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Colorado Teen Escaped by Stabbing Kidnapper

police-lights-redEDGEWATER, Colo. (AP) — Police are looking for a man suspected of kidnapping a 16-year-old suburban Denver girl who managed to escape after stabbing her abductor with his knife.

The kidnapping began Wednesday evening and ended about 20 miles away on a highway in Aurora. Police say the abductor asked the girl for directions as she waited for a bus and then offered to give her a ride home. She accepted, but when they got near her house she told authorities that he drove into an alley in Edgewater. She says he pulled out a knife, bound her hands with rope and began to drive away.

About an hour later, she said was able to escape after freeing one of her hands, getting the knife off the floor and stabbing the suspect.

Man Pleads Not Guilty in 3 Nebraska Crash Deaths

fatal-accidentPIERCE, Neb. (AP) — A 21-year-old South Dakota man has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor vehicular homicide in the crash deaths of three other people in northeast Nebraska.

Online court records say the attorney for Carlos Sanchez Espinoza entered the pleas on Wednesday in Pierce County Court.

The April 28 crash on U.S. Highway 81 in Pierce County killed 41-year-old Pablo Chilel Escobar, 29-year-old Mario Adan DeJesus Pinedo and 24-year-old Hugo Iglecias Moreno. Those men and six others in the vehicle were ejected from the SUV when it left the highway and rolled.

Authorities say it appears a tire blew out, causing the driver to lose control. The men were on their way to a construction site when the crash occurred.

Lincoln May Change Retailers’ Rule on Ammo Display

ammo-shortageLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A proposal to be considered by the Lincoln City Council would let retailers place shotgun and rifle ammunition on aisles for easy customer access.

Current Lincoln law requires all ammunition to be stored behind counters, so that store employees must respond to customers’ requests. The proposal going before the council next would eliminate that restriction.

Guns and handgun ammunition still would have to be placed behind counters, requiring help from store workers.

Public Safety Director Tom Casady says the change was requested by Scheels.

Manager Louie Sikich of the Lincoln Scheels said at a public hearing this week that it is an expense for retailers and an inconvenience for customers, who like to read the information on the ammo boxes before making purchasing decisions.

Nebraska Company Cited for Safety Violations

OSHAGENEVA, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska company has been cited for 10 health and safety violations, including three classified as willful.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced Wednesday that it has placed the Geneva-based Bioiberica Nebraska in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program. OSHA proposed $101,200 in penalties for the alleged violations, including a failure to protect workers from machine parts during service and maintenance.

OSHA says an investigation found workers were exposed to serious amputation risks and the threat of electrocution, burns, crushing, lacerations or fractured body parts. Willful violations are committed with intentional or voluntary disregard for the law, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.

OSHA also cited the facility for using hazardous chemicals without proper worker training.

A company phone rang unanswered on Wednesday.

Police: Man Chained Son to Bed on 10 Straight Days

police-lights-redLOGAN, Utah (AP) — Utah authorities say a 6-year-old boy found chained to a bed while his father was at work probably was shackled like that each of the past 10 days since school ended.

Logan City Police Chief Gary Jensen says they believe the boy’s father chained him to the bed post each day when he left for work, unchaining him when he got home.

Jensen says the boy had some water and snacks and just enough slack to reach the bathroom.

The 28-year-old father was booked into Cache County Jail on four counts of child abuse. The Associated Press is not naming the man to avoid identifying the child.

The boy has been placed in custody of state child protective services.

Police are investigating whether the man’s live-in girlfriend knew about what was going on.

Gage County Approves New Jail Surveillance Gear

gage-co-sheriffBEATRICE, Neb. (AP) — Gage County officials will spend more than $13,700 to upgrade security equipment at their detention center.

The Board of Supervisors approved the funding at its Wednesday meeting. Board members were told that the technology will help close gaps in the current system. The upgrade was prompted by vandalism and inmate suicides.

Chief Deputy Sheriff Doug Klaus says authorities currently aren’t able to monitor some areas around the facility. Klaus says high-definition cameras will also make it easier for deputies to identify suspects.

Current surveillance equipment helped deputies catch a man who recently threw rocks at the jail to get his ex-girlfriend’s attention. Three windows were broken in the process, and at least one other jail window was broken in a previous incident.

10-Year-Old Gets High School Diploma in California

odd-newsSACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A 10-year-old Northern California boy is celebrating a milestone most people don’t reach until they are in their late teens.

Tanishq Abraham has become one of the youngest people to graduate from high school.

The Sacramento boy received his diploma at a private ceremony in front of family and friends on Sunday.

Tanishq was home-schooled and graduated with a 4.0 GPA. He tells KXTV in Sacramento the work wasn’t easy, but not that hard either.

His mom, Taji, says she suspected her son was gifted, but didn’t know until the results of an IQ test.

Tanishq is taking college courses and says he wants to be a scientist, but also president.

Nebraska High Court Backs LA Lawyer in Fee Dispute

ne-supreme-courtLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court has upheld a jury decision against a Lincoln law firm that was seeking a bigger share of fees paid a California lawyer.

Former Lincoln lawyer Dan McCord argued in his lawsuit that he should have been paid $562,500 more than the $2.25 million he was paid. McCord said he was supposed to receive 25 percent of the fee paid to Michael Piuze, of Los Angeles. The two represented Penny Shipler, who was partially paralyzed after a 1997 Lincoln accident. Shipler eventually settled her safety issues lawsuit against General Motors for $22.5 million.

In July 2012 a jury sided with Piuze. McCord appealed to the Nebraska Supreme Court.

The high court ruled against McCord last week, saying his arguments were meritless.

Mining Firm to Meet with Nebraska Landowners

niobiumELK CREEK, Neb. (AP) — The Canadian mining firm exploring a Nebraska deposit of a rare mineral used to make steel plans to meet with landowners Wednesday.

NioCorp Developments says top officials from the company will update landowners on the project and talk about their plans for the next year.

NioCorp resumed drilling samples from beneath the ground near Elk Creek last month for the first time since 2011. There are two drilling rigs working on the site.

The U.S. imports nearly all the niobium that’s used in this country to harden steel and make it more heat-resistant for industrial uses.

NioCorp previously estimated that more than 100 tons of niobium rests several hundred feet below the ground, but it’s not yet clear whether a mine will be built.

Union Fights Lincoln Chief’s Order to Use Pickup

Lincoln Fire DptLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Lincoln firefighters union has challenged the fire chief’s order to use a pickup instead of a firetruck to respond to some medical calls.

The union filed a grievance two weeks ago after Chief John Huff sent a directive about the truck on May 12. He told captains at Station No. 1 to use what’s called the alternate response vehicle or report why they didn’t.

City Public Safety Director Tom Casady says the pickup isn’t being used as often as it should be used.

City officials say the pickup is a more cost-effective way to get paramedics to patients more quickly. But union leaders say the savings are minimal and come at the expense of safety.

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