WRITER: Chris Conde

Lawrence man once given a 2nd chance at life spent it committing new crimes ahead of new prison sentence

A Lawrence man who once was given a reprieve amid a 26-year prison sentence spent the next decade committing new crimes and has now been sentenced to three more years in prison. Jason Lee Ellison, 42, pleaded no contest in March to one felony count of criminal threat. The charge had originally been filed as an aggravated assault in which he allegedly threatened a man with a piece of lumber on Sept. 25, 2024, ...

Lawrence man granted probation for interfering with police investigation in 14-year-old's shooting death

A Lawrence man who was a key witness in the death of a 14-year-old boy was granted probation on Thursday for interfering with the police investigation into the shooting. The man, Owen Gage Walker, 20, of Lawrence, pleaded no contest in March to one felony count of interference as part of a plea agreement that dismissed an additional felony obstruction charge, as the Journal-World reported. Walker was ...

Motorcycle and bicycle officers parade through Lawrence to honor the fallen; ceremonies scheduled in Topeka

Dozens of motorcycles and bicycles paraded through Lawrence on Thursday as part of the 2025 Kansas Law Enforcement Ride for the Fallen. The cyclists were traveling from Leawood to Topeka to honor officers who have died in the past year, said Sgt. Drew Fennelly with the Lawrence Police Department. According to a release from the Kansas Highway Patrol, the ride was scheduled to end at the Statehouse around 7 ...

'I didn’t really believe it until I fell to the ground'; man testifies about being shot during botched drug deal in Lawrence

A man testified on Tuesday that he had never met the Lawrence teen who allegedly shot him twice in the leg during a drug deal gone bad and that he still has bullet fragments from the incident in his leg. Cameron Jay Cooper, 18, of Lawrence, is charged with one felony count each of aggravated robbery and aggravated battery in connection with a shooting on Nov. 11, 2024, around 7:45 p.m. at 3323 Iowa St., the ...

Man pleads to lesser offense in stabbing near North Lawrence homeless camp, hopes to serve sentence at Larned

A man told a Douglas County judge on Wednesday that he would like to spend his upcoming prison sentence at Larned State Hospital after entering a plea deal that reduced his attempted murder charge in connection with an attack near a North Lawrence homeless camp. Tristen Lamont Hollins, 43, was charged in Douglas County District Court with one felony count of attempted first-degree murder in connection with the ...

Uncover traces of the past at a ruined mansion in Lecompton this summer with the Kansas Archeology Training Program's field school

This summer, would-be archeologists can get a taste of fieldwork — looking for bottles, buttons and many other artifacts — at the ruins of a home built by a former acting territorial governor of Kansas in the 19th century. The Kansas Archeology Training Program is currently accepting enrollees for this summer's field school, which will explore the ruins in Lecompton known as the Mount Aeolia mansion. The ...