The President of the Iowa Association of Auditors, Roxanna Moritz, Sunday, said “The 2020 General Election has been unprecedented in the challenges facing County Auditors in Iowa. The COVID-19 pandemic and record early voting are among those challenges. Auditors have been planning for months and are prepared to both accurately count votes as well as safely serve all voters on Election Day.”

Mortiz added, “On Saturday October 31st many County Auditors convened the absentee boards of their counties to begin the process to review and open absentee ballot envelopes. Starting Monday, November 2nd and ending on Tuesday, November 3rd, County Auditors will have 46 hours to undertake the task of tabulating all the ballots.”

She concluded by sayig “Even though this has been an unprecedented year, as always, Iowa’s County Auditors are positioned to deliver this Election in the same manner as they have for years; providing all citizens of Iowa a safe, fair, timely and accurate election.”

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police have arrested a suspect in the fatal shooting of a 45-year-old man in Des Moines. Shortly before 1:30 a.m. Sunday, Des Moines police officers found the 45-year-old man with a gunshot wound in the 2600 block of Ingersoll Avenue in central Des Moines. The man was taken to a hospital where he died. Des Moines Police spokesman Sgt. Paul Parizek said in a statement that investigators arrested 24-year-old Rythm Huddleston of Des Moines on suspicion of first-degree murder and a gun charge in connection with the shooting. The victim was identified as 45-year-old Marcellas McNeil of Des Moines.

DAVENPORT – The Iowa Dept. of Corrections, Sunday, said 38-year-old Durell Ryan Parks Jr., who was convicted of Willful Injury Causing Serious Injury, in Scott County, left the Davenport Work Release Center without permission Saturday, and has not returned.

38-year-old Durell Ryan Parks Jr.

Parks is a black male, 5-feet 6-inches tall, and weighs 165 pounds. He was admitted to the work release facility on August 26, 2020.

Persons with information on Parks’ whereabouts should contact local police.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — President Donald Trump and other Republicans will head into Election Day likely trailing by tens of thousands of votes in Iowa but they hope to overcome that deficit with a strong turnout of their supporters at polling places. More than 62% of active registered Democrats in Iowa and 43% of Republicans have already returned absentee ballots as part of a record-setting early vote in the state.

That means 123,000 more Democrats had voted than Republicans as of Saturday. But it also means the remaining electorate Tuesday will be smaller than unusual, tilt toward the GOP and feature a plurality of voters who do not belong to either party.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A surge in coronavirus cases across the country, including in key presidential battleground states, is creating mounting health and logistical concerns for voters, poll workers and political parties ahead of Election Day. In Iowa, county officials said they were preparing for scores of confirmed or potentially infected people to vote curbside. It’s an option typically used by disabled people that must be available outside every polling place.

In Wisconsin, Gov. Tony Evers sought to assure voters in the critical swing state that going to the polls would not be risky, even as officials announced more than 5,000 new coronavirus cases.

Iowa set another record for the number of people hospitalized with symptoms of COVID-19. Data from the State’s Coronavirus dashboard as of 10-a.m. today (Sunday), indicated 46 people had been hospitalized since Saturday’s 10-a.m. report, for a total of 676 (compared to 630 previously). And, there were nearly 2,900 new, Positive test results (2,887), for a total since the pandemic began, of 130,244. Officials say there was one more death reported, bringing the total of 1,716. Pre-existing conditions account for 1,122 of the deaths, with 840 of the deaths taking place at a Long-Term Care facility. The IDPH says 980,394 tests have been completed thus far, with 848,434 total Negative results returned. Persons who have recovered from the effects of the virus number 93,511.

In this area: Cass County has 11 more Positive cases of COVID-19, for a total of 479. Pottawattamie County reports 57 new cases; 22 more cases in Mills County; Harrison, Madison and Union Counties each had 13 more cases; There are 12 new cases in Shelby County, and six new cases in Adair and Montgomery Counties.  Other area counties have four or less new cases. (see the list below).

There have been 7,456 tests returned from the labs since 10-a.m. Saturday, with 5,829 Negative results, and 1,593 Positive. The Individual Positivity rate in Iowa is 13.3% (compared to 13.1% previously), and the 14-day rolling average is 14.1%, compared to 13.4% on Saturday. O’Brien County still leads the State in the percentage of Positive cases, at 25.8. Harrison County is 6th on the list at 21.7%, and Cass County fell to ninth place, with a positivity rate of 21.0%.

Hospitalization data show: There are 164 patients in an ICU, (compared to 153 Saturday); Admissions are up by 29, to 128, and there are 53 Iowans on a ventilator. Western/southwest Iowa hospitals report 43 hospitalized, nine are in an ICU, six were admitted, and two remain on a ventilator.

Long-Term Care facility (LTC) outbreaks remain at 81, There are 2,358 patients/staff at those facilities who have tested positive for the virus, and 953 patients/staff have recovered from the effects of the virus.

In the KJAN listening area, here are the current number positive cases in each county (as of 9-a.m., 10/31), along with the 24-hour change in case numbers {+#}; the number of persons recovered, and the total number of [deaths] (if any), since the pandemic began,

• Cass, 479 cases {+11}; 306 recovered; 3 deaths
• Adair, 221 {+6}; 77; 1
• Adams, 87 {+3}; 50; 1
• Audubon, 191 {+4}; 104; 1
• Guthrie, 427 {+2); 282; 15
• Harrison County, 740 {+13}; 350; 17
• Madison County, 396 {+13}; 273; 3
• Mills County, 473 {+22}; 224; 3
• Montgomery, 211 {+6}; 157; 7
• Pottawattamie County, 3,556 {+57]; 2,546; 45
• Shelby County, 426 {+12}; 3609; 2
• Union County,  294 {+13}; 232; 5

Red Oak Police arrested a Cass County man early Sunday morning (today). Authorities say 25-year old Thomas Daniel Bruning, of Griswold, was taken into custody for Public Intoxication at around 12:30-a.m., in the 400 block of E. Reed Street, in Red Oak. Bruning was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $300 bond.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:55 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa man has been indicted for illegally possessing an assault rifle during a racial injustice protest this summer. Authorities say 20-year-old Brandon Tumause Owen of Cedar Rapids was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday. He faces one count of unlawful drug user in possession of a firearm. The protest was June 7 in Iowa City. Court documents say a police officer saw Owen carrying an AR-15 rifle and later stopped him for a traffic offense. The document says an investigation revealed Owen was under the influence of marijuana and the rifle was found in the vehicle. Federal law prohibits an unlawful drug user from possessing firearms.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Kanzi, who is almost certainly the world’s most famous bonobo, is celebrating a milestone birthday. The Des Moines Register reports that Kanzi turned 40 on Wednesday. He resides at a research center in Des Moines. Kanzi can use abstract symbols to communicate with people, and understands some spoken words. He has played piano with Paul McCartney, interacted with CNN’s Anderson Cooper and appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” Bonobos are closely related to chimpanzees and are found in the wild only in the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa. Genetically, they are among humans’ closest relatives.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus continues to rise in Iowa, with more than 2,800 additional cases reported Saturday. The Des Moines Register reports that in addition to the 2,823 new cases of COVID-19, the state reported 10 more deaths. All told, Iowa has reported 127,357 confirmed cases and 1,715 deaths since the pandemic began. The state also reported alarmingly high positivity rates in dozens of counties. The statewide 14-day positivity rate of 13.4% is nearly three times higher than the World Health Organization recommends as a benchmark for reopening. Nine counties have 14-day positivity rates higher than 20%.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police in Des Moines say they’ve made an arrest after a shooting killed a man and injured a woman. Police say the shooting happened around 7:30 p.m. Thursday near the grounds of East High School. Officers called to the scene found a 29-year-old woman with a gunshot wound to her leg and learned that a 21-year-old man had been taken to a hospital with a gunshot wound to the chest and later died. Police identified him as Alston Troy Edwards, of Des Moines. Minutes after the shooting, police arrested a suspect with the help of information from witnesses. Police say 27-year-old Wesley Marquise Bekish is charged with first-degree murder and a weapons count in the shooting.

The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office, Friday, reported the arrest on Oct. 24th, of 19-year-old Austin Hulsing, of Carroll. Hulsing was arrested for Operating While Intoxicated- 1st offense. He was released on his own recognizance after appearing before the magistrate.

And, on Oct. 25th, 19-year-old Crew McAlpin, of Exira, was also arrested for OWI/1st offense. McAlpin later posted bond, and was released.

MADISON, Iowa – October 31, 2020 – As the sun started to rise across Iowa and Wisconsin, Saturday, Alliant Energy lineworkers in both states left home to help restore power following Hurricane Zeta. Nearly 200 employees will make their way to Gulfport, Mississippi, where they’ll join mutual aid crews from several other states to help Mississippi Power get the lights back on.  

Alliant Energy is a member of the Edison Electric Institute mutual assistance group which recently provided more than 3,000 nationwide and Canadian crews to assist with power restoration efforts to our customers in Iowa following the August 10 Derecho.