The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.
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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 (4.3MB)
Subscribe: RSS
WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Black Hawk County supervisors have approved a deal to sell the county’s nursing and mental health care center that has struggled financially in recent years. The board voted 4-1 Tuesday to sell Country View to Pritok Capital, which is based in Skokie, Illinois. The closing is scheduled to occur on or before Dec. 31. The $4 million sale price is below the $5.6 million Pritok initially offered. The contract doesn’t require Pritok to retain the 190-member staff .
Hawkeye Ten Conference
(3-0) Red Oak 25-25-25, Atlantic 19-15-14
(3-0) Red Oak 25-30-25, Shenandoah 20-28-14
(3-0) Shenandoah 25-25-25, Atlantic 15-15-21
(3-0) Harlan 25-25-26, Creston 19-20-24
(3-0) Lewis Central 27-25-26, Glenwood 25-16-24
(3-0) St. Albert, Council Bluffs 25-25-25, Denison-Schleswig 18-18-12
Western Iowa Conference Tournament (@ Logan)
(3-0) Tri-Center, Neola 25-25-25, IKM-Manning 21-21-19
(3-0) Treynor 25-25-25, Underwood 19-17-18
Rolling Valley Conference
(3-0) Ar-We-Va, Westside 25-25-25, Exira-EHK 12-23-21
(3-2) Boyer Valley 25-25-14-20-15, CAM, Anita 20-20-25-25-12
(3-1) Paton-Churdan 25-26-16-26, Glidden-Ralston 19-24-25-24
(3-0) West Harrison 25-25-25, Woodbine 23-13-10
Pride of Iowa Conference Tournament (@ Mount Ayr)
Semifinal: (3-0) Southwest Valley 25-25-25, Nodaway Valley 18-9-9
Semifinal: (3-1) Southeast Warren 13-25-25-25, Central Decatur 25-21-21-19
Consolation: (3-0) Nodaway Valley 25-25-25, Central Decatur, Leon 18-15-16
Championship: (3-1) Southeast Warren 16-25-25-31, Southwest Valley 25-14-13-29
Corner Conference
(3-1) East Mills 16-28-25-25, Stanton 25-26-23-23
(3-0) Sidney 25-25-25, Fremont-Mills 14-15-17
(3-1) South Page over Essex
Other Scores
(3-1) ACGC 13-25-25-25, Ogden 25-17-22-19
(2-0) ACGC 25-25, Greene County 21-15
(3-1) Bondurant-Farrar 19-25-25-25, ADM, Adel 25-17-11-16
(3-0) Council Bluffs, Abraham Lincoln 25-25-25, Sioux City, North 13-18-18
(2-0) Murray 25-25, Diagonal 23-18
(3-0) Sergeant Bluff-Luton 25-25-25, Bishop Heelan 17-17-18
(2-0) Seymour 25-25, Orient-Macksburg 9-9
(3-1) West Central Valley, Stuart 21-25-25-25, Pleasantville 25-23-18-19
(3-0) Westwood, Sloan 25-25-25, River Valley 12-10-14
(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Red Oak Tuesday evening in a review of an Iowa Court of Appeals decision that reversed a murder conviction in northwest Iowa. An Emmet County jury found Lee Samuel Christiansen of Estherville guilty of second-degree murder in the 2016 shooting death of Thomas Bortvit. Bortvit had been seeing a woman Christiansen had dated and his defense argued he should be found guilty of involuntary manslaughter. Christiansen appealed the verdict alleging jurors found him guilty of a more serious charge because of a Facebook post threatening a riot if he wasn’t found guilty of first-degree murder. Assistant Attorney General Tyler Buller asked the Supreme Court justices to vacate the appeals court’s ruling that the jury was prejudice — arguing it was based on innuendo — and not the fact finding used in the district court’s decision.
“What we have in this case is something that’s happened in every Iowa courtroom going back 150 years,” Buller said. “Every time there is a small town, high profile prosecution, there are rumors, there’s innuendo, and there’s gossip. This case is nothing more than that, with the added twist of 21st Century technology.” Iowa City Attorney Leon Spies represented Christiansen, and argued social media tainted the jury’s ruling. “Mr. Christiansen had the right to have a trial decided by 12 impartial jurors–not 11, not 10,” Spies said. “The other aspect of this case, besides the misconduct issue, is the bias issue. And, the bias issue is the one, I think, that gives pause to any comfort being found in Mr. Christiansen being found guilty of only second-degree murder.”
Justice Edward Mansfield questioned whether the alleged Facebook post had any impact in the jury’s murder conviction. “What we’re talking about is a Facebook post of a rumor of a riot,” Mansfield said, “and then somebody talked about that post to a juror, and it’s not even clear if that was discussed prior to the murder verdict having been reached.” Chief Justice Mark Cady says the justices will continue to deliberate on the case, and file a ruling within “a couple of months.”
(Radio Iowa) — The wet weather slowed the harvest again this week. The latest U-S-D-A report shows there were about two suitable days for fieldwork last week. The corn harvest is now 15 percent complete — which compares to 11 percent last week. The corn harvest got started early — and is still 10 days ahead of last year despite the weather. Southeast Iowa leads the state with 39 percent of its corn harvested. Eighteen percent of the soybeans are now in the bin — that’s an increase of just three percent from last week’s total. The bean harvest is now five days behind the average.
(Radio Iowa) — A report from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation has cleared a Creston police officer in a fatal shooting. Sergeant Jared Auten will not face any criminal charges. The incident which happened back in mid August involved several officers responding to a person in McKinley park with a weapon. The person later identified as Christopher Cameron did not respond to officers commands as he remained in a position of concealing an item in his right hand. Cameron eventually after several attempts by officers to get him to show his hands advanced on Sergeant Auten. It was found that Auten acted appropriately and within the scope of his lawful duty as a peace officer in a life threatening situation.
MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) — A woman has been accused of stealing prescription drugs turned in to the Mason City Police Department. Cerro Gordo County court records say 43-year-old Melinda Severs, of Dumont, is charged with two counts of unlawful possession of prescription drugs. The records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for her. Severs’ next hearing is scheduled for Oct. 26.
Authorities say Severs was working as an administrative assistant for the department when she took the medications. The department building is a collection site for unused and unwanted medicines.
Police Chief Jeff Brinkley says Severs no longer works for his department.
BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — Decades after they died, the military is seeing a surge in identifications of U.S. service members who had been classified as missing in action.
The number of identifications is expected to reach 200 this year, more than triple what used to be the norm.
The increase by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency is credited to increased funding and new techniques for tracking remains and identifying them. The soaring number of identifications followed years of complaints that the process was ineffective.
The increase has led to a surge of long-delayed memorial services and burials across the country as families and entire communities honor those killed.
Joani McGinnis, of Shenandoah, Iowa, said her family is planning a service Friday now that they understand what happened to her uncle, Sgt. Melvin. C. Anderson.