Motorists in Hall County can expect DUI checkpoints and high visibility patrols during a special Nebraska State Patrol enforcement effort focused on reducing the risk of alcohol related crashes.

“We all know drinking and driving is a dangerous combination,” said Captain Chris Kolb, Troop C Commander. “Through special enforcement efforts such as the one planned this weekend we hope to raise awareness of the need for voluntary compliance as we work together to save lives on our roads.”

The special enforcement paid for thanks in part to a $2,375 grant from the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety (NOHS), is planned for Friday, May 17

Authorities say a 40-year-old man has been killed in a collision between his pickup and a locomotive.

The Saline County Sheriff’s Office says the accident occurred around 5:20 a.m. Tuesday at a railroad crossing north of Nebraska Highway 33, west of Dorchester.

The Sheriff’s Office identified the pickup driver as Brad Kasl, of Dorchester. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Sheriff’s officers and BNSF officials are investigating the crash.

A Colorado teacher found a suspicious package inside a high school in Lafayette and took it outside, where police detonated it.

A 16-year-old student was arrested after the explosive device was found at Centaurus High School Monday morning.

Lafayette Police Cmdr. Gene McCausey says the device that was similar to a pipe bomb forced the evacuation of the school and the closure of a nearby road for several hours.

McCausey says the device could have hurt people nearby had it exploded.

The FBI and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are involved in the investigation.

Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning has been fined $19,000 by the Federal Election Commission for violating campaign finance laws during his run for U.S. Senate last year.

The FEC determined Bruning did not file candidacy paperwork in a timely manner for his run for U.S. Senate in 2012, among other violations. Bruning agreed to a settlement with the FEC last month.

The fine stems from a complaint filed against Bruning by the Nebraska Democratic Party shortly after Bruning announced he was launching an exploratory committee for a Senate run in late 2010.

Bruning was defeated in the Republican primary in May 2012 by then-state Sen. Deb Fischer, who went on to win the election.

 

(AP)-A U.S. Army general accused of sexual misconduct is scheduled to return to court.

Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair is set to appear Tuesday for hearings before a military judge considering pre-trial motions.

A court martial for Sinclair is scheduled to begin June 25 on charges that include forcible sodomy, indecent acts, violating orders and adultery. The married father of two faces life in prison. He has thus far deferred entering a plea.

The most serious charges involve a female captain who served under Sinclair’s command in Iraq and Afghanistan with whom he admits having an affair.

The woman testified at an evidentiary hearing last year that Sinclair threatened to kill her and twice physically forced her to perform oral sex after they argued.

New Orleans police and federal authorities are searching for a young man who’s suspected of opening fire at a Mother’s Day parade in New Orleans, wounding 19.

Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas identified the suspect late Monday as 19-year-old Akein Scott of New Orleans. Serpas said several people identified Scott as the gunman based on blurry surveillance camera images of the mass shooting.

Serpas said officers would be searching all night and into Tuesday for Scott, whom he called “no stranger to the criminal justice system.” He urged the teen, who has previous arrests on firearms and drug charges, to turn himself in.

Three gunshot victims remained in critical condition Monday, though their wounds didn’t appear to be life-threatening. Most of the wounded had been released from the hospital.

A 19-year-old Grand Island man has been given federal prison time for helping a friend get away from police.

Federal prosecutors say Luis Green-Chavez was sentenced on Friday to 12 months and a day in prison. He must serve a year of supervised release after he leaves custody.

In November a jury found Green-Chavez guilty of being an accessory after the fact. Prosecutors say that in August last year, Green-Chavez drove the friend, Alexander Martinez, away after Martinez made a threat to a federal officer at a Grand Island home.

Prosecutors say Green-Chavez sped through town and ran stop signs during a chase by police and later dropped off Martinez and another man. Martinez was captured after a couple days.

A Marine officer in charge of snipers shown in a 2011 video urinating on the corpses of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan will be court-martialed.

The U.S. Marine Corps announced Monday that Capt. James V. Clement will be tried for dereliction of duty, conduct unbecoming an officer and failure to stop misconduct by those under his command. The charges were referred for trial following an evidentiary hearing held last month at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

A date for the upcoming court-martial has not been set. Two Marine sergeants have already been convicted in the case with another enlisted soldier still awaiting trial.

Defense lawyer John Dowd says Clement is being scapegoated a result of political correctness and hysteria. Video of the incident posted on YouTube caused widespread outrage among Afghans.

 

A Nebraska man has been given jail time for allowing his son to stay at his home after escaping from a minimum-security prison in South Dakota.

Robert Thorngren, of South Sioux City, was sentenced Monday in Dakota County Court to 220 days in jail on a misdemeanor charge of accessory to a felony. He must pay a $500 fine.

The 45-year-old Thorngren was arrested in March after his son, 30-year-old Travis Thorngren, went missing from the South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls. He had been serving a five-year sentence on a grand theft conviction in Lincoln County.

Travis Thorngren pleaded not guilty to criminal impersonation. He is accused of giving a fake name when he was arrested.

 

Authorities in western Colorado say a human skeleton found in a partially buried car belongs to a man who was reported missing 26 years ago.

The Mesa County Coroner’s Office identified the man on Monday as 65-year-old Ronald Vasey. He went missing in 1987.

The sheriff’s department says someone hiking near John Brown Canyon Road, near Gateway, called 911 at about 6 p.m. Thursday to report a crashed vehicle below a cliff. The old station wagon was roughly 100 feet off the roadway, and it was partially obscured by rocks and sediment that presumably washed down over the years.

Deputies found personal items in the car, including clothing and credit cards.

The coroner’s office says it appears Vasey committed suicide.