United Group Insurance

(Podcast) Skyscan Weather Forecast: Thu., Feb. 27th 2014

Podcasts, Weather

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

The Freese-Notis forecast for the KJAN listening area, and weather info. for Atlantic.

Play

Missing teen w/a warrant located in Red Oak

News

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Police in Red Oak say a teenager reported missing from Bellevue, NE, was located early this (Thursday) morning, in Red Oak. 17-year old Michael Ryan Eona, Jr., who was also wanted on a warrant out of Sarpy County, NE , was taken into custody near the intersection of North 7th and East Maple Streets, following a foot pursuit by Red Oak Police Officers.

Eona was transported to the Juvenile Detention Center in Council Bluffs, where he will await extradition back to Nebraska.

NE man convicted on sex abuse charges in IA could also face 2 life sentences in NE

News

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Authorities in Iowa say a Nebraska man convicted in Mills County on four charges related  to the sexual abuse of two girls,  will be transferred to Nebraska,  where he faces more serious charges that could lead to two life sentences. According to the Omaha World-Herald, 64-year old John R. Schondelmeyer, of Bellevue, NE, is charged in Nebraska, with two counts of first-degree sexual assault of a child less than 12 years of age, a felony. He also was charged with two counts of incest, also a felony. If convicted, he could be sentenced to a maximum two life sentences for the sexual assault charges and 40 years in prison and a $50,000 fine for the incest charges.

On Tuesday, a Mills County jury found Shondelmeyer guilty on two counts of second-­degree sexual abuse and two counts of lascivious acts with a child, all felonies, related to an incident last September involving two girls, ages 8 and 9.  In Iowa, Schondelmeyer faces a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison for each sexual abuse charge and a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine for the lascivious acts charges.

Bluffs man charged with OWI/1st following brief pursuit

News

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Police in Council Bluffs arrested the driver of a vehicle following  a chase that began at around 2-a.m., Wednesday. The Daily NonPareil reports the incident ended with 21-year old Dylan V. Rooney, of Council Bluffs, being taken into custody for alleged drunken driving. Police officials said an officer saw Rooney, who was in a 2001 Chevy Cavalier, ignore a flashing red light at South 32nd Street and 23rd Avenue.

The officer pulled up behind the Cavalier and initiated a traffic stop, but Rooney allegedly sped-off, and eventually failed to stop for a traffic signal at Nebraska Avenue while on 35th Street, before he lost control of the Cavalier. The vehicle ended up in the parking lot of a nearby hotel. Officers arrested Rooney on suspicion of operating a vehicle while intoxicated-first offense, felony eluding, reckless driving, driving while barred, two counts of failure to maintain control of a motor vehicle, interference with official acts, speeding more than 20 mph above the limit and possession of drug equipment.

Rooney was released from the Pottawattamie County Jail after posting a $5,000 bond.

ROBERT D. AHRENHOLTZ, 79, of Harlan (Svcs. 2/28/14)

Obituaries

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

ROBERT D. AHRENHOLTZ, 79, of Harlan, died Tue., Feb. 25th, in Omaha. Funeral services for ROBERT AHRENHOLTZ will be held 10:30-a.m. Fri., Feb. 28th, at the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Harlan. Burmeister-Johannsen Funeral Home in Harlan has the arrangements.

Friends may call at the funeral home from 1-to 9-pm Thu (2/27), with the family greeting friends from 5-to 8-pm.  Online condolences may be left at www.burmeisterjohannsen.com.

Burial will be in the Harlan Cemetery.

ROBERT AHRENHOLTZ is survived by:

His wife – Marjorie, of Harlan.

His sons – Alan Ahrenholtz, of Council Bluffs, & Dale (Arlie) Ahrenholtz, of Bloomingdale, IL.

His daughter – Leann (Roger) Saylor, of Treynor.

His brother – Galen (Mary) Ahrenholtz, of Des Moines.

His sisters – Delores (Jack) Perkins, of Council Bluffs, & Beverly (Jerald) Knudsen, of Charter Oak.

7 grandchildren, 1 great-grandchild, 2 step-grandchildren, 1 step great-grandchild, other relatives & friends.

SHARON PETERSEN, 77, of Avoca (Svcs. 3/1/14)

Obituaries

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

SHARON PETERSEN, 77, of Avoca, died Tue., Feb 25th, at Myrtue Medical Center in Harlan. A Celebration of Life service for SHARON PETERSEN will be held 10-a.m. Sat., March 1st, at the 1st Baptist Church in Harlan. Pauley-Jones Funeral Home in Harlan has the arrangements.

Friends may call at the 1st Baptist Church from Noon until 8-pm Fri., Feb. 28th, with the family present from 6-to 8-pm.

Burial will be in the Rose Hill Cemetery at Kirkman.

SHARON PETERSEN is survived by:

Her husband – Gayle (Whitey” Petersen, of Harlan.

Her sons – Rick (Judi) Petersen, of Atlantic; Gaige Petersen, of Kirkman, & Gary (Jolene) Petersen, of Harlan.

Her daughter – Shelli (Jeff) Larson, of Harlan.

Her sisters – Donna Holka, and Marilyn  Petersen, both of Lincoln, NE.

Her brother – Roger Lawson, of Lincoln, NE.

and 10 grandchildren.

EndIowaDogRacing.com launched

News

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Backers of a plan to end greyhound racing at the casinos in Council Bluffs and Dubuque are amping up their public relations push, launching an on-line petition drive on their new www.EndIowaDogRacing.com website. Rick Dickinson, president of the Greater Dubuque Development Corporation, spoke at a statehouse news conference Wednesday afternoon.

“Greyhound racing is the Blockbuster Video of the gaming industry,” Dickinson said. Like Blockbuster, Dickinson argues dog racing is “bankrupt” because it no longer has enough customers. Dubuque Mayor Roy Buol says the three-point-three million the Mystique casino spent on the prizes for greyhound breeders last year would be better spent as charitable contributions to Dubuque area schools, fire houses and non-profit groups.

“Greyhound racing is no longer profitable,” Buol said during the news conference. “…Together we can achieve the common sense vote to end the dead, debt-ridden venue of greyhound racing.” The Council Bluffs casino provides a 10-million dollar annual subsidy for greyhound racing at its facility, but former Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan stressed how the track occupies prime real estate that could be better used. “We’re in a situation where we need more hotels,” Hanafan says. “And one of the attractive things about this area is the opportunity to build hotels and some retail.” Bob Mundt, president and C-E-O of the Council Bluffs Chamber of Commerce, says the track sits near one of the Midwest’s high-traffic areas — the intersection of two Interstates.

“That creates a lot of opportunities for us and as we see the decline of dog racing and the ability to reuse that particular location for higher and better uses, we stand in favor of the elimination of dog racing,” Mundt says. Hanafan points to how Omaha redeveloped the site of the old Arsarben Horse Track. “It’s become the trendy place to live in Omaha. It has education opportunities, living opportunities. It has economic development that Omaha has never seen,” Hanafan says. “It’s taken a piece of property that may have been a track 60 or 100 years ago and made into an economic development package for today — and I believe this is the opportunity that we have in Council Bluffs.”

A bill that would end greyhound racing is eligible for debate in the Iowa House. The legislation calls for the two casinos to pay reparations to the Iowa greyhound breeders who will no longer be able to race their dogs in Dubuque or Council Bluffs. Dickinson, the Dubuque chamber executive who also sits on the Dubuque Racing Association board of directors, says that’s a “fair” settlement. “Seventy million dollars over a seven year period I think by any Iowan’s standards is an unbelievable amount of money to go away,” Dickinson says. Iowa is one of just seven states which host greyhound racing today. No other state which has closed down dog tracks has called for payments to the greyhound breeders.

(Radio Iowa)

Report details rising cost of living in Iowa

News

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

A new report from an Iowa City based research organization shows many families in Iowa cannot afford to make ends meet. Peter Fisher, lead author of the report from the Iowa Policy Project, says the cost of living in Iowa has increased significantly since the last report on the issue in 2012. “Two years ago, we were able say that because of the recession, inflation had pretty much been held in check in many areas. That’s not been the case recently,” Fisher says. “Food costs, depending on the family, have gone up between 8 and 15 percent.

The state average cost of child care for preschoolers has gone up 13 to 16 percent.” According to the report, rent has increased between 8 and 13 percent and the cost of owning a vehicle has risen by roughly 6 percent. Fisher says, for most families, the wage that’s needed from a job to cover those “basic needs” is substantially above the median wage offered in Iowa.

“In other words, you’d have to be in a job paying above and sometimes well above what over half of the jobs in Iowa pay,” Fisher says. Lily French, who helped prepare the IPP report, says after accounting for expenses like childcare, transportation, and rent, Iowans have to earn one-point-six to three times the federal poverty line to make ends meet.

“There’s a significant disconnect between the measurements the federal government uses to describe the number of people who are struggling, they also use that number to help determine policies and programs to help fill in the gap for people,” French says. The gap was even more significant for workers who do not receive health insurance through their employer.

A single parent in that scenario would have to earn nearly 21-dollars an hour to support just one child, according to the analysis. The “Cost of Living in Iowa” is available on the IPP website: www.iowapolicyproject.org.

(Radio IOwa)

Garcia unlikely to be ready for season’s start

Sports

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

JUPITER, Fla. (AP) — St. Louis left-hander Jaime Garcia is unlikely to be ready to pitch at the start of the season, but Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak won’t completely rule out the possibility. Garcia will be returning to the Cardinals’ spring training camp after Dr. James Andrews did not find any structural damage in the pitcher’s throwing shoulder. Mozeliak said Wednesday that Garcia will receive a cortisone injection at Andrews’ office in Pensacola.

Garcia met with Cardinals’ doctors in St. Louis on Monday and with Andrews on Tuesday. Expected to be the lone left-hander in the Cardinals’ rotation, Garcia began feeling soreness in his shoulder early last week. He hasn’t thrown since Feb. 18.

Iowa State rolls over No. 15 Oklahoma State 86-69

Sports

February 27th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Jadda Buckley scored 26 points and Nikki Moody finished one point from a triple-double as Iowa State rolled to an 86-69 win over No. 15 Oklahoma State on Wednesday. Moody had nine points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Cyclones (19-8, 8-8 Big 12). Hallie Christofferson and Brynn Williamson contributed 17 points apiece and Seanna Johnson had 14.

Iowa State knocked down 15 of 36 3-pointers, matching a season high, and shot 52.7 percent from the field, 69.2 percent in the second half. With Buckley adding five assists, the Cyclones had helpers on 20 of 29 field goals. LaShawn Jones scored 17 points for Oklahoma State (21-6, 10-6). Liz Donohoe and Brittney Martin had 14 points each with Martin grabbing 10 rebounds. The Cowgirls were just 2 of 14 from 3-point range and shot 40.3 percent from the field.

OSU won 69-62 at Iowa State last month.