Authorities in western Iowa are searching for a man who failed to return from a work release program this weekend. 25-year old Colton Edward Benson-Blaine was listed as escaped from the Council Bluffs Work Release Facility after he failed to return from his place of employment. Benson is described as being a white male, 6-feet 2-inches tall, weighing 232 pounds. He was blonde hair, blue eyes, and a scar on his right wrist.

Benson-Blaine was serving a 12-year sentence for out of Shelby and Pottawattamie Counties for Voluntary manslaughter, Operating a Vehicle without consent and Voluntary Absence. His sentence began Aug. 5th, 2011. He was transferred to Work Release on March 16th, 2016 under the authority of the Iowa Board of Parole.

If you see him, notify the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office, Council Bluffs Police, or your local law enforcement agency.

Colton Edward Benson-Blaine

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Legislature has taken another step toward adjournment by agreeing to budget spending targets, but lawmakers still must decide details over what areas of state government will actually get some of the limited new dollars available.

It’s unclear whether the split Legislature will reach consensus in time for an adjournment scheduled on April 19, but some legislative leaders believe it’s possible. It will come down to a set of budget groups that must allocate funding based on the spending targets. Many areas of state government will receive little new money.

Lawmakers agree there is about $7.34 billion to spend on the state budget that takes effect in July. It’s also unclear whether lawmakers will pass legislation before the session wraps up that addresses water quality initiatives or medical marijuana.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The three northern Iowa counties being sued by a Des Moines water utility have received $900,000 in donations to cover most of their legal bills, but officials won’t identify the donors. The Des Moines Register reports Sac, Buena Vista and Calhoun counties released released about 260 pages of legal records.

One of Calhoun County’s attorneys, David Wollenzien, says the counties are trying to get permission from donors to share more, but they don’t believe they’re required to identify them because state law exempts donations from foundations that support government.

The lawsuit filed last year by Des Moines Water Works alleges the three counties that oversee 10 agricultural drainage districts should be required to obtain federal water pollution discharge permits because they release pollutants into rivers much like regulated factories.

The Atlantic High School Building Trades Program steering committee is looking for someone to assist with the implementing the course. The program, “Project Renovate,” will initially enroll AHS juniors and seniors, and provide opportunities not accessible in a classroom environment, for students to work and learn in a construction field.

Industrial Technology teacher Derek Bair developed curriculum for the course, and students are in the process of registering for next year’s classes. The course will benefit those students who are interested in entering the world of work upon completion of high school, or those who might enroll at a technical college, upon graduation.

A steering committee for the program consists of local contractors, carpenters and land developers, who have been providing program guidance and development. The committee currently has two construction projects under review. They are looking for an individual who may be interested in assisting with the course.

The steering committee continues to work bi-monthly to help the program gain momentum and move forward. For more information, contact AHS Principal Heather McKay at 712-243-5358, Joann Runyon, Atlantic Middle School School-to-Work Coordinator, at 243-1330, or Superintendent Dr. Michael Amstein, at 243-4252.

Or, e-mail projectrenovate@atlanticschools.org.

Sheriff’s officials in Adams County say two men were arrested Saturday morning following a traffic stop on Highway 148 at 265th Street. During a consent search of the vehicle, a K9 unit located a nylon bag with six plastic jars containing cultivated, high-grade marijuana. A passenger in the car, Bruce Luverne Anderson, of Creston, was arrested for Possession of Marijuana and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. The driver, Austin Duane Binns, of Lenox, was arrested for Driving While Suspended. The men were being held in the Adams County Jail, where their bonds were set at $1,300.

Red Oak Police say a teenager faces an eluding charge and three moving violations, following a brief pursuit involving an ATV. Authorities say at around 7:40-p.m. Saturday, officers with the Red Oak P-D tried to stop an ATV near the intersection of Broadway and Coolbaugh Streets. The ATV failed to yield, and took off westbound on west Coolbaugh Street at a high rate of speed.

Officers pursued the ATV westbound to the levy area before the machine then turned south onto the levy and continued to try and elude officers at a high rate of speed. The ATV continued to the area of West Ohio and the Nishnabotna River, where the machine became stuck in a creek.

The driver, 16-year old Lee Allen Edds, Jr., of Red Oak, took off on foot but was apprehended a short time later by Montgomery County Sheriffs Deputies and Red Oak Police, on a sandbar next to the river. Edds was transported to the Montgomery County Law Enforcement Center, processed and then released to the custody of a parent at the request of Juvenile Court Services.

In addition to the eluding charge, Edds was cited for Failure to Obey a Stop sign, Operating an ATV on a public roadway, and for being a Minor in Possession of Tobacco/1st offense.

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office reports two separate ATV accidents Saturday resulted in two persons being injured. One of the accidents took place at around 2:40-p.m. at 130th Street and 260th Avenue. Officials say 18-year old Zachary Shively of Council Bluffs, suffered non-life threatening injuries when he lost control of the ATV he was driving as he was turning left onto 130th Street. The machine rolled over during the crash. Shively was transported by Sidney Rescue to Jennie Edmundson Hospital in Council Bluffs, for treatment.

The second accident happened at around 2:20-p.m. at 150th Street and 260th Avenue. An unidentified female was injured during the crash and transported by Tabor Rescue to Grape Community Hospital, in Hamburg.

Both accidents remain under investigation, with charges pending.