HASTINGS, Neb. (AP) — A judge has rejected a Hastings man’s request to withdraw his pleas to charges stemming from the dragging of a police officer.

Thirty-year-old Marty Deckert had accepted a plea deal on charges of attempted second-degree murder and other crimes. But at his sentencing hearing last month, Deckert tried to fire his court-appointed attorney and withdraw his pleas.

Authorities say Deckert tried to avoid arrest in July by speeding away in a car while dragging a police officer.

Deckert said in court on Tuesday that he thought his attorney had pressed him to take the plea deal without fully explaining what it included.

Judge Terri Harder denied Deckert’s motion, saying he didn’t provide enough evidence to back up his argument and had lied at the sentencing hearing.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Lincoln school board has approved a $50 million, 10-year plan that will provide third- through 12th-graders with a laptop over the next three years.

The board voted 6-0 Tuesday, with one member absent. The plan also provides tablets to kindergarten through second-grade classrooms.

The number of computer labs in the district will be reduced by nearly half, saving about $1 million a year. The remaining labs will be used for more specialized classes, such as computer programming, video production and computer-assisted drawing.

Sixth-graders will receive the laptops next year. Upper elementary students, seventh-graders and students at two high schools will receive the devices in 2016-17. Eighth-graders and the remaining four high schools will get them in 2017-18.

The Omaha World-Herald says the district has more than 37,800 students.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Lincoln Children’s Zoo is seeking three acres of land to expand westward.

The zoo wants to expand it facility to include new exhibit space and a permanent home for the Zoo School, which is part of the Lincoln Public Schools’ system. The land that is being considered includes where the Ager Play Center and the city’s Parks and Recreation Office are located. The play center and the office would be used by the zoo.

Zoo Executive Director John Chapo says that he hopes that at least a portion of the zoo can be kept open year-round instead of only April to October.

The Parks and Recreation Advisory Board is scheduled to decide whether to endorse the land-use proposal in May. If the board approves, a feasibility study will be conducted.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska court has ruled to uphold a 38-year-old Lincoln man’s conviction of sexually assaulting a young girl.

The Nebraska Court of Appeals issued an opinion Tuesday, saying trial errors alleged by Mitchell Bogenreif’s attorneys were unfounded. Bogenreif was convicted of first-degree sexual assault of a child and aggravated third-degree sexual assault in May based on testimony from a then 8-year-old girl.

Defense attorneys argued the girl’s testimony wasn’t sufficient for the jury to convict Bogenreif, primarily because there was no physical evidence of sexual assault. They also said Bogenreif never admitted the alleged sexual abuse to the girl’s mother. But the concluded that the verdict ultimately came down to credibility, which is a question for the jury.

Bogenreif is serving 44 to 65 years in prison.

YORK, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Court of Appeals has ordered a new trial for a 33-year-old man convicted of killing his infant daughter.

The court ruled Tuesday that 33-year-old Ryan Kozisek should have a new jury trial after he appealed his December 2013 sentence of 35 to 50 years in prison. A York County jury found Kozisek guilty of child abuse resulting in the death of his 4-month-old daughter, Kayley Kozisek.

The appeals court concluded that Kozisek should get a retrial because an admission of opinion made by his ex-wife regarding his involvement in the baby’s death “was prejudicial error.” A new trial has not yet been scheduled.

Kayley died at an Omaha hospital on Jan. 25, 2011, a day after Kozisek called 911 and said she wasn’t breathing.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — An Omaha officer who fatally shot an unarmed man last month has resigned following a departmental investigation.

The Omaha Police Department said in a news release on Tuesday that the Internal Affairs investigation into the Feb. 23 shooting had been completed and that Chief Todd Schmaderer (SHMAH’-dur) had accepted the resignation of Officer Alvin Lugod.

The news release did not say whether Lugod had violated any departmental policies or say why he quit. A police spokeswoman didn’t immediately return a message from The Associated Press, seeking comment.

A grand jury had cleared Lugod in the shooting of 39-year-old Danny Elrod, who was a suspect in a robbery at a nearby store.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A 33-year-old man has taken a plea deal in the hit-and-run death of a rural Hickman resident in southeast Nebraska.

Court records say James Gibbs, of Panama, pleaded no contest to manslaughter on Monday. Prosecutors dropped a charge of failing to stop and render aid in return for Gibbs’ plea.

Authorities say Gibbs was driving his pickup home from a bar when he hit 62-year-old Gregory Nicklas around 11:30 p.m. on May 29 last year while Nicklas was out walking his dog. Gibbs left the scene but later turned himself in.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A man has been arrested after Lincoln police say he stole a vehicle from a car dealership.

Sgt. John Walsh says workers at DuTeau Chevrolet reported on Monday afternoon that someone had stolen a 2015 Chevy Camaro. Nebraska State Patrol troopers tracked the car for about an hour before Lincoln police officers began a pursuit.

Walsh says officers tried to arrest the 21-year-old suspect, but he rammed the vehicle into a patrol car before taking off. Police worked with the car dealership’s employees, who reached out to OnStar to shut the car off remotely.

Walsh says officers eventually were able to arrest the man on suspicion of felony theft, fleeing to avoid arrest and other charges.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A 41-year-old Iowa woman who was managing property in northeast Nebraska’s South Sioux City has been sentenced for lying to federal officials.

Federal prosecutors said Monday that Melissa Edwards, of Sioux City, Iowa, was given a year and a day in prison and was ordered to pay more than $179,000 in restitution. She must serve three years of supervised release when she leaves custody.

Prosecutors say Edwards falsified applications and recertifications for Section 8 housing subsidies from October 2011 to October 2013.

In August Edwards was placed on probation in Iowa’s Woodbury County District Court after pleading guilty to theft for stealing more than $8,000 while manager of a Sioux City apartment complex.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A former University of Nebraska football coach has been charged with domestic assault after Lincoln police say he threw a picture frame at a 33-year-old woman.

Forty-year-old Rick Kaczenski was Nebraska’s defensive line coach from 2012 to 2014. Deputy Lancaster County Attorney Carolyn Bosn charged him with third-degree domestic assault Monday.

A Lincoln police officer says police were called over the weekend to a Lincoln home about an argument between two people. Police found the woman with a cut to her forehead and scratches to her face and neck.

Kaczenski was jailed Sunday on suspicion of committing third-degree domestic assault. He was released on bond Monday night.

It wasn’t immediately clear if Kaczenski has an attorney.