(AP) — An Omaha man has been found guilty of first-degree murder in the July 2012 shooting deaths of a man and his two teenage sons.

A jury reached the verdict Friday in the case of 35-year-old Anthony Davis after several hours of deliberations. Davis was convicted on three counts of first-degree murder and three counts of use of a weapon to commit a felony.

Davis was charged in connection to the deaths of 44-year-old Miguel Avalos, 18-year-old Miguel Avalos Jr. and 16-year-old Jose Avalos. An alleged accomplice, Timothy J. Britt, faces similar charges in the case and is awaiting trial. Court records do not list an attorney for him.

Witnesses testified during a two-week trial that the men went to the Avalos home to steal drugs and money.

(AP) — A Nebraska man convicted of sexually abusing an 8-year-old relative in Maine nearly a quarter century ago has been ordered to serve five years in prison.

WZON-AM says a Maine superior court judge in Bangor on Friday imposed the sentence on Clarence Cote (KOH’-dee) of Nemaha, Neb. The 65-year-old man was convicted in January of abusing the girl.

Cote’s attorney, who vowed to appeal, had questioned why the state took so long to prosecute when it knew of the allegations in 1994. He said the state had lost key evidence.

Prosecutors say they had trouble finding Cote after he moved to Nebraska.

(AP) — Authorities are investigating a barn fire near Beatrice that killed two horses inside.

Beatrice Rural Fire Chief Jim Engel says firefighters were sent to the scene at about 3 p.m. Thursday. They left several hours later.

The large barn east of the Beatrice Country Club was a horse arena with stables and storage space. There is no estimate yet on the cost of damages.

A Nebraska Fire Marshal deputy is investigating the cause of the fire.

(AP) — Nebraska lawmakers have approved a committee to investigate the state’s handling of Nikko Jenkins, who is accused of killing four people in the Omaha area after his release from prison.

Senators adopted a resolution Friday that would create a special committee to look at the circumstances of the case, and review the Department of Correctional Services’ rehabilitative and mental health programs. Jenkins was allowed to leave without supervision, despite making threats of violence and begging officials to commit him to a mental health institution.

Lawmakers also adopted a resolution that would create a special committee to study ACCESSNebraska, the state’s public benefits hotline. Supporters of the resolution say the system has had problems with long wait times and lost paperwork.

(AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court has upheld the denial of post-conviction relief for a man convicted of the 2001 shooting death of another man who was believed to have been the wrong target in a retaliation killing.

Danny Robinson was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced in 2003 to life in prison for the shooting death of 26-year-old Daniel Lockett.

Prosecutors say the shooting was in retaliation for the shooting death one week earlier of 17-year-old Terez Reed.

Police had said Lockett was killed when at least two people fired at his family’s house in north Omaha. Two of Lockett’s relatives were grazed by bullets, and police found at least 20 shell casings.

On Friday, the state’s high court said Robinson’s arguments that his lawyer was ineffective were without merit.

(AP) — The body of a 56-year-old woman has been found in a car believed to have crashed about two weeks ago in northeast Nebraska.

The victim has been identified as Donna Baumert, of West Point.

Cuming County Sheriff Brad Boyum says the wrecked car and Baumert’s body were found by utility workers on Wednesday afternoon about a mile south of Beemer. Boyum says it appears her car ran through a dead end and went about a half-mile through a field before coming to rest in a creek bed.

The sheriff says the accident appears to have occurred about two weeks ago but was just discovered Wednesday.

(AP) — A 60-year-old truck driver has been sentenced to 75 days in jail and two years of probation for the crash death of a 13-year-old boy.

Online court records say Kevin Monahan, of Murray, was sentenced on Thursday. He had pleaded no contest to misdemeanor vehicular homicide. Monahan will lose his license for a year and must perform 250 hours of community service.

Authorities say Monahan was driving a semitrailer on July 19 when it struck three cars that were stopped in a construction zone on U.S. Highway 75 near Plattsmouth. The crash fatally injured Nathan Houfek and hurt his mother, Kelley Houfek, and his 12-year-old sister Georgeann Houfek.

(AP) — Lincoln officials are thinking about requiring some middle school students to wear photo IDs on lanyards around their necks.

The ID system has been required at district high schools since 2007. The IDs help administrators ensure the teenagers in the school buildings are supposed to be there. The IDs also serve as lunch tickets and passes at football games and other school events.

District security director Joe Wright says he wants to test the system at Irving Middle School and another middle school he hasn’t yet selected.

He says the company that makes the IDs will provide free badges for two middle schools for a year. Wright says that would give the district an opportunity to determine whether expansion is worth the expense.