WRITER: Bremen Keasey

Lawrence man faces up to 24 years in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of rape

A Lawrence man charged with numerous child sex crimes in Douglas County Circuit Court pleaded guilty to two counts of rape as part of a plea agreement Tuesday afternoon, avoiding a jury trial and a possible life sentence. Adrian Raye Wisdom pleaded guilty to two counts of rape, both level one person felonies, as part of a plea agreement that dropped 13 other charges Widsom was facing. As the Journal-World ...

Study challenges narratives about loneliness in youth

In recent years — especially since the onset of the unique social changes sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic around the start of 2020 — the topic of feelings of loneliness and disconnection experienced by younger people has exploded. The image that many people think of to characterize what has been called an epidemic is a “young person forlornly looking in their phone,” according to Jeffrey Hall, ...

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is just around the corner, but what does that mean and how might it affect Lawrence?

Soccer fans all over the world held their breath, screamed in delight and learned about what kinds of travel plans they would be looking at come summer, as multiple teams qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup this week. From shocking goals in Glasgow that secured Scotland’s first ticket to the tournament since 1990 to the Caribbean countries of Haiti and Curacao celebrating their second and first World Cup ...

Sex offender accepts plea agreement to two counts of abuse of a Lawrence child; faces 24 years in prison

A violent sex offender from New York accepted a plea agreement from prosecutors in Douglas County District Court on Thursday, avoiding a jury trial that was scheduled for next month. Kyle Elder, 35, pleaded no contest to two counts of aggravated abuse of a child, both felonies. Under the plea agreement, Senior Assistant District Attorney Ricardo Leal said that prosecutors dismissed other charges that Elder was ...

Organizers for proposed trail system north of I-70 in Lawrence say government agreement on easement is crucial

Organizers looking to create a new park and trail system near Interstate 70 in Lawrence said it needs community support to make the dream reality, especially support from the city and county governments to make use of a small stretch of land to connect the system. Around 100 people gathered at the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vermont St., for a meeting hosted Wednesday night by the Friends of Lawrence Area ...

LMH Health Board of Trustees approves 2026 budget that projects net operating income of $8.1 million next year

The LMH Board of Trustees approved the hospital’s operating budget for 2026 with expectations of an increased net operating income compared to this year’s budget. The Board voted unanimously Wednesday morning to approve a budget that projects the hospital system will take in an operating revenue of just over $448 million in 2026, with around $440 million in operating expenses. The budget projects it would ...