OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A monthly survey report suggests that business conditions improved last month in nine Midwest and Plains states. The report issued Wednesday says the Mid-America Business Conditions Index rose to 55.2 in December from 54.1 in November. The October reading was 54.9. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss oversees the survey, and he says the shortages of skilled workers are still holding back even stronger growth. The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth. A score below that suggests decline.

The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

A traffic stop in Adams County this (Wednesday) morning, resulted in the arrest of a Nebraska man. 22-year old Ray Phillip, Jr., of Omaha, was arrested at around 3:17-a.m., for OWI/1st offense, Driving Under Suspension, Reckless Driving, No Insurance, and Speeding. He was pulled over after being observed driving eastbound in the westbound lane of Highway 34, near Birch Avenue.

The Iowa State Patrol has confirmed a second fatality has occurred following a weekend crash on Interstate 80 in northeast Des Moines. The driver of a 2016 Ford Focus, 22-year old Austin Paul Gainuss, of Des Moines, died Tuesday at Methodist Hospital in Des Moines, where he had been flown to by medical helicopter after his car was struck from behind by a speeding pickup truck. The accident happened at around 10:10-p.m. Saturday near the east mixmaster (the I-80/I-235/I-35 interchange). After the impact, both vehicles entered the north ditch, where the car struck a tree.

Authorities say they think 37-year-old Travis Gonzales, of Bondurant, was under the influence when his 2018 GMC pickup rear-ended the car. A passenger in the Ford, 24-year-old Joshua Lamont Cox, of Prairie City died at Mercy Hospital shortly after he was transported there by ambulance, Saturday. Both men in the car were wearing their seat belts. Gonzales was able to walk away from the crash uninjured.

The accident remains under investigation, with charges pending the results of toxicology tests.

(Radio Iowa) — The company that bought the former Tyson Foods plant in northwest Iowa will open for business later this month. Iowa Food Group will purchase, further process, and package beef, pork, and chicken at the plant in Cherokee. The products will be sold to grocery store and restaurants. Bill Anderson, with Cherokee Area Economic Development, says the company received around 400 job applications. “We have a number of folks, hundreds of people, who leave Cherokee County every day to go to work outside of the county, so I think for citizens of Cherokee County this is an opportunity to find employment closer to home,” Anderson said.

Tyson Foods shut down the Cherokee facility in 2014. Mack Zimmerman, with Iowa Food Group, says his company will maintain a relationship with Tyson. “We’ll be a customer of theirs, which is a win-win,” Zimmerman said. Tyson employed around 450 people in Cherokee before it closed. Zimmerman said he was confident there would be plenty of interest in the jobs offered by Iowa Food Group. “Especially those who had experience at the plant before and what-not…in that regard, we didn’t have a lot of concern that we’d have good employees,” Zimmerman said.

Iowa Food Group has already hired staff for its front office and sales. The company aims to start off with 100 employees and eventually grow to over 400.

(Thanks to Katie Peikes, Iowa Public Radio)

FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) — Iowa authorities are investigating after a fleeing suspect died after exchanging gunfire with deputies from the Webster County Sheriff’s office. After a domestic disturbance was reported Tuesday morning, deputies spotted the suspect’s vehicle and tried to stop it. But the Webster County Sheriff’s office says the suspect fired at officers as the chase continued just outside Fort Dodge, Iowa.
Officers fired back at the suspect’s vehicle, which came to rest in a field. The deceased suspect was found inside. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation will investigate the incident.

Police in Red Oak, Tuesday, arrested 37-year old Jesse Donald Trost, of Red Oak, on charges that include Attempted 3rd Degree Burglary, Possession of a Controlled Substance, Possession of Contraband in a Correctional Facility, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Trespassing. Trost was taken into custody at around 9:50-p.m., in the 2100 block of Woodfield Drive, following a report of a possible burglary in progress. Officers arriving on the scene spoke with witnesses, who advised the suspect had fled on foot into a CRP field near the residence. With assistance from the Montgomery County K-9 Unit and Montgomery County Emergency Management, the suspect, identified as Trost, was taken into custody  and transported to the Montgomery County Jail, where his bond was set at $5,000.

Earlier in the day, Tuesday, Red Oak Police arrested a 17-year old male from Red Oak, on charges of eluding, Interference with Official Acts, Driving While Suspended, No Insurance, and Driving an Unregistered vehicle on the highway. The unidentified teen was arrested at around 2:45-p.m. near a residence off Highway 48, and transported to the Montgomery County Jail, where his bond was set at $2,000. He was subsequently transported to the Juvenile Detention Facility, in Council Bluffs. Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies assisted in handling the incident.

(Radio Iowa) — The big screens for keeping score at the statehouse have been replaced.  The screens aren’t for football scores, but for the “score” that shows whether a bill has enough votes to pass. Lawmakers punch a button at their desk. The votes are recorded electronically, then the big screens mounted in the Iowa House and Senate show the vote tally — AND how each lawmaker voted.

Lawmakers have been using voting systems first installed in 2001. “The software was obsolete to the point where it couldn’t be upgraded anymore and the hardware was difficult to find parts for. We could still find them, but it was becoming more and more difficult, so we needed to do something.” Carmine Boal is the chief clerk in the Iowa House. She led the effort to buy the new system. On a few occasions in 2017, the old voting system crashed. Boal read the names of all 100 state representatives aloud, waiting for each to cast their vote by yelling “yes” or “no” — so her greatest fear was the 18-year-old system would crash for good.

“That was a nightmare that I had, so I’m very excited to have that pressure off my back,” Boal says, with a laugh. Legislative leaders approved spending about $1.2 million to buy the new voting systems and big screens for the House and Senate. The money is part of what was set aside to repair the capitol’s dome, but that project wrapped up under budget — with enough left over to buy new voting systems.

Charlie Smithson is the Secretary of the Senate — the person in charge of the voting machine in that chamber. “It was time to make sure that we could do the people’s business in an expeditious and open fashion,” Smithson says, “and that’s what this new system will do.” Video can be played on the new screens, but that’s not part of the plan. Lawmakers will start using them soon. The 2019 legislative session convenes on Monday, January 14th.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:35 a.m. CST

FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) — Iowa authorities are investigating after a fleeing suspect died after exchanging gunfire with deputies from the Webster County Sheriff’s office. After a domestic disturbance was reported Tuesday morning, deputies spotted the suspect’s vehicle and tried to stop it.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An 18-year-old Iowa man who was driving roughly 70 mph just before a fatal crash in a 35 mph zone last fall is now facing charges. The Des Moines Register reports that Charles Hunter Everman was charged last month with vehicular homicide and causing serious injury in connection with the Nov. 5 crash. Everman has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

MUSCATINE, Iowa (AP) — A Feb. 11 trial start has been scheduled for a 19-year-old Muscatine man accused of stabbing to death his grandmother. Muscatine County court documents say Darian Lensgraf pleaded not guilty Friday to first-degree murder. He’s accused of killing 66-year-old Diana Lensgraf at her home early on Dec. 12.

BURLINGTON, Iowa (AP) — A southeast Iowa couple convicted of locking their adopted 7-year-old son in their basement at night have filed appeals. Court records say Heidi Fiems, of Mediapolis, filed the appeal notice after her sentencing Friday. She and her husband, Justin, were sentenced to 180 days in jail but must serve only 60 days. Each was fined $625 and given two years of probation. The Hawk Eye reports that Heidi Fiems was tearful Friday as she described the “wrong choice” she and her husband made.

The Creston Police Department reports a hit and run was solved on Tuesday morning. Officers were called to the scene of an accident on Montgomery Street in Creston at 8:00am. It was discovered that a legally parked 2008 Ford Fusion was on the north side of Montgomery Street facing west when it was side swiped by another vehicle. Damage to the other vehicle that left the scene left tracks on the road that officers followed to its location. The other vehicle was found to be a 2006 Ford Explorer driven by 33-year-old Heather Anne McNichols of Creston. McNichols told officers that she thought she had hit the curb. She was determined to be at fault for the accident which caused $2,000 to the parked Fusion and $1,500 to the Explorer. No injuries were reported.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An 18-year-old Iowa man who was driving roughly 70 mph just before a fatal crash in a 35 mph zone last fall is now facing charges. The Des Moines Register reports that Charles Hunter Everman was charged last month with vehicular homicide and causing serious injury in connection with the Nov. 5 crash. Everman has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Prosecutors say data from Everman’s 2012 Toyota Highlander showed he was driving between 68 mph and 72 mph shortly before the crash that killed 38-year-old Samantha Jo Kriegel in another car. Two passengers in Everman’s vehicle were also hurt.

While the court case is pending, Everman has been released on a $15,000 bond.