A search warrant executed Wednesday at a home in rural Pottawattamie County resulted in 117 marijuana plants being seized, a six-week old infant being taken into protective custody, and the arrest of four people. Chief Deputy Sheriff John Reynolds said Friday (Today), the drug bust went down at 21159 250th Street, near Underwood.

Taken into custody during the event on charges of Manufacturing Marijuana, a Tax Stamp Violation and Child Endangerment, was: 63-year old Bobby Wayne Berg; 58-year old Julie Maxine Berg; 32-year old Gustav Wayne Berg; and 29-year old Cassandra Jane Hoffman. Each of the subjects was booked into the Pott. County Jail.

The raid was carried out by Deputies from the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office, and officers from Southwest Iowa Narcotics Task Force and State of Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Revenue at a new casino in Sioux City is down from when it opened last summer, but an official says the drop was expected and the center is doing well. The Sioux City Journal reports the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Sioux City had revenue of $5.8 million in November. That’s down from $7.2 million in adjusted gross revenue in August, when the casino opened.

Revenue in September and October was about $6 million each month. The $128 million gambling and entertainment center replaced the former Argosy Sioux City riverboat.

Mark Monson, the president of a nonprofit group that holds the Hard Rock’s state gambling license, says the lower revenue was expected during the winter. He maintains the center is meeting expectations, saying “they’re going great guns down there.”

EVANSDALE, Iowa (AP) – Two years after hunters found the remains of two missing cousins, investigators say they’re still receiving tips about the abduction of the girls. Ten-year-old Lyric Cook and her 8-year-old cousin Elizabeth Collins disappeared in Evansdale after they left for a bike ride in July 2012.  Their bodies were found in December 2012 in a rural wildlife refuge in Bremer County. No arrests have been made in their deaths.

Police chief Kent Smock tells the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier they have received new information within the past month. He says it’s nothing that’s “super promising,” but it shows the case is still active.

A $150,000 reward has been set for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case.

Pottawattamie County Sheriff Jeff Danker has announced that on December 13th, at 6:30-AM, the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office in conjunction with Target at Metro Crossing, will hold the 16th annual “Shop with the Sheriff.”

This year, 36 children will be shopping for outerwear, clothing and toys with employees and family members from the Sheriff’s Office. Each family of the participating children will also receive a food basket for the holiday season.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office “Shop with the Sheriff” event is made possible by the generous donations from citizens, organizations and businesses throughout the area.

A federal judge in Iowa ruled Wednesday two state laws that protect the American flag from desecration are unconstitutional. It’s a victory for the controversial Westboro Baptist Church in a court case filed on its behalf by the Iowa chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Iowa U-S Senator Tom Harkin was asked if the flag needs more protections at the federal level. Harkin’s short answer is, “no.”

“There’s always been an effort here, as long as I’ve been here, to have some kind of constitutional amendment to prevent desecration of the flag,” Harkin says. “I remember the first time that came up when I was in the Senate was in the late ’80s. I was opposed to it then and I still remain opposed to some kind of constitutional amendment.” Harkin, a Democrat, says he favors a different type of solution.

“The best way to protect the American flag is to stand strong for our Constitution and our Bill of Rights,” Harkin says. “When we stand strong for our Constitution and our Bill of Rights, that does more to protect our flag than any constitutional amendment or any law or anything else that can be done.”

U-S District Judge Robert Pratt said he based his decision on a 1989 U-S Supreme Court ruling that found burning the American flag during a protest is considered free speech. Protesters from the Kansas-based church held demonstrations at soldiers’ funerals last year in Council Bluffs and Red Oak. At the group’s protests, members reportedly stood on, spat on and dragged the Stars and Stripes. One of the Iowa laws that was declared unconstitutional specifies no one is to “trample on” or “mutilate” an American flag.

(Radio Iowa)