KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas jury was unable to reach a verdict in the trial of a Kansas priest who was suspended from the ministry after he was accused of inappropriately touching a young girl on two occasions.

A Wyandotte County jury announced Monday evening that it could not determine the guilt or innocence of the Rev. Scott Kallal, 37, who was charged with two felony counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child.

He was accused of inappropriately touching a 10-year-old girl in 2015 at a Kansas City, Kansas, church gymnasium and again at a graduation party in Bonner Springs.

The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas said in a statement that Kallal will remain on leave and it will resume its evaluation process after the legal process is completed.

“I continue to pray that truth is served and all those affected by this ordeal may find healing and peace,” Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann said in the statement.

The girl testified at a preliminary hearing in 2017 that Kallal twice tickled her breasts against her wishes. She said in one incident at a parish hall gymnasium, she ran into a girl’s restroom to escape Kallal but he came into the restroom, picked her up and carried her out, still tickling her.

The girl’s mother testified last week that she saw Kallal carrying her daughter during that incident and had to demand three times that he put her down because she said it was inappropriate. She said she didn’t witness the inappropriate touching that her daughter later reported.

“She was scared,” the woman said.

The incidents were not reported until the summer of 2017. The girl’s mother said she waited to make a police report because she didn’t think the church would do anything and she was raised to hold priests in high regard.

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KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Jurors have deadlocked in the trial of a suspended Kansas priest charged with molesting a child.

The Wyandotte County prosecutor’s office says jurors were unable to reach a verdict Monday in the case against the Rev. Scott Kallal. The 37-year-old was tried on two felony counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child. He has pleaded not guilty.

He was accused of inappropriately touching a girl in 2015 at a Kansas City, Kansas, church and at a graduation party in Bonner Springs. The girl was 10 at the time.

The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas said in a statement that Kallal will remain on leave and that it will resume its evaluation process after the legal process is completed. Prosecutors haven’t said whether they will retry him.

LYON COUNTY — One person was injured in an accident Monday in Lyon County.

Just after 9:30 a.m., EMS and police responded to the intersection of 12th Avenue and East Street in Emporia, according to police Sgt. Lisa Sage.

A bicycle ridden by a 21-year-old woman from Emporia was northbound on East Street and did not stop at a stop sign, according to witnesses. The bicycle collided with the rear driver’s side of a northbound SUV driven by a 56-year-old woman,

EMS transported the bicyclist who was unconscious to the hospital in Emporia, according to Sage. She was later air-lifted to another hospital. She was not wearing a helmet, according to Sage.

Police have not release names of those involved and late Tuesday afternoon were working to learn the condition of the bicycle rider, according to Sage.

SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting and working to find a suspect.

Just after 2:30a.m. Tuesday, residents in the 300 block of SE Lime in Topeka reported hearing gunfire. Police were immediately dispatched to the area to investigate, according to Sgt. Steven Block.

A short time later, 3 victims arrived at a local hospital with gunshot wounds. They arrived by a private vehicle, according to Block.

Officers and detectives responded to the hospital to speak with the victims. Their injuries are considered non-life threatening. Police ask that anyone with information is asked to contact authorities.

FINNEY COUNTY— Law enforcement authorities are investigating a fatal shooting believed to be in connection with a robbery and have a suspect in custody.

Just before 11p.m. September 10, police responded to the area of Buffalo Jones Avenue and Bancroft Street in Garden City for a reported person down, according to Captain Randy Ralston.

Upon the arrival of first responders, they located a man later identified as Ernest Ortiz, 69, Garden City lying on the east parking lot entrance to the El Conquistador Restaurant with gunshot wounds.

EMS transported him to St. Catherine Hospital where he later died.  Ortiz is the owner of the El Conquistador Restaurant and the preliminary investigation revealed that this could be a possible robbery.

Just after 4:30a.m. Monday, police arrested 31-year-old Marcus William Road a transient in the 300 Block of Hillside Avenue in Garden City, according to Sergeant Lana Urteaga.  He is being held in the Finney County Jail on requested charges of first-degree murder, according to Urteaga.

Roady was was wanted on a Kansas Department of Corrections warrant and was on parole for convictions that include criminal damage to property and drugs, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

 

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — The University of Kansas plans to close its Center for STEM Learning and a program designed to attract math and science teachers.

Program director Steven Case said Friday that the center and the UKanTeach program will close at the end of the academic year because of budget cuts at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Students in the UKanTeach program complete a science, technology, engineering or math bachelor program while also receiving a teaching license in math or some science programs.

An email to students in the program said officials in the liberal arts and education departments are collaborating on a new program to continue the UKanTeach approach.

The 112 students currently in the program will be allowed to obtain their teaching licenses.

SALINE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas felon on new charges after a traffic stop on Interstate 135.

On Monday evening,  an officer monitoring traffic on I-135 recognized a northbound white Toyota Sequoia as one driven by Torrean Hughley, 30, of Salina. Hughley had two warrants for failure to appear including one from Saline County District Court and one from Harvey County, according to Salina Police Captain Paul Forrester.

The officer stopped the vehicle and the K-9 deployed indicated the presence of illegal narcotics in the vehicle, and a search revealed six pounds of methamphetamine in a backpack on the front passenger floorboard, The methamphetamine has a street value of $18,000-$20,000, according to Forrester.

In addition to the active warrants, Hughley was arrested on requested charges of Distribution of a certain stimulant greater than one kilogram, Possession of drug paraphernalia and no drug tax stamp.

Hughley has four previous drug convictions, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

NORTON COUNTY —A Norton Correctional Facility Central Unit offender, Jeremy J. Palmer, died on Monday, according to a media release from the Kansas Department of Corrections.

Palmer, age 46, was transported by ambulance to the Norton County Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 12:37 p.m. The cause of death is pending an autopsy.

Per protocol when an offender dies in the custody of the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC), the death is under investigation by the KDOC and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

Palmer was serving a 97-month sentence for previous convictions in Barton, Ford and Thomas counties. In 2013, he was found guilty in Thomas County of possession of heroin and methamphetamine, with intent to distribute. In Barton and Ford counties in 2016, he was found guilty of distribution of opiates, fleeing and eluding a law enforcement officer and was charged with interference of law enforcement.

The Norton Correctional Facility houses low-medium and minimum-custody male offenders, and has a population of 970.

General Mills announced Tuesday a voluntary national recall of five-pound bags of its Gold Medal Unbleached All Purpose Flour with a better if used by date of September 6, 2020.

According to a release from the FDA, the recall is being issued for the potential presence of E. coli O26 which was discovered during sampling of the five-pound bag product. This recall is being issued out of an abundance of care as General Mills has not received any direct consumer reports of confirmed illnesses related to this product.

This recall only affects this one date code of Gold Medal Unbleached All Purpose Flour five-pound bags. All other types of Gold Medal Flour are not affected by this recall.

Consumers are asked to check their pantries and dispose of the product affected by this recall. Consumers who have had to discard products covered by this recall may contact General Mills Consumer Relations at 1-800-230-8103 or visit www.generalmills.com/flourExternal Link Disclaimer.

Guidance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) continues to warn that consumers should refrain from consuming any raw products made with flour. E. coli O26 is killed by heat through baking, frying, sautéing or boiling products made with flour. All surfaces, hands and utensils should be properly cleaned after contact with flour or dough.

This voluntary recall includes the following code date currently in stores or consumers’ pantries:

Although most strains of E. coli are harmless, others can make you sick. E. coli O26 is a potentially deadly bacterium that can cause bloody diarrhea and dehydration. Seniors, the very young, and persons with compromised immune systems are the most susceptible to foodborne illness.

Any consumers concerned about an illness should contact a physician. Anyone diagnosed by a physician as having an illness related to E. coli O26 is also urged to contact state and local public health authorities.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The amount of water flowing down the lower Missouri River this year is approaching the record set during the historic 2011 flood, and another round of flooding is expected this week after unusually heavy rains upstream, federal officials said.

Heavy rains dumped more than four times what is normal in parts of Montana, North and South Dakota and Nebraska last week — triggering flood warnings and forcing the forecast for how much water will flow down the Missouri River to jump by 4 million acre feet (1.22 million meters) to 58.8 million acre feet (17.92 million meters).

That will be second only to 2011’s 61 million acre feet (18.59 million meters), and it means the river has stayed high all year long. Previously, the second highest runoff year was 1997 when 49 million acre feet (14.94 million meters) of water flowed down the river and caused major flooding.

“2019 continues to be a very wet year throughout the basin,” said John Remus with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that operates the dams along the Missouri River.

This week’s third round of flooding along the Missouri River will likely be less severe than the first two but still significant, said National Weather Service hydrologist Dave Pearson. When the river crests near Omaha, Nebraska, on Friday and Saturday, parts of Interstates 29 and 680 could again be under water.

At Omaha, this week’s crest is projected to be 30.5 feet (9.3 meters). In March the river hit 34 feet (10.36 meters), and it registered 32 feet (9.75 meters) in the June flooding.

The Corps of Engineers doesn’t expect major problems or threats to cities with this week’s latest flooding — provided all the temporary repairs that have been made to levees since the spring hold up. But communities along the river are bracing for more problems in an exceptionally wet year.

Residents of Dakota Dunes, South Dakota, have been encouraged to evacuate their homes as a precaution because the river is already threatening that city. The river will peak there on Tuesday.

“When people call me and ask me what to do, I tell them, ‘Hey I relocated my family,'” Dakota Dunes Community Improvement District Manager Jeff Dooley told the Sioux City Journal. “If you wait until you know for sure, it’s too late.”

Downstream, residents of Hamburg, Iowa, will be keeping a close eye on the repaired levees around their town that was inundated in the spring to be sure the patches will hold up. Completely repairing the levees damaged in the spring is likely to take several years and cost more than $1 billion.

“Anybody I talk to I tell them to be prepared,” said Mike Crecelius, the emergency manager in the southwest Iowa county that’s home to Hamburg. “There’s been no relief at all this year.”

In March, massive flooding caused more than $3 billion in damage in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri. In June, flooding returned and inundated many of the same places because most damaged levees remained broken.

The river will remain high throughout the fall because the Corps of Engineers plans to continue releasing large amounts of water into the river to clear out space in the reservoirs ahead of winter.

The amount of water flowing into the lower Missouri was temporarily cut to 60,000 cubic feet (1699 cubic meters) per second this weekend, but it will increase to 80,000 cubic feet (2265.6 cubic meters) per second later this week.

SUMNER COUNTY — After four earthquakes over the past two days, the U.S. Geological Survey reported a 3.4 magnitude quake approximately 8 miles southeast of Caldwell in Sumner County Tuesday morning.

Just before 9p.m. Monday, the USGS reported a 3.2 magnitude quake approximately 8 miles east of Marion, Kansas. Just before 10a.m. Monday, a magnitude 3.6 quake shook the same area.

The quake follow a 3.9 magnitude quake at 2:37 a.m. Monday approximately 10 miles west of Cottonwood Falls in Chase County and a magnitude 2.8 quake at 10:30 a.m. Sunday in Reno County.

There are no reports of damage or injury. The threshold for damage usually starts at 4.0.