Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:30 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Department of Agriculture is proposing a new set of administrative rules that could significantly improve the lives of dogs, cats and other companion animals in a state long regarded as among the worst in the nation for animal protection. Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig says he will submit the new set of rules to the state on Friday, beginning a process that requires a legislative panel review and public comment.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — The former administrator of Iowa’s third-largest city is suing the area’s biggest newspaper, claiming that its coverage was unfair and cost him his job. Former Davenport city administrator Craig Malin’s lawsuit against the Quad-City Times is set for trial Monday. A judge ruled Malin didn’t meet the high bar to sue for defamation but did allow him to sue for contract interference. Press freedom experts say the case is troubling.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Some Democratic presidential candidates are trying out new strategies to appeal to voters with just over four months until Iowa’s leadoff caucuses. Kamala Harris said Thursday that she would spend more time in Iowa and add some 60 staffers. Bernie Sanders is shuffling his early state staff, and Beto O’Rourke has turned his calls for gun control laws into a national strategy. The shifts signal that the race is entering a new stage, with precious few months for candidates to change their fortunes.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — The field manager of an Iowa hog farm has testified that a woman he was having an affair told him last year she was deathly afraid of her husband _ a man now accused of using a corn rake to kill her. Jerry Frasher took the stand Wednesday in the trial of Todd Mullis, who’s charged with killing Amy Mullis on Nov. 10 at the farm about 40 miles west of Dubuque. Frasher said he told Amy Mullis they had to cool things after Todd Mullis confronted him about text messages Frasher exchanged with Amy.

(Radio Iowa) — A sign hoisted by an Iowa State student in the crowd gathered for E-S-P-N’s “Gameday” telecast from Ames last weekend has now generated more than 200-thousand dollars for the University of Iowa’s Children’s Hospital. University of Iowa president Bruce Harreld talked about 24-year-old Carson King’s fundraiser at Thursday’s Board of Regents meeting. “Iowans responded. As of 7:30 this (Thursday) morning, he’s received 75-thousand dollars of contributions,” Harreld says.

Harreld says Busch Beer and Venmo were impressed after the Altoona man said he would keep enough money from his “Venmo” account for one case of beer and then would donate the rest to the hospital. They’ve agreed to match the donations. “So that’s a total of 225-thousand dollars. And all the parties — including Carson and the donors have agreed to keep the campaign open until the end of the month,” according to Harreld, “so any of you who are so inclined to donate might go to his website and do so.”

Harreld says it was a great gesture that says a lot about our state. “Carson is an Iowa State student and I applaud him for his creativity and his thoughtfulness of donating to our wonderful Stead Family Childrens’ Hospital,” Harreld says. “While we’re clearly very competitive on the field, he is clearly showing how collaborative all Iowans really are…and how we’re all in this together.” So thank you, Carson, thank you Iowa State, and Go Hawks.”

King says he was surprised his sign got on T-V and then got so many responses afterwards. His fundraiser has gained national attention on social and other media.

Deputies in Page County, Tuesday, responded to a report of a person walking on Highway 2 just east of Clarinda. The person was reportedly barefoot and the temperature was in the 90’s. When a Deputy arrived, he spoke with the female, 30-year old Ashley Marie Sveen of Isanti, MN.

During the incident, Sveen was arrested for Interference with Official Acts. She was transported to the Page County Jail and held on a $300 bond.

Ashley Sveen

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – United States Attorney Marc Krickbaum has announced that on September 18th, 28-year old Jorge Alejandro Salazar Machado, of California, was sentenced in Council Bluffs United States District Court, to 10-years in prison for Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance. Salazar is required to serve a five-year term of supervised release, following his incarceration.

In January 2019, Salazar Machado was arrested by Council Bluffs Police for possession of drug paraphernalia. A subsequent search warrant was executed on his vehicle. During the search, officers located two packages containing a total of 1,891.28 grams of heroin. Salazar Machado pleaded guilty to the charge in May 2019.

The case was investigated by the Council Bluffs Police Department and the Southwest Iowa Narcotics Task Force, and prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

The Montgomery County Auditor’s Office has released a list of candidates who have filed for the November 5th City Elections. It should be noted that the Mayor’s term is 2 years, except in Stanton & Coburg, where the term is 4-years. And, Council members serve 4-year terms, except in Grant, where the term is for two-years. (TVF= To Fill a Vacancy)

The Candidates in Red Oak include:

• Mayor–Vote for One (2yr term): Karen Blue, Bill Billings
• Council Member Ward #1–Vote for One (4yr term): Scott Keith
• Council Member Ward #3 –Vote for One (4yr term): Peter Wemhoff
• Council Member At Large–Vote for One (4yr term):Jeanice A. Lester
• Council Member At Large-TVF -Vote for One (2yr term):Terry Koppa, Brian Lee Bills

Elliott City Offices and Candidates Filed:

• Mayor–Vote for One (2yr term): None filed
• Council Member–Vote for Two (4yr term): Jessica Rasmussen, Travis Johnson, Leta Rush
• Council MemberTFV –Vote for Two (2yr term): None filed

Stanton City Offices and Candidates Filed:

• Mayor –Vote for One (4yr term): Kirk Requist, Jeff Magneson
• Council Member–Vote for Two (4yr term): Pier Schenck-Osweiler, James Cavner

Villisca City Offices and Candidates Filed:

• Mayor–Vote for One (2yr term): Marilyn Halda
• Council Member–Vote for Three (4yr term): Robert Narup, Marsha S. Shepherd

Coburg City Offices and Candidates Filed:

• Council Member–Vote for Three (4yr term): None filed

Grant City Offices and Candidates Filed:

• Mayor–Vote for One (2yr term): Lyn Sliger
• Council Member –Vote for Five (2yr term): Zelda Swartz, Jeff Brown, Steve Williams, Nancy Taylor, Emerson Hill.

MUSCATINE, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa grandmother has been convicted of the 1992 killing of her former boyfriend. The Quad-City Times reports that Annette Cahill was found guilty Thursday of second-degree murder in the death of bartender Corey Wieneke.

Prosecutors said the 56-year-old Cahill used a baseball bat to kill 22-year-old Wieneke. He was found dead on the floor of his bedroom in rural West Liberty in October 1992.

Police have said Cahill had been in a sexual relationship with Wieneke, and they had a heated argument about his involvement with another woman. The case against Cahill relied on testimony from a woman who said she was 9 when she overheard Cahill confess to killing Wieneke weeks after the slaying.

Cahill is now a mother of three adult children and a grandmother of four.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Some 2020 candidates are trying out new strategies to appeal to voters just over four months until Iowa’s leadoff caucuses begin the process in which Democrats will select their presidential nominee.

Kamala Harris announced a substantive shift on Thursday, saying she would spend half of October in Iowa and add some 60 staffers there. Bernie Sanders is shuffling his early state staff, and Beto O’Rourke has turned his impassioned calls for gun control laws into a nationalized strategy that has led him to places far outside the early voting states.

The shifts signal that the race for the Democratic nomination is entering a new stage, with precious few months for candidates to change their fortunes before the first votes are cast.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — The former administrator of Iowa’s third-largest city is suing the area’s biggest newspaper, claiming that its coverage was unfair and cost him his job. Former Davenport city administrator Craig Malin’s lawsuit against the Quad-City Times is set to go to trial Monday. He argues that the paper published false stories and opinion pieces about his official actions, forcing him out after 14 years with the city.

The trial will not be a traditional libel case because a judge has ruled Malin did not meet the high bar for proving the newspaper defamed him. Instead, the case will be about whether the paper improperly interfered with Malin’s employment contract.

The newspaper’s reporting on Davenport’s handling of financial negotiations for a new casino prompted the mayor to call for Malin’s termination. The newspaper has defended its coverage as accurate watchdog journalism protected by the First Amendment.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Department of Agriculture is proposing a new set of administrative rules that could significantly improve the lives of dogs, cats and other companion animals in a state long regarded as among the worst in the nation for animal protection. Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig says Wednesday he will submit the new set of rules to the state on Friday, beginning a process that requires a legislative panel review and public comment.

Animal rights groups celebrated it as a huge victory for pets in state-licensed commercial breeding facilities, animal shelters, pet dealers, rescue organizations and boarding kennels. The rules include increased access to water, larger cages and more stringent temperature, cleaning and sanitation requirements.

Iowa has 500 dog breeders, half licensed by the state and half by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in addition to boarding kennels, shelters and other pet care facilities. It was ranked 48th in the nation for animal protection last year by the nonprofit Animal Legal Defense Fund.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Bankers in rural parts of 10 Plains and Western states expect slow growth in the months ahead, but the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China is weighing on the economy.
The Rural Mainstreet survey’s overall index climbed into positive territory at 50.1 in September from August’s 46.5. Any score above 50 suggests a growing economy, while a score below 50 indicates a shrinking economy.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey, says bankers are less confident because of the ongoing trade disputes and the lack of approval for a new North American trade agreement.

The confidence index remained low at 42.9 in September — up slightly from August’s 42. Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.