the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/3c0b39a1bb5b4e44aafe2c4e05a4b67f">third-biggest selling disc ever</a>&nbsp;in the U.S.

Rare-book dealer Glenn Horowitz, former Rock &amp; Roll Hall of Fame curator Craig Inciardi and memorabilia seller Edward Kosinski have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and various other charges. Their lawyers have said the case “alleges criminality where none exists and unfairly tarnishes the reputations of well-respected professionals.”

The documents include lyrics-in-development for “Life in the Fast Lane,” “New Kid in Town” and, of course, “Hotel California,” the more than six-minute-long, somewhat mysterious musical tale of the goings-on at an inviting, decadent but ultimately dark place where “you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.”

If scorned by some as an overexposed artifact of the '70s, the Grammy-winning song is still a touchstone on classic rock radio and many personal playlists. The entertainment data company Luminate counted over 220 million streams and 136,000 radio plays of “Hotel California” in the U.S. last year.

The case was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-music-new-york-california-290e31743f028951408a4a80a681f880">brought in 2022</a>, a decade after some of the pages began popping up for auction and Henley took notice — and took umbrage. He bought back a bit of the material for $8,500 but also reported the documents stolen, according to court filings.

At the time, the lyrics sheets were in the hands of Kosinski and Inciardi, who had bought them from Horowitz. He had purchased them in 2005 from Ed Sanders, a writer and 1960s counterculture figure who worked with the Eagles on a band biography that was shelved in the early '80s.

Sanders, who also co-founded the avant-garde rock group the Fugs, isn't charged in the case and hasn't responded to a message seeking comment about it.

Sanders told Horowitz in 2005 that Henley's assistant had mailed along any documents he wanted for the biography, though the writer worried that Henley “might conceivably be upset” if they were sold, according to emails recounted in the indictment.

But once Henley's lawyers began asking questions, Horowitz, Inciardi and Kosinski started maneuvering to gin up and disseminate a legally viable ownership history for the manuscripts, Manhattan prosecutors say.

According to the indictment, Inciardi and Horowitz floated evolving accounts of how Sanders obtained the documents. The explanations ranged over the next five years from Sanders finding them abandoned in a backstage dressing room to the writer getting them from Eagles co-founder Glenn Frey, who&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-music-8169f05ac21d43dda4b1c1dd8b065e28">died in 2016</a>.

Emails show some input and assent from Sanders, but he also apparently objected at least to the backstage-salvage story. In messages that didn't include him, Horowitz wrote about getting Sanders' “'explanation' shaped into a communication" and giving him “gentle handling” and assurances “that he's not going to the can,” the indictment says.

The defendants' lawyers have said that Sanders had legal possession of the documents, and so did the men who bought them from him. Defense attorneys have indicated they plan to question how clearly Henley remembers his dealings with Sanders and the lyric sheets at a time when the rock star was living life in the fast lane himself.

NEW YORK (AP) — In the mid-1970s, the Eagles were working on a spooky, cryptic new song.

On a lined yellow pad, Don Henley, with input from band co-founder Glenn Frey, jotted thoughts about “a dark desert highway" and “a lovely place” with a luxurious surface and ominous undertones. And something on ice, perhaps caviar or Taittinger — or pink Champagne?

The song, “Hotel California,” became one of rock's most indelible singles. And nearly a half-century later, those handwritten pages of lyrics-in-the-making have become the center of an unusual criminal trial set to open Wednesday.

Rare-book dealer Glenn Horowitz, former Rock &amp; Roll Hall of Fame curator Craig Inciardi and memorabilia seller Edward Kosinski are charged with conspiring to own and try to sell manuscripts of “Hotel California” and other Eagles hits without the right to do so.

The three have pleaded not guilty, and their lawyers have said the men committed no crime with the papers, which they acquired via a writer who'd worked with the Eagles. But the Manhattan district attorney’s office says the defendants connived to obscure the documents’ disputed ownership, despite knowing that Henley said the pages were stolen.

Clashes over valuable collectibles abound, but criminal trials like this are rare. Many fights are resolved in private, in lawsuits or with agreements to return the items.

“If you can avoid a prosecution by handing over the thing, most people just hand it over," said Travis McDade, a University of Illinois law professor who studies rare document disputes.

Of course, the case of the Eagles manuscripts is distinctive in other ways, too.

The prosecutors' star witness is indeed that: Henley is expected to testify between Eagles tour stops. The non-jury trial could offer a peek into the band's creative process and life in the fast lane of '70s stardom.

At issue are over 80 pages of draft lyrics from the blockbuster 1976 “Hotel California” album, including words to the chart-topping, Grammy-winning title cut. It features one of classic rock's most recognizable riffs, best-known solos and most oft-quoted — arguably overquoted — lines: “You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.”

Henley&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/don-henley-the-eagles-glenn-frey-kennedy-center-honor-hotel-california/">has said</a>&nbsp;the song is about “the dark underbelly of the American dream."

It still was streamed over 220 million times and got 136,000 radio spins last year in the U.S. alone, according to the entertainment data company Luminate. The “Hotel California” album&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/3c0b39a1bb5b4e44aafe2c4e05a4b67f">has sold 26 million copies nationwide</a>&nbsp;over the years, bested only by an Eagles' greatest hits disc and Michael Jackson's “Thriller.”

The pages also include lyrics from songs including “Life in the Fast Lane” and “New Kid in Town.” Eagles manager Irving Azoff has called the documents “irreplaceable pieces of musical history.”

Horowitz, Inciardi and Kosinki are charged with conspiracy to possess stolen property and various other offenses.

They’re not charged with actually stealing documents. Nor is anyone else, but prosecutors will still have to establish that the documents were stolen. The defense maintains that's not true.

Much turns on the Eagles' interactions with Ed Sanders, a writer who also co-founded the 1960s counterculture rock band the Fugs. He worked in the late ‘70s and early ’80s on an authorized Eagles biography that was never published.

Sanders isn’t charged in the case. A phone message seeking comment was left for him.

He sold the pages to Horowitz, who then sold them to Inciardi and Kosinski.

Horowitz has handled huge rare book and archive deals, and he's been entangled in some ownership spats before. One involved papers linked to "Gone With the Wind″ author Margaret Mitchell. It was settled.

Inciardi worked on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/1638d88917dd46f2a1a915ed35f70b09">notable exhibitions</a>&nbsp;for the Cleveland-based Rock Hall of Fame. Kosinski has been a principal in Gotta Have It! Collectibles, known for auctioning celebrities’ personal possessions — so personal that Madonna&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/e97e69c287624787b094ed2a161489a1">unsuccessfully sued</a>&nbsp;to try to stop a sale that included her latex briefs.

Henley told a grand jury he never gave the biographer the lyrics, according to court filings from Kosinski's lawyers. But defense lawyers have signaled that they plan to probe Henley’s memory of the time.

“We believe that Mr. Henley voluntarily provided the lyrics to Mr. Sanders,” attorney Scott Edelman said in court last week.

Sanders told Horowitz in 2005 that while working on the Eagles book, he was sent whatever papers he wanted from Henley’s home in Malibu, California, according to the indictment.

Then Kosinski’s business offered some pages at auction in 2012. Henley’s attorneys came knocking. And Horowitz, Inciardi and Sanders, in varying combinations, began batting around alternate versions of the manuscripts’ provenance, the indictment says.

In one story, Sanders found the pages discarded in a backstage dressing room. In others, he got them from a stage assistant or while amassing “a lot of material related to the Eagles from different people." In yet another, he obtained them from Frey — an account that “would make this go away once and for all," Horowitz suggested in 2017. Frey had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-music-8169f05ac21d43dda4b1c1dd8b065e28">died the year before</a>.

“He merely needs gentle handling and reassurance that he's not going to the can,” Horowitz emailed Inciardi during a 2012 exchange about getting Sanders' “‘explanation’ shaped into a communication” to auctioneers, the indictment says.

Sanders supplied or signed off on some of the varying explanations, according to the indictment, and it’s unclear what he may have conveyed verbally. But he apparently rejected at least the dressing-room tale.

Kosinki forwarded one explanation, approved by Sanders, to Henley's lawyer. Kosinski also assured Sotheby's auction house that the musician had “no claim” to the documents and asked to keep potential bidders in the dark about Henley's complaints, the indictment says.

Sotheby's listed the “Hotel California” song lyrics in a 2016 auction but withdrew them after learning the ownership was in question. Sotheby's isn't charged in the case and declined to comment.

Henley bought some draft lyrics privately from Gotta Have It! for $8,500 in 2012, when he also began filing police reports, according to court filings.

Defense lawyers claim Henley found starstruck prosecutors to take up his cause instead of pursuing a civil suit himself.

The DA's office worked closely with Henley's legal team, and an investigator even yearned for backstage passes for an Eagles show — until a prosecutor said the idea was “completely inappropriate,” Kosinki's lawyers said in court papers.

Prosecutors have rebuffed questions about their motivations as “a conspiracy theory rather than a legal defense.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1708429319229.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) — A curious criminal case involving&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hotel-california-lyrics-manuscript-trial-eagles-henley-973e74e795416821e6f022895b47b78e">handwritten lyrics to the classic rock megahit “Hotel California”</a>&nbsp;and other Eagles favorites is going to trial in a New York courtroom, with opening statements set for Wednesday.The three defendants, all well-established in the collectibles world, are accused of scheming to thwart Eagles co-founder Don Henley’s efforts to reclaim the allegedly ill-gotten documents.The trial concerns more than 80 pages of drafts of the words to songs from the “Hotel California” album, the 1976 release that stands today as the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/3c0b39a1bb5b4e44aafe2c4e05a4b67f">third-biggest selling disc ever</a>&nbsp;in the U.S.Rare-book dealer Glenn Horowitz, former Rock &amp; Roll Hall of Fame curator Craig Inciardi and memorabilia seller Edward Kosinski have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and various other charges. Their lawyers have said the case “alleges criminality where none exists and unfairly tarnishes the reputations of well-respected professionals.”The documents include lyrics-in-development for “Life in the Fast Lane,” “New Kid in Town” and, of course, “Hotel California,” the more than six-minute-long, somewhat mysterious musical tale of the goings-on at an inviting, decadent but ultimately dark place where “you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.”If scorned by some as an overexposed artifact of the '70s, the Grammy-winning song is still a touchstone on classic rock radio and many personal playlists. The entertainment data company Luminate counted over 220 million streams and 136,000 radio plays of “Hotel California” in the U.S. last year.The case was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-music-new-york-california-290e31743f028951408a4a80a681f880">brought in 2022</a>, a decade after some of the pages began popping up for auction and Henley took notice — and took umbrage. He bought back a bit of the material for $8,500 but also reported the documents stolen, according to court filings.At the time, the lyrics sheets were in the hands of Kosinski and Inciardi, who had bought them from Horowitz. He had purchased them in 2005 from Ed Sanders, a writer and 1960s counterculture figure who worked with the Eagles on a band biography that was shelved in the early '80s.Sanders, who also co-founded the avant-garde rock group the Fugs, isn't charged in the case and hasn't responded to a message seeking comment about it.Sanders told Horowitz in 2005 that Henley's assistant had mailed along any documents he wanted for the biography, though the writer worried that Henley “might conceivably be upset” if they were sold, according to emails recounted in the indictment.But once Henley's lawyers began asking questions, Horowitz, Inciardi and Kosinski started maneuvering to gin up and disseminate a legally viable ownership history for the manuscripts, Manhattan prosecutors say.According to the indictment, Inciardi and Horowitz floated evolving accounts of how Sanders obtained the documents. The explanations ranged over the next five years from Sanders finding them abandoned in a backstage dressing room to the writer getting them from Eagles co-founder Glenn Frey, who&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-music-8169f05ac21d43dda4b1c1dd8b065e28">died in 2016</a>.Emails show some input and assent from Sanders, but he also apparently objected at least to the backstage-salvage story. In messages that didn't include him, Horowitz wrote about getting Sanders' “'explanation' shaped into a communication" and giving him “gentle handling” and assurances “that he's not going to the can,” the indictment says.The defendants' lawyers have said that Sanders had legal possession of the documents, and so did the men who bought them from him. Defense attorneys have indicated they plan to question how clearly Henley remembers his dealings with Sanders and the lyric sheets at a time when the rock star was living life in the fast lane himself.---------------------NEW YORK (AP) — In the mid-1970s, the Eagles were working on a spooky, cryptic new song.On a lined yellow pad, Don Henley, with input from band co-founder Glenn Frey, jotted thoughts about “a dark desert highway" and “a lovely place” with a luxurious surface and ominous undertones. And something on ice, perhaps caviar or Taittinger — or pink Champagne?The song, “Hotel California,” became one of rock's most indelible singles. And nearly a half-century later, those handwritten pages of lyrics-in-the-making have become the center of an unusual criminal trial set to open Wednesday.Rare-book dealer Glenn Horowitz, former Rock &amp; Roll Hall of Fame curator Craig Inciardi and memorabilia seller Edward Kosinski are charged with conspiring to own and try to sell manuscripts of “Hotel California” and other Eagles hits without the right to do so.The three have pleaded not guilty, and their lawyers have said the men committed no crime with the papers, which they acquired via a writer who'd worked with the Eagles. But the Manhattan district attorney’s office says the defendants connived to obscure the documents’ disputed ownership, despite knowing that Henley said the pages were stolen.Clashes over valuable collectibles abound, but criminal trials like this are rare. Many fights are resolved in private, in lawsuits or with agreements to return the items.“If you can avoid a prosecution by handing over the thing, most people just hand it over," said Travis McDade, a University of Illinois law professor who studies rare document disputes.Of course, the case of the Eagles manuscripts is distinctive in other ways, too.The prosecutors' star witness is indeed that: Henley is expected to testify between Eagles tour stops. The non-jury trial could offer a peek into the band's creative process and life in the fast lane of '70s stardom.At issue are over 80 pages of draft lyrics from the blockbuster 1976 “Hotel California” album, including words to the chart-topping, Grammy-winning title cut. It features one of classic rock's most recognizable riffs, best-known solos and most oft-quoted — arguably overquoted — lines: “You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.”Henley&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/don-henley-the-eagles-glenn-frey-kennedy-center-honor-hotel-california/">has said</a>&nbsp;the song is about “the dark underbelly of the American dream."It still was streamed over 220 million times and got 136,000 radio spins last year in the U.S. alone, according to the entertainment data company Luminate. The “Hotel California” album&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/3c0b39a1bb5b4e44aafe2c4e05a4b67f">has sold 26 million copies nationwide</a>&nbsp;over the years, bested only by an Eagles' greatest hits disc and Michael Jackson's “Thriller.”The pages also include lyrics from songs including “Life in the Fast Lane” and “New Kid in Town.” Eagles manager Irving Azoff has called the documents “irreplaceable pieces of musical history.”Horowitz, Inciardi and Kosinki are charged with conspiracy to possess stolen property and various other offenses.They’re not charged with actually stealing documents. Nor is anyone else, but prosecutors will still have to establish that the documents were stolen. The defense maintains that's not true.Much turns on the Eagles' interactions with Ed Sanders, a writer who also co-founded the 1960s counterculture rock band the Fugs. He worked in the late ‘70s and early ’80s on an authorized Eagles biography that was never published.Sanders isn’t charged in the case. A phone message seeking comment was left for him.He sold the pages to Horowitz, who then sold them to Inciardi and Kosinski.Horowitz has handled huge rare book and archive deals, and he's been entangled in some ownership spats before. One involved papers linked to "Gone With the Wind″ author Margaret Mitchell. It was settled.Inciardi worked on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/1638d88917dd46f2a1a915ed35f70b09">notable exhibitions</a>&nbsp;for the Cleveland-based Rock Hall of Fame. Kosinski has been a principal in Gotta Have It! Collectibles, known for auctioning celebrities’ personal possessions — so personal that Madonna&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/e97e69c287624787b094ed2a161489a1">unsuccessfully sued</a>&nbsp;to try to stop a sale that included her latex briefs.Henley told a grand jury he never gave the biographer the lyrics, according to court filings from Kosinski's lawyers. But defense lawyers have signaled that they plan to probe Henley’s memory of the time.“We believe that Mr. Henley voluntarily provided the lyrics to Mr. Sanders,” attorney Scott Edelman said in court last week.Sanders told Horowitz in 2005 that while working on the Eagles book, he was sent whatever papers he wanted from Henley’s home in Malibu, California, according to the indictment.Then Kosinski’s business offered some pages at auction in 2012. Henley’s attorneys came knocking. And Horowitz, Inciardi and Sanders, in varying combinations, began batting around alternate versions of the manuscripts’ provenance, the indictment says.In one story, Sanders found the pages discarded in a backstage dressing room. In others, he got them from a stage assistant or while amassing “a lot of material related to the Eagles from different people." In yet another, he obtained them from Frey — an account that “would make this go away once and for all," Horowitz suggested in 2017. Frey had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-music-8169f05ac21d43dda4b1c1dd8b065e28">died the year before</a>.“He merely needs gentle handling and reassurance that he's not going to the can,” Horowitz emailed Inciardi during a 2012 exchange about getting Sanders' “‘explanation’ shaped into a communication” to auctioneers, the indictment says.Sanders supplied or signed off on some of the varying explanations, according to the indictment, and it’s unclear what he may have conveyed verbally. But he apparently rejected at least the dressing-room tale.Kosinki forwarded one explanation, approved by Sanders, to Henley's lawyer. Kosinski also assured Sotheby's auction house that the musician had “no claim” to the documents and asked to keep potential bidders in the dark about Henley's complaints, the indictment says.Sotheby's listed the “Hotel California” song lyrics in a 2016 auction but withdrew them after learning the ownership was in question. Sotheby's isn't charged in the case and declined to comment.Henley bought some draft lyrics privately from Gotta Have It! for $8,500 in 2012, when he also began filing police reports, according to court filings.Defense lawyers claim Henley found starstruck prosecutors to take up his cause instead of pursuing a civil suit himself.The DA's office worked closely with Henley's legal team, and an investigator even yearned for backstage passes for an Eagles show — until a prosecutor said the idea was “completely inappropriate,” Kosinki's lawyers said in court papers.Prosecutors have rebuffed questions about their motivations as “a conspiracy theory rather than a legal defense.”

Criminal case over handwritten lyrics to 'Hotel California' goes to trial

DOUGLAS COUNTY —A registered Kansas offender admits to new child sex crimes.

On Feb. 16, Michael W. Wicks, 53, of Lawrence, pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual exploitation of a child for possessing nude images of children, according to&nbsp;Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez.

“In collaboration with our local law enforcement partners, we continue to enhance our prosecution of possession of child sexual abuse material,” District Attorney Valdez said. “We must hold offenders accountable in order to protect children and to deter this criminal conduct.”

Wicks was convicted of sexual exploitation of a child in 2020, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections. He has been registered as a sex offender since that time.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1708271196782.png" alt="Wicks-photo KBI Offender Registry" />
 <figcaption>Wicks-photo KBI Offender Registry</figcaption>
 </figure>DOUGLAS COUNTY —A registered Kansas offender admits to new child sex crimes.On Feb. 16, Michael W. Wicks, 53, of Lawrence, pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual exploitation of a child for possessing nude images of children, according to&nbsp;Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez.“In collaboration with our local law enforcement partners, we continue to enhance our prosecution of possession of child sexual abuse material,” District Attorney Valdez said. “We must hold offenders accountable in order to protect children and to deter this criminal conduct.”Wicks was convicted of sexual exploitation of a child in 2020, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections. He has been registered as a sex offender since that time.

Kan. sex offender admits to new child sex crime charges

KANSAS CITY – A man has been convicted in federal court of the armed robbery of a credit union, according to the United State's Attorney.

Tre Joseph Connor, 29, Jefferson City, was found guilty on Feb. 15, of one count of bank robbery, one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Evidence introduced during the trial indicated that Connor entered River Region Credit Union, 3608 W. Truman Blvd. in Jefferson City, on the morning of Jan. 19, 2023. Connor, wearing a black ski mask, brandished a Smith &amp; Wesson 9mm semi-automatic pistol and ordered a credit union employee to open a vault. Connor stole approximately $111,700 from the vault, filled a backpack with the cash, and left through a side door.

Investigators used security cameras from various sources to identify Connor, including Walmart security camera footage that depicted Connor’s purchases of clothing and other items used in the robbery.

Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Connor, who has prior felony convictions for dissemination of private sexual images and harassment, was on probation at the time he committed the armed robbery.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Jefferson City, Mo., deliberated for approximately two and a half hours before returning guilty verdicts to U.S. District Judge Roseann A. Ketchmark, ending a trial that began Monday, Feb. 12.

Under federal statutes, Connor is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1708291678603.png" alt="Connor-photo Cole County Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>Connor-photo Cole County Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY – A man has been convicted in federal court of the armed robbery of a credit union, according to the United State's Attorney.Tre Joseph Connor, 29, Jefferson City, was found guilty on Feb. 15, of one count of bank robbery, one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.Evidence introduced during the trial indicated that Connor entered River Region Credit Union, 3608 W. Truman Blvd. in Jefferson City, on the morning of Jan. 19, 2023. Connor, wearing a black ski mask, brandished a Smith &amp; Wesson 9mm semi-automatic pistol and ordered a credit union employee to open a vault. Connor stole approximately $111,700 from the vault, filled a backpack with the cash, and left through a side door.Investigators used security cameras from various sources to identify Connor, including Walmart security camera footage that depicted Connor’s purchases of clothing and other items used in the robbery.Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Connor, who has prior felony convictions for dissemination of private sexual images and harassment, was on probation at the time he committed the armed robbery.Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Jefferson City, Mo., deliberated for approximately two and a half hours before returning guilty verdicts to U.S. District Judge Roseann A. Ketchmark, ending a trial that began Monday, Feb. 12.Under federal statutes, Connor is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

Camera showed suspect purchase clothes used in $111K bank robbery

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The Alabama Supreme Court has ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law, a decision critics said could have sweeping implications for fertility treatment in the state.

<a href="https://publicportal-api.alappeals.gov/courts/68f021c4-6a44-4735-9a76-5360b2e8af13/cms/case/343D203A-B13D-463A-8176-C46E3AE4F695/docketentrydocuments/E3D95592-3CBE-4384-AFA6-063D4595AA1D">The decision was issued in a pair of wrongful death cases</a>&nbsp;brought by three couples who had frozen embryos destroyed in an accident at a fertility clinic. Justices, citing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/9169e683e92f452d8ac34e6d7d9c7d05">anti-abortion language</a>&nbsp;in the Alabama Constitution, ruled that an 1872 state law allowing parents to sue over the death of a minor child "applies to all unborn children, regardless of their location.”

"Unborn children are ‘children’ ... without exception based on developmental stage, physical location, or any other ancillary characteristics,” Justice Jay Mitchell wrote in Friday's majority ruling by the all-Republican court.

Mitchell said the court had previously ruled that fetuses killed while a woman is pregnant are covered under Alabama’s Wrongful Death of a Minor Act and nothing excludes “extrauterine children from the Act’s coverage.”

The ruling brought a rush of warnings about the potential impact on fertility treatments and the freezing of embryos, which had previously been considered property by the courts.

“This ruling is stating that a fertilized egg, which is a clump of cells, is now a person. It really puts into question, the practice of IVF,” Barbara Collura, CEO of RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, told The Associated Press Tuesday. The group called the decision a "terrifying development for the 1-in-6 people impacted by infertility" who need in-vitro fertilization.

She said it raises questions for providers and patients, including if they can freeze future embryos created during fertility treatment or if patients could ever donate or destroy unused embryos.

Sean Tipton, a spokesman with the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, said at least one Alabama fertility clinic has been instructed by their affiliated hospital to pause IVF treatment in the immediate wake of the decision.

Dr. Paula Amato, president of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, said a decision to treat frozen fertilized egg as the legal equivalent of a child or gestating fetus could limit the availability of modern health care.

“By insisting that these very different biological entities are legally equivalent, the best state-of-the-art fertility care will be made unavailable to the people of Alabama. No health care provider will be willing to provide treatments if those treatments may lead to civil or criminal charges,” Amato said.

Gabby Goidel, 26, who is pursuing IVF treatment in Alabama after three miscarriages, said the court ruling came down on the same day she began daily injections ahead of egg retrieval.

“It just kind of took me by by storm. It was like all I could think about and it was just a very stressful thing to hear. I immediately messaged my clinic and asked if this could potentially halt us. They said we have to take it one day at a time," Goidel said.

She said her clinic is continuing to provide treatment for now, but said it will let her know if they have to change course.

Goidel said she turned to IVF and preimplantation genetic testing after the multiple miscarriages related to genetic issues.

"Without IVF, I would have to probably go through several more miscarriages before I even had an option of having a baby that is my own," she said.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The Alabama Supreme Court has ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law, a decision critics said could have sweeping implications for fertility treatment in the state.<a href="https://publicportal-api.alappeals.gov/courts/68f021c4-6a44-4735-9a76-5360b2e8af13/cms/case/343D203A-B13D-463A-8176-C46E3AE4F695/docketentrydocuments/E3D95592-3CBE-4384-AFA6-063D4595AA1D">The decision was issued in a pair of wrongful death cases</a>&nbsp;brought by three couples who had frozen embryos destroyed in an accident at a fertility clinic. Justices, citing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/9169e683e92f452d8ac34e6d7d9c7d05">anti-abortion language</a>&nbsp;in the Alabama Constitution, ruled that an 1872 state law allowing parents to sue over the death of a minor child "applies to all unborn children, regardless of their location.”"Unborn children are ‘children’ ... without exception based on developmental stage, physical location, or any other ancillary characteristics,” Justice Jay Mitchell wrote in Friday's majority ruling by the all-Republican court.Mitchell said the court had previously ruled that fetuses killed while a woman is pregnant are covered under Alabama’s Wrongful Death of a Minor Act and nothing excludes “extrauterine children from the Act’s coverage.”The ruling brought a rush of warnings about the potential impact on fertility treatments and the freezing of embryos, which had previously been considered property by the courts.“This ruling is stating that a fertilized egg, which is a clump of cells, is now a person. It really puts into question, the practice of IVF,” Barbara Collura, CEO of RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, told The Associated Press Tuesday. The group called the decision a "terrifying development for the 1-in-6 people impacted by infertility" who need in-vitro fertilization.She said it raises questions for providers and patients, including if they can freeze future embryos created during fertility treatment or if patients could ever donate or destroy unused embryos.Sean Tipton, a spokesman with the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, said at least one Alabama fertility clinic has been instructed by their affiliated hospital to pause IVF treatment in the immediate wake of the decision.Dr. Paula Amato, president of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, said a decision to treat frozen fertilized egg as the legal equivalent of a child or gestating fetus could limit the availability of modern health care.“By insisting that these very different biological entities are legally equivalent, the best state-of-the-art fertility care will be made unavailable to the people of Alabama. No health care provider will be willing to provide treatments if those treatments may lead to civil or criminal charges,” Amato said.Gabby Goidel, 26, who is pursuing IVF treatment in Alabama after three miscarriages, said the court ruling came down on the same day she began daily injections ahead of egg retrieval.“It just kind of took me by by storm. It was like all I could think about and it was just a very stressful thing to hear. I immediately messaged my clinic and asked if this could potentially halt us. They said we have to take it one day at a time," Goidel said.She said her clinic is continuing to provide treatment for now, but said it will let her know if they have to change course.Goidel said she turned to IVF and preimplantation genetic testing after the multiple miscarriages related to genetic issues."Without IVF, I would have to probably go through several more miscarriages before I even had an option of having a baby that is my own," she said.The plaintiffs in the Alabama case had undergone IVF treatments that led to the creation of several embryos, some of which were implanted and resulted in healthy births. The couples paid to keep others frozen in a storage facility at the Mobile Infirmary Medical Center. A patient in 2020 wandered into the area and removed several embryos, dropping them on the floor and "killing them,” the ruling said.The justices ruled that wrongful death lawsuits by the couples could proceed. The clinic and hospital that are defendants in the case could ask the court to reconsider its decision.Michael Upchurch, a lawyer for the fertility clinic in the lawsuit, Center for Reproductive Medicine, said they are “evaluating the consequences of the decision and have no further comment at this time.”A pro-life group cheered the decision. “Each person, from the tiniest embryo to an elder nearing the end of his life, has incalculable value that deserves and is guaranteed legal protection," Lila Rose, president and founder of Live Action said in a statement.Chief Justice Tom Parker issued a concurring opinion in which he quoted the Bible in discussing the meaning of the phrase “the sanctity of unborn life” in the Alabama Constitution.“Even before birth, all human beings bear the image of God, and their lives cannot be destroyed without effacing his glory," Parker said.Justice Greg Cook, who filed the only full dissent to the majority opinion, said the 1872 law did not define “minor child" and was being stretched from the original intent to cover frozen embryos.“No court — anywhere in the country — has reached the conclusion the main opinion reaches," he wrote, adding the ruling “almost certainly ends the creation of frozen embryos through in vitro fertilization (IVF) in Alabama.”The Alabama Supreme Court decision partly hinged on anti-abortion language added to the Alabama Constitution in 2018, stating it is the "policy of this state to ensure the protection of the rights of the unborn child.”Supporters at the time said it would have no impact unless states gained more control over abortion access. States gained control of abortion access in 2022.White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the Alabama decision reflected the consequences of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade and blamed Republican elected officials from blocking access to reproductive and emergency care to women.“This president and this vice president will continue to fight to protect access to reproductive health care and call on Congress to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade in federal law for all women in every state,” Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One.___