The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office reports their K9 “Axel” will receive a bullet and stab protective vest, thanks to a charitable donation from non-profit organization Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. K9 Axel’s vest is sponsored by Laura and Joe Libby of Kent, WA and will be embroidered with the sentiment “This gift of protection provided by Vested Interest in K9s, Inc”. Delivery is expected within eight to ten weeks.

K-9 Axel is a 2 year old Belgian Malinois, who was purchased in November of 2015 from Code2K9 in Omaha.

K9 Axel (from the Audubon County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page)

Axel and his handler, Deputy Nathan Tibbets, certified in narcotics in December of 2015 and later certified in tracking and evidence recovery in early 2016. Axel and Deputy Tibbets will also soon be certified in handler protection. Axel and Deputy Tibbets have spent hundreds of hours training and have had several narcotic finds.

The Audubon County Sheriff’s Department thanks Laura and Joe Libby for their generous donation and Vested Interest in K9s for providing the vest. The vest will be a great way to protect Axel when he is out working with the public.

About Vested Interest in K9s, Inc.:

Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. is a 501c (3) charity located in East Taunton, MA whose mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related agencies throughout the United States. The non-profit was established in 2009 to assist law enforcement agencies with this potentially lifesaving body armor for their four-legged K9 officers. Since its inception, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provided over 2,200 protective vests, in 50 states, through private and corporate donations, at a cost of over 1.9 million dollars. All vests are custom made in the USA by Armor Express in Central Lake, MI.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – A February trial has been scheduled for a Council Bluffs woman accused of placing one of her infant son’s arms in a mug of coffee to prove to him it was hot. Court records say 36-year-old Rebecca Brahier entered a written plea of not guilty Tuesday to felony charges of willful injury and child endangerment. Her trial is set to begin Feb. 7.

Brahier told police the 10-month-old tried to touch the mug several times on Nov. 19 before she put his arm in the mug. Officers say she told them she was proving her point to the child: The coffee was hot. Doctors say the boy suffered second-degree burns. Police say the boy’s father didn’t know about the incident.

Three Iowa chapters of a breast cancer-fighting agency are joining forces. The affiliates are Susan G. Komen Iowa, Komen Quad Cities and Komen Siouxland. The merged affiliate, Komen Greater Iowa, will have its main office in Des Moines with offices and staff also in the Quad Cities and Siouxland. Komen Greater Iowa will serve all of Iowa’s 99 counties plus Henry, Mercy, Rock Island and Whiteside counties in Illinois; Dakota and Thurston counties in Nebraska; and Union County in South Dakota.

Susan G. Komen is known for its fight against breast cancer. The organization says the merger of the three affiliates will increase efficiency and stewardship by centralizing some functions, leveraging staff and volunteer leadership, and merging granting and funding relationships.

(Radio Iowa)

The Adair County Board of Supervisors met Tuesday morning in Greenfield, and elected Steve Shelley as their Board Chair. They also elected Jodie Hoadley as Vice-Chair.

In other business, the Board held a Public Hearing on a Fiscal Year 2017 Budget Amendment, during which Auditor Mindy Schaefer said there were no objections. One part of the amendment pertained to County Engineer Nick Kauffman and the Adair County Secondary Roads Department.

The Board approved a Resolution amending the budget as stated, along with a related Appropriations Resolution. And, Schaefer said the Board talked about salary increases for elected officials, but ended-up tabling action on the matter until later this week.

The Adair County Board of Supervisors passed the 2017 Master Matrix Resolution, as it pertains to the construction of new livestock confinement facilities.

Iowa Republican Senator Joni Ernst will visit parts of southwest Iowa Saturday, during her 99 County Tour of the State. Ernst, from Red Oak, will hold a Montgomery County Town Hall Meeting beginning at 9-a.m. Saturday, at the Montgomery County Family YMCA, in Red Oak.

Later that evening, beginning at 5:30, she’ll be in Page County visiting with students at the Clarinda Academy. Prior to her stop in Clarinda, though, Ernst will be in Winterset, for a “Coffee with Joni,” which takes place at the Northside Cafe (61 E. Jefferson St.), beginning at 2:30-p.m.

DURANGO, Iowa (AP) – Authorities have released the names of a man killed and another injured while repairing a tractor in Dubuque County. The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office identified the dead man as 84-year-old Cletus Klein, who lived in Durango, and the injured man as his 53-year-old son, Randy Klein, also of Durango.

The accident occurred at a farm around 2 p.m. Monday. The Sheriff’s Office says the tractor slipped into gear during the repairs and ran over the two men.

Sheriff’s officials in Union County says 52-year old Robbie Allen Dohrn, of Creston, was arrested Dec. 29th at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, on a Union County Warrant for probation violation.  Dohrn was being held in the Union County Jail on $4,000 bond.

The Sheriff’s office says also, three residents reported incidents of theft and/or vandalism. On Monday, a Lorimor woman told authorities someone had taken jewelry and cash from her home. The theft, which had occurred sometime over the previous 24-hours, resulted in a loss of about $615.  On Saturday, a Creston woman reported that sometime that evening, someone someone broke out the windshield of her vehicle while it was parked at the Chicken Inn, and took her purse along with a purse that belonged to another woman from Creston. Each purse was valued at $50. Damage to the vehicle windshield was estimated at $100.

And, last Friday, a man from Lorimor reported to the Union County Sheriff’s Office, that sometime since Dec. 28th, someone had entered his garage and took a Black & Decker jig saw, Snap-On tool box, and a router.  The estimated value of the stolen items was $220.