IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A former secretary for Iowa soil and water conservation districts allegedly embezzled nearly $300,000 in cash and personal purchases over a 7-year period. A report released by State Auditor Mary Mosiman says Leslie Carey made hundreds of withdrawals and improper purchases, criticizing the districts for failing to implement safeguards after a similar scandal was uncovered in 2014.

Carey was secretary for the Black Hawk County Soil and Water Conservation District and its counterpart in Bremer County. She was an employee of the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship until resigning last December.

The report found Carey withdrew $182,000 in cash from the Black Hawk district and spent $105,000 on debit and credit cards. She used public funds to buy items such as a new television and water heater, airline and concert tickets, groceries and clothing.
Carey improperly transferred $134,000 from Bremer to prop up Black Hawk’s budget.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The state has taken custody of another infant through Iowa’s safe haven law. The state Department of Human Services says a baby boy born Aug. 19 at an Iowa hospital was released into the custody of the agency.

It was the 32nd time the procedure had been used since lawmakers changed the law following a 2001 case in which a mother killed her home-delivered newborn in eastern Iowa.

Under the law, parents can give the state custody of babies who are 30 days or younger without concern of being prosecuted. Parents or an authorized representative can leave infants at a hospital or other health care facility.

The babies are placed with foster or adoptive families. The state doesn’t identify the location of babies taken into custody.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A newspaper investigation has found that a company that ran Iowa’s newly privatized Medicaid program before quitting still owes up to $14.6 million for medical care provided to disabled, poor and elderly residents. Records obtained by the Des Moines Register show that AmeriHealth Caritas owes nearly 6,000 individual charges totaling more than $1 million at the University of Iowa Hospitals.

AmeriHealth was one of three for-profit groups that Iowa hired in 2016 to take over management of the state’s $5 billion annual program. The company announced last year that it planned to terminate its contract with the state after 18 months and multiple failed attempts to negotiate higher payments for its Medicaid work. AmeriHealth spokesman Joshua Brett says the company is complying with its Iowa contract and that it’s working to examine provider claims.

Officials with the Harlan Police Department are reporting numerous arrests took place over the past week. Today (Friday), 21-year old Zachary Thomas Powers, of Harlan, was arrested following a call for a possible domestic situation near 10^th and Market. Powers was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with domestic abuse assault, public intoxication, and disorderly conduct. On Thursday, 20-year old Quentin James Briggs, of Harlan, was arrested on an active warrant following a traffic stop near 12^th and Willow St. Briggs was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was also charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.

Three people were arrested this past Monday. 22-year old Cassie Kaylynn Swensen, of Anita, was arrested following a call for stolen vehicle in the 900 block of Broadway St. Swensen was transported to the Shelby County Jail where she was charged with theft 2^nd degree. 38-year old Daniel Harvey Pash, of Harlan, was arrested following a traffic stop near 18^th St and Lincoln Ave. Pash was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia. And, 19-year old Cody James Haggerty, of Harlan, was arrested after a call for service in the 1700 block of 7^th St. Haggerty was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with burglary 2^nd, burglary 3^rd, and possession of burglary tools.

On August 26th, 27-year old Justin Lee Stout,of Harlan, was arrested on two active warrants. Stout was transported to the Shelby County Jail. And, on August 25th, 23-year old Breanna Mae Loran Laugen, of Harlan, was arrested following a call for service in the 1100 block of Durant St. Laugen was transported to the Shelby County Jail where she was charged with providing alcohol to person under age and unauthorized disposing of trash.

Atlantic School District Superintendent Steve Barber, today (Friday), said a student with the Atlantic Middle School brought a backpack to school containing a knife and an unloaded BB gun. School Administrators were alerted and handled the situation according to school policy, which also involved contacting the Atlantic Police Department. Barber said “At no time was there a threat made toward my students and their safety.” The incident remains under investigation.

Cass County Public Health is now accepting registrations for their fall sessions of A Matter of Balance. A Matter of Balance is a program designed to reduce the fear of falling and increase activity levels among older adults. It includes 8 two-hour sessions for a small group of 8-12 participants led by trained facilitators. If you are interested in attending this free course, please contact Cass County Public Health at 712-243-7546.

Officials with Dollar General are looking into building a store on the eastern-most city limits of Griswold. Cass County Zoning Administrator Rich Hansen told the Board of Supervisors during their meeting this (Friday) morning, that company officials are asking for a zoning change in order to build a store on about 2.5-acres of land they want to purchase, just north of Highway 92. He said the land is located across from the Little League Field. Company officials are requesting the land be rezoned from “General Ag,” to “Business.” They’ve started with the paperwork. The next step is a Zoning Hearing.

Because the property is in a Flood Plain, they’ll have to build-up the property by about two-feet. Hansen said that will require approval of the DNR. The Supervisors took no action of the request, as that’s up to the Cass County Zoning Board. Hansen just wanted to keep them up to date on the project. In other business, the Cass County Supervisors approved the abatement of taxes on parcels of land owned in both the City of Atlantic and Anita, after those properties were abandoned. The tiny parcel in Atlantic at 604 Cedar Street, no longer exists and has been given a new number. Taxes on it are just $40. Total assessment is $1,740.

The parcel in Anita is at 507 Main Street. Taxes amount to $298.

(Radio Iowa) – Children of divorce are less likely to earn a four-year college degree or beyond, according to an Iowa State University study co-authored by I-S-U sociology professor Susan Stewart. “We tracked young adults into their 20s and 30s and we looked at the families that they were from,” Stewart says. “We found that children with divorced parents were about half as likely to complete their college degree and about half as likely to go on to graduate school than children with continuously married parents.”

The study found 27-percent of children with divorced parents had a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 50-percent of those with married parents. One of the more likely reasons for the findings, she says, is simply financial. “After divorce, incomes go down and it takes a long time to recover that and sometimes, parents never recover that loss in income,” Stewart says. “They might have saved for college for their children, but then that money might get eaten up when the parents have to pay for the divorce and form a new household.”

The study looked for any differences in outcomes when the child was under 18 versus over 18 at the time of the divorce and found no variation. “Divorce, whether in childhood or young adulthood, has long-lasting effects on childrens’ lives,” Stewart says, “even into their late adulthood.”  With the divorce rate continuing to hover around 50-percent of all marriages, Stewart says the impact on a child’s higher education is undoubtedly being felt in the bigger picture of the workforce. “Getting a college degree has become pretty much a requirement for getting a job and reaching the middle class,” Stewart says. “Increasingly, a graduate degree is important even for relatively low-paying fields like social work and education.”

A federal report predicts jobs requiring a master’s degree are expected to grow by nearly 17-percent between 2016 and 2026. The I-S-U study is being published in the Journal of Family Issues.

(Radio Iowa) — The chief of the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau, Patrick Hoye, is hoping this holiday weekend is a lot safer for motorists in Iowa than it was in 2017. “Last Labor Day (weekend), we saw 10 traffic fatalities, which was the highest Labor Day count we’ve had since 1995,” Hoye said. “So, coming off of last year, we have some real serious concerns.” Labor Day marks the traditional end of summer and this weekend is typically one of the busiest travel times of the year. According to Hoye, too many motorists get behind the wheel after celebrating the holiday with alcohol. “One of the trends we saw over last Labor Day was that about 40-percent of those fatalities were alcohol related,” Hoye said.

Police in Iowa are taking part in a national campaign that involves an increase in law enforcement officers on roadways through this coming Monday. Among other things, they’ll be looking for impaired drivers, so Hoye is encouraging Iowans to plan ahead. “We always tell people, ‘hey, if you’re going out and you know you’re going to be drinking, have a plan on how you’re going to get home – whether it be a designated driver, Uber, Lyft, or a taxi,'” Hoye said. “Have in mind, before you leave the house, what your plan is to get home safely.”

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that during the 2016 Labor Day weekend, there were 433 crash fatalities nationwide with 36-percent involving drivers who were drunk.

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

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