Cards including information about an unsolved crime will soon be distributed in state prisons and county jails across the state

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Cards including information about an unsolved crime will soon be distributed in state prisons and county jails across the state

The Kansas Department of Corrections is now in the playing card business. The department is set to release decks of playing cards that include information about unsolved crimes in Kansas.

The cards will soon be distributed in state prisons and county jails across the state.

The Kansas Department of Corrections and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, in partnership with the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police , the Kansas Sheriff’s Association and the Kansas Peace Officers Association, developed the Cold Case Playing Cards as a way of generating tips that may help resolve cases of unsolved homicides, missing persons or unidentified remains.

Other states have solved multiple cold case homicides, missing person cases and suspicious deaths by making these cards available.

“Our agency and our state’s criminal justice community have a commitment to the victims of crimes,” Kansas Secretary of Corrections Jeff Zmuda said in a press release Monday. “Our staff members see the unresolved pain experienced by the many families we work with. Hearing the responses from surviving family members when notified that their loved one’s case has been selected for the deck has been powerful and humbling. These families have waited a long time for answers, and this brings some hope.”

Each card in the deck includes a phone number for anyone with information to call: 1-800-KS-CRIME. These cards highlight case details in the hope that a person or persons familiar with a case will come forward with information leading to its resolution.

Decks will be placed in dayrooms and other common areas, and available through the commissary for purchase by KDOC residents.

“Every call or tip that is shared with law enforcement will be vetted by investigators assigned to the case,” said KBI Director Kirk Thompson. “No matter how small, each tip has the potential of being the missing piece of information needed to finally provide justice to crime victims and their families.”

The oldest case is from 1976 and the most recent case is from 2020. Local law enforcement from across Kansas provided 81 cases to be highlighted. A selection committee with representatives from KDOC, KBI, the Kansas Attorney General’s Office and local law enforcement prioritized 59 cases to highlight on the first deck of 52 cards.

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