BURLINGTON, Iowa (AP) — Another person has been charged with killing a 26-year-old man in southeast Iowa. Authorities say 30-year-old Caesar “CJ” Davison, of Chicago, was served Thursday with an Iowa murder warrant as he was returned from Illinois. He’d been held in Illinois for a parole violation, and he denied while being questioned there that he was involved in the Iowa slaying.

Prosecutors say Davison conspired with four other people to kill Demarcus “Peanut” Chew, who was fatally shot in a car outside his mother’s Burlington apartment on Sept. 10, 2017. One of them, Antoine Spann, pleaded guilty last month and was sentenced to 20 years in prison after making a deal with prosecutors. Spann’s plea agreement says he must testify against any others charged in the slaying.

Atlantic Police Chief Dave Erickson today (Friday), reports three recent arrests. On Wednesday, 35-year old Matthew J. Bruns, of Atlantic, was arrested for Harassment in the 1st Degree. And there were two arrests March 20th: 32-year old Christopher Castillo, of Atlantic, was arrested for Violation of a No Contact Order, and 39-year old Melissa Wheeler, of Atlantic, was arrested on a warrant for Violation of Probation.

All three subjects were booked into the Cass County Jail. Castillo and Bruns remained in the Cass County Jail as of the latest report. Wheeler was subsequently released from custody.

Police in Creston report a man wanted on a warrant for Forgery (Unlawful use of credit cards & Identity Theft), was arrested Thursday evening. 44-year old Matthew Lee Brummett, of Creston, was taken into custody at the Union County Law Enforcement Center at around 6:45-p.m., and was being held on a $10,000 bond.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (3.7MB)

Subscribe: RSS

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Closing arguments have been scheduled for Monday in the fourth Iowa trial of an Illinois man accused of killing a 9-year-old girl in 1990. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that the defense rested its case for 57-year-old Stanley Liggins on Thursday in Black Hawk County District Court in Waterloo. Jurors were dismissed until Monday.

He’s charged with first-degree murder in the death of Jennifer Lewis, of Rock Island, Illinois. Her burned remains were found in September 1990 near a school in neighboring Davenport, Iowa, which is just across the Mississippi River.

Liggins has been convicted and sentenced to life in prison twice in the death of Lewis. Both convictions were overturned. His third trial was moved to Black Hawk County because of extensive pretrial publicity in Scott County. It ended in a mistrial in September 2018 because jurors couldn’t reach a verdict.

Medivac Ambulance and Atlantic Fire & Rescue were dispatched at around 6:53-a.m. to a two-vehicle accident at 11th and Chestnut Street. (Update 6:55: Atlantic Police advised no one complained of injuries and, contrary to initial reports, no one was trapped.) Additional details are currently not available.

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. (AP) — The flood-damaged U.S. Air Force base south of Omaha has reopened its runway to aircraft. The Omaha World-Herald reports that some of the nine aircraft flown from Offutt Air Force Base to other bases returned Thursday, once it was determined that the flooding didn’t damage the runway and taxiways. Other aircraft had been towed to higher ground.

Earlier this month Missouri River floodwaters breached one levee and overtopped another near the sprawling complex, flooding the southeastern third. The water inundated nearly 80 buildings and covered more than a quarter of the runway. On Wednesday Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson said the Air Force needs $4.9 billion in extra funding over the next three years to rebuild and repair Offutt and Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, which sustained hurricane damage last fall.

JOHNSTON, Iowa (AP) — The adjutant general of the Iowa National Guard has announced his plans for retirement. A National Guard news release says Maj. Gen. Tim Orr intends to step down effective May 1 after 10 years as the Iowa Guard’s commander. He was named to the post by then Gov. Chet Culver in March 2009. Brig. Gen. Stephen Osborn will serve as the interim adjutant general.

Brig. Gen. Osborn

Maj. Gen. Tim Orr

Orr enlisted in the Iowa Army National Guard in 1978 while still a senior at Boone High School and rose through the ranks.

Red Oak Police, Thursday night, arrested a man wanted on a Page County warrant for Theft in the 5th Degree (loss less than $200). 19-year old Brandon Kyle Beckstead, of Red Oak, was taken into custody at around 10:50-p.m. and brought to the Montgomery County Jail, where his bond was set at $300.

The Iowa Dept. of Transportation reports flood waters are beginning to recede in some flooded areas around Iowa. However, just because water may no longer remain on the roadway that does not mean the roads are ready to be opened to traffic. There are several stages the Iowa Department of Transportation must go through to make sure roadways are safe for you to travel.

Depending on the extent of damage caused by floodwaters, the recovery process may take anywhere from a few days to several months. As soon as floodwaters recede, the Iowa DOT is working as diligently as possible to move through the recovery process and reopen the roadway.

The following is a list of roads currently closed due to flooding and what the recovery process is:

• I-29 in both directions, MILE MARKER 0-10 Between the Missouri State Line (near Hamburg) and the Iowa 2 interchange (south of Percival) – Water over the roadway
• I-29 in both directions, MILE MARKER 10-25 Between the Iowa 2 interchange (South of Percival) and one mile north of Bartlett – Debris on the road, cleanup in progress.
• I-29 in both directions MILE MARKER 25-35 Between one mile north of Bartlett and the U.S. 34 interchange (near Glenwood) – Testing & inspecting of the road & structures’ ability to handle traffic.
• I-29 in both directions MILE MARKER 55-61 Between North 25th Street in Council Bluffs and the I-680 interchange (near Crescent) – Testing & inspecting of the road & structures’ ability to handle traffic.
• I-29 in both directions MILE MARKER 61-71 Between the I-680 interchange (near Crescent) and the I-680 interchange (near Loveland) – Testing & inspecting of the road & structures’ ability to handle traffic.
• I-680 in both directions MILE MARKER 0-3 Between the I-29 interchange (Old Mormon Bridge Road near Crescent) and I-680 in Nebraska (Mormon Bridge) – Testing & inspecting of the road & structures’ ability to handle traffic.
• U.S. 34 westbound MILE MARKER 0-4 Between the Nebraska State Line and the I-29 interchange (near Pacific Junction) – Debris on the road, cleanup in progress.
• U.S. 275 in both directions MILE MARKER 0-2 Between the Missouri State Line and Iowa 333 (near Hamburg) – Testing & inspecting of the road & structures’ ability to handle traffic.
• Iowa 2 in both directions MILE MARKER 0-10 Between the Missouri River bridge at the Nebraska State Line and U.S. 275/ Fremont County Road J-46 (near Sidney) – Water on the road, waiting for the water to recede before cleanup and inspection.
• Iowa 333 in both directions Between I-29; Fremont County Road J-64 and U.S. 275 (near Hamburg) – Water on the road, waiting for the water to recede before cleanup and inspection
• Iowa 4 in both directions Between Palo Alto County Road B-53 and U.S. 18 (one mile south of Emmetsburg) – Water on the road, waiting for the water to recede before cleanup and inspection
• Iowa 141 in both directions Between Woodbury County Road K-64 (near Hornick) and Iowa 31 (near Smithland) – Testing & inspecting of the road & structures’ ability to handle traffic.

Barriers blocking access to roads will remain in place until the road has been deemed safe for traffic. If you see a barricade, don’t drive around it. Just because a road looks safe, doesn’t mean it is safe. While some structural damage to the road surface is very visible, damage to the ground underneath the road may be more difficult to see. Barricades are in place to protect you from hurting yourself, damaging your vehicle, and potentially causing further damage to the road. If you are a resident or property owner and need to get to your property, your county emergency management office can help coordinate safe access. For the latest in flooding information and recovery resources, go to https://floods2019.iowa.gov/