BOULDER COUNTY, CO — Law enforcement authorities are investigating of a Kansas man who died after falling while rock climbing Saturday in Colorado and have identified the victim.
According to Coroner Emma R. Hall , the victim has been positively identified as Matthew Hagney, 50, of Bel Aire, Kansas.
He and a companion had just completed a climbing route and were searching for a way to descend. When the Hagney walked to the edge of a cliff to look over, a rock gave way and he fell.
His body was found in the 32700 block of Boulder Canyon Drive, in an area called the Bell Buttress in Boulder Canyon about 9 miles west of downtown Boulder.
An autopsy has been completed and the cause and manner of death are pending further investigation, according to Hall.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A new Missouri ban on abortions at or after eight weeks of pregnancy won’t take effect Wednesday after a federal judge temporarily blocked it from being implemented.
U.S. District Judge Howard Sachs put a pause on the law as a legal challenge against it plays out in court.
Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri filed the lawsuit, arguing that the law is unconstitutional and goes against the landmark 1973 U.S. Supreme Court Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion nationwide.
The law includes exceptions for medical emergencies, but not for rape or incest. If courts don’t uphold the eight-week ban, the measure includes a series of less-restrictive bans ranging from 14 weeks up to 20 weeks. The policy also bans abortions based solely on race, sex or a diagnosis indicating the potential for Down syndrome.
Similar laws have been struck down in North Dakota and Iowa.
Attorneys for the state can appeal the judge’s ruling. They argue that courts have allowed limits on abortions based on the gestational age of the fetus, although similar abortion restrictions in North Dakota and Iowa have been struck down by judges. In court documents, they told the judge that the state’s goal is “protecting fetal life” as well as protecting women. During a court hearing Monday, Missouri Solicitor General John Sauer’s argument centered on his contention that Planned Parenthood and the ACLU do not have standing to challenge the law.
Federal law allows states to prohibit abortions after fetuses are viable outside the womb, which can be from 24 to 28 weeks.
Missouri’s law also includes an outright ban on abortions except in cases of medical emergencies, but that would take effect only if Roe v. Wade is overturned.
Missouri already has some of the nation’s most restrictive abortion regulations. Just one clinic in the state performs abortions.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A federal appellate court will hear the case of a retired Army lieutenant and his wife who are seeking to keep their adopted Korean-born daughter in the country after she graduates from college.
Patrick Schreiber, wife and daughter-courtesy photo
Attorneys for the family of Hyebin Schreiber said Monday that the hearing is set for next month. Schreiber was 15 when she went to live with her aunt and uncle, Army veteran Patrick Schreiber, in Lansing, Kansas, because of family problems in Korea.
Schreiber’s deployment to Afghanistan caused the couple to put off her adoption until she was 17. The age limit for a foreign-born adopted child to become a naturalized U.S. citizen is 16.
She currently is in the U.S. legally on a student visa, but could be forced to leave after she graduates from the University of Kansas.
A Kansas man was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for his role in an armed robbery and assault on a fellow inmate while in the Ellis County jail.
Jeremy Schulmeister, 33, Wilson, was sentenced to a total of 133 months in prison Monday in Ellis County District Court after he was found guilty of three felony charges earlier this month.
Schulmeister was sentenced to 102 months in prison for aggravated robbery and 12 months for aggravated battery.
In February, Schulmeister and another man offered to give a man a ride near the Fort Hays State campus, but instead of dropping the man off on campus, the two men robbed the man at gun point.
They robbed the man of more than $1,500 cash, an iPhone and clothes.
While in the Ellis County jail, Schlmeister attacked another inmate and broke his nose, authorities said. Schlmeister was sentenced to 19 months in prison for aggravated battery.
At Monday’s sentencing, Schlmeister apologized to the victims, his family and the court. He said he is now being treated for mental health issues.
RILEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a teen after an alleged threat.
Just before 7:30 a.m. Monday, police filed a report for aggravated criminal threat in the 1900 block of Lincoln Drive in Manhattan, according to the RCPD activity report.
Officers listed a 15-year-old boy as the victim and a 15-year-old girl as the suspect when it was reported she threatened the victim on social media while displaying a weapon. Police have not reported an arrest.
Snapchat
On August 21, a citizen alerted the Riley County Police Department that a video had been posted to the social media messaging phone app Snapchat which depicted a 15-year-old boy and 15-year-old girl holding what appeared to be a gun and making threatening statements, according to Captain Josh Kyle.
Preliminary investigation indicates the video was directed at a different 15-year-old boy and a 17-year-old boy.
All the parties mentioned are students at Manhattan High School West Campus.
SALINE COUNTY —A teen driver received only minor injuries after the pickup he was driving traveled off of Interstate 70 and down a steep embankment Monday in Saline County.
photo courtesy KHP
A 2007 GMC pickup driven by Alec Sappington, 18, Guymon, OK., was eastbound on Interstate 70 just west of the Hedville exit when he fell asleep, drove through a guardrail, down a steep embankment, and impacted the ground before coming to rest next to railroad tracks, according to Saline County Sheriff’s Lieutenant Sean Kochanowski
EMS transported Sappington to Salina Regional Health Center after he complained of minor facial injuries. The pickup had front-end and undercarriage damage,
Sappington was properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to Kochanowski.
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SALINE COUNTY — The Kansas Highway Patrol responded to a minor injury crash along Interstate 70 in Saline County Monday morning
It’s believed the driver fell asleep at the wheel and the vehicle dropped off the roadway to the railroad tracks below, according to Trooper Ben Gardner.
Lieutenant Riedel responded to this minor injury crash along I-70 in
Saline county.
County deputies are handling the call.
It’s believed the driver fell asleep at the wheel and dropping off the roadway to the R&R tracks below. pic.twitter.com/r33HwRsbyk
SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a stolen car suspect after a chase.
Just after 6:30 a.m. Monday, Shawnee County Sheriff deputies responded to a report of a stolen vehicle from the parking lot of the Petro Deli, 3603 NW 46th Street in Topeka, according to Sgt. Todd Stallbaumer.
McCormick photo Shawnee Co.
The victim had left a Nissan Rogue unlocked and running and entered the business.
The victim had left a cell phone in the vehicle that was tracked.
Deputies located the Nissan near NW 46th and Brickyard Road and attempted a traffic stop. The suspect failed to stop for the deputies and drove the Nissan west on NW 46th and committed several traffic violations.
A deputy was able to successfully deploy spike strips near NW Valencia Road and 24 Highway. The vehicle was then stopped near NW Docking Road and 24 Highway.
Deputies with assistance from the Kansas Highway Patrol arrested 26-year-old Jesse L. McCormick, 26, of Topeka and transported to the Shawnee County Department of Corrections.
The Shawnee County Sheriff K9 officers were also able to locate a 9mm handgun near the location of the vehicle stop.
McCormick is being held on requested charges that include, Felony Theft, Felony Fleeing and Eluding, Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Various Traffic Charges.
McCormick has numerous convictions that include theft, obstruction, flee and attempt to elude and drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.
KANSAS CITY,– A former Kansas City Chiefs football player, who was tasered twice while struggling with officers and resisting arrest, was charged in federal court Monday with illegally possessing firearms, according to the United State’s Attorney’s office.
Saousoalii P. Siavii Jr., -photo Jackson Co.
Saousoalii P. Siavii, Jr., also known as “Junior,” 40, of Independence, Missouri, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., with three counts of being an unlawful drug user in possession of firearms. Siavii remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing, which has not yet been scheduled.
Monday’s federal criminal complaint alleges that Siavii, an unlawful user of illegal drugs, has been arrested on three occasions in which he was in possession of both illegal drugs and loaded firearms. Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who is an unlawful drug user to be in possession of any firearms or ammunition.
According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Siavii was arrested on Saturday, Aug. 24. Independence, Missouri, police officers responded to parking lot on U.S. 40 Highway, where a witness said he located his friend’s stolen 2017 Jeep Wrangler Sport. The witness told police he saw a man later identified as Siavii getting out of the driver’s seat of the vehicle.
Officers contacted Siavii, the affidavit says, who disregarded their commands, and an officer deployed his Taser on Siavvi. Siavvi, who is six feet, five inches tall and weighs approximately 330 pounds, fell to the ground and officers attempted to gain control as he began to actively resist arrest. Siavii began pushing himself up off the ground, at which time a loaded Smith and Wesson 9mm pistol fell directly in front of him within his reach. An officer drew his duty weapon and put it to Siavii’s back, due to him not being under physical control, while another officer grabbed Siavii’s firearm and threw it several feet away. Officers continued to fight with Siavii, the affidavit says, while giving him commands to stop resisting and to place his hands behind his back. An officer deployed his Taser on Siavii again with little effect. Siavii was able to get on top of the officer, who was on the ground at this point. Another officer was eventually able to put Siavii in a neck restraint and render him unconscious long enough to handcuff him. Siavii continued to resist even after being handcuffed.
Officers searched Siavii’s backpack and found additional ammunition, 5.2 grams of methamphetamine, 12.2 grams of marijuana, and drug paraphernalia.
In addition to the Aug. 24 incident, today’s complaint cites two more incidents in which Siavii was arrested while in possession of illegal drugs and firearms.
On Aug. 4, 2019, Independence police officers were dispatched to the area of 24 Highway and Jennings on a stolen auto report. A 2019 Chevrolet Silverado had been stolen in Sugar Creek, Missouri, and was being tracked by On-Star to the parking lot of the Great Western Motel. When officers arrived, Siavii was walking away from the stolen vehicle, the affidavit says, and fled on foot when he saw the officers. Officers attempted to take Siavii into custody, but he resisted and fought with officers. Siavii was lying on his stomach and constantly reached towards his waistband. After a prolonged struggle with Siavii, officers were able to take him into custody. When officers rolled him to his side, a loaded Sturm Ruger handgun was located underneath him. Officers searched Siavii and found 4.4 grams of methamphetamine. Officers searched the stolen Silverado and found a Cobra Enterprises .32-caliber handgun and drug paraphernalia.
On April 7, 2019, Independence police officers attempted a traffic stop in the area of 24 Highway and Lee’s Summit Road on a silver Ford Fusion for an improperly registered license plate. The vehicle, driven by Siavii, had been observed at a known drug house. Siavii failed to stop and a pursuit was initiated. During the pursuit, Siavii’s vehicle reached speeds up to 101 m.p.h. Siavii’s vehicle eventually left the roadway on Maywood Avenue and he was seen running northbound; he was located by officers and taken into custody. Officers found a loaded Phoenix Arms .22-caliber handgun in the front cup holder of the vehicle. Also found in the vehicle was 3.8 grams of marijuana, two baggies that contained a total of .6 grams of methamphetamine, ammunition, and drug paraphernalia.
The complaint also cites two earlier incidents in which Siavii was in possession of illegal drugs when he was stopped by police officers. Siavii was arrested on Jan. 17, 2019, following a traffic stop. According to the affidavit, when he got out of his vehicle, he pulled away from officers, causing the officers to take him to the ground where he continued to resist. Officers searched him and found a Xanax pill; they also found a prescription bottle that belonged to another person and contained more pills and marijuana. Siavii also was arrested on April 21, 2018, for driving under the influence. According to the affidavit, he was in possession of a straw that contained cocaine residue.
The charges contained in this complaint are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
HARVEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities and USD 439 school district officials are investigating an alleged school threat.
On Monday evening, the Sedgwick Police Department and the Sheriff’s Office investigated a threat of potential violence against Sedgwick Public Schools, according to a social media report from the sheriff’s office. The suspect in that threat, a 14-year-old juvenile, was identified and taken into custody for alleged criminal threat.
This was an isolated incident. There is no active threat. Authorities released no additional details late Monday and there was no word of additional police at the school Tuesday. A portion of the city of Sedgwick is located in Harvey County.
KANSAS CITY (AP) — From huge rewards to calls for allowing Missouri cities to enact their own gun laws, leaders in Kansas City are grappling with a troubling rise in shooting deaths, especially those involving children.
Police on the scene of a Kansas CIty shooting investigation in July photo courtesy KCTV
This past weekend was especially violent. In Kansas City, four men were killed Sunday, including two in a drive-by shooting in a popular entertainment district. In St. Louis, six people were killed in shootings, including 8-year-old and 10-year-old girls and a 15-year-old boy.
Many of the victims of violence in the state’s two largest cities are black, and black Missouri lawmakers are asking Republican Gov. Mike Parson to allow the House and Senate to consider during a special session next month legislation that would let cities adopt their own gun control measures. In a letter dated Saturday, state Rep. Steven Roberts Jr. a St. Louis Democrat who chairs the 19-member Missouri Black Caucus, told Parson that local leaders need the autonomy to act as they see fit on “this pressing crisis.”
Kansas City — Missouri’s largest city with 490,000 residents, about 30% of whom are black — has recorded 97 homicides this year, on pace to top last year’s homicide rate of 143. Sixty-eight of this year’s victims were black.
St. Louis has seen about 128 homicides this year, also on pace to top last year’s total of 186. The vast majority those killed this year — 112 victims — were black in a city where about half of the 320,000 residents are black.
At least a dozen children have been shot to death in St. Louis since April, many of them in drive-by shootings, and the city is offering $25,000 rewards for information in five recent fatal shootings of children.
“We ask you and our rural colleagues to recognize that the slaughter of children in our state, and the hundreds of other victims of gun violence, demand immediate solutions that will produce results for our communities,” Roberts wrote in his request to Parson.
In a statement, Parson said that while there are many opinions on how to find a solution to reduce violence, a special session is not the “correct avenue.”
“If we are to change violent criminal acts in Missouri, it will take all of us at the federal, state, local, and community levels working together,” the governor said.
Republican Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz doubted the Legislature would take up the proposal.
“I think we would all agree we would like to find a way to end the type of gun violence that we see going on, but you’re going to have to show proof of something that’s been effective and worked somewhere, and not doing something just for the purposes of doing something,” Schatz said.
“Guns don’t do these acts,” Schatz said. “People do them, and unfortunately they use guns to do some of these horrific things.”
Republican House Speaker Elijah Haahr didn’t immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment.
Top St. Louis officials also believe Missouri’s lenient gun laws are a factor in the upsurge of killings. Mayor Lyda Krewson noted that Missouri, in 2017, became the first state to allow people to carry guns without a permit.
“Now almost anyone can carry a gun almost anywhere, anytime,” Krewson said. “That makes the job for police officers particularly difficult.”
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner blamed lax gun laws as well as a “sense of hopelessness” in many neighborhoods that has “fostered an environment where too many young people have little or no regard for their own lives or the lives of others.”
Krewson said city officials hoped the unusually high rewards for information leading to the arrests of suspects in child shootings would spur reluctant witnesses who may fear retaliation to come forward. Ninety-three of the city’s homicides this year remain unsolved.
This month alone, the victims have included Xavier Usanga a 7-year-old boy shot in the yard of his home on Aug. 12; 8-year-old Jurnee Thompson, killed Friday when gunfire erupted after a high school football exhibition; and, Nyla Banks, a 10-year-old girl found dead Saturday evening along with two adults inside an apartment building.
St. Louis saw just four killings last year involving children 16 or younger, according to police statistics.
Kansas City leaders are alarmed by a rise in homicides in the city’s popular nightlife areas, including the early Sunday deaths of Austin Michael Quijas and Leo Moreno Jr. in the Power & Light District downtown.
State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, a Kansas City Democrat, called it shameful that St. Louis and Kansas City both consistently rank among the deadliest U.S. cities.
“This is now a public health crisis,” Manlove said in a statement.
