Officers with the Red Oak Police Department, Thursday, arrested a 17-year old, for Interference with Official Acts. The teen was taken into custody in the 2300 block of Eastern Avenue, cited, and released to juvenile courts. No name was released because of the person’s age.

A 16-year old from Creston was flown by air ambulance to Methodist Hospital in Des Moines, and three others juveniles were injured, following a collision at an uncontrolled gravel road intersection, Thursday night. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 2004 Nissan Xterra (SUV) driven by a 16-year old was traveling westbound on 190th at around 8:23-p.m., at the same time a 1998 Toyota 4 Runner driven by a 17-year old, was traveling northbound on Jaguar Road.

After the 4 Runner struck the driver’s side of the Nissan, the Nissan rolled onto its passenger side and was thrown into a utility pole at the northwest corner of the intersection. When it hit the utility pole, a live power line fell onto the SUV, and the Toyota came to rest in a ditch.

No names were released because the teens are juveniles.

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office reports a man and a woman were arrested Thursday, following a search for a man wanted on a warrant. Deputies received a call stating 30-year old Jonathan Lee Million, of Marshalltown, and formerly of Shenandoah, who was wanted on the warrant, was hiding inside a residence in Farragut. Deputies attempted to make contact with the residents located at a home in the 800 block of Essex Street in Farragut, and while on scene, received an anonymous call of 2 men wearing masks, armed with guns at the bank in Riverton, Iowa. The bank in Riverton had been closed for several years. The call was found to be fraudulent.

J.Million

Lisa Costello

Deputies then observed a male matching the description of Million, attempt to exit the home and then reenter upon observing law enforcement still in the area. Deputies forced entry into the home and Fremont County K9 “Roby” was deployed. Two occupants of the residence surrendered to law enforcement prior to the K9 entering the residence.

Deputies arrested Jonathan Lee Million, and 43-year old Lisa Ann Costello, of Farragut. A search warrant was conducted on the residence and several items of evidence were recovered, including a loaded firearm reported stolen during a burglary out of Fremont County. Million was arrested on an outstanding warrant out of Marshalltown, as well as new charges that include Interference with Official Acts, Theft 4th Degree, and two counts of Possession of a Weapon by a felon. Costello was arrested for Accessory of a Felony After the Fact, Possession of Methamphetamine, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

Additional charges are pending. Tabor Police Department and Shenandoah Police Department assisted the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office in the investigation.

Deputies with the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, Thursday, took 31-year old Mindy Elizabeth Irvin, of Shenandoah, into custody at residence in Riverton. Irvin was wanted on an outstanding Fremont County warrant.

Mindy Irvin

Authorities say in early October 2019, deputies took a report of someone who had unlawfully entered a storage unit, stored items in the unit, and had caused damage to two separate units while on the property. The owner of the property advised Irvin did not have a rental agreement and had stored property inside a unit for at least two months.

It was also discovered that Irvin had locked a male inside an adjacent storage unit for approximately 4 hours, against his will. Irvin was being held at the Fremont County Jail for Burglary 3rd Degree, a class D felony, Theft 5th Degree, a simple misdemeanor, and False Imprisonment, a serious misdemeanor. More charges are pending in this case.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:45 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Polk County Jail officials say an inmate faces additional charges after he was found with parts of a handgun taped to his inner thigh. KCCI reports that 27-year-old Wyatt Andrew Franklin was booked into the nail on Nov. 13 on an operating under the influence charge. After being injured in an incident at the jail, Franklin was taken to a hospital, where medical staff found the frame of a handgun and a holster taped to his leg. The rest of the gun and ammunition was found hidden back at the jail.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s auditor says the state budget is in good shape with surpluses but that beneficial federal tax policies will end in a few years, potentially causing problems. In his annual review of the state budget, Auditor Rob Sand said Thursday that federal tax changes made in 2017 gave Iowa’s budget a $188 million windfall for the 2019 fiscal year that ended June 30. He says the federal windfall accounts for about two-thirds of the estimated surplus for the current fiscal year.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Supreme Court Justice David Wiggins will serve as the chief justice of the court until a successor to Chief Justice Mark Cady can be appointed. Cady died unexpectedly Nov. 15 at age 66. Wiggins will serve as acting chief justice until the current vacancy on the court is filled and the full court selects a chief justice. The court’s elected chief will serve until the court holds its first meeting in 2021 and holds another election.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new survey of bankers suggests the economy continues growing in rural parts of 10 Plains and Western states, but the ongoing trade disputes continue to hurt the outlook for more growth. The Rural Mainstreet survey’s overall index improved to 54.2 in November from October’s 51.4.

LENOX – Responding to a complaint about manure application, Iowa DNR staff found manure running into a stream about four miles south of Lenox Thursday morning. Manure was flowing from multiple locations into an unnamed tributary of the East River. Staff collected water samples for analysis, but did not see any dead fish in the stream.

DNR staff learned manure from the Utah North facility was applied by Larabee Applicators Wednesday evening prior to rainfall.  Manure reached the stream due to improper injection. Kristi Burg of the DNR’s Atlantic field office, said “We know the weather and field conditions have been challenging this fall, but I’d like to remind people to check the weather forecast before land applying manure to reduce the potential for runoff.”

DNR will consider appropriate enforcement. As a reminder, manure spills and releases must be reported to the DNR field offices or called in to the spill line at 515-725-8694 within 6 hours of occurrence or discovery.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s auditor says the state budget is in good shape with surpluses but that beneficial federal tax policies will end in a few years, potentially causing problems.

In his annual review of the state budget, Auditor Rob Sand said Thursday that federal tax changes made in 2017 gave Iowa’s budget a $188 million windfall for the 2019 fiscal year that ended June 30. He says the federal windfall accounts for about two-thirds of the estimated surplus for the current fiscal year.

He’s reminding lawmakers that by the 2025-2026 budget year the portion of the federal tax break that benefits Iowa will end. Iowa will need to have built a significant surplus to avoid problems.

He also says the state is not following best budget practices by underfunding its portion of Medicaid costs. For the last several years lawmakers have had to provide additional money to fill the void. Sand says it’s more accurate, transparent, and responsible to budget enough from the beginning.

(Radio Iowa) — Republican Senator Joni Ernst and the top Democrat in the senate are hurling accusations at one another over a bill to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act. Ernst accuses New York Senator Chuck Schumer of blocking Democrats from supporting the bill to hurt her bid for re-election. Schumer accuses Ernst of blocking gun-related provisions because she’s afraid of the National Rifle Association. Ernst was with some of her staffers as she spoke with Iowa reporters today (Thursday) from a booth in Washington, D.C. “I do not need to be mansplained by Chuck Schumer,” Ernst said and a member of her staff yelled: “Woo!” Ernst continued: “Yeah, I heard that little woo. Thank you very much. I am a survivor. I’m not afraid of anyone, folks. I’ve been through the worst of the worst and I’m here today.”

Ernst and her husband divorced last year and Ernst said this past January that in addition to an abusive spouse, she was raped in college by someone else. “Going through these situations is already extremely trying for anyone, but having that lifeline of support was so important to me and it helped me find my way through dark and difficult times,” Ernst said. “That’s why this bill, the Violence Against Women Act, has been a priority for me this year.” The bill passed by Democrats in the U.S. HOUSE prohibits people convicted of domestic violence or stalking from owning a firearm. Ernst says the House made that retroactive and she says that’s not what the law said at the time of those convictions — and the move could violate plea agreements of the past.

“That would be someone who was guilty of assault 30, 40 years ago, but has since been, you know, having good behavior,” Ernst told reporters today. “…What we can’t do is go back, change the law as it existed in 1975 and expect that is due process. It is not.” Ernst says she plans to continue working with the top Democrat on a key committee in hopes of coming up with a bipartisan solution to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.

(Radio Iowa) — Three men are charged with illegally shooting a trumpeter swan at the Cedar Bottoms Wildlife Management Area in Muscatine County. Conservation officer, Derrick Slutts, says he investigated after getting a tip that the swan had been shot Sunday. “I was able to collect some evidence at the scene — shell casings and what not — which led me to a potential suspect. We went and interviewed the suspect and he confessed that he believed the swan was a snow goose and his two other friends had believed the same,” Slutts says. Twenty-seven-year-old Austin McMillan of West Branch, 26-year-old Daniel Solorio-Oldenburg of Cedar Rapids and 28-year-old Mitchell Kesterson of Van Horne were each charged with one count of attempt to take wildlife and one count of abandonment of wildlife. The men were hunting ducks and Slutts says it’s mistake that should not have happened.

“They should be able to distinctly know the difference between a snow goose and a trumpeter swan. A trumpeter swan can be upwards of eight to ten feet wingspan — where a snow goose is only going to be maybe that five feet range at max. And a majority of them are only three to four foot wingspan,” according to Sluttes. “There’s a large size difference.” He says it’s a reminder to hunters to remain calm and see the target before shooting during any type of hunt. “It’s important to know what your target is in front of you before you pull that trigger,” he says. “You just need to wait and make sure you properly identify that target. Once you determine it’s a snow goose or not a snow goose, you pull that trigger — and don’t get too excited just thinking that there’s birds coming at you.” Slutts says they recovered the swan and have a use for it.

He says they are going to try and get it mounted and have offered it to county conservation boards to use for educational purposes. Trumpeter swans were very common in Iowa around the time the state was being settled, but they vanished over the decades due to excessive hunting. Conservationists began working to restore the swans in Iowa in the 1990s. Slutts says there aren’t as many trumpeter swans out there as other species of birds — but hunters need to be aware they do fly in the same areas.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports a traffic stop Tuesday, in College Springs, resulted in the arrest of a central Iowa man. The stop occurred near the intersection of School and Iowa Streets. Authorities say during the traffic stop, 54-year old Roger Gene James, of Des Moines, was arrested for Driving while license barred and OWI 1st Offense. James was transported to the Page County Sheriff’s Office where he was being held held on a $3,000 bond.