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Trial Opens for Former Marine Accused in ‘American Sniper’ Death

Eddie Ray Routh
Eddie Ray Routh

STEPHENVILLE, Texas (AP) — Opening statements are set to begin in the Texas trial of the man charged with killing Chris Kyle, the famed Navy SEAL depicted in the blockbuster movie “American Sniper.”

Former Marine Eddie Ray Routh is charged with capital murder in the shooting deaths of Kyle and his friend, Chad Littlefield, two years ago at a rural shooting range. Routh’s lawyers will pursue an insanity defense. The 27-year-old faces life in prison without parole if convicted.

Attorneys are expected to make opening statements Wednesday morning in the small town of Stephenville. Prosecutors have said their first witnesses will be Kyle’s widow, Taya, and Littlefield’s mother, Judy.

The Oscar-nominated film is based Kyle’s memoir. The sniper served four tours in Iraq.

Embattled Nebraska Prison-Records Administrator Resigns

ne-department-of-correctionsLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A prisons administrator who shared blame for hundreds of miscalculated inmate sentences has resigned from Nebraska’s corrections department.

A prisons spokesman says Kyle Poppert stepped down Monday.

Poppert served as records administrator in the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services. He was initially suspended without pay for two weeks for his role in the sentencing miscalculations, which led to the early release of hundreds of inmates.

A report by the U.S. Department of Justice concluded that Poppert’s division was plagued by poor communication. Department employees told investigators they weren’t properly trained for their jobs, and couldn’t rely on Poppert to answer their questions.

Two department attorneys, George Green and Sharon Lindgren, retired from the department under the threat of being fired. Attorney Kathy Blum was suspended for one day.

Omaha Police Arrest 1 in Connection to Triple Homicide

omaha-policeOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have arrested one man in connection to a triple homicide that occurred at a house party in Omaha last month.

Police say 21-year-old Trenelle Miller was arrested Tuesday on charges of possession of a gun by a prohibited person.

According to a news release, an arrest warrant had been issued for Miller following the fatal Jan. 24 shooting. Nineteen-year-old Jakela Foster, 24-year-old Latecia Fox and 26-year-old Cameron R. Harris were killed.

Miller was one of five other people wounded by gunfire at the party. He was taken to Nebraska Medical Center for treatment and was later released.

Officials say investigation is ongoing.

Colorado’s 2014 Taxes on Recreational Pot Total $44 Million

Colorado-MarijuanaDENVER (AP) — Colorado finally knows how much tax revenue it collected from recreational marijuana in the first year of sales, and the haul was below estimates — about $44 million.

The year-end Colorado tax report was made public Tuesday. Colorado is the first government anywhere in the world to regulate marijuana production and sale, so other governments are watching closely.

Colorado’s total haul from marijuana for 2014 was about $76 million. That includes fees on the industry, plus pre-existing sales taxes on medical marijuana products. The $44 million represents only new taxes on recreational pot.

Those new taxes were estimated to bring in about $70 million. Budget writers say the tax report shows marijuana isn’t having a major effect on a multi-billion state budget.

Nebraska Store Owner, Employee Enter Pleas to Food Stamp Fraud

gavel-moreLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A store owner and his employee have entered plea deals in connection to a scheme to buy food stamp cards from homeless people in Lincoln.

40-year-old storeowner Jose Banos and 48-year-old Juan Garivay pleaded no contest Monday to theft by deception charges.

Authorities say Garivay bought food stamp numbers from people at a Lincoln homeless shelter, and Banos then entered them into his store’s credit card machine for hundreds of dollars in fake grocery purchases and took the money for himself and Garivay.

According to court records, the two had been running false transactions since 2010.

But Carlos Monzon, Garivay’s attorney, says it was a one-time, “unfortunate” incident.

Sentencing hearings are scheduled for April 15. The men face up to five years in prison.

Norfolk Man Injured in Collision Dies in Lincoln Hospital

fatal-crashLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Norfolk man who’d been injured when his car struck the back of a manure spreader truck has died at a Lincoln hospital.

The Platte County Sheriff’s Office says 26-year-old Matthew LeComte died Saturday.

The accident occurred around 2:45 p.m. on Jan. 29 on U.S. Highway 81 near Humphrey. The Sheriff’s Office says LeComte was driving north when his car rammed the back of the northbound truck, which was slowing to turn east. The truck driver wasn’t injured.

Nebraska Couple Sentenced to Probation for Movie Piracy

dept.-of-justiceLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska man and his ex-wife have been sentenced to probation for movie piracy.

U.S. Attorney Deborah R. Gilg says 34-year-old William Cayou, of Lincoln, was sentenced in Lincoln’s federal court Monday to five years’ probation for copyright infringement. Gilg says 39-year-old Holly Cayou, of Macy, received the same sentence last month for the same offense.

They must also each perform 200 hours of community service and pay $1,500 in restitution.

Prosecutors say the couple were married and living in Macy on the Omaha Indian Reservation from 2011 through 2013 when they obtained pirated copies of copyrighted motion pictures, reproduced them and sold them to people on the reservation.

The investigation revealed that Holly Cayou sold about 600 DVDs and William Cayou sold about 1,250 DVDs during that time.

New Quarter Featuring Homestead National Monument Celebrated

homestead-national-monumentBEATRICE, Neb. (AP) — The new quarter depicting the Homestead National Monument is being showcased at several events in Beatrice.

The celebration started Tuesday morning with an assembly at Beatrice High School that featured state officials and coin experts from the U.S. Mint.

Everyone who attended Tuesday’s launch events had a chance to be one of the first people to get one of the newly minted Homestead Monument coins.

The quarters will be available from U.S. Mint starting on Feb. 24.

The Mint’s David Croft says the new quarter pays tribute to the strength and tenacity of settlers who took advantage of the Homestead Act.

The national monument Beatrice celebrates the Homestead Act of 1862 that distributed more than 270 million acres in 160-acre plots of land.

Nebraska Sex Offender Imprisoned for Assault on 15-Year-Old

John Suing
John Suing

STANTON, Neb. (AP) — A registered sex offender accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old in northeast Nebraska has been given eight to 12 years in prison.

Online court records say 41-year-old John Suing, of Wynot, was sentenced on Monday and given credit for 197 days already served. He’d pleaded guilty to attempted sexual assault of a child, after prosecutors lowered the charge.

Deputies say he assaulted the teenager last July near Woodland Park, northeast of Norfolk, after they met on social media. Suing was on probation at the time for a Gage County conviction of enticement by electronic communication device.

Fire Destroys Antique Shop in South-Central Nebraska

fire-graphicHASTINGS, Neb. (AP) — A fire has destroyed an antiques shop in the south-central Nebraska town of Edgar.

The fire was reported Monday morning by the owner of Ruby’s Room, Craig German. He told the Hastings Tribune that he’d noticed smoke coming from the chimney as he drove by the building.

Fire crews from Clay Center and Fairfield joined Edgar firefighters in battling the blaze. No injuries have been reported.

The fire cause is being investigated.

German says he’s sad about the loss, “but it’s just stuff.”

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