We have a brand new updated website! Click here to check it out!

US, ACLU divide on how to reunify separated families

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Trump administration and the American Civil Liberties Union on Thursday revealed widely divergent plans on how to reunite hundreds of immigrant children with parents who have been deported since the families were separated at the U.S.-Mexico border.

President Donald Trump’s administration puts the onus on the ACLU, asking that the organization use its “considerable resources” to find parents in their home countries, predominantly Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. The U.S. Justice Department said in a court filing that the State Department has begun talks with foreign governments on how the administration may be able to aid the effort.

The ACLU, which sued on behalf of separated parents, called for the government to take “significant and prompt steps” to find the parents on its own.

“Plaintiffs have made clear that they will do whatever they can to help locate the deported parents, but emphasize that the government must bear the ultimate burden of finding the parents,” the ACLU said in a filing, pinning blame for “the crisis” on the administration and arguing it has far more resources.

A decision on how to bridge the differences falls to U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw, who has ordered that more than 2,500 children be reunited with their families. He was scheduled to speak with both sides in a conference call Friday.

As of Wednesday, 410 children whose parents were outside the country were in the custody of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department.

The ACLU said it takes “a degree of detective work” to track down contact information for deported parents, some of whom may be hiding from persecutors.

The group said the government provided home-country addresses in U.S. immigration databases with no useful information for about 120 parents. Other addresses had limited use — for example, some had “calle sin nombre” (“street without a name”) or six addresses connected to one Honduran child, all in the Mexican city of San Luis Potosi.

The proposals from both sides come a week after a court-imposed deadline to reunite more than 2,500 children who were separated from their families at the border.

The administration also asks that the ACLU consult each deported parent to determine if they wish to waive their right to be reunified with their child, a scenario that may occur if the parent wants the child to remain in the U.S. The U.S. would work with foreign governments “to determine how best to complete reunifications.”

The ACLU proposes that parents who want their children sent back home be reunited within a week and that those who want to return to the U.S. to pick up their kids be permitted under humanitarian parole, with round-trip transportation paid for by the government.

There are also differences about how to locate parents who were released in the U.S., but they appear less stark. The administration says it will meet with the ACLU to discuss what information it can provide, while the ACLU requests specific details — ranging from last known phone number and copies of birth certificates — as well as volunteers to help find the parents.

The government said last week that it had returned all 1,800-plus children to parents and sponsors who were “eligible” for reunification. But it said more than 700 adults were not eligible because they were in their home countries, have been released from immigration custody, had red flags for criminal records or other reasons, chose not to be reunited, or were still being reviewed.

On Wednesday, it said the number of reunified children neared 2,000 and nearly 600 remained separated, mostly because their parents.

Sabraw ordered the government to submit written updates every Thursday, indicating he plans to keep a close watch on the still-separated families. Each update will be followed by a telephone call the next day with both sides.

In late June, Sabraw set deadlines of July 10 to reunify dozens of children under 5 with their families and July 26 to reunify children 5 and older.

Drugmakers object to use of products in Nebraska execution

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Two more pharmaceutical companies are objecting to Nebraska’s use of lethal injection drugs that may have come from them as the state prepares to execute its first inmate in nearly 21 years.

Representatives of Sandoz Inc. and Hikma Pharmaceuticals sent letters late last month urging state officials to return their drugs for a refund or provide assurances they won’t be used in executions.

Company spokespeople said Thursday they have not confirmed whether Nebraska’s corrections department has obtained their products. It’s also not clear whether they’ll pursue a legal challenge that could derail the scheduled Aug. 14 execution of Carey Dean Moore, although one of the companies reserved the right to do so.

Sandoz and Hikma are among several manufacturers of drugs that are part of Nebraska’s lethal injection protocol.

State officials have refused to identify the supplier and filed an immediate appeal after a judge ordered them to release public records that would reveal the source. A Department of Correctional Services spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a phone message or email request for comment on the letters.

A Sandoz executive said attempts to use the manufacturer’s drugs in executions run afoul of the company’s mission of promoting public health, damages the company’s reputation and exposes it to risks including lawsuits and a potential backlash from shareholders.

“Sandoz should not be forced against its business interest and business plan to suffer financial loss because a state wishes to misuse medicines for the unauthorized purpose of a lethal injection,” Michelle Quinn, the company’s North American vice president and general counsel, said in a letter to state officials.

Quinn said the company reserves the right “to take necessary legal action” to ensure its medicines are used properly.

A Hikma executive said it has enacted policies to keep its drugs out of the hands of corrections departments for use in lethal injection, but state officials keep trying to get them through middlemen.

“Not only is this contrary to our intention of manufacturing the product for the health and well-being of patients in need, it is also completely counter to our company values,” Executive Vice President Daniel Motto said in the letter.

Hikma spokesman Steve Weiss said the company sends a similar letter annually to governors, attorneys general and correction department directors in every state that allows capital punishment.

“Our first and foremost concern is that it’s against our values of making quality medicines that help improve and save lives,” Weiss said.

Drugmaker Pfizer has sent a similar letter to Nebraska officials. State Sen. Ernie Chambers, a staunch death penalty opponent, is urging the company to do more to intervene.

“The matter before us is too grave to allow for verbal pussy-footing,” Chambers said in a Wednesday letter to the company.

Nebraska’s ACA insurer seeks 3.7 percent increase in 2019

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska residents who use the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace for health insurance could see a much smaller rate increase in 2019 compared to previous years.

Health insurer Medica says it is seeking a 3.7 percent increase in rates next year, which is sharply lower than in the past. Premiums for the state’s lone Obamacare insurer rose 31 percent last year and 53 percent in 2016. The new proposed rates were published Monday by the Nebraska Department of Insurance.

Medica vice president Geoff Bartsh says the rate adjustment is smaller because premiums have caught up to growing medical expenses.

Nearly 90,000 Nebraska residents purchase health insurance through the marketplace. Medica is also proposing to reduce rates on its Medica with CHI Health insurance, which is available in 23 eastern Nebraska counties.

Judge found dead in Omaha courthouse; no crime suspected

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A judge has been found dead in the Douglas County Courthouse in downtown Omaha.

Authorities say another judge found the body of District Judge Mark Ashford in his chambers around 6 p.m. Wednesday. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office says a preliminary investigation found no signs that any crime was involved.

Brother Brad Ashford, a former congressman, says the 66-year-old judge has had heart problems but had been doing better in recent years. An autopsy is scheduled for Thursday.

Judge Peter Bataillon was a close friend and told the Omaha World-Herald Mark Ashford “had a great demeanor in and out of court. He always wanted to make sure he did the right thing.”

Dannebrog man died of injuries from Grand Island crash

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — Police say an 85-year-old Dannebrog man has died from injuries received in a Grand Island car crash earlier this week.

Television station KSNB says the crash happened just after 8 a.m. Tuesday at a busy Grand Island intersection.

Police say Robert Robertson was driving a car that collided with a pickup truck at the intersection of Highway 30 and Webb Road. Officials believe Robertson had a medical condition that factored into the crash.

Robertson was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

Death penalty sought for co-defendant in woman’s slaying

Bailey Boswell
WILBER, Neb. (AP) — Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for the second of two people accused of killing a Lincoln woman, dismembering her and dumping her remains in southeast Nebraska field.

A prosecutor Wednesday cited the slaying’s “exceptional depravity” in a filing regarding the state’s intentions against 24-year-old Bailey Boswell.

Court records say Boswell and 51-year-old Aubrey Trail are charged with first-degree murder. Prosecutors allege Trail strangled Sydney Loofe and Boswell helped Trail cut up Loofe’s body and stuff the remains into trash bags. The remains were found Dec. 4 in Clay County, weeks after Loofe was reported missing.

Prosecutors cited the slaying’s depravity in their death penalty filing against Trail and said he has a substantial history of “serious assaultive or terrorizing criminal activity.”

A trial date hasn’t been scheduled.

Officials say 3-year-old red panda at Omaha zoo dies

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Officials with Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium say a 3-year-old red panda housed at the zoo has died.

Officials said Wednesday that Tofu, a female red panda who arrived at the Omaha zoo from the Detroit Zoo in October 2017, had died.

According to preliminary necropsy results, Tofu had excess fluid in her abdomen and chest cavity. Officials say that is commonly observed in cases of heart failure or cardiomyopathy, but another potential cause of death includes inflammation of the heart from bacterial or viral causes.

Despite the name, red pandas aren’t related to giant pandas. Red pandas are close relatives to raccoons, skunks and weasels and are the size of a small raccoon.

Judge found dead in Omaha courthouse; no crime suspected

Judge Mark Ashford
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A judge has been found dead in the Douglas County Courthouse in downtown Omaha.

Authorities say another judge found the body of District Judge Mark Ashford in his chambers around 6 p.m. Wednesday. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office says a preliminary investigation found no signs that any crime was involved.

Brother Brad Ashford, a former congressman, says the 66-year-old judge has had heart problems but had been doing better in recent years. An autopsy is scheduled for Thursday.

Judge Peter Bataillon was a close friend and told the Omaha World-Herald Mark Ashford “had a great demeanor in and out of court. He always wanted to make sure he did the right thing.”

Public defender accused of stealing from private clients

GENEVA, Neb. (AP) — The York County public defender is accused of stealing thousands of dollars from private clients.

Court records say 59-year-old Nancy Waldron is charged with felony theft. She didn’t immediately return messages left Thursday by The Associated Press. The records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for her.

The next court date regarding her case is set for Aug. 15.

The records say questions were raised in nearby Fillmore County about checks Waldron had written to herself on a bank account that belonged to two sisters living in nursing homes.

Woman fatally shot in Lincoln home is identified

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a woman who was fatally shot in her north Lincoln home.

She’s been identified as 36-year-old Jessica Brandon.

Police Chief Jeff Bliemeister (BLEYE’-meye-stur) says the intruders entered the home just after 3:30 a.m. Tuesday and officers were called at 3:45 a.m. Bliemeister says four children were among seven people in the home when the woman was shot. No other injuries have been reported.

Brandon was pronounced dead at a Lincoln hospital. No arrests have been reported.

Copyright Eagle Radio | FCC Public Files | EEO Public File