March 2015 – Page 13 – North Platte Post Archive

Iowa Softball Coach Convicted of 4 Counts of Sexual Assault

Posted on March 27, 2015

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A western Iowa youth softball coach accused of having a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old friend of his daughter has been convicted of four counts of sexual abuse.

47-year-old John Osborn, of Council Bluffs, was found guilty Thursday of third-degree sexual abuse in a nonjury trial. He faces up to 40 years in prison at his May 1 sentencing hearing.

Council Bluffs police say the girl and Osborn began exchanging text messages in June and had phone conversations about sex. Court documents show the girl reported that she and Osborn engaged in sexual acts in July when the girl stayed at Osborn’s house for a sleepover with his daughter.

Osborn has denied willingly touching the teen and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

NPCC Unveils New Athletic Logo

Posted on March 27, 2015

The NPCC Knights new logo

The Mid – Plains Community College Board of Governors approved new athletic logos for North Platte Community College.

The full new logo is similar to the old one with the arched spelling of North Platte with a different Knight in the middle. The Knight in the middle sports a shield with NPCC Knights in the shield. The words “Community College” were added to the bottom of the logo.

The logo will be implemented immediately. The old logos will remain on items currently in use. As items are replaced, they will include the new logo.

The new logo coincides with the remodeling of the gymnasium at the North Platte Community College McDonald – Belton building. The Knight alone will be in the center of the basketball court. The full logo with North Platte Community College will be imprinted on the gym wall safety mats at each end of the gymnasium.

The MPCC Rodeo Team new logo

The board also approved the logo for the Mid-Plains Community College Rodeo Team. The rodeo team is the only area wide sport. The new rodeo team logo will feature the Mid-Plains Community College shield with horns on the side.

30 is the New 40 When it Comes to Home Runs These Days

Posted on March 27, 2015

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Whether it’s steroid testing, all those power arms in the bullpen or a lower strike zone, baseballs just aren’t flying out of the park like they did a decade or two ago.

Sluggers who came of age in the days of 50, 60 and 70 home-run seasons have been forced to recalibrate what’s a successful power season.

And 30 is the new 40.

Home runs have hit their lowest rate in more than two decades. Only 11 players reached the 30-homer mark last season, the fewest in a full season since 1992, when there were four fewer teams, no interleague play and Fay Vincent was still commissioner.

State Patrol: 10-Year-Old Died in Crash Near Macy

Posted on March 27, 2015

MACY, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 10-year-old child has died in a crash off a state highway in northeast Nebraska.

The accident occurred about 6:45 p.m. Thursday on Nebraska Highway 94 west of Macy. The Nebraska State Patrol says Terri Webster was driving east when the vehicle ran off the shoulder. The patrol says Webster overcorrected, causing the vehicle to go into a ditch, hit a grate and flip over.

The child, Carroll Webster, of Macy, died after being ejected from the vehicle.

Lincoln Man Who Tied Up, Terrorize Mom Gets 2-5 Years

Posted on March 27, 2015

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Lincoln man who tied up and threatened to kill his mother has been given two to five years in prison.

Online court records say 48-year-old Adam Herman was sentenced on Thursday in Lancaster County District Court. He’d pleaded no contest and was convicted of felony false imprisonment and misdemeanor assault.

Police say that when Herman and his mother argued on Oct. 23, he dragged her into a basement, threatened to slit her throat, bound her to a chair and repeated his threat to kill her. He released her about two hours later.

Colorado to Defend Pot Law for 1st Time

Posted on March 27, 2015

DENVER (AP) — Colorado is defending its pot law for the first time Friday in a filing due to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Friday is the deadline for Colorado to respond to a legal challenge from Oklahoma and Nebraska.

The lawsuit challenges Colorado’s legalization of recreational marijuana and is one of four lawsuits that aim to dismantle the young industry.

Colorado’s neighbors claim that the 2012 pot legalization vote has sent the drug flooding across Colorado’s borders.

Three other lawsuits have been filed since Nebraska and Oklahoma sued.

One was filed by a hotel owner in Colorado who argues legal weed is hurting his business. Another is from a southern Colorado landowner who says legal weed is hurting property values. The fourth lawsuit comes from county sheriffs in Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas.

Authorities Investigating North Platte Grass Fire

Posted on March 27, 2015

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) — Authorities are investigating after a grass fire burned for nearly two hours and threatened homes south of Lake Maloney in North Platte.

Battalion Chief Jason Trimble of the North Platte Fire Department says he believes the fire had spread 100 acres by the time he arrived to the scene Thursday. Assistance was requested from several other fire departments, and Trimble says local farmers helped combat the blaze as well.

Trimble says he doesn’t know what caused the fire.

Posted on March 27, 2015

Today: Scattered snow showers before 10am, then a slight chance of rain showers between 10am and noon. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 62. South wind 5 to 11 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Tonight: Patchy fog after 5am. Otherwise, partly cloudy, with a low around 31. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light and variable.
Saturday: Patchy fog before 7am. Otherwise, sunny, with a high near 77. Northwest wind 5 to 14 mph becoming southeast in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph.
Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 41. South wind around 14 mph becoming northwest after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph.
Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 66. North northwest wind 15 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph.
Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 33.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 75.
Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 35.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 76.

NPCC Knights’ Williams Commits to Eastern Kentucky

Posted on March 26, 2015March 27, 2015

North Platte Community College Knights basketball player Cameron Williams, on his Twitter account, announced that he has verbally committed to Eastern Kentucky University.

Williams averaged 21 points per game for the Knights this season and finished seventh on the Knights all-time scoring list. He was on the Region IX All – Region and All – Tournament teams his sophomore season.

The Colonels are a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I program. They are a member of the Ohio Valley Conference and finished 21 – 12 on the season. The Colonels have been in post season tournaments the last three seasons. They appeared in the NCAA tournament in 2014, losing to the University of Kansas in the second round. This season the Colonels were in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT), losing to University of Tennessee – Martin 70 -69 in the quarterfinals. They also appeared in the CIT in 2013.

Williams cannot officially sign until April 8.

Narcotics Dog Who Ingested Meth During Search Dies

Posted on March 26, 2015

TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — Barney, the Tacoma police narcotics dog that became sick after ingesting methamphetamine during a drug investigation, has died.

The 11-year-old black Labrador mix died Wednesday night.

His handler, Officer Henry Betts, rushed him to a veterinary hospital on Tuesday after the dog touched his nose to meth at a Puyallup storage unit. He was with officers who were serving a search warrant.

Narcotics dogs are trained to alert their handlers to drugs by placing their nose on them. In this case, Barney accidentally inhaled residue from the meth.

He suffered seizures and his body temperature reached 109 degrees.

Vets said Barney was more responsive Wednesday morning but he passed away that evening.

Pierce County prosecutors say they haven’t decided whether they’ll amend charges against the three defendants to include Barney’s death.