Kansas.com: Top Stories

CEO: Job cuts ahead at Hawker Beechcraft

JERRY SIEBENMARK — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 06:30 CST

Hawker Beechcraft will cut additional jobs because of a big pullback in airplane production this year brought on by recession.

The Wichita planemaker told employees Thursday that it expects business conditions to remain unstable or to erode further.

"As we enter 2009, we... find ourselves facing a highly uncertain and unpredictable business climate," Hawker Beechcraft chief executive Jim Schuster said in a letter to employees. "As a result we are forced to substantially decrease our 2009 production levels and take the painful step of reducing our work force accordingly."

Schuster did not say in the letter how many employees will be affected or when they will be notified.

Hawker spokesman Andrew Broom said he didn't have any more details on the work force reduction.

Some businesses worry new toy safety law could force them to close

SUZANNE PEREZ TOBIAS — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 06:27 CST

Makers of handmade toys, second-hand stores and others who make or sell children's products fear that new government regulations could soon put them out of business.

At issue is the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, passed by Congress last year in response to widespread recalls of products that posed a threat to children, including toys made with lead or lead-based paint.

"It's pretty simple: If they follow it to the letter of the law, we'll have to close," said Christiane Doom, owner of Hannah Banana, a children's consignment store in Wichita.

"Everyone's in shock. They're like, 'No, this can't be right.' It's unbelievable."

The legislation, set to take effect Feb. 10, mandates independent, third-party testing and batch labeling of all children's products -- not just toys, but everything from cloth diapers to hair bows.

Most missing kids reported quickly

HURST LAVIANA — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 01:40 CST

The investigation into the 1999 disappearance of 11-year-old Adam Herrman had several law enforcement experts struggling Thursday to think of a more unusual case.

There have been cases where a person has been missing for years before a body is found and a criminal investigation is launched.

There have been plenty of cases where the parents of missing children have failed to file reports in a timely manner. But it's usually a delay of a few days or weeks.

But the case of Adam, who was reported missing by a relative only seven weeks ago, has drawn widespread attention and speculation from around the country.

"I'll be honest with you, I can't think of a single case like this," former Sedgwick County District Attorney and Sheriff Vern Miller said of the delay in filing Adam's missing person report. "I've known them to wait a week or two -- maybe three or four -- where they say they think he's gone off to his dad's. And usually that's what happens.... I don't remember a single case like this."

Barfield says he'll stand up to council status quo

BRENT D. WISTROM — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 01:40 CST

James Barfield thinks the Wichita City Council has largely lost its way.

"Right now, there's a big disconnect between the council and the average Joe," he said.

And that's one of the main reasons he plans to run for the District 1 City Council seat, a position that represents central northeast Wichita.

He'll face incumbent Lavonta Williams.

Barfield, 68, said he would stand up to the status quo.

Skelton wants council to focus on basic needs

BRENT D. WISTROM — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 01:40 CST

Jim Skelton thinks the city should use most of its money and energy on the core aspects of government -- things like streets, sewers, police, animal control and code enforcement.

He said that the 47th Street South bridge over I-135 could spur the city's fourth-largest shopping center and that he will continue to push for the bridge renovations.

"It's not going away," he said. "I'm not going to put that hammer down as long as I'm a councilman."

That's one of many reasons Skelton said he is seeking a second term as council member for District 3, which covers southeast Wichita.

He said he is most proud of his push to get a new fire station near the corner of Denker and Hydraulic. Fire officials have said the station should ease the call volume at the city's second-busiest station.

'Our Body' exhibit was big hit in Wichita

SUZANNE PEREZ TOBIAS — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 07:03 CST

Exhibit draws 55,000 visitors, makes profit

Exploration Place's most controversial and expensive exhibit to date, "Our Body: The Universe Within," will end its seven-month run Sunday and will make a profit for the museum, officials said.

"People constantly say, 'Don't bring that to Wichita,' or 'Wichita will never go for that,' " said museum president Alberto Meloni. "Well, we've got to rethink that.

"This taught us that if an exhibit is important enough and good enough, people are willing to support it."

More than 55,000 people have seen the exhibit, which features 17 human corpses posed in lifelike positions to illustrate the inner workings of the human body. It also features more than 150 body parts -- lungs, hearts, kidneys, eyes, even fetuses -- preserved by a process known as plastination.

Kline says he won't take abortion clinic records

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 06:22 CST

Johnson County District Attorney Phill Kline told a judge Thursday that he won't take any records in a criminal case against an abortion clinic with him when he leaves office.

But Kline's testimony during a district court hearing didn't satisfy attorneys for the clinic, operated by Planned Parenthood in Overland Park. They said they're most concerned about protecting the privacy of 29 patients whose medical files have become key evidence in the criminal case Kline filed.

The clinic faces 107 charges, alleging it falsified documents and performed illegal late-term abortions, which it denies. Planned Parenthood attorneys unsuccessfully challenged Kline's right to keep edited copies of patient records. Last month they subpoenaed Kline, hoping to force him to produce a detailed accounting for his evidence.

Kline leaves office Monday. Clinic attorneys told District Judge Stephen Tatum that they want to prevent Kline from taking records -- or copies, summaries or notes -- with him and distributing them to others.

Tatum declined to order Kline to produce a detailed accounting, but he upheld the subpoena and questioned Kline in open court.

Kansas legislators faced with growing shortfall

DION LEFLER — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 06:29 CST

Forget $141 million.

The state budget shortfall this year is now about $186 million and growing, south-central Kansas legislators learned Thursday.

The new number was given to about 25 local legislators by Alan Conroy, director of the Kansas Legislative Research Department.

State revenue estimators pegged the expected 2009 shortfall at $141.2 million at the beginning of November.

But receipts for November and December have fallen $44.6 million short, adding to the gap lawmakers and the governor will have to close, Conroy said.

Koch grows but falls to No. 2 as nation’s largest private company

RICK PLUMLEE — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:49 CST

Cargill’s growth in 2008 - not Koch’s decrease - was responsible in the two reversing positions in the top two spots as America’s largest private companies, according to Forbes.

State budget deficit climbs to $186 million

DION LEFLER — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 17:50 CST

Forget $141 million.

The state budget deficit for this year is now at $186 million and climbing, south-central Kansas lawmakers were told today.

The new deficit amount was reported by Alan Conroy, director of the Kansas Legislative Research Department in a meeting at Wichita State University..

Analysts developed the $141.2 million estimate in early November, Conroy said.

Since then, November and December general fund receipts have fallen $44.6 million short of expectations, he said.

Authorities reviewing findings in missing boy case

STAN FINGER — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 12:45 CST

Butler County investigators today are reviewing their findings from the Wednesday search of a rural Sedgwick County home as they attempt to find out what happened to Adam Herrman.

The investigators, along with Wichita police, served a search warrant on a small gray house in the 10300 block of North 109th Street West, which is the former mobile home of Adam's adoptive parents, Doug and Valerie Herrman, when they lived in Towanda in 1999.

Relatives of the boy say the house is where they last saw Adam in 1999. His adoptive parents say he ran away that year and they did not report it to authorities or case workers.

Butler County Sheriff Craig Murphy said the search was conducted because investigators had never seen the inside of the residence, so they could not talk intelligently about the house while working the case.

Investigators took photographs and drew diagrams of the house, he said. They also verified verbal information they had received.

Hawker chief expects more layoffs

JERRY SIEBENMARK — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 14:10 CST

In a letter to Hawker Beechcraft employees today, chief executive Jim Schuster said he expects more layoffs at the Wichita planemaker.

"As we enter 2009, we see the economy continuing to erode and find ourselves facing a highly uncertain and unpredictable business climate," Schuster said in the letter. "As a result we are forced to substantially decrease our 2009 production levels and take the painful step of reducing our work force accordingly."

Schuster did not say in the letter how many employees will be affected or when they will be notified.

Hawker spokesman Andrew Broom said there were no additional details available.

"We are in the process of finalizing our plans and will notify affected employees as soon as possible," Schuster said in the letter.

Obama team urges delay in digital TV transition

JOELLE TESSLER — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 19:00 CST

President-elect Barack Obama is urging Congress to postpone the Feb. 17 switch from analog to digital television broadcasting, arguing that too many Americans who rely on analog TV sets to pick up over-the-air channels won't be ready.

In a letter to key lawmakers Thursday, Obama transition team co-chair John Podesta said the digital transition needs to be delayed largely because the Commerce Department has run out of money for coupons to subsidize digital TV converter boxes for consumers. People who don't have cable or satellite service or a TV with a digital tuner will need the converter boxes to keep their older analog sets working.

Obama officials are also concerned the government is not doing enough to help Americans - particularly those in rural, poor or minority communities - prepare for and navigate the transition.

"With coupons unavailable, support and education insufficient, and the most vulnerable Americans exposed, I urge you to consider a change to the legislatively mandated analog cutoff date," Podesta wrote to the top Democrats and Republicans on the Senate and House Commerce committees.

In 2005, Congress required that broadcasters switch from analog to digital broadcasts, which are more efficient, to free up valuable chunks of wireless spectrum. The newly available room in the airwaves can be used for commercial wireless services and for emergency-response networks.

More than 300 local DUI arrests over holiday period

STAN FINGER — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 10:35 CST

A crackdown on motorists driving under the influence over the holidays resulted in more than 300 arrests in Wichita and Sedgwick County.

Between Nov. 24 and Jan. 4, Wichita police arrested 218 people and Sedgwick County Sheriff's officers arrested 120 people for driving under the influence.

The crackdown was part of the 2008 Holiday Drive for DUI Victims program.

Arrests made by Kansas Highway Patrol troopers have not yet been released.

By comparison, sheriff's officers made 122 DUI arrests during the last two months of 2007, while police officers arrested 283 people for driving under the influence during November and December 2007.

Powerball jackpot climbs to $120 million

STAN FINGER — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 08:20 CST

Powerball is up to $120 million after no one hit the winning numbers in Wednesday night's drawing.

The numbers drawn were 23, 31, 33, 38 and 52, with a Powerball of 24. Players were vying for a jackpot of $105 million.

The next drawing will be held on Saturday. The cash option for the grand prize is $75.3 million.

Tickets that match the first five numbers, but miss the Powerball, win $200,000 each. There were three of those, sold in Louisiana, Missouri and South Carolina.

There was one Power Play Match 5 winner in Tennessee.

A mild end to Wichita's workweek

STAN FINGER — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 07:28 CST

A warm, sunny day awaits the Wichita area today, and an even warmer Friday is on the way.

Forecasters expect temperatures to climb into the mid- to upper 50s over the next couple of days. Light easterly winds will stay primarily in the single digits today, then gain strength and shift to the north on Friday.

Gusts could reach nearly 30 mph, foretelling the arrival of a cold front that will drop highs in Wichita on Saturday into the 30s. No precipitation is in the forecast for the next several days, but highs will yo-yo between the 30s and 40s.

Check Kansas.com for updates.

Officials search former house of missing boy's family

BRENT D. WISTROM — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 05:42 CST

Investigators from three law enforcement agencies searched a rural Sedgwick County home Wednesday for clues that might help them find out what happened to Adam Herrman.

What they found, if anything, remains unclear.

A Butler County official leaving the scene would say only that Sheriff Craig Murphy is very tired after several days of the investigation and would give details sometime this morning.

The search took place at a small, gray home that sits halfway down North 109th Street West, a dead-end dirt road about halfway between Bentley and Sedgwick in a loosely knit neighborhood.

The home is a former residence of Doug and Valerie Herrman, adoptive parents of Adam Herrman. It was moved from a Towanda mobile home park where authorities say Adam apparently disappeared in 1999 at age 11.

Missing boy's sister was one who called officials

TIM POTTER — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 07:32 CST

For years, Crystal says, she felt bad about how her mother treated her younger, adopted brother -- Adam Herrman, who would be 21 now if he is still alive. One pivotal day more than a month ago, she brought her concern to the state. Her action led to the discovery that Adam disappeared in 1999, and it triggered an ongoing law enforcement investigation into what happened to him.

Crystal, now 31, said she saw her mother, Valerie Herrman, kick and punch Adam and spank him with the metal buckle of a belt. Valerie Herrman also stepped on his bare feet with her heels, said Crystal, who asked that her last name not be used to protect her children's privacy.

Crystal said she also saw Adam being kept in a locked bathroom.

Valerie Herrman, now 52 and living in Derby, denied the abuse allegations but said she did spank Adam with a belt twice and kept him locked in a bathroom at times under the advice of a psychiatrist after he threatened the family.

Crystal said she and her younger biological brother, Justin Herrman, tried to protect Adam over the years. In 1999, she said, her mother told them that Adam had gone back into state custody.

Lawyers focus on basis of Tiller charges in closing arguments

RON SYLVESTER — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 05:42 CST

Prosecutor Barry Disney on Wednesday urged a judge to focus on the criminal charges against a Wichita abortion provider, not his lawyers' attempts to discredit them.

Disney had been less vocal than George Tiller's lawyers the previous two days during a pretrial hearing that concluded Wednesday. He lodged an occasional objection and spent little time cross-examining witnesses, as Tiller's lawyers argued the case should be dismissed.

An assistant Kansas attorney general, Disney even tried to persuade a judge that closing arguments were unnecessary.

But when he rose to speak, Disney asked Sedgwick County District Judge Clark Owens to return the focus of the case to the 19 misdemeanor charges against Tiller.

"This defendant has been given, by virtue of his medical license, a great responsibility, a great privilege," Disney told the judge. "That privilege is to perform late-term abortions.

Area to miss deadline to certify Big Ditch levees

DEB GRUVER AND FRED MANN — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 05:46 CST

The Big Ditch -- the flood control project that protects Wichita -- needs about $14 million in repairs.

Because of that, the city and county will miss a Feb 2 deadline to certify the levees that make up the Big Ditch -- formally known as the Wichita-Valley Center Floodway -- which potentially could require thousands of homeowners to buy flood insurance or pay higher rates for existing policies.

New flood maps will be drawn by the Federal Emergency Management Agency in the next 18 to 24 months. Without an accredited levee system, the new maps could put more properties in flood zones.

But local leaders say they still hope the flood control project will be accredited before FEMA issues the new maps.

"Yes, there's a deadline, and we're going to miss it, but there's still going to be plenty of time before new flood map revisions come out that would affect the community," said Sedgwick County Commissioner Tim Norton.