Des Moines, Iowa – A man from northwest Iowa, 46-year-old Andrew Warren Joyce, from Emmetsburg, was recently charged with one Class B Felony count of Ongoing Criminal Conduct, one Class C Felony count of Theft 1st Degree, on Class D Felony count of Theft 2nd Degree, and one Class D Felony count of Failure to Trust Pre-need Funeral Services. The charges followed an investigation by the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau that began in 2019.

Photo courtesy of the Palo Alto Sheriff’s Office.

According to criminal complaints filed by the Iowa Insurance Fraud Bureau, while acting as an Iowa funeral director licensed to sell pre-need funeral insurance policies, Andrew Joyce failed to comply with the requirements of Iowa Code chapter 523A. A Cease and Desist order was previously issued against Joyce by the Iowa Insurance Division in October of 2019. On December 29th, 2020 Joyce was charged and posted bond with a promise to appear in court at a later date. No additional information was released.

A reminder: If you have information about insurance fraud, or suspected fraud, contact the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau at 515-654-6556.

More State and area news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — An investigation continues into what caused a fire at the Council Bluffs airport that destroyed one plane and damaged several others. The fire broke out Wednesday morning, sending thick black smoke into the air. Firefighters extinguished the blaze in about 40 minutes.

Authorities say one plane was a total loss and others sustained smoke damage. Officials have not yet estimated the financial toll.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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(Radio Iowa) – Iowa has one of the nation’s worst rates of children being hit by trains, according to a study by a non-profit group that works to protect kids from preventable injuries. Nadji  Kirby, senior program manager at Safe Kids Worldwide, says Iowa has the country’s third-highest percentage of railroad-related accidents involving kids. “In Iowa, between 2010 and 2019, there were 54 children injured in rail-related incidents,” Kirby says. “Of those, 12 were fatal and 42 were non-fatal.”

Those accidents accounted for 16-percent of all rail-related injuries in Iowa, ranking the state behind only Indiana at 20-percent and Idaho at 19-percent. The study found many parents don’t realize the importance of addressing railroad safety, with fewer than half of parents surveyed saying they’ve talked with their kids about it — and half of parents admit to taking risks around railroads. “The majority of parents don’t consider children being hit by trains to be a big problem, despite the fact that we found that every five days a child is killed in a train collision,” she says.

Safe Kids Worldwide and Omaha-based Union Pacific Railroad are working to increase awareness and educate families about how to be safe around train tracks. Kirby says railroad crossing accidents often occur when a driver isn’t paying attention near the tracks, when drivers or walkers choose to go around a safety barrier, or when they race to cross the track before the train passes.  “Talk to the kids about only crossing at designated crossings that are marked by signs, lights and gates,” Kirby says. “Always wait for the train to completely pass because trains can take up to a mile to stop, so once a train sees you, it might be too late. Also, the importance of not being distracted around tracks or trains, because distraction is a big issue, driving and/or walking.”

For motorists, allow plenty of space when stopped at railroad crossings, as trains are at least three feet wider than the tracks on either side.

Full report: https://www.safekids.org/research-report/railroads-often-overlooked-danger-children

The New Year is almost upon us, and while COVID has put a damper on many parties or large celebrations, it’s still important to remember not to drink and drive. Iowa State Patrol Trooper Ryan DeVault with District 3 in Council Bluffs, says you might think the New Year’s holiday is the most deadly time on the road for motorists, but that’s not the case.

Taking a nap for a few hours after drinking and then getting back on the road again, he says does not guarantee you’re sober enough to get behind the wheel.

When you’re on the road, keep an eye out for drivers displaying erratic behavior, such as weaving between lanes or crossing the center line, driving too slowly, or speeding up and slowing down for no reason.

(Radio Iowa) – Congresswoman-elect Ashley Hinson of Marion says she would favor more targeted federal assistance rather than stimulus checks to most Americans in the next round of pandemic relief. “I definitely support the direct payments to people who need them,” Hinson says. “I think the real issue here is the fact that it took months and months to even start negotiating this relief package and they pushed it clearly to the last minute, which is very frustrating.”

Hinson, a Republican, will be sworn in as a member of the U.S. House on Sunday, to represent Iowa’s first congressional district. She calls the 600-dollar payments that HAVE begun arriving in the bank accounts of some Americans a start. “For some families that’s not enough right now,” Hinson says. “I know there are families who need it, but I also had someone message me they wanted to send theirs back, so I think that there’s a way that maybe we could better target some of that and narrowly focus relief going forward.”

President Trump has called on congress to pay most Americans two-thousand dollars. That proposal passed the Democratically-led House on Monday. Hinson says she hasn’t read the proposal, which has stalled in the Republican-led U.S. Senate. “As you know, things change very quickly, but I said the $600 payment is a good start and we can go from there,” Hinson says.

President-elect Joe Biden has called the current round of stimulus checks a down payment on a larger relief bill he plans to introduce once he takes office. “For me, the priority in the first quarter is going to be looking at all of that, figuring out how those payments, you know, if they were effective, if they were enough,” Hinson says. “And then we do need to be responsive and we do need to take a next step, if that’s needed.” Hinson says when she becomes a voting member of the House next week, she’d like to see a package that not only provides direct federal payments to financially-stressed individuals, but to industries that have taken a hit during the pandemic.

(Iowa News Service, DES MOINES, Iowa) — More than half of Iowans surveyed say new federal stimulus payments will provide immediate financial help. The Treasury Department is issuing the payments after President Donald Trump signed the latest COVID relief bill. As Congress debated the issue through the fall, nearly 3,000 people responded to a survey commissioned by the United Ways of Iowa. Fifty-one percent said a second stimulus payment would make “an important difference.” That number was 72% for those living in poverty.

Dennis Parker, executive director of the National Center for Law and Economic Justice, said the results show the country has ignored the plight of marginalized workers for too long.  “We’re in this position now because we didn’t do it before,” Parker asserted. “And having seen it, it would be criminal not to take steps to make changes that end the prospect of these kinds of problems.” Parker thinks the changes should go beyond providing livable wages, since health-care access in the pandemic has revealed racial and economic disparities.

The Iowa survey, released this month, was conducted between late September and early November. Pro-business groups contend higher wage requirements would lead to fewer workers, especially in smaller companies. But Parker said paying workers more is feasible for a lot of businesses, and can produce a more stable workforce. When considering prosperity, he said the U.S. needs to move past the traditional measuring sticks. “The fact that the stock market is doing well is little consolation for people who are facing eviction, having trouble feeding their kids,” Parker argued.

A report from the Pew Research Center released just prior to the pandemic said upper-income households in the U.S. are seeing most of the income growth, as the middle class erodes.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:30 a.m. CST

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A winter storm moving across parts of Texas and Oklahoma could dump up to 18 inches of snow in places before moving eastward and possibly spawning tornadoes. The National Weather Service says 12 to 18 inches of snow in southwestern Texas is possible by Thursday. Some snow is also expected in northwest Arkansas. Forecasts say the storm then will move eastward, creating a threat of tornadoes across Louisiana and southern Mississippi on New Year’s Eve as the colder temperatures are met with moisture and warmer air. The storm produced what forecaster Jeremy Grams said was likely a brief tornado in Corsicana, Texas, on Wednesday.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Majority Democrats in the U.S. House say they intend to allow an Iowa Republican to take office while they review her opponent’s contest claiming the six-vote race was wrongly decided. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said “yes” when asked at a news conference whether Mariannette Miller-Meeks will be sworn in with other members of the House on Sunday. Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill said later that Democrats “intend to provisionally seat” Miller-Meeks pending a review of the challenge filed by her Democratic opponent. Rita Hart asked the House to investigate and overturn the state-certified results. The House Administration Committee is reviewing the matter.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Spread of the coronavirus may be increasing again in Iowa as the positivity rate ticked higher in recent days. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University say the 7-day average of the positivity rate in Iowa has risen over the past two weeks from 35.38% on Dec. 15 to 36.21% on Dec. 29. The state reported about 1,600 new cases and 10 deaths on Wednesday. Hospitalizations fell slightly, though the number of people in intensive care was up.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A 22-year-old Kalona man has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for creating and storing child pornography. Federal prosecutors announced that Jackson Yaro Young was sentenced Tuesday. Officials said investigators found child pornography on his phone and evidence that he had coerced several minors into sexually explicit conduct. Young pleaded guilty in 2017 to third-degree sexual abuse for having sex with a child. He was placed on probation. He violated his probation in 2018. After serving his current sentence, Young will be on supervised release for 10 years.