A white former police detective accused of raping and terrorizing women in the predominantly Black neighborhood he was sworn to protect in Kansas City, Kansas, died in an apparent suicide Monday morning just as jury selection was set to begin in his criminal trial in nearby Topeka.
Roger Golubski, 71, was found dead on the back porch of his home in Edwardsville, Kansas, shortly after a neighbor called 911 to report hearing a gunshot around 9 a.m., the Kansas Bureau of Investigations said in a statement. Golubski died from a fatal gunshot wound, the bureau said, and there were no indications of foul play. An autopsy and “thorough investigation” were set to be conducted, the agency said.
At the time he died, Golubski was supposed to be in the courtroom for the start of his long-awaited trial. He was facing six felony counts related to the alleged civil rights violations suffered by two women while Golubski was a police officer in Kansas City, Kansas, during his many years on the force.
Prosecutors said that between 1998 and 2001, Golubski forced one victim identified by the initials S.K. to perform oral sex on him inside his vehicle. They said Golubski also digitally and genitally penetrated the victim without her consent during sexual assaults and rapes that took place in and next to his vehicle on multiple occasions. Golubski allegedly started targeting the victim when she was a young teen in middle school.
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Golubski allegedly terrorized his second victim, identified by the initials O.W., by raping her in her home between 1999 and 2002. Prosecutors said Golubski also forced O.W. to perform oral sex on him. If convicted as charged, he was facing a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The second victim, Ophelia Williams, ultimately stepped forward with her full identity and said Golubski first raped her in 1999, shortly after her twin teen sons were arrested in connection with a homicide Golubski was investigating, the Wichita Eagle reported.
“He didn’t want to face the facts, so he decided to kill himself,” Williams said Monday when reached by the Eagle. The death meant she would not be testifying against Golubski as planned. In her straightforward reaction, she said, “I guess that’s what happens to people who do all the wrong stuff they do.”
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Golubski’s death led the U.S. District Court judge overseeing his case to dismiss the charges at the request of prosecutors.
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“This matter involved extremely serious charges, and it is always difficult when a case is unable to be fully and fairly heard in a public trial and weighed and determined by a jury. The proceedings in this case may be over, but its lasting impact on all the individuals and families involved remains. We wish them peace and the opportunity for healing as they come to terms with this development and ask that they all be treated with respect and their privacy respected,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke and U.S. Attorney Kate E. Brubacher for the District of Kansas said in a joint statement Monday.
Prosecutors said seven other women had agreed to testify that Golubski abused or harassed them as well, the Associated Press reports. “There is no justice for the victims,” Anita Randle-Stanley, who went to court to watch jury selection, told the AP on Monday after hearing about Golubski’s death. Randle-Stanley claimed Golubski harassed her as well, when she was a teenager decades earlier, but she always refused him.
The pending trial was part of a larger investigation of the Kansas City Kansas Police Department involving multiple civil lawsuits and parallel allegations that Golubski accepted money from and provided protection to several men who allegedly ran a violent sex trafficking operation in Kansas City in the late 1990s.
Jay-Z’s social justice organization Team Roc has been pushing for further investigation and reform of the Kansas City Kansas Police Department after Golubski’s case fueled questions about corruption or lack of oversight. Team Roc filed a court complaint last month accusing city and county officials of stonewalling their efforts to access public records about alleged police misconduct. The department did not respond to Rolling Stone‘s request for comment on the lawsuit.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Right-hander Michael Lorenzen and the Kansas City Royals finalized a $7 million, one-year contract on Wednesday that includes a mutual option for 2026 and $2.5 million in annual performance bonuses.
Lorenzen gets a $5.5 million salary this year, and the Royals have a $12 million option for 2026 with a $1.5 million buyout.
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He can earn $1.5 million for innings in each season: $250,000 each for 100 and 125, and $500,000 apiece for 150 and 175.
Lorenzen also can get $1 million for pitching appearances: $100,000 for 10, $150,000 for 20 and $250,000 each for 25, 30 and 40.
He would earn $100,000 for All-Star selection or election, $50,000 for winning a Gold Glove, $100,000 for winning a Cy Young Award, $50,000 for finishing second through fifth in the voting and $25,000 for sixth through 10th.
The 33-year-old was acquired by Kansas City in a trade with Texas just before the deadline last July and became a dependable part of the pitching staff down the stretch. He went 2-0 with a 1.57 ERA in six starts and one relief appearance to help the Royals clinch a wild card, then tossed 2 1/3 innings over two appearances in the playoffs.
Lorenzen took the loss in Game 1 of the AL Division Series against the New York Yankees, giving up Alex Verdugo’s go-ahead single in the seventh inning of a 6-5 defeat. The Royals went on to lose the series in four games.
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Lorenzen spent his first seven seasons in Cincinnati, then spent a year with the Angels, before splitting the 2023 season between the Tigers and Phillies, getting selected to his only All-Star Game while with Detroit and throwing a no-hitter for Philadelphia after being traded. He has a career record of 47-44 with a 3.99 ERA and 15 saves in 368 games, including 93 starts.
The top of the Royals’ starting rotation appears to be set, with Michael Wacha returning on a three-year, $51 million contract to join Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans, both of whom made the All-Star Game for Kansas City last season.
The Royals hope Kyle Wright can return to the form he displayed in Atlanta after spending last season rehabbing from shoulder surgery. Kris Bubic and Alec Marsh are among those who will compete with Lorenzen for one of the remaining starting spots.
Looking to return to the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs, Sporting KC are undergoing a roster reset. They previously bid farewell to four key veterans – goalkeeper Tim Melia, defender Andreu Fontàs, midfielder Rémi Walter and forward Johnny Russell – after finishing 13th in the Western Conference (31 points) and missing the postseason.
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.
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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.
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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.
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KSLPA
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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).
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“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.
