ONAWA, Iowa (KCAU) — The Monona County Sheriff’s Office said that a person of interest they were looking for is now in custody.  Thursday morning, the sheriff’s office asked for the public’s help to locate Derrick Lee Meadows, 36, as a person of interest as part of an investigation. As of 3:43 p.m., he was taken into custody. The sheriff’s office didn’t say what the case involved.

Derrick Meadows

In an earlier release, the sheriff’s office said they and the Iowa State Patrol Tactical Team executed a search warrant at 329 E. Main St. in Ute Thursday around 6 a.m.

Two people were arrested as part of the search warrant. They were identified as Lavelle Annet Meadows, 71, and Larry Lee Meadows, 69, both of Ute, on drug charges.  According to court documents, both Lavelle and Larry Meadows were charged with one count of controlled substance violation and one count of failure to affix a drug stamp, both class D felonies. Larry Meadows was also arrested on a warrant charging him with second-degree theft for a stolen vehicle in December.

Court documents state that a search warrant was served for an unrelated matter when authorities found “a marijuana grow” of six plants in the residence.

(Radio Iowa) – The Sioux City Community School District has won a federal grant of almost six-million dollars to buy 15 new school buses, what are considered “clean” buses. Shelly Reimer, a grant project officer with the U-S Environmental Protection Agency, says the grant process was very competitive and Sioux City stood out as an ideal candidate for the effort. “The Clean School Bus program is being funded by the bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provides $5 billion over five years for schools to replace older diesel buses with new clean school buses,” Reimer says, “which includes electric school buses, propane and compressed natural gas.” The electric buses are proving to be the most popular option, according to Reimer, and she says the clean buses will help to improve the air quality for children and their families, as they’re low- or zero-emission vehicles.

“The diesel exhaust has particulate matter, emissions, nitrogen oxides,” Reimer says. “There’s definitely health benefits for the students and anybody who’s in and around or riding on the buses.” She says the E-P-A is hearing very positive feedback from other school districts that have already made the switch from diesel to electric buses. “They’re keeping their charge, they stay warm, they reliably start up in the morning — which can be an issue with the diesel buses when it gets extremely cold,” Reimer says. “Drivers like them. They’re very quiet.” In addition to being better for the environment, she says the clean buses will be cheaper for school districts to operate.

“There is a savings,” Reimer says. “The schools that are already operating electric buses in their fleet are definitely collecting data and we are hearing reports of significant cost savings in fuel.” Other Iowa school districts have a few weeks to apply for similar grants. The E-P-A is taking applications for the 2023 Clean School Bus Rebate Program through January 31st.

(Radio Iowa) – The final weekend of campaigning is ahead, leading up to what may be the chilliest evening ever for the Iowa Caucuses.  The candidates are fully aware of the forecast. Ron DeSantis says Floridians usually don’t go north in the winter. “I haven’t ever experienced negative 15 degrees in my life,” he said at an event Thursday. DeSantis says his winter coat is getting shipped up to Iowa from Tallahassee.

Nikki Haley is from South Carolina. “In October and November and December I’m like: ‘It’s cold!’ And everybody was like: ‘No, it’s really mild,'” Haley said Thursday morning. “I get it now.”

Iowa State University political science professor Dave Peterson says the temperatures will be a test of voters’ attitudes about the candidates. “You’re going to have to be pretty enthusiastic to go out there Monday night,” Peterson says. Peterson has been directing a monthly “Civiqs” poll for the past five months. In December, he described support for former President Trump as “durable.” Peterson is using the word “immovable” after this month’s poll. “Nothing’s changed,” Peterson said. “It’s an entirely stable race.”

Jean Schlichtemeier of West Des Moines is a Trump voter who went to see him in Newton last weekend. “I think the other candidates are just playing politics and we need someone who’s gutsy — and this man seems to have guts,” she said. In 2016, 37,000 Iowans who were Democrats registered as Republicans on Caucus Night in order to cast a straw poll vote for president. Mary Howard of Cedar Rapids says it’s hard to decide which party’s caucus she’ll attend this year. “I want to vote against Trump which would be the reason to go to the Republican Party thing,” Howard said at the end of December, “but I’m unsure of the candidates.”

There is one sure thing. The Caucuses will start at 7 p.m. Monday, regardless of the weather.

(Radio Iowa) – A judge has ruled the State of Iowa cannot require a panel that nominates people to fill vacancies on the Iowa Supreme Court and Court of Appeals have an equal number of men and women. In her ruling, U-S District Court Judge Stephanie Rose said the gender balance requirement for the State Judicial Nominating Commiussion violates the U-S Constitution’s equal protection clause.

A California based group filed the lawsuit challenging the rule on behalf of three Iowans. One of them is chief legal counsel for The Family Leader, a group that pushed for recent changes in Iowa’s judicial selection process. Governor Kim Reynolds is asking lawmakers to repeal Iowa’s gender balance requirement for ALL state boards and commissions.

(Radio Iowa) – The funeral was held this (Thursday) morning for the 11-year-old boy who was shot to death at Perry High School last week. Perry police say sixth grader Ahmir Jolliff was shot three times in the cafeteria by the 17-year-old gunman who wounded four other students and three adults — including the principal — before taking his own life.

According to a post on the Perry Community School District website, elementary school students will head back to class next Thursday, which will be two weeks after the violence, while middle schoolers will return next Friday.

The site says the return for high school students is “still being discussed as there are many factors to consider.”

(Radio Iowa) – Some Iowa nonprofits are facing a financial crunch as they run out of state and federal pandemic relief funds, which is a concern for Iowa seniors who rely on meal deliveries. The Northeast Iowa Agency on Aging’s nutrition budget has been cut nearly in half since its COVID assistance ran dry. That means a reduction in daily hot meal deliveries for 18 counties. Agency C-E-O Mike Donohue says state legislative funding just isn’t keeping pace with the cost of meals.

“We have seen those costs just go through the roof,” Donohue says. “We had per-meal costs that were in the $6 range prior to the pandemic that today are $10.” Donohue’s agency does get state money to operate but he says that funding isn’t keeping up with the cost of inflation.

“Overall, funding really hasn’t changed much,” he says. “I think if you look over the past five years, funding has grown about six percent total.” The agency plans to continue to make meal deliveries to about 500 area seniors, though as of last week, those deliveries started coming in bulk, every two weeks, instead of every day.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa National Guard Adjutant General Stephen Osborn — appointed to the post last March — says he’s leading “the greatest transformation” of the Guard in its 186 year history.

“This initiative is a reorganization that optimizes organizational efficiencies, leverages our human capital, and brings the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard into a more cohesive, joint team,” Olson said today, “without growing our force structure.”

Olson delivered the annual “Condition of the Guard” address to Iowa lawmakers this morning. “Ultimately, these long range, holistic efforts lay the groundwork to keep your Iowa National Guard ready to execute any state or federal mission well into the future,” Olson said.

Iowa National Guard Adjutant General Stephen Olson (Official photo)

Olson has hired a full-time staff director to oversee Army and Air Guard operations. Also, in response to a congressional mandate, he’s hired 14 new civilian employees to help service members with violence and sexual assault prevention, as well as victim advocacy.

“We owe our service members every opportunity and benefit to take care of them,” Olson said, “and to allow them to do their jobs.”

There are nearly 9000 soldiers, airmen and civilian staff in the Iowa National Guard today. Iowa Army National Guard units have deployed to Poland, Kosovo, the Middle East and the U.S./Mexico border in the past year. Airmen from the Iowa Air Guard were on missions in Korea, Japan, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Greenland, and Germany during 2023.