By:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/mchilson/">Morgan Chilson</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/02/24/gov-laura-kelly-skeptical-kansas-houses-anti-tenure-legislation-will-reach-her-desk/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — CoreCivic argued Tuesday for the right to begin holding prisoners in its closed Leavenworth facility, even as the company is working through a local permit process that could make the court case irrelevant.

CoreCivic challenged an injunction in the Kansas Court of Appeals that was made last year by the Leavenworth County District Court. The injunction kept the private prison from taking detainees from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement while CoreCivic and the City of Leavenworth fought in court about reopening the company’s prison facility.

Complicating the issue, the two are now working through the city’s planning process as CoreCivic has applied for a special use permit that would allow it to reopen.&nbsp;

“This is a difficult case because it feels like there are all of these slippery parts that are not part of the matter before us,” said Chief Judge Sarah Warner. “There’s a separate lawsuit. There are ongoing administrative proceedings.”&nbsp;

CoreCivic operated a private prison in Leavenworth until 2021 when it lost a contract with the U.S. Department of Justice. In 2025, the company announced it planned to reopen the prison as the Midwest Regional Detention Center and house ICE detainees.&nbsp;

The city required CoreCivic to obtain a special use permit through its planning and zoning process before reopening, which is where the court cases originated last year. The two entities have been fighting it out in court, with CoreCivic insisting it did not need a permit.&nbsp;

After losses in Kansas district court, CoreCivic bowed to the city’s demands and began the process of obtaining the permit. Last week, the city’s planning commission&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2026/02/03/corecivic-receives-leavenworth-planning-commission-approval-in-contentious-meeting/" target="_blank">approved the permit</a>&nbsp;and sent it to the city commission for a final determination.&nbsp;

Although one court case between the two ended and one remains open but inactive, the Nashville-based private prison company continued its appeal Tuesday to&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/06/04/leavenworth-wins-restraining-order-barring-corecivic-from-taking-ice-detainees/" target="_blank">argue the injunction prohibiting</a>&nbsp;it from taking prisoners immediately should be reversed.

Sara Fevurly, an attorney for CoreCivic, said the district court didn’t properly grant the injunction, and even if the decision were rendered moot after the permit was approved, the company may be entitled to fees and damages associated with an improper temporary injunction.&nbsp;&nbsp;

In the short hearing focused on legal technicalities of the case, both sides argued about the definition of “irreparable harm” and whether CoreCivic abandoned use of its property because it did not house prisoners there for about three years.&nbsp;

Joseph Hatley, an attorney for Leavenworth, told the court it was difficult to determine what “irreparable harm” would mean for the city, listing challenges the city had with CoreCivic during its operations before 2021. Those included not alerting local police to crimes at the facility and public works issues created by sewage.&nbsp;

Fevurly argued that past behavior cannot be used to determine harm.&nbsp;

“I don’t know how you calculate damages based on the police inability to investigate crimes,” Hatley said. “There are people who get hurt by that, there are victims in the facility who are hurt by that. Irreparable harm is the inability to calculate damages, and that’s what we have here.”

Warner said the judges would render a written opinion as soon as they could.&nbsp;

CoreCivic will know by March 10 whether the city will approve its special use permit to reopen the prison, Hatley said after the hearing. That will be the city commission’s second consideration of the permit, with the first consideration occurring Feb. 24. A public hearing is held as part of the process.&nbsp;

David Waters, the Leavenworth city attorney, said after the hearing that the public’s input is “certainly” part of determining whether the permit goes through.&nbsp;

“That is why we hold a public hearing,” he said. “The planning commission holds that public hearing to get the citizen input on that. It’s one of the most important parts of the zoning and planning process is to get that input from the residents as to what is best for the public health and safety and welfare of the community.”

Waters said CoreCivic has the option to appeal to the district court if the city commission refuses to grant the permit.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770836020066.png" alt=" From left, Kansas Court of Appeals Judges Thomas Malone, Sarah Warner and Stephen Hill hear arguments on Feb. 10, 2026, about reversing an injunction against CoreCivic (Thad Allton for Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> From left, Kansas Court of Appeals Judges Thomas Malone, Sarah Warner and Stephen Hill hear arguments on Feb. 10, 2026, about reversing an injunction against CoreCivic (Thad Allton for Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/mchilson/">Morgan Chilson</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/02/24/gov-laura-kelly-skeptical-kansas-houses-anti-tenure-legislation-will-reach-her-desk/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — CoreCivic argued Tuesday for the right to begin holding prisoners in its closed Leavenworth facility, even as the company is working through a local permit process that could make the court case irrelevant.CoreCivic challenged an injunction in the Kansas Court of Appeals that was made last year by the Leavenworth County District Court. The injunction kept the private prison from taking detainees from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement while CoreCivic and the City of Leavenworth fought in court about reopening the company’s prison facility.Complicating the issue, the two are now working through the city’s planning process as CoreCivic has applied for a special use permit that would allow it to reopen.&nbsp;“This is a difficult case because it feels like there are all of these slippery parts that are not part of the matter before us,” said Chief Judge Sarah Warner. “There’s a separate lawsuit. There are ongoing administrative proceedings.”&nbsp;CoreCivic operated a private prison in Leavenworth until 2021 when it lost a contract with the U.S. Department of Justice. In 2025, the company announced it planned to reopen the prison as the Midwest Regional Detention Center and house ICE detainees.&nbsp;The city required CoreCivic to obtain a special use permit through its planning and zoning process before reopening, which is where the court cases originated last year. The two entities have been fighting it out in court, with CoreCivic insisting it did not need a permit.&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770835927566.png" alt="Sara Fevurly, attorney for CoreCivic, considers opponent’s arguments during a Feb. 10, 2026, Kansas Court of Appeals hearing about reversing an injunction against the private prison company. (Photo by Thad Allton for Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Sara Fevurly, attorney for CoreCivic, considers opponent’s arguments during a Feb. 10, 2026, Kansas Court of Appeals hearing about reversing an injunction against the private prison company. (Photo by Thad Allton for Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>After losses in Kansas district court, CoreCivic bowed to the city’s demands and began the process of obtaining the permit. Last week, the city’s planning commission&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2026/02/03/corecivic-receives-leavenworth-planning-commission-approval-in-contentious-meeting/" target="_blank">approved the permit</a>&nbsp;and sent it to the city commission for a final determination.&nbsp;Although one court case between the two ended and one remains open but inactive, the Nashville-based private prison company continued its appeal Tuesday to&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2025/06/04/leavenworth-wins-restraining-order-barring-corecivic-from-taking-ice-detainees/" target="_blank">argue the injunction prohibiting</a>&nbsp;it from taking prisoners immediately should be reversed.Sara Fevurly, an attorney for CoreCivic, said the district court didn’t properly grant the injunction, and even if the decision were rendered moot after the permit was approved, the company may be entitled to fees and damages associated with an improper temporary injunction.&nbsp;&nbsp;In the short hearing focused on legal technicalities of the case, both sides argued about the definition of “irreparable harm” and whether CoreCivic abandoned use of its property because it did not house prisoners there for about three years.&nbsp;Joseph Hatley, an attorney for Leavenworth, told the court it was difficult to determine what “irreparable harm” would mean for the city, listing challenges the city had with CoreCivic during its operations before 2021. Those included not alerting local police to crimes at the facility and public works issues created by sewage.&nbsp;Fevurly argued that past behavior cannot be used to determine harm.&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770835965549.png" alt="Sara Fevurly, attorney for CoreCivic, considers opponent’s arguments during a Feb. 10, 2026, Kansas Court of Appeals hearing about reversing an injunction against the private prison company. (Photo by Thad Allton for Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Sara Fevurly, attorney for CoreCivic, considers opponent’s arguments during a Feb. 10, 2026, Kansas Court of Appeals hearing about reversing an injunction against the private prison company. (Photo by Thad Allton for Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>“I don’t know how you calculate damages based on the police inability to investigate crimes,” Hatley said. “There are people who get hurt by that, there are victims in the facility who are hurt by that. Irreparable harm is the inability to calculate damages, and that’s what we have here.”Warner said the judges would render a written opinion as soon as they could.&nbsp;CoreCivic will know by March 10 whether the city will approve its special use permit to reopen the prison, Hatley said after the hearing. That will be the city commission’s second consideration of the permit, with the first consideration occurring Feb. 24. A public hearing is held as part of the process.&nbsp;David Waters, the Leavenworth city attorney, said after the hearing that the public’s input is “certainly” part of determining whether the permit goes through.&nbsp;“That is why we hold a public hearing,” he said. “The planning commission holds that public hearing to get the citizen input on that. It’s one of the most important parts of the zoning and planning process is to get that input from the residents as to what is best for the public health and safety and welfare of the community.”Waters said CoreCivic has the option to appeal to the district court if the city commission refuses to grant the permit.

CoreCivic argues to overturn injunction keeping it from housing ICE detainees in Kansas prison

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Mexican cartel drone incursion prompted an hourslong closure of airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas that was lifted on Wednesday morning, the Trump administration said.

Just hours earlier, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/federal-aviation-administration">Federal Aviation Administration</a>&nbsp;had announced a 10-day closure grounding all flights to and from the airport.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a post on X that the FAA and the Defense Department “acted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion. The threat has been neutralized and there is no danger to commercial travel in the region.” He said normal flights were resuming Wednesday morning, but did not say how many drones were involved or what specifically was done to disable them.

The shutdown “for special security reasons” had been expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office referred questions to the FAA.

Steven Willoughby, the deputy director of the counter-drone program at the Department of Homeland Security, told lawmakers in July that nearly every day cartels are using drones to try to bring drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border and surveil Border Patrol agents.

More than 27,000 drones were detected within 500 meters (1,600 feet) of the southern border in the last six months of 2024, he testified, most flying late at night. Homeland Security has said agents have seized thousands of pounds of methamphetamine, fentanyl and other drugs in recent years that cartels were trying to fly across the border using drones.

Mexican officials head to Washington following shutdown

El Paso,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-border-texas-migrants-a378073ed4e565570b4d4aa20f3a9ff8">a border city</a>&nbsp;with a population of nearly 700,000 people and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city of Ciudad Juárez in Mexico. The brief closure did not include Mexican airspace.

Ciudad Juárez is home to about 1.5 million people, and some of its residents are accustomed to taking advantage of facilities including airports on both sides of the border. That easy access to the U.S. has also made Juarez, like other border cities, attractive to Mexico’s drug cartels that seek control in order to safeguard their smuggling routes for drugs and migrants headed north and cash and guns moving to the south.

The airport said in an Instagram post after the closure was announced that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. Local newscasts showed stranded travelers with luggage lining up at airline ticket counters and car rental desks at the El Paso airport hours after flights were grounded. The airport posted Wednesday morning that its operations had resumed and encouraged travelers to contact their airlines for the most up-to-date flight information.

Mexican defense and navy secretaries will meet with Northern Command officials in Washington on Wednesday in a meeting attended by several other countries, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said during a news conference. Sheinbaum said the Mexican officials would “listen” in the meeting.

Sheinbaum said her government was going to look into “the exact causes” of the closure. Asked about the explanation given by U.S. officials, she said she had “no information about the use of drones on the border.” She noted that if U.S. authorities have more information they should contact Mexico’s government.

‘The information ... does not add up’

Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, had urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning, saying neither her office, the city of El Paso nor airport operations received advance notice.

“I believe the FAA owes the community and the country an explanation as to why this happened so suddenly and abruptly and was lifted so suddenly and abruptly.” Escobar said during a news conference Wednesday morning.

“The information coming from the federal government does not add up,” Escobar said.

Escobar later said she believed the shutdown was not based on Mexican cartel drones in U.S. airspace, saying that “is not what we in Congress have been told.”

When asked about Escobar’s remarks, Pentagon officials said they didn’t have a comment.

The airport describes itself as the gateway to west Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. Southwest, United, American and Delta all operate flights there, among others.

A similar 10-day temporary flight restriction for special security reasons remained in place Wednesday morning around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, which is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport. FAA officials did not immediately explain why that restriction remained in place.

U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, a Democrat, said in a statement: “Keeping our communities informed and safe is critical. I’m demanding answers from the FAA and the administration about why the airspace was closed in the first place without notifying appropriate officials, leaving travelers to deal with unnecessary chaos.”

Associated Press reporters Jim Vertuno in Austin, Texas; Josh Funk in Omaha, Nebraska; Mike Balsamo and Konstantin Toropin in Washington; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; and María Verza in Mexico City contributed.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/federal-aviation-administration">Federal Aviation Administration</a>&nbsp;reopened the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas on Wednesday morning, just hours after it announced a 10-day closure that would have grounded all flights to and from the airport.

The FAA said in a social media post that it has lifted the temporary closure of the airspace over El Paso, saying there was no threat to commercial aviation and that all flights will resume.

A Trump administration official told The Associated Press that the airspace over El Paso was closed after Mexican cartel drones breached the airspace, but that the Defense Department took action to disable the drones.

Both the Federal Aviation Administration and the Defense Department have determined there is no threat to commercial travel, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a national security issue.

The official did not say how many drones were involved or what specifically was done to disable them.

The shutdown announced just hours earlier “for special security reasons” had been expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area.

El Paso,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-border-texas-migrants-a378073ed4e565570b4d4aa20f3a9ff8">a border city</a>&nbsp;with a population of nearly 700,000 people and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city of Ciudad Juarez in Mexico. The brief closure does not include Mexican airspace.

The airport said in an Instagram post after the closure was announced that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded from late Tuesday through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. It suggested travelers contact their airlines to get up-to-date flight information.

Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, had urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning. There was no advance notice given to her office, the city of El Paso or airport operations, she said.

“The highly consequential decision by FAA to shut down the El Paso Airport for 10 days is unprecedented and has resulted in significant concern within the community,” Escobar said. “From what my office and I have been able to gather overnight and early this morning there is no immediate threat to the community or surrounding areas.”

A similar temporary flight restriction for special security reasons over the same time period was imposed around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, which is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport.

Southwest Airlines said in a statement that it has paused all operations to and from El Paso at the direction of the FAA.

“We have notified affected customers and will share additional information as it becomes available,” Southwest Airlines said. “Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of its customers and employees.”

EL PASO, Texas (AP) —The Federal Aviation Administration&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/faa-el-paso-texas-air-space-closed-1f774bdfd46f5986ff0e7003df709caa" target="_blank">reopened the airspace around El Paso International Airport</a>&nbsp;in Texas on Wednesday morning, just hours after it announced a 10-day closure that would have grounded all flights to and from the airport.

The FAA announced in a social media post that it has lifted the temporary closure of the airspace over El Paso, saying that there was no threat to commercial aviation and all flights would resume.

The shutdown was expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. El Paso,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-border-texas-migrants-a378073ed4e565570b4d4aa20f3a9ff8">a border city</a>&nbsp;with a population of nearly 700,000 and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is a hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city Ciudad Juárez in Mexico.

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/federal-aviation-administration">Federal Aviation Administration</a>&nbsp;is closing the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas for 10 days, grounding all flights to and from the airport.

A notice posted on the FAA's website said the temporary flight restrictions were for “special security reasons,” but did not provide additional details. The closure does not include Mexican airspace.

The airport said in an Instagram post that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded from late Tuesday through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. It suggested travelers contact their airlines to get up-to-date flight information.

The shutdown is likely to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. El Paso,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-border-texas-migrants-a378073ed4e565570b4d4aa20f3a9ff8">a border city</a>&nbsp;with a population of nearly 700,000 and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside neighboring Ciudad Juarez in Mexico.

Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning. There was no advance notice given to her office, the city of El Paso or airport operations, she said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Mexican cartel drone incursion prompted an hourslong closure of airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas that was lifted on Wednesday morning, the Trump administration said.Just hours earlier, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/federal-aviation-administration">Federal Aviation Administration</a>&nbsp;had announced a 10-day closure grounding all flights to and from the airport.Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a post on X that the FAA and the Defense Department “acted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion. The threat has been neutralized and there is no danger to commercial travel in the region.” He said normal flights were resuming Wednesday morning, but did not say how many drones were involved or what specifically was done to disable them.The shutdown “for special security reasons” had been expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office referred questions to the FAA.Steven Willoughby, the deputy director of the counter-drone program at the Department of Homeland Security, told lawmakers in July that nearly every day cartels are using drones to try to bring drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border and surveil Border Patrol agents.More than 27,000 drones were detected within 500 meters (1,600 feet) of the southern border in the last six months of 2024, he testified, most flying late at night. Homeland Security has said agents have seized thousands of pounds of methamphetamine, fentanyl and other drugs in recent years that cartels were trying to fly across the border using drones.<h2>Mexican officials head to Washington following shutdown</h2>El Paso,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-border-texas-migrants-a378073ed4e565570b4d4aa20f3a9ff8">a border city</a>&nbsp;with a population of nearly 700,000 people and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city of Ciudad Juárez in Mexico. The brief closure did not include Mexican airspace.Ciudad Juárez is home to about 1.5 million people, and some of its residents are accustomed to taking advantage of facilities including airports on both sides of the border. That easy access to the U.S. has also made Juarez, like other border cities, attractive to Mexico’s drug cartels that seek control in order to safeguard their smuggling routes for drugs and migrants headed north and cash and guns moving to the south.The airport said in an Instagram post after the closure was announced that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. Local newscasts showed stranded travelers with luggage lining up at airline ticket counters and car rental desks at the El Paso airport hours after flights were grounded. The airport posted Wednesday morning that its operations had resumed and encouraged travelers to contact their airlines for the most up-to-date flight information.Mexican defense and navy secretaries will meet with Northern Command officials in Washington on Wednesday in a meeting attended by several other countries, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said during a news conference. Sheinbaum said the Mexican officials would “listen” in the meeting.Sheinbaum said her government was going to look into “the exact causes” of the closure. Asked about the explanation given by U.S. officials, she said she had “no information about the use of drones on the border.” She noted that if U.S. authorities have more information they should contact Mexico’s government.<h2>‘The information ... does not add up’</h2>Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, had urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning, saying neither her office, the city of El Paso nor airport operations received advance notice.“I believe the FAA owes the community and the country an explanation as to why this happened so suddenly and abruptly and was lifted so suddenly and abruptly.” Escobar said during a news conference Wednesday morning.“The information coming from the federal government does not add up,” Escobar said.Escobar later said she believed the shutdown was not based on Mexican cartel drones in U.S. airspace, saying that “is not what we in Congress have been told.”When asked about Escobar’s remarks, Pentagon officials said they didn’t have a comment.The airport describes itself as the gateway to west Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. Southwest, United, American and Delta all operate flights there, among others.A similar 10-day temporary flight restriction for special security reasons remained in place Wednesday morning around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, which is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport. FAA officials did not immediately explain why that restriction remained in place.U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, a Democrat, said in a statement: “Keeping our communities informed and safe is critical. I’m demanding answers from the FAA and the administration about why the airspace was closed in the first place without notifying appropriate officials, leaving travelers to deal with unnecessary chaos.”___Associated Press reporters Jim Vertuno in Austin, Texas; Josh Funk in Omaha, Nebraska; Mike Balsamo and Konstantin Toropin in Washington; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; and María Verza in Mexico City contributed.-----------------WASHINGTON (AP) — The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/federal-aviation-administration">Federal Aviation Administration</a>&nbsp;reopened the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas on Wednesday morning, just hours after it announced a 10-day closure that would have grounded all flights to and from the airport.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">The temporary closure of airspace over El Paso has been lifted. There is no threat to commercial aviation. All flights will resume as normal.&mdash; The FAA ✈️ (@FAANews) <a href="https://twitter.com/FAANews/status/2021583720465969421?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The FAA said in a social media post that it has lifted the temporary closure of the airspace over El Paso, saying there was no threat to commercial aviation and that all flights will resume.A Trump administration official told The Associated Press that the airspace over El Paso was closed after Mexican cartel drones breached the airspace, but that the Defense Department took action to disable the drones.Both the Federal Aviation Administration and the Defense Department have determined there is no threat to commercial travel, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a national security issue.The official did not say how many drones were involved or what specifically was done to disable them.The shutdown announced just hours earlier “for special security reasons” had been expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area.El Paso,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-border-texas-migrants-a378073ed4e565570b4d4aa20f3a9ff8">a border city</a>&nbsp;with a population of nearly 700,000 people and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city of Ciudad Juarez in Mexico. The brief closure does not include Mexican airspace.The airport said in an Instagram post after the closure was announced that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded from late Tuesday through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. It suggested travelers contact their airlines to get up-to-date flight information.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">We have urged the FAA to immediately lift the Temporary Flight Restrictions placed on the El Paso area. I will continue to make information public as I learn it.&mdash; Rep. Veronica Escobar (@RepEscobar) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepEscobar/status/2021569956844839020?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, had urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning. There was no advance notice given to her office, the city of El Paso or airport operations, she said.“The highly consequential decision by FAA to shut down the El Paso Airport for 10 days is unprecedented and has resulted in significant concern within the community,” Escobar said. “From what my office and I have been able to gather overnight and early this morning there is no immediate threat to the community or surrounding areas.”The airport describes itself as the gateway to west Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. Southwest, United, American and Delta all operate flights there, among others.A similar temporary flight restriction for special security reasons over the same time period was imposed around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, which is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport.Southwest Airlines said in a statement that it has paused all operations to and from El Paso at the direction of the FAA.“We have notified affected customers and will share additional information as it becomes available,” Southwest Airlines said. “Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of its customers and employees.”---------EL PASO, Texas (AP) —The Federal Aviation Administration&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/faa-el-paso-texas-air-space-closed-1f774bdfd46f5986ff0e7003df709caa" target="_blank">reopened the airspace around El Paso International Airport</a>&nbsp;in Texas on Wednesday morning, just hours after it announced a 10-day closure that would have grounded all flights to and from the airport.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">The temporary closure of airspace over El Paso has been lifted. There is no threat to commercial aviation. All flights will resume as normal.&mdash; The FAA ✈️ (@FAANews) <a href="https://twitter.com/FAANews/status/2021583720465969421?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The FAA announced in a social media post that it has lifted the temporary closure of the airspace over El Paso, saying that there was no threat to commercial aviation and all flights would resume.The shutdown was expected to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. El Paso,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-border-texas-migrants-a378073ed4e565570b4d4aa20f3a9ff8">a border city</a>&nbsp;with a population of nearly 700,000 and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is a hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city Ciudad Juárez in Mexico.-----------EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/federal-aviation-administration">Federal Aviation Administration</a>&nbsp;is closing the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas for 10 days, grounding all flights to and from the airport.A notice posted on the FAA's website said the temporary flight restrictions were for “special security reasons,” but did not provide additional details. The closure does not include Mexican airspace.The airport said in an Instagram post that all flights to and from the airport would be grounded from late Tuesday through late on Feb. 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. It suggested travelers contact their airlines to get up-to-date flight information.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">We have urged the FAA to immediately lift the Temporary Flight Restrictions placed on the El Paso area. I will continue to make information public as I learn it.&mdash; Rep. Veronica Escobar (@RepEscobar) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepEscobar/status/2021569956844839020?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The shutdown is likely to create significant disruptions given the duration and the size of the metropolitan area. El Paso,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/immigration-border-texas-migrants-a378073ed4e565570b4d4aa20f3a9ff8">a border city</a>&nbsp;with a population of nearly 700,000 and larger when you include the surrounding metro area, is hub of cross-border commerce alongside neighboring Ciudad Juarez in Mexico.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770816430122.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, urged the FAA to lift the restrictions in a statement Wednesday morning. There was no advance notice given to her office, the city of El Paso or airport operations, she said.“The highly consequential decision by FAA to shut down the El Paso Airport for 10 days is unprecedented and has resulted in significant concern within the community,” Escobar said. “From what my office and I have been able to gather overnight and early this morning there is no immediate threat to the community or surrounding areas.”The airport describes itself as the gateway to west Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. Southwest, United, American and Delta all operate flights there, among others.A similar temporary flight restriction for special security reasons over the same time period was imposed around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, which is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport.Southwest Airlines said in a statement that it has paused all operations to and from El Paso at the direction of the FAA.“We have notified affected customers and will share additional information as it becomes available,” Southwest Airlines said. “Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of its customers and employees.”

New details on why FAA closed airspace round El Paso 

WASHINGTON (AP) — Parents who owe a significant amount of child support soon could lose their ability to travel internationally as the Trump administration expands and steps up enforcement of a 30-year-old law that allows the federal government to revoke American passports until payments are made, three U.S. officials told The Associated Press.

While passport revocations for unpaid child support of more than $2,500 have been permitted under 1996 federal legislation, the State Department had in the past acted only when someone applied to renew their travel document or sought other consular services. In other words, enforcement depended on the person approaching the department for assistance.

Starting soon, however, the department will begin to revoke passports on its own initiative based on data shared with it by the Health and Human Services Department, according to the U.S. officials familiar with the plan. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the change has not yet been publicly announced.

The number of people who could be affected was not immediately clear, but it is believed to be in the thousands. Because of the potentially large universe of those owing child support who currently hold passports, the State Department will make the change in tiers, the officials said.

The first group to be affected will be passport holders who owe more than $100,000 in past-due child support, the officials said. One of the officials said fewer than 500 people meet that threshold and could avoid having their passport revoked if they enter into a payment plan with HHS after being notified of the pending revocation.

The official acknowledged, though, that if and when the threshold is lowered to a smaller past-due amount, the number of those affected will rise significantly. The official could not say when any further changes would take effect or estimate how many people might then lose their passports.

In an emailed response to the AP’s queries about the change, the State Department said it “is reviewing options to enforce long-standing law to prevent those owing substantial amounts of child support from neglecting their legal and moral obligations to their children.” It added: “It is simple: deadbeat parents need to pay their child support arrears.”

Since the Passport Denial Program began with the 1996 passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, the initiative has taken in nearly $621 million in past-due child support payments, with nine collections of more than $300,000, according to the Office of Child Support Enforcement at the Department of Health and Human Services.

HHS did not respond to questions about how many people are in arrears.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/7/1627262146028.jpeg" alt="Image Pixaby" />
 <figcaption>Image Pixaby</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Parents who owe a significant amount of child support soon could lose their ability to travel internationally as the Trump administration expands and steps up enforcement of a 30-year-old law that allows the federal government to revoke American passports until payments are made, three U.S. officials told The Associated Press.While passport revocations for unpaid child support of more than $2,500 have been permitted under 1996 federal legislation, the State Department had in the past acted only when someone applied to renew their travel document or sought other consular services. In other words, enforcement depended on the person approaching the department for assistance.Starting soon, however, the department will begin to revoke passports on its own initiative based on data shared with it by the Health and Human Services Department, according to the U.S. officials familiar with the plan. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the change has not yet been publicly announced.The number of people who could be affected was not immediately clear, but it is believed to be in the thousands. Because of the potentially large universe of those owing child support who currently hold passports, the State Department will make the change in tiers, the officials said.The first group to be affected will be passport holders who owe more than $100,000 in past-due child support, the officials said. One of the officials said fewer than 500 people meet that threshold and could avoid having their passport revoked if they enter into a payment plan with HHS after being notified of the pending revocation.The official acknowledged, though, that if and when the threshold is lowered to a smaller past-due amount, the number of those affected will rise significantly. The official could not say when any further changes would take effect or estimate how many people might then lose their passports.In an emailed response to the AP’s queries about the change, the State Department said it “is reviewing options to enforce long-standing law to prevent those owing substantial amounts of child support from neglecting their legal and moral obligations to their children.” It added: “It is simple: deadbeat parents need to pay their child support arrears.”Since the Passport Denial Program began with the 1996 passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, the initiative has taken in nearly $621 million in past-due child support payments, with nine collections of more than $300,000, according to the Office of Child Support Enforcement at the Department of Health and Human Services.HHS did not respond to questions about how many people are in arrears.___

US to expand passport revocations for parents who owe child support

KANSAS CITY—Law enforcement are investigating another homicide in Kansas City.

At 9:30p.m. Tuesday, police were dispatched to the 1300 block of E. Armour Blvd. in Kansas City, Missouri, on a sound of shots call, according to KCPD Sergeant Jake Becchina.

Multiple callers reported the sound of gunfire from behind an apartment building there. On arrival officers were directed to a parking lot in the back of an apartment building where they located a vehicle with two shooting victims, a man and woman, unresponsive inside.&nbsp;

Officers called for EMS who declared both victims deceased at the scene.&nbsp;Homicide detectives responded to the scene to conduct their investigation along with crime scene investigators who are processing the scene for available evidence.&nbsp; Police did not release any suspect information or the names of the victims.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770822843585.png" alt="Police on the scene of the investigation -photo courtesy KMBC" />
 <figcaption>Police on the scene of the investigation -photo courtesy KMBC</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY—Law enforcement are investigating another homicide in Kansas City.At 9:30p.m. Tuesday, police were dispatched to the 1300 block of E. Armour Blvd. in Kansas City, Missouri, on a sound of shots call, according to KCPD Sergeant Jake Becchina.Multiple callers reported the sound of gunfire from behind an apartment building there. On arrival officers were directed to a parking lot in the back of an apartment building where they located a vehicle with two shooting victims, a man and woman, unresponsive inside.&nbsp;Officers called for EMS who declared both victims deceased at the scene.&nbsp;Homicide detectives responded to the scene to conduct their investigation along with crime scene investigators who are processing the scene for available evidence.&nbsp; Police did not release any suspect information or the names of the victims.

Homicide: Man, woman found dead in car behind KC apartment building

RIO RICO, Ariz. (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-arizona-b765fed6b9669441383b75860263ac99">Fresh surveillance images</a>&nbsp;from Nancy Guthrie’s porch the night she went missing, coupled with intense police activity across Arizona and the detention of a man raised hopes that authorities were nearing a major break.

By Wednesday, however, it was unclear where the investigation stood into last week’s disappearance of Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/savannah-guthrie">Savannah Guthrie</a>.

Just hours after the FBI released videos Tuesday of a person wearing a gun holster, ski mask and a backpack and approaching&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-nancy-adaa8af43efe04c252a52616d9037a05">Nancy Guthrie's home</a>&nbsp;in Tucson, authorities announced they had stopped a man near the U.S.-Mexico border for questioning.

The man, though, told several media outlets early Wednesday that he was released after several hours and had nothing to do with Guthrie's disappearance last week.

Authorities have not said what led them to stop the man and had not confirmed he was released. The sheriff's department said its deputies and FBI agents also searched a location Tuesday night in Rio Rico, a city south of Tucson where the man lives.

It was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-534c68bfb666ab8e08123f130f937c2d">the latest twist</a>&nbsp;in an investigation that has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-534c68bfb666ab8e08123f130f937c2d">gripped the nation</a>&nbsp;since Nancy Guthrie disappeared on Feb. 1. Until Tuesday, it seemed authorities were making little headway in determining what happened to her or finding who was responsible.

The black and white images released by the FBI showing a masked person trying to cover a doorbell camera on Guthrie’s porch marked the first significant break in the case.

The videos — less than a combined minute in length — gave investigators and the public their first glimpse of who was outside Guthrie’s home in the foothills outside Tucson. But the images did not show&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-nancy-adaa8af43efe04c252a52616d9037a05">what happened to her</a>&nbsp;or help determine whether she is still alive.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nancy-guthrie-nest-camera-footage-kidnapper-bd5f1d886543e23f2d105535031c9445">videos were pulled</a>&nbsp;from data on “back-end systems” after investigators spent days trying to find lost, corrupted or inaccessible images.

Even though the images do not show the person's face, investigators are hopeful someone will know who was on the porch that night.

“Even when you have a person who appears to be completely covered, they’re really not. You can see their girth, the shape of their face, potentially their eyes or mouth,” said former FBI agent Katherine Schweit.

Authorities were back near Guthrie’s neighborhood on Tuesday, using vehicles to block her driveway. A few miles away, law enforcement was going door-to-door in the area where daughter Annie Guthrie lives, talking with neighbors as well as walking through a drainage area and examining the inside of a culvert with a flashlight.

Investigators have said for more than a week that they believe Nancy Guthrie was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mother-missing-arizona-tucson-6c7b78d17d7b647c64f71f64ecaecf8b">taken against her will</a>. She was last seen at home Jan. 31 and reported missing the next day. DNA tests showed blood on her porch was hers, authorities said.

Savannah Guthrie posted the new surveillance images on social media Tuesday, saying the family believes their mother is still alive and offering phone numbers for the FBI and county sheriff.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/today-savannah-guthrie-mother-missing-2c0512333cfaa6cdb01a82d1992160b2">The longtime anchor</a>&nbsp;of NBC’s morning show and her two siblings have released a series of video statements pleading for the return of their mother and indicating a willingness to pay a ransom.

It is not known whether ransom notes demanding money with deadlines that have already passed were authentic, and whether the family has had any contact with whoever took Guthrie.

Authorities have described Nancy Guthrie as mentally sound but with limited mobility. She takes several medications and there was concern from the start that she could die without them, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said repeatedly.

RIO RICO, Ariz. (AP) — A person was detained for questioning Tuesday in the kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie, hours after the FBI released surveillance videos of a masked person wearing a handgun holster outside Guthrie’s front door the night she vanished from her Arizona home.

Deputies detained the person during a traffic stop south of Tucson, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. It did not immediately provide details about the person or the location. The FBI referred questions to the sheriff’s office.

A Phoenix, Arizona, television station, KNXV-TV, interviewed a delivery man who said he had been detained by police on suspicions of kidnapping Guthrie. He said he was innocent and that police released him after several hours. Local and federal authorities have not confirmed that the person who they had detained was released.

The department and the FBI were conducting a court-authorized search Tuesday night at a location in Rio Rico, about an hour’s drive south of Tucson, the department said in a statement. It was expected to take several hours.

Guthrie disappeared on Feb. 1 and since then the case has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-534c68bfb666ab8e08123f130f937c2d">gripped the nation</a>. Until Tuesday, it seemed authorities were making little headway in determining what happened to the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/savannah-guthrie">Savannah Guthrie</a>&nbsp;or finding who was responsible.

Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings have released a series of video statements pleading for the return of their mother and indicating a willingness to pay a ransom. Authorities have described Nancy Guthrie as mentally sound but with limited mobility. She takes several medications and there was concern from the start that she could die without them, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said repeatedly.

The community of Rio Rico — population 20,000 — is roughly an hour's drive from Guthrie's home and about 15 miles (24 kilometers) north of the U.S.-Mexico border.

The videos released earlier Tuesday show a person wearing a ski mask and a backpack. At one point, they tilt their head down and away from a doorbell camera while approaching Guthrie's front door. The footage also shows the person holding a flashlight in their mouth and trying to cover the camera with a gloved hand and part of a plant ripped from the yard.

The videos — less than a combined minute in length — gave investigators and the public their first glimpse of who was outside Guthrie's home in the foothills outside Tucson. But the images did not show&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-nancy-adaa8af43efe04c252a52616d9037a05">what happened to her</a>&nbsp;or help determine whether she is still alive.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the “armed individual” appeared to "have tampered with the camera." It was not entirely clear whether there was a gun in the holster.

The videos were pulled from data on "back-end systems” after investigators spent days trying to find lost, corrupted or inaccessible images, Patel said.

“This will get the phone ringing for lots of potential leads,” said former FBI agent Katherine Schweit. “Even when you have a person who appears to be completely covered, they’re really not. You can see their girth, the shape of their face, potentially their eyes or mouth.”

Tuesday afternoon, authorities were back near Guthrie’s neighborhood, using vehicles to block her driveway. A few miles away, law enforcement was going door-to-door in the area where daughter Annie Guthrie lives, talking with neighbors as well as walking through a drainage area and examining the inside of a culvert with a flashlight.

Authorities initially could not pull images from camera

Until now, authorities have released few details, leaving it unclear if ransom notes demanding money with deadlines already passed were authentic, and whether the Guthrie family has had any contact with whoever took Guthrie.

Savannah Guthrie posted the new surveillance images on social media Tuesday, saying the family believes their mother is still alive and offering phone numbers for the FBI and county sheriff. Within minutes, the post had thousands of comments.

Investigators had hoped cameras would turn up evidence right away about how Nancy Guthrie disappeared from her home in an secluded neighborhood.

But the doorbell camera was disconnected early on Feb. 1. While software recorded movement at the home minutes later, Guthrie did not have an active subscription, so Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos had initially said none of the footage could be recovered. Officials continued working to get the footage.

Savannah Guthrie expressed desperation a day ago

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nancy-guthrie-instagram-videos-timeline-37d24fdea0bbc787900d8c02ea34b390">Heartbreaking messages</a>&nbsp;by Savannah Guthrie and her family shifted from hopeful to bleak as they made pleas for whoever took Nancy Guthrie. In a video just ahead of a purported ransom deadline Monday, Savannah Guthrie appeared alone and spoke directly to the public.

“We are at an hour of desperation,” she said. “We need your help.”

Much of the nation is closely following the case involving&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/today-savannah-guthrie-mother-missing-2c0512333cfaa6cdb01a82d1992160b2">the longtime anchor</a>&nbsp;of NBC’s morning show.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Donald Trump watched the new surveillance footage and was in “pure disgust,” encouraging anyone with information to call the FBI.

The FBI this week began posting digital billboards about the case in major cities from Texas to California.

Connor Hagan, a spokesperson for the FBI, said Monday that the agency&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-ransom-deadline-arizona-3977f842fd3d1fd66952d1d763944b9d">was not aware of ongoing communication</a>&nbsp;between Guthrie’s family and any suspected kidnappers. Authorities also had not identified any suspects, he said.

Videos from Guthrie siblings appealed directly to whoever took their mom

Three days after the search began, Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings sent their&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-88e8731270d05e6e667730d2ed8633d3">first public appeal</a>&nbsp;to whoever took their mother, saying, “We want to hear from you, and we are ready to listen.”

In the recorded video, Guthrie said her family was aware of media reports about a ransom letter, but they first wanted proof their mother was alive.

The next day, Savannah Guthrie’s brother&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-2765f354b498e6146b955162c3b71d4f">again made a plea</a>, saying, “Whoever is out there holding our mother, we want to hear from you. We haven’t heard anything directly."

Then over the past weekend, the family&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-92dff046a91f2c5c0093f17cd3b7ad42">posted another video</a>&nbsp;— one that was more cryptic and generated&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/search-nancy-guthrie-social-media-posts-e176abcc670af3844416946fb3bb5619">even more speculation</a>&nbsp;about Nancy Guthrie's fate.

“We received your message, and we understand. We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her,” said Savannah Guthrie, flanked by her siblings. “This is the only way we will have peace. This is very valuable to us, and we will pay.”

Golden reported from Seattle and Seewer from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press reporters Darlene Superville in Washington, Ed White in Detroit, and Mike Balsamo, Eric Tucker and Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington contributed to this report.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770749564250.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>RIO RICO, Ariz. (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-arizona-b765fed6b9669441383b75860263ac99">Fresh surveillance images</a>&nbsp;from Nancy Guthrie’s porch the night she went missing, coupled with intense police activity across Arizona and the detention of a man raised hopes that authorities were nearing a major break.By Wednesday, however, it was unclear where the investigation stood into last week’s disappearance of Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/savannah-guthrie">Savannah Guthrie</a>.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Subject detained in connection to Nancy Guthrie investigation. <a href="https://t.co/B2pgIwqODt">pic.twitter.com/B2pgIwqODt</a>&mdash; Pima County Sheriff&#39;s Department (@PimaSheriff) <a href="https://twitter.com/PimaSheriff/status/2021424732676280546?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">New video in the search for Nancy Guthrie: Over the last eight days, the FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department have been working closely with our private sector partners to continue to recover any images or video footage from Nancy Guthrie’s home that may have been lost,… <a href="https://t.co/XCEvkA5eJ6">pic.twitter.com/XCEvkA5eJ6</a>&mdash; FBI Phoenix (@FBIPhoenix) <a href="https://twitter.com/FBIPhoenix/status/2021303417914753471?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Just hours after the FBI released videos Tuesday of a person wearing a gun holster, ski mask and a backpack and approaching&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-nancy-adaa8af43efe04c252a52616d9037a05">Nancy Guthrie's home</a>&nbsp;in Tucson, authorities announced they had stopped a man near the U.S.-Mexico border for questioning.The man, though, told several media outlets early Wednesday that he was released after several hours and had nothing to do with Guthrie's disappearance last week.Authorities have not said what led them to stop the man and had not confirmed he was released. The sheriff's department said its deputies and FBI agents also searched a location Tuesday night in Rio Rico, a city south of Tucson where the man lives.It was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-534c68bfb666ab8e08123f130f937c2d">the latest twist</a>&nbsp;in an investigation that has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-534c68bfb666ab8e08123f130f937c2d">gripped the nation</a>&nbsp;since Nancy Guthrie disappeared on Feb. 1. Until Tuesday, it seemed authorities were making little headway in determining what happened to her or finding who was responsible.The black and white images released by the FBI showing a masked person trying to cover a doorbell camera on Guthrie’s porch marked the first significant break in the case.The videos — less than a combined minute in length — gave investigators and the public their first glimpse of who was outside Guthrie’s home in the foothills outside Tucson. But the images did not show&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-nancy-adaa8af43efe04c252a52616d9037a05">what happened to her</a>&nbsp;or help determine whether she is still alive.FBI Director Kash Patel said the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nancy-guthrie-nest-camera-footage-kidnapper-bd5f1d886543e23f2d105535031c9445">videos were pulled</a>&nbsp;from data on “back-end systems” after investigators spent days trying to find lost, corrupted or inaccessible images.Even though the images do not show the person's face, investigators are hopeful someone will know who was on the porch that night.“Even when you have a person who appears to be completely covered, they’re really not. You can see their girth, the shape of their face, potentially their eyes or mouth,” said former FBI agent Katherine Schweit.Authorities were back near Guthrie’s neighborhood on Tuesday, using vehicles to block her driveway. A few miles away, law enforcement was going door-to-door in the area where daughter Annie Guthrie lives, talking with neighbors as well as walking through a drainage area and examining the inside of a culvert with a flashlight.Investigators have said for more than a week that they believe Nancy Guthrie was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mother-missing-arizona-tucson-6c7b78d17d7b647c64f71f64ecaecf8b">taken against her will</a>. She was last seen at home Jan. 31 and reported missing the next day. DNA tests showed blood on her porch was hers, authorities said.Savannah Guthrie posted the new surveillance images on social media Tuesday, saying the family believes their mother is still alive and offering phone numbers for the FBI and county sheriff.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/today-savannah-guthrie-mother-missing-2c0512333cfaa6cdb01a82d1992160b2">The longtime anchor</a>&nbsp;of NBC’s morning show and her two siblings have released a series of video statements pleading for the return of their mother and indicating a willingness to pay a ransom.It is not known whether ransom notes demanding money with deadlines that have already passed were authentic, and whether the family has had any contact with whoever took Guthrie.Authorities have described Nancy Guthrie as mentally sound but with limited mobility. She takes several medications and there was concern from the start that she could die without them, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said repeatedly.___RIO RICO, Ariz. (AP) — A person was detained for questioning Tuesday in the kidnapping of Nancy Guthrie, hours after the FBI released surveillance videos of a masked person wearing a handgun holster outside Guthrie’s front door the night she vanished from her Arizona home.Deputies detained the person during a traffic stop south of Tucson, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. It did not immediately provide details about the person or the location. The FBI referred questions to the sheriff’s office.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Subject detained in connection to Nancy Guthrie investigation. <a href="https://t.co/B2pgIwqODt">pic.twitter.com/B2pgIwqODt</a>&mdash; Pima County Sheriff&#39;s Department (@PimaSheriff) <a href="https://twitter.com/PimaSheriff/status/2021424732676280546?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">New video in the search for Nancy Guthrie: Over the last eight days, the FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department have been working closely with our private sector partners to continue to recover any images or video footage from Nancy Guthrie’s home that may have been lost,… <a href="https://t.co/XCEvkA5eJ6">pic.twitter.com/XCEvkA5eJ6</a>&mdash; FBI Phoenix (@FBIPhoenix) <a href="https://twitter.com/FBIPhoenix/status/2021303417914753471?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>A Phoenix, Arizona, television station, KNXV-TV, interviewed a delivery man who said he had been detained by police on suspicions of kidnapping Guthrie. He said he was innocent and that police released him after several hours. Local and federal authorities have not confirmed that the person who they had detained was released.The department and the FBI were conducting a court-authorized search Tuesday night at a location in Rio Rico, about an hour’s drive south of Tucson, the department said in a statement. It was expected to take several hours.Guthrie disappeared on Feb. 1 and since then the case has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-534c68bfb666ab8e08123f130f937c2d">gripped the nation</a>. Until Tuesday, it seemed authorities were making little headway in determining what happened to the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/savannah-guthrie">Savannah Guthrie</a>&nbsp;or finding who was responsible.Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings have released a series of video statements pleading for the return of their mother and indicating a willingness to pay a ransom. Authorities have described Nancy Guthrie as mentally sound but with limited mobility. She takes several medications and there was concern from the start that she could die without them, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said repeatedly.The community of Rio Rico — population 20,000 — is roughly an hour's drive from Guthrie's home and about 15 miles (24 kilometers) north of the U.S.-Mexico border.The videos released earlier Tuesday show a person wearing a ski mask and a backpack. At one point, they tilt their head down and away from a doorbell camera while approaching Guthrie's front door. The footage also shows the person holding a flashlight in their mouth and trying to cover the camera with a gloved hand and part of a plant ripped from the yard.The videos — less than a combined minute in length — gave investigators and the public their first glimpse of who was outside Guthrie's home in the foothills outside Tucson. But the images did not show&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-nancy-adaa8af43efe04c252a52616d9037a05">what happened to her</a>&nbsp;or help determine whether she is still alive.FBI Director Kash Patel said the “armed individual” appeared to "have tampered with the camera." It was not entirely clear whether there was a gun in the holster.The videos were pulled from data on "back-end systems” after investigators spent days trying to find lost, corrupted or inaccessible images, Patel said.“This will get the phone ringing for lots of potential leads,” said former FBI agent Katherine Schweit. “Even when you have a person who appears to be completely covered, they’re really not. You can see their girth, the shape of their face, potentially their eyes or mouth.”Tuesday afternoon, authorities were back near Guthrie’s neighborhood, using vehicles to block her driveway. A few miles away, law enforcement was going door-to-door in the area where daughter Annie Guthrie lives, talking with neighbors as well as walking through a drainage area and examining the inside of a culvert with a flashlight.Investigators have said for more than a week that they believe Nancy Guthrie was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mother-missing-arizona-tucson-6c7b78d17d7b647c64f71f64ecaecf8b">taken against her will</a>. She was last seen at home Jan. 31 and reported missing the next day. DNA tests showed blood on her porch was hers, authorities said.<h2>Authorities initially could not pull images from camera</h2>Until now, authorities have released few details, leaving it unclear if ransom notes demanding money with deadlines already passed were authentic, and whether the Guthrie family has had any contact with whoever took Guthrie.Savannah Guthrie posted the new surveillance images on social media Tuesday, saying the family believes their mother is still alive and offering phone numbers for the FBI and county sheriff. Within minutes, the post had thousands of comments.Investigators had hoped cameras would turn up evidence right away about how Nancy Guthrie disappeared from her home in an secluded neighborhood.But the doorbell camera was disconnected early on Feb. 1. While software recorded movement at the home minutes later, Guthrie did not have an active subscription, so Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos had initially said none of the footage could be recovered. Officials continued working to get the footage.<h2>Savannah Guthrie expressed desperation a day ago</h2><a href="https://apnews.com/article/nancy-guthrie-instagram-videos-timeline-37d24fdea0bbc787900d8c02ea34b390">Heartbreaking messages</a>&nbsp;by Savannah Guthrie and her family shifted from hopeful to bleak as they made pleas for whoever took Nancy Guthrie. In a video just ahead of a purported ransom deadline Monday, Savannah Guthrie appeared alone and spoke directly to the public.“We are at an hour of desperation,” she said. “We need your help.”Much of the nation is closely following the case involving&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/today-savannah-guthrie-mother-missing-2c0512333cfaa6cdb01a82d1992160b2">the longtime anchor</a>&nbsp;of NBC’s morning show.White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Donald Trump watched the new surveillance footage and was in “pure disgust,” encouraging anyone with information to call the FBI.The FBI this week began posting digital billboards about the case in major cities from Texas to California.Connor Hagan, a spokesperson for the FBI, said Monday that the agency&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-ransom-deadline-arizona-3977f842fd3d1fd66952d1d763944b9d">was not aware of ongoing communication</a>&nbsp;between Guthrie’s family and any suspected kidnappers. Authorities also had not identified any suspects, he said.<h2>Videos from Guthrie siblings appealed directly to whoever took their mom</h2>Three days after the search began, Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings sent their&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-88e8731270d05e6e667730d2ed8633d3">first public appeal</a>&nbsp;to whoever took their mother, saying, “We want to hear from you, and we are ready to listen.”In the recorded video, Guthrie said her family was aware of media reports about a ransom letter, but they first wanted proof their mother was alive."Please reach out to us,” they said.The next day, Savannah Guthrie’s brother&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-nancy-guthrie-mom-missing-2765f354b498e6146b955162c3b71d4f">again made a plea</a>, saying, “Whoever is out there holding our mother, we want to hear from you. We haven’t heard anything directly."Then over the past weekend, the family&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/savannah-guthrie-mom-missing-92dff046a91f2c5c0093f17cd3b7ad42">posted another video</a>&nbsp;— one that was more cryptic and generated&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/search-nancy-guthrie-social-media-posts-e176abcc670af3844416946fb3bb5619">even more speculation</a>&nbsp;about Nancy Guthrie's fate.“We received your message, and we understand. We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her,” said Savannah Guthrie, flanked by her siblings. “This is the only way we will have peace. This is very valuable to us, and we will pay.”___Golden reported from Seattle and Seewer from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press reporters Darlene Superville in Washington, Ed White in Detroit, and Mike Balsamo, Eric Tucker and Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington contributed to this report.

Nancy Guthrie mystery: Suspect detained and then released

Kansas City —A Jackson County sheriff's deputy struck by a car while investigating an accident continues to improve.

&nbsp; Deputy Westphal sustained numerous serious injuries that required multiple surgeries. He was released from the hospital on Christmas Eve and on Tuesday&nbsp;returned to the&nbsp; Jackson County Sheriff's office for a short visit, according to Jackson County Sheriff Daryl Forte'.

Just after 6p.m. December 17, a 2012 Mercedes driven by a 69-year-old Lee's Summit woman was southbound at South Buckner Tarsney at E. Ryan Road. The vehicle traveled into the crash scene and struck the the 53-year-old deputy, according to the MSHP.

Central Jackson County EMS transported the deputy to Centerpoint Medical Center where he underwnt several medical procedures.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770776003940.png" alt="Westphal photo Sheriff Daryl Forte" />
 <figcaption>Westphal photo Sheriff Daryl Forte</figcaption>
 </figure>Kansas City —A Jackson County sheriff's deputy struck by a car while investigating an accident continues to improve.&nbsp; Deputy Westphal sustained numerous serious injuries that required multiple surgeries. He was released from the hospital on Christmas Eve and on Tuesday&nbsp;returned to the&nbsp; Jackson County Sheriff's office for a short visit, according to Jackson County Sheriff Daryl Forte'.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770775795506.png" alt="Westphal&nbsp; photo Sheriff Daryl Forte" />
 <figcaption>Westphal&nbsp; photo Sheriff Daryl Forte</figcaption>
 </figure>Just after 6p.m. December 17, a 2012 Mercedes driven by a 69-year-old Lee's Summit woman was southbound at South Buckner Tarsney at E. Ryan Road. The vehicle traveled into the crash scene and struck the the 53-year-old deputy, according to the MSHP.Central Jackson County EMS transported the deputy to Centerpoint Medical Center where he underwnt several medical procedures.

Deputy struck by a car  at scene of earlier crash continues to improve

By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/dave-skretta">DAVE SKRETTA</a>

MILAN (AP) — U.S. figure skater Maxim Naumov carried the memory of his late parents with him to the Olympics on Tuesday night, delivering an emotional, heartfelt short program at the Milan Cortina Games that fulfilled a dream they had long shared together.

Former pairs&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/vadim-naumov-evgenia-shishkova-dc-jet-crash-c4788cb6f3e123f0caff83e57347a00d">world champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov</a>&nbsp;were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/aviation-safety-dc-plane-crash-faa-helicopters-07ea495a557b8a2767d0eca4277e8be1">among the 67 people killed</a>&nbsp;— more than two dozen of them members of the figure skating community — when American Airlines Flight 5342 from Wichita&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/dc-plane-crash-army-helicopter-ntsb-cause-c2ebc159a163068b782dd4824097b00b">crashed into a military helicopter</a>&nbsp;on approach to Ronald Reagan National Airport and fell into the icy Potomac River on Jan. 29, 2025.

One of the last conversations Naumov had with his parents was about what it would take to make the Olympics.

“I’ve been inspired by them since day 1, ever since we stepped on the ice together,” said Naumov, who brought an old photograph of that moment to the kiss-and-cry at the Milano Ice Skating Arena, the little tyke standing between his parents as he stepped foot on the ice for the first time, the three of them all smiling for the camera.

“It’s not necessarily thinking about them specifically,” Naumov said, “but their presence. Feeling their presence. With every glide and step that I made on the ice, I couldn’t help but feel their support, almost like a chess piece on a chess board.”

What made one of the feel-good stories of the Winter Games even more special was the performance.

While a long shot to make the top 10 at the Olympics, much less land on the podium, the 24-year-old Naumov nevertheless had one of the best short programs of his career. He opened with a quad salchow as his godmother, Gretta Bogdan, watched from the stands, and he followed up with a triple axel and a triple lutz-triple toe loop to finish out the program.

As the last notes of “Nocturne No. 20” by Frederic Chopin reverberated through the arena, and the crowd rose to its feet, Naumov slid to a stop on his knees and looked to the sky, telling his parents: “Look at what we’ve done.”

“I didn’t know if I was going to cry, smile or laugh,” he said afterward, “and all I could do was look up at them. And man, I still can’t believe what just happened. I think it’s going to take me a few hours or maybe a few weeks to know.”

The plane carrying Naumov’s parents also had aboard 11 young skaters, two other coaches and several family members who had been attending a development camp in Wichita, Kansas, following the 2025 national championships.

Naumov had flown out earlier, shortly after he had finished in fourth place for the third consecutive year.

He has recalled those first weeks after the plane crash, when little things like getting out of bed seemed impossible.

“I just wanted to rot, basically,” he told The Associated Press, though he willed himself to rise anyway.

Naumov soon realized he could find a purpose in lacing up his skates again. The idea of fulfilling the Olympic dream he harbored with his parents pushed him on. And when he finished third at the U.S. championships in January, his spot was all-but secured.

“To be honest,” Naumov said Tuesday night, “I wasn’t thinking about executing anything perfectly or anything like that. I wanted to go out there and just give my heart out. Leave everything out there. Have no regrets. And that’s exactly what I felt.”

In the crowd, dozens of American flags waved when Naumov’s program came to a conclusion. At one end of the arena, a fan held up a big flag that read, “Tomorrow’s Champions,” and carried the logo of the Skating Club of Boston — “Tomorrow’s Champions” is the name of the skating school there that his parents founded and Naumov now oversees.

“I love those guys,” he told AP, smiling.

The work isn’t done for Naumov at the Milan Cortina Olympics, though. His score of 85.65 was enough to make it through the short program, giving him another opportunity to perform when the men’s free skate takes place Friday night.

“From the time that my name was announced in the warm-up to right before the skate,” Naumov said, “I felt it — just the crowd, the energy, the roar. It’s like a buzz, you know? In your body. I couldn’t help but just embrace it. Embrace that love.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770774898118.png" alt="Maxim Naumov image courtesy Team USA" />
 <figcaption>Maxim Naumov image courtesy Team USA</figcaption>
 </figure>By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/dave-skretta">DAVE SKRETTA</a>MILAN (AP) — U.S. figure skater Maxim Naumov carried the memory of his late parents with him to the Olympics on Tuesday night, delivering an emotional, heartfelt short program at the Milan Cortina Games that fulfilled a dream they had long shared together.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">A meaningful debut on the Olympic stage for Maxim Naumov. 🤍<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WinterOlympics?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WinterOlympics</a> <a href="https://t.co/L6sWazkFFf">pic.twitter.com/L6sWazkFFf</a>&mdash; Team USA (@TeamUSA) <a href="https://twitter.com/TeamUSA/status/2021310810471973243?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Former pairs&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/vadim-naumov-evgenia-shishkova-dc-jet-crash-c4788cb6f3e123f0caff83e57347a00d">world champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov</a>&nbsp;were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/aviation-safety-dc-plane-crash-faa-helicopters-07ea495a557b8a2767d0eca4277e8be1">among the 67 people killed</a>&nbsp;— more than two dozen of them members of the figure skating community — when American Airlines Flight 5342 from Wichita&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/dc-plane-crash-army-helicopter-ntsb-cause-c2ebc159a163068b782dd4824097b00b">crashed into a military helicopter</a>&nbsp;on approach to Ronald Reagan National Airport and fell into the icy Potomac River on Jan. 29, 2025.One of the last conversations Naumov had with his parents was about what it would take to make the Olympics.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">Wow. US Figure Skating highlights Maxim Naumov making the sign of the cross as he makes his Olympic debut 1 year ago, he lost his parents in the infamous DC plane crash Even in suffering, God gets the glory ✝️ <a href="https://t.co/WbZkmbksxE">pic.twitter.com/WbZkmbksxE</a>&mdash; Anna Lulis (@annamlulis) <a href="https://twitter.com/annamlulis/status/2021437676126450069?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“I’ve been inspired by them since day 1, ever since we stepped on the ice together,” said Naumov, who brought an old photograph of that moment to the kiss-and-cry at the Milano Ice Skating Arena, the little tyke standing between his parents as he stepped foot on the ice for the first time, the three of them all smiling for the camera.“It’s not necessarily thinking about them specifically,” Naumov said, “but their presence. Feeling their presence. With every glide and step that I made on the ice, I couldn’t help but feel their support, almost like a chess piece on a chess board.”What made one of the feel-good stories of the Winter Games even more special was the performance.While a long shot to make the top 10 at the Olympics, much less land on the podium, the 24-year-old Naumov nevertheless had one of the best short programs of his career. He opened with a quad salchow as his godmother, Gretta Bogdan, watched from the stands, and he followed up with a triple axel and a triple lutz-triple toe loop to finish out the program.As the last notes of “Nocturne No. 20” by Frederic Chopin reverberated through the arena, and the crowd rose to its feet, Naumov slid to a stop on his knees and looked to the sky, telling his parents: “Look at what we’ve done.”“I didn’t know if I was going to cry, smile or laugh,” he said afterward, “and all I could do was look up at them. And man, I still can’t believe what just happened. I think it’s going to take me a few hours or maybe a few weeks to know.”The plane carrying Naumov’s parents also had aboard 11 young skaters, two other coaches and several family members who had been attending a development camp in Wichita, Kansas, following the 2025 national championships.Naumov had flown out earlier, shortly after he had finished in fourth place for the third consecutive year.He has recalled those first weeks after the plane crash, when little things like getting out of bed seemed impossible.“I just wanted to rot, basically,” he told The Associated Press, though he willed himself to rise anyway.Naumov soon realized he could find a purpose in lacing up his skates again. The idea of fulfilling the Olympic dream he harbored with his parents pushed him on. And when he finished third at the U.S. championships in January, his spot was all-but secured.“To be honest,” Naumov said Tuesday night, “I wasn’t thinking about executing anything perfectly or anything like that. I wanted to go out there and just give my heart out. Leave everything out there. Have no regrets. And that’s exactly what I felt.”In the crowd, dozens of American flags waved when Naumov’s program came to a conclusion. At one end of the arena, a fan held up a big flag that read, “Tomorrow’s Champions,” and carried the logo of the Skating Club of Boston — “Tomorrow’s Champions” is the name of the skating school there that his parents founded and Naumov now oversees.“I love those guys,” he told AP, smiling.The work isn’t done for Naumov at the Milan Cortina Olympics, though. His score of 85.65 was enough to make it through the short program, giving him another opportunity to perform when the men’s free skate takes place Friday night.“From the time that my name was announced in the warm-up to right before the skate,” Naumov said, “I felt it — just the crowd, the energy, the roar. It’s like a buzz, you know? In your body. I couldn’t help but just embrace it. Embrace that love.”___

Olympic debut 1 year after parents died in plane flight from Kansas

Four years ago, Congress created the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program to help bridge the digital divide and connect all Americans with reliable broadband, especially rural communities.



However, not a single BEAD project has been completed. On Tuesday, Kansas U.S. Senator Jerry Moran chaired an Appropriations Subcommittee hearing with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick&nbsp;on the roadblocks to implementing the program and ensuring the funding for the program will be used according to congressional intent.

Four years ago, Congress created the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program to help bridge the digital divide and connect all Americans with reliable broadband, especially rural communities.
<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">Four years ago, Congress created the Broadband Equity, Access, &amp; Deployment (BEAD) program to help bridge the digital divide &amp; connect all Americans with reliable broadband, especially rural communities. However, not a single BEAD project has been completed. Today, I chaired an… <a href="https://t.co/JMcLDIXPfB">pic.twitter.com/JMcLDIXPfB</a>&mdash; Senator Jerry Moran (@JerryMoran) <a href="https://twitter.com/JerryMoran/status/2021324485492695547?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
However, not a single BEAD project has been completed. On Tuesday, Kansas U.S. Senator Jerry Moran chaired an Appropriations Subcommittee hearing with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick&nbsp;on the roadblocks to implementing the program and ensuring the funding for the program will be used according to congressional intent.

🎥Moran grills Commerce Secy. on spending for broadband in rural communities

SEDGWICK COUNTY — A Kansas man was sentenced to 34 years in prison last week after being convicted of multiple child exploitation charges.

Judge Kevin Smith handed down the 408-month sentence to Steven K. Davis following a jury trial. On Oct. 8, 2025, a Sedgwick County jury found Davis guilty on six counts of sexual exploitation of a child, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

During the trial, Davis’ parole officer testified that he discovered numerous images on Davis’ phone following an arrest for a parole violation. Davis had been taken into custody for contacting minors, a violation of his post-release conditions.

At the time of the new offenses, Davis was on post-release supervision for two prior convictions of aggravated indecent liberties with a child in 2022, according to the district attorney's office. Smith imposed the sentence after determining Davis is a persistent sex offender under Kansas law.

Davis will be required to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life.

The case was investigated by the Wichita Police Department’s Exploited and Missing Children’s Unit, led by Detectives Jonathan Elledge and Hans Asmussen.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770329069310.png" alt="Davis-photo Kansas Sex Offender Registry" />
 <figcaption>Davis-photo Kansas Sex Offender Registry</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY — A Kansas man was sentenced to 34 years in prison last week after being convicted of multiple child exploitation charges.Judge Kevin Smith handed down the 408-month sentence to Steven K. Davis following a jury trial. On Oct. 8, 2025, a Sedgwick County jury found Davis guilty on six counts of sexual exploitation of a child, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.During the trial, Davis’ parole officer testified that he discovered numerous images on Davis’ phone following an arrest for a parole violation. Davis had been taken into custody for contacting minors, a violation of his post-release conditions.At the time of the new offenses, Davis was on post-release supervision for two prior convictions of aggravated indecent liberties with a child in 2022, according to the district attorney's office. Smith imposed the sentence after determining Davis is a persistent sex offender under Kansas law.Davis will be required to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life.The case was investigated by the Wichita Police Department’s Exploited and Missing Children’s Unit, led by Detectives Jonathan Elledge and Hans Asmussen.

Parole officer found inappropriate images on Kan. sex offender's phone

JOHNSON COUNTY —A man who admitted his role in the drug deal death of a Kansas woman on February 14, 2023 is going to prison.

Last week, Johnson County Judge Jason Billam sentenced 21-year-old Treger Melique Samuels to 84-months in prison, according to the Johnson County District Attorney's office.&nbsp;

Samuels pleaded guilty to charges of distributing drugs causing the death of 20-year-old Ericka Grisby of Olathe.&nbsp; In June of 2025, police booked Samuels into the Johnson County Jail, according to online records.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770391832501.png" alt="Samuels-Johnson County Jail" />
 <figcaption>Samuels-Johnson County Jail</figcaption>
 </figure>JOHNSON COUNTY —A man who admitted his role in the drug deal death of a Kansas woman on February 14, 2023 is going to prison.Last week, Johnson County Judge Jason Billam sentenced 21-year-old Treger Melique Samuels to 84-months in prison, according to the Johnson County District Attorney's office.&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2026/2/1770392373467.png" alt="Ericka Grigsby -photo courtesy Dignity Memorial" />
 <figcaption>Ericka Grigsby -photo courtesy Dignity Memorial</figcaption>
 </figure>Samuels pleaded guilty to charges of distributing drugs causing the death of 20-year-old Ericka Grisby of Olathe.&nbsp; In June of 2025, police booked Samuels into the Johnson County Jail, according to online records.

Prison time for drug deal death of 20-year-old Kansas woman

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jurors in a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/meta-instagram-youtube-social-media-addiction-los-angeles-1b409b31438e5ba46e2e8c064229b51a">landmark social media case</a>&nbsp;that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children got their first glimpse into what will be a lengthy trial characterized by dueling narratives from the plaintiffs and the two remaining defendants, Meta and YouTube.

At the core of the Los Angeles case is a 20-year-old identified only by the initials “KGM,” whose case could determine how thousands of similar lawsuits will play out. KGM and the cases of two other plaintiffs have been selected to be bellwether trials — essentially test cases for both sides to see how their arguments play out before a jury.

Comparing social media platforms to casinos and addictive drugs, lawyer Mark Lanier delivered opening statements Monday in the Los Angeles Superior Court trial that seeks to hold Instagram owner Meta and Google's YouTube responsible for addictive features and harms to children who use their products. Two other defendants, TikTok and Snap,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/social-media-trial-kids-addiction-meta-tiktok-youtube-d3a6bf617f2d11521675412ffb275031">have settled the case.</a>

Meta lawyer Paul Schmidt spoke of the disagreement within the scientific community over social media addiction, with some researchers believing it doesn’t exist, or that addiction is not the most appropriate way to describe heavy social media use.

Luis Li, the attorney representing YouTube and Google, delivered an opening statement on Tuesday focused on KGM's user data, saying the five-year average of her watch time is 29 minutes per day. He said KGM's average daily time spent on YouTube Shorts, watching vertical short form videos with the “infinite scroll” feature Lanier called into question Monday, was just 1 minute and 14 seconds.

He also told jurors that all of the YouTube features Lanier challenged in his opening statement could be disabled and modified to match users’ preferences.

“When you strip away all of the rhetoric ... what you are left with is a simple truth. Infinite scroll is not infinite,” Li said. “In some cases, in this case, before this court, before you, the jury, it’s as little as a minute and 14 seconds. It’s not social media addiction when it’s not social media and it’s not an addiction.”

Lanier, the plaintiff's lawyer, delivered lively first remarks Monday, where he said the case will be as “easy as ABC” — which stands for “addicting the brains of children.” He said Meta and Google, “two of the richest corporations in history,” have “engineered addiction in children’s brains.”

He presented jurors with a slew of internal emails, documents and studies conducted by Meta and YouTube, as well as YouTube’s parent company, Google. He emphasized the findings of a study Meta conducted called “Project Myst,” in which they surveyed 1,000 teens and their parents about their social media use. The two major findings, Lanier said, were that Meta knew children who experienced “adverse events” like trauma and stress were particularly vulnerable for addiction; and that parental supervision and controls made little impact.

He also highlighted internal Google documents that likened some company products to a casino, and internal communication between Meta employees in which one person said Instagram is “like a drug” and they are “basically pushers.”

Li was insistent that KGM is not addicted to YouTube, pointing to sworn testimony where she directly said she wasn’t addicted to it. He also displayed three large boxes containing about 10,000 pages of medical records, saying that within all of those records, jurors would not see a “single example” of KGM being addicted to YouTube, or a single treatment plan for an addiction to YouTube.

The sole reference to YouTube within those records is an instance where her provider noted KGM was using a YouTube video to assist with sleep at night when feeling anxious, he said.

Plaintiff grew up using YouTube, Instagram

KGM made a brief appearance on Monday during Lanier’s statement and she will return to testify later in the trial. Lanier spent time describing KGM's childhood, focusing particularly on what her personality was like before she began using social media. She started using YouTube at age 6 and Instagram at age 9, Lanier said. Before she graduated from elementary school, she had posted 284 videos on YouTube.

The outcome of the trial could have profound effects on the companies' businesses and how they will handle children using their platforms.

Lanier said the companies’ lawyers will “try to blame the little girl and her parents for the trap they built,” referencing the plaintiff. She was a minor when she said she became addicted to social media, which she claims had a detrimental impact on her mental health.

Lanier said that despite the public position of Meta and YouTube being that they work to protect children, their internal documents show an entirely different position, with explicit references to young children being listed as their target audiences.

“For a teenager, social validation is survival,” Lanier said. The defendants “engineered a feature that caters to a minor’s craving for social validation,” he added, speaking about “like” buttons and similar features.

In his opening statement representing Meta, Schmidt said the core question in the case is whether the platforms were a substantial factor in KGM’s mental health struggles. He spent much of his time going through the plaintiff’s health records, emphasizing that she had experienced many difficult circumstances in her childhood, including emotional abuse, body image issues and bullying.

Schmidt presented a clip from a video deposition from one of KGM‘s mental health providers, Dr. Thomas Suberman, who said social media was “not the through-line of what I recall being her main issues,” adding that her struggles seemed to largely stem from interpersonal conflicts and relationships. He painted a picture — with KGM’s own text messages and testimony pointing to a volatile home life — of a particularly troubled relationship with her mother.

Schmidt acknowledged that many mental health professionals do believe social media addiction can exist, but said three of KGM’s providers — all of whom believe in the form of addiction — have never diagnosed her with it, or treated her for it.

A reckoning for social media and youth harms

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/9/1758981317980.jpg" alt="Image. Pixaby" />
 <figcaption>Image. Pixaby</figcaption>
 </figure>LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jurors in a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/meta-instagram-youtube-social-media-addiction-los-angeles-1b409b31438e5ba46e2e8c064229b51a">landmark social media case</a>&nbsp;that seeks to hold tech companies responsible for harms to children got their first glimpse into what will be a lengthy trial characterized by dueling narratives from the plaintiffs and the two remaining defendants, Meta and YouTube.At the core of the Los Angeles case is a 20-year-old identified only by the initials “KGM,” whose case could determine how thousands of similar lawsuits will play out. KGM and the cases of two other plaintiffs have been selected to be bellwether trials — essentially test cases for both sides to see how their arguments play out before a jury.Comparing social media platforms to casinos and addictive drugs, lawyer Mark Lanier delivered opening statements Monday in the Los Angeles Superior Court trial that seeks to hold Instagram owner Meta and Google's YouTube responsible for addictive features and harms to children who use their products. Two other defendants, TikTok and Snap,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/social-media-trial-kids-addiction-meta-tiktok-youtube-d3a6bf617f2d11521675412ffb275031">have settled the case.</a>Meta lawyer Paul Schmidt spoke of the disagreement within the scientific community over social media addiction, with some researchers believing it doesn’t exist, or that addiction is not the most appropriate way to describe heavy social media use.Luis Li, the attorney representing YouTube and Google, delivered an opening statement on Tuesday focused on KGM's user data, saying the five-year average of her watch time is 29 minutes per day. He said KGM's average daily time spent on YouTube Shorts, watching vertical short form videos with the “infinite scroll” feature Lanier called into question Monday, was just 1 minute and 14 seconds.He also told jurors that all of the YouTube features Lanier challenged in his opening statement could be disabled and modified to match users’ preferences.“When you strip away all of the rhetoric ... what you are left with is a simple truth. Infinite scroll is not infinite,” Li said. “In some cases, in this case, before this court, before you, the jury, it’s as little as a minute and 14 seconds. It’s not social media addiction when it’s not social media and it’s not an addiction.”<h2>‘Addicting the brains of children’</h2>Lanier, the plaintiff's lawyer, delivered lively first remarks Monday, where he said the case will be as “easy as ABC” — which stands for “addicting the brains of children.” He said Meta and Google, “two of the richest corporations in history,” have “engineered addiction in children’s brains.”He presented jurors with a slew of internal emails, documents and studies conducted by Meta and YouTube, as well as YouTube’s parent company, Google. He emphasized the findings of a study Meta conducted called “Project Myst,” in which they surveyed 1,000 teens and their parents about their social media use. The two major findings, Lanier said, were that Meta knew children who experienced “adverse events” like trauma and stress were particularly vulnerable for addiction; and that parental supervision and controls made little impact.He also highlighted internal Google documents that likened some company products to a casino, and internal communication between Meta employees in which one person said Instagram is “like a drug” and they are “basically pushers.”Li was insistent that KGM is not addicted to YouTube, pointing to sworn testimony where she directly said she wasn’t addicted to it. He also displayed three large boxes containing about 10,000 pages of medical records, saying that within all of those records, jurors would not see a “single example” of KGM being addicted to YouTube, or a single treatment plan for an addiction to YouTube.The sole reference to YouTube within those records is an instance where her provider noted KGM was using a YouTube video to assist with sleep at night when feeling anxious, he said.<h2>Plaintiff grew up using YouTube, Instagram</h2>KGM made a brief appearance on Monday during Lanier’s statement and she will return to testify later in the trial. Lanier spent time describing KGM's childhood, focusing particularly on what her personality was like before she began using social media. She started using YouTube at age 6 and Instagram at age 9, Lanier said. Before she graduated from elementary school, she had posted 284 videos on YouTube.The outcome of the trial could have profound effects on the companies' businesses and how they will handle children using their platforms.Lanier said the companies’ lawyers will “try to blame the little girl and her parents for the trap they built,” referencing the plaintiff. She was a minor when she said she became addicted to social media, which she claims had a detrimental impact on her mental health.Lanier said that despite the public position of Meta and YouTube being that they work to protect children, their internal documents show an entirely different position, with explicit references to young children being listed as their target audiences.“For a teenager, social validation is survival,” Lanier said. The defendants “engineered a feature that caters to a minor’s craving for social validation,” he added, speaking about “like” buttons and similar features.<h2>Meta pushes back</h2>In his opening statement representing Meta, Schmidt said the core question in the case is whether the platforms were a substantial factor in KGM’s mental health struggles. He spent much of his time going through the plaintiff’s health records, emphasizing that she had experienced many difficult circumstances in her childhood, including emotional abuse, body image issues and bullying.Schmidt presented a clip from a video deposition from one of KGM‘s mental health providers, Dr. Thomas Suberman, who said social media was “not the through-line of what I recall being her main issues,” adding that her struggles seemed to largely stem from interpersonal conflicts and relationships. He painted a picture — with KGM’s own text messages and testimony pointing to a volatile home life — of a particularly troubled relationship with her mother.Schmidt acknowledged that many mental health professionals do believe social media addiction can exist, but said three of KGM’s providers — all of whom believe in the form of addiction — have never diagnosed her with it, or treated her for it.<h2>A reckoning for social media and youth harms</h2>A slew of trials beginning this year seek to hold social media companies responsible for harming children's mental well-being. Executives, including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, are expected to testify at the Los Angeles trial, which will last six to eight weeks. Experts have drawn similarities to the Big Tobacco trials that led to a 1998 settlement requiring cigarette companies to pay billions in health care costs and restrict marketing targeting minors.A separate&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/meta-new-mexico-child-exploitation-trial-19195fc680dba782fb971d68082e11a4">trial in New Mexico</a>, meanwhile, also kicked off with opening statements on Monday. In that trial, Meta is accused of failing to protect young users from sexual exploitation, following an undercover online investigation.A federal bellwether trial beginning in June in Oakland, California, will be the first to represent school districts that have sued social media platforms over harms to children.In addition, more than&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/instagram-facebook-children-teens-harms-lawsuit-attorney-general-1805492a38f7cee111cbb865cc786c28">40 state attorneys general have filed lawsuits</a>&nbsp;against Meta, claiming it is harming young people and contributing to the youth mental health crisis by deliberately designing features on Instagram and Facebook that addict children to its platforms. The majority of cases filed their lawsuits in federal court, but some sued in their respective states.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/tiktok-lawsuit-youth-mental-health-2993f8e70d2e3d4eab9988df168fb948">TikTok</a>&nbsp;also faces similar lawsuits in more than a dozen states.—Ortutay reported from Oakland, California. Associated Press Writer Morgan Lee in Santa Fe, New Mexico, contributed to this story.