TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The operator of a Kansas water park where a boy was killed on a giant waterslide in 2016 is accusing the state of a "malicious effort" to "stir up unfounded fear," though it says park rides won't open for the season until issues raised in a recent state audit are resolved.

Attorneys for the management company for the Schlitterbahn park in Kansas City, Kansas, also demanded in a Wednesday letter to the Kansas Department of Labor that it withdraw the audit from an inspection last week and a notice alleging 11 violations of state amusement park regulations, mostly pertaining t...