(Radio Iowa) – The president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids applauds the recent F-D-A ruling that banned Juul (JEWEL) vaping products from the U-S, but he says the damage is already done in states like Iowa. Matt Myers says in almost every category, Iowa’s youth smoking rates are well above the national average and it’s going to take serious work to reduce what he’s calling an epidemic. “Iowa’s number of kids who smoke cigarettes is almost seven-percent, which is about two to three points higher than the national average, but it’s particularly concerning with regard to e-cigarettes,” Myers says. “One in five kids in Iowa use these e-cigarettes and about 40% of them are seriously addicted to the product. That’s far higher than the national average.”

Juul’s role in driving the youth e-cigarette craze is clear, according to Myers. He says the company introduced a sleek, easy-to-hide product that was sold in appealing flavors which delivered massive doses of nicotine that can quickly addict kids.  “Juul has fought regulation every step of the way in order to continue to market to kids and they’re doing so now,” Myers says. “The FDA’s findings should concern everybody, but Juul won’t give up.” With slick marketing campaigns that focused on teens, Myers says Juul is largely to blame for e-cigarette use among high school students rocketing between 2017 to 2019.

“While the e-cigarette companies touted the product as a way to help smokers quit, they marketed the products to youth,” Myers says. “So what we found was the percentage of kids who use e-cigarettes almost doubled during the three years after Juul was introduced, even during a period of time when we saw no increase in adults using these products.” While the F-D-A order specifically named Juul, Myers remains hopeful it will serve as a warning to other vaping product makers.

“What’s really our long-term concern is that many of the kids who use these products have become addicted,” Myers says. “Kids who start using e-cigarettes are three times as likely to become cigarette smokers, and the threat that e-cigarettes pose to the long-term progress we’ve made in Iowa and elsewhere is real.” The youth e-cigarette epidemic is a public health crisis which Myers says Juul, more than any other product or company, is responsible for creating. He says removing these products from the market is “absolutely critical” to reversing the trend.

https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/

(Radio Iowa) – Fireworks aren’t the only things that are sky high this Fourth of July weekend. Iowans who are grilling out should be prepared to pay much higher prices. An American Farm Bureau Federation survey found consumers will pay an average of $69.68 for standard July Fourth cookout fare, including more costly burgers, buns, potato salad, chips, lemonade, and ice cream. The item that rose in cost the most, ground beef, was up a whopping 36% from last year. It all breaks down to about $7 a person per 10 cookout attendees. Cookout costs are up $10 from last year or 17%, which the federation says is the largest increase since they started tracking data a decade ago.

The survey found prices are rising based on the ongoing war in Ukraine, inflation across the consumer landscape, supply chain disruptions and “shrinkflation” due to the pandemic, among other factors.

(Dubuque, Iowa) – Three people, a young adult and two teens, died in a single-vehicle crash this (Friday) morning, in Dubuque. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 2014 Chevy Camaro driven by 18-year-old William L. Wodrich, IV, was traveling at a high rate of speed  southbound on the NW Arterial at around 1:20-a.m., when the car went out of control. The vehicle entered a ditch and went airborne before it rolled and came to rest.

Wodrich, and his passengers, 17-year-old Kennedy Elizabeth Elskamp, and 17-year-old Chloe Madison Lucas, all from Dubuque, died at the scene. Lucas was not wearing her seat belt.

The State Patrol says the accident remains under investigation.

(Harlan, Iowa) – Officials with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office have released a list of persons arrested from June 19th through the 30th.

• • On Thursday, June 30th, 39-year-old Randi Lyn Riessen, of Shelby, was arrested following a traffic stop, and charged with OWI/1st Offense. Riessen was also cited for Speeding.
  • On Tuesday, June 28th, 47-year-old Julie Ann McManigal, of Harlan, was arrested following a call for service in the area of 1120th & Nishna Avenue. She was charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.
  • On the 25th, Shelby County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 39-year-old Malcolm Shane McDonald, of Harlan, following a traffic stop. He was charged with Possession of Controlled Substance 3rd Offense, Prohibited Acts/Possession of Drug Paraphernalia/Driving while License Denied, Suspended, Canceled or Revoked, and Speeding; and, 23-year-old Maria Engracia Hytrek, of Earling, was arrested after a traffic stop on Highway 37. Hytrek was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with OWI 1st, and 3 counts of Child Endangerment.
  • There were two arrests June 23rd, in Shelby County: 25-year-old Joshua Lewis Hytrek, of Earling, was arrested after a call for service in Earling. Hytrek was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with Reckless use of Fire or Explosives, and Harassment 3rd; and, 46-year-old Aaron James Nelson, of Harlan, was arrested after Shelby County Deputies responded to a Motor Vehicle accident on Maple Road. Nelson was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with OWI 3rd Offense, Driving while License Denied or Revoked, Reckless Driving, Open Container, and Failure to Maintain Control.
  • On June 22nd, Shelby County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 30-year-old Kolton Kenneth Kobold, of Harlan, after he was seen having a bike accident in Harlan. Kobold was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with Public Intoxication.
  • On the 20th, 29-year-old Victor Nelson Rodriguez, of Avoca, was arrested after a traffic stop on Highway 59. Rodriguez was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance, Prohibited Acts, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Driving while License is Denied, Suspended, Canceled or Revoked, and Speeding.
  • and, on June 19th, 34-year-old Truc Trung Nguyen, of Des Moines, was arrested after a call for service on Highway 59. Nguyen was transported to the Shelby County Jail and charged with OWI 1st offense, Possession of a Controlled Substance, Prohibited Acts, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Speeding, and Leaving the Scene of an Accident.

Note: Criminal charges are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law.