Month: November 2019

Charges filed against two sheriff’s employees following incident at jail

Sgt. David J. Toland, left, has been charged with aggravated battery and mistreatment of a confined person stemming from an incident on Sept. 5 at the jail. In this file photo from June 2016, he was giving a speech at a memorial dedication. Sheriff Don Ash was at the right in this photo. (File photo)

Charges have been filed by District Attorney Mark Dupree against two Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Department employees after an incident at the Wyandotte County Jail on Sept. 5.

Sgt. David J. Toland, 47, has been charged with aggravated battery and mistreatment of a confined person. The battery charge is a felony and the mistreatment charge is a misdemeanor.

Deputy Marcus Johnson, 34, faces two misdemeanor counts, mistreatment of a confined person and assault.

The two employees have been placed on administrative leave, according to a statement from Sheriff Don Ash. They were not being held in the Wyandotte County Jail.

When Ash learned about the incident, he did a preliminary review and then asked the Kansas Bureau of Investigation to investigate, according to his statement. That investigation was turned over to the district attorney, who filed charges Nov. 13.

There is also an ongoing administrative investigation by an outside agency to determine whether the employees violated any departmental policies, according to Ash.

Toland and Johnson are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty, the district attorney’s spokesman stated.

Sheriff Don Ash’s statement:

“On September 6, 2019, I learned about an incident in the jail involving employees and an inmate that happened on September 5, 2019. Following a preliminary review of the incident, I placed an employee on administrative leave and referred the matter to the KBI for investigation. The District Attorney’s Office has now filed charges against two employees as a result of that investigation. Both charged employees have been placed on administrative leave. I also requested an administrative investigation by an outside agency to determine whether employees violated any policies. That investigation is ongoing.

“All people facing criminal charges are innocent until proven guilty. The Sheriff’s Office has and will continue to cooperate fully in the investigative and judicial process.

“As Sheriff, I hold myself and my employees to the highest moral, ethical, and legal standards. This incident does not reflect our organizational values or my personal values and I take it very seriously. This incident will not distract from our ongoing mission to serve and protect our community, including inmates in our custody, guided by our core values of equality, respect, service, honesty, and integrity.”

Gov. Kelly asks to be removed from Kansas foster care lawsuit

by Nomin Ujiyediin, Kansas News Service

Attorneys for Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly have asked a federal court to remove her from a class-action lawsuit over the state’s troubled foster care program, arguing that she doesn’t actually oversee the system.

The move comes as parents and advocates say that the system continues to traumatize the thousands of children in its care.

A year ago, child welfare advocates sued then-Gov. Jeff Colyer and the heads of the state agencies in charge of the foster care system: the Department for Children and Families, the Department of Aging and Disability Services and the Department of Health and Environment. In April 2019, Kelly and the current heads of those agencies replaced them as the defendants in the suit.

The lawsuit alleges that the state failed to provide adequate mental health treatment for Kansas foster children and traumatized them by moving them from house to house, sometimes more than 100 times. The suit was filed on behalf of 10 foster children, who were identified only by their initials.

On Oct. 25, Kelly’s attorneys filed a motion in the U.S. District Court of Kansas, arguing that the governor is protected under the 11th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which provides states protection from many lawsuits by private citizens.

Kelly is not responsible for regulating the state’s foster care agencies, the attorneys argued, and is therefore immune from being sued over this issue.

“While Governor Kelly generally oversees her appointees’ administration of the foster care system,” the motion reads, “she does not enforce the statutes or regulations that control the Kansas foster care system.”

Instead, Kelly’s lawyers argued, the heads of state agencies are responsible for overseeing social welfare, mental health, medical care and other duties laid out in state law.

In an email, the governor’s office said it does not comment on pending litigation.

Attorneys for the children suing the state have until Dec. 30 to respond.

Teresa Woody, an attorney for advocacy group Kansas Appleseed, said they plan to file a response opposing the removal of Kelly from the lawsuit.

“It’s not at all uncommon to name the governor in a case like this,” Woody said. “The ultimate responsibility for the executive branch of the state rests with the governor.”

The judge will make the final decision to remove Kelly as a defendant, and it’s not clear when that might happen.

Woody said both sides of the case met Tuesday for mediation.

The governor has previously said she wants to prioritize fixing foster care during her time in office. While she was a state senator, Kelly served on a task force examining the foster care system.

Nomin Ujiyediin reports on criminal justice and social welfare for the Kansas News Service. Follow her on Twitter @NominUJ or email nomin (at) kcur (dot) org.

The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public Radio focused on the health and well-being of Kansans, their communities and civic life. Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished by news media at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org.

See more at https://www.kcur.org/post/governor-kelly-asks-be-removed-kansas-foster-care-lawsuit.