Maize

Crash critically injures on-duty police officer

An on-duty Maize police officer was in critical condition Monday after a head-on crash with another vehicle traveling the wrong way on Kansas Highway 96, police said.

The driver of the other car, identified only as an elderly woman, died at the scene, said Maize police dispatcher C.J. Stuart.

The officer was identified by The Wichita Eagle as Sgt. Doug Prier, who has been with the Maize Police Department for about four years. He is in his early 30s, the newspaper said.

The crash occurred at 2:26 p.m. as the woman, driving east in the westbound lanes, ran head-on into Prier’s vehicle. The officer was trying to find the woman when the crash occurred.

Prier was taken by air ambulance to Via Christi-St. Francis Hospital in Wichita, where he remained Monday night.

Mound Valley

Hunter dies in accident

A southeast Kansas man died during the weekend when his .50-caliber muzzleloading rifle discharged accidentally, striking him in the leg.

Labette County Sheriff William Blundell identified the victim as Danny R. Dunsing, 50, of Mound Valley.

The rifle went off around 7 p.m. Saturday as Dunsing was hunting deer from a tree stand in the northwest part of the county, near Big Hill Lake. The round struck him in the leg, with the shell traveling in an upward direction.

Deputy Labette County coroner pronounced Dunsing dead at the scene of the accident. His body was transported to Topeka for an autopsy.