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Audubon County K9 dies after being hit by a vehicle

News

April 20th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

The Audubon County Sheriff’s Department late Friday evening, posted some sad news with regard to the death of a K9 officer. On their social media page, authorities said “It is with heavy hearts that the Sheriff’s Department informs the public of the passing of our K9, Axel. He was tragically hit by a passing vehicle while off duty.

Axel has served Audubon County for approximately 4 years. He has assisted with getting many dangerous drugs off the streets of Audubon County. He will be greatly missed!” County Attorney Sarah Jennings posted on her social media page, “We tragically lost a beloved member of Audubon law enforcement today in K-9 Deputy Axel. Without Axel, countless drug traffickers would still be out on our streets, and we are forever grateful to him for his selfless service.

He may not have died in the line of duty, but it’s not how you die that determines whether you’re a hero—it’s how you live. Here’s to honoring and remembering a hero and a great cop. Please send your thoughts and prayers to Axel’s handler and partner, Nate Tibbets, and Nate’s wife and family.”

No other details were provided.

K9 Officer Axel

Midwest Sports Headlines: 4/20/19

Sports

April 20th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Rookie Pete Alonso hit his seventh home run, Robinson Cano added three hits and the New York Mets held off the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4. Mets closer Edwin Diaz retired Yadier Molina on a flyball with runners at the corners for the final out. Lane Thomas hit a two-run homer in his first major league plate appearance, connecting in the St. Louis sixth. His shot scraped the top of the right field wall and originally was ruled in play, but became a home run after a replay review.

NEW YORK (AP) — CC Sabathia played stopper again for the Yankees in earning his first win of the season and Brett Gardner hit a two-run homer to help New York beat the Kansas City Royals 6-2. Mike Tauchman also went deep and the Yankees got four solid innings from their bullpen to bounce back from a listless performance against the last-place Royals in the series opener.

NEW YORK (AP) — Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson didn’t go into detail about what he said during a bench-clearing fracas with Kansas City earlier in the week after a report that he directed a racial slur at Royals pitcher Brad Keller. Anderson was suspended one game for his actions Wednesday. Benches cleared after Keller hit Anderson, who had celebrated an earlier home run, with a fastball. Keller was penalized five games and is appealing.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s Noor Ahmed is the only golfer at the college level or higher known to wear a hijab while competing. Ahmed says she hopes Muslim girls are watching her and encouraged to chase their dreams in environments where they might encounter fear, uncertainty and hostility. Ahmed has been the Cornhuskers’ No. 2 player most of the spring. She helped them win their first tournament title in five years.

Iowa early News Headlines: Saturday, April 20, 2019

News

April 20th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:50 a.m. CDT

MUSCATINE, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a woman is in stable condition after being rescued from an apartment fire in eastern Iowa. The Muscatine Fire Department said Friday in a news release that the fire was reported just before midnight Thursday. Arriving firefighters could see flames through the second story window and forced the door to the smoke-filled apartment. Firefighters found the woman and pulled her out. She was taken by ambulance to a hospital.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A series of infrastructure failures in a crumbling state dormitory caused a toxic gas leak at an Iowa police academy that sickened dozens of recruits and could have killed some of them. Workplace safety records obtained by The Associated press show that at least three recruits were poisoned by potentially lethal levels of carbon monoxide after an air handling unit and a vent malfunctioned Nov. 15 at the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy. The academy paid a $5,500 penalty to settle violations.

Stun guns on public university, community college campuses

News

April 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) — A bill likely to win final approval in the Iowa legislature next week would let most students carry stun guns on the university campuses in Ames, Cedar Falls and Iowa City as well as on community college property. Senator Amy Sinclair, a Republican from Allerton, says the reality is there’s an elevated risk of assault on college campuses. “Sexual assault, physical assault…we need to give young women and young men the opportunity to defend themselves from people who would wish them harm,” Sinclair says.

Representative Matt Windschitl, a Republican from Missouri Valley, says current Iowa law lets anyone above the age of 18 carry a stun gun, but some public colleges and universities have campus-wide bans on the devices. “Folks, what this boils down to is the simple fact that we’ve got people that are going out, living their life and they deserve the opportunity to be able to defend themselves,” Windschitl says.

Windschitl says stun guns are not lethal. “We are talking about devices that are meant to incapacitate somebody for a temporary amount of time, so that person that is being attacked can get away and go find the help that they need.” Nine senators and 37 members of the Iowa House opposed the bill.

Representative Mary Mascher, a Democrat from Iowa City, says a college campus — especially a football stadium — is not a place you’d want stun guns. “When you combine alcohol and sporting events, you could have a very dangerous situation,” Mascher says. “Right now the NCAA’s ‘best practices’ for the NCAA championship competitions instructs a prohibition of weapons of any kind at these events.”

Representative Chris Hall, a Democrat from Sioux City, opposed the bill, suggesting it is condescending to women. “We’re telling women they should feel empowered to carry a weapon,” Hall said. “Wouldn’t it be empowering, instead, to tell them they can trust the people around them on campus and have higher level of trust because those men have actually gone through some sort of training or education that gender violence is wrong?”

The proposal won approval in the Iowa Senate in mid-March. The House voted to add language that would prohibit anyone with a felony conviction from carrying a stun gun on a public college or university campus in Iowa. The Senate is expected to approve that caveat this coming week and send the bill to the governor for her review.

Ames man charged with animal torture after stabbing puppy

News

April 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) — An Ames man is being held in the Story County Jail on a charge of animal torture. Twenty-year-old Rashdi D. Simba is accused of stabbing a German Shepherd puppy on April 14th and putting the puppy in a dumpster.

Police notified Ames Animal Control to assist in the investigation. The puppy was taken to a vet clinic for treatment and is now in the Ames Animal Shelter. Ames

Police said Simba admitted to stabbing the puppy and placing him in the dumpster. The bond for Simba was set at $6,500.

FEMA Disaster Survivors Assistance Teams Working in Pottawattamie County

News

April 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

COUNCIL BLUFFS – Today (Friday), personnel from FEMA’s Disaster Survivors Assistance Teams (DSAT) began work in flood affected areas of Pottawattamie County. The teams are assigned to go into flood impacted areas and make contact with those affected by the disaster. Team members will be able to validate whether residents are registered for FEMA assistance programs, check the status of their case, or assist them in registering for assistance with the agency.

Starting next Tuesday (April 23rd), residents will also be able to register for assistance at a Disaster Recovery Center (DRC), which will be located at the Council Bluffs Public Library. Dates and times of DRC operations can be found on the Emergency Management flood page at www.pottcounty-ia.gov.

Emergency Management Director Doug Reed says all FEMA DSAT personnel working in the county will have FEMA labeled clothing and government issued FEMA photo identification. As a reminder, impacted residents can register for federal assistance in the following ways:

  • Go online to www.disasterassistance.gov
  • Download the FEMA app on your smartphone (www.fema.gov/mobile-app)
  • Call 1-800-621-3362 for voice, 711 for video relay services, or 1-800-462-7585 for TTY service. Multilingual operators are available.
  • Visit the Disaster Recovery Center (DRC). To find the nearest DRC, go online to www.fema.gov/DRC.

For more information, including DRC location and hours of operation next week in Council Bluffs, visit https://pottcounty-ia.gov/departments/emergency-management/flood-2019-march-12th-continuing/.

Guthrie County Sheriff’s report (for April 12-19)

News

April 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

The Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office, Friday afternoon, released a report on arrests that occurred over the past week. From most recent to earliest:

April 19thJacob Way, of Guthrie Center, was booked into the Guthrie County Jail on a warrant for Domestic Abuse Assault with Injury or Mental Illness 1st Offense. Way is currently being held on without bond.

April 17thIan Kimmes, of Carroll, was detained following a traffic stop in Bagley. Kimmes has pending charges of Possession of Marijuana 1st Offense and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.  A body specimen was collected from Kimmes for the purposes of determining whether Kimmes was operating while under the influence of marijuana. Again, all charges are pending.

April 15th

  • Leslie Wiles, of Coon Rapids, was booked into the Guthrie County Jail to serve two days for an Operating While Intoxicated 1st Offense conviction.
  • Terri Caraher, of Guthrie Center, was booked into the Guthrie County Jail to serve three days for a Probation Revocation. The original charge was Operating While Intoxicated 1st Offense.
  • Jodie Rosenbeck, of Guthrie Center, was booked into the Guthrie County Jail to serve seven days for a Probation Revocation. The original charge was Possession of Marijuana 1st Offense.
  • Ronald Becker, of Carroll, was arrested on a warrant for Probation Violation. Becker was booked into the Guthrie County Jail and ordered to serve two days. After serving two days, Becker was released from custody.

April 14th

  • Jeffrey Frain, of Jamaica, was arrested for Operating While Intoxicated 2nd Offense following a traffic stop in Yale. Frain was held on a $200 cash bond by the Guthrie County Magistrate. Frain later posted bond and was released.
  • Adrian Erwin, of Ames, was arrested for Operating While Intoxicated 1st Offense following a traffic stop in Guthrie Center. Erwin was released from custody on a promise to appear for future court proceedings.

April 12th James Humlicek, of Exira, was arrested on a bench warrant for Probation Violation. The original charge was Public Intoxication 2nd Offense. Humlicek was released from custody after an appearance before the Guthrie County Magistrate.

Plea deal reduces charges against ex-Waukee schools official

News

April 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

WAUKEE, Iowa (AP) — The former chief operating officer of the Waukee school district has resolved criminal misconduct in office allegations by pleading guilty to lesser charges. Dallas County on Friday dropped felony charges against former Waukee chief operating officer Eric Rose.

Instead, Rose pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges related to his personal use of a district snowblower and his solicitation of district vendors to make donations to his son’s hockey team. The dismissed charges related to allegations that he directed staff to falsify time cards of a maintenance worker who ran an errand for him.

Rose was granted a deferred judgment, which means the charges will be dismissed after he completes one year probation, and fined $630. His attorney, Grant Woodard, said his client is satisfied with the agreement and “looks forward to putting this all behind him.”

Rose was charged in December after a state audit of the school district described a culture of questionable spending and management decisions by administrators.

Man guilty of trying to take internet domain at gunpoint

News

April 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A Cedar Rapids man who had his cousin try to hijack an Internet domain at gunpoint has been convicted in federal court. Federal prosecutors say 26-year-old Rossi Lorathio Adams II was found guilty Thursday of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by force, threats and violence.

Adams was the founder of social media company State Snaps, whose followers often used the slogan “Do It For State!” Adams tried for years to buy the domain doitforstate.com from a Cedar Rapids man, but the owner refused to sell.

Investigators say in 2017, Adams enlisted his cousin, Sherman Hopkins Jr., to break into the domain owner’s house and force him at gunpoint to transfer the domain to Adams.

Police say the man was shot in the leg as he and Hopkins struggled over the gun before the man wrestled the gun away and shot Hopkins several times. Hopkins was sentenced last year to 20 years in prison for the crime. Adams also faces up to 20 years when he’s sentenced at a later date.

Iowa’s Megan Gustafson wins Honda award for basketball

Sports

April 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

NEW YORK (AP) — Megan Gustafson of Iowa has won the Honda Sports Award as the top woman in college basketball. Gustafson led Division I women’s basketball with an average of 28 points this season. She owns Iowa records for most career points (2,804) and rebounds (1,460).

The 6-foot-3 center from Port Wing, Wisconsin, had 33 double-doubles in her senior season, tying an NCAA record. She led the Hawkeyes to the school’s first Elite Eight in 26 years and earned AP Player of the Year honors.

The other finalists were Asia Durr (Louisville), Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon) and Teaira McCowan (Mississippi State). Gustafson becomes eligible for Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year, which will be awarded June 24 on CBS Sports Network in Los Angeles.