Gary J. Weathers, 67, passed away on December 28, 2021 in Salina, 
Kan. He was born on July 24, 1954, in Great Bend, Kan., to Winton and 
Winifred (Watson) Weathers. He is survived by two children, Mollie 
Weathers and Miles Weathers, both of Salina; three sisters-in-law, Mary 
Kohr (Mike), of Norwood Young America, Minn., Mardella Chambers 
(Blaine), and Betsy Beadleston, both of Salina; nieces, Meaghan Urban 
(Michael), and Jodie Platz, both of Kansas City, Kan.; nephew, Matthew 
Kohr, of Norwood Young America, Minn.; and grandchildren, Winifred Lea 
Bounsombath, Angelina Maybrier, and Wade Pugh, all of Salina, and 
Charley Robinson, of Kansas City, Mo.

Gary grew up in Salina and graduated from Salina South High School in
 1972. He married Nancy Beadleston on October 1, 1983 at the University 
United Methodist Church in Salina. With the marriage came two children, 
Mollie and Miles. Gary worked for many years as a fabricator/machinist. 
He finished his working career as a print press operator for the Salina 
Journal. In retirement he took care of his ailing wife, Nancy, until her
 passing, and then took up her role in helping to watch his grandchild, 
Winifred. Having many hobbies through the years, Gary was known to enjoy
 his motorcycle, being a Deadhead, the Community Theater, cycling, and 
anything to do with history. Through the community theater he was 
introduced to the Salina Mennonite Church where his was baptized and 
remained an active member. Always the first to offer help or to show up 
randomly with something he saw that made him think of you, Gary always 
hoped that the world would find peace and everyone would stop fighting.

A celebration of life gathering will be held on Friday, January 7, 
2022 from 4 – 8 p.m, at Ryan Mortuary, Salina. Memorials may be made to 
donor’s choice, left in care of the mortuary. For more information or to
 leave online condolences visit www.ryanmortuary.com.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641241604924.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Gary J. Weathers, 67, passed away on December 28, 2021 in Salina, 
Kan. He was born on July 24, 1954, in Great Bend, Kan., to Winton and 
Winifred (Watson) Weathers. He is survived by two children, Mollie 
Weathers and Miles Weathers, both of Salina; three sisters-in-law, Mary 
Kohr (Mike), of Norwood Young America, Minn., Mardella Chambers 
(Blaine), and Betsy Beadleston, both of Salina; nieces, Meaghan Urban 
(Michael), and Jodie Platz, both of Kansas City, Kan.; nephew, Matthew 
Kohr, of Norwood Young America, Minn.; and grandchildren, Winifred Lea 
Bounsombath, Angelina Maybrier, and Wade Pugh, all of Salina, and 
Charley Robinson, of Kansas City, Mo.Gary grew up in Salina and graduated from Salina South High School in
 1972. He married Nancy Beadleston on October 1, 1983 at the University 
United Methodist Church in Salina. With the marriage came two children, 
Mollie and Miles. Gary worked for many years as a fabricator/machinist. 
He finished his working career as a print press operator for the Salina 
Journal. In retirement he took care of his ailing wife, Nancy, until her
 passing, and then took up her role in helping to watch his grandchild, 
Winifred. Having many hobbies through the years, Gary was known to enjoy
 his motorcycle, being a Deadhead, the Community Theater, cycling, and 
anything to do with history. Through the community theater he was 
introduced to the Salina Mennonite Church where his was baptized and 
remained an active member. Always the first to offer help or to show up 
randomly with something he saw that made him think of you, Gary always 
hoped that the world would find peace and everyone would stop fighting.A celebration of life gathering will be held on Friday, January 7, 
2022 from 4 – 8 p.m, at Ryan Mortuary, Salina. Memorials may be made to 
donor’s choice, left in care of the mortuary. For more information or to
 leave online condolences visit www.ryanmortuary.com.

Gary J. Weathers

Keith Wendell Mull, 98, passed away January 2, 2022, at Country Place Senior Living in Larned.

He was born October 29, 1923, in Great Bend, the son of John and Vida Unruh Mull.

A lifetime area resident he was a farmer/stockman, building two 
commercial feed lots. Keith was a 1941 Graduate of Pawnee Rock High 
School and later attended Emporia State University, Denver University, 
and Kansas State University. He served in the United States Army during 
World War II in the European Theatre. He was a Farm Bureau Leader of the
 Year and a Larned Rotary Club Paul Harris Fellow; a member of New 
Jerusalem Church, Pawnee Rock, Prairie Arts Unlimited, and a member of 
the Kansas Livestock Association for fifty years. He served on the 
Pawnee Rock School Board, Farm Service Board, River Township Board, 
First National Bank Board of Directors, National Cattleman Association 
Committee, 4-H Club Leader, Pawnee County Republican Party Leader, BCCC 
Endowment Board, New Jerusalem Church Urbana College Board of Trustees, 
Urbana, OH, Pawnee County Environmental Task Force, Larned Recreation 
Commission, CKMC Foundation Board, and Kansas State University Endowment
 Board.

On December 27, 1945, he married Marian E. Schmitt in Pawnee Rock; she preceded him in death on October 19, 2005.

Survivors include: a daughter, Jeanine (Brad) Haynes, Westfield, IN; 
four grandchildren, Jennifer (Walter) Ladwig, London, England, John 
Mull, Wichita, Jason (Terri) Haynes, Goshen, KY, Robyn (Brian) Kavanagh,
 Carmel, IN and Doug Harter, Pawnee Rock; ten great grandchildren, Ava 
Mull, Pratt, Chase Harter, Lewis, Walter and William Ladwig, London, 
England, Gabe and Maddy Mull, Larned, Avery and Ben Haynes, Goshen, KY, 
and Jameson and Emily Kavanagh, Carmel IN.

He was preceded in death by: his parents; his wife; a brother, 
Charles Mull; son and daughter-in-law, Glenn and Elaine Mull; 
granddaughter, Amy Harter; and great granddaughter, Samantha Harter.

Funeral service will be 10:00 a.m. Saturday, January 8, 2022, at First
 Presbyterian Church, Larned, with Pastor Jane Siebert and Pastor Bill 
Stapleton presiding. Visitation will be 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Friday, 
January 7, 2022, at Beckwith Mortuary with family present from 6:00 p.m. 
to 8:00 p.m. Burial will be in the Pawnee Rock Cemetery, Pawnee Rock 
with military graveside rites.

Memorials may be given to Pawnee County 4-H Foundation, Santa Fe 
Trail Center, or Pawnee Valley Community Hospital in care of Beckwith 
Mortuary, PO Box 477, Larned, Kansas 67550.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641241528105.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Keith Wendell Mull, 98, passed away January 2, 2022, at Country Place Senior Living in Larned.He was born October 29, 1923, in Great Bend, the son of John and Vida Unruh Mull.A lifetime area resident he was a farmer/stockman, building two 
commercial feed lots. Keith was a 1941 Graduate of Pawnee Rock High 
School and later attended Emporia State University, Denver University, 
and Kansas State University. He served in the United States Army during 
World War II in the European Theatre. He was a Farm Bureau Leader of the
 Year and a Larned Rotary Club Paul Harris Fellow; a member of New 
Jerusalem Church, Pawnee Rock, Prairie Arts Unlimited, and a member of 
the Kansas Livestock Association for fifty years. He served on the 
Pawnee Rock School Board, Farm Service Board, River Township Board, 
First National Bank Board of Directors, National Cattleman Association 
Committee, 4-H Club Leader, Pawnee County Republican Party Leader, BCCC 
Endowment Board, New Jerusalem Church Urbana College Board of Trustees, 
Urbana, OH, Pawnee County Environmental Task Force, Larned Recreation 
Commission, CKMC Foundation Board, and Kansas State University Endowment
 Board.On December 27, 1945, he married Marian E. Schmitt in Pawnee Rock; she preceded him in death on October 19, 2005.Survivors include: a daughter, Jeanine (Brad) Haynes, Westfield, IN; 
four grandchildren, Jennifer (Walter) Ladwig, London, England, John 
Mull, Wichita, Jason (Terri) Haynes, Goshen, KY, Robyn (Brian) Kavanagh,
 Carmel, IN and Doug Harter, Pawnee Rock; ten great grandchildren, Ava 
Mull, Pratt, Chase Harter, Lewis, Walter and William Ladwig, London, 
England, Gabe and Maddy Mull, Larned, Avery and Ben Haynes, Goshen, KY, 
and Jameson and Emily Kavanagh, Carmel IN.He was preceded in death by: his parents; his wife; a brother, 
Charles Mull; son and daughter-in-law, Glenn and Elaine Mull; 
granddaughter, Amy Harter; and great granddaughter, Samantha Harter.Funeral service will be 10:00 a.m. Saturday, January 8, 2022, at First
 Presbyterian Church, Larned, with Pastor Jane Siebert and Pastor Bill 
Stapleton presiding. Visitation will be 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Friday, 
January 7, 2022, at Beckwith Mortuary with family present from 6:00 p.m. 
to 8:00 p.m. Burial will be in the Pawnee Rock Cemetery, Pawnee Rock 
with military graveside rites.Memorials may be given to Pawnee County 4-H Foundation, Santa Fe 
Trail Center, or Pawnee Valley Community Hospital in care of Beckwith 
Mortuary, PO Box 477, Larned, Kansas 67550.&nbsp;

Keith Wendell Mull

Each year, I like to look back and create a “Top 10 list” in David Letterman style. The list, roughly in chronological order, is certainly not all-encompassing – there are great stories and good news every day at Fort Hays State University. However, it does provide a means of looking back and recounting some of the many blessings we enjoyed in 2021. So, in keeping with tradition, here is my top 10 list for 2021.&nbsp;

March brought the exciting news that beginning fall of 2021, thanks to the generosity of the Schmidt Foundation, five students would receive full-ride scholarships to FHSU. The Schmidt Foundation Scholarship includes 30 hours of tuition and fees for fall and spring courses, books, and room and board over a period of four years. Each year, five students will be selected – so in the fall of 2024, we will have 20 Schmidt Foundation scholars on campus.&nbsp;

Speaking of outstanding students, we were enamored with the accomplishments of Brynn Wooten, a sophomore from Westminster, Colo., who was named a 2021 Barry Goldwater Scholar in May. This nationally competitive scholarship will fully fund her final two years of undergraduate study. Brynn’s passion for science, especially paleobiology, began at a very young age as a visitor to the Sternberg Museum of Natural History. During her college search process, she learned of Sternberg Museum’s affiliation with Fort Hays State and immediately decided she wanted to become a Tiger. Brynn is the first FHSU student to receive this prestigious award.

The return to in-person commencement ceremonies was definitely a highlight of 2021. The thrill of having students once again walk across the commencement stage was fantastic. Hats off to the planning committee that thoughtfully balanced honoring our students and their families with best practices for health and safety.

In June, the Kansas Board of Regents approved our new 2022 regional tuition for on-campus students. Fort Hays State doubled down on its commitment to providing quality accessible education by making the bold move to redefine the meaning of regional on-campus tuition. We now offer the equivalent of in-state tuition to students from Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming. I can’t wait to welcome more students home to Hays, America!

Over the summer, we celebrated the accomplishments of two student-athletes: basketball standout Whitney Randall received the MIAA Women’s Winter Student-Athlete-of-the-Year Award, and pole vaulter Ryan Stanley earned the MIAA Men’s Spring Student-Athlete-of-the-Year Award after claiming the NCAA Division II national championship in the pole vault. Extraordinary accomplishments for both student-athletes. Tiger proud!

Fully returning to face-to-face classes and a myriad of student activities, from football to theatre, was a spectacular high point in fall 2021.

In August, we dedicated the Schmidt Foundation Center for Art and Design. I especially loved listening to the personal stories about Bob and Pat Schmidt, who enjoyed nearly 69 years of married life together before Pat passed away in 2015 and Bob in 2017. The couple was known for their love of FHSU and their philanthropic support. With a generous $2.5 million gift, the Schmidt Foundation has carried on Bob’s and Pat's legacy and their love for education, the arts, and Fort Hays State by naming a building after them – a building with which the couple would have been enamored.

Speaking of extraordinary generosity, September concluded our Journey campaign. The Journey campaign kicked off Homecoming of 2016 with a goal of raising $100 million in support of FHSU and its students over a five-year period. Those years flew by, and not only was that ambitious goal reached – it was surpassed. The Journey campaign raised a total of $112,769,457!

In October, the university hosted a ribbon-cutting event for the Fischli-Wills Center for Student Success. Similar to the Center for Art and Design, this celebration honored two extraordinary individuals, the late Richard Fischli and Dolores Wills-Fischli. Richard and Dolores began their journey with Fort Hays State as two rural Kansas kids pursuing a college education. Both earned bachelor's and master's degrees from FHSU in the 1950s, then moved to southern California. Upon retiring from their careers in education, the Fischlis moved back home to Logan, Kansas. Today, this impressive new facility has become a reality thanks to a $5 million gift from the Fischlis’ estate. Although the generous couple is no longer with us, their legacy of impacting students will continue to live on at Fort Hays State.

Given our focus on improving the lives, our Criminal Justice Department chair, Dr. Tamara Lynn – in partnership with Chief of University Police, Ed Howell – put together a de-escalation center. With the invaluable assistance of U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, FHSU began our Thanksgiving break by celebrating a $1.25 million federal grant for the training center. Fort Hays State’s regional training center will train police on how to de-escalate potentially dangerous situations using a psychological approach. The training provided by FHSU places the university at the forefront of this vital law enforcement training initiative.

And while I have mentioned 10 items, like that extra cookie in a baker’s dozen, I must add how excited I am, that at the writing of this column, both our men and women’s basketball teams were undefeated, and our women were ranked No. 1 in the NCAA Division II coaches poll. Perhaps this is a foreshadowing of what will appear in my 2022 Top 10 list.

I end 2021 and begin 2022 by expressing my deepest gratitude to our faculty and staff for their resilience and innovation, never losing sight of our enduring commitment to caring for our students. Simply put, our faculty and staff rose to the challenge in 2021 and continued to deliver robust support services and outstanding teaching and learning experiences in thoughtful, impactful, and personal ways. I also thank our students for having faith in Fort Hays State University and working together to create an environment of respect and kindness.

Happy New Year to you and yours – and to FHSU!&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/12/1575301942236.jpeg" alt="Dr. Tisa Mason, FHSU president" />
 <figcaption>Dr. Tisa Mason, FHSU president</figcaption>
 </figure>Each year, I like to look back and create a “Top 10 list” in David Letterman style. The list, roughly in chronological order, is certainly not all-encompassing – there are great stories and good news every day at Fort Hays State University. However, it does provide a means of looking back and recounting some of the many blessings we enjoyed in 2021. So, in keeping with tradition, here is my top 10 list for 2021.&nbsp;March brought the exciting news that beginning fall of 2021, thanks to the generosity of the Schmidt Foundation, five students would receive full-ride scholarships to FHSU. The Schmidt Foundation Scholarship includes 30 hours of tuition and fees for fall and spring courses, books, and room and board over a period of four years. Each year, five students will be selected – so in the fall of 2024, we will have 20 Schmidt Foundation scholars on campus.&nbsp;Speaking of outstanding students, we were enamored with the accomplishments of Brynn Wooten, a sophomore from Westminster, Colo., who was named a 2021 Barry Goldwater Scholar in May. This nationally competitive scholarship will fully fund her final two years of undergraduate study. Brynn’s passion for science, especially paleobiology, began at a very young age as a visitor to the Sternberg Museum of Natural History. During her college search process, she learned of Sternberg Museum’s affiliation with Fort Hays State and immediately decided she wanted to become a Tiger. Brynn is the first FHSU student to receive this prestigious award.The return to in-person commencement ceremonies was definitely a highlight of 2021. The thrill of having students once again walk across the commencement stage was fantastic. Hats off to the planning committee that thoughtfully balanced honoring our students and their families with best practices for health and safety.In June, the Kansas Board of Regents approved our new 2022 regional tuition for on-campus students. Fort Hays State doubled down on its commitment to providing quality accessible education by making the bold move to redefine the meaning of regional on-campus tuition. We now offer the equivalent of in-state tuition to students from Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming. I can’t wait to welcome more students home to Hays, America!Over the summer, we celebrated the accomplishments of two student-athletes: basketball standout Whitney Randall received the MIAA Women’s Winter Student-Athlete-of-the-Year Award, and pole vaulter Ryan Stanley earned the MIAA Men’s Spring Student-Athlete-of-the-Year Award after claiming the NCAA Division II national championship in the pole vault. Extraordinary accomplishments for both student-athletes. Tiger proud!Fully returning to face-to-face classes and a myriad of student activities, from football to theatre, was a spectacular high point in fall 2021.In August, we dedicated the Schmidt Foundation Center for Art and Design. I especially loved listening to the personal stories about Bob and Pat Schmidt, who enjoyed nearly 69 years of married life together before Pat passed away in 2015 and Bob in 2017. The couple was known for their love of FHSU and their philanthropic support. With a generous $2.5 million gift, the Schmidt Foundation has carried on Bob’s and Pat's legacy and their love for education, the arts, and Fort Hays State by naming a building after them – a building with which the couple would have been enamored.Speaking of extraordinary generosity, September concluded our Journey campaign. The Journey campaign kicked off Homecoming of 2016 with a goal of raising $100 million in support of FHSU and its students over a five-year period. Those years flew by, and not only was that ambitious goal reached – it was surpassed. The Journey campaign raised a total of $112,769,457!In October, the university hosted a ribbon-cutting event for the Fischli-Wills Center for Student Success. Similar to the Center for Art and Design, this celebration honored two extraordinary individuals, the late Richard Fischli and Dolores Wills-Fischli. Richard and Dolores began their journey with Fort Hays State as two rural Kansas kids pursuing a college education. Both earned bachelor's and master's degrees from FHSU in the 1950s, then moved to southern California. Upon retiring from their careers in education, the Fischlis moved back home to Logan, Kansas. Today, this impressive new facility has become a reality thanks to a $5 million gift from the Fischlis’ estate. Although the generous couple is no longer with us, their legacy of impacting students will continue to live on at Fort Hays State.Given our focus on improving the lives, our Criminal Justice Department chair, Dr. Tamara Lynn – in partnership with Chief of University Police, Ed Howell – put together a de-escalation center. With the invaluable assistance of U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, FHSU began our Thanksgiving break by celebrating a $1.25 million federal grant for the training center. Fort Hays State’s regional training center will train police on how to de-escalate potentially dangerous situations using a psychological approach. The training provided by FHSU places the university at the forefront of this vital law enforcement training initiative.And while I have mentioned 10 items, like that extra cookie in a baker’s dozen, I must add how excited I am, that at the writing of this column, both our men and women’s basketball teams were undefeated, and our women were ranked No. 1 in the NCAA Division II coaches poll. Perhaps this is a foreshadowing of what will appear in my 2022 Top 10 list.I end 2021 and begin 2022 by expressing my deepest gratitude to our faculty and staff for their resilience and innovation, never losing sight of our enduring commitment to caring for our students. Simply put, our faculty and staff rose to the challenge in 2021 and continued to deliver robust support services and outstanding teaching and learning experiences in thoughtful, impactful, and personal ways. I also thank our students for having faith in Fort Hays State University and working together to create an environment of respect and kindness.Happy New Year to you and yours – and to FHSU!&nbsp;

MASON: Top 10 list brimming with good news

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a burglary.

On Thursday morning, police were dispatched to the 300 block of SE 21st Street in Topeka on the citizen report of an overnight burglary to a business captured on video, according to Lt. Shane Hilton.

Officers, going off of the suspect vehicle description,&nbsp;located the vehicle behind another business on SW Topeka Boulevard. The occupant identified as&nbsp;Curtis Callarman, 43, of Topeka, was questioned and taken into custody without incident.

Callarman, 43, of Topeka, was booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges of burglary, according to Hilton.

In October, police arrested Callarman in the 3800 block of SW Topeka Blvd. in connection with Burglary and Theft from businesses in the Topeka area.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640894137857.png" alt="Callarman photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Callarman photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a burglary.On Thursday morning, police were dispatched to the 300 block of SE 21st Street in Topeka on the citizen report of an overnight burglary to a business captured on video, according to Lt. Shane Hilton.Officers, going off of the suspect vehicle description,&nbsp;located the vehicle behind another business on SW Topeka Boulevard. The occupant identified as&nbsp;Curtis Callarman, 43, of Topeka, was questioned and taken into custody without incident.Callarman, 43, of Topeka, was booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections on requested charges of burglary, according to Hilton.In October, police arrested Callarman in the 3800 block of SW Topeka Blvd. in connection with Burglary and Theft from businesses in the Topeka area.

Police use video of Kan. business burglary to track down suspect

CHICAGO (AP) — States and the federal government carried out 11 executions this year, the fewest since 1988, as support for the death penalty has continued to decline.

That’s according to an&nbsp;<a href="https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/facts-and-research/dpic-reports/dpic-year-end-reports/the-death-penalty-in-2021-year-end-report" target="_blank">annual report on the death penalty </a>&nbsp;which was also sharply critical of the Supreme Court and its role in green-lighting executions. Three of the death sentences were carried out in January during&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-death-penalty-legacy-838932ac2b665b42373309336d130f56">an unprecedented run of federal executions</a>&nbsp;that ended days before President Donald Trump left office. Annual executions have steadily declined since peaking at 98 in 1999.

Pandemic-related disruptions partly accounted for the low number of executions this year — though 2021 marked the seventh consecutive year when there were fewer than 30 executions and fewer than 50 new death sentences, the report said.

The federal death penalty was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-executions-government-and-politics-9daf230ef2257b901cb0dfeeeb60be44">put on hold in June&nbsp;</a>by Attorney General Merrick Garland, well short of the permanent abolition activists hoped for when Joe Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-joe-biden-executions-health-coronavirus-pandemic-67ed5dd28d92f11629310ddb7590357a">became the first sitting U.S. president</a>&nbsp;to have openly opposed the death penalty. State executions continue despite growing numbers of Americans opposed to the death penalty.

The report from the Death Penalty Information Center said far from representing the “worst of the worst,” 10 of the 11 prisoners executed this year had “significant impairments,” including IQs in the intellectually disabled range.

Many cases were tainted by poor legal representation at trial and jurisdictions engaging in “shocking conduct” to thwart judicial review of credible constitutional claims, the report said.

“As death-penalty usage continues to erode, its flaws become even more evident,” the report from the Washington, D.C.-based center said.

The report also noted the three conservative appointments to the Supreme Court by Trump and said the justices demonstrated “deep hostility to stays of execution,” denying or lifting every stay of execution requested — other than a few on religious grounds that inmates should have fuller access to spiritual advisers.

The report also noted how some death-penalty states scrambled for alternative execution methods after pharmaceutical companies restricted access to drugs once widely used for lethal injections. It highlighted Arizona’s proposal this year to use&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-joe-biden-executions-health-coronavirus-pandemic-67ed5dd28d92f11629310ddb7590357a"></a><a href="https://apnews.com/article/arizona-executions-business-health-government-and-politics-c3f67a6ec65959fea817b4c3193bb15e">the same cyanide hydrogen gas</a>&nbsp;deployed by Nazis to kill Jews.

Support for the death penalty, meanwhile, has plummeted from a high of 80% in 1994 to 54% this year, according to a 2021 Gallup poll cited in the report. Since the mid-1990s, opposition has risen from under 20% to around 45% now.

States also continue to rescind death penalty laws.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/virginia-to-end-death-penalty-ralph-northam-0a5b51f2e4458a0600bce6b75e6389bd">Virginia, once a prolific executioner, did so in March</a>, bringing the number of states to have abolished the death penalty to 23. Three, including California, have moratoriums on executions.

Executions have been increasingly concentrated in a few Southern states. Texas executed three inmates and Oklahoma two in 2021. Alabama, Mississippi and Missouri each executed one. The Trump administration executed three. The last, Dustin Higgs, was executed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-wildlife-coronavirus-pandemic-crime-terre-haute-28e44cc5c026dc16472751bbde0ead50">five days before Joe Biden’s inauguration</a>. The federal executions brought the year’s total to 11.

Trump’s Justice Department executed 10 federal prisoners in 2020, ending a 17-year hiatus&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/public-health-prisons-health-coronavirus-pandemic-executions-ac5afd6c1df5b8acbeece712830e6469">as COVID raged through prisons</a>. States suspended their death penalty programs during the height of the pandemic.

— Seven states imposed 18 new death sentences in 2021 — tying a record low. Alabama and Oklahoma imposed four each. California and Texas both imposed three. Florida imposed two and Nebraska and Tennessee one each.

— Six of the 11 inmates executed in 2021 were Black. Black and Hispanic defendants made up more than 60% of the death sentences imposed this year.

— Some 2,500 prisoners remain on state death rows. Some 50 are left on federal death row at a Terre Haute, Indiana, prison after the Trump executions reduced their numbers by nearly a quarter.

The Justice Department’s June order halted federal executions while it reviewed Trump-era practices. The Biden administration also withdrew notices of intent to seek the death penalty in several cases. But the administration did still keep pressing for death sentences for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/religion-crime-courts-south-carolina-hate-crimes-0db104e0c60baaa954d9833daccaf6b4">white supremacist Dylann Roof</a>, convicted in the 2015 slayings of nine members of a Black congregation in South Carolina, and for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-sports-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-boston-bombings-ad5f5d675c401d55ec27b54d9e3ef202">Boston Marathon bomber</a>&nbsp;Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Despite&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-death-row-inmates-talk-biden-executions-6381ed8b3e821a34a6b6ade6bb3375c0">a campaign pledge to decisively end executions</a>, Biden hasn’t addressed the issue publicly as president. The report noted he hasn’t backed legislation to strike the death penalty from U.S. statutes. Activists fear federal executions could restart if Trump were to run again for president and win a second term or if another capital punishment advocate becomes president.

The report spotlighted several individual executions.

It described Oklahoma’s execution of John Grant on Oct. 28 as “botched.” The 60-year-old, convicted in the 1998 slaying of a prison cafeteria worker, repeatedly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-prisons-executions-oklahoma-oklahoma-attorney-generals-office-6e5eedd1956a38f83db96187651f145c">convulsed and vomited</a>&nbsp;after his lethal injection. Oklahoma’s Department of Corrections said the execution occurred “without complication.”

The report also pointed to the May 19 Texas execution of Quintin Jones, 41, convicted of killing his great aunt in 1999. It proceeded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-executions-lifestyle-747fc8994706df9dee9e64909c464b99">without media witnesses</a>, the first time since Texas resumed capital punishment in 1982 that no journalist was present. Officials blamed a failure to bring in reporters waiting nearby on miscommunication.

Two death row inmates were exonerated in 2021, both in Mississippi. One, Eddie Lee Howard Jr., who is Black, was freed after spending&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/race-and-ethnicity-mississippi-crime-f13826a919f192108cba4502f965d4ef">26 years on death row&nbsp;</a>after debunked bite-mark testimony and DNA evidence cleared him in the 1992 rape and killing of an 84-year-old white woman.

Those exonerations bring the total number of exonerees out of more than 9,600 death sentences since the early 1970s to 186, the report said.

That figure, it added, “revealed that the American death-penalty system is even more frighteningly unreliable than was previously understood.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1621882682950.png" alt="Ernest Johnson was executed in October for killing three workers while robbing a Missouri convenience store in 1994-photo MODOC" />
 <figcaption>Ernest Johnson was executed in October for killing three workers while robbing a Missouri convenience store in 1994-photo MODOC</figcaption>
 </figure>CHICAGO (AP) — States and the federal government carried out 11 executions this year, the fewest since 1988, as support for the death penalty has continued to decline.That’s according to an&nbsp;<a href="https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/facts-and-research/dpic-reports/dpic-year-end-reports/the-death-penalty-in-2021-year-end-report" target="_blank">annual report on the death penalty </a>&nbsp;which was also sharply critical of the Supreme Court and its role in green-lighting executions. Three of the death sentences were carried out in January during&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-death-penalty-legacy-838932ac2b665b42373309336d130f56">an unprecedented run of federal executions</a>&nbsp;that ended days before President Donald Trump left office. Annual executions have steadily declined since peaking at 98 in 1999.Pandemic-related disruptions partly accounted for the low number of executions this year — though 2021 marked the seventh consecutive year when there were fewer than 30 executions and fewer than 50 new death sentences, the report said.The federal death penalty was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-executions-government-and-politics-9daf230ef2257b901cb0dfeeeb60be44">put on hold in June&nbsp;</a>by Attorney General Merrick Garland, well short of the permanent abolition activists hoped for when Joe Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-joe-biden-executions-health-coronavirus-pandemic-67ed5dd28d92f11629310ddb7590357a">became the first sitting U.S. president</a>&nbsp;to have openly opposed the death penalty. State executions continue despite growing numbers of Americans opposed to the death penalty.The report from the Death Penalty Information Center said far from representing the “worst of the worst,” 10 of the 11 prisoners executed this year had “significant impairments,” including IQs in the intellectually disabled range.Many cases were tainted by poor legal representation at trial and jurisdictions engaging in “shocking conduct” to thwart judicial review of credible constitutional claims, the report said.“As death-penalty usage continues to erode, its flaws become even more evident,” the report from the Washington, D.C.-based center said.The report also noted the three conservative appointments to the Supreme Court by Trump and said the justices demonstrated “deep hostility to stays of execution,” denying or lifting every stay of execution requested — other than a few on religious grounds that inmates should have fuller access to spiritual advisers.The report also noted how some death-penalty states scrambled for alternative execution methods after pharmaceutical companies restricted access to drugs once widely used for lethal injections. It highlighted Arizona’s proposal this year to use&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-joe-biden-executions-health-coronavirus-pandemic-67ed5dd28d92f11629310ddb7590357a"></a><a href="https://apnews.com/article/arizona-executions-business-health-government-and-politics-c3f67a6ec65959fea817b4c3193bb15e">the same cyanide hydrogen gas</a>&nbsp;deployed by Nazis to kill Jews.Support for the death penalty, meanwhile, has plummeted from a high of 80% in 1994 to 54% this year, according to a 2021 Gallup poll cited in the report. Since the mid-1990s, opposition has risen from under 20% to around 45% now.States also continue to rescind death penalty laws.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/virginia-to-end-death-penalty-ralph-northam-0a5b51f2e4458a0600bce6b75e6389bd">Virginia, once a prolific executioner, did so in March</a>, bringing the number of states to have abolished the death penalty to 23. Three, including California, have moratoriums on executions.Executions have been increasingly concentrated in a few Southern states. Texas executed three inmates and Oklahoma two in 2021. Alabama, Mississippi and Missouri each executed one. The Trump administration executed three. The last, Dustin Higgs, was executed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-wildlife-coronavirus-pandemic-crime-terre-haute-28e44cc5c026dc16472751bbde0ead50">five days before Joe Biden’s inauguration</a>. The federal executions brought the year’s total to 11.Trump’s Justice Department executed 10 federal prisoners in 2020, ending a 17-year hiatus&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/public-health-prisons-health-coronavirus-pandemic-executions-ac5afd6c1df5b8acbeece712830e6469">as COVID raged through prisons</a>. States suspended their death penalty programs during the height of the pandemic.Among other report highlights:— Seven states imposed 18 new death sentences in 2021 — tying a record low. Alabama and Oklahoma imposed four each. California and Texas both imposed three. Florida imposed two and Nebraska and Tennessee one each.— Six of the 11 inmates executed in 2021 were Black. Black and Hispanic defendants made up more than 60% of the death sentences imposed this year.— Some 2,500 prisoners remain on state death rows. Some 50 are left on federal death row at a Terre Haute, Indiana, prison after the Trump executions reduced their numbers by nearly a quarter.The Justice Department’s June order halted federal executions while it reviewed Trump-era practices. The Biden administration also withdrew notices of intent to seek the death penalty in several cases. But the administration did still keep pressing for death sentences for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/religion-crime-courts-south-carolina-hate-crimes-0db104e0c60baaa954d9833daccaf6b4">white supremacist Dylann Roof</a>, convicted in the 2015 slayings of nine members of a Black congregation in South Carolina, and for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-sports-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-boston-bombings-ad5f5d675c401d55ec27b54d9e3ef202">Boston Marathon bomber</a>&nbsp;Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.Despite&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/federal-death-row-inmates-talk-biden-executions-6381ed8b3e821a34a6b6ade6bb3375c0">a campaign pledge to decisively end executions</a>, Biden hasn’t addressed the issue publicly as president. The report noted he hasn’t backed legislation to strike the death penalty from U.S. statutes. Activists fear federal executions could restart if Trump were to run again for president and win a second term or if another capital punishment advocate becomes president.The report spotlighted several individual executions.It described Oklahoma’s execution of John Grant on Oct. 28 as “botched.” The 60-year-old, convicted in the 1998 slaying of a prison cafeteria worker, repeatedly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-supreme-court-prisons-executions-oklahoma-oklahoma-attorney-generals-office-6e5eedd1956a38f83db96187651f145c">convulsed and vomited</a>&nbsp;after his lethal injection. Oklahoma’s Department of Corrections said the execution occurred “without complication.”The report also pointed to the May 19 Texas execution of Quintin Jones, 41, convicted of killing his great aunt in 1999. It proceeded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-executions-lifestyle-747fc8994706df9dee9e64909c464b99">without media witnesses</a>, the first time since Texas resumed capital punishment in 1982 that no journalist was present. Officials blamed a failure to bring in reporters waiting nearby on miscommunication.Two death row inmates were exonerated in 2021, both in Mississippi. One, Eddie Lee Howard Jr., who is Black, was freed after spending&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/race-and-ethnicity-mississippi-crime-f13826a919f192108cba4502f965d4ef">26 years on death row&nbsp;</a>after debunked bite-mark testimony and DNA evidence cleared him in the 1992 rape and killing of an 84-year-old white woman.Those exonerations bring the total number of exonerees out of more than 9,600 death sentences since the early 1970s to 186, the report said.That figure, it added, “revealed that the American death-penalty system is even more frighteningly unreliable than was previously understood.”

Report: 11 executions in 2021 mark three-decade low

Dorothy Lucille Yowell, age 94, of 
Mesquite, Texas, formerly of Ellis, Kansas, passed away November 16, 2021,&nbsp; in Mesquite. She was born May 20, 1927, in Hays, Kansas, to Nicholas and 
Anna Heroneme. On January 15, 1946, she married Clyde Yowell in Ellis. He
 preceded her in death on October 24, 1994.

Dorothy was a farm wife and also worked
 at Travenol in Hays for several years. She had been a member of St. 
Mary's Catholic Church in Ellis and St. Jerome Catholic Church in 
Phoenix, Arizona.&nbsp; She spent many years volunteering at the Society of 
St. Vincent de Paul in Phoenix. She was a beloved mother, grandmother 
and great grandmother.

Those left to cherish her memory are 
her daughters, Victoria Larson and Claudia Schroer; a son, Paul Yowell; 
grandchildren, Rich Wellbrock, Monica Hafif, Brook Schroer, Nathan 
Yowell, Sarah Williams and Kelsey Yowell; great grandchildren, Griffin 
Wellbrock, Madeline Wellbrock, Jack Hafif, Freida Hafif, Lillian 
Schroer, Brenden Schroer, Jackson Williams and Addison Williams, as well
 as numerous extended family and friends who will miss her dearly.

Memorial services will be 10:00 AM with
 visitation 9:00 AM until service time on Saturday, January 8, 2022 at 
Brock's-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory 2509 Vine Hays, KS 67601.

In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul @ svdpusa.org in her memory.

Condolences may be left by guest book at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com or by email at keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1641061874680.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Dorothy Lucille Yowell, age 94, of 
Mesquite, Texas, formerly of Ellis, Kansas, passed away November 16, 2021,&nbsp; in Mesquite. She was born May 20, 1927, in Hays, Kansas, to Nicholas and 
Anna Heroneme. On January 15, 1946, she married Clyde Yowell in Ellis. He
 preceded her in death on October 24, 1994.Dorothy was a farm wife and also worked
 at Travenol in Hays for several years. She had been a member of St. 
Mary's Catholic Church in Ellis and St. Jerome Catholic Church in 
Phoenix, Arizona.&nbsp; She spent many years volunteering at the Society of 
St. Vincent de Paul in Phoenix. She was a beloved mother, grandmother 
and great grandmother.Those left to cherish her memory are 
her daughters, Victoria Larson and Claudia Schroer; a son, Paul Yowell; 
grandchildren, Rich Wellbrock, Monica Hafif, Brook Schroer, Nathan 
Yowell, Sarah Williams and Kelsey Yowell; great grandchildren, Griffin 
Wellbrock, Madeline Wellbrock, Jack Hafif, Freida Hafif, Lillian 
Schroer, Brenden Schroer, Jackson Williams and Addison Williams, as well
 as numerous extended family and friends who will miss her dearly.Memorial services will be 10:00 AM with
 visitation 9:00 AM until service time on Saturday, January 8, 2022 at 
Brock's-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory 2509 Vine Hays, KS 67601.In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul @ svdpusa.org in her memory.Condolences may be left by guest book at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com or by email at keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com.

Dorothy Lucille Yowell

By DANA GENTRY <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/holidays-are-no-holiday-amazon%C2%A0">States Newsroom</a>

It’s called ‘peak season’ – the time 
of year when 10-hour days for some of the nation’s more than one 
million Amazon employees extend into eleven-hour shifts packed into a 
backbreaking blur of six-day work weeks.

“They work us like crazy with hardly any days off, especially during the holidays. They
 don’t care about the safety of their employees,” says Johnny Acejo, who
 spent five years employed at an Amazon facility in Phoenix.&nbsp;

Amazon declined to answer the majority of questions posed for this story.

Unwinding after a long shift while 
facing the prospect of doing it again involves video games, booze, or 
weed, according to about a dozen employees interviewed by the Current. 
Others turn to the sleep aid Unisom, purchased online from Amazon.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“They literally keep track of your 
restroom time,” Acejo says of a scanner worn by employees that allows 
Amazon to track their movements. “I took five minutes in the restroom 
because I had real bad stomach pains and I was throwing up. I got a 
write up. All they care about is the numbers.”

Ecommerce sales in the U.S. topped $800 billion in the last year. As of October, Amazon owned 41% of the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/274255/market-share-of-the-leading-retailers-in-us-e-commerce/">market share</a>, followed by Walmart at 6%, according to Statista.

Amazon’s net income for the twelve months ending September 30, 2021 was $26.263 billion, up&nbsp; 51.14% year-to-year.

Amazon is the second largest employer
 in the U.S. (behind Walmart) with more than a million workers. Amazon 
employs more than 10,500 Nevadans at more than a dozen warehouses, 
distribution facilities, and fulfillment centers throughout the state, 
mostly in Southern Nevada.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Amazon is changing the nature of 
work in our country,” says a resolution passed by the International 
Brotherhood of Teamsters last summer, which noted the company “presents 
an existential threat to the standards we have set” in Teamster-related 
industries Amazon has disrupted, such as parcel delivery, freight, food 
distribution, and movie production.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

The resolution says the union 
“recognizes that there is no clearer example of how America is failing 
the working class than Amazon. From its start as a book retailer, Amazon
 has grown to become an ecommerce giant and has disrupted industry after
 industry and displaced hundreds of thousands of jobs.”

“Amazon is very rightly worried that 
if one fulfillment center were to organize and unionize, it could start a
 domino reaction that would cause all others to fall in line,” says 
Avery, a former Amazon worker and host of the podcast The Amazon.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Amazon exploits its employees, 
contractors, and employees of contractors via: wage theft, fraudulent 
classification, intense production quotas, dehumanizing work 
environments, unsafe workplaces and production standards, low wages, 
high turnover, no voice on the job, lack of job security and outsourced 
jobs,” says the Teamsters’ resolution.&nbsp;

But the union’s effort to organize Amazon workers appears stalled.&nbsp;

“We are not discussing specific locations or strategies at this time,” said a national spokesperson for the Teamsters.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Members of local Teamsters chapters 
say they’re unaware of any efforts to unionize Amazon workers in Nevada,
 as is a spokeswoman for the AFL-CIO of Nevada.

For the last two decades, Amazon has deflected union overtures – most recently in Bessemer, Alabama, when it turned back the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, which represents poultry plant workers in that state.

Last month, a judge <a target="_blank" href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/29/22565851/amazon-bessemer-union-vote-nlrb-appeal-overturned-second-election">ruled</a> Amazon interfered in the vote and ordered a do-over.&nbsp;

“I’d say the ability to organize is a
 slim chance due to attrition, union busters, and Amazon’s brazen 
ability to not break but obliterate labor law with little to no 
consequences,” says Avery of The Amazon podcast. “Every chip is stacked 
against the workers and through pure grit a large number of them are 
still fighting the good fight.”

“Organizing is hard due to the fact 
that no one stays,” he says. “Union organizers at Bessemer estimated 
they lost 60 ‘yes’ ballots a day due to attrition and Amazon’s ability 
to legally prolong the organizing attempt. People simply don’t stay in a
 shit hole long.”

A group of Whole Foods employees unsuccessfully <a target="_blank" href="https://techcrunch.com/2018/09/06/whole-foods-workers-seek-to-unionize-says-amazon-is-exploiting-our-dedication/#:~:text=Since%20the%20Amazon%20acquisition%2C%20several%20hundred%20Whole%20Foods,have%20saved%20millionsas%20a%20result%20of%20the%20shake-up.">attempted to organize </a>in
 2018 after Amazon laid off several hundred employees and increased the 
cost of doing business for suppliers, according to the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-era-at-amazons-whole-foods-grates-on-some-suppliers-employees-1530526964">Wall Street Journa</a>l, when it purchased the grocery chain for $13.7 billion in 2017.

“Amazon won’t allow that because it 
will cost them more in the long run,” said one Whole Foods delivery 
driver in San Diego who asked not to be named. Paying union dues will 
just be a burden to workers, she fears.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

In February, Amazon <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2021/02/amazon-pay-617-million-settle-ftc-charges-it-withheld-some">agreed</a> to pay $61.7 million to settle charges leveled by the FTC that it withheld tips from its delivery drivers. Another <a target="_blank" href="https://www.classaction.org/news/amazon-illegally-withheld-tips-from-flex-drivers-class-action-claims">suit </a>with similar allegations followed within days.

“We do not believe unions are in the 
best interest of our customers, our shareholders, or most importantly, 
our associates,” says an anti-union <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRpwVwFxyk4">vide</a>o
 produced by Amazon for its employees. “Our business model is built upon
 speed, innovation, and customer obsession—things that are generally not
 associated with union. When we lose sight of those critical focus areas
 we jeopardize everyone’s job security: yours, mine, and the 
associates’.”

“Does your Chair take comfort in the 
outcome of the recent union vote in Bessemer? No, he doesn’t,” Jeff 
Bezos wrote earlier this year in his 2020 <a target="_blank" href="https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/2020-letter-to-shareholders?utm_source=social&amp;utm_medium=tw&amp;utm_term=amznnews&amp;utm_content=2020shareholderletter&amp;linkId=116261313">letter</a> to shareholders. “I think we need to do a better job for our employees.”&nbsp;

Bezos went on to say that even though
 the vote was in Amazon’s favor, “it’s clear to me that we need a better
 vision for how we create value for employees – a vision for their 
success.”

Bezos rejected the notion that Amazon
 employees are “desperate souls and treated as robots. That’s not 
accurate. They’re sophisticated and thoughtful people who have options 
for where to work. When we survey fulfillment center employees, 94% say 
they would recommend Amazon to a friend as a place to work.”

Avery, host of The Amazon podcast, says job satisfaction is elusive at an Amazon fulfillment center.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Satisfaction isn’t near what most 
people get from a job at Amazon, it’d be hard to be satisfied when 
Amazon averages a 150% turnover rate and near double the average of 
serious accidents in the workplace,” he says.

He’s referring to a Washington Post 
investigation that revealed Amazon reported twice as many accidents to 
OSHA as other warehouse and storage companies.&nbsp;&nbsp;

OSHA is currently investigating the 
storm-related deaths this month of half a dozen Amazon employees at an 
Indiana warehouse.&nbsp; Some employees say they were not allowed to leave 
the warehouse to seek shelter.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“As soon as there was a tornado 
warning, the team took immediate action to move to shelter in place 
locations,” Amazon spokeswoman Alisa Carroll told the Current via 
email.&nbsp;

“When a site is made aware of a 
tornado warning in the area, all employees are notified and directed to 
move to a designated and marked shelter in place location,” she said. 
“This is the safest approach to ensure no one is on the road or outside 
during a tornado.”

Carroll said the site got warnings 
between 8:06 and 8:16, and “leaders directed people on site to 
immediately take shelter. At 8:27, the tornado struck the building.”

Validated OSHA complaints from 
Amazon’s Nevada workers the last year range from safety concerns, some 
resulting from a reduced workforce certain days of the week, to 
violations of COVID protocols.

“Scanners and carts used by employees
 for order picking are not being sanitized after being used,” says one 
complaint to OSHA, echoed frequently by workers interviewed 
nationwide.&nbsp;&nbsp;

But the most common complaint from Amazon workers in Nevada was the heat.&nbsp;&nbsp;

A complaint of “poor air quality” prompted an OSHA inspection of DLV 7, a facility in North Las Vegas ,on April 27.

“There is poor air quality in the 
workplace. The air filters are dirty,” says the complaint. “It is very 
hot in the building. Employees are experiencing headaches due to the 
heat and wearing a mask.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Employees in the warehouse are not 
provided with enough water or rest and are being potentially exposed to 
heat stress related illness,” says a complaint that brought OSHA to DLV 2
 on Alexander Rd. in North Las Vegas on June 1. “The warehouse fans are 
operational but are not providing adequate airflow for the given volume 
of the warehouse.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Inside the warehouse employees are 
exposed to heat stress,” says a complaint that resulted in an inspection
 of LAS 1 on Bermuda Rd. in Henderson on June 22. “There is only one fan
 and no air-conditioning in the building.”

On June 28, inspectors visited the 
LAS 7 fulfillment center on Tropical Pkwy. in North Las Vegas,&nbsp; after 
receiving complaints that employees were “experiencing heat issues since
 the summer began due to the lack of air conditioning on the south end 
of the warehouse. Operation managers have advised that fans would be 
installed at each station throughout the warehouse however that has yet 
to occur for all stations. It is warm on the north side of the 
warehouse, but it is hot on the south side of the warehouse.”&nbsp;

OSHA records say the complaint was resolved.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Employees are working under heat 
stress up to 100 degrees inside the establishment,” says a complaint 
filed in July by a worker at LAS 1 in Henderson. “The employer does not 
allow employees to use the fans in the trailers. The fans are locked up 
and employees that unlock the fans face retaliation including 
termination.”

The same substantiated complaint says
 workers “are rarely able to take breaks during their shifts. Employees 
typically do not receive any breaks during their shifts.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Amazon is among hundreds of companies
 that have agreed to pay a statutorily approved average wage and certain
 benefits to be eligible for incentives to do business in Nevada.&nbsp;&nbsp;

In 2014, the state ponied up a 
combination of incentives and tax abatements expected to save Amazon 
$1.365 million over the course of several years, while generating a 
projected $393 in economic impact for every dollar of abated tax.&nbsp;

“The proposed plan will bring a new non-sort operation to the Reno area. The state incentive program is a critical factor in the company’s decision for this expansion,” Amazon said in its proposal.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The company noted the majority of 
jobs would pay under the $20.62 per hour dictated by Nevada law to 
qualify a firm for the abatements.

“500 of the 600 positions will make 
an annual wage of $29,100 ($14/hr at 40 hrs/week). Of the remaining 100,
 50 will earn $41,600/yr ($20/hr) and the other 50 is above the 
statewide wage requirement,” its proposal said.

Companies that receive abatements are
 audited after two years and again after five years, according to Greg 
Bortolin, spokesman for the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.&nbsp;

“The company projections in 2014 
estimated they would produce 600 jobs at an average wage of $16.50 per 
hour and make a capital expenditure of $10 million,” he said via email. 
“The audit findings found they created 533 jobs at an average wage of 
$23.37 per hour and made a capital expenditure of $15,295,110.”

A second <a target="_blank" href="https://www.diversifynevada.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Amazon.com_.kydc_Board_Packet_4.pdf">contract</a>
 with Amazon in 2016 bestowed benefits valued at $1.8 million on Amazon 
in return for building and operating a warehouse in Clark County.&nbsp; The 
company estimated the economic impact at $707 for every dollar of tax 
revenue sacrificed by the government.&nbsp;

“The
 company projections in 2016 estimated they would produce 1,000 jobs at 
an average wage of $14.64 per hour and make a capital expenditure of $18
 million,” says Bortolin. “The audit findings found they created 704 
jobs at an average wage of $52.63 and made a capital expenditure of 
$7,439,082.”

Both the jobs and wages generated were in compliance with the abatements, Bortolin says.

When Amazon was looking for a second national headquarters, then-Gov. Brian Sandoval <a target="_blank" href="https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/100-free-acres-in-las-vegas-part-of-bid-for-amazons-2nd-hq/">offered </a>to pony up $800 million in incentives toward the effort.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Avery of The Amazon podcast says the 
idea behind subsidies that employees “would reinvest all of their 
paycheck back into the city via housing and taxes and just going 
downtown to buy stuff,” is questionable. “In reality, it’s hard to say 
that that would happen. Those employees work for Amazon. They have the 
biggest company store known to man where anything can arrive to them 
faster than ever, no matter how much subsidizing is done.”

Why does a company valued near $2 trillion need public money from the states where it does business?&nbsp;

Nevada Democratic state Sen. Dina Neal attempted in 2019 to create a legislative committee to oversee incentives and abatements.&nbsp; Gov. Steve Sisolak vetoed the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.leg.state.nv.us/App/NELIS/REL/80th2019/Bill/6857/Overview">bill</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The state’s arrangement with Amazon 
has put it at odds with its own interests, as it incentivizes higher 
wages from private employers while failing to invest in its own critical
 workforce.&nbsp;

In a letter to Sisolak in October, 
the Governor’s Committee on Behavioral Health lamented that pay for 
“…front line staff working with the intellectually disabled and 
psychiatrically ill adults is far below that of large local employers 
such as Amazon and Walmart,” the Current <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2021/10/14/sisolak-asked-to-make-mental-health-worker-pay-competitive-with-other-local-employers/">reported</a>.&nbsp;

While Amazon offers subsidies to 
employees to cover part of a health plan for workers who can purchase 
through an exchange, it has the most workers of any Nevada employer 
enrolled in Medicaid – 3,648 employees and 4,244 dependents at a cost of
 $ 21,326,448 in 2020, according to a<a target="_blank" href="https://dhhs.nv.gov/uploadedFiles/dhhsnvgov/content/Programs/Office_of_Analytics/Nevada%20Medicaid%20Recipients%20Employed%20by%20Employers%20with%2050%20or%20More%20Employees%20SFY%202020%20SB%20366.pdf"> state report</a>.&nbsp;

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders <a target="_blank" href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/3410#:~:text=Stop%20Bad%20Employers%20by%20Zeroing%20Out%20Subsidies%20Act,employees%20on%20business%20days%20during%20the%20preceding%20year.">attempted</a>
 unsuccessfully in 2018 to impose a tax on companies with 500 employees 
“equal to the amount of federal benefits received by their low wage 
workers.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640715507348.png" alt="An Amazon employee in a fulfillment center. (Amazon press photo)" />
 <figcaption>An Amazon employee in a fulfillment center. (Amazon press photo)</figcaption>
 </figure>By DANA GENTRY <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/holidays-are-no-holiday-amazon%C2%A0">States Newsroom</a>It’s called ‘peak season’ – the time 
of year when 10-hour days for some of the nation’s more than one 
million Amazon employees extend into eleven-hour shifts packed into a 
backbreaking blur of six-day work weeks.“They work us like crazy with hardly any days off, especially during the holidays. They
 don’t care about the safety of their employees,” says Johnny Acejo, who
 spent five years employed at an Amazon facility in Phoenix.&nbsp;Amazon declined to answer the majority of questions posed for this story.Unwinding after a long shift while 
facing the prospect of doing it again involves video games, booze, or 
weed, according to about a dozen employees interviewed by the Current. 
Others turn to the sleep aid Unisom, purchased online from Amazon.&nbsp;&nbsp;The job is consuming.&nbsp;&nbsp;“They literally keep track of your 
restroom time,” Acejo says of a scanner worn by employees that allows 
Amazon to track their movements. “I took five minutes in the restroom 
because I had real bad stomach pains and I was throwing up. I got a 
write up. All they care about is the numbers.”The numbers are good.&nbsp;Ecommerce sales in the U.S. topped $800 billion in the last year. As of October, Amazon owned 41% of the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/274255/market-share-of-the-leading-retailers-in-us-e-commerce/">market share</a>, followed by Walmart at 6%, according to Statista.Amazon’s net income for the twelve months ending September 30, 2021 was $26.263 billion, up&nbsp; 51.14% year-to-year.Amazon is the second largest employer
 in the U.S. (behind Walmart) with more than a million workers. Amazon 
employs more than 10,500 Nevadans at more than a dozen warehouses, 
distribution facilities, and fulfillment centers throughout the state, 
mostly in Southern Nevada.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<h2>Union no</h2>“Amazon is changing the nature of 
work in our country,” says a resolution passed by the International 
Brotherhood of Teamsters last summer, which noted the company “presents 
an existential threat to the standards we have set” in Teamster-related 
industries Amazon has disrupted, such as parcel delivery, freight, food 
distribution, and movie production.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The resolution says the union 
“recognizes that there is no clearer example of how America is failing 
the working class than Amazon. From its start as a book retailer, Amazon
 has grown to become an ecommerce giant and has disrupted industry after
 industry and displaced hundreds of thousands of jobs.”“Amazon is very rightly worried that 
if one fulfillment center were to organize and unionize, it could start a
 domino reaction that would cause all others to fall in line,” says 
Avery, a former Amazon worker and host of the podcast The Amazon.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;“Amazon exploits its employees, 
contractors, and employees of contractors via: wage theft, fraudulent 
classification, intense production quotas, dehumanizing work 
environments, unsafe workplaces and production standards, low wages, 
high turnover, no voice on the job, lack of job security and outsourced 
jobs,” says the Teamsters’ resolution.&nbsp;But the union’s effort to organize Amazon workers appears stalled.&nbsp;“We are not discussing specific locations or strategies at this time,” said a national spokesperson for the Teamsters.&nbsp;&nbsp;Members of local Teamsters chapters 
say they’re unaware of any efforts to unionize Amazon workers in Nevada,
 as is a spokeswoman for the AFL-CIO of Nevada.For the last two decades, Amazon has deflected union overtures – most recently in Bessemer, Alabama, when it turned back the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, which represents poultry plant workers in that state.Last month, a judge <a target="_blank" href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/29/22565851/amazon-bessemer-union-vote-nlrb-appeal-overturned-second-election">ruled</a> Amazon interfered in the vote and ordered a do-over.&nbsp;“I’d say the ability to organize is a
 slim chance due to attrition, union busters, and Amazon’s brazen 
ability to not break but obliterate labor law with little to no 
consequences,” says Avery of The Amazon podcast. “Every chip is stacked 
against the workers and through pure grit a large number of them are 
still fighting the good fight.”“Organizing is hard due to the fact 
that no one stays,” he says. “Union organizers at Bessemer estimated 
they lost 60 ‘yes’ ballots a day due to attrition and Amazon’s ability 
to legally prolong the organizing attempt. People simply don’t stay in a
 shit hole long.”A group of Whole Foods employees unsuccessfully <a target="_blank" href="https://techcrunch.com/2018/09/06/whole-foods-workers-seek-to-unionize-says-amazon-is-exploiting-our-dedication/#:~:text=Since%20the%20Amazon%20acquisition%2C%20several%20hundred%20Whole%20Foods,have%20saved%20millionsas%20a%20result%20of%20the%20shake-up.">attempted to organize </a>in
 2018 after Amazon laid off several hundred employees and increased the 
cost of doing business for suppliers, according to the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-era-at-amazons-whole-foods-grates-on-some-suppliers-employees-1530526964">Wall Street Journa</a>l, when it purchased the grocery chain for $13.7 billion in 2017.“Amazon won’t allow that because it 
will cost them more in the long run,” said one Whole Foods delivery 
driver in San Diego who asked not to be named. Paying union dues will 
just be a burden to workers, she fears.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;In February, Amazon <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2021/02/amazon-pay-617-million-settle-ftc-charges-it-withheld-some">agreed</a> to pay $61.7 million to settle charges leveled by the FTC that it withheld tips from its delivery drivers. Another <a target="_blank" href="https://www.classaction.org/news/amazon-illegally-withheld-tips-from-flex-drivers-class-action-claims">suit </a>with similar allegations followed within days.“We do not believe unions are in the 
best interest of our customers, our shareholders, or most importantly, 
our associates,” says an anti-union <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRpwVwFxyk4">vide</a>o
 produced by Amazon for its employees. “Our business model is built upon
 speed, innovation, and customer obsession—things that are generally not
 associated with union. When we lose sight of those critical focus areas
 we jeopardize everyone’s job security: yours, mine, and the 
associates’.”“Does your Chair take comfort in the 
outcome of the recent union vote in Bessemer? No, he doesn’t,” Jeff 
Bezos wrote earlier this year in his 2020 <a target="_blank" href="https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/2020-letter-to-shareholders?utm_source=social&amp;utm_medium=tw&amp;utm_term=amznnews&amp;utm_content=2020shareholderletter&amp;linkId=116261313">letter</a> to shareholders. “I think we need to do a better job for our employees.”&nbsp;Bezos went on to say that even though
 the vote was in Amazon’s favor, “it’s clear to me that we need a better
 vision for how we create value for employees – a vision for their 
success.”Bezos rejected the notion that Amazon
 employees are “desperate souls and treated as robots. That’s not 
accurate. They’re sophisticated and thoughtful people who have options 
for where to work. When we survey fulfillment center employees, 94% say 
they would recommend Amazon to a friend as a place to work.”Avery, host of The Amazon podcast, says job satisfaction is elusive at an Amazon fulfillment center.&nbsp;&nbsp;“Satisfaction isn’t near what most 
people get from a job at Amazon, it’d be hard to be satisfied when 
Amazon averages a 150% turnover rate and near double the average of 
serious accidents in the workplace,” he says.He’s referring to a Washington Post 
investigation that revealed Amazon reported twice as many accidents to 
OSHA as other warehouse and storage companies.&nbsp;&nbsp;OSHA is currently investigating the 
storm-related deaths this month of half a dozen Amazon employees at an 
Indiana warehouse.&nbsp; Some employees say they were not allowed to leave 
the warehouse to seek shelter.&nbsp;&nbsp;“As soon as there was a tornado 
warning, the team took immediate action to move to shelter in place 
locations,” Amazon spokeswoman Alisa Carroll told the Current via 
email.&nbsp;“When a site is made aware of a 
tornado warning in the area, all employees are notified and directed to 
move to a designated and marked shelter in place location,” she said. 
“This is the safest approach to ensure no one is on the road or outside 
during a tornado.”Carroll said the site got warnings 
between 8:06 and 8:16, and “leaders directed people on site to 
immediately take shelter. At 8:27, the tornado struck the building.”Validated OSHA complaints from 
Amazon’s Nevada workers the last year range from safety concerns, some 
resulting from a reduced workforce certain days of the week, to 
violations of COVID protocols.“Scanners and carts used by employees
 for order picking are not being sanitized after being used,” says one 
complaint to OSHA, echoed frequently by workers interviewed 
nationwide.&nbsp;&nbsp;But the most common complaint from Amazon workers in Nevada was the heat.&nbsp;&nbsp;A complaint of “poor air quality” prompted an OSHA inspection of DLV 7, a facility in North Las Vegas ,on April 27.“There is poor air quality in the 
workplace. The air filters are dirty,” says the complaint. “It is very 
hot in the building. Employees are experiencing headaches due to the 
heat and wearing a mask.”&nbsp;&nbsp;“Employees in the warehouse are not 
provided with enough water or rest and are being potentially exposed to 
heat stress related illness,” says a complaint that brought OSHA to DLV 2
 on Alexander Rd. in North Las Vegas on June 1. “The warehouse fans are 
operational but are not providing adequate airflow for the given volume 
of the warehouse.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;“Inside the warehouse employees are 
exposed to heat stress,” says a complaint that resulted in an inspection
 of LAS 1 on Bermuda Rd. in Henderson on June 22. “There is only one fan
 and no air-conditioning in the building.”On June 28, inspectors visited the 
LAS 7 fulfillment center on Tropical Pkwy. in North Las Vegas,&nbsp; after 
receiving complaints that employees were “experiencing heat issues since
 the summer began due to the lack of air conditioning on the south end 
of the warehouse. Operation managers have advised that fans would be 
installed at each station throughout the warehouse however that has yet 
to occur for all stations. It is warm on the north side of the 
warehouse, but it is hot on the south side of the warehouse.”&nbsp;OSHA records say the complaint was resolved.&nbsp;&nbsp;“Employees are working under heat 
stress up to 100 degrees inside the establishment,” says a complaint 
filed in July by a worker at LAS 1 in Henderson. “The employer does not 
allow employees to use the fans in the trailers. The fans are locked up 
and employees that unlock the fans face retaliation including 
termination.”The same substantiated complaint says
 workers “are rarely able to take breaks during their shifts. Employees 
typically do not receive any breaks during their shifts.”&nbsp;&nbsp;<h2>Paying for the privilege</h2>Amazon is among hundreds of companies
 that have agreed to pay a statutorily approved average wage and certain
 benefits to be eligible for incentives to do business in Nevada.&nbsp;&nbsp;In 2014, the state ponied up a 
combination of incentives and tax abatements expected to save Amazon 
$1.365 million over the course of several years, while generating a 
projected $393 in economic impact for every dollar of abated tax.&nbsp;“The proposed plan will bring a new non-sort operation to the Reno area. The state incentive program is a critical factor in the company’s decision for this expansion,” Amazon said in its proposal.&nbsp;&nbsp;The company noted the majority of 
jobs would pay under the $20.62 per hour dictated by Nevada law to 
qualify a firm for the abatements.“500 of the 600 positions will make 
an annual wage of $29,100 ($14/hr at 40 hrs/week). Of the remaining 100,
 50 will earn $41,600/yr ($20/hr) and the other 50 is above the 
statewide wage requirement,” its proposal said.Companies that receive abatements are
 audited after two years and again after five years, according to Greg 
Bortolin, spokesman for the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.&nbsp;“The company projections in 2014 
estimated they would produce 600 jobs at an average wage of $16.50 per 
hour and make a capital expenditure of $10 million,” he said via email. 
“The audit findings found they created 533 jobs at an average wage of 
$23.37 per hour and made a capital expenditure of $15,295,110.”A second <a target="_blank" href="https://www.diversifynevada.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Amazon.com_.kydc_Board_Packet_4.pdf">contract</a>
 with Amazon in 2016 bestowed benefits valued at $1.8 million on Amazon 
in return for building and operating a warehouse in Clark County.&nbsp; The 
company estimated the economic impact at $707 for every dollar of tax 
revenue sacrificed by the government.&nbsp;“The
 company projections in 2016 estimated they would produce 1,000 jobs at 
an average wage of $14.64 per hour and make a capital expenditure of $18
 million,” says Bortolin. “The audit findings found they created 704 
jobs at an average wage of $52.63 and made a capital expenditure of 
$7,439,082.”Both the jobs and wages generated were in compliance with the abatements, Bortolin says.When Amazon was looking for a second national headquarters, then-Gov. Brian Sandoval <a target="_blank" href="https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/100-free-acres-in-las-vegas-part-of-bid-for-amazons-2nd-hq/">offered </a>to pony up $800 million in incentives toward the effort.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Avery of The Amazon podcast says the 
idea behind subsidies that employees “would reinvest all of their 
paycheck back into the city via housing and taxes and just going 
downtown to buy stuff,” is questionable. “In reality, it’s hard to say 
that that would happen. Those employees work for Amazon. They have the 
biggest company store known to man where anything can arrive to them 
faster than ever, no matter how much subsidizing is done.”Why does a company valued near $2 trillion need public money from the states where it does business?&nbsp;Nevada Democratic state Sen. Dina Neal attempted in 2019 to create a legislative committee to oversee incentives and abatements.&nbsp; Gov. Steve Sisolak vetoed the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.leg.state.nv.us/App/NELIS/REL/80th2019/Bill/6857/Overview">bill</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;The state’s arrangement with Amazon 
has put it at odds with its own interests, as it incentivizes higher 
wages from private employers while failing to invest in its own critical
 workforce.&nbsp;In a letter to Sisolak in October, 
the Governor’s Committee on Behavioral Health lamented that pay for 
“…front line staff working with the intellectually disabled and 
psychiatrically ill adults is far below that of large local employers 
such as Amazon and Walmart,” the Current <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2021/10/14/sisolak-asked-to-make-mental-health-worker-pay-competitive-with-other-local-employers/">reported</a>.&nbsp;While Amazon offers subsidies to 
employees to cover part of a health plan for workers who can purchase 
through an exchange, it has the most workers of any Nevada employer 
enrolled in Medicaid – 3,648 employees and 4,244 dependents at a cost of
 $ 21,326,448 in 2020, according to a<a target="_blank" href="https://dhhs.nv.gov/uploadedFiles/dhhsnvgov/content/Programs/Office_of_Analytics/Nevada%20Medicaid%20Recipients%20Employed%20by%20Employers%20with%2050%20or%20More%20Employees%20SFY%202020%20SB%20366.pdf"> state report</a>.&nbsp;U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders <a target="_blank" href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/3410#:~:text=Stop%20Bad%20Employers%20by%20Zeroing%20Out%20Subsidies%20Act,employees%20on%20business%20days%20during%20the%20preceding%20year.">attempted</a>
 unsuccessfully in 2018 to impose a tax on companies with 500 employees 
“equal to the amount of federal benefits received by their low wage 
workers.”

The holidays are no holiday at Amazon 

KANSAS CITY— Jackson County judge sentenced Jason Cook to six years in prison for the fatal Jan. 21, 2019 shooting of 23-year-old Cameron Douglas, according to the Jackson County attorney's office.

According to court records filed Dec. 21, Kansas City police were dispatched on Jan. 21, 2019, to the 5300 block of Oak Leaf Drive in Kansas City on a reported shooting. 

Officers found the Douglas deceased on the front stoop of an apartment building. 

Eight shell casings were found at the scene. Surveillance video showed an encounter between Douglas and the Coo.

Douglas turned to walk away, but stopped and turned back toward the Cook. Douglas had his hands in his pockets. Cook began shooting. Douglas ran and the Cook continued firing before he fled.

The prosecutor's office charged the defendant with Murder 2nd Degree and Armed Criminal Action, but the jury in October convicted him of the lesser charge of Involuntary Manslaughter and Armed Criminal Action. Prosecutors requested the judge order the maximum penalty of six years for those convictions.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640200512228.png" alt="Cook-photo Jackson Co." />
 <figcaption>Cook-photo Jackson Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY— Jackson County judge sentenced Jason Cook to six years in prison for the fatal Jan. 21, 2019 shooting of 23-year-old Cameron Douglas, according to the Jackson County attorney's office.According to court records filed Dec. 21, Kansas City police were dispatched on Jan. 21, 2019, to the 5300 block of Oak Leaf Drive in Kansas City on a reported shooting. Officers found the Douglas deceased on the front stoop of an apartment building. Eight shell casings were found at the scene. Surveillance video showed an encounter between Douglas and the Coo.Douglas turned to walk away, but stopped and turned back toward the Cook. Douglas had his hands in his pockets. Cook began shooting. Douglas ran and the Cook continued firing before he fled.The prosecutor's office charged the defendant with Murder 2nd Degree and Armed Criminal Action, but the jury in October convicted him of the lesser charge of Involuntary Manslaughter and Armed Criminal Action. Prosecutors requested the judge order the maximum penalty of six years for those convictions.

Man sentenced for violent KC shooting death of 23-year-old

BERLIN (AP) — The head of the World Health Organization says he’s worried about the omicron and delta variants of COVID-19 producing a “tsunami” of cases between them, but he’s still hopeful that the world will put the worst of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic">pandemic</a>&nbsp;behind it in 2022.

Two years after the coronavirus first emerged, top officials with the U.N. health agency cautioned that it’s still too early to be reassured by initial data suggesting that omicron, the latest variant, leads to milder disease. First reported last month in southern Africa, it is already the dominant variant in the United States and parts of Europe.

And after 92 of the WHO’s 194 member countries missed a target to vaccinate 40% of their populations by the end of this year, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged everyone to make a “new year’s resolution” to get behind a campaign to vaccinate 70% of countries’ populations by the beginning of July.

According to WHO’s figures, the number of COVID-19 cases recorded worldwide increased by 11% last week compared with the previous week, with nearly 4.99 million newly reported from Dec. 20-26. New cases in Europe — which accounted for more than half of the total — were up 3% while those in the Americas rose 39% and there was a 7% increase in Africa. The global gain followed a gradual increase since October.

“I’m highly concerned that omicron, being more transmissible (and) circulating at the same time as delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases,” Tedros said at an online news conference. That, he said, will put “immense pressure on exhausted health workers and health systems on the brink of collapse.”

WHO said in its weekly epidemiological report that the “overall risk” related to omicron “remains very high.” It cited “consistent evidence” that it has a growth advantage over the delta variant.

It noted that a decline in case incidence has been seen in South Africa, and that early data from that country, the U.K. and Denmark suggest a reduced risk of hospitalization with omicron, but said that more data is needed.

WHO’s emergencies chief, Dr. Michael Ryan, underlined that note of caution. He said it will be important in coming weeks to “suppress transmission of both variants to the minimum that we can.”

Ryan said that omicron infections began largely among young people, “but what we haven’t seen is the omicron wave fully established in the broader population. And I’m a little nervous to make positive predictions until we see how well the vaccine protection is going to work in those older and more vulnerable populations.”

WHO officials didn’t offer specific comments on decisions by the U.S. and other countries to reduce self-isolation periods. Ryan said “these are judgement calls that countries make” — taking into account scientific, economic and other factors. He noted that the average incubation period to date has been around five to six days.

“We need to be careful about changing tactics and strategies immediately on the basis of what we’re seeing” about omicron, Ryan said.

Tedros renewed longstanding warnings that “ending health inequity remains the key to ending the pandemic.” He said that missing the target of getting 40% of populations vaccinated this year “is not only a moral shame — it cost lives and provided the virus with opportunities to circulate unchecked and mutate.”

Countries largely missed the target because of limited supply to low-income nations for most of the year and then vaccines arriving close to their expiry date, without things such as syringes, he said.

All the same, “I still remain optimistic that this can be the year we can not only end the acute stage of the pandemic, but we also chart a path to stronger health security,” Tedros said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640816747031.png" alt="Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged everyone to make a “new year’s resolution” to get behind a campaign to vaccinate 70% of countries’ populations by the beginning of July-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged everyone to make a “new year’s resolution” to get behind a campaign to vaccinate 70% of countries’ populations by the beginning of July-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>BERLIN (AP) — The head of the World Health Organization says he’s worried about the omicron and delta variants of COVID-19 producing a “tsunami” of cases between them, but he’s still hopeful that the world will put the worst of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic">pandemic</a>&nbsp;behind it in 2022.Two years after the coronavirus first emerged, top officials with the U.N. health agency cautioned that it’s still too early to be reassured by initial data suggesting that omicron, the latest variant, leads to milder disease. First reported last month in southern Africa, it is already the dominant variant in the United States and parts of Europe.And after 92 of the WHO’s 194 member countries missed a target to vaccinate 40% of their populations by the end of this year, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged everyone to make a “new year’s resolution” to get behind a campaign to vaccinate 70% of countries’ populations by the beginning of July.According to WHO’s figures, the number of COVID-19 cases recorded worldwide increased by 11% last week compared with the previous week, with nearly 4.99 million newly reported from Dec. 20-26. New cases in Europe — which accounted for more than half of the total — were up 3% while those in the Americas rose 39% and there was a 7% increase in Africa. The global gain followed a gradual increase since October.“I’m highly concerned that omicron, being more transmissible (and) circulating at the same time as delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases,” Tedros said at an online news conference. That, he said, will put “immense pressure on exhausted health workers and health systems on the brink of collapse.”WHO said in its weekly epidemiological report that the “overall risk” related to omicron “remains very high.” It cited “consistent evidence” that it has a growth advantage over the delta variant.It noted that a decline in case incidence has been seen in South Africa, and that early data from that country, the U.K. and Denmark suggest a reduced risk of hospitalization with omicron, but said that more data is needed.WHO’s emergencies chief, Dr. Michael Ryan, underlined that note of caution. He said it will be important in coming weeks to “suppress transmission of both variants to the minimum that we can.”Ryan said that omicron infections began largely among young people, “but what we haven’t seen is the omicron wave fully established in the broader population. And I’m a little nervous to make positive predictions until we see how well the vaccine protection is going to work in those older and more vulnerable populations.”WHO officials didn’t offer specific comments on decisions by the U.S. and other countries to reduce self-isolation periods. Ryan said “these are judgement calls that countries make” — taking into account scientific, economic and other factors. He noted that the average incubation period to date has been around five to six days.“We need to be careful about changing tactics and strategies immediately on the basis of what we’re seeing” about omicron, Ryan said.Tedros renewed longstanding warnings that “ending health inequity remains the key to ending the pandemic.” He said that missing the target of getting 40% of populations vaccinated this year “is not only a moral shame — it cost lives and provided the virus with opportunities to circulate unchecked and mutate.”Countries largely missed the target because of limited supply to low-income nations for most of the year and then vaccines arriving close to their expiry date, without things such as syringes, he said.All the same, “I still remain optimistic that this can be the year we can not only end the acute stage of the pandemic, but we also chart a path to stronger health security,” Tedros said.___

WHO chief hopeful world will put the worst of pandemic behind it in 2022

Dorothy Lucille Yowell, age 94, of Mesquite, Texas formerly of Ellis, Kansas, passed away November 16, 2021, in Mesquite. She was born May 20, 1927, in Hays, Kansas to Nicholas and Anna Heroneme. On January 15, 1946, she married Clyde Yowell in Ellis. He preceded her in death on October 24, 1994. Dorothy was a farm wife and also worked at Travenol in Hays for several years. She had been a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Ellis and St. Jerome Catholic Church in Phoenix, Arizona.&nbsp; She spent many years volunteering at the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Phoenix. She was a beloved mother, grandmother and great grandmother. Those left to cherish her memory are her daughters, Victoria Larson and Claudia Schroer; a son, Paul Yowell; grandchildren, Rich Wellbrock, Monica Hafif, Brook Schroer, Nathan Yowell, Sarah Williams and Kelsey Yowell; great grandchildren, Griffin Wellbrock, Madeline Wellbrock, Jack Hafif, Freida Hafif, Lillian Schroer, Brenden Schroer, Jackson Williams and Addison Williams, as well as numerous extended family and friends who will miss her dearly. Memorial services will be 10:00 AM with visitation 9:00 AM until service time on Saturday, January 8, 2022, at Brock's-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory 2509 Vine Hays, KS 67601. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul @&nbsp;<a href="http://svdpusa.org/">svdpusa.org</a>&nbsp;in her memory. Condolences may be left by guest book at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com/">www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com</a>&nbsp;or by email at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com">keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640987669564.jpeg" alt="\" />
 <figcaption>\</figcaption>
 </figure>Dorothy Lucille Yowell, age 94, of Mesquite, Texas formerly of Ellis, Kansas, passed away November 16, 2021, in Mesquite. She was born May 20, 1927, in Hays, Kansas to Nicholas and Anna Heroneme. On January 15, 1946, she married Clyde Yowell in Ellis. He preceded her in death on October 24, 1994. Dorothy was a farm wife and also worked at Travenol in Hays for several years. She had been a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Ellis and St. Jerome Catholic Church in Phoenix, Arizona.&nbsp; She spent many years volunteering at the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Phoenix. She was a beloved mother, grandmother and great grandmother. Those left to cherish her memory are her daughters, Victoria Larson and Claudia Schroer; a son, Paul Yowell; grandchildren, Rich Wellbrock, Monica Hafif, Brook Schroer, Nathan Yowell, Sarah Williams and Kelsey Yowell; great grandchildren, Griffin Wellbrock, Madeline Wellbrock, Jack Hafif, Freida Hafif, Lillian Schroer, Brenden Schroer, Jackson Williams and Addison Williams, as well as numerous extended family and friends who will miss her dearly. Memorial services will be 10:00 AM with visitation 9:00 AM until service time on Saturday, January 8, 2022, at Brock's-Keithley Funeral Chapel and Crematory 2509 Vine Hays, KS 67601. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul @&nbsp;<a href="http://svdpusa.org/">svdpusa.org</a>&nbsp;in her memory. Condolences may be left by guest book at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com/">www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com</a>&nbsp;or by email at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com">keithleyfuneralhomes@gmail.com</a>.

Terry Wayne Young, 78, passed away on December 28, 2021, at his home 
in Great Bend, Kansas. He was born on October 27, 1943 at Celina, Ohio, 
to Russell &amp; Mable (Parks) Young. On August 26, 1973, he married 
Alice Paxton at Durango, Colorado.

A long-time Great Bend resident, Terry was the manager for the job 
service centers for the State of Kansas in Great Bend, Hutchinson and 
Newton until he retired in 2006. Terry was also a veteran, serving as a 
sergeant in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. He was a past 
department commander for the D.A.V. in 2013. Terry was an avid sports 
fan, specifically cheering on the Broncos and Ohio State Buckeyes. He 
enjoyed playing golf and was a lifetime hunter, picking up pheasant 
hunting when he moved to Kansas.

Survivors include, his wife Alice Young of the home; a brother, Altas
 Knapp and wife Teresa of Sidney, Ohio; sisters, Candy Knapp of Van 
Wert, Ohio, Laura Bricker of Greenville, Ohio, and Lahoma Frederick of 
South Carolina; nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was preceded in death 
by his parents.

There will be no visitation as cremation has taken place. Funeral 
service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, January 7, 2022, at Bryant 
Funeral Home with Chaplain Jeffrey Owen presiding. Internment will 
follow at Great Bend Cemetery North. Memorials can be made to the D.A.V.
 in care of Bryant Funeral Home.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640978130766.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Terry Wayne Young, 78, passed away on December 28, 2021, at his home 
in Great Bend, Kansas. He was born on October 27, 1943 at Celina, Ohio, 
to Russell &amp; Mable (Parks) Young. On August 26, 1973, he married 
Alice Paxton at Durango, Colorado.A long-time Great Bend resident, Terry was the manager for the job 
service centers for the State of Kansas in Great Bend, Hutchinson and 
Newton until he retired in 2006. Terry was also a veteran, serving as a 
sergeant in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. He was a past 
department commander for the D.A.V. in 2013. Terry was an avid sports 
fan, specifically cheering on the Broncos and Ohio State Buckeyes. He 
enjoyed playing golf and was a lifetime hunter, picking up pheasant 
hunting when he moved to Kansas.Survivors include, his wife Alice Young of the home; a brother, Altas
 Knapp and wife Teresa of Sidney, Ohio; sisters, Candy Knapp of Van 
Wert, Ohio, Laura Bricker of Greenville, Ohio, and Lahoma Frederick of 
South Carolina; nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was preceded in death 
by his parents.There will be no visitation as cremation has taken place. Funeral 
service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, January 7, 2022, at Bryant 
Funeral Home with Chaplain Jeffrey Owen presiding. Internment will 
follow at Great Bend Cemetery North. Memorials can be made to the D.A.V.
 in care of Bryant Funeral Home.

Terry Wayne Young

DENVER (AP) — An estimated 580 homes, a hotel and a shopping center have burned and tens of thousands of people were evacuated in wind-fueled wildfires outside Denver, officials said Thursday evening.

At least one first responder and six others were injured, though Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle acknowledged there could be more injuries and deaths could be possible due to the intensity of fires that quickly swept across the region as winds gusted up to 105 mph.

The first fire erupted just before 10:30 a.m. and was “attacked pretty quickly and laid down later in the day and is currently being monitored” with no structures lost, Pelle said.

A second wildfire, reported just after 11 a.m., “ballooned and spread rapidly east,” Pelle said. The blaze spans 2.5 square miles (6.5 square kilometers) and has engulfed parts of the area in smoky, orangish skies and sent residents scrambling to get to safety.

The activity of the fires, which are burning unusually late into the winter season, will depend on how the winds behave overnight and could determine when crews are able to go in and begin assessing the damage and searching for any victims.

“This is the kind of fire we can’t fight head on,” Pelle said. “We actually had deputy sheriffs and firefighters in areas that had to pull out because they just got overrun,” he added.

Evacuations have been ordered for the city of Louisville, home to about 21,000 people, and Superior, which has another 13,000 residents.

The neighboring towns are roughly 20 miles&nbsp; northwest of Denver in an area filled with middle and upper-middle class subdivisions surrounded by shopping centers, parks and schools. The area is in between Denver and Boulder, a foothills college town home to the University of Colorado.

Residents evacuated fairly calmly and orderly, but the winding streets in the suburban subdivisions quickly became clogged as people tried to get out. It sometimes took cars as long as 45 minutes to advance about a half mile (less than a kilometer).

Small fires cropped up here and there in surprising places — on the grass in a median or in a dumpster in the middle of a parking lot — as wind gusts caused the fire to jump and spread. Shifting winds caused the skies to turn from clear to smoky and then back again as emergency sirens blared nearby.

Some of the several blazes in the area Thursday were sparked by downed power lines.

Six people who were injured in the fires were being treated at UCHealth Broomfield Hospital, spokesperson Kelli Christensen said. A nearby portion of U.S. Highway 36 also was shut down.

Colorado’s Front Range, where most of the state’s population lives, had an extremely dry and mild fall, and winter so far has continued to be mostly dry.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-lifestyle-business-denver-weather-d967eafc0de74000c758fbbac9f5f52d">Denver set a record for most consecutive days without snow</a>&nbsp;before it got a small storm on Dec. 10. It hasn’t snowed since, though snow was expected in the region Friday.

One video captured by a bystander outside a Superior Costco store showed an apocalyptic scene with winds whipping through barren trees in the parking lot surrounded by gray skies, a hazy sun and small fires scattered across the ground.

Leah Angstman and her husband saw similar dark skies while returning to their Louisville home from Denver International Airport after being away for the holidays. As they were sitting on the bus going toward Boulder, Angstman recalled instantly leaving clear blue skies and entering clouds of brown and yellow smoke.

“The wind rocked the bus so hard that I thought the bus would tip,” she wrote in a message to The Associated Press.

The visibility was so poor that the bus had to pull over and they waited a half-hour until a regional transit authority van escorted them to a turnaround on the highway. There she saw four separate fires burning in bushes across the freeway, she said.

“The sky was dark, dark brown, and the dirt was blowing in swirls across the sidewalk like snakes,” she said.

Angstman later ended up evacuating, getting in a car with her husband and driving northeast without knowing where they would end up.

Vignesh Kasinath, an assistant professor of biochemistry at the University of Colorado in Boulder, evacuated from a neighborhood in Superior with his wife and her parents. Kasinath said the family was overwhelmed because of the sudden evacuation warning and anxious from the chaos while trying to leave.

“It’s only because I am active on Twitter I came to know about this,” said Kasinath, who said he did not receive an official evacuation notice from authorities.

The fires prompted Gov. Jared Polis to declare a state of a emergency, allowing the state to access disaster emergency funds.

The evacuations come as climate change is making&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-climate-change-science-environment-and-nature-935be069af34aad472074d42097af85e">weather more extreme</a>&nbsp;and wildfires more frequent and destructive, scientists say. A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ut-state-wire-az-state-wire-id-state-wire-or-state-wire-nv-state-wire-d1f130f8826ef57c74db611e959937ac">historic drought</a>&nbsp;and heat waves have made wildfires harder to fight in the U.S. West.

Ninety percent of Boulder County is in severe or extreme drought, and hasn’t seen substantial rainfall since mid-summer.

“With any snow on the ground, this absolutely would not have happened in the way that it did,” said snow hydrologist Keith Musselman, who was at home when the fire broke out not far away.

Musselman said this severe fire risk can be expected in September and October following a dry summer, but the lack of any precipitation – snow or rain – this late in the season is highly unusual.

The National Weather Service predicts up to a foot of snow could fall tomorrow in Boulder, and that moisture would bring substantial relief, Musselman said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640951000026.png" alt="Evacuations were ordered for the city of Louisville, home to about 21,000 people, and Superior, which has another 13,000 residents.-photo courtesy KKTV" />
 <figcaption>Evacuations were ordered for the city of Louisville, home to about 21,000 people, and Superior, which has another 13,000 residents.-photo courtesy KKTV</figcaption>
 </figure>DENVER (AP) — An estimated 580 homes, a hotel and a shopping center have burned and tens of thousands of people were evacuated in wind-fueled wildfires outside Denver, officials said Thursday evening.At least one first responder and six others were injured, though Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle acknowledged there could be more injuries and deaths could be possible due to the intensity of fires that quickly swept across the region as winds gusted up to 105 mph.The first fire erupted just before 10:30 a.m. and was “attacked pretty quickly and laid down later in the day and is currently being monitored” with no structures lost, Pelle said.A second wildfire, reported just after 11 a.m., “ballooned and spread rapidly east,” Pelle said. The blaze spans 2.5 square miles (6.5 square kilometers) and has engulfed parts of the area in smoky, orangish skies and sent residents scrambling to get to safety.The activity of the fires, which are burning unusually late into the winter season, will depend on how the winds behave overnight and could determine when crews are able to go in and begin assessing the damage and searching for any victims.“This is the kind of fire we can’t fight head on,” Pelle said. “We actually had deputy sheriffs and firefighters in areas that had to pull out because they just got overrun,” he added.Evacuations have been ordered for the city of Louisville, home to about 21,000 people, and Superior, which has another 13,000 residents.The neighboring towns are roughly 20 miles&nbsp; northwest of Denver in an area filled with middle and upper-middle class subdivisions surrounded by shopping centers, parks and schools. The area is in between Denver and Boulder, a foothills college town home to the University of Colorado.Residents evacuated fairly calmly and orderly, but the winding streets in the suburban subdivisions quickly became clogged as people tried to get out. It sometimes took cars as long as 45 minutes to advance about a half mile (less than a kilometer).Small fires cropped up here and there in surprising places — on the grass in a median or in a dumpster in the middle of a parking lot — as wind gusts caused the fire to jump and spread. Shifting winds caused the skies to turn from clear to smoky and then back again as emergency sirens blared nearby.Some of the several blazes in the area Thursday were sparked by downed power lines.Six people who were injured in the fires were being treated at UCHealth Broomfield Hospital, spokesperson Kelli Christensen said. A nearby portion of U.S. Highway 36 also was shut down.Colorado’s Front Range, where most of the state’s population lives, had an extremely dry and mild fall, and winter so far has continued to be mostly dry.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-lifestyle-business-denver-weather-d967eafc0de74000c758fbbac9f5f52d">Denver set a record for most consecutive days without snow</a>&nbsp;before it got a small storm on Dec. 10. It hasn’t snowed since, though snow was expected in the region Friday.One video captured by a bystander outside a Superior Costco store showed an apocalyptic scene with winds whipping through barren trees in the parking lot surrounded by gray skies, a hazy sun and small fires scattered across the ground.Leah Angstman and her husband saw similar dark skies while returning to their Louisville home from Denver International Airport after being away for the holidays. As they were sitting on the bus going toward Boulder, Angstman recalled instantly leaving clear blue skies and entering clouds of brown and yellow smoke.“The wind rocked the bus so hard that I thought the bus would tip,” she wrote in a message to The Associated Press.The visibility was so poor that the bus had to pull over and they waited a half-hour until a regional transit authority van escorted them to a turnaround on the highway. There she saw four separate fires burning in bushes across the freeway, she said.“The sky was dark, dark brown, and the dirt was blowing in swirls across the sidewalk like snakes,” she said.Angstman later ended up evacuating, getting in a car with her husband and driving northeast without knowing where they would end up.Vignesh Kasinath, an assistant professor of biochemistry at the University of Colorado in Boulder, evacuated from a neighborhood in Superior with his wife and her parents. Kasinath said the family was overwhelmed because of the sudden evacuation warning and anxious from the chaos while trying to leave.“It’s only because I am active on Twitter I came to know about this,” said Kasinath, who said he did not receive an official evacuation notice from authorities.The fires prompted Gov. Jared Polis to declare a state of a emergency, allowing the state to access disaster emergency funds.The evacuations come as climate change is making&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-climate-change-science-environment-and-nature-935be069af34aad472074d42097af85e">weather more extreme</a>&nbsp;and wildfires more frequent and destructive, scientists say. A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ut-state-wire-az-state-wire-id-state-wire-or-state-wire-nv-state-wire-d1f130f8826ef57c74db611e959937ac">historic drought</a>&nbsp;and heat waves have made wildfires harder to fight in the U.S. West.Ninety percent of Boulder County is in severe or extreme drought, and hasn’t seen substantial rainfall since mid-summer.“With any snow on the ground, this absolutely would not have happened in the way that it did,” said snow hydrologist Keith Musselman, who was at home when the fire broke out not far away.Musselman said this severe fire risk can be expected in September and October following a dry summer, but the lack of any precipitation – snow or rain – this late in the season is highly unusual.The National Weather Service predicts up to a foot of snow could fall tomorrow in Boulder, and that moisture would bring substantial relief, Musselman said.____

Wildfires near Denver burn hundreds of homes, force evacuations

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Supreme Court has upheld the first-degree murder conviction of a Topeka man over a fatal road rage shooting more than five years ago. 

The court on Thursday rejected arguments from an attorney for Andre Clark Rhoiney Jr., that the prosecutor made improper statements during closing arguments. 

The shooting of 28-year-old Michael Stadler occurred in October 2016, when Rhoiney was 23. According to trial testimony, Rhoiney fired two shots at a van that Stadler was in after people in the two vehicles had exchanged words and rude gestures. 

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640890816132.png" alt="Rhoiney following his initial arrest in the case" />
 <figcaption>Rhoiney following his initial arrest in the case</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Supreme Court has upheld the first-degree murder conviction of a Topeka man over a fatal road rage shooting more than five years ago. The court on Thursday rejected arguments from an attorney for Andre Clark Rhoiney Jr., that the prosecutor made improper statements during closing arguments. The shooting of 28-year-old Michael Stadler occurred in October 2016, when Rhoiney was 23. According to trial testimony, Rhoiney fired two shots at a van that Stadler was in after people in the two vehicles had exchanged words and rude gestures. A Shawnee County judge sentenced Rhoiney to life plus 13 months in prison, with no chance for parole for 25 years.