Judy L. Thomas

JoCo Catholic school teacher placed on leave no longer works there, archdiocese says School officials said in December that the teacher was placed on administrative leave after concerns were raised about the person’s behavior.

A teacher at a Catholic school in Leawood who was placed on administrative leave in December "no longer works for the school," the KCK archdiocese says.
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Survivors, advocates urge MO senators to end time limits on child sex abuse claims Survivors and their supporters came from Minnesota, Texas and Tennessee to share their stories and urge senators to pass the measures.

"We are siding with abusers." Missouri is a safe harbor for predators and it’s time to put an end to protecting them, supporters of a measure to eliminate the statute of limitations on child sex abuse lawsuits told a Senate committee Wednesday.
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Survivors of child sex abuse ‘silenced’ by Missouri law fight to end time limit Supporters of a bill to abolish the statute of limitations on child sex abuse lawsuits call Missouri “a sanctuary state for predators.”

Sexual abuse survivors and their advocates — some from IHOPKC and Branson-based Kanakuk Kamps — will testify before a MO Senate committee Wednesday in support of a bill to abolish the statute of limitations involving child sex abuse lawsuits.
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JoCo Catholic school puts teacher on leave during ‘behavior’ investigation The school said the action “is not an assertion of guilt or wrongdoing, but was taken for the safety and well-being of all involved while the facts are reviewed.”

Cure of Ars Catholic School in Leawood has placed a teacher on administrative leave after concerns were raised about the person’s behavior.
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Lawsuit alleging IHOPKC leaders didn’t act in sexual harassment of boy is settled IHOPKC leaders witnessed several acts of bullying and abuse toward the minor plaintiff and failed to intervene, the lawsuit alleged.

"He is thankful that he was able to come forward and be heard." A lawsuit filed last year alleging that IHOPKC leaders failed to act when a minor boy was sexually harassed, abused and bullied at a youth retreat in Oklahoma in 2023 has been settled.
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Longtime Kansas City firefighter with 6 DWIs in 4 counties remains on the job In a July 2023 arrest — just five months after a previous arrest — his minor children were riding with him and his speed was clocked at 87 mph.

A longtime Kansas City firefighter has had 6 DWI cases, three charged as felonies. Yet he remains on the job even after racking up 11 probation violations in an ongoing case.
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KCK archbishop reinstates suspended priest after investigation — but with limits Along with the reinstatement, the archbishop placed some restrictions on the Rev. Jerry Arano-Ponce’s activities involving minors.

NEW: The KCK archbishop has reinstated a priest he temporarily suspended in August, saying investigations found that he violated no civil or church laws. But Archbishop Shawn McKnight imposed some restrictions on the priest's activities involving minors.
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Another Kansas City firefighter with multiple DWIs remains on the job Antonino Giarraputo is among multiple Kansas City firefighters who remained on the KCFD employee rolls despite DWI cases.

Another KC firefighter remains on the job despite multiple DWI cases. When he pleaded guilty in August and was sentenced to 2 years' probation and 10 days of “shock time” in the Platte County jail, the judge granted him work release so he could keep his job.
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KC Catholic Diocese staffer hailed as philanthropic ‘star’ accused of stealing $155K An indictment filed in federal court accused Jeremy Lillig of stealing more than $150,000 from the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.

A decade ago, Jeremy Lillig was being celebrated in a class of “Rising Stars of Philanthropy" here in Kansas City. Last week, he was charged with wire fraud, accused of stealing roughly $155,000 while running the Catholic Church's Bright Futures Fund. www.kansascity.com/news/local/a...

KC fire captain faces charges alleging assault of co-worker at KC Current match The alleged assault occurred during a Kansas City Current soccer match, and the victim was on duty at the time.

A Kansas City fire captain is charged with assaulting a fellow firefighter at a KC Current soccer match last year. He remains on the job.
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Former KC firefighter pleads guilty to assaulting co-worker at station last year Brian Taylor “recklessly caused injury” to a fellow KC firefighter, the charging document says.

A former longtime Kansas City firefighter pleaded guilty Friday to assaulting a fellow firefighter last year in an incident that co-workers said ended when they pulled him off the victim.
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Man charged in killing of Kansas priest may be incompetent for trial, lawyer says Gary Hermesch is charged with first-degree murder in the April 3 shooting death of the Rev. Arul Carasala, a Catholic priest in Seneca, Kansas.

The man charged in the April shooting death of a Catholic priest in northeast Kansas may be incompetent to stand trial, his lawyer said in a court document filed Tuesday.
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IHOPKC founder should never return to church leadership role, new report says A return by IHOPKC founder Mike Bickle to any church leadership role, the panel wrote in its report, would not be “scripturally sound.”

International House of Prayer-Kansas City founder Mike Bickle has violated Scripture and should be permanently disqualified from any kind of church leadership position, a team of church officials and professional therapists said in a new report.
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Kansas City fights ruling reinstating firefighter involved in deadly 2021 crash “While we support our employees, we believe there must be consequences to unlawful actions committed while on duty,” Mayor Quinton Lucas said.

NEW: Kansas City has renewed its effort to override an arbitrator’s order that the firefighter driving the pumper truck involved in a 2021 multi-fatality crash in Westport get his job back and serve just a three-day suspension without pay.
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Leawood priest resigns amid criminal investigation, KCK archdiocese says The Rev. Richard Storey informed the archdiocese on Wednesday of his decision to resign, the archdiocese said in a statement posted online.

The pastor of Cure of Ars Catholic Church in Leawood has resigned amid a criminal investigation now underway by Prairie Village police, the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas has announced.
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KCFD employees convicted of serious crimes weren't disciplined, union filing reveals The firefighters’ crimes include a federal drug case and a felony assault conviction.

Five Kansas City Fire Department employees who have been involved in motor vehicle tragedies or convicted of serious felonies over the years weren't disciplined and were allowed to remain on the job, a new court filing reveals.
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KC firefighter involved in fatal Westport crash to get job back, can drive again The arbitrator also authorized firefighter Dominic Biscari to drive a fire truck again.

A Kansas City fire truck driver involved in the deadly 2021 crash in Westport that killed 3 people must get his job back, receive full back wages and benefits and serve a 3-day suspension without pay, an arbitrator has ruled.
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Hundreds protest in Kansas City against gerrymandering, ‘attacks on democracy’ A major concern among the protesters was President Donald Trump’s calls for Missouri lawmakers to redraw the state’s congressional map.

“What’s going on is un-American.” Hundreds gathered Monday in Kansas City to protest what organizers called continued attacks on democracy, workers’ rights and freedom.
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KCK archdiocese temporarily removes priest while allegations are investigated The restrictions will remain in effect “pending the outcomes of formal investigations by local law enforcement and the Archdiocese.”

The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas has temporarily removed a priest from ministry while investigations are conducted into allegations of questionable behavior, the archbishop announced this week.
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Coffee chain sues IHOPKC, alleges Bickle scandal caused major financial harm IHOPKC’s lease agreement with Prefix Coffee required all employees to sign a “sexual immorality agreement,” lawsuit says.

Prefix Coffee is suing IHOPKC, claiming financial harm tied to a sex scandal involving founder Mike Bickle. The suit alleges contract breaches and negligence. “IHOPKC knew for years that wide-spread sexual abuse had corrupted the sectarian organization."
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IHOPKC founder Mike Bickle’s sister doubles down on his defense during sermon Sunday’s message was a sequel to Lisa Stribling’s Aug. 3 sermon, when she called the allegations against her brother “exotic trash.”

After creating a firestorm over her sermon last week in support of IHOPKC founder Mike Bickle, his sister doubled down in a new message Sunday, raising further questions about whether a comeback is underway for the fallen charismatic leader.
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Bishop Miege board removes president amid investigation into conduct The action came two months after the board placed Baniewicz on leave while investigating reports on his ability to oversee a safe environment.

Phil Baniewicz has been removed as president of Bishop Miege High School in Roeland Park as an investigation continues into allegations of inappropriate behavior with a minor, the board of trustees announced.
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Engineer explains how KC could have prevented deadly Family Dollar collapse A support column knocked down in a 2016 crash into the Family Dollar building was never replaced.

The failure to properly reinforce the entrance area of the Family Dollar store in Midtown after a 2016 car crash destroyed a key support column likely led to last week’s deadly collapse, a structural engineer told The Star.
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IHOPKC founder’s sister calls sex abuse allegations against him ‘exotic trash’ The comments mark the first time a family member has spoken publicly about the sex abuse allegations against Mike Bickle.

The youngest sibling of embattled International House of Prayer-Kansas City founder Mike Bickle defended him during a church service Sunday, calling sex abuse allegations against him a “false narrative” and “exotic trash.”
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Boilermakers sue ex-president, demand he repay union nearly $500,000 he ‘misused’ The lawsuit comes amid a federal corruption case that accuses former union leaders of scheming to steal $20 million in union funds.

The Kansas City-based Boilermakers union is suing the president it ousted two years ago, demanding that Newton Jones pay back nearly $500,000 of union money it says he misused.
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MO Supreme Court suspends ex-KCPD lawyer’s license after he spread misconduct concerns “Whether the disclosures were the acts of a disgruntled, recently terminated employee or of a dutiful public servant, McCarty knowingly disclosed client information in violation of his sworn duty of c...

MO Supreme Court suspends former KCPD attorney’s license for disclosing client info. “No matter how noteworthy his disclosure may have been, it does not justify violating his sacred duty to his client."
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Kansas City fire captain remained on job despite four DWI arrests, records show A 2023 DWI arrest became a Kansas City fire captain’s fourth case of driving while intoxicated since 2016, court records show.

Kansas City fire captain remained on job despite four DWI arrests, records show

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Ex-MO boarding school leader can’t afford travel to CA trial. So US Marshals will pay A federal judge has granted ex-MO boarding school leader Julio Sandoval’s request for U.S. Marshals to transport him to his California trial. He says he can’t afford the travel costs.

A former leader at two unlicensed Missouri boarding schools says he can’t afford to travel to his upcoming criminal trial in California. So a federal judge has ordered the U.S. Marshals Service to foot the bill.
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