Nebraska

Defense lawyer suspended for talking with prosecutor about ex-client and his new counsel

A Nebraska attorney has been indefinitely suspended from practice because she spoke with a prosecutor about her former client in a rape case, allegedly motivated by hatred for the lawyer who replaced her in representing Kevin H. Beltran and a desire to see Beltran convicted. Attorney Donna J. Tonderum, 45,…

Nov 26, 2013 7:00 PM CST

Ex-client faces first-degree murder charge in slaying of divorce lawyer

A former client of a Nebraska lawyer was charged Friday with first-degree murder in Hall County in the fatal shooting of attorney Todd V. Elsbernd, 52, outside his Grand Island law office on Wednesday night. Authorities said Elsbernd represented defendant Michael Petersen, 58, in a 2005 divorce and the two…

Nov 15, 2013 10:30 PM CST

Former divorce client is arrested in lawyer’s shooting death

A former divorce client has been arrested in the slaying of a Nebraska attorney who was shot outside his law office on Wednesday. Police arrested Michael Petersen, 58, of Glenvil, whose ex-wife, Nancy Petersen, was found dead outside her home on Thursday morning, report the Omaha World-Herald, the Grand-Island Independent…

Nov 15, 2013 12:57 PM CST

Trial attorney slain outside his law office was targeted, police chief says

A Nebraska trial lawyer was fatally shot Wednesday as he stood beside a red Chevrolet Avalanche parked outside his Grand Island law office at around 6:30 p.m. Todd Elsbernd, 52, was struck in the torso and died at a local hospital, the Grand Island Independent reports. Police chief Steve Lamken…

Nov 14, 2013 10:10 PM CST

As shutdown continues, more federal courts ‘tell Congress to go to hell,’ as blogging judge puts it

Instructed to prepare for the possibility of an ongoing government shutdown if Congress doesn’t resolve a budget impasse and restore funding this week, a growing number of federal courts have taken a more aggressive approach. By declaring all employees “essential,” court administrators are in a position to insist that workers…

Oct 15, 2013 7:15 PM CDT

Oops. Former bar prez copies top court on email about its ‘ill-conceived and uninformed questions’

A well-known lawyer congratulating two attorneys about their recent oral argument before the Nebraska Supreme Court in a state bar association case apparently was not as impressed by some of the jurists on the bench. Former state bar president Warren Whitted Jr. referenced “some ill-conceived and uninformed questions” posed during…

Oct 9, 2013 5:30 PM CDT

‘Legal limbo’ for foster child seeking abortion? Neb. decision doesn’t decide who must give consent

The Nebraska Supreme Court has ruled a foster child must get the consent of a parent or guardian for an abortion, but it did not reach the issue of who can give that consent. The court majority upheld a finding that the girl did not sufficiently establish she has the…

Oct 8, 2013 11:15 AM CDT

Lawyer shortage in rural Nebraska is target of state bar initiative

Twelve counties in Nebraska have no lawyers at all, while others have only a handful. Indeed, the number of practicing lawyers in rural Nebraska is “shrinking rapidly,” the Sidney Sun-Telegraph reports. The problem has spurred the Nebraska State Bar Association to begin a rural initiative that stresses the benefits of…

Oct 1, 2013 11:05 AM CDT

Overstuffed Wal-Mart bag led to woman’s death, suit alleges

A lawsuit filed by a Nebraska man claims his wife would still be alive if a Wal-Mart employee had not overstuffed her grocery bag in April 2010. The Lincoln Journal Star has details. The suit by William Freis of Plattsmouth says the grocery bag broke as his wife, Lynette, was…

Sep 3, 2013 11:30 AM CDT

$1M seized in traffic stop is returned to exotic dancer on judge’s orders

A federal judge in Nebraska has ordered the government to return more than $1 million in cash seized during a traffic stop to a California woman who testified she earned it as an exotic dancer and claimed the money as income on her tax returns. Although the government argued that…

Jul 22, 2013 5:14 PM CDT

FBI distributed child porn for several weeks as a sting after seizing service, court records say

The FBI seized and operated a child-pornography service for about two weeks last year as it worked to identify some 5,000 customers. Court records in one Washington state man’s case and an affidavit by a Washington state-based FBI special agent working on a Nebraska-based investigation say the FBI continued to…

May 29, 2013 3:50 PM CDT

Former 3L sues after being kicked out of law school for alleged plagiarism

A former third-year law student claims in a lawsuit that the University of Nebraska College of Law discriminated against him and violated his constitutional rights when he was kicked out of school for alleged plagiarism. Layth Mohammad Al-Turk claims discrimination on the basis of his Arabic heritage and Muslim beliefs,…

Mar 7, 2013 1:00 PM CST

Wrongful Death Suit Filed in Car Crash Cites Nebraska Fetal Protection Law

A wrongful death suit filed on behalf of a Maryland family killed in a Nebraska car crash also seeks damages for the death of a fetus. The case may be the first civil suit based on Nebraska’s 2003 law expanding legal protections to fetuses at any stage of development, the…

Nov 5, 2012 2:31 PM CST

Police Say DUI Lawyer Crashed Lexus, Took Off Running, Was Tackled by Bystander; Now Faces DUI Case

A Nebraska lawyer who specializes in defending driving-under-the-influence cases is now reportedly facing one of his own—following two prior convictions—after police say he rear-ended another vehicle with his speeding Lexus and crashed his car a block later in downtown Omaha near the courthouse on Tuesday night. Police said Robb Gage,…

Sep 14, 2012 10:27 PM CDT

Jury Sides With Out-of-State Lawyer in Hard-Fought Battle Over Attorney’s Fees in $22.5M Case

What reportedly may be the largest jury award ever made in Lancaster County, Neb., resulting in a $22.5 million settlement by General Motors in an automobile accident case, also has led to a protracted court battle between the plaintiff’s attorneys concerning how to split the attorney’s fees. Paid $2.25 million…

Jul 31, 2012 6:07 PM CDT