CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — A third person has been charged with conspiracy in the slaying of a Waterloo man during a robbery attempt. Marquas Gafeney remained in custody Monday, charged with conspiracy to commit a forcible felony. Gafeney and two other men are accused in the Dec. 4 shooting death of Grant Saul. The two others are charged with the same crime. They are James Wright-Buls and Keyon Roby.

Page County Sheriff’s deputies, along with Essex Fire and Rescue and Red Oak Rescue, responded just before 7-p.m. Sunday, to the scene of a single-vehicle accident with injuries. The crash happened on 140th Street, or about 4.5-miles east of Essex. Authorities say 18-year old Xavier Eugene Steiner, of Shenandoah, was driving a 1999 Dodge Durango eastbound on 140th St., when for reasons unknown, the SUV left the roadway and entered the south ditch, where it rolled several times prior to coming to rest in the south ditch.

Steiner was extricated from the vehicle by Essex Fire /EMS. He was transported to the Montgomery County Memorial Hospital for treatment of undisclosed injuries.

(Radio Iowa) — Governor Kim Reynolds plans to hold half a dozen town hall meetings this week to tout the “Invest in Iowa Act” she unveiled seven weeks ago. The plan includes income tax cuts and would reduce tax revenue to the state by about seven MILLION dollars. However, it would also require the governor’s fellow Republicans in the legislature to vote to raise the state sales tax by one percent. Reynolds spoke about her lobbying effort during an appearance on Iowa P-B-S this weekend. “I’m going to work on it, but I think Iowans are going to ultimately be the ones to convince them to do it,” Reynolds says.

Reynolds says she would be open to adjusting the plan so the state takes over all, not just part of the costs of Iowa’s mental health care system. Those costs are currently paid with county property taxes. Iowans for Tax Relief has joined the governor in touting the plan. Chris Ingstad is the group’s president. “Iowa is in competition with the rest of the country and especially our Midwestern neighbors to attract and retain people and businesses. Taxes matter and the best way to improve Iowa’s tax code is to cut income tax rates,” Ingstad says. “The legislation the governor has proposed cuts rates in both the short term and the long term.”

Another influential lobbying group — American for Prosperity — is registered as undecided on the legislation. The bill allocates new sales tax revenue to the currently empty state fund that is to be used for water quality and outdoor recreation projects.

(Radio Iowa) — A University of Iowa professor is conducting a study on how smoking marijuana impacts older people who are already at a greater risks for falls. Professor Thorsten Rudroff told K-C-R-G T-V it may have to do with T-H-C, which is the main psychoactive ingredient found in marijuana that gives a high sensation. Rudroff says T-H-C can also hurt a person’s cognitive skills which include memory, concentration and focus. Rudroff says those who turn to marijuana now for relief have no guidelines. “It’s self-medicated,” Rudroff says, “they don’t know how to use medical cannabis. There are no guidelines, no recommendations out there. We want to find out what is the best and safest product.”

The university is looking for people between the ages of 50 and 80 to take part in the study. Researchers will test medical marijuana smokers against non-smokers regarding their motor functions, for example, to compare how they walk. Rudroff suggests people use more C-B-D products instead of smoking medical marijuana. “We looked in one study how C-B-D affects the brain, and we found some really positive results. So it is very positive that C-B-D has some benefits to cognition to older people,” Rudroff.

The study will last about two years. Those who take the study will receive 100 dollars. Those interested in the study can email thorsten-rudroff@uiowa.edu

The Montgomery County Auditor’s Office reports due to the legislation changes in Iowa that were adopted in 2019, there are a number of changes to filing deadlines for public office. These affect the Primary and General Election candidates wanting to run for office in Montgomery County. Nomination papers for all offices on the Primary and General ballots are now due in March, except for Montgomery County Agricultural Extension, even though many offices will not appear on the ballots until November. Two seats (District 3 and District 5) on the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors, as well as the offices of County Auditor and County Sheriff will be on the ballot.

Current office holders for Supervisors are Bryant Amos and Donna Robinson; for Auditor is Stephanie Burke; and for Sheriff is Joe Sampson. In each candidacy, there are a specific number of signatures that are required, and they are based on party. Only voters living in the supervisor candidate’s respective district are allowed to sign the nomination papers. The offices of Auditor and Sheriff are elected at large. All terms are four years. Nomination papers and any accompanying affidavit of candidacy for the June 2, 2020 Primary Election must be filed with the Montgomery County Auditor’s Office beginning March 2, 2020. The filing deadline is 5:00 p.m. on March 25.

Burke said “The filing for County Agricultural Extension has no start date and the deadline is August 26, 2020.” Filing and signature requirements differ in all the offices in the Primary and General Election. Please contact the Auditor’s office at 623-5127 for more information. Democratic and Republican candidates must run in the June 2 Primary Election, with the winners moving on to the November 3 General Election ballot.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports a man from Council Bluffs faces numerous charges following an incident Saturday night. 37-year old Kyle Adrian Cline was arrested at around 11:36-p.m. on warrants for Burglary in the 1st Degree with Bodily Injury, and Criminal Mischief in the 5th Degree, following an investigation into a hit-and-run. Cline was also being held on: two counts of Assault/Use of a Weapon ($2,000 bond); Domestic Abuse Assault/1st offense w/a dangerous weapon; Attempt to Commit Murder ($25,000 bond); Failure to provide proof of (automobile insurance), and Leaving the scene of an injury accident. 35-year old Aubree Jasmine Cline, was arrested in connection with the same incident, on a hold for another law enforcement agency.

A around 8:20-p.m. Saturday, 52-year old Thomas C. Ortiz, of Waverly, NE., was arrested following a traffic stop, and charged with OWI/1st offense. His bond was set at $2,000. Early Saturday morning, 32-year old Mark Andrew Alkire was arrested for OWI/2nd offense, following a property damage accident in Underwood. Alkire was also cited for Failure to Maintain Control. Also arrested early Saturday morning, was 23-year old Kaleb Jackson Reynek, for OWI/1st offense. He was arrested in the area of Honey Creek.

Friday night, just before midnight, three juveniles – two 16-year old females and a 17-year old male – were arrested following a traffic stop in Avoca. The two females were charged with Possession/purchase of alcohol by a person under the age of 18. The male was charged with OWI/1st offense. And, late Friday morning, 39-year old Andrew James Kuhn, of Omaha, was arrested at the Sheriff’s Office, after he turned himself in. Kuhn was wanted on a warrant for Unlawful possession of a prescription drug, and transported to the Pott. County Jail.

The Iowa State Patrol has released the names of two teenagers who died in a head-on collision Friday afternoon, in southern Adair County. The driver of the car, 16-year old Colton Eivins and his passenger, 15-year old Drew Nelson, both of Winterset, died when a 1999 Ford Escort they were in crested a hill on eastbound 260th Street (a gravel road) near Hebron at around 3:40-p.m., and collided in the center of the road with a westbound 2017 Dodge Durango. The teens died at the scene.

The driver of the SUV, 26-year old Marriah Love, of Orient, was injured and transported by private vehicle to the Adair County Hospital. Her back seat passenger, 3-year old Kynslee Love, suffered serious injuries and was flown from the scene by Life Flight to Blank Children’s Hospital, in Des Moines.