• Today: A slight chance of flurries before 1pm. Mostly cloudy and cold, with a high near 6. Wind chill values as low as -17. Calm wind becoming southwest 5 to 8 mph in the afternoon.
• Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around -10. Wind chill values as low as -22. South wind 5 to 7 mph.
• Friday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 16. Wind chill values as low as -25. South wind 6 to 10 mph.
• Friday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 6. Wind chill values as low as -8. South wind 7 to 10 mph becoming northwest after midnight.
• Saturday: A 20 percent chance of snow after noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 23. North northwest wind 7 to 11 mph.
• Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 1.

...DANGEROUS WIND CHILLS THURSDAY MORNING...

.DESPITE LIGHT WIND THIS MORNING...TEMPERATURES WILL BE VERY COLD
SO THAT THE LITTLE WIND THERE IS WILL PRODUCE DANGEROUS WIND CHILL
VALUES.

SHERIDAN-EASTERN CHERRY-KEYA PAHA-BOYD-BROWN-ROCK-HOLT-GARDEN-
GRANT-HOOKER-THOMAS-BLAINE-LOUP-GARFIELD-WHEELER-ARTHUR-MCPHERSON-
LOGAN-CUSTER-DEUEL-KEITH-PERKINS-LINCOLN-CHASE-HAYES-FRONTIER-
WESTERN CHERRY-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...GORDON...RUSHVILLE...VALENTINE...
SPRINGVIEW...SPENCER...AINSWORTH...BASSETT...ONEILL...OSHKOSH...
HYANNIS...MULLEN...THEDFORD...DUNNING...TAYLOR...BURWELL...
BARTLETT...ARTHUR...TRYON...STAPLETON...BROKEN BOW...CHAPPELL...
BIG SPRINGS...OGALLALA...GRANT...NORTH PLATTE...IMPERIAL...
HAYES CENTER...CURTIS...EUSTIS...CODY...MERRIMAN...KILGORE
343 AM CST THU FEB 6 2014 /243 AM MST THU FEB 6 2014/

...WIND CHILL ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM CST /10 AM
MST/ THIS MORNING...

A WIND CHILL ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM CST /10 AM
MST/ THIS MORNING.

* WIND CHILL VALUES...20 BELOW ZERO TO 29 BELOW ZERO. LOCALIZED
  COLDER WIND CHILLS CAN BE EXPECTED FOR BRIEF PERIODS.

* IMPACTS...DANGEROUS WIND CHILLS CAN RESULT IN FROSTBITE OR
  LEAD TO HYPOTHERMIA WITHIN 30 MINUTES OR LESS IF PRECAUTIONS
  ARE NOT TAKEN.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WIND CHILL ADVISORY MEANS THAT VERY COLD AIR AND STRONG WINDS
WILL COMBINE TO GENERATE LOW WIND CHILLS. THIS WILL RESULT IN
FROST BITE AND LEAD TO HYPOTHERMIA IF PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT TAKEN.
IF YOU MUST VENTURE OUTDOORS...MAKE SURE YOU WEAR A HAT AND
GLOVES.

(AP) — A 48-year-old western Nebraska man who was convicted of killing his girlfriend has been sent to prison for life.

Craig Johnson was sentenced on Tuesday in Cheyenne County District Court.

A jury found Johnson guilty of first-degree murder in the Dec. 11, 2011, killing of 42-year-old April Smith. Smith was found bound, strangled, beaten and stabbed on her living room floor. An autopsy showed she died from an abdominal stab wound in the home they shared eight miles west of Sidney.

Witnesses said Smith had talked of reconciling with her estranged husband and that Johnson was jealous of him.

(AP) — A North Platte official says a bison was shot and killed at a city park because it was acting aggressive.

Parks Superintendent Lyle Minshull says the bison at Cody Park was getting older and being aggressive toward other bison. He says he asked an individual with his own bison herd to shoot the animal on Jan. 28.

Mayor Dwight Livingston and City Administrator Jim Hawks say the city is investigating the incident. They didn’t say whether there was any violation of a city statue preventing the discharge of firearms within city limits. There are no set guidelines on animal care at the park.

A councilman at a Tuesday meeting questioned the city’s handling of the incident. Livingston welcomed the councilman to meet with him privately.

(AP) — Educators and advocates are supporting efforts to change Nebraska’s truancy law.

The Judiciary Committee heard testimony Wednesday on a proposal to change the state’s truancy law at a hearing.

Current law allows schools to report when students missed 20 days or more due to documented illness or other approved excuses. If any of the absences are unexcused, the school can request more time to work with the student or the school can request that the county attorney intervenes.

Sen. Brad Ashford has proposed a change so that illnesses would not need to be documented and schools would not report the information to county attorneys if all 20 absences are excused.

A 19-year-old North Platte man has been arrested in connection with the death of a 17-year-old North Platte teen.

Chandler Snyder was found dead on the morning of November 2, 2013 in a camper behind a North Platte residence.

It was determined that Snyder’s death was the result of acute ethanol intoxication, more commonly referred to as alcohol poisoning.

Following further investigation, North Platte Police found probable cause to arrest Logan Johnston for his role in the teen’s death.

Johnston was arrested, on Tuesday, and charged with felony procuring for a minor or mentally incompetent person.

He was processed and released from the Lincoln County Detention Center.

RELATED CONTENT

https://www.northplattepost.com/2013/11/03/policenp-teens-cause-of-death-unknown/

https://www.northplattepost.com/2013/11/05/police-no-signs-of-trauma-on-teens-body-toxicology-tests-pending/

Two people were killed and one other injured when a semi-trailer truck and an SUV collided on Highway 88 west of Redington, in Morrill County.

The crash occurred around 2:30 p.m., (MDT), on Tuesday, February 4, when a semi westbound on Highway 88, collided head-on with an eastbound Cadillac Escalade. The force of the collision caused the two vehicles to catch fire.

The driver of the SUV, Bruce Evertson, 64, of Kimball and a passenger, Robin C. Lapaseotes, 56, of Bridgeport, were killed in the crash. The driver of the semi, Dennis G. Dobrinski, 56, of Bridgeport, was transported to Regional West Medical Center in Scottsbluff with non-life threatening injuries.

Seat belts were in use by all involved.

The crash closed a portion of Highway 88 from Bridgeport to the Highway 71 Junction for several hours.  Weather is believed to have been a factor in the crash.

A North Platte man has been charged with possession of methamphetamine after lab tests confirmed the presence of methamphetamine on drug paraphernalia found is his possession.

According to Officer Rodney Brown, officers made contact with 30-year-old Jason Sullivan on October 9, 2013.  Sullivan was wanted on a felony bond revocation warrant.

Sullivan was arrested and transported to the Lincoln County Detention Center.

During a search of Sullivan at the jail, officers located drug paraphernalia commonly tied to the use of methamphetamine.

Recently, lab results from the Nebraska State Patrol Crime Lab were returned and confirmed that methamphetamine was present.

Sullivan was located on Tuesday, February 4, and placed under arrest.  He was transported to the Lincoln County Detention Center and processed for felony possession of a controlled substance-methamphetamine.

 

(AP) — School and teacher associations are supporting a push for early childhood education in Nebraska.

The Education Committee heard testimony Tuesday on a series of bills relating to early childhood education.

Sen. Kate Sullivan of Cedar Rapids, Chairwoman of the committee, has introduced a bill that would allocate an additional $4.6 million for early childhood education grants for next year.

Lawmakers included $3.6 million budget for early childhood education grants in the state’s two-year budget last year.

Sen. Heath Mello of Omaha has introduced a bill that would provide $400,000 for the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska over the next two years.

• Today: Mostly cloudy and cold, with a high near 4. Wind chill values as low as -23. North northwest wind 6 to 10 mph.
• Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around -13. Wind chill values as low as -22. Northwest wind 3 to 7 mph.
• Thursday: A 20 percent chance of snow after 1pm. Mostly cloudy and cold, with a high near 8. Wind chill values as low as -13. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon.
• Thursday Night: A slight chance of snow showers before 7pm, then a chance for flurries before ending. Mostly cloudy, with a low around -9. Wind chill values as low as -19. South wind 5 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
• Friday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 14. South wind 5 to 8 mph.

...WINTER HAZARDS OVERNIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING...

.VERY COLD TEMPERATURES WILL COMBINE WITH NORTHERLY WINDS OF 10
TO 20 MPH...PRODUCING DANGEROUS WIND CHILLS OF 20 TO 30 DEGREES
BELOW ZERO THIS MORNING AND AGAIN TONIGHT AND EARLY THURSDAY. SNOW
HAD ENDED OR BECOME VERY LIGHT AND ADDITIONAL ACCUMULATIONS ARE
NOT EXPECTED. WIND HAD DIMINISHED...SO BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW
IS NOT EXPECTED.

SHERIDAN-EASTERN CHERRY-BROWN-GRANT-HOOKER-THOMAS-BLAINE-
MCPHERSON-LOGAN-CUSTER-LINCOLN-WESTERN CHERRY-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...GORDON...RUSHVILLE...VALENTINE...
AINSWORTH...HYANNIS...MULLEN...THEDFORD...DUNNING...TRYON...
STAPLETON...BROKEN BOW...NORTH PLATTE...CODY...MERRIMAN...KILGORE
411 AM CST WED FEB 5 2014 /311 AM MST WED FEB 5 2014/

...WIND CHILL ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM CST /10 AM
MST/ THIS MORNING...
...WIND CHILL ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 10 PM CST /9 PM MST/ THIS
EVENING TO 11 AM CST /10 AM MST/ THURSDAY...
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS CANCELLED...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN NORTH PLATTE HAS ISSUED A WIND
CHILL ADVISORY...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 10 PM CST /9 PM MST/
THIS EVENING TO 11 AM CST /10 AM MST/ THURSDAY. THE WINTER
WEATHER ADVISORY HAS BEEN CANCELLED. A WIND CHILL ADVISORY
REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM CST /10 AM MST/ THIS MORNING.

* WIND CHILL VALUES...20 TO 30 DEGREES BELOW ZERO THIS MORNING
  AND AGAIN TONIGHT THROUGH EARLY THURSDAY.

* IMPACTS...DANGEROUS WIND CHILLS CAN RESULT IN FROSTBITE OR LEAD
  TO HYPOTHERMIA WITHIN 30 MINUTES OR LESS IF PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT
  TAKEN.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WIND CHILL ADVISORY MEANS THAT VERY COLD AIR AND STRONG WINDS
WILL COMBINE TO GENERATE LOW WIND CHILLS. THIS WILL RESULT IN
FROST BITE AND LEAD TO HYPOTHERMIA IF PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT TAKEN.
IF YOU MUST VENTURE OUTDOORS...MAKE SURE YOU WEAR A HAT AND
GLOVES.

(AP) — A law that gives Nebraska counties the power to manage black-tailed prairie dog populations has drawn the ire of Sen. Ernie Chambers.

Chambers proposed a repeal bill to a legislative committee on Tuesday, saying he would have fought to block the law had he been in the Legislature when it passed in 2012. Chambers, the state’s longest-serving senator, was forced out briefly because of term limits but returned to office last year.

The law allows counties to launch prairie-dog management programs, with the power to go onto a landowner’s property to eradicate the animals if they stray onto someone else’s land. Ranchers view them as pests that can threaten cattle.

Chambers says prairie dogs are native to the area, while cattle are the invasive species.