COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A 36-year-old man has been found guilty of killing another man nearly 11 years ago in Council Bluffs.

A jury convicted James Harris on Tuesday of first-degree murder. Prosecutors say he stabbed to death Nelson Alvarez-Hernandez during a robbery on July 31, 2003.

The case went cold until police used DNA results to tie Thomas Sanchez, of La Vista, Nebraska, to the case and arrest him in January. That led police back to Harris, who police say had long been a suspect. Harris was arrested in March. Charges against Sanchez were dropped on June 24.

Harris faces life in prison without parole at his sentencing, which is scheduled for Aug. 20.

FAIRBURY, Neb. (AP) — A 32-year-old convicted sex offender has been sent back to a Nebraska prison for 25 more years.

Online court records say Billy Barritt was sentenced last week after being convicted of five counts of child sexual assault.

Fairbury police say Barritt molested one boy several times over a year following Barritt’s release from prison, where he’d served time for sexually assaulting a child in Madison County. Police also say Barritt molested three other children at a birthday party held at Barritt’s Fairbury home in 2012.

ELKHORN, Neb. (AP) — Access to the Elkhorn River in eastern Nebraska will continue to be restricted through the July 4th weekend cause of dangerous high water.

The Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District has closed all the Elkhorn River access points in Douglas County.

General manager John Winkler says boating on the river remains dangerous.

But if the river returns to normal levels, the access points could be reopened next week.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Cedar Rapids police say the body of a teenager swept into a storm drain has been found more than a mile away in a lake.

Police announced Tuesday afternoon they had found the body of 17-year-old Logan Blake in Cedar Lake. He was in 3 feet of water, about 75 yards from the shore.

Firefighters who were searching in a boat found the body about 4 p.m.

The body is being taken to a local hospital and the state medical examiner will determine the cause of death.

Blake was with friends on the grounds of an elementary school when he was pulled into the drain by fast-moving water.

 

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A judge has denied bail for an Omaha man accused of fatally shooting another man.

Bailed was denied Tuesday for 26-year-old Corleone M. McCurry. He faces a first-degree murder charge in the June 25 death of 41-year-old Timothy Marzettie. He also faces a charge of use of a firearm to commit a felony

McCurry’s girlfriend, 22-year-old Brittani Brown, also faces a charge of being an accessory in the case. Her bail was set at $75,000.

The couple was arrested Sunday. Court records do not list attorneys for them.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Lincoln police say investigators have spoken with a Texas teenager who was critically injured when she fell from a six-floor hotel window and don’t believe her fall was due to foul play.

18-year-old Brittany Turner, of Houston, was able to speak Monday with investigators. Police say the window Turner fell from was broken, but Capt. David Beggs wouldn’t release other details.

Turner was in Lincoln with other Houston high school students for the International Thespian Festival.

After falling from the window at the Embassy Suites in downtown Lincoln, she landed on a second-floor balcony.

Her mother, Lynn Hamilton, rushed to Lincoln to be with her daughter. She says Turner is an accomplished actor and plans to attend Howard University in Washington this fall.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska appeals court has ruled that an Iowa judge shouldn’t have decided a custody dispute involving two boys from Omaha, even though their mother now lives in Iowa.

The three-judge panel of the Nebraska Court of Appeals said Tuesday that a Douglas County judge in Omaha should determine the case.

Court records say Francis M. Zimmerman and Tiffany L. Biggs are the unwed parents of two boys who were born in Omaha, one in 2010 and the other in 2013. Biggs moved to Creston, Iowa, last year, and filed a domestic violence protection order against Zimmerman. An Iowa judge granted the order and awarded her temporary custody of both children.

Zimmerman sought custody in Douglas County, where a judge ruled the Iowa court had already decided the matter.

BLAIR, Neb. (AP) — The hail storm that hit Blair last month caused roughly $5 million damage to the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant in eastern Nebraska.

The Omaha Public Power District says that damage estimate could still change because repair bids haven’t been received for some work.

The June 3 storm damaged homes and vehicles with baseball-sized hail and winds stronger than 90 mph.

OPPD spokesman Jeff Hanson says the storm didn’t disrupt the nuclear power plant’s operations.

But Hanson says the hail damaged the roof of the administration building, broke some windows and also damaged rooftop air conditioners and other equipment.

The storm also caused significant damage to utility vehicles that were parked at the complex.

OPPD has a $2.5 million deductible on its insurance policy the utility will have to pay.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — An Omaha woman has been given five years of probation for her involvement in a fraudulent housing scheme involving an AIDS support group.

U.S. Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced Tuesday that 35-year-old Tamika Payne, of Omaha, also must pay restitution of more than $141,000.

Gilg’s office says in a news release that Payne helped her friend and co-conspirator Jason Armstrong prepare fraudulent applications for federal housing assistance funding. Armstrong was a case manager for the Nebraska Aids Project, a group that provides services to people living with HIV and AIDS.

Gilg’s office says Payne and Armstrong split the money from the fraudulent benefits. Both were convicted of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. Armstrong was given two years in prison and ordered to pay restitution.

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — The beloved giant canine ambassador at the Grand Island animal shelter has died.

Dubbed Angus T. Loner after his capture in December 2009, the gold and brown mastiff had to retire from his duties at the Central Nebraska Humane Society. He’d been diagnosed with wobbler syndrome, a neurologic disease that affected his legs.

His adopted mom, Laurie Dethloff, said Angus’ hind legs became so atrophied that he couldn’t walk. He was euthanized on Friday.

Angus evaded capture for around four years after being left outside a local meatpacking plant in 2005. After his capture, he was socialized and turned into the shelter’s mascot, greeting people as they arrived.

He was featured on Animal Planet’s “Dogs 101” television show in 2010.