Boothe’s hearing delayed

Leavenworth A hearing for a man charged with stabbing his son and leaving him to die last summer along the Kansas Turnpike east of Lawrence was delayed Friday for the second time.

Raymond Boothe, 34, of Cameron, Mo., still is undergoing a mental examination at Larned State Hospital, said Leavenworth County Atty. Frank Kohl. A hearing had been scheduled in Leavenworth County District Court.

A new court date was set for 9 a.m. Dec. 6 before Judge Frederick Stewart. However, the hearing could be sooner if Boothe returns from Larned before that date, Kohl said.

On Aug. 29, Boothe was charged with first-degree murder in the death of 11-year-old Levi Boothe. Lawrence Police said that two days earlier, after stabbing and dumping the boy along Interstate 70, Raymond Boothe drove to Lawrence with his two other young children and crashed his car through a fence in an apparent suicide attempt.

Neither Boothe nor the surviving children were seriously injured.

Accident: Cause of silo collapse remains unknown

What caused a 64-foot-tall steel grain storage bin to collapse at Midland Co-op Elevator north of Lawrence remained a mystery Friday.

“We know it happened at the seam, but we don’t know why,” Midland general manager Adrian Derousseau said.

Work began Friday to clear away corn the bin had contained, but more must be cleared before the inside of the bin can be examined, he said.

The bin had the capacity to hold 50,000 bushels of grain. Midland workers have determined it contained about 35,000 bushels when it fell Thursday, Derousseau said.

“We’ll save as much grain as we can,” he said.

A crane will be brought to the site Monday to clear away debris, conveyors and other equipment hanging over the site.

No damage estimate or losses have been determined, Derousseau said.

Politics: Blues pianist to headline fund-raiser for Sebelius

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Kathleen Sebelius on Sunday will be in Lawrence to stage a fund-raising concert and dance at Abe & Jake’s, 8 E. Sixth St., featuring Grammy-nominated blues pianist and singer Marcia Ball.

Doors open at 7 p.m. Music starts at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $10 for students, $25 for adults.

Ball, who was nominated for a Grammy in 1998 for “Sing It,” a CD she recorded with Irma Thomas and Tracy Nelson, has been a Sebelius supporter for many years.