The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports a Mills County man,  40-year old Adam Michael Blackman, was sentenced Thursday to spend 135 months in jail. United States District Court Chief Judge James E. Gritzner handed down the 11-year sentence after Blackman was found guilty on a charge of Manufacturing Methamphetamine. United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt says Judge Gritzner also ordered Blackman to serve an eight year term of supervised release following incarceration.

On January 9th, 2013, Blackman pled guilty to a charge of manufacturing at least five grams of methamphetamine in Hamburg. The charge was the result of an investigation conducted by several law enforcement agencies into the manufacturing and distribution of methamphetamine by Blackman. On May 1st, 2012, the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office located an active methamphetamine manufacturing operation in an apartment building in Hamburg. Blackman, along with several other people were found at the location of the manufacturing operation. Blackman admitted he was manufacturing methamphetamine when the Fremont County Sheriff’s investigators arrived.

The investigation was conducted by the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, the Mills County, Iowa, Sheriff=s Office, Iowa State Patrol, and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

The Harlan Community School District is celebrating today after another state victory, this time in Jazz Band. The State Competition was held Thursday in Des Moines. After performing around 2pm, the judges announced the Cyclones made it to the finals versus Pella. The finals were held later in the evening with the Harlan Community Cyclones named number 1 in Class 3A Jazz Band.

(Joel McCall/KNOD)

No injuries were reported after a vehicle slid-off a muddy road early this (Friday) morning, in Cass County. According to the Sheriff’s Department, a sheriff’s deputy responded at around 3:40-a.m. to a report of a single-vehicle accident on Richland Road in Cass County. It was later determined a 2013 Mazda SD driven by 28-year old Jennifer Lee Nye, of Nanticoke, PA, was westbound on Richland Road, when her car slid off the road and into the south ditch, before coming to rest against a sign post.  Damage to the vehicle was estimated at $2000.

Organizers with “Project Paint-A-Thon” say applications are currently being accepted through June 7^th for a volunteer event designed to benefit homeowners age 60 or over, or who are permanently disabled. Applicants for the 25^th Annual Brush Up paint-a-thon who live in Council Bluffs, or, Douglas and Sarpy Counties, in Nebraska, must meet financial guidelines listed on the official application, which is available by calling Southwest 8 Senior Services at 712-328-2540, or by calling 2-1-1. All applications must be returned by June 7^th in order to be eligible for the August 17^th event.

An independent Selection Committee made up of professionals from housing and human services will identify homeowners who are qualified. Homeowners selected will have their homes painted at NO COST. Volunteers paint the exterior of selected homes in August of each year.

The Paint-A-Thon was established in 1989, as a “Community Partnership” to spearhead a community-wide effort to paint the homes of older adults and disabled homeowners who are unable to either physically or financially, paint their homes. Since the program’s inception, volunteer teams have painted 2,495 homes. The goal for 2013, is to paint 80 homes, with the help of over 2,500 volunteers.

The event is made possible through the support of numerous companies, businesses and individuals, who donate materials and other forms of support for the volunteer teams.

(8-a.m. News)