With the 4th of July holiday upon us, Clarinda Police Chief Keith Brothers would like to remind people that the Clarinda Police Department will be vigorously enforcing Iowa’s traffic laws from July 1st through the 7th. This is in connection with a nationwide traffic enforcement campaign.

In other news, The Clarinda 911 call center answered 89 calls in a span of 20 minutes early Thursday morning after the power went out at approximately 5:15 a.m. Many people called on 911 asking why the power was out. Police Chief Keith Brothers would like to remind people that you should not call 911 for power outages. You should report power outages to MidAmerican Energy.

The annual Jaycee Flight Breakfast tradition will continue July 4th with the addition of the A-26 Invader “Lady Liberty,” the only American built combat aircraft to see action in World War II, Korea, and VietNam.

“The A-26 was scheduled to appear at the Fly Iowa Air Show last September and had some mechanical issues, that prevented the visit,” Fly Iowa Chairman Garry Pellett said. “We’ve made special arrangements for this additional event in partnership with the Jaycees for our communities to enjoy.”

The plane will be available for walk-on tours during the Jaycees Flight Breakfast and will also do fly-overs throughout the morning. Breakfast is from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. rain or shine at the Atlantic Municipal Airport, 59706 Highland Road. Bounce houses will also be available for children.

Planes won’t be the only things taking to the sky, as another local favorite, The Pancake Man, will toss hundreds of pancakes onto attendees plates. The breakfast also includes sausage and a drink for $6 per plate. All funds raised support the Jaycees Fourth of July Fireworks Display. Fireworks and music will begin at dusk with concessions provided by the Kiwanis Club beforehand. The rain date is July 5th for fireworks.

“The Flight Breakfast, business donations and donations from the general public support the fireworks show 100 percent,” Jaycee Fireworks’ chair Brad Peerbolte said. “The A-26 is a great addition to our annual celebration and we hope it helps bring even more attendees out to enjoy the holiday.”

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press
KEOKUK, Iowa (AP) – Hundreds of people are expected in southeast Iowa this weekend to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Keokuk Dam and Power Plant. The Burlington Hawk Eye reports organizers of the Mississippi Power 100 celebration in Keokuk are highlighting trolley rides across the dam that start today and conclude Sunday.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The former Des Moines schools superintendent is suing the district over its handling of explicit emails that led to her resignation. Des Moines station KCCI-TV reports Nancy Sebring filed a lawsuit yesterday that claims the emails detailing her affair with a lover should not have been released to the public because they were part of a personnel matter when district officials uncovered them.

BRITT, Iowa (AP) – A Nebraska subsidiary of a Minnesota food company has bought egg processing plants in Iowa and Minnesota. The sale of Primera Foods Corporation to M.G. Waldbaum Company of Wakefield, Nebraska was expected to be completed yesterday. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports that the $35.7 million deal includes the Primera Foods plant near Britt, Iowa.

FORT MADISON, Iowa (AP) – A Corrections Department spokesman says an inmate at the Iowa State Penitentiary and Clinical Care Unit has killed himself. Corrections spokesman Fred Scaletta says 35-year-old Adam Moss was found unresponsive Wednesday afternoon in his cell. He was found hanging from a wall vent with a bed sheet around his neck.

State health officials say if you are cleaning up after floods and other storms you should make sure your tetanus vaccination is up to date. Iowa Department of Public Health Medical Director, Patricia Quinlisk, says although the vaccine is good for about ten years, if you can’t remember the last time you had one, it’s probably time.

“We believe about 90-percent of Iowans need to be given booster shot, because they are not up to date on their tetanus boosters. So this is a good time to remind yourself to go in and make sure you’re all up to date, so if you do get a wound you don’t get sick from it,” Quinlisk says.

Dr. Quinlisk says the vaccine also has an added, important benefit. “And that’s because we have a new tetanus booster shot that’s got the pertussis or the whooping cough in it too. We know that almost no adults in Iowa have gotten that whooping cough booster and were are recommending that everybody get that. So when you go in to get the tetanus booster, you can get the booster for the whopping cough — which is a really good idea — get them both at once,” Quinlisk says.

She says while tetanus is not likely to be fatal, whooping cough kills dozens of children nationwide each year and adults can be carriers without knowing it.

(Radio Iowa)

Senator Chuck Grassley is set to hold meetings in 11 Southwest Iowa communities starting Monday, July 1st. Grassley will hold town meetings in Bedford, Corning, Red Oak, Clarinda, Sidney, Glenwood, Logan, Harlan, and Audubon. In Atlantic, Grassley will speak at the Rotary Club meeting and he will tour and hold a Q&A session with employees at Griffin Pipe Products Co., Inc. in Council Bluffs.

Grassley has said that “Representative government is a two-way street. It’s strengthened by dialogue between elected officials and the people we represent. I plan these meetings to listen to concerns, hear points of view, and respond to questions directly from Iowans.” Grassley has held at least one meeting with Iowans in every one the state’s 99 counties since 1980, when he was first elected to serve in the U.S. Senate.

With the upcoming meetings in Southwest Iowa, Grassley will have been to 84 Iowa Counties so far this year. The nine town meetings on Grassley’s July 1st-2nd schedule are open to the public.

Grassley will speak with the Rotary Club of Atlantic on Tuesday, July 2nd from 12pm-1pm at the Heritage House located at 1200 Brookridge Circle in Atlantic.

In Harlan, Grassley will speak from 2:15-3:15pm at the Harlan Community Library at 718 Court Street.

And, in Audubon from 4-5pm at the Audubon County Economic Development Corporatin at 800 Market Street.

Beginning July 1, an update to Iowa law now allows veterans to have a “veteran” designation put on their driver’s license (DL) or nonoperator identification card (ID) anytime they seek a new card, not just at the time of renewal. The cost for a duplicate DL or nonoperator ID is $10.

The designation on Iowa DLs and nonoperator IDs is a voluntary initiative designed to assist Iowa veterans who can benefit from discounts offered to them by many businesses. Often, to get the veteran’s benefits, businesses require proof of a veteran’s status. Showing this status on a DL or nonoperator ID card is just one more way to make obtaining these benefits easier for Iowans who have served our country.

To get the designation, an honorably discharged veteran must present a copy of their DD 214 or applicable discharge document to their county Veterans Affairs office. That office will confirm the applicant’s veteran status and complete an Iowa DOT form, which authorizes the Iowa DOT to place the designation on the individual’s DL or nonoperator ID. The veteran must then take the completed form to any Iowa DL issuance location and request that the veteran designation be added to his or her DL or nonoperator ID card.

Veterans may expedite the process by bringing a completed application form with them to the county Veterans Affairs office, along with a copy of their DD 214. The form is available online at: https://va.iowa.gov.

Previously, Iowa law only allowed the designation to be added when a DL or nonoperator ID was first issued or renewed.

If you have further questions contact Kim Snook, director of Office of Iowa DOT’s Office of Driver Services, at 515-237-3010 or kim.snook@dot.iowa.gov.

Iowa Department of Natural Resource officials are stepping up efforts to catch intoxicated boaters on the state’s waterways.

Susan Stocker is the boating law administrator and education coordinator for the Iowa DNR.

“In 2012, we had 95 boating while intoxicated arrests in Iowa and that’s an increase over previous years,” Stocker says. The 95 arrests last year compared to 55 in 2011 and 40 arrests in 2010. This weekend, DNR law enforcement officers are taking part in a national campaign called “Operation Dry Water.”

Stocker says the officers will increase patrols, conduct check points, and administer breath tests. She believes too many boat operators don’t recognize how dangerous drinking and boating can be. “The effects of the wind, the water, the sun, and the glare also enhance the effects of alcohol. So, someone who is having one alcoholic beverage on a boat will feel the effects of two or three times the alcoholic beverage,” Stocker says. “That’s what we believe the public isn’t aware of.”

Operators may not think they are under the influence, but their judgment, reaction time, balance and vision indicate that they are, Stocker added. “Having a sober driver is the best course of action,” Stocker said.

During the Operation Dry Water campaign last year, officers in Iowa contacted nearly 550 vessels, resulting in 136 citations or warnings. The 2012 effort was conducted on the Mississippi River Pool 15, the Coralville Reservoir, Saylorville Reservoir, North Twin Lake, Storm Lake and the Missouri River.

Of the 95 BWI arrests in Iowa last year, 32 were made on the Mississippi River. There were 16 BWI arrests on Saylorville Lake, 15 on the Iowa Great Lakes, 14 on the Coralville Reservoir, and six arrests on Clear Lake.

(Radio Iowa)

On June 25th, 48-year old Michael James Allison of Marshalltown pled guilty to mail fraud, in connection with a scheme to defraud his employer through the mailing of fraudulent expense reports for reimbursement. The plea agreement was announced by United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt.

According to the written plea agreement, Michael Allison, while in his position as Chief Financial Officer and Director of Finance of a regional subsidiary of Airgas, Incorporated headquartered in Chicago, mailed falsified expense reports to the region’s accounting office. Allison categorized personal expenses as business expenses and fabricated expenses on the reports. From 2003-2012, Allison obtained at least $300,000 as a result of his scheme.

Allison will be sentenced on October 9, 2013 before Judge John A. Jarvey. Mail fruad is punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to 20 years and a fine of up to $250,000.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, following a referral from Airgas, Inc., and prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.