Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Sorted by date Results 526 - 550 of 762
The Honorable Donna Taylor, presiding from the bench in the Antelope County court last week, set sentencing dates for several defendants, who admitted criminal allegations. Robert J. Evans, 41, of Elgin pleaded guilty, pursuant to a plea agreement, to one count of violating a harassment protection order, a Class 2 misdemeanor committed Dec. 12. In return, Antelope County attorney Joe Abler dismissed two additional counts of violating the protection order and agreed to recommend a fine only at...
Travis D. Mace, 35, of Elgin faced the Honorable Donna Taylor in two related cases last Wednesday, Feb. 3, during county court proceedings. Mace requested court-appointed counsel. After holding an indigency hearing, Taylor appointed public defender Melissa Figueroa of Norfolk. In the first case, Mace is charged with two felonies, possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person, a Class 3 felony, and possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony, both alleged Jan. 30 in Neligh. A...
Robert M. Gotschall, 36, of Atkinson faced the Honorable Kale Burdick in the Holt County courtroom in O'Neill last Tuesday, Feb. 2, for a preliminary hearing on a felony charge, abuse of a vulnerable adult. Pursuant to a plea deal with Holt County prosecutor Brent Kelly, Gotschall entered a no contest plea to a reduced charge, third-degree assault, a Class 1 misdemeanor. Burdick found Gotschall guilty and sentenced him to 60 days in the Holt County Jail, with credit for 56 days previously...
Wesley D. Hattula, 21, formerly of Oakdale, who had spent the previous nine plus months locked up in the Antelope County Jail on a $100,000, 10% cash bond, faced the Honorable Mark Kozisek for sentencing on two felonies last Wednesday. Johnson sentenced Hattula, to a term of not more than 16 years, nor less than 10 years, in a facility under the jurisdiction of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, on Count I, incest with person under 18, a Class 2A felony, giving him credit for 279 days previously served. On Count III, possession o...
Joshua A. Boettcher, 29, of Stuart was sentenced to 18 months in a facility under the jurisdiction of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services for a July 2019 crime. Boettcher was sentenced by the Honorable Mark Kozisek in the Holt County district courtroom Jan. 22. “Your prior history of criminal behavior is a concern…it began when you were a juvenile and has continued more or less consistently since,” Kozisek said, while reviewing sentencing guidelines with Boettcher. “Placing blame on your victim flies in the face of the facts…y...
Marcos Y. Morales Ruano, 20, of O’Neill faced the Honorable Kale Burdick in the Holt County courtroom in O’Neill last Tuesday, Jan. 19, for a preliminary hearing. He was charged with, Count I, minor in possession of alcohol, ages 19/20, a Class 3 misdemeanor; Count II, attempted third-degree assault on an officer, a Class 4 felony; and Count III, resisting arrest, a Class 1 misdemeanor, all alleged Dec. 31, in O’Neill. Pursuant to a plea bargain with Holt County attorney Brent Kelly, Morales Ruano pleaded guilty to Count I and an amended Count...
A Texas couple, accused in the theft of a pickup and camper, recently had their Antelope County charges dismissed. Antelope County attorney Joe Abler told the Advocate, on Monday morning, “Local Antelope County charges against Rodney Anderson and Lauren Lucas were dismissed last week, after my office was contacted and informed by the Scotts Bluff County attorney’s office that felony charges and warrants for theft of the same motor vehicle had been filed in that jurisdiction. As far as the alleged felony theft of a camper from a business in Hol...
Sergio Martinez, 33, of Clearwater faced the Honorable Donna Taylor in the Antelope County courtroom in Neligh on Wednesday, Jan 20, for further arraignment on two counts, Count I, driving under suspension/before reinstated, a Class 3 misdemeanor committed July 15, 2020; and Count II, no operator’s license, also a Class 3 misdemeanor. Martinez pleaded guilty to Count I, pursuant to a plea agreement with county prosecutor Joe Abler. In return, Abler dismissed Count II, agreed to file no additional charges in the case and recommended a fine and s...
Ervin J. Mast, 33, of Ewing appeared before the Honorable Donna Taylor last week, for arraignment on four counts alleged Nov. 27, 2020. He is charged with, Count I, driving under the influence, .15 grams or more, first offense, a Class W misdemeanor; Count II, no proof of financial responsibility, a Class 2 misdemeanor; no valid registration, a Class 3 misdemeanor; and possession of an open alcohol container, an infraction. Mast pleaded not guilty to all four counts and requested a jury trial. Pretrial hearing is set Feb. 17. Bond, in the...
Christian J. Peterson, 20, of Norfolk faced the Honorable Kale Burdick last Tuesday, Jan. 12, for sentencing on seven counts. Burdick sentenced Peterson to 18 months’ probation for Count I, attempted possession of a controlled substance, a Class 1 misdemeanor; Count II, reckless driving, first offense, a Class 3 misdemeanor; and Count III, theft of lost property, also a Class 3 misdemeanor. In addition, Peterson was sentenced to a $250 fine and two days in the Holt County Jail, with credit for one day previously served, on Count V, minor in p...
Two area men were sent to the Nebraska Penal and Correctional Complex at Lincoln last week for crimes committed in Holt County. Kip V. Polston, 42, of Elgin appeared before the Honorable Mark Kozisek in the Holt County district courtroom in O’Neill for sentencing Jan. 11. Kozisek sentenced Polston to two years in a facility under the jurisdiction of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, with credit for six days previously served. He was also fined $500 and assessed $139 costs of prosecution. Provided he loses none of his good t...
An Antelope County district court case was adjudicated in the judge’s chambers at the Madison County Courthouse last week. Eliud A. Herara-Cuevas, 21, of San Bernardino, California, his court appointed attorney, Pat Carney, and Antelope County prosecutor Joe Abler appeared before the Honorable Mark Johnson, via teleconference, for the pretrial hearing Jan. 5. A plea agreement was announced, with Count I, theft by receiving stolen property, a Class 4 felony, dismissed by Abler, without prejudice, along with a recommendation for a sentence of t...
The Honorable Donna Taylor ruled on several arrest warrants, for defendants who failed to appear in court, when she presided from the bench in the Antelope County Courthouse in Neligh last week. Edward D. Lundstrom, 63, of Stanton failed to appear Jan. 5, for the second time, for arraignment on a count of second-degree criminal trespass, a Class 3 misdemeanor alleged Nov. 18. Taylor directed County attorney Joe Abler may file a motion for order of a warrant. Angela R. Flores, 42, of Neligh failed to appear on a misdemeanor Neligh nuisance...
The Honorable Kale Burdick signed a bench warrant, ordering the arrest of Trey A. German, 20, after he failed to appear in Holt County court in O’Neill on Tuesday, Jan. 5 for sentencing. Bond is set at $3,000, 10%. German was charged with I, no operator’s license; and II, operating a motor vehicle during time of suspension, both Class 3 misdemeanors alleged March 3, 2020. After he failed to appear in court June 16 as ordered, a third Class 3 misdemeanor count was added by Holt County attorney Brent Kelly, for failure to appear, and a war...
A Texas couple is being held in the Antelope County Jail on $25,000 bond, with charges related to a stolen pickup and camper discovered near Orchard on Monday, Dec. 28. Rodney A. Anderson, 28, homeless, and Lauren A. Lucas, 23, of Tomball, Texas, appeared before the Honorable Donna Taylor in the Antelope County courtroom in Neligh last Wednesday, Jan. 5, facing felony charges related to the thefts of a Chevrolet pickup from Scotts Bluff County and a camper from Stuart. Each defendant is charged with two counts, a Class 2A felony, theft by unlaw...
Michael R. Hernandez, 28, of Clearwater faced the Honorable Donna Taylor for arraignment on a Class 3 misdemeanor count of disturbing the peace. Hernandez, who waived his right to counsel, pleaded guilty and was fined $500, along with one day previously served in the Antelope County Jail and assessed $50 costs of prosecution. Antelope County officers were called to Hernandez residence in Clearwater the night of Dec. 11, on reports he had broken a window, was yelling and scaring children at the residence, with no physical abuse occurring. He...
Richard L. Bloom, 59, of Hot Springs, South Dakota, appeared before the Honorable Mark Kozisec for sentencing in the Holt county district courtroom in O’Neill on Monday, Dec. 28, 2020. Bloom was sentenced to seven days in the Holt county Jail, with credit for five days previously served, a $500 fine and his driver’s license was revoked for six months on a Class W misdemeannor count of driving under the influence of alcohol, first offense; and the same for a second Class W misdemeanor, refusal to submit to a chemical test; and a $50 fine for...
Despite a pandemic that saw life around us change, not everything in 2020 was bad. Advocate-Messenger employees share a personal glimpse of the hope they experienced in 2020 and offer a wish for the new year. ~~~ One of the biggest signs of hope for me was being able to attend in-person classes at Wayne State College. With all the uncertainty in the world, it was a huge relief to know that colleges were taking one of the first steps to give some sense of normalcy to their students. Wish for...
Josue E. Saenz-Guevara, 27, of O’Neill faced the Honorable Mark Kozisek in the Holt County district courtroom Monday, Dec.14, to be sentenced for third-degree sexual assault of a child, who was 13 years of age at the time the crime was committed in December 2018. Kozisek sentenced Saenz-Guevara to a term of three years in the Nebraska Penal and Correctional Complex at Lincoln, under the jurisdiction of the Nebraska Department of Corrections, with credit for 301 days previously served. Provided he loses none of his good time, he must serve o...
Jefferey C. Voborny, 58, of Neligh faced the Honorable Donna Taylor in the Antelope County courtroom in Neligh last Wednesday, Dec. 16, for sentencing. Voborny pleaded guilty Nov. 4, after reaching a plea deal with Antelope County attorney Joe Abler, to Count I, driving under the influence of alcohol, 0.15 or more, second offense, a Class 1 misdemeanor, and no contest to Count II, leaving the scene of a property-damage accident, a Class 2 misdemeanor, both committed Sept. 3. In return, Abler dismissed an infraction count of failure to yield...
Kyle L. Boettcher, 31, of Stuart faced the Honorable Kale Burdick in the Holt Count courtroom in O’Neill last Tuesday, Dec. 15, for a hearing on four counts, Count I, possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony; Count II, no valid registration, a Class 3 misdemeanor; Count III, possession of marijuana and Count IV, possession of drug paraphernalia, infractions. A plea deal was reached, resulting in Holt Count prosecutor Brent Kelly reducing Count I to attempted possession, a Class 1 misdemeanor, with a joint sentencing r...
Austin Pittet of Brunswick was presented a Quilt of Valor by Brunswick's Verner A. Baird American Legion Post 357 and the Brunswick Auxiliary during the organizations' annual Christmas party Saturday, Dec. 5 at the Brunswick Fire Hall meeting room. The quilt was presented by auxiliary president Linda Wahrer and vice president Janet Todd, who crafted the quilt, which she recorded with the Quilts of Valor Foundation. A Quilt of Valor is a handmade quilt awarded to a service member or veteran who...
Randy J. Aime, 56, of O’Neill appeared before the Honorable Kale Burdick in the Holt County courtroom last Tuesday, Dec. 8, on a charge of third-degree domestic assault. Due to a conviction of the same offense in December 2019, Aime’s charge was a felony. A plea bargain was reached, with Holt County prosecutor Brent Kelly, striking the previous subsequent offense language, reducing the charge to a Class 1 misdemeanor, in return for Aime’s guilty plea. Kelly further agreed to recommend jail, with credit for time served. Burdick sentenced Aime to...
The Honorable Donna Taylor presided from the bench in the Antelope County courtroom last Wednesday, while the state of Nebraska was represented by Pierce County attorney Ted Lohberg, on behalf of Antelope County attorney Joe Abler. A 27-year-old Wayne man appeared in a 2013 case. Johnathon Crocker was convicted in June 2013 of writing four bad checks, Class 2 misdemeanors, fined $50 for each and restitution, along with a six-month term of probation. A motion to revoke probation was filed in August 2013 and when Crocker failed to appear at a...
Dennis J. Nekolite, 30, of O’Neill appeared before the Honorable Kale Burdick in the Holt County courtroom Tuesday, Dec. 1. Nekolite faced Burdick for sentencing on two Class 1 misdemeanors, Count I, operate motor vehicle to avoid arrest and Count II, criminal mischief, $1,500 to $4,999. Burdick sentenced him to 60 days in the Holt County Jail on Count I and 14 days on Count II, with credit for one day previously served. The jail terms are to be served concurrent and commence Jan. 2, 2021. In addition, Burdick ordered his driver’s license imp...
