(AP) — A jury has returned a guilty verdict for two Omaha men accused of killing two men in December.

39-year-old Terrell Newman and 36-year-old Derrick Stricklin were found guilty Tuesday.

Their charges included first-degree murder, attempted intentional manslaughter, use of a firearm to commit a felony and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

The bodies of 47-year-old Carlos Morales and 40-year-old Bernardo Noreiga were found inside an auto body business on Dec. 2. A third man was inside the building but was not hurt. He identified Newman as one of the shooters.

(AP) — A former town clerk accused of stealing from her south-central Nebraska town has pleaded not guilty.

Jennifer Bassett was in Clay County District Court on Wednesday to face two counts of theft. Court and arrest records say the 38-year-old Bassett used a credit card issued to the town of Fairfield in her name to pay for personal items and services. Records also say Bassett overpaid herself and overcompensated herself for health insurance premiums.

Bassett is due back in court on Jan. 8. A trial date hasn’t been set.

(AP) — Organizers of a rally in Omaha calling for Congress to pass immigration reform say hundreds of supporters from across Nebraska will participate.

The “Families’ March and Rally for Dignity and Respect” will begin at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Heartland of America Park near downtown Omaha. It is part of a nationwide series of rallies and marches in October calling for immigration reform.

Speakers at Saturday’s rally in Omaha will include Nebraska families and leaders from business, faith, youth and civil rights organizations.

 

(AP) — A 37-year-old Beatrice man has been given 15 to 24 years in prison for several felony convictions.

Gary Kuhn Jr. was sentenced on Wednesday in Gage County District Court. Kuhn had made a plea deal with prosecutors, who dropped or reduced several charges in two cases. Court records say Kuhn pleaded no contest to four charges and guilty to another.

Records say Kuhn was arrested on Feb. 13 after biting and choking a woman. Children ages 3 and 4 were present but covered their eyes.

On Wednesday Kuhn asked Judge Paul Korslund for help, saying the demons of substance abuse had driven him out of control.

(AP) — Three teenagers suspected of crimes in Iowa, Missouri and Nebraska have been captured in southwest Iowa.

Fremont County, IA sheriff’s deputies found the three inside the public library on Tuesday. The three bolted but were soon captured after foot chases.

The three had been reported missing from a youth center in Manning.

Nebraska authorities had alerted the Fremont County deputies as Otoe County, Neb., deputies were chasing a pickup believed stolen in Plattsmouth, Neb. Fremont County deputies soon were tipped that the pickup was seen in Sidney.

The three are suspected of vehicle theft in Manning, Iowa, a police pursuit in Atchison County, Mo., thefts in Nemaha County, Neb., and vehicle theft and arson in Cass County, Neb.

Two of the teens are 16; the other is 13.

(AP) — Gov. Dave Heineman is criticizing a local veterans service officer who wants to block federal funding for a new veterans home, after the state decided to move it from Grand Island to Kearney.

Heineman called the request “outrageous” in an open letter Thursday, and urged state and local officials in Grand Island to condemn it.

The Sept. 6 letter was sent to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs by Donald Shuda, a veterans service officer based in Grand Island. Shuda urged the federal government to withhold funding until further study is completed. The letter also noted that Heineman will leave office in less than 1 ½ years because of term limits.

The Department of Veterans Affairs says it will respect the governor’s right to choose the facility’s location.

 

(AP) — The Iowa State Patrol says a section of Interstate 80 in Council Bluffs has collapsed, but no one was injured.

The Omaha World-Herald reports crews were installing a pipe beneath the freeway when the three eastbound lanes collapsed Wednesday night.

Council Bluffs police say the collapse left about a 10-foot gap that was 2 to 3 feet deep.

Workers immediately called 911 and authorities were able to halt traffic and avoid injuries.

The state Department of Transportation posted a message on its website just before 9 p.m. saying lanes were blocked between Exit 1A and Exit 4.

Omaha TV station WOWT reported the Department of Transportation advised that eastbound lanes from the Missouri River bridge to the South Expressway exit would remain closed until late afternoon Thursday.

(AP) — When pheasant hunters take to the fields of South Dakota this weekend to renew a treasured rite of autumn, they’ll have less land to do it on thanks to the federal government shutdown.

About 150,000 acres in the national wildlife refuge system will be off-limits for the state’s annual public lands hunt. It’s a scenario being played out across the country, affecting millions of acres ordinarily available to hunters seeking antelope in Colorado, ducks in Montana or bears in Alaska.

In South Dakota, millions of acres of land leased or owned by the state will still be available.

But Mark Norton of the state wildlife department says the national wildlife refuge system offers some of the best cover for upland birds. He says sportsmen will feel the loss.

(AP) — Montana officials want to make salvaging roadkill for the dinner table as easy as a mouse click.

State officials plan to let drivers who accidentally kill big game to print out permits at home that allow them to harvest the meat for food.

Later on, there will be an app for that, too.

State lawmakers earlier this year passed the bill allowing motorists to salvage the carcasses of deer, elk, moose and antelope struck by vehicles. They left it to the state Fish, Wildlife and Parks agency to sort out how to issue roadkill permits.

Wildlife commissioners are expected to approve regulations Thursday that allow people to go online for the permits. Spokesman Ron Aasheim says there are plans in the works for a smartphone application for permits, as well.

(AP) — The Omaha Tribe of Nebraska has declared a state of emergency in an area where a tornado damaged homes and injured people.

The tribe says the declaration will help coordinate response efforts to meet the needs of displaced residents in Macy, which is located in northeast Nebraska.

The tornado on Saturday injured two residents, severely damaged five homes and damaged a business. The tribe is assisting at least four displaced families by offering new trailer homes that are in the process of being built.

Omaha Tribal Chairman Rodney Morris says the tribe is grateful for the outpouring of support from nearby communities. They’re encouraging people to help displaced families with needs like groceries, toiletries and other household goods.