A Harlan man charged with sexual exploitation by a school employee and assault with intent to commit sexual abuse, has agreed to plead guilty to a reduced charge of assault. 73-year old Lee Gordon Nelson, a former contractor with the Harlan Community School District, entered his plea Wednesday in Shelby County District Court and will serve 45-days in jail.

District Court Judge James Heckerman said Wednesday the parties involved in the case had reached an agreement where the original charges were dropped and Nelson will not be allowed to have any contact with a minor unless with a family member. He must also have no contact with the victim in the case or her family, and may not be allowed on the Harlan Community School District grounds or school functions. All restrictions were placed for a two year term.

During the trial on Tuesday, the victim, who was in her late teens at the time the incidents occurred, took the stand and testified that from between October 2012 and February 2013, Nelson held her hand, played footsie and touched her thigh throughout private lessons held at the school district, on band trips and at Nelson’s home.

Following the state’s case on Tuesday, Defense Attorney Dave Richter motioned for acquittal, saying the state failed to show evidence of sexual exploitation, and the contract signed by Nelson to the Harlan Community School District was for an independent contractor –  not a school district employee. Before a verdict on the acquittal could be made by the judge, a plea agreement was reached between the parties. If the terms of the agreement are violated, Nelson would serve a total of 180 days in jail.

(Joel McCall/KNOD)

BURLINGTON, Iowa (AP) – Some pet breeders in Iowa say proposed legislation placing new restrictions on their work would put them out of business in the state.  The bill, which was recently approved by a Senate commerce committee, would include requirements like increased licensing fees, more outdoor access and larger kennel sizes. There would also be stricter penalties for violations.

The Burlington Hawk Eye reports the legislation would affect commercial breeders with more than four animals. Daniel Reece, president of the Iowa Pet Breeders Association, says the proposed rules would essentially get rid of pet breeding in the state. Margie Davis, a member of Iowa Voters for Companion Animals, says the bill is intended to shut down puppy mills.

The bill has now been referred to the Senate Ways and Means subcommittee.

Representatives of area emergency services toured Cass County Health System recently as part of local disaster preparedness efforts. “With all the changes in our building we thought it was important to give our emergency responders an up-close look at our facility,” noted Amy Anstey, CCHS Safety and Emergency Preparedness Coordinator.

Jack Evans of the CCMH Plant Operations Department explains the decontamination area in the CCMH Emergency Department. Shown from left are: Darby Mclaren, Cass County Sherriff; Mike Kennon, Cass County Emergency Management Coordinator; Evans and John Johnson, Atlantic Fire Department and Medivac Ambulance. (Photo from Sara Nelson/CCMH)

Representatives from the Atlantic Fire Department, Cass County Sheriff’s Department, Medivac Ambulance Service and the Atlantic Police Department, along with Cass County Emergency Coordinator Mike Kennon participated in the extensive tour. Guests were welcomed by the CCHS Safety Department staff. Brian Juhl, Diagnostic Imaging, explained the special response tactics required for the new Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) equipment, due to the high powered magnet utilized. Members of the Cass County Memorial Hospital Plant Operations Department spoke with guests and then led three groups on tours of the facility. The tours included public areas of the facility as well as maintenance areas, underground access tunnels, rooftop access and all other exits and entrances to the facility.

This was the first time a tour of this nature had been organized, and the participants all expressed appreciation for the opportunity. “The hospital is a complex facility that could present serious challenges to Emergency Responders depending on the threat,” Kennon noted. “The tour helped identify emergency access points, critical areas and functions within the facility, and options to mitigate risks from specific threats.” Discussion among hospital staff and the emergency responders led to several ideas for improving responder access, which will be implemented in the near future.

An accident Tuesday morning at 18th and Sycamore Streets in Atlantic caused a total of $4,500 damage, but no one was hurt. According to Atlantic Police, a vehicle driven by David Freund, of Atlantic, was turning west onto Sycamore when the sun reflected into Freund’s eyes. The blinding light caused him to run into a parked car registered to Stephanie Clark, of Atlantic. No citations were issued.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports a central Iowa man was arrested on a Mills warrant Tuesday. 57-year old Daniel Lee Green, of Des Moines, was arrested at the Polk County Jail on a warrant charging him with Ongoing Criminal Conduct. Green was being held in the Mills County Jail on $25,600 bond.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors, today (Wednesday) adopted the Fiscal Year 2015 Budget, following a public hearing, during which there were no written or spoken comments. The Budget amounts to slight more than $20-million, 188-thousand dollars, which is a decrease from the re-estimated FY 2013-2014 budget of $20.9-million. Auditor Dale Sunderman said the budget was lower because the amount the County takes in from taxes is less than last year.

The proposed tax rate is $5.68 per $1,000 valuation for urban areas and $10.16 per $1,000 valuation for rural areas. Last year the tax rate was $5.63 per $1,000 valuation for urban areas and $10.17 per $1,000 valuation for rural areas. The levy rate Sunderman says is the same, but the taxes will still go up because of an increase in valuations.

He said the total valuation for the County on property tax alone was increased. Sunderman said there was also a rollback on residential properties, which amounted to 54.4-percent of the assessed value. He says that’s due to an increase in valuation. Last year the rollback was 52.8166-percent. For agricultural property, the rollback was to 43.3997-percent. Last year the rollback was 59.9334-percent. That, he says means the Ag valuations went down, which resulted in shift in some of the tax burden to residential property owners.

The Iowa Department of Revenue determines the rollback amount. Sunderman said there this was also the first year in a long time there has been a rollback in Commercial/Industrial and Railroad property. The rollback was 95-percent, whereas it is normally 100-percent. The amount of taxes in the General Basic fund derived from property taxes is expected to be a little more than $2.678-million.

In other business, the Supervisors voted to approve a schedule of salaries for elected officials, which was less than what the County Compensation Board had recommended. The Board had recommended a 3.5-percent increase for the Recorder, Treasurer, Auditor and Supervisors, and a 7-percent increase for the County Attorney and Sheriff.

Supervisor Gaylord Schelling made a motion to lower the percentages. Schelling proposed reducing the percentages from 3.5 to 3-percent for Recorder, Treasurer, Auditor and Supervisors, and from 7 to 6-percent for the Sheriff and County Attorney. That’s a reduction of one-seventh. The annual salary as approved amounts to $95,498 for the County Attorney, $68,438 for the Sheriff, $53,256 each for the Auditor, Treasurer and Recorder, $27,798 for the Supervisors and $28,798 for the Supervisor Chair.