Nebraska

Nebraska Supreme Court upholds state’s 12-week abortion ban and transgender care restrictions

Published

5 months ago

July 26, 2024

Nebraska Supreme Court upholds state’s 12-week abortion ban and transgender care restrictions

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – The Nebraska Supreme Court ruled in favor of the state’s 12-week abortion ban and transgender care restrictions on Friday.

A lawsuit brought by Planned Parenthood of the Heartland and its medical director, Dr. Sarah Traxler, in May 2023 claimed LB 574 violated the “no bill shall contain more than one subject, and the subject shall be clearly expressed in the title” rule in the Nebraska State Constitution.

LB 574 allowed Nebraska’s chief medical officer the ability to regulate transgender care for minors, and a last minute amendment tacked a 12-week abortion ban onto it. Governor Jim Pillen signed the bill into law on May 22, 2023.

The Supreme Court Justices peppered lawyers with the ACLU and State of Nebraska with questions about the constitutionality of LB 574 pertaining to the single-subject rule earlier this year.

In an opinion issued Friday morning, the Supreme Court found no merit to Planned Parenthood’s argument that the bill contained more than one subject, affirming a district court decision in 2023.

The state’s high court acknowledged in its ruling that abortion and gender-affirming care “are distinct types of medical care,” but found the law does not violate Nebraska’s single-subject rule because both abortion and transgender health fall under the subject of medical care, the AP reported.

The ACLU of Nebraska highlighted Justice Lindsey Miller-Lerman’s dissent from the majority’s interpretation of the single-subject requirement.

Justice Miller-Lerman accused the majority of applying different standards to bills passed by the Legislature and those sought by voter referendum.

I respectfully disagree from the majority’s holding that “‘[i]f a bill has but one general object, no matter how broad that object may be . . . it does not violate [article III, § 14].’” (Emphasis supplied.) I have explained my disagreement with the use of “object” as an inappropriate substitute for the textual “subject” in the preceding discussion. I also disagree with the majority’s search for a “broad” unifying theme that might explain why abortion and gender-affirming acts are one subject. The word “broad” is not in article III, § 14; instead, the text requires “one subject.” “Broad” and “one” are obviously in tension. Accordingly, I respectfully believe it was inappropriate for the majority to search “broadly” for a nugget that could be called one subject.

The ACLU of Nebraska released the following statement:

“We respectfully disagree with the court majority’s determination, and we had of course hoped for a very different outcome,” Mindy Rush Chipman, executive director of ACLU of Nebraska, said. “But looking beyond the legal arguments of this specific case, it is so important that Nebraskans do not lose sight of the impact of these restrictions. Nebraskans have been harmed every week since the governor signed LB 574 into law. That will continue under today’s ruling. However, this case will not be the final word on abortion access and the rights of trans youth and their families in Nebraska. Despite this loss, we will continue to do all that we can to ensure that Nebraskans can make their own private decisions about their lives, families and futures.”

Pillen, who pushed for the bill to be passed, released a statement following the Court’s decision:

“I am grateful for the court’s thorough and well-reasoned opinion upholding these important protections for life and children in Nebraska. There was a dark moment last year when many feared that a victory for unborn babies was impossible and that the pro-life coalition might break apart. I was honored to partner with faithful allies and leaders across the state to combine the abortion ban with protections for kids against irreversible sex change surgeries. We worked overtime to bring that bill to my desk, and I give thanks to God that I had the privilege to sign it into law. I immediately directed our state government agencies to swiftly bring these protections into effect. I am grateful for their work and for the work of the Attorney General to defend it,” Pillen said.

Attorney General Mike Hilgers also commended the Court on its ruling.

“The Legislature passed Nebraska’s 12-week abortion ban and its ban on gender-altering procedures for minors, and we are pleased that the Court upheld the constitutionality of the Legislature’s work,” Attorney General Mike Hilgers said.

Read the full Nebraska Supreme Court opinion below:

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Nebraska

Husker Football: NU Lucked Out With The Pinstripe Bowl

Published

8 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Press Room

Husker Football: NU Lucked Out With The Pinstripe Bowl

At first, Nebraska playing in a bowl in late December in New York City sounded like a form of punishment rather than a reward for a successful season.

It’s true, playing in a balmy Florida, Arizona or California might be more appealing. But consider this: NU is playing at noon this Saturday. That’s great day and time for a college football game.

As a result, I believe a lot of people are going to be able to watch the game. TV viewers aren’t going to care a rip about the cold. Most football fans think forty degrees is ideal football weather.

Playing in Florida does have some advantages, but three early bowl games that were played in Florida weren’t seen by many people. Why?

Bad dates and times.

Boca Raton Bowl (Boca Raton, FL)
Wednesday, December 18th 5:30pm (EST)
Western Kentucky vs James Madison

Staffdna Cure Bowl (Orlando, FL)
Friday, December 20th 12:00pm (EST)
Ohio vs Jackson State

Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl (Tampa, FL)
Friday December 20th 3:30 pm (EST)
Tulane vs Florida

Raise your hands if you watched any of those games.

I didn’t think so.

My point is, playing in a cold clime in late December is not necessarily a bad thing. The Pinstripe Bowl matchup between Nebraska and Boston College should be a TV ratings success.

The Pinstripe Bowl Matchup

To win the game, NU is going to have to:

1.) Stop the Eagles’ running game and make them one dimensional,

2.) Move the chains consistently on offense.

3.) Be able to pass on BC’s defense (BC is 111th pass defense)

4.) Win the turnover battle (NU ranks 66th while BC is 21st)

If the Huskers are able to do those things, they will come back to Lincoln with another bowl trophy to add to its collection.

What’s a stake: Win the game and NU ends the season with a winning record-its first since 2016. Lose the game and NU limps into ’25 with a 6-7 record.

You may contact me at: HuskerDan@cox.net

MORE: Analytics Preview: Nebraska Football vs. Boston College in the Pinstripe Bowl

MORE: 1962 Co-Captain, Gotham Bowl Veteran Dwain Carlson Joins the Common Fans

MORE: Nebrasketball Beats Oregon State, Wins Diamond Head Classic

MORE: Idaho Transfer Defensive Back Andrew Marshall Commits to Nebraska

MORE: Former NFL Running Back Leonard Fournette Shares Praise for Nebraska Quarterback Dylan Raiola

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.

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Nebraska

Nebraska governor to undergo rib surgery after horse-riding incident – Washington Examiner

Published

16 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Press Room

Nebraska governor to undergo rib surgery after horse-riding incident – Washington Examiner

Gov. Jim Pillen (R-NE) will undergo a rib fixation procedure on Thursday after a horse bucked him off on Sunday.

Pillen, 68, will need to be under anesthesia while doctors install metal plates to stabilize his seven broken ribs. Lt. Gov. Joe Kelly will take on the role of acting governor during the surgery.

“Based on the Governor’s health profile and active lifestyle, his doctors consider him an ideal candidate for this procedure. Nebraska Medicine has emerged as a national leader in rib fixation operations,” the governor’s office wrote in a statement.

Today, the Governor’s office issued the following update regarding Governor Jim Pillen’s condition:
“Governor Pillen’s recovery at Nebraska Medicine has progressed well. There have been no new issues regarding the injuries to his kidney and lung, and his spleen continues to heal…
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— Governor Jim Pillen (@TeamPillen) December 26, 2024

The governor was riding a new horse with his daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter when he fell. In addition to his rib fractures, he suffered a partially collapsed lung, lacerations on his spleen and kidney, and a minor vertebrae fracture.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

“Gov. Pillen remains grateful for the exceptional care he is receiving by the team at Nebraska Medicine and thanks Nebraskans for their outpouring of support to him and his family during this time,” Pillen’s office wrote.

This surgery will result in Pillen remaining in the hospital for a few days following his surgery. He is prepared to continue to work from his hospital bed.

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Merry Christmas: Nebraska wins Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii

Published

1 day ago

December 26, 2024

Press Room

Merry Christmas: Nebraska wins Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii

For the first time since the San Juan Shootout in 2000, the Nebraska men’s basketball program has an in-season tournament championship.

Led by Brice Williams’ 25 points (6-of-6 at the free-throw line), seven rebounds, four assists and two steals, the Huskers picked up a 78-66 win over the Oregon State Beavers on Christmas Day.

NU (10-2, 1-1 in Big Ten) now gets to leave Honolulu with the 2024 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic title.

“As we said to our guys, we just don’t get a whole lot of opportunities in your life to play for championships, and this was a big tournament for us,” head coach Fred Hoiberg told Huskers Radio Network after the game.

Notable perks to a tournament win like this includes picking up a true road win over host Hawaii and a Quad 1 victory (for now) on a neutral site over Oregon State, which came into the game with a NET rating of 43 (Nebraska’s was 52).

“Just really proud of the guys for finding a way to muster up the energy and play, I thought, our best stretch of basketball those last five minutes,” Hoiberg said.

That five minutes Hoiberg reference had a lot to do with strong defense and Williams.

NU’s defense held OSU to just 40% shooting overall for the game, and the Huskers out-rebounded OSU 31-24 to become only the second team to out-rebound the Beavers this season. But OSU did connect on nine 3s that helped them hang around. Four different OSU players each made two triples.

But from the 5:32 mark of the second half when nursing a 61-56 lead, Williams took over and showed everyone he was the best player on the court. The 6-7 guard scored 11 points in the stretch, including five game-sealing free throws. He outscored OSU 11-10.

Williams has scored 57 points the last two games, with tonight’s 25 and Monday’s 32. He averaged 22 points per game in three games and earned tournament MVP honors.

“I was just aggressive, I wanted to let my defense lead to offense,” Williams said after the game. “I came out hot and my team kind of took it from there.”

The game was a low-scoring, back-and-forth affair that featured scoring runs and scoring droughts for both sides. Neither team ever took control until Williams did his thing.

NU never trailed by more than four points in the first half and took a 34-32 lead into the break. There were 13 lead changes in the opening 10 minutes of the second half.

Multiple Huskers stepped up late to help NU take command. Sam Hoiberg made his third 3 of the season to put NU up 48-47. Andrew Morgan was another bench player who made an impact as his and-1 paint bucket extended the Husker lead to 51-49.

One player who had maybe his best night as a Husker was Berke Buyuktuncel. The 6-10 big who’s been playing through minor injuries showed off a variety of skill sets that made him one of the top international prospects coming out in his signing class.

Buyuktuncel finished with a career-high 16 points and made three 3s, also a new career mark. He played defense and rebounded too, collecting six with one offensive board which turned into an and-1 putback.

Buyuktuncel scored eight points in both the first and second half.

“Both ends. I thought two days ago, versus Hawaii, we finished off the game with him at the five, and he battles those fives as well as anybody on our team,” Hoiberg said of Buyuktuncel. “Him knocking down those shots in the first half, that’s a game changer for us. Hopefully he can get it going and it’ll give him confidence. When Berke can knock down threes, that’s just opens up a whole other new opportunities for us to run different plays to get him going.”

Buyuktuncel had success bullying his way into the paint and finishing. His and-1 where he grabbed an offensive board and sank the putback while being fouled pushed NU to a 54-51 lead. Not long after, he was running the court with Williams and hit a transition layup to put NU up by six points, 57-51.

Those plays helped a 10-2 run that extended the Husker lead to 61-53. But the Beavers never went away and NU’s offense went cold. During one stretch, it missed six of seven shots. That allowed OSU to cut its 8-point deficit in half.

But then Williams put the Beavers away. NU went on an 11-3 run to end the game.

Williams, along with Buyuktuncel, were named to the all-tournament team. Williams averaged 22 points on 56% shooting along with 3.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists in NU’s three games.

Hoiberg becomes the second head coach to win the Diamond Head Classic twice. His first win came while he was coaching Iowa State in 2013.

UP NEXT

Nebraska has one non-conference game left before diving into Big Ten play the rest of the season. The Huskers host Southern on Monday night with a late tip of 8 p.m.

Southern is currently 5-7 and riding a three-game losing streak. Earlier this season, Southern led Texas A&M at halftime, 39-25, before losing 71-54.