A reminder to resident of Atlantic: Fireworks may only be LEGALLY discharged within the City limits on this Independence Day weekend, on these dates and times:

July 2nd and 3rd, from Noon until 10-p.m.

July 4th, from Noon until 11-p.m.

• Only shoot fireworks on your property, or where permission has been given.
• No fireworks may be discharged within 300-feet of public school buildings, Assisted Living Facilities, or the Cass County Memorial Hospital.
• Discharging fireworks while intoxicated or impaired is illegal.
• Persons under the age of 18 may shoot fireworks only under DIRECT SUPERVISION of an adult.
• Only persons 18 and older may purchase fireworks.
• You are liable for fireworks in your possession and those discharged by you!

Other communities have differing rules on when it’s legal, so check with your respective town’s social media sites, if they have one, or call your local City Hall.

Officials with the Iowa Dept. of Corrections report the Iowa State Penitentiary in Ft. Madison was placed on restricted movement Saturday, after an incident involving multiple offenders on the yard. Staff responded swiftly and gained immediate control of the situation.  While responding to the incident there were no noted injuries to staff.

Only minor injuries to offenders were reported, and no weapons were known to be involved. Authorities said the visiting room will be closed until further notice. The incident remains under investigation and no further information is available at this time.

Starting today (Saturday), a new state law goes into effect that may reduce some paperwork for truckers and companies that haul cargo. The law deals with so-called “straight trucks” that are different from semis that pull loaded trailers. Straight trucks carry cargo in the body of the truck. Iowa law had restricted the length of “straight trucks” to 41 feet. Iowa’s new law lets a single truck operate on the state’s roads if it’s four feet longer — 45 feet from bumper-to-bumper.

During the 2017 legislative session, Senator Michael Breitbach, of Strawberry Point, encouraged his colleagues to back the move. “This is similar to what happens in some of the states that surround us, that their feet are allowed to be 45 feet when they cross into Iowa,” Breitbach said. “They run into problems and have to get special permits for overlength loads. This would just give us a little more uniformity from state-to-state.”

The federal government sets a minimum size for SEMI tractors and trailers, but size limits for straight trucks vary from state to state. Iowa’s new law will align with straight truck size limits in Missouri, Minnesota, South Dakota and Kansas. It also means a straight truck that’s 45-feet long will be able to travel the entire length of Interstate 35 from Minnesota to Texas without getting permits for being oversized. This Saturday, July 1st, is the date when many new state laws take effect.

Nebraska and Wisconsin have straight truck size limits of 40 feet. Illinois has a 42 feet limit.

(Radio Iowa)

One person is dead following a shooting on Friday night in Charles City. Police are searching for 36-year-old Antoine Williams, a black man who is 6’ 7”, weighs around 250 pounds. A warrant has been issued for first degree murder. Williams is considered armed and dangerous. He may be in a 2006 Chevy Equinox with Iowa license plate number DOW 568.

The victim of the shooting was transported to the hospital where they were pronounced dead. The name of the victim has not yet been released pending notification of relatives.

(Radio Iowa)

Police in Red Oak, Saturday, said two people were arrested for Public Intoxication early Saturday morning. 42-year old James Reed Mitroff II of Red Oak was arrested at 12:45-a.m., and 40-year old Kelly Lee Peterson Jr., of Storm Lake, was taken into custody at around 2-a.m.  

On Friday, 43-year old Steven Lynn Ronfeldt, of Red Oak, was arrested for Public Intoxication. Bond for all three men was set at $300 each.

Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies report the arrest this (Saturday) morning, of a Nebraska woman on an alcohol-related charged. 49-year old Jennifer Mulholland, of Elk Horn, NE., was taken into custody OWI/1st offense, following a traffic stop. Mulholland was held at the Montgomery County Jail on a $1000 cash bond.

The Iowa Supreme Court has sent a former state administrator’s lawsuit against former Governor Branstad back to district court. In 2006, Christopher Godfrey was appointed Iowa Workers Compensation Commissioner. Godfrey was confirmed by the state senate to serve in that role through 2015. Shortly after Terry Branstad was reelected governor in 2010, he asked Godfrey to resign. Godfrey refused and Branstad reduced his salary by $36,000.

The Supreme Court’s ruling upheld a lower court’s dismissal of Godfrey’s claim that Branstad and his staff violated the Iowa Constitution by targeting Godfrey because he is gay. Godfrey says his claim Branstad violated the Iowa Civil Rights Act by discrimination based on sexual orientation is still pending. Branstad and his aides have denied they targeted Godfrey because of his sexuality. The opinion also directed a district court to hear Godfrey’s argument that he is owed money because he was “falsely accused of poor work performance” and his salary was docked for “partisan reasons.”

Godfrey resigned nearly three years ago to take a federal job. The attorney representing former Governor Branstad, Governor Reynolds and four other Branstad administration officials says he’s confident the case will be “disposed” in Branstad’s favor. Godfrey’s attorney says there’s still a long way to go, but the court’s decision protects Godfrey “and all other Iowans from having their constitutional rights trampled on by Iowa governments.”

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court has struck down as unconstitutional a portion of Iowa’s drunken boating law that allows officers to seek alcohol breath tests declaring the law coercive.

A divided 4-3 court concluded Friday that the portion of the law that requires individuals suspected of drunken boating to pay a fine of at least $500 if they decline a breath test violates the state constitutional protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.

The justices awarded Dale Dean Pettijohn Jr. a new trial during which the results of his breath test cannot be used. He was stopped by an officer while driving a pontoon boat on Saylorville Lake northwest of Des Moines in August 2013 and asked to take a breath test. He exceeded the legal limit and was convicted of drunken boating.

One person died and another was injured during a fiery collision this (Friday) morning, in Carroll County. The Iowa State Patrol reports 61-year old Debra Renee Kock, of Carroll, who was wearing her seat belt, died at the scene, after her 2011 Toyota RAV4 was struck by a 2011 Jeep Wrangler that ran a stop sign.

The accident happened at around 8:18-a.m. at the intersection of Kittyhawk Avenue and 170th Street, a couple of miles northwest of Carroll. The driver of the Jeep, 17-year old Kizer James Brockman, of Lincoln, NE. was injured in the crash and also transported to the hospital.

The patrol says immediately after the Jeep hit the Toyota, both vehicles landed in the east ditch and the Jeep caught fire.The accident remains under investigation. The State Patrol was assisted at the scene by deputies with the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, along with Carroll County Fire and EMS.