(Radio Iowa) – Sheffield based SukupManufacturing Company is acquiring Ramco Innovations, a West Des Moines company that specializes in factory automation. Sukup is the world’s largest family-owned manufacturer of grain storage, grain handling and grain drying equipment. Emily Schmitt, Sukup’s Chief Administrative Officer, says Ramco has done work at Sukup facilities in Sheffield, Manly and Hampton that are being automated, with robots.

Hank Norem, Ramco’s CEO, will be chief innovation officer for a new division of the Sheffield company called Sukup Innovations. Ramco’s 65 employees will continue to work at Ramco’s facility in West Des Moines. Sukup has over 800 employees.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports a man and a woman were arrested in Stanton Sunday night, on Domestic Abuse charges. Deputies responding to the 600 block of Elliott Street in Stanton at around 8:23-p.m. investigated, and subsequently arrested 54-year-old James Bruce Castillo for Domestic Abuse/3rd offense (a Class-D Felony), and 47-year-old Christina Marie Castillo, for Domestic Abuse/1st offense (a Simple Misdemeanor).

Both were transported to the Montgomery County Jail, where they were being held without bond.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater reports three arrests took place over the past week. Last Friday (12/22), 59-year-old Duane Eric Sickles, of Greenfield, was arrested on a warrant out of Polk County, for Failure to Appear for his Probation Violation hearing. He was held without bond until being released to Polk County Sheriff’s Deputies that same day.

On December 18th, 45-year-old Daniel Arthur Anderson, of Adair, was arrested by Adair Police, for being a Fugitive from Justice from Alabama. He was wanted on a warrant for Probation Revokation. Anderson was being held in the Adair County Jail without bond, pending extradition to Alabama.

And, on Dec. 17th, 45-year-old Niels Curtis Mikkelsen, of Orient, was arrested in Orient, following a traffic stop. He was taken into custody for OWI/2nd offense, on released on a $2,000 cash or surety bond later that same day.

The Council Bluffs Police Department reports that at around 3:21-a.m. today (Sunday), a vehicle pedestrian fatality crash occurred near the intersection of Poplar Dr. and Birch St. in Council Bluffs. A 74 year old male was near a vehicle on the street and was struck by a passing vehicle. The male party was declared deceased at the scene.

The female driver was uninjured. The intersection was closed and traffic was being diverted.

This incident is in the early stages of the investigation and the names are being withheld at this time.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak report a woman was arrested Saturday, for Assault Causing Bodily Injury. Authorities say 52-year-old Kimberly Ridge, of Red Oak, was arrested at around 11:10-a.m. in the 800 block of N. 6th Street. She was transported to the Montgomery County Jail and held on $1,000 bond.

DES MOINES — U.S. Representative Zach Nunn (IA-03) today announced his bipartisan legislation to expand parental leave eligibility for parents serving in the drilling Reserve or National Guard was signed into law.  The Reserve Component Parental Leave Parity Act, co-led with Representative Jeff Jackson (NC-14), was included in the National Defense Authorization Act signed into law by President Joe Biden.

“As a father and current Air Force Reserve member, I’ve experienced firsthand the sacrifices parents make to serve our country. I’m proud that our bipartisan bill has been included in this year’s National Defense Authorization Act to make life easier for military families,” Rep. Nunn said. “This law will ensure Reserve and National Guard parents have the same access to leave as their active duty counterparts. Any servicemember who serves our country deserves time with their new children.”

The Reserve Component Parental Leave Parity Act addresses a disparity under current policies implemented in 2021 that expanded parental leave for fathers and adoptive parents in active duty but did not include drilling members of the Reserve and National Guard. Currently, leave policies for those servicemembers are offered to new mothers but not fathers or adoptive parents.  This bill equalizes leave policies for all service members.

The bill, which was originally introduced on April 13, 2023 at the American Legion in Bondurant, Iowa, passed the House of Representatives on December 14, 2023 and Senate on December 13, 2023 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act.  The President signed the bill into law on Friday, December 22, 2023.

LOHRVILLE, Iowa — Charges have been dismissed against an Iowa father whose son got ahold of one of his guns and accidentally caused his own death. The accidental shooting happened in Lohrville back on June 16. The boy was 6 years old.

KCCI says Court documents had argued that Justin Pope left several loaded handguns out where children in the home could get them. Pope pleaded not guilty to the charges.

A Calhoun County judge accepted the state’s request to dismiss charges. The state says there was not enough evidence to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

(Des Moines, Iowa/KCCI] – The mother of a Des Moines teen who was shot and killed by police officers in December 2022 is suing the city and police department. Trevontay Jenkins, who was 16 at the time, was shot and killed by police on Dec. 26, 2022. Officers had been called to an apartment on East McKinley Avenue in Des Moines early Dec. 26 and found Jenkins armed along with other family members, according to previous reporting.

During de-escalation efforts, police say Jenkins raised his gun in the direction of officers, prompting three of the four responding officers to fire their weapons. Jenkins later died at a Des Moines hospital.

Monica Woods, Jenkins’ mother, filed a civil rights lawsuit Friday against the city and the individual police officers involved. The lawsuit claims Jenkins was not pointing the gun in the direction of any officers when they fired shots at him, and that Des Moines did not adequately train its officers in de-escalation techniques.

The Iowa Attorney General’s office previously announced the shooting was justified and the four officers involved would not be criminally charged.

RADCLIFFE, Iowa [KCCI]— The Radcliffe, Iowa, American Legion has something inside the building that may turn out to be a tourist attraction. Ray “Bubba” Sorensen, well known for his painting patriotic Freedom Rocks, was commissioned to paint a mural inside the building. The mural features a legion member saluting a folded flag, jets flying in fallen man formation, the USS Iowa Battleship, an American flag and soldiers coming out of a cornfield.

While some people have seen the mural, it will not be officially revealed until Sunday, Jan. 21, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Legion’s monthly winter breakfast fundraiser.

(Villisca, Iowa) – Two separate calls to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office about a person trying to break into homes in Villisca Friday night, resulted in the arrest of 40-year-old Gary Allen Honeyman, of Villisca. He was charged with Felony Attempted Burglary in the 2nd Degree, Public Intoxication, and Criminal Mischief in the 5th Degree.

Authorities say Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies were called to the 100 block of N. 4th Avenue in Villisca, at around 10:30-p.m. for a report of a man possibly trying to break into a residence in the area. Deputies were unable to locate anyone after a search of the area. About 45-minutes later, the Sheriff’s Office received a similar call from a resident in the 100 block of 5th Avenue, in Villisca, with the suspect fitting the same description as in the first incident.

Deputies located the suspect – Gary Honeyman – hiding under a porch. He was taken into custody on the aforementioned charges, and transported to the Montgomery County Jail. Honeyman’s bond was set at $5,000.