The Iowa Department of Transportation reports the reconstruction of Iowa 196 in Sac County requires detouring traffic beginning at 9 a.m. Monday, March 16th, until Wednesday, Nov. 25th, weather permitting. Traffic will be routed around the road construction project area using U.S. 71, Sac County Road M-54, and U.S. 20.

Peterson Contractors Inc., of Reinbeck, and Godbersen-Smith Construction Co., of Ida Grove, were awarded this $25.3 million roadway reconstruction project.

A U-S District Court Judge in Pottawattamie County, Wednesday, handed down prison sentence for a California woman convicted on drug charges. Chief Judge John A. Jarvey sentenced 22-year old Lorena Morales, of La Habra, California, to 120 months (10-years) in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Morales’ term of imprisonment is to be followed by five years of supervised release.

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa says Morales was convicted by a jury after a three-day trial in October of 2014. During trial, it was established that on February 27, 2014, Morales was driving her Nissan Altima when it was stopped by members of the Iowa State Patrol and found to contain sixteen pounds of methamphetamine. Trial testimony showed that Morales was working with several other people, including two others in the vehicle at the time of the stop, in the transportation of methamphetamine from California to various locations in the United States, including Waterloo, Iowa.

On December 16, 2014, Chief Judge Jarvey sentenced co-defendant Mario Ruben Borboa to 160 months in prison, and co-defendant Melissa Nicole Gallardo to 65 months in prison, for their roles in this offense. The investigation was conducted by the Iowa State Patrol and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — The trial of an Omaha man accused of threatening to inject an Iowa woman with HIV during an attempted robbery is underway in Council Bluffs. The Daily Nonpareil reports  the trial of 34-year-old Jeshua Divis for a second-degree robbery charge began Tuesday. Prosecutors say Divis told the woman he’d administer an HIV injection if she didn’t hand over her money during the incident in November at Ameristar Casino. Divis was later located at Horseshoe Casino with a syringe and a note referring to injecting HIV.

Defense attorneys say surveillance footage shows Divis made no threatening motions toward the woman. But the woman testified that Divis demanded her money as she was gambling and flashed a note warning her that he’d inject her with HIV if she didn’t comply.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An effort to expand access to medical marijuana in Iowa has won preliminary approval in the Iowa Senate. A subcommittee reviewed the proposed legislation Wednesday. The bill would make medical marijuana available to people with a number of chronic diseases, including cancer, multiple sclerosis and epilepsy. Those approved by a doctor would then purchase marijuana products produced in Iowa at state-run dispensaries.

Last year, the Legislature approved a law that allows some residents with epilepsy to use oil with an ingredient derived from marijuana for treatment. But the law did not establish an in-state program for the production and distribution of the oil. Critics say that as a result, the law is effectively useless.

The Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) Board of Directors today announced federal Housing Tax Credit and HOME program awards to thirteen affordable rental projects totaling more than $83.7 million to build and preserve 523 affordable housing units in nine Iowa counties. Iowa Finance Authority Executive Director Dave Jamison said “The tax credit and HOME program awards announced today (Wednesday) will improve affordable housing options in communities all across Iowa, ultimately enhancing the quality of life for thousands of Iowans. [The] projects have leveraged an additional $8 million in local contributions….”

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development allocates HOME program funding among states and hundreds of localities nationwide. IFA allocates Iowa’s allocation of HOME funds to eligible entities to build and preserve affordable housing.  The IFA Board of Directors approved more than $4.9 million in state HOME funds to support six rental housing tax credit projects.

Among them was the Lincoln School Apartments, in Creston, which received a tax credit award amounting to $412,731 for a project that incorporates Adaptive Reuse and New Construction of 24 affordable units for families. Developer for the project is the Seldin Affordable Housing Program, LLC.

Police in Red Oak say a man wanted on a valid Montgomery County warrant for a Sex Offender Registry Violation/1st offense was arrested this (Wednesday) morning. 33-year old Ryan Michael McDougall, of Red Oak, was taken into custody a little after 9-a.m. at 106 W. Coolbaugh Street, in Red Oak. His bond was set at $2,000.

McDougall was convicted in Webster County of Sexual Abuse in the 3rd Degree in March, 2003, when he was 20-years old, for having contact with a female between the ages of 14-and 17.

ONAWA, Iowa (AP) – The city administrator in a western Iowa town has been placed on probation after pleading guilty to assaulting his teenage son. The Sioux City Journal reports 45-year-old Bradley Hanson, city administrator in Onawa, Iowa, entered his plea Tuesday to one count of misdemeanor assault. Hanson was given probation for one year, a $100 fine and an order to complete at least 10 hours of counseling.

A criminal complaint with the Monona County Sheriff’s Office says Hanson slapped his 15-year-old son, who slapped him back. Hanson then took him to the ground and slammed his head into the floor. Records show Hanson’s wife called police as the altercation occurred. Hanson remains employed with the city.

The Iowa Senate has passed legislation that would give Iowa businesses preference over out-of-state firms for some state government contracts. Senator Liz Mathis, a Democrat from Robbins, says it’s about “standing up” for Iowa’s business community. “You ask Iowa business owners what they want and they’ll tell you that they support this bill,” Mathis says.

If the bill becomes law, it would only apply to state government contracts worth less than half a million dollars. If an out-of-state business submits the lowest bid, an Iowa business could still get the contract under certain conditions. The bid would have to be less than five percent higher and the Iowa business would have to agree to get paid the lower price submitted on the out-of-state-company’s bid. Nineteen Republicans in the Iowa Senate voted against the bill.

Senator Mark Chelgren, a Republican from Ottumwa, says this isn’t “fair trade.” “Fundamentally it is wrong to elevate Iowa companies above those of competing states,” Chelgren said. Senator David Johnson, a Republican from Ocheyedan, agreed. “This bill is nothing more than a first step towards protectionism,” Johnson said. Senator Mathis responded, saying Iowa companies expect Iowa legislators to act in the best interest of Iowans. “They don’t expect that you’re going to legislate for Minnesota, or you’re going to legislate for Wisconsin or protect Illinois,” Mathis said. “They want you to protect Iowans.”

The bill would not give preferential treatment to bids Iowa companies submit for road and bridge construction. It would not apply to architectural firms submitting design proposals for government construction projects either.

(Radio Iowa)

A World Heath Organization study estimates more than one-billion teenagers and young adults will suffer hearing loss because they’re using ear buds to listen to loud music for long periods of time. Dr. Michi Diller, an audiologist in Omaha-Council Bluffs, says hearing loss is a serious issue that shouldn’t be ignored.  “Sixteen percent of 12-to-19-year-olds have documented threshholds that are elevated due to the exposure to these loud sounds,” Dr. Diller says. “We’re definitely seeing more teens with hearing loss but we also are trying to focus on educating our patients about the importance of noise protection and preventing noise-induced hearing loss.”

That ringing in the ears after a loud concert, being around gunfire, chainsaws or loud farm equipment may go away but there could be permanent damage that will show up later in life. It’s a wake-up call for some teens to learn that once their hearing is gone, it’s gone for good and there is no miracle cure to restore it. “We’re not anywhere close to regrowing hair cells, which is what the structures are in your inner ear that are damaged due to noise exposure,” Diller says. “We’re not at the point at which people can say, ‘Yeah, I can listen to louder music because I’ll be able to take a pill later on and regrow those hair cells.’ We certainly want to just work on prevention.”

The only quick fix, she says, is a hearing aid. There are safe levels that don’t harm delicate ears. You can listen safely at 85 decibels for about 8 hours with no damage.  “Eighty-five decibels is equivalent to the volume of busy city traffic,” Diller says. “If you go up to 100 decibels, which is similar to the sound of a tractor, you can safely be around that sound for about 15 minutes.”

Diller, who got her B-A and her Doctor of Audiology degrees at the University of Iowa, is an audiologist at Boys Town National Research Hospital in Omaha.

(Radio Iowa)