Charges of first-degree premeditated murder were dismissed Friday against Carolyn Heckert in Wyandotte County District Court.
Judge Aaron Roberts dismissed the charges at a preliminary hearing today, according to the district attorney’s office. The judge felt there was a lack of sufficient evidence to tie her to the crime, the spokesman for the district attorney said.
Heckert was charged in October 2016 in the 1989 case, in which DeLeon was found near Wolcott and I-435. DeLeon was the victim of a stabbing and head wound. DeLeon’s car later was found near 78th and I-70.
Jeff Rogers was killed nine years ago in Kansas City, Kansas, and his family is seeking tips that will lead to the solving of the crime and closure. (File photo from Rogers family)
Another year has gone by in the Jeff Rogers’ homicide case, without an end to one family’s pain.
Rogers was killed nine years ago Sunday, and his family members are still awaiting the closure that might take place when the case is solved. Rogers died in a violent home invasion burglary on April 9, 2008. He was 25 years old.
Jeff Rogers was an outdoorsman and avid angler who enjoyed going to Wyandotte County Lake. He was at home near 84th and Tauromee Avenue in Kansas City, Kansas, when the door was kicked in and the home was burglarized. He fought back, and later died of his injuries.
John Frishman, Rogers’ uncle, said the family received a little hope today that the case might be closer to being solved, when a tip came in.
Although there have been other tips in the past, the case is still not solved because police need more information. Frishman said Rogers’ case was different from most homicides as the victim had not been in trouble in the past.
Kansas City, Kansas, police and the Crime Stoppers Hotline today urged the community to come forward and bring information that will help solve the case and satisfy the family’s need for closure.
The need for tips in this case has been advertised on billboards in the area, on posters and through the media. There are cash rewards of $4,000 from the CrimeStopper TIPS hotline for information leading to an arrest, $5,000 from the state for information leading to an arrest and conviction, and $1,000 from the family.
Frishman said every year, Rogers’ mother is very affected by the anniversary date of her son’s death. Sometimes, a chance mention, a tip in the case or an event can bring back all the memories of that time nine years ago.
“Every now and then I’ll be out fishing and it reminds me of fishing with Jeff,” Frishman recalled. When there are developments in the case, all the memories come back again.
“You relive the same thing all over again,” Frishman said. ”It’s like another page in the book. You want to close the book, you want some kind of closure.”
Anyone with information about the homicide is asked to contact the Crime Stoppers Greater Kansas City TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477). The identity of the tipster is kept confidential.
Mike Kane (File photo)
Fifth District Unified Government Commissioner Mike Kane is running for re-election.
Kane said lowering property taxes is his top priority. He said the UG has the money now to lower taxes, and in the past promised the funds from the payoff of the sales tax revenue bonds would be used on lower property taxes.
He has served three terms as the 5th District commissioner.
“We started this journey 12 years ago and we saw the need for growth out west,” Kane said. The 5th District has experienced much economic growth during his years in office.
Among his achievements in office, he said, are a new community center that opened in Piper, at the request of a Girl Scout troop; a cleanup of an old greenhouse and nursery property located on 82nd Street; and a new fire station in the 5th District that is expected to break ground at the end of summer.
With the fire station project already approved, the next goals on his list are to get a new grocery store in the 5th District and more curbs and sidewalks, he said. Already, there have been five grocery stores built in Wyandotte County during his years on the commission, he said.
Kane said he also would like to look into turning a former go-kart park at Wolcott and Hutton roads into a park with a soccer field and gazebo. Currently, there isn’t a park west of I-435 in his district.
“I want to continue to do a good job, and enjoy serving my community,” he said.
Kane, 60, is the public affairs director for Laborers 1290. He is the president of Tri-County Labor, serves on the executive board of the AFL-CIO state board, and also is on the Kansas Human Rights Commission, appointed in 2013.
He coached soccer for four years at Piper High School. Kane is a lifelong Kansas City, Kansas, resident, and he and his wife have two children.
“Wyandotte County is a good place to work, to visit, and it is equally important to make it a good place to live,” Kane said. “I think it is, and I think that is why my kids stayed here.”
Kane has opposition in the 2017 election from Sarah Kremer. The primary election is Aug. 1, and the general election is in November this year.
