COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A 16-year-old Nebraska boy has been sentenced to 10 to 50 years in prison for the slaying of a man in western Iowa.

Pottawattamie County District Court records say Xavier Smith-Catchings, of Omaha, was sentenced Thursday. He’d entered a written plea of guilty Wednesday to a charge of second-degree murder. Prosecutors lowered the charge in exchange for his plea. He and three men were charged with killing Adam Angeroth in January.

The judge had ruled that Smith-Catchings’ case remain in in district court because it was unlikely he’d be rehabilitated in the juvenile system. He was 15 when Angeroth was stabbed and beaten to death.

Iowa residents Nicholas Haner, of Harlan; Ryan McDonald, of Glenwood; and Liam Stec, of Omaha, Nebraska, were sentenced earlier last week to 35-50 years. They all pleaded guilty to second-degree murder after prosecutors lowered the charges.

DES MOINES – Secretary of State Paul Pate’s Iowa State Fair Straw Poll featured a very close race between Democratic presidential candidates Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren. Biden edged Warren 17.7%-17.2%, a margin of just 10 votes. Pete Buttigieg finished third, at 14%, and Bernie Sanders placed fourth, with 10% of the vote. There were 24 Democratic presidential candidates in the poll.

Donald Trump surpassed 96% among Republican presidential candidates, and 46% of the overall vote.

More than 4,000 fairgoers voted in the Straw Poll. The poll was conducted on iPads in the Iowa Secretary of State’s Fair booth.

“Historically, this Straw Poll has been a pretty good indicator of the way the races will eventually shape it, so it will be interesting to see if that holds true this time,” Secretary Pate said. “My thanks to the thousands of folks who visited our booth during the State Fair. We registered a lot of people to vote and encouraged civic engagement among Iowans of all ages.”

Secretary Pate also polled Iowa’s U.S. Senate and U.S. House races. Theresa Greenfield led the Democratic field in the U.S. Senate, with 45% of the vote. Kimberly Graham placed second, with 36%. Republican incumbent Joni Ernst garnered 60% of all votes cast.

Among U.S. House races with primary elections, Ashley Hinson led the Republican field in the First Congressional District, with 67% of the votes. Steve Everly edged Bobby Schilling among Second District Republicans, 41%-39%. Rita Hart picked up 80% of the votes among Democrats in the Second District.

David Young was the favorite among Republicans in the Third District, with 83% of the votes. Steve King garnered 56% of the vote for Republicans in the Fourth District.

The poll ran from August 8-18. Final results are available on the Iowa Secretary of State’s website, sos.iowa.gov or by clicking here. Results are unscientific and intended for entertainment purposes only.

Local Group Preparing for Fall Plant Sale in September

Fall can be a great time for planting!  Learn more about perennials conducive to fall dividing and planting at the Cass County Master Gardener meeting on Tuesday, August 27, at 6:30 PM at the Cass County Community Building.   The public is invited to a presentation by Master Gardener Dottie Krogh that will include tips to help you be successful in your dividing and transplanting endeavors. Seasonal Tips for Lawn and Garden Care will also be covered in this free presentation.  Cass County Master Gardeners are hosting the meeting to prepare for a fall plant sale, set for Saturday morning September 21 at the Cass County Community Center. Donations of divided plants are welcome if you would like to donate. The sale will be open to the public to buy perennials for fall planting.

Perennials that are conducive to fall dividing and transplanting that you may have in your garden include daylilies, peonies, garden phlox, bleeding heart, coneflowers, speedwell, and more.  Irises and hostas can also be transplanted successfully in early fall.  By dividing the plant when it is not flowering, all the energy it produces can be directed to root and foliage growth.

If you would like to learn more about fall dividing and transplanting attend the Cass County Master Gardener meeting on August 27.  If you would like to donate plants for the plant sale on September 21,  call the Cass County Extension Office at 243-1132.

The Cass County Extension Office is also hosting a fall training for anyone wanting to be trained as a Master Gardener. More information on the training and the fall plant sale are on the Cass County Extension website at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass.

The Cass County Extension office will hold training sessions starting on Tuesday, September 3 at the Extension Office and other locations around Cass County to allow for hands-on learning. Classes will be held each Tuesday evening in September and October from 6-8 PM, with an additional extended class scheduled for Saturday morning September 28. The Class on Campus training session will be held in Ames on October 19, bringing all Master Gardener trainees across the state together for hands-on workshops with ISU Extension and Outreach instructors.

For more information about the Master Gardener training, or Master Gardener activities in Cass county, call the Cass County Extension Office at 712-243-1132 or email Cass County Extension Director and Master Gardener Coordinator Kate Olson at keolson@iastate.edu.

(Mike Kennon – photo)

The Wiota Fire Department responded to a house fire at 106 East Street in Wiota at around 3:15am on Monday morning. Wiota Fire Chief Mitch Boysen said after he arrived on scene they knew they were going to need assistance.

Boysen said there was just one resident and a dog in the home that were able to get out safely. He said they had an idea of what may have started the blaze.

Boysen thought the house was likely a total loss with the size of holes that were cut in the roof to battle the blaze along with the amount of fire, smoke, and water damage.

Crews were on the scene for about four hours.

(This meeting has now been postponed to 8/27/19)

In a continuation of their discussion held last week, the City of Atlantic’s Planning and Zoning Commission, Tuesday, will review any new developments with regard to the site plan for a proposed Scooter’s Coffee kiosk in the green space, between Oinker’s Lounge and the McDonalds/Verizon/U-S Cellular, building entrances. During their meeting last week, the Commission tabled approval of the site plan, after concerns were raised about traffic congestion in the overall Noddle development area.

Scooter’s Construction Manager Don Forsland said during the meeting, that traffic count modeling done by their engineers showed traffic congestion would not be an issue, however the Commission raised questions about the turning restrictions on the 7th Street exit immediately to the south of the proposed site. It was not clear if cars leaving the area would be allowed to turn left (into east bound traffic), when traffic is currently only allowed to turn right (West) on 7th.

Forsland said he would consult with the Iowa DOT and present updated information during this week’s meeting, which takes place 5:30-p.m. Tuesday (Aug. 20th) in the City Council’s Chambers, at City Hall.

w/ Chris Parks

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The Taylor County Sheriff’s Office reports Deputies arrested three people Sunday,  after the K9 “Ciba” was deployed during the search of a vehicle in the 600 block of Madison Street, in Bedford.

39-year old Clinton Johnson, of Athelstan, Iowa, 37-year old Cynthia Butler, of Bedford, and 18-year old Samantha Sweat, of Blockton, were all charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Their bonds at the Taylor County Jail were set at $1,300 each.

WEST POINT, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say an Iowa man died after his vehicle collided with another on a northeast Nebraska highway.

The collision occurred around 9:40 a.m. Sunday, on Nebraska Highway 9 about 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) north of West Point. The Cuming County Sheriff’s Office says 21-year-old Jose Barrios, of Denison, Iowa, was killed when his vehicle ran into an oncoming vehicle driven by 28-year-old Michael Jensen, of West Point. Jensen was taken to a West Point hospital.

The collision is being investigated.

Officials with the Creston Police Department report three arrests and one incident of theft. 33-year old Shane White, of Clearfield, was arrested Saturday in Creston, for Driving While Suspended. He was later released on a $300 bond.

25-year old Bradley Nauman, of Adel, was arrested Saturday, in Creston, for OWI/1st offense. He was later released on a $2,000 bond.

And, 40-year old Lela Churchwell, of Creston, was arrested Sunday for Theft in the 2nd Degree. She was being held in the Adams County Jail on a $5,000 bond.

A woman from Creston reported to police on Saturday, that sometime within the past week, someone entered her residence and stole a PlayStation 3, a PlayStation4, and an LG Bluetooth speaker. The loss was estimate at $500.

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