OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The company trying to build a pipeline to carry Canadian oil south to the Gulf Coast says its efforts to force Nebraska landowners to agree to the project remain on hold because of several pending lawsuits.
Earlier this month, a Holt County judge issued a temporary injunction blocking TransCanada’s eminent domain efforts there. Company spokesman Mark Cooper says a York County judge is expected to issue a similar order Thursday.
Cooper says TransCanada plans to ask judges in seven Nebraska counties to delay action on its other eminent domain cases until the lawsuits are resolved.
The proposed pipeline still needs presidential approval before it could be built across Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska to connect with existing pipelines. It would carry more than 800,000 barrels of crude oil a day.
The pairings of the National Junior College Athletic Association Region IX Men’s Division I tournament have been released. The No. 2 seed North Platte Community College Knights will host the No. 7 seed Otero Junior College Rattlers at McDonald-Belton Gymnasium on Saturday, February 28 at 4:00 p.m. CST.
The Region IX men’s tournament changed format this season. The top four seeded teams of each sub-region will host the bottom four seeded teams from the same sub-region. The winners of those eight games will advance to the quarterfinals which will be held at the top remaining seed in the north sub-region. The Knights are in the south sub-region.
The Knights have defeated the Rattlers twice this season, 91-70 in North Platte and 76-72 in La Junta, Colorado.
The Knights are 22- 8 on the season and are 11-5 in the South Sub-Region. They are led in scoring by Cameron Williams with a 21.1 points per game average. Marco Pascolo is averaging 10.7 points per game and Shyquinn Dix is averaging 10.3 points per game. Pascolo leads the Knights in rebounding with 7.6 rebounds per game.
The Rattlers are 16-13 overall and 6-10 in the South Sub-Region. They are led in scoring by Josh Blaylock, who is averaging 15.4 points per game. Tre O’Neal is averaging 11.9 points per game and Brandon Wilson is averaging 10.1 points per game.
The Knights are averaging 78 points per game and allowing 70.6 points per game. The Rattlers are averaging 81 points per game and allowing 77 points per game.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A dog owner has filed a lawsuit against a pet food company alleging that thousands of dogs have been sickened or died from eating the company’s dry dog food.
Pet owner Frank Lucid filed the suit in federal court on Feb. 5 against Nestle Purina PetCare Company.
Lucido is just one of 3,000 people who complained online about the dog food. He claims he fed his three dogs Beneful, and in a month, two were sick and one was dead.
The suit alleges the food contains an animal toxin used in antifreeze. Purina says on its website it uses “an FDA-approved food additive.” Purina issued a statement saying “there are no quality issues with Beneful.”
The suit asks that Purina pay Lucido and others unspecified damages and restitution.
MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — A Montana man has pleaded guilty but mentally ill to beating his grandmother to death with a chair in December 2013, shortly after he was released from the state psychiatric hospital.
Tyler Dan Perry entered his plea to deliberate homicide Tuesday under a deal with prosecutors.
Deputy Missoula County Attorney Jason Marks says the plea agreement calls for a 60-year commitment to the psychiatric hospital when Perry is sentenced on May 12.
Prosecutors charged the 25-year-old Perry with killing his 72-year-old grandmother, Carol Perry, while she was lying on the couch watching television.
Court records say Tyler Perry told investigators his grandmother had a “third eye” and that “everybody knew we had to bash her over the head.”
ALDA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a Michigan man died after the big rig he was driving ran across a county road and struck several objects as it left Interstate 80 in south-central Nebraska.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Department says the accident occurred around 6 p.m. Tuesday, just off the eastbound exit ramp at the South Alda Road interchange. The truck didn’t halt at the bottom of the ramp. It ran across South Alda, striking a tree, a sign and a power pole before stopping. The driver was trapped in the wreckage, which soon was engulfed by flames.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office identified the driver as 57-year-old Dennis Lambertson, of Jackson, Michigan.
Nebraska hits the road looking for its first Big Ten win of the season, as the Huskers travel to Ohio State Thursday evening.
Tipoff from Value City Arena in Columbus is set for 6 p.m. and the contest will be televised nationally on ESPN with Rece Davis and Dan Dakich on the call. Thursday’s game is also available online and on mobile devices on the WatchESPN app.
The game will be broadcast across the state of Nebraska on the 37-station IMG Husker Sports Radio Network, including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln, 1110 KFAB in Omaha and KRVN 880 AM in Lexington with Kent Pavelka calling the action and Jake Muhleisen adding color commentary. The game can be heard for free on Huskers.com and is available on the Huskers’ app on iOS or android devices, as well as on TuneIn Radio and on SiriusXM Satellite Radio.
Nebraska (13-14, 5-10 Big Ten) put together its poorest effort of the season in a 28-point home loss to Iowa Sunday afternoon. The Huskers allowed Iowa to shoot 50 percent from the floor, as the Hawkeyes became the first team in 38 games to shoot 50 percent from the field against Nebraska. The Hawkeyes put the game out of reach with a 21-2 run to close the first half in taking a 42-16 halftime lead. The loss put Nebraska in a tie for 10th with Minnesota in the Big Ten standings with two weeks left in the regular season. Nebraska has three Big Ten games left, including road trips to Ohio State and Illinois.
If the Huskers are to bounce back in the final two weeks of the regular season, they will need strong performances from Terran Petteway, Shavon Shields and Walter Pitchford. Petteway (18.1 ppg) and Shields (15.7 ppg) have been among the Big Ten’s top eight scorers throughout the season, while Pitchford has gotten into an offensive groove of late, averaging 13.7 points per game in NU’s last three games, including a 19-point effort at Maryland on Feb. 19. Pitchford has come off the bench for the Huskers in the last two contests.
The Huskers face an Ohio State team which is 19-8 overall and 8-6 in the Big Ten following a 64-57 loss at Michigan on Sunday. The Wolverines held D’Angelo Russell to 16 points on 6-of-15 shooting on Sunday, becoming one of the few teams to slow down the talented freshman. The 6-foot-5 freshman guard, averages 19 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game and is one of three Buckeyes who average double figures.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Attorney General Doug Peterson is slated to meet with western Nebraska law enforcement to discuss the impact of Colorado marijuana on the region.
Peterson and his criminal bureau chief, John Freudenberg, will visit the region on Thursday and Friday. Peterson has said he opposes Colorado’s decision to legalize marijuana, and supports a lawsuit filed by Nebraska and Oklahoma to have it declared unconstitutional.
Colorado’s decision has riled some western Nebraska law enforcement officers who say marijuana coming into Nebraska has increased their workload.
Peterson is expected to visit Chadron and Gering on Thursday and Sidney and North Platte on Friday.
PAPILLION, Neb. (AP) — An 18-year-old from Plattsmouth faces a vehicular homicide charge for a collision that fatally injured her little sister last month.
Sarpy County prosecutors said in a news release Wednesday that the driver was 17 when the accident occurred on Jan. 13.
Prosecutors say she failed to yield the right of way when she tried to turn west onto Platteview Road off northbound U.S. Highway 75. Her sport utility vehicle was struck by a southbound minivan and then a car.
The teenager’s 7-year-old sister was in a right rear passenger seat of the SUV. The younger girl was taken to an Omaha hospital, and authorities say she died there on Jan. 19.
The Associated Press is not using the sisters’ names because the AP generally doesn’t name juveniles accused of crimes.
The North Platte Community College Lady Knights basketball team will host the Central Community College Lady Raiders in the National Junior College Athletic Association Region IX Division II Semi-Final playoff game on Thursday, February 26 at 6:00 p.m. at McDonald – Belton Gymnasium on the South Campus of North Platte Community College.
The Lady Knights are the No. 2 seed with a 14-13 overall record and 2-2 in Region IX Division II play. The Lady Raiders are 14-13 overall and 0-4 in the region.
The winner of this game will travel to Beatrice, Nebraska to play the Southeast Community College Lady Storm on Monday, March 2. The Lady Storm went a perfect 4-0 in region play to gain the top seed and host the championship game.
The Lady Knights on the year are averaging 61.2 points per game and allowing 59 points per game.
April Stull, a sophomore from Sweeny, Texas leads the Knights in scoring and rebounds. Stull is averaging 15.7 points per game and 8.6 rebounds per game. Stull is seventh on the Lady Knights all-time scoring list with 735 career points.
Aliyah Brown, a sophomore from Omaha Burke High School is averaging 10.5 points per game. Brown leads the team in steals and assists with 88 steals and 49 assists.
The Lady Knights are the two-time defending Region IX Division II champions. They have won the Division II championship five times: 2006-07, 2008-09, 2010-11, 2012-13 and 2013-14.
The Lady Raiders are averaging 79.7 points per game while allowing 80.8 points per game. They are led in scoring by Montrese Weller, who is averaging 15.7 points per game. Adrianna Beck is second on the Lady Raiders with a 15.3 points per game average. Paige Muhammad is the other Lady Raider averaging in double-figures with 10.8 points per game. McKenna Rossmeier and Weller lead the Lady Raiders in rebounding with 5.6 rebounds per game.
Mid-Plains Community College has made great strides the past three years. That’s according to data indicating significant improvements to policies and procedures.
“Every three years we come up with a strategic plan for shaping our future,” said Andy Long, area vice president of student affairs and McCook Community College. “It’s developed based on community input sessions, employee feedback, a student engagement survey and feedback we receive from our accrediting body, the Higher Learning Commission.”
MPCC is required to demonstrate continuous advancement as part of its accreditation process. The college participates in the Academic Quality Improvement Program, one of several pathways leading to reaffirmation of accreditation through the Higher Learning Commission.
Accreditation is important to MPCC because without it, credits would not be universally transferrable, and the college could not administer federal financial aid.
A total of 19 action projects were focused on during the 2012-15 cycle. Of those, nine tie directly back to MPCC’s strategic plan.
“With each of the action projects, an objective was determined,” said Long. “Team leaders then had to demonstrate how the objective was reached.”
The action projects included:
Improving intra-college communication
Improving intra-college communication 2
Restructuring of the college’s website
Support for technology users
Student support services awareness
Meeting the needs of business and industry
Employee development training
Enhancing career service offerings
College readiness
Among the many improvements, a systemized approach was developed to communicate existing strategies to align with business and industry.
The college’s website was divided into three sites. The mpcc.edu section was redesigned to make it more attractive to potential students. A CampusWeb area was created as a resource for current students, and a third site, The Portal, was built with an employee focus. It became the “go-to” place for budgets, leave requests, transportation reservations and other internal employee documents.
Another action project led to the development of a plan that would ensure all students seeking employment had prepared an acceptable resume and cover letter, knew how to complete a suitable job application, could locate job opportunities and had the chance to prepare for a job interview. It also called for one-on-one counseling between a career development professional and students in the last semester of their planned programs.
A Help Desk was implemented to provide technical and maintenance support to students and employees of MPCC, and a “You Rock” award was introduced to recognize MPCC employees who demonstrated exceptional customer service skills.
A new training team was put together to make sure developmental training opportunities were provided to all employees – regardless of full-time or part-time status. Training opportunities included webinars, job aids, articles and audio programs among many other things.
“The great thing about this process is we use a variety of data to identify our needs, have collaboration from all parts of the college to develop solutions and do this on an ongoing basis,” said Long. “We’re always looking to make Mid-Plains better with the processes we put in place.”
Now that the 2012-15 cycle is coming to an end, attention is turning to the 2015-18 cycle. The community input sessions have already happened.
“During those sessions, the public, in all six campus areas, students and staff were asked three questions,” said Chuck Salestrom, area associate vice president of public information and marketing. “The questions were, ‘What is the college doing well?’, ‘What improvements can we make to better serve our constituency?’ and a general overall question asking what the college should be doing.”
According to Salestrom, more than 1,000 responses were collected. From those answers, a new set of objectives and action projects will be formulated. Details about the action projects will be released in the near future.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The company trying to build a pipeline to carry Canadian oil south to the Gulf Coast says its efforts to force Nebraska landowners to agree to the project remain on hold because of several pending lawsuits.
