Free Republic

Deputy U.S. Marshal Matt Westover two years ago submitted a DNA profile to a public registry, the same one that many people use in their family genealogical research. But the Omaha law enforcement officer wasn’t looking for some long-lost relative — at least not his own. The DNA profile he submitted in 2020 came from the brother of William Leslie Arnold, the fugitive who killed his parents in Omaha in 1958, buried them in the backyard, nine years later escaped from the Nebraska Penitentiary and vanished without a trace.

When asked about his origin story, John Damon always told his family he was an orphan from Chicago. Which was true, in a way. In 1958, the 16-year-old Omaha boy indeed became an orphan — when he shot his parents to death. And nine years later, after he sawed through prison bars and escaped the Nebraska State Penitentiary, the fugitive did flee to Chicago to launch his new life. But back in those days, Damon was known by a different name: William Leslie Arnold.

A Nebraska Republican lawmaker is defending killing an abortion ban that would protect babies with beating hearts. Nebraska could have been the next state to protect babies from abortions if not for a recalcitrant Republicans who sold out unborn children. Republican Sen. Merv Riepe had cosponsored the measure to protect babies from abortion when their heartbeat can be detected, but yesterday he abstained from voting on the measure. That allowed a Democrat filibuster of the bill to prevail – making it so thousands of babies will continue to be killed in abortions until the legislature can try again next year....

It was a dream come true—or rather about to come true—when the Halls bought their forever home. It had everything they needed and more: five bedrooms, four bathrooms, a family room, a dining room, a roomy garage, good schools, and a good neighborhood. Sure, a fixer-upper, but they felt up to it. Prentiss Hall, a home improvement contractor, made it his life project, and everybody lent a hand—his wife, Tawanda, and six children, cousins, and friends. “We were really excited,” Tawanda told The Epoch Times. They negotiated the price down to $67,000—a bargain, perhaps, but the home demanded a daunting...

Monday, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum signed a fetal heartbeat law that essentially outlaws all abortions in that state after six weeks. Unfortunately, as the North Dakota legislature and Governor Burgum were doing what needed to be done, two other allegedly conservative state legislatures had an opportunity to strike a blow against the pagan practice of infanticide and declined to do so.Karens Win in South CarolinaIn South Carolina, a bill that would have banned nearly all abortions failed to clear the state senate by a 22-21 vote. The bill failed because three Republican women senators voted in favor of killing...

(LifeSiteNews) — Leroy Carhart, the late-term Nebraska abortionist responsible for the deaths of 30,000 innocent babies, has died. The notorious doctor died at 5:30 on Friday morning, ending his lengthy career of murdering unborn children in their mother’s wombs. Carhart founded an organization dedicated to committing abortions, which established two “C.A.R.E.” killing centers, one in Bethesda, Maryland, and one in Bellevue, Nebraska. “This news comes as a shock to me since I was just there praying outside his abortuary a few weeks ago on April 1,” LifeSiteNews’ John-Henry Westen reacted to the news. “I joined a group of LifeRunners praying...

ANebraska state senator who has a transgender child is being investigated for a potential conflict of interest after she voted against a bill that would ban gender-affirming health care for minors. The complaint, filed Wednesday by Omaha lawyer David Begley, alleges Nebraska Democratic Sen. Megan Hunt could benefit financially from the failure of Legislative Bill 574, a measure that would bar health care providers from administering gender-affirming medical care to transgender patients younger than 19. Begley, in the complaint filed with the state’s Accountability and Disclosure Commission, wrote that Hunt and her child, who is a minor, “have a slightly...

Nebraska could have been the next state to protect babies from abortions if not for a recalcitrant Republicans who sold out unborn children. Republican Sen. Merv Riepe has cosponsored the measure to protect babies from abortion when their heartbeat can be detected, but today he abstained from voting on the measure. That allowed a Democrat filibuster of the bill to prevail – making it so thousands of babies will continue to be killed in abortions until the legislature can try again next year. Riepe filed an amendment to the bill to allow killing babies in abortions up to 12 weeks,...

While a number of Donald Trump’s Capitol Hill allies have been quick to defend the former president and criticize the indictment, one moderate Republican told CNN he trusted the legal system. “I believe in the rule of law," said Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska. "I think we have checks and balances and I trust the system.” Bacon said it was important to let the process play out. “We have a judge. We have jurors. There is appeals. So I think in the end, justice will be done. If he’s guilty it will show up. But if not, I think that...

Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., joined forces with 18 GOP governors to reject President Joe Biden's environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) "agenda," claiming the push is a "direct threat" to the economic freedom of American retirees. Governors in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming formed the alliance Thursday in what they described as an effort to ensure American retirement funds are not used for "woke" investments. "Yet again, President Biden put his political agenda above the wellbeing and individual freedoms of hardworking Americans,"...

Last month in Nebraska, two 20-year-old Hondurans, Ramiro Hernandez-Tziquin and Domingo Zetino-Hernandez, shot a bald eagle and were planning to cook it and eat it. The two Hondurans, carrying a dead bald eagle, were arrested by the Stanton County Sheriff’s department on February 28, right outside a state wildlife management area. The illegal alien eagle-killers didn’t speak English and deputies had to use a translation app to communicate with them. The only form of ID they were carrying were documents from the Honduran consulate.

Nebraska we are one step closer to the passage of Permitless Carry and ending the unconstitutional registry schemes of socialist-controlled cities that have lorded over the rural areas of the state for far too long.By demonstrating a willingness to be flexible in the fight and with single-minded persistence, Sen. Brewer pushed L.B. 77 through the first floor debate with a vote of 36-12! Please send a message expressing your appreciation to Sen. Brewer and his staff for their tireless efforts in defence of liberty!As we have witnessed over the last few sessions, the fight was not without its memorable moments…...

Nebraska officials say a pair of migrants shot and killed a North American bald eagle - a protected animal and the national emblem of the United States - with the intention of eating the bird. Two Honduran nationals, Ramiro Hernandez-Tziquin, 20 and Domingo Zetino-Hernandez, 20, both of Norfolk were cited for unlawful possession of the eagle. Hernandez-Tziquin was also cited for having No Drivers License," the Stanton County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release on Feb. 28. The sheriff’s office said officials responded to an area near the Wood Duck Recreation Area, which is about 100 miles northeast of...

2 Honduran migrants charged with misdemeanor after killing an American bald eagle with intention to eat itA Nebraska sheriff is calling on federal authorities to act after two Honduran migrants allegedly killed an American bald eagle in the state with the intention of eating it.Stanton County Sheriff Mike Unger told "Fox & Friends First" Monday that he has yet to get an answer from federal officials on their handling of the incident that has the community in an "uproar.""We find this very alarming, I'm sure nationwide, but locally it's been very alarming to the citizens," Unger said.The Stanton County Sheriff's...

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — After years of trying to pass a bill to allow people to carry concealed guns in Nebraska without a permit, conservative lawmakers are on the cusp of doing so, thanks in part to the defection of two Democratic Omaha senators — the only Black lawmakers in the body — who cited racial disparity in enforcing gun laws in their districts. After three days of debate, lawmakers voted 36-12 Friday to advance the bill. It must survive two more rounds of debate to pass. While the bill would not usurp the federal requirement for a background check...

Two men are facing criminal charges, accused of shooting and killing a bald eagle near Stanton, Nebraska, on Tuesday, that authorities said they had planned to cook and eat. The two suspects, identified as Honduran nationals Ramiro Hernandez-Tziquin and Domingo Zetino-Hernandez, both age 20, were charged with unlawful possession of an eagle, the Stanton County Sheriff's Office reported in a news release Tuesday. Hernandez-Tziquin was also cited for not having a driver's license. At about 4 p.m. local time Tuesday, deputies responded to a report of a vehicle in a field northwest of the Wood Duck Recreation Area, about three...

Nebraska state Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh (D) on Thursday pledged to filibuster every bill on the state’s legislative agenda this session if two Republican-backed bills seeking to ban both abortion and gender-affirming health care for transgender youth are not immediately withdrawn. “If this legislature collectively decides that legislating hate against children is our priority, then I am going to make it painful; painful for everyone,” Cavanaugh, one of just 17 Democrats in Nebraska’s unicameral legislature, said Thursday at the state capitol in Lincoln. “Because if you want to inflict pain upon our children, I am going to inflict pain upon this...

When Morrill High School coach April Ott broke the news to Katrina Kohel that she was the only one left on the cheer squad, she promised her that even if she couldn’t compete at the state tournament, they could still enjoy the whole experience. They’d get fun coffee drinks, watch the more than 2,700 girls and 225 teams compete in the three-day cheer and dance competition in Grand Island and just have a good time. But Kohel, the lone senior on what had been a squad of four, had other ideas. After talking it over with her mom, Della, she...

Union Pacific freight train derailed in Nebraska early on Tuesday, sparking an emergency response. Around 30 cars carrying coal jumped tracks three miles southeast of the town of Gothenburg at about 1.45am, officials said. Emergency hazmat teams rushed to the site of the crash. There were no reported injuries. Images posted to KNOP showed dozens of rail cars strewn along the tracks, alongside mounds of black coal. It was the fourth derailment involving a Union Pacific train in the area since May last year, KNOP reported. In a statement to Fox News, Union Pacific said a clean up operation was...

Driving kids to Vacation Bible School would become a misdemeanor in Nebraska if a recent proposal by Nebraska Senator Megan Hunt (D) passed into law. Hunt proposed to "amend" a bill that would protect children from adult-themed drag performances (LB371) by striking all the language and replacing it with similar language to bar children from attending a "religious indoctrination camp" instead.Hunt's amendment (AM74), filed on January 23, defined a religious indoctrination camp as "a camp, vacation Bible study, retreat, lock-in, or convention held by a church, youth group, or religious organization for the purpose of indoctrinating children with a specific...