(AP) — A Nebraska inmate who robbed a Beatrice bank while out on work release has been given more time in prison.

32-year-old Lucius Turner was sentenced on Thursday in Gage County District Court. Judge Daniel Bryan Jr. gave Turner 30 to 40 years, which will be served after his other prison sentence has been completed. Turner pleaded guilty in November as part of a deal with prosecutors. The deal includes his assignment to the state prison in Tecumseh.

Prosecutors say Turner robbed a Pinnacle Bank branch on Aug. 16 while on work release granted by the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services. Investigators say he and another man slipped a teller a note demanding money. The other man has yet to be charged.

(AP) — Federal officials have designated portions of 11 western and central states as primary natural disaster areas because of a drought.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s announcement Wednesday includes counties in Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Kansas, Texas, Utah, Arkansas, Hawaii, Idaho, Oklahoma and California.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement that he sympathizes with farmers and ranchers who are dealing with the lack of rain and snow, and assured them that the USDA will stand by them.

The designation means eligible farmers can qualify for low-interest emergency loans from the Agriculture Department.

Counties adjacent to those that are affected also are eligible for assistance.

The United States Drought Monitor reports that while storms have dumped rain and snow in the East, droughts are persisting or intensifying in the West.

(AP) — State officials could travel Nebraska in a new airplane if an upcoming proposal in the Legislature becomes law.

Sen. Bob Krist of Omaha told the Legislature’s Executive Board on Thursday that he will introduce a bill to buy a new state plane, which would cost as much as $3.8 million.

Lawmakers rejected Gov. Dave Heineman’s budget request for a plane last year so they could study their options. The Department of Aeronautics had asked to purchase the 2001 Beechcraft Super King Airplane from the University of Nebraska Foundation for $2.2 million. State officials had previously leased the plane, which has since been sold.

The bill would also require the state to sell its 1982 Cheyenne plane.

A legislative study concluded that a new aircraft would be safer and last longer.

(AP) — The University of Nebraska-Lincoln will pay a Lincoln man $20,000 to settle a federal lawsuit accusing the university of illegally closing down handicapped parking stalls on campus during Nebraska home football games.

Richard Norton Jr. sued UNL in 2012 after he says he was not allowed to park in a handicapped stall outside of the University of Nebraska State Museum during a home football game in 2010. Norton says he was told the handicapped spots were being held for university donors.

Norton, who suffers from a physical disability, says he was forced to park several blocks away, and the walk hurt him to the point of having to seek medical treatment.

Norton’s attorney, Kathleen Neary, says the settlement was reached in December, and a judge dismissed the lawsuit Thursday.

(AP) — Economic growth will likely slow in rural parts of 10 Midwest and Western states in the months ahead.

A monthly survey of rural bankers released Thursday shows the region’s overall economic index falling to 50.8 in January from December’s 56.1.

The index ranges from 0 to 100, and any score above 50 suggests growth in that factor in the months ahead.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says declining farm prices are hurting the economy.

And most bankers say they expect the economy to be hurt by the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to reduce the amount of ethanol that must be blended into gasoline.

The report covers rural parts of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming.

(AP) — Authorities are investigating the cause of a fire at a Bellevue apartment complex.

Battalion Chief Kurt Strachota with the Bellevue Fire Department says the blaze was reported around 12:30 p.m. Thursday at Brent Village apartments. No injuries were reported.

The fire was contained to the south side of the building’s exterior. Residents of at least two units were displaced.

The state fire marshal is investigating the case.

(AP) — The family of a 5-year-old girl killed by a stray bullet that entered her Omaha home says they do not want retaliation for her death.

Tabatha Manning says she wants justice for her daughter Payton Benson’s death. She asked the public to let police handle the investigation.

Manning and other family members made comments Thursday. Payton was fatally shot Wednesday morning as she ate breakfast in her north Omaha home. She was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Authorities say the stray bullet was connected to a nearby shooting that involved multiple people, weapons and gunfire.

Manning encouraged people involved in the shooting to come forward. Police made the same plea during a press conference Wednesday night. Authorities are trying to identify several possible suspects, but no arrests have been made.

 

Lincoln police are investigating the death of a man whose body was found in a park as a homicide.

People who live near Peter Pan Park called police around 10:40 a.m. Thursday. Officers soon found the body.

Police say the body had injuries that they do not believe were self inflicted.

No further details have been released.

(AP) — A 43-year-old man has died after being struck by a semitrailer on the West Dodge Expressway in Omaha.

Police say the accident occurred around 6 p.m. Wednesday. The man had stopped his sport utility vehicle on the shoulder and turned on his hazard lights. Police say the man was in a traffic lane when he was hit by the big rig.

Police say Christopher Demman, of La Vista, was pronounced dead at the scene. The truck driver was identified as 50-year-old Greg Hoeser, of Loyal, Wis.

The accident is still being investigated.

(AP) — A 27-year-old man has been given 20 to 60 months in prison for choking a woman at the Hastings apartment they’d been sharing.

Tyler Millard was sentenced on Tuesday by Judge Stephen Illingworth in Adams County District Court. Millard had pleaded no contest to a charge of strangulation after prosecutors dropped two other charges.

The woman told police that she wanted to break up with Millard. She was moving his belongings out of the apartment on Sept. 13, 2012, when she and Millard got into an argument that turned physical. She says he choked her into unconsciousness.