COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A man charged as an accessory in the Council Bluffs slaying of a homeless man has been sentenced. Court records say 53-year-old Cleo McClellan pleaded guilty Wednesday and was sentenced to 98 days already served and fined $625, but the fine was suspended.

Police say he and 43-year-old Michael Thacker were involved in the Nov. 28 slaying of 34-year-old David Simpson, whose body was found Dec. 11. He’d died of blunt force trauma. Police say all three men were homeless at the time. Thacker was found and arrested Dec. 13 in Lincoln, Nebraska. Court records show he’s pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and is scheduled to go on trial May 8.

The Taylor County Sheriff’s Office say 54-year old James Leroy Meek, Jr., of Blockton was arrested Wednesday. Meek, Jr.  was taken into custody on a warrant for Failure to Appear (on an original charge of Domestic Abuse Assault), and was being held at the Taylor County Jail without bond, until seen by the magistrate.

The Atlantic City Council held a public hearing Wednesday evening, with regard to the removal of a stop sign at 6^th and Sunnyside Lane. Mayor Dave Jones explained why the sign is being removed. He said the north/south stop signs will be removed and signs indicating north/south traffic will not stop at the intersection will be installed. The reason is that trucks and traffic coming from the ethanol plant will frequent the road, and having stop signs on the north/south sides would likely result in a traffic congestion there.)

The change was recommended by the Community Protection Committee during their meeting Jan. 16^th. The Mayor admits they currently have no idea how much the traffic flow will increase, but it’s expected to be significant. Following the public hearing, the Council held the first reading of an amended ordinance calling for removal of the north south stop signs.

Two more readings are required before the change takes effect.

Officials with the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office report they received a call this (Thursday) morning with regard to threats made at the Sidney High School. Deputies determined that a 16-year-old female student, made a general threat against the lives of students, causing them to be in fear of their safety. The student has been charged with Harassment 1st Degree, an Aggravated Misdemeanor and has been placed at the Juvenile Detention Center in Council Bluffs. Deputies determined that incident is not directly connected to the previous threat that took place Wednesday.

During that incident, a 14-year old female student allegedly threatened to make a shooting at the Sidney High School. The student was also arrested and transported to the Juvenile Detention Center in Council Bluffs. They were charged with Threats of Terrorism.

No names were released in connection with either incident.

A new report finds the number of cases of Alzheimer’s disease in Iowa is growing rapidly, as is the cost of care. Greg Woods, a program specialist with the Alzheimer’s Association of Greater Iowa, says the annual report isn’t very encouraging as there’s still no effective treatment and no cure. “This year, we looked at three main things,” Woods says, “the prevalance and incidence of the disease, so how common is it, we looked at the cost of care and we looked at the effect of caregiving, as well.”

Alzheimer’s deaths have more than doubled in the last 15 years while deaths from other major illnesses and medical conditions, like heart disease, have significantly decreased. The report finds about five-point-seven million people nationwide are now living with Alzheimer’s, while the figure in Iowa is about 64-thousand, and both numbers are escalating. “By 2025, the number of people aged 65 and older is expected to reach 7.1-million, that’s an increase of almost 29% from this year,” Woods says. “In Iowa, we will see that as well, so we’re looking at that 64,000 number becoming upwards of 73,000.”

If a treatment isn’t found, the annual number of new cases of Alzheimer’s and other dementia’s is projected to double by 2050. In Iowa, the report projects a 14-percent growth in the number of people with Alzheimer’s or another dementia. Woods says the number of Alzheimer’s deaths have more than doubled in the last 15 years nationwide. “We know that Alzheimer’s is the 6th leading cause of death in the U.S. and that is interesting to some people because they don’t often think of it as an actual cause of death,” Woods says. “In fact, here in Iowa alone, we have the 5th highest death rate from Alzheimer’s in the whole United States.”

The national cost of caring for people with Alzheimer’s is projected to surpass a quarter-trillion dollars ($277 billion) this year, an increase of nearly 20-billion since last year. In Iowa, the Medicaid costs to care for people with Alzheimer’s are expected to reach 630-million dollars this year. The cost is expected to grow by nearly 24-percent by 2025. In Iowa, 136-thousand caregivers provided a total of 154-million hours of unpaid care for Alzheimer’s patients, valued at 1.95-billion dollars. The difficulties associated with providing that care are estimated to have resulted in 98-million dollars in additional healthcare costs for caregivers last year. See the full report at: www.alz.org/facts

(Radio Iowa)

GARNER, Iowa (AP) — A car driver has been imprisoned for the crash death of a motorcyclist in northern Iowa. Hancock County District Court records say 34-year-old Shannon Gamble, of Garner, was sentenced Tuesday to 25 years in prison. She’d pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide while under the influence.

The collision occurred June 18 near Klemme in Hancock County. Authorities say Gamble was driving south on U.S. Highway 69 and trying to pass another vehicle when her car struck the northbound motorcyclist, killing 31-year-old Nathan Wadsley. He lived in Belmond.

Sheriff’s officials in Union County report 30-year old Kenneth Lyle Williams, of Creston, was arrested 9-p.m. March 13th at the Union County Law Enforcement Center. Williams was arrested on a Department of Corrections warrant for violation of parole. He was transported to prison. And, at around 8:15-a.m. Tuesday, 33-year old Justin Levi Brown, of Clearfield, was arrested on High & Dry Road in Union County, for driving while barred. Brown was later released from the Union County Jail on $2,000 bond.

The Glenwood Police Department reports 21-year old Jacob Wilson, of Glenwood, was arrested Wednesday, on OWI/1st offense, and Possession of a Controlled Substance, charges, following an accident that happened at around 7:30-p.m.  Authorities say a 1993 Chevy SIlverado pickup driven by Wilson, hopped a curb at Coolidge and South Elm Streets in Glenwood. The pickup struck a house at 911 Coolidge, damaging the house and its foundation. Wilson, and his passenger, both told police the accident happened due to malfunctioning brakes, but there was no evidence at the scene to indicate attempted to brake for the accident happened. Wilson was cited for failure to maintain control, and arrested for OWI. No injuries were reported. Wilson was being held in the Mills County Jail on a $2,000 cash or surety bond. The house sustained about $5,000 damage. Damage to the pickup was estimated at $2,500, and a street sign that was struck by the truck sustained about $150 damage.

And, an accident last Saturday night in the Glenwood High School parking lot caused a total of $4,000 damage. Glenwood Police say an investigation revealed 16-year old Lanie Marie Brule, of Malvern, backed into a parked 1996 Chevy Suburban, after an incident in the parking lot led her to step on the accelerator too hard while she was backing up a 2000 Pontiac Grand Am. The event unfolded after Brule and her passenger  antagonized some Glenwood students, who, in-turn, antagonized them back. As Brule was attempting to leave the parking lot, her vehicle was blocked by another vehicle. Brule told Police several students told her to turn around and go the other way. As she tried backing-up, she stepped on the gas and ran into the Suburban, which was pushed up over the curb and struck the concrete base of a parking lot light pole. The driver of the Suburban was sitting in another vehicle several stalls away. No injuries were reported, and no citations were issued.

Administrators at the University of Iowa and Iowa State University must cut nearly 11 million dollars in spending between now and June 30th. Last (Wednesday) night, Republicans in the Iowa Senate sent the governor a package of state budget cuts to avoid a deficit caused by lower-than-expected state tax revenue. Democrats like Senator Joe Bolkcom of Iowa City railed against the cuts at the two public universities. “Despite the Regents only representing approximately seven percent of the state general fund this puts over 44 percent of tje proposed general cuts on the backs of Iowa State kids and kids that go to the University of Iowa,” Bolkcom said. Senator Rick Bertrand, a Republican from Sioux City, responded.

“Senator Bolkcom, doom and gloom,” Bertrand said. “…It’s the old playbook of, you know, you’re talking about scaring ’em. Iowans are smart enough to understand how it works down here.” Bertrand says with tax collections falling below expectations, lawmakers have to “reel back” the state budget. The budget-cutting package outlines nearly 25-million dollars in spending reductions to the universities as well as the Department of Human Services, courts, prisons and other state agencies. Another 10-million dollars in unspent economic development awards is being used to cover the state budget shortfall and create a “cushion” in the bottom line in case state taxes fall farther below predictions.

(Radio Iowa)