PEOSTA, Iowa (AP) – The parents of a 13-year-old and the boy’s uncle have been accused of having the repeat runaway wear a chain belt attached to a weight. Court records say Cynthia Kobusch and her husband, Michael Kobusch, and her brother, Jeffrey Merfeld, have been charged with child endangerment. They live in Peosta. The records don’t list attorneys who could comment for them.

The records say the boy was known for running away. He told investigators his parents were out of town when Merfeld padlocked a chain around the boy’s waist and attached a weight. He also says his parents left the chain on for two days after they returned. The document says Cynthia Kobusch told an investigator she’d asked Merfeld to fashion a way to attach a GPS unit to her son.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports a Cass County man was arrested Tuesday night in Walnut. 18-year old Robert Lee Hitch, of Atlantic, was taken into custody without incident at around 8:45-p.m. as he sat in a vehicle located in a residential driveway in Walnut. He was wanted on a warrant for Interference with Official Acts.

And, a traffic stop at around 1-a.m. today (Thursday) at the intersection of Highways 59 and 6 outside of Oakland, resulted in the arrest without incident, of 38-year old Terrance Brierly, of Carson. Brierly was wanted on a warrant for Theft in the 5th Degree. He was also cited for Driving Under Suspension and Failure to Provide Proof of Financial Responsibility (SR-22 insurance).

If you haven’t yet had a chance to check out the book sale at the Atlantic Public Library, you still have time. The Library Auxiliary’s “Friends of the Library Semi-Annual (used) Book Sale” began Wednesday and continues through Friday (tomorrow), April 21st.

Ken Moorman, Publicity Chair for Friends of the Library, said the sale runs from 9-a.m. until 6-p.m. each day, and includes primarily reading materials, audio books, DVD’s, CD’s, and even VHS tapes, all priced at 25-cents to one-dollar.

Moorman says children’s books are always popular. All proceeds from the book sale benefit the Atlantic Library for Adult and Youth programs, of which more than 200 are held each year, thanks he says, to Library Director Natalie Struecker.

He says last year’s contribution to the Library amounted to over $4,000 for the combined Spring and Fall book sales.

Those who oversee the security at city halls and courthouses around the state are hoping to get some more information about what Iowa’s new gun bill signed into law by Governor Branstad will mean for them. The bill will allow the nearly a quarter of a million Iowans with a concealed weapons permit to carry their guns into the state capitol. Woodbury County Sheriff Dave Drew is in charge of security at the county courthouse.

“It’s still a little unclear because we’re waiting for the Attorney General’s opinion — which I think should come out within 30 days — of where courthouses that have existing courthouse security will stand,” Drew says.

The Iowa Judicial Branch, the Iowa County Attorneys Association and the Iowa Judges Association all opposed to the bill, which becomes law on July 1st. Sheriff Drew says there are also concerns about where someone carrying a gun could go after they enter the courthouse. “It covers more than just the courtroom, and that’s the definition we are trying to find out. Does that protect the whole courthouse?,” Drew explains. “Because the courthouse in itself isn’t just courts, it has the auditor’s office, the recorder’s office in there.”

The Sheriff says we live in a dangerous world, and emotions can run high in court hearings. “Judges and those involved in the criminal justice system, there’s a lot of days there’s a lot of threats made,” Drew says. “There’s threats made in the courtroom when we have divorce hearings, child custody hearings. You know, a secure and safe courthouse makes it easier for jurors. Jurors are concerned about coming to the courthouse and feeling safe.”

Woodbury County officials will meet in May to discuss their concerns about courthouse security.

(Radio Iowa)

Two students who escaped from court ordered custody at the Clarinda Academy this (Thursday) morning escaped, but were captured about three hours later. Clarinda Police Chief Keith Brothers reports the students, both from Minnesota, absconded from the Clarinda Academy at around 4-a.m.  They were apprehended at around 7-a.m. in the back yard of a residence in the 400 block of E. Lincoln Street in Clarinda, after a brief foot chase. They have since been returned to the facility for At-Risk and Delinquent youth, where they were ordered held by Ramsey County, Minnesota juvenile court authorities.

Assisting with the search and apprehension of the students were the Clarinda Police Department, Clarinda Academy staff, Clarinda Fire Department firefighters and the Clarinda CRHC/EMS staff.