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AG Schmidt: 63 crime victims receive support

October 11, 2013, 8:25 am
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TOPEKA – (October 11, 2013) – The Kansas Crime Victims Compensation Board yesterday awarded financial assistance to 63 victims of crime at its October meeting, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.

Awards were made in 22 new cases. Additional expenses were paid in 41 previously submitted cases. The awards totaled $134,910.23.

The Division of Crime Victims Compensation in Schmidt’s office administers the Crime Victims Compensation program, which was established in 1978 to help victims of violent crime pay for their unexpected expenses such as medical treatment, mental health counseling, lost wages, dependent support and funeral costs.

The state’s three-member Crime Victims Compensation Board determines claims that are eligible for payment and decides how much money will be awarded to each claimant. Awards are limited to a maximum total amount of $25,000 with limitations of $5,000 for funeral expense, $3,500 for outpatient mental health counseling, $10,000 for inpatient mental health treatment and $1,000 for grief counseling for family survivors of homicide victims.

The program is funded by a portion of assessed court costs and fines, inmate wages, parole fees and restitution paid by convicted offenders.

For more information about the Crime Victims Compensation Program call (785) 296-2359 or visit the Attorney General’s website at www.ag.ks.gov.

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Hodgeman County man convicted of Jessica's Law charges

October 11, 2013, 9:30 am
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Douglas PetermanJETMORE – (October 11, 2013) – A Hodgeman County man was convicted yesterday of three counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.

Douglas D. Peterman, 44, Hanston, was found guilty of all three charges by a Hodgeman County jury. The charges fall under Jessica’s Law, because the victim was under 14 years of age. Chief District Judge Bruce Gatterman presided over the trial. Sentencing in the case has not yet been scheduled.

The crimes were committed between August 2010 and April 2012. The charges stemmed from an investigation by the Hodgeman County Sheriff's Office and the Kansas Department for Children and Families. Assistant Attorney General Steve Karrer of Schmidt's office prosecuted the case.

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AG Schmidt: Wichita company fined for No-Call Act violations

October 14, 2013, 7:32 am
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Kansas prosecutors name AG Schmidt ‘Policy Maker of the Year’

October 15, 2013, 12:29 pm
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Kansas Attorney General Derek SchmidtOVERLAND PARK – (October 15, 2013) – Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt was named a “Policy Maker of the Year” by the Kansas County and District Attorneys Association yesterday at the organization’s annual meeting in Overland Park.

“It is an honor to accept this award from KCDAA,” Schmidt said. “Prosecutors across the state work hard every day to make Kansas a safe place to live. As Attorney General, it is one of my greatest priorities to make sure they have the tools they need to do their jobs. Our office will continue to support the work of our local prosecutors by making the case to the Governor and Legislature for the resources required for public safety.”

In its letter naming Schmidt for the award, the KCDAA Board of Directors cited Schmidt’s role in initiating the 2013 Special Session to address the Kansas “Hard 50” law in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court decision calling the constitutionality of the law into question. During the 2013 regular session of the Legislature, Schmidt also supported strengthening Kansas identity theft, anti-human trafficking and anti-gang laws and worked to obtain legislative approval to upgrade the forensic laboratory capabilities at the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

Schmidt has served as Kansas Attorney General since 2011. Before being elected attorney general, Schmidt served 10 years as a Kansas State Senator representing the 15th District in Southeast Kansas. During his last six years in the Senate, he served as majority leader for the Republican Caucus. He currently serves as Midwest Regional Chair for the National Association of Attorneys General.

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AG Schmidt statement on Eureka shooting

October 16, 2013, 9:40 pm
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TOPEKA – (October 16, 2013) – Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt tonight issued the following statement:

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation has informed the Attorney General’s Office of a shooting earlier this evening involving Kevin Robert Welsh, the suspect in an Oct. 2 double murder, and KBI agents near 8th and Poplar in Eureka, Kan.

Welsh was pronounced dead at a hospital in Eureka at 10:11 p.m. The KBI will release further information as details are confirmed. Future media inquiries should be directed to Kyle Smith with the KBI at (785) 296-8200.

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AG Schmidt: Supreme Court to hear another challenge to EPA regulations

October 18, 2013, 7:17 am
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TOPEKA – (October 18, 2013) – The U.S. Supreme Court this week agreed to hear a challenge to new EPA greenhouse gas regulations that Kansas and other states say were unlawfully imposed, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.

The Court on Tuesday agreed to hear Texas v. EPA, which challenges the authority of EPA to extend new regulations affecting motor vehicle emissions to also regulate stationary sources, such as factories and power plants. Kansas had joined in asking the Court to hear the Texas challenge, which was consolidated with several other challenges to the new regulation.

“Even if EPA followed the correct process in imposing new regulations on automobiles, we don’t think that gives it authority to impose new regulations on stationary sources,” Schmidt said. “The rule-making process is designed to ensure input from interested parties, and there are significantly different interests involved in the effect of regulation on cars as compared with that on stationary sources. The new regulations would impose new compliance costs on state regulators, utilities and manufacturers, all without input from the states as the law contemplates, and those costs will ultimately be passed on to Kansas taxpayers, ratepayers and consumers.”

Oral argument in the case is expected next spring. This is the 12th Supreme Court case in which Kansas is involved during this term, which began October 7 and is expected to run through June.

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AG Schmidt: Dispose of unused medicine on October 26

October 18, 2013, 11:08 am
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Unused medications can be safely disposed at locations throughout the state during the semi-annual National Drug Take-Back Day on October 26, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.

• Find a location near you.
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AG’s office sues asphalt pavers

October 22, 2013, 7:11 am
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Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt announced that his office has filed a lawsuit against a door-to-door asphalt paving operating in Northeast Kansas and is asking consumers who have interacted with them for assistance in the investigation.
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Human Trafficking Advisory Board to meet

October 23, 2013, 8:48 am
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TOPEKA – (October 23, 2013) – The Kansas Human Trafficking Advisory Board will meet this week for the first time as the state’s official anti-human trafficking group, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.

The Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Advisory Board was first organized in January 2010. A new law, passed earlier this year, recognized the group as the state’s official anti-human trafficking board. The board’s agenda includes discussion of the implementation of the new anti-human trafficking law.

“We have given the advisory board an important goal of working toward the elimination of human trafficking in Kansas,” Schmidt said. “The guidance of the advisory board will be critical to our state’s efforts to combat human trafficking and to support trafficking victims.”

The meeting is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Friday, October 25 at the Department for Children and Families Learning Center, 2600 SW East Circle Drive South, Topeka.

Members of the board include representatives of the governor’s office, attorney general’s office, cabinet agencies, law enforcement and social service organizations. The board is chaired by Assistant Attorney General Pat Colloton, a former state representative from Leawood.

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AG Schmidt to host national consumer protection conference in Wichita

October 25, 2013, 8:34 am
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WICHITA – (October 25, 2013) – Wichita will be the site of next week’s National Association of Attorneys General Fall Consumer Protection Seminar, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt announced today.

The conference will bring staff from the consumer protection offices of 46 states and territories to the Hyatt Regency in Wichita for a three-day seminar.

“Protecting consumers from scams and rip-offs is a top priority for the Kansas attorney general’s office,” said Schmidt, who serves as co-chair of the Consumer Protection Committee for the national organization. “Bringing this national conference to Wichita in order to share best practices and experiences among the states underscores the importance we place on protecting Kansans’ pocketbooks.”

Sessions will focus on topics such as mobile phone cramming, military consumer protection, identity theft and data breaches. The conference begins Sunday afternoon and runs through Wednesday morning. Most sessions are for law enforcement officials only, but select sessions are open to members of the public who are registered for the conference. More information is available at www.naag.org.

The Office of Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett also will be participating in the conference. Schmidt and Bennett plan a news conference for 11:30 a.m. Tuesday to discuss cooperative consumer protection efforts between the Attorney General’s office and the District Attorney’s office.

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Kansas consumers: AG’s office is ‘In Your Corner’

October 29, 2013, 10:04 am
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Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt today launched a new effort to help Kansans avoid falling victim to scams and deceptive business practices.

The new outreach effort features a new user-friendly website, www.InYourCornerKansas.org. The website contains information about the latest scams being reported to the Attorney General’s office, and answers to frequently asked questions about consumer protection issues on a variety of topics.
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AG Schmidt: Three meth sentences imposed today total 26 years of prison time

October 30, 2013, 3:50 pm
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Dale Karnes 
 Dale Karnes
Christopher Wene
 Christopher Wene
Jose Muniz
Jose Muniz

TOPEKA – (October 30, 2013) – Sentences for methamphetamine-related convictions handed down today in two counties will send three men to prison for a total of more than 26 years, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.

Dale W. Karnes, 41, and Christopher R. Wene, 43, both of Baxter Springs, were each sentenced to 84 months in the Kansas Department of Corrections by Judge A.J. Wachter in Cherokee County District Court. The men each pleaded no contest to a charge of manufacture of a controlled substance in September. The charges stemmed from a 2012 investigation by the Baxter Springs Police Department, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office and Kansas Bureau of Investigation. Assistant Attorney General Steve Wilhoft of Schmidt’s office prosecuted the cases.

Jose M. Muniz, 31, Garden City, was sentenced to 136 months in the Kansas Department of Corrections by Judge Wendel W. Wurst in Finney County District Court. Muniz pleaded no contest to one felony charge of possession of methamphetamine with intent to sell. Muniz was also sentenced to 12 months in the Finney County Jail after pleading no contest to one count of felony domestic battery. Wurst ordered the sentences to run consecutively. The charges stemmed from investigations earlier this year by the Garden City Police Department and Finney County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant Attorneys General Steve Karrer and Jessica Domme of Schmidt’s office prosecuted the case.

Photos courtesy of Cherokee and Finney County Sheriffs' Offices.

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AG’s Office to provide trainings on investigating, prosecuting domestic violence

October 31, 2013, 12:09 pm
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TOPEKA – (October 31, 2013) – The Kansas Attorney General’s Office will offer four trainings in November for law enforcement professionals in combating domestic violence, Attorney General Derek Schmidt announced today.

“We want to build on the good work by so many dedicated Kansans throughout Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October,” Schmidt said. “These trainings will promote best practices and will focus on the importance of a collaborative approach in enforcing the laws against domestic violence throughout our state.”

The training sessions will be conducted in Dodge City, Colby, Pittsburg and Manhattan. They are open to prosecutors, law enforcement officers and allied professionals working within law enforcement or a local prosecutor’s office. Continuing education hours are available for attorneys and law enforcement officers in attendance. For more information about the sessions, or to register to attend, go to www.ag.ks.gov/dv-seminar.

The Kansas Attorney General’s Office also provides year-round support to local organizations working to reduce domestic violence. The Victims Service grant programs support many local organizations that provide education, support groups and emergency shelter for victims of domestic violence. The office also administers the Batterer Intervention Program, which certifies programs across the state that provide domestic violence intervention. More information about these programs is available on the Attorney General’s website at www.ag.ks.gov.

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Kansans turn in nearly 5 tons of medications

November 1, 2013, 7:08 am
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Kansans turned in nearly 5 tons of medications during last weekend’s National Drug Take-Back Day, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said today.
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Tower Foundation awards $62,000 in grants to three organizations

November 5, 2013, 9:25 am
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TOPEKA – (November 5, 2013) – Three statewide organizations have been awarded grants from the Tower Foundation totaling $62,000 to support mental health services in Kansas, Attorney General Derek Schmidt announced today.

Association of Community Mental Health Centers of Kansas, Inc., was awarded $30,000 to fund staff training in the Mental Health First Aid for Youth (MHFA-Y) program, so they can disseminate this training to others across the state. MHFA-Y is a public education program which introduces participants to the unique risk factors and warning signs of mental health problems in adolescents, builds understanding of the importance of early intervention, and teaches individuals how to help an adolescent in crisis or experiencing a mental health challenge.

Disability Rights Center of Kansas, Inc., was awarded $23,000 to fund the development and promotion of “transition toolkit” for recent high school graduates with disabilities, including mental health disabilities, to navigate the transition from high school to adult life. The toolkit will provide information to students and their parents so they can understand their rights and how to obtain support during and after the transition. The toolkit will include a smart phone application that will make it more effective and accessible for the user.

NAMI Kansas, Inc., received an award of $9,000, which will pay for training of In Our Own Voice presenters. In Our Own Voice is a public education program developed by NAMI in which two trained speakers share compelling personal stories about living with mental illness and achieving recovery.

The Tower Mental Health Foundation of Kansas was created as a result of an agreement between the Attorney General’s Office and the Menninger Foundation in 2007. It offers support to organizations that provide mental health services to Kansas. The Attorney General is the sole member of the Foundation, which is staffed by the Office of the Attorney General. The Foundation’s Board of Directors is comprised of nine Kansans with a keen interest in mental health issues. Dr. Walter Menninger serves as the Board’s president.

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Consumer Alert: Prescription discount cards may not deliver promised savings

November 5, 2013, 2:41 pm
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Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt today warned consumers that prescription discount cards which arrived this past week in many Kansas mailboxes may not be what they appear.
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Hodgeman County man sentenced to life in prison on Jessica’s Law conviction

November 7, 2013, 3:51 pm
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Douglas PetermanJETMORE – (November 7, 2013) – A Hodgeman County man was sentenced today to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 25 years after being convicted of child sex crimes, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.

Douglas D. Peterman, 44, Hanston, was found guilty in October by a Hodgeman County jury of three counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child. Chief Judge Bruce Gatterman sentenced Peterman today in Hodgeman County District Court.

The crimes were committed between August 2010 and April 2012. The charges stemmed from an investigation by the Dodge City Police Department, Hodgeman County Sheriff's Office and the Kansas Department for Children and Families. Assistant Attorney General Steve Karrer of Schmidt’s office prosecuted the case.

Photo courtesy of Hodgeman County Sheriff’s Office.

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AG Schmidt to feds: ‘Obamacare’ implementation risks consumer privacy

November 8, 2013, 7:15 am
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TOPEKA – (November 8, 2013) – Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt this week called on the Obama administration to step up consumer privacy protections as it implements the Affordable Care Act.

“I’m concerned that the well-publicized shortcomings in the new health exchange website are just the tip of the iceberg,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt and nine other state attorneys general sent a letter this week to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius raising concerns about consumer protections under the new law. In addition to expressing general concerns about data security, the attorneys general focused on the lack of background checks or other controls to ensure the integrity of the people who become “navigators.” The navigators assist consumers in signing up for coverage.

Because the navigators have access to consumers’ personal information, the lack of screening creates a risk of identity theft or other privacy violations.

“[T]he federal standards for navigators provide inadequate consumer protections to prevent the stealing of personal information,” the attorneys general wrote.

In August, before the October 1 implementation deadline for the new law, the attorneys general sent a previous letter to Secretary Sebelius raising concerns about the lack of background checks on navigators and the risk that consumer privacy could be at risk. They have not received a response to that previous letter.

This week, the Secretary testified before a United States Senate committee that it is possible for people with a felony conviction to become navigators with access to consumers’ personal information.

In addition to Schmidt, the letter was signed by the attorneys general from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and West Virginia. Copies of the August letter and yesterday’s letter are available at http://1.usa.gov/1bdMv2g and http://1.usa.gov/1hmUZNg.

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AG Schmidt: Missouri company to pay $10,000 fine for violating No-Call Act

November 12, 2013, 9:57 am
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A Missouri lawn service company will pay a $10,000 fine for violating the Kansas No-Call Act, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.
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Minneapolis man sentenced to nearly 13 years for sex crimes

November 12, 2013, 12:42 pm
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MINNEAPOLIS – (November 12, 2013) – A Minneapolis man was sentenced today to nearly 13 years in prison after being convicted of sex crimes earlier this year, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.

Bernard Wallin, 79, was sentenced to 155 months in the Kansas Department of Corrections by Chief Judge Jerome P. Hellmer in Ottawa County District Court. An Ottawa County jury found Wallin guilty in August of one count of rape, three counts of aggravated criminal sodomy and two counts of aggravated sexual battery.

The charges stemmed from an investigation by the Minneapolis Police Department and Kansas Bureau of Investigation. Assistant Attorney General Steve Karrer of Schmidt’s office prosecuted the case.

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