LEAVENWORTH COUNTY –&nbsp;The Basehor Police Department requested that the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) issue a statewide Silver Alert for a missing Basehor man.

The whereabouts of 77-year-old Donald L. Pursley are unknown, and the public’s assistance is requested to help locate him.

Pursley is a white male, 5 ft. 10 in. tall, weighing around 170 lbs. He has grey hair and hazel eyes. Pursley was last known driving a silver 2003 Toyota Tacoma, with Kansas Veterans tag&nbsp;59982. The pickup truck has USMC and POW stickers on the rear window.

Pursley left his home on Sept. 21 around 11 a.m. to go fishing and has not returned home. He was wearing a dark-colored USMC ball cap and jeans. Pursley’s last location may have been within a 10 mile radius of Oskaloosa, Kansas.

Pursley’s family reported him missing Friday evening, Sept. 24, and shared that he sometimes fishes at Lake Perry in Jefferson County, or Smithville Lake in Missouri. They are concerned for his safety.

If you see Pursley, his vehicle, or have information about his whereabouts, please immediately call 911 or the Basehor Police Department at 913-758-4022.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632538450016.png" alt="Donald L. Pursley" />
 <figcaption>Donald L. Pursley</figcaption>
 </figure>LEAVENWORTH COUNTY –&nbsp;The Basehor Police Department requested that the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) issue a statewide Silver Alert for a missing Basehor man.The whereabouts of 77-year-old Donald L. Pursley are unknown, and the public’s assistance is requested to help locate him.Pursley is a white male, 5 ft. 10 in. tall, weighing around 170 lbs. He has grey hair and hazel eyes. Pursley was last known driving a silver 2003 Toyota Tacoma, with Kansas Veterans tag&nbsp;59982. The pickup truck has USMC and POW stickers on the rear window.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632538425842.png" alt="Mr. Pursley" />
 <figcaption>Mr. Pursley</figcaption>
 </figure>Pursley left his home on Sept. 21 around 11 a.m. to go fishing and has not returned home. He was wearing a dark-colored USMC ball cap and jeans. Pursley’s last location may have been within a 10 mile radius of Oskaloosa, Kansas.Pursley’s family reported him missing Friday evening, Sept. 24, and shared that he sometimes fishes at Lake Perry in Jefferson County, or Smithville Lake in Missouri. They are concerned for his safety.If you see Pursley, his vehicle, or have information about his whereabouts, please immediately call 911 or the Basehor Police Department at 913-758-4022.

KBI: Statewide Silver Alert for missing Kan. man

DOUGLAS COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating the fatal shooting of 2-year-old have arrested 21-year-old Bishop Isaiah Mendoza of Lawrence.

Just before 11a.m. Sept. 17, police were dispatched to a home in the 1500 Block of Wedgewood Drive in Lawrence in reference to a shooting, according to police spokesperson Patrick Compton.&nbsp;

Officers arrived on scene and located a 2-year-old child later identified as Legend King who was critically injured from an apparent gunshot wound. The child was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital by Lawrence Douglas County Fire and Medical. The child was later pronounced deceased at the hospital.

Mendoza is being held on requested charges of involuntary manslaughter, aggravated child endangerment and possession of a stolen handgun, according to Compton.

DOUGLAS COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting that left a child dead.

Just before 11a.m. Friday, police were dispatched to the 1500 Block of Wedgewood Drive in reference to a shooting, according to police spokesperson Patrick Compton.&nbsp;

Officers arrived on scene and located a 2-year-old child who was critically injured from an apparent gunshot wound. The child was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital by Lawrence Douglas County Fire and Medical. The child was later pronounced deceased at the hospital.

Officers and detectives are currently speaking with the parties involved in the incident and preliminary information suggests the shooting was accidental. Authorities released no additional details including names of those involved.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1631914210754.png" alt="Police on the scene of the Friday fatal shooting investigation -photo courtesy WIBW TV" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the Friday fatal shooting investigation -photo courtesy WIBW TV</figcaption>
 </figure>DOUGLAS COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating the fatal shooting of 2-year-old have arrested 21-year-old Bishop Isaiah Mendoza of Lawrence.Just before 11a.m. Sept. 17, police were dispatched to a home in the 1500 Block of Wedgewood Drive in Lawrence in reference to a shooting, according to police spokesperson Patrick Compton.&nbsp;Officers arrived on scene and located a 2-year-old child later identified as Legend King who was critically injured from an apparent gunshot wound. The child was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital by Lawrence Douglas County Fire and Medical. The child was later pronounced deceased at the hospital.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632512725788.png" alt="Mendoza-photo Douglas County" />
 <figcaption>Mendoza-photo Douglas County</figcaption>
 </figure>Mendoza is being held on requested charges of involuntary manslaughter, aggravated child endangerment and possession of a stolen handgun, according to Compton.--------DOUGLAS COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting that left a child dead.Just before 11a.m. Friday, police were dispatched to the 1500 Block of Wedgewood Drive in reference to a shooting, according to police spokesperson Patrick Compton.&nbsp;Officers arrived on scene and located a 2-year-old child who was critically injured from an apparent gunshot wound. The child was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital by Lawrence Douglas County Fire and Medical. The child was later pronounced deceased at the hospital.Officers and detectives are currently speaking with the parties involved in the incident and preliminary information suggests the shooting was accidental. Authorities released no additional details including names of those involved.

Police: Stolen handgun killed 2-year-old Kansas boy 

JOHNSON COUNTY –&nbsp;The Shawnee Police Department requested that the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) issue a statewide silver alert for a missing Shawnee woman.&nbsp;

The whereabouts of 81-year-old Marsha A. McClellan are unknown, and the public’s assistance is requested to help locate her.

McClellan&nbsp;left her home at approximately 2 p.m. Friday, Sept. 24, in a tan 2013 Buick Encore, with Kansas Veteran tag&nbsp;75AZD. Her vehicle was last seen heading East at Johnson Dr. &amp; Neiman Rd., in Shawnee, around 3 p.m. on Friday.

McClellan has been diagnosed with dementia, and has not driven in over six months. She also does not have medication with her.

McClellan is a white female, 5 ft. 4 in. tall, and weighs approximately 135 lbs.&nbsp;She has blue eyes and short white hair.

If you see McClellan or her vehicle, or have details about her whereabouts, please immediately call 911, or contact the Shawnee Police Department at&nbsp;(913) 742-6770.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632533084973.png" alt="Marsha McClellan-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Marsha McClellan-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>JOHNSON COUNTY –&nbsp;The Shawnee Police Department requested that the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) issue a statewide silver alert for a missing Shawnee woman.&nbsp;The whereabouts of 81-year-old Marsha A. McClellan are unknown, and the public’s assistance is requested to help locate her.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632533137335.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>McClellan&nbsp;left her home at approximately 2 p.m. Friday, Sept. 24, in a tan 2013 Buick Encore, with Kansas Veteran tag&nbsp;75AZD. Her vehicle was last seen heading East at Johnson Dr. &amp; Neiman Rd., in Shawnee, around 3 p.m. on Friday.McClellan has been diagnosed with dementia, and has not driven in over six months. She also does not have medication with her.McClellan is a white female, 5 ft. 4 in. tall, and weighs approximately 135 lbs.&nbsp;She has blue eyes and short white hair.If you see McClellan or her vehicle, or have details about her whereabouts, please immediately call 911, or contact the Shawnee Police Department at&nbsp;(913) 742-6770.

KBI: Statewide Silver Alert for missing Kansas woman

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education have announced that the president of Emporia State University in Kansas will become the new chancellor of Oklahoma's higher education system. 

Regents Chair Jeffrey Hickman on Friday said Allison Garrett, the first woman named as chancellor, will succeed Glen Johnson, who is retiring Sept. 30 after serving as chancellor since 2007. 

Garrett, president at Emporia State since 2016, previously was an administrator at Abilene Christian University in Texas and at Oklahoma Christian University. She also worked as an executive at Walmart, which is based in Bentonville, Arkansas.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632528187360.png" alt="Allison Garrett-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Allison Garrett-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education have announced that the president of Emporia State University in Kansas will become the new chancellor of Oklahoma's higher education system. Regents Chair Jeffrey Hickman on Friday said Allison Garrett, the first woman named as chancellor, will succeed Glen Johnson, who is retiring Sept. 30 after serving as chancellor since 2007. Garrett, president at Emporia State since 2016, previously was an administrator at Abilene Christian University in Texas and at Oklahoma Christian University. She also worked as an executive at Walmart, which is based in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Emporia State president named chancellor of Okla. higher education system

WASHINGTON (AP) —President Joe Biden on Friday urged those now eligible for boosters of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine to get the added protection a day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention endorsed the extra doses for millions of older or otherwise vulnerable Americans.

<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?514937-1/president-biden-announces-eligible-groups-pfizer-booster-shots">Click here to watch </a>a replay of President Biden's comments

Now public health officials must clear up confusion over exactly who should get a booster, and why — as they juggle vaccinating the unvaccinated who still make up the vast majority of the nation’s coronavirus cases.

People 65 and older, nursing home residents and those ages 50 and up who have chronic health problems such as diabetes should be offered a booster once they’re six months past their last Pfizer dose, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky ruled late Thursday.

And a broad swath of other adults can decide for themselves if they want a booster once they reach that six-month mark: Younger people with underlying health problems — plus people at increased risk of infection because of their jobs, such as health workers, or their living conditions, such as jails or homeless shelters.

Walensky overruled objections from her own advisory panel in adding that last category, but the decision drew praise from health organizations that need their employees to avoid even a mild infection so they can come to work.

“At a time when hospitals across the country are experiencing ongoing surges in COVID-19 hospitalizations and severe workforce shortages, all available tools — including booster shots — should be considered to keep frontline health care workers safe and safeguard access to care,” said American Hospital Association CEO Rick Pollack.

The booster decision comes even as CDC data shows the vaccines used in the U.S. still strongly protect against severe illness, hospitalizations and death from COVID-19, although immunity against milder infection appears to be waning somewhat months after getting the shots.

“You’re in good shape and we’re doing everything we can to keep it that way, which is where the booster comes in,” Biden said Friday as he praised the decision. He aimed to set aside any unease about another vaccination by saying he would get his own booster soon.

“It’s hard to acknowledge I’m over 65, but I’ll be getting my booster shot,” Biden said. “It’s a bear, isn’t it?”

The approval prompted many Americans to immediately seek their own boosters.

Jen Peck, 52, of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, got the booster first thing Friday morning. She qualified as a math and science consultant at rural schools in Wisconsin, and got her last Pfizer dose in March.

“It’s a little scary out there,” she said of her job traveling between school districts in places where many students and teachers don’t wear masks and the younger children aren’t vaccinated.

“Because I go from building to building I don’t want to be COVID Mary carrying it around to buildings full of unvaccinated kiddos. I could not live with myself if I carried it from one building to another. That haunts me, the thought of that,” Peck said.

CDC’s Walensky said getting the unvaccinated their first shots remains the top priority. But her advisers on Thursday wrestled with whether the booster debate was distracting from that goal, especially if the shots were opened to the wide swath of Americans that Walensky ultimately settled on.

Only about 182 million Americans are fully vaccinated, or just 55% of the population.

It’s rare for a CDC director to overrule the panel recommendation; experts said it has only happened once this century.

Still to come: Government decisions on whether to allow booster doses of vaccines made by Moderna and Johnson &amp; Johnson.

Britain and Israel are already giving a third round of shots over strong objections from the World Health Organization that poor countries don’t have enough for their initial doses.

The U.S. had already authorized third doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for certain people with weakened immune systems, such as cancer patients and transplant recipients. Other Americans, healthy or not, have managed to get boosters, in some cases simply by asking.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632493622883.png" alt="“It’s hard to acknowledge I’m over 65, but I’ll be getting my booster shot,” President Biden said. “It’s a bear, isn’t it?”-photo courtesy White House" />
 <figcaption>“It’s hard to acknowledge I’m over 65, but I’ll be getting my booster shot,” President Biden said. “It’s a bear, isn’t it?”-photo courtesy White House</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —President Joe Biden on Friday urged those now eligible for boosters of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine to get the added protection a day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention endorsed the extra doses for millions of older or otherwise vulnerable Americans.<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?514937-1/president-biden-announces-eligible-groups-pfizer-booster-shots">Click here to watch </a>a replay of President Biden's commentsNow public health officials must clear up confusion over exactly who should get a booster, and why — as they juggle vaccinating the unvaccinated who still make up the vast majority of the nation’s coronavirus cases.People 65 and older, nursing home residents and those ages 50 and up who have chronic health problems such as diabetes should be offered a booster once they’re six months past their last Pfizer dose, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky ruled late Thursday.And a broad swath of other adults can decide for themselves if they want a booster once they reach that six-month mark: Younger people with underlying health problems — plus people at increased risk of infection because of their jobs, such as health workers, or their living conditions, such as jails or homeless shelters.Walensky overruled objections from her own advisory panel in adding that last category, but the decision drew praise from health organizations that need their employees to avoid even a mild infection so they can come to work.“At a time when hospitals across the country are experiencing ongoing surges in COVID-19 hospitalizations and severe workforce shortages, all available tools — including booster shots — should be considered to keep frontline health care workers safe and safeguard access to care,” said American Hospital Association CEO Rick Pollack.The booster decision comes even as CDC data shows the vaccines used in the U.S. still strongly protect against severe illness, hospitalizations and death from COVID-19, although immunity against milder infection appears to be waning somewhat months after getting the shots.“You’re in good shape and we’re doing everything we can to keep it that way, which is where the booster comes in,” Biden said Friday as he praised the decision. He aimed to set aside any unease about another vaccination by saying he would get his own booster soon.“It’s hard to acknowledge I’m over 65, but I’ll be getting my booster shot,” Biden said. “It’s a bear, isn’t it?”The approval prompted many Americans to immediately seek their own boosters.Jen Peck, 52, of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, got the booster first thing Friday morning. She qualified as a math and science consultant at rural schools in Wisconsin, and got her last Pfizer dose in March.“It’s a little scary out there,” she said of her job traveling between school districts in places where many students and teachers don’t wear masks and the younger children aren’t vaccinated.“Because I go from building to building I don’t want to be COVID Mary carrying it around to buildings full of unvaccinated kiddos. I could not live with myself if I carried it from one building to another. That haunts me, the thought of that,” Peck said.CDC’s Walensky said getting the unvaccinated their first shots remains the top priority. But her advisers on Thursday wrestled with whether the booster debate was distracting from that goal, especially if the shots were opened to the wide swath of Americans that Walensky ultimately settled on.Only about 182 million Americans are fully vaccinated, or just 55% of the population.It’s rare for a CDC director to overrule the panel recommendation; experts said it has only happened once this century.Still to come: Government decisions on whether to allow booster doses of vaccines made by Moderna and Johnson &amp; Johnson.Britain and Israel are already giving a third round of shots over strong objections from the World Health Organization that poor countries don’t have enough for their initial doses.The U.S. had already authorized third doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for certain people with weakened immune systems, such as cancer patients and transplant recipients. Other Americans, healthy or not, have managed to get boosters, in some cases simply by asking.

🎥 Biden: Hard to acknowledge I’m over 65, I’ll get my booster shot

KANSAS CITY (AP) — The driver of an all-terrain vehicle is dead after it reportedly popped a wheelie and crashed into the side of a Jeep.

<a href="https://www.kctv5.com/news/local_news/4-wheeler-rider-dead-after-popping-a-wheelie-driving-into-car-with-baby-inside/article_f4d12e42-1d36-11ec-97e3-ffdbd3825b4e.html?block_id=991162">KCTV-TV&nbsp;</a>reports that the accident happened around 10 p.m. Thursday in Kansas City. Police said a man driving a Yamaha four-wheeler ran a red light and popped a wheelie while trying to go around a vehicle that was in front of him at the light.

As the ATV ran the red light it drove into the side of a Jeep. The ATV driver was thrown from the vehicle and died. The woman driving the Jeep is hospitalized with serious injuries. Her 1-year-old son who was in the Jeep was not hurt.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — The driver of an all-terrain vehicle is dead after it reportedly popped a wheelie and crashed into the side of a Jeep.<a href="https://www.kctv5.com/news/local_news/4-wheeler-rider-dead-after-popping-a-wheelie-driving-into-car-with-baby-inside/article_f4d12e42-1d36-11ec-97e3-ffdbd3825b4e.html?block_id=991162">KCTV-TV&nbsp;</a>reports that the accident happened around 10 p.m. Thursday in Kansas City. Police said a man driving a Yamaha four-wheeler ran a red light and popped a wheelie while trying to go around a vehicle that was in front of him at the light.As the ATV ran the red light it drove into the side of a Jeep. The ATV driver was thrown from the vehicle and died. The woman driving the Jeep is hospitalized with serious injuries. Her 1-year-old son who was in the Jeep was not hurt.

ATV driver dead after crash into Jeep with baby inside

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House passed legislation Friday that would guarantee a woman’s right to an abortion, an effort by Democrats to circumvent a new Texas law that has placed that access under threat.

The bill's 218-211 approval is mostly symbolic, as Republican opposition will doom it in the Senate.

Still, Democrats say they are doing all they can to codify the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision after the Supreme Court recently allowed the Texas law banning most abortions in the state to take effect. The court will hear arguments in December in a separate Mississippi bid to overturn the landmark decision.

Despite the long odds in his chamber, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement after the vote that “Congress must assert its role to protect the constitutional right to abortion” and that the Senate would hold a vote “in the very near future.”

Codifying the Roe ruling would mean creating a right to abortion in federal law, a monumental change that would make it harder for courts and states to impose restrictions.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said that congressional action would make a “tremendous difference” in Democrats’ efforts to maintain access to abortion rights. She called the Supreme Court's decision “shameful” and counter to its own precedent.

Pelosi said just ahead of Friday's vote that it should “send a very positive message to the women of our country — but not just the women, to the women and their families, to everyone who values freedom, honors our Constitution and respects women.”

No Republicans voted for the legislation, which would supersede state laws on the subject, give health care providers the right to perform abortions and patients the right to receive them. Republicans argue it would prevent states from setting requirements like parental involvement and could weaken laws that allow doctors to refuse to perform an abortion.

The legislation “isn't about freedom for women, it's about death for babies,” said Republican Rep. Vicky Hartzler of Missouri. She said it would eliminate protections for women and girls who may be coerced into having abortions.

“It ends the life of a living human being with a plan and a purpose from God and who deserves to live,” Hartzler said.

Only one member crossed party lines — Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas, who voted against the bill.

The vote came as Democrats have spoken boldly about fighting the Supreme Court — which has a more conservative tilt after Justice Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed last year — but struggled privately to find an effective strategy. They control Congress by the slimmest of margins, including the evenly split 50-50 Senate, making the prospects of a successful legislative response difficult.

The party has split, in some cases, over how far Washington must go to preserve access to abortions. Liberal lawmakers backed by advocates of reproductive rights who helped power President Joe Biden to office want to expand the number of justices on the Supreme Court to rebalance power, changing the rules if needed to lower the 60-vote threshold typically required in the Senate to advance legislation.

“Democrats can either abolish the filibuster and expand the court, or do nothing as millions of peoples’ bodies, rights, and lives are sacrificed for far-right minority rule," tweeted Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. “This shouldn’t be a difficult decision.”

But other Democrats — Biden among them — have been wary of such a move.

Biden supports the House bill and called the court’s ruling on Texas an “unprecedented assault on a woman’s constitutional rights." He has directed multiple agencies to conduct a government-wide effort to ensure women have abortion access and to protect health care providers. But he has not endorsed the idea of adding justices to the Supreme Court, instead forming a commission to study the idea.

The court's decisions on abortion could prompt political tensions among Republicans, as well.

Former President Donald Trump was able to secure three new conservative Supreme Court justices because Republican leadership in Congress led by GOP leader Mitch McConnell paved the way. Now, as the court upheld the strict new Texas aw outlawing most abortions in the state, the political fallout will test the limits of that strategy.

Women and advocates of abortion rights are quickly mobilizing to take on not just those Republicans, but also the big businesses that backed them, aiming squarely at those that contributed to many of the Texas Republicans behind the abortion law.

“They will be met with a fierce response from women and people across the country,” said Sonja Spoo, director of Reproductive Rights Campaigns at UltraViolet, an advocacy organization, in an interview.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican who supports abortion rights, says the Texas law is “harmful and extreme” and she supports codifying Roe.

But she says the House bill goes “way beyond” that and could threaten the rights of doctors who refuse to perform abortions on religious or moral grounds, for example.

“I support codifying Roe, and I am working with some of my colleagues in the Senate on legislation that would do so,” Collins said in a statement.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632509999612.png" alt="House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said that congressional action would make a “tremendous difference” in Democrats’ efforts to maintain access to abortion rights. She called the Supreme Court's decision “shameful” and counter to its own precedent.-photo courtesy House Speaker" />
 <figcaption>House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said that congressional action would make a “tremendous difference” in Democrats’ efforts to maintain access to abortion rights. She called the Supreme Court's decision “shameful” and counter to its own precedent.-photo courtesy House Speaker</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The House passed legislation Friday that would guarantee a woman’s right to an abortion, an effort by Democrats to circumvent a new Texas law that has placed that access under threat.The bill's 218-211 approval is mostly symbolic, as Republican opposition will doom it in the Senate.Still, Democrats say they are doing all they can to codify the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision after the Supreme Court recently allowed the Texas law banning most abortions in the state to take effect. The court will hear arguments in December in a separate Mississippi bid to overturn the landmark decision.Despite the long odds in his chamber, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement after the vote that “Congress must assert its role to protect the constitutional right to abortion” and that the Senate would hold a vote “in the very near future.”Codifying the Roe ruling would mean creating a right to abortion in federal law, a monumental change that would make it harder for courts and states to impose restrictions.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said that congressional action would make a “tremendous difference” in Democrats’ efforts to maintain access to abortion rights. She called the Supreme Court's decision “shameful” and counter to its own precedent.Pelosi said just ahead of Friday's vote that it should “send a very positive message to the women of our country — but not just the women, to the women and their families, to everyone who values freedom, honors our Constitution and respects women.”No Republicans voted for the legislation, which would supersede state laws on the subject, give health care providers the right to perform abortions and patients the right to receive them. Republicans argue it would prevent states from setting requirements like parental involvement and could weaken laws that allow doctors to refuse to perform an abortion.The legislation “isn't about freedom for women, it's about death for babies,” said Republican Rep. Vicky Hartzler of Missouri. She said it would eliminate protections for women and girls who may be coerced into having abortions.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Democrats&#39; radical abortion bill being considered today isn’t about freedom for women. It’s about death for babies. (1/3) <a href="https://t.co/UQU6IpldMe">pic.twitter.com/UQU6IpldMe</a>&mdash; Rep. Vicky Hartzler (@RepHartzler) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepHartzler/status/1441422196132380678?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 24, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“It ends the life of a living human being with a plan and a purpose from God and who deserves to live,” Hartzler said.Only one member crossed party lines — Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas, who voted against the bill.The vote came as Democrats have spoken boldly about fighting the Supreme Court — which has a more conservative tilt after Justice Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed last year — but struggled privately to find an effective strategy. They control Congress by the slimmest of margins, including the evenly split 50-50 Senate, making the prospects of a successful legislative response difficult.The party has split, in some cases, over how far Washington must go to preserve access to abortions. Liberal lawmakers backed by advocates of reproductive rights who helped power President Joe Biden to office want to expand the number of justices on the Supreme Court to rebalance power, changing the rules if needed to lower the 60-vote threshold typically required in the Senate to advance legislation.“Democrats can either abolish the filibuster and expand the court, or do nothing as millions of peoples’ bodies, rights, and lives are sacrificed for far-right minority rule," tweeted Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. “This shouldn’t be a difficult decision.”But other Democrats — Biden among them — have been wary of such a move.Biden supports the House bill and called the court’s ruling on Texas an “unprecedented assault on a woman’s constitutional rights." He has directed multiple agencies to conduct a government-wide effort to ensure women have abortion access and to protect health care providers. But he has not endorsed the idea of adding justices to the Supreme Court, instead forming a commission to study the idea.The court's decisions on abortion could prompt political tensions among Republicans, as well.Former President Donald Trump was able to secure three new conservative Supreme Court justices because Republican leadership in Congress led by GOP leader Mitch McConnell paved the way. Now, as the court upheld the strict new Texas aw outlawing most abortions in the state, the political fallout will test the limits of that strategy.Women and advocates of abortion rights are quickly mobilizing to take on not just those Republicans, but also the big businesses that backed them, aiming squarely at those that contributed to many of the Texas Republicans behind the abortion law.“They will be met with a fierce response from women and people across the country,” said Sonja Spoo, director of Reproductive Rights Campaigns at UltraViolet, an advocacy organization, in an interview.Maine Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican who supports abortion rights, says the Texas law is “harmful and extreme” and she supports codifying Roe.But she says the House bill goes “way beyond” that and could threaten the rights of doctors who refuse to perform abortions on religious or moral grounds, for example.“I support codifying Roe, and I am working with some of my colleagues in the Senate on legislation that would do so,” Collins said in a statement.

House votes to protect abortion rights amid state challenges

BLUE SPRINGS, Mo. (AP) — A Jackson County judge has ordered a suburban Kansas City restaurant to shut down in the wake of its owner’s continued defiance of a mask mandate intended to fight the spread of COVID-19.

Earlier this month, Judge James Kanatazar ordered Rae’s Cafe in Blue Springs to temporarily close after owner Amanda Wohletz ignored a health department order to close because of repeated violations of the county’s indoor mask requirement.

On Thursday, Judge Jennifer Phillips barred the restaurant from operating, rejecting Wohletz’s argument of medical exemptions and that the restaurant could skirt the mandate by operating as a private club. The judge also ordered Rae’s Cafe to cease operations until it obtained a valid food permit.

On Sept. 3, Jackson County health officials and sheriff’s deputies served Wohletz with an order to close because the mask mandate was being ignored. But the business continued to operate, and its food permit was then suspended. Wohletz reopened as a private club, which charged customers $1 to join and prohibited masks.

Wohletz had said she and all her workers were medically exempt from the mask mandate, saying in court filings that “wearing masks caused them anxiety and mental stress."

The restaurant was the first business the county sought to close for not following public safety requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1631393652541.png" alt="A large gathering outside the Kansas City-area restaurant&nbsp; on Sept. 10-photo courtesy Rae's" />
 <figcaption>A large gathering outside the Kansas City-area restaurant&nbsp; on Sept. 10-photo courtesy Rae's</figcaption>
 </figure>BLUE SPRINGS, Mo. (AP) — A Jackson County judge has ordered a suburban Kansas City restaurant to shut down in the wake of its owner’s continued defiance of a mask mandate intended to fight the spread of COVID-19.Earlier this month, Judge James Kanatazar ordered Rae’s Cafe in Blue Springs to temporarily close after owner Amanda Wohletz ignored a health department order to close because of repeated violations of the county’s indoor mask requirement.On Thursday, Judge Jennifer Phillips barred the restaurant from operating, rejecting Wohletz’s argument of medical exemptions and that the restaurant could skirt the mandate by operating as a private club. The judge also ordered Rae’s Cafe to cease operations until it obtained a valid food permit.On Sept. 3, Jackson County health officials and sheriff’s deputies served Wohletz with an order to close because the mask mandate was being ignored. But the business continued to operate, and its food permit was then suspended. Wohletz reopened as a private club, which charged customers $1 to join and prohibited masks.Wohletz had said she and all her workers were medically exempt from the mask mandate, saying in court filings that “wearing masks caused them anxiety and mental stress."The restaurant was the first business the county sought to close for not following public safety requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mask dispute: Judge orders KC-area restaurant to cease operations 

TOPEKA— The number of confirmed coronavirus cases* (see below) in Kansas increased by 2,528 to a total of 404,459 the state health department reported Friday afternoon.&nbsp;

The state reported 62 new COVID-19 deaths for a total of 5981.

<a href="https://www.kansasvaccine.gov/158/Data">Click here for Data</a> about the COVID-19 vaccine.

<a href="https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/160/COVID-19-in-Kansas">Click here&nbsp;</a>for additional virus numbers from the KDHE.

As of August 1, 2021, in accordance with an&nbsp;<a href="https://ndc.services.cdc.gov/conditions/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/" target="_blank">updated CDC/CSTE surveillance case definition</a>, a confirmed case is defined as a person who tested positive by molecular detection (e.g., PCR, NAA) or identification of SARS-CoV-2 through genetic sequencing. A probable case is defined as a person with: a) presumptive lab evidence (antigen) or b) no lab testing but meeting clinical case criteria and is epi-linked. A person will be counted as a new surveillance case (e.g. reinfection) if they test positive for SARS-CoV-2 by a diagnostic test (i.e., molecular, antigen) and it has been greater than 90 days since the previous positive diagnostic test. In addition, a person with sequencing results identifying different SARS-CoV-2 lineages regardless of the time since the previous specimen sequenced will be counted as a new surveillance case.&nbsp;

Cases occurring between&nbsp;September 1, 2020&nbsp;and July 29, 2021 were classified by&nbsp;<a href="https://ndc.services.cdc.gov/conditions/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/" target="_blank">previous CDC/CSTE case definition,&nbsp;</a>and cases prior to September 1, 2020 were classified by the&nbsp;<a href="https://ndc.services.cdc.gov/case-definitions/coronavirus-disease-2019-2020/" target="_blank">original case definition</a>.

TOPEKA— The number of confirmed coronavirus cases* (see below) in Kansas increased by 2,528 to a total of 404,459 the state health department reported Friday afternoon.&nbsp;The state reported 62 new COVID-19 deaths for a total of 5981.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632503011665.png" alt="Friday Sept. 24, 2021 KDHE image" />
 <figcaption>Friday Sept. 24, 2021 KDHE image</figcaption>
 </figure><a href="https://www.kansasvaccine.gov/158/Data">Click here for Data</a> about the COVID-19 vaccine.<a href="https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/160/COVID-19-in-Kansas">Click here&nbsp;</a>for additional virus numbers from the KDHE.As of August 1, 2021, in accordance with an&nbsp;<a href="https://ndc.services.cdc.gov/conditions/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/" target="_blank">updated CDC/CSTE surveillance case definition</a>, a confirmed case is defined as a person who tested positive by molecular detection (e.g., PCR, NAA) or identification of SARS-CoV-2 through genetic sequencing. A probable case is defined as a person with: a) presumptive lab evidence (antigen) or b) no lab testing but meeting clinical case criteria and is epi-linked. A person will be counted as a new surveillance case (e.g. reinfection) if they test positive for SARS-CoV-2 by a diagnostic test (i.e., molecular, antigen) and it has been greater than 90 days since the previous positive diagnostic test. In addition, a person with sequencing results identifying different SARS-CoV-2 lineages regardless of the time since the previous specimen sequenced will be counted as a new surveillance case.&nbsp;Cases occurring between&nbsp;September 1, 2020&nbsp;and July 29, 2021 were classified by&nbsp;<a href="https://ndc.services.cdc.gov/conditions/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/" target="_blank">previous CDC/CSTE case definition,&nbsp;</a>and cases prior to September 1, 2020 were classified by the&nbsp;<a href="https://ndc.services.cdc.gov/case-definitions/coronavirus-disease-2019-2020/" target="_blank">original case definition</a>.

KDHE: 2500 new cases, 62 more COVID deaths

TOPEKA —The Kansas Supreme Court announced Friday that it had vacated a former Smoky Valley Middle School counselor's two convictions of rape of a child under the age of 14 and remanded the case for a new trial, according to a media release from the court.

Brooke Dinkel who formerly taught in Hays is now 40. She was convicted in Saline County District Court in 2014. According to court records, the victim was a student at the middle school.

In her defense, Dinkel argued the alleged victim had physically forced the first act of sexual intercourse and blackmailed Dinkel into continuing the sexual contact and that she had a mental disease or defect. 

After the conviction in Saline County District Court, Dinkel appealed, alleging a number of errors, and the Court of Appeals remanded the case for a hearing on whether her trial counsel had been ineffective, according to information released by the Kansas Supreme Court with its ruling. The district court concluded that Dinkel's counsel had not been ineffective and the Court of Appeals agreed. Additionally, the Court of Appeals rejected Dinkel's claims of error, largely based on its conclusion that her intent was irrelevant because there is no mental culpability requirement for rape of a child.

"On review, the Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals conclusion that Dinkel's intent was irrelevant. It ruled that evidence the sexual intercourse was physically forced was relevant to the voluntary act requirement," the Kansas Supreme Court information noted.

The Kansas Supreme Court then remanded the case to the district court for a hearing concerning whether Dinkel's counsel had been ineffective for failing to argue the voluntary act requirement. According to the information from the Kansas Supreme Court, the district court concluded counsel had not been ineffective.

"In an opinion written by Justice Eric Rosen, a majority of the Supreme Court disagreed. It held that counsel had been ineffective when it failed to craft a defense that rendered Dinkel's claims of forced intercourse legally relevant. But it affirmed the Court of Appeals conclusion there is no mental culpability requirement for rape of a child," the Kansas Supreme Court noted.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632500056460.png" alt="Dinkel- photo Kansas Department of Corrections&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Dinkel- photo Kansas Department of Corrections&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA —The Kansas Supreme Court announced Friday that it had vacated a former Smoky Valley Middle School counselor's two convictions of rape of a child under the age of 14 and remanded the case for a new trial, according to a media release from the court.Brooke Dinkel who formerly taught in Hays is now 40. She was convicted in Saline County District Court in 2014. According to court records, the victim was a student at the middle school.In her defense, Dinkel argued the alleged victim had physically forced the first act of sexual intercourse and blackmailed Dinkel into continuing the sexual contact and that she had a mental disease or defect. After the conviction in Saline County District Court, Dinkel appealed, alleging a number of errors, and the Court of Appeals remanded the case for a hearing on whether her trial counsel had been ineffective, according to information released by the Kansas Supreme Court with its ruling. The district court concluded that Dinkel's counsel had not been ineffective and the Court of Appeals agreed. Additionally, the Court of Appeals rejected Dinkel's claims of error, largely based on its conclusion that her intent was irrelevant because there is no mental culpability requirement for rape of a child."On review, the Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals conclusion that Dinkel's intent was irrelevant. It ruled that evidence the sexual intercourse was physically forced was relevant to the voluntary act requirement," the Kansas Supreme Court information noted.The Kansas Supreme Court then remanded the case to the district court for a hearing concerning whether Dinkel's counsel had been ineffective for failing to argue the voluntary act requirement. According to the information from the Kansas Supreme Court, the district court concluded counsel had not been ineffective."In an opinion written by Justice Eric Rosen, a majority of the Supreme Court disagreed. It held that counsel had been ineffective when it failed to craft a defense that rendered Dinkel's claims of forced intercourse legally relevant. But it affirmed the Court of Appeals conclusion there is no mental culpability requirement for rape of a child," the Kansas Supreme Court noted.

Kan. Supreme Court vacate's rape conviction of former teacher

By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY Salina Post

SALINA — The Saline County Sheriff's Office has released the identity of the man found dead southwest of Salina on Tuesday as Marc Anthony Tipton, Sr., 42, of Salina, according to Sheriff Roger Soldan.

Tipton's body was found near the intersection of S. Halstead Road and W. McReynolds Road.

The case remains an active multi-agency homicide investigation by the Salina Police Department, Kansas Bureau of Investigation, and the Saline County Sheriff's Office.

On Wednesday, the Salina Police Department announced that it had arrested Manuel Medina-Castro, 27, of Salina, on the requested charge of second degree murder.

If you have any information relative to this case, call Crimestoppers at 825-TIPS, text SATIPS to CRIMES (274637), or visit&nbsp;<a href="https://new.tipsubmit.com/en/create-report/anonymous/salina.org">https://new.tipsubmit.com/en/create-report/anonymous/salina.org</a>&nbsp;to submit a web tip. You may receive a cash reward up to $1,000. Tipsters may also contact the Saline County Sheriff’s Office at (785) 826-6500. Saline County Sheriff’s case number 2021-16812

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1600959516286.jpeg" alt="Marc Tipton-photo Saline Co." />
 <figcaption>Marc Tipton-photo Saline Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY Salina PostSALINA — The Saline County Sheriff's Office has released the identity of the man found dead southwest of Salina on Tuesday as Marc Anthony Tipton, Sr., 42, of Salina, according to Sheriff Roger Soldan.Tipton's body was found near the intersection of S. Halstead Road and W. McReynolds Road.The case remains an active multi-agency homicide investigation by the Salina Police Department, Kansas Bureau of Investigation, and the Saline County Sheriff's Office.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1631972405111.jpeg" alt="Medina-Castro / photo Saline Co." />
 <figcaption>Medina-Castro / photo Saline Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>On Wednesday, the Salina Police Department announced that it had arrested Manuel Medina-Castro, 27, of Salina, on the requested charge of second degree murder.If you have any information relative to this case, call Crimestoppers at 825-TIPS, text SATIPS to CRIMES (274637), or visit&nbsp;<a href="https://new.tipsubmit.com/en/create-report/anonymous/salina.org">https://new.tipsubmit.com/en/create-report/anonymous/salina.org</a>&nbsp;to submit a web tip. You may receive a cash reward up to $1,000. Tipsters may also contact the Saline County Sheriff’s Office at (785) 826-6500. Saline County Sheriff’s case number 2021-16812

Sheriff releases ID of homicide victim found southwest of Salina

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities investigating a body found in rural Sedgwick County have identified the victim as&nbsp;Karlie S. Bidwell, 26, of Fort Scott, Kansas, according to Sheriff's Lt. Benjamin Blick.

Just after 7a.m. Thursday, a citizen discovered Bidwell in the roadway at 9200 E 69th Street North,northeast of Wichita, according to Sheriff's Lt. Benjamin Blick.

 Sheriff and Fire personnel responded to the scene to assess the 26-year-old woman. Shortly after arriving, fire personnel pronounced her deceased.&nbsp;

Authorities released no additional details including a possible cause of death.

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating the death of a woman in Sedgwick County.

Just after 7a.m. Thursday, a citizen discovered an unresponsive woman in the roadway at 9200 E 69th Street North,northeast of Wichita, according to Sheriff's Lt. Benjamin Blick.

Authorities released no additional details.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632423736858.png" alt="Google map" />
 <figcaption>Google map</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities investigating a body found in rural Sedgwick County have identified the victim as&nbsp;Karlie S. Bidwell, 26, of Fort Scott, Kansas, according to Sheriff's Lt. Benjamin Blick.Just after 7a.m. Thursday, a citizen discovered Bidwell in the roadway at 9200 E 69th Street North,northeast of Wichita, according to Sheriff's Lt. Benjamin Blick. Sheriff and Fire personnel responded to the scene to assess the 26-year-old woman. Shortly after arriving, fire personnel pronounced her deceased.&nbsp;Authorities released no additional details including a possible cause of death.-----------SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating the death of a woman in Sedgwick County.Just after 7a.m. Thursday, a citizen discovered an unresponsive woman in the roadway at 9200 E 69th Street North,northeast of Wichita, according to Sheriff's Lt. Benjamin Blick. Sheriff and Fire personnel responded to the scene to assess the 26-year-old woman. Shortly after arriving, fire personnel pronounced her deceased.&nbsp;Authorities released no additional details.

Sheriff IDs body of woman found on rural Kansas road

KANSAS CITY—The CDC is investigating a fast growing salmonella outbreak involving residents in Kansas and 28 other states. The CDC says a specific food item has not yet been identified as the source of the outbreak. The CDC reported 279 individuals sick and 26 hospitalizations.

If you have symptoms of a&nbsp;Salmonella&nbsp;infection, talk to your healthcare provider and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/publichealthgateway/healthdirectories/healthdepartments.html">report your illness</a>&nbsp;to your health department to help investigators solve this outbreak.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632479966800.png" alt="CDC image" />
 <figcaption>CDC image</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY—The CDC is investigating a fast growing salmonella outbreak involving residents in Kansas and 28 other states. The CDC says a specific food item has not yet been identified as the source of the outbreak. The CDC reported 279 individuals sick and 26 hospitalizations.If you have symptoms of a&nbsp;Salmonella&nbsp;infection, talk to your healthcare provider and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/publichealthgateway/healthdirectories/healthdepartments.html">report your illness</a>&nbsp;to your health department to help investigators solve this outbreak.<ul>
 <li>Most people infected with&nbsp;Salmonella&nbsp;experience&nbsp;diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps.Symptoms&nbsp;usually&nbsp;start&nbsp;6 hours to 6 days&nbsp;after&nbsp;swallowing&nbsp;the bacteria.Most&nbsp;people&nbsp;recover without treatment&nbsp;after 4 to 7 days.</li><li>Symptoms&nbsp;usually&nbsp;start&nbsp;6 hours to 6 days&nbsp;after&nbsp;swallowing&nbsp;the bacteria.</li><li>Most&nbsp;people&nbsp;recover without treatment&nbsp;after 4 to 7 days.</li><li>Some people&nbsp;–&nbsp;especially children&nbsp;younger than&nbsp;5 years, adults 65 years and older, and people with weakened immune systems&nbsp;–&nbsp;may experience more severe illnesses&nbsp;that require&nbsp;medical treatment&nbsp;or hospitalization.</li><li>For more information&nbsp;about&nbsp;Salmonella, see&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/general/index.html">the&nbsp;Salmonella&nbsp;Questions and Answers page</a>.</li>
 </ul>

Fast growing salmonella outbreak under investigation 

MANHATTAN —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas man for alleged sex crimes.

On Thursday, police arrested 35-year-old Skyler James Barry of Manhattan on a warrant in connection to sex crimes reported to have occurred in Manhattan in December 2020 and February 2021, according to a media release from the Riley County Police Department.

On May 28, 2021, officers filed a report for rape, aggravated indecent liberties with a child and criminal sodomy. Officers arrested Barry in connection for aggravated criminal sodomy, and two counts rape and aggravated indecent liberties with a child.

Barry is confined in the Riley County Jail on a total bond of $250,000.

MANHATTAN —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas man for alleged sex crimes.On Thursday, police arrested 35-year-old Skyler James Barry of Manhattan on a warrant in connection to sex crimes reported to have occurred in Manhattan in December 2020 and February 2021, according to a media release from the Riley County Police Department.On May 28, 2021, officers filed a report for rape, aggravated indecent liberties with a child and criminal sodomy. Officers arrested Barry in connection for aggravated criminal sodomy, and two counts rape and aggravated indecent liberties with a child.Barry is confined in the Riley County Jail on a total bond of $250,000.

35-year-old Kansas man accused of child sex crimes

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating the fatal shooting that left a 16-year-old girl dead have arrested two 17-year-old boys and a 16-year-old boy, according to Officer Charley Davidson.

The teens are being held on charges of 1st-degree murder and criminal discharge of a firearm into an occupied vehicle.

One of the 17-year-olds was also arrested on a charge of felon in possession of a firearm.

Just before 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, officers responded to a disturbance with weapons shots fired at 15th and Kenmar near the Wichita State University State campus, according to Officer Charley Davidson. While officers were in route to the location, 16-year-old Azuri Jones who had been shot arrived at a local hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.

The investigation revealed the three boys were in a red Kia along with another 16-year-old girl.&nbsp; The girl got into a disturbance with a boy inside of the vehicle in a parking lot in the 1400 block of North Terrace. During the disturbance, four of her girl friends pulled up in a white Honda. Azuri Jones was in the Honda. The 16-year-old got out of the Kia and got into the Honda. 

The disturbance continued so the driver of the Honda left with Jones and three other girls in the car.

The three boys got back into the red Kia and began chasing the girls in the Honda. In the area of 15th and Kenmar, one of the boys fired multiple shots at the Honda striking Jones who was sitting in the back seat. The driver of the Honda drove directly to the hospital. 

The red Kia was located unoccupied in the area of Vesta and Fountain and was later found to have been reported stolen on Wednesday.

Shortly later, WPD officers observed the three suspects in the area of 17th and Harvard. They were all arrested after a short foot pursuit. Investigators have also recovered a handgun during the investigation.

All three teens are being held on charges of 1st-degree murder and criminal discharge of a firearm into an occupied vehicle.

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting and have three suspects in custody.

Just before 1:30p.m. Thursday, police responded to a report of a disturbance with weapons and shots fired near 15th Street North and Belmont adjacent to the Wichita State University State campus, according to Police Captain Jeff Weible. Two vehicles were reported chasing each other.

As officers arrived in the area, a vehicle arrived at Wesley Hospital with one victim identified as a 16-year-old girl. She was pronounced dead.

Police were able to locate the suspect vehicle, a red Kia that was reported stolen, according to Weible. The suspects had fled on foot.&nbsp; Police released a description of the suspects to other officers and just before 4p.m. took three individuals into custody near 17th and Hillside.

Investigators learned the individuals, all teenagers, in the two vehicles know each other. They had met behind a shopping center near 13th and Oliver and then started chasing each other, according to Weible.

Police have also recovered a handgun. Weible said it was not located in a vehicle.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632431388374.png" alt="Police near the Wichita State campus during Thursday's fatal shooting investigation-photo Wichita Police" />
 <figcaption>Police near the Wichita State campus during Thursday's fatal shooting investigation-photo Wichita Police</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating the fatal shooting that left a 16-year-old girl dead have arrested two 17-year-old boys and a 16-year-old boy, according to Officer Charley Davidson.The teens are being held on charges of 1st-degree murder and criminal discharge of a firearm into an occupied vehicle.One of the 17-year-olds was also arrested on a charge of felon in possession of a firearm.Just before 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, officers responded to a disturbance with weapons shots fired at 15th and Kenmar near the Wichita State University State campus, according to Officer Charley Davidson. While officers were in route to the location, 16-year-old Azuri Jones who had been shot arrived at a local hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.The investigation revealed the three boys were in a red Kia along with another 16-year-old girl.&nbsp; The girl got into a disturbance with a boy inside of the vehicle in a parking lot in the 1400 block of North Terrace. During the disturbance, four of her girl friends pulled up in a white Honda. Azuri Jones was in the Honda. The 16-year-old got out of the Kia and got into the Honda. The disturbance continued so the driver of the Honda left with Jones and three other girls in the car.The three boys got back into the red Kia and began chasing the girls in the Honda. In the area of 15th and Kenmar, one of the boys fired multiple shots at the Honda striking Jones who was sitting in the back seat. The driver of the Honda drove directly to the hospital. The red Kia was located unoccupied in the area of Vesta and Fountain and was later found to have been reported stolen on Wednesday.Shortly later, WPD officers observed the three suspects in the area of 17th and Harvard. They were all arrested after a short foot pursuit. Investigators have also recovered a handgun during the investigation.All three teens are being held on charges of 1st-degree murder and criminal discharge of a firearm into an occupied vehicle.One of the 17-year-olds was also arrested on a charge of felon in possession of a firearm.-----------------SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting and have three suspects in custody.Just before 1:30p.m. Thursday, police responded to a report of a disturbance with weapons and shots fired near 15th Street North and Belmont adjacent to the Wichita State University State campus, according to Police Captain Jeff Weible. Two vehicles were reported chasing each other.As officers arrived in the area, a vehicle arrived at Wesley Hospital with one victim identified as a 16-year-old girl. She was pronounced dead.Police were able to locate the suspect vehicle, a red Kia that was reported stolen, according to Weible. The suspects had fled on foot.&nbsp; Police released a description of the suspects to other officers and just before 4p.m. took three individuals into custody near 17th and Hillside.Investigators learned the individuals, all teenagers, in the two vehicles know each other. They had met behind a shopping center near 13th and Oliver and then started chasing each other, according to Weible.Police have also recovered a handgun. Weible said it was not located in a vehicle.

Police ID girl who died in shooting near Wichita State campus

WASHINGTON (AP) —The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday endorsed booster shots for millions of older or otherwise vulnerable Americans, opening a major new phase in the U.S vaccination drive against COVID-19.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky signed off on a series of recommendations from a panel of advisers late Thursday.

The advisers said boosters should be offered to people 65 and older, nursing home residents and those ages 50 to 64 who have risky underlying health problems. The extra dose would be given once they are at least six months past their last Pfizer shot.

However, Walensky decided to make one recommendation that the panel had rejected.

The panel on Thursday voted against saying that people can get a booster if they are ages 18 to 64 years and are health-care workers, teachers or have another job that puts them at increased risk of being exposed to the virus.

But Walensky disagreed and put that recommendation back in, noting that such a move aligns with an FDA booster authorization decision earlier this week. The category she included covers people who live in institutional settings that increase their risk of exposure, such as prisons or homeless shelters, as well as health care workers.

The panel had offered the option of a booster for those ages 18 to 49 who have chronic health problems and want one. But the advisers refused to go further and open boosters to otherwise healthy front-line health care workers who aren’t at risk of severe illness but want to avoid even a mild infection.

The panel voted 9 to 6 to reject that proposal. But Walensky decided to disregard the advisory committee’s counsel on that issue. In a decision several hours after the panel adjourned, Walensky issued a statement saying she had restored the recommendation.

“As CDC Director, it is my job to recognize where our actions can have the greatest impact,” Walensky said in a statement late Thursday night. “At CDC, we are tasked with analyzing complex, often imperfect data to make concrete recommendations that optimize health. In a pandemic, even with uncertainty, we must take actions that we anticipate will do the greatest good.”

Experts say getting the unvaccinated their first shots remains the top priority, and the panel wrestled with whether the booster debate was distracting from that goal.

All three of the COVID-19 vaccines used in the U.S. are still highly protective against severe illness, hospitalization and death, even with the spread of the extra-contagious delta variant. But only about 182 million Americans are fully vaccinated, or just 55% of the population.

“We can give boosters to people, but that’s not really the answer to this pandemic,” said Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot of Vanderbilt University. “Hospitals are full because people are not vaccinated. We are declining care to people who deserve care because we are full of unvaccinated COVID-positive patients.”

Thursday’s decision represented a dramatic scaling back of the Biden administration plan announced last month to dispense boosters to nearly everyone to shore up their protection. Late Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration, like the CDC panel, signed off on Pfizer boosters for a much narrower slice of the population than the White House envisioned.

The booster plan marks an important shift in the nation’s vaccination drive. Britain and Israel are already giving a third round of shots over strong objections from the World Health Organization that poor countries don’t have enough for their initial doses.

Walensky opened Thursday’s meeting by stressing that vaccinating the unvaccinated remains the top goal “here in America and around the world.”

Walensky acknowledged that the data on who really needs a booster right away “are not perfect.” “Yet collectively they form a picture for us,” she said, “and they are what we have in this moment to make a decision about the next stage in this pandemic.”

The CDC panel stressed that its recommendations will be changed if new evidence shows more people need a booster.

The CDC advisers expressed concern over the millions of Americans who received Moderna or Johnson &amp; Johnson shots early in the vaccine rollout. The government still hasn’t considered boosters for those brands and has no data on whether it is safe or effective to mix-and-match and give those people a Pfizer shot.

“I just don’t understand how later this afternoon we can say to people 65 and older, ‘You’re at risk for severe illness and death, but only half of you can protect yourselves right now,’” said Dr. Sarah Long of Drexel University.

About 26 million Americans got their last Pfizer dose at least six months ago, about half of whom are 65 or older. It’s not clear how many more would meet the CDC panel’s booster qualifications.

CDC data show the vaccines still offer strong protection against serious illness for all ages, but there is a slight drop among the oldest adults. And immunity against milder infection appears to be waning months after people’s initial immunization.

For most people, if you’re not in a group recommended for a booster, “it’s really because we think you’re well-protected,” said Dr. Matthew Daley of Kaiser Permanente Colorado.

Public health experts not involved in Thursday’s decision said it is unlikely people seeking third doses at a drugstore or other site will be required to prove they qualify.

Even with the introduction of boosters, someone who has gotten just the first two doses would still be considered fully vaccinated, according to the CDC’s Dr. Kathleen Dooling. That is an important question to people in parts of the country where you need to show proof of vaccination to eat in a restaurant or enter other places of business.

Among people who stand to benefit from a booster, there are few risks, the CDC concluded. Serious side effects from the first two Pfizer doses are exceedingly rare, including heart inflammation that sometimes occurs in younger men. Data from Israel, which has given nearly 3 million people — mostly 60 and older — a third Pfizer dose, has uncovered no red flags.

The U.S. has already authorized third doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for certain people with weakened immune systems, such as cancer patients and transplant recipients. Other Americans, healthy or not, have managed to get boosters, in some cases simply by asking.

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and MIKE STOBBE, Associated Press

The U.S. vaccination drive against COVID-19 stood on the verge of a major new phase as government advisers Thursday recommended booster doses of Pfizer’s vaccine for millions of older or otherwise vulnerable Americans — despite doubts the extra shots will do much to slow the pandemic.

Advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said boosters should be offered to people 65 and older, nursing home residents and those ages 50 to 64 who have risky underlying health problems. The extra dose would be given once they are at least six months past their last Pfizer shot.

The advisers refused to go further and open boosters to otherwise healthy front-line health care workers and school teachers who aren’t at risk of severe illness but want to avoid even a mild infection

The panel offered the option of a booster for those ages 18 to 49 who have chronic health problems and want one.

“We might as well just say give it to everyone 18 and older. We have a very effective vaccine and it’s like saying, ‘It’s not working.’ It is working,” said Dr. Pablo Sanchez of Ohio State University, who helped block the broadest booster option.

Still, getting the unvaccinated their first shots remains the top priority, and the panel wrestled with whether the booster debate was distracting from that goal.

All three of the COVID-19 vaccines used in the U.S. are still highly protective against severe illness, hospitalization and death, even amid the spread of the extra-contagious delta variant. But only about 182 million Americans are fully vaccinated, or just 55% of the population.

It is up to the CDC to set final U.S. policy on who qualifies for the extra shot. A decision from the agency was expected later Thursday, but the CDC usually follows its advisers’ recommendations.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky opened Thursday’s meeting by stressing that vaccinating the unvaccinated remains the top goal “here in America and around the world.”

CDC data shows the vaccines still offer strong protection against serious illness for all ages, but there is a slight drop among the oldest adults. And immunity against milder infection appears to be waning months after people’s initial immunization.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632445496467.png" alt="The CDC panel rejected policy question #3. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky&nbsp;disagreed and put that recommendation back into the plan-&nbsp; &nbsp;CDC image" />
 <figcaption>The CDC panel rejected policy question #3. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky&nbsp;disagreed and put that recommendation back into the plan-&nbsp; &nbsp;CDC image</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday endorsed booster shots for millions of older or otherwise vulnerable Americans, opening a major new phase in the U.S vaccination drive against COVID-19.CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky signed off on a series of recommendations from a panel of advisers late Thursday.The advisers said boosters should be offered to people 65 and older, nursing home residents and those ages 50 to 64 who have risky underlying health problems. The extra dose would be given once they are at least six months past their last Pfizer shot.However, Walensky decided to make one recommendation that the panel had rejected.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632445472712.png" alt="Members of the CDC panel met online Thursday" />
 <figcaption>Members of the CDC panel met online Thursday</figcaption>
 </figure>The panel on Thursday voted against saying that people can get a booster if they are ages 18 to 64 years and are health-care workers, teachers or have another job that puts them at increased risk of being exposed to the virus.But Walensky disagreed and put that recommendation back in, noting that such a move aligns with an FDA booster authorization decision earlier this week. The category she included covers people who live in institutional settings that increase their risk of exposure, such as prisons or homeless shelters, as well as health care workers.The panel had offered the option of a booster for those ages 18 to 49 who have chronic health problems and want one. But the advisers refused to go further and open boosters to otherwise healthy front-line health care workers who aren’t at risk of severe illness but want to avoid even a mild infection.The panel voted 9 to 6 to reject that proposal. But Walensky decided to disregard the advisory committee’s counsel on that issue. In a decision several hours after the panel adjourned, Walensky issued a statement saying she had restored the recommendation.“As CDC Director, it is my job to recognize where our actions can have the greatest impact,” Walensky said in a statement late Thursday night. “At CDC, we are tasked with analyzing complex, often imperfect data to make concrete recommendations that optimize health. In a pandemic, even with uncertainty, we must take actions that we anticipate will do the greatest good.”Experts say getting the unvaccinated their first shots remains the top priority, and the panel wrestled with whether the booster debate was distracting from that goal.All three of the COVID-19 vaccines used in the U.S. are still highly protective against severe illness, hospitalization and death, even with the spread of the extra-contagious delta variant. But only about 182 million Americans are fully vaccinated, or just 55% of the population.“We can give boosters to people, but that’s not really the answer to this pandemic,” said Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot of Vanderbilt University. “Hospitals are full because people are not vaccinated. We are declining care to people who deserve care because we are full of unvaccinated COVID-positive patients.”Thursday’s decision represented a dramatic scaling back of the Biden administration plan announced last month to dispense boosters to nearly everyone to shore up their protection. Late Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration, like the CDC panel, signed off on Pfizer boosters for a much narrower slice of the population than the White House envisioned.The booster plan marks an important shift in the nation’s vaccination drive. Britain and Israel are already giving a third round of shots over strong objections from the World Health Organization that poor countries don’t have enough for their initial doses.Walensky opened Thursday’s meeting by stressing that vaccinating the unvaccinated remains the top goal “here in America and around the world.”Walensky acknowledged that the data on who really needs a booster right away “are not perfect.” “Yet collectively they form a picture for us,” she said, “and they are what we have in this moment to make a decision about the next stage in this pandemic.”The CDC panel stressed that its recommendations will be changed if new evidence shows more people need a booster.The CDC advisers expressed concern over the millions of Americans who received Moderna or Johnson &amp; Johnson shots early in the vaccine rollout. The government still hasn’t considered boosters for those brands and has no data on whether it is safe or effective to mix-and-match and give those people a Pfizer shot.“I just don’t understand how later this afternoon we can say to people 65 and older, ‘You’re at risk for severe illness and death, but only half of you can protect yourselves right now,’” said Dr. Sarah Long of Drexel University.About 26 million Americans got their last Pfizer dose at least six months ago, about half of whom are 65 or older. It’s not clear how many more would meet the CDC panel’s booster qualifications.CDC data show the vaccines still offer strong protection against serious illness for all ages, but there is a slight drop among the oldest adults. And immunity against milder infection appears to be waning months after people’s initial immunization.For most people, if you’re not in a group recommended for a booster, “it’s really because we think you’re well-protected,” said Dr. Matthew Daley of Kaiser Permanente Colorado.Public health experts not involved in Thursday’s decision said it is unlikely people seeking third doses at a drugstore or other site will be required to prove they qualify.Even with the introduction of boosters, someone who has gotten just the first two doses would still be considered fully vaccinated, according to the CDC’s Dr. Kathleen Dooling. That is an important question to people in parts of the country where you need to show proof of vaccination to eat in a restaurant or enter other places of business.Among people who stand to benefit from a booster, there are few risks, the CDC concluded. Serious side effects from the first two Pfizer doses are exceedingly rare, including heart inflammation that sometimes occurs in younger men. Data from Israel, which has given nearly 3 million people — mostly 60 and older — a third Pfizer dose, has uncovered no red flags.The U.S. has already authorized third doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for certain people with weakened immune systems, such as cancer patients and transplant recipients. Other Americans, healthy or not, have managed to get boosters, in some cases simply by asking.----------By LAURAN NEERGAARD and MIKE STOBBE, Associated PressThe U.S. vaccination drive against COVID-19 stood on the verge of a major new phase as government advisers Thursday recommended booster doses of Pfizer’s vaccine for millions of older or otherwise vulnerable Americans — despite doubts the extra shots will do much to slow the pandemic.Advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said boosters should be offered to people 65 and older, nursing home residents and those ages 50 to 64 who have risky underlying health problems. The extra dose would be given once they are at least six months past their last Pfizer shot.The advisers refused to go further and open boosters to otherwise healthy front-line health care workers and school teachers who aren’t at risk of severe illness but want to avoid even a mild infectionThe panel offered the option of a booster for those ages 18 to 49 who have chronic health problems and want one.“We might as well just say give it to everyone 18 and older. We have a very effective vaccine and it’s like saying, ‘It’s not working.’ It is working,” said Dr. Pablo Sanchez of Ohio State University, who helped block the broadest booster option.Still, getting the unvaccinated their first shots remains the top priority, and the panel wrestled with whether the booster debate was distracting from that goal.All three of the COVID-19 vaccines used in the U.S. are still highly protective against severe illness, hospitalization and death, even amid the spread of the extra-contagious delta variant. But only about 182 million Americans are fully vaccinated, or just 55% of the population.“We can give boosters to people, but that’s not really the answer to this pandemic,” said Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot of Vanderbilt University. “Hospitals are full because people are not vaccinated. We are declining care to people who deserve care because we are full of unvaccinated COVID-positive patients.”Thursday’s decision represented a dramatic scaling back of the Biden administration plan announced last month to dispense boosters to nearly everyone to shore up their protection. Late Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration, like the CDC panel, signed off on Pfizer boosters for a much narrower slice of the population than the White House envisioned.It is up to the CDC to set final U.S. policy on who qualifies for the extra shot. A decision from the agency was expected later Thursday, but the CDC usually follows its advisers’ recommendations.The booster plan marks an important shift in the nation’s vaccination drive. Britain and Israel are already giving a third round of shots over strong objections from the World Health Organization that poor countries don’t have enough for their initial doses.CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky opened Thursday’s meeting by stressing that vaccinating the unvaccinated remains the top goal “here in America and around the world.”Walensky acknowledged that the data on who really needs a booster right away “are not perfect.” “Yet collectively they form a picture for us,” she said, “and they are what we have in this moment to make a decision about the next stage in this pandemic.”The CDC panel stressed that its recommendations will be changed if new evidence shows more people need a booster.The CDC advisers expressed concern over the millions of Americans who received Moderna or Johnson &amp; Johnson shots early in the vaccine rollout. The government still hasn’t considered boosters for those brands and has no data on whether it is safe or effective to mix-and-match and give those people a Pfizer shot.“I just don’t understand how later this afternoon we can say to people 65 and older, ‘You’re at risk for severe illness and death, but only half of you can protect yourselves right now,’” said Dr. Sarah Long of Drexel University.About 26 million Americans got their last Pfizer dose at least six months ago, about half of whom are 65 or older. It’s not clear how many more would meet the CDC panel’s booster qualifications.CDC data shows the vaccines still offer strong protection against serious illness for all ages, but there is a slight drop among the oldest adults. And immunity against milder infection appears to be waning months after people’s initial immunization.For most people, if you’re not in a group recommended for a booster, “it’s really because we think you’re well-protected,” said Dr. Matthew Daley of Kaiser Permanente Colorado.Public health experts not involved in Thursday’s decision said it is unlikely people seeking third doses at a drugstore or other site will be required to prove they qualify.Even with the introduction of boosters, someone who has gotten just the first two doses would still be considered fully vaccinated, according to the CDC’s Dr. Kathleen Dooling. That is an important question to people in parts of the country where you need to show proof of vaccination to eat in a restaurant or enter other places of business.Among people who stand to benefit from a booster, there are few risks, the CDC concluded. Serious side effects from the first two Pfizer doses are exceedingly rare, including heart inflammation that sometimes occurs in younger men. Data from Israel, which has given nearly 3 million people — mostly 60 and older — a third Pfizer dose, has uncovered no red flags.The U.S. has already authorized third doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for certain people with weakened immune systems, such as cancer patients and transplant recipients. Other Americans, healthy or not, have managed to get boosters, in some cases simply by asking.___

Health care workers, teachers added to CDC booster shot plan

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect&nbsp;&nbsp;facing multiple charges following a incident early Thursday.

Just before 1am, sheriff’s deputies responded to a home in the 400 block of West 9th Street in Auburn, Kansas, according to Deputy Abigail Christian.

At the scene, deputies learned that a man known to the victims, arrived at the residence and fired a gun multiple times through the front door prior to leaving the scene. 

Inside the residence during the shooting were two adults and a one-year-old child. There were no injuries, according to Christian.

Throughout the investigation, deputies gathered important information. At approximately 2:30am, a deputy conducted a traffic stop on a gray 2008 Nissan Altima in the 2000 block of SW Topeka Boulevard. The driver identified as 21-year-old Cristofer Paz-Ruiz Topeka, was taken into custody without incident.

Paz-Ruiz was booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges of attempted 2nd degree murder, aggravated child endangerment, aggravated assault and criminal discharge of a firearm at an occupied dwelling. 

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1632419279763.png" alt="Paz-Ruiz-photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Paz-Ruiz-photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect&nbsp;&nbsp;facing multiple charges following a incident early Thursday.Just before 1am, sheriff’s deputies responded to a home in the 400 block of West 9th Street in Auburn, Kansas, according to Deputy Abigail Christian.At the scene, deputies learned that a man known to the victims, arrived at the residence and fired a gun multiple times through the front door prior to leaving the scene. Inside the residence during the shooting were two adults and a one-year-old child. There were no injuries, according to Christian.Throughout the investigation, deputies gathered important information. At approximately 2:30am, a deputy conducted a traffic stop on a gray 2008 Nissan Altima in the 2000 block of SW Topeka Boulevard. The driver identified as 21-year-old Cristofer Paz-Ruiz Topeka, was taken into custody without incident.Paz-Ruiz was booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges of attempted 2nd degree murder, aggravated child endangerment, aggravated assault and criminal discharge of a firearm at an occupied dwelling.

Sheriff: Suspect fired gun through door of Kansas home

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri appeals court on Thursday denied the state attorney general's request to recuse all Jackson County judges from presiding over an upcoming evidentiary hearing for a man who the county prosecutor says was wrongfully convicted in a triple homicide more than 40 years ago.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1620695920927.png" alt="Strickland-photo MODOC" />
 <figcaption>Strickland-photo MODOC</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri appeals court on Thursday denied the state attorney general's request to recuse all Jackson County judges from presiding over an upcoming evidentiary hearing for a man who the county prosecutor says was wrongfully convicted in a triple homicide more than 40 years ago.The Missouri Court of Appeals also denied Attorney General Eric Schmitt's request to cancel the hearing for Kevin Strickland, who has been in prison for the killings since 1979 and has always maintained that he's innocent.Schmitt asked the court to recuse all judges in Jackson County, which includes a large part of Kansas City, because he argued that they have shown a bias in favor of Strickland. The court didn't explain its ruling, which Schmitt plans to appeal to the state Supreme Court, according to his spokesman, Chris Nuelle, KCUR&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2021-09-23/missouri-appeals-court-denies-attorney-generals-attempt-to-further-delay-kevin-strickland-case">reported</a>.Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker has said Strickland&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/missouri-816410e8eab142331d08c9d750153d28">was wrongfully convicted</a>&nbsp;of the killings, and she and Strickland's lawyers plan to argue at an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kansas-city-kansas-missouri-d13bceef618a479e8cd02b991fe1c8d9">Oct. 5-6 hearing</a>&nbsp;that he should be exonerated and freed&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2021-09-23/missouri-appeals-court-denies-attorney-generals-attempt-to-further-delay-kevin-strickland-case">.</a>Peters Baker has said two men who admitted to taking part in the shootings said Strickland was not there, and the only witness to identify him as the shooter recanted her statement.Schmitt, who is seeking the Republican nomination to run for a U.S. Senate seat, has said he believes Strickland is guilty.