Old Town cameras being used to catch traffic violators

Wichita police are using 97 cameras to monitor the Old Town area for safety. Now, some of those cameras are being used for traffic enforcement. KSN Legal Expert Dan Monnat says, “You have no reasonable expectation of privacy in actions or driving behaviors that you knowingly display to the general public….”

Charges yet to be filed in Evan Brewer case

More than a week since the remains of a 3-year-old boy were found inside a concrete structure, many questions surround the case. Dan Monnat tells KWCH TV, “Likely there’s an autopsy involved here to determine whether or not the child died of natural causes or criminal means,” and those results could point investigators in a different direction…

Lawyer explains difference between arrest and charges

WICHITA, Kan. – A criminal case against a Wichita Police Officer accused of rape has been closed. While Officer Marlon Woolcock was arrested , he was never charged with the crime. The case has been dismissed because forensic evidence could not substantiate the case. Says KAKE Legal Expert Dan Monnat: “It is the duty of the District Attorney, and the media who broadcast that officer’s arrest, to make it clear to the public this individual is innocent, he has been exonerated, he did not commit a crime…

Man arrested on charge of terrorism

WICHITA, Kan. – Wichita police said a man was arrested on a terrorism charge after 911 dispatchers received calls referencing a post allegedly made by the suspect on social media. Defense attorney Dan Monnat says a terroristic threat is considered a felony, but he says prosecutors must prove beyond a reasonable doubt the criminal intent necessary to commit the crime….

First time marijuana offenders could face lesser charges in Wichita

WICHITA, Kan. – People caught with marijuana in the city of Wichita could now face less serious penalties if a new ordinance gets final approval. Defense attorney Dan Monnat says that whether a case in the city is charged under the more serious state law or the new city law is largely a matter of “prosecutorial discretion.” Monnat says, “If the sheriff’s officer brings a state accusation of possession of marijuana to the district attorney, it is perfectly within the district attorney’s prosecutorial discretion to say, ‘we don’t want to handle that here, take that over to the city.’”

Wichita mom to fight Kansas law after son is left to die in pool

WICHITA – A Wichita mom is fighting to change Kansas law after her teenage son was left to die in a pool. KSN Legal Expert Dan Monnat says, “Generally in the U.S., the law regulates actions and codes of morality regulate the less clear area of omissions to act. Generally in Kansas, there is no legal duty to rescue or render aid to someone in peril…”

Wichita mom to fight Kansas law after son is left to die in pool

WICHITA – A Wichita mom is fighting to change Kansas law after her teenage son was left to die in a pool. KSN Legal Expert Dan Monnat says, “Generally in the U.S., the law regulates actions and codes of morality regulate the less clear area of omissions to act. Generally in Kansas, there is no legal duty to rescue or render aid to someone in peril…”

Wichita man sentenced for turning stolen mail into fake identities

A Wichita man was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison for turning stolen mail into 14 false identities. Attorney Dan Monnat says, “Checks can always be stolen, washed and re-used by thieves to empty your bank account…Although there’s no way to completely stop mail theft from happening, there are some things you can do…

Wichita police: 78 guns stolen from cars this year; 193 in 2016

The Wichita Police Department says 193 firearms were stolen from vehicles last year and 78 guns have been taken in car break-ins this year. Legal Analyst Dan Monnat says a gun owner “cannot be criminally prosecuted or successfully civilly sued for crimes committed by a thief who stole the owner’s gun….”