WRITER: Sara Shepherd

New evidence delays rural Lawrence murder and arson trial; defendant’s ex, fellow inmate claim she confessed to them

New evidence linking Christina L. Towell to the murder and subsequent burning of a Eudora man last year has surfaced, necessitating her trial be pushed back, lawyers say. Specifically, Towell’s ex-husband and a fellow inmate at the jail have both claimed she confessed to them her involvement in the death of Joel Wales, Towell’s attorney wrote in his request to push back the trial, which had been scheduled ...

Lawrence police blotter for Oct. 14

Listed below is the majority of Lawrence police activity within the last 24 hours. Each afternoon the Lawrence Police Department releases a list of officer activity. This call blotter spans from 6 a.m. Saturday to 6 a.m. Sunday and includes 226 incidents. Each listing gives a date, time and general address followed by a short description of the call's nature. It's important to remember that each incident only ...

Lawrence police blotter for Oct. 13

Listed below is the majority of Lawrence police activity within the last 24 hours. Each afternoon the Lawrence Police Department releases a list of officer activity. This call blotter spans from 6 a.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Saturday and includes 215 incidents. Each listing gives a date, time and general address followed by a short description of the call's nature. It's important to remember that each incident only ...

Lawrence police blotter for Oct. 12

Listed below is the majority of Lawrence police activity within the last 24 hours. Each afternoon the Lawrence Police Department releases a list of officer activity. This call blotter spans from 6 a.m. Thursday to 6 a.m. Friday and includes 256 incidents. Each listing gives a date, time and general address followed by a short description of the call's nature. It's important to remember that each incident only ...

KCMO man is 5th person arrested in Lawrence home-invasion robbery and shooting

A woman was recently convicted and sent to prison for shooting a man during a home-invasion robbery at a Lawrence apartment in December. A total of four additional suspects have now been arrested and charged in connection with the same incident, the newest one being booked into the Douglas County Jail Wednesday night. Michael R. Smith, 28, of Kansas City, Mo., was arrested on a warrant and held on $50,000 ...

KU student jailed on suspicion of rape, released

A University of Kansas student was booked into jail early Thursday morning on suspicion of rape, but later released without being charged, pending further investigation. On Wednesday, a female student reported to KU police that she’d been sexually assaulted a few weeks earlier, in the early morning hours of Sept. 14, in her dorm room at Self Hall, 1620 Engel Road, Deputy Chief James Anguiano said. Anguiano ...