(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa court system is trying a pilot project in six counties where text message reminders are sent out for some court services. Polk County District Court Clerk, Anne Sheeley, explains. “It just reminds people of their upcoming court dates. And then the second part of that is it also reminds people of their payment that’s due. So if they’re on a payment plan, it will remind them that their payment is due,” she says. Sheeley says the pilot is up and running in Shelby, Sioux, Marshall, Dubuque, Davis, and her county with the hope the texts help the system run better.

“And really, the goal is, you know just to eliminate failures to appear. People are busy, and sometimes they just need a little reminder,” Sheeley says. Sheeley says having people fail to show up for a court date pushes everything back for everyone, and can lead to an arrest. “So currently, when a defendant doesn’t show up for his hearing right now, we may send out a warrant for their arrest. You know, it could be that they just forgot yet that warrant goes out for arrest or court hearings are continued, the victim, if there’s a victim in the case, that it all becomes a bigger problem than it needs to be,” Sheeley says. “And we’re hoping that these text reminders will remind people, ‘Hey, your court hearings coming up, don’t forget about it’. And we’re hoping that we’ll see a decrease in the failure to appear.”

You have to sign up to get the text reminders. Sheeley says they have been getting a good response when they ask people if they want in. “At the initial appearance, especially at a jail court, we’re capturing those phone numbers of people and they’re their volunteering, yes, I want you to I want to be signed up for this,” she says. “And we’ve only done it in the criminal, simple misdemeanor, and traffic cases. And someday hope to expand that to all cases.” She says they give you plenty of notice when you are due in court.

She says they send out a text seven days before the scheduled event, then three days, and then the day before. Sheeley says it’s become pretty common now to get texts from your dentist or doctor or others who you have appointments with. She says they have not had any problems with the text system in Polk County, and anticipate the court system would expand it to all 99 counties if the pilot continues to go well.

WASHINGTON – On the 7th anniversary of Sarah Root’s death, U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra (R-Iowa) are renewing their push to honor Sarah by introducing legislation to close a loophole that allowed her killer to walk free. On January 31, 2016, the night of her graduation, Sarah Root, a 21-year-old from Council Bluffs, Iowa was struck and killed by an illegal immigrant who was driving drunk – three times over the legal limit. Due to a gap in federal law, Sarah’s killer was released by federal law enforcement and never faced justice.

“Because of a small loophole in our law, for seven years now, Sarah’s killer has walked free, and the Root family has been robbed of justice,” said Ernst. “It is unacceptable that someone who is here illegally and commits such a heinous crime is not considered an enforcement priority nor is detained by the proper authorities. This straightforward bill would ensure that illegal immigrants responsible for these crimes cannot slip into the shadows and instead will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Simply put, it’s quite possibly the most commonsense reform we can make.”

“Seven years ago today, 21-year-old Sarah Root was killed by an illegal immigrant who was driving drunk – the tragic result of Democrats’ open-border policies. Instead of being prosecuted for his crimes, he was released from custody and never seen again,” said Feenstra. “No family should have to endure the pain of losing a child like the Root family did. That’s why I’m proud to reintroduce Sarah’s Law with Senator Joni Ernst to hold illegal immigrants accountable for their actions and swiftly detain and punish those who break our laws.”

“I appreciate Senator Ernst, Representative Feenstra, and all those who continue to introduce this commonsense law to honor my daughter each year on the anniversary of her death,” said Michelle Root, Sarah’s mother. “There should be no partisan opposition to this legislation and it amazes me to hear anyone is against this effort; I truly do not understand why it hasn’t passed. We must prioritize the safety of American citizens over illegal aliens.”

Sarah’s Law amends the mandatory detention provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to require U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to detain illegal immigrants criminally charged with killing or seriously injuring another person. It also adds a requirement that upon encountering an illegal immigrant subject to mandatory detention, ICE makes reasonable efforts to identify victims and inform their families of certain information.

Read full text of the bill here.

(Radio Iowa) – There’s a new C-E-O at a southeast Iowa hospital where authorities are investigating assaults committed by an employee found dead in a hospital room last fall. William Keifer was announced as the new chief executive officer of Ottumwa Regional Health Center, according to a press release. Keifer was tabbed the interim CEO in November after previous CEO Dennis Hunger was relieved of his duties. In October, authorities started an investigation into the hospital when 27-year-old Devon Caraccio, of Centerville, a nurse practitioner, was found dead in a room at the facility.

The cause of death was later determined to be an accidental overdose. Earlier this month, the Ottumwa Police Department said the investigation revealed Caraccio sexually assaulted at least nine female patients while working at the hospital. The victims were either asleep or unconscious at the time of the assaults. Police say Caraccio photographed or videoed the assaults which were recovered from his cell phone. In a statement, Ottumwa Regional Health Center said it was working with authorities to identify the victims. The case remains under investigation.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s trucking industry would get significant liability protection from lawsuits under a bill that’s cleared its first hurdle in the Iowa House. David Scott is a lobbyist for the Iowa Motor Truck Association. He says delivery trucks, construction vehicles and pick-ups owned by businesses would be covered as well as semis. “We brought this bill forward in the hopes to bring some fairness to nuclear verdicts around the country of $50 (million),$60 (million), $90 million dollars,” Scott said. “The legislation provides a degree of predictability to all 804,000 commercial vehicles in Iowa.” The bill would exempt businesses from paying damages in cases where their employee was found negligent in a trucking accident.

Kellie Paschke, a lobbyist for the Iowa Association for Justice, representing trial lawyers. She says the bill protects bad actors who fail to maintain trucks or tell drivers to stay on the road when they’re supposed to be resting. “These are decisions that are made by employers, not employees,” Paschke said, “and what this bill does is make the employees the scapegoat for the employers’ bad decisions.” The state’s farm cooperatives, the Pork Producers and farm equipment dealers as well as two convenience store chains back the bill. Scott Weiser is a lobbyist for C-R-S-T and Annett Holdings, the state’s two largest trucking companies.

“We know it’s a difficult issue but the time has come,” Weiser says. “The availability of the market for our insurance is very, very tight.” Dan McKay, an insurance consultant for the Iowa Bar Association, says insurance rates for commercial vehicles are competitive. “We have to talk about the people who are injured or damaged by the negligent acts of this carrier,” McKay said. In civil cases in which a trucking company is considered liable in an accident, non-economic or pain and suffering damages could be no more than one million dollars if the bill becomes law.

The bill cleared a House subcommittee this (Tuesday) morning. The proposal was part of Governor Kim Reynolds’ legislative priorities last year, but ran into opposition in the House.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Board of Supervisors, today (Tuesday), took action on a handful of matters to come before them. They approved a Class-C Liquour License for the Bluebird Hill event venue, in rural Atlantic. The Board unanimously passed a Resolution to withdraw from a 28-E agreement with Workforce Development Chief Elected Official Consortium. Supervisor Wendy Richter explained that, in essence, decisions made by Workforce Development adversely affected the counties in the consortium.

In other business, the Supervisors acted to approve wage changes for the Treasurer’s deputies/staff. Following their six-month probationary periods, Stacie Linfor and Bailey Smith were bumped-up from $19 per hour to $20 per hour. The Supervisors received a quarterly report from Cass County Veteran’s Affairs Executive Director Mitch Holmes.

The Board also received a monthly report from Mental Health/General Assistance Director Deb Schuler. With regard to General Assistance, Schuler said….

On the mental health side of her position, Schuler said she attended numerous meetings in December.

And, the Supervisors received a weekly report on Secondary Roads Department Maintenance and Activities, from County Engineer Trent Wolken.

Wolken said bid letting on Bridge #84, a dirt road north of Griswold, on Seattle Road, took place. There were three bids. The low bidder was A.M. Cohron and Son, at $112,400.Their part of the project, which the Board will act on approving next week, involves erecting the structure, and includes salvaged beams.

Their final order of business, was to approve Michael Dreager as Grove Township Trustee.

DES MOINES – Gov. Reynolds has approved more than $440,000 to cover a backlog of Iowa Veterans Trust Fund (IVTF) grants that were approved by the Iowa Commission of Veterans Affairs between March 3, 2021, and November 3, 2022, before the program was temporarily suspended due to insufficient funds. The funds are from the state’s allocation of Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, through the American Rescue Plan Act.

The IVTF, which is funded by the Iowa Lottery Authority and managed by the commission, receives a $500,000 annual appropriation from the Iowa Legislature to help eligible veterans and their families with expenses related to dental care, education, or emergency needs.  Over time, the commission obligated funding beyond the program’s appropriation, recently resulting in a backlog of applications and insufficient funds to reimburse veterans’ expenses.

“I’m pleased that this funding will finally provide veterans the financial assistance they were approved to receive,” Gov. Reynolds stated. “We owe Iowa’s veterans a debt of gratitude and we must ensure that the services we offer them are available when needed.” Todd Jacobus, Commandant of the Iowa Veterans Home and Interim Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs, said “I’m grateful to Governor Reynolds for providing these funds. This will have a significant and very positive impact on veterans in need of emergency support and assistance.”

The Iowa Department of Veterans Affairs will begin processing payments immediately to fulfill any outstanding grants that were approved between March 3, 2021, and November 3, 2022. No further action is required by veterans whose applications have been approved by the commission and are awaiting payment.

Veterans who have questions about an application or the program should contact Melissa Miller at Melissa.Miller2@iowa.gov or 515-727-3443.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest Monday afternoon, of a Council Bluffs man. 55-year-old Derrell Dewayne Jenkins, Jr., was arrested following a traffic stop on 188th Street in Mills County. Jenkins, Jr., was charged with OWI/2nd offense, with bond set at $2,000.

There were two accidents Monday afternoon in Mills County. The first happened at 189th Street & Bunge Avenue, at around 3:10-p.m. Officials say a 2019 Toyota driven by 66-year-old James Withrow, of Papillion, NE., was stopped at the controlled intersection, on 189th Street, with his turn signal on, indicating his intent to turn right onto westbound Bunge Avenue. A 2020 Chevy, driven by 25-year-old Mason George, of Council Bluffs, was westbound on Bunge, approaching 189th. Authorities say Withrow failed to yield from the stop sign, and entered the intersection before striking the right rear bumper of the Chevy. No injuries were reported.

The second accident happened at around 5:07-p.m. Monday, at 195th & Eastman Road, in Mills County. Authorities say the driver of a 1996 Toyota, 59-year-old Mark Ratzlaff, of Glenwood, was traveling east on Eastman Road, when he lost control of his car, which went into the north ditch. He thought his car rolled about three times, because he heard three loud crashes after he entered the ditch. Because he didn’t have cell phone reception, Ratzlaff waited until he got home to call 911 and report the accident.

He refused any medical assistance, but the Sheriff’s Deputy investigating the crash, strongly urged Ratzlaff to have his wife take him to the hospital to be checked-out.