RAPID CITY YOUTH DIES AS RESULT OF SHOOTING INCIDENT ON SEPTEMBER 2
RAPID CITY, S.D. – Rapid City Police say a juvenile who was injured by a gunshot this past Monday has died.
Police say 13-year-old Xavier White Whirlwind of Rapid City died Wednesday evening.
According to authorities White Whirlwind was found at a residence on E. Fairlane Dr. on Monday morning. Police had responded to a report of a shooting. First responders provided immediate medical care to White Whirlwind before transporting him to the hospital.
The RCPD continues to seek the public’s assistance in locating 16-year-old Tyrell James Yellow Thunder and 20-year-old Loretta Elizabeth Bettelyoun.
The two individuals are wanted for questioning in relation to that shooting.
FIRST THUNDER FIRE UPDATE
RAPID CITY, S.D. – Firefighters are conducting mop up work as progress continues on the lines of the First Thunder Fire southwest of Rapid City.
Incident Commander Brandon Sanchez says containment has surpassed the 41% number reported yesterday, but an exact number is not available until later today.
Sanchez says multiple air resources have also aided ground crews with suppression efforts.
Jason Mitzel with the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office says the pre-evacuation notices have been lifted, but some roads in the area of the fire remain closed.
Scattered showers yesterday were aiding in fire suppression, we’ll have updates as they become available.
FEMA MAY BE ABLE TO ASSIST WITH DAMAGED PRIVATE WATER/SEPTIC SYSTEMS
SOUTH DAKOTA Undated – South Dakotans who lost access to water through a private well or damaged septic system in Davison, Lincoln, Turner, and Union counties as a result of the severe storms, straight-line winds, and flooding from June 16 to July 8, 2024, may be eligible for FEMA assistance.
For private wells and septic systems that supply water to your home, FEMA may reimburse you for the cost of a professional, licensed technician to visit your home and prepare an estimate detailing the necessary repairs or replacement of your disaster-damaged systems.
In addition to the technician’s estimate, FEMA may also pay for the actual repair or replacement cost of your septic system or private well, which typically are not covered by homeowner’s insurance.
If you have applied for FEMA assistance and have not had a home inspection, call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. At the time of your inspection, let the FEMA inspector know you have a private well and/or septic system that may have been damaged by the storms and flooding.
If the damage is determined to have been caused by the disaster, you may be eligible for FEMA assistance.
If you have already had an inspection and damage to the well or septic system wasn’t reported, contact the FEMA Helpline to learn how to amend your application.
OMAHA TEEN SENTENCED TO 320 YEARS FOR SHOOTINGS IN 2021
OMAHA, NE – One of two teens found guilty in June for hunting down people in rival gang territory three years earlier was sentenced to 320 years to life in prison on Thursday.
A Douglas County Court Judge sentenced Quan White, who will turn 19 later this month. White was given 1,105 days credit on his sentencing for 11 charges.
He and Mariano Flores were found guilty of multiple crimes committed in 2021 as they hunted people down in rival gang territory.
Flores’ sentencing date was moved to Dec. 5.
Here’s how White’s sentence terms totaled up for each of the 11 counts:
30-50 years for robbery
30-50 years for use of a deadly weapon
40 years to life for first-degree murder
30-50 years for use of a firearm
30-50 years for first-degree assault
30-50 years for use of a firearm
30-50 years for discharging a firearm at occupied house/building/car
30-50 years for use of a deadly weapon
30-50 years for discharging a firearm at occupied house/building/car
30-50 years for use of a deadly weapon
10-20 years for theft by receiving $5,000 or more
Investigators said the teens, both 15 years old at the time, criss-crossed Omaha in June 2021, looking for getaway vehicles — and members of the Crips, a rival gang. They stopped at 2 a.m. and shot into a bar at 39th and Ames streets. One of them had a high-powered rifle, and 37-year-old Timothy Washington was killed.
Seventeen minutes later, the shooters surrounded a man in his car at Spencer Housing. Twenty casings were found on one side, nine on the other. Remarkably, he survived. A woman was grazed in a nearby apartment.
Detectives say if not for a victim tracking her phone when the teens stole her car at a west Omaha gas station, the suspects’ connection to murder may have been lost.
NEBRASKA SUPREME COURT TO HEAR 3 ABORTION BALLOT INITIATIVE CASES ON MONDAY
LINCOLN, NE (Deborah Van Fleet / Nebraska News Connection) – In an unusual set of circumstances, the Nebraska Supreme Court will hear arguments in three lawsuits about the two abortion-related ballot initiatives, each of which had successful petition drives for the November ballot.
The first two lawsuits ask the Nebraska Supreme Court to rule to keep “Protect our Rights,” which would legalize abortions until fetal viability, off the ballot. They claim it violates the state’s “single subject” rule.
The third suit was filed in response to these on behalf of 29 Nebraska physicians who support Protect Our Rights.
Joshua Livingston, an attorney at the Koenig Dunne law firm in Omaha, which filed the lawsuit, said there are two types of access at stake.
“These physicians spend their days working with Nebraska patients, and they understand what Nebraskans need and what Nebraskans are asking for,” Livingston explained. “Over 200,000 Nebraskans signed this petition asking for their voices to be heard. So the goal is access to health care and access to the ballot.”
Livingston maintained the only fair outcome would require both initiatives to remain on the ballot or both to be removed. The “Protect Women and Children” initiative would prohibit abortions after the first trimester. The Nebraska legislature passed a 12-week abortion ban in 2023.
Livingston noted their position is that the “single-subject” rule would allow both initiatives to remain on the ballot.
“What we’re really seeing is that the opponents to Protect Our Rights, the activist opponents, are scared of what the outcome is going to be,” Livingston contended. “They’re scared that if Nebraskans have the opportunity to expand abortion health care, they’re going to vote in favor of that.”
Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, voters in six states have passed constitutional amendments to protect abortion rights.
Livingston stressed Nebraska voters’ right to be heard is really what is at stake here. He added they hope the Nebraska Supreme Court will rule before the Sept. 13 deadline for Nebraska ballots to be finalized.
