Two 16-year-olds charged with murder in North Platte slaying

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) _ Two 16-year-old boys have been charged with first-degree murder for the shooting death of a man at a park in the western Nebraska city of North Platte.     

The two Grand Island residents also were charged Monday in Lincoln County Court with use of a firearm to commit a felony.

The Associated Press generally doesn’t name juveniles accused of crimes.     

They’re accused of killing 22-year-old Ethan Pohlmeier, who was shot the night of Sept. 14 at Centennial Park. North Platte Police Chief Daniel Hudson says investigators think Pohlmeier and a friend met with the two boys for a drug deal that turned into a dispute and then a shooting.     

Police say Pohlmeier’s friend took him to a hospital, where he died.