OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Former Sen. Bob Kerrey says he won’t seek the Democratic nomination to replace retiring Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska.
Kerrey’s announcement Tuesday shuts down hopes for a bid both parties called Democrats’ best chance to hold on to the seat.
Kerrey himself had described it as a longshot.
The 1992 presidential candidate and former Nebraska governor moved to New York City after giving up his seat. He spent nearly a week in Nebraska this month to seek advice about whether to run in a state that’s drifted ideologically away from him since he left.
Nelson’s decision not to seek another term this year came as a boon to Republicans, who must net four seats to retake the Senate.
And they’ve prioritized capturing the lone Democratic seat in Nebraska’s congressional delegation.

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) – Authorities say a Hall County roads worker has been rescued from a pile of snow.
The worker was dumping snow from his truck on Monday when he became trapped in a pile with only his head and an arm free.
He used his cellphone to make a call for help, and Grand Island firefighters soon responded.
He was dug out and taken to St. Francis Medical Center in Grand Island, where he was treated for scratches and bruises.
His name has not been released.
Hall County officials say it’s unclear whether the worker violated any safety guidelines.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – A state lawmaker wants to study the potential cost and impact of switching to single, countywide school districts throughout Nebraska.
Omaha Sen. Bob Krist will present a proposal (LB991) Tuesday to the Legislature’s Education Committee. The proposed study would examine how a county-by-county district system might work, and whether school districts spanning more than one county should be exempted.
The measure would establish a committee with at least 12 members, including two business representatives from each congressional district, two teachers from each congressional district, and Nebraska Education Commissioner Roger Breed.
Committee members would report their findings to the  Legislature by Jan. 1, 2013.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – Potential raises for Nebraska lawmakers would be put in the hands of the voters, under a resolution up for debate in the state Legislature.
Lawmakers on Tuesday will discuss whether to boost lawmaker salaries from $12,000 per year to $32,000 per year.
The move requires a constitutional amendment, which means the final say on the proposed pay hike would be with the Nebraska voters.
The measure, sponsored by Omaha Sen. Scott Lautenbaugh, would place the issue on the November general election ballot.
The new pay rate would take effect on Jan. 9, 2013, if approved.
The constitutional amendment is being offered in an effort to bring legislative compensation in line with the current economy.
Legislative compensation has not been adjusted for 24 years.

FREMONT, Neb. (AP) – Authorities say seven dogs were found in a storage unit rented by a Fremont couple who already face animal cruelty charges.
The dogs were found Tuesday in large pet carriers inside the unit. They are expected to survive their ordeal.
The Dodge County attorney is reviewing a report from the sheriff’s office to determine whether more charges should be filed against 56-year-old Daniel Newcomer and his wife, 46-year-old Ellyn Newcomer. They face two felony counts and 11 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty over the nine dogs, three cats and a potbellied pig that were removed from their Fremont residence, which was later was condemned and demolished.
A phone listed for the Newcomers has been disconnected. Online court records don’t list the name of their attorney.

KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) – A 37-year-old rural Kearney man has paid a $300 fine and been place on probation for trying to take a loaded handgun onto a plane at Kearney Regional Airport.
Randy Black recently pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of violating his concealed-weapon permit for having a loaded .40-caliber semi-automatic handgun in his carry-on luggage at the airport on Sept. 25. Black also was placed on six months’ probation.
Authorities say the gun was detected by a security X-ray machine at the airport.
Federal authorities say firearms must be placed in locked, hard-sided containers in checked baggage and be unloaded, and owners must declare the presence of the weapons.
Black wasn’t considered a terror threat and his case was not forwarded to federal prosecutors.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – A Nebraska death row inmate whose murder case inspired the 1999 film “Boys Don’t Cry” has filed an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
John Lotter and a co-defendant were convicted in the 1993 slaying of a 21-year-old woman who lived briefly as a man and two witnesses to the killing. Lotter has maintained his innocence.
In August, a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Lotter’s attempt to appeal his conviction. His request for the full court to consider his appeal was denied.
In a letter filed Thursday, the 8th Circuit informed the U.S. District Court in Nebraska about the Supreme Court filing.
There’s no word yet on whether the Supreme Court will hear the case.

COLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) – A second person has died from injuries sustained in a rollover crash in Columbus last weekend, and charges are pending against the driver.
22-year-old Zachary Tharnish of Columbus died at an Omaha hospital. Previously, another passenger – 19-year-old Candace Randall-Stewart of Columbus – also died.
One other passenger in the vehicle that crashed early Saturday morning – 18-year-old Skye Butterfield, of Columbus -has been released from the hospital.
The 21-year-old driver, Genaro Anaya, of Norfolk, was arrested after the crash on suspicion of vehicular homicide, driving under the influence and willful reckless driving.
Formal charges had not been filed against Anaya as of Thursday morning, but he remained in custody in Platte County.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Omaha police are investigating the death of Ralston’s fire chief, but they say it appears Kyle Ienn committed suicide Tuesday.
Ienn’s body was found hanging from a bridge in an Omaha park Tuesday morning. A fire department vehicle was parked nearby.
The 40-year-old Ienn had been Ralston’s fire chief since 2000, and he had served on the board of the National Council on Fireworks Safety.
Ienn was a 22-year veteran of the volunteer Ralston fire department in the Omaha suburbs. He also managed an Ace Hardware store in Omaha for the past two decades.
Ienn was married with three children.

CHADRON, Neb. (AP) – A young mountain lion that had been unintentionally caught in a Nebraska Panhandle trap has been released.
Nebraska Game and Parks Commission officials say the young female weighed about 50 pounds. She was caught in a legal foothold trap in Dawes County.
The trapper called Game and Parks to report the trapping.
Officials tranquilized the animal, checked her health, and then released her on Friday.
Commission carnivore program manager Sam Wilson says high prices for bobcat pelts have led to more trapping and more incidental captures of mountain lions, which also are called cougars or pumas.