Shaun Hittle / LJWorld.com

Staff

Shaun Hittle

Shaun began working for the World Co. in 2008.

He is new to Kansas, having grown up in Florida and Michigan. He remembers the snow in Michigan and the giant cockroaches in Florida.

He has a 12-inch scar on one of his legs. He tells people it's a shark bite. About half the time people believe him.

His nose breaks very easily. He has learned this lesson the hard way.

He does not play video games and he feels strongly that other adults shouldn't either.

People tell Shaun that his best quality is his punctuality. He isn't sure if that's a compliment.

There are many things that Shaun is not good at, and he accepts that and plans no improvement in those areas, which include fixing things, cooking, and directions.

In his life, he has worked as a basketball referee, a pizza delivery driver, an undercover store detective, a social worker, a bouncer, and now a journalist.

You can follow him on Twitter @shaunhittle Here is a list of some of Shaun's favorite reporting projects:

• The Boy in the Attic: http://bit.ly/mUFOoH

• From the Ashes: Five Years Later: http://bit.ly/q0QF4d

• A Tournament of their Own: http://bit.ly/pi8EQy

• Rodeo School: http://bit.ly/iGkD2C

Recent stories

Father of slain toddler grieves in Missouri jail: By Shaun Hittle; May 15, 2013; Shawn Bailey, father of the 18-month-old killed in the quadruple homicide case in Ottawa, sits in a jail cell in Missouri, missing the funeral services of his daughter just 200 miles away. By Shaun Hittle
Families pack courtroom for hearing in Ottawa murder case: By Ian Cummings & Shaun Hittle; May 13, 2013; Friends and family of the four victims found killed in rural Ottawa last week packed a Franklin County courtroom Monday afternoon as the capital murder case went forward against Kyle T. Flack, 27, Ottawa. Flack is accused of killing four people, including a young child and her mother, at a house about five miles west of Ottawa. By Ian Cummings & Shaun Hittle
Families, Ottawa community grapple to understand quadruple homicide: By Ian Cummings & Shaun Hittle; May 12, 2013; Less than a day after the body of a missing toddler was discovered by police, the family of two homicide victims shared their grief as the Ottawa community seeks to come to grips with a quadruple homicide. By Shaun Hittle and Ian Cummings
Authorities believe Lana-Leigh Bailey’s body was moved to Osage County after killings in Ottawa: By Ian Cummings & Shaun Hittle; 01:09 a.m., May 12, 2013 Updated 10:30 p.m.; Authorities said Sunday they believe that 18-month-old Lana-Leigh Bailey was killed on the same rural Ottawa property last week as her mother and two men, and that her body was then moved to Osage County. Franklin County Sheriff Jeff Richards said officials are confident that the body found in Osage County Saturday was that of Lana-Leigh. Final identification has not yet been made, he said, pending a forensic examination. By Ian Cummings • Arrest of defendant in Ottawa homicide case brings new questions
Arrest of defendant in Ottawa homicide case brings new questions: By Ian Cummings & Shaun Hittle; May 12, 2013; The arrest of Kyle T. Flack in connection with the killings of three adults and a child last week in rural Ottawa, and the capital murder charges filed against him Friday, answer some questions that have bothered many since the bodies were discovered. But other questions remain: What happened at 3197 Georgia Road? How were the victims killed? How did a body believed to be that of Lana Leigh Bailey get to Osage County, where it was found Saturday evening? And why was Flack roaming those country roads free after shooting a man down in 2005 and being convicted of attempted murder? By Ian Cummings and Shaun Hittle
Search for missing toddler — presumed dead — ramping down after intense week: By Ian Cummings & Shaun Hittle; May 11, 2013; There will be no mass search for missing toddler Lana Bailey on Sunday, but investigators continue to follow leads elsewhere, Franklin County Sheriff Jeff Richards said Saturday. Searches will begin anew Monday, with the total manpower available down to about 50 from the 150 working this week. Officials are still holding out hope of finding the 18-mongh old child of a young woman found dead along with two other men in rural Ottawa early this week. By Ian Cummings and Shaun Hittle
Suspect in Ottawa killings charged with four counts of first-degree murder; could face death penalty: By Shaun Hittle; May 10, 2013; Kyle T. Flack was charged with four counts of first-degree murder Friday of a woman and two men whose bodies were found in rural Ottawa earlier this week, as well as a toddler whose is still missing but presumed dead. He could face the death penalty if convicted. Bond in the case was set at $10 million. The 27-year-old Ottawa man made his first court appearance at the Franklin County courthouse Friday afternoon to hear the charges, which also included a count of rape, a count of criminal possession of a firearm and two counts of capital murder, which opens up the possibility that Flack could face the death penalty if convicted.By Shaun Hittle
Ottawa man charged; FBI joins search for missing toddler, now presumed dead: By Ian Cummings & Shaun Hittle; 12:01 a.m., May 10, 2013 Updated 05:12 p.m.; A suspect in a quadruple homicide made his first appearance in court at 4 p.m. Friday and was charged with murder, rape and criminal possession of firearms. The search for a missing toddler, now presumed dead, continued earlier Friday on a rural Ottawa property where three bodies were discovered this week. The Federal Bureau of Investigation became involved and as many as 150 law enforcement officers in helicopters, planes and on horseback, are combing the area. By Ian Cummings & Shaun Hittle
Franklin County Sheriff faces high-profile case just weeks into office: By Shaun Hittle; May 10, 2013; It’s been trial by fire for new Franklin County Sheriff Jeff Richards, as he works a potential quadruple homicide case, just weeks after taking over the office in April. By Shaun Hittle
Homicide suspect had mental health and drug problems, sources say: By Shaun Hittle; May 10, 2013; As Kyle T. Flack sits in a Franklin County Jail cell awaiting multiple charges of murder, relatives of a man Flack nearly killed eight years ago paint a picture of the suspect as a troubled young man prone to mental health and drug issues. Flack served four years in prison for the 2005 shooting of Ottawa resident Steven Dale Free, 47. By Shaun Hittle

Full story list

Recent photos

Shawn Patrick Bailey, sitting in a Missouri jail, talks about finding out about the killings of his wife and daughter. Bailey, about to begin a multiyear prison sentence for burglary, was unable to attend funeral services for his wife and daughter, killed last week in Ottawa.

Shawn Patrick Bailey, sitting in a Missouri jail, talks about finding out about the killings of his wife and daughter. Bailey, about to begin a prison sentence for burglary, was unable to attend funeral services for his wife and daughter, killed last week in Ottawa.

A cross, flowers and a picture of 18-month-old Lana-Leigh Bailey, whose body was found Saturday evening in Osage County, sit at the intersection of Georgia and Highway 68 In Ottawa Monday. Police say they believe Lana-Leigh was killed, along with her mother and two other men, at a farmstead at 3197 Georgia Road.

Franklin County Sheriff Jeff Richards addresses the media Sunday, May 12, about the previous night's discovery of what police believe was the body of missing 18-month-old Lana-Leigh Bailey. Richards said the body was found in rural Osage County Saturday evening, but he declined to specify a location.

Search teams on horseback search along Highway 68, near the Eisenhower Drive intersection, Friday afternoon in Ottawa. Crews on horseback were seen all Friday combing Highway 68, fanning out east and west from Georgia Road, where three bodies were discovered Monday. Police continue to search for missing 18-month-old Lana-Leigh Bailey.

Full photo list