Topeka

The first of three groups of soldiers from the Kansas National Guard's 1st Battalion, 161st Field Artillery will be welcomed home from their year-long deployment to the Horn of Africa on Thursday, Febrary 9, in Topeka. The ceremony will begin at noon at Washburn University Lee Arena. The public is invited to attend. The unit deployed March 2, 2011, after training at the Kansas Regional Training Center in Salina. The battalion is headquartered in Wichita, with subordinate units in Dodge City, Great Bend, Lenexa, Liberal, Hutchinson, Newton, Paola, Pratt and Topeka.

There will be a concert this Sunday to benefit the Geske family. Jeff Geske is the Salina Pastor that lost three family members in a car wreck near Topeka last month.  Geske's wife, Laura, 37, daughter, Joy, 3, and son, Joshua, 8, were killed Jan. 28 in a head-on collision on Interstate Highway 70 west of Topeka. He and his 3-year-old son, Jacob, survived the crash. Those who attend a Feb. 12 concert at Redeemer Lutheran Church, 743 E. Magnolia, will have a chance to contribute to a fund supporting Pastor Jeff Geske of Christ the King Lutheran Church and his family.

Wendell Turner loves all of his grandchildren.  But there are two who he feels need a little more protection. "Their mother had abandoned them.  And their dad just wasn't qualified to take care of them,” Turner said. The state agreed.  In 2007, his grandsons went through the foster care process.  After attending a custody meeting, Turner decided to get an attorney and fight for his grandsons.     "One of the people who was still there said it won't do you any good, because grandparents don't have any rights.  And I said, well who is going to get them?

Police use surveillance photos to catch criminals. But in some recent Topeka photos, the hood of a sweatshirt makes it very hard to identify them. Mayor Bill Bunten suggests, "Have a sign that says please remove your hat or lower your hoodie so the camera can see who's there. " Bunten has proposed a ban on hooded sweatshirts and ball caps in the Capital City. "Seems very socialist, very communist," says Shawn Minihan. Topeka business owner Connie Cook says, "I think we would lose a lot of customers over this.

It was voted down in 2007, but now the state is looking at the issue again. The owner of the Wichita Greyhound Park is asking the state to allow slot machines to be installed. Proponents for the expansion of gambling made their case in front of a State Senate committee in Topeka Tuesday. Opponants will make their case Wednesday. If its approved, Sedgwick County residents will get to vote on it. The plan calls for 400 to 1,200 slots to be installed. Later in the week, the committee will hear arguments about the possibility of making changes to the law that allowed smoking inside state owned casinos.

Workers hit a gas line in Topeka, causing a home to explode.  The explosion happened Monday morning in the 1900 block of SW Navajo. Topeka fire investigators say a sprinkler system was being installed when a gas line was struck, causing the explosion.  The house was leveled and one victim, an unidentified female, was taken to a nearby hospital. The extent of the victims injuries are unknown at this time.  Eyewitness News is following the story - look for updates as they become available.

The Kansas Highway Patrol says a woman and her two children are dead after a car collided with their minivan on Interstate 70 west of Topeka. The crash happened around 3:15 p.m. Saturday when the eastbound car crossed the interstate's grassy median and collided with the westbound van. The patrol says the van's driver, 37-year-old Laura Geske of Salina, was killed along with 3-year-old Joy Geske and 8-year-old Joshua Geske. Laura Geske's 41-year-old husband, Jeffrey, and another son, 3-year-old Jacob, were taken to a Topeka hospital.  The patrol says their injuries don't appear life-threatening.

Medical marijuana, some patients say it's their best medicine for pain. But opponents feel legalizing a drug will only lead to more drug abuse. Kansas lawmakers may get to decide the issue this year. A house committee will hear testimony from patients Tuesday in Topeka about a bill to legalize medical marijuana in Kansas. There are times when I hurt so bad, I can't leave the house for days at a time," said Hutchinson resident David Mulford. He's lived with chronic pain from hernias and debilitating muscle spasms for more than 20 years.

Kansas legislators started heading to Topeka over the weekend to be ready when the 2012 session begins at two o'clock Monday afternoon. Governor Sam Brownback wants lawmakers to simplify the school funding formula.  That would give districts more freedom to spend the money as they wish, but also could eliminate extra funds that districts get for students with special needs. The governor has also suggested that lawmakers look at eliminating the state income tax.  Democrats such as Rep. Melody McCray-Miller of Park City say that would result in the increase of other taxes which would put a greater burden on those with less.  Meanwhile, Republicans such as Rep. Steve Huebert of Valley Center say cutting income taxes is doable, but eliminating them is not possible at this time.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture filed a complaint against the Topeka Zoo last week, saying the zoo willfully violated the Animal Welfare Act. In the complaint, the agency said "the gravity of the violations herein is great.” The complaint claims that at least nine infant, juvenile or young adult animals died between April 2007 and July 2011. Here are a few examples of the charges: A 17-day old lion fell from a three foot tall platform, broke his back on June 24 th , 2007 and was found dead hours later after hemorrhaging.