The Kansas Prosecutor The official publication of the Kansas County and District Attorneys Association Volume VIII, No. 2, Summer 2011 2010-2011 KCDAA Board John Wheeler, Jr. Melissa Johnson Mark Frame President Vice President Secretary/Treasurer Finney County Attorney Seward County Assistant County Edwards County Attorney Attorney Michael Russell Barry Wilkerson Marc Goodman Director I Director II Director III Wyandotte County Chief Deputy Riley County Attorney Lyon County Attorney District Attorney Chairs & Representatives Justin Edwards CLE Committee Chair Assistant Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Goodman Legislative Committee Chair Lyon County Attorney Marc Bennett Ann Swegle Nola Tedesco Foulston Director IV Past President NDAA Representative Sedgwick County Deputy District Sedgwick County Deputy District Sedgwick County District Attorney Attorney Attorney The Kansas Prosecutor The official publication of the Kansas The Kansas Prosecutor County and District Attorneys Association The official publication of the Kansas County Published by the Kansas County and District and District Attorneys Association Attorneys Association, 1200 S.W. Tenth Avenue, Topeka, Kansas 66604. Phone: (785) 232-5822 Fax: (785) 234-2433 Volume VIII, No. 2, Summer 2011 Table of Contents President’s Column: KCDAA’s Legislative Role by John Wheeler ............... 4 2012 KCDAA Legislative Request for Proposals ........................................... 6 Executive Director’s Column: KCDAA Processes by Steve Kearney ............ 7 Guest Column: Legislation Passed to Further Enhance Public Safety Our mission: by Kansas Governor Sam Brownback ................................................................ 9 The purpose of the KCDAA is to promote, improve and facilitate the administration Letter to Prosecutors by U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom .................................. 10 of justice in the State of Kansas. Legislator’s Column: DUI: A Matter of Public Safety For questions or comments about by Senator Tim Owens ...................................................................................... 12 this publication, please contact the editor: The New Kansas DUI Statutes: What Passed, What Didn’t Mary Napier by Gregory T. Benefiel ....................................................................................... 14 [email protected] (785) 783-5494 KCDAA Member Highlights: Brandon & Heather Jones and Boyd & Lesley Isherwood by Amanda G. Voth ............................................. 18 Board of Editors John Settle Jerome Gorman KCDAA Milestones ......................................................................................... 20 Barry Wilkerson Mary Napier Update on Sex Crimes Prosecution in Kansas by Marc Bennett ................. 23 Advisory Council Megan Fisher Steve Howe KPERS Legislation for Study Commission and Plan Design Changes ...... 24 Heather Jones Kim Parker Amanda Voth Angela Wilson KPERS: How We Got to Where We Are by Senator Jeff King .................... 25 KCDAA Administrative Staff Financial Mistreatment Cases: Where to Begin by Amanda G. Voth .......... 27 Steve Kearney, Executive Director Prosecutorial Perspectives by Jared S. Maag ................................................ 32 Leisa Shepherd Kellie Kearney Patrick Vogelsberg Kari Presley Assistance from Prosecutors Needed by Cheryl Whelan ............................... 35 This magazine is dedicated to professional prosecutors across NDAA Summer Report by Nola Foulston ..................................................... 36 the state of Kansas for public information. The KCDAA and the members of the Editorial Board assume no responsibility KCDAA Spring 2011 Conference Photos & Fall 2011 Conference .......38-39 for any opinion or statement of fact in the substantive legal articles published in The Kansas Prosecutor. We welcome your comments, suggestions, questions, information, etc. From time to time, The Kansas Prosecutor will publish About the Cover articles dealing with controversial issues. The views The present Rooks County Courthouse was built expressed in The Kansas Prosecutor are those of the authors in 1921. The builder was Cuthbert & Sons, and and may not reflect the official policy of the KCDAA. Send the architect was F.C. Squires from Topeka. The correspondence to: The Kansas Prosecutor editor, 1200 S.W. structure was a Bedford Stone Structure with county Tenth Avenue, Topeka, Kansas 66604 or e-mail Mary Napier offices on the first three floors and a jail on the fourth at [email protected]. floor. The building was completed in 1923. © The Kansas Prosecutor All rights reserved The staircases are made of solid marble and the corridors are lined from the floor up five feet Photocopying, reproduction or quotation is strictly with solid sheets of marble. The corridor floors prohibited without the written consent from the publisher or are original ceramic tile. The doors and casings Editorial Board. Unsolicited material and/or correspondence are all solid original oak. Near the end of 2000, cannot be acknowledged or returned, and becomes the the building was officially listed on the National property of The Kansas Prosecutor. Register of Historic Places. Photo by John D. Morrison, Prairie Vistas Photography President’s Column by John Wheeler, KCDAA President Finney County Attorney KCDAA’s Legislative Role When we were sworn in before the Bar, each section. The request for proposals is the first step in of us swore to uphold and defend the constitution the process of gaining the input of the membership for and laws of the state of Kansas. When we were changes needed to the Kansas Statutes. The deadline respectively sworn in as prosecutors for the state to submit proposals is August 31. of Kansas, we took the same oath. Each of us The proposals from the membership are then wants to uphold the peace and dignity of the people directed to the Legislative Committee for their of the state of Kansas and keep our homes and review and consideration. Typically, the Legislative communities safe. Committee has a series of conference calls to Have we ever considered how difficult our sort the proposals, reconcile and merge duplicate jobs would be if the laws we have sworn to uphold proposals, and narrow the list down to a list of and enforce were vague, overbroad, or just plain priority proposals. The list of legislative priorities ineffective? To prevent “bad law” from becoming are then submitted to the Board of Directors for our law and to inform our legislature of serious determination of the KCDAA Legislative Agenda. public safety issues facing our communities, it Because of the myriad of issues the Legislature is vitally important that we, as an association must face each year, the Board limits our legislative of prosecutors, dedicate our efforts to assist the agenda to the five most important issues at their legislature in passing, improving laws to protect meeting at the Fall Conference. This allows our the citizens of this state, or to repeal those laws Executive Director and staff to draft the legislation that are problematic to effective enforcement of the and submit it to the Revisor of Statutes Office prior law. It is for that reason that the KCDAA Board to the session. of Directors, Legislative Committee members, I think it is important for our membership to Executive Director, and staff expend a great deal of know who comprises your Legislative Committee. effort to the session. They spend time in anticipation The Committee is comprised of all section heads of the legislative session and during the session to of the organization as well as other members of the advancing our legislative agenda and lending an organization who have expressed interest in serving enlightened prosecutorial perspective to others’ bills on the committee. Currently our committee persons we support, and against those we oppose or have are as follows: concern. Marc Goodman, Lyon County Attorney, Chair I have been advised that some of our Greg Benefiel, Douglas County, DUI Section membership have questions about how we form our Head legislative agenda and choose our organizational Marc Bennett, Sedgwick County, Sex Crimes positions to present to the legislature. Therefore, Section Head allow me the opportunity to walk you through the John Fritz, Johnson County KCDAA’s legislative process. Jerry Gorman, Wyandotte County District Our annual legislative agenda always begins at the Attorney, Homicide Section Head grass roots: our membership. You will recall at this Don Hymer, Johnson County, CINC Section year’s KCDAA Spring Conference, you were given Head a form called “2012 KCDAA Legislative Request for Margaret Mahoney, Decatur County Proposal.” The form is also available on the KCDAA Steve Obermeier, Johnson County, Appellate website (www.kcdaa.org) in the “Members Only” Section Head 4 The Kansas Prosecutor Summer 2011 Thomas Stanton, Reno County, Drug Section a quick response. Head It is very important that our membership Ann Swegle, Sedgwick County understand that if their legislative proposal does not Todd Thompson, Leavenworth County Attorney make the final agenda, you are not precluded from submitting your suggested legislation on your own, Following the October Board meeting, the Board perhaps through one of your friendly legislators. We of Directors assumes the role of the Legislative ask that you let us know of your proposal and, even Committee through the end of the Legislative though it may not be on our agenda, the organization Session.