WRITER: Kim Callahan

Green Hall

Federal lawsuit against KU by former student who was charged with making false rape report dismissed

A federal lawsuit filed against the University of Kansas by a former KU law student who said she had been raped by a fellow student has been dismissed for failure to state a claim. The lawsuit, filed in October of 2020, followed a yearslong series of events in which the plaintiff reported to Lawrence police in September 2018 that a fellow student had raped her while she was too intoxicated to consent. As the ...

Lawrence resident heading to Ukraine border to help care for refugees

Lawrence resident Scott Sloyer is scheduled to arrive in Przemysl, Poland, this weekend to help feed Ukrainian citizens fleeing Vladimir Putin’s devastating invasion of their country. What specifically he’ll be doing at the refugee site near Ukraine’s western border isn't yet clear, but the specifics don’t concern Sloyer much. “If they tell me to go cut potatoes and carrots for 12 hours, that’s ...

Theatre Lawrence tackles 'The Girl on the Train,' turning bestselling thriller into 'optical feast'

Depicting a narrator’s inner life, especially when it’s warped by psychological abuse, alcoholism and other conditions that affect reliability, is challenging in a book — and even more so in a film. In a live stage play, it’s truly daunting. That’s what Piet Knetsch discovered when he agreed to direct “The Girl on the Train” for Theatre Lawrence. The play, based on British author Paula Hawkins’ ...

With help from national and local donors, Lawrence Humane Society 'goes all out' with free pet vaccine clinics

When an announcement went out recently about a free vaccine clinic for pets, 200 applications flooded in within the first hour. And more kept coming, said Elina Alterman, director of development and communications with the Lawrence Humane Society. Alterman is acutely aware of the “incredible need in the community” for pet care, but those recent numbers “blew our minds,” she told the ...

Douglas County Sheriff's Office donating bulletproof vests to aid Ukraine against Russian invasion

Like many organizations, agencies and individuals across the globe, the Douglas County Sheriff's Office is contributing to Ukraine's effort to defend itself against Russia's deadly invasion. The office has donated bulletproof body armor — specifically 20 ballistic vests — to help Ukraine in its fight against President Vladimir Putin's military, which invaded the country on Feb. 24. “In law enforcement ...

'Drunken Fiddles' class a delightfully sobering experience for adults who thought they couldn't learn violin

Like a lot of violinists, Laurel Parks started playing the violin at a very young age. She was just 4 when her dad, who was taking a music class at a community center, brought home a fiddle. Something about the shiny wooden thing “spoke to my little tiny heart,” she says. After she grew up and became an accomplished musician, she realized that the instrument also spoke to bigger, older hearts. Problem was, ...