Kansas

Prosecutors obtained video recordings of lawyer-inmate meetings at private-run federal prison

Prosecutors obtained video recordings of lawyers meeting with their prisoner clients that were made by the Corrections Corporation of America and turned over in response to a grand jury subpoena, testimony revealed at a hearing before a federal judge last week. U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson ordered (PDF) prosecutors to…

Aug 15, 2016 3:48 PM CDT

Gunman invaded chief judge’s home, held him hostage for 6 hours before release, authorities say

The chief judge of Finney County, Kansas, was held hostage for nearly six hours at his own home by a gunman on Tuesday, before being released unharmed, authorities say. The ordeal began for 25th Judicial District Chief Judge Wendel Wurst around 7 a.m. when Jason Nichols, 33, knocked on the…

Jun 1, 2016 9:05 AM CDT

Kansas Supreme Court gives lawmakers until June 30 to fix school funding inequities

The latest Kansas law aimed at fixing school funding inequities violates the state constitution, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled on Friday. The court gave lawmakers a June 30 deadline to increase funding for poor districts, report the New York Times and the Kansas City Star. How Appealing links to the…

May 31, 2016 12:05 PM CDT

Federal judge orders Kansas to register to vote about 18,000 people who lacked citizenship proof

A federal judge on Tuesday ordered Kansas officials to process federal voter-registration applications of about 18,000 Kansans who were turned down for failing to provide documentation of citizenship when they tried to register to vote at state driver’s license facilities. U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson of Kansas City, Kansas, issued…

May 18, 2016 11:29 AM CDT

Kansas Supreme Court issues three opinions then overrules them on the same day

The Kansas Supreme Court ruled in three opinions on Friday that the state’s sex offender registry law can’t be applied retroactively, then overruled itself in a fourth opinion issued the same day. The reason for the change in stance was a new justice who joined the court, taking the place…

Apr 25, 2016 7:24 AM CDT

Man serving 20-year term in drug case gets concurrent time in lawyer’s death

Already serving a 20-year federal prison term for cocaine trafficking, Calah Johnson was sentenced Monday to another concurrent 20-year term in Missouri state court for accidentally shooting to death a Kansas lawyer. Attorney Deanna Lieber, 45, was driving home from a Kansas City show with her mother and teenage daughter…

Apr 19, 2016 10:40 AM CDT

Collection lawyer takes mail fraud plea, admits diverting $1.2M in payments from medical client

Disbarred collections attorney Alan Gallas on Wednesday pleaded guilty to mail fraud in federal court in Kansas City. The 64-year-old founding partner of Gallas & Schultz admitted that he had diverted more than $1.2 million in payments intended for then-client St. Luke’s Health System to the law firm’s operating account…

Apr 14, 2016 11:10 AM CDT

Johnson & Johnson unit is settling cases over morcellators used in hysterectomies, lawyer says

A unit of Johnson & Johnson that sold laparoscopic power morcellators used to cut a woman’s uterus into small pieces that could be extracted through a tiny incision is settling cases over a number of hysterectomies, a plaintiff’s lawyer says. The problem is, if a woman has undetected cancer, the…

Mar 22, 2016 4:30 PM CDT

Top Kansas court strikes law making it a crime to refuse a warrantless DUI test

Kansas drivers who refuse a blood test, a breath test or an analysis of some other bodily substance to determine whether they are under the influence cannot be criminally punished for doing so when there is no search warrant requiring their cooperation, the Kansas Supreme Court has ruled. In four…

Feb 26, 2016 3:50 PM CST

Kansas Supreme Court: Lawmakers have until June 30 to approve constitutional school-funding formula

The Kansas Supreme Court on Thursday ruled a temporary school funding law violated the state constitution because it did not cure inequities between school districts. The court gave lawmakers until June 30 to approve a new formula, report the Wichita Eagle, the Associated Press and the Kansas City Star. The…

Feb 11, 2016 11:21 AM CST

Spencer Fane opens Oklahoma City office with 9 attorneys from Lester firm

Corrected: Spencer Fane announced Monday that the 170-attorney firm is opening an Oklahoma City office, its first in the state, with at least 9 lawyers from the former Lester Loving & Davies. Spencer Fane was able to extend the group’s existing lease, following the dissolution of the Lester firm, but…

Feb 1, 2016 4:00 PM CST

Kansas legislature backs off in separation-of-powers faceoff with state supreme court

The Kansas legislature has backed off in a separation-of-powers showdown with the state supreme court, repealing a section of an earlier statute that would have taken away the court’s power to appoint chief judges in districts around the state, the Topeka Capital-Journal reports. On Thursday the legislature passed a fix…

Jan 29, 2016 3:00 PM CST

Legislation advances to keep Kansas courts open

Bills are advancing in the Kansas Legislature that would preserve court funding that had been jeopardized by a Kansas Supreme Court decision. The legislation would repeal a Kansas law that defunds the courts if they strike down a law on the selection of chief district court judges, the Kansas City…

Jan 15, 2016 8:41 AM CST

Lawyer who reported client threats is suspended for failing to file appeal on client’s behalf

The Kansas Supreme Court has indefinitely suspended a lawyer who blamed her failure to file a criminal appeal on her disillusionment with law practice and the client’s threats against her and family. The lawyer, Debra Jean Fickler, failed to meet three extended deadlines to file a federal appeal on behalf…

Jan 4, 2016 6:15 AM CST

Kansas supremes strike down law on chief judge appointments; is court funding in danger?

The Kansas Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down a section of state law that took away the court’s authority to appoint chief judges in the state’s 31 judicial districts in a case that could threaten court funding. The court said the section violates a provision of the state constitution giving…

Dec 23, 2015 11:17 AM CST