A semi tractor-trailer driven by a Cass County man struck traffic lights in Red Oak, Thursday afternoon. Red Oak Police say a 2000 Kenworth semi hauling a grain trailer and driven by 22-year old Jordan Michael Bazer, of Griswold, was making a turn from N. Broadway onto W. Oak Street in Red Oak at around 4:15-p.m., Thursday, when Bazer cut the turn too sharp. The grain trailer struck a set of City of Red Oak traffic lights, causing $5,000 damage to the light. The light pole was not damaged, however. The grain trailer sustained an estimated $3,000 damage.

No citations were issued, and no injuries were reported.

(Updated) ONAWA, Iowa (AP) — Drag racing has begun at a former western Iowa airport following the site’s $2 million transformation. Nearly 200 racers and 600 spectators gathered at the Onawa Racing and Events Complex last weekend for its opening, the Sioux City Journal reported . The city closed the seldom-used Onawa Municipal Airport two years ago and transformed it into a racing complex.

“We drew races from four to five states,” said Phil Schroder, of the OREC. “We had people staying in campers out here, people staying in local motel.”

The new facility’s concrete strip can host races of 1,000 feet, one-eighth mile and one-quarter mile. A $400,000 event center is equipped to run the facility’s concessions and will soon host other events, such as concerts and reunions.

Schroder said the complex will eventually pay up to $60,000 in property taxes. The facility is also bringing more people to town, which should increase the area’s sales tax revenue, he said.

Junior drag racers are welcome this weekend and the facility will host old-style drag races, where cars have flag starts, said Ron Conner, the site’s racing manager. Races on Saturday and Sunday will also include a testing portion, where racers can run the track multiple times to get calibrated.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled for the first time that workers under union contract with the state may sue for wrongful discharge if they’re fired for retaliation or other improper reasons. The decision came today (Friday) in a lawsuit filed in 2015 by former Iowa Workforce Development judge Susan Ackerman. Her claims included that former IWD Director Teresa Wahlert and other agency leaders defamed her, caused her emotional distress and breached her contract.

The court’s ruling overturns a judge’s dismissal of the wrongful discharge portion of her case and allows her lawsuit to go forward in district court. The supreme court, in a separate case, also says former Workforce Development judge Joseph Walsh, who led the agency’s unemployment appeals bureau, can proceed with his whistleblower and wrongful discharge lawsuit filed in April 2014. A third IWD judge, Marlon Mormann, had sued for age discrimination but the court upheld his lawsuit dismissal.

A woman attempting to visit an inmate at the Pottawattamie County Jail, Thursday afternoon, was arrested on a warrant. 30-year old Jerica Jean Moore, of Council Bluffs, was arrested in the Sheriff’s Office parking lot on the warrant for Violation of Probation. She was then booked into the Pott. County Jail. A Council Bluffs women appeared at the Pott. County Sheriff’s Office Thursday afternoon, wanting to turn herself-in on a warrant. The Violation of Probation warrant for 44-year old Kimberly Sue Trotter was confirmed. She was placed under arrest and turned over to Corrections Staff.

And, Thursday night, a Pott. County Sheriff’s Deputy assisted an Iowa State Patrol Trooper with a traffic stop at the 67 Mile Marker of Interstate 29. A passenger in the vehicle identified as 25-year old Marcus Craddock, of Omaha, had an outstanding arrest warrant out of Council Bluffs for theft 5th. The warrant was verified through Communications, and he was placed under arrest before being transported to the Pottawattamie County Jail where he was read his warrant and turned over to detention staff.

DES MOINES – Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 2.7 percent in May. According to officials with Iowa Workforce Development (IWD), the state’s jobless rate was 3.2 percent one year ago. The U.S. unemployment rate dropped to 3.8 percent in May. The number of unemployed Iowans decreased to 46,000 in May from 47,000 in April. The current estimate is 7,900 lower than the year ago level of 53,900.  The total number of working Iowans increased to 1,630,100 in May. This figure was 2,900 higher than April and 3,300 higher than one year ago.

Iowa’s business establishments added 3,300 jobs in May, raising total non-farm employment to 1,586,400 jobs. IWD officials say This month’s gain is moderate and helps offset the sluggish job numbers that afflicted the state last month. It is also the third increase for 2018. The job growth was primarily the result of service industries bolstering employment, although goods producing sectors added 900 jobs in total. On the other hand, May also marks another month of little change for the government sector. Only 200 jobs were added this month overall, while there was no change in March. Over the past twelve months, government has added a slight 700 jobs due to hiring at the local level.

Trade industries fueled much of the growth this month. Wholesale trade rebounded from two consecutive months of losses to add 1,100 jobs. For the first time in 2018, retail trade made a significant monthly advancement (+900). Job gains for retail are welcome news as this sector has steadily trended down since a recent high established in August of 2016. The overall outlook for retail, however, is for jobs to be trimmed as this sector deals with shifting consumer preferences. Administrative support and waste management industries, specifically temporary help and landscaping, advanced by more than expected this month (+1,100). Construction added jobs for the fourth consecutive month (+1,000), with 4,100 jobs being added since January. This sector had been dealing with annual losses following a slight regression from a peak established in early 2016. Losses were limited to just a few sectors, and led by accommodations and food services (-800), nondurable goods manufacturing (-400), and finance and insurance (-400).

Since last May, Iowa establishments have added 17,100 jobs. Durable and nondurable goods factories have combined for 9,800 jobs added. In a distant second were both healthcare and transportation, each having added 2,500 jobs. Retail trade has led all sectors in terms of losses (-2,800) followed by private education services (-2,200) and other services (-2,100). Visit www.iowalmi.gov for more information about current and historical data, labor force data, nonfarm employment, hours and earnings, and jobless benefits by county.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A federal judge has ruled in favor of Christian colleges in Michigan and Iowa that sued the government to avoid paying for abortion- and contraception-related health care under an Obama-era requirement. U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett issued a permanent injunction Tuesday, blocking the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from enforcing the 2011 mandate. It required employers, regardless of their religious or moral beliefs, to provide health insurance coverage for contraception, abortion-inducing drugs and sterilization.

Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa, and Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, sued in October 2013. They argued that the requirement to provide coverage for morning-after or week-after pills violated their religious freedoms. They said many Christians consider the pills to be abortion drugs.

Interim Department of Health and Human Services rules abandoned the mandate last year.

Democrats and Republicans will hold their state conventions in Des Moines tomorrow (Saturday). Democrats will gather in downtown Des Moines and Fred Hubbell — the party’s nominee for governor –will reveal who he’s chosen as a running mate.  “Of course, our focus as been on the primary. We had to win the primary before we had the opportunity to choose a lieutenant governor,” Hubbell said last Friday on Iowa Public Television, “and we will chose a very talented, capable person to be our lieutenant governor.”

Speculation has centered on a few names, including two women who are state senators. Since 1990, every Democrat and Republican nominated to run for governor has opted for “gender balance” at the top of the ticket. Hubbell says he’s had one major consideration. “Pick a person who is very talented, very experienced,” Hubbell said on IPTV last Friday, “and, if something were to happen to me as governor, could step in, and do a great job.”

Republicans are holding their state convention across town, on the state fairgrounds. The G-O-P delegates will formally nominate Adam Gregg as their party’s lieutenant governor. Governor Kim Reynolds announced he’d be her running mate and governing partner in May of last year, the day after she took over from departing Governor Terry Branstad.

(Radio Iowa)

Iowa has one of the nation’s oldest populations and the elderly face increasing threats from crooks — who sometimes turn out to be people they trusted. This (Friday) is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. Amy Ouphachack is an elder rights specialist with the Elderbridge Agency on Aging, based in Fort Dodge.  “We work with local law enforcement and DHS in serving those who have been referred to our program either through financial exploitation, self neglect or abuse in general,” Ouphachack says.

Each year, as many as five-million older Americans are abused, neglected or exploited. They lose two-point-five BILLION dollars — or more — each year, money that could be used to pay for housing, food and medical care. It’s estimated only one in five of these crimes are discovered. Through the Elder Rights Program, Ouphachack handles cases around central Iowa.”The program is voluntary so we generally go in with a soft approach and explain why we’re there and what we can do to help them,” she says. “We keep in contact with the local law enforcement and DHS. We get a lot of referrals from them as well.”

Ouphachack says these cases can happen anywhere, from an individual’s own home to a nursing home to a church. “A recent case I did a consult on was from Rippey where she was power of attorney for her mother,” she says. “She noticed her mother wrote a check for $25,000 to a man at church and couldn’t explain what it was for.”

Proclamations on Elder Abuse Awareness Day will be signed by the mayors in several Iowa communities today, including Fort Dodge, Carroll and Spencer.

(Radio Iowa)