By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/01/19/audit-of-kansas-economic-development-programs-offers-mixed-assessment-of-incentives/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — Auditors working for the
 Kansas Legislature estimated five of the state’s major business 
development incentive programs would generate positive total returns for
 the private-sector economy but not produce enough growth in tax revenue
 to cover public investments.

The evaluation was ordered in June by a joint committee of the House 
and Senate due to skepticism among some legislators with the state 
government’s use of tax credits or exemptions, or direct expenditure of 
state funds, to convince businesses to make capital investments or 
create jobs in Kansas. Gov. Laura Kelly, who won reelection in November,
 invited scrutiny by pointing to her first-term success in pursuing new 
jobs, including a $4 billion Panasonic battery plant for De Soto.

Legislative auditor Josh Luthi said during a briefing with lawmakers 
all five programs were viewed as “generally successful” despite 
projections the programs wouldn’t deliver enough new state and local 
income, sales or property taxes to cover every dollar in direct costs or
 foregone revenue devoted to economic development.

Ranking the five programs in terms of proficiency would be folly, 
Luthi said, because they were of different size, targeted different 
needs and were funded differently.

The audit focused on an alphabet soup of incentives: High Performance
 Incentive Program (HPIP), Job Creation Fund (JCF), Kansas Industrial 
Training (KIT), Kansas Industrial Retraining (KIR) and Promoting 
Employment Across Kansas (PEAK). At least $400 million has been awarded 
to businesses by the Kansas Department of Commerce through these 
programs from 2017 to 2021.

Luthi said auditors sent surveys to nearly 300 businesses that 
received benefits from the five programs to determine whether executives
 would have made the same business decisions if they hadn’t received 
state incentives. In response, 11 said they would have created a new 
business facility in Kansas and hired people to work there without the 
state’s generosity. Thirteen businesses said incentives convinced them 
to do bigger projects or to speed development timelines. Three 
businesses said they would have canceled the projects or moved to 
another state if denied tax dollars.

“Incentives do not always make 100% of the difference,” Luthi said. “Sometimes they don’t make any difference.”

The audit didn’t delve into details of how the Kansas Department of 
Commerce administered these programs. For example, auditors didn’t 
examine how the department negotiated incentive awards with businesses.

Sen. Mike Thompson, R-Shawnee, said cost recovery was the bottom-line issue related to incentives paid by Kansas taxpayers.

“If we’re putting more money into the program that we’re recovering, 
then it’s not doing its job. The taxpayers need to receive some kind of 
return,” he said.

Democratic Sen. Mary Ware of Wichita said she was frustrated by the 
audit’s lack of reform recommendations and absence of an 
apples-to-apples assessment of economic incentives. She said the 
Legislature could dig deeper into complex topics with the addition of 
personnel to the overloaded auditing division or by shrinking the number
 of audits assigned to them.

“I honestly am not sure what to do with this report,” she said. 
“Throughout this there’s the words estimate, assumption, not a 
projectable sample, survey results can’t be considered representative. 
My conclusion is that this is a 40-page report with limited utility.”

Rep. Sean Tarwater, a Republican from Stilwell and chairman of the 
House Commerce, Labor and Economic Development Committee, said 
legislators would welcome information about the experience of companies 
competing with business rivals that got state incentives.

Augusta Rep. Kristey Williams, a Republican, suggested the Department
 of Commerce’s reliance on economic development incentives could fail to
 address the state’s labor shortage. She said there was an estimated 2.5
 unfilled jobs for every unemployed Kansan seeking a job.

“Are you concerned that further incentives are going to not drive 
more people into Kansas, but to move Kansans from one job to another?” 
she said.

The Department of Commerce, which operates the five business 
incentive programs, responded to the report with criticism of the 
decision by auditors to rely on a new economic modeling program rather 
than stick with methodology deployed in 2014 to evaluate state 
incentives. The commerce department said the switch meant meaningful 
comparisons between audits would be impossible.

Bob North, chief counsel to the Department of Commerce, said auditors
 “arbitrarily” chose the new model. He viewed it as a drastic departure 
from the previous evaluation tool. He recommended the state select a 
model and stick with it so program success could be coherently measured 
over time. Internally, he said, the Department of Commerce used a system
 developed at Wichita State University.

He said the auditor’s process was flawed because it didn’t take into 
consideration the influence of construction jobs and capital 
expenditures flowing through the economy. In terms of the Panasonic 
facility, he said, there would be 16,000 construction jobs in the course
 of two years. If those jobs averaged $50,000 per year, he said, the 
auditors’ approach wouldn’t capture that significant fiscal impact.

“We want a tool that helps us administer a programs and we think that
 will be most meaningful to you as well,” North told legislators. “We 
want to give the least amount of incentives possible to recruit or 
retain a project to the state.”

The agency also disagreed with auditors’ decision to closely study 28
 Kansas projects — they were selected, not randomly identified — from 
among 600 projects involving state incentives from 2017 to 2021. Some 
projects were linked to several economic development initiatives. 
Auditors reported 23 of the 28 were projected to yield positive economic
 returns over a 20-year period.

North said the agency supported appropriation of additional funding 
to the Legislature’s auditing division to allow for more robust 
assessments of business incentives. It would be improper to extrapolate 
the value of programs through the lens of a couple dozen projects, he 
said.

In addition, the commerce department said broad conclusions shouldn’t
 be drawn from a supplemental survey of businesses with an “extremely 
low” response rate. The survey was sent to 298 businesses, but only 30 
volunteered to fully complete the survey.

“No one wants to go through another audit,” North said, “but if we’re going to do it, let’s do it right.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674149932056.png" alt="Josh Luthi, an auditor with the Kansas Legislature’s auditing division, says a new report on five of the state’s prominent economic development incentives will produce positive business growth but may not generate enough tax revenue to cover taxpayers’ investment in those programs. (Kansas Reflector screen capture from Kansas Legislature YouTube channel)" />
 <figcaption>Josh Luthi, an auditor with the Kansas Legislature’s auditing division, says a new report on five of the state’s prominent economic development incentives will produce positive business growth but may not generate enough tax revenue to cover taxpayers’ investment in those programs. (Kansas Reflector screen capture from Kansas Legislature YouTube channel)</figcaption>
 </figure>By TIM CARPENTER <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/01/19/audit-of-kansas-economic-development-programs-offers-mixed-assessment-of-incentives/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Auditors working for the
 Kansas Legislature estimated five of the state’s major business 
development incentive programs would generate positive total returns for
 the private-sector economy but not produce enough growth in tax revenue
 to cover public investments.The evaluation was ordered in June by a joint committee of the House 
and Senate due to skepticism among some legislators with the state 
government’s use of tax credits or exemptions, or direct expenditure of 
state funds, to convince businesses to make capital investments or 
create jobs in Kansas. Gov. Laura Kelly, who won reelection in November,
 invited scrutiny by pointing to her first-term success in pursuing new 
jobs, including a $4 billion Panasonic battery plant for De Soto.Legislative auditor Josh Luthi said during a briefing with lawmakers 
all five programs were viewed as “generally successful” despite 
projections the programs wouldn’t deliver enough new state and local 
income, sales or property taxes to cover every dollar in direct costs or
 foregone revenue devoted to economic development.Ranking the five programs in terms of proficiency would be folly, 
Luthi said, because they were of different size, targeted different 
needs and were funded differently.The audit focused on an alphabet soup of incentives: High Performance
 Incentive Program (HPIP), Job Creation Fund (JCF), Kansas Industrial 
Training (KIT), Kansas Industrial Retraining (KIR) and Promoting 
Employment Across Kansas (PEAK). At least $400 million has been awarded 
to businesses by the Kansas Department of Commerce through these 
programs from 2017 to 2021.Luthi said auditors sent surveys to nearly 300 businesses that 
received benefits from the five programs to determine whether executives
 would have made the same business decisions if they hadn’t received 
state incentives. In response, 11 said they would have created a new 
business facility in Kansas and hired people to work there without the 
state’s generosity. Thirteen businesses said incentives convinced them 
to do bigger projects or to speed development timelines. Three 
businesses said they would have canceled the projects or moved to 
another state if denied tax dollars.“Incentives do not always make 100% of the difference,” Luthi said. “Sometimes they don’t make any difference.”The audit didn’t delve into details of how the Kansas Department of 
Commerce administered these programs. For example, auditors didn’t 
examine how the department negotiated incentive awards with businesses.<h2>Frustration bubbles over</h2>Sen. Mike Thompson, R-Shawnee, said cost recovery was the bottom-line issue related to incentives paid by Kansas taxpayers.“If we’re putting more money into the program that we’re recovering, 
then it’s not doing its job. The taxpayers need to receive some kind of 
return,” he said.Democratic Sen. Mary Ware of Wichita said she was frustrated by the 
audit’s lack of reform recommendations and absence of an 
apples-to-apples assessment of economic incentives. She said the 
Legislature could dig deeper into complex topics with the addition of 
personnel to the overloaded auditing division or by shrinking the number
 of audits assigned to them.“I honestly am not sure what to do with this report,” she said. 
“Throughout this there’s the words estimate, assumption, not a 
projectable sample, survey results can’t be considered representative. 
My conclusion is that this is a 40-page report with limited utility.”Rep. Sean Tarwater, a Republican from Stilwell and chairman of the 
House Commerce, Labor and Economic Development Committee, said 
legislators would welcome information about the experience of companies 
competing with business rivals that got state incentives.Augusta Rep. Kristey Williams, a Republican, suggested the Department
 of Commerce’s reliance on economic development incentives could fail to
 address the state’s labor shortage. She said there was an estimated 2.5
 unfilled jobs for every unemployed Kansan seeking a job.“Are you concerned that further incentives are going to not drive 
more people into Kansas, but to move Kansans from one job to another?” 
she said.<h2>Agency’s perspective</h2>The Department of Commerce, which operates the five business 
incentive programs, responded to the report with criticism of the 
decision by auditors to rely on a new economic modeling program rather 
than stick with methodology deployed in 2014 to evaluate state 
incentives. The commerce department said the switch meant meaningful 
comparisons between audits would be impossible.Bob North, chief counsel to the Department of Commerce, said auditors
 “arbitrarily” chose the new model. He viewed it as a drastic departure 
from the previous evaluation tool. He recommended the state select a 
model and stick with it so program success could be coherently measured 
over time. Internally, he said, the Department of Commerce used a system
 developed at Wichita State University.He said the auditor’s process was flawed because it didn’t take into 
consideration the influence of construction jobs and capital 
expenditures flowing through the economy. In terms of the Panasonic 
facility, he said, there would be 16,000 construction jobs in the course
 of two years. If those jobs averaged $50,000 per year, he said, the 
auditors’ approach wouldn’t capture that significant fiscal impact.“We want a tool that helps us administer a programs and we think that
 will be most meaningful to you as well,” North told legislators. “We 
want to give the least amount of incentives possible to recruit or 
retain a project to the state.”The agency also disagreed with auditors’ decision to closely study 28
 Kansas projects — they were selected, not randomly identified — from 
among 600 projects involving state incentives from 2017 to 2021. Some 
projects were linked to several economic development initiatives. 
Auditors reported 23 of the 28 were projected to yield positive economic
 returns over a 20-year period.North said the agency supported appropriation of additional funding 
to the Legislature’s auditing division to allow for more robust 
assessments of business incentives. It would be improper to extrapolate 
the value of programs through the lens of a couple dozen projects, he 
said.In addition, the commerce department said broad conclusions shouldn’t
 be drawn from a supplemental survey of businesses with an “extremely 
low” response rate. The survey was sent to 298 businesses, but only 30 
volunteered to fully complete the survey.“No one wants to go through another audit,” North said, “but if we’re going to do it, let’s do it right.”

Audit of Kansas eco-devo programs offers mixed assessment

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — A police officer was injured during an arrest of a Kansas felon in Hutchinson on&nbsp; Wednesday.

&nbsp;Officers arrested 33-year-old Jarrod Pollard on requested charges of theft, criminal trespass, felony interference, battery of a law enforcement officer,&nbsp;possession of opiates, possession of THC, and possession of drug paraphernalia.&nbsp;

Just after 8:30p.m. police were dispatched to Walmart, 1905 East 17th in Hutchinson, according to Police Lt. Dayton Gates.

“They initially got a call of him [Pollard] inside the mall,” Lt. Gates said. “Then he ran from an officer and they lost track of him, and they later got called he was inside Walmart and then that’s how everything else lined up.” &nbsp;

Pollard was advised of criminal trespassing charges at Walmart on Jan. 17, according to Gates.&nbsp; Pollard has also been involved in theft cases at the Uptown Hutch Mall. &nbsp;

As Pollard was being placed under arrest, he tried to flee HPD officers, prompting an officer to tase him.&nbsp; During the altercation, an officer was injured.&nbsp;

“He was injured during the time officers were taking the suspect into custody,” Lt. Gates said. “He’s fine, he’s recovering at this point.”&nbsp; &nbsp;The officer is off work for the time being, but is expected to make a full recovery. &nbsp;&nbsp;

Pollard has six previous convictions for theft, one for ID theft and for obstruction, according to the Kansas Dept. of Corrections

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674158476044.png" alt="Pollard has six previous convictions for theft, one for ID theft and for obstruction, according to the Kansas Dept. of Corrections" />
 <figcaption>Pollard has six previous convictions for theft, one for ID theft and for obstruction, according to the Kansas Dept. of Corrections</figcaption>
 </figure>JUDD WEIL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — A police officer was injured during an arrest of a Kansas felon in Hutchinson on&nbsp; Wednesday.&nbsp;Officers arrested 33-year-old Jarrod Pollard on requested charges of theft, criminal trespass, felony interference, battery of a law enforcement officer,&nbsp;possession of opiates, possession of THC, and possession of drug paraphernalia.&nbsp;Just after 8:30p.m. police were dispatched to Walmart, 1905 East 17th in Hutchinson, according to Police Lt. Dayton Gates.“They initially got a call of him [Pollard] inside the mall,” Lt. Gates said. “Then he ran from an officer and they lost track of him, and they later got called he was inside Walmart and then that’s how everything else lined up.” &nbsp;Pollard was advised of criminal trespassing charges at Walmart on Jan. 17, according to Gates.&nbsp; Pollard has also been involved in theft cases at the Uptown Hutch Mall. &nbsp;As Pollard was being placed under arrest, he tried to flee HPD officers, prompting an officer to tase him.&nbsp; During the altercation, an officer was injured.&nbsp;“He was injured during the time officers were taking the suspect into custody,” Lt. Gates said. “He’s fine, he’s recovering at this point.”&nbsp; &nbsp;The officer is off work for the time being, but is expected to make a full recovery. &nbsp;&nbsp;Pollard has six previous convictions for theft, one for ID theft and for obstruction, according to the Kansas Dept. of Corrections

Kan. police officer injured during arrest of theft suspect

WASHINGTON (AP) — Pro-life activists will have multiple reasons to celebrate — and some reasons for unease — when they gather Friday in Washington for the <a href="https://marchforlife.org/national-march-for-life/">annual March for Life.</a>

The march, which includes a rally drawing abortion opponents from across the nation, has been held annually since January 1974 — a year after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision established a nationwide right to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/abortion">abortion</a>.

This year’s gathering — 50 years after that decision — will be the first since the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-supreme-court-decision-854f60302f21c2c35129e58cf8d8a7b0">high court struck down Roe</a>&nbsp;in a momentous ruling last June.

Since then, 12 Republican-governed states have implemented sweeping bans on abortion, and several others seek to do the same. But those moves have been offset by other developments. Abortion opponents were defeated in votes on ballot measures in Kansas, Michigan and Kentucky. State courts have blocked several bans from taking effect. And myriad efforts are underway to help women in abortion-ban states either get abortions out of state or use the abortion pill for self-managed abortions.

“It’s almost like the old wild, wild West … everything is still shaking out,” said Carol Tobias, president of the National Right to Life Committee.

With numerous Democratic-governed states taking steps to protect and expand abortion access, Tobias likened the current situation to the pre-Civil War era when the nation was closely divided between free states and slave states.

“I will not be surprised if we have something like that for a few years,” she said. “But I do know that pro-lifers are not going to give up — it’s a civil rights issue for us.”

The theme for this year’s March for Life is “Next Steps: Marching Forward into a Post-Roe America.” Scheduled speakers include Hall of Fame football coach Tony Dungy and Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch, who won the Supreme Court case that overturned Roe.

The president of March for Life, Jeanne Mancini, depicted the June ruling as “a massive victory for the pro-life movement.”

“But the battle to build a culture of life is far from over,” she said. “March for Life will continue to advocate for the unborn and policies that protect them until abortion becomes unthinkable.”

Prospects for any federal legislation restricting abortion nationwide are negligible for now, given that any such measures emerging from the Republican-led House would face rejection in the Democratic-led Senate. The main battlegrounds will be in the states.

Since June, near-total bans on abortion have been implemented in Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-politics-health-indiana-state-government-reproductive-rights-7308b2edc8a8ac62446d821abc5fae59">Legal challenges are pending</a>&nbsp;against several of those bans.

Elective abortions also are unavailable in Wisconsin, due to legal uncertainties faced by abortion clinics, and in North Dakota, where the lone clinic relocated to Minnesota.

Bans passed by lawmakers in Ohio, Indiana and Wyoming have been blocked by state courts while legal challenges are pending. And in South Carolina, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-politics-health-south-carolina-state-government-6cd1469dbb550c70b64a30f183be203c">state Supreme Court on Jan. 5 struck down a ban</a>&nbsp;on abortion after six weeks, ruling the restriction violates a state constitutional right to privacy.

The Guttmacher Institute, a research group which supports abortion rights, says the overall result is “a chaotic legal landscape that is disruptive for providers trying to offer care and patients trying to obtain it.”

“When people do not have access to abortion care in their state, they are forced to make the difficult decision to travel long distances for care, self-manage an abortion or carry an unwanted pregnancy to term,” Guttmacher staffers Elizabeth Nash and Isabel Guarnieri wrote last week.

Looking ahead, some anti-abortion leaders hope the Republicans nominate a 2024 presidential candidate who will aggressively push for nationwide abortion restrictions, rather than keep it as a state-by-state matter.

“The approach to winning on abortion in federal races, proven for a decade, is this: state clearly the ambitious consensus pro-life position and contrast that with the extreme view of Democrat opponents,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America.

Dannenfelser says she’s not surprised by the divisive ups-and-downs that have unfolded since the June ruling.

“This is what it looks like when democracy is restored and we have a voice in the debate,” she said. “For 50 years, we had no voice because the judiciary was always going to shield public opinion from having an effect on the law.”

“We always knew it wouldn’t be a straight line (after Roe’s repeal),” she said, adding "we know neither side is going to lay down and die.”

Professor Kathleen Sprows Cummings, director of the University of Notre Dame’s Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism, suggested the anti-abortion movement may suffer from a perception among many Americans that it’s more concerned with controlling women’s bodies than helping them cope with unintended pregnancies.

“It’s about consolidating their political power, more than about babies," she said.

Some abortion opponents are trying to counter such perceptions. In Texas, for example, anti-abortion groups are urging lawmakers to spend more money on services for pregnant and parenting Texans, including expanding Medicaid coverage for mothers.

According to Texas Right to Life, the state's new abortion ban has had a major impact — it says only 68 abortions were recorded by state health officials in July 2022, compared to 4,879 in July 2021.

The group noted the data does not include illegal, unreported abortions — which are widely believed to be increasing as women obtain abortion pills by mail from overseas or from Mexico suppliers.

Charles Camosy, a medical humanities professor at Creighton University School of Medicine who opposes abortion, has analyzed the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-abortion-voting-rights-health-kentucky-fabb3a40797c5491e9b2a3a696435161">high-profile election defeats</a>&nbsp;suffered by the anti-abortion movement. Voters in Kansas and Kentucky rejected constitutional amendments that would have declared there is no right to abortion; Michigan voters approved an amendment enshrining the right to abortion in the state constitution.

“Pro-lifers have clearly and badly lost the PR battle since June and this has shaped how people are voting,” Camosy said via email. He said abortion-rights supporters were better organized and better funded, while many anti-abortion politicians either avoided the issue or sounded too extreme.

“There are obviously very good things that have happened, however,” added Camosy, citing the drop in abortions reported in states with bans.

“Pro-lifers also now relish the chance to actually debate the issues in a democratic, open context ... as opposed to constantly running into the fiats of various courts,” he said. “We may lose some battles early on... but it is worth it to have the debates.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674052326441.png" alt="Friday’s gathering — 50 years after that decision — will be the first since the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-supreme-court-decision-854f60302f21c2c35129e58cf8d8a7b0">high court struck down Roe</a>&nbsp;in a momentous ruling last June.-photo courtesy March for Life" />
 <figcaption>Friday’s gathering — 50 years after that decision — will be the first since the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-supreme-court-decision-854f60302f21c2c35129e58cf8d8a7b0">high court struck down Roe</a>&nbsp;in a momentous ruling last June.-photo courtesy March for Life</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Pro-life activists will have multiple reasons to celebrate — and some reasons for unease — when they gather Friday in Washington for the <a href="https://marchforlife.org/national-march-for-life/">annual March for Life.</a>The march, which includes a rally drawing abortion opponents from across the nation, has been held annually since January 1974 — a year after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision established a nationwide right to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/abortion">abortion</a>.This year’s gathering — 50 years after that decision — will be the first since the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-supreme-court-decision-854f60302f21c2c35129e58cf8d8a7b0">high court struck down Roe</a>&nbsp;in a momentous ruling last June.Since then, 12 Republican-governed states have implemented sweeping bans on abortion, and several others seek to do the same. But those moves have been offset by other developments. Abortion opponents were defeated in votes on ballot measures in Kansas, Michigan and Kentucky. State courts have blocked several bans from taking effect. And myriad efforts are underway to help women in abortion-ban states either get abortions out of state or use the abortion pill for self-managed abortions.“It’s almost like the old wild, wild West … everything is still shaking out,” said Carol Tobias, president of the National Right to Life Committee.With numerous Democratic-governed states taking steps to protect and expand abortion access, Tobias likened the current situation to the pre-Civil War era when the nation was closely divided between free states and slave states.“I will not be surprised if we have something like that for a few years,” she said. “But I do know that pro-lifers are not going to give up — it’s a civil rights issue for us.”The theme for this year’s March for Life is “Next Steps: Marching Forward into a Post-Roe America.” Scheduled speakers include Hall of Fame football coach Tony Dungy and Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch, who won the Supreme Court case that overturned Roe.The president of March for Life, Jeanne Mancini, depicted the June ruling as “a massive victory for the pro-life movement.”“But the battle to build a culture of life is far from over,” she said. “March for Life will continue to advocate for the unborn and policies that protect them until abortion becomes unthinkable.”Prospects for any federal legislation restricting abortion nationwide are negligible for now, given that any such measures emerging from the Republican-led House would face rejection in the Democratic-led Senate. The main battlegrounds will be in the states.Since June, near-total bans on abortion have been implemented in Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-politics-health-indiana-state-government-reproductive-rights-7308b2edc8a8ac62446d821abc5fae59">Legal challenges are pending</a>&nbsp;against several of those bans.Elective abortions also are unavailable in Wisconsin, due to legal uncertainties faced by abortion clinics, and in North Dakota, where the lone clinic relocated to Minnesota.Bans passed by lawmakers in Ohio, Indiana and Wyoming have been blocked by state courts while legal challenges are pending. And in South Carolina, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/abortion-politics-health-south-carolina-state-government-6cd1469dbb550c70b64a30f183be203c">state Supreme Court on Jan. 5 struck down a ban</a>&nbsp;on abortion after six weeks, ruling the restriction violates a state constitutional right to privacy.The Guttmacher Institute, a research group which supports abortion rights, says the overall result is “a chaotic legal landscape that is disruptive for providers trying to offer care and patients trying to obtain it.”“When people do not have access to abortion care in their state, they are forced to make the difficult decision to travel long distances for care, self-manage an abortion or carry an unwanted pregnancy to term,” Guttmacher staffers Elizabeth Nash and Isabel Guarnieri wrote last week.Looking ahead, some anti-abortion leaders hope the Republicans nominate a 2024 presidential candidate who will aggressively push for nationwide abortion restrictions, rather than keep it as a state-by-state matter.“The approach to winning on abortion in federal races, proven for a decade, is this: state clearly the ambitious consensus pro-life position and contrast that with the extreme view of Democrat opponents,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America.Dannenfelser says she’s not surprised by the divisive ups-and-downs that have unfolded since the June ruling.“This is what it looks like when democracy is restored and we have a voice in the debate,” she said. “For 50 years, we had no voice because the judiciary was always going to shield public opinion from having an effect on the law.”“We always knew it wouldn’t be a straight line (after Roe’s repeal),” she said, adding "we know neither side is going to lay down and die.”Professor Kathleen Sprows Cummings, director of the University of Notre Dame’s Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism, suggested the anti-abortion movement may suffer from a perception among many Americans that it’s more concerned with controlling women’s bodies than helping them cope with unintended pregnancies.“It’s about consolidating their political power, more than about babies," she said.Some abortion opponents are trying to counter such perceptions. In Texas, for example, anti-abortion groups are urging lawmakers to spend more money on services for pregnant and parenting Texans, including expanding Medicaid coverage for mothers.According to Texas Right to Life, the state's new abortion ban has had a major impact — it says only 68 abortions were recorded by state health officials in July 2022, compared to 4,879 in July 2021.The group noted the data does not include illegal, unreported abortions — which are widely believed to be increasing as women obtain abortion pills by mail from overseas or from Mexico suppliers.Charles Camosy, a medical humanities professor at Creighton University School of Medicine who opposes abortion, has analyzed the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-abortion-voting-rights-health-kentucky-fabb3a40797c5491e9b2a3a696435161">high-profile election defeats</a>&nbsp;suffered by the anti-abortion movement. Voters in Kansas and Kentucky rejected constitutional amendments that would have declared there is no right to abortion; Michigan voters approved an amendment enshrining the right to abortion in the state constitution.“Pro-lifers have clearly and badly lost the PR battle since June and this has shaped how people are voting,” Camosy said via email. He said abortion-rights supporters were better organized and better funded, while many anti-abortion politicians either avoided the issue or sounded too extreme.“There are obviously very good things that have happened, however,” added Camosy, citing the drop in abortions reported in states with bans.“Pro-lifers also now relish the chance to actually debate the issues in a democratic, open context ... as opposed to constantly running into the fiats of various courts,” he said. “We may lose some battles early on... but it is worth it to have the debates.”

US divided over Roe's repeal as abortion foes gird for march

KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) — State troopers arrested a 13-year-old driver from Colorado after a chase that topped 100 mph along an interstate highway in Nebraska.

A state trooper spotted an SUV driving about 35 mph on Interstate 80 near the city of Kearney on Monday night, but the driver sped up and fled east when the trooper tried to pull her over.

The chase continued at speeds over 100 mph until another state trooper put out stop sticks, the Nebraska State Patrol said in a news release. But the Nissan Pathfinder took an exit off the highway and kept driving, although at slower speeds, until a state trooper used a tactical maneuver to bring the vehicle to a stop, the authorities said. The entire chase lasted about 15 minutes.

The 13-year-old girl who was driving the SUV and an 11-year-old boy riding with her were both arrested, and troopers said they found a gun and a small amount of marijuana in the vehicle. The State Patrol said both the girl and boy are from Colorado but didn't release their names. They were placed in protective custody.

KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) — State troopers arrested a 13-year-old driver from Colorado after a chase that topped 100 mph along an interstate highway in Nebraska.A state trooper spotted an SUV driving about 35 mph on Interstate 80 near the city of Kearney on Monday night, but the driver sped up and fled east when the trooper tried to pull her over.The chase continued at speeds over 100 mph until another state trooper put out stop sticks, the Nebraska State Patrol said in a news release. But the Nissan Pathfinder took an exit off the highway and kept driving, although at slower speeds, until a state trooper used a tactical maneuver to bring the vehicle to a stop, the authorities said. The entire chase lasted about 15 minutes.The 13-year-old girl who was driving the SUV and an 11-year-old boy riding with her were both arrested, and troopers said they found a gun and a small amount of marijuana in the vehicle. The State Patrol said both the girl and boy are from Colorado but didn't release their names. They were placed in protective custody.

100mph chase: 13-year-old driver, juvenile passenger arrested

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities investigating a fatal pedestrian accident have identified the victim as 62-year-old Mary Dellor of Wichita.

Just after 8 p.m. Wednesday, police were dispatched to a vehicle vs. pedestrian collision at the intersection of East Harry Street and Faulders Lane in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.

First responders located Dellor unconscious and not breathing.&nbsp; EMS pronounced her deceased on the scene.

Police investigators learned an eastbound 2020 Kia Soul driven by a 65-year-old man struck Dellor as she was crossing from the north side of East Harry to the south at Faulders Lane.&nbsp; The accident remains under investigation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674129813335.png" alt="First responders at the scene of the fatal pedestrian crash -photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>First responders at the scene of the fatal pedestrian crash -photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities investigating a fatal pedestrian accident have identified the victim as 62-year-old Mary Dellor of Wichita.Just after 8 p.m. Wednesday, police were dispatched to a vehicle vs. pedestrian collision at the intersection of East Harry Street and Faulders Lane in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.First responders located Dellor unconscious and not breathing.&nbsp; EMS pronounced her deceased on the scene.Police investigators learned an eastbound 2020 Kia Soul driven by a 65-year-old man struck Dellor as she was crossing from the north side of East Harry to the south at Faulders Lane.&nbsp; The accident remains under investigation.

Police: Kansas woman struck by car has died

CLOUD COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities in north-central Kansas have recently fielded several calls about illicit Fentanyl in Cloud County, according to a statement from Concordia Chief of Police and Cloud County Sheriff.

At this time law enforcement authorities believe it is circulating illegally within communities in Cloud County.&nbsp; "We would like to remind you that any illicit drug could be laced with Fentanyl. Typically it is found in counterfeit pills and homemade edibles among other illicit drugs."

"Any candies, edibles or pills not purchased directly from a store or pharmacy or not in its original packaging may have been tampered with."

"Fentanyl is often abused by addicts who obtain it on the street or illegally. Based on lab results, 2 out of 5 seized counterfeit pills contain lethal doses, which the Drug Enforcement Administration defines as being 2 mg of fentanyl."

"However, the different forms of lab-created fentanyl and its analogs, along with it being often combined with other illicit drugs, make it very difficult to determine a specific amount that would lead to death. Fentanyl also affects individuals differently, so what might be fatal for one person might not be for another."

"Any use of fentanyl is potentially deadly.People who use fentanyl can experience an overdose, which occurs when a drug causes severe and life-threatening symptoms."

"Typically, a fentanyl overdose will cause a person’s breathing to be impaired. When the brain does not get enough oxygen, one can go into a coma and suffer from brain damage. The effects of fentanyl on the brain also slow down the function of other major organs, including the heart, kidneys, and lungs, as well as a person’s motor function."

"Potent doses of fentanyl cause a user to experience several dangerous side effects beyond the initial euphoric feelings. When three symptoms are present at the same time, such as coma, small pupils, and difficulty breathing, overdose is very likely. Immediate medical care must be administered to keep that person from suffering from lasting complications and even death."

"If caught early enough and before it reaches the final life-threatening stage, fentanyl overdose can be treated. Naloxone is a medication that is effective against fentanyl and other opioids if given immediately."

"It binds to the opioid receptors in the brain, so that the effects of fentanyl are blocked. The solution can be injected with a needle. The brand names Narcan and Kloxxado are also naloxone but used as a nose spray. Because fentanyl is one of the most potent opioids, naloxone may have to be given multiple times to fully treat the overdose."

"If you suspect someone is overdosing on fentanyl, you can take the following actions:1. Call 911 immediately.2. Roll the person on their side in case they vomit to prevent choking.3. Monitor the person’s breathing and avoid giving any fluid.4. If the person is not breathing, perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)."

"If you suspect illegal drug activity in your area please contact law enforcement."

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641841246356.png" alt="Fake OxyContin pills often contain fentanyl. -photo U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration" />
 <figcaption>Fake OxyContin pills often contain fentanyl. -photo U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration</figcaption>
 </figure>CLOUD COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities in north-central Kansas have recently fielded several calls about illicit Fentanyl in Cloud County, according to a statement from Concordia Chief of Police and Cloud County Sheriff.At this time law enforcement authorities believe it is circulating illegally within communities in Cloud County.&nbsp; "We would like to remind you that any illicit drug could be laced with Fentanyl. Typically it is found in counterfeit pills and homemade edibles among other illicit drugs." "Any candies, edibles or pills not purchased directly from a store or pharmacy or not in its original packaging may have been tampered with.""Fentanyl is often abused by addicts who obtain it on the street or illegally. Based on lab results, 2 out of 5 seized counterfeit pills contain lethal doses, which the Drug Enforcement Administration defines as being 2 mg of fentanyl.""However, the different forms of lab-created fentanyl and its analogs, along with it being often combined with other illicit drugs, make it very difficult to determine a specific amount that would lead to death. Fentanyl also affects individuals differently, so what might be fatal for one person might not be for another.""Any use of fentanyl is potentially deadly.People who use fentanyl can experience an overdose, which occurs when a drug causes severe and life-threatening symptoms.""Typically, a fentanyl overdose will cause a person’s breathing to be impaired. When the brain does not get enough oxygen, one can go into a coma and suffer from brain damage. The effects of fentanyl on the brain also slow down the function of other major organs, including the heart, kidneys, and lungs, as well as a person’s motor function.""Potent doses of fentanyl cause a user to experience several dangerous side effects beyond the initial euphoric feelings. When three symptoms are present at the same time, such as coma, small pupils, and difficulty breathing, overdose is very likely. Immediate medical care must be administered to keep that person from suffering from lasting complications and even death.""If caught early enough and before it reaches the final life-threatening stage, fentanyl overdose can be treated. Naloxone is a medication that is effective against fentanyl and other opioids if given immediately.""It binds to the opioid receptors in the brain, so that the effects of fentanyl are blocked. The solution can be injected with a needle. The brand names Narcan and Kloxxado are also naloxone but used as a nose spray. Because fentanyl is one of the most potent opioids, naloxone may have to be given multiple times to fully treat the overdose.""If you suspect someone is overdosing on fentanyl, you can take the following actions:1. Call 911 immediately.2. Roll the person on their side in case they vomit to prevent choking.3. Monitor the person’s breathing and avoid giving any fluid.4. If the person is not breathing, perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).""If you suspect illegal drug activity in your area please contact law enforcement."

Law enforcement in north-central Kan. issues fentanyl warning

WASHINGTON (AP) — The countdown toward&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-us-department-of-the-treasury-united-states-government-janet-yellen-business-6fe9b54dcdfea58bead0f4c5f9f89a64">a possible U.S. government default</a>&nbsp;is in the offing — with frictions between President Joe Biden and House Republicans raising alarms about whether the U.S. can sidestep a potential economic crisis.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-states-government-us-department-of-the-treasury-janet-yellen-business-cf6cf1dcfc3d0d81fb5a20f8ad442f7a">Treasury Department projects</a>&nbsp;that the federal government will on Thursday reach its legal borrowing capacity of $38.381 trillion, an artificially imposed cap that lawmakers have increased roughly 80 times since the 1960s. Markets so far remain calm, as the government can temporarily rely on accounting tweaks to stay open, meaning that any threats to the economy are several months away. Even many worried analysts assume there will be a deal.

But this particular moment seems more fraught than past brushes with the debt limit because of the broad differences between Biden and new House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who presides over&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/house-speaker-mccarthy-first-week-4f9040a752fb1fd7cc5c949adf734ab3">a restive Republican caucus</a>.

Those differences increase the risk that the government could default on its obligations for political reasons, a problem that could rattle financial markets and — if not resolved — plunge the world's largest economy into a wholly preventable recession.

The pair have several months to forge a deal, as the Treasury Department imposes “extraordinary measures” to keep the government operating until at least June. But years of intensifying partisan hostility have led to a conflicting set of demands that jeopardize the ability of the U.S. lawmakers to work together on a basic duty.

Biden insists on a clean increase to the debt limit so that existing financial commitments can be sustained, refusing to even start talks with Republicans. McCarthy is calling for negotiations that he believes will lead to spending cuts. It's unclear how much he wants to trim and if his fellow Republicans would support any deal after a testy start to the new Congress that required 15 rounds of voting to elect McCarthy speaker.

Asked twice Wednesday if there was evidence that House Republicans can ensure that the government will avert a default, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said it's their “constitutional responsibility” to protect the full faith and credit of the United States. She did not say whether the White House saw signs at this stage that a default was off the table.

“We're just not going to negotiate that,” Jean-Pierre said. “They should feel the responsibility.”

For his part, McCarthy said Biden needs to recognize the political realities that come with a divided government. He equates the debt ceiling to a credit card limit and calls for a level of fiscal restraint that did not occur under President Donald Trump, a Republican who in 2019 signed a bipartisan suspension of the debt ceiling.

“Why create a crisis over this?" McCarthy said this week. "I mean, we’ve got a Republican House, a Democratic Senate. We’ve got the president there. I think it’s arrogance to say, ‘Oh, we’re not going to negotiate about pretty much anything’ and especially when it comes to funding.”

Any deal would also need to pass the Democratic Senate. Many Democratic lawmakers are skeptical about the ability to work with Republicans aligned with the “Make America Great Again” movement started by Trump. The MAGA movement has claimed that the 2020 election lost by Trump was rigged, a falsehood that contributed to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

“There should be no political brinkmanship with the debt limit,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. “It’s reckless for Speaker McCarthy and MAGA Republicans to try and use the full faith and credit of the United States as a political bargaining chip.”

In order to keep the government open, the Treasury Department on Thursday was introducing a series of accounting maneuvers known as “extraordinary measures.” These measures put a hold on contributions and investment redemptions for government workers' retirement and health care funds, giving the government enough financial space to handle its day-to-day expenses until roughly June.

What happens if these measures are exhausted without a deal to raise the debt limit is unknown. A prolonged default could be devastating, with crashing markets and panic-driven layoffs if confidence evaporated in a cornerstone of the global economy, the U.S. Treasury note.

Analysts at Bank of America cautioned in a Friday report that “there is a high degree of uncertainty about the speed and magnitude of the damage the U.S. economy would incur.” The underlying challenge is that the government would have to balance its books on a daily basis if it lacks the ability to issue debt. If the government cannot issue debt, it would have to impose cuts equal in size on an annual basis to 5% of the total U.S. economy. But the analysts say their baseline case is that the U.S. avoids default.

Still, if past debt ceiling showdowns such as the one that occurred in 2011 are any guide, Washington may be in a nervous state of suspended animation with little progress until the “X-date,” the deadline when extraordinary measures are depleted. That creates its own set of challenges.

“A deal probably won’t be reached until the last minute, raising the risk that the deadline to lift the ceiling is inadvertently missed,” said Andrew Hunter, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics.

WASHINGTON (AP) — On the brink of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-states-government-us-department-of-the-treasury-janet-yellen-business-cf6cf1dcfc3d0d81fb5a20f8ad442f7a">hitting the nation's legal borrowing limit on Thursday,</a>&nbsp;the government is resorting to “extraordinary measures” to avoid a default.

But -- take a breath -- the phrase technically refers to a bunch of accounting workarounds. Yes, accounting.

Because the debt cap limits the issuance of government bonds — a way the U.S. borrows money — these workarounds shift money among accounts and should keep the government open through at least June, according to a letter last week by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.

In theory, President Joe Biden and Congress are supposed to use that additional time to work out an agreement to raise the nation's legal $31.38 trillion debt ceiling. These talks often grow heated and go down to the wire, with major economic damage in the balance. But there have been roughly 80 deals to raise or suspend the borrowing cap since the 1960s.

What could be worrisome is not the existence of extraordinary measures, but what happens if they are exhausted this summer without a deal in place. Economists have warned that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-business-covid-c3d5a98cf3722562e53d0c9a499510b0">could lead to a global financial crisis.</a>

So far, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Biden are playing what could be a dangerous game of chicken with the world’s largest economy in the middle.

Some questions and answers on the situation:

Yellen’s Friday letter listed two measures that will begin this month in order to prevent the government from defaulting.

First, the government will temporarily suspend payments to the retirement, disability and health benefit funds for federal employees. Second, it will suspend the reinvestment of maturing government bonds in the retirement savings accounts of government workers.

By suspending the payments, the government can reduce the amount of outstanding debt. That enables the Treasury Department to keep financing government operations, according to Yellen’s letter.

WHAT ALLOWS TREASURY TO USE THESE MEASURES?

No dispute there. Congress has given Treasury the authority to do so.

Because these are retirement accounts, no one is harmed by the government equivalent of an IOU. The funds are made whole after a debt ceiling increase or suspension becomes law. It’s not necessarily the measures that can harm the economy but rather the doubts among consumers and businesses about whether lawmakers will increase the borrowing cap.

There were $986 billion in net assets of the civil service and federal employees retirement funds at he end of fiscal 2021, according to a report by the Office of Personnel Management. The required government contributions to the funds are large enough to rely on these extraordinary measures for roughly five months.

“Treasury Secretaries in every Administration over recent decades have used these extraordinary measures when necessary,” Yellen wrote in her letter.

The measures were first deployed in 1985 and have been used at least 16 times since then, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a fiscal watchdog.

Before World War I, Congress needed to approve each bond issuance. The debt limit was created as a workaround to finance the war effort without needing a constant series of votes.

Since then, a tool created to make it easier for the government to function has become a source of dysfunction, stoking partisan warfare and creating economic risk as the debt has increased in size over the past 20 years.

It looks alarming -- and it’s not clear how Biden, McCarthy and the Democratic Senate will find common ground. A default could cause millions of job losses, a deep recession that would reverberate globally and, ironically, higher interest rates that would make it harder to manage the federal debt.

McCarthy said Tuesday that talks should begin immediately on the potential spending cuts that Republicans are seeking in exchange for raising the debt limit, even though the Biden administration has equated that demand to holding the U.S. economy hostage.

“Who wants to put the nation in some type of threat at the last minute of the debt ceiling?” McCarthy said. “Nobody wants to do that. That’s why we’re asking, ’Let’s change our behavior now. Let’s sit down.”

The Biden administration wants the borrowing cap increased without any preconditions. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Tuesday ruled out holding talks with McCarthy.

DO DEBT LIMIT SHOWDOWNS HELP REDUCE GOVERNMENT DEBT?

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that annual budget deficits will grow from roughly $1 trillion to more than $2 trillion over the next 10 years.

The imbalance over the coming years increasingly reflects government expenses for programs such as Medicare and Social Security that are outstripping tax revenue. That suggests the government would need severe cuts to spending, major tax hikes or some combination of those options.

In 2011 when Barack Obama was president and Biden was vice president, there was a bipartisan deal to raise the debt limit by $900 billion in return for $917 billion worth of automatic spending cuts over 10 years.

But the debt reduction never fully materialized.

After Donald Trump became president in 2017, Republican lawmakers fueled further debt increases by passing deficit-financed tax cuts. Debt accelerated even more with the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, which caused massive government borrowing in order to pull the U.S. out of a deep recession.

The CBO last year estimated that the U.S. debt would exceed $40 trillion in 2032.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674129864216.png" alt="Biden insists on a clean increase to the debt limit so that existing financial commitments can be sustained, refusing to even start talks with Republicans-White House photo" />
 <figcaption>Biden insists on a clean increase to the debt limit so that existing financial commitments can be sustained, refusing to even start talks with Republicans-White House photo</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The countdown toward&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-us-department-of-the-treasury-united-states-government-janet-yellen-business-6fe9b54dcdfea58bead0f4c5f9f89a64">a possible U.S. government default</a>&nbsp;is in the offing — with frictions between President Joe Biden and House Republicans raising alarms about whether the U.S. can sidestep a potential economic crisis.The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-states-government-us-department-of-the-treasury-janet-yellen-business-cf6cf1dcfc3d0d81fb5a20f8ad442f7a">Treasury Department projects</a>&nbsp;that the federal government will on Thursday reach its legal borrowing capacity of $38.381 trillion, an artificially imposed cap that lawmakers have increased roughly 80 times since the 1960s. Markets so far remain calm, as the government can temporarily rely on accounting tweaks to stay open, meaning that any threats to the economy are several months away. Even many worried analysts assume there will be a deal.But this particular moment seems more fraught than past brushes with the debt limit because of the broad differences between Biden and new House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who presides over&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/house-speaker-mccarthy-first-week-4f9040a752fb1fd7cc5c949adf734ab3">a restive Republican caucus</a>.Those differences increase the risk that the government could default on its obligations for political reasons, a problem that could rattle financial markets and — if not resolved — plunge the world's largest economy into a wholly preventable recession.The pair have several months to forge a deal, as the Treasury Department imposes “extraordinary measures” to keep the government operating until at least June. But years of intensifying partisan hostility have led to a conflicting set of demands that jeopardize the ability of the U.S. lawmakers to work together on a basic duty.Biden insists on a clean increase to the debt limit so that existing financial commitments can be sustained, refusing to even start talks with Republicans. McCarthy is calling for negotiations that he believes will lead to spending cuts. It's unclear how much he wants to trim and if his fellow Republicans would support any deal after a testy start to the new Congress that required 15 rounds of voting to elect McCarthy speaker.Asked twice Wednesday if there was evidence that House Republicans can ensure that the government will avert a default, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said it's their “constitutional responsibility” to protect the full faith and credit of the United States. She did not say whether the White House saw signs at this stage that a default was off the table.“We're just not going to negotiate that,” Jean-Pierre said. “They should feel the responsibility.”For his part, McCarthy said Biden needs to recognize the political realities that come with a divided government. He equates the debt ceiling to a credit card limit and calls for a level of fiscal restraint that did not occur under President Donald Trump, a Republican who in 2019 signed a bipartisan suspension of the debt ceiling.“Why create a crisis over this?" McCarthy said this week. "I mean, we’ve got a Republican House, a Democratic Senate. We’ve got the president there. I think it’s arrogance to say, ‘Oh, we’re not going to negotiate about pretty much anything’ and especially when it comes to funding.”Any deal would also need to pass the Democratic Senate. Many Democratic lawmakers are skeptical about the ability to work with Republicans aligned with the “Make America Great Again” movement started by Trump. The MAGA movement has claimed that the 2020 election lost by Trump was rigged, a falsehood that contributed to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.“There should be no political brinkmanship with the debt limit,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. “It’s reckless for Speaker McCarthy and MAGA Republicans to try and use the full faith and credit of the United States as a political bargaining chip.”In order to keep the government open, the Treasury Department on Thursday was introducing a series of accounting maneuvers known as “extraordinary measures.” These measures put a hold on contributions and investment redemptions for government workers' retirement and health care funds, giving the government enough financial space to handle its day-to-day expenses until roughly June.What happens if these measures are exhausted without a deal to raise the debt limit is unknown. A prolonged default could be devastating, with crashing markets and panic-driven layoffs if confidence evaporated in a cornerstone of the global economy, the U.S. Treasury note.Analysts at Bank of America cautioned in a Friday report that “there is a high degree of uncertainty about the speed and magnitude of the damage the U.S. economy would incur.” The underlying challenge is that the government would have to balance its books on a daily basis if it lacks the ability to issue debt. If the government cannot issue debt, it would have to impose cuts equal in size on an annual basis to 5% of the total U.S. economy. But the analysts say their baseline case is that the U.S. avoids default.Still, if past debt ceiling showdowns such as the one that occurred in 2011 are any guide, Washington may be in a nervous state of suspended animation with little progress until the “X-date,” the deadline when extraordinary measures are depleted. That creates its own set of challenges.“A deal probably won’t be reached until the last minute, raising the risk that the deadline to lift the ceiling is inadvertently missed,” said Andrew Hunter, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics.--------------WASHINGTON (AP) — On the brink of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-states-government-us-department-of-the-treasury-janet-yellen-business-cf6cf1dcfc3d0d81fb5a20f8ad442f7a">hitting the nation's legal borrowing limit on Thursday,</a>&nbsp;the government is resorting to “extraordinary measures” to avoid a default.Sounds ominous, right?But -- take a breath -- the phrase technically refers to a bunch of accounting workarounds. Yes, accounting.Because the debt cap limits the issuance of government bonds — a way the U.S. borrows money — these workarounds shift money among accounts and should keep the government open through at least June, according to a letter last week by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.In theory, President Joe Biden and Congress are supposed to use that additional time to work out an agreement to raise the nation's legal $31.38 trillion debt ceiling. These talks often grow heated and go down to the wire, with major economic damage in the balance. But there have been roughly 80 deals to raise or suspend the borrowing cap since the 1960s.What could be worrisome is not the existence of extraordinary measures, but what happens if they are exhausted this summer without a deal in place. Economists have warned that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-business-covid-c3d5a98cf3722562e53d0c9a499510b0">could lead to a global financial crisis.</a>So far, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Biden are playing what could be a dangerous game of chicken with the world’s largest economy in the middle.Some questions and answers on the situation:WHAT ARE “EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES”?Yellen’s Friday letter listed two measures that will begin this month in order to prevent the government from defaulting.First, the government will temporarily suspend payments to the retirement, disability and health benefit funds for federal employees. Second, it will suspend the reinvestment of maturing government bonds in the retirement savings accounts of government workers.By suspending the payments, the government can reduce the amount of outstanding debt. That enables the Treasury Department to keep financing government operations, according to Yellen’s letter.WHAT ALLOWS TREASURY TO USE THESE MEASURES?No dispute there. Congress has given Treasury the authority to do so.Because these are retirement accounts, no one is harmed by the government equivalent of an IOU. The funds are made whole after a debt ceiling increase or suspension becomes law. It’s not necessarily the measures that can harm the economy but rather the doubts among consumers and businesses about whether lawmakers will increase the borrowing cap.HOW BIG ARE THESE RETIREMENT FUNDS?There were $986 billion in net assets of the civil service and federal employees retirement funds at he end of fiscal 2021, according to a report by the Office of Personnel Management. The required government contributions to the funds are large enough to rely on these extraordinary measures for roughly five months.HOW COMMON IS THIS?“Treasury Secretaries in every Administration over recent decades have used these extraordinary measures when necessary,” Yellen wrote in her letter.The measures were first deployed in 1985 and have been used at least 16 times since then, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a fiscal watchdog.WHY DO WE HAVE A DEBT LIMIT?Before World War I, Congress needed to approve each bond issuance. The debt limit was created as a workaround to finance the war effort without needing a constant series of votes.Since then, a tool created to make it easier for the government to function has become a source of dysfunction, stoking partisan warfare and creating economic risk as the debt has increased in size over the past 20 years.HOW RISKY IS THE BRINKMANSHIP THIS TIME?It looks alarming -- and it’s not clear how Biden, McCarthy and the Democratic Senate will find common ground. A default could cause millions of job losses, a deep recession that would reverberate globally and, ironically, higher interest rates that would make it harder to manage the federal debt.McCarthy said Tuesday that talks should begin immediately on the potential spending cuts that Republicans are seeking in exchange for raising the debt limit, even though the Biden administration has equated that demand to holding the U.S. economy hostage.“Who wants to put the nation in some type of threat at the last minute of the debt ceiling?” McCarthy said. “Nobody wants to do that. That’s why we’re asking, ’Let’s change our behavior now. Let’s sit down.”The Biden administration wants the borrowing cap increased without any preconditions. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Tuesday ruled out holding talks with McCarthy.DO DEBT LIMIT SHOWDOWNS HELP REDUCE GOVERNMENT DEBT?Not so much.The Congressional Budget Office estimates that annual budget deficits will grow from roughly $1 trillion to more than $2 trillion over the next 10 years.The imbalance over the coming years increasingly reflects government expenses for programs such as Medicare and Social Security that are outstripping tax revenue. That suggests the government would need severe cuts to spending, major tax hikes or some combination of those options.In 2011 when Barack Obama was president and Biden was vice president, there was a bipartisan deal to raise the debt limit by $900 billion in return for $917 billion worth of automatic spending cuts over 10 years.But the debt reduction never fully materialized.After Donald Trump became president in 2017, Republican lawmakers fueled further debt increases by passing deficit-financed tax cuts. Debt accelerated even more with the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, which caused massive government borrowing in order to pull the U.S. out of a deep recession.The CBO last year estimated that the U.S. debt would exceed $40 trillion in 2032.

Biden-House GOP: Showdown over debt limit of $38.3 trillion

OSAGE COUNTY– Law enforcement authorities investigating&nbsp; &nbsp;the burglary that occurred at the Santa Fe Trail High School, 15701 S. California Road in Carbondale during the early morning hours of January 12 have identified a&nbsp;person of interest, according to Sheriff Chris Wells.

The sheriff asked for the public’s assistance in locating Dalton R. Quimby, a 28-year-old white male, approximately 5-foot-11, 200 pounds, green eyes, and sandy blonde hair.

USD 434 dismissed high school students early on the 12th, to allow deputies to investigate. The high school will resumed classes on Friday.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Quimby is asked to contact the Osage County Sheriff’s Office at 785-828-3121, email tips@oscosheriff.org, Osage County Crime Stoppers at (877) OSCRIME, or their local law enforcement agency

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1673573355483.png" alt="-Security camera image Osage Co. Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>-Security camera image Osage Co. Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>OSAGE COUNTY– Law enforcement authorities investigating&nbsp; &nbsp;the burglary that occurred at the Santa Fe Trail High School, 15701 S. California Road in Carbondale during the early morning hours of January 12 have identified a&nbsp;person of interest, according to Sheriff Chris Wells.The sheriff asked for the public’s assistance in locating Dalton R. Quimby, a 28-year-old white male, approximately 5-foot-11, 200 pounds, green eyes, and sandy blonde hair.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674080967196.png" alt="Quimby-photo Osage Co. Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>Quimby-photo Osage Co. Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>USD 434 dismissed high school students early on the 12th, to allow deputies to investigate. The high school will resumed classes on Friday.Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Quimby is asked to contact the Osage County Sheriff’s Office at 785-828-3121, email tips@oscosheriff.org, Osage County Crime Stoppers at (877) OSCRIME, or their local law enforcement agency

Police ID suspect in burglary at Kansas high school

KANSAS CITY —Police continue to search for a suspect involved in the armed abduction of an 8-month old girl that prompted an Amber Alert in Kansas City.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, 23-year-old Markelv Avery, was armed with a handgun when he took Malani Avery by force from her mother's house in the area of Gladstone Boulevard and Belmont Avenue. Within an hour, police found the girl. She was not with Markley.&nbsp;

He was last seen driving a four-door white Acura sedan that is missing the front bumper with an unknown license plate.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674068973618.png" alt="Screenshot 2023-01-18 at 1.09.20 PM.png" />
 <figcaption>Screenshot 2023-01-18 at 1.09.20 PM.png</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —Police continue to search for a suspect involved in the armed abduction of an 8-month old girl that prompted an Amber Alert in Kansas City.According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, 23-year-old Markelv Avery, was armed with a handgun when he took Malani Avery by force from her mother's house in the area of Gladstone Boulevard and Belmont Avenue. Within an hour, police found the girl. She was not with Markley.&nbsp;He was last seen driving a four-door white Acura sedan that is missing the front bumper with an unknown license plate.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Police continue search for Kansas City Amber alert suspect

The Federal 
Trade Commission opened a claims process for former AT&amp;T customers 
who have yet to claim a refund stemming from the FTC’s lawsuit against 
the company for misleading consumers about its unlimited data plans.

Former AT&amp;T
 customers may be eligible to claim a refund from the $7 million 
remaining in a fund created to settle allegations that the wireless 
provider charged for “unlimited” data plans while reducing their data speeds, a practice known as throttling.

The <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2019/11/att-pay-60-million-resolve-ftc-allegations-it-misled-consumers-unlimited-data-promises">FTC in 2019 required AT&amp;T to provide $60 million</a>
 for refunds for failing to disclose to millions of smartphone customers
 with unlimited data plans that once they reached a certain amount of 
data use in a given billing cycle, AT&amp;T would reduce or throttle 
their data speeds. Some customers experienced data speeds so slow that 
many common phone applications, such as web browsing and video 
streaming, became difficult or nearly impossible to use.

The money paid by AT&amp;T was 
deposited into a fund that the company used to provide partial refunds 
to current and former customers who had unlimited plans that were 
throttled by AT&amp;T. The company gave a bill credit to current 
AT&amp;T customers and sent refund checks to former customers.

AT&amp;T has not been able to 
reach everyone who was eligible for a refund. The FTC is using the 
remaining $7 million from the fund to provide partial refunds to 
consumers who meet all these requirements:

Consumers who meet these requirements can submit a claim online at <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/ATT">www.ftc.gov/ATT</a>. Consumers can contact the claims administrator by calling 1-877-654-1982 or emailing <a href="mailto:info@ATTDataThrottling.com">info@ATTDataThrottling.com</a>

 if they have questions or if they would like to request a claim form. Consumers have until May 18, 2023, to submit a claim.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/4/1619632629588.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>FTCThe Federal 
Trade Commission opened a claims process for former AT&amp;T customers 
who have yet to claim a refund stemming from the FTC’s lawsuit against 
the company for misleading consumers about its unlimited data plans.Former AT&amp;T
 customers may be eligible to claim a refund from the $7 million 
remaining in a fund created to settle allegations that the wireless 
provider charged for “unlimited” data plans while reducing their data speeds, a practice known as throttling.The <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2019/11/att-pay-60-million-resolve-ftc-allegations-it-misled-consumers-unlimited-data-promises">FTC in 2019 required AT&amp;T to provide $60 million</a>
 for refunds for failing to disclose to millions of smartphone customers
 with unlimited data plans that once they reached a certain amount of 
data use in a given billing cycle, AT&amp;T would reduce or throttle 
their data speeds. Some customers experienced data speeds so slow that 
many common phone applications, such as web browsing and video 
streaming, became difficult or nearly impossible to use.The money paid by AT&amp;T was 
deposited into a fund that the company used to provide partial refunds 
to current and former customers who had unlimited plans that were 
throttled by AT&amp;T. The company gave a bill credit to current 
AT&amp;T customers and sent refund checks to former customers.AT&amp;T has not been able to 
reach everyone who was eligible for a refund. The FTC is using the 
remaining $7 million from the fund to provide partial refunds to 
consumers who meet all these requirements:<ul>
 <li>they are a former AT&amp;T customer;</li><li>they had an unlimited data plan at some point between October 1, 2011 and June 30, 2015;</li><li>they experienced data throttling; and </li><li>they have not received a bill credit or payment from AT&amp;T related to this matter.</li>
 </ul>Consumers who meet these requirements can submit a claim online at <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/ATT">www.ftc.gov/ATT</a>. Consumers can contact the claims administrator by calling 1-877-654-1982 or emailing <a href="mailto:info@ATTDataThrottling.com">info@ATTDataThrottling.com</a> if they have questions or if they would like to request a claim form. Consumers have until May 18, 2023, to submit a claim.

AT&T throttle your wireless? Apply for a payment from FTC

BROWN COUNTY —A Kansas man died in an accident just before 2:30p.m. Wednesday in Brown County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2017 Freightliner semi driven by Cody Thomas Carson, 24,&nbsp;Muscotah, was westbound on 330th Road near Raccoon Road. 

The vehicle left the roadway to the right, overturned, struck a culvert, and came to rest in the north ditch at the base of a steep embankment.

Carson was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to&nbsp;Dishon-Maple-Chaney Mortuary. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

BROWN COUNTY —A Kansas man died in an accident just before 2:30p.m. Wednesday in Brown County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2017 Freightliner semi driven by Cody Thomas Carson, 24,&nbsp;Muscotah, was westbound on 330th Road near Raccoon Road. The vehicle left the roadway to the right, overturned, struck a culvert, and came to rest in the north ditch at the base of a steep embankment.Carson was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to&nbsp;Dishon-Maple-Chaney Mortuary. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

Kansas man dies after semi overturns down embankment

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man on trial for threatening to kill U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner cross-examined the Kansas Republican on Wednesday in federal court, with the congressman rejecting the defendant's suggestions that he was conveying a message from God.

LaTurner was the last prosecution witness in the trial of Chase Neill, 32, from the northeastern Kansas city of Lawrence. Prosecutors contend that Neill, who is representing himself in court, became fixated on LaTurner and then made his threat in a June 5 phone message left after hours at LaTurner’s office in Topeka.

The trial came amid what authorities say is a sharp rise in threats against the nation’s lawmakers over the past two years. LaTurner testified that he beefed up the security at his Topeka office and home in response to Neill’s message because he worried about the safety of his family and staff.

Neill suggested Wednesday during his cross-examination of prosecution witnesses that he believes he is a “religious heir” whose message to LaTurner followed a tradition of Old Testament prophets following a duty of speaking for God and doing it as if they were God themselves. In questioning LaTurner, Neill asked whether it was reasonable for Neill to identify himself in his voicemail as the son of God.

“I thought the whole voicemail was unreasonable, especially the death threat parts,” LaTurner replied.

Before presiding U.S. District Judge Holly Teeter allowed Neill to take over his own defense Wednesday, federal public defenders&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-states-government-kansas-state-lawrence-6fea225d8b04ecd4e9eb31b5acd65166">argued that Neill is harmless</a>&nbsp;because he expected God to send "meteors and plagues” to punish LaTurner and government officials across the Earth. The public defenders also said Neill never tried to get close to LaTurner and after Neill left the message, local authorities did not arrest him or send him to a mental health hospital or ward.

In the June voicemail message, Neill said he had contacted LaTurner’s office before about whether Congress was pursuing issues involving witchcraft, divination, wizards and “creatures.”

Threats against members of Congress&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-san-francisco-nancy-pelosi-congress-government-and-politics-b8a3fb8b3e6f491fcfb16e155b877427">have increased</a>&nbsp;since the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. In October, an intruder&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/paul-pelosi-assaulted-156ece77186eb11b97260af3c5122f67">severely beat</a>&nbsp;former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband with a hammer in their San Francisco home.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-education-coronavirus-pandemic-school-boards-35db5c9eec87b85ca8eb95a64c2f6dd7">Local school board members</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-new-mexico-donald-trump-presidential-9356ff48f081250aa54040cbd7cf1cc3">election workers</a>&nbsp;across the nation also have endured harassment and threats. Police in Albuquerque, New Mexico, this week arrested a former Republican legislative candidate over&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-new-mexico-state-government-crime-albuquerque-1410b516f5b66c18d62342a0d7a9b60f">a series of shootings</a>&nbsp;targeting elected Democratic officials’ homes or offices, though none were injured.

Neill acknowledges that he left the voicemail message in June telling LaTurner, “I am saying that I will kill you,” but argues that his use of the phrase “act of God” in the same message means he was forwarding a message from God, not himself.

While LaTurner testified that he thought Neill was using some “ridiculous talk," he focused on the death threat. He received an anonymous written threat in the mailbox at his Topeka home early in 2021, when he first entered Congress.

As for the “act of God phrase, LaTurner told Neill: "I thought it meant something more nefarious, that there would be an attempt to kill me and it wouldn't be detectable.”

Neill's questioning of LaTurner was bizarrely low-key, with the clean-shaven LaTurner sitting at the witness stand in a dark suit and the bearded Neill at the lawyers' podium wearing khaki pants, a blue jacket and a dress shirt without a tie. Neill had a Bible with him at the podium.

His cross-examination of LaTurner ended abruptly after an objection from prosecutors to a question to the congressman, “Do you believe that God has a right to punish people?”

A U.S. magistrate judge said in an August order refusing to release Neill from custody that Neill had suffered a head injury four or five years ago “characterized as a head fracture.” But Teeter concluded during a hearing last month that Neill was capable of following what was going on in court and assisting his lawyers, making him mentally competent to stand trial.

Twice within the past week, Neill asked to represent himself, withdrawing one request before his federal court jury was selected Tuesday. He said Wednesday in court that he has been portrayed as “a false Christ,” damaging his reputation.

Teeter granted the second request, finding it was his right to to represent himself and he could do so competently, despite his lack of legal training as a high school graduate with some college education. The judge warned Neill repeatedly Wednesday that she thought it unwise for him to represent himself, but he was adamant.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1673992624611.png" alt="Neill is being held in Shawnee County" />
 <figcaption>Neill is being held in Shawnee County</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man on trial for threatening to kill U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner cross-examined the Kansas Republican on Wednesday in federal court, with the congressman rejecting the defendant's suggestions that he was conveying a message from God.LaTurner was the last prosecution witness in the trial of Chase Neill, 32, from the northeastern Kansas city of Lawrence. Prosecutors contend that Neill, who is representing himself in court, became fixated on LaTurner and then made his threat in a June 5 phone message left after hours at LaTurner’s office in Topeka.The trial came amid what authorities say is a sharp rise in threats against the nation’s lawmakers over the past two years. LaTurner testified that he beefed up the security at his Topeka office and home in response to Neill’s message because he worried about the safety of his family and staff.Neill suggested Wednesday during his cross-examination of prosecution witnesses that he believes he is a “religious heir” whose message to LaTurner followed a tradition of Old Testament prophets following a duty of speaking for God and doing it as if they were God themselves. In questioning LaTurner, Neill asked whether it was reasonable for Neill to identify himself in his voicemail as the son of God.“I thought the whole voicemail was unreasonable, especially the death threat parts,” LaTurner replied.Before presiding U.S. District Judge Holly Teeter allowed Neill to take over his own defense Wednesday, federal public defenders&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-states-government-kansas-state-lawrence-6fea225d8b04ecd4e9eb31b5acd65166">argued that Neill is harmless</a>&nbsp;because he expected God to send "meteors and plagues” to punish LaTurner and government officials across the Earth. The public defenders also said Neill never tried to get close to LaTurner and after Neill left the message, local authorities did not arrest him or send him to a mental health hospital or ward.In the June voicemail message, Neill said he had contacted LaTurner’s office before about whether Congress was pursuing issues involving witchcraft, divination, wizards and “creatures.”Threats against members of Congress&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-san-francisco-nancy-pelosi-congress-government-and-politics-b8a3fb8b3e6f491fcfb16e155b877427">have increased</a>&nbsp;since the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. In October, an intruder&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/paul-pelosi-assaulted-156ece77186eb11b97260af3c5122f67">severely beat</a>&nbsp;former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband with a hammer in their San Francisco home.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-education-coronavirus-pandemic-school-boards-35db5c9eec87b85ca8eb95a64c2f6dd7">Local school board members</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-new-mexico-donald-trump-presidential-9356ff48f081250aa54040cbd7cf1cc3">election workers</a>&nbsp;across the nation also have endured harassment and threats. Police in Albuquerque, New Mexico, this week arrested a former Republican legislative candidate over&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-new-mexico-state-government-crime-albuquerque-1410b516f5b66c18d62342a0d7a9b60f">a series of shootings</a>&nbsp;targeting elected Democratic officials’ homes or offices, though none were injured.Neill acknowledges that he left the voicemail message in June telling LaTurner, “I am saying that I will kill you,” but argues that his use of the phrase “act of God” in the same message means he was forwarding a message from God, not himself.While LaTurner testified that he thought Neill was using some “ridiculous talk," he focused on the death threat. He received an anonymous written threat in the mailbox at his Topeka home early in 2021, when he first entered Congress.As for the “act of God phrase, LaTurner told Neill: "I thought it meant something more nefarious, that there would be an attempt to kill me and it wouldn't be detectable.”Neill's questioning of LaTurner was bizarrely low-key, with the clean-shaven LaTurner sitting at the witness stand in a dark suit and the bearded Neill at the lawyers' podium wearing khaki pants, a blue jacket and a dress shirt without a tie. Neill had a Bible with him at the podium.His cross-examination of LaTurner ended abruptly after an objection from prosecutors to a question to the congressman, “Do you believe that God has a right to punish people?”A U.S. magistrate judge said in an August order refusing to release Neill from custody that Neill had suffered a head injury four or five years ago “characterized as a head fracture.” But Teeter concluded during a hearing last month that Neill was capable of following what was going on in court and assisting his lawyers, making him mentally competent to stand trial.Twice within the past week, Neill asked to represent himself, withdrawing one request before his federal court jury was selected Tuesday. He said Wednesday in court that he has been portrayed as “a false Christ,” damaging his reputation.Teeter granted the second request, finding it was his right to to represent himself and he could do so competently, despite his lack of legal training as a high school graduate with some college education. The judge warned Neill repeatedly Wednesday that she thought it unwise for him to represent himself, but he was adamant.

Defendant cross-examines Kansas congressman he threatened

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas man accused in the alleged aggravated criminal solicitation of children in Wichita made his first court appearance Tuesday.&nbsp; Damien Henderson, 43, was charged with&nbsp;3 counts of aggravated indecent solicitation of a child and attempted kidnapping, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.&nbsp;

Just after 7:30p.m. on Jan. 11, police were flagged down at the intersection of Yale and Dunham by a family member stating three girls, ages 7-13, were solicited for sex by&nbsp; Henderson, according to Officer Chad Ditch.

The suspect fled from the scene before officers arrived. None of the girls were physically injured. The girls are known to each other.

The investigation revealed that the three girls were walking in the neighborhood together when Henderson walked up to them and solicited all of them for sex. The girls ran and informed their parents. 

Officers were already in the neighborhood when the adult flagged them down. Officers were given Henderson’s description and a short time later located him near 31st and K-15. 

<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20053750">Henderson was detained</a> without incident and police notified Wichita Public Schools of the incident.&nbsp; Henderson <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20053750">remains jailed on a $500,000</a> bond and is due back in court Jan. 30, according to the district attorney's office.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1673528900779.png" alt="Henderson-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Henderson-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas man accused in the alleged aggravated criminal solicitation of children in Wichita made his first court appearance Tuesday.&nbsp; Damien Henderson, 43, was charged with&nbsp;3 counts of aggravated indecent solicitation of a child and attempted kidnapping, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.&nbsp;Just after 7:30p.m. on Jan. 11, police were flagged down at the intersection of Yale and Dunham by a family member stating three girls, ages 7-13, were solicited for sex by&nbsp; Henderson, according to Officer Chad Ditch.The suspect fled from the scene before officers arrived. None of the girls were physically injured. The girls are known to each other.The investigation revealed that the three girls were walking in the neighborhood together when Henderson walked up to them and solicited all of them for sex. The girls ran and informed their parents. Officers were already in the neighborhood when the adult flagged them down. Officers were given Henderson’s description and a short time later located him near 31st and K-15. <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20053750">Henderson was detained</a> without incident and police notified Wichita Public Schools of the incident.&nbsp; Henderson <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20053750">remains jailed on a $500,000</a> bond and is due back in court Jan. 30, according to the district attorney's office.

Kansas man charged after approaching 3 juveniles for sex

KANSAS CITY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting outside an apartment building in Kansas City have identified the victim as 25-year-old&nbsp;Dahrell Johnson.

Just after 6p.m. Tuesday, police were dispatched to the sound of gun shots in the area of 10300 E. 42nd Street in Kansas City, according to Officer Leslie Foreman.

The call was upgraded to a shooting and officers observed a vehicle in the parking lot and a man inside of the vehicle who had been shot and was unresponsive. Officers began life-saving measures at that time. EMS responded to the scene and transported the victim to the hospital where he was pronounced deceased.

Police did not have any suspect information on Wednesday.&nbsp; Detectives and crime scene personnel responded to the scene and&nbsp; actively canvassed for witnesses and processed the scene for evidence.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674039821924.png" alt="Police at the scene of the shooting -photo courtesy KCTV" />
 <figcaption>Police at the scene of the shooting -photo courtesy KCTV</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting outside an apartment building in Kansas City have identified the victim as 25-year-old&nbsp;Dahrell Johnson.Just after 6p.m. Tuesday, police were dispatched to the sound of gun shots in the area of 10300 E. 42nd Street in Kansas City, according to Officer Leslie Foreman.The call was upgraded to a shooting and officers observed a vehicle in the parking lot and a man inside of the vehicle who had been shot and was unresponsive. Officers began life-saving measures at that time. EMS responded to the scene and transported the victim to the hospital where he was pronounced deceased.Police did not have any suspect information on Wednesday.&nbsp; Detectives and crime scene personnel responded to the scene and&nbsp; actively canvassed for witnesses and processed the scene for evidence.