Daily Archives: July 9, 2006

Open thread

July 9, 200612:09 a.m.

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (76)

Is throwing journalists in jail ‘authoritarian’?

July 9, 200612:07 a.m.

Our editorial last Wednesday said that the media must exercise its First Amendment freedoms with great care, but that the call by Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Goddard, and others to jail reporters who won’t reveal confidential sources goes against the very freedoms our country is promoting to the world. Check out Tiahrt’s response in today’s opinion pages (and my editor’s note at the end on how Tiahrt made up some of his claims). He wrote: “If enforcing current law and protecting the citizens of this country is how the board defines ‘authoritarian,’ it needs a new dictionary.”
Posted by Phillip Brownlee

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (55)

Is lethal injection cruel and unusual punishment?

July 9, 200612:05 a.m.

The sentencing rules of Kansas’ death penalty law got the U.S. Supreme Court’s go-ahead last month. But as the appeals of other death row cases go forward, other points of contention will arise. One possible problem: Kansas is among 38 states that have chosen lethal injection as the preferred method of execution, and the high court recently ruled that inmates could challenge that method as being unconstitutional. In addition to questions about the pain the series of injections might cause, there also are new questions about the doctors (or nondoctors) who administer these drugs.
Posted by Rhonda Holman

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (37)

So is Sedgwick County’s court is opaque and tainted?

July 9, 200612:05 a.m.

Sedgwick County’s judges are elected to office, with party affiliations, campaign contributions, yard signs and the rest. Voters seem satisfied with the system, despite its obvious dangers. But Johnson County is having a raging debate over whether to go from its merit-based appointment system to an elective system, something both Attorney General Phill Kline and his Democratic challenger, Johnson County District Attorney Paul Morrison, recommend against. What they said on the subject at a forum last month is worth pondering in both counties:
– “I believe that (the appointment process) is appropriate, and it provides greater transparency within our state,” Kline said.
– “If I’m a litigant in a case and I’m sitting across the courtroom from a lawyer who represents my foe, and I know that the lawyer who represents my foe is the biggest contributor to the judge’s pending re-election campaign, how’s that going to make me feel? And more importantly, how is that going to look?” asked Morrison.
Posted by Rhonda Holman

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (34)

Cameras show justice in action

July 9, 200612:03 a.m.

Sedgwick County District Judge David Kennedy ruled Friday that cameras and recording devices generally will be allowed in the courtroom related to the case against Elgin R.J. “Ray Ray” Robinson Jr., the 20-year-old charged with plotting the heinous murder of 14-year-old Chelsea Brooks to cover up the fact that she was nine months pregnant with his baby. That’s welcome news to citizens as well as media outlets. As demonstrated so dramatically recently in the cases of murderers Greg Moore and Dennis Rader, cameras provide a picture window into the judicial system that mere words can’t. Especially with judges under new scrutiny for their “activism” and otherwise, the more cameras in courtrooms, the better for justice generally.
Posted by Rhonda Holman

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (10)

Brag about Wichita’s business climate

July 9, 200612:01 a.m.

Wichita is a great place to do business. In fact, it’s the seventh-least-taxing large city in the nation, according to the new 2006 Kosmont-Rose Institute Cost of Doing Business Survey. Can it do even better? No doubt. So can the state, which had the fourth-worst job growth in the nation during the first quarter. But the Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce and other economic development groups need to brag about Wichita’s business climate to anyone who will listen.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee

By Phillip Brownlee | Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (12)