DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Des Moines lawyer who interviewed to be an Iowa Court of Appeals judge but wasn’t a finalist is suing Gov. Kim Reynolds and other state officials, arguing a new law that gives the governor more power over the commission that selects Supreme Court and appeals judges is unconstitutional.

It’s the second such lawsuit filed in state court challenging the measure passed by lawmakers in April during the final days of the legislative session and signed a few days later by Reynolds. The law shortened the term of Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady, removed Supreme Court Justice David Wiggins from the commission and allowed Reynolds to replace him with her own appointee. Critics say the changes shifted the balance of the commission, allowing the GOP governor to get more conservative nominees onto the courts.

Supporters of the law say lawyers had too much clout in deciding which judicial nominees were sent to the governor and the change places more control with the governor, an elected official instead of non-elected members of the state bar association. The first lawsuit, filed by a group of Democratic legislators and a member of the State Judicial Nominating Commission, was dismissed in June by a judge who said the legislators and commission member lacked standing to sue. An appeal of that decision is before the Iowa Supreme Court and will take months to resolve.

The new case was filed on Sept. 11 by Thomas Duff, a trial lawyer for 30 years who focuses on personal injury, employment law and medical malpractice. His legal challenges to the new law are similar to the first lawsuit, but he believes since he was personally affected by the new makeup of the commission he has a better chance of proving standing to sue.
He’s asking the court for an expedited hearing on his request for a temporary injunction to immediately stop the judicial selection procedure outlined in the law and halt the section of the law that alters the term of office for the chief justice. A judge set a hearing for Oct. 11.

Duff also seeks a permanent finding that the law is unconstitutional, in part because he says it violates the separation of powers article of the state constitution, claiming the lawmakers cannot change the term of chief justice because it is an improper encroachment on the judicial branch by the legislative branch.
He said Republican efforts to control the courts undermine the credibility of the courts and people’s confidence in the judicial system.

“I do feel that the way that the bill was passed that this strikes me as politicization of the court which I have always thought was a bad idea whether it’s Democrats or Republicans,” he said Monday in an interview.
Sixteen people applied for the job that became available with the July 1 retirement of Iowa Court of Appeals Judge Gayle Vogel. The names of three finalists were sent to the governor on Aug. 5 including two judges and a lawyer from Ames. Reynolds has 30 days from the date she received the nominees to name a judge.

A spokesman for the Iowa attorney general declined to comment and the governor’s office did not respond to a message.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports seven arrests between September 5th and 20th.

On September 5th the Cass County Sheriff’s Office arrested 56-year-old Dick Allen Cook of Atlantic on an Atlantic Police Department warrant for Violation of a No Contact Order. Cook was taken to the Cass County Jail and released later that day on $2,000 bond.

On September 8th the Cass County Sheriff’s Office arrested 29-year old Felix Rodriguez of Beatrice, NE on a warrant from Hall County, NE. Rodriguez was taken to the Cass County Jail and later released to Nebraska authorities.

On September 15th the Cass County Sheriff’s Office arrested 41-year-old Aaron Joseph Moore of Walnut on charges of Possession of Marijuana 2^nd Offense (Aggravated) and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (Simple). Moore was taken to the Cass County Jail and released later that day on his own recognizance.

On September 16th the Cass County Sheriff’s Office arrested 30-year-old Cory Foster Gould of Farragut on a Fremont County warrant. Gould was taken to the Cass County Jail and released later that day to Fremont County authorities.

Also on the 16th the Cass County Sheriff’s Office arrested 40-year old Charles Theodore Shroyer of Atlantic on a Dallas County warrant. Shroyer was taken to the Cass County Jail and later released to Dallas County authorities.

On September 19th the Cass County Sheriff’s Office arrested 26-year-old Austin Allen Schmitt of Atlantic on two charges of Assault Causing Bodily Injury (Serious) and one count of Criminal Mischief 4^th Degree (Serious). Schmitt was taken to the Cass County Jail and released the following day on $3,000 bond.

On September 20th the Cass County Sheriff’s Office arrested 37-year-old Donald Paul Kadereit of Atlantic on charges of Possession of Meth 1^st Offense (Serious) and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (Simple). Kadereit was taken to the Cass County Jail and released later that day on his own recognizance.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports on arrest and one incident report on Tuesday.

At 10:03 Deputies arrested 37-year-old Randall Eric Crawford Jr. of Sidney on a valid warrant for Failure to Appear on an original charge of Driving While License Denied or Revoked. He was booked in on $1,000 bond.

Mills County Conservation also reported an incident of Criminal Mischief 5th Degree on Levi Road at 9:18am. No further details were provided.

AMES, Iowa – Sept. 24, 2019 – The Iowa Department of Transportation was able to reopen southbound Interstate 29 from the Crescent area south into Council Bluffs this morning. This area was closed late last week due to flooding. Continued flooding in the area may cause the roadway to close again with very short notice.

Northbound I-29 between exit 71 (near Loveland) and exit 55 (N. 25th Street in Council Bluffs) remains closed. Traffic is being detoured using I-80 and I-680. The southern segment of I-680 from the Missouri River to I-29 remains closed as well.

Relying on phone or in-vehicle navigation systems may not be reliable as closure changes happen rapidly and navigation systems can route traffic through areas not designed for heavy or some types of traffic.

The best source of information on state and U.S. highways and interstate roadway closures during uncertain weather events is www.511ia.org. You can stay connected with 511 on Facebook or Twitter (find links at https://iowadot.gov/511/511-social-media-sites); or download the free app to your mobile device. (Note: for information on county or local roads, please check the county 511 system at https://www.iowacountyroads.org/connections#county-511-map) or contact your local county engineer’s office.

To receive email or text alerts about traffic incidents, road closures, traffic delays, and other restrictions that affect this highway route or other routes you travel, the Iowa DOT offers the “Your 511” option on 511ia.org. It’s easy to subscribe to Your 511 and sign up to receive the email/text alerts. Visit https://iowadot.gov/511/511-full-feature-website-help/how-to-videos for simple, step-by-step instructions.

The Harlan Police Department reports three recent arrests.

On Thursday, September 19th Harlan Police arrested 34-year-old Eric Jon Wilds of Shelby on an active Shelby County Warrant. He was booked into the Shelby County Jail.

Also on September 19th Harlan Police arrested 52-year-old William James Ballard of Irwin following a call for service. He was charged with Public Intoxication and booked into the Shelby County Jail.

On Friday, September 20th Harlan Police arrested 29-year-old Benjamin Allen Sommer of Harlan following a traffic stop. He was charged with OWI, Open Container, and turning from an improper lane. Sommer was booked into the Shelby County Jail.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office has released further details on a fatal accident Monday night near Oakland. The accident occurred around 9:24pm in the area of Highway 6 and 340th Street.

Upon arrival Deputies located two semi tractor-trailers and one passenger car involved in the accident. Investigation indicated that a 2015 Toyota Camry driven by 22-year-old Zachary Crombie Presberg of Appleton, WI was eastbound on Highway 6 and attempted to pass a 2016 Freightliner semi driven by 55-year-old Scott Dayton of Missouri Valley. While attempting the pass, a 2018 Kenworth semi driven by 26-year-old William Zoellner of Logan, IA crest a hill going westbound. Crombie Presberg attempted to get back into the eastbound lane behind the Dayton semi but struck the rear of his trailer. This caused Crombie Presberg to lose control and the Zoellner semi collided with the Toyota in the passenger side door area. Zachary Crombie Presberg was pronounced dead at the scene.

The accident remains under investigation.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors met on Tuesday at the board room at the Cass County Courthouse. The board addressed just a couple of items during the short session.

The board approved an updated agreement for tower use with NISHNANET for wireless internet equipment on the tower. Marne Elk Horn Telephone Company has their equipment on the tower now and sold their wireless internet division to NISHNANET. The previous agreement was non-transferable, so a new agreement had to be signed. NISHNANET owner Scott Bennett appeared before the board to explain his business and said the new equipment will be very similar in size and weight. The previous agreement called for Marne Elk Horn Telephone to trade services as a backup internet provider for use of the tower. NISHNANET is planning to provide a fiber connection for the courthouse, and replace Mediacom as the primary provider for the courthouse, in exchange for tower use. The board unanimously approved the agreement effective today and signed the new documents.

The board then set a hearing date for the sale of a county owned parcel in Cumberland for October 8th. Darrin Hardisty owns the surrounding property and requested to buy the parcel from the County. After the board discussed what would be the best option to execute the sale, they decided that the parcel would be sold by an auction session following the hearing on October 8th. Supervisor Steve Green suggested they process the sale in that matter so there would be no argument from others on the process. The notice of hearing will be published in the Anita and Atlantic newspapers on October 3rd.