The Cass County Board of Supervisors today (Wednesday), rejected a request from the County Recorder’s Office for the purchase of a new passport photo machine. Their action followed a complaint they received from a local photographer who said the move would put government in direct competition with the private sector.

The Board heard from Fred Fiddelke, owner of Fredericks’ Photography, in Atlantic, who has been in business for more than 37-years. It’s been suggested that having photos taken at the Recorders Office would be more convenient. Supervisor Frank Waters asked how fast Fiddelke could turn the pictures around to make them ready for persons needing a passport. Fiddelke replied “10-minutes.”

Fiddelke said in the past, the process for getting a passport involved coming to the courthouse three-times and waiting six-weeks to receive your passport. Now, he says, with the advent of online passport applications and other information that’s available electronically, the process is expedited, and it’s not necessary nor “convenient” for people to have to come to the courthouse for those procedures.

Fiddelke said also, with the $1,695 price tag for specialized photography equipment that’s needed, it would take the County three-to-five years to recoup its cost. He said taking passport pictures isn’t going to make him rich. They only cost $12. The value, he says, comes in the form of future business that simple picture can generate. A person coming to have their passport taken, can see the work he’s done for families, such as graduation pictures, weddings and anniversaries. That, he said is what keeps him in business.

After brief discussion, the Supervisors agreed the County does not need to compete with area private photographers.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office, Wednesday, said a Malvern woman was arrested Tuesday afternoon on a warrant for OWI/1st offense. 54-year old Deborah Lynn Drummy was taken into custody, at around 3:45-p.m.  Her bond was set at $1,000.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office would like the public to be aware: If you receive a call claiming you owe an outstanding debt and a warrant will be issued for your arrest if you don’t forward money to someone right away, you very well may be the target of a scam. The Cass County Sheriff’s Office says they NEVER cold-call citizens to tell them to pay a fine RIGHT NOW or go to jail.

An assistant in the Iowa Attorney General’s office is calling on state legislators to make it easier to prove recklessness in cases where bicyclists are injured or killed when hit by motor vehicles. Pete Grady says Iowa currently has some of the nation’s highest hurdles to clear when prosecutors go after distracted drivers accused of hitting bicyclists. He says legislators have done nothing to toughen laws.

“We had bills filed in 2015, 2011, 2008, and we haven’t had any movement on bicycle safety laws in any of those sessions of the legislature,” Grady said. More than 20 bicyclists have died after being struck by vehicles in Iowa over the past five years. At present, Grady says prosecutors need to show the vehicle operators knew their actions would cause harm.

“I don’t think anyone would define reckless behavior as requiring a better than 50 percent outcome for danger or harm, but that’s the standard we have now in Iowa,” Grady said. Most of the time, county attorneys go after lesser charges against drivers involved in serious bicycle accidents, resulting in fines, but no jail time, according to Grady. He notes most Iowans agree that texting while driving is very dangerous, but Grady doesn’t believe it’s treated that way under Iowa law.

A police officer in Iowa can’t pull over a motorist for simply texting while driving. Grady asks, “How serious is texting if the legislature says it’s not even serious enough to require that somebody be pulled over when it’s observed by a law enforcement officer?” Grady made his comments on Iowa Public Radio’s River to River program.

(Radio Iowa)