Accident ties up traffic near 23rd and Haskell

At least one person suffered injuries in a four-vehicle wreck Wednesday afternoon that clogged traffic on 23rd Street near Haskell Avenue.

A narrative of how the wreck happened wasn’t available Wednesday from police, but Lawrence Police spokesman Sgt. Dan Ward said it appeared all vehicles had been in the westbound turning lane to go south onto Haskell when they collided about 1:18 p.m.

Emergency crews took at least one person to an ambulance on a stretcher.

The vehicles were a Cadillac Escalade driven by Patricia Allen, 42, Lawrence; a Ford Tempo driven by Betty Leesman, 37, Lawrence; a Honda Accord driven by Julio Lopez-Martinez, 17, Lawrence; and a Ford Focus driven by Mary Baer, 83, Lawrence.

FBI

Congressmen want probe of anarchist questioning

Three Democratic congressmen on Tuesday asked the Justice Department to investigate the FBI’s questioning of potential protesters in advance of this summer’s political conventions — a nationwide investigation that included agents knocking on the doors of Lawrence anarchists.

“We recognize the obvious importance of protecting the conventions from violence and threats of violence,” said the letter, signed by Reps. John Conyers Jr. of Michigan, Jerrold Nadler of New York and Robert C. Scott of Virginia. “However, based upon our review of recent media accounts, the FBI appears to be engaged in systematic political harassment and intimidation of legitimate anti-war protesters.”

All three men are on the House Judiciary Committee.

The FBI in late July questioned at least two members of a Lawrence anarchist group before the Democratic National Convention. Agents said they were checking out a tip that a group planned to firebomb media vehicles at the convention in Boston.

Lawrence anarchists said they feared the government was seizing an opportunity to investigate or harass them for their anti-capitalist, anti-war views.

Police

Patrols to look out for drunken drivers

Authorities will hit the streets in Lawrence and Eudora in coming days with extra patrols and a checkpoint to watch for drunken drivers.

The Lawrence Police Department’s traffic unit will have six officers and a sergeant assigned to a “saturation patrol” throughout the city from 11 p.m. today to 3 a.m. Friday.

From 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. Friday, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, the Eudora Police Department and the Kansas Highway Patrol will conduct a sobriety checkpoint at an undisclosed location in Eudora.

In the recent past, the Sheriff’s Office has assigned the department’s drug-sniffing German shepherd to assist at the checkpoint.

Gasoline Prices

Pump Patrol seeks deals

The Journal-World has found gasoline prices as low as $1.73 a gallon at Diamond Shamrock, 501 W. Ninth St., Presta Phillips 66, 602 W. Ninth St., Kwik Shop, 845 W. Ninth St., and Conoco Jayhawk Foodmart, 701 W. Ninth. If you find a lower price, call Pump Patrol at 832-7154.