DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — A prosecutor told jurors on the opening day of a murder trial that they were going on a journey in time to learn about an Iowa high school girl who was slain more than 40 years ago. Testimony began Wednesday in the trial of Jerry Burns. He’s accused of fatally stabbing 18-year-old Michelle Martinko at a Cedar Rapids mall. A prosecutor says Martinko’s lungs and aorta were pierced and she lost about a third of her blood. The prosecutor also says DNA shows that Burns’ blood was found at the crime scene. But defense attorney Leon Spies told jurors that evidence will show Burns isn’t guilty of first-degree murder.

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office has issued a report on nine arrests that occurred over nearly the past couple of weeks. Last Saturday, 33-year old Hector Manuel Quinones-Cardona, of Council Bluffs, was arrested for Operating While Intoxicated 2nd Offense. Quinones-Cardona was released on $2,000 cash/surety bond. Last Thursday (Feb. 6th), 34-year old Justin Blake Richardson, of Farragut, arrested for Domestic Abuse Assault, 2nd Offense. Richardson was released after posting $2000 cash/surety bond.

On Feb. 5th:

• 35-year old Zachary Michael Anderson, of Sidney, was arrested for a Failure to Appear for a Child Support hearing. Anderson was released after posting $1000 cash bond.
• 25-year old Cicy Miracle Castro-Pinske, of Sidney, was arrested on an outstanding out of state warrant. Castro-Pinske was extradited out of state.
• 49-year old Joseph Steven Stiegmann, of Hamburg, was arrested for Feb. 5th Sexual Abuse 2nd Degree, on victims under the age of 12, Class B Felonies. Stiegmann was released after posting $50,000 cash/surety bond.
• 26-year old Colton Frank Sederburg, of Council Bluffs, was arrested for 3 counts of First-Degree Harassment, for an incident that occurred in Farragut. Colton is being held on $5,000 cash/surety bond.
• And, 42-year old Christopher Dos Santos, of Riverton, was arrested Feb 5th at the Fremont County Jail, on a warrant for Operating While Intoxicated 2nd Offense. Dos Santos is being held on $5,000 cash/surety bond.

On Feb. 3rd, 28-year old Travis Jay Tubbs, of Jupiter, FL, was arrested in Fremont County for Possession of a Controlled Substance. He was later released on $1000 cash/surety bond. And, on Feb. 2nd. 61-year old Gregory James Springer, of Riverton, was arrested for Domestic Assault 1st Offense. He was later released on $300 bond.

Atlantic, IA – The February session of “Healthy U” will be held Thursday, February 27, 2020, at the Cass County Memorial Hospital, in Atlantic. The program, “Health Benefits of Walking,” will be presented by Kathy Denning, MPT.

Kathy Denning, MPT (photo submitted)

Denning has been practicing physical therapy for over 22 years and specializes in postural asymmetries, orthopedics, chronic pain and pediatrics. She graduated with her BS in Biology from Briar Cliff College and her Masters of Physical Therapy from St. Ambrose University.

Healthy U will be offered at noon, February 27th. Healthy U is a free educational series at Cass County Health System held monthly in CCMH Conference Room 2 (located just inside the main atrium). The public is invited and welcome to attend, but reservations are required as a meal is provided for all attendees. Call 712-243-7479 to reserve your seat.

The Creston Police Department reports 38-year old Kevin Cottrell, of Creston, was arrested late Wednesday morning. Cottrell was taken into custody on a Union County warrant for Theft in the 5th Degree. He was later released on $300 bond. And, 57-year old Patti Page-Jones, of Creston, was cited Wednesday, for Trespass. She was released from the Union County Law Enforcement Center on a Promise to Appear in court.

The Atlantic School Board, Wednesday, received an update on District Athletic Facilities construction projects, from liaison Bob Sweeney. Sweeney said work on construction has been slowed due to the recent snowfall and now, bitterly cold temperatures, but for the most part, they are ahead of schedule with grading and dirt work at the Trojan Bowl and Baseball/Softball fields.  About 60% of the retaining wall for the baseball/softball fields is finished. The remainder will be done in the Spring, to adjust for settling and adjustments. Sweeny said also, plumbing and electrical connections have been installed for the concession/restroom building, there was a slight change in the design of the ticket booth and traffic flow into the stadium.

And, the Trojan Bowl scoreboard, field turf colors and keying of locks have all been recent topics of conversation (see a PDF of the current color scheme, here: Trojan Bowl colors 2-2020 ) He said gray colors would be used for markings, instead of solid black, and having white in the end zone. While those construction projects have slowed due to the weather, construction is still slated to begin in June on the High School Tennis, Soccer and Track.  On a related note, Superintendent Steve Barber said the District is very grateful for the Atlantic Community and all the support and resources they provide the school and community.

Barber extended a special thanks to the Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, for their generous donation and $100,000 matching grant challenge with the Trojan Bowl synthetic turf project. The challenge ends March 31st. The funding raising committee has raised nearly half of the $600,000 needed to make up the cost difference between what was bonded for due to the late change from a grass to synthetic field. Barber said “The response received from the community to the fund raising committee has been outstanding. We have a number of businesses and (30-to 40) individuals who have donated to the challenge ($70,000 to date), and Rolling Hills Bank has committed a $50,000 pledge.”

Bob Sweeney added $60,000 has been generated from advertising space on scoreboards within the district.

(Radio Iowa) — A third person who was pulled from a Sioux City house fire has now died. Twenty-six-year-old Juan Galarza is the latest victim of the fire on February 6th. The fire earlier claimed the lives of 57-year-old Andrew Godberson and 24-year-old Jessica Fisher of Sioux City. It is the deadliest fire in Sioux City since three people died in a house fire in 1983. Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the fire.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Office reports Coltin Douglas Hatfield, of Corning, was arrested at around 7-p.m. Wednesday. Hatfield was being held without bond in the Adams County Jail, pending an appearance before the magistrate. He faces charges that include Harassment in the 1st Degree, Enticing a Minor, and Dissemination of Obscene Material to Minors. An investigation into his alleged activities is ongoing.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports 54-year old Richard Lee Lappegard, Jr., of Red Oak, was arrested Wednesday, on a valid Montgomery County warrant for Assault. Lappegard was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $1,000 bond. And, Red Oak Police report 34-year old Colbie Jo Sue Hunter, of Red Oak, was arrested Wednesday afternoon in the 1900 block of N. Broadway Street, for Driving While Barred (an aggravated misdemeanor). She was being held in the Montgomery County Hail on a $2,000 bond.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:45 a.m. CST

WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party has resigned after a disastrous caucus process beset by technical glitches led to a dayslong delay in reporting the results, inconsistencies in the numbers and no clear winner. Chairman Troy Price announced his resignation Wednesday, saying Iowa Democrats deserved better than what happened on caucus night. After a breakdown in the Feb. 3 caucuses, it took until Feb. 6 for the state party to issue what it said are complete results. In those figures, Pete Buttigieg leads Bernie Sanders by 0.09 percentage points. The Associated Press hasn’t declared a winner because it is not confident in the accuracy of the results. A partial recanvass is also underway.

FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) — A Fort Dodge man accused of beating a pastor to death outside a central Iowa church has been found mentally unfit to stand trial. Webster County Judge Gina Badding on Wednesday ordered 36-year-old Joshua Pendleton to undergo treatment at the Iowa Medical Classification Facility. Badding last month suspended proceedings in the case and ordered a mental competency evaluation after Pendleton’s attorney said he had been acting irrationally. Pendleton is charged with first-degree murder in the Oct. 2 slaying of the Rev. Allen Henderson. The 64-year-old Henderson was senior pastor at St. Paul and had served as a chaplain to first responders.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A judge has ruled incompetent for trial a woman accused of hate crimes in the Des Moines area, including intentionally running over a girl she thought was Mexican. Nicole Poole is charged with assault in violation of individual rights for an incident at a convenience store and with attempted murder. Police have said she intentionally ran over two children with her sport utility vehicle. Both children survived. The judge ruled Tuesday after hearing evidence and arguments on the matter that Poole is suffering from a mental disorder. She ordered state treatment for Poole so she can be restored to competency.

CHARLES CITY, Iowa (AP) — A Waterloo man charged in the 2017 killing of a Grundy Center man has been found guilty of first-degree murder and a weapons count. The Courier reports that a jury found 29-year-old Armando Adame III guilty Wednesday for the Oct. 25, 2017, shooting death of 27-year-old Michael Bruce Johns. Police say the men had been arguing as they drove around Floyd County when they stopped on a gravel road. Police say Adame pulled Johns from the vehicle and shot him in the head with a sawed-off shotgun. Adame faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole when he’s sentenced at a later date.

The Atlantic School District’s Board of Education met Wednesday evening, and approved three out of four personnel matters. The Board approved the resignation of Jordan Mullen as Head Boys Track Coach, but tabled a decision on offering a contract to Abby Becker for the same position. The matter will instead be handled in an exempt session, later. No reason was given for their decision. The Board did approve contract recommendations for Clint Weppler as Link Center Para Educator, and Mark Anderson as Volunteer Boys Soccer Coach.

In other business, the School Board approved a 2019-20 Amended Certified Budget. The question was asked why the Budget was increased from nearly $2.5-million to $8-million. Superintendent Steve Barber explained “When we certified our budget (which must be certified by April 15th), part of that certification of the budget is to publish and post it at least 20-days prior to April 15th. The bond issue was passed on April 2nd (2019). There’s no way that we could have amended that, because it couldn’t include the bond expenditures in there because it hadn’t passed yet.

Barber went on to say “So we went to $8-million just for the fact that we didn’t know how much expenditures would be coming by June 30th (2019). This year (past year) we’ve had five projects. Anything that is spent for the bond…and expenditure to that account would be approved by the Board, based upon work that was completed with the project.” Board Vice President Kristy Pellett said also, “The taxpayers authorized, when they approved the General Obligation Bond Sale, that tax expenditure. So that’s already been done. That was done last year with the passage of the bond. This process is more to keep our school budget in line that we are spending what we have told the State we would spend for the 2020 Fiscal Year.” Steve Barber added, “It’s safe to say we’re not going to spend $8-million, but we didn’t want to say ‘Okay, it’s gonna be $4-million, 800-thousand, then all the sudden it’s $5-million,200-thousand. We kind of elevated that number just to say ‘We really don’t know how much is gonna be done by June 30th, so that we wouldn’t overspend it and have to amend it again.”

The bottom line, according to the Administration: There will be No Increases in taxes to be paid in the Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2020. In other news, the Atlantic School Board set 6-p.m. March 11th as the date for a Public Hearing on the 2020-21 School Calendar, which as it stands, calls for: classes not to begin until Aug. 24, 2020; Fall P-T conferences to be moved back one-week to avoid extracurricular activities conflicts, as in prior years; A full day of school Dec. 22nd, prior to the Winter Break; A shorter Winter Break due to Christmas falling on a Friday; and the Last Day of School (2021) to be scheduled before Memorial Day due to that holiday falling on May 31st.