February 2019 – Page 2 – North Platte Post Archive

Senators advance bill to add judge in Douglas County

Posted on February 27, 2019

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A bill that would add another judge to Nebraska’s largest county to help with a growing caseload has won first-round approval in the Legislature.

But the measure advanced on Wednesday but won’t pass until lawmakers figure out a way to pay for it while balancing the state budget.

The measure by state Sen. Steve Lathrop, of Omaha, would bring the total number of district court judges to 17 in the fourth judicial district, which encompasses Douglas County. Supporters say adding a judge is necessary to adjust to the large number of court cases that are handled in Omaha each year.

Lawmakers advanced the bill on a 35-0 vote. Two additional votes are required before it goes to the governor.

Sigma Kappa Delta members donate books to Lincoln County Detention Center

Posted on February 27, 2019

Detention Officer Vince Garcia and Cpl. Willie Purvis watch as Sigma Kappa Delta members Ashley Linke, of Cozad, and Nathan Snider, of North Platte, load books onto a cart Tuesday. North Platte Community College’s Rho Zeta chapter of Sigma Kappa Delta collected more than 500 books for the Lincoln County Detention Center and other organizations around North Platte. (Courtesy Photo)

Nebraska bill targeting wind-energy projects stalls

Posted on February 27, 2019February 27, 2019

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A bill that would have made it harder to install new wind-energy farms in Nebraska has died in the Legislature.

Lawmakers voted 23-8 Wednesday in favor of the bill, two votes shy of the simple majority needed to advance it.

The bill would have barred Nebraska’s public power organizations from using eminent domain to install transmission lines for use by privately developed wind-energy farms. Opponents say it would have stifled wind energy development in Nebraska.

The bill was introduced by state Sen. Tom Brewer, of Gordon, whose rural district includes a vast swath of north-central and western Nebraska.

Many of Brewer’s constituents are fighting a proposed transmission line that would cut through their area. They also fervently oppose wind turbines in the Sandhills, a scenic region of grass-covered sand dunes.

1 person killed, 1 injured in northwest Omaha shooting

Posted on February 27, 2019

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a woman was killed and a man wounded in a shooting at a northwest Omaha home.

Deputies were dispatched to the house a little before 5 p.m. Tuesday after a man called 911, reported a shooting and hung up. Capt. Wayne Hudson of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office says a deputy got to the home within three minutes and found the woman’s body and the wounded man. The man was taken to a hospital.

Hudson didn’t provide the two people’s names or other details about the shooting’s circumstances. He did say, however, that the shooting presents no danger to the public.

Nebraska man stands trial in killing of Iraq War veteran

Posted on February 27, 2019

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — An Omaha trial has begun for a man accused in the road-rage killing of an Iraq War veteran.

Michael Benson, 26, is charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of James Womack, 32, The Omaha World-Herald reported. The shooting occurred at a busy Omaha intersection in 2017.

Dashcam video from another vehicle shows that the altercation began after Womack got out of his semitrailer and yelled at Benson, pounded on the passenger-side window of Benson’s truck and started to walk back to his semitrailer.

Witnesses testified in a Douglas County courtroom Tuesday that they heard gunshots and then saw Womack fall to the ground. Womack was taken to a local hospital where he later died.

Benson’s attorney, Beau Finley, said there’s no proof his client fired the shots or was even in the truck involved in the dispute. After the shooting, Benson told police that his truck had been stolen days before the shooting.

Prosecutors Ryan Lindberg and Amy Jacobsen said a GPS tracking device on Benson’s vehicle and surveillance video show he was driving the vehicle the day of the shooting. They said they’re confident the evidence will lead to a conviction.

Benson was originally charged with being an accessory to a felony in the shooting before prosecutors increased the charge to second-degree murder in March 2018.

Womack was in the Army and served three tours in Iraq before he moved to Omaha with his wife to raise their three children.

Missouri man sentenced in Nebraska for woman’s I-80 death

Posted on February 27, 2019

AURORA, Neb. (AP) — A Missouri man has been jailed and put on probation for fatally striking a woman with his semitrailer as she was walking to a tow truck along Interstate 80 in central Nebraska.

Hamilton County Court records say 30-year-old Victor Genetti, of Sugar Creek, Missouri, was sentenced Tuesday in Aurora to 32 days in jail with credit for one day already served, fined $1,000, put on probation for two years and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service over the next year.

He’d pleaded no contest to misdemeanor vehicular homicide.

Authorities say the woman was a passenger in a vehicle that had broken down March 1 last year near Giltner in Hamilton County. She’s been identified as 26-year-old India Marie Simpson, who lived in Waxhaw, North Carolina.

Woman’s sentencing set for exposing unborn child to meth

Posted on February 27, 2019

GERING, Neb. (AP) — A 34-year-old Scottsbluff woman is scheduled to be sentenced April 24 for exposing her unborn child to methamphetamine.

Scotts Bluff County Court records say Amanda Pourier pleaded no contest Monday to the misdemeanor.

The records say an officer was dispatched to Regional West Medical Center on Dec. 18 because a woman who’d just given birth was making suicidal comments. The child died shortly after being delivered after only 14 weeks of gestation.

The officer says Pourier reported that she’d used meth the day before giving birth. The officer also says Pourier seemed to be under the influence of meth during the hospital interview.

Authorities release name of Interstate 80 crash victim

Posted on February 27, 2019

GREENWOOD, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a Lincoln resident who was killed when his car crashed on Interstate 80 in eastern Nebraska.

The Nebraska State Patrol identified him as 24-year-old Travis Egan.

The patrol says Egan was driving west Monday morning when his car crossed the median near the Greenwood exit and rolled. He was thrown from the car and struck by an eastbound sport utility vehicle.

Egan was pronounced dead at the scene. The patrol says the SUV driver wasn’t injured.

An 11-mile (17.7-kilometer) stretch of the interstate was closed for about four hours from the Waverly exit east to the Greenwood exit.

Man sentenced in Nebraska for hauling $1.5M worth of pot

Posted on February 27, 2019

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — One of two people accused of hauling more than a quarter ton of marijuana through eastern Nebraska on Interstate 80 has been imprisoned.

Federal prosecutors say 39-year-old Felice Michael Giorgetti, of Huntington Beach, California, was sentenced Tuesday to 37 months. Giorgetti had pleaded guilty to possession for sale. The other person charged, Robert Rahon, also pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing in April.

The two were in a truck headed east on Jan. 10 last year when a trooper pulled them over just east of the Beaver Crossing interchange for traffic and vehicle violations. One of its drug dogs alerted troopers to the presence of a controlled substance. The troopers say they found just over 526 pounds of marijuana in the truck.

The pot’s estimated street value: $1.5 million.

GAMESTORY: Knights fall to WNCC, snag #2 spot in Region IX south

Posted on February 27, 2019

Scottsbluff, NE – Sports pundits are known to say that a season is a marathon and not a sprint, well last night pundits would be wrong.

The North Platte Knights travelled up to Scottsbluff for a showdown for the #1 spot in the Region IX south sub-district. The winner would take the top spot and earn an automatic bid to the Region IX tournament in Sheridan WY. The loser would then get the right to host McCook on Saturday the 1st to earn a spot in Sheridan.

The Palace at WNCC was packed headed into tip-off as the Cougars were also celebrating sophomore night, would be the last home game for 6 players from the team.

WNCC would jump out to an early lead in this one going up 6-0 before the Knights were able to get a bucket. Teams would go back and forth for a little as WNCC would slowly start to build a lead. Shots for the Knights were just not falling throughout the first half.

After about 5 minutes of play time the floodgates would open for WNCC. They would get out in transition and start hitting shots from all over the floor. The Knights didnt have an answer for the Cougar attack.

Between transition baskets and NBA length three pointers the Cougars found themselves up by double digits early in the half and would stay there throughout.

Only Tim Johnson would have any offense for the Knights going 10/10 from the FT line in the first half to lead the scoring for the Knights. He would be a big part of the momentum shift as the Knights, down by 20 with a minute left in the half would rattle off 4 quick points and get a couple big defensive stops.

The first half would end 50-34 in favor of WNCC. It should be noted that the Cougars shot an out worldly percentage from the field in the first half. They would go 19/31 (61.3%) from the field and go 9/20 (45%) from 3pt range. Those numbers are outstanding and not something one usually sees in a basketball game, at any level.

The Knights, however, would build on that momentum from the end of the half and would storm out of the gates going on a quick 9-3 run to open up the second half. That would prompt a quick time out from WNCC with the score sitting at 53-43, what was a blowout now would turn into a close game.

A combination of the Cougars coming back down to earth mixed with tough defense from the Knights would continue for much of the second half. At numerous times the Knights would get the lead down to 9 points before WNCC would go on a mini run of their own and push it back into double digits.

WNCC started to sweat as their shot was not falling while the Knights were gaining momentum. Another time out with 9:43 left on the clock by the Cougars that tried to stave off Knights momentum. At that point the score stood at 69-58.

Finally with about 7 minutes remaining the Knights would start their push. A group of Da’May Jones, Jakub Karwowski, Courtney Miller, Tim Johnson and Edgars Kaufmanis would be the magic lineup and push the lead below that 9 point barrier and further. Kaufmanis would get in a foul trouble and would be swapped out for Ilya Tyrtyshnik.

With 4:09 left in the game, Tyrtyshnik would hit a three point shot from the top of the key that would tie the game at 71-71. The Knights had done the improbable and clawed back from 20 points down to tie things up.

Another quick time out by WNCC would prove to be what they needed. The season previous the Cougars were eliminated in the 2nd round of the National Championship tournament and used that experience to close out a game at home. They would finish the game on an 11-5 run and take the victory 82-76.

Leading the way for the Knights was Tim Johnson with 23 points. Courtney Murrell would put in 16 and Karwowski would be in double digits with 10 points.

Karwowski would also snag 12 rebounds for the Knights.

WNCC carries the #1 seed and will get a first round bye. The Knights will host McCook in the first round on Saturday March 2nd. The time is still to be determined.