WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS failed to pursue mandatory audits of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;on a timely basis during his presidency, a congressional panel found on Tuesday, raising questions about statements by the former president and leading members of his administration who claimed he could not release his tax filings because of the ongoing reviews.

(<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5047652/chair-richard-neal-audits-president-trumps-tax-returns-existent">Click here to watch</a>&nbsp;Committee Chair Rep.&nbsp;Richard Neal's statement on the investigation or <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23476419-committee-report-final">Click here to read the report.</a>)

A report released by the Democratic majority on the House Ways and Means Committee indicated the Trump administration may have disregarded an IRS requirement dating back to 1977 that mandates audits of a president's tax filings. The IRS only began to audit Trump's 2016 tax filings on April 3, 2019, more than two years into Trump's presidency and just months after Democrats took control of the House. That date coincides with Rep. Richard Neal, the panel chairman, asking the IRS for information related to Trump's tax returns.

There was no suggestion that Trump, who has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-2024-updates-cd5339d48064a149527e8f9a1aa7614e">announced</a>&nbsp;a third presidential run, sought to directly influence the IRS or discourage the agency from reviewing his tax information. But the report found that the audit process was “dormant, at best.”

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23476419-committee-report-final">29-page report</a>&nbsp;was published just hours after the committee voted along party lines to release Trump's tax returns in the coming days, raising the potential of additional revelations related to the finances of the onetime businessman who broke political norms by refusing to voluntarily release his returns as he sought the presidency. The vote was the culmination of a yearslong fight between Trump and Democrats that has played out everywhere from the campaign trail to the halls of Congress and the Supreme Court.

Democrats on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee argued that transparency and the rule of law were at stake, while Republicans countered that the release would set a dangerous precedent with regard to the loss of privacy protections.

“This is about the presidency, not the president,” Neal, D-Mass., told reporters.

Texas Rep. Kevin Brady, the panel’s top GOP member, said, “Regrettably, the deed is done.”

“Over our objections in opposition, Democrats in the Ways and Means Committee have unleashed a dangerous new political weapon that overturns decades of privacy protections,” he told reporters. “The era of political targeting, and of Congress’s enemies list, is back and every American, every American taxpayer, who may get on the wrong side of the majority in Congress is now at risk.”

Trump spent much of Tuesday evening releasing statements on his social media platform that were unrelated to his tax returns. The IRS didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

But&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23476433-jct-report-final">an accompanying report</a>&nbsp;released by Congress' nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation also found repeated faults with the IRS’s approach toward auditing Trump and his companies.

IRS agents in charge of the audits repeatedly did not bring in specialists with expertise assessing the complicated structure of Trump’s holdings. They frequently determined that a limited examination was warranted because Trump hired a professional accounting firm that they assumed would make sure Trump “properly reports all income and deduction items correctly.”

“We must express disagreement with the decision not to engage any specialists when facing returns with a high degree of complexity,” the tax committee report states. “We also fail to understand why the fact that counsel and an accounting firm participated in tax preparation ensures the accuracy of the returns.”

The reports released Tuesday renewed scrutiny on one of the biggest questions that has surrounded Trump since he shifted from a reality television star to an unlikely presidential candidate: Why did he abandon the post-Watergate tradition of White House hopefuls releasing their tax returns? Trump and those around him have consistently said that IRS audits prevented him from doing so.

“I would love to give them, but I’m not going to do it while I’m under audit,” Trump said on April 10, 2019, before boarding the presidential helicopter.

There are no laws that would have barred Trump from voluntarily releasing his returns even if they were being audited. But when Trump spoke of being audited, it's unclear whether he was referring to the mandatory process specifically aimed at presidents or prior reviews that are more typical for wealthy individuals.

<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html">The New York Times</a>&nbsp;found that before he entered the White House, Trump was facing an IRS audit potentially tied to a $72.9 million tax refund arising from $700 million in losses he claimed in 2009. The documents released Tuesday indicate that Trump continued to collect tax benefits from those losses through 2018.

“What happened?" said Steven Rosenthal, senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center. "If it was not resolved, the IRS stalled. If it was resolved in Trump’s favor, then maybe the IRS rolled over and played dead. That’s what we have to find out.’’

The report raised multiple red flags about aspects of Trump's tax filings, including his carryover losses, deductions tied to conservation and charitable donations, and loans to his children that could be taxable gifts.

In response to the findings, the Ways and Means Committee is proposing legislation to beef up the IRS’s approach, requiring an initial report no later than 90 days from the filing of a president’s tax returns. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the chamber would “move swiftly” to advance the legislation.

Democrats argue that the IRS is ill-equipped to audit high-income, complex tax returns, and instead targets filers in lower-income brackets — something they have tried to remedy with their work on the panel.

“Because of the dismantling of funding to the IRS, they have not been able to do their job,” said Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev. “They did not have the specialized staff to do it for that high-income category — not just this person, but people who fall into that category.”

But Republicans have vowed to cut a recent influx of funding for more IRS agents. That's the first bill they will consider upon taking the House majority in less than two weeks.

The committee’s move represents yet another challenge for Trump. Just a day earlier, the House Jan. 6 committee voted to make a criminal referral to the Justice Department for Trump’s role in sparking the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. He’s also facing an intensifying investigation in Atlanta for efforts to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia. And he’s the subject of growing criticism from fellow Republicans for contributing to the party’s underwhelming performance in last month’s midterms.

Trump's family business, The Trump Organization, was convicted earlier this month on tax fraud charges for helping some executives dodge taxes on company-paid perks such as apartments and luxury cars.

Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg told The Associated Press in an interview last week that his office’s investigation into Trump and his businesses continues.

“We’re going to follow the facts and continue to do our job,” Bragg said.

Trump has argued there is little to learn from his tax returns even as he has fought to keep them private.

“You can’t learn much from tax returns, but it is illegal to release them if they are not yours!” he complained on his social media network last weekend.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee voted along party lines Tuesday to issue a report on Donald Trump’s tax returns — likely offering a deeper look into financial records that the former president tried to shield from the public.

(<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5047652/chair-richard-neal-audits-president-trumps-tax-returns-existent">Click here to watch</a>&nbsp;House Ways and Means Committee Chair Rep.&nbsp;Richard Neal's statement of the investigation.)

Lawmakers indicated after the vote that the world could see redacted copies Trump's tax filings within a couple of days.

The dueling mix of animosity and loyalty inspired by Trump has made the release of the tax forms into a fever-pitched and yearslong grind, one that could continue well after the public learns more details about the finances, foreign dealings and possible net worth of the one-term Republican president.

The report shows how much of a grip Trump still holds over U.S. politics despite losing reelection in 2020. Democratic lawmakers argued that transparency and the rule of law were at stake by voting to issue the report that legally rests on questions about IRS audits of the wealthy. Republicans countered that the release would set a dangerous precedent with regard to the loss of privacy protections.

Tuesday's vote comes after a multiyear battle that ultimately resulted in the Supreme Court clearing the way last month for the Treasury Department to send the returns to Congress. The committee received six years of tax returns for Trump and some of his businesses.

Democrats faced pressure to act aggressively in the final stretch of this year. With just two weeks left until Republicans formally take control of the House, Tuesday’s meeting was an opportunity for Democrats to disclose whatever information they have on Trump, a reputed multibillionaire who used his wealth as a selling point with voters to win the presidency in 2016.

Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., said supporting materials will be released along with the report. Texas Rep. Kevin Brady, the committee's top Republican, raised concerns about privacy as the documents could contain information such as Social Security numbers.

Republicans have railed against the potential release, arguing that it would set a dangerous precedent.

Before Tuesday’s meeting, Brady called any release of Trump’s tax records a “dangerous new political weapon” that “even Democrats will come to regret.”

“Our concern is not whether the president should have made his tax returns public, as is traditional, nor about the accuracy of his tax returns,” Brady said. “Our concern is that, if taken, this committee action will set a terrible precedent that unleashes a dangerous new political weapon that reaches far beyond the former president and overturns decades of privacy protections for average Americans that have existed since the Watergate reforms.”

Trump has long had a complicated relationship with his personal income taxes.

As a presidential candidate in 2016, he broke decades of precedent by refusing to release his tax forms to the public. He bragged during a presidential debate that year that he was “smart” because he paid no federal taxes and later claimed he wouldn't personally benefit from the 2017 tax cuts he signed into law that favored people with extreme wealth, asking Americans to simply take him at his word.

Tax records would have been a useful metric for judging his success in business. The image of a savvy businessman was key to a political brand honed during his years as a tabloid magnet and star of “The Apprentice” television show. They also could reveal any financial obligations — including foreign debts — that could influence how he governed.

But Americans were largely in the dark about Trump's relationship with the IRS until October 2018 and September 2020, when The New York Times published two separate series based on leaked tax records.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/10/02/us/politics/donald-trump-tax-schemes-fred-trump.html">2018 articles</a>&nbsp;showed how Trump received a modern equivalent of at least $413 million from his father's real estate holdings, with much of that money coming from what the Times called “tax dodges” in the 1990s. Trump sued the Times and his niece, Mary Trump, in 2021 for providing the records to the newspaper. In November, Mary Trump asked an appeals court to overturn a judge’s decision to reject her claims that her uncle and two of his siblings defrauded her of millions of dollars in a 2001 family settlement.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html">2020 articles</a>&nbsp;showed that Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes in 2017 and 2018. Trump paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the past 15 years because he generally lost more money than he made.

The articles exposed deep inequities in the U.S. tax code as Trump, a reputed multi-billionaire, paid little in federal income taxes. IRS figures indicate that the average tax filer paid roughly $12,200 in 2017, about 16 times more than the former president paid.

Details about Trump's income from foreign operations and debt levels were also contained in the tax filings, which the former president derided as “fake news."

At the time of the 2020 articles, Neal said he saw an ethical problem in Trump overseeing a federal agency that he has also battled with legal filings.

"Now, Donald Trump is the boss of the agency he considers an adversary," Neal said in 2020. “It is essential that the IRS’s presidential audit program remain free of interference.”

The Manhattan district attorney’s office also&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/manhattan-prosecutor-trump-tax-records-87f675d7ae8e24fbf2e8f33c480869d6">obtained copies of Trump’s tax records</a>&nbsp;in February 2021 after a protracted legal fight that included two trips to the Supreme Court.

The office, then led by District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., had subpoenaed Trump’s accounting firm in 2019, seeking access to eight years of Trump’s tax returns and related documents.

The DA’s office issued the subpoena after Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen told Congress that Trump had misled tax officials, insurers and business associates about the value of his assets. Those allegations are the subject of a fraud lawsuit that New York Attorney General Letitia James filed against Trump and his company in September.

Trump’s longtime accountant, Donald Bender, testified at the Trump Organization’s recent criminal trial that Trump reported losses on his tax returns every year for a decade, including nearly $700 million in 2009 and $200 million in 2010.

Bender, a partner at Mazars USA LLP who spent years preparing Trump’s personal tax returns, said Trump’s reported losses from 2009 to 2018 included net operating losses from some of the many businesses he owns through his Trump Organization.

The Trump Organization was convicted earlier this month on tax fraud charges for helping some executives dodge taxes on company-paid perks such as apartments and luxury cars.

The current Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, told The Associated Press in an interview last week that his office’s investigation into Trump and his businesses continues.

Trump, who refused to release his returns during his 2016 presidential campaign and his four years in the White House while claiming that he was under IRS audit, has argued there is little to be gleaned from the tax returns even as he has fought to keep them private.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671588054320.png" alt="House Ways and Means Committee Chair Rep.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.c-span.org/person/?6103/RichardNeal">Richard Neal&nbsp;</a>(D-MA) held a press conference following the committee’s vote to release the materials surrounding Donald Trump’s tax returns. photo courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>House Ways and Means Committee Chair Rep.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.c-span.org/person/?6103/RichardNeal">Richard Neal&nbsp;</a>(D-MA) held a press conference following the committee’s vote to release the materials surrounding Donald Trump’s tax returns. photo courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS failed to pursue mandatory audits of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;on a timely basis during his presidency, a congressional panel found on Tuesday, raising questions about statements by the former president and leading members of his administration who claimed he could not release his tax filings because of the ongoing reviews.(<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5047652/chair-richard-neal-audits-president-trumps-tax-returns-existent">Click here to watch</a>&nbsp;Committee Chair Rep.&nbsp;Richard Neal's statement on the investigation or <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23476419-committee-report-final">Click here to read the report.</a>)<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671623474434.png" alt="Image House Ways and Means Committee" />
 <figcaption>Image House Ways and Means Committee</figcaption>
 </figure>A report released by the Democratic majority on the House Ways and Means Committee indicated the Trump administration may have disregarded an IRS requirement dating back to 1977 that mandates audits of a president's tax filings. The IRS only began to audit Trump's 2016 tax filings on April 3, 2019, more than two years into Trump's presidency and just months after Democrats took control of the House. That date coincides with Rep. Richard Neal, the panel chairman, asking the IRS for information related to Trump's tax returns.There was no suggestion that Trump, who has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-2024-updates-cd5339d48064a149527e8f9a1aa7614e">announced</a>&nbsp;a third presidential run, sought to directly influence the IRS or discourage the agency from reviewing his tax information. But the report found that the audit process was “dormant, at best.”The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23476419-committee-report-final">29-page report</a>&nbsp;was published just hours after the committee voted along party lines to release Trump's tax returns in the coming days, raising the potential of additional revelations related to the finances of the onetime businessman who broke political norms by refusing to voluntarily release his returns as he sought the presidency. The vote was the culmination of a yearslong fight between Trump and Democrats that has played out everywhere from the campaign trail to the halls of Congress and the Supreme Court.Democrats on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee argued that transparency and the rule of law were at stake, while Republicans countered that the release would set a dangerous precedent with regard to the loss of privacy protections.“This is about the presidency, not the president,” Neal, D-Mass., told reporters.Texas Rep. Kevin Brady, the panel’s top GOP member, said, “Regrettably, the deed is done.”“Over our objections in opposition, Democrats in the Ways and Means Committee have unleashed a dangerous new political weapon that overturns decades of privacy protections,” he told reporters. “The era of political targeting, and of Congress’s enemies list, is back and every American, every American taxpayer, who may get on the wrong side of the majority in Congress is now at risk.”Trump spent much of Tuesday evening releasing statements on his social media platform that were unrelated to his tax returns. The IRS didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.But&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23476433-jct-report-final">an accompanying report</a>&nbsp;released by Congress' nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation also found repeated faults with the IRS’s approach toward auditing Trump and his companies.IRS agents in charge of the audits repeatedly did not bring in specialists with expertise assessing the complicated structure of Trump’s holdings. They frequently determined that a limited examination was warranted because Trump hired a professional accounting firm that they assumed would make sure Trump “properly reports all income and deduction items correctly.”“We must express disagreement with the decision not to engage any specialists when facing returns with a high degree of complexity,” the tax committee report states. “We also fail to understand why the fact that counsel and an accounting firm participated in tax preparation ensures the accuracy of the returns.”The reports released Tuesday renewed scrutiny on one of the biggest questions that has surrounded Trump since he shifted from a reality television star to an unlikely presidential candidate: Why did he abandon the post-Watergate tradition of White House hopefuls releasing their tax returns? Trump and those around him have consistently said that IRS audits prevented him from doing so.“I would love to give them, but I’m not going to do it while I’m under audit,” Trump said on April 10, 2019, before boarding the presidential helicopter.There are no laws that would have barred Trump from voluntarily releasing his returns even if they were being audited. But when Trump spoke of being audited, it's unclear whether he was referring to the mandatory process specifically aimed at presidents or prior reviews that are more typical for wealthy individuals.<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html">The New York Times</a>&nbsp;found that before he entered the White House, Trump was facing an IRS audit potentially tied to a $72.9 million tax refund arising from $700 million in losses he claimed in 2009. The documents released Tuesday indicate that Trump continued to collect tax benefits from those losses through 2018.“What happened?" said Steven Rosenthal, senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center. "If it was not resolved, the IRS stalled. If it was resolved in Trump’s favor, then maybe the IRS rolled over and played dead. That’s what we have to find out.’’The report raised multiple red flags about aspects of Trump's tax filings, including his carryover losses, deductions tied to conservation and charitable donations, and loans to his children that could be taxable gifts.In response to the findings, the Ways and Means Committee is proposing legislation to beef up the IRS’s approach, requiring an initial report no later than 90 days from the filing of a president’s tax returns. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the chamber would “move swiftly” to advance the legislation.Democrats argue that the IRS is ill-equipped to audit high-income, complex tax returns, and instead targets filers in lower-income brackets — something they have tried to remedy with their work on the panel.“Because of the dismantling of funding to the IRS, they have not been able to do their job,” said Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev. “They did not have the specialized staff to do it for that high-income category — not just this person, but people who fall into that category.”But Republicans have vowed to cut a recent influx of funding for more IRS agents. That's the first bill they will consider upon taking the House majority in less than two weeks.The committee’s move represents yet another challenge for Trump. Just a day earlier, the House Jan. 6 committee voted to make a criminal referral to the Justice Department for Trump’s role in sparking the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. He’s also facing an intensifying investigation in Atlanta for efforts to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia. And he’s the subject of growing criticism from fellow Republicans for contributing to the party’s underwhelming performance in last month’s midterms.Trump's family business, The Trump Organization, was convicted earlier this month on tax fraud charges for helping some executives dodge taxes on company-paid perks such as apartments and luxury cars.Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg told The Associated Press in an interview last week that his office’s investigation into Trump and his businesses continues.“We’re going to follow the facts and continue to do our job,” Bragg said.Trump has argued there is little to learn from his tax returns even as he has fought to keep them private.“You can’t learn much from tax returns, but it is illegal to release them if they are not yours!” he complained on his social media network last weekend.-----------------WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee voted along party lines Tuesday to issue a report on Donald Trump’s tax returns — likely offering a deeper look into financial records that the former president tried to shield from the public.(<a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5047652/chair-richard-neal-audits-president-trumps-tax-returns-existent">Click here to watch</a>&nbsp;House Ways and Means Committee Chair Rep.&nbsp;Richard Neal's statement of the investigation.)Lawmakers indicated after the vote that the world could see redacted copies Trump's tax filings within a couple of days.The dueling mix of animosity and loyalty inspired by Trump has made the release of the tax forms into a fever-pitched and yearslong grind, one that could continue well after the public learns more details about the finances, foreign dealings and possible net worth of the one-term Republican president.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671623474434.png" alt="Image House Ways and Means Committee" />
 <figcaption>Image House Ways and Means Committee</figcaption>
 </figure>The report shows how much of a grip Trump still holds over U.S. politics despite losing reelection in 2020. Democratic lawmakers argued that transparency and the rule of law were at stake by voting to issue the report that legally rests on questions about IRS audits of the wealthy. Republicans countered that the release would set a dangerous precedent with regard to the loss of privacy protections.Tuesday's vote comes after a multiyear battle that ultimately resulted in the Supreme Court clearing the way last month for the Treasury Department to send the returns to Congress. The committee received six years of tax returns for Trump and some of his businesses.Democrats faced pressure to act aggressively in the final stretch of this year. With just two weeks left until Republicans formally take control of the House, Tuesday’s meeting was an opportunity for Democrats to disclose whatever information they have on Trump, a reputed multibillionaire who used his wealth as a selling point with voters to win the presidency in 2016.Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., said supporting materials will be released along with the report. Texas Rep. Kevin Brady, the committee's top Republican, raised concerns about privacy as the documents could contain information such as Social Security numbers.Republicans have railed against the potential release, arguing that it would set a dangerous precedent.Before Tuesday’s meeting, Brady called any release of Trump’s tax records a “dangerous new political weapon” that “even Democrats will come to regret.”“Our concern is not whether the president should have made his tax returns public, as is traditional, nor about the accuracy of his tax returns,” Brady said. “Our concern is that, if taken, this committee action will set a terrible precedent that unleashes a dangerous new political weapon that reaches far beyond the former president and overturns decades of privacy protections for average Americans that have existed since the Watergate reforms.”Trump has long had a complicated relationship with his personal income taxes.As a presidential candidate in 2016, he broke decades of precedent by refusing to release his tax forms to the public. He bragged during a presidential debate that year that he was “smart” because he paid no federal taxes and later claimed he wouldn't personally benefit from the 2017 tax cuts he signed into law that favored people with extreme wealth, asking Americans to simply take him at his word.Tax records would have been a useful metric for judging his success in business. The image of a savvy businessman was key to a political brand honed during his years as a tabloid magnet and star of “The Apprentice” television show. They also could reveal any financial obligations — including foreign debts — that could influence how he governed.But Americans were largely in the dark about Trump's relationship with the IRS until October 2018 and September 2020, when The New York Times published two separate series based on leaked tax records.The Pulitzer Prize-winning&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/10/02/us/politics/donald-trump-tax-schemes-fred-trump.html">2018 articles</a>&nbsp;showed how Trump received a modern equivalent of at least $413 million from his father's real estate holdings, with much of that money coming from what the Times called “tax dodges” in the 1990s. Trump sued the Times and his niece, Mary Trump, in 2021 for providing the records to the newspaper. In November, Mary Trump asked an appeals court to overturn a judge’s decision to reject her claims that her uncle and two of his siblings defrauded her of millions of dollars in a 2001 family settlement.The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html">2020 articles</a>&nbsp;showed that Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes in 2017 and 2018. Trump paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the past 15 years because he generally lost more money than he made.The articles exposed deep inequities in the U.S. tax code as Trump, a reputed multi-billionaire, paid little in federal income taxes. IRS figures indicate that the average tax filer paid roughly $12,200 in 2017, about 16 times more than the former president paid.Details about Trump's income from foreign operations and debt levels were also contained in the tax filings, which the former president derided as “fake news."At the time of the 2020 articles, Neal said he saw an ethical problem in Trump overseeing a federal agency that he has also battled with legal filings."Now, Donald Trump is the boss of the agency he considers an adversary," Neal said in 2020. “It is essential that the IRS’s presidential audit program remain free of interference.”The Manhattan district attorney’s office also&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/manhattan-prosecutor-trump-tax-records-87f675d7ae8e24fbf2e8f33c480869d6">obtained copies of Trump’s tax records</a>&nbsp;in February 2021 after a protracted legal fight that included two trips to the Supreme Court.The office, then led by District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., had subpoenaed Trump’s accounting firm in 2019, seeking access to eight years of Trump’s tax returns and related documents.The DA’s office issued the subpoena after Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen told Congress that Trump had misled tax officials, insurers and business associates about the value of his assets. Those allegations are the subject of a fraud lawsuit that New York Attorney General Letitia James filed against Trump and his company in September.Trump’s longtime accountant, Donald Bender, testified at the Trump Organization’s recent criminal trial that Trump reported losses on his tax returns every year for a decade, including nearly $700 million in 2009 and $200 million in 2010.Bender, a partner at Mazars USA LLP who spent years preparing Trump’s personal tax returns, said Trump’s reported losses from 2009 to 2018 included net operating losses from some of the many businesses he owns through his Trump Organization.The Trump Organization was convicted earlier this month on tax fraud charges for helping some executives dodge taxes on company-paid perks such as apartments and luxury cars.The current Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, told The Associated Press in an interview last week that his office’s investigation into Trump and his businesses continues.“We’re going to follow the facts and continue to do our job,” Bragg said.Trump, who refused to release his returns during his 2016 presidential campaign and his four years in the White House while claiming that he was under IRS audit, has argued there is little to be gleaned from the tax returns even as he has fought to keep them private.“You can’t learn much from tax returns, but it is illegal to release them if they are not yours!” he complained on his social media network last weekend.

🎥Panel: Trump tax audits required by IRS were delayed

WYANDOTTE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting and have a suspect in custody.

Just after 9a.m. Dec. 9, emergency dispatch received a call regarding shots fired near the intersection of 10th and Pacific Avenue, according to Kansas City, Kansas Police. When officers arrived on scene, they discovered a man later identified as 23-year-old&nbsp;Ali Alesani-Natvidad on a sidewalk just west of the intersection, dead from gunshot wounds.

The crime scene is in a heavy traffic area.&nbsp;

On Tuesday, police reported suspect 31-year-old&nbsp;Alvaro R. Lozano had been arrested in Kansas City, Missouri and charged with first degree murder in Wyandotte County. He is being held in the Jackson County Jail on a $500,000 bond as he awaits extradition to Kansas.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671578842766.png" alt="Lozano is being held in Jackson County" />
 <figcaption>Lozano is being held in Jackson County</figcaption>
 </figure>WYANDOTTE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting and have a suspect in custody.Just after 9a.m. Dec. 9, emergency dispatch received a call regarding shots fired near the intersection of 10th and Pacific Avenue, according to Kansas City, Kansas Police. When officers arrived on scene, they discovered a man later identified as 23-year-old&nbsp;Ali Alesani-Natvidad on a sidewalk just west of the intersection, dead from gunshot wounds.The crime scene is in a heavy traffic area.&nbsp;On Tuesday, police reported suspect 31-year-old&nbsp;Alvaro R. Lozano had been arrested in Kansas City, Missouri and charged with first degree murder in Wyandotte County. He is being held in the Jackson County Jail on a $500,000 bond as he awaits extradition to Kansas.&nbsp;

Suspect captured in Missouri for man's murder in Kansas

WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was making his way to Washington on Wednesday for a summit with President Joe Biden and to address Congress in his first known trip outside the country since&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">Russia’s invasion</a>&nbsp;began in February.

Zelenskyy said on his Twitter account that the visit was “to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities” of Ukraine and discuss cooperation between his country and the U.S with Biden.

The highly sensitive trip is taking place after 10 months of a brutal war that has seen tens of thousands killed and wounded on both sides of the conflict, along with devastation for Ukrainian civilians. It also comes as U.S. lawmakers are set to vote on a year-end spending package that includes about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-3e0fef206f524f6b1b67f7c36178a688">$45 billion in emergency assistance to Ukraine</a>&nbsp;and as the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-b90ce5a55b1f6b820d03da96612b3796">Pentagon prepares to send Patriot surface-to-air missiles</a>&nbsp;to the country to defend itself.

Zelenskyy headed abroad after making&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-kyiv-9b7d42d3897185c0ecff222e5149e4ea">a daring and dangerous trip</a>&nbsp;Tuesday to what he called the hottest spot on the 1,300-kilometer (800-mile) front line of the conflict, the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s contested Donetsk province. He praised Ukrainian troops for their “courage, resilience and strength” as artillery boomed in the background.

Poland’s private broadcaster TVN24 said Zelenskyy crossed into Poland early Wednesday on his way to the U.S. The station showed footage of what appeared to be Zelenskyy arriving at a train station and being escorted to a motorcade. TVN24 said the video, which was partially blurred for security reasons, was shot Wednesday morning in Przemysl, a Polish border town that has been the arrival point for many refugees fleeing the war.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, in a statement Tuesday night, said that Biden looks forward to Zelenskyy's visit and that the address to Congress will demonstrate “the strong, bipartisan support for Ukraine.”

“The visit will underscore the United States’ steadfast commitment to supporting Ukraine for as long as it takes, including through the provision of economic, humanitarian, and military assistance," she said.

Zelenskyy was scheduled to meet with Biden at the White House in the afternoon and then join Biden for a news conference in the East Room. He was expected to address Congress in the evening.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23484955-pelosi-letter-to-zelenskyy">her invitation to Zelenskyy</a>&nbsp;to address a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol, said that “The fight for Ukraine is the fight for democracy itself” and that lawmakers “look forward to hearing your inspiring message of unity, resilience and determination.”

U.S. and Ukrainian officials have made clear they don’t envision an imminent resolution to the war and are preparing for fighting to continue for some time. Biden has repeated that while the U.S. will arm and train Ukraine, American forces will not be directly engaged in the conflict.

Biden and Zelenskyy first discussed the idea of a visit to Washington during their most recent phone call, on Dec. 11, and a formal invitation followed three days later, said a senior U.S. administration official, briefing reporters on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the visit. Zelenskyy accepted the invitation on Friday and it was confirmed on Sunday, when the White House began coordinating with Pelosi to arrange the congressional address.

The White House consulted with Zelenskyy on security for his departure from Ukraine and travel to Washington, including the risk of Russian action while Zelenskyy was briefly out of the country, the official added, declining to detail the measures taken to safeguard the Ukrainian leader. The official said the U.S. expected Russia to continue its attacks on Ukrainian forces and civilian infrastructure targets despite the trip.

The tranche of U.S. funding pending before Congress would be the biggest American infusion of assistance yet to Ukraine — even more than Biden's $37 billion emergency request — and is meant to ensure that support flows to the war effort for months to come.

On Wednesday, the U.S. was also set to announce that it will send a major package of $1.8 billion in military aid to Ukraine that will for the first time include a Patriot missile battery and precision guided bombs for its fighter jets, U.S. officials said.

The aid signals an expansion by the U.S. in the kinds of advanced weaponry it will send to Ukraine to bolster its air defenses against what has been an increasing barrage of Russian missiles in recent weeks. The package will include about $1 billion in weapons from Pentagon stocks and $800 million in funding through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, officials said.

The decision to send the Patriot battery comes despite threats from Russia’s Foreign Ministry that the delivery of the advanced surface-to-air missile system would be&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-biden-0cc0e5bece38007e3d9f958f536bf1fe">considered a provocative step</a>&nbsp;and that the Patriot battery and any crews accompanying it would be a legitimate target for Moscow’s military.

It’s unclear when the Patriot battery would arrive on the front lines in Ukraine, since U.S. troops will have to train Ukrainian forces on how to use the high-tech system. The training could take several weeks and is expected to be done in Germany. To date, all training of Ukraine’s forces by the U.S. and its Western allies has taken place in European countries.

The visit comes at an important moment as the White House braces for greater resistance when Republicans take control of the House in January and give more scrutiny to aid for Ukraine. GOP leader Kevin McCarthy has said his party’s lawmakers will not write a “blank check” for Ukraine.

Biden and Zelenskyy frequently have talked by phone as the White House arranges new tranches of military assistance for Ukraine. The calls have been mostly warm, with Biden praising Ukraine for remaining steadfast against the Russians and Zelenskyy thanking the U.S. president for support.

The one exception was a June phone call soon after Biden notified Zelenskyy that an additional $1 billion package was headed to Ukraine. Zelenskyy didn’t miss a beat in ticking off the additional assistance he said Ukraine needed.

That irked Biden, who underscored to Zelenskyy the American people’s generosity. But the brief moment of tension hasn’t caused any lasting difficulty, according to officials familiar with the episode.

Pelosi, who visited Zelenskyy earlier this year in Kyiv, encouraged lawmakers to be on hand for Wednesday evening’s address by the Ukrainian leader.

“We are ending a very special session of the 117th Congress with legislation that makes progress for the American people as well as support for our Democracy,” Pelosi wrote Tuesday in a letter to colleagues. “Please be present for a very special focus on Democracy Wednesday night.”

Later at the Capitol she said of Ukrainians, “They are fighting for democracy for all of us.”

Russia’s invasion, which&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-europe-russia-moscow-kyiv-626a8c5ec22217bacb24ece60fac4fe1">began Feb. 24</a>, has lost momentum. The illegally annexed provinces of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia remain fiercely contested.

With the fighting in the east at a stalemate, Moscow has used missiles and drones to attack Ukraine’s power equipment, hoping to leave people without electricity as freezing weather sets in.

In a video released by his office from the Bakhmut visit, Zelenskyy was handed a Ukrainian flag and alluded to delivering it to U.S. leaders.

“The guys handed over our beautiful Ukrainian flag with their signatures for us to pass on,” Zelenskyy said in the video. “We are not in an easy situation. The enemy is increasing its army. Our people are braver and need more powerful weapons. We will pass it on from the boys to the Congress, to the president of the United States. We are grateful for their support, but it is not enough. It is a hint — it is not enough.”

For his part, Putin on Tuesday hailed the “courage and self-denial” of his forces in Ukraine — but he did so at a ceremony in an opulent and glittering hall at the Kremlin in Moscow, not on the battlefield.

At the Kremlin ceremony, Putin presented awards to the Moscow-appointed heads of the four illegally annexed regions of Ukraine. In a video address honoring Russia’s military and security agencies, he praised the security personnel deployed to the four regions, saying that “people living there, Russian citizens, count on being protected by you.”

Putin acknowledged the challenges faced by the security personnel.

“Yes, it’s difficult for you,” he said, adding that the situation in the regions is “extremely difficult.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671623174379.png" alt="Zelenskyy address before a joint session of Congress is scheduled for approximately 6:30p.m. CDT Wednesday.-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Zelenskyy address before a joint session of Congress is scheduled for approximately 6:30p.m. CDT Wednesday.-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was making his way to Washington on Wednesday for a summit with President Joe Biden and to address Congress in his first known trip outside the country since&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">Russia’s invasion</a>&nbsp;began in February.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">On my way to the US to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities of 🇺🇦. In particular, <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> and I will discuss cooperation between 🇺🇦 and 🇺🇸. I will also have a speech at the Congress and a number of bilateral meetings.&mdash; Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1605443014847086592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 21, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Zelenskyy said on his Twitter account that the visit was “to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities” of Ukraine and discuss cooperation between his country and the U.S with Biden.The highly sensitive trip is taking place after 10 months of a brutal war that has seen tens of thousands killed and wounded on both sides of the conflict, along with devastation for Ukrainian civilians. It also comes as U.S. lawmakers are set to vote on a year-end spending package that includes about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-3e0fef206f524f6b1b67f7c36178a688">$45 billion in emergency assistance to Ukraine</a>&nbsp;and as the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-b90ce5a55b1f6b820d03da96612b3796">Pentagon prepares to send Patriot surface-to-air missiles</a>&nbsp;to the country to defend itself.Zelenskyy headed abroad after making&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-kyiv-9b7d42d3897185c0ecff222e5149e4ea">a daring and dangerous trip</a>&nbsp;Tuesday to what he called the hottest spot on the 1,300-kilometer (800-mile) front line of the conflict, the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s contested Donetsk province. He praised Ukrainian troops for their “courage, resilience and strength” as artillery boomed in the background.Poland’s private broadcaster TVN24 said Zelenskyy crossed into Poland early Wednesday on his way to the U.S. The station showed footage of what appeared to be Zelenskyy arriving at a train station and being escorted to a motorcade. TVN24 said the video, which was partially blurred for security reasons, was shot Wednesday morning in Przemysl, a Polish border town that has been the arrival point for many refugees fleeing the war.White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, in a statement Tuesday night, said that Biden looks forward to Zelenskyy's visit and that the address to Congress will demonstrate “the strong, bipartisan support for Ukraine.”“The visit will underscore the United States’ steadfast commitment to supporting Ukraine for as long as it takes, including through the provision of economic, humanitarian, and military assistance," she said.Zelenskyy was scheduled to meet with Biden at the White House in the afternoon and then join Biden for a news conference in the East Room. He was expected to address Congress in the evening.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23484955-pelosi-letter-to-zelenskyy">her invitation to Zelenskyy</a>&nbsp;to address a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol, said that “The fight for Ukraine is the fight for democracy itself” and that lawmakers “look forward to hearing your inspiring message of unity, resilience and determination.”U.S. and Ukrainian officials have made clear they don’t envision an imminent resolution to the war and are preparing for fighting to continue for some time. Biden has repeated that while the U.S. will arm and train Ukraine, American forces will not be directly engaged in the conflict.Biden and Zelenskyy first discussed the idea of a visit to Washington during their most recent phone call, on Dec. 11, and a formal invitation followed three days later, said a senior U.S. administration official, briefing reporters on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the visit. Zelenskyy accepted the invitation on Friday and it was confirmed on Sunday, when the White House began coordinating with Pelosi to arrange the congressional address.The White House consulted with Zelenskyy on security for his departure from Ukraine and travel to Washington, including the risk of Russian action while Zelenskyy was briefly out of the country, the official added, declining to detail the measures taken to safeguard the Ukrainian leader. The official said the U.S. expected Russia to continue its attacks on Ukrainian forces and civilian infrastructure targets despite the trip.The tranche of U.S. funding pending before Congress would be the biggest American infusion of assistance yet to Ukraine — even more than Biden's $37 billion emergency request — and is meant to ensure that support flows to the war effort for months to come.On Wednesday, the U.S. was also set to announce that it will send a major package of $1.8 billion in military aid to Ukraine that will for the first time include a Patriot missile battery and precision guided bombs for its fighter jets, U.S. officials said.The aid signals an expansion by the U.S. in the kinds of advanced weaponry it will send to Ukraine to bolster its air defenses against what has been an increasing barrage of Russian missiles in recent weeks. The package will include about $1 billion in weapons from Pentagon stocks and $800 million in funding through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, officials said.The decision to send the Patriot battery comes despite threats from Russia’s Foreign Ministry that the delivery of the advanced surface-to-air missile system would be&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-biden-0cc0e5bece38007e3d9f958f536bf1fe">considered a provocative step</a>&nbsp;and that the Patriot battery and any crews accompanying it would be a legitimate target for Moscow’s military.It’s unclear when the Patriot battery would arrive on the front lines in Ukraine, since U.S. troops will have to train Ukrainian forces on how to use the high-tech system. The training could take several weeks and is expected to be done in Germany. To date, all training of Ukraine’s forces by the U.S. and its Western allies has taken place in European countries.The visit comes at an important moment as the White House braces for greater resistance when Republicans take control of the House in January and give more scrutiny to aid for Ukraine. GOP leader Kevin McCarthy has said his party’s lawmakers will not write a “blank check” for Ukraine.Biden and Zelenskyy frequently have talked by phone as the White House arranges new tranches of military assistance for Ukraine. The calls have been mostly warm, with Biden praising Ukraine for remaining steadfast against the Russians and Zelenskyy thanking the U.S. president for support.The one exception was a June phone call soon after Biden notified Zelenskyy that an additional $1 billion package was headed to Ukraine. Zelenskyy didn’t miss a beat in ticking off the additional assistance he said Ukraine needed.That irked Biden, who underscored to Zelenskyy the American people’s generosity. But the brief moment of tension hasn’t caused any lasting difficulty, according to officials familiar with the episode.Pelosi, who visited Zelenskyy earlier this year in Kyiv, encouraged lawmakers to be on hand for Wednesday evening’s address by the Ukrainian leader.“We are ending a very special session of the 117th Congress with legislation that makes progress for the American people as well as support for our Democracy,” Pelosi wrote Tuesday in a letter to colleagues. “Please be present for a very special focus on Democracy Wednesday night.”Later at the Capitol she said of Ukrainians, “They are fighting for democracy for all of us.”Russia’s invasion, which&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-europe-russia-moscow-kyiv-626a8c5ec22217bacb24ece60fac4fe1">began Feb. 24</a>, has lost momentum. The illegally annexed provinces of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia remain fiercely contested.With the fighting in the east at a stalemate, Moscow has used missiles and drones to attack Ukraine’s power equipment, hoping to leave people without electricity as freezing weather sets in.In a video released by his office from the Bakhmut visit, Zelenskyy was handed a Ukrainian flag and alluded to delivering it to U.S. leaders.“The guys handed over our beautiful Ukrainian flag with their signatures for us to pass on,” Zelenskyy said in the video. “We are not in an easy situation. The enemy is increasing its army. Our people are braver and need more powerful weapons. We will pass it on from the boys to the Congress, to the president of the United States. We are grateful for their support, but it is not enough. It is a hint — it is not enough.”For his part, Putin on Tuesday hailed the “courage and self-denial” of his forces in Ukraine — but he did so at a ceremony in an opulent and glittering hall at the Kremlin in Moscow, not on the battlefield.At the Kremlin ceremony, Putin presented awards to the Moscow-appointed heads of the four illegally annexed regions of Ukraine. In a video address honoring Russia’s military and security agencies, he praised the security personnel deployed to the four regions, saying that “people living there, Russian citizens, count on being protected by you.”Putin acknowledged the challenges faced by the security personnel.“Yes, it’s difficult for you,” he said, adding that the situation in the regions is “extremely difficult.”

$45B trip: Zelenskyy to meet Biden, address Congress

WICHITA —On April 4, the Consumer Protection Division of the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office opened an investigation into a Building Development Fee charged by the Wichita Wind Surge at the Riverfront Stadium, according to a statement from the district attorney's office.

During the investigation the district attorney's office received two additional complaints from consumers regarding the fee.

On June 16, the Consumer Protection Division issued a demand letter to the Wind Surge to cease and desist based on the Kansas Consumer Protection Act. The Wind Surge voluntarily ended the practice and provided an accounting of the funds accumulated prior to the discontinuance.

On December 18, the Wind Surge provided the district attorney's office proof that the funds acquired by the fee were donated to several local charities. The district attorney has determined that the immediate action by the Wind Surge and subsequent voluntary action sufficiently addressed concerns; therefore, the district attorney's office has closed the investigation into this matter.

The District Attorney's office of Consumer Protection Division enforces the Kansas Consumer Protection Act in Sedgwick County and works to assist citizens by investigating possible violations. 

WICHITA —On April 4, the Consumer Protection Division of the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office opened an investigation into a Building Development Fee charged by the Wichita Wind Surge at the Riverfront Stadium, according to a statement from the district attorney's office.During the investigation the district attorney's office received two additional complaints from consumers regarding the fee.On June 16, the Consumer Protection Division issued a demand letter to the Wind Surge to cease and desist based on the Kansas Consumer Protection Act. The Wind Surge voluntarily ended the practice and provided an accounting of the funds accumulated prior to the discontinuance.On December 18, the Wind Surge provided the district attorney's office proof that the funds acquired by the fee were donated to several local charities. The district attorney has determined that the immediate action by the Wind Surge and subsequent voluntary action sufficiently addressed concerns; therefore, the district attorney's office has closed the investigation into this matter.The District Attorney's office of Consumer Protection Division enforces the Kansas Consumer Protection Act in Sedgwick County and works to assist citizens by investigating possible violations.

DA: Wichita Wind Surge donates hidden fee proceeds to charities

JACKSON COUNTY— A Kansas City man has been charged in the October double-murder of Chantell Gipson and Austin Scott, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.

Glenn A. Pulluaim II, 28, who is still at large, faces two Murder 1st Degree charges and two Armed Criminal Action charges.

According to court records, on Oct. 17, Kansas City police&nbsp; were dispatched to the 8700 block of Chestnut Circle to check on the welfare of an individual. 

Inside an apartment, police officers found the body of Chantell Gipson. She had been shot. In another bedroom they found the second victim, Austin Scott, Gipson's cousin. 

Witnesses helped identify Pulluaiam. His DNA profile was founnd&nbsp; on spent shells found at the crime scene.

Pulluaim fled the scene im the victim's vehicle. Police recovered the vehicle and have exhausted all leads in an attempted to find him.&nbsp;

Pulluaim is described as 6-foot,&nbsp;&nbsp;thin build with&nbsp; shoulder length dreadlocks. He should be considered armed and dangerous. The FBI is assisting with the investigation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671103315937.png" alt="Pulluaim-photo KCPD" />
 <figcaption>Pulluaim-photo KCPD</figcaption>
 </figure>JACKSON COUNTY— A Kansas City man has been charged in the October double-murder of Chantell Gipson and Austin Scott, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.Glenn A. Pulluaim II, 28, who is still at large, faces two Murder 1st Degree charges and two Armed Criminal Action charges.According to court records, on Oct. 17, Kansas City police&nbsp; were dispatched to the 8700 block of Chestnut Circle to check on the welfare of an individual. Inside an apartment, police officers found the body of Chantell Gipson. She had been shot. In another bedroom they found the second victim, Austin Scott, Gipson's cousin. Witnesses helped identify Pulluaiam. His DNA profile was founnd&nbsp; on spent shells found at the crime scene.Pulluaim fled the scene im the victim's vehicle. Police recovered the vehicle and have exhausted all leads in an attempted to find him.&nbsp;Pulluaim is described as 6-foot,&nbsp;&nbsp;thin build with&nbsp; shoulder length dreadlocks. He should be considered armed and dangerous. The FBI is assisting with the investigation.

Police: Kansas CIty double murder suspect still at large

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Chanute, Kansas, man serving with the Army National Guard was sentenced in federal court Tuesday for sexually exploiting an 11-year-old southwest Missouri victim to produce child pornography, according to the United State's Attorney.

Christian Sinclair, 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 16 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Sinclair to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration.

On March 2, 2022, Sinclair pleaded guilty to one count of the sexual exploitation of a child. Sinclair admitted that he used a minor to produce child pornography from Aug. 1, 2020, through June 15, 2021.

According to Sinclair’s plea agreement, a captain in the Kansas National Guard contacted the Sierra Vista, Arizona, police department on June 15, 2021, while his unit was deployed to Arizona. The captain reported that Sinclair, one of the soldiers in his command, was sexting an 11-year-old child in Missouri. Sinclair’s fiancée had reported to the captain earlier the same day that she had screenshots between herself and Sinclair in which Sinclair admitted to “cheating” on her with an 11-year-old child.

The child victim told investigators that she had sent Sinclair multiple pornographic videos and images of herself via Snapchat at Sinclair’s request. Sinclair admitted that he also sent pornographic images of himself to the child victim via Snapchat.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Wan. It was investigated by the Joplin, Mo., Police Department, the FBI, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, the Lamar, Mo., Police Department, the Sierra Vista, Arizona, Police Department, and the Chanute, Kan., Police Department.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1646494837245.png" alt="Sinclair-photo Green Co." />
 <figcaption>Sinclair-photo Green Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Chanute, Kansas, man serving with the Army National Guard was sentenced in federal court Tuesday for sexually exploiting an 11-year-old southwest Missouri victim to produce child pornography, according to the United State's Attorney.Christian Sinclair, 22, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 16 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Sinclair to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration.On March 2, 2022, Sinclair pleaded guilty to one count of the sexual exploitation of a child. Sinclair admitted that he used a minor to produce child pornography from Aug. 1, 2020, through June 15, 2021.According to Sinclair’s plea agreement, a captain in the Kansas National Guard contacted the Sierra Vista, Arizona, police department on June 15, 2021, while his unit was deployed to Arizona. The captain reported that Sinclair, one of the soldiers in his command, was sexting an 11-year-old child in Missouri. Sinclair’s fiancée had reported to the captain earlier the same day that she had screenshots between herself and Sinclair in which Sinclair admitted to “cheating” on her with an 11-year-old child.The child victim told investigators that she had sent Sinclair multiple pornographic videos and images of herself via Snapchat at Sinclair’s request. Sinclair admitted that he also sent pornographic images of himself to the child victim via Snapchat.This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Wan. It was investigated by the Joplin, Mo., Police Department, the FBI, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, the Lamar, Mo., Police Department, the Sierra Vista, Arizona, Police Department, and the Chanute, Kan., Police Department.

Kan. National Guard soldier sentenced for sexting with 11-year-old

KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City-area woman is going to prison for her role in a fatal DUI crash.

Desire C. Smith, 41, Blue Springs, was sentenced to 15 years Friday after pleading guilty to DWI Death of a Another Not Passenger, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.

According to court records, the Missouri Highway Patrol were dispatched on June 14, 2019, to Interstate 70, near Adams Dairy Parkway and found Smith's Cadillac and another vehicle involved in the crash. 

The woman who drove the other vehicle was pronounced dead at the scene. Witnesses told troopers that defendant's vehicle was headed westbound in the eastbound lane when she struck the victim's vehicle.

According to court documents, a partially consumed bottle of liquor was in the passenger seat of the Cadillac and a trooper at the hospital observed alcohol on Smith’s breath. A blood test was administered to determine her blood-alcohol concentration.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671383401941.png" alt="Smith-photo Jackson County" />
 <figcaption>Smith-photo Jackson County</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City-area woman is going to prison for her role in a fatal DUI crash.Desire C. Smith, 41, Blue Springs, was sentenced to 15 years Friday after pleading guilty to DWI Death of a Another Not Passenger, according to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.According to court records, the Missouri Highway Patrol were dispatched on June 14, 2019, to Interstate 70, near Adams Dairy Parkway and found Smith's Cadillac and another vehicle involved in the crash. The woman who drove the other vehicle was pronounced dead at the scene. Witnesses told troopers that defendant's vehicle was headed westbound in the eastbound lane when she struck the victim's vehicle.According to court documents, a partially consumed bottle of liquor was in the passenger seat of the Cadillac and a trooper at the hospital observed alcohol on Smith’s breath. A blood test was administered to determine her blood-alcohol concentration.

KC-area woman sentenced for deadly wrong-way I-70 crash

SEDGWICK COUNTY —The Sedgwick County District Attorney's office has charged Wichita police officer Anthony Villegas with one misdemeanor count of dissemination of criminal history record information and one misdemeanor count of official misconduct, according to a statement from police department spokesman Officer Chad Ditch.

The charges stem from an aggravated assault firearms investigation that occurred on November 21 at 8p.m. in the 2400 block of N Rosenthal in Wichita.

Villegas has been employed by the Wichita Police Department since July 2008. He has been placed on paid leave pending a review by the Chief and an internal investigation conducted by the Wichita Police Department.

SEDGWICK COUNTY —The Sedgwick County District Attorney's office has charged Wichita police officer Anthony Villegas with one misdemeanor count of dissemination of criminal history record information and one misdemeanor count of official misconduct, according to a statement from police department spokesman Officer Chad Ditch.The charges stem from an aggravated assault firearms investigation that occurred on November 21 at 8p.m. in the 2400 block of N Rosenthal in Wichita.Villegas has been employed by the Wichita Police Department since July 2008. He has been placed on paid leave pending a review by the Chief and an internal investigation conducted by the Wichita Police Department.

Kansas officer placed on leave after charged with misconduct

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The Biden administration is asking the Supreme Court to end asylum restrictions, but asked the court for a delay until at least after Christmas.

The administration made the plea in a filing Tuesday.

Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.

The federal government acknowledged in its filing to the Supreme Court that the end of Title 42 will likely lead to “disruption and a temporary increase in unlawful border crossings” but asked the court to reject efforts by a group of conservative leaning states to keep Title 42 in place.

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — Suspense mounted at the U.S. border with Mexico on Tuesday about the future of restrictions on asylum-seekers as the Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/93fb4d675e5b381bc3b7196e7185edc3">issued a temporary order</a>&nbsp;to keep pandemic-era limits on migrants in place.

Conservative-leaning states won a reprieve — though it could be brief — as they push to maintain a measure that allows officials to expel many but not all asylum-seekers. In a last-ditch appeal to the Supreme Court, they argued that an increased numbers of migrants&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/public-health-immigration-asylum-54c11e091d464fe8d9272d607f6778f8">would take a toll on public services</a>&nbsp;such as law enforcement and health care and warned of an “unprecedented calamity” at the southern border.

Chief Justice John Roberts granted a stay pending further order, asking the administration of President Joe Biden to respond by 5 p.m. Tuesday. That's just hours before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-mexico-2d6872921b9d21347175b50f30d31539">restrictions are slated to expire Wednesday</a>.

The Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for enforcing border security, acknowledged Roberts' order — and said the agency would continue "preparations to manage the border in a safe, orderly, and humane way when the Title 42 public health order lifts.”

With the decision on what comes next going down to the wire, pressure is building in communities along both sides of the U.S-Mexico border.

In El Paso, Democratic Mayor Oscar Leeser warned that shelters across the border in Ciudad Juárez are packed to capacity with an estimated 20,000 migrants who are prepared to cross into the U.S.

Despite the court's stay, the city of El Paso rushed to expand its ability to accommodate more migrants by converting large buildings into shelters, as the Red Cross brings in 10,000 cots. Local officials also hope to relieve pressure on local shelters by chartering buses to other large cities in Texas or nearby states, bringing migrants a step closer to relatives and sponsors in coordination with nonprofit groups.

“We will continue to be prepared for whatever is coming through,” Leeser said.

Troops in tactical gear under Texas state command on Tuesday used razor wire to cordon off a gap in the border fence along a bank of the Rio Grande that became a popular crossing point in recent days for migrants who waded through shallow waters to approach immigration officials. They announced through a loudspeaker in Spanish that it's illegal to cross there.

Texas said Monday that it was sending 400 National Guard personnel to El Paso, after city officials declared a state of emergency. Leeser said the declaration was aimed largely at protecting vulnerable migrants, while the deployment included forces used to “repel and turn-back illegal immigrants,” according to a Texas National Guard statement.

A flashing signed warned motorists to “watch for unexpected pedestrians" on a highway that extends along the fenced-off border, near three bridges that connect El Paso with Mexico.

At a church-affiliated shelter a few blocks from the border, migrants including children lined up early afternoon Monday in hopes of securing a bed for the night, accepting donations of food from a succession of cars bearing gifts. Police and municipal garbage workers arrived to remove abandoned blankets and discarded possessions.

The Rev. Michael Gallagher, a priest at Sacred Heart Church in downtown El Paso, said local faith leaders have been trying to pool resources and open up empty space. On Tuesday, a gym at the church gave shelter to 200 migrants — mostly women and children.

Outside the church Monday, Jose Natera, a 48-year-old handyman from the Venezuelan town of Guaicaipuro, said he traveled for three months to reach El Paso, sometimes on foot, with no money or sponsors to take him further.

“I have to stop here until I can get a ticket” out, he said.

El Paso residents Roberto Lujan and Daniela Centeno handed out fruit, Hostess cakes, soda and chips at a street corner.

“I have to do it,” said Lujan, a 39-year-old construction worker. “I have kids and I know the struggle.”

Conservative-leaning states have argued that the federal government has no plan to deal with an increase in migrants — while in Washington, Republicans are set to take control of the House and make immigration a key issue.

Biden administration officials said they have marshaled more resources to the border in preparation for the end of Title 42. That includes more Border Patrol processing coordinators, more surveillance and increased security at ports of entry.

About 23,000 agents are currently deployed to the southern border, according to the White House.

Immigration advocates have said that the Title 42 restrictions, imposed under provisions of a 1944 health law, go against American and international obligations to people fleeing to the U.S. to escape persecution — and that the pretext is outdated as coronavirus treatments improve. They sued to end the use of Title 42; a federal judge in November sided with them and set the Dec. 21 deadline.

The Roman Catholic bishop of El Paso, Mark Seitz, expressed concern that the stay would keep migrants who had to flee their homes from even making a case for protection in the U.S., after years of pent-up need.

“What happens now with all those on their way?” he said.

Title 42 restrictions have applied to all nationalities but have fallen disproportionately on those from countries that Mexico has agreed to take back: Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and, more recently Venezuela, in addition to Mexico.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671577993523.png" alt="Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.- photo Rep. Tony Gonzales" />
 <figcaption>Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.- photo Rep. Tony Gonzales</figcaption>
 </figure>EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The Biden administration is asking the Supreme Court to end asylum restrictions, but asked the court for a delay until at least after Christmas.The administration made the plea in a filing Tuesday.Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.The federal government acknowledged in its filing to the Supreme Court that the end of Title 42 will likely lead to “disruption and a temporary increase in unlawful border crossings” but asked the court to reject efforts by a group of conservative leaning states to keep Title 42 in place.------------EL PASO, Texas (AP) — Suspense mounted at the U.S. border with Mexico on Tuesday about the future of restrictions on asylum-seekers as the Supreme Court&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/93fb4d675e5b381bc3b7196e7185edc3">issued a temporary order</a>&nbsp;to keep pandemic-era limits on migrants in place.Conservative-leaning states won a reprieve — though it could be brief — as they push to maintain a measure that allows officials to expel many but not all asylum-seekers. In a last-ditch appeal to the Supreme Court, they argued that an increased numbers of migrants&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/public-health-immigration-asylum-54c11e091d464fe8d9272d607f6778f8">would take a toll on public services</a>&nbsp;such as law enforcement and health care and warned of an “unprecedented calamity” at the southern border.Chief Justice John Roberts granted a stay pending further order, asking the administration of President Joe Biden to respond by 5 p.m. Tuesday. That's just hours before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-mexico-2d6872921b9d21347175b50f30d31539">restrictions are slated to expire Wednesday</a>.The Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for enforcing border security, acknowledged Roberts' order — and said the agency would continue "preparations to manage the border in a safe, orderly, and humane way when the Title 42 public health order lifts.”Migrants have been denied rights to seek asylum under U.S. and international law 2.5 million times since March 2020 on grounds of preventing the spread of COVID-19 under a public-health rule called Title 42.With the decision on what comes next going down to the wire, pressure is building in communities along both sides of the U.S-Mexico border.In El Paso, Democratic Mayor Oscar Leeser warned that shelters across the border in Ciudad Juárez are packed to capacity with an estimated 20,000 migrants who are prepared to cross into the U.S.Despite the court's stay, the city of El Paso rushed to expand its ability to accommodate more migrants by converting large buildings into shelters, as the Red Cross brings in 10,000 cots. Local officials also hope to relieve pressure on local shelters by chartering buses to other large cities in Texas or nearby states, bringing migrants a step closer to relatives and sponsors in coordination with nonprofit groups.“We will continue to be prepared for whatever is coming through,” Leeser said.Troops in tactical gear under Texas state command on Tuesday used razor wire to cordon off a gap in the border fence along a bank of the Rio Grande that became a popular crossing point in recent days for migrants who waded through shallow waters to approach immigration officials. They announced through a loudspeaker in Spanish that it's illegal to cross there.Texas said Monday that it was sending 400 National Guard personnel to El Paso, after city officials declared a state of emergency. Leeser said the declaration was aimed largely at protecting vulnerable migrants, while the deployment included forces used to “repel and turn-back illegal immigrants,” according to a Texas National Guard statement.A flashing signed warned motorists to “watch for unexpected pedestrians" on a highway that extends along the fenced-off border, near three bridges that connect El Paso with Mexico.At a church-affiliated shelter a few blocks from the border, migrants including children lined up early afternoon Monday in hopes of securing a bed for the night, accepting donations of food from a succession of cars bearing gifts. Police and municipal garbage workers arrived to remove abandoned blankets and discarded possessions.The Rev. Michael Gallagher, a priest at Sacred Heart Church in downtown El Paso, said local faith leaders have been trying to pool resources and open up empty space. On Tuesday, a gym at the church gave shelter to 200 migrants — mostly women and children.Outside the church Monday, Jose Natera, a 48-year-old handyman from the Venezuelan town of Guaicaipuro, said he traveled for three months to reach El Paso, sometimes on foot, with no money or sponsors to take him further.“I have to stop here until I can get a ticket” out, he said.El Paso residents Roberto Lujan and Daniela Centeno handed out fruit, Hostess cakes, soda and chips at a street corner.“I have to do it,” said Lujan, a 39-year-old construction worker. “I have kids and I know the struggle.”Conservative-leaning states have argued that the federal government has no plan to deal with an increase in migrants — while in Washington, Republicans are set to take control of the House and make immigration a key issue.Biden administration officials said they have marshaled more resources to the border in preparation for the end of Title 42. That includes more Border Patrol processing coordinators, more surveillance and increased security at ports of entry.About 23,000 agents are currently deployed to the southern border, according to the White House.Immigration advocates have said that the Title 42 restrictions, imposed under provisions of a 1944 health law, go against American and international obligations to people fleeing to the U.S. to escape persecution — and that the pretext is outdated as coronavirus treatments improve. They sued to end the use of Title 42; a federal judge in November sided with them and set the Dec. 21 deadline.The Roman Catholic bishop of El Paso, Mark Seitz, expressed concern that the stay would keep migrants who had to flee their homes from even making a case for protection in the U.S., after years of pent-up need.“What happens now with all those on their way?” he said.Title 42 restrictions have applied to all nationalities but have fallen disproportionately on those from countries that Mexico has agreed to take back: Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and, more recently Venezuela, in addition to Mexico.

Biden admin. asks court to end asylum limits after Christmas

WASHINGTON&nbsp;— Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers intercepted a record number of firearms brought by passengers to airport security checkpoints in 2022. As of December 16, TSA has stopped 6,301 firearms; more than 88% were loaded. This number surpasses the previous record of 5,972 firearms detected in 2021. TSA anticipates it will prevent about 6,600 firearms in carry-on bags from entering the secure area of airports by the end of 2022, a nearly 10% increase over 2021’s record level.

Firearm possession laws vary by state and local government, but firearms are never allowed in carry-on bags at any TSA security checkpoint, even if a passenger has a concealed weapon permit.&nbsp;In order to reduce the threat of firearms at checkpoints, TSA has increased the maximum civil penalty for a firearms violation to $14,950. TSA determines the&nbsp;penalty amount for a violation based on the circumstances in each case.&nbsp;TSA will continue to revoke TSA PreCheck®&nbsp;eligibility&nbsp;for at least five years for passengers caught with a firearm in their possession.&nbsp;TSA may conduct enhanced screening for those passengers to ensure no other threats are present.&nbsp;Depending on state or local law in the airport’s location, passengers who bring firearms to a checkpoint may be arrested by law enforcement.

“I applaud the work of our Transportation Security Officers who do an excellent job of preventing firearms from getting into the secure area of airports, and onboard aircraft,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. “Firearms are prohibited in carry-on bags at the checkpoint and onboard aircraft. When a passenger brings a firearm to the checkpoint, this consumes significant security resources and poses a potential threat to transportation security, in addition to being very costly for the passenger.”

Passengers traveling by air who wish to transport firearms must do so in checked baggage. Those&nbsp;passengers&nbsp;must&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition">follow proper packing guidance for firearms</a>&nbsp;in checked baggage and declare them to their airline at check-in. Airlines may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition, so travelers must also contact their airline regarding firearm and ammunition carriage policies prior to arriving at the airport.

To view the complete&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/travel/civil-enforcement">list of penalties</a>, go to TSA.gov.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671448133438.png" alt="TSA image" />
 <figcaption>TSA image</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON&nbsp;— Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers intercepted a record number of firearms brought by passengers to airport security checkpoints in 2022. As of December 16, TSA has stopped 6,301 firearms; more than 88% were loaded. This number surpasses the previous record of 5,972 firearms detected in 2021. TSA anticipates it will prevent about 6,600 firearms in carry-on bags from entering the secure area of airports by the end of 2022, a nearly 10% increase over 2021’s record level.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1671448314170.png" alt="TSA image" />
 <figcaption>TSA image</figcaption>
 </figure>Firearm possession laws vary by state and local government, but firearms are never allowed in carry-on bags at any TSA security checkpoint, even if a passenger has a concealed weapon permit.&nbsp;In order to reduce the threat of firearms at checkpoints, TSA has increased the maximum civil penalty for a firearms violation to $14,950. TSA determines the&nbsp;penalty amount for a violation based on the circumstances in each case.&nbsp;TSA will continue to revoke TSA PreCheck®&nbsp;eligibility&nbsp;for at least five years for passengers caught with a firearm in their possession.&nbsp;TSA may conduct enhanced screening for those passengers to ensure no other threats are present.&nbsp;Depending on state or local law in the airport’s location, passengers who bring firearms to a checkpoint may be arrested by law enforcement.“I applaud the work of our Transportation Security Officers who do an excellent job of preventing firearms from getting into the secure area of airports, and onboard aircraft,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. “Firearms are prohibited in carry-on bags at the checkpoint and onboard aircraft. When a passenger brings a firearm to the checkpoint, this consumes significant security resources and poses a potential threat to transportation security, in addition to being very costly for the passenger.”Passengers traveling by air who wish to transport firearms must do so in checked baggage. Those&nbsp;passengers&nbsp;must&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition">follow proper packing guidance for firearms</a>&nbsp;in checked baggage and declare them to their airline at check-in. Airlines may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition, so travelers must also contact their airline regarding firearm and ammunition carriage policies prior to arriving at the airport.To view the complete&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/travel/civil-enforcement">list of penalties</a>, go to TSA.gov.

TSA breaks record for number of firearms at airport security checkpoints

By ALLISON KITE <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/20/drone-no-fly-zone-issued-over-keystone-oil-spill-site-in-kansas/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TC Energy has established a no-fly zone over the Kansas site where its <a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/09/regulators-order-keystone-pipeline-to-investigate-after-14000-barrels-spill-in-kansas/">Keystone pipeline spilled 14,000 barrels of oil</a> following drone footage of the disaster.

The Canadian company said in a statement that it did so for safety reasons. But drone footage of the spill —&nbsp;the largest in <a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/13/keystone-pipeline-has-history-of-spills-warnings-and-fines-kansas-spill-is-largest-yet/">the pipeline’s history</a>
 —&nbsp;was among the only means of seeing the damage as the site is closed 
to press. Even lawmakers were not allowed there for a briefing.&nbsp;

“Clearing the airspace is critical 
for the safety and security of the pilots conducting ongoing monitoring 
as well as the working crew on the ground,” TC Energy said in a 
statement. “Crews are working around the clock on the incident and need 
to be distraction-free.”

Earlier this month, the Keystone pipeline spilled near Washington, Kansas, just south of the Nebraska border. So far, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.tcenergy.com/incident/milepost-14-incident/">TC Energy says it has isolated the spill</a>
 to keep it from flowing downstream and recovered 7,233 barrels of oil 
—&nbsp;or 13,877 barrels of oil and water. More than 400 personnel have 
responded to the site.&nbsp;

<a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g_47hr6qkY">Drone footage immediately following the spill</a>
 showed the 14,000 barrels —&nbsp;or 588,000 gallons —&nbsp;of oil turned Mill 
Creek black. One former Kansas legislator said oil had sprayed around 80
 yards onto his field next to the site. The oil that landed on nearby 
fields <a target="_blank" href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2022-12-11/watch-drone-footage-reveals-extent-of-keystone-pipeline-oil-spill">looks like a plume of smoke from above</a>.&nbsp;

The no-fly zone was issued Dec. 16 and ends Wednesday evening, according to the Federal Aviation Administration’s website.&nbsp;

The Keystone pipeline splits into two
 segments in Nebraska, just over the Kansas border. One cuts across 
northeast Kansas, through Missouri and ends in Illinois. The one that 
spilled runs through central Kansas and Oklahoma to refineries in 
Texas.&nbsp;

TC Energy last week announced it had 
resumed operations on the unaffected pipeline. The other remains shut 
down under an order from the U.S. Department of Transportation.&nbsp;

The spill site near Washington, 
Kansas, is still inaccessible, but on Monday, lawmakers received a 
briefing nearby and viewed a drone tour.&nbsp;

Rep. Lindsay Vaughn, D-Overland Park,
 said she appreciated that TC Energy had opened a line of communication 
but that “there are still a lot of unanswered questions.” She said it 
was difficult to determine the necessity of the drone no-fly zone, and 
she did have concerns about transparency.&nbsp;

“Third-party drones — if they’re not 
going to be allowed to monitor the site, then I think there has to be 
other ways that media or third parties can have greater information or 
access to what’s going on because that’s one of the best ways to hold 
all parties accountable for the best outcome possible,” Vaughn said.&nbsp;

Zack Pistora, a lobbyist for the 
Sierra Club in Kansas, expressed mild disbelief that the company 
couldn’t allow legislators to see the site.&nbsp;

“I understand that a company doesn’t 
want to show you the horrible side of the nature of their business,” 
Pistora said. “…That wouldn’t be something they would like to show 
government officials that may say, ‘More needs to be done to prevent 
this spill from happening next time.’”&nbsp;

TC Energy said its “priority is that the investigation, recovery, repair and remediation continue to advance.”&nbsp;

“We appreciate the interest and 
respect the role journalists play in documenting and reporting to the 
public,” the company said. “We are committed to being transparent and to
 providing access to media when it is safe to do so.”

This month’s spill is estimated to be
 larger than all of the Keystone pipeline’s previous spills combined. 
But the pipeline’s spills have been growing larger in recent years.&nbsp;

In 2020, the Keystone pipeline 
spilled 442 barrels of oil near a delivery facility in Texas because it 
failed to control corrosion. At one point, part of the pipeline in 
Missouri was so corroded that the wall was less than 1/64 of an inch 
thick.&nbsp;

At the same time, the pipeline 
company failed to correct deficiencies in its corrosion control for 
years, including 56 deficiencies along the pipeline from Nebraska to 
Illinois and six between Nebraska and Oklahoma.

TC Energy has been repeatedly warned 
about its corrosion control and installation practices, and material 
defects have caused the bulk of its 20-plus spills.&nbsp;

But despite causing an estimated $111
 million in property damage in its history, Keystone has paid fines of 
just more than $300,000 in the 12 years it has been operating. Another 
fine tied to the Texas spill is pending. The federal government has 
proposed one of more than $500,000.&nbsp;

Under a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/2022-12/TC%20Oil%20CAO.3-2022-074.pdf">corrective action order</a>
 from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous 
Materials Safety Administration, TC Energy must investigate the root 
cause of the spill in northern Kansas and create a plan to resume 
operations before receiving federal permission to restart the pipeline.&nbsp;

Bill Pannbacker, who previously 
served in the Kansas House of Representatives, said he was awakened Dec.
 8 by a phone call informing him of the spill.&nbsp;

“That got my adrenaline going probably for 10 hours,” Pannbacker said.&nbsp;

Pannbacker estimated the rupture in 
the pipeline occurred about 15 feet from his property line. Oil 
saturated the ground for 30 or 40 yards into his field. Droplets landed 
80 yards from the fracture.&nbsp;

“The creek is just pretty much black,” he said in the days after the spill.&nbsp;

Fortunately, Pannbacker said, that 
area of pasture was closed off, so the rupture didn’t affect his cattle.
 But he said a neighbor had to move cows that had previously been 
drinking from Mill Creek. He expected cleanup and construction to last 
at least through the holidays.&nbsp;

According to Kansas Rep. Lisa Moser, 
14 landowners are either affected directly by the spill or have response
 vehicles and personnel on their property. She said in a Facebook update
 they’re all being paid.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1670881926358.png" alt="A massive oil spill in north-central Kansas seeped into Mill Creek and traveled about three miles downstream. Clean up crews contained the spill with a dam about four miles downstream. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency" />
 <figcaption>A massive oil spill in north-central Kansas seeped into Mill Creek and traveled about three miles downstream. Clean up crews contained the spill with a dam about four miles downstream. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency</figcaption>
 </figure>By ALLISON KITE <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/20/drone-no-fly-zone-issued-over-keystone-oil-spill-site-in-kansas/">Kansas Reflector</a>TC Energy has established a no-fly zone over the Kansas site where its <a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/09/regulators-order-keystone-pipeline-to-investigate-after-14000-barrels-spill-in-kansas/">Keystone pipeline spilled 14,000 barrels of oil</a> following drone footage of the disaster.The Canadian company said in a statement that it did so for safety reasons. But drone footage of the spill —&nbsp;the largest in <a target="_blank" href="https://kansasreflector.com/2022/12/13/keystone-pipeline-has-history-of-spills-warnings-and-fines-kansas-spill-is-largest-yet/">the pipeline’s history</a>
 —&nbsp;was among the only means of seeing the damage as the site is closed 
to press. Even lawmakers were not allowed there for a briefing.&nbsp;“Clearing the airspace is critical 
for the safety and security of the pilots conducting ongoing monitoring 
as well as the working crew on the ground,” TC Energy said in a 
statement. “Crews are working around the clock on the incident and need 
to be distraction-free.”Earlier this month, the Keystone pipeline spilled near Washington, Kansas, just south of the Nebraska border. So far, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.tcenergy.com/incident/milepost-14-incident/">TC Energy says it has isolated the spill</a>
 to keep it from flowing downstream and recovered 7,233 barrels of oil 
—&nbsp;or 13,877 barrels of oil and water. More than 400 personnel have 
responded to the site.&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g_47hr6qkY">Drone footage immediately following the spill</a>
 showed the 14,000 barrels —&nbsp;or 588,000 gallons —&nbsp;of oil turned Mill 
Creek black. One former Kansas legislator said oil had sprayed around 80
 yards onto his field next to the site. The oil that landed on nearby 
fields <a target="_blank" href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2022-12-11/watch-drone-footage-reveals-extent-of-keystone-pipeline-oil-spill">looks like a plume of smoke from above</a>.&nbsp;The no-fly zone was issued Dec. 16 and ends Wednesday evening, according to the Federal Aviation Administration’s website.&nbsp;The Keystone pipeline splits into two
 segments in Nebraska, just over the Kansas border. One cuts across 
northeast Kansas, through Missouri and ends in Illinois. The one that 
spilled runs through central Kansas and Oklahoma to refineries in 
Texas.&nbsp;TC Energy last week announced it had 
resumed operations on the unaffected pipeline. The other remains shut 
down under an order from the U.S. Department of Transportation.&nbsp;The spill site near Washington, 
Kansas, is still inaccessible, but on Monday, lawmakers received a 
briefing nearby and viewed a drone tour.&nbsp;Rep. Lindsay Vaughn, D-Overland Park,
 said she appreciated that TC Energy had opened a line of communication 
but that “there are still a lot of unanswered questions.” She said it 
was difficult to determine the necessity of the drone no-fly zone, and 
she did have concerns about transparency.&nbsp;“Third-party drones — if they’re not 
going to be allowed to monitor the site, then I think there has to be 
other ways that media or third parties can have greater information or 
access to what’s going on because that’s one of the best ways to hold 
all parties accountable for the best outcome possible,” Vaughn said.&nbsp;Zack Pistora, a lobbyist for the 
Sierra Club in Kansas, expressed mild disbelief that the company 
couldn’t allow legislators to see the site.&nbsp;“I understand that a company doesn’t 
want to show you the horrible side of the nature of their business,” 
Pistora said. “…That wouldn’t be something they would like to show 
government officials that may say, ‘More needs to be done to prevent 
this spill from happening next time.’”&nbsp;TC Energy said its “priority is that the investigation, recovery, repair and remediation continue to advance.”&nbsp;“We appreciate the interest and 
respect the role journalists play in documenting and reporting to the 
public,” the company said. “We are committed to being transparent and to
 providing access to media when it is safe to do so.”<h2>Keystone’s history&nbsp;</h2>This month’s spill is estimated to be
 larger than all of the Keystone pipeline’s previous spills combined. 
But the pipeline’s spills have been growing larger in recent years.&nbsp;In 2020, the Keystone pipeline 
spilled 442 barrels of oil near a delivery facility in Texas because it 
failed to control corrosion. At one point, part of the pipeline in 
Missouri was so corroded that the wall was less than 1/64 of an inch 
thick.&nbsp;At the same time, the pipeline 
company failed to correct deficiencies in its corrosion control for 
years, including 56 deficiencies along the pipeline from Nebraska to 
Illinois and six between Nebraska and Oklahoma.TC Energy has been repeatedly warned 
about its corrosion control and installation practices, and material 
defects have caused the bulk of its 20-plus spills.&nbsp;But despite causing an estimated $111
 million in property damage in its history, Keystone has paid fines of 
just more than $300,000 in the 12 years it has been operating. Another 
fine tied to the Texas spill is pending. The federal government has 
proposed one of more than $500,000.&nbsp;Under a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/2022-12/TC%20Oil%20CAO.3-2022-074.pdf">corrective action order</a>
 from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous 
Materials Safety Administration, TC Energy must investigate the root 
cause of the spill in northern Kansas and create a plan to resume 
operations before receiving federal permission to restart the pipeline.&nbsp;<h2>Spill and response&nbsp;</h2>Bill Pannbacker, who previously 
served in the Kansas House of Representatives, said he was awakened Dec.
 8 by a phone call informing him of the spill.&nbsp;“That got my adrenaline going probably for 10 hours,” Pannbacker said.&nbsp;Pannbacker estimated the rupture in 
the pipeline occurred about 15 feet from his property line. Oil 
saturated the ground for 30 or 40 yards into his field. Droplets landed 
80 yards from the fracture.&nbsp;“The creek is just pretty much black,” he said in the days after the spill.&nbsp;Fortunately, Pannbacker said, that 
area of pasture was closed off, so the rupture didn’t affect his cattle.
 But he said a neighbor had to move cows that had previously been 
drinking from Mill Creek. He expected cleanup and construction to last 
at least through the holidays.&nbsp;According to Kansas Rep. Lisa Moser, 
14 landowners are either affected directly by the spill or have response
 vehicles and personnel on their property. She said in a Facebook update
 they’re all being paid.&nbsp;Vaughn said she was impressed by the level of coordination between TC Energy and federal, state and local responders.&nbsp;One of her primary concerns was that 
the heavy oil would sink to the bottom of Mill Creek and become far more
 difficult to clean up. She said TC Energy told the group of lawmakers 
it had not sunk below the water’s surface yet.&nbsp;Vaughn said TC Energy gave lawmakers a
 fact sheet saying its “commitment … is that our response and recovery 
efforts will continue until we have fully remediated and restored the 
area.”&nbsp;“Going forward, I think it’s our responsibility to hold them accountable for that,” she said.