Murderer of UNL student
set to die in electric chair
■ For the second time this
month, the state high court
sets date without request
from attorney general.
By Michelle Starr
Staff writer
The state high court said on
Wednesday that Roger Bjorklund will
be sent to die in the electric chair on
June 1.
The decision marks the second time
in a month the Nebraska Supreme
Court has set an execution date for an
inmate without a request from the attor
ney general’s office.
Just a few weeks ago in February,
the state Supreme Court completed its
review of Bjorklund’s case, said Kirk
Brown, assistant attorney general.
Bjorklund was convicted of first
degree murder and use of a weapon to
commit a felony in the 1992 murder of
Candice Harms, who was an 18-year
old freshman at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln.
Scott A. Barney, also was convicted
for the murder and given a life sentence.
Barney, while in custody for pos
session of a stolen vehicle in 1992, told
police he and Bjorklund had kidnapped,
raped and murdered Harms and led
police to her body.
On Feb. 24 the court surprised both
sides and set an April 26 execution date
for John Lotter, despite a pending post
conviction hearing in Richardson
County after the scheduled execution.
But on March 2, the court granted a
stay of execution for Lotter because of
the pending hearing.
Lotter and Marvin Nissen were
convicted for the 1993 murders of
Teena Brandon, Lisa Lambert and
Philip DeVine in a rural farmhouse near
Humboldt.
Though both sides were surprised
by the date set for Lotter, Brown said
Bjorklund’s case was much different
from Lotter’s case because of Lotter’s
pending hearing.
“This one isn’t quite the surprise
that the Lotter one was,” Brown said.
The most recent action in
Bjorklund’s case was on Jan. 2, when
the state Supreme Court denied
Bjorklund’s motion for a new trial.
But Brown also said Bjorklund has
completed only two of the expected
nine steps of appeal for death-row
cases.
No action had been made by Alan
Stoler, Bjorklund’s attorney, and Brown
said he was unsure whether Stoler
would file an appeal before the execu
tion date.
Stoler was unavailable for com
ment.
- CITY COUNCIL -
Golf course resolutions passed
■ Golf pros’ contracts
renewed with changes that
will increase city’s revenue.
By CaraPesek
Staff uniter
At its Monday meeting, the City
Council unanimously passed three res
olutions that will change the way
things are done at Lincoln’s five public
golf courses.
Each of the resolutions renewed a
golf professional’s contract with a
Lincoln golf course. The city made
changes to the contracts, which may
allow the city to earn more money
from the courses.
Steve Hiller, superintendent of
administration and communication
services at the Lincoln Parks and
Recreation Department, said in the
past, the PGA members at the courses
leased or owned golf carts.
The professionals then were able to
rent the golf carts to course patrons and
collect the revenue from the rentals,
Hiller said.
Under the old system, Hiller said,
the city’s golf courses had a total of
about 200 carts.
Now, the city will lease about 225
carts and will be entitled to most of the
profits from the golf-cart rental.
The golf professionals will receive
25 percent of the revenue, Hiller said.
He said he hoped the new program
would generate about $200,000 annu
ally for the city.
Councilwoman Cindy Johnson
said she was surprised that the golf
professionals had agreed to turn con
trol of the golf-cart rental over to the
city.
“I’m a little confused,” she said. “I
thought this was something they didn’t
want to give up.”
Councilman Jerry Shoecraft said
he thought change in control of the golf
carts was hurting the quality of
Lincoln’s public golf courses.
“I’m not happy now that we’ve lost
two excellent golf pros at our public
courses,” Shoecraft said. “It affects the
quality of our service.”
But Hiller said only one golf pro,
Marc Cruse, has left. Hiller didn’t say
why. Another golf pro, Dale Hardy, has
been moved to an administrative posi
tion that will allow him to work with all
the courses.
Hiller said 12 golf professionals
have shown interest in the open posi
tion.
“I’m confident we can find some
one just as qualified or even better to
fill the position,” Hiller said.
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Ballet d’Afiique Noire
The Mandinka Epic
Company of 30 dancers,
singers and musicians bring
alive the traditional song
and dance of West Africa.
Thursday,
March 23, 8pm
Lied Center for Performing Arts
Lincoln, NE
Tickets: 472-4747 or
1-800-432-3231
Box Office: 11:00am-5:30pm M-F
Website: www.unl.edu/lied/
TEN YEARS
ATI , ^ I Lied Center programming is supported by the Friends of Lied and grants from the National Endowment tor the Arts,
INGDraSKa Mid-AmehcaArtsAHanceandlheNebraakaArtsCounciLAIIeventsatemadepossiblebytheLiedPerlormance
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University of Nebraska-Lincoln
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is an affirmative action, equal opportunity institution.
Sweet-smelling bandits
hit Osco stores
Two Osco Drug stores were hit by
cologne bandits Sunday.
Between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. a cus
tomer notified a clerk at the store at 130
N 66th St., Suite B, that some people
had taken cologne from the locked glass
case, Lincoln Police Ofc. Katherine
Finnell said.
Nineteen bottles were taken from
the store, totaling $723, Finnell said. ,
Around the same time the store at
233 N 48th St., Suite C, also reported
that 10 bottles of cologne were taken
from a locked glass case, Finnell said. A
total of $627 worth of cologne was
taken from the second store.
A customer at the first store
described seeing three men near the
cologne aisle at about the same time the
cologne was taken, Finnell said.
The customer also said the men left
in a car with DodgeCounty plates.
Cashier gives more than $1000
in wrong change
Two people were arrested Saturday
on felony charges of theft by deception.
Management at Kmart Super
Center, 3300 N. 27th St., noticed that a
17-year-old employee had been missing
cash from her cash-register drawer and
decided to watch her while at work.
About 11:19 p.m. a 16-year-old bey
entered the store, bought something and
went through the girl’s check-out lane.
Management noticed that through
out the girl’s shift she accumulated a
large number of bills in the one-dollar
bill slot in the register, Finnell said.
When the girl made change for the
boy she handed him a large number of
bills. The boy was stopped at the door
and had been given $1,292 in change
from the girl, Finnell said.
The management suspects that this
was the second time the boy received a
large amount of money from the girl
while she was working.
Man dies in fall from fire escape
A man died early Sunday morning
when he slipped from a fire escape in
the Haymarket.
Ryan Sydow, 21, 2321 Wildwood
Place, was at a party when he attempted
to climb from the roof to the fire escape.
Sydow first hit a power line with
7,000 volts running through it, then fell
45 feet to the ground. He was pro
nounced dead at the scene, Finnell said.
Smeared feces found
in Morrill Hall bathroom
Ten times in the past month some
one has smeared fecal matter on the
walls of Morrill Hall’s first floor unisex
bathroom in the west side of the build
ing, University Police Sgt. Mylo
Bushing said
The most recent report was filed on
Friday, he said
The incidents all have occurred
sometime after closing time, between
midiight and 7 a.m., Bushing said
No evidence of forced entry has
been reported and there are no suspects
at this time, Bushing said
Compiled by staff writer Michelle
Starr
Nebraska
UMVIMITT or MMKABKA- UWCOLW
Feed Your Brain
, at the University of Nebraska
Research Fair
Saturday, March 25,2000
10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Nebraska Union Centennial Room
1400 R Street No Admission Charge / |
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Fill your head with ideas at the University Research Fair. Booths and poster
displays from every College show off our depth and breadth of Research
and Creative Activity. From the Dead Sea Scrolls to Biotechnology,
Astronomy to Quilts, Global Positioning Systems to Adolescent Alcohol
use. Nebraska researchers create new knowledge to inform the world.
10 am - 3 pan. ^
Faculty Displays and Pasters
1-230 pan.
Graduate Student Poster Viewing and Judging
230-340 pan.
Graduate Student Poster Awards Ceremony
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The University of Nebraska-Lincoln
An equal opportunity educator and employer with a
comprehensive plan for diversity
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