ROCKWELL CITY, Iowa (AP) – A part of Rockwell City has been renamed in honor of a police officer who was killed in the line of duty last fall.An area north of the Rockwell City park will now be known as Jamie Buenting Memorial Park. Dozens of people attended an event Sunday afternoon to celebrate the change.

Buenting was killed in September 2013 during an early morning standoff. Corey Trott has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the case. The Fort Dodge Messenger reports the newly named area includes a renovated duck pond, new shelter on the bank and donated benches. Mayor Phil Heinlin says organizers want to put an illuminated flag on a pole in the middle of the pond.

Sheriff’s officials in Audubon County report two men were arrested on OWI charges Friday night. 31-year old Eddie Ray Mack, of Audubon, was taken into custody at around 10-p.m. on charges that include OWI/3rd offense, 2 counts of Child Endangerment, and Open Container. The charges were the result of a traffic stop on Highway 71, south of Audubon.

Also arrested Friday night, was 30-year old David James Elliott, of Newton. He was taken into custody at around 11:30-p.m. following an incident on Tracy Street, in Audubon. Elliott was charged with OWI/1st offense, Driving While Suspended, and Careless Driving.

Both men were transported to the Audubon County Jail and later released after appearing before the magistrate. Their preliminary hearings were set for June 19th.

The Atlantic Police Department says no injuries were reported following two separate accidents that occurred about 30-minutes apart, Saturday. Officials say vehicles driven by Dylan Rowland, of Atlantic, and Traci Luke, of Lewis, collided at around 2:20-p.m. in the Dollar General Store parking lot. The accident happened when both vehicles, which were parked on opposite sides of the lot, started backing up at the same time. The damage amounted to $1,700.

The second accident happened at around 2:35-p.m. Saturday, as a vehicle driven by Pamela Kuehl, of Atlantic, was backing up. Kuehl had been traveling south on Cedar Street when she came upon a Police officer assisting another motorist. Kuehl put her vehicle in reverse and in the process of backing up, struck a legally parked vehicle registered to Franklin Waggoner, of Atlantic. The mishap caused $1,800 damage altogether,.

No citations were issued following those accidents.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Iowa utility officials say the Obama administration’s ambitious plan to cut carbon dioxide emissions from power plants is likely to increase costs. The plan announced Monday calls for carbon emissions to be cut by 30 percent by 2030 when compared to 2005 levels. But utilities and state officials say they’ll have to review the details before they know how Iowa will be affected.

Regi Goodale with the Iowa Association of Electric Cooperatives says it’s just a question of how much electric bills will increase because of the new regulations. Iowa utilities invested heavily in wind power over the past decade and improved the efficiency of existing power plants. Mark Douglas with the Iowa Utilities Association says the state may be in a good position because of those past efforts.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – An Iowa company has agreed to pay $6.8 million in fines for crimes that include selling the tainted eggs that caused a nationwide salmonella outbreak in 2010. A plea agreement filed Monday by federal prosecutors calls for Quality Egg to plead guilty Tuesday to charges of bribery, selling misbranded eggs and introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce.

The company is admitting that, between 2006 and 2010, it intentionally sold eggs to customers in Arizona, California and elsewhere with false labels that disguised how old they were. The company says its employees twice bribed a U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector in 2010 to approve eggs that didn’t meet federal quality standards.

Company owners Austin and Peter DeCoster are expected to plead guilty Tuesday to introducing adulterated food into interstate commerce.

Officials with The Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund report the fund recently donated $1000 to the Atlantic Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO),  for the purchase of new computers to be used in 2nd grade and some Kindergarten class rooms. Fund spokesperson Melanie Petty says “As we strive to support the community that Trevor loved we would like to remind everyone that our 6th Annual T-Fred Memorial Golf Tournament will be held in Atlantic on Saturday, August 9th. All monies raised at the tournament are given back to the community.”

Petty says also, that The Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund recently donated $400 toward the Kiwanis Bike Helmet Project. She says the project is one that Trevor benefited from back in the 90’s, and they appreciate the Kiwanis Club efforts in keeping children safe by handing out helmets each year.

Atlantic Police Chief Steve Green, today (Monday), released additional information about a drug bust that took place last Thursday. Green says after a joint investigation involving officers with the Atlantic Police Department and Cass County Sheriff’s Office, three search warrants were conducted simultaneously on Thursday, May 29th. The search warrants were executed at 505 Cedar Street, apartments one and two, and at 502 Cedar Street.

Assisting the two local law enforcement agencies in the in the execution of the warrants, was: Officers with the Atlantic Police Reserves; The Red Oak Police Department k-9 unit; the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Dept. k-9 unit; and the Iowa Dept. of Transportation k-9 unit #T-280. Cass County’s K-9 “Vader” was also deployed.

28-year old Derek McDermott was arrested for Possession with the intent to deliver, gathering where controlled substances were unlawfully used, 2 counts of Child Endangerment and delivery of a controlled substance/methamphetamine. 27-year old Mary Nowatzke was arrested on two counts of Child Endangerment, possession of controlled substances and gathering where controlled substances are unlawfully used. And, 30-year old Cody Hanson was arrested for Possession of a controlled substance/marijuana- 2nd offense, and conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance/methamphetamine.

On Tuesday, June 3, 2014 between 7:00 A.M. and 9:00 P.M. a PRIMARY ELECTION will be held for all qualified electors of Cass County to select certain candidates to appear on the General Election ballot, November 4, 2014.

THE VOTING CENTERS FOR THIS ELECTION WILL BE AS FOLLOWS:

1 Atlantic 1st Ward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Zion Lutheran Church (811 Oak St)

2 Atlantic 2nd Ward. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Atlantic Public Library (507 Poplar)

3 Atlantic 3rd Ward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cass County Community Center (805 W 10th)

4 Atlantic 4th Ward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . United Church of Christ (1607 Hazel)

5 Atlantic 5th Ward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Heritage House (1200 Brookridge Circle)

6 Bear Grove, Cass Twp/Lewis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lewis Public Library (412 W Main St, Lewis)

7 Benton, Franklin Twp/Wiota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wiota City Hall (311 Center St)

8 Brighton, Grove, Pymosa, Washington Twp/Marne . . . . . . Cass County Community Center (805 W 10th)

9 Edna, Victoria Twp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Massena Public Library (122 Main St, Massena)

10 Grant, Lincoln Twp /Anita. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Anita Community Center (805 Main St)

11 Noble, Pleasant Twp/Griswold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Griswold Community Bldg. (601 2nd St)

12 Massena Twp/City of Massena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Massena Public Library (122 Main St, Massena)

13 Union Twp/City of Cumberland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cumberland Community Bldg. (200 W 2nd)

NOTICE: Iowa Law states that in order to vote in a PRIMARY ELECTION you must choose either a REPUBLICAN or a DEMOCRATIC PARTY Ballot. (Sec. 43.38, Code of Iowa) A voter may change party affiliation at the polls on the day of the election.

Persons attempting to vote in the wrong precinct will be directed to the correct precinct. Persons must be registered in Cass County at their current residence address to be eligible to vote. Persons who have changed their name/address within Cass Co. since registering will be required to re-register at the polls before being permitted to vote. Same day registration and voting is permitted (the voter must present proof of identity and proof of residence address).

Dale E. Sunderman, Cass County Election Commissioner

w/ Ric Hanson

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (1.0MB)

Subscribe: RSS

State and federal candidates are heading into the final hours of the campaign for support in party primaries on Tuesday. A Des Moines Register “Iowa Poll” released Saturday night found Joni Ernst had the support of 36 percent likely voters in the race of the Iowa G-O-P’s U.S. Senate nomination. Ernst led competitors Mark Jacobs, Matt Whitaker, Sam Clovis and Scott Schaben by double-digits. The poll also found 16 percent of voters hadn’t picked a candidate. University of Iowa political science professor Tim Hagle says since primary elections attract just a fraction of those who vote in a presidential election, many of those undecided voters may wind up staying home.

“So it’s really a little bit hard to say and we just have to wait and see — and I’m certainly not to going try to make any prediction as far as what’s going to happen,” Hagle says, with a laugh. “It would seem that Ernst is the best position to potentially get to that magic 35 percent.” A candidate in any party primary in Iowa must get at least 35 percent to win the nomination. It that doesn’t happen, delegates at a nomination convention decide whose name will be on November’s ballot.

“Convention delegates often give a lot of deference to who actually was the top vote-getter in the primary,” Hagle says. And that was the case in Iowa’s last nomination convention, when Republican delegates in what was then Iowa’s fifth congressional district chose Steve King as their nominee. King, who won the nominating convention after three rounds of voting, finished the primary with just under 30 percent of the votes cast.

There are also primaries this Tuesday in three of Iowa’s four congressional districts. Congressman Bruce Braley has no opposition in the Democratic Party’s U.S. Senate primary. The seat has been held by Democrat Tom Harkin for three decades. Since Braley’s U.S. House seat is open, five Democrat and three Republicans have been traversing northeast Iowa’s first district, hoping to cross the 35 percent threshhold to win their party primaries. Republican Congressman Tom Latham announced in December he would not seek reelection.

Two Democrats and a half dozen Republicans are competing to run in Latham’s southwest district. In the second congressional district in southeast Iowa, two candidates are competing for the Republican nomination and the chance to face-off against Democratic Congressman Dave Loebsack in November. Among the 23 candidates running in Iowa’s senate or congressional primaries this year, six are women. Dianne Bystrom is director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University.

“And I think it’s exciting from the fact that Iowa has never sent a woman to congress. I think we’ve got a lot of women this year who are viable candidates and I’m as optimistic as I’ve ever been that we will send a woman to congress this year,” Bystrom says. The polls open at 7 a.m.for Tuesday’s primary voting and close at 9 p.m.

(Radio Iowa)