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.

Sheriff’s Deputies in Page County, Wednesday, arrested 62-year old Jerry Lee Mutchler, of Shenandoah. He was taken into custody on a warrant for OWI/1st offense. Mutchler was arrested at the page County Sheriff’s Office, where he was being held on a $1,000 bond, pending further court proceedings.

Sheriff Lyle Palmer said also, 39-year old Phillip Jay McClish, of Clarinda, was arrested Monday on a Page County Warrant for Failure to Appear for a Pretrial Conference. The warrant stems from an original charge of Theft 2ndDegree which McClish had bonded on.

McClish was arrested at the Page County Courthouse. McClish was unable to post the $10,000.00 bond. He was transported to the Page County Jail where he is currently being held pending further court proceedings.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports 43-year old Molly Beth Carr-Gross, of Silver City, was arrested Wednesday evening, following a traffic stop. Carr-Gross was charged with OWI/1st offense, and two-counts of Child Endangerment. Her bond was set at $5,000.

Montgomery County Auditor Stephanie Burke reports polling place changes will be in effect for the combined regular City and School Elections, effective the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of odd-numbered years. Burke says “The first-ever combined City/School Election has caused us to review our polling locations for this election. The new law establishing this combined election requires the General Election polling places to be used.

“The General Election polling place is where you normally would go to vote for the Governor and Presidential races. This law will affect some voters.” Burke said “The Montgomery County Auditor’s Office will be mailing out a postcard as a notice to households that have registered voters living there that will have a change of polling location. Watch for this notice in the mail in the near future.”

Because the City/School Election are combined this year, Burke says some school voters may not be voting at their traditional School Election polling location. Requesting an absentee ballot and voting early may be a good option for some voters. Voters wishing to receive a ballot by mail for this election will need to complete an absentee ballot request form and return it to the Auditor’s office by Friday, October 25.

You can vote in-person in the Auditor’s Office starting October 7th and up to the day before the election held on November 5. If you have moved, you need to fill out a new voter registration form. Remember to bring your driver’s license or required ID to the polls on Election Day! If you don’t have one of the approved IDs for election day, then contact the Auditor’s Office for a free Iowa Voter Identification Card.

If you have any questions, please contact the Montgomery County Auditor’s office at 712-623-5127.

FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) — A judge has decided that a man accused of killing two brothers in the Webster County city of Fort Dodge can’t get a fair trial there, so he’s moving the trial to Ames in Story County. The Messenger reports that Judge Kurt Stoebe ruled Tuesday that, after nearly two days of jury selection, it was unlikely an impartial jury could be assembled in Webster County to try 28-year-old Tanner King. He’s pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder in the October 2018 shootings of 37-year-old Marion and 34-year-old Eldominic Rhodes.

Stoebe also said he would be shocked if a significant number of jurors didn’t know of the defendant, the numerous witnesses to be called or the families affected by the slayings.
The questioning of potential jurors in Story County is scheduled to begin Nov. 12.

Sheriff’s officials in Pottawattamie County say one person was injured during an off-road motorcycle accident, Wednesday, between Oakland and Hancock. Authorities say 21-year old Ethan Rankin, of Carson, was riding a dirt bike on private property in the 4300 block of Juniper Road, a little after 5:30-p.m., when the accident took place. Rankin was transported to the UNMC in Omaha, by LifeNet. A report on his condition was not available.

A survey by SecurityBaron.com ranks Atlantic as one of the safest cities in Iowa. Coming in with a score of 75.57, Atlantic ranks 33rd among the 50 safest cities in the State. The analysis found that Atlantic (with a population of 6,588) had a rate of 3.49 violent crimes per 1,000 citizens. The city also has a citizen-to-officer ratio of 1.82 per 1,000 people and an average income of $39,702. Additionally, there are 3,283 households in Atlantic and a rate of 19.88 property crimes per 1,000 citizens.

It was also found that the safest city in Iowa is Sioux Center, with a safety score of 90.1 and an average income of $73,185. Sioux Center has a rate of only 0.26 violent crimes per 1,000 citizens and in fact, a citizen-to-officer ratio of 0.92 per 1,000 people. It’s highly unlikely you’ll be a victim of crime here! There are also 2,361 households in Sioux Center on average. The results were gleaned from FBI crime statistics.

By comparison, it was found that Storm Lake ranked last on the list, with a safety score of 68.3 and a median income of $48,382. The city in Buena Vista County has a rate of 6.58 violent crimes per 1,000 citizens, along with a citizen-to-officer ratio of 1.76 per 1,000 people.

For more information, go to: https://securitybaron.com/safe-cities/iowa/

(Radio Iowa) — National Weather Service forecasters are recalculating the crest of the Missouri River in the Council Bluffs area due to early morning rains. Meteorologist Taylor Nicolaisen at the National Weather Service office across the river in Valley, Nebraska says as much as four inches of rain fell on the north side of Omaha during this morning’s storm. Three-and-a-half inches was reported in Crescent, Iowa. “It will bump up the river marginally, at a minimum, here with the crest that was already forecast,” Nicolaisen says.

The Missouri River crest is starting today in the Omaha/Council Bluffs metro. Heavy rain has been reported in NORTHEAST Iowa and the National Weather Service has issued a flash flood WARNING that includes the city of Dubuque. Forecasters warn hail is possible in the storms striking in eastern Iowa. The storm that hit in parts of WESTERN Iowa early this (Tuesday) also produced a lot of lightning around 6 a.m. In a 50-mile radius of Omaha, the National Weather Service recorded 100 cloud-to-ground strikes every five minutes. “Very loud thunder, obviously quite a bit of trouble. That was waking people up and we had to send alerts out on phones and that was waking people up as well,” Nicolaisen says, “so a lot of people rubbing their eyes early this morning.”

A flash flood WATCH that was in effect for a large swath of Iowa stretching from Council Bluffs to Decorah and the northeast tip of the state was cancelled at 10-a.m. for all but Monona, Harrison, Shelby, Pottawattamie, Mills, Montgomery and Fremont Counties. The WATCH is set to expire at 1-p.m. A Flood Warning is in effect until 3:30-p.m. for Monona, northwestern Pottawattamie and Harrison Counties.

Nicolaisen says there’s a lot of moisture in high levels of the atmosphere. “The atmosphere is absolutely juicy,” he says. “…That’s going to be kind of the trend here. We’re going to at least be capable of heavy rain of and on here in the next few weeks.” Nicolaisen warns there’s a chance of heavy rain in the Missouri River valley — from South Dakota through Kansas and Missouri through the rest of September and into early October.

(Update 10:15-a.m.) — OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Missouri River continues to rise and flood mostly rural land in Nebraska and Iowa, but Interstate 29 remains open near Omaha. Iowa Transportation Department officials expect to have to close parts of I-29 at some point during this week’s flooding. The river is expected to crest Saturday near Omaha after overnight rains dropped 1-to-3 inches in the area.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — The field manager of an Iowa hog farm has testified that a woman with whom 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 testified Wednesday in the trial of Todd Mullis. Mullis is charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of Amy Mullis on Nov. 10 at the farm about 40 miles west of Dubuque.

Delaware County’s county attorney John Bernau, right, questions witness Delaware County Deputy Eric Holub as he hands back a corn rake during the first-degree murder trial for Todd Mullis at Dubuque County Courthouse in Dubuque, Iowa, on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2019. Todd Mullis is accused of killing Amy L. Mullis by stabbing her with that rake on Nov. 10. (Nicki Kohl/Telegraph Herald via AP)

A prosecutor has said Todd Mullis was irate over the affair and fearful that he’d lose their farm if she divorced him. The Telegraph Herald reports that Frasher said he told Amy Mullis they had to cool things after Todd Mullis confronted him about text messages Frasher exchanged with Amy.