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DEVELOPING: LICENSE PLATES,
ADDS: BEATRICE PROBLEMS, SUPCO–FAKE CHECKPOINT, SUPCO-ATTORNEY DISBARRED, UNEMPLOYMENT, DAM REMOVAL, FARM SCENE-KLAMATH WATER,
BEATRICE PROBLEMS
LINCOLN—Statements from a top state official and consultant during and after a meeting about the troubled Beatrice State Developmental Center earlier this month angered and surprised Terry Kruse. He’s the father of a mentally disabled man who had lived at the center. By Nate Jenkins.
AP Photo
LICENSE PLATES
OMAHA—Nebraska is changing its license plate—again—because of a prank by a Web site. Department of Motor Vehicles Director Beverly Neth announced Friday the white, gold and black plate featuring the state bird and state flower—the western meadowlark and goldenrod—is the actual winner of online voting. By Eric Olson.
AP Photo NENH101.
SUPCO–FAKE CHECKPOINT
OMAHA—The Nebraska Supreme Court has rejected a challenge to a fake drug checkpoint the State Patrol set up, because the driver who was arrested for hauling 50 pounds of marijuana consented to be searched. In a ruling released Friday, the court said that Parry Hedgcock’s case didn’t raise constitutional questions about searches and seizures, because he freely agreed to searches of his car and himself in February 2006. By Josh Funk.
SUPCO-ATTORNEY DISBARRED
OMAHA—A Nebraska attorney convicted in 2005 of hiding large bank deposits has been disbarred. In a ruling issued Friday, the Nebraska Supreme Court said David Wintroub’s conviction violates “basic notions of honesty and endangers public confidence in the legal profession.” By Jean Ortiz.
BUSINESS:
UNEMPLOYMENT
LINCOLN—Nebraska’s unemployment rate dropped to 4.4 percent in April, federal officials said in a report issued Friday. That’s three-tenths of a percentage point less than the revised March figure of 4.7 percent in a new report from Nebraska officials.
DAM REMOVAL
YAKIMA, Wash.—PacifiCorp is delaying plans to remove Condit Dam on southwest Washington’s White Salmon River until next year as it pursues the necessary permits. The utility is owned by a division of Omaha, Neb.-based Berkshire Hathaway. By Shannon Dininny.
FARM SCENE-KLAMATH WATER
GRANTS PASS, Ore.—The Klamath Tribes of Oregon and farmers have agreed to drop their state water rights battle pending approval of a federal agreement leading to removal of dams on the Klamath River. The settlement filed Wednesday with the Oregon Department of Water Resources mirrors the water issues in the dam removal plan, known as the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement. By Environmental Writer Jeff Barnard. Eds: Note Nebraska mention. Also moving on national lines.
SPORTS:
— BIG 12 COACH—The Big 12 Conference has named Nebraska’s Gary Pepin its coach of the year for men’s indoor track and field.
ALSO GETTING ATTENTION:
— SWINE FLU-NEBRASKA—Nebraska health officials say six probable cases of swine flu are pending at the state’s health lab in Omaha.
— SARPY COUNTY FATAL—Authorities have identified a man killed in a fiery crash this week as 20-year-old Michael Garvey of Papillion.
— 2ND ASSAULT CHARGE—A 19-year-old man awaiting trial on a charge of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl has been accused of sexually assaulting another underage girl.
— TURBINE TRAINING—Nebraska’s community colleges are stepping up to train workers who can install and maintain wind turbines, which have boomed across the state in recent years.
— MUSEUM GRANT—A federal grant of more than $61,000 will help the Richardson County Historical Society build a museum in southeast Nebraska’s Falls City.
— HOLIDAY ENFORCEMENT—Just in time for Memorial Day weekend, Nebraska law enforcement officers are making another push for drivers to use their seat belts.
The AP, Omaha.
