Nebraska sweetens Space Command bid
OMAHA, Neb. -- Nebraska's bid to attract the U.S. Space Command's headquarters to Offutt Air Force Base includes $107 million of public and private money.
Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce President David Brown said the money is meant to help offset the roughly $1 billion cost of building the headquarters at Offutt.
"If there's a need for public or private support, there has always been a willingness to find a way," he said.
Offutt is one of the six finalists. The others are Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, Patrick Air Force Base in Florida, Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado, Redstone Army Airfield in Alabama and the former Kelly Air Force Base in Texas.
Brown said the Nebraska incentive package would include $50 million from the state, $50 million to be raised from private donations, $4 million from the city of Bellevue and $3 million in other incentives.
Rick Evans, a retired Air Force major general who is acting director of the University of Nebraska's National Strategic Research Institute, said the incentives in the bid are impressive. "That's a big number. It's an eye-catcher," he said.
A decision by the Air Force is expected later this month.
New chief justice on job in Louisiana
NEW ORLEANS -- The Louisiana Supreme Court has a new chief justice.
John Weimer, 66, of Thibodaux, took the oath of office this month as the state's 26th chief justice. A ceremony was held in New Orleans on Thursday. Weimer fills the seat vacated by Bernette Joshua Johnson, who retired Dec. 31 after 26 years on the court.
"I feel a profound sense of humility and the recognition of the obligation of service," Weimer said. "I have served with three chief justices who have made their mark on the judiciary in special ways ... I have learned much from each of them, and I promise to work hard to be dedicated to the principles of impartiality, independence and fairness while pursuing justice and acting with integrity just as my predecessors did."
Gov. John Bel Edwards said Weimer is becoming Louisiana's highest jurist during one of history's most difficult periods, with a global pandemic raging. "John Weimer is the right person to lead this court during these challenging times," the Democratic governor said.
Officer scolded over post-Floyd interview
MINNEAPOLIS -- A Minneapolis police officer who spoke to GQ magazine after the death of George Floyd -- criticizing the department for having what she called a toxic culture -- has been reprimanded for speaking to the media without permission.
Disciplinary records made public Friday show Colleen Ryan received a letter of reprimand Dec. 2.
Ryan was an anonymous source in the June 10 article, but her name was made public in records released Friday under a court order that's part of an ongoing human-rights investigation into the department's practices, the Star Tribune reported.
In his disciplinary decision, Chief Medaria Arradondo wrote that he's responsible for providing clear expectations of what will and won't be tolerated. He said Ryan should have sought permission to speak to the media from the department's public information officer.
In the GQ article, Ryan was quoted under the pseudonym "Megan Jones." She criticized what she described as a "toxic" culture that discourages officers from reporting colleagues' bad behavior.
An investigation was begun after a tip to the department's ethics hotline. Records show Ryan admitted to investigators that she was interviewed for the article and expressed regret for the "bad press the article generated for the Minneapolis Police Department."
Atlanta police reinstate chase policy
ATLANTA -- A year after the practice was halted, Atlanta police have reinstated a controversial policy that allows officers to chase suspects, a decision that comes after the city saw one of its most violent years in decades.
But the revived policy comes with new restrictions.
The Police Executive Research Forum, contracted by the city to conduct a top-down review of Atlanta Police Department policies and training, provided guidance to command and training staff who crafted the revived policy, Police Department Interim Chief Rodney Bryant told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
He said the department has adopted safety measures not present in the old policy scrapped last January by former Chief Erika Shields, who decided the chases put innocent people at too much risk.
"The policy itself is much more restrictive than it has been in the past," Bryant said. "After we added significant restrictions to it, we lifted the suspension."
The new protocols allow officers to pursue only specific suspects, those who have committed certain felonies ranging from murder to involuntary manslaughter and who present an imminent threat of death or serious injury. A supervisor must approve a chase, and no more than three police cruisers can join.
-- Compiled by Democrat-Gazette staff from wire reports