Connect with us

Nebraska

Governor nixes proposal to relax police trainee standards for marijuana, drug use

Published

on

Governor nixes proposal to relax police trainee standards for marijuana, drug use


LINCOLN, Neb. (Nebraska Examiner) – Gov. Jim Pillen has rejected a proposed relaxation in drug-use standards to qualify for training as a Nebraska law enforcement officer, saying it could be viewed as a “watering down” of the standards.

A panel of state law enforcement officials had recommended the change as part of a broader effort to qualify more applicants for the necessary state training to work in law enforcement.

Currently, a recruit cannot have used marijuana for 24 months, or used a narcotic or other “dangerous drug” for five years. prior to being admitted to the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center in Grand Island.

The Police Standards Advisory Council had proposed to lower the standards to 12 months for marijuana and three years for narcotics.

Advertisement

Not ‘prudent’

Pillen, in a July 18 letter rejecting the proposed rule change, said he didn’t think it was “prudent” to adopt such a change without data that shows “a significant number” of applicants are being rejected due to the current drug-use standards.

“It is therefore imperative that we have the necessary data before making a policy change that could be perceived as watering down the standards to become a law enforcement officer in the State of Nebraska,” Pillen wrote.

He urged the Police Standards Advisory Council to collect the data and, if they wish, resubmit their proposed rule change.

On Wednesday, the police council will meet to decide what to do next.

Data being sought

Brian Jackson, the president of the council and an assistant chief with the Lincoln Police Department, said that he and others on the council are seeking numbers on how many potential recruits have been disqualified due to the current drug standards.

Advertisement

Jackson said it was impossible to know how many potential applicants didn’t apply after learning of the drug-use standards, but he knows that some applicants have been disqualified, after applying, due to the current requirements.

“There have been people who have been disqualified due to drug standards but there have been people who have been disqualified for other reasons,” he said.

“Not every idea is a good idea,” Jackson added.

He said multiple reasons exist for why fewer men and women are seeking to become law enforcement officers.

The proposed changes in training center entry requirements come as police agencies across Nebraska, and across the nation, struggle to attract new recruits, despite recent salary increases at some.

Advertisement

Negative publicity about police work, inspired in large part by police custody deaths such has the suffocation death of George Floyd during a police stop in Minneapolis, has been blamed for much of it.

Meanwhile, laws concerning marijuana use are relaxing across the country, with 23 states, including nearby Colorado and Minnesota, allowing recreational use of pot as of June 1, Reuters reported.

Recruiting has improved from ‘worst ever’

In February, the superintendent of the Nebraska State Patrol described the volume of new trooper candidates as “the worst it’s ever been.”

The situation has improved somewhat since then — in February, the Patrol reported 69 vacant posts for state troopers out of an authorized force of 482 uniform officers. Just recently, the vacant post figure had dropped to around 60.

Staffing has also improved at the Lincoln Police Department, which hiked its starting pay to $64,000 — the highest in the state.

Advertisement

Lincoln television station KOLN/KGIN reported last month that Lincoln police were short 27 officers, or about 7% of the force, compared to 40 vacancies in June of 2022.

The proposed rule changes rejected by the governor included several other changes, though Pillen only mentioned the drug-use standards as problematic. The changes were a mixture of new requirements passed by the State Legislature to increase the professionalism of law enforcement officers, and attempts to attract more applicants.

The other changes include: allowing graduates of home schools to qualify for admittance for law enforcement training; requiring new recruits to undergo psychological testing to determining their fitness for the job; and disqualifying someone who was convicted of  threatening violence, and not just using it.

Nebraska Examiner is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Nebraska Examiner maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Cate Folsom for questions: info@nebraskaexaminer.com. Follow Nebraska Examiner on Facebook and Twitter.

Advertisement





Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Nebraska

Dana Holgorsen, John Butler talk bowl prep and being “light on your feet”

Published

on

Dana Holgorsen, John Butler talk bowl prep and being “light on your feet”


Dana Holgorsen, John Butler talk bowl prep and being “light on your feet”

In today’s college football, coaches must have their head on a swivel.

Advertisement

That’s true during the season of course, but it’s now a way of life once the transfer portal opens in December and rosters start moving and shaking. And things get even more wild if you’re at a program that’s playing in a bowl game, or even the College Football Playoff.

It’s a balancing act that all staffs are going through right now. Nebraska’s included.

“You’ve got to be light on your feet, man,” Nebraska defensive coordinator John Butler said during a press conference over Zoom on Thursday. “I mean, you’re maybe in the middle of a game-plan meeting and all of a sudden you got to jump out and you’re having a 30-minute meeting with a prospect that’s in on a visit, or you’re jumping on a Zoom doing it. Or you’re watching 15 minutes of tape to make sure that, hey, this guy just jumped in and he wants to visit us. So I think you got to be a fast thinker and mover and a shaker, quite frankly.”

This whole process has taught Butler, who spent the 2024 season as the defensive backs coach under now-departed DC Tony White, that these traits are as important as ever: Being decisive. Being organized. Following a road map to achieve a goal and not deviating from it when there’s chaos all over.

Advertisement

“You’ve got to have a plan and a vision for what you’re looking for, because everything happens so fast,” Butler said. “You have a guy get in and get out, get in and get signed. And at the same time, you also got to keep an eye on your roster constantly, because there’s people reaching out. There’s people reaching out to your players, whether it’s direct or it’s people reaching out through a third party. And it’s unfortunate in this environment.

“People said, ‘Hey, it’s like NFL free agency.’ No, it’s not. NFL free agency is regulated.”

As Husker fans have come to learn, just because a player says he’s going to enter the transfer portal doesn’t mean he actually will. And sometimes when a player actually enters his name in the portal, there’s always a chance they could withdraw their name and return to their program if each side wants.

Nebraska saw that happen with defensive lineman Keona Davis, who briefly entered the portal before withdrawing and staying at NU for 2025. There was also running back Emmett Johnson — he announced he would enter the portal but never made it there.

Advertisement

Holgorsen played a key role in convincing Johnson to stay at Nebraska.

“We had some long talks after the season, and I got to know him better as a person,” Holgorsen said of his relationship with Johnson. “I did that with a bunch of them, but him in particular was probably about the first one that came in and was excited about what we did, but there was some buts. So we had some long talks. I think he’s a great kid and he’s going to be a special player here. Excited to coach him.”

On Holgorsen’s side of the ball, he’ll have to adjust his game plan now that he’ll be without a handful of players he was able to use during the regular season.

Running back Dante Dowdell transferred to Kentucky on Friday. A tight end Holgorsen really liked, Nate Boerkircher, transferred to Texas A&M. Receiver Isaiah Neyor has chosen to opt out of the Pinstripe Bowl to focus on his NFL aspirations. Offensive lineman Micah Mazzccua, who began the year as the starting right guard but finished the season rotating with Gunnar Gottula at left tackle, won’t play in the bowl because he’s getting surgery to fix a torn labrum he played through during the season.

Advertisement

There will be holes to fill on Holgorsen’s offense in the bowl game and beyond in 2025. But Holgorsen brushes all of this chaos off. He’s a go-with-the-flow guy. He doesn’t pretend to have answers to fix college football. What he does have, though, is a plan.

“There’s been a lot of talk out there about something needs to happen. That’s above my pay grade,” Holgorsen said. “So, the few kids who decided to do that (leave), we wish them well, and you just go replace them. It’s as simple as that.”

Part of that replacement process needs to happen for the bowl game with current members of the roster. Behind Emmett Johnson, expect Rahmir Johnson — he’s native of the Bronx and will have several family members and friends at Yankee Stadium — to play often as it’ll be his final game in a Husker uniform.

But with Dowdell and Gabe Ervin Jr. gone from the team, perhaps this Pinstripe Bowl will feature another big back on Nebraska’s roster who’s seldom been used: redshirt freshman Kwinten Ives, a 6-3, 210-pounder.

“You know, 23 (Dowdell) isn’t playing in the bowl game but 28 (Ives) is gonna go in there and he’s gonna play his tail off because he’s had nine spectacular practices,” Holgorsen said. “I think that’s how you got to look at it. You don’t worry about the ones that aren’t playing. You worry about the ones that are playing, and you coach them and you try to develop them, put them in position to hopefully be successful.”

Advertisement

ENJOYING INSIDE NEBRASKA?

>> GAIN ALL-ACCESS with an annual or monthly subscription for less than $10/month

>> NEW SUBSCRIBERS get 30 days FREE

>> Sound off on the hot topics on our INSIDER’S BOARD

>> Follow us on Twitter (@NebraskaRivals)

Advertisement

>> Follow us on Instagram (@nebraskarivals)

>> Subscribe for FREE to the Inside Nebraska YouTube channel





Source link

Continue Reading

Nebraska

Purdue Transfer Quarterback Marcos Davila Commits to Nebraska

Published

on

Purdue Transfer Quarterback Marcos Davila Commits to Nebraska


KALEB HENRY

Kaleb Henry is an award-winning sports reporter, covering collegiate athletics since 2014 via radio, podcasting, and digital journalism. His experience with Big Ten Conference teams goes back more than a decade, including time covering programs such as the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Oregon Ducks, and USC Trojans. He has contributed to Sports Illustrated since 2021. Kaleb has won multiple awards for his sports coverage from the Nebraska Broadcasters Association and Midwest Broadcast Journalists Association. Prior to working in sports journalism, Kaleb was a Division I athlete on the Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Track and Field team where he discussed NCAA legislation as SIUE’s representative to the Ohio Valley Conference Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. 



Source link

Continue Reading

Nebraska

Rhule talks Dante Dowdell, navigating new landscape of roster management

Published

on

Rhule talks Dante Dowdell, navigating new landscape of roster management


Many Nebraska football fans were caught off guard and surprised when they saw Dante Dowdell’s name pop up in the transfer portal.

The big and physical downhill runner played in every regular-season game this season with seven starts. Dowdell rushed for 614 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns in 2024.

With Emmett Johnson and Dowdell, the Huskers looked to have a nice 1-2 punch in the backfield in 2025. Johnson as the shifty all-purpose back with plenty of make-you-miss and receiving ability in him. Dowdell, a young back who’s still developing in certain areas, as the 6-foot-2, 225-pound north-south bruiser who was money in short-yardage and goal-line situations.

But the days of being caught off guard and surprised by anything dealing with college football are over. With the way the sport is operating right now, Matt Rhule wasn’t surprised Dowdell is looking elsewhere.

Advertisement

According to Nebraska’s head coach, the process of Dowdell’s departure started well before the transfer portal opened.



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending