(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds will soon get to decide whether to approve a state law that would nullify a recent Iowa Supreme Court ruling on “garbage grabs.” Last summer the court ruled that under the state’s constitution, Iowa residents have an expectation of privacy when they place their garbage in a publicly accessible area — meaning law enforcement has to get a warrant for these kind of trash searches. A bill that passed the House would restore the status quo in Iowa, according to Republican Representative Steven Holt of Denison.  “The searching of abandoned garbage makes our communities safer because numerous crimes are solved each year using this essential law enforcement tool,” Holt says, “and this legislation seeks to restore that important precedent.”

A Clear Lake man who served two days in jail on a drug conviction argued the search warrant for his home was improperly obtained because it was based on evidence police found in trash bags outside his home. Representative Mary Wolfe, a Democrat from Clinton, says the ruling was a big deal because the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled law enforcement doesn’t have to get a warrant to search trash bags and garbage cans in a driveway or at the curb. “Now, I’ll acknowledge that reasonable people can and do disagree as to whether Iowa citizens should have a protected liberty interest in their trash,” Wolfe says, “but our Supreme Court is the final arbiter.”

Wolfe says the legislature can’t pass a law and should propose a constitutional amendment to take away this constitutional right.  “Even one that you may think is silly or ridiculous or doesn’t make any sense or you don’t care if they look through your garbage, none of that matters,” Wolfe says. “Our Supreme Court says this is a constitutionally protected liberty right.” Holt says the legislature routinely passes bills to legislatively overturn court rulings. “There has never been an expectation of privacy for abandoned garbage sitting on a curb,” Holt says. “Let’s be clear here, we’re talking about publicly accessible areas, such as curbs and sidewalks. We’re not talking about garbage outside on your back porch and your yard. Publicly accessible area is the key and, again, this legislation is returning us to the status quo.”

The bill passed the Senate unanimously last month and was approved in the House this week on a 58 to 36 vote.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports two separate arrests took place, Thursday. 21-year-old Nathan Edward Lee Richardson, of Glenwood, was arrested on a warrant for three counts, Violation of Probation. Bond was set at $30,000. And, 26-year-old Timothy James Black, of Emerson, was arrested for Driving Under Suspension ($300 bond).

(Harlan, Iowa) – The Shelby County Supervisors will meet in a special session 9-a.m. Tuesday, March 29th. The Board has one action item on their agenda: a Hearing for, and Approval of a Resolution on, the  fiscal year 2023 Shelby County budget. There will also be general county business discussion, with no action to follow.

(Creston, Iowa) – Officials with the Creston Police Department today (Friday), reports the arrest at around 3:45-a.m. today, of 30-year-old Christopher Cerda-Roma, from Lenox. Cerda-Roma was arrested at Oak and Montgomery Streets, for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. His bond at the Union County Jail, was set at $300.

Authorities say two incidents of vandalism and/or theft were reported over the past few weeks. On Wednesday (March 23rd), a man told Police his vehicle had been vandalized while parked near a fitness business in the 500 block of W. Taylor Street, in Creston. He said his driver’s side window was broken out, and a fitness card worth an estimated $200, was missing. On Feb. 13th, a person with the Smoke Shop in Creston reported the business was broken into. The loss from damage and missing inventory, amounted to slightly more than $2,387.

And, on March 21st, a woman reported to Creston Police that her purse went missing while she was at the Creston Walmart Store. The loss was estimated at $100.

(Radio Iowa) – The latest figures show only 67 people were hospitalized in Iowa (as of Wednesday), for treatment of COVID-19, which is down significantly from the peak in January near one-thousand patients. The C-D-C says death rates, too, are slowing dramatically. Lisa Ridge, C-E-O of Van Diest Medical Center in Webster City, says even after two years, coronavirus is still making a critical impact on the facility. “While we’re grateful for these low numbers and low mortality, as a small, rural hospital with limited resources and limited ability to increase our covered lives or services rapidly,” Ridge says, “we are grappling with the ongoing effects of the pandemic.”

Lisa Ridge. (photo from Van Diest)

Since early 2020, many people have chosen to retire or quit the health care profession and the hospital has a long list of open positions, making a tough situation even more difficult for those who remain. “From our staffing and supply challenges to decreased utilization of our services, we’ve really had to embrace and show our agility,” Ridge says. “We’ve cross-trained staff. We’re showing the ability to flex-staff between departments. We’re being creative with supplies and really with our supply chain as a whole.”

The hospital is investing in new technologies, she says, in order to support its many virtual platforms.