(Radio Iowa) – A northwest Iowa woman has been sentenced to 30 days in federal prison after pleading guilty to money laundering.Twenty-three-year-old Yesenia Ledesma-Ledezma, of Albert City, has agreed to forfeit the house she bought in April of last year with 65-thousand dollars in cash. According to a plea agreement, she admits smuggling counterfeit goods into the country and selling them for a profit.

A news release from U.S. Attorney’s Office indicated the value of those smuggled goods was 370-thousand dollars.

(Radio Iowa) – Assaults at hospitals increased at some locations in the state during the pandemic. That includes Sioux City where police reported six assaults of staff at MercyOne and five at UnityPoint St. Lukes. In the Mercy One Emergency Department, Johnny Garza says they have a two-part training that first emphasizes dealing with situations as they escalate and how to get out of them. “The second part of the training is what do you do if physical contact is made — how do you ensure safety to self? For instance, what techniques are involved if you are grabbed by the arm, grabbed by the hair if someone is biting you,” Garza says. “So, each one of these, the safety training that we provide does provide resources for staff on how to escape or how to prevent further injury.”

He says there are alarm buttons in the E-R for staff to get help if things do escalate. “By initiating either the emergency or the code, you are definitely going to get team members there to assist,” he says. Garza says the staff also have an alarm system that is linked to their I-D badge. “So it’s on them every single minute that they are working. There’s a button that they are to push. This will not only activate a panic alarm — but it will also tell staff where that distressed staff member is so that staff and security can respond,” Garza explains.

Staff also have radios available. The assaults in Sioux City included eight nurses and four security guards. The University of Iowa recently reported that two-thirds of the aggravated assaults on the campus in 2020 happened at the University Hospitals and Clinics. The Journal of the American Medical Association reported this trend of staff assaults began in April — but the story said attacks on health care workers have been rising for years.

The following article was submitted by Rebecca Wallace, Family and Consumer Sciences at the Atlantic High School & Atlantic Middle School. It was written by Mary McBride, and is part of a series of articles letting you know what’s going on with the Atlantic, Iowa School District….

Not everyone knows that the Atlantic Community School District has multiple settings for their high school students to earn a diploma. In addition to the traditional high school setting, there
are two other programs to help students meet their graduation goals. These programs are called the Link Center and the Cass County Educational Opportunity Center (CCEOC). Both of these
programs are usually located at the Achievement Center, though they are currently displaced by the 6th and 7th-grade students due to the Atlantic Middle School fire. However, they are two
very different programs that serve a variety of students.

The Link Center is a program for students who need a smaller classroom setting, higher teacher-to-student ratio, and social-emotional support. This program is led by Special Education
teacher Mary McBride and Behavior Interventionist Melanie Fell. They are assisted by paraprofessionals Oran Perkins and Clint Weppler. The Link Center serves students between 6th and 12th-grade and can have up to 10 students at a time.

The CCEOC is a program that allows students to recover credits if they get behind at the high school. This program is led by Special Education teacher Karen Vogl and assisted by general
education teacher Bryce Smith and paraprofessionals Stacy Van Aernam and Sheri Walter. They can serve up to 40 high school students who work at their own pace to complete classes
through independent study.

Both of these programs help to ensure that students who may struggle in the traditional high school environment can still obtain a diploma and move forward in their postsecondary plans.
Students from these programs may go to college and often go on to a successful career.

(Radio Iowa) – An eastern Iowa school district is adding a dual language program next fall that will have kindergartners learning English and Spanish. Corry Spies, principal at Franklin Elementary School in Muscatine, says parents of kindergartners can sign them up for the program that will start in August and it will extend to the following grade every year. Spies says, “It’s just something that will continue to help our students overall in life with problem-solving skills, building leadership, self-confidence, and then strengthen that bond that exists between our schools and our community.”

Becky Wichers, the Muscatine district’s director of student services, says the program will benefit kids who speak English at home, but especially those who speak Spanish at home. “So it lets them be a leader in the classroom,” Wichers says, “and I think it really demonstrates the appreciation for our native-speaking Spanish students and their families, so I think culturally, it will really enhance that relationship.”

The Muscatine Community School District already has a similar program for four-year-olds in preschool, but this will be the first time it’s brought into the district’s K-12 system.

(by Kassidy Arena, Iowa Public Radio)

(Harlan, Iowa) – The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office has issued a report on arrests that occurred from Dec. 17, 2021 to Dec. 29th. Most recently, on Dec. 29th, 23-year-old Sara Ann Cooper, of Harlan, was arrested for OWI/1st offense, and 27-year-old Wyatt Lee Canfield, of Harlan, was arrested for Driving while license is suspended, and, for speeding.

On Dec. 26th, Shelby County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 53-year-old Darren Keith Webster, of Elk Horn, on an active Shelby County warrant for Failure to Appear, on a Public Intoxication charge. Authorities say 36-year-old Tiffanie Ann Newcomb, of Kirkman, was arrested Dec. 23rd, for Theft in the 1st Degree, and Driving While Barred.

46-year-old Robert Anthony Staiert, of Harlan, was arrested Dec. 22nd, for Possession of a controlled substance, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Two days earlier (Dec. 20th), 33-year-old George Adam Summers, of Excelsior Springs, MO., was arrested following a traffic stop in Shelby County. He was subsequently charged with Possession of a controlled substance, poss. of paraphernalia, Person ineligible to carry dangerous weapons, and speeding.

On Dec. 19th, 25-year-old Dillon Michael Knudsen, of Logan, was arrested following a traffic stop on Highway 59, in Shelby County. He was charged with OWI/1st offense, and Speeding. And, on Dec. 17th, 41-year-old Bryan Christopher Heller, of Kirkman, was arrested following a traffic stop in Kirkman. He was charged with Assault on persons in certain occupations – Intent of Injury, Poss. of a controlled substance/3rd or subsequent offense, Prohibited Acts Penalties, Interference with Official Acts – inflicts bodily injury, Disarming a Peace Officer, Driving While Barred, and failure to use or maintain safety belt.

(Radio Iowa) – The Linn County Sheriff’s deputy who was injured in a shooting last summer will be honored with a key to the city where it happened next week. The City of Coggon says they plan to present the gift to Deputy Will Halverson in recognition of his bravery and commitment to Coggon’s citizens. Deputy Halverson was shot multiple times while responding to a report of an armed robbery at Casey’s General Store along Highway 13 on June 20th. The shooter, 36-year old Stanley Donahue of Chicago, fled the scene and was taken into custody without incident the next day on the northeast side of town. Coggon Mayor Travis Beckman says not every city is lucky enough to have its own superhero. “We are,” he says, “and his name is Will Halverson.” The City of Coggon will present Deputy Halverson with the Key to the City in a special ceremony prior to their City Council meeting on Tuesday night at 5:30 pm at Coggon City Hall.

Area & State News from Ric Hanson.

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(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors will hold an electronic meeting beginning at 9:30-a.m. on Friday, Jan. 7th. The session will originate from their Board Room at the Adair County Courthouse in Greenfield, and is being conducted via dial-in conference call**.  On their agenda, is Fiscal Year 2023 funding requests from the following agencies:

• The Adair County Historical Society
• Adair County Fair Board
• Adair-Guthrie County Environmental Health
• Adair County Public Health
• Adair County Tourism
• The Ag Extension
• and MATURA Action Corporation (Which consists of representatives from Adair and five other area Counties. The organization is a Community Action Agency, offering programs to the region’s low-income families and individuals.)

** The dial-in number to listen to the session is (605)-313-6157. When prompted, enter the following Access Code: 526272 (followed by the # sign).

(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston report three arrests took place, Wednesday:

• 32-year-old Cody Reese Craig, of Creston, was arrested on two counts of Operating a Vehicle without the owner’s consent, and Driving While Suspended. He was later released from the Union County Jail after posting bond.
• 34-year-old Jessica Renee Swietek, of Mt. Ayr, was arrested Wednesday at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, on a Union County warrant for Failure to Appear on a Driving While Barred charge. Swietek was transported to the Adams County Jail and held on a $2,000 cash-only bond.
• and, 43-year-old Brady Gale Richert, of Creston, was arrested at the Union County Jail on two warrants for Probation Violation, on original charges of OWI/2nd offense. His cash-only bond was set at $4,000.