(Radio Iowa) – The latest Covid patient count in Iowa hospitals marks another record high for 2021. The 777 figure announced Wednesday is a seven percent increase since Dec. 1st. Theresa Brennan is the Chief Medical Officer at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. “We continue to struggle, as many hospitals in Iowa have continued to struggle, with making sure that we have beds for the patients that need them,” she says.

Brennan says the hospital continue to prepare for more Covid patients — including transfers from other hospitals — while employees are exhausted from the pandemic. “We’re working with the hospitals in Iowa to try to make sure that the sickest patients have the right bed to get the care that they need, but it is a struggle,” she says.

On Tuesday, the hospital on the University of Iowa campus had 40 adult Covid patients and three pediatric patients, under the age of 18, with the virus. Nearly 120 other patients with flu and Covid symptoms were screened by telephone or video conference Tuesday, according to the hospital’s website.

(Radio Iowa) – A key senator says he’ll propose charging educators with a felony if they provide obscene materials to students. Republican Senator Brad Zaun of Urbandale is chairman of the committee that would vote on the bill. Zaun says he’s concerned about two books in particular that central Iowa school boards have discussed banning. “It was brought to my attention by several parents, some of the garbage that is being taught to our kids,” Zaun says. “It is not appropriate.” Zaun says passages in the books describe unhealthy sexual situations. “All I want our schools to do is teach our kids to be successful when they get out of school, give them the tools that they need,” Zaun says, “and I think we need to put a stop to that garbage.”

Senate Democratic Leader Zach Wahls of Coralville says this debate makes Iowa less attractive to people who might move here for work. “Saying that we’re going to go after teachers and librarians is not going to make Iowa’s public education stronger,” Wahls says. Jennifer Konfrst of Windsor Heights, the Democratic Leader in the Iowa House, says book banning discussions aren’t helpful to companies trying to attract new workers. “Iowa’s brand gets damaged when stories are out there about things that fringe elements in the state are doing or proposing,” Konfrst says.

The legislators made their comments Wednesday morning, during a forum organized by the Greater Des Moines Partnership.

FAIRFIELD, Iowa — KCCI in Des Moines reports one of the two teens charged with the murder of a Fairfield Spanish teacher has filed a motion to be tried as a juvenile. Willard Miller, 16, is facing first-degree murder charges as an adult in the death of Nohema Graber.

According to court documents, his lawyers said he’s too young and has no criminal history. A hearing on this request has not yet been set. Jeremy Goodale, 16, is also charged in the killing.

(Radio Iowa) – Federal investigators say the State of Iowa has failed to provide the most appropriate setting for intellectually disabled Iowans who are residents at state-run facilities in Glenwood and Woodward.

A report from the U.S. Department of Justice concludes Iowa’s system is heavily biased toward placing Iowans with profound intellectual disabilities in an institution. About 300 adults with intellectual disabilities and behavioral disorders are residents at the state Resource Centers in Glenwood and Woodward. The report finds that with the right services, nearly all of them could live in a community setting instead and the cost of that care would be less.

Iowa Department of Human Services director Kelly Garcia says Iowa has a long history of relying on institutional care and the findings are not a surprise. Garcia says her agency is working to build an array of services to help intellectually disabled Iowans live as independently as possible.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Farm Bureau has elected a northwest Iowa farmer and business owner as its next president. According to a news release from the organization, Brent Johnson raises corn, soybeans and cattle on a Calhoun County farm near Manson. He also operates a precision farming company that does soil sampling, deploys drones and offers data management. Johnson replaces 64-year-old Craig Hill of Ackworth who is retiring after a decade as the organization’s president. “I farm and enjoy the aspects of the farming operation,” Hill says. “I’m of that age where, you know, while I’m healthy and able, I want to do some things and we’re going to do those and we’ll see where it goes from there.”

Hill says soon after he became Iowa Farm Bureau president in 2012, he was part of a group that greeted Xi Jinping in Des Moines, just before Xi became president of China. “We knew the market demands of China. They’re a very large population and the growing need for food and it was an exciting opportunity to talk about trade and to hopefully prepare to be a large provider of their needs going forward,” Hill says, “so trade has been so important from the very beginning to me, the trade war that disrupted a bit of things a few years ago during my tenure, the challenges there.”

Hill says he’s proud the Farm Bureau was successful in scuttling rules that could have made more Iowa waterways subject to federal regulation. “Something that would have been very critical to this organization and to our farmers and we avoided that,” Hill says. Hill says the greatest frustration during the past decade has been the federal waivers that have exempted oil refineries from ethanol blending obligations.

“Just think how perverse this is,” Hill says. “We have an EPA that’s for clean air, right? And you have a product, a liquid fuel, that is the cleanest burning fuel that can be offered.” Johnson, Hill’s successor, was elected president yesterday (Wednesday) at the Iowa Farm Bureau’s annual meeting. Johnson was not available for media interviews after his election.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic School Board held its annual re-organizational meeting Wednesday evening, which included the election of officers. The Board chose Jenny Williams to continue serving as President, and Laura McLean as Vice President. She succeeds Kristy Pellett in second seat. They also approved the re-appointment of Sarah Sheeder as Board Secretary/Treasurer. The newly re-organized Board voted to move the start time of their meetings on the second and fourth Wednesday’s of the month, from 6-p.m., to 5:30-p.m. Their meetings will normally be held in the High School Media Center. And, they approved an amendment to the 2021-22 School Calendar, and made Jan. 17, 2022 as a Professional Development Day.

In regular business, the Board voted to terminate Middle School Custodian/Groundskeeper Mark Weideman, “For Cause.” They voted to re-appoint Lynch-Dallas as Legal Counsel, and selected the Atlantic News Telegraph as the District’s official source for publication.

In his report to the Board, Superintendent Steve Barber provided an update on the status of the Middle School, which was damaged by a fire in July, 2021. Barber said he and administrators met Wednesday morning with floor specialist Steve Stalker, and, while they looked at all areas, the main focus was on the Middle School Gym floor, as part of a sanding and painting project. Barber said they were pleased to learn the thickness of the floor is sufficient, and that it currently has a water-based finish.

Mr. Stalker and Maintenance Director Russell Peck recommend that the oil base be reapplied after the floor is sanded, the provide a better appearance and less slippery surface. The downside is, that would put the gym out of commission for a much longer time. They are looking at completing the task right after the gymnasium is done being used for basketball. Additional review and discussion took place with regard to the high school floor, which was last sanded about 12-years ago. The current gym floor at the high school is 26-years old.

In addition to sanding the floor, Mr. Barber said if the board approves, they will be purchasing new motors for the bleachers. The middle school gym would be available while the high school gym is drying from sanding and application of the oil base. The District’s Insurance Company is working to obtain money towards the reconstruction costs, according to Steve Barber.

In other business, the Atlantic School Board approved resignations and contract recommendation (as mentioned in an earlier story this week), and the purchase of a 77 person propane-powered bus.

(Radio Iowa) – Forecasters say the first significant snowfall of the season is headed toward Iowa and 22 counties across the state’s northern third are under a Winter Storm Watch. Meteorologist Roger Vachalek, at the National Weather Service, says moderate-to-heavy snow is possible from Friday afternoon into Saturday morning.  “There’s about a 40- to 50-percent chance in the northwestern counties of seeing more than six inches of snow but four to five inches is a pretty sure bet,” Vachalek says. “The farther south you get toward the Des Moines metro, there’s about a 50-percent chance of seeing an inch of snow.”

Snow has already fallen a couple of times in various parts of the state in recent weeks, but this storm promises to be widespread and could potentially paint all but the Keokuk area in white. “Impacts from the storm are going to be the snowfall, of course, but we also have some wind coming in on the back side of it and visibilities will probably be dropping down as well later on Friday afternoon and evening,” Vachalek says. “You’re really going to want to watch this carefully. We haven’t driven for quite a while in this type of weather and people need to be very, very cautious.”

Winter Storm Watch for counties in blue Friday afternoon & Friday night. (NWS)

Folks in parts of southern and central Iowa enjoyed unseasonably warm temperatures last week, with highs in the 60s and near 70. This week is shaping up to be quite chilly, as we’ve had to break out the winter coats, hats and gloves, but the weather rollercoaster will go back up next week. “The snow that falls on Friday, in many cases, may all be melted by next Wednesday or Thursday, as high temperatures rebound into the 50s even as far as northern Iowa,” Vachalek says. “This is very unusual. We call it a high amplitude pattern where we get some big changes or big swings coming into and out of the state.”

With next week’s predicted warm-up, Vachalek says it’s difficult to predict whether any of Iowa will see a White Christmas. We’ll have a better view of the probabilities in another week.

Des Moines, Iowa – Officials with the Iowa Insurance Division (IID) said Wednesday, David Mark Ellis and Debra Jo Ellis of Spring Hill, Iowa, and Justin Dwayne Gilbert of Des Moines, Iowa, face multiple charges following an investigation by the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau.

Charges against David Ellis, the owner of Always Affordable Bail Bonds in Des Moines, include four counts of Fraudulent Sales Practices (class D felony), 4 counts of Prostitution (aggravated misdemeanor), and two counts of Credit Card Fraud (aggravated misdemeanor). David Ellis was also charged with one count of Fraudulent Submissions to an Insurance Company (class D felony) after the investigation discovered he allegedly misrepresented the facts of loss on an insurance claim in order to receive funds he was not entitled to. Gilbert, an employee of Always Affordable Bail Bonds, was charged with six counts of Fraudulent Sales Practices (class D felony).

Authorities have alleged that David Ellis and Gilbert knowingly employed an unlicensed person to conduct bond sales on behalf of Always Affordable Bail Bonds and that David Ellis received sexual acts and an EBT benefits card in exchange for bond payment and inmate compensation. Debra Ellis was charged with five counts of Credit Card Fraud related to EBT transactions (aggravated misdemeanor).

On December 7, Debra Ellis was arrested and taken to the Polk County Jail where she was released on bond. The same day, David Ellis and Gilbert turned themselves in to the Polk County Jail on outstanding warrants and were later released on bond.

The Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau was assisted by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Wapello County Sheriff’s Department, and the Warren County Sheriff’s Department. Iowans with information about insurance fraud are encouraged to contact the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau at 515-654-6556 or visit our website at www.IID.Iowa.gov.

Cass County Republicans recently made $100 donations to the Anita Food Pantry and The Lord’s Cupboard in Griswold.

The Anita Food Pantry was established over 25 years ago and is open the 1st and 3rd Saturdays each month.  The nine board members are also volunteers at the pantry, which helps over 600 families each year.  They currently need paper products, soup, cereal and canned goods.  Delivering the donation is Cathy Zimmerman, Cass County Republican Central Committee Treasurer (center) to board members Cathie Alff (left) and Jodi Irlmeier (right).

The Lord’s Cupboard in Griswold was established over 20 years ago and is currently housed in the Methodist Church.  It is open the 2nd and 4th Tuesday each month from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm.  Seven to ten volunteers help distribute food on those days and serve about 700 families annually.  To keep the pantry stocked, canned meat, cereal, canned goods and toilet paper are needed.  Accepting the donation from CCRCC Treasurer Cathy Zimmerman (far right) are (left to right) Daryl Dorscheimer (volunteer), Barb Schroeder (church secretary) and Tim Amos (volunteer).

(IOWA FALLS, Iowa) – Officials with the Iowa Dept. of Public Safety report that a little after 7-a.m. today (12/8), the Iowa Falls Police Department, the Hardin County Sheriff’s Office, and the Iowa State Patrol responded to a request for assistance from a female regarding a male that was stalking her by following her in his vehicle on this morning.  The two have had a previous relationship.

Officers responded to the area of Siloam Ave and River Street in Iowa Falls and witnessed the male strike the female’s vehicle with his vehicle.  Officers ordered the male out of the vehicle when he refused and displayed a shotgun.  Officers were able to get the female to safety.   The suspect refused commands and attempted to flee the scene when he was shot by officers.  The suspect died of his injuries.

The incident remains under investigation by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. Names of the subjects involved will be released pending notification of family members. Upon completion of the investigation, the results will be forwarded to the Hardin County Attorney’s Office for review.