Month: September 2022

Gov. Kelly places first legal sports bet in Kansas at Hollywood Casino in KCK

Gov. Laura Kelly today placed the first legal sports bet in Kansas. She was at the Hollywood Casino in Kansas City, Kansas. The governor placed a $15 bet that the Kansas City Chiefs would win the Super Bowl. (Photo from Gov. Kelly’s office)

Today Gov. Laura Kelly traveled to Hollywood Casino in Kansas City, Kansas, to kick off legal sports betting in Kansas.

The governor placed the first legal sports wager in Kansas, betting $15 – the same as Patrick Mahomes’ jersey number – on the Kansas City Chiefs to win Super Bowl LVII this upcoming football season.

“Every day I hear from Kansans across the state who are eager to finally place legal wagers on sports. I’m glad we were able to move quickly to get this bipartisan effort done in time for football season,” Gov. Kelly said. “Now, casinos, restaurants, and other venues will have another way to attract Kansans to their establishments—creating jobs and driving economic growth. And I’m willing to bet on that. Go Chiefs!”

“We are so grateful for the leadership of Governor Kelly and the legislature to finally get legalized sports wagering over the goal line this year,” said Lydia Garvey, vice president and general manager of Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway. “We have been waiting anxiously for this day to arrive, and I’m confident many of our customers will follow her lead in betting on Kansas City to emerge as champions once again.”

The four casinos contracted with the state to offer sports wagering through independent platforms are Boot Hill Casino and Resort, Ford County near Dodge City; Kansas Star Casino in Mulvane; Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway, Kansas City, Kansas; and Kansas Crossing Casino and Hotel in Pittsburg. 

Today was the first day for legal sports betting in Kansas, being handled through the state casinos.

Tribal casinos are also working to align on contracts with the state of Kansas for sports wagering. These casinos will be authorized to launch as soon as they are ready, according to the governor’s office.  – Story from Gov. Kelly’s office

KCK native Ed Dwight Jr. featured on national television

Ed Dwight Jr., who grew up in Kansas City, Kansas, and was the first African-American male to graduate from Bishop Ward High School, class of 1951, was featured on the CBS Morning News nationally on Thursday, Sept. 1.

Dwight, who was an Air Force pilot, was the first African-American in the pre-astronaut program, but was not selected to be an astronaut. He later became a nationally known sculptor.


See https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ed-dwight-art-nasa/

Escaped inmate taken into custody in KCK

Michael S. Stroede

Update:

This morning Kansas City, Kansas, police located Michael Shane Stroede, the inmate who walked away earlier this week from the Lansing Correctional Facility, and took him into custody without incident, according to a KCK police spokesman.

An alert, keen-eyed KCKPD officer, driving near 7th and Kansas Avenue around 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 1, spotted Strode walking in the area, the spokesman stated.

The officer quickly recognized him as the Lansing escapee whom officials noticed missing during an emergency headcount on Tuesday, according to the police spokesman.

Officers with the KCKPD then took Stroede into custody a short time later, the police spokesman stated.

It is unknown at this time as to Stroede’s whereabouts since Tuesday, according to the police spokesman.

Stroede is currently in the process of being transferred back into the custody of the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC), the KCK police spokesman stated.

Stroede, a minimum custody inmate, was reported escaped after he went missing from the minimum security unit at Lansing Correctional Facility on Aug. 30. He was sentenced on a charge of theft out of Rice County in 2017 and on a drug charge in 2021. He had a previous drug conviction from Russell County in 2009, according to KDOC records.

Police said anyone with additional information on this incident should contact the KDOC at 913-727-3235.