The Cass County Sheriff’s Office report the arrest on Wednesday of a Massena man on a trio of charges. 24-year old Michael Russell Robinson, was taken into custodty on charges of Criminal Mischief 2^nd Degree, Domestic Abuse Assault 2^nd Offense, and Violation of No Contact Order. Robinson was taken to the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $7300 bond.

And on Monday, Cass County deputies arrested 21-year old Jorge Ariel Perez Adams, of Muscatine, on a charge of Driving While Barred. Adams was taken to the Cass County Jail where he was released the following day on $2000 bond.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa House has passed a bill intended to keep sexually violent predators off the streets. Lawmakers unanimously approved the measure 97-0 Wednesday. It now returns to the Senate for final review. The bill would allow people convicted of a violent sexual offense as a juvenile to be sent to a civil containment unit for sexually violent predators upon release from prison.

Republican Rep. Greg Heartsill, from Melcher-Dallas, says taking this step is needed to ensure the safety of all Iowans. Democratic Rep. Mary Lynn Wolfe, from Clinton, says predators like Michael Klunder, who authorities say abducted and killed 15-year-old Kathlynn Shepard last year, would have been kept in civil containment instead of being freed. Wolfe says the Shepard case may have been different had the legislation been in place.

SAC CITY, Iowa (AP) — A Sac City man has been accused of multiple sex crimes involving minors. The Sac City Police Department says they received a report Sunday from a 15-year-old girl who claims she was sexually assaulted by 35-year-old Christopher Carnine. The girl told police she was assaulted Saturday at Carnine’s residence. She claims Carnine gave alcohol to minors and drove them around the Sac City area.

The Fort Dodge Messenger reports Carnine has been arrested and faces multiple charges, including third-degree sexual assault. He is also charged with two counts of lascivious acts with a child, in connection to allegations that he had sexual contact with two other underage teenagers over several years.

Carnine remains at the Sac County Jail.

Officials with the Museum of Danish America in Elk Horn (formerly known as the Danish Immigrant Museum) report the Museum has received a $50,000 grant from the Iowa West Foundation, for the purpose of installing a green roof on the Curatorial Center addition, currently under construction.

Artist’s rendition of the Curatorial Center’s Green Roof.

The green roof is expected to maximize energy efficiency and the thermal barrier between the outdoor environment and artifact storage areas, as well as incorporate the addition into the visitor experience of the surrounding Jens Jensen Prairie Landscape Park. The addition is being built into the western hillside of the museum and connects in the basement level, bringing the top of the structure at nearly ground-level.

The green roof will serve as an elevated continuation of the Jens Jensen Prairie Landscape Park space. Museum visitors will be able to walk on a pathway atop the roof, view the native plantings, and read interpretive panels about green roofs and native plantings. The museum’s green roof will be unusual in that it will incorporate prairie grasses and forbs instead of sedums, which are most commonly used on green roofs.

The planting plan, developed by landscapers at Midwest Groundcovers of St. Charles, IL, is based on research done by the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Plant Conservation Science Center. The roof will comprised of 20 different, native plants. Under the roof, the Curatorial Center addition will add 8,000 square feet of artifact storage area and staff workspaces. Construction began on the project in September 2013 and is expected to reach completion in the summer of 2014.

The Iowa West Foundation grant was included in their 2013 fourth quarter grant awards to 32 non-profit organizations in the region. Museum officials say the foundation will be recognized for its grant upon completion of the addition and the green roof on an educational, outdoor panel specifically highlighting green roofs.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest today (Wednesday), of an Emerson man. Officials say 51-year old Brent Douglas Vestal was taken into custody at around 1-a.m. on a charge of OWI/2nd offense. His bond was set at $2,000.

And, there were two accidents in Mills County Monday afternoon, neither of which resulted in any injuries. The first happened at around 2-p.m. on Hilman Road, when Draven Ray, of Glenwood,  lost control of the pickup he was driving. The accident happened at the vehicle was rounding a curve. The 1992 Chevy went off the road and hit a utility pole.

The second accident happened at around 3:10-p.m., Monday, on Main Street, near Malvern. Sheriff’s officials say a 2002 Ford driven by John David Prokop, of Malvern, was traveling south on 315th Street and entering a speed zone in Malvern, when he became distracted while reaching for his sunglasses. Prokop’s vehicle crossed the center line of the road and northbound lane of traffic before hitting a culvert sign. The vehicle continued south on the northbound shoulder and hit another driveway culvert before coming to rest.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors, Wednesday, approved the Assignment of a County held tax sale certificate of purchase for a Lot in Cumberland. Cass County Treasurer Tracey J. Marshall told the Supervisors the lot is next to property owned by Brent Paulsen, who wants to clean-up the lot and get the property back on the tax roll. Auditor Dale Sunderman said it’s not a “High Value” property at $38 per year.

Board Chair Frank Waters said Paulsen wants to improve the community by cleaning-up the site and possibly making it a small park or, at least get rid of the eye sore of junk material currently located on the lot. Sunderman said the property description is the “South half of the east half of Lot 9 block 9, Second Addition,” in Cumberland.

In other business, Cass County Engineer Charles Marker updated the Board on the gravel and roads the Secondary Roads department will be working on this year, “Specifically, one-mile at a time.” He says some of the “Contract rock” will be “Spot Rock,” which is used for roads that have portions that which have soft or muddy.  Marker said Contract Rock currently runs $10 per ton, which takes up a good chunk of his budget.

He said also that they have been stockpiling some of the material in parts of the County. There are about 30-miles of rock roads in each district within Cass County, with each district receiving a share of the rock necessary to handle road improvements. He says the rock costs his department $790,000. That figure does not include the cost of hauling and handling the material. Marker says his department receives $1.7-million dollars from property taxes, with nearly half of that going for the purchase of rock alone.

He says the decision on which roads need to be bladed and/or re-rocked, is made with each district foreman. And in her report to the Board, Cass County Mental Health/General Relief Coordinator Deb Schuler said the 28-E Agreement for Regionalized Mental Health Services has been accepted, and another regional meeting will be held on March 31^st to approve the Management Plan, which must be submitted to the State by April 1^st. Schuler reports also, Dr. John Bigelow with the Southwest Iowa Mental Health Center, has been appointed to the Regional Mental Health Advisory Council, which means Cass County will be represented on that particular Board. Some of the persons on the Council will be appointed to the Board in charge of running the Regional services.