SIDNEY, Neb. (AP) – A 37-year-old Sidney man has pleaded not guilty to possession of child pornography.  Court records say a November trial has been scheduled for Kenneth Steffens.  According to The Sidney Sun-Telegraph, Steffens entered his plea earlier this week.  The allegation stemmed from an investigation into what officials say was a phony kidnapping.  Prosecutors say a 16-year-old girl had sent text messages to another man about her supposed kidnapping.  When the girl called her mother to report the supposed abduction, the mother found photos and racy text messages on her daughter’s cellphone.  Prosecutors say the photos and texts had been sent to Steffens.  Court records say a hearing is scheduled for next month.

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) – A cougar has been reported in the south-central Nebraska city of Grand Island, but the report has not been confirmed. Police say someone reported seeing a cougar in a backyard early Thursday morning. According to The Grand Island Independent, an officer who was sent to the area couldn’t find the big cat. Cougars, which also are called mountain lions or pumas, have turned up as far east in Nebraska as Omaha. There were at least four unconfirmed cougar reports during June in York County, which is east of Grand Island. A study estimated that at least 19 cougars are living in the Pine Ridge area of the Nebraska Panhandle.

WAHOO, Neb. (AP) – A woman has been convicted of manslaughter in the death of a fellow resident at an assisted-living facility in Wahoo. The Saunders County attorney’s office says 36-year-old Angelic Norris was found guilty on Monday. She faces up to 20 years in prison when she’s sentenced on Oct. 3. Investigators say Norris got into dispute last September with another resident at Liberty House, which serves people with mental-health issues. Authorities say 56-year-old Elizabeth Collins suffered a head injury and later died. Norris was found competent to stand trial in January.

HASTINGS, Neb. (AP) – Three people charged in the death of a 4-year-old Minden boy have pleaded no contest to lesser charges.  Dustin Scoville, Sharon Turnell and her husband, Charles, were charged in the December 2009 death of Landon Payne.  He was Sharon Turnell’s nephew, and lived with the couple.  The Hastings Tribune says Scoville and Sharon Turnell pleaded no contest to attempted child abuse resulting in death on Wednesday in Adams County District Court. They face up to 50 years in prison.  Charles Turnell pleaded no contest to attempted child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury. He faces up to 20 years in prison. All three had been charged with aiding and abetting child abuse resulting in death, punishable by up to life in prison. Sentencing is Sept. 20.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Two people who authorities believe helped sell more than 200 Hummers with phony titles and export many of them are now facing federal fraud charges.  FBI agent Andy Thomure said Wednesday that a former salesman at the Omaha car dealership that sold the Hummers has been arrested.  The other person charged is a woman who owned an Overland Park, Kan., trucking company. She hasn’t been arrested yet.  Many of the vehicles sold by the Huber dealership in 2005 and 2006 were bought by a small broker in Chillicothe, Mo. Most of the Hummers were resold overseas and exported to Nigeria, Germany, Canada, Japan and elsewhere.  The fraudulent titles allowed the buyers to collect incentives from General Motors that weren’t available to anyone buying more than five vehicles.

NORFOLK, Neb. (AP) – Prosecutors say it’s not likely that a man suspected in the disappearance of a Peru State freshman will be linked to a 2009 death in northeast Nebraska.  Joshua Keadle, from Swansea S.C., is facing criminal charges in Nemaha and Dodge counties.  Pierce County Attorney Verlyn Leubbe said Tuesday that investigators looked into whether Keadle could be linked to the death of 19-year-old Lacey Anderson, but Keadle’s name hasn’t come up in several months.
Anderson’s body was found in Pierce County by hunters.  She was from Madison County.  In Nemaha County, Keadle has pleaded not guilty to sexual assault in the Halloween rape of a fellow Peru State student.  The charges were filed after his arrest in the disappearance of Tyler “Ty” Thomas, who was last seen Dec. 3.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – The Defense Department says a 29-year-old Omaha man has been killed in Afghanistan.  Officials said Tuesday that Marine Sgt. Joshua Robinson died Sunday while on combat operations in Helmand Province.  He was shot twice in the left side of his chest while on patrol.  Robinson was on his first deployment to Afghanistan but had been deployed to Iraq twice before.  He enlisted in the Marines in 2003.  Robinson earned a Purple Heart and Combat Action Ribbon during his service.  Robinson was an infantryman assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, which is based at Camp Pendleton, Calif.  Robinson’s wife and two sons, ages 4 and 5, moved back to Bennington, Neb. earlier this year to be close to family while he was deployed.  The number of service members with Nebraska connections killed in Afghanistan or Iraq since September 11, 2001 continues to grow.  The latest U.S. military casualties in Afghanistan bring the total of deaths with Nebraska ties to 70.  The Defense Department said Tuesday that Marine Sgt. Joshua Robinson from Omaha was killed Sunday in Afghanistan during combat operations.  Family members say two other soldiers from Nebraska died Saturday when a military helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan.  Twenty-six-year-old Navy SEAL John Douangdara and 30-year-old Nebraska National Guard Sgt. Patrick Hamburger were among the 30 American troops killed in the crash.  Douangdara is from South Sioux City. Hamburger is a Lincoln native who lived in Grand Island.

COLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) – A 17-year-old Columbus youth convicted as an adult for a gang-related shooting last year has been given 11-to-22 years in prison.  Court records say Anthony Ramirez was sentenced last week for four felonies: using a firearm to commit a felony, intentional discharge of a firearm, possession of a stolen firearm and possessing a short rifle.  Investigators say Ramirez fired the sawed-off rifle at a pursuing vehicle after firing at a house on Oct. 31.  Rival gang members were partying at the house. Ramirez was 16 at the time.  No injuries were reported.  The Columbus Telegram reports that Ramirez had received probation four times for juvenile offenses.  Prosecutor Demi Herman says Ramirez is a dedicated gang member who wanted to raise his gang standing on the night of the shooting.