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Suspect arrested in 2008 Omaha barbershop slaying

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say they’ve arrested a suspect in the 2008 fatal shooting of a man at a north Omaha barbershop.

The Omaha Police Department cold case squad arrested 31-year-old Richodd Mackins on a warrant charging him with first-degree murder. He was booked Monday into Douglas County Jail. Court records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for him.

Police say 23-year-old Marcus Johnson was shot the morning of Sept. 25, 2008. He left the barbershop and flagged down some help, but he died later at a hospital.

Lincoln’s first 2018 homicide highlights suspects’ ages

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Lincoln police have arrested four teens in the city’s first killing of the year.

Anthony Young III, 18, has been charged with being an accessory in the March 26 shooting death of Edgar Union Jr., 22. Young is the oldest person to be arrested in the case.

Two 17-year-olds face similar charges as Young for the case, though they haven’t been ruled adults or juveniles for prosecution.

A shooting suspect in the killing appeared in adult court last week. The teen, 16, is the youngest person accused in a Lincoln homicide since the 1980s, according to police.

Police said the case stands out due to the number of young people involved.

“The majority are still school-age with so much life in front of them,” Police Chief Jeff Bliemeister said.

Nebraska prosecutors consider many factors when determining whether to charge a minor as an adult, including the motive, past criminal history and public safety concerns.

Union’s mother, Monica Brown, said she hopes the shooting suspect is asked to stand trial as an adult “because that’s what he deserves.”

The suspect faces Class 1 felony charges of second-degree murder and gun possession.

Investigators are trying to determine the motive and timeline of events leading up to the shooting, Bliemeister said.

Police know there was a fight at Lincoln Southeast High School involving Union’s associates the day of the shooting, according to Bliemeister. The shooting suspect and one of the 17-year-old accused accomplices were seen leaving the school that afternoon.

The shooting suspect knew Union, and both belonged to feuding gangs, Bliemeister said.

A confrontation involving more than 20 people from different Lincoln gangs occurred that afternoon, ending with a shot fired.

Union died on the porch of a home in the area, according to police.

The shooting suspect is being held at the Lancaster County juvenile detention center on a $1 million bond. The teen suspect’s attorney, Mark Rappl, said they’re exploring options, including asking to transfer the case to juvenile court.

Nebraska farmland values drop by 2.8 percent

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s farmland values saw a decline for the second consecutive year after decades of increases.

The Nebraska Department of Revenue released a report Friday showing that agricultural land values fell by almost 2.8 percent. The values dropped by 0.15 percent last year, which marked the first decline after nearly 25 years of increases.

Residential and commercial property values increased this year by 5.4 percent and 6.9 percent respectively.

Experts said the farmland property values follow the price decline for corn, soybeans, beef and other commodities over the past few years.

“It’s a reflection of the farm economy right now,” said Jay Rempe, an agricultural economist with the Nebraska Farm Bureau.

The decline can be seen as a “rebalancing,” said Eric Thompson, director of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Bureau of Business Research. Farmland values were at “unusually high levels” early this decade, he said.

A modest drop in farmland values won’t bring extensive property tax relief, according to Craig Weber, a farmer north of Kearney.

“It’s going to take a lot of 2.7 percents to get our property taxes where they’re a little more reasonable,” Weber said.

Farmland values took the biggest hit in Hitchcock County, where they dropped by more than 10 percent.

Gov. Pete Ricketts proposed reforming agricultural land valuations last year to lower property taxes on farmers and ranchers, said Taylor Gage, the governor’s spokesman.

“The governor has continued to fight for property tax relief in spite of the failure of senators to adopt his proposal,” Gage said.

Weber said the agriculture industry is “cyclical,” and that “we’ll be headed back to more profitable times.”

Iowa, Nebraska farmers nearly caught up on spring planting

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Although spring storms initially slowed spring planting progress in Iowa and Nebraska, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports farmers have nearly caught up to five-year averages in the past week.

Iowa farmers have 40 percent of the corn crop planted, about three days behind the average at this point in the season. Three percent of corn plants have emerged, a slower pace than the five-year average of 9 percent.

The USDA said Monday in its weekly crop update that Iowa soybean planting is at the average of 12 percent completed.

Farmers in Nebraska have 42 percent of the corn planted, near the 46 percent average. About 2 percent of the plants emerged behind the five-year average of 10 percent.

Soybean planting is slightly ahead of schedule with 16 percent completed.

4 Iowa residents killed in Interstate 80 crash in Nebraska

MILFORD, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say four people killed in a crash on Interstate 80 in Nebraska were from eastern Iowa.

The victims were identified Monday as 49-year-old Susan Selser, 20-year-old Cody Richardson, 20-year-old Troy Wanzek and 19-year-old Cole Austin, all of Clinton, Iowa.

Authorities say 20-year-old Madison Selser-Smith, of Clinton, was driving westbound in a 2005 Chevy Equinox when she hit rumble bars on the north shoulder, overcorrected, crossed the center median and entered the eastbound lanes. The car was then struck by a 2010 Buick Lacerne driven by 75-year-old Anna Richert, of rural Gresham, Nebraska.

Selser-Smith and Richert were flown to a Lincoln hospital with life-threatening injuries. Authorities say Richert, Selser and Selser-Smith were wearing seat belts. Richardson, Wanzek and Austin were not, and were ejected from the car’s back seats.

Pedestrian struck and killed along I-680 in north Omaha

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a semitrailer struck and killed a pedestrian along Interstate 680 on the north side of Omaha.

The trucker called 911 around 4:40 a.m. Monday to report the accident.

Traffic was routed off the westbound lanes as authorities investigated.

Omaha police identified the pedestrian as 25-year-old Zachary C.L. Crinklaw of Omaha. The trucker driver was 52-year-old Michael J. Stone, of Rockwell City, Iowa.

Police say the truck hit Crinklaw when he walked from the shoulder and into a freeway lane.

Nebraska Supreme Court officially adds new justice

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Omaha attorney Jonathan Papik was sworn in to the Nebraska Supreme Court on Monday by U.S. Supreme Court Judge Neil Gorsuch.

Papik served as Gorsuch’s law clerk, and the judge said Papik has a natural judicial temperament.

“Where character is concerned, Jonathan Papik arrived in my chambers fully formed,” Gorsuch said, describing his former clerk as a hard-worker who was “precise in his reasons, confident, but never brash.”

Gorsuch was appointed to the Supreme Court last year by President Donald Trump to replace Antonin Scalia.

Papik was nominated by Gov. Pete Ricketts to replace Justice Max Kelch, who resigned after less than two years on the bench following an ethics complaint filed against him. Papik is Ricketts’ third nomination to the state Supreme Court.

Ricketts said Papik has a sharp mind, the respect of his colleagues and is dedicated to understanding the constitution how it was written.

Papik also clerked for Judge Laurence H. Silberman in the U.S. Court of Appeals after graduating with honors from Harvard Law School. He has practiced law as a partner at Cline Williams Wright Johnson & Oldfather for nearly eight years.

Papik, who was born in Stromsburg, said he feels blessed for the opportunity to serve as a judge.

“As a judge, there’s not a lot I can say about how I will do my job,” he said. “It’s improper to say that I would rule this way or rule that way on a particular issue or particular case, but I can commit before everyone here today that I will do my absolute best to apply the law faithfully and impartially.”

The 36-year-old Papik is the youngest judge to serve on the high court. His wife and three young children placed his judicial robe on him during Monday’s official ceremony.

Papik will represent the 4th Judicial District, which includes portions of Douglas and Sarpy counties.

Man injured in blast that leveled Lincoln home has died

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A man has died nearly nine months after an explosion ripped through the Lincoln home he shared with his wife, who also has died.

Lincoln police say 66-year-old Jim Jasa died in hospice care Wednesday. Officer Angela Sands said Friday that the death certificate says Jasa died of natural causes, but doctors have said he died of his blast injuries.

Jeanne Jasa died Aug. 29, more than two weeks after the Aug. 14 rocked their southeast Lincoln neighborhood.

Investigators say natural gas filled the home and was ignited from inside, but they have not been able to determine whether any crime was involved. Sands says investigators were unable to interview Jim Jasa before he died.

Nebraska man faces charges for starving livestock again

UNADILLA, Neb. (AP) — A man who was imprisoned for neglecting his livestock has been charged in a new case after animal carcasses were found on his southeast Nebraska property.

John Maahs, 67, faces 10 felony animal cruelty and neglect charges after dead pigs and goats were found on his Otoe County farm.

Maahs was convicted of the same charges in 2011 after deputies found about 1,000 dead hogs on the property. Maahs served more than a year in prison for that case and paid more than $50,000 in fines and cleanup costs, said Otoe County Attorney David Partsch.

“He really didn’t have an excuse,” Partsch said. “He said he just got lazy.”

Police made periodic visits to Maahs’ farm after he was released in 2013. But police determined that all animals appeared healthy during the check-ins, Holland said. Police were tipped off last month by a motorist who returned one of Maahs’ goats that fled its pen.

Chief Deputy Mike Holland called the more than 40 dead pigs and 15 dead goats found a “disgusting scene.” Police found live hogs feeding on dead hogs.

Animals were locked inside buildings without food or water despite deputies finding plenty of feed sacks on the farm, Holland said.

“Where the carcasses were as far as decomposition, it looks to me it’s probably something that’s been going on the last six months,” Holland said.

A judge ordered Thursday that the surviving animals be forfeited to the sheriff’s office. The livestock will likely be sold at an auction to help cover cleanup costs, Partsch said.

Maahs didn’t return a request for comment and doesn’t appear to have an attorney. He’s scheduled to appear in court May 21. He faces 20 years in prison and $100,000 in fines.

Maahs could also be prohibited from owning animals again.

“He obviously didn’t change his behaviors,” Partsch said. “So we’ll be seeking every remedy possible to ensure he doesn’t have the opportunity to do this again.”

Family of Nebraska man killed during arrest files lawsuit

BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — The father of a man who died during an arrest by Bellevue police has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city just south of Omaha.

The lawsuit, which has been moved to federal court, seeks $19,000 in medical and funeral expenses. The family also seeks an unspecified amount for their pain and suffering following the 2016 death of 31-year-old Alex Zoucha (ZOO-ha).

Authorities say officers called to a home found Zoucha trying to break into the house and that he didn’t respond to their commands. Police say they used a stun gun with little effect until he became unresponsive.

Officers performed CPR, but Zoucha died at a hospital.

The four officers involved were cleared of any wrongdoing and have since returned to active duty.

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