UPDATE:

The body found at Centennial Park on Monday has been identified as that of Howard D. Russell, 54, of North Platte.

North Platte Police say the body was discovered by a passerby and reported to police.

The Lincoln County Attorney has not yet determined a cause of death.

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North Platte Police found a body at Centennial Park on Monday.

Public Information Officer Rodney Brown said Officers found the body of a 54-year-old local man at around 6:50 a.m near the Bike Trail on the South side of the park.

Police say the man died alone, and no evidence of foul play has been discovered.

According to Brown, the investigation is ongoing.

An August trial has been scheduled for a 26-year-old man charged with child abuse in the death of a 2-year-old Gering girl.

Two of three charges against Dustin Chauncey were dismissed last week. Prosecutors cited problems with the statute of limitations for a felony manslaughter charge and a misdemeanor charge of providing false information to police.

Chauncey has pleaded not guilty to harming Juliette Geurts, of Gering in July 2008. He was the boyfriend at the time of the girl’s mother, Charyse Geurts. Charges against her also have been dismissed because of the statute of limitations.

The statute of limitations on Chauncey’s child abuse charge is seven years. It’s less on the other charges.

Chauncey is serving time in a Colorado prison on a drug conviction.

The Scottsbluff City Council has approved the hiring of a police chief and has shelved plans for consolidating police operations.

On Monday the council endorsed the selection of Kevin Spencer, who’s spent 11 years on the city’s force.

In one of its first directives to Spencer, the council asked him to compile the consolidation research for future use by local residents and the council.

Mayor Randy Meininger says there has been scant support for the latest proposal to fold the Scottsbluff and Gering police forces into the Scotts Bluff County Sheriff’s Office.

North Platte Public Schools Superintendent Marty Bassett will be recommending two new administrators at the May 14 North Platte Public Schools Board of Education meeting.

Danny McMurtry will be recommended for the Madison Middle School principal position and Peggy Board will be recommended as the new Assistant Principal at North Platte High School (NPHS).

Current NPHS Assistant Principal, Vikki Carlson, will return to Adams Middle School as the Assistant Principal.  Carlson was a teacher at Adams before becoming the Dean of Students at NPHS in 2010.

Danny McMurtry is a NPHS graduate and attended Howard College in Texas where he earned an Associates Degree before transferring to the University of Louisiana-Lafayette to play baseball.  McMurtry earned a Bachelor of Science Degree from UL-Lafayette.  He will earn a Masters in Educational Leadership from Arkansas State University in May of 2014.

Peggy Bourge is a graduate of Brady High School and attended Doane College, where she received her Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and Political Science.  She received her teaching certificate from Texas A & M University.  She also earned two Masters Degree from Texas A & M in Curriculum and Instruction and Educational Administration.  Bourge has 14 years of experience as a Social Studies teacher and Assistant Principal.

The filling of these two positions completes the North Platte Public Schools administrative team.

 

A 26-year-old North Platte man has been sentenced to two and a half to five years in prison for burglarizing the North Platte Regional Recycling Center.

Bradley Clark was sentenced Monday in Lincoln County District Court.

Prosecutors asked Judge Richard Birch for a lengthy sentence due to Clark’s extensive criminal record.  They noted that Clark apparently steals to support his drug habit.

He had been out of prison for less than a year when this crime was committed.

Police say Clark stole metals from the Regional Recycling Center, then tried to sell the materials to North Platte Metals.

A 29-year-old Sutherland man has been sentenced to four to five years in prison after he was convicted of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.

Lincoln County District Court Judge Richard Birch sentenced Eric Humphrey on Monday.

Humphrey is accused of sexually assaulting the girl on five different occasions between December of 2011 and March of 2012.

Humphrey told Judge Birch that he was extremely sorry and was working to become a better member of society.

Humphrey will have register as a sex offender, and was give credit for 426 days in jail.

 

A 23-year-old man has been given 30 months of probation for shaking a baby in south-central Nebraska.

23-year-old Cameron Hovey was sentenced to community service as well. Dawson County District Court records say Hovey also was given 134 days in jail, with credit for 14 days already served. He was sentenced on Monday.

Hovey pleaded guilty to vigorously shaking a 4½-month-old child last summer. Prosecutors had lowered the child abuse charge in exchange for Hovey’s plea.

Hovey told police that he shook the child because he panicked when it appeared the baby had stopped breathing.

The infant suffered brain damage.

General Motors Co. is recalling 38,197 Chevrolet Malibu Eco, Buick LaCrosse and Buick Regal sedans in the U.S. because a defective battery control module could stall the engine or cause a fire.

Vehicles from the 2012 and 2013 model years equipped with GM’s eAssist hybrid system are affected. Vehicles built after December 2012 are not part of the recall.

GM says some vehicles may have a malfunctioning generator control module that causes a gradual loss of battery power and stalls the engine. If the module overheats, it could cause smoke or fire in the trunk.

GM will notify owners and repair the module for free.

The company knows of two trunk fires related to the issue, which happened in the first 1,000 miles of operation. No injuries have been reported.

A North Platte man is facing Burglary charges after a local residence was burglarized over the weekend.

According to North Platte Police Department Public Information Officer Rodney Brown, Officers responded to the 100 Block of East 12th on Saturday May 4 after receiving a report of a burglary.

The victim alleged that someone had broken into their residence and stolen numerous items including sports trading cards, $120.00 in cash and a metal lock box.

After an investigation, police determined that 37-year-old Andy Dike was the suspect in the crime.

Police executed a search warrant on Dike’s residence and located the lock box and trading cards inside.

Dike was arrested and charged with Burglary, a Class III Felony.

He was jailed at the Lincoln County Detention Center.

The Nebraska Travel Commission says its goals for this summer’s travel season could help the state surpass last year’s success.

The commission estimated $3.1 billion in total direct travel spending in Nebraska last year, a 5.6 percent increase over 2011.

Among the commission’s goals for the 2013 season is raising participation in tourism passport programs offered statewide and locally. More than 19,000 people from Nebraska, 11 other states and two foreign countries picked up the passports last year. The promotional tools offer discounts and prizes at participating businesses.

The state program offers prizes for redeemed stamps from the 80 participating attractions. A partnership with the Nebraska Hotel & Motel Association will provide discounts to passport participants who mention the program when making reservations.