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Former college athlete set for Nebraska trial in stabbings

Jeffland Neverson
Jeffland Neverson

AUBURN, Neb. (AP) — A former Peru State College basketball player accused of stabbing three other Peru State athletes is scheduled for a May trial.

Court records say 24-year-old Jeffland Neverson, from Brooklyn, New York, has pleaded not guilty to assault, use of a weapon and tampering with evidence — all felonies. His trial is set to begin May 1 in Nemaha County District Court in Auburn.

Authorities say the crimes occurred after a fight broke out Sept. 17 last year about a block from the Peru State stadium in Peru. Several Peru State football and basketball players were involved in the melee. At least three of the athletes required medical treatment.

Report: Nebraska farmland value drops 10 percent

farmlandLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A land-market report by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln shows a 10 percent decline in the state’s average farmland value over the past year.

The survey appeared in the Wednesday edition of Cornhusker Economics. It reveals slower bids and land sales, resulting in the value drop.

Agricultural economist Jim Jansen says Nebraska appraisers, farm managers and agricultural finance professionals replied to the survey saying low commodity prices and high property tax concerns are putting pressure on land values.

The drop marks the third consecutive year the state’s average farmland price has declined. As of Feb. 1, the average was a little over $2,800 per acre, 15 percent lower than 2014’s more than $3,315 per acre.

Waldo Realty co-owner Pat Chohon says most of the active land buyers are neighbors looking to expand their farms.

Authorities ID man whose body was found at rural fire

fireROSALIE, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a 64-year-old man whose body was found inside a burned home north of Bancroft in Cuming County.

The county attorney identified the man as Ernest Warnock, who lived in rural Rosalie. The cause of his death hasn’t been released.

The investigation into Warnock’s death and the fire on Saturday is continuing. The Nebraska State Patrol has described the home as a crime scene. County Attorney Dan Bracht (brahcht) didn’t immediately return a call Thursday from The Associated Press, seeking more information.

Staff assaulted at Nebraska prison, scene of deadly riots

tecumseh-correctionalTECUMSEH, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say inmates at a southeast Nebraska prison that erupted into violence earlier this month have assaulted four staff members, including two who required outside medical care.

The Nebraska Correctional Services Department says the assaults occurred around 1 p.m. Wednesday at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution. Prison personnel used physical force to subdue the inmates. The prison has not said whether any of the inmates required medical attention.

Two inmates were killed and others were injured March 2 when inmates revolted against staff members and started a fire in a courtyard at the facility. No prison staffers were injured that day. Two inmates were killed during a May 2015 riot there.

Department of Correctional Services Director Scott Frakes has said the department is struggling to hire and retain prison employees.

Driver in Fremont crash died in Omaha hospital, police say

fremont-policeOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a man injured when his pickup truck crashed in Fremont has died in an Omaha hospital.

The Fremont Police Department said in a news release Thursday that 53-year-old Fremont resident Ricky Stolley was injured when his pickup left a roadway and finally stopped when it rammed into a tree around 3:50 p.m. Sunday.

The department says Stolley eventually was transferred to the Omaha hospital, where he died Wednesday.

The crash is being investigated.

Google adds tool to flag ‘offensive’ search results

googleNEW YORK (AP) — Google is now directing its review teams to flag content that might come across as upsetting or offensive in search results.

The review teams — comprised of contractors known as “quality raters” — already comb through websites and other content to flag questionable items such as pornography. Google added a new category, “upsetting-offensive,” in its guidelines for quality raters. For example, content with “racial slurs or extremely offensive terminology” could now get flagged as such.

While flagging something doesn’t directly affect the search results themselves, it’s used to tweak the company’s software so that better content ranks higher.

Google declined to comment on the changes, which were reported in the blog Search Engine Land and elsewhere.

New nonstop flight from Omaha to San Diego announced

Courtesy Photo
Courtesy Photo

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new nonstop flight from Omaha’s airport to the West Coast has been announced.

Alaska Airlines will begin offering nonstop service from Omaha’s Eppley Airfield to San Diego International Airport on Aug. 28. The daily flight from Omaha will leave at 3:05 p.m. and arrive in San Diego at 5:05 p.m. It will leave San Diego at 8:50 a.m. and arrive in Omaha at 2:25 p.m.

The airline also provides service to Portland, Oregon and Seattle.

The new addition comes a week after Eppley announced another new nonstop route to Miami International Airport on American Airlines.

The San Diego flight brings the number of nonstop destinations travelers can reach from Omaha to 28.

Nebraska man faces prison for sexually assaulting teen

Andrew Wortman
Andrew Wortman

KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) — A Sutton man faces at least a year in prison when he’s sentenced in May for sexually assaulting a girl in Buffalo County.

25-year-old Andrew Wortman has pleaded no contest in Buffalo County District Court to first-degree sexual assault of a teenage girl younger than 16.

Prosecutors say the offense happened between July 1 and Sept. 1. Court documents outlining the details in the case have been sealed.

In exchange for Wortman’s plea, a charge of enticement by electronic device was dropped. Wortman must register with the Nebraska State Patrol as a convicted sex offender once he’s released.

Wanted man, woman, drugs found at NP motel

A man and woman wanted in Western Nebraska are in jail after police found them at a North Platte motel and located drugs in the man’s vehicle.

On Wednesday, an officer was patrolling the parking lot of a local motel when he ran a check on a license plate. The officer soon learned that the registered owner of the vehicle, 40-year-old Quirt Orsborn, was wanted in Scotts Bluff County.

Officers located Orsborn in a room at the motel and placed him under arrest for the warrants.

Also in the room was 31-year-old Valerie Thorpe.  Officers learned that she too had an outstanding felony warrant out of Scotts Bluff County.

A criminal history check of both Thorpe and Orsborn revealed convictions for drug-related offenses.  Because of this, the investigating officer asked for assistance from a Nebraska State Patrol K-9 unit.

The K-9 gave a positive alert on the vehicle and officers obtained a search warrant.

A subsequent search led to the discovery of several grams of methamphetamine and psilocybin mushrooms.

Orsborn was charged with possession of methamphetamine and possession of psilocybin, both felonies.  Thorpe was arrested on the warrant and both were jailed at the Lincoln County Detention Center.

 

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