No serious injuries were reported during a collision early Friday afternoon, in Atlantic. Atlantic Police Officer Devin Hogue told KJAN News a line of cars was traveling south on Olive Street approaching the intersection with 7th. When a red Chevy Tahoe slowed for the traffic ahead, it was struck from behind by a blue Ford Focus. The airbag on the car deployed, causing what appeared to be only minor injuries to the female driver. The accident happened at around 1:35-p.m.

No one was initially transported to the hospital. Hogue said if the injuries required attention later, the driver would likely be transported to CCMH by private vehicle. The names of the drivers was not immediately available.

Atlantic Fire and Rescue, Medivac Ambulance, deputies with the Cass County Sheriff’s Office and Atlantic Police assisted at the scene.

Photos by KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest this (Friday) morning, of 50-year old Kristine Courtney Ryan, of Elliott. Ryan was charged with OWI 2^nd Offense and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. She was taken to the Cass County Jail where she remains held on $2,300 bond.

On Thursday, deputies in Cass County arrested 41-year old Joseph Michael Greathouse, of Massena, on an Atlantic Police Department warrant for Ongoing Criminal Conduct, Theft 2^nd Degree, and Tampering with Records. Greathouse remains held in the Cass County Jail pending sentencing.

And, of Wednesday, 18-year old Ronald Edward Lee Mathers, of Davenport, was arrested in Cass County, on a charge of False Report to Law Enforcement. Mathers was taken to the Cass County Jail and remains held on a $300 bond.

(12-p.m. News)

Officials with the Guthrie County Extension service report Palmer Amaranth was confirmed in Guthrie County this (Friday) morning. Guthrie County Extension & Outreach will host a meeting on Palmer Amaranth next 7-p.m. Wednesday, September 14th at the Extension Office in Guthrie Center (212 State Street).

Topics to be covered include:

• The recent discovery of Palmer Amaranth in Guthrie County
• P-A Identification
• Plant Biology
• Current levels of infestations across Iowa
• and Management possibilities in CRP Plantings and Row Crops.

The session will be presented by ISU Field Agronomist Mike Witt.

For more information on Palmer Amaranth, go to this link: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/article/stopping-spread-palmer-amaranth-aggressive-competitive-weed

Deputies with the Union County Sheriff’s Office, Thursday afternoon, arrested 31-year old Jackie Lee Marler, of Creston. Marler was taken into custody at the Union County Courthouse on a Union County warrant for violation of a no contact/protective order.  Marler was being held in the Union County Jail without bond, pending an appearance before a judge.

A task force meets for the first time today (Friday 2 PM) to study Iowa’s old and complicated alcohol laws which some say need to be revamped. Garrett Burchett (bur-CHET), of LeClaire, will represent a dozen “micro-distilleries” on the panel. Burchett runs a vodka distillery near Davenport that opened six years ago and now, his Mississippi River Distilling attracts nearly 60-thousand people a year.

“Those people come to see the mechanics of it, they come to see how it’s made, and at the end of the day, we believe they want to sit down and have a drink,” Burchett says. “We want to do that responsibly and within the laws, within those rules, no different than any other bar or restaurant but at the same time, we want that opportunity no different than breweries and wineries.”

The LeClaire distillery is growing, selling vodka, gin and whiskey to customers in 26 states and three foreign countries. Unfortunately for Burchett, Iowa code requires small distilleries to stop producing liquor once they reach a certain limit. “At some point, we will exceed that production limit,” he says. “This company will be so successful that we’ll have to close our doors to the folks of Iowa and Illinois. We’ll have to close our front door. There’s not a brewery in the state of Iowa that has a production limit. No one walked into a brewery and said, ‘Hey, no matter how successful you are, eventually, we’re going to have to put a stop to that.'”

In addition to the production limit, Burchett says another problem is the company is only allowed to sell two bottles of liquor per day to a customer and they can’t sell any by the glass. Also, free samples are limited to two ounces per person per day. The Iowa Alcohol Policy Task Force is expected to make recommendations to the next legislature. The group’s co-chairs are the directors of the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division and Economic Development Authority. The other members represent Iowa’s beer, wine and liquor industries.

(Radio Iowa)

An investigation into the sexual assault and exploitation of 10 prepubescent girls has resulted in the conviction of a southern Iowa man. The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports a judge on Thursday sentenced 31-year old Timothy Ryan Zollman, of Van Wert, to 120-years in federal prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release. Zollman was earlier convicted on two counts of child pornography production, which included the videotaping of the sexual assaults.

Timothy Ryan Zollman

U-S Attorney Kevin VanderSchel said Zollman was a “Dangerous predator,” who “Was brought to justice because one of his victims, a young girl, was brave enough to report his criminal actions.”

The case was investigated by the FBI, U-S Dept. of Homeland Security, U-S Marshals Service, the Iowa DCI’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Decatur, Ringgold and Polk County Sheriff’s Offices, Creston Police Dept., Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and the South Dakota Dept. of Criminal Investigation. The case was prosecuted by the U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa, as part of the U-S Dept. of Justice’s “Project Safe Child” initiative.

Any person having knowledge of a child being sexually assaulted, is encouraged to call the Iowa Sexual Abuse Hotline, at 1-800-284-7821.

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

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BLAIR, Neb. (AP) – A new filing with the Nebraska Department of Labor says about 400 Omaha Public Power District employees involved with the Fort Calhoun nuclear plant will lose their jobs by the end of 2019. District spokeswoman Jodi Baker tells the Omaha World-Herald that the number of affected employees is an estimate. The utility expected to have a more precise figure as it creates a clearer plan for closing the plant (located across the Missouri River from Missouri Valley).

The filing says the layoffs will occur in “several rounds.” The utility notified the first group of 58 employees on Sept. 1 that it would terminate their positions on Oct. 31, a week after the nuclear plant is scheduled to permanently halt operations. The Fort Calhoun nuclear plant is 20 miles north of Omaha. It employed about 700 people at its peak.

Officials with the Atlantic Police Department announced on their social media page today (Friday), Christian Holzapfel was recently sworn-in as the Department’s newest officer. Christian was hired in August to fill the open spot left by Lieutenant Jon Parsons, who retired in July after 25+ years of service.

The A-PD says they look forward to Christian growing with the department and that he looks forward to serving the community.

Atlantic Mayor Dave Jones administers the Oath of Honor and Conduct to Christian Holzapfel. (Photo from the A-PD’s Facebook page)

Police in Creston say a resident in the 600 block of Wyoming Avenue reported Thursday, that sometime between Sept. 6th and 8th, someone stole two tires and rims from a trailer parked outside the residence. The loss was estimated at $201.