KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) — Students in Kearney will have the chance to watch the Nebraska Court of Appeals hear cases next month.

The court will hear several cases on the University of Nebraska at Kearney’s campus on the afternoon of Nov. 12.

College and high school students from the area are invited to attend. The Appeals Court reviews trial court decisions, and its decisions are final unless the Nebraska Supreme Court agrees to review them.

The university is planning to offer a seminar on the court system for students before the Court of Appeals begins to hear cases.

The Appeals Court has previously heard cases on the campuses of Peru State College and Nebraska Wesleyan University.

As one North Platte woman learned over the weekend, convicted felons cannot possess brass knuckles in the State of Nebraska.

On Friday, at around 8:30 p.m., a deputy with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office checked a parked vehicle on Dodge Hill Road, just south of North Platte.

As the deputy spoke to the occupants of the vehicle, he asked for and was granted permission to search the vehicle for contraband.

The deputy located a black backpack in the vehicle, and a search of the bag led to the discovery of a set of brass knuckles.

It was determined that the bag belonged to one of the vehicle’s occupants, 28-year-old Sophia Boe.

A check of Boe’s criminal record revealed that she had prior felony convictions.

As a result, Boe was arrested and charged with possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person, a Class III felony.

Boe was transported to the Lincoln County Detention Center and jailed.

If convicted, Boe faces up to 20 years in prison, a $25,000 fine or both.  The minimum sentence is one year imprisonment.

• Today: A 20 percent chance of showers before 11am. Partly sunny, with a high near 59. Breezy, with a north northwest wind 17 to 22 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph.
• Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 25. West wind 6 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph.
• Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 59. Light west northwest wind increasing to 11 to 16 mph in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 23 mph.
• Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 25. Light and variable wind.
• Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 69. Calm wind becoming west southwest 5 to 9 mph in the morning.
• Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 34.
• Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 64.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska officials say they will continue using a highway guardrail system that has been the focus of safety concerns until the Federal Highway Administration says it shouldn’t.

Trinity Industries’ ET-Plus guardrail system has been used in Nebraska since 2005 mostly on interstates and freeways.

In the last five years, there have been 107 accidents involving ET-Plus guardrails and three deaths in Nebraska, but the Roads Department has no evidence the system malfunctioned.

A Texas jury on Monday issued a $175 million award in a lawsuit brought by a Trinity competitor and whistleblower who charged that end caps on the Trinity ET-Plus guardrails can malfunction and pierce a vehicle.

Trinity disputes the ruling, and federal safety experts are retesting the system.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska prison officials have found more sentencing errors during a review spurred by past problems with the way sentences were calculated.

Prison officials said Saturday that the sentences of 425 people in prison and 80 more on parole have been extended.

The latest errors involve inmates who improperly received credit for good time that shortened their sentences after their parole had been revoked.

Prisons Director Mike Kenney says the cases of another 800 inmates are being reviewed for similar problems.

The Department of Correctional Services and state Attorney General’s office have been reviewing sentences since the Omaha World-Herald reported earlier this year on errors in roughly 700 sentences that let some inmates out of prison early.

By MARILYNN MARCHIONE, AP Chief Medical Writer

Starting Monday, millions of people who have avoided colon cancer screening can get a new home test that’s noninvasive and doesn’t require the icky preparation most other methods do.

The test is the first to look for cancer-related DNA in a stool sample. But deciding whether to get the test is a complex choice. The test could greatly boost screening for a deadly disease, but it also could lure people away from colonoscopies and other tests that, unlike the new one, have been shown to save lives.

The test, called Cologuard, was developed at the Mayo Clinic and is sold by Exact Sciences Corp. of Madison, Wisconsin.

Medicare covers it but private insurers are not covering it yet.

The City of North Platte Water Department will begin work at the intersection of Leota Street and McNeel Lane, beginning Sunday, October 26 at 7:30 a.m.

Residents will still be able to access businesses on McNeel Lane by entering through Mid-Nebraska Physical Therapy, 120 West Leota Street.

Drivers and pedestrians are encouraged to use caution around the construction zone, and follow detour instructions.

Officials say the project will “continue until completion.”

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A public comment period is now open for the state transportation improvement plan in Nebraska.

The Nebraska Department of Roads says a revision to the plan is posted on its website at (https://1.usa.gov/12jg19D ). Comments will be accepted until Tuesday at 5 p.m.

The department amends the plan to add or remove projects, adjust funding sources or estimates, or to update a project’s scope.

The Federal Highway Administration and Federal Transit Administration will not approve the revision the public comment period has ended and the input has been evaluated.

A North Platte man woke up with more than a headache Friday morning after he tangled with North Platte Police and a fence.

At around 1:05 a.m., on Friday, North Platte Police responded to Casey’s, 2421 Rodeo Road, after receiving a report that a vehicle had rammed the fence at the business and was attempting to leave the scene.

An officer arrived and found the driver, 35-year-old Donald Filkin, still attempting to back away from the fence.

Police say officers made contact with Filkin, who became uncooperative and aggressive toward the officers.

Officers eventually subdued him, and placed him under arrest.

They say Filkin smelled of alcohol, and appeared to show signs of intoxication.

In the end, Filkin was jailed and charged with driving under the influence of liquor-2nd offense, open container, leaving the scene of an accident and resisting arrest.

Upon arrival at the jail, Filkin refused to take a breath test.  As a result, he was also charged with refusal to submit to a breath test.

The amount of damage done to the fence is unknown at this time.