OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A former Douglas County sheriff’s deputy has been sentenced to a year in jail for coercing a 19-year-old woman he had stopped into performing a sex act on him.

Cory Cooper was sentenced Wednesday to six months for third-degree assault and another six months for attempted tampering with evidence. Both counts are misdemeanors. The 31-year-old will serve his time in a county jail.

Cooper pleaded no contest, meaning he did not admit guilt but acknowledged that prosecutors had enough evidence to convict.

He was arrested after the woman reported that he forced her into a sex act in February 2013 in order to keep her boyfriend out of trouble.

Prosecutors say Cooper altered paperwork to try to cover up where he had had been on the night of the crime.

DETROIT (AP) — A Louisiana woman who died after her Honda crashed on April 5 may be the seventh person killed by faulty Takata air bags.

A lawsuit filed in federal court Monday by the family of 22-year-old Kylan Langlinais says they received a recall notice two days after the crash. She died at a hospital on April 9.

The lawsuit alleges that Langlinais’ right carotid artery was severed by shrapnel from an exploding driver’s side air bag. It says Langlinais was driving a 2005 Honda Civic in Lafayette about 4 a.m. when the car hit a utility pole. According to the lawsuit, she had no other serious injuries.

Honda and Takata are named as defendants. Honda says it’s gathering information from family members. A message was left for a Takata spokesman.

HAY SPRINGS, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say an 83-year-old man has been killed in a rollover crash on a county road in the Nebraska Panhandle.

The accident occurred just before 11 a.m. Tuesday in Sheridan County, near U.S. Highway 20 and a little more than two miles east of Hay Springs.

The Nebraska State Patrol says Joseph Heiting, of Hay Springs, was southbound on 420th Lane when he lost control of his pickup and it ran into a ditch and rolled. The patrol says Heiting was thrown from the truck and died at the scene.

The accident is being investigated.

With the summer driving season underway, the national average price for regular unleaded gasoline continues to hover near what many expect to be the highest average of the year, but remain substantially lower than a year ago.  AAA reports that with the national average at $2.74, consumers are saving 91 cents per gallon compared to this same date last year.   Nebraska’s fuel average is currently nine cents lower than the national average at $2.65 a gallon.  A year ago, Nebraskans were paying 87 more per gallon with unleaded fuel averaging $3.52 a gallon.  Lower crude oil prices are the main reason for the savings at the pump.  Crude oil which is currently trading at $58 a barrel in the U.S. market was trading at $104 a barrel at this same time a year ago.  For more information on fuel prices, visit AAA’s website at www.fuelgaugereport.com.   

On June 9, the death toll on Nebraska roadways climbed to 100.  Tragically, the fatality rate in Nebraska is up 22 percent compared to the average reported for the same period for the previous four years.   With the start of the summer vacation season, AAA reminds all motorists to stay focused when behind the wheel.  Avoid distractions as driving should never become a secondary task to conversations, food consumption, or making adjustments to onboard electronics which can cause a driver to lose focus.  Many of the fatal injuries may have been prevented simply by buckling-up.  A review of the Nebraska crash records show that of the 79 vehicle occupants who died in car crashes this year, 72 percent were not using their safety belt.   AAA also wants to remind motorists to be observant to pedestrians, motorcyclists, and bicyclists in the traffic mix.  So far this year, six pedestrians have died on Nebraska roadways, up from four reported last year.  All of the pedestrians who were struck and killed were adults.  Three bicyclists and 11 motorcyclists also lost their lives in roadway crashes; more than twice as many compared to the previous year.  For helpful driving tips, and to review regulations and rules pertaining to operating a vehicle on Nebraska roadways, visit www.dmv.nebraska.gov and click-on the Nebraska Driver’s Manual.  

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Gov. Pete Ricketts is discussing Nebraska’s beef products with one of the state’s largest customers in the European Union.

The governor’s inaugural trade mission team met Monday with company officials from Inalca, an Italian beef distributor.

Ricketts says the face to face meeting was important to better understand the business and learn how Nebraskans can assist the company in expanding its customer base. Nebraska exported more than $136.7 million in beef products to the European Union last year.

The trade mission is scheduled to stop in Italy, Belgium and Denmark from June 7-16.

Department of Agriculture Director Greg Ibach says Nebraska needs to continue building its relationships with existing European partners.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The infant son born of a brain-dead woman who was kept on life support so he could develop and survive has left an Omaha hospital.

Methodist Health System spokeswoman Claudia Bohn (bahn) said Wednesday that Angel Perez was released from Methodist Women’s Hospital on Tuesday. He went to his new home in Waterloo with his maternal grandparents, Modesto and Berta Jimenez.

Angel weighed a little less than 3 pounds when he was delivered by cesarean section on April 4 and has gained nearly 4 pounds since. His mother, 22-year-old Karla Perez, had collapsed at home in Waterloo in early February after complaining of a bad headache. Doctors discovered a brain bleed and determined that she was brain-dead.

She was kept on life support for more than seven weeks.