Pit bull deemed dangerous by judge

A judge ruled Wednesday that a pit bull terrier suspected of attacking and killing a 5-pound Chihuahua last month was a “dangerous dog” under city ordinance.

After a roughly half-hour hearing in Lawrence Municipal Court, Judge Randy McGrath found it was more likely than not that the pit bull, Jade, roamed onto private property May 11 in the 700 block of Joseph Drive, killed Peanut the Chihuahua, and carried it off in its jaws.

The ruling means the pit bull’s owner, former Kansas University linebacker Chaz Murphy, 27, must register the dog with the Lawrence Humane Society, keep it in a locked enclosure and muzzle it when it’s in public. If the dog attacks again, it can be put to sleep.

Evidence in the case was circumstantial. No one directly witnessed the attack, and the body hasn’t been recovered. But a neighbor testified he saw a pit bull carrying a small animal in its mouth down the street shortly after Peanut’s owner, Ellea Fellers, heard yelping in her unfenced back yard.

Appointments

KU, KSU leaders named to bioscience board

The leaders of Kansas University and Kansas State University are the first members appointed to the Kansas Bioscience Authority Board of Directors.

Robert Hemenway, chancellor of KU, and Jon Wefald, president of KSU, were appointed to the board by the Kansas Board of Regents.

The authority was created this legislative session by the Kansas Economic Growth Act. It will use tax money generated from bioscience companies to attract scholars to Kansas universities and construct and maintain bioscience research facilities.

Hemenway and Wefald will be nonvoting members on the 11-member board. Two board members will be appointed each by the governor, speaker of the House and president of the Senate. One appointment each will be made by the Senate minority leader, House minority leader and the Kansas Technology Enterprise Corp.

Officials hope to have the full board in place by Aug. 1.

Courts

Guilty plea entered in heist at Taco John’s

Kansas City, Kan. — A Kansas City, Kan., man has pleaded guilty in federal court to robbing a Taco John’s restaurant in Lawrence.

George Cannon, 46, also pleaded guilty to charges of carrying a revolver during the robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Kansas U.S. Atty. Eric Melgren said Cannon admitted in his plea Tuesday that he and an accomplice, Michael Hussey, took about $855 from the restaurant on Dec. 26, 2003.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office was able to handle the prosecution because Taco John’s was involved in interstate commerce.

Cannon previously had been convicted of robbery in 1983 in Wyandotte County. He faces a maximum total of 35 years to life in prison on all of the recent convictions. He will be sentenced Aug. 16.

Hussey pleaded guilty in April to similar charges and is to be sentenced July 12.

Gasoline prices

Pump Patrol seeks deals

The Journal-World has found gasoline prices as low as $1.94 a gallon at Presto Phillips 66, 602 W. Ninth St.; Jayhawk Food Mart, 701 W. Ninth St.; and Shamrock, 501 W. Ninth St. If you find a lower price, call the Pump Patrol at 832-7154.