Kansas

Self-defense law doesn’t protect officer who shot at charging dog and injured child, top state court rules

A Kansas law allowing the use of deadly force against an aggressor does not protect people defending themselves who act recklessly and harm a bystander, the state’s top court has ruled.

Aug 3, 2022 9:47 AM CDT

GEICO can’t relitigate $5.2M award for car-sex STD after refusing to defend car owner, appeals court rules

GEICO had no right to relitigate a $5.2 million arbitration award to a woman who contracted a sexually transmitted disease in a car insured by the company, a Missouri appeals court has ruled.

Jun 13, 2022 8:36 AM CDT

Federal judge blocks school from disciplining teacher if she outs transgender students to their parents

A federal judge in Kansas City, Kansas, has temporarily blocked a school district from disciplining a teacher who had religious objections to a policy that prevented her from outing transgender students to their parents.

May 17, 2022 3:04 PM CDT

GOP targets state courts with campaign cash, laws that change judicial elections

Seeking a more favorable climate in fights over election maps, Republicans are planning to spend record amounts on state supreme court races and introducing legislation to make judicial elections more political.

Apr 15, 2022 10:04 AM CDT

Many federal courts ease mask requirements; judges often retain discretion in their courtrooms

More than a dozen federal courts have eased or dropped mask requirements since the beginning of March.

Mar 11, 2022 10:04 AM CST

There’s no need to ‘act on every scrap of tittle-tattle,’ justice says in nude-pics ethics case

The Kansas Supreme Court on Friday took no further action against a retired judge accused of posting nude photos of himself on a swingers website while he was still on the bench.

Jan 31, 2022 8:48 AM CST

A few years after graduating from high school and college concurrently, 19-year-old preps for February bar

Braxton Moral isn’t sure what he wants to do after he passes the bar, and that’s OK. He’s only 19 years old. In addition to being years younger than the vast majority of candidates sitting for the February 2022 bar, Moral is set to graduate from Kansas’ Washburn University School of Law in 2.5 years rather than the traditional three. He claims he didn’t do well during his first semester but started to get the hang of it by the second.

Dec 8, 2021 8:46 AM CST

Retired judge who posted nude photos on swingers website shouldn’t be disciplined, his lawyer argues

Should a Kansas judge be disciplined after his retirement for posting nude pictures of himself on a swingers website while he was still on the bench? The Kansas Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the question last week.

Nov 2, 2021 10:01 AM CDT

Litigants claiming GEICO auto policy covers STD from car sex can’t proceed anonymously, judge rules

A car owner and his sexual partner can’t keep their names secret in litigation over their claim that GEICO’s auto and umbrella policies cover damages for a sexually transmitted disease contracted during sex in the insured car.

Oct 5, 2021 4:18 PM CDT

Not in Kansas anymore: A former congressman’s improbable journey from the heartland to Hollywood

In 2004, Dan Glickman began a six-year stint as chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America. That may seem like an unusual career change for a nine-term congressman from Kansas and former secretary of agriculture. People sometimes questioned his qualifications to lead Hollywood’s trade association. “I used to grow popcorn,” he tells me he’d respond. “And now I sell it.”

Jun 8, 2021 9:38 AM CDT

Judge cuts sentence after defense lawyer claims ‘shady shenanigans’ by federal prosecutor

A federal judge in Kansas City, Kansas, has slashed a defendant’s sentence from 20 to nine years in prison, citing a federal prosecutor’s failure to “conduct herself as a prosecutor must.”

May 26, 2021 12:07 PM CDT

After prosecutor declines to bring rape charge, accuser uses unusual law to convene her own grand jury

A Kansas woman is taking matters into her own hands after she was unable to persuade a prosecutor to bring a rape charge against the man she accused of strangling and slapping her during sex.

May 20, 2021 9:51 AM CDT

Federal prosecutor is removed from criminal cases after allegations of witness pressure

An assistant U.S. attorney in Kansas is no longer handling criminal cases after a federal judge criticized her conduct in a prosecution and noted that she apparently accessed recordings of attorney-client phone calls.

Mar 24, 2021 3:13 PM CDT

Judge with ‘salty’ personality gets suspension partly for F-bombs, says word is common in his region

A Kansas judge who dropped F-bombs and refused to “f- - -ing apologize” to one employee subjected to one of his outbursts has been suspended from the bench for “quite troubling” behavior.

Mar 2, 2021 1:42 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Trump pardons Michael Flynn; lawyer suspended for cyberattack knowledge

Trump pardons former national security adviser Flynn President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he has pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI in the Russia probe and then sought to withdraw the plea. The Department of Justice moved to drop the case,…

Nov 25, 2020 4:00 PM CST