Today: Areas of fog before 11am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 50. South wind 3 to 7 mph.
Tonight: Areas of fog after 9pm. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 31. South wind 7 to 9 mph.
Friday: Areas of fog before noon. Otherwise, partly sunny, with a high near 57. Light south wind increasing to 5 to 9 mph in the morning.
Friday Night: A chance of drizzle after midnight. Patchy fog after 9pm. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 38. South wind 7 to 10 mph.
Saturday: A chance of drizzle, then a slight chance of light rain after noon. Areas of fog before noon. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 52. South southeast wind 6 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 38.
Sunday: A 50 percent chance of rain. Cloudy, with a high near 44.
Sunday Night: A chance of rain and snow. Cloudy, with a low around 24.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The governor says Nebraska employment is expected to top 1.1 million next year, a record high.
Gov. Dave Heineman said in making the announcement Wednesday that the state has had continued growth in a number of industries. The record projection is based on growth patterns and current economic trends.
A news release from the governor’s office says jobs in high demand projected through 2015 include registered nurses, truck drivers, accountants, market research analysts, carpenters, electricians and software developers.
The Nebraska unemployment rate for October was 3.4 percent, the lowest since 2008. The November rate hasn’t been released yet.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A former TierOne Bank officer has pleaded guilty to conspiracy, fraud and other crimes connected to the collapse of the Lincoln-based bank.
James Laphen pleaded guilty Monday to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and making false statements to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Prosecutors say he conspired with other senior executives to hide the bank’s true financial condition.
FDIC took over TierOne in 2010, saying the bank had too many bad loans on its books and lacked sufficient capital to cushion losses. The bank’s assets were sold to a South Dakota-based bank. Laphen was the president and chief operating officer of TierOne between April 2002 and March 2010. He was later appointed CEO in March 2010.
Luke Pittle, of Brisbane, Australia, speaks to fourth grade students at Osgood Elementary on Tuesday. Pittle attends and plays basketball for North Platte Community College. (Courtesy)
“Did you ride kangaroos to school?”
“Have you ever been attacked by a shark?”
“Are there credit cards where you come from?”
Those were just a few of the questions posed to Luke Pittle by fourth grade students at Osgood Elementary on Tuesday.
Pittle, a native of Brisbane, Australia, moved to Nebraska in August of 2013 to play basketball for the North Platte Community College Knights men’s basketball team. Pittle is currently studying electrical engineering at NPCC and has plans to graduate in May.
He is also president of the college’s International Student Organization, which has started a pen pal program incorporating students at Osgood and Lake Maloney elementary schools.
“We thought it would be a fun twist on traditional pen pal programs,” said Heather Pucket, area advising coordinator. “Instead of just corresponding with someone overseas, elementary students get to actually meet the person they are writing to.”
Students from ISO, which also has representatives from Italy, Germany, Vietnam, Canada, Bulgaria and England among other places, started the process by introducing themselves through letters to fourth and fifth grades students.
The elementary kids wrote back with questions, which the NPCC students answered – again in letter form.
“Right now, we are wrapping things up with visits to the Lake and Osgood classrooms,” said Pucket. “So far, both groups of students have been really excited about this venture.”
She said the primary benefits to the college are twofold.
“This program allows the college to be involved in the community,” Pucket said. “It’s also an amazing opportunity for North Platte to tap into and learn from the diversity we have at NPCC.”
Elementary school officials appreciate the partnership as well.
“I think it’s good for the kids to meet people from other countries and realize those people aren’t so different from them,” said Jenny Nekuda, fourth grade teacher at Osgood. “The pen pal program is also a good way for the kids to sharpen their social skills.”
On Tuesday, Pittle fielded questions about everything from his accent to his favorite animal, it’s a dingo, and his favorite food – a pineapple.
“I liked his accent,” said RJ Stefka, 9. “Canadian is my first favorite accent, and Australian is my second favorite.”
Kadan Wright, 9, said he enjoyed learning about Australia overall, and Rydon Lampe, 9, thought it was “pretty cool” that Pittle likes sports.
“I’ve seen people from Australia before,” said Jordan Buoy, 10. “But, it was fun to meet one face-to-face.”
TRENTON, Neb. (AP) — A 22-year-old man, who is sitting in a Colorado jail on another case, has been charged in Nebraska with killing an 18-year-old man whose body was found in April.
The Nebraska Attorney General’s spokeswoman, Liz Eberle, said Wednesday that John Leahy III had been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Austin Wright.
Wright’s body was found in southwest Nebraska’s Hitchcock County April 12 — several weeks after his mother reported him missing from McCook.
Eberle said she didn’t immediately know what led investigators to Leahy.
Leahy remained in the Yuma County, Colorado, jail on Wednesday where he has been held since September on felony charges related to methamphetamine.
He will be extradited to face the Nebraska charge, but it wasn’t immediately clear Wednesday how quickly that will happen.
The Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) conducted compliance checks over the weekend at 28 retail alcohol outlets in Buffalo and Kearney Counties.
On Friday, Dec. 5, compliance checks were conducted in Buffalo County (18) and Kearney County (10). Of the 28 compliance checks conducted, one business in Buffalo County, Uncle Neal’s in Ravenna, was found to be non-compliant after selling alcohol to a minor. The retail outlets checked during the effort included convenience, liquor and grocery stores, as well as restaurants and bars.
“We want to thank the businesses that are working to help keep our communities safe,” said Investigative Services Major Bret Friesz. “Through voluntary compliance these retail outlets are making a difference by helping to reduce the availability of alcohol to minors.”
Law enforcement performs compliance checks to ensure businesses are complying with the state’s alcohol laws to decrease youth access to alcohol.
Compliance checks in Buffalo and Kearney Counties were conducted thanks in part to a $2,100 grant from the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety (NOHS).
A North Platte man is in jail after he allegedly assaulted a woman with a bowl.
At around 2:15 p.m., on December 9, North Platte Police responded to the report of an assault in the 400 block of West 11th Street.
Upon arrival, a 28-year-old female told officers that she had gone to the residence to visit her sister, when 25-year-old Kristopher White began yelling at her.
The victim stated that, at some point, White picked up a dish or bowl, and began to strike her on the side of the face with it.
White was located at a residence in the 1000 block of North Willow Street, and placed under arrest.
He’s been charged with felony 2nd degree assault.
White was jailed at the Lincoln County Detention Center.
A North Platte man has been charged with a felony after he allegedly assaulted his girlfriend with a flashlight.
According to Officer Rodney Brown, at around 9:00 p.m., on December 9, officers with the North Platte Police Department responded to Patriot Mobile Home Park, 2300 East Philip, on the report of an assault.
Upon arrival, a 50-year-old female told officers that her boyfriend, Richard Housman, had assauledt her with a Mag flashlight during an argument.
The victim also stated that Housman shattered her cell phone with the flashlight to prevent her from calling law enforcement.
Officers investigated, and determined that there was probable cause to arrest Housman.
He was taken into custody and transported to the Lincoln County Detention Center, where he was jailed on a charge of felony 2nd degree assault.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A twice-convicted drunken driver sentenced to probation this year for refusing to submit to chemical testing can now add a $1,000 fine to his sentence, thanks to a Nebraska court’s ruling on his appeal.
The ruling comes in the case of 36-year-old Aaron Brooks, of Kearney, convicted earlier this year of refusing to submit to a chemical test after a 2013 traffic stop. Brooks faced prison time because of previous DUI convictions in 2001 and 2003, but got four years’ probation. He appealed, saying the previous convictions should not have been used against him.
On Tuesday, the Nebraska Court of Appeals upheld his conviction. But it vacated his sentence because the judge failed to impose a mandatory $1,000 fine. The court ordered him to be resentenced to include the fine.
