It was a case that was hard to believe.
But it was just one of the court cases that had folks talking in 2011.
In April, 37-year-old William Bishop IV of Fremont was arrested after a man told police Bishop had attempted to hire him to kill the husband of Bishop's ex-girlfriend.
Bishop met the man - a professional clown - while driving a truck.
Bishop pleaded guilty in May to attempted conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, a Class III felony.
Dodge County District Court Judge Geoffrey Hall sentenced Bishop in July to 9 to 10 years in prison.
"The facts of this case are almost hard to believe," Hall told Bishop during sentencing. "... You're lucky you didn't choose someone who was serious or we would be looking at a totally different case."
Bishop acknowledged during sentencing that he likely would be headed to prison.
"What I did was probably wrong," he said. "I want to serve my time and get back on with my life."
Another Fremont story that made headlines around the state involved 57-year-old Kathy Madsen, who was arrested in July and accused of concealing her father's death.
Police officers went to the home Madsen shared with her 88-year-old father and found Raymond Madsen's badly decomposed body in a mummified state. Investigators determined Raymond Madsen had been dead for at least four months.
Last week, Kathy Madsen pleaded no contest to concealing the death of another person and theft by deception - Class I misdemeanors - and was sentenced to a year of probation by Dodge County Court Judge Kenneth Vampola.
Madsen also was ordered to pay more than $4,500 in restitution because Social Security deposits were made to her father's bank account after he died.
Another case that has attracted attention from around the state will go to trial early next year.
Hall set a March 13 trial date for 30-year-old Joshua Keadle, who is accused of sexually assaulting a then 15-year-old girl in 2008 at what was known as Midland Lutheran College.
Keadle, a student at Midland at the time, submitted a written waiver of formal arraignment and a written not guilty plea in August. He faces up to 50 years in prison if convicted of first-degree sexual assault of a minor, a Class II felony.
In November, prosecutors in Nemaha County dismissed a rape case against Keadle, although charges could be refiled.
In that case, the woman who accused Keadle of sexually assaulting her in Fremont testified during a motion hearing. She said she was in a dark room when Keadle entered and had sex with her. She testified that she thought she was with another man at the time.
Keadle also is listed as a person of interest in the Dec. 3, 2010, disappearance of Peru State student Tyler "Ty" Thomas.
In January, then Dodge County District Court Judge John Samson sentenced 18-year-old Makayla Thomas of Omaha to 4 to 8 years in prison for attempted first-degree assault, a Class III felony.
Thomas was 17 when she shot at her 27-year-old boyfriend at a Fremont apartment complex.
"It's a very dangerous situation that you created," Samson told Thomas at sentencing. "Not only the intended victim, but some innocent person could have been hurt by the stray bullets."
Three Omaha teens were sentenced earlier this year for their roles in the 2010 beating of a Fremont man in the parking lot at Fremont Middle School.
Hall sentenced 19-year-old Large King Jr. to 30 months to 5 years in prison, 19-year-old Katie Kahnk to 2 to 3 years and 19-year-old Tyler Berry to 18 months to 3 years for attempted first-degree assault, a Class IIIA felony.
Kahnk lured her 21-year-old ex-boyfriend to the parking lot, where he was beaten by King and Berry.
In August, Hall sentenced three Omahans to prison for their roles in the botched robbery of a Fremont coin dealer.
Twenty-nine-year-old Anthony Flud was sentenced to 3 to 5 years in prison and 32-year-old Sandie Zorinsky and 38-year-old Leonard Washington each were sentenced to a year in prison.
The three met a Fremont man at a park claiming they were selling gold coins, which turned out to be chocolate wrapped in foil. When the potential buyer arrived with cash, he was sprayed in the face with mace.
In November, 24-year-old William Hearn was sentenced to 15 to 20 years in prison for possession of a firearm by a felon, a Class ID felony.
Hearn took part in a June home invasion where a baby sitter was held at gunpoint.
But it was just one of the court cases that had folks talking in 2011.
In April, 37-year-old William Bishop IV of Fremont was arrested after a man told police Bishop had attempted to hire him to kill the husband of Bishop's ex-girlfriend.
Bishop met the man - a professional clown - while driving a truck.
Bishop pleaded guilty in May to attempted conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, a Class III felony.
Dodge County District Court Judge Geoffrey Hall sentenced Bishop in July to 9 to 10 years in prison.
"The facts of this case are almost hard to believe," Hall told Bishop during sentencing. "... You're lucky you didn't choose someone who was serious or we would be looking at a totally different case."
Bishop acknowledged during sentencing that he likely would be headed to prison.
"What I did was probably wrong," he said. "I want to serve my time and get back on with my life."
Another Fremont story that made headlines around the state involved 57-year-old Kathy Madsen, who was arrested in July and accused of concealing her father's death.
Police officers went to the home Madsen shared with her 88-year-old father and found Raymond Madsen's badly decomposed body in a mummified state. Investigators determined Raymond Madsen had been dead for at least four months.
Last week, Kathy Madsen pleaded no contest to concealing the death of another person and theft by deception - Class I misdemeanors - and was sentenced to a year of probation by Dodge County Court Judge Kenneth Vampola.
Madsen also was ordered to pay more than $4,500 in restitution because Social Security deposits were made to her father's bank account after he died.
Another case that has attracted attention from around the state will go to trial early next year.
Hall set a March 13 trial date for 30-year-old Joshua Keadle, who is accused of sexually assaulting a then 15-year-old girl in 2008 at what was known as Midland Lutheran College.
Keadle, a student at Midland at the time, submitted a written waiver of formal arraignment and a written not guilty plea in August. He faces up to 50 years in prison if convicted of first-degree sexual assault of a minor, a Class II felony.
In November, prosecutors in Nemaha County dismissed a rape case against Keadle, although charges could be refiled.
In that case, the woman who accused Keadle of sexually assaulting her in Fremont testified during a motion hearing. She said she was in a dark room when Keadle entered and had sex with her. She testified that she thought she was with another man at the time.
Keadle also is listed as a person of interest in the Dec. 3, 2010, disappearance of Peru State student Tyler "Ty" Thomas.
In January, then Dodge County District Court Judge John Samson sentenced 18-year-old Makayla Thomas of Omaha to 4 to 8 years in prison for attempted first-degree assault, a Class III felony.
Thomas was 17 when she shot at her 27-year-old boyfriend at a Fremont apartment complex.
"It's a very dangerous situation that you created," Samson told Thomas at sentencing. "Not only the intended victim, but some innocent person could have been hurt by the stray bullets."
Three Omaha teens were sentenced earlier this year for their roles in the 2010 beating of a Fremont man in the parking lot at Fremont Middle School.
Hall sentenced 19-year-old Large King Jr. to 30 months to 5 years in prison, 19-year-old Katie Kahnk to 2 to 3 years and 19-year-old Tyler Berry to 18 months to 3 years for attempted first-degree assault, a Class IIIA felony.
Kahnk lured her 21-year-old ex-boyfriend to the parking lot, where he was beaten by King and Berry.
In August, Hall sentenced three Omahans to prison for their roles in the botched robbery of a Fremont coin dealer.
Twenty-nine-year-old Anthony Flud was sentenced to 3 to 5 years in prison and 32-year-old Sandie Zorinsky and 38-year-old Leonard Washington each were sentenced to a year in prison.
The three met a Fremont man at a park claiming they were selling gold coins, which turned out to be chocolate wrapped in foil. When the potential buyer arrived with cash, he was sprayed in the face with mace.
In November, 24-year-old William Hearn was sentenced to 15 to 20 years in prison for possession of a firearm by a felon, a Class ID felony.
Hearn took part in a June home invasion where a baby sitter was held at gunpoint.
