(Radio Iowa) – Volunteers from the Central Iowa Chapter of the American Red Cross are already in Mississippi, which was hit by multiple tornadoes over the weekend, killing at least 25 people.

Emily Holley, with the Nebraska-Iowa Region of the Red Cross, says only a few Iowans are in the disaster area so far, but more will be deploying. “We expect there to be quite a bit more, depending on what the needs are down there,” Holley says. “Disaster assessment is always in motion because the storms are not finished yet, and we expect there to be more devastation.”

It’s estimated at least 27 tornadoes hit five Southern states on Friday night and Saturday morning, though Mississippi was the hardest hit with at least ten tornadoes. An EF-4 twister, with top winds of 170 miles an hour, struck the town of Rolling Fork, Mississippi, leveling a large portion of the community. Another tornado was on the ground in Mississippi for 59 miles. Holley says the Red Cross teams from Iowa will be offering what’s called mass casualty care.

“We are opening shelters for folks who are unable to stay in their homes, their homes aren’t safe, so obviously, we don’t want them in that situation,” Holley says, “so we are opening up shelters so that folks can get the support that they need, meals, a bed, showers.” While the disaster support volunteers receive extensive training, seeing the widespread damage up-close and comforting survivors can be a difficult job.

“One of the things that we do is, after they have come home, they work with Red Cross staff to kind of debrief the event,” Holley says, “so if they need more support processing that devastation, we are able to provide that for them.”

For Iowans who’d like to offer financial help, Holley says the quickest avenue is the agency’s website. “We want to be able to send more supplies and help down there, and we also want to be prepared for the next disaster, wherever it may strike,” Holley says, “and so the best way to give is going to be at Redcross.org/donate.”

You can also call in a donation toll-free at 1-800-HELP NOW.

(Radio Iowa) – A subcommittee in the Iowa Senate has advanced a bill that would toughen penalties for convicted felons caught with a gun. The bill easily cleared the House last Tuesday on an 88-to-six vote.

Tony Phillips, a lobbyist for the Iowa State Sheriffs and Deputies Association, said the bill would be a useful tool for county law enforcement agencies. “You end up dealing with the same types of these people over and over and you have a hard time getting the correct punishment to get them off the streets,” Phillips said during a Senate subcommittee hearing today. “It’s really more about making sure the good guys out there are unaffected, but you have tools to go after some of the more serious crime and repeat crime in the state.”

The bill calls for a mandatory two year sentence in state prison for a felon caught for the first time with a gun. A felon convicted a fourth time for illegally possessing a gun would have to serve at least a decade in state prison. For the past few years, federal prosecutors have been focusing on cases involving felons with serious criminal records who’d been caught with a firearm during an arrest. Senator Jeff Reichman, a Republican from Montrose, said relying on federal prosecution has become a concern because there’s a backlog of these cases in the federal system.

“This (bill) is against the bad actors and keeps them off the street and overall reduces crime,” Reichman said.

A Legislative Services Agency analysis indicates the state will spend at least $2.8 million more each year if the bill becomes law. That’s because about 30% of people with felonies who are convicted in state court of having a gun are being sent to state prison today. Most are placed in the community based system that’s an alternative to jails and prison.

(Radio Iowa) – The number of students who took an Iowa community college course while in high school increased by around six percent in the past school year. The Department of Education’s Jen Rathje says that continues a recovery following the pandemic.”You can kind of see there was a slight dip after 2020. We are continuing continuing to see participation, rebound and is back on the rise in the program,” she says. Rathje says pandemic dip was only recent downturn in the joint enrollment program in the last several years. “From 2004, the growth has been 137-point-nine percent — with an average annual growth rate of four-point-nine percent,”Rathje says.

She says the program is popular because it gives students a jump on college and they are able to complete their degrees and enter the workforce quicker, while saving money. “In Iowa, about two out of every five community college students are also a high school student. And so overall, jointly enrolled students accounted for 42-point-six-percent total community college enrollment across the state, and 11 of our community colleges enroll more jointly enrolled students than the state average,” Rathje says. Northeast Iowa Area Community College had the most jointly enrolled students.

“With 52-point-one percent of overall student enrollment being comprised of jointly enrolled students, Followed by Southwestern Community College with jointly enrolled students making up 47-point-three percent of total enrollment,” she says. Rathje says the increase in community college enrollment comes along with a decrease in full time college enrollment. Nearly 43 percent of students who also took community college classes were seniors with just more than 35 percent juniors. The full report is available on the Department of Education’s website.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – March 27, 2023 – If you travel on Iowa 175 in Monona County three miles east of Monona County Road L-12 you need to be aware of a construction project that may slow down your trip. The Iowa DOT says beginning at 9 a.m. on Monday, April 3 until July 7, weather permitting, traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction with a ten-foot lane-width restriction in place as crews work to replace a bridge deck.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – March 27, 2023 – Drivers on Iowa 175 in Onawa need to be aware of a construction project that may slow down their trip. Officials with the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) say beginning at 8 a.m. on Monday, April 3 until Oct. 1, weather permitting, traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction as crews work to replace the Iowa 175 bridge over McCandless Cleghorn Ditch.

Help keep everyone on the road safer. Drive with caution, obey the posted speed limit and other signs in the work area, and be aware that traffic fines for moving violations are at least double in work zones. As in all work zones, you should stay alert, allow ample space between vehicles, and wear seat belts.

The latest traveler information is available anytime through The Iowa DOT’s 511 system. Visit 511ia.org; call 511 (within Iowa) or 800-288-1047 (nationwide); stay connected with 511 on Facebook or Twitter (find links at https://iowadot.gov/511/511-social-media-sites); or download the free app to your mobile device.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Sheriff’s Office reports four arrests covering March 22nd through the 25th. On the 25th, Deputies arrested 20-year-old Lacey Ray Breece, of Greenfield, on an Adair County Felony warrant for Criminal Mischief in the 2nd Degree, and Operating a vehicle without the owner’s consent. Breece was being held on a $5,000 cash-only bond.

On the 23rd, Police in Adair charged 21-year-old Lindsey Lee Gay, of Ames, when a records check showed she was wanted in another County. She was taken into custody after an Adair Police Officer saw a pickup parked on the Exit 76 on-ramp to I-80. The officer saw the woman walking ahead of the vehicle, upset and crying. She claimed her boyfriend dropped her off on the side of the road after he had stolen a car.

She was subsequently arrested on a Story County warrant for Failure to Attend OWI post treatment and Failure to Submit completion of a substance abuse evaluation and drinking driver course for OWI/1st offense. After being transported to the Adair County Jail, Gay was additionally charged with Interference with official acts, for refusing to submit her property to authorities at the jail, and fought with the officer. She also threw her shoe at the jailer. She plead guilty to the Interference charge, and was released to Story County Deputies on the 24th.

On March 23rd, 30-year-old Cristian Ortiz, of Adair, was arrested by Adair Police on Dallas County,Texas warrants for Assault on a Peace Officer/Judge and Possession of a Controlled Substance. Ortiz remains in the Adair County Jail on a $20,000 bond. And, on March 22nd, 20-year-old Ashlen Marie Knutsen, of Bridgewater, was issued a summons (Citation) for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, following a traffic stop on a vehicle with an improperly illuminated headlight. Upon further investigation, the Deputy detected the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle and noted Knutsen did not have a valid driver’s license.

A search of the vehicle lead to the discovery of two used orange THC vape pens inside the woman’s purse, along with a THC oil cartridge, and a clear plastic food container with apparent marijuana, a green, bud-like material. Knutsen’s under 21 passenger also possessed tobacco vape pens. In addition to the citation, Knutsen received multiple written warnings for the traffic violations and vaping products.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa House has passed a bill to let older teenagers get a state license so they can cut and style hair in a salon or barber shop. Current Iowa law requires someone to get a high school degree or G-E-D before they may get a cosmetology or barbering license. The bill says anyone who’s completed 10th grade and finished training at a school for barbers and cosmetologists could get a state license if they’re at least 16 years old. Representative Derek Wulf, a Republican from Hudson, says schools that train cosmetologists and barbers in Iowa do require that students have completed high school, so it’s redundant to keep that requirement in state law. “We’ve heard from several 17 year old high school students who have wrapped up their senior year of high school and they really want to start their classes, but unfortunately the way the law stands today, they cannot do that.”

And Wulf says Iowa would not be unique in letting older teens get cosmetology licenses. “Other Midwestern states that have the same 16 year old requirement include South Dakota and Ohio. Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska have a 17 year old age requirement,” Wulf says. “Minnesota doesn’t have an age requirement, but requires a high school diploma or equivalent.” Representative Amy Nielsen, a Democrat from North Liberty, supports OTHER parts of the bill, but she says lowering the age may encourage teens to drop out of high school.  “I think as the education state, we are doing ourselves and our children a disservice,” Nielsen says.

The bill passed the House on an 84-to-11 vote. A similar bill has passed a committee in the Iowa Senate, but it would not allow 16 and 17 year olds to become licensed cosmetologists or barbers. Other parts of BOTH bills would dramatically reduce the schooling required to get a state cosmetology or barbering license. Under current law, students must complete 21-hundred hours of classroom instruction and supervised cutting and styling of hair to get a license. The bill would reduce that by about 26 percent. The House and Senate bills also would combine the Iowa Board of Barbering and the Iowa Board of Cosmetology Arts and Sciences.

(Harlan, Iowa) – The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office has issued a report on arrests taking place from March 1st through the 19th. On the 19th, 34-year-old Lacy Jean Christensen, of Council Bluffs, was arrested on an active Shelby County Warrant for Violation of Probation. On March 18th, 30-year-old Lucas Badillo-Rubio, of Harlan, was arrested following a traffic stop on Highway 59. Badillo-Rubio was charged with OWI 1st, Open Container, and Failure to Maintain Control.

On the 12th, 31-year-old Michael John Tremayne, of Harlan, was arrested following a traffic stop on Spring Street, in Harlan. Tremayne was charged with Driving while License Denied or Revoked, Keeping Premises or Vehicle for Controlled Substance, Possession of Controlled Substance, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Tremayne was also arrested the previous day, March 11th, following a traffic stop at 7th St and Elm St., in Harlan. He was charged with Driving while License Denied or Revoked, Operating without Interlock Device, Failure to use a seat belt, Failure to Provide Proof of Financial Liability, Driving while License is Suspended, and Failure to Transfer Title on Motor Vehicle.

On the 10th of March, 33-year-old Benjamin Tomoya Sorensen, of, Harlan, was arrested following a traffic stop at Umbrella Road and Highway 44. Sorensen was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance (3 counts), Keeping Premises or Vehicle for Controlled Substance, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Improper Rear Lamp.

Back on March 7th, 33-year-old Sarah Elizabeth Koester, of Harlan,  was arrested following a traffic stop at 1600th St. and Hwy 59.  Koester was charged with Driving Under Suspension. And, on March 1st, Faith Merritt Peterson, age 42, of Harlan, was arrested on an active Shelby County Warrant. Peterson was charged with Violation of Probation.

Note: Criminal charges are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law.

(Guthrie Center, Iowa) – The Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office reports four recent, property damage accidents. At around 2:20-a.m. today (Monday), a 1997 Chevy Lumina driven by 21-year-old Haylee Jo Petersen, of Adair, was traveling east on 330th Street, when Petersen attempted to turn south onto Indigo Avenue. Her vehicle went into the ditch, and out into a field. She tried to get out of the field, but her car became stuck in a small creek in the field. The car sustained $1,501 damage,

At around 8-a.m., Sunday, a 2014 Ford F350 Super Duty pickup driven by 19-year-old Michael Truman Maas, of Adair, was traveling west on 310th Street, when, due to the weather conditions, the vehicle went out of control and into the south ditch before colliding with an embankment. The pickup sustained $15,000 damage. At around 8:05-a.m. Sunday, a 2006 Ford Expedition was traveling north on Wagon Road, when the driver, 18-year-old Avery Sue Hazen, of Stuart, lost control on the snow covered roadway. The SUV went into the north ditch and rolled over before coming to rest on its wheels, in a field. The vehicle sustained $7,500 damage.

And, at around 10:20-a.m., Sunday, a 2019 KIA Soul driven by 40-year-old Jeremy R. Nunes, of Riverton, IL, was traveling south on Highway 25 when it went out of control and into the west ditch. The SUV sustained minor damage to the passenger side front bumper area upon impact with the ditch ($2,500 damage estimate).

There were no injuries and no citations issued following those accidents.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Board of Supervisors will meet Tuesday at 9-a.m. in their Courthouse Boardroom. On their agenda is a presentation from Kate Olson, with Cass County Extension. She is expected to make a request for ARPA funds, to temporarily expand the role of the Cass County Wellness Coordinator, to address local public health priorities, and assist in long-term pandemic recovery efforts.

The Board will also consider and possible act on approving updated Cass County Public Safety Commission Articles of Agreement, and, Resolution 2023-05 Opioid Settlement Agreement, Memorandum of Understanding between the Board of Supervisors and Zion Recovery Services.

A regular, weekly report from Cass County Engineer Trent Wolken will be presented, as well.