Month: January 2022

Interim UG administrator named

Cheryl Harrison-Lee (Kansas Board of Regents photo)

Mayor Tyrone Garner on Thursday named Cheryl Harrison-Lee to be the interim Unified Government administrator, through April 1, 2023.

Harrison-Lee will fill the temporary post vacated by former Administrator Doug Bach, who retired effective Jan. 6. Bach announced his retirement on Dec. 29. Deputy Administrator Alan Howze served as interim administrator on Thursday night.

Harrison-Lee’s appointment was approved by a unanimous vote of the UG Commission Thursday night.

She will become the first interim UG administrator who is a person of color and a woman, according to Garner.

She has extensive experience as a municipal administrator in Florida and also served as city administrator of Gardner, Kansas, he said.

Harrison-Lee is currently vice chair of the Kansas Board of Regents.

Garner said he selected Harrison-Lee because of her qualifications and his belief that this appointment is what Wyandotte County needs at this time to address some of the needs in the community, including addressing taxes, and investing in disinvested parts of the community.

According to her biography on the Board of Regents’ website, Harrison-Lee is CEO of HLDC, a management consulting firm. She served as chief technical adviser for the city of Kansas City, Missouri, working on the central city sales tax.

She also was executive director for the Kansas Office of Recovery, and was in charge of distributing federal CARES Act funding to local communities.

UG commissioners spoke in favor of Harrison-Lee’s appointment.

Commissioner Christian Ramirez said it is a historic moment for Wyandotte County, a first female interim county administrator and the first interim administrator who is a person of color.

Commissioner Mike Kane said he supports the appointment because of excellent recommendations from Gardner officials.

Commissioner Melissa Bynum also asked about getting a copy of the interim administrator’s contract, and Commissioner Gayle Townsend was interested in a procedural question and if there were plans to conduct a national search for a permanent administrator.

Misty Brown, chief legal counsel, said in the past, mayors have negotiated and signed contracts with the administrator. The administrator reports directly to the mayor. The contract will be provided to commissioners after it has been negotiated, she said.

Mayor Garner said he was impressed by Harrison-Lee’s resume and qualifications and her desire to provide servant leadership.

He said it was “premature” to talk about the long term. There will be the opportunity to come back to the commission for evaluation, he said, and it would surprise him if she does not meet or exceed expectations of the commission, staff and community. He said he would notify the commission if he moves forward with a national search.

“Ms. Harrison-Lee has my full support,” he said. “She’s going to need all of our support, to need this community’s support.”

Haley pledges to represent voice of people in inaugural speech at BPU

David Haley

State Sen. David Haley, D-4th Dist., took the oath of office, joining the Board of Public Utilities on Wednesday night, while pledging to represent the voice of the people.

Sen. Haley, who will represent BPU at-large, position 2, said he hoped to continue the proud legacy of his family in service to Wyandotte County and “to represent people over profits.” He also continues as a state senator in Wyandotte County. Three BPU members who won election in November took the oath of office at the BPU meeting Wednesday, Jan. 5.

During two campaigns for the BPU board, Haley committed to greater accountability and transparency. In his speech Wednesday, he discussed holding the Unified Government accountable for the charges it places on the BPU bills. He also said he supports allowing BPU ratepayers to compare practices and policies with investor-owned utilities in Kansas, having the BPU better reflect policies, and being fair and consistent to the ratepayers.

Haley also said he expected to be quiet during his first few months at the BPU board while he is learning about the utility.

Haley is serving his sixth term in the Kansas Senate, and is currently the longest-serving member of the Senate. He also served in the Kansas House from 1994 through 2000. He is a graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia, and Howard University Law School in Washington, D.C. He is a real estate developer and a public affairs counselor.

Mary Gonzales

Re-elected to the BPU board was Mary Gonzales, vice president of the board, and at-large, position 1. She thanked family, friends, BPU employees and voters for their support.

Campaigning this year was different, with virtual forums, and many candidates were not able to shake hands and visit with voters, but had to rely on doorhangers and signs, she said.

Gonzales said the public utility was defined by local control, with decisions taking place closest to the people the utility serves. Decisions such as approving expenditures and hiring a manager are made by the body the community has selected, she said.

She said she knows the importance of every decision and does not take any of them lightly.

She added it is always her concern to serve Main Street and not Wall Street, and during the next four years, she pledged to serve with integrity and honesty.

Gonzales is a retired teacher. She retired after a 33-year career, and for many years, taught language arts at Piper Middle School.

Gonzales, who was first elected to the BPU in 2001, has served on many community boards, including the Rosedale Development Association, and is a former board member of El Centro and City Vision Ministries.

She has a Bachelor of Arts in education from the University of Montevallo, Montevallo, Alabama, and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from Emporia State University.

Tom Groneman

Also re-elected to office was Tom Groneman, 2nd District.

Groneman said the past two years of the pandemic have been a challenge for individuals and the utility, and he didn’t think it would end any time soon.

He pledged to work together as a board to make sure they do everything they can to make the utility competitive and the rates as low as they possibly can be. He was first elected to the BPU in 2013.

Groneman, a native of Wyandotte County, holds a bachelor’s degree in business and economics from Bethany College, Lindsborg, Kansas. After military service with the U.S. Navy, he worked in the probation office for the Wyandotte County District Court.

He was appointed Wyandotte County register of deeds in 1975, then was elected to seven terms as register of deeds.

He served as director of Alcoholic Beverage Control for the state of Kansas under Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and Gov. Mark Parkinson, until 2011.

8 Kansas residents charged in last Jan. 6 insurrection

Kansans charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol include alleged members of the Proud Boys, a Topeka City Council candidate and others who’ve since expressed regret for their actions.

by Dan Margolies, KCUR, Kansas News Service

One year after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the United States Capitol, 64% of Americans believe U.S. democracy is “in crisis and at risk of failing,” according to an NPR/Ipsos poll.

Five people died during or after the insurrection, and approximately 140 members of law enforcement suffered injuries.

To date, more than 700 people have been charged with crimes. Based on court records and media accounts, here are all the people from Kansas who are facing charges and, in instances where they’ve pleaded guilty, the outcomes of their cases.

Ryan Ashlock

Ashlock, of Gardner, was arrested in Lenexa on Feb. 22, 2021.

He was charged with conspiracy; obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting; obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder and aiding and abetting; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds and carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; and carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon.

The Kansas City Star reported that he was part of a group of Kansas City-area Proud Boys, including William Chrestman, Christopher Kuehne and Louis Enrique Colon, as well as Arizona siblings Felicia Konold and Cory Konold.

Ashlock was also named as a defendant in a separate civil suit brought by the attorney general of the District of Columbia against the Proud Boys, Oathkeepers and multiple individuals. The suit accuses the defendants of “conspiring to terrorize the District” in connection with the Capitol insurrection.

William Chrestman

Chrestman, of Olathe, was arrested in Olathe on Feb. 11, 2021.

He was charged with conspiracy; obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting; obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder and aiding and abetting; threatening a Federal Officer; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds and carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; and carrying a deadly or dangerous weapon.

He allegedly acted in concert with Christopher Kuehne, Louis Enrique Colon, Felicia Konold and Cory Konold. The Army veteran has been incarcerated since his arrest and remains in jail, according to court documents. Chrestman also is a defendant in the civil lawsuit filed by the attorney general of the District of Columbia.

Michael Eckerman

Eckerman, of Wichita, was arrested in Wichita on Sept. 20, 2021.

An affidavit filed by an FBI special agent alleged he was nearby when a Capitol police officer shot and killed Ashli Babbit as she attempted to climb through a broken window to enter the House of Representatives.

He was charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers; civil disorder; obstruction of an official proceeding; disorderly conduct in the Capitol building; entering and remaining in a restricted building; entering and remaining on the floor of Congress; parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building; and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds.

Eckerman told Wichita television station KAKE in September that he wasn’t armed and didn’t assault or even touch an officer.

Christopher Kuehne

Kuehne, of Olathe, was arrested in Missouri on Feb. 11, 2021.

Indicted along with Ashlock, Chrestman, Colon, Felicia Konold and Cory Konold, he was charged with conspiracy; civil disorder; obstruction of an official proceeding; knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority; and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. Kuehne also is a defendant in the civil lawsuit filed by the attorney general of the District of Columbia.

Jennifer Ruth Parks

Parks, of Leavenworth, self-surrendered in Kansas City, Kansas, on April 23, 2021.

She was charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority; and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

On Sept. 28, Parks pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building. On Dec. 8, she was sentenced to 24 months’ probation and ordered to pay restitution of $500.

Parks has since expressed regret about participating in the breach of the Capitol. A sentencing memorandum submitted in her case last month included a letter from her:

“If I could have that day back, I would not have gone to Washington, D.C., and I certainly would not have gone into the Capitol building. I sincerely apologize for my actions. I believe I am wiser and more discerning now than I was then and will spend years trying to make it up to the people I’ve disappointed.”

William Alexander Pope

Pope, of Topeka, was arrested in Topeka on Feb. 12, 2021.

He was charged with civil disorder; obstructing an official proceeding; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; impeding passage through the Capitol; and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.

Pope unsuccessfully sought a seat on the Topeka City Council in 2019, according to the Kansas Reflector.

Pope, doctoral student and graduate teaching assistant at Kansas State University, told the Topeka Capital-Journal last January that he was “not violent or destructive” and had reported himself to the FBI.

Mark Roger Rebegila

Rebegila, of St. Marys, was arrested in Topeka on March 15, 2021.

He was charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building and engaging in disorderly or disruptive conduct. During the insurrection, he entered Capitol grounds with a flag zip-tied to a piece of plastic pipe, trespassed in offices and took selfies.

On Dec. 1, 2021, he pleaded guilty to parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building. His sentencing is set for March 10, 2022.

Esther Schwemmer

Schwemmer, of Leavenworth, was arrested in Kansas City, Kansas, on April 23, 2021.

She was charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority; knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority; violent entry and disorderly conduct on capitol grounds.

On Sept. 28, Schwemmer pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.

The government’s sentencing memorandum in Schwemmer’s case said that early in the investigation, on Jan. 17, 2021, she agreed to be interviewed by law enforcement. It said she “accepted responsibility for her actions and admitted that she had entered the Capitol.” It also noted that, through her attorney, she “expressed a desire to plead guilty, acknowledge her conduct, and promptly resolve her case.”

She is set to be sentenced on Jan. 10, 2022.

Were you at the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and open to talking with KCUR about it? Contact [email protected].
The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public Radio focused on health, the social determinants of health and their connection to public policy.
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/news/2022-01-06/8-kansas-residents-have-been-charged-in-the-jan-6-2021-insurrection-here-are-their-names.