(Polk County, Iowa) – A man from California was struck and killed by a semi tractor-trailer late Monday night, in Polk County. The Iowa State Patrol reports a semi driven by a man from Sacramento, CA, was westbound on Interstate 80 near Altoona at around 10:30-p.m., when 18-year-old Davis Cooper, of Pasadena, CA, entered the roadway and was hit. Cooper died at the scene. It’s not known why he was walking along the Interstate. The Patrol said Cooper was parked at a convenience store nearby, before entering the interstate on foot.

A traffic stop at around 11:30-p.m. Monday, in Red Oak, resulted in the arrest of the driver, for having a suspended license through the State of Iowa. 47-year-old Terry J. Aherns, of Red Oak, was also cited for failure to show proof of insurance. High bond was set at $491.25.

(Clarinda, Iowa) – Police in Shenandoah arrested a man from Essex, Monday morning, following an investigation into drugs found in a vehicle at the Clarinda Correction Facility (CCF). Authorities say 49-year-old Jeffrey Scott Shane was arrested for possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of methamphetamine, possession of contraband in a correctional facility and possession of a firearm in a correctional facility. Shane was transported to the Page County Jail and held on on $16,300 bond.

His arrest occurred after the Shenandoah Police Department K9 “Remmi” was called in to assist the Iowa Department of Corrections in an investigation around 9:30 a.m. Monday. Remmi was deployed on a vehicle and alerted to the odor of narcotics. A subsequent search revealed methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in the vehicle.

CCF officials have an ongoing investigation in connection with the incident.

(Radio Iowa) – The 19-year-old man in custody for two shooting deaths in Sioux City is related to one of the victims. Court records indicate 19-year-old Joseph Cruz of Sioux City was fighting with a friend over a gun early Saturday morning and fired several shots inside a Sioux City home. Cruz shot himself in the leg.

Police dispatched to the house where the shooting happened found Carlos Aquirre, Cruz’s 21-year-old friend, and Anthony Williams, Cruz’s 19-year-old cousin, lying on the floor in the kitchen. Cruz is charged with two counts of second degree murder.

(Radio Iowa) – Two-hundred thousand Iowans have already cast votes in this year’s General Election. The latest information on the Iowa Secretary of State’s website indicates county auditors have issued 273-thousand absentee ballots and 73 percent of those ballots have been returned. Here’s the party breakdown so far: about 55 percent of the early votes are from Democrats, 31 percent are from Republicans and most of the rest are from independents who list “no party” on their voter registration.

Fifty-two percent of the “early votes” so far were either cast in person at a county auditor’s office or satellite voting site — or voters used a designated drop box for their absentee ballot.  A little less than half of the early votes already cast in Iowa’s 2022 General Election were delivered to county auditors’ offices through the U.S. Mail. Iowa law now requires absentee ballots to be inside your county auditor’s office by 8 p.m. next Tuesday. Election officials say the window for mailing ballots is closing. Jennifer Garms is president of the Iowa State Association of County Auditors.

“Once again, I would just recommend that if you have the opportunity to bring it into the office, to do that route,” she says. Postmarks and postal bar codes showing you mailed a ballot before election day NO LONGER APPLY. Voters can check online at www.voterready.iowa.gov, to see if their ballot has been received.

In-person early voting at county auditors’ offices and some satellite voting locations continues through November 7th.

(Radio Iowa) – A former Webster County teacher is pleading guilty to a charge of sexual exploitation by a school employee, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison. Brandon Louis was the choir director at Southeast Valley High School in Gowrie. Louis admits in a plea agreement that he had exchanged text messages with a student that were sexual in nature. Haley Studyvin, a graduate of Southeast Valley, says the messages Louis sent her began arriving later and later at night.

“The texts started as endearing like, ‘You’re one of my favorites, you know. You’re going to do great things,'” she says. “He’d always throw in a lot of, ‘I’m not supposed to be doing this. I could get fired for doing this,’ and then it progressed into where, by the end of my senior year, he was trying to get me to leave my house in the middle of the night and come over to his apartment and sleep with him.” Studyvin says her eyes have been opened to how often this sort of abuse happens, but she says it took a while before she understood what was happening to her.

“I needed to realize that what he was doing was not because he cared about me,” Studyvin says. “What he was doing was manipulating me and hurting me and putting me in a position that nobody should ever have to be in because it’s not healthy and it’s not safe and you’ll never come out of it feeling good about yourself.” Studyvin says her message to others going through similar situations is that they will be able to heal.

Two years ago, Studyvin told the Southeast Valley school board she and more than 20 other students who had been victimized by the choir director. Louis resigned in October of 2020 and he was arrested in November of last year after a year-long investigation. He’s scheduled to be sentenced December 19th.

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Internet Crimes Against Child (ICAC) Task Force executed a three-day operation in the Des Moines Metro. This operation targeted individuals seeking underage juveniles for sexual activity. A total of eight (8) arrests resulted from the operation.

Taking part in the operation were the following agencies: Altoona Police Department, Des Moines Police Department, Iowa State University Police Department, Iowa State Patrol, FBI, Polk County Attorney’s Office, Polk County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa Department of Public Safety Division of Intelligence-Law Enforcement Intelligence Network, Division of Criminal Investigation-Major Crime Unit, and Division of Criminal Investigation-Cyber Crime Bureau.

The following individuals were arrested as a result of the operation:

James Ehrenreich Reiser, 37 of Des Moines, IA
710A.2A Solicitation of commercial sexual activity, a Class D felony

Kevin Paul Weiser, 43 of Des Moines, IA
710A.2A Solicitation of commercial sexual activity, a Class D felony

Shijian Ding, 45, of Ankeny, IA
710A.2A Solicitation of commercial sexual activity, a Class D felony

Johnnie Bertrum Meling, 40 of Indianola, IA
710A.2A Solicitation of commercial sexual activity, a  Class D felony

Kenneth James Jaeger Jr., 55 of Des Moines, IA
710A.2A Solicitation of commercial sexual activity, a Class D felony

Damian Lamorn Dudley, 29 of Polk City, IA
710A.2A Solicitation of commercial sexual activity, a Class D felony
124.401(1)(d) Possession of Marijuana with Intent to Deliver, a Class D felony

Joshua Michale Lyn Ezzard, 37 of Ankeny, IA
710A.2A Solicitation of commercial sexual activity, a Class D felony

Luke Jai Wilkins, 36 of Ames, IA
710A.2A Solicitation of commercial sexual activity, a Class D felony

DES MOINES, Iowa (October 31, 2022) – The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) have confirmed a positive case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Wright County, Iowa. The virus was found in a commercial layer flock, and this is the first confirmed case of HPAI in Wright County in 2022.

“With HPAI continuing to be a significant threat across the country, this is a difficult and stressful time for poultry farmers and egg producers,” said Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig. “We have been preparing for the possibility of additional outbreaks and are working closely with USDA and producers to eradicate this disease from our state. With migration ongoing, we continue to emphasize the need for strict biosecurity on poultry farms and around backyard flocks to help prevent and limit the spread of this destructive virus.”

Commercial and backyard flock owners should prevent contact between their birds and wild birds. Sick birds or unusual deaths among birds should be immediately reported to state or federal officials. Biosecurity resources and best practices are available at iowaagriculture.gov/biosecurity. If producers suspect signs of HPAI in their flocks, they should contact their veterinarian immediately. Possible cases must also be reported to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship at (515) 281-5305.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the recent HPAI detections in birds do not present a public health concern. It remains safe to eat poultry products. As a reminder, consumers should always utilize the proper handling and cooking of eggs and poultry products. An internal temperature of 165˚F kills bacteria and viruses.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The City Council will meet twice this week, in Atlantic. On Tuesday, Nov. 1st, they will gather in a Special Session at 6:30-p.m. in their Chambers at City Hall, to hold a Public Hearing on a CDBG application for an Upper Story Housing Conversion Program. A Resolution following the hearing, says in-part:

1. The City of Atlantic has found a need for affordable housing in the City, and
2. The City proposes an upper story housing conversion project for which an application is being made and administered by SWIPCO in an amount not to exceed $550,000. The developer will contribute any local match in private and public funds to complete the project. The application must be submitted on behalf of a private building owner on or before Nov. 1, 2022.  The project will benefit low-to-moderate income residents.
3. SWIPCO will be hired to administer the services upon the CDBG award.

The Council will act on approving the application following the hearing. The Council’s second meeting will take place at the regular time, 5:30-p.m. on Wednesday, at City Hall.

(Shenandoah, Iowa) – A 16-year-old male from Shenandoah was injured during a single-vehicle accident Saturday afternoon, north of Shenandoah. The Page County Sheriff’s Office says that accident happened on A Avenue at around 3:44-p.m.

An investigation determined the 16-year-old (unidentified) male was the driver and only occupant of a 2009 Pontiac G6 owned by Stephanie Petersen of Shenandoah. The vehicle lost control on the gravel, entered the east ditch, flipped end over end, and reversed ends, prior to coming to rest. The male juvenile was transported to the Shenandoah Memorial Hospital by Shenandoah EMS service. The male juvenile was issued a citation for Failure to maintain control of vehicle.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office was assisted at the scene by the Shenandoah Fire Department and the Shenandoah Ambulance Service

A charge is merely an accusation and that the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.