An alleged scam artist wanted in several states was arrested after an alert Newton man tipped off authorities. A 54-year-old man wanted on warrants for running construction scams in five states was arrested in Newton yesterday (Tuesday) after the Jasper County Sheriff’s office received a call from a local resident. The resident had responded to an ad in the local newspaper, contacting Ed Cross with Cross Construction about building a pole-type building on his property. The resident became suspicious when Cross submitted a very low bid and requested a seven-thousand dollar deposit the same day.

The home owner then discovered Cross was renting equipment from a local business under the name of Ed Armstrong. The home owner did an internet search, discovered that Armstrong had a nationwide warrant for his arrest and then the home owner called the local sheriff’s department. Seventeen outstanding warrants have been issued for Armstrong by authorities in Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Oklahoma and Ohio.

The Jasper County Sheriff’s Department found Armstrong, driving around in Newton, and arrested him. He’s in the Jasper County Jail, awaiting extradition.

(Radio Iowa)

A 9-year old Council Bluffs boy suffered only minor injuries after he was hit by a car this (Wednesday) morning. Bluffs Police Sgt. Jason Bailey says an investigation revealed Joshua McNutt entered the intersection of 6th and Willow Streets at around 8-a.m., and was crossing the street against the walk signal, when he was hit by a car driven by Kayla Knudtson, of Omaha.

Bailey says because the car was traveling at a slow rate of speed at the time, the child suffered minor injuries to his knees as the result of falling to the ground. The boy was transported to Mercy Hospital’s E-R for an evaluation, as a precaution.

No charges will be filed in connection with the accident.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors, Wednesday, approved the appointment of a Deputy County Recorder. Mary Ward officially became the Cass County Recorder on Nov. 14th, following the November 4th General Election. Ward replaced Joyce Jensen, who has retired. Auditor Dale Sunderman says since Ward was Jensen’s Deputy, Mary needed to request a person to fill her former position. The Board approved the appointment of Marci Wallingford as Deputy County Recorder, with no change in her current rate of pay until July 1st, 2015.

In other business, the Board voted to approve a list of Military and Homestead Tax Credit applications for Fiscal Year 2015-2016. Auditor Dale Sunderman said 2014-2015 was the first year for the Disabled Veterans Homestead Tax Credit, during which there was one applicant. Sunderman said there are six names on the current list for credits on taxes collectible in 2015-16.

The Board also set Dec. 10th as the date for a public hearing on an amendment of the FY 2015 County Budget, which Sunderman said is NOT due to a shortage of funds. He said the “Jumpstart Program” was allowed to continue, which means the flow-through funds may be four-million dollars more than what was expected. The amendment allows the funds to be spent. The funds are administered through SWIPCO (The Southwest Iowa Planning Council), are paid to contractors for work on disaster recovery and housing assistance. The funds can also be used to assist local governments in the areas of Public Safety and Communications.

And, Cass County Engineer Charles Marker updated the Supervisors on on-going bridge projects, some of which are being delayed due to the recent cold and wet weather. Work on pouring the concrete approaches to the bridge over Interstate 80 north of Marne is being slowed due to the cold temperatures. Constant temperatures at or above 40-degrees are required for the concrete to set, according to Marker. Also, because a contract for work on the Cass County Landfill Bridge was not yet been returned by the company recently hired for the job, no action has been taken on the project just yet.

Preparation work for two other bridge projects planned for next year in Victoria Township on Yankton Road, and one just south of Massena at the T-intersection, will begin next week.

Visitors to the Cass County Courthouse in Atlantic will be limited to one point of entry in the near future. Cass County Sheriff Darby McLaren asked the Board of Supervisors about courthouse security during their meeting this (Wednesday) morning. Supervisor Gaylord Schelling said the same matter came up during a recent meeting of the Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC). Schelling said at the ISAC meeting, it was suggested courthouses be limited to one access point for the public, so the areas where a potential active shooter can enter is limited and easily observable.

The Board, Sheriff, and Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Kennon agreed the best plan is to make the rear double-doors to the courthouse as the only access point. All other doors will be locked, and signs will be posted on those no-access doors to alert the public. The two, south entrance doors are visible from a security camera that’s monitored in the Communications Center.

As part of an “Active Shooter” scenario designed to alert courthouse staff to the sound of gunshots on each level of the building, Supervisor Gaylord Schelling went to each floor and fired a “Starter’s Pistol,” that replicated that type of situation. He fired one shot on each floor Wednesday morning, beginning with the third floor.
Shot1 :03

The sound was clearly audible on the second floor. Another shot was fired on the second floor, where the courtroom and other legal offices are located. The third shot was fired on the Main floor, where the Auditor, Treasurer, Recorder and Clerk of Courts offices are found. Regardless of where the shot rang out, it clearly echoed throughout the building. Other measures will be taken to ensure the safety of courthouse personnel, such as reinforcing some offices and the use of “Safe Rooms,” some of which are already available.

GREENFIELD, Iowa (AP) – School officials have issued an apology to victims of a 2011 hazing incident at a Greenfield high school. The apology came as part of a settlement Tuesday from the incident in the high school’s wrestling room.

Two students were originally charged with second-degree sexual abuse, but the charges were reduced to first-degree harassment. According to online court documents, the students pleaded guilty to the harassment charges.

KCCI-TV reports the apology by Nodaway Valley Community School District was issued by superintendent Casey Berlau. He said in the statement that the district wants to apologize to the victims and their families for the assault that occurred while they were in the wrestling program.

Berlau said the district is making efforts to ensure another incident will not occur.

A Creston Woman reported the theft of a FedEx package from her home at 601 E. Page Street on November 13th sometime between 11:55am and 5:32pm that day. The package contained an Ipod Nano and the loss was estimated at $140. The Creston Police Department took the report at 5:20pm Tuesday, November 18th.

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Progress is being made in reducing the number of preterm births in Iowa, as the state earned a grade of “B” in this year’s report card from the March of Dimes. The report shows the national preterm birth rate is now at 11.4 percent. In Iowa, it’s a little lower at 11.1 percent, although Michelle Gogerty, state director of programs and advocacy with the state chapter of the March of Dimes says, “We have a long way to go. Our goal is for every baby to get a healthy start in life,” says Gogerty. “We won’t stop until we eliminate this problem and certainly, we’re striving for an “A” on the report card.”

Gogerty says the goal is to reduce the preterm birth rate to 9.6 percent or lower by 2020. Premature birth is the leading cause of newborn death, and babies who survive often face the risk of serious and sometimes lifelong health issues. Gogerty notes they often also spend the first weeks or months of their lives hospitalized in intensive care.

“We have some babies that are March-of-Dimes families that have had medical bills over a million dollars,” says Gogerty. “So, it’s huge in comparison to a normal, healthy birth.” Often, the specific cause of premature birth isn’t clear, but factors that may increase the risk include smoking, some infections and chronic conditions, such as high blood pressure or diabetes.

(Iowa News Service)

More than 12-hundred people representing most of Iowa’s 340-some school districts will be gathering in Des Moines today (Wednesday) for the Iowa Association of School Boards convention. Members of the Atlantic Community School District’s Board of Education will attend the convention Thursday, from 7:30-a.m. to 9-p.m.

Association spokeswoman Tracy Bainter says this 69th annual convention will center on how the internet and various computer advances have changed the modern classroom.Bainter says, “We’re going to be focusing on all of the changes in technology and the opportunities that unlocks for students, staff and education leaders like school board members.”

Bainter says technology continues to evolve and so does the way students learn.  “We’re looking at being able to connect with students in their homes,” Bainter says. “For their homework, they’re able to connect with schools all around the country. If they’re doing a report on European history, they can connect with a museum in Europe to learn first-hand from historians.”

One of the convention speakers is a “futurist” who will be talking about a re-imagining of the entire concept of school, while there will be a range of workshops during the three-day event.  “We’re going to have some on technology, we’re going to have some on school finance, which is always an important issue for school board members,” Bainter says. “We’ll have a few on legislative issues that are coming up. We’re going to talk with working with a variety of personalities and creating a cohesive team on a school board.”

The convention runs through Friday at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines. Learn more at www.ia-sb.org.

(Radio Iowa)

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