Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa utilities regulators plan to make a decision on whether to allow a Texas company to bury 346 miles of crude oil pipe under Iowa farmland next month. Iowa Utilities Board chairwoman Geri Huser says the three-member board intends to meet March 9 and consider an order pertaining to the permit application from Texas-based Dakota Access to build the so-called Bakken pipeline. Environmental and property rights groups oppose the project. Supporters say it’s a safer way to transport oil and it will create jobs.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Louisiana construction company says in a lawsuit it is owed $53 million dollars for work done at the Iowa Fertilizer Co. plant in southeast Iowa. White Castle, Louisiana-based Maintenance Enterprises says in documents that it’s filed a mechanics lien with the Iowa Secretary of State. The company hopes to collect from Orascom, a subsidiary of an Egyptian construction company. It began in 2013 building the $1.9 billion Iowa Fertilizer Co., which Orascom has since been spun off as a separate limited liability company based in the Netherlands.

DECORAH, Iowa (AP) — The high-profile trial of a former Boone man charged with killing his wife is underway as court officials and attorneys begin selecting from a large pool of potential jurors. Forty-one-year-old Alexander Fazzino is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Emily Fazzino, who was found dead on a bathroom floor at the couple’s Boone home in January 2012.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police say a man killed by Urbandale officers has been tied to a Des Moines killing. Des Moines police say the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation notified detectives last week that blood found at the scene of the January killing of 71-year-old Norma McNeeley matched that of 29-year-old Ali Eisa Abdalla Yahia, who was shot to death by Urbandale police on Feb. 13.

The Young Professionals of Atlantic (YPA), who is hosting the 3rd Annual Awards Luncheon and Dessert gala on April 27th, 2016, are seeking community-wide nominations for the awards. The awards are designed to recognize the achievements of young professionals who demonstrate a commitment to excellence and innovation in their profession and within the community.

YPA logo

The awards are open to any Young Professional that meets the following criteria: the professional is between the age of 21-41 years old as of January 1, 2016, and the professional either works or resides within Cass County. Young Professionals will be nominated for their excellence in 4 different categories: YP Newcomer, YP Entrepreneur, YP Business Leader and YP Public Servant. There will also be one YP Choice Workplace Award given. The YP Choice Workplace Award recognizes a company who effectively attracts, retains and develops young professionals.

Individuals can either nominate their company or another company. Companies must be Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce members. You can check the membership directory at www.atlanticiowa.com for eligibility. To submit a nomination, go to www.atlanticiowa.com for a nomination form or pick one up at the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce Office (102 Chestnut, Atlantic, IA 50022). All nomination forms must be submitted by Thursday, March 31st, 2016 by 5 pm.

The YPA nominations will be reviewed by a selection committee including: a YPA Representative, an Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce Board Representative, a member of CADCO, a Board of Supervisors Representative, an Atlantic City Official and an out of town guest. The Award Recipients in all 4 categories and the YP Choice Award will be recognized and celebrated at the April 27th Awards Luncheon and Dessert Gala.

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The Young Professionals of Atlantic is a social group with no membership dues or required meetings. Their mission is to connect, engage and attract young leaders into the community while promoting the greater Atlantic area. Members are young professionals between the ages of 21-41. Any interested individuals can contact the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce at 712-243-3017 for information.

The Iowa Department of Public Safety’s (DPS) Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) is looking into the Des. 1st, 2015 death of a female inmate at the Page County Jail. Officials say on November 19th, 2015, 25-year old Jessica Lee, of Council Bluffs, was arrested and booked into the Page County Jail for Possession of controlled substance (PCS), Possession of Paraphernalia, Providing False Information and Interference with Official Acts.

Jessica Lee

On the evening of December 1st, 2015, jailers at the Page County Jail found Lee unresponsive in her cell. Emergency personnel were called and provided medical aid.  She was transported to University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in Omaha. Lee died Dec. 2nd at the UNMC.  An autopsy was performed at the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner in Ankeny on December 3rd, 2015. The cause and manner of death was acute methamphetamine toxicity.  No foul play is suspected in this case.

As to how Lee was able to possess and ultimately overdose while in custody, it was discovered that hours before Lee was found unresponsive, she had placed a recorded call to someone outside the jail stating she was dying.  Lee admitted to the person she called that she had smuggled meth into the jail inside a body cavity. Neither Lee nor the person she called contacted anyone at the Page County Jail to notify them of Lee’s statements or condition.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office, Page County Attorney’s Office, Iowa Department of Public Safety’s Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner continue to investigate the case.

KJAN News wishes to clarify our original post about Saturday’s chase and shots fired incident. I want to make it clear, that Sheriff Jeff Vandewater DID NOT identify the Greenfield Police Chief as Austin O’Brien. That was my error. The Chief is Jesse Lund. That information was corrected in the follow-up story with additional details. I wish to apologize to Sheriff Vandewater for unintentionally making it appear as though he had identified the Chief as O’Brien, when in fact he simply mentioned “The Chief.”

Ric Hanson/KJAN News

Two legislative leaders say lawmakers can quickly make a decision on how much general state aid will be forwarded to Iowa’s public schools for the next academic year, but neither is suggesting exactly what the compromise number might be. By law, legislators should have made this school funding decision last year, and House Democratic Leader Mark Smith of Marshalltown says school administrators are struggling to make budget decisions.

“Unfortunately, we’ve put them in a horrible position. We have Davenport schools looking at breaking the law so they can go into reserves,” Smith says. “We have 76 percent of the school districts in Iowa raising property taxes which is a regressive tax and one that the legislature is forcing them to rely on.” Senate Republican Leader Bill Dix of Shell Rock says the two parties are “close to the same page” on school funding.

“We should get this resolved as quick as possible,” Dix says. “I do not see any reason why it cannot and just make sure that we put a number in place that schools can count on and know that the dollars will be there.” Dix and Smith made their comments during a weekend appearance on Iowa Public Television. House Republicans have proposed a two percent boost in general state support of schools. Republican Governor Terry Branstad has proposed a two-point-45 percent increase. Democrats in the Iowa Senate have proposes a four percent increase.

(Radio Iowa)