Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
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A Sidney High School student attended a Cheyenne County Commissioners meeting on Monday to raise concerns about the condition of some roads in the county. Kade Price told the commissioners his family has been living in Cheyenne County for 25 years. A few weeks ago, he posted online about the condition of County Road 8. “I just wanted to raise some awareness on county roads and county roads south of town,” he said. County Road 8 is highly travelled, he said, by farmers, ranchers and truck drivers. “There aren’t many options other than Road 8,...
Sidney planning commissioners voted on Monday evening to recommend the approval of a preliminary plat application to subdivide an unplatted tract of land on the northwest corner of Toledo Street and Fort Sidney Road. Randy Miller, the property owner, told the Sidney Planning and Zoning Commission the plans call for the property to be subdivided into 1-acre lots. Commissioner Dave McCarville said he saw no issues with the application. A public hearing was opened, during which no one voiced opposition. Commissioners unanimously voted to...
The Potter-Dix Public School District announced on Tuesday its new superintendent. Michael Williams will assume the role of superintendent beginning July 1. Kevin Thomas, the current superintendent, is retiring in June after 23 years working as an educator. Williams is currently employed as superintendent of schools at Maywood (Neb.) Public Schools. According to a release issued by McPherson & Jacobson, a recruitment firm that assisted in the search process, before Williams took on his current position three years ago, he served as principal...
It took the jury in the Jason Assad trial less than three hours to reach a unanimous decision: guilty on all five charges. Closing statements in the two-and-half day trial concluded Friday afternoon. The jury of five women and seven men began deliberations at 3:10 p.m., and preparations had been made to sequester jurors throughout the weekend until a decision was made, but that was unneeded. Just before 6 p.m. on Friday, the defendant and counsel were called back to the Cheyenne County District...
An apparent domestic dispute turned deadly Sunday evening in a quiet neighborhood near the Hillside Golf Course in Sidney. A woman is hospitalized with stab wounds and her husband was killed by gunfire from a Sidney Police officer responding to a 911 call from the residence shortly before 7 p.m. As Sidney Police arrived at the home on Clark Drive near Summit Drive, which sits in the shadows of the fairways of the Hillside course, Leasa Hlavinka was seen bleeding from her wounds and running away...
The State of Nebraska, represented by Cheyenne County Attorney Paul Schaub, continued its case against Jason Assad, 36, of Sidney, on Thursday. Assad, represented by Steven Elmhaeuser, is charged with multiple crimes, including first-degree false imprisonment and use of a weapon to commit a felony, among other alleged offenses. The second day of the trial began with a continuation of themes presented on Wednesday: Schaub calling law enforcement officers to testify about the events that unfolded...
It took the jury in the Jason Assad trial less than three hours to reach a unanimous decision: guilty on all five charges. Closing statements in the two-and-half day trial concluded Friday afternoon. Preparations had been made to sequester the jury of five women and seven men throughout the weekend until a decision was made, but that was unneeded. Just before 6 p.m. on Friday, the defendant and his counsel – along with prosecutor Cheyenne County Attorney Paul Schaub – were called back to the Cheyenne County District Courtroom With about a doz...
Clark Drive in Sidney was blocked off Sunday evening as law enforcement officers established a perimeter and secured the scene in front of a residence where a woman with stab wounds had been found fleeing and her husband was later killed by police. Sidney Police officers responded to the home on Sunday afternoon after receiving a 911 call, according to a release from the Cheyenne County Attorney’s Office. Upon their arrival, officers saw Leasa Hlavinka fleeing from the residence. After entering the house, police were confronted by her h...
After a jury was selected and seated during the morning, opening statements in the Jason Assad trial were heard at Cheyenne County District Court on Wednesday afternoon. Assad is on trial for charges of terroristic threatening, first-degree false imprisonment, possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, use of a weapon to commit a felony and habitual criminality. In his opening remarks, Cheyenne County Attorney Paul Schaub said a man warming up his vehicle on the morning on Sept. 14,...
Sidney city councilors voted unanimously Tuesday to authorize a long-term, low-interest loan from the state for a design engineering contract to address storm water issues in East Sidney. The approval came after a 90-minute joint meeting between the Sidney City Council and the South Platte Natural Resource District Board of Directors. Under the plan, a series of bioswales and retention ponds would be constructed near Fort Sidney Road and along land to the east. The network of ditches and ponds would collect rain water and then release it over...
Riders using the dial-a-ride and fixed route line public transportation systems in Sidney increased in 2014 over the past year. Dave Doty, Sidney Transportation Department coordinator, presented a 2014-’15 public transportation summary to city councilors on Tuesday night. The seven-member department includes Doty, a full-time driver and director, and six part time drivers. Public transportation services are open to all persons within the city limits. During 2014, the dial-a-ride program accumulated nearly 17,000 miles – averaging 67 miles per...
The trial for Jason Assad began Wednesday afternoon. Earlier in the day, a jury to hear the case was seated. Assad faces numerous charges including terroristic threatening, kidnapping and domestic assault, stemming from an arrest last fall. Assad was arrested last fall at the El Palomino Motel in Sidney, a business he co-owned at the time. The arrest stemmed from an alleged altercation at the property that occurred on Sept. 14, 2014. Sidney Police officers responded to the motel for a report of an argument and a woman screaming, according to...
Weymouth Field, the home of the Sidney High School Raiders football team, is set to receive a new scoreboard. The current one has been in place for 14 years. Sponsorships and donations will allow the school to buy a larger scoreboard at no cost to the district. On Monday night, the Board of Education for the Sidney Public School District OK’d the purchase of the new scoreboard by a unanimous vote, 5-0. Superintendent Jay Ehler said after numerous back and forths with Pepsi and Security First Bank – the project’s principal sponsors whose logos...
The Sidney Public School District Board of Education honored the academic and athletic accomplishments of students at Monday night’s regular meeting. Brett Avila, a Spanish and human development teacher at Sidney High School, attended the meeting with two students to make a brief presentation on Raiders Reaching Out. The program was a human development class project. Along with support from 20 local businesses, students in the course collected donations for a teen homeless shelter in Scottsbluff. Fifty-four boxes of donations were ultimately c...
A former Lincoln city attorney has been tasked with reviewing complaints stemming from a meeting held by the Nebraska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. Last month, the commission, based in Sidney, conducted a hearing on a proposed application for a commercial wastewater disposal well. Terex Energy Corporation is seeking a permit to inject contaminated saltwater from oil wells in Nebraska and nearby states into a well near Mitchell. The March meeting was divided into two parts: a public comment portion and a formal, quasi-judicial hearing. La...
The trial for a Sidney man facing charges that include terroristic threatening, kidnapping, domestic assault and drug and gun possession is scheduled to begin Wednesday in Cheyenne County District Court. Jason Assad was arrested last fall at the El Palomino Motel in Sidney, a business he co-owned at the time. The arrest stemmed from an alleged altercation at the property that occurred on Sept. 14, 2014. Sidney Police officers responded to the motel for a report of an argument and a woman...
Floyd O. Kettle, of Sidney, pled guilty to a single count of cultivating marijuana, a Class III felony, on Monday in Cheyenne County District Court. The offense carries a minimum sentence of one year in jail and maximum penalty of 20 years, along with a possible fine of $25,000. In exchange for his guilty plea, the Cheyenne County Attorney's office asked additional charges for distribution of marijuana within 1,000 feet of park be dropped. Judge Derek Weimer asked Kettle a series of questions...
The Sidney City Council will begin its Tuesday meeting earlier than usual and in a different venue. At 5 p.m., the City Council and the South Platte Natural Resources will hold a joint meeting at the NRD offices located at 551 Parkland Drive in Sidney. The groups are meeting to discuss a combined effort to address storm water issues in East Sidney. More than two years ago, the Joint East Sidney Watershed Authority was formed with representatives from both entities. A master plan was created, an ordinance implemented and possible projects...
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension office held a 'Women in Agriculture' conference in Sidney on Friday. About 40 attendees turned out for the event to hear presentations on topics ranging from crops to photography....
The City of Sidney will say goodbye to its community and economic development director and the Leyton School District will bid farewell to a principal and athletic director this summer when Megan and James McGown, along with their two daughters, move to Brady. The McGowns, who have called Sidney home for 10 years, are relocating to Brady – a small town southeast of North Platte – in June. James was recently named the superintendent for the Brady Public School District. While Megan doesn't hav...
Fourteen months ago, a study was released examining the Sidney Police Department's current facilities. From the structure to the layout to its size, the consultants tasked with drafting the report identified safety and security concerns inherent with the building at 1715 Illinois Street. In 1986, the police left the courthouse to make room for a probation office. Since then, the department has called a repurposed fast food restaurant home. It was meant to serve as a temporary fix – a couple o...
COLTON, Neb. – A Sidney resident died Tuesday evening after his vehicle was struck by a train near Colton. Michael Kennedy, 44, was traveling north on County Road 125 when a westbound train hit his car at a crossing. According to the Cheyenne County Sheriff's Office, Kennedy failed to yield to the train. He was pronounced deceased at the scene, and seat belts were not in use. Kennedy was born and raised in Sidney, and graduated from St. Patrick's High School. Family members said he worked for U...
A crash near Dalton on Tuesday morning killed a man and sent his female passenger to the hospital with serious injuries. The Cheyenne County Sheriff’s Office is seeking information about the male driver of a second vehicle involved in the crash that left the scene. Martin Geiger Jr., 45, of Sidney and Chappell, and his passenger, Kathy Berger, 53, of Bayard and Chappell, were driving north on U.S. Highway 385 two miles south of Dalton. According to the sheriff’s office, Geiger attempted to pass another vehicle, also traveling north. At som...
Two environmental organizations are claiming the Sidney-based Nebraska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission broke state laws at a public meeting last month. On March 24, the commission’s office on Illinois Street was filled to capacity as a permit application for a commercial wastewater well in Mitchell was discussed. The applicant, Terex Energy Corporation, based in Broomfield, Colo., is seeking approval to convert an oil well into a disposal site for contaminated water and chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing. The proposal has received r...
