(AP) — A federal judge says lawsuits by two men falsely accused of murder can proceed against southeast Nebraska law enforcement officials.

Matthew Livers and Nicholas Sampson sued Douglas County and Cass County law enforcement officials in 2008 and 2007, saying officials violated their constitutional rights.

The two men were initially charged in the 2006 shotgun slayings of Wayne and Sharmon Stock in their farmhouse in southeastern Nebraska. The men spent months in prison before being cleared of murder charges.

A Wisconsin pair was eventually convicted and sentenced to life in prison.

The Lincoln Journal Star reports (http://bit.ly/1eoTYSg) that U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Bataillon on Friday rejected a request by the defendants to dismiss the lawsuits. Trial in the case has been set to begin Oct. 21.