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House unlikely to OK Senate-backed wage theft bill

News

March 9th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Civil rights groups and some Democrats in the Legislature say Iowa has a wage theft problem and it needs to be fixed. Wage theft can include underpayment of wages, theft of tips, and unlawful deductions from paychecks. It’s most common in low-wage jobs often employing immigrant workers.

Sen. Bill Dotzler, a Waterloo Democrat says it’s an epidemic involving up to 1,000 workers a year in Iowa. He’s proposed a bill that holds employers responsible and forces them to tell workers up front in writing how much they’ll get paid and what deductions will be taken from their checks.

The bill passed the Democratic-led Senate but it’s expected to die in the House Labor Committee where majority Republicans contend it would be too costly for honest businesses.

NWS forecast for Cass & area Counties: Sun., 3/9/2014

Weather

March 9th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Today: Sunny…breezy. Much warmer. High in the upper 50s. Southwest wind 10 to 15 mph with gusts to around 25 mph increasing to 15 to 25 mph with gusts to around 35 mph in the afternoon.
Tonight: Partly cloudy. Not as cool. Low in the mid 30s. Southwest wind 5 to 15 mph. Gusts up to 25 mph through midnight.

Monday: Mostly sunny. High in the mid 60s. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
Monday Night: Mostly cloudy. Low in the upper 30s. North wind near 5 mph shifting to the east after midnight.

Tuesday: Mostly cloudy. A slight chance of rain in the morning… Then a chance of rain and snow in the afternoon. Breezy…cooler. High in the mid 40s. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph increasing to 15 to 20 mph in the afternoon. Gusts up to 30 mph. Chance of precipitation 50 percent.
Tuesday Night: Cloudy. A 50 percent chance of rain and snow through midnight. Breezy…colder. Low in the upper 20s.

Wednesday And Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy. High in the lower 40s. Low in the upper 20s.

Thursday Through Friday: Mostly clear. High in the mid 50s. Low 29 to 34.

Harlan beats Western Dubuque for 4A title

Sports

March 9th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Jess Schaben scored 24 points with nine rebounds and top-ranked Harlan held on in the final 2 minutes to beat No. 8 Western Dubuque 55-51 Saturday night and win the Class 4A state title. Harlan (26-0) steadied after letting a 13-point lead slip away in the fourth quarter and claimed the basketball title to go with the 4A volleyball championship the Cyclones won in November.

Schaben, a 6-foot-2 junior who has committed to Iowa State for volleyball, made 10 of her 11 shots. She also blocked two shots and handed out an assist. Rose Simon-Ressler and Megan Maahs led Western Dubuque (23-3) with 12 points each.

Zoey Weber scored nine for the Bobcats, whose rally fell short after they trailed 46-33 early in the fourth quarter.

Dowling Catholic wins 5A title over SE Polk

Sports

March 9th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Audrey Faber scored 19 of her 26 points in the second half and No. 5 Dowling Catholic fended off No. 9 Southeast Polk 66-55 on Saturday night for the Class 5A championship. Dowling Catholic (23-3) reversed the outcome of last year’s title game, won 43-34 by Southeast Polk, and claimed its fifth state title. Luci Sarcone added 14 points and nine rebounds for Dowling Catholic and Hayden Butler scored 11 points.

Becca Hittner finished with five points but was named captain of the all-tournament team. Sierra Mitchell came off the bench to hit four 3-pointers for Southeast Polk. She led the Rams (18-7) with 12 points.

Ekey’s 3 lifts Illinois over No. 24 Iowa 66-63

Sports

March 9th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Jon Ekey hit a 3-pointer in the final second to lift Illinois to a 66-63 victory at Number 24 Iowa Saturday night. Rayvonte Rice scored 15 points to lead the Illini (18-13, 6-12 Big Ten), who notched consecutive road wins against ranked opponents for the first time since 2005. Iowa’s Roy Devyn Marble — the Big Ten’s leading scorer — was held to eight points on 3-of-11 shooting. The Hawkeyes (20-11, 9-9) have lost five of their last six games.

Ekey’s 30-foot game-winner left only a half-second on the game clock. An Iowa foul with 13.8 seconds left had reset the shot clock and gave Illinois the final shot. Ekey hit another big 3-pointer with 3:03 left to give the Illini a 63-59 lead. A layup by Marble and Gabe Olaseni’s putback with 41 seconds left tied the game at 63.

Illinois’ Nnanna Egw scored 14 points. Aaron White led Iowa with 12 points.

Iowa early News Headlines: Sun., March 9th 2014

News

March 9th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press…

TRIPOLI, Iowa (AP) — The northeast Iowa town of Tripoli is advising its residents to boil their tap water before using it for drinking or cooking. The Waterloo Cedar-Falls Courier reports that the boil advisory was issued Friday afternoon. It follows a weather-related problem in the Tripoli water supply distribution system. The advisory is in effect until further notice.

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — The state is investigating what caused the death of Black Hawk County Jail inmate. Black Hawk County officials say a man being held at the jail was found unresponsive in a cell around 6:25 p.m. Friday. The inmate was taken by ambulance to a Waterloo hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The Sheriff’s Office has not released the name of the inmate.

SPENCER, Iowa (AP) — A 16-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of making terroristic threats after police say he acknowledged writing a threat on a wall at Spencer High School. The Sioux City Journal reports that the teen was arrested Friday and released to his parents. The case has been referred to juvenile probation authorities.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Jon Ekey hit a 3-pointer in the final second to lift Illinois to a 66-63 victory at Number 24 Iowa Saturday night. Iowa’s Roy Devyn Marble — the Big Ten’s leading scorer — was held to eight points on 3-of-11 shooting on his home court. The Hawkeyes have lost five of their last six games.

No. 23 Iowa tops Ohio St. 77-73 in Big Ten semis

Sports

March 8th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Theairra Taylor scored 21 points and made a go-ahead layup with 1:32 left as fifth-seeded and No. 23-ranked Iowa held on for a 77-73 win over eighth-seeded Ohio State on Saturday in the semifinals of the Big Ten tournament.

After Taylor’s go-ahead layup gave Iowa (26-7) a 75-73 lead, Ameryst Alston missed a layup on Ohio State’s ensuing possession. Martina Ellerbe then missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer for Ohio State (17-18) with 10 seconds left and Melissa Dixon sunk two free throws for Iowa with a second remaining as the Hawkeyes advanced to the Big Ten title game for the first time since 2010.

Bethany Doolittle and Ally Disterhoft each added 18 points and Melissa Dixon scored 16 for Iowa, which never trailed the entire game.  Alston led Ohio State with 20 points while Ellerbe and Darryce Moore each added 15 for the Buckeyes.

Cardinals, 3B Carpenter agree to $52M, 6-year deal

Sports

March 8th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

JUPITER, Fla. (AP) – The St. Louis Cardinals and third baseman Matt Carpenter have agreed to a $52 million, six-year contract. The deal includes a team option for a seventh year in 2020 at $18.5 million. Should the St. Louis decline the option, they would pay Carpenter a $2 million buyout.  Carpenter’s agent, Bryan Cahill, says the 28-year-old received a $1 million signing bonus and he’ll make $1.5 million this season. The salary escalates each year, reaching $14.5 million in 2019.

Carpenter says the decision to sign a long-term deal with St. Louis was a “no-brainer.”  He hit .318 while leading the National League in hits (199), doubles (55) and runs (126) last season while playing second base. He is moving to third this season.

Iowa State students tease Smart with mass flop

Sports

March 8th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

AMES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa State students teased Oklahoma State’s Marcus Smart on Saturday by doing a “mass flop” in the stands at Hilton Coliseum when the Cowboys’ star was introduced by the public address announcer before the game.

The stunt was organized by Iowa State junior Michael Harris and fliers with instructions for fans were handed out to those in the student section before the game. Harris says he was inspired by Smart’s “infamous” reputation around the Big 12 for trying to draw fouls by flopping.

Smart leads the Cowboys with 17.6 points and 4.7 assists per game. He was suspended for three games after shoving a Texas Tech fan who was taunting him last month.

No. 12 Oklahoma St. tops Iowa St. 67-57 in Big 12

Sports

March 8th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Brittney Martin scored 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as fourth-seeded and 18th-ranked Oklahoma State pulled away late to beat Iowa State 67-57 in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament on Saturday.  The Cowgirls (23-7)  face top-seeded and ninth-ranked Baylor in the semifinals on Sunday. Oklahoma State got 14 points each from Tiffany Bias and Brittany Atkins and Kendra Suttles, who was clutch off the bench down the stretch, had 11.

The Cyclones (20-10) tied the game at 52 with 8:45 to play but went cold. OSU used a 6-0 surge for separation and closed the game by hitting 6 of 8 free throws. Suttles scored seven straight points for the Cowgirls as they pulled away. Hallie Christofferson led Iowa State with 21 points and 11 rebounds and Nikki Moody had 14 points. ISU shot just 34 percent, going 7 for 25 from 3-point range.

Oklahoma State shot 50 percent and forced Iowa State into 16 turnovers.