Fremont County Sheriff Kevin Aistrope has updated an earlier report with regard to an investigation into stolen property and a pursuit. Aistrope reports two more people are in custody, and the man who ran from authorities was officially identified. A suspect who was previously reported to have run from a vehicle after it crashed during a pursuit, was identified as 46-year old Jerry Eaton, of Osceola, Missouri. He had previously refused to provide authorities with his name.

Eaton, along with 26-year old Brandon Wood, of Hollister, MO., and 45-year old Shanna Daniels Case, of Missouri, were taken into custody. Eaton and Case were wanted by authorities in Missouri. Both Wood and Case were found near the crashed vehicle. Case and Wood were being held without bond until making an initial court appearance. All three were arrested in connection with a ring of car thefts and burglaries in Fremont County.

The incident leading to their arrests began, when deputies, conducting an investigation into a series of stolen vehicle and thefts, Monday night recovered two stolen vehicle, a stolen camper, flatbed trailer, 4-wheeler, and other, miscellaneous stolen items. They were recovered in the vicinity of Green Hollow Road. During the investigation, Deputies came into contact with a suspicious vehicle, and they soon engaged in a pursuit on Green Hollow Road.

The suspect vehicle traveled south into Thurman, before heading east towards Highway 275 and then changing directions. The vehicle went south on 242nd Avenue and the driver shut off the lights before turning into a field entrance a little over one-mile from 160th Street. Deputies pursued the vehicle until it crashed. When the persons inside took off on foot, Deputies deployed the Sheriff’s Office K9 “Judge” and his partner, to track the suspects.

One of the suspects, later identified as Eaton, was tracked into the bluffs and down a creek bed. He was given numerous commands to surrender, but continued to resist, and fled on foot once again. The K9 foiled his efforts to run, though.  During the apprehension, the Eaton kicked the K9 in the face, but the dog never let go of his bite., and dragged him toward the handler. Eaton was then taken into custody and transported to Grape Community Hospital to be treated for dog bite and hypothermia. He was later transported to Jenny Edmundson Hospital, in Council Bluffs. A Deputy was treated for frost bite, following the incident.

Eaton faces charges that include Eluding, Assault on a Peace Officer, and other infractions. Tabor Police and the Iowa State Patrol assisted in handling the incident. The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office wants to thank the citizens who have called in suspicious activity, and the Fremont County Roads Department, for being aware of surroundings and suspicious activity.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Gov. Kim Reynolds has left the door open to Iowa requiring certain Medicaid recipients to work as a condition of health care coverage. Reynolds told reporters Tuesday “we’ll take a look at that down the road” when asked about work rules for able-bodied Medicaid recipients. Reynolds wouldn’t give a timeline, adding she’s focused on separate workforce development initiatives.

President Donald Trump’s administration announced recently it will let states implement certain requirements as a condition of receiving Medicaid benefits. It could involve making people enrolled in Medicaid find work, attend school, enroll in job training or perform community service. The Iowa Department of Human Services oversees the state’s privatized Medicaid program, which provides health care to the poor and disabled. A DHS spokesman says the agency is reviewing the federal guidance.

Atlantic Police, today (Tuesday), arrested 36-year old Brian Beard, of Atlantic. Beard was taken into custody for Public Intoxication/3rd or subsequent offense. He was booked-into the Cass County Jail.

The Harlan Police Department reports 20-year old Justin Andrew Dickinson, of Harlan, was arrested Monday on drug and other charges, following a traffic stop. Dickinson was charged with Operating a vehicle without owner’s consent, possession of drug paraphernalia, driving while suspended, violation of financial liability coverage, and operating a non-registered vehicle.

On Jan. 13th, 43-year old Charles Xavier Wuebker, of Addison, TX, was arrested following a traffic stop. Wuebker was charged with OWI, violation of financial liability, driving on the wrong side of a two-lane highway, open container, and failure to obey a stop sign. That same day, 39-year old Jerod Steven Mathiasen, of Harlan, was arrested for OWI and speeding.  On Jan. 12th, 48-year old Eric Leonard Williams, of LaVista, NE., was arrested in Harlan for OWI and speeding.

And, on Jan. 9th, Harlan Police arrested 46-year old Christopher Michael Will, of Harlan, following a reported domestic situation in progress.  Will was charged with Domestic Abuse Assault and booked into the Shelby County Jail.

(12-p.m.News)

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports a traffic stop on Interstate 80 at around 10-a.m. last Wednesday on a speeding SUV, resulted in the arrest of a woman from California, on drug charges. 26-year old Saundra Ashley Hawkins, of Marysville, CA, was taken into custody for a Controlled Substance Violation, after 15-pounds of marijuana was found in the vehicle.

At around 11:20-p.m. Sunday, a man was arrested on a Pottawattamie County warrant for Violation of Probation, after a deputy saw him walking in the middle of Railroad Highway, near Yellow Road. When the deputy activated his patrol vehicle’s lights to check on the man, he walked to the patrol vehicle and identified himself as 46-year old Bryan Douglas Charles, of Omaha. Charles said he was lost and trying to find the homeless shelter after having left a friends’ house on Franklin Avenue, in Council Bluffs. Pott. County Dispatch confirmed Charles was wanted on a warrant. He was transported to the Pott. County Jail and booked-in.

And, 29-year old Rachel Linn Nielsen, of Omaha, was arrested Monday afternoon in Underwood, on warrants for Violation of Probation, Operating a motor vehicle without owners consent, and Failure to Appear in court on a 2nd Degree Theft charge.  Nielsen was booked-in the Pott. County Jail.

GUTHRIE CENTER, Iowa (AP) — A judge has set a new trial starting date for a man charged with murder and arson in Guthrie County. Court records say the new date of Sept. 17 was filed Friday. The old date was May 8. The judge already has granted a motion from the attorneys for 27-year-old Patrick Thompson to move the trial to another county. The judge hasn’t yet announced which county that will be.

Thompson has pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted murder and one count of arson. The May 15 fire in Guthrie Center killed 16-year-old Shakiah Cockerham and 12-year-old Melanie “Paige” Exline and injured their uncle, William Long III, and grandmother, Shirley Exline.

The Griswold School Board received word during their meeting Monday evening, that bids for their facilities’ improvements came in much higher than expected. The District had budgeted $10-million dollars for those projects. Superintendent Dave Henrichs said they went out for bids December 21^st. He said after the process was completed, they realized they were about $330-thousand dollars OVER budget. The plan then was to pull out some the 14 separate bid packages, and re-bid those that were over budget.The next day, one of the low bidders pulled their bid because they made a mistake. Henrichs wasn’t made aware of that until last Friday afternoon. With that bid having been pulled, the next low bidder was looked at. They were also over budget. At that point, the Distrct was looing at being $660-thousand dollars over budget.)

Plans are still moving forward, with KPE Architects and Estes Construction hold conversations with contractors. Some bid packages were too big, meaning more than the contractors were capable of handling, or, some were too small, with the result being contractors didn’t want to deal with a less substantial project. Therefore he said in some cases, they’re going to split them up, while others will be bundled together. They’ll also look at some specifications, to determine if there are some areas where things can be removed to help bring the cost of the project under bid.)

That being the case, the Griswold School Board rejected seven different bids. The contractors with other bids,specifically those that came in under budget, have agreed to extend bids for 45 days. Bids for the other aspects will be called for, with those bids due in on February 8^th, during which it’s hoped the Board can approve all the bids. Henrichs said also, every year the Griswold District tries to look to the future where the General Fund is concerned. Business Manager Dan Rold, he says, spent a lot of time working on the projections, which include enrollment, staffing, State Aid and other factors, which are always a “Moving target.” The biggest thing the District looks at is their Spending Authority, or the amount of money the District can legally spend, which is not the same as cash. Prior to his coming to Griswold, the projections showed by 2020, the District would have a negative spending authority, which is illegal, and can cause the District to be shut-down.

With the changes made over the past couple of years, Henrichs said they have actually increased their spending authority. Last year, that amounted to an additional $250-thousand dollars, to make the total $1.1-million. “In our projections then moving forward,” according to Henrichs, “ we look like we will be able to continue that trend of increasing the spending authority, up until 2021,” when it will be $1.7-million, and then there will be a little tail-off. Long term, through the 2023 school year, he said “We have no issues what-so-ever. Our projections through the end of 2023 have a spending authority of $1.2-million,” which takes them back to where they were in 2014. He said “So, we’re heading in the right direction.”