The Iowa Court of Appeals has upheld two, first degree murder convictions for a Lake City man. In May, 2015, Thomas Guy Henderson was found guilty of the murders of 48-year old Tami DeVore and her son, 30-year old Karl DeVore. The pair were found dead May 18, 2014 at Tami DeVore’s home in Glidden. They died from blunt force trauma and, in the case of Karl DeVore, also of stabbing. Henderson was sentenced to Life in Prison for their deaths.

In his appeal, Henderson claimed ineffective counsel, that the trial court improperly admitted a hearsay statement, and the court abused its discretion in denying his motion for mistrial.

The Appeals Court said Henderson failed to show he was prejudiced, and therefore cannot maintain his ineffective-assistance claim. Additionally, they find the admitted statement was not a hearsay statement, and the court’s denial of his motion for mistrial was a proper exercise of the court’s discretion.

The Iowa Court of Appeals has upheld the first degree murder conviction of a man charged in a Fremont County case. In Feb., 2015, Brian Heath Davis was sentenced to life in prison for the July 2009 murder of Holly Ray Durben, from rural Shenandoah. He had appealed his conviction based on what he claimed was insufficient evidence, improper evidentiary rulings concerning expert-opinion testimony and prior-bad-acts evidence, improper denial of his motion for new trial, and ineffective assistance of counsel concerning the recall of a witness, expert-opinion testimony, and prosecutorial error.

In it’s ruling the Appeals Court found substantial evidence in the record to support the elements of murder in the first degree, and they rejected Davis’s call for acquittal. The court also rejected his two other assertions, and concluded Davis’s trial counsel did not breach an essential duty by failing to object to the State’s recall of a witness or to the prosecutors’ statements during closing arguments. However, the Court said “because further development of the record is necessary to assess Davis’s ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim related to the medical examiner’s opinion testimony regarding the location of Durben’s shotgun wound,” they preserved it for possible postconviction-relief proceedings.

Are you a farmer or are you involved in the agriculture industry? Are you curious where the ag markets might be headed this year?  If yes, plan on attending Iowa State University Extension and Outreach – Shelby County’s Farmer’s Coffee January 31st at 9:30 a.m. ISUEO Farm Management Specialist Shane Ellis will be presenting a market outlook for both crops and livestock. Low commodity prices are impacting both producers and other industries related to agriculture.  Knowing what to expect in the near future will help to make good management decisions for the future.

Please join us at the Shelby County Extension Office 906 6th Street for hot coffee and refreshments, catch up on the latest ag news, bring your questions, and visit with others and Shane about what the new holds for agriculture.  There is no cost.  This informational meeting is for anyone who is involved in the agriculture industry! Please call the Shelby County Extension and Outreach Office at (712)755-3104 for more information.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors, Wednesday, approved a change in zoning classification for several small parcels from the current General Agricultural, to a Light Industrial District, with regard to the Elite Octane ethanol plant project. Zoning Commissioner Rich Hansen said the Zoning Commission met last week, and recommended the Supervisors approve the change.

The Supervisors also received an update from County Engineer Charlie Bechtol, on the various County bridge projects, some of which, as you might expect, have not seen much progress, due to the weather, but others of which are almost finished. Charlie said four bridge projects have been completed by Massena. He said work continues by A-M Cohron, on a $650,000 bridge project [Bridge #134] near Massena. The end caps are expected to be poured this week.

Bridge #115 in the northern part of the County is under design. Bridge #123 is another A.M. Cohron project that should be done in about three weeks. Bridge #17 is being built by Cunningham-Reis. The old bridge was closed and removed. And, bridge #16 is finished. Bechtol says the Murphy Bridge on the Cass County line in the north is closed. The deck has been poured, but concrete railings still need to be installed. That bridge therefore, is still closed to the public.

And, Cass County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Kennon informed the Board about some meetings and events coming up in the next few months. He said Storm Spotter Training will be held for members of the public who are interested, at the Cass County Courthouse on March 8^th. The event takes place at 7-p.m. in the Courthouse Courtroom. And, on March 30^th and 31^st, the “Every 15 minutes” program will be held at the Atlantic High School and, in-part, at the hospital and Cass County Courthouse.

The program teaches students, through a mock accident, about the consequences of impaired driving, and provides emergency responders and law enforcement with an excellent training opportunity. The “accident, trial and sentencing” takes place the first day of the event, with a seminar on what the students take away from the experience taking place the second day.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors were asked today (Wednesday), to step-back and re-evaluate the process by which County employees are hired. The request came from new Board member Steve Green, who expressed concerns that a recent job posting for an Information Technology (I-T) person was not advertised as widely as it should be, and the job description was inadequate. Green said County Attorney Dave Wiederstein agreed with his assessment of the situation.

He said the recent job posting wasn’t presented to the media or in the local papers. Board Chair Gaylord Schelling said he followed the rules he said, which indicated the job must at the least, be advertised online, and it was posted on the County’s website. Green said Iowa Code requires the position be posted in the same method Supervisor’s meetings and so on, are posted.

He said when the Department Heads met, they indicated a need for a G-I-S (Geographic Information System) person more than an I-T person. Green said the little advertising that was done, was for an I-T person, and it was pretty vague at that. He said there is a feeling of “expediency” in getting the job posted without considering what qualifications are needed, what the job will be, and who is required to be informed of the opening.

Board Secretary/Cass County Auditor Dale Sunderman agreed the Board was “probably deficient” in handling the matter.

And, Schelling acknowledged he was a bit hasty in getting the posting up, but he said he was trying to save the County money with regard  to County’s current I-T provider.

In the end, the Board agreed to Green’s suggestion, and will re-post the job opening when more information has been gathered.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Authorities found a loaded handgun and 151 rounds of handgun and rifle ammunition inside the pickup of a man accused of killing two Des Moines-area police officers. Court documents filed last week say investigators also found more than 600 rounds of rifle and handgun ammunition at the home of Scott Greene. He’s pleaded not guilty to two murder charges in the Nov. 2 slayings of Urbandale Police Officer Justin Martin and Des Moines Police Sgt. Anthony Beminio.

The truck, a high-powered rifle and other evidence were found near where Greene turned himself in. Des Moines Police Department spokesman Paul Parizek says the amount of ammunition found wasn’t necessarily “alarming.” He says police are troubled by what Greene did, but not so much by his possessions.

Police in Glenwood say an unlicensed teenage driver was cited following a single-vehicle accident Monday afternoon on 240th Street. Officials say 14-year old Grant Thomas, of Glenwood, was driving a 2015 Ford Focus south/westbound on 240th at around 3:50-p.m., when he lost control as he was traveling too fast for road conditions. The car failed to negotiate a curve and left the road before hitting a cable guardrail. Damages amounted to $3,500. No injuries were reported.

Thomas was cited for Failure to Maintain Control and having no Driver’s License. Authorities say the car had been reported stolen earlier in the day, Monday.

Glenwood Police said also, 26-year old Maria Cadena, of Glenwood, was arrested Tuesday on a Douglas County, NE., warrant. Cadena was being held without bond in the Mills County Jail.

The Union County Sheriff’s Office says no injuries were reported following a collision Tuesday evening on Highway 34. Officials say a 2008 Chevy Suburban driven by 36-year old Andrew Warner, of Creston, was traveling west on Highway 34 at around 5:30-p.m. A 2014 Chevy Cruz driven by 51-year old Gary McDougal, of Afton, was traveling east. As both vehicles rounded a curve in the road, McDougal accidentally hit the steering wheel with his knee, causing the Cruz to cross the center line of the road and hit the Suburban on the left rear side.

Damage from the collision amounted to $6,000. McDougal was cited for Failure to Maintain Control.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office says a Crawford County man was arrested Tuesday night on drug and other charges. 32-year old Christopher John Terwilleger, of Dow City, was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Interference with Official  Acts.

Authorities say Sheriff’s Deputy’s were investigating a stalled vehicle near the intersection of Idlewood Road and Railroad Highway at around 10-p.m., Tuesday. Terwilleger, who was a front seat passenger in the vehicle, got out and ran westbound on Idlewood Road, in an attempt to elude law enforcement. As he refused deputies’ commands to stop, Terwilleger threw an object in the south ditch. The object turned out to be a white pill bottle with 6.4-grams of marijuana, and a metal pipe used to smoke marijuana.

Terwilleger was taken into custody and transported to the Pottawattamie County Jail.

More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (4.0MB)

Subscribe: RSS