December 26 marks the 150th anniversary of the largest mass execution in American history…the hanging of 38 Dakota Sioux Indians in Mankato, Minn., which marked the end of the Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising.

A new monument to those hanged, replacing one dating back decades, was dedicated this morning in Reconciliation Park in Mankato, the location where the executions are believed to have taken place.

The 2-hour ceremony drew a crowd estimated at around 500 people, including a group of Dakota runners from Fort Snelling and about 60 horse riders…most of whom arrived in Mankato earlier after a 2-week ride from South Dakota.

Mankato resident Bud Lawrence helped start the reconciliation effort in the 1970s, and called the rededication “a great day, not only for the Dakota but for the city of Mankato.”

The Santee Sioux tribe in northeast Nebraska has remembered the executions for several years with a ceremony that this year included a number of horses dressed in Native American regalia with drapes commemorating each of the men killed.

Santee Tribal Council chairman Roger Trudell says the executions are a piece of the nation’s past that not many people know, but that are important to the Santee because nearly all the members of the tribe are direct descendants of those killed in the hangings.

The Sioux Uprising began on August 17, 1862, when one young Dakota in a hunting party of 4 killed 5 settlers. That night a council of Dakota decided to attack settlements throughout the Minnesota River valley to try to drive whites out of the area.

Battles continued for several months, but as more troops were brought in despite the Civil War, most of the Dakota bands had been captured by late December. There has never been an official report on the number of settlers killed, but it’s put as high as 800.

In early December 1862, 303 Sioux prisoners were convicted of murder and rape by military tribunals and sentenced to death while Minnesota Governor Alexander Ramsey called for the extermination of the Sioux Indians of Minnesota.

President Abraham Lincoln personally reviewed the trial records to distinguish between those who had engaged in warfare against the U.S., versus those who had committed crimes of rape and murder against civilians.

In the end, Lincoln commuted the death sentences of 264 prisoners, but allowed the execution of 39 men…one of whom was granted a reprieve before the rest were hanged.

 

The severe, yearlong drought that continues in Nebraska has been voted the top news story of 2012 by newspaper and broadcast members of The Associated Press. Finishing #2 in the survey were the wildfires that blackened hundreds of thousands of acres in north-central and northwest Nebraska.

Included in the top 10 list were three stories about the U.S. Senate race won by State Senator Deb Fischer over former Senator Bob Kerrey. Fischer’s victory in the general election was #3, her primary win #6, and Kerrey’s decision to enter the race #7.

The Keystone XL oil pipeline was ranked #4, followed at #5 by Tom Osborne’s retirement a week from tomorrow as athletic director at the University of Nebraska. Osborne will become athletic director emeritus and stay involved in department operations through July 30.

Rounding out the top 10 were the hostage drama at Thiele’s Pharmacy in Alliance, the veto override of a bill that restored prenatal care coverage to the children of illegal immigrants, and coverage of the so-called “pink slime” beef  product produced in South Sioux City and at other plants.

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — A plea agreement is in the works for a former New Underwood teacher accused of having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student.

The Rapid City Journal reports that Kyle Keegan’s attorney, Tim Rensch, scheduled a change of plea hearing Tuesday with Circuit Judge Janine Kern. Keegan returns to court on Jan. 7 when he is expected to enter a plea.

Pennington County Deputy State’s Attorney Ryan Ryder confirmed that he and Rensch are in the process of “hammering out” a plea agreement.

Keegan was arrested in October and charged with fourth-degree rape of a victim between the ages of 13 and 16 and sexual contact with a child under 16. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of up to 15 years in prison.

 

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — The attorney for a Rapid City woman accused of raping a 14-year-old boy and videotaping the alleged sex acts says April Solles isn’t competent to stand trial.

Defense attorney Paul Winter on Monday asked Judge Jeff Davis to schedule a competency hearing based on the results of an psychologist’s evaluation. Davis ordered a second opinion.

The second evaluation will be done at the state Human Services Center in Yankton.

Solles has pleaded not guilty to rape, sexual contact with a child under 16 and possession of child pornography.

The case started unfolding late last year when Solles’ 1-year-old girl died of a head injury. A 14-year-old boy was charged with murder in juvenile court but authorities would not say if he was the same boy in the alleged rape case.

 

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — The Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota and Wyoming will use extensive commercial tree thinning to battle the mountain pine beetle.

Forest Supervisor Craig Bobzien  says the plan developed over more than a year will target 248,000 acres of vulnerable woodlands within the 1.2-million-acre forest. Commercial logging and non-commercial thinning will be used on almost half of the acres over five to seven years to make them more resistant to the destructive bugs that have infested more than 40 million acres of the nation’s forests.

Officials estimate that about 405,000 acres of the Black Hills National Forest is infested. That’s about one-third of the forest.

Bobzien says the response plan includes a variety of treatment options and will cost about $70 million to implement.

BRUNSWICK, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 38-year-old Plainview man is being treated for a gunshot wound after ramming his tractor into a Nebraska state trooper’s car.

State Patrol spokeswoman Deb Collins says the altercation happened Tuesday morning after Aaron White created a disturbance at his children’s school and made threats at a convenience store.

The man drove to his farm northeast of Brunswick and set fire to his semitrailer truck. Then he started up the tractor and ran into outbuildings and equipment.

When state troopers and a Pierce County sheriff deputy arrived, White tried to ram the deputy’s car before hitting a trooper’s car and hurting him.

Another state trooper fired and hit the suspect. White was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an officer and flown to a hospital for treatment.

 

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — The deadly school shooting in Connecticut has prompted a South Dakota legislator to begin drafting a bill that would allow teachers, administrators and even janitors with concealed weapons permits to bring their guns to school.

Representative Betty Olson, a Republican from Prairie City, tells The Associated Press that she feels fewer people would have been killed in Newtown, Connecticut had someone inside the school been armed. Twenty-six people, including 20 children ages 6 and 7, were shot to death in the Friday rampage.

Olson’s suggestion will be met with debate. Senate Democratic Caucus Chairwoman Angie Buhl  says she welcomes a “much-needed conversation about gun safety” but says she thinks there should be fewer guns rather than more. She also questions how gun-carrying school personnel would be trained.