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Police arrest 23-year-old suspected of Omaha slaying

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have arrested a 23-year-old man suspected of killing an Omaha resident earlier this month.

Douglas County Court records say Donovan Fryer is charged with second-degree murder and two weapons crimes. The records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for him. Police say he was arrested and booked into jail Wednesday.

He’s accused of shooting to death 20-year-old Roderick Moore, whose body was found July 5 outside an apartment building several blocks west of downtown.

Officials ID baby who died after found unresponsive at park


WATERLOO, Neb. (AP) — Officials in eastern Nebraska have identified a baby who died after being found unresponsive at a state park last week.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office says deputies called to the area found 3-month-old Miguel Futrell unresponsive at Two Rivers State Park at Waterloo around 8:30 a.m. Friday. Miguel was with his mother Asia Sovey, of Fremont, and other family members when he was discovered not breathing and unresponsive in a tent on the campgrounds of the park.
Officials say an autopsy was performed on Saturday, and investigators are awaiting the results.
The investigation into the baby’s death continues.

Man imprisoned for fatal shooting over beer bottles

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A man has been imprisoned for shooting to death another Omaha man as they argued about beer bottles.

Douglas County District Court records say 21-year-old Malcolm Ward was sentenced Tuesday to up to 60 years for killing 29-year-old Brandon Mutum. Ward had pleaded no contest to second-degree murder and two weapons charges after prosecutors lowered the murder charge and one of the weapons counts.

Prosecutors say Mutum had been criticizing Ward for leaving empty beer bottles around the apartment of one of Mutum’s friends, where friends had gathered April 20 last year. Prosecutors say Ward shot Mutum as the argument escalated.

Nebraska man dies in northwest Iowa train accident

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a Nebraska man died when a train moved as he was crawling underneath it in northwest Iowa.

Sioux City police say the accident occurred just after 11 p.m. Monday. Police say the train had stopped in downtown and the man tried to crawl under it to continue on his way. But it moved, running over him.

He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police have identified him as 45-year-old Kalmer Crowe. He lived in Winnebago, Nebraska.

Man who confessed to killing wife faces upgraded murder charge

Brandon Norton

BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — A man who confessed that he’d killed his wife in an Omaha suburb will be tried on a charge of first-degree murder.

The judge ruled Monday that 38-year-old Brandon Norton, of Bellevue, will face the upgraded charge for the slaying of 32-year-old Jennifer Norton. Her body was recovered from the Missouri River on June 8.

Norton initially was charged with second-degree murder, but prosecutors say investigators found information that warranted the new charge.

He was arrested after walking into the Sarpy County Jail on June 5 to tell authorities that he had killed his wife the day before and dropped her body from a bridge into the river. He reported that he’d choked her to death after an argument.

Eastern Nebraska city to put immigration issue to voters

SCRIBNER, Neb. (AP) — The city council in an eastern Nebraska community has decided to let voters decide whether to bar employing or renting residences to people living in the U.S. illegally.

The Scribner council voted 4-0 Monday to put a proposed ordinance on the November ballot. Last month the council gave the proposal an initial approval.

The push for such rules comes as the area prepares for an influx of workers for Costco’s new chicken processing plant in neighboring Fremont.

The Costco plant will employ 1,000 workers when it opens next year and could change the face of Scribner’s population, which is 96 percent white. Many officials interviewed for a state labor study have said the plant will likely require new residents to fill half the jobs.

Scribner’s ordinance mirrors a similar ordinance in Fremont, which went into effect four years ago.

CHI Health builds Omaha community garden

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — An Omaha-based health system has created a community garden to offer patients more access to healthy food.

CHI Health recently planted five raised garden beds with nonprofit City Sprouts at the Creighton University Medical Center campus, the Omaha World-Herald reported.

Officials intend the $326,000 project to provide produce to CHI Health patients. Nutritionists, physical therapists and behavioral health specialists can also use the garden to teach lessons on healthy eating and stress management.

The health system hopes to expand the garden to get neighbors involved, said Audrey Matthews, CHI Health’s healthier communities coordinator. CHI Health plans to hire a community health worker to identify families facing food insecurity, which refers to those who may not always know when or where they’ll get their next meal from, she said. The worker will make home visits, educate families about urban agriculture and help them plant gardens in their backyards.

Organizers will begin identifying families in South Omaha this fall, according to Matthews.

The health system is also working with local nonprofits, including City Sprouts and the Latino Center of the Midlands, to connect South Omaha residents to more fresh produce, Matthews said.

City Sprouts offers gardening classes in Spanish, said Roxanne Draper, the nonprofit’s executive director.

The Latino Center has a demonstration garden to show residents how to plant raised beds on their own.

Matthews said, “The more opportunities we can provide for the community to come to the property and be engaged, the better.”

Lottery says Powerball ticket worth $1M sold in York

YORK, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Lottery says a Powerball ticket worth $1 million was sold in York.

The ticket was bought at the Good2go Travel Center. The ticket figures matched all five white ball numbers but not the Powerball number drawn Saturday night.

Winning Nebraska Lottery Lotto tickets expire 180 days after the drawing. Prizes of $20,000 or more must be claimed in person at lottery headquarters in Lincoln.

Exhibit highlights construction of transcontinental railroad

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new exhibit of photographs and other artifacts has been assembled to celebrate the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869.

The exhibit featuring images from Union Pacific’s collection will debut in Omaha this fall before moving to museums in Utah and California next year.

When the exhibit is displayed at the Joslyn Art Museum from Oct. 6 through Jan. 6, all three commemorative railroad spikes that marked the completion of the transcontinental railroad will be displayed.

The exhibit will then travel to the Utah Museum of Fine Arts in Salt Lake City. It will be displayed there next year from Feb. 1 to May 26.

The final planned display will be at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, California next June 23 through Sept. 29.

Neo-Nazi books found in Lincoln neighborhood libraries

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Lincoln Police are investigating after neo-Nazi books were left in more than a dozen Little Free Libraries across the city.

The booklets were found in 17 of the small outdoor book exchanges in Lincoln. Earlier this month, a similar incident was reported in Omaha.

Lincoln Police Capt. Donald Scheinost said a book titled “You and Your Folk” was removed from several of the libraries.

The Anti-Defamation League urges any residents who encounter such propaganda to report it.

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