Month: December 2020

Parents of Wyandotte County judge killed in Friday crash

The parents of a Wyandotte County judge were killed in a crash Friday by suspects fleeing from police.

The collision happened at 1:45 p.m. Friday, Dec. 25, at 17th and Orville Avenue in Kansas City, Kansas.

According to a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper’s report, a 2002 Ford F150 truck was being pursued by Kansas City, Kansas, police officers because it was a stolen vehicle and had rammed a police patrol vehicle near the2500 block of Grandview Boulevard.

A 2009 Cadillac DTS was northbound on North 17th Street and stopped at the stop sign at Orville Avenue.

The Ford truck was traveling eastbound on Orville and ran through the stop sign at 17th Street, the trooper’s report stated. The Ford truck entered the intersection and struck the Cadillac on the driver’s side, the report stated.

The impact forced the Cadillac into the yard of 401 N. 17th St., where it struck a tree, the report stated.

The driver of the Ford truck then fled on foot, according to the trooper’s report.

The driver of the Ford truck was Roberto Vallejo-Avelrya Jr., 22, of Kansas City, Kansas, the report stated. He fled on foot.

A passenger in the Ford truck was Jesse A. Acosta III, 26, of Kansas City, Kansas. He was taken to a hospital, the report stated.

Killed in the crash were Mario F. Madruga, 89, of Kansas City, Kansas, and Delia Madruga, 85, of Kansas City, Kansas.


The family of Wyandotte County District Court Judge Delia York and her husband, Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department Chief Michael York, released this statement:

“On Friday, December 25th, a tragic event took place in Kansas City, Kansas, when a vehicle evading authorities caused a crash taking the lives of Delia and Mario Madruga, parents of Wyandotte County District Court Judge, Delia York and the mother and father-in-law of Kansas City, Kansas Police Chief, Michael York. The family deeply appreciates the community’s condolences and prayers while at the same time asks for privacy as they mourn this loss. The Madrugas were loved and respected members of the Kansas City, Kansas, community and will be deeply missed.”

COVID-19 case numbers reported

Wyandotte County reported an increase of 136 COVID-19 cases on Friday, Dec. 25, according to the Unified Government’s COVID-19 webpage. There were a cumulative 14,116 cases. There were no additional deaths reported, for a cumulative total of 193.

The Mid-America Regional Council’s Kansas City Region COVID-19 Data Hub reported 117,058 COVID-19 cases on Dec. 25, with a total of 1,402 deaths in the nine-county regional area. There were no additional deaths Friday. The daily average of new hospitalizations was 171, down slightly.

Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Friday reported 18,756,360 cases in the United States, with 330,246 deaths.

COVID-19 tests scheduled Saturday at Turner location

Free COVID-19 testing is scheduled to be available at 9 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 26, at Pierson Community Center, 1800 S. 55th St., Kansas City, Kansas. The site is operated by WellHealth, and those interested in a test may visit www.GoGetTested.com/kansas to schedule a COVID-19 test Check in advance to see if there are any changes to the schedule.

COVID-19 testing through the UG Health Department will resume on Monday.

Testing sites are at https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19.

For more test sites, also see https://www.gogettested.com/kansas.

For more information about the testing site at the former Kmart location, visit https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/10092020_newtestingsitewyco.pdf.

To see information about the UG giving vaccines to health care workers, visit https://wyandotteonline.com/ug-to-start-giving-covid-19-vaccines-to-health-department-and-ems-personnel-next-week/.

The KDHE vaccine report is at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/DocumentCenter/View/1677/Vaccine-Update-12-16-20.

Cards and letters of encouragement for caregivers at KU Health System may be sent to Share Joy, care of Patient Relations, 4000 Cambridge St., Mailstop 1021, Kansas City, Kansas, 66160. Emails can be sent to [email protected].

Wyandotte County is under a mandatory mask and social distancing order. Also, the Wyandotte County health order with a limit of 10 persons to a gathering, and a closing time of 10 p.m. for restaurants and bars, with other new restrictions, is at https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/11162020localhealthorderexecuted.pdf.

The UG COVID-19 webpage is at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information.

The KDHE’s COVID-19 webpage is at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/.

The KC Region COVID-19 Hub dashboard is at https://marc2.org/covidhub/.

The Wyandotte County page on the Johns Hopkins COVID-19 website is at https://bao.arcgis.com/covid-19/jhu/county/20209.html.

The CDC’s COVID-19 webpage is at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html.

Two dead after accident involving stolen vehicle

Two persons are dead after an accident involving a stolen vehicle at 17th and Orville on Friday, Dec. 25.

Police were dispatched to an area near North 25th and Grandview Boulevard at 1:42 p.m. Dec. 25 on a stolen vehicle report, according to a Kansas City, Kansas, police spokesman.

The vehicle had been located by the registered owner, according to police.

When police arrived, officers tried to contact the occupants of the stolen vehicle. The stolen vehicle fled, striking a Kansas City, Kansas, police vehicle, according to the spokesman.

Police chased the vehicle eastbound on Orville, then the suspect vehicle ran a stop sign at North 17th and Orville Avenue, striking a vehicle traveling northbound on 17th Street, the spokesman stated.

Both occupants of the northbound vehicle were killed, police stated.

The two suspects fled on foot, and one suspect was taken into custody, the spokesman stated.

The Kansas State Highway Patrol is investigating this accident, according to the spokesman. Anyone with information is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.