With less than 24-hours before the deadline to file nomination papers for the Cass County District 2 seat on the Board of Supervisors, a total of five people have taken steps to have their names placed on the ballot for the November 8th Special Election. Cass County Auditor Dale Sunderman said as of 5-p.m. Thursday,those nominated by petition include: Donald W. Lappe, Pat McCurdy, Jeff J. Richter, and Kathy Somers, all of Atlantic.

Each of those individuals, along with Gaylord Schelling, of Atlantic, who was nominated by Republican convention, will be on the ballot in November. Nomination papers to fill the seat on the Board of Supervisors, which was left vacant by the death of Chuck Kinen, must be filed by no later than 5-p.m. Friday, September 23rd.

Iowa Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds has announced that she will hold four town hall meetings in Western Iowa on Monday, September 26th,  and Wednesday, September 28th. The events, which are open to the public, will be held in Jefferson, Guthrie Center, Winterset, and Atlantic.

On September 26th, Reynolds will be: in Jefferson, 11:30-a.m., at the Greene County Community Center; in Guthrie Center at 1:30-p.m., in the Public Hearing Room at the Guthrie County Courthouse;  and, the  Lt. Governor along with Iowa Congressman Tom Lathamm will hold a town hall meeting in Madison County, beginning at 3-p.m., in the Winterset High School Auditorium.

On Wednesday, Reynolds will hold a Cass County town hall meeting beginning at 1-p.m., at the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce.
For more information please visit www.ltgovernor.iowa.gov.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Gov. Terry Branstad has ordered flags flown at half-staff Friday to honor a volunteer firefighter and state trooper who died in separate accidents this week.

Firefighter Michael Collins of Shelby was struck by a vehicle and killed while directing traffic Sunday around a car accident on Interstate 80 in western Iowa. Trooper Mark Toney was killed when his patrol vehicle crashed while on patrol near Indianola on Tuesday. Collins’ funeral is scheduled for Friday. Toney’s funeral is scheduled for Saturday. Flags flown at all state buildings and facilities across the state will be flown at half-staff from Friday until Monday. Individuals, businesses, schools, cities and counties are encouraged to also lower their flags to half-staff during that time.

An eight-person jury in Atlantic deliberated for less than two-hours Wednesday afternoon before finding an Adair man to be a sexually violent predator. According to Cass County District Court documents, 52-year old David Charles Whetstone was remitted to the custody of the Director of the Department of Human Services, where he will be controlled, receive care and treatment for “His mental abnormality” until he is deemed safe for placement in a transitional release program, or discharged. The court made it clear his was a civil, and NOT a criminal, commitment.

Whetstone was immediately sent to the DHS Civil Commitment Unit for Sexual Offenders on the campus of the Cherokee Mental Health Institute, in Cherokee, where in addition to treatment, he will receive an annual medical examination of his mental state of being. The judge also said Whetstone must register as a sex offender before he is released from confinement, and submit a sample of his DNA to be kept on file. The sentence is subject to appeal.

In May 2008, Whetstone was found guilty of Assault with the Intent to Commit Sexual Abuse, an aggravated serious misdemeanor offense. The incident which led to his arrest and conviction occurred on April 4th, 2008. He was sentenced in August of that year to a two-year prison term. Prior to his release from prison and parole, the Iowa Attorney General’s Office filed a petition to have Whetstone committed, as an “extremely dangerous sexually violent predator.”

A little more than two-years earlier, Whetstone pled guilty to a charge of Disorderly Conduct, and was ordered to pay a $100 fine, following an incident which occurred between Whetstone and Greenfield Republican Representative Clel Baudler. Baulder told KJAN News in February 2006, that Whetstone had been harassing him for nearly a year, and had made veiled threats against his life.