MUSCATINE, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say two police officers have rescued a woman from a burning Iowa home. The Muscatine Fire Department said in a news release that Police Cpl. Matt Fowler and Officer Mark Schollmeyer were on patrol Tuesday morning when they noticed heavy smoke and found a home engulfed in flames.

The two officers tried to enter the home through the front door but were turned back by the heat and flames. They then went to the back of the home and saw an 80-year-old woman lying on the floor. The release said they then broke open the back door, pulled the woman to safety.

Two Latino advocacy groups sued the state of Iowa Tuesday over a law that prohibits county election officials from using information readily available in the voter registration database to fill in any information missing from a voter’s absentee ballot request. The law approved by Republican lawmakers in the final hours of the legislative session last month requires county election officials to contact the voter directly by phone, email or mail to confirm any missing information.

Supporters say it’s a voter fraud protection measure. The League of United Latin American Citizens and Majority Forward say in their lawsuit that it’s unconstitutional.

Mills County Public Health, Tuesday (Today), report two new confirmed cases of COVID-19. One of the cases is a person 18 years of age or younger. The other is age 41-to 60. Both were contracted through community spread. The latest cases bring to 53 the total number of positive COVID-19 cases, in Mills County. Of those, 34 have recovered.

Officials say 2,146 Mills County residents have been tested for the virus, as of today (Tuesday).

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — A suspect in an Iowa killing has been arrested in Michigan. U.S. Marshals took 25-year-old Deonte Ellison into custody shortly after 10 a.m. Tuesday in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The Dubuque Police Department says an arrest warrant was issued for Ellison after he was identified as a suspect in the July 2 shooting death of Curtis R. Smothers Jr.

Ellison has been transported to the Kalamazoo County Jail, where he awaits extradition to Dubuque.

(Radio Iowa) – More than 17 percent of Iowa’s K-through-12 teachers are 55 or older and Governor Kim Reynolds says state officials realize the health concerns of teachers are an issue as schools reopen for classes. “I believe that school districts and teachers know without hesitation that our kids need to be in the classroom, ” Reynolds says. “You know, we are doing them a disservice by not opening these schools back up and getting them to school, but we have to be flexible, we have to think outside the box and we have to look at different alternatives.”

Governor Reynolds, 7-14-2020

If full-time teachers fall ill or their classroom is quarantined due to a positive COVID-19 test, Reynolds says she realizes the majority of the state’s substitute teachers are older, semi-retired — and perhaps reluctant to teach during the pandemic.  “We’re going to work with the educators, we’re going to work with the school districts to make sure they’ve got the PPE, make sure that they have the flexibility and workforce is a big component of that,” Reynolds says, “so right now we’re looking at different options that we can help provide them with the workforce that they need to just be ready for whatever, you know, happens as we kind of move through the next stage of opening our schools back up.”

Reynolds says she’ll make an announcement later this week on the topic, but the governor says there is good data that may help alleviate concerns.  “Kids are less likely to get it, you know they are less like to spread (the virus),” Reynolds says. “…But we know, also, that data says if you’re part of a certain age group, an older population, and you have underlying conditions — you are the ones that are most impacted by COVID and we need to take that into account when we’re putting the infrastructure in place.”

Reynolds says the goal should be to get everybody back to school, but she also says it’s appropriate to give parents the option of having their child take all of their classes online if the child or someone in the household has underlying health conditions that make them vulnerable to the virus. Mike Beranek, President of the Iowa State Education Association, says there’s not a teacher in the state who does not want to see their students back at school, but teachers want to ensure students aren’t put in harm’s way in an environment that is not safe.

The Harlan Police Department has issued a report on arrests and incidents dating back to July 3rd.

Today (Tuesday), 40-year old Lisa Marie Briggs, of Harlan, was arrested following a stop. Briggs was transported to the Shelby County Jail where she was charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

On Monday, 53-year old Danny Lawrence Brittain and 18-year old Chance Deshon Marley Manley, both of Council Bluffs, were arrested following a call for service. Brittain was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with willful injury, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Manley was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with aiding and abetting, possession of drug paraphernalia, and possession of a controlled substance.

Last Friday, 71-year old Fred Liden Fountain, of Holcomb, MS, was arrested following a traffic stop. Fountain was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with operating while intoxicated, speed, and turning from an improper lane.

Last Thursday, 52-year old Brian Allen Sorensen, of Harlan, was arrested on an active Shelby County warrant. Sorensen was transported to the Shelby County Jail. On July 8th, 19-year old Trinity Akasha Callahan, 21-year old Juan Carlos Andrew Lara Juarez, and 18-year old Haley Marie Briggs, all of Harlan, were all arrested following a traffic stop. All subjects were transported to the Shelby County Jail where Callahan was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a controlled substance, and prohibited acts penalties, Lara Juarez was charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, and Briggs was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance.

On July 7th, 32-year old Christopher Young Courtney II, of Harlan, was arrested following a call for service. Courtney was transported to the Shelby County Jail where he was charged with theft and trespassing. And, on July 3rd, Harlan Police were called to a disturbance at 1302 Hawkeye Ave. Following the investigation, the following persons from Harlan were arrested and transported to the Shelby County Jail:

1. 35-year old Dawn Noel Pederson was charged with assault;
2. 51-year old Jodie Ann Tuttle was charged with assault.
3. 59-year old John Allen Veydt was charged with assault displaying a weapon.
4. 35-year old Joseph Rheinhart Smith-Kidd was charged with disorderly conduct.
5. 40-year old Lisa Marie Briggs was charged with disorderly conduct.

CHICAGO (AP) — People traveling from Iowa and Oklahoma to Chicago will have to quarantine for two weeks upon arrival or face possible fines starting Friday. Chicago first issued a quarantine order early this month for 15 other states based on increasing numbers of confirmed cases of the coronavirus. The city updated the order Tuesday, bringing the total number of affected states to 17.

States are included based on the rate of new confirmed cases per 100,000 residents. Illinois health officials announced 707 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease and 25 deaths.

• City of Lenox, for a Main Street Pocket Park (TPC $90,000)
• City of Stanton, for downtown renovations, including signage (TPC $553,400)
• SWIPCO (City of Atlantic), for a complete building rehab for commercial and Airbnb (TPC $315,992)
• TB Ramsey Enterprises, LLC (Regions around Lenox & Manning), for a rural grocery store delivery system. (TPC $60,000)