KEYSTONE, S.D. (AP) — An Indiana woman has pleaded guilty to climbing Mount Rushmore, a federal violation. 

Twenty-year-old Molly Venderley entered the plea at a hearing in federal court in Rapid City, South Dakota Monday. 

Two other misdemeanor charges were dropped as part of a plea deal. 

Venderley, from Bloomington, Indiana, was fined $1,250 after entering her plea. 

A report from a park ranger says Venderley told him she climbed in the dark Sunday because she knew it was against the law to scale the monument and knew the park was closed. 

The ranger saw the woman’s flashlight on a security camera and found she had made it to the base of George Washington’s lapel.

KEYSTONE, S.D. (AP) — An Indiana woman has pleaded guilty to climbing Mount Rushmore, a federal violation. Twenty-year-old Molly Venderley entered the plea at a hearing in federal court in Rapid City, South Dakota Monday. Two other misdemeanor charges were dropped as part of a plea deal. Venderley, from Bloomington, Indiana, was fined $1,250 after entering her plea. A report from a park ranger says Venderley told him she climbed in the dark Sunday because she knew it was against the law to scale the monument and knew the park was closed. The ranger saw the woman’s flashlight on a security camera and found she had made it to the base of George Washington’s lapel.

Indiana woman pleads guilty to climbing Mount Rushmore

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A 43-year-old Omaha man has been charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of a real estate agent. 

Ross Lorello III was charged Monday in the death of 70-year-old Mickey Sodoro on Dec. 28. 

Court documents say Sodoro was shot at close range in the back of the head and his body was hidden in a garage crawl space of the rental home where he met with Lorello to exchange keys and payment.

 Lorello told police he gave Sodoro the rent money and signed the lease agreement, and the real estate agent then drove away with someone else.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A 43-year-old Omaha man has been charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of a real estate agent. Ross Lorello III was charged Monday in the death of 70-year-old Mickey Sodoro on Dec. 28. Court documents say Sodoro was shot at close range in the back of the head and his body was hidden in a garage crawl space of the rental home where he met with Lorello to exchange keys and payment. Lorello told police he gave Sodoro the rent money and signed the lease agreement, and the real estate agent then drove away with someone else.

Man charged in shooting death of Omaha real estate agent

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — As lawmakers around the U.S. convene this winter to deal with the COVID-19 crisis, statehouses themselves could prove to be hothouses for infection. 

Many legislatures will start the year meeting remotely, but some Republican-controlled statehouses, from Montana to Pennsylvania, plan to hold at least part of their sessions in person, without requiring masks.

 Public health officials say that move endangers the safety of other lawmakers, staffers, lobbyists, the public and the journalists responsible for holding politicians accountable. 

The risk is more than mere speculation: An ongoing tally by The Associated Press finds that more than 230 state lawmakers across the country have contracted COVID-19, and at least seven have died.

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — As lawmakers around the U.S. convene this winter to deal with the COVID-19 crisis, statehouses themselves could prove to be hothouses for infection. Many legislatures will start the year meeting remotely, but some Republican-controlled statehouses, from Montana to Pennsylvania, plan to hold at least part of their sessions in person, without requiring masks. Public health officials say that move endangers the safety of other lawmakers, staffers, lobbyists, the public and the journalists responsible for holding politicians accountable. The risk is more than mere speculation: An ongoing tally by The Associated Press finds that more than 230 state lawmakers across the country have contracted COVID-19, and at least seven have died.

Statehouses could prove to be hothouses for virus infection

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska officials who are leading the state’s pandemic response expect a large increase in coronavirus vaccinations over the next two weeks after a slowdown over the holidays.

 New data from the state's tracking portal shows that Nebraska has given 36,360 vaccinations so far out of the 94,697 doses in its possession. 

Most who have received initial doses at this point are front-line health care workers who were given first priority. 

Nebraska began vaccinating people on Dec. 15 but saw sharp drops in daily doses administered on Dec. 25 and the two following days. 

The numbers rose to roughly 3,000 per day afterward but dropped again to 1,579 on Jan. 1.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska officials who are leading the state’s pandemic response expect a large increase in coronavirus vaccinations over the next two weeks after a slowdown over the holidays. New data from the state's tracking portal shows that Nebraska has given 36,360 vaccinations so far out of the 94,697 doses in its possession. Most who have received initial doses at this point are front-line health care workers who were given first priority. Nebraska began vaccinating people on Dec. 15 but saw sharp drops in daily doses administered on Dec. 25 and the two following days. The numbers rose to roughly 3,000 per day afterward but dropped again to 1,579 on Jan. 1.

Nebraska expects ramp up of vaccinations after slow start

WASHINGTON (AP) — As the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic stretch into 2021, millions of U.S. renters are bracing for the possibility of having to show up in housing court to avoid getting evicted. But unlike their landlords, only a small fraction of them will do so flanked by an attorney.

Fewer than 10 cities and counties nationwide guarantee tenants the right to a lawyer in housing-related disputes, and for people struggling to make ends meet, an attorney is beyond their means, leaving many to skip their court hearings or walk in knowing they have little chance. Unlike criminal cases, an attorney won’t be assigned if someone can’t afford one. Legal aid organizations and pro bono lawyers represent many renters every year, but the need outpaces what they can handle.

While housing advocates have primarily pushed for rent relief from the government, experts also expect more cities to join the movement to give tenants the right to an attorney.

“The push for right to counsel preceded the pandemic, but it’s particularly acute and particularly urgent in light of the pandemic, given just the overall precarity that renters are facing,” said Gretchen Purser, an associate professor of sociology at Syracuse University who specializes in housing, homelessness and urban poverty.

She said legal representation “is going to be one of the most important things that groups around the country can be pushing for.”

Many people owe months of back rent, having lost their jobs or faced mounting medical bills during the health crisis. By January, renters will owe as much as $34 billion, according to estimates by the global investment bank and advisory firm Stout. An estimated 23 million people are at risk of getting evicted.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-health-care-reform-legislation-immigration-coronavirus-pandemic-3ba55f6ae819ad2be2319dfa218012b8">federal COVID-19 relief package</a>&nbsp;includes $25 billion for rental assistance and an extension of an eviction moratorium through January.

The moratorium is what Zachary Kettering thought would protect him when he lost two jobs during the pandemic, fell behind on rent and received a notice in October to vacate his one-bedroom apartment in the Dallas suburb of McKinney.

But he fell victim to a caveat that housing attorneys have warned about: The order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is not a blanket moratorium; tenants must sign a declaration and give a copy to their landlord. By early December, Kettering, a disabled veteran, owed $6,900 in rent and a constable knocked on his door with an eviction notice.

A friend loaned him the money to cover his debt, and he agreed to sign a document from his landlord saying he won’t renew his lease in February in exchange for dropping the case.

“I just kind of acquiesce to whatever they wanted,” said Kettering, 33, who is now raising money online. “It’s like you’re playing a game, and one of the people involved doesn’t know the rules of the game. And that game is a very high stakes, to the point where, like, you will be homeless if you don’t play the game.”

The federal relief bill also includes $20 million for legal assistance for renters.

In Baltimore, only 1% of tenants have legal representation in eviction cases, compared with 96% of landlords. But this month, Maryland’s largest city became the latest U.S. jurisdiction to grant renters a right to counsel in those cases. A Stout report estimated that 92% of tenants represented by lawyers in Baltimore would avoid having to leave their homes.

The new ordinance requires the city’s Department of Housing and Community Development to hire nonprofit legal organizations and calls for funding to help spread the word and educate tenants. It gives the city four years to fully implement the requirements.

Attorney Matthew Hill with the Public Justice Center, which advocated for the new ordinance, said Baltimore could draw from general funds and federal money to cover the program’s costs. He said a measure proposing a right to counsel also will be introduced in the Maryland Legislature, potentially making state funds available for Baltimore’s effort.

“This is really supposed to level the playing field and really provide tenants access, because eviction court often is just about evictions, but tenants have a lot of defenses,” Hill said, including whether the place is livable and if landlords are licensed. “So, we want to try and change eviction court into housing court and make sure we enforce tenants’ rights to safe, stable, healthy housing.”

The Stout report estimated that an investment of $5.7 million a year to get legal representation for Baltimore renters would result in $35.6 million in savings to the city and state on homeless shelters, Medicaid spending, school funding and foster care costs.

In 2017, New York became the first U.S. city to guarantee the right to an attorney in housing court. Between July 1, 2019, and June 30, 86% of tenants represented by lawyers were able to stay in their homes, according to a city report released this fall.

Other cities with similar laws include San Francisco, Philadelphia and Newark, New Jersey.

Before the pandemic, about 300,000 evictions were filed in the U.S. in an average month, according to the Eviction Lab at Princeton University. A patchwork of local and state guidelines combined with the federal moratorium have provided some protections for people unable to pay rent. But in some places, including cities in South Carolina, Ohio, Florida and Virginia, renters are losing their homes.

Pablo Estupiñan, interim co-coordinator of Right to Counsel NYC Coalition, said eviction filings dropped in New York since its right-to-counsel ordinance took effect three years ago. But he said landlords’ attorneys have increased pressure on tenants and sometimes people choose to leave because they may not know their rights.

“As a result of right to counsel, we saw landlords changing their tactics, and we definitely heard from community members that landlord attorneys were threatening them, saying, ‘If you get an attorney to represent you, then I will fight your case harder and not give you a fair settlement,’” Estupiñan said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — As the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic stretch into 2021, millions of U.S. renters are bracing for the possibility of having to show up in housing court to avoid getting evicted. But unlike their landlords, only a small fraction of them will do so flanked by an attorney.Fewer than 10 cities and counties nationwide guarantee tenants the right to a lawyer in housing-related disputes, and for people struggling to make ends meet, an attorney is beyond their means, leaving many to skip their court hearings or walk in knowing they have little chance. Unlike criminal cases, an attorney won’t be assigned if someone can’t afford one. Legal aid organizations and pro bono lawyers represent many renters every year, but the need outpaces what they can handle.While housing advocates have primarily pushed for rent relief from the government, experts also expect more cities to join the movement to give tenants the right to an attorney.“The push for right to counsel preceded the pandemic, but it’s particularly acute and particularly urgent in light of the pandemic, given just the overall precarity that renters are facing,” said Gretchen Purser, an associate professor of sociology at Syracuse University who specializes in housing, homelessness and urban poverty.She said legal representation “is going to be one of the most important things that groups around the country can be pushing for.”Many people owe months of back rent, having lost their jobs or faced mounting medical bills during the health crisis. By January, renters will owe as much as $34 billion, according to estimates by the global investment bank and advisory firm Stout. An estimated 23 million people are at risk of getting evicted.The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-health-care-reform-legislation-immigration-coronavirus-pandemic-3ba55f6ae819ad2be2319dfa218012b8">federal COVID-19 relief package</a>&nbsp;includes $25 billion for rental assistance and an extension of an eviction moratorium through January.The moratorium is what Zachary Kettering thought would protect him when he lost two jobs during the pandemic, fell behind on rent and received a notice in October to vacate his one-bedroom apartment in the Dallas suburb of McKinney.But he fell victim to a caveat that housing attorneys have warned about: The order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is not a blanket moratorium; tenants must sign a declaration and give a copy to their landlord. By early December, Kettering, a disabled veteran, owed $6,900 in rent and a constable knocked on his door with an eviction notice.A friend loaned him the money to cover his debt, and he agreed to sign a document from his landlord saying he won’t renew his lease in February in exchange for dropping the case.“I just kind of acquiesce to whatever they wanted,” said Kettering, 33, who is now raising money online. “It’s like you’re playing a game, and one of the people involved doesn’t know the rules of the game. And that game is a very high stakes, to the point where, like, you will be homeless if you don’t play the game.”The federal relief bill also includes $20 million for legal assistance for renters.In Baltimore, only 1% of tenants have legal representation in eviction cases, compared with 96% of landlords. But this month, Maryland’s largest city became the latest U.S. jurisdiction to grant renters a right to counsel in those cases. A Stout report estimated that 92% of tenants represented by lawyers in Baltimore would avoid having to leave their homes.The new ordinance requires the city’s Department of Housing and Community Development to hire nonprofit legal organizations and calls for funding to help spread the word and educate tenants. It gives the city four years to fully implement the requirements.Attorney Matthew Hill with the Public Justice Center, which advocated for the new ordinance, said Baltimore could draw from general funds and federal money to cover the program’s costs. He said a measure proposing a right to counsel also will be introduced in the Maryland Legislature, potentially making state funds available for Baltimore’s effort.“This is really supposed to level the playing field and really provide tenants access, because eviction court often is just about evictions, but tenants have a lot of defenses,” Hill said, including whether the place is livable and if landlords are licensed. “So, we want to try and change eviction court into housing court and make sure we enforce tenants’ rights to safe, stable, healthy housing.”The Stout report estimated that an investment of $5.7 million a year to get legal representation for Baltimore renters would result in $35.6 million in savings to the city and state on homeless shelters, Medicaid spending, school funding and foster care costs.In 2017, New York became the first U.S. city to guarantee the right to an attorney in housing court. Between July 1, 2019, and June 30, 86% of tenants represented by lawyers were able to stay in their homes, according to a city report released this fall.Other cities with similar laws include San Francisco, Philadelphia and Newark, New Jersey.Before the pandemic, about 300,000 evictions were filed in the U.S. in an average month, according to the Eviction Lab at Princeton University. A patchwork of local and state guidelines combined with the federal moratorium have provided some protections for people unable to pay rent. But in some places, including cities in South Carolina, Ohio, Florida and Virginia, renters are losing their homes.Pablo Estupiñan, interim co-coordinator of Right to Counsel NYC Coalition, said eviction filings dropped in New York since its right-to-counsel ordinance took effect three years ago. But he said landlords’ attorneys have increased pressure on tenants and sometimes people choose to leave because they may not know their rights.“As a result of right to counsel, we saw landlords changing their tactics, and we definitely heard from community members that landlord attorneys were threatening them, saying, ‘If you get an attorney to represent you, then I will fight your case harder and not give you a fair settlement,’” Estupiñan said.

Virus relief: Renters get right to lawyers in housing court

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha police say 22-year-old a man shot outside a barbershop over the weekend has died.

 Jumeez Sherman was shot Saturday in front of Transitions Barber &amp; Beauty shop. 

Police said in a news release that he died Sunday. 

Another man, 21-year-old Desmond Edwards, was shot and hospitalized with injuries that were not considered life threatening. 

Police continue to investigate the shooting and have not released further details.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha police say 22-year-old a man shot outside a barbershop over the weekend has died. Jumeez Sherman was shot Saturday in front of Transitions Barber &amp; Beauty shop. Police said in a news release that he died Sunday. Another man, 21-year-old Desmond Edwards, was shot and hospitalized with injuries that were not considered life threatening. Police continue to investigate the shooting and have not released further details.

Man shot Saturday outside Omaha barbershop has died

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The economy continues improving in nine Midwest and Plains states but business leaders are less optimistic after the latest surge in coronavirus cases in the region, according to a new monthly survey released Monday. 

The overall index for the region suggests strong growth even though it dipped to 64.1 in December from November’s 69.

 Any score above 50 on the survey’s indexes suggests growth, while a score below 50 suggests recession. 

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey, said the survey’s confidence index suggests business leaders are worried about the economy after the recent growth in virus cases across the region.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The economy continues improving in nine Midwest and Plains states but business leaders are less optimistic after the latest surge in coronavirus cases in the region, according to a new monthly survey released Monday. The overall index for the region suggests strong growth even though it dipped to 64.1 in December from November’s 69. Any score above 50 on the survey’s indexes suggests growth, while a score below 50 suggests recession. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey, said the survey’s confidence index suggests business leaders are worried about the economy after the recent growth in virus cases across the region.

Midwest economy improving but businesses less optimistic

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Authorities say a SkyWest flight from Milwaukee to Denver made an emergency landing in South Dakota after the flight crew reported a cracked windshield. 

The Federal Aviation Administration says the twin-engine aircraft was diverted to Joe Foss Field in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and landed without incident at 10:45 a.m. Saturday. 

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says the FAA is investigating the incident

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Authorities say a SkyWest flight from Milwaukee to Denver made an emergency landing in South Dakota after the flight crew reported a cracked windshield. No injuries were reported. The Federal Aviation Administration says the twin-engine aircraft was diverted to Joe Foss Field in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and landed without incident at 10:45 a.m. Saturday. No other details were available. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says the FAA is investigating the incident

Milwaukee flight makes emergency landing in South Dakota

GILLETTE, Wyo. (AP) — Tourists flocked to Wyoming's Devils Tower National Monument this fall despite the coronavirus. 

The national monument closed in March because of the pandemic but reopened in May. 

The Gillette News Record reports more than 113,000 people visited the park in August, some 13,000 more than in August, 2019. September, October and November set visitation records. 

Overall, more than 420,000 people visited Devils Tower through November. 

That was down by just 7% compared to the number of visitors during that period in 2019. 

Devils Tower KOA campground owner Ogden Driskill says many visitors were eager to get outside and away from cities.

GILLETTE, Wyo. (AP) — Tourists flocked to Wyoming's Devils Tower National Monument this fall despite the coronavirus. The national monument closed in March because of the pandemic but reopened in May. The Gillette News Record reports more than 113,000 people visited the park in August, some 13,000 more than in August, 2019. September, October and November set visitation records. Overall, more than 420,000 people visited Devils Tower through November. That was down by just 7% compared to the number of visitors during that period in 2019. Devils Tower KOA campground owner Ogden Driskill says many visitors were eager to get outside and away from cities.

Devils Tower visitation up in fall after coronavirus closure

BEATRICE, Neb. (AP) — A Beatrice man is in custody after a fatal shooting outside the suspect's home. Police say Alex Rader, of Beatrice, died after being shot late Wednesday. 

Police Chief Bruce Lang says the suspect, 25-year-old Brandon Long, told officers he heard a disturbance outside his home. He said he went outside, saw a man standing next to his house, and shot him. 

Lang says the men knew each other and the shooting does not appear to be related to an attempted burglary or self defense. 

KWBE reports Long was booked into the Gage County jail on suspicion of second-degree murder, and two weapons charges.

BEATRICE, Neb. (AP) — A Beatrice man is in custody after a fatal shooting outside the suspect's home. Police say Alex Rader, of Beatrice, died after being shot late Wednesday. Police Chief Bruce Lang says the suspect, 25-year-old Brandon Long, told officers he heard a disturbance outside his home. He said he went outside, saw a man standing next to his house, and shot him. Lang says the men knew each other and the shooting does not appear to be related to an attempted burglary or self defense. KWBE reports Long was booked into the Gage County jail on suspicion of second-degree murder, and two weapons charges.

Police arrest suspect after fatal shooting in Beatrice

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 26-year-old man was fatally shot on New Year’s Day in Omaha. 

The Omaha World Herald reports that police responded around 3 a.m. Friday to a hotel, where they found James Reed dead and another man suffering from non-life threatening wounds. 

No suspect information was immediately released.

 Police are urging anyone with information to come forward.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 26-year-old man was fatally shot on New Year’s Day in Omaha. The Omaha World Herald reports that police responded around 3 a.m. Friday to a hotel, where they found James Reed dead and another man suffering from non-life threatening wounds. No suspect information was immediately released. Police are urging anyone with information to come forward.

26-year-old man killed in Omaha New Year’s Day shooting

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Lily Guido was having trouble hearing and she felt warm while talking to her co-worker at a California nursing home. She knew something was wrong.

Fearing the coronavirus, Guido, 30, of Santa Rosa, California, didn’t go home to avoid possibly spreading it to her five children, isolating in a hotel room provided for health care workers like her.

“They confirmed that I had COVID, and my husband was like, ‘Oh God, what’s going to happen?’” she said last week. “I couldn’t take it. I was in tears. I was in denial.”

Out of work, her family’s bills began to pile up this summer. While Guido is a U.S. citizen, and so are her children, her family hadn’t gotten a relief check from the federal government in the spring because she files taxes jointly with her husband, Erik, who is an immigrant in the country illegally and not eligible for any federal payments.

An estimated 1.4 million spouses and 3.7 million children who are U.S. citizens or legal residents in mixed-status families like Guido’s were cut out of the payments that many needed as the pandemic tanked the economy, according to tax data analysis by the Migration Policy Institute.

That’s changed in the latest federal relief package. Guido celebrated that her family and others like them would get checks this time around, as well as a retroactive $1,200 tax credit.

“Mixed-status families with children count,” Guido said. “That makes such a big difference. And I jump for joy, you know, for those people that unfortunately aren’t able to work during this pandemic.”

But even in the latest bill, some 2.2 million children who are U.S. citizens or legal residents will be left out again because both their parents are in the country illegally, according to the Migration Policy Institute. That means no $600 check per child.

During the pandemic, officials in Democratic-controlled places have targeted rent relief and direct payments to all immigrant families who didn’t receive checks. States like California and Vermont have distributed federal relief money to community groups helping immigrants, saying they pay taxes and work essential jobs, while New Mexico lawmakers sent U.S. funds directly to those without legal status.

When Guido got sick, her husband, Erik, had already lost hours at his pest control job, so he stopped working for two and a half weeks to take care of their kids.

Alone in the hotel, the virus took her appetite, strained her breath and tanked her heart rate. She prayed and talked to her husband every day. Though she isolated away from home, he and the kids got the virus, too, but not as badly.

“I was stressing on top of it, not knowing how we were gonna make it, how we’re gonna pay my mortgage, how we’re gonna pay the rest of the bills,” Guido said.

They maxed out their credit cards to buy food and other necessities. Erik, who was 10 when he arrived from Mexico, doesn’t have a Social Security number and pays taxes using a special number for non-resident immigrants. Guido asked that his last name be withheld, fearing it could affect an immigration application.

Guido says she tried to apply by phone for financial help from California but never got through.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/679ae0f08b2f67df454e22e9e62e1bad">California’s governor distributed money</a>&nbsp;to a network of regional nonprofits to give to mixed-status families and adults in the country illegally early in the pandemic.

Recent aid packages passed by legislatures in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/legislature-michelle-lujan-grisham-coronavirus-pandemic-new-mexico-bills-6fe233171a8a58b569d8e05a172c885f">New Mexico</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2019-2020-coronavirus-pandemic-vermont-virus-outbreak-immigration-economic-stimulus-47db1fb4d4f6c84d812aa1b394ff5c7c">Vermont</a>&nbsp;directed federal relief funds to those who didn’t get checks in April, mostly through cash payments to mixed-status families and immigrants without legal status. In Phoenix, immigration advocates&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-states-coronavirus-pandemic-phoenix-immigration-7116e261fa4207c60e2d52ae9493aba3">successfully sued</a>&nbsp;to ensure residents could access rent and bill relief regardless of legal status.

New Mexico’s effort is unique because it paid applicants through direct deposit, instead of relying on community groups to distribute the funds, like California and Vermont.

“These are families — many of them with young children — these are essential workers, these are folks whose livelihoods have been interrupted by this pandemic,” said state Rep. Javier Martínez, who’s credited with getting the measure into New Mexico’s larger emergency relief bill.

Some 15,000 New Mexico residents have received about $465 each from a $5 million fund created by the Legislature. It’s not just immigrants benefiting. The only requirements for the money are being a state resident and having not received a federal check in April, which includes homeless and elderly Americans who didn’t get a check because of IRS rules.

After getting about four times the number of applicants that the fund could support, state officials reduced the maximum amount and prioritized the lowest-income households.

The fund faced no resistance from minority Republicans in the New Mexico House, but some of them voted against the entire bill.

Cities also have used federal funds for direct payments to immigrants.

Angelica Rodriguez and her husband are restaurant cooks in Santa Fe and had their hours cut in half. But they have been able to catch up on rent thanks to the city’s pandemic relief: a $750 payment last month and $1,500 this month.

She’s a member of Somos Un Pueblo Unido, a Latino-focused group that advocated for the inclusion of immigrants in state relief efforts. It’s also educated immigrants about not worrying that pandemic assistance will count against them in immigration applications, which ask about public aid like food stamps.

Despite the city payments, Rodriguez’s family still can’t afford to fix a broken washing machine and couldn’t splurge on Christmas presents this year. She and her husband are in the country without permission while their three children are U.S. citizens.

“It’s really hard because the 15-year-old boy, the 13-year-old girl, they get it — we told them there won’t be Christmas presents this year because we’re working very little, and the money we are getting is to pay bills and rent,” said Rodriguez, 43.

“But the 6-year-old boy still doesn’t get it,” she said. When she told him Santa couldn’t come this year because the family had gotten COVID-19, he shot back: “He can leave my present outside the door and not come in.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/12/1609336667005.png" alt="A quiet U.S. Capitol the final week of December image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>A quiet U.S. Capitol the final week of December image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Lily Guido was having trouble hearing and she felt warm while talking to her co-worker at a California nursing home. She knew something was wrong.Fearing the coronavirus, Guido, 30, of Santa Rosa, California, didn’t go home to avoid possibly spreading it to her five children, isolating in a hotel room provided for health care workers like her.“They confirmed that I had COVID, and my husband was like, ‘Oh God, what’s going to happen?’” she said last week. “I couldn’t take it. I was in tears. I was in denial.”Out of work, her family’s bills began to pile up this summer. While Guido is a U.S. citizen, and so are her children, her family hadn’t gotten a relief check from the federal government in the spring because she files taxes jointly with her husband, Erik, who is an immigrant in the country illegally and not eligible for any federal payments.An estimated 1.4 million spouses and 3.7 million children who are U.S. citizens or legal residents in mixed-status families like Guido’s were cut out of the payments that many needed as the pandemic tanked the economy, according to tax data analysis by the Migration Policy Institute.That’s changed in the latest federal relief package. Guido celebrated that her family and others like them would get checks this time around, as well as a retroactive $1,200 tax credit.“Mixed-status families with children count,” Guido said. “That makes such a big difference. And I jump for joy, you know, for those people that unfortunately aren’t able to work during this pandemic.”But even in the latest bill, some 2.2 million children who are U.S. citizens or legal residents will be left out again because both their parents are in the country illegally, according to the Migration Policy Institute. That means no $600 check per child.During the pandemic, officials in Democratic-controlled places have targeted rent relief and direct payments to all immigrant families who didn’t receive checks. States like California and Vermont have distributed federal relief money to community groups helping immigrants, saying they pay taxes and work essential jobs, while New Mexico lawmakers sent U.S. funds directly to those without legal status.When Guido got sick, her husband, Erik, had already lost hours at his pest control job, so he stopped working for two and a half weeks to take care of their kids.Alone in the hotel, the virus took her appetite, strained her breath and tanked her heart rate. She prayed and talked to her husband every day. Though she isolated away from home, he and the kids got the virus, too, but not as badly.“I was stressing on top of it, not knowing how we were gonna make it, how we’re gonna pay my mortgage, how we’re gonna pay the rest of the bills,” Guido said.They maxed out their credit cards to buy food and other necessities. Erik, who was 10 when he arrived from Mexico, doesn’t have a Social Security number and pays taxes using a special number for non-resident immigrants. Guido asked that his last name be withheld, fearing it could affect an immigration application.Guido says she tried to apply by phone for financial help from California but never got through.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/679ae0f08b2f67df454e22e9e62e1bad">California’s governor distributed money</a>&nbsp;to a network of regional nonprofits to give to mixed-status families and adults in the country illegally early in the pandemic.Recent aid packages passed by legislatures in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/legislature-michelle-lujan-grisham-coronavirus-pandemic-new-mexico-bills-6fe233171a8a58b569d8e05a172c885f">New Mexico</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2019-2020-coronavirus-pandemic-vermont-virus-outbreak-immigration-economic-stimulus-47db1fb4d4f6c84d812aa1b394ff5c7c">Vermont</a>&nbsp;directed federal relief funds to those who didn’t get checks in April, mostly through cash payments to mixed-status families and immigrants without legal status. In Phoenix, immigration advocates&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/united-states-coronavirus-pandemic-phoenix-immigration-7116e261fa4207c60e2d52ae9493aba3">successfully sued</a>&nbsp;to ensure residents could access rent and bill relief regardless of legal status.New Mexico’s effort is unique because it paid applicants through direct deposit, instead of relying on community groups to distribute the funds, like California and Vermont.“These are families — many of them with young children — these are essential workers, these are folks whose livelihoods have been interrupted by this pandemic,” said state Rep. Javier Martínez, who’s credited with getting the measure into New Mexico’s larger emergency relief bill.Some 15,000 New Mexico residents have received about $465 each from a $5 million fund created by the Legislature. It’s not just immigrants benefiting. The only requirements for the money are being a state resident and having not received a federal check in April, which includes homeless and elderly Americans who didn’t get a check because of IRS rules.After getting about four times the number of applicants that the fund could support, state officials reduced the maximum amount and prioritized the lowest-income households.The fund faced no resistance from minority Republicans in the New Mexico House, but some of them voted against the entire bill.Cities also have used federal funds for direct payments to immigrants.Angelica Rodriguez and her husband are restaurant cooks in Santa Fe and had their hours cut in half. But they have been able to catch up on rent thanks to the city’s pandemic relief: a $750 payment last month and $1,500 this month.She’s a member of Somos Un Pueblo Unido, a Latino-focused group that advocated for the inclusion of immigrants in state relief efforts. It’s also educated immigrants about not worrying that pandemic assistance will count against them in immigration applications, which ask about public aid like food stamps.Despite the city payments, Rodriguez’s family still can’t afford to fix a broken washing machine and couldn’t splurge on Christmas presents this year. She and her husband are in the country without permission while their three children are U.S. citizens.“It’s really hard because the 15-year-old boy, the 13-year-old girl, they get it — we told them there won’t be Christmas presents this year because we’re working very little, and the money we are getting is to pay bills and rent,” said Rodriguez, 43.“But the 6-year-old boy still doesn’t get it,” she said. When she told him Santa couldn’t come this year because the family had gotten COVID-19, he shot back: “He can leave my present outside the door and not come in.”

Immigrants get help, cheer inclusion in new virus relief bill 

A huge U.S. study of another COVID-19 vaccine candidate is underway as states continue to roll out scarce supplies of the first shots to a nation anxiously awaiting relief from the catastrophic outbreak.

Public health experts say more options in addition to the two vaccines now being dispensed — one made by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech, the other by Moderna — are critical to amassing enough shots for the country and the world.

The candidate made by Novavax Inc. is the fifth to reach final-stage testing in the United States. Some 30,000 volunteers are needed to prove if the shot — a different kind than its Pfizer and Moderna competitors — really works and is safe.

“If you want to have enough vaccine to vaccinate all the people in the U.S. who you’d like to vaccinate — up to 85% or more of the population — you’re going to need more than two companies,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, told The Associated Press.

The coronavirus is blamed for about 1.8 million deaths worldwide, including more than 330,000 in the U.S. This has been the deadliest month of the outbreak in the U.S. yet, with about 65,000 deaths in December so far, according to the COVID Tracking Project. The nation has repeatedly recorded more than 3,000 dead per day over the past few weeks.

And the U.S. could be facing a terrible winter: Despite warnings to stay home and avoid others over Christmastime, nearly 1.3 million people went through the nation’s airports, the highest one-day total since the crisis took hold in the U.S. nine months ago.

The Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed expects to have shipped 20 million doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to states by the beginning of January,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/general-gustave-perna-vaccine-shipments-6e61f8f1eb9bb0151669d1fe2d9b5646">fewer than originally estimated</a>&nbsp;to the frustration of states and health officials trying to schedule the shots.

There is no real-time tracking of how quickly people are getting the first of the two required doses. As of Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had reports of more than 2.1 million vaccinations out of 11.4 million doses shipped — but the agency knows that count is outdated. It can take days for reports from vaccine providers to trickle in and get added to the site.

“Just because a vaccine arrives doesn’t mean we can put an on-the-spot clinic up and running,” said Jenny Barta, a public health official in Carlton County, Minnesota.

But Tuesday, her agency aims to vaccinate 100 people in a drive-thru clinic for emergency medical workers that Barta hopes could become a model for larger attempts at mass vaccination. Nurses will wheel vaccine to cars lined up in a county-owned snowplow garage. Once the drivers get their shots, they will wait in parking spaces to be sure they don’t have an allergic reaction before heading home.

“Vaccinating one individual at a time is how we’re going to work our way out of this pandemic,” she said.

Yet another worry hanging over the vaccine scramble: Will shots block a new variant of the coronavirus that emerged in Britain and might spread more easily? Fauci said that data from Britain indicates the vaccines still will protect against the virus but that National Institutes of Health researchers will be “looking at it very intensively” to be sure.

A look at the frontrunners in the global vaccine race:

The U.S. based its emergency rollout of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and a similar one made by Moderna and the NIH on studies suggesting they are both roughly 95% effective. Europe over the weekend began its first vaccinations with the Pfizer shot, and on Jan. 6 will decide whether to add Moderna’s.

These shots are made with a brand-new technology that injects a piece of genetic code for the spike protein that coats the coronavirus. That messenger RNA, or mRNA, induces the body to produce some harmless spike protein, enough to prime the immune system to react if it later encounters the real virus.

Both vaccines must be kept frozen, the Pfizer shot at ultra-low temperatures that complicate its delivery to poor or rural areas.

Additional companies are working toward their own mRNA candidates, including Germany’s CureVac, which has begun a large study in Europe.

The Novavax candidate is made differently, using what Fauci called a “more tried and true” technology that needs only ordinary refrigeration. The Maryland company grows harmless copies of the coronavirus spike protein in the laboratory and mixes in an immune-boosting chemical.

Novavax already has enrolled 15,000 people in a late-stage study in Britain and 4,000 in South Africa. The newest and largest study, funded by the U.S. government, will recruit volunteers at more than 115 sites in the U.S. and Mexico and target high-risk older adults along with volunteers from Black and Hispanic communities, which have been hit hard by the virus.

“We’ve got to protect our community and our people,” said the Rev. Peter Johnson, 75, a prominent civil rights activist in Dallas who was among the first volunteers.

Two-thirds of participants will receive vaccine and the rest dummy shots, a twist from earlier vaccine studies that gave half their volunteers a placebo. That should help researchers recruit people who wonder whether it’s better to take part in a study or wait their turn for an existing shot, said Dr. Gregory Glenn, research chief at Novavax.

For many people, that would be a long wait: The Pfizer and Moderna shots are slated first for health care workers and nursing home residents, followed by people 75 and older and essential workers.

“If you wanted to hedge your bets, for most people who aren’t in those very high-risk groups, the shortest route to getting the vaccine would be to sign up for a trial,” said NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins.

The next big vaccine news may come from Johnson &amp; Johnson, which is aiming for a one-dose COVID-19 vaccine.

Made in yet another way, it uses a harmless virus – a cold virus called an adenovirus -- to carry the spike gene into the body. In mid-December, J&amp;J finished enrolling about 45,000 volunteers in a final-stage study in the U.S. and a half-dozen other countries. Fauci expects early results sometime next month.

In Britain, regulators also are considering clearing a similar vaccine made by AstraZeneca and Oxford University.

Tests of the shots in Britain, South Africa and Brazil suggested they are safe and partially protective — about 70%. But questions remain about how well the vaccine works in people over 55 and how to interpret results from a small number of people given a different set of doses.

A U.S. study of the AstraZeneca shots is still recruiting volunteers; Fauci said researchers hope it will provide a more clear answer.

Companies in China and Russia also are producing adenovirus-based vaccines and began administering them before the results of final testing came in. Argentina is expected to soon use the Russian vaccine.

Spike-focused vaccines aren’t the only option. Making vaccines by growing a disease-causing virus and then killing it is a still older approach that gives the body a sneak peek at the germ itself rather than just that single spike protein.

China has three such “inactivated” COVID-19 vaccines in final testing in several countries and has allowed emergency use in some people ahead of results. An Indian company is testing its own inactivated candidate.

By LAURAN NEERGAARD, Associated PressA huge U.S. study of another COVID-19 vaccine candidate is underway as states continue to roll out scarce supplies of the first shots to a nation anxiously awaiting relief from the catastrophic outbreak.Public health experts say more options in addition to the two vaccines now being dispensed — one made by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech, the other by Moderna — are critical to amassing enough shots for the country and the world.The candidate made by Novavax Inc. is the fifth to reach final-stage testing in the United States. Some 30,000 volunteers are needed to prove if the shot — a different kind than its Pfizer and Moderna competitors — really works and is safe.“If you want to have enough vaccine to vaccinate all the people in the U.S. who you’d like to vaccinate — up to 85% or more of the population — you’re going to need more than two companies,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, told The Associated Press.The coronavirus is blamed for about 1.8 million deaths worldwide, including more than 330,000 in the U.S. This has been the deadliest month of the outbreak in the U.S. yet, with about 65,000 deaths in December so far, according to the COVID Tracking Project. The nation has repeatedly recorded more than 3,000 dead per day over the past few weeks.And the U.S. could be facing a terrible winter: Despite warnings to stay home and avoid others over Christmastime, nearly 1.3 million people went through the nation’s airports, the highest one-day total since the crisis took hold in the U.S. nine months ago.The Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed expects to have shipped 20 million doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to states by the beginning of January,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/general-gustave-perna-vaccine-shipments-6e61f8f1eb9bb0151669d1fe2d9b5646">fewer than originally estimated</a>&nbsp;to the frustration of states and health officials trying to schedule the shots.There is no real-time tracking of how quickly people are getting the first of the two required doses. As of Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had reports of more than 2.1 million vaccinations out of 11.4 million doses shipped — but the agency knows that count is outdated. It can take days for reports from vaccine providers to trickle in and get added to the site.“Just because a vaccine arrives doesn’t mean we can put an on-the-spot clinic up and running,” said Jenny Barta, a public health official in Carlton County, Minnesota.But Tuesday, her agency aims to vaccinate 100 people in a drive-thru clinic for emergency medical workers that Barta hopes could become a model for larger attempts at mass vaccination. Nurses will wheel vaccine to cars lined up in a county-owned snowplow garage. Once the drivers get their shots, they will wait in parking spaces to be sure they don’t have an allergic reaction before heading home.“Vaccinating one individual at a time is how we’re going to work our way out of this pandemic,” she said.Yet another worry hanging over the vaccine scramble: Will shots block a new variant of the coronavirus that emerged in Britain and might spread more easily? Fauci said that data from Britain indicates the vaccines still will protect against the virus but that National Institutes of Health researchers will be “looking at it very intensively” to be sure.A look at the frontrunners in the global vaccine race:GENETIC CODE VACCINESThe U.S. based its emergency rollout of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and a similar one made by Moderna and the NIH on studies suggesting they are both roughly 95% effective. Europe over the weekend began its first vaccinations with the Pfizer shot, and on Jan. 6 will decide whether to add Moderna’s.These shots are made with a brand-new technology that injects a piece of genetic code for the spike protein that coats the coronavirus. That messenger RNA, or mRNA, induces the body to produce some harmless spike protein, enough to prime the immune system to react if it later encounters the real virus.Both vaccines must be kept frozen, the Pfizer shot at ultra-low temperatures that complicate its delivery to poor or rural areas.Additional companies are working toward their own mRNA candidates, including Germany’s CureVac, which has begun a large study in Europe.PROTEIN VACCINESThe Novavax candidate is made differently, using what Fauci called a “more tried and true” technology that needs only ordinary refrigeration. The Maryland company grows harmless copies of the coronavirus spike protein in the laboratory and mixes in an immune-boosting chemical.Novavax already has enrolled 15,000 people in a late-stage study in Britain and 4,000 in South Africa. The newest and largest study, funded by the U.S. government, will recruit volunteers at more than 115 sites in the U.S. and Mexico and target high-risk older adults along with volunteers from Black and Hispanic communities, which have been hit hard by the virus.“We’ve got to protect our community and our people,” said the Rev. Peter Johnson, 75, a prominent civil rights activist in Dallas who was among the first volunteers.Two-thirds of participants will receive vaccine and the rest dummy shots, a twist from earlier vaccine studies that gave half their volunteers a placebo. That should help researchers recruit people who wonder whether it’s better to take part in a study or wait their turn for an existing shot, said Dr. Gregory Glenn, research chief at Novavax.For many people, that would be a long wait: The Pfizer and Moderna shots are slated first for health care workers and nursing home residents, followed by people 75 and older and essential workers.“If you wanted to hedge your bets, for most people who aren’t in those very high-risk groups, the shortest route to getting the vaccine would be to sign up for a trial,” said NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins.TROJAN HORSE VACCINESThe next big vaccine news may come from Johnson &amp; Johnson, which is aiming for a one-dose COVID-19 vaccine.Made in yet another way, it uses a harmless virus – a cold virus called an adenovirus -- to carry the spike gene into the body. In mid-December, J&amp;J finished enrolling about 45,000 volunteers in a final-stage study in the U.S. and a half-dozen other countries. Fauci expects early results sometime next month.In Britain, regulators also are considering clearing a similar vaccine made by AstraZeneca and Oxford University.Tests of the shots in Britain, South Africa and Brazil suggested they are safe and partially protective — about 70%. But questions remain about how well the vaccine works in people over 55 and how to interpret results from a small number of people given a different set of doses.A U.S. study of the AstraZeneca shots is still recruiting volunteers; Fauci said researchers hope it will provide a more clear answer.Companies in China and Russia also are producing adenovirus-based vaccines and began administering them before the results of final testing came in. Argentina is expected to soon use the Russian vaccine.“KILLED” VACCINESSpike-focused vaccines aren’t the only option. Making vaccines by growing a disease-causing virus and then killing it is a still older approach that gives the body a sneak peek at the germ itself rather than just that single spike protein.China has three such “inactivated” COVID-19 vaccines in final testing in several countries and has allowed emergency use in some people ahead of results. An Indian company is testing its own inactivated candidate.___

More COVID-19 vaccines in the pipeline as US effort ramps up

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska temple says its $11,000 donation to two Lincoln organizations is a way to say thanks for the community’s support after anti-Semitic vandalism in January. 

WOWT-TV reports that the South Street Temple and Congregation Tifereth Israel is making the donation to the Food Bank of Lincoln and Clinic with a Heart. 

The vandalism included a swastika and racial epithets spray-painted on the temple. 

A news release from the temple said Lincoln residents gave donations, attended Shabbat services and made public statements in solidarity with the Jewish community.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska temple says its $11,000 donation to two Lincoln organizations is a way to say thanks for the community’s support after anti-Semitic vandalism in January. WOWT-TV reports that the South Street Temple and Congregation Tifereth Israel is making the donation to the Food Bank of Lincoln and Clinic with a Heart. The vandalism included a swastika and racial epithets spray-painted on the temple. A news release from the temple said Lincoln residents gave donations, attended Shabbat services and made public statements in solidarity with the Jewish community.

Nebraska temple shows gratitude after reaction to vandalism

(AP)-An Associated Press investigation has found an army of children toiling beneath a canopy of towering palm oil trees in Indonesia and Malaysia, the main suppliers of the world’s most consumed vegetable oil. 

They are kept out of school and forced to work for free or for little pay, and routinely exposed to dangerous chemicals. Others are smuggled across borders and left vulnerable to trafficking or sexual abuse. 

The AP traced the fruits of their labor to the supply chains of popular cereals, candies and ice creams sold by Nestle, Unilever, Kellogg’s, PepsiCo and many other leading food companies.  It also was linked to that most American of treats — Girl Scout cookies.

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 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/1/1609598636986.jpg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>(AP)-An Associated Press investigation has found an army of children toiling beneath a canopy of towering palm oil trees in Indonesia and Malaysia, the main suppliers of the world’s most consumed vegetable oil. They are kept out of school and forced to work for free or for little pay, and routinely exposed to dangerous chemicals. Others are smuggled across borders and left vulnerable to trafficking or sexual abuse. The AP traced the fruits of their labor to the supply chains of popular cereals, candies and ice creams sold by Nestle, Unilever, Kellogg’s, PepsiCo and many other leading food companies. It also was linked to that most American of treats — Girl Scout cookies.

Child labor in palm oil industry tied to Girl Scout cookies

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP)-One worker was killed and another was injured when concrete fell on them Friday at a construction site, Lincoln police said.

The men were part of a crew disassembling a concrete balcony at the Cedars in south Lincoln. The balcony was about 10 to 12 feet off the ground when part of it broke off and hit the men, Capt. Todd Kocian said.

A man in his 20s died at the scene. The other worker was taken to the hospital with a leg injury that wasn't considered life-threatening, The Lincoln Journal-Star&nbsp;<a href="https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/1-dead-1-injured-in-construction-accident-at-lincoln-emergency-youth-shelter/article_2816ee19-68cd-5b06-ab9d-7a106c7dee61.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1" target="_blank">reported</a>.

Cedars is undergoing a $3.5 million expansion of its emergency youth shelter.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP)-One worker was killed and another was injured when concrete fell on them Friday at a construction site, Lincoln police said.The men were part of a crew disassembling a concrete balcony at the Cedars in south Lincoln. The balcony was about 10 to 12 feet off the ground when part of it broke off and hit the men, Capt. Todd Kocian said.A man in his 20s died at the scene. The other worker was taken to the hospital with a leg injury that wasn't considered life-threatening, The Lincoln Journal-Star&nbsp;<a href="https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/1-dead-1-injured-in-construction-accident-at-lincoln-emergency-youth-shelter/article_2816ee19-68cd-5b06-ab9d-7a106c7dee61.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1" target="_blank">reported</a>.No names have been released.Cedars is undergoing a $3.5 million expansion of its emergency youth shelter.

Construction accident in Lincoln kills 1, injures another

OMAHA, Neb. (NSP)-Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol arrested one person after he attempted to flee a traffic stop and assaulted a trooper.

The incident occurred Thursday on the entrance ramp to westbound Interstate 80 near the Q street overpass in Omaha. At approximately 11:45 a.m. Thursday, a trooper observed a Ford Thunderbird driving in excess of 80 miles per hour in a 50 miles per zone.

During the traffic stop, the driver of the Thunderbird refused to provide any documentation requested by the trooper. The trooper then asked the driver to exit the vehicle. After several requests the driver did exit the vehicle and was belligerent with the trooper. The driver then attempted to flee on foot, running toward the traffic lanes of I-80.

The trooper followed and caught up to the subject quickly. The person then hit the trooper in the face multiple times and a struggle ensued against the jersey barrier separating the entrance ramp and traffic lanes of I-80. After a short time, the trooper was able to place the suspect into custody and move him away from traffic.

The driver, Juventino Gomez, 37, of Omaha, was arrested for assaulting an officer, resisting arrest, driving under the influence, no operator’s license, no registration, outstanding warrants, and several other violations. Gomez was lodged in Douglas County Corrections.

The trooper did not require medical treatment.

OMAHA, Neb. (NSP)-Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol arrested one person after he attempted to flee a traffic stop and assaulted a trooper.The incident occurred Thursday on the entrance ramp to westbound Interstate 80 near the Q street overpass in Omaha. At approximately 11:45 a.m. Thursday, a trooper observed a Ford Thunderbird driving in excess of 80 miles per hour in a 50 miles per zone.During the traffic stop, the driver of the Thunderbird refused to provide any documentation requested by the trooper. The trooper then asked the driver to exit the vehicle. After several requests the driver did exit the vehicle and was belligerent with the trooper. The driver then attempted to flee on foot, running toward the traffic lanes of I-80.The trooper followed and caught up to the subject quickly. The person then hit the trooper in the face multiple times and a struggle ensued against the jersey barrier separating the entrance ramp and traffic lanes of I-80. After a short time, the trooper was able to place the suspect into custody and move him away from traffic.The driver, Juventino Gomez, 37, of Omaha, was arrested for assaulting an officer, resisting arrest, driving under the influence, no operator’s license, no registration, outstanding warrants, and several other violations. Gomez was lodged in Douglas County Corrections.The trooper did not require medical treatment.

Suspect arrested after assaulting Nebraska trooper, fleeing

KANSAS CITY (AP) — When Andre Avery drives his commercial truck through Detroit, he keeps his pistol close.

Avery, 57, grew up in the Motor City and is aware that homicides and shootings are surging, even though before the pandemic they were dropping in Detroit and elsewhere. His gun is legal, and he carries it with him for protection.

“I remain extremely alert,” said Avery, who now lives in nearby Belleville. “I’m not in crowds. If something looks a little suspicious, I’m out of there.”

In Detroit, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and even smaller Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Milwaukee, 2020 has been deadly not only because of the pandemic, but because gun violence is spiking.

Authorities and some experts say there is no one clear-cut reason for the spike. They instead point to social and economic upheaval caused by the COVID-19 virus, public sentiment toward police following George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody and a historic shortage of jobs and resources in poorer communities as contributing factors. It’s happening in cities large and small, Democrat and Republican-led.

Two years ago, Detroit had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/c43536132a0996ba53d763cae281c084">261 homicides</a>&nbsp;— the fewest in decades. The tally has hovered around there with about 786 shootings for a city of more than 672,000.

But with only a few days left in 2020, homicides already have topped 300, while non-fatal shootings are up more than 50% at more than 1,124 through the middle of December.

“I think the pandemic — COVID — has had a significant emotional impact on people across the country,” Detroit Police Chief James Craig said. “Individuals are not processing how they manage disputes. Whether domestics, arguments, disputes over drugs, there’s this quickness to use an illegally carried firearm.”

About 7,000 guns had been seized through mid-December in Detroit, with more than 5,500 arrests for illegal guns. There were 2,797 similar arrests last year.

“I’ve not seen a spike like this. But when it’s happening in other cities — some smaller — what do we all have in common?” Craig said of the slayings and shootings. “That’s when you start thinking about COVID.”

Washington, D.C., a city of about 700,000, has seen more than 187 homicides this year, eclipsing last year’s total by more than 20. Among the most horrible: A 15-month-old baby boy was shot to death during a drive-by shooting.

“We’re all sick of the heinous crimes in our city,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser.

Crime in parts of the U.S. dropped during the early weeks of the pandemic when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bbb7adc88d3fa067c5c1b5c72a1a8aa6">stay-at-home orders closed businesses and forced many people to remain indoors.</a>

University of Pennsylvania economics professor David Abrams said crime began to spike in May and June when initial orders in some states were lifted.

Some people “may have been a little stir crazy,” Abrams said. “At the end of May, George Floyd’s killing led to protests and looting. That led to police reform movements. Any of that could have potentially affected individual behavior and also the police response to that.”

Calls for some cities to reduce funding for police departments may have led some officers to take a less aggressive approach to policing, he added.

What the COVID-19 virus did was exacerbate all of the frustration and anger that some in Black and brown communities already were dealing with, according to retired Michigan State University sociology professor Carl Taylor. The virus has killed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-coronavirus-deaths-top-3-million-e2bc856b6ec45563b84ee2e87ae8d5e7">more than 300,000 people&nbsp;</a>across the country, with minority communities hardest hit.

“The COVID has been absolutely the trigger of an everlasting bomb that’s exploding in many parts of our community,”

Nowhere is that more true than inside people’s homes. “The COVID crisis and the economic shutdown is forcing people into their homes, creating conditions where people are more volatile,” said Kim Foxx, the top prosecutor in Cook County, which includes Chicago. And the most jarring statistic that illustrates that volatility is this: The number of domestic-related homicides in the nation’s third-largest city are up more than 60% compared with last year.

President Donald Trump claimed spiking crime was somehow related to massive protests over police brutality that swept the nation this year, but the majority of those protests were peaceful. Trump also claimed the crime was concentrated in Democratic-run cities, but there have been spikes in Republican-run cities as well. Federal agents and resources were poured into Detroit and a number of other cities this summer to help local authorities collar the rising crime rates.

By early October, more homicides — 363 — were recorded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-homicide-shootings-violence-philadelphia-ebe03dcb7e05777b7e73892e46b78b01">in Philadelphia&nbsp;</a>than the 356 committed in 2019. There were 354 killings&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-new-york-violent-crime-new-york-city-violence-6d7e05e85b81d4281a14d3a03981d677">in New York</a>&nbsp;through Oct. 11 — 90 more than at the same time last year.

Between Jan. 1 and Nov. 5, 165 homicides were recorded in Milwaukee,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-homicide-milwaukee-shootings-5179d42d4cc421ce1178e6834b55f66e">the most&nbsp;</a>since 1991. And in Chicago, after three years of falling homicide numbers, the totals skyrocketed to 739 in mid-December compared with 475 at the same point last year.

Even smaller cities like Grand Rapids are suffering. By mid-December there were 35 homicides compared with 16 through all of 2019 and nine the year before. From this January to October, non-fatal shootings topped 200 in the city, which is home to about 200,000 people. Over the same period last year there were 131 non-fatal shootings.

“This year, is it because of COVID? The political polarization we have seen?” asked Sgt. Dan Adams, spokesman for the Grand Rapids Police Department. “This year has been a year like no other. I don’t think you can point to any one ‘why.’”

It is the same for other mid-sized cities. Last year, there were 18 homicides in Rockford, a city of about 170,000 people in northern Illinois. More than 30 have been killed so far this year,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rockford-shootings-illinois-c0692de8b46ca5cc8f642855eb2eef15">including three Saturday&nbsp;</a>at a bowling alley.

“As we come to the end of this most difficult year and we look ahead at this New Year upon us, we know that this type of violence needs to stop,” Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara said.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — When Andre Avery drives his commercial truck through Detroit, he keeps his pistol close.Avery, 57, grew up in the Motor City and is aware that homicides and shootings are surging, even though before the pandemic they were dropping in Detroit and elsewhere. His gun is legal, and he carries it with him for protection.“I remain extremely alert,” said Avery, who now lives in nearby Belleville. “I’m not in crowds. If something looks a little suspicious, I’m out of there.”In Detroit, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and even smaller Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Milwaukee, 2020 has been deadly not only because of the pandemic, but because gun violence is spiking.Authorities and some experts say there is no one clear-cut reason for the spike. They instead point to social and economic upheaval caused by the COVID-19 virus, public sentiment toward police following George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody and a historic shortage of jobs and resources in poorer communities as contributing factors. It’s happening in cities large and small, Democrat and Republican-led.Two years ago, Detroit had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/c43536132a0996ba53d763cae281c084">261 homicides</a>&nbsp;— the fewest in decades. The tally has hovered around there with about 786 shootings for a city of more than 672,000.But with only a few days left in 2020, homicides already have topped 300, while non-fatal shootings are up more than 50% at more than 1,124 through the middle of December.“I think the pandemic — COVID — has had a significant emotional impact on people across the country,” Detroit Police Chief James Craig said. “Individuals are not processing how they manage disputes. Whether domestics, arguments, disputes over drugs, there’s this quickness to use an illegally carried firearm.”About 7,000 guns had been seized through mid-December in Detroit, with more than 5,500 arrests for illegal guns. There were 2,797 similar arrests last year.“I’ve not seen a spike like this. But when it’s happening in other cities — some smaller — what do we all have in common?” Craig said of the slayings and shootings. “That’s when you start thinking about COVID.”Washington, D.C., a city of about 700,000, has seen more than 187 homicides this year, eclipsing last year’s total by more than 20. Among the most horrible: A 15-month-old baby boy was shot to death during a drive-by shooting.“We’re all sick of the heinous crimes in our city,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser.Crime in parts of the U.S. dropped during the early weeks of the pandemic when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bbb7adc88d3fa067c5c1b5c72a1a8aa6">stay-at-home orders closed businesses and forced many people to remain indoors.</a>University of Pennsylvania economics professor David Abrams said crime began to spike in May and June when initial orders in some states were lifted.Some people “may have been a little stir crazy,” Abrams said. “At the end of May, George Floyd’s killing led to protests and looting. That led to police reform movements. Any of that could have potentially affected individual behavior and also the police response to that.”Calls for some cities to reduce funding for police departments may have led some officers to take a less aggressive approach to policing, he added.What the COVID-19 virus did was exacerbate all of the frustration and anger that some in Black and brown communities already were dealing with, according to retired Michigan State University sociology professor Carl Taylor. The virus has killed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-coronavirus-deaths-top-3-million-e2bc856b6ec45563b84ee2e87ae8d5e7">more than 300,000 people&nbsp;</a>across the country, with minority communities hardest hit.“The COVID has been absolutely the trigger of an everlasting bomb that’s exploding in many parts of our community,”Nowhere is that more true than inside people’s homes. “The COVID crisis and the economic shutdown is forcing people into their homes, creating conditions where people are more volatile,” said Kim Foxx, the top prosecutor in Cook County, which includes Chicago. And the most jarring statistic that illustrates that volatility is this: The number of domestic-related homicides in the nation’s third-largest city are up more than 60% compared with last year.President Donald Trump claimed spiking crime was somehow related to massive protests over police brutality that swept the nation this year, but the majority of those protests were peaceful. Trump also claimed the crime was concentrated in Democratic-run cities, but there have been spikes in Republican-run cities as well. Federal agents and resources were poured into Detroit and a number of other cities this summer to help local authorities collar the rising crime rates.By early October, more homicides — 363 — were recorded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-homicide-shootings-violence-philadelphia-ebe03dcb7e05777b7e73892e46b78b01">in Philadelphia&nbsp;</a>than the 356 committed in 2019. There were 354 killings&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-new-york-violent-crime-new-york-city-violence-6d7e05e85b81d4281a14d3a03981d677">in New York</a>&nbsp;through Oct. 11 — 90 more than at the same time last year.Between Jan. 1 and Nov. 5, 165 homicides were recorded in Milwaukee,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-homicide-milwaukee-shootings-5179d42d4cc421ce1178e6834b55f66e">the most&nbsp;</a>since 1991. And in Chicago, after three years of falling homicide numbers, the totals skyrocketed to 739 in mid-December compared with 475 at the same point last year.Even smaller cities like Grand Rapids are suffering. By mid-December there were 35 homicides compared with 16 through all of 2019 and nine the year before. From this January to October, non-fatal shootings topped 200 in the city, which is home to about 200,000 people. Over the same period last year there were 131 non-fatal shootings.“This year, is it because of COVID? The political polarization we have seen?” asked Sgt. Dan Adams, spokesman for the Grand Rapids Police Department. “This year has been a year like no other. I don’t think you can point to any one ‘why.’”It is the same for other mid-sized cities. Last year, there were 18 homicides in Rockford, a city of about 170,000 people in northern Illinois. More than 30 have been killed so far this year,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rockford-shootings-illinois-c0692de8b46ca5cc8f642855eb2eef15">including three Saturday&nbsp;</a>at a bowling alley.“As we come to the end of this most difficult year and we look ahead at this New Year upon us, we know that this type of violence needs to stop,” Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara said.___