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Bellevue Man Gets Jail in Chainsaw Incident

Michael Nordmeyer
Michael Nordmeyer

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A Bellevue man who had used a chain saw to injure himself during a domestic dispute has been sent to jail.

Online court records say 24-year-old Michael Nordmeyer was sentenced on Wednesday to a year for misdemeanor false imprisonment and 30 days for interfering with a public service company. Prosecutors had lowered the two charges and dropped three others in return for Nordmeyer’s pleas.

Officers who were sent to a Bellevue house on Dec. 17 to check on a domestic dispute found Nordmeyer in the basement. The officers say Nordmeyer was holding a chain saw that he kept turning on and off and had several self-inflicted injuries. Officers used a stun gun to subdue him so he could be taken to a hospital in Omaha.

Hastings Couple Plead Not Guilty in Boy’s Slaying

HASTINGS, Neb.–The mother of a slain 4-year-old Hastings boy and her live-in boyfriend have pleaded not guilty to charges of child abuse resulting in death.

29-year-old Amanda Pecor and 30-year-old Matthew Edwards made their plea Thursday in Adams County District Court. Police say the Pecor’s 9-year-old son fatally shot his 4-year-old brother, Beau Pecor, on April 18.

Prosecutors say police, school and mental health officials had concerns about the 9-year-old’s often violent behavior. Prosecutors say officials had warned both Pecor and Edwards in the weeks before the shooting not to have guns in the house and to lock up all knives and other sharp objects.

Construction Worker Hurt in Lincoln Home Explosion

Lincoln Fire DptLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a construction worker was injured in a house explosion and fire in south Lincoln.

Crews were called to the home shortly before noon on Thursday. Lincoln Fire and Rescue Battalion Chief Leo Benes says a large fire was burning on the first floor. Three construction workers were renovating the home at the time, and one was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Neighbors say they heard a loud boom and a crash and then saw smoke coming out of the home’s window.

Investigators say the fire caused $80,000 to $90,000 in damage.

Turkey Vultures Not Welcome at Fremont Airport

turkey-vultureFREMONT, Neb. (AP) — Not everything that flies into the Fremont Municipal Airport is welcome.

Local officials are working to get rid of turkey vultures that have created a hazard at the airport.

Wildlife Specialist Scot Rosendahl told the Dodge County Board of Supervisors Wednesday that he saw a dozen of the birds out between the airport’s runways that morning.

Rosendahl says foxes and badgers are also a nuisance at the airport because they dig large holes near the runways.

Jim Kjeldgaard, who works at the airport, says the animals have not caused any incidents involving aircraft. But he says the animals aren’t wanted there, and their numbers appears to be increasing.

Autopsy: Man Found Dead in Omaha Landfill Was Crushed

douglas-county-sheriffOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say an Omaha man found dead in a landfill was accidentally crushed.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday released preliminary autopsy results for 57-year-old Lewis D. Doss.

Authorities say a garbage truck driver spotted Doss in his rear-view mirror as he dumped a load of trash at the Douglas County landfill around 6:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Officials say Doss was in a dumpster that the truck had emptied, but the driver was unaware.

Chief Douglas County Sheriff’s Deputy Tom Wheeler says Doss was crushed by the truck’s trash compactor. It’s unclear why Doss was inside the dumpster, but authorities say his death appears to be an accident.

Authorities say toxicology tests are pending, and won’t be available for another two to four weeks.

Lincoln Woman in Critical Condition After Kitchen Fire

fire-graphic

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a woman is in critical condition after a kitchen fire in her Lincoln apartment.

Police on Thursday identified the woman as 30-year-old Brianna Johnson. Johnson was taken to a Lincoln hospital with unspecified injuries.

The fire was reported around 6:20 p.m. Wednesday in a building several blocks southeast of downtown.

Lincoln Fire Investigator Damon Robbins says the fire started when spaghetti and meatballs on an electric stove were left unattended. The fire spread to some cabinets and a can of grease, which helped fuel it.

Lincoln Police Capt. Danny Reitan says firefighters found Johnson unresponsive in the smoke-filled apartment. Damage to the building was estimated at $50,000, and the second-floor apartment was deemed uninhabitable.

Plea Deal Reached in Lincoln High School Stabbing Case

stabbingLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A girl accused of stabbing a fellow student at Lincoln Pius X High School has reached a plea deal with prosecutors.

The 17-year-old will enter a plea in August, but attorneys for both sides aren’t giving specifics about the agreement. The girl faces felony charges of assault and use of a weapon for the Oct. 7 attack that prompted a two-hour school lockdown.

A trial had been scheduled for July, after a judge ruled that the girl was competent to stand trial. Police say the girl attacked 17-year-old Ellen Kopetzky in a school bathroom with a hunting knife and a claw hammer, and then fled to Kansas, where she surrendered the next day. Kopetzky survived the attack.

The Associated Press generally doesn’t identify juveniles accused of crimes.

Substance Abuse Counselor Gets Prison in DUI Death

gavel-and-scaleLOS ANGELES (AP) — A substance-abuse counselor who struck a pedestrian with her car and drove through a Los Angeles suburb with the dying man on her windshield has been sentenced to 55 years to life in prison.

Fifty-three-year-old Sherri Lynn Wilkins was sentenced Thursday after being convicted of second-degree murder, drunken driving and hit-and-run.

Prosecutors say Wilkins’ blood-alcohol level was nearly twice the legal limit when she struck 31-year-old Phillip Moreno in 2012.

She drove two miles before other motorists were able to swarm her car at a traffic light and keep her there until police arrived.

Wilkins, who was an addict before she became a drug and alcohol counselor, said she had been drinking that night but wasn’t drunk.

She was leaving a counseling center when she hit Moreno.

Amazon Launches Music Streaming for Prime Members

amazonLOS ANGELES (AP) — Amazon is launching a music streaming service for its Prime members, adding yet another freebie to the free-shipping plan ahead of the expected unveiling of its first smartphone next week.

Starting Thursday, Amazon.com Inc. will offer more than a million tracks for streaming and downloading to its Kindle Fire tablets, as well as on its Amazon Music app for Apple and Android devices.

People who pay $99-a-year for Prime can listen to the music for no extra cost.

Amazon reached licensing deals with most of the top independent labels and major recording companies Sony and Warner Music, but failed to reach a deal with top-ranked Universal Music Group.

The service will feature artists including Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars, Bruce Springsteen, Pink and Madonna, but won’t have many new releases.

Nebraskan Dies After Falling from Boat

ambulanceDULUTH, Minn. (AP) — A Nebraska man has died after falling from a fishing boat in northeastern Minnesota.

St. Louis County sheriff’s officials say the 64-year-old man was a passenger in boat and fell into Lake Vermilion near Cable Bay Wednesday night. Authorities say the man was pulled from the water, taken to shore and transported by ambulance to Essentia Health-Virginia where he was pronounced dead.

The man has not been identified, but sheriff’s deputies say he was from Lincoln, Nebraska. Authorities say he was not wearing a life jacket.

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