Battery

Kansas sophomore forward Thomas Robinson has been cited with misdemeanor battery after a fight at a nightclub. Jerry Little, the city prosecutor in Lawrence, Kan., said Tuesday that Robinson is accused of being involved in the April 10 fight. He said officers served Robinson with the ticket Monday. Coach Bill Self said he's aware of the "situation" with Robinson, who notified him immediately after being interviewed by police. Self said Robinson has been cooperating in the investigation.

A former Salina day care provider pleads guilty to a charge of aggravated battery. Prosecutors say Amanda Castro shook a three-month-old baby when the child would not stop crying. During a preliminary hearing in April doctors said the baby suffered brain damage and had been in and out of the hospital. Castro had been charged with child abuse and aggravated battery. While she initially entered a not guilty plea, prosecutors now say Castro has pleaded guilty to battery, the more serious of the two charges.

Here at KWCH, all of the reporters are outfitted with our own personal iPhone 3GS. Some take better care of it than others (you know who I'm glaring at). Others use it like their own personal iPhone, loading it with apps and music and games to make our days a little more enjoyable.  Part of the job is to use the iPhone to take pictures, record videos and other little vignettes to email back to the station to be uploaded to the web.  But like all battery powered things, sooner or later the battery dies faster than we'd like it to. One of our reporters might be lining up a photo to take and the battery will die right before Elvis jumps into frame!

We all know the frustration, you're in the middle of a call and your cell phone's battery dies.  But a student at Kansas State University hopes to give your phone or laptop a little energy boost. Steven Klankowski is developing new materials to increase the energy capacity of batteries in cell phones and computers.  He says it could lead to fewer batteries inside devices and it could make them smaller and lighter. "What we see in everyday life is just the electricity coming out, but the chemistry inside is what i'm working to try to improve.  We need to use iPod, iPad, notebook computers, all these need good batteries so you can run for longer time and also reduce the weight," Klankowski said.

A 49-year-old priest with the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Salina entered a not guilty plea to sexual battery.  Father Allen Scheer appeared in court Friday. Salina police say Father Scheer turned himself in on April 18. An adult male says Father Scheer inappropriately touched him on April 11.  Police say the alleged incident happened at the victim's residence in Salina and the two are acquaintances. "I've been around him a lot, I've never seen him say or do that would lead me to believe that he's capable of the alleged offense," says parishioner and former Salina mayor Alan Jilka.

By Cliff Judy & John Boyd (WICHITA, Kan.) Police have identified the man who shot and killed Sedgwick County Sheriff's Deputy Brian Etheridge as Richard Lyons, Jr.  Lyons was shot and killed in a firefight hours after the initial shooting. We checked on Lyons and found he had an extensive juvenile record: 1994 -- charged with criminal damage to property 2 counts 1997 -- charged with battery 1998 -- charged with criminal damage to property 2000 -- criminal threat, domestic battery and criminal damage to property (this may have been his first charge as an adult)

University of Kansas linebacker and former Hutch Salthawk Ben Heeney was cited for battery, after an incident early Saturday morning in Lawrence. Head Coach Charlie Weis said in a statement today that, “We are fully aware of the situation involving Ben. We have discussed this with all of the parties involved and believe we know what truly happened. We are handling it internally with appropriate measures.”  20-year-old Heeney is facing one misdemeanor count of battery from the incident.

The Wichita police department says one of its officers was transporting a woman to jail when she propositioned him. The 21 year old was originally arrested for being accused of a hit and run and domestic violence. The officer says the woman propositioned him while in cuffs in the back of his car. After being turned down, he says the woman slipped her cuffs in front of her, then kicked out the rear window of his car. Police say she then jumped out of the window.

SEATTLE (AP) - Technology bloggers have posted photos of what may be the next version of the iPhone. If the gadget is real, Apple's next iPhone could have a longer battery life and be used for video chatting. Analysts expect an updated iPhone this summer. AOL blog Engadget posted photos of the device over the weekend. Gizmodo, a competing gadget blog, obtained the phone itself and published details Monday. Both blogs say the phone was found in a Silicon Valley bar. Gizmodo's report Apple Inc. didn't respond to messages seeking comment.

Daylight Saving Time begins at 2 a.m. Sunday. We gain an extra hour of sunlight, but we lose an extra hour of sleep.  When we Spring Forward, it is also a good time to change batteries in smoke alarms or carbon monoxide detectors. Homeowners in need of a smoke alarm can contact the Wichita Fire Department. Firefighters are installing the emergency warning device through a partnership with Safe Kids Kansas, Scholfield dealerships and All-pack Batteries. Call 268-4441 to schedule an appointment with the Wichita Fire Department.

A Japanese airway reported problems months before battery failures grounded Boeing Dreamliner jets, according to the New York Times. All Nippon Airways said 10 lithium-ion batteries were replaced months before multiple problems questioned their reliability. All the events occurred from May to December of last year. The airline reported the problems to Boeing, but was not required to tell safety regulators. The National Transportation Safety Board is now focusing their investigation on the battery problems.

University of Kansas linebacker and former Hutch Salthawk Ben Heeney was cited for battery, after an incident early Saturday morning in Lawrence. Head Coach Charlie Weis said in a statement today that, “We are fully aware of the situation involving Ben. We have discussed this with all of the parties involved and believe we know what truly happened. We are handling it internally with appropriate measures.”  20-year-old Heeney is facing one misdemeanor count of battery from the incident.

A suspected burglar attacked a Sheriff's deputy inside her car then took off.  But the deputy wasn't going to let him get away. The sheriff's department tells us deputies responded to an alarm east of Wellington at around 10:20 Monday morning. When they got to the home, they found someone had broken into it and stolen items from inside. At around noon that same day, a deputy spotted a suspicious vehicle and started following it. The deputy lost track of the car briefly, but found it in the 1400 block of N. Hydraulic and saw someone walk out of the front door of the home and put something in the trunk.

AA batteries are the biggest sellers. They are commonly used in flashlights, digital cameras, remote controls, and toys. Consumer Reports tested a dozen, including big names such as Energizer, and store brands such as Walgreens and CVS. Testers used a rack to evaluate battery performance. It was programmed to mimic a digital camera and a flashlight. The tests turned up big differences. The Eveready Gold, the worst batteries, took only 52 shots before dying. The Energizer Ultimate lithium, the best, took 682 shots.

We all know the frustration, you're in the middle of a call and your cell phone's battery dies.  But a student at Kansas State University hopes to give your phone or laptop a little energy boost. Steven Klankowski is developing new materials to increase the energy capacity of batteries in cell phones and computers.  He says it could lead to fewer batteries inside devices and it could make them smaller and lighter. "What we see in everyday life is just the electricity coming out, but the chemistry inside is what i'm working to try to improve.  We need to use iPod, iPad, notebook computers, all these need good batteries so you can run for longer time and also reduce the weight," Klankowski said.

A Salina priest accused of sexual battery pleads guilty to a lesser charge. Father Allen Scheer was arrested in April, accused of touching an adult male inappropriately. At that time he pleaded not guilty to charges of sexual battery. Our news partners at The Salina Journal report Scheer pleaded guilty Friday to a lesser charge of misdemeanor battery. Scheer was scheduled for trial in the case Wednesday. Scheer had presided over Salina's Sacred Heart Cathedral since 2005.

Tablets are really hot this holiday season, and plenty of new ones are just out. There are also a bunch of tablets made just for kids. Consumer Reports just sized up ones from Fisher-Price, LeapFrog, VTech  and Vinci. They mimic tablet computers, but they don't have nearly as many features. They also don't have access to the Internet. That's a good thing because they're for such young children. But parents will have to help download content. More than a dozen kids checked out the tablets by using them to read books, take pictures, and play for several days.

Americans buy nearly 3 billion batteries a year. AA batteries are the most widely sold. Consumer Reports tested a dozen, including some from Energizer, Duracell, and Rayovac, as well as store brands. To measure how long batteries last, testers load them into identical digital cameras. They zoom three times, take five photos with the flash, zoom three more times, then take five photos without the flash. After a 10-minute rest, the test is repeated until the batteries die. Walgreens Alkaline Supercell was the lowest-rated battery.