Company owner says the seized products were a small portion of the total inventory, and employees were allowed to continue production while feds were there

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/rebecca-rivas/">REBECCA RIVAS</a> <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-senate-committee-advances-bill-to-ban-texting-while-driving/">Missouri Independent</a>

Federal agents this week seized 73,000 products containing 7-hydroxymitragine, commonly known as 7-OH, from three Kansas City-area warehouses.

The seized products included things like power bars, pills and liquids shots that are made with a concentrate of 7-OH, which is&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/07/16/fda-warns-kansas-city-manufacturer-of-illegal-marketing-pain-relieving-pills/">the main opioid-inducing element in kratom</a>.&nbsp;

The action came out of a partnership between the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Justice Department, according to the DOJ’s<a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmo/pr/justice-department-seizes-unlawful-7-oh-products-three-warehouses" target="_blank">&nbsp;press release issued Tuesday</a>.

“While 7-OH occurs naturally in trace amounts in the plant kratom, products containing 7-OH as an added ingredient can be dangerous,” states a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26338216-shaman-complaint/" target="_blank">civil forfeiture complaint filed on Nov. 21</a>&nbsp;in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri. “In the human body, 7-OH is able to bind to opioid receptors, raising concerns about its potential for abuse.”

7-OH products are advertised as improving chronic pain and “mental clarity,” and they are sold in Missouri smoke shops, gas stations, convenience stores and online shops.&nbsp;

The FDA sent&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/07/16/fda-warns-kansas-city-manufacturer-of-illegal-marketing-pain-relieving-pills/">warning letters</a>&nbsp;in June to the facility owners, Shaman Botanicals LLC and Relax Relief Rejuvenate Trading LLC, stating the 7-OH products were considered “adulterated” and their labels were illegal under federal food laws.

On Nov. 12 and 13, FDA officials did an unannounced inspection of the three facilities, where they tagged and detained 76,000 units. Vince Sanders, who owns Shaman Botanicals LLC, said the company had the opportunity to appeal the FDA’s action, which they did. Shaman was the first company to make 7-OH products, Sanders said.

The DOJ filed a complaint to seize the detained products on Nov. 21, and officials from the FDA and U.S. Marshal Service seized the tagged boxes on Tuesday.

“The 7-OH products seized are illegal under federal law and pose risks to consumers, including children,” said R. Matthew Price, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri. “We are committed to helping American consumers protect themselves from dangerous chemicals posing as health products.”

Price said the department will continue to work with the FDA “to ensure illegal products never enter the stream of commerce and pursue all possible civil and criminal remedies against those who violate federal laws.”

However, Sanders told The Independent Thursday the seized units were only a small portion of the 7-OH products that were at the warehouse during the FDA’s November inspection. And his employees were allowed to continue making products while the federal agents were tagging and later seizing products in the warehouse.&nbsp;

“This is the craziest part,” Sanders said. “We literally sat there continuing to make the same products that they were taking.”

Sanders said the agents explained that they were targeting the finished packages, but there were many more finished products in the warehouse than the ones that were detained and ultimately seized.&nbsp;

In the FDA’s June warning letter, the agency deemed that 7-OH is a “new dietary ingredient.” The letter states that a dietary supplement is adulterated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act if it contains a new dietary ingredient that doesn’t have enough evidence to show it isn’t dangerous.

“Because there is inadequate information available to provide a reasonable assurance that 7-OH does not present a significant or unreasonable risk of illness or injury, it is illegal to sell dietary supplement products containing it as an ingredient,” the release states.&nbsp;

Sanders told The Independent in July that his company conducted three research studies on the products, including using rodents and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25999061-dfr-mgn-25-001-27jun25-crrdoc/" target="_blank">beagles</a>, which he believes shows the products are safe.

“This is just destroying something that has the potential to save hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of lives long term,” Sanders said.

He said there will likely be a hearing on the recent action in the next few weeks.

On the same day the DOJ’s complaint was filed on Nov. 21,&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/11/21/missouri-ag-launches-investigation-into-manufacturers-of-kratom-7-oh/">Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway</a>&nbsp;sent “civil investigative demand” letters to Sanders’ company and six other producers and distributors of 7-OH products.

The letters mandate the company hand over multiple types of documents, including lab test results, research on health risks and safety label information.

Consumers, Hanaway said in a press release, “may be exposed to unapproved, unsafe and deceptively marketed opioid-like drugs.”

According to the letters sent to each company, the attorney general’s investigation targets the distribution of products containing 7-OH or “any part of the plant Mitragyna speciosa,” which is the kratom plant.

“We are deeply concerned,” Hanaway said, “that Missourians are being sold drug-like substances under the guise of harmless supplements, with no FDA approval, no safety testing, and in some cases no meaningful disclosure of what these products actually contain.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764944590295.jpeg" alt="Federal agents seized thousands of 7-OH products from Kansas-city area warehouses on Dec. 2, including these 7-OH tablets that have opioid effects (photo courtesy of the FDA)." />
 <figcaption>Federal agents seized thousands of 7-OH products from Kansas-city area warehouses on Dec. 2, including these 7-OH tablets that have opioid effects (photo courtesy of the FDA).</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Company owner says the seized products were a small portion of the total inventory, and employees were allowed to continue production while feds were there</h2>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/rebecca-rivas/">REBECCA RIVAS</a> <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-senate-committee-advances-bill-to-ban-texting-while-driving/">Missouri Independent</a>Federal agents this week seized 73,000 products containing 7-hydroxymitragine, commonly known as 7-OH, from three Kansas City-area warehouses.The seized products included things like power bars, pills and liquids shots that are made with a concentrate of 7-OH, which is&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/07/16/fda-warns-kansas-city-manufacturer-of-illegal-marketing-pain-relieving-pills/">the main opioid-inducing element in kratom</a>.&nbsp;The action came out of a partnership between the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Justice Department, according to the DOJ’s<a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmo/pr/justice-department-seizes-unlawful-7-oh-products-three-warehouses" target="_blank">&nbsp;press release issued Tuesday</a>.“While 7-OH occurs naturally in trace amounts in the plant kratom, products containing 7-OH as an added ingredient can be dangerous,” states a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26338216-shaman-complaint/" target="_blank">civil forfeiture complaint filed on Nov. 21</a>&nbsp;in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri. “In the human body, 7-OH is able to bind to opioid receptors, raising concerns about its potential for abuse.”7-OH products are advertised as improving chronic pain and “mental clarity,” and they are sold in Missouri smoke shops, gas stations, convenience stores and online shops.&nbsp;The FDA sent&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/07/16/fda-warns-kansas-city-manufacturer-of-illegal-marketing-pain-relieving-pills/">warning letters</a>&nbsp;in June to the facility owners, Shaman Botanicals LLC and Relax Relief Rejuvenate Trading LLC, stating the 7-OH products were considered “adulterated” and their labels were illegal under federal food laws.On Nov. 12 and 13, FDA officials did an unannounced inspection of the three facilities, where they tagged and detained 76,000 units. Vince Sanders, who owns Shaman Botanicals LLC, said the company had the opportunity to appeal the FDA’s action, which they did. Shaman was the first company to make 7-OH products, Sanders said.The DOJ filed a complaint to seize the detained products on Nov. 21, and officials from the FDA and U.S. Marshal Service seized the tagged boxes on Tuesday.“The 7-OH products seized are illegal under federal law and pose risks to consumers, including children,” said R. Matthew Price, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri. “We are committed to helping American consumers protect themselves from dangerous chemicals posing as health products.”Price said the department will continue to work with the FDA “to ensure illegal products never enter the stream of commerce and pursue all possible civil and criminal remedies against those who violate federal laws.”However, Sanders told The Independent Thursday the seized units were only a small portion of the 7-OH products that were at the warehouse during the FDA’s November inspection. And his employees were allowed to continue making products while the federal agents were tagging and later seizing products in the warehouse.&nbsp;“This is the craziest part,” Sanders said. “We literally sat there continuing to make the same products that they were taking.”Sanders said the agents explained that they were targeting the finished packages, but there were many more finished products in the warehouse than the ones that were detained and ultimately seized.&nbsp;In the FDA’s June warning letter, the agency deemed that 7-OH is a “new dietary ingredient.” The letter states that a dietary supplement is adulterated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act if it contains a new dietary ingredient that doesn’t have enough evidence to show it isn’t dangerous.“Because there is inadequate information available to provide a reasonable assurance that 7-OH does not present a significant or unreasonable risk of illness or injury, it is illegal to sell dietary supplement products containing it as an ingredient,” the release states.&nbsp;Sanders told The Independent in July that his company conducted three research studies on the products, including using rodents and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25999061-dfr-mgn-25-001-27jun25-crrdoc/" target="_blank">beagles</a>, which he believes shows the products are safe.“This is just destroying something that has the potential to save hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of lives long term,” Sanders said.He said there will likely be a hearing on the recent action in the next few weeks.On the same day the DOJ’s complaint was filed on Nov. 21,&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/11/21/missouri-ag-launches-investigation-into-manufacturers-of-kratom-7-oh/">Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway</a>&nbsp;sent “civil investigative demand” letters to Sanders’ company and six other producers and distributors of 7-OH products.The letters mandate the company hand over multiple types of documents, including lab test results, research on health risks and safety label information.Consumers, Hanaway said in a press release, “may be exposed to unapproved, unsafe and deceptively marketed opioid-like drugs.”According to the letters sent to each company, the attorney general’s investigation targets the distribution of products containing 7-OH or “any part of the plant Mitragyna speciosa,” which is the kratom plant.“We are deeply concerned,” Hanaway said, “that Missourians are being sold drug-like substances under the guise of harmless supplements, with no FDA approval, no safety testing, and in some cases no meaningful disclosure of what these products actually contain.”

Feds seize thousands of 7-OH products from Kansas City warehouses

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Michael Annett, a former racecar driver who made 436 combined starts in NASCAR’s three national touring series, has died. He was 39.

JR Motorsports, one of Annett's former teams, posted the news on social media on Friday. No cause of death was announced.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Annett family with the passing of our friend Michael Annett,” the team wrote. “Michael was a key member of JRM from 2017 until he retired in 2021 and was an important part in turning us into the four-car organization we remain today.”

According to NASCAR, Annett made 321 starts in the Xfinity Series, 158 of which came with JRM.

In 2019, Annett won the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway in the No. 1 JRM Chevrolet for his only win at the national level.

Annett, a native of Des Moines, Iowa, was also a two-time winner in the ARCA Menards Series. He won at Talladega Superspeedway in 2007 and then took the series opener at Daytona in 2008.

“NASCAR is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of former NASCAR driver Michael Annett," the racing body said in a statement. "Michael was a respected competitor whose determination, professionalism, and positive spirit were felt by everyone in the garage. Throughout his career, he represented our sport with integrity and the passion of a true racer. NASCAR extends its condolences to Michael’s family and many friends.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1765051158844.jpeg" alt="FILE - NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Michael Annett before the Alsco Uniforms 300 race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 29, 2021 in Charlotte, NC. (AP Photo/Ben Gray, File)" />
 <figcaption>FILE - NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Michael Annett before the Alsco Uniforms 300 race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 29, 2021 in Charlotte, NC. (AP Photo/Ben Gray, File)</figcaption>
 </figure>MOORESVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Michael Annett, a former racecar driver who made 436 combined starts in NASCAR’s three national touring series, has died. He was 39.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Annett family with the passing of our friend Michael Annett. Michael was a key member of JRM from 2017 until he retired in 2021 and was an important part in turning us into the four-car organization we remain today. <a href="https://t.co/oZdMymjBz6">https://t.co/oZdMymjBz6</a> <a href="https://t.co/PUsCZHkXEg">pic.twitter.com/PUsCZHkXEg</a>&mdash; JR Motorsports (@JRMotorsports) <a href="https://twitter.com/JRMotorsports/status/1997099119676985354?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>JR Motorsports, one of Annett's former teams, posted the news on social media on Friday. No cause of death was announced.“Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Annett family with the passing of our friend Michael Annett,” the team wrote. “Michael was a key member of JRM from 2017 until he retired in 2021 and was an important part in turning us into the four-car organization we remain today.”According to NASCAR, Annett made 321 starts in the Xfinity Series, 158 of which came with JRM.In 2019, Annett won the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway in the No. 1 JRM Chevrolet for his only win at the national level.Annett, a native of Des Moines, Iowa, was also a two-time winner in the ARCA Menards Series. He won at Talladega Superspeedway in 2007 and then took the series opener at Daytona in 2008.“NASCAR is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of former NASCAR driver Michael Annett," the racing body said in a statement. "Michael was a respected competitor whose determination, professionalism, and positive spirit were felt by everyone in the garage. Throughout his career, he represented our sport with integrity and the passion of a true racer. NASCAR extends its condolences to Michael’s family and many friends.”

Former NASCAR star Michael Annett dead at 39

WASHINGTON (AP) — When the children of wealthy households leave the nest, they often benefit from their parents’ largesse in the form of a trust fund. Less affluent peers may receive nothing at all — or even be expected to support their families when they become adults.

But what if all children, regardless of their family’s circumstances, could get a financial boost when they turn 18?

That’s the idea behind&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/baby-bonds-trump-child-poverty-8503180dc5c57a2f20dd59d7ece01d6a">“Trump Accounts,”</a>&nbsp;a lesser-known provision of President Donald Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-big-beautiful-gop-taxes-ced365c347de9320eef2ccb8df16dda2">tax legislation</a>. The bill, signed into law earlier this year, gives $1,000 to every newborn, so long as their parents open an account. That money is invested in the stock market by private firms, and the child can access the funds when they turn 18. The parents of older children can also open accounts, but they won’t get the $1,000 bonus.

Backers say it’s a way to bolster capitalism and help children from low-income households build wealth at a time when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/socialism-socialist-capitalism-big-business-free-enterprise-poll-c052ca687269a2cc075423877b7904e6">openly socialist candidates</a>&nbsp;are growing more popular.

The new program gives the $1,000 bonus only to babies born during the calendar years of the Trump administration. Thanks to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/michael-dell-susan-trump-accounts-stock-market-poverty-inequality-7e2615d50a3fc0563109ed0eeb4c41e1">a historic donation</a>&nbsp;announced Tuesday by billionaires Michael and Susan Dell, some children 10 and under could receive $250 in seed money if their parents open an account. That money is reserved for kids who live in ZIP codes with a median family income of $150,000 or less and who won’t get the $1,000 seed money from the Treasury.

Here’s what you need to know about Trump Accounts and how to claim them.

It’s new savings tool where money is invested in the stock market on behalf of a child. The child can’t access the money until they turn 18 and can only use it for specific purposes, such as paying tuition, starting a business or making a down payment on a home.

After a parent opens an account, the U.S. Treasury will contribute $1,000 for newborns. Private banks and brokerages will manage the money, which must be invested in U.S. equity index funds that track the stock market and charge the accounts no more than 0.10% in annual fees.

Parents can contribute up to $2,500 annually in pretax income, much like they do for retirement accounts. Parents’ employers, relatives, friends, local governments and philanthropic groups can also pitch in. Yearly contributions are capped at $5,000, but contributions from governments and charities don’t count toward that total.

To qualify for the $1,000 seed money, a baby must be a U.S. citizen, have a Social Security number and be born between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2028. Any parent can open an account for a qualifying child, regardless of the parent’s immigration status.

It’s important to note that the child won’t be able to access the money until they turn 18, except in rare circumstances, so it can’t help with immediate expenses. And disbursements from the accounts will be subject to taxes.

Children born before 2025 won’t qualify for the $1,000 incentive, but parents can still open accounts for them as long as they’re under 18. Parents can still invest up to $2,500 pretax for those kids, and they may benefit from the Dells’ donation, giving $250 to children 10 and under in certain ZIP codes.

How do I open a Trump Account for my kids?

The accounts won’t be open for contributions until July 2026. But parents of eligible kids can sign up now by filling out Form 4547 from the Internal Revenue Service. As of Tuesday afternoon, that form was not yet available on&nbsp;<a href="https://trumpaccounts.gov/" target="_blank">the Trump Accounts website</a>.

In May, parents who sign up will get information about how to finish opening the accounts. Beginning in July, the White House says it will have a website where parents can register for the accounts.

Backers of the accounts say they want to introduce more people to the stock market and give even children born into poverty a chance to benefit from it. They believe that giving every newborn $1,000 will help combat the rising popularity of socialism and offer more people the opportunity to build wealth. About&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sec.gov/data-research/statistics-data-visualizations/us-households-participation-capital-markets" target="_blank">58% of U.S. households</a>&nbsp;held stocks or bonds in 2022, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, though the&nbsp;<a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/WFRBST01122" target="_blank">wealthiest 1%</a>&nbsp;owned almost half the value of stocks in that same year.

Before Trump created the accounts, California, Connecticut and the District of Columbia were piloting “baby bonds” programs that are similar to Trump Accounts in some ways. Several other states, including Maryland, are weighing programs.

But those programs are targeted for youth growing up in poverty or foster care, plus children who lost a parent to COVID-19. Wealthier children don’t benefit.

They’re also managed by the state, not private investment firms.

Critics point out the accounts do little to help children in their early years, when they’re most vulnerable and most likely to be in poverty. They also say the accounts do little to offset the cuts the Trump administration and congressional Republicans have made to other programs that benefit young people and their families, including&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-snap-wic-head-start-ddc8a5f6bb6b49150ff478eae9d454d5">food assistance</a>&nbsp;and Medicaid. Republicans created the accounts in the same Trump tax bill that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-big-bill-medicaid-snap-baby-bond-25c03837e9b2a0a4d6f60384ec5d0677">reduced spending</a>&nbsp;for some of those programs.

And even with the contribution from the government, critics say the Trump Accounts will widen the wealth gap. Affluent families that can afford to make the maximum pretax contribution to the accounts will realize the greatest benefits. Poor families who can’t afford to set aside money for the accounts will benefit the least. Assuming a 7% return, the $1,000 in seed money would grow to roughly $3,570 over 18 years.

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ap.org/about/news-values-and-principles/" target="_blank">standards</a>&nbsp;for working with philanthropies, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ap.org/about/supporting-ap/" target="_blank">list</a>&nbsp;of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764708295774.png" alt="Billionaires Michael and Susan Dell pledged $6.25 billion on Tuesday-image from White House Press conference&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Billionaires Michael and Susan Dell pledged $6.25 billion on Tuesday-image from White House Press conference&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — When the children of wealthy households leave the nest, they often benefit from their parents’ largesse in the form of a trust fund. Less affluent peers may receive nothing at all — or even be expected to support their families when they become adults.But what if all children, regardless of their family’s circumstances, could get a financial boost when they turn 18?That’s the idea behind&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/baby-bonds-trump-child-poverty-8503180dc5c57a2f20dd59d7ece01d6a">“Trump Accounts,”</a>&nbsp;a lesser-known provision of President Donald Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-big-beautiful-gop-taxes-ced365c347de9320eef2ccb8df16dda2">tax legislation</a>. The bill, signed into law earlier this year, gives $1,000 to every newborn, so long as their parents open an account. That money is invested in the stock market by private firms, and the child can access the funds when they turn 18. The parents of older children can also open accounts, but they won’t get the $1,000 bonus.Backers say it’s a way to bolster capitalism and help children from low-income households build wealth at a time when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/socialism-socialist-capitalism-big-business-free-enterprise-poll-c052ca687269a2cc075423877b7904e6">openly socialist candidates</a>&nbsp;are growing more popular.The new program gives the $1,000 bonus only to babies born during the calendar years of the Trump administration. Thanks to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/michael-dell-susan-trump-accounts-stock-market-poverty-inequality-7e2615d50a3fc0563109ed0eeb4c41e1">a historic donation</a>&nbsp;announced Tuesday by billionaires Michael and Susan Dell, some children 10 and under could receive $250 in seed money if their parents open an account. That money is reserved for kids who live in ZIP codes with a median family income of $150,000 or less and who won’t get the $1,000 seed money from the Treasury.Here’s what you need to know about Trump Accounts and how to claim them.<h2>What is a Trump Account?</h2>It’s new savings tool where money is invested in the stock market on behalf of a child. The child can’t access the money until they turn 18 and can only use it for specific purposes, such as paying tuition, starting a business or making a down payment on a home.After a parent opens an account, the U.S. Treasury will contribute $1,000 for newborns. Private banks and brokerages will manage the money, which must be invested in U.S. equity index funds that track the stock market and charge the accounts no more than 0.10% in annual fees.Parents can contribute up to $2,500 annually in pretax income, much like they do for retirement accounts. Parents’ employers, relatives, friends, local governments and philanthropic groups can also pitch in. Yearly contributions are capped at $5,000, but contributions from governments and charities don’t count toward that total.<h2>Who gets $1,000?</h2>To qualify for the $1,000 seed money, a baby must be a U.S. citizen, have a Social Security number and be born between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2028. Any parent can open an account for a qualifying child, regardless of the parent’s immigration status.It’s important to note that the child won’t be able to access the money until they turn 18, except in rare circumstances, so it can’t help with immediate expenses. And disbursements from the accounts will be subject to taxes.<h2>What about older children?</h2>Children born before 2025 won’t qualify for the $1,000 incentive, but parents can still open accounts for them as long as they’re under 18. Parents can still invest up to $2,500 pretax for those kids, and they may benefit from the Dells’ donation, giving $250 to children 10 and under in certain ZIP codes.<h2>How do I open a Trump Account for my kids?</h2>The accounts won’t be open for contributions until July 2026. But parents of eligible kids can sign up now by filling out Form 4547 from the Internal Revenue Service. As of Tuesday afternoon, that form was not yet available on&nbsp;<a href="https://trumpaccounts.gov/" target="_blank">the Trump Accounts website</a>.In May, parents who sign up will get information about how to finish opening the accounts. Beginning in July, the White House says it will have a website where parents can register for the accounts.<h2>What’s the idea behind the accounts?</h2>Backers of the accounts say they want to introduce more people to the stock market and give even children born into poverty a chance to benefit from it. They believe that giving every newborn $1,000 will help combat the rising popularity of socialism and offer more people the opportunity to build wealth. About&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sec.gov/data-research/statistics-data-visualizations/us-households-participation-capital-markets" target="_blank">58% of U.S. households</a>&nbsp;held stocks or bonds in 2022, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, though the&nbsp;<a href="https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/WFRBST01122" target="_blank">wealthiest 1%</a>&nbsp;owned almost half the value of stocks in that same year.Before Trump created the accounts, California, Connecticut and the District of Columbia were piloting “baby bonds” programs that are similar to Trump Accounts in some ways. Several other states, including Maryland, are weighing programs.But those programs are targeted for youth growing up in poverty or foster care, plus children who lost a parent to COVID-19. Wealthier children don’t benefit.They’re also managed by the state, not private investment firms.<h2>What do critics say?</h2>Critics point out the accounts do little to help children in their early years, when they’re most vulnerable and most likely to be in poverty. They also say the accounts do little to offset the cuts the Trump administration and congressional Republicans have made to other programs that benefit young people and their families, including&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-snap-wic-head-start-ddc8a5f6bb6b49150ff478eae9d454d5">food assistance</a>&nbsp;and Medicaid. Republicans created the accounts in the same Trump tax bill that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-big-bill-medicaid-snap-baby-bond-25c03837e9b2a0a4d6f60384ec5d0677">reduced spending</a>&nbsp;for some of those programs.And even with the contribution from the government, critics say the Trump Accounts will widen the wealth gap. Affluent families that can afford to make the maximum pretax contribution to the accounts will realize the greatest benefits. Poor families who can’t afford to set aside money for the accounts will benefit the least. Assuming a 7% return, the $1,000 in seed money would grow to roughly $3,570 over 18 years.___The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ap.org/about/news-values-and-principles/" target="_blank">standards</a>&nbsp;for working with philanthropies, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ap.org/about/supporting-ap/" target="_blank">list</a>&nbsp;of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

With new 'Trump Accounts,' your baby could qualify for $1,000. Here's what to know

SHAWNEE COUNTY—A wanted fugitive is in custody after an arrest in Shawnee County.

On December 2, sheriff deputies were investigating the occupants of a vehicle at the KWIK Shop near Morse and Topeka, according to Deputy Abigal Christian. Deputies identified a possible wanted subject. The driver was immediately detained, and the passenger ran.

With assistance from patrol deputies, a K-9 Unit, a drone and the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC), deputies conducted a search of the neighborhood west of the KWIK Shop and successfully apprehended the fleeing suspect.

Danny J. Belisle Jr., 50, of Topeka, was arrested and booked him into the Shawnee County Department&nbsp; of Corrections on requested charges of Felony interference with law enforcement. Belisle also had two felony warrants for his arrest

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764775528180.png" alt="Belisle photo Shawnee County" />
 <figcaption>Belisle photo Shawnee County</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY—A wanted fugitive is in custody after an arrest in Shawnee County.On December 2, sheriff deputies were investigating the occupants of a vehicle at the KWIK Shop near Morse and Topeka, according to Deputy Abigal Christian. Deputies identified a possible wanted subject. The driver was immediately detained, and the passenger ran.With assistance from patrol deputies, a K-9 Unit, a drone and the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC), deputies conducted a search of the neighborhood west of the KWIK Shop and successfully apprehended the fleeing suspect.Danny J. Belisle Jr., 50, of Topeka, was arrested and booked him into the Shawnee County Department&nbsp; of Corrections on requested charges of Felony interference with law enforcement. Belisle also had two felony warrants for his arrest

Drone and sheriff's K9 helped catch wanted Kansas suspect

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-signal-messaging-app-attack-plans-f8581bcb447b91d2e7f9cb7809ae0f06">The Pentagon’s watchdog</a>&nbsp;found that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth put U.S. personnel and their mission at risk when he&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-atlantic-war-plans-signal-yemen-houthis-c0addd08c627ab01a37ea63621cb695e">used the Signal messaging app</a>&nbsp;to convey sensitive information about a military strike against Yemen's Houthi militants, two people familiar with the findings said Wednesday.

<a href="https://media.defense.gov/2025/Dec/04/2003834916/-1/-1/1/DODIG_2026_021.PDF">Click here to read the full 84-page report</a>

Hegseth, however, has the ability to declassify material and the report did not find he did so improperly, according to one of the people familiar with the findings who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the information. That person also said the report concluded that Hegseth violated Pentagon policy by using his personal device for official business and it recommended better training for all Pentagon officials.

Hegseth declined to sit for an interview with the Pentagon's inspector general but provided a written statement, that person said. The defense secretary asserted that he was permitted to declassify information as he saw fit and only communicated details he thought would not endanger the mission.

The initial findings, which were first reported by CNN,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-hegseth-boat-strikes-e68621ec48c7886215359c0110d6d9ca">ramp up the pressure</a>&nbsp;on the former Fox News Channel host after lawmakers called for the independent inquiry into his use of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/signal-app-atlantic-war-plans-32699da142c5209b845e57f690df4925">commercially available app</a>.

Lawmakers also just opened investigations into a news report that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-venezuela-hegseth-maduro-512c66b99b2a13e9d1a3ed2699e78228">a follow-up strike</a>&nbsp;on an alleged drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean Sea in September killed survivors after Hegseth issued a verbal order to “kill everybody."

Hegseth&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-trump-venezuela-540ae279827e02105e089f1bd5af37a6">defended the strike as emerging in the “fog of war</a>,” saying he didn’t see any survivors but also “didn’t stick around” for the rest of the mission and that the admiral in charge “made the right call” in ordering the second strike. He also did not admit fault following the Signal revelations, asserting that the information was unclassified.

“The Inspector General review is a TOTAL exoneration of Secretary Hegseth and proves what we knew all along — no classified information was shared,” Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman said in a statement. “This matter is resolved, and the case is closed.”

President Donald Trump “stands by” Hegseth, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement, adding that the probe affirms that “no classified information was leaked, and operational security was not compromised.”

Journalist was added to a chat where sensitive plans were shared

In at least two separate Signal chats, Hegseth provided the exact timings of warplane launches and when bombs would drop — before the men and women carrying out those attacks on behalf of the United States were airborne.

Hegseth’s use of the app came to light when a journalist,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-atlantic-war-plans-signal-yemen-houthis-c0addd08c627ab01a37ea63621cb695e">Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic</a>, was inadvertently added to a Signal text chain by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-waltz-rubio-national-security-hegseth-d787db43d45922668ad0c1c62e608f85">then-national security adviser Mike Waltz</a>. It included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and others, brought together to discuss March 15 military operations against the Iran-backed Houthis.

Hegseth had created&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-signal-chat-houthis-attack-8dbf9dd6c711796438a5c1c84831c40b">another Signal chat</a>&nbsp;with 13 people that included his wife and brother where he shared similar details of the same strike, The Associated Press reported.

Signal is encrypted but is not authorized for carrying classified information and is not part of the Pentagon’s secure communications network.

Hegseth previously has said none of the information shared in the chats was classified. Multiple current and former military officials have told the AP there was no way details with that specificity, especially before a strike took place, would have been OK to share on an unsecured device.

The review was delivered to lawmakers, who were able to review the report in a classified facility at the Capitol. A partially redacted version of the report was expected to be released publicly later this week.

Hegseth said he viewed the investigation as a partisan exercise and did not trust the inspector general, according to one of the people familiar with the report’s findings. The review had to rely on screenshots of the Signal chat published by the Atlantic because Hegseth could not provide more than a small handful of his Signal messages, the person said.

When asked about the investigation in August, Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson told reporters that "we believe that this is a witch hunt and a total sham and being conducted in bad faith.”

Lawmakers had called for inspector general to investigate

The revelations sparked intense scrutiny, with Democratic lawmakers and a small number of Republicans saying Hegseth posting the information to the Signal chats before the military jets had reached their targets&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-signal-chat-pentagon-trump-30dc4c3d0e75a89f3fd883f38b26afff">potentially put those pilots’ lives at risk</a>. They said lower-ranking members of the military would have been fired for such a lapse.

Some Democrats on the House and Senate intelligence committees suggested Wednesday that Hegseth’s actions would be a fireable offense for anyone else.

“This was not an isolated lapse. It reflects a broader pattern of recklessness and poor judgment from a secretary who has repeatedly shown he is in over his head,” Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia said in a statement.

The inspector general had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-signal-messaging-app-attack-plans-f8581bcb447b91d2e7f9cb7809ae0f06">opened its investigation</a>&nbsp;into Hegseth at the request of the Republican chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, and the committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island.

It all ties back to the campaign against Yemen’s Houthis

The Houthi rebels had started launching&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthi-israel-hamas-red-sea-shipping-ab6fee82e73170b7e2edbab90ed6c14c">missile and drone attacks</a>&nbsp;against commercial and military ships in late 2023 in what their leadership had described as an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/israel-hamas-war-yemen-red-sea-rebellions-and-uprisings-yemen-government-35148e6fbef64ec8b6fa074d4da2551c">effort to end</a>&nbsp;Israel’s offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Their campaign greatly reduced the flow of trade through the Red Sea corridor, which typically sees $1 trillion of goods move through it annually.

The U.S.-led campaign against the Houthis in 2024 turned into the most intense running sea battle the Navy had faced since World War II.

A ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war had begun in January before falling apart in March. The U.S. then launched a broad assault against the Houthis that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-houthis-end-of-bombing-yemen-israel-e2f08ac04024ef3d6409b4ce97092489">ended weeks later</a>&nbsp;when Trump said they pledged to stop attacking ships. The latest Gaza ceasefire began in October.

Following the disclosure of Hegseth’s Signal chat that included the Atlantic’s editor, the magazine&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-atlantic-war-plans-signal-yemen-houthis-c0addd08c627ab01a37ea63621cb695e">released the entire thread</a>&nbsp;in late March. Hegseth had posted multiple details about an impending strike, using military language and laying out when a “strike window” starts, where a “target terrorist” was located, the time elements around the attack and when various weapons and aircraft would be used in the strike. He mentioned that the U.S. was “currently clean” on operational security.

Hegseth told Fox News Channel in April that what he shared over Signal was “informal, unclassified coordinations, for media coordinations and other things.”

Associated Press writer Stephen Groves, Konstantin Toropin, Michelle L. Price and David Klepper contributed to this report.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764876336391.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-signal-messaging-app-attack-plans-f8581bcb447b91d2e7f9cb7809ae0f06">The Pentagon’s watchdog</a>&nbsp;found that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth put U.S. personnel and their mission at risk when he&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-atlantic-war-plans-signal-yemen-houthis-c0addd08c627ab01a37ea63621cb695e">used the Signal messaging app</a>&nbsp;to convey sensitive information about a military strike against Yemen's Houthi militants, two people familiar with the findings said Wednesday.<a href="https://media.defense.gov/2025/Dec/04/2003834916/-1/-1/1/DODIG_2026_021.PDF">Click here to read the full 84-page report</a>Hegseth, however, has the ability to declassify material and the report did not find he did so improperly, according to one of the people familiar with the findings who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the information. That person also said the report concluded that Hegseth violated Pentagon policy by using his personal device for official business and it recommended better training for all Pentagon officials.Hegseth declined to sit for an interview with the Pentagon's inspector general but provided a written statement, that person said. The defense secretary asserted that he was permitted to declassify information as he saw fit and only communicated details he thought would not endanger the mission.The initial findings, which were first reported by CNN,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-hegseth-boat-strikes-e68621ec48c7886215359c0110d6d9ca">ramp up the pressure</a>&nbsp;on the former Fox News Channel host after lawmakers called for the independent inquiry into his use of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/signal-app-atlantic-war-plans-32699da142c5209b845e57f690df4925">commercially available app</a>.Lawmakers also just opened investigations into a news report that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-venezuela-hegseth-maduro-512c66b99b2a13e9d1a3ed2699e78228">a follow-up strike</a>&nbsp;on an alleged drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean Sea in September killed survivors after Hegseth issued a verbal order to “kill everybody."Hegseth&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-trump-venezuela-540ae279827e02105e089f1bd5af37a6">defended the strike as emerging in the “fog of war</a>,” saying he didn’t see any survivors but also “didn’t stick around” for the rest of the mission and that the admiral in charge “made the right call” in ordering the second strike. He also did not admit fault following the Signal revelations, asserting that the information was unclassified.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">No classified information. Total exoneration. Case closed. Houthis bombed into submission. Thank you for your attention to this IG report. <a href="https://t.co/eQPO5iPIRc">https://t.co/eQPO5iPIRc</a>&mdash; Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth/status/1996368824397094925?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“The Inspector General review is a TOTAL exoneration of Secretary Hegseth and proves what we knew all along — no classified information was shared,” Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman said in a statement. “This matter is resolved, and the case is closed.”President Donald Trump “stands by” Hegseth, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement, adding that the probe affirms that “no classified information was leaked, and operational security was not compromised.”<h2>Journalist was added to a chat where sensitive plans were shared</h2>In at least two separate Signal chats, Hegseth provided the exact timings of warplane launches and when bombs would drop — before the men and women carrying out those attacks on behalf of the United States were airborne.Hegseth’s use of the app came to light when a journalist,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-atlantic-war-plans-signal-yemen-houthis-c0addd08c627ab01a37ea63621cb695e">Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic</a>, was inadvertently added to a Signal text chain by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-waltz-rubio-national-security-hegseth-d787db43d45922668ad0c1c62e608f85">then-national security adviser Mike Waltz</a>. It included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and others, brought together to discuss March 15 military operations against the Iran-backed Houthis.Hegseth had created&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-signal-chat-houthis-attack-8dbf9dd6c711796438a5c1c84831c40b">another Signal chat</a>&nbsp;with 13 people that included his wife and brother where he shared similar details of the same strike, The Associated Press reported.Signal is encrypted but is not authorized for carrying classified information and is not part of the Pentagon’s secure communications network.Hegseth previously has said none of the information shared in the chats was classified. Multiple current and former military officials have told the AP there was no way details with that specificity, especially before a strike took place, would have been OK to share on an unsecured device.The review was delivered to lawmakers, who were able to review the report in a classified facility at the Capitol. A partially redacted version of the report was expected to be released publicly later this week.Hegseth said he viewed the investigation as a partisan exercise and did not trust the inspector general, according to one of the people familiar with the report’s findings. The review had to rely on screenshots of the Signal chat published by the Atlantic because Hegseth could not provide more than a small handful of his Signal messages, the person said.When asked about the investigation in August, Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson told reporters that "we believe that this is a witch hunt and a total sham and being conducted in bad faith.”<h2>Lawmakers had called for inspector general to investigate</h2>The revelations sparked intense scrutiny, with Democratic lawmakers and a small number of Republicans saying Hegseth posting the information to the Signal chats before the military jets had reached their targets&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-signal-chat-pentagon-trump-30dc4c3d0e75a89f3fd883f38b26afff">potentially put those pilots’ lives at risk</a>. They said lower-ranking members of the military would have been fired for such a lapse.Some Democrats on the House and Senate intelligence committees suggested Wednesday that Hegseth’s actions would be a fireable offense for anyone else.“This was not an isolated lapse. It reflects a broader pattern of recklessness and poor judgment from a secretary who has repeatedly shown he is in over his head,” Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia said in a statement.The inspector general had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-signal-messaging-app-attack-plans-f8581bcb447b91d2e7f9cb7809ae0f06">opened its investigation</a>&nbsp;into Hegseth at the request of the Republican chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, and the committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island.<h2>It all ties back to the campaign against Yemen’s Houthis</h2>The Houthi rebels had started launching&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/yemen-houthi-israel-hamas-red-sea-shipping-ab6fee82e73170b7e2edbab90ed6c14c">missile and drone attacks</a>&nbsp;against commercial and military ships in late 2023 in what their leadership had described as an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/video/israel-hamas-war-yemen-red-sea-rebellions-and-uprisings-yemen-government-35148e6fbef64ec8b6fa074d4da2551c">effort to end</a>&nbsp;Israel’s offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Their campaign greatly reduced the flow of trade through the Red Sea corridor, which typically sees $1 trillion of goods move through it annually.The U.S.-led campaign against the Houthis in 2024 turned into the most intense running sea battle the Navy had faced since World War II.A ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war had begun in January before falling apart in March. The U.S. then launched a broad assault against the Houthis that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-houthis-end-of-bombing-yemen-israel-e2f08ac04024ef3d6409b4ce97092489">ended weeks later</a>&nbsp;when Trump said they pledged to stop attacking ships. The latest Gaza ceasefire began in October.Following the disclosure of Hegseth’s Signal chat that included the Atlantic’s editor, the magazine&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-atlantic-war-plans-signal-yemen-houthis-c0addd08c627ab01a37ea63621cb695e">released the entire thread</a>&nbsp;in late March. Hegseth had posted multiple details about an impending strike, using military language and laying out when a “strike window” starts, where a “target terrorist” was located, the time elements around the attack and when various weapons and aircraft would be used in the strike. He mentioned that the U.S. was “currently clean” on operational security.Hegseth told Fox News Channel in April that what he shared over Signal was “informal, unclassified coordinations, for media coordinations and other things.”___Associated Press writer Stephen Groves, Konstantin Toropin, Michelle L. Price and David Klepper contributed to this report.

Read Pentagon watchdog report on Hegseth’s use of messaging app

Patients of NKC Health in North Kansas City finally learned in late November that their data was compromised in ‘one of the most massive breaches in the health care industry’

By:<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/suzanneking/">Suzanne King</a>

In January, hackers gained access to a cache of Cerner electronic health records stored on a legacy network.

But some patients whose sensitive health and financial information may have been exposed are only now being notified — and many others still haven’t been told.

NKC Health, formerly North Kansas City Hospital, is one of the most recent hospitals to let patients know about a cyber incident involving Cerner, now Oracle Health. The Nov. 25&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nkchealth.org/news-and-media/notice-cerner-cyber-security-event" target="_blank">notice</a>&nbsp;said the hospital had only “recently learned” of the incident, which has been unraveling for months and reportedly dates back to January.

About a dozen hospitals&nbsp;<a href="https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/healthcare-information-technology/ehrs/oracle-health-data-breach-hits-3-more-states/" target="_blank">across the country</a>, including Mosaic Life Care in St. Joseph, Missouri, have sent similar notices to patients. Oracle has not publicly disclosed the number of hospitals involved or how many patients may have been affected.

But Elena A. Belov, a lawyer representing victims of the data breach in a federal class action lawsuit filed in the Western District of Missouri, said she has been told by Oracle’s attorneys that 80 hospitals’ patient records may have been involved. And that could amount to millions of victims.

“This is one of the most massive breaches in the health care industry in the last couple of years,” said Belov, who practices with the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.almeidalawgroup.com/" target="_blank">Almeida Law Group</a>. “We still don’t know the entire universe. The list of affected hospitals has not been made public.”

Oracle Health, which&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/health-tech/oracle-gets-european-approval-28m-cerner-deal-set-close-next-week" target="_blank">acquired</a>&nbsp;North Kansas City-based Cerner for $28 billion in 2022, did not reply to requests for comment about the incident. The company is the country’s second-largest electronic medical records vendor, managing patient data for about 20% of the nation’s hospitals and doctors’ offices.

News reports about the January data breach said it involved data on Cerner’s old network that had not yet been transferred to Oracle’s cloud network.

While details of the Cerner data breach began appearing in news reports last spring, and the company started informing customers about the incident this summer, Oracle did not announce it to the media, and left it up to its health care clients to report the breach to patients and to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights’&nbsp;<a href="https://ocrportal.hhs.gov/ocr/breach/breach_report.jsf" target="_blank">Breach Portal</a>.

“It goes to the big problem we have,” Belov said. “Even huge companies who are in the business of digital security like Oracle are not paying enough attention to security.”

Data security experts said the Cerner network hack illustrates just how vulnerable patients’ health and financial information can be.

During the first 11 months of 2025, health care organizations reported 493 data compromises, which involved more than 34 million victims, according to the<a href="https://www.idtheftcenter.org/" target="_blank">&nbsp;Identity Theft Resource Center</a>, a nonprofit that tracks and works to prevent such incidents.

Until 2024, health care accounted for the most data breaches of any industry for six years in a row. But last year the financial industry took the top spot and health care came in second. The trend continued this year.

James E. Lee, president of the Identity Theft Resource Center, said health care is particularly vulnerable to cyber attackers because it is so large and diverse.

“There are small providers in small towns, all the way to huge multinational health care organizations and everything in between,” he said.

Health care involves hospitals, doctors, pharmacies, labs and insurance companies, all of which have access to patients’ personal information, including identity data like Social Security numbers, names and addresses; financial data like credit card information; and personal health information like diagnoses and medications.

All it takes to break in is one legitimate login and password at one point in the system. That leaves plenty of room for weak links, Lee said.

Companies like Cerner, which digitize health records so every doctor and hospital has easy access to patient charts, have become a major part of the system. From its beginnings in 1979, Cerner’s founders promised the electronic management of health records would cut costs and bring better care.

“The idea of digitizing the records — from a patient perspective — was a good one,” Lee said. “What we didn’t anticipate, and it is true across all industries, is the level to which professional criminals would become engaged. These are professional, multinational organizations, not some kid sitting in a basement drinking Red Bull.”

NKC Health’s statement said its patients’ records may have been accessed as early as Jan. 22, but Oracle Health only informed them about the incident recently.

In its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nkchealth.org/news-and-media/notice-cerner-cyber-security-event" target="_blank">notice to patients</a>, NKC said Oracle Health told the hospital that “law enforcement investigators” had urged it to delay notifying patients and hospital customers “because it could have impeded their investigation.”

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), the federal law that deals with patient privacy, requires health care providers and their associates to notify patients when sensitive information has been compromised “without unnecessary delay,” and no later than 60 days after an incident. But&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/subtitle-A/subchapter-C/part-164/subpart-D" target="_blank">the law makes an exception</a>&nbsp;if law enforcement requests a delay.

News organizations&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/fbi-investigating-cyberattack-oracle-bloomberg-news-reports-2025-03-28/" target="_blank">reported</a>&nbsp;in March that the FBI was looking into the attack, and in April, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2025/04/16/cisa-releases-guidance-credential-risks-associated-potential-legacy-oracle-cloud-compromise" target="_blank">security alert</a>, warning that “the nature of the reported activity presents potential risk to organizations and individuals.”

Oracle has informed some of its hospital and physician practice customers about the data breach individually.

Belov called the lack of transparency “really dismaying.”

“We’re losing valuable time for people to protect their information and their identities,” she said. “This is going to be a huge problem.”

Stolen data comes with ‘deadly outcomes’

Legal and health experts said breaches of health care information can be among the most concerning.

Beyond the potential loss of Social Security numbers, names, addresses and credit card information, victims of health care data breaches also risk much more worrisome losses, experts said.

If health records are altered or in some way compromised in a data breach, doctors might lose critical information about a patient’s medications or health history. And that could lead to medical errors or decisions that compromise care and endanger a patient.

“Stolen health data can lead to deadly outcomes,” Belov said.

That’s why many hospitals and doctors offices end up paying a ransom to get data back from hackers. Health care organizations often won’t talk about hacks. They worry that would make them look vulnerable and expose them to additional problems.

But a cybersecurity expert with the American Hospital Association&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeaconnews.org/stories/2024/01/25/how-ransomware-attacks-at-kansas-city-hospitals-threaten-your-privacy/" target="_blank">has estimated</a>&nbsp;that at least a third of the time, hospitals end up paying a ransom to get information back. Unlike other industries that might be able to wait out criminals or rebuild databases, they need the information right away and can’t risk waiting.

“Patient lives are on the line when something critical happens,” said Alexander Boyd, a data privacy and security lawyer with the Polsinelli law firm.

Clients across industries regularly consult him about situations in which data has been compromised. And, among those cases, ransomware attacks happen “more often than we’d like.”

In those cases, criminals break into a company, encrypt the data and demand a payment to unlock it. When one of those attacks happens to a health care provider, it can be an emergency.

“It’s not just a money issue, it’s a well-being issue,” Boyd said. “If the health care provider doesn’t have good backups, sometimes the only option is to pay the ransom.”

Coveware, a company that helps clients respond to cyber extortion incidents, reports the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.coveware.com/blog/2025/10/24/insider-threats-loom-while-ransom-payment-rates-plummet" target="_blank">average ransom payment</a>&nbsp;made by victims of cyberattacks has been falling. In the third quarter of this year, the average ransom payment for all industries was $376.94, a 66% drop from the previous quarter. The median payment was $140,000, down 65%.

Boyd said companies are getting better at avoiding attacks in the first place. More often they have data backed up so they don’t have to make ransom payments.

But when a client does have to negotiate with a hacker, Boyd turns to Coveware or another firm that specializes in dealing with the criminals. Those firms know through experience how much the hackers may be willing to negotiate and whether they may actually turn over an encryption key if their demands are met.

Typically, after coming to an agreement — after, perhaps, sending sample files to verify that the hackers actually can unlock them — clients pay the bitcoin ransom (there is no escrow) and then wait for the encryption key.

This&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeaconnews.org/stories/2025/12/04/some-patients-just-learning-about-january-cerner-data-breach/" target="_blank">article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeaconnews.org/" target="_blank">Beacon: Kansas City</a>&nbsp;and is republished here under a&nbsp;<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/" target="_blank">Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764944895246.png" alt=" Oracle purchased Cerner in 2022 in a deal valued at $28 billion. The company’s old logo remains outside its former North Kansas City headquarters (Suzanne King/The Beacon)." />
 <figcaption> Oracle purchased Cerner in 2022 in a deal valued at $28 billion. The company’s old logo remains outside its former North Kansas City headquarters (Suzanne King/The Beacon).</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Patients of NKC Health in North Kansas City finally learned in late November that their data was compromised in ‘one of the most massive breaches in the health care industry’</h2>By:<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/suzanneking/">Suzanne King</a>In January, hackers gained access to a cache of Cerner electronic health records stored on a legacy network.But some patients whose sensitive health and financial information may have been exposed are only now being notified — and many others still haven’t been told.NKC Health, formerly North Kansas City Hospital, is one of the most recent hospitals to let patients know about a cyber incident involving Cerner, now Oracle Health. The Nov. 25&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nkchealth.org/news-and-media/notice-cerner-cyber-security-event" target="_blank">notice</a>&nbsp;said the hospital had only “recently learned” of the incident, which has been unraveling for months and reportedly dates back to January.About a dozen hospitals&nbsp;<a href="https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/healthcare-information-technology/ehrs/oracle-health-data-breach-hits-3-more-states/" target="_blank">across the country</a>, including Mosaic Life Care in St. Joseph, Missouri, have sent similar notices to patients. Oracle has not publicly disclosed the number of hospitals involved or how many patients may have been affected.But Elena A. Belov, a lawyer representing victims of the data breach in a federal class action lawsuit filed in the Western District of Missouri, said she has been told by Oracle’s attorneys that 80 hospitals’ patient records may have been involved. And that could amount to millions of victims.“This is one of the most massive breaches in the health care industry in the last couple of years,” said Belov, who practices with the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.almeidalawgroup.com/" target="_blank">Almeida Law Group</a>. “We still don’t know the entire universe. The list of affected hospitals has not been made public.”Oracle Health, which&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/health-tech/oracle-gets-european-approval-28m-cerner-deal-set-close-next-week" target="_blank">acquired</a>&nbsp;North Kansas City-based Cerner for $28 billion in 2022, did not reply to requests for comment about the incident. The company is the country’s second-largest electronic medical records vendor, managing patient data for about 20% of the nation’s hospitals and doctors’ offices.News reports about the January data breach said it involved data on Cerner’s old network that had not yet been transferred to Oracle’s cloud network.While details of the Cerner data breach began appearing in news reports last spring, and the company started informing customers about the incident this summer, Oracle did not announce it to the media, and left it up to its health care clients to report the breach to patients and to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights’&nbsp;<a href="https://ocrportal.hhs.gov/ocr/breach/breach_report.jsf" target="_blank">Breach Portal</a>.“It goes to the big problem we have,” Belov said. “Even huge companies who are in the business of digital security like Oracle are not paying enough attention to security.”<h2>Health care data breaches are common</h2>Data security experts said the Cerner network hack illustrates just how vulnerable patients’ health and financial information can be.During the first 11 months of 2025, health care organizations reported 493 data compromises, which involved more than 34 million victims, according to the<a href="https://www.idtheftcenter.org/" target="_blank">&nbsp;Identity Theft Resource Center</a>, a nonprofit that tracks and works to prevent such incidents.Until 2024, health care accounted for the most data breaches of any industry for six years in a row. But last year the financial industry took the top spot and health care came in second. The trend continued this year.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764944731513.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>James E. Lee, president of the Identity Theft Resource Center, said health care is particularly vulnerable to cyber attackers because it is so large and diverse.“There are small providers in small towns, all the way to huge multinational health care organizations and everything in between,” he said.Health care involves hospitals, doctors, pharmacies, labs and insurance companies, all of which have access to patients’ personal information, including identity data like Social Security numbers, names and addresses; financial data like credit card information; and personal health information like diagnoses and medications.All it takes to break in is one legitimate login and password at one point in the system. That leaves plenty of room for weak links, Lee said.Companies like Cerner, which digitize health records so every doctor and hospital has easy access to patient charts, have become a major part of the system. From its beginnings in 1979, Cerner’s founders promised the electronic management of health records would cut costs and bring better care.“The idea of digitizing the records — from a patient perspective — was a good one,” Lee said. “What we didn’t anticipate, and it is true across all industries, is the level to which professional criminals would become engaged. These are professional, multinational organizations, not some kid sitting in a basement drinking Red Bull.”<h2>NKC Health incident</h2>NKC Health’s statement said its patients’ records may have been accessed as early as Jan. 22, but Oracle Health only informed them about the incident recently.In its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nkchealth.org/news-and-media/notice-cerner-cyber-security-event" target="_blank">notice to patients</a>, NKC said Oracle Health told the hospital that “law enforcement investigators” had urged it to delay notifying patients and hospital customers “because it could have impeded their investigation.”<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764944772112.png" alt="NKC Health, formerly North Kansas City Hospital, sits across the street from Cerner’s old headquarters in North Kansas City. (Suzanne King/The Beacon)" />
 <figcaption>NKC Health, formerly North Kansas City Hospital, sits across the street from Cerner’s old headquarters in North Kansas City. (Suzanne King/The Beacon)</figcaption>
 </figure>The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), the federal law that deals with patient privacy, requires health care providers and their associates to notify patients when sensitive information has been compromised “without unnecessary delay,” and no later than 60 days after an incident. But&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/subtitle-A/subchapter-C/part-164/subpart-D" target="_blank">the law makes an exception</a>&nbsp;if law enforcement requests a delay.News organizations&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/fbi-investigating-cyberattack-oracle-bloomberg-news-reports-2025-03-28/" target="_blank">reported</a>&nbsp;in March that the FBI was looking into the attack, and in April, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2025/04/16/cisa-releases-guidance-credential-risks-associated-potential-legacy-oracle-cloud-compromise" target="_blank">security alert</a>, warning that “the nature of the reported activity presents potential risk to organizations and individuals.”Oracle has informed some of its hospital and physician practice customers about the data breach individually.Belov called the lack of transparency “really dismaying.”“We’re losing valuable time for people to protect their information and their identities,” she said. “This is going to be a huge problem.”<h2>Stolen data comes with ‘deadly outcomes’</h2>Legal and health experts said breaches of health care information can be among the most concerning.Beyond the potential loss of Social Security numbers, names, addresses and credit card information, victims of health care data breaches also risk much more worrisome losses, experts said.If health records are altered or in some way compromised in a data breach, doctors might lose critical information about a patient’s medications or health history. And that could lead to medical errors or decisions that compromise care and endanger a patient.“Stolen health data can lead to deadly outcomes,” Belov said.That’s why many hospitals and doctors offices end up paying a ransom to get data back from hackers. Health care organizations often won’t talk about hacks. They worry that would make them look vulnerable and expose them to additional problems.But a cybersecurity expert with the American Hospital Association&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeaconnews.org/stories/2024/01/25/how-ransomware-attacks-at-kansas-city-hospitals-threaten-your-privacy/" target="_blank">has estimated</a>&nbsp;that at least a third of the time, hospitals end up paying a ransom to get information back. Unlike other industries that might be able to wait out criminals or rebuild databases, they need the information right away and can’t risk waiting.“Patient lives are on the line when something critical happens,” said Alexander Boyd, a data privacy and security lawyer with the Polsinelli law firm.Clients across industries regularly consult him about situations in which data has been compromised. And, among those cases, ransomware attacks happen “more often than we’d like.”In those cases, criminals break into a company, encrypt the data and demand a payment to unlock it. When one of those attacks happens to a health care provider, it can be an emergency.“It’s not just a money issue, it’s a well-being issue,” Boyd said. “If the health care provider doesn’t have good backups, sometimes the only option is to pay the ransom.”Coveware, a company that helps clients respond to cyber extortion incidents, reports the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.coveware.com/blog/2025/10/24/insider-threats-loom-while-ransom-payment-rates-plummet" target="_blank">average ransom payment</a>&nbsp;made by victims of cyberattacks has been falling. In the third quarter of this year, the average ransom payment for all industries was $376.94, a 66% drop from the previous quarter. The median payment was $140,000, down 65%.Boyd said companies are getting better at avoiding attacks in the first place. More often they have data backed up so they don’t have to make ransom payments.But when a client does have to negotiate with a hacker, Boyd turns to Coveware or another firm that specializes in dealing with the criminals. Those firms know through experience how much the hackers may be willing to negotiate and whether they may actually turn over an encryption key if their demands are met.Typically, after coming to an agreement — after, perhaps, sending sample files to verify that the hackers actually can unlock them — clients pay the bitcoin ransom (there is no escrow) and then wait for the encryption key.None of it is comfortable.“You hope and wait,” Boyd said.This&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeaconnews.org/stories/2025/12/04/some-patients-just-learning-about-january-cerner-data-breach/" target="_blank">article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeaconnews.org/" target="_blank">Beacon: Kansas City</a>&nbsp;and is republished here under a&nbsp;<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/" target="_blank">Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.

Some patients are just learning about Cerner health data breach in January

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement investigating a deadly shooting have made an arrest.

Just before 1a.m. on November 22, police responded to several reports of gunshots around SE 37th St. and SE Adams Street in Topeka, according to media release. While officers were investigating that area, they received information on a subject arriving at a local hospital by private vehicle with apparent gunshot wounds. That individual later identified as 16-year-old Kingston Scott of Topeka.

As a result of the investigation, police announced Friday a 16-year-old boy from Topeka, was booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges Criminal discharge of firearm; Occupied vehicle with great bodily harm, Murder in the 1st degree; In the commission of a felony and&nbsp;Criminal discharge of firearm; Recklessly at occupied dwelling.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764973228137.png" alt="Kingston Scott -photo GoFundMe" />
 <figcaption>Kingston Scott -photo GoFundMe</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement investigating a deadly shooting have made an arrest.Just before 1a.m. on November 22, police responded to several reports of gunshots around SE 37th St. and SE Adams Street in Topeka, according to media release. While officers were investigating that area, they received information on a subject arriving at a local hospital by private vehicle with apparent gunshot wounds. That individual later identified as 16-year-old Kingston Scott of Topeka.As a result of the investigation, police announced Friday a 16-year-old boy from Topeka, was booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges Criminal discharge of firearm; Occupied vehicle with great bodily harm, Murder in the 1st degree; In the commission of a felony and&nbsp;Criminal discharge of firearm; Recklessly at occupied dwelling.

16-year-old Kan. boy accused of killing 16-year-old

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">The Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;agreed on Friday to take up the constitutionality of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">President Donald Trump's</a>&nbsp;order on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/birthright-citizenship-immigration-trump-20919d26029cf0f98ecb0dc7f90a066b">birthright citizenship</a>&nbsp;declaring that children born to parents who are in the United States illegally or temporarily are not American citizens.

The justices will hear Trump's appeal of a lower-court ruling that struck down&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/protecting-the-meaning-and-value-of-american-citizenship/">the citizenship restrictions</a>. They have not taken effect anywhere in the country.

The case will be argued in the spring. A definitive ruling is expected by early summer.

<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/protecting-the-meaning-and-value-of-american-citizenship/">The birthright citizenship order</a>, which Trump signed Jan. 20, the first day of his second term, is part of his Republican administration’s broad&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/immigration">immigration crackdown</a>. Other actions include immigration enforcement surges in several cities and the first peacetime invocation of the 18th-century&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/alien-enemies-trump-immigration-deportations-21a62ede23b8c493b60d00a9c125722f">Alien Enemies Act</a>.

The administration is facing multiple&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/chicago-illinois-immigration-ice-border-patrol-7bb7d05c90b970226073857d97427c9e">court challenges</a>, and the high court has sent mixed signals in emergency orders it has issued. The justices effectively stopped the use of the Alien Enemies Act to rapidly deport alleged Venezuelan gang members without court hearings. But the Supreme Court allowed the resumption of sweeping immigration stops in the Los Angeles area after a lower court blocked the practice of stopping people solely based on their race, language, job or location.

The justices also are weighing the administration’s emergency appeal to be allowed to deploy National Guard troops in the Chicago area for immigration enforcement actions. A lower court has indefinitely prevented the deployment.

Birthright citizenship is the first Trump immigration-related policy to reach the court for a final ruling. His order would upend more than 125 years of understanding that the Constitution’s&nbsp;<a href="https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-14/">14th Amendment</a>&nbsp;confers citizenship on everyone born on American soil, with narrow exceptions for the children of foreign diplomats and those born to a foreign occupying force.

In a series of decisions, lower courts have struck down the executive order as unconstitutional, or likely so, even after a Supreme Court ruling in late June that limited judges’ use of nationwide injunctions.

The Supreme Court, however, did not rule out other court orders that could have nationwide effects, including in class action lawsuits and those brought by states. The justices did not decide at that time whether the underlying citizenship order was constitutional.

Every lower court that has looked at the issue has concluded that Trump’s order violates or likely violates the 14th Amendment, which was intended to ensure that Black people, including former slaves, had citizenship. Birthright citizenship automatically makes anyone born in the United States an American citizen, including children born to mothers who are in the country illegally, under longstanding rules.

The case under review comes from New Hampshire. A federal judge in July blocked the citizenship order in a class action lawsuit including all children who would be affected. The American Civil Liberties Union is leading the legal team representing the children and their parents who challenged Trump's order.

“No president can change the 14th Amendment’s fundamental promise of citizenship,” Cecillia Wang, the ACLU's national legal director, said in a statement, adding, "We look forward to putting this issue to rest once and for all in the Supreme Court this term.”

The administration had also asked the justices to review a ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. That court, also in July, ruled that a group of Democratic-led states that sued over Trump's order needed a nationwide injunction to prevent the problems that would be caused by birthright citizenship being in effect in some states and not others. The justices took no action in the 9th Circuit case.

The administration has asserted that children of noncitizens are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States and therefore not entitled to citizenship.

“The Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause was adopted to grant citizenship to newly freed slaves and their children — not ... to the children of aliens illegally or temporarily in the United States,” top administration top Supreme Court lawyer, D. John Sauer, wrote in urging the high court’s review.

Twenty-four Republican-led states and 27 Republican lawmakers, including Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, are backing the administration.

Follow the AP's coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court at&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1672235865420.png" alt="Supreme Court Credit: Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States" />
 <figcaption>Supreme Court Credit: Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">The Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;agreed on Friday to take up the constitutionality of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">President Donald Trump's</a>&nbsp;order on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/birthright-citizenship-immigration-trump-20919d26029cf0f98ecb0dc7f90a066b">birthright citizenship</a>&nbsp;declaring that children born to parents who are in the United States illegally or temporarily are not American citizens.The justices will hear Trump's appeal of a lower-court ruling that struck down&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/protecting-the-meaning-and-value-of-american-citizenship/">the citizenship restrictions</a>. They have not taken effect anywhere in the country.The case will be argued in the spring. A definitive ruling is expected by early summer.<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/protecting-the-meaning-and-value-of-american-citizenship/">The birthright citizenship order</a>, which Trump signed Jan. 20, the first day of his second term, is part of his Republican administration’s broad&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/immigration">immigration crackdown</a>. Other actions include immigration enforcement surges in several cities and the first peacetime invocation of the 18th-century&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/alien-enemies-trump-immigration-deportations-21a62ede23b8c493b60d00a9c125722f">Alien Enemies Act</a>.The administration is facing multiple&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/chicago-illinois-immigration-ice-border-patrol-7bb7d05c90b970226073857d97427c9e">court challenges</a>, and the high court has sent mixed signals in emergency orders it has issued. The justices effectively stopped the use of the Alien Enemies Act to rapidly deport alleged Venezuelan gang members without court hearings. But the Supreme Court allowed the resumption of sweeping immigration stops in the Los Angeles area after a lower court blocked the practice of stopping people solely based on their race, language, job or location.The justices also are weighing the administration’s emergency appeal to be allowed to deploy National Guard troops in the Chicago area for immigration enforcement actions. A lower court has indefinitely prevented the deployment.Birthright citizenship is the first Trump immigration-related policy to reach the court for a final ruling. His order would upend more than 125 years of understanding that the Constitution’s&nbsp;<a href="https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-14/">14th Amendment</a>&nbsp;confers citizenship on everyone born on American soil, with narrow exceptions for the children of foreign diplomats and those born to a foreign occupying force.In a series of decisions, lower courts have struck down the executive order as unconstitutional, or likely so, even after a Supreme Court ruling in late June that limited judges’ use of nationwide injunctions.The Supreme Court, however, did not rule out other court orders that could have nationwide effects, including in class action lawsuits and those brought by states. The justices did not decide at that time whether the underlying citizenship order was constitutional.Every lower court that has looked at the issue has concluded that Trump’s order violates or likely violates the 14th Amendment, which was intended to ensure that Black people, including former slaves, had citizenship. Birthright citizenship automatically makes anyone born in the United States an American citizen, including children born to mothers who are in the country illegally, under longstanding rules.The case under review comes from New Hampshire. A federal judge in July blocked the citizenship order in a class action lawsuit including all children who would be affected. The American Civil Liberties Union is leading the legal team representing the children and their parents who challenged Trump's order.“No president can change the 14th Amendment’s fundamental promise of citizenship,” Cecillia Wang, the ACLU's national legal director, said in a statement, adding, "We look forward to putting this issue to rest once and for all in the Supreme Court this term.”The administration had also asked the justices to review a ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. That court, also in July, ruled that a group of Democratic-led states that sued over Trump's order needed a nationwide injunction to prevent the problems that would be caused by birthright citizenship being in effect in some states and not others. The justices took no action in the 9th Circuit case.The administration has asserted that children of noncitizens are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States and therefore not entitled to citizenship.“The Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause was adopted to grant citizenship to newly freed slaves and their children — not ... to the children of aliens illegally or temporarily in the United States,” top administration top Supreme Court lawyer, D. John Sauer, wrote in urging the high court’s review.Twenty-four Republican-led states and 27 Republican lawmakers, including Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, are backing the administration.___Follow the AP's coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court at&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court</a>.

Supreme Court agrees to decide if Trump may end birthright citizenship

DOUGLAS COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating three teen suspects after a high-speed chase and crash in Doulas County.

The owner of a GMC Yukon reported it stolen from outside a home near 24th and Louisiana in Lawrence on Tuesday.

Justdecided not to stop for officers and ultimately crashed into a pole. 

Just after 11a.m. Wedneday, an officer spotted multiple people in the vehicle in the 4700 block of Overland Drive in Lawrence, according to a statement from police. The driver led police north on Folks, east on Peterson,&nbsp; south on Monterey and refused to stop.

 Another officer was able to set up spikes and pop a tire along the route, but the driver continued on until a failed left turn at Overland Drive. The driver ran from the crash but was chased down and safely arrested without injury. The others surrendered. 

A 17-year-old boy was taken to the hospital to get checked out and released to a parent. A 14-year-old, who was reported as a runaway, went to the Juvenile Detention Center.

DOUGLAS COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating three teen suspects after a high-speed chase and crash in Doulas County.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=476&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Freel%2F1596425831802860%2F&show_text=false&width=267&t=0" width="267" height="476" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>The owner of a GMC Yukon reported it stolen from outside a home near 24th and Louisiana in Lawrence on Tuesday.Justdecided not to stop for officers and ultimately crashed into a pole. Just after 11a.m. Wedneday, an officer spotted multiple people in the vehicle in the 4700 block of Overland Drive in Lawrence, according to a statement from police. The driver led police north on Folks, east on Peterson,&nbsp; south on Monterey and refused to stop. Another officer was able to set up spikes and pop a tire along the route, but the driver continued on until a failed left turn at Overland Drive. The driver ran from the crash but was chased down and safely arrested without injury. The others surrendered. A 17-year-old boy was taken to the hospital to get checked out and released to a parent. A 14-year-old, who was reported as a runaway, went to the Juvenile Detention Center.

🎥Teens in stolen SUV crash into pole during Kan. police chase

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump was awarded the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fifa-peace-prize-infantino-trump-c339695d2cca0f8acd92ff0264ff5ea9">new FIFA peace prize</a>&nbsp;on Friday at the 2026 World Cup draw — giving the soccer spectacle to set matchups for the quadrennial tournament even more of a Trumpian flair.

Trump, who has openly campaigned for the Nobel Peace Prize, had been heavily expected to receive the newly created FIFA prize. FIFA president Gianni Infantino, a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-world-cup-soccer-gianni-infantino-65a8160052baa74a007403ad20bbc256">close ally</a>&nbsp;of Trump, has said he thought Trump should have won the Nobel for his efforts to broker a ceasefire in Gaza.

The certificate that Infantino handed Trump recognizes the U.S. president for his actions to “promote peace and unity around the world.”

“This is what we want from a leader — a leader that cares about the people,” Infantino said about Trump, who wore a gold medal around his neck and was presented with a gold trophy with his name on it that depicts hands holding up the world. The FIFA leader said to Trump “this is your prize, this is your peace prize.”

Trump thanked his family, including his wife, first lady Melania Trump, and praised the leaders of the other two host nations — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum — in his brief remarks.

“This is truly one of the great honors of my life,” Trump said.

Infantino has often spoken about soccer as a unifier for the world, but the prize is a departure from the federation’s traditional focus on sport.

FIFA has described the prize as one that rewards “individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace and by doing so have united people across the world.”

It comes during a week where Trump’s administration has been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pete-hegseth-boat-strike-admiral-congress-521606d39c04dcc040ea232dc9cfeeda">under scrutiny for lethal strikes</a>&nbsp;on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and as Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-world-cup-draw-soccer-travel-bans-9a50f48ae28fd61e5e8339a2dedca907">hardens his rhetoric</a>&nbsp;against immigrants.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump was awarded the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fifa-peace-prize-infantino-trump-c339695d2cca0f8acd92ff0264ff5ea9">new FIFA peace prize</a>&nbsp;on Friday at the 2026 World Cup draw — giving the soccer spectacle to set matchups for the quadrennial tournament even more of a Trumpian flair.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">🚨 &quot;The inaugural 2025 FIFA Peace Prize is proudly bestowed upon the President of the United States of America, the Honorable Donald J. Trump.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/uyx6j9FcXf">pic.twitter.com/uyx6j9FcXf</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1996996968334139529?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">🚨 &quot;Please welcome the very first winner of the FIFA Peace Prize — the 45th and 47th President of the United States of America, Mr. Donald J. Trump!&quot; <a href="https://t.co/wPcObuFBKV">pic.twitter.com/wPcObuFBKV</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1996996980606672939?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">FIFA President Gianni Infantino presents <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> with a medal upon him receiving the very first FIFA Peace Prize 🕊️ <a href="https://t.co/h6GSBsWJc9">https://t.co/h6GSBsWJc9</a> <a href="https://t.co/EMtCkdhfq2">pic.twitter.com/EMtCkdhfq2</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1996997442408251620?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">WATCH: FIFA President Gianni Infantino delivers remarks as he awards <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> with the very first FIFA Peace Prize: <a href="https://t.co/PQxeWizEOm">pic.twitter.com/PQxeWizEOm</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1996998560554917900?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> on receiving the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize: &quot;This is truly one of the great honors of my life. Beyond awards... we saved millions and millions of lives.&quot; 🕊️ <a href="https://t.co/6H6qSUmvKC">pic.twitter.com/6H6qSUmvKC</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1996998595208171806?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President Donald J. Trump thanks his family after receiving the FIFA Peace Prize: &quot;I want to thank, by the way, my family — my great First Lady, Melania.&quot; ❤️ <a href="https://t.co/ZEPvi6DEXY">pic.twitter.com/ZEPvi6DEXY</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1996998932308664707?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Trump, who has openly campaigned for the Nobel Peace Prize, had been heavily expected to receive the newly created FIFA prize. FIFA president Gianni Infantino, a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-world-cup-soccer-gianni-infantino-65a8160052baa74a007403ad20bbc256">close ally</a>&nbsp;of Trump, has said he thought Trump should have won the Nobel for his efforts to broker a ceasefire in Gaza.The certificate that Infantino handed Trump recognizes the U.S. president for his actions to “promote peace and unity around the world.”“This is what we want from a leader — a leader that cares about the people,” Infantino said about Trump, who wore a gold medal around his neck and was presented with a gold trophy with his name on it that depicts hands holding up the world. The FIFA leader said to Trump “this is your prize, this is your peace prize.”Trump thanked his family, including his wife, first lady Melania Trump, and praised the leaders of the other two host nations — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum — in his brief remarks.“This is truly one of the great honors of my life,” Trump said.Infantino has often spoken about soccer as a unifier for the world, but the prize is a departure from the federation’s traditional focus on sport.FIFA has described the prize as one that rewards “individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace and by doing so have united people across the world.”It comes during a week where Trump’s administration has been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pete-hegseth-boat-strike-admiral-congress-521606d39c04dcc040ea232dc9cfeeda">under scrutiny for lethal strikes</a>&nbsp;on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and as Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-world-cup-draw-soccer-travel-bans-9a50f48ae28fd61e5e8339a2dedca907">hardens his rhetoric</a>&nbsp;against immigrants.

🎥FIFA awards President Trump their first peace prize

WASHINGTON (AP) — The man accused of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pipe-bombs-dc-jan6-40d748385b7b18ece2208c6c6690708b">planting a pair of pipe bombs</a>&nbsp;outside the headquarters of the Republican and Democratic national parties in Washington on the eve of the U.S. Capitol attack confessed to the act in interviews with investigators, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

Brian Cole Jr. also indicated that he believed the 2020 election was stolen and expressed views supportive of President Donald Trump, said the people, who were not authorized to discuss by name an ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The details add to a still-emerging portrait of the 30-year-old suspect from Woodbridge, Virginia, and it was not immediately clear what other information or perspectives he may have shared while cooperating with law enforcement following his arrest on Thursday.

Federal authorities have not publicly disclosed any information about a possible motive or whether there is any connection to the attack on the Capitol the following day by Trump supporters.

A spokesperson for the federal public defender’s office, which will be representing Cole at a Friday court appearance in Washington, declined to comment. Calls to relatives of Cole listed in public records were not immediately returned Thursday.

Cole faces explosives charges in connection with the Jan. 5, 2021 placement of the pipe bombs near the offices of the Democratic and Republican national committees. Nobody was hurt before the bombs were rendered safe, but the FBI has said both devices could have been lethal.

An FBI affidavit made public Thursday indicated that investigators zeroed in on Cole through analysis of credit card charges related to the purchase of pipe bomb components, cellphone towers and a license plate reader.

The arrest marks the first time investigators have publicly identified a suspect in an act that has been an enduring mystery for nearly five years in the shadow of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeumZ2aHDug" target="_blank">the violent Capitol attack</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/1/1735867762680.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The man accused of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pipe-bombs-dc-jan6-40d748385b7b18ece2208c6c6690708b">planting a pair of pipe bombs</a>&nbsp;outside the headquarters of the Republican and Democratic national parties in Washington on the eve of the U.S. Capitol attack confessed to the act in interviews with investigators, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.Brian Cole Jr. also indicated that he believed the 2020 election was stolen and expressed views supportive of President Donald Trump, said the people, who were not authorized to discuss by name an ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.The details add to a still-emerging portrait of the 30-year-old suspect from Woodbridge, Virginia, and it was not immediately clear what other information or perspectives he may have shared while cooperating with law enforcement following his arrest on Thursday.Federal authorities have not publicly disclosed any information about a possible motive or whether there is any connection to the attack on the Capitol the following day by Trump supporters.A spokesperson for the federal public defender’s office, which will be representing Cole at a Friday court appearance in Washington, declined to comment. Calls to relatives of Cole listed in public records were not immediately returned Thursday.Cole faces explosives charges in connection with the Jan. 5, 2021 placement of the pipe bombs near the offices of the Democratic and Republican national committees. Nobody was hurt before the bombs were rendered safe, but the FBI has said both devices could have been lethal.An FBI affidavit made public Thursday indicated that investigators zeroed in on Cole through analysis of credit card charges related to the purchase of pipe bomb components, cellphone towers and a license plate reader.The arrest marks the first time investigators have publicly identified a suspect in an act that has been an enduring mystery for nearly five years in the shadow of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeumZ2aHDug" target="_blank">the violent Capitol attack</a>.

Suspect in DC pipe bomb case said to have confessed to investigators

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug allegations after a triffic stop.

Just after 11p.m. November 26, a K-9 Unit with the Shawnee County&nbsp; Sheriff’s Office&nbsp; conducted a traffic stop on a black 2017 Chevrolet Impala for speeding in&nbsp; the 300 block of SE 29th Street, according to Deputy Abigail Christian. During the investigation, it was determined that the driver had a&nbsp; suspended driver’s license and a warrant for his arrest. Illegal narcotics, including cocaine, were&nbsp; also located.

Leo Rucker Jr., 40, of Topeka, was arrested and booked into the Shawnee County Department of&nbsp; Corrections on requested charges of Possession of an opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant, Possession of marijuana, Speeding; maximum limits, Driving while license suspended, Vehicle liability insurance; knowingly drive uninsured vehicle and&nbsp;&nbsp;Vehicles; operate vehicle without registration or with expired tag.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/12/1764776350902.png" alt="Rucker photo Shawnee County" />
 <figcaption>Rucker photo Shawnee County</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug allegations after a triffic stop.Just after 11p.m. November 26, a K-9 Unit with the Shawnee County&nbsp; Sheriff’s Office&nbsp; conducted a traffic stop on a black 2017 Chevrolet Impala for speeding in&nbsp; the 300 block of SE 29th Street, according to Deputy Abigail Christian. During the investigation, it was determined that the driver had a&nbsp; suspended driver’s license and a warrant for his arrest. Illegal narcotics, including cocaine, were&nbsp; also located.Leo Rucker Jr., 40, of Topeka, was arrested and booked into the Shawnee County Department of&nbsp; Corrections on requested charges of Possession of an opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant, Possession of marijuana, Speeding; maximum limits, Driving while license suspended, Vehicle liability insurance; knowingly drive uninsured vehicle and&nbsp;&nbsp;Vehicles; operate vehicle without registration or with expired tag.