PAWNEE COUNTY — Formal charges were filed Wednesday afternoon against Emilia Melinda Brown, 38 of Ulysses, in connection with the Monday night escape of Isaac Nathaniel Watts, 43 of Ulysses, from the Crisis Stabilization Unit on the Campus of Larned State Hospital, according to Pawnee County Attorney Doug McNett.

Just after 11a.m. Tuesday, the Garden City Police Department arrested Watts and Brown at the Hampton Inn,&nbsp;2505 Crestway Drive in Garden City.

Brown is charged with Aiding Escape, a severity level 7 nonperson felony. Bond has been set at $15,000 cash or surety. She remains in the custody of Finney County Detention Center. Arrangements are being made to by the Pawnee County Sheriff’s Office to transport her to the Pawnee County Jail.

The Complaint alleges she provided transportation for Watts from the Larned State Hospital campus. At the time of the escape, Watts was subject to a hold by the Grant County Sheriff for felony charges that included Attempted Second Degree Murder and Aggravated Kidnapping.

Watts will be formally charged with Aggravated Escape from Custody once the law enforcement investigation is completed. The investigation is being handled by the Pawnee County Sheriff’s Office, according to McNett.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641423652635.png" alt="Watts-photo Finney Co." />
 <figcaption>Watts-photo Finney Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>PAWNEE COUNTY — Formal charges were filed Wednesday afternoon against Emilia Melinda Brown, 38 of Ulysses, in connection with the Monday night escape of Isaac Nathaniel Watts, 43 of Ulysses, from the Crisis Stabilization Unit on the Campus of Larned State Hospital, according to Pawnee County Attorney Doug McNett.Just after 11a.m. Tuesday, the Garden City Police Department arrested Watts and Brown at the Hampton Inn,&nbsp;2505 Crestway Drive in Garden City.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641423485802.png" alt="Brown-photo Finney Co." />
 <figcaption>Brown-photo Finney Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>Brown is charged with Aiding Escape, a severity level 7 nonperson felony. Bond has been set at $15,000 cash or surety. She remains in the custody of Finney County Detention Center. Arrangements are being made to by the Pawnee County Sheriff’s Office to transport her to the Pawnee County Jail.The Complaint alleges she provided transportation for Watts from the Larned State Hospital campus. At the time of the escape, Watts was subject to a hold by the Grant County Sheriff for felony charges that included Attempted Second Degree Murder and Aggravated Kidnapping.Watts will be formally charged with Aggravated Escape from Custody once the law enforcement investigation is completed. The investigation is being handled by the Pawnee County Sheriff’s Office, according to McNett.

Female accomplice charged in escape from Larned State Hospital 

By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated Press

MISSION, Kan. — What students are learning about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-confirm-joe-biden-78104aea082995bbd7412a6e6cd13818">the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6</a>&nbsp;may depend on where they live.

In a Boston suburb in heavily Democratic Massachusetts, history teacher Justin Voldman said his students will spend the day journaling about what happened and talking about the fragility of democracy.

“I feel really strongly that this needs to be talked about,” said Voldman, who teaches history at Natick High School, 15 miles (24 kilometers) west of Boston. As the grandson of a Holocaust survivor, he said “it is fair to draw parallels between what happened on Jan. 6 and the rise of fascism.”

Voldman said he feels fortunate: “There are other parts of the country where ... I would be scared to be a teacher.”

Liz Wagner, an eighth and ninth grade social studies teacher in a Des Moines suburb of increasingly Republican Iowa, got an email from an administrator last year, warning teachers to be careful in how they framed the discussion.

“I guess I was so, I don’t know if naïve is the appropriate word, perhaps exhausted from the pandemic teaching year last year, to understand how controversial this was going to be,” she said.

Some students questioned Wagner last year when she referred to what happened as an "insurrection." She responded by having them read the dictionary definition for the word. This year, she will probably show students videos of the protest and ask them to write about what the footage shows.

“This is kind of what I have to do to ensure that I’m not upsetting anybody,” Wagner said. “Last year I was on the front line of the COVID war, trying to dodge COVID, and now I’m on the front line of the culture war, and I don’t want to be there.”

With&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-education-coronavirus-pandemic-school-boards-35db5c9eec87b85ca8eb95a64c2f6dd7">crowds shouting at school board meetings</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/elections-education-race-and-ethnicity-racial-injustice-school-boards-bed36a1460957cb6be4df9d18583a765">political action committees investing millions of dollars in races</a>&nbsp;to elect conservative candidates across the country, talking to students about what happened on Jan. 6 is increasingly fraught.

Teachers now are left to decide how — or whether — to instruct their students about the events that sit at the heart of the country’s division. And the lessons sometimes vary based on whether they are in a red state or a blue state.

Facing History and Ourselves, a nonprofit that helps teachers with difficult lessons on subjects like the Holocaust, offered&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facinghistory.org/educator-resources/current-events/responding-insurrection-us-capitol" target="_blank">tips on how to broach the topic</a>&nbsp;with students in the hours after the riot.

Within 18 hours of publication, it had 100,000 page views — a level of interest that Abby Weiss, who oversees the development of the nonprofit’s teaching tools, said was unlike anything the group has seen before.

In the year that has followed, Weiss said, Republican lawmakers and governors in many states have championed legislation to limit the teaching of material that explores how race and racism influence American politics, culture and law.

“Teachers are anxious,” she said. “On the face of it, if you read the laws, they’re quite vague and, you know, hard to know actually what’s permissible and what isn’t.”

Racial discussions are hard to avoid when discussing the riot because&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/white-supremacy-threats-capitol-riots-2d4ba4d1a3d55197489d773b3e0b0f32">white supremacists&nbsp;</a>were among those descending on the halls of power, said Jinnie Spiegler, director of curriculum and training for the Anti-Defamation League. She said the group is concerned that the insurrection could be used as a recruitment tool and wrote&nbsp;<a href="https://www.adl.org/education/resources/tools-and-strategies/extreme-measures-how-to-help-young-people-counter" target="_blank">a newly released guide</a>&nbsp;to help teachers and parents combat those radicalization efforts.

“To talk about white supremacy, to talk about white supremacist extremists, to talk about their racist Confederate flag, it’s fraught for so many reasons,” Spiegler said.

Anton Schulzki, the president of the National Council for the Social Studies, said students are often the ones bringing up the racial issues. Last year, he was just moments into discussing what happened when one of his honors students at William J. Palmer High School in Colorado Springs said, “’You know, if those rioters were all Black, they’d all be arrested by now.”

Since then, three conservative school board candidates won seats on the school board where Schulzki teaches, and the district dissolved its equity leadership team. He is covered by a contract that offers academic freedom protections, and has discussed the riot periodically over the past year.

“I do feel,” he said, “that there may be some teachers who are going to feel the best thing for me to do is to ignore this because I don’t want to put myself in jeopardy because I have my own bills to pay, my own house, to take care of, my own kids to take back and forth to school.”

Concerned teachers have been reaching out to the American Federation of Teachers, which last month&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/education-lawsuits-discrimination-race-and-ethnicity-racial-injustice-3ad179f58e856873305541e1c95cdc14">sued over New Hampshire’s new limits</a>&nbsp;on the discussion of systemic racism and other topics.

“What I’m hearing now over and over and over again is that these laws that have been passed in different places are really intended to chill the discussion of current events,” said Randi Weingarten, the union’s president and a former social studies teacher. “I am very concerned about what it means in terms of the teaching as we get closer and closer to January 6th.”

The biggest fear for Paula Davis, a middle school special education teacher in a rural central Indiana district, is that the discussion about what happened could be used by teachers with a political agenda to indoctrinate students. She won’t discuss Jan. 6 in her classroom; her focus is math and English.

“I think it’s extremely important that any teacher that is addressing that topic does so from an unbiased perspective,” said Davis, a regional chapter chair for Moms for Liberty, a group whose members have protested mask and vaccine mandates and critical race theory. “If it cannot be done without bias, then it should not be done.”

But there is no way Dylan Huisken will avoid the topic in his middle school classroom in the Missoula, Montana, area town of Bonner. He plans to use the anniversary to teach his students to use their voice constructively by doing things like writing to lawmakers.

“Not addressing the attack,” Huisken said, “is to suggest that the civic ideals we teach exist in a vacuum and don’t have any real-world application, that civic knowledge is mere trivia.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/2/1614042711157.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated PressMISSION, Kan. — What students are learning about&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-confirm-joe-biden-78104aea082995bbd7412a6e6cd13818">the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6</a>&nbsp;may depend on where they live.In a Boston suburb in heavily Democratic Massachusetts, history teacher Justin Voldman said his students will spend the day journaling about what happened and talking about the fragility of democracy.“I feel really strongly that this needs to be talked about,” said Voldman, who teaches history at Natick High School, 15 miles (24 kilometers) west of Boston. As the grandson of a Holocaust survivor, he said “it is fair to draw parallels between what happened on Jan. 6 and the rise of fascism.”Voldman said he feels fortunate: “There are other parts of the country where ... I would be scared to be a teacher.”Liz Wagner, an eighth and ninth grade social studies teacher in a Des Moines suburb of increasingly Republican Iowa, got an email from an administrator last year, warning teachers to be careful in how they framed the discussion.“I guess I was so, I don’t know if naïve is the appropriate word, perhaps exhausted from the pandemic teaching year last year, to understand how controversial this was going to be,” she said.Some students questioned Wagner last year when she referred to what happened as an "insurrection." She responded by having them read the dictionary definition for the word. This year, she will probably show students videos of the protest and ask them to write about what the footage shows.“This is kind of what I have to do to ensure that I’m not upsetting anybody,” Wagner said. “Last year I was on the front line of the COVID war, trying to dodge COVID, and now I’m on the front line of the culture war, and I don’t want to be there.”With&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-education-coronavirus-pandemic-school-boards-35db5c9eec87b85ca8eb95a64c2f6dd7">crowds shouting at school board meetings</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/elections-education-race-and-ethnicity-racial-injustice-school-boards-bed36a1460957cb6be4df9d18583a765">political action committees investing millions of dollars in races</a>&nbsp;to elect conservative candidates across the country, talking to students about what happened on Jan. 6 is increasingly fraught.Teachers now are left to decide how — or whether — to instruct their students about the events that sit at the heart of the country’s division. And the lessons sometimes vary based on whether they are in a red state or a blue state.Facing History and Ourselves, a nonprofit that helps teachers with difficult lessons on subjects like the Holocaust, offered&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facinghistory.org/educator-resources/current-events/responding-insurrection-us-capitol" target="_blank">tips on how to broach the topic</a>&nbsp;with students in the hours after the riot.Within 18 hours of publication, it had 100,000 page views — a level of interest that Abby Weiss, who oversees the development of the nonprofit’s teaching tools, said was unlike anything the group has seen before.In the year that has followed, Weiss said, Republican lawmakers and governors in many states have championed legislation to limit the teaching of material that explores how race and racism influence American politics, culture and law.“Teachers are anxious,” she said. “On the face of it, if you read the laws, they’re quite vague and, you know, hard to know actually what’s permissible and what isn’t.”Racial discussions are hard to avoid when discussing the riot because&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/white-supremacy-threats-capitol-riots-2d4ba4d1a3d55197489d773b3e0b0f32">white supremacists&nbsp;</a>were among those descending on the halls of power, said Jinnie Spiegler, director of curriculum and training for the Anti-Defamation League. She said the group is concerned that the insurrection could be used as a recruitment tool and wrote&nbsp;<a href="https://www.adl.org/education/resources/tools-and-strategies/extreme-measures-how-to-help-young-people-counter" target="_blank">a newly released guide</a>&nbsp;to help teachers and parents combat those radicalization efforts.“To talk about white supremacy, to talk about white supremacist extremists, to talk about their racist Confederate flag, it’s fraught for so many reasons,” Spiegler said.Anton Schulzki, the president of the National Council for the Social Studies, said students are often the ones bringing up the racial issues. Last year, he was just moments into discussing what happened when one of his honors students at William J. Palmer High School in Colorado Springs said, “’You know, if those rioters were all Black, they’d all be arrested by now.”Since then, three conservative school board candidates won seats on the school board where Schulzki teaches, and the district dissolved its equity leadership team. He is covered by a contract that offers academic freedom protections, and has discussed the riot periodically over the past year.“I do feel,” he said, “that there may be some teachers who are going to feel the best thing for me to do is to ignore this because I don’t want to put myself in jeopardy because I have my own bills to pay, my own house, to take care of, my own kids to take back and forth to school.”Concerned teachers have been reaching out to the American Federation of Teachers, which last month&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/education-lawsuits-discrimination-race-and-ethnicity-racial-injustice-3ad179f58e856873305541e1c95cdc14">sued over New Hampshire’s new limits</a>&nbsp;on the discussion of systemic racism and other topics.“What I’m hearing now over and over and over again is that these laws that have been passed in different places are really intended to chill the discussion of current events,” said Randi Weingarten, the union’s president and a former social studies teacher. “I am very concerned about what it means in terms of the teaching as we get closer and closer to January 6th.”The biggest fear for Paula Davis, a middle school special education teacher in a rural central Indiana district, is that the discussion about what happened could be used by teachers with a political agenda to indoctrinate students. She won’t discuss Jan. 6 in her classroom; her focus is math and English.“I think it’s extremely important that any teacher that is addressing that topic does so from an unbiased perspective,” said Davis, a regional chapter chair for Moms for Liberty, a group whose members have protested mask and vaccine mandates and critical race theory. “If it cannot be done without bias, then it should not be done.”But there is no way Dylan Huisken will avoid the topic in his middle school classroom in the Missoula, Montana, area town of Bonner. He plans to use the anniversary to teach his students to use their voice constructively by doing things like writing to lawmakers.“Not addressing the attack,” Huisken said, “is to suggest that the civic ideals we teach exist in a vacuum and don’t have any real-world application, that civic knowledge is mere trivia.”

Teachers at culture war frontlines with Jan. 6 education

SEDGWICK COUNTY—A <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20035776">Kansas felon jailed </a>for the alleged fatal stabbing of a Kansas woman in her home is scheduled for a return to court Wednesday afternoon, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office. The&nbsp; hearing could determine when his case goes to trial.

Goldy Metcalf, 36, is<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20035776"> charged with 1st&nbsp;degree</a> murder, attempted 1st&nbsp;degree murder, aggravated burglary, burglary, theft, two counts of criminal damage to property, criminal damage to property and criminal trespass, according to the Sedgwick County District attorney's office.

Just after 8 a.m. Dec. 4, police responded to a disturbance with a weapon at a home in the 600 block of South Green in Wichita, according to Officer Charley Davidson.

 Upon arrival, officers located a 64-year-old woman and a 73-year-old man with multiple stab wounds. 

EMS transported both victims to an area hospital where the 64-year-old woman died, according to Davidson. The 73-year-old man had serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

The investigation revealed at approximately 5 a.m. on Dec. 4, officers responded to a call in the 1800 block of North Kansas regarding a citizen who had 36-year-old Goldy L. Metcalf of Wichita at gunpoint for unlawfully entering his vehicle.&nbsp; 

Metcalf was cooperative with officers, cited for misdemeanor tampering with an automobile, and given a courtesy transport to St. Francis Hospital for medical treatment due to a previous injury to his mouth, according to Davidson.

Metcalf left St. Francis Hospital against medical advice and at approximately 8 a.m. stole a blue Ford pick-up in the 600 block of North Waco that was left running.

Metcalf fled in the truck and crashed it into a building in the 600 block of South Green. He then fled the scene and forced his way into the residence on South Green, where he stabbed the two victims. Metcalf fled from that residence and entered an unoccupied residence in 600 block of South Erie, and attempted to gain access to a church in the same block. Thanks to information provided by citizens, police responded quickly, located&nbsp; Metcalf and arrested him.

Metcalf was paroled from prison in July and has prior convictions for aggravated battery, criminal possession of a firearm, burglary, flee law enforcement, and aggravated robbery, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.&nbsp; He<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20035776"> is jailed on </a>a bond $507,500.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1638721469657.png" alt="Metcalf-photo Sedgwick Co." />
 <figcaption>Metcalf-photo Sedgwick Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY—A <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20035776">Kansas felon jailed </a>for the alleged fatal stabbing of a Kansas woman in her home is scheduled for a return to court Wednesday afternoon, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office. The&nbsp; hearing could determine when his case goes to trial.Goldy Metcalf, 36, is<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20035776"> charged with 1st&nbsp;degree</a> murder, attempted 1st&nbsp;degree murder, aggravated burglary, burglary, theft, two counts of criminal damage to property, criminal damage to property and criminal trespass, according to the Sedgwick County District attorney's office.Just after 8 a.m. Dec. 4, police responded to a disturbance with a weapon at a home in the 600 block of South Green in Wichita, according to Officer Charley Davidson. Upon arrival, officers located a 64-year-old woman and a 73-year-old man with multiple stab wounds. EMS transported both victims to an area hospital where the 64-year-old woman died, according to Davidson. The 73-year-old man had serious but non-life-threatening injuries.The investigation revealed at approximately 5 a.m. on Dec. 4, officers responded to a call in the 1800 block of North Kansas regarding a citizen who had 36-year-old Goldy L. Metcalf of Wichita at gunpoint for unlawfully entering his vehicle.&nbsp; Metcalf was cooperative with officers, cited for misdemeanor tampering with an automobile, and given a courtesy transport to St. Francis Hospital for medical treatment due to a previous injury to his mouth, according to Davidson.Metcalf left St. Francis Hospital against medical advice and at approximately 8 a.m. stole a blue Ford pick-up in the 600 block of North Waco that was left running.Metcalf fled in the truck and crashed it into a building in the 600 block of South Green. He then fled the scene and forced his way into the residence on South Green, where he stabbed the two victims. Metcalf fled from that residence and entered an unoccupied residence in 600 block of South Erie, and attempted to gain access to a church in the same block. Thanks to information provided by citizens, police responded quickly, located&nbsp; Metcalf and arrested him.Metcalf was paroled from prison in July and has prior convictions for aggravated battery, criminal possession of a firearm, burglary, flee law enforcement, and aggravated robbery, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.&nbsp; He<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20035776"> is jailed on </a>a bond $507,500.&nbsp;

Felon who left hospital, killed Kan. woman in her home due in court

WASHINGTON (AP) — The suspect was covered from head to toe, skulking through the dark streets of the nation’s capital before methodically placing two explosives outside the offices of the Republican and Democratic national committees.

Only 17 hours later — and just before the U.S. Capitol was stormed by a sea of pro-Trump rioters — were the pipe bombs discovered. It quickly became one of the highest-priority investigations for the FBI and the Justice Department.

But the trail grew cold almost immediately. A year later, federal investigators are no closer to learning the person’s identity. And a key question remains: Was there a connection between the pipe bombs and the riot at the Capitol?

The suspect is among hundreds of people still being sought by the FBI following last January’s deadly insurrection. So far, 250 people seen on video assaulting police at the Capitol still haven’t been fully identified and apprehended by the FBI, and another 100 are being sought for other crimes tied to the riot.

The investigation has been a massive undertaking for federal law enforcement officials. More than 700 people have been charged with federal crimes stemming from the Jan. 6 attack, and arrests are still being made regularly.

But for the FBI agents working on the cases, the job is far from over. Agents and investigative analysts have been poring over thousands of hours of surveillance video, going second by second in each video to try to capture clear images of people who attacked officers inside the Capitol.

“This investigation takes time because it is a lot of lot of work, a lot of painstaking work that they look at the video kind of frame by frame,” said Steven D’Antuono, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s field office in Washington.

In one case, police body camera footage captures a man using a cane with electric prods on the end jabbing at officers and shocking them as they fight to hold back the riotous crowd trying to break through a barricaded line of officers at one of the doors of the Capitol. The crackling sound of the electricity can be heard as he prods his cane into one of the officers. The man, known only as “AFO114” — using shorthand for “assaulting a federal officer” — is still being sought.

“The assaults against the police officers are extremely serious,” D’Antuono said. More than 100 police officers were attacked by rioters on Jan. 6, some attacked by multiple people and some attacked multiple times, he said.

In another video, a man is seen repeatedly bashing a police officer over the head with a 6-foot (1.8-meter) metal pole as he tries to push his way into the Capitol. And a third shows a man spraying some kind of chemical from a can into the faces of other officers.

“There is still a lot of work to be done on this,” D’Antuono said. “There were a lot of people up there at the Capitol, a lot of people that either committed violence up there did other unlawful actions up there.”

In the search for the person who left the pipe bombs at the RNC and DNC offices, investigators have interviewed more than 900 people, collected 39,000 video files and examined more than 400 leads. They have dived into the components of the explosives and have been working to try to discern anything they can about the suspect, from analyzing the person's gait to trying to collect information about purchases of the distinctive Nike sneakers the person wore.

But they are still no closer to finding the suspect’s identity and are hoping renewed attention on the video of the person may spark a tip to crack the case.

The explosive devices were placed outside the two buildings between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 5, 2021, but weren’t located by law enforcement until the next day. U.S. Capitol Police and agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were called to the Republican National Committee’s office around 12:45 p.m. on Jan. 6. About 30 minutes later, as the agents and bomb technicians were still investigating at the RNC, another call came in for a similar explosive device found at the Democratic National Committee headquarters nearby. The bombs were rendered safe, and no one was hurt.

Video released by the FBI shows a person in a gray hooded sweatshirt, a face mask and gloves appearing to place one of the explosives under a bench outside the DNC and separately shows the person walking in an alley near the RNC before the bomb was placed there. The person wore black and light gray Nike Air Max Speed Turf sneakers with a yellow logo.

“We’ve used and continue to use every investigative tool that we lawfully have to find this individual,” D’Antuono said. But, a year later, investigators still don’t know whether the suspect is a man or a woman. The person carried the bombs — made of threaded galvanized pipes, kitchen timers and homemade black powder — in a backpack.

“We’re still nose to the grindstone here and trying to find this individual, trying to bring the person to justice,” D'Antuono said. “But there is hopefully maybe somebody still out there that knows the person or sees the video again.”

It is unclear whether the bombs were related to planning for the insurrection or whether they were unrelated to the deadly riot. Both buildings are within a few blocks of the Capitol.

And the fact the suspect was covered from head to toe has made identifying the person extremely difficult for the FBI.

“In normal times, like if this wasn’t COVID,” D’Antuono said, “a person walking down the street in D.C. covered from head to toe with a mask on, glasses and gloves would have been a red flag.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — The suspect was covered from head to toe, skulking through the dark streets of the nation’s capital before methodically placing two explosives outside the offices of the Republican and Democratic national committees.<div><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GNmjMIyoxHo?start=11" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>Only 17 hours later — and just before the U.S. Capitol was stormed by a sea of pro-Trump rioters — were the pipe bombs discovered. It quickly became one of the highest-priority investigations for the FBI and the Justice Department.But the trail grew cold almost immediately. A year later, federal investigators are no closer to learning the person’s identity. And a key question remains: Was there a connection between the pipe bombs and the riot at the Capitol?The suspect is among hundreds of people still being sought by the FBI following last January’s deadly insurrection. So far, 250 people seen on video assaulting police at the Capitol still haven’t been fully identified and apprehended by the FBI, and another 100 are being sought for other crimes tied to the riot.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641396762471.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>The investigation has been a massive undertaking for federal law enforcement officials. More than 700 people have been charged with federal crimes stemming from the Jan. 6 attack, and arrests are still being made regularly.But for the FBI agents working on the cases, the job is far from over. Agents and investigative analysts have been poring over thousands of hours of surveillance video, going second by second in each video to try to capture clear images of people who attacked officers inside the Capitol.“This investigation takes time because it is a lot of lot of work, a lot of painstaking work that they look at the video kind of frame by frame,” said Steven D’Antuono, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s field office in Washington.In one case, police body camera footage captures a man using a cane with electric prods on the end jabbing at officers and shocking them as they fight to hold back the riotous crowd trying to break through a barricaded line of officers at one of the doors of the Capitol. The crackling sound of the electricity can be heard as he prods his cane into one of the officers. The man, known only as “AFO114” — using shorthand for “assaulting a federal officer” — is still being sought.“The assaults against the police officers are extremely serious,” D’Antuono said. More than 100 police officers were attacked by rioters on Jan. 6, some attacked by multiple people and some attacked multiple times, he said.In another video, a man is seen repeatedly bashing a police officer over the head with a 6-foot (1.8-meter) metal pole as he tries to push his way into the Capitol. And a third shows a man spraying some kind of chemical from a can into the faces of other officers.“There is still a lot of work to be done on this,” D’Antuono said. “There were a lot of people up there at the Capitol, a lot of people that either committed violence up there did other unlawful actions up there.”In the search for the person who left the pipe bombs at the RNC and DNC offices, investigators have interviewed more than 900 people, collected 39,000 video files and examined more than 400 leads. They have dived into the components of the explosives and have been working to try to discern anything they can about the suspect, from analyzing the person's gait to trying to collect information about purchases of the distinctive Nike sneakers the person wore.But they are still no closer to finding the suspect’s identity and are hoping renewed attention on the video of the person may spark a tip to crack the case.The explosive devices were placed outside the two buildings between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 5, 2021, but weren’t located by law enforcement until the next day. U.S. Capitol Police and agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were called to the Republican National Committee’s office around 12:45 p.m. on Jan. 6. About 30 minutes later, as the agents and bomb technicians were still investigating at the RNC, another call came in for a similar explosive device found at the Democratic National Committee headquarters nearby. The bombs were rendered safe, and no one was hurt.Video released by the FBI shows a person in a gray hooded sweatshirt, a face mask and gloves appearing to place one of the explosives under a bench outside the DNC and separately shows the person walking in an alley near the RNC before the bomb was placed there. The person wore black and light gray Nike Air Max Speed Turf sneakers with a yellow logo.“We’ve used and continue to use every investigative tool that we lawfully have to find this individual,” D’Antuono said. But, a year later, investigators still don’t know whether the suspect is a man or a woman. The person carried the bombs — made of threaded galvanized pipes, kitchen timers and homemade black powder — in a backpack.“We’re still nose to the grindstone here and trying to find this individual, trying to bring the person to justice,” D'Antuono said. “But there is hopefully maybe somebody still out there that knows the person or sees the video again.”It is unclear whether the bombs were related to planning for the insurrection or whether they were unrelated to the deadly riot. Both buildings are within a few blocks of the Capitol.And the fact the suspect was covered from head to toe has made identifying the person extremely difficult for the FBI.“In normal times, like if this wasn’t COVID,” D’Antuono said, “a person walking down the street in D.C. covered from head to toe with a mask on, glasses and gloves would have been a red flag.”

🎥 FBI still hunting Jan. 6 suspects, pipe bomber a year later

In the last year, a new product popped up in stores across Ellis County.

Found on shelves in local convenience and liquor stores, Delta-8 products were being sold in a variety of forms, from edible to vape-based.

Often found near CBD or nicotine-based products, Delta-8 has been readily available for months across the state.

But while the product was being openly purchased and consumed, recent guidance from the Ellis County Attorney and Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt clarified Delta-8 is illegal to sell and possess in Kansas.

After informing area businesses of the new clarification, most shops in the county have removed the product from their shelves, but now Ellis County Attorney Robert Anderson, warned those that continue to sell or possess the product are now in clear violation of the law.

“Over the last 18 to 24 months across the state of Kansas, businesses have been begun selling hemp-derived Delta-8 THC products — vape pens, gummies, candy, etc.” Anderson said. “These products are typically anywhere between 60-99 percent concentrated Delta-8 THC. Arguably, these products were legal prior to the April 29 amendment. After the law was amended, there was a lot of confusion concerning whether or not these products in particular were now legal or illegal.”

He said his department has interpreted the change in law to mean that these products are now illegal, but had not taken action against those in violation.

“On Dec. 2, the Kansas Attorney General issued an opinion on this very topic and concluded that these products are illegal,” Anderson said. “A recent criminal case in Ellis County took up this issue as well. A district court judge in the 23rd Judicial District found, among other things, that for a hemp product to be lawful, it must contain a total THC concentration of less than 0.3 percent. Bottom line: Hemp-derived Delta-8 THC products are illegal.”

Delta-8 came to prominence as a THC product, often thought of as a lighter version of traditional marijuana, processed from hemp, that carried inherent benefits of use, without the psychotropic effects.

While Delta-8 is found in small amounts marijuana, along with other cannabinoids, the chemical in marijuana that is most closely associated with getting “high” is another cannabinoid, Delta-9.

While Delta-8 does not inherently carry the same potency as Delta-9, it was the manufacturing process that created the original confusion around the legality of the product.

When Kansas approved the production of hemp products, the process of extracting Delta-8 from hemp was also thought to be legal.

But now the recent guidance clarifies, possessing, or selling products with THC above the 0.3 percent legal limit, in any form, is not legal in Kansas, no matter how it was manufactured.

“This is no longer just my interpretation of the law,” Anderson said in a letter to local business last week. “On Dec. 2, the Kansas Attorney General, Derek Schmidt, issued an opinion on this very topic. His opinion was nearly identical to mine and clearly stated that these products are illegal. … That judge found that any hemp product containing THC levels exceeding 0.3 percent are illegal. Additionally, that defendant was convicted of unlawful possession of tetrahydrocannabinols, a severity level 5 drug felony.”

Within days of the letter being issued, most sellers had removed the product from their shelves in Hays, but for those that did not, Anderson warned the leniency due to the questionable legality surrounding the product has ended.

“For nearly a year now, law enforcement has been ready to take legal action against those possessing, selling, and/or distributing Delta-8 THC products — because they have a duty to enforce the law,” Anderson said. “Until now, this office has given local businesses every opportunity to comply with the law and has operated under the premise that I could very well be interpreting the law incorrectly. Now that authorities higher than myself have weighed in, this office cannot continue to request that law enforcement in Ellis County not act.

“Ellis County law enforcement officers now have clear direction from higher authorities than this office who have determined that these products are illegal. As such, law enforcement officers in Ellis County have a legal obligation to seize these products as illegal contraband and have authority to arrest those in possession, or those who are distributing and/or selling these products.”

Anderson said, while the recent guidance completely clarifies the issue, he has warned businesses in the area for months that it was his opinion that selling Delta-8 products was a violation of the law.

“It's (their) duty to ensure that your products comply with the law,” Anderson said. “And I kind of spelled it out for (them). I go, 'Look, we're not going to do anything right now, but probably should be hesitant.' And to my knowledge, only one place got rid of the stuff.”

Now it is the duty of law enforcement to act to stop the sale of Delta-8 or any THC product that is over the 0.3 percent limit, he said.

“Law enforcement has a duty and obligation to seize illegal contraband, and they can't just see it and look the other way and ignore it and decide not to do anything about it,” Anderson said. “So now that that now that law enforcement has clear direction, from the attorney general, from the old county attorney, and from a judge in the 23rd Judicial District, I feel like they have an obligation to seize that stuff that they are aware that of its present.”

He said that could include search warrants and seizure of illegal contraband in those businesses that continue to violate the law.

“Any time you are in possession of illegal contraband with the intent to distribute it, it elevates the stakes,” Anderson said. “Now, those, those felonies on the drug grid, that involve distribution are dependent upon quantity. But that's simply having possession of it with intent to distribute, even if you have just a little bit elevates the stakes from just simple possession.”

Anderson said even those that are currently in possession of any Delta-8 products should get rid of them, as even what was thought to have been a legal purchase can lead to a drug possession charge.

“From my view, we've given everyone as much cushion on this as we possibly can,” he said. And it's just at the point where ... now we can be pretty certain that I've been correct all along. And now we have a duty to act. We have a duty to enforce the laws.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641305014931.jpg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By JAMES BELL Hays PostIn the last year, a new product popped up in stores across Ellis County.Found on shelves in local convenience and liquor stores, Delta-8 products were being sold in a variety of forms, from edible to vape-based.Often found near CBD or nicotine-based products, Delta-8 has been readily available for months across the state.But while the product was being openly purchased and consumed, recent guidance from the Ellis County Attorney and Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt clarified Delta-8 is illegal to sell and possess in Kansas.After informing area businesses of the new clarification, most shops in the county have removed the product from their shelves, but now Ellis County Attorney Robert Anderson, warned those that continue to sell or possess the product are now in clear violation of the law.“Over the last 18 to 24 months across the state of Kansas, businesses have been begun selling hemp-derived Delta-8 THC products — vape pens, gummies, candy, etc.” Anderson said. “These products are typically anywhere between 60-99 percent concentrated Delta-8 THC. Arguably, these products were legal prior to the April 29 amendment. After the law was amended, there was a lot of confusion concerning whether or not these products in particular were now legal or illegal.”He said his department has interpreted the change in law to mean that these products are now illegal, but had not taken action against those in violation.But that grace ends now.“On Dec. 2, the Kansas Attorney General issued an opinion on this very topic and concluded that these products are illegal,” Anderson said. “A recent criminal case in Ellis County took up this issue as well. A district court judge in the 23rd Judicial District found, among other things, that for a hemp product to be lawful, it must contain a total THC concentration of less than 0.3 percent. Bottom line: Hemp-derived Delta-8 THC products are illegal.”Delta-8 came to prominence as a THC product, often thought of as a lighter version of traditional marijuana, processed from hemp, that carried inherent benefits of use, without the psychotropic effects.While Delta-8 is found in small amounts marijuana, along with other cannabinoids, the chemical in marijuana that is most closely associated with getting “high” is another cannabinoid, Delta-9.While Delta-8 does not inherently carry the same potency as Delta-9, it was the manufacturing process that created the original confusion around the legality of the product.When Kansas approved the production of hemp products, the process of extracting Delta-8 from hemp was also thought to be legal.But now the recent guidance clarifies, possessing, or selling products with THC above the 0.3 percent legal limit, in any form, is not legal in Kansas, no matter how it was manufactured.“This is no longer just my interpretation of the law,” Anderson said in a letter to local business last week. “On Dec. 2, the Kansas Attorney General, Derek Schmidt, issued an opinion on this very topic. His opinion was nearly identical to mine and clearly stated that these products are illegal. … That judge found that any hemp product containing THC levels exceeding 0.3 percent are illegal. Additionally, that defendant was convicted of unlawful possession of tetrahydrocannabinols, a severity level 5 drug felony.”Within days of the letter being issued, most sellers had removed the product from their shelves in Hays, but for those that did not, Anderson warned the leniency due to the questionable legality surrounding the product has ended.“For nearly a year now, law enforcement has been ready to take legal action against those possessing, selling, and/or distributing Delta-8 THC products — because they have a duty to enforce the law,” Anderson said. “Until now, this office has given local businesses every opportunity to comply with the law and has operated under the premise that I could very well be interpreting the law incorrectly. Now that authorities higher than myself have weighed in, this office cannot continue to request that law enforcement in Ellis County not act.“Ellis County law enforcement officers now have clear direction from higher authorities than this office who have determined that these products are illegal. As such, law enforcement officers in Ellis County have a legal obligation to seize these products as illegal contraband and have authority to arrest those in possession, or those who are distributing and/or selling these products.”Anderson said, while the recent guidance completely clarifies the issue, he has warned businesses in the area for months that it was his opinion that selling Delta-8 products was a violation of the law.“It's (their) duty to ensure that your products comply with the law,” Anderson said. “And I kind of spelled it out for (them). I go, 'Look, we're not going to do anything right now, but probably should be hesitant.' And to my knowledge, only one place got rid of the stuff.”Now it is the duty of law enforcement to act to stop the sale of Delta-8 or any THC product that is over the 0.3 percent limit, he said.“Law enforcement has a duty and obligation to seize illegal contraband, and they can't just see it and look the other way and ignore it and decide not to do anything about it,” Anderson said. “So now that that now that law enforcement has clear direction, from the attorney general, from the old county attorney, and from a judge in the 23rd Judicial District, I feel like they have an obligation to seize that stuff that they are aware that of its present.”He said that could include search warrants and seizure of illegal contraband in those businesses that continue to violate the law.“Any time you are in possession of illegal contraband with the intent to distribute it, it elevates the stakes,” Anderson said. “Now, those, those felonies on the drug grid, that involve distribution are dependent upon quantity. But that's simply having possession of it with intent to distribute, even if you have just a little bit elevates the stakes from just simple possession.”Anderson said even those that are currently in possession of any Delta-8 products should get rid of them, as even what was thought to have been a legal purchase can lead to a drug possession charge.“From my view, we've given everyone as much cushion on this as we possibly can,” he said. And it's just at the point where ... now we can be pretty certain that I've been correct all along. And now we have a duty to act. We have a duty to enforce the laws.”Cover image courtesy Pixabay

County Attorney warns Delta-8 illegal; pulled from stores

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas man for alleged drug distribution.

On Sunday, members of the Topeka Police Department Narcotics Unit and the Shawnee County Drug Task Force served a search warrant at a home in the 3700 Block of SE 30th Terrace in Topeka in related to an ongoing investigation, according to Lt. Jerry Monasmith.

 While conducting the search warrant, officers located marijuana, controlled substances, drug paraphernalia, and a firearm.

Officers arrested Dustin Lewis, 22 years of age, of Topeka, on requested charges that include Possession of marijuana with the intent of distribution, Possession of a controlled substance, Possession of depressants with the intent of distribution and Possession of drug paraphernalia with the intent of distribution.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641246798036.png" alt="Lewis photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Lewis photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas man for alleged drug distribution.On Sunday, members of the Topeka Police Department Narcotics Unit and the Shawnee County Drug Task Force served a search warrant at a home in the 3700 Block of SE 30th Terrace in Topeka in related to an ongoing investigation, according to Lt. Jerry Monasmith. While conducting the search warrant, officers located marijuana, controlled substances, drug paraphernalia, and a firearm.Officers arrested Dustin Lewis, 22 years of age, of Topeka, on requested charges that include Possession of marijuana with the intent of distribution, Possession of a controlled substance, Possession of depressants with the intent of distribution and Possession of drug paraphernalia with the intent of distribution.

Task force arrests Kan. man for alleged drug distribution

TOPEKA—Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects for a series of burglaries.

On Dec. 30, police were dispatched to 2720 NE Grantville reference multiple subjects breaking into storage units, according to Lt. Kelvin Johnson.

 Officers arrived on scene and saw two subjects getting into a vehicle and driving to the rear of the property

Police set up a perimeter, the business was cleared and the vehicle was found to be stolen. With the assistance of a K9 and the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office, both subjects were located and taken into custody.

As a result of the investigation, police arrested Donald Buhrle, 50, and Walter Rogers, 58, booked them into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges of Burglary, Theft, Criminal Damage, Possession of Stolen Property and Felony Interference.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641209906774.png" alt="Rogers-photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Rogers-photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA—Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects for a series of burglaries.On Dec. 30, police were dispatched to 2720 NE Grantville reference multiple subjects breaking into storage units, according to Lt. Kelvin Johnson. Officers arrived on scene and saw two subjects getting into a vehicle and driving to the rear of the property<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641209953876.png" alt="Buhrle -photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Buhrle -photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>Police set up a perimeter, the business was cleared and the vehicle was found to be stolen. With the assistance of a K9 and the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office, both subjects were located and taken into custody.As a result of the investigation, police arrested Donald Buhrle, 50, and Walter Rogers, 58, booked them into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges of Burglary, Theft, Criminal Damage, Possession of Stolen Property and Felony Interference.

Police arrest two Kansas men for series of burglaries

KANSAS CITY– A Mexican national was sentenced in federal court Thursday for his role in a conspiracy that distributed more than 2,600 kilograms of cocaine in the Kansas City metropolitan area, according to the United State's Attorney.

Jesus Salvador Campoy-Estrada, also known as “Chava” and “Chavita,” 27, of Kansas City, Kansas, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to 12 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Campoy-Estrada to forfeit to the government $12,150,000, which represents the proceeds of illegal drug trafficking.

On Dec. 19, 2019, Campoy-Estrada pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and one count of money laundering. He is the final defendant among 13 defendants to be sentenced in this case.

When Campoy-Estrada was arrested, law enforcement searched his residence and found $111,995 that he admitted was illicit drug proceeds, marijuana, a drug ledger, and a loaded XD 9mm semi-automatic handgun.

Campoy-Estrada was a primary organizer in a drug-trafficking organization that distributed substantial amounts of cocaine from Mexico in the Kansas City metropolitan area from October 2013 to Nov. 15, 2018. Campoy-Estrada admitted that he was personally responsible for the distribution of well in excess of 450 kilograms of cocaine during his involvement with the larger conspiracy. At one point, he distributed approximately 10 to 20 kilograms of cocaine each week.

Campoy-Estrada obtained substantial sums of money from his involvement in the drug-trafficking conspiracy, which he converted to other forms of property, such as real estate, in an effort to conceal the illicit nature of the drug proceeds.

Campoy-Estrada received cocaine from the leader of the conspiracy, co-defendant Jose Luis Armendariz-Rascon, also known as “Uncle” or “Rambo,” 41, of Kansas City, Kan. Campoy-Estrada then sold cocaine to other cocaine dealers, including co-defendant Howard Christopher Walters, also known as “Chris,” 44, of Lee’s Summit, Missouri. Investigators intercepted several telephone calls in which Campoy-Estrada and Walters discussed the sale of multiple kilograms of cocaine to Walters. Law enforcement also intercepted many other wire and electronic communications between Campoy-Estrada and persons he sold cocaine to during the course of the conspiracy.

Armendariz-Rascon was sentenced on May 21, 2021, to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Walters was sentenced on April 21, 2021, to 25 years in federal prison without parole after pleading guilty to his role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy. The court also ordered Armendariz-Rascon to forfeit to the government more than $56 million, which represents the proceeds of illegal drug trafficking.

Armendariz-Rascon was in charge of coordinating the transportation of loads of cocaine from the El Paso, Texas, area to the Kansas City metropolitan area for distribution. Armendariz-Rascon would then coordinate the collection of bulk cash that was sent back to El Paso as payment for the cocaine.

Otilio Zaragoza-Navarrette, 65, of El Paso, delivered cocaine to Jose Armendariz-Rascon as well as to Campoy-Estrada and Miguel Armendariz-Rascon, 33, a citizen of Mexico residing in Olathe, Kan. Zaragoza-Navarrette and Miguel Armendariz-Rascon have pleaded guilty and been sentenced.

Zaragoza-Navarette also transported illicit drug proceeds from the drug-trafficking organization back to Texas and/or to Mexico. Zaragoza-Navarrette hid the cocaine and/or the cash proceeds inside of five-gallon gas cans and anti-freeze jugs on his commercial semi-tractor trailer. In one instance, law enforcement officers seized nearly $500,000 from Zaragoza-Navarrette, who was transferring the illicit drug proceeds in an operation orchestrated by Armendariz-Rascon.

KANSAS CITY– A Mexican national was sentenced in federal court Thursday for his role in a conspiracy that distributed more than 2,600 kilograms of cocaine in the Kansas City metropolitan area, according to the United State's Attorney.Jesus Salvador Campoy-Estrada, also known as “Chava” and “Chavita,” 27, of Kansas City, Kansas, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to 12 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Campoy-Estrada to forfeit to the government $12,150,000, which represents the proceeds of illegal drug trafficking.On Dec. 19, 2019, Campoy-Estrada pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and one count of money laundering. He is the final defendant among 13 defendants to be sentenced in this case.When Campoy-Estrada was arrested, law enforcement searched his residence and found $111,995 that he admitted was illicit drug proceeds, marijuana, a drug ledger, and a loaded XD 9mm semi-automatic handgun.Campoy-Estrada was a primary organizer in a drug-trafficking organization that distributed substantial amounts of cocaine from Mexico in the Kansas City metropolitan area from October 2013 to Nov. 15, 2018. Campoy-Estrada admitted that he was personally responsible for the distribution of well in excess of 450 kilograms of cocaine during his involvement with the larger conspiracy. At one point, he distributed approximately 10 to 20 kilograms of cocaine each week.Campoy-Estrada obtained substantial sums of money from his involvement in the drug-trafficking conspiracy, which he converted to other forms of property, such as real estate, in an effort to conceal the illicit nature of the drug proceeds.Campoy-Estrada received cocaine from the leader of the conspiracy, co-defendant Jose Luis Armendariz-Rascon, also known as “Uncle” or “Rambo,” 41, of Kansas City, Kan. Campoy-Estrada then sold cocaine to other cocaine dealers, including co-defendant Howard Christopher Walters, also known as “Chris,” 44, of Lee’s Summit, Missouri. Investigators intercepted several telephone calls in which Campoy-Estrada and Walters discussed the sale of multiple kilograms of cocaine to Walters. Law enforcement also intercepted many other wire and electronic communications between Campoy-Estrada and persons he sold cocaine to during the course of the conspiracy.Armendariz-Rascon was sentenced on May 21, 2021, to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Walters was sentenced on April 21, 2021, to 25 years in federal prison without parole after pleading guilty to his role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy. The court also ordered Armendariz-Rascon to forfeit to the government more than $56 million, which represents the proceeds of illegal drug trafficking.Armendariz-Rascon was in charge of coordinating the transportation of loads of cocaine from the El Paso, Texas, area to the Kansas City metropolitan area for distribution. Armendariz-Rascon would then coordinate the collection of bulk cash that was sent back to El Paso as payment for the cocaine.Otilio Zaragoza-Navarrette, 65, of El Paso, delivered cocaine to Jose Armendariz-Rascon as well as to Campoy-Estrada and Miguel Armendariz-Rascon, 33, a citizen of Mexico residing in Olathe, Kan. Zaragoza-Navarrette and Miguel Armendariz-Rascon have pleaded guilty and been sentenced.Zaragoza-Navarette also transported illicit drug proceeds from the drug-trafficking organization back to Texas and/or to Mexico. Zaragoza-Navarrette hid the cocaine and/or the cash proceeds inside of five-gallon gas cans and anti-freeze jugs on his commercial semi-tractor trailer. In one instance, law enforcement officers seized nearly $500,000 from Zaragoza-Navarrette, who was transferring the illicit drug proceeds in an operation orchestrated by Armendariz-Rascon.

Mexican national ran large KC-area cocaine distribution organization

SEDGWICK COUNTY — Authorities are investigating a drunk driving arrest involving an off-duty police officer.

On New Year's Eve, the Clearwater Police Department notified Wichita Police officials&nbsp;that they had arrested an off-duty Wichita Police Department officer on suspicion of driving under the influence, according to police department spokesman Officer Trevor Macy.

The officer, identified as Alex Gardinier, was arrested, cited and released by Coldwater police for a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence and speeding.

Gardinier has been employed with the Wichita Police Department for six years and was assigned to the Field Services Division. He has been moved to an administrative assignment, according to Macy.

The Clearwater Police Department is investigating the case, and an internal review will take place by Wichita police.

SEDGWICK COUNTY — Authorities are investigating a drunk driving arrest involving an off-duty police officer.On New Year's Eve, the Clearwater Police Department notified Wichita Police officials&nbsp;that they had arrested an off-duty Wichita Police Department officer on suspicion of driving under the influence, according to police department spokesman Officer Trevor Macy.The officer, identified as Alex Gardinier, was arrested, cited and released by Coldwater police for a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence and speeding.Gardinier has been employed with the Wichita Police Department for six years and was assigned to the Field Services Division. He has been moved to an administrative assignment, according to Macy.The Clearwater Police Department is investigating the case, and an internal review will take place by Wichita police.

Off-duty Kan. police officer arrested for alleged DUI, speeding

PAWNEE COUNTy – Larned State Hospital (LSH) official notified Pawnee County law enforcement at 11:30 p.m. Monday that a patient had absconded from the Crisis Stabilization Unit on the Campus of Larned State Hospital, according to Pawnee County Attorney Doug McNett. 

An electronic notification was then sent to area residents to be on alert.

The patient was later identified as Isaac Nathaniel Watts, 43 of Ulysses. 

He had been at LSH since December 4, 2021, on an involuntary civil commitment for care and treatment. He was also subject to a hold by the Grant County Sheriff for charges of felony Attempted Second Degree Murder and Aggravated Kidnapping.

Watts, along with a female accomplice, were taken into custody in Finney County at approximately 11:00 a.m. Tuesday without incident by the Garden City Police Department. 

The two remain in the custody of Finney County Detention Center pending formal charging decisions.

The specific details of his escape and any assistance he may have received are subject to an ongoing criminal investigation.

Under Kansas law, a “mentally ill person subject to involuntary commitment for care and treatment” means a mentally ill person who also lacks capacity to make an informed decision concerning treatment, is likely to cause harm to self or others, and whose diagnosis is not solely one of the following mental disorders: Alcohol or chemical substance abuse; antisocial personality disorder; intellectual disability; organic personality syndrome; or an organic mental disorder.

PAWNEE COUNTY - Through help of Finney County agencies, 43-year-old Isaac Nathaniel Watts, was located and placed into custody, according to a social media report from the Pawnee Co. Sheriff.

PAWNEE COUNTY– Isaac Nathaniel Watts, a 43-year-old patient on a court-ordered Care and Treatment Order through Pawnee County, Kan. and a hold order from Grant County, Kan., walked away Monday night from Larned State Hospital (LSH) and is currently considered absent without leave, according to a statement from Kansas Dept. of Aging and Disability Services. 

Watts, charged with kidnapping and attempted second-degree murder, was being held in the hospital’s crisis stabilization unit (CSU).

Watts was seen on video walking out of the CSU at approximately 9 p.m. wearing multiple layers of clothing, including blue jeans and a state-issued jean jacket. 

Watts’s elopement violates the court-ordered hold, making this a criminal investigation led by the Pawnee County Sheriff’s office in cooperation with the LSH Special Investigator.

“I have been in constant contact with the superintendent and leadership team at Larned and am monitoring the progress of the situation each moment,” Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services Secretary Laura Howard said. “We are working closely with local law enforcement to ensure Mr. Watts is detained without delay or incident”

Watts is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 161 pounds. He has a multiple tattoos, including a cross on his upper right arm, a spider on his abdomen, a “Tiki” figure on his upper left arm, an owl and roses on his left forearm, a bible ad roses on his left upper back and a scorpion on his left calf. The Pawnee County Sheriff was alerted to the situation. The Kansas Highway Patrol has also been notified.

LSH and KDADS officials are fully cooperating with law enforcement’s ongoing investigation.&nbsp;

PAWNEE COUNTY—Authorities are working to capture a man who walked away from the Larned State Hospital.

According to Pawnee County Sheriff Scott King, attempted second degree murder and kidnapping suspect Isaac N. Watts 43, of Grant County walked away from the Larned State Hospital on Monday night.

Authorities know where he is and are close to taking him into custody, according to King.&nbsp; Authorities don't think he is a predator.&nbsp;

Deputies arrested Watts on November 29 in connection with a domestic situation, according to Grant&nbsp; County Sheriff James Biddle and he was sent to Larned State Hospital for a mental evaluation.

The Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services is expected to release additional details on the escape later Tuesday.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641330344451.png" alt="Watts-photo Finney County" />
 <figcaption>Watts-photo Finney County</figcaption>
 </figure>PAWNEE COUNTy – Larned State Hospital (LSH) official notified Pawnee County law enforcement at 11:30 p.m. Monday that a patient had absconded from the Crisis Stabilization Unit on the Campus of Larned State Hospital, according to Pawnee County Attorney Doug McNett. An electronic notification was then sent to area residents to be on alert.The patient was later identified as Isaac Nathaniel Watts, 43 of Ulysses. He had been at LSH since December 4, 2021, on an involuntary civil commitment for care and treatment. He was also subject to a hold by the Grant County Sheriff for charges of felony Attempted Second Degree Murder and Aggravated Kidnapping.Watts, along with a female accomplice, were taken into custody in Finney County at approximately 11:00 a.m. Tuesday without incident by the Garden City Police Department. The two remain in the custody of Finney County Detention Center pending formal charging decisions.The specific details of his escape and any assistance he may have received are subject to an ongoing criminal investigation.Under Kansas law, a “mentally ill person subject to involuntary commitment for care and treatment” means a mentally ill person who also lacks capacity to make an informed decision concerning treatment, is likely to cause harm to self or others, and whose diagnosis is not solely one of the following mental disorders: Alcohol or chemical substance abuse; antisocial personality disorder; intellectual disability; organic personality syndrome; or an organic mental disorder.PAWNEE COUNTY - Through help of Finney County agencies, 43-year-old Isaac Nathaniel Watts, was located and placed into custody, according to a social media report from the Pawnee Co. Sheriff.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641315388419.png" alt="Watts from a 2006 arrest -Grant Co. Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>Watts from a 2006 arrest -Grant Co. Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>--------PAWNEE COUNTY– Isaac Nathaniel Watts, a 43-year-old patient on a court-ordered Care and Treatment Order through Pawnee County, Kan. and a hold order from Grant County, Kan., walked away Monday night from Larned State Hospital (LSH) and is currently considered absent without leave, according to a statement from Kansas Dept. of Aging and Disability Services. Watts, charged with kidnapping and attempted second-degree murder, was being held in the hospital’s crisis stabilization unit (CSU).Watts was seen on video walking out of the CSU at approximately 9 p.m. wearing multiple layers of clothing, including blue jeans and a state-issued jean jacket. Watts’s elopement violates the court-ordered hold, making this a criminal investigation led by the Pawnee County Sheriff’s office in cooperation with the LSH Special Investigator.“I have been in constant contact with the superintendent and leadership team at Larned and am monitoring the progress of the situation each moment,” Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services Secretary Laura Howard said. “We are working closely with local law enforcement to ensure Mr. Watts is detained without delay or incident”Watts is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 161 pounds. He has a multiple tattoos, including a cross on his upper right arm, a spider on his abdomen, a “Tiki” figure on his upper left arm, an owl and roses on his left forearm, a bible ad roses on his left upper back and a scorpion on his left calf. The Pawnee County Sheriff was alerted to the situation. The Kansas Highway Patrol has also been notified.LSH and KDADS officials are fully cooperating with law enforcement’s ongoing investigation.&nbsp;-------PAWNEE COUNTY—Authorities are working to capture a man who walked away from the Larned State Hospital.According to Pawnee County Sheriff Scott King, attempted second degree murder and kidnapping suspect Isaac N. Watts 43, of Grant County walked away from the Larned State Hospital on Monday night.Authorities know where he is and are close to taking him into custody, according to King.&nbsp; Authorities don't think he is a predator.&nbsp;Deputies arrested Watts on November 29 in connection with a domestic situation, according to Grant&nbsp; County Sheriff James Biddle and he was sent to Larned State Hospital for a mental evaluation.The Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services is expected to release additional details on the escape later Tuesday.

Escapee from Larned State Hospital had female accomplice

JACKSON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects for drug possession after a New Year's Day traffic stop.

Just before 9a.m. Saturday, a sheriff's deputy stopped a vehicle in the area of Northbound U.S. 75 Highway and Columbine Drive for a traffic infraction, according to Sheriff Tim Morse.

During the stop, a quantity of methamphetamine and a hallucinogenic drug was located in the vehicle.

 Jessica Lynn Andrews, 40, of Topeka, was arrested on requested charges that include possession of methamphetamine, possession of a hallucinogenic drug, possession of drug paraphernalia, and transporting an open container. 

Deputies also arrested Russell Washington IV, 36, of Axtell, on requested charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of a hallucinogenic drug, possession of drug paraphernalia, and driving while suspended. Washington also had several outstanding warrants from Shawnee County, Marshall County, and the Topeka Police Department, according to Morse.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641247019303.png" alt="Washington-photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Washington-photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>JACKSON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects for drug possession after a New Year's Day traffic stop.Just before 9a.m. Saturday, a sheriff's deputy stopped a vehicle in the area of Northbound U.S. 75 Highway and Columbine Drive for a traffic infraction, according to Sheriff Tim Morse.During the stop, a quantity of methamphetamine and a hallucinogenic drug was located in the vehicle.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641246975353.png" alt="Andrews-photo Jackson Co." />
 <figcaption>Andrews-photo Jackson Co.</figcaption>
 </figure> Jessica Lynn Andrews, 40, of Topeka, was arrested on requested charges that include possession of methamphetamine, possession of a hallucinogenic drug, possession of drug paraphernalia, and transporting an open container. Deputies also arrested Russell Washington IV, 36, of Axtell, on requested charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of a hallucinogenic drug, possession of drug paraphernalia, and driving while suspended. Washington also had several outstanding warrants from Shawnee County, Marshall County, and the Topeka Police Department, according to Morse.

Deputies catch wanted Kan. suspect during New Year's Day traffic stop

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects after a reported burglary in the 900 block of SW University Drive in Topeka. Just before 8 a.m. New Year's Eve, the Shawnee County authorities received a 911 call reporting a white 2004 Chevrolet Avalanche with two woman&nbsp; taking items from a business, according to Deputy Abigail Christian.

Deputies responded and conducted a traffic stop on that vehicle in the 4200 block of SW 75 Highway. Deputies arrested Cristal M. Gadbury, 44, and Frednetta T. Covington-Winston, 26, both of Topeka.

Gadbury was booked on requested charges of driving with a suspended driver’s license, no vehicle liability insurance, license plate not assigned to that vehicle, unsecured load and theft. 

Winston had two misdemeanor warrants through the Topeka Police Department and was booked on requested charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and theft.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641162776902.png" alt="Covington-Winston-photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Covington-Winston-photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects after a reported burglary in the 900 block of SW University Drive in Topeka. Just before 8 a.m. New Year's Eve, the Shawnee County authorities received a 911 call reporting a white 2004 Chevrolet Avalanche with two woman&nbsp; taking items from a business, according to Deputy Abigail Christian. Deputies responded and conducted a traffic stop on that vehicle in the 4200 block of SW 75 Highway. Deputies arrested Cristal M. Gadbury, 44, and Frednetta T. Covington-Winston, 26, both of Topeka.Gadbury was booked on requested charges of driving with a suspended driver’s license, no vehicle liability insurance, license plate not assigned to that vehicle, unsecured load and theft. Winston had two misdemeanor warrants through the Topeka Police Department and was booked on requested charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and theft.

Sheriff: 2 Kansas women accused in New Year's Eve burglary

FORT SCOTT, Kan. (AP) — A 23-year-old Fort Scott man has been charged with killing his mother and another man. 

The Bourbon County Prosecutor's office charged Dawson Mitchell last week with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of 48-year-old Melissa Mitchell and 53-year-old Leonard Zimmerman. 

Their bodies were found at their home on Dec. 21. Dawson Mitchell was arrested the next day. Authorities have not said what prompted the shootings. Mitchell was also charged with being a felon in possession of a weapon, an aggravated weapons charge and two theft counts.

BOURBON COUNTY –&nbsp;The Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI), and the Fort Scott Police Department have arrested 23-year-old Dawson J. Mitchell, the person of interest connected to the murders of Melissa Mitchell and Leonard Zimmerman, according to a media release from the KBI.

Mitchell was arrested at approximately 1 p.m. on Wednesday near the intersection of 5th&nbsp;St. and Judson St. in Fort Scott.

He is being held on requested charges of theft of a firearm, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and unlawful possession of controlled substances. He was then booked into the Bourbon County Jail.

Currently, Mitchell has not been charged related to the murders, according to the KBI.

BOURBON COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities are investigating after two victims were found shot in their Fort Scott home on Tuesday night, according to a media release from the&nbsp;Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

Just after 7:30p.m. Tuesday, the Fort Scott Police Department received a 911 call from a subject who came home to find a female family member had been shot. 

When police arrived at 402 Main St. in Fort Scott, they located 48-year-old Melissa L. Mitchell who had died from a gunshot wound. They also discovered 53-year-old Leonard D. Zimmerman deceased inside the residence. Both victims were pronounced dead at the scene.

The victims’ son, Dawson J. Mitchell, 23, of Fort Scott, is a person of interest and is wanted for questioning connected to the case. Investigators are working to locate him at this time.

If you know the whereabouts of 23-year-old Dawson J. Mitchell, you are asked to contact the Fort Scott Police Department at 620-223-1700 or the KBI at 1-800-KS-CRIME. Mitchell is expected to be armed and dangerous. Do not approach him, but immediately call police.

Mitchell is a white male, 5-foot- 7 in. tall, 160 pounds. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. Mitchell was last seen wearing blue jeans, a brown Carhartt-style coat and a baseball cap that is light in color in the front and dark in color in the back.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640220648047.png" alt="Mitchell following his arrest Dec. 22-photo Bourbon Co." />
 <figcaption>Mitchell following his arrest Dec. 22-photo Bourbon Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>FORT SCOTT, Kan. (AP) — A 23-year-old Fort Scott man has been charged with killing his mother and another man. The Bourbon County Prosecutor's office charged Dawson Mitchell last week with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of 48-year-old Melissa Mitchell and 53-year-old Leonard Zimmerman. Their bodies were found at their home on Dec. 21. Dawson Mitchell was arrested the next day. Authorities have not said what prompted the shootings. Mitchell was also charged with being a felon in possession of a weapon, an aggravated weapons charge and two theft counts.---------<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640191022809.png" alt="Mitchell is a white male, 5-foot- 7 in. tall, 160 pounds. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. Mitchell was last seen wearing blue jeans, a brown Carhartt-style coat and a baseball cap that is light in color in the front and dark in color in the back-photo KBI" />
 <figcaption>Mitchell is a white male, 5-foot- 7 in. tall, 160 pounds. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. Mitchell was last seen wearing blue jeans, a brown Carhartt-style coat and a baseball cap that is light in color in the front and dark in color in the back-photo KBI</figcaption>
 </figure>BOURBON COUNTY –&nbsp;The Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI), and the Fort Scott Police Department have arrested 23-year-old Dawson J. Mitchell, the person of interest connected to the murders of Melissa Mitchell and Leonard Zimmerman, according to a media release from the KBI.Mitchell was arrested at approximately 1 p.m. on Wednesday near the intersection of 5th&nbsp;St. and Judson St. in Fort Scott.He is being held on requested charges of theft of a firearm, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and unlawful possession of controlled substances. He was then booked into the Bourbon County Jail.Currently, Mitchell has not been charged related to the murders, according to the KBI.------------BOURBON COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities are investigating after two victims were found shot in their Fort Scott home on Tuesday night, according to a media release from the&nbsp;Kansas Bureau of Investigation.Just after 7:30p.m. Tuesday, the Fort Scott Police Department received a 911 call from a subject who came home to find a female family member had been shot. When police arrived at 402 Main St. in Fort Scott, they located 48-year-old Melissa L. Mitchell who had died from a gunshot wound. They also discovered 53-year-old Leonard D. Zimmerman deceased inside the residence. Both victims were pronounced dead at the scene.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640190791746.png" alt="Mitchell-photo KBI" />
 <figcaption>Mitchell-photo KBI</figcaption>
 </figure>The victims’ son, Dawson J. Mitchell, 23, of Fort Scott, is a person of interest and is wanted for questioning connected to the case. Investigators are working to locate him at this time.If you know the whereabouts of 23-year-old Dawson J. Mitchell, you are asked to contact the Fort Scott Police Department at 620-223-1700 or the KBI at 1-800-KS-CRIME. Mitchell is expected to be armed and dangerous. Do not approach him, but immediately call police.Mitchell is a white male, 5-foot- 7 in. tall, 160 pounds. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. Mitchell was last seen wearing blue jeans, a brown Carhartt-style coat and a baseball cap that is light in color in the front and dark in color in the back.

Kansas man charged with killing his mother, another man

By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY Salina Post

SALINE COUNTY —A Salina man struck by a car on Christmas Eve is out of intensive care and police have arrested the driver of the vehicle that allegedly hit him.&nbsp;

Frank Cooper, Jr., 49, of Salina, remains in Via Christi in Wichita, but is no longer in ICU, according to&nbsp;Salina Police Captain Paul Forrester.

Cooper received life threatening injuries when he was struck by a car in the 500 block of S. Ohio Street on the evening of Dec. 24. 

The driver of the vehicle later identified as 62-year-old Daniel Woodruff did not stop and the Salina Police Department asked for the public's assistance in identifying him.

 On Dec. 26, police reported they had identified Woodruff as the driver. He was&nbsp; was arrested on Friday at his residence on requested charges Felony failing to stop at an accident resulting in great bodily harm and Driving while suspended. He is no longer in custody, according to online jail records.

By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY Salina Post<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640967497059.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>SALINE COUNTY —A Salina man struck by a car on Christmas Eve is out of intensive care and police have arrested the driver of the vehicle that allegedly hit him.&nbsp;Frank Cooper, Jr., 49, of Salina, remains in Via Christi in Wichita, but is no longer in ICU, according to&nbsp;Salina Police Captain Paul Forrester.Cooper received life threatening injuries when he was struck by a car in the 500 block of S. Ohio Street on the evening of Dec. 24. The driver of the vehicle later identified as 62-year-old Daniel Woodruff did not stop and the Salina Police Department asked for the public's assistance in identifying him. On Dec. 26, police reported they had identified Woodruff as the driver. He was&nbsp; was arrested on Friday at his residence on requested charges Felony failing to stop at an accident resulting in great bodily harm and Driving while suspended. He is no longer in custody, according to online jail records.

Kan. driver arrested, man in Christmas Eve hit-and-run out of ICU

SEDGWICK COUNTY—A Kansas man accused in a fatal Thanksgiving crash is due in court Monday for a preliminary hearing, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

&nbsp;<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20065612">Garett Meyers</a>, 37,&nbsp;of Andover is charged&nbsp; with involuntary manslaughter, aggravated battery, and driving while license is suspended or cancelled.&nbsp;

Just after 8p.m. on Thanksgiving, police responded to report of an accident at 13th and Hillside in Wichita, according to Officer Trevor Macy.

Investigators determined a truck driven by Myers struck an SUV driven by 65-year-old Leroy Grim, of Wichita, who was stopped westbound at the intersection. Grim was pronounced dead at the scene. EMS transported a 67-year-old woman in the SUV to an area hospital.

Police arrested Myers. <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20065612">He remains in custody </a>on $250,000 bond, according to the district attorney's office.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1638389226894.png" alt="Meyers-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Meyers-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY—A Kansas man accused in a fatal Thanksgiving crash is due in court Monday for a preliminary hearing, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.&nbsp;<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20065612">Garett Meyers</a>, 37,&nbsp;of Andover is charged&nbsp; with involuntary manslaughter, aggravated battery, and driving while license is suspended or cancelled.&nbsp;Just after 8p.m. on Thanksgiving, police responded to report of an accident at 13th and Hillside in Wichita, according to Officer Trevor Macy.Investigators determined a truck driven by Myers struck an SUV driven by 65-year-old Leroy Grim, of Wichita, who was stopped westbound at the intersection. Grim was pronounced dead at the scene. EMS transported a 67-year-old woman in the SUV to an area hospital.Police arrested Myers. <a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/sheriffinmates/SheriffInmateDetail.aspx?nameId=20065612">He remains in custody </a>on $250,000 bond, according to the district attorney's office.

Kansas man in fatal Thanksgiving crash due back in court

KINGMAN COUNTY— A Kansas man convicted of killing his wife 10 years ago will have a hearing before the Kansas Court of Appeals January 12.

Brett Seacat, now 45, was found guilty of shooting Vashti Seacat in the couple's bedroom then setting their home in Kingman ablaze in April of 2011. 

He was sentenced to life in prison without parole for 25 years. Seacat has filed a civil motion claiming ineffective counsel, saying that there was evidence the defense failed to present that would clear him of the crime. The motion was filed in May of 2020.

The Kansas Supreme Court upheld the conviction of the former Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center instructor in 2016.

Seacat maintained that his wife killed herself and that evidence proving so was not presented in his trial. In his original appeal, Seacat challenged the trial court’s exclusion of evidence relating to his wife's depression, which he contends would have bolstered his theory that she took her own life.

The case is part of the summary docket before the court of appeals, which means there will be no oral arguments.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640963669399.jpeg" alt="Brett Seacat -From his original arrest in Kingman County&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Brett Seacat -From his original arrest in Kingman County&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>KINGMAN COUNTY— A Kansas man convicted of killing his wife 10 years ago will have a hearing before the Kansas Court of Appeals January 12.Brett Seacat, now 45, was found guilty of shooting Vashti Seacat in the couple's bedroom then setting their home in Kingman ablaze in April of 2011. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole for 25 years. Seacat has filed a civil motion claiming ineffective counsel, saying that there was evidence the defense failed to present that would clear him of the crime. The motion was filed in May of 2020.The Kansas Supreme Court upheld the conviction of the former Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center instructor in 2016.Seacat maintained that his wife killed herself and that evidence proving so was not presented in his trial. In his original appeal, Seacat challenged the trial court’s exclusion of evidence relating to his wife's depression, which he contends would have bolstered his theory that she took her own life.The case is part of the summary docket before the court of appeals, which means there will be no oral arguments.