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Past articles by Lucas:
Abi, Topeka Zoo giraffe, gives birth
Abi, one of two pregnant Topeka Zoo giraffes, gave birth Wednesday afternoon.Through the YouTube live streams provided by the Topeka Zoo views began to → Read More
Topeka massage parlor bust typical of trafficking investigations
MANHATTAN — A massage parlor in downtown Topeka that law enforcement and federal prosecutors believe operated as a front for sex work fits the mold of what Kansas investigators find in human trafficking cases, an assistant U.S. attorney said Tuesday, but investigating such establishments can be tricky.Increasingly, investigators find those dealing in the sex trade using storefront massage… → Read More
Beer is a science for Lawrence's Black Stag Brewery
LAWRENCE — John Hampton, co-owner of downtown Lawrence's soon-to-open Black Stag Brewery, knows a thing or two about beer.Before retiring, Hampton → Read More
Dana Chandler to represent herself in retrial
Dana L. Chandler, who was previously convicted of a 2002 double homicide, will represent herself in her retrial, for the time being.The Kansas Supreme → Read More
Man sentenced for Topeka homicide receives more prison time
A man who wanted his conviction for a 2013 murder overturned by the Kansas Supreme Court will spend additional time in prison, a judge ruled Thursday.It → Read More
Family of Dominique White sues city, Topeka police officers
The family of Dominique White has filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Topeka and multiple police officers involved in the 30-year-old's 2017 shooting death near Ripley Park in East Topeka.On the nine-month mark of White's death, his family planned to gather at Thursday at the Law Enforcement Center to announce the filing of the lawsuit. Filed Wednesday by White's father Kelly White, the… → Read More
Topeka Frito-Lay union rejects contract over wages
Union workers at the Topeka Frito-Lay plant this week voted down a new contract, citing stagnant wages, and a federal negotiator will brought in next month, a union representative said Thursday.Brad Schmidt, international representative for the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers union, was called in to help Topeka’s Local 218 with negotiations, which took place last week. A… → Read More
Woman sues Topeka company over KDADS sexual harassment case
A Topeka adult services company faces a federal lawsuit from a former employee who accused a top Kansas disability services administrator of repeated and → Read More
Topekan Daniel Munoz charged with first-degree murder in double-shooting
Daniel R. Munoz faces a first-degree murder charge after one of the two men police and prosecutors believe he shot early this month died, Shawnee County → Read More
Witness, defendant's sister testify in Kora Liles' triple homicide trial in Topeka
Although Joseph A. Krahn killed three people in a North Topeka home last year, one man who witnessed the crime told jurors Thursday it seemed to him Kora → Read More
Testimony begins in Kora Liles' trial in Topeka triple homicide
The boyfriend of homicide victim Nicole Fisher told jurors Tuesday he thought she would be fine when he left her at a home in North Topeka where her body → Read More
Prosecutor: Evidence shows Kora Liles aided in triple homicide
Kora L. Liles may not have killed anyone but evidence will show she played a pivotal role in the deaths of three people in a North Topeka home last spring, → Read More
Kora Liles trial, first of four in Topeka triple slaying, starts Monday
Jury selection in the first trial in a Topeka triple murder that has five defendants began Monday with jury selection.Kora L. Liles, 31, is charged with → Read More
16 arrested in 5th week of Topeka Poor People's Campaign protests
A protest that touched on a number issues including child welfare was interrupted Monday when police arrested more than a dozen people in front of the → Read More
Bond set at $500,000 for Topeka man jailed in Saturday double-shooting
A Shawnee County District Court Judge Monday set a $500,000 bond for a man suspected of shooting two others over the weekend.Police arrested Daniel R. → Read More
Topeka man pleads guilty for his part in road rage kiling of Michael Stadler
A third man involved in a road rage killing has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge.Daniel A. Askew, pleaded guilty Tuesday to disorderly conduct in the Oct. 8, 2016, incident that lead to the death of Michael J. Stadler. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail with a $500 fine. He had already spent 30 days in jail, according to court records.Stadler, 28, was gunned down near S.W. 29th and… → Read More
Abilene police arrest man wanted for 150 rape counts in Pennsylvania
A Kansas man wanted for more than 150 counts of rape is behind bars in Pennsylvania after Abilene police detectives traveled more than 1,000 miles to find → Read More
Jacob Ewing appeals rape conviction, argues prosecutor misconduct, court errors
A Holton man serving more than 30 years for rape and sodomy appealed part of his conviction, pointing to prosecutor misconduct and errors made by the → Read More
Topeka, Lawrence massage parlor operators indicted for prostitution
A FBI and Topeka police raid on a downtown massage parlor Tuesday was part of larger investigation into fronts for prostitution. Sunflower Massage, 733 S. → Read More
Reward offered for tips in Jackson County drive-by shooting
With no suspects identified two weeks after a drive-by shooting injured a child in near Mayetta, the Jackson County Sheriff's Office announced Monday it → Read More