Latest new posts from ALL categories of The Lawrence Times:
Lawrence news, state news, Community Voices, Lawrence Life, obituaries and more.
(Please note that opinion pieces are included in this list, marked as columns or letters to the Times. Not all posts linked on this page were written or produced by the Lawrence Times staff.)
Douglas County launching local program to restore people’s legal competency as they await trial
People who are booked into jails statewide have long waited several months — even more than a year — for beds at state mental hospitals, so their competency to understand court proceedings can be restored. Douglas County is now working on a local solution to that problem.
Mackenzie Clark/Lawrence Times
Jury to decide case in shooting of Lawrence boy; prosecutors say teen planned to kill, but defense attorney says evidence creates doubt
A Douglas County jury is deliberating whether they believe a teen intended to shoot and kill a 14-year-old Lawrence boy last year, whether the teen acted recklessly, or whether they doubt that he was the one who pulled the trigger at all.
August Rudisell/Lawrence Times
Lawrence Transit to hold grand opening for Central Station
Lawrence Transit staff members are inviting the public to celebrate the opening of the new Central Station at Bob Billings Parkway and Crestline Drive.
Kansas court upholds AG Kobach’s argument in transgender driver’s license case
A district court has sided with Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach on a temporary block to keep Kansas residents from changing the gender listed on their drivers’ licenses.
Mackenzie Clark/Lawrence Times
Neighbor of teen charged in shooting death of Lawrence boy says she witnessed someone else with gun
A neighbor testified about seeing an alternate suspect holding a gun the day a 14-year-old Lawrence boy was shot and killed, but prosecutors questioned her story and countered some details she shared.
Max Kautsch: This Sunshine Week, Kansas officials should finally clear the Marion County Record’s journalists (Column)
”Journalists should not feel like they are taking an unreasonable risk just to do their jobs, a feeling perpetuated every day that goes by without resolution on the raids” of the Marion County Record, Max Kautsch writes in this Kansas Reflector column.
Kaw Valley Almanac for March 11-17, 2024
Look to the south after dark to see some of the best constellations of the year, with Orion sliding west from the south, Taurus and the Pleiades leading the way and bright Jupiter in the west.
City of Lawrence names next director of parks, recreation, arts and culture
Luis Ruiz, currently deputy director of community facilities in Mesa, Arizona, has been selected as the next director of parks, recreation, arts and culture for the City of Lawrence.
Why former KU basketball star Lynette Woodard should be as famous as Caitlin Clark
Up until a few weeks ago, Lynette Woodard from KU had scored more points in college basketball than any woman ever. But she was never recognized by the NCAA as a scoring champion.
After school closures, Lawrence families grapple with fractured communities, future of school district
After the Lawrence school board voted to close two elementary schools last year, some local families now wrestling with doubts about their future in the district and the community.
Longtime KU Innovation Park executive selected as new CEO
Adam Courtney, who has worked at KU Innovation Park for more than 10 years, has been named the organization’s new CEO.
Obituary: Margaret Kathleen ‘Katie’ Coleman
Margaret Kathleen “Katie” Coleman, 8/25/1974 – 3/3/2024
Molly Adams / Lawrence Times
Pronoun button party brings together members of Lawrence’s Indigenous, queer communities
Dozens of community members gathered at Art Love Collective Friday evening for a pronoun button party.
Molly Adams / Lawrence Times
Gunshot residue detected on teen, his car following shooting death of Lawrence boy
Gunshot residue was detected on the teen charged with the shooting death of a Lawrence boy, but not on the alternative suspect the defense has suggested could have been responsible for the crime, according to evidence presented Friday.
Natasha Torkzaban/Lawrence Times
Transparency concerns loom at Lawrence school board meeting; district will follow new plan to make up snow days
The Lawrence school district will follow a revised plan for the district’s middle and high school students to make up time lost to snow days, though school board members voiced concerns about how district administrators handled the issue and communicated the plan to families.
Lawrence school district tentatively changes plans, will keep early dismissal Wednesdays for final quarter
Lawrence school district administrators and teachers union members have tentatively agreed to a plan to make up snow days by adding days to the end of the year instead of nixing early dismissal on Wednesdays for middle and high schoolers.
Obituary: Elizabeth Lichtwardt
Elizabeth Lichtwardt, 6/14/1927 – 3/4/2024
New Kansas bill requests $40 million for homeless shelters, requires enforcement of camping laws
A bill supported by Sedgwick County and the city of Wichita is requesting $40 million from the state for homeless shelter infrastructure, and it also requires localities to enforce ordinances on camping and vagrancy.
Kansas Democrats blast GOP physicians for pushing disinformation in debate on anti-trans bill
House Democrats questioned the integrity of two Republicans legislators who brandished their credentials as physicians while promoting harmful misinformation about transgender children during debate Thursday on legislation that would prohibit doctors from providing gender-affirming care.
Mackenzie Clark/Lawrence Times
Teens present during shooting death of Lawrence boy testify in trial; autopsy reveals bullet trajectory
The teen girl who picked up another teen shortly after he allegedly shot a Lawrence boy testified Thursday to her recollection of that day’s events, some of which conflicts with the boy’s friends’ stories.
Nathan Kramer
Lawrence school district shares plan to make up snow day time; Free State students walk out in protest
The Lawrence school district will have no more early dismissal on Wednesdays this year for middle and high schoolers to compensate for snow days, leaving some high schoolers upset enough to walk out.
Lawrence teens ask lawmakers to eliminate sales tax on period products, diapers
A Lawrence teen told legislators Thursday morning that a sales tax exemption for menstruation products, diapers and incontinence products would benefit Kansans as well as a local nonprofit.
Natasha Torkzaban/Lawrence Times
Lawrence musician, 39, was person shot and killed downtown; police chief says community is safe
After two fatal shootings in two days, the Lawrence police chief wants to assure the community that the city and downtown are safe.
In wake of mass shooting, Kansas lawmakers spar over ‘gun rights preservation’ bill
Though Kansans and Missourians are still reeling from a February mass shooting that left dozens injured and one dead, a Kansas lawmaker is pushing to change gun regulations in the state so that the “feds” can’t interfere with gun owners like himself.
