(Radio Iowa/kjan) – As we reported last week on KJAN, the City Council in Atlantic gave its initial approval to an ordinance to make aggressive panhandling illegal within city limits. It’s modeled after a new ordinance in Manchester, where city officials have moved to prohibit what they define as aggressive panhandling at gas stations as well as on sidewalks, streets, parking lots and other places open to the general public. Police in Sioux City say they are fielding more complaints about aggressive panhandling at busy intersections. Sioux City Police Sergeant Jeremy McClure says the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled panhandling is protected speech under the First Amendment.

In 2020, Sioux City officials passed an ordinance that bars anyone from standing or sitting in the middle of a street unless they’re on a median that’s at least six feet wide. That’s been the rule in Iowa’s largest city since April of 2019. Des Moines Police Sergeant Paul Parizek says the focus is on safety.

Parizek says complaints about panhandlers in Des Moines are fairly steady and, during the summer months, many of the 9-1-1 calls about Des Moines street beggars are about a pet or a child who is with the panhandler.

Same goes for pets if the panhandler is providing food and water and the pet appears healthy. Sergeant McClure of the Sioux City Police Department says anyone who feels threatened or harassed by an aggressive panhandler should call 9-1-1.

In April, the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa sent letters to four eastern Iowa cities, urging repeal of ordinances that generally prohibited aggressive solicitations in public areas. Dubuque’s city council repealed its ordinance this spring. Similar ordinances in Bettendorf, Davenport and Coralville were repealed in July. All were replaced with rules focused on the pedestrian safety.

(Johnston, Iowa) – Iowa National Guard leaders wrapped up a weeklong visit to Kosovo to foster and strengthen the state partnership with the Kosovo Security Force this week. Maj. Gen. Ben Corell, the Adjutant General of the Iowa National Guard, and Command Sgt. Maj. Joseph Hjelmstad, the Command Senior Enlisted Leader, joined the Kosovo Minister of Defense, U.S. Embassy personnel and KSF members in touring several cities to learn more about Kosovo history, traditions and culture.

Maj. General Ben Corell, Adjutant General of the Iowa National Guard, visits Iowa troops and Kosovo Security Force members during a state partnership visit to Kosovo in August 2022. (Photos courtesy Capt. Kevin Waldron, Iowa National Guard Deputy Public Affairs Officer)

The Iowa Air National Guard’s 132d Wing, based out of Des Moines, Iowa, also conducted a large joint medical exercise with the KSF. The exercise was the culmination of a five-year training cycle that included multiple bilateral training events. Corell, Hjelmstad and senior KSF leaders observed as the Airmen and KSF troops worked side by side to focus on point of injury care, moving patients to a ROLE I hospital and then transporting the critically wounded to a higher level of care.

The trip comes after a recent visit from KSF leadership to the U.S., during which the Iowa National Guard and KSF renewed their dedication to continue strengthening the partnership through training and cultural understanding. They had the opportunity to tour Camp Dodge facilities, observe a joint cyber competition at Iowa State University and recognize Iowa Army National Guard and KSF troops for their efforts during joint maneuver training at Camp Atterbury, Indiana.

Airmen with the 132d Air Wing, based in Des Moines, IA conduct joint medical training with Kosovo Security Force members in Pristina, Kosovo in August 2022.

The Iowa National Guard is planning several more joint training events with the KSF in 2023. To stay informed regarding all Iowa National Guard activities and events, visit the Iowa National Guard website, iowanationalguard.com.

(Radio Iowa) – A police chase last (Wednesday) night in Des Moines ended in a crash and multiple injuries.  A Des Moines police officer saw a car run a stop sign on the city’s east side and tried to make a traffic stop, but the car sped off. A few blocks later, the suspect’s car hit another vehicle, then crashed into a utility pole. Five people jumped out and ran. Four of them were captured. Police say they found a firearm, illegal drugs and drug paraphernalia inside the suspect’s car.

Two people in the vehicle that was hit were hurt as were several of the suspects, though none of the injuries were life-threatening. Police say several felony charges are pending. No names were released.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak, Wednesday, arrested a man wanted on two Montgomery County warrants for Violation of Probation. Authorities say 50-year-old Floyd Raymond Henry II, of Red Oak, was arrested at around 6:48-p.m. in the 1100 block of W. Prospect Street. The first warrant was for OWI/1st offense, the other for Possession with the Intent to Deliver – A Class C Felony.

Floyd was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $5,000 bond.

(Radio Iowa) – After several fender-benders involving Iowa school buses this week, including some with injuries, authorities are reminding drivers about the importance of using caution whenever they spot the slow-moving, yellow vehicles. Trooper Paul Gardner, a public resource officer with the Iowa State Patrol based in Fort Dodge, says many schools started classes this week and thousands of buses are navigating the state’s roads, carrying their cargo of kids.

“When they’re on the road and they see a school bus, please keep that in the back of their mind,” Gardner says. “That school bus may be coming up to a stop. When you see the yellow-amber lights flashing, that means the bus is preparing to stop, and once the red stop lights come on and the stop arm’s extended, it’s illegal to pass at that point.”

Motorists may get impatient and try to zip around the bus before it comes to a halt, but the patrolman says that could be both a life-threatening — and an expensive — mistake. “It’s illegal to pass a school bus when it’s stopped, red lights and stop arm are activated,” Gardner says. “So when a driver is caught in violation of that, they could face a minimum fine of $345 and a suspended driver’s license. It’s definitely a dangerous violation.”

State lawmakers adopted Kadyn’s Law in 2012 after the death of seven-year-old Kadyn Halverson of Kensett, who was fatally hit by a pickup in 2011 while trying to cross the road to board a school bus. The law raised criminal penalties for passing a stopped school bus.