The top middle school mock trial participants in the state will gather at the Iowa Events Center on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Dec. 6^th through the 8^th, to compete in the Twenty-ninth Annual Iowa Middle School Mock Trial State Tournament. The Iowa Mock Trial Program is presented by The Iowa State Bar Association Center for Law & Civic Education with the support of the ISBA Young Lawyer’s Division and the Iowa State Bar Foundation. This year more than 1,700 middle school students from throughout Iowa participated in the competition, the largest middle school mock trial program in the nation. Among them are students from the: Carroll, Harlan and Kuemper Catholic School Districts.

In a mock trial, students play the roles of attorneys and witnesses as they prepare and present both sides of a hypothetical legal problem. Practicing attorneys serve as judges who decide the case on the legal merits and who also assess student performances as attorneys and as witnesses. Participants are given a hands-on opportunity to examine the legal process and current legal issues. Mock trials also help students develop important critical thinking skills and aid in the development of fundamental research, preparation and presentation skills. This year’s Middle School problem deals with the issues of negligence and defamation.

The 34 teams of students advanced to the state competition based upon their performances at regional tournaments throughout the state earlier this month. The students will compete in three rounds of competition on Thursday and Friday, with the top four teams advancing to a semi-final round on Saturday morning, at the Iowa Judicial Branch Building.

The championship round features the semi-final winners presenting the final case starting at 1:30 p.m. in the Supreme Court Chambers of the Iowa Judicial Branch. A special awards program honoring all 34 teams, naming the top ten teams and recognizing individual “outstanding attorneys” and “outstanding witnesses” will begin at 5 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 7 at the Veteran’s Memorial Convention Center in downtown Des Moines.

Christmas is coming early to the Pottawattamie County town of Carson. The community is celebrating its 19th annual Christmas Celebration this (Wednesday) evening. The city is decked out in duct tape for this year’s event. Wilma McLaughlin, member of the Carson Christmas Committee, says the fun starts with a soup supper. She says the soup supper is hosted by the Carson Park board, with the proceeds for park improvements. The supper runs from 4-until 7-pm in the Carson Community Building. There will also be kids’ activities and art events at the Community Building this evening.

She says another great activity is the Reindeer run. It’s kind of like a “Poker Run,” and costs just five-dollars. Participants will pick up cards at local businesses. The person with the best hand will win a prize. The Carson Community Center and the Carson Fire Station will host the craft and vendor show for the Carson Christmas Celebration. McLaughlin says the number of vendors and crafts continue to grow. The vendors and crafts will show their merchandise from 4 to 8pm. The main event for the 19th annual Carson Christmas Celebration is “The Red Green Show” at the Dreamland Theatre.

Doors open at 5:45 and the first show starts at 6-p.m.. Santa Claus will arrive at 7-p.m., in between the two shows. Pictures can be taken with the Jolly Old Elf at the Photography studio. Doors open for the second show at 7:15 with the performance at 7:30.” A Duct Tape Fashion Show will kick off the show and tickets can be purchased for $4 at several businesses.

(Joel McCall/KNOD)

The Cass County Board of Supervisors set Dec. 12^th and 19^th as the dates for public hearings on an amendment to the Division of Taxes ordinance pertaining to the Amaizing Energy “Urban Renewal Area/TIF District. The amendment calls for the removal of certain parcels of land from the URA/TIF District, which Auditor Dale Sunderman says would be advantageous to the county, since they have already decreased in value. Another benefit would be to conserve what economic development incentives are available. The Board is currently waiting on legal advice before the amendment is redrafted and presented at the public hearings.

In other business, the board was asked by a member of the public about current efforts at reaching an agreement with County Employees in the Public, Professional and Maintenance Employee’s Union (PPME), which represents the County’s Secondary Roads Department. In October, the Board received the Union’s initial bargaining proposal, which was rejected. The following week, the County presented its initial proposal, and the two sides went into closed door session later to try and hash things out.

Efforts to reach an agreement are currently in Mediation. The board was asked if it goes into arbitration, how much “Power” does the Supervisor hold to try and reign in the Union’s request for a seven-percent rate increase for the first-year of the contract. They also called for a 4-percent increase across the board the second-year of the contract, and a 3-percent increase for the third-year, effective July, 2013, for a total increase of  14-percent increase over a three-year period. Supervisor’s Gaylord Schelling and Mark Wedemeyer are in on the negotiations, representing the County. Schelling said the next meeting is on the 17^th of December. The next step he says would be binding arbitration.

Wedemeyer said if the County is forced by the arbitrator to meet the demands of the Union, and not reach a compromise, there would likely be job reductions. He said the only thing they could do is to fund a certain portion to the department, until it comes to budget time. Schelling said the arbitrator will likely take into consideration what the level of pay is in other Counties the size of Cass, and what both sides are offering for those wages, when making a determination as to what the percentages should be.

w/ Ric Hanson

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Refund checks to Iowa taxpayers next year may not go out as promptly as they have in the past. Iowa Department of Revenue Director Courtney Kay-Decker says the slow down on the refund process is expected as her agency cracks down on fraud. “I hate to tell you, but I think we are going to slow that process down just a touch because we would like to make sure that we have the opportunity to do more front-end fraud checks,” Kay-Decker said at a recent Statehouse budget hearing. “It’s something we’re always working on and trying to keep on top of…whatever is the latest fraud.”

The director was reluctant to share information about how many tax filers they’ve caught asking for refunds they’re not entitled to.  “I do know we’ve stopped significant amounts of fraud. The criminals are always trying to be one step ahead of you and we don’t want them to know what we’re doing – other than that we’re doing it and we’re continuing to do more and more,” Kay-Decker said.

Governor Branstad praised the agency for its efficiency in issuing refunds in the past. Branstad said last year he got his state refund back well before his federal check arrived.

(Radio Iowa)

Thousands of community college students are learning this month that they’re receiving financial aid from a new state program that’s designed to address a skilled workforce shortage in Iowa. Heather Doe, with the Iowa College Student Aid Commission, says roughly 4,400 students will be the first recipients of an Iowa Skilled Workforce Tuition Grant. “It’s kind of a surprise to many of these students who are just finding out now that they’re receiving some assistance to help them this Fall and next Spring towards their tuition and fees,” Doe said.

The program is also referred to as the Kibbie Grant after former Iowa Senate President Jack Kibbie of Emmetsburg. Kibbie sponsored the bill that created the grant during the 2012 session. Students may quality for a grant if they’re from Iowa, are enrolled in at least 3 credit hours in a qualified course of study, file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) each year, and demonstrate a high level of financial need. The minimum Kibbie Grant award is one-half of the average Iowa community college tuition and mandatory fees per year. The maximum amount a student can receive is $2,040.

Doe notes a wide variety of programs at Iowa community colleges are covered by the program. “All sorts of fields in health care, computer science and technology, but also a lot of technical programs like machinists, plumbers, welders, carpenters and sustainable energy,” Doe said. Iowa Workforce Development estimates around half of all jobs in the state require an associate’s degree, certification or apprenticeship training — but only 33 percent of Iowa workers have such skills.

(Radio Iowa)

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NEBRASKA CITY, Neb. (AP) – William “Walkin’ Willie” Perkins was given a final farewell by friends in Nebraska City as his funeral procession left downtown and headed to southwest Iowa for his burial. The Lincoln Journal Star says Perkins was 79 when he died Nov. 27 at a Lincoln hospital. He’d been struck hit by a car on Nov. 6 in Nebraska City. Friends say Perkins got the nickname because he used to walk 16 miles from Hamburg, Iowa, to Nebraska City to work or pick up his mail.

Perkins became a downtown fixture, visiting friends in stores and offices, when he moved to Nebraska City 10 years ago.  Gude Funeral Homes had encouraged people to turn out Friday to watch as the procession turned down Central Avenue. He was buried in Riverton, Iowa.