Man accused of threatening Wichita mayor over pandemic-era mask mandate is sentenced

A Wichita man accused of threatening mayor Brandon Whipple over a pandemic-era mask mandate has pleaded no contest to one misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct, court records show. Meredith Dowty, 62, was immediately sentenced to two years of non-reporting probation after entering the plea on May 19, three days ahead of a scheduled jury trial and a defense motion to dismiss the case. Prosecutors charged him in October 2020 with three felony counts of making criminal threats that caused “terror, evacuation or disruption.” Dowty made the threatening comments toward Whipple...