Team Scores (top 5)
McCook – 309
North Platte – 327
Gothenburg – 343
Sidney – 349
Cozad – 354
North Platte (indiv. placing)
Chesney Tatman; 79 (5)
Jayden Neal; 81 (9)
Kort Steele; 82 (11)
Kade Wroot; 85 (16)
Kyle Zimbelman; 87 (21)
Month: April 2016
Ricketts Lobbying Senators on Immigrant Licensing Bill
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts is personally lobbying senators to try to stop them from overriding his veto of a bill that would allow certain immigrants to get professional licenses.
One lawmaker said Wednesday that the governor called him in hopes of swaying his vote, but failed to persuade him. Sen. Les Seiler of Hastings says in an open letter to Ricketts that he will continue to support the legislation.
The bill would apply to young immigrants who entered the country illegally but received temporary legal status under a 2012 Obama administration policy.
Supporters say it would help fill jobs in a state where companies are struggling to find qualified workers. Ricketts says it’s unfair to those who came here legally.
Lawmakers will attempt the override Wednesday.
Sponsor of Nebraska Redistricting Bill Won’t Challenge Veto
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A state senator who sought to change Nebraska’s process for drawing congressional and legislative districts says he won’t challenge Gov. Pete Ricketts’ veto of his bill.
Republican Sen. John Murante of Gretna said Tuesday he won’t try to override Ricketts because of the GOP governor’s arguments that the bill was unconstitutional.
The bill would have created a bipartisan redistricting commission to draw the state’s political boundaries. Nebraska’s current system requires a legislative committee to propose new maps once every decade, after the census. The process was criticized as overly partisan during the last redistricting in 2011.
Earlier Tuesday, the Nebraska Republican Party issued a statement supporting Ricketts’ veto.
Sen. Heath Mello, a Democratic co-sponsor, says he was disappointed by the veto but not surprised.
Judge Rejects Chicago Attorney’s Request to Be Reinstated
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A judge has denied a request to reinstate a Chicago attorney to help defend a former doctor accused of killing four people with ties to an Omaha medical school.
On Monday, Douglas County District Judge Gary Randall rejected a third request to reinstate Alison Motta to the defense team of Anthony Garcia.
The ruling comes after Randall earlier this month deemed that Motta will not be allowed to speak at trial or sit at the defense table, although she can still assist Garcia’s defense. The judge said Motta made public comments days before Garcia’s trial was to begin that violated ethical rules and could have swayed a jury.
The motion to reinstate Motta suggested her team was prepared to appeal the judge’s decision before the Nebraska Supreme Court.
Former Heineman Spokeswoman Joins Nebraska Think Tank
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A former spokeswoman for ex-Gov. Dave Heineman is joining the staff of a Nebraska think tank.
Jen Rae Wang will serve as a lobbyist for the Platte Institute for Economic Research. The group announced the new hire on Tuesday, touting her experience in state and federal government.
Wang served as Heineman’s communications director from 2007 to 2015. She previously served as a senior adviser to former Republican U.S. Rep. Lee Terry of Omaha. Wang has also served in a management role as the communications and public affairs director and statewide planning coordinator for a Nebraska state agency.
Platte Institute CEO Jim Vokal says Wang’s knowledge of state government, policy, the budget and legislative and business leaders will help the group promote its policies.
(UPDATED) NP Police Investigating Armed Robbery
UPDATE (4/19/16 5:10 p.m.)
North Platte Police have released more details on the Tuesday morning armed robbery, and they’ve reported a third arrest.
According to Investigator John Deal, Collins is suspected of entering the store and pointing the gun at the clerk. Eby is suspected of providing the handgun Collins used in the robbery, and 21-year-old Nicholas Robison is suspected of driving the vehicle that dropped Collins off before the robbery and picked him up afterward.
Investigator Deal said more details will be released tomorrow.
Check back for updates.
UPDATE (4/19/16 4:40 p.m.)
Two 21-year-old men have been arrested in connection with the armed robbery of Kwik Stop on Tuesday morning.
According to jail records, Joshua Collins has been charged with felony robbery and use of a weapon to commit a felony, and Rex Eby has been charged with being an accessory to robbery.
Police have not released any further details at this point. We will update you as this story develops.
The North Platte Police Department in investigating an armed robbery that took place early this morning.
At around 12:18 a.m., officers responded to Kwik Stop, 101 Platte Oasis Parkway.
A clerk at the store reported that a male subject had entered the business, brandished a handgun, pointed at him, and demanded that the clerk give him the money in the cash drawer.
According to Investigator John Deal, the clerk complied and handed over the approximately $100 that was in the drawer.
The suspect then left without further incident.
The suspect was wearing a costume-type mask during the robbery, according to Deal, to disguise his identity.
Officers reviewed surveillance video and were able to identify a suspect vehicle.
Currently, officers are interviewing possible suspects and expect to have more information tomorrow.
We will provide more details as they become available.
Nebraska Gov. Ricketts Approves Property Tax Package
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska will steer an extra $20 million to farm and ranch landowners next year to offset their property taxes under a bill signed by Gov. Pete Ricketts.
The measure approved Tuesday is one of the governor’s top priorities, but was watered down from his original proposal to impose spending controls on local governments. On Monday, the governor signed another property tax bill that could make it easier for some local school districts to lower their levy rates.
Ricketts says the bills aren’t everything he had sought, but says compromise is part of the legislative process.
The bills were introduced by Sens. Mike Gloor of Grand Island and Kate Sullivan of Cedar Rapids, both of whom are leaving because of term limits.
Texas Police: Man Kills Wife, Son, Daughter, Then Himself
KATY, Texas (AP) — Investigators say a man shot and killed his wife, son and daughter before killing himself in a Houston-area home.
The Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office says the bodies were discovered Tuesday morning in the Katy area.
Sheriff’s spokesman Bob Haenel (HAN’-el) says it appears the man shot his family, including two children under the age of 5.
Haenel says a relative of the victims had asked deputies to check on the family, and that’s how their bodies were found.
Officials are trying to determine what prompted Tuesday’s shootings. Names of the victims and further details weren’t immediately released.
Lincoln Allows Police to Interfere with Drone Use
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — An ordinance that has been narrowly approved will allow police to interfere with drone operation in Lincoln.
The City Council voted 4-2 on Monday to approve the ordinance, which will allow Lincoln police to stop drone operators who are flying recklessly, outside of operators’ line of sight or without proper registration and markings.
Dissenting City Council members say the ordinance is a case of over-regulation because drones are already regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Councilwoman Jane Raybould says the local drone ordinance would give law enforcement the ability to interfere in unsafe situations.
The city’s Airport Authority had asked for a city ordinance to restrain drone activity during a major airshow scheduled in May.
Lincoln Shooting Victims’ Names Released
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have released the names of two people who were shot in Lincoln.
Police say 32-year-old Christopher Coleman was killed and 21-year-old Jerry Griffis Jr. was wounded. The two were shot Monday afternoon at a two-story home about a block from Prescott Elementary School, which was briefly locked down.
No arrests have been reported.
Children ages 5, 3 and 1 were in the house but were not injured. Police say Coleman was the father of at least two of the children.