Month: August 2022

UG Commission to meet tonight

The Unified Government Commission is scheduled to meet at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 11.

The 4 p.m. special session will be a presentation by the Fairfax Industrial Association followed by a budget workshop.

The 7 p.m. meeting, according to the agenda, will include:

• An update on the county administrator search process;
• A report on infrastructure and bridge;
• A presentation on economic development;
• A legislative report;
• An ordinance and resolution amending the code for open burning;
• A resolution to adopt a family reunification plan to amend the county emergency operations plan;
• A resolution to adopt the infrastructure subcommittees and strategies document;
• Approval for the KCK Police Department to apply for the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant for $99,209;
• Approval for the KCK Police Department and Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Offie eto apply for a federal Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant;
• Approval to transfer properties from UG ownership to the city of Edwardsville;
• Approval of honorary street signs for Faith City Christian Center and St. Andrew Missionary Baptist Church.
• Approval of a $340,000 Kansas Department of Health and Environment grant to the UG Health Department to address the tuberculosis outbreak;
• A plat of The Helm at State Line Road and Butler Way;
• A plat of the Turner Logistics Center West First Plat, College Parkway and Tauromee Avenue;
• An ordinance to create a solid waste enterprise fund;
• The presentation of the UG’s annual Comprehensive Financial Report for 2021;
• An update on the status of grants nad grant process;
• A travel request by Commissioner Andrew Davis to go to Phoenix, Arizona, to attend the Engaging Local Government Leaders 2022 conference;
• A proclamation for National Night Out, Aug. 2;
• A proclamation for the Week of The Wiz in Wyandotte County;
• A proclamation for Aug. 8-14 as Community Care Clinics Week Wyandotte County;
• A proclamation for Aug. 14 as Unique, Salon and Boutique Day;
• A proclamation for Aug. 15-19 as American Clean Power Week.

The 4 p.m. meeting will be in the fifth floor conference room at City Hall, 701 N. 7th St., Kansas City, Kansas. The meeting also will be on Zoom at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88019946644?pwd=WENJc0EvV2NFcUJhTDhxLzhTeVJQdz09.

The 7 p.m. meeting will be in the Commission Chambers, lobby level, City Hall, 701 N. 7th St., Kansas City, Kansas. It also will be on Zoom at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88019946644?pwd=WENJc0EvV2NFcUJhTDhxLzhTeVJQdz09.

For more information, see https://www.wycokck.org/Engage-With-Us/Calendar-of-Events/Full-Commission-Special-Session
or https://www.wycokck.org/Engage-With-Us/Calendar-of-Events/Full-Commission-Meeting.

Kansas civil action results in $764,000 restitution, penalty order against autopsy scammer

Parcells awaits sentencing on desecration, theft and wire fraud convictions

by Tim Carpenter and Sherman Smith, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — A Kansan without medical credentials who performed illegal autopsies was ordered by a judge to pay $510,000 in penalties and fees as well as $254,000 in restitution for violating consumer protection laws and other state statutes, the attorney general said Wednesday.

Attorney General Derek Schmidt initiated civil action against Shawn Parcells, 42, and three businesses operated by Parcells based on allegations he performed illegal autopsies.

Parcells didn’t have a degree or credentials in medicine or pathology, but gained national attention in 2014 by assisting, on behalf of the family of the deceased, in an autopsy of Michael Brown, a Black teenager killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. The shooting led to violent and peaceful protests.

In the course of the Kansas’ civil investigation and litigation, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment secured more than 1,700 biological samples collected by Parcells.

“Navigating the loss of a loved one can be difficult enough, but the additional harm created by Shawn Parcells has added to that difficulty,” said Schmidt, the Republican nominee for governor. “Though the resolution of this case does not undo that harm, our hope is that affected family members can now at least properly grieve.”

Parcells, who had lived in Topeka and Leawood, was convicted last year in Wabaunsee County on three counts of felony theft and three misdemeanor counts of criminal desecration for autopsy services. In May, he entered a guilty plea in federal court to one count of wire fraud.

The state’s civil case filed in 2019 resulted in Shawnee County District Court Judge Mary Christopher permanently banning Parcells and his three companies from operating in Kansas. The shuttered businesses are Parcells Forensic Pathology Group, ParCo-Parcells and Company and National Autopsy and Tissue Recovery Services.

Christopher’s order blocked Parcells from engaging in regulated businesses involved in the healing arts, including any COVID-related services.

The court required Parcells to pay $254,000 in restitution to 82 consumers related to private autopsy services.

“It is important to remember that behind all these case details are individuals and family members who have been put in unimaginable circumstances due to Parcells’s conduct,” Schmidt said.

In addition, the judge directed Parcells to pay a $200,000 penalty for violating the Kansas Consumer Protection Act. He was instructed to pay a $200,000 penalty for violating the Kansas False Claims Act in Wabaunsee County. He also was obligated to pay $49,600 in compensation to Wabaunsee County.

Parcells agreed to judgments that further mandated he pay $60,000 in investigative and receivership fees related to the state’s inquiry.

Eric Kjorlie, a Topeka attorney who has represented Parcells, said he was in custody of the U.S. Marshal’s office and held in a federal prison facility in Kansas pending a September sentencing date on the wire fraud charge. He was declared indigent by the U.S. District Court and has been represented by a federal public defender.

“Mr. Parcells has expressed his interest, at least to me, that his hope is that he will be able to obtain in the future his medical certifications and to then provide full and complete restitution ordered by the state and federal court,” Kjorlie said.

The state obtained a court order allowing Parcells’ samples to be cataloged and stored, but that receivership will be brought to a close. A notice on the attorney general’s website will provide families 30 days to submit a request to retrieve samples. For more information, contact the office’s victim services division at 785-291-3950.

Kansas Reflector stories, www.kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/08/10/kansas-civil-action-results-in-764000-restitution-penalty-order-against-autopsy-scammer/

Weather starts to warm up today

Photo by Steve Rupert
National Weather Service graphic

It will be a little warmer today, with a high of 91 and sunny skies, according to the National Weather Service forecast.

Temperatures will be higher over the weekend, rising to about 96 on Saturday, the weather service said.

Rain chances will return on Monday, according to the weather service.

Today, it will be sunny, with a high near 91 and a calm wind becoming east around 6 mph in the afternoon, the weather service said.

Tonight, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 67 and an east wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening, according to the weather service.

Friday, it will be sunny, with a high near 92 and a calm wind becoming south 5 to 9 mph in the morning, the weather service said.

Friday night, it will be clear, with a low of 71 and a south southeast wind of 7 mph, according to the weather service.

Saturday, it will be sunny, with a high near 96 and a south southwest wind of 6 to 9 mph, the weather service said.

Saturday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 74, according to the weather service.

Sunday, it will be sunny and hot, with a high near 97, the weather service said.

Sunday night, it will be partly cloudy, with a low of 72, according to the weather service.

Monday, there is a 30 percent chance of showers, with a high near 88, the weather service said.

Monday night, there is a 40 percent chance of showers after 1 a.m., with a low of 69, according to the weather service.

Tuesday, there is a 40 percent chance of showers, with a high near 82, the weather service said.

Tuesday night, there is a 30 percent chance of showers, with a low of 65, according to the weather service.

Wednesday, there is a 30 percent chance of showers, with a high near 78, the weather service said.