The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest on drug charges June 30th, of 62-year old Rodney Scott Rasmussen, of Atlantic. Rasmussen was taken into custody on a Sheriff’s Office warrant for felony Possession Meth/ 3rd or Subsequent offense, and Possession of Marijuana 1st Offense. Rasmussen was also charged with another count of Possession Meth/3rd or Subsequent offense, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He was taken to the Cass County Jail where he was released the following day on $11,300 bond.

Cass County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested two people last Friday. 50-year old Thomas Leeroy Jackson, of Council Bluffs, was arrested after he turned himself in at the Cass County Jail, on a Department of Corrections warrant for Parole Violation. Jackson was released later that day on $5,000 bond. And, 24-year old Morgan Barbara Dvorak, of Atlantic, was arrested Friday on charges of Domestic Assault, and two counts of Assault with Intent to Cause Injury. Dvorak was taken to the Cass County Jail and was released the following day on $6,300 bond.

(12-p.m. News)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The estimated Mega Millions jackpot has risen to $454 million, making it potentially the 7th largest lottery jackpot in the U.S. The prize increased slightly Tuesday from $449 million previously. The jackpot will be the largest since a $429.6 million Powerball prize won by a New Jersey family May 7. The highest jackpot drawn in the country was a $1.6 billion Powerball jackpot won in January by players in three states.

The odds of picking the correct numbers in the Mega Millions game are one in 259 million. For Powerball, the odds are one in roughly 292 million. The drawing will take place at 10 p.m. Central time Tuesday.

Officials with the Union County Sheriff’s Office report 59-year old Bobby Lawrence Condit, of Thayer, was arrested today (Tuesday) at his residence, on a Polk County warrant for driving while barred.  Condit was being held in the Union County Jail until he’s transferred by Polk County authorities back to Polk County.

And, a Lorimor resident reported Sunday, that sometime during the past 24 hours someone broke into his building at 3^rd and Minnesota in Lorimor. A battery charger was reported missing.  The loss was estimated at $150.

A motorcycle accident Sunday evening in Audubon County resulted in one person being sent to the hospital. The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office says 58-year old Brian Dale Schmidt, of Audubon, suffered unknown injuries and was transported by Exira Fire and Rescue to the Audubon County Memorial Hospital, after he lost control of his 1999 Harley Davidson cycle.

Schmidt was traveling south on Pheasant Avenue northeast of Exira at around 5-p.m., when the crash occurred. He became separated from the machine during the crash and ended up in the west ditch. Damage to the cycle was estimated at $9,000.

The Glenwood Police Department reports 3 arrests. 21-year old Maxwell Manley, of Glenwood, was arrested Monday for failure to file SR-22 insurance. His bond was set at $1,000. Last Friday, 43-year old Gidget Tyler, of Omaha, was arrested on a Mills County warrant for Theft in the 4th Degree. Her bond was set at $1,000. That same day, 20-year old David Barrett, of Glenwood, was arrested for Driving Under Suspension and Possession of a Controlled Substance. His bond was set at $2,300.

Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater reports a Greenfield woman was cited for OWI/1st offense, June 26th. 74-year old Linda Faye Hughes was pulled over by Greenfield Police at around 8:20-p.m. and later released on the citation.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A brother and sister from western Iowa will certainly be able to spell rivalry after they both compete at this year’s state spelling bee. The Daily Nonpareil reports that Quentin and Joey McCloskey won the chance to compete on Aug. 12 at the State Fair by finishing first and second at the local competition.

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

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OMAHA, Neb. (July 5, 2016) — The American Red Cross has issued an emergency call for blood and platelets, urging all eligible donors to give now to replenish an extremely low summer blood supply.

Blood donations have fallen short of hospital needs for the past few months, resulting in about 39,000 fewer donations than what’s needed, as well as a significant draw down of the overall Red Cross blood supply. In addition, the Independence Day holiday may have caused many regular donors to postpone donations due to vacation plans. A recent Red Cross poll revealed that more than 75 percent of donors surveyed indicated vacation plans this summer, many of them occurring the weeks before and after July 4.

“Right now, blood products are being distributed to hospitals faster than donations are coming in, which is why we are making this emergency request for donations,” said Anna Sanderson, Donor Recruitment Director of the Midwest Blood Services Region. “Donations are urgently needed now to meet the needs of hospital patients in the coming days and weeks. If you’ve thought about giving blood and helping to save lives, now is the time to do it. It’s the blood donations on the shelves that help save lives when an emergency occurs.”

How to Help

To schedule an appointment to donate, use the free Blood Donor App, visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767). The Red Cross is extending hours at many donation sites to allow for more donors to make an appointment to give. Donation appointments and completion of a RapidPass online health history questionnaire are encouraged to avoid longer wait times. Donors with all blood types are needed.

Those unable to give can still help by encouraging others to give through a SleevesUp virtual blood drive at redcrossblood.org/sleevesup, giving of their time through volunteerism or making a financial donation to support Red Cross humanitarian work across the country and around the world.

Upcoming blood donation opportunities

Adair County:

Orient: 7/6/2016: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Methodist Church, 124 South Maple Street

Audubon County:

Exira: 7/18/2016: 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., Exira Recreational Center, 106 N Jefferson

Carroll County:

Dedham: 7/6/2016: 11:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., American Legion Hall, 302 Main Street

Cass County:

Atlantic: 7/13/2016: 8:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m., Cass County Memorial Hospital, 1501 E. 10th Street; 7/21/2016: 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., Atlantic Catholic Parish Center, 105 West 5th Street

Montgomery County:

Red Oak: 7/25/2016: 11:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Faith Community Church, 2701 North 8th Street

Villisca: 7/20/2016: 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., Community Center, 201 S. 3rd Ave

Page County:

Clarinda: 7/8/2016: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Westminster Presbyterian Church, 322 N 16th; 7/20/2016: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Regional Health Center, 220 Essie Davison Drive.

Shenandoah: 7/15/2016: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Shenandoah K-8 School, 601 Dr. Creighton Circle.

Pottawattamie County:

Avoca: 7/16/2016: 8 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., American Legion, 309 1/2 Elm

Council Bluffs: 7/5/2016: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Loess Hills Chapter Donation Center, 705 North 16 Street; 7/9/2016: 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., Mid-America Center, One Arena Way; 7/11/2016: 12:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m., Loess Hills Chapter Donation Center, 705 North 16 Street; 7/11/2016: 1 p.m. – 6 p.m., St. Paul Lutheran Church, 239 Frank St.; 7/12/2016: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Loess Hills Chapter Donation Center, 705 North 16 Street; 7/16/2016: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Home Depot, 3101 Manawa Center Drive; 7/17/2016: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., East Side Christian Church, 331 West Bennett Ave.; 7/18/2016: 12:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m., Loess Hills Chapter Donation Center, 705 North 16 Street; 7/19/2016: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Loess Hills Chapter Donation Center, 705 North 16 Street; 7/20/2016: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m., H&H Buick GMC, 3400 South Expressway Street; 7/25/2016: 12:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m., Loess Hills Chapter Donation Center, 705 North 16 Street

Minden: 7/9/2016: 7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., United Church of Christ, 106 Lincoln Street, PO Box 218

Neola: 7/5/2016: 1 p.m. – 6 p.m., Neola Community Center, 110 4th St

Ringgold County:

Mount Ayr: 7/12/2016: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., First Christian Church, 201 W Monroe

Sac County:

Wall Lake: 7/8/2016: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Wall Lake Community Center, 202 West 2nd Street

Shelby County:

Earling: 7/25/2016: 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., St. Joseph’s Hall, 118 Main Street

Elk Horn: 7/12/2016: 11:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Elk Horn Lutheran Church, 4313 Main Street

Harlan: 7/6/2016: 11:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Veteran’s Memorial Building, 1104 Morningview

Westphalia: 7/13/2016: 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., St. Boniface Parish Center, 305 Duren St.

Union County:

Afton: 7/19/2016: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., East Union High School, 1916 High School Drive

Creston: 7/13/2016: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., Creston High School, 601 W. Townline

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources turned 30 on July 1st, and one of the issues that has generated a lot of controversy has been large-scale animal confinement operations.  D-N-R director Chuck Gipp says one of the things that’s brought the issue to the forefront is the change in the number of people involved in raising livestock.

“Part of it is the demographics that are living out in the countryside. Used to be as a kid when I was growing up, that the vast majority of people living out in the country in the unincorporated areas were people involved in agriculture. Today that is not the case,” according to Gipp.

He says people who are not involved in agriculture are more likely to raise concerns about farm smells, the operation of grain dryers and other things that come with an ag operation.  There’s also been a change in how animals are raised, as he says in the 1990s there were mostly open feed lots where animals were raised and the manure was out on the ground. “Most of that was runoff, because there was no machinery there was not equipment and there were no facilities to capture all of the manure, including the liquid portion of it,” Gipp says. “And rain was your friend. It took that off, so it was runoff.”

He says the animal confinement operations led to more animals being raised, but also more control on the waste the animals produced. “In 1990 there were 14-point-one million hogs grown in the state and 2015 there’s 20 million hogs. Prior to confinement operations becoming the norm and way to do that, those 14-point-one million pigs were generating waste, a lot of which wasn’t captured and became runoff into the rivers and streams,” Gipp says.  “Other than the odor issue there — other than the siting decisions made by some — actually the way we raise livestock today is much more environmentally friendly than it ever has been.”

Gipp says the D-N-R has to manage the issue without taking sides. “I think the biggest challenge is always going to be to find that middle ground to do what you need to do, regardless of who controls the legislature or anything like that, the department has a job and a responsibility to the people of Iowa to provide opportunities for the long run,” Gipp says.

Gipp says if everyone has to take a role in making things work in protecting the state’s natural resources. “We have to understand no matter who we are what we do. If the combined effort of somebody if they are rich or poor, rural or urban, or big and small. If they all work together to determine what happens on their particular piece of property, the combined effort of everybody doing a little bit, no matter what their condition is, is going to be immense.   Rather than waiting for the other guy to be the solution — let’s just determine what we can do,” Gipp says.

He says getting everyone on board is not always easy. “Having that type of thinking process, how all of us individually can impact our surroundings, I think our the biggest challenge that we face,” Gipp says, “not only in the department, but across government in general.”

The D-N-R was created by combining four agencies in 1986. Gipp has led the department for the last five years.

(Radio Iowa)