A jury trial for a man accused of multiple sex crimes that was scheduled to begin at the end of this month has been canceled after the parties indicated to the court Thursday that a plea deal was imminent. The defendant, Kenneth Wayne Soap, 46, is now scheduled for a plea hearing on May 1 in Douglas County District Court. The plea agreement, not yet available in court records, is expected to resolve charges in ...
A man with a lengthy criminal record who is known for leading law enforcement on numerous car chases was convicted Wednesday in Douglas County District Court of attempted aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, fleeing and eluding police and criminal damage to property for three incidents that happened in 2022 and 2024. The convictions followed a deal in which Steven Carl Drake II, 50, pleaded no ...
A defendant who was convicted of felony battery against a law enforcement officer has been ordered to serve two years of probation and to pay nearly $2,400 in restitution to the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. Judge Sally Pokorny sentenced Dustin Parrish on Wednesday to 11 months in prison but suspended that term to 24 months of probation in accordance with the parties' recommendations. Parrish, who has no ...
A Douglas County woman with two previous domestic battery convictions has been ordered to stand trial for a third violent incident. In the most recent case, Shaleah N. Kauffman is facing felony domestic battery and aggravated battery charges after a man testified on Tuesday that Kauffman drunkenly attacked him two separate times in the fall of 2023. The man testified that the first attack occurred early in ...
A Lawrence man pleaded not guilty Friday in Douglas County District Court to charges that he molested two girls eight years ago during sleepovers at his home. The teens testified at a preliminary hearing in January about separate incidents that they said occurred at the home of Jordey McTaggart as they spent the night with his children when they were in elementary school. Judge Sally Pokorny ordered McTaggart ...
A 30-year-old Lawrence man was found guilty Wednesday in Douglas County District Court after he pleaded no contest to aggravated battery in connection with a stabbing incident two years ago outside a Lawrence restaurant. The defendant, Edgar Oropeza Diaz, was originally charged with aggravated battery as a level 4 person felony but pleaded down to a less serious level 7 person felony. He faces between 11 and 34 ...