A U-S District Court Judge, Friday, sentenced a Pottawattamie County man to nearly 11-years in prison on methamphetamine and weapon charges. 24-year old Christopher Alan Durrett, of Council Bluffs, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger to 130 months in prison for possession of methamphetamine with the intent to deliver and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

Durrett will be required to serve five years of supervised release following his imprisonment. On January 4, 2017, Durrett pleaded guilty to these charges and admitted on October 24, 2016, he possessed over 38 grams of methamphetamine that he intended to distribute. Durrett admitted he was also in possession of a 9mm handgun with ammunition.

Durrett had previously been convicted of misdemeanor domestic abuse assault, and, as a result, was prohibited from possessing a firearm. The Southwest Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force, the Council Bluffs Police Department and the Pottawattamie County Attorney’s Office conducted the investigation. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

San Francisco-based Core-Mark Holding Company announced they have entered into a Definitive Asset Purchase Agreement to acquire all of the assets of Carroll’s Farner-Bocken Company for 190 million dollars. Farner-Bocken Chairman, John Norgaard says, “After a careful evaluation of potential partners to preserve the Farner-Bocken Company legacy, Core-Mark emerged as the obvious choice.”

Third-generation-owned Farner-Bocken is a landmark Carroll company founded in 1939. Their more than one-thousand employees provide foodservice and fresh supplies to nearly six-thousand customers in 14 Midwestern states.A timeline for the acquisition has not yet been released.

(Radio Iowa)

MANCHESTER, Iowa (AP) – A trial has been delayed for an eastern Iowa man charged in the death of a woman hit by fragments from a homemade cannon. The Telegraph Herald reports the trial of Max Fenton, of Greeley, now’s scheduled to begin Aug. 16. He’s pleaded not guilty to a felony charge of involuntary manslaughter.

The improvised cannon was made from the sawed-off barrel of a .50-caliber, black powder rifle and was supposed to serve as a noisemaker. A Delaware County news release said the rear of the barrel “blew out” the night of July 2, 2016, sending fragments toward where 55-year-old Lori Heims was sitting, hitting her in the head. She died later at a hospital.

Sheriff’s officials in Sac County say a Marshalltown man was arrested Sunday morning after a Sac County Deputy Sheriff used a Taser to take the man in custody. 23-year old Korey Austin Martz was arrested at around 6:30-a.m. following an investigation into a suspicious person who was twice at Sparky’s in Lake View, wanting to used the phone.

The description of the subject person matched the description of a man who fled on foot during an earlier traffic stop by a Lake View police officer. The deputy encountered Martz, who matched the suspect description, walking behind TCT Trucking in Lake View. When the deputy made contact with Martz, he fled on foot. The deputy gave chase and after several warnings to stop, the deputy deployed his Taser. Martz was taken in to custody without further incident.

Martz had two warrants for his arrest out of Marshall County. The first warrant was for Violation of Parole and the other was for Voluntary Absence from Custody. Martz was charged by sheriffs’ officials with interference with official acts. He was booked in to the Sac County Jail.

Afton Police Chief John Coulter says his Department has been informed that there is a new device used to scan credit cards and debit cards. The device is called a ‘Shimmer’ and is smaller and slimmer than a ‘Skimmer’ most commonly seen in Iowa. Coulter say, “So far it has been seen in Europe but recently was discovered in Canada by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.”

He suggests that when you are using your credit, to look at the card reader and see if there are signs of tampering. If there are indications of tampering, notify the store management.The shimmer devices will slip inside the ATM or credit/debit card slot, so they may not even be detectable. But if you see anything unusual, let the bank or store know.

Police officials in Glenwood today (Monday), say three people were arrested recently. Last Friday, 20-year old Brody Kates, of Glenwood, was arrested for Domestic Abuse Assault. Kates was being held in the Mills County Jail without bond, until seen by a magistrate judge.

On Sunday, Glenwood Police arrested 25-year old Derek Rodwell, of Glenwood, for violation of a 321A financial responsibility (failure to provide proof of insurance). His bond was set at $1,000 cash or surety.  That same day, 18-year old Dylan Barrett, of Glenwood, was arrested for Trespass. His bond was set at $1,000.

Deputies in Page County, Sunday night, arrested 42-year old Bruce Edison VanFosson, of rural Page County, on a Page County District Court warrant.  VanFosson was arrested at a residence southwest of Clarinda, on a warrant charging him with two counts of Domestic Abuse Assault – Impeding air / blood flow causing bodily injury, three counts of Willful injury – causing bodily injury, and Child endangerment.  The charges stem from an incident that took place earlier this month.

VanFosson was unable to post the $25,000.00 cash bond on the charges.  He was being held in the Page County Jail pending further court proceedings.

Bruce VanFooson (Page County Sheriff’s Dept. photo)

A woman from Missouri Valley was arrested by Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Deputies, Friday morning on a warrant for 3rd Degree Theft. 49-year old Faith Larae Jensen-Roberts was transferred from the Polk County Jail and brought back to Pott. County, where she was held pending a court appearance.

Sheriff’s officials report also, 24-year old Julian Felipa Stewart, of Council Bluffs, was arrested Friday afternoon for Domestic Assault, after a deputy observed a disturbance between Stewart and his 25-year old girlfriend.

37-year old Jason Allen Byers, of Council Bluffs, was arrested Friday afternoon in Pott. County, after he turned himself-in to the jail. Byers was wanted on warrants for use of possession of drug paraphernalia, unlawful possession of a prescription drug, and Criminal Mischief in the 5th degree.

28-year old Cody Flynn Miller, of Council Bluffs, was arrested Friday afternoon at the Pottawattamie County Jail. Miller was wanted on a warrant for Domestic Abuse/Impeding air flow. He was booked into the jail without incident.

A man being held in the Cass County (IA) Jail was transferred Friday afternoon by Pott. County Deputies to the jail in Council Bluffs. 24-year old Jacob Allen Craft, of Council Bluffs, was wanted on a warrant for Burglary in the 3rd degree/Theft from a motor vehicle.

A Council Bluffs man was  arrested on drug charges late Friday night, after a deputy conducted a welfare check on the driver of a vehicle that had partially stopped on the road in the area of Greenview and State Orchard Road, in Council Bluffs. 24-year old Cody Allan Johnston was determine to have operating the vehicle while intoxicated. Authorities also found 4.5 grams of marijuana and a marijuana smoking pipe in his possession. Johnston was subsequently taken into custody for OWI/1st offense, Possession of Marijuana w/the intent to deliver, and possession of paraphernalia.

And, the Pott. County Sheriff’s Office says 23-year old William Dunlap, Jr., of Council Bluffs, was arrested Saturday afternoon, following a traffic stop in Council Bluffs. As a result Dunlap, Jr., was arrested for Driving While Barred.

An Iowa State University study focused on people who are targets of workplace bullying. Stacy Tye-Williams, an I-S-U professor of communication studies, says she surveyed 48 targets of bullying about what advice they’d received, if they used the advice, if it worked and what advice they’d offer others. Tye-Williams says most bullying victims said none of the advice worked.

“But interestingly, when I asked them what kind of advice they would give to others, they repeated the same advice that either was not helpful for them, that made things worse, or that they didn’t use because they didn’t think it would be helpful for them,” she says.

Researchers found common themes among the advice victims received. The top recommendations include: quit the job or get out of the situation, ignore the bullying, fight or stand up to the bully, or stay calm and report the bullying. Tye-Williams says those options were often ineffective.

“They would talk about how they stood up to the bully but it only made things worse,” she says, “or they can’t quit their job because of financial reasons but then when I asked them, ‘What advice would you give,’ they would say, ‘Stand up to the bully because maybe it would work in another context,’ or they should quit, they should get out.”

Many victims feared retaliation or further humiliation if they directly confronted the bully or lacking a better option, they did nothing about the abuse. “People don’t have really good ways to navigate the situation so they’re kind of stuck in the cycle where they don’t know what to do,” Tye-Williams says. “There aren’t many stories out there circulating of people who successfully navigated a bullying situation.”

Sometimes, people will report the bullying to human resources or to their manager but sometimes the manager is the bully, which makes it more complicated. She says some companies are ill-equipped to handle the situation, telling both parties to “work it out on your own” or to “act like adults.” Tye-Williams co-authored the study with Katholeen Krone from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. It appeared in the Journal of Applied Communication Research.

(Radio Iowa)

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

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