From the Lawrence Daily Journal-World for Aug. 1, 1973:

• The Douglas County Commission was to seek a legal opinion from its attorney on whether a corrections officer could be hired for the county jail. District Court Judge Frank Gray was questioning the legality of having a county corrections officer in charge of the jail and correction facilities because there was no statutory authorization for the use of tax funds for such a position, adding, “I doubt if a state auditor would allow the expenditure.” Gray agreed with Tom Regan, of the Governor’s Committee on Criminal Administration, that federal funds could be used for the position and that only local tax funds were in question. Dick Peters, a member of the jail committee, asked if it would be possible for Sheriff Rex Johnson to deputize someone to serve in the capacity of a corrections officer, but Johnson pointed out that none of his deputies were considered qualified for the role.
• The Lawrence Police Department demonstrated a hand-held radar unit today. The unit, which had just been returned from some factory repairs, was operated on a shoulder-carried battery pack or from the patrol car’s electrical system. In a front-page photo in today’s Journal-World, Patrolman Jerry Karr demonstrated how to pull the trigger to lock the digital display on a speeder’s rate of travel.