The party announced Friday that Omaha attorney and former city council member Dan Welch was chosen at its State Central Committee meeting on Saturday.

Welch was first elected as chairman in March 2015, at the urging of Gov. Pete Ricketts.

Welch says he’ll continue advocating for the party’s agenda of limited government, lower taxes and greater opportunity.

Ricketts praised Welch for leadership and vision that are “assets to our party and the conservative movement.”

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s corrections director is acknowledging the state will probably fail to meet a mandatory deadline to reduce its prison population by July 2020, forcing parole officials to consider releasing all eligible inmates.

Scott Frakes said prison officials have more work to do after lawmakers repeatedly asked him Friday if he believed the goal was still attainable.

Nebraska’s corrections department faces a July 1, 2020, deadline imposed by the Legislature to lower its inmate population to 140 percent of what its facilities were designed to hold. Falling short of that target will put the prisons in an “overcrowding emergency.”

As of last month, Nebraska’s prisons were at 158 percent of their total design capacity.

The deadline was imposed to hold the department accountable for its efforts to reduce prison crowding.

Eppley Airfield officials said via Twitter that no one was injured when the Southwest Airlines plane from Las Vegas went off the end of the runway after landing just after 2 p.m. Friday. The incident led authorities to close the airport Friday afternoon and suspend all flights.

“Airport fire crews are working with Southwest to deplane the passengers and take them to the terminal,” the airport’s Twitter account read.

Freezing drizzle and mist cut visibility and slicked roads and sidewalks in much of the eastern half of Nebraska on Friday as residents prepared for a second straight weekend of harsh winter weather.

The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory for much of the state, with snow expected by Friday evening into Saturday. The service had expected snowfall of more than 7 inches (18 centimeters) in some areas, but adjusted that downward by Friday afternoon to 1-to-3 inches (2.5-to-7.5 centimeters).

Of more concern were high winds of up to 30 mph (50 kph) expected late Friday and into Saturday that could whip up snow, cutting visibility and pushing high-profile vehicles off slick roads. Artic air is expected to move into the state behind the storm, sending wind chills to as low as 20 below zero on Saturday and Sunday.

Schools in the Omaha area canceled or cut classes short Friday in anticipation of the storm.

The Lincoln Journal Star reports that the Lancaster County District Court jury returned a verdict Wednesday of more than $7.1 million against BNSF and in favor of Jimmy Rohr Jr. But it was reduced by 51 percent, the percentage for which the jury deemed Rohr responsible.

The railroad maintained that Rohr was fully responsible. He said the railroad was.

Rohr’s attorney Jeff Chod says a rail car rolled over Rohr’s left foot on Feb. 22, 2014. Eventually his left leg was amputated below the knee.

Chod says Rohr returned to work in October 2015 and plans on staying at BNSF as long as he’s physically able to do the work.

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska commission will consider approving a race track’s request to allow wagering on historical horse races, even as the state attorney general challenges its legality.

The Nebraska Racing Commission this week revisited a request from Fonner Park in Grand Island to allow historical horse racing, which allows gamblers to bet on previously run races, though the identities of horses and riders are changed.

The five-member commission originally approved the request in October, but it rescinded that decision Wednesday following concerns from Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson.

Peterson said the commission’s original decision was made during a meeting that violated open-meeting rules. He said the commission also doesn’t have the legal authority to approve the betting machines because it’s a new form of gambling.

In 2012, then-Gov. Dave Heineman vetoed a bill that would’ve allowed betting on historical horse races. Another move to put the issue before voters in 2014 was blocked by the state Supreme Court.

“As much as the commission wants to approve historic horse racing, it cannot,” said Assistant Attorney General Laura Nigro. “That must be decided by the Legislature or the people of Nebraska.”

Nigro said the attorney general’s office won’t defend the commission if it approves the betting and runs into legal issues.

The commission also heard testimony on the issue this week. Fonner Park officials and horse racing advocates said offering historical horse racing is a way for the industry to adapt, draw more interest and promote horse racing tracks.

Commission Chairman Dennis Lee said the board will take public comments on the issue until Feb. 1. The commission’s decision will be announced in the next few months.

TRENTON, Neb. (AP) — Another person has been charged in the fatal beating of a southwestern Nebraska man.

Hitchcock County Court records say 33-year-old Samantha Bell, also known as Samantha Strohm, is charged with first-degree murder and with conspiracy to commit robbery. She remained in custody Thursday at the Hitchcock County Jail in Trenton.

The records say she and 42-year-old Darin Mason are suspected of fatally beating 49-year-old Todd Miller on Aug. 16, 2017, during a drug robbery at his home in Culbertson. Mason was arrested last month.

The records don’t list the names of attorneys who could comment for them.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Demand is growing for special courts that serve drug offenders, veterans and people with mental illnesses, but Nebraska’s top judge says state officials don’t have the resources needed to address it.

Nebraska Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Heavican touted the benefits of so-called problem-solving courts Thursday in his State of the Judiciary address to lawmakers.

Heavican says Nebraska’s problem-solving courts served 1,397 people in 2018, a 247 percent increase over the last decade. He says many people treated in those courts would otherwise be in prison, at a much greater cost to taxpayers.

Heavican says the judicial branch recently exhausted its resources allocated for problem-solving courts. He says counties want to establish mental health courts, but the courts can’t help because they don’t have enough money and judges available.

Gov. Pete Ricketts, Kearney Mayor Stan Clouse and other officials were on hand Wednesday as the veterans arrived at the new Central Nebraska Veterans Home in Kearney. They moved 34 miles west (55 kilometers) from the old facility in Grand Island.

Grand Island, Kearney, Hastings and North Platte had all competed for the project to replace the outdated, 225-bed Grand Island facility.

The new, $89 million campus has six neighborhoods of sorts, which each feature three homes that can accommodate 12 to 15 veterans in private rooms.

A federal judge ruled last week that Dr. Farid Karimi’s claims against the state and the department are barred by sovereign immunity. Judge Laurie Smith Camp said the alleged deficiencies may have violated the patients’ constitutional rights, but they did not violate Karimi’s constitutional rights. She allowed the lawsuit to continue against three officials, however.

Karimi alleges that he reported procedural and medical violations several months after he started working at the Lincoln Regional Center in February 2016. The lawsuit says officials didn’t take any action to correct violations and instead retaliated against Karimi.