2011 News Releases

	11/10/2011 Court of Appeals to sit in Salina TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeals will convene in Salina Tuesday and Wednesday, November 15-16, to hear arguments in eight appeals.The Court of Appeals sessions, which are to be conducted in room 107 of the City-County Building, will be broadcast live by Salina's Access Television and video streamed to the Internet ...
	10/21/2011 Commercial wind farm case sent back to district court Re: Appeal No. 98,487: Roger Zimmerman et al. and A.B. Hudson and Larry French v. Board of County Commissioners of Wabaunsee County, KSTOPEKA—The Supreme Court today remanded a lawsuit challenging a Wabaunsee County ban on all commercial wind farms back to the district court for additional evidence and further proceedings.Friday's remand ...
	10/13/2011 Court of Appeals to convene in Colby TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeals will convene in Colby, Tuesday, October 18, to hear arguments in eight appeals.The hearing panel includes Judges Stephen D. Hill, G. Joseph Pierron, Jr., and John J. Bukaty, Jr. In addition to the cases argued in Colby, the panel also will decide the outcome of 19 other appeals that ...
	10/13/2011 Court of Appeals to convene in Kingman TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeals will convene in Kingman Tuesday, October 18, to hear arguments in eight appeals.The hearing panel includes Judges Michael B. Buser, Christel E. Marquardt, and Steve Leben. In addition to the cases argued in Kingman, the panel also will decide the outcome of 17 other appeals that have ...
	10/13/2011 Court of Appeals to convene in Lawrence TOPEKA—The appeal of former University of Kansas student Matthew Jaeger, convicted of kidnapping and assaulting his former girlfriend by a Douglas County jury in 2009, will be among 14 cases scheduled for argument to three Kansas Court of Appeals judges on October 18 and 19 at the Douglas County Courthouse.Jaeger received a prison sentence of ...
	10/11/2011 Osage County district magistrate judge named TOPEKA—Lyndon Attorney Taylor J. Wine today was appointed Osage County District Magistrate Judge to succeed Judge Jon Stephen Jones, who retired September 30th.Wine was appointed following interviews earlier in the day at the Osage County Courthouse, Lyndon, by the 4th Judicial District Nominating Commission, a volunteer board consisting of ...
	10/04/2011 Osage County district magistrate judge interviews Tuesday TOPEKA—The 4th Judicial District Nominating Commission will meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday to interview nine applicants to fill a district magistrate judge vacancy in Osage County, it was announced today.Applying for the position, which resulted from the retirement of District Magistrate Judge Jon Stephen Jones, are Darian P. Dernovish, Lawrence ...
	09/08/2011 Proposed 2012 child support guidelines TOPEKA—Public comments on proposed changes to the guidelines judges use for determining how much child support parents pay are being accepted until October 24th, it was announced today.The changes are being recommended by a Supreme Court-appointed committee that is charged with conducting a federally required review of the Child Support ...
	09/08/2011 Nominations for Osage County district magistrate vacancy being accepted TOPEKA—A nominating commission charged with naming candidates to fill a district magistrate judge vacancy in Osage County has issued a request for assistance from the public.The nine-member commission is responsible for selecting a district magistrate judge to the vacancy which will be created upon the retirement of District Magistrate Judge ...
	09/07/2011 Electronic case filings coming to Johnson County TOPEKA—The Johnson County District Court will implement electronic case filings for civil cases beginning September 19, it was announced today.In doing so, that court will join Shawnee County as one of two courts in the state to have limited electronic case filings in place. Meanwhile, a statewide program of electronic case filings is on the ...
	09/06/2011 Court of Appeals to sit in Barton County TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals will hear cases in Great Bend September 20 as part of Barton County Community College's Constitution Day activities. Oral arguments in two of the cases will be conducted in the Fine Arts Auditorium at Barton County Community College and in a third case at the Barton County ...
	09/06/2011 Court of Appeals to sit at Kansas City Kansas Community College TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals will hear two appeals at Kansas City Community College, September 20, as part of its Constitution Day activities. Oral arguments in the cases will be conducted at 9:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.Court of Appeals Judges David Bruns and Michael Buser will be joined by Senior Judge David Knudson ...
	09/06/2011 Court of Appeals in special sessions at Washburn University TOPEKA—A hearing panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals will meet in special sessions September 20th-21st on the Washburn University campus in observance of Constitution Day, a federally proclaimed day commemorating the adoption of the U.S. Constitution, September 17, 1787.Christel Marquardt, Judge of the Court of Appeals and liaison with ...
	09/06/2011 Court of Appeals to sit at WSU TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals will hear three appeals at Wichita State University September 21 as part of its Constitution Day activities. Oral arguments in the cases will be conducted in the CAC Theater at WSU, beginning at 9:30 a.m.Chief Judge Richard Greene, and Judges Henry Green and Senior Judge Edward Larson ...
	07/15/2011 Supreme Court files decision in appeal TOPEKA—The Supreme Court today ordered the case of a Johnson County defendant convicted of first-degree murder in a 1974 cold case involving the slaying of a 13-year-old girl returned to the district court for a determination of whether additional defense evidence should have been permitted after the jury began deliberations.The interim ...
	06/20/2011 Three nominated for Shawnee County judgeship TOPEKA—Three Topeka attorneys Monday were nominated to fill a vacancy on the Shawnee County District Court that was created by the appointment of Judge David E. Bruns to the state Court of Appeals.Municipal Court Judge Steven R. Ebberts, Carl William Ossmann, chief of litigation for the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services; ...
	06/06/2011 Five apply for Shawnee County judgeship TOPEKA—Five Topeka attorneys have submitted applications for a vacancy on the Shawnee County District Court that was created by the appointment of Judge David E. Bruns to the Court of Appeals.Applying by the noon Monday deadline for the vacancy were Steven R. Ebberts, Robert A. Fox, Carl William Ossmann, Fred C. Patton, and Brian M. Vasquez ...
	05/09/2011 Three nominated for 31st Judicial District judgeship TOPEKA—Three attorneys today were nominated to fill a district judge vacancy in the 31st Judicial District to succeed Neosho County District Judge Timothy E. Brazil, who retired in April.Nominated by the 31st Judicial District Nominating Commission were Daryl D. Ahlquist, Erie, a partner in Hines & Ahlquist, P.A.; Charles H. Apt III, Iola ...
	05/06/2011 Shawnee County judgeship applications being accepted TOPEKA—A nominating commission charged with naming candidates to fill a district judge vacancy on the Shawnee County District Court has issued a request for assistance from the public.The seven-member commission is responsible for submitting the names of two or three nominees to the Governor for the vacancy which was created by the ...
	05/04/2011 Freedom of religion trumps Kansas health policy authority decision Re: Appeal No. 105366: Stinemetz v. Kansas Health Policy AuthorityTOPEKA—The State Court of Appeals today ruled that a Kansas Health Policy Authority decision denying a Hill City Jehovah's Witness request for prior authorization for an out-of-state liver transplant violated her right to the free exercise of religion under the state and ...
	04/20/2011 Chief justice named Toll Fellow TOPEKA—Kansas Chief Justice Lawton R. Nuss has been named one of 48 state leaders from across the nation to attend the prestigious Toll Fellowship Program sponsored by the Council of State Governments, it was announced today.The annual week-long seminar, named in honor of Henry Toll, a Colorado senator who founded CSG in 1933, seeks to ...
	04/08/2011 Court strikes down part of gaming law Re: Appeal No. 102,786: Dissmeyer et al. v. State of KansasTOPEKA—The Supreme Court today struck down a state statute making so-called "gray machines" illegal under Kansas gaming law as unconstitutionally too broad because it could include every mechanical device from spinners for children's games to a personal computer that has ...
	04/06/2011 Court of Appeals to sit in Leavenworth TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals will sit at the Leavenworth County Courthouse April 12 and 13 to hear oral arguments in 11 appeals arising from Johnson, Leavenworth, and Wyandotte counties, it was announced today.The court sessions will begin at 9:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 12, and at 9:00 a.m. on ...
	04/04/2011 Local judges to sit with Supreme Court TOPEKA—Barton County District Judge Hannelore Kitts and Dickinson County Judge Benjamin Sexton will be sitting with the state Supreme Court in its historic session April 13 in Salina to hear an appeal in one of four matters on the Court's docket. The hearing marks the first session in which the Supreme Court is presiding at a location ...
	04/04/2011 Supreme Court to preside over historic session in Salina TOPEKA—In what is believed to be a historical first in Kansas, Chief Justice Lawton R. Nuss today announced the Supreme Court will travel to Salina April 13 to hear appeals in four matters pending before the Court. The Court has never presided over cases in locations other than Topeka, historical records show.The sessions, which will be ...
	03/17/2011 Judicial vacancy in 31st Judicial District TOPEKA—A nominating commission charged with naming candidates to fill a district judge vacancy in the 31st Judicial District has issued a request for assistance from the public.The 31st Judicial District includes Allen, Neosho, Wilson, and Woodson counties.The nine-member commission is responsible for submitting the names of two or three ...
	03/11/2011 State judicial administrator appointed TOPEKA—Chief Justice Lawton R. Nuss announced today the Kansas Supreme Court's appointment of Nancy Maydew Dixon, Topeka, as the new state Judicial Administrator, the highest ranking nonjudicial employee in the Kansas court system.She succeeds Dr. Howard Schwartz, whose retirement is effective today."The Court feels very fortunate to ...
	03/11/2011 Court of Appeals to sit in McPherson TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals will sit at the McPherson County Courthouse on March 15 and 16 to hear arguments in 14 cases that arose primarily in southcentral and southwest Kansas. The court sessions will begin at 9:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 15, and at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 16.The cases that ...
	03/08/2011 Court of Appeals to sit in Pittsburg TOPEKA—A hearing panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals will sit in the Crawford County Judicial Center in Pittsburg March 15 and 16 to hear arguments in 14 area appeals, it was announced in Topeka today.In addition to hearing oral arguments in the appeals, the three judges will participate in a variety of public outreach programs while in ...
	03/02/2011 Blue Ribbon organizational meeting set March 9 TOPEKA—The Blue Ribbon Commission that will make a comprehensive study of the court system to assist the Supreme Court in finding improvements in the way the courts serve Kansans will conducts its organizational meeting in Topeka March 9.The 24-member Commission's appointments were announced in January by Chief Justice Lawton R. Nuss. The ...
	03/01/2011 Court of Appeals swearing-in ceremony scheduled The Court of Appeals will meet in special session Friday at 2 p.m. to swear-in the newest member of that court, Hon. Karen Arnold-Burger, former presiding judge of the Overland Park Municipal Court.Judge Arnold-Burger was appointed to the Court of Appeals by former Gov. Mark Parkinson to fill vacancy created by the retirement of Chief Judge Gary W. ...
	02/18/2011 Three nominated for Court of Appeals vacancy The Supreme Court Nominating Commission Friday sent the names of two district judges and a Topeka attorney to Gov. Sam Brownback as nominees to fill a vacancy on the Court of Appeals that was created by the appointment of Justice Nancy L. Moritz to the Supreme Court.Nominated were Shawnee County District Judge David E. Bruns, Labette County ...
	02/14/2011 Judicial administrator announces retirement Dr. Howard Schwartz, longtime Kansas Judicial Administrator, announced his retirement after 32 years as head of the Office of Judicial Administration, the Supreme Court's administrative arm. He is the longest serving State Court Administrator in the nation.As Judicial Administrator, Dr. Schwartz oversaw much change in the Kansas courts over the ...
	01/31/2011 Court of Appeals interview schedule set TOPEKA—The Supreme Court Nominating Commission today released its interview schedule for applicants to fill a vacancy on the state Court of Appeals that has been created by the appointment of Supreme Court Justice Nancy L. Mortiz, who was a member of that court before her appointment to the state's highest court.The Nominating Commission ...
	01/27/2011 Supreme Court to commemorate sesquicentennial with session at statehouse TOPEKA—The Supreme Court will conduct an historic session Thursday, January 27, when it convenes in the former Supreme Court Courtroom in the Statehouse to hear appeals in four cases.Chief Justice Lawton R. Nuss said the temporary relocation from the Judicial Center to the Statehouse is to commemorate the state's sesquicentennial, which ...
	01/05/2011 Intensive review of state courts announced TOPEKA—Chief Justice Lawton R. Nuss today announced the appointment of a 24-member “Blue Ribbon Commission” that will conduct an intensive review of state court operations and structure. The Commission’s effort will assist the Kansas Supreme Court in finding improvements in the way the courts serve Kansans.In making the ...