Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:45 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Republican leaders are creating a human resources manager position to oversee harassment complaints at the Legislature. The move comes after the state agreed to pay $1.75 million to settle a lawsuit involving a former Senate Republican staffer who alleged sexual harassment. Staff for the GOP-controlled House and Senate plan to make the hire before the legislative session begins in January. The Senate staffer filed the suit after reporting sexual harassment, then being fired.

ALTA VISTA, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa parents of a 4-month-ol baby whose maggot-infested body was found in a swing in his family’s home have pleaded not guilty to murder charges. The Courier reported Thursday that 28-year-old Zachary Paul Koehn and 20-year-old Cheyanne Renae Harris, both of Alta Vista, filed written arraignments pleading not guilty earlier in the week. Each face charges of child endangerment and first-degree murder in the death of their son, Sterling Koehn.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A western Iowa man accused of raping a teenage baby sitter has been sentenced to two years in prison. The Sioux City Journal reports that 25-year-old Colby Mauch, of Castana, was sentenced Thursday in Woodbury County District Court. He had pleaded guilty to one count of assault with the intent to commit sexual abuse, an aggravated misdemeanor.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa state lawmaker has filed a police report accusing someone in her campaign office of stealing $6,000 in campaign donations over several years. The Des Moines Register reports that Rep. Ruth Ann Gaines, D-Des Moines, reported the theft Wednesday. She told police the campaign worker wrote checks to herself from the campaign account. The Associated Press is not naming the worker, since she has not been arrested or charged with a crime.

ALTA VISTA, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa parents of a 4-month-old baby whose maggot-infested body was found in a swing in his family’s home have pleaded not guilty to murder charges. The Courier reported Thursday that 28-year-old Zachary Paul Koehn and 20-year-old Cheyanne Renae Harris, both of Alta Vista, filed written entered a plea of not guilty earlier this week.

Each faces charges of child endangerment and first-degree murder in the death of their son, Sterling Koehn. Authorities say deputies and medics called to the couple’s apartment on Aug. 30 found Sterling dead in the swing. A medical examiner found maggots in his clothing and skin that indicated he hadn’t had a diaper change, bath or been removed from the seat in over a week.

Koehn and Harris remain jailed pending a trial date.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A western Iowa man accused of raping a teenage baby sitter has been sentenced to two years in prison. The Sioux City Journal reports that 25-year-old Colby Mauch, of Castana, was sentenced Thursday in Woodbury County District Court. He had pleaded guilty to one count of assault with the intent to commit sexual abuse, an aggravated misdemeanor.

Police say that in September 2016, Mauch traveled to the then-17-year-old girl’s home, where she was baby-sitting six children. While the children were in the backyard, Mauch grabbed the girl, pulled down her pants and raped her.

DES MOINES – Recently, Iowa Economic Development Authority announced the cities of Creston and Lewis were awarded a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG).

“The award of funds for housing stability to the cities of Creston and Lewis are positive steps for those towns,” said Senator Tom Shipley, R-Nodaway. “Housing stabilization grants allow hardworking Iowans the ability to remain in their homes with important health and safety upgrades.”

The city of Creston will receive $246,200 and the city of Lewis will receive $238,242. Each year, approximately $4 million in federal CDBG funds are available to cities and counties through Iowa’s Housing Sustainability Fund. Eligible applicants are cities and counties under 50,000 people. This money may go to funding public or community services and facilities, housing rehabilitation, or economic development and job training.

Two men from Council Bluffs were arrested this (Thursday) morning in connection with several recent storage unit burglaries and thefts from apartment complex laundry facilities in Council Bluffs. The two suspects are identified as 30 year old Joshua McCammond and 29 year old Jacob Vincent.

McCammond

Vincent

Both men were being held on multiple felony and misdemeanor charges including Ongoing Criminal Conduct, Burglary, Theft and Criminal Mischief. Detectives continue to investigate other property crimes that may have been committed by the suspects, and additional charges are expected.

Anyone with knowledge of criminal activity perpetrated by the suspects, or by anyone else, is encouraged to contact the Council Bluffs Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division at 712-328-4728 or you can remain anonymous by calling CrimeStoppers at 712-328-STOP (7867).

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The U.S. Postal Service says its decision not to fill dozens of postal jobs in Des Moines is intended to deal with a shrinking workload. The comment follows picketing Wednesday by more than 100 postal workers, customers, teamsters and others outside the post office near downtown Des Moines to protest recent job cuts. USPS spokesman John Friess says no one has lost a job at the postal service; all cuts have come through attrition.

The Postal Service has seen growth in its package segment. But Friess says overall volume has declined by more than 3 billion pieces. He says cuts are to “reduce costs and remain competitive in the marketplace, to be able to continue to serve the public in the most efficient, cost-effective way possible and keep mail affordable.”

The Iowa West Foundation Board of Directors recently approved $4.4 million in grants and initiatives funding to 22 nonprofit organizations and government entities in southwest Iowa and eastern Nebraska. Here are some of the non-profit and government entities which received IWF grants and initiatives:

• City of Carroll – Kellan’s Kingdom: Carroll’s first all-inclusive playground, $10,000.
• City of Council Bluffs – Bayliss Park holiday lights, $24, 370.
• The City of Council Bluffs also received $2 million for the parking garage to be constructed on the Iowa side of the Missouri Riverfront.
• City of Crescent – Bunker gear (for firefighters), $10,000.
• City of Denison – Audio/Visual Equipment, $4,000
• Iowa Western Community College Foundation – $30,000 for access to performing arts programs.
• Micha House – Shelter Reimiagined campaign, $425,000.
• Pottawattamie Arts, Culture and Entertainment – $600,000.
• Shelby County Historical Society – Military exhibit hall, $8,250.
• Walnut Volunteer Fire Department – $7,567 for Compressed air foam system, pagers, parkas and blowers.

The City of Council Bluffs, as mentioned, will use their $25,000 for holiday lights in Bayliss Park. In the past few years, the city has sought to restore the display to its former prominence. The Iowa West Foundation grant will allow the city to install custom lighting on the trees in the park and continue the forward momentum. This year’s lighting ceremony will be held on Thursday, Nov. 16th from 6-8 p.m. and kick off Winterfest. Attendees can enjoy family-friendly activities in the park and at partnering locations around the park, in addition to hot chocolate and cookies. The hope is to attract visitors from throughout Pottawattamie County and surrounding areas and increase traffic to Bayliss overall during the winter months.

The Letter of Inquiry period for the Cycle 1 of 2018 grant application process opened on November 1 and will close Nov. 15  Applications are due Dec. 15th, Grant application and initiative decisions will be made in February. The Iowa West Foundation is one of the largest private foundations in the Midwest. It has distributed more than $400 million to nonprofits and governmental agencies through southwest Iowa and eastern Nebraska since the inception of its grant program. Funding for the grants comes from investment earnings and the Iowa West Racing Association, which receives contractual fees from casino operators, Ameristar and Harrah’s. IWRA is the license sponsor for Ameristar and Harrah’s and the license holder for Horseshoe-Bluffs Run. The Foundation targets resources into programs and projects that focus on economic development, education, placemaking and healthy families. For more information on the Foundation, visit www.iowawestfoundation.org