Nebraska
Woman arrested after allegedly smuggling drugs into Nebraska State Penitentiary
LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – An Omaha woman was arrested Friday on suspicion of smuggling drugs into the Nebraska State Penitentiary last summer.
According to court documents, Nebraska State Penitentiary surveillance video showed 23-year-old Cynthia Price and a child visiting Trenqueal Dismuke, an inmate, on July 9, 2022.
During the visit, court records showed Price looked around before retrieving an item from inside the front of her pants before placing it into a plastic bag that was sitting between her and Dismuke.
Dismuke then immediately retrieved the item from the plastic bag and attempted to hide it inside his front of his pants. Later on, Dismuke moved it into his hair and placed his hair into a ponytail, court documents say.
The court documents said prison staff members observed Price and Dismukeâs interactions during the visit and completed a search of Dismuke immediately afterwards. During the search, prison staff discovered an 8.5 inch by 11 inch sheet of paper containing suspected synthetic marijuana in Dismukeâs hair, according to court records.
Dismuke allegedly told prison staff that it was a love letter that Price gave him.
After conducting an analysis on the synthetic cannabinoid-soaked paper, it was revealed that the paper contained MDMB-4en-PINACA, a synthetic cannabinoid, Scheduled I.
Price was arrested for Deliver; Manufacture; or with Intent to Deliver Controlled Substance, Schedule 1,2,3, which is a Class 2A Felony, and Unlawful Acts in Department of Corrections or Conveyance of Article to Inmate, which is a Class 4 Felony.
Price posted bail at 10 percent of $2,500 and has a hearing scheduled for July 3.
Copyright 2023 KOLN. All rights reserved.
Nebraska
Nebraska's 2024 border deployments cost $1.27 million âą Nebraska Examiner
LINCOLN â This yearâs two border deployments ordered by Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen cost a combined $1.27 million.
The state says it paid $1.2 million of that total using interest collected from holding the second wave of $48 million in federal pandemic relief funds that Congress set aside for rental assistance.
State taxpayers paid the remaining $71,675.23 in general funds, the Nebraska State Patrol confirmed. The Patrol and the Nebraska Military Department both sent people south.
The Examiner requested the costs of Pillenâs 2024 deployments a year after he spent nearly $1 million in pandemic-related funds and general funds on two similar deployments in 2023.
Not all are pleased with spending
Some legislators, including term-limited State Sens. Carol Blood of Bellevue and Megan Hunt of Omaha, have said those funds could have been better used on other in-state priorities.
Hunt said this spending wonât help constituents. She said it doesnât address problems Nebraskans tell senators and the governor they want fixed, such as workforce and housing needs.
âThis spending is political and partisan,â she said. âItâs misusing political power for political gain. I think Governor Pillen is hoping that Nebraskans donât notice.â
Some support Pillenâs deployments
Pillen deployed 34 members of the Nebraska National Guard between April 1 until June 27 to help near the Texas-Mexico border in the Del Rio area â 28 from the Army Guard and six from the Air Guard.
Pillen similarly sent 10 State Patrol troopers to the El Paso area of the Texas-Mexico border from April 14-28, where they were paired with Texas Department of Public Safety troopers.
Pillen has argued that public safety and national security dictate the need for every state to send help until the federal government does more to stem the flow of migrants to the border.
Like many other GOP governors seeking to draw attention to the issue in a presidential election year, he defends the spending on border security as necessary and worthwhile.Â
Questions about effectiveness
He calls âevery state a border stateâ and speaks about the failures of the federal government. Local and national critics have described the spending as ineffective and wasteful.
Pillen dismissed such questions about the cost-effectiveness of state efforts during his three trips to the border as governor, including stops to visit the Nebraskans he sent.
He and leaders with the State Patrol have said their efforts help reduce the number of people and illegal substances being trafficked across the border.
Pillenâs predecessor, U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts, also sent state employees to the Texas border as part of efforts to help his friend and fellow Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.
Texas has spent billions in state money on border security, arguing that border security has been a problem under both Republican and Democrat administrations.Â
Congress spends nearly $20 billion on border security.
Approach draws supporters, critics
Red-state governors have found political support at home for the spending. Pillen took Speaker of the Legislature John Arch and State Sen. Tom Brewer to the border last month.
Every member of Nebraskaâs all-GOP congressional delegation has said polling shows border security is a top issue for voters. It is discussed often on conservative Fox News and Newsmax.
Immigrant advocates and Latino Nebraskans argue that some of the rhetoric Pillen, Ricketts and others have used to describe migrants contributes to fear and anger against them.
One Omaha-based group, LULAC of Nebraska, has argued that the governor would rather spend money on political stunts rather than work to help people who contribute to Nebraskaâs business dynamism.
Immigrant and refugee labor account for more than 8% of the stateâs economic output, one study indicated. More than 60,000 undocumented workers call Nebraska home, estimates show.Â
Pillen has said he will keep sending Texas help until the feds get more serious about stopping the flow of people and products across the border. No next deployment has been announced.
Nebraska
WATCH LIVE: Coverage of severe weather in southeast Nebraska
LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) â Heavy rain and high winds are blowing through southeast Nebraska late Monday night.
Just after 11 p.m., the National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for central Lancaster County, including Lincoln.
The warning goes until 2:45 a.m. The weather service expects the rain to fall at a rate of 1 to 2 inches per hour.
Lancaster County is also under a severe thunderstorm warning until 11:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, just before 11:30 p.m., a storm capable of producing a tornado was located 3 miles southwest of Crete.
It is moving east at 25 mph.
Parts of Lancaster and Saline counties are under a tornado warning until midnight.
Nebraska
University of Nebraska Medical Center names interim chancellor
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – Newly-elected University of Nebraska President Jeffery P. Gold has named H. Dele Davies, M.D. as UNMCâs interim chancellor.
Davies will replace Gold, who assumed the role of university system president in March after a decade of serving as UNMCâs chancellor.
âIt was important to me to find the right person who can keep our momentum going as we formulate plans for permanent leadership. Dr. Dele Davies is that leader,â Gold said in a press release Monday.
Davies previously served as the senior vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean of graduate studies within the University of Nebraska, where he added new professional degrees and research graduate training programs to the college system.
âI look forward to continue deepening the relationships within the communities we serve to grow Nebraskaâs health care workforce, expand our research breakthroughs and pursue new opportunities for expansion of excellence on all of our five campuses,â Davies said in the release.
Davies also played a key role in launching both the Interprofessional Experiential Center for Enduring Learning (iEXCEL) and the Global Center for Health Security. He also worked to expand UNMCâs rural health initiatives.
âUNMC is on a remarkable trajectory, thanks to the collective efforts of so many individuals on the campus and beyond whose work is transforming the health and quality of life for people in Nebraska and around the world,â Gold said.
The chancellor position is subject to formal approval by the Board of Regents.
Copyright 2024 WOWT. All rights reserved.
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