(Radio Iowa) — All this week, law enforcement officers in Iowa and across the nation will put a special emphasis on cracking down on risky motorists through Operation Safe Driver Week. Dave Lorenzen, chief of Iowa Motor Vehicle Enforcement, says this time of year, people are often traveling unfamiliar roads. “Mix that in with the trucking population and the number of commercial vehicles that are moving up and down the roads on a daily basis, traffic counts are at an all-time high,” Lorenzen says. “So, it’s just an opportunity for us to concentrate on making sure that folks are following the laws, being attentive to all of the safety aspects of sharing the road with those larger vehicles.”

Lorenzen says patrols will be ticketing drivers who break common driving laws. “We don’t like to give citations but to affect driver behavior, sometimes there has to be that ultimate consequence,” Lorenzen says. “Most folks know when they’re speeding, they know they are not supposed to have their phone in their hands, they are not supposed to be doing things that are distracting them, and they know they are supposed to be belted in. Those three main things are no surprises to people. It’s just sometimes we become a little less attentive than we need to.”

We’re in the midst of what’s considered the “100 Deadliest Days” of the year, the period between Memorial Day and Labor Day when crash fatalities historically climb, especially for teen drivers.
(By Julie Englander, Iowa Public Radio)

Sheriff’s officials in Pottawattamie County report a domestic call with strangulation involved resulted in the arrest Sunday, of a man from Oakland. 26-year old Alex John Rutledge, of Oakland, was taken into custody at around 3:20-p.m. for Domestic Abuse Assault with strangulation, and was being held in the Pottawattamie County Jail. Authorities say sheriff’s deputies, as well as Oakland Fire and Rescue responded to a 911 call from a 23-year old woman who claimed she had been physically attacked by her husband at their residence in the 300 block of Hill Street, in Oakland. The victim claimed she had been choked to the point where she was having a hard time breathing. Alex Rutledge admitted he wrapped his hands around the woman in a domestic dispute that became heated and also involved child custody. Authorities say at no time was the child in the area at the time of the altercation.

The Pott. County Sheriff’s Office said also, 53-year old Deborah Coleman was arrested at around 6-p.m. Sunday outside the Sheriff’s Office. She was taken into custody on a Council Bluffs Police Dept. warrant for Theft in the 4th Degree and transported to the Pott. County Jail. At around 1:20-a.m. Sunday, 30-year old Matthew D. Churchill was arrested in Honey Creek, for Assault causing bodily injury without intent, following an incident involving a 37-year old male.

At around 2-a.m. Saturday, 25-year old Darrell Jerome Boyer, of Neola, was arrested following a traffic stop for failure to have a front license plate. Boyer was arrested for Driving While Barred/Habitual Offender. An inmate at the Pott. County Jail, was presented with a warrant for Violation of Parole, Friday afternoon. Once the warrant was read to 23-year old Jerran Lee Baker, of Council Bluffs, he was returned to the custody of jail staff. And, 45-year old Aaron Michael Wulff was arrested for Domestic Abuse Assault/1st offense – causing bodily injury, following an altercation with his 68-year old father.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:05-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Authorities have identified a 12-year-old boy who died after being thrown from an off-road vehicle in eastern Iowa. The crash occurred Saturday afternoon outside Bellevue. Authorities say Gavin Milder was riding in a Chevrolet Suburban driven by a 15-year-old when the crash happened. Milder was ejected when the modified sport utility vehicle rolled, and he became pinned underneath it. Three other people in the SUV were not hurt.

The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office says the boy was a student at Clinton Middle School in Clinton.

The Creston Police Department says the Pastor of the Church of Christ in Creston reported Sunday morning, that sometime between 11-a.m. Saturday and 9:30-a.m. Sunday, the upper glass of the front door of the building was kicked-in, causing damage to the frame, interior carpet and wall. The damage was estimated at $200.

Authorities said also, 29-year old Christopher Bird, of Creston, was arrested at around 2:50-a.m. Saturday, for OWI/1st offense. He was later released from the Union County Jail on a $1,000 bond. And, at around 1:47-a.m. Saturday, 21-year old Wade Hiatt, of Lorimor, was arrested at the Union County Law Enforcement Center. Hiatt was taken into custody on a Union County warrant for Criminal Mischief in the 3rd Degree. He was later released on a $2,000 bond.