WICHITA, Kan. – Matthew Gorney has joined Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered as an associate attorney.
A Wichita native, Gorney is admitted to practice before the federal and state courts in Kansas. He graduated from the University of Kansas School of Law in 2013 where he earned certificates in both Advocacy Skills and Media, Law and Technology. Gorney simultaneously earned a Master of Science Degree in Journalism from the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications after successfully defending his thesis: Social Media and Kansas Courtrooms: Assessing Kansas Supreme Court Rule 1001 and Exploring Possible Improvements. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University majoring in journalism with a minor in leadership studies.
While in law school, he served a year as an officer for the American Bar Association’s Law Student Division. Gorney also worked as a graduate teaching assistant and later adjunct instructor for KU’s journalism school. He began practicing law in Wichita in 2014.
Founded in 1985 by litigator Dan Monnat and legal scholar Stan Spurrier, Monnat & Spurrier has built an international reputation for criminal defense and appellate defense. In addition to Monnat, Spurrier and Gorney, the firm includes two former prosecutors, Trevor Riddle and Sal Intagliata, and a legal research and writing specialist, Kathryn Stevenson.
WICHITA, Kan. – Who’s Who Legal: Business Crime Defense 2016 has named Dan Monnat, of Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered, one of the world’s leading practitioners in the sectors of Business Crime Defense and Investigations. The publication is a strategic research partner of the American Bar Association’s Section of International Law. Monnat is one of only two attorneys in Kansas to be selected.
Monnat has practiced in Wichita for more than 40 years, handling criminal and white-collar criminal cases that have attracted worldwide attention. He is a Fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, the American College of Trial Lawyers, the American Board of Criminal Lawyers and the Litigation Counsel of America.
“I’m truly honored to be recognized among this worldwide group of exemplary attorneys,” Monnat said. “I believe this recognition is also a tribute to the quality of our criminal justice system in Kansas and in the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. Rulings in the Heartland sometimes resonate globally, and can have a potential impact on white-collar criminal defense strategies worldwide.”
A graduate of California State University, Monnat received his J.D. from Creighton University School of Law and is a graduate of Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyer’s College.
A frequent national lecturer and editorial contributor on criminal defense topics, Monnat is the author of “Sentencing, Probation, and Collateral Consequences,” a chapter of the Kansas Bar Association’s Kansas Criminal Law Handbook, 4th edition. From 2007 – 2011, Monnat served on the Kansas Sentencing Commission as a Governor’s appointee. He currently sits on the Kansas Association of Justice’ Board of Editors.
Monnat served as a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Board of Directors from 1996 – 2004, and is a two-term past president of the Kansas Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered, celebrates its 30th anniversary this year.
WICHITA, Kan. – Dan Monnat, of Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered, has been named by Chambers USA 2016 as one of Kansas’ top litigators in White-Collar Crime and Government Investigations. The publication, which conducts independent surveys of both lawyers and their clients, writes that Monnat is a “highly regarded criminal defense lawyer with significant trial and appellate expertise. Peers laud him as a ‘very impressive, intelligent and experienced’ attorney.”
Monnat has practiced criminal law, white-collar criminal law and appellate law in Wichita for 40 years. A graduate of California State University, Monnat received his J.D. from Creighton University School of Law. He also is a graduate of Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyer’s College.
A frequent national lecturer and editorial contributor on criminal defense topics, Monnat is the author of “Sentencing, Probation, and Collateral Consequences,” a chapter of the Kansas Bar Association’s Kansas Criminal Law Handbook, 4th edition. He was the Governor’s appointee to the Kansas Sentencing Commission from 2007 – 2011.
Monnat has earned distinction as a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, the American Board of Criminal Lawyers, the Litigation Counsel of America and the Kansas Bar Foundation. He currently sits on the Kansas Association of Justice’s Board of Editors.
Monnat is a member of the National Trial Lawyers and served as a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Board of Directors from 1996 – 2004. He is a two-term past president of the Kansas Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and a member of the Nebraska Criminal Defense Attorneys Association.
Monnat & Spurrier, Chartered, celebrates its 30th anniversary as a firm this year.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A woman accused of giving her former boyfriend guns used in a shooting at a Kansas lawn equipment factory plans to mount a battered woman’s syndrome defense at her August trial.
The attorney for Sarah Jo Hopkins filed notice Wednesday saying he plans to introduce expert evidence related to her mental state. The defense is also seeking to suppress her statements.
Court documents state,
“Defendant’s mental state is relevant to the crimes charged, and expert testimony would assist the jury in determining her state of mind and whether she acted as she did because Cedric Ford [the shooter] threatened and abused her…”
The motion also states that Hopkins was evaluated by a doctor in March 2016 and that doctor concluded,
“… [The] Defendant suffered from PTSD and battered woman’s syndrome at the time of the alleged criminal offenses.”
The 28-year-old Newton woman has pleaded not guilty to transferring weapons to a prohibited person.
Prosecutors say she gave Cedric Ford an AK-47-type semi-automatic rifle and a .40-caliber handgun that he used in the Feb. 25 attack at Excel Industries in Hesston. Four people, including Ford, were killed and 14 others were injured.
Hopkins has told investigators that she gave him the guns because he had threatened her.
Dan Monnat talks to KSN about a battered woman’s syndrome defense
KSN spoke with legal analyst and defense attorney, Dan Monnat, about the defense.
“Battered woman’s syndrome typically refers to the psychological state of a woman who has suffered repeated, vicious, physical or psychological abuse,” said Monnat. “It is one aspect of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.”
Monnat says the defense is most often introduced in a criminal case to “help the jury understand why an accused person might not be able to act as freely and voluntarily as the rest of us.”
Monnat also told KSN that, in general, for anyone to be convicted of a crime, the law requires a “guilty mental state.”
“If a person is coerced or compelled to commit a crime by physical threats or force, or psychological conditions, then by definition, they didn’t commit a crime because they had no guilty mind.”
Hopkins’ trial is scheduled for August 9.
KSN TV – By Brittany Glas
WICHITA, Kan. — The Sedgwick County Coroner’s Office released the autopsy and toxicology reports on Jhornee Bland Friday.
In a report from the Sedgwick County Regional Forensic Science Center, Deputy Coroner Dr. T. Gorrill reported that the cause and manner of Jhornee Bland’s death is “undetermined.”
The autopsy, performed May 10th, also reported that there was no evidence of injury or natural disease.
“It’s unusual to find an autopsy report like this,” stated KSN Legal Expert, Dan Monnat. “”At this stage, no one knows why the child died. A prosecutor’s first question is, can I prove without a reasonable doubt that a crime has been committed. Number two, that this particular suspect committed it.”
The toxicology report also showed negative for any toxic chemicals or drugs.
Tested drugs and chemicals included: Ethanol, Acetone, Acetaminophen, Amitriptyline, Amphetamine, Barbiturates, Benzoylecgonine, Carisoprodol, Carboxytetrahydrocannabinol [THCA], Chlordiazepoxide, Cocaine, Codeine, Despiramine, Diazepam, Diphenhydramine, Doxepin, Fentanyl, Hydrocodone, Hydromorphone, Imipramine, Ketamine, Meperidine, Meprobamate, Methadone, Methamphetamine, Methylenedioxymethamphetamine [MDMA], Morphine, Nordiazepam, Nortriptyline, Oxycodone, Phencyclidine [PCP], Phentermine, Propoxyphene, Salicylates, Sertralinc, Strychnine, Tramadol, Trazodone, Verapamil and Zolpidem.
District Attorney Marc Bennett issued the following statement Friday afternoon:
“In light of the release of the final Autopsy report issued by the Sedgwick County Coroner, the Wichita Police Department will continue to investigate the death of Jhornee Bland. When the investigation is complete, WPD investigators will present their findings to the Office of the District Attorney for a final charging determination.”
KSNW TV
WICHITA, Kan. — Wichita Police say a 9-year-old boy was accidentally shot in the leg Tuesday night. It happened around 9:15 p.m. at a home in the 700 block of South Fountain.
Police say a friend of the boy’s father accidentally shot the boy in the leg. WPD reports that the suspect, a 36-year-old, was showing the child the gun when it accidentally discharged.
“The suspect admitted to accidentally discharging his firearm inside of a residence,” said Sgt. Nikki Woodrow, with the Wichita Police Department. “The victim is expected to make a full recovery, and the suspect was arrested and booked for aggravated battery.”
The boy was taken to the hospital by a private vehicle and at last report Wednesday, was in fair condition.
AUGUSTA, Kan. — Questions continued to be raised Tuesday about the discharge of the firearm at Hillier Stadium in Augusta during Sunday’s commencement exercise. Two people were injured, including the man carrying the gun.
Augusta police say the non-life-threatening injuries occurred when the man was moving his gun. Police say he had the gun stowed in his sock, rather than a protective holster. They report the man was repositioning it, because it was uncomfortable there. Police say it discharged,firing through his foot. Then bullet fragments struck and injured a woman several feet away in her leg.
The attorney for the Kansas Association of School Boards, Lori Church, said the best schools can do is to continue posting “no gun” signs at entrances of schools and school stadiums, to get the message across that guns aren’t welcome.
Church admitted the man who had the gun at Sunday’s graduation ceremonies at Hillier Stadium had a conceal carry permit, so he didn’t break a law by simply having the gun there.
“The only thing the school district can do is ask the person to leave the premises,” Church said. “It’s no longer a crime to carry where signs are posted, saying that you cannot have a concealed handgun. All we can do is ask them to leave.”
Wichita attorney Dan Monnat researched the law. “If a Kansan possesses a valid Kansas carry and conceal license, the person cannot be criminally prosecuted for carrying a firearm into a school building, a school stadium or on school grounds, under either state or federal law,” Monnat said. “Even if the school has posted that possession of firearms is prohibited.”
Monnat said it’s not relevant whether the stadium itself is considered a school building or not, on the question of the man breaking any laws by possessing the gun there.
“Every law you look at that might apply in this circumstance doesn’t apply,” Monnat explained, “because the same law exempts from its provisions someone who’s entitled by licensure law to possess a firearm.
“At most, such a person can be asked to leave posted premises or could be denied access,” Monnat added. “But the Kansas law specifically says a licensed person shall not be subject to criminal prosecution for carrying a firearm on posted premises of a school.”
School Board attorney Church said if schools recognize someone with a gun, ask them to leave and they don’t, then it may become a trespassing issue.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the incident was still under investigation and had not been presented to the Butler County Attorney to consider potential charges.
See full video at KAKE.com
KAKE TV – By Chris Frank
WICHITA – Following the accidental gun discharge at the Augusta High graduation Sunday, where two people were injured, KSN is asking if schools can keep concealed carry guns out of graduations.
“The Kansas Statute has allowed schools to set their parameters in regards to school safety,” says Terri Moses, Executive Director of Security Services at USD 259, Wichita Schools. “And we have the no gun signs on all of our properties. And we continue to enforce that rule.”
Legal minds agree. Federal law says no guns within 1,000 feet of a school zone. Kansas law has allowed concealed carry holders to carry a gun on school grounds.
“Are there exceptions to the federal law? Yes,” says legal analyst and Wichita attorney, Dan Monnat. “If a person has a valid carry and concealed license, then the question is, does it conflict with Kansas law?”
Monnat says the bottom line is, no guns by Kansas statute, if schools post signs that say no guns.
“Posted signage makes such possession illegal,” says Monnat. “However, there are no criminal penalties for that statute. The only (legal) remedy is denial of access to or removal from the school premises.”
The Augusta police chief says he is going after charges in the Augusta case.
“It’s illegal for anyone to have a weapon on school property, we’re looking into that right now,” said Chief Tyler Brewer, Augusta Director of Public Safety.
Augusta Superintendent John Black says the shooting has been what he calls a learning experience.
“This brings up an interesting series of questions,” says Black. “Security is something we take seriously. We will continue to review our safety procedures.”
Augusta has a sign outside its stadium, where the accidental shooting happened. Kansas Statute 75-7c (et. al) goes extensively into concealed carry. It also says federal law is usurped by Kansas law that, in turn, says concealed carry permit holders can carry on schools, unless signs are posted.
USD 259 officials say they will continue to use metal detectors to keep guns out of graduation ceremonies and other large events.
“I think they’re reasonable for the safety and security and peace of mind that they give to people when they are entering an event,” said Moses.
Augusta Chief Brewer says his office will present a case to the county attorney for charges, later this week.
KSNW TV – By Craig Andres