FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is trying to determine how prevalent the plague is in northern Colorado after a 16-year-old boy died of the disease, which was possibly spread by fleas on his family’s rural property.

Taylor Gaes (Gays) died June 8 after coming down with what he thought was a bad case of the flu, but tests confirmed it was a rare form of the plague.

The most common type of plague, bubonic, affects the body’s lymphatic system. But Gaes is believed to have had septicemic plague, which spreads directly through the bloodstream.

Cases of plague are rare, with an average of seven human cases nationally a year.

County health officials are working with the CDC to test animals on the family’s property near Fort Collins for the plague.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — An Omaha school plans to make changes this fall in an effort to make it a friendlier environment for students.

Westside Middle School officials say grading previously was based on work that summed up what students knew, which generally were tests and final projects. They say that grading will now be tweaked to focus more on day-to-day work showing what students are learning along the way.

The number of students on each “team” assigned to a group of teachers also will be smaller. The teams are intended to make the school feel smaller and more like a family for students.

Teams had grown to around 160 students each, and the school plans to add two more teams. Around 120 students will be in each team.

 

PAPILLION, Neb. (AP) — A 62-year-old pastor accused of inappropriately touching a 14-year-old girl in an Omaha suburb has been convicted of a lesser charge.

Online court records show Clifton Wells, of Papillion, pleaded no contest and was convicted of a misdemeanor on Monday in Sarpy County District Court. Prosecutors lowered the charge from felony sexual assault of a child in exchange for Wells’ plea.

Prosecutors say Wells inappropriately touched the girl several times in July when he gave the girl a ride to pick up a job application. Wells told investigators he’d been counseling the girl about her misbehavior at school, and he denied that any sexual assault occurred.

Wells is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 14.

PONSFORD, Minn. (AP) — Authorities have recovered the body of a Nebraska man who died after falling out of a boat while fishing on a lake in northern Minnesota.

The Becker County sheriff’s office got a call Sunday morning that the fisherman had fallen into Many Point Lake and had not resurfaced.

Authorities recovered the body at 7:20 p.m. that night. The victim is identified as 67-year-old Terry Lee Ruch of Omaha, Nebraska.

The sheriff’s office says the victim was not wearing a life jacket.

DENVER (AP) — Health officials think a Colorado teen who died of the plague had a less common form of the disease that’s difficult to detect.

Sixteen-year-old Taylor Gaes (Gays) died June 8 after coming down with what seemed like a bad case of the flu. But tests later confirmed it was the plague, possibly spread by fleas on his family’s rural property.

The most common type of plague, bubonic, affects the body’s lymphatic system and causes tell-tale swelling of the lymph nodes. But Gaes is believed to have had septicemic plague, a form which spreads directly through the blood stream and doesn’t lead to swelling.

Cases of plague are rare, with an average of seven human cases nationally a year. All forms can be treated with antibiotics if recognized in time.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A transportation company that serves people who are handicapped is being allowed to expand its service to Lincoln, despite a number of consumer complaints.

The state Public Service Commission has agreed to let Golden Plains Services Transportation to expand.

A commissioner who voted against the expansion said the majority of the panel overlooked the complaints because they believed the need for more vans in Lincoln was great.

But another commissioner said the panel didn’t know about the complaints early enough to thoroughly investigate.

Rather than deny the company’s expansion to Lincoln, the other commissioners want to set up a more effective system for monitoring complaints against companies serving people who are handicapped.

The company’s owner says the complaints are few compared to the number of rides it provides.

 

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Lancaster County grand jury has concluded that a deputy U.S. marshal didn’t break any Nebraska laws in the fatal shooting of a 34-year-old man during at arrest attempt in Lincoln.

County Attorney Joe Kelly reported the jury’s decision but declined last week to disclose the marshal’s name.

Thirty-four-year-old Tyson Hubbard, of Omaha, was shot March 5 as members of the Metro Fugitive Task Force tried to take him into custody as Hubbard sat in a car outside a Lincoln motel. Hubbard was wanted on a warrant for failing to show for a court appearance to face an assault charge.

Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner has said the deputy marshal opened fire after seeing Hubbard reach for a revolver under the car seat.

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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A consultant’s report says funding to build a replacement for Omaha’s aging Department of Veterans Affairs hospital may be even further away than expected.

In 2011 the VA unveiled plans for a 1 million-square-foot replacement in Omaha to serve Nebraska and western Iowa veterans. Congress approved $56 million to start the project planning, and it tentatively was scheduled to open in 2018.

The analysis by Omaha-based Booz Allen Hamilton released Monday says funding now could be delayed until the late 2020s. The analysis points to a $9 billion backlog of approved projects and VA infrastructure needs that could reach $60 billion.

“There never really was any real chance there was going to be a new hospital here,” said U.S. Rep. Brad Ashford, D-2nd District.

WAVERLY, Neb. (AP) — A 19-year-old man faces charges after police say surveillance video captured him breaking into storage units in eastern Nebraska.

Cody Tierney was arrested Thursday after police received a burglary report from the owner of Overpass Storage in Waverly. The owner says seven storage units were burglarized sometime around Wednesday.

Police say surveillance video shows four people at the scene during the time of the burglaries. Tierney is suspected of being one of them.

Tierney is at the Lancaster County jail. He faces several burglary charges, including several counts of aiding and abetting a burglary. A message for the county public defender’s office was not immediately returned.

A 16-year-old was also identified from the video. He was cited on being an accessory to a felony.