A red wooden wagon, a piece of one of the most infamous cold cases in Iowa history, is going to be on display at this year’s Iowa State Fair. Ron Sampson of Des Moines has possession of the wagon – which was being used by Johnny Gosch on the morning of September 5, 1982 to deliver newspapers. The wagon was left behind when the 12-year-old boy vanished. So, why does Sampson want to showcase the wagon at the Fair? “We’re certainly not trying to commercialize anything,” Sampson says.

Gosch’s apparent kidnapping remains unsolved 35 years later — despite countless news reports, a documentary, and books about his disappearance. Sampson says he wanted to put the wagon on display for all fair-goers to see as a “tribute” to Gosch’s parents.  “John and Noreen went on a crusade to make things safer for young children, for parents, and helping law enforcement with getting things done and reported,” Sampson said. “I guess I would reach back and say they were the very beginning of the Amber Alert. They were the first people to have a child on milk cartons.”

John and Noreen Gosch divorced in 1993. Sampson, now a real estate agent, became friends with the couple after their son disappeared. At the time, Sampson was owner of the Ankeny Press Citizen and he wrote a series of articles about the case. “They plowed some important ground legislatively and just everyday life. Things changed because of John and Noreen,” Sampson said. “I think if this wagon symbolizes anything it’s the great changes that they made happen for today’s parents.”

Johnny Gosch wagon

The Iowa State Patrol has agreed to include the wagon among its displays inside the Grandstand at the Iowa State Fair. Gosch’s father, John, sent the wagon to Sampson around a year ago. “He had the wagon and just said, ‘There needs to be a better place for it, a place that will touch people and mean something to people.’ He was going to start traveling at this point in his life and didn’t want anything to happen to the wagon,” Sampson said.

On the back of the red wagon, the name “Gosch” is painted in black lettering. The Iowa State Fair in Des Moines is scheduled for August 10-20.

(Radio Iowa)

A Jefferson man is jailed on charges including attempted murder after an altercation last week. Twenty-three-year-old Niko Lee Rice, of Jefferson, was taken into custody by the Jefferson Police Department Wednesday. According to authorities, officers were called to the scene of a physical altercation on Thursday, July 13 in Jefferson around 5 p.m. after a neighbor reported screaming. When officers arrived on scene, they found a female victim who showed signs of obvious injuries and trauma.

She told law enforcement Rice had struck her with closed fists and attempted to choke her with his belt. She was transported to Greene County Medical Center by Greene County Emergency Medical Services and later taken to a Des Moines hospital. Rice turned himself in soon after the incident and informed police he had ingested a large amount of prescription medication. He was taken to the hospital in Jefferson and later transported to a facility in Council Bluffs.

Authorities arrested Rice immediately after he was released from the facility Wednesday. He is currently being held at the Greene County jail and has been charged with attempted murder, a class B felony; willful injury, a class C felony’ domestic abuse assault and impeding airflow, a class D felony and second degree harassment, a serious misdemeanor.

(Radio Iowa)

ANKENY, Iowa (AP) – A state board has approved construction of a psychiatric hospital in Bettendorf. The Iowa Health Facilities Council voted 4-1 Thursday at its meeting in Ankeny in favor of the $15 million, 72-bed hospital proposed by Strategic Behavioral Health, which is based in Memphis, Tennessee.
The project was opposed by two major health care systems in the Quad Cities area. Their officials told the board they already offer sufficient services and would be harmed by a facility built by the for-profit company.

Supporters testified that the hospital would provide desperately needed mental health services for eastern Iowa. The Iowa Health Facilities Council is charged with determining whether large health care projects are necessary or whether they would create expensive duplication of services.

A chase in Council Bluffs early this morning, ended with a man taken into custody on multiple charges. According to Council Bluffs Police, 59-year old Michael J. Flanagan, of Council Bluffs, was booked into the Pottawattamie County Jail on charges that include: OWI/2nd offense; Leaving the Scene of a Personal Injury Crash; Leaving the Scene of a Property Damage Crash; Eluding; Interference with Official Acts; Driving While Disqualified; No Proof of Insurance – Accident related; and Improper Use of a Controlled Access Facility.

Michael Flanagan

His arrest followed an incident that began a little after 1:45-a.m.. Authorities say a Council Bluffs Police officer, in a fully marked vehicle, was driving north bound on South Expressway. As he was approaching the 900 block of South Expressway. he noted a vehicle, a Gray 2014 Ford Focus, driving directly at him. The vehicle was traveling in the wrong direction, south bound in the north bound lanes. The officer activated his emergency lighting in attempts to warn / stop the driver.

The vehicle continued south bound as the officer pulled to the side of the road to try to avoid being struck. The vehicle sideswiped the police cruiser causing minor damage and continued south bound. After striking the police cruiser, the car then struck another vehicle that was northbound behind the cruiser on South Expressway. The driver of the second vehicle was a 46-year old man from Council Bluffs. The Focus continued south bound after striking the second vehicle.

The officer was able to get turned around on the vehicle and attempted to initiate a traffic stop on it. The Focus refuse to yield and fled from the officer. Officers pursued after the vehicle and were able to deploy stop sticks on it flattening all four of the Focus’s tires. The vehicle was disabled and came to a stop in the parking lot of Casey’s General Store (at 510 23rd Ave). Officers were able to take the driver, later identified as Flanagan, into custody.

The 46 year old male driver of the vehicle Flanagan struck after striking the police cruiser suffered minor injuries and was treated at the hospital. The officer struck was not injured.

Police in Red Oak report the arrest Thursday evening, of 36-year old Daniel Edward Miller, of Elliott. Miller was taken into custody at the Montgomery County Law Enforcement Center on a valid Montgomery County warrant for Willful Injury. He remains in the jail on a $5,000 cash bond.

President Trump has nominated an Iowan who was a top policy advisor on Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign to serve as the U-S-D-A Undersecretary for research, education and economics. Sam Clovis, formerly of Hinton, Iowa, has been working in the U-S-D-A since Trump took office, serving as a liason to the White House. A year ago, this is how Clovis described being part of the Trump campaign.

“This may be the last rodeo I ever have. I can’t believe I’ve had this experience,” Clovis said. “But I will tell you this: I can’t imagine anything more important than what I’m doing right now because it’s about the country.” His nomination to be the top science advisor in the U-S-D-A has sparked controversy, as Clovis has said he’s skeptical of climate science.

“I have looked at the science and I have enough of a science background to know when I’m being boofed and I think a lot of what we see is ‘junk science’, so I’m a skeptic.” Clovis was asked about the topic during a 2014 interview on Iowa Public Radio. “Does man have an impact on the environment? Absolutely, but there’s a difference between having an impact on the environment and leading us to something that we have now changes from global warning now to climate change,” Clovis said,” because I’m not sure what climate change means.”

Clovis says he’s wary of efforts to restrict human activity deemed damaging to the environment.”What we see about a lot of this…is really about income redistribution from rich nations that are industrialized to nations that are not and it comes down to this false premise…that we ought to consume based on population rather than on the strength of our economy,” Clovis said. “If we have 20 percent of the world GDP, it wouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that we consume 20 percent of the energy of the world.”

Clovis finished second in the June 2014 Republican Primary for U.S. Senate and then he ran as the Republican Party’s nominee for state treasurer in the 2014 General Election. Clovis worked on Rick Perry’s presidential campaign, but after Perry dropped out of the race Clovis joined the Trump team in August of 2015. Clovis helped edit Trump’s most recent book as well. Clovis is a U-S Air Force veteran who was a Morningside College economics professor and talk show host on K-S-C-J Radio in Sioux City before he entered politics.

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:50 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Department of Corrections tells The Associated Press that about 80 inmates at a maximum security prison could face disciplinary action in connection to a large fight this month. That’s a far greater number of people than the state corrections department has publicly said were directly involved in the July 1 melee at the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison. The estimate could add weight to union claims that the state agency previously has downplayed the fight.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has issued a disaster proclamation for four counties in the northeast corner of Iowa that suffered storm damages. The governor’s office said Thursday that the proclamation covers Allamakee, Clayton, Fayette and Winneshiek counties raked by storms Wednesday. The proclamation allows state resources to be used to aid in recovery efforts. It also activates the Iowa Individual Assistance program for qualifying residents of the four counties.

FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) — A Lake Mills man has been found guilty of killing two people and trying to kill another in Mason City last year. The Globe Gazette reports that a jury on Thursday found 31-year-old Peter Veal guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder. Prosecutors say Veal shot Melinda Kavars and stabbed Caleb Christensen to death and tried to kill a witness, Ron Willis.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — A Muscatine man has been sentenced to decades in federal prison for possessing and distributing child pornography. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa says in a news release that 36-year-old Casey John Blain was sentenced Thursday in a Davenport federal courtroom. Prosecutors say Blain admitted to having at least 369 images and at least 267 videos of child pornography that he shared with others on the internet.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Drought conditions in some areas and weak grain prices are among factors weighing heavily on the rural economy in parts of 10 Plains and Western states. The overall Rural Mainstreet Index for the region plummeted to 40.7 in July from June’s index of 50. The index ranges between 0 and 100, with any number under 50 indicating a shrinking economy.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says July’s was the largest one-month decline recorded in the index since November 2008, which was in the middle of the Great Recession. The confidence index, which reflects bankers’ expectations for the economy six months out, slumped to 38.4 this month from 48.9 in June.

Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.

Page County Sheriff Lyle Palmer reported Thursday, that a Braddyville man was arrested Tuesday evening following a traffic stop four-miles east of Clarinda. 47-year old John David Stone, of Braddyville, was arrested for driving while license is barred, an Aggravated Misdemeanor. He was transported to the Page County Jail and held on a $2,000 bond, pending an appearance before a Magistrate Judge.

Officials with the Cass County Health System say the next session of “Healthy U” is scheduled for noon on Thursday, July 27th at Cass County Health System. Presenting will be CCMH Laboratory Director Mitch Whiley, who says “A hospital lab is a behind-the-scenes area, but the information that we are able to provide is critical to our providers and patients.”

The presentation will cover background information about the lab, including services offered and staff. Mitch will also present a general overview about routine lab tests and results.

Mitch Whiley, MLS (ASCP)

Whiley says “We really want all of our patients to have information about their overall health including things like their cholesterol, blood sugar, and organ function. But understanding your results and reading the reports can be confusing. We will go over the reports and [MW1] provide a brief explanation on our most common lab tests, however, we always encourage patients to talk with their providers directly about what their personal results mean.”

Healthy U is a free educational lunch series at Cass County Health System held monthly in Conference Room 2. The public is invited and welcome to attend, but reservations are required as lunch is provided for all attendees. Call 712-243-7479 to reserve your seat.