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New Inspector Named at Nebraska Nuclear Power Plant

fort-calhoun-dryBLAIR, Neb. (AP) — Federal regulators have named a new resident inspector at the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant about 20 miles north of Omaha.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says Brian Cummings is one of the two inspectors monitoring operations at the plant that was offline for nearly three years between spring 2011 and December 2013.

The plant was offline for such a long period while regulators’ safety concerns were addressed and flood damage was repaired. Fort Calhoun is owned by the Omaha Public Power District.

Cummings joined the NRC last February after serving on a nuclear submarine in the U.S. Navy.

The NRC keeps at least two inspectors at every nuclear power plant. Cummings joins senior inspector Max Schneider at Fort Calhoun.

Police Arrest Teen on Warrant in Omaha Double Homicide

Jail-Bars-and-Cuffs_mediumOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police have arrested a teenager on a warrant charging him as an adult with two counts of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of two men over the weekend.

Court records show that 16-year-old Charles Trotter was also charged with two weapons counts in the warrant issued Monday. Police say Trotter was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of murder in the Saturday night deaths of 25-year-old Dexter Joseph and 26-year-old Marcel Lovejoy.

Both men were found dead in a north-central Omaha apartment; both had been shot.

The deaths marked Omaha’s second and third homicides of 2015.

1 Hospitalized After Lincoln Garage Fire

fireLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say one person has been sent to a hospital after a garage fire in north Lincoln.

The blaze broke out a little before 7 p.m. Monday. People inside the garage were able to escape, but one of them was hospitalized for treatment of smoke inhalation.

The fire cause is being investigated.

 

Cops: Dad Cut Dreadlocks Off Teen Daughter’s Male Friend

odd-newsREADING, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania father is apologizing after police say he pulled his daughter’s male friend by the hair and chopped off his dreadlocks with a knife.

Reginald Hardy was charged with aggravated assault, terroristic threats and other offenses after police say he saw the 19-year-old sneaking around his apartment Friday with his 17-year-old daughter.

Police say the 38-year-old Hardy punched the 19-year-old in the face and threatened to shoot him in the back if he ran away as he left.

Hardy said he was only looking out for his daughter. He says her friend was disrespectful to him and shouldn’t have been at the apartment.

Police say Hardy cooperated with the investigation. He’s free on $50,000 unsecured bail.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 12.

Omaha School Official Apologizes to Parent

omaha-psOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The superintendent of Omaha Public Schools has apologized to a parent, saying he didn’t intend to restrict the parent’s speech regarding complaints about a principal.

Superintendent Mark Evans briefly addressed the matter at the school board’s Monday meeting.

Parent Alex Gates had asked board members on Oct. 6 to create a process that lets people formally request an investigation and removal of an ineffective principal. He said parents have sought for years to replace a school principal.

Gates says Evans approached him the next day after the school board meeting, threatening him with legal action for defamation or slander. The American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska sent a letter to Evans reminding him of the parent’s free-speech rights.

Iowa Man Killed in Dixon County Crash

fatal-accidentLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska State Patrol says a 69-year-old man from Iowa was killed after his vehicle hit a semitrailer in Dixon County.

Charles Earnest Woods of Spencer, Iowa, was driving a pickup on Monday afternoon in the northeastern Nebraska county.

Authorities say Woods died after he passed a snowplow and struck the tractor-trailer near the intersection of U.S. 20 and Nebraska 116. Paramedics pronounced Woods dead at the scene.

State patrol investigators say the driver of the semitrailer was uninjured.

Nebraska Rocket House Provides Haven for Students to Cool Their Jets

sowers-clubLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A new school-based program has been opened at Northeast High School to give students a safe place to go after classes instead of heading to an empty home.

It’s named Rocket House and it’s another offshoot of the Lighthouse after-school program that opened in 1990 as a haven for middle and high school students. Lighthouse and Southeast High School officials teamed up three years ago to create Knight House, which last year served nearly 1,200 students.

The Sowers Club of Nebraska Foundation provided $16,700 for Rocket House expenses this year and will do the same next year. Then the school will cover the costs.

Columbus Developing Plan to Upgrade Meeting Space

lake-north-columbusCOLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) — The Columbus City Council has agreed to let staffers develop a long-term, big-picture plan for improving the council chambers.

Council members discussed ideas for about 30 minutes on Monday night before agreeing to seek a construction and financing plan that would be put to a council vote.

Councilman Jim Bulkley says the renovation plan must look at the big picture, but he wants the city to take smaller steps in targeting areas where improvements are most urgent. Councilman Terry Reardon says improvements to the council chambers should be prioritized.

The ideas discussed included changing the council seating arrangement; purchasing new, portable cabinets; upgrading a nearby bathroom to make it accessible to people with disabilities.

Doctors: US Health Worker Exposed to Ebola Wants Privacy

UNMCOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska doctors treating an American health care worker who was exposed to the deadly Ebola virus in Sierra Leone won’t discuss the case because of privacy concerns.

Nebraska Medical Center spokesman Taylor Wilson said Monday that the patient wants the details of his or her care to remain private.

If the patient does test positive for Ebola, public health officials would report that. But the patient was not ill or contagious when he or she arrived at the Omaha hospital on Sunday.

The patient will be observed throughout the virus’ 21-day incubation period. Doctors and nurses are taking precautions as if the patient had Ebola

The Nebraska Medical Center treated three people with Ebola last fall. Two of those patients recovered, and one patient died.

Ex-US Official Sentenced to 25 Years for Child Pornography in Nebraska

Timothy DeFoggi
Timothy DeFoggi

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A former acting director of cyber security at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for engaging in a child pornography enterprise.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for Nebraska says 56-year-old Timothy DeFoggi, of Maryland, was sentenced Monday on charges of engaging in a child exploitation enterprise and related charges. He was convicted in August.

Prosecutors say DeFoggi used an anonymous computer network in 2012 to access child pornography and exchange private messages about illegal activity involving children. The network’s users used advanced technology to try to avoid identification.

DeFoggi is the sixth person to be convicted as part of an investigation into three child pornography websites — including one based and administered from Nebraska.

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