In December, the Douglas County Commission approved an increase to motor vehicle satellite office fees from $2 per vehicle to $5 per vehicle. The new fees began Jan. 1, 2019.

Satellite offices are located at:

The Douglas County Heritage Conservation Council announces the 2019 Natural & Cultural Grant Program. Members of the public interested in the conservation of local landmarks and conservation of natural areas within Douglas County are invited to attend upcoming grant information sessions at Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vermont St. They will be:

Douglas County Government’s general and satellite offices will be closed Dec. 24, Dec. 25 and Jan. 1 for the holidays. There will be no Douglas County Commission meetings Dec. 26 and Jan. 2.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Dispatch Center and Criminal Justice Services will be operating. If you have an emergency, please call 911. If you have a non-emergency, call 785-832-7509.

We wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season!

Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson announces today that Scharron R. Dingledine, 26, Columbia, MO entered guilty pleas to Murder in the First Degree and Attempted Murder in the First Degree on Monday, December 17th, 2018 in the Division 6 courtroom of the Douglas County District Court.

Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson announces that today a jury convicted Topeka resident Aramis N. Hernandez, 38, of battery on a law enforcement officer in the July 2016 dragging injury of a Lawrence Police Officer.

Route 458 (N 1000 Road) from E 1800 Road to E 2000 Road has been opened to traffic through construction while project work has been suspended for the winter.  Some construction traffic control signing will remain in place, but the road is open for unrestricted traffic. 

Construction work to complete the project will resume next spring when sustained weather conditions permit.  Remaining work includes asphalt surfacing on residential entrances, pavement rehabilitation between E 1900 Road and E 2000 Road, and permanent seeding.

Please join the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to learn more about the South Lawrence Trafficway Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS).

Douglas County is proposing a quarter-cent sales tax that will generate an estimated $4.9 million annually to help finance and maintain a behavioral health recovery campus including a crisis center, supportive housing and prevention programs.

Lawrence, Kan.—The second of two full-scale emergency exercises in recent weeks will take place in Lawrence on Tuesday, Oct. 9. Tuesday’s exercise also will have a transportation-related hazardous materials theme, but this scenario will also focus on a response to a mass casualty incident, which will drive a more involved response, according to Teri Smith, Douglas County’s Director of Emergency Management. 

Is the criminal justice system broken? How have public policy failures resulted in issues that the criminal justice system is being forced to address? Do alternative justice programs really work?  

Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson announces Elmoses Blackwell, 28, of Denver Colorado was sentenced today for his July 31, 2018 plea to aggravated criminal sodomy and two counts of robbery that occurred on May 28, 2017 and on June 7, 2017.  The plea consolidated two cases.