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70 YO Nebraska Man Dies in Fall at Iowa Church

Gerald-Dean-WackerSIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A northeastern Nebraska man has died following a fall at a Sioux City church.

The Rev. John Woodford says 70-year-old Gerald Dean Wacker, of Walthill, Neb., was helping to build the garage for Good News Baptist Church when he fell Tuesday.

Woodford says he did not see the accident, which happened about 1 p.m. Tuesday, and did not know exactly how it occurred.

Wacker was taken to a Sioux City hospital, where he later died.

Woodford said Wacker was a generous and humble man who was quick to offer help to others.

A funeral service is set for 11 a.m. Saturday at the church.

Report: Smoke Inhalation Killed Elderly York Couple

apt.-fireYORK, Neb. (AP) — York County Attorney Candace Dick, who also serves as the county coroner, says smoke inhalation killed an elderly McCool Junction couple who died in a house fire last month.

The investigation into the deaths of Charles and Juanita Bailey, both in their 80s, is now closed.

Neighbors noticed smoke coming from the Baileys’ home near McCool Junction in southeast Nebraska on the morning of Nov. 2.

Arriving firefighters found a small fire in the home’s living room and the Baileys’ bodies in a bedroom.

Investigators believe the fire started accidentally overnight and was just smoldering when neighbors arrived.

Investigators Blame Omaha Fire That Killed 2 Children on Space Heaters

OMAHA-FIRE-AND-RESCUE-BADGEOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha fire investigators say a mobile home blaze the killed two children was likely caused by space heaters.

The Omaha Fire Investigation Unit says Friday that space heaters were used throughout the home, including in the living room, where the fire began.

Investigators determined a smoke detector was in the home’s kitchen but wasn’t working because it lacked a battery.

Police say 3-year-old Gabriel Rodriguez and his 3-month-old brother Brandon Rodriguez died in the Wednesday morning fire.

The boys’ 18-year-old mother, Champaine Harn, and their sister, Adrianna Rodriguez, remained hospitalized but were expected to survive.

Witnesses said a neighbor tried to rescue the boys but couldn’t make it past the intense flames.

Neb. Woman Gets Jail Time for Nude Photo Stunt

Valerie Dodds
Valerie Dodds

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A 19-year-old woman has received a 45-day jail sentence for sneaking onto a Lincoln Catholic high school campus and posing naked for her adult website.

A judge on Friday sentenced Valerie Dodds to 30 days in jail for trespassing and 15 days for public nudity. Prosecutors say Dodds made various poses on the football field at Lincoln Pius X in May and then posted the photos online.

Dodds says on her site that the photo shoot was revenge against students and teachers at her former school who gave her grief when she shared her plans to go into pornography.

Judge Thomas Fox ordered Dodds to serve the sentences consecutively. Her attorney, Chad Wythers, says he has already filed an appeal.

Omaha Police Arrest 2 Men in Separate Homicides

omaha-policeOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha police have arrested two men including a Northwest High football player in connection with two separate homicides.

Police say they arrested 18-year-old Mitchell Wynne and charged him with first-degree murder. He’s alleged to have shot Darnell Haynes on July 14.

Wynne, a high school senior, was arrested Friday afternoon at a residence. Police Capt. Kerry Neumann says Wynne and Haynes were acquaintances.

The case was not yet entered into court records and it wasn’t apparent whether he had an attorney.

In a separate case, police arrested 35-year old John R. Moniz Friday and charged him with first-degree murder in the slaying of Delbert Freemont Jr. whose body was found Dec. 9.

Court records did not show an attorney yet assigned to his case.

Man Wins Honor for Thwarting Lincoln Robbery

carnegie-medalOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A 29-year-old Lincoln man is among the 20 honored with medals for heroism by the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission.

Brandon Wemhoff was announced as one of the winners Friday for saving a 54-year-old woman from assault during a May 2011 attempted robbery at a Lincoln drugstore.

Wemhoff followed and confronted a masked man who ran back to the pharmacy and demanded drugs. The man turned and pointed a weapon at Wemhoff, who recognized that the weapon was really a BB handgun. Wemhoff tackled the man to the floor and held him for officers.

The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, based in Pittsburgh, says its mission is to recognize people who perform heroic acts in civilian life.

Unemployment Benefits Denied to Former Neb. County Attorney

City Attorney Bob Sivick

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court has denied unemployment benefits to a former Howard County attorney who was appointed to fill a vacancy, but lost his position when another lawyer was elected to the office.

The court released a ruling Friday that says Robert Sivick was not eligible because he served in a major advisory or policy-making position without tenure.

According to the ruling, Howard County hired Sivick as its interim county attorney in 2007. Sivick ran for the office in 2010, and lost. He filed for unemployment benefits, but the Nebraska Department of Labor denied his claim.

Sivick now works as Grand Island’s city attorney. He also is a former Omaha City Council member and member of the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission.

Woman Bitten by Nebraska Police Dog Gets Settlement

lawsuit-settlementLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A woman bitten by a Lincoln police dog during an overnight training exercise at a city park last year has settled her lawsuit against the city.

A City Council resolution shows that the city settled last month with Krystle Park for just more than $43,805.

Lancaster County District Judge Karen Flowers then dismissed Park’s lawsuit on Tuesday.

Park filed the lawsuit last year after a police dog, which was in the park around 1 a.m. with his handler for training exercises, attacked her.

Police had said they searched the park to make sure it was empty before beginning the training, but that Park was hiding beneath a tree. Park said she was hiding to flee a threatening situation with another person.

Police Say They Thwarted Attack at Colorado School

trinidad-colorado-policeTRINIDAD, Colo. (AP) — Police say they thwarted a plan by two teenagers who wanted to shoot students and teachers at a southern Colorado high school.

Police Chief Charles Glorioso says the department’s school resource officer got a tip Thursday that two boys, ages 15 and 16, planned to carry out the attack at Trinidad High School after winter break. Because of the warning, extra security was in place at three Trinidad schools Thursday.

Glorioso says investigators learned the 15-year-old had been bullied and had said he idolized the Columbine High School and Colorado theater shooters.

The teens were arrested Friday. Glorioso says they planned the attack for a month and a-half, but he wouldn’t release the details of their plot or how they would carry it out.

NSP Troopers Find Nearly 110 Pounds of Weed During I-80 Traffic Stop

POT-BUSTA traffic stop on Interstate 80 in southeast Nebraska, led to the seizure of 109.5 lbs. of marijuana stashed in a hidden compartment in the bed of a pickup truck.

Around 1:30 p.m., Thursday, December 19, a trooper made a traffic stop on a 2003 Dodge pickup headed eastbound on I-80 near the Seward exit.

The trooper was given consent to search the vehicle. A false compartment was located in the bed of the pickup. A search of the compartment led to the seizure of 109.5 lbs. of marijuana. The marijuana was contained in 12 bundles.

The driver of the pickup, Matthew D. King, 35, Colorado Springs, Colo., and a passenger, Steven J. Bennett, 37, Tucson, Arizona were both lodged in the Seward County Jail on charges to include Possession of Marijuana with Intent to Deliver.

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