FORD COUNTY— Law enforcement authorities in southwest Kansas were busy on Halloween during a sweep to make arrests for those with outstanding warrants.

The Ford County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas Highway Patrol, Dodge City Police Department and the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks arrested 13 individuals within Ford County, according to Sheriff  Bill Carr.

Nine of those arrested were on drug related charges including for Distribution of Methamphetamines, Distribution of Cocaine or Distribution of Fentanyl.  Four others were arrested on unrelated warrants, according to Carr.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — The Kansas City Council has rejected a measure to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana.

Councilman Brandon Ellington initially proposed decriminalized possession of less than 100 grams of marijuana. An amendment instead allowed offenders to plead guilty, face a fine and have their record expunged after 180 days.

The proposals would have applied only to municipal marijuana offenses. County prosecutors can also bring marijuana charges, though Jackson County no longer takes up those cases.

Ellington didn’t support the new version, which failed Thursday on a 5-6 vote. Ellington said he was told that a municipal marijuana arrest record is forwarded onto the state, meaning expunging it on the local level would still leave a state record. He plans to reintroduce his original plan.

RILEY COUNTY —Police in Manhattan need help finding 33-year-old Cory Calkins, who escaped from custody Saturday morning.

Police arrested him on probable cause offenses of aggravated burglary, possession of meth, possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, according to a media release.

Calkins has previous convictions for theft, burglary, “unlawful vol sex relations intercourse,” obstruction and for drugs, according to the Kansas Department of corrections

Police reminded “If you see Calkins do not approach him and call 911.

By BRIAN GRIMMETT
Kansas News Service

WICHITA — The water coming out of your tap might meet legal standards, but that doesn’t mean that it’s safe to drink — at least according to the Environmental Working Group, an environmental advocacy nonprofit.

EWG found that nearly all of the 870 water utilities in Kansas tested for at least one contaminate above what it considers safe, though most water utilities in the state meet federal standards, which are different than EWG’s.

The nonprofit’s latest update to their tap water database comes from testing data submitted to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

Generally, the number of contaminants that EWG considers safe is much lower than EPA standards. EWG bases its limits on independent scientific research and public health goals set by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.

EWG senior scientist Tasha Stoiber said more than half of the contaminants detected in U.S. tap water aren’t regulated by the federal government, things like PFAS (a so-called forever chemical that can accumulate in the body and lead to cancer) and cyanotoxins found in harmful algae blooms. Plus, she said, contaminants that are tracked haven’t been updated in 20 years.

The science that details health impacts of contaminants in drinking water has moved forward during the past two decades, but experts say the political environment has made it difficult to get some policies passed, especially at the EPA.

“One contaminant after the other rises up, but it doesn’t mean we have a strategic, proactive approach for dealing with it,” according to Kristine Kirchoff, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Connecticut.

‘Each one has its own story’ 

Generally speaking, most water utilities in the state of Kansas meet federal safety standards. Most of the worst offenders — those with contaminant levels higher than the legal limits — are smaller rural water providers.

“Each one has its own story, each one has its own situation that we bring all those tools to bear to try to bring them back into compliance,” said Tom Stiles, who is KDHE’s director of the Bureau of Water.

KDHE is responsible for enforcing the federal Safe Water Drinking Act. Stiles said when the state discovers a higher-than-legal limit for a contaminant, it offers technical assistance, helps find a new place to put a water well and, when able, provides money to update infrastructure.

Safe water violators

In Kansas, 22 utilities have tested above the legal limit for total trihalomethanes. — cancer-causing contaminants that are a byproduct of the disinfection process. EWG noted that the small town of Elmdale, Kansas, near Cottonwood Falls, had the fifth-highest levels of the contaminant in the U.S.

Dealing with the issue is a balancing act: If the source water is of poor quality to begin with, more disinfectant is used in the water treatment process. The more disinfectant that’s used, the more likely a utility is to exceed the legal and safe levels of trihalomethanes.

“The best way, in an ideal world, to improve water quality would be to prevent contaminants from entering source water and needing treatment in the first place,” Stoiber said.

Studies have shown that trihalomethanes increase the risk of developing bladder cancer. It’s also associated with an increased risk for problems during pregnancy.

In Kansas, 791 utilities reported tests with total trihalomethane levels above EWG’s health guidelines (.15 parts per billion, or ppb), which represents a one in 1 million lifetime cancer risk level. The federal guidelines of 80 ppb were established in 1998.

Another major issue in Kansas’ drinking water is nitrate, a chemical fertilizer that’s often a problem in water sources where there’s lots of agricultural production.

Six utilities in Kansas exceed the legal limit for nitrate.

Pretty Prairie, Kansas, which serves about 681 people, has one of the highest average concentration of nitrates in the U.S. at 21.1 parts per million (ppm). The federal legal limit is 10 ppm, and EWG recommends the limit should be .14 ppm.

The small towns of Ford in western Kansas, Norwich in south central Kansas, and Elmdale all exceed federal limits too.

One way to reduce the amount of nitrates in a system is to install an expensive reverse osmosis filtration system. But most small towns just struggling to survive can’t afford that.

Ford City Clerk Penny Mcallister said they’ve been working with KDHE to try and solve the issue in other ways that don’t involve spending half a million dollars on reverse osmosis.

But until then, she said, “I’ve learned that it doesn’t pay to worry. Especially on something that I can’t control.”

Brian Grimmett reports on the environment, energy and natural resources for the Kansas News Service. You can follow him on Twitter @briangrimmett or email him at grimmett (at) kmuw (dot) org. 

 

GEARY COUNTY —A man and a woman were taken into custody following the alleged kidnapping of a one-year old infant boy in the 1000 block of West 6th Street in Junction City and a pursuit that ended west of Lawrence Friday, according to Junction City Police. The one-year old infant was rescued safely.

The incident began just before 2 p.m. Friday with the Kansas Highway Patrol joining Junction City police in tracking the Chevrolet Silverado pickup as it traveled down Interstate 70. It was located west of Topeka but was eventually stopped farther east.

No injuries were reported. Police did not release names of the suspects.

RILEY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas felon on a number of new charges after an arrest in Riley County.

Just after 6p.m. Thursday, police arrested Mark Anthony Koch, Sr. 51, Manhattan, on a Riley County District Court Warrant for alleged crimes that include “aggravated kidnapping, aggravated burglary; dwelling for felony, theft, sex; aggravated battery; knowingly cause great bodily harm or disfigurement, burglary; dwelling to commit felony, theft or sexually motivated crime, theft of property or services; value $1,500 to $25,000; theft from building, theft of property or services; Value $1,500 to $25,000 and theft of motor vehicle parts or accessories, according to the RCPD booking report.

The crimes allegedly occurred October 10 and 11, according the RCPD. He is being held on a $250,000.00 bond.

Koch has previous convictions for theft, criminal damage to property, battery and drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY — One person died in an accident just before 7:30a.m. Friday in Pottawatomie County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2011 GMC Sierra driven by Joseph F. McIntyre, 19, St. Marys, was westbound on U.S. 24 one mile northwest of Darling Road in the eastbound lane. 

The pickup struck a 1996 Ford Explorer driven by K Kathleen Cummings, 54, Belvue, head-on.

Cummings was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Frontier Forensics. EMS transported McIntyre to a hospital in Topeka. Both drivers were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Local Republican leaders have called on a GOP legislator from Wichita to resign after a newspaper investigation linked him to an ad making false claims against a Democratic colleague running for mayor.

Sedgwick County GOP’s leaders demanded that Rep. Michael Capps step down over the attack on Rep. Brandon Whipple.

Whipple hopes to unseat Mayor Jeff Longwell in Tuesday’s election.

A Capps-owned company was the original owner of a website domain name mirroring the name of a company that paid for the ad. The firm also listed the same address as Capps’ business.

The YouTube and Facebook ad falsely suggests Whipple has been accused of sexual harassment at the Statehouse.

Capps didn’t immediately respond to emails seeking comment.

TOPEKA – For the month of October, the state saw an increase in its total tax collections at $552.9 million; 7.1% or $36.8 million ahead of estimates. These collections amount to $41.5 million more than October of Fiscal Year 2019, according to a media release from the Kansas Department of Revenue.

Individual and corporate income tax collections continued to be more than estimated. Individual income tax collections were $15.0 million ahead of the estimate at $260.0 million; $17.8 million ahead of the same month last fiscal year. Corporate income tax collections were at $26.2 million; $6.2 million more than the estimate and $6.7 million more than collected in October of FY2019.

Retail and compensating use tax collections were also ahead of the estimate. Retail sales tax collections were at $200.8 million; $8.8 million or 4.6% ahead of the estimate. These collections were $10.4 million more than the same month of Fiscal Year 2019. Compensating use tax collections came in $7.7 million or 22.6% ahead of estimates at $41.7 million; a $7.2 million increase from October of FY2019.

“The increase the state is seeing in compensating use tax collections could be, in part, due to the recent increase in the number of registrations by out-of-state retailers,” Secretary Mark Burghart said.

“As we saw in September, the latest report is a positive sign as we slowly recover from the failed Brownback-Colyer tax experiment,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “Still, we’re mindful of the need to remain cautious and show fiscal restraint as we continue to rebuild the state and strengthen the economy.” 

KIOWA COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect in connection with a high-speed chase and crash that sent a Kansas deputy to the hospital.

Just after 6:30 p.m. Thursday, law enforcement authorities informed officials in Greensburg of a chase  with a motorcycle was heading to Kiowa County from Pratt County, according to Sheriff Chris Tedder.

A Kiowa County Sheriff deputy located the red 2001 Honda motorcycle on U.S. 54 at about the 111 milepost and traveling at a high rate of speed.

As officers turned to stop the vehicle,  the motorcycle accelerated gaining about a half mile on the deputies and traveled into Greensburg. As deputies caught up with the motorcycle, the driver of lead patrol unit lost control and the vehicle crashed into a drainage ditch, according to Tedder.

The suspect on the motorcycle identified as 18-year-old Isaac Mason of Wisconsin was located at the Ford-Kiowa County line and taken into custody without further incident.

The deputy was transported to Kiowa County Memorial Hospital and he was later transported by ambulance to Wichita, in stable but critical condition. The sheriff did not release the name of the deputy.

Mason is being held in Pratt County on requested charges that include “flee or attempt to elude, five or more moving violations and vehicles; Unlawful Acts; e.g. registration: STAT,” according to online booking records.