The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports an investigation Sunday into an alleged assault Villisca resulted in an arrest. 48-year old Douglas Franklin Nicholas, of Villisca, was taken into custody a little after 2:30-p.m. on charges that include Domestic Assault, Obstruction of Emergency Communication and Criminal Mischief in the 4th degree, Nicholas was arrested in the 300 block of S. 3rd Avenue and brought to the Montgomery County Jail, where he was being held on $1,000 bond.

(Used during overnight news 7/5-6)

A new online tool has been created to help gauge the well-being of Iowans and “nudge” Iowans to make improvements. Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds is encouraging Iowa businesses, communities and schools to use it. “This assessment tool is a great resource for those who want to seek change and positively impact the health of our state, but they may not know where to start,” Reynolds says. “The assessment tool will provide immediate feedback on opportunities for improvement and access to resources that will help support those improvements.”

Jami Haberl is executive director of the Healthiest State Initiative, which led the effort to create this test. “Being healthy extends beyond physical activity and nutrition,” Haberl says, “and it includes other factors such as tobacco and substance abuse, dental health, community engagement and emotional health. In the tool you’ll find questions about all of these areas.”

The online tool, which is free, is available at www.iowahealthieststate.com. A number of Iowa schools and businesses have already taken the assessment as part of a pilot project. Among them is: the Red Oak Senior High School; Wesley Life; Houghton State Bank; CDS Global, and RDG Planning and Design.

Answers are scored and provide immediate feedback on how Iowa schools, workplaces and communities support or put up roadblocks to the physical, emotional, intellectual, social, and spiritual health of Iowans.

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

COUNCIL BLUFFS ,Iowa (AP) — Council Bluffs Police say a bullet someone fired into the air wounded a 7-year-old boy who was watching fireworks with his grandparents. When the boy started crying and complaining about shoulder pain Saturday night, his grandparents initially thought he’d been hurt by fireworks. But while treating the wound, the boy’s grandmother discovered a .223 caliber bullet in the wound, which was about ¼-inch deep. The boy was treated at a local hospital and released.

FORT MADISON, Iowa (AP) — A 25-year-old inmate who escaped from the Iowa State Penitentiary Sunday morning was recaptured several hours later in Illinois. The Iowa Corrections Department says Justin Kestner was arrested by the Illinois State Police roughly 100 miles from the prison in Fort Madison, Iowa.

LANCASTER, Wis. (AP) — An Iowa girl has drowned during a family gathering on a Wisconsin island on the Mississippi River. The Grant County Sheriff’s Office says 2-year-old Bryle (BRIGH’-lee) Morgan of Waterloo, Iowa died early Sunday at an Iowa City hospital.

CLEAR LAKE, Iowa (AP) — After 50 years of marriage, one Iowa woman found the perfect gift for her husband: a kidney. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports Jan Maulsby donated one of her two kidneys to her husband Mike on Thursday. Family members say both are recovering well after the surgery. Mike Maulsby has been undergoing dialysis treatments for about a year while waiting for a kidney donation, but that takes an average of three to five years.

Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater credits a deputies’ special training in information gathering and sharing in making an arrest last week. Vandewater says at about 1:25 p.m., Tuesday June 30th, an Adair County Sheriff’s Deputy and Detectives from the Des Moines Police Department arrested 33-year old Johnny Saenz Jr., of Des Moines, at the Phillips 66 Food Mart on the south side of Interstate 80 in Stuart. Saenz, was charged with Robbery in the First Degree and is being held in the Polk County Jail. He is alleged to have robbed the First Class Credit Union in Des Moines on June 24th.

Vandewater says in early April this year, he sent a deputy to a two week L.E.I.N, or Law Enforcement Intelligence Network, school. While knowing the deputies’ being away from his local duties for that length of time is a bit of a burden for a small office, the Sheriff said they had needed to “bite the bullet” for a long time. They made some scheduling adjustments and made it work.

The primary goal of LEIN is information sharing. The deputy who arrested Saenz had just come back to work after having been off a week on vacation. Another deputy and the Greenfield Police Department had contact with Saenz in the middle of the preceding week in Greenfield. The LEIN-trained deputy learned of this, and while going through his LEIN information, he learned that Saenz was a suspect in the First Class Credit Union Robbery.

The LEIN deputy then contacted Des Moines Detectives and they initiated an investigation into Saenz’ current location, which culminated in his arrest in the Phillips 66 Food Mart parking lot. Vandewater says “The arrest of Saenz validates my belief that we have long needed to send a deputy to LEIN school. The criminal element is highly mobile and our ability to communicate and share information effectively and efficiently with other agencies is critical in the 21st century”.

For more information about L.E.I.N, go to http://www.dps.state.ia.us/intell/lein/index.htm

LANCASTER, Wis. (AP) — An Iowa girl has drowned during a family gathering on a Wisconsin island on the Mississippi River. The Grant County Sheriff’s Office says 2-year-old Bryle Morgan, of Waterloo, Iowa, died early Sunday at an Iowa City hospital.

According to the initial investigation, the child’s family was preparing for a group picture on an island on the Wisconsin side near Waupeton, Iowa, late Saturday afternoon. Bryle’s mother took her back to the boat to retrieve an item. When the mother got out of the boat, the girl was missing. Bryle was found moments later under a boat in the water.

Detective Rick Place says Bryle was wearing a life jacket before the incident, but it was removed for the group picture. He says there’s no indication of foul play.

An accident in Creston Saturday night resulted in $3,500 damage, but no one was injured. Authorities say a 2011 Chrysler Town and Country van was traveling east on West Adams Street at around 10:15-p.m., and had stopped because of traffic congestion at the intersection with North Lincoln Street, when the van was hit from behind by a 2010 Honda Insight.

The driver of the car, 27-year old Amanda Jean Putzier, of Creston, told authorities she didn’t notice the van, driven by 34-year old Corey Wayne Bisgard, of Ankeny, had stopped. The woman accidentally hit the gas instead of the brake when she got too close, the action of which resulted in the collision. There were no citations issued.

An inmate who escaped from the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison this (Sunday) morning, was captured about 100 miles away, south of Geneseo, Illinois.

Justin James Kestner

The Department of Public Safety notified the facility of his capture after 10 a.m., the officer said.

Iowa Department of Corrections spokesperson Fred Scaletta says 25-year-old Justin Kestner had been last seen at 1:30 a.m. during the routine count of the inmates. He was discovered missing at 4:45 a.m. Kestner is serving a 10 year prison sentence stemming from a 2009 theft charge out of Woodbury County. He robbed a Sioux City convenience store.

(WQAD/Radio Iowa)

Police in Council Bluffs say a stray bullet fired from a distance during 4th of July celebrations late Saturday night apparently came down a struck a 7-year old boy in the shoulder. Authorities say officers were called to the 2600 block of Avenue J at around 10:30-p.m. Saturday, to assist medics who were treated the boy.

Upon arrival, officers established the 7-year old had been outside in his driveway watching the neighborhood fireworks with his grandparents when he began crying and complaining of something hitting him in the right shoulder area.  His grandmother noticed a small amount of blood and thought that a firework had struck him. She took him inside to clean him up and calm him down when she discovered a bullet had worked its way out of the wound.

The wound appeared to be about one-quarter of inch in diameter and depth on the child’s right clavicle.  The bullet is believed to be a .223 caliber round which had been fired into the air and came down on the child as he was watching fireworks.  Judging by the size and depth of the wound, authorities say they believe the round was fired into the air a good distance away and had slowed considerably prior to striking him.

The child was taken to the hospital by his grandparents where he was treated and released. The Council Bluffs Police Department is once again warning the public against shooting firearms into the air in a celebratory manner. If anyone has any information regarding this incident please contact Crime Stoppers at (712)328-STOP.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s focus has traditionally been on food production, agriculture and natural resources but under the administration of President Barack Obama the USDA also has taken on a broader rural economic development role. The agency has funded energy projects, small business loans, upgrades to power lines and high speed internet.

Some don’t consider financial support for such rural development projects to be among the agency’s fundamental roles but Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack disagrees. Vilsack is now promoting newly available funding of up to $800,000 to support farmers markets and other local food initiatives.

The USDA since 2009 has invested $800 million in more than 29,000 local and regional food projects including investments in 1,000 local food projects in Iowa and 617 in Nebraska.