Sheriff’s office ready for start of Kevin German trial Monday

    July 18 has been circled on Sheriff Kevin Mueller’s calendar for awhile.
    His office will have some major duties as the first degree murder-kidnapping trial gets underway that day for Imperial native Kevin German.
    District Judge Patrick Heng has marked two and a half weeks on the Chase County District Court calendar for the trial proceedings.
    The trial is open to the public, and Sheriff Mueller said he has no idea how many people to expect.
    But he does know how many seats the Chase County Courtroom holds, however—85.
    He said he’s counted and recounted the chairs several times.
    “We’re expecting that the public will want to attend the trial,” Mueller said Tuesday.
    Once the courtroom is full, people will have to be turned away. They will keep count each day as people come in. Several of the chairs will be taken up by court system employees, he noted.
    Mueller said there will be no additional rooms at the courthouse with video feed of the trial.
    “Those attending need to know they will be checked at the doors with hand-held metal detectors,” he said.
    Mueller said no bags, purses, cell phones or other items will be allowed in the courtroom during the trial.
    The elevator will be in use, but Mueller said it will be reserved for people with handicaps.
    “The back stairwell will be closed to the public for security purposes,” he said.
    Mueller said he’d like everyone who can use the front door access to do so. The elevator will be used only for handicapped individuals, he said.
    The owner of a private security firm has been hired for the trial to help with security, Mueller said.
    Mueller and two of his deputies, Rob Browning and Duncan Einspahr, were involved in investigating the case and could be called to testify.
    Mueller’s office issued the initial release in November 2019 after Annika Swanson of Imperial was reported missing by her father.
    They teamed up with a number of other law enforcement agencies in the search for Swanson over a three-day period starting Nov. 21, 2019.
    On Nov. 24, 2019, Swanson’s remains were found south of Imperial in a rural location.
    County Deputy Mike Dukes, who was not employed at the sheriff’s office in late 2019, will be on night duty during the trial, Mueller said.
    German, 26, is charged with first degree murder and two counts of felony kidnapping in  Swanson’s death. He pled not guilty on all counts, and continues to be jailed in North Platte without bond.
    German will be brought back to Chase County for the trial, but due to security reasons, when that will be was not released.
    Chase County has a contract with the Lincoln County Jail in North Platte for housing prisoners after a request is received. That amounts to $50 each day a Chase County prisoner is housed there, Mueller said.
    Keonna Carter, who is also charged with first degree murder and one felony count of kidnapping in the case, has also been jailed in North Platte since being transferred from Chase County.
    Both German and Carter were apprehended in Fort Collins, Colorado Nov. 23, 2019, a day before Swanson’s body was found.
    There have been no updates on Carter’s court case since late 2020.
    Carter is listed in court documents as a potential witness in German’s trial, along with a host of others.
Chase Co. murder cases rare
    It’s been a generation since murder charges were filed in Chase County, and there were two in 1978.
    Rita Denbo, then 22, of Elsie, originally was charged with first degree murder in the May 21, 1978  shooting death of her husband of one month, Dallas Denbo.
    Court documents revealed that under an agreement, she pled guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to 18 months to four years in prison. She began her prison sentence Aug. 2, 1978, and was released on Oct. 7, 1980.
    According to newspaper stories, Alfred Tracy Clermont was arrested after two-year-old John
Rudolph Reyna, his wife’s son, was found dead on the floor of the couple’s home in Vinta’s Trailer Court that same year.
    Clermont was convicted of second degree murder in a bench trial after his arrest in July 1978.
    According to Nebraska Department of Correctional Services records, Clermont was sentenced to the maximum of 10 years in prison. He began his sentence on Dec. 15, 1978, and was released on Dec. 21, 1983. The reason for the early release is listed on the records as “mandatory discharge.”