Suspects arrested after dirt bag stolen

A small plastic bag full of dirt valued at $1 was the only thing stolen early Monday during an auto burglary in the 1600 block of Matthew Circle.

Police said the three suspects — who were arrested after a neighbor saw the burglary in progress and called police — thought the bag contained some kind of narcotic.

In fact, the dirt was good-luck soil taken from a church in Chimayo, N.M. The owner of the dirt, 27-year-old Chris Woods, said a co-worker gave it to him and told him it would help keep him safe as he drove.

Police recovered the dirt and arrested three men: an 18-year-old and 24-year-old from Wellsville, and an 18-year-old from Ottawa.

Crime

Suspect arrested in ID theft of deceased

Police have arrested a Lawrence woman who they say combed the Journal-World looking for recent death notices — then tried to use the names of the deceased to get a car loan.

The 41-year-old woman, who was arrested Monday on suspicion of identity theft and forgery, told police she got the idea in an Internet chat room, said Sgt. Dan Ward, a Lawrence Police spokesman.

Ward said the woman tried Monday to submit paperwork for two separate loans using herself as a co-signer and two recently deceased women as the primary signers. A local credit-union employee called police after discovering the two women were dead.

Politics

3rd District candidates to chat online today

Patricia Lightner and Kris Kobach, Republican candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives for the 3rd District, will chat online today on the Journal-World’s Web site, www.ljworld. com.

Lightner is completing her first term in the Kansas House. She will answer questions from LJWorld. com readers starting at 8:30 a.m. today.

Kris Kobach was a Bush administration official from 2001 to 2003, and has served on the City Council in Overland Park. He was also a White House fellow. He is currently a law professor at University of Missouri-Kansas City. He will answer questions from LJWorld.com readers starting at 12:30 p.m. today.

The third candidate in the GOP primary, Adam Taff, could not participate because of a scheduling conflict.

Questions for the candidates may be submitted through the Web site before and during the chats.

Competition

Lawrence student wins junior chess title

Lawrence resident Deepyaman Datta has qualified to compete in the 2005 U.S. Junior Invitational Championship.

Deepyaman, who recently completed the ninth grade at Southwest Junior High School, won the U.S. Junior Open Chess Championship in the 21-and-under division July 23-25 in Lindsborg. The win automatically allows Deepyaman to compete in the invitational championship, which is restricted to the top 10 under-21 players in the United States.

Other Lawrence children also competed in the tournament. Quail Run School student Alan Shi took third place in the 11-and-under division. Southwest Junior High student Anjali Datta took 10th place and Roy Wedge, a Wakarusa Valley School student, finished 11th in the 15-and-under division.

Homeschool band needs musicians

The Encore Homeschool Band will begin rehearsing Sept. 10.

The group also will have an orchestra this year.

While no musical experience is needed for the beginning level, there will be auditions for the intermediate and advanced levels.

For more information about the groups, e-mail encore homeschool@sbcglobal.net.