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Five candidates will be interviewed for the vacancy on the Omaha City Council:
Rebecca Barrientos-Patlan
Terri Blackburn
Garry Gernandt
Ron Hug
Erik Servellon
The interviews will be conducted publicly starting at 9 a.m. on Sept. 7
With deadlines looming, the Omaha City Council took action Tuesday on two divisive issues: guns and climate change.
Check out my latest (and last) local government recap for the Reader:
thereader.com/2023/08/30/oma…
During today’s Omaha City Council meeting, City Attorney Matt Kuhse said Mayor Jean Stothert is working on an executive order to prohibit concealed firearms on city-owned properties
The exec order will come before the state’s new concealed carry law goes into effect this weekend
The new state law will allow Nebraskans to carry concealed weapons without registration or training.
It will override the city’s gun regulations, but the city will retain the authority to prevent concealed carry in places like city parks and libraries
Council President Pete Festersen said that even though the city is forced to repeal many of its current gun regulations, they are working on new regulations to address issues like ghost guns and bump stocks
🚨🚨Vinny Palermo pleads guilty in federal court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud by deprivation of honest services. The eight other charges against him will be dismissed at sentencing. Sentencing recommendation is up to 21 months in prison. Story to come
Court filings indicate a plea deal may be forthcoming for Richard Gonzalez, a former Omaha Police officer facing federal fraud charges.
It's also possible that he could enter a plea of guilty to some or all of the charges without a deal. Hearing set for Aug. 29 at 2pm.
The Omaha City Council announced a list of candidates to fill the vacant District 4 seat:
Andrew Adams
Rebecca Barrientos-Patlan
Terri Blackburn
Samuel Canova
Garry Gernandt
Ron Hug
Margo Juarez
Mark Martinez
Anita Rojas
Ben Salazar
Erik Servellon
Joseph Velasquez
The City Council will conduct public interviews on Sept. 7 starting at 9 a.m. The new representative would be elected by the Council on Sept. 12 and take office on Sept. 26.
The field includes Vinny Palermo’s predecessor, former Councilmember Garry Gernandt, and his former opponent Rebecca Barrientos-Patlan, who lost to Palermo in the race for District 4 in 2017.