Judge Anderson: 'Somebody may have committed a felony in an attempt to cover up a misdemeanor.'

Supreme Court asked to allow judge to testify in Planned Parenthood case

The Johnson County District Attorney, Phill Kline, last week asked the Kansas Supreme Court to remove a gag order slapped on a district court judge to keep him from testifying in a criminal prosecution.

It was the first in a series of related events leading to a dramatic reversal by Attorney General Stephen Six who had been seeking the immediate return of documents subpoenaed from an abortion provider.

Kline said in a motion filed with the high court that the testimony by Shawnee County District Court Judge Richard Anderson is needed in a case against a Johnson County abortion provider, Comprehensive Health of Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri, Inc.

Kline said Anderson has testified previously in court that some documents supplied by Planned Parenthood appeared to have been altered. The documents had been produced in response to a subpoena issued as part of an effort to monitor the clinic's compliance with state laws.

Anderson told a hearing that "there is evidence of crimes in those records that needs to be evaluated." In describing the evidence, Anderson said, "it appears someone has manufactured" portions of the records. [ Read more...]

Criminal case against Planned Parenthood sets precedent.

Kansas abortion case edges into national spotlight

Partisans on both sides of the abortion issue are focused on Kansas, as a case long tangled in the Kansas judicial system appears as if it might finally be destined for a criminal court in Johnson County, where Planned Parenthood faces 107 criminal counts.

It's the most prominent case in a wave of criminal proceedings involving Planned Parenthood in other states, too.

“I don’t know if the people of Kansas realize how all eyes in the pro-life community are watching this case,” said Jennifer Giroux, Executive Director of Women Influencing the Nation. [ Read more...]

Two suits challenge the KDHE Secretary's actions. State has already lost billions.

Despite vetoes, Sunflower Electric hasn't given up hope

House Speaker Melvin Neufeld, R-Ingalls, announced this week that the House leadership would not attempt to overturn Gov. Kathleen Sebelius veto of an economic stimulus bill that included a $3.5 billion coal-fired power plant in Holcomb.

The last chance the Legislature has to override will pass on May 29, when the House and Senate convene for the ceremonial closing of the legislative session.

Other development plans, such as one put forward by Texas-based Hyperion Resources Inc., have been affected by the governor's opposition to the Holcomb plant. Hyperion apparently has withdrawn its consideration of a Kansas site for a $10 billion oil refinery that would have created nearly 10,000 jobs.  [ Read more...]

Cites "citizen participation," but vetoes special elections for mid-term vacancies.

Sebelius vetoes Voter ID, special elections

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has vetoed a voter ID bill for the second year in a row. The veto was accompanied by another: a refusal to allow Kansans to vote to fill mid-term Congressional vacancies.

The voter ID bill, HB-2019, would have required citizens to present identification bearing a photograph before voting. The law would have allowed for a wide variety of photographic identity cards to be used by voters.

In her veto message, the governor said, "We have a rich history and tradition in Kansas of working to increase citizen participation in our democracy." [ Read more...]

'I have made clear that it is her responsibility not to present herself for reception of holy Communion.'

Archbishop explains criticism of Sebelius

Kansas City, Kansas, Archbishop Joseph Naumann, who is engaged in a running dispute with Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, a Catholic, responded to critics last week by renewing his call for her to avoid Communion in Catholic churches.

Writing in The Leaven, Naumann explained his May 9 request to Sebelius "not to present herself for reception of holy Communion until she had sought to repair the public scandal of her long-standing support for legalized abortion."

The request, Nauman said, "not surprisingly has initiated quite a bit of discussion in secular newspapers, local talk radio shows and coffee-break conversations." [ Read more...]

The Week on the Web

An erroneous misstatement of a goof-up. The Kansas City Star (share price: less than a second-hand copy of All the President's Men) wants you to know that when the governor makes a gaffe and sends out correspondence to lobbyists asking for moolah during a legislative session, it's not just a flub:

A few days ago, Sebelius sent an e-mail to supporters explaining her position on energy policy. That e-mail included a red button and the word “solicit” next to it. A little later, another e-mail went out apologizing for the accidental mistake. 

So, uh...the other mistakes are intentional?

How Kansas looks if you've never been here. In a Slattery puff-piece in  The Hill, a Washington political newsletter, Sam Youngman and Aaron Blake explain to their readers that "Kansas has long been seen as a red state with a long tradition of electing conservatives." What they meant, of course, is that "Kansas has long been seen by journalists in Washington, D.C., as a red state with a long tradition of electing conservatives."

Hold the Mayo. A good piece of sports reporting by Ned Seaton at the Manhattan Mercury about how K-State's Huggins did the school a great favor when he just said "no":

Brad Underwood told the Konza Rotary Club this morning that Mayo was on the phone with Huggins, "begging to come here" around the time of national letter-of-intent signing day a year ago. Huggins told him no, Underwood said, because he thought Mayo would get in trouble because of money funneled to him and a friend prior to enrolling in college.

That's the center of the scandal now surrounding Mayo, who played one year as a guard at USC and is now headed to the NBA. The NCAA is investigating.

We read them so you don't have to. Take a look at News Around Kansas, our regularly updated index of current news stories from the state's newspapers.

A Preview of the Coming Week

Ruff Around the Edges - on Wednesdays, sometimes, from L. Candy Ruff.

And a thoughtful pair of weekend columns, The Country Party, by Caleb Stegall, and Mount Sunflower, by guest columnists from all over the state.

Monday Monday takes a Monday holiday off this week.