(Radio Iowa)- A northern Iowa man has been found guilty of murdering a retired grocer more than a decade after the crime. A Chickasaw County jury has found 51-year-old Randy Patrie guilty of killing 70-year-old Carl Gallmeyer of Nashua in September of 2012. Patrie was the primary suspect, however, before local officials could proceed with their case, he was sentenced in 2014 to life in federal prison on felony firearms charges and for being a career criminal.

In 2018, Patrie was re-sentenced “I think everyone is very grateful the jury delivered justice to the Gallmeyer family after nearly 12 years of waiting,” Laudner says.

Patrie’s first degree murder conviction carries a mandatory life sentence in an Iowa prison. No sentencing date has been set.

(Radio Iowa) – President Biden has approved federal disaster assistance for residents and businesses in four counties hit by Tuesday’s severe weather. Governor Kim Reynolds made the request yesterday (Thursday), noting over 200 homes had been severely damaged or destroyed in Adair, Montgomery, Polk and Story Counties. The state’s initial damage estimate is 11 million dollars.

In a written statement, Reynolds thanked Biden for expediting the assistance, which the governor says it critical to Iowa’s recovery process. Homeowners and renters in the four counties who were affected may seek federal assistance now to cover temporary housing, medical bills and other expenses.

U-S Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack has approved U-S-D-A disaster assistance for farmers in 29 counties that had damage from the tornadoes and severe weather that hit Iowa LAST month.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – A Council Bluffs man was sentenced May 21, 2024, to 84 months in federal prison for Conspiracy to Distribute 500 grams or more of a Mixture or Substance Containing a Detectable Amount of Methamphetamine.

According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencings, Alejandro Almaraz, 24, and three co-defendants, conspired to distribute methamphetamine in the Council Bluffs, Iowa and Omaha, Nebraska metro areas. This case involved the seizure of approximately 12 kilograms of methamphetamine. The seized methamphetamine was transported from Juarez, Mexico to the United States through El Paso, Texas.

After completing his term of imprisonment, Almaraz will be required to serve three years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

Almaraz’s three co-defendants were sentenced earlier this year. Arnulfo Ibarra-Nunez, 57, was sentenced to 144 months in federal prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Stacey Hernandez, 19, was sentenced to 72 months in federal prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Manuel Gamez-Acosta, 25, was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Southwest Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Council Bluffs Police Department.

(Radio Iowa) – Tornado sirens wailed this (Friday) morning in several central and eastern Iowa counties as severe storms rolled across the state. In Hamilton County, southbound traffic is being detoured off of Interstate 35 due to several semis having been knocked over by powerful winds. Hamilton County Sheriff Doug Timmons says there were no serious injuries reported.

One of several semis along I-35, flipped by the strong winds. (Photo by Pat Powers, KQWC)

“About the 139 mile marker, which is the Kamrar exit, is currently closed,” Sheriff Timmons says. “We got multiple semis that are tipped over and we got powerlines across the road. We’re diverting traffic.” Timmons says there’s damage to buildings in the county that was either caused by a small tornado or strong straight-line winds. As yet, no tornadoes are confirmed in today’s storms.

MidAmerican Energy reported some 35-thousand customers statewide were without power at the peak this morning, while Alliant Energy had another 12-thousand customers in the dark.

The Atlantic Memorial Day service will be held Monday, May 27 at 10:00 am at the Atlantic Cemetery Field of Glory.  Steve Livengood, local veteran who helps to coordinate those events, has announced that the flags that are normally raised on Friday and left through the weekend will not be raised until Monday morning.

The flags will be raised to half-mast Monday morning at 7:00 am and lowered and stored at 5:00 pm.  The service will feature canon fire to begin, the Atlantic High School Band and keynote speaker Ryan Graham.  If you can’t make it to the service, KJAN TV will provide live streaming video.

(Radio Iowa) – The Waterloo Visiting Nurses Association will be closing its doors at the end of the month after almost a century of work in Black Hawk County and beyond. Executive director Annett Burke says like many nonprofit health organizations, the Waterloo Visiting Nurses Association has seen diminishing private donations and minimal Medicare reimbursement. “With all of that, it has all combined into the perfect storm in that we are just no longer able to provide services and still cover the overhead.” Burke says staffing has become a major issue.

“It’s very difficult to get and retain nurses and nurses aids,” says. “They are the ones who are the meat of the industry.” The non-profit in Waterloo has provided a variety of services, like nutrition classes, blood pressure checks and immunization clinics.

There are other Visiting Nurses Associations still operating in the state in places like Council Bluffs, Iowa City and Dubuque.

(Griswold, Iowa) – The Griswold School Board, during their meeting Monday evening (May 20^th), acted on approving staff resignations and new hires.

That’s Griswold Superintendent Dave Henrichs, who said also, the School Board took action on the District’s TLC positions.

In other business, the Griswold School Board approved the purchase through Griswold Communications, of a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) phone system, and, a contract for internet content monitoring

Henrichs said “The Board approved a couple of fundraisers” for football cheer leading.

The Board held a rather lengthy discussion, with regard to a COPS Grant, as it relates to a School Resource Officer (SRO).

Henrichs said they were able to find a partner, but after further research found that it is a three-year grant, however “year four” is a sustainability piece, which requires the districts to take on the entire cost. The Griswold School Board opted not to commit to that right now, and decided they would not be applying for the grant, at this time.

The Board set Activities passes for the next school year, but since Griswold belongs to the Corner Conference, and the Principles in the Conference are the executive decision making committee, Conference by-laws state its members will charge the same amount for admission prices. That amount won’t be known though, until the Corner Conference Boards this coming week, but Henrichs says the range is expected to be between five-and seven-dollars per event.

By not charging Griswold students a fee to attend home events, Henrichs said they try to encourage participation, and that it can be expensive for families, so that’s why they opted out of a fee for homes games, to encourage families to attend home events.

In other business, the Griswold School Board approved: Continuation of an agreement with the City of Griswold, with regard to sharing of personnel and/or equipment; A Social Worker Services agreement with the AEA, and, an ELL (English Language Learner) agreement with the AEA, whereby the agency to provide virtual support and services.