The Adams County Sheriff’s Office has released a report on recent arrests. Officials says at around 2:20-a.m. today (Tuesday), Deputies were dispatched to a possible domestic incident. Upon further investigation, Mick Coleman was placed under arrest for Domestic Abuse Assault.

Coleman

On July 4th, at around 7-p.m., Adams County Deputies conducted a traffic stop near the intersection of Quince Avenue and 190th. Upon further investigation, the driver, Zachary Troy Hoffmeier, of Ottumwa was placed under arrest for Violation of a No Contact Order. Hoffmeier also has numerous arrest warrants. A passenger in the vehicle, Robyn Blazek, of Prescott, was also placed under arrest for Violation of a No Contact Order.

And, on July 1st, Adams County Deputies arrested Jennifer Houck, of Rippey, Iowa on an Active Adams County Warrant for Harassment.

Houck

The author of a new book called “The Baseball Whisperer” says it was a “labor of love” to honor a man who helped more than three-hundred players sign contracts with professional teams. Merl Eberly was the founder and long-time manager of the Clarinda As. His team showcased college players hoping experience in a summer league might lead to a professional career. It’s truly kind of a classic Iowa tale.” That’s Michael Tackett, author of The Baseball Whisperer. He’s a New York Times editor who met Eberly when his own son went to Clarinda to play ball.

“He was a big man. He had been sick for a long time, but it didn’t show,” Tackett says. “…He spoke to a group of parents and, you know, he had a real presence about him.” Merl Eberly died of cancer in June of 2011. During research for the book, Tackett discovered Eberly’s pivotal role in developing Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith, the stand-out shortstop for the St. Louis Cardinals. “It wasn’t guaranteed that you would make the team,” Tackett says. “They guaranteed you a chance to make the team, so they go out on the field and Merl grabs a bucket of balls and just starts ponding balls to him — left, right, with top spin, with back spin, over the second base bag — and Ozzie did not miss a single ball and at that point Merl thought: ‘Well, this skinny kid’ who at the time weighed 140 pounds ‘might just be something.'”

Smith got no notice as a high school player and wound up playing for a small college in California. Smith’s college coach sent him to Clarinda in 1975.  “He comes out to Iowa. He’s never been to the Midwest before…and he reduces the Midwest to a single word: corn. When he comes there, they originally call him ‘Osborne Smith’ and, of course, by the end of the summer, he’s ‘Ozzie” to everybody.” Pat Eberly was an integral part in managing the team and finding other families to host the players for the summer in their homes. Tackett discovered people in the Clarinda area call it “keeping” the players.

“These families just open up their homes, up their arms to people they’ve never met,” Tackett says. “They give them room and board. They take them to practice. They go to the games and cheer them on and they don’t get anything for that other than the satisfaction of doing it and all of that, together, is why I think Clarinda is such a special place.” And it’s why Tackett wanted Clarinda to be a focus of the book as well.

“Clarinda really sticks out to me as a place where there is a glue,” Tackett says. “…The town square has almost all locally-owned shops and restaurants. Many of them have been there for generations. The one rule that Merl had for the As was that nobody gets paid. Everybody has to volunteer their time and effort and now they’ve been doing this for over half a century in all and that’s the still the ethic of the team.” Tackett makes the case in his book that Eberly’s story would have been difficult to replicate anywhere else. Merl Eberly had a brief professional career of his own after graduating from Clarinda High School. He signed a professional contract with the Chicago White Sox and played on a minor league team in Nebraska, the Holdrege White Sox, in 1957.

“In one game he got hit in the face with a pitch and people who were in the stands could hear it because it hit his cheekbone and there was blood everywhere, but he refused to come out of the game and the reason was because he got a bonus,” Tackett says. “He got $500 for when he started the season and then he got $500 if he completed the season.” Eberle played in 43 games in the minor league and his batting average was .281. Eberle was released by the White Sox in 1958.

He went back to Clarinda, starting playing on a semi-pro town team and the team ultimately became a college proving ground. Tackett’s son, who played a “magical” summer for the Clarinda As, won a spot on his college baseball team and is now working in the “player development division” for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Tackett’s wife is an Ames native and his mother-in-law still lives in Ames, so Tackett knows the state from covering presidential politics and from many personal trips.

Tackett is in Clarinda today (Tuesday), to mark “opening day” for sales of The Baseball Whisperer.

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The estimated Mega Millions jackpot has risen to $449 million, making it potentially the 7th largest lottery jackpot in the U.S. Lottery officials in Des Moines say if any ticket matches the balls drawn Tuesday, the jackpot will be the largest since a $448.4 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.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:15 a.m. CDT

DONNELLSON, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s oldest county fair is getting ready to celebrate its 175th anniversary. The Burlington Hawk Eye reports that the Lee County Fair in southeast Iowa will mark the event with a mix of old traditions and new. Brock Westfall, the county fair’s president, says the fair will host mule and horse races on Wednesday as county fairs used to do.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — One person was sent to the hospital after an Iowa City house fire that caused $50,000 in damage. The Iowa City Press-Citizen says the blaze was reported around 4:10 a.m. Sunday. Crews discovered a fire in the home’s basement and extinguished it within 20 minutes. Authorities say the building’s occupant had left the building before firefighters arrived and was evaluated at the scene before being taken to a local hospital

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump spent part of his July 4th with Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, fueling speculation about his vice presidential pick. Trump met with Ernst in New Jersey on Monday and praised her in a tweet. Ernst is a first-term senator, combat veteran and the first woman elected to Congress from Iowa. She ran on a platform of cutting wasteful spending, with the slogan “Make ’em squeal.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Donald Trump has narrowed down his vice presidential shortlist to a handful of contenders. While the presumptive GOP nominee is known for throwing curveballs, here’s a look at some of the men and women he is said to be considering.

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest on July 1st, of 35-year old Mark Andrew Travis, of Sidney. Travis was arrested following an investigation by the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office into the alleged falsifying of water testing records for the City of Sidney. Authorities allege that between 2009 and 2015, Travis falsified water testing records that were required to be performed by Iowa law.

Mark Travis

An investigation by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources determined water testing records sent to the Iowa DNR, had been falsified. An investigation referral was made by the Iowa Attorney General’s Office to the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office.

Travis was arrested for Felonious Misconduct in Office, a Class D Felony. Travis turned himself in to the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, posted a $5,000 bond, and was released. Since the DNR investigation concluded in September 2015, Sidney municipal water has been tested and found to be within accepted standards.

Sheriff’s officials in Adams County say an Adair County man suffered minor injuries during an accident Monday morning. 83-year old Harvey Wallace, of Fontanelle, was driving a 2001 Ford Windstar van northeast towards Prescott at around 11:40-a.m., when the van left the road and made contact with a BNSF railroad signaling mast. The impact caused the van to rotate and flip into its top across the tracks.

Wallace was transported by ambulance to CHI Health Mercy Hospital in Corning. The accident remains under investigation. Adams County Sheriff’s deputies were assisted at the scene by Prescott Fire and Rescue, Corning Rescue, and bystanders who volunteered to assist.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump spent part of his July 4th with Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, fueling speculation about his vice presidential pick. Trump met with Ernst in New Jersey on Monday and praised her in a tweet.

Ernst is a first-term senator, combat veteran and the first woman elected to Congress from Iowa. She ran on a platform of cutting wasteful spending, with the slogan “Make ’em squeal.”

Trump also spent time over the weekend with Indiana Gov. Mike Pence. In addition, the New York billionaire is considering former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence and Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions.

In a statement, Ernst says she had a good conversation with Trump but did not say whether the vice presidency was discussed.

AREA COUNTIES: AUDUBON-GUTHRIE-DALLAS–CASS-ADAIR-MADISON–ADAMS-UNION–TAYLOR-RINGGOLD–POTTAWATTAMIE-MILLS-MONTGOMERY-FREMONT…

…HEAT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM TO 8 PM CDT TUESDAY…

Heat Advisory Tuesday for Counties in orange on this map.

* TEMPERATURES AND HEAT INDEX VALUES…MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES WILL RANGE IN THE LOWER 90S WITH DEW POINTS RANGING IN THE MIDDLE TO UPPER 70S. THE COMBINATION OF HOT TEMPERATURES AND MOIST AIR WILL LEAD TO HEAT INDEX VALUES RANGING FROM 102 TO 110 DEGREES DURING THE AFTERNOON TUESDAY.

* IMPACTS…HEAT RELATED ILLNESSES MAY OCCUR SUCH AS HEAT CRAMPS…HEAT EXHAUSTION…AND HEAT STROKE…ESPECIALLY IF PROPER PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT TAKEN.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…A HEAT ADVISORY MEANS THAT A PERIOD OF HOT TEMPERATURES IS EXPECTED. THE COMBINATION OF HOT TEMPERATURES AND HIGH HUMIDITY WILL COMBINE TO CREATE A SITUATION IN WHICH HEAT ILLNESSES ARE POSSIBLE. DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS…STAY IN AN AIR-CONDITIONED ROOM…STAY OUT OF THE SUN…AND CHECK UP ON RELATIVES AND NEIGHBORS.

The time most Iowans are spending outside has increased dramatically as we moved into summer. Iowa Department of Public Health Medical Director Patricia Quinlisk says with so many activities going on, it can be easy to remember to protect yourself from mosquitoes. Doctor Quinlisk says make it easy to remember the bug spray by keeping it along with the other items you take outside. It’s something she does for one of her favorite back yard activities.

“I just put my can of insect repellent right next to my gardening gloves, to make sure that when I go out to start gardening that I don’t forget,” Quinlisk explains. “Because it is easy to forget, but it is important because West Nile is around that they use insect repellent.” West Nile is spread by mosquito bites and in the most serious cases can lead to death.

Quinlisk says they have not had any cases of West Nile virus confirmed yet, but she says it is a little early. She says it first starts showing up in mosquitoes that are being monitored and in horses. Quinlisk says you may not have been bothered by mosquitoes yet while out in the yard, but she says it just takes a little bit of water to get them to become active and seeking out someone to bite.

“These mosquitoes don’t fly a long ways, so one of the best ways of protecting yourself from mosquito bites and the diseases they may carry is to make sure that they are not breeding anywhere in your yard. So that means getting rid of all the little puddles that may be in your yard,” Quinlisk explains. “And that may be things as simple as your children’s toys that our left out in the back yard, or the dog’s dish. In my case I have bird baths.”

Doctor Quinlisk says you can make sure mosquitoes are not breeding in the bird bath by periodically changing the water. You can find a lot of different products with insect repellents in them on the store shelf. Quinlisk has this advice to make a good choice. She says there are only three repellents that have been shown to work well, and the Department of Public Health recommends the one called DEET. Quinlisk says the DEET has the added advantage of being able to repel ticks, so you get a two-for-one benefit when you spray it on. DEET can also be used on infants starting at three months of age. You should carefully read the label and any restrictions.

“There’s one called oil of lemon eucalyptus — which sounds very natural — but it cannot be used in children less than three years of age. So that would not be the one to buy if you’ve got young children,” Quinlisk explains. She suggests you check with your doctor if you have questions about the best products for children.

(Radio Iowa)

Fireworks will be filling the sky tonight and while most people find them spectacular to view up close, for others, they can cause breathing problems. Iowa DNR environmental specialist Chris Maiers says it’s a good idea to keep a safe distance. “We’re not saying ‘don’t go to any fireworks displays,’ it’s just be aware of your surroundings and try to avoid that blow off smoke coming toward you at the end or during the displays,” Maiers says. “That can really hinder the enjoyment…not only will it be difficult to breathe, it’ll be difficult to see too.”

An air pollution monitor in Davenport detected unhealthy levels of fine particles following last year’s Fourth of July fireworks display. Maiers says that’s something to consider when you’re deciding where to sit during the celebration. “These actually have things like heavy metals in them because that’s what they burn to produce the colors and you really don’t want to breath that in…there’s all sorts of stuff in there that can make even healthy people have issues like coughing or even a little bit of chest pain,” Maiers says.

He suggests people with asthma or respiratory issues, children and the elderly should make sure to stay upwind and a safe distance away from the fireworks.

(Radio Iowa/IPR)