The Cass County Board of Supervisors met for their regular meeting on Tuesday morning at the Cass County Courthouse Boardroom. One of the first items that was acted upon was an appointment to the Cass County Compensation Board to fill a vacancy. The board voted to appoint Jennifer Saathoff to the board for a 4-year term.

The Board is still searching for individuals to fill vacancies for a trustee and clerk for Lincoln Township, a vacancy on the Condemnation in Eminent Domain board, multiple vacancies on the Board of Adjustment, and a vacancy on the County Conservation Board. The Supervisors are working to contact a number of individuals to fill out application paperwork for those vacancies.

The board also received an update on road projects from County Engineer Trent Wolken. He showed the board some images and video of progress on the Olive Street bridge replacement. The project is moving along with deck pouring actually taking place today. He also updated a few other projects that are underway including a bridge on Indian Creek.

The board also approved a request from Cass County EMA to purchase a supply trailer for use in moving supplies during emergency situations and to also use to move voting equipment for the Auditor’s office. The board approved using up to $7,500 of American Rescue Plan funding to purchase the trailer.

Another action item was approving a bid to digitize real estate and vital records in the county. The process would enable the county to have a digital backup of hard copy records and aid in times of disaster or limited courthouse access for the public. The board had already discussed the project and are now approving bids for the contract. The process will involve two separate projects with Cott Systems. The first approval was for $47,400 for the Auditor land transfer online book system. The second project approval was for $153,565 to create a hosted online index for all vital records the county has in the Recorders Office. Both projects are being funded through American Rescue Plan funding the county has received.

The board also talked about a recent presentation that County employees sat through in regards to a potential county wide payroll system. They are in the beginning stages of evaluating what type of system could work for all county departments and how it could integrate with current procedures.

The Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce has been notified by area businesses that a company called ‘Local Yellow Book’ is contacting businesses claiming to be yellow page advertising. They are saying the business hasn’t paid their bill all year and will be “red flagged” if it isn’t paid. They say if you pay them today, they will drop the late fee and interest. The actual Yellow Pages company for Atlantic has been contacted and confirmed they have never heard of Local Yellow Book and that this is a scam.

(Radio Iowa) The U-S-D-A crop report shows Iowa’s corn crop is rated at 58 percent good to excellent — a slight drop from last week’s 61 percent rating. The soybean condition was also rated at 58 percent good to excellent — down from 60 percent the week before. Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig says things could have been a lot worse if not for some rain that helped some of the dry areas.

Things still remain very dry in areas of the state, and overall Naig says we are still behind.

Naig says some farmers are still trying to recover from last year’s derecho damage.

Naig says there’s always added costs as you are rebuilding bins and other things, and that keeps the burden of the storm recovery going into this year. Naig made his comments during a recent interview at the Iowa State Fair.

The Adair County Sheriff’s Office released details late Monday on recent arrests.

On July 21st 36-year-old Christopher McNeese of Orient was arrested on a Warrant for Child Endangerment-Bodily Injury and Assault Causing Bodily Injury or Mental Illness. He was taken to the Adair County Jail and held on $6,000 cash or surety bond.

On July 22nd 42-year-old Crystal Marie Mack was arrested on a Warrant for Failure to Serve a Jail Sentence. She was held to serve remainder of a previously court ordered sentence.

On July 25th Deputies arrested 38-year-old Tim Leeroy Wambold Jr. of Fontanelle for Theft 2nd Degree and Trespass 1st Offense. He was arrested in the 2600 block of 260th Street in Bridgewater and taken to the Adair County Jail.

On July 30th Deputies arrested 26-year-old Taylor Marie Turnbull of West Des Moines for OWI 2nd Offense. She was arrested at the intersection of Highway 92 and Kent Avenue.

On August 10th Deputies arrested 34-year-old Kirk Robert Williams of Marshalltown after being called to a residence where he was not supposed to be. Williams was identified at the scene and Deputies discovered a type of socket on him that contained marijuana residue. He was charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and held on $300 cash or surety bond.

During the past week Deputies also arrested 31-year-old Lucas Jeffrey Keith Kopp of Creston on an Warrant issued in April for Carrying Weapons. He was held in the Adair County Jail on $2,000 cash or surety bond.

On August 12th Deputies arrested David Scott Rectenbaugh of Fontanelle on a charge of OWI 1st Offense. He was arrested on Highway 92 at 9:45 p.m. and taken to the Adair County Jail where he was later cited and released.

The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office released details on Monday afternoon on arrests dating back to the beginning of August.

On August 15th Deputies arrested 38-year-old Amy Joy Carman from Avoca following an early morning traffic stop along the 1800 block of Highway 59 in Shelby County.   Upon further investigation it was determined Carma had a suspended drivers license, and further was charged with possession of controlled substance (methamphetamine), prohibited acts, possession of drug paraphernalia, interference with official acts, and failure to provide insurance. Carman was transferred to the jail without incident where she was released the following morning under her own recognizance.

On August 12th Deputies arrested 36-year-old Tiffany Ann Newcomb of Kirkman on an outstanding warrant from Shelby County District Court for failure to appear on a driving while barred charge from a previous court date.  She was taken into custody and held under a $5,000 cash only bond. Newcomb was also served a warrant for two counts of fraudulent practice 2^nd degree, and 1 count fraudulent practice 3^rd degree. This warrant carried an additional $5,000 cash or surety bond, totaling $10,000 bond for Newcomb. Newcomb was held until she was able to post the cash and surety bond the following day.

On August 10th 37-year-old Katie Marie Johnson from Carroll was taken into custody following a traffic stop for not bearing any license plates on the vehicle. Upon further investigation it was determined that Johnson had initially provided false information upon who she was to the deputy. It was also determined that Johnson had an outstanding warrant out of Carroll County for failure to appear on a theft charge, carrying a $20,000 cash only bond. Johnson was taken into custody and charged with providing false identification information, driving while license suspended, and operation of a non-registered vehicle. She was taken into custody and held under a $500 cash or surety bond.

On August 8th Deputies arrested 39-year-old Thomas William Holzer of Harlan following a traffic stop along Highway F32 in Shelby County.  It was determined that Holzer didn’t have a valid driver’s license to operate a motor vehicle in the State of Iowa.   Holzer was taken into custody and charged with Eluding and driving while suspended license. Holzer was taken into custody and held under $1,491 dollar cash or surety bond and then released on his own recognizance the following morning.

On August 7th 45-year-old Steven Wayne Thompson of Omaha, NE was taken into custody for a violation of probation warrant carrying a $5000 cash or surety bond.  The warrant stems from alleged violation against the terms of his probation for failure to sign up per his terms and regulations. Thompson was held under $5,000 bond until he was able to post and be released on August 15th and given a future court date.

Also on August 7th 33-year-old John Chris Thirtle III was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant for violation of probation. Thirtle was transported to the jail without incident and held under $10,000 cash or surety bond. On August 9th Thirtle, along with his attorney and county attorney, made a plea deal with allowed for his release under his own recognizance and given a future court date.

On August 5th Deputies arrested two people following a short pursuit in Shelby County. The driver of the vehicle 24-year-old Seth Dewayne Strong and a passenger 36-year-old Tiffanie Ann Newcomb were both taken into custody along 800^th Street and Timber Road in Shelby County. The vehicle was clocked at 92MPH along Highway M47 and Sequoia Loop. The vehicle continued south on M47, going through the stop sign on State Highway 44 and Highway M47, then turning on 800th street, where the vehicle continued east on 800^th for another mile.  The vehicle came to a stop after Timber Road where both parties were taken into custody.  The driver Seth Strong, was charged with eluding, driving while license suspended, speed, multiple counts of failure to obey stop sign, failure to wear seat belt, no insurance, and improper use of registration. Strong was held under $2,300 cash or surety bond and was released on August 8th after posting the required bond and given a future court date. The passenger 36-year-old Tiffanie Ann Newcomb was taken into custody and charged with possession of controlled substance (marijuana), carrying weapons, possession of drug paraphernalia, interference with official acts, and open container as passenger. She was held $3,300 cash surety bond and was able to be released the following day after posting the required bond.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – The Iowa Governor’s Charity Steer Show reached new heights, raising $375,265.92 at the 39th annual show. All proceeds benefit the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Iowa, with houses in Des Moines, Iowa City and Sioux City. The local charities provide a “home away from home” for families of sick children.

Since 1983, the Iowa Governor’s Charity Steer Show has raised over $4.5 million for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Iowa. The Office of the Governor of Iowa; Kim Reynolds, Iowa Cattlemen’s Association and Iowa Beef Industry Council would like to thank past and present donors for their support. This event demonstrates the “Cattlemen Care” and “Iowa Nice” mantra, which is synonymous with Iowa.

This year’s show, held at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, showcased 24 Iowa steer exhibitors. Ben Kelly, of Dallas Center, picked the Grand Champion Steer and Mike Sorensen, of Greenfield, selected the Grand Champion Showman. The Grand Champion Steer was shown by Jeff Angelo and exhibited by Lane Elmquist of Audubon. Elmquist is the son of Joe and Brittany Elmquist. He has shown his steer Nelson this summer at the Beef Expo, Austin Alt Memorial Classic, the Barn to Backdrop Classic, earned Grand Champion at the Audubon County Fair, and qualified for the Southwest Iowa Shootout. The Grand Champion Steer was sponsored by the Iowa Bankers Association and purchased by Friends & Family of Lane Elmquist and the Audubon Community. Grand Champion Showman honors went to Celebrity Showman Teagan Schaefer, of TaterTough. Schaefer led steer Hero, who was raised by Carlee Cremeens and sponsored by the Iowa Hereford Breeders Association.

This year’s People’s Choice Award went to celebrity Eric Hanson and exhibitor Molly Chapman. The Community Hero award was a new honor in 2021 and encouraged youth exhibitors to promote a sense of community through donated non-perishable goods and pop tabs, and social media engagement to raise awareness of the event. Youth exhibitor Kami Schrunk received the first Community Hero Award for exemplary leadership and promotion of the cause. Social media played an important role in exposing the Iowa Governor’s Charity Steer Show to more than 266,000 people nationwide.

(Additional information can be found HERE)

CLARINDA – The Iowa Department of Corrections reports 32-year-old Joshua Michael Pierce was pronounced dead at 3:25 a.m. (Monday) this morning, at the University of Nebraska Medical Center after being found unresponsive in his cell at the Clarinda Correctional Facility.  The cause of death will be determined by the State of Iowa Medical Examiner’s Office.  An investigation is pending.

Pierce had been serving a 40-year maximum term for the crimes of Operating Vehicle No Consent, Dominion/Control of Firearm/Offensive Weapon by Felon, Going Armed with Intent and Habitual Offender (Property and Person) from Wapello County.  His sentence began on January 22, 2018.

(Radio Iowa) – As Iowa’s children prepare to head back to school, the state is experiencing a fourth wave of coronavirus infections and hospitalizations. Stanley Perlman, a professor of immunology and pediatrics at the University of Iowa, says even though the state has outlawed districts from requiring masks in school, parents should still have their kids wear masks to slow the spread.  “If my child was going, I would try to make them wear a mask,” Perlman says. “I would certainly make it so that the school had very tough policies and if children came in with any kind of respiratory symptoms, they’d be sent home.”

“Make sure your child wears a mask, make sure all the rules are followed as much as they can be rigorously,” he says. “Make sure that the rooms that are used at schools are as ventilated as possible, if there’s choices.” Perlman says it’s also important that children ages 12 to 17 get vaccinated before heading back to school — to both protect themselves and those around them.

According to the CDC, only around 30-percent of Iowa’s kids in this age range have been fully vaccinated.

(By Natalie Krebs, Iowa Public Radio)

DES MOINES, Iowa – Officials with the Iowa Dept. of Public Safety said today (Monday), that after a nearly two month long investigation into the disappearance and death of 58-year old Timothy Fechter, law enforcement has charged his brother, 43-year old Creston resident Dustin Seley with one count of Murder in the First Degree.  Seley was taken into custody at the Union County Jail, where he had been since June 29 on unrelated charges. Seley was transferred to the Adair County Sheriff’s Office, where was being held without bond on the murder charge. Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater said Monday, “It is believed that a prosecution for murder has not taken place in Adair County since 1951.”

Dustin Seley

Authorities say the charge against Mr. Seley follows an investigation by the Division of Criminal Investigation, the Creston Police Department, the Union County Sheriff’s Office, and the Adair County Sheriff’s Office, and an autopsy by the Office of the State Medical Examiner. The medical examiner ruled Mr. Fechter’s cause of death as blunt force trauma and gunshot wound. The manner of death has been ruled a homicide.

Fechter was reported missing to the Creston Police Department on June 20 with his body being discovered along a rural Adair County road on July 1st. Anyone with further information concerning the investigation is asked to contact Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater at 641-743-2148.

Seley had his intial appearance with the magistrate on Tuesday and bond has been set at 1 million dollars, cash only.

The US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports that 30-year-old Dylan Michael Joseph Hoffman of Council Bluffs was sentenced on Thursday, August 12th in District Court to 63 months in prison on a charge of Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm. He pleaded guilty to the offense in March 2021. His prison term will be followed by three years of supervised release.

The Council Bluffs Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives investigated the case.