(Radio Iowa) – The Powerball jackpot has increased to its second highest level in the history of the game at 800 million dollars for Saturday’s drawing. Iowa Lottery spokesperson, Mary Neubauer, says this level of jackpot brings in a lot of people who don’t normally play — but she says Iowa doesn’t see the long waits for tickets that some states have.

Neubauer says Neubauer says the jackpots in the two largest lotto games end up being like a snowball that’s rolling downhill.

The big jackpots impact the Iowa Lottery’s budget — but Neubauer says they can never figure in what might happen from month to month.

The Powerball jackpot is the fifth largest lottery prize ever in North America, with the cash option of 383-point-seven million dollars if you win. The sales cut-off time here in Iowa is 8:59 p-m Saturday.

(Logan, Iowa) – Authorities in Harrison County are joining other counties bordering the Missouri River and elsewhere in western Iowa, in instituting a ban on open burning, effective at Noon today (Friday), and continuing until further notice. The ban prohibits open burning in Harrison County, including all the cities within the county. The County experienced a large field fire Sunday, Oct. 23rd, due to the windy and dry conditions. Harrison, and most contiguous counties are under a Moderate Drought, which means it doesn’t take much to spark a fire that can spread rapidly and dangerously, endangering lives and property.

Other (Area) Counties that have established a Burn Ban until further notice include: Monona, Crawford, Carroll, Pottawattamie, Mills, Montgomery, Page and Shelby.

DAVENPORT, IA – Eight people from Burlington have now been sentenced to federal prison for their role in conspiring to distribute drugs in the Burlington area. The conspiracy started by at least December 1, 2019, and continued until November 2, 2021.

Those sentenced as part of this drug conspiracy include:
• Kendric Centrall Childs, age 35, was sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment and 10 years of supervised release;
• Rudolph Sinclair Allen, age 37, was sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release;
• Clyde Macks Stewart, Jr., age 51, was sentenced to 17 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release;
• Demetrius Antre Goudy, age 42, was sentenced to 18 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release;
• Marcus Allen Johnson, age 46, was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release;
• Gregory Jermain Johnson, age 36, was sentenced to 14 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release;
• Brian Keith Davis, age 42, was sentenced to 10 1/2 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release; and
• Julie Jeanne Mason, age 54, was sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment and three years of supervised release.

According to court documents, Gregory Johnson, Marcus Johnson, and Rudolph Sinclair were the “middlemen” for the group and received large quantities of ice methamphetamine from Kendric Childs, the main drug source, along with another individual (who has not yet been apprehended). Gregory Johnson, Allen, and Marcus Johnson either sold quantities of ice methamphetamine themselves or provided it to lower-level dealers such as Goudy, Stewart, and Davis for distribution. Mason was identified as a drug courier for the group.
On January 24, 2020, Mason was stopped in Arizona while transporting approximately 362 pounds of ice methamphetamine. Mason admitted the ice methamphetamine was bound for Burlington, Iowa. At the time, this traffic stop was the Arizona Department of Public Safety’s largest single seizure of ice methamphetamine.1
U.S. Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The case was investigated by Southeast Iowa Narcotics Taskforce, Burlington Police Department, West Burlington Police Department, Des Moines County Sheriff’s Office, Henry County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Drug Enforcement Administration, Muscatine County Sheriff’s Office, Johnson County Drug Taskforce, Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Lee County Drug Taskforce, Muscatine County Drug Taskforce, Iowa State Patrol, and Arizona Department of Public Safety.

(Radio Iowa) – Just like Fourth of July fireworks can stress out Iowans’ pets, Halloween can also be a night of horrors for our dogs and cats. Jessie Phillips, director of development & communications at the Animal Rescue League of Iowa, says to keep your animals calm on trick-or-treat night, you will likely want to find a quiet place for them to camp out. “It really is best if they are kept in another room, maybe in the interior of the house, so they’re not seeing people come to the door, ringing the doorbell,” Phillips says. “Some pets prefer to be crated, if they’re crate trained, so in their safe space or maybe in a bedroom that is their safe space. Read your pet’s cues.”

It may look adorable to dress your dog in disguise for the spooky season, but Fido may think otherwise.  “Not every pet loves to be dressed up in their Halloween costume,” Phillip says. “But regardless, any costume that you do put on your pet, they should be able to move freely, it shouldn’t restrict them. Make sure that their eyes aren’t covered and that they can see clearly. That can be really stressful for pets if their vision is blocked in any way.”

Whether your dog will be staying home or accompanying you while trick-or-treating, it’s always important that there be an I-D tag on their collar, as they might manage to dart off. “Making sure that their tags are updated, that the number on the tag is up to date,” Phillips says. “We get new cell phone numbers or move addresses, so always make sure that information is up to date. And then microchipping is a great way to make sure that if your pet does happen to get loose or get out, that your pet will be returned safely.”

Bowls and bags of Halloween candy should be kept in a cabinet and away from pets, as Phillips says chocolate and other sweets can be dangerous — and even deadly — to a pet.