(AP) — A woman who tried to break into a Colorado jail after demanding that she be arrested instead of her brother got her wish.

Twenty-year-old Monique Deshawn Armstrong was being held at the Mesa County jail Tuesday, a day after authorities say she called 911 to demand she be booked and her brother released. Her brother was arrested Sunday night on suspicion of driving under the influence.

Sheriff’s officials say that soon after the call, Armstrong got past the chain-link and razor wire fence that surrounds the jail yard. They say she was found there throwing landscaping rocks at a jail window

Armstrong asked to be arrested, and the deputies obliged.

A few hours later, her brother posted bond and was released.

(AP) — A former Omaha child care provider has been given jail time in connection with the death of a 1-year-old boy under her care.

Elizabeth Harding was sentenced Tuesday to 120 days in jail and five years of probation.

A Douglas County District judge found Harding guilty of child neglect resulting in death.

Investigators say Harding was watching Chase Hunter in February 2013 when she put the child to sleep in an unbuckled car seat. Investigators say the seat belt harness wrapped around the boy’s neck. He died later at a hospital.

(AP) — A Lancaster County judge won’t block a lawsuit filed for three same-sex couples challenging a Nebraska policy that bars them and all unmarried couples from serving as foster parents.

The state had sought dismissal of the case, saying the plaintiffs had no standing and had failed to state a claim.

But Judge John Colborn said in a ruling issued last week that there was no evidence presented as to whether the policy could survive judicial scrutiny, so he allowed the case to go forward.

The lawsuit filed for the couples last August by the Nebraska and national American Civil Liberties Union argues that the policy discriminates against would-be foster parents based on their sexual orientation.

(AP) — A 42-year-old Omaha man has made a last-minute deal with prosecutors and been convicted of two rapes and other crimes.

Jury selection was to begin Monday for the trial of Anthony Vaughn, who originally was charged with seven counts of forcible sexual assault that occurred from 1999 through 2009. Instead he pleaded no contest and was convicted of two rapes, one attempted sexual assault and one weapons charge. Prosecutors dropped the other charges in exchange for his pleas.

Five women were prepared to testify against Vaughn.

He’ll face up to 140 years in prison when he’s sentenced in July. A DNA sample taken in 2011 after a burglary conviction linked Vaughn to the assaults.

(AP) — A Saunders County sheriff’s deputy has confirmed a motorist’s sighting of a mountain lion near Wahoo.

Sheriff Kevin Stukenholtz says the motorist saw the mountain lion about 4:25 a.m. Monday as it fed on a deer carcass on U.S. Highway 77 about a mile and a half south of Wahoo. The deputy sent to check the report shined his spotlight in some nearby trees and saw the mountain lion jump down from one and run off.

The sighting occurred about a half mile from Saunders Medical Center. Stukenholtz says the hospital was notified.

Mountain lions, which also are called cougars or pumas, have turned up as far east in Nebraska as Omaha.

(AP) — Adult siblings in Lincoln have been accused of brutally attacking a relative.

Lincoln police say 18-year-old Henrionce Cope and 20-year-old Sade Cope attacked 50-year-old Charles Riley Jr. on Sunday.

Officer Katie Flood said the siblings stabbed Riley 13 times in his head, arms and legs. They’re also accused of using a broken bottle and an iron in the attack.

Authorities say Riley is Henrionce Cope’s stepfather. It’s unclear what his relationship is to Sade Cope.

Riley was treated at a hospital. The siblings were arrested Monday without incident on suspicion of second-degree assault and using a weapon to commit a felony. Court records do not list attorneys.

(AP) — Authorities have released the name of a car driver killed in a collision with a truck in eastern Nebraska.

The driver was identified as 51-year-old Kevin Janning, of Bellevue.

The accident occurred a little before 6:10 a.m. Monday on U.S. Highway 275 about a half mile east of Scribner.

Dodge County Sheriff Steve Hespen says the westbound car crossed the center line and rammed the oncoming truck.

Janning was pronounced dead at the scene. The truck driver wasn’t injured. He’s been identified as 72-year-old Ronnie Billheimer, of Randolph.

(AP) — A 28-year-old Lincoln man has been sentenced to jail for groping or slapping the backsides of women jogging on city trails.

Christopher Jackson was sentenced on Monday. Online court records say Jackson had pleaded no contest to three counts of sexual assault and one count of misdemeanor assault.

Lincoln police say women had reported separate incidents in September. They said their attacker would ride up on a bicycle from behind them and would reach out to grab or slap their buttocks.

(AP) — At least 35 deaths have been reported from a large, stubborn storm system making its way through the South after pummeling the central U.S.

In Mississippi, officials say 12 people died Monday, nine in Winston County, where hard-hit Louisville is the county seat. Three others died in separate traffic incidents.

In Alabama, three people were reported dead, two in the northern part of the state and one in Tuscaloosa. There, officials say a University of Alabama student died Monday when he took shelter in a home’s basement and a retaining wall collapsed on him.

Tennessee officials say two people died in a home when a suspected tornado hit Monday night.

On Sunday, 15 were killed as a tornado blasted through Arkansas. One person died in Oklahoma, and two in Iowa.

The American Red Cross is responding across the South and Midwest to help people affected by the massive storm system that has destroyed neighborhoods and left thousands without power.

Red Cross workers opened or supported community shelters in seven states Monday night including Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Mississippi and Virginia. More than 100 people sought refuge in the shelters and many more visited them for meals and information about what help is available. If someone needs to find a shelter, they can contact their local Red Cross chapter or access the Red Cross shelter map on redcross.org, which is updated every 30 minutes with shelter locations by address, city, state and/or zip code.

“Two well-trained disaster responders from Lincoln will deploy to hard hit Arkansas and Mississippi,” said Jill Orton, Region Disaster Officer. “These two men will join hundreds of other Red Cross workers who are providing immediate assistance to the residents who have been touched by this disaster.”

Red Cross workers are providing health and mental health services and Red Cross emergency vehicles are distributing food and relief supplies throughout the affected states as weather conditions permit. The Red Cross is mobilizing additional disaster workers and emergency vehicles to move into the affected states to provide additional help when it is safe to do so.

“It’s heart wrenching to see the destruction this storm has caused and that so many people have lost everything,” said Richard Reed, senior vice president, Disaster Cycle Services for the Red Cross, who is in Arkansas. “Red Cross workers are here now, providing shelter, food and comfort, and we’ll be here for weeks to help people as they begin to recover.”

More than 75 million people are still at risk from this storm system which threatens communities from the southeast coast to the Great Lakes and into the Mid-Atlantic region. Parts of Alabama and Mississippi face the highest threat today in communities already battered by the storm Monday.

 
DOWNLOAD TORNADO APP People should download the free Red Cross tornado app onto their mobile devices. The app includes a warning siren and alert when a tornado warning has been issued and an all-clear alert when the warning expires or is cancelled. Users can find Red Cross shelters and utilize the app’s “I’m Safe” button to let loved ones know they are okay. The Red Cross sent out 4.4 million severe weather notifications in the last 48 hours through its tornado app for tornado and thunderstorm watches and warnings.

TORNADO SAFETY People should know how their community will warn them about the storm. Other steps include the following:

• Pick a place where family members can gather – the basement, a center hallway, bathroom, or closet on the lowest floor. Keep this place uncluttered.
• Move or secure lawn furniture, trash cans, hanging plants or anything else that can be picked up by the wind and become a projectile.
• Watch for tornado danger signs – dark, greenish clouds, a cloud of debris, large hail, a funnel cloud or roaring noise.
• Mobile homes are not safe during tornadoes or severe winds. If there is access to a sturdy shelter or vehicle, abandon the mobile home immediately and go to that facility. Do not wait until the tornado is in view.
• If someone is caught outdoors, they should seek shelter in a basement or sturdy building. If they can’t do that, they should get into a vehicle, buckle their seat belt and drive to the closest sturdy shelter. If flying debris occurs, they should pull over and park, stay in the vehicle with their head down below the windows, covering their head.