A motorcycle test drive Friday afternoon didn’t go as planned. The Mills County Sheriff’s Office says 51-year old Edward Dole, of Omaha, was test driving a 2014 Harley Davidson motorcycle at the Loess Hills Harley Davidson dealership, when he struck a metal barrier on the property as he was about to enter 190th Street. The cycle fell over onto Dole, causing minor injuries that did not require transport to the hospital.

An accident at around 7:10-p.m. on August 31st, however resulted in one person transported to Mercy Hospital by Glenwood Rescue. Authorities say 21-year old Shannon Perkins, of Red Oak, was injured in a collision between a 2015 Chevy and the 1996 Jeep she was a passenger in.

Officials say the Chevy, driven by 60-year old Kenneth Morris, of Norman, AR., was westbound on Highway 34 after exiting I-29 southbound. The vehicle continued in the outside (North lane). The 20-year old driver of the Jeep moved his vehicle to the inside lane in an attempt to allow the Chevy to enter the highway. When Morris began to make a left turn onto 188th Street to turn around and go eastbound on Highway 34, he didn’t see the approaching Jeep. The Jeep collided with the Chevy as the Chevy crossed into the lane occupied by the Jeep.

Morris was cited for making an Unsafe Turn.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports three arrests. Sunday afternoon, Carley Marie-Jene Hunter was arrested on a Page County warrant for Probation Violation. Her bond was set at $5,000. Saturday afternoon, 37-year old Jeremy Jacob Potts, of Glenwood, was arrested for Driving While Revoked. His bond was set at $1,000. And, Friday morning, 45-year old Daniel Allen Kinney, of Council Bluffs, was arrested for Driving While Barred. Bond was set at $2,000.

The Harlan Police Department reports 27-year old Aaron Matthew Rooney, of Harlan, was taken into custody Monday, after officers observed two male subjects take off running in the 2100 block of 8th St. Officers were able to locate Rooney and transported him to Shelby County Jail where he was charged with Trespassing. The other subject was not located.

Last Thursday, 32-year old Ronald Anthony Leal, of Harlan, was taken into custody following a dispute. Leal was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with Public Intoxication.

And on August 30th, 45-year old Marc Brandon Morris, of Harlan, and 55-year old Lee Jung Hoon Hansen, of Elk Horn, were taken into custody following a traffic stop. Morris and Hansen were transported to the Shelby County Jail where Morris was charged with Driving a motor vehicle while Suspended. Hansen was Cited for Permitting an Unauthorized Person to Drive and released.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports 24-year old Tanor Devon Jimmison, of Clarinda, was arrested Friday on a warrant for Failure to Appear (in court). Jimmison was taken to the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $2,000 bond.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Gov. Terry Branstad announced recommendations for improving the teaching of Iowa history in schools but acknowledged he can’t promise he’ll support funding the effort. Branstad announced the history teaching recommendations Tuesday at a Des Moines elementary school before at least two dozen children, who sat on the floor between the governor and reporters.

The proposals came from the Iowa History Advisory Council, which was formed last year and issued a report this month. The recommendations include coordinating professional development for teachers and ensuring adequate state staffing to create Iowa history materials. Despite supporting the concept, Branstad says Iowa is “facing some challenges,” and there may not be money available in the state budget to help implement the ideas.

Branstad expressed interest in a public-private partnership for funding but offered no details.

Cass County Extension will host “Money Talk,” a 5 week financial course for women, starting in mid-September. The first session meets on September 15th, but the registration deadline is September 8th, to ensure materials will be available for first class, so call today to sign up!

“Women are often vulnerable when it comes to their financial future,” says Sandra McKinnon, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach family finance specialist. “Women tend to live longer than men, have lower wages, are more conservative in their investments and are in and out of the workforce.”

“This program is designed for women to improve their money management skills and level of financial knowledge. Participants develop confidence in decision making and gain control of their finances,” explains McKinnon.

The 5-session class meets on Thursdays from 6:30pm to 8:30pm, starting September 15, at the Cass County Community Center in Atlantic. Registration deadline is September 8.

Instructors include McKinnon, and local professionals on these topics:

September 15: Financial Basics – Sandra McKinnon
September 22: Insurance Essentials – Tammy Cullen

September 29: Investment Fundamentals – Jenny Johnson

October 6: Retirement Realities – Dan Mehmen

October 13: Legal Issues – Jennifer Plumb

The program is strictly educational and does not promote any company or product. The cost for the 5 week program is $25 per person. This includes all 5 sessions, handout materials and a 192-page workbook that participants will use to track their goals and progress. This program registration fee is below the usual course fee of $75 per person due to support from the Cass County Extension Council and local sponsors Cullen & Associates; Wiges & Johnson, Ameriprise Financial; Megan Roberts, State Farm; and Otto, Lorence & Wiederstein, PLLC.

(Press Release from ISU Ext./Cass County)

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley’s new T-V ad criticizes his opponent Patty Judge for not volunteering to take a pay cut during the recession when she was Iowa’s lieutenant governor. During a conference call with Iowa media, Grassley was asked if he’s ever taken a voluntary pay cut or refused his check during his four decades of public service in the Iowa legislature, the U-S House or the U-S Senate.

“Several times in the last five or six years, we’ve taken a pay cut because the automatic cost of living increase applies to members of Congress,” Grassley says. “We have voted as an institution and decided it wouldn’t be appropriate to take the pay increase.” Grassley, a Republican, says he opposes how he and his colleagues get pay hikes every year.

Grassley says, “I co-sponsored the Vitter amendment that would require a vote on any pay raise for Congress in the future instead of it being an automatic pay raise.” Grassley also harkened back to a vote in July of 1975, shortly after he was first sent to represent Iowa in Washington. House leaders were calling for a voice vote on a plan to set up automatic pay increases for members of Congress and Grassley says he’s on record opposing the idea.

“You will read there two words that Chuck Grassley said as a freshman member of Congress: ‘I object,'” Grassley says. “So, they had to have a roll call (vote) and everybody was on record and that record came out that it passed by about two votes to have the automatic pay raise that we have right now.” Grassley says he has “consistently voted for measures to deny all the congressional pay raises.” He says, when a raise can’t be justified, like when Americans face a dismal economy, “then the least we can do is not boost our own salary.”

(Radio Iowa)

A traffic stop in Exira at around 2-a.m. Sunday, resulted in the driver of the vehicle being arrested for OWI/1st offense. The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office says 34-year old Arthur Dean Holle, of Guthrie Center, was taken into custody and brought to the Audubon County Jail. He was later released and is scheduled to appear in court Sept. 8th.

Police in Glenwood report two separate arrests over the holiday weekend. On Monday, 47-year old Brenda Foster, of Glenwood, was arrested for Domestic Abuse Assault. Foster was being held in the Mills County Jail without bond until making an appearance before a magistrate judge. And, on Sunday, Glenwood Police arrested 48-year old Bryan Storm, of Glenwood, for OWI/2nd offense. His bond was set at $2,000.

Authorities in Union County say two men have entered guilty pleas in connection with the June 3rd 2016 robbery of a Casey’s Store at South Elm and Taylor Streets, in Creston. Last Friday, 19-year old Dyrrel Malik Thornton Culbertson plead guilty to the Armed Robbery, and, he was found guilty of Possession With Intent to Deliver a Controlled Substance, as a result of evidence discovered during the execution of a search warrant following the robbery.

During the course of that investigation, officers learned of additional information which linked Thornton-Culbertson to the Armed Robbery of the Creston Casey’s (at 200 S. Elm) on October 21st, 2015. Thornton-Culbertson plead guilty to that crime as well. Because he was on probation at the time he committed the crimes, the Court revoked his probation and ordered all of the sentences to be served consecutively. As a result, Thornton-Culbertson received an indeterminate sentence of 50-years in prison.

The case followed court proceedings on August 26th, 2016, involving a co-defendant, 20-year old Fransisco Martinez. Martinez plead guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Armed Robbery of the Creston Casey’s Store (at South Elm and Taylor) on June 3rd, 2016.

Fransisco Martinez

In connection with that incident, he was also found guilty of Possession of a Controlled Substance as a result of evidence discovered during the execution of a search warrant following the robbery. As a result, Martinez was sentenced to 11-years in prison.