Kansas

Kansas audit flags staff safety, security concerns at Osawatomie State Hospital

Published

1 year ago

January 7, 2025

Kansas audit flags staff safety, security concerns at Osawatomie State Hospital

OSAWATOMIE, Kan. — A December publication by the Kansas Legislative Division of Post Audit found the Osawatomie State Hospital does not adequately meet the safety and security standards of its operating staff.

The audit was authorized April 24, 2024, to answer the legislative committee’s initial question:

Does Osawatomie State Hospital adequately ensure the safety and security of its staff?

To conduct the audit, employees were surveyed to better understand the environment at the hospital.

The legislative body visited the hospital and reviewed policy and incident reports with data available from January 2022 to September 2024.

McKenzie Nelson/KSHB

Multiple law enforcement and Kansas state agencies were involved Monday morning in the search for a missing patient and employee from Osawatomie State Hospital. The pair was located and arrested.

Background

The state psychiatric facility operates two independent hospitals. Since 1863, the hospital has provided inpatient psychiatric and mental health treatment to patients 18 years and older.

Osawatomie State Hospital is entirely state-funded and is not certified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

OSH has a capacity for 116 patients. As of August 2024, it held 108.

Acute Care (AAC) held 39 patients with a 60-patient capacity, as of August 2024.

Numerous state agencies oversee the hospital and operate on a $59.6 million budget, 80% of which comes from the state general fund.

Osawatomie State Hospital, one of the largest employers in the county, has 533 authorized employment positions. Jobs range from full-time to part-time and include administrative, facilities and medical personnel.

Issues on hospital grounds

The report revealed Osawatomie State Hospital has a history of problems.

In 2015, OSH lost CMS certification due to repeated safety deficiencies, per the audit. The deficiencies included a lack of nursing staff to perform necessary patient check-ins and security staff not performing duties.

The December 2024 audit also reported a staff member was sexually assaulted by a patient in late 2015, which employees alleged was attributed to a lack of staff.

OSH’s plan to resolve the 2015 issue was to better assess a patient’s risk of violence, increase training, remind staff to use personal safety alarms, and ensure that staffing levels were adequate.

Federal inspectors require renovations on light fixtures, door handles and windows to prevent patient suicide. Such areas should not physically allow for any item that hangs or attaches.

The report also stated staff safety and security pose challenges based on the population served. Staff consistently report patients are one of the biggest reasons they feel unsafe, a combination of verbal harassment and physical assault, per the audit.

Staff identified three main areas to determine whether OSH adequately ensures the safety and security of its staff: physical security, personnel and management culture.

WATCH | Osawatomie State Hospital: A History

The audit outlined OSH does not have adequate processes to ensure physical security.

On-site security staff does not have enough fire-trained staff to respond to campus fires because fire training hasn’t been conducted since March 2024. No policy exists describing fire training requirements for security staff.

The report also outlined a number of other concerns, including OSH does not ensure staff carry required personal safety alarms and doesn’t check if staff respond to alarms timely; facilities staff key tracking does not include complete and accurate accounting of keys; OSH has a process to monitor safety risks and noncompliance with policies but management hasn’t followed the process.

The audit finally reported that OSH management has not created a culture of reporting issues when they’re made aware, including professional boundaries or encouraging employees to speak up, per staff surveys.

Final findings

According to the audit, OSH staff turnover rates were high in the three years the audit committee reviewed data from September 2021 to September 2024.

54% was the highest turnover of all active contracts from September 2023 through August 2024.

Roughly 95% of the state workforce at OSH, which is staff volunteered, worked overtime. In 2024, OSH dished out over 27,000 hours of overtime.

OSH Pay Audit — December 2024 Audit revealed differences in pay between contracted and state employees at Osawatomie State Hospital.

The audit found the overall working environment and culture do not prioritize a safe workplace, noting management’s lack of clear expectations for safety and security processes.

Staff reported having mixed emotions about safety while at work.

KSHB 41 reached out to the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) for comment on the audit. Department spokesperson Cara Sloan issued this statement:

“The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) takes the safety and well-being of all its staff and residents seriously. We recognize the trust placed in us to care for some of Kansas’ most vulnerable individuals. That is why the agency promptly reviewed concerns and took steps to address the findings outlined in the Legislative Post Audit’s report regarding Osawatomie State Hospital (OSH).

“The report acknowledged the unique challenges and safety risks associated with operating a psychiatric hospital. Even with those realities, our actions reflect our unwavering dedication to improving conditions at OSH while fostering a culture of transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement. KDADS is committed to working collaboratively with state leaders, community stakeholders, and hospital staff to ensure we meet the highest standards of care and safety.

“We will continue to work with our staff and partners to address challenges head-on to build a stronger, safer environment for everyone at Osawatomie State Hospital.”

To read the full audit, click here.

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KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa covers Miami County in Kansas and Cass County in Missouri. Share your story idea with Ryan.

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Kansas

Kansas Orders Trans Drivers to Surrender Licenses With One Day’s Notice

Published

21 hours ago

February 26, 2026

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Kansas Orders Trans Drivers to Surrender Licenses With One Day’s Notice

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The Kansas Division of Vehicles (DOV) has instructed transgender residents to surrender their updated driver’s licenses, as one of the nation’s most extreme anti-trans laws takes effect this week.

Trans Kansans received letters from the DOV on Wednesday informing them that licenses and other state ID papers that do not match a person’s assigned sex at birth are considered invalid and must be surrendered to the state effective immediately, ostensibly giving them less than 24 hours to make accommodations, according to multiple copies of the letter reviewed by the Kansas City Star.

“Please note that the Legislature did not include a grace period for updating credentials,” the letter read in part. “That means that once the law is officially enacted, your current credentials will be invalid immediately, and you may be subject to additional penalties if you are operating a vehicle without a valid credential.” Affected residents were “directed to surrender your current credential to the Kansas Division of Vehicles” and receive a new ID — at their own expense, as SB 244 did not provide state funding to cover the reversions, the Star noted.

The move comes as a result of Kansas’ SB 244, which became law on Thursday and instructs state agencies to reverse gender marker changes on official documents. Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed the legislation, but the Republican supermajority overrode her veto last week.

Kansas officially recognizes only “male” and “female” as recorded at birth as valid sexes, per a state law passed in 2023. About 1,700 people are expected to have their licenses invalidated as a result of the new law, according to a legislative analysis of SB 244 conducted by the state House. The law will also invalidate amended birth certificates that were issued with a corrected gender marker.

The LGBTQ Foundation of Kansas shared a copy of one letter on Instagram, with identifying information redacted. Representatives for the nonprofit noted that some Kansas counties will hold special elections next week, and trans residents without valid photo ID cards will not be able to cast a vote under existing state law.

At least three other states have passed laws banning gender marker changes on driver’s licenses, but Kansas is now the only U.S. state to require such previous changes be reverted, according to KCTV.

“The persecution is the point,” said Rep. Abi Boatman, Kansas’ only trans state legislator, in a statement to the Star on Wednesday. “It tells me that Kansas Republicans are interested in being on the vanguard of the culture war and in a race to the bottom,” she added in a comment to KCTV.

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Kansas

Kansas City man charged with murder in fatal shooting of reported missing teenage girl

Published

2 days ago

February 25, 2026

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Kansas City man charged with murder in fatal shooting of reported missing teenage girl

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – A Kansas City man has now been charged in the death of a teenage girl who was reported missing and found dead a day later from a gunshot.

Jackson County Prosecutor Melesa Johnson announced Wednesday that Eric R. Phillips II has been charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action and abandoning a corpse, following the girl’s November 2025 death.

Elayjah Murray had been reported missing on Nov. 28, 2025. As investigators looked into her disappearance, the Independence Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Unit learned that she’d possibly been shot.

Eric R. Phillips II has been charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action and abandoning a corpse, following the girl’s November 2025 death.(Independence Police Department/Facebook)

Multiple witnesses and surveillance footage helped detectives identify Phillips as the shooter. Court documents say he shot Murray multiple times while she was in the back of his car during the early morning hours of Nov. 28.

A day later, police with the Kansas City Missouri Police Department found Murray in Kansas City. Phillips’ cell phone pinged in the area where Murray’s body was located.

Phillips’ bond has been set at $350,000 cash only.

Johnson said Phillips was charged on Dec. 3, 2025, under seal. The case was unsealed Wednesday in an effort to help locate Phillips.

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Kansas

Kansas marijuana debate: tax dollars vs. crime concerns

Published

2 days ago

February 25, 2026

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Kansas marijuana debate: tax dollars vs. crime concerns

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – Kansas House Democrats on Tuesday discussed separate bills to legalize recreational and medical marijuana use, citing a recent Kansas Speaks survey showing 70% of Kansans support medical legalization and 60% support recreational use.

Supporters say the legislation would generate revenue for affordable housing, childcare and property tax relief. Opponents say legalization would worsen the state’s mental health crisis and increase crime.

What supporters say

Rep. Ford Carr, D-Wichita, said the bills would direct significant revenue back to residents.

“In this legislation, we’re gonna take those funds — which could be, you know, we’re talking about $1 billion and we’re gonna give that back to the people,” Carr said.

Rep. Heather Meyer, D-Overland Park, said Kansans are already crossing state lines to access cannabis.

“I live right on the Kansas-Missouri border. The closest dispensary is 12 minutes away[…]We’ve got cannabis on the other side of the state line. You’ve got minivans with JoCo tags on them, Wyandotte tags on them,” Meyer said.

Rep. John Alcala, D-Topeka, said constituents have long pressed him on the issue.

“I used to receive tons of emails from parents whose children needed medical cannabis for seizures. I still receive an overwhelming amount of emails from our veterans suffering from PTSD,” Alcala said.

What opponents say

Katie Patterson, a representative for Stand Up for Kansas who spent more than 18 years with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, said she opposes the bills and that crime has increased in states where marijuana has been legalized in some form.

“I’ve seen firsthand how substance use, abuse and addiction impact lives, families, communities and create strains on criminal justice systems,” Patterson said.

Patterson said the FDA should serve as the standard for what qualifies as medicine.

“Medicines should be based on clinical data and robust amounts of research demonstrating medical efficacy for treatment of certain conditions,” Patterson said.

She also said increased access leads to increased use and warned of consequences for the state’s mental health system.

“We in this state have a mental health crisis. This is a policy conversation that would further exacerbate that crisis that we currently have on our hands with treatment in Kansas,” Patterson said.

What happens next

The bills were referred to the House Federal and State Affairs Committee. No hearing has been scheduled. Supporters said they do not expect the bills to advance this session but said they intend to continue raising the issue.

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