(AP) — As more and more Nebraska inmates remain to age in place, behind bars, the state’s prison system is making adjustments.

Among them is a porter program.

Steve Urosevich is chief operating officer of Health Services for the Nebraska Department of Correction Services. He said the inmate health porter program lets inmates help care for the increasing patient load posed by an aging prison population.

Officials use psychological testing and interviews to filter out applicants who may have predatory natures. Starting pay is 38 cents an hour and can go as high as $1.08 an hour, which Urosevich says is good pay for an inmate.

(AP) — A 30-year-old southeast Nebraska man is scheduled to be sentenced July 1 for strangulation.

Paul Potter pleaded no contest to strangulation. The felony charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Prosecutors dropped several misdemeanor charges in exchange for Potter’s plea.

Court records say Potter lives in Friend.

York County Attorney Candace Dick says officers were dispatched to a York house in January to investigate a report of a domestic problem. A woman told the officers that she’d asked Potter to leave, causing him to lose his temper.

Dick says the woman said Potter threw her on a bed and choked her.

(AP) — Authorities have release the names of two women who were struck by a car while they were brawling on a street in northeast Omaha.

Police say the two had gotten into an argument in a driveway late Monday night and then began trading blows as their dispute moved into the street. Officers say a passing car struck both women despite efforts by its driver to avoid them.

The Omaha Police Department says 23-year-old Sherrial Onderi was pronounced dead at the scene and that 34-year-old Kimberly Nelson was taken to a hospital. Police say Nelson’s injuries are not considered life-threatening.

The car driver was identified as 57-year-old Glenda Faulkner, of Omaha.

(AP) — Police in northeast Nebraska are investigating the death of a 51-year-old man as a homicide, but authorities aren’t releasing many details.

Steven Jorgensen was found dead in his home on Wednesday after failing to show up for work for three days.

Police say Jorgensen died as a result of a struggle inside his home, but they haven’t said how he died.

Eugene Jorgensen says his son’s death was a shock. He says his son liked his job as a machinist, but had trouble with people breaking into his home.

Steven Jorgensen was the victim of a Jan. 3 assault in which two Columbus women were charged.

Eugene Jorgensen says he wonders if his son’s death is connected to that January incident.

(AP) — An Omaha officer is recovering from injuries he received when his cruiser was struck by a semitrailer along Interstate 80.

The Omaha Police Department says the accident occurred a little before 6:30 p.m. Sunday as the officer was conducting a traffic stop. Police say the officer and his patrol dog were inside the cruiser when the semitrailer smacked into its rear.

Officer Troy Liebe was taken to Nebraska Medical Center for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. The dog apparently wasn’t hurt.

The truck driver was identified as 56-year-old Thomas Tieskotter of Spanaway, Wash. He was arrested and booked into Douglas County Jail on several charges, including driving under the influence of drugs. A jailer said Tieskotter remained in custody on Monday. Online court records don’t yet list the case.

(AP) — Lincoln fire officials still disagree on whether first responders with a geared-up pickup can handle some calls that traditionally have been handled by firefighters with fully equipped firetrucks.

Last May the department outfitted a pickup and gave captains the authority to take it on minor medical calls.

Lincoln Fire and Rescue Capt. Jeff Gottbreht says that he’s concluded the Alternative Response Vehicle is risky to take on some calls because it doesn’t carry enough equipment to handle each emergency.

But Battalion Chief Eric Jones thinks the yearlong test has provided firefighters another tool that allows the same level of service without risking firefighter safety.

(AP) — Grand Island Mayor Jay Vavricek wants the city to contribute $3 million toward having the Central Nebraska Veterans Home be built in his south-central Nebraska town.

Vavricek will make his proposal to the City Council at Tuesday night’s meeting.

Grand Island has been home to the Grand Island Veterans Home since the Soldiers and Sailors Home opened in 1888 on 640 acres that the city donated to the state.

The state has earmarked money for the $120 million replacement facility and will be considering proposals from four cities that wish to host the veterans home. The four are Grand Island, Hastings, Kearney and North Platte.

The state says there are nearly $1.3 million of amenities it cannot provide with state and federal funds.

(AP) — A 16-year-old Omaha boy is getting the rank of Eagle Scout for a project that honors a Boy Scout killed when a tornado hit Little Sioux Scout Ranch in Iowa five years ago.

Marcus Ehlinger built a 60-foot, partial suspension bridge at the Eastern Nebraska 4H Center and will dedicate it in honor of Sam Thomsen, who died in at the ranch in 2008. The American flag that was at the camp when the tornado struck will also be displayed Sunday at the bridge when the Eagle Scout ceremony is held.

Fifteen-year-old James Kopsa, of Omaha, also will be receiving his Eagle Scout rank. He primed and painted 32 telephone poles along the Lincoln Highway for his project.

Both Ehlinger and Kopsa were in Boy Scout Troop 26 with Thomsen.

(AP) — A Lincoln man has been accused of making threats with a machete.

The incident that led to 19-year-old Taylor Arizola’s arrest happened around 1 a.m. Sunday.

Lincoln Police say Arizola pulled a machete out of his truck and threatened another man because Arizola says the other man threw a bottle at him.

Police say Arizola was actually the one who called police, but now he is facing charges of making terroristic threats and using a weapon to commit a felony.

 

(AP) — An eastern Nebraska man is facing charges because Fremont police say he tried to kill his girlfriend and himself by setting fire to a mobile home.

Fremont police arrested 19-year-old Jose Manuel Saturday night.

Police say the mobile home sustained fire and smoke damage, but no one was hurt.

Manuel is facing charges of attempted first-degree murder, second-degree arson, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.