Nebraska
EXCLUSIVE: Rural Nebraska crash victims say the same man was waiting for them after separate wrecks
BENNINGTON, Neb. (WOWT) – A frightening mystery has played out along a busy highway in northern Douglas County, Neb. It’s happened at night — and it’s happened more than once.
Cresting a hill while traveling on Highway 36 in the dark, Garrison Beach faced a driver’s worst nightmare Sunday night.
“I didn’t want to [crash] head-on into a big piece of metal in the middle of the road going 55-60 miles per hour, so I just tried to swerve out of the way,” Garrison Beach said.
But he overcorrected, and his Toyota Camry barreled through a wire guardrail and down a ravine, with his wife Skylar Beach riding it out in the passenger’s seat.
“It was pretty scary,” Skylar said. “I remember screaming and I wasn’t sure when we’d start rolling, but we were fortunate to walk away from the accident.”
The crash wouldn’t be the couple’s only shock of the evening, though.
Startled as they fast-approached the object in the road, they looked over and noticed a vehicle parked on 132nd Street with the headlight on, as if someone was keeping watch on the intersection.
“As soon as we got out of the car, I remember walking up the embankment and this guy showed up,” Garrison said. “He was already there, like, waiting for us up on the side of the road and [said], ‘Are you guys okay? I’ve called the paramedics already.‘”
Garrison says they declined the strangers offer to get in his car.
“It was just very odd,” Skylar Beach said. “As soon as we said, ‘No, we’re going to wait for the police,’ he kind of just walked back to his car.”
The man left before they got his name, but he doesn’t seem to be a stranger to incidents on Highway 36.
Kyle Sorenson can attest.
“I hit a kid’s bike that had been right in the center of the road,” said Sorenson. “As I looked in my rearview mirror, I saw someone sitting there [just north] on Pawnee Road. They pulled up behind me and it was this individual saying he was checking to make sure we were okay.”
Seeing little damage on his vehicle, Kyle left, but later, near the same place along the highway, his wife spotted the same man behind another car leaking oil on the roadway.
“In two weeks, this has been three incidents where he was immediately the first person on the scene,” Sorenson said. “It seems strange.”
And even stranger, about two weeks later, Sorenson would see the same man from his incident at the crash scene of his friends, Garrison and Skylar Beach.
“I really didn’t want to confront the person, but I informed the police,” Sorenson said. “I don’t want to accuse and say this person is absolutely doing this, but I want to make aware this is strange.”
Feeling lucky to have survived the crash, the Beaches now wonder if the object sitting in their lane was simply bad luck — or no accident after all.
“We definitely want some answers on why he’s doing what he’s doing,” Skylar Beach said. “We just don’t want this to keep happening to other people, or something even worse to happen.”
The Douglas County Sheriff is investigating multiple incidents of objects laying in driving lanes on Highway 36 near Bennington. Even though it’s a main route to the landfill, the deputies want to determine if the debris fell off a truck or had placed in the roadway on purpose.
Copyright 2024 WOWT. All rights reserved.
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Bergevin was one of 3 candidates to be interviewed here
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Gov. Jim Pillen has announced his appointment of the Honorable Jason M. Bergevin of Columbus as an associate justice to the Nebraska Supreme Court representing the Fifth Judicial District. The announcement was made on Jan. 2.
“Judge Bergevin is a dedicated jurist with extensive experience as an attorney and most recently as a district judge representing the Fifth Judicial District,” said Gov. Pillen. “I have great confidence in Judge Bergevin’s abilities, and I know he has deep respect and integrity when it comes to matters of the court. I am pleased to elevate him to this role on Nebraska’s Supreme Court.”
“I am honored to be chosen as the next judge of the Nebraska Supreme Court from the Fifth Judicial District,” said Justice Bergevin. “Three highly qualified applicants stepped forward for this position. I appreciate Governor Pillen’s confidence in me. I will work hard to continue serving the Nebraska Judicial Branch and the people of our state.”
Bergevin was the second of three candidates for the position to be interviewed by the Judicial Nominating Commission on Dec. 12 in the 5th District courtroom on the third floor of the Hamilton County Courthouse. Fourteen members of the commission heard presentations and asked questions of Judge Bergevin, as well as David Bargen of Adams and Lawrence Welch, Jr. of Plattsmouth, the other two candidates.
In his opening remarks to the commission, Bergevin mentioned his prior experience as a practicing attorney and as a Judge Advocate General officer in the U.S. Air Force.
“I have been in the battle and I would be a supreme court justice who can remember what it was like to be a litigator,” he added.
In answer to a question from a member of the panel regarding how he would separate his personal views from judicial decisions, Bergevin said he believes a judge should regularly be unhappy with the result of a case because it meant the law was being followed, even though it went against his own personal preferences.
In addition to his recent role as district judge (2022), Bergevin also oversaw the opening of one of the state’s newest problem-solving courts in Platte County last summer. He was an assistant attorney general in the Nebraska Attorney General’s office for seven years where he worked with county attorneys in the prosecution of complex cases, was legal advisor to multiple state agencies and reviewed agency regulations. Bergevin also held multiple positions in the U.S. Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Corps up until 2022 and has prior experience in both the Lancaster County Attorney’s office and the Weld County District Attorney’s office in Greeley, Colo.
Bergevin holds a bachelor’s degree in secondary education from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln (UNL) and earned his juris doctor from Western New England University School of Law in Massachusetts.
The Fifth Judicial District for the Nebraska Supreme Court consists of Hamilton and 24 other counties in this part of Nebraska. The vacancy was due to Judge Jeffrey Funke’s appointment as chief justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court.
Nebraska
Couple who crashed due to object on rural Nebraska highway waits for results of sheriff’s investigation
BENNINGTON, Neb. (WOWT) – A Nebraska couple is still waiting for answers from investigators and their insurance company.
It’s been more than a month since several drivers reported large objects on a busy Douglas County highway. Sheriff’s deputies continue to investigate the incidents as intentional, but so far, no arrests have been made.
After swerving to avoid what appeared to be a TV in the highway and then crashing down into a ravine, Garrison and Skylar Beach escaped with their lives.
But six weeks later, life has been stressful.
“It isn’t a harmless thing that happened,” Garrison said. “It’s had a huge impact on us financially and in other aspects.”
The couple believes their insurance provider is waiting on the outcome of the sheriff’s investigation for a final settlement, but in the meantime, the Beaches’ out-of-pocket costs are estimated at $6,500, including a $1,500 deductible and the price of a used car they had to buy, which is cost more than the replacement value of the crashed Toyota Camry.
On top of all that, the couple says they have an expense they didn’t expect. They received a bill from the Nebraska Department of Transportation for repairs to the guardrail cable they wrecked while trying to avoid the object in the middle of the road.
“It’s the cherry on top, I guess,” Skylar Beach said. “After all this, we got the bill for the guardrail, but hopefully our insurance can help us out with that.”
Douglas County Sheriff’s Captain Eric Sellers told First Alert 6 last month that several incidents of objects sitting on Highway 36 near Bennington appear intentional to have been intentionally placed there.
“We have a subject of interest we’re looking at now in the case,” Capt. Sellers said in December.
A 22-year-old Bennington man has been questioned, but without a confession, investigators must prove he intentionally put the objects in the roadway.
“I feel like the responsible part should have to make it right for people, especially like us, where it’s putting us out thousands of dollars,” Garrison Beach said.
The Beaches are a single-income couple right now as Garrison is a full-time student studying to be a physician’s assistant.
“We just wish whoever did this will come forward and just make it right for us, because we’re at a point in our lives where this has really effected us financially,” Skylar said.
Capt. Sellers says the investigation into the highway objects is ongoing and no more similar incidents have been reported. As for the guardrail, the district engineer says that’s standard procedure but most times a driver’s insurance will cover the bill.
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Copyright 2025 WOWT. All rights reserved.
As Nebraska fully turns the page to the 2026 class, visits to Lincoln are being lined up by top targets and recent offers. We noted in last week’s Tim-Bits that Nebraska has a Junior Day set for Feb. 1 and mentioned two notable prospects already planning to be in attendance. Over the last week, I’ve caught up with numerous 2026 targets who have plans to visit Nebraska in the comings weeks/months.
Here’s some intel on visits to keep an eye out, plus some additional notes on prospects nationwide
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