June 2016 – Page 16 – North Platte Post Archive

Ex-Sidney police chief’s conviction, sentence upheld

Posted on June 17, 2016

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court has upheld the conviction and 30-day jail sentence of a former western Nebraska police chief for obstructing government operations.

Former Sidney Police Chief Byron Wilkinson was convicted after pleading no contest last July. Prosecutors say Wilkinson wrongly kept a citation for disturbing the peace against then-city Public Works Director John Hehnke from being sent to prosecutors.

Hehnke had been ticketed in 2014 for peeking into his ex-girlfriend’s window.

In his appeal, Wilkinson argued — among other things — that the court should not have accepted his no-contest plea, because he had the authority as police chief to thwart the prosecution of Henke.

The high court disagreed Friday, saying there “is no doubt that Wilkinson actually obstructed, impaired, or perverted the governmental function of prosecuting Hehnke’s citation.”

Emerald ash borer found southwest of Omaha

Posted on June 17, 2016

GREENWOOD, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Department of Agriculture has confirmed the presence of the emerald ash borer in Cass County, southwest of Omaha.

The department says the invasive beetle was found on private property in Greenwood. The announcement of the discovery comes 10 days after officials said the insect was found first discovered in Nebraska — in an Omaha park.

Emerald ash borers are native to Asia and were first spotted in the U.S. in 2002, when it showed up in Detroit. The species has since spread to at least 25 states and killed millions of trees.

The insect feeds on tree tissue beneath the bark and destroys its ability to move water and nutrients to branches. Trees usually die within five years once they are infected.

Mistrial in Nebraska sex assault trial against Arizona man

Posted on June 17, 2016

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A mistrial has been declared in the case of an Arizona man charged with sexually assaulted another student in a dorm at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The case against 19-year-old Christopher Petersen went to jurors Thursday, but they were unable to reach a verdict by Friday afternoon and a mistrial declared.

Prosecutors say Petersen and the woman went to her room on Sept. 5 last year and began kissing. The woman told investigators that Petersen continued kissing and groping her after she told him to stop. Petersen said he never heard her say no.

Prosecutors must decide whether to try the case again or drop the charge against Petersen. Defense attorney Bob Creager (KREE’-gur) says he’ll also consider his client’s options.

4-year-old Iowa boy dies after being shot in the head

Posted on June 17, 2016

ELGIN, Iowa (AP) — A 4-year-old boy has died after being shot in the head in a small town in Iowa.

The Fayette County Sheriff’s Office says deputies found the boy with a gunshot wound to his head in Elgin after two 911 calls Friday afternoon.

The child was pronounced dead at a hospital in West Union. Two adults and two small children were also at the scene.

Authorities haven’t released any additional details about the shooting, including how it happened or the boy’s name.

The Sheriff’s Office has asked the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation for assistance.

Elgin is a town of about 680 people that’s about 170 miles northeast of Des Moines.

Lincoln County Marriage Licenses (Week of June 13, 2016)

Posted on June 17, 2016

Joshua Evan Curtis Trace, 30, Curtis NE and Natalie Ann Phillips, 29, Curtis NE

Robert Harold Bush, 47, Hershey and Beth Marie Junker, 36, Hershey

Taylor Dean Hensley, 25, North Platte and Ashley Ann Clark, 27, North Platte

Matthew David Brestel, 33, North Platte and Kara Kathleen Dickman, 30, North Platte

Matthew Donald Pederson, 28, North Platte and Lindsey Marie Mikkelsen, 27, North Platte

Nebraska’s jobless rate unchanged at 3 percent for 5th month

Posted on June 17, 2016

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A new report says Nebraska’s unemployment rate has remained 3 percent for five months in a row.

The Nebraska Labor Department said in the report issued Friday that the preliminary May rate matched those recorded for January, February, March and April and was a tenth of a point higher than the 2.9 percent reported for May last year.

The new Nebraska rate remained well below the preliminary national unemployment rate of 4.7 percent in May — three-tenths of a point under the 5 percent recorded for April.

The U.S. Labor Department says only South Dakota’s preliminary rate of 2.5 percent and New Hampshire’s 2.7 percent were lower in May than Nebraska’s 3 percent.

Nebraska confirms year’s 1st human case of West Nile virus

Posted on June 17, 2016

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Someone in Dodge, Saunders or Washington counties was diagnosed with the state’s first confirmed case of West Nile virus for 2016.

The Nebraska Health and Human Services Department said Thursday that the case was reported in the Three Rivers Health Department area, which covers the three counties. The person was not hospitalized.

Experts say most people who are infected have no symptoms or experience only mild, flu-like symptoms. The most vulnerable people are those who are at least 50 or have weakened immune systems.

Nebraska reported 68 human cases of West Nile virus and two deaths last year. In 2014 eight deaths were blamed on West Nile virus.

Nebraska family ‘devastated’ by fatal gator attack at Disney

Posted on June 17, 2016June 17, 2016

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The parents of a Nebraska toddler killed by an alligator at a Walt Disney World resort say they’re devastated by the death of their son.

A statement by Matt and Melissa Graves of Elkhorn, Nebraska, says words can’t express the shock and grief their family is experiencing.

They are thanking authorities in Orlando, Florida, for their assistance after the gator grabbed 2-year-old Lane Graves from shallow water in a lake at a Disney hotel.

An animal described as being as long as 7 feet snatched the little boy as he waded in shallow water Tuesday night. The beach had “no swimming” signs but none warning about alligators.

The company says it will now add gator warnings. No time frame is being announced, and the resort’s beaches remain closed.

Nebraska jury mulls sex assault case against Arizona student

Posted on June 17, 2016

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A jury will resume deliberations Friday on whether a student from Arizona sexually assaulted another student in a dorm at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The case against Christopher Petersen went to jurors Thursday, but they were unable to reach a verdict.

A court affidavit says Petersen and the woman went to the woman’s room on Sept. 5 last year and began kissing. The woman told investigators that Petersen continued kissing and groping her after she told him to stop. Petersen said he never heard her say no.

The 19-year-old Petersen is from Scottsdale, Arizona.

Defense attorney Bob Creager (KREE’-gur) said in his closing arguments that the issue isn’t whether the woman consented, but “whether she conveyed her lack of consent.”

Authorities release name of teen killed in Schuyler crash

Posted on June 17, 2016

SCHUYLER, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a teenage girl who was fatally injured in a Schuyler crash after a brief police chase.

Colfax County authorities identified the 15-year-old as Isabella Brandt, of Schuyler.

The accident occurred around 11:15 p.m., on Wednesday, after officers pursued a car that was being driven erratically. The officers soon halted the pursuit because of safety concerns. Within minutes, they were sent to check a report that the car had rammed a tree.

Brandt was found on the ground near the car. Authorities say she was flown to a Lincoln hospital, where she was pronounced dead. The driver was flown to an Omaha hospital for treatment, and a 15-year-old male passenger was taken to a Schuyler hospital.

Authorities suspect the driver had been drinking alcohol.