Lawmakers have given final approval to a funding bill that divides state aid among Nebraska’s large and small public schools.
The 47-0 vote on Wednesday followed a series of contentious debates in the Legislature. The funding is intended to fill the gap between school-district needs and their local resources.
The formula includes funding allowances for districts that offer longer school years and more highly educated teachers. Smaller, rural districts will receive that funding even if property values and their tax levies prevent them from qualifying for other state aid.
(AP) — Lincoln’s parks and medians are awash in dandelions.
And Parks and Recreation Director Lynn Johnston says the drought is to blame for the yellow sea covering once-green expanses.
He says that in many spots, park grass is dead or sparse. That lets weeds thrive.
Park staffers didn’t apply weed killer in the fall because it requires moisture to work properly. And little herbicide is applied in spring because it can drift to neighboring lawns and gardens.
The department plans to spread grass seed on nonirrigated parkland in late summer and apply weed killer in early fall.
(AP) — An attorney has requested that a sheriff in southeast Nebraska be protected from questioning that could be used as evidence in an upcoming trial.
Attorney Vincent Valentino says Gage County Sheriff Millard “Gus” Gustafson’s knowledge of the case involving Elliot Hawkins is limited.
Hawkins is suing four employees of the department after he was cleared of wrongdoing in an alleged rape case. Hawkins called the investigation reckless.
Hawkins’ attorney, Joy Shiffermiller, says her client is entitled to know what Gustafson said to the defendants. Gustafson is not named in the lawsuit.
Jennifer Valenta told authorities in 2012 that she fabricated her story of rape and inflicted injuries on herself. She has been sentenced to at least two years in prison.
A bill designed to help fight wildfires in rural Nebraska has advanced to a final legislative vote.
Lawmakers approved several changes to the measure on Wednesday before giving it second-round approval.
The new legislation would reduce the number of single-engine aerial tanker planes stationed in Nebraska from two to one. It also would increase the number of bases that are equipped to service the firefighting plane.
The bill would also require the Nebraska Forest Service to thin forests, and develop markets for the wood shavings. Sen. Al Davis of Hyannis says the shavings could be used for pets, landscaping mulch, fence posts and fuel for heating and cooling.
A hit and run at a North Platte convenience store resulted in multiple charges for a Missouri man and a North Platte woman.
Officers from the North Platte Police Department were dispatched to a reported hit and run at the Casey’s store located at 520 Rodeo Road at around 6:10 p.m. on Tuesday.
The suspect vehicle’s registered owner was located, and told police that he had sold the vehicle to Edward Roney, 32, of Missouri. However, police say the vehicle was reported stolen because Roney did not formally purchase the vehicle and did not return it to the owner
An officer located the vehicle and Roney in the 1100 block of East 12th at around 7:45 p.m.
Officers conducted a search on Rony’s person and found that he was carrying a knife.
After further investigation, prescription drugs and stolen property were discovered in Roney’s vehicle.
Additionally, a passenger in the vehicle, Cortney Lopez, 24, was found to be in possession of drugs.
Both subjects were arrested and taken to the Lincoln County Detention Center.
Roney was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance, Possession of a concealed weapon, Possession of Stolen Property, Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle, Leaving the Scene of a Non-Injury Accident and Failure to Sign a Citation.
Lopez was charged with with Possession of a controlled Substance. Lincoln County Sheriff’s records indicate that Lopez has been jailed more than half a dozen times in the last year.
(AP) — A 47-year-old North Platte man whose dog was infested with maggots has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor animal abuse.
Phillip Moreno made a plea agreement with prosecutors, who lowered the felony charge of abandoning or cruelly neglecting the animal.
Moreno made his plea in Lincoln County District Court on Tuesday and was fined $500.
Two women had told authorities the dog had masking tape around its midsection and was filthy when the women found it last summer. The women say they took the dog to a veterinarian, who discovered a maggot-infested wound beneath the tape.
Officials say the maggots had spread to the dog’s internal organs, so it was euthanized.
(AP)-A 29-year-old east-central Nebraska man has been ruled mentally incompetent to stand trial on allegations that he molested his 8-year-old niece.
Platte County District Judge Robert Steinke’s ruling followed a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation. The state evaluation said the St. Edward man was developmentally disabled and was unlikely to become competent for trial within the foreseeable future.
Prosecutor Demi Herman says the county will begin a civil commitment proceeding to hold the defendant indefinitely.
The Associated Press isn’t using the defendant’s name in order to protect the identity of the girl.
The man had been charged with first-degree sexual assault of a child. He was accused of assaulting the girl several times from October 2011 to February 2012, when she was 8 years old.
The players have been selected for the East and West teams for the 29th Annual West Nebraska All-Star Volleyball Game.
The 13 members of each all-star volleyball team were selected from nominations by their respective high school coach.
The East squad will be led by Shelly Byrn from North Platte St. Pat’s. Valerie Kershner from Sutherland High School will assist her.
The West will be led by Kim Turnbull-Campbell from Gordon-Rushville High School. Kim Davis from Chadron will be her assistant coach.
The game will be played Saturday, June 1, at Cougar Palace on the campus of Western Nebraska Community College in Scottsbluff. Game time is 2:00 p.m. MDT.
A portion of the proceeds from the match will benefit the Scotts Bluff County Volunteer Center.
(AP) — Jodi Arias heads back to court as jurors consider whether the death penalty should be an option for sentencing the former waitress after convicting her of first-degree murder last week.
The 32-year-old aspiring photographer admitted killing her onetime boyfriend Travis Alexander in June 2008, at his suburban Phoenix home. She initially denied involvement then later blamed masked intruders. Two years after her arrest, she said it was self-defense when he attacked her after a day of sex.
Prosecutors said she planned the killing in a jealous rage as Alexander wanted to end their affair.
Testimony began in early January. The jury reached its verdict last Wednesday after about 15 hours of deliberations over four days.
Jurors on Wednesday will hear testimony before deciding whether the death penalty should be an option for sentencing Arias.
An Omaha man has been sentenced to six years in federal prison for receiving and distributing child pornography.
U.S. Attorney Deb Gilg says 47-year-old Michael Abraham was sentenced Monday. Abraham must also register as a sex offender and remained under supervised release for seven years after his release.
There is no parole in the federal court system.
Abraham was arrested following an undercover investigation by the Nebraska State Patrol and the FBI’s Cyber Crimes Task Force. Officers discovered child pornography being shared online from a computer in Abraham’s home. On Sept. 21, a search warrant was executed at Abraham’s home and turned up more than 100 videos and 50,000 images of child pornography and child erotica.
Lawmakers have given final approval to a funding bill that divides state aid among Nebraska’s large and small public schools.
