(Radio Iowa) – A former middle school teacher in the Humboldt Community School District has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to sexual exploitation of a child. Court records show 32-year-old Samantha Meyer-Davis of Rutland admitted that from May of 2022 through November of the following year she was engaged in a sexual relationship with a student. Meyer-Davis initially denied the relationship when confronted by school administrators. During her sentencing, Judge Leonard T. Stand said there was no indication she would have stopped the abuse on her own and it only ended when law enforcement got involved.

Along with the 20-year term in a federal prison, Meyer-Davis has been ordered to pay over 13-thousand dollars in restitution. Meyer-Davis is set to go on trial in state court later this month on state charges of third degree sexual abuse and sexual exploitation by a school employee.

(Radio Iowa) – State Auditor Rob Sand — a Democrat who’s running for governor — says the decline in state tax revenue is even worse than expected. Sand says it’s a fiscal crisis created by Republican lawmakers who intentionally cut revenue by reducing the state income tax and increased spending on Education Savings Accounts for students attending private schools. Sand says Iowans are sick of the direction the state is going in.

Rob Sand in Manchester, IA

“The vouchers program itself has a total lack of oversight,” Sand said. “They’re frustrated with a lack of support for public schools. They’re looking at rising costs for their own checkbook.” During July, August and September, total state tax receipts were down nearly 15 percent compared to the same quarter last year. Sand says if the trend continues, the state will have a deficit of over a BILLION dollars. Sand says it’s time to reorient state government, so it’s not just serving insiders and special interest groups. “This is what you get out of 10 years of one party control. If it was 10 years for the other party in total control, you’d have the same issues,” Sand said. “Too much power in too few hands for too long brings corruption. That’s human nature. It’s not partisan.”

Sand made his comments during a campaign stop yesterday (Wednesday) in Manchester. Republicans say they planned for the decline in state tax revenue by producing lean state budgets over the past several years and stockpiling a surplus. Governor Reynolds and her fellow Republicans say the tax cut will spur the state economy and tax revenue will rise, but until then they plan to use the surplus to balance the state budget.

(Radio Iowa) – A report from the state auditor’s office is flagging some bookkeeping issues in a northwest Iowa community where several previous public officials were accused of wrongdoing in 2021. A report from the state auditor’s office eight years ago on the City of Armstrong led to charges against Armstrong’s former police chief, former mayor, former city clerks and a policeman. None of the issues in the latest report from the state auditor’s office rose to the level of being turned over to law enforcement.

C-P-As did raise concerns about a deficit in the fund used to cover the city’s garbage and landfill costs. The report indicates a city employee used their own Society Security number to get a debit card for Armstrong’s bank account to pay city bills. The state auditor’s office says unlike credit cards, there’s limited ability to set guidelines for access to debit cards and the city should ban the use of a debit card.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is among a group asking Meta — the company that owns Facebook and Instagram — to explain its policy about the removal of videos depicting violence. Victims of the October 7th attacks in Israel have sued Meta for enabling the distribution of the Hamas attacks and failing to remove the video footage. Bird says social media companies like Meta should not profit from or promote terrorism in any form.

Brenna Bird (Radio IA file photo)

Bird says she and the 11 other attorneys general who signed onto a letter to Meta need to know what Meta has done and will do to make sure it doesn’t happen again. The attorneys general have asked Meta’s chief legal officer to reply to their questions by November 10th. Hamas is currently banned from Facebook and Instagram and a spokesperson for the company has said Meta worked around the clock after the October 7th attacks to remove images that sought to glorify the violence.

Meta’s website says users will be protected from depictions of kidnappings and severe violence and the company says it removes threats of violence against various targets.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Rotary Club has donated $2,500 to Vision Atlantic’s transformative project, which will bring a housing development, new child development center, and YMCA expansion to Atlantic.

Vision Atlantic Committee Members Dave and Barb Chase, said “Following a long-standing tradition of supporting local community projects, we want to express our gratitude to the Atlantic Rotary Club for its recent financial commitment to the Vision Atlantic initiatives. And, we look forward to its continuing support of this transformational project.”

As previously reported, Vision Atlantic, through extensive research and surveying of the community and surrounding region, identified three areas that will help increase Atlantic’s population: expanded childcare, quality housing and quality of life amenities. Infrastructure for the 142 mixed unit Camblin Hills housing development and 300 capacity child development center is almost complete, with construction of 48 homes currently underway. Construction of the child development center and YMCA expansion is slated to begin early 2026.

Vision Atlantic has a fundraising goal of $39 million, which will be used to construct the YMCA expansion and child development center. To date, they have raised $26 million of that goal, thanks to an $8.6 million lead grant from the Charles E. Lakin Foundation and significant support from local donors. In addition to their grant support, the Lakin Foundation has created a separate investment fund of $23 million that will be used to construct homes in the Camblin Hills housing development. The capital will be used as a line of credit, and as the dollars are paid back, the Foundation will donate up to 5% of the interest paid back to Vision Atlantic, who will use those dollars to operate the child development center.

Vision Atlantic’s Project Committee is actively working to secure the remaining $13 million needed to meet their fundraising goal. If you are interested in helping transform Atlantic, whether it’s through monetary donations or acts of volunteerism, please contact Vision Atlantic at visionatlanticiowa@gmail.com. Visit www.visionatlantic.org and follow on Facebook for behind-the-scenes access to project updates and in-depth information of the project scope.

Vision Atlantic is a 501(c)(3) non-profit whose mission is to empower growth, enhance lives, and build a thriving community together through the economic development of Atlantic, Iowa.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, October 9, 2025 – On Saturday, Oct. 4, over 400 Council Bluffs residents participated in the Walk to End Alzheimer’s at Iowa Western Community College. Walkers helped raise over $12,000 so far to fund the care, support and research programs of the Alzheimer’s Association. Fundraising continues through the end of the year, so there is still time to donate at alz.org/walk.  This year’s Top Team is Team EJ (Edward Jones) REG290, led by Top Walker Ross Jensen, and they raised over $4,700. Jensen walks in memory of his mother and aunt who passed from the disease.

The other top teams and walkers are:

·       Team Jessie’s Team Scuba Steve, led by Team Captain Jessica Duncan, raised over $2,300 in memory of Duncan’s father who passed from dementia.

·       Team Moore for the Cure, led by Top Walker Rev. Richard Moore, raised over $2,100 in memory of family and friends affected by the disease.

·       Team Primrose Kenealy, led by Team Captain Stephanie Kenealy, raised over $2,000.

All top teams and walkers can be found at alz.org/walk.

Over 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease – a leading cause of death in the United States. Additionally, nearly 12 million family members and friends provide care to people living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias. In Iowa, there are more than 62,000 people living with the disease and 80,000 caregivers.

The Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s is the world’s largest event to raise awareness and funds for Alzheimer’s care, support and research.  Since 1989, the Alzheimer’s Association mobilized millions of Americans in the Alzheimer’s Association Memory Walk^®; now the Alzheimer’s Association is continuing to lead the way with Walk to End Alzheimer’s

(Creston, Iowa) – A high school English teacher from Creston, facing termination for a social-media comment regarding the killing of Charlie Kirk, is fighting back, citing a series of pro-Republican posts by the superintendent. KCCI-TV reports Melisa Crook has filed a lawsuit against the Creston Community School District, its superintendent and the school board, claiming her First Amendment rights are being violated and seeking an injunction blocking her dismissal. As part of her lawsuit, Crook is citing numerous political and religious social-media posts allegedly made by Creston Community School District Superintendent Deron Stender over the past five years and by school board president Don Gee.

In some of the posts, the superintendent has allegedly questioned the rights of immigrants; voiced support for Republicans including President Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa; referred to former Rep. Liz Cheney, a Republican critic of Trump, as a “snake;” and called backers of former President Joe Biden, a Democrat, “snowflakes.” Stender said Wednesday he cannot comment on his social-media posts, calling them a “personnel matter” that was handled by the school board. He also declined to comment on Crook’s lawsuit, calling it a separate personnel matter. Gee also declined to comment on either his posts or the lawsuit.

In her lawsuit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, Crook, who has taught English for the Creston district since 2022, alleges she has been “subjected to retaliation, and is now threatened with the termination of her continuing-teaching contract, because of a private, off-duty comment on Facebook.”

Her Sept. 10, 2025, comment was made in response to a family member’s Facebook post about the shooting death of Kirk, a controversial, conservative political activist. The lawsuit states that “at her home, on her personal time, and using her personal Facebook account, Crook wrote, ‘He is a terrible human being … terrible. I do not wish death on anyone, but him not being here is a blessing.’” Within a few hours, the lawsuit alleges, a conservative blog, the Iowa Standard, reported on Crook’s comment, identifying her by name and by her status as a public-school teacher working for the Creston district. The next morning, after seeing how others had perceived her original comment, Crook wrote on Facebook that she did “not wish anyone death” and apologized.

Later that morning, she issued a more extensive apology on her own Facebook page, saying she does not condone violence or the killing of people you disagree with politically or otherwise. She admitted that she should have given more consideration to her posted thoughts, and took responsibility for the “ poor wording” of her post. Her comments prompted Republican Iowa House Speaker Pat Grassley to state “…hate has no place in our state and certainly does not belong in our schools.” He said also if the school district didn’t take appropriate action, the Iowa House Government Oversight Committee would address the issue and take action to root out that type of hate from schools in the State.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports 30-year-old Emily Dawn Christensen, of Creston, “was arrested at her residence”, Tuesday evening – cited, and then released on a Promise To Appear in Court – with regard to an incident where police say an animal was allowed to run at-large.

(A report from the Iowa Capital Dispatch) – A survey of the commercial horticulture food crops industry in Iowa showed direct specialty crop sales of more than $79 million in 2022 and even higher figures of economic output attributable to the industry.  The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship announced the results of the 2023 survey, Wednesday, and said it shows the local produce industry is “diverse, growing, and making a significant contribution to Iowa’s economy and agricultural identity.” The survey was sent to Iowa specialty crop producers who grow edible crops like vegetables, fruits, berries, nuts, honey, maple syrup, herbs, mushrooms and pumpkins.

According to a news release from IDALS, this is the first “comprehensive look” at the industry since 2015.  More than 850 specialty farmers participated in the survey, which found that a total of 11,650 acres of specialty crops were grown in 2023.  Sales from these farms had a statewide economic output of $66.5 million in 2023 and supported $29.9 million in labor.  Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said the survey “confirms the economic strength of specialty crop producers.” Most of those farms are small, grow multiple products and sell directly to consumers. These farmers skew young with nearly 50% of respondents below the age of 35. The survey found the average age of Iowa specialty crop producers was 57.2 years, which is lower than the national average, 58.1 years, of producers in the U.S. according to the latest Census of Agriculture.

The majority of specialty farm producers responded that they also work-off farm jobs and 37% responded they work full-time jobs off the farm in addition to running the farm. The average farm size for these edible crops was 7.8 acres, though many farms are quite a bit smaller considering the median farm size was just 2.8 acres. The survey also found that just 4% of farms had crop insurance.  From 1989 to 2000, the number of specialty farms in Iowa declined from 1,400 farms to 938 farms, according to the survey results. The industry has since rebounded, with 1,680 farms counted in 2023. The results show the total number of sales of edible specialty crops increased by 73% from 2012 to 2022, with inflation-adjusted figures. The survey results show direct edible specialty crop sales amounted to $79 million in 2022.

Locally grown produce. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

In addition to growing on average 3.8 distinct specialty crops, farmers also diversify their operations with on-farm activities. Nearly 60% of surveyed farms participate in some form of agritourism, which they reported generated $6.6 million in income. Farmers also increase their sales with value-added products, or products that have been processed in some way, like canned vegetables or wine. The survey results show edible specialty crop farms sold an estimated $11.3 million in value-added products in 2023. Naig said he believes the Iowa edible specialty crop industry will continue to grow, especially with the expansion of the department’s marketing service, Choose Iowa. Naig said these farmers also help connect Iowans to their food sources.

“With the continued expansion of the Choose Iowa program, I believe this sector is well-positioned for even greater growth in the years ahead,” Naig said. “Horticulture food crops bring opportunities not just for established farms but also for beginning farmers who are shaping the future of our industry.”

Honey, peppers, apples, tomatoes and lettuce were the top edible specialty crops grown in Iowa. According to survey results, the number of honey producers in the state has “dramatically increased” as there were fewer than 200 producers in 1997 and there were 1,229 in 2022. The other top crops had between 400 and 550 producers each in 2022. Producers who sold through Community Supported Agriculture programs or at farmers markets were more likely to grow a higher variety of crops.

According to the release from IDALS, the report, which was produced primarily by the department and staff from Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, will help lawmakers and department leaders to “better support specialty crop farmers and help them overcome challenges, seize new opportunities, and sustain growth.”

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Eighteen lakes across Iowa are gearing up to receive trout this fall. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) says they will release between 1,000 to 2,000 rainbow trout at each location as part of its cool weather trout program that brings trout to areas that cannot support them during the summer months. The fall community trout stockings are a great place to take kids to catch their first fish. A small hook with a night crawler or corn under a small bobber or small simple spinners such as a panther martin or Mepps is all you need to get in on the fun.

Bringing trout to cities and towns offers a “close to home” option for Iowans who might not travel to northeast Iowa to discover trout fishing. A family-friendly event is often paired with the stocking to help anglers have success and fun while fishing. Check the Iowa DNR Community Trout Stocking Schedule website to see which lakes are having events.

The popular program is supported by the sales of the trout fee. Anglers need a valid fishing license and pay the trout fee to fish for or possess trout. The daily limit is five trout per licensed angler with a possession limit of 10. Children age 15 or younger can fish for trout with a properly licensed adult, but they must limit their catch to one daily limit. The child can purchase a trout fee which will allow them to keep their own limit.

2025 Fall Community Trout Stocking Schedule:

Oct. 23, Ottumwa Park Pond, Ottumwa, 11 a.m.

Oct. 24, Prairie Park Fishery, Cedar Rapids, 10 a.m.

Oct. 24, Liberty Centre Pond, North Liberty, 10:30 a.m.

Oct. 25, East Lake Park Pond, Mount Pleasant, 10 a.m.

Oct. 25, Wilson Lake, Donnellson, Noon

Oct. 25, Lake of the Hills, Davenport, 10 a.m.

Oct. 27, Triumph Park East & West, Waukee, Noon

Oct. 27, Terra Lake, Johnston, Noon

Oct. 29, Big Lake, Council Bluffs, 3 p.m.

Oct. 29, Moorland Pond, Fort Dodge, Noon

Oct. 29, Sand Lake, Marshalltown, Noon

Oct. 30, North Prairie Lake, Cedar Falls, 11:30 a.m.

Oct. 30, Heritage Pond, Dubuque, 11 a.m.

Oct. 31, Lake Petocka, Bondurant, Noon

Nov. 1, Stolley Pond, Spencer, 1 p.m.

Nov. 3, Ada Hayden Heritage Park Lake, Ames, Noon

Nov. 3, Bacon Creek, Sioux City, 1:30 p.m.

Nov. 26, Blue Pit, Mason City, 11 a.m.

Find more information about trout fishing in community lakes on the DNR trout fishing webpage.