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Ronald Lee Westman

ronald-westman

Ronald Lee Westman, 82, of North Platte, NE passed away April 11, 2017, at Great Plains Health in North Platte, NE.

Ronald Lee Westman was born August 4, 1934, to Edmund J. and Fae Waldron Westman in Callaway, NE.  He attended Callaway High School with the class of 1952. Ronald married Janice Ilene Barnes on June 26,1955. As a child he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. He served in the U.S. Army stationed in Germany from 1955 to 1957. Ron and Jan moved to his family farm on Stop Table near Callaway, NE in 1958. While living near Callaway, they attended Morning Star Church. They moved to North Platte, NE in 1970.

Mr. Westman is survived by wife Jan, daughter Julie Rainbolt of Central City, NE; three sons: Jim and Kathryn (Morris) Westman of Magna, UT; Bill and Kathy (McCall) Westman of North Platte, NE; Bob and Merry (Reece) Westman of Gurley, NE; twelve grandchildren Danielle, Jenny, Sarah (Bobby Brown), and Amber Rainbolt (fiancé Jesse Herman); David (Kristine Martin) Westman and Jon (Martha Saavedra) Westman; Ryan (Connie Wickstrom) Westman and Jason (Abi Damico) Westman, Daniel (fiancé, Amanda Walker) Westman, Michael, Garrett (Kelsey Waite) and Jared Westman; and eight great grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents and brother Edmund “Junior” Westman. Memorial Service will be Saturday, April 15, 2017, at 11:00 am, at Carpenter Memorial Chapel in North Platte. Cremation was chosen. Graveside service will be at 3:00 pm at Stop Table Cemetery in Custer County near Callaway, NE. Online condolences may be shared at www.carpentermemorial.com. Carpenter Memorial Chapel is in care of arrangements.

Driver killed in Grand Island crash, police say

Grand-Island-PoliceGRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a driver has died in a Grand Island crash.

Police say the vehicle ran off an overpass and struck a building around 1 a.m. Friday. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver’s name has not yet been released.

Police suspect the driver may have been speeding.

5-year-old flown to Omaha hospital after fall from window

cass county sheriffLOUISVILLE, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 5-year-old child was flown to an Omaha hospital after falling from a second-story window in Cass County.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office says the incident was reported around 2:15 p.m. Thursday in Louisville (LOO’-iss-vihl). The child was taken to the Louisville High School football field, where a medical helicopter landed so it could fly the child to Nebraska Medical Center.

Details about what happened and the child’s name and condition have not been released.

Former Hastings officer sentenced for fundraising scam

Jerry Esch
Jerry Esch

HASTINGS, Neb. (AP) — A former Hastings police detective has been sentenced to 10 days in jail and two years’ probation for running a fraudulent fundraiser.

The Nebraska Attorney General’s Office says 46-year-old Jerry Esch was sentenced Wednesday in Adams County District Court. Esch also was ordered to serve 120 days of home confinement and pay $7,500 in restitution. He pleaded guilty in January to one misdemeanor count of theft.

Prosecutors say that in November 2015, Esch was an officer with the Hastings Police Department when he created a GoFundMe page, asking for money to cover medical expenses for cancer treatment.

Officials say Esch did have cancer, but did not have the medical bills he claimed to have incurred.

He is no longer a Hastings police officer.

Wyoming man found guilty in fatal 2013 Nebraska crash

Edward Hood
Edward Hood

OSHKOSH, Neb. (AP) — After years of court battles in the case, a Wyoming man has been found guilty in the 2013 fatal drunken driving death of a Nebraska woman.

The Nebraska Attorney General’s Office says 48-year-old Edward Hood, of Sheridan, was found guilty Wednesday in Garden County District Court of motor vehicle homicide, manslaughter and drunken driving causing injury. He’s set to be sentenced June 5.

Prosecutors say Hood was drunk and wanted on a Florida warrant in another DUI case when he hit the vehicle of 62-year-old Terry Hofer of Ogallala in western Nebraska. The crash also seriously injured a passenger in Hofer’s car.

Hood successfully argued to suppress blood and urine samples taken from him after the crash, but lost a battle to have the case thrown out on what he said was a speedy trial violation.

Panel sets date to rule on Whiteclay beer store licenses

nebraska-liquor-control-comLINCOLN, Neb. (AP)  Four Nebraska beer stores on the border of South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation will learn next week whether state regulators will allow them to stay in business.

The Nebraska Liquor Control Commission says it will issue a ruling Wednesday on whether the stores in Whiteclay can renew their liquor licenses.

The commission denied the stores’ requests to renew their licenses automatically amid concerns over whether law enforcement in the area is adequate.

The stores sold the equivalent of 3.5 million cans of beer in 2015 even though Whiteclay only has nine full-time residents. Whiteclay is known as a gathering place for Native Americans who loiter, beg for change and sometimes get into fights. The problem has persisted for decades.

The commission’s ruling is likely to be appealed.

Omaha zoo’s last Malayan tiger euthanized following illness

henry-doorly-zooOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The last of the Malayan tigers at Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium has died.

Zoo officials say the 20-year-old, three-legged tiger named Mai was euthanized Wednesday morning after her health recently declined.

Mai had been at the zoo since 2003. She had been found with her front left leg in a poacher’s trap, and veterinarians amputated the limb. She underwent rehabilitation at a Malaysian zoo before arriving in Omaha.

She gained notoriety again in 2015 when she bit a woman who broke into the zoo after hours and tried to pet the tiger.

The zoo has said it will no longer keep Malayan tigers. It will instead focus on the care of its existing tiger species, Amur and Bengal.

Colorado has backed off plans for marijuana clubs

Colorado-MarijuanaDENVER (AP) — Colorado lawmakers have backed off plans to regulate marijuana clubs, saying the state would have invited a federal crackdown by approving Amsterdam-style pot clubs.

The state House voted Thursday to amend a bill that would have set rules for how private pot clubs could work.

Bring-your-own pot clubs had bipartisan support in the Legislature but strong opposition from Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper.

Colorado already has about 30 private pot clubs, but they operate under a patchwork of local regulations and are sometimes raided by law enforcement. The bill would have set up the nation’s first statewide regulations for pot clubs.

The House amendment effectively removes club regulations, and the remaining bits of the bill are relatively minor. The bill could face yet more changes before a final vote.

Nebraska senators criticize bill limiting Airbnb regulations

airnbLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Several Nebraska state senators are urging their colleagues to kill a bill they say would give Airbnb hosts an unfair tax advantage and create safety concerns.

Senators adjourned without voting Thursday on a bill that would prevent cities from passing any regulations that could prohibit short-term rentals such as those booked through Airbnb. Sen. Tyson Larson of O’Neill, the bill’s sponsor, says encouraging Airbnb in the state will help Nebraska residents earn extra income.

Larson says he’s working on an amendment that would require Airbnb to collect motel taxes when people book Nebraska homes in response to concerns from Omaha-area senators.

Sen. Burke Harr of Omaha says cities should be able to regulate Airbnb rentals the same way they do traditional bed and breakfasts to maintain safety and property values.

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