Great Bend

Barton County deputy in second fatal accident

A traffic accident that killed a Great Bend man over Labor Day weekend was the second such accident in two years involving the same Barton County sheriff’s deputy, authorities say.

Brian Frenzl, 40, died Sept. 1 when his motorcycle struck the front end of David Paden’s patrol car on Kansas 281. According to Kansas Highway Patrol reports, Paden was making a U-turn at the time of the accident.

Casey Hubbard, the investigator for the Barton County attorney’s office, said his office was reviewing the report.

Paden also was involved in a January 2002 chase that claimed the life of 16-year-old Adam Mayers of Albert, the Barton County Sheriff’s Department said.

According to the department, Mayers was speeding on a county road when Paden began pursuing the teenager. During the chase, Mayers’ pickup truck rolled and hit a telephone pole.

South Dakota

Missouri reservoir levels fall to record low

The six Missouri River reservoirs held 42.9 million acre-feet of water at the end of August, a record low amount for that date, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said.

The previous low for the end of August was 44 million acre-feet in 1990.

Runoff for the year is expected to be 18.5 million acre-feet, down from the normal of 25.2 million acre-feet. Runoff above Sioux City, Iowa, in August was the second lowest in 106 years of record keeping, the corps said.

The corps said the level of the three uppermost reservoirs will fall an additional 1 to 3 feet in September. Lake Oahe is forecast to be 22 feet below normal at the end of the month, Lake Sakakawea 18 feet below normal, and Fort Peck 25 feet below normal.

Kansas City, Kan.

Teacher suspended after porn found on computer

An elementary school teacher has been accused of having child pornography on his work computer, police said.

Joseph T. Martin Jr., 46, of Olathe, was charged Friday after pornography was found at Whittier Elementary School in Kansas City, Kan., police said.

School officials discovered “inappropriate materials” in Martin’s classroom after school Wednesday, said Linda Murray, an assistant superintendent for the Kansas City, Kan., School District.

The district suspended Martin on Thursday and notified police, Murray said.

Martin, who teaches computer classes, has worked for the district since 1996.

“There is no evidence of Mr. Martin having any inappropriate contact or inappropriate behavior with any students at Whittier or any of our schools,” Murray said.