(AP) — A new report says northwest Nebraska lost more than 2,200 cattle in the early October blizzard that swept through the region.

The loss totals in Sioux and Dawes counties were released Monday by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s extension office in Chadron. The cattle deaths came little more than a year after wildfires damaged more than 900 miles of fence line and reduced the region’s cattle population to less than 45 percent of its normal number.

Scott Cotton, an extension educator, says the numbers are not yet definitive.

Cotton says producers should document both their losses and the number of cattle they owned before the winter storm. He says donations to help the victims can be made to the First National Bank Community Foundation in Chadron.

A 43-year-old man is in jail after Police say he fired a weapon within the City Limits of North Platte and committed several other felonies.

According to North Platte Police Department Public Information Officer, Rodney Brown, Officers responded to a report of gunfire in the 600 block of West 9th at around 11:00 p.m. on Friday.

Officers made contact with a 43-year-old female, who told them 43-year-old Michael Meyers had parked his pickup in the alley behind their residence and began firing a small caliber handgun.  Meyers then allegedly sped off.

Officers were able to locate and intoxicated Meyers operating his pickup near Buffalo Bill Avenue and West 9th Street, where a search of Meyers’ vehicle produced a .38 caliber revolver.

Following an investigation, Officers placed Meyers under arrest without incident.  However, upon arrival at the jail, Brown says Meyers became belligerent and defiant with authorities, which resulted in additional charges.

Meyers faces felony charges of Discharging a Firearm Within City Limits, Terroristic Threats, Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person, Use of a Deadly Weapon to Commit a Felony, 3rd Offense Driving Under the Influence and Refusal to Submit to a Chemical Test, as well as a misdemeanor charge of Driving Under Suspension.

He is being held at the Lincoln County Detention Center on $100,000 bond.

A North Platte woman, who was recently charged with attempting to run down a North Platte High School (NPHS) Student, has been charged with assaulting a 14-year-old girl.

According to a North Platte Police Department news release, Officers responded to a residence in the 1100 block of East 5th Street just before midnight on Friday.

Upon arrival, the female victim told Officers that while she and some friends were near 5th and Oak Streets, 19-year-old Kirsten Collins, drove up and confronted her about an earlier incident.  Collins then reportedly exited the vehicle, started choking the victim and punched her in the face.

Following the investigation, the Officer determined there was probable cause to arrest Collins and charge her with 3rd Degree Assault, a misdemeanor, as well as felony Assault-Strangulation and Child Abuse.

In September, Collins was charged after she allegedly tried to run down a student at NPHS with her vehicle.  Police did not say if this was the same victim from that incident.

Collins is being held at the Lincoln County Detention Center on $15,000 bond.

(AP) — A judge is considering freeing a man whose attorneys acknowledge that he killed six members of a western Nebraska family.

Seventy-five-year-old Audrey Brown, of North Platte, said she’s driven to Lincoln every year since 1979 so various judges considering freedom for Erwin Simants will see her and be mindful of the victims she represents. Her parents were among the six.

The 67-year-old Simants has been in the state’s Lincoln psychiatric hospital since being found not guilty by reason of insanity for the 1975 slayings of six in the Kellie family of Sutherland.

Doctors now agree that Simants is no longer mentally ill. A judge is expected to rule Thursday on whether Simants will be released.

(AP) — Two dozen sets of twins converged on Hastings this weekend to socialize and raise money for cancer research.

The Nebraska State Twin Association held its annual convention in Hastings. The event drew 24 sets of twins from all over the state, ranging in age from 5 months to 81 years old. The organization was founded in 1986 by a set of Nebraska twins.

The theme for this year’s conference was “Scare Away Cancer.” Twins set out to raise money for Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society.

The Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) conducted compliance checks at 18 retail alcohol outlets in Custer County.

During the checks conducted Friday, October 18, two businesses were found to be non-compliant after selling alcohol to minors.  The retail outlets checked during the effort included convenience, liquor and grocery stores as well as restaurants and bars.

Law enforcement performs compliance checks to ensure that businesses are complying with the state’s alcohol laws and to decrease youth access to alcohol.

Compliance checks in Custer County were conducted thanks in part to a $1,100 grant from the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety (NOHS).

A North Platte man sustained serious injuries when he crashed his motorcycle early Sunday morning.

According to North Platte Police Department Public Information Officer, Rodney Brown, Officers responded to the the area of West Front Street and North Buffalo Bill Avenue at around 1:30 a.m. on the report of a one vehicle accident involving a motorcycle.

Responding Officers learned that a 2010 Honda Fury, driven by 41-year-old Scotty Betancud, was traveling westbound on Front Street when he lost control of his motorcycle.

Police say the Honda left the roadway, continued into a ditch filled with water, traveled up the other side, turned sideways and rolled several times.

Betancud was thrown from the bike and the bike continued to travel around 430 feet after exiting Front Street.

Investigators say Betancud sustained serious injuries in the accident and was transported to Great Plains Regional Medical Center.  His condition is unknown at this time.

(AP) — Almost 6 million young people are neither in school nor working, or about 15 percent of those aged 16 to 24.

That’s according to a report released Monday from Opportunity Nation, a bipartisan coalition advocating greater economic mobility.

Idle youth are missing an opportunity to build skills they will need later in life or to use knowledge they acquired in college. Without those experiences, the report predicts they’re less likely to command higher salaries and more likely to be an economic drain on their communities.

The study also finds that the number of families living in poverty has increased in 49 states, while household median incomes have fallen in 45 states last year. The dour report underscores the challenges young adults face now and foretells trials they’re likely to face.

• Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 58. West northwest wind 5 to 10 mph increasing to 11 to 16 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 24 mph.
• Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 38. West northwest wind 7 to 10 mph.
• Tuesday: Partly sunny, with a high near 57. Breezy, with a north northwest wind 10 to 15 mph increasing to 17 to 22 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 31 mph.
• Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 33. North wind 5 to 8 mph becoming calm in the evening.

New technology proved effective for the North Platte Catholic Schools G.R.E.E.N. fundraising event on October 12th.

Over 320 people gathered for the 11th annual Generating Resources for Educational Excellence Now event at the Quality Inn. Endowment Director Wendy Dodson says net proceeds should exceed $120,000… the best outcome yet for the annual event.

G.R.E.E.N. helps the Endowment reach its yearly fundraising goal for school operations and helps fund teacher retirement. This year’s event also generated over $16,000 (via text message) for the Endowment’s Great Teaching Fund program for educators.

This program allows teachers to receive scholarships for continuing and higher education. The Endowment provides thousands of dollars in tuition and fees each year so that McDaid and St. Patrick’s faculty members can take classes and attend workshops.

Dodson says that the addition of the QTEGO text-bidding system, sponsored by NebraskaLand National Bank, was a tremendous boost for the event, and says the implementation of this new technology allowed people to bid on items and text donations who were unable to attend G.R.E.E.N. She adds that it also boosted profits on the silent auctions, and enhanced the entertainment value of the event.

Dodson says that thanks are in order to the entire community of North Platte for making G.R.E.E.N. a success for the past 11 years. Local businesses and individuals donated tens of thousands of dollars in auction items and cash to the event. Dodson explains that, “North Platte responds to G.R.E.E.N. in a tremendous way every year, and we are extremely grateful for the support of this event and our school system.”

Next year’s G.R.E.E.N. is scheduled for Saturday, October 4th, 2014.