EMMETSBURG, Iowa (AP) — A northwest Iowa man has been sentenced to five year in prison for shooting at a crop-dusting plane in Palo Alto County last year. Sioux City television station KTIV reports that 55-year-old John Metzger, of Whittemore, was sentenced Friday in Palo Alto District Court.

Metzger was found guilty in November by a jury of going armed with intent. He was not found guilty of other charges, including terrorism, stalking with a weapon and intimidation with a dangerous weapon.

The Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office says Metzger fired a gun that hit the wing flap of a plane while spraying a field in Fairfield Township on July 31. The plane was landed safely at Steier’s landing strip in Whittemore. The pilot wasn’t injured.

w/ Chris Parks

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.8MB)

Subscribe: RSS

The Red Oak Police Department reports the arrest Friday night of an Atlantic man on multiple charges.  At 11:23pm officers arrested 21-year-old Christian Lee Meek of Atlantic in the 200 block of 3rd Avenue in Red Oak.  Meek was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance Marijuana (a Serious Misdemeanor), Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (a Simple Misdemeanor), and was also cited for open container of alcohol as a passenger.  Meek was taken to the Montgomery County Jail and held on $1,000 cash bond.

Iowa’s senior U-S Senator has filed the paperwork needed to run for a seventh term. Senator Chuck Grassley’s office says the Republican has submitted more than 20-thousand signatures to get on the June 7th primary ballot to the Iowa Secretary of State’s office. Grassley was required for file only 33-hundred-31 signatures to qualify.

A news release announcing the filing of the signatures, says the “extraordinary number of signatures reflects Iowans’ recognition that Chuck Grassley works hard on the issues that are important to them.” Grassley, who has served in the U-S Senate since 1981, has come under fire over his decision to not hold any hearings on a new Supreme Court justice until after the presidential election.

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — About 2,000 players from throughout Iowa have gathered in Waterloo for a five-day pool tournament. The Courier newspaper reports that two levels of a downtown convention center were crammed with 140 pool tables as the annual Iowa Operators of Music and Amusements Pool Tournament kicked off Wednesday.

ROCK FALLS, Iowa (AP) — Residents near Rock Falls are concerned about what they consider as neglect of a county park. The Globe Gazette reports that more than 200 people have signed a petition to the Cerro Gordo County Conservation Board to make repairs and improve maintenance at Wilkinson Pioneer Park and the Shell Rock River Greenbelt. Some of the concerns citied in the petition include a lack of road maintenance in both the park and the greenbelt, as well as a rusty drain tunnel.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Department of Natural Resources officials say a pipeline company is working to contain a gasoline spill in Sioux City that reached a drainage ditch. Magellan Pipeline officials reported the spill Friday morning after finding a leaking pipe between tanks at their Sioux City bulk petroleum facility.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Damon Struve scored 13 points and Paullina South O’Brien finished the game with a 15-0 run to beat Council Bluffs St. Albert 54-43 Friday night for the Class 1A state championship. St. Albert led 43-39 after Jake Carley’s jumper in the lane with 5:32 remaining in Des Moines, but couldn’t score after that.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — It’s time to spring forward again, as the country makes the switch to daylight-saving time. Like those in almost all other states, Nebraskans and Iowans will trade an hour of sleep starting Sunday morning for an extra hour of sunlight in the evening.

The government expanded daylight-saving time in 2007 in an effort to save energy. It now begins on the second Sunday in March and continues until the first Sunday in November.

Daylight Saving Time (DST) begins 2-a.m. Sunday

The official change occurs at 2 a.m. Sunday, local time, although people often change their clocks before going to bed Saturday night. Daylight-saving time ends Nov. 6th.

The Cass County Auditor’s Office late Friday afternoon updated the roster of candidates who have filed certified nomination papers for the June 7th Primary election. By the end of the day, there were three Republicans running in each of the Board of Supervisors Districts 1 and 4. The latest addition was Atlantic Police Chief Steve Green, who is running for the District 1 Supervisor’s seat. He faces a challenge from Atlantic Mayor Dave Jones who filed nomination papers on  Monday, and Dale Retallic, who threw his hat into the ring on Tuesday. No democrats have filed for the seat, thus far.

Another candidate also threw their hat into the ring for the District 4 seat on the Cass County Board of Supervisors. Todd Hansen, a Republican from Atlantic filed nomination papers Friday, for the seat left open when Chuck Rieken decided against running for re-election. Hansen joins fellow Republicans Steve Baier and Barry Moore in the District 4 race heading into the June 7th Cass County Primary Election. No democrats have filed for the seat. The filing period opened this past Monday, and closes at the end of the day on March 30th.

Republican Frank Waters is vying for re-election to the Board of Supervisors in District 5, and County Auditor Dale Sunderman as well as Cass County Sheriff Darby McLaren have both filed for re-election on the Republican ticket. No democrats have filed for any of those positions.

The second Produce in the Park meeting will be Thursday, March 17, 4:30 pm at Atlantic Area Chamber of commerce meeting room, 102 Chestnut Street, Atlantic. Vendors of locally grown produce and handmade crafts, and anyone interested in the community event are invited to attend.

The opening date for Produce in the Park is June 2 to be held every Thursday night, 4:30 to 6:30 in Atlantic City Park. The vendor fee is $60 for the season.

An update on funding and expenses will be discussed. Marketing methods, activities and cooking demonstrations are also on the agenda. Decisions are made by the group in attendance.

The mission of Produce in the Park is promoting local food production and consumption, and building community to enhance the health and well-being of residents. Produce in the Park provides opportunities for direct marketing for producers, access to fresh local foods for consumers, social networking and educational opportunities for all participants.

For more information contact Susan Retz, Emily Krengel, LaVon Eblen or the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce.

Official with the Iowa Department of Public Safety, Friday (Today) released the name of a man involved in a stand-off Wednesday night that ended with him being shot by a Crawford County Sheriff’s Deputy. The suspect was identified as 45-year old James Scott Champion.  Champion is still recovering from two gunshot wounds to his torso, at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.  Crawford County Deputy Lt. Corey Utech has been identified as the deputy who returned fire, when Champion allegedly fired a round just before the stand-off ended. Lt. Utech is an 11 year veteran of the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office.

Following the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office Policy and Procedures, Lt Utech is currently on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.  Champion is facing two (2) counts of Assault on a Police Officer with a dangerous weapon (Class D Felony).

The incident began at around 6:20-p.m. Wednesday when a concerned citizen called authorities requesting a welfare check on a male subject residing at the Schleswig Manor Apartments, in Schleswig. When Deputies arrived at the apartment complex, Champion, who was inside the building allegedly pointed a long gun at the deputies and allegedly threatened to shoot them if they didn’t back away.

Deputies evacuated other residents of the apartment complex as a precaution. Despite attempts to negotiate with the man, at around 11:45- p.m. (Nearly 4 1/2 hours after the stand-off began), Champion opened a door and pointed the long gun in the direction of officers before firing a single round.

The investigation is still ongoing by the Iowa Department of Public Safety’s (DPS) Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.