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Few Kansas residents are getting arrested for buying legal weed in Missouri and bringing it home

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Few Kansas residents are getting arrested for buying legal weed in Missouri and bringing it home


More than 1 million Kansans live within an hour’s drive of Missouri and its dispensaries selling legal cannabis at seemingly every strip mall.

Yet even with that new, easy access to legal weed, fewer people face arrest in Kansas on marijuana charges. Prosecutors and police remain obliged to enforce the state’s prohibition on cannabis — Kansas is one of only 11 states that outlaw marijuana even for medical purposes — but generally make it less of a priority.

So, while statistics are still taking shape in a state bordered by three states where medical and recreational sales are legal, arrests on cannabis charges and seizures of illegal weed appear on the decline or at least flattening out.

Missouri’s first legal sale of cannabis came in early February 2023. Kansas residents could immediately drive over and buy it legally, but risked arrest and prosecution if they brought their joints or gummies across the state line.

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The Beacon asked law enforcement agencies in eastern Kansas for arrest data from 2022 and 2023. Statewide data on arrests isn’t complete.

Kansas Bureau of Investigation arrest records don’t track arrests by type of drug, and the agency doesn’t have complete numbers yet for 2023. The Kansas Highway Patrol also said getting statistics on every drug arrest would take time, but data on major seizures of weed showed a slight drop in 2023.

Here’s how some departments compare.

  • The Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department arrested 186 people for weed in 2022. That number jumped to 241 in 2023. That spike is mostly due to an uptick in July arrests. The amount of weed seized dropped from 108 pounds to 22 pounds. 
  • Overland Park police went from 189 arrests for selling and using in 2022 down to 166 arrests in 2023. 
  • The Pittsburg Police Department had 35 arrests for 2022 but only 18 in 2023. Seizures jumped from 2,541 grams to 6,686 grams — again due to one month of large seizures. 
  • Leavenworth police cited 23 people for weed in 2022 and 28 people in 2023. 
  • The Kansas Highway Patrol said it has 76 significant marijuana seizures in 2022 and 68 significant seizures in 2023. That would mean a seizure with more than one pound of weed and likely doesn’t include arrests for simple possession, but getting data on every arrest is hard, the agency said. 

The plateau in arrests signals a welcome shift to advocates who say over-policing cannabis only causes problems and is especially problematic for minority communities. The highway patrol lost a lawsuit just last year about an unconstitutional police practice it used to search drivers for weed.

No single factor explains the uneven trend in weed arrests. One agency said it just cites, rather than arrests, people for possession. Another agency said it was short on staff and cannabis wasn’t its biggest priority. Officers and prosecutors offices said they weren’t ignoring the issue, but some only pursue drug charges if other criminal charges are associated with a case.

“We have to have probable cause,” Overland Park police spokesperson John Lacy told Fox 4 in Kansas City last year. “In other words, they have to be speeding. They have to make an illegal lane change, things of that sort.”

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Lacy said his agency cared more about serious felonies.

The Douglas County District Attorney’s Office was one of the few agencies that had a public policy on weed. The policy said the DA’s office isn’t interested in prosecuting weed charges.

Suzanne Valdez, the Douglas County district attorney, said she inherited a policy that’s been around for a decade and saw no reason to change it.

Her office still goes after drug dealers selling hard drugs, but she said stomping out users is a waste of prosecutors’ already limited time and resources.

Prosecuting a single case for possession isn’t quick. It requires lab testing at the KBI. That agency is testing sexual assault kits and evidence in murder cases. A marijuana sample could get lost in the shuffle.

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“Marijuana possession? Nope, we’re just not doing it,” Valdez said. “Our law enforcement partners have pretty much accepted that.”

Wichita decriminalized weed in 2022. Medical marijuana or legal cannabis is murkier at a statewide level.

A bill in the Kansas Statehouse now would change how drugs are criminally categorized. That effort joined multiple attempts by state lawmakers to legalize medical marijuana that have stalled in recent years.

Supporters of the change say the public clearly supports legal weed — just look at all the Kansas plates at Missouri dispensaries. The 2023 Kansas Speaks survey found that 67% of Kansas residents support recreational weed, with 12% neutral on the idea, 17% opposed and 4% undecided.

But the political battle will continue.

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“We’ve tackled this topic before and we’ll tackle it again,” said Speaker of the House Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican.

The Republican-controlled Kansas House has passed out measures to legalize medical weed, but the Republican-controlled Kansas Senate has blocked that.

“They are getting closer,” Hawkins said. “We’ll have our chance.”

This story was originally published by the Kansas City Beacon, a fellow member of the KC Media Collective.

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Judge denies Missouri AG’s bid to immediately halt 7-OH kratom sales by American Shaman

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Judge denies Missouri AG’s bid to immediately halt 7-OH kratom sales by American Shaman


A Jackson County judge on Friday denied Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway’s attempt to immediately stop Kansas City-based CBD American Shaman and several affiliated companies from selling kratom products.

The motion for a temporary restraining order, which was filed alongside the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, took particular aim at the more potent 7-OH products, which Hanaway argues are “hazardous opioids” banned by state and federal law.

Jackson County Circuit Judge Charles McKenzie’s ruling Friday stated there are “competing affidavits” from experts on both sides of the argument, following a hearing on the motion earlier this week.

“The court cannot find, based on the oral argument of the parties, the respective competing affidavits presented and the pleadings, whether the plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits at this juncture in the proceedings in order for the court to grant relief in the form of a temporary restraining order,” McKenzie’s order states.

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Hanaway’s argument was backed by sworn statements from an undercover narcotics officer with the highway patrol who said 7-OH is being used to cut fentanyl and a woman whose brother died from a kratom overdose.

Her office also submitted an FDA report that points to 7-OH as “a potent opioid that poses an emerging public health threat” and states health data showing synthetic 7-OH was involved in at least 197 Missouri deaths.

American Shaman submitted statements of its own from five toxicology and addiction experts, who largely said there wasn’t enough evidence to show that 7-OH and kratom posed a public health risk. One who researched narcotics said she had never heard of 7-OH being used to cut fentanyl.

Company owner Vince Sanders’ statement detailed how he came up with the idea to create 7-OH products, which now have an “enormous” demand, particularly among people who need pain management.

Sanders could not be reached for comment about the ruling on Friday.

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McKenzie denied a temporary restraining order “without prejudice,” meaning that he would like to see more evidence.

“It is because of this finding that the court determines it necessary to hold an additional hearing,” he wrote, “where it can consider the parties’ respective positions with the potential of testimonial evidence and other properly introduced evidence, all as more fully developed by the parties, in order to further analyze these issues.”

The judge will consider “other injunctive relief sought in the pleadings at a future hearing to consider the issues,” the order states.

Hanaway filed a similar lawsuit Thursday against Relax Relief Rejuvenate Trading LLC, and its owners Dustin Robinson and Ajaykumar Patel.

The group received a warning letter from the FDA for producing 7-OH products last year, similar to one received by Shaman Botanicals.

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“This is another step in our ongoing crackdown on kratom manufacturers who flout the law and try to justify endangering Missourians in the name of profit,” Hanaway said in a press release Thursday.

“Our mission is to safeguard Missourians from unregulated and addictive substances, and we will continue to pursue every legal tool available to protect public health and safety.”



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Missouri Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 winning numbers for May 10, 2026

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The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at May 10, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Pick 3 numbers from May 10 drawing

Midday: 7-2-5

Midday Wild: 7

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Evening: 9-6-8

Evening Wild: 7

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from May 10 drawing

Midday: 7-1-9-9

Midday Wild: 1

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Evening: 6-9-8-9

Evening Wild: 2

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from May 10 drawing

Early Bird: 02

Morning: 11

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Matinee: 10

Prime Time: 12

Night Owl: 11

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Show Me Cash numbers from May 10 drawing

09-18-23-31-39

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Check Show Me Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

All Missouri Lottery retailers can redeem prizes up to $600. For prizes over $600, winners have the option to submit their claim by mail or in person at one of Missouri Lottery’s regional offices, by appointment only.

To claim by mail, complete a Missouri Lottery winner claim form, sign your winning ticket, and include a copy of your government-issued photo ID along with a completed IRS Form W-9. Ensure your name, address, telephone number and signature are on the back of your ticket. Claims should be mailed to:

Ticket Redemption

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Missouri Lottery

P.O. Box 7777

Jefferson City, MO 65102-7777

For in-person claims, visit the Missouri Lottery Headquarters in Jefferson City or one of the regional offices in Kansas City, Springfield or St. Louis. Be sure to call ahead to verify hours and check if an appointment is required.

For additional instructions or to download the claim form, visit the Missouri Lottery prize claim page.

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When are the Missouri Lottery drawings held?

  • Powerball: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Mega Millions: 10 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
  • Pick 3: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
  • Pick 4: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
  • Cash4Life: 8 p.m. daily.
  • Cash Pop: 8 a.m. (Early Bird), 11 a.m. (Late Morning), 3 p.m. (Matinee), 7 p.m. (Prime Time) and 11 p.m. (Night Owl) daily.
  • Show Me Cash: 8:59 p.m. daily.
  • Lotto: 8:59 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Powerball Double Play: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Missouri editor. You can send feedback using this form.



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Missouri Highway Patrol: 3 killed in fiery head-on crash on Highway 71

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Missouri Highway Patrol: 3 killed in fiery head-on crash on Highway 71


BURLINGTON JUNCTION, Mo. (KCTV) – A head-on collision on Highway 71 killed 3 people and seriously injured a 4th, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

State Troopers say the crash happened around 1:25 p.m. on Saturday, May 9, near the intersection of Highway 71 and 170th St. – about a mile and a half north of Burlington Junction.

Investigators say a 2026 Chevrolet Equinox, driven by a 59-year-old woman from Carthage, Texas, was heading north on the highway when it crossed the centerline.

FILE(Ken Price, KCTV5)

The Chevrolet struck a southbound 2026 Ford Explorer head-on, according to MSHP. Both vehicles caught fire and came to rest in the southbound lane.

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State Troopers note that the crash killed the Texas driver, a 67-year-old woman from Harlan, Iowa and a 76-year-old woman from Rockwell City, Iowa.

The Ford’s driver – a 72-year-old man from Rockwell City – was airlifted to Bryan West Medical Center in Lincoln, Nebraska, with serious injuries, according to first responders.

Troopers say all four people involved were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash.

The cause of the collision remains under investigation.

Copyright 2026 KCTV. All rights reserved.

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