A recent purchase at a North Platte convenience store has made someone a millionaire.

According to the Nebraska Lottery, a $1,000,000 winning lottery ticket was sold at Prairie Mart, 747 East Maloney Drive.

According to the Lottery’s website, the numbers drawn on Wednesday were 21, 39, 40, 55, 59 and a Powerball of 17.  The PowerPlay was 3.

All players are encouraged to check their tickets.  This can be done at any establishment that sells lottery tickets or online at www.nelottery.com.  You can also call the Lottery office at 402-471-6100.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A second straight monthly survey of nine Midwest and Plains states suggests a slowdown in the region’s economy.

A report issued Thursday says the overall Mid-American Business Conditions Index dropped to 47.7 last month, compared with 49.6 in August.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he cited the strong U.S. dollar and global economic weakness among the reasons for the region’s economic slide.

The survey results from supply managers are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests economic growth. A score below that suggests decline.

The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A federal appeals panel has upheld the dismissal of three companies in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the estate of a Maryland family killed in a 2012 fiery crash on Interstate 80 in western Nebraska.

The lawsuit was filed by relatives of Christopher and Diana Schmidt. The Gaithersburg, Maryland, couple died along with their two young children and unborn son in Sept. 9, 2012 crash.

The Schmidts were in separate cars in standstill traffic after a crash that involved two semitrailers in Cheyenne County. They were then rear-ended by another semitrailer traveling about 75 mph.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel on Thursday upheld a lower judge’s dismissal against the two trucking companies and a trailer company involved in the initial crash.

A 23-year-old Lexington man is being held in the Dawson County jail on an attempted murder charge.

According to the Lexington Police Department, Ciro Cortez, Jr., was arrested on Wednesday.

Police say Cortez fired a gun into an occupied vehicle on Cypress Lane, in Lexington, late last Thursday evening.

After processing the victim’s vehicle and interviewing several witnesses, police secured an arrest warrant for Cortez and contacted him outside of his home in Lexington.

In addition to attempted first-degree murder, Cortez was also charged with use of a weapon to commit a felony and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

The investigation is ongoing, according to police.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The resignation of a Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services administrator came after state officials discovered she had inflated her academic credentials.

A department spokeswoman said Wednesday that Yolanda Webb left voluntarily after a background check found discrepancies in her application materials. Webb had accepted a job as the state’s Developmental Disabilities division director.

Spokeswoman Kathie Osterman says Webb claimed on her resume that she had received a doctoral degree from Union Institute & University, but in her cover letter she said she was still working on the degree. Osterman says the governor’s office relied on the resume for a news release about Webb’s hiring and allowed her to review it, but she didn’t correct the inaccuracy.

The reason behind Webb’s resignation was first reported by the Omaha World-Herald.

SIDNEY, Neb. (AP) — A judge has upheld the conviction and sentencing of a western Nebraska police chief who didn’t pursue a criminal case against a city official.

Court records say Judge Travis O’Gorman of Cheyenne County District Court on Tuesday rejected an appeal by Sidney Police Chief B.J. Wilkinson.

State prosecutors say Wilkinson failed to pursue criminal charges against city Public Works Director John Hehnke after Hehnke’s ex-girlfriend filed a complaint in January 2014 against Hehnke. The case came to the attention of state prosecutors, who later charged Hehnke.

Wilkinson’s attorney, Thomas Sonntag, said in court Monday that Wilkinson’s 30-day jail sentence was unfairly tough when compared to Hehnke’s $300 fine for disturbing the peace.

O’Gorman says Wilkinson abused his power by failing to uphold and enforce the law.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The developer of the Keystone XL pipeline is reversing course in Nebraska and will drop its eminent domain lawsuits against landowners who don’t want the pipeline running through their property.

TransCanada Inc. announced Tuesday that it will stop pushing for the project under a state law that’s now being challenged in the courts.

The company says it will instead seek approval through the Nebraska Public Service Commission, an agency that regulates pipelines, warehouses and grain bins.

TransCanada won approval from former Gov. Dave Heineman, but the state law that allowed him to do so remains mired in court. TransCanada spokesman Mark Cooper says the company believes that applying through the commission will reduce the local conflicts.

Jane Kleeb, a leading pipeline opponent, says the company was losing ground in Nebraska.

North Platte Police say they have made an arrest after a North Platte man was seriously injured by a homemade explosive device.

At around 1:00 a.m., on September 15, officers with the North Platte Police Department responded to the emergency room at Great Plains Health, where a 24-year-old male was being treated for a serious injury to his hand.  Staff at the hospital told police the injury was caused by a homemade explosive device.

Officer met with the victim, who told them that he and another 26-year-old male had been riding in a van with Daniel Smith.

The victim alleged that as they traveled down East Philip Street, in between Bicentennial Street and Newberry Access, Smith lit the fuse on a pipe bomb type explosive device and handed it to him.

The victim said Smith told him to throw it out the window of the vehicle.

According to the victim, and the other passenger, the device exploded before the victim was able to throw it out the window, instead, police say the device detonated in the victim’s hand, causing serious injury to his hand and wrist.

Smith then transported the victim to the hospital and fled the scene.

Officers soon located the vehicle, which had sustained damage to the windshield and several other areas, and towed it to a secure facility.

On September 28, an officer met with Smith, who was being held at the Lincoln County Detention Center on unrelated charges, and questioned him regarding this case.

After further investigation, Smith was arrested and charged with felony 2nd-degree assault and felony use of an explosive device to commit a felony.

Smith remains in custody at the LCDC