We have a brand new updated website! Click here to check it out!

Omaha Police Investigate After Finding 2 Bodies in Houses

crimeOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police are investigating the deaths of two people after their bodies were found in different northeast Omaha homes.

Police said an adult woman was found Friday inside a home at 2210 N. 39th St. after an anonymous tip came in about the body.

Few details were released about the woman or her identity.

On Saturday, a 54-year-old man was found in the basement of a home at 5309 North 35th Street. That man was identified as Roy Jennings.

Police have not said how the victims died, and no arrests had been made as of Sunday morning.

Lincoln Meeting to Focus on Care of Mentally Ill in Assisted Living

union-collegeLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Advocates for people with mental illnesses are concerned about reports of poor care in assisted living facilities in Lincoln, so they are holding a community meeting.

The Mental Health Association of Nebraska has received reports of rooms filled with soiled adult diapers, bedbug infestations and outright neglect.

The meeting will be held Monday evening at Union College. Officials from the state Department of Health and Human Services, Disability Rights Nebraska and law enforcement are expected.

Kasey Moyer with the Mental Health Association of Nebraska says the meeting is designed to help find solutions and improve care.

Wyoming Sees First Confirmed Human Case of Rabies

Rabies Virus
Rabies Virus
CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming Department of Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed the state’s first recorded case of human rabies.

Officials announced Friday that a woman from Fremont County had contracted the disease. They say she may have been exposed to the virus by a bat.

State Public Health Veterinarian Dr. Karl Musgrave says rabies is often found in animals such as bats and skunks, but human cases are rare. He says there are only one or two human cases in the United States each year.

Officials have not released the woman’s health status, but say rabies is a serious, deadly illness once it develops.

To prevent rabies, officials warn that people should keep a safe distance from wildlife.

UNL to Lead $13.5M Sorghum Biofuel Research Effort

UNLLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The University of Nebraska-Lincoln will lead a $13.5 million research effort looking at sorghum as a sustainable source for biofuel production.

The research is funded through a five-year U.S. Department of Energy grant. Scientists will examine how plants and microbes interact, and which sorghum germplasm grows better with less water and nitrogen.

The university is joining forces with researchers at the Danforth Plant Science Center, the DOE-Joint Genome Institute, and six other universities.

Most U.S. biofuels currently are made from corn, but sorghum varieties create more biomass for cellulosic ethanol. UNL agronomy and horticulture professor Daniel Schachtman says that makes it a top contender to replace corn and relieve pressure on an important global food source.

Schachtman is the director of UNL’s Center for Biotechnology, and will lead the project.

Grand Island to Dedicate New Dog Park on Oct. 15

city-of-grand-islandGRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — Workers are putting the finishing touches on a new Grand Island dog park before its dedication later this month.

Parks workers will spend the next week installing a dog teeter-totter, climbing ramp, jumping hoop, agility training table, hitching post and plastic fire hydrants — all made from recycled plastic water bottles.

The dog park at L.E. Ray Lake at Highway 34 and Blaine Street is set to be dedicated on Oct. 15.

Parks and Recreation Director Todd McCoy says the city’s first dog park opened for use late this summer. It includes a three-acre area natural setting for use by all dogs and a smaller, more manicured one-third acre area for small dogs.

Omaha Store Where Shoplifter Hurt Ordered to Pay Him $750K

jury-boxOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — An Omaha jury has ordered a discount store to pay a man convicted of shoplifting from it $750,000 for injuries he received from a store employee.

A Douglas County jury on Friday found in favor of 59-year-old Richard “Dave” Moore. Moore sued ShopKo after suffering a brain injury when he was thrown to the ground by a ShopKo loss-prevention officer in November 2008.

Moore was confronted by two security workers after they say he pilfered two pairs of personal grooming scissors. One of the workers threw Moore to the ground when Moore resisted going back into the store, saying he feared Moore would use a pair of the scissors to stab him.

Moore pleaded no contest to shoplifting and was fined $50.

Omaha Man’s First-Degree Murder Conviction Upheld

Avery Tyler
Avery Tyler
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court has upheld the first-degree murder conviction of a man who shot another man to death outside an Omaha nightclub.

Avery Tyler had appealed his conviction last year for the Sept. 3, 2012, shooting death of Delayno Wright outside the Halo Ultra Lounge during an argument.

The 25-year-old Tyler said in his appeal that the seizure and search of his cellphone by police was illegal and should have been kept out of evidence at his trial. He also argued that warrants used to search the homes of grandparents, mother and girlfriend should have been thrown out.

On Friday, the state’s high court dismissed all of Avery’s arguments, saying the searches were valid.

Package Raises Brief Concerns at Nebraska Nuke Plant

fort-calhoun-dryBLAIR, Neb. (AP) — A bomb squad has determined that a package found in a vehicle at the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant poses no danger.

The Omaha Public Power District says in a release that security workers noticed the package around 8:44 a.m. Friday. The vehicle was just outside what the district called the protected area of the plant. About 30 workers at a nearby warehouse were evacuated as a precaution, but the plant continued to operate.

The district says the Washington County Sheriff’s Office was notified, and a bomb squad from Omaha eventually was called in. The squad determined that the package didn’t contain any explosives. It’s not clear yet what the package did contain, if anything.

Nebraska Woman Accused of Profiting from Fraudulent Loans

gavel-and-scaleSCHUYLER, Neb. (AP) — A 37-year-old woman has been accused of embezzling more than $66,000 from a Pinnacle Bank branch in Schuyler.

Diane Sanchez created false loans and pocketed the money. She faces five felony counts of theft. Online court records don’t list the name of an attorney who could be contacted to comment on Sanchez’s behalf.

Court documents say Sanchez has apologized to bank officials. The Schuyler resident joined Pinnacle Bank in 1996.

York Man Accused of Child Abuse in Spanking of 4-Year-Old

child-abuseYORK, Neb. (AP) — A January trial has been scheduled for a York man accused of child abuse in the spanking of a 4-year-old girl.

23-year-old Luis Rodriguez-Olvera pleaded not guilty this week in York County District Court. His trial is set to begin on Jan. 20.

Court documents say a child care worker found bruises on the girl’s buttocks, back, a side and an arm. Investigators say the child’s mother said she was at work when her fiancé spanked the girl. Investigators also say Rodriguez-Olvera acknowledged striking the girl six or seven times with a sandal because she was “acting up or misbehaving.”

Copyright Eagle Radio | FCC Public Files | EEO Public File