Three Mid-Plains Community College students have been named Phi Beta Lambda national award winners. They were recognized Monday at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln.

PBL is the national collegiate career student organization preparing students for careers in business or business-related occupations.

It has more than 11,000 members nationwide and almost 300 members in Nebraska representing 15 chapters.

PBL offers innovative leadership and career development programs, which give members cutting edge skills to be successful in the work force.

In June approximately 2,000 members from across the U.S. participated in the PBL National Leadership Conference in Nashville, Tenn.

Participants from Nebraska earned 52 national competitive event awards, including six first-place awards, 10 second place awards and three third place awards.

As a result, Nebraska collected more awards than any other state represented – the first time that has ever happened.

On Monday, Gov. Dave Heineman and Matthew Blomstedt, Nebraska commissioner of education, presented certificates to those who placed in the top two spots of their competitive events at nationals. Erin Mitchell, of North Platte, was one of them.

The North Platte Community College student placed second in the word processing competition, which requires a demonstration of word processing efficiency beyond entry level.

The NPCC chapter of PBL claimed first place for submitting the winning annual business report. It’s been 17 years since a Nebraska PBL chapter took that honor, despite the fact that NPCC has been in the Top 10 several times.

Mitchell accepted the award on behalf of the college. Her advisors are Angie Chittick and Kathy McCune.

McCook Community College also did well. It earned second place in the website design category thanks to Ashley Noltensmeier, of McCook, and Veronica Waddell, of Indianola.

They were given a topic and had to design a website for viewing on as many platforms as possible. The women also had to present their website to a panel of judges.

Waddell also placed second in desktop publishing. The event requires an individual or team to demonstrate a high amount of skill in desktop publishing, creativity and decision-making. It’s the second time Waddell has placed second in the category at nationals, but the first time as an individual. She was part of a team last year.

The McCook Community College advisers are Janet Stalder and Lorrie Mowry.

UPDATE 3:14 p.m., November 18

North Platte Police have taken the subject into custody.

Officer Rodney Brown said the female was placed in Emergency Protective Custody and transported to Great Plains Health.

Police advise that students at Washington Elementary and their parents can resume normal after-school routines.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Officers with the North Platte Police Department are negotiating with a barricaded subject near a local elementary school.

According to Officer Rodney Brown, a call came in at around 1:30 p.m., today, reporting a suicidal female subject in the 600 block of West 1st Street.

Brown said officers soon learned that the woman may be armed, and immediately established a perimeter around the area.

Officers are in contact with the subject off-and-on via telephone.

Parents with students at Washington Elementary are asked to pick-up students north of the school at the regularly scheduled time.

We will provide further details as they become available.

*THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY*

GERING, Neb. (AP) — The attorney for a Wyoming teenager accused of attacking a western Nebraska jailer says his client didn’t intend for the woman to die.

During his opening statement on Monday, Todd Lancaster said Dylan Cardeilhac, of Torrington, Wyoming, wanted to steal keys from 24-year-old Amanda Baker and escape from the Scotts Bluff County Jail in Gering. Baker died two days after she was attacked in Cardeilhac’s cell on Feb. 14. He was 15 at the time.

Scotts Bluff County Attorney Doug Warner told the jury that some inmates will testify that Cardeilhac and other inmates had been planning to attack and disable a jailer and that the talks included killing one.

Testimony is continuing Tuesday. Cardeilhac faces life imprisonment if convicted.

Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) vehicles will once again fly red ribbons this holiday season in support of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) efforts to encourage motorists to never drive impaired.

Presenting a united front in the statewide effort to remove impaired drivers from Nebraska roads, the Nebraska State Patrol joined Nebraska’s Governor, First Lady, MADD, local law enforcement and public safety partners, to kick-off the MADD Red Ribbon, “Tie One On For Safety” campaign. Started in 1986, the campaign encourages motorists to tie a red ribbon on their vehicle as a symbol of their commitment to drive safe, sober and buckled up this holiday season.

“It has been a rough year for traffic deaths on Nebraska roads,” said Colonel David Sankey, Superintendent of the Nebraska State Patrol. “Of the 201 fatalities to-date, 57, or 28%, have been identified as alcohol-related. By engaging citizens in the this effort, we are working to raise awareness and at the same time gain voluntary compliance with all traffic safety laws”

The Nebraska State Patrol is also participating in the “Click It or Ticket” special enforcement campaign which encompasses the heavily traveled Thanksgiving Day holiday weekend. The national enforcement is designed to reduce the potential for serious injury and fatality crashes by raising awareness of the need to wear your seat belt every time you get into a motor vehicle. A grant from the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety (NOHS) helps to pay for the added enforcement.

Motorists are also encouraged to pay special attention to the weather when preparing to head out for holiday travel. Travelers can utilize 511, Nebraska’s Traveler Information System. The system can be accessed by dialing 511, or logging onto www.511.nebraska.gov . A Nebraska 511 mobile app is also available to download at no cost. Simply search your App provider for Nebraska 511.

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) — One of three people suspected in the slaying of a Colorado man has pleaded not guilty in Lincoln County District Court.

Thirty-year-old Randy Nevsimal made his plea on Monday. He’s charged with second-degree murder in the Sept. 16 slaying of 43-year-old Lonnie Sanchez, of Hoehne (HOH’-nee), Colorado. His body was found along the South Platte River near the city of North Platte. An autopsy showed that Sanchez died of blunt force trauma.

Forty-five-year-old David Saxton, a transient from Ponca City, Oklahoma, also is charged with second-degree murder. Thirty-two-year-old Maybelle Collins is charged with being an accessory. Online court records say neither has entered a plea. Their attorneys didn’t immediately return messages left Tuesday by The Associated Press.

ALLIANCE, Neb. (AP) — Alliance police have arrested a man who they say injured a South Dakota pedestrian in a hit-and-run.

Twenty-eight-year-old Joshua Manning of Aberdeen, South Dakota, was listed in serious condition Monday at a Scottsbluff hospital. Lt. Ken Hart says Manning was struck over the weekend in Alliance. It’s unclear how the collision happened.

A 21-year-old Alliance man has been arrested. Hart says he faces charges of DUI resulting in serious bodily injury, willful reckless driving and failure to stop at a serious accident.

 

COURTESY OF THE NORTH PLATTE POLICE DEPARTMENT

11/17/2014 00:49:53 CITIZEN ASSIST “200 RODEO RD
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 01:23:58 LOUD MUSIC “1100 S TABOR AV
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 02:37:27 SUSPICIOUS VEHICLE “W 5TH ST /N ELM ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 03:06:10 ALARM-BURGLARY CALL IN “400 E LEOTA ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 05:26:13 AIRPORT SECURITY CHKPOINT “5400 E LEE BIRD DR
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 05:29:19 ALARM-BURGLARY CALL IN “400 S DEWEY ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 06:10:59 SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY “1000 S DEWEY ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 07:26:20 AIRPORT SECURITY CHKPOINT “5400 E LEE BIRD DR
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 07:42:45 THEFT BY EXER CONTROL- FROM MOTOR VEHICLE “500 W 2ND ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 07:46:49 CRIMINAL MISCHIEF “800 S MAPLE ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 08:52:37 ALARM-GENERAL “1700 N JEFFERS ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 09:04:10 COURT SECURITY “300 N JEFFERS ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 09:06:34 COURT SECURITY “300 N JEFFERS ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 09:49:56 72 HR PARKING VIOLATION “E PHILIP AV /S BICENTENNIAL AV
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 10:44:13 WELFARE CHECK “200 E LEOTA ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 10:49:31 ABANDONED VEHICLE “1300 S DEWEY ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 11:42:33 SPEEDING “2000 RODEO RD
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 11:49:55 CITIZEN ASSIST NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101

11/17/2014 12:24:21 THEFT BY EXER CONTROL- FROM MOTOR VEHICLE “1800 W 14TH ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 12:26:09 LOOSE ANIMALS “N BUFFALO BILL AV / PAWNEE AV
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 13:45:42 TRAFFIC ENFORCE GENERAL “300 E FRANCIS ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 13:57:13 GEN PARK & TRAFFIC “1400 S DEWEY ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 14:27:05 DISTURBING THE PEACE AND QUIET NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101

11/17/2014 14:34:37 OTHER DISTURBANCE “3200 S NEWBERRY RD
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 15:58:37 CRIMINAL MISCHIEF “2300 E 2ND ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 16:12:23 DOG-SURRENDER “1400 N SYCAMORE ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 16:15:07 FAMILY DIST-NO ASSAULT “200 S CHESTNUT ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 16:36:12 EXPIRED PLATES/REGISTRATION “W PHILIP AV /S JEFFERS ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 16:38:06 WELFARE CHECK “800 S DEWEY ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 18:17:24 H&R ACC-NO ALC RELATED “E 5TH ST /N JEFFERS ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 18:43:20 OTHER DISTURBANCE “1100 S TABOR AV
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 18:51:23 HANDICAPPED PARKING “400 E 6th ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 19:16:01 HARRASS-ANNOY PHONECALLS “600 W 4TH ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 19:17:23 FAMILY DIST-NO ASSAULT “700 E 12TH ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 19:20:59 CITIZEN ASSIST “1300 E RAILROAD ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 19:23:48 GEN PARK & TRAFFIC “1900 W A St
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 20:15:32 SPEEDING “W RODEO RD /N MILES AV
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 20:22:25 CRIMINAL MISCHIEF “1300 E 12TH ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 20:41:40 EXPIRED PLATES/REGISTRATION “W PHILIP AV / MCDONALD RD
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 21:23:42 CRIMINAL MISCHIEF “1200 W 2ND ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 21:29:25 EXPIRED PLATES/REGISTRATION “W C ST /S VINE ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 22:28:29 SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY “500 N Pacific
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69103”

11/17/2014 22:49:00 DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE “600 N POPLAR ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 23:01:33 AIRPORT SECURITY CHKPOINT “LEE BIRD FIELD,
5400 E LEE BIRD DR
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 23:35:31 VIOL TRAFFIC CONTROL DEV “E E ST /S DEWEY ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/17/2014 23:46:32 OTHER DISTURBANCE “500 S CHESTNUT ST HALF
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 00:49:21 NO PROOF OF INSURANCE “1400 E 4TH ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 01:48:05 DOMEST ASSAULT-MISD “2200 W 1ST ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 02:49:17 MOTORIST ASSIST “E 6TH ST /N JEFFERS
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 04:40:16 AIRPORT SECURITY CHKPOINT “5400 E Lee Bird Dr
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 05:16:09 DISTURBING THE PEACE AND QUIET “700 E 8TH ST
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 05:55:53 TRAFFIC ACCIDENT-GENERAL “3400 S NEWBERRY RD
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 07:20:42 MOTORIST ASSIST “E PHILIP AV /S BICENTENNIAL AV
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 07:25:11 AIRPORT SECURITY CHKPOINT “AIRPORT,
5400 E LEE BIRD DR
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

11/18/2014 07:53:11 MOTORIST ASSIST “BUFFALO VIADUCT-NORTH,
1 BUFFALO VIADUCT
NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101”

• Today: Mostly sunny, with a high near 43. Wind chill values as low as -6. West southwest wind 7 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
• Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 16. West northwest wind 13 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph.
• Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 38. Northwest wind 8 to 13 mph.
• Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 11. West wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening.
• Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 39. Calm wind becoming south southeast 5 to 8 mph in the morning.
• Thursday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 17.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — One of Nebraska’s biggest medical networks delivered a counteroffer to Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska Monday in an attempt to end a contract stalemate.

CHI Health officials say their proposal would cut rates by $10 million in the first year and then freeze rates in the second year of the deal.

Blue Cross officials said it doesn’t appear the offer does enough to address their cost concerns, but they hope to meet with CHI Health officials Tuesday.

Blue Cross says CHI Health routinely charges 10 to 30 percent more than other Omaha hospitals although CHI Health officials dispute that.

Numerous facilities and doctors affiliated with CHI Health have been out of the Blue Cross network since Sept. 1, so they are significantly more expensive for the insurer’s customers.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Twenty-one college-aged Nebraskans have been chosen to serve on a youth advisory council that promotes agriculture.

The new members of the Nebraska Agricultural Youth Council were unveiled Monday at the Capitol by Gov. Dave Heineman and Department of Agriculture Director Greg Ibach.

The council is entering its 44th year. The council coordinates events to teach Nebraska youth about agriculture. Among the activities are elementary classroom visits to talk about the origins of food and visits to farms with urban youths.

The council also helps organize the annual Nebraska Agricultural Youth Institute, a five-day summer conference for current high school juniors and seniors.

See the members of the NAYC HERE.