The deadline to file papers for the June 5th Primary has passed. Persons interested in filing for County Offices had until the end of the business Wednesday to file with their County Auditors. In Cass County, as previously mentioned, incumbents Duane McFadden, Charles Rieken and Frank Waters have filed for re-election to the Board of Supervisors, Dale Sunderman filed for re-election to his County Auditor’s post, and Darby McLaren filed for re-election as Sheriff. All five men are Republican, and none will be opposed in the Primary. Also on the ballot in Cass County, are various candidates for the Iowa Senate and House of Representatives.

Among them, are Republicans:  Tom Latham, U-S Representative – District 3; Jake Chapman & Matthew T. Mardesen, State Senate – District 10; Clel Baudler, State Representative – District 20, and Jack Drake, State Representative – District 21. Democrats having filed for the June 5th Primary include: Leonard Boswell, U-S Representative – District 3; Greg Nepstad, State Representative – District 20, & John Rose, State Representative – District 21.

In Montgomery County: Republican Ted Schoonover has filed for County Auditor; Incumbent Republican Joe Sampson faces a challenge from fellow Republican Chris Stephens, for the job of Sheriff;  Republican Bryant Amos has filed for Supervisor – District 3; and Republican Donna Robinson has filed for a Supervisor seat in District 5.

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports two men, one from southwest Iowa, the other from northwest Missouri, were sentenced Tuesday in U-S District Court, to a total of nearly 21-years in prison for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in southwest Iowa and northwest Missouri. 54-year old Edward Eugene Gray, Sr., of Coin, Iowa, and 47-year old Wilbur Leo Long, III, of Elmo, Missouri, were sentenced by United States District Court Judge John A. Jarvey.

United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt said Gray, Sr. was sentenced to 150 months (12 1/2-years) imprisonment, and Wilbur Leo Long, III, was sentenced to a term of 100 months (8-years, three months) imprisonment. Both men were also sentenced to five years supervised release following their incarceration.

Klinefeldt says from approximately January of 2005 until November of 2010, Gray, Sr. & Long were involved in the distribution of methamphetamine in the Southwest Iowa and Northwest Missouri areas with co-conspirators: 56-year old Orvis Lee Wagaman, of College Springs, Iowa; 34-year old Edward Eugene Gray, Jr., of Clarinda, Iowa; 23-year old Levi Edward Gray, of Clarinda, and others.

Gray, Jr. was sentenced on February 21st, 2012, to 15-years in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and 5-years for possession of a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking offense, for a total sentence of 240 months imprisonment. Levi Gray was also sentenced on that date to a term of 48 months in prison, for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Co-defendant Orvis Lee Wagaman, is scheduled to be sentenced on May 22nd, 2012.

The case against the men was investigated by the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Taylor County Sheriff’s Office, Drug Enforcement Administration, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Nodaway County Sheriff’s Office (MO), Buchanan County Drug Strike Force (MO), NITRO Task Force (MO), Tri County Task Force (Adams, Ringgold, and Taylor Counties), Ringgold County Sheriff’s Office, Page County Sheriff’s Office, and the Ringgold and Taylor County Attorneys’ Offices. It was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) Wednesday evening released the names of the Police Officer and a man he shot during an incident early this (Wednesday) morning.  Officials say at approximately 3:19 AM, Clarinda Police Department Officer Justin Ridnour, went to 110 North 16th Street in Clarinda.  He was responding to a 911 call received from a female in the residence.  The caller, Alisha Michaelson, indicated there was a man with a hammer outside her window.

Upon arriving at the residence Officer Ridnour observed 40 year old Jason Cieslak using a hammer to break the window of a first floor apartment, and Ms. Michaelson inside the apartment.  Officer Ridnour approached and engaged in a conversation with Cieslak.  This dialogue continued as the confrontation traveled down the block.  Officer Ridnour repeatedly commanded Cieslak to drop the weapon (hammer). These commands were ignored. Eventually, Cieslak advanced on Officer Ridnour with the raised hammer.  Officer Ridnour then fired his duty weapon once to stop the threat, striking Cieslak.  Cieslak was immediately transported to the Clarinda Regional Health Center for treatment.  He remains hospitalized in stable condition.

An arrest warrant for Jason Lee Cieslak has been filed. After his release from the hospital, Cieslak will be arrested and charged with First Degree Burglary, a class “B” felony. Additional charges are pending the results of the investigation.

Arrest Warrant and Criminal Complaint

Clarinda Police Officer Justin Ridnour was not injured in the incident.  He has been placed on administrative leave per department policy.  Officer Ridnour is a two year veteran of the Clarinda Police Department. The Clarinda Police Department, Page County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and Iowa State Patrol continue to investigate the incident.

Two Nebraska City, NE residents were injured this (Wednesday) afternoon when the vehicle they were in went out of control for reasons unknown, entered a ditch and rolled over multiple times, in Fremont County. The Iowa State Patrol says the driver of the 2002 Cadillac DeVille, 78-year old Elizabeth L. Davis, and her passenger, 62-year old Christina Weber, were transported by Sidney rescue to St. Mary’s Hospital in Nebraska City, following the crash that occurred on westbound Highway 2. The accident happened just after 2-p.m. Both women were wearing their seat belts. The accident remains under investigation.

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa said today (Wednesday), 29-year old Merle Leon Ivey, of Council Bluffs, was sentenced Tuesday to 2-years in prison for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. District Court Judge John Jarvey also ordered also ordered Ivey to serve a three year term of supervised release following incarceration. Ivey pled guilty to a charge of being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm on November 3rd, 2011. In doing so, he agreed to forfeit to the United States the firearm he possessed.

On April 18th, 2011, a .32 caliber semi-automatic pistol was recovered from Ivey by Council Bluffs police, as they were investigating a child neglect call in the area of 25th Street and 3rd Avenue. Ivey had been convicted of a felony offense in Nebraska in 2005.

The investigation was conducted by the Council Bluffs Police Department, the Pottawattamie County Attorney’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

The Atlantic Volunteer Fire Department is one of three departments from around the State of Iowa to have been awarded an Assistance to Firefighters Grant. Senator Tom Harkin announced today (Wednesday) a total of $391,512 in grants is being awarded from the program, through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Atlantic’s share of the grant money amounts to $228,475.

Cass County Assistant Emergency Management and E-911 Coordinator Rob Koppert told KJAN News, the funds will be shared among all the fire departments in the County, because the Cass County Fireman’s Association worked with him to compile all the information necessary to apply for the grant. The Atlantic Fire Department will serve as the flow-through agency, which is why it was named the grant recipient. The total project cost is a little over $240,000. The county’s share of those funds is 5-percent,  or about $12,000, with the feds picking up the rest.

Koppert says the funds will be used for radio infrastructure, such as new radios for 35 fire trucks among the various departments within the County, new radios for six fire department ambulances, a little more than 100 pagers, plus installation of remote receivers for the County Fire frequency or moving that frequency to the repeater to enable improved communications. Most of the radios and receives are necessary due to the Federal narrow-banding requirement, which means the bandwidth of transmissions is changed from 25-kilohertz to 12.5-kilohertz. The result, says Koppert, is an impact on the audio quality and coverage.

Koppert says the next step in the process is to determine the specifications for the radios they need, and put it out to the various vendors who handle that type of equipment, for bid. The equipment will be paid for with the grant money. Koppert says many, extensive hours were spent not only by himself, but the various County departments, in putting together all the information needed on the grant application, that would make Cass County stand-out among the competition for funds.

He says he received information about three-weeks ago a grant may be in the works for the County, but there were no official announcements, until word came down today from Senator Harkin’s Office. He says he is “Extremely ecstatic. This is the most fantastic news that (he’s) received in many, many years.” He says “This is the best thing that can happen for Cass County and the fire departments (within the County). Each fire department is going to benefit from this.”

Harkin, a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which funds the Department of Homeland Security, says the funds shared by the three departments will go toward operations and safety. The other grants were awarded to the communities of Garwin, and Independence.

Authorities in Atlantic report a 19-year old was arrested Tuesday on warrants out of Cass County and Colorado. Michael Vyzourek, of Atlantic, was taken into custody on a Cass County warrant for OWI/1st offense, and a Colorado felony warrant for Identity Theft. Vyzourek was being held in the Cass County Jail.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Department reports a Corning man was arrested early this (Wednesday) morning. 25-year old Corey McBreen was taken into custody at around midnight, on a charge of Operating a motor vehicle While Intoxicated (OWI). McBreen was being held in the Adams County Jail without bond, until he appears before the magistrate.

The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation said today authorities are investigating an overnight shooting in Clarinda, which involved a Clarinda Police Officer. In a statement released just before 10-a.m. today, the DCI says the investigation involves officials with the Clarinda Police Department, the Page County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Iowa State Patrol. 

Officials say at around 3:20-a.m., a Clarinda Police Department officer went to 110 North 16th Street in Clarinda in response to a 911 call received from a female in the residence.  The caller indicated there was a man with a hammer outside her window.

Upon arriving at the residence the officer observed a man using a hammer to break the window of a first floor apartment, and a woman inside the apartment.  As the officer approached, the man turned toward the officer and began yelling at him.  The man then advanced toward the officer with the hammer in his hand and the officer fired his duty weapon, striking the subject.  The suspect was immediately transported to the Clarinda Regional Health Center for treatment.  A report on his condition is not available. 

The Clarinda Police officer was not injured during the incident.  He’s been placed on administrative leave per department policy.  The names of the suspect and officer will be released by the DCI on Thursday. No other information is being released at this time.