(Des Moines, IA) – Iowa law enforcement officials have announced they will conduct a Drug Impaired Driving specialized enforcement campaign throughout the state April 19th and 20th. “Drive High, Get an OWI” is an intensified effort to fight drug-impaired driving in correlation with the 4/20 ‘holiday.’ Similar efforts are occurring across the region in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. Up and down the highways of these states, officers will be arresting anyone caught driving impaired.

During the Drive High, Get an OWI effort in Iowa, officers will intensify enforcement of the state’s drug-impaired-driving laws. Like drunk driving, drug-impaired driving is illegal in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and Washington DC. Law enforcement will stop and arrest anyone caught driving drug-impaired.

Authorities say it is never safe to drive impaired. This not only means refraining from drunk driving, but also from drug-impaired driving. Many people wrongly believe that driving while high won’t affect them. It has been proven that THC – the chemical responsible for most of marijuana’s psychological effects – slows reaction times, impairs cognitive performance and makes it more difficult for drivers to keep a steady position in their lane.

The bottom line is this: It doesn’t matter what term is used, if a person is high, stoned, wasted or drunk, he or she is impaired. Driving while impaired by any substance is illegal and can be deadly to the driver and other road users. Never drive while impaired by any substance, including a new prescription drug or a higher dose of a current prescription drug. Do not drive until you know what effect it has on your judgment, coordination, and reaction time. Any effect could impair your driving ability. Certain medications may not impair you on their own, but if taken with a second medication or with alcohol, they may cause impairment.

Any form of impaired driving is illegal. There are many resources available to get home safely. Plan ahead and designate a sober driver. Use public transportation or a rideshare service. Download NHTSA’s SaferRide mobile app, which connects those in need of a sober ride with a taxi or friend to pick them up. For more information, visit www.nhtsa.gov.

BURLINGTON, Iowa (AP) — Burlington City Council has decided to make a deteriorating bridge off-limits to bicyclists and pedestrians, years after officials shut down the bridge to other vehicle traffic. The Hawk Eye reports that the council voted Monday to close Cascade Bridge to pedestrian and bicycle traffic after receiving the recommendation from Calhoon-Burns, a West Des Moines-based engineering firm. Calhoon-Burns determined in its report that the 123-year-old bridge is in poor condition and could be a threat to safety.

Cascade was closed in 2008 when its load rating was found to be less than 4 tons. In 2010, the council chose to reopen the bridge to pedestrian and bicycle traffic. The decision has left some residents frustrated that little has been done to repair or replace the bridge.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A jury has convicted a man who Des Moines police say was found with his dying girlfriend’s blood on his hands. The Des Moines Register reports that 33-year-old Nickolas Pettinger was found guilty Monday of first-degree murder. He’ll be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Prosecutors say Pettinger choked and used a 20-pound weight to batter 19-year-old Katelynn “Kat” Gould on Dec. 12, 2016, in a Des Moines garage. Prosecutors say Gould’s blood was on Pettinger’s hands and clothes when he was taken into custody after hiding in a nearby garage for more than 90 minutes. Prosecutor Thomas Miller told jurors Pettinger was “caught red-handed in every sense of the word.”

Pettinger’s attorney said his client could have touched his dying girlfriend after someone else attacked her while Pettinger was elsewhere.

Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater reports six arrests took place over nearly the past 10-days. On April 11th, 36-year old Daniel Floyd Edwards, of Tingley, was arrested near Massena following a pursuit that began in Bridgewater. In addition to the previously announced charges, Edwards was taken into custody by the Sheriff on warrants for Failure to Appear in court on earlier charges of Driving Under Suspension,Violation of Parole, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, OWI/3rd offense, Possession of a Controlled Substance/3rd or subsequent offense, Driving while barred, and Driving while license denied or revoked. The all but one of the warrants was out of Adams County. The other was from Ringgold County. Edwards was transferred to the custody of Adams County Deputies.

There were three arrests April 8th in in Stuart, in association with a fight involving a large group of people. 26-year old Derrick Devon Henry, of Stuart, was arrested by Stuart Police for Assault with intent to inflict serious injury, after he used a 4-foot long metal fence post in an aggressive manner. Henry was released from custody April 10th on a $2,000 cash or surety bond. 32-year old Jeffrey Forrest Stonehocker, of Redfield, was arrested in connection with the same incident, where he used a metal garbage can as a weapon. Stonehocker was released the same day on a $2,000 cash or surety bond. And, 26-year old Chiquita Cheketa Kelly, of Stuart, was arrested during the incident for Assault causing bodily injury, after she was identified on video engaging in a fight with 32-year old Amanda Marie Comly, of Stuart. Comly suffered injuries to her face and arms during the incident, including a bite mark on the upper arm, abrasions and bruises on her face, and scratches to her arms. Kelly was released the same day on a $1,000 cash or surety bond. Comly was cited by Stuart Police for Disorderly conduct, fighting or violent behavior. She was released on the citation.

On April 7th, 18-year old Johnathan Paul Godron, of  Menlo, was arrested by Stuart Police for Criminal Mischief in the 2nd degree, for allegedly shooting a residence with a BB gun, and after a man was seen waving a BB gun around in the parking lot of the Stuart McDonald’s restaurant. During questioning, Godrun admitted to shooting at signs and windows. The damage to the residence was estimated at $1,500. Godrun was released from the Adair County Jail April 8th on a $5,000 cash or surety bond. And, as previously mentioned, 32-year old James Robert Lyman, of Greenfield, was arrested April 7th following the pursuit of a pickup truck where speeds reached 105 mph, and a brief foot pursuit. Lyman was taken into custody on an Adair County warrant for Driving While Barred, Driving While Barred, Eluding while in participation of a felony, and a controlled substance violation (about 2 grams of a substance believed to be Meth), and Violation of Parole. His cash bond was set at $19,000.

WASHINGTON – Tomorrow (Wednesday), U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) will chair a Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee field hearing in Southwest Iowa focusing on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ river management following the devastating flooding in the region. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) will also participate. Witnesses will include officials from the Army Corps and local leaders and stakeholders from Fremont County, among others. The meeting takes place 8:30-a.m. at Kaufman Hall (24116 Marian Ave., in Glenwood), and includes the following witnesses:

• Major General Scott Spellmon: Deputy Commanding General, Civil and Emergency Operations – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Civil Works)
• John  Remus: Chief, Missouri River Basin Water Management Division U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Civil Works), Northwestern Division
• Cathy Crain: Mayor City of Hamburg, Iowa
• Leo Ettleman: Farmer & Community Advocate, Fremont County, Iowa
• Joel Euler: Attorney Doniphan County, Kansas, and,
• Blake Hurst: Executive Director: Coalition to Protect the Missouri River, from Hermann, MO

Ernst says “As Iowans continue to recover from the devastating floods, we need answers to the critical question of how best to manage our rivers and water infrastructure. This hearing will bring together officials from the Army Corps and local leaders and stakeholders to examine what happened over the last few weeks and discuss how we can prevent this kind of destruction from happening again.”

Grassley says “Flood control should be the number one priority of the Army Corps of Engineers. The current river management policy needs fixing, and recent flooding makes that more urgent than ever. This hearing will help put a spotlight on the real-world impact that policies crafted in Washington have on Iowans and Americans across the Midwest. I thank Senator Joni Ernst for her hard work and leadership on the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee. Having her in this key role will continue to pay dividends for Iowans.”

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Authorities have released the names of two people who were killed when a train struck their sport utility vehicle in Cedar Rapids. The crash was reported around 4:20 p.m. Sunday near Tait Cummins Memorial Park. Police identified the driver as 32-year-old Ethan Mortensen and his passenger as 66-year-old David Mortensen. Both men lived in Ely. Other details haven’t been released.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — An environmental organization says the Upper Mississippi River is among the most endangered rivers in the U.S. American Rivers on Tuesday released its annual report that lists the Gila River in New Mexico as most endangered, followed by the Hudson River in New York and the Upper Mississippi. The report cites threats to public safety and river health posed by “climate change and illegal levee raises” on the Mississippi River in Iowa, Illinois and Missouri.

The organization urges federal and state agencies to resolve levee violations, blaming illegally raised levees for destroying fish and wildlife habitat and making flooding worse downstream.
American Rivers says climate change is causing more frequent and severe flooding. The Mississippi is currently well above flood stage at several towns in the three states.