COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – A Saskatchewan, Canada man was sentenced on March 6, 2025 to 14 years in federal prison for transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.

According to public court documents, Quentin Joel Nighttraveller, 45, drove his fourteen-year-old daughter from Canada to the United States. Nighttraveller worked as a commercial truck driver. In Rogers, Minnesota, Nighttraveller stopped to get the truck repaired. Nighttraveller sexually assaulted the victim. They continued the trip and while in Avoca, Iowa, the victim ran from the truck in the gas station and requested assistance. Nighttraveller drove away.

After completing his term of imprisonment, Nighttraveller will be required to serve a five-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – An Adel man was sentenced on March 6, 2025 to 18 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, Charles Adam Bradshaw, 41, drove from Adel to Omaha, Nebraska to pick up methamphetamine from a Mexican-based source of supply, who facilitated the transactions through local couriers. Bradshaw was on parole for 2021 convictions for eluding and possession of methamphetamine in the Iowa District Court for Dallas County at the time he committed this offense.

After completing his term of imprisonment, Bradshaw will be required to serve a five-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force, Southwest Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force, and DEA.

(Radio Iowa) – A bill to establish a Center for Intellectual Freedom at the University of Iowa has cleared the Iowa House and Senate with Republican support. Senator Kerry Gruenhagen of Walcott says the center will be a “hub” so students at Iowa State University, the University of Northern Iowa and the University of Iowa could take civics-related classes at any of the three schools.

“This bill creates a huge step forward in strengthening civic education at Iowa’s three Regent universities,” he said, “and in promoting greater intellectual diversity at the University of Iowa.” The bill requires the University of Iowa to create courses in American history and civil government. Democrats opposed the bill. Senator Matt Blake of Johnston says there are already courses on those topics at the University of Iowa.

“I’m asking why we have to create an entire new program that’s dedicated to American civics and history if we already have classes on the books that teach what we need teach,” Blake said. Senator Zach Wahls of Coralville brought up international students at the University of Iowa who have had their student visas revoked. “I would challenge anybody on the other side of the aisle who is truly concerned about intellectual freedom to ask themselves why the exercise of intellectual freedom on Iowa campuses currently is resulting the revocation of student visas by the current administration,” Wahls said.

Gruenhagen says those are federal issues that are not connected to the bill creating the Center for Intellectual Freedom in Iowa City. “This bill adds to the mission of the university, upholding the Freedom of Speech, by codifying a center for research on the historical ideas shaping society,” Gruenhagen said.

The proposal won approval in the Iowa House March 27th and the Iowa Senate sent it to the governor today (Tuesday).

(Atlantic, Iowa)  – Over 30 food and craft vendors are registered for Produce in the Park’s EGG-cellent Spring Celebration Market this Saturday, April 19, from noon to 3:00 PM at the Nishna Valley Family YMCA (1100 Maple St. Atlantic, IA 50022). The market is scheduled the day before Easter so shoppers can buy fresh baked goods and desserts and other local food and treats to enjoy at Easter celebrations. This year’s Spring Celebration Market is all about eggs, to highlight the farm-fresh eggs sold by multiple market vendors.

Spring Celebration Market attendees will get to see a live Easter bunny, enjoy a free bounce house and playland thanks to the YMCA, and hear tunes from the Squeezy Pease Accordion Duo. Additionally, Pim’s Thai Food Truck and Lucky Wife Wine Slushies will be parked outside the YMCA during the market.

Vendors at the spring farmers market will offer local vegetables including fresh greens and carrots, as well as local beef, pork, lamb, chicken, honey, and farm-fresh eggs. Shoppers will also find lots of baked goods and desserts including gourmet cupcakes, cookies, kringle, pies, soft pretzels, and other sweet breads. Craft vendors will be selling candles, wax melts, soaps
and other bath and body products, and more. Lastly, plant vendors will be selling both potted plants and plant starts.

Jan Renander of Renander Farms will be at Spring Celebration Market with farm-fresh eggs and a variety of baked goods including soft pretzels

EGG-cellent Spring Celebration Market Vendor Lineup:
● Food Trucks (outside YMCA): Pim’s Thai Food Truck, Lucky Wife Wine Slushies
● A Witch Crafts- artwork, crafts
● Barn N Back – reclaimed barnwood shelves
● Bridgewater Farm – EGGS, spinach, spring greens, bok chop, carrots, beets
● Brun Ko Farm- EGGS, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, spinach,
spring mix
● Creekside Crystal & Crafts – Crystals, crystal jewelry, custom pens, and wristlets
● Denton Farms Soapery, – handmade soap, lotion, sugar scrubs, body butter, lip
butter, wax melts
● Dragonfly Creations – candles, wax melts, soaps, crafts, artwork
● Fancy Faces Facepainting – Easter and egg-themed face painting
● Frosting, Inc.- gourmet cupcakes, cookies, and a few pies
● Hall House Freeze Dried- freeze dried candy
● Heavens Hands Crochet – crocheted toys, home decor, household items, and
clothing
● Hoopy Hallow Ranch – lamb and beef
● Imagine at Zellmer Century Farm – houseplants, fairy gardens, gifts, and garden
decor
● It Makes Total Scents – artwork, crafts, holiday decorations, car freshies
● Juj’n Juj’n and Mike Souder Original Art – art and leatherwork
● Mystic Dawn Creations- greeting cards and 3D printed items
● Noble Provisions – all the beef
● Oak Hill Honey – honey
● Paige’s Pieces – keychains, earrings, car hangers, signs, and more
● Pat’s Bats Birds and Squirrels – bird houses and feeders, squirrel feeders, bat
houses
● Renander Farms – EGGS, chicken calendars, baked goods including Swedish Rye
Bread, cinnamon rolls, soft pretzels, sweet breads, cookies, and peach cobbler
● Resin for Reason – resin art, keychains, magnets, jewelry, trays
● Robin’s Unique Boutique – up-cycled denim jackets, tops, and more
● Rolling Acres Greenhouse – cool-weather garden plants including lettuce, broccoli,
cauliflower, cabbage; perennials like grasses and clematis, and sage; plants for
hanging baskets, and more
● Soyer Designs – embroidered apparel, cups, hair accessories, etc.
● Studio Samantha – prints, art, laptop/iPad cases, baby/toddler clothing, greeting
cards, drinking glasses, and sticker sheets
● Sweet Vale Creations – soy candles, wax melts, car diffusers, and more
● Ter-Bear Honey – honey
● The Bee & The Butterfly – candles and bath and body products
● The Kringleman Pastries – Danish Kringle, pastries, eclairs, krispies, letters, cream
horns
● Your Forte – specialty candles

Additional Activities
There is no cost to enter the farmers market, and local organizations–including Cass County Tourism and Healthy Cass County–will be at the market sharing information on various community happenings and resources. As the theme of the market is eggs, visitors will find a 4-H poultry exhibitor sharing information and offering a free egg art craft, and Cass Health Dietitian Sarah Andersen sharing information on the benefits and nutrients of eggs. Cass County Extension will be sharing information on raising chickens, and artist Sarah Selders will be offering Easter-themed face painting featuring
Easter eggs.

All Produce in the Park farmers markets accept SNAP EBT, otherwise known as food stamps, for all qualifying food items. Spring Celebration Market Market 2025 is sponsored by Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, Cass County Tourism, Cass Health, City of Atlantic, First Whitney Bank & Trust and Nishna Valley Family YMCA.

For the latest information on all Produce in the Park markets, follow Produce in the Park on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ProduceInThePark) or Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/produceintheparkatlanticia/)

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Chamber Ambassadors were hosted by members of the Atlantic Rotary Club on Thursday, April 10, 2025, in celebration of the Atlantic Rotary’s 105th anniversary. During the visit, the Ambassadors learned about the organization’s history and its significant impact on the community.

Dolly Bergmann, a current member and Atlantic Rotary President from 2000 to 2001, shared insights into the rich history of the Atlantic Rotary Club. Established on March 10, 1920, the club held its first official meeting at Merchants Café, a location most recently known as Robinson’s True Value. Since that initial gathering, the Rotary Club has experienced substantial growth, now boasting 51 members and a wide array of ongoing programs.

These initiatives include the Rotary Auction, the 4th of July Flight Breakfast, Student Recognition, Employee Recognition, New Teacher Recognition, the Cass County Fair Watermelon Feed, and the Atlantic Rotary scholarships, among many others. A particularly noteworthy past project of the Atlantic Rotary Club is the relocation of the Log Cabin from rural Pymosa Township to City Park, where it is now affectionately known as “Santa’s Cabin.”

Ambassadors Left to Right: Lana Westphalen, Steve Tjepkes, Janet Cappel, Jim Kickland, Kathie Hockenberry, Dolly Bergmann, Krysta Hanson, Barb Hofeldt, Ruth Sears, Tori Gibson, Bailey Smith, Anne Quist, Jeremy Butler, Becky Mahoney, Joh Bricker, Scott Bennett, Alisha Wagner, Colt Doherty, DeeDee Kalny, David Kalny, Jeff Christensen

Rotary is a global organization comprised of business and professional leaders dedicated to providing compassionate service, promoting high ethical standards, and fostering goodwill and peace worldwide. With a presence in over 160 countries, approximately 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 29,000 Rotary clubs. The core objective of Rotary is service – within the community, in the workplace, and across the globe.

Rotarians develop community service projects addressing critical current issues such as children at risk, poverty and hunger, environmental concerns, illiteracy, and violence. They also support programs for youth, educational opportunities and international exchanges for students, teachers, and other professionals, as well as vocational and career development. The guiding principle of Rotary is encapsulated in its motto: “Service Above Self.”

To discover more about the Atlantic Rotary Club, please visit www.atlanticrotary.com.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa voters are likely to decide in the 2026 election if Iowa’s constitution has a new amendment that sets a higher threshold for future state income tax increases. The Iowa Senate has given its final approval to the proposed amendment. It would require that “super majorities” of at least 34 state senators and 67 representatives approve any future increases in the individual income tax or the state’s corporate tax. Senator Rocky DeWitt of Lawton says Iowa’s Constitution is meant to confine government.

“It’s not a guardrail, not a little lowly speed bump. It’s a barrier that guarantees those folks that voted us in their freedoms,” DeWitt said, “and freedom from excessive taxation is real.” DeWitt says 14 other states have this type of limitation in their constitutions and he predicts Iowa voters will approve it. “They are in favor of the extra protections from us,” DeWitt said. “…Raising taxes on anything, I don’t care what, should be hard.”

Democrats oppose the concept. Senator Tony Bisignano of Des Moines says requiring two-thirds votes in the legislature to raise income taxes will tie the hands of future lawmakers who have to respond to declining tax revenue during an economic downturn. “This particular proposal is nuclear,” Bisignano said “…and what you’re done is…set this state up for probably one of the largest sales tax increases we will ever see.”

Proposed amendments to Iowa’s constitution must win approval in the Iowa Senate AND House twice over a four year period. This was the second time the Senate endorsed the proposal. The House is likely to approve it a second time this year or during the 2026 legislative session. If adopted by voters, this would be the 52nd amendment to Iowa’s Constitution.

(Rural Carroll County, Iowa) – A collision Monday night southwest of Carroll resulted in two deaths and one person injured. The Iowa State Patrol says a John Deere tractor driven by 51-year-old Troy Bluml, of Carroll, was traveling east on 220th Street near Hawthorne Avenue at around 10:30-p.m., when Bluml failed to stop at the intersection.

A 2007 Hyundai Sante Fe (SUV) driven by 17-year-old Elvin Ariel Murilla Castro, of Carroll, was traveling northbound on Hawthorne Avenue when the vehicle was struck on the driver’s side by the tractor. Following the impact, the  tractor left the scene. Castro and a rear seat passenger in his SUV –  56-year-old Pedro Castro, of Carroll – died at the scene. A front seat passenger in the vehicle, 24-year-old Carlos Castro, also of Carroll, was critically injured and flown by Life Flight helicopter to Unity Point Hospital in Des Moines.

Bluml and his tractor were found at his residence. Bluml was arrested and charged with knowingly leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, which is a Class C felony.

Troy Bluml

(Radio Iowa) – A spokesman for the IRS says an estimated 147,000 Iowa taxpayers will request an extension this year. Spokesman Chris Miller says an extension is an option if you can’t meet today’s filing deadline.

“If you don’t think you have everything together in time to file an accurate tax return by the deadline, then you should consider filing for an extension,” Miller says. He says the extension lets you avoid late filing penalties. “An extension gives you an additional six months to file your tax return until October 15th to file without penalties. It’s important to remember that an extension of time to file your tax return does not give taxpayers extra time to pay if they owe,” he says.

Miller says you can use the IRS Free File program for an extension. “All individual filers can use the program to request an extension regardless of income and at no cost to them. And taxpayers at that point in time when using the free file program will estimate their tax liability and file by the deadline to receive the extension,” he says. In addition to using last year’s tax return to estimate taxes owed, individuals can also use Form 1040-ES.

Miller says there are a few groups that get an automatic extension. “Members of the military on duty outside the U.S and Puerto Rico — they receive an automatic two month extension to file. And also those serving in combat zones, they have at least 180 days after they leave the combat zone to file tax returns and pay any taxes due. And then taxpayers in federally declared disaster areas,” he says.

Miller says there expect to receive an estimated 1.6 million individual Iowa tax returns. You can find out more information at IRS.gov.

(Radio Iowa) – It’s already morel hunting season in several Iowa counties, as foodies who crave the taste of the elusive mushrooms — battered in bread crumbs, butter and garlic — hike to their closely guarded locations in the woods in hopes of finding a coveted crop. Dr. Benjamin Orozco, an emergency physician with Gundersen Health, says there are also “false morels” starting to sprout across Iowa, and they can be dangerous.

“With just a little bit of knowledge, you can avoid mistaking the two. The morel mushroom that is enjoyed by many is delicious, very safe, should be cooked and eaten,” Orozco says. “The false morel, on the other hand, is actually poisonous, and if you consume enough of it, it can cause seizures and even death.” Morel hunting can be a thrilling challenge that gets you out exercising in the sunshine, but Orozco says you absolutely need to know what you’re looking for — and what to pass by.

Common morel mushroom (Photo by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach)

While newbies may be fooled, he says a seasoned hunter can easily identify a false morel. “The cap is kind of misshapen. Sometimes it can be saddle-shaped or kind of brain-like in its appearance. And if you cut that false morel in half, the stalk is filled with kind of a fibrous material like the rest of the mushroom. So if that stalk is solid, or if there’s material within the mushroom, then that’s not a morel,” he says. “A morel should have a continuous stalk that goes right into the cap, and that interior should be hollow.”

Every spring, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach offers classes for anyone interested in being certified to sell wild-harvested mushrooms within Iowa. The extension also offers Wild-Harvested Mushroom Certification Workshops during the wintertime. The dates for next year will be posted in January 2026.  “I recommend anyone who wants to get into mushroom foraging to look at your local clubs and consult a reference guide,” Orozco says, “and the most useful thing is to be out in the woods with someone knowledgeable who has experience and expertise with the identification of wild mushrooms.”

Gundersen Health System has clinics in Calmar, Decorah, Fayette, Lansing, Postville and Waukon, and a hospital in West Union.