KANSAS CITY (AP) —Federal health officials are expanding&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/wanabana-lead-fruit-pouch-recall-fda-e00acb3437c5ea792de36fa4c1dcb3ed">an investigation</a>&nbsp;into potentially lead-tainted pouches of apple cinnamon fruit puree marketed for children amid reports of more illnesses and additional product recalls.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Friday it has received&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/food/outbreaks-foodborne-illness/investigation-elevated-lead-levels-applesauce-pouches-november-2023?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery">reports of seven illnesses</a>&nbsp;in at least five states possibly linked to contaminated puree.

Two new companies,&nbsp;<a href="https://nourish.schnucks.com/news-releases/schnuck-markets-recalls-select-schnucks-brand-applesauce-pouches/">Schnucks Markets</a>&nbsp;of St. Louis and Weis Markets of Sunbury, Pennsylvania, announced recalls of certain cinnamon applesauce products because they may contain high levels of lead. WanaBana of Coral Gables, Florida, previously&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/wanabana-issues-voluntary-recall-wanabana-apple-cinnamon-fruit-puree-pouches-due-elevated-lead">recalled</a>&nbsp;of all lots and expiration dates of its apple cinnamon fruit puree.

Eating the contaminated products could result in “acute toxicity," FDA officials said. Parents and caregivers should not buy or serve the cinnamon applesauce products, which are sold through multiple retailers, including Amazon, Dollar Tree and at Schnucks and Eatwell Markets grocery stores.

Children and others who have consumed the products should be tested for possible lead poisoning, the agency said.

The investigation began in North Carolina, where health officials are looking into reports of four children with elevated blood levels linked to the WanaBana product. State health officials analyzed multiple lots of the product and detected “extremely high” concentrations of lead. The FDA confirmed the results.

The FDA's Coordinated Outbreak Response and Evaluation Network is leading the investigation in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state and local health officials.

Lead is toxic to people of all ages, but can be especially harmful to children. Most children have no obvious symptoms, so it’s important that kids who are exposed get tested to check levels of lead in their blood. Short-term exposure to lead can result in symptoms that include headache, abdominal pain, vomiting and anemia, the FDA said.

Heavy metals like lead can get into food products from soil, air, water or industrial processes, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Lead exposure can seriously harm children’s health, causing damage to the brain and nervous system and slowed growth and development. There is no known safe level of lead exposure, the AAP said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699279077387.png" alt="FDA image" />
 <figcaption>FDA image</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY (AP) —Federal health officials are expanding&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/wanabana-lead-fruit-pouch-recall-fda-e00acb3437c5ea792de36fa4c1dcb3ed">an investigation</a>&nbsp;into potentially lead-tainted pouches of apple cinnamon fruit puree marketed for children amid reports of more illnesses and additional product recalls.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Friday it has received&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/food/outbreaks-foodborne-illness/investigation-elevated-lead-levels-applesauce-pouches-november-2023?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery">reports of seven illnesses</a>&nbsp;in at least five states possibly linked to contaminated puree.Two new companies,&nbsp;<a href="https://nourish.schnucks.com/news-releases/schnuck-markets-recalls-select-schnucks-brand-applesauce-pouches/">Schnucks Markets</a>&nbsp;of St. Louis and Weis Markets of Sunbury, Pennsylvania, announced recalls of certain cinnamon applesauce products because they may contain high levels of lead. WanaBana of Coral Gables, Florida, previously&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/wanabana-issues-voluntary-recall-wanabana-apple-cinnamon-fruit-puree-pouches-due-elevated-lead">recalled</a>&nbsp;of all lots and expiration dates of its apple cinnamon fruit puree.Eating the contaminated products could result in “acute toxicity," FDA officials said. Parents and caregivers should not buy or serve the cinnamon applesauce products, which are sold through multiple retailers, including Amazon, Dollar Tree and at Schnucks and Eatwell Markets grocery stores.Children and others who have consumed the products should be tested for possible lead poisoning, the agency said.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1698669783345.png" alt="FDA image" />
 <figcaption>FDA image</figcaption>
 </figure>The investigation began in North Carolina, where health officials are looking into reports of four children with elevated blood levels linked to the WanaBana product. State health officials analyzed multiple lots of the product and detected “extremely high” concentrations of lead. The FDA confirmed the results.The FDA's Coordinated Outbreak Response and Evaluation Network is leading the investigation in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state and local health officials.Lead is toxic to people of all ages, but can be especially harmful to children. Most children have no obvious symptoms, so it’s important that kids who are exposed get tested to check levels of lead in their blood. Short-term exposure to lead can result in symptoms that include headache, abdominal pain, vomiting and anemia, the FDA said.Heavy metals like lead can get into food products from soil, air, water or industrial processes, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Lead exposure can seriously harm children’s health, causing damage to the brain and nervous system and slowed growth and development. There is no known safe level of lead exposure, the AAP said.___

More fruit pouches for kids recalled; illnesses linked to lead

JACKSON COUNTY — Two people died in an accident just before 2a.m. Monday near Kansas City.

According to Independence Police, a&nbsp;Chevrolet Equinox was eastbound on Interstate 70 just west of Interstate 470.&nbsp; The SUV left the roadway,&nbsp; struck a rock embankment and was re-directed back onto the roadway as it overturned. 

 An eastbound Ford F-150&nbsp; struck the Equinox as it was overturned in the roadway.  An uninvolved motorist exited his vehicle and was struck as he tried to assist with the crash. 

 One occupant from the Equinox suffered fatal injuries on scene.  The uninvolved motorist also suffered fatal injuries on scene.  The Equinox was a reported stolen vehicle from Kansas City.

Authorities have not released names or additional details.

 Eastbound Interstate 70 was closed until just before 7a.m. as officials investigated.

Check the Post for more information as it becomes available.

JACKSON COUNTY — Two people died in an accident just before 2a.m. Monday near Kansas City.According to Independence Police, a&nbsp;Chevrolet Equinox was eastbound on Interstate 70 just west of Interstate 470.&nbsp; The SUV left the roadway,&nbsp; struck a rock embankment and was re-directed back onto the roadway as it overturned. An eastbound Ford F-150&nbsp; struck the Equinox as it was overturned in the roadway. An uninvolved motorist exited his vehicle and was struck as he tried to assist with the crash. One occupant from the Equinox suffered fatal injuries on scene. The uninvolved motorist also suffered fatal injuries on scene. The Equinox was a reported stolen vehicle from Kansas City.Authorities have not released names or additional details. Eastbound Interstate 70 was closed until just before 7a.m. as officials investigated.Check the Post for more information as it becomes available.

Good Samaritan among 2 dead in crash involving stolen SUV

KANSAS CITY- Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting in Kansas City that sent four to the hospital.

Just after 3 p.m. Sunday, police were dispatched on a sound of shots at 4409 South Benton in Kansas City, according to KCPD Officer Alayna Gonzalez.

 An argument took place and multiple individuals began shooting at one another. Officers located three gunshot victims with serious but non-life threatening wounds who were transported to area hospitals. An additional subject involved arrived at an area hospital shortly after.

Police have not reported an arrest or additional details.

KANSAS CITY- Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting in Kansas City that sent four to the hospital.Just after 3 p.m. Sunday, police were dispatched on a sound of shots at 4409 South Benton in Kansas City, according to KCPD Officer Alayna Gonzalez. An argument took place and multiple individuals began shooting at one another. Officers located three gunshot victims with serious but non-life threatening wounds who were transported to area hospitals. An additional subject involved arrived at an area hospital shortly after.Police have not reported an arrest or additional details.

Police: 4 injured after argument led to gun fight at KC home

SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting in Wichita and continue to ask the public for help to locate a suspect identified as Luis Jackson, according to a Crime Stoppers report.

Just after 2a.m. September 10, police were dispatched to report of a shooting in the 4000 block of West Memory Lane in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.

First responders&nbsp; located&nbsp;19-year-old Zyles James of Wichita unconscious and not breathing with gunshot wounds to his upper and lower body.

Officers began providing life-saving efforts until EMS arrived. James was transported to a local hospital where he was later pronounced deceased.

During the initial response, officers located another victim with a graze wound to the arm. The victim was transported to a local hospital and was treated and released.

If you see Jackson or know his location, call 911 or Crime Stoppers at 316-267-2111.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/9/1694602061567.png" alt="Jackson-photo Wichita Police" />
 <figcaption>Jackson-photo Wichita Police</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting in Wichita and continue to ask the public for help to locate a suspect identified as Luis Jackson, according to a Crime Stoppers report.Just after 2a.m. September 10, police were dispatched to report of a shooting in the 4000 block of West Memory Lane in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.First responders&nbsp; located&nbsp;19-year-old Zyles James of Wichita unconscious and not breathing with gunshot wounds to his upper and lower body.Officers began providing life-saving efforts until EMS arrived. James was transported to a local hospital where he was later pronounced deceased.During the initial response, officers located another victim with a graze wound to the arm. The victim was transported to a local hospital and was treated and released.If you see Jackson or know his location, call 911 or Crime Stoppers at 316-267-2111.

Suspect in murder of Kansas teen still hiding from police

&nbsp;By&nbsp;<a href="http://www.defense.gov/News/Author/71410/david-vergun/">David Vergun</a>&nbsp;, Department of Defense News&nbsp;

A mix of weaponry that includes National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, artillery rounds, TOW missiles and Javelin and AT-4 antiarmor systems is earmarked for Ukraine in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3578754/biden-administration-announces-new-security-assistance-for-ukraine/">latest defense package</a>.

Additional material includes laser-guided munitions to counter unmanned aerial systems; more than 3 million rounds of small arms ammunition and grenades; demolitions munitions for obstacle clearing; Claymore antipersonnel munitions; 12 trucks to transport heavy equipment; cold weather gear; and spare parts, maintenance, and other field equipment.&nbsp;

This package includes security assistance from Defense Department inventories valued at up to $125 million, utilizing assistance authorized for Ukraine during prior fiscal years under presidential drawdown authority. It's the 50th security package for Ukraine since August 2021.&nbsp;

Other funding totals $300 million in the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. This package makes use of the funding available under the continuing resolution that Congress recently passed and exhausts the remaining funds currently available to support Ukraine.

Unlike a presidential drawdown —&nbsp;which draws equipment down from DOD stocks, as well as defense services, education and training —&nbsp;USAI is an authority under which the United States procures capabilities from industry for Ukraine.

Last week, President Joe Biden asked Congress for more Ukraine funding; however, lawmakers have yet to provide additional funding.&nbsp;

At an Oct. 31 Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III told lawmakers that supplemental aid is needed to help Ukraine continue to defend itself against Russia's ongoing aggression.

"When we send our friends munitions from our stockpiles, the money to replenish our supplies strengthens our military readiness, [as] we invest in American industry and American workers. That also holds true for funding for Israel or Ukraine to procure new equipment off the production line," Austin testified.&nbsp;

"Today's battles against aggression and terrorism will define global security for years to come. And only firm American leadership can ensure that tyrants, thugs and terrorists worldwide are not emboldened to commit more aggression and more atrocities," he said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699057750297.png" alt="U.S. M1A1 Abrams tanks arrive at Grafenwoehr, Germany, May 12, 2023. They will be used to train Ukrainian soldiers.&nbsp;Photo By:Army Spc. Adrian Greenwood" />
 <figcaption>U.S. M1A1 Abrams tanks arrive at Grafenwoehr, Germany, May 12, 2023. They will be used to train Ukrainian soldiers.&nbsp;Photo By:Army Spc. Adrian Greenwood</figcaption>
 </figure>&nbsp;By&nbsp;<a href="http://www.defense.gov/News/Author/71410/david-vergun/">David Vergun</a>&nbsp;, Department of Defense News&nbsp;A mix of weaponry that includes National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, artillery rounds, TOW missiles and Javelin and AT-4 antiarmor systems is earmarked for Ukraine in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3578754/biden-administration-announces-new-security-assistance-for-ukraine/">latest defense package</a>.Additional material includes laser-guided munitions to counter unmanned aerial systems; more than 3 million rounds of small arms ammunition and grenades; demolitions munitions for obstacle clearing; Claymore antipersonnel munitions; 12 trucks to transport heavy equipment; cold weather gear; and spare parts, maintenance, and other field equipment.&nbsp;This package includes security assistance from Defense Department inventories valued at up to $125 million, utilizing assistance authorized for Ukraine during prior fiscal years under presidential drawdown authority. It's the 50th security package for Ukraine since August 2021.&nbsp;Other funding totals $300 million in the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. This package makes use of the funding available under the continuing resolution that Congress recently passed and exhausts the remaining funds currently available to support Ukraine.Unlike a presidential drawdown —&nbsp;which draws equipment down from DOD stocks, as well as defense services, education and training —&nbsp;USAI is an authority under which the United States procures capabilities from industry for Ukraine.Last week, President Joe Biden asked Congress for more Ukraine funding; however, lawmakers have yet to provide additional funding.&nbsp;At an Oct. 31 Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III told lawmakers that supplemental aid is needed to help Ukraine continue to defend itself against Russia's ongoing aggression."When we send our friends munitions from our stockpiles, the money to replenish our supplies strengthens our military readiness, [as] we invest in American industry and American workers. That also holds true for funding for Israel or Ukraine to procure new equipment off the production line," Austin testified.&nbsp;"Today's battles against aggression and terrorism will define global security for years to come. And only firm American leadership can ensure that tyrants, thugs and terrorists worldwide are not emboldened to commit more aggression and more atrocities," he said.

U.S. sending millions more in missiles, air defense to Ukraine 

RUSSELL COUNTY—The Russell County Game Warden is requesting the public's assistance with information about 3 white-tailed does that were killed between 8a.m. on November and 9a.m. November 4, according to the a social media report from the Kansas Department of Wildlife and&nbsp; Parks Game Wardens.

The does were 'more than likely killed in the evening or night hours."

 All 3 does were shot with a rifle and left in the field on west side of 188th approximately 1/3 of a mile south of Waldo, Kansas. 

If you have any information about this crime please contact Game Warden Pack (620)770-6148

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699221051436.png" alt="Photo KDWP Game wardens" />
 <figcaption>Photo KDWP Game wardens</figcaption>
 </figure>RUSSELL COUNTY—The Russell County Game Warden is requesting the public's assistance with information about 3 white-tailed does that were killed between 8a.m. on November and 9a.m. November 4, according to the a social media report from the Kansas Department of Wildlife and&nbsp; Parks Game Wardens.The does were 'more than likely killed in the evening or night hours." All 3 does were shot with a rifle and left in the field on west side of 188th approximately 1/3 of a mile south of Waldo, Kansas. If you have any information about this crime please contact Game Warden Pack (620)770-6148

Kan. game warden: 3 white-tailed deer shot, left in a field

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a porch theft from a home in Maize made an arrest last week.

&nbsp;The suspect in this case was identified with the help of private and Flock Cameras, other data sources, and tips from the public, according to a social media from Maize police.&nbsp; Officer also were able to recover the stolen item.

The suspect 65-year-old William Alan Winegarner has along history of crime with over two dozen previous convictions that include burglary, theft, forgery, computer crimes and for drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

He is now being held in Sedgwick County Jail on requested charges of theft, making false information, possession of Methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia. 

 The case will be presented to the Sedgwick County District Attorney for charging consideration.&nbsp;

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating&nbsp; an alleged package theft from the&nbsp; porch of a home in the city of Maize.

Just after 2 p.m. Tuesday, the alleged Porch Pirate stole the package from a residence in the Watercress neighborhood, according to a media release from police.

The suspect is described as a white male driving a gold Ford Fusion. If you are a victim of a similar offense involving the same vehicle/suspect or have information as to the identity of the suspect(s) involved in this crime, please contact Maize PD Detective Jeff Piper at 316-425-3356.

Police also reminded that "this type of theft will likely increase with the holiday season upon us. The safest way to ensure receipt of packages is to have them delivered to your workplace or to a secure location such as a UPS or FedEx store. Otherwise, please ensure you or someone is home or available to collect your packages as soon as they are delivered to your doorstep."

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1698857057811.png" alt="Photo Maize Police" />
 <figcaption>Photo Maize Police</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a porch theft from a home in Maize made an arrest last week.&nbsp;The suspect in this case was identified with the help of private and Flock Cameras, other data sources, and tips from the public, according to a social media from Maize police.&nbsp; Officer also were able to recover the stolen item.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1698925105360.png" alt="Winegarner-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Winegarner-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>The suspect 65-year-old William Alan Winegarner has along history of crime with over two dozen previous convictions that include burglary, theft, forgery, computer crimes and for drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.He is now being held in Sedgwick County Jail on requested charges of theft, making false information, possession of Methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia. The case will be presented to the Sedgwick County District Attorney for charging consideration.&nbsp;SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating&nbsp; an alleged package theft from the&nbsp; porch of a home in the city of Maize.Just after 2 p.m. Tuesday, the alleged Porch Pirate stole the package from a residence in the Watercress neighborhood, according to a media release from police.The suspect is described as a white male driving a gold Ford Fusion. If you are a victim of a similar offense involving the same vehicle/suspect or have information as to the identity of the suspect(s) involved in this crime, please contact Maize PD Detective Jeff Piper at 316-425-3356.Police also reminded that "this type of theft will likely increase with the holiday season upon us. The safest way to ensure receipt of packages is to have them delivered to your workplace or to a secure location such as a UPS or FedEx store. Otherwise, please ensure you or someone is home or available to collect your packages as soon as they are delivered to your doorstep."

Captured Kansas porch pirate has a long history of crime

JOHNSON COUNTY—A jury convicted a Kansas man this week of multiple crimes including rape and burglary for crimes that occurred in 2018 at three homes in Shawnee.

According to the Johnson County District Attorney, William Louis Elliot, 23, was found guilty of aggravated sodomy by force, rape, sexual battery, and aggravated burglary.&nbsp;

Elliot is scheduled for sentencing December 11, according to the district attorney's office.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699106600413.png" alt="Elliot-photo Johnson Co." />
 <figcaption>Elliot-photo Johnson Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>JOHNSON COUNTY—A jury convicted a Kansas man this week of multiple crimes including rape and burglary for crimes that occurred in 2018 at three homes in Shawnee.According to the Johnson County District Attorney, William Louis Elliot, 23, was found guilty of aggravated sodomy by force, rape, sexual battery, and aggravated burglary.&nbsp;Elliot is scheduled for sentencing December 11, according to the district attorney's office.

Jury: Kan. man  guilty of sex assault and burglary at 3 homes

Experts: Consumer spending hurt, career decisions delayed by student debt

By CASEY QUINLAN,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/02/19/rural-hospitals-gird-for-unwinding-of-pandemic-medicaid-coverage/">States Newsroom</a>

Justin Brown, a father of a 2-year-old who lives with his wife in the St. Louis, Missouri area, has $20,000 in student loan debt. Before the pause on loan payments at the start of the pandemic in 2020, he paid $300 a month. But now that Brown has a family, his financial responsibilities have grown — paying for child care, a mortgage for a house he bought in 2022 and car notes, to name a few.

“I have to look at that $300, like where do I carve it from? Because my income is not going to increase in the next month, and maybe in the near future, but here and now it is what it is and my wife’s is what it is,” said Brown, who works in marketing. “I have to now make a sacrifice and the sacrifice is not going to come at the expense of my kid and it’s not going to come at the expense of my marriage. But it will come at the expense of something that I can live without that I otherwise would choose to [spend money on]. It may mean I may eat out two times a month instead of 10 times a month or that I won’t go to the movies ever again.”

Many borrowers, like Brown, are facing similar decisions this month as student loan payments resumed. Nearly 45 million Americans collectively owe more than&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/HIST/cc_hist_memo_levels.html">$1.7 trillion</a>&nbsp;in 2023 and have an average outstanding loan balance of less than $25,000, according to a Federal Reserve&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/2023-economic-well-being-of-us-households-in-2022-higher-ed-student-loans.htm">report</a>. They pay an average between $200 and $299 monthly, according to the Fed.

Economists say that hundreds of dollars spent on monthly student loan payments is a loss to the economy and could hurt consumer spending, affect workers’ decisions to stay at their current job or look elsewhere, and delay new home purchases or renting a nicer apartment.

<a target="_blank" href="https://www.surveymonkey.com/curiosity/cnbc-invest-in-you-jan-2022/">According to</a>&nbsp;a CNBC online poll in January 2022 of 5,162 adults, 81% of borrowers surveyed said they delayed major decisions because of their debt, with 33% deferring a home purchase, 35% setting aside travel plans, and 12% waiting to look for a new job.

“It will be a decline in demand, a decline in overall spending in the economy,” said Mike Konczal, director of macroeconomic analysis at the Roosevelt Institute. “A year ago, people were very worried that there was too much spending in the economy. Now, there’s a little less worry about that and a lot more worry about the real uncertainty that’s going to happen over the next year.”

Konczal said that he sees the resumption of student loan payments as the biggest headwind the economy is facing right now. Less spending in the economy has historically helped trigger a recession, he said. Consumer spending represents&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.usbank.com/investing/financial-perspectives/market-news/consumer-spending.html#:~:text=Consumer%20spending%20plays%20the%20most,the%20nation%27s%20Gross%20Domestic%20Product.">two-thirds</a>&nbsp;of economic activity.

Higher education has been associated with higher homeownership rates, but having student debt is associated with lower rates of owning a home, according to&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.newyorkfed.org/press/pressbriefings/household-borrowing-student-loans-homeownership?campaign=homescomp10515">findings</a>&nbsp;from a 2017 New York Fed report.

Early in the pandemic with interest rates low and the pause on loan repayments, younger buyers took advantage of the market to buy homes. And while student debt isn’t the biggest roadblock today to home ownership (high mortgage rates are), such purchases will be impacted as potential buyers are faced with student loan repayments, instead of putting that money toward a down payment, according to Selm Hepp, chief economist for CoreLogic.

“If you’re saving that much on a monthly basis over a year, how much of that could help you with the down payment,” Hepp said.

The same holds true for those seeking to upgrade their rentals. “… While we expect to see rent growth go back to the rate that was pre-pandemic, which is like 3% to 4% on a year-over-year basis, which is what we’ve historically seen, that may be subdued because of the student loan payments. So people may not be able to upgrade to that nicer apartment but they’ll just kind of stick it out wherever they are because they now have that student loan [payment],” Hepp said.

Major retailers have already expressed concern over the impact of student loan payments on their businesses.&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/americas-retailers-and-restaurants-brace-for-a-shock-from-student-loan-payments-175132890.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAJvtFqMbXEixD7zsawwn8fbWf86qFE8j35WYaNBvL8QtTy8WumYTyvQZ2LqOZShhk2o9D_Vmw5UU5u3EQqr0ISxtpuNEhjTTG9NKRJ4JWAH0_4V1pn1K5XjqN-jnByuJmi3IkTjwqc1Yh96T9vDy07Tu-1GRdA6TWwGVQam1oJnM">Executives</a>&nbsp;from Macy’s, Walmart, and Target said in August that they were keeping it in mind as a source of financial pressure on consumers.

The Biden administration’s plans last year to cancel up to $20,000 of student loan debt would have helped many borrowers, particularly&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/bidens-loan-forgiveness-plan-heavily-impact-black-borrowers/story?id=88900684#:~:text=A%20typical%20Black%20borrower%20will,disproportionate%20burden%20of%20student%20debt.">Black and Latino borrowers</a>. But the U.S. Supreme Court&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/30/us/student-loan-forgiveness-supreme-court-biden.html">struck down</a>&nbsp;the policy in June. Then in August, the administration&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/08/22/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-administration-launches-the-save-plan-the-most-affordable-student-loan-repayment-plan-ever-to-lower-monthly-payments-for-millions-of-borrowers/#:~:text=Bring%20many%20borrowers%27%20loan%20payments%20to%20%240%20per%20month.&amp;text=The%20Department%20of%20Education%20estimates,needs%20instead%20of%20loan%20payments.">announced</a>&nbsp;steps to reduce the financial burden of making payments for some borrowers by basing them on their income and family size and not borrowers’ loan balance.

The Federal Reserve also has recognized the return of student loan payments as it considers future policy. On Sept. 20, Fed Chair Jerome Powell was asked what he thought the looming government shutdown, rising oil prices, and the UAW strike meant for the course of Fed policy.

Describing a “collection of risks,” Powell said “there is a long list and you hit some of them. It’s the strike, it’s the government shutdown, resumption of student loan payments, higher long-term rates, oil price shock. There are a lot of things that you can look at, so what we try to do is assess all of them and handicap all of them. Ultimately though, there’s so much uncertainty around these things.”

Economists point out that research has shown that student debt and debt cancellation affect borrowers’ decisions about the jobs they take or don’t take. When people have their loans discharged, they are more likely to move, which researchers say&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://cepr.org/voxeu/columns/effects-debt-relief-student-loan-market">suggests&nbsp;</a>they are able to pursue opportunities they wouldn’t otherwise have with the student debt. Some research has also&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w13117">shown</a>&nbsp;that debt motivates graduates to favor higher-paying jobs over lower-paid jobs that are more focused on the public interest.

“There is evidence that holding student debt affects people’s choices early in their careers. I found that it affected people’s occupational choices,” said Jesse Rothstein, professor of public policy and economics at the University of California, Berkeley, and co-author of the research on job choices.

Because a college degree doesn’t bring the same accumulation of wealth that it once offered, economists are also concerned that there is little payoff for households constrained by payments. A St. Louis Fed&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://files.stlouisfed.org/files/htdocs/publications/review/2019/10/15/is-college-still-worth-it-the-new-calculus-of-falling-returns.pdf">report</a>&nbsp;released in 2019 found a decline in the wealth a college degree brings over the past few decades. Families whose head of the household was born in the 1980s have a weaker college wealth premium, “to the point of statistical insignificance.” The exception is white families where the head of the household has a bachelor’s degree, but even then the wealth enjoyed by those families is much smaller than in older groups.

Lissa Knudsen, a PhD candidate at the University of New Mexico studying health communication, has an 18-year-old who will head to college in a year herself. Knudsen has three streams of income as a freelance journalist, cheesemonger, and a teacher that have helped support her as she makes her way through school, which she said is not really enough for her to live on. She has $230,000 in student loan debt.

Unlike some borrowers, who look for well-paying jobs after graduation, she said that she is worried that if she takes a more lucrative job in her field of study, student debt will swallow up her income anyway.

“I’m afraid that there’s a disincentive for me to try to use my PhD to its fullest potential and to make say $70,000 or $80,000 a year because I think almost all of that would go to student loan payments,” she said. “Versus, if I stay in the lower income bracket, I might be able to have the minimum amount of payment. Then I could hopefully get some of it forgiven in a while. That would be great.”

Bilal Baydoun, director of policy and research at the Groundwork Collaborative, observed that the return of student loan payments will undo some of the positive changes the recovery brought to households that previously felt greater financial precarity. For example, the rise of younger people, many of them millennials,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.corelogic.com/intelligence/homeownership-accelerated-among-young-millennials-during-the-pandemic/">buying homes</a>&nbsp;earlier in the pandemic when interest rates were low and student debt payments were on pause, was a sign of a changing economic tide.

“My fear overall is that the sort of muscle memory of our pre-pandemic plutocracy is starting to redevelop … [Policymakers] want to grow different muscles. We want to grow the muscles that we’ve seen over the last couple of years of major public investment, of labor activity, of rising wages that outpace inflation and this really threatens all of that,” he said.

To address the burden of student debt on the U.S. economy, experts and economists say that the federal government needs to undertake major policy efforts on debt cancellation and overhauling the way higher education is financed.

Baydoun said that debt cancellation, once a fringe policy idea years ago, is “considered one of the most important interventions when it comes to our affordability crisis.”

“I think continuing to find ways to [cancel student debt] is not only great economic policy, it’s also great politics. All of these borrowers through the course of the pandemic, when payments were on hold for three years, they saw very clearly that nothing bad happened as a result of that … In fact, if anything, it was one of the factors that helped supercharge our economic recovery,” he said.

Not all borrowers plan to resume payments on their student loans. Kyle Guzik, a high school art teacher who lives in Richmond, Virginia, has more than $200,000 in student loan debt, most of it from William &amp; Mary, which he attended for graduate school. He spends $1,350 in rent each month and has more than $10,000 in medical debt, which he can’t pay. He said his daily life expenses take up the rest of his budget and that there simply isn’t anything left over.

“The money just disappears. It might seem like a lot at first but it just disappears and [student loan servicers] want whatever the amount is that they want. Alright. It isn’t there to be had,” he said. “ … You can’t get blood from a stone.”

Guzik said his decision is one of financial necessity. But he added that he hopes this refusal will result in policy changes.

“I hope that others in my situation will also think about what is really in their own rational self interest and that, by organizing a debt strike, we will collectively force a change in policy so that housing, healthcare, education, and a dignified retirement are recognized politically in this country as human rights,” he said.

Rothstein said he believes the pressure for policymakers to address student debt is building but that most of it has been around canceling payments rather than redesigning the college finance system.

“We are going to need to redesign the way we pay for college and that will be a major lift before we get to the point where Congress passes something,’’ he said. “ … In the long run, our failure to do that is going to be a drag on educational attainments in this country and on economic growth.”

Editor’s note: Lissa Knudsen has freelanced for Source New Mexico, an affiliate of States Newsroom.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1675012264290.jpg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Experts: Consumer spending hurt, career decisions delayed by student debt</h2>By CASEY QUINLAN,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/02/19/rural-hospitals-gird-for-unwinding-of-pandemic-medicaid-coverage/">States Newsroom</a>Justin Brown, a father of a 2-year-old who lives with his wife in the St. Louis, Missouri area, has $20,000 in student loan debt. Before the pause on loan payments at the start of the pandemic in 2020, he paid $300 a month. But now that Brown has a family, his financial responsibilities have grown — paying for child care, a mortgage for a house he bought in 2022 and car notes, to name a few.“I have to look at that $300, like where do I carve it from? Because my income is not going to increase in the next month, and maybe in the near future, but here and now it is what it is and my wife’s is what it is,” said Brown, who works in marketing. “I have to now make a sacrifice and the sacrifice is not going to come at the expense of my kid and it’s not going to come at the expense of my marriage. But it will come at the expense of something that I can live without that I otherwise would choose to [spend money on]. It may mean I may eat out two times a month instead of 10 times a month or that I won’t go to the movies ever again.”Many borrowers, like Brown, are facing similar decisions this month as student loan payments resumed. Nearly 45 million Americans collectively owe more than&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/HIST/cc_hist_memo_levels.html">$1.7 trillion</a>&nbsp;in 2023 and have an average outstanding loan balance of less than $25,000, according to a Federal Reserve&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/2023-economic-well-being-of-us-households-in-2022-higher-ed-student-loans.htm">report</a>. They pay an average between $200 and $299 monthly, according to the Fed.Economists say that hundreds of dollars spent on monthly student loan payments is a loss to the economy and could hurt consumer spending, affect workers’ decisions to stay at their current job or look elsewhere, and delay new home purchases or renting a nicer apartment.<a target="_blank" href="https://www.surveymonkey.com/curiosity/cnbc-invest-in-you-jan-2022/">According to</a>&nbsp;a CNBC online poll in January 2022 of 5,162 adults, 81% of borrowers surveyed said they delayed major decisions because of their debt, with 33% deferring a home purchase, 35% setting aside travel plans, and 12% waiting to look for a new job.“It will be a decline in demand, a decline in overall spending in the economy,” said Mike Konczal, director of macroeconomic analysis at the Roosevelt Institute. “A year ago, people were very worried that there was too much spending in the economy. Now, there’s a little less worry about that and a lot more worry about the real uncertainty that’s going to happen over the next year.”Konczal said that he sees the resumption of student loan payments as the biggest headwind the economy is facing right now. Less spending in the economy has historically helped trigger a recession, he said. Consumer spending represents&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.usbank.com/investing/financial-perspectives/market-news/consumer-spending.html#:~:text=Consumer%20spending%20plays%20the%20most,the%20nation%27s%20Gross%20Domestic%20Product.">two-thirds</a>&nbsp;of economic activity.Higher education has been associated with higher homeownership rates, but having student debt is associated with lower rates of owning a home, according to&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.newyorkfed.org/press/pressbriefings/household-borrowing-student-loans-homeownership?campaign=homescomp10515">findings</a>&nbsp;from a 2017 New York Fed report.Early in the pandemic with interest rates low and the pause on loan repayments, younger buyers took advantage of the market to buy homes. And while student debt isn’t the biggest roadblock today to home ownership (high mortgage rates are), such purchases will be impacted as potential buyers are faced with student loan repayments, instead of putting that money toward a down payment, according to Selm Hepp, chief economist for CoreLogic.“If you’re saving that much on a monthly basis over a year, how much of that could help you with the down payment,” Hepp said.The same holds true for those seeking to upgrade their rentals. “… While we expect to see rent growth go back to the rate that was pre-pandemic, which is like 3% to 4% on a year-over-year basis, which is what we’ve historically seen, that may be subdued because of the student loan payments. So people may not be able to upgrade to that nicer apartment but they’ll just kind of stick it out wherever they are because they now have that student loan [payment],” Hepp said.Major retailers have already expressed concern over the impact of student loan payments on their businesses.&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/americas-retailers-and-restaurants-brace-for-a-shock-from-student-loan-payments-175132890.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAJvtFqMbXEixD7zsawwn8fbWf86qFE8j35WYaNBvL8QtTy8WumYTyvQZ2LqOZShhk2o9D_Vmw5UU5u3EQqr0ISxtpuNEhjTTG9NKRJ4JWAH0_4V1pn1K5XjqN-jnByuJmi3IkTjwqc1Yh96T9vDy07Tu-1GRdA6TWwGVQam1oJnM">Executives</a>&nbsp;from Macy’s, Walmart, and Target said in August that they were keeping it in mind as a source of financial pressure on consumers.The Biden administration’s plans last year to cancel up to $20,000 of student loan debt would have helped many borrowers, particularly&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/bidens-loan-forgiveness-plan-heavily-impact-black-borrowers/story?id=88900684#:~:text=A%20typical%20Black%20borrower%20will,disproportionate%20burden%20of%20student%20debt.">Black and Latino borrowers</a>. But the U.S. Supreme Court&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/30/us/student-loan-forgiveness-supreme-court-biden.html">struck down</a>&nbsp;the policy in June. Then in August, the administration&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/08/22/fact-sheet-the-biden-harris-administration-launches-the-save-plan-the-most-affordable-student-loan-repayment-plan-ever-to-lower-monthly-payments-for-millions-of-borrowers/#:~:text=Bring%20many%20borrowers%27%20loan%20payments%20to%20%240%20per%20month.&amp;text=The%20Department%20of%20Education%20estimates,needs%20instead%20of%20loan%20payments.">announced</a>&nbsp;steps to reduce the financial burden of making payments for some borrowers by basing them on their income and family size and not borrowers’ loan balance.The Federal Reserve also has recognized the return of student loan payments as it considers future policy. On Sept. 20, Fed Chair Jerome Powell was asked what he thought the looming government shutdown, rising oil prices, and the UAW strike meant for the course of Fed policy.Describing a “collection of risks,” Powell said “there is a long list and you hit some of them. It’s the strike, it’s the government shutdown, resumption of student loan payments, higher long-term rates, oil price shock. There are a lot of things that you can look at, so what we try to do is assess all of them and handicap all of them. Ultimately though, there’s so much uncertainty around these things.”<h2>Labor market&nbsp;</h2>Economists point out that research has shown that student debt and debt cancellation affect borrowers’ decisions about the jobs they take or don’t take. When people have their loans discharged, they are more likely to move, which researchers say&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://cepr.org/voxeu/columns/effects-debt-relief-student-loan-market">suggests&nbsp;</a>they are able to pursue opportunities they wouldn’t otherwise have with the student debt. Some research has also&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w13117">shown</a>&nbsp;that debt motivates graduates to favor higher-paying jobs over lower-paid jobs that are more focused on the public interest.“There is evidence that holding student debt affects people’s choices early in their careers. I found that it affected people’s occupational choices,” said Jesse Rothstein, professor of public policy and economics at the University of California, Berkeley, and co-author of the research on job choices.Because a college degree doesn’t bring the same accumulation of wealth that it once offered, economists are also concerned that there is little payoff for households constrained by payments. A St. Louis Fed&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://files.stlouisfed.org/files/htdocs/publications/review/2019/10/15/is-college-still-worth-it-the-new-calculus-of-falling-returns.pdf">report</a>&nbsp;released in 2019 found a decline in the wealth a college degree brings over the past few decades. Families whose head of the household was born in the 1980s have a weaker college wealth premium, “to the point of statistical insignificance.” The exception is white families where the head of the household has a bachelor’s degree, but even then the wealth enjoyed by those families is much smaller than in older groups.Lissa Knudsen, a PhD candidate at the University of New Mexico studying health communication, has an 18-year-old who will head to college in a year herself. Knudsen has three streams of income as a freelance journalist, cheesemonger, and a teacher that have helped support her as she makes her way through school, which she said is not really enough for her to live on. She has $230,000 in student loan debt.Unlike some borrowers, who look for well-paying jobs after graduation, she said that she is worried that if she takes a more lucrative job in her field of study, student debt will swallow up her income anyway.“I’m afraid that there’s a disincentive for me to try to use my PhD to its fullest potential and to make say $70,000 or $80,000 a year because I think almost all of that would go to student loan payments,” she said. “Versus, if I stay in the lower income bracket, I might be able to have the minimum amount of payment. Then I could hopefully get some of it forgiven in a while. That would be great.”<h2>Policy implications</h2>Bilal Baydoun, director of policy and research at the Groundwork Collaborative, observed that the return of student loan payments will undo some of the positive changes the recovery brought to households that previously felt greater financial precarity. For example, the rise of younger people, many of them millennials,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.corelogic.com/intelligence/homeownership-accelerated-among-young-millennials-during-the-pandemic/">buying homes</a>&nbsp;earlier in the pandemic when interest rates were low and student debt payments were on pause, was a sign of a changing economic tide.“My fear overall is that the sort of muscle memory of our pre-pandemic plutocracy is starting to redevelop … [Policymakers] want to grow different muscles. We want to grow the muscles that we’ve seen over the last couple of years of major public investment, of labor activity, of rising wages that outpace inflation and this really threatens all of that,” he said.To address the burden of student debt on the U.S. economy, experts and economists say that the federal government needs to undertake major policy efforts on debt cancellation and overhauling the way higher education is financed.Baydoun said that debt cancellation, once a fringe policy idea years ago, is “considered one of the most important interventions when it comes to our affordability crisis.”“I think continuing to find ways to [cancel student debt] is not only great economic policy, it’s also great politics. All of these borrowers through the course of the pandemic, when payments were on hold for three years, they saw very clearly that nothing bad happened as a result of that … In fact, if anything, it was one of the factors that helped supercharge our economic recovery,” he said.Not all borrowers plan to resume payments on their student loans. Kyle Guzik, a high school art teacher who lives in Richmond, Virginia, has more than $200,000 in student loan debt, most of it from William &amp; Mary, which he attended for graduate school. He spends $1,350 in rent each month and has more than $10,000 in medical debt, which he can’t pay. He said his daily life expenses take up the rest of his budget and that there simply isn’t anything left over.“The money just disappears. It might seem like a lot at first but it just disappears and [student loan servicers] want whatever the amount is that they want. Alright. It isn’t there to be had,” he said. “ … You can’t get blood from a stone.”Guzik said his decision is one of financial necessity. But he added that he hopes this refusal will result in policy changes.“I hope that others in my situation will also think about what is really in their own rational self interest and that, by organizing a debt strike, we will collectively force a change in policy so that housing, healthcare, education, and a dignified retirement are recognized politically in this country as human rights,” he said.Rothstein said he believes the pressure for policymakers to address student debt is building but that most of it has been around canceling payments rather than redesigning the college finance system.“We are going to need to redesign the way we pay for college and that will be a major lift before we get to the point where Congress passes something,’’ he said. “ … In the long run, our failure to do that is going to be a drag on educational attainments in this country and on economic growth.”Editor’s note: Lissa Knudsen has freelanced for Source New Mexico, an affiliate of States Newsroom.

Borrowers weigh personal, professional options as student loan payments resume

WASHINGTON (AP) — The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;agreed on Friday to decide whether a Trump era-ban on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/north-america-us-news-ap-top-news-las-vegas-shootings-ff26110203da4a28bfd1d99022fb401c">bump stocks</a>, the gun attachments that allow semi-automatic weapons to fire rapidly like machine guns, violates federal law.

The justices will hear arguments early next year over a regulation put in place by the Justice Department after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/north-america-country-music-us-news-ap-top-news-music-4eeaef2efced49698855d13830de3327">a mass shooting in Las Vegas</a>&nbsp;in 2017.

Federal appeals courts have come to different decisions about whether the regulation defining a bump stock as a machine gun comports with federal law.

The justices said they will review the Biden administration's appeal of a ruling by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans that invalidated the ban.

The Supreme Court already is weighing a challenge to another federal law that seeks to keep guns away from people under domestic violence restraining orders, a case that stems from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-guns-decision-58d01ef8bd48e816d5f8761ffa84e3e8">the landmark decision in 2022</a>&nbsp;in which the six-justice conservative majority expanded gun rights.

The new case is not about the Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms,” but rather whether the Trump administration followed federal law in changing the bump stock regulation.

The ban on bump stocks took effect in 2019. It stemmed from the Las Vegas shooting in which the gunman, a 64-year-old retired postal service worker and high-stakes gambler, used assault-style rifles to fire more than 1,000 rounds in 11 minutes into a crowd of 22,000 music fans.

Most of the rifles were fitted with bump stock devices and high-capacity magazines. A total of 58 people were killed in the shooting, and two died later. Hundreds were injured.

The Trump administration’s ban on bump stocks was an about-face for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. In 2010, under the Obama administration, the agency found that a bump stock should not be classified as a machine gun and therefore should not be banned under federal law.

Following the Las Vegas shooting, officials revisited that determination and found it incorrect.

Bump stocks harness the recoil energy of a semi-automatic firearm so that a trigger “resets and continues firing without additional physical manipulation of the trigger by the shooter,” according to the ATF.

A shooter must maintain constant forward pressure on the weapon with the non-shooting hand and constant pressure on the trigger with the trigger finger, according to court records.

The full U.S. 5th Circuit&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-new-orleans-texas-state-government-b5990ed60ebb617055cc8d5c36a84050">ruled 13-3</a>&nbsp;in January that Congress would have to change federal law to ban bump stocks.

“The definition of ‘machinegun’ as set forth in the National Firearms Act and Gun Control Act does not apply to bump stocks,” Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod wrote for the 5th Circuit.

But a panel of three judges on the federal appeals court in Washington looked at the same language and came to a different conclusion.

Judge Robert Wilkins wrote for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit that “under the best interpretation of the statute, a bump stock is a self-regulating mechanism that allows a shooter to shoot more than one shot through a single pull of the trigger. As such, it is a machine gun under the National Firearms Act and Gun Control Act.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;agreed on Friday to decide whether a Trump era-ban on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/north-america-us-news-ap-top-news-las-vegas-shootings-ff26110203da4a28bfd1d99022fb401c">bump stocks</a>, the gun attachments that allow semi-automatic weapons to fire rapidly like machine guns, violates federal law.The justices will hear arguments early next year over a regulation put in place by the Justice Department after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/north-america-country-music-us-news-ap-top-news-music-4eeaef2efced49698855d13830de3327">a mass shooting in Las Vegas</a>&nbsp;in 2017.Federal appeals courts have come to different decisions about whether the regulation defining a bump stock as a machine gun comports with federal law.The justices said they will review the Biden administration's appeal of a ruling by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans that invalidated the ban.The Supreme Court already is weighing a challenge to another federal law that seeks to keep guns away from people under domestic violence restraining orders, a case that stems from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-guns-decision-58d01ef8bd48e816d5f8761ffa84e3e8">the landmark decision in 2022</a>&nbsp;in which the six-justice conservative majority expanded gun rights.The new case is not about the Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms,” but rather whether the Trump administration followed federal law in changing the bump stock regulation.The ban on bump stocks took effect in 2019. It stemmed from the Las Vegas shooting in which the gunman, a 64-year-old retired postal service worker and high-stakes gambler, used assault-style rifles to fire more than 1,000 rounds in 11 minutes into a crowd of 22,000 music fans.Most of the rifles were fitted with bump stock devices and high-capacity magazines. A total of 58 people were killed in the shooting, and two died later. Hundreds were injured.The Trump administration’s ban on bump stocks was an about-face for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. In 2010, under the Obama administration, the agency found that a bump stock should not be classified as a machine gun and therefore should not be banned under federal law.Following the Las Vegas shooting, officials revisited that determination and found it incorrect.Bump stocks harness the recoil energy of a semi-automatic firearm so that a trigger “resets and continues firing without additional physical manipulation of the trigger by the shooter,” according to the ATF.A shooter must maintain constant forward pressure on the weapon with the non-shooting hand and constant pressure on the trigger with the trigger finger, according to court records.The full U.S. 5th Circuit&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-new-orleans-texas-state-government-b5990ed60ebb617055cc8d5c36a84050">ruled 13-3</a>&nbsp;in January that Congress would have to change federal law to ban bump stocks.“The definition of ‘machinegun’ as set forth in the National Firearms Act and Gun Control Act does not apply to bump stocks,” Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod wrote for the 5th Circuit.But a panel of three judges on the federal appeals court in Washington looked at the same language and came to a different conclusion.Judge Robert Wilkins wrote for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit that “under the best interpretation of the statute, a bump stock is a self-regulating mechanism that allows a shooter to shoot more than one shot through a single pull of the trigger. As such, it is a machine gun under the National Firearms Act and Gun Control Act.”

Supreme Court to review ban on rapid-fire gun bump stocks

SHAWNEE COUNTY— Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting in Topeka have a second suspect in custody.

Just before 1:30a.m. October 21, police were dispatched to the 1500 block of SW 21st Street in Topeka reference a possible shooting, according to Topeka Police Lt. Donna Eubanks.

&nbsp;Officers located two adult male victims, one with possible life threatening injuries and one with non-life threatening injuries. Both victims were transported to a local hospital for treatment.&nbsp;

During the course of the investigation, police identified 22-year-old Rajhgerio Smith&nbsp; as a suspect. They arrested him on requested charges of Aggravated Battery.

On Friday, the Topeka Police Department asked the public for help in locating Tysuan E. White, 22, Topeka, as a person of interest in this investigation. 

With the public's help. police located and arrested Smith. He is being held in the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges&nbsp; of&nbsp; Aggravated Battery.

Police thanked the community for their help.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699193180106.png" alt="White-photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>White-photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY— Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting in Topeka have a second suspect in custody.Just before 1:30a.m. October 21, police were dispatched to the 1500 block of SW 21st Street in Topeka reference a possible shooting, according to Topeka Police Lt. Donna Eubanks.&nbsp;Officers located two adult male victims, one with possible life threatening injuries and one with non-life threatening injuries. Both victims were transported to a local hospital for treatment.&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1697942064704.png" alt="Smith-photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Smith-photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>During the course of the investigation, police identified 22-year-old Rajhgerio Smith&nbsp; as a suspect. They arrested him on requested charges of Aggravated Battery.On Friday, the Topeka Police Department asked the public for help in locating Tysuan E. White, 22, Topeka, as a person of interest in this investigation. With the public's help. police located and arrested Smith. He is being held in the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges&nbsp; of&nbsp; Aggravated Battery.Police thanked the community for their help.

Community helps police capture Kansas shooting suspect

JERUSALEM (AP)— Israel’s minister of Jewish heritage, Amihai Eliyahu, said that dropping an atomic bomb on the Gaza Strip is a possibility. His comments were immediately denounced by other Cabinet members.

Eliyahu, a junior minister in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyhau’s Cabinet, made the comment in an interview with Kol Beramah radio. He later tried to walk it back, saying, “Anyone reasonable would understand that the comment was metaphorical. But we definitely need to respond powerfully and disproportionately to terrorism."

Army Radio cited Netanyahu as saying that the remark was “divorced from reality.”

“Israel and the IDF operate according to the highest standards of international law to avoid hurting non-combatants — and will continue to do so until we achieve victory,” he was quoted as saying.

The radio said Netanyahu suspended Eliyahu from Cabinet meetings until further notice, a move that has no practical effect.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also criticized Eliyahu, saying, “It’s a good thing that people like this are not in charge of Israel’s security.”

Meanwhile, Giora Eiland, an adviser to Gallant, said Israel is far from vanquishing Hamas.

“We don’t see hundreds of people starting to surrender,” Eiland, a reserves general and former head of the National Security Council, told Army Radio. “You see very, very sophisticated attacks from the other side involving the successful coordinated use of paragliders, antitank missile fire and mortar fire. This requires a high degree of coordination among forces and they do it well.”

Meanwhile,&nbsp;U.S. Secretary of State&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/antony-blinken">Antony Blinken</a>&nbsp;brought his diplomatic push on the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">Israel-Hamas war</a>&nbsp;to the occupied West Bank on Sunday, meeting with Palestinian President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/mahmoud-abbas">Mahmoud Abbas</a>&nbsp;in the Biden administration's latest bid to ease civilian suffering in the Gaza Strip and begin to sketch out a post-conflict scenario for the territory.

On a stop not announced in advance, Blinken traveled to Ramallah in an armored motorcade and under tight security just hours after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-11-05-2023-eb1dfa6afe40ba267024c7d819e17194">Israeli planes</a>&nbsp;struck a refugee camp in Gaza, killing at least 40 people and wounding dozens, Gaza's Health Ministry said. Despite the secrecy and the U.S. State Department's refusal to confirm the trip until after Blinken had left the West Bank, there were protests against the diplomat's visit and U.S. support for Israel as word of his arrival leaked.

Neither man spoke as they greeted each other in front of cameras and their meeting ended without any public comment.

A senior American official traveling with Blinken said stressed the U.S. commitment to pressing Israel to protect civilians in Gaza, increase humanitarian aid supplies and rein in and punish extremist Jewish settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.

Blinken also told Abbas that the U.S. was pushing Israel to fully restore suspended tax remittance transfers to the Palestinian Authority. Those funds were partially unblocked last week, but the Palestinians want the whole amount. In addition, Blinken said the U.S. envisions the Palestinian Authority as “playing a central role” in any post-Hamas administration in Gaza, according to the official, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity to detail private discussions.

Abbas, meantime, said the Palestinian Authority would only assume power in Gaza as part of a “comprehensive political solution” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to the official WAFA news agency. Abbas condemned Israel’s bombardment of Gaza as a “genocidal war” and urged Blinken “to immediately stop them from committing such crimes,” the agency reported.

He called for an immediate cession of the war, and the delivery of humanitarian aid and fuel, and the restoration of water and electricity in Gaza. The Palestinian leader said “military and security solutions” would not bring security to Israel, but that “security and peace” would be achieved only through ending the occupation and establishing a Palestinian state on the pre-1967 Mideast war borders with east Jerusalem its capital, according to the report.

Earlier, the U.S. State Department said Blinken reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to the delivery of humanitarian assistance and the resumption of essential services in Gaza and made clear that Palestinians must not be forcibly displaced. Blinken and Abbas discussed efforts to restore calm and stability in the West Bank, including the need to stop the violence against Palestinians and bring to account those who are responsible, in reference to attacks by Israeli settlers.

The meeting with Abbas, whose Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority has not been a factor in Gaza since Hamas took it over by force in 2007, came at the start of Blinken’s third day of his latest Mideast mission, his second since the surprise Hamas attack against Israel on Oct. 7. Blinken visited Israel and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/blinken-mideast-diplomacy-gaza-israel-hamas-war-9d9ada872b84699424f17f13df1c3560">meeting in Jordan with Arab ministers</a>&nbsp;Saturday.

At each stop, Blinken has offered firm U.S. support for Israel’s right to defend itself but also stressed that it must adhere to the laws of war, protect civilians and increase humanitarian aid supplies to Gaza. To do that, as well as to ease the flow of foreigners fleeing Gaza, he has made the case that Israel should implement rolling humanitarian pauses to its airstrikes and ground operations, something that Netanyahu has thus far flatly rejected.

U.S. officials believe that Netanyahu may soften his opposition if he can be convinced that it is in Israel’s strategic interests to ease the plight of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. The soaring death toll has sparked growing international anger,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-gaza-palestinians-protests-europe-193a9aaca97df2c5c6a515f756a40a34">with tens of thousands from Washington to Berlin taking to the streets</a>&nbsp;over the weekend to demand an immediate cease-fire.

The Arab foreign ministers with whom Blinken met in Amman – from Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates – issued the same demand. But Blinken said the U.S. would not push for one.

Arab states are resisting American suggestions that they play a larger role in resolving crisis, expressing outrage at the civilian toll of the Israeli military operations but believing Gaza to be a problem largely of Israel’s own making.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699029329853.png" alt="U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday to urge protections for civilians in the fighting with Hamas-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday to urge protections for civilians in the fighting with Hamas-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>JERUSALEM (AP)— Israel’s minister of Jewish heritage, Amihai Eliyahu, said that dropping an atomic bomb on the Gaza Strip is a possibility. His comments were immediately denounced by other Cabinet members.Eliyahu, a junior minister in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyhau’s Cabinet, made the comment in an interview with Kol Beramah radio. He later tried to walk it back, saying, “Anyone reasonable would understand that the comment was metaphorical. But we definitely need to respond powerfully and disproportionately to terrorism."Army Radio cited Netanyahu as saying that the remark was “divorced from reality.”“Israel and the IDF operate according to the highest standards of international law to avoid hurting non-combatants — and will continue to do so until we achieve victory,” he was quoted as saying.The radio said Netanyahu suspended Eliyahu from Cabinet meetings until further notice, a move that has no practical effect.Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also criticized Eliyahu, saying, “It’s a good thing that people like this are not in charge of Israel’s security.”Meanwhile, Giora Eiland, an adviser to Gallant, said Israel is far from vanquishing Hamas.“We don’t see hundreds of people starting to surrender,” Eiland, a reserves general and former head of the National Security Council, told Army Radio. “You see very, very sophisticated attacks from the other side involving the successful coordinated use of paragliders, antitank missile fire and mortar fire. This requires a high degree of coordination among forces and they do it well.”Meanwhile,&nbsp;U.S. Secretary of State&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/antony-blinken">Antony Blinken</a>&nbsp;brought his diplomatic push on the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">Israel-Hamas war</a>&nbsp;to the occupied West Bank on Sunday, meeting with Palestinian President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/mahmoud-abbas">Mahmoud Abbas</a>&nbsp;in the Biden administration's latest bid to ease civilian suffering in the Gaza Strip and begin to sketch out a post-conflict scenario for the territory.On a stop not announced in advance, Blinken traveled to Ramallah in an armored motorcade and under tight security just hours after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-11-05-2023-eb1dfa6afe40ba267024c7d819e17194">Israeli planes</a>&nbsp;struck a refugee camp in Gaza, killing at least 40 people and wounding dozens, Gaza's Health Ministry said. Despite the secrecy and the U.S. State Department's refusal to confirm the trip until after Blinken had left the West Bank, there were protests against the diplomat's visit and U.S. support for Israel as word of his arrival leaked.Neither man spoke as they greeted each other in front of cameras and their meeting ended without any public comment.A senior American official traveling with Blinken said stressed the U.S. commitment to pressing Israel to protect civilians in Gaza, increase humanitarian aid supplies and rein in and punish extremist Jewish settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.Blinken also told Abbas that the U.S. was pushing Israel to fully restore suspended tax remittance transfers to the Palestinian Authority. Those funds were partially unblocked last week, but the Palestinians want the whole amount. In addition, Blinken said the U.S. envisions the Palestinian Authority as “playing a central role” in any post-Hamas administration in Gaza, according to the official, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity to detail private discussions.Abbas, meantime, said the Palestinian Authority would only assume power in Gaza as part of a “comprehensive political solution” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to the official WAFA news agency. Abbas condemned Israel’s bombardment of Gaza as a “genocidal war” and urged Blinken “to immediately stop them from committing such crimes,” the agency reported.He called for an immediate cession of the war, and the delivery of humanitarian aid and fuel, and the restoration of water and electricity in Gaza. The Palestinian leader said “military and security solutions” would not bring security to Israel, but that “security and peace” would be achieved only through ending the occupation and establishing a Palestinian state on the pre-1967 Mideast war borders with east Jerusalem its capital, according to the report.Earlier, the U.S. State Department said Blinken reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to the delivery of humanitarian assistance and the resumption of essential services in Gaza and made clear that Palestinians must not be forcibly displaced. Blinken and Abbas discussed efforts to restore calm and stability in the West Bank, including the need to stop the violence against Palestinians and bring to account those who are responsible, in reference to attacks by Israeli settlers.The meeting with Abbas, whose Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority has not been a factor in Gaza since Hamas took it over by force in 2007, came at the start of Blinken’s third day of his latest Mideast mission, his second since the surprise Hamas attack against Israel on Oct. 7. Blinken visited Israel and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday before&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/blinken-mideast-diplomacy-gaza-israel-hamas-war-9d9ada872b84699424f17f13df1c3560">meeting in Jordan with Arab ministers</a>&nbsp;Saturday.At each stop, Blinken has offered firm U.S. support for Israel’s right to defend itself but also stressed that it must adhere to the laws of war, protect civilians and increase humanitarian aid supplies to Gaza. To do that, as well as to ease the flow of foreigners fleeing Gaza, he has made the case that Israel should implement rolling humanitarian pauses to its airstrikes and ground operations, something that Netanyahu has thus far flatly rejected.U.S. officials believe that Netanyahu may soften his opposition if he can be convinced that it is in Israel’s strategic interests to ease the plight of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. The soaring death toll has sparked growing international anger,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-gaza-palestinians-protests-europe-193a9aaca97df2c5c6a515f756a40a34">with tens of thousands from Washington to Berlin taking to the streets</a>&nbsp;over the weekend to demand an immediate cease-fire.The Arab foreign ministers with whom Blinken met in Amman – from Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates – issued the same demand. But Blinken said the U.S. would not push for one.Arab states are resisting American suggestions that they play a larger role in resolving crisis, expressing outrage at the civilian toll of the Israeli military operations but believing Gaza to be a problem largely of Israel’s own making.

Atomic bomb: Israel Minister threatens using nuke on Gaza

By&nbsp;RACHEL MIPRO&nbsp; <a href="http://www.kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — A dragon spitting fire at the Kansas Statehouse, depicted in a Vincent Van Gogh style, illuminated the possibilities of Artificial Intelligence to lawmakers during a Wednesday meeting.

An overview of AI creative designs provided some levity before legislators turned to discussion of the state’s changing internet landscape — one that IT officials have repeatedly warned needs to be better secured.

“I’d like to improve our ability to respond and recover from cyber incidents, including testing, tracking and training for known unlikely eventualities,” said Michael Murphy, security engineer with the Kansas Legislative Office of Information Technology.

Murphy said he and other legislative IT staff would look into system security upgrades and improvements before the upcoming legislative session.

“The first priority right now is security awareness training,” Murphy said. “Like I said, the biggest point of failure is going to be the people. So we need to make sure everybody’s trained up on how to do things properly.”

The renewed discussion on internet security comes after a “security incident” that shut down online operations for most of the state’s courts. Kansas’ judicial branch publicly announced the issue on Oct. 12, later indicating that clerks in 104 counties were unable to receive online filings. The Johnson County District Court, which operates its own e-filing and case management system separately from the state, is the only state district court not affected.

While courts are still operating, all filings have to be submitted in paper. The investigation into the incident is ongoing, with little information publicly released.

“We also have to figure out how to stop these bad actors from doing things that screw everything up, like they’ve done in judiciary,” said committee lawmaker Rep. Barb Wasinger, R-Hays, before lawmakers withdrew to speak privately about judiciary IT security during an executive session.

Though last year’s risk assessment of the state’s court system has been earmarked as confidential, previous audits of several state agencies have shown several weaknesses. A cybersecurity investigation by accounting firm FORVIS into the Department of Labor’s IT system found data breaches that led to record-high identity theft and unemployment insurance fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the closed-door meeting, lawmakers talked with Marisa Bayless, special counsel to the supreme court chief justice, along with IT personnel.

“We know that this is a difficult process,” Bayless said after the closed session. “It’s not ideal. And we are going to continue examining our systems, understanding what happened, how it happened, and how we can bring the system back online in a very safe environment.”

Bayless said the return to online operations would be done in phases, and the court systems would look at providing services through public portals and clerk stations in the meantime.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699034126873.png" alt="= IT security officers have previously warned state agencies to tighten cybersecurity measures. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>= IT security officers have previously warned state agencies to tighten cybersecurity measures. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>By&nbsp;RACHEL MIPRO&nbsp; <a href="http://www.kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — A dragon spitting fire at the Kansas Statehouse, depicted in a Vincent Van Gogh style, illuminated the possibilities of Artificial Intelligence to lawmakers during a Wednesday meeting.An overview of AI creative designs provided some levity before legislators turned to discussion of the state’s changing internet landscape — one that IT officials have repeatedly warned needs to be better secured.“I’d like to improve our ability to respond and recover from cyber incidents, including testing, tracking and training for known unlikely eventualities,” said Michael Murphy, security engineer with the Kansas Legislative Office of Information Technology.Murphy said he and other legislative IT staff would look into system security upgrades and improvements before the upcoming legislative session.“The first priority right now is security awareness training,” Murphy said. “Like I said, the biggest point of failure is going to be the people. So we need to make sure everybody’s trained up on how to do things properly.”The renewed discussion on internet security comes after a “security incident” that shut down online operations for most of the state’s courts. Kansas’ judicial branch publicly announced the issue on Oct. 12, later indicating that clerks in 104 counties were unable to receive online filings. The Johnson County District Court, which operates its own e-filing and case management system separately from the state, is the only state district court not affected.While courts are still operating, all filings have to be submitted in paper. The investigation into the incident is ongoing, with little information publicly released.“We also have to figure out how to stop these bad actors from doing things that screw everything up, like they’ve done in judiciary,” said committee lawmaker Rep. Barb Wasinger, R-Hays, before lawmakers withdrew to speak privately about judiciary IT security during an executive session.Though last year’s risk assessment of the state’s court system has been earmarked as confidential, previous audits of several state agencies have shown several weaknesses. A cybersecurity investigation by accounting firm FORVIS into the Department of Labor’s IT system found data breaches that led to record-high identity theft and unemployment insurance fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic.During the closed-door meeting, lawmakers talked with Marisa Bayless, special counsel to the supreme court chief justice, along with IT personnel.“We know that this is a difficult process,” Bayless said after the closed session. “It’s not ideal. And we are going to continue examining our systems, understanding what happened, how it happened, and how we can bring the system back online in a very safe environment.”Bayless said the return to online operations would be done in phases, and the court systems would look at providing services through public portals and clerk stations in the meantime.

‘It’s not ideal’: Kan. lawmakers on incident that took down online court access

JERUSALEM&nbsp; (AP)— The U.S. Central Command says the Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group arrived in the Middle East and the CENTCOM area of responsibility as part of the increase in regional posture.

The Eisenhower sailed into the Mediterranean last Saturday as the American forces expand their presence in the Middle East to deter Iran and its proxy militant groups from trying to widen the Israel-Hamas war.

The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier and its strike group had moved through the Strait of Gibraltar earlier this week, putting two American carriers in the Mediterranean Sea, a rare sight in recent years.

The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group is already in the eastern Mediterranean, part of a buildup of forces as the U.S. supports Israel in its war against Hamas.

Meanwhile, the U.S. is trying to persuade Israel to take a humanitarian pause from airstrikes on Gaza, where Palestinians reported on Saturday that there were multiple fatalities across the besieged enclave.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is making a new push to help civilians, and met with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/blinken-mideast-diplomacy-gaza-israel-hamas-war-9d9ada872b84699424f17f13df1c3560">Arab foreign ministers</a>&nbsp;on Saturday in Jordan. That was after his talks in Israel with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who insisted there could be no temporary cease-fire&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-news-11-3-2023-94d5d0b58bc10a14be6ac191060e47e1">until all hostages held by Hamas are released</a>. President Joe Biden suggested Saturday that progress is being made on the humanitarian pause.

The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 9,448, according to the Hamas-run&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>. In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids. The UNRWA says 72 of its staff members have been killed.

More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-rockets-airstrikes-tel-aviv-11fb98655c256d54ecb5329284fc37d2">Oct. 7 Hamas attack</a>&nbsp;that started the fighting, and 242 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.

Roughly 1,100 people have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-rafah-crossing-egypt-foreigners-israel-restrictions-border-fe17f8fbbeaea039ccfba081019bcdaf">left the Gaza Strip</a>&nbsp;through the Rafah crossing since Wednesday under an apparent agreement among the United States, Egypt, Israel and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699124273212.png" alt="Photo U.S. Central Command" />
 <figcaption>Photo U.S. Central Command</figcaption>
 </figure>JERUSALEM&nbsp; (AP)— The U.S. Central Command says the Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group arrived in the Middle East and the CENTCOM area of responsibility as part of the increase in regional posture.The Eisenhower sailed into the Mediterranean last Saturday as the American forces expand their presence in the Middle East to deter Iran and its proxy militant groups from trying to widen the Israel-Hamas war.The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier and its strike group had moved through the Strait of Gibraltar earlier this week, putting two American carriers in the Mediterranean Sea, a rare sight in recent years.The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group is already in the eastern Mediterranean, part of a buildup of forces as the U.S. supports Israel in its war against Hamas.Meanwhile, the U.S. is trying to persuade Israel to take a humanitarian pause from airstrikes on Gaza, where Palestinians reported on Saturday that there were multiple fatalities across the besieged enclave.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is making a new push to help civilians, and met with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/blinken-mideast-diplomacy-gaza-israel-hamas-war-9d9ada872b84699424f17f13df1c3560">Arab foreign ministers</a>&nbsp;on Saturday in Jordan. That was after his talks in Israel with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who insisted there could be no temporary cease-fire&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-news-11-3-2023-94d5d0b58bc10a14be6ac191060e47e1">until all hostages held by Hamas are released</a>. President Joe Biden suggested Saturday that progress is being made on the humanitarian pause.The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 9,448, according to the Hamas-run&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>. In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids. The UNRWA says 72 of its staff members have been killed.More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-rockets-airstrikes-tel-aviv-11fb98655c256d54ecb5329284fc37d2">Oct. 7 Hamas attack</a>&nbsp;that started the fighting, and 242 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.Roughly 1,100 people have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-rafah-crossing-egypt-foreigners-israel-restrictions-border-fe17f8fbbeaea039ccfba081019bcdaf">left the Gaza Strip</a>&nbsp;through the Rafah crossing since Wednesday under an apparent agreement among the United States, Egypt, Israel and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas.

More U.S. warships arrive in the Middle East

SEDGWICK COUNTY—A Kansas man accused of child abuse made his first court appearance in the case this week.

Ronald Leyman Jr, 27, was charged&nbsp; with two counts of abuse of a child, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

Just before 4a a.m. Friday, police received a report of&nbsp; child abuse at a local area hospital. The victim had suffered abusive injuries and was going to be admitted to the hospital, according to Office Kris Gupilan.

A sibling twin of the child, who also lived in the home, was taken into Police Protective Custody and transported to an area hospital for evaluation. It was determined this child also had abusive injuries. 

Police conducted interviews of those involved and a suspect was identified as a Leyman. He is being on a $300,000 bond.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1698494853456.png" alt="Leyman-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Leyman-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY—A Kansas man accused of child abuse made his first court appearance in the case this week.Ronald Leyman Jr, 27, was charged&nbsp; with two counts of abuse of a child, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.Just before 4a a.m. Friday, police received a report of&nbsp; child abuse at a local area hospital. The victim had suffered abusive injuries and was going to be admitted to the hospital, according to Office Kris Gupilan.A sibling twin of the child, who also lived in the home, was taken into Police Protective Custody and transported to an area hospital for evaluation. It was determined this child also had abusive injuries. Police conducted interviews of those involved and a suspect was identified as a Leyman. He is being on a $300,000 bond.

Kansas man accused of abuse of two children

WICHITA – A Kansas man pleaded guilty to one count of receiving child pornography.

According to court documents, Eric Caleb Carlson, 43, of Wichita admits to downloading and receiving videos and images depicting prepubescent children subjected to sex acts, according to the United State's Attorney.

In June 2023, Synchronoss Technologies submitted two reports to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding files uploaded to its cloud-based backup service containing child sexual abuse/exploitation material.

 Law enforcement investigators linked the account to Eric Carlson based on evidence including a photograph of Carlson’s driver’s license, a selfie of Carlson, and photographs taken at Wichita Unified School District 259, where Carlson formerly worked in the IT division.

Carlson was arrested at the USD 259 office (his now former place of employment), and his phone was seized. A search of his phone revealed numerous images and videos of child sex abuse material located in a password protected private folder.

Carlson also had the Onion Router (“Tor”) on his device, which is a free and open source software for enabling anonymous communications and access to the dark web. Investigators reviewed Carlson’s Tor browser history and found cached darknet webpages he had visited that offered access to child exploitation materials. 

In July 2023, Carlson downloaded and received a zip file from the dark web containing child sex abuse material. 

Carlson is scheduled to be sentenced on January 22, 2024. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Kansas Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC)

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699060632838.png" alt="Carlson photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Carlson photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>WICHITA – A Kansas man pleaded guilty to one count of receiving child pornography.According to court documents, Eric Caleb Carlson, 43, of Wichita admits to downloading and receiving videos and images depicting prepubescent children subjected to sex acts, according to the United State's Attorney.In June 2023, Synchronoss Technologies submitted two reports to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding files uploaded to its cloud-based backup service containing child sexual abuse/exploitation material. Law enforcement investigators linked the account to Eric Carlson based on evidence including a photograph of Carlson’s driver’s license, a selfie of Carlson, and photographs taken at Wichita Unified School District 259, where Carlson formerly worked in the IT division.Carlson was arrested at the USD 259 office (his now former place of employment), and his phone was seized. A search of his phone revealed numerous images and videos of child sex abuse material located in a password protected private folder.Carlson also had the Onion Router (“Tor”) on his device, which is a free and open source software for enabling anonymous communications and access to the dark web. Investigators reviewed Carlson’s Tor browser history and found cached darknet webpages he had visited that offered access to child exploitation materials. In July 2023, Carlson downloaded and received a zip file from the dark web containing child sex abuse material. Carlson is scheduled to be sentenced on January 22, 2024. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Kansas Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC)

Former Kan. school employee downloaded child porn from dark web

WASHINGTON(AP) — Thousands of mostly young people filled the streets of downtown Washington D.C. on Saturday afternoon to protest the Biden administration’s support of Israel and its continued military campaign in Gaza.

“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” chanted demonstrators. They wore black and white keffiyehs as an enormous Palestinian flag was unfurled by a crowd that filled Pennsylvania Avenue, the street leading up to the White House.

Dozens of small white body bags with the names of children killed lined the street and demonstrators held signs calling for an immediate cease-fire.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1699135631316.jpeg" alt="Photo courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Photo courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON(AP) — Thousands of mostly young people filled the streets of downtown Washington D.C. on Saturday afternoon to protest the Biden administration’s support of Israel and its continued military campaign in Gaza.“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” chanted demonstrators. They wore black and white keffiyehs as an enormous Palestinian flag was unfurled by a crowd that filled Pennsylvania Avenue, the street leading up to the White House.Dozens of small white body bags with the names of children killed lined the street and demonstrators held signs calling for an immediate cease-fire.Meanwhile,&nbsp;Palestinians in Gaza said Israeli airstrikes left multiple fatalities across the besieged enclave, including in the south where Israel had told civilians to seek refuge as its ground operation intensifies in northern Gaza.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is making a new push to ease the plight of civilians. He met with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/blinken-mideast-diplomacy-gaza-israel-hamas-war-9d9ada872b84699424f17f13df1c3560">Arab foreign ministers</a>&nbsp;on Saturday in Jordan, the day after talks in Israel with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who insisted there could be no temporary cease-fire&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-news-11-3-2023-94d5d0b58bc10a14be6ac191060e47e1">until all hostages held by Hamas are released</a>.The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 9,448, according to the Hamas-run&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>. In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids. The UNRWA says 72 of its staff members have been killed.More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-rockets-airstrikes-tel-aviv-11fb98655c256d54ecb5329284fc37d2">Oct. 7 Hamas attack</a>&nbsp;that started the fighting, and 242 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.Roughly 1,100 people have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-rafah-crossing-egypt-foreigners-israel-restrictions-border-fe17f8fbbeaea039ccfba081019bcdaf">left the Gaza Strip</a>&nbsp;through the Rafah crossing since Wednesday under an apparent agreement among the United States, Egypt, Israel and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas.