LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska State Patrol and Nebraska Trucking Association have started a safety project that will put state troopers into commercial trucks.

The association said in a Facebook posting Friday that the statewide Trooper in a Truck project is aimed at addressing unsafe driving in and around large commercial vehicles.

Patrol Lt. Kurt Von Minden says troopers will ride in the cabs and keep watch. When they spot violations such as following too closely or speeding, they will alert nearby troopers in marked patrol cars who will stop the violators for citations or warnings.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a convicted killer imprisoned for more than 40 years and two other ailing inmates have died in custody.

The Nebraska Correctional Services Department says 88-year-old Harold Nokes died Wednesday. He’s been serving two life sentences since 1974 for killing Edwin and Wilma Hoyt, of Culbertson, in 1973. He admitted killing them, cutting up their bodies and dumping the parts in Harry Strunk Lake near Cambridge.

Another convicted killer, 68-year-old Gary Pope, also died Wednesday. He was sentenced to life in prison for the 1979 slaying of Richard Rogers in Saunders County.

The department says 57-year-old Wayne Stark died early Monday morning. He’d been serving three to six years for fourth-offense driving under the influence.

The department says all three men were being treated for long-term ailments.

Winter Weather Advisory until February 24, 6:00 pm

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s longest-serving senator is once again trying to outlaw mountain lion hunting, describing the animals as majestic and no threat to humans.

Sen. Ernie Chambers of Omaha argued in a committee hearing Thursday that lawmakers never should have approved a hunting season in 2012, when Chambers was out of office.

Mountain lions are native to Nebraska, but vanished in the late 1800s after settlers started poisoning and hunting them. Nebraska has four areas where mountain lion hunting is permitted. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission determines which areas can sustain hunting each session.

State officials have estimated that Nebraska has somewhere between 15 and 22 mountain lions.

Opponents of the bill say the hunting season allows officials to regulate the population.

A North Platte woman is facing felony drug possession charges after police discovered meth in her home as they searched for a man with felony warrants.

On February 22, at around 1:46 p.m., North Platte police officers responded to a residence in the 300 block of East Ninth Street in an attempt to located Juan Nila, who had multiple warrants for his arrest.

According to Investigator John Deal, an officer knocked on the front door of the residence and made contact with 22-year-old Karissa Arensdorf.

Deal says during the contact with Arensdorf, and officer in the rear of the residence observed Nila push out a window screen and attempt to escape. The officer was able to apprehend Nila and place him in custody.

Officers then reported that Arensdorf asked them to take possession of a backpack that belonged to Nila.  As the officers spoke to Arensdorf, they noticed several plastic baggies in plain view inside the residence.  Deal said the baggies contained a white residue that was believed to be methamphetamine. The substance was field tested and returned a positive result for meth.

Arensdorf was placed under arrest and charged with felony possession of methamphetamine.  She was also charged with being an accessory to a felony, a misdemeanor, because Deal says she had been told before that Nila was wanted and she would be arrested if she harbored him. He says it was clear that Nila had been staying with Karissa.

Both Nila and Arensdorf were transported to the Lincoln County Detention Center and jailed.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers have given initial approval to a bill that would require candidates for elected or appointed office to pay campaign violation fines.

The Legislature advanced the bill on a 40-0 vote Thursday. It would apply only to campaign violation fines, not late fees or other fines.

The sponsor, Sen. Carol Blood of Bellevue, says public officials should be held to a higher ethical standard because their salaries are paid by taxpayers.

The bill could prevent cases like the 2013 legislative appointment of a Bellevue businessman who owed more than $16,000 in unpaid state fines for orchestrating a smear campaign against his opponent when he ran for the seat a decade before. Patrick Shannon withdrew from the appointment a few hours after it was announced.