(Lewis, Iowa) –  The Cass County Conservation Board held their 8th Biennial Lighted Halloween Campground on Saturday, Oct. 9th. The event, at Cold Springs State Park near Lewis, featured several sites decorated in Halloween décor. The sites were viewed and voted on by 180 people.

When the votes were tallied, the first-place winner was Site 5, the Sandbothe/Smith families. Second-place winner was Site 3, Jim Casebeer. Third-place went to Site 4, Amber Jennings. And, the site by Beth Boeck, McKinnley Boeck, Josey Gipple placed fourth.

Winners, left-to-right: Sandbothe/Smith kids family representing their families (1st place);(1st place), Beth Boeck, McKinnley Boeck, Josey Gipple (4th place), and Amber Jennings (3rd place), Jim Casebeer (2nd place).

Winning 1st place décor

2nd place décor

3rd place décor

The CCCB thanks their business sponsors, Cappel’s Ace Hardware, who donated the prizes to for the Lighted Halloween Campground, and Cass Health, which donated towards the kid’s goodie bags. They also wish to thank everyone who signed up to decorate a site. Thank you for sharing your Halloween  with everyone! 

The Board looks forward to the next Lighted Halloween Campground!

(Rockwell City, Iowa) – Authorities in northwest Iowa said today (Sunday), a man wanted on a warrant out of Texas for Murder, was arrested Sunday morning (Oct. 20) just outside of Pomeroy, ending his more than two-years on the run. The Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office said 39-year-old Kyle Andrew Coolack was detained by a Calhoun County Sheriff’s Deputy at around 7:33-a.m., after he was found walking along Highway 4.

Coolack had initially given the deputy a name that did not return any information, and was suspected of being false. Less than an hour later, during questioning, he revealed his true identity, and was arrested on an outstanding murder warrant issued by the Houston, TX, Police Department on July 15, 2022.

The man’s arrest followed a call to the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office from a Pomeroy resident who had just kicked a man out of his house, where he had recently been staying. The caller said the subject left the residence and was possibly walking south toward Fort Dodge. The Pomeroy resident told authorities also, that in a conversation among household members, the male subject (Coolack) admitted to be on the run for killing his own brother. That conversation led to Coolack being kicked-out of the residence.

Kyle Coolack was transported to the Carroll County Jail and held, pending extradition to Houston, TX.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A central Iowa woman was arrested on drug charges Saturday evening, following a traffic stop in Montgomery County. According to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, the traffic stop occurred at around 6:30-p.m. in the 3000 block of 155th Street. Upon further investigation, deputies arrested 25-year-old Teylor Rindone, of Johnston. Rindone was transported to the Montgomery County Jail and charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance – Marijuana/1st Offense, and Possession of a Controlled substance. Her bond was set at $1,000.

JOHNSON COUNTY, Iowa (KCRG) – The Iowa state patrol says a small plane landed on an eastern Iowa Highway early Saturday evening, after running out of fuel. The bi-wing plane landed on US Highway 218 near mile marker 94.8, at around 5:45-p.m. There were no injuries.

Officials were able to push the plane onto the side of the road, allowing traffic to resume. The plane received the necessary amount of fuel it needed before taking off and a short time later landing safely at the Iowa City Airport.

UPDATE 2-P.M.: The victim in the homicide on Saturday October 19, 2024 has been identified as 46 year old Michael Carter Jr. from Des Moines. The investigation is still ongoing and no other information is available at this time. 

Michael Carter, Jr. (Photo authorized by the family through the PCSO)

DES MOINES, Iowa — The Polk County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a homicide that occurred Saturday night at Union Park in Des Moines. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office Communication Center received a 911 call reporting a shooting at 7:22-p.m., Saturday.

Deputies arrived on scene and located one victim that had been shot. Deputies began live saving measures until care could be turned over to EMS. The victim did not survive and was pronounced deceased on scene. Deputies secured the scene and investigators were called to the scene to speak to witnesses. Preliminary investigations show there was a large gathering of people at the Park for a Mental Health Awareness event.

(Iowa County, Iowa) – A head-on crash between a pickup and a motorcycle Saturday evening in east central Iowa resulted in injuries to a man from Marengo. The Iowa State Patrol says a pickup driven by 19-year-old Zane Pope, from Conroy, was traveling north on Western Avenue in Marengo at around 5:40-p.m., and turned onto W. Miller Street.

A 2021 Harley Davidson motorcycle operated by 52-year-old Craig A. Hawkins, of Marengo, was westbound on W. Miller, when the cycle was struck by the pickup at the intersection. Hawkins was transported by Iowa County EMS to the University of Iowa Health Care. A report on his condition was not released.

(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – Police in Council Bluffs this (Saturday) morning, said after receiving several tips from citizens, two suspects in the shooting Thursday night of a 14-year-old male, were identified Friday afternoon.  Officers were able to take two 16 year old males into custody, without incident, last night (Friday October 18th) at approximately 10:30pm.

Both of the suspects are Council Bluffs residents.  They were each being charged with 2 Counts of Attempted Murder and Robbery 1st Degree; they are being held at the Southwest Iowa Juvenile Detention Center.

Original story:

The Council Bluffs Police Department is investigating an incident that took place early Thursday night. Authorities say that at approximately 7:14 pm, Council Bluffs Police and Fire Departments were dispatched to the area of East Pierce Street and South 1 st Street for a report of a shooting. Upon arrival, officers located a 14 year old male who sustained a gunshot wound to one of his legs. The victim was transported by Council Bluffs Fire Department medics to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

The initial investigation revealed that two juvenile males were confronted by two male suspects at the intersection of East Pierce Street and Grace Street. During the confrontation, one of the male suspects produced a handgun and shot the victim once in the leg.

(Iowa City, Iowa) – Two University of Iowa professors are working to develop an artificial intelligence camera system that could eventually track and catch child abuse as it happens. The Iowa Capital Dispatch reports Karim Abdel-Malek, UI professor and interim director of the Iowa Technology Institute, and social work Associate Professor Aislinn Conrad are merging their backgrounds in child welfare and human modeling technology to develop cameras that will clock when an instance of violence has occurred. The cameras would send a recording of the incident to the person who set up the system. Abdel-Malek said they’d start off targeting the software at abuse of children and elderly people, but as the program grows there will be more opportunities for it to be of aid. “It’s well known that kids and older adults do not speak for themselves, and so we hope that this tech can really help,” Abdel-Malek said.

The technology for the camera system started as a program called the “Virtual Soldier,” which Abdel-Malek said he and others developed over 20 years working with the military. The technology could determine someone’s “kinematics,” or the “position, velocity and acceleration of each limb as it moves,” he said. From there, he wanted to explore whether AI could identify through those kinematics whether someone is being physically abusive. It took two years to get the patent, he said, which was actually a fairly speedy process.

Abdel-Malek reached out to Conrad to bring her in as an expert in child abuse prevention, with both academic and in-the-field experience. Before coming to the UI to teach in the school of social work, Conrad worked as a child welfare investigator and case manager in the foster care system. As the two only started working together in September, Conrad is currently focused on applying for grants and other funding to help move the project forward. In the future, Abdel-Malek said the team hopes to bring in actors and develop scenarios in order to “teach” the AI system what it should flag as abuse and what it should overlook. They’re trying to find its limitations, Abdel-Malek said, as well as where it can be expanded and how it could be commercialized in the future. He’s worked on other programs like this that have been brought to market, like software that can detect spills in a grocery store and gun detection.

Aislinn Conrad

Karim Abdel-Malek

One real-world application would be for parents, who could hide the camera somewhere in their home to monitor a caretaker with their child. Abdel-Malek described it as “a little Big Brother,” but its intended use is for eliminating abuse. “When I talk to (parents), it’s very much the sigh of relief of wow, what would that be like to actually leave and know that if something did happen, it would be documented,” Conrad said. Not only would the parents or caregivers be notified if abuse did occur, Conrad said they could have a way to set up the program to have it notify authorities as well. In terms of where the system could be utilized, Abdel-Malek said they will start with targeting environments with children and the elderly, like babysitting situations, day cares and nursing homes. (Photos via the Univ. Of Iowa College of Engineering & School of Social Work)

However, Conrad said its applications won’t stop there. Eventually, once the product is out there and proven to work, the system could be pitched to child welfare agencies, other elderly services, schools and other gathering places where violence could occur. “We do believe this camera will change the way society handles and responds to violence, and it’s really a paradigm shift,” Conrad said. “I mean, it’s one thing to start with children and the elderly, but the applications of this are for any vulnerable person at risk for violence.”

About 1 in 3 people is at risk for violence, Conrad said, especially women, and 1 in 9 children will experience abuse. Despite the many efforts made over the years, Conrad said these numbers haven’t changed much. She and Abdel-Malek are hoping that with time and effort, this system will help change how people are educated and become aware of abuse, followed by changes in how to mitigate it. “I think it’ll take a little bit of time, but I wouldn’t be surprised if in a few years, we start seeing a shift,” Conrad said.

(Decorah, Iowa) – Following Luther College President Jenifer Ward’s announcement of her plans to retire at the conclusion of the current academic year, the Decorah private college has named its provost as president-elect. According to a news release, Brad Chamberlain, who has served in both academic and administrative roles at the university since 2001, was chosen by the Luther College Board of Regents to become Luther’s 12th president after a national search.

Chamberlain, as well as members of the board of regents, spoke to the campus community Friday, where he said he is “humbled” to have the faith and support of the board and college to name him as its new leader. In the news release, he said “When people think about a college that is drawing excellence out of students, I want them to  think about Luther College. Students arrive at Luther with a set of dreams, and we help them achieve those dreams. But we also want to plant within them dreams that are bigger than the ones they brought with them to college.”

According to the release, Chamberlain is the first internal candidate in more than 100 years to be chosen as president. Shannon Duval, vice chair of the Board of Regents and co-chair of the Presidential Selection Committee, said in the release that during the search, consultants shared that Chamberlain “brings a national-caliber set of experience and skills” to Luther, and the university is lucky that he chose Decorah to make his home.

Bradley Chamberlain – President-Elect
Provost
Professor of Chemistry (Luther College photo)

Before taking on the provost role on an interim basis in August 2022 then permanently in December 2022, Chamberlain served as the college’s vice president for mission and communication, according to the release, where he led efforts to put in place an integrated brand strategy, created a strategic internal communications plan and helped lead a response team to the COVID-19 pandemic. He started at Luther as a visiting professor before joining the chemistry department full-time.

In his speech to students, staff, faculty and alumni, Chamberlain said Luther and its community has shaped the last 20 years of his life, and while the university is facing challenges seen across higher education today, he has hope and confidence for the future. He said in the release he wants to use Luther’s identity as an institution that “inspires and equips students to courageously serve the common good” to ensure the university, and the students it prepares to lead meaningful and purposeful lives after graduation, thrive in the years to come.

“At liberal arts colleges, we talk about the power of ideas, and we teach our students how to evaluate ideas and connect ideas, how to activate ideas,” Chamberlain said in the release. “This is what I think the world needs right now. As we look at the challenges that society is facing, these are not necessarily technical challenges — they are adaptive challenges. This is what a place like Luther College prepares students to do. They are prepared to lead and to serve, but above all, through their leadership and service to others, to make everyone around them better.”

DES MOINES, Iowa [KCCI] — The Iowa Secretary of State’s office is determining whether a spelling error in the wording of a proposed constitutional amendment on Polk County ballots would create any problems in counting those votes. As early voting began Wednesday, some ballots in Polk County contained a typo in its section on the constitutional amendment related to the gubernatorial line of succession. The constitutional amendment reads:

Lieutenant governor or lieutenant governor-elect to become or act as governor or governor-elect.

If there is a temporary disability of the governor, the lieutenant governor shall act as governor until the disability is removed, or the governor dies, resigns, or is removed from office. In case of the death, resignation, or removal from office of the governor, the lieutenant governor shall become governor for the remainder of the term, which shall create a vacancy in the office of lieutenant governor. This section shall also apply, as appropriate, to the governor-elect and the lieutenant governor-elect.

On at least some Polk County ballots cast in early voting, the word “until” was misspelled as “unitl.”

The vote in this year’s 2024 general election is the final step in the state’s process of amending the constitution. The gubernatorial succession measure, as well as another proposed amendment dealing with age and citizenship requirements for voting, must be approved by a simple majority of voters to make it into the Iowa Constitution. Before these measures appeared on Iowans’ ballots, they were passed through two consecutive general assemblies as required by state law.