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Kansas judge Michael Gibbens (l.) sentenced Raymond Soden, 67, (r.) in a child sex solicitation case after saying the two victims, girls, 13 and 14 were "more agressor than a participant in the criminal conduct." (Leavenworth County Bar Association/ Kansas Department of Corrections) A Kansas judge has come under fire for saying in court that two girls--solicited by an online predator to have sex with him when they were 13 and 14--were partly to blame for what happened to them. “I do find that the victims in this case, in particular, were more an aggressor than a participant in...

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that a Kansas state freshman Republican representative hopes to help struggling college students burdened by the already high cost of textbooks via tax relief. Rep. Rick Hoheisel suggests that Kansas exempt all textbooks from the statewide 6.5% sales tax, thus saving students money each year they buy new books for their curriculum. Rep. Hoheisel is a recent college graduate and remembers quite well that he would have to shell out big bucks each year simply to afford required reading. While Kansas cannot control the price of textbooks directly, the state government can control the taxes imposed on said...

R. Lee Ermey will be laid to rest with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery at 10:00 a.m. January 18, 2019. Ronald Lee Ermey (Gunnery Sgt. Hartman from Full Metal Jacket and reality TV) was born in Kansas but moved to the Yakima Valley in his early teens going to schools in Granger while the rest of his family attended classes in Zillah. A feisty kid with a penchant for getting into trouble, when he was 17, a judge offered him juvenile detention or the military. Ermey chose the Marines. You may recall he died back in April but his Arlington Cemetery...

The GoFundMe campaign that generated $20 million in private donations is being shutdown and those who donated are being refunded their money unless they decide to donate it to a newly-established 501(c)4. Brian Kolfage, the veteran who started the campaign, on Friday posted the following message on the campaign's website: Eight days before Christmas I started this GoFundMe campaign because I was tired of watching the U.S. government’s inability to secure our southern border. Like most Americans, I see the porous southern border as a national security threat and I refuse to allow our broken political system to leave my family...

Kansas GOP Sen. Pat Roberts announced Friday that he would not run for re-election in 2020, launching what is expected to be a competitive Republican primary for his seat. “I have had the honor and privilege of representing Kansas for 16 years in the House, 22 years so far in the Senate,” Roberts said at an event in Manhattan, Kansas, on Friday. “Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would become the longest serving member of Congress in Kansas history.” Roberts, who was first elected to the Senate in 1996 after serving in the House, said he would...

Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) will make an announcement Friday afternoon about whether he’ll run for a fifth term in 2020, according to multiple media reports. Roberts, who has served in Congress since the 1980s, will make an announcement about his political future at the Kansas Department of Agriculture, the reports noted. He will be 84 by the 2020 election

I used to have a flower garden in my backyard. A few years ago I decided to move my flowers to the front yard so my neighbors could enjoy them. I found that I could keep some them blooming in the winter by surrounding them with water in containers and covering them with transparent tarps. On warm days I uncover them so can enjoy the ones that are still green or even blooming. They often begin growing again in early March so they are doing well by the end of April. A week before Christmas I got a letter from...

A skunk may be after my flowers. I used to have a flower garden in my backyard. A few years ago I decided to move my flowers to the front yard so my neighbors could enjoy them. I found that I could keep some them blooming in the winter by surrounding them with water in containers and covering them with transparent tarps. On warm days I uncover them so can enjoy the ones that are still green or even blooming. They often begin growing again in early March so they are doing well by the end of April. A week...

In a move Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer called “the biggest news for this state in a long time,” Spirit AeroSystems announced Wednesday that it plans to add 1,400 more jobs in Wichita next year. That’s in addition to the 1,000 jobs — and $1 billion in infrastructure — it promised the city at this time last year. “We have completed hiring that first 1,000, and in fact we have exceeded it,” Spirit President and CEO Tom Gentile said at a news conference on Wednesday....

TOPEKA, Kan. (KSNT) - Music superstar Taylor Swift called a Topeka Christmas light show "epic" in a handwritten note sent to a Topeka native. Swift sent the note to Louie Cortez, the creator of the annual "Cortez Holiday Light Show," thanking him for using her song "Are You Ready For It?" to kick off the display in November. Cortez, a huge Swift fan, posted a video of his Christmas display perfectly synced to Swift's song on Twitter where it quickly gained traction online..... Swift also said Cortez was "So amazing," for including her song. "Thanks so much for the effort...

A divided Kansas Supreme Court affirmed Lawrence Hubbard’s misdemeanor convictions in a case demonstrating police officers relying exclusively on olfactory skills to detect raw marijuana can supply probable cause to support search of a residence. The decision by the high court extended to a private residence the accepted principle in Kansas that a trained and experienced officer’s detection of the aroma of marijuana could justify the legal search of a vehicle. The ruling also resolved conflicting Kansas Court of Appeals decisions. Supreme Court justices, on a 4-3 vote, rejected arguments put forth by Hubbard’s attorney, including questions about whether Lawrence...

CAWKER CITY, Kan. (KAKE) - A northern Kansas woman who went missing after her car got stuck in a weekend blizzard has been found dead. Authorities at the Mitchell County command center for the search say the body of 37-year-old Tanya Eshbaugh, of Cawker City, was found in a field near Waconda Lake, about three miles from her car. She was on her way to work Sunday morning when she called in to say she wasn't going to make it due to the weather and was turning around to go home. "It is believed that after getting her vehicle stuck...

In the national explosion known as the midterm elections of 2018, ground zero had to be the Kansas 3rd District congressional race. There, a political novice who is Native American, openly gay and whom hardly anyone had ever heard of a year ago, swept away a historically popular, four-term Republican incumbent with 20 years of political experience, renowned for his campaigning skills and fundraising prowess. Sharice Davids was the most unlikely of candidates to beat Rep. Kevin Yoder. But that was before Yoder was body-snatched by President Donald J. Trump. To really grasp how that alliance had morphed two men...

WICHITA, Kan. — Kansas is recalling hundreds of vehicle license plates on the streets containing the “JAP” lettering in the wake of complaints that it is an ethnic slur offensive to Japanese Americans. The Kansas Department of Revenue said there are 731 active registrations containing that random letter combination on standard license plates. Vehicle owners were sent a letter dated Tuesday asking them to return the plate to their county vehicle office within 30 days for replacement at no cost. Plates not replaced within that period will be identified in the state’s system and will be replaced at their annual...

If you need more evidence that big scoring equals big TV ratings for the NFL then look no further than this week's "Monday Night Football." The Los Angeles Rams 54 to 51 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs brought in a 11.3 overnight rating for ESPN. That's the best overnight rating for "Monday Night Football" since 2014. Monday night's ratings were up more than 57% from last year's week 11 match-up, which was between the Atlanta Falcons and the Seattle Seahawks. The Rams and Chiefs offered viewers one of the most impressive offensive displays in NFL history. The two teams,...

In 2004, liberal journalist and political scientist Thomas Frank caused a stir with his book, "What’s the Matter with Kansas," a broadside against the natives of his home state and their lurch to the right that Frank perceived to be against their economic interests. In the wake of the 2018 midterms, it should be the Republicans asking, “What’s the Matter with Kansas?,” after Kris Kobach lost the governorship to Democrat Laura Kelly in a state in which registered Republicans outnumber Democrats almost 2-1.

Democratic candidates won governorships in seven Republican-held states on Tuesday as voters rebuked both President Trump and unpopular GOP governors in some of the deepest red territories in the country. Democratic candidates picked up open seats in Maine, Nevada, Michigan and New Mexico where Republican incumbents faced term limits. State Sen. Laura Kelly (D) beat out controversial Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach (R), who ousted Gov. Jeff Colyer (R) in this year’s Republican primary. Billionaire hotel magnate J.B. Pritzker (D) easily outpaced Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) in a race that cost both men tens of millions of dollars....

Kansas is a state entirely controlled by Republicans now and one that voted for President Donald Trump in 2016 by 20 points. And yet in a couple of weeks, voters there could elect a Democrat to be their governor for the first time in eight years - just in time to have a hand in the upcoming redistricting battle that could shape control of the state for the next decade. Snip Republicans' fears have so far become reality. Polls show Democrat Laura Kelly and Kobach running about even, with a third-party candidate, Greg Orman, taking about 9 percent of the...

QuikTrip convenience stores added good guys with guns in Wichita, Kansas, and the results were so good that they are expanding the program to stores in other areas. The NRA noted, “After implementing the new strategy at its Wichita, Kansas locations and seeing success, QuikTrip, the massive gas station and convenience store chain said it would expand the policy to other stores.” KWCH reports that the good guys with guns will be armed security, but QuikTrip also left the door open to armed clerks in situations where the clerks “have previous experience and necessary licenses.”

Les Miles to Kansas has become a reality. The Jayhawks announced Sunday that is has hired Miles as the replacement for head football coach David Beaty, who will be let go at the end of the season. “Since the beginning of our search, we focused on identifying and recruiting an experienced head coach with a strong track record of success on and off the field,” KU athletic director Jeff Long said. “Les Miles is exactly what we need for our program right now. His national reputation as a great recruiter and as a coach who student-athletes love playing for will...