ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Boeing announced plans to acquire key supplier Spirit AeroSystems for $4.7 billion, a move that it says will improve plane quality and safety amid increasing scrutiny by Congress, airlines and the Department of Justice.

Boeing previously owned Spirit, and the purchase would reverse a longtime Boeing strategy of outsourcing key work on its passenger planes. That approach has been criticized as problems at Spirit&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-supplier-slow-production-737-max-2525b4c5a27a7332b80b3016645918db">disrupted production</a>&nbsp;and delivery of popular Boeing jetliners including 737s and 787s.

“We believe this deal is in the best interest of the flying public, our airline customers, the employees of Spirit and Boeing, our shareholders and the country more broadly,” Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun said in a statement late Sunday.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-max-emergency-landing-alaska-airlines-79bc1ea98ee7fbc6edf46aff9319775b">Concerns about safety</a>&nbsp;came to a head after the Jan. 5 blowout of a panel on an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 at 16,000 feet (4,876 meters) over Oregon. The Federal Aviation Administration soon after announced&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-investigation-faa-panel-blowout-monitoring-06b098e57a8c65bdb0ba377f99290d32">increased oversight</a>&nbsp;of Boeing and Spirit, which supplied the fuselage for the plane.

No one was seriously injured in the Alaska Airlines door incident, which terrified passengers, but Boeing is under pressure from the U.S. Justice Department&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-criminal-charges-plea-deal-861175435e04039112fde0ac6bdbf75a">to plead guilty</a>&nbsp;to criminal fraud in connection with two deadly plane crashes involving its 737 Max jetliners more than five years ago.

Boeing has until the end of the week to accept or reject the offer, which includes the giant aerospace company agreeing to an independent monitor who would oversee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-ceo-calhoun-safety-senate-investigations-de6a273e5ad69764f4e666cc4afda2c1">its compliance</a>&nbsp;with anti-fraud laws, according to several people who heard federal prosecutors detail a proposed offer Sunday.

The Justice Department said in a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-violated-settlement-max-crashes-25cde72e154f60adae54177ce35c9176">May court filing</a>&nbsp;that Boeing violated terms of a 2021 settlement allowing the company to avoid prosecution for actions leading up to the crashes in Ethiopia and Indonesia,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-plane-crashes-737-max-justice-department-da2977c487811e873be2d118b3c5e529">which killed 346 people</a>.

Those crashes were blamed on a faulty sensor in a flight-control system and the investigation is separate from the probe of the more recent Alaska Airlines blowout, which involved Spirit.

Boeing spun off Spirit, which is based in Wichita, Kansas, and not related to Spirit Airlines, in 2005. In recent years, quality problems have mounted, including fuselage panels that didn’t fit together precisely enough and holes that were improperly drilled.

Spirit&nbsp;<a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/spirit-aerosystems-announces-leadership-transition-301944352.html">removed its CEO</a>&nbsp;in October and replaced him with Patrick Shanahan, a former Boeing executive who served as acting defense secretary in the Trump administration.

Things seemed to be going more smoothly until the Alaska Airlines incident. Investigators said a panel used in place of an extra emergency door had been removed at a Boeing factory to let Spirit workers fix damaged rivets, and bolts that help hold the panel in place&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-emergency-landing-report-alaska-airlines-8543c90b68b4d932a700cf57ff8f1b8e">were missing</a>&nbsp;after the repair job. It is not clear who removed the bolts and failed to put them back.

Spirit said in May that it was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-spirit-aerosystems-737-layoffs-c8da0ea0a2f4694cc9f22d7d63595ba7">laying off about 450</a>&nbsp;workers at its Wichita plant because of a production slowdown since the January incident. Its total workforce was just over 13,000 people.

“Bringing Spirit and Boeing together will enable greater integration of both companies’ manufacturing and engineering capabilities, including safety and quality systems,” Shanahan said.

The acquisition's equity value of $4.7 billion is $37.25 per share, while the total value of the deal is around $8.3 billion, which includes Spirit’s last reported net debt, the aerospace company said.

Boeing common stock will be exchanged for Spirit shares according to a variable formula that depends on a weighted average of the share price over a 15-trading-day period ending on the second day before the deal closes, Boeing said.

The companies also announced an agreement with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/airbus-se">Airbus</a>&nbsp;to negotiate the purchase of Spirit assets involved with programs operated by the European aerospace firm. The Airbus agreement is set to commence when Boeing's acquisition of Spirit is completed, the two U.S. companies said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/1/1580497975886.jpeg" alt="Photo by Elaine Thompson/AP/NPR" />
 <figcaption>Photo by Elaine Thompson/AP/NPR</figcaption>
 </figure>ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Boeing announced plans to acquire key supplier Spirit AeroSystems for $4.7 billion, a move that it says will improve plane quality and safety amid increasing scrutiny by Congress, airlines and the Department of Justice.Boeing previously owned Spirit, and the purchase would reverse a longtime Boeing strategy of outsourcing key work on its passenger planes. That approach has been criticized as problems at Spirit&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-supplier-slow-production-737-max-2525b4c5a27a7332b80b3016645918db">disrupted production</a>&nbsp;and delivery of popular Boeing jetliners including 737s and 787s.“We believe this deal is in the best interest of the flying public, our airline customers, the employees of Spirit and Boeing, our shareholders and the country more broadly,” Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun said in a statement late Sunday.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-max-emergency-landing-alaska-airlines-79bc1ea98ee7fbc6edf46aff9319775b">Concerns about safety</a>&nbsp;came to a head after the Jan. 5 blowout of a panel on an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 at 16,000 feet (4,876 meters) over Oregon. The Federal Aviation Administration soon after announced&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-investigation-faa-panel-blowout-monitoring-06b098e57a8c65bdb0ba377f99290d32">increased oversight</a>&nbsp;of Boeing and Spirit, which supplied the fuselage for the plane.No one was seriously injured in the Alaska Airlines door incident, which terrified passengers, but Boeing is under pressure from the U.S. Justice Department&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-criminal-charges-plea-deal-861175435e04039112fde0ac6bdbf75a">to plead guilty</a>&nbsp;to criminal fraud in connection with two deadly plane crashes involving its 737 Max jetliners more than five years ago.Boeing has until the end of the week to accept or reject the offer, which includes the giant aerospace company agreeing to an independent monitor who would oversee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-ceo-calhoun-safety-senate-investigations-de6a273e5ad69764f4e666cc4afda2c1">its compliance</a>&nbsp;with anti-fraud laws, according to several people who heard federal prosecutors detail a proposed offer Sunday.The Justice Department said in a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-violated-settlement-max-crashes-25cde72e154f60adae54177ce35c9176">May court filing</a>&nbsp;that Boeing violated terms of a 2021 settlement allowing the company to avoid prosecution for actions leading up to the crashes in Ethiopia and Indonesia,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-plane-crashes-737-max-justice-department-da2977c487811e873be2d118b3c5e529">which killed 346 people</a>.Those crashes were blamed on a faulty sensor in a flight-control system and the investigation is separate from the probe of the more recent Alaska Airlines blowout, which involved Spirit.Boeing spun off Spirit, which is based in Wichita, Kansas, and not related to Spirit Airlines, in 2005. In recent years, quality problems have mounted, including fuselage panels that didn’t fit together precisely enough and holes that were improperly drilled.Spirit&nbsp;<a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/spirit-aerosystems-announces-leadership-transition-301944352.html">removed its CEO</a>&nbsp;in October and replaced him with Patrick Shanahan, a former Boeing executive who served as acting defense secretary in the Trump administration.Things seemed to be going more smoothly until the Alaska Airlines incident. Investigators said a panel used in place of an extra emergency door had been removed at a Boeing factory to let Spirit workers fix damaged rivets, and bolts that help hold the panel in place&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-emergency-landing-report-alaska-airlines-8543c90b68b4d932a700cf57ff8f1b8e">were missing</a>&nbsp;after the repair job. It is not clear who removed the bolts and failed to put them back.Spirit said in May that it was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/boeing-spirit-aerosystems-737-layoffs-c8da0ea0a2f4694cc9f22d7d63595ba7">laying off about 450</a>&nbsp;workers at its Wichita plant because of a production slowdown since the January incident. Its total workforce was just over 13,000 people.“Bringing Spirit and Boeing together will enable greater integration of both companies’ manufacturing and engineering capabilities, including safety and quality systems,” Shanahan said.The acquisition's equity value of $4.7 billion is $37.25 per share, while the total value of the deal is around $8.3 billion, which includes Spirit’s last reported net debt, the aerospace company said.Boeing common stock will be exchanged for Spirit shares according to a variable formula that depends on a weighted average of the share price over a 15-trading-day period ending on the second day before the deal closes, Boeing said.The companies also announced an agreement with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/airbus-se">Airbus</a>&nbsp;to negotiate the purchase of Spirit assets involved with programs operated by the European aerospace firm. The Airbus agreement is set to commence when Boeing's acquisition of Spirit is completed, the two U.S. companies said.

Boeing agrees to buy Kan. aircraft parts maker for $4.7 billion

SHERIDAN COUNTY —Two people died in a small plane crash just after 6p.m. Sunday in Sheridan County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a&nbsp;YKC Fixed Wing Single-Engine Airplane piloted by David K.&nbsp;Allen, 78, Elbert, Colorado, was northbound&nbsp; and crashed in a field 10 miles north of Hoxie near Kansas 23 and one mile West on County Road 10.

Allen and a passenger Jeanne M.&nbsp;Allen, 79, Elbert, Colorado, were pronounced dead at the scene. The FAA and NTSB are in charge of the investigation.

SHERIDAN COUNTY —Two people died in a small plane crash just after 6p.m. Sunday in Sheridan County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a&nbsp;YKC Fixed Wing Single-Engine Airplane piloted by David K.&nbsp;Allen, 78, Elbert, Colorado, was northbound&nbsp; and crashed in a field 10 miles north of Hoxie near Kansas 23 and one mile West on County Road 10.Allen and a passenger Jeanne M.&nbsp;Allen, 79, Elbert, Colorado, were pronounced dead at the scene. The FAA and NTSB are in charge of the investigation.

2 dead after small plane crash in NW Kansas

WYANDOTTE COUNTY —Detectives investigating a fatal shooting have identified the victim as 17-year-old Michael Welch of Kansas City, Kansas.

On Wednesday evening, police were dispatched to a shooting in the 4900 block of Steele Road, according to a media release.

First responders discovered Welch outside a home, the victim of apparent gunshot wounds. He was pronounced deceased on scene. Two adult victims were transported to an area hospital with serious, but non-life threatening injuries, not caused by gunfire.

This incident is under investigation by the KCKPD Major Case Unit.&nbsp;This is the 13th homicide of the year in Kansas City, Kansas.

WYANDOTTE COUNTY —Detectives investigating a fatal shooting have identified the victim as 17-year-old Michael Welch of Kansas City, Kansas.On Wednesday evening, police were dispatched to a shooting in the 4900 block of Steele Road, according to a media release.First responders discovered Welch outside a home, the victim of apparent gunshot wounds. He was pronounced deceased on scene. Two adult victims were transported to an area hospital with serious, but non-life threatening injuries, not caused by gunfire.This incident is under investigation by the KCKPD Major Case Unit.&nbsp;This is the 13th homicide of the year in Kansas City, Kansas.

Police: 17-year-old identified as victim in Kansas shooting

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement found a live deer in a home during a drug bust near Kansas City.

Just afater 11:00 a.m., June 27, Deputies with the Cass County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Apprehension Unit served a search warrant near Hamilton Lane and West South Avenue in Belton, according to a media release.

This search warrant was the result of an extensive investigation into narcotics distribution. Deputies seized several items of evidence including suspected methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia and money. 

In conjunction with this operation, deputies took two suspects into custody on felony warrants. 

Hannah Graham, 42, of Belton was arrested on a Felony Parole Violation through the State of Kansas with no bond allowed.

Christopher McGolgin, 39,&nbsp; of Belton was arrested on felony warrants from Cass County with requested charges of Possession of a Controlled Substance and Unlawful Use of a Weapon.&nbsp;

 Two additional suspects, man and woman were taken into custody pending felony charges. 

&nbsp;The Drug Enforcement Administration assisted our Office with this investigation. During the search, a young live deer was located inside the residence. The Missouri Department of Conservation recovered the deer.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719665932482.png" alt="photo Cass Co." />
 <figcaption>photo Cass Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement found a live deer in a home during a drug bust near Kansas City.Just afater 11:00 a.m., June 27, Deputies with the Cass County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Apprehension Unit served a search warrant near Hamilton Lane and West South Avenue in Belton, according to a media release.This search warrant was the result of an extensive investigation into narcotics distribution. Deputies seized several items of evidence including suspected methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia and money. In conjunction with this operation, deputies took two suspects into custody on felony warrants. <figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719665968723.png" alt="Graham-photo Cass Co." />
 <figcaption>Graham-photo Cass Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>Hannah Graham, 42, of Belton was arrested on a Felony Parole Violation through the State of Kansas with no bond allowed.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719666003508.png" alt="McGolgin-photo Cass Co." />
 <figcaption>McGolgin-photo Cass Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>Christopher McGolgin, 39,&nbsp; of Belton was arrested on felony warrants from Cass County with requested charges of Possession of a Controlled Substance and Unlawful Use of a Weapon.&nbsp; Two additional suspects, man and woman were taken into custody pending felony charges. &nbsp;The Drug Enforcement Administration assisted our Office with this investigation. During the search, a young live deer was located inside the residence. The Missouri Department of Conservation recovered the deer.

Deputies found Kan. felon, live deer in a home during drug bust 

KANSAS CITY. – A Kansas City man and a Crowder, Mississippi, man have been sentenced in federal court for their roles in a drug-trafficking conspiracy that included two murders.

Shawn Burkhalter, also known as “Deuce,” 35, of Kansas City, Mo., was sentenced last week by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to life in federal prison without parole. Co-defendant Joshua Nesbitt, also known as “T,” 30, was sentenced to life in federal prison without parole.

On Aug. 28, 2023, Burkhalter and Nesbitt each were found guilty at trial of one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana, one count of possessing cocaine with the intent to distribute, one count of possessing marijuana with the intent to distribute, one count of robbery, two counts of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and a drug-trafficking crime, one count of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, one count of being felons in possession of a firearm, one count of conspiracy to commit witness and evidence tampering, one count of murdering a potential witness, and one count of evidence tampering. Additionally, Burkhalter was found guilty of one count of witness tampering.

Burkhalter and Nesbitt participated in a decade-long conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana from 2008 to Feb. 20, 2018. Six more co-defendants pleaded guilty and have been sentenced for their roles in the drug-trafficking conspiracy.

Trial evidence showed that on Sept. 10, 2015, Burkhalter and Nesbitt stole cocaine from Danny Lamont Dean, and in the process of that robbery, shot and killed Dean with a Rock River Arms AR-15, 5.56-caliber semi-automatic rifle.

On Oct. 4, 2015, Nesbitt and others stole marijuana from Anthony Dwayne Johnson, and in the process of that robbery, Nesbitt shot and killed Johnson with the same Rock River Arms AR-15, 5.56-caliber semi-automatic rifle, all of which was at the direction of Burkhalter (who was detained in custody at the time of the murder). Trial evidence showed Johnson was murdered because Burkhalter suspected him of providing information to investigators about Burkhalter’s involvement in Dean’s murder.

Burkhalter and Nesbitt robbed a Kansas City, Mo., business on Sept. 8, 2015, brandishing the same AR-15 rifle.

The government also presented evidence at sentencing hearing that Nesbitt repeatedly assaulted staff members at detention facilities while incarcerated and awaiting trial.

Co-defendants Sharika Hooker and Autry Hines, both of Kansas City, Mo.; Joslyn Lee, also known as “Bless,” and Nickayla Jones, both of Blue Springs, Mo.; Rachel Ryce of Raytown, Mo.; and Anthony Peltier, also known as “A-1,” of Lawrence, Kansas, have pleaded guilty and previously been sentenced.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719783612378.png" alt="Burkhalter" />
 <figcaption>Burkhalter</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY. – A Kansas City man and a Crowder, Mississippi, man have been sentenced in federal court for their roles in a drug-trafficking conspiracy that included two murders.Shawn Burkhalter, also known as “Deuce,” 35, of Kansas City, Mo., was sentenced last week by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to life in federal prison without parole. Co-defendant Joshua Nesbitt, also known as “T,” 30, was sentenced to life in federal prison without parole.On Aug. 28, 2023, Burkhalter and Nesbitt each were found guilty at trial of one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana, one count of possessing cocaine with the intent to distribute, one count of possessing marijuana with the intent to distribute, one count of robbery, two counts of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and a drug-trafficking crime, one count of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, one count of being felons in possession of a firearm, one count of conspiracy to commit witness and evidence tampering, one count of murdering a potential witness, and one count of evidence tampering. Additionally, Burkhalter was found guilty of one count of witness tampering.Burkhalter and Nesbitt participated in a decade-long conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana from 2008 to Feb. 20, 2018. Six more co-defendants pleaded guilty and have been sentenced for their roles in the drug-trafficking conspiracy.Trial evidence showed that on Sept. 10, 2015, Burkhalter and Nesbitt stole cocaine from Danny Lamont Dean, and in the process of that robbery, shot and killed Dean with a Rock River Arms AR-15, 5.56-caliber semi-automatic rifle.On Oct. 4, 2015, Nesbitt and others stole marijuana from Anthony Dwayne Johnson, and in the process of that robbery, Nesbitt shot and killed Johnson with the same Rock River Arms AR-15, 5.56-caliber semi-automatic rifle, all of which was at the direction of Burkhalter (who was detained in custody at the time of the murder). Trial evidence showed Johnson was murdered because Burkhalter suspected him of providing information to investigators about Burkhalter’s involvement in Dean’s murder.Burkhalter and Nesbitt robbed a Kansas City, Mo., business on Sept. 8, 2015, brandishing the same AR-15 rifle.The government also presented evidence at sentencing hearing that Nesbitt repeatedly assaulted staff members at detention facilities while incarcerated and awaiting trial.Co-defendants Sharika Hooker and Autry Hines, both of Kansas City, Mo.; Joslyn Lee, also known as “Bless,” and Nickayla Jones, both of Blue Springs, Mo.; Rachel Ryce of Raytown, Mo.; and Anthony Peltier, also known as “A-1,” of Lawrence, Kansas, have pleaded guilty and previously been sentenced.

Life in prison: Kansas City man sold drugs, killed murder witness 

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/suzanneking/">SUZANNE KING</a>

Michael Mullen donates blood plasma every Tuesday and Thursday. He has for 12 years.

The money it brings in — a little over $100 a week — augments what he makes as a chef. He’s come to rely on it.

“It helps supplement bill paying,” he said recently, smoking a cigarette outside the Biomat USA donation center on East 63rd Street where he’d just spent an hour and a half in the donation chair. “If I didn’t have it, I don’t know. I don’t know what would happen.”

Kelcey Gordon is out of work and said he’d struggle without the money he makes donating twice a week. Standing outside the same for-profit plasma donation center, one of 11 in the Kansas City area, he said he is grateful for the extra cash it represents.

In the $35 billion plasma pharmaceutical industry, Mullen, Gordon and some 3 million other U.S. adults supply the raw material the industry counts on.

The plasma they deposit every week is tested, processed and separated into protein parts that become medicine to treat rare, chronic conditions like immune deficiencies, autoimmune diseases and bleeding disorders.

Their plasma, collected at a storefront that shares a shopping center with a Thriftway and lies just a block east of Cash America Pawn, will end up in medicines sold for hundreds or thousands of dollars a dose. It will likely treat patients on the other side of the world.

Thanks to regulations that make the United States one of the few countries to let companies pay for plasma, and because people here can donate as often as twice a week, the U.S. supplies about 70% of the world’s plasma.

“This is the world basket of plasma,” said Peter Jaworski, a Georgetown University professor who studies the plasma economy.

The industry — with the enthusiastic backing of organizations that advocate for people suffering from the diseases that plasma therapies treat — says the system works. If people weren’t paid to donate, they argue demand could not be met. That would mean thousands of people would die or be unable to live normal lives.

The plasma centers, most of them owned and operated by pharmaceutical companies based overseas, say their business models also inject money into local communities.

Donation centers employ phlebotomists, security guards and screeners. And the payments made to donors — which vary based on how often someone donates and, in some cases, how much a donor weighs — go back into the local economy.

But doctors and public health experts caution that no one really knows what frequent plasma donations over many years could mean for donors’ health.

And they worry that poor people provide a bulk of U.S. donations at plasma centers. Plasma centers&nbsp;<a href="https://sites.fordschool.umich.edu/poverty2021/files/2022/07/Blood-Plasma-and-Poverty.pdf" target="_blank">tend to set up in</a>&nbsp;disadvantaged neighborhoods and rely on incentive programs designed to make donors give again and again.

Plasma centers push people to give as often as possible, but they don’t disclose the unknown risks of frequently extracting plasma from their blood for many years.

“People perceive it as a better alternative than high-cost loans that lead to debt,” said Emily A. Gallagher, an assistant professor of finance at the University of Colorado. She co-authored&nbsp;<a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3940369" target="_blank">a study</a>&nbsp;about the intersection between plasma donors and payday loan customers.

“Without knowing the longer-term health consequences,” she said, “it’s analogous to a loan against your future house with an unknown interest rate.”

The blood running through your veins includes red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets and plasma. Plasma — a yellow-tinged liquid — accounts for more than half of your blood.

It is 90% water, but also contains proteins vital to living a normal life. When someone has plasma that lacks&nbsp; — or is short on — certain proteins, they end up with rare and chronic diseases. Medicines made from healthy human plasma treat those diseases by supplementing the lacking plasma.

For someone with primary immune deficiency, a condition in which a person’s immune system doesn’t function properly, it takes&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pptaglobal.org/resources/plasma-collection-and-manufacturing" target="_blank">130 donations</a>&nbsp;to cover a year’s worth of treatment. For a person with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, a potentially fatal disease that can lead to organ damage, that number jumps to 900 donations a year. And for someone with hemophilia, a blood clotting disorder, it takes 1,200 donations of plasma to make a year’s worth of medicine.

Scientists have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/blood-donation-process/what-happens-to-donated-blood/blood-transfusions/history-blood-transfusion.html" target="_blank">known about</a>&nbsp;blood circulation since 1628, and blood transfusions began almost that long ago. In 1665, a British doctor figured out how to keep a dog alive by transfusing blood from other dogs.

At the beginning of the 20th century, scientists began to figure out that different people had different blood types. And by World War II the value of blood plasma was well understood.

In 1940, researchers developed a process to break plasma down into individual components to treat patients. That’s essentially what happens to plasma donated today.

Donated plasma goes through a process known as fractionation, which separates plasma into various protein parts. Once it is tested and cleaned — a process that can take up to a year — those proteins are pooled with other donors’ plasma and made into therapies.

Plasma therapies for patients on the receiving end are considered extremely safe today. Tests designed to find plasma tainted by disease are highly effective. And plasma pharmaceutical makers won’t use plasma until a donor has given at least twice and the donor has passed a health screening. In addition, plasma is treated to kill any lingering virus before it is used in medicine.

But in the 1980s, before it was understood that viruses like HIV could be transmitted through blood, plasma transfusions proved deadly.

In the United States, 63% of hemophiliacs&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gao.gov/assets/t-hehs-98-242.pdf" target="_blank">contracted HIV</a>&nbsp;after receiving plasma from infected donors. Others contracted hepatitis B and hepatitis C, diseases that are also transmitted through blood.

After those “wild west days of plasma collection,” Jaworski said, the industry underwent drastic changes. That included pharmaceutical companies taking over independent donation centers. In recent years, those centers have multiplied.

Pharmaceutical companies operate a combined 1,000 collection centers in the United States. That’s compared to 300 in 2005.

The business of taking human plasma and turning it into medicine is worth about $35 billion this year. And that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/plasma-fractionation-market-101614" target="_blank">could nearly double</a>&nbsp;by 2032, according to Fortune Business Insights, a market research firm.

Kansas City-area donation centers are all owned directly by the companies that make the plasma-derived drugs.

They include the Biomat on 63rd Street, owned by Grifols S.A., a Spanish company. Other Kansas City donation centers are owned by CSL Ltd., based in Australia, Takeda Pharmaceuticals from Japan and Octapharma Plasma, out of Switzerland.

Experts say the influx of new donation centers in recent years follows growing demand for plasma therapies. That’s because scientists are figuring out that more diseases can benefit from plasma medicines. During the COVID pandemic, plasma transfusions from previously infected donors were tried as a treatment, but its effectiveness&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/17/health/covid-convalescent-plasma.html?searchResultPosition=3" target="_blank">isn’t understood</a>&nbsp;because scientific testing was lacking.

Demand for plasma therapies is also up because more people are being diagnosed with diseases that could benefit from them.

For example, improved newborn screenings mean more people know they have primary immune deficiency, diseases that affect an estimated 500,000 people. But according to the Immune Deficiency Foundation, “tens of thousands” of others remain undiagnosed.

Only the United States, Germany, the Czech Republic and a few other countries allow payments for plasma donations. The countries that restrict payments have to rely on imports, primarily from the U.S. There is no synthetic alternative to human plasma.

That’s why Jaworski wants more countries to allow paid plasma.

“There isn’t a single country in the world that collects enough plasma to meet demand unless they compensate donors,” he said. “The most important moral mission for a system of blood and plasma collection is to meet the needs of patients.”

By that standard, he said, the American system is unquestionably succeeding.

“America not only collects enough for its own citizens,” he said, “it also collects enough for the rest of the world.”

Is it safe to donate plasma twice a week?

Through a process known as plasmapheresis, the plasma collected at for-profit centers is taken out of a donor’s arm as whole blood, pumped into a machine that separates out plasma and returns red blood cells and other components of blood to the donor.

That process, known as source plasma collection, is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/blood-blood-products" target="_blank">regulated</a>&nbsp;by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and also overseen by the countries that import the plasma. Donors spend about 90 minutes in the donation chair.

Nonprofit blood centers like the Community Blood Center of Greater Kansas City collect plasma through whole blood donations. Plasma is separated out once blood has been donated. But that process yields much less plasma.

Nonprofit blood banks don’t pay for donations. For one thing, hospitals won’t accept blood from a donor who has been compensated. And the World Health Organization&nbsp;<a href="https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241599696" target="_blank">advises against</a>&nbsp;paying for donations. It’s considered risky because donors who give blood because they need money could be more likely to misrepresent their health history — essentially hiding the likelihood that they’re carrying blood-borne infections.

Because plasma used in pharmaceuticals is so thoroughly processed, the risk posed by paid donations is lower. Jaworski said it’s proved to be extraordinarily safe for 30 years. He argues that objections to paid plasma donations are unrealistic when so many people rely on plasma therapies.

He compared paying people for their plasma to hiring firefighters rather than relying on volunteers. The payment doesn’t diminish the good act, he said.

“At some point, you get too many fires and you have to pay people to put out the fires,” he said. “We hit that tipping point (for plasma) more than 20 years ago.”

People who rely on the therapies created from paid-for plasma are actively campaigning to be sure paid donations continue.

The Immune Deficiency Foundation has a program meant to recruit more paid donors. “Your work will encourage donors to continue donating and, in turn, encourage their friends and family to donate plasma as well,” the organization’s&nbsp;<a href="https://primaryimmune.org/get-involved/volunteer/plasma-ambassador" target="_blank">web page</a>&nbsp;says.

But while plasma-derived therapies are critical for the patients relying on them to live a normal life, some doctors worry about what plasma donation could do to donors.

Plasma collection centers advise donors to drink lots of water, get sleep and have a healthy meal before donating. In the near term, donors are told to be prepared for certain temporary side effects like dehydration, dizziness and fatigue.

On its webpage, CSL Plasma also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cslplasma.com/faq" target="_blank">warns</a>&nbsp;about the possibility that donating frequently for a long period of time can deplete immunoglobulin levels, which can lower a person’s ability to fight off infections.

Dr. Morey A. Blinder, a hematologist at Washington University, said that’s definitely something frequent plasma donors should worry about. Long-term studies, looking at people who donate plasma twice a week, year after year, simply haven’t been done, he said.

“You’re depleting a person’s proteins in their bloodstream,” he said. “And it’s hard to know what the effect of that is.”

Proteins regenerate, he said, so in the short term, people can keep up. But it’s unclear what happens over time.

And while the plasma collection centers monitor donors’ health, their incentive isn’t to limit donations. It’s to collect as much plasma as possible.

“There are financial incentives to these donors to stay on schedule and keep donating,” Blinder said.

Many doctors would feel more comfortable, he said, if that pressure were reduced. Blinder also would like to see more frequent checks of donors’ blood levels, and a weekly, rather than twice weekly, donation limit.

“People in this field would say that would be an advantage,” he said.

Blinder also questions whether the pharmaceutical companies are paying donors fairly. Donors take home around $50 per donation, but the medicine it’s eventually turned into can cost $200 a gram, perhaps $16,000 per treatment dose, depending on the illness.

“We don’t have a good sense of the margins they earn on the plasma,” said Gallagher, the University of Colorado professor.

Right or wrong, the paid plasma business has become a reasonably big thread in the country’s social safety net. Gallagher found that people tend to donate plasma so they can get extra money and avoid taking out high-interest loans to make ends meet. Donors range from college students to single parents to low-wage earners who just need extra cash.

BioLife Plasma Services is&nbsp;<a href="https://info.biolifeplasma.com/new-plasma-donation-0722?utm_source=google&amp;utm_medium=paidsearch&amp;utm_campaign=tom:nonbrand%20search:::06012020&amp;gclid=CjwKCAjw1emzBhB8EiwAHwZZxcCrEIO2VHvuHYDaWVnCEZ2e53ivnHTubUPgByY_Vlqu2PkomP4l1BoCIVMQAvD_BwE" target="_blank">promising</a>&nbsp;new donors “up to $800.” And CSL Plasma&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cslplasma.com/" target="_blank">advertises</a>&nbsp;new donors “over $700 your first month.”

Whether or not donors are getting a fair payment, selling plasma is tempting a growing number of Americans. And, like Mullen and Gordon, they’re relying on the extra cash.

That’s why most mornings, before CSL Plasma’s donation center at 37th and Broadway opens for business at 6 a.m., a line of ready donors is already waiting outside.

This&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeaconnews.org/stories/2024/06/26/donating-plasma-in-kansas-city-helps-fuel-billion-dollar-industry/" 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 Creative Commons license.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719748510538.png" alt="At CSL Plasma on Broadway Boulevard in midtown Kansas City, willing plasma donors line up on a recent day before the center’s 6 a.m. opening (Suzanne King/The Beacon)." />
 <figcaption>At CSL Plasma on Broadway Boulevard in midtown Kansas City, willing plasma donors line up on a recent day before the center’s 6 a.m. opening (Suzanne King/The Beacon).</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/suzanneking/">SUZANNE KING</a>Michael Mullen donates blood plasma every Tuesday and Thursday. He has for 12 years.The money it brings in — a little over $100 a week — augments what he makes as a chef. He’s come to rely on it.“It helps supplement bill paying,” he said recently, smoking a cigarette outside the Biomat USA donation center on East 63rd Street where he’d just spent an hour and a half in the donation chair. “If I didn’t have it, I don’t know. I don’t know what would happen.”Kelcey Gordon is out of work and said he’d struggle without the money he makes donating twice a week. Standing outside the same for-profit plasma donation center, one of 11 in the Kansas City area, he said he is grateful for the extra cash it represents.In the $35 billion plasma pharmaceutical industry, Mullen, Gordon and some 3 million other U.S. adults supply the raw material the industry counts on.The plasma they deposit every week is tested, processed and separated into protein parts that become medicine to treat rare, chronic conditions like immune deficiencies, autoimmune diseases and bleeding disorders.Their plasma, collected at a storefront that shares a shopping center with a Thriftway and lies just a block east of Cash America Pawn, will end up in medicines sold for hundreds or thousands of dollars a dose. It will likely treat patients on the other side of the world.Thanks to regulations that make the United States one of the few countries to let companies pay for plasma, and because people here can donate as often as twice a week, the U.S. supplies about 70% of the world’s plasma.“This is the world basket of plasma,” said Peter Jaworski, a Georgetown University professor who studies the plasma economy.The industry — with the enthusiastic backing of organizations that advocate for people suffering from the diseases that plasma therapies treat — says the system works. If people weren’t paid to donate, they argue demand could not be met. That would mean thousands of people would die or be unable to live normal lives.The plasma centers, most of them owned and operated by pharmaceutical companies based overseas, say their business models also inject money into local communities.Donation centers employ phlebotomists, security guards and screeners. And the payments made to donors — which vary based on how often someone donates and, in some cases, how much a donor weighs — go back into the local economy.But doctors and public health experts caution that no one really knows what frequent plasma donations over many years could mean for donors’ health.And they worry that poor people provide a bulk of U.S. donations at plasma centers. Plasma centers&nbsp;<a href="https://sites.fordschool.umich.edu/poverty2021/files/2022/07/Blood-Plasma-and-Poverty.pdf" target="_blank">tend to set up in</a>&nbsp;disadvantaged neighborhoods and rely on incentive programs designed to make donors give again and again.Plasma centers push people to give as often as possible, but they don’t disclose the unknown risks of frequently extracting plasma from their blood for many years.“People perceive it as a better alternative than high-cost loans that lead to debt,” said Emily A. Gallagher, an assistant professor of finance at the University of Colorado. She co-authored&nbsp;<a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3940369" target="_blank">a study</a>&nbsp;about the intersection between plasma donors and payday loan customers.“Without knowing the longer-term health consequences,” she said, “it’s analogous to a loan against your future house with an unknown interest rate.”<h2>Therapies from donated plasma</h2>The blood running through your veins includes red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets and plasma. Plasma — a yellow-tinged liquid — accounts for more than half of your blood.It is 90% water, but also contains proteins vital to living a normal life. When someone has plasma that lacks&nbsp; — or is short on — certain proteins, they end up with rare and chronic diseases. Medicines made from healthy human plasma treat those diseases by supplementing the lacking plasma.For someone with primary immune deficiency, a condition in which a person’s immune system doesn’t function properly, it takes&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pptaglobal.org/resources/plasma-collection-and-manufacturing" target="_blank">130 donations</a>&nbsp;to cover a year’s worth of treatment. For a person with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, a potentially fatal disease that can lead to organ damage, that number jumps to 900 donations a year. And for someone with hemophilia, a blood clotting disorder, it takes 1,200 donations of plasma to make a year’s worth of medicine.Scientists have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/blood-donation-process/what-happens-to-donated-blood/blood-transfusions/history-blood-transfusion.html" target="_blank">known about</a>&nbsp;blood circulation since 1628, and blood transfusions began almost that long ago. In 1665, a British doctor figured out how to keep a dog alive by transfusing blood from other dogs.At the beginning of the 20th century, scientists began to figure out that different people had different blood types. And by World War II the value of blood plasma was well understood.In 1940, researchers developed a process to break plasma down into individual components to treat patients. That’s essentially what happens to plasma donated today.<h2>Wild west of plasma collection</h2>Donated plasma goes through a process known as fractionation, which separates plasma into various protein parts. Once it is tested and cleaned — a process that can take up to a year — those proteins are pooled with other donors’ plasma and made into therapies.Plasma therapies for patients on the receiving end are considered extremely safe today. Tests designed to find plasma tainted by disease are highly effective. And plasma pharmaceutical makers won’t use plasma until a donor has given at least twice and the donor has passed a health screening. In addition, plasma is treated to kill any lingering virus before it is used in medicine.But in the 1980s, before it was understood that viruses like HIV could be transmitted through blood, plasma transfusions proved deadly.In the United States, 63% of hemophiliacs&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gao.gov/assets/t-hehs-98-242.pdf" target="_blank">contracted HIV</a>&nbsp;after receiving plasma from infected donors. Others contracted hepatitis B and hepatitis C, diseases that are also transmitted through blood.After those “wild west days of plasma collection,” Jaworski said, the industry underwent drastic changes. That included pharmaceutical companies taking over independent donation centers. In recent years, those centers have multiplied.Pharmaceutical companies operate a combined 1,000 collection centers in the United States. That’s compared to 300 in 2005.The business of taking human plasma and turning it into medicine is worth about $35 billion this year. And that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/plasma-fractionation-market-101614" target="_blank">could nearly double</a>&nbsp;by 2032, according to Fortune Business Insights, a market research firm.<h2>Growing demand for plasma donations</h2>Kansas City-area donation centers are all owned directly by the companies that make the plasma-derived drugs.They include the Biomat on 63rd Street, owned by Grifols S.A., a Spanish company. Other Kansas City donation centers are owned by CSL Ltd., based in Australia, Takeda Pharmaceuticals from Japan and Octapharma Plasma, out of Switzerland.Experts say the influx of new donation centers in recent years follows growing demand for plasma therapies. That’s because scientists are figuring out that more diseases can benefit from plasma medicines. During the COVID pandemic, plasma transfusions from previously infected donors were tried as a treatment, but its effectiveness&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/17/health/covid-convalescent-plasma.html?searchResultPosition=3" target="_blank">isn’t understood</a>&nbsp;because scientific testing was lacking.Demand for plasma therapies is also up because more people are being diagnosed with diseases that could benefit from them.For example, improved newborn screenings mean more people know they have primary immune deficiency, diseases that affect an estimated 500,000 people. But according to the Immune Deficiency Foundation, “tens of thousands” of others remain undiagnosed.Only the United States, Germany, the Czech Republic and a few other countries allow payments for plasma donations. The countries that restrict payments have to rely on imports, primarily from the U.S. There is no synthetic alternative to human plasma.That’s why Jaworski wants more countries to allow paid plasma.“There isn’t a single country in the world that collects enough plasma to meet demand unless they compensate donors,” he said. “The most important moral mission for a system of blood and plasma collection is to meet the needs of patients.”By that standard, he said, the American system is unquestionably succeeding.“America not only collects enough for its own citizens,” he said, “it also collects enough for the rest of the world.”<h2>Is it safe to donate plasma twice a week?</h2>Through a process known as plasmapheresis, the plasma collected at for-profit centers is taken out of a donor’s arm as whole blood, pumped into a machine that separates out plasma and returns red blood cells and other components of blood to the donor.That process, known as source plasma collection, is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/blood-blood-products" target="_blank">regulated</a>&nbsp;by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and also overseen by the countries that import the plasma. Donors spend about 90 minutes in the donation chair.Nonprofit blood centers like the Community Blood Center of Greater Kansas City collect plasma through whole blood donations. Plasma is separated out once blood has been donated. But that process yields much less plasma.Nonprofit blood banks don’t pay for donations. For one thing, hospitals won’t accept blood from a donor who has been compensated. And the World Health Organization&nbsp;<a href="https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789241599696" target="_blank">advises against</a>&nbsp;paying for donations. It’s considered risky because donors who give blood because they need money could be more likely to misrepresent their health history — essentially hiding the likelihood that they’re carrying blood-borne infections.Because plasma used in pharmaceuticals is so thoroughly processed, the risk posed by paid donations is lower. Jaworski said it’s proved to be extraordinarily safe for 30 years. He argues that objections to paid plasma donations are unrealistic when so many people rely on plasma therapies.He compared paying people for their plasma to hiring firefighters rather than relying on volunteers. The payment doesn’t diminish the good act, he said.“At some point, you get too many fires and you have to pay people to put out the fires,” he said. “We hit that tipping point (for plasma) more than 20 years ago.”People who rely on the therapies created from paid-for plasma are actively campaigning to be sure paid donations continue.The Immune Deficiency Foundation has a program meant to recruit more paid donors. “Your work will encourage donors to continue donating and, in turn, encourage their friends and family to donate plasma as well,” the organization’s&nbsp;<a href="https://primaryimmune.org/get-involved/volunteer/plasma-ambassador" target="_blank">web page</a>&nbsp;says.But while plasma-derived therapies are critical for the patients relying on them to live a normal life, some doctors worry about what plasma donation could do to donors.Plasma collection centers advise donors to drink lots of water, get sleep and have a healthy meal before donating. In the near term, donors are told to be prepared for certain temporary side effects like dehydration, dizziness and fatigue.On its webpage, CSL Plasma also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cslplasma.com/faq" target="_blank">warns</a>&nbsp;about the possibility that donating frequently for a long period of time can deplete immunoglobulin levels, which can lower a person’s ability to fight off infections.<h2>What is the downside to donating plasma?</h2>Dr. Morey A. Blinder, a hematologist at Washington University, said that’s definitely something frequent plasma donors should worry about. Long-term studies, looking at people who donate plasma twice a week, year after year, simply haven’t been done, he said.“You’re depleting a person’s proteins in their bloodstream,” he said. “And it’s hard to know what the effect of that is.”Proteins regenerate, he said, so in the short term, people can keep up. But it’s unclear what happens over time.And while the plasma collection centers monitor donors’ health, their incentive isn’t to limit donations. It’s to collect as much plasma as possible.“There are financial incentives to these donors to stay on schedule and keep donating,” Blinder said.Many doctors would feel more comfortable, he said, if that pressure were reduced. Blinder also would like to see more frequent checks of donors’ blood levels, and a weekly, rather than twice weekly, donation limit.“People in this field would say that would be an advantage,” he said.Blinder also questions whether the pharmaceutical companies are paying donors fairly. Donors take home around $50 per donation, but the medicine it’s eventually turned into can cost $200 a gram, perhaps $16,000 per treatment dose, depending on the illness.“We don’t have a good sense of the margins they earn on the plasma,” said Gallagher, the University of Colorado professor.Right or wrong, the paid plasma business has become a reasonably big thread in the country’s social safety net. Gallagher found that people tend to donate plasma so they can get extra money and avoid taking out high-interest loans to make ends meet. Donors range from college students to single parents to low-wage earners who just need extra cash.BioLife Plasma Services is&nbsp;<a href="https://info.biolifeplasma.com/new-plasma-donation-0722?utm_source=google&amp;utm_medium=paidsearch&amp;utm_campaign=tom:nonbrand%20search:::06012020&amp;gclid=CjwKCAjw1emzBhB8EiwAHwZZxcCrEIO2VHvuHYDaWVnCEZ2e53ivnHTubUPgByY_Vlqu2PkomP4l1BoCIVMQAvD_BwE" target="_blank">promising</a>&nbsp;new donors “up to $800.” And CSL Plasma&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cslplasma.com/" target="_blank">advertises</a>&nbsp;new donors “over $700 your first month.”Whether or not donors are getting a fair payment, selling plasma is tempting a growing number of Americans. And, like Mullen and Gordon, they’re relying on the extra cash.That’s why most mornings, before CSL Plasma’s donation center at 37th and Broadway opens for business at 6 a.m., a line of ready donors is already waiting outside.This&nbsp;<a href="https://thebeaconnews.org/stories/2024/06/26/donating-plasma-in-kansas-city-helps-fuel-billion-dollar-industry/" 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 Creative Commons license.<figure>
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Plasma donors in Kansas City are helping fuel a $34 billion industry

NEW YORK (AP) — The monthlong celebration of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pride-month-lgbtq-2024-1abf80d0cf1026b60b47f565e9953fec">LGBTQ+ Pride</a>&nbsp;reached its exuberant grand finale on Sunday, bringing rainbow-laden revelers to the streets for marquee parades in Wichita, New York, Chicago, San Francisco and elsewhere across the globe.

The wide-ranging festivities functioned as both jubilant parties and political protests, as participants recognize the community’s gains while also calling attention to recent anti-LGBTQ+ laws, such as bans on transgender health care, passed by Republican-led states.

“We’re at a time where there’s a ton of legislation, anti-LGBTQ+ legislation,” Zach Overton, 47, said at the New York parade. “It feels like we’re taking a step backwards in the fight for equality and so it’s a great moment to come out and be with our community and see all the different colors of the spectrum of our community and remind ourselves what we’re all fighting for.”

Thousands of people gathered along New York’s Fifth Avenue to celebrate Pride. Floats cruised the street as Diane Ross’ “I’m Coming Out” played from loudspeakers. Pride flags filled the horizon, and signs in support of Puerto Rico, Ukraine and Gaza were visible in the crowd.

This year, tensions over the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">Israel-Hamas war</a>&nbsp;in Gaza also seeped into the celebrations,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-nyc-pride-gaza-72879ee18421aff044961cd7cd8ab1a9">exposing divisions</a>&nbsp;within a community that is often aligned on political issues. Protesters temporarily blocked the New York parade on Sunday, chanting: “Free, free, free Palestine!” Police eventually took some of them away.

Pro-Palestinian activists disrupted pride parades earlier in June in Boston, Denver, and Philadelphia. Several groups participating in marches Sunday said they would seek to highlight the victims of the war in Gaza, spurring pushback from supporters of Israel.

“It is certainly a more active presence this year in terms of protest at Pride events,” said Sandra Pérez, the executive director of NYC Pride. “But we were born out of a protest.”

The first pride march was held in New York City in 1970 to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/stonewall-at-50">Stonewall Inn uprising</a>, a riot that began with a police raid on a Manhattan gay bar.

Nick Taricco, 47, who was at the New York parade with Overton, said he attended Friday's&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-election-lgbtq-stonewall-trump-1b1978ac44f80ca5f468661c32015c48">opening of the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center</a>, where President Joe Biden spoke. Taricco said he has concerns about politics in the U.S., including the presidential election.

“Even given how old he is, I still think that’s the direction we need to go in," Taricco said of Biden. “But it’s a very uncertain time in general in this country.”

Ireland Fernandez-Cosgrove, 23, celebrated at the New York parade.

“New York City is a great place to live, but this is one of the only days where you can come out and be openly queer and you know you’re going to be OK and safe about it," she said. "I came out here today with my partner to be able to be ourselves in public and know that other people are going to be supporting us.”

In addition to the NYC Pride March, the nation’s largest, the city also played host Sunday to the Queer Liberation March, an activism-centered event launched five years ago amid concerns that the more mainstream parade had become too corporate.

Another one of the world’s largest Pride celebrations took place Sunday in San Francisco, with throngs of spectators lined up along Market Street.

Brian Peterson, the secretary of queer-friendly motorcycling club Homoto, rode his motorcycle along the parade route.

“This is an event where I can celebrate myself as well as my friends and make new friends, and reaffirm that I belong in this world," Peterson told the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/sf-lgbtq-pride-parade-19530235.php">San Francisco Chronicle</a>.

Tens of thousands of revelers packed sidewalks along Chicago’s parade, a scaled-back event from previous years. City officials shortened the North Side route and the number of floats this year from 199 to about 150 over safety and logistical concerns, including to better deploy police into evening hours as post-parade parties have become more disruptive in recent years. Chicago's parade, one of the largest in the U.S., routinely draws about 1 million people, according to the city. Sunday’s crowd estimates were not immediately available.

Parades also were held in Minneapolis and Seattle.

On top of concerns about protests, federal agencies had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/terror-warning-pride-month-lgbtq-homeland-security-ad89884662d67dfd6f4cc2c0b358e9eb">warned</a>&nbsp;that foreign terrorist organizations and their supporters could target the parades and adjacent venues. Security was heavy at all of the events.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719791789039.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) — The monthlong celebration of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/pride-month-lgbtq-2024-1abf80d0cf1026b60b47f565e9953fec">LGBTQ+ Pride</a>&nbsp;reached its exuberant grand finale on Sunday, bringing rainbow-laden revelers to the streets for marquee parades in Wichita, New York, Chicago, San Francisco and elsewhere across the globe.The wide-ranging festivities functioned as both jubilant parties and political protests, as participants recognize the community’s gains while also calling attention to recent anti-LGBTQ+ laws, such as bans on transgender health care, passed by Republican-led states.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FWichitaPrideInc%2Fposts%2Fpfbid02AksZYJVCNWuSpUNQneYy8WpcQjd9T7EgEAtpGV6Riieo7EtmKjGVosNA5TQcoDCGl&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="660" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div>“We’re at a time where there’s a ton of legislation, anti-LGBTQ+ legislation,” Zach Overton, 47, said at the New York parade. “It feels like we’re taking a step backwards in the fight for equality and so it’s a great moment to come out and be with our community and see all the different colors of the spectrum of our community and remind ourselves what we’re all fighting for.”<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">PRIDE! 🏳️‍🌈 <a href="https://t.co/gdSvdIIGYM">pic.twitter.com/gdSvdIIGYM</a>&mdash; Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenSchumer/status/1807539678288936983?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 30, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Thousands of people gathered along New York’s Fifth Avenue to celebrate Pride. Floats cruised the street as Diane Ross’ “I’m Coming Out” played from loudspeakers. Pride flags filled the horizon, and signs in support of Puerto Rico, Ukraine and Gaza were visible in the crowd.This year, tensions over the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">Israel-Hamas war</a>&nbsp;in Gaza also seeped into the celebrations,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-nyc-pride-gaza-72879ee18421aff044961cd7cd8ab1a9">exposing divisions</a>&nbsp;within a community that is often aligned on political issues. Protesters temporarily blocked the New York parade on Sunday, chanting: “Free, free, free Palestine!” Police eventually took some of them away.Pro-Palestinian activists disrupted pride parades earlier in June in Boston, Denver, and Philadelphia. Several groups participating in marches Sunday said they would seek to highlight the victims of the war in Gaza, spurring pushback from supporters of Israel.“It is certainly a more active presence this year in terms of protest at Pride events,” said Sandra Pérez, the executive director of NYC Pride. “But we were born out of a protest.”The first pride march was held in New York City in 1970 to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/stonewall-at-50">Stonewall Inn uprising</a>, a riot that began with a police raid on a Manhattan gay bar.Nick Taricco, 47, who was at the New York parade with Overton, said he attended Friday's&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-election-lgbtq-stonewall-trump-1b1978ac44f80ca5f468661c32015c48">opening of the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center</a>, where President Joe Biden spoke. Taricco said he has concerns about politics in the U.S., including the presidential election.“Even given how old he is, I still think that’s the direction we need to go in," Taricco said of Biden. “But it’s a very uncertain time in general in this country.”Ireland Fernandez-Cosgrove, 23, celebrated at the New York parade.“New York City is a great place to live, but this is one of the only days where you can come out and be openly queer and you know you’re going to be OK and safe about it," she said. "I came out here today with my partner to be able to be ourselves in public and know that other people are going to be supporting us.”In addition to the NYC Pride March, the nation’s largest, the city also played host Sunday to the Queer Liberation March, an activism-centered event launched five years ago amid concerns that the more mainstream parade had become too corporate.Another one of the world’s largest Pride celebrations took place Sunday in San Francisco, with throngs of spectators lined up along Market Street.Brian Peterson, the secretary of queer-friendly motorcycling club Homoto, rode his motorcycle along the parade route.“This is an event where I can celebrate myself as well as my friends and make new friends, and reaffirm that I belong in this world," Peterson told the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/sf-lgbtq-pride-parade-19530235.php">San Francisco Chronicle</a>.Tens of thousands of revelers packed sidewalks along Chicago’s parade, a scaled-back event from previous years. City officials shortened the North Side route and the number of floats this year from 199 to about 150 over safety and logistical concerns, including to better deploy police into evening hours as post-parade parties have become more disruptive in recent years. Chicago's parade, one of the largest in the U.S., routinely draws about 1 million people, according to the city. Sunday’s crowd estimates were not immediately available.Parades also were held in Minneapolis and Seattle.On top of concerns about protests, federal agencies had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/terror-warning-pride-month-lgbtq-homeland-security-ad89884662d67dfd6f4cc2c0b358e9eb">warned</a>&nbsp;that foreign terrorist organizations and their supporters could target the parades and adjacent venues. Security was heavy at all of the events.

LGBTQ+ Pride Month culminates with parades in Kansas and beyond

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — Former Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt lauded Friday a decision of the U.S. Supreme Court to restrict authority of federal government agencies to assume a prominent role in interpretating ambiguous laws rather than depending on Congress to fill the gaps.

Schmidt, a Republican candidate in for the U.S. House in the 2nd District, said overturning a 40-year precedent was “a victory for accountability in government” and an important restraint on “unelected bureaucrats.”

As attorney general, he signed onto a brief supported by officials in more than a dozen states urging the Supreme Court to upend the “Chevron doctrine” that directed judges to give deference to reasonable interpretations offered by federal agencies when Congress failed to clearly define how to administer a law. Under the 1984 doctrine, judges were to yield to agency experts when assessing regulations tied to federal statute.

“When I served as Kansas attorney general,” Schmidt said, “I asked the Supreme Court to take up the case.”

He said his campaign to fill the eastern Kansas congressional seat to be vacated by U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner, R-Kansas, was in part a fight against the “intrusion of big government into our lives.”

The 6-3 decision of the Supreme Court would “strengthen the ability of Congress and our independent judiciary to stand up for liberty and government accountability,” Schmidt said.

Supporters of the 1984 Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council doctrine argued the decision would undermine federal regulation of consumer products, transportation systems, the environment and an array of other sectors of the federal government.

Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan’s dissent said a “longstanding precedent at the crux of administrative governance thus falls victim to a bald assertion of judicial authority. The majority disdains restraint, and grasps for power.”

The ruling wouldn’t automatically nullify court decisions associated with the Chevron doctrine. However, the opinion said, courts in the future wouldn’t have to defer to agency interpretations when determining whether policies complied with the federal law.

The Supreme Court’s action was driven by legal challenges by fishermen who objected to federal policy mandating payment of $700 daily fees to carry federal monitors on their boats.

GOP candidates in the 2nd District contest include Schmidt, former Brownback and Trump administration official Jeff Kahrs, Michael Ogle, Shawn Tiffany and Chad Young. Candidates for the Democratic Party’s nomination are Matt Kleinmann and former U.S. Rep. Nancy Boyda. The Libertarian Party nominee is John Hauer.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719627531343.png" alt="S Derek Schmidt, a Republican candidate for Congress and a former Kansas attorney general, endorsed the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn a 1985 precedent of judges deferring to federal government agencies when implementing fague laws passed by Congress. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>S Derek Schmidt, a Republican candidate for Congress and a former Kansas attorney general, endorsed the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn a 1985 precedent of judges deferring to federal government agencies when implementing fague laws passed by Congress. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Former Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt lauded Friday a decision of the U.S. Supreme Court to restrict authority of federal government agencies to assume a prominent role in interpretating ambiguous laws rather than depending on Congress to fill the gaps.Schmidt, a Republican candidate in for the U.S. House in the 2nd District, said overturning a 40-year precedent was “a victory for accountability in government” and an important restraint on “unelected bureaucrats.”As attorney general, he signed onto a brief supported by officials in more than a dozen states urging the Supreme Court to upend the “Chevron doctrine” that directed judges to give deference to reasonable interpretations offered by federal agencies when Congress failed to clearly define how to administer a law. Under the 1984 doctrine, judges were to yield to agency experts when assessing regulations tied to federal statute.“When I served as Kansas attorney general,” Schmidt said, “I asked the Supreme Court to take up the case.”He said his campaign to fill the eastern Kansas congressional seat to be vacated by U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner, R-Kansas, was in part a fight against the “intrusion of big government into our lives.”The 6-3 decision of the Supreme Court would “strengthen the ability of Congress and our independent judiciary to stand up for liberty and government accountability,” Schmidt said.Supporters of the 1984 Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council doctrine argued the decision would undermine federal regulation of consumer products, transportation systems, the environment and an array of other sectors of the federal government.Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan’s dissent said a “longstanding precedent at the crux of administrative governance thus falls victim to a bald assertion of judicial authority. The majority disdains restraint, and grasps for power.”The ruling wouldn’t automatically nullify court decisions associated with the Chevron doctrine. However, the opinion said, courts in the future wouldn’t have to defer to agency interpretations when determining whether policies complied with the federal law.The Supreme Court’s action was driven by legal challenges by fishermen who objected to federal policy mandating payment of $700 daily fees to carry federal monitors on their boats.GOP candidates in the 2nd District contest include Schmidt, former Brownback and Trump administration official Jeff Kahrs, Michael Ogle, Shawn Tiffany and Chad Young. Candidates for the Democratic Party’s nomination are Matt Kleinmann and former U.S. Rep. Nancy Boyda. The Libertarian Party nominee is John Hauer.

Schmidt lauds U.S. Supreme Court’s limit on power of federal agencies to interpret vague laws

Law enforcement officials are seeking information which will lead to the identification of an unknown individual known as John Doe 48. It is believed that this individual may have critical information pertaining to the identity of a child victim in a sexual exploitation investigation, according to a statement from the agency.

The video depicting John Doe, 48 is believed to have been produced in October of 2023.

John Doe, 48 is described as a White male between the ages of 45 and 65-years-old.&nbsp; He has dark hair, a gray beard, and has a tattoo on each of his forearms.&nbsp; He is seen in the back of a 2018-2019 Nissan NV Cargo Van wearing a blue t-shirt and a dark-colored hat.&nbsp; He is heard speaking English in the video.&nbsp;

If you have any information concerning this case, please call the FBI's toll-free tip-line at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324), contact a Crimes Against Children Investigator at your<a href="http://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field/" target="_blank">local FBI office</a>, or the nearest&nbsp;<a href="http://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/legat/" target="_blank">American Embassy or Consulate</a>.

<a href="https://tips.fbi.gov/?fugitive_name=UNKNOWN+INDIVIDUAL+-+JOHN+DOE+48&amp;fugitive_type=ecap" target="_blank">Click here to submit an anonymous tip online</a>

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719430482057.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Law enforcement officials are seeking information which will lead to the identification of an unknown individual known as John Doe 48. It is believed that this individual may have critical information pertaining to the identity of a child victim in a sexual exploitation investigation, according to a statement from the agency.The video depicting John Doe, 48 is believed to have been produced in October of 2023.John Doe, 48 is described as a White male between the ages of 45 and 65-years-old.&nbsp; He has dark hair, a gray beard, and has a tattoo on each of his forearms.&nbsp; He is seen in the back of a 2018-2019 Nissan NV Cargo Van wearing a blue t-shirt and a dark-colored hat.&nbsp; He is heard speaking English in the video.&nbsp;<h2>Submit a Tip:</h2>If you have any information concerning this case, please call the FBI's toll-free tip-line at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324), contact a Crimes Against Children Investigator at your<a href="http://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field/" target="_blank">local FBI office</a>, or the nearest&nbsp;<a href="http://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/legat/" target="_blank">American Embassy or Consulate</a>.<a href="https://tips.fbi.gov/?fugitive_name=UNKNOWN+INDIVIDUAL+-+JOHN+DOE+48&amp;fugitive_type=ecap" target="_blank">Click here to submit an anonymous tip online</a>

FBI working to ID suspect in child sex crime investigation

WASHINGTON (AP) — President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">Joe Biden's</a>&nbsp;halting&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bidentrumppresidentialdebate-0e7577e9a354a69f50675494fea54ca9">debate performance</a>&nbsp;has led some in his own party to begin questioning whether he should be replaced on the ballot before November.

There is no evidence Biden is willing to end his campaign. And it would be nearly impossible for Democrats to replace him unless he chooses to step aside.

Delegates Biden won in the primaries are obligated to support him

Every state has already held its presidential primary. Democratic rules mandate that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-presumptive-nominee-election-president-democrat-63b66006d4bc45354343228e323e3baa">the delegates Biden won</a>&nbsp;remain obligated to support him at the party's upcoming national convention unless he tells them he’s leaving the race.

Biden indicated that he had no plans to do that, telling supporters in Atlanta shortly after he left the debate stage, “Let's keep going.” Biden campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt was even clearer, saying Friday: “Of course he's not dropping out.”

The conventions and their rules are controlled by the political parties. The Democratic National Committee could convene before the convention&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/democratic-convention-2024-8616953934537edbf2cf795066c878ec">opens on Aug. 19</a>&nbsp;and change how things will work, but that isn't likely as long as Biden wants to continue seeking reelection.

The current rules read: “Delegates elected to the national convention pledged to a presidential candidate shall in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them.”

VP Kamala Harris couldn't automatically replace Biden

The vice president is Biden's running mate, but that doesn't mean she can swap in for him at the top of the ticket by default. Biden also can't decree that she replace him should he suddenly decide to leave the race.

The Democratic National Convention is being held in Chicago, but the party has announced that it will hold a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ohio-ballot-biden-access-3bf359cce8e73714be45cb99a6e31546">virtual roll call</a>&nbsp;to formally nominate Biden before in-person proceedings begin. The exact date for the roll call has not yet been set.

If Biden opts to abandon his reelection campaign, Harris would likely join other top Democratic candidates looking to replace him. But that would probably create a scenario where she and others end up lobbying individual state delegations at the convention for their support.

That hasn't happened for Democrats since 1960, when John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trayvon-martin-today-in-history-los-angeles-thurgood-marshall-ef2219d71bc32d488191beaa47d2397f">jockeyed</a>&nbsp;for votes during that year’s Democratic convention in Los Angeles.

Other potential Democratic candidates would also face challenges

In addition to the vice president, others that had endorsed Biden in 2024 while harboring their own presidential aspirations for future cycles include California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker and California Rep. Ro Khanna.

Still others who Biden bested during the party’s 2020 presidential primary could also try again, including Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, as well as Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

If Biden were to abruptly leave the race, conservative groups have suggested they will file lawsuits around the country, potentially questioning the legality of the Democratic candidate's name on the ballot.

But Elaine Kamarck, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution in Washington, who wrote a book about the presidential nominating process and is also a member of the Democratic National Committee’s rulemaking arm, said that courts have consistently stayed out of political primaries as long as parties running them weren’t doing anything that would contradict other constitutional rights, such as voter suppression based on race.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">Joe Biden's</a>&nbsp;halting&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bidentrumppresidentialdebate-0e7577e9a354a69f50675494fea54ca9">debate performance</a>&nbsp;has led some in his own party to begin questioning whether he should be replaced on the ballot before November.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Folks, I might not walk as easily or talk as smoothly as I used to. I might not debate as well as I used to. But what I do know is how to tell the truth.<a href="https://t.co/ep5D0EhT5P">pic.twitter.com/ep5D0EhT5P</a>&mdash; Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBiden/status/1806746426904379543?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 28, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>There is no evidence Biden is willing to end his campaign. And it would be nearly impossible for Democrats to replace him unless he chooses to step aside.Here's why:<h2>Delegates Biden won in the primaries are obligated to support him</h2>Every state has already held its presidential primary. Democratic rules mandate that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-presumptive-nominee-election-president-democrat-63b66006d4bc45354343228e323e3baa">the delegates Biden won</a>&nbsp;remain obligated to support him at the party's upcoming national convention unless he tells them he’s leaving the race.Biden indicated that he had no plans to do that, telling supporters in Atlanta shortly after he left the debate stage, “Let's keep going.” Biden campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt was even clearer, saying Friday: “Of course he's not dropping out.”The conventions and their rules are controlled by the political parties. The Democratic National Committee could convene before the convention&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/democratic-convention-2024-8616953934537edbf2cf795066c878ec">opens on Aug. 19</a>&nbsp;and change how things will work, but that isn't likely as long as Biden wants to continue seeking reelection.The current rules read: “Delegates elected to the national convention pledged to a presidential candidate shall in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them.”<h2>VP Kamala Harris couldn't automatically replace Biden</h2>The vice president is Biden's running mate, but that doesn't mean she can swap in for him at the top of the ticket by default. Biden also can't decree that she replace him should he suddenly decide to leave the race.The Democratic National Convention is being held in Chicago, but the party has announced that it will hold a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ohio-ballot-biden-access-3bf359cce8e73714be45cb99a6e31546">virtual roll call</a>&nbsp;to formally nominate Biden before in-person proceedings begin. The exact date for the roll call has not yet been set.If Biden opts to abandon his reelection campaign, Harris would likely join other top Democratic candidates looking to replace him. But that would probably create a scenario where she and others end up lobbying individual state delegations at the convention for their support.That hasn't happened for Democrats since 1960, when John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trayvon-martin-today-in-history-los-angeles-thurgood-marshall-ef2219d71bc32d488191beaa47d2397f">jockeyed</a>&nbsp;for votes during that year’s Democratic convention in Los Angeles.<h2>Other potential Democratic candidates would also face challenges</h2>In addition to the vice president, others that had endorsed Biden in 2024 while harboring their own presidential aspirations for future cycles include California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker and California Rep. Ro Khanna.Still others who Biden bested during the party’s 2020 presidential primary could also try again, including Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, as well as Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.If Biden were to abruptly leave the race, conservative groups have suggested they will file lawsuits around the country, potentially questioning the legality of the Democratic candidate's name on the ballot.But Elaine Kamarck, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution in Washington, who wrote a book about the presidential nominating process and is also a member of the Democratic National Committee’s rulemaking arm, said that courts have consistently stayed out of political primaries as long as parties running them weren’t doing anything that would contradict other constitutional rights, such as voter suppression based on race.

🎥Why it would be tough to replace Joe Biden on the presidential ticket

KANSAS CITY —Police investigating another deadly shooting in Kansas City identified the victim as 23-year-old Chestina Gaskin.

Just after noon Wednesday, police responded to a shooting at an apartment in the 2000 Block of East Linwood Boulevard, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.

When first responders entered the apartment they located Gaskin suffering from gunshot wounds.  She was pronounced dead at the scene.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Police have not reported an arrest or suspect details.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719434415426.png" alt="Photo Sheriff Dary Forte'" />
 <figcaption>Photo Sheriff Dary Forte'</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —Police investigating another deadly shooting in Kansas City identified the victim as 23-year-old Chestina Gaskin.Just after noon Wednesday, police responded to a shooting at an apartment in the 2000 Block of East Linwood Boulevard, according to Sheriff Daryl Forte'.When first responders entered the apartment they located Gaskin suffering from gunshot wounds. She was pronounced dead at the scene.&nbsp;&nbsp;Police have not reported an arrest or suspect details.

Homicide: Police ID woman found dead in Kansas City apartment

Changes effective July 1 touch on energy, crime, education and business statutes

TOPEKA — Kansans will awake to a new statutory landscape Monday after contents of 101 bills approved by the Legislature and, mostly, signed into law by Gov. Laura Kelly officially take effect.

With turning of the calendar at 12:01 a.m. July 1, incarcerated juveniles in Kansas could be granted work release. Microbreweries would be able to self-distribute beer and hard cider. Public universities must adhere to restrictions on diversity, equity and inclusion policy. Coercing a female to get an abortion could be a crime. Companies delivering pornography online must confirm customers are of legal age.

Motorists could choose from a half-dozen new options for distinctive license plates. Public utilities would be forbidden from relying on eminent domain to locate solar farms. Leaving the scene of an accident would become a more serious offense. The state unemployment insurance and worker compensation programs would change. The law authorizing issuance of bonds to lure the Kansas City Chiefs or Kansas City Royals to Kansas would be in play. Overhaul of the state’s civil asset forfeiture law also would be final.

Even cosmetic changes occur, including renaming the Kansas Commission on Veterans Affairs Office to the Kansas Office of Veterans Services. Adoption of House Bill 2760 by the Kansas Legislature and signing of the bill by Kelly won’t alter the agency’s office locations or contact numbers.

“While the agency’s name is changing, its mission and core functions remain steadfast,” Kelly said. “The name change removes confusion with the federal Department of Veterans Affairs and better aligns with the agency’s purpose.”

Kelly vetoed a long list of bills and provisions in budget bills, but the Legislature imposed its will at times with veto overrides.

The Republican-led Legislature and the Democratic governor agreed to adoption of House Bill 2105 banning public universities from requiring students, faculty or other employees to disclose views on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. GOP legislators complained DEI policies were interferring with university admissions and hiring decisions, so they delivered a law forbidding pledges of allegiance to DEI.

In K-12 public schools, Kansas statute was altered to allow districts to maintain emergency medication kits that included epinephrine for allergic reactions and albuterol for breathing problems. The bill amended liability protections for any person who rendered emergency care at a school-sponsored event or on school property. It provide a level of immunity from liability for a pharmacist, physician or a mid-level practitioner who distributed or prescribed emergency medications to a school.

Senate Bill 195, approved unanimously by the House and Senate, authorized the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund to establish a nonprofit organization to raise money for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Book gifting program. The program mails free, age-appropriate books each month to the home of Kansas children until their fifth birthday.

Under House Bill 2703, all children in foster care custody of the Kansas Department for Children and Families would be added to the list of students eligible to receive at-risk programs and services in the public school system. Another new law mandated DCF release certain information related to a child fatality when criminal charges were filed alleging a person caused the death.

The enactment of House Bill 2144 created the new Kansas crime of encouraging a person to attempt suicide or kill themselves. A person charged with the felony would have to know the person was suicidal and the oral, written or visual communication must be shown to have substantially influenced the individual.

Legislators were advised during the session the state law could invite challenges on First Amendment grounds because the statute could be viewed as criminalizing speech.

The suicide statute was developed at behest of Jennifer Dennis, who discovered too late her son logged onto an internet chat site to obtain instructions on how to die by suicide. Her son, William, obtained sodium nitrite, drove to a Lenexa model, consumed the substance with water and died.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/6/1719692481654.png" alt="Gov. Laura Kelly, shown participating in the ceremonial signing of a bill reforming worker compensation law in Kansas, put her signature to 100 bills approved by the Legislature during the regular session and one more bill adopted during the special session that will be implemented July 1. (Rachel Mipro/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Gov. Laura Kelly, shown participating in the ceremonial signing of a bill reforming worker compensation law in Kansas, put her signature to 100 bills approved by the Legislature during the regular session and one more bill adopted during the special session that will be implemented July 1. (Rachel Mipro/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Changes effective July 1 touch on energy, crime, education and business statutes</h2>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Kansans will awake to a new statutory landscape Monday after contents of 101 bills approved by the Legislature and, mostly, signed into law by Gov. Laura Kelly officially take effect.With turning of the calendar at 12:01 a.m. July 1, incarcerated juveniles in Kansas could be granted work release. Microbreweries would be able to self-distribute beer and hard cider. Public universities must adhere to restrictions on diversity, equity and inclusion policy. Coercing a female to get an abortion could be a crime. Companies delivering pornography online must confirm customers are of legal age.Motorists could choose from a half-dozen new options for distinctive license plates. Public utilities would be forbidden from relying on eminent domain to locate solar farms. Leaving the scene of an accident would become a more serious offense. The state unemployment insurance and worker compensation programs would change. The law authorizing issuance of bonds to lure the Kansas City Chiefs or Kansas City Royals to Kansas would be in play. Overhaul of the state’s civil asset forfeiture law also would be final.Even cosmetic changes occur, including renaming the Kansas Commission on Veterans Affairs Office to the Kansas Office of Veterans Services. Adoption of House Bill 2760 by the Kansas Legislature and signing of the bill by Kelly won’t alter the agency’s office locations or contact numbers.“While the agency’s name is changing, its mission and core functions remain steadfast,” Kelly said. “The name change removes confusion with the federal Department of Veterans Affairs and better aligns with the agency’s purpose.”Kelly vetoed a long list of bills and provisions in budget bills, but the Legislature imposed its will at times with veto overrides.<h2>Education front</h2>The Republican-led Legislature and the Democratic governor agreed to adoption of House Bill 2105 banning public universities from requiring students, faculty or other employees to disclose views on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. GOP legislators complained DEI policies were interferring with university admissions and hiring decisions, so they delivered a law forbidding pledges of allegiance to DEI.In K-12 public schools, Kansas statute was altered to allow districts to maintain emergency medication kits that included epinephrine for allergic reactions and albuterol for breathing problems. The bill amended liability protections for any person who rendered emergency care at a school-sponsored event or on school property. It provide a level of immunity from liability for a pharmacist, physician or a mid-level practitioner who distributed or prescribed emergency medications to a school.Senate Bill 195, approved unanimously by the House and Senate, authorized the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund to establish a nonprofit organization to raise money for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Book gifting program. The program mails free, age-appropriate books each month to the home of Kansas children until their fifth birthday.Under House Bill 2703, all children in foster care custody of the Kansas Department for Children and Families would be added to the list of students eligible to receive at-risk programs and services in the public school system. Another new law mandated DCF release certain information related to a child fatality when criminal charges were filed alleging a person caused the death.<h2>The crime log</h2>The enactment of House Bill 2144 created the new Kansas crime of encouraging a person to attempt suicide or kill themselves. A person charged with the felony would have to know the person was suicidal and the oral, written or visual communication must be shown to have substantially influenced the individual.Legislators were advised during the session the state law could invite challenges on First Amendment grounds because the statute could be viewed as criminalizing speech.The suicide statute was developed at behest of Jennifer Dennis, who discovered too late her son logged onto an internet chat site to obtain instructions on how to die by suicide. Her son, William, obtained sodium nitrite, drove to a Lenexa model, consumed the substance with water and died.“William had an undiagnosed mental illness,” Dennis said. “Instead of coming to his parents for help, he went to (the internet chat site) where he was brainwashed by sociopaths.”In addition, the bill established penalties for people convicted of taking part in “organized retail” crimes. It would permit the attorney general to prosecute cases in which alleged criminal activity occurred in two or more counties.Attorney General Kris Kobach advocated for the reform to thwart gangs organized to move from city to city to rob stores. The law would apply to theft of goods with a retail market value of $5,000 or more within a one-year period.Other new state laws raised from $4,000 to $10,000 the treshhold for cases to be considered in small claims court. Compensation for attorneys appointed to represent indigent defendants was raised from $80 to $120 per hour. A separate law provided immunity from prosecution for certain drug crimes when an individual sought or&nbsp;provided medical assistance to a person who consumed a controlled substance.<h2>Business law</h2>As of July 1, the maximum civil penalty that could be imposed by the Kansas Corporation Commission for pipeline safety violations was changed. The new law complied with requirements of the Federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.“The alignment with federal maximum penalty amounts is required if Kansas wishes to maintain enforcement authority over intrastate natural gas pipeline safety,” said Paul Owings, deputy chief engineer in the utilities division at the KCC.Another state law would require the state’s budget director to independently determine the cost of compliance and implementation for all proposed state rules and regulations. In general, rules and regulations that cost businesses, local governments or individuals $1 million or more during the initial five-year period after adoption would have to be ratified by the Legislature.As of Monday, railroads operating in Kansas must keep stored rolling cars on sidings a minimum distance from unlit traffic crossings. House Bill 2501 set the safe-zone distance at 250 feet, if that crossing didn’t have electronic warning signals. Exceptions to the law would address railcars awaiting loading or unloading.Implementation of House Bill 2588 meant telecommunications, broadband and video service providers wouldn’t be blocked from using county right-of-way to construct, maintain and operate poles, cable, switches and related equipment for delivery of services. Their gear couldn’t obstruct or hinder public safety nor interfere with legal use of that ground by utilities or providers, the law said.Meanwhile, Senate Bill 455 declared a public utility would be prohibited from exercising eminent domain to secure property to build a solar-powered electric generation station.