LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — State auditors say a former finance chief for the Nebraska State Fair collected nearly $150,000 in undocumented payments through a company he created last year. 

Auditors say the review found two checks totaling $149,415.60 that were made out to RKBB Enterprises Inc. 

RKBB Enterprises was created in May 2019 by Brandon Kopke, the fair’s former chief of finance and administration.

 Kopke resigned in November after telling board members that the fair was headed for bankruptcy. 

State auditors say they identified the questionable payments during a review of the fair’s spending. 

They say they couldn’t find any invoices for the payments or connect them to any services provided for the fair.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — State auditors say a former finance chief for the Nebraska State Fair collected nearly $150,000 in undocumented payments through a company he created last year. Auditors say the review found two checks totaling $149,415.60 that were made out to RKBB Enterprises Inc. RKBB Enterprises was created in May 2019 by Brandon Kopke, the fair’s former chief of finance and administration. Kopke resigned in November after telling board members that the fair was headed for bankruptcy. State auditors say they identified the questionable payments during a review of the fair’s spending. They say they couldn’t find any invoices for the payments or connect them to any services provided for the fair.

Auditors question spending by ex-Nebraska fair employee

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump came prepared.

As he took the podium&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/bfb8402551605ff40d8a16efbd827b92">Tuesday</a>&nbsp;to give a briefing room update on the coronavirus for the first time in months, the president was asked an obvious question: If wearing a mask is “patriotic,” as he tweeted this week, why didn’t he wear one more frequently?

“Well, I do actually do it when I need. I mean, I carry the mask,” Trump responded. He reached into his suit jacket pocket and produced his for the cameras: navy blue, with a presidential seal.

“I have no problem with the masks. I view it this way: Anything that potentially can help, and that certainly can potentially help, is a good thing. I have no problem. I carry it, I wear it ... and I’ll continue,” he added.

The comments were a dramatic about-face for a president who, for months, resisted wearing a face covering in public and complained privately he thought it would make him look weak and would focus attention on the public health crisis rather than the economic recovery.

Even as top public health officials, who initially had advised the public not to wear masks, became convinced that face coverings could effectively halt the spread of the virus and begged the public to embrace them, Trump resisted. He mocked Democratic rival Joe Biden for wearing one, asked reporters to remove them and entertained the idea that people might be wearing them to spite him.

“I just don’t want to wear one myself,” he said in April. “I don’t know, somehow sitting in the Oval Office behind that beautiful Resolute Desk — the great Resolute Desk — I think wearing a face mask as I greet presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens, I don’t know. Somehow, I don’t see it for myself. I just don’t. Maybe I’ll change my mind.”

By Tuesday, as coronavirus cases continue to rise across much of the nation, Trump finally came around, saying, “I’m getting used to the mask.”

“I will use it gladly, no problem with it,” he said, urging those watching to follow his lead.

“When you can, use the mask. If you’re close to each other, if you’re in a group, I would put it on,” he said.

But that pronouncement was too little, too late for some public health officials, who have blamed the mixed messaging and Trump’s personal actions for politicizing mask-wearing and fueling a partisan social divide.

“I think it would have been enormous impact if he had done it from Day One,” said Lawrence Gostin, a public health expert at Georgetown University. He worried that Trump’s words would have only marginal impact in moving Americans who aren’t consistently wearing masks in public to do so.

If, from the beginning, “you had consistent messages at the federal, state and local level, if everyone had been on the same page all along on the importance of masks, we’d be in a different situation,” Gostin said.

And Trump still declined to wear a mask at the briefing — noting that he and the reporters who cover him are frequently tested. And he was seen without one Monday evening at the Trump hotel in Washington, where he attended a fundraiser and ate dinner.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, an occasional informal Trump adviser, had urged the president to wear a mask to the briefing, saying during an appearance on “Fox and Friends” Tuesday, “That’s what’s going to convince people that he’s serious about this.”

Trump tweeted a photo of himself in a face mask Monday, calling it an act of patriotism. He wore one for the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/7651589ac439646e5cf873d021f1f4b6">first time in public</a>&nbsp;earlier this month during a visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1595414351557.png" alt="President Trump pulled his face mask from his suit pocket in response to a reporter's question during Tuesday's Coronavirus Task Force briefing-image courtesy White House" />
 <figcaption>President Trump pulled his face mask from his suit pocket in response to a reporter's question during Tuesday's Coronavirus Task Force briefing-image courtesy White House</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump came prepared.As he took the podium&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/bfb8402551605ff40d8a16efbd827b92">Tuesday</a>&nbsp;to give a briefing room update on the coronavirus for the first time in months, the president was asked an obvious question: If wearing a mask is “patriotic,” as he tweeted this week, why didn’t he wear one more frequently?“Well, I do actually do it when I need. I mean, I carry the mask,” Trump responded. He reached into his suit jacket pocket and produced his for the cameras: navy blue, with a presidential seal.“I have no problem with the masks. I view it this way: Anything that potentially can help, and that certainly can potentially help, is a good thing. I have no problem. I carry it, I wear it ... and I’ll continue,” he added.The comments were a dramatic about-face for a president who, for months, resisted wearing a face covering in public and complained privately he thought it would make him look weak and would focus attention on the public health crisis rather than the economic recovery.Even as top public health officials, who initially had advised the public not to wear masks, became convinced that face coverings could effectively halt the spread of the virus and begged the public to embrace them, Trump resisted. He mocked Democratic rival Joe Biden for wearing one, asked reporters to remove them and entertained the idea that people might be wearing them to spite him.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1595366343118.png" alt="White House image" />
 <figcaption>White House image</figcaption>
 </figure>“I just don’t want to wear one myself,” he said in April. “I don’t know, somehow sitting in the Oval Office behind that beautiful Resolute Desk — the great Resolute Desk — I think wearing a face mask as I greet presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens, I don’t know. Somehow, I don’t see it for myself. I just don’t. Maybe I’ll change my mind.”By Tuesday, as coronavirus cases continue to rise across much of the nation, Trump finally came around, saying, “I’m getting used to the mask.”“I will use it gladly, no problem with it,” he said, urging those watching to follow his lead.“When you can, use the mask. If you’re close to each other, if you’re in a group, I would put it on,” he said.But that pronouncement was too little, too late for some public health officials, who have blamed the mixed messaging and Trump’s personal actions for politicizing mask-wearing and fueling a partisan social divide.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1595366561351.png" alt="White House image" />
 <figcaption>White House image</figcaption>
 </figure>“I think it would have been enormous impact if he had done it from Day One,” said Lawrence Gostin, a public health expert at Georgetown University. He worried that Trump’s words would have only marginal impact in moving Americans who aren’t consistently wearing masks in public to do so.If, from the beginning, “you had consistent messages at the federal, state and local level, if everyone had been on the same page all along on the importance of masks, we’d be in a different situation,” Gostin said.And Trump still declined to wear a mask at the briefing — noting that he and the reporters who cover him are frequently tested. And he was seen without one Monday evening at the Trump hotel in Washington, where he attended a fundraiser and ate dinner.Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, an occasional informal Trump adviser, had urged the president to wear a mask to the briefing, saying during an appearance on “Fox and Friends” Tuesday, “That’s what’s going to convince people that he’s serious about this.”<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">We are United in our effort to defeat the Invisible China Virus, and many people say that it is Patriotic to wear a face mask when you can’t socially distance. There is nobody more Patriotic than me, your favorite President! <a href="https://t.co/iQOd1whktN">pic.twitter.com/iQOd1whktN</a>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1285299379746811915?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Trump tweeted a photo of himself in a face mask Monday, calling it an act of patriotism. He wore one for the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/7651589ac439646e5cf873d021f1f4b6">first time in public</a>&nbsp;earlier this month during a visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

Trump embraces masks in an about-face

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A former Nebraska volleyball player and eight other women have sued the university. They allege the school did not properly respond or investigate complaints of sexual assault and harassment. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court. The complaint outlines a pattern of unresponsiveness, sloppiness and indifference by university employees in charge of investigating allegations of sexual misconduct. Seven of the women allege they were victims of rape or sexual assault. The university declined to comment on the lawsuit but said it has a strong Title IX process.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A former Nebraska volleyball player and eight other women have sued the university. They allege the school did not properly respond or investigate complaints of sexual assault and harassment. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court. The complaint outlines a pattern of unresponsiveness, sloppiness and indifference by university employees in charge of investigating allegations of sexual misconduct. Seven of the women allege they were victims of rape or sexual assault. The university declined to comment on the lawsuit but said it has a strong Title IX process.

Former Husker among nine women suing school regarding sex assault, harassment complaints 

Joe Biden's presidential campaign is ramping up its advertising and deploying some of its high-profile surrogates as it tries to solidify a broad battleground map that his advisers see as giving him multiple paths to an Electoral College majority.

Biden's Democratic campaign announced Tuesday a $15 million weeklong advertising campaign including television, digital, radio and print in six states: Arizona, Florida, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. President Donald Trump won all six states four years ago. The television purchases, which involve ads in English and Spanish, also extend to national cable television, including Major League Baseball's Opening Day broadcasts.

Separately, the campaign is using top surrogates in the coming days for virtual events targeting Las Vegas; Milwaukee; northern Virginia; Detroit and western Michigan; Raleigh, North Carolina; Des Moines, Iowa; and Omaha, Nebraska. The headliners include two women mentioned as potential Biden running mates, Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth and California Sen. Kamala Harris, along with former presidential candidates Julián Castro and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

While the Biden moves underscore his wide-ranging approach, they also highlight lingering questions about spreading the campaign too thin. Four years ago, Democrat Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign made a show of expanding its efforts into Sun Belt states like Arizona and Georgia - GOP strongholds that have become more competitive - while the candidate herself spent no time in Wisconsin and little time in Michigan or Pennsylvania, states her campaign viewed as reliably Democratic. President Donald Trump ended up sweeping all those states.

Biden's top aides have promised "an expanded map" that includes both traditional battlegrounds like the Great Lakes states that delivered Trump's 2016 victory and more GOP-leaning states that are now in play because of demographic shifts and the president's struggles responding to the coronavirus pandemic.

"We're not trying to get to 400 electoral votes," Biden's deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield told The Associated Press in a recent interview. "But we're trying to have as many paths as possible to the 270 that it takes to win."

Biden's advertising and surrogate footprint reflects a broad geographic and demographic coalition that he is seeking.

As an example, Trump won Michigan in 2016 by fewer than 11,000 votes. Clinton lost ground in whiter, working-class areas beyond the urban areas and in Detroit, as compared to President Barack Obama's 2012 marks. Although addressing either shortfall could flip Michigan back to Democrats, Biden's campaign insists it is not prioritizing one slice of the electorate over the other.

Northern Virginia and Raleigh, North Carolina, meanwhile, represent growing urban and suburban areas where Democrats can run up big vote totals from white liberals, nonwhite voters and college-educated white voters who have leaned Republican in the past but have soured on Trump.

Des Moines and Omaha, meanwhile, are whiter, more culturally conservative cities, but Democrats believe Trump's struggles put electoral votes there in play. Obama twice won Iowa before Trump outpaced Clinton there nearly by double digits. Nebraska is reliably Republican but awards electoral votes by congressional districts, and the Omaha district could be in play.

The presumptive Democratic nominee still has not reserved television advertising for the fall. Trump's Republican reelection campaign has reserved more than $146 million already, led by a $36.3 million investment in Florida and $18.4 million in Ohio, which is not included in the latest Biden spending. In 2016, Clinton did not start buying post-Labor Day television spots until late August.

Harris, one of the party's most recognizable women of color, is leading Biden's event in North Carolina, where the Democratic path to victory depends both on high Black turnout and cajoling enough white swing voters. Klobuchar, who built her presidential campaign identity as a Midwestern moderate, is being deployed as the envoy in Iowa.

Biden's campaign manager, Jen O'Malley Dillon, and other Biden aides have pointed to the campaign's uptick in fundraising to assert that they can build a wide playing field without being spread too thin. The campaign and the Democratic National Committee have outraised Trump for the last two months but still trail the GOP's combined accounts in cash on hand.

By BILL BARROW-Associated Press Joe Biden's presidential campaign is ramping up its advertising and deploying some of its high-profile surrogates as it tries to solidify a broad battleground map that his advisers see as giving him multiple paths to an Electoral College majority.Biden's Democratic campaign announced Tuesday a $15 million weeklong advertising campaign including television, digital, radio and print in six states: Arizona, Florida, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. President Donald Trump won all six states four years ago. The television purchases, which involve ads in English and Spanish, also extend to national cable television, including Major League Baseball's Opening Day broadcasts.Separately, the campaign is using top surrogates in the coming days for virtual events targeting Las Vegas; Milwaukee; northern Virginia; Detroit and western Michigan; Raleigh, North Carolina; Des Moines, Iowa; and Omaha, Nebraska. The headliners include two women mentioned as potential Biden running mates, Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth and California Sen. Kamala Harris, along with former presidential candidates Julián Castro and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.While the Biden moves underscore his wide-ranging approach, they also highlight lingering questions about spreading the campaign too thin. Four years ago, Democrat Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign made a show of expanding its efforts into Sun Belt states like Arizona and Georgia - GOP strongholds that have become more competitive - while the candidate herself spent no time in Wisconsin and little time in Michigan or Pennsylvania, states her campaign viewed as reliably Democratic. President Donald Trump ended up sweeping all those states.Biden's top aides have promised "an expanded map" that includes both traditional battlegrounds like the Great Lakes states that delivered Trump's 2016 victory and more GOP-leaning states that are now in play because of demographic shifts and the president's struggles responding to the coronavirus pandemic."We're not trying to get to 400 electoral votes," Biden's deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield told The Associated Press in a recent interview. "But we're trying to have as many paths as possible to the 270 that it takes to win."Biden's advertising and surrogate footprint reflects a broad geographic and demographic coalition that he is seeking.As an example, Trump won Michigan in 2016 by fewer than 11,000 votes. Clinton lost ground in whiter, working-class areas beyond the urban areas and in Detroit, as compared to President Barack Obama's 2012 marks. Although addressing either shortfall could flip Michigan back to Democrats, Biden's campaign insists it is not prioritizing one slice of the electorate over the other.Northern Virginia and Raleigh, North Carolina, meanwhile, represent growing urban and suburban areas where Democrats can run up big vote totals from white liberals, nonwhite voters and college-educated white voters who have leaned Republican in the past but have soured on Trump.Des Moines and Omaha, meanwhile, are whiter, more culturally conservative cities, but Democrats believe Trump's struggles put electoral votes there in play. Obama twice won Iowa before Trump outpaced Clinton there nearly by double digits. Nebraska is reliably Republican but awards electoral votes by congressional districts, and the Omaha district could be in play.The presumptive Democratic nominee still has not reserved television advertising for the fall. Trump's Republican reelection campaign has reserved more than $146 million already, led by a $36.3 million investment in Florida and $18.4 million in Ohio, which is not included in the latest Biden spending. In 2016, Clinton did not start buying post-Labor Day television spots until late August.Harris, one of the party's most recognizable women of color, is leading Biden's event in North Carolina, where the Democratic path to victory depends both on high Black turnout and cajoling enough white swing voters. Klobuchar, who built her presidential campaign identity as a Midwestern moderate, is being deployed as the envoy in Iowa.Biden's campaign manager, Jen O'Malley Dillon, and other Biden aides have pointed to the campaign's uptick in fundraising to assert that they can build a wide playing field without being spread too thin. The campaign and the Democratic National Committee have outraised Trump for the last two months but still trail the GOP's combined accounts in cash on hand.

Biden launches wide battleground push with ads, surrogates

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A double murder trial in Nebraska will be rescheduled after the suspect's sister, who had been sitting in the courtroom, tested positive for COVID-19. 

Douglas County District Judge Marlon Polk declared a mistrial Monday in the case of Nyir Kuek, who is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the June 2019 deaths of two men in a Florence-area home. 

The Omaha World-Herald reports Kuek's sister was in court Friday during opening statements. 

She later informed attorneys she had tested positive for COVID-19. 

Douglas County Health Director Adi Pour said the safest action would be to delay the trial. Defense and prosecution attorneys agreed with that recommendation.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A double murder trial in Nebraska will be rescheduled after the suspect's sister, who had been sitting in the courtroom, tested positive for COVID-19. Douglas County District Judge Marlon Polk declared a mistrial Monday in the case of Nyir Kuek, who is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the June 2019 deaths of two men in a Florence-area home. The Omaha World-Herald reports Kuek's sister was in court Friday during opening statements. She later informed attorneys she had tested positive for COVID-19. Douglas County Health Director Adi Pour said the safest action would be to delay the trial. Defense and prosecution attorneys agreed with that recommendation.

Mistrial declared in Nebraska murder trial over coronavirus

CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming Legislature could consider providing up to $2 million to help the state’s tourism sector cope with the economic impact of the pandemic. 

The Casper Star-Tribune reports that the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Travel, Recreation and Wildlife voted to draft legislation providing the compensation for communities and businesses that rely on tourism. 

Lawmakers speculated a vote on the bill may take place in a second special session of the Legislature, although no date was announced. 

The funds would be directed toward relief for business losses incurred as the result of cancellations of events with regional and local significance.

CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming Legislature could consider providing up to $2 million to help the state’s tourism sector cope with the economic impact of the pandemic. The Casper Star-Tribune reports that the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Travel, Recreation and Wildlife voted to draft legislation providing the compensation for communities and businesses that rely on tourism. Lawmakers speculated a vote on the bill may take place in a second special session of the Legislature, although no date was announced. The funds would be directed toward relief for business losses incurred as the result of cancellations of events with regional and local significance.

Wyoming Legislature may consider relief for tourism sector

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Health officials say South Dakota's coronavirus test results are being slowed by the surge in COVID-19 in other states. 

South Dakota Health Secretary Kim Malsam-Rysdon says officials have seen a change in the last week in the length of time it takes for a result if the sample is sent to an out-of-state commercial lab. 

 She says it's taking up to a week _ or longer _ to get results from out-of-state labs. She says it's different for in-state labs, and that South Dakota's public health lab is still turning out lab results in 24 hours. 

The Argus Leader reports state epidemiologist Josh Clayton says the delay in test results just means some people are in isolation longer while waiting for test results.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Health officials say South Dakota's coronavirus test results are being slowed by the surge in COVID-19 in other states. South Dakota Health Secretary Kim Malsam-Rysdon says officials have seen a change in the last week in the length of time it takes for a result if the sample is sent to an out-of-state commercial lab. She says it's taking up to a week _ or longer _ to get results from out-of-state labs. She says it's different for in-state labs, and that South Dakota's public health lab is still turning out lab results in 24 hours. The Argus Leader reports state epidemiologist Josh Clayton says the delay in test results just means some people are in isolation longer while waiting for test results.

Virus surge in other states slows South Dakota test results

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — A Sioux Falls couple is facing criminal charges after police say they broke into an apartment armed with an ax and crowbar in a dispute over a TV. 

 Police say the 23-year-old woman and 21-year-old man are facing charges of aggravated assault, burglary and cruelty to a minor.

 According to authorities, the two went to an apartment building Friday, climbed over a fence and the woman used the ax to break the patio door glass.

 There were two children and three adults in the apartment. 

Police say the woman struck a man in the hand while her partner continued to swing the crowbar. 

They were arrested a short time later.&nbsp;

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — A Sioux Falls couple is facing criminal charges after police say they broke into an apartment armed with an ax and crowbar in a dispute over a TV. Police say the 23-year-old woman and 21-year-old man are facing charges of aggravated assault, burglary and cruelty to a minor. According to authorities, the two went to an apartment building Friday, climbed over a fence and the woman used the ax to break the patio door glass. There were two children and three adults in the apartment. Police say the woman struck a man in the hand while her partner continued to swing the crowbar. They were arrested a short time later.&nbsp;

Couple arrested in ax, crowbar attack in dispute over TV

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police have identified a man who drowned while docking a boat on the Missouri River this weekend as an Omaha man. 

The Omaha World-Herald reports that 66-year-old Robert Winberg died in the Friday night incident.

 Investigators say Winberg fell into the river while docking a boat around 9:20 p.m. Friday.

 Officials say Winberg was submerged for a long period in an area north of N.P. Dodge Park in north Omaha before he was found by rescue crews and pulled from the water.

 He was taken to an Omaha hospital, where he was declared dead.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police have identified a man who drowned while docking a boat on the Missouri River this weekend as an Omaha man. The Omaha World-Herald reports that 66-year-old Robert Winberg died in the Friday night incident. Investigators say Winberg fell into the river while docking a boat around 9:20 p.m. Friday. Officials say Winberg was submerged for a long period in an area north of N.P. Dodge Park in north Omaha before he was found by rescue crews and pulled from the water. He was taken to an Omaha hospital, where he was declared dead.

Omaha man identified as person who drowned at boat dock

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - A 31-year-old man assaulted two police officers Sunday when they tried to take him into custody during a disturbance at a Walgreens' pharmacy counter in Lincoln, police said.

Ray Q. Burns of Lincoln was arrested on suspicion of two counts of third-degree assault on an officer and resisting arrest, the Lincoln Journal Star&nbsp;<a href="https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/2-lincoln-officers-injured-arresting-man-for-disturbance-at-pharmacy-police-say/article_3ea4f619-47a0-582a-b4b5-06ad7cf019bc.html" target="_blank">reported</a>.

Police responding to a call arrived to see Burns causing a disturbance before jumping behind the pharmacy counter, said police officer Luke Bonkiewicz.

When officers tried to arrest him, Burns hit one officer in the head, causing two cuts that required four staples to close. A second officer suffered scrapes, bruising and swelling of his right arm.

The officers eventually were able to take him into custody.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - A 31-year-old man assaulted two police officers Sunday when they tried to take him into custody during a disturbance at a Walgreens' pharmacy counter in Lincoln, police said.Ray Q. Burns of Lincoln was arrested on suspicion of two counts of third-degree assault on an officer and resisting arrest, the Lincoln Journal Star&nbsp;<a href="https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/2-lincoln-officers-injured-arresting-man-for-disturbance-at-pharmacy-police-say/article_3ea4f619-47a0-582a-b4b5-06ad7cf019bc.html" target="_blank">reported</a>.Police responding to a call arrived to see Burns causing a disturbance before jumping behind the pharmacy counter, said police officer Luke Bonkiewicz.When officers tried to arrest him, Burns hit one officer in the head, causing two cuts that required four staples to close. A second officer suffered scrapes, bruising and swelling of his right arm.The officers eventually were able to take him into custody.

Police: Nebraska man assaulted, injured 2 police officers

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — Rapid City police are searching for a suspect accused of shooting and seriously injuring two people. 

The shooting was reported shortly before 7 a.m. Monday.

 Police say it left one person with life-threatening wounds and the other with serious injuries. 

Police say the shooting was not a random act as the victims and suspect are known to each other. 

The victims were found in a vehicle near an intersection and appeared to be on their way to the hospital. 

First responders arrived and transported the victims to the hospital.

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — Rapid City police are searching for a suspect accused of shooting and seriously injuring two people. The shooting was reported shortly before 7 a.m. Monday. Police say it left one person with life-threatening wounds and the other with serious injuries. Police say the shooting was not a random act as the victims and suspect are known to each other. The victims were found in a vehicle near an intersection and appeared to be on their way to the hospital. First responders arrived and transported the victims to the hospital.

Two seriously injured in Rapid City shooting

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska Democrats have endorsed a new U.S. Senate candidate in hopes of pressuring their current nominee to drop out of the race after he sent sexually offensive text messages to a campaign staffer. 

The party’s state central committee voted Sunday to back Alisha Shelton, an Omaha mental health therapist, if nominee Chris Janicek withdraws his name from consideration. 

Janicek has refused to resign from the race, and state law bars the party from removing him as their nominee without his consent.

 If Janicek doesn’t withdraw by Sept. 1, his name will remain on the ballot as the party’s nominee in November.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska Democrats have endorsed a new U.S. Senate candidate in hopes of pressuring their current nominee to drop out of the race after he sent sexually offensive text messages to a campaign staffer. The party’s state central committee voted Sunday to back Alisha Shelton, an Omaha mental health therapist, if nominee Chris Janicek withdraws his name from consideration. Janicek has refused to resign from the race, and state law bars the party from removing him as their nominee without his consent. If Janicek doesn’t withdraw by Sept. 1, his name will remain on the ballot as the party’s nominee in November.

Nebraska Democrats endorse replacement for Senate nominee

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — A Wyoming woman has turned her experience in salvaging food discarded at grocery stores into a program to feed people in need.

 Ali Milburn says she used to rummage through grocery store dumpsters in Jackson search of food. Milburn tells the Jackson Hole News &amp; Guide she often found food that had few if any flaws and was “totally edible." 

The experience inspired Milburn to establish Hole Food Rescue. 

The 7-year-old nonprofit distributes discarded grocery store food to local residents. 

Milburn is now a regional director of the Wyoming Hunger Initiative and says the coronavirus pandemic has meant new challenges for her nonprofit.

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — A Wyoming woman has turned her experience in salvaging food discarded at grocery stores into a program to feed people in need. Ali Milburn says she used to rummage through grocery store dumpsters in Jackson search of food. Milburn tells the Jackson Hole News &amp; Guide she often found food that had few if any flaws and was “totally edible." The experience inspired Milburn to establish Hole Food Rescue. The 7-year-old nonprofit distributes discarded grocery store food to local residents. Milburn is now a regional director of the Wyoming Hunger Initiative and says the coronavirus pandemic has meant new challenges for her nonprofit.

Wyoming woman turns dumpster-diving into food nonprofit

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police say a woman has died in a two-vehicle crash in Omaha. Police say the crash happened around 10 p.m. Sunday at a north Omaha intersection, killing 33-year-old Brittni McBride, of Omaha. 

Investigators say a speeding sport utility vehicle ran a stop sign at the intersection and hit another SUV, driven by McBride.

 McBride was thrown from her SUV and died at the scene. 

Officials say the 18-year-old driver of the first SUV and his passenger were taken to a hospital with injuries, but are expected to survive.

 Police say charges are pending against the 18-year-old driver.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police say a woman has died in a two-vehicle crash in Omaha. Police say the crash happened around 10 p.m. Sunday at a north Omaha intersection, killing 33-year-old Brittni McBride, of Omaha. Investigators say a speeding sport utility vehicle ran a stop sign at the intersection and hit another SUV, driven by McBride. McBride was thrown from her SUV and died at the scene. Officials say the 18-year-old driver of the first SUV and his passenger were taken to a hospital with injuries, but are expected to survive. Police say charges are pending against the 18-year-old driver.

Woman killed in 2-vehicle crash in north Omaha

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — A man accused of a fatal shooting on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 2018 has pleaded guilty to reduced charges in federal court.

 Twenty-one-year-old Palani Bull Bear was originally charged with second-degree murder in the death of 19-year-old Brycee Red Owl during a confrontation in Kyle. 

Bull Bear pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to voluntary manslaughter and discharge of a firearm during the commission of a crime. 

Court documents say that during the conflict, Bull Bear fired two shots, killing Red Owl and also fired two shots at Colin Gregg, striking the horse he was riding.&nbsp;

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — A man accused of a fatal shooting on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 2018 has pleaded guilty to reduced charges in federal court. Twenty-one-year-old Palani Bull Bear was originally charged with second-degree murder in the death of 19-year-old Brycee Red Owl during a confrontation in Kyle. Bull Bear pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to voluntary manslaughter and discharge of a firearm during the commission of a crime. Court documents say that during the conflict, Bull Bear fired two shots, killing Red Owl and also fired two shots at Colin Gregg, striking the horse he was riding.&nbsp;

Guilty plea entered in 2018 fatal shooting on reservation

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Four people were rushed to hospitals in St. Louis on Sunday after being struck by lightning in a park, officials said.

The incident happened around 8 p.m. Sunday as thunderstorms rolled through the city. Andrea Ford lives near Marquette Park where the people were injured. 

She&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kmov.com/news/4-people-struck-by-lightning-in-south-city-1-in-critical-condition/article_0ed5a50e-ca2a-11ea-ac15-2747040eed96.html">told&nbsp;</a>television station KMOV she had seen several people playing in a grassy area at the park as the storm came in. She then heard several loud claps of thunder, and when she looked out the window again, she saw two people down on the ground.

Medics responded and were performing CPR on victims before they were taken to hospitals, Ford said.

At least one person was in critical condition, officials said. The names of the victims had not been released by Monday morning.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1595254224132.png" alt="Security camera images moments after the lightning strike -image courtesy KMOV TV" />
 <figcaption>Security camera images moments after the lightning strike -image courtesy KMOV TV</figcaption>
 </figure>ST. LOUIS (AP) — Four people were rushed to hospitals in St. Louis on Sunday after being struck by lightning in a park, officials said.The incident happened around 8 p.m. Sunday as thunderstorms rolled through the city. Andrea Ford lives near Marquette Park where the people were injured. She&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kmov.com/news/4-people-struck-by-lightning-in-south-city-1-in-critical-condition/article_0ed5a50e-ca2a-11ea-ac15-2747040eed96.html">told&nbsp;</a>television station KMOV she had seen several people playing in a grassy area at the park as the storm came in. She then heard several loud claps of thunder, and when she looked out the window again, she saw two people down on the ground.Medics responded and were performing CPR on victims before they were taken to hospitals, Ford said.At least one person was in critical condition, officials said. The names of the victims had not been released by Monday morning.

4 hospitalized after being struck by lightning in Missouri

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - At least eight people were injured, including one critically, when someone in a passing vehicle began shooting early Sunday into crowd in Omaha.

A 15-year-old girl, Paduey Jock, sustained a life-threatening injury in the shooting about 5:15 a.m., the Omaha World-Herald&nbsp;<a href="https://omaha.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/15-year-old-among-at-least-eight-people-injured-in-south-omaha-shooting/article_179093ab-3246-51d7-9a39-9609abde9eb0.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1" target="_blank">reported</a>. A spokeswoman for the Nebraska Medical Center said she remained in critical condition Sunday afternoon.

The teen was in a crowd of about 100 people outside when someone in a gray minivan began firing. Seven other people were also injured by gunfire during that incident.

A total of 14 people in incidents involving five shooting scenes went to Omaha hospitals for treatment between Saturday night and Sunday morning.

Two were injured in vehicle collisions involving gunfire, two were shot while driving, one person was shot walking, and one was shot after getting into a dispute with another driver

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - At least eight people were injured, including one critically, when someone in a passing vehicle began shooting early Sunday into crowd in Omaha.A 15-year-old girl, Paduey Jock, sustained a life-threatening injury in the shooting about 5:15 a.m., the Omaha World-Herald&nbsp;<a href="https://omaha.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/15-year-old-among-at-least-eight-people-injured-in-south-omaha-shooting/article_179093ab-3246-51d7-9a39-9609abde9eb0.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1" target="_blank">reported</a>. A spokeswoman for the Nebraska Medical Center said she remained in critical condition Sunday afternoon.The teen was in a crowd of about 100 people outside when someone in a gray minivan began firing. Seven other people were also injured by gunfire during that incident.A total of 14 people in incidents involving five shooting scenes went to Omaha hospitals for treatment between Saturday night and Sunday morning.Two were injured in vehicle collisions involving gunfire, two were shot while driving, one person was shot walking, and one was shot after getting into a dispute with another driver

Teen critically hurt in Omaha after shots fired into crowd

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) — Daniel Lewis Lee, a condemned man and convicted murderer, was asked if he wanted to make a final statement from the execution chamber, with its institutional green-tiled walls and plate-glass interior window, moments before he too would die.

He did. He leaned his head up and we locked eyes.

“You’re killing an innocent man,” Lee said, looking directly at me.

Those were his last words. He said them to me.

Lee’s execution, one of two that I witnessed this past week at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana, played out slowly, after painstaking hours of final, futile legal appeals, before prison officials administered a lethal injection and the federal government carried out capital punishment for the first time in almost two decades. A third execution came later in the week.

Before the lethal injection for Lee, there had been a lot of waiting. Prison officials searched me extensively each time I arrived, then sent me back to my hotel during the legal maneuvering, only to call me back to the maximum-security facility.

As part of a small group of other reporters, I was an official witness to Lee’s death, one that took place in the middle of a pandemic.

Lee, who was convicted of killing an Arkansas gun dealer, his wife and young daughter in the late 1990s, was scheduled to be executed Monday at 4 p.m. EDT.

But there would be a long wait as his legal appeals made their way to the Supreme Court. Along with other reporters, I was lodged inside a former bowling alley that was now a prison staff training center. It was guarded by heavily armed prison officers. We were all wearing blue surgical masks. Our temperatures were taken.

We could carry only identification into the prison as we loaded into two unmarked white vans that took us a short distance down “Justice Drive” to the penitentiary building for a security screening.

Inside, correction officers outfitted in full protective gear — N95 masks, face shields, gloves and paper gowns — told us we’d be going through the equivalent of a souped-up airport screening. They even took my glasses to X-ray them.

But then came another delay. Officials told us to grab dinner, so we did, then returned to the prison and waited. By midnight, all of us left again for our hotels nearby.

At 2:10 a.m. the Supreme Court ruled the execution could proceed. About a minute or so later, a Bureau of Prisons official was on the phone saying the execution was scheduled for 4:15 a.m.

We rushed back to the prison. The clock in the van read 4:16 when we hopped out and headed into the execution chamber.

Lee was already there — strapped to a gurney.

We were brought into a small witness room. There were plastic chairs facing the window, a notepad, a pen, small bottle of hand sanitizer and a single sanitizing wipe on each seat. A correction officer pulled the large metal door closed and a booming click echoed through the room. We were locked in.

The curtain was shut, but I could hear noises coming from the other side of the wall. We couldn’t make small talk. A man, albeit a convicted murderer, who was supposed to die soon could probably hear us.

We were all uncomfortable. A reporter next to me scribbled “legal issue?” on his notepad and gestured to me. “I guess so,” I replied.

There was no clock in the room. We lost track of how long we had been in there. Eventually someone asked if anyone knew what time it was. When a correction officer replied it was 6:10 a.m., there was a collective gasp of surprise.

At 7:46 a.m. the curtain began to rise slowly. By that time we’d been locked in the room with Lee just on the other side of the glass, strapped in, for nearly four hours.

There he was. His arms were strapped down and a light blue sheet covered most of his body. I was annoyed with one of the reporters who was moving around vying for a better view. Of a man’s death. It bothered me somehow, even though we were all there.

A U.S. marshal inside the room with Lee picked up a black phone hanging on the green tiled wall.

“This is the marshal inside the execution chamber,” he said. Washington headquarters was on the other end. The marshal asked if there were any legal impediments that would prohibit the execution. He listened, then said, “I understand there are no impediments.”

And then Lee said those last words, looking right at me.

He rested his head back down and the drug quickly did its deadly work. His lips turned blue. His chest stopped moving. He was pronounced dead.

I rushed back to my computer and filed my story.

It wouldn’t sink in until later that I had just watched a man die. My face was one of the last he saw. I’ve been a crime reporter for years, but this felt different. It was clinical. It was like watching someone go to sleep.

And there wasn’t much time to dwell on the experience, because another execution was scheduled for the next day.

Wesley Ira Purkey was convicted of kidnapping a 16-year-old girl from her Kansas neighborhood, raping and killing her in the late 1990s and also killing an 80-year-old.

But his time to die too was already delayed well into the evening. We arrived at the staff training center at 4 p.m. But this time we weren’t allowed to leave.

As the hours ticked by, everyone became more anxious, at times pacing in circles.

By 10 p.m., the Bureau of Prisons officials offered us peanuts and chips. They didn’t want to let us go back to the hotels because it would take too long to bring us all back through security.

Just before midnight came more food — Lunchables, dug out from a prison fridge somewhere.

At 2:45 a.m. — about 11 hours after we arrived — we were told to leave our electronics and loaded back into the vans. This time we stopped just outside of the execution chamber.

And we sat there for five hours. I dozed off for a bit in my seat.

Eventually, after Purkey’s legal avenues were exhausted, we were brought into the witness room. The curtain rose at 7:55 a.m. We were again looking into the execution chamber. The same officials were standing beside Purkey, his arms strapped down with black restraints. He apologized to the family of the teenage girl he killed and to his own daughter.

“I deeply regret the pain and suffering I caused to Jennifer’s family,” he said. “I am deeply sorry. I deeply regret the pain I caused to my daughter, who I love so very much. This sanitized murder really does not serve no purpose whatsoever. Thank you.”&nbsp;

I glanced over at his spiritual adviser — a Zen Buddhist priest who had sued the Bureau of Prisons to try to stop the execution because of fears over the coronavirus. He was wearing a mask under a face shield and appeared to be praying. I wondered if he was afraid he’d get the virus. I wondered if I would get the virus.

A few minutes later, Purkey was declared dead. The curtain came down.

In one week, I had spent more than 32 hours inside a prison. And watched two men die.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/11/1574950995361.png" alt="&nbsp;Wesley Purkey from Kansas was convicted of kidnapping and killing a 16-year-old girl before dismembering, burning and dumping her body in a septic pond. He also was convicted in a state court in Kansas after using a claw hammer to kill an 80-year-old woman who had polio." />
 <figcaption>&nbsp;Wesley Purkey from Kansas was convicted of kidnapping and killing a 16-year-old girl before dismembering, burning and dumping her body in a septic pond. He also was convicted in a state court in Kansas after using a claw hammer to kill an 80-year-old woman who had polio.</figcaption>
 </figure> By MICHAEL BALSAMOTERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) — Daniel Lewis Lee, a condemned man and convicted murderer, was asked if he wanted to make a final statement from the execution chamber, with its institutional green-tiled walls and plate-glass interior window, moments before he too would die.He did. He leaned his head up and we locked eyes.“You’re killing an innocent man,” Lee said, looking directly at me.Those were his last words. He said them to me.Lee’s execution, one of two that I witnessed this past week at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana, played out slowly, after painstaking hours of final, futile legal appeals, before prison officials administered a lethal injection and the federal government carried out capital punishment for the first time in almost two decades. A third execution came later in the week.Before the lethal injection for Lee, there had been a lot of waiting. Prison officials searched me extensively each time I arrived, then sent me back to my hotel during the legal maneuvering, only to call me back to the maximum-security facility.As part of a small group of other reporters, I was an official witness to Lee’s death, one that took place in the middle of a pandemic.Lee, who was convicted of killing an Arkansas gun dealer, his wife and young daughter in the late 1990s, was scheduled to be executed Monday at 4 p.m. EDT.But there would be a long wait as his legal appeals made their way to the Supreme Court. Along with other reporters, I was lodged inside a former bowling alley that was now a prison staff training center. It was guarded by heavily armed prison officers. We were all wearing blue surgical masks. Our temperatures were taken.We could carry only identification into the prison as we loaded into two unmarked white vans that took us a short distance down “Justice Drive” to the penitentiary building for a security screening.Inside, correction officers outfitted in full protective gear — N95 masks, face shields, gloves and paper gowns — told us we’d be going through the equivalent of a souped-up airport screening. They even took my glasses to X-ray them.But then came another delay. Officials told us to grab dinner, so we did, then returned to the prison and waited. By midnight, all of us left again for our hotels nearby.At 2:10 a.m. the Supreme Court ruled the execution could proceed. About a minute or so later, a Bureau of Prisons official was on the phone saying the execution was scheduled for 4:15 a.m.We rushed back to the prison. The clock in the van read 4:16 when we hopped out and headed into the execution chamber.Lee was already there — strapped to a gurney.We were brought into a small witness room. There were plastic chairs facing the window, a notepad, a pen, small bottle of hand sanitizer and a single sanitizing wipe on each seat. A correction officer pulled the large metal door closed and a booming click echoed through the room. We were locked in.The curtain was shut, but I could hear noises coming from the other side of the wall. We couldn’t make small talk. A man, albeit a convicted murderer, who was supposed to die soon could probably hear us.We were all uncomfortable. A reporter next to me scribbled “legal issue?” on his notepad and gestured to me. “I guess so,” I replied.There was no clock in the room. We lost track of how long we had been in there. Eventually someone asked if anyone knew what time it was. When a correction officer replied it was 6:10 a.m., there was a collective gasp of surprise.At 7:46 a.m. the curtain began to rise slowly. By that time we’d been locked in the room with Lee just on the other side of the glass, strapped in, for nearly four hours.There he was. His arms were strapped down and a light blue sheet covered most of his body. I was annoyed with one of the reporters who was moving around vying for a better view. Of a man’s death. It bothered me somehow, even though we were all there.A U.S. marshal inside the room with Lee picked up a black phone hanging on the green tiled wall.“This is the marshal inside the execution chamber,” he said. Washington headquarters was on the other end. The marshal asked if there were any legal impediments that would prohibit the execution. He listened, then said, “I understand there are no impediments.”And then Lee said those last words, looking right at me.He rested his head back down and the drug quickly did its deadly work. His lips turned blue. His chest stopped moving. He was pronounced dead.I rushed back to my computer and filed my story.It wouldn’t sink in until later that I had just watched a man die. My face was one of the last he saw. I’ve been a crime reporter for years, but this felt different. It was clinical. It was like watching someone go to sleep.And there wasn’t much time to dwell on the experience, because another execution was scheduled for the next day.Wesley Ira Purkey was convicted of kidnapping a 16-year-old girl from her Kansas neighborhood, raping and killing her in the late 1990s and also killing an 80-year-old.But his time to die too was already delayed well into the evening. We arrived at the staff training center at 4 p.m. But this time we weren’t allowed to leave.As the hours ticked by, everyone became more anxious, at times pacing in circles.By 10 p.m., the Bureau of Prisons officials offered us peanuts and chips. They didn’t want to let us go back to the hotels because it would take too long to bring us all back through security.Just before midnight came more food — Lunchables, dug out from a prison fridge somewhere.At 2:45 a.m. — about 11 hours after we arrived — we were told to leave our electronics and loaded back into the vans. This time we stopped just outside of the execution chamber.And we sat there for five hours. I dozed off for a bit in my seat.Eventually, after Purkey’s legal avenues were exhausted, we were brought into the witness room. The curtain rose at 7:55 a.m. We were again looking into the execution chamber. The same officials were standing beside Purkey, his arms strapped down with black restraints. He apologized to the family of the teenage girl he killed and to his own daughter.“I deeply regret the pain and suffering I caused to Jennifer’s family,” he said. “I am deeply sorry. I deeply regret the pain I caused to my daughter, who I love so very much. This sanitized murder really does not serve no purpose whatsoever. Thank you.”&nbsp;I glanced over at his spiritual adviser — a Zen Buddhist priest who had sued the Bureau of Prisons to try to stop the execution because of fears over the coronavirus. He was wearing a mask under a face shield and appeared to be praying. I wondered if he was afraid he’d get the virus. I wondered if I would get the virus.A few minutes later, Purkey was declared dead. The curtain came down.In one week, I had spent more than 32 hours inside a prison. And watched two men die.___

One reporter, witness to two executions, haunting last words

LAWSON, Mo. (AP) — A dog named Cleo who disappeared from her home in Kansas earlier this month turned up a few days later at her old home in Missouri, about 50 miles away.

Colton Michael told television station&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kmbc.com/article/dog-somehow-makes-57-mile-journey-to-her-old-home-in-lawson/33341915" target="_blank">KMBC&nbsp;</a>that the 4-year-old Labrador retriever-border collie mix showed up on the front porch of his family’s home in Lawson, which is about 30 miles (48 kilometers) northeast of Kansas City.

At first, she wouldn’t let anyone get near her, said Michael, who has lived in the home for nearly two years.

“She finds her way home, and there’s some strangers living in it. That would be scary for anybody,” he said.

Eventually, he was able to gain Cleo’s trust and to get her checked for a microchip, which showed that she belonged to the former owners of his house.

Cleo’s owners, who had moved to Olathe, Kansas, about 50 miles southwest of Lawson, couldn’t believe it when Michael called and said the dog had turned up at their old home. They had posted on Facebook a week earlier about the missing dog. Neither family knows how Cleo made the trip, which would have required her to cross at least one river.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1595090480550.png" alt="Photo courtesy KMBC TV" />
 <figcaption>Photo courtesy KMBC TV</figcaption>
 </figure>LAWSON, Mo. (AP) — A dog named Cleo who disappeared from her home in Kansas earlier this month turned up a few days later at her old home in Missouri, about 50 miles away.Colton Michael told television station&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kmbc.com/article/dog-somehow-makes-57-mile-journey-to-her-old-home-in-lawson/33341915" target="_blank">KMBC&nbsp;</a>that the 4-year-old Labrador retriever-border collie mix showed up on the front porch of his family’s home in Lawson, which is about 30 miles (48 kilometers) northeast of Kansas City.At first, she wouldn’t let anyone get near her, said Michael, who has lived in the home for nearly two years.“She finds her way home, and there’s some strangers living in it. That would be scary for anybody,” he said.Eventually, he was able to gain Cleo’s trust and to get her checked for a microchip, which showed that she belonged to the former owners of his house.Cleo’s owners, who had moved to Olathe, Kansas, about 50 miles southwest of Lawson, couldn’t believe it when Michael called and said the dog had turned up at their old home. They had posted on Facebook a week earlier about the missing dog. Neither family knows how Cleo made the trip, which would have required her to cross at least one river.

Kansas dog makes 50-mile trek to her old home in Missouri

OMAHA, Neb. (UNMC)-The University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Steven Hinrichs, MD, recently was named to a national panel tasked with exploring how the cruise industry can safely resume operations this fall and winter.

Dr. Hinrichs has dealt with challenges associated with infectious diseases throughout his professional life, which makes him a perfect fit for the "Healthy Sail Panel," a group comprised of top experts in public health, infectious disease, biopreparedness, hospitality and maritime operations.

Cruise industry leaders&nbsp;<a href="https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&amp;l=en&amp;o=2848781-1&amp;h=3583110911&amp;u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.royalcaribbean.com%2F&amp;a=Royal+Caribbean+Group" target="_blank">Royal Caribbean Group</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&amp;l=en&amp;o=2848781-1&amp;h=423641340&amp;u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nclhltdinvestor.com%2F&amp;a=Norwegian+Cruise+Line+Holdings+Ltd." target="_blank">Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.</a>&nbsp;announced the panel, a collaboration to develop recommendations for cruise lines to advance their public health response to COVID-19, improve safety, and achieve readiness for the safe resumption of operations, earlier this summer.

The panel is co-chaired by Michael Leavitt, former secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and Scott Gottlieb, MD, former commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. It also includes Julie Gerberding, MD, former head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who was on hand in 2005 for the opening of the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit on the UNMC campus.

“This is a very challenging assignment but also an important effort,” said Dr. Hinrichs, professor and chair of the UNMC Department of Pathology and Microbiology. “The cruise line industry is a major contributor to our economy and the public health challenges and logistical challenges a cruise line faces are very complex. We think processing 1,000 COVID laboratory specimens a day is a challenge, but imagine loading 4,000 to 6,000 passengers onto a ship in four hours.”

Dr. Hinrichs said the panel has to review several hundred pages of documentation from cruise lines by mid-September. Information includes how cruise leaders would decide whether to disembark, when to implement quarantine measures, the best approaches to disinfection, how much reduced capacity they should operate with and how many intensive care beds they should they have on each ship.

Dr. Hinrichs said with the right guidelines in place, it’s possible to make vacationing on a cruise ship safe.&nbsp;

“With certain guidelines in place, including when masks are required and with enhanced screening, a return to business could be very feasible,” he said. “It’s been instructional to see how the various technologies can be brought to bear on a challenge this complex. There are wristbands that can be used to monitor temperature 24 hours a day, facial recognition software can be used for contact tracing, and there are technologies for touchless boarding so no paperwork is involved when people are boarding the ship.”

For more information and to see the list of other panel experts, go to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/leading-public-health-experts-to-oversee-development-of-enhanced-cruise-line-health-and-safety-standards-301088345.html" target="_blank">https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/leading-public-health-experts-to-oversee-development-of-enhanced-cruise-line-health-and-safety-standards-301088345.html</a>.

OMAHA, Neb. (UNMC)-The University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Steven Hinrichs, MD, recently was named to a national panel tasked with exploring how the cruise industry can safely resume operations this fall and winter.Dr. Hinrichs has dealt with challenges associated with infectious diseases throughout his professional life, which makes him a perfect fit for the "Healthy Sail Panel," a group comprised of top experts in public health, infectious disease, biopreparedness, hospitality and maritime operations.Cruise industry leaders&nbsp;<a href="https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&amp;l=en&amp;o=2848781-1&amp;h=3583110911&amp;u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.royalcaribbean.com%2F&amp;a=Royal+Caribbean+Group" target="_blank">Royal Caribbean Group</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&amp;l=en&amp;o=2848781-1&amp;h=423641340&amp;u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nclhltdinvestor.com%2F&amp;a=Norwegian+Cruise+Line+Holdings+Ltd." target="_blank">Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.</a>&nbsp;announced the panel, a collaboration to develop recommendations for cruise lines to advance their public health response to COVID-19, improve safety, and achieve readiness for the safe resumption of operations, earlier this summer.The panel is co-chaired by Michael Leavitt, former secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and Scott Gottlieb, MD, former commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. It also includes Julie Gerberding, MD, former head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who was on hand in 2005 for the opening of the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit on the UNMC campus.“This is a very challenging assignment but also an important effort,” said Dr. Hinrichs, professor and chair of the UNMC Department of Pathology and Microbiology. “The cruise line industry is a major contributor to our economy and the public health challenges and logistical challenges a cruise line faces are very complex. We think processing 1,000 COVID laboratory specimens a day is a challenge, but imagine loading 4,000 to 6,000 passengers onto a ship in four hours.”Dr. Hinrichs said the panel has to review several hundred pages of documentation from cruise lines by mid-September. Information includes how cruise leaders would decide whether to disembark, when to implement quarantine measures, the best approaches to disinfection, how much reduced capacity they should operate with and how many intensive care beds they should they have on each ship.Dr. Hinrichs said with the right guidelines in place, it’s possible to make vacationing on a cruise ship safe.&nbsp;“With certain guidelines in place, including when masks are required and with enhanced screening, a return to business could be very feasible,” he said. “It’s been instructional to see how the various technologies can be brought to bear on a challenge this complex. There are wristbands that can be used to monitor temperature 24 hours a day, facial recognition software can be used for contact tracing, and there are technologies for touchless boarding so no paperwork is involved when people are boarding the ship.”For more information and to see the list of other panel experts, go to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/leading-public-health-experts-to-oversee-development-of-enhanced-cruise-line-health-and-safety-standards-301088345.html" target="_blank">https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/leading-public-health-experts-to-oversee-development-of-enhanced-cruise-line-health-and-safety-standards-301088345.html</a>.

UNMC infectious disease expert among national panel to review reopening plans for cruise industry

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Lincoln residents will be required to wear masks in public buildings starting Monday to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the city's mayor announced Friday.

Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird said the new rules will require anyone older than 5 years old to wear face coverings in public, unless they can keep at least 6 feet of space between two people. The rule runs through Aug. 31.

The directive doesn't apply to people who are outdoors, exercising, eating or drinking at a restaurant or bar, giving a speech or seeking federal, state or county services. It also doesn't include people with medical conditions that prevent them from wearing a mask.

The announcement came as Lancaster County public health officials confirmed 50 new coronavirus cases and one new death, the 14th so far in Lancaster County during the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak" target="_blank">pandemic</a>.

"Our fate is up to us and the time to act is now," Gaylor Baird said, adding that she doesn't want to wait until sick patients overwhelm local hospitals.

The mandate could face a legal challenge from state officials, who argue that they are supposed to make such decisions. Gov. Pete Ricketts has strongly encouraged residents to wear masks but refused to impose an order.

Some Lincoln-area officials have argued that they have the authority to impose such rules during a public health emergency.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Lincoln residents will be required to wear masks in public buildings starting Monday to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the city's mayor announced Friday.Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird said the new rules will require anyone older than 5 years old to wear face coverings in public, unless they can keep at least 6 feet of space between two people. The rule runs through Aug. 31.The directive doesn't apply to people who are outdoors, exercising, eating or drinking at a restaurant or bar, giving a speech or seeking federal, state or county services. It also doesn't include people with medical conditions that prevent them from wearing a mask.The announcement came as Lancaster County public health officials confirmed 50 new coronavirus cases and one new death, the 14th so far in Lancaster County during the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak" target="_blank">pandemic</a>."Our fate is up to us and the time to act is now," Gaylor Baird said, adding that she doesn't want to wait until sick patients overwhelm local hospitals.The mandate could face a legal challenge from state officials, who argue that they are supposed to make such decisions. Gov. Pete Ricketts has strongly encouraged residents to wear masks but refused to impose an order.Some Lincoln-area officials have argued that they have the authority to impose such rules during a public health emergency.